Take my lips ...

Take my lips ...
Mise en ligne par ©EpicureanPiranha

… I want to lose them

I wanted to create a scrumptious, romantic dessert for Valentine’s Day. After tasting these wonderful little cakes, I christened them Melt Your Heart Pistachio Cupcakes. Rich and tender, flavoured with a large proportion of ground, roasted pistachios and blue curaçao (a bitter orange flavoured liqueur), they are crowned with a cloud of silky, white chocolate Swiss meringue buttercream ~ flavours and taste sensations that melt your heart!

Perfect for ♥ Valentine’s Day ♥, especially when decorated with lots of tiny, red lips :-)

Note ♥ Actually, these aren't very sweet ~ the beauty of Swiss meringue buttercream is that it's made from a cooked meringue to which you add butter - so, no raw sugar taste, and very little sugar compared to simple buttercreams made from powdered sugar which can be overly sweet and heavy. Just silky buttery cream, light as a cloud because of the meringue. And the delicate, moist cupcakes really taste of pistachio and butter :-)

Coming soon on my gourmet webzine ♥

Hazelnut broyage layered with cream, fresh peaches & blueberries

Hazelnut broyage layered with cream, fresh peaches & blueberries
Mise en ligne par ©EpicureanPiranha

"Meringue gateaux are wonderful concoctions based on layers or pieces of meringue to which ground nuts may have been added, which once baked, are layered with one or more preparations of flavoured whipped cream, light buttercream, pastry cream, ganache, fresh fruit, fruit compotes, or a multitude of other fillings and filling combinations.

If ground nuts have been added to the meringue, the mixture is then known as ~ depending on the recipe’s origin and the type of filling(s) used ~ success, progress, japonais, grillage, broyage, dacquoise, or russe. These delicious types of meringue range from very crisp to very chewy, depending on the proportion of nuts, sugar, and egg whites used, as well as how they are baked."

~ the ©EpicureanPiranha


I had leftover egg whites I needed to use the other day, so I decided to make some toasted hazelnut meringues. The delicious flavour of hazelnuts, gently toasted then finely ground, makes the meringue rich and just slightly chewy in the centre. Whipped cream flavoured with vanilla and a little brown sugar to give it a delicate caramel flavour, blueberries and thinly sliced fresh peaches are a lovely compliment to the hazelnuts.

Lovely with an espresso or perfect to end a meal :-)