Celebrating A Year In Someone's Kitchen

I can’t believe a whole year has gone by since I began this blog.

As the saying goes “time flies when you’re having fun” and indeed it has been a lot of fun posting a different recipe for fifty two weeks. I’ve also enjoyed the comments and interest some have shown.

This has been a great learning experience for me. Besides learning new computer skills I’ve also became more comfortable with my camera and was able to take some decent shots of the food I prepared.

One of my greatest challenges was choosing a feature recipe each week from my collection of many.

Fifty two recipes barely scratch the surface of the number of recipes that I enjoy making on a daily basis.

Perhaps some requests would have taken this blog in a completely different direction but I’m happy to have shared many of the recipes that have been our favourites over the years.

This year I’ve decided to try my hand at putting together a cook book instead of posting more recipes on my blog.

Not having done something like this before, I’m preparing to take on the challenges that this new venture may present.

I hope to use some of the recipes from my blog along with others that have not been posted.

I will certainly miss posting weekly recipes therefore will consider sharing some special recipes on my blog from time to time.

A special thanks to all those who have supported and encouraged me in this past year and are willing to do the same in my new endeavor.

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"I'm glad that's over, blogging is exhausting!"

(Drag your mouse over Norah to find out where he likes to be pet and where he doesn't.)

Vanilla Custard Fruit Tarts

It’s always a good idea to have a few boxes of ingredients in the cupboard or freezer that can be quickly put together to create a delicious dessert.

There are definitely times when you need a sweet ending to a special dinner but don’t have the time or inclination to spend hours in the kitchen.

These Vanilla Custard Fruit Tarts come together very quickly with frozen tart shells, a box of instant vanilla pudding, milk and sour cream.

Fresh strawberries, raspberries, blueberries or blackberries really dress up the tops of these tarts. If fresh fruit is not available canned fruit pie filling works in a pinch and it pays to have a can in the pantry.

These tarts taste as good as they look and compliments are sure to follow… no one needs to know about the shortcut!


Vanilla Custard Fruit Tarts
1 package frozen tart shells (12 large or 18 mini tarts)
1 cup sour cream
1 cup milk
1 package instant vanilla pudding (4 serving size)
fresh berries
1 pouch clear glaze (optional, follow package instructions)

1. Bake tart shells according to package directions and cool completely.
2. Beat sour cream and milk with electric beater until smooth.
3. Blend in pudding mix until mixture is smooth and slightly thickened.
4. Pour into baked and cooled tart shells.
5. Refrigerate 20 minutes until set.
6. Arrange fresh berries on top of tarts and brush clear glaze over berries if desired.
7. Refrigerate.

Notes, Tips and Suggestions

• Pour filling into an 8 inch baked pie shell instead of tart shells then refrigerate 1 hour to set.
• Clear glaze is optional but gives the fruit a glossy finish which also helps to preserve the fruit.
• Add a swirl of whipped cream on top of fruit for a little extra presentation and taste.
• Place some thinly sliced bananas into the bottom of baked shells before adding custard for a little twist on texture and taste.

Chocolate Biscotti

I have a great from scratch recipe for Chocolate Biscotti in my collection but this short cut recipe ranks a close second.

The method of preparation is basically the same but the use of purchased chocolate cake mix eliminates much of the measuring and comes in handy if you are out of cocoa powder.

I’ve tried using vanilla and lemon cake mixes but the chocolate flavour definitely gives the best results.

Biscotti have certainly come a long way from their humble beginnings and seem to have recently become a more popular choice.

While growing up I remember Biscotti being a part of many breakfasts and they were usually dunked into a large cup of café latte.

The combination of simple ingredients including flour, sugar, oil and the zest from an orange or lemon was standard. When possible, the addition of almonds or candied fruit made them extra special.

The substitution of butter for the oil and addition of delicious chocolate, pistachios and dried cranberries just to mention a few ingredients has taken the Biscotti to another level.

They have graduated from the breakfast table to many trendy cafes and specialty bake shops.

Their crisp, crunchy texture along with the perfect shape still makes them excellent for dunking into café latte, a glass of cold milk or a cup of steaming espresso.

I believe the twice baked process intensifies the flavour and certainly prolongs shelf life.

Come to think of it I don’t ever remember eating stale Biscotti... although they never seem to be around long enough to become stale.


Chocolate Biscotti
1 package Chocolate cake mix
1 cup all purpose flour
½ cup butter or margarine (melted)
2 eggs
1 cup chocolate chunks (mix of dark, milk and white)

1. Sift together cake mix and flour into a bowl.
2. Add melted butter and eggs.
3. Beat at low speed with electric mixer until well blended.
4. Stir in chocolate.
5. Divide dough in half and shape each half into a 12x2-inch log.
6. Place logs on lightly greased or parchment lined baking sheets.
7. Bake in a preheated 350 degree F. oven for 30 to 35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean..
8. Remove logs from oven, cool for 5 minutes.
9. Using serrated knife cut logs into ½ inch slices and arrange flat on baking sheet.
10. Bake Biscotti 10 minutes more then remove to cooling racks to cool completely.
11. Store in an airtight container.

Notes, Tips and Suggestions

• Place a sheet of aluminum foil on lower oven rack to prevent Biscotti logs from burning on the bottom.
• Instead of adding chocolate chunks substitute almonds then dip one end of the Biscotti into melted chocolate.
• Cut Biscotti diagonally for better presentation.
• Try different chocolate mixes. I prefer using the lighter chocolate like Swiss or German cake mixes but the darker fudge mix also works well if you prefer a very dark chocolate Biscotti.
  
• These freeze exceptionally well.

Cream Horn Pastries

Even though I prefer cooking and baking from scratch, I don’t mind taking a shortcut now and then. If the results prove to be just as delicious and presentable, why not?

I highly prize my shortcut recipes and receive as many compliments when serving these as those made from scratch.

The following recipe for cream horns uses pre-made puff pastry available in most grocery stores.

Making puff pastry from scratch may seriously discourage many since the process requires hours of folding, rolling and chilling the dough to get a perfect pastry.

There are some very good products on the market that can make baking so much easier.

Prepared and rolled out puff pastry dough is certainly one of them. For the best product make sure that real butter is on the ingredient list.

Since the dough is ready to use, all you have to do is cut, shape, bake and fill with your favourite cream filling.


Cream Horns
1 package (450 grams) frozen puff pastry
water (for brushing)
favourite cream filling

1. Defrost puff pastry according to directions on box.
2. Lay pastry sheet on a lightly floured surface.
3. Measure and cut 8 to 9 equal strips.
4. Grease aluminum forms.
5. Brush strips of dough lightly with water.
6. Wind each strip of dough around aluminum form slightly overlapping.
7. Place on lightly greased or parchment paper lined baking sheets.
8. Bake in a preheated 400 degree F. oven for 15 minutes or until golden.
9. When cool enough to handle, remove pastries from forms and place on wire cooling rack until completely cooled.
10. Using pastry bag and large plain tip fill with favourite cream filling and lightly dust tops with icing sugar.
11. Makes 16 to 18 pastries.

Notes, Tips and Suggestions

• Aluminum cream roll forms are available at most kitchen supply stores.
• A 450 gram package of puff pastry contains 2 sheets of pastry, defrost 1 sheet only to make 8 to 9 pastries.
• Cream rolls can be made a few days ahead and filled just before serving although they will remain crisp for about 2 to 3 days after being filled.

Waffles with Strawberries and Cream

This waffle recipe uses simple ingredients, is quite easy to make and a great breakfast treat especially when served with fresh berries and whipped cream.

Since there isn’t any sugar in the batter, indulging in sweet toppings is permitted.

Fresh blueberries, raspberries, peaches or mangoes also bring wonderful colour and delicious taste to this light and crisp waffle, not to mention creamy butter and a generous drizzle of maple syrup.

This is certainly not every day fare but a welcomed sight for a late morning, weekend breakfast.


Waffles
1¾ cups sifted flour
3 teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
2 egg yolks
1¼ cups milk
½ cup corn or vegetable oil
2 egg whites

1. Sift together flour baking powder and salt.
2. Combine egg yolks and milk and stir into dry ingredients.
3. Beat egg whites until stiff then fold into flour mixture.
4. Preheat waffle maker and bake waffles until golden.
5. Makes 5 to 6 large round waffles.

Notes, Tips and Suggestions

• Blueberries, raspberries or chopped strawberries can be added to batter before baking.
• Berries can be pureed and made into a sauce to serve on top of waffles.
• These freeze well and can be reheated in oven or toaster from the frozen state.

Blueberry Scones with Creme Fraiche

I’ve been using this recipe for Blueberry Scones for quite some time and they’re absolutely delicious.

They've always been served with creamy butter until the I discovered Crème Fraiche during a special Mother’s Day Tea last year.

Reluctant to try it at first since its resemblance to sour cream held me back, I was encouraged to at least give it a chance.

Suffice it to say there was no left over Crème Fraiche at the end of our tea.

Since then I've been searching for a Crème Fraiche recipe as it’s not the easiest product to find at the supermarket and a little on the expensive side.

I’ve tried a couple of recipes which were fairly good but yielded a large quantity, too much unless the plan is to host a rather large tea party.

The addition of sour cream in these recipes wasn't the taste I was looking for so the search continued .

Recently I tried a new recipe. The addition of yogurt instead of sour cream made all the difference for me and discovered that using vanilla yogurt instead of plain resulted in a perfect balance of flavour.

The best thing about this recipe is that you can make as much or as little as you want since it works on a three to one ratio.

On second thought, the best thing about this recipe is that I will never put butter on my Blueberry Scones again!


Blueberry Scones
2 cups all purpose flour
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon grated lemon peel
¼ cup butter
1/3 cup milk
2 eggs, beaten
1 cup fresh blueberries
Icing sugar (for dusting tops)

1. In a large bowl sift together flour, sugar, baking powder and salt.
2. Add lemon zest then with a pastry blender cut in butter unto it resembles coarse crumbs.
3. Beat eggs lightly with milk.
4. Add milk, eggs and blueberries to flour mixture all at once stirring with a fork until dough comes away from the side of the bowl.
5. On a lightly floured surface knead dough 5 to 6 times until smooth.
6. Roll dough to 1 inch thickness and using a 2 inch biscuit cutter, cut out scones.
7. Place 2 inches apart on a greased or parchment lined baking sheet.
8. Bake in a preheated 400 degree F. oven for 12 to 15 minutes or until lightly browned.
9. Cool on wire rack. Lightly dust with icing sugar.
10. Makes 12 to 15 scones

Crème Fraiche
To make ½ cup (125 ml)
6 tablespoons whipping cream
2 tablespoons yogurt, plain or vanilla (with active culture)

In a small glass jar or container stir whipping cream and yogurt together, cover.
Let sit in a warm place for 12 hours then refrigerate.















Notes, Tips and Suggestions

• Use only fresh blueberries as frozen add too much moisture to the dough.
• Raspberries or cranberries can be substituted for the blueberries.
  
• After cutting out scones, place scraps one on top of the other, pat down with hand, roll again to 1 inch thickness and cut out more scones. Repeat until all of the dough is used up.
  
• The original recipe for Creme Fraiche made a softer consistency spread. Preferring a much thicker consistency I tried whipping the cream until thick before stirring in the yogurt. Perfect results.
  

Chocolate Strawberry Cheesecake Muffins

It’s often said that breakfast is the most important meal of the day yet so many insist on skipping it or ingesting a minimum amount of food so not to collapse later on in the morning.

Toast, cereal, muffins or quick breads accompanied by a bowl of fresh fruit have always been standard breakfast items on our table during the weekdays.

However, weekend breakfasts have always afforded something a little more decadent to be enjoyed at leisure.

Even though the Cinnamon Roll gets high points as part of a weekend breakfast, the next few posts will share more sweet recipes we have enjoyed over the years.

The following recipe is actually a combination of three different recipes plus a few alterations, with delicious results.

As far as I know there is no law against altering or improving existing recipes. After trying out a new recipe as is, the personal or creative touch may just be what’s missing.

Many of my recipes are not exact originals; I welcome the challenge of putting a new twist on any recipe I venture to try out.

Sometimes it’s as easy as adjusting the baking temperature for better results. Increasing or decreasing the measurement of a particular ingredient may also improve the final product as well as the addition of a totally different ingredient.

It may take a few tries before the perfect combination or necessary changes come together but in the end a new recipe has been discovered and it’s all yours…unless you decide to share it!


Chocolate Strawberry Cheesecake Muffins
1 3/4 cups flour
¾ cups granulated sugar
½ cup cocoa
2 teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon baking soda
1 egg
1 egg white (save yolk for cream cheese filling)
1 cup milk at room temperature
1/2 cup melted and cooled butter

1. Prepare cream cheese and strawberry fillings.
2. Into a bowl sift together flour, cocoa, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
3. Beat together egg, egg white, milk and butter.
4. Make a well in the dry ingredients and add milk mixture, stir until just combined.
5. Spoon batter into muffin tin wells 1/3 full.
6. Place one tablespoon of cream cheese filling into center then place 2 teaspoons of strawberry filling.
7. Spoon remaining batter on top but don’t cover the center where the filling is.
8. Bake in a preheated 375 degree oven for 20 to 25 minutes.
9. Cool muffins in pan for 10 minutes before removing to wire rack to cool completely.
10. Makes 12 large muffins.

Cream Cheese Filling
4 ounces cream cheese (1/2 8 ounce brick)
1 egg yolk
¼ cup sugar

1. Soften cream cheese then beat in egg yolk and sugar until light and fluffy.

Strawberry Filling
1 cup chopped fresh or frozen strawberries
4 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon corn starch

1. Place strawberries into a small sauce pan.
2. If using fresh strawberries add 2 tablespoons water to pan.
3. Bring strawberries up to a simmer.
4. Mix sugar and corn starch together and add to simmering strawberries.
5. Stir until thickened. Cool.

Notes, Tips and Suggestions

• Strawberry filling can be substituted with purchased cherry or raspberry pie fillings.
• When adding remaining batter to top of muffin use a piping bag with a large plain tip. This makes it easier not to cover the center filling.
• Before serving, a light sprinkle of icing sugar finishes this muffin off perfectly.
• Make 24 mini muffins instead of the large size, great served at teas or brunches.
• These freeze very well.