I used to be scared of pralines or anything caramel. In Paris I wanted to buy jars of praliné paste to take home to Barcelona. But I couldn’t – the suitcase was too full of other baking stuff. And that’s how I learnt it’s surprisingly […]
All posts tagged: Cakes
Masala chai, raspberry and pistachio layer cake recipe, the history of a cup of chai and why it’s good for you! :)
First of all don’t ask for Chai Tea Latte because you’ll be saying Tea Tea Latte so people could think you’ve already had too much caffeine and refuse to serve you. Ho ho. Yes, Chai means ‘tea’, originating from the Chinese word for it 茶 chá […]
Introducing: a baking picture dictionary!
Preparing for my first baking workshop last weekend in Barcelona gave me the impetus to create a baking dictionary helpful for following recipes in English, especially if you’re not a native speaker. You can of course teach kids with these drawings but adults love doodles […]
Easter stuff and a moist Easter chocolate cake recipe for children (or adults)!
A friend requested a cake to give his goddaughter and niece, a Catalan tradition during Easter. More about that and some photos later. Several elements would ensure this cake could impersonate a local mona de pascua de chocolate (chocolate Easter cake) and not be spotted […]
Healthier Fraisier – a take on the classic French strawberry cake
Pâtisserie can be healthier and delicious! There’s a trend towards superfoods and clean living but why not compromise and have desserts with both healthy and ‘decadent’ ingredients? We’ll whip up a genoise sponge with flour, ground almonds, cornflour and xylitol (a birch sugar substitute) then […]
Dreamy chocolate and hazelnut dacquoise mini cakes
Would you like an incredibly yummy chocolate treat? These cakes are for you! There’s a chewy meringue dacquoise base covered in a praliné or Nutella layer combined with crispy wafer and toasted hazelnut. Then there’s a milk chocolate cream mousse topped with a slim chocolate […]
Easy blood orange frangipane tart
Have you tried blood oranges? They’re amazing but only come out certain times of the year and in some countries. So when you see some grab them while you can! Grab loads. Even if they’re imported they’ll be worth it. It’s hard to describe this […]
Matcha white chocolate and chestnut millefeuilles recipe (puff pastry) and a cake accident!
Millefeuilles are absolutely heavenly. Imagine light flaky layers of puff pastry interspersed with clouds of creams. These little inventions have a layer of crème pâtissière flavoured with matcha green tea balanced with creamy white chocolate. Then there’s chestnut cream in the second delicious layer lightened […]
Pomegranate red velvet cupcakes recipe and the ‘red’ experiment
Yes, you’ve seen the cake and now here are the cupcakes! They’re faster, smaller and healthier. Healthier? Well, just because of the reduced quantities. Tee hee. There’s half the quantity of sponge used in the original layer cake and a third of the frosting. After […]
Pithiviers, galette des rois (French king cake) recipe for Epiphany, danger and Johnny Depp in a box!
Do you want to be king or queen for the day? Just bake this easy galette and make sure you find the fève hidden in there. What’s a fève? A bean or porcelaine trinket and I’ll be showing you some cute ones. On January 6 or […]
French flourless lemon almond cake recipe – moist, delicious and so easy!
If you want an impressively simple and scrumptious cake to make over the holidays and even take travelling, this is for you! We made it the first day of our Cordon Bleu course and though it was the fastest it was one of the best […]
Raspberry, goats’ cheese and fig pavlova!
A savoury-sweet tangy delight and swirly cloud of delicious flavours. Pavlovas are delicious anytime and a popular Christmas dessert in Australia and New Zealand. The base is very simple and fast to whip up if you follow a few basic steps. Yay! For this […]
Cakes and chocolates – at the Cordon Bleu, Paris
A run-down of last week’s cakes and chocolate you can vote for if you’d like to see them up on the blog with adapted and simplified recipes! 🙂 There’s the delicious multi-layered Opera cake with joconde sponge, coffee buttercream and syrup then chocolate ganache and […]
Cakes from le Cordon Bleu pâtisserie course in Paris! Please vote! :)
Last week’s cake production was a little crazy, even by my standards! I gave some away to my landlord for his family and friends and to the homeless in the street, who looked happy to be given cake. One started eating a macaron immediately. This […]
Pomegranate and passion fruit yoghurt pavlova
I once committed a pàtisserie faux pas, in other words a mistake but it sounds better in French. I made some meringue nests and posted them as pavlovas!!! Oh dear. Months later I realised the error of my ways: pavlovas look like meringues and also […]
lili's cakes 