Brown Rice Pudding, the light edition

Hi All, 

Today we are trasforming a Greek traditional recipe of Rice Pudding, Ryzogalo, into a lighter version with brown rice and honey or stevia. 

Brown Rice Pudding

Cooking Time: 20 minutes Total Time:60 minutes Difficulty:Easy

Ingredients

4 servings

1 liter milk

3 cups water

1/2 cup brown rice

4 tablespoons honey or 1/2 cup stevia

few drops of vanilla extracy

Ground cinammon to serve

Instructions

In a saucepan, over high heat, heat the water.

Bring to boil, add the rice and reduce the heat to low.

Cover the pot and simmer for 30 – 35 minutes, stirring occasionally until rice is softened. 

Remove lid, add the milk, the honey or stevia and the vanilla extract and simmer for another 10 – 15 minutes, stirring frequently until the mixture thickens.

When it thickens, remove from heat and let cool. The mixture will thicken more on standing.

Fill bowls and serve the brown rice pudding warm or cold topped with ground cinammon. Refrigerate, covered with plastic wrap.

TROPICAL HEAVEN WITH CHOCOLATE COCONUT MOUSSE

Ingredients

6 small portions

2 eggs
250 g. good quality dark chocolate
250 ml. heavy cream or coconut milk
50 g. crystal sugar
1/2 cup shredded coconut

Preparation

1. Seperate eggs and beat the white eggs until thick.
2. Using a whisk beat the cream, the egg yolks and the sugar together for a couple of minutes until smooth and thick.
3. Melt the chocolate at a bain-marie (over a pan of boiling water) or in the microwave.
4. Add the melted chocolate and the shredded coconut to the whisked cream and continue to whisk for another couple of minutes.
5. Spoon into small serving dishes or in coconut shell.
6. Refrigerate for about 2 hours.

Rice pudding! The next trend in China

Today, I am going to reveal my secret plan of how I will become extremely rich...

I will sell Greek rice pudding in China!!! Sounds stupid? What a minute! Chinese people love rice and rice pudding is more than delicious! So creamy, so yummy! Success for sure!

Ingredients

8 servings

5 cups milk

1 cup Short Grain Rice

1 cup sugar

ground cinnamon for serving

1tsp vanilla extract 

A lemon or orange peel

Process

Wash the rice. 

Put the rice in a bowl and cover it with water for about 15 minutes. 

Drain it in a strainer and roughly rub the rice with your hands.

In a large pot heat the milk over medium heat. 

Before bubbles begins to rise from the milk, add the rice and reduce heat to low. 

Stir constantly with a large wooden spoon (to prevent stucks at the bottom of the saucepan) until thick and creamy about 40 minutes. 

Stir in sugar, orange/lemon peel and vanilla extract; cook 20 minutes more, stirring constantly. 

Remove from heat and pour rice pudding into small serving bowls. 

Serve with a sprinkle of ground cinnamon, at room temperature or chilled.

Tip

If you are too busy or just bored for a time consuming recipe like this, you can dissolve two tablespoons corn flower in half cup of milk and pour it in your saucepan right after you add the rice. 

My pumpkin pie!

Pumpkin pie!Not really a Greek recipe but one of my favourites! I really love this recipe, especially when I use fresh pumpkin, it tastes so much better! 

Ingredients

for a 9-inch pie pan

1 piece pre-made pie dough
4 cups milk1 cup sugar
2 tablespoons butter2 cups pumpkin 
2 tablespoons Cornflour, or cornstarch
1 teaspoon orange zest
2 eggs
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Whipped cream or icing sugar for topping

Preparation

Place the pie dough down into a (9-inch) pie pan and press down along both the bottom and all sides. Pie dough should excess about 1 inch (2 cm)round the edges of the pie pan. 

Put the pie shell back into the freezer to firm up while you are preparing the filling. 

For the filling, in case you use fresh pumpkin, cut it into pieces and boil them in plenty of water till they soften and fork tender. Drain them and place them in food processor. If you use canned pumpkin, start from next step!

Pour milk in a large pot and add cornstarch and combine until dissolved. Heat the milk over medium heat. 

Beat eggs in a large bowl with sugar. When milk is hot enough but has not started boiling, stir in pumpkin, butter and orange zest. Once it thickens, cover it with the lid and remove it from the heat. Let it cool for about 10 minutes.

Pour the filing into pie shell and cover with the edges that excess round the rim.

Bake in preheated 350° F for 30 to 40 minutes or until knife inserted near center comes out clean. Cool on wire rack for a couple of hours. Top with whipped cream or icing sugar and cinnamon before serving.

Secret of god Aphrodite

Greek Debt to Gastronomy today cooks a traditional Greek dessert, baked quinces! Quinces are also called golden apples due to their color. In ancient Greee quince was associated with the god of love, Aphrodite that is why quinces were considered natural Aphrodisiacs!

Baked Quinces

4 servings 

2 quinces

1 cup sugar 

2 cinnamon sticks

2-3 whole cloves 

1/2 cup brandy

1/2 cup water

Preperation

Rinse quinces under water and rub hardly to remove any outer fuzz. Pat dry and use knife or peeler to remove the outer skin. With a knife cut each quince into quarters from stem end to bottom. Use the knife to carve out core and seeds. Pour the water and the brandy in a bowl. Dissolve the sugar in the bowl with the water. Place quince pieces, cloves and cinammon into a small deep baking dish and sprinkle them with the sugar mixture. 

Bake in a preheated 360-degree F (170 degrees C) oven for about an hour, turning the quinces once. The quinces should be fork tender and golden brown. The water and sugar should have cooked down to a syrup. Serve plain or with whipped cream! How about ice cream? 

SWEET LIKE STRAWBERRY

Strawberries season has started, isn't great? I can think hundreds of recipes with strawberries but today I am going to make a really easy and quick dessert with only four ingredients. This delicate treat is an excellent choice for vegetarians and whoever is desperate to lose a few pounds before hitting the beach but at the same time wants to keep his/her sweet tooth satisfied ! Strawberry mousse!

Ingredients

8 servings

500 gr. ripe strawberries (17 oz)
200 gr. dairy-free cream (7 ounces)
200 gr. sugar or froctuse (7 ounces)
water


Steps

Wash the strawberries and cut the leaves off. 

Pour water in a saucepan enough to cover- about enough to cover the bottom of the saucepan. Heat the water.

Add the sugar and allow it to melt, stirring occasionally

When it melts add the strawberries. 

Remove the foam that accumulates. 

Strawberries will be ready when syrup is thick but strawberries haven't melted completely. Let the syrup cool down.

Whisk the whipping cream just until it reaches stiff peaks. 

Pour the half of strawberry syrup in the whipped cream and combine well. 

In serving glasses pour the remaining strawberry syrup and then the whipped cream. 

Leave them in the refrigerator for some hours.

Garnish with a strawberry and serve cold.

ORANGE POWER

Pumpkin reminds many people Halloween. Greek cuisine doesn’t include pumpkins widely, apart from the pumpkin pies whose receipts are quite regional. The recipe that follows is a creamy, smooth sweet dessert with pumpkin, carrot and orange. You can enjoy it on its own or combine it with biscuits, chocolate syrup or whipped cream! Really tasty, really orange!

Ingredients

 2 servings

• 200 gr. Pumpkin
• 1 carrot
• 2 zested and juiced oranges
• 3 tablespoons sugar
• Vanilla extract (optionally)
• 1 cup milk
• 2 tablespoon caster powder
• 1 teaspoon butter

Steps

1. Chop the pumpkin at cubes.
2. Peel the carrot.
3. Boil the pumpkin and the carrot in a saucepan till they soften.
4. Drain them and put them in a food processor or electric chopper.
5. Preheat the half milk at low-medium temperature.
6. Add the melted pumpkin, the carrot and the butter.
7. Add the vanilla and the orange zest.
8. In a bowl combine well the sunflower powder and the other half of milk till the powder dissolved.
9. Add it to the boiling cream.
10. Add the orange juice.
11. Stir frequently.
12. Your cream is ready to serve it when it thickens.

 The smell will truly amaze you! So fresh and lovely!

IT'S TIME TO DIET!

Since I started this blog, I 've gained weight... That's why today I am gonna give you the recipe of a light dessert. It is healthy,easy-to-do, delicious and low-cal!

Ingredients

200 gr. strain low-fat yogurt
1 jelly powder mix
1 kiwi
1 fig
1 plum
1 nectarine
some grapes
1 cup water

Steps

Boil water and pour into a big bowl. Empty the jelly mix in the bowl and stir very well until dissolved. Pour yogurt in the bowl and mix till combined well. Place into the refrigerator until it starts to freeze around the outer edge of the bowl. Wash and cut the fruits into cubes. Add them to mixture and mix ingredients together lightly. Place bowl in the refrigerator. You can unmould the jelly running a thin knife around the edges of the bowl to loosen and putting the bowl in hot water for a few seconds. Turn the dessert upside down on your serving dish! Enjoy!

Tips

You can pick whatever fruits you like, prefer the seasonal fruits!