Meringue Nests with Fresh Berries Marängnästen med färska bär

Meringues bring back so many childhood memories for me. My dad used to eat them crushed over vanilla ice cream, and my aunt would use them to make the most delicious dessert with ice cream, bananas, chocolate sauce and whipped cream, called Marängswiss. Meringues are one of those special treats that makes me feel like a kid, just the way cotton candy does!

These meringue nests are easy to whip up and makes a perfectly light dessert for these last days of summer. Delightfully crisp on the outside and wonderfully chewy on the inside, just the way I like them! Fill them with fresh strawberries, blackberries, blueberries and raspberries, and garnish with mint leaves.

Vi har fortfarande runt sommarvärme här i Washington, så en lättare sensommardessert som de här marängnästena med färska bär är perfekt. Marängerna är krispiga på utsidan, men sådär mumsigt sega i mitten. Precis som de ska vara. Fyll dem med hallon, jordgubbar, blåbär och björnbär och toppa med lite mynta. Det blir inte enklare än så här!

Meringue Nests with Fresh Berries

(from "bake" magazine, spring 2016)

Makes 8 servings

4 egg whites, room temperature

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1/4 tsp cream of tartar

3/4 cup sugar

4 cups fresh berries

fresh mint leaves for garnish

1. Preheat oven to 215 degrees.
2. Beat egg whites, vanilla extract and cream of tartar until foamy. Add sugar, a little at a time, and beat until stiff peaks.
3. Make 8 mounds on a baking tray lined with parchment paper. Using the back of a spoon, shape each mound into a nest.
4. Bake for 2 hrs, then turn off the heat and let it sit for another hour in the oven.
5. Fill the nests with fresh berries and garnish with mint.

Marängnästen med Fäska Bär

(anpassat från tidningen "bake", vårnumret 2016)

för 8 pers

4 äggvitor, rumstemperatur

1 tsk vaniljpulver

2 dl socker

0,5 tsk vinäger

9 dl färska bär

Färsk mynta till garnering

1. Sätt ugnen på 100 grader. 

2. Vispa äggvitor, vaniljpulver och vinäger till ett skum. Tillsätt sockret, lite i taget, tills marängsmeten är fast.

3. Gör åtta stora klickar på en plåt med bakplåtspapper. Gör fördjupningar i varje maräng med en sked. 

4. Baka i ugn i 2 h. Stäng sedan av värmen och låt stå en 1h till med ungsluckan stängd.

5. Ta ut marängnästena och fyll med färska bär och garnera med mynta.

A Gooey Mint Chocolate Birthday Surprise

My hubby's birthday was a few weeks ago, and the boys and I had a special surprise waiting for him when he came home from work - his favorite chocolate dessert! It's a Swedish cake called kladdkaka, which translates to "gooey cake", and is a version of a molten chocolate cake. I grew up with this chocolaty goodness, and we would make it for birthday parties, whenever we had guests over, or just on a regular Friday night. As a matter of fact, I would even dare to say that there's a 90% chance that this is one of the things you will be served at any Swedish birthday party. And since we're a chocolate loving family, this easy recipe has become a staple at our house.

 

 

My oldest son, Jacob, loves to help out in the kitchen, and William, my youngest, loves to get messy, so this was a great baking adventure for them. I love finding recipes that are kid friendly, that only uses a handful of ingredients, and doesn't take too much time to make. The best part was seeing how excited they were to make something for daddy!

 

 

A good thing about this specific recipe, is that it doesn't use any active ingredient such as baking powder or baking soda, so you can stir until the cows come home without it having affect on how it turns out! And as you can imagine, there was a whole lot of stirring going on.

I've made a lot of kladdkakas over the years, and I've tried different versions of it; traditional, dark chocolate, milk chocolate, mint chocolate, chocolate raspberry, a dulce de leche version etc. Sometimes I'll stick with the traditional recipe and serve it with vanilla sugar whipped cream and a raspberry sauce, just to make it a little more fun. The bottom line is, you can't go wrong with this one if you love chocolate.

 

 

This time we made a mint chocolate version, because it's one of Matt's favorites. The recipe calls for After Eight, but you can also use Andes Mints or something similar. Just don't be intimidated by the amount of mint used, it's not going to be overpowering! Even the kids loved every bite of it.

 

 

The boys made sure we quality tested the chocolate. Because, I mean, we wouldn't want to use bad chocolate. I just had to make sure there was still some left to use in the cake. Luckily, there was!

The boys where so proud to present the cake to daddy, and of course he was so impressed and loved the surprise!

 

 

Personally, I think kladdkaka is best served with vanilla bean ice cream or with whipped cream, but some like it plain Jane. I usually go with ice cream, especially in the winter time, when I like to bake the cake in small ramekins and serve the chocolate cake warm.

 

 

 

 

Look at that fudgey goodness! Now you have something to bake Friday night to celebrate that another work week is over!

 



 

After Eight Gooey Chocolate Cake
from the magazine Hembakat

150 g butter
270 g sugar
3 eggs
3 tbsp. cacao
105 g flour
1 pinch salt
2 tsp vanilla sugar*
8 After Eight pieces

Mint chocolate glaze
25 After Eight pieces
powdered sugar

*If you can't get your hands on vanilla sugar, just substitute with confectioners sugar and add a 1/2 tsp of vanilla extract.

Instructions:

1. Preheat the oven to 355 degrees. Melt the butter in a saucepan. Add the remaining ingredients and mix until smooth. 
2. Pour the batter into a buttered 9" spring form pan.
3. Chop up 8 After Eights and put them in the batter.
4. Bake in on the center rack for about 25-30 minutes. Make sure it's not too wobbly when you take it out. Let cool in the pan.
5. For the mint chocolate glaze: Melt 25 pieces of After Eights over a water bath.
6. Pour the chocolate over the cooled cake and let harden in the fridge. Dust with powdered sugar before serving. Serve with ice cream or whipped cream. 

Lyxig After Eightkladdkaka
från tidningen Hembakat

150 g smör
3 dl strösocker
3 ägg
3 msk kakao
1 ¾ dl vetemjöl
1 nypa salt
2 tsk vaniljsocker
ca 8 plattor After Eight

Mintchokladglasyr
ca 25 plattor After Eight
florsocker


Gör så här

1. Sätt ugnen på 180 grader. Smält smöret i en kastrull. Tillsätt resten av ingredienserna och blanda snabbt ihop allt till en slät smet.
2. Häll smeten i en smord och bröad springform, 23–24 cm i diameter (bröa gärna formen med kokos i stället för ströbröd).
3. Skär ca 8 After Eight-plattor på mitten och stick ner dem i smeten.
4. Grädda kakan mitt i ugnen i 25–30 min beroende på hur kladdig du vill ha den. Låt den svalna i formen.
5. Mintchokladglasyr: Smält ca 25 After Eight-plattor över vattenbad.
6. Bred ut mintchokladkrämen över kakan och låt den stelna i kylen. Pudra över lite florsocker före servering. Servera gärna med vispgrädde eller glass.

Apple Rose Mini Tarts

 

 

I love finding beautiful recipes that are both easy to make, and use ingredients you most likely already have at home. These little beauties are one of those recipes that you can easily throw together after dinner one week night to have with that late night coffee (it's not just me right?). Or if you have guests coming over, simply plate the roses with a scoop of vanilla bean ice cream on the side, drizzle with caramel, and you have yourself a fancy dessert.

 

 

 

 

Did I mention they are delicious?

 

 

 

 

My soon-to-be 4 year old loved these, and I'm sure you will too! Be sure to check out this tutorial to see how easy they are to make. Happy baking!

 

 



 

Apple Rose Mini Tarts
from Cooking With May Lynn 

1 red apple
2 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon honey
3 tablespoons water
1/2 cup butter
1 cup flour
Cinnamon
Powdered sugar for dusting


Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees (175C).
2. Slice an apple in half and remove the core.
3. Make thin slices and put them in a pot. Add sugar, honey and water and cook for about 5 minutes.
4. Move the apples to a bowl and let them cool.
5. Take the butter and add 3 tablespoons of the apple water and the flour. Mix well and form into a ball. Divide dough in half, and roll it into a rectangle on your counter.
6. Slice strips horizontally, about 1 inch wide.
7. Put 5-6 slices of apple, overlapping, on top of the strips. Sprinkle some cinnamon and roll them up so it looks like roses.
8. Put the roses in cupcake molds and bake in the oven for 20 minutes.
9. Dust some powdered sugar on top and voilá!

Små Äppelrosor
 
2,25 dl mjöl
Ett rött äpple
2 msk socker
1 msk flytande honung
3 msk vatten
60 gram smör
Kanel