Bakes – airinie

Moussaka

I had 2 wonderful visitors from Malaysia a few weeks ago. These 2 ladies (Zaza and Maton) are super travellers! They went to Santorini and Meteora, amongst a lot of other places. But a trip to Greece would be incomplete if they didn’t have a chance to taste moussaka. So I decided to make some for…

Chocolate Beetroot Cake

My friend Omaira is a great writer and journalist, and you can read her work here on her blog. She has written extensively about her son, Hermes, who has Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD). Hermes is on a strict regimen of meds and diet, and I have decided to bake a cake that doesn’t use any…

Green Tea Chiffon Cake

Last weekend, I spent a few wonderful hours with my good friend Alison and Omaira. We cooked, and ate, and I baked a chiffon cake for dessert! We had rendang and nasi ketupat and Omaira made wonderful pakoras. I used the recipe from the ever trusty cookbook Okashi by Keiko Ishida. You can see a picture…

Alison’s Birthday Pie: Beef in Stout Pie

Happy Birthday Alison! Her birthday was the day before yesterday (18th of August.) I have been itching to bake a pie for a few weeks now since I have been listening non-stop to Sara Bareilles and her ‘Songs from Waitress‘ album. I thought this would be a great opportunity to make a pie (savoury, of…

Gigantes (Giant Baked Beans)

I have recently started a healthier diet, in combination with a new gym membership (my poor muscles). Pulses and legumes are a good source of protein, and the Greeks have a variety of baked dishes that are suitable for vegetarians and vegans. Healthy and yummy, this dish is great warm and cold, as a main…

Cheese Scones

I have returned! And I got a wonderful gift from my mother – cheese from Holland. It’s Gouda, it’s called boerenkaas or farmer’s cheese – a protected form of Gouda made in the traditional way, using unpasteurized milk. She got me 2 types, one is young and light (pictured above!) and the other is quite matured,…

Ondeh-Ondeh (Buah Melaka)

I very rarely make Malaysian local sweets at home, just simple ones like sago (tapioca) with gula melaka syrup, or bananas in coconut milk with gula melaka (pengat pisang it’s called. I will post about it soon.) I had a few tsps of the pandan extract left, and I thought, why not make something that…

Simple Chocolate Brownies

I have posted about brownies before on this blog – they were a very rich, gooey and super-chocolatey Double Fudge Chocolate Oreo Brownies. But my recent trip to Lidl (where I bought waffle moulds to make this Waffles recipe) had me buying these silicone brownie moulds. I cannot make the super gooey oreo brownies in…

Greek Yoghurt Waffles

Last Sunday, I went to Zampano’s or brunch with Alison and Eliza. You can read more about it here. But it has also gotten me thinking about making my own waffles. I have never made them – always had them in eating establishments or even frozen ones, but I have never made batter and cooked…

Strawberry Cheesecake

I had a lot of strawberries at home, and I wanted to use them up before they go bad. A good friend of ours has recently just been discharged from hospital, and I thought a wonderful cheesecake would add a little ‘sweetness’ in his life and help him with his recovery. This particular cheesecake is…

Banana Cupcakes with Pandan Coconut Frosting

Last night, Metadrasi had a “kopi pitas” party, which is a New Year’s tradition, where you cut a bread cake where a coin (florin) is baked into it. Whoever gets the piece with the coin gets the luck for the rest of the year. I didn’t get a coin, but it was a great get-together…

Chocolate Fudge Cupcakes

Now who doesn’t love chocolate? This is one of the first few recipes that I started making when I moved here to Athens. This recipe has evolved a lot since then, and this is the version that I love best. This is my go-to cupcake recipe when there is a party that I want to…