Easter treats + Pikachu bread?

I am so, so, soooo excited! For the past little while I have been feeling a little... suffocated. As to why I've been feeling this way is beyond me, seriously I feel like a rat in the cage... maybe not the nicest of examples but that's literally how I've been feeling. I'm sure it has something to do with the fact that I sit in a teeny, tiny, stuffy office four a minimum of twelve hours a day, then I head home, make my lunch, shower, then sleep in a basement... yeah, I'm sure that has something to do with it. Nevertheless, for the past four or so months, no, no, more than that, probably since October I have been wanting to go on vacation. I almost did a few times then decided to save my money. Yesterday though, I got the itch, the scratch, the want and the need to leave.

I thought about a couple places. First I looked around Europe, then Asia (but I'll be visiting Jordan in Korea in September so I thought if I was going to go to Asia I might as well just visit Jordan), then I thought... Canada. I live in such a beautiful country and I've never really visited. Sure, I went to Winnipeg and Prince-Edward-Island a couple of years when my mom was working out there, but it was the winter so I didn't really get to go outside, and I was younger too. Now that I'm older, enjoy to run, and can really appreciate my surroundings I figured why not. Where did I decide? Vancouver, British Columbia. What's nice is, I've always wanted to go there, and luckily I have family who are willing to take me in for a week ;). I'm really looking forward to it. It'll be nice to spend time with some of my dads family, especially in such a beautiful province such as British Columbia. I leave next Thursday! I know it's so soon which makes it so much better because I won't have get the jitter bug of excitement for too long! I am looking very forward to it, and I'm sure will be taking a million and one pictures while I'm out there!

Easter Nests

Recipe from my head - inspired by the cyber world

As for recipes. Well, my mom left this morning for Montreal, yes... that's another reason why I wanted to go on vacation. I had one week between when I finish this job and when I have to start work in Montreal. To be honest this really hasn't been the easiest of jobs which is why I really feel like I need a vacation so voila. Anyways, she left this morning, and seeing as she will be seeing my adorable twin cousins this weekend for Easter I figured I would make them a cute little snack.

I'm sure by now, all of us foodies have all come across "birds nest" at one point or another. I'm not sure where the recipe originates from, nor did I look at a recipe. I simply used the remaining ingredients that I had left and through some stuff together. I have to say, these are seriously the cutest things. It immediately made my heart melt, and made me feel like I was six again. These would be the cutest place settings for Easter dinner, or even brunch (don't want to start off the day on the wrong foot!) but honestly, how cute, and... seriously four ingredients, you can add, subtract more ingredients but these are so easy, and they'd be so fun to make with kids too!

Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup butterscotch chipits
• 1 1/4 cups chow mein noodles
• 1/2 cup slivered almonds
• Chocolate eggs to put into your nests

Directions:
In a microwave safe bowl, microwave your butterscotch chipits for 3o seconds. Once melted, add your slivered almonds and chow mein noodles and mix thoroughly making sure the chocolate is well coated on your ingredients. Using a 1/4 cup scoop, add your mix into the cup, on parchment paper/silpat/wax paper anything really place the mixed scoop of ingredients, gently press three eggs on top and a nest will be formed. Sprinkle with coconut for "feathers", or add coconut extract to the chocolate, if you're not vegan top with Peeps, so much you can do!

As for added Easter-ness, how friggin amazingly cute are these bad boys? I mean, do they not just scream Bugs Bunny, Easter, deliciousness? I think so!

These were pan-fried for ten minutes with EVOO + 1 tsp garlic salt + pepper to taste + dried spiced tomato flakes ... scrumptious honestly, it was a wonderful afternoon snack.

Molasses Oatmeal Bread

Recipe taken from here

... in case my art skills aren't good enough, these are supposed to be rabbits... or Pikachu's ;)

Okay, okay, last night I wasn't planning on baking... but, well, you get inspired and then you feel like you just can't wait another day, or until the weekend to make that dish, or baked good, or bread that is on the brain. Well that was me last night, while driving home. All I could think about was bread. Sweet, tasty, oatmeal, molasses, bunnies (what?) bread. No, no don't worry no animals were harmed while making this bread, but some sure were laughed at!

I was re-arranging some of the meals that I had planned on making because some plans were changed so I wanted everything to flow nicely. Well, I have an oatmeal planned for Thursday (which will be posted sometime after hopefully) that I will be adding molasses too. I was trying to look for other flavour pairings with molasses when I came across a recipe for Molasses Oatmeal Bread. Well of course I had to make that. It's vegan, looked simple enough, and from the ingredient list it sure sounded marvelous. 45 minutes, 43 minutes, 30 minutes, 28 minutes... the countdown until I would be able to make my bread it was killing me.

You know when people tell you to read a recipe before making it? Yes, this is definitely the case with this bread. BEFORE you continue, this is NOT a difficult bread, so that's not what I'm saying it's just... it took a lot of time. 30 minutes to let the oatmeal and boiling water sit (which got reduced to 15 minutes), one hour for the first rise... oops, 45 minutes, then an additional 45-60 minutes for the final rise... 15 minutes playing with the dough + 10 or so while the oven baked good enough! ... let's just set the record straight, this is the first time I have never let the bread rise for it's directed time... did it get ruined? Heck no, sure the animals may of turned out a little well... odd, but that did not take away from their tastes.

Oh my goodness are these ever good. To be quite franc, the smell that these emanate... are definitely not something I'd ride home about... honestly to me they kind of stunk. However, while touching the dough they felt like soft, soft sponges. I gave one to Jenna to eat, she really liked them (it was too late for me to eat... seriously it was 11:30 pm by the time they were done)... yes on a work night too, I mean... REALLY, did I really need to have them that badly?! Crazy I am I tell ya! These are... definitely one of my favourite breads I've ever made, and actually they are my first rolls! I was really happy with the outcome, deformed animals and all. They are sweet but not overly sweet, they are insanely soft, crispy on the outside and just make you feel awesome. I brought two to work, and totally regretting not bringing in a third. These are definitely going to be made again, they were a breeze to make, and were delicious to eat!

... before making these, check your stove if anyone left any fries on the bottom of your stove... nobody likes a fire alarm before any food is even put into the oven...

Ingredients:

• 1 cup rolled oats (old fashioned)
• 1 1/2 cups boiling water
• 3/4 cup molasses
• 3 tbsp canola oil
• 2 tsp salt
• 2 cups warm water
• 1 tbsp active dry yeast
• 4 cups whole wheat bread flour
• 4 cups whole wheat flour

Directions:

Combine the oats and the boiling water in a large mixing bowl and let sit for 30 minutes.

Add the molasses, canola oil, and salt to the oatmeal mixture and stir to combine. In a separate bowl, dissolve the yeast in the warm water. Add to the molasses and oatmeal mixture.

Gradually stir in the flour, one cup at a time. Once the dough begins to pull away from the sides of the bowl, turn the dough out onto a floured surface and knead in the remaining flour until the dough is smooth (about 6-8 minutes). The amount of flour needed will vary based on the weather and other factors.

Place the dough in a greased bowl, turning over to coat all sides. Cover with a damp cloth and let rise until doubled (about one hour). Punch down, and divide in half. Shape into two loaves or rolls, if desired. Transfer the loaves to lightly greased bread pans or the rolls to a lightly greased baking sheet. Cover with the damp cloth and let rise for an additional 45 minutes to 1 hour.

Preheat the oven to 400°F. Bake for 5 minutes and then reduce the heat to 350°F. Bake for an additional 40 minutes for loaves, and an additional 25-30 minutes for rolls. The bread is done when it sounds hollow when tapped lightly - mine were rolls and were only in there for the beginning five minutes + 35 minutes afterward.

"It’s a devilfish!! Looks like crab cake but also looks like bread of some kind." - my dad... really a crab cake?

What do you think this looks like?

Best of 2010, Hello 2011!

Happy New Year again!

I know I blogged yesterday, but I didn't really talk about New Years, instead I talked about my anniversary with Jordan. New Years Eve was incredibly exciting, probably the best one I have celebrated up to date. I was intending on staying home, because a couple of weeks before New Years Jordan's parents had decided that they were going to take the family to Nathan Phillip's Square in Toronto, however, they had asked if my mom and her boyfriend would want to join and get a hotel so that I could go to. Unfortunately that wasn't the case since they had decided to go to Montreal. I wasn't really interested in partying because it would more than likely be with people that I'm not really interested in hanging out with since my good friends had decided to go out of town.

Well, it was two days after our anniversary, Jordan's parents came in the afternoon to pick him up and head downtown for the night. After about ten or so minutes I had gotten a call from Jordan's dad asking if I wanted them to turn back and come pick me up, I said no since it was a family thing and was more than happy spending it at home with my cats. However, he asked a few more times and I said sure. I really was appreciative that they did this because it was a lot of fun.

We headed downtown, brought all of our stuff into the hotel. After taking a couple shots we walked down a few blocks and found a Thai restaurant. It was really good, I had bean curd and veggies, incredibly delicious. We then headed back to the hotel and hung out for a couple of hours. We decided to make our way down to Nathan Phillips (which we could see from our hotel room which was completely amazing) at about 9 o'clock. It was so warm out it was wonderful. It was supposed to pour and that didn't happen so it was awesome!

We stayed out until 11:30 pm. We saw Divine Brown, Shawn Desman (his brother), Kids Wearing Crowns, The Stereo's and I believe that was it. The performers weren't amaziiiing but it was lots of fun. Jordan's sister and I brought lots of energy which seemed to pump those around us. Unfortunately at around 11:00 pm lots of creepy Torontonians were coming out (I am NOT a Toronto person at all, they give me the heebs to be completely honest), there was one in particular who just freaked us all out. Needless to say at this point we were all getting very freaked, annoyed and anxious so we made our way back to the hotel. We sat at the windowsill, talked, reminisced about the year and at 11:58 pm I realized it was almost 2011. It was fun, we were watching it live, and had it turned on on the tv too (which we realized had a ten second delay), so I had first started the countdown (looking at the tv) at 25 seconds, then looked "live" and realized it was 15 seconds until 2011. 10, 9, 8, 7.... 3, 2, 1 HAPPY NEW YEAR!

We clinked our glasses, about a minute or so later got a kiss from Jor and we watched the fireworks, it was beautiful. After talking for about an hour or so more we decided to go to sleep. The next day we stayed in the hotel until about 2 in the afternoon, packed our stuff, got out of the hotel, made way to a sushi restaurant then went to Jordan's grandfathers. We had dinner there, spent a couple of hours, then made Jordan and I got dropped off at my place. We then finished the evening off by watching a couple episodes of Fringe.

So that is how I spent my New Years Eve + day, hope yours was as much as mine was.

At the beginning of each year, most people set out resolutions for what they want to modify to their "life" for the next year. Now, most people make resolutions and end up breaking them about a week or two into the new year. Myself however, I am not like that... I am one of those people that if I write something down, or I tell myself something I make it the holy word. Last year I stuck with my resolution all through out and I'm hoping the same thing happens this year.

This year my resolutions are as so:

• To put some weight on, so far I am up a few already (I actually started my resolution early and started on the 28th)
• To not worry about my weight so much (I'm hoping that with time I will talk more about ... some of these issues)
• To weigh myself once a week
• To start eating healthier again, and not just binging on ice cream, cookies and cake
• To make a weekly meal plan and sticking with it
• To feel happier about myself/life
• To continue blogging, and learning about nutrition
• Start working out regularly again
  

I know that the majority of these have to do with weight, but over the past couple of months I have struggled with that. As above, I am hoping that with time I will have more confidence and will be able to talk about it, until then, I want to focus on my resolutions and get healthier physically and psychologically. These aren't the easiest of goals, but they also aren't the hardest. These are all goals that are incredibly important to me and I know I need to work on them so I will do so.

I would love if some of you would share your resolutions with me, so that we could encourage each other because sometimes just getting a little encouragement from others can really make a difference.

On this post, I am not going to be posting any new recipes as I am going to post my twelve favourite desserts of the year. I mean, I have made way too many desserts that this was incredibly difficult, but these were ones that came to mind when I thought of the best! I didn't want to do meals because well I just felt like doing desserts :P.

Chocolate Cherry Kisses Almond Walnut Cookies + Chocolate Chip Cookies (I cheated since there were two on the same page ;) )
Amazing Hard Boiled Egg Oatmeal Cookies

Green Tea Almond Thumbprints
Anise Drop Cookies x2 ;)
Thick and Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies with/without Banana
Red Velvet Caramel Chip Cookies
Cranberry Apple Streusel Pie
Anise Ice cream

White Chocolate Blueberry Oatmeal Cookies
Strawberry Goji Yoghurt Peach Muffins
Almond Lemon Cake
Vanilla and Nutmeg Risotto with Fresh Berries

Hope you will check them out! Have yourself a great day!

Christmas Wishes + Caramel Stuffed Apple Cider Cookies

Hello everyone!

Merry Christmas Eve, or Happy Holidays to you. Today is the day that I actually celebrate my first Christmas, since my parents are split up my brother and I always spend one day with my mom or dad on Christmas Eve and vice versa on Christmas day. Each year we swap who get's us on Christmas Eve/Day. This year, i.e. today we are spending it with my mom and her boyfriend and tomorrow we are spending it with my dad and his girlfriend. To be honest, it is kind of a drag but I mean that's what happens when your family isn't together still right? You just have to deal with things that aren't in your hands.

Tonight we are going to have dinner at a restaurant. I've mentioned this prior... it's going to be weird. I really am about tradition, I don't necessarily like change, even though I'm a human being and really should be able to adapt easily, I just really dislike it. Especially in cases like this, Christmas dinner at a restaurant? Weird. I mean, at least we aren't going to McDonald's and we are actually going to a fancy smancy restaurant but still. I will try and take pictures tonight, I hope that they don't forbid camera's for whatever reason. I've already looked at The North Restaurant's menu online and will definitely be having the Pumpkin Seed Crusted Seabass, Tempura Vegetable Roll, Avocado Puree, Chilli Roasted Pepper Sauce. I cannot wait, my brother and my dad went to this restaurant about a month or so ago and raved about it for days, so we shall see!

Afterward we will be coming home, perhaps watch a movie and will be opening our gifts. We will then talk as we usually do, go to sleep, have a really nice breakfast with tons of fruit and WHIPPED CREAM. (I've been craving whipped cream for quite a while now, twice I've gone to the grocery store put it in the cart and taken it out. My mom went to the grocery store by herself today, and came home with a can, I guess I have to eat it now right? :) ). We will then head over to my dads, do our gift exchange, possibly watch a movie, then head over to my dads girlfriends, do a gift exchange and spend the day there.

Before I go ahead and post the amazing cookie recipe, I just want to apologize for not posting as much. It's not that I don't have recipes, because I have recipes coming out of the wazzoo. I've just had a lot of personal things going on right now. I don't feel comfortable talking about it right now, but maybe with time I will talk about it. In the mean time I am going to try and post as frequently as possible, please don't hold it against me.

When I had first found this recipe it was along the time that I had made the Cinnamon Ginger Apple Cider Bread and the Crystallized Ginger and Cinnamon Apple Cider Bagels. I had so much apple cider left in the house since mom's boyfriend always likes to buy things and never finish it, but I just couldn't find a good cookie recipe with liquid in it to make it something amazing. Instead I turned away this recipe.

However, when my mom had received the invitation for the dinner at Casino Rama, they had stuck some mulled apple cider and candy ribbons in the envelope. Immediately I thought back to this recipe. There was no way I was going to be given powdered mulled apple cider and use it as a drink, not after I found this recipe which contained ooey-gooey melted caramel on the inside of a cookie, no way Jose.

I was incredibly excited while I was making this recipe. It was honestly one of the best cookie batters I have ever worked with. Not only that, the instant you pour in the mulled cider spices the whole room just opened up and praised you, yeah, maybe I live in a fairy tale. But I mean seriously, it was fantastic. You then get the mix ready, stuff it with some caramels (after perhaps eating too many while unwrapping them... sometimes I wish they came unwrapped because it would seriously prevent you from eating as many of them, I mean it may not stop you completely but it could definitely help!). Stick them in the oven and just die. Seriously, the aroma that the room gets filled in, then you can see the caramel ooze out of the cracks of the top of the cookie, seriously heavenly.

These are by far one of my favourite cookies I made for the holidays. Heck, it's probably one of the best cookies I've ever had in my life, I don't say that lightly either. These are so incredibly addictive. If I had more mulled apple cider mix I would definitely be in the kitchen right now instead of writing entry.

Truthfully I almost didn't even want to post this recipe and keep it as a secret (even though it is on the internet... it would mean that you would have to go out and seek it for yourself), but it's Christmas Eve I thought I should give you something! This is truthfully one of the best gifts you will receive, and it will definitely be the best virtual gift you receive. You need to make this. I cannot rave about it enough, it is so frickin' fantastic!

Caramel Stuffed Apple Cider Cookies

Recipe taken from here

Ingredients:

• 1 cup unsalted butter, nearly melted
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 7.4 ounce package Spiced Apple Cider
• 2 eggs 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 (14 ounce) bag Kraft Caramels

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (190 degrees C). Line rimless cookie sheets with parchment paper. It has to be parchment this time.

In a stand mixer, cream together butter, sugar, salt, and all 10 packets of apple cider mix until smooth and fluffy. Beat in eggs and vanilla extract, then mix in the baking soda and baking powder. Add the flour and mix until just combined.

With a standard cookie scoop, scoop the dough scrapping off the excess as you go up the bowl. Flatten the dough slightly in your hand and place a caramel in the center. Work the dough around the caramel sealing well. Place the cookies two inches apart on the sheets.

Bake 12 to 14 minutes or until golden brown around the edges. After baking, carefully slide the parchment with the cookies onto the counter. Let cool until they are no longer soft but still slightly warm. Twist gently to remove, and cool the rest of the way upside down on the parchment or on a cooling rack.

I hope you guys have yourself an absolutely wonderful Christmas Eve/Day. I hope it is spent with your beautiful and lovely families. Lots of food is shared. Lots of laughs are expelled from your lungs. And joyous moments and memories are created.

I also wanted to say a quick thank you. I may only have six "actual" followers, however, I know that there are people who visit my blog with out being followers and to that I am truly thankful. When I first started this blog I didn't know how it would turn out, but I have many views, and even if I don't have followers that I could put a face to I am glad I continued doing so. It has helped me learn, grow, and has helped me fall asleep at night. I love you all, and appreciate everything. Hopefully for Christmas on my blog I can get a few more followers, if not I am still thankful.

Wishing you nothing but the best.

Compost Cookies

Hello and welcome back from Christmas! Hoping you all got everything you wished for, got to spend your Christmas with your loved ones without any drama or heartaches and had your bellies full of food!

My Christmas Eve (i.e. Christmas with my mom) turned out to be good. We went down to Barrie to the restaurant I had posted before. Unfortunately they didn't have any sea bass so my meal bad to be switched since I don't eat any other meat. I ended up having a big chunk of salmon. It was alright at best, incredibly salty, brother said the chef was Polish and they loooove to use salt. I could definitely see that, even the sushi that came with the meal was salty... kind of confused me. My mom, her boyfriend, and my brother absolutely devoured their meals. Then the dessert came and oi... I definitely could of done better with my eyes closed, their specialty is certainly not their desserts and seafood. The meat dishes really did look delicious however.

*Note: the presentation of my dish was absolutely stunning, unfortunately due to the lighting pictures didn't come out :(

We then went home and opened our gifts. Woke up in the morning, and I made blueberry pancakes with a side of fruit. We stayed with my mom until about 12, where the remaining of the time we watched Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives... I love Guy, and I love that show!

We headed over to my dads. Opened our gifts, watched The Town, my cousin came over so we talked, they all did Tequila shots, gross, and then they play PlayStation 3. After a little bit we headed over to my dad's girlfriends... watched a really boring dog competition... then had dinner, dessert, opened gifts. It was nice, had a lot of laughs and shared many stories, it really was a great two days.

Recipe adapted from here

I have seen many varieties of cookies for Compost Cookies. I like the concept of behind this cookie because it allows you to get rid of your remnants in the cupboard. For me this included a lot of random things. However, the outcome of these cookies were absolutely divine. I can't even tell you how many I had, but all I know is every bite hid a little gem that another bite may not of had. I liked that these cookies didn't fluff up, and were thin. I find I always have a difficult time making thin cookies, I'm not sure why, but I found these cookies to be so beautiful especially due to their thinness! I would definitely make this cookie again, because it is at your discretion as to what you want to throw in, just like every cookie basically, however, the idea behind this cookie is simply that! Great cookie, great recipe, great outcome, would definitely make again.
Ingredients:

• 1 cup unsalted butter
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 3/4 cup light brown sugar
• 1 tbsp honey
• 1 tsp coconut extract
• 2 large eggs
• 1 3/4 cups all purpose flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 2 tsp salt
• 2 heaping tbsp Rolo hot chocolate mix
• 1 tbsp chopped crystallized ginger
• 1/4 cup milk chocolate
• 1/4 cup butterscotch chips
• 1/4 cup dessicated unsweetened coconut
• 1 cup Life brand cereal, chopped
• 2 tbsp caramel sauce
• 3 small boxes of raisins
• 1 tsp cinnamon
  

Directions: In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream together butter, sugars, and corn syrup on medium-high until fluffy and pale yellow in color, about 2-3 minutes.

On a lower speed, add eggs one at a time and coconut extract until well incorporated. Increase mixing speed to high and let it go for 10 minutes -- the mixture will become really pale and will almost double in size

In a medium sized bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt

When 10 minutes are up, add flour mixture slowly until just combined, about 45-60 seconds. Chop up and mix together all of your baking and snack ingredients in a small bowl, and fold into batter with a spatula until just incorporated.

Using a medium-sized ice cream scoop, portion cookie dough on parchment paper-lined cookie sheet and wrap the entire thing tightly with plastic wrap. Refrigerate for a minimum of 1 hour and up to 1 week.

Heat oven to 400F and arrange cookies on cookie sheets at least 4" apart. Bake 9-11 minutes, until they are golden in color and slightly brown along the edges.

Cool the cookies completely on the sheet pan (or just eat them immediately...)

Recipe yields 15 large cookies

Enjoy :)

Orange Honey Lavender Palmiers + Triple C Palmiers (Chocolate, Caramel, Coconut)

"A palm tree (French: palmier) is a Spanish or French pastry in a palm shape or a butterfly shape, sometimes called palm leaves, elephant ears or glasses. It is thought to have originated in France around the turn of the century, but appears to a broader geography than just France. There is no known first credit for the recipe."

"Palmiers are made from puff pastry, a laminated dough similar to the dough used for croissant, but without the yeast. Puff pastry is alternating layers of dough and melted butter. The puff pastry is rolled out, coated with sugar, and then the two sides are rolled up together so that they meet in the middle, making a roll that is then cut into about 1/4" slices and baked. Usually it is rolled in sugar before baking. In the Puerto Rican version, it is topped with honey." - Wikipedia

Over the course of the summer I saw many different versions of palmiers. I had never had them before, and I had a box of puff pastry in my fridge so I decided that I would be trying out these suckers. I mean c'mon now, buttery puff pastry with honestly any toppings that I want? Yeah, obviously I couldn't this slip away from me. I made two different versions. One with lavender, orange zest, sugar and honey, which was honestly beautiful. The flavours came so well together, it seriously tasted like tea time. The other I added chocolate chips, Life brand cereal, coconut, and tons of ooey-gooey melted caramel, yeah... those were DEFINITELY sinful.

I seriously loved these beautiful little pastries. They were fun to make, packed with flavour and were seriously one of the easiest baked goods I've ever made. I really wanted to make my own puff pastry, but since I had a box in the fridge I figured I might as well use it up. However, now that I don't have any, I have a good excuse to make some :)!

Orange Honey Lavender Palmiers

• 2 tsp crushed Lavender
• 1 1/2 tsp orange zest
• 1 heaping tbsp honey
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 sheet of Puff Pastry

Triple C Palmiers (Chocolate, Caramel, Coconut)

• 1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 1 1/2 cups life brand cereal processed
• 1 cup coconut, toasted
• 1 cup caramel

Directions:

Heat oven to 450 degrees F.

Mix your ingredients together in a bowl. Sift some sugar (with no honey in it) over your workstation. Roll out the puff pastry. Sprinkle your lavender mix over the puff pastry. (Or change accordingly for the Triple C version, or whichever ingredients you decide).

Fold up the left and right vertical side inward, stopping at about 1/4 of the pastry. Fold both sides that meet at the center and touch with each other. Press the two sides together gently as picture shown. Let the pastry chill in the fridge for at least half an hour. (Repeat with any more puff pastry you may have.)

Transfer pastry on your workstation carefully. Cut pastry into strips about 1.25cm (1/2 inch) in thickness. Pinch and press the sides of the two rolls together to ensure that they don't unroll during baking.

Refrigerate for fifteen minutes so that the flavours combine and to make it easier to cut.

Place on baking tray lined with baking paper . Leave about 5 cm (2 inches) between each because they will increase in size after baking. Bake in batches if needed.

Set the tray in the middle of the oven.

Bake for about 12-15 minutes, turning once at about 7 minutes, until the sugar has caramelized and golden brown. Allow them to cool on a rack for 10 minutes. Enjoy!

Hard Boiled Egg Chocolate Chip Toffee Cookies + White Chocolate Cranberry Orange Pecan Hard Boiled Egg Cookies

After having made the Amazing Hard Boiled Egg Oatmeal Cookies and falling absolutely and madly in love with them, I knew that I would have to try out the Hard Boiled Egg Chocolate Chip Cookies.

I had a lot of fun making these cookies, there's just something about watching a cookie come together through a food processor. I'm not sure why I like the process so much, but I really do enjoy it. This time around I even looked forward to the hard boiled egg smell, the reason for this was because I knew that it was the key, secret ingredient to making these cookies oh so wonderful.

These cookies are so simple to make, create such a breeze for a clean up, and result in such a sweet treat. I liked this cookie a lot, but to me they were not as fantastic as the oatmeal cookies, I think this was due to the chocolate. I liked the cookies though, they were soft inside, and crispy on the outside. I added additional Skor bits, and instead of stirring the chocolate chips into the dough, I decided to chop them up in the food processor, this definitely made the cookies a lot more chocolatey. Next time I will certainly mix them in. I'm going to play around with the flavours in this recipe and see what I can come up with, perhaps a white chocolate cranberry orange walnut cookie for the holiday season? Ooohh, I think I may whip up a batch of those today!

Ingredients:

• 2 3/4 cups All-Purpose flour
  
• 1 cup cold unsalted butter
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 2 hard boiled eggs, chopped
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 3/4 cup toffee bits

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Combine flour and butter in food processor. Pulse until mixture is mealy and coarse. Add the salt and baking soda and pulse to mix. Transfer mixture to large bowl (you can leave it in the food processor if yours is large enough).

Add sugars, vanilla and hard boiled eggs to food processor. Pulse just until the mixture begins to come together. Transfer sugar and egg mixture to the bowl, and combine with flour and butter mixture. Stir in chocolate chips and toffee bits.

Scoop cookies with a medium scoop and place on cookie sheet. (I refrigerated my dough in between batches) Bake approximately 13 -15 minutes or until cookies are lightly browned on the edges. Allow cookies to cool on the cookie sheet for 5 minutes and then transfer to cooling rack.

White Chocolate Cranberry Orange Pecan Hard Boiled Egg Cookies - long title or what?

So, this recipe really does create the most scrumptious cookies! I'm so glad I decided to give the recipe another go, and change the ingredients around. This was seriously one of the most perfect cookies. It was jam packed with healthy and sinful ingredients. It was packed with full frontal flavours and seriously left you wanting more. The cranberries gave a beautiful tartness, with a zing from the orange zest, a crunch from the pecans, then a subtle sweetness from the white chocolate. Seriously, it was just perfect. The cookie was so soft, it was exactly how I like my cookies. I cooked them for fifteen minutes, and they still had that raw-like cookie-esk dough that I love oh so much, plus, with the cranberries finely chopped you get beautiful pigments of purpley-reds adorned all through out the cookies! I will be bringing these cookies to a Christmas party this weekend, I'm interested to see what others think of it! This is certainly a perfect cookie for this time of year! I will without a doubt be making these cookies again, whether I make it like this, or play around with the ingredients, the base of this recipe is so divine! You should definitely try it for yourself!
Recipe adapted from above ^

Ingredients:

• 2 3/4 cups All-Purpose flour
  
• 1 cup cold unsalted butter
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 2 hard boiled eggs, chopped
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 cups cranberries, pulsed in the food process
• 1 cup white chocolate chips
• 2 tsp orange zest
• 1 cup finely chopped pecans
  

Directions:

See above recipe.

Make sure to try them out!

Mexican Snickerdoodles + Hot Chocolate on a Spoon

Mexican Snickerdoodles

Recipe taken from here

For the past couple of weeks it seems as though "Mexican Snickerdoodles" are popping up everywhere. I love cayenne pepper, and I really enjoy Snickerdoodles so I thought what is there to lose. Considering everyone has been making them and has been giving such good feedback about them I figured why not.Oiii... I tried this cookie, and no, I did not like it, not one bit. Some of it may have to do with the fact that it was chocolate, however, the recipe I followed (not the recipe I linked, I couldn't find the recipe I used... the recipe I linked has much less cayenne so it might be okay), however, there was just way too much cayenne. It felt as though a whole bottle of cayenne had been dumped in the cookies, however, I know that's not the case because I was VERY meticulous when I put the cayenne in because I know just how hot it can be if you go crazy. I just... I really was not impressed with these. I brought them into work and people did like them, maybe I've just become a sissy and can't handle as much spice anymore... I don't know. I'm still determined to try it again, perhaps Mexican Hot Chocolate Bark or something, we shall see.

Hot Chocolate on a Spoon

Recipe adapted from here

Note: I'm aware of how atrocious these pictures are, the lighting was absolutely horrid and I didn't have enough time to try and work with it :(

I had mentioned in a post or two prior to this that I was making a "cookie box" for the two accountants I was working, when I found this recipe I knew that it would be perfect for the one accountant. While most people are coffee drinkers, he was a hot chocolate man, kudos to that because so am I. I had seen this recipe popping up for quite a while, and when I was making the box for them I thought what perfect addition to it. For Susan I added some of the homemade vanilla, and Darren had mentioned that his wife never bakes so I figured, perfect.

I'm not sure how they tasted because I gave him the whole batch, but they were definitely cute. They were a little bit all over the place since the ice cube tray I used was star shape and the chocolate I was working with wasn't as spreadable as I was intending it to be. Nevertheless it worked out and they definitely looked cute. I was happy with the outcome, and I definitely think this is a perfect addition to any homemade gift for the season especially for people who aren't coffee fans and/or have younger children at home.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate (bittersweet, semisweet, milk, and white chocolate all work)
• 1/4 cup Rolo hot chocolate mix
• 1/2 cup confectioner’s sugar, sifted
• 1 1/2 tsp milk
• Pinch of salt
• Sprinkles for decorations
• (6 cups milk and 2 cups heavy cream if you plan to enjoy these as soon as you make them ;) )
  

Directions:

If your chocolate is in a block, chop it into even-sized meltable pieces. Simmer a couple inches of water in a pan, then turn down the heat so the water is below a simmer. I like to remove the pan from the heat, but if you keep it on, keep that water below a simmer. Place glass or stainless steel bowl over the top to make a double boiler. If the bowl touches the water it’s alright, as long as your water is mildly warm, not hot. Dump chocolate into the clean, dry bowl and stir as the chocolate melts. (If you are patient and let those chunks melt slowly, keeping them from getting over 90 degrees F or 88 degrees F for milk and white chocolate, the chocolate will stay “in temper” and will still be nice and pretty when it cools.)

Once the chocolate is 2/3 melted, with just some pieces of the chocolate unmelted, remove the bowl from the pan, dry the bottom with a towel and continue stirring until chocolate is fully melted. This is just one more step to keep the chocolate from getting too hot.

Add hot chocolate mix, sugar, and salt and continue to stir until combined. The chocolate will be thicker, as thick as frosting, but stir on. If it looks and feels grainy it’s possible you’ve accidentally gotten a drop of water in the mixture. If it has gotten water in it and has seized up, it will still taste alright, it just won’t be as pretty or smooth or melt quite as fast.
Scoop chocolate into a ziplock bag and clip off the corner.

Pipe the chocolate into your chocolate mold, tapping the mold on the counter to make sure all the chocolate settles into the mold. Add a stir stick and you’re done. The stir stick should stay upright without any trouble. If the chocolate bursts through the bag in places you don’t want it to, just put the whole thing in another bag. If the chocolate starts to get too thick to squeeze, just put the whole thing in a microwave-safe bowl and microwave for 30 seconds or so at half power.
Let the chocolate cool either at room temperature or in the fridge if you’re in a hurry. I find the chocolate pops out of the mold nicely if it’s been in the fridge. It’s okay to cool chocolate in the fridge, just don’t store it there, because chocolate soaks up the odors of other foods pretty quickly.

If you don’t like the look of the chocolate once it is removed from the mold, you can dip the cubes into a new batch of plain melted chocolate for a shinier finish (again, try to keep chocolate from heating over 90 degrees, or use candy melts, which don’t need to be in temper, they will stay shiny and pretty even if you go above 90 degrees). This also lets you add sprinkles or crushed candy or just lets you dip in fun patterns. I like dipping at an angle into a different color of chocolate.

In order to enjoy these, heat up any combo of milk, water, half and half, or cream. I like 6 cups milk with 2 cups heavy cream. One ounce of chocolate on a stick should be melted into one cup milk or cream. So a standard ice cube-tray block, which is 3/4 an ounce, should be melted into a mug with 3/4 cup milk or cream in it.

How to store it: Dark chocolate will keep in an airtight container for up to a year, milk and white chocolate for several months. Remember, don’t keep it in the fridge because it is really good at absorbing odors.

This recipe is perfect because you really can alter it to meet the persons tastes' and there are tons and tons of different options from the type of chocolate, to the types of hot chocolate, the spices added, the extracts used, to even the sprinkles you want to decorate them with, be adventurous and try it for yourself!

Enjoy :)

Cranberry and Banana Loaf with Ginger and Walnuts (Eggless) + Ooey-Gooey-Banana Cinnamon Rolls + Samoas

Cranberry and Banana Loaf with Ginger and Walnuts (Eggless)

Recipe adapted from here

Up until this point in my life I don't think I could ever come across a loaf that tastes' as heavenly as this. I mean, I have posted numerous loaves on this blog and I can say they have all been extremely delicious but this blows all of those out of the water. I just loved EVERYTHING about this. Banana, cranberry, CRYSTALLIZED ginger and then walnuts (I may not be the biggest fan of walnuts, but when added with the other ingredients it just packs such a punch). Even though this recipe is eggless, it is still just as fluffy as it would be if it were made with eggs. All the pureed fruit plus the oil adds such an amazing moistness to the bread. The bread is seriously so moist you really have to be careful or it may crumble in your hands. I didn't eat this with butter because I seriously think it would have ruined it (but again I'm not the biggest fan of butter, I don't even put butter on my corn...). This was so divine and it was such a perfect wrap-up of the summer and a welcoming fall loaf. This will be made many more times I can tell you that right now. Also the colours! I know I'm going to post quite a few pictures of pretty much the same thing but I was so hypnotized by the colours and the way the bread looked I just couldn't help myself. DIIIIVINE!

Ingredients:

• 1 small banana, pureed
• 1 C of fresh cranberries, pureed
• 5 tbsp of grapeseed oil
• 1 cup of fortified soy milk
• 3 tbsp brown sugar
• 2 cups of whole wheat flour
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 5 tbsp of chopped crystallized ginger
• 3 tbsp of chopped walnuts

Directions:

Pre heat the oven at 360 degrees F. Line a 7 and 1/2 inch by 3 and 1/2 inch loaf pan with foil.

In a bowl, add the banana and cranberry purees, brown sugar, oil and milk. Stir well and keep aside.

In another bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, soda, ginger and walnuts and mix well.
Make a well in the centre of the flour mixture. Stir the fruit mixture well. Fold in until everything is just moistened. Spoon the mixture into the prepared pan.

Place the pan in the centre of the pre-heated oven and bake for about 50 minutes or until the top is golden and a toothpick inserted through the centre of the loaf comes out clean.

Cool the loaf in the pan for 10-15 minutes and then transfer to a rack to cool completely before slicing.

Store in air tight containers.

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Ooey-Gooey-Banana Cinnamon Rolls

Recipe adapted from here

I have never made homemade cinnamon buns, excluding the Pillsbury's but those don't count. I had been looking for quite a while for a cinnamon roll recipe, and when I had lots of bananas left I wanted to somehow incorporate them into my cinnamon buns. After doing a little bit of perusing it seemed that others had the same idea as me. I found one recipe that really stuck out to me so I knew I was going to try it. When I woke up the next morning that is exactly what I did and boy was I grateful. These were exceptional. The banana added so much va-va-va-voom to the roll, and I also decided to mash some into the filling and that packed in even more va-va-va-voom. These were soo good, I probably would have eaten them all myself if I didn't give some away. I was so happy that my first attempt at cinnamon rolls were a success (not that I was afraid it wasn't going to be since they really are so simple to make, but I was excited nonetheless). If you like sweet cinnamon rolls and you also love the flavour of banana this is the recipe for you!

Ingredients:

• 2 1/4 tsp active dry yeast
• 1/2 cup vanilla fortified soy milk, heated
  
• 2 tbsp dark brown sugar
• 2 cups bread or all-purpose flour, plus more as needed
• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 large overripe bananas, mashed
• 1/4 cup butter, melted and cooled slightly

Filling:

• 1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
• 2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 cup butter, melted
• 1 mashed banana

Directions:

In a small bowl, stir 1 tablespoon of the sugar into the warm milk. Sprinkle the yeast over the milk and let rest for 10 minutes.

While the yeast is coming to life, in a separate bowl, stir together the flours, cinnamon, remaining tablespoon of sugar and salt. Set aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, place the mashed bananas, melted margarine and the yeast/milk mixture after it has bloomed. Using the paddle attachment, mix the ingredients on medium low until well combined, about 2 minutes. Add half of the flour mixture to the mixing bowl and stir to combine. Slowly mix in the rest of the flour and mix.

Switch the attachment to the dough hook. At this point, your dough may still feel quite wet and soft. Add some flour, a tablespoon at a time, while the machine is running on medium low until the dough starts to come away from the bowl. Knead for about 10 minutes. The dough will be ready when it has formed a nice ball, but is still very soft and slightly tacky to the touch, but comes away cleanly from the bowl. Place the dough in a greased bowl, cover, and allow to rise in a warm place for about 1 hour, or until it has doubled in size.

Punch the dough down; cover and let rest for 5 minutes. While the dough is resting, melt the butter. In a small bowl, combine the sugar and cinnamon. Set aside.

Roll the dough into a 12 x 10-inch rectangle on a floured surface. Brush the dough with the melted butter and sprinkle with the cinnamon sugar mixture, spreading it around the whole surface of the dough with your hand. Drizzle the surface with the remaining melted butter. Roll up the rectangle tightly, from the long side, and pinch the seam to seal. Cut the roll into 12 even slices. (This will be a messy process, as the banana/sugar/butter mixture will start oozing out. Don’t be afraid of it. Just go at it.) Place the slices, cut sides down, in a greased 9-inch square baking pan. Give them a little bit of space in between as they will rise. Cover with plastic wrap and pop them in the fridge to rise overnight.

In the morning, pull the cinnamon buns from the fridge a half hour before baking and place them on top of the stove while the oven preheats to 375°F (if using a glass or dark-coloured pan like I was, reduce the temperature by 25°F). Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until light golden brown.

Remove the cinnamon buns from the oven and set on top of the stove to let cool a bit. (I didn't put any glaze as I found they were rich enough).

Samoas

Recipe taken from here

First may I rant a little bit here for a second? Where are all the Girl Guide cookies in Canada? I see American's posting about all these wonderful looking cookies and I never get to experience the legit thing. I have to resort to making my own and I'll never know, no matter how good mine are if they compare to the legit Girl Guide cookies. ... really, I want to do a foodie-exchange with an American so I can get a chance to try all kinds of American goodies INCLUDING pumpkin pie poptarts and the candy corn kisses :( /sigh...

Over the summer I saw numerous post's about Samoas which are APPARENTLY (I wouldn't know) also known as Caramel de-Lites. Girl Guides describe Samoas as vanilla cookies, dipped in caramel, topped with coconut and drizzled with chocolate. In my books these are all good flavours, yes even the chocolate... chocolate, caramel and coconut are a match made in heaven. I think this cookie might even convince those "coconut-haters" out there that these are divine. Heck it convinced my caramel-hating (I know I didn't even know that was possible!) friend to love these cookies.

These cookies were soooo good. It had a shortbread/sugar cookie type base. Then rich toppings just made this one exquisite cookie. I still really want to try a REAL Girl Guide Samoa, but if that opportunity never arises for me I can gladly say that I have tried a Samoa i.e. Samoa a la Sam!

Note: these took a little bit of time to make but were very very fun. I found it to be relaxing and quite an enjoyable process but the results are definitely worth it!


Cookies:

• 1 cup butter, soft
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 1/4 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• Up to 2 tbsp milk

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350F.

In a large mixing bowl, cream together butter and sugar. Mix in flour, baking powder and salt at a low speed, followed by the vanilla and milk, adding in the milk as needed to make the dough come together without being sticky (it’s possible you might not need to add milk at all). The dough should come together into a soft, not-too-sticky ball. Add in a bit of extra flour if your dough is very sticky.

Roll the dough (working in two or three batches) out between pieces of wax paper to about 1/4-inch thickness (or slightly less) and use a 1 1/2-inch cookie cutter to make rounds. Place on a parchment lined baking sheet and use a knife, or the end of a wide straw, to cut a smaller center hole. Repeat with remaining dough. Alternatively, use scant tablespoons of dough and press into an even layer in a mini donut pan to form the rounds.

Bake cookies for 10-12 minutes, until bottoms are lightly browned and cookies are set. If using a mini donut pan, bake for only about 10 minutes, until edges are light gold.

Cool for a few minutes on the baking sheet then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Topping:

• 3 cups shredded coconut (sweetened or unsweetened)
• 12-oz good-quality chewy caramels
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 3 tbsp milk
• 8 oz dark or semisweet chocolate

Directions:

Preheat oven to 300. Spread coconut evenly on a parchment-lined baking sheet (preferably one with sides) and toast 20 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes, until coconut is golden. Cool on baking sheet, stirring occasionally. Set aside.

Unwrap the caramels and place in a large microwave-safe bowl with milk and salt. Cook on high for 3-4 minutes, stopping to stir a few times to help the caramel melt. When smooth, fold in toasted coconut with a spatula.

Using the spatula or a small offset spatula, spread topping on cooled cookies, using about 2-3 tsp per cookie. Reheat caramel for a few seconds in the microwave if it gets too firm to work with.

While topping sets up, melt chocolate in a small bowl. Heat on high in the microwave in 45 second intervals, stirring thoroughly to prevent scorching. Dip the base of each cookie into the chocolate and place on a clean piece of parchment paper. Transfer all remaining chocolate (or melt a bit of additional chocolate, if necessary) into a piping bag or a ziplock bag with the corner snipped off and drizzle finished cookies with chocolate.

Let chocolate set completely before storing in an airtight container.

Makes about 3 1/2-4 dozen cookies.

ENJOY!

Easy Pea-zy Hallowe'en Bark + Reece's Pieces/Peanut Butter Cup Chocolate Brownies

Have any leftover candy that you just don't know what to do with it (besides from eating it all in one sitting?). How about making some Hallowe'en mix chocolate bark? It's so simple to make, and it could include any of your favourite candies. This bark has some of my all time favourites, Skor and Reece's Pieces, but I also decided to add candy corn for festive colour even though I really dislike the taste. I just find candy corn so gorgeous, I went to Bulk Barn today and saw the Christmas version of candy corn, I was so tempted to buy it just because of it's colours but... ugh, it's so gross. Anywho, onto the bark.

At my dad's work they were bringing in baked goods... or store-bought baked goods, but I decided to make my dad look like a good Samaritan and bake some Hallowe'en treats for him. The proceeds were going to United Way... I couldn't resist; the treats went to a good cause and gave me an excuse to bake. My dad actually ended up winning two passes to the movies, which he ended up passing to me which was even cooler. I brought some bark into work and that went very quickly.

In my dad's tin, I put the following:
Hallowe'en bark - see below
Chocolate Gingerbread Cookies
Iced Pina Colada Shortbread Cookies
Hallowe'en Pinwheel Cookies
Hallowe'en Checkerboard Cookies

It looked festive, had a nice variety of baked goods, and tasted darn good! I was really happy. Now onto the bark recipe which is super-deeelish and incredibly easy to make!

Chocolate Hallowe'en Bark

Ingredients:

• 1 pound dark chocolate
• 1/2 cup Reece's Pieces
• Handful of green M&M's (yes I actually picked them out... black, orange, yellow and green are Hallowe'en c'mon!)
• 2 Skor bars - coarsely chopped
• 1/4 cup of candy corn
• Black and Orange Jimmy's - sporadically sprinkled

Directions:

Prepare all of your ingredients. Set out a baking sheet covered in parchment paper.

Melt the dark chocolate on low heat. Quickly spread it out on the baking sheet to your desired thickness (don't make it too thin or else it will shatter).

Sprinkle all of the toppings on the bark, pushing them down slightly to insure they will stick.

Refrigerate until the bark is firm. Peel off the parchment paper off and break into pieces.

Reece's Pieces/Peanut Butter Cup Chocolate Brownies

When I was younger, where we lived we used to get 300-400 kids on Hallowe'en night sometimes even 500. That was almost 12 years ago though... I moved out of my dad's years ago and moved in with my mom and where she lives... well... we don't get any kids at all. My dad was a Hallowe'en Grinch for quite some years and never bought pumpkins and never handed out candy, he'd simply shut off the lights. Well the past two years he's decided to be more zen with life and thought that he owed back to the community. With that being said he now looks very forward to handing out Hallowe'en to the local children and buys quite an exuberant amount of candy. Well... this year, he bought boxes of chips and Cheetos and boxes of chocolate, and how many kids did he get you ask? Twenty-four. Needless to say he wasn't impressed, because he had sooo much leftover candy. He simply looked at it that it was just karma for all the years he didn't buy candy, but he still wasn't happy. I decided to take some Reece's Pieces and Reece's Peanut Butter Cups off his hands though... I wanted to do some baking c'mon!

I decided to make some brownies. I wanted to make something quick and simple, since I don't get home until eight o'clock at night sometimes later but I wanted to bring something into my co-workers. I decided to use a cake mix and lessen the water and egg consistency making it more fudge like and not as cakey, and it worked. Even my mom who's on her weird diet tried it and was like "OHHH MY GOSH!!!" These were all gone by the end of the day which made me happy and it "helped" my dad out by getting rid of some of his candy ;) not that I complained at all!

This is such a simple recipe and is ideal for those busy days where you want a good treat. You can add any candies/chocolates to make it more special or you can simply keep it brownie-esque but what fun is that?

Ingredients:

• 1 box of Duncan Hines chocolate cake mix
• 1/4 cup cooking oil
• 1/3 cup water
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup Reece's Pieces
• 10 Reece's Peanut Butter Cups

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Mix all of your ingredients in a large bowl. Pour into a lined dish and bake for 45 minutes or until tooth pick comes out clean.

Remember to brush your teeth ;)!