Join me as I bake through the Great British Bake Off.
Sfogliatelle, meaning "small, thin leaves" in Italian, perfectly describes these delicate laminated pastries that are popular in Naples. In this version, half are filled with a traditional semolina-ricotta cream flavored with chocolate and Amarena cherries. The other half encase a French almond cream reminiscent of almond croissants. Try either one ... or both!
A trifle terrine is a layered dessert made in a loaf pan and served in slices. Inspired by another layered dessert, this Spumoni Trifle Terrine highlights four classic Italian flavors: Amarena cherry, amaretto panna cotta, chocolate mousse, and pistachio bavarois. Beneath those creamy layers is an amaretti cookie crumble.
This walnut spice cake with coffee crème au beurre filling complements the cream cheese buttercream frosting and walnut praline topping. It also sports a unique caramel collar, a creative touch that offers an artistic flair!
Fondant fancies two ways: Champagne and rose fancies feature a rose-flavored sponge brushed with champagne syrup and sandwiched with raspberry curd. Orange blossom and marmalade fancies are scented with orange blossom water and filled with a dollop of orange marmalade. Two for tea, anyone?
An early form of marzipan, marchpane was used in Tudor times to create elaborate centerpieces. This marzipan pumpkin patch sits atop a disk of marchpane, which sits on an olive oil orange marmalade cake, made with a whole orange and lemon.
These mini mousse cakes are light as a feather but pack a real flavor punch. Caramel Macchiato Mousse Cakes have both coffee and vanilla mousse layered atop a chocolate sponge, with a salted caramel ganache on top. Lemon-Berry Mousse Cakes feature a berry-flavored mousse on a lemon sponge, with raspberry gelée hidden inside!
Mary Berry's marjolaine is a 7-layered delight featuring four layers of almond-hazelnut dacquoise sandwiched with praline buttercream and chocolate ganache. Overall, a delightfully nutty, crunchy, creamy concoction that presents itself with elegance and panache!
An amuse-bouche is a bite-sized hors d'oeuvre served by chefs at the beginning of a meal. These Crab Rangoon Parcels and Rhubarb-Ricotta Tartlets both feature my Practically Painless and Almost Perfect Phyllo Pastry. Even better, they can be made in advance!
These sweet and savory Danish pastries — an apple and almond braid and a spinach-artichoke egg "soufflé" — can both be made with a single batch of pastry dough. They would complement each other at the brunch table or make great grab-and-go breakfast options.
These churros are flavored with a blend of chai spices and scented with orange zest, accompanied by a blood orange caramel dipping sauce. Churros make a great snack any time of day, or eat them for breakfast with a mug of thick, hot chocolate, like the Spanish do!
