Cooling the Summer heat with popsicles - even if it has to be done without a blender!

(Em português)

It's been at least one or two Summers since I've been willing to post a recipe for popsicles, I don't recall it precisely.
In the meantime I have been thinking of how to make popsicles that won't come out as ice blocks, but that also won't give me too much trouble (by which I mean: don't require a stand mixer, or re-stirring every 30 minutes) nor take weird industrialized ingredients.
Hummm. How to make it simple?
Well, I have found out a few things about this process through trial and error, and I think finally I can share a "formula", as I did with the crunchy bars. Although, before I jump into the recipe, I would like to tell that I have been interviewed by Melanie Moreira for the site Receitas sem fronteiras, talking a bit about the ways that lead me to the kitchen. It is only available in Portuguese, but if you want to check out anyway, click here.
The picture illustrating the interview is by Nicole Samperi.
Are you feeling like going to the kitchen too? :)

Routine - who would say? - is something likeable. A post about formulas and savory (or not) energy bars.

(Em português)

I don't know about you, but I am a person who likes food. Really.
It gives me severe bad mood if I get hungry/ crave for food, and have nothing to nibble.
And the plot thickens, as I've been in this healthy-eating-well wave.
Because sometimes I could give it a way having snacks at any bakery down the street, but I haven't been feeling like it lately (besides, each little bite you buy around São Paulo represents a significant percentage of one's monthly budget).
So, in May 2012, gathering information here and there and testing a little, I found myself happy about a recipe/ formula that I came up with for oatmeal granola bars.
You see: they are just the way I like it. Crunchy, and accepting a wide variation of ingredients.
The point is: if I'm hungry, I urge for something savory. And that is just not possible with the recipe mentioned.
There are some options of savory bars being sold out there. But I heard that mostly they taste weird.
Anyway, there are possible.
So, there goes Flora looking in the internet for savory energy bars recipes. But they are not easy to find, not at all.
I had found a website which I really enjoyed, I read it on my mobile in the subway, then never found that link again.
I remember the person who wrote that post worked at a hospital, and s/he commented how clumsy it was to eat trail mixes for a snack.
The idea is good, allright. However, it is not functional:
Picture yourself in the bus/ your car/ in the middle of a film set/ at the office, wherever, holding a bag or a cup of nuts in one hand while feeding yourself with the other one.
So, it seemed like a good idea to merge all of the ingredients into one bar.
This person had some vague ideas of ways to put it together, nothing very concrete.
Going on with my research, I found a post at No meat athlete. Then I figured:
I did not need a recipe, I needed a formula. What a smart guy!
It so happens that his formula wasn't exactly what I was looking for, despite of it filling all nutritional needs etc etc etc.
Next step? Make mess in my kitchen until I found a formula I liked.

Cheese-monkey: a classic in the Brazilian family.

 

(Em Português)

I want to know how many of you have never eaten bread with banana. You know what? I think there is actually plenty of people who never eaten it. Oh my.

Look, you should try. There are millions of possible versions. The sandwich in the picture I have prepared with a soft store bought cornmeal bread, a thin layer of banana chimia (banana sauce? Banana spread? How do I call this thing in English? Anyway, the recipe will be after the jump. It's one I have prepared without sugar, pretty nice), unsalted white cheese, and the banana itself.

Lemon and poppy seed cake, and absolute truths.

(Em português)

There are some things we learn as small kids, often times through observation, and they end up becoming absolute truths for us.

One of such things I have learned from my grandmother Nelci: everytime we receive a visit at home, or every time someone from home is coming back from a trip, we make something special to wait for that person. Every time.

It happened that 98% of the time the special thing was to bake a cake.

So in my head, receiving a visit is associated to baking cakes.

A few days ago, I received two very dear people (hi Ire, hi mom), so there it is, lemon and poppy seeds cake.

Of course I got this recipe at technicolor kitchen, the kingdom of sweets made with citrus fruit, and for me, the perfect place to find something good to do with my recently-acquired seeds.

Crunchy cookies with walnuts, almonds and dark chocolate.

(Em português)


During the last holiday, in which I've been with my family, I've baked these cookies for us.
They are super crunchy, hence they were a hit.
I've added chopped dark chocolate, almonds and walnuts. I only think they are a bit too sweet, mas sugar is what makes the cookies crunchy after all.

Wintery gingerbread cookies.

(Em português)

This recipe from Deb is a version of what we consume here in Brazil as Christmas cookies.

But for me, it makes a whole lot more sense to eat those spice-packed cookies - which would perfectly match hot cocoa - in the Winter.

So, preparing myself for the upcoming cold weather which has come and gone a few times to São Paulo over the past weeks, I tested this recipe that has been in my list since it was posted in Smitten Kitchen.

The cookies are soft and not overly sweet, they feel cozy.

But next time, I will be using less pepper, for sure. Geez, cayenne is hot!

Ginger crystals - and the lack of constancy.

(Em português)


Made victim of a cold that caught me out of a sudden, I prepared this ginger crystals to
help relieve the sore throat.
Besides the tea with propolis extract, honey, lemon...
In case you don't find it weird, take a look at the recipes.

Fake summer compote.

(Em português)

A real fruit compote is that beautiful thing, seen in Grandmother houses.

It's a huge mason jar filled with fruit chunks in sugar syrup.

Where my Grandmother lived, there was a pear tree, and when they started to ripen, nobody could eat it all. To solve the problem, compote was made, since it's a preservation method.

Now, this recipe here won't serve to preserve anything, it doesn't last long.

But it looks and tastes a lot like compote, except it takes a lot less sugar.

The best applesauce in the world!

(Em português)

Today I bring you the best applesauce in the world, with questionable pictures and a post written in a rush as a side.

I'm sorry about the silence last week, I swear I'm making an effort to keep posting regularly.

I took this recipe from Crunchy Betty, a very funny site which publishes homemade recipes for cleaning products and beauty products. Sometimes I find it a bit weird, but most of the time I like it. Take a look and see what do you think.

I ended up adapting the recipe to my taste, maybe you should take a look at Betty's version to make a comparison.

Praliné topped cookies.

(Em português)

Do you know that feeling when you see a great idea, but so good you wish it was yours?

Here's one example. When I read the title of that post at Technicolor Kitchen, I got excited.

And the picture helps it.

Anyway, I did not use the same recipe Patricia did, because I thought these butter cookies and our regular praliné (actually, pé de moleque, as I wrote in here) would fit my taste better.

Truth be told, it's not convenient to eat these cookies, they splatter crumbs in every possible direction - but oh, are they yummy! The trick here is to bake real small cookies and drop tiny bits of pralinée on top, so that you can eat one cookie in one bite, and look like a civilized person.

Birthday flan.

(Em português)

After two weeks without new posts, here am I again. Already in São Paulo, already

working (and very glad about it! Self employed people out there know how it is), already

getting to see the friends from here I've been missing, already missing too much my 

family and friends from Santa Catarina.

I hope you had great vacation, and have plenty of ideas for the year that's beginning.

It won't be easy, it never is. But it will be very productive, and will be fun, for sure.

I always thought that making flan was complicated and had everything it takes to go wrong.

I have tried it before, and it didn't work out.

But it was my brother's birthday, so I thought I should try again.

The recipe is the classic 1, 2, 3: 1 can condensed milk, 2 measures equal to the can of milk, 3 eggs, process it in the blender. Any mother around would that you that and think you'd be able to make the flan all by yourself. What about the details?

The details I got at Technicolor Kitchen.

Results: my first flan that goes right!

Party time! - Panettone.

(Em português)

Well, since christmas is around the corner and panettone is a tradition, here it goes.

In my opinion, it makes for great gifts.

I made it a bit different, but used Susan's recipe as a guide.

Real fruit jelly. In this case, mango.

    (Ignore the fork in the first picture. The breakfast table was set, so there was a spoon nearby          as well...)

(Em português)

About 300 years ago I bookmarked this recipe in Patricia's blog, and I really wanted to test it.

Ana Elisa posted another real fruit jelly, and I started to like the idea very much.

People say jelly is good for many things, and it's quite easy to prepare but, honestly, those boxed jello flavors can't be appealing.

So the other day I stumbled upon the agar agar package almost expiring in the back of the drawer, I looked at the overripe mango crying for help, and I knew what would I have for breakfast. 

And why agar agar instead of regular jelly?

Well, because it's hard to stop myself from buying cute packaged things  in the grocery stores of Liberdade. Anyway, I try to keep those purchases down to things that might be useful, even though they're not necessary in my life.

Confessions set aside, let's get to the recipe.

Bee hives.

(Em português)

This is a family recipe, which we never knew where came from.

I don't know if the whole thing was my grandma's idea, or if she saw something like it and made up her own version.

What matters here is that ever since I remember existing, bee hives is a treat present in our christmas, which sometimes she would also prepare in random afternoons.

It's been a couple years since my grandmother passed away, and since then we hadn't cooked the dishes that she used to make. But before I came to Santa Catarina this year (yeeess! I'm here already!) my brother wrote me asking if I could bake the bee hives, because he missed it.

I've tried, and it worked out. So here goes the recipe in case someone feels like having a new christmas tradition. This test-hive was devoured as a snack while still warm. The only thing they said was not the same was the glaze, so except for that the treat was like the original.

Cinnamon cake, filled with dulce de leche and peanut crispy.

(Em português)

So, what do we have here?

A boyfriend's birthday, a huge jar of dulce de leche from Minas (I think it was 500g, maybe more), and some great peanuts.

For me, it seemed like a good idea to turn it all into a cinnamon cake filled with a peanut crispy and dulce de leche. I adapted this recipe for the cake dough, which came out a bit too dry, but even so it tasted nice, and the result was the cake in the pictures.

Oatmeal chocolate chunk cookies for a picnic at the park.

(Em português)

Here am I, returning to the blog after many (nice) happenings which kept me busy

for a couple days.

Today I bring you a cookie recipe that got the approval of my friends on the last time

we went to Ibirapuera park together.

Biscuits to serve with coffee or tea.

(Em potuguês)

This recipe is repeated, except for two details: the flavor and shape.

These are made with the same dough used in alfajores, and are good

to serve with tea because they're very light.

Dona Benta and the fantastic banana waffles.

(Em português)

My mother called me about two weeks ago, and at some point in the conversation she said "when I come to visit you, I'm bringing a surprise".

The damage was done. Miss Curiosity here spent this whole time forgetting and remembering to think

whether it would be something to eat, something for my home, to dress myself, if it had something to do with cinema...

She arrived at last, and what a beautiful surprise!

It was that huge book "Dona Benta - Comer bem". The best selling Brazilian cook book in the country ever since it's first edition - in 1940 -, according to the foreword. 

It comes with many traditional recipes, the ones that might end up forgotten once in a while.

The ones that feel great to be reminded of suddenly.

As soon as I could, I spent hours browsing the book and reading recipes.

To start it up, I cooked these waffles this morning.

Gooood! :)

White yogurt cake.

(Em português)


This is a basic everyday cake, so so fluffy.
The recipe is quite a bit adapted from here.

Kanelbullar - cinnamon bread, Swedish version.

(Em português)

It is a fact that there are many versions of cinnamon bread out there.

Why should I start with the Swedish version, you might ask.

Well, simply because. I think the Swedish breads and cakes I've seen

on internet are really good-looking. And I also think Sweden must be the

thrift store paradise. I bet I would find everything pretty if I visited that country.

Also, the recipe I chose promised to be light and not too sweet.

And it's true. To it!