Espresso, Hazelnut and Dark Chocolate Biscotti - Espresso, Haselnuss und dunkle Schokolade-Biscotti

Add a bit of buzz to your baking with this recipe for coffee-flavored Espresso, Hazelnut and Dark Chocolate Biscotti. Combining the flavor of coffee with chocolate, vanilla, cinnamon and hazelnuts in these cookies makes for wonderful little treats to enjoy with your favorite cup of coffee, tea or hot chocolate in the afternoon or any time you are looking for a sweet “pick-me-up”.

Man kann seinen Backwaren ruhig einmal einen Kaffee-Kick hinzufügen, wie zum Beispiel in diesem Rezept für Espresso, Haselnuss und dunkle Schokoladen Biscotti. Kaffee, dunkle Schokolade, Vanille, Zimt und Haselnüsse harmonieren auf ganz besondere Weise in diesen wunderbaren kleinen Leckereien, die man besonders gut mit einer Tasse Kaffee, Tee oder heißer Schokolade genießen kann. Wenn man auf der Suche nach einem süßen "Muntermacher" ist, sind diese Biscotti genau das Richtige.

On the occasion of the eighth annual “National Coffee Day” (“Tag des Kaffees”) in Germany last weekend, I wanted to bake Espresso, Hazelnut and dark Chocolate Biscottis since these three flavors complement each other in the most delicious way possible. The other Biscotti that are in the pictures are my favorite Almond Biscotti with warm spices but without coffee, one reason why they are lighter in color than the ones with espresso (recipe will be featured in another post soon).

Anlässlich des achten jährlichen "Tag des Kaffees" in Deutschland, der am vergangenen Wochenende zelebriert wurde, wollte ich gerne ein Rezept für Espresso, Haselnuss und dunkle Schokolade-Biscotti backen. Diese drei Geschmackskomponenten kommen in diesem Rezept besonders gut zur Geltung und ergänzen sich auf köstliche Art und Weise. Die anderen Biscotti auf den Fotos sind Mandel Biscotti mit warmen Gewürzen aber ohne Kaffee, ein Grund warum die Kekse heller sind als die mit Espresso (das Rezept folgt noch zu einem späteren Zeitpunkt).

Coffee is one of the world’s favorite brews. It can be made from either caffeinated or decaffeinated beans and there are many ways to serve coffee. Some of the most popular include espresso, cappuccino, caffè latte or café au lait, espresso macchiato, Americano, or ristretto or even mocha.

Kaffee ist eines der weltweit beliebtesten heißen Getränke. Kaffee kann aus koffeinhaltigen oder entkoffeinierten Bohnen gemacht werden, wobei es unendlich viele Möglichkeiten gibt, ihn zu genießen. Die beliebtesten Kaffeegetränke sind Espresso, Cappuccino, Caffè Latte oder Café au Lait, Espresso Macchiato, Americano, oder Ristretto oder auch Mokka.

The hard Italian cookies called Biscotti were traditionally made with hazelnuts and aniseed but today are flavored with a wide variety of nuts (such as pine nuts, pistachios, and almonds), dried fruits (such as figs, dates, or raisins), chocolate (dark, milk or white), and lemon, lime or orange rind.

Italienische Biscotti wurden traditionell nur mit Haselnüssen und Anis gebacken Heutzutage werden jedoch viele Variationen angeboten. Es gibt sie mit verschiedenen Sorten von Nüssen, wie zum Beispiel Pinienkernen, Pistazien und Mandeln, aber auch mit Trockenfrüchten, wie zum Beispiel Feigen, Datteln oder Rosinen. Ebenso mit dunkler, weißer oder Milch-Schokolade, oft auch verfeinert mit Zitronen-, Limetten- oder Orangenschalen-Abrieb.

They are hard and crunchy because they are twice-cooked (‘bis’ is Italian for twice and ‘cotti’ for cooked). This makes them ideal for dipping into dessert wine or coffee, especially espresso. They are also known widely by the name Cantuccini. Recipes for Biscotti date back as far as the 13th century in Italy. Since the flavor of these twice-baked Italian cookies deepens over time, you can make them in advance and store them in cookies tins in a cool and dry place.

Biscottis sind hart und knackig, denn sie werden zweimal gebacken. Daher der Name: italienisch "bis" für "doppelt" und "cotti" für "gekocht" bzw. "gebacken". Das macht sie ideal zum Eintunken in Dessertwein oder Kaffee, vor allem aber Espresso. Biscotti sind auch bekannt unter dem Namen Cantuccini. Rezepte für Biscotti gibt es schon seit dem 13. Jahrhundert. Da der Geschmack dieser italienischen "zweimal gebackenen" Kekse mit der Zeit etwas intensiver wird, kann man sie ruhig auf Vorrat backen und in Keksdosen an einem kühlen und trockenen Ort lagern.

These Espresso, Hazelnut and Dark Chocolate Biscotti smell wonderful while baking. They are not overly sweet and do not contain a lot of butter. They are studded with delicious hazelnuts and dark chocolate and have a delicate coffee flavor that pairs quite well with that afternoon hot beverage of your choice.

Meine Espresso, Haselnuss und dunkle Schokolade Biscotti duften schon beim Backen wunderbar nach Vanille, Zimt und Kaffee. Sie sind nicht allzu süß und enthalten nur wenig Butter. Voller leckerer Haselnüsse und guter dunkler Schokolade haben sie einen feinen Kaffee-Geschmack, der hervorragend zu Tee oder Kaffee passt.

Recipe for the Hazelnut Espresso Biscottis Ingredients for the Cookies 200 grams (7 ounces) whole hazelnuts, I used the "round Romans" (got to love that name) 250 grams ( 8.8 ounces/2 cups) white spelt flour, plus some for the work surface ½  tsp baking powder ½ tsp baking soda a pinch of fine sea salt 1 tsp ground cinnamon, (I used Ceylon cinnamon) 140 grams (5 ounces) super fine white baking sugar 2 tsp pure vanilla sugar 60 ml freshly brewed espresso, cooled (you can substitute 1 tbsp Amaretto plus one egg for the espresso) 25 grams (0.8 ounce/2 tbsp) unsalted butter, room temperature 1 egg (L), free range or organic 100 grams (3.5 ounces) dark chocolate (I used Lindt Excellence 70 %), chopped (best done with a serrated knife)

Rezept für die Espresso, Haselnuss & dunkle Schokolade-Biscotti Zutaten für die Biscotti 200 Gramm ganze Haselnüsse (zum Beispiel Sorte "runde Römer")  250 Gramm helles Dinkelmehl (Typ 630), plus ein wenig für die Arbeitsfläche ½ TL Backpulver ½ TL Natron  eine Prise feines Meersalz 1 TL gemahlener Ceylon-Zimt  140 Gramm feinster weißer Zucker 2 TL Bourbon Vanillezucker 60 ml frisch gebrühter Espresso, abgekühlt (anstatt Espresso kan man auch 1 EL Amaretto plus ein Ei hinzugeben) 25 Gramm ungesalzene Butter, Zimmertemperatur  1 Ei (L), Freilandhaltung oder Bio  100 Gramm dunkle Schokolade (ich nehme gerne Lindt Excellence 70 %), gehackt

Preparation of the Cookies Line a baking sheet with parchment paper (unbleached if possible or use Silpat baking mat). On the baking sheet toast hazelnuts in one layer in middle of oven 10 to 15 minutes, or until lightly colored and skins are blistered. Wrap nuts in a kitchen towel and let steam for about one minute. Rub nuts in a tea towel to remove loose skins (it does not matter if not all of the skins come off) and cool completely. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, sugar, and vanilla sugar until well combined. Transfer the dry ingredients to the bowl of your mixer and add the espresso, butter and egg.  Then beat the wet ingredients into the flour mixture until the mixture is well combined and comes together as a dough. Add the whole hazelnuts and the chocolate and combine well.  Divide the dough into two equal parts. Wrap each dough piece in plastic wrap and place in refrigerator for about thirty minutes and up to a day. If you leave the dough refrigerated for a longer period of time, the cinnamon and vanilla will definitely loose some of their “punch”. Preheat your oven to 180 degrees Celsius (350 degrees Fahrenheit). Dust your work surface with the remaining flour. Take the first batch of dough out of the refrigerator and using the palms of your hands, roll the Biscotti dough into a cylinder shape on the dusted surface. Flatten the dough a little to form an oval cylinder if you wish. Repeat with the remaining dough.  Transfer the dough logs to a baking sheet and bake for about 15 minutes, or until the logs have spread and doubled in size.  Remove the baking sheet from the oven and set aside on a wire rack to cool a bit. Repeat with the remaining log of dough. When the logs have cooled but are still warm, slice each about 1cm (½ inches) thick, you should cut on the diagonal, using a very sharp knife. Place each Biscotti slice onto a baking sheet or onto cooling racks that you place onto the baking sheets thereby allowing for the hot air to circulate around each Biscotti cookie slice and return the baking sheets to the oven for a further 10 to 15 minutes, or until crisp, golden-brown and cooked through. Transfer to cooling racks and cool completely. When the Biscotti have completely cooled, place them in cookie tins, between layers of parchment, they will keep for quite some time.

Zubereitung der Biscotti Zwei Backbleche mit Backpapier auslegen oder Silpat Backmatten verwenden. Die Nüsse auf einem mit Backpapier ausgelegten Backblech ausbreiten und für 12 bis 15 Minuten rösten. Die Nüsse auf ein Küchentuch geben, einschlagen, eine Minute ruhen lassen und dann das Tuch durchkneten und die Nüsse reiben bis die Haut der Nüsse abfällt. Dabei darf ruhig etwas Haut an den Nüssen bleiben. Nüsse auskühlen lassen. In einer großen Schüssel Mehl, Backpulver, Natron, Salz, Zimt, Zucker und Vanillezucker mischen. Dann Espresso, Butter und das Ei zu der Mehlmischung hinzufügen. Dann alle Zutaten mischen und zu einem glatten Teig kneten. Die ganzen Haselnüsse und die Schokolade in den Teig einarbeiten. Den Teig halbieren.  Die Teighälften in Frischhaltefolie einwickeln und für zirka 30 Minuten und bis zu einem Tag in den Kühlschrank legen. Wenn der Teig länger gekühlt wird, verlieren der Zimt und die Vanille etwas an Intensität. Den Backofen auf 180 Grad Celsius (Elektro) vorheizen. Das restliche Mehl auf die Arbeitsfläche geben. Eine Teighälfte aus dem Kühlschrank nehmen und mit den Handflächen einen schmalen, länglichen Laib formen (ungefähr so lang wie das Backblech breit ist). Mit der zweiten Teighälfte genauso verfahren.  Die Laibe auf das mit Backpapier belegte Backblech legen und für etwa 15 Minuten backen oder bis die Laibe sich (in der Breite) verdoppelt haben.   Das Backblech aus dem Ofen nehmen und auf einem Kuchenrost etwas abkühlen lassen. Wenn die Laibe abgekühlt aber noch warm sind, in etwa 1 cm dicke Scheiben schneiden. Am besten schräg, mit einem scharfen Messer. Jede Biscotti Scheibe erneut auf das Backblech legen oder, besser noch, auf ein Kuchenrost legen, das auf das Backblech gestellt wird, damit die heiße Luft um jedes einzelne Keks zirkulieren kann und die Biscotti so gleichmäßiger gebacken werden. Das Backblech für weitere 10 bis 15 Minuten in den Ofen geben oder bis die Biscotti knusprig und goldbraun gebacken sind. Die fertg gebackenen Biscotti aus dem Ofen nehmen und vollständig abkühlen lassen. Wenn die Biscotti vollständig abgekühlt sind, kann man sie in Keksdosen, am besten zwischen Lagen von Pergamentpapier lagern, so halten sich die Kekse eine ganze Weile frisch.

And since they are the perfect crunchy companion to a cup of coffee, why not give some Biscottti together with a bag of your very favorite (maybe locally roasted) coffee beans as a gift to your friends!

Diese Biscotti passen perfekt zu Kaffee. Warum nicht ein paar von diesen wunderbare leckeren Keksen zusammen mit frisch gerösteten Kaffeebohnen (vielleicht von einer Rösterei in der Nachbarschaft) an liebe Freunde verschenken!

Enjoy these Espresso, Hazelnut and dark Chocolate Biscotti!

Viel Spaß beim Genießen der Espresso, Haselnuss und dunkle Schokolade-Biscotti!

Source:

•  for Imping´s Coffee in Bocholt, Germany

"River Cottage Veg Everyday" - Tahini-dressed courgette and green bean salad

Today I am featuring the "Tahini-dressed courgette and green bean salad" as my eighth post in my River Cottage Veg Everyday series. Still lots of sunshine and late summer weather around here - meaning that we enjoyed this huge salad as a lovely outside lunch.

Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall comments this recipe with the following words " this lovely recipe is as much about the dressing as the salad". That is quite true because what he calls the "thick, trickling dressing" seems to be particularly good when you add chargrilled summer veg (remember those from my sixth post) such as courgettes and tomatoes to the fresh salad greens.

For the salad greens I used a head of romaine lettuce and a whole bunch of arugula and added a few fresh basil leaves to the mix. For the vegetables I used chargrilled cherry tomatoes as well as summer squash and courgettes. And steamed some lovely French beans.

This tahini dressing also works very well with lentils, barley and other legumes. It contains the following ingredients, namely a bit of garlic, sea salt, tahini (a paste made from ground, hulled sesame seeds), the zest and juice of a lemon, juice of an orange, some local honey, fruity olive oil and freshly ground black pepper. Tangy and a bit thick this "trickling dressing" was very well received at our house.

While all those lovely courgettes and summer squashes and cherry tomatoes are still abundantly available, I like the fact that I can double up on the chargrilled vegetables, serve some of them the first day just as is with some fresh lemon juice and keep some of them for the next day and make this colorful and hearty salad. Perfect family meal and if you add a lovely loaf of bread, it will be even more wonderful!

If you own the English edition of this vegetable cookbook, you will find the recipe for the "Tahini-dressed courgette and green bean salad" on page 74 in the chapter on "Hearty Salads".

Please take a look at the other posts from my "River Cottage Veg Everyday" series.

FFwD: Fresh Tuna, Mozzarella, and Basil Pizza

Today´s recipe for the French Fridays with Dorie group is Fresh Tuna, Mozzarella, and Basil Pizza.

This interesting recipe was inspired by a pizza served at Yves Camborde´s world-famous Paris bistro "Le Comptoir"  that Dorie describes as "part pissaladière, part salade Nicoise,  and part pizza".

There are a number of different elements to this pizza that is best served while still warm. To make the base of this pizza, you start off by cutting circles from ready-made puff pastry and baking them in the oven for about 15 minutes with a baking sheet to weigh them down. For the topping you arrange finely chopped spring onions (previously cooked in olive oil), fresh mozzarella, basil leaves, slices of sushi-grade tuna, quartered cherry tomatoes and Kalamata olives as well as paper thin slices of radishes on top of the pizza. Just before heating the pizzas for about three minutes, drizzle with a bit of good-quality olive oil and sprinkle with French sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.

Considering the young age of some of my devoted taste testers, I skipped the freshly grated ginger on top - while we love ginger, the kids do not really enjoy it semi-raw. Apart from that one ingredient, I followed the recipe exactly and in order to take some of the sharp bite off the radishes, I sprinkled them with with fine sea salt, let them sit for five minutes, rinsed them under cold water and dried them off before placing them on top of the pizzas - after all, we live in a country of relentless radish lovers and that is how we usually enjoy them.

We liked the way these small appetizer-style pizzas looked like, very pretty and the taste was intriguing and liked by all - thanks also to the utterly fresh sushi-grade tuna. I do not think that I woud change any substantial element of this recipe - it seems to me that his recipe is quite harmonious and quite the taste experience as is.

To take a look at some more Fresh Tuna, Mozzarella, and Basil Pizzas prepared by the other members of the French Fridays with Dorie group, please click here.

"River Cottage Veg Everyday" - Courgette and Filo Rice Pie

It was the first day of school around here yesterday and it seems more important than ever to prepare delicious and healthy food for everyone and happily continue with my quest to cook as many vegetable dishes as possible. Therefore I am featuring the "Courgette and Filo Rice Pie" as my seventh post in my River Cottage Veg Everyday series today.

Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall comments this crispy Greek-style pie with the following words” this is based on an intriguing, delicious Greek dish that I came across in a battered old copy of  a Mediterranean vegetable Cookbook by Rena Salaman. The rice steals the water from the grated courgettes and plumps up as the two cook together inside the pie”.

Finally a chance to use my trusted Le Creuset baking dish again – I have a few of these and never use them often enough it seems – this kind of dish or any other baking dish with the capacity to hold about 1.5 liters is the perfect size for this recipe.

As pretty as this pie is, it is also easy to put together and we were very pleased with the way it turned out – together with a salad, this makes the perfect weeknight dinner for the whole family.

For the filling of the pie you will need grated courgettes, long-grain rice, red onion, grated hard goat´s cheese, two eggs, fruity olive oil, some freshly chopped dill and flat-leaf parsley plus some freshly ground black pepper and sea salt. The pastry consists of ready-made filo pastry (I used ten sheets) and melted unsalted butter.

In order to make this Courgette and Filo Rice Pie you have to line your baking dish with a few sheets of filo pastry, taking care to brush each layer with a bit of melted butter. Then you place the filling into the pastry-lined dish, crumple the remaining sheets of filo pastry on top of the pie, brush with a bit more melted butter and bake for a good 45 minutes. We waited about ten minutes before cutting into the pie and devoured all of it.

This is once again a recipe with easy to find ingredients and not difficult to put together at all. We thought that this very delicious Courgette and Filo Rice Pie also looks pretty enough for company, especially when served in a nice baking dish. Once the baked pie has had a chance to rest for a while, you can easily cut into it and serve nice slices to everyone around the table - perfect as is or with a salad on the side!

If you own the English edition of this vegetable cookbook, you will find the recipe for the "Courgette and Filo Rice Pie" on page 51 in the chapter on "Comfort Food & Feasts".

• December Filo Tart with Mini Brussels Sprouts (Winterliche Filotarte mit Rosenkohlröschen) (HERE)
• Filo Tart with fresh Figs & Prosciutto (Filotarte mit frischen Feigen & Prosciutto) (HERE)
• Crispy, Crackly Apple-Almond Tart (HERE)
• Filo Tart with White Asparagus, Goat Cheese & Meadowsweet Blossoms (Filotarte mit weißem Spargel, Ziegenkäse & Mädesüßblüten) (HERE)
• Red Swiss Chard & Mushroom Filo Tart (Filotarte mit rotem Mangold & braunen Champignons) (HERE)

Please take a look at the other posts from my "River Cottage Veg Everyday" series.

TwD - Sweet Berry Fougasse

Today´s recipes for the Tuesdays with Dorie group are Sweet Berry Fougasse or Blueberry Muffins. I chose the Sweet Berry Fougasse by contributing baker Craig Kominiak.

It is the first week of September and there are still tons of berries available around here. Because I adore red currants and blackberries, these are the two kind of berries I bought to make the topping for today´s recipe of the Sweet Berry Fougasse. Red currants are bright red, juicy berries with a distinct tart flavor. They are wonderful for baking Cookie Slices or when added to the Baked Yogurt Tart that we baked for TwD back in July of this year, or in a Red Currant Meringue Cake. Blackberries with their rich, deep, purple-black tones are delicious in pies, crumbles, ice cream, and jams and seemed to be a natural partner for red currants for today´s recipe.

But we are also in the midst of the peak season for fresh figs around here - therefore the second Fougasse got a topping of very thinly sliced dark burgundy-colored figs.

This striking fruit, with its fresh green or deep purple skin and vibrant deep pink flesh, is a wonderful addition to an autumnal-style Fougasse.

The recipe for the Fougasse is straightforward and once you have the focaccia dough ready for baking, this lovely dessert comes together quickly. You prepare the streusel topping with plain flour, cinnamon, freshly grated nutmeg, white and light brown sugar and some good and cold butter - I added a pinch of fine sea salt and some homemade vanilla sugar as well. Once the Streusel is done, you transfer the dough to your baking sheets, top with fruits of your choice, then sprinkle the streusel on top of the lovely fruit and bake - done!

The warm spices cinnamon and nutmeg together with the light brown sugar always smell wonderful while baking. And we enjoyed both versions, the summery berry version as well as the autumnal fig version - leads me to believe that you could top the Fougasse with just about any ripe fruit that is in season.

Instead of placing the Fougasse on my regular baking sheets, I used my well-worn and trusted vintage pie pans for these. Overall, a nice recipe that is reminiscent of my Tarte flambée with Apples that I made back in May of this year and that we also loved sans any streusel topping.

To see what the other members of the Tuesdays with Dorie group thought of thie Sweet Berry Fougasse or the Blueberry Muffins from contributing baker Rick Katz, please click here.

"River Cottage Veg Everyday" - Chargrilled summer veg

It is the first day of September and summer vegetables are still widely available everywhere. The weather is also still very much like summer around here, therefore, I am featuring the "Chargrilled summer veg" as my sixth post in my River Cottage Veg Everyday series today.

Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall states in his comment "to vary the veg as you like" and so I went to the market and brought back the best looking vegetables that I could find.. I also dropped by my favorite bakery and bought two loaves of fresh bread.

We enjoy fresh fennel that hails from Italy - I have not been able to find locally grown fennel anywhere but the Italian fennel bulbs that I bought were not only firm and unblemished but also incredibly aromatic.The Italian fennel is also called "Florence fennel" or finocchio in Italian.

Fresh fennel has a broad, bulbous base, pale green, celery-like stems, bright green, feathery foliage (that I often use as garnish) and greenish-brown seeds, all of which have a lovely aniseed flavor.

My usual way to prepare fennel is cutting the fennel into wedges, placing it in my grill pan and serving it with local honey and fresh soft goat cheese - pan or grill, both methods miraculously turn the crisp fennel slices into sweet and tender vegetable delights.

Next up was sweet corn - after my little adventure with a recipe for the French Fridays with Dorie recipe last week, I now have a reliable source who will part with some of his freshly harvested corn in the husk, I could not resist and placed some lovely fresh corn on the grill as well.

And grilling courgettes also known as zucchinis is the one of best methods of preparing those lovely veggies and handling part of the bumper crop. When choosing courgettes, remember, the smaller they are, the more flavorful they will be.

And no one at our house can resist ripe, bright red, grilled, cherry tomatoes, they are a smaller variety of the common garden tomato and are generally sweeter than larger fruits. They make a fabulous and colorful addition to any platter filled to the rim with tons of summer chargrilled veg.

New potatoes are also wonderful when placed on the grill for a few minutes - I scrubbed them, boiled them in salted water for a good 12 minutes, dried them off, coated them lightly with olive oil and placed them on the grill for a few minutes.

New potatoes are potatoes from the early crop that are smaller than the main crop potatoes. Remember to leave the skins on as much of the flavor (and the vitamin C) is found just under the tender skins.

When we grill, I always make sure to place some Ciabatta on the grill as well - simply delicious alongside any type of grilled vegetables - the thick slices of bread are especially fabulous when topped with those grilled late summer cherry tomatoes. You can easily use the tines of a fork to squash the grilled tomatoes.

And since we enjoy eating garlic, particularly when it is grilled this way, it also was placed on the grill.Grilling garlic gives it a golden color and an unbeatable mellow smoky flavor. Make sure to rub a bit of this delicacy on the grilled and still warm slices of Ciabatta.

And last but not least, thick grilling slices of fresh lemons will impart them with a sweet and smoky flavor  - make sure to grill a whole bunch of these and just before serving the veg platter, season to taste with some wonderful sea salt and freshly ground black pepper and drizzle your grilled treasures with the still warm lemon juice.

Sometimes there seems to be no better way to celebrate the late summer bounty of vegetables than by placing them on the grill and serving them on a huge platter. Then you gather the family around the table and let them choose which vegetables they would like to enjoy.

If you like, Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall also suggests tossing the veg together with chopped fresh herbs such as finely chopped parsley, basil, chervil, thyme or tarragon or finish them with cheese shavings (Parmiggiano Reggiano or another well-flavored hard cheese). But for today, it was just lemon juice, pepper, salt and a drizzle of a fruity olive oil.

If you own the English edition of this vegetable cookbook, you will find the recipe on page 332 in the chapter on "Roast, Grill & Barbecue".

Please take a look at the other posts from my "River Cottage Veg Everyday" series.

FFwD: Floating Islands (Îles flottantes)

Today´s recipe for the French Fridays with Dorie group is the traditional and elegant French dessert called “Floating Islands" or "Îles Flottantes".

A classic French comfort food, floating islands (or îles flottantes) are meringues poached in custard or milk and topped with a caramel sauce. It is a popular French childhood dessert that often brings back sweet memories and is considered to be a real treat. Floating islands are also known as "oeufs à la neige" in French or "Schnee- Eier" in German (which in turn means "snow eggs").

This is a dreamy kind of dessert that requires a few different steps before it can be enjoyed. I started with the vanilla custard sauce that contains nothing but egg yolks, sugar, milk, some cream and the scraped seeds of a vanilla bean. Then I made the caramel sauce with sugar, water, butter and lemon juice. The third step was the meringue that following Dorie´s recipe contains six egg whites, a pinch of sea salt, sugar and more vanilla (I used vanilla bean seeds again).

Then you can either poach the meringues in milk with sugar or bake them in a water filled baking dish - I chose to fill the bottoms of eight oven-proof ramekins with the caramel sauce, filled the dishes to the rim with the meringue, placed the dishes in a water bath and baked them in the oven for a good twenty minutes. Of course, if you poach the meringues, they will look more like "oeufs à la neige" or "snow eggs" and if you bake them, they will look more like "îles" or "islands".

Some of my dreamy islands were served in a generous pool of that homemade vanilla custard sauce, some were served just as is with some added caramel sauce - they were gone before I had a chance to explain why I had been in the kitchen for so long preparing this very French dessert...

Well, at least now I have a bit of routine preparing these and it will hopefully not take me that long next time, good, because I am planning on making these again.

To take a look at some more floating islands, or snow eggs or baked meringues that were prepared by the other members of the French Fridays with Dorie group, please click here.

"River Cottage Veg Everyday" - Marinated courgettes with mozzarella

It is the end of August and courgettes are rather cheap and abundantly available right now. They are tasty, quick-growing and endlessly versatile, in fact, recipes for courgettes come in as many shapes and sizes as the squash itself. Varieties of this summer vegetable can range in size from small and long shaped to humongous or even round shaped. The colors vary from dark green to pale green streaked with cream or even bright yellow.

Seeing that these courgettes were freshly picked the same day I bought them at my favorite farm stand, I chose the green, smallish long ones to star in my fifth recipe for my "River Cottage Veg Everyday" series, the delightfully fresh Mediterranean-style "Marinated courgettes with mozzarella".

The most "difficult" part about this recipe, is cutting the courgettes into thin strips or rather slices. You have to sear the slices in a hot pan (I used my beloved grill pan) and then prepare a marinade with extra virgin olive oil (which I always get at our local oil mill in town), garlic, lemon (zest and juice from an organic lemon), sea salt, freshly ground black pepper and basil.

The courgette slices should marinate for about an hour at room temperature and just before serving tear up or slice some buffalo mozzarella (regular will do as well) and strew the marinated courgettes with the fresh cheese.

I have been making a similar recipe for years now, it is one of my most favorite appetizers or anitipasti of all times - so, I do not really consider myself to be all that impartial - but trust me whe I say, this is just a perfect (late) summer appetizer - it is fresh and tangy and you could showcase your very favorite bread alongside and then mop up some of the fabulous marinade - that´s why you should really use a good-quality olive oil for the marinade, it will make quite a difference in how this dish tastes like.

If you own the English edition of this vegetable cookbook, you will find the recipe on page 314 in the chapter on "Mezze & Tapas".

Please take a look at the other posts from my "River Cottage Veg Everyday" series.