♥♥ Happy Valentine's Day ♥♥

After a long day of walking in Granada during our honeymoon, we got caught between meals- it was too early for dinner and we didn't want to spoil our appetites with a large snack, but I was in serious need of food. We retraced our steps to this tiny bakery we had passed by earlier, and it was a great call.

I instantly fell in love with this place. It was in Albaicí aka the Muslim quarter. This area is known for its narrow winding streets, so I couldn't stop thinking about how they bring all their fresh ingredients everyday into their shop, clearly cars don't fit... and I complain about my fifth floor walk up when I come from the grocery store- these people are amazing.

They had all sorts of baked goods, among many things we got a slice of torta de Santiago. This is a very traditional Spanish almond cake. I love all things almond, so this was the perfect snack for me.

I've been wanting to make this cake, so I've been reading up on it. I've learned that the traditional torta de Santiago, is a very simple, flour-less basic cake- PERFECT! The ingredients are super simple: eggs, and equal parts sugar and ground almonds (so use a scale if you have one). That's it! and a bit of cinnamon and salt to enhance flavors. This is more of a tea cake and what makes it "Santiago" is the traditional cross mold for the powdered sugar on top. Since it's Valentine's day. I made it for my marido with a heart instead.... awww

So here, make this (recipe follows).

In a mixing bowl with the whisk attachment, beat the eggs and slowly add the sugar.

When incorporated and airy, add the salt and the cinnamon

Fold in the ground almonds by hand. 

Once incorporated, pour batter into a 9" pan and bake for 50 minutes or until golden brown at 325 degrees.

Let it cool in a rack and once cool...

Place a paper cut out (or in my case a cookie cutter) to use as a mold and dust with powdered sugar. If you want to make a traditional Torta de Santiago, you can print and cut out this traditional mold.

Enjoy, and Feliz dia de los enamorados! ♥


Torta de Santiago:

• 5 eggs
• 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon of salt
• 250 gr or 1 cup + 2 tablespoons of sugar
• 250 gr or 1 1/4 cup of ground almonds
• powdered sugar for dusting

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Healthy yummy granola break

For Christmas, I made some of this granola for my father in law, he's very health conscious so this was a yummy and healthy treat for him. It's also super easy to make, thou I burnt it the first time... oopsy poopsy.

It's so ridiculously easy that you can figure it out by looking at the pics.

 

The final product. Keep in air-tight container and enjoy!

Mix 4 cups of rolled oats, 3 tablespoons of brown sugar, 1/2 teaspoon of salt, 1/2 teaspoon of nutmeg, and 1 teaspoon of cinnamon.

In a smaller bowl mix 1/3 cup of veggie oil, 1/3 cup of honey and 1/3 cup of apple juice. Once combined, pour over the oats and mix until everything is coated wet.

Use good honey. Let it Bee honey is delicious, local and it was a gift from my friend's boyfriend's family who own the company. Check out the natural benefits of eating local honey. Bye bye allergies.

Divide and spread in even layers.

Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes, and add the chopped nuts. Then bake for another 20 minutes or until golden brown. Once you pulled it out of the oven, add 1/2 cup of dried cranberries.

Recipe:

• 4 cups of old fashioned rolled oats
• 1 cup of shredded unsweetened coconut
• 1/2 cup of chopped hazelnuts
• 1/2 cup of chopped almonds
• 1/3 cups of honey
• 1/3 cup of veggie oil
• 1/3 cup of apple juice
• 3 tablespoons of brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon of cinammon
• 1/2 teaspoon of nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon of salt
• 1/2 cup of dried cranberries

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