Tiramisu

So as Dad was making his Spaghetti With Herby Pork Meatballs, I decided I would make a dessert. With it being spaghetti and all, I stuck with the "Italian" theme and went for Tiramisu. I've had Tiramisu a few times and only seem to like certain ones. The best I have ever tasted was in an Italian restaurant in Turkey and, ironically, the worst I have ever tasted was in a restaurant in Venice.

This is a creamy and rich dessert and it is simple to put together. It went down well with my family, who are fast becoming my tasting jury and not afraid to say if it's......well......yuck! There are sooooo many versions of tiramisu out there, I'm not claiming this to be the best but I would definitely whip it up again. On my recent purchase of Nigella's "nigellissma", I noticed she does her version served in a martini glass, which I thought looked cute, perfect for dinner parties.

Recipe for Tiramisu

 

Ingredients

• 150ml Strong black coffee or espresso
• 1 tbsp brandy
• 250g boudoir biscuits
• 200g mascarpone
• 100g whipped double cream or plain yoghurt
• 100g ricotta cheese
• 75g caster sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 large free-range egg whites
• Grated chocolate for sprinkling

Instructions

1. Make the coffee, put into a shallow dish. Add brandy, allow to cool. Dip half of the biscuits quickly one by one in the coffee to moisten and use to line the bottom of the dish. Do this quickly or the biscuits will become soggy and break up.
2. Beat Mascarpone,cream (I used cream for a richer dessert), ricotta, sugar and vanilla until smooth.
3. Separate eggs. Whisk egg whites stiffly. Fold into the cheese mixture. Spoon half of this over the layer of soaked sponge fingers.
4. Moisten remaining sponge fingers with the remaining coffee and make a second layer over the cheese. Cover with the cheese mixture. If you are using a smaller dish just continue the layering.
5. Sprinkle with grated chocolate or cocoa if you prefer and leave chill in the fridge for 2-3 hours before serving.

I actually ended up using a larger dish so my biscuits were quite spaced apart but I don't think you can go wrong with this dessert whatever the dish size!

Enjoy!

Shirley x

Pavlova.

(Photo Credit~Gary Rhodes)

It being the long weekend,I decided to do something I have never done before and have my very first dinner party. First problem that came to mind was "where was I going to fit everybody?". There is eight in my family and I have a four seater table,umm. As luck would have it all the boys were off doing their own thing and Callum has his highchair,crisis averted!

Next up,"what will I make?". This was like heaven to me,I could spend hours reading through copious amounts of cookbooks with a pot of tea by my side.

In the end I went for :

Appetizers

Mini Tuna Vol-au-vents.

Starters

Cesar Salad.

Main Course

Lemon Roast Chicken.

Dessert

Brown-Sugar Pavlova with Cream,Strawberries and Blueberries.

Tuna vol-au-vents are always at my family get togethers because they're super easy and yum!

For the Starters I went for Cesar salad,it's so simple to put together,all ingredients into a blender and you have your dressing (there's some good ones on the Internet and homemade is sooo way nicer,trust me!), croutons,lardons,Parmesan...done!

The Lemon chicken I had never made before but was pleasantly surprised,if any one has Gary Rhodes "Food with friends" and you haven't tried this,go do it,the sauce is to die for!

And last but not least the yum Pavlova!

Recipe for Brown-sugar Pavlova

 

Ingredients

• 6 eggs whites 
• 115g caster sugar
• 55g soft,light brown sugar
• 1 tsp vinegar
• 1 tsp cornflour
• 300ml double cream

Instructions

1. Pre-heat the oven to 150°C. Line a baking sheet with non-stick baking paper and using a cake tin base,mark a 20cm (8in) circle.
2. In a large bowl, whisk the egg whites to form soft peaks. Gradually add the sugars, whisking well. Whisk in the vinegar and cornflour with the last of the sugar.
3. Spread the meringue mixture on to the baking paper within the circle, building up the sides slightly. Bake for 1 hour.
4. Turn off the oven but leave the meringue inside to cool  completely. When cool, carefully remove from the baking sheet, peel off the baking paper and place on serving plate.
5. Whip the cream and spoon onto the meringue. Arrange fruits on top and your done!

It's actually pretty easy so it was perfect for a dinner party,I was so scared it would all go wrong so I whipped up some ice-cream with the leftover egg yolks but thankfully it didn't!

Have a nice weekend.

Shirley x

Eton Mess

(Photo Credit~Real Food)

My Mother invited us all over for Easter Sunday dinner and was adamant we were to bring nothing. Usually for a big family dinner(There is 8 of us) Jacqueline would do the starter, I tackle the dessert and Aishling does the "waitressing". We started the day with the Heineken Cup Rugby match and a couple of drinks. My mam then,like the trooper she is,started into our 3-course meal. We had BBQ chicken wings for starters and turkey with all the trimmings for main (My mouth is actually watering as I type this lol!) and dessert was Eton Mess!

Eton Mess

 

Ingredients

• Meringue,crushed
• Strawberries
• Double cream
• Vanilla Ice-cream

 

Instructions

1. Purée half the strawberries in a blender. Chop the remaining strawberries, reserving some for decoration.
   
2. Whip the double cream until stiff peaks form.
   
3. Into four cold wine glasses,Mam layered meringues,ice-cream,purée,strawberries and cream. She did this twice and then garnished with the remaining strawberries.
   
   

I don't think it is "Traditionally" made with ice-cream but this was deeeelicious! It was actually quiet refreshing, especially after the big meal we had. Well done to my wonderful mother,she seriously outdone herself. Hope you all had a nice relaxing Easter.

Shirley x