Twice as nice

They're not Global Baker recipes, but I like to think they are part of the project in that as much as I'm screwing up most of the Global Baker recipes, I'm getting more confident baking and it's really exciting (for me.  And my tummy).

Orange and poppy seed cake from The Nordic Bakery Cookbook.

Yum.  Yum, yum, yum.  This is a stonking recipe, boasting 5 eggs among other things, but it is a beeeeautiful cake.  One thing I really love about this cookbook is that hardly anything is iced.  Almost everything stands on its own, and this cake is no exception.  The husband and I generally don't ice anything unless it's a recipe that really needs that icing, we're making it for someone, or the kids beg us to (and then they only eat the icing, little monsters).  It's not that we are too lazy to finish the product off (although that does happen), it's just that we really love recipes where something is special enough on its own.  This is definitely one of those recipes. 

And then these ... these are from the Little Paris Kitchen cookbook.  I confess, I actually bought the cookbook pretty much solely for this recipe, after watching the TV series (the husband and I have a bit of a thing about watching food while we're eating food).  If any TV series or cookbook could convince me to (a) learn to cook and/or (b) get on a plane for an international destination (France), it'd be this one.  OK, I did have romantic notions about learning to cook from this book, because the recipes seemed to easy and wonderful, but ultimately it was really, probably all about the tarts.  We have busted out the carrot salad recipe too though!  Carrot salad is awesome.  And by 'we', I mean the husband.

These are not grapefruit and pepper meringue tartlets, although they will be at some stage when I have some grapefruit (actually, I do have grapefruit. On a big ol' grapefruit tree down the back. That's embarrassing.  For some reason every time I've thought of this receipe, or read it, I've heard and seen passionfruit.  I did think passionfruit meringue tartlets would be a bit unusual.  I really need to pay more attention to ... pretty much everything.  It's the rushing that does it.  I'm trying not to rush so much.  Wallace Chapman would be helping me with that (I bought his book Don't Just Do Something, Sit There.  Except I haven't had time to read it yet.  Ironic.  I think)  and I'm not so lazy that I bust out a jar (yes! a jar! I'll make my own next time, I promise) of lemon curd instead. 

I can tell you a few things about these.  Firstly, if you are lazier than a lazy thing on lazy day and buying lemon curd - Sabato stocks an excellent product.  Secondly, don't be afraid of the black pepper in the meringue.  It adds a dimension that I was very suspicious of, but definitely glad I took a run at.  Thirdly, I made meringue for the first time ever, and it was Italian meringue at that (you whisk the egg whites while pouring hot sugar syrup onto them).  V. proud of myself, regardless of how easy it was in the end (cheating with the curd likely helped a bit to be fair).  The point is, I felt confident to try this ensemble and that's thanks to the Global Baker project.