Sweet – Beary Strong

Festive Apple Hazelnut Cake with Cinnnamon Crumble

Crumbly, creamy, cinnamony.

I love easy bakes full of flavor but quick to prepare, without a ton of steps to follow. However, there are occasions where something more soffisiticated is just the right thing to do. While watching a baking show, I came across this gorgeous combination of ingredients and textures, which tingled my baking nerve. The single components aren’t difficult to prepare and with the proper timing it won’t take long until you have a scrumptious festive cake to serve to your guests.

Datterini And Yoghurt Nice Cream

Creamy, refreshing and macro friendly.

Summer is my least favourite season, yet it still has it’s perks, one of them being perfectly ripe and sweet tomatoes. They are so delicious that I somehow got the urge to turn them to an ice cream. Yet another experiment that worked out way better than I thought! Oh, and the macros are insane. Thank me later.

Easy Flapjacks

Rustic, foolproof and full of “the good stuff”.

Flapjacks are kinda weird: somewhere between cookie and müsli-bar. Delicious, easy to make and surprisingly satiating. Don’t be fooled by all the “healthy” ingredients like oats, fruits, nuts and honey, they still are what they are, a sweet treat totally worth the calories, but still having quite some calories. Sorry, I just hate it when sweets are labeled “healthy” and then marketed any calorie free. Anyways, enjoy these flapjack cookies, they are simply amazing!

Zabaglione

A classic with a little twist.

If you need a hug from inside, you should definitely try zabaglione. Its silky texture made from egg yolks beaten over a bain marie with a little bit of sugar and wine make you instantaneously happy. Best eaten when it is cold and grey outside, it is an incredibly simple and fast dessert.

Vanilla Shortbread

Pure luxury for special occasions.

Saying this is a cookie is almost an insult. This is pure luxury. A single piece of vanilla shortbread takes a simple cup of tea and elevates it to a proper tea time. We choose best ingredients, so this is something special, reserved for special occasions or special people. I’m sure you’ll like it.

Banana Poppy Bread

Tales of a Crossfit post-workout treat revised.

The first banana breads Stefan and I baked were as we both were eating Paleo style, which means without any grains, dairy and legumes. Why did we do that? First, I was suffering from weekly gut issues and had regular migraine attacks and a TCM doctor suggested me to avoid these products. In addition, we were both training Crossfit-style and it was very popular in those circles. The banana bread was our post-workout and probably the best part of it 😉 The old version of our banana bread was without flour and with plenty of nuts, delicious but a caloric bomb. Inspired by a lovely girl training at Das Gym with us, Kathi, we modified it and created a lighter version of it.

Lemon And Basil Granita

Incredibly refreshing and almost calorie free.

Zingy lemon and fragrant basil work wonderfully together, creating a refreshing harmony that, at least for a short time, brings relief from the summer heat. But I think it is equally capable to bring back a trace of summer to cold, dull winters day. Luckily it is easily done “a la minute” whenever you are in the mood for it. Give it a try, you won’t be disappointed!

White Chocolate And Pea Greenie

A surprisingly fresh, sweet treat.

The series of desserts with veggies is not finished yet. To summ it up, we already had two pumpkin pies, a root veggie cake, pumpkin poppy crumble and eggplant brownies. These are all earthy, warm, rich flavours which make you feel good in the colder months. But what about sweet, green peas and a bit of white chocolate? Maybe served cold with a spoon of ice cream on the side? I can definitely see this extravagant blondie version as a dessert for a dinner in summer and the colour is simply stunning.

Rhubarb and Strawberry Crumble

Sweet. Sour. Butter. Love.

Last year during Halloween we posted a quite unusual crumble version, namely the Pumpkin Poppy Crumble. We promised to come back with even more crumble recipes and, finally, here we are. There is nothing more seasonal now in late spring than delicious sweet strawberries and a pretty sour pink rhubarb. Add some elderflower scent and crunchy oats to it and I am in heaven.

Eggplant Brownies

Dark chocolate meets veggies.

If you are a long-time reader of the Beary Strong blog you know that I love baking and always try to find a way to make some desserts a bit less heavy on the calorie account. I would not define them as “healthy” as I do not like do divide food in good or bad. Norb do I think they will subsitute a proper meal: sweets should always be an enjoyable treat but not the major component of your diet. I am also always searching for new interesting flavour pairings and since our experiment with the root veggie cake I was intrigued to build even more unconventional vegetable-based sweets. This is how the eggplant brownies were born.