Classic Chocolate Cake Recipe

This recipe is a classic. A Chocolate Cake is easy to prepare and it will make everyone happy in your household. I usually double the quantities below to make a bigger cake that will last a bit longer (2-3 days...only)! Enjoy it warm with vanilla ice cream.

Serves 6

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Baking time: 45-50 minutes

Difficulty: *

Ingredients:

- 75 g (2/3 cups) flour
- 150g butter (about 1 1/2 sticks)

- 150g (5 1/2 oz) chocolate

- 3 eggs
- 150g (2/3 cups) granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

- 1 teaspoon baking powder

- pinch of salt

1. Preheat your oven at 150°C (300°F). Grease and flour a 8-inch baking pan.

2. Melt the chocolate in a heavy bottom pan. Once melted, remove from the heat and add the butter cut into small pieces.

3. Whisk the egg yolks with the sugar and vanilla extract until the preparation whitens.

4. Pour the sugar and egg yolks preparation into the melted chocolate. Add the flour and mix well.

5. Add a pinch of salt to the egg whites. Beat the egg whites with an electric mixer at medium speed until they hold soft peaks.
Very gently incorporate the beaten egg whites to the chocolate preparation.

6. Pour the preparation into the mold and bake for 45 to 50 minutes. To test if the cake is done, insert a metal skewer or sharp knife into the centre of a muffin. It should come out dry.

Enjoy!

Super Easy Recipe for Lemon Soufflé

This recipe is super simple to make and you will be able to put on a show for your guests :) Light, fluffy, the Lemon Soufflé is the perfect dessert after a great family meal. The only trick is to prepare it right on time and serve it immediately because it can go down quickly.

Serves 4

Preparation time: 15 minutes

Baking time: 15 minutes

Difficulty: **

Ingredients:

- 80g granulated sugar (20g + 50g + 10g)

- 3 organic lemons

- 3 eggs

- pinch of salt

1. Place 4 ramekins in the fridge. After about 15-20 minutes, coat the ramekins with butter and sprinkle 20g of the granulated sugar all over the inside. All the sides should be covered.

2. Preheat your oven at 350°F/180°C.

3. Separate whites from egg yolks. Mix the egg yolks with 50g of granulated sugar. Add the zest of 2 lemons and mix well.

4. Beat the egg whites with a pinch of salt until peaks form. Continue beating and slowly add 10g of sugar and the juice of 1 lemon.

5. Slowly fold in the beaten egg whites into the egg yolk mixture. Pour it into the ramekins.

6. Bake for about 15 minutes or until the soufflés are fluffy and golden on top.

7. Sprinkle each soufflé with confectioner's sugar and serve immediately.

Amazingly light and delicious...!

Home to make Plum-Vanilla Jam

I am lucky to have a plum tree in my garden so it's easy to make Plum Jam in this season. But you can also buy the fruits of course and make this jam the exact same way. I use red plums, ripe and sweet. The good thing with jam is that you can prepare several jars and eat it all year long! And my secret to get natural pectin is... lemon pips!

For about 4 jars
Preparation time: 20 minutes
Baking time: about 2 hours
Difficulty: **

Special utensil: empty spice bag/tea bag or gauze for cooking

Ingredients
- a bit more than 2 pounds red plums (use 1kg)
- 1 pound (use 500g) caster sugar
- lemon pips (from one lemon)
- 1 whole vanilla bean

1. Pit the plums and weight the pitted fruits. You should have about 2 pounds.
2. The quantity of sugar should be twice less than the quantity of plums. So if you have 2 pounds of fruits, you should use 1 pound of sugar.
3. Slice your lemon to get all the pips from it. Put them into the spice bag and close the bag securely.
4. In a big stainless steel pan, mix the pitted plums and the sugar. Add the bag containing the lemon pips.
5. With a knife, halve the vanilla beans lengthwise. Scrape the seeds into the fruit mixture and add the whole bean (optional).
6. Heat your pan on medium heat until it starts boiling. Then lower the heat and let cool slowly for about 2 hours. Mix frequently to prevent sticking.
7. To test if the jam is ready, use the spoon test: Dip a spoon into the hot jam and let the liquid drip off on a cold plate. The drops should be thick and not liquid. That's when your jam is ready!
8. Pour your jam in the jars, and return each jar upside down. Let cool like this and only return the jar when the jam is completely cool.

Enjoy right away, if you are patient, in a few days!!

The secret to succeed in baking Meringues!

Meringues are delicious sweet treats with a crunchy texture outside and a soft heart inside. They melt in your mouth but are pretty tricky to make... The secret to succeed is to beat the egg whites for a loooooooooooooonnng time. Yes, a VERY long time. You know, like in the old times, when they did it with a wooden spoon while looking outside the window. Take your time and you'll make delicious Meringues.

Serves 4
Preparation time: 20-30 minutes
Baking time: 1:30 hours

Difficulty: **

Ingredients:
- 2 egg whites (get your eggs out of the fridge about 15 minutes before starting baking)
- 1 pinch of salt
- 125 g (1 1/4 cup) caster sugar

1. In a large bowl, add the egg whites and the pinch of salt.
2. Beat the egg whites with an electric mixer at medium speed until they hold soft peaks. Add the sugar, little by little, then increase speed to high and continue to beat until whites just hold stiff, glossy peaks.
3. Keep on beating the egg whites, for at least 10 minutes.
4. Using a pastry bag or 2 spoons, place small amounts of the preparation on baking sheet covered with greased parchment paper.
5. Preheat your oven at 248°F/120°C. Bake the meringues for about 1 hour and let them dry for at least 2 hours in your oven. Let them stand in there all night if you can.

Tabbouleh: a classic Lebanese salad

Tabbouleh, tabouleh, tabouli... is a classic Lebanese salad. It makes a delicious substitute for a rice dish on a buffet table. Tabbouleh is very good with cold meat like lamb, or with smoked salmon.
You can switch some ingredients and try new combinations. I sometimes add raisins to my recipe: cover 1 tbsp raisins with hot water, let stand for about 10 minutes and add this to your tabouleh.

Serves 4
Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: none - 2 hours in the fridge
Difficulty: *

Ingredients:
- 1 cup (175 g) whole wheat couscous (semolina)
- juice of 1 lemon
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 2 tbsp fresh parsley, finely chopped
- 2 tbsp fresh mint, chopped
- 2 shallots (or spring onions)
- 1 green pepper, seeded and sliced
- 2 large tomatoes, diced
- 2 tbsp almonds
- black Kalamata olives to garnish
- salt and ground black pepper

1. Put the couscous in a bowl, add cold water to cover, and let stand for at least 1 hour (up to 2 hours).

2. If there is excess water, spread the couscous on kitchen paper to dry it completely.

3. Place the couscous in a large bowl. Add the lemon juice, the oil and a little seasoning.
Allow to stand for 1 to 2 hours.

4. Add the chopped parsley and mint, shallots (or spring onions), green pepper, diced tomatoes, almonds and mix well.

5. Garnish with the black olives and serve. You can let stand in the fridge before serving, if needed.