dancing in the clouds. { cream filled berry pavlova }

Named after russian ballerina Anna Pavlova, this beautiful dessert is a sure crowd stunner. The ideal pavlova meringue has a crispy shell and a fluffy marshmallow-like interior. Don't panic if your meringue cracks - there really is something perfect about such imperfection. Sublimity can be easily achieved with a thick layer of lemon twisted whipped cream and an overload of fresh berries. I finished mine by pouring over a little port wine reduction and, inspired by the happenstance of the first snowfall of the season, I dusted it all with confectioner's sugar.

in praise of slowness, making the plan as you go and sparking creativity { lemon poppy seed pound cake with blueberries and basil }

For its exquisite yet crowd-pleasing flavour profile and its laid-back yet preppy looks, this cake suits any occasion or table just perfectly. It brings that extra something to a picnic-style brunch in the balcony with plenty other things to choose from, it is just as good for packing and taking to the park to share with friends on a sunday afternoon, or it can just as well be the star of a fancier dinner. Do not skip the glaze and the lemon zest on top, for they are not only a final decorative touch, they actually change the experience of biting into a slice.

let me introduce you your new favourite everyday summer treat { watermelon-strawberry slush }

It's 35ºC outside and maybe even way over it inside your house, you're feeling close to fainting, sweating and panting whenever you have to move a finger... so what now? Just whip youself up this all-natural delicious slush. Luscious, with a vibrant red colour, it's pretty perfect. No need to add colourants.

A couple of days ago, so to speak, I decided I could wait no longer to go back to freezing fruit. I started doing it some years ago when I was at my parents' over the summer, mostly to produce creamy banana ice creams, slowly destroying their blender with rock-like pieces of banana, strawberries, blueberries, or whatever crossed my mind that day. However, since I moved to Germany, I haven't had the chance to use a REAL blender, for all I've got is a feeble cheap hand blender that I bought at the supermarket, which main function is actually spilling soup all around my kitchen. Not funny.

tarte aux framboises { french raspberry tart }

When I was a toddler, and until I started elementary school, my then only brother and me had a very sweet french lady taking care of us and helping around the house. I have to admit that, besides her tanned face and her kind smile, which she managed to pull even when we young brothers had our share of fun plotting against her, I can't quite recall these days. They say we start collecting memories around that age, right? Well, I was a bit too young back then to remember everything clearly.

it's THAT chocolate cake! { chocolate-cherry cake with mascarpone-blueberry filling and brigadeiro frosting }

It happens that, sometimes, I find myself in the need of baking or cooking something for some special occasion, and yet I have absolutely no clue of what I intend to do exactly, or even the desire to do anything at all. I know... coming from me, it may sound a bit odd. But, even if seldom, it happens.

para a minha mãe. { clafoutis dutch baby pancake }

She is a one in a zillion kind of woman.

She may not be easy to deal with at times, for she has the boldest of personalities. She will teach you how to stay strong no matter what, how to stand up for your ideas and ideals. She is the strongest person you will ever meet. She will, without even knowing it, show you to be that woman - in a man's world. She will teach you not to care about petty things and to treasure authenticity and essence. She is not afraid to speak her mind, and although she is transparent as she can be with her emotions, she will always remain a mystery to you.

That makes her infinitely sexy.

She may seem unattached at times, but she has the biggest heart you could ever imagine. She will come off as though she won't easily get off her own track for something or someone - yet she definitely will. Don't let the looks fool you and make her regret that later on. If you find her, beware that you have found a rare gem. You will have to - and you will want to - catch up with her unique pace.

She's not for the faint of heart. 

She embraces challenges and change. And she likes to live with her head up in the clouds. She is a dreamer. She will tell you all about some crazy idea she has had, right in the haze of it, and then she will leave you puzzled as she moves on to the next one, for her mind is both restless and reckless. Don't be fearful and don't try to stop it, it's not like she cannot commit or care. She is merely capable of seeing countless roads at the same time. She's witty and creative and she will definitely inspire you. Her endless unfinished projects may always remain so, for she has already accomplished so much. She has achieved so much in her life, you can only feel profound admiration for her. That is both insping and intimidating, for it's not easy to live up to that standard.

She is larger than life.

We do have a lot in common, and I am glad for it.

And I hope and like to think that, one day, I will be worthy of these words of my own myself.

my blueberry nights { american-style blueberry pie }

i think i am in love.

i am in love with my new - still in the making - flat.

and with the blueberry pie that came with it.

enjoy ;)

no butter, no cake? no way. { olive oil lemon bundt cake with white chocolate and berries }

this cake has a very funny story.

a berry brioche will make your day brighter! { berry swirl brioche }

i love challenges.

i feel the uttermost need to experiment, discover and push my limits every time.

i can't stay still, because even when I do it my mind is still racing.

in my head, at any time, ideas swell and eventually overflow like popping corn, unpredictable, plenty and loud.

i also use to put recipes together during meetings. or on my way home, in the metro. or while i'm shopping for groceries. or in the shower. it's just something that i can't avoid.

all of this to say that i have been dreaming about this day for a long, long time.

i had the recipe thought of, i had seen plenty others for inspiration, i was even convinced i could successfully do it, but i never found the time. it does take some eight hours - and some more overnight rest - but i finally convinced myself that it would be absolutely worth it.

i was partially guided by some brioche recipes i've found online, but i made it pretty much from scratch. having no stand-mixer, i kneaded it all by hand - and oh yeah, if that wasn't some heavy work out! - i used frozen berries - which are usually too watery for this kind of recipe, but i'm not rich! - and i didn't really follow any guidelines on pretty much anything - only my gut, which once more has proven to be sharp.

i was astonished at how perfect this whole thing actually turned out.

modesty aside... it was absolutely gorgeous.

whenever i bake bread, i always think that it is the best bread i've ever made/eaten/seen. but this time i think i've raised the tide quite high.

i think i am in love with my breakfast,

may i tempt you too?

more on white sheets: tainted love { french toast, topped with banana and a silky berry sauce }

the most peaceful moment of the week.

i find safety in the dull white of these weekend mornings.

two-thousand-fifteen! { spekulatius bundt cake with cranberries, orange and almond }

my handsome 'little' bros and me wish you a happy new year 2015!
by my dearest pretty little stories

i am sorry i haven't been posting lately.
truth is... it's not like i haven't been cooking!


you've seen what i've been doing in the kitchen - i cannot lie.
i've got plenty of inspiring recipes to share with you, which have accumulated to a dramatic point over the last month, while i kept running around thinking about loads of other stuff, not without bearing a guilty tiny corner of mind, squeezing and twisting over the postponed blogger work.
it's just that every time i come to Portugal there's so much stuff to do that i don't know where to turn to anymore, and time seems to slip between my fingers. when i finally find myself staring at my laptop's overly bright screen, it's most likely three in the morning and, despite the intensity of the light, i'm already having trouble keeping my eyes open.

in any case, i decided that even if i cannot find the right words - you have no clue how demanding i am with writting, particularly my own! - and even if there was no recipe attached, i would not keep myself from posting in the first day of the year... especially because this post was already meant for yesterday... uups!

a christmas message. { yogurt pancakes with homemade cranberry sauce }

and possibly some pancake recipe too.

birthday celebration challenges | the outcome

we've got a winner!
it's Susana, from basta cheio, and you can check her post here too

a love affair with braided berries ♥ { strawberry raspberry bread braid }

You can call me crazy, but I have no shame in admitting that I love winter thunderstorms and rain, particularly at night and especially (of course, but not only) when I'm home, cozying up in the couch, underneath thick blankets and with a huge cup of freshly brewed tea nearby.

But there is one thing I like even more: those days (and many of them are left by these stormy nights) when you wake up to a bright sunshine and a deep blue sky, that almost make you forget how it is less than ten degrees celsius outside, because you can have breakfast in the balcony wearing a t-shirt as if it was summer.

Extra points if that day is a sunday ♥

about brunches. { american pancakes II }

... bringing some happiness to your next lazy day breakfast or brunch.

Gordon Ramsay has this cookbook where he states that breakfast is the most challenging meal of the day, even for a chef. I can say I totally side with him. I usually wake up happy and full of energy, but even so, it's not like I'm jumping on air over running to the kitchen and start cooking right away. It's a bit hard for me to believe that anyone wakes up with this much energy. Plus, for some reason I don't quite understand, it makes me mostly desperate having to wait one hour for breakfast to be ready.

So one thing is for sure: if I am making you brunch... I really like you ;)

Made this for my Italian 'family'. It's so sad you're leaving, guys!

I must add that this is now my absolute favourite pancake recipe. I used to make them with baking soda, but this time I changed the recipe a bit and I'm pretty satisfied with how they turned out.

blueberry bliss... in a cake. { blueberry orange pound cake with vanilla glaze }

Baking, baking, baking... you're all invited for tea!

I think I may have found my most recent favourite yellow cake recipe (heart)

Pound Cake de Mirtilhos e Laranja com Glacé de Baunilha

- 125g de manteiga

- 125g de açúcar

- 125g de farinha

- 125 ml de buttermilk

- 1 colher de chá de fermento

- 1/2 colher de chá de sal

- 2 colheres de sopa de orange marmalade

- 2 ovos

- 150g de mirtilhos

- 1/2 chávena de açúcar em pó

- 2 colheres de sopa de leite

- baunilha moída e gotas de aroma de baunilha

1) Bater bem a manteiga com o açúcar e o doce até obter uma mistura cremosa homogénea,

2) Acrescentar os ovos um a um, batendo entre adições,

3) Misturar a farinha, o fermento e o sal,

4) Com um fouet, incorporar à vez parte do buttermilk e parte da farinha,

5) Com uma espátula, envolver os mirtilhos cuidadosamente,

6) Verter numa forma de bolo inglês ou de bundt cake untada e levar ao forno a 170ºC cerca de 40 minutos,

7) Desenformar e deixar arrefecer; entretanto, misturar bem os ingredientes do glacé,

8) Verter o glacé sobre o bolo de forma irregular, deixando escorrer para os lados.

Blueberry Orange Pound Cake with Vanilla Glaze

- 125g butter

- 125g sugar

- 125g flour

- 125 ml buttermilk

- 1 tsp baking powder

- 1/2 tsp salt

- 2 tbsp orange marmalade

- 2 eggs

- 150g blueberries

- 1/2 cup confectioner's sugar

- 2 tbsp milk

- ground vanilla and vanilla aroma drops

1) Cream butter, sugar and jam,

2) Add eggs one by one, beating between additions,

3) Mix flour, baking powder and salt together,

4) Alternately mix the flour and the buttermilk into the egg mixture,

5) Carefully fold in the blueberries,

6) Pour into a greased english or pound cake mould and bake at 170ºC for about 40 minutes,

7) Unmould, let cool; meanwhile prepare the glaze, mixing all ingredients,

8) Pour glaze over the cake; it should run down the sides of the cake here and there.

cherry booze will make you smile ;) { sparkling cherry sangria }

I confess... I'm on a cherry inebrity these days.

Champanhada de Cereja

750ml de espumante, frio

300ml de sumo de cerejas ácidas, frio

1/2 a 2/3 de chávena de açúcar

1 colher de sopa de sumo de limão

meia dúzia de cubos de gelo

uma dúzia de cerejas doces descaroçadas e cortadas em metades e mirtilhos para decorar

Num jarro, misturar as cerejas, os mirtilhos, o açúcar e o sumo de limão,

Juntar o sumo de cereja, misturar tudo bem,

Por fim, juntar o espumante e o gelo e servir.

Cherry Champanhada

750ml sparkling wine, cold

300ml sour cherry juice, cold

1/2 to 2/3 cup sugar

1 tbsp lemon juice

half a dozen ice cubes

a dozen sweet cherries, pitted and cut into halves, and blueberries to garnish

In a jar, mix cherries, blueberries, sugar and lemon juice,

Add cherry juice and stir until dissolved,

Finally, add sparkling wine and ice and serve.

rouge cerise. { sweet cherry pie }

Blog recipes are not always planned.

(btw, blog texts are barely never planned around here, and as you can see, sometimes it can go a bit wild, as this one quite turned into an essay!)

I mean... sometimes it can be as spontaneous as 'oh, I've just made this, and it actually looks pretty cool. I should go grab my iPhone'. Sometimes this happens while I'm sitting at the table with eager guests.

And here's where an interesting thing that may intrigue many people comes about: often, people waiting on the table get a bit upset while waiting for the pictures to be taken. That is a big reason why I will post dessert, or anything that's not to be immediately served, over main courses, even though my preferences used to be otherwise (guess what, desserts are really growing on me over time!). For older people who don't use the web, me shooting the table over Christmas may even come out as a bit odd, I suppose.

As time went by, however, most of my friends got used to the fact that 'she has a cooking blog' and an unspoken agreement was established on if they are willing to eat it, they should sometimes (It's not like I'm posting every single thing I make) be willing to be a bit patient while not teasing me about it. Nowadays, I get a bit proud out of the fact that I am less teased and less conscientious about taking the damn pictures - is my 'cooking blog thing' getting a bit more acknowledged? :) I know I'm no pro cook and I'm not here to lecture you on what is right or wrong in the kitchen, but I do have a cooking blog and it makes me really happy to share recipes.

Back to the spontaneity, there's times when I've been dreaming about whipping the thing up for ages, whereas quite often the idea just crosses my mind the minute I step into the kitchen, or even whilst cooking. It's actually not uncommon for me to plan on doing something and then just decide otherwise - last minute.

That was what happened today. As I invited Catarina for lunch, my first thought was: 'let's do something wrapped in pastry crust! Like... salmon and spinach... or maybe salmon and mushrooms... what about beef wellington (and here I hit one of my ever growing 'to-do recipe list' items)... yeah, that's it and it's gonna be awesome!...' (then back in the supermarket) 'Oh wait, they have not a single good cut of beef here... What about chicken, stuffed with this duxelles thing you wrap the beef in?' (as strolling down the aisle) 'Oh, but I really feel like pastry crust... I've got to make a pie! Yeah, that cherry pie I was dreaming about yesterday (hitting another item again) sounds great. Well then, chicken and cherry it is!'

(this is what happens when you don't let it cool! We were a bit in a rush but you should wait for it ;) ) 

Sweet Cherry Pie

(para um mini pyrex e 2-3 pessoas)

- 400g de cerejas escuras doces descaroçadas

- 1 massa folhada de compra rectangular

- 1/2 chávena de açúcar

- 2 colheres de sopa de maizena

- 15g de manteiga em lascas

- 1 colher de sopa de vinho branco

1) Misturar bem as cerejas com o açúcar, a maizena, a manteiga e o vinho branco; deixar repousar um pouco,

2) Entretanto, cortar a massa em duas partes; forrar um mini pyrex com uma delas e fazer alguns furos/desenhos (para o vapor) no topo da outra metade,

3) Deitar a mistura de cerejas dentro do pyrex, cobrir com a segunda metade, remover o excesso de massa e dobrar os lados da massa de baixo por cima da do topo, pressionando ligeiramente,

4) Levar ao forno pré-aquecido a 200ºC, no tabuleiro de baixo, durante cerca de 30 min, ou até estar dourada,

5) Deixar arrefecer antes de servir.

Sweet Cherry Pie

(for a mini pyrex and 2-3 people)

- 400g dark sweet cherries

- 1 rectangular pastry crust package

- 1/2 cup sugar

- 2 tbsp corn starch

- 15g butter shavings

- 1 tbsp white wine

1) Mix well cherries, sugar, corn starch and wine; let sit for a while,

2) Meanwhile, cut the pastry in two pieces; place the first inside the mini pyrex, sides up, and make cuts on the other (for the steam),

3) Pour the cherries inside the pyrex, cover with the second layer of pastry, remove any excess and fold the sides of the bottom layer over the second layer, pressing them together,

4) Bake at 200ºC on the bottom rack for about 30 minutes or until golden,

5) Let it cool before serving.

1 + 1 + 1 = CAKE { three ingredient chocolate cherry cake }

When I first found out about this cake here, I knew it wouldn't be long before I tried it...

(and this is what you get when you're so eager you don't allow the cake to bake properly)

Bolo de Chocolate e Cereja... em Três Ingredientes

- 200g de nutella

- 3 ovos

- uma dúzia de cerejas descaroçadas

1) Derreter a nutella em banho-maria, deixar arrefecer um pouco,

2) Bater os ovos durante 10 minutos com a batedeira na velocidade máxima,

3) Incorporar a nutella nos ovos,

4) Forrar o fundo de uma forma de fundo amovível com papel vegetal,

5) Deitar as cerejas no interior e verter sobre elas a massa,

6) Levar ao forno a 170ºC durante cerca de 15-20 minutos,

7) Retirar do forno e deixar arrefecer completamente antes de servir.

Chocolate Cherry Cake... with Three Ingredients

- 200g nutella

- 3 eggs

- a dozen pitted cherries

1) Melt nutella over a pot of simmering water, let cool a bit,

2) Beat eggs for 10 minutes at maximum speed,

3) Fold the nutella in the eggs,

4) Line the bottom of a removable bottom cake pan with baking paper,

5) Pour in the cherries and the batter,

6) Bake at 170ºC for about 15-20 minutes,

7) Let cool completely before serving.

this ain't no jelly for kids. { berry and triple sec jelly terrine }

Today is the birthday of a very dear friend... He is also one of the main contributors and fans of Between Kitchens and since I cannot be there to bake him a proper cake, this recipe is dedicated to him.
Hope you like it!

Terrina de Frutos Vermelhos e Triple Sec

- 250g de morangos, lavados e cortados em metades e quartos

- 100g de mirtilhos, lavados

- 2 chávenas de água

- 1 chávena de sumo de toranja

- 1/3 chávena de Triple Sec

- 2 colheres de sopa de Licor Beirão

- 1 colher de sobremesa de chá verde com morango e laranja Wittards

- 20g de gelatina transparente

- 2 colheres de sopa de açúcar

1) Espalhar os frutos numa terrina de vidro funda,

2) Ferver a água e preparar o chá,

3) Dissolver a gelatina e o açúcar no chá ainda quente,

4) Juntar o sumo e depois o Triple Sec e o Licor Beirão,

5) Verter sobre a fruta e levar ao frigorífico pelo menos três horas,

6) Para desenformar, colocar a terrina em água quente durante um ou dois minutos, passar uma faca a toda a volta e voltar sobre um prato de servir.

Berry and Triple Sec Terrine

- 250g strawberries, rinsed and chopped in halves or quarters

- 100g blueberries, rinsed

- 2 cups water

- 1 cup grapefruit juice

- 1/3 cup triple sec

- 2 tbsp Licor Beirão

- 2 tsp Wittards strawberry and orange green tea

- 20g transparent gelatin

- 2 tbsp sugar

1) Spread the fruits inside a deep pyrex,

2) Take the water to a boil and prepare the tea,

3) Solve gelatin and sugar in the still warm tea,

4) Mix the juice and then the alcohol,

5) Pour over the fruit and place in the fridge for at least three hours,

6) To unmould, place the pyrex in hot water for one or two minutes, run a knife around the sides and fold over a serving plate.