Nadine bakes

Last Friday we all had a day off so my family and I decided we would made a cultural and gastronomical expedition to Amsterdam. This meant I could seize the opportunity of going to Patisserie Holtkamp and sample their amazing baked goods! Over the past year I have made many of Cees Holtkamp’s recipes from his book De Banketbakker, to which I refer here every so often. The bakery is now owned by Cees’ daughter and her husband but the master is still present. While I was gasping at all the lovely pies he went past me in the shop, wishing his staff and customers a good weekend. So, I can now safely say I have met one of my culinary heroes, even if I only saw him for a split second. While the cakes and pies all looked fantastic I made a choice I will never regret, the terrifically calorific ”Oriënt”. According to the website, this pie consists of

“a brittle, baked frangipane crust, lightly covered with whipped cream, with on the edges balls of hazelnut bavaroise, enclosed in a thin layer of milk chocolate. In the core a ball of walnut cream, in which thin shards of orient mass (caramel with nuts) have been placed.”

Yes, it tasted every bit as good as is sounds - it was easily the best slice of pie I have had in my life. Unfortunately, the recipe is not in the book so needless to say I will spend the rest of my life like some sort of Dr Frankenstein, bringing to life and perfecting my own version of that impossibly delectable walnut cream. 

Tiramisu with homemade savoiardi (ladyfingers).

The idea for this cake was a bit tongue in cheek. As of yesterday, The Netherlands has a new king: Willem-Alexander. I felt like making something cheesy like a Koninginnerol (no actual cheese involved) but then I came across the Pavé du Roy, which translates as “The King’s Cobblestones”. The chocolate mousse originally meant to resemble the cobblestones but of course mine decided to collapse so it ended up looking rather more like the king’s asphalt. I didn’t really care because the cake was absolutely delicious. With the little pieces of mixed fruit I meant to symbolise the crown jewels.

Dark Chocolate Truffles

A great way to use up leftover ganache.

Cappuchino Chip Buckwheat Cupcake

Topped with crème pâtissière-based mocha cream and a dark chocolate ganache.

Chocolate and Orange Cake. I made this one for my birthday ;)

I made a Sachertorte and a Hazelnut Mocha Pie for my dad’s birthday.

My sister and I made tiramisú for our Christmas dinner dessert.

Every day over the past month I would open the cupboard and meet a little packet of silken tofu waiting to be used. My sister and I figured we’d use it to make brownies. We used buckwheat flour, applesauce, vegetable oil, stevia and unsweetened cocoa powder to make room for the richness of two packets of dark chocolate chips and shredded coconut, also adding the dreamy flavours of vanilla and cinnamon. The result was very much to our liking. Tofu is perfect for moist, dense brownies: it has no flavour of its own so the brownies remain intense and chocolate-y. I’m sure I’ll make these again and when I do I will add some nuts for extra texture and crunchiness.

Cappuccino Chip Cupcakes

For 12 regular muffins or 24+ mini muffins

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Sachertorte