Coconut Treats

a good way to get rid of some egg whites leftovers and remind yourself there is still something good in this universe...

Dolcetti al Cocco

fare fondere 70gr di cioccolato bianco (o nero) e lasciare raffreddare. a parte, montare 2 albumi con 100gr di zucchero e aggiungere 100gr di cocco grattuggiato. unire il cioccolato e passare in forno a 180gradi fino a che non sono belli dorati

Cononut Treats

melt 70gr of (white or dark) chocolate and let cool. whisk 2 egg whites with 100gr of sugar. stir 100gr of coconut and the melted chocolate. bake in preheated oven 180° for around 15 minutes, until golden as in the picture

Happy New Year Cappuccino Cake

so i'm back! and i have so many many recipes waiting to be told... but let me start from the end, with yesterday's night new-year-cake...

Happy New Year Cappuccino Cake

for the cake: whisk 4 eggs with a mixer long enough to see the volume double. add 20ml of strong espresso (possibly cold), 115gr of caster sugar, vanilla essence and keep on whisking. add 100gr of melted and cooled white chocolate. finally, all 125gr of flour. bake in preheated oven at 180degrees for 25 minutes.

for the filling: mix 250gr of ricotta cheese and 20ml of coffee liquor

for the topping: melt 200gr of white chocolate with 100 gr of butter and let cool. add 80gr of icing sugar and 100ml of whipped heavy cream. let it cool in the fridge for 10 minutes or until the topping is not too liquid to fall from the cake and liquid enough to let you spread it on the cake. don't worry, i messed it up, too. but i'm confident i will be more familiar with icing in a couple of more tries :)

come iniziare al meglio il nuovo anno se non con un cappuccino?? auguri a tutti!!

The birthday gift for who you love: Cheesecake-Brownies

Cheesecake and Brownies together... if you're diabetic, do not read further. what-a-sweet experience! i have to say this was one of my most successful tries in my baking history :)

a cake which is in fact a brownie but features a cheesecake soft decoration is just The Sweet Gift and will guarantee a wow-effect at first-sight (and first-taste). what is more, you'll have fun spreading the cheesecake topping!

so, happy birthday rosa and giulia, and thank you for welcoming me in your house every time i pass by with sexynerd.

i also tried a mono-portion version, which was an unsuccessful attempt to limit my greed to one portion/day. oh, my...

the recipe is taken from il cavoletto. i have been waiting for an occasion to bake it for weeks, since baking it all for myself yould have been a very dangerous attempt of sugary intoxication. even now, after i kept only one-third-dose for myself, i feel weird.... sugary addicted by now?? ...but i just can't help it, maybe i need help?!? :)

Cheesecake+Brownie
(makes... oh, it's never enough)

mix 150gr of ricotta cheese and 150gr of philadelphia cheese in one bowl. add two spoons of white caster sugar and whisk until you don't feel the sugar anymore. add a spoon of flour, 1 egg and 3/4 drops of vanilla extract. in a separate bowl, whisk 5 large eggs with 350gr of sugar for a few minutes, until the sugar is melted. then melt 250gr of dark chocolate with 200gr of butter and add it to the eggs&sugar mixture [oh, my...]. add few drops of vanilla extract, a pinch of salt and 150gr of flour. well mix.
put the brownie-batter in a baking tin (cover with cooking-paper) and flatten it. then let spoons of the cheese-batter fall on the brownie. be artistic and draw some abstract patterns with a knife. i exagerated a bit, and the two batters mixed, creating some light-brownie areas. you should try to focus on the contrast of color of the 2 batters.

so have fun!

WhiteChocolate and Redcurrant Cupcakes

I am writing this post in defense of the too-many-times-abused cupcake category. I would like to give these cute little cakes the respect they deserve and show that they're not the tasteless spongy cakes you find at your work canteen. So here they are, fantastic and versatile as only ThePerfectDessert can be, ready to make your day brighter.

White chocolate and redcurrant cupcakes
(makes 12)

beat 100gr of butter and 100gr of sugar until pale. add 2 eggs and beat again. fold in 130 gr of sifted flour, the baking powder and the seeds from a vanilla beam. add three tablespoons of milk.
now put one spoon of the mixture in every paper case (paper cases make your cleaning less painful, and help preserve hygene) and bake in the oven at 180 degrees for 20-22 minutes.
now prepare the topping: melt 100 gr of white chocolate and in the meanwhile beat 150 gr of philadelphia cheese (or another kind of cream cheese) with 3/4 tablespoons of icing sugar and the seeds of another vanilla beam. add the melted chocolate.
before decorating the cupcakes, cut the top part of your little cakes (the part that comes out of the paper cases) to make them flat. now give them a good spread of topping and finish the decoration with redcurrants. alternatively, you can use blueberries or other fruits which you think go well with vanilla.