© Le QookBook

Cuisine: American

  • Banana Punch Cake

    Banana Punch Cake

    Banana punch cake! Punch because of the Caribbean flavors of rum, vanilla and orange that are incorporated into the banana cake, an American classic. Bananas need to be over ripped; this is when they give their strongest flavors.

    Banana bread became popular in the US during the 1930s, in the middle of the Great Depression. People were trying to waste as little as possible and started to make bread using over ripped bananas and baking powder, which was readily available.

    A little fun fact but bananas were introduced into the US in the 1870s becoming an instant hit. Even to this day, it is the most consumed fruits in the US! You can only imagine how many of those end up in banana bread recipes!

    Best eaten at room temperature and can be kept in cling film up to 3 days in the fridge.

  • Butternut Squash Pie

    Butternut Squash Pie

    Think of food in the autumn and anything with pumpkin seems to be the star of attention, but for me it is the Butternut squash! The Butternut squash pie has a very smooth and creamy consistency and the mix of spices make it really nice with a hint of almondy taste.

    Originally from North America, a farmer in the Massachusetts created it by crossing two types of squashes. It is named Butternut because it is “smooth like butter, sweet as nut.”

    Traditionally it is made as a soup or is roasted during Halloween and Thanksgiving. Although it is usually pumpkin pie with whipped cream that is served during thanksgiving, I personally find the Butternut squash a more flavorful filling for the pie.

    Squashes can sometimes be one of the least favourite vegetables but with this recipe even children will ask for another slice!

  • Chocolate Chip Cookies

    Chocolate Chip Cookies

    Chocolate Chip Cookies are small, dry, round biscuits with chocolate chips and originated from the United States.

    These fluffy chocolate chip cookies are secret weapons when you do not know what to bring to a social event. They are also a classic favorite to give to children. Once baked, these soft biscuits are crispy on sides and the middle melts in your mouth.

    This traditional recipe combines dough composed of butter, both brown and white sugar, semi-sweet chocolate chips and vanilla. There are many variations of this recipe and are not limited to the use of just chocolate. You can use with other types of chocolate as well as swap some ingredients for peanut butter, banana or oatmeal.

  • Crème Brûlée Cheesecake

    Crème Brûlée Cheesecake

    A cheesecake without dairy? Yes, it’s true! This Crème Brûlée Cheesecake is actually a New York cheeseless cheesecake, prepared with soy yogurt and soy cream in place of traditional ingredients.

    For the crust of the cake I used my recipe of cookies, so I’m sure about them being dairy free.

    There is little sugar in this recipe to balance with the topping of your choice that will be sweet, here there is a layer of caramelised sugar to mimic a ‘crème brûlée’, a fruit coulis/sauce would also be very sweet.

  • Banana and Peanut Butter Cookies

    Banana and Peanut Butter Cookies

    I wanted to make a 100% dairy free cheesecake but it is quite hard to find dairy free cookies at the supermarket so I decided to make my own banana and peanut butter cookies.

    For the best flavour, use the ripest bananas you have and for the peanut butter, use the one you like the most crunchy or soft. I do prefer the crunchy one because it add crunchiness to the cookies.

     

  • Not so magic Brownie

    Not so magic Brownie

    This brownie recipe is really easy to make. I suggest to prepare it the day before and leave it in the fridge overnight, it gives time to the chocolate to settle and make the brownie more moist and chewy.

    In this recipe I used walnuts but you can replace by any type of nuts.