Pizza Cookie

This week I made a delicious coffee fudge tart and had some dough leftovers. I didn't want to throw them away so I decided to make an experiment. I wanted to mix sweet and salty. The dough had sugar in it and was lightly sweet. So I remembered how much I like salty caramel and decided to make something like that - salty sweet, only without caramel. What about... sweet pizza? Oh yes! But don't misunderstand - they don't taste like real pizza. The cookie is crispy, buttery and lightly sweet and the top is spicy. I really didn't think it will turn out so good! I mean it! I just watched them disappearing from the plate. My family absolutely enjoyed them. So what about you? Try them and tell me if you like them. 

1/3 tart dough

1 egg white

1 teaspoon dried basil

pinch black pepper

pinch salt

pinch nutmeg

1 teaspoon chopped garlic

1 teaspoon dijon mustard

1 teaspoon tomato sauce

coriander, to sprinkle

20g cheese, grated

Roll the dough into a 2-3 mm thick rectangle and cut into 4x4cm squares. Make some mini holes with a fork. Put them on a baking tray lined with a parchment paper. Lightly beat the egg white. Mix in the basil, pepper, salt, nutmeg, garlic, mustard and tomato sauce. Take one cookie and dip it into the egg white mixture to coat evenly. Repeat the process with the remaining cookies. Sprinkle with coriander and cheeese. Bake in a 200 degree C preheated oven until golden brown. (I didn't watch the clock and don't really know how long does it take. But I'm sure you'll see when they're done. If you want them softer, bake until lightly golden. If you want them more crispy, bake until golden brown but don't let them burn - take out of the oven when the top is getting dark brown.) Let cool completely and enjoy!

Coffee Fudge Tart

Coffeeee!! When I first saw the recipe called "coffee fudge tart" - I was sure I'm going to try it. For me, coffee flavoured desserts are even better then the chocolate ones. Every coffee lover will like this.Such a rich coffee flavour and a chewy fudge-like consistency. There's nothing better. Though I was a little bit worried when after 25 minutes the tart was still undercooked, at the end I wasn't disappointed. I was happy! Because the tart was a-m-a-z-i-n-g. Try this out and you'll see that.

P.S. I post some of my photos I made last year because today the sun is shining and it feels like spring!

For the pastry
175g salted butter, softened
50g caster sugar
1 egg yolk
250g plain flour

For the filling
125g butter
250g brown sugar
10g instant coffee
90ml Kahlua liqueur
2 eggs, lightly beaten
50g self-raising flour

For the pastry, cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Add the egg yolk and stir until fully incorporated. Add the flour and mix until the pastry forms a ball.

Wrap the pastry in plastic wrap and chill for around 20 minutes. Roll out the dough to fit the tart tin and refrigerate until needed.

Preheat the oven to 180C while you prepare the filling.

Heat the butter and sugar together in a saucepan over a low heat, until melted. Transfer the mixture to a large mixing bowl and add the coffee grounds and Kahlua. Stir in the beaten eggs and then the flour. Mix until everything is well combined, smooth and glossy.

Pour the mixture into the chilled pastry case and bake for 20-25 minutes. (The baking time looks ridiculous - Fow me it took an hour! That's why be careful with it - check the tart with a toothpick.) Remove from the oven and cool. You can serve it with ice-cream.

Caramelized Grilled Cheese Sandwich

2 slices white sandwich bread
1 tablespoon butter, room temperature
150g cheese, grated

1. Heat the pan over medium heat.
2. Completely butter one side of each slice of bread.
3. Place one slice of bread in the pan, buttered side down, sprinkle on the half cheese, then top with the remaining slice of bread, buttered side up. Cook until golden brown on low heat. Flip and cook until golden brown on the other side.
4. Sprinkle half of the remaining cheese on an unoccupied section of the pan, place the grilled cheese on top and cook until the cheese has melted. Repeat with another side.

White Sandwich Bread

Soft and fragrant, there's nothing better than a smell of fresh homemade bread filling the house. I'll never buy a bread from a store anymore. And about the toast, this makes a perfect one.

It's delicious with my homemade herb/garlic spread/dip/sauce/dressing or whatever it is. I made it with butter, sour cream, dijon mustard, various seasonings and millions of other ingredients. That's right, I was experimenting and added almost everything I found in the kitchen. Sounds crazy, but the result was very good. Almost perfect. Next time, I am going to add more sea salt and some peppers because it was too mild. 

And now - the recipe for the bread!

• 2 ¾ C all-purpose flour  
• ½ tbsp salt
• 1 ½ tsp active dry yeast 
• 235ml very warm water
• ½ tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1 ¾ tbsp honey 

Place all dry ingredients into the bowl of your stand mixer.  In a separate container, add warm water, oil and honey. Stir liquids well to combine.

Place dough hook attachment on mixer and set on low speed for 15 seconds to combine all dry ingredients. Turn off mixer, add the liquid and set to low speed again, this time for about a minute and a half, or until all ingredients have combined.  Turn off mixer and allow to stand for 10 minutes.

Set Mixer to second speed and run for three minutes.  Remove the dough hook and turn dough onto a floured surface.  Knead 3 or 4 times to remove any air pockets.

Place dough in an oiled bowl and cover with plastic wrap and a kitchen towel.  Let dough proof in a warm place for 1 hour.  At the end of the hour, punch down dough, turn dough onto a floured surface and knead another few times.  Form dough into a loaf and place into loaf pan.

Cover with a kitchen towel and allow to rise for approximately 45 minutes or until doubled in size.

Bake in a preheated 190 degree oven for 30 to 35 minutes or until crust is a light golden brown.  Remove from loaf pan and allow to cool on a rack for at least 30 minutes before cutting.

Chewy Granola Energy Bars

Soft, chewy and healthy granola bars.

2 cups quick rolled oats
100g walnuts
4 tbsp wheat germ
2 tbsp sunflower seeds

1 tablespoon coconut oil
2 tbsp natural honey
1/2 tsp natural brown sugar
~1 cup sweetened applesauce

100g dried cranberries
100g raisins
100g chopped pitted dates
(you can use any combination... There's so much fun to experiment with it. Next time I'll try it with dried apples, apricots etc. You can also use any other nuts but I chose walnuts because they're softer. I imagine pistachios would add a nice flavour)

1)  In a saucepan, mix the first four ingredients and toast until fragrant and lightly browned.
2)  In another saucepan, combine next four ingredients and heat until everything is melted.
3)  Mix the dried fruits together.
4)  Turn off the heat and add wet ingredients into oat mixture. Add in the fruits. Mix well!
5)  Now line a baking sheet into your pan and pour the mixture onto it. Press down and let completely cool before cutting.