pastries - Manu’s Menu

Chocolate Meringues

The other day I just felt like having a small sweet treat with my tea. Since starting the low fodmap diet, grabbing a cookie from the pantry has become practically impossible (as I can’t usually stop at one anyway). And, that’s when it hit me: meringues are naturally low fodmap, dairy-free and gluten-free, so they…

Easter Taralli

With Easter just around the corner, I obviously had to share a traditional Italian Easter recipe! So, today I will show you how to make Easter Taralli. Pin It

Italian Vegetable Pie

Today’s recipe is a delicious Italian Vegetable Pie. It is very simple to make and it is lower in fat than a regular quiche, since it does not contain any milk or cream. You can use your favourite vegetables for this one and it is also a great way to finish off leftover vegetables lying…

Croquembouche

I love choux pastries. I could eat 10 all by myself if left unattended! So, this Christmas I thought of trying my hands at making the in-famous Croquembouche, a traditional French dessert made with cream puffs filled with pastry cream and then dipped in caramel, and piled into a cone. For some reason, I had…

Lemon and Oil Cakes

I absolutely love lemon-based desserts. I am not sure if it’s an age thing, but lately, they have become m, favourite and I like them even more than chocolate-based desserts! If you had told me this a few years ago, I would have never believed it could happen! These Lemon and Oil are delicious and…

Nutella Roses

I love making puff pastry treats, both savoury and sweet. I always have some puff pastry in the freezer and I like the fact that working with it is easy and quick. I have already showed you how to make Apple Roses using puff pastry, and today I am going to show you how to…

No Bake Chocolate Peanut Butter Bars

I made these No Bake Chocolate Peanut Butter Bars to take to a friend’s get together. I love the combination of peanut butter and chocolate and these also had an added bonus: puffed rice. Don’t you just love how crispy puffed rice is? Every time I eat it, I get transported back to my childhood,…

Cherry Financiers

As you know, I have always had a big connection with France. My parents have always loved the country, especially Paris, so we visited at least once a year while I was growing up. Luckily, France is quite close to Milan, so the trips were easy. That said, I have always enjoyed French food… I…

Strawberry Lemon Cream Scones

I must confess I had never had “flavoured” scones before. Whenever I have eaten scones, it’s always been the traditional British kind, filled with jam and cream. I LOVE those! A little while ago, we were invited to celebrate the first birthday of the son of some close friends of ours. He is the CUTEST!…

Sweet Yogurt Burek

I discovered today’s recipe by chance. I had some filo pastry in my fridge that begged to be used before drying out and some yogurt that was close to its expiry date. So I was delighted to be able to put them together in this delicious Sweet Yogurt Burek. But what is Burek? It is…

Baked Nutella Iris

Today I will take you all to Sicily, once again! Sicilian street food is among the best food in the whole world. Besides, you can find everything: desserts, snacks, savoury treats and even pasta in street food form! I am not joking, it is that awesome. I would actually go as far as to say…

Blue Cheese, Pear and Walnut Triangles

If you know me, you will know how much I love blue cheese. It is my absolute favourite cheese. I like all kinds but the ones I prefer are Gorgonzola and Roquefort, so I often have some in my fridge. As I had some filo pastry remaining from making Burek, I thought of using it…

Nutellotti #WorldNutellaDay

Sara from Ms. Adventures in Italy and Michelle from Bleeding Espresso have declared February 5th “World Nutella Day″ – “a day to celebrate, to get creative with, and most importantly, to EAT Nutella”. Pin It

Apple Roses

I love apple desserts, don’t you? When I was a child, my favourite cake was this Apple Tart and it is still one of my favourites. Today’s recipe is quite common in Italy and there are a few variations to it. Some people cook the apples, others use them raw, some people sprinkle cinnamon on…

Three-Ingredient Nutella Doughnuts

It is time again for the “Secret recipe club” reveal! I am sure you all know what the club is about, but for the few of you who still don’t know about it, here goes a brief explanation. It is a great concept… each month you are assigned a participating food blogger to make a…

Nutella Palmiers

I made these Nutella Palmiers for my daughter’s 8th birthday party. As you know, I always have puff pastry for birthday parties and being Italian, Nutella cannot be skipped either! So, I decided to combine the 2 traditions and I made these deliciously crunchy treats. I added some toasted hazelnuts to them, to enhance both…

Portuguese Custard Tarts

As you know, I am travelling at the moment, so I thought of asking some of my favourite food blogger friends to come over and share some of their amazing creations with all of you! I told you I would leave you in great company, right? I am very excited about today’s guest. I have met…

Delizie al Limone

Today’s recipe comes from Naples and the Sorrentine peninsula, in the region of Campania: Delizie al Limone (Lemon Delights). They are sponge cakes filled with a lemon cream, brushed with Limoncello syrup and covered in a lemon and whipped cream glaze. Yes, you got that right… they are absolutely decadent. As I have recently shared…

Pain au Chocolat

Last year I shared with you the recipes for how to make the perfect French Croissants and Pain aux Raisins. Well… today I am back to show you how to make the missing item to have on a French breakfast table: Pain au Chocolat, my kids’ favourite! I made these when I made croissants and pain…

Bomboloni alla Crema

Happy Mardi Gras everyone! As promised in my last post about Ravioli di Carnevale, I am back with yet another delicious treat that is perfect to make and eat this time of the year: Bomboloni alla Crema – aka Italian doughnuts filled with pastry cream. To be truthful, Italians eat Bomboloni all year round, but…

Pineapple Tarts

Tomorrow we celebrate the Chinese New Year: 新年快乐! This is going to be the Year of the Horse… I have read that people born in the Year of the Horse are clever, kind and energetic… they sometimes talk too much, but are cheerful, talented and love to be in the centre of a crowd. 2014…

PAIN AUX RAISINS

Remember that a few months ago I shared with you the recipe of how to make the perfect French Croissants? Well, today I am back with another French breakfast classic: Pain aux Raisins. During my frequent Parisian visits as a child, I would always have pain au chocolat for my breakfast, while my parents would…