Quick and tasty dinner:Pasta and 2 sauce alternatives!

Hello there! Moi! Aloha! :)

I know,it looks as if I've abandoned the blog .I can't believe it's almost 2 months since I last posted something. My excuse for the lack of content is : a) I traveled to Finland in July-August for a little over 2 weeks and b) I've been in a post-vacation sad mood ever since I got back .

It was a lovely WWOOF-ing experience in Southern Finland,but this is post is not going to be about that.If you want me to dedicate an article to my volunteering experience(and how you can travel very cheap  in exchange for volunteering),please do let me know !

Today's article is about pasta and 2 delicious sauces that you can prepare in under 15 minutes .I don't know what it is about pasta but I'm sure you've noticed that people of all ages love it,including kids(and you know how hard it is to get kids to eat ).

The pasta I use for these sauces is either gnocchi or fusilli.Of course you can also use ditalini,gomiti,penne rigate or any other exotic sounding pasta you can find :) I don't recommend spaghetti or any thin type of pasta.

I'm a tomato person.I love tomatoes to death and I used to eat pasta only with tomato sauce but  today's recipes are for "white" sauces.

A. Alfredo sauce

200 ml milk (200 ml lapte)
1/2 tbsp butter (1 lingura unt)
1/2 tbsp all purpose flour (1/2 lingura faina)
3 tbsp grated hard cheese (3 linguri cascaval ras)
2 garlic cloves,minced (2 catei de usturoi,tocati marunt)
a pinch of salt and ground black pepper (sare si piper dupa gust)

Melt the butter over medium heat. Add the flour,stirring constantly.(Topiti untul la foc mediu.Adaugati faina,amestecand constant.)
Gradually add the milk,stirring constantly.(Adaugati laptele gradual,amestecand constant)
Add the grated hard cheese,minced garlic,salt and pepper and let it simmer for 2 more minutes.(Adaugati cascavalul ras,usturoiul tocat,sare si piper si lasati amestecul la foc mic inca 2 minute)

B.Mushroom sauce

3 tbsp butter (3 linguri unt)
1 onion,minced (1 ceapa uscata,tocata marunt)
2 cloves garlic,minced( 2 catei de usturoi,tocati marunt)
115 grams fresh mushrooms,sliced ( 115 g ciuperci proaspete,taiate)
1/2 tsp dried basil( 1/2 lingurita busuioc uscat)
1/4 tsp salt (1/4 lingurita sare)
1/8 tsp ground black pepper (1/8 lingurita piper macinat)
30 g all purpose flour(30 g faina)
250 ml milk( 250 ml lapte)

Melt the butter over medium heat.Add the onion and garlic and saute about 3-5 minutes until the onion is translucent.Add mushrooms,basil,salt and pepper and saute 5 to 10 more minutes.(Topiti untul la foc mediu.Adaugati ceapa si usturoiul si caliti 3-5 minute pana cand ceapa devine translucida.Adaugati ciupercile,busuiocul,sarea si piperul si lasati amestecul pe foc inca 5-10 minute.)

Remove pan from the heat and add the flour.Gradually add milk,stirring constantly.(Luati vasul de pe foc si adaugati faina.Adaugati laptele gradual,amestecand constant)

Return the pan to heat until sauce thickens and comes to a boil.Reduce heat and let it simmer for 2 more minutes.(Readuceti vasul pe foc si lasati-l pana cand sosul se ingroasa si da in clocot.Dati focul mai mic si mai lasati-l la foc inca 2 minute)



Bon appetit !

Sweet 'n' Sour :Lemon Cupcakes Recipe

Hello,darlings! On this cold Monday afternoon I thought about sharing another cupcake recipe.I really like the taste of lemon in a cupcake .This is perfect for enjoying on a hot summer afternoon on the beach with a glass of whatever you fancy :) But honestly,it's tasty no matter the season.

Now that I'm finally over with all the exams and have just started my 3 month long vacation,I will be cooking/baking more but most of all ,travel :) That's what summer is for.

Moving on now..this is what you need for your lovely lemon cupcakes:

• 250 grams of all- purpose flour(250 grame faina)
• 1 tablespoon baking powder(1 lingura praf de copt)
• a pinch of salt( un varf de cutit de sare)
• 240 ml milk( 240 ml lapte)
• the zest of 2 lemons( coaja a 2 lamai)
• 60 ml lemon juice(60 ml suc de lamaie)
• 4 egg- whites( 4 albusuri)
• 300 grams of granulated sugar(300 grame zahar granulat)
• 115 grams of butter( 115 grame unt)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract( 1 lingurita extract de vanilie)

If you have everything ready , what are you waiting for? Let's start mixing everything :P
First of all,preheat your oven.I preheat mine a couple of minutes before putting the  cupcake batter in because my oven doesn't show the temperature.(I have an ancient oven).

Steps:

1. Mix the flour,baking powder and salt.(Amestecati  faina,praful de copt si sarea)
2. In another bowl,mix the milk,lemon juice and egg whites .(In alt vas,amestecati laptele,sucul de lamaie si albusurile)
3. In bowl number 3,mix the lemon zest with the sugar.Add the butter,take a hand mixer and mix for about 3 minutes.Add the vanilla extract.(In vasul numarul 3,amestecati coaja de lamaie cu zaharul.Adaugati untul si amestecati cu mixerul in jur de 3 minute.Adaugati extractul de vanilie)
4. In bowl number 3,pour one third of the flour and mix.Then pour one half of the milk-lemon juice-egg-whites mixture and mix yet again.Then pour another third of the flour,the other half of the milk mixture and  finally the last part of the flour-baking powder-salt mixture.Make sure to mix well anytime you add .(In vasul #3,turnati o treime din faina si amestecati.Apoi turnati jumatate din amestecul de lapte ,suc de lamaie si albusuri si amestecati din nou.Turnati a doua treime din faina,cealalta jumate din lapte si la sfarsit ultima treime faina.Nu uitati sa amestecati bine dupa fiecare adaugare.)
5. Mix everything one more time at the end.(Amestecati totul onca o data la sfarsit)
6. Pour the batter in cupcake liners and put them in your preheated oven for about 18 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.( Turnati compozitia in hartii pentru briose si puneti-le  in cuptorul preincalzit in jur de 18 minute sau pana cand scobitoarea iese curata)

Result ☺

Enjoy your cupcake!

My favorite crepes recipe!

Hello and happy Monday to you! :)
The week has just started and I have my first exam tomorrow.What plans do you have for this week?

Sometimes,when I'm in the mood for something sweet and quick to make,I opt for crepes( a thinner kind of pancake).There are many recipes for crepes out there but this is the one that I like.You will need:

• 240 ml milk(240 ml lapte)
• 2 tablespoons of  granulated sugar(2 linguri zahar)
• 1 teaspoon of salt( 1 lingurita sare)
• 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract(1 lingurita extract de vanilie)
• 3-4 teaspoons of yogurt(3-4 lingurite iaurt)
• 1 teaspoon of lemon zest(1 lingurita coaja de lamaie)
• 110 grams of all purpose flour(110 grame faina)
• 1 egg(1 ou)

Now that you have these,mix them all in a bowl until you get a mixture with the consistency of a more liquid cream.Heat some oil in a pan and pour a ladleful of the mixture in the pan.Then you know the drill :)
You will have about 6 crepes resulting from the mixture.
RO:Amestecati totul intr-un vas pana cand obtineti un amestec de consistenta unei smanatani mai lichide.Incalziti niste ulei inr-o tigaie si puneti cate un polonic din amestec.Ar trebui sa va iasa cam 6 clatite.

Fill it with whatever you want and dig in!:D

Recipe:Not-too-sweet Chocolate Orange Cupcakes(EN/RO)

Hello again, lovelies!
First and foremost...Yay! I made it to 100 followers! Thank you so much for taking time out of your day to read and subscribe to my blog :) It means a lot to me.

Today, I have a recipe to share with you. To me, chocolate+ orange= love :) so,what better way to combine them than in a cupcake?Right, there is no better way.
Keep in mind that you can add more sugar if you wish but I prefer it like this. Less sugar= smaller chance of getting diabetes & less calories,right?
RO: Astazi, vreau sa impart o reteta cu voi.Pentru mine,ciocolata si portocalele sunt combinatia perfecta.Deci, de ce sa nu le combinam intr-o briosa? :)
Daca va plac mai dulci,puteti adauga mai mult zahar,dar eu le prefer asa.Mai putin zahar= mai putine sanse sa facem diabet= mai putine calorii :)

You will need:
O sa aveti nevoie de :

• 75 grams butter(softened) ( 75 grame unt la temperatura camerei)
• 80 grams granulated sugar (80 grame zahar granulat)
• 1 teaspoon baking powder ( 1 lingurita praf de copt)
• 200 grams all purpose flour (200 grame faina)
• a pinch of salt ( un varf de cutit de sare)
• 2 tablespoons cocoa (2 linguri cacao)
• 100 ml orange juice  (100 ml suc de portocale)
• 1 egg (1 ou)
• the zest of an orange  ( coaja de la o portocala)

Step 1: Preheat your oven.(I don't pay attention at how many degrees because I have an old type of oven.Just make sure it's hot :) )
RO:Preincalziti cuptorul.Nu tin cont de grade fiindca am un cuptor vechi care imi afiseaza nimic.

Step 2: Mix the butter with the sugar with a hand mixer.(or a spoon or whatever you have).Add the egg and mix again.Just make sure it's all mixed together really well.
RO: Amestecati untul cu zaharul utilizand un mixer(sau o lingura sau ce aveti).Adaugati oul si mixati din nou pana se uniformizeaza compozitia.

Step 3:In another bowl, mix  the flour,cocoa,salt and baking powder.Put the dry ingredients over the butter-egg-sugar mixture and stir.
RO: In alt vas, amestecati faina,cacaoa,sarea si praful de copt.Puneti ingredientele uscate peste cele ne-uscate si amestecati bine.

Step 4: Peel an orange and get the juice of it. Add the zest and juice to the mixture.
RO: Radeti coaja de la o portocala si faceti suc din ea.Adaugati aceste 2 ingrediente in amestec.

Step 5: Line your cupcake tray .Put in the oven for about 10 to 15 minutes. Do the toothpick test if you wish.
RO: Pregatiti tava cu hartie pt.briose.Dati la cuptor pentru aproximativ 10-15 minute .Faceti testul cu scobitoarea ca sa va asigurati ca s-au facut.

Step 6: Enjoy your cupcakes that should look like this:
RO: Bucurati-va de briosele voastre care are trebui sa arate cam asa:

Happy cupcake eating and last day of April! :)

Yogurt & Fruits Chocolate Cups Recipe

Hello, beautiful people of the world!:)

Today I want to share with you one of the many dessert recipes I've tried in the past couple of months. Apparently, 2013 brought to me a passion for dessert making .

I decided to try out this dessert after watching Byron Talbott's video on Youtube. He makes every recipe look so easy and I really find his videos extremely helpful. I won't go into detail on how I made the chocolate cups because I think it's much more useful if you watch the video itself :)

Now,for the filling I used yogurt,bananas, kiwis and tiny pieces of chocolate. I'm not a big fan of very sweet desserts  so I thought that the filling should be a little bit sour.That's pretty much why I chose yogurt. I sliced a banana and a kiwi .I took what was left of the chocolate that I didn't melt and broke it into tiny pieces and sprinkled it over.

I think this is an awesome dessert for people that are not into extremely sweet stuff.

 You will need:
-about 200 grams dark chocolate
-as many balloons as you want cups
-140 grams yogurt( depending on the size of the cup)
-1 or 2 bananas
-1 or 2 kiwis
-a teaspoon of small chocolate pieces( or why not chocolate chips)

The previous dessert recipes that I have posted: tiramisu and pineapple chocolate pyramid (I just came up with that name,it kind of looks like a pyramid) :)



Have an awesome week and keep smiling! :)

Summer Recipes:Tiramisu

Hey y'all!Today I want to share with you my all time favorite dessert recipe: the well known Tiramisu.I found this recipe on Internet a while back  and it's so easy to make.You don't need an oven,it takes about half an hour and it tastes yummy.

What I used: 400 grams ladyfingers
                    4 eggs
                    500 grams mascarpone
                    4 spoons sugar
                    1/2 liters natural coffee
                     1 spoon cocoa powder


What I did(and what you should do:) ):
Separate the yolk from the egg-white.Whip the egg-white.Mix the yolk with the sugar.Add the yolk-sugar mixture gradually to the whipped egg-white.Add the mascarpone and then use a mixer to mix it all together (what else could you do with a mixer anyway :) )

Take a plate and start with a layer of coffee sodden ladyfingers,then a layer of mascarpone cream ,another layer of ladyfingers,then another one of cream....you get it.Do that until A)you're out of ingredients B)you feel tired.
And last but not least,take some cocoa powder and powder the Tiramisu with it.Put it in the fridge for half an hour and then eat it .Or leave it there for a day.Your choice:)

What it looks like


If it looks kind of messy ,that's because it's supposed to look like that.It's not always like in the magazines:)
Enjoy your day!
Misha

Sweet Summer Recipe!

Hi guys!Lately I've been curious about different desserts I can make.I really love Tiramisu but I thought"Why not experiment?" and I tried something with pineapples,ladyfingers and cocoa cream.So this is what I used:
-200 grams of ladyfingers

-canned pineapples(1)

For the cocoa cream:
-150 grams butter

 -3 spoons of powder sugar

-1 egg

-3 full spoons of cocoa powder

Take a bowl and mix the butter with sugar.Then add the egg and the cocoa powder.I used almond essence ,too.You can put rum essence or not put anything at all.You leave the canned pineapple in the can but you let the pineapple syrup drop out in another bowl.You take a big plate and put a layer of ladyfingers that you have previously soaked in pineapple syrup.Next you put a layer of cocoa cream and lastly a layer of pineapple bits.You repeat this process till you're out of ingredients:)

To be honest,mine was way too sweet for my taste .If you want to make it less sweet I recommend you use fresh pineapple ,which is not as sweet.You could soak the ladyfingers in water instead of sweet syrup.Overall,it tastes better the next day:)

This is how it looks: