Though it is summer and the various kinds of fruit are at their most beautiful, today, at my children's request, I prepared a dessert without any fruit. The dessert, inspired by the popular chocolate bar Snickers, wasn't too sweet, and my children ate it before I could pick up my teaspoon. My dessert was vegan, but you can prepare it with sweet cream and cow's milk, and it will also be excellent. The salty peanuts with crunchy golden caramel was an interesting combination. My son said that it looked like the dessert had been sprinkled with pieces of amber.

Ingredients (for 5 people)
vanilla layer
500ml of almond-rice milk
3 tablespoons of maple syrup
5 tablespoon of millet flakes
1 teaspoon of vanilla essence
a pinch of salt
chocolate layer
2 bananas
2 tablespoons of cocoa
3-4 tablespoons of maple syrup
decoration
4-5 tablespoons of brown sugar
150g of salted peanuts

I love soups and when the autumn is coming I like them more and more. I confess that broth is my favourite soup, but I value also cream soups for their simplicity and endless options when choosing ingredients.

Today I would like to share with you the recipe for an easy and light mushroom soup. If you don't like creamy soup, don't blend it. Add some boiled groats and some cream and you have a quite new approach to mushroom soup.

Ingredients:
500g of mushrooms
2 medium size potatoes
1 onion
2 cloves of garlic
200ml of coconut milk
1l of vegetable stock
2 twigs of thyme
1 tablespoon of butter
2-3 tablespoons of chopped dill
salt and pepper

Alcoholic drinks definitely taste better with friends. We like beer during barbecues with the family, and we drink wine with our friends on holiday. After all, holidays are not only for children. After a day full of sightseeing and sunbathing, we usually drink local wine or we prepare holiday drinks.

In Italy we prepared drinks with our beloved Aperol. It could be classical Aperol Spritz, but you can also add it to other fruit drinks. Today I would like to share with you the recipe for a light holiday drink. I made it up as I went along, so I will just give you the ingredients without ratios. Add as many ingredients as you need for it to be as strong and sweet as you like. I usually add very cold watermelon to this drink. I don't like ice cubes because they thin the drink. You can add frozen pieces of orange or frozen grapes to cool down your drink.

Ingredients:
watermelon (without the skin and stones)
Aperol
lemon juice
orange juice
sparkling water (or other drink with gas)

When I was a child around my home there were a lot of red currant and gooseberry bushes. I never liked fresh fruit. I didn't like eating it and picking it was even worse. Now the bushes are only memories and I buy fruit at the market.

Currants are a rich source of ascorbic acid, and they enhance the immune system and blood system. Not too many people know that red currants increase the appetite, which makes them a good option for parents of fussy eaters. Red currants used as a mask are recommended for people with oily skin and acne problems.

I usually use currants for cakes. Today, however, I was reminded of a simple dessert from my childhood, which my mum often prepared. I made kissel with red currants and gooseberries for my children.

Ingredients:
700g of red currants and gooseberries
6-8 tablespoons of sugar

Caprese salad is one of the most popular dishes in the south of Europe. In Italy, where it comes from, it consists of slices of tomato interleaved with slices of mozzarella cheese, basil leaves, sprinkled olive oil and black pepper. The dish is supposed to resemble the Italian flag. Depending on the country, you can also find olives, red pepper or cucumber in it. Today I would like to share with you the recipe for a dinner version of caprese salad. It looks beautiful and tastes excellent. It is a suggestion for dinner on a hot day.

Ingredients (for 2 people)
100g of wholemeal macaroni
150g of mozzarella mini
2 handfuls of cherry tomatoes (red and yellow)
a handful of black olives
a handful of pistachios
leaves of basil
4 tablespoons of olive oil
salt and pepper