Almond bread (grain free, sugar free)

We come back with another diet cake recipe. We go on pursuing our dream of eating cakes without compromising our shape or health! So today we cooked a flour free, sugar free almond bread. We have already published another almond bread, but it was more "cake-like". We have to admit that one tastes better, but we prefer to leave it for special occasions. 

We have used banana and sweet potato to make it sweet. It is not specially sweet though. If you prefer it, you can always add a couple of tablespoons of honey, and it will definitely make a difference. Because it is flour free, it is gluten free, it is suitable for paleo diet, so fashionable these days. 

As we commented in other diet baking posts we think that sugar and flour cakes are better than this kind of cakes. But once more, we think this is a decent substitute. 

Here is the new video. We hope you enjoy it! guilty free pleasure... 

Cheese stuffed burgers

And Halloween is gone. These year we were coming back from holidays so we didn't record any recipe, but next year we will definitely record something. In Spain there is not a big Halloween tradition, but living in UK you can see how people live it, and especially, how children enjoy it. 

But today we are talking about something different. We bring you a new recipe: cheese stuffed burgers. You can use your favourite home made burger recipe to make them. 

We used Brie cheese to fill them, but you can use any other cheese. Mozzarella, or blue cheese if you prefer a stronger flavour. We used salad and onion as side dish to make it healthier. These burgers are yummy, you have to try them. 

So here is the video. We'll be back soon! 

Decoration for Halloween: Vomiting pumpkin

We couldn't just ignore the Halloween craziness that seems to be everywhere. We have been looking for some inspiration for Halloween recipes and we saw this decoration and we decided to make a different video today.. it is not a recipe, but it involves a pumpkin, so we think it is still ok! 

It is a very easy pumpkin to carve, so you don't need to be an artist. It is basically within anybody's reach. Just little bit of patience and it is ready. 

Isn't it original? We find it very funny. We hope you like the idea and you give it a try! 

Click here to see the video!

How to make coconut milk

     We have already made a couple of recipes using coconut milk (one of the fruit cold soups and the lemon chicken breast). They won't probably be the last ones because coconut milk is an ingredient we love. Both coconut milk and all its derivatives have had a bad reputation for some time, due to their high fat content. We know now that coconut fat is a healthy one and it is a very fashionable product in different diets. It is still a high energetic fruit, but it tastes delicious and it is healthy, so we are all for it.

     Extracting coconut milk is an easy process, although it can be a little bit tedious because you have to open the coconut and extract the meat. You can extract the milk using dessicated coconut and then it is even easier. The intensity and freshness of the flavour make it worthy. Be aware that it goes off very quickly (it smells stale, it is easy to recognize) so it is better to prepare it the day you are going to use it, or maybe maximum a couple of days before. 

     Do you want to give it a try? Here you have our new video. 

Fragrant Basmati Rice

     I think I never told you that my husband is from Bangladesh. That means that we eat lots of curries at home. He is a fantastic cook, so I hope I can record him cooking in the near future while he is cooking one of his curries. We bring you today an easy recipe, with an Indian touch, very aromatic and easy. We cook it from time to time as a side dish. Usually with some simple dish, because the rice has already its own personality. We think it is perfect for some grilled fish or meat. 

     We used basmati rice. The flavour comes from the fragrant oil in which we add some spices, like anise, cloves or cardamoms. We finish adding some roasted pine nuts and coriander and mint. 

     Don't you want to try it? You just need to watch our video. We hope you like it!! 

How to cook a crispy and moist brownie

     We have recently posted about oatmeal cakes, pasta less dishes, salads, soups.. it's been ages since we don't post a "real sweet". And it is not that the other ones are not nice, that they are... but from time to time we need some very unhealthy and real refined sugar cake. Because one day is just one day.... we couldn't think about a better recipe than a brownie. 

     This a recipe that everybody likes. It has a dense and intense chocolate flavour, it is moist in the inside and crispy on the outside... just the perfect every day chocolate cake. Easy to make and yummy like no other ones. There are some difference in our version compared to the traditional ones. These difference are the consequence of chance and an optimization process. We are happy with the result. So much, that even knowing that there are millions of brownie recipes online... we think this one was still lacking! 

     So here it is. 

     Maybe you will like: our layered chocolate panna cotta. 

Home made baby food to take away

     This post is for moms (and for future ones!) Not too long ago I was going out with my mum and she saw how I prepared my baby's food. She said: "Blanca, you have to record a video with that". So here it is.

     I am not very sure if this is anything new for anybody, but it is definitely a practical way of having some home made baby food always ready. In the video we comment that in normal conditions it will be frozen for around two hours. Just use your common sense, it will be fine if you don't wait too long to eat it.

     So no excuses, no processed food for our babies. These ones are much nicer and there is nothing on them that we do not want to give to them. I always try to have enough ingredients ready to have different combinations of fish, meat or vegetables.

    So here is the video, we hope it is useful. We'll be back soon!

Cuukitips. How to make a pan non stick

     Today we start a new section in Cuukinando: our Cuukitips. You will find quick videos in which we will share some cooking tips. 

     In our first Cuukitip we show you how to make an old pan to be non stick again. It won't be a permanent change (so yes, you will need to buy new pans at some point!) but it will solve the problem for today. For example, it is fantastic if you are going to cook our Spanish Omelette, we always do it just before.. just to be on the safe side. 

     So there it is. The first Cuukitips video. We hope you like it, because we'll come back with more videos! 

Lemon chicken with coconut milk

     A recipe with an oriental touch today in Cuukinando to start the week. Have you ever used coconut milk to cook? It is the kind of ingredient that makes everything taste nice, it always works. For example, it is a very good way to make some simple vegetables taste yummy. 

     The combination with lemon grass is very popular in asian countries and we just love it. We add the juice of a lemon and some lime leaves, giving a general lemon flavour to this delicious recipe. We don't keep you any longer today, let's start the week! but watch our video first: 

And here is the recipe:

See here how to make coconut milk at home. 

How to make hummus if you don't have tahini

     Today we are coming back with a recipe we cook quite often at home: hummus. We don't always cook it with the recipe we are sharing though. Hummus is a popular dish in the middle east. It is a dip or spread made with chickpeas and a sesame seed paste called tahini. This paste is starting to be easily available, although it is not yet part of our daily food culture and therefore, it is not normally found in our supermarkets.

     You can make your own Tahini paste. It is quite easy and you can use it in other recipes, or even as a spread on its own. But if you don't want to make Tahini this is the perfect recipe to make hummus. You actually make the tahini in the process. 

     So! here is the video:

     And the recipe:

Vanilla oatmeal sponge cake with stevia

     Seven months ago I had a baby. I haven't been able to use my pre-pregnancy jeans yet, but I am actively working on it and getting closer every day. That's why our today's post is about diet baking. As we did when we talked about microwave baking (in our microwave instant cheesecake) we believe we are talking about substitutes of the real thing. They are nice, but never as nice as a good unhealthy sweet. If eaten in moderation they can be part of a healthy diet though. 

     As we did when we cook our oatmeal cookies we have decided to use whole oats. It is our favourite cereal and it has numerous proven health benefits. It is gluten free and it can be part of a celiac disease diet (although in this case you have to be sure the oats were not processed in the same premises than wheat or rye). To go a little bit further we cooked it sugar-free, using stevia, which is a very popular natural sweetener. We give the equivalent in sugar, just in case you want a "real" sweet. 

     So this is our new video, dedicated to people who are trying to get in shape, or simply stay healthy. 

And here you have the recipe:

Puy lentils salad with butternut squash and goat cheese

     We are still cooking summer recipes in Cuukinando. We love beans in general at home and in the summer we like eating them in salads. I tried this combination (lentils with butternut squash and cheese) in an Italian restaurant some weeks ago and I loved it, so I decided to do something similar at home. Maybe it is not exactly the same salad, but I would say it is every bit as good as that one was.

     We have roasted the butternut squash in the microwave, so it is a really fast dish to make. It is really colourful and full of vitamins and it tastes yummy. We will repeat for sure. Will you try it? Just check our video:

 

     This is the recipe:

Pasta-less Lasagna

     We come back today with a recipe that everybody loves: Lasagna. In this case, we have substituted the pasta for courgette, and we can guarantee that if you try it, you won't miss it! 

     If you prefer the conventional lasagna you just need to substitute the courgette for pasta. Our version is healthier and low-carb, but the flavour is just as good as the original one... believe us! We have used our microwave bechamel sauce in the recipe. 

     Cooking lasagna is always time consuming, but so much worth it. As you have probably already realized, in Cuukinando we believe that homemade is aaalways better. 

    We hope you like it! 

Instant Mug Microwave Cheesecake

      Have you ever seen a mug recipe? They seem to be kind of fashionable these days. For instance, the instant chocolate mug sponge cake is very popular. We have to confess that we have eaten it a couple of times... We were eager to experiment today, and at the same time, we were in the mood of a cheesecake. This post is the result of that combination. 

     The truth is that this kind of cakes never taste like the "real ones" but the amount of effort, and above all, time that you need to cook them are just not comparable. In this recipe we literally mixed the ingredients in the mug and cook them for under two minutes in the microwave. Just perfect for a treat or a sweet craving! 

     Do you fancy trying it? Just watch our video... 

     The recipe:

My mother's paella

   We have a special guest today in Cuukinando: our mother, and she came to cook for us the most famous Spanish recipe: Paella! 

     Our love for food and cooking at home has its origin in our mother. And before that, in her father (our grandfather) but we were not lucky enough to meet him. This is the paella version we have always had at home,what we would call a typical Sunday lunch. It is, of course, our favourite version. We are 5 brothers and sisters at home, and some of us prefer it with beef, pork.. or like this one, with chicken. But as you can see, we prefer meat paella. There are probably some differences with the traditional way of cooking paella. You can cook the first steps in a pressure cooker, to have a quicker version. 

     Oh, and don't be afraid of burning it! The burnt paella is called socarrat, and we all fight at home to eat it. 

     This is the way my mother learnt to cook paella, the way we learnt from her and this is the way we are sharing with you today. My mother's paella. 

Salmon Mousse

     And we keep posting summer recipes. We are having a fantastic hot summer, so that is the only thing we want to cook these days! We bring you an easy and healthy cold recipe for the summer: Salmon Mousse, full of proteins and good fats. 

     It requires very little cooking time, although it needs to cool for several hours to settle. It is perfect to eat with a good toasted bread. For sure, we will eat it like that next time. 

     Do you want to know how to cook it? You just need a couple of spare minutes. Watch our video here: 

Two Fruit cold soups for the summer

     We all like a nice cold soup a a starter in the summer. We are andalusian, so we love gazpacho and salmorejo (maybe some day we will share those recipes!) and we eat them at home quite often. But today we are bringing you a couple of different soups. Both of them are fruit based and we think they have a special flavour. 

     They are both very easy recipes, and there is not cooking involved in their preparation. The first one is a pineapple soup with olive oil, and we serve it with prawn and chive. You can used canned pineapple for this recipe. If you do so, do not add the water and use the juice in the can. 

     The second one has flavour little bit more exotic for us. We used mango, melon and coconut milk. To serve it we used bacon. Coriander is a good option for this soup as well, we just didn't have it at home! 

     So that's it for today. Just check our video! 

Lemon and meringue pie

     A classic English dish and one of our home favourite cakes: Lemon and meringue pie.

 

     We've optimizing this recipe for a while now, and we are happy with the result. There is still something we would like to improve, because the sides of the cake are not as nice as we would like them to be, but the flavour is just great. You can bake each layer while you are preparing the next one, so it is a relatively easy and fast cake. 

     There is no need to use a pipe to decorate it. You can just spread the meringue over the lemon layer and make some peaks with a fork. You will still have a stunning cake. 

     We say it in the video, but be especially careful not to burn the meringue, it is quite easy (not that we know it by experience....) 

     You have to try this one. Let us know what you think about it! 

Crispy vegetables snack

    It seems that with the hot weather we are lowering our activity level in Cuukinando. To solve that we bring you a new recipe today. It is a healthy one, a good option for these days.

     They are a fantastic alternative to processed potato crisps and their taste is just as good as theirs (if not better!)

     We have used different vegetables with different cooking times. That means that the crispiness is not the same for all of them. We could try to be more exact and adjust the cooking times, but the truth is that the method is so simple and the result so good that at least for us... it is just not worth it! Be specially careful with the courgette, it is the first one to burn in our combination. We think that parsnip are specially good. 

     Use good quality olive oil and sea salt to cook them, you will see they are much better that way. 

     Will you try to cook them? Let us know if that is the case! 

 

Chocolate layers panna cotta

     We have been thinking about this recipe for a while, and finally we can bring it to you: chocolate layers panna cotta. 

     Panna cotta is an easy dessert and it is always a success. It is kind of the Italian custard. But despite how simple this recipe is, there are huge differences between a good and a bad panna cotta. It is not that easy to find the perfect one! You have to find the perfect fat percentage, sweetness and gelatine amount. For us these are the perfect parameters. But this is not any panna cotta. This is a chocolate layers panna cotta! 

     There is a 3 chocolates cake in Spain that is similar to this recipe, but it is not based in panna cotta but in junket. That was the origin of the idea! 

     We think that this is a very rich and attractive dessert, and we hope you agree with us! 

    Just check out our video, and see you all in our next post. 

Beef stew with cinnamon and dry apricots

     And because people do not live by sweets alone (or they shouldn't!) we bring you a beef recipe today. An easy one with an exotic touch: beef stew with cinnamon and dry apricots. 

     We have cooked this recipe in other occasions with lamb and it is delicious too. We like serving it with just plain rice, because it has an intense flavour and we think it is better not to add anything else. We used flaked almonds today, but any nuts would do (pine nuts goes fantastically well with these flavours). 

     We won't take more of your time today. Here is the video, we will come back soon.

Mini cakes with rose petals and sweet yolks

     It's summer and England is full of roses everywhere. I have a fantastic rose plant at home with beautiful purples roses that smell (and taste!) delicious. So we decided to make some recipe to use them... and we must have a sweet week in Cuukinando, because we are bringing you another cake recipe today. 

     Crystallized petals are easy to make, and you can keep them in an airtight recipient for several months. They can be used to decorate lots of different dishes and they always give an original and fancy touch. And the sweet yolks... well, we are Spanish and they are typical there, so we just love them. We will upload some other sweet yolk recipes. 

    This is a perfect decoration for beginners, so easy to make. And you don't need to be an artist! We hope you decide to give it a try. 

     You can use any cake recipe. We have used our olive oil sponge cake, that we love because of its flavour and the moisture texture. 

     

      You can find the video here:

Chocolate sponge cake bonbons

     We are back today to tell you how do we cook what we call chocolate sponge cake bonbons. It is nothing else than a chocolate sponge cake presented in convenient bite size balls. 

     Once more, it is an easy recipe, and it has a classic chocolate flavour that everybody likes. The only problem we can see in this recipe is that as it happens with any kind of bonbons... you always end up eating more that what you intended! 

     This recipe can be used to make cake pops too. You just need to add the stick and they are ready to decorate. 

     This is our new video, we hope you cook them, and above all, we hope you enjoy them! 

Easy homemade yoghurt (without yoghurt maker)

     Hi there! We are back to show you how we prepare yoghurt at home without using a yoghurt maker. You will need a wide mouth thermos bottle though... but they are cheap, easy to find and they take much less room than conventional yoghurt makers (this is the one we use)

     If you haven't tried homemade yoghurt you will be surprised with its flavour!

     One of the biggest advantages of homemade products is that you can control the ingredients you use. In the case of yoghurt it is specially interesting to control the amount of sugar, since commercial yoghurt can have a substantial amount! We prepared it using no sugar at all. We like the natural flavour and we like adding some honey in the moment we eat it. If you prefer sweet yoghurt you just need to add sugar during the process, but we would recommend you to try it without sugar first. 

     The best starter you can use for your yoghurt is your own homemade yoghurt, so once you have the first one, go on using it for the next batch. There are some commercial starters that can be used as well, and you can even grow your own starter culture at home (we haven't tried that, but we want to try at some point! maybe a future video?) Just go back to commercial yoghurt or starter every 5-6 batches of yoghurt to be sure you are not growing any nasty bacteria. 

     The process is easy and you will have a cheap, healthy and yummy food. What else can you wish for? We hope to hear your experiences. Here is the video:

     Update: If you end up having a liquid with some lumps just whisk everything to mix them and leave it longer to finish the fermentation. 

Focaccia flower

   We were thinking about different names for this recipe and we decided to call it "Focaccia flower". We thought about other options... like flower of bread, bread flower, flower pizza... 

    Ale, our younger brother likes having focaccia for dinner when he has some friends around, so we decided to give him a different one today. 

    The technique is quite similar to that one used in the apple roses, that we shared not that long ago. 

So this is the recipe:

•  Bread ingredients:

600 g of strong flour
300 ml of water
40 g of yeast
2 teaspoons of salt
a pinch of sugar
and a tablespoon of olive oil 

• Filling:

Spanish Chorizo
Havarti Cheese
Fresh basil leaves

     Bread is clearly a soft spot for us, so we expect to upload lots of bread recipes. If you knead by hand start doing a "volcano" with the flour and the salt. Then, add the sugar and the cold water with the diluted yeast and the oil, until everything is merged. And then just knead until everything is smooth. For this recipe you won't need to knead long. Leave it resting covered for some minutes and cut into 10 pieces. 

     Use the rolling pin to stretch them and form the flower alternating dough, chorizo and cheese. Then you have to wait until it gets bigger, paint with some oil and bake at 185 °C for 25 minutes. 

     You can use thousands of focaccia recipes with so many fillings, both sweet and savoury. We hope you try to make it! 

     You can see our video here:

Leek and Prawns filobites served with Mustard dipping sauce.

   Some years ago I lived in Santander, a nice and small city in the North coast of Spain. I remember a small hotel in a beautiful village called Santillana del Mar. I used to go to this hotel (La colegiata) quite frequently because we really liked the restaurant. This recipe is based in a starter I first tried there, although I am not sure if it is still on their menu, since this was years ago. I know this filled filo pastry bites are not that difficult to find, but I first tried them there and in my mind they are linked to this restaurant. 

     This is our own version, and since I didn't eat them in such a long time, I am not sure how close they are to the original version. I think it is not strange to find them filled with prawn and asparagus. We have used prawns, leek and pine nuts. They can be served without any sauce and they are fantastic, but we cooked a mustard, honey and dill dipping sauce which we think it is a fantastic companion for them. 

     Here is the video... we hope you like it!