[Nida_Shaaz]

Apricot-Pistachio Ice Cream


Ingredients

150g fresh apricots - quartered and then cut into chunks
180ml white grape juice
70g shelled unsalted pistachio nuts - coarsely chopped
130g sugar
250ml cream
250ml milk
Few drops of freshly squeezed lemon juice

Method

Pour the grape juice in a small saucepan and warm the apricots pieces in the liquid. Simmer for 5 minutes, cover and then remove from heat. Allow this to steep for 1 hour.

Purée the apricots in a blender with the sugar, milk, cream and lemon juice. David recommends to do this until smooth but as I preferred to have bits of apricots in my ice-cream I coarsely puréed the mixture.

Chill the mixture thoroughly - preferably overnight. Freeze it in your ice-cream maker according to the manufacturer's instructions. During the last few minutes of churning, add the chopped pistachio nuts.

[Nida_Shaaz]

A Very Berry Dessert

Ingredients:
Vanilla Pod
Berries - Blueberries, red currents, strawberries or whatever you fancy
Thick natural yoghurt - please do not use the low fat type for this one
2 tablespoons sugar
Cinnamon -just a pinch
1 tablespoon vanilla sugar*
A few pieces of Cantuccini - or any other nutty type cookie

Method:

To make the vanilla yoghurt: Pour the yoghurt in a bowl and whisk till smooth. Cut open the vanilla pod and scrape the insides out into to the yoghurt. Mix well and allow to cool for a few hours.

Wash and clean the berries and place in a clean bowl. Add the sugar, cinnamon and vanilla sugar and mix together well. Allow to cool.

Break up the cantuccini in coarse pieces.

Serve the berries in little bowls and pour some of the vanilla yoghurt on top. Sprinkle with the cookie bits.

* To make vanilla sugar just place the rest of the vanilla pod into a jar with some normal sugar. You can also add some fresh pods including the inside to give it a more intensive taste.

[Nida_Shaaz]

Plum Cheese Cakelettes

Ingredients:

110g Plum
50g butter - melted
6 tablespoon plum preserve. I used one with actual plum bits in them.
200g cream cheese
50g sour cream
40g sugar
2 eggs
1 tablespoon flour
1 vanilla bean

Kitchenware you will need: baking or mousse rings

Method:

Pre-heat the oven to 160 degrees Celsius.

In a kitchen mixer finely chop the cantuccini. Place the cantuccini crumbs in a bowl and drizzle the melted butter over them. Mix well.

Place four metal rings on a baking sheet lined with baking paper. If you do not have such metal rings you can line ramekin bowls with baking paper or grease them.

Now divide the cantuccini crumbs onto the bottom of the rings/bowls and press down firmly with your fingers. Put into the refrigerator for 30 minutes.

Divide the plum preserve on top of the canntuccini crust, even out and once again place in the refrigerator for approx. 15 minutes.

In a mixing bowl whisk the cream cheese, sour cream , sugar, eggs and flour into a smooth mixture. Cut open the vanilla bean and with the back of the knife scrape out the inside. Add this to the cream cheese mixture and stir in well.

Pour the mixture evenly into the metal rings and bake for 40 minutes.

Take out and allow to cool and then release each cake from the ring.