Oops... I see now that when I first posted this, I forgot the flour in the recipe :P I hope that there aren't too many people who have tried it since then (as this is a fabulous recipe!!). Here's the real complete recipe (thanks Alanna!!).
This recipe comes from Canadian Living's Best Muffins and More. This book was given to me as a gift and the inscription inside says "To Sleepy Owl, from the 2nd Bradford Brownies". Wow that was a long time ago... I must have been 15....
This is a favourite recipe. My sister Ashley and her friend Stephanie ate about 3 batches of these in a week once upon a time. All by themselves. I love to make it with peanut butter chips, though I'll use dark chocolate chips instead if anyone has an allergy.
1 C butter, softened
2 C granulated sugar
2 eggs
2 tsp. vanilla
1 1/2 C flour
1 C unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tsp. baking powder
1 salt
2 C white chocolate chunks
3/4 C coarsely chopped toasted hazelnuts
1. In large bowl, beat butter with sugar; beat in eggs and vanilla. Combine flour, cocoa, baking powder and salt; gradually stir into butter mixture. Stir in white chocolate and hazelnuts.
2. Drop by tablespoonfuls of dough, 2 inches apart, onto greased baking sheets. Bake in 350 degree Farenheit oven for 12 minutes or until centres spring back when lightly touched (cookies will be soft but will firm up when cooled).
Makes 3 dozen
Variation: double chocolate mint cookies: substitute peppermint chips for white chocolate chips and 1 C chopped pecans or walnuts for hazelnuts.
This is yet another recipe from Cook Great Food. This used to be my favourite post-run 'snack' when training for a half or full marathon. Nowadays, it's clearly way too much for a snack, and makes for a very filling breakfast. They're a really healthy fiber-full take on pancakes. And though they certainly aren't quite the same as the buttermilk pancakes you get when you go out for brunch, they're still delicious. I threw about a cup of frozen blueberries into these ones, but have done lots of variations, stirring in mashed banana, chopped apples and cinnamon, chocolate chips, etc. depending on what I'm feeling like. I also love to cover them with a mixture of fresh fruit. I usually cook up the whole batch and freeze the remainder.
3/4 C whole-wheat flour
1/2 C bran cereal flakes, crushed (I use natural wheat bran)
1/4 C wheat germ
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/8 tsp. salt
1 C milk
1 egg
1 egg white
1 tbsp. vegetable oil
1. In a medium bowl, combine flour, bran flakes, wheat germ, baking powder and salt. Set aside.
2. In a small bowl, blend together milk, egg, egg white and oil; stir into bran mixture until combined. Heat nonstick griddle or frying pan over medium heat. For each pancake, pour about 1/4 C batter onto griddle. Cook, turning once, for about 1 to 2 minutes per side or until golden.
Makes 8 pancakes.
My good friend Teresa gave me this recipe many years ago. I used to make it quite frequently and for whatever reason one day just forgot all about it. I've just started making it again recently and love it just as much as I used to.
2-3 tbsp. vegetable oil
3 large cloves of garlic, minced
2 C rice noodles, soaked
2 tbsp. rice vinegar
2-3 tbsp. unsalted, dry roasted peanuts, coarsely chopped
1/2 tsp. chili powder
1 tbsp. sugar
1 to 1 1/2 tbsp. peanut butter
1 C bean sprouts
2 green onions, cut into 1 inch lengths
For garnish:
extra bean sprouts, scallions and peanuts
lime wedges to squeeze over each serving
General tips and hints:
- the key to mastering this dish is to cook in small batches. This maintains the proper proportion of flavours and allows you to better manage the noodles as you cook.
- preparation is also very important - have all of your ingredients and utensils set to go before you begin the first batch. The actual cooking time is very small - just a few minutes per batch. Do not overcook - your noodles will break and your sauce will become clumpy and gummy. Just get everything nice and hot and mix well.
- your wok must be super hot. Place wok over high heat for 1-2 minutes before adding sauce or oil.
- keep a glass of water within reach. If noodles start to stick together at any point, lower heat slightly and add a small splash of water to unstick.
- allow wok to cool after cooking a batch, wash clean, reheat and repeat the recipe.
1. Bring a pot of water to a boil, add noodles, cover and remove from heat. Soak approximately 7 minutes and drain.
2. Heat wok over high heat for 1-2 minutes.
3. Add oil and garlic, cook until golden. Watch carefully - do not burn.
4. Lower heat to medium, add noodles and cook, stirring with two spatulas to prevent sticking. Stir fry for 2 minutes. If noodles clump, lower heat and add 1 tbsp. of water.
5. Add vinegar and continue to cook, stirring for 1 minute.
6. Sprinkle peanuts, chili powder and sugar on noodle mixture. Stir and toss to mix. Add 1 to 1 1/2 tbsp. peanut butter; allow to melt and then stir to mix. Quickly mix in sprouts and green onions.
7. Set batch aside in a covered pot and keep warm until all batches are complete.
8. Garnish with additional sprouts, green onions, peanuts and lime.
This sounds complicated to make, but since the cooking time per batch is quite short, it really doesn't take that much time to make. And it's well worth it. I threw in some chicken when I made it, to add in some protein.
This recipe is another of my mom's classics. I remember sneaking into the freezer as a kid to eat these even frozen I like them so much! They're a fantastic recipe to make for big groups, as it makes 60 muffins. I often make this to bring camping for breakfasts for everyone. The uncooked mixed dough can also be kept in the fridge for up to 6 weeks (I know!), which means that you can mix up the whole batch and bake 6 or 12 at a time, depending on how big your family is. I usually tend to just cook up the whole batch and freeze them, though I have kept the dough in the fridge on occasion. The quantities of oil and sugar sound astounding, but keep in mind that it is spread out over 60 muffins.
These aren't typical bran muffins. Many people can't even recognize them as bran. And though I do like traditional bran muffins and also make them at times, this is a recipe that I really love. Perhaps it's quite related to childhood memories, as this is a recipe my mom used to make fairly often for us - it paid off, given that there were 6 in the family, these would actually stick around for awhile, unlike most recipes!
I usually just make my own buttermilk by adding 1 tbsp. of lemon juice per cup of regular milk and letting it stand for a few minutes. However, the recipe is better with buttermilk. I just usually don't have any on hand and can't be bothered going to get any. Today my husband happened to pick up the buttermilk at the grocery store. As they don't have it in France, he was curious as to what 'butter-milk' could possibly be. Which inspired me to whip up a batch of these.
2 1/2 C white sugar (I used 2 C)
1 tbsp. salt
5 1/2 C flour
5 tsp. baking soda
4 eggs
1 quart (1 litre) buttermilk
1 1/2 C cooking oil
1 C raisins
2 C All Bran
3 C Bran Flakes
1. Mix buttermilk and baking soda together, then oil and beaten eggs.
2. Add dry ingredients.
3. Mix together and bake at 400 degrees Farenheit for 15-20 minutes.
In keeping with my Thai cravings, I've been digging through my recipes to find any recipes that are almost remotely Thai... and have decided that Vietnamese is close enough to Thai to serve my cravings. So I just whipped up a batch of this to take in our lunches this week.
This recipe was given to my by my Aunt Liz, though it is originally one of Bonnie Stern's recipes. This recipe is great for my family, as everyone can eat it - nut and wheat free. As such, it makes a great addition to family camping trips. When camping, we usually leave out the chicken, so that we don't have to be super concerned about the keeping of it in the cooler. Otherwise, I always add the chicken in for some protein.
1/2 lb. spaghettini or rice vermicelli
1 lb. cooked diced chicken
1 English cucumber, chopped
1 grated carrot
1 sweet red pepper, chopped
3 green onions
1/2 C fresh cilantro (as always, I don't recommend leaving this out)
Lemon Sesame Dressing:
1 garlic clove
1 tsp. minced ginger
3 tbsp. Thai fish sauce
2 tbsp. hoisin sauce
3 tbsp. lemon juice
3 tbsp. water
1 tbsp. hot Thai sauce or 1/2 tsp. hot chili paste
1 tbsp. sesame oil
You can find Thai fish sauce and hoisin sauce in the Asian section of well-stocked grocery stores. Otherwise, you can definitely find both in Asian specialty grocery stores.
If you make this in advance, toss it with dressing at the last minute. Garnish with peanuts and coriander if there are no allergies.
This recipe also comes from the cookbook 365 Great Cookies & Brownies cookbook that was given to me by Antonia back in first year of undergrad. Let's not do the math... I haven't made it often but wonder why I haven't made it more. It's quite tasty and quick to whip up.
6 tbsp. butter, softened
1/2 C firmly packed dark brown sugar
1 C mashed ripe bananas (about 2 medium)
1 egg
1/4 tsp. salt
2 C quick-cooking rolled oats (don't use old-fashioned)
1/2 C raisins or chocolate chips
1/2 C toasted slivered almonds (I've never made the effort to actually toast them, though I'm sure this would make it better)
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Farenheit. Grease a 9-inch square pan. In a medium bowl, beat butter and brown sugar with an electric mixer on medium speed until creamy. Add mashed bananas, egg, and salt and beat until well blended.
2. Stir in oatmeal, raisins/chocolate chips, and almonds. Spread batter evenly in prepared pan.
3. Bake 25 to 30 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted in centre comes out clean. Let cool on rack completely before cutting into 12 bars.
Some of you may have noticed on facebook that I have been desperately searching for an authentic Thai restaurant somewhere near our place. It's gotten to the extent that it's perhaps detrimental to my marriage... I convinced my husband over the weekend to drive 45 minutes to try this little Thai restaurant I had found on-line (under the guise of looking at strollers). Sadly, the restaurant isn't open for lunch on the weekend, so my craving once again had to be put on hold.
I realized over the weekend though that I have a couple of excellent Thai recipes. Though they're not quite as good as what I'd get in a true Thai restaurant, it'll help hold me over until I've found what I'm searching for. Or until the next time I'm in Oakville and can go back to the fantastic restaurant we found there (I can't remember the name right now, but am sure I could hunt it down again if it came to it).
This is a great soup recipe and I make it lots during the winter for both lunches and suppers. It's great with a salad and/or homemade biscuit or roll.
1 tbsp. oil
4 tsp. curry paste
1 1/4 lb. chicken, cut
1 onion
1 red pepper, chopped
grated rind of 1 lemon
1 C light coconut milk
2 tbsp. soy sauce
1 tsp. fresh lemon juice
chicken broth (optional)
1/3 C fresh coriander
1. Heat oil. Stir-fry curry paste for 30 seconds. Add chicken and cook for 3 minutes. Add onion and cook for another minute. (I usually use the Shredded Chicken from my post of Dec. 18th. So I typically cook the pepper and onion until cooked and then stir in the curry paste and already cooked Shredded Chicken).
2. Add pepper and lemon rind and stir-fry for 1 minute or until onion is soft. (I typically cheat and use store-bought ground lemon rind, which you can usually find in the spices section of a well-stocked grocery store, such as Loblaws).
3. Stir in coconut milk, soy sauce and lemon juice and bring to a boil. I usually also add in a decent quantity of chicken broth, as I find that otherwise, the soup doesn't have enough broth to my liking.
4. Cook for 2 minutes or until liquid is reduced. Stir in coriander. (I always say this, but don't omit the fresh coriander unless absolutely necessary, as it really does contribute a lot of flavour to the soup.)
