Claudia&Julia's blog

The days are coming when our kitchen will be in full swing, and it’s one of those times when knowing a simple recipe that can sort out a Christmas dessert or breakfast is welcomed with open arms.

Are you thinking about the Christmas menu? Well, these cheese and grape tartlets with Pedro Ximénez sauce make an excellent appetizer: they are easy and the combination of flavors from all the cheeses is sensational.

I don't know about you, but I can't think of a better combination than chocolate and walnuts. And if to this mix, which is already delicious, we add a good homemade pastry base, then we have... the best chocolate, walnut and shortcrust tart in the world!

With this chocolate and yolk bundt cake we declare the season of oven-baked treats and delicious cakes at home open. Bundts are something children are passionate about, because they marvel at their shape and silhouette, and they make a stunning impression if you're going to give one as a gift or have guests at home.

Don't you love easy, showy recipes that make us look like real cooking pros with very little effort? I do. I adore them. Any recipe with minimal effort and maximum wow factor goes straight into the stash to be tried. And if I like it, it gets added to my cookbook ipso facto. That's what the ruffle milk pie recipe is like, pastel de leche arrugado or galatopita. The latter is the original name of the creation, of Greek origin, and it's to die for.

It's autumn, and it's the season for chestnuts, sweet potatoes, and pumpkins; it seems like we’re starting to crave baking pies, tarts, cakes, and pastries with apples and pears. In a way we want to turn on the oven to fill our home with those intoxicating scents of butter, cinnamon, and sugar. If only we could keep that smell in a glass jar and open it every now and then!

These butter cookies are made with our cookie press — what do you think? A churrera is very similar to a cookie press in its operation: a tube with a plunger that pushes the dough through a die. A little bit of force and not much mystery.

Today I bring you a basic lemon cake recipe, one of those must-haves in your recipe collection. It is a fluffy cake full of lemon juice flavor. Made with simple ingredients, it is a very easy cake to prepare but one of those recipes that everyone enjoys.

Summer brings us one of the most wonderful fruits there is, cherries. Before their season ends I wanted to bring you this recipe that is a hit wherever it goes, an easy cherry tart recipe, though with a twist you'll love.

In summer we don't feel like cooking as much or spending hours in front of the stove, but we can't live on salads alone. Savory tarts are a good solution to serve at a summer dinner. It's true that we tend to turn to wheat flours as the base for our tarts, but there are actually other good, healthy options a little different from the usual.

Today I bring you a recipe I've always loved: the apple galette. The galette is a cross between a cake and a tart. It never ceases to amaze me how something so simple and so delicious can be so visually appealing. To make the galette a bit more interesting we add a soft, distinctive touch thanks to the flavors of almonds, ginger, and honey.

Now the heat has finally arrived, at least in this part of our country in the Mediterranean, finally!!!! How badly we needed sun and warmer temperatures this year, right? So to celebrate, today an afternoon snack in the garden with some amazing blueberry and banana muffins!