Purple rain...

by Karolina, 28th October 2012

"Autumn had come, giving not a damn for the inconvenience it caused"- these words by Andrey Kurkov say it all...

The short days have come bringing the chill with it. Beautiful Indian summer is over and rainy, grey time had taken over :(

To fight cold weather blues I made these...

Purple madeleines with a hint of lavender.

As a base I used Dorie Greenspan's recipe for madeleines. After all if you learn, learn from the best!

However I was making violet madeleines, so I infused the butter with little bit of dried lavender and for the colour I used a few drops of coloring. I didn't want to have just one plain colour. So I added tiny drop of colouring when the dough was already in the madeleine pan and then swirled it using wooden stick. Like this I got pretty purple swirls.

I'm really happy with the result. I got nice fluffy madeleines with hint of lavender which reminded me of summer and quite quirky look :) Together with nice cup of tea made be forget the weather outside - so definitely reccomended.

And how do you like my madeleines?

What is your way to beat autumn blues? I'd love to hear from you!

Fig fling

by Karolina, 21st October 2012

What would be Autumn without its seasonal fruits and veggies?
Apples, plums, pears, pumpkins - they make grey clouds and chilly weather more bearable  and comfortable.

But my favourite of all is beautiful fig.

With amazing colours of purple and violet and lovely sweet taste, it's one of my most loved fruits.

And today, I'd like to show you classic, no fail combination of fig and goat cheese.

This quick and easy recipe makes a lovely starter.

All you need is:

- figs (as many as people at your table)
- goat cheese
- balsamic vinegar
- a few pistachios
- salt and pepper

How to?

- Preheat the oven to 180 degrees C
- Cut the figs across and open them slightly to make cavity for cheese
- Crush or cut goat cheese and insert into the fig's cavity
- Sprinkle with salt and pepper and pistachios
- Pour a little bit of balsamic vinegar on top
- Put into the oven for about 10-15 minutes (when the cheese is nice and melting it's ready)
- Serve immediately

This dish is a yummy combination of sweet & salty, smooth and crunchy.
Give it a try! You won't regret it!