Is there a self-respecting food blogger out there who has not yet tried Joy the Baker's fabulous cinnamon sugar pull-apart bread? Not here in Estonia, I suspect - this cinnamon bread has popped up on pretty much every Estonian blog on my reading list :) I've made it thrice myself, and love it. I've used three different dough recipes - my cinnamon roll recipe, my korvapuusti dough recipe and finally slightly adapted version of Joy's recipe. The last one was the winner for this particular one :) I've simplified the process considerably, however. I'm quite experienced in making and comfortable with using sweet yeast dough and I would say the complicated dough-making process involving several steps described by Joy isn't simply justified. It's a simple pastry, the fabulousness of it is in the way it's shaped, and not in the way the dough is made.

Special thanks to Jaanika (blogging @ Maitse asi) who came up with an excellent Estonian name for this type of bread!

It's best on the day it's made (and probably won't last much longer anyway), but you can wrap it in a clingfilm and keep it for up to two days at the room temperature.

Cinnamon Sugar Pull-Apart Bread
(Kaneelilõõts)
Makes 1 loaf



360 g plain flour (600 ml)
4 Tbsp caster sugar
1 packet of instant dry yeast (11-12 g)*
0.5 tsp salt
125 g (125 ml or half a cup) milk
50 g butter, softened
2 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract

Filling:
200 g caster sugar
2 tsp ground cinnamon
0.5 tsp ground nutmeg
50 g butter, melted

* Note that I've used instant yeast that can be simply mixed with dry ingredients. If you're using active dry yeast, you need to activate and proof it first. 

In your mixing bowl, combine flour, sugar, instant yeast and salt.
Break the eggs into a small bowl. Heat the butter and milk in a small saucepan until the butter has melted. Cool a little, then whisk in the eggs. Pour into the dry ingredients and stir and knean, until combined and the dough breaks loose from the sides of the bowl. (If it's too dry, add a spoonful of milk; if too sticky, add a spoonful of flour).
Cover the dough with a clean kitchen towel and leave to rise until doubled in side in a warm draught-free room. (Or, if you prefer, let rise for about an hour at the room temperature, then transfer into your fridge overnight. Then you can quickly and easily bake warm cinnamon sugar pull-apart bread for breakfast).
Mix the sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg for the filling in a small bowl. Melt the butter (you can brown it a little, if you prefer the flavour).
Take a loaf tin (mine was 22x12x7 cm), butter it generously or line with a parchment paper.
On a lightly floured surface, roll the yeast dough into a rectangle about 30x50 cm. Brush the surface with melted butter and sprinkle the cinnamon sugar evenly on top.
Cut vertically into six even strips. Gently lift them on top of each other, then cut into six square towers again.
Place these, side down, into the loaf tin. Cover with a kitchen towel and leave to rise for 30-45 minutes.



Bake in a preheated 200 C/400 F oven for 30-35 minutes, until dark golden brown on top (just golden brown isn't enough - the bread will be still slightly under-baked inside then).
Remove from the oven, leave to cool in the tin for 20-30 minutes. Remove from the tin and serve, letting everybody pull a slice of delicious cinnamon bread :)

Just like that, and ever so suddenly, the summer is here. We've just had almost a fortnight of very high temperatures (about 30 C/85 F) and constant sunshine (almost 24/7 - us being rather high up North :)). It's hard to believe that just a few months ago the summer seemed soooo far away. Last winter was long, cold and harsh and unwilling to ever end. After still complaining about the amount of snow in early April, I felt ashamed about complaining about the heat of last summer (temperatures hovering around 30 C aren't exactly my cup of tea - and last summer was especially difficult for me as I was expecting our second baby). And yet I was already ready to complain about the heat last weekend :)

Luckily, the temperatures dropped a little last night, and we finally got some long-awaited rain this morning (I've got a vegetable garden as well, remember, so occasional moderate rain is very much needed and welcomed). But should the heat wave return, then here's one of the easy summer smoothies that helped me stay cool and sane a year ago :)

Watermelon lassi
(Arbuusi-jogurtijook)
Serves 1

150 g watermelon (weight after cleaning)
100 g plain yogurt
1 Tbsp sugar (optional)
1 tsp lemon juice
1 tsp finely chopped fresh mint

Cut the watermelon into chunks and blend until smooth. Stir in the yogurt, sugar and lemon juice.
Pour into cold classes, sprinkle some mint on top and serve at once.

It's time for a Paper Chef, a food blogging event with pedigree (launched by Owen back in 2004, now co-hosted with Ilva and Mike. I'm embarrassed to admit that I've only participated twice before - #8 (spinach, olives, Cheddar cheese, potatoes/cream) and #15 (limes, beetroots, pears and aphrodisiac of your choice)), but with Ilva asking us all so nicely to participate, I couldn't say no :)

The ingredients this month - bread, berries, chocolate and lime. I won't dwell on the difference between bread ('leib') and white bread ('sai') in Estonian - suffice to say that even after living in an Anglophone country for seven years, I automatically thought of our dark Estonian rye bread when I spotted 'bread' in that list of ingredients. Only later did it occur to me that I could have gone the 'white bread' (aka 'wheat bread') route, perhaps with summer pudding with lime-macerated berries and white chocolate and mascarpone mousse? Mmmm...

The rules of Paper Chef do not say that you must restrict yourself to those four ingredients alone. However, I immediately remembered a little neat idea I had seen on the Finnish Herkut.net site a while ago - warm rye bread toasts with melted chocolate and sliced strawberries. I added some grated lime zest for, well, extra zest - and using just the four ingredients that were required - and loved the result! I can easily see serving this at one of the many patio parties or summer grill events that are about to follow.

A word of warning, however. While it's a dessert sure to please all the young ones, it's no S'Mores that you grab between your hands and eat without staining a thing (well, couple of cookie crumbs on the floor, perhaps). Our daughter Nora approached her warm rye bread with chocolate and strawberries with gusto, but in the process she managed to smear melted chocolate all over her :)



Rye bread toasts with chocolate, strawberries and lime zest
(Röstitud koorikleib šokolaadi ja maasikatega)

You can use any type of rye bread here - those flat rye breads, halved horizontally ('koorikleib') are ideal, or then thickly sliced naturally leavened rye bread. I used a recently introduced new product at the Estonian market - saib (sai+leib, get it?!) - tastes and looks like white bread, but it's made with 100% rye flour.



sliced rye bread
dark chocolate, coarsely chopped (I used Callebaut chocolate chips)
strawberries,
lime zest, thinly grated

Toast the bread until slightly golden and aromatic. Immediately top with chopped chocolate and strawberries, leave for a few minutes, until the chocolate melts.
Grate some lime zest over the strawberries.
Serve at once.

Picture taken in July 2008

Do you use strawberries for anything else but various _cold and uncooked_ desserts and puddings? 

I realised that I _almost_ never cook strawberries, especially sun-ripened local ones. They're just too luscious and delicious as they are, and I usually run out of them before I manage to start thinking about including them in a cake (and in any case, my repeated attempts to include strawberries in a clafoutis have ended with a disaster). However, there is one baked strawberry cake that I've been making again and again over the years. The recipe is from an old issue of BBC Good Food, bylined by their previous editor Orlando Murrin. I've simplified the recipe a little over the years, and it's been on my early summer table at least one every year. It's delicious both warm or cold (I love it warm with a scoop of good vanilla ice cream).

I think I'll be baking one later tonight :Pc

Almond and Strawberry Cake
(Maasika-mandlikook)
Serves eight

175 g ground almonds
175 g unsalted butter, softened
175 g caster sugar
175 g all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp ground cinnamon
2 eggs, whisked
400 g strawberries
icing sugar/confectioner's sugar, for dusting

Preheat the oven to 180C. Line the base of a loose-bottomed 24 cm cake tin with greaseproof paper and butter the sides.
Mix almonds, butter, sugar, flour, cinnamon, baking powder and eggs in a food processor just until the ingredients are evenly combined.
Spread half the mixture over the base of the tin in a smooth layer. Lay the sliced strawberries on top. Spread the remaining cake mixture over the strawberries.
Bake for 45-50 minutes, until slightly risen and dark golden brown when cooked.
Cool in the tin slightly, then loosen the edges with a knife and remove from the tin.
Transfer onto a serving plate and dust with icing sugar.

Couple of years ago, when I blogged about Estonian rye bread soup, the idea of a 'sweet' bread soup seemed very unusual to most of my (non-Estonian) readers. But trust me - the rye bread soup is cheap (usually using stale rye bread) and cheerful, and very tasty. Here's a seasonal version of the soup, using pale pink rhubarb stalks. Whereas the rye bread soup isn't particularly sugary-sweet anyway, this late spring/early summer version is even lighter and with a slight and welcome tang.

Rhubarb and rye bread soup
(Leivasupp rabarbriga)
Serves six to eight



400 g rhubarb, cleaned
200 g rye bread
1 litre water
100 g caster sugar
a cinnamon stick
some vanilla extract

To serve:
sour cream or yoghurt

Break the rye bread into chunks, place into a pan with 1 litre of cold water. Leave to soften for a few hours.
Bring slowly into the boil.
Cut the rhubarb into thick slices, add to the pan with sugar and cinnamon stick. Simmer the soup for 15-20 minutes, or until the bread and rhubarb are soft and mushy.
Season with vanilla.
Cool before serving.

A delicious combination of orange, lime and apple (Granny Smith).

What's your favourite freshly pressed juice? I'd love to get new ideas.

Originally posted here.

A well-known (and much-hated) garden pest, ground-elder (Aegopodium podagraria, also known as bishop's weed and goutweed in English, naat in Estonian) has a long history of being used for medicinal purposes. However, it was also cultivated as a food crop in the Middle Ages, especially in Russia (and in Siberia in particular - the Russian Saint Seraphim of Sarov is said to have survived three years on eating mainly ground-elder while on self-exposed exile in a deep forest), Scandinavia, in Central Europe. Old Finno-Ugric peoples were keen consumers of ground-elder, too. According to some sources, old traders wrapped their vegetables into ground-elder leaves to keep them fresh looking and smelling - the leaves are high in essential oils and helped to keep the other produce fresh and aromatic, too. Young and tender ground-elder leaves can be added to soups, omelettes and stews. Blanched leaves can be mixed with cottage cheese and curd cheese. The leaves are high on Vitamin E, as well as vitamin C, they're rich in antioxidants, minerals, flavonoids and fibre. Dishes containing ground-elder are easily digestible, and have cleansing properties - so they're good for that spring-time detoxing :)



Make sure to use only very young ground-elder/goutweed leaves (like those on the photo above) - the big ones tend to be too bitter and rough. Pamela Michael, a well-known "herbal cook" and author of Edible wild plants and herbs, writes that "those of us who suffer from the weed in our gardens, should rejoice in the knowledge that we can eat the pest" :)

Intrigued? You can also use young ground-elder leaves to make delicious spring-time vanilla-scented muffins.

Ground-elder and cottage cheese pie
(Kevadine naadipirukas)
Serves 8 to 10



Pastry:
200 g butter
200 g sour cream
350 g all-purpose flour
a pinch of salt

Filling:
100 to 200 g young ground-elder leaves
1 Tbsp oil
one large onion (about 100 g)
300 to 400 g cottage cheese, drained
1 egg
1 tsp dried oregano
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Make the pastry: melt butter over moderate heat. Take the saucepan off the heat, stir in sour cream, flour and salt. Stir until well combined, then place into the fridge for about 30 minutes to rest.

Make the filling: wash the goutweed leaves carefully, drain lightly. Place onto a dry hot skillet and heat until wilted. Then rinse quickly under cold running water to stop the leaves from cooking further. Press to dry the leaves thoroughly, then chop roughly.
Heat oil on a heavy frying pan, add onion and sauté gently for about 10 minutes, until the onion softens. Add the chopped ground-elder leaves, cottage cheese, oregano, salt and pepper. Give it a stir, then add most of the egg and stir again.

Take the pastry out of the fridge, divide into two. On a flour-dusted table, roll out one of the pastry pieces into a large circle (approximately 40 cm in diameter or whatever the size that fits your oven sheet). Transfer onto a lined oven sheet, spoon the filling on top. Roll out the other pastry and cover. Press the edges tightly together, prick the top with a fork here and there.

Brush with an eggwash. Bake in a preheated 200 C oven for about 25-30 minutes, until the pie is lovely golden brown on top.

Isn't it pretty? This lovely topless tart can be served either warm (perhaps with a green side salad) or cold (cut into thin slices to accompany drinks). It's a simple tart - a puff pastry base (I made a quick rough puff pastry myself) is covered with a layer of grated cheese, followed by an egg and cream mixture, and finally topped with lightly cooked asparagus spears. You could certainly mix the cheese in to the egg and cream mixture, but I loved the visual effect of using a separate cheese layer.

The basic idea is from the UK-based food writer and photographer Alastair Hendy via the always-inspirational Delicious Days, but I omitted the potato layer.

Asparagus and cheese tart
(Spargli-juustupirukas)
Serves 8 to 10



500 g puff pastry (store-bought or home-made rough puff pastry)
24 medium-sized fresh green asparagus spears
150 g Gouda or Gruyère cheese, coarsely grated
3 large eggs
200 ml fresh cream (whipping, heavy or double)
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
freshly grated nutmeg

Snap off the hard and woody lower end of the asparagus spears (these can be used to make stock, for instance). Cook the asparagus spears in a simmering and lightly salted water for about 2 minutes. Drain, rinse quickly under cold water and drain again. Put aside.
Line a rectangular pie dish (approximately 25x35 cm) with a parchment paper. Roll out a puff pastry so it'd cover the base and come up the sides a little. Prick with a fork here and there.
Scatter the grated cheese over the base.
Whisk the eggs with cream, season with salt, pepper and grated nutmeg. Pour carefully over the cheese.
Place asparagus spears on top.
Bake in a preheated 200 C oven for about 30 minutes, until the tart is nicely golden on top and the puff pastry is cooked.

Nothing new under the sun :) I took last year's favourite rhubarb cheesecake recipe, tweaked it a little, and ended up with yet another definite favourite. An exceptionally good-looking favourite as well :) The rhubarb is from a farm near Raplamaa (a county in Estonia), and the stalks were especially and beautifully pink this time - both inside and outside. Also, I never peel young rhubarb stalks. Hence the impressive colour scheme of the cake.

Baked Rhubarb Cheesecake
(Rabarbri-toorjuustukook)
Serves 8



Base:
100 g unsalted butter, softened
85 g caster sugar (1 dl/100 ml)
1 large egg
180 g plain flour (3 dl/300 ml)
0.5 tsp ground cardamom
0.5 tsp baking powder
a pinch of salt

Cream cheese topping:
400 g full-fat cream cheese, softened
200 g sour cream or soft curd cheese
125 g caster sugar (1,5 dl/150 ml)
3 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract

Topping:
300 g young pink rhubarb stalks
a tablespoonful of demerara sugar

For the base, cream the butter and sugar. Add eggs, one at a time, thoroughly beating each time. Add the dry ingredients and stir until combined. Press the mixture onto the base and sides of a 26 cm springform tin lined with parchment paper. Place into the fridge to wait while you prepare the cheesecake mixture.

For the cheesecake topping, mix all ingredients thoroughly (you may use a whisk for a fluffier result).

To assemble the cake, pour the cream cheese mixture over the cake base. Scatter or lay the rhubarb on top, sprinkle with demerara sugar.

Bake in a preheated 200 C oven for 40-45 minutes, until the filling is set and the cake base cooked.

Remove from the oven and let cool completely before serving.

I know, I know. Spring is in full swing here in Estonia and I'm baking cinnamon rolls? I blame Joy the Baker, author of the Best Baking and Dessert Blog according to Saveur. Joy's Cinnamon Sugar Pull-Apart Bread has been taking Estonian foodbloggers by storm, and I've fallen for it as well. But I cannot possibly blog about the cinnamon sugar pull-apart bread - or about Finnish korvapuustit or voisilmäpullat or about Swedish kanelknutar - before I have blogged about the wonderful cinnamon bun recipe I've been using for well over a decade, if not longer.

These are smallish cinnamon rolls, at least when compared with its American counterparts. It's not a Classic Cinnabon for sure (a respectable 220 grams and a whopping 880 kcal!!!!), more like a delicious and less decadent alternative :D

The step-by-step photos were taken back in November 2008 :)

Cinnamon Rolls
(Kaneelirullid)
Makes 36 small pastries



50 g fresh yeast*
50 ml (about 3 Tbsp) lukewarm water
300 ml milk
100 g unsalted butter
0.5 tsp salt
85 g caster sugar (100 ml)
1 tsp ground cardamom
600 to 650 g all-purpose flour

Filling:
100 g unsalted butter
85 g caster sugar
0.5 Tbsp ground cinnamon

For brushing:
1 small egg

Take a large mixing bowl, add the lukewarm water. Crumble the fresh yeast into the water, stir until combined.
Melt butter in a small saucepan, then add the milk (the resulting mixture should be about 37C aka body temperature) and slowly pour into the yeast mixture.
Add sugar, salt and cardamom. Now add the flour, a cupful at a time, mixing and kneading until you've got a nice soft and shiny dough.
Cover the bowl with a clean kitchen towel and let it prove in a draught-free warm place until doubled (for about an hour).

Meanwhile, make the filling. Melt the butter slowly, then add the sugar and cinnamon. Let it cool a little.

When the dough is risen, then gently knead it again and divide into three pieces. Working with one piece of dough at a time, roll it into a 23x30 cm rectangle on a lightly floured surface.



Spread with the butter mixture, right to the edges:



Then roll it up rather tightly, starting from the longer side:



Using a sharp knife, cut the roll into inch-long lengths (about 2-3 cm):





Transfer each roll onto a baking sheet:


Bake in a pre-heated 220 C oven for about 12-15 minutes, until nicely golden brown. Transfer to a metal rack to cool.



NOTES:

* If you're not planning to eat all the cinnamon buns on the day of baking, you may want to place some of the warm buns into a large plate/bowl and cover with a kitchen towel while cooling - this helps to keep them soft longer.
* If you prefer using instant dry yeast, then mix the yeast with the other dry ingredients, add milk, water and melted butter and stir until combined.

Just wanted to share a neat breakfast idea that I got from the Swedish Allt om Mat magazine - frukostkeso. It was a lovely change from the usual yogurt/cereal/open sandwich type of start to the day. I had to change the recipe a little, as I don't keep two types of linseed at home (the original recipe included both whole and ground linseed), I omitted the sunflower seeds and added a drizzle of agave nectar, one of my favourite sweeteners.

Cottage Cheese Breakfast
(Hommikune kodujuust)
Serves one

200 g cottage cheese (I used 4%)
1 Tbsp flax seeds/linseeds
a good drizzle of agave nectar
handful of strawberries, quartered
sliced almonds or coarsely chopped hazelnuts (I used almonds)

Take your brekkie bowl, spoon cottage cheese into the bowl. Sprinkle with flax seeds and drizzle with agave nectar. Place strawberries on top, sprinkle with nuts and serve :)

Västerbotten is an excellent hard cow's milk cheese from Sweden that reminds me (and many others) of a good youngish Parmiggiano Reggiano, but it's somewhat sweeter. Sadly it's not available in Estonia, but we've got good friends in Sweden who bring us a chunk every time they're popping over to Estonia. It is produced in the far North of Sweden, and the recipe and process has remained pretty much the same for the last 150 years or so. The Swedes love it, and it's considered the Emperor of Swedish cheeses (hence the crown on the packaging? See below ;))

You can read more about this cheese here (includes a link to the US supplier), here (Anne's Food), here and here (Wiki).

Although it's an excellent cheese for the cheese board, it's also a great cooking cheese. So far I've tried honeyed Västerbotten cheese spread, which was unusual but delicious (sweet and creamy). I got another half-a-kilo chunk of Västerbotten for my birthday (thank you, Annika & Markus!!!), and wanted to try the classic Västerbotten cheese tart. It's so simple - a plain shortcrust base, topped with a mixture of eggs, cream/milk and cheese. There are hundreds of similar recipes in the Internet, here's the way I made it.

You can serve it either hot or cold, accompanied with a nice sauce or perhaps a green salad. When cold, the tart can be cut into very thin and elegant slices that would be great as an appetizer.

Västerbottenspaj or Västerbotten cheese tart
(Västerbotteni juustu pirukas)
Serves 6



Pastry:
200 g plain flour
pinch of salt
100 g cold butter, cubed
1 egg

Cheese filling:
3 eggs
200 ml fresh cream (single, whipping, double or even half-and-half)
200 g Västerbottens cheese, coarsely grated
salt and freshly ground black pepper

Make the pastry first. Combine flour and salt in a bowl of your food processor, then add the cold butter and process until you've got coarse crumbs. Now add the egg and process again, until the dough comes together.
Flatten the dough into a disc and wrap in clingfilm. Place into the fridge for at least 30 minutes, preferably an hour.
Roll the pastry on a lightly floured surface into a circle large enough to fill a 26 cm springform or tart tin. Transfer the dough into the tin, pressing it gently to the edge and up along the sides. Blind bake in a 200 C oven for about 15 minutes. Remove from the oven.
For the filling, whisk the eggs and cream until combined, then season with salt and pepper. Fold in the grated cheese. Pour over the partially baked pastry base.
Return into the oven and bake for another 25-30 minutes, until the filling is set and the tart is golden (do not brown).

One of my newest cookbooks is How Easy Is That? by Ina Garten. It's the first Ina Garten's book in my extensive cookbook library and I love it (I noted that there are quite a few negative reviews on Amazon, but then I cannot compare this book to her five earlier ones). I've bookmarked probably every other recipe from it, and can vouch that her Roasted Shrimp Salad with Orange Mayonnaise is wonderful, and her tip to set the table with empty bowls and platters with post-it notes has already been tested twice and that indeed made the last minute preparations a lot less stressful.

These herbed ricotta bruschette(or bruschettas, if you want to Americanize the plural spelling) were at our table last night for a light Sunday evening snack. I was thrilled to use the chives from my own garden already! It's a slightly adapted version, using different amounts of herbs, and both ricotta and cottage cheese instead of just ricotta, but the idea is Ina's. It's a lovely option for a spring or summer snack.

Herbed Ricotta Bruschette
(Krõbesaiad ürdise ricottaseguga)
Makes 12

12 thick slices of ciabatta or some sourdough bread
1 whole garlic clove, cut in half
extra-virgin olive oil

Herbed ricotta:
250 g ricotta
200 g cottage cheese/farmer's cheese
2 Tbsp finely chopped scallions/spring onions
2 Tbsp finely chopped fresh dill
2 Tbsp finely chopped fresh chives
0.5 tsp sea salt
freshly ground black pepper

Combine the ricotta, scallions, herbs, salt and pepper. Set aside.
Heat a charcoal grill or a toaster or a gas grill.
When the grill is hot, drizzle the bread slices with olive oil and grill each side for about a minute or two, until lightly browned. Remove from the grill and rub each slice of bread with the cut side of the garlic clove.
Spoon some herbed ricotta mixture on top. Serve immediately.

Another item I served at this year's Easter brunch. Same idea, but this time I used quail eggs and "pickled" them simply in grated boiled beetroot. They were adorable :)

Wild garlic has arrived! Wild garlic, also known as ramson or bear's garlic (Allium ursinum, 'karulauk' in Estonian), is a very close relative to the wild leek aka ramp (Allium tricoccum, 'grislilauk' in Estonian). I've been eagerly waiting for this spring green, as I love both the flavour and the versatily of it, and it's a good health-booster at this time of the year. Well, if it's good enough for big brown bears, it's good enough for us :D

Although I've been happily making a wild garlic pesto with pinenuts for a few years now, this one is a new favourite. There's more flavour, and somehow it's much more gutsier than the 'regular' wild garlic pesto. The idea to use almonds instead of pinenuts in a wild garlic pesto is from a German food magazine (aitäh, Kiilike, et tähelepanu retseptile juhtisid!). I've upped the amount of almonds and cheese, and used regular almonds instead of blanched.

Let me tell you - this was a huge hit at my recent birthday brunch, where the guests were spreading it on thin slices of ciabatta. I'm heading to my secret wild garlic field later today, just so I could make this one again :)

You could definitely try this with ramps or even with garlic scapes. If you love garlic, you'll love this, I promise!

Other recipes using wild garlic/ramson @ Nami-Nami:
Wild garlic tzatziki
Wild garlic and potato mash
Wild garlic butter
Wild garlic pesto (with pinenuts)
Stuffed tomatoes with wild garlic salad

Wild garlic pesto / Ramson pesto
(Karulaugupesto mandlitega)
Makes about 200 ml



a good bunch of wild garlic (about 125 g), rinsed and drained
50 g Parmesan cheese, roughly chopped
50 g whole almonds
75 ml (5 Tbsp) extra virgin olive oil
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Place almonds and cheese into a food processor and blitz into fine crumbs. Add wild garlic, process again until you've got a coarse pesto. Now add the oil little by little, with the machine still running.
Season with salt and pepper.

If you want to keep your pesto for a few weeks, then place into cool sterilised jars and pour a layer of olive oil on top. Keep in the fridge.

Cooksister's Jeanne is hosting this month's Monthly Mingle, and she chose topless tarts as the theme. She's one cheeky foodblogger, you know :) As my little family has been growing, I've been very bad in taking part various foodblogging events, but this theme really speaks to me and hence this post. I'm contributing this lovely beet and feta tart for the occasion. I know, I know - it wasn't so long ago that I blogged about beetroot tart. But March's beetroot tart was this lovely quiche with blue cheese and pickled beets. This time it's all about feta cheese and roasted beets!

I realise it's a risky choice for this month's mingle, as the hostess isn't so fond of beets. Hopefully she'll still accept my entry and give it the consideration it deserves :D

Here's a reminder from last summer - beets from our own garden:



Aren't they cute? I think they are ;)

Beetroot and feta tart
(Peedi-fetapirukas)
Inspired by Molly @ Orangette
Serves 6



Pastry:
180 g all purpose flour (300 ml)
0.5 tsp salt
0.5 tsp caster sugar
100 g cold butter, cut into cubes
cold water

Topping:
300 g boiled or roasted beets
200 g feta cheese
2 eggs
150 ml milk or single cream
fresh or dried oregano or dill
freshly ground black pepper

Make the pastry first. Combine flour, salt, sugar in a bowl of your food processor, then add the cold butter and process until you've got coarse crumbs. Now add a tablespoonful or two of cold water, until the dough comes together.
Flatten the dough into a disc and wrap in clingfilm. Place into the fridge for at least 30 minutes, preferably an hour.
Roll the pastry on a lightly floured surface into a circle large enough to fill a 24 cm springform tin. Transfer the dough into the tin, pressing it gently to the edge and up along the sides. Blind bake in a 200 C oven for about 15 minutes. Remove from the oven.
Great the beetroot coarsely, spread over the partly baked base.
Crumble the feta cheese over the beetroot.
Whisk the eggs with milk or cream, season with salt and dill or oregano. Pour over the tart.
Bake in a 180 C oven for about 35-40 minutes, until the egg is set.

Chocolate paskha, 2011, decorated with dried apricots

It's Easter Sunday this weekend and many a festive table will have a paskha (also spelled as 'pascha') as a centerpiece. We will, for sure.

Paskha is a sweet and rich curd cheese dessert that's traditionally served during Easter. I've shared two favourite recipes with you before - my traditional uncooked paskha with pistachio nuts and craisins and creamy cooked paskha with egg yolks. Here's another delicious paskha, especially for those of you who love chocolate!

Chocolate paskha
(Šokolaadisõbra kohupiimapasha)
Serves 8


Chocolate paskha, 2009, decorated with candied kumquats

500 g curd cheese (kohupiim/tvorog) or ricotta
100 ml whipping cream
100 g dark chocolate, chopped
75 g butter, cut into cubes
50 g caster sugar
handful of dried apricots
handful of dried seedless raisins

Place raisins and apricots into a colander, pour over boiling water and drain thoroughly. Put aside.

Place cream, chocolate and butter into a small heavy saucepan and heat gently, stirring with a wooden spoon, until chocolate and butter are melted and you've got a luscious brown sauce. Remove the pot from the heat and immediately fold in the curd cheese, sugar, apricots and raisins. Mix until combined.

Line a special paskha-dish or a fine sieve with a double layer of cotton muslin that you've rinsed under cold water and wrung dry. Pour the curd cheese mixture into the dish, place a small plate on top. Place the filled paskha-dish over a bowl to collect any whey liquid that will drip out of the paskha.

To serve, turn the paskha onto a plate, remove the muslin and paskha dish or sieve.

 Decorate as you please - I love the contrast of chocolate-coloured paskha and something orange (apricots, candied kumquats etc).

Have you decided upon your weekend cake yet? If not, then may I recommend this lovely and creamy and very lemony baked cheesecake? One of the local dairies has began to market cream cheese in 400 g tubs, and I had had one of those in my fridge for week or so. As I had also come across some very nice large Spanish lemons, I ended up making this delicious and creamy baked lemon cheesecake. I used a smaller cake tin this time, ending in a slightly higher cheesecake, but this would be also nice if made in 24 cm tin.

Note that this has quite a thick biscuit base, which nicely balances the zesty lemon filling. You may use much less, if you prefer.

Baked Lemon Cheesecake
Serves 8

Base:
250 g Digestive biscuits
125 g butter, melted

Filling:
400 g cream cheese, softened
150 g caster sugar
1 heaped Tbsp finely grated lemon rind
4 Tbsp lemon juice
3 large eggs

whipped cream, to serve (optional)

Preheat oven to 160°C. Grease a 20 cm round springform cake tin with butter, line the base with parchment paper. Process biscuits into fine crumbs, add melted butter and combine (I actually crushed the biscuits with a wooden spoon and mixed it all by hand). Press the cookie mixture over base and sides of the prepared tin. Refrigerate for 15 minutes.
Meanwhile, beat the cream cheese, sugar and lemon rind together until smooth. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating until combined. Add lemon juice, beat for another minute. Pour the mixture into prepared cake tin.
Bake for about 1 hour or until filling is just set (mixture may wobble slightly in centre, but will firm on standing). Cool in oven with door slightly ajar.
Refrigerate for 4 hours or until cold.
Garnish with some lemon zest and serve with cream.

I was translating some Swedish recipes the other day, when I came across the word 'långpanna'. I knew it was an oven sheet, but wasn't sure about the size of it. A quick internet search revealed that it's the deep-sided oven sheet, about 30x35 cm in size, that's used for baking kärleksmums. Although I know about quite a few Swedish cakes and pastries, I hadn't heard about these 'love yummies', but was intrigued. They are described as a slightly lighter alternative to regular brownies and are apparently sold pretty much in every café in dear old Sverige. This must be indeed the cake - a friend of mine - Airi - who lived in Sweden for quite a few years during her 20s, instantly recognised the cake at a party last weekend, where I brought it along.

Our little family loved it - not too chocolatey or rich, but still with a good amount of cocoa and very satisfying.

Both Anne and Dagmar have blogged about that particular cake as well, good Swedish foodbloggers as they are ;)

Kärleksmums
(Kärleksmums ehk kohviglasuuriga kakaokook)
Makes about 30 squares

150 g butter, melted
3 large eggs
250 g caster sugar
150 ml milk
240 g plain flour/all-purpose flour
2 Tbsp Dutch-processed cocoa powder
2 tsp baking powder
2 tsp vanilla sugar

Coffee-chocolate glaze:
75 g butter
2 Tbsp strong coffee
1 Tbsp cocoa powder
2 tsp vanilla sugar
about 200 g icing sugar/confectioner's sugar

desiccated/shredded coconut, to decorate

Preheat the oven to 200 C/400 F.
Whisk eggs and sugar until thick and pale. Fold in the melted butter (cooled!) and milk.
Combine the dry ingredients, then fold quickly and gently into the wet ingredients.
Spoon the batter onto a lined cookie sheet (abut 30x35 cm).
Bake in a preheated 20 C oven for about 15-20 minutes, until the cake feels springy when touched with a finger. Take out of the oven and let cool.
For the glaze, melt the butter over a low heat, stir in the rest of the ingredients. Spread the glaze over the cooled cake base.
Sprinkle with plenty of shredded coconut.

Cut in to squares before serving.