Ricotta is a kind of soft unripened cheese, which is produced in Italy with goat's, cow's or sheep's milk by a long cooking process. Apparently, because of the way it's prepared, ricotta shouldn't be called cheese but rather a milk product. It is an interesting fact that ricotta contains five times more calcium than cottage cheese.

Ricotta is excellent for desserts but you may use it also with dry dishes like pasta or as a filling for tarts.

Today's dessert could be called cheesecake or thin cheese tart because it has more caramelized fruit than cheese. Due to this it is light, less caloric than traditional cheesecake and may be eaten even by these who count calories. The beautiful sweet-and-sour aroma of cinnamon plums and almonds means it is the perfect culmination of an autumn dinner.

The inspiration for this dessert comes from the Lidl online cookery book.

Ingredients:
dough
500g of ricotta
2 eggs
5 tablespoons of brown sugar
1 teaspoon of lemon essence
lemon zest
fruit:
500g of plums
1 teaspoon of cinnamon

A few days ago I was looking for an idea for a dessert and I knew one thing: it must be with chocolate. That's just the way when the autumn is coming: chocolate is more often the main ingredient of my desserts. You have to lift your mood somehow when outdoors it is drab, cold and the days are shorter.

In this way I figured out the recipe for chocolate rice pudding. Sweet-and-sour plums counteract the chocolate sweetness of the dessert and turn out to be an excellent ingredient. In the original recipe I discovered that it is enough to boil thick rice with any ingredients. I also blended my dessert because I like this dish to have a smooth consistency.

Ingredients (for 4 people):
100g of rice
400ml of coconut milk
150g of dark chocolate
plum jam
2 tablespoons of butter
3 tablespoons of brown sugar
10 plums
1 tablespoon of lemon juice
a half teaspoon of cinnamon

When I was a child, apricots were not my favourite fruit. The soft ones with sweet flesh and fluffy skin were at the end of my list of fruit to eat. I definitely preferred juicy nectarines, peaches and plums. Today I appreciate the uniqueness of apricots, and I use them in my kitchen both as fresh fruit and as conserves and ingredients of desserts and meat dishes.

Arboriculture of apricot trees isn't easy. They are fickle, tough and unpredictable. The trees sometimes bear fruit every year, but sometimes for no specific reason they have a yearly break. They are sensitive to frost and cool wind, which destroys their beautiful scented flowers. They don't like a lot of different things like drought, excess moisture and fertilizers.

It is said that apricots allow us to live longer. Their nutritional value was appreciated by the Chinese. This fruit was a permanent ingredient of their diet. Apricots are a rich source of antioxidants, which delay the human aging processes. Oil from apricot seeds is used for creams, masks, tonics and milk – especially for oily and acne-prone skin.

Today I used some apricots to prepare a fluffy cake that is excellent for a weekend cream tea or a school packed lunch.

Ingredients:
12 apricots
100g of almonds

When the school year was finished my daughter moaned that she didn't want to be on holiday. When the holiday was finished she moaned that she didn't want to go back to school. It is difficult to please young people. It is good that at least my little son is distinctly happy starting school. Maybe because for the first time he will cross the doorstep of the school and he doesn't know what he should anticipate.

I wanted to sugar the pill of the school year starting, so I prepared some almond-orange cookies in chocolate. My effort was appreciated. Spanish cookies suggestive of florentynki (in Poland, cookies with nuts, almonds and honey) are crunchy, and the orange aroma is clearly discernible. Chocolate, almonds and orange are definitely a perfect trio.

The recipe comes from the Lidl cookery book.

Ingredients:
3 oranges
150g of sugar
250g of almonds cut into pieces
200g of milk chocolate

Today I would like to share with you a recipe which you may prepare in two ways. The first way is the traditional one with whipped cream and mascarpone cheese, and the second one is a bit lighter. I use natural yoghurt and slightly creamy white cheese (you may use mascarpone cheese, but not necessarily) to make a dessert with a mellow consistency. I admit that I prefer the second version of this dessert (maybe because it is less sweet). I leave the option open which dessert to choose.

One thing in both of the desserts is the same. The blackberries – beautiful, so navy blue they are almost black, glossy, juicy and slightly sour – in one word: incomparable. As well as the excellent taste and beautiful look, blackberries have a lot of health properties. They are rich in anticancer nutrients, aid the circulatory system, control blood sugar levels and even buffer PMS and menopause symptoms.

In our home my daughter likes blackberries the most. My son doesn't like them, but after today's dessert he said that "maybe he will like them"  When I served today's dessert my son said that the blackberries looked like they had been dipped in fresh white snow.