Wacky Chocolate Avocado Cupcakes

My sister Sylvia is a seasoned recipe maker. She invented these delicious cupcakes to use up a surfeit of avocado.

Ingredients:

• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 6 T. dark cocoa powder
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 2 tsp. baking powder
• 2 c. sugar
• 1 large ripe avocado, mashed
• 2/3 c. sunflower oil
• 2 T. vinegar
• 1 c. cold water
• 2 tsp. vanilla

Methods:
Pre-heat your oven to 350 degrees F. 

Sift the first 5 ingredients together in a large bowl. Mix the next 6 ingredients together in a second bowl. Then mix the wet (avocado mixture) into the dry ingredients and spoon the batter into 12 large muffin cups. Bake 15-18 minutes, depending on the size of your muffin cups.

Remove the cupcakes from the pan when cool.

Frost with a dark chocolate ganache, (which is simply chopped chocolate mixed into warmed heavy cream).

Nuts & Bolts.....they're better than Bits and Bites

Making this snack at Christmas is a rather rigid holiday tradition in our family. Don't ask me why we have not made it at other times of the year. Other families are more flexible...our friend Jane produces it in August when her family visits the cottage on the St. Lawrence River. So lately, I have broken with tradition and baked up a big batch of Nuts and Bolts whenever. 

Ingredients:

• one 400 gram box of regular Cheerios (oat cereal)
• one 620 gram box of Shreddies (wheat cereal)
• one 350 gram box of Crispix (rice and corn cereal) or Rice Chex
• 2 smallish packages of pretzel sticks (these form the 'bolts')
• 2 pounds of nuts ( I use blanched peanuts)
• 1 pound of butter (melted)
• 2 tablespoons garlic salt (not garlic powder)
• 2 tablespoons celery salt (not celery seed)
• 4 tablespoons of Worchestershire sauce (pronounced Worstersheer)

Methods:
Preheat oven to 250 degrees F. Since it is pretty much impossible to find a roasting pan large enough to hold all of these ingredients, I usually use 2 disposable aluminum foil roasting pans from the grocery store. However, the cottage is well-equipped and I managed with the top and bottom of the roasting pan found 'in-house'. Divide the dry ingredients evenly between the 2 pans.

Halve the pound of butter and melt each half in separate pots. Add 1 tablespoon of celery salt and garlic salt to each pot of melted butter as well as 2 tablespoons of Worchestershire sauce. Stir well, then pour the butter mixture over the dry ingredients; mix everything together with a spatula. Adjust your oven racks so that you can place both roasting pans in the oven for approximately 2 hours, stirring the mixture gently every 15 minutes. After 2 hours remove from the oven, cool completely, and pack in airtight tins or plastic containers.

Zesty Cornmeal Cookies

My sister Penelope made these cookies to add to a gift of homemade baked goods provided to the volunteers at her local library. Apparently everyone loved their zesty flavour and intriguing texture. There's nothing like a bit of  intrigue to keep volunteers on board. This recipe was first published in the Ottawa Citizen.

Ingredients for the Lemon Cornmeal Cookies:

• 1/2 cup finely ground cornmeal
• 1 and 1/2 cups of all purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup butter, softened
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• zest of 1 lemon
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1 egg

Ingredients for glaze:

• 1/2 cup icing sugar
• 1 and 1/2 to 2 tablespoons lemon juice

Methods:
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F.  Whisk together the flour, cornmeal and salt in a mixing bowl and set aside. Using an electric mixer, beat together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the lemon juice, zest and egg and beat until incorporated. Add the cornmeal/flour mixture and mix on a low speed until everything is combined (about a minute). Scoop tablespoon-sized balls of dough onto parchment paper-lined cookie sheets, leaving a bit of room for spread. Bake until golden at the edges, between 14 and 18 minutes. While the cookies are baking, whisk together the lemon juice and icing sugar. Drizzle over the baked cookies.

Sharing space with the remaining dates squares.

Cottage Life Ribs - A Revelation

Cottage Life Magazine had a eureka moment when its food editors came up with this recipe for pork ribs. Slow cooking is the key. It never fails and is as easy as pie. 

Ingredients:

• a couple of racks of ribs
• seasoning rub
• your preferred barbecue sauce

Methods:
Preheat your oven to 300 degrees F. Season the racks liberally, front and back, with a good rub. Place on a baking sheet with a shallow rim and bake in the oven for 2–3 hours until tender. Cut them up into reasonable serving sizes, then slather with your favourite barbecue sauce. Rewarm  the ribs in the oven or place them under the broiler for a few minutes.

Fat flows, so you want to make sure it doesn't flow off the baking sheet into your oven. That's why a rimmed baking sheet is required. However, (and this is important), the rim must not be so high as to cause the ribs to steam. 

Wherefore Condiments? Cutting the mustard

This post was drawn from my former blog...

I may have mentioned in previous posts that I have a bit of a thing about condiments.....there are times when my fridge is devoid of fruits and vegetables, but it never lacks for several varieties of ketchups, mustards, relishes and chutneys. This predilection extends to my sisters who are great pickle and condiment producers.

Some of you may be unaware that growing mustard is big business in at least two Canadian provinces - Alberta and Saskatchewan. Too bad the French Impressionist painters didn't make their way to the Canadian west. They would have had a field day with the vast swathes of prairie cloaked in the vibrant yellow of this crop in flower. The following informative link confirms Canada's status as a mustard superpower.

http://albertaventure.com/2011/06/one-hot-commodity/

Last weekend, we were treated to a great Sunday brunch made by my friend Janice who served among other things, a beautiful glazed ham accompanied by a homemade grainy mustard. Her recipe follows.

Janice's Grainy Stout Mustard- She gave me some to add to the collection in my fridge

The following recipe was taken from a magazine called Taste & Travel International (April-June 2015 edition). Mustard seeds may be available in your local grocery store. If not, try a natural food store. 

 Ingredients:

•  1 and 1/2 cups English stout
• 1 cup yellow mustard seeds
• 1 cup brown mustard seeds
• 3/4 cup cider vinegar
• 4 cloves garlic , minced or pressed
• 2 Tbs brown sugar
•  4 Tbs honey
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/3 cup dry mustard powder such as Keen's or Colman's
• 1 tsp allspice
• 1/2 tsp turmeric

Methods:

Soak the mustard seeds in the stout for 4 hours or overnight. Add more stout as necessary to keep the seeds submerged. Combine the remaining ingredients in a heavy saucepan and simmer uncovered over medium heat until reduced by half. Pour the reduced liquid into the mustard seed mixture and process in a food processor until coarsely ground. Return to the saucepan and cook over medium heat until slightly thickened. Place in clean Mason jars and refrigerate. 

And for a finer textured, non-grainy mustard that will clean out your sinuses, follow the recipe on the Keen's or Colman's mustard powder container, which simply calls for mixing equal parts powder and cold water. This is what you get. Stand back - it's hot, and makes things unfocused. 

Roasted Asparagus with Almonds and Capers

I’ve misplaced the name of the author of this recipe, but I’m quite sure I found it in a recent NYT Cooking column. The original recipe called for fresh dill as an accompaniment to the asparagus in addition to the almonds and fried capers, but I decided enough was enough, and omitted the dill. I used some very healthy, chunky-looking asparagus when testing this recipe and they stood up to roasting well. This was my first attempt at frying capers and I'm not sure that I was entirely successful. C'est la vie.

Ingredients:

• ⅓ pounds/600 grams asparagus, woody ends trimmed 
• 3 tablespoons olive oil 
• Salt and black pepper
• 2 tablespoons/30 grams unsalted butter
•  Scant 1/4 cup/20 grams sliced/chopped almonds
• 3 tablespoons/30 grams baby capers, patted dry on paper towels

Methods:

Heat your oven to 425 degrees F. Arrange asparagus on a baking sheet and toss them in 1 tablespoon of olive oil, with a generous pinch of salt and pepper. Space the asparagus well apart on the baking sheet, and roast, shaking the pan occasionally, until the asparagus is soft and starting to brown in places, 8 to 12 minutes, depending on thickness. In a small or medium saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat until foamy. Add almonds and fry, stirring frequently, until golden brown, 1 to 2 minutes. Pour the almonds and butter over the asparagus. Add the remaining 2 tablespoons of oil to the pan and heat over high heat. Once hot, add the capers and fry, stirring continuously, until they have opened up and become crisp, 1 to 2 minutes. Remove the capers from the oil and sprinkle over the asparagus.

Strawberry Cake

My sister made this fabulously whimsical cake for a cottage meal a couple of years ago. I love the look of it. The vivid pink of that frosting comes from the addition of cherry juice to  an ordinary icing recipe.

The original recipe was published as a Canada Day recipe by Pat Trew in the EMC news. You’ll notice in the instructions below that she used whipping cream and fresh strawberries instead of icing; a completely acceptable and patriotic alternative, although not quite as riveting as that glowing pink blanket of sugar on my sister's cake. 

Ingredients:

• 1 super-moist white cake mix (enough for 2 layers)

• 1 package of frozen strawberries (or 2 cups)

• 85 gm package strawberry Jello, or other jelly powder

• 1/3 cup vegetable oil

• 4 eggs

• heavy cream for whipping

• as many fresh strawberries as you like

Methods:

Partially thaw the strawberries before you start everything else. Grease and lightly flour a 13"x 8" cake pan and preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.  In a large mixing bowl, combine the cake mix, Jello powder, oil and eggs. Pour off any juice from the berries and add this to the bowl. With an electric mixer, mix the cake batter for 2 minutes. Turn the bowl occasionally to ensure that the ingredients are thoroughly combined. Fold the partially-thawed berries into the cake batter, then spoon the batter into the prepared pan. Bake at 325 degrees F for 50-60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the centre of the cake comes out clean. Since it's easiest to serve this cake directly from the pan, cool it completely in the pan.

To finish the cake, whip heavy cream in a small bowl until it holds its shape. Spread this over the top of the cake. Arrange some fresh strawberries on top of the whipped cream with the tips pointing up. Keep chilled until serving time. Serves 12-14

Beet and Whipped Goat Cheese Salad

This is a salad that has received rave reviews on the three occasions I’ve served it. Because I am a fairly lazy cook, I have taken some liberties with the original recipe. My apologies to its author.

Ingredients for the beet salad:

• a tin of baby beets, drained and cut into bite-sized pieces
• 2 tablespoons minced shallots or minced onion, if you don’t happen to have shallots
• at least 3 tablespoons of olive oil
• 2 tablespoons of a rich sweet vinegar such as balsamic or sherry vinegar
• salt and pepper to taste
• ¼ cup shelled nuts like walnuts, pistachios or pecans
• 2 cups of small salad greens or a combination of salad greens mixed with fresh herb leaves, such as mint or Italian parsley

Ingredients for the cheese:

• ¼ cup (4 ounces) fresh goat cheese
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 2 tablespoons heavy cream
• 1/2 teaspoon of rice or white wine vinegar (or more to taste)
• ½ teaspoon of coarsely ground black pepper
• ¼ teaspoon salt, or more to taste

Methods: 
Cut the beets into bite-sized pieces then place them in a bowl with the shallots, oil, vinegar, salt and pepper. Let the beets marinate for at least 30 minutes. Toast the nuts briefly, sprinkle them with salt if unsalted and chop them coarsely. Prepare the goat cheese by whisking/whipping the cheese with the olive oil, vinegar, cream, salt and pepper. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

To serve, arrange the greens on a platter, then pile on the beets. Spoon any remaining dressing over the salad. Spoon on dollops of the whipped cheese and sprinkle with the nuts.

Sweet Potato and Corn Soup

This fresh-tasting soup was inspired by a chowder described by Lucy Waverman in her column in the Globe & Mail on August 22, 2015. The above photo shows an unadorned vegetarian version of the soup, which could be made much more impressive, and less vegetarian, with a healthy sprinkling of fried bits of bacon. Of note, this soup was actually better on Day 2, after the paprika had released all its smoky flavour.


Ingredients:

• 3 cobs of fresh corn, kernels removed with a sharp knife

• 1 onion diced

• 1 teaspoon sea salt

• 1/4 cup butter

• 2 medium-sized sweet potatoes, peeled and diced

• 4 cups water

• 1 teaspoon smoked paprika 

• additional salt and pepper to taste

• 1/4 cup heavy cream (optional)

Methods:

In a fairly large and heavy-bottomed pot, lightly sauté the diced onion in the butter and salt. Add the sweet potatoes and sauté lightly for several minutes before the addition of water to the pot along with the 3 cobs of corn from which you have removed the kernels. Simmer the vegetables until the potatoes are soft when pierced with a sharp knife. Remove the cobs from the pot and discard, then add the corn kernels and paprika. Simmer for several minutes longer in order to cook the corn, then remove the soup from the heat and use an immersible whizzer to blend it thoroughly. Add 1/4 cup heavy cream (or not), and place the soup back on the heat to re-warm. Add salt and pepper to taste.



Hold the cob upright in a bowl, and use a sharp knife to slice off the kernels. No fuss, no muss.




This looks odd, but simmering the 'nude' corn cobs along with the sweet potato adds flavour, and your friends will be impressed with your obviously very-sophisticated cooking technique.

Blue Cheese and Cheddar Nibbly-Bits

This recipe was adapted from Deb Perelman's recipe for Rosemary, Gruyere and Sea Salt Crisps found in her Smitten Kitchen Cookbook. Perhaps I should say that this recipe was inspired by hers, since she might not absolutely approve of the following adaptation.

The major deviation in my recipe, aside from changing the type of cheese, omitting the rosemary, and doubling the quantities of ingredients, was the addition of water to the dough mixture. I suspect that if you followed Ms. Perelman's advice and used a food processor to cut the cheese and butter into the flour, the addition of water would be unnecessary, which is probably why she doesn't call for it in her recipe. Unfortunately, my old-timey kitchen doesn't contain a food processor.So maybe these nibbly-bits were not texturally perfect by Perelman's standards but like I always say, perfectionism impedes progress. In any event, you're likely going to be eating them while consuming alcohol and may be willing to overlook any possible imperfections.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup of crumbled blue cheese

• 2 cups of shredded cheddar cheese

• 8 tablespoons of butter (1 stick or 1/4 pound)

• 1 and 1/2 cups of all-purpose flour plus more for the counter

• 1/3 - 1/2 cup cold water

• sea salt and freshly ground pepper

Methods:
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F.Mix the first four ingredients together using a pastry cutter until the butter has been cut into the flour, as if you were making pastry. Then add the water a bit at a time and stir with a fork until the crumbs hold together in dough form. Cut the dough in half and wrap each half in a square of wax paper. Chill for 15-20 minutes. On a floured surface, roll the dough to approximately 1/8 inch thickness. Cut the flattened dough into approximate 1-inch diamond shapes or squares. Dock each cracker with a skewer or knife point, then dab lightly with a bit of water. Sprinkle with sea salt and freshly ground pepper. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until the edges are lightly browned. Set the baking sheet on a rack to cool.

Here's my dough. It doesn't look bad here but just be aware that blue cheese can add a bit of a greyish hue to things.

Nectarine Crumble

There are a number of easy-to-make fruit desserts, which consist of baked fruit covered in various types of crumbs or batter. These go by the names of Brown Betties, grunts, cobblers, crumbles and crisps. They're all variations on a theme.

Because I had recently purchased some seemingly ripe, but actually rock-hard nectarines, I was inspired to design a recipe to both soften and sweeten them, that is, to bake them into submission.

Ingredients for fruit base:

• 7 nectarines sliced (no need to peel because they aren't creepily fuzzy-skinned like peaches)
• 1/2 cup plum jam (apricot jam should work just as well)
• 1 tablespoon flour
• pinch of salt

The nectarines, in a pretense of ripeness.

Ingredients for topping:

• 1/3 cup melted butter
• 1/3 cup brown sugar
• 1/3 cup flour
• 1 cup rolled oats
• pinch of salt



The topping

Methods:
Pre-heat your oven to 350 degrees F. After slicing the nectarines, combine the ingredients for the fruit base in a bowl then transfer to an ovenproof baking dish. Mix together the ingredients for the topping and place evenly over the fruit. Bake for approximately 50 minutes or until the fruit is bubbling at the edges of the baking dish and the crumbly topping is golden brown. Serve warm with vanilla icecream.