Elderflower Lollipop

ingredients (8-10 lollipops):

Lollipop:

• 5-7 dl icing sugar or lollipop mold

• 2 tsp elderflower extract 

• 60 ml water

• 200 g sugar

• 60 ml white corn syrup

• lollipop sticks

• elderflower, for decorating

How to:

To prepare your lollipop mold, line a baking tray with parchment paper and then spread an even layer of icing sugar so that it is about 1 cm thick. Use a flat water glass about 5 cm across and press this into the icing sugar at intervals, making sure the impression is level (if you make a mistake, you can always loosen the icing sugar and start again.) Place one end of a lollipop stick into each depression.

Place the water, sugar and corn syrup in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil over high heat without stirring.  Occasionally brush the sides of the pan with water to prevent any sugar splashes from sticking and crystallizing.  

Cook the sugar until it reaches a temperature of 145 C as measured on a candy thermometer (the sugar should not change colour).  Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the elderflower concentrate.  Work quickly to carefully ladle the hot sugar into each depression, so that it fills it and covers the lollipop stick. Sprinkle the lollipops with elderflowers. Let the lollipops cool completely. 

 Lift the lollipops out of the icing sugar and gently tap off any icing sugar stuck to them.  Use a damp paper towel (cool water) to wipe the icing sugar side of the lollipop and then immediately dry that side with a dry paper towel.  Wrap the lollipops individually if you wish.

The lollipops will keep for up to a month, well-wrapped at room temperature.

White Chocolate cupcakes with Rose buttercream

ingredients (12 ):

Cupcakes:

• 100 g butter

• 1 egg

• 0.5 dl sugar

• 1 tsp vanilla extract

• 3.75 dl flour

• 2 tsp baking powder

• 0.5 teaspoon salt

• 1.8 dl milk

• 200 g white chocolate, chopped

Buttercream:

• 200 g unsalted butter, room temperature

• 450 g powdered sugar

• 1/4 tsp salt

• 1.5 Tbsp heavy cream

• 0.5 Tbsp rose water

• pink food color (optional)

How to:

Cupcakes:

Preheat oven to 180C.  Prepare cupcake tin with butter and cupcake liners.

Using a double-boiler, melt the white chocolate and the butter and set aside. 

Sift together the dry ingredients and set aside.

Place the egg and sugar in the bowl and beat on high until fluffy. Add vanilla, milk and white chocolate mixture and mix. Then slowly add in the dry ingredients as well. When fully combined, pour the batter into the prepared tin and bake for 18-20 minutes.

Buttercream:

Beat the butter on a medium speed until smooth. Mix in the rose water and salt on a low speed. (If you don’t like rosewater just add bit of vanilla extract instead).

Slowly add in the powdered sugar, 1dl at a time. Alternate with small splashes of cream, and mix on a low speed. Mix until the ingredients are fully incorporated, and the desired consistency is reached. 

Put half of the butter cream into a piping bag with 1M-tip. Push the sides together so buttercream covers all the piping bags sides. Then add a small amount of pink food coloring to the rest of the buttercream. Open up the piping bag and try to push the pink colored cream into the middle (between the white sides). This will make your roses extra beautiful when you pipe them out.

Flower Salad

Ingredients (4 servings):

Salad:

• 2 handful of spinach

• 1 handful edible flower petals (ex. marigold, pansy, lilac, nasturtium )

• 1 cucumber

• 4 big tomatoes

• 150 g feta cheese

• fresh basil

• 1 red onion

•  2 sweet potatoes

Dressing: 

• 1.5 dl olive oil

• 0.5 dl balsamic vinegar 

• 1 dl honey

• 1 tbsp italian dressing seasoning*

• 0.5 tsp salt

• 1 pressed garlic clove

• 0.25 tsp pepper

How to:

Preheat oven to 200 C. 

Cut the sweet potatoes diagonally and place them cut down on a prepared pan. Leave in oven for 20 minutes.

Slice the cucumber, cube the feta cheese and tomatoes and cut the onion into big chunks. When the 20 minutes are up add you red onion next to the sweet potatoes and leave in for another 20 minutes.

In a small bottle, add all the ingredients for the dressing and shake well. 

Add everything to nice mixing bowl, pour as much dressing on as you like and mix well. 

Serve with freshly baked bread.

*italian dressing seasoning: 1.5 tsp  garlic powder, 1 tbsp onion powder, 2 tbsp oregano, 1 tbsp dried parsley, 1 tbsp granulated sugar, 2 tbsp salt, 1 tsp black pepper, 1 tsp ground basil, 0.25 tsp teaspoon ground thyme

Chive Flower Pancake

Ingredients (2 servings) :

Batter:

• 2 dl flour

• 2 dl cold water

• 1/2 teaspoon salt

• ¼ tsp black pepper

• 1 tsp garlic powder

• 1/2 white onion

• 4 tbsp chive flower petals

• 1 teaspoon soy sauce

• sesame oil

Dipping sauce:

• 1 tbsp soy sauce

• 1 tsp vinegar

• 1 tbsp water

• 1/2 tsp sugar

• sesame seeds

How to:

Thinly slice the onion. Add the flour, garlic powder and salt to a large bowl. Stir in the water and the soy sauce and mix lightly. The batter should be thin.

 Mix in the flower petals and onion.

 Heat one tablespoon of oil in a pan over medium heat. Ladle the mixture into the pan, and spread it evenly into a thin round shape. Cook until the edges turn light golden brown, about 2 to 3 minutes. Turn it over, adding more oil (it needed), and press it down with a spatula. Cook until the other side is light golden brown, about 2 minutes. Repeat the process. 

 Serve with a dipping sauce

Lilac Gin Sour

Ingredients (1 serving):

Lilac Sour:

• 4 cl gin

• 3 cl lilac syrup

• 3 cl lemon juice

• 1 egg white

• 2 dashes angostura bitters

Lilac syrup:

• 20 Lilac flower clusters

• 1 liter water

• 1 kg sugar

• 0.5 st lemon

• 1 tbsp citric acid

How to:

Lilac Sour:

Add gin, syrup, lemon and egg white to a shaker and dry shake for 15 seconds. Then add some ice and shake again til cold. Strain into sour glass or martini glass and decorate with a lilac flower or leave it as it is. 

Lilac syrup:

Start by shaking the flower clusters so that any bugs that might have been inside fall out. Plock off the purple flowers and put them into a fine sieve. Make sure to remove any greens because they taste bitter. 

Wash the flowers and the lemon. Slice the lemon and put all of them in a medium saucepan.

In a different saucepan mix sugar and water and bring to a boil. Add the citric acid and mix. Then pour the hot sugar mixture over the flowers and lemon. Put a lid on it and leave it in the fridge for 3 days. 

After that pour the liquid into a clean bottle through a fine sieve. :)  You can also freeze it, but fill only to ¾ of the container because it will expand. 

*To make juice: dilute 1 part syrup to 4 parts water.

Boozy Strawberry Boba Milk Tea

Ingredients (2 servings):

• 4 dl milk

• 1 dl tapioca pearls

• 1 tbsp brown sugar

• 8 cl strawberry vodka

• 2 tbsp strawberry syrup

How to:

Boba:

Add 5 dl of water to a medium saucepan and bring to a boil. Add boba and quickly stir until the boba are all floating at the surface.Decrease the heat to medium and cook for 3 minutes. Remove from heat, cover, and let sit for another 3 minutes.

Strain the boba under cold water for 20 seconds, then transfer into a bowl with the brown sugar. Mix and let it rest there until ready to serve. Use within 5-10 minutes while fresh, or keep them inside the syrup and refrigerate.

Drink:

Spoon the boba to bottom of a tall glass. Add the vodka, strawberry syrup and milk to a shaker. Fill the shaker halfway with ice and vigorously shake until ice cold. Strain into the glass over the boba. Add some new ice and a wide mouth straw, and serve!

Vegan Jajangmyeon

Ingredients (4 servings):

• Udon noodles 

• 1 large potato

• 1 zucchini

• 1 white onion

• 100 g cabbage   

• 1 tsp garlic powder

• 1 dl black fermented bean sauce

• 1 tbsp brown sugar

• cucumber

• sesame seeds

How to:

Fry the black bean sauce in some oil on low heat, only to give it some flavour but don’t burn it! Put it aside.

Cook noodles according to package. 

In a large pan, fry the onions for a couple of minutes before adding the potatoes and cabbage. Season with garlic powder and cook for about 10 minutes. Add only the zucchini when the potatoes are fully cooked. Now add the black bean sauce, sugar and 0.5 - 1 dl water and let it all simmer until it turn into a nice creamy texture. (Taste and add more water if you feel it’s too salty, you can always add a little bit of cornstarch in the end to make it more thick.) 

Add the noodles to a plate and pour the vegetable mixture over it, decorate with cucumber cut up into matchsticks and sesame seeds.

Mozzarella Corndogs

Ingredients (8 pieces) :

Batter:

• 2.5 dl all purpose flour plus more for dusting

• 2 tsp baking powder

• 1/2 tsp salt

• 2 Tbsp sugar

• 1 egg

• 1.5 dl cold milk

Cheese corn dogs:

• 8 cheese sticks

• 2.5 dl panko bread crumbs

• frying oil

• 1 dl sugar

• Spicy ketchup (half ketchup & half sriracha)

• honey mustard

How to:

In a mixing bowl, whisk flour, baking powder, salt and sugar. Make a little well in the middle and add egg and milk. Mix everything together until smooth. Pour batter into a long glass and keep it in a fridge until ready to use.

Skewer cheese sticks onto wooden skewers. Dust with flour and place in a freezer at least 10 minutes. (It’s very important to keep everything cold, otherwise, the cheese will leak out to the oil.)

Heat frying oil to 165°C. Dip and coat the skewered cheese sticks with the cold batter. Make sure to cover all around. Now, lightly and quickly coat with panko bread crumbs then carefully place into frying oil. Fry for 5 minutes or until golden brown outside. Remove form oil, place on a cooling rack or paper towel lined baking sheet.

To make it a little bit more fun: Spread sugar on a large plate. Roll cheese corn dogs on sugar to evenly coat while it’s still hot. 

Enjoy with ketchup and honey mustard.

Rainbow Crepe Cake

ingredients (8-10 servings):

Crepes:

• 4 eggs

• 8dl milk

• 3 ¼dl flour

• ½ tsp salt

• 4 tbsp butter

• food coloring: purple, blue, green, yellow, orange & red

• 1 l whipping cream

Strawberry syrup:

• 4dl strawberries

• 2dl sugar

• 4 dl water

How to:

Crepes:

Mix flour, salt and half the milk til it’s smooth and have no lumps. Add rest of the milk and eggs. Pour into 6 different containers (2dl/container) and add the food colorings of your choice. In a frying pan cook all the crepes (I did 0.5 dl a piece). So the end result was 4 of each color and a total of 24 crepes. 

In a large bowl whip the whipping cream until firm (but not too firm).

Put the first crepe on  plate and add a heaping spoonful of whipped cream, smooth it out and add the next layer until you have no crepes left. 

Decorate with strawberry syrup.

Strawberry syrup:

Add sugar, strawberries and water to a small saucepan and bring to a boil. Boil for about 20 minutes. Mixture will reduce and thicken slightly. Using a fine sieve or mesh strainer, strain the mixture into a small bottle.

Strawberry Tanghulu

ingredients (6 skewers with 4 berries):

Tanghulu:

• 0.5 dl water

• 4 dl sugar

• 0.5 dl + 1 tbsp corn syrup

• strawberries

• skewers

How to:

Add sugar, water and corn syrup to a small saucepan and bring it to boil. Bring it to 150c (using a candy thermometer). Put the strawberries (or any other fruit) on the skewers and dip it in the hot sugar syrup then put i on a prepared baking sheet to harden.

Khanom Chan (Thai layered cake)

ingredients ():

Khanom chan:

• 1 dl sweet rice flour 

• 1 dl tapioca flour

• 0.75 dl sugar

• 2 dl canned coconut milk

• 0.25 dl water

• 0.5 tsp pandan essence

• green food coloring (optional)

How to:

Add coconut milk, water and sugar to a small saucepan. Heat on low and whisk until the sugar has dissolved. (Make sure the mixture is not warm, because that will activate the tapioca flour.)

Add the flour mixture to a bowl and gradually add coconut mixture while mixing with whisk to break up any flour clumps. Divide mixture into two bowls. In one bowl, whisk pandan essence and food coloring until well combined.

Prepare a steamer pot. Wrap the lid with a clean kitchen towel and secure with a rubber band on the handle. Oil a silicone mold and place it into the steamer pot and heat for 5 minutes. (Either use a big 10x10 cm mold or do as I did and use praline molds).

Depending on the size of your mold, you’re going to want to add different amount of batter. I’m using very small mold so I made each layer about 3mm thick. Start with your green batter, add as much you want and cover with the lid and steam for 5 minutes, or until the layer is set. Than pour the same amount of the white batter on top, cover and steam for 5 minutes. Repeat the process, alternating the batters and steaming each layer for 5 minutes. After the last layer is poured, allow to steam for 10 minutes.

Remove the mold from the pot and allow to cool completely. Flip the cake onto a board and serve! :) 

Mint Chip Ice Cream

ingredients (1l):

Ice cream:

• 4 egg yolks 

• 1 dl sugar 

• 3 dl whole milk

• 1.5 dl cup heavy cream

• 1 dl fresh mint leaves, packed

• green food coloring

• 100 g dark chocolate, chopped

How to:

In a medium bowl, whisk together egg yolks and sugar. In a saucepan over low heat, stir together milk and cream.  Add in mint leaves, slightly bruising leaves by crunching in a fist.  Heat until steaming (not boiling!).

Add about 1 dl of the hot milk mixture and whisk into the egg yolk mixture to temper the eggs.  Pour the egg mixture back into the rest of the milk mixture, stirring constantly.  Keep over low heat and cook until thickened, 5 to 6 minutes, or until thick enough to coat the back of a spoon.  Stir in food coloring and strain through a sieve into a large bowl. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and chill overnight.

Next day, process the custard in an ice cream machine, adding the chopped chocolate during the last minute or two of churning. Pour mixture into an ice cream container and freeze overnight until hard.

Pesto Pasta

Ingredients (4 servings):

• 5 dl fresh basil, tightly packed

• 0.5 dl walnuts

• 0.5 dl extra virgin olive oil

• 1-2 garlic cloves 

• 1 dl parmesan cheese

• 0.5 tsp salt

• 0.25 tsp freshly ground pepper

• 2 dl green cherry tomatoes

• 500g spinach spaghetti 

How to:

Cook the spaghetti according to the package and drain. 

Place all you ingredients (except for spaghetti and tomatoes) in the food processor and blend until nice and smooth, taste and season with more salt or garlic if needed. 

Cut the tomatoes into quarters.

In a big bowl add the spaghetti, tomatoes and pesto, toss everything until all the spaghetti has been covered with the pesto. 

Green Soup

Ingredients (4 servings) :

• 250g broccoli , cut into small florets

• 1 carrot, diced

• 1 garlic

• 1 yellow onion, diced

• 1 potato

• 1 dl frozen spinach defrosted

• 3 tbsp yoghurt

• 7 dl vegetable broth

• 1 tsp salt

• Freshly ground black pepper

How to:

Add the carrot, yellow onion, spinach and garlic into a medium pot and saute them for a couple of minutes before covering with the vegetable broth. Bring to boil over medium heat, then simmer on low heat for 20 minutes. Add the broccoli and simmer for 5 more minutes.

Remove from stove, add the season and use a hand mixer to blend everything until creamy.

Add the yoghurt and put the pot back to the stove and slowly whisk everything to incorporate.

Kiwirosca

Ingredients (1 serving):

• 2 kiwi (peeled)

• 4 tsp sugar

• 5 cl vodka

• 0.5 lime

• crushed ice

How to:

In a shaker muddle kiwi and sugar together until a pulp has formed. Then add about 1 dl of crushed  ice and the vodka and stir.

Pour into a rocks glass and decorate with a slice of kiwi. 

Mima’s Moon Pie

ingredients (8):

Cookies:

• 230 g butter (softened at room temperature)

• 60 g Powdered sugar

• 125 g wheat flour

• 120 g graham flour

• 1/4 tsp salt

• 1/2 tsp baking powder

• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Filling:

• 1 unflavored gelatin envelope

• 200 g sugar

• 1 tbsp light corn syrup

• 1/4 tsp salt

• 0.75 dl water

• 230 g chocolate (finely chopped)

• 1 tbsp coconut butter

How to:

Cookies:

Preheat oven to 175 C and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.

In the bowl, mix the butter and sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy. In another bowl mix the wheat flour, graham flour, salt, baking powder and vanilla. Add the dry ingredients to the butter and beat until the dough comes together and looks uniform. Form the dough into a disc and wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for about 20 minutes.

Transfer the dough to a lightly floured work surface and roll until it is about 5mm thick. Use a 7.5 cm round cutter or glass to cut out the cookies from the dough. Re-roll the scraps and continue cutting until you have 14-16 cookies. Use a thin spatula to transfer the cookies to the prepared baking sheet/sheets. 

Bake for about 12 minutes, or until the cookies are golden brown and set. Let cool on the baking sheet for 10 minutes before transfering them to a wire rack to cool completely.

Marshmallow filling: 

Put the gelatine envelope in some water and put to the side.

Combine the sugar, corn syrup, salt and water in a medium saucepan and set over medium heat. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the mixture reaches 115 C. With the mixer on low speed, slowly add the hot sugar in a steady stream down the side of the mixer bowl. When fully incorporated, increase the mixer speed to high and beat until the marshmallow is fluffy and thick.

When the cookies are completely cool, pair them by size. Transfer the marshmallow to a large pastry bag. Pipe 2-3 tablespoons of the filling onto one side of each pair of cookies. Pipe it within about 1 cm of the edges. Place the other cookie on top to make a sandwich (the cookies are a bit fragile so you don’t want to press on the sandwich too much to get the filling to the edge). Pop the sandwiches in the fridge for about 10 minutes to allow the marshmallow to set.

Chocolate coating: 

Add the chocolate and shortening to a heatproof bowl and put it over a water bath. Stir until the chocolate is melted and smooth. To dip the sandwiches, use a fork and let the excess chocolate drip off, then transfer to a wire rack set over a piece of wax paper. When you’ve dipped all of the sandwiches, transfer to the refrigerator to set. Once set, transfer the moon pies to an airtight container and store in the refrigerator.

Rajesh’s Grasshopper

Ingredients (1 serving):

• 3 cl double cream 

• 3 cl creme de cacao

• 3 cl creme de menthe

How to:

Pour into shaker, dry shake first just like you would any other cream or egg based cocktail. Then add some ice and shake until cold and strain into a martini glass. Garnish with grated chocolate.

Howard's Mom's Brisket

Ingredients (5 servings):

• 1 kg beef brisket

• 1 tbsp salt

• 1 tsp pepper

• 1 tbsp flour 

• 1 tbsp vegetable oil

• 4 medium yellow onions, peeled and sliced 1 cm thick

• 1.5 tablespoons tomato paste

• 2 cloves garlic

• 4 carrots, peeled and halved

• Handful fresh chopped parsley, for garnish (optional)

How to:

Preheat oven to 175 C. 

Season the brisket on both sides with salt and pepper, then lightly dust it with flour. Heat the oil over medium heat in a oven proof cast-iron pot, add the brisket and sear on both sides (about 5 minutes per side). Transfer brisket to a platter and then add the onion to the pot and stir with wooden spoon until they become softened and golden brown. 

Turn off the heat and place brisket (fatty side up) on top of the onions. Spread the tomato paste over the brisket and scatter the garlic and carrots around the edges of the pot. Cover the pot with a lid and put it in the oven for 2 hours. Then transfer the brisket to a cutting board and slice it up. Put the slices back into the pot and oven, then lower the heat to 160 C and cook until fork-tender, about 2 more hours (the longer the better). Check during cooking to make sure it doesn’t get dry, (if that happens, add a couple of tsp of water). 

When it’s ready, serve with it’s juices and maybe some mashed potatoes, but it’s even better the second day when all the ingredients have gotten to know each other. :)

Tuesday Hamburger Slider

Ingredients (6 burgers) :

• 250 g ground beef

• 1 tsp garlic powder

• 1 tsp salt

• 1 tsp pepper

• 1 tsp paprika

• barbecue sauce

• 3 strips bacon, cut in half

• 6 small cheddar cheese slices

• 6 mini burger buns 

• 3 green leaf lettuce, cut in half

• 6 slices tomato

How to:

This is barely a recipe but anyway 0:). 

In a bowl, add the ground beef and spices and mix together. Divide to 6 equal pieces and fry them to the doneness of your choice. 

Build your burger and enjoy!

Lactose-Free Raspberry Cheesecake (For Leonard)

ingredients (10-12 servings):

Mold size: 20 cm diameter

Cheesecake:

• 15 digestive biscuits

• 50 g melted lactose free butter

• 350 g lactose free cream cheese

• 95 g sugar

• 1 tsp vanilla extract

• 15 g lemon juice

• 10 g gelatin sheets

• 210 g lactose free heavy cream (whipped to 50%)

Raspberry:

• 250 g raspberries

• 50 g sugar

• 5g gelatin sheets

How to:

Bottom:Crush the biscuits and mix with butter, push th mixture to the bottom of the mold.

First cream cheese layer: In a medium bowl, mix all the ingredients except the gelatin sheets. Divide the mixture into two bowls. Add 5g gelatin to the first bowl, mix and then pour the mixture into the mold and put it in the fridge. Let it rest for 30 minutes. 

First raspberry jelly layers: In a saucepan add the raspberries and sugar and boil for a 5 minutes, then strain it through a fine sieve to remove the seeds. Divide this mixture into two bowls as well. Add 2.5g sheet to one of them and pour that mixture over the first cheesecake layer and put it back to the fridge for 30 minutes. 

Second cream cheese layers: Add 5g gelatin to the second bowl, mix and then pour the mixture over the first raspberry layer and put it in the fridge. Let it rest for 30 minutes. 

Second raspberry jelly layers: Add 2.5g gelatine sheets to the second raspberry bowl-mix and pour it into a piping bag. Decorate the cheesecake with the atom symbol. Put the cake back into the fridge for the last 30 minutes and then it’s ready to be served.