Islands in the sky, food & travel

Whenever I'm craving a special, creamy, silky, chocolate dessert, I make this silk tarte.   First, I made a chocolate crust. Then it was as easy as making a chocolate ganache by melting chocolate and blending it with a milk and cream mixture. Here's the recipe. Chocolate crust : 1/2 cup (110 g) unsalted butter (softened) 1 cup (125 g) flour (or gluten-free flour blend with xanthan gum) 1/4 cup (30 g) almond flour 1/3 cup (60 g) confectioners sugar 3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder 1 egg yolk 1 teaspoon vanilla 1/2 teaspoon sea salt Knead butter and flours together, add sugar, cocoa, vanilla, salt and egg.  Knead about 2 minutes, to get a non-sticky texture (does not stick to finger).  Cover and allow to cool in refrigerator for at least 2 hours.  Preheat oven 175°C (350° F).  Line a pan (or individual tarte moulds) with parchment paper, roll the dough on a flat surface and flatten to an 1/8 inch thickness, cut out round forms, then transfer to pan....

Here is another recipe for which I've had requests, a matcha tiramisu that I had initially intended as a Swiss roll (that didn't turn out as I expected, haha, accidents happen, the cake wouldn't roll). So I took some nice bowls, cut circles out of the sheet cake, added 2 delicious creams, a matcha cream and chocolate espresso cream, inserted a surprise raspberry in between, and voilà, a new dessert! Here is the gluten-free layer cake recipe (if you don't want to make this, you can use ladyfingers for the cake layer) 4 large eggs, separated 100 sugar 90 g gluten-free flour 1 teaspoon baking powder 1/4 teaspoon xathan gum 1 teaspoon vanilla extract Preheat oven to 350° F / 180° C.  Line a 39 x 24 cm baking sheet with parchment paper. Separate eggs into two bowls, then whip egg whites until you get stiff peaks.  Mix in sugar, and continue to mix until the sugar has dissolved (you won't get a grainy feel to the touch).  Add yolks, folding in gently with a spatula, then ...

How about a pecan-like pie but made with a layer of mochi for a change?  This is a recipe I found on the Bon Appetit website and it is so good I had to share.  The pecans are so tasty with the miso base and the mochi so spongy and a great contrast to the crunchy pecans.  It's also quite easy to make and honestly, everyone loved it. Here is the recipe : Pecan topping 2 cups (220 g) coarsely chopped pecans 2 tablespoons maple syrup or corn syrup 1 tablespoon brown sugar 2 teaspoons miso paste 1 tablespoon of truffle oil or olive oil (optional) Mochi cake 6 tablespoons (melted) unsalted butter 2 large eggs 1/14 cup (250 g) sugar  1 teaspoon sea salt 13.5 oz (382 g) can unsweetened coconut milk  2 teaspoon vanilla extract or vanilla paste 1 2/3 cup (200 g) glutinous rice flour  1 teaspoon baking powder Mix all nut ingredients (pecans, maple syrup, brown sugar, miso, oil) in a bowl. Cover a baking sheet with parchment paper or slightly oil, then roast the pecans...