So what do you do if you don’t have 1. flour, 2. yeast or 3. baking powder/baking soda and still want to make a sweet treat for …. say, Mother’s Day? Here is an idea: this Torta Caprese, an Italian Flourless Spiced Chocolate Almond Cake. No flour, no leaveners! Now, you will need a few ingredients that you might not have in the pantry (almond flour/meal, bittersweet chocolate bars, cocoa powder), and some standards (butter, eggs, sugar, salt, and spices). This comes together quickly, but does take some time to cool (and what happens if you don’t let it cool long enough — the top cracks when you cut it, like what happened here.) Nevertheless, delicious, rich and gluten-free, if that is your thing. My recommendation: serve with a bit of Amaretto Whipped Cream!
Cookies, Sweet Snacks
Coconut Toffee Bit Florentine-Style Oatmeal Cookies, with Dark Chocolate Drizzle
I think that I might have mentioned this before, but I am very much a fan of “florentine-style” cookies — very thin, almost lace-like, crunchy and a little sticky. As most of you know, I am also a huge fan of coconut, so with these, I combined the best of both: a little coconutty, very thin and crispy, and just a touch of chocolate for good measure. Great afternoon pick-me-up; very addictive.
Springtime Lunch: Prosciutto wrapped Asparagus is a pretty classic combo and I happen to have Prosciutto in the house, so decided to go with a quiche for lunch. My quiche attempts have been hit-or-miss in the past, with some of them turning out quick dense. This one was light and fluffy though, and which a touch on the salty side (I should have compensated for the saltiness of the Prosciutto more), it was great. The recipe is written for a full-sized quiche (9 inch pan), but I just made a small one for me (6 inch pan). Lunch for tomorrow then too!
Nothing like starting off a Monday morning with a hearty breakfast. Trader Joes sells this great sliced brioche bread which makes the absolute perfect French Toast so I thought that I would indulge. Light, fluffy with just the right amount of sweetness. And you know what, French Toast doesn’t actually take that long as I managed to make it before my early doors this morning. Might need to make a habit of this to start the week.