Jenna’s Gozinaki recipe

Saturday Theo was at the barracks and I knew that Jenna was all alone, her husband being at work, so I invited him to have a bite to eat on the port. We discussed a bit of everything and nothing and then she confided in me a bit. Jenna had health problems a few years ago which mean that even if today she is well, she is now having difficulty finding work. Her husband makes a good enough living for both of them, but she is embarrassed to feel cared for and she misses spending her days alone when he works.

For the financial contribution I could not promise anything but for the occupation, I had an idea. I asked him to come with me to the Deaf Club around 4 p.m. I had explained to him that there were families and children and that we would organize a tea party there.

At 3:30 p.m. I see her walk through the door with two huge bags filled with nuts and honey.
Steven, one of my colleagues, was in a hurry to get rid of it for fear of seeing one of the bags tear.

I introduced him to the president of the club and to everyone present. Including Grandma who was there too.
Everyone was intrigued by Jenna, but even though she doesn’t speak sign language, she fit in very well with our group.
She had already taken the initiative to equip herself with a slate and chalk to be able to communicate with the children, but grand ma is in charge of playing the interpreters.

In fact everyone came to participate in our little cooking activity, even Gemma our secretary and receptionist left her switchboard to join us.


Jenna offered us to make Gozinaki, Georgian nougats made from, you guessed it, honey and nuts. They are mainly served during holidays such as Christmas or New Year.

Ingredients (for 20 pieces):

  • 300g of honey
  • 500g walnuts
  • 4 tablespoons of sugar

Preparation:

  1. Roast the nuts and cut them into small pieces with a knife.
  2. Pour honey into a non-stick saucepan, put on low heat and bring to a boil.
  3. When the honey begins to foam, remove it from the heat, let cool.
  4. Put it back on the heat and repeat this procedure twice to allow the honey to thicken.
  5. Add the sugar and stir until boiling resumes.
  6. Pour in the nuts and mix well.
  7. When the nuts begin to change color (about 3 minutes), remove the pan from the heat.
  8. Immediately pour the unit onto a damp, oiled wooden board.
  9. Spread evenly on the plank with a damp hand or the back of an oiled metal spoon.
  10. Even out using an oiled rolling pin.
  11. Trim the edges by hand or with a knife until you get a square or round about 1 cm thick.
  12. Using a heated and oiled knife blade, cut equal pieces into a triangle or diamond shape.

Everyone loved the animation and Jenna, well how could we not love this woman!

I offered her to become a volunteer for our association as a facilitator, whether with children or adults, depending on the days or times she would be present, which would allow her to build up the professional experience she lacks following- to his long pose of professional activities. And even if that doesn’t help her find a job, at least it would give her something to do when she feels alone. Everyone loved the idea.

I’m so happy for her that it went so well.

Take care of yourself and your loved ones and see you soon!

Italian almond cookies!

Tonight I’m invited to a little engagement party for one of my best friends. We all had to bring something to eat, I took care of the dessert.

I missed Italy a bit so I was inspired by one of their recipe to create their sweet treats, which I hope will delight my friends as well as your taste buds.

Ingredients:

  • 180 g almond meal or blanched ground almonds
  • 110 g caster / superfine sugar
  • 2 tsp lemon zest (1 lemon)
  • 3 drops natural almond extract (or vanilla extract for me)
  • 1/8 tsp salt
  • 60 g dried cherries , chopped (or chocolate chips)
  • 2 egg whites , at room temperature (from 2 large eggs)
  • 2 tsp honey

Almond coating:

  • 1 Extra egg white
  • 150 g flaked almonds

Instructions:

  • Preheat oven to 190°C/375°F (170°C fan). Line 2 trays with baking/parchment paper.
  • Combine Dry Ingredients: Place the almond meal, sugar, zest, almond extract and salt in a bowl. Whisk together until zest and almond extract is evenly distributed. Add the cherries and set aside
  • Beat eggs whites: Using an electric mixer or a whisk, beat the egg whites and honey to soft peaks (Note 5). About 2 minutes on Speed 8 of a handheld beater, or 1 1/2 minutes on Speed 6 of a stand mixer.
  • Fold the beaten egg whites gently into the almond mixture. You will seemingly knock most of the air out of the meringue, that’s ok! (You actually haven’t 🙂 ).

Forming and coating cookies:

  • Place Extra egg white in a small bowl and whisk with a fork until foamy. Place flaked almonds in another bowl.
  • Form 2.5cm/1″ balls: Scoop up about 1 tablespoon of the mixture and shape into a rough ball (2.5cm/1″ ball). I do this using 2 eating spoons – we don’t need perfect balls here.
  • Coat in egg whites: Drop the ball into foamy egg whites. Use 2 forks to turn to coat, then pick up and place in the flaked almonds.
  • Almond coating: Coat cookies with the almonds, pressing them on to cover as completely as you can. Don’t worry if you get some double layers or pieces sticking out – no need to be neat or thorough here!
  • Bake 13 minutes: Place on prepared tray 2.5cm / 1″ apart. Bake for 13-15 minutes until golden brown. Start checking at 12 minutes to be sure the nuts aren’t burning
  • Cool: Transfer to rack to cool completely before serving.
  • Store: Store in an airtight container. They last up to 10 days in a storage container or can be frozen

To serve them, I provided vanilla ice cream

I hope you’ll like it guys!

PRALINE HAZELNUT CREAM

Saturday afternoon at the Deaf Club, there was a meal organized by the association. Personally, with the help of my little brother, we made the desserts. Since there were so many things to eat, I wanted to make something light, so our choice fell on verrines.


Ingrédient for 10 verrines :

For the praline :

• 140g of powdered sugar
• 1 tablespoon of water
• 300g of shelled hazelnuts
• 150g hulled almonds

For the hazelnut cream :

• 1 egg yolk
• 20g of cornstarch
• 50cl of skimmed milk
• 200g of butter
• 100g of organic hazelnut paste
• 300g of praline

For the choux pastry :

• 75g of milk
• 75g of water
• 1 teaspoon caster sugar
• 1 pinch of salt
• 50g of butter
• 75g of flour
• 2 whole eggs + 1 yolk

Preparation :

Prepare the praline : Heat the sugar with the water in a saucepan over medium heat until a very brown caramel is obtained (be careful not to burn). Stir in the hazelnuts and almonds. Pour the praline over a sheet of silicone or parchment paper, then allow to cool. Then mix in a robot with a cutter blade. When the praline is in powder, take 1 tablespoon for decoration, then continue to mix until the mixture is creamy.

Prepare the hazelnut cream : Mix the egg yolk and starch in a bowl. Bring the milk to a boil, then pour it over the beaten egg. Mix and return to the pan. Cook for 5 minutes over very low heat, until the cream thickens. Stir in butter, hazelnut paste and praline. Mix and let stand overnight in the fridge.

Prepare the choux pastry : Combine the milk, water, sugar, salt and diced butter in a saucepan. Heat over high heat. Remove the pan from the heat at the first boil. Add the flour all at once and mix with a spatula until you have a ball of dough. Return the pan to low heat and stir vigorously for 1 minute to dry the excess water. Remove from the heat and incorporate the eggs one by one. The dough should be elastic.
Preheat the oven at 220 ° C. Transfer the dough to a pastry bag. Place the cabbage on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Mix the egg yolk with 1/2 teaspoon of water. Brush the egg yolks with a brush and sprinkle them with sugar. Bake for 10 minutes of cooking, then lower the oven to 180 ° C and continue cooking for 5 minutes.

For the dressing :

Place creamy praline in the bottom of each jar 1cm high. Emulsify the hazelnut cream with a whisk, then put it in a fluted piping bag and garnish the jars up to 2/3 of their height. Add cabbage and sprinkle with praline powder before serving.