dessert

Twisted matcha tea buns (and a cinnamon version)

November 23, 2020 by Ariel Leave a Comment

I havent had good quality matcha to cook with in ages.

Call it pure laziness on my end, I just hadn’t taken the time to shop around for a decently priced alternative since my last matcha plug stopped shipping to Canada. Luckily, the universe has been on my side and clearly heard my prayers because the Canadian company Yupik contacted me on Instagram, about a month ago, to send me some of their delicious matcha tea along with other goodies.

May I say that I’ve been happily surprised with the quality of organic products that was sent to me and their matcha is no exception!

If you’re ever shopping on Yupik.com, make sure to use the code: ARIEL12 at checkout for a nice discount.

Now, this recipe for matcha twisted buns is a nice twist (pun intended) on the classic and oh so delicious cinnamon buns but because when they are baked in a giant muffin pans, they come out with a crunchy exterior and a nice soft interior. The brightness of the matcha, when you cut right through, is not only pleasing to the eyes but also so bursting with flavours.

Along with these gorgeous green buns, I’ve added the recipe for the classic cinnamon version (but still twisted) and baked in a regular rectangle oven dish. You’ll noticed that both recipes are slightly different in execution than what you might be used to but, this minor extra step makes such a difference in the potency of your preferred flavours, in the end.

Obviously, both baking methods can be used for either one of the fillings, it only depends on the final texture you prefer. As mentioned above, baking them in individual portions in giant muffin pans makes the outside crunchier while baking them in the classic rectangle oven dish will make keep them more hydrated and chewy.

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Choux au craquelin

October 29, 2020 by Ariel 2 Comments

The result of my second stream on Twitch!
Oh my, oh my… this is what heaven is made of; pastry cream, pâte à choux, sugar and vanilla aroma.

I sincerely hope you get to try this super fun to make French pastry which translate to cream puff crack buns if I may borrow the title from chef John (food wishes). It was so fun trying this recipe for the first time, last night, surrounded by so many of you.

Pastry cream and choux pastry dough was something I was familiar with but the craquelin part on top was new to me. Let me just say that it adds such a fun and crunchy dimension to the regular pâte à choux. Definitely something I’ll be making again for my friends and family once we can gather again… like in the good old days.

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Poor man’s pudding (Pudding Chômeur)

June 27, 2019 by Ariel Leave a Comment

This recipe got a decent amount of attention on Twitch because not only it’s super delicious… it’s also super easy to make.

Pudding chômeur (direct translation – poor man’s pudding) is a French Canadian classic dessert our grand mothers used to make in the Spring when the maple trees are dripping down their delicious sap to make maple syrup. You can absolutely substitute the maple syrup for a more basic sugary syrup, if you don’t have any but, I don’t think you can call it “pudding chômeur” if you do that. Neitherless to say, it will come out delicious for sure and I really hope you get to try this.

Are you a sugar bug? …because if you are, this recipe is for you!

Got hyperactive kids at home? …this might be the last thing you should be feeding them XD

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Apple & ginger crumble

June 27, 2019 by Ariel Leave a Comment

This is actually a pretty easy recipe. Although, when I first made it on Twitch, it wasn’t optimal. There was not enough fruit to crumble ratio but the result became some delicious “cereal” that kept me well fed and happy for the few days after the stream. Yesterday, I made it again to tweak the recipe and take photos. The result is a wonderful dessert that I’m eating with a spoon as we speak!

Hope you get to try it and if even if you’re not a fan of apples or ginger, you can make it with pretty much any fruits you like. This is the kind of easy going recipe that you’ll learn to love because the possibilities are endless.

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Spiced, gooey brownies with candied ginger

April 1, 2019 by Ariel Leave a Comment

Ohhhhh snap. These are the good ones.

When I first made this recipe, a few week ends ago, my bestie and I added a little secret ingredient to make them “magical” and then we went on this crazy adventure all around Montreal. Allow me to be dead honest, some parts of this adventure is a little blurry today but overall we had a blast and I’ll forever cherish this memory. Today, I’m offering you the updated, upgraded and non magical version of this delicious creation which I hope you’ll love as much as I do.

The recipe doesn’t make that many brownies and can easily be a serving for one. I used a much smaller pan (6″ x 8″) to make sure they are thick enough so all the gooeyness shines through. It’s also my fifth time tweaking this recipe (my friends are drowning in brownies from all the previous batches as it would have been impossible for me to eat everything) to make sure they are banging and I really think they are!

If you’re a fan of decadence and gooeyness, you got to try this recipe. Enjoy!

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Angel food cake

March 20, 2019 by Ariel Leave a Comment

It took me a little time to tweak this one even if it’s a very simple recipe. Most of everything found out there (I thought) uses way too many egg whites and since I live alone, the last thing I wanted was to end up having to eat a huge cake on my own. Not that I wouldn’t be able to eat it in full but, this where I have to draw the line at being a solitary foodie.

So this recipe only uses 6 egg whites and make a much smaller cake which is perfect if you live alone and/or you just don’t like to share your food (like Joey from Friends). The most important aspect of this preparation is to make sure you start with stiff peaks when whisking your egg whites AND that you take your time to fold the flour/powdered sugar mix in to the egg whites. After this, you’re pretty much set and you’ll soon have a deliciously fluffy sponge cake to devour.

Growing up, this cake has always been my all time favourite and if I had known how easy it was to make it, I would have stopped buying the pre-made ones at the grocery full of bad ingredients. Everything is always better when it’s homemade so don’t get too intimidated by the procedure, it’s really not that complexed.

Angel food cake

Prep time

20 mins

Cook time

45 mins

Total time

1 hour 5 mins

Author: ZestyandSpicy.com

Recipe type: Dessert

Serves: 1 cake

Ingredients

Bowl 1
- ½ cup of all purpose flour, sifted
- ½ cup of powdered sugar, sifted
Bowl 2
- 6 room temperature egg whites
- ½ cup of regular cane sugar
- ½ teaspoon of cream of tartar
- Pinch of fine sea salt
- ¼ teaspoon of vanilla extract
- ⅛ teaspoon of almond extract

Instructions

- Pre-heat the oven at 350, DO NOT GREASE the tube pan.
- Sift all the ingredients of the bowl #1, reserve.
- Mix in the egg whites the cream of tartar, both extracts, salt and a bit of the sugar and start whisking with an electric mixer. Gradually add more cane sugar while mixing on the fastest level until the full ½ cup if incorporated and you end up with STIFF PEAKS.
- Take the flour/powdered sugar mix from the bowl #1 and VERY SLOWLY FOLD IT in to the egg whites. Take your time on this step, if you go too fast, the cake won't rise as much as it should.
- Transfer the batter in to the UNGREASED mold, smooth the top and put in the oven for 45minutes.
- Cool down the cake upside down on a cooling rack and gently unmold once it's fully cooled down.

Cashew Fudge with a Touch of Lime

February 14, 2016 by Ariel 3 Comments

ohhh you’re gonna like this one and since it’s Valentine’s Day, this dessert is coming right in time.

Don’t worry if you already have a lot of work to be done in the kitchen for tonight, this fudge recipe is gonna take you about 5 minutes to prepare and only 30 minutes to 1 hour maximum in the freezer so you don’t have to do much and can concentrate on your main dish.

Tired of the classic chocolate fudge? This no bake and no fuss cashew version should satisfy your palates. Not too keen on extremely sweet desserts? No worries, the lime juice and zest of lime is balancing the flavours perfectly.

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Avocado Brownies! ….no brownie pan needed!

May 19, 2015 by Ariel 3 Comments

Have you ever woken up from an amazing night of sleep craving something terrible?

Here I was, 7:30am, in my kitchen baking brownies and trying to find a way to avoid using any oil or butter because it’s not because I want to pig out on brownies at 7:30am that I want to gain a million pounds.

Did you know you can substitute avocado for butter using a 1 : 1 ratio in your baked goods and get the same result?

O_O

YES YOU CAN!! …and these bad boys are the perfect example that it is possible to bake without butter or oil. Pillow soft (80% cake like and 20% fudge like), not too sweet and a perfectly balanced dark chocolate taste for the fancy palate.

I have topped mine with simple, sliced almonds but add a little sugar glaze on top and they become out of this world!

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Low Sugar – Almond & Sugar Cookies

April 6, 2015 by Ariel 1 Comment

These little gem are the result of a “cookie experiment” which did not end up the way I expected. Although it created these little babies that are the perfect cookies to eat if you don’t have a sweet tooth but still crave something sweet.

They are simply delicious, plain as they are, and can also become something much more extravagant like sandwich cookies or dipped in chocolate.

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Mini Pumpkin & Spices Cupcakes

October 29, 2012 by Ariel 2 Comments

Can I really post too many pumpkin recipes? I don’t think so. After passing over all the homemade pumpkin puree and a couple of cans of pumpkin puree, I still have a bit left in my fridge and a ton of fun ideas of what I could do with it. Two weeks ago, somebody asked me on twitter if I had a good recipe for some easy and fast pumpkin cupcakes so here it is! I brought these little bites to a party I went to on Saturday and they were a hit! Hope you like them to 🙂

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