Piña Colada Birthday Cake

Happy weekend everyone!! I am happy to share my Birthday Cake with you all! The traditional flavors that go in the famous tropical drink are nicely incorporated in this recipe. This was the first time I made dried pineapple flowers. Besides looking gorgeous they are also quite yummy!

Piña Colada Birthday Cake

Ingredients:

• 6 large eggs, seperated, egg yolk at room temperature and egg whites cold,
• pinch of salt
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1 cup honey
• 1 cup shredded unsweetened coconut
• 1 cup spelt flour
• 1 tsp almond extract

For the Filling:

• 500 ml whipping cream, 35%, chilled
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/4 cup honey
• 1/2 cup shredded unsweetened coconut
• 1/2 cup coconut flavored Rum like Bacardi or Malibu
• 1 cup finely cut pineapple pieces

-Line 3 9-inch baking forms with parchment paper. Preheat oven to 350 F.

-Seperate egg whites from yolks. Add a pinch of salt and baking powder and start whisking until stiff peaks form. Add honey and whisk just until well combined.

-Whisk egg yolks with the almond extract until foamy. Mix in the flour and shredded coconut. Carefully fold in the whipped whites, just until well combined.

-Pour batter into prepared baking forms. Bake in preheated oven for about 30 minutes or until golden brown. Let cool completely.

For the Filling:

– In a large bowl whisk the whipping cream until almost stiff, add the vanilla extract and honey then keep whisking until stiff peaks form. Fold in the shredded coconut.

How to assemble the cake:

– Place one cake layer onto a serving plate, brush top evenly with Rum. Spread evenly with about 1/3 cup of whipping cream. Then sprinkle 1/2 cup of pineapple pieces evenly on top. Place second cake layer on top and repeat with Rum, whipping cream and pineapple pieces. Add the third cake layer and brush with some Rum then cover the whole cake with the remaining whipping cream. Refrigerate until ready to se serve. Decorate with pineapple flowers.

How to make the dried pineapple flowers:

– Preheat oven to 200 F. Cut off the outside shell, and do not remove the core. With a sharp knife or mandolin cut about half of the pineapple into thin slices. Use paper towel to dry the slices and removing as much moisture as possible. I used a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Place pineapple slices on the prepared sheet and place in the oven for 2 – 3 hours or until fully dried and edges are crisp. While still warm place each pineapple slice into the inside of a muffin tin to create the shape of a flower. Allow the pineapple flowers to completely dry. Decorate the cake with as many flowers as desired.

I hope you give it a try!

Ursula

xox

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Strawberry-Tiramisu Cake

This was my Birthday Cake, celebrating my 40th!!

It was so delicious; a creamy Mascarpone filling with strawberries and a touch of liquor, the base simply made with ladyfingers and butter. And the cake is a no-bake recipe, perfect for summer and strawberry season!

Strawberry-Tiramisu Cake

For the crust:

• 200g Ladyfingers, finely crushed
• 100g butter, melted

Filling:

• 500g Mascarpone
• 200ml 35% heavy cream
• 80g + 2tbsp honey
• 1 1/5 tsp vanilla extract
• 3 tbsp liquor
• 400g strawberries, finely cut
• a few strawberries for decoration

-grease a 22cm Springform.

-mix together the finely crushed ladyfingers with the butter, fill into baking form and press down evenly. Let rest in the fridge while you make the filling.

-in a large mixing bowl, stir together the mascarpone, honey, vanilla and liquor. Whip the cream until stiff peaks form add 2 tbsp of honey, whisk until combined. Gently fold whipped cream under the mascarpone filling, then add the strawberries. Pour the filling into the form. Let cool for at least 6 hours. Top and decorate the cake with some more strawberries.

Happy June!

Enjoy!

Ursula

 

 

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Almond Coconut Fruit Tart (gluten-free)

This year we have some special celebrations in our family, we’ll be celebrating 10, 20, 40, 50, 60, 70th birthday as well as some anniversaries. First up was my husbands 50th birthday!

Because of some digestion problems he did not ask for a cake, that is why I came up with this gluten free almond fruit tart. Pretty easy to make and tastes delicious.

 

Almond Coconut Fruit Tart

Almond Crust:

• 3 1/2 cup ground almonds
• 1/2 cup coconut sugar
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• pinch sea salt
• 1/2 cup butter melted
• 2 eggs

-Whisk together butter and eggs, add coconut sugar, salt and cinnamon. Stir in ground almonds until well combined. This will be a sticky dough.

-Line the bottom of a 28 cm tart form with parchment paper, grease the sides. Fill in almond dough, works best using your hands, press down evenly. Bake in preheated 350F oven for 30 minutes. Let cool completely.

Coconut Custard

• 500 ml coconut milk
• 4 tbsp corn starch
• 1/3 cup honey
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

-In a medium saucepan whisk together all ingredients, except vanilla. Let come to a boil, while whisking, then reduce heat and let cook until thickened. Remove from heat, stir in vanilla and let cool a few minutes then fill in a bowl and let cool completely in the fridge.

Assembly:

-Place almond crust on a serving plate or cake stand. Fill with custard then decorate with your fruit of choice. I used about 5 kiwis, cut in slices, 1 orange and some grape halves.

-Store in refrigerator.

 

Enjoy!

Ursula

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Strawberry Cake / Erdbeertorte

Happy June!!

I’ve had a hard time deciding on what kind of cake I would like for my birthday! There are so many I like…lol. In the end I choose to make a traditional European strawberry cake, similar to what you could find in a bakery.

It turned out pretty lovely and delicious! I was especially proud to have made it, because I’ve been having a lot of shoulder pain and numbness in my arm and hand, which makes everyday tasks very difficult, not to mention doing something that involves even more time. And writing down the recipe just had to wait a little.

I had a wonderful birthday!

 

The recipe is adapted from Kuchenfeelisa.de and Betty Bossi

 

Strawberry Cake / Erdbeertorte

• 80 g sugar or honey
• 4 egg yolks
• 1 lemon, only zest
• 4 egg whites
• pinch of salt
• big pinch of baking powder
• 2 tbsp sugar or honey
• 100 g all-purpose unbleached flour
• 40 g melted

-Line the bottom of a 24 cm spring form with parchment paper. Grease and flour the sides. Preheat the oven to 350F/180C.

-Mix together the sugar, egg yolks and lemon zest until creamy.

-Whisk egg whites with the salt and baking powder until stiff peaks form. Add 2 tbsp of sugar and whisk a little more.

-Add the flour alternately with the egg whites, a little at the time and gently fold under the egg yolk mixture. Mix in the melted butter and fill into prepared form.

-Bake for about 15 minutes or until golden brown.

-Let cool completely.

Vanilla Creme

• 125 g sugar or honey
• 3 egg yolks
• 1 egg
• 60 g all-purpose unbleached flour
• 500 ml milk or plant milk like cashew or coconut milk
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

-In a bowl mix together the sugar, egg yolks and egg, add the flour and mix well.

-In a saucepan bring the milk to a boil. Remove from heat. Add the vanilla.

-Add a few tablespoons of the hot milk to the flour/egg mix and stir well, repeat that 2 times.

-Then add the flour/egg/milk mix to the milk in the saucepan. Keep stirring and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, keep stirring until nice and creamy. Remove from heat. Let cool for a few minutes.

– Add the still warm creme onto the cake. Arrange strawberries onto the cake, I cut them in half to lay onto the creme. Then add the rest of the whole strawberries evenly. This will be a few layers of strawberries.

-Prepare cake glaze according to packing instruction and pour onto strawberries. Use about 100 ml less water to make a thicker glaze.  Leave some to brush on the top strawberries to make it look extra shiny. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours.

-Remove the spring form side, maybe using a knife first to loosen it from the form first.

-Brush warmed jelly around the side, then cover with the toasted almonds.

-Decorate with some pistachios or flowers if desired.

-Keep refrigerated.

Extras

• 1 kg small or medium strawberries, washed and hulled.
• 50 g strawberry jelly, warmed
• 200 g sliced almonds, lightly toasted
• Tortenguss, cake glaze (you can find it in a European deli)
• a few finely chopped pistachios or some flowers for decorating

 

 

 

Enjoy!

Ursula

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Haselnusstorte / Hazelnut Cake

Hello everyone! It was my husbands birthday yesterday and this Hazelnut cake was his birthday cake wish. The recipe is adapted from my 1982 Betty Bossi book, my usual go to for European style cakes. It has a rich hazelnut flavor, a little bit of rum, no butter and only a tiny bit of flour. The only heavy part of the cake is the whipped cream, I really like it, but have to admit I do not tolerate cream that well, I ended up having a stomach ache. That is why I mostly eat dairy free, I don’t seem to have a problem with butter and eat only once in a while some cheese…I used to eat a lot of cheese before!

My husband loved it! It is really delicious!

I’ve been busy looking after my son, he has been sick with a high fever since Sunday. Poor guy, he was only able to eat a tiny slice of the cake.

Prepare the cake at least 1 day ahead before cutting and adding the filling. I made the cake refined sugar free, feel free to use regular sugar. The recipe is only for 2 layers. I ended up baking another half of the recipe, you could also just double the recipe. I drizzled the bottom 2 layers with a little bit more rum before spreading the whipped cream.

 

Haselnusstorte/Hazelnut Cake

Ingredients:

• 220 g coconut sugar
• 6 egg yolks
• 1 tbsp rum
• 6 egg whites
• 1 pinch of salt
• 1/4 tsp baking powder
• 2 tbsp honey
• 300 g ground hazelnuts
• 1 tbsp all-purpose unbleached flour

-Line a 24 cm Springform pan with parchment paper, grease and flour the sides. Preheat oven to 180C.

-Whisk together egg yolks and sugar, add rum.

-Whip egg whites with the salt and baking powder until stiff peaks form. Add the honey and continue to whip for a little longer.

-Mix hazelnuts and flour, add to the egg yolk mix, alternating with egg whites, a little at the time, and gently fold under with a spatula. Pour into prepared form.

-Bake in preheated 180C for 20 minutes then reduce heat to 150C and bake for about 40 minutes, or toothpick inserted into middle comes out clean. Let cool completely. Let rest for 1-3 days before cutting and filling.

Filling:  

• 200 ml 35% cream
• 3 tbsp ground hazelnuts
• 3 tbsp honey

-Whip cream until stiff peaks form, add the hazelnuts and honey, mix well. Fill and decorate cake as desired.

-Store in refrigerator.

 

 

Wishing you all a lovely week!

Enjoy!

Ursula

 

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Strawberry-Coconut-Cake

June is usually the month when we get the first Ontario Strawberries, depending on where you live of course. We also have some plants in our garden, which are full of flowers this year, and I’ve seen some green unripe berries. I can’t wait to taste the first berries:)

June is also the month of my birthday:) June 2nd. I’ve made this amazing tasting strawberry coconut cake. Imagine coconut cake with a creamy mascarpone filling and strawberry puree! It is perfect for the month of strawberries;) or as other summer fruits come along I am sure it would taste great with cherries or other berries and so on.

Our strawberry plants.

 

Strawberry-Coconut-Cake/Erdbeer-Kokos-Torte

Coconut cake:

• 3 eggs
• pinch of salt
• 100 coconut sugar, or sugar
• 75 g flour
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 40 g coconut, shredded unsweetened
• 30 g butter, melted

-Preheat oven to 350F/180C. Line the bottom of a 22 cm round Springform baking pan with parchment paper.

-Mix eggs, salt and coconut sugar well for a few minutes. Mix flour and baking powder and sift it into the bowl with the egg mixture. Gently mix. Add coconut and melted butter only until combined. Pour into prepared baking pan. Bake for about 30 minutes or until tester inserted in middle comes out clean. Let cool completely.

Strawberry layer:

• 1/2 organic lemon, zest and juice
• 250 g strawberries
• 2 tbsp cornstarch
• 3 tbsp water

-Puree strawberries, lemon juice and zest. Mix together well cornstarch and water, add to strawberry puree. Over medium heat bring puree to a boil, and let cook for about 3 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool down, then put in fridge.

Coconut Mascarpone Cream:

• 500 g mascarpone
• 150 ml coconut cream
• 100 ml honey, plus 2 tbsp
• 350 ml whipped cream
• 1 packet vanilla sugar
• 2 pouches unflavored gelatin
• 75 g coconut, shredded unsweetened

-Mix together mascarpone, coconut cream and honey, add shredded coconut. Prepare gelatin as directed. Add a few tablespoons of the mascarpone cream to the gelatin and mix, then add it to the rest of the cream. Whip whipping cream until stiff, add 2 tbsp honey or sugar, whisk again then fold gently under the mascarpone cream. Cover and leave in fridge until cake has completely cooled down.

Extras and Decoration: 

• Coconut liquor, Rum, Kirsch Schnapps…(optional, leave out if you have little kids eating)
• 100 ml whipped cream
• 250 g strawberries

-Place cake on a plate or cake stand. Drizzle some liquor on top. Place and close cake ring back around the cake. Spoon some of the strawberry puree into middle leaving a 2 cm space around. Cover with 2/3 of the mascarpone cream, spread evenly. Mix rest of puree with remaining mascarpone cream. Spoon onto cake then gently swirl, not going to deep until you have a desired look, kind of like a marbled look. Let set in refrigerator overnight.

-Carefully remove cake ring. I used a hot knive to go around first, to loosen it a bit.

-Decorate with whipped cream, strawberries and some shredded coconut if desired, to your liking:)

–you can use regular sugar to replace the coconut sugar and the honey–

 

Recipe by Ursula, A little Swiss a little Canadian

 

 

 

I wish you all a great weekend! Happy long weekend for those in Europe (Pfingsten)!

Enjoy!

Ursula

 

 

You can find me on Instagram @littleswisslittlecanadian