Tag archive for treat

Enroute

A couple of months ago I received a message from ginger, she said it was my last chance. She had booked tickets to Paris and if I wanted in on the action I had better step up my game. Back in the fall she had told me of her plans and asked if I was interested. I had been non-committal, busy at work and all in all just not sure. But when my final warning came in I decided to give the trip some more serious thought.

Here we are about 2 months later and I’m sitting in seat 16F looking out my window, 35,000 feet in the air and halfway across Canada. To be exact, somewhere over Beausejour, where ever that is. For one reason or another Ginger and I always manage to make time for each other when it comes to Paris, although this time our visit is much overdue.

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I have always enjoyed traveling with Ginger. We seem to have a similar idea of what it takes to have a good vacation. So far we have a Google map with some rough ideas of sites, food and general things that we want to do while we are in Paris. Unstructured is a good way to describe how we approach things. We often find ourselves gathered around a table with our sketchbooks and a couple of cups of tea, planning the area that we want to visit the next day. Most of our time is spent wandering streets, taking photos and I like to stop often for treats.
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In the days leading up to my departure, when I wasn’t making little stacks of items that needed to be packed on the living room floor, I was scanning the internet for all things French. That is when I came upon this recipe in Dorie Greenspan cookbook, Paris Sweets for World Peace/Korova Cookies. It was fate, they were french and I had to make them. We devoured them in record time and when the cookies were all finished I hopped on my plane for Paris.

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Pai & I make cake

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I bet that if I snuck into your kitchen right now and took a peek in your fridge or maybe even your freezer, I would find a bag of cranberries. That blessed extra bag of cranberries that you bought for the holidays just in case and never ended up needing.

I have had those bags of cranberries before. They start out in your crisper drawer and then as time goes by, reality sets in and you realize that you aren’t going to use them in the near future and they silently slip into the depths of the freezer. Then one day, months from now when you open up the freezer, freshly back from a run (or at least this is what happened to me) and in serious need of something to eat, you realize that the blueberries are all gone and no, a cranberry smoothie will not do the trick. So before you let those cranberries sneak up into the freezer, haul them right out and get busy making this delicious Cranberry Orange & Pecan Coffee Cake from Joy the Baker.

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Better yet, do what I did and turn your coffee cake baking into an event with a friend! Brew yourself a pot of coffee, we made Irish Coffee and then get a bak’n. All of these ridiculously lovely photos were taken by the ever so talented Joann Pai. Hand modelling by myself.

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The past is behind us and oatcakes are in our future!

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The past is behind us right? Well in that case perhaps we shan’t waste time talking about how a short summer hiatus some how turned into a full summer break and basically a fall break too. Let’s just say things have been really busy and good times were had all around. Perhaps at some point in the future I will tell you about my unexpected trip to the Caribbean and move to a new house. But we aren’t talking about that now that is for sure.

I am not a big fan of the time change that happened a few weeks ago. I have hardly stood up from my desk at the end of the day and it is already dark out. I have given up my forest trail running in favour of blocks and blocks of uneven kind of lite sidewalks. I have started falling asleep on the couch at about 7:30 most nights and to top it all off I forgot some of my potted plants out on the patio and the frost has killed them! My plants lives are on your head time change!!! This whole time change thing has really thrown me off my game!

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Such males viagra sales in india ejaculate semen within one or two minutes of penetration into her genital passage, create more contact and friction during lovemaking and offer her enhanced sexual pleasure. And you would want to realize the root cause of problems, viagra pfizer 25mg pinpoint appropriate solutions and implement these solutions in the best possible manner. The device can be worn discreetly under clothing (even at work, if a man has a low-exertion job) and needs to be applied consistently for cialis purchase a course of months. Your get viagra cheap signs of despression symptoms are different as well. The one good thing that the cooler darker days afford me is afternoon tea. Nothing is quite as comforting on a chilly afternoon as a pot of milky tea. But, there is something that can make that afternoon pot of tea even better, Scottish oatcakes. A few days ago I was scanning through Flipbook when I noticed a recipe for oatcakes. A little spot in my heart is dedicated to these lovely little treats but for some reason I have never baked them at home. They have always only been an occasional store-bought treat.

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The recipe narrative drew me in right away, I too wanted to be walking the Scottish moors with my thermos full of hot tea and a package of oatcakes in my pocket. Honestly now, who could say no to a cookie chock full of oats that can double as breakfast. Certainly not me! Visit Food52 if you find yourself in need of a salty sweet treat to accompany your afternoon tea.

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Pop it like it’s hot

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I am currently sitting in front of the computer looking for a little motivation. It is hard to get down to business when visions of campfires are dancing through your head. This weekend marks the unofficial start to summer around these parts. Camping is a big part of our summer activities and I have come to equate the beginning of summer with our first camping trip. So, summer begins tomorrow and at this time tomorrow I hope to be sitting in front of a campfire relaxing.

Snacks are a really big part of camping, especial the driving part of camping. Last year, I had some pretty good success with popcorn, so for our first trip I have decided to take this years popcorn to the next level. Earlier in the week I stumbled on this popcorn recipe on The Kitchn and they kindly forwarded me on to Top With Cinnamon, where the official recipe to this years camping popcorn lay. When it comes to popcorn there isn’t much that beats a straight up buttered popcorn or kettle corn. Oftentimes I find fancy popcorn flavours too sweet or too salty or otherwise just overly flavoured. But this coconut chocolate kettle corn strikes the perfect balance, a little sweet, a little salty and a whole lot yummy. I have modified the original recipe a little as I have had a lot of success making kettle corn with a little more oil and a little more popcorn than the original called for. When you have proportions that work for you, why mess with it I figure. The next time I make this recipe I think that I am going to try adding some of the coconut into the pot with the popcorn. I have no idea if it will work or not but it seems like it could be tasty.

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Coconut Chocolate Kettle Corn

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1/2 cup popcorn kernels
2 tbsp sugar
1/2 cup shredded coconut (plus a little more for sprinkling at the end)
salt to taste
1/4 cup semisweet/bittersweet chocolate, melted

Once you begin popping the popcorn this recipe comes together very quickly. You would be well served to have all your ingredients measured and set aside. Begin by laying out two cookie sheets. You can cover them with parchment paper for easier cleanup if you like. Placing your melted chocolate into a piping bag or a ziplock with the corner snipped off will also speed up the process.

Place a large pot on a medium high element, add the coconut oil and three kernels of corn. Once all three kernels have popped add all of the popcorn to the pot and shake. Once all the kernels have been coated in oil sprinkle evenly with sugar. Continue shaking the pot until the vigorous popping slows. Remove the pot from the heat and allow the remaining few kernels to pop. Divide the hot popcorn between the two trays. Working quickly, sprinkle the popcorn with coconut and salt to taste. Next drizzle the melted chocolate onto the popcorn and top with a little more coconut if you like. Let cool until the chocolate has hardened or until you can wait no longer. Store in an airtight container.

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Panna cotta with rosemary honeyed apricots

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One of my all time favourite things about having a collaborative blog with Ginger is the opportunity it provides to play off of each others ideas. That is exactly what I did this week. I’m sure that you remember Ginger’s decadent Cheesecake with honeyed apricots. When I saw it I nearly lost my mind, apricots, fresh or dried are a favourite of mine, and as luck would have it I was on the hunt for a delicious, quick and easy dessert.
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I knew that a cheesecake, as yummy as it would have been, wasn’t quite in my timeline. So I stole the honeyed apricots idea, it fit with my timing and I began searching for something to pair them with. In these types of situations I like to turn to google for help. I did numerous random searches like “best easy dessert in the world” or “quick and easy dessert”, what kept coming up for me was Panna Cotta. Apparently, if you don’t know how to make Panna Cotta, you should, because it is a lifesaver. Not only are the ingredients simple but you can easily fancy it up with a little fresh fruit, a compote or honeyed apricots!
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Perfect Panna Cotta
Server 4 | Adapted from David Lebovitz

You can find the recipe for the Honeyed apricots with Ginger’s cheesecake recipe.

1 cup half-and-half
1 cup whole milk
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1 teaspoons of vanilla extract
1 packets powdered gelatin (about 4 1/2 teaspoons)
3 tablespoons cold water

Heat half and half, milk and sugar in a sauce pan. Once the sugar has completely dissolved remove the pan from the heat and add in the vanilla.

Lightly oil four custard cups or teacups with a flavourless oil.

Add cold water to a medium mixing bowl and gently sprinkle the gelatine powder over the water. Allow to sit for 5 to 10 minutes. Pour the warm Panna Cotta mixture into the medium bowl and stir until the gelatine is full dissolved.

Divide the Panna Cotta mixture amongst the four oiled cups and chill until firm. This will take about 2 to 3 hours. If you are unmolding your Panna Cotta run a sharp Knife around the edge of the dish, unmold onto individual serving plates and top as desired. Enjoy!

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Homemade creme easter eggs

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I wish that I could tell you that these didn’t take the better part of an evening to make and that they totally weren’t worth the trouble. That would be a lie. Truth is, I did spend a good 4 hours in and out of the kitchen mixing, freezing, photographing, shaping, freezing, photographing, freezing, tempering, dipping… and so on. But it was totally worth it.

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Growing up, creme eggs were always the Holy Grail of Easter candy. They were soft, creamy and slightly gross, in that intriguing kind of way. How did that gooey yellow centre stay in the middle of the egg? How did it all get inside a chocolate egg? These were questions I wanted to know! Damn Cadbury and all their tricky candy!! They just kept me wanting more.

Although creme eggs don’t hold quite the hallowed spot that they used to in my holiday treat line up, I can’t seem to let Easter pass without one somehow ending up in my grocery basket. This year I have stayed strong, that is until I saw the DYI creme eggs up on Food52. I just couldn’t say no, they used to be a childhood favourite after all. Who doesn’t want to relive fond childhood memories?

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So what sets these guys apart from the 2$ version that you can pick up at just about any store in the city? Um, let’s see. First there is the outer layer of silky rich dark chocolate, gone is the overly sweet milky chocolate. And the filling? The filling is smooth, but not to runny, sweet with a hint of salt (which is sheer genius) and finally there is the slight crunch of the tiny beads of vanilla. All and all a sophisticated take on the classic and you can rest assured knowing that you can pronounce every single ingredient used in the making.

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So if you love your creme eggs as much as me and you have a few hours burning a hole in your evening, visit Food52 where Ashley Rodriguez shares the complete recipe and instructions and shape up a batch for yourself. Remember to read the recipe through first! I always like to remind you of this because I often fail to do so. While I didn’t take the time to read the recipe through this time, I did set aside a little time to read some of the comments. You should do this too, I found a lot of the comments to be really helpful. Good luck, and Happy Easter!

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Earl grey tea cookies

Is tea the new coffee? I stumbled upon this question in an article or some such business earlier this week. My immediate reaction was, “Yes! Tea is totally the new coffee.” But upon reflection I realized “no”, both hold such distinctly different roles in my daily routine that I couldn’t do with only one or the other. Coffee is peppy, social and bright, it is the drink that drags me out of bed in the morning and shoves me out the front door. Tea is a whole other story. It is cozy, relaxing and lulls me into bed at the end of the day. Simply put, coffee is an extrovert and tea is an introvert. And life wouldn’t have any balance without both.

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I’ll admit it, I have a nightly tea tradition. The tradition varies a little, sometimes I have a cookie with my tea and if I’m really, really lucky, I get to have a Tim Tam. But most often I just have tea. Vanilla SleepyTime is the tea du jour. If I happen to have a Tim Tam on hand, the Tim Tam slam is the only way to go. Are you are sitting in front of your computer thinking “what the heck is a Tim Tam slam?” this guy will show you how it is done and if you don’t believe him Jennifer Love Hewitt will show you too. It is legit.

Sadly, I’m currently out of Tim Tams and my evening tea has been cookie-less for quite sometime now. As I was digesting the whole tea vs. coffee thing, I was inspired to do a little baking, and my inspiration point was a certain coffee flavoured cookie that we often had around the house at Christmas. If tea really is the new coffee, then I should make a tea flavoured cookie to celebrate. Earl Grey is my tea flavour of black tea, so naturally it is only fitting that I use it in my cookies. To give them a little twist, I decided to dip them in chocolate to mimic our Christmas coffee cookies.

I know that I have been talking about chocolate dipped cookies but I have yet to show you any proof that they were ever made. Keep scrolling down and you will see one. Here is the deal. I dipped half of the cookies and then did a taste test. I know what you are thinking, “Chocolate and Earl Grey, sounds like a match made in heaven.” I know right! That is exactly what I thought. I don’t what to sell the chocolate dipped version short but they weren’t mind-blowing. They were fine, perhaps even good, but not better. So, unless you are a chocolate fiend, I would suggest that you just keep these cookies as is. Crisp, delicately favoured with tea and delicious.

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Earl Grey Tea Cookies
makes 2 dozen | adapted from The Kitchn

1 cup all purpose flour
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1/4 cup confectioners’ sugar
1 tablespoon Russian Earl Grey tea leaves
1/4 teaspoon fleur de sel
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon water
1/2 cup unsalted butter (cut into cubes)

Using a spice grinder or mortar and pestle grind the tea into a fairly fine powder. In a medium mixing bowl, combine the first five ingredients. Add the vanilla, water and butter into the flour mixture. Using a pastry cutter, work the butter into the flour until it forms a dough. Form the dough into a ball and place it onto a sheet of parchment paper. Roll the dough into a smooth log shape, wrap with the parchment paper and freeze for 30 minutes.

Pre-heat your oven to 375. Remove dough from the freezer and slice into 1/3″ slices. Evenly space cookies on a baking sheet and bake for 12 minutes or until lightly golden. Remove the baking sheet from the oven and transfer the cookies onto a cooling rack.

Enjoy with a piping hot cup of tea!

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