Hazelnut and vanilla verrines with quince jelly, figs and cape gooseberry… or with alpine strawberries

Crema di nocciola e vaniglia con gelatina di cotogne, fichi e alchechengi

A few days ago I was in Christchurch where I bought some hazelnut flour (Hazelz). I love hazelnuts!

For 4 verrines I used:

2 eggs

3 tbps sugar

1 tbsp (level) cornflour

400 ml full cream milk

1 drop real vanilla essence

1 tbsp (heap) hazelnut flour

1 tbsp Frangelico liquor

for the topping

4-8 tbsp quince jelly (see below)

figs and cape gooseberries to decorate

In a pot mix the eggs with sugar and cornflour and add the milk little by little. Simmer stirring constantly until a custard form, then add the vanilla essence. Pour 200 ml of this custard into a measuring jug (I used the same one I used for the milk) and set aside, then put the hazelnut flour and Frangelico into the remaining custard and stir well. Fill four verrines or glasses with the hazelnut cream (this will be quite thick) and then pour the (thinner) vanilla custard on top. Let it cool down then add the quince jelly. I made the quince jelly by cooking the quinces and then straining the juice overnight in a jelly bag (actually, I use a clean pillowcase that I keep just for jellies) hung over a bowl. Don't squeeze the bag or the jelly will be cloudy. Usually for thick jellies I measure the liquid, add the same amount of sugar and bring back to the boil, but here I only used half the quantity of sugar and I got a soft, almost 'liquid' jelly, good to pour over desserts like this. A tbsp or two per glass will give you a nice covering. Refrigerate. Before serving decorate with slices of figs and cape gooseberries.

For this dessert instead I didn't use quince jelly but I just added some alpine strawberries and some Fresh As raspberry powder. For decorations I used some (edible) pansies. While the first verrines were very 'Autumn', this one was more like a 'fruits of the forest', it reminded me of foraging in the mountains in Italy for alpine strawberries, raspberries and hazelnuts. It works really well. 

But who ate what? Max got this one, and we had the other three, all delicious!

I also like to add some photos of the Transitional Christchurch Cathedral of Christchurch, better known as the Cardboard Cathedral. If you live in New Zealand you will know that the Christchurch Cathedral was significantly damaged in the 2011 earthquake. I haven't been to Chch since last August and so much is being rebuilt now (or demolished, to be rebuilt), a long job! 

 I really wanted to visit the Cardboard Cathedral, I heard so much about it and I wasn't disappointed! Usually I am not a fan of modern churches, but this is truly beautiful, and special. It was designed, for free, but Japanese architect Shigeru Ban, who works in many 'disaster' areas using materials like paper, cardboard and wood.

Why is it call Cardboard Cathedral? Yes, those 86 'tubes' which make the A-frame are cardboard (specially treated, of course). Have a look at this 2 min video to see how it was built. Well done Christchurch, and ありがとう Ban-san.

Photos and Recipes by Alessandra Zecchini ©

This recipe is for Sweet New Zealand #34, the blogging event open to all Kiwi bloggers (living in NZ or overseas) and expats blogging from NZ. May's host is Sue from Couscous and Consciousness. Sue lived in Christchurch and her house was destroyed by the earthquake, so I hope that she will find the images of the Cardboard Cathedral uplifting. Visit her blog and click here to share you sweet creations with her. Also let me know if you are keen to be a host in 2014, and book a month!

Wild strawberry skewers, and the memory of foraging, plus a very special Slow Food event!

Photo by Alessandra Zecchini ©

Did you ever pick wild strawberries as a child? If you did maybe you too made skewers with grass! It was more like a game really, mostly when I went out picking wild strawberries I was 'on a mission', i.e. out with a bag to pick enough to make jam, not just a few to eat on a grass skewer :-)! But here in New Zealand there are not fields and mountains full with wild strawberries (or wild blueberries and raspberries, maybe just a few bramble berries), so the only wild strawberries I have have been planted in pots in the garden, and the harvest is enough for decorations (and grass skewers) rather than for having a full bowl for dessert, let alone making jam!

 I grew up foraging: mushrooms, berries, nuts, greens, wood (not for eating!). A good forager takes only what he/she needs and leaves the environment unchanged. Foraging is healthy, keeps you in touch with nature, and goes hand in hand with good farming and gardening practices. And now it is fashionable too!  

Slow Food Waitakere is organizing a wonderful ethical Feast on 24 November, and much of the food will be foraged. You can find a record of some of the foraging here, more plants, flowers and ideas will be added as we prepare the feast. So join us for this special lunch, and click here for more info. 

These are Wild (or Alpine) strawberries, not the 'Mock' Strawberries typically found in New Zealand and considered a weed (I have many too!). The mock strawberries are rounder and with a yellow flower, they are edible but have no taste. Alpine or wild strawberries have a white flower, smell delicious and are sweet, but they are so small that you need to eat a few at a time to really taste them. Photo by Alessandra Zecchini ©

Photo by Alessandra Zecchini ©

Crêpe cake with Cointreau butter and flowers

Our friend David came to stay, it was his birthday a few days ago, but I didn't have time to bake a cake.  So I just used some ready made sweet Crêpes (pack of 9) and whipped about 100 g of unsalted butter with one heap tbsp of icing sugar and a good dose of Cointreau (to taste!). I spread the butter cream on the Crêpes and topped it with edible flowers from the garden (you can do this if the flowers in your garden have not been sprayed). I added a few Alpine strawberries (also from the garden) and voilà! An instant cake that looked great, and tasted good and took no time! Sometime we need to 'cheat' a little!

I am entering this recipe for Sweet New Zealand, the monthly blogging event for Kiwi bloggers. Our November 2013 host is Mairi from Toast, click here to enter. 

Photos and recipes by Alessandra Zecchini ©

Alpine strawberries and Forget-me-not

In my garden right now... a part from lots of onion weed (edible), Alpine strawberries are starting to pop up, just enough for a 'shot' dessert of yogurt, honey, and tiny wild strawberries. It looks good next to another garden treasure: sweet forget-me-not, among my favourite little flowers. Both strawberries and flowers makes me think of home in Italy, where they grow wild everywhere at the beginning of Summer. And I love the colours!

Photos and recipes by Alessandra Zecchini ©

Happy Mother's Day and Alpine (wild) strawberry smoothie

Happy Mother's Day to all the Mums!

Alpine (wild) strawberry smoothie

Ingredients:

All the wild strawberries you can find

One banana

Natural apple juice

Photos and Recipe by Alessandra Zecchini ©