Baked figs with honey, vanilla and cointreau

I'm as partial to fruit desserts as the Boyfriend is to anything containing chocolate. I love petits pots de chocolats, molten chocolate cakes, Julia's chocolate cake - all these make me very happy. But to end a sumptuous meal, nothing makes me happy like fruit, especially when it's warm and served with something cool and indulgent like whipped cream, crème fraîche or maybe some greek yoghurt. Fruit desserts satisfy the longing for something sweet without being too heavy and it's simply amazing how a little sugar or a spoonfull of honey and a squeeze of lemon and a couple of minutes in the oven or the stovetop enhance the fruits' aroma. Figs lend themselves especially well to all kinds of warm desserts.

Baked figs with honey, vanilla and cointreau (serves 2)

• 8 small figs
• 4 teaspoons honey
• 2 teaspoons lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon vanilla paste or one vanilla bean
• 1 tablespoon cointreau
• butter for greasing the dish

Preheat the oven to 220°. Butter a small ovenproof dish. Cut a cross into each fig and open them slightly but be careful not to tear them apart. Set them in the dish. Stir together the honey, lemon juice and vanilla paste or scraped vanilla seeds. Drizzle the mixture over the figs and bake them in the oven for about 10-15 minutes. When they are done, heat the cointreau in a small saucepan. Pour over the figs and flambé. Serve immediately with a dollop of crème fraîche or whipped cream.

Rice pudding

I made this rice pudding according to Elise's recipe on Simply Recipes. I must admit that when I read how her father had proclaimed that this was how God intended us to eat rice, I considered that statement somewhat, um, exaggerated maybe? Ok, I love rice pudding, too, but surely it wouldn't be that good. Well. Friends. It is. Which is why I shall not keep you any longer. Go make that rice pudding and prosper. Now. And make sure to eat it warm to fully appreciate its other-worldliness.

Chocolate pots

I just finished reading Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. It was by far the most intense of the seven books - I got so scared and nervous at times (when they go into the Ministry for instance - my heart almost stopped) that I had to put the book down and do something else for a little while. Cook, for instance. I made these chocolate pots pre-HP, though, when I had a day off and wanted to surprise the Boyfriend with a dessert after his own heart, i.e. one containing chocolate.

Chocolate pots (serves 4)

• 3dl full-fat milk
• 3 egg yolks
• 120g chocolate (with a high cocoa content)
  
• 50g icing sugar
• 2 tablespoons Kirsch or any other liquor you fancy
  
• butter for the ramequins

Preheat the oven to 180°. Butter four ramequins. Heat the milk, then break the chocolate into pieces and add to the milk. Stir until the chocolate has melted completely. Add the kirsch. In a bowl, beat the egg yolks and sugar until the mixture is light and thickened. Slowly pour the hot chocolate milk into the egg mixture, stirring continuously. Divide between the four ramequins and put them into an ovenproof dish. Add boiling water halfway up the ramequins and bake in the preheated oven for 30-35 minutes. Let cool and then chill in the fridge for a few hours before serving. You could add some raspberries or cherries to the bottom of the ramequins but be warned - die-hard chocolate lovers (such as my very dear friend M.) will not love you for it.

Dessert according to me

While many food blogs regularly feature the most elaborate desserts, I hardly ever write about them. It's not that I don't have a sweet tooth - I do - (even though given the choice between two entrées and a dessert I'll go for the entrées any time) it's just that - I can't be bothered to make them, really. While I'll happily stand in the kitchen all afternoon to make something as complicated as oeufs en gelée, my desserts are always non-fuss, requiring minimal effort and very often involve fruit. Overly sweet and heavy stuff is not my thing - something like tiramisu after a large dinner - no thank you. Vanilla-poached dried apricots from Marie Claire Zest are a staple or, right now, anything simple involving strawberries, such as the bowl of strawberries macerated in sugar and lemon juice topped with a dollop of mascarpone (you've been warned) that we had sitting on the balcony one of last week's exceptionnally mellow nights. Which explains for the very sombre picture in case you wondered.

Among many, I particularly admire the following blogs for absolutely breathtaking desserts:

• La Tartine Gourmande
• Milk and Cookies
• C'est moi qui l'ait fait
• La cuisine de Loupiti
• Le chou de bruxelles
  

Jamie Oliver's chocolate pots

If you look at the categories section in the right sidebar of this blog, you'll see that there are only five entries for desserts. Dear reader, don't be fooled into thinking that I don't eat sweet things. I do and with great pleasure, too. Still, I have to admit that given the choice between a cheeseboard and the dessert menu, I'll go for the cheese board eight times out of ten.* And if I make more than one course for dinner for the Boyfriend and myself I'll probably make a starter and not dessert. I'll always make dessert when I have guests though and I made these chocolate pots from Jamie Oliver's The Return of the Naked Chef for peanut-bee last week. I've been meaning to try these for a long time but I just never got round to it so far. They're very good, as gooey and as decadent as a chocolate dessert can get, which is exactly what some people will love them for and others won't. I suggest you make these only if you know the preferences of you guests. The way of serving these in little cups was great, I thought - more elegant than serving from a large bowl. As for portion size they were on the side of too big in my opinion - I'll make them even smaller the next time, even though the quantity given in the book made six pots/espresso cups and not four as indicated. I will also definitely try these with the whipped egg whites folded into the chocolate mixture as suggested in the book.

Jamie Oliver's chocolate pots (serves 4 to 6, depending on the size of your espresso cups)

• 285ml single cream (I used reduced fat by mistake and it worked perfectly)
• 200g good-quality chocolate with a cocoa content of 70%
• 2 large egg yolks
• 3 tablespoons brandy
• 20g butter

In a thick-bottomed pan, heat the cream until nearly boiling. Remove and set aside for one minute before snapping in the chocolate. Stir until melted and smooth. Once melted, stir in the egg yolks and brandy and stir until smooth. Allow to cool slightly before stirring in your butter until the mixture is smooth. Pour into individual serving pots and place them in the fridge for a few hours until set.

* Writing this post made me think of the dessert carts some restaurants used to have when I was a child. Whatever happened to them? Dust them off and bring them back, I say! I'm sure that for my part, I'd be lured into having dessert every time...

Chocolate fondant

If I had to name one fail-safe, return-to-it-over-and-over recipe in my "collection", I'd say this one. I have made this numerous times for dinner parties and everyone's always liked it. There a millions of recipes for chocolate fondant, of course, but this one, in my eyes, has two undeniable advantages: one - it actually tastes of chocolate and is not overly sweet and two - it can be prepared ahead of time.

Chocolate fondant (serves 4)

• 100g dark chocolate, in pieces
• 100g milk chocolate, in pieces
• 1 pinch ground cinnamon
• 2dl double cream
• 2 eggs
• 40g sugar
• 40g flour

Place the chocolate pieces in a bowl and melt by standing the bowl in a pan of hot water. Mix with the cream. Add all the other ingredients and beat vigurously until the chocolate mixture thickens slightly. Pour into four buttered ramequins. The fondant can be prepared ahead this far, even the night before. When ready to heat, bake the chocolate fondants for ca. 17 minutes at 180°. The centre should still be a bit soft. Unmold carefully and serve with whipped cream or a dollop of crème fraîche.

P.S. Don't overfill your ramequin dishes or - see picture.
P.P.S. This is actually a post long due. I once promised Winona from daddylikey that I'd post my chocolate fondant recipe in return for instructions from her on how to wear scarves without that instant me-in-fifteen-years effect I get everytime I give one of my many scarves another try.

January orange dessert

As every year after the festive season, I suffer from a rich foods-overfeed. As for desserts, I steer clear off anything containing butter, cream, sugar or chocolate (I'm not sure how long that's going to last, though). In this mood, I made myself some dessert without any of these offenders to round off a meal the other night.

January orange dessert (serves 1)

• 1 orange
• 2 tablespoons low-fat fromage frais or greek yoghurt
• a sprinkling of chopped pistachio nuts

Peel the orange and cut the segments into pieces. You could make fillets but that always turns out to be a mess when I do it. Arrange the orange into a glass or a small bowl. Stir the fromage frais or yoghurt until smooth and pour over the orange. Sprinkle the pistachio nuts on top. Done. Combine with a run in the forest for extra health-benefits.

Heirloom chocolate cake

I'm having a bit of a generous moment so I'll share my very special recipe for the best chocolate cake with you. Are you grateful yet? I'm joking. A girl called Julia who went to my school used to make this irresistible chocolate cake and she willingly wrote down the recipe for everyone. This is how I got it, via my best friend, who's sister was very good friends with Julia. I gave the recipe to my mother who's been using it ever since. As it is, Julia's aunt is married to my father's cousin (it's a small world and this is a small country). On one occasion, my mother mentioned the chocolate cake to her and said how much we all liked it. Big mistake. Julia's aunt was not amused. The recipe for the bespoke cake, it turned out, was a heirloom piece, not to be divulged to outsiders. I find that attitude extremely ridiculous and it delights me to herewith spread the word across the world! Rejoice! Everybody shall bake Julia's chocolate cake! (According to the heirloom recipe, slightly altered to make it even better - does that make it a heirloom recipe of my family?)

Julia's chocolate cake (for a medium-sized cake tin)

- 150g butter
- 160 caster sugar
- 4 eggs
- 200g good-quality dark chocolate, melted
- 4g instant coffee granules or 2 tablespoons espresso
- a couple of tablespoons Kirsch
- 100g plain flour

Beat the butter, sugar and eggs until the mixture is light and fluffy, this may take a few minutes - be patient, it pays off. Add the melted chocolate, the coffee and the Kirsch. Mix in the flour. Bake in a preheated oven at 200° for about 40 to 60 minutes, depending on whether you usa a round/square or longish cake tin. A knife inserted into the cake should come out clean but take care not to overbake the cake, it should still be moist in the middle. Serve on its own or - a particular favourite with children - with custard.

Oven baked apples

I just re-read my last post. Could it be that I was rambling a bit? I'll keep this one nice and short.

Oven baked apples (serves 4)

- 4 medium apples
- 1 handfull hazelnut biscuits
- 2 tablespoons raisins
- 1 teaspoon brown sugar (depending on how sweet the biscuits are)
- cinnamon
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 3 small dots butter and a little more to butter the dish

Core the apples from the stem-side using a special device made for this or just a small knife. The apples must remain whole, make sure you don't cut a them at the bottom or you won't be able to fill them. Prick their skins a few times with a fork. Soak the raisins in hot water. Place the biscuits in a freezer bag and bash them up with a rolling pin until they are crumbly. Mix the biscuit crumbs, drained raisins, sugar, cinnamon and lemon juice. Fill the apples with the mix, dot them with a little butter and and place in the lightly buttered dish. Bake at 180° for thirty minutes. Serve with whipped cream, mascarpone, a dollop of sour cream, ice cream - whatever you like best.

Instead of hazelnut biscuits, you could just use ground hazelnuts or almonds. Or bash up some amaretti - use your imagination, this recipe is very versatile.

This was thrown together in just a few minutes the other night when I came back from work. We had an impromptu dinner with the Boyfriend and someone very dear to me who will be moving to Finland in a few days. It always makes me a bit sad to part with friends. But I am looking forward to going up there for a visit. Just to think of all the special foods I'll be sampling - blog-material aplenty!