Pulled Pork.

I made pulled pork last weekend. It was amazing. Slowed cooked in root beer for 7 hours. Discovered Sweet Baby Rays BBQ sauce.... Mmmmmm.

(Date) Balls.

I know, I know. It's been a while. I'm back in job limbo, and trying not to think too hard about it.

Also very busy in general with school, grad, wedding shower planning and life in general.

I was not very happy, however, when I thought  my roof might be leaking, based on the spot that appeared on the ceiling in my bathroom. I was happy to find out that was not the case, thanks to my awesome brother, who did a bunch of roof yoga in my attic to figure out where the moisture was coming from.

Long story short, I owed him some dessert, and he picked date balls. I guess they are more commonly known as "fry pan cookies", and my grandmother used to call them "mice", but I prefer date balls.

I whipped up a batch last night using this recipe as my starter, but I don't really like adding nuts, so I use extra rice krispies, and I added in some rum flavoring for good measure as well.

Can't figure out why, but I have a heck of a time getting the coconut to stick to the outside. They stick to everything else, but not the coconut. Alas.

Balls.

A friend gave me a recipe for some breakfast protein balls, that I absolutely love. They are the perfect, easy go-to food when I have zero time in the morning (which is all the time).

I just have no idea what to call them. My family has just taken to calling them "balls", which is fine because apparently we are all 10 year old boys at heart, but I feel like they deserve another name....

Josee's Protein Balls 

2 C oatmeal

1 C ground flax

(Take some out if adding chia seeds, hemp hearts or sunflower seeds. As long as you have 3 C of dry mix)

1 C raisins/ craisins

1 C nut butter (I've only tried them with peanut so far)

1/2 C honey

2 tsp vanilla

Mix all ingredients together in a large bowl. Liberally grease your hands with coconut oil, and roll into 1" balls. Place on cookie sheet in fridge until set, and store in fridge in an air tight container. 

Churros.

Once again fallen off the blogging wagon a little. I've been experimenting with twitter at the urging of some colleagues (including my principal) and can really only think of so many things to post to social media. Coupled with how busy it has been the last week (volunteering at the trade fair, putting in time at school, planning shower activities, food club, open house this week...) it just hasn't happened.

Speaking of food club, we had a mexi-themed lunch yesterday. I attempted to make churros... without frying them. Mixed success. Was a big fan of the flavor... But the recipe I used was waaaay off. Not sure the people had actually tried making them. I used one egg instead of two, and changed the cooking instructions rather drastically. Can't decide if I want to experiment further, or just call that one a pass. 

On the plus side, I got kitty snuggles. 

Hi, Sid!

Baklava.

I made baklava for this month's Mediterranean themed food club. Lordy, it was good. Easier than I though it would be. 

I modified a recipe I found online to get this. 

1 pkg phyllo pastry

1/2 C butter, melted

2 C ground nuts (I used walnuts, but want to try pistachios. The recipe also called for chopped, but I found they just fell out)

3 tsp cinnamon

1 C water

1 C sugar

1/2 C honey

1 tsp vanilla

1 tsp lemon juice

Preheat oven to 350. Liberally butter a 9 x 13 pan. Mix together nuts and cinnamon. 

Cut the phyllo in half so it fits the pan, and store under a damp tea towel until you need it. Place 2 sheets of phyllo in the pan, and brush generously with butter. Repeat 2 more times, and follow with a thin layer of nut mixture. Repeat the two sheets of phyllo, butter, two sheets of phyllo, butter, nuts pattern until you have 6 sheets of phyllo left. Generously butter between each last layer of phyllo, pressing down before you do so. 

Slice into triangles or squares, cutting through all the layers. One pan should make about 30-40 depending on your size. Bake in oven approx 40 minutes. 

While pastry is baking, combine water and sugar in a small saucepan over medium heat and bring to a boil. Add honey, vanilla, and lemon, and reduce heat, allowing to simmer approximately 20 minutes. 

Remove baklava from oven when tops are golden brown, and immediately spoon syrup over the whole tray. Allow to cool totally before separating. Store in muffin liners, and drizzle with chocolate if desired. 

Brownie Cake.

Had a great but tiring weekend going from conference and dance chaperoning to family dinners to fundraisers. Made dessert for dinner at Dom's, and was pretty happy with how it turned out. I made brownie cake (recipe to come) with maple whipped cream and a raspberry sauce. Yummy!

I also took the opportunity to sneak a bunch of post-its featuring terrible pick up lines into her house, and hid them without her or Ken knowing. Success. 

Rustic.

Made scones this evening. I adore raspberry scones. Nothing like some tea, warm buttered scones and Pavarotti music to make a chilly Thursday evening all the better.

Day #1 of teachers convention today. Had a nice, fun day today. Tomorrow  is looking long. Good thing I'll have some biscuits to tide me over. 

They are these ones ... With some minor adjustments. (Less time, more moisture, and raspberries)

Samosas.

Last weekend was a potato themed food club. Seemed like a good time to try something I've been wanting to do homemade for a while... vegetable samosas!

I used this recipe for dough from Williams Sonoma... and it was awesome and easy. Fries up really similar to naan. I will probably be trying it with other stuffing in the future.

For the filling, I adapted this recipe. I substituted ground ginger for crushed, because that was what I had. I also didn't have any coriander seeds. Nor do I have any idea what amchur powder is, so I left that out too.

I found it a bit lacking in taste (maybe the kind of chili I used, or my spices aren't the freshest any more) so I doubled up some of the spices (but not the turmeric. I want to have my frying pan be a color other than yellow someday soon.) and added extra peas and some corn.

Fried them up in a bit of oil... and they were really tasty! As I said, I was really impressed with the pastry. I mixed up some tandoori dip to serve them with, but they were especially good with Lindsey's tzatziki.

Pasta Sauce.

Missed the one a day deadline. Oops.  Spent today marking and running errands, and it didn't occur to me until I went out, and blogging at a party is a bit of a faux pas.

Last night, had some girlfriends over for dinner (made an amazing vodka cream sauce... more on that later) and we ended up watching Pride and Prejudice, drinking tea (and cherry coke!) and I taught Dom how to knit. And it was great. 

I feel like being mid-twenties is very liberating, in that we can have relaxed Friday night in and not be ashamed. 

Followed it up with a housewarming tonight. Also kept it low-key.  Gotta go into this coming week more well rested than last week. Last week was rough. 

And now, without further ado... amazing pasta sauce! It's called "you won't be single for long" sauce. I would make this more often to test the title, but if I made it too often I'd be the size of a house. It's damn good. 

Vodka Cream Sauce (modified from Rachel Ray) 

1 tbsp butter

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 shallots, minced

1 cup vodka

1 1/2 cup chicken stock

2  14 oz can crushed tomatoes

1 tsp sugar

Coarse salt and pepper

1 cup heavy cream

Basil

Heat a large skillet over moderate heat. Add the butter, garlic and shallots. Gently sauté the shallots for 3-5 minutes. Add the vodka and reduce by half, about 2 or 3 minutes. Add the chicken stock and the tomatoes, and sugar. Bring sauce to a bubble and reduce heat to simmer. Season with salt and pepper.

Stir the cream into the sauce. When the sauce returns to a bubble, remove it from the heat. Add small amount of basil. 

Fall cookies.

Remember those sugar cookies I tried making ages ago??

Yah. Turns out the recipe STILL makes a lot of cookies. I'd forgotten about that. The 5 1/2 C of flour should have tipped me off.

Anyways, I wanted to make some cookies for my MUN meeting this week, and fall leaf shaped sugar cookies seemed like a good way to go. I even bought cute fall colored sprinkles at Bulk Barn.

Well,  I took some to the lake for Thanksgiving, some to school today, and I still have a large bag in my freezer. Yikes. But, they are as tasty as ever, and got good reviews everywhere (although, let's be honest, teenagers will be thankful for just about any treats that are free).

 

But actually. How cute are they?

Success.

For a while now, I've wanted to recreate at home the Vietnamese fish sauce that comes with vermicelli bowls. I'd experimented with a couple recipes before that just weren't right. (Golden Bird has set the bar high)

This week, success! It's not quite Golden Bird, but it's pretty darn close and tasty. I'm rather impressed with this recipe from food.com.

I plan on making this a LOT. 
 

Nuoc Cham Sauce

1 C water
4 Tbsp rice wine vinegar
4 Tbsp sugar
5 Tbsp fish sauce
1 clove minced garlic
1 tsp red pepper flakes

Boil water with vinegar and sugar; allow it to cool. Add garlic and red pepper flakes. Allow to sit until ready to use. Add the fish sauce prior to serving.

 

Parfaits.

 
"You know what else everybody likes? Parfaits. Have you ever met someone, you say, "Let's go get some parfait" they say "Hell no, I don't like no parfaits"? Parfaits are delicious."


I made some desserts for my dear Lindsey's wedding shower this weekend. I wanted to make some light and spring-like things, and was inspired by this month's food club theme (spring) to make some lime parfaits. For food club, I made this recipe, and while they were good, I wasn't too thrilled with the lime mousse layer.

For Lindsey's shower, I made my standby strawberry cupcakes (so good) and changed the mousse to a version I had been given by a friend. I found it much less punch-in-the-face sweet, and a nice light texture. Piped into the little mugs I bought at Dollarama, I was rather impressed with myself.

Lime Parfaits:

1/4 C butter
2 T brown sugar
1 C graham cracker crumbs

1 container Cool Whip
1 can sweetened condensed milk
3/4 C lime juice
zest from 2 limes
(I added a little bit of food coloring to make it look "limey")

Melt butter in a sauce pan over medium heat. Add brown sugar, and stir until bubbly. Mix in graham cracker crumbs, and stir for a few minutes. Transfer to a bowl to cool, breaking large chunks into a fine powder.

Combine Cool Whip, sweetened condensed, and lime juice. Chill until ready to use.

Using a large piping bag, fill all containers (this filled 18 2 oz glasses really nicely, with a little leftover. Each cup was about a half portion) a third full of lime mousse. Add a spoonful of graham cracker crumbs, and top with another layer of mousse.

Chill until ready to serve.

I love that the lighting makes this picture look retro.

Melt butter in heavy small skillet over medium heat. Mix in brown sugar and stir until bubbling, about 1 minute or less. Mix in crumbs; stir until color deepens, about 3 minutes. Turn out onto plate and cool. - See more at: http://foodfashionandflow.blogspot.ca/2012/09/key-lime-parfaits.html#sthash.zVnXRqtD.dpuf

Melt butter in heavy small skillet over medium heat. Mix in brown sugar and stir until bubbling, about 1 minute or less. Mix in crumbs; stir until color deepens, about 3 minutes. Turn out onto plate and cool. - See more at: http://foodfashionandflow.blogspot.ca/2012/09/key-lime-parfaits.html#sthash.zVnXRqtD.dpuf

3 tablespoons unsalted butter

2 tablespoons white sugar

1/4 cup powdered sugar

1 tablespoon light brown sugar

1/2 cup graham cracker crumbs

1 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk

1/2 cup fresh lime juice

1 tablespoon grated lime peel

1-2 cups chilled whipping cream 

Pure Vanilla Extract

- See more at: http://foodfashionandflow.blogspot.ca/2012/09/key-lime-parfaits.html#sthash.zVnXRqtD.dpuf

• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 2 tablespoons white sugar
• 1/4 cup powdered sugar
• 1 tablespoon light brown sugar
• 1/2 cup graham cracker crumbs
• 1 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk
• 1/2 cup fresh lime juice
• 1 tablespoon grated lime peel
• 1-2 cups chilled whipping cream 
• Pure Vanilla Extract

Directions

Melt butter in heavy small skillet over medium heat. Mix in brown sugar and stir until bubbling, about 1 minute or less. Mix in crumbs; stir until color deepens, about 3 minutes. Turn out onto plate and cool. 

Stir condensed milk, lime juice and lime peel in large bowl to blend (mixture will thicken). Set aside while you make whipped topping.

- See more at: http://foodfashionandflow.blogspot.ca/2012/09/key-lime-parfaits.html#sthash.zVnXRqtD.dpuf

• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 2 tablespoons white sugar
• 1/4 cup powdered sugar
• 1 tablespoon light brown sugar
• 1/2 cup graham cracker crumbs
• 1 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk
• 1/2 cup fresh lime juice
• 1 tablespoon grated lime peel
• 1-2 cups chilled whipping cream 
• Pure Vanilla Extract

Directions

Melt butter in heavy small skillet over medium heat. Mix in brown sugar and stir until bubbling, about 1 minute or less. Mix in crumbs; stir until color deepens, about 3 minutes. Turn out onto plate and cool. 

Stir condensed milk, lime juice and lime peel in large bowl to blend (mixture will thicken). Set aside while you make whipped topping.

- See more at: http://foodfashionandflow.blogspot.ca/2012/09/key-lime-parfaits.html#sthash.zVnXRqtD.dpuf

• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 2 tablespoons white sugar
• 1/4 cup powdered sugar
• 1 tablespoon light brown sugar
• 1/2 cup graham cracker crumbs
• 1 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk
• 1/2 cup fresh lime juice
• 1 tablespoon grated lime peel
• 1-2 cups chilled whipping cream 
• Pure Vanilla Extract

Directions

Melt butter in heavy small skillet over medium heat. Mix in brown sugar and stir until bubbling, about 1 minute or less. Mix in crumbs; stir until color deepens, about 3 minutes. Turn out onto plate and cool. 

Stir condensed milk, lime juice and lime peel in large bowl to blend (mixture will thicken). Set aside while you make whipped topping.

- See more at: http://foodfashionandflow.blogspot.ca/2012/09/key-lime-parfaits.html#sthash.zVnXRqtD.dpuf

Italian Soda.

So, it went from kinda dodgy Spring to SUMMER, just like that. Today it was 30. Made for a very stifling classroom.

Nothing like unwinding on the porch with a homemade Italian soda. I made a simple syrup flavored with saskatoons and rhubarb this weekend while I was making pie. And, since the Internet told me to, I added a little bit of vodka to it, in the hopes that it will extend the shelf life of the syrup. Mmmm.

Corn Flakes.

Spring this year is all about change for me. Ken moved out, and this week I'm getting a new roommate (an awesome coworker). My job status for the fall is unknown, which causes me all kinds of anxiety. School year is winding down, but there is still so much to do, so many shows to go to, grads coming up super quick... Sheesh!

Sometimes you just need to take a step back and enjoy the simple things in life. I hung out with my mom today, and did some baking. Made some pies for a family thing, and made a treat I haven't had in ages..

We used to make toffee flakes (corn flake stacks according to Heather) all the time. But years ago when they stopped making the full bars of Mackintosh toffee, I figured we were out of luck. Not long ago, my dad found small pieces of Mackintosh toffee, but I had no clue how much to use. Thanks to a (different, but still awesome) coworker, I now know how much to use! So happy! I can make the awesome cereal bars again!

Toffee Flakes

2 bags of Mackintosh toffee pieces (1 bag is equal to 3 of the old bars)
3 T butter
3 T milk
6 C corn flakes (although I ran out, and used kamut flakes instead)

Melt together toffee, milk and butter over low heat until smooth. Stir in corn flakes. Drop in small piles on a lined cookie sheet and cool.

Try not to eat them all at once. Mmmm. Tastes like childhood.

Roses.

So I reached a new achievement today while decorating some cupcakes to take to my MUN group this week. The ones for them are just valentine themed, but with the extra icing and leftover cupcakes, I got a bit creative.

I remember seeing an online tutorial (all pictures, alas) on how to do icing roses, but never really did anything with it (I don't usually use pink icing). Well, today was the day to try it.

And holy cats are they adorable.

Basically the technique is the same as I normally do, but instead of starting on the edge and spiraling in, I started in the middle and spiraled out. Some looked a bit funny, but some were awesome!

I gave this one leaves to enhance the effect.

Buffalo Quinoa Bites.

These things are delicious. You should all make them. Soon.

I know they don't look like much (D- for presentation) but y'all are lucky I even remembered to take a picture. Too busy munching on them.

I found this recipe on Pinterest ages ago, and just finally got around to making them. I didn't modify it too much, just used some jack cheese instead of mozza, no panko crumbs, and a little less than the required Frank's, mostly because the bottle was getting empty. They could have done with a smidgeon more Frank's.

But seriously. So tasty.

Ginger cookies.

Not right.

My grandmother used to make these cookies at Christmas. Ginger, but soft, with cinnamon icing. After she passed away, I tried making them, but they were not the same.

Using the recipe she gave me, I was unable to reproduce her cookies. Obviously at some point she changed the recipe in a slight but important way. Her cookies spread out and were soft and chewy; my cookies were tall and dense. The flavor was there, but the texture was off.

Right.

It's taken me a few years, but this Christmas break I set about tackling the mystery of what was wrong with my ginger creams. Essentially, I was not using enough fat or water. (Probably didn't help that we have since learned my parents oven runs 25 degrees too hot.)







Ginger Creams

Mix together:
1/3 C shortening
1/2 C sugar
1 small egg
1/2 C molasses
1/2 C warm water

In a separate bowl, mix together:
2 C flour
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp ginger
1/2 tsp cloves
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tap baking soda

Chill dough. When chilled, add a couple of tablespoons of water the smooth out the dough (about 4 Tbsp). Drop rounded teaspoonfuls about 2 inches apart on a lined cookie sheet. Bake at 400 for 10 minutes. Top with cinnamon flavored icing.

Slow Cooker.

Today, I had my first experience of coming home to the house smelling deliciously of low-effort, wholesome food, cooked while I was away.

That's right. I got a slow cooker for Christmas. And today I christened it with chili.

I made a really simple beef and bean chili, with onions, green pepper, garlic, chili powder, basil and oregano. And my house smells DELIGHTFUL. I could get used to this.

Bonding.

Decorated gingerbread men today with my father.

I have all the artistic talent of an 8 year old.

Christmas Goodies.

Last weekend, I did some Christmas baking with my friend Michelle, and last night I did a bunch more. (truffles, check. Candied popcorn, check. Candy wreaths, check) Goal of today is to attempt to recreate my grandmother's ginger creme cookie recipe.

My grandmother rarely ever used recipes that were written down. She would change a recipe subtly, but never recorded the changes in her recipe box. The result is that I have all of her old recipes... but most turn out NOTHING like they did when she made them. I've managed to reverse engineer a cookie she called Honey Fruit Snaps, but so far no luck with the ginger cremes.