happy third! { snickers 'klimt' pie }

Cheers! So it's been three years since I finally decided this thing was for real, threw all my fears and doubts out of the window, ignored all the discouraging voices around me and started working my ass off on improving. Not that it was that hard - there's nothing I'll take more gladly than a good challenge and holding an adventurous journey against all odds definitely thrills me.

I am absolutely amazed at how I have managed to hold on to this page, which feels, in a way, as much of a home as every other place I could once call mine. I have a clue, though, about how I was able to do it. I have to thank it all to my family, especially my brothers, to all of you who visit this page and keep on spoiling me with sweet comments, but, on top of all, to all the amazing people I have met along this 'between kitchens' journey - and that I am now lucky to call friends. To all my awesome friends around the world, to my family and to my followers, I here state my most deep gratitude. None of this would have been possible without each one of you! ♥

Not all that is gold glitters, or do you? ;)

thoughts on birthday cakes. { naked red velvet cake with peanut buttercream }

each and every day is a good day for birthday cake.

 ♥

come to the dark side... { the perfect nutella & peanut butter filled cookies }

... we have cookies ;)

I was gonna say something about these cookies, but then I decided it is better to let the pictures speak for themselves... If after scrolling you're still not convinced about what I'm saying, I don't know how words would do it ;)

Cookies Americanas, duas receitas

- nutella

- manteiga de amendoim

- 3 + 1/3 chávena de farinha

- 2 colheres de chá de bicarbonato de sódio

- 1/3 de colher de chá de sal

- 200g de manteiga

- 2 chávenas de açúcar escuro

- 1/3 de chávena de açúcar branco

- 2 ovos

- 2 gemas

- 2 colheres de sobremesa de creme fraiche

- algumas gotas de aroma de baunilha

- 1/3 de chávena de cacau em pó

- 150g de chocolate Pantagruel 70% de cacau, picado

- 150g de chocolate de leite, picado

- 100g de amendoins salgados, picados

1) Um dia antes, moldar pequenas bolinhas de nutella e manteiga de amendoim com a ajuda de duas colheres e congelar ou refrigerar bem,

2) Numa taça, misturar a farinha, o bicarbonato e o sal,

3) Derreter a manteiga em lume brando, mexendo sempre até obter uma cor dourada e um aroma semelhante a avelãs. Verter numa taça fria e deixar arrefecer,

4) Bater a manteiga com o açúcar até obter uma mistura homogénea,

5) Adicionar os ovos e gemas, a baunilha e o creme fraiche e bater novamente,

6) Com as mãos, incorporar os ingredientes líquidos nos sólidos; separar a massa em duas partes, incorporar o cacau numa delas,

7) Incorporar parte dos chocolates na massa branca e a restante parte e os amendoins na massa escura,

8) Levar ao frigorífico cerca de hora e meia,

9) Aquecer o forno a 180ºC,

10) Com as mãos, formar pequenas bolas de massa, espalmar, colocar uma colher do respectivo recheio no centro - nutella para a massa branca, manteiga de amendoim para a escura - e envolver com a massa,

11) Colocar as bolachas num tabuleiro forrado com papel vegetal, com uma distância de 4-5 cm entre si, pressionar ligeiramente os topos. Se necessário levar de novo ao frigorífico,

12) Cozinhar cerca de 10 minutos,

13) Retirar do forno e colocar numa rede para arrefecer.

American Cookies, two ways

- nutella

- peanut butter

- 3 + 1/3 cups flour

- 2 tsp baking soda

- 1/3 tsp salt

- 200g butter

- 2 cups dark sugar

- 1/3 cup white sugar

- 2 eggs

- 2 yolks

- 2 tbsp sour cream

- vanilla flavouring

- 1/3 cup powder cocoa

- 150g Pantagruel chocolate with 70% cocoa, chopped

- 150g milk chocolate, chopped

- 100g salted peanuts, chopped

1) Using two teaspoons, shape small dollops of nutella and peanut butter and freeze or let cool in the fridge over night,

2) In a bowl, mix flour, baking soda and salt,

3) Melt butter over medium heat, stirring until reaching a golden amber colour and a nutty aroma. Pour in a cold bowl and let cool,

4) Beat sugar with butter until well mixed together,

5) Add in eggs and yolks, vanilla and sour cream and beat again,

6) Mix liquid ingredients into solid ones; divide batter in two parts and mix cocoa in one of them,

7) Incorporate part of the chocolate in the white batter and the remaining chocolate plus the peanuts in the dark one,

8) Refrigerate for one and a half hour,

9) Pre-heat oven at 180ºC,

10) Using the hands, shape small balls of batter, flatten it, place a dollop of the filling inside - nutella for the white batter and peanut butter for the cocoa one - and fold over the sides,

11) Place the cookies over a parchment paper lined baking tray, 4-5 centimeters apart from the next, slightly press the tops. If needed refrigerate once more,

12) Bake for aroun 10 minutes,

13) Take out of the oven and let cool over a wire rack.

another little piece of my heart { heart-shaped white chocolate and peanut sugar cookies }

During my last trip back to Munich I was planning to watch the latest episode of Bones. In order to do so, I had left the streaming open all night long, to ensure there would be no problem during the flight. However, it seems like the episode didn't download entirely, for I have been in the ignorance about who the killer was since then. Almost halfway through the flight but still waiting for lunch, I decided to go for plan B, and go through my files in the quest for a film. Unluckily - or should I say the opposite - I had no films I felt I could stomach at the moment. Somehow, I ended up rewatching Pride and Prejudice and I have been watching it bit by bit until today, when it made me cry over my pasta bowl at lunch. Seriously, that thing is bewitching.

So I could find no better moment to blog about this cookies, I dare to say. If I were you, I'ld go, whip up a batch of these hearts first, get some tissues ready too, and watch it straightway.

Corações de Chocolate Branco e Amendoim

- 300g de farinha

- 100g de açúcar mascavado

- 100g de açúcar branco

- 2 colheres de chá de fermento

- 125g de manteiga, fria e cortada em cubos

- 50g de amendoins descascados, grosseiramente picados

- 80g de chocolate branco Pantagruel, grosseiramente picado

- cerca de meia chávena de água

Num blender, processar a farinha, o açúcar, o fermento e a manteiga, até obter uma mistura com aspecto de migalhas,

Juntar a água e voltar a misturar, até obter uma bola de massa que se desprenda das paredes do copo,

Retirar a bola de massa e incorporar o chocolate e os amendoins, amassando com as mãos,

Estender com o rolo da massa, numa superfície ligeiramente enfarinhada, até obter uma espessura de cerca de meio centímetro,

Cortar as bolachas com um cortador em forma de coração e colocar sobre um tabuleiro forrado com papel vegetal,

Levar ao forno pré-aquecido a 190ºC durante cerca de 20 minutos,

Retirar do forno e deixar arrefecer sobre uma grelha.

White Chocolate and Peanut Hearts

- 300g flour

- 100g light brown sugar

- 100g white sugar

- 2 tsp baking powder

- 125g butter, cold and diced

- 50g peanuts, coarsely chopped

- 80g Pantagruel white chocolate, coarsely chopped

- about 1/2 cup water

In a blender, process flour, sugar, baking powder and butter, until obtaining a crumble-like mixture,

Add the water and process once more, until a ball of dough takes shape without sticking to the cup,

Take the dough out of the blender and mix in the chocolate and peanuts,

Roll the dough over a flour sprinkled surface until it is half centimeter tall,

Cut the cookies with a heart-shaped mould and place over a baking tray, lined with parchment paper,

Bake at 190ºC for about 20 minutes, remove from oven and let cool over a grid.

One, Two, Three, Four... Can I Have a Litte More? { four recipes of chewy-cakey cookies }

These cookies are slightly on the chewy side, yet a bit cakey too. As you can understand from reading this blog, I am a firm believer on multiple flavour cookie baking - I mean, if you're already putting time and effort into baking cookies, why not make more than one kind!? So here's four of them!