Valentine's Day gift ideas

Revisited! for 2012!

Valentines day is coming soon! And that means chocolates, chocolates, and loads of chocolates!!!

Here are some sweets for non-choco lovers for Valentines day gifts. Sweets comes in handmade boxes wrapped in cellophane. Send me a message for inquiries and orders... (partyfairies1@gmail.com)

Delivery for Tampere, Finland

Citrus Squares

Chewy, refreshing, lemony bars.

Vanilla cookies

Crispy and buttery vanilla cookies with raspberry marmalade or sugar frosting.

And for the chocolate lovers....

Chocolate crinkles

Cake like cookies that are just full of cholate flavours.

Royal Velvet cupcakes

The name says it all... Velvety, soft, delicious cupcakes fit for a queen!!!

Syllabub

Inspired by Nigellas Syllabub, I tried making the same with the liqueur I could find in my alc. cabinet. I found a cranberry and cherry liqueurs. And it was a huge success! So here it goes. I hope you enjoy this too.

Ingredients and procedure:

1. Juice 1 lemon and strain the pulps and seeds, place the juice in the mixing bowl and add
3/4 cups of sugar.

2. Whisk in a 250 ml tub of Mascarpone cheese.

3. Add 1/4 cup (well... go nuts!) of cranberry or cherry liqueur and a 250 ml whipping cream. Continue to whisk until thick. Set aside.

4. This is what I found in my cabinet!

5. Arrange 6 pcs. of dessert glasses. Crumble about 1 pc. of a vanilla biscuit. Digestive will also do.

6. Layer it with the cream mixture about 1/2 inch thick.

7. Add a layer of raspberry sauce.

I used a small bag of frozen raspberry (if using fresh, you need about 1 ½ cups) run it in a food processor with about 1/4 cup sugar. Strain to get rid of the seeds.

8. Add a thin layer of crumbled biscuit and almond flakes. (for texture)

9. Add another layer of cream.

10. Cover with cling wrap and refrigerate for about 2 hours before serving. Preparing this a day before serving, works well.

11. Top with some cherries and some more almond flakes. Enjoy!!!

Danke Donuts

Danke Donuts:
In Club Manila in Dubai:
Peewee: Isn't "Danke" African?
Toni: No, its German for "Thanks"
Jinky: (with indignation-taray!) No! Its American! Danke Donuts!


Ingredients and directions:



1. In a medium bowl, combine the following:

250 ml unflavored yogurt (non-fat is ok too)
170 grams sugar
2 eggs
1 tbsp. Vanilla
45 grams melted butter

(Mix well, till sugar is dissolved)




2. In a separate bowl, mix together:

500 grams triple A grade flour
2 tbsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt

(You can also use all purpose flour, of course, but if you want a softer and long lasting dough, then go for the finest flour. I did!)

Incorporate this flour mixture to the yogurt mixture until it forms into a soft dough.






3. Turn it over in a floured surface. (Do not knead)
Just pack it until all ingredients are incorporated.











4. Roll out the dough with a rolling pin to about 1/4 inch thick and using 2 round cutters, form your donuts until all the dough have been used.










5. Let the cut dough rest for about 10 mins on a baking paper lined tray.
While waiting, start to heat up about 400ml of vegetable oil. Depending on how big your pan is, donuts should be immersed in the oil.










6. If you have an oil thermometer - it should be about 350 F or 175 C.

Or to test it, drop one of the small rounds (munchies) it should take about 30 seconds to brown each sides, then your oil is ready.
If too hot, turn down the heat and add a bit more oil to pull down the temp.










7. Fry the donuts until golden brown. Be careful not to overfry them especially if you think you like it crispy. Well done donuts tend to harden faster.

Drain them on paper towels.








8. For quick ones, combine powdered sugar and ground cinnamon (ratio: 8:1) in a plastic box with lid or plain food plastic bag and coat the donuts before serving.

(Normally, I'd do this to the munchies, and maybe put a bit of chocolate powder in there too)




Yield: 30 pieces (depending on how big the cutter is) + the munchies

Meatloaf Express

This is another one of my favorites that I learned to make here in Finland. This is so easy that I make this whenever. I hope you'll like it.
Difficulty: Easy

Mix together:

1 kilo of ground meat. ( you can use all chicken, or mixed with pork or beef)

1/4 cup raisins (optional)
1/2 cup of croutons
1 egg
1/2 cup milk

TIP: The amount of ground meat depends on the size of your baking tins. I need about 1.2 kilos for the moulds I am using.



This is a regular 60 gms pack of onion soup powder.
Pour it over the meatloaf mixture.

No need to add salt. Just a bit of pepper.

For some who couldn't use MSG (monosodium glutamate) use instead:
1 large onion, finely chopped
1 tsp. salt
½ tsp. pepper







I have 2 similar silicon moulds here.











I lined the other one with bacon slices.

The other one, I brushed with vegetable oil and dust it generously with bread crumbs.











Line the moulds with a thin layer of the meat mixture, and lay the 6 minute eggs.













Then cover it with the rest of the mixture.

Place in a 200 degs C pre heated oven for about 25 mins.









Turn the meat loaf over a baking paper on a tray...




















... and put it back in the oven in 300 degs C for about 8 to 10 minutes



















Or until golden brown. Watch it closely so it doesn't burn.













Serves: 6

Power Scrambled Eggs

This is my favorite power breakfast!
Difficulty: Easy

Ingredients:

1. a small sauce pan
2. a wooden spoon
3. 2 eggs separated
4. garlic infused oil (if not available, just crush 1 clove of garlic and let it heat up inside the pan with the oil for 2 mins. take it out before putting the eggs)
5. a tbsp. of chives or chopped basil or chopped dill.

1. Heat up the pan in medium high, and pour about 1 tbsp. of oil. Swirl it around at least halfway up on the sides of the pan. (to keep the eggs from sticking)

My stove temp is 1 to 9. Medium high for me is 7.






2. Pour in the egg whites first. Keep stirring the egg whites to prevent it from sticking to the bottom. When the whites are about to coagulate (runny but not liquid anymore) pour in the egg yolks.












3. Keep on stirring.














4. To gain a bit of fluffy texture, add about ½ tbsp. of butter. Keep stirring.














5. When the egg whites and yolks have been mixed, wait till the texture is crumbly but not stiff, then its ready. It has to be almost airy.












6. Topped with your favorite herbs, serve it with some tomatoes, and your favorite salad veggies, toast, or here, a freshly baked scone! Yum!!!






Serves 1!

Chicken Torta!

This is a bestseller here at home. Easy to make. For dinner or snacks! Best served with sweet chili sauce. Enjoy...
Difficulty: Easy

Ingredients and directions:

Mix together the following:

1. 800 gms. ground chicken
2. 2 eggs
3. 2 tbsp. cornstarch
4. 2 tbsp. sesame seed oil
5. 1/4 cup fresh coriander (chopped)
6. 1 tsp. salt
7. 1 tsp. pepper
8. 1 medium onion (chopped)
9. 1 medium carrot grated.
and
10. Oil for frying







Fry them flat on a pan with 3 to 4 tbsp. of olive oil.













Drain in paper towels.













You may serve it with fried rice....













... or for east meets west, mashed potato and salad greens!

Pandesal

For my fellow Filipinos who have been living outside the Philippines, Pa de Sal is one of those staple foods that we miss the most.
Send me a message for orders: partyfairies1@gmail.com

Delivery around Tampere, Finland

Soft Pretzels

SOFT PRETZELS!!!

Difficulty: Easy-Medium

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cup warm water
1 1/8 teaspoon active dry yeast
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 1/8 teaspoon salt
1 cup bread flour
3 cups regular flour
2 cups Warm water
2 tablespoons baking soda
4 tablespoons butter (melted)

and sugar for dusting

Directions:

2. Dissolve yeast and sugar in the the warm water.

3. Add flour 1 cup at a time, mixing every after addition.

4. When incorporated, knead the dough for at least 10 minutes or ntil the dough is smooth and elastic.

Leave it to rise for at least ½ an hour.

5. Start forming the pretzels. The thinner the pretzels, the crispier it will become.

6. After the pretzels have been formed, dip them in a mixture of 2 cups hot water and 2 tbsp. of baking soda.

7. Lay the pretzels in a greased baking sheet and leave to rise for a few minutes, then put in an oven, 230 degs C for 10 minutes or until brown enough.

8. Roll in melted butter and sprinkle with mixture of sugar and cinnamon (just the way you want it)

9.You can sprinkle coarse salt instead of sugar.

Or make a caramel sauce:

Heat 1 cup of white sugar until it caramelizes. Add 6 tbsp. butter, stir until incorporated. Turn off the fire. Slowly add ½ cup of heavy cream. Keep stirring until smooth. Let it cool and it will thicken.

Serves 12