Good Bread

“‘A loaf of bread,’ the Walrus said, ‘is what we chiefly need: Pepper and vinegar besides are very good indeed.’” - Lewis Caroll

LOAF OF BREAD: a recipe

3 cups lukewarm water
1 1/2 T. granulated yeast (2 packets)
1 1/2 T. course salt
6 1/2 cups flour 

I always thought that bread was a ridiculously long, difficult process, but I was wrong.  this was my first time making bread, and it was really simple, and totally worth it.  

+  warm the water slightly, pour in a 5-quart dish(if mixing by hand, or a mixing bowl for your mixer), and add in the packets of yeast. 
+  don't bother to stir, add in the rest of the ingredients (flour, salt)
+  mix with a big spoon, or the bread hook on your mixer until completely incorporated, but you don't need to knead. 
+  cover with a cheesecloth or loose lid and let rise for 2 or more hours.
+  spray your dish or baking sheet and preheat your oven to 425 F.
+  cover your working surface with flour, and coat your hands.  
+  create four loaves of bread from your dough, simply forming a ball, pinching the dough together to form a smooth surface.  
+  place loaves in or on your baking surface, and let rise for another 40 min. 
+  when done rising, pat surfaces with flour again and cut cross-hatches on the tops of the loaves.
+  place a dish with 1 cup of boiling water in the bottom of the oven, and then put your sheet of loaves on the middle rack.
+  bake your bread for about 30 minutes, until the crust is nice and golden, and firm to the touch.  
+  break it open and slather it in butter or jam or honey or vinegar.  

Share with friends, family, and eat a lot of it yourself.  there's something about homemade bread that is spectacular.  

lillian.

campfire bars (in jars)

'Tis the season for indulging in sweets, right? This recipe isn't very healthy per se but I can confirm it is one of the most delicious things I have ever tasted and that it makes a great, easy holiday gift. You can put it all together in a jar, make it look pretty, and deliver it to someone you're thankful for and they can make it whenever they want.





Campfire Bars

Ingredients
1 cup (3 full sheets) graham crackers pieces, each about 1 inch square
1 1/2 cups mini marshmallows
3/4 cup milk chocolate chips
1/2 cup peanut butter chips
1/3 cup light brown sugar, packed

To make the mix: In a 1 quart jar, layer the graham crackers, marshmallows, chocolate and peanut butter chips, and brown sugar, pressing down gently, as needed, to fit all the ingredients. Seal with a lid, decorate if desired (we used a festive cupcake liner here), and add a label with the following instructions:

To make the bars: You will need 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees C. Very lightly coat the sides of an 8 inch square pan with cooking spray.

Pour the contents of the jar into a large bowl, mixing them up a bit. Add the melted butter, and stir until everything is evenly coated and distributed. Press the mixture into the prepared pan and bake for 12 to 15 minutes. Allow to cool completely before cutting into bars and serving. This makes 9 to 18 bars, depending on how big you cut them.

Of course, if you don't want to give it to anyone, you could always just forgo the jar, throw all the ingredients in the pan and bake it straight away. I'd definitely be understanding.

Happy holidays!

Kendall

making my own sun.

Around here, we like a cup of something good in the morning. We also like apple season. On Thanksgiving weekend, Patti (my sweet aunt) sent me home with two big jars of her homemade apple juice. It's nice to start these whirlwinds we call weekdays with something sweet. Not the processed, saccharine kind of sweet. The just enough flavour to wake you up kind of sweet. 

It's not uncommon for us prairie kids to go a day or so without a single glimpse of the sun. It rises during first period, and sets during last. On these days, I make my own sun. Today it was Patti's apple juice and I'm quite okay with that.

--

abbey

apple season

(photo | hannah nicole)

Here's to a season of all the best things. Apple picking and apple crumble and baked apples. And apples drizzled with caramel and apples eaten during early morning sunrise and apples tucked in baskets for autumn picnics.
Apple season is the best.
this article | this photo | this recipe

summer fresh

There's something about summertime produce. It manages to taste better than any other food at any other time of year--it's sweeter and fresher and just better. Nectarines and salads from the shop in the village, and the first selection of apples, and a freshly-harvested jug of sour blackcurrants from the garden. 
Nothing tastes as good as succulent peaches, with juice that runs down your arms, and frozen grapes, with a sherbet tingle, and fresh peas, picked straight off the vine.
Sometimes, the surplus of all this goodness can be cooked up into sauces and pies and stews. Tiny pieces of summer are frozen, waiting to be reheated in the midst of a bleak winter. Those dishes just about manage to bring sunshine and warmth back into cold and raining days. Perhaps a beaker of lemonade stashed in the freezer for a grey day, or a bag full of frozen berries to be defrosted and savoured, or sticky jams cooked up with an excess of apricots.
I for one plan to have a plethora of summer-y goodness, both photos of my favourite foods and summer treats kept in the freezer, for the coming winter.
What are your favourite summer foods?

xx
L

rhubarb & strawberry crumble

There a few meals that remind me of home, and of family. The tastes of those dinners and desserts instantly send me back to a certain season of my life, and when I move out I am sure they will be what I cook up whenever I feel homesick. My mum's delicious 'bigistrone' soup is one of those meals, as is the fruitcake my grandad makes and the pasta dish my brother taught to me to cook.
But our one family recipe that we eat year round, talk about constantly, and completely adore is crumble. This is the kind of pudding that results in texts from my brother at university, asking what our crumble recipe is. It's so delicious; this is one of the first things I started cooking on my own. When I was a few years younger, I would cook the aforementioned pasta dish with crumble for pudding, and cooking this dish has become second nature to me now.
Those kinds of recipes are the best ones. After time, you get to a stage where you can just play it by ear. Grab a spoon, taste the fruit, add more sugar to taste. Chuck in almonds or oats to the topping. Serve in tiny ramekins  or a huge dish to serve a hungry extended family. With this, follow your cooking instincts.

rhubarb & strawberry crumble 

ingredients:
for the fruit filling:
approx. 4 stalks rhubarb
half a punnet of strawberries
two to three tablespoons sugar (more/less depending on how tart your rhubarb is)
a dash of water
for the topping:
5oz self-raising flour
1 1/2 oz butter
two tablespoons sugar

method
Preheat the oven to gas mark 5
Chop the rhubarb into 1/4 inch pieces. Chuck in a saucepan over a medium heat with sugar and water. Simmer for three minutes with the lid on. Then take the lid off, turn the heat down and cook for a few more minutes until soft. Add in strawberries, turn off the heat and put to one side.
To make the topping, rub together the flour and butter. Stir in sugar.
Into a medium-sized dish or five to six small ramekins, spoon in the fruit mixture. Top with the topping mixture, and smooth the top. If desired, sprinkle with a little bit of brown sugar.
Bake for 40 minutes or until the top of the crumble is golden brown. 

Yum!
xx
Libby

almonds with chocolate

Almonds (wonderfully nutty and flavorful) with chocolate (pure perfection) are a winning combination. They are a balance meant for each other, and meant for enjoying in the sunshine on a blanket under a leafy tree.

much love,
carlotta

caramel popcorn.

It's a family favorite, and one that I typically start making in September or October. It goes perfectly with our fresh-pressed apple cider and everything else that fall entails. Lately though, I've been craving this caramel popcorn. (Carlotta gave up sugar for Lent, so now would be a perfect time to submit all your sugar-laden recipes. ;) The best part about this recipe? It takes ten minutes, tops, and it all cooks in the microwave.

Here's the recipe.

You'll need:
two bags of popcorn
one stick of butter
one cup of brown sugar
one/fourth cup of corn syrup
one/half teaspoon of salt
and one/half teaspoon of baking soda

Take the freshly popped popcorn, (we pop ours on the stove, but you can use whatever low-salt option you have) and pour them into a paper grocery bag sprayed with cooking spray. Set it aside; you'll need it in a minute.

Next, combine all the ingredients except for the baking soda into a microwave safe bowl. You'll want to microwave it for two minutes, stir it, then put in in for another minute. When you take it out of the microwave, stir in the half teaspoon of baking soda.

Pour the entire caramel mixture on top of the popcorn. This next part is key. Roll the top of the bag closed, and shake it. The harder you shake it, the better mixed it will be and the better it will taste. Continue shaking until your biceps start burning. Put the entire bag back in the microwave for a minute and forty-five seconds. Then shake it. Then put it back in for another minute forty-five. Shake it. Are you getting the picture? ;) Finally, it needs to go back in the microwave for another minute. Shake it again, and you're through! I usually pour it onto a cookie sheet covered in wax paper, and let it cool. (The best part is all the little popcorn/caramel bits stuck onto the bottom of the bag. Those are best scraped off with a spoon and eaten quickly.)

It should last up to a week, if you have any sort of self control and don't eat it on the first day. (I speak from experience...) Enjoy, and let me know what you think!

xo
Katie

a match made in heaven

Peanut butter and chocolate are, hands down, my favorite food combination ever. Even more than butter and bread or olive oil and vinegar. They just win. So when my grandma gifted us with this truly magical Magic Bullet blender a few years ago, I knew what had to happen. And thus, this smoothie was created. Add in the bananas and it's practically healthy for you! Think of it as a milkshake for people without ice cream. It's not quite to the milkshake level, but it's definitely delicious.

chocolate peanut butter banana smoothie

Ingredients:
1 packet of Carnation Breakfast Essentials Chocolate Milk (I haven't tried it but I assume that any other chocolate powder would work the same)
1/2 of a frozen banana, chopped
peanut butter
ice cubes
milk

Instructions:
I use a Magic Bullet blender and it works perfectly for this. Pour a packet of the chocolate powder and the frozen bananas in a blender. Add two spoonfuls of peanut butter, three ice cubes, and fill about halfway with milk (about 3/4 cup). Blend it until smooth, then enjoy!

Note: This is one of those recipes that you have to fiddle with for a while, because a lot of it depends on personal taste. For instance, if you're like my sister and don't care for bananas, leave them out. If you don't want as much peanut butter, put less in. If you want a stronger flavor overall, add less milk, and vice versa.

Yes, definitely a match made in heaven.

Kendall

truffles

I really love chocolate. I'm not a huge fan of other kinds of sugary sweet treats...but chocolate I always have room for. I like cream and coffee too. And when it's all combined in a little sphere, it's like biting into a bit of heaven.

truffles

ingredients

-8 ounces (one cup) good quality semi-sweet chocolate chips
-1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
-1 to 2 teaspoons ground coffee
-2 tablespoons nutella
-cocoa powder

to make

In a small, heavy sauce pan, bring cream to a simmer. Place chocolate, nutella, and coffee in a separate bowl and pour cream in. Let sit a few minutes, then combine. Allow to cool, then refrigerate for at least two hours. Using a teaspoon, quickly roll the chocolate into spheres and place onto tray. Be sure not to handle the mixture too much, as it will melt from the heat of your hands. Refrigerate overnight, then roll truffles into cocoa powder. Serve!

note: things can get kind of messy while making truffles. so no, they might not always be the prettiest, but they most definitely make it up in taste!

much love,
carlotta

the best kind of bribery.

Some things never get old. Chocolate chip cookies are at the top of that list, I'm sure.

The week before exams is always a hectic one. While finishing up a final assignment the other day, I was struck with a cookie craving. Okay, fine. It was a cookie dough craving. (you know you have them, too.) So I gave into it. Because schoolwork bribery in the form of chocolate chip cookies totally works. True story.

chewy chocolate chip cookies

adapted from chatelaine magazine.


ingredients
>>2 cups all-purpose flour
>>2 tsp cornstarch
>>1 tsp baking soda
>>1/2 tsp salt
>>1 cup chocolate chips
>>3/4 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
>>1 cup brown sugar
>>1/4 cup granulated sugar
>>1 egg
>>2 tsp vanilla


1. Preheat oven to 350F (180C). In a medium-sized bowl, using a fork, stir flour with cornstarch, baking soda, and salt until evenly mixed. Measure out chocolate chips. Place butter in a large bowl. Using an electric mixer, beat until smooth, about 1 minute. Then beat in brown and granulated sugars until fluffy, about 2 minutes. Beat in egg and vanilla. Using a spoon, stir in flour mixture and chocolate chips just until evenly mixed.


2. Lightly spray a baking sheet with vegetable oil. Scoop out about 1 tbsp dough and place on sheet. Repeat with remaining dough, spacing at least 2 in. apart. 


3. Bake, one sheet at a time, in centre of oven until cookies are golden around the edges, from 8 to 10 minutes per sheet. (Press cookies down with a fork halfway through baking.) Remove sheet to a rack and let cookies stand on sheet about 2 minutes. Then remove cookies to a rack to cool completely. Repeat with remaining dough. Once cool, cookies will keep well in a covered container at room temperature up to 2 weeks - if they last that long! 

Enjoy! xo,

abbey

cinnamon coconut granola

There's something wonderfully delicious about a morning ritual of nutty granola and a cup of coffee, sun streaming across the newspaper spread out across the kitchen table. I like to take my time with my breakfast; it's almost like the calm before the storm of a busy day (which seems to be the case more and more lately). And this little breakfast ritual is even better with homemade granola.

Here's how.

cinnamon coconut granola

ingredients

– six cups plain uncooked oats (such as Quaker's)

– 1/2 cup coconut oil

– 1/4 cup brown sugar

– 1/4 cup honey or maple syrup
– 1 1/2 cups shredded coconut
– 1 teaspoon sea salt
– 1 1/2 tablespoons cinnamon (or to taste)
– 1/2 cup raisins
– 1/2 cup chocolate chips

to make

Preheat the oven to 250°. Pour the oatmeal on a large cookie sheet with sides. Add the sugar, salt, coconut, and cinnamon to the oatmeal and stir to combine. In a sauce pan over medium heat, melt together the coconut oil and honey or maple syrup. Once melted, pour over the oatmeal mixture. Stir until everything is coated.

Roast for one and a half hours, stirring occasionally. Wait until cooled, then add raisins and chocolate chips. Transfer the granola to an air-tight container and store at room temperature. 

Enjoy!
xo,carlotta

chocolate pumpkin bars.

These chocolatey pumpkin bars have long been one of my family's favorite snacks. They're perfect for a mid-afternoon snack or for any celebration. The last time I made them was for my friend's birthday...they're her favorite, too.

chocolate pumpkin bars
(recipe adapted from Nick Jr. Family magazine...ha!)

Ingredients:
1 cup all purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
3/4 cup sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 large eggs, beaten
1 can (15 oz) pumpkin
1/2 cup canola oil
1/4 cup low-fat milk
1/2 cup mini chocolate chips

Note: The recipe originally calls for 1 cup of pecans (very finely chopped) so you can add that in during the second step if you wish, but I personally like them better without nuts.

Instructions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 F. Lightly oil a 15-inch-by-10-inch-by-1-inch rimmed baking pan with nonstick cooking spray and set aside.
2. Whisk together flours, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl.
3. In a separate bowl, combine eggs, pumpkin, canola oil, and milk. Add to the dry mixture along with the chocolate chips and stir.
4. Spread batter evenly in the prepared pan and bake for 25 minutes, or until a wooden toothpick inserted in the center of the batter comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack. Cut into squares.

Enjoy!

Kendall