fudge

mmm chocolatey delicious creamy fudge.

i had some left over sweetened condensed milk from another recipe, so I decided to use it to make fudge (letting it go bad.. not an option when it's so expensive!!)

Simple Fudge:

Ingredients:
1 can sweetened condensed milk
1 package chocolate chips

put both ingredients in a glass bowl. Microwave for 1 minute, then stir. then microwave in 15 second intervals, stirring in between. when the chocolate is completely melted give it one more good stir. Pour it into a lightly greased container and allow to harden (put in fridge to speed up the cooling process) and then cut into small pieces.
I spooned it into one of my ikea silicone ice cube trays (a heart shaped one for valentines day) - which made it easy to pop them out.

Enjoy! (in small doses, or you'll get a sugar overload!!)

tinfoil dinners

Simple and delicious.
Perfect for camping but also for a nice quiet cozy evening in.

Tinfoil Dinners for 2
ingredients:
1 medium size onion
6 small potatoes (or 3 medium/large ones)
2 handfuls of baby carrots
1 full length of farmer sausage

directions:
tear off a 2 large sections of tinfoil (around 1 1/2 feet maybe? better to have extra than too little)
grease the tinfoil (butter or pam)
cut up the onion, potato, baby carrots & sausage into bite sized pieces and split evenly and place on the greased tinfoil.  (at this point, Michael added a splash of bbq sauce to his, I'm not a huge bbq sauce fan, so I didn't)

Add a generous sprinkle of salt & pepper.
Fold the tinfoil both horizontally across and then vertically till it is nicely sealed.

Place directly on the oven racks of a preheated oven (375-400 degrees) and cook for 45 minutes. Take them out and open very carefully (the steam will be very hot!) and check if the potatoes and carrots are cooked all the way through (and the meat too of course! but the potatoes and carrots seem to take much longer) - put them back in the oven in 15 minute intervals until they are done.

Empty contents onto a plate and enjoy!

Cookie Dough Cupcakes

Yup - they sound delicious - and they were delicious!!
A little more work than your typical cupcake since you have to make a filling, remove the centre of the cupcake, fill it and then frost it. But... they were delicious!

I got this recipe from Fake Ginger again (she has a lot of great recipes!)


Cookie Dough Cupcakes

Ingredients

• For the cupcakes:
• 3 sticks unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1 1/2 cups light brown sugar, packed
• 4 large eggs
• 2 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup milk
• 2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup chocolate chips (semisweet or bittersweet)

• For the filling:
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 6 tablespoons light brown sugar, packed
• 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 7 ounce sweetened condensed milk
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/4 cup mini semisweet chocolate chips

the cookie dough filling

• For the frosting:
• 3 sticks unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 3/4 cup light brown sugar, packed
• 3 1/2 cups confectioners sugar
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 3 tablespoons milk
• 2 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

• For decoration:
• Mini chocolate chips

Instructions

To make the cupcakes, preheat the oven to 350F. Line two cupcake pans with paper liners (about 20). In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the butter and brown sugar. Beat together on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Mix in the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition and scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.

Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl. Stir together to blend. Add the dry ingredients to the mixer bowl on low speed, alternating with the milk, beginning and ending with the dry ingredients, mixing each addition just until incorporated. Blend in the vanilla. Fold in the chocolate chips with a spatula.

Divide the batter evenly between the prepared cupcake liners. Bake for 18-20 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Allow to cool in the pan 5-10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

To make the cookie dough filling, combine the butter and sugar in a mixing bowl and cream on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Beat in the flour, sweetened condensed milk and vanilla until incorporated and smooth. Stir in the chocolate chips. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until the mixture has firmed up a bit, about an hour.

i used my "shark knife" to cut out the centre of the cupcakes

To fill the cupcakes, cut a cone-shaped portion out of the center of each cupcake. Fill each hole with a chunk of the chilled cookie dough mixture.

filled with the cookie dough filling

To make the frosting, beat together the butter and brown sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment until creamy. Mix in the confectioners sugar until smooth. Mix in the salt, milk, and vanilla extract until smooth and well blended.

Frost the filled cupcakes as desired, sprinkling with mini chocolate chips for decoration. 

YUM

cut down the middle so you can see the filling and all. it kinda blends into the colour of the frosting but you can sorta see the difference. so good.
Enjoy!

Raspberry Cupcakes with Raspberry Buttercream

I love a good cupcake - especially one that tastes so fresh & delicious. The raspberries turned the cupcake a bit of a blue colour, but the icing was a nice rich pink colour. They were very delicious!! I will definitely be making these again..


Raspberry Cupcakes with Raspberry Buttercream
(adapted from a recipe from Fake Ginger)

For the cupcakes:

• 2 1/2 cup cake flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter
• 1 1/4 cup sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1/3 cup buttermilk
• 1/4 cup oil
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 cup chopped raspberries  *all I had was frozen, so l drained off a little of the liquid as they began to thaw
• For the frosting:
• 1 stick butter, softened
• 1 pound powdered sugar
• 1 cup chopped raspberries

Instructions

To make the cupcakes:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and prepare 2 cupcake pans.
2. Sift flour, salt, and baking soda in medium bowl.
3. In bowl of mixer, cream butter and sugar until fluffy. Add eggs one at a time until combined. Add buttermilk, oil and vanilla until combined. Add flour mixture and stir until just combined. Fold in berries.
4. Fill cupcake pans 3/4 way. Bake for 20 minutes. Allow to cool completely before frosting.

To make the frosting:

1. Use a mixer to beat butter until light and fluffy. Add in powdered sugar a little at a time until you reach a slightly stiffer consistency then you wanted. Blend the raspberries into the mixture. The raspberry juices should thin out your buttercream a little bit, add more powdered sugar if needed.

ENJOY!!! (and share if you want!)

Drunken Fruit Salsa

I made this salsa to enjoy on top of the bbq chicken for my brother's birthday (see previous post). I made it both "drunken" and "non-drunken" since we were also feeding Everett :) It was my first time eating & making fruit salsa, and I think it was a hit.

Drunken Fruit Salsa
(I doubled it to feed the 7 of us)
1 medium mango, peeled and finely diced**
3/4 cup chopped fresh strawberries
1 kiwi, peeled and finely diced
3/4 cup pineapple, finely diced
2 tbsp fresh mint, chopped
1/4 cup rum (leave out if you want it "non-drunken")

Stir together all ingredients in a bowl. Refrigerate for 1-3 hours, stirring once or twice. Serve on top of bbq chicken! enjoy!

**the best way to cut a mango:
hold the mango so that the longest side of the mango is vertical, essentially you want to have it so the pit is standing vertically. slice top to bottom, curving around the pit as much as possible. When you feel resistance you are likely cutting into the pit, so you want to angle out a little more. Once you have cut off both sides of the pit you want to hold one side in your hand, peel down. Now you will cut into the mango in a checkerboard way. Then you pop the mango inside out, and the mango will be like a porcupine, sticking out so you can easily pop it off the peel.

(I realize these instructions aren't the best, so here is a video on youtube, watch from the 1:30 mark: http://youtu.be/lvLdPjpELyU it really is so much easier to enjoy mangos once you learn this! my mom-in-law taught me)

Honey Barbecue Chicken

My brother just turned 30 last weekend, and I offered to make him supper. he requested bbq chicken with fresh fruit salsa. So I did a little online searching and found this recipe (see next post for the fresh fruit salsa recipe)

Honey Barbecue Chicken
(I doubled it for the 7 of us)

4 chicken breasts

Marinade:
3/4 cup dry white wine
1/4 cup orange juice
1 tbsp honey
2 tbsp fresh basil
2 tbsp olive oil
3/4 tsp dried oregano
1 large bay leaf
salt & pepper, to taste

Combine all marinade ingredients together in a bowl. Mix to combine. Add the chicken, turn to coat, cover and refrigerate 2-4 hours.
BBQ and then serve with rice (I did basmati rice, made with chicken brother instead of water, very tasty) and fresh fruit salsa. yum!

Mixed Herb Pasta with Red Bell Peppers and Feta

I had bought feta awhile ago to make veggie bagels, and wanted to use up the rest of it to make some type of herb & feta pasta.

I found this website on epicurious.com - it wasn't my favourite, but Michael asked that we put it on our "regular rotation" of recipes (aka my go-to list)

here it is!

Mixed Herb Pasta with Red Bell Peppers & Feta

• 5 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 large red bell peppers, cut into thin strips
• 4 large garlic cloves, minced
• 1 cup dry white wine

• 1 pound spaghettini
• 1 1/2 cups coarsely chopped mixed fresh herbs (such as basil, parsley, tarragon, mint, and sage)
• 1 1/2 cups crumbled feta cheese (about 7 ounces)

Heat oil in heavy large skillet over high heat. Add peppers and cook until crisp-tender, stirring frequently, about 3 minutes. Add garlic; sauté 1 minute. Add wine; boil until reduced by 1/3, about 2 minutes.

Meanwhile, cook pasta in large pot of boiling salted water until just tender but still firm to bite, stirring occasionally. Drain, reserving 1/2 cup cooking liquid. Return pasta and reserved cooking liquid to pot. Add pepper mixture, herbs, and cheese. Toss gently but thoroughly until cheese begins to melt. Season to taste with salt and pepper and serve.

* I only made a half recipe and it was enough for the two of us with no left overs.

Peppermint Patties

I LOVE mint and chocolate together, it is one of the tastiest combinations in my opinion.

I love a good york peppermint patty after a meal, so minty & delicious. I decided to try and create my own, they were a lot of work, but so tasty that I think they were worth it. YUM. 

(I found this recipe on joyofbaking)

Peppermint Patties:

2 cups (240 grams) confectioners (powdered or icing) sugar

1 1/2 tablespoons (20 grams) unsalted butter, softened

1 teaspoon peppermint extract (add more if you want a stronger flavour)

1/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

2 tablespoons (30 ml) evaporated milk

Chocolate Coating:

8 ounces (240 grams) semi sweet or bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped

1 tablespoon (12 grams) shortening

Line a cookie sheet with aluminum foil, smoothing out any wrinkles. Lightly dust the foil with icing sugar.

With an electric mixer beat (on low speed) the sugar, butter, peppermint extract, vanilla extract, and evaporated milk until combined. Increase the speed to medium-high and beat until very creamy (about 2-3 minutes). Transfer the batter to a bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and place in the refrigerator to chill until firm enough to roll into balls (about an hour).

Roll the batter into 1 inch (2.5 cm) balls and place on the prepared pan. Flatten each ball with the palm of your hand until the patties are about 1 1/2 inches (4 cm) in diameter and 1/4 inch (.6 cm) thick. Cover and place in the refrigerator until the patties are firm (at least one hour, or even overnight).

Chocolate Coating: 

* This is where I ran into it being "more work than it's worth?". I didn't let the peppermint filling cool off long enough, so when I went to dip it in the chocolate it just became goo. I ended up coating the bottoms of the patties first and placing them on the pan, and then I dropped a dollop of chocolate on the top of each one and spread it around to cover the whole thing. 

Melt the chocolate and shortening in a heatproof bowl placed over a saucepan of simmering water. Remove the patties from the refrigerator and dip, one patty at a time, into the melted chocolate, making sure both sides of each patty are completely coated with chocolate. (You can use 2 forks or a chocolate dipping fork.) 

Let any excess chocolate drip back into the bowl and then place the patties back on the foil. Once all the patties have been dipped in the chocolate, return to the refrigerator to chill until firm (30 - 60 minutes). Store in the refrigerator in an airtight container (separate layers with parchment paper or wax paper) for up to one month.

Makes 25 - 30 patties. 

Oatmeal Smoothie

I found this recipe on my first day of using pinterest

I am almost always running late in the mornings.. I love my sleep, what can I say! So, often I make a smoothie and then run out the door with my breakfast.


This recipe (via martha stewart) had this description: All the nutritional benefits of oatmeal and fruit can be enjoyed in this simple, healthy smoothie.
sounded good to me! So I tried it out this morning.

Over all, tasty, filling and easy BUT.. it had a bit of a chalky taste from the oatmeal. Other than that, you couldn't taste or feel the oatmeal.

I will likely make this again!

Oatmeal Smoothie

Ingredients:
1 cup ice

• 1/2 cup frozen raspberries
• 1/2 cup plain lowfat yogurt
• 1 banana
• 1/2 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 1 cup coconut water (or other liquid, such as juice)
• 
  
• Directions

1. Place ice and raspberries in the bottom of blender, and all other ingredients on top. Whir until completely smooth. Serve.

Red Lentil Soup With Bacon

I found this recipe in a renters magazine a few months ago & decided to try it out on a nice cool day. It hit the spot!


Red Lentil Soup with Bacon

Ingredients:
5 slices bacon, cut into 1/4 inch
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 medium onion, finely chopped
4 medium carrots, cut into 1/4 inch
1 1/2 cup red lentils
1 tsp ground cumin
2 1/2 tbsp tomato paste
4 cups chicken or vegetable stock
1/2 cup white wine
1/2 cup water
**I also added a good amount of tabasco sauce to give it a little kick :)

plain yogurt
fresh sprigs of basil (i didn't have any, so you can do without!)

Directions:
In a large saucepan over medium-high heat, cook the bacon until crisp about 3 minutes. Transfer the bacon to a piece of paper towel & set aside. Keep 1 tbsp bacon dripping ins the pan.
Add the garlic, onion & carrots to saucepan. Cook vegetables over medium heat until tender, about 5 minutes.
Add the lentils, cumin, tomato paste, chicken stock, wine & water, stir to combine. Simmer until the lentils are cooked and falling apart, about 25-30 minutes. The soup is fairly thick, so if you prefer it thinner just add more stock or water.

Puree the soup in a blender. Reheat if necessary.

To serve, divide the soup among warmed soup bowls, garnish with a dollop of yogurt  & the reserved bacon (crumbled).

Enjoy!