Zucchini-Banana Muffins with Dried Fruits, Nuts and Chocolate Chips

Zucchini season is here and, once again, I bought too many. So I’ve decided to use them in some simple  and nutritious muffins.

Spiced Red Wine Syrup with Fruits

Opening a bottle of wine and realizing it’s not as good as expected, makes one wonder what to do with it. It’s not bad or spoiled enough to throw it away with a clear conscious, yet at the same time, it’s not going to work as an enjoyable drink.
My usual solution is to add such wines to stews, but as I wasn’t planning on making any, I had to find another way to use it. So, I’ve decided to cook it down with brown sugar and spices, to create a tasty syrup.

Quince in Spiced Red Wine

Quince is one of my most favorite fruits, even though it’s not the kind of fruit you can just grab and eat as it.

Almond and Semolina Mini Cakes with Spiced Milk Syrup

These tasty mini cakes are a combination of two favorites: THIS semolina cake with milk syrup, and THESE almond-cardamom Friands. 

Almond, Coffee, Banana and Dates Breakfast Bread

This fragrant, not overly sweet bread, is a great way to start your day. It contains a fairly small amount of oil, fresh and dried fruits, fiber from unblanched almonds and whole wheat flour, and to top it all, even the coffee and milk are already in!

Cardamom Friands with Lemon Curd

Friands are almond mini cakes, a version of the classic Financier cakes. Both types of cakes are made with butter, egg whites, almond meal, powdered sugar and a small amount of flour. The major difference between the two types is in the butter: while the Friand uses melted butter, the Financier is made with brown butter.

Stewed Spiced Plums and Plum Jelly

What to do if you buy beautiful plums that end up tasting disappointingly bland? Don’t throw them away! Instead, stew them with brown sugar and spices, to enhance their flavor.