Christmas Cookies

Today I made the first round of our traditional Christmas Cookies...As they are special family recipes, I cannot post the details up here. But photos.. those are ok!!

The first are Cinnamon Cookies - Mum's favourite.

Cinnamon Cookies

And then there's Dad's favourite, Shortbread.

Shortbread

I also made some drop cookies that Candice and I experimented with a few weeks ago. They are delicious! The recipe for them is from the 5 Roses Cooking Book and I'll detail it here!

Drop Cookies
Ingredients:
1 cup flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
pinch baking soda
1/3 cup butter or margarine
1/3 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1.5 tbsp milk
1/2 tsp vanilla

Method:
Preheat oven to 375F. Combine flour, baking powder, salt and baking soda in bowl, set aside. Cream butter and brown sugar together (slowly adding sugar). Then add egg, milk and vanilla. Once well mixed, blend in dry ingredients.

I then decided to add a handful each of rasins, chocolate chips, and about 1/2 cup of oats. This doesn't really change base cookie the flavour, but adds some much needed texture and some excitement for kiddies.

Drop spoonfuls of the dough onto a cookie sheet and bake for 10 - 15 minutes, until browned. The regular recipe is supposed to make 24 cookies, but my additions stops the cookies from 'spreading', and makes them denser, so I got 18.

Chip & Rasin Oatmeal Drop Cookies

Update: Made my personal favourites - Almond Squares and Melting Moments. I've made them before so they are elsewhere in my blog!

Melting Moments

Almond Squares

Cheese Straws

I made these cheese-y bread sticks as an appetizer dish for a friends birthday. They seemed to go down really well and people wanted me to make even more next time! I found the recipe in my 'Three & Four Ingredient" recipe book (see earlier post re cookbooks).

Cheese Straws

Ingredients:
2/3 cup flour
40g mature/sharp hard Cheddar (or similar hard cheese) - finely grated
1 egg
5ml ready-made mustard
3 tbsp butter
salt
black pepper

Method:
Preheat oven to 350.  Mix together flour, seasoning and butter until crumbly. Stir in cheese slowly.   Lightly beat egg with mustard, then pour half of this mixture into the dry mixture. Stir/mix until it becomes dough-like.  Roll out the dough until roughly 6 inch square and cut into 1.5cm strips.  Put onto baking sheet and brush remaining egg mixture on top. Bake until brown - approx 12 minutes.

The book indicated you could add in other seasonings to taste, such as cayenne pepper. The consumers at the party indicated I should try chopping up some jalapeno peppers into the mix for added spice.  I think these could easily be served with a number of different kinds of dips.

Also, I cut mine into half size strips - so instead of 6inch straws which would yield about 10 straws, I created over 25.  Remember, you can always gather up the extra chopped off bits and re-roll them out for more straws!

I was very happy with these and will definitely make them again!

Thanksgiving!!

Chef Lolls had her greatest test this weekend: I was in-charge of the entire Thanksgiving meal!! I had a lot of fun and everyone seemed to really like the meal.

I can't give away our secret recipes, so for this post photos will have to suffice.. but I am happy I have accomplished this big feat!

Ready to go - hated the cleaning/prep part, but it had to be done!

Stuffing - our blender was on the fritz, so my 'mini-copper' saved the day! woohoo!

Gravy, Cheese Sauce and the syrup for the sweet potatoes..

Spud Prep

Yams/ Sweet Potatoes about to be chopped

All prep work done!

Putting the Potatoes in with the Turkey - 1/2 done!

Carnage

Success!

Robyn demonstrates the deliciousness....

Birthday Kittens

It was William and Sophia's 2nd Birthday on Saturday!!! I can't believe they are 2 already!!

I was the 'cake boss' for the event. I'm rather proud of the result - these were pretty tough to create!

Mreow?

Fiesta!

Over Labour Day long weekend my extended family from Vancouver Island were over moving my cousin into her new apartment (she's taking a Masters in Physiotherapy at UBC).  It seemed logical, as they were all over, to celebrate my upcoming birthday with them.  As Mum is so busy with Gran (who just had knee replacement surgery and is in hospital), it seemed logical for me to take on the party hosting.

I decided to throw a Mexican Fiesta!

Chef at Work!!

First course/appies: (served with tortilla chips)

7 Layer Dip

Delicious Dip! (split in 3 for leftovers!)

This is a secret recipe that I received from Colleen and Wilfy. I can't give out the recipe, but can say that it is definitely not your standard 7 Layer Dip. Delicious!

Guacamole
I found a new Guac recipe online
Ingredients:
1 small jalapeno chile
2 large ripe avocados
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
2 tablespoons finely chopped cilantro

The Appie Table

1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon salt
dash pepper
1 small clove garlic, finely chopped
1 small tomato, seeded, chopped
2 tablespoons finely chopped red onion

Method:
Remove stems, seeds and ribs from chile, chop finely.
Cut avocado out of skin into bowl, mash with fork. Add all other ingredients until mixed.

So many people indicated that it was fantastic. I'm not a huge Guac person, so am taking their word on it!

Chef Success!

Salsa
Made following my previous salsa recipes - seemed to be enjoyed.

I also served some Taquitos with these dips, but they were store bought.
(for recipe see previous blog entries)

Main:

Tacos
Ingredients:
1 white onion, chopped.
ground beef.
Taco spice.

Forgot to photograph end result...

Method:
Saute onions until translucent. Add beef and cook until brown. Drain excess fat. Add taco spice with 1 cup of water and simmer until water reduces. Serve with fixings.

Fixings: Shredded lettuce, chopped tomato, sliced jalapeno peppers, chopped green onion.  Also provided sour cream, 'store' salsa, and grated cheddar and monteray jack cheese.

Spanish Rice
While I would love to claim this as my own invention, it was from Rice a Roni. It is by far the best pack they make and I would definitely recommend it. Any time I have made it the people eating have raved about it. 

Does that seriously mean 30?

Dessert
Well it was a birthday party.... so had to make some birthday cake. Wasn't feeling overly inventive, so reached for my favourite box of Lemon cake and vanilla icing.  This is a tried and true combination.

Runny Icing

The strange thing about my cake is that, well, the icing melted.  The cake had cooled for 12 hours before I went to ice it, so it wasn't to do with the cake heat. The icing just never 'hardened' and was a sloppy runny mess. We found this out during the 'happy birthday' song, when I'd held up the cake for a photo. Well, it started 'running' off the cake like some classic TV spoof where makeup drips off someones face!! We shrieked, put it back down and tried to sort it all out.  Tasted fine, just continued to be runny. No idea why.

The Drink Station

Anyway.  We washed all this food down with some fun drinks: Margaritas, Mojitos, Pina Coladas, and some special pink champagne/ sparkling wine with the cake.

All in all, I am very proud that I hosted this entire meal entirely alone with only 1 or 2 mishaps. In all everyone seemed to enjoy the food and I will happily make all of these recipes again! Awesome!

2009 Gehringer Cuvee Noir

With my steak dinner we had a Gehringer Brothers 2009 Cuvee Noir wine.  DELICIOUS!

I'd picked it up at the vineyard a few years ago as a 'test'. It was a perfect bottle for my palate. It is a blended red whine, not too sweet, not too dry.  Berry flavours, probably would be good with a sharper cheese.

I'm going to try buy it again.

Peppercorn Steak Dinner

When I finished my exams last week I wanted to have a special meal to celebrate. Mum had steak thawed, so we decided at the last minute to create a peppercorn steak dinner.

We didn't have all the ingredients, but that was ok, cuz what we had in the end was great!

We cooked the steak in some butter, and then removed the meat and added clotted cream to the leftover butter. I had ground a bunch of peppercorns with a little mortar and pestle, and we added that to the mix.  Sounds strange, but it worked really well!

We served it with baked potato (with sour cream and bacon bits), and then some usual green veggies.

All in all, a wonderful meal to celebrate exams being done!

Return of Apple Crumble

A friend has come home for a visit from overseas and our 'gang' got together to catch up and such... I decided to mark the occasion by bringing an Apple Crumble along! And judging by the silence, spoon licking, and requests for extra helpings, I'd say it was a hit!

Technically it is a 'Secret Family Recipe', so I won't give the full measurement amounts, but otherwise here's the info:

Ingredients:
Canned Apples - I used imported apples from South Africa. The canned option allows for the right 'softness to crispness' ratio and, frankly, is way easier than peeling, coring and chopping apples from the produce department!
Cinnamon
Flour
Sugar
Margarine/Butter
Salt.

Method: 
Plunk the apples into your pie dish, sprinkle with cinnamon. By hand, or mixer, mix all other ingredients together until it is 'crumbly'... don't over mix, as it can become dough-y very quickly!  Then crumble it all onto the apple, bake for 30 min at 375!

I served it with vanilla ice-cream, but you could also serve with custard etc.

No photo of this pie - it was consumed too quickly!

Tipsy Tart

I made this over the Canada Day weekend and my Aunt's house. It comes from a 'Tupperware' recipe book she has, and it is one of her family favourite recipes. It took a bit of time for me to make (mostly due to the chopping of dates with scissors...), but in the end was delicious. 

Ingredients:
Tart:
250g stoned dates, chopped
5ml bicarbonate of soda (baking soda)
250ml boiling water
115g butter
250ml sugar
2 eggs
500ml flour
5ml baking powder
2ml salt
250ml walnuts, chopped

Syrup:
300ml sugar
20ml butter
190ml water
1ml salt
5ml vanilla
125ml brandy


Method:
Pre-heat oven to 180C and grease 2 pie plates. Divide chopped dates into two. Place on half in a bowl with bicarb and water, stir and let sit.  Cream butter and sugar, then add eggs.  Mix together dry ingredients and fold into batter by hand. Add in second half of dates, then nuts, and then the bicarb/date/water mixture. Make sure this is all mixed well, then pour into the dishes and bake for 40 minutes.  If your oven tends to try things out/burn, place aluminum foil on top, shiny side up.

Just before the tarts are finished baking, make the syrup.  Add water to pan, then add sugar, butter and salt. Simmer for 5 minutes, then remove from heat and add the vanilla and brandy.  Pour over the tarts while the tarts are still warm.

This recipe is supposedly 'even better' the second day, and can be frozen and warmed up in the microwave.  Serve alone, or with ice cream (we had it with Skor ice-cream, but I think vanilla would be perfect).

2006 Quails Gate Gewurztraminer

Delicious!

Drank this watching Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Finals.... not too sweet, a good wine for having some semi-spicy food with, like samosas.  Can also be a 'stand alone' drink, but I would try serve it super cold for this, and drink it quickly, as I didn't like it as much warm.

Will buy again - this bottle was from the vineyard, and as it is close to the 'main drag' up to the Okanagan, will definitely stop in for some more!

2007 Gehringer Pinot Noir

Had this at the birthday party with the brie (below).

Not too heavy, as per a pinot noir, but bold enough to let you know you are drinking red. Fruitier than some other pinot's I've had... I'd even say it was bolder/heavier?

I will look for this in the stores/ buy at the vineyard again... I am addicted to Gehringer wine, so this is not a big surprise.

Return of the Brie

I brought a baked brie over to a friends birthday party last weekend and it may have been so yummy that it has possibly re-lit my cooking-interest fire.... it was super simple and really tasty....

So I'm going to try pick cooking back up and will diligently start posting again.  Not sure if anyone has been checking up on this blog, but in case they are...  LOL!

Must follow Yoda's advice: 'Do, or Do Not, there is no Try'....

2007 Gehringer Riesling

Drank this a few nights ago for a 'welcome myself home' occasion. Really nice solid Reisling, pretty much perfect.  I was afraid I may have cellared it too long, but it was just fine. Wouldn't want to drag it any further in time tho...

New Years Wine

Yes, I am posting this in April, but it is a report on the wine I had a New Years...

2007 Quail's Gate Rose
I've had it a number of times and really enjoy their Rose.. however this bottle was old, and consequently completely off. It tasted like rotten fruit. So it didn't actually get consumed. Note to self - don't keep Rose that long, or at least BC Rose!!

2007 Nk'Mip Pinot Blanc
This was really nice, especially after the failed rose! A tad dry but that was fine for the occasion.