Lemon Poppy Seed Scones

 

Lemon poppy seed loaf or cake is a quintessential classic and a favourite in our house however lemon poppy seed scones have become ideal too. With an intense lemon zing and crumbly buttery texture that melts in your mouth for breakfast or dessert just the same.  

Lemon PoppySeed Scones

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1  3/4 cups unbleached all purpose flour

3 tablespoons sugar

1  1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoon poppyseeds

grated lemon zest of 1 - 2 large lemons 

1/3 cup firm butter, chilled

1 large egg, beaten

4 - 6 tablespoons whipping cream

coarse sugar for sprinkling

Lemon Icing

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1 cup icing sugar

2 tablespoons butter, melted

3 tablespoons lemon juice

1/2 teaspoon lemon zest

In a medium bowl, add the icing sugar, melted butter, lemon juice and lemon zest. Whisk until smooth. 

Heat oven to 400ºF (200ºC). Line a baking tray with baking parchment. Set aside.

In a large bowl mix the flour, 3 tablespoons of sugar, baking powder, salt, poppyseeds and lemon zest. Using a pastry knife or two forks cut in the butter until the mixture is crumbly, you may also use clean hands do this. 

Create a well in the centre of the flour mixture and add the beaten egg and whipping cream. Using a wooden spoon fold in the flour mixture to the egg mixture so the dough leaves side of the bowl. You may need to add a few more tablespoons of whipping cream if the dough appears to be a bit  too dry. You want a moist dough not a sticky one. 

Place the dough on a lightly floured surface, gently roll in the flour to coat. Knead lightly 10 times. Roll or pat into an 8 - inch circle. Carefully transfer to the prepared baking tray with parchment paper. Cut into 8 wedges with a sharp knife dipped in flour, but do not separate the wedges. Brush with additional whipping cream and sprinkle with the coarse sugar. 

Bake 14 to 16 minutes or until golden. Immediately remove from the baking tray, carefully separating the wedges. Serve warm. 

You may drizzle a lemon icing over top. If doing so, allow the scones to cool then make the icing above or one of your preference. Icing and decorate with fresh lemon zest over the top. 

 

Chocolate Cake

 

This is my go to cake for almost any occasion or any time for that matter, purely for it's simplicity and no fuss deliciousness. Intense chocolate flavour that is voluptuously dense and fudgy. Lovely slathered with icing or drenched in a rich hot fudge sauce or toppled with fresh fruit, this is one slice of cake I can not get enough of and I don't miss the fact that it has no milk, eggs and no butter.  

Chocolate Cake 

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1 1/2 cups unbleached all purpose flour

4 tablespoons cocoa powder

1/2 cup white sugar

1/2 cup coconut sugar

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon Kosher salt

1 teaspoon white vinegar

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

5 tablespoons (1/3 cup) light olive oil

1 cup of water

Preheat oven to 350ºF (180ºC). Lightly grease and flour one round cake tin or square cake tin. 

In a large bowl add the flour, cocoa powder, sugar, coconut sugar, baking soda and salt. Whisk together until well combined.

Using the back of a spoon, create three wells or indentations into the flour mixture, and in each one pour the white vinegar, vanilla extract and vegetable oil. Add the water and mix until well combined. 

Pour the batter into the prepared cake tin. Bake in the preheated oven for 30 to 35 minutes or until cake has set in the middle. Allow cake to cool before decorating.

Nanaimo Bars

Since these squares were such a hit. I thought I would post the recipe that my son used. It is from the City of Nanaimo's website and you may visit and search for the recipe there however I have shared it. It is a very straight forward, done in three easy parts recipe. My son has made these again but with a mocha filling. I was able to taste test the filling and it was luscious!     

Nanaimo Bars

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Bottom Layer:

1/2 cup unsalted butter

1/4 cup sugar

5 tablespoon cocoa 

1 beaten egg

1 3/4 cups graham wafer crumbs

1/2 cup finely chopped almonds

1 cup coconut

Melt the first 3 ingredients in top of double boiler. Add an egg and stir to cook and thicken. Remove from heat. Stir in crumbs, coconut, and nuts. Press firmly into an ungreased 8" x 8" pan. 

Second Layer:

1/2 cup unsalted butter

2 tablespoons and 2 teaspoons cream

2 tablespoons vanilla custard powder

2 cups icing sugar

Cream the butter, cream, custard powder, and icing sugar together well. Beat until light. Spread over bottom layer. 

Third Layer:

4 squares semi sweet chocolate (1 oz each) 

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

Melt chocolate and butter over low heat. Cool. Once cool, but still liquid, pour over second layer and chill in the refrigerator.   

Hope everyone had a nice weekend! - JD 

Steak and Guinness Pie

This pie is pretty substantial and is a British classic. The recipe was taken from Jamie Oliver's cookbook, Happy Days with the Naked Chef. I made only a few modifications to this  easy classic. For the Jamie Oliver recipe click *here*  and search Steak and Guinness Pie or Steak, Guinness & Cheese Pie with a puff pastry lid. Although the latter recipe comes up on his website it may be more of an updated one so I will include the recipe from Happy Days with the Naked Chef. Which is a great cookbook by the way.  

Jamie Oliver's Good Old Steak and Guinness Pie

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680g/1and 1/2 lb stewing beef, diced

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

2 heaped tablespoons flour

olive oil

1 onion, peeled and roughly chopped

1 large carrot, peeled and roughly chopped

4 sticks of celery, washed and roughly chopped

2 parsnips, peeled and roughly chopped 

1 handful of mixed herbs (rosemary, thyme and bay), leaves picked

565ml/1 pint of Guinness 

2x 400g/14oz tins of tomatoes

1x500g/1lb 2oz pack of puff pastry 

1 beaten egg

Season your beef generously with salt and pepper, sprinkle with flour and toss around until coated. Heat 2 to 3 lugs of olive oil in a large casserole-type pan and fry your meat, in two batches if need be, until golden brown. Add the onion and fry for 1 more minute, then add the carrot, celery, parsnips and herbs. Fry for a further 4 minutes then pour in your Guinness. Add the tinned tomatoes and bring to the boil. Stir around, then simmer for around 2 hours or until the meat is really tender. The sauce should be nice and thick with an intensely tasty flavour. Season. At this point you could serve it as a stew with mash, or it will keep really well for a good 5 days in the fridge (while improving in flavour at the same time).

To make the pies, preheat the oven to 190ºC/375ºF/gas 5. Put your meat filling into an appropriately-sized baking dish or dishes. I like to make small individuals pies - any high-sided round oven proof bowls are fine. Roll out your pastry, dusting with flour as you go, until 0.5cm/1/4 inch thick. Cut out 6 circles about 1cm/1/2 inch bigger than the tops of your bowls. Brush the rims of your bowls with beaten egg, then place the pastry circles on top, squashing the excess pastry down the outside of the bowls to secure. Lightly score the top of the pastry in a criss-cross fashion and brush with more of the beaten egg. Bake in the middle of the preheated oven for 45 minutes until golden and bubbling. 

Notes: I had ran out of olive oil so good thing I bought that Camelina oil, I used that instead. Dried herbs work in a pinch. I used tins of diced tomatoes. I omitted the celery and added chopped baby potatoes instead. Added a dash here and there of cumin. Buying meat from the butcher's, Acme Meat here in E-town, made a difference in just over 1 hour the beef I used was tender. 

Get Cooking.

However simple this title is, the message is universal. This cookbook is great for home cooks, anyone who enjoys cooking and baking and wants to eat well, anyone in need of a bit of encouragement in the kitchen, and fabulous for experienced and not so experienced cooks... essential anyone and everyone! Get Cooking is written by Mollie Katzen, the author of the Moosewood Cookbooks, which I have. This cookbook will inspire and may make a cook out of anyone. With a little elbow grease and determination one can sharpen their kitchen... culinary skills while making simple delicious food. Delicious food made at home equals less time eating fast food. Of course it is okay to indulge... in moderation, however, I can not stress this enough - nothing beats food you prepare yourself. The accomplishment and satisfaction are worth every self glorification jubilation. 

The recipes are made simple and most if not all of the ingredients one would have on hand. Which makes this book's recipes accessibility very favourable. As always with most cookbooks I have it seems more often than not that the vegetarian recipes are the ones I take note of. One such recipe was the White Cheddar Mashed Potato Soup and another was the Black Bean Burgers. Most of the recipes use cumin. Which I am happy about. And the photographs in this book are more modest and matter of fact than glossy and overtly stylized.

Since the potato soup caught my eye. I will be making it tomorrow with just a few slight modifications. That being said I will share the recipe from the cookbook in hopes that it will inspire you.

White Cheddar Mashed Potato Soup

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2 tablespoons olive oil

1 medium yellow onion, chopped

1 tablespoon ground cumin

1 tablespoon minced garlic (about 3 good-sized cloves)

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

3 cups water

4 medium-large russet potatoes (about 3 pounds), cut into small chunks

1 1/2 cups milk

3/4 cup (packed) grated white Cheddar cheese

red pepper flakes 

freshly ground black pepper

1. Place a soup pot or a Dutch oven over medium heat. After about a minute, add the olive oil and swirl to coat the pan. Add the onion and cumin, and cook, stirring occasionally, for about 5 minutes, or until the onion softens.

2. Sir in the garlic and the salt. Reduce the heat to medium-low, partially cover the pot, and cook, stirring occasionally, for another 10 minutes.

3. Add the water and the potatoes. Bring to a boil, then turn the heat all the way down to lowest possible setting. Partially cover, and simmer gently for about 15 minutes or until the potatoes become completely soft. (It's okay to err on the side of their becoming falling-apart tender.) Turn off the heat, stir in the milk, and let the soup sit, uncovered, to allow it to cool down a bit.

4. Use a blender or immersion blender to purée the soup until it lis smooth. (if it seems to thick, add a little extra water.) 

5. Reheat the soup very slowly and over medium-low heat, being careful not to let it boil. When it is hot, stir in the cheese and season to taste with the red pepper flakes (a pinch or two) and black pepper (6 to 10 grinds) Serve hot, passing around the pepper mill and extra red pepper flakes. 

Hope everyone is having a good week so far. - JW 

Strawberry Raspberry Cheesecake

All this week I made some form of chocolate treats. However this was going to be a secret for my Valentine, my husband. There was no hiding the refrigerator stacked with berries, something round hidden under sheets of foil wrap and the smell of melting chocolate. Since I had melted too much chocolate and there were left over berries I felt compelled to share an early Valentine's Day treat. Sometimes there are benefits when one hangs around the kitchen. I prefer baked cheesecakes and this one was very easy to whip up.

  

Cheesecake

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1 1/4 cup graham crumbs

1/4 cup melted butter

3 - 250g packages of cream cheese, softened

3/4 cup sugar

3 eggs

spoonful of lemon juice

spoonful of lemon zest

Combine the graham crumbs and butter together. Press into a spring form pan.

Beat the cream cheese and sugar until smooth. Add the eggs, one at a time, and mix until just blended. Stir in the lemon juice and lemon zest. Pour into crust. 

Bake at 350ºF for 45-50 minutes or until centre is almost set. Cool completely on a wire rack. Refrigerate for 3 hours or overnight. Decorate as you desire. 

Notes - By far this is as simple as cheesecakes can get. It is pretty much foolproof. You can certainly change up the crust by using chocolate or vanilla cookie crumbs. Try digestive biscuits. Also adding spices like cinnamon, cardamom, ginger, and nutmeg to the crust mixture is lovely. You can add orange or lime zest instead of the traditional lemon. Adding liqueur for a more grown-up sophisticated cheesecake. You can purée the fruit however I prefer fresh fruit. Simple things like chocolate, dried fruit, and nuts. The possibilities are truly endless. 

     

Chocolate Fudge

I did make it back into the kitchen to whip up a batch of fudge. This time chocolate. And as you can tell from the photo I have had some success.  The recipe is from the cookbook I feature a few days ago called Christmas Candy. This recipe although it may seem intricate is pretty easy and was a breeze to create. I still do not have a candy thermometer however my kitchen intuition kicked in nicely. So far this recipe is the simplest and easiest. 

Old-Fashioned Chocolate Fudge

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2 ounces unsweetened chocolate

1 cup of milk

2 cups granulated sugar

1 tablespoon light corn syrup 

2 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 cup finely chopped walnuts

*Notes: I did not have corn syrup so instead I used golden syrup. Also I omitted the walnuts. 

Grease an 8 inch pan with butter.

In a large, heavy saucepan, combine the chocolate and the milk. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until the chocolate has melted and the mixture is smooth.

Stir in the sugar and corn syrup. Increase the heat to moderate and continue stirring until the mixture comes to a boil.

Cover the pan and cook for 1 minute. Uncover the pan and insert a candy thermometer. Cook, uncovered, without stirring, until the mixture reaches the soft-ball stage. (236ºF on the candy thermometer). Note: Since I do not have a candy thermometer I used my mum's method of dropping a bit of the boiling mixture into a glass of cold water until it form a soft- ball. 

Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the butter and the vanilla. Set aside until the candy cools to lukewarm (110ºF). Note: Once the top of the fudge in the saucepan looked less glossy and when tipping the saucepan the fudge looked like it had a skin on top, I started to beat it with a wooden spoon until it thick and creamy. 

With a wooden spoon, beat the fudge until it is thick and creamy and no longer glossy. Quickly stir in the nuts.

Pour the fudge into the prepared pan. Cool in the pan on a wire rack. 

When the fudge is firm and completely cool, cut into squares.

Hope you had a great weekend! - JW  

Chicken Vegetable Stew

Sometimes I can get a complete craving for a recipe. Plotting and deciding exactly how everything will come together. Stew is one of those mystical one pot wonders that comfort all especially when the temperature drop. It was absolutely divine to sit down with a bowl and the let the savoury herbs unfold in front of you. 

Chicken Stew

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3 chicken breasts, diced 

5-6 potatoes, cubed

2 parsnips, peeled and chopped

3 carrots, peeled and chopped

1 onion, peeled and chopped

1/2 cup red wine

2 x 796ml tins of diced tomatoes
3 bay leaves

1 teaspoon cumin

1 teaspoon rosemary

1 teaspoon thyme

1 teaspoon smoked paprika

salt and pepper to taste

* You can change the vegetables, add different seasonings, adjust the seasonings or herbs according to taste, and omit the wine and add beer. * 

First, place a bit of olive oil a the stock pot. Turn the burner on to medium heat. Add the chicken. Stir. Add a bit of salt and pepper. Continue sautéing the chicken. When the chicken has slightly browned add the onions. Stir and fry the onion for about 1 -2 minutes. Add the carrots, parsnips, and potatoes. Fry for a few minutes longer or until slightly tender. Add the cumin, rosemary, thyme and paprika. Pour the red wine in and add the tinned tomatoes. Stir everything around. Pop the bay leaves in. Bring to a boil and then let everything simmer for about 2 hours. Serve it with some naan bread or a slice of french baguette.

Enjoy! - JW 

200 Fast & Easy Artisan Breads ~ No-Knead, One Bowl

Still on my quest for making bread I was given this cookbook. No Kneading and one Bowl sounds excellent to me! At 317 pages there was bound to be a bread I could make with much ease. I set my sights on the Oatmeal Honey Bread. Despite the tedious step by step instructions it was easy. The only thing about this recipe and others in this book was that after you made the dough the recipe seemed to stop. Now I am used to full instructions dished out and continuing on. However the Oatmeal Honey Dough recipe was on page 65 and the how to prepare and bake was on page 85. There was no reference to having to turning to page 85 once you had finished preparing the dough. One has to flip through 10 to 20 pages to find the baking instructions. Why? 

The only conclusion I can come up with, in this informative book, is that it is due to the book being done in three parts. Part 1: Let's Get Started, Part 2: Now You're Baking and Part 3: Master Baking. It is a pretty loose conclusion. Not all the recipes are drawn up like this. Some have flow and continuity. The recipes are not just bread, there are: Bagels,  Baguettes, Brioche, Boule, Cinnamon Rolls, Fougasse, gluten-Free Breads and Rolls, Naan, and Tea Rings. All sounding very delicious. And the bold colour photography sections in each part make your eyes and stomach appear larger.   

That is the Oatmeal Honey Bread I made. The method used... loaf tins. In the book the majority of the breads are to be made using a baking stone with a pan of water underneath. The loaf tins make it easier to slice and toast. I had a piece or two this morning with my dippy eggs and it was quite lovely. 

Oatmeal Honey Dough

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4 1/2 cups unbleached flour

2 cups large-flake (old fashion) rolled oats

2 tablespoons instant or bread machine yeast

1 1/2 tablespoon fine table salt

1/3 cup wildflower, clover or other pale amber liquid honey

3 cups lukewarm water (about 100ºF/38ºC) 


1. MEASURE. One at a time, spoon the flour and oats into a measuring cup, level with a knife or your finger, then dump into the mixing bowl. Combine well. 

2. MIX. Add the yeast and salt to the flour mixture. Stir together with a wooden spoon or Danish dough whisk. Stir honey into the water. Pour into the flour mixture and stir together until just moistened. Beat 40 strokes, scraping the bottom and sides of the bowl, until the dough forms a lumpy, sticky mass.

3. RISE. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let rise at room temperature (72ºF/22ºC) in a draft-free place for 2 hours or until the dough has risen nearly to the top of the bowl and has a sponge-like appearance .

4. USE RIGHT AWAY OR REFRIGERATE. Use that day or place the dough, covered with plastic wrap, in the refrigerator for up to 3 days before baking. 

...Turning to page 85 to continue the recipe...


1. FORM. Place the dough on a floured surface and dust very lightly with flour. Divide it in half with a serrated knife and dough scrapper. Flour your hands. Working the dough as little as possible and adding flour as necessary, form each portion into an 8 inch (20cm) cylinder.Smooth the dough with your hands to form a soft, non-sticky skin. Pinch any seams together. Lightly flour any sticky places on the dough. The dough should feel soft and smooth all over, like a baby's skin, but not all sticky.

2. REST. Place each cylinder in a prepared loaf pan. Cover with tea towels and let rest at room temperature for 40 minutes. 

3. PREPARE OVEN FOR ARTISAN BAKING. About 30 minutes before baking place a broiler pan on the lower shelf and the baking stone on the middle shelf of the oven. Preheat to 400ºF (200ºC).

4. PLACE LOAF PANS ON BAKING STONE AND ADD WATER TO BROILER PAN. Using an oven mitt , carefully pull the middle rack of the oven out several inches. Place the loaf pans at least 3 inches (7.5cm) apart on the hot stone. Push the middle rack back in place. Pull the lower rack out, pour the hot water, about 2 cups or 500ml of hot water, into the broiler pan and push the lower rack back into place. Close the oven door immediately so the steam will envelop the oven.

5. BAKE. Bake for 27 - 30 minutes or until the crust is a medium dark brown and an instant thermometer inserted in the centre of the loafs registers at least 190ºF (90ºC). Transfer to a wire rack to cool in pans for 10 minutes. Remove from pans and let cool on rack. 

* Note I did not have a baking stone however I placed the loaf tins in the oven on the middle rack and omitted the water in the broiler pan bit. The bread as you can see from the picture above turned out fine and was done in 30 minutes. - JW 

Leftovers #7 - Roasted Potato and Chickpea Salad

I made this quick and simple salad by putting to use the leftover roasted potatoes we had the other night and about 1/3 cup of chickpeas that were leftover from those yummy Chickpea and Chocolate Chip cookies. 

I first chopped the the celery and green onions and placed them in a bowl. I then added the chickpeas. I diced, without any rhyme or reason, the potatoes and added them to the bowl. Tossing gently and adding about 1/2 cup of mayonnaise and a 1/4 cup of greek yoghurt. Then came a couple of pinches of pepper. A 1/4 teaspoon of cumin and 1 1/2 teaspoons of curry powder. You can always adjust the cumin and curry spices to your liking. I luv the taste and aroma of curry therefore I could not resist adding a bit more. Stir gently to coat. Let it mellow for about an hour, or longer if possible, in the refrigerator so all the flavours can come together. Then serve. 

I washed and cut the top of of a red pepper. Cleaned out the inside and placed the potato salad in the hollowed out pepper. There is a little bit left for today's lunch and I am sure the curry flavour has intensified.  - JW  

Tomato and Halloumi Cheese

This salad was or is in part inspired by a very good friend who showed me many years ago when I was visiting her that she would fry Halloumi cheese and eat it as a snack. I know fried cheese isn't the most healthiest ingredient to add to a salad. However it is quite lovely. It is saltier than feta and has a cheese curd like consistency. 

I sliced yellow and red tomatoes arranging them on a plate. Then I thinly sliced some red onions and then some radishes. Arranging them with the tomatoes. Then topped the salad with three pieces of Halloumi cheese. I had already made a dressing of basic oil and vinegar with herbs which was drizzled over the top. Very simple. Very fast. Easy and delicious. Enjoy! -JW  

Garlic Linguine with Tomatoes, Chicken, Halloumi Cheese and Parsley

I was determined to get back into the kitchen and try to push the jet lag aside. Donning my apron brought great pleasure. I decided to make something quick and comforting. linguine with garlic, cherry tomatoes, leftover chicken, fresh parsley and cubed halloumi cheese. I made so much of it that tonights dinner will be much of the same.   

In a saucepan add 1/2 cup of olive oil and three cloves of garlic that have been crushed. Set aside. 

In another saucepan fill with water and add a pinch of salt. Turn on high heat and bring water to the boil then add 450 grams of dried linguine and cook according to package. 

As the pasta is cooking chop the tomatoes in half, dice the chicken, cube the halloumi cheese and mince the fresh parsley. Set aside. No exact measurements needed for these ingredients. Depends on how much of each you would like to have in the dish. You may also want to use different cheese, veggies or meat.  

When the pasta looks just about done place the saucepan with the crushed garlic in it on the stove and turn on medium/low heat. You want to gently heat the oil and brown the garlic. When the garlic turns golden brown remove from heat. By this time the pasta should be ready to drain.

Drain the linguine well. Transfer to a large serving dish. Pour the oil and garlic mixture over the pasta. Toss to coat. Add the tomatoes, chicken, halloumi cheese and fresh parsley. Toss to coat, again. Add a pinch of salt and ground pepper, if you like, to taste. Serve immediately. Enjoy! -JW       

My Apple Chutney

I was feeling rather creative over the weekend. Pork chops, sweet potatoes and veggie couscous salad were on our dinner menu. And I wanted to make a sauce for the pork chops. I had some apples that were starting to gather a bruise here and a bruise there so I decided that an apple compote or chutney, as I like to call it would do. It's fairly easy to make provided you have some black tea, apples, cinnamon and maple syrup.

Take two tea bags, black or any flavoured tea of your choice, and place them in a saucepan with about 1 and 1/2 cups of water. Bring to a boil. Remove from heat and let the tea steep for a bit. In the meantime chopped two apples, green or red, leaving the skin on. I used granny smith apples for their tartness. I like things to have a bit of a bite! When the apples are chopped, place them into the saucepan. Add some cinnamon and maple syrup, flavour to your taste. And place the saucepan back on the stove and bring to a boil again. Let the apples boil in the tea, cinnamon and maple syrup mixture until the apples become soft but not to soft so that they are a mushy pulp. If you find that some pieces of apple are not easy to pierce just take a potato masher and do a rough mash just to sort out those bits. You don't want to mash up all the pieces of apples. You are not making apple sauce. You just want a nice chunky chutney that has a bit of sauce. Also if you find that the sauce is a bit runny, place about 2 tablespoons of cornstarch in a small bowl and mix it with some water and add it to the saucepan. Do that until you have it to the desired consistency. Serve over pork chops, chicken, bread pudding and ice cream. 

*Note - You may add some dried cranberries or raisins when adding the apples to the tea. You can try other dried or fresh fruits as well. Caramelized onions are are great too! I luv adding a dash of cardamom. There are many options and playing around with flavours is a must.

Tomato and Cheese Macaroni Bake

My mum used to make this dish for us very often. As simple as this is, this was one of my favourite meals. Simple equals comfort. For all my North American followers you might remember a product called Hamburger Helper. That alone conjures up all sorts of images... the talking and ever so helpful kitchen glove... the spoon twirling around the skillet... the enduring family sitting at kitchen table and all served up with a catchy tune. Graze the grocery aisles and you will see that Hamburger Helper is still being sold today. Pick up a box and read the nutritional label and feel how fast your jaw will drop open. Worse than a carnival ride. The salt content is astounding! The only thing you are getting is shear convenience. And that is more than enough to place it back on the store shelf and walk away. 

I guess one could say that this was my mums answer to Hamburger Helper or a no fuss lasagne. This recipe is easy, fast and has low to no salt! All you need are the following: 

2 cans of 796ml of low or no salt diced tomatoes

1 package of ground turkey **or ground beef or ground chicken or veggie soy ground

1 onion, chopped

2 cloves of garlic, crushed

pepper

a pinch of salt 

whatever fresh herbs you want to add

and approximately 2-3 cups of elbow macaroni 

1 1/2 cups grated cheddar cheese  

*when cooking pasta I tend to eyeball it or cook what feels right. This may not be your method and possibly for good reason. I do tend to cook more pasta then needed. However any leftovers never go unused in our house. The suggested 2-3 cups of macaroni are uncooked. 

Preheat the oven to 350ºF.

Sauté the onion and garlic with a bit of olive oil in a larger pan. Then add the ground turkey. Sauté together until the meat is cooked. You may add the herbs at this time. When the meat is cooked add the tomatoes. Stir and heat through. 

Meanwhile in a large saucepan, boil water. Add the macaroni to the boiling water and follow the cooking directions on the package. Stirring occasionally to make sure the pasta does not stick together. You want to cook the pasta until almost done. You don't want to over cook the pasta because there will be liquid from the diced tomatoes which will get soaked up by the pasta. When the pasta is cooked. Drain the water slowly and add the pasta to the tomato and meat mixture. Stir to coat. 

Pour the now macaroni mixture into a large casserole baking dish. Cover with grated cheese of you choice. I used a mixture of cheddar, mozzarella and parmesan. Bake in a preheated 350ºF oven until cheese has melted. Serve immediately. 

Note: When I made this dish I made it in advance to save time. I stored it in the refrigerator until dinner time. It kept well. Therefore I had to warm it up a bit first before topping it with the cheese.

Enjoy your weekend everyone! - JW    

Vegan Blueberry Banana Bread

Most of the time I luv to browse through my cookbook collection searching for promising recipes. However sometimes recipes just fall into my lap, as did with this one. A friend posted it and I just happened to be in the right place at the right time and voila! I had all the ingredients except the soy milk. Not a problem I went to the grocery store and bought some. This recipe came from a website called Fat Free Vegan Kitchen. It is a wonderful blog with many recipes. I am not vegan however I do like to try different recipes and do not mind eating vegan dishes. This recipe is absolutely delicious! And I can not stress that enough. For the recipe click *HERE* This recipe will probably replace all the other banana bread recipes I use. Also read the thread of comments for suggestions and substitutions. I will be making another loaf this time I will substitute the blueberries for strawberries. Enjoy the recipe and have a wonderful weekend! - JW 

Rose Water and Chocolate Cereal Squares

Everyone has ate a crispy rice cereal square or two and possibly even made them. I remember my mother telling me stories about her parents, my grandparents, travelling to the UK where relatives would do all sorts of different variations of the crispy cereal square otherwise known as the rice krispie square. She said relatives would use everything imaginable into this pleasurable homely treat. When I was in grade school one of my classmates would have a rice krispie square scattered with raisins. My mum would sometimes add peanut butter when melting the butter or spread homemade icing across the top. It truly is a quick and versatile treat! Remembering those thoughts lead me to make my version of the rice krispie treat. Rose water and chocolate. A bit more sophisticated than raisins or peanut butter. And since Mother's Day is approaching this is a fun treat that the kidlets can make.

Rose Water Rice Krispie Square

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6 cups of crispy rice cereal or rice krispie cereal

1 package of jumbo marshmallows or 4 cups of regular marshmallows

1/4 cup of butter

1 1/2 teaspoons of rose water

drops of red food colouring

2 - 1 ounce squares of chocolate, melted 

  

First you want to butter the bottom and sides of 13x9 baking dish. 

Melt the butter in a large sauce pan over low/medium heat. Once the butter has melted add the marshmallows. Stir until marshmallows are completely melted, remove from heat. Add the rose water. Stir to combined. Then add the drops of red food colouring. I did not give a measurement as it's far easier to eyeball how "pink" you want the squares to be. 

Once the desired colour is reached add the crispy rice cereal to the melted mixture. Stir to coat evenly. Pour out into the greased dish. Spread evenly and flatten with a moist knife. Let cool. When cool you can melt 2 squares of good quality dark chocolate and drizzle on top. Let the chocolate set then cut into 2 inch squares. 

One and a half teaspoons is the perfect amount of rose water to give just enough flavour without over powering and the dark chocolate cuts down on the sweetness. It is almost turkish delight like. I enjoyed the chocolate pink morsel very much. Unfortunately the picture does not show how pink the square actually is. Knowing that the possibilities are endless what ingredients would you try?  - JW   

  

Sausage Rolls

When I was younger I thought most things that had puff pastry were sweet not savoury. We had sausage rolls on occasion however I got the impression that they were time consuming and you had to be a proper pastry chef to manage making them. Yesterday I made these sausage rolls. They were easy considering that I used a package of puff pastry, unfortunately. Right now I am not about to fuss with making puff pastry although I do want to try. And after some research I have found many recipes which vary from simple to all out time consuming. For this recipe you can make your own puff pastry or simply do what I did and buy a box of ready made low sodium puff pastry.

Sausage Rolls

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2 eggs

1 package of ground pork

1/4 cup (60ml) bread crumbs, 

1/4 cup (60ml) minced fresh parsley

1/4 cup (60ml) minced onion or shallot

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tablespoon of grainy organic mustard

1 package (450g pkg) frozen puff pastry, thawed and chilled

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Set aside.

In a bowl blend the ground pork, bread crumbs, parsley, onion, garlic and mustard. In a smaller bowl beat 1 of the eggs until frothy and add it to the ground meat mixture. Stir. Set aside.

On a lightly floured surface roll out pastry, one square at a time. *The box of puff pastry I bought came as two squares.* Yours may come wrapped differently. Roll until you have a fair sized rectangle. Spoon half of the meat mixture lengthwise down the side of the each pastry. You want to leave about an inch between the edge and where the mixture starts. Fold and roll over all the way to the other side. Fold in the edges as you go.

Arrange rolls seam side down on the prepared baking sheet. Cover and freeze for about 10 minutes. Cut each roll into about 1 inch pieces.

In another small bowl, whisk the other egg with 1 tablespoon (15ml) of water; brush over rolls. Bake in a 425ºF (220ºC) oven until puffed and golden. About 20 minutes.

I served them with seasoned oven roasted baby potatoes and mushy peas.   

    

Have a good weekend everyone! - JW 

  

   

Savoury Bread Pudding

This week I made savoury bread pudding. I made a huge pan so there would be plenty of leftovers. Although I see bread pudding as being a dish one would snuggle up to during the coldest months of the year, I can also see this fluffy seasoned dish making an appearance or two during the warmer months as well. 

To make this Savoury Bread Pudding you will need the following:

1 red onion, diced

approximately 10 mushrooms, sliced

small pint of cherry tomatoes, cut in half

a bunch of spinach or kale or swiss chard, chopped

olive oil

balsamic vinegar or red wine vinegar

thyme

tarragon

rosemary

summer savoury

smoky paprika

1 loaf of day old bread

8 eggs

2 cups of milk

salt and pepper  

Preheat the oven to 375ºF. 

Prepare all the vegetables. In a pan add some olive oil. Turn the element on to medium high heat. Once the oil has warmed up, add the onion. Stir. When the onion has soften a bit, add the mushrooms. Stir. Add the tomatoes. Stir again and let those vegetables simmer for a bit. When the mushrooms and tomatoes have soften a bit add the greens of your choice. Now the pan may look like it's going to overflow. Do not worry everything will simmer down. You made need to add some more olive oil and at this time you can add the balsamic vinegar or red wine vinegar. Stir to make sure everything is not sticking and gets coated with the oil and vinegar. Now it's time to add the herbs and seasoning. I didn't give exact measurements on the herbs and seasonings because you can adjust those to your liking. Once everything has simmered and looks like this...

  

I must say at this point the aroma was very inviting. Everything in the pan had come together nicely. Remove from heat and now it's time to prepare the bread. The day old loaf you use doesn't have to be pre sliced. Since mine was, I cut each slice in half making two triangle pieces. Once all the slices have been cut, butter the bottom of the baking dish. 

Arrange half the bread slices on the bottom of the pan. Take some of those lovely simmered down veggies and spread over the slices of bread. Then placing the remaining slices of bread on top of that and using the remaining veggie mixture on top. Now there is no rhyme or reason to placing the bread. Just place them as you see fit. Trust me when  all is said and done nobody is going to notice how the slices of bread were or weren't arranged. That is the pure charm of this dish. 

Break the eggs in a large bowl and add the milk, salt and pepper. Mix together. Then pour over top of the bread layered with the veggie mixture. Making sure everything gets coated. Pop in a preheated, 375ºF oven for about 40 minutes or until everything is puffy, golden and the eggs have set. Serve immediately with grated cheese on top. 

You can always change the order of the prep work by slicing the bread first, buttering the pan then chopping the veggies and continuing from there. Bread pudding whether sweet or savoury is such a labour of delightful comfort. - JW