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.

Farmer's Cheese Fritters

These are one of my favorite fritters. I remember my mum making them when I was little. I loved them very sweet and used to sprinkle even more sugar on top. Yesterday I wanted something healthy and sweet so the first idea was to make these fritters. Now I don't add so much sugar but serve them with a dollop of sour cream. Jam or any other sauce would work as well but the combination of cottage cheese and sour cream reminds me of the childhood. I guess this is a perfect food for children. They are super easy to make with only 4 ingredients and are perfect for breakfast.

 Approx. 1 cup Farmer's (curdled) cheese (I use 9%)

 2 tablespoons sugar (if you want them sweeter add more sugar, and for a healthier version, use brown sugar)

 1 large egg

 4-5 tablespoons flour (or enough to form balls)

 olive oil for frying

 sour cream to serve

Mix cottage cheese with sugar. In a separate bowl, beat an egg and add to the mixture. Fold in the flour. Mix well everything and form little balls, press to flatten. (I got 6 7cm diameter fritters) Bake over a preheated skillet over medium heat until golden brown. Serve warm with some sour cream.

Pop Tarts

 With apple-cinnamon filling

 With strawberry jam filling

 With poppy seed filling

 With banana filling

Pastry
2 cups (340g) all-purpose flour
1 tbsp sugar
1 tsp salt
1 cup (225g) unsalted butter, cut into cubes
1 large egg
2-3 tablespoons milk

Whisk together the flour, sugar, and salt. Work in the butter with your fingers until pea-sized lumps of butter are still visible, and the mixture holds together when you squeeze it. Transfer the mixture to a large bowl. Whisk the egg and milk together and stir them into the dough, mixing just until everything is cohesive, kneading briefly on a well-floured counter if necessary. Refrigerate while you prepare the fillings. 

Remove it from the refrigerator and allow it to soften and become workable, about 15 to 30 minutes. Place one piece on a lightly floured work surface, and roll it into a rectangle about 3mm thick (I rolled it into ~25x33cm rectangle). Repeat with the second piece of dough. Set trimmings aside. Cut dough into 20 rectangles. (I didn't get 20 rectangles so  I re-rolled the trimmings).

Beat the additional egg and brush it over the entire surface of the first dough. This will be the “inside” of the tart; the egg is to help glue the lid on. Place a heaping tablespoon of filling into the center of each rectangle. Place a second rectangle of dough atop the first, using your fingertips to press firmly around the pocket of filling, sealing the dough well on all sides. Press the tines of a fork all around the edge of the rectangle. Repeat with remaining tarts.

Gently place the tarts on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Prick the top of each tart multiple times with a fork. Refrigerate the tarts  for 30 minutes, while you preheat your oven to 180 degrees C.

The amounts of ingredients are for 2 pop tarts each. Just mix the ingredients of different fillings in separate bowls and fill the tarts:

Caramel Filling:

2 tbsp homemade caramel

1/3 tsp flour

sea salt for topping

Apple-cinnamon filling:

1/3 medium apple, cut into cubes

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp honey

1 tsp dark molasses sugar

Poppy seed filling:

2 tbsp ground poppy seeds

1 tbsp sugar

1/2 tbsp butter, melted

Stawberry jam filling: 

2 tbsp organic strawberry jam

1/3 tsp cornstarch

Banana filling:

1 small banana, ripe

1 tsp sugar

1/3 tsp flour 

Bake for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown. Enjoy!