Food blogger: 4 amazing desserts (No chocolate tempering required.)

By ELLY JEAN-LOUIS

This week I’ve channelled my dark side and whipped up four delicious desserts. They’re quick, easy, and delicious but most of all…there’s something for everyone.

“I can’t eat dessert because I’m trying to be good…” you say? I’ve heard you and that is why I’ve created desserts that range across indulgent pudding-spectrum.

So if you are:

Vegan, gluten free, lactose intolerant, a dessert dabbler, a Chocolate Lover or a self confessed dessert-a-holic, then, I have something here for you.

Let’s start off on the lower end of the dessert scale. This is perfect for when you want something sweet but healthy. Then, we’ll move our way up to a sweet, chocolaty, indulgent… heaven – perfect for days when chocolate is the only thing that will save your world from imploding.

COCONUT CHIA PUDDINGS

(INDULGENCE LEVEL ONE)

Vegan, Gluten Free, Lactose Free

What you need:

½ cup chia seeds

1 cup coconut milk

¼ cup coconut water

1tsp vanilla extract

1tbsp honey

Fruit to serve (I like raspberries or frozen mangos an blueberries)

Let’s create:

1. Pour the chia seeds into a large bowl, add the liquid and stir. Mix in the honey and vanilla extract.

2. Pour mix into glasses or bowls and then chill for an hour. Top with fruit and enjoy. See, you can have your cake and eat it too.

FLOURLESS ORANGE AND ALMOND CAKE

(INDULGENCE LEVEL TWO)

Gluten Free, Lactose Free

What you’ll need:

2 Large Oranges (do not use bruised oranges as you need the flesh and skin for this recipe)

5 medium eggs

1 1/4 cups of Caster Sugar

2 1/2 cups of Almond Meal

1 tsp baking powder (gluten free baking powder)

What you need to do:

1. Preheat Oven to 170°C and grease your cake tin.

2. Place the oranges in a large pan. Cover with water and boil for 1 hour until tender.

3. Cool orange, then them cut into quarters and discard any seeds or bruises.

4. Blend orange segments and skin until smooth. I find that it works best if you pass the puree through a sieve after blending HOWEVER this is not a compulsory stage.

5. Using electric beaters, blend sugar and eggs till they appear pale and creamy.

6. Add orange puree, almond meal and baking powder to the orange mixture and stir well.

7. Cook for 1 hour, remove from the oven and allow and cool for 20 minutes before serving.

8. Enjoy.

*Serving suggestions: Vanilla Bean Gelato or Double Cream (not for the faint hearted).

“IT’S SO FLUFFY” CHOCOLATE MOUSSE

(INDULGENCE LEVEL THREE)

What you need:

350g good quality dark chocolate, roughly chopped

3 eggs

1/4 cup caster sugar

300ml thickened cream

Fresh Raspberries, to serve

Let’s create:

1. Place the chocolate in a bain-marie (a heatproof bowl e.g. metal or glass, over a pan of gently simmering water). Note: do not let the bowl touch the water. Stir chocolate until melted then remove from heat and set aside for 2 minutes.

2. Using electric beaters, whisk eggs for 3-4 minutes until they double in size and appear pale and fluffy. Fold cooled chocolate into the egg mix.

3. In a separate bowl, whip cream until thickened peaks form (this usually takes 1-2 minutes, don’t over work as cream can curdle).

4. Use a large metal spoon, fold half of the cream through the chocolate mixture then add the second lot of cream. This keeps the mixture as light as possible.

5. Spoon into 4-6 serving glasses, chill for at least 20 minutes. Top with fresh raspberries (or desired fruit) and enjoy the sweet, sweet goodness.

HAZELNUT TIRAMISU

(INDULGENCE LEVEL FOUR)

What you need:

Biscuits

1 large pack of ladyfinger biscuits (I think there were roughly 40 in the packet)

Soaking liquid

1 cup of coffee

¼ cup Frangelico

1 tbsp caster sugar

Delicious filling

500g mascarpone

4 egg yolks

2 tbsp sugar

3 tbsp of hazelnut spread e.g. nutella

2 cups of thickened cream

1 tbsp Frangelico

1 tsp vanilla extract

Grated chocolate or cocoa for dusting

Let’s create:

1. Mix soaking ingredients together and set aside to cool.

2. Whip egg yolks and sugar until pale and fluffy.

3. Add hazelnut spread and mascarpone and mix until just combined.

4. In a separate bowl whip cream with sugar and vanilla, when peaks form add in Frangelico and whip till peaks have reformed.

5. Gently fold cream into mascarpone mix.

6. Now it’s time to assemble. Dip 1 ladyfinger at a time into the espresso mix and arrange in rows (in a large flat dish or individual bowls).

7. Layer with half of the hazelnut mix and repeat (layer biscuits in the opposite direction for the second layer). Smooth top with spatula, refrigerate for at least 4 hours.

8. Dust with grated chocolate or cocoa before serving.

What about you, what’s your favourite thing to indulge on?