Family favourites (old and new)
This is a ad lib from The Best of the Best and More recipe for “Phantom Rhubarb Muffins”. In my humble opinion fat-free sour CREAM is an oxymoron and since I don’t bother with fat-free anything much I just substitute whatever yoghurt I happen to …
I had this amazing soup at Smartmouth Cafe last week with kale and chorizo in it and I decided I had to try making it at home. I picked up some yummy house made Chorizo from The Honest Butcher and set to work looking for …
I am still working my way through The Dahlia Bakery Cookbook. Sorry kids no fruit and veg this week…but how about some SNAILS ahahaha. Schnecken is the German word for snail and the term given to a rather lovely gooey treat similar to the Chelsea buns I used to get as a kid (except without those awful candied cherries…yuck). Really any sweet bread dough will do for this recipe. The gooey topping is butter, brown sugar, corn syrup and pecans and the dough is brushed with (more) butter and sprinkled with copious amounts of cinnamon sugar before rolling. Did I mention I can no longer fit in to any of my jeans? No…well never mind.
Here’s my photo journal foray into the world of Scccchhhhhhhnecken…note: I heard a lot of “Are they ready yet?” and “How come they have to cool?” but then there was that silence that descends when one is chewing a little piece of heaven. As an added bonus…I promise you there is no grit in these snails ha!
MMMMMMM Scccchhhhhhnecken!
More goodness from the Dahlia Bakery Cookbook: Sweetness in Seattle. Tonight I made the Apple Raisin Compote but since my kids hate raisins and I like cranberries I used cranberries instead and it worked out YUM. Then because I had buttermilk in the fridge that …
This recipe is based on the Cherry Almond Scone recipe from The Dahlia Bakery Cookbook. I didn’t have any dried cherries and truth be told I prefer dried cranberries. Plus my kids won’t eat whole nuts in anything so I had to sneak them in …
This is a slightly different take on the Tuscan Salad I usually make. Ataulfo mangos are just coming into season and they are so wonderfully delicious that I had to get some.
3 medium sized yams peeled and chopped in bite sized pieces
2 Tbsp olive oil
Ground salt and pepper + sumaki or other herb you like
1 Ataulfo Mango (check out Chef Alan for how to cut a mango up without losing the flesh (or your fingers).
1/4 c. toasted pine nuts
1/4 crumbled feta (I used Dodonis…expensive but really good)
24 grape tomatoes halved
1 can rinsed chickpeas
Juice of 1 lime
1/4 c. olive oil (or less…you are looking for a 50:50 mix of lime juice and olive oil for the dressing)
Preheat oven to 375F. Toss yams with olive oil and spread in a single layer on a parchment paper lined cookie sheet. Grind salt and pepper over top to taste and sprinkle with sumaki or zatar would work as well…or chipotle powder. Bake 35 minutes and remove to cool. In the meantime, toast the pine nuts and set aside to cool. Chop the tomatoes and mango and toss in a bowl. Rinse the chickpeas and add them to the bowl. Juice the lime and whisk together with oil oil. Add the cooled yam, mix and toss the works with the lime juice dressing. Correct seasonings to your taste. Crumble the feta on top and sprinkle with pine nuts.
Serves 4-6 and is great for packed lunches.
I’m big on finding recipes to suit the ingredients I have on hand. Today I defrosted some chicken legs that I bought recently from the BFFs (Big Friendly Fellahs) at the Honest Butcher but I had a hard time finding a recipe for chicken legs …
My daughter has recently taken an interest in trying new recipes…or to be more precise, finding new recipes for me to try. Today I made the Cauliflower Breadsticks she found on Tumblr which are from the delightful Mama Grubbs Grub blog. You can find the recipe here. I used oregano and sumac instead of oregano and basil because I happen know that sumac is amazing with roasted cauliflower. The sticks are still cooling but I had a little piece and they are really, really, really good (thanks Mama G!). I made them a little thinner than 1″ (more like 1/2″) and they were a bit tricky to flip but well worth the effort. The recipe makes about 8 decent sized snacks. I don’t expect they will go more than one lunch.
I am also in the process of make Crockpot Chicken Adobo for tomorrow (it’s still cooking but it smells good). The recipe for that is here. I am big Adobo fan and since the Honest Butcher happened to have organic chicken thighs on half price today it was an easy sell.
I’ve also got roasted Greek potatoes in the oven (mmmm lemony goodness) and the plan for tonight is my world famous morphing meatloaf. I say morphing because it changes according to what I have on hand (or what I forgot to buy at the grocery store). The basic recipe is here. The world famous part comes from onion soup mix. As long as you have that in there you can’t go too far wrong. Yes, it’s a cheat. So what?
Last but not least, I made Tricolour Pearl (aka Israeli) Couscous with Pesto and Veg from the recipe off the back of the Bob’s Red Mill Pearl Couscous. Recipe here. I used grated carrot and added a can of organic chickpeas instead of zucchini. I love this company. When Bob decided to retire instead of selling up or shutting down…he gave the company to his employees. Now that is cool. Bob…you have my sincere admiration. Read the story here.
Life has been pretty busy at our house of late so I haven’t been cooking much. This is a reasonably quick vegetarian curry that is light and flavourful. Ingredients: 2 Tbsp vegetable oil 1 large onion diced 3 Tbsp curry paste (I used Patak’s Bombay …
