CHOCOLATE & COCONUT OATMEAL BAKE

     Hello, lovely people! June is here and some of you may already have plans ahead for the summer. I booked my tickets for Greece yesterday, where I'm going for two weeks this month before a new chapter in my life begins. I can't wait to taste all the fresh vegetables and fruit in my home country and take in as much vitamin D as possible. We're planning on doing a small getaway with some friends, so I'm looking forward to that too!

      This month I think began in the best way possible. Yesterday we were invited by some dear friends of us for a casual food experience (or so we thought). Apart from the amazing food they served us, they had the most wonderful news in the world. They are expecting their first baby!!! I couldn't hide my happiness for them and I'm already thinking how blessed this kid will be. 

     Moving towards some foodie talking, a while back I got us a very good quality cast iron pan. It had been in my plans of getting one  for a long time, and cook amazing recipes. The great thing about a cast iron skillet is that the more you cook with it, the better it gets. Plus you can always place it in the oven just like that and create wonderful recipes. Which is what I did two days ago, when I needed something sweet but not too much, as I'm trying to lay off sweets for a bit (at least for everyday eating). And I thought to myself "what can be sweet, but also slightly health-ish?". Well, a chocolate and coconut oatmeal bake.

      I am one of those weird people that loves oats, oatmeal and everything oaty. To me they have an earthy taste and I think being a Taurus (earth sign) I can appreciate these types of tastes. Often I find that people dislike them and reply with a "I don't want to eat horse food" and I'm like "have you seen a horse? they are so beautiful...". But I can understand that oats alone are flavourless. That's where dutch-processed cacao and coconut milk come along in this recipe. And some 90% dark chocolate on top!

Chocolate & Coconut Oatmeal Bake

ingredients (for one medium pan)

2 large or 3 small overripe bananas

1/2 cup coconut milk

1/3 cup olive oil

1/3 cup brown sugar

1 tsp baking soda

1 cup oats 

1 cup whole wheat flour

3 tbsp good quality cacao (unsweetened)

2/4 cup shredded coconut

90% dark chocolate chunks for topping (70-90% works great)

how do I make it?

1. In a large bowl smash with a fork the bananas until they get very smooth, almost soupy. Then, pour inside the olive oil and brown sugar and mix very well until combines. Next, pour in the coconut milk and mix again. 

2. Add the baking soda, oats, cacao and whole wheat flour and mix well just until everything is combined together. Finally, mix in the shredded coconut. Prepare your cast iron skillet with some oil and pour inside the mixture. Top it with some dark chocolate chunks or more coconut if you want.

3. Bake the oatmeal bake at 180C for 20 minutes. It will be slightly undercooked, but it will make it softer. Enjoy plain with a cup of coffee or pair it with some ice cream.

HOLIDAY TRUFFLES WITH COCONUT OIL & AMARETTO

     Only two and a half more days left for Christmas day and the spirits are very festive. This past year I felt that I met so many people, experienced many funny times and others not so funny, but most importantly I learnt how to let go of things and certain feelings. The most difficult feeling for me is anger. I can't yet control it. It's as if I am standing on the edge of a cliff about to fall, and I know that I am going to fall if I don't calm down, but yet it is impossible for me. I keep thinking sometimes that our lives would be much better if people spoke their mind, truly, about what they want. If there is a conflict or a bad moment, talk about it the moment it happens. When we keep inside us regrets, anger and suppressed feelings, we only end up in a worse state of self. 

     For the new year 2018, I have decided that I won't let any worse situations or negative comments around me affect me. People have their own opinions for their own reasons and it stays like that. Being a person who doesn't express their own thoughts quite often, for fear of being judged or rejected, I will try to either voice my thoughts or take my mind somewhere else and let the negative person or comment be without it affecting me. Also, I would like to up my exercise a little bit more this year and maybe dedicate some time for personal care, like bubble baths. I know they are quite a luxury and not at all essential  everyday,  but sometimes we need to pamper ourselves and not punish them. I do the latter more than I should.

      Among all the holiday eating and drinking, I always make time to either make or buy some chocolate truffles. With extra alcohol inside, because...well Holidays. This year I decided to skip the traditional ones with just plain chocolate and heavy cream and add some extra flavour inside. I used some coconut oil and amaretto cookies and oh my, were they good! Now, if you feel like adding some healthy aspect to these truffles, you can use some matcha powder or mesquite meal to cover the truffles. Or simply skip that and cover them in pure cacao. Yum!

Holiday truffles with coconut oil & amaretto

ingredients (for 15 truffles)

100gr dark chocolate

100gr heavy cream

40gr coconut oil (melted)

20gr butter (melted)

10-20 small amaretto cookies, crushed in food processor

1 shot whiskey

topping: cocoa powder, matcha or mesquite powder

how do I make it?

1. First in a medium pan heat your heavy cream until it starts to shimmer. Be careful not to boil it. 

2. In another bowl place the dark chocolate in chunks and as soon as the heavy cream is hot, pour it on the chocolate and start mixing until the chocolate is completely melted. Then add the melted coconut oil and butter and mix again very well.

3. Mix in the shot of whiskey and cover with a transparent sheet. Place in the fridge for 2 hours at least or overnight.

4. In a bowl place the crushed cookies and take out your chilled chocolate. With a spoon, take some chocolate in your hands and place it in the crushed cookies trying to mix as much as possible and create a soft ball. Place the ball in a pan with baking paper on top.

5. Repeat the step until there is no chocolate left. Cover the pan again and place in the fridge for 30 minutes.

6. Take the pan out and fill three bowls with cocoa, match and mesquite each. Then using a small spoon, take a truffle and swirl it around the cocoa or matcha, whatever you like, until the truffle is completely covered. Do the same for all the truffles.

7. Keep the truffles in the fridge when not eating or serving them.

DARK CHOCOLATE BARK WITH CRANBERRIES, NUTS AND COCONUT FLAKES

     Oh the sweet taste of Autumn! The long summer days are beginning to end, rainy days are more often and the need for a protective layer, other than your own skin, is important.  Summer fruit are not so easy to find anymore, whereas Fall fruit and veggies like grapes, pumpkin, apples are everywhere. Yes, my dear readers, Summer is over, and new exciting things are going to happen from now on.

     I always feel as if September is the New Year's after the summer period. There is a change in our schedule, diet and habits almost immediately after August is gone. Since I am a sucker for new beginnings, I embrace this one dearly. It's time to practice some self-care, learn a new skill and why not, master a few culinary tricks. Plus I love cosiness and everything that has to do with food, so this season is one of my best after Summer!

     A new thing I am trying out in very small, baby steps this season, is taking care of plants. I mean, who doesn't like those green and colourful plants that bring a little life to a home and make it more vibrant? Past experiences with plants have not been very successful, however, and I am struggling to figure out why. Asking around, I get the feeling that everyone has a different perspective and way to take care of plants and maybe I need to figure out my way as well. It seems that it's a little try and fail period for me, but I will not give up for sure. On that note, if anyone has any tips, or a website/video they can suggest that explains how plants need to be cared for, I would dearly appreciate it!

     Last Sunday inspiration stroke again! Like an unexpected period, it came without notice, but was welcomed. I had some chocolate laying around in my pantry and some dried cranberries, so the immediate thought was to try a recipe for a homemade chocolate bark! I am one of those people that loves crunchy food and when it comes to dark chocolate, I like it when there is some fruit or nut inside. It's one of those recipes I wanted to try for some time, and now it was the perfect time. 

     For this version of chocolate bark, I used 70% dark chocolate (next time I will go with more) and added some coconut oil inside, to make it stabilise quicker and to add some healthy fats inside. I added some coconut flakes because lately I've been loving the combination of these two. Normally I would try something like an orange peel, but no, coconut has my heart the past few months.

Dark Chocolate Bark with dried Cranberries, Nuts and Coconut Flakes

ingredients

300gr dark chocolate (at least 70%)

2/3 cup of mixed chopped nuts (almonds, pistachios, hazelnuts)

2 tablespoons pumpkin seeds

2 tablespoons chia seeds

3 tablespoons dried cranberries

3 tablespoons of coconut flakes

1 tablespoon coconut oil

how do I make it?

1. In a medium pan on low heat, melt the chocolate with the coconut oil. You have to stir the chocolate very often to avoid burning. Once the chocolate has melted and has a kind of glossy texture, remove the pan from heat and set aside.

2. Mix all of nuts together, cranberries and chia seeds together and leave coconut flakes for the end.

3. In a big baking dish or pan, set a large piece of baking paper. Take your pan and carefully pour the melted chocolate on top of the baking paper. Using a spatula, try to spread the chocolate on the pan, but make sure that it has some thickness (around 1,5 cm).

4. When you have prepared the chocolate, start spreading the nuts on top. Next add cranberries and chia seeds and in the end add the coconut flakes. You want to have every corner of the chocolate covered with a topping, make sure you don't leave anything uncovered. 

5. Leave your chocolate to chill in a cool surface or place. I left it for a couple of hours to chill in room temperature and then put it in the fridge, because the weather was quite hot outside and the chocolate wouldn't become solid. 

6. When it's ready, simply cut it into pieces you desire. 

P.S. This chocolate bark can be a very nice gift as well. Simply cover it with some baking sheet and use a twine to tie a knot. 

HOMEMADE COCONUT GRANOLA WITH SUPERFOODS

     With the middle of August coming tomorrow, I can't believe that summer will soon be over. Tomorrow we are having some of our friends over for barbequeing the Greek way, which translates into a lot of juicy meet and fresh vegetables being grilled. I'm going to provide dessert and my help to my boyfriend, as well as cleaning the house, preparing everything for the food and perhaps getting some flowers. 

     I love having friends over for food. It feels like taking care of your family, so personal and intimate. Everyone is laughing, having a great time and although there is a lot of work behind it, it doesn't matter, because these are memories we are going to have for the rest of our lives...

     Yesterday we went for another one of our big walks into the forrest we have here in Rümlang. To our surprise, as we took another road that we've never taken before, we met some young deers. Babies to be correct. Of course, they were scared of us and run quickly the other way, we could see them in the depth of the trees taking a peak at us. Or so we liked to think! It was rejuvenating to be back in the nature and look at its creatures. So simple and yet so beautiful, without the human interference.

     In the morning I also managed to quickly prepare a homemade granola. I've been wanting to make some for a long, long time, but I have been postponing it. Only because I think if I make it then I will be tempted to it right away, and it's not the least caloric thing to eat. But to be frank I had A LOT of oat flakes in my pantry and I needed to do something with them, since porridge is not a usual dish during the summer.

     The recipe for this one is very simple. You have wet and dry ingredients and you mix them together. Also, the great thing about granola is that you can add whatever exists in your fridge or pantry without worrying about it going wrong. Now, these are the recipes I like. If you are busy and trying to do everything at once, then this will help you a lot in the kitchen spectrum. Plus granola is so versatile and it can be paired with so many other ingredients like yoghurt, milk, as a topping on your porridge, an add-on for smoothies and on its own.

     This granola is a little different that your usual kind, since it contains three amazing and good for you superfood powders: Maca, Mesquite and Reishi. Each on each own with numerous benefits for the health. I will start with Maca, my favourite one, a root used by the Incans, which helps with balancing your female hormones, acne, energy levels anaemia and libido. During the Incan Empire it is said that soldiers used it to regain their energy. Reishi is a medicinal mushroom used in Traditional Chinese Medicine and has some effects on protecting you from infections, cancerous cells and chronic fatigue. Mesquite is natural sweetener that doesn't spike your blood glucose levels, which has a lot of fibre and omega 3s. 

    So there you go! A healthy version of granola you must not resist!

Homemade coconut granola with superfoods

ingredients

4 cups oats

1 cup coconut slices

1 cup nuts (I used almonds, walnuts, flaxseed, popped Amarath and pumpkin seeds)

1 pinch salt

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 tablespoon of each: Maca powder, Mesquite meal and Reishi powder

1/4 cup coconut oil (liquid form)

1/4 cup honey or agave syrup

how do I make it?

1. Preheat your oven to 150C. Mix together all the ingredients in a large bowl very well. Everything needs to be combined well before toasting the granola.

2. In a large pan, place a baking paper and then pour on top the mixture in your bowl. With a spoon, make sure the mixture goes fills the surface of the pan.

3. Put the pan in the oven and toast for about 30 to 40 minutes. I toasted mine for 45 minutes. This depends on how crunchy you like it. Every 10 minutes after you begin to toast your granola, open the door of the oven and carefully mix again the mixture with a spoon to make sure everything in there gets a colour.

4. When your granola is ready, take it out of the oven and let it cool completely before serving.

TAHINI AND COCONUT GRANOLA BARS

     Hello dear friends. I hope your week was just as wonderful as mine was. I did a lot of things, met with some friends and prepared a lot of food. A lot of friends and people I meet always ask me "how do you find the time and energy to make so many things"? I am known among my friends as the one who always bakes, cooks or makes something in the kitchen. This week I made some chickpea curry (as usual), hummus and tried a new recipe for red lentil fallafel (recipe for this baby soon). And I always say that I enjoy the sense of accomplishment I feel after I made all those things. I believe in making your own food from scratch and try to avoid as much processed foods as possible.

     This kind of change towards homemade and as much as possible natural food, happened I think about 5 years ago, when I really started paying attention to what I eat and not how much I eat. I don't know about anyone else, but I am concerned about what goes into my body. Of course I won't go crazy, because really you can't control everything,

 although you might think you can. You buy something that says organic or natural, and quite soon you read an article or find out that it's not so organic and natural after all. The only way to achieve that is if you immigrate to a virgin area, where no human presence has ever been...which is impossible.

     What I can suggest you do, if you want to take care of your nutrition, is to make most of your food yourself and when you buy something, look at the ingredients. Like for example there are so many granola bars out there. Some are pure sugar, in which case you better eat a candy bar instead, and other contain very few ingredients that makes them almost homemade. So, if you love the taste of homemade granola bar and have some time in your hands, I have the perfect recipe for you...

    These bars I made on Thursday are pure magic. Very simple to make and they don't require baking them, so actually they are not so heavy on your stomach. For me sometimes raw food is better for my stomach issues. They only thing you need is some good quality tahini or sesame butter, coconut flakes and some other few ingredients. I found that tahini pairs well with coconut, however, some of you might find the taste a bit too strong. You can substitute it for almond butter, which gives the bars a lighter taste.

Tahini and Coconut granola bars

ingredients (for 10 to 12 bars)

1 cup tahini or almond butter

1 cup coconut flakes

1 3/4 cup rolled oat flakes

1 cup roasted and roughly chopped almonds

1/2 cup raw honey or good quality honey

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon salt

how do I make it?

1. First, in a large bowl put the oats, roasted almonds, cinnamon, coconut flakes and salt and stir a bit.

2. In a small sauce pan, pour in the honey and tahini on medium heat. Stir continuously until the honey melts and is incorporated with the tahini. Be careful to mix it all the time as you don't want the mixture to burn. 

3. Pour into the large bowl and with a big spatula or spoon, mix very well all the ingredients until you get a soft mixture that resembles a dough.

4. Prepare a medium pan with some paper sheet (leaving some paper on the sides) and pour in the granola mixture. Using your hands, press the mixture until it covers all the pan and has a somewhat smooth surface. 

5. Cover the pan with a transparent sheet or a clean towel and refrigerate for two hours or better overnight.

6. Using the sides of the baking paper, pull the mixture out and using a sharp knife, cut into desired shapes of bars.

PANCAKES ΜΕ ΑΛΕΥΡΙ ΚΑΡΥΔΑΣ, ΡΟΔΙ ΚΑΙ ΣΟΣ ΚΡΕΜΑΣ ΤΥΡΙΟΥ

     Σαν σωστή foodie που ασχολείται με την υγιεινή διατροφή και εναλλακτικά συστατικά είχα μια όμορφη ιδέα προχθές το πρωί. Τελευταία με την τσικνοπέμπτη να μας φορτώνει με πολύ φαί και μαζί της να παρασέρνει και άλλες μέρες ανεξέλεγκτης ποτοφαγίας, ήρθε ο καιρός να προσέξουμε λιγάκι τι τρώμε και κυρίως με τι "τρέφουμε" τον οργανισμό μας. Σίγουρα κανένας δεν μπορεί να αντισταθεί στη γεύση ενός λαχταριστού λιπαρού γεύματος, που εκείνη την στιγμή μας γεμίζει με ευχαρίστηση, αλλά τις επόμενες ώρες ή την επόμενη ημέρα μας αφήνει φουσκωμένους και χωρίς ενέργεια.

     Η υγιεινή διατροφή δεν χρειάζεται να είναι άγευστη ή βαρετή. Στην αρχή μόνο θα σας είναι δύσκολο να συμβαδίσετε μαζί της εάν έχετε συνηθίσει να τρώτε εντελώς διαφορετικά. Έχει παρατηρηθεί πως η υπερβολική κατανάλωση ζάχαρης, αλκοόλ και κορεσμένων λιπαρών δημιουργεί ένα είδος "φλεγμονής" (inflammation) στον γαστρεντερικό σωλήνα που δημιουργεί προβλήματα στην πέψη/απορρόφηση θρεπτικών ουσιών, όπως επίσης και μακροχρόνια επιπλέον προβλήματα υγείας, όπως καρδιαγγειακά και άλλα. Οπότε μικρές αλλαγές στην καθημερινότητά σας και στη διατροφή σας θα σας προσφέρει αρκετά οφέλη.

     Ένα συστατικό περίεργο που είχα σκοπό να δοκιμάσω να εντάξω στη διατροφή μου είναι το αλεύρι καρύδας. Μην το μπερδέψετε με την τριμμένη καρύδα. Το αλεύρι καρύδας έχει τη μορφή του κανονικού αλευριού, αλλά λίγο πιο χοντροκομμένο. Μπορείτε να το χρησιμοποιήσετε σε αρκετές συνταγές αντί του κανονικού αλευριού, με προσοχή όμως διότι η αναλογία με το κανονικό αλεύρι σε συνταγές δεν είναι πάντα η ίδια (δηλαδή 1 κούπα αλεύρι καρύδας για 1 κούπα αλευριού απλού). 

     Η σημερινή συνταγή έχει την γεύση των λαχταριστών pancakes και ομολογώ πως μου άρεσε πάρα πολύ. Ήμουν αρκετά διστακτική στην αρχή για το αποτέλεσμα φοβούμενη μήπως βγουν πολύ "στεγνές" και χωρίς καθόλου γεύση. Όμως, το αποτέλεσμα ήταν πολύ θετικό και οι τηγανίτες ήταν αφράτες όπως έπρεπε και χωρίς υπερβολική την αίσθηση της καρύδας. Επιπλέον, το ρόδι έδωσε μια πιο δροσερή και ανοιξιάτικη νότα χωρίς να "βαραίνει" παραπάνω τη γεύση των pancakes. Ξεκινάμε λοιπόν;

Pancakes με αλεύρι καρύδας, ρόδι και σος κρέμας τυριού

υλικά (για 6-8 τηγανίτες)

2 κουταλιές αλεύρι καρύδας

2 αυγά

2 κουταλιές λάδι καρύδας (λιωμένο)

5 κουταλιές γάλα αμυγδάλου ή αγελαδινό

1/4 κουταλάκι baking powder

1 κουτάλι μέλι

1 κουταλάκι σκόνη πρωτεϊνης (προαιρετικά)

2 κουταλιές σπόρους από ρόδι

για την σος κρέμας τυριού

3 κουταλιές τυρί κρέμα

1 κουταλάκι ζάχαρη άχνη

2-3 κουταλιές γάλα καρύδας ή αγελαδινό

πώς θα το φτιάξω;

1. Σε ένα μπολ ανακατέψτε όλα τα υλικά για τη ζύμη των pancakes. Χρησιμοποιήστε ένα καλό αντικολλητικό τηγάνι ή αν δεν έχετε βουτυρώστε καλά το τηγάνι σας για να μην κολλήσουν οι τηγανίτες και να είναι εύκολο το "γύρισμα". Ζεστάνετε το τηγάνι σας σε μέτρια προς δυνατή φωτιά.

2. Πάρτε μια κουταλιά και λίγο παραπάνω ζύμης και τοποθετήστε στο κέντρο του τηγανιού. Θα παρατηρήσετε πως αρχίζει να "απλώνεται" η ζύμη σας. Μόλις δείτε ότι περιφερικά αρχίζει να "σηκώνεται" η ζύμη ή να δημιουργούνται μικρές φουσκάλες στο κέντρο πάρτε μια σπάτουλα μεγάλη και με προσοχή αναποδογυρίστε την τηγανίτα από την άλλη μεριά. Ψήστε για ακόμη 1 λεπτό περίπου και τοποθετήστε τη τηγανίτα σε ένα πιάτο. Επαναλάβετε την ίδια διαδικασία για την υπόλοιπη ποσότητα ζύμης.

3. Αφού τελειώσετε με τις τηγανίτες ανακατέψτε με ένα μίξερ το τυρί κρέμα, το γάλα και τη ζάχαρη άχνη μέχρι να δημιουργηθεί ένα λεπτόρευστο μείγμα.

4. Για σερβίρισμα πασπαλίστε τα pancakes με λίγη από τη σος που φτιάξατε και από πάνω προσθέστε λίγους σπόρους από ρόδι. Απολαύστε αμέσως!

ΚΕΙΚ ΜΕ ΦΥΣΤΙΚΙΑ ΑΙΓΙΝΗΣ ΚΑΙ ΚΡΕΜΑ ΚΑΡΥΔΑΣ

Έχετε σκεφτεί πού θα πάτε φέτος το καλοκαίρι; Σε ποια παραλία θα ξαπλώσετε πίνοντας ένα δροσιστικό χυμό ή ένα ελαφρύ κοκτέιλ (για τους πιο δυναμικούς); Οι μέρες περνάνε και ο καιρός όσο πάει και καλοκαιριάζει. Οι πιο τολμηροί θα έχετε δοκιμάσει να πλατσουρίσετε σε κάποια παραλία της Αθηναϊκής ριβιέρας. Οι υπόλοιποι, που είτε λόγω δουλειάς είτε λόγω διστακτικότητας, έχουμε μείνει στην ηλιοθεραπεία μόνο. Πάντως τα σαββατοκύριακα η κοσμοσυρροή στις παραλιακές περιοχές έχει αρχίσει να γίνεται όλο και μεγαλύτερη και φυσικά απολαμβάνουμε και τις ηλιόλουστες ημέρες.

Φεύγοντας λίγο από την ονειροπόληση για το καλοκαίρι, θα σας πω πως το κέικ που έφτιαξα πριν δύο μέρες προήλθε για ακόμα μια φορά μέσω του αυτοσχεδιασμού. Η αλήθεια είναι ότι λατρεύω τους ξηρούς καρπούς σε οποιαδήποτε μορφή και υφή τους. Είναι ίσως αυτή η τραγανιστή αίσθηση που αποδίδουν που μου αρέσει τόσο πολύ. Τα φυστίκια Αιγίνης φυσικά δεν θα μπορούσαν να λείπουν. Θα χρειαστείτε καλής ποιότητας φυστίκια για αυτή την συνταγή και λίγη παραπανίσια υπομονή μέχρι να τους βγάλετε το κέλυφος ένα-ένα.

Κέικ με φυστίκια Αιγίνης και κρέμα καρύδας

υλικά (για ένα κέικ κανονικού μεγέθους)

για το κέικ

3/4 κούπας φυστίκια Αιγίνης (χωρίς το κέλυφος)

1 κούπα αλεύρι για όλες τις χρήσεις

1/2 κούπα ξινόγαλα ή πλήρες αγελαδινό γάλα

125 γρ. βούτυρο σε θερμοκρασία δωματίου

1 κούπα ζάχαρη λευκή

3 αυγά

2 κουταλάκια μπέικιν πάουντερ

1 κουταλάκι κανέλα

1/2 κουταλάκι εκχύλισμα βανίλιας ή μια δόση βανίλιας σε σκόνη

ξύσμα από ένα μεγάλο πορτοκάλι

για την κρέμα καρύδας

250 γρ τυρί κρέμα

100 γρ βούτυρο σε θερμοκρασία δωματίου

2 κούπες ζάχαρη άχνη

2 κουταλιές γάλα καρύδας

1 κούπα τριμμένη καρύδα

πώς θα το φτιάξω;

το κέικ

1. Τρίψτε τα φυστίκια σε ένα μούλτι για λίγα δευτερόλεπτα μέχρι να θριμματιστούν ελαφρά. Μην το παρακάνετε γιατί θα δημιουργηθεί μια πάστα, κάτι που δεν το θέλετε για τη συνταγή. 

2. Σε ένα μεσσαίο μπολ προσθέστε το αλεύρι, το μπέικιν πάουντερ, την κανέλα, τη βανίλια (εάν είναι σε σκόνη, αλλιώς προσθέστε την στο γάλα εάν είναι σε υγρή μορφή) και τα τριμμένα φυστίκια. Ανακατέψτε καλά με ένα κουτάλι. 

3. Σε ένα άλλο μεγαλύτερο μπολ, χτυπήστε στο μίξερ το βούτυρο μαζί με τη ζάχαρη μέχρι να ασπρίσουν και να μαλακώσουν. Στη συνέχεια, προσθέστε τα αυγά ένα ένα και χτυπήστε καλά. 

4. Μεταφέρετε στο προηγούμενο μπολ σε μικρές δόσεις το μείγμα με το αλεύρι και λίγο από το γάλα και ανακατέψτε. Κάθε φορά φροντίστε να ανακατεύονται όλα τα υλικά πολύ καλά.

5. Βουτυρώστε μια φόρμα κέικ της αρεσκείας σας (εγώ χρησιμοποίηση παραλληλόγραμμο σχήμα, αλλά μπορείτε εξίσου να χρησιμοποιήσετε στρογγυλή φόρμα. Προθερμάνετε το φούρνο στους 180 βαθμούς. Μεταφέρετε το μείγμα του κέικ στη φόρμα και ψήστε στο φούρνο για 35-40 λεπτά ή μέχρι μια οδοντογλυφίδα να βγαίνει από το κέικ "στεγνή".

6. Αφήστε το να κρυώσει καλά πριν το βγάλετε από τη φόρμα.

κρέμα καρύδας 

1. Χτυπήστε το τυρί κρέμα μαζί με το βούτυρο μέχρι να μαλακώσει το μείγμα. Προσθέστε 1 κούπα από τη ζάχαρη άχνη και ένα κουτάλι γάλα καρύδας και συνεχίστε το χτύπημα. Τέλος, προσθέστε και την υπόλοιπη ποσότητα ζάχαρης και γάλακτος και συνεχίστε. 

2. Αφού ανακατευτούν καλά όλα τα υλικά ελέγξτε την πυκνότητα του μείγματος. Εάν είναι πολύ πηκτό προσθέστε ελάχιστη ποσότητα γάλακτος. Εάν είναι πολύ αραιό, προσθέστε ακόμα λίγη ζάχαρη άχνη.

3. Στη συνέχεια, προσθέστε την τριμμένη καρύδα και ανακατέψτε με ελαφριές κινήσεις με τη βοήθεια μιας κουτάλας.

 4. Αφήστε το μείγμα λίγο να σφίξει και στη συνέχεια απλώστε το πάνω στο κέικ σας προσεχτικά σε μικρές ποσότητες. Εάν θέλετε πασπαλίστε λίγα τριμμένα φυστίκια από πάνω

Σημειώσεις:

* Η συνταγή του κέικ προέρχεται από το Epicurious