December Cookie Extravaganza Part 5 - Jam Thumbprints

Jam Thumbprints are probably my favourite non-chocolate Christmas cookies. I always manage to eat a truck load of them every year under the premise of "hey at least there's fruit in these ones". It's a slippery slope my friends.


These lovelies are made with a pretty basic dough rolled into balls, dipped in egg whites, covered in walnuts, indented and baked.

Once cooled you fill the indent with jam (hence jam thumbprints). This year strawberry jam was used in place of the usual blueberry. They were almost as good^_^...but surely much better then the raspberry jam my Mum wanted to use.

Jam Thumbprint Cookies

• 2/3 cup butter; softened
• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 egg yolks
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 2 slightly beaten egg whites
• 1 cup finely chopped walnuts
• 1/3-1/2 cup jam

In a large mixing bowl beat butter until creamy. Add half of the flour. Mix in egg yolks, sugar and vanilla until fully incorporated. Add remaining flour and mix well. Cover and chill for 1 hour.

Shape dough into 1-inch balls. Dip dough into the egg whites then roll in walnuts to coat. Place on a lined cookie sheet approximately 1-inch apart. Using your thumb, or the back of a wooden spoon, make an indent in each cookie.

Bake at 375 degrees for 10-12 minutes until edges are lightly browned (if indents lose definition push them back down when they come out of the oven). Cool on a wire rack. Once cooled fill with jam.

December Cookie Extravaganza Part 4 - S'more Bars

Chocolate, marshmallows and graham crackers...one of the best combinations of food ever. I realize that for most people s'mores are reserved for marshmallow roasts around campfires. But really how often do we get campfires? And I am a naturally impatient person with the tendency to crave that which is out of season. So I was VERY excited when I found this recipe (though I can't for the life of me remember where) for S'more Bars last year. Some of the excitement may have been heightened by the fact that I am still currently banned from using my s'more maker (yes I do own such a wonderous gadget - think fondue like apparatus), since I almost burned down my parents house the last time I attempted to use it.

The sad part about these is that I had a very hard time photographing them. They are so plan to look at and kind of blob-y that I feel my pictures don't properly portray how wonderful they are. So please make a batch so that you can get the full effect. Because, trust me, they are a fan favourite and don't last very long. In fact I believe it was these very bars that someone proposed marriage to me over last year (of course it was just a joke proposal) but that's got to say something for these little guys.

S'more Cookie Bars

• 1/2 cup butter; softened
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 1/3 cup all purpose flour
• 3/4 cup graham cracker crumbs
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 2 king-sized chocolate bars
• 1 1/2 cups marshmallow fluff
  

In a small bowl mix flour, salt, baking powder and graham crumbs, set aside. In a large bowl cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Mix in vanilla and egg. Pour in flour mixture and blend until combined.

Grease an 8-inch square baking pan. Press half of dough mixture into bottom of pan. Place chocolate bars in a single layer on top of dough. Spread marshmallow fluff over chocolate. Spread remaining dough on by flattening small sections and placing them one by one on top.

Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool completely before cutting.

I store mine in an airtight container in the fridge then either let them come to room temperature or pop them in the toaster oven to get them all gooey when I want to eat them.

December Cookie Extravaganza Part 3 - Chocolate Chunk Snowballs

Next up to the plate for your baking and eating pleasure we have Chocolate Chunk Snowballs...

These are quick and easy to make. No rolling, molding weird shapes, cutting or any other such things. Just mix the ingredients, form into balls, bake, cool and toss into icing sugar. Now that's my kinda cookie!

Chocolate Chunk Snowballs

• 2 Cups Butter; softened
• 1 Cup Icing Sugar
• 3 1/2 Cups All-Purpose Flour
• 1/2 Cup Cornstarch
• 6 Squares Bittersweet Chocolate; coarsely chopped
• 1 Cup Walnuts; coarsely chopped
• Icing sugar for dusting

In a large bowl, beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Stir in flour & cornstarch until combined. Add in chocolate & walnuts.

Roll dough into 1-inch balls and place on a lined cookie sheet. Bake for 20 minutes at 350 degrees or until lightly brown.

Cool completely on wire wrack. Toss in icing sugar to lightly coat.

Enjoy!

December Cookie Extravaganza Part 2 - Chocolate Thumbrints

Things got a little busy on the weekend so I wasn't able to post any new cookies. But it's a whole new week and I've got a gem to share with you...Chocolate Thumbprint Cookies.

When it comes to Christmas cookie baking, I have a list of my Mums tried and true recipes that I always use. But I also like to mix things up a little bit and try new things. Which is why when I saw these cookies on the Martha Stewart website I knew I had to give them a try. These delectable little morsels of chocolately goodness may be new to my repertoire, but I have a feeling they will have a recurring role in years to come.

Chocolate Thumbprint Cookies
(adapted from Martha Stewart recipe)

• 1 Cup Unsalted Butter; Softened
• 1 1/3 Cup Sugar (plus a little extra for rolling dough in)
  
• 2 Egg Yolks
• 2 TBSP Heavy Cream
• 2 TBSP Vanilla Extract
• 2 Cups All-Purpose Flour
• 1 Cup & 1 TBSP Cocoa Powder
• 2 tsp salt
  
• Chocolate Vanilla-Bean Ganache *

In a small bowl mix together the flour, salt and cocoa powder. Set aside.

In a large bowl cream the sugar and butter until fluffy. Beat in cream, vanilla and egg yolks until well combined. Mix in dry ingredients.

Shape dough in balls using roughly 2 tsp of dough for each. Roll in sugar. Place onto lined cookie sheet about 1 inch apart. Using your finger or back of a wooden spoon push gently on the dough to form an indent.

Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes or until cookie is just set. Let cool slightly on sheet before transferring to wire rack.

Once completely cooled spoon warm ganache filling into centers. Let set 15 minutes. Store in airtight container.


*Chocolate Vanilla-Bean Ganache

• 1/3 Cup Heavy Cream
• 1/3 Cup Honey
• 1/2 Cup Bittersweet Chocolate; finely chopped
• 2 TBSP Unsalted Butter; softened & cut into pieces
• 1/2 A Vanilla Bean; Split & Scraped (reserve pod)

In a medium saucepan combine cream, honey, vanilla seeds & pod. Over medium heat bring mixture to a simmer, stirring until honey is melted. Remove from heat and let sit, covered, for 20 minutes.

Place chopped chocolate into a blender. Place cream mixture back onto stove and return to a simmer. Remove vanilla pods. Pour cream mixture over chocolate and let sit for 1 minute. Blend until mixture is smooth. Add butter and continue to blend until combined. Let cool slightly, then use immediately.

December Cookie Extravaganza Part 1 - The Shortbread Cookie.

I am decidedly not much of a Christmas person. I don't jump up and down with glee at the thought of snow, I view most decorations as tacky eyesores, I am in no way, shape or form associated with any type of religion and the sound of Christmas carols are like nails on a chalkboard to me. Furthermore, even though I am a good little consumer who goes out with the masses to buy gifts, I don't actually like the concept. I have, however, learned that people don't react well when you attempt to skip Christmas, so I go along for the ride.

I'd like to also state here that I am not one of those "Grinch-y" people who walk around in a cloud of hum-buggery ruining the experience for those who enjoy it. I do get excited about some aspects of the Holiday's and choose to focus on those instead. For example, I do adorn my apartment with a few tasteful decorations. My motto here is simple but classy - black and silver with a couple pops of ruby red for good measure. I have a black tree and a matching black garland that I hang a couple small things on for colour. I also have a small silver snowflake wreath that I hang on my door. And that's it. No singing doormats, no dancing Santa's or glowing reindeer. A girl's gotta draw the line somewhere.

More of my likes include, hanging out with my family and friends, cracking open a few bottles of wine and sharing conversation over a crowded dinner table covered with food. Yes, I can easily get into anything that involves the cooking and consuming of food. Which of course brings me to my favourite part of the Holiday Season...Christmas cookies. If there is anything during this time of year to jump up and down about it is tins and tins of delicious cookies. I love making them, I love eating them and I love gifting them to others. And in honour of this, over the next couple weeks I am going to be posting this years fare. So sit back with your disgusting Eggnog drink and a hunk of hard fruitcake and enjoy!

I figure the best place to start when talking Christmas cookies is the traditional shortbread. Easy to make, easy to eat and just about everyone loves them. Ironically the last thing I made will be the first I post.

My Mum and I decided to bake our cookies together to quicken the process and allow me to bake in a real kitchen with a proper sized well working stove. We managed to blast through just about all the things we needed to bake in one day. Unfortunately we saved the shortbread until the end, and even though we had the heat turned down really low, the oven was still too hot and just about liquified our cookies in the oven. Because of this my Mother has boycotted shortbread this year. Sad, but true. So I've taken up the mantle and made them on my own, it's not really Christmas without them.

Shortbread Cookies

• 1 Cup Butter; softened
• 2 Cups Pastry Flour
• 3 TBSP Fruit Sugar
• 3 TBSP Rice Flour

Beat butter with a spoon until creamy. Stir in flour until well mixed. Blend in rice flour and sugar.

Roll out flat and cut into shapes or form into balls and press down with a fork.

Sprinkle with red & green coloured sugar.

Bake at 275 degrees until faintly brown (approx. 10-15 mins depending on your oven)


One cookie down...nine more to go!

Tourtière...A Little Piece of Comfort.

Just about everyone has certain favourite comfort foods that they love. Something that reminds them of the simplicity of being a child, when your mom would spend the evening in the kitchen cooking and you would sit around anxiously waiting for her to yell "dinner's ready!". Filled with excitement you would run full tilt down the stairs in hopes of being the first one at the table and thus eligible to choose the most delicious morsels.

As someone who has a healthy obsession with food, I probably have a much longer list of favourites then the average person. But I maintain that each and every one of them gives me a different level of comfort wrapped up in warm memories. Take for example, my Mums tortière...

This is definitely on my top 5 list of "Things My Mother Makes That I Love". I think part of what makes this dish so special, aside from the fact that it is delicious, is that she only makes it once a year right around Christmas time. Whenever I dig into a piece of tortière it brings with it the memories of past time spent with friends, family and good food wrapped up in a tasty package of meat and potatoes.

A couple weeks ago, busy and lacking proper sleep, I was plagued with a craving for a piece. After some wheedling my Mom eventually agreed to give me the recipe (even though we're only supposed to have it once a year). A couple days later Cory and I sat down to enjoy my first go at making my Mum's tortière and it was exactly what I had needed. A little taste of comfort.

Mum's Tourtière
Serves 6

• 1 pound minced pork
• 1/4 cup chopped onion (we like to add more than this since we love onions so much)
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp garlic salt
• 1/2 tsp sage
• dash pepper
• 1/4 cup boiling water
• 1 cup mashed potatoes (we also like to up the amount of potatoes)
  
• Pastry for 2 crust 9-inch pie

Combine pork, onion, seasonings and water. Simmer uncovered, stirring ocasionally, until meat is cooked (about 25 minutes). Let cool and skim the fat off. Stir in the potatoes.

Line a pie plate with half of the pastry. Pour the pork mixture into it. Cover with the second pastry and seal the edges. Cut steam vents into the pastry.

Bake at 450 degrees for 10 minutes; reduce heat to 350 degrees and continue baking for approx. 30 minutes until the crust is golden brown.

Enjoy.

Graveyard Cupcakes

I know that most people have already put Halloween behind them and are already well on their way to Christmas. But I like to remember the spookier side of the year for a little while longer and I didn't get a chance to post this until now.

Halloween is my all time FAVOURITE time of year. I jumped at the chance to throw a party this year complete with spooky food. I had another huge camera fail and didn't take pics of everything. But, I did manage to get some shots of these graveyard cupcakes that are just *ahem* to die for.

The grave stones are lady fingers that I , along with Cory's help, wrote on with melted semi-sweet chocolate. The bones, sadly, are not edible. I bought some decorative skeletons from the dollar store, cleaned them then cut them up into little bits.

For the cupcakes I made a rich, extra moist chocolate batter and baked them in square muffin tins. I was running a little short on time, so I did something I don't normally do and used *gasp* a boxed cake mix. I know, I know it is something I almost steadfastly stay away from. But when faced with little time and a lot of food to make, with a little bit of adjustments, boxed works just fine.

Graveyard Cupcakes

• 1 chocolate cake recipe (be it homemade or boxed)
• 12 ladyfingers cut in half (to equal 24 gravestones)
• handful of semi sweet chocolate chips
• green icing sugar
• tooth picks
• Small plastic skeletons (or if you can make edible bones go for it!)
  

Prepare cake recipe. (For the boxed recipe I left out some of the liquid it asked for and replaced it with a splash of vanilla extract and some brewed espresso. The coffee really helps bring out the chocolaty flavour without you actually being able to taste it.)

Pour batter into square cupcake pan and bake 15-20 minutes. Remove to a wire rack and cool.

Meanwhile, prepare the grave stones. Cut the lady fingers in half (1 lady finger = 2 gravestones). Melt the chocolate chips in the microwave. Using a toothpick scoop up a small amount of chocolate and write RIP on the lady finger gravestones. Put aside and let chocolate set.

Once the cupcakes are cooled spread the green icing on top. Take a gravestone and spread a bit of melted chocolate on the bottom (you can skip this part if you want I just found that it helped it to adhere to the cupcake). Slide a tooth pick into the grave stone about halfway in. If desired use a toothpick to create some wisps of grass on the bottom front of the gravestone. Place gravestone on top of cupcake making sure to leave enough space in front to place skeleton bones. Repeat with remaining cupcakes.

Take your skeletons and wash thoroughly to make sure they are clean. Using scissors cut the skeleton into bits so you have various amounts of legs, arms, skulls, ribcages etc. Place on top of cupcakes pressing down slightly or inserting parts into the cupcake to make sure they don't fall off.

Place on a spooky platter and enjoy!!

My New Favourite Way To Make Meatballs.

J'adore the Food Network. I could watch cooking shows for hours and hours, and in fact do. I am a little sad about how much of the programming time has been taken over by "reality" cooking shows/competitions. I find that there is increasingly less cooking and more drama happening on a regular basis. Honestly if I wanted to watch drama I'd be on a different station.

So please Food Network Gods, if you're out there and you hear me, can the reality shows, nix the constant re-runs of 10 episodes of restaurant make-over and amp up the cooking. Afterall you are called The FOOD Network.

One show I surely can't get enough of is Jamie At Home. So it's no surprise how excited I was when I was given the book for a gift. And for the record it is quite lovely. A little while ago I brought this very book over to my friends house so that we could cook dinner for her parents. We decided on the quick sausage meatballs with tomato and basil sauce spaghetti. I'm not really fond of the name but I definitely like the dish.

I honestly don't know why I never thought to make meatballs out of sausages before. Cut the casing on the sausage and push the meat out in little hunks, form them into meatballs, cook. It's simple yet delicious. And depending on what kind of sausages you buy, the flavour combination is endless.

Since we were making a pasta dish we decided to accompany it with some bruschetta. Nothing like fresh bread piled high with tomatoes, onions, garlic....yum.

Everything about this dish was simple but tasty. I've always liked how Jamie Oliver can jump from basic meals to more lavish dishes, but he always builds a really solid flavour base. As any good chef can do. Even the pasta sauce, not much more than crushed tomatoes, basil, garlic and a couple simple spices was bang on. I do also happen to love a good pasta sauce...and I'm fussy. To be honest I just about never order pasta when I go out for dinner because I am almost always disappointed with it. But I will eat it constantly at home in every way, shape and form.

Okay, so I have a bit of a confession to make now. Despite all the camera action going on in the kitchen that day we somehow, in our excitement to eat, forgot to take a picture of the main dish. I have all the bits and pieces documented but the final thing all put together...not so much. So I've been forced to include the picture from the book as a substitute. I'll try harder to tamp down my overeagerness to eat next time to take a picture.

By some strange fluke, I did somehow manage to take pictures of the super cute bowls that we ate from. I think my priorities got a little mixed up that day. Frankly, I blame the pre, during and post dinner drinks.

A Thanksgiving Dinner Built For Two.

Thanksgiving was this past weekend. Which of course means food, food, more food, cooking, baking, food and...oh yeah food! I ended up with 3 separate dinners. One being the standard family get together, another one with my brother's girlfriends family and the last (even though it was the first to be eaten) one being a dinner for two with The Boy.



Cory's and my family dinners were allotted to happen on the same day so neither of us were going to get to attend the others. However we both wanted to have Thanksgiving dinner (our first one in fact) together. So I decided the only course of action was for me to make a meal on the Friday for just the two of us.

I didn't want to make a whole turkey, but I did want the look of turkey, so I went with a couple of cornish hens. I really like cornish hens because you can serve one per person and they hold the perfect amount of stuffing for one serving. Though those little wings have a tendency to burn really badly if you don't tie them back. So, unfortunately for me, trussing is a must.



Fact: my trussing is not exactly picture perfect. I tend to be a little awkward at it and drop the bird and the string multiple times before I manage to get it all tied up. Cornish hens only make it harder for me since they are even smaller. As the saying goes the smaller they are...the harder they are to truss. Okay so there is no actual saying but you get my point. Keep on trussing. (okay I'll stop now)



I accompanied my birds with a Cranberry Wild Rice Stuffing and Oven Roasted Root Vegetables. Let me state now that I will never make traditional stuffing if I can help it. I have a strong dislike for bread stuffing. No matter how many times I try it I just don't like it. So I was really happy when I found a recipe years ago in a pocket sized Canadian Living magazine (long since lost) for the wild rice stuffing. It is just to die for. At least in my opinion.



Now how about a desert? Low and behold I still had a little bit of pumpkin puree leftover along with some frozen tart shells. So I made mini pumpkin tarts to finish off the meal (and thankfully that huge can of pumpkin!).



And of course I'm never the one to forget a generous dollop of whipped cream! Sometimes too generous..at least when I'm "dolloping" it into my mouth instead of onto the desert. Cory did manage, at the risk of life and limb, to wrestle the bowl of whipped cream away from me and into the freezer. Though I'm sure he snuck a few spoonfuls first!



A wonderful meal for us to share, even if it did end up being eaten at 10:00pm. And Cory even cleaned up all the dishes afterwords.

And, for those of you who don't like traditional stuffing or just want to try something different here is the aforementioned stuffing recipe.

Cranberry Wild Rice Stuffing
Adapted from a Canadian Living recipe

• 3 TBSP each Butter & Oil
• 1 Large Onion; Chopped
• 1 Cup Chopped Carrots
• 1 Cup Craisons
• 3 TBSP Balsamic Vinegar
• 1 TBSP each Thyme & Sage
• 1 1/4 Cup Uncooked Wild & Long Grain Rice Blend
• 1 Cup Chicken Broth
• 1/2 Cup White Cranberry Cocktail
  

In a pot, heat butter & oil until butter had completely melted. Add in the chopped onions, carrots and craisons. Cook until they are tender.

Stir in the balsamic vinegar, thyme, sage and rice. Add the chicken broth and the juice.

Bring mixture to a boil, then reduce heat to low. Simmer covered until all liquid is absorbed and rice is fully cooked. (If the liquid is almost gone but rice is not cooked add a little bit more broth or juice and continue to cook)

Stuff into the cavity of a turkey or chicken. It can also be served right out of the pot as a side dish.

Pumpkin Pancakes...Not Just For Breakfast.

I guess I bought a really big can of pureed pumpkin. Even after all those Iced Pumpkin Cookies I still had lots to spare. Needless to say I decided to make some pumpkin pancakes with some of the leftovers. But, being me, I naturally decided to make them for dinner on one cold fall evening last week. They were definitely just what the doctor ordered.


I know what you're thinking now: why are your pancakes triangles? Well, the funny thing about my pancake cooking technique is that I don't particularly like to cook pancakes in a frying pan. The oil/butter is always too hot or too cold or my sad excuse for a stove isn't working right. Plus I hate standing around waiting for them to bubble. So I stand by my tried and true method of cooking them in my handy dandy sandwich maker.

Yes you heard me correctly, I cook my pancakes in my sandwich maker. And they are wonderful! I can pour the batter in, close the lid and walk away knowing they won't end up burnt. The dual heat from both sides at once allows them to rise much thicker then they would in a pan, becoming fluffy morsels of goodness. And the convenient triangular shape is perfect for on the go snacking.


And really? How sad would it be if I only used my sandwich maker for grilled cheese when in fact many things can be made in it? My parents model even came with a recipe for Twinkies!!!! Which for some odd reason I have yet to attempt to make....though I'm sure my curiosity will win out sometime soon. But, in the meantime, pancakes are the name of the game.

Pumpkin Pancakes
Adapted from many assorted pancake recipes the I have accumulated

• 1 Cup Canned Pumpkin Puree (not pumpkin pie filling)
• 1 Cup Whole Wheat Flour
• 1/2 Cup All-Purpose Flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 1/2 - 2 tsp pumpkin pie spice ( or a mixture of cinnamon, ginger & nutmeg)
• 2 TBSP Brown Sugar
  
• 1 Cup Milk
• 2 Eggs
• 2 TBSP vegetable oil
• 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

In a large bowl whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and spices. Combine remaining ingredients in a separate bowl.

Pour the wet ingredients into the bowl with the dry and mix until just combined.

Cook using your standard pancake making method....or if you have a sandwich maker pour some batter in and give it a try.

Enjoy!!

Pumpkin: A Little Taste of Fall

October is here! Over the past week I've traded in my sun dresses for leggings, boots and sweaters. My umbrella has become a permanent resident inside my purse and my cravings for pumpkin everything have begun. October is by far my most favourite month. I may flirt with Springtime, and have a serious crush on the Summer but my heart will always lay with Fall.

Since this weekend marked the beginning of October, and baked goods for a car ride trip were requested (*cough* demanded *cough*), I figured now was as good a time as any to crack open that pureed pumpkin and get baking.

As it so happens I used to HATE pumpkin. I loved buying them, scooping out the insides and carving a face into them. But I just didn't like to eat them. I don't know if it was the spices most people used or the pumpkin itself, I was having nothing to do with it! I do, however, have a rule for myself when it comes to food. Every year or two I will force myself to try out a food that I have previously disliked. Weather it is in a dish I have had before or a new preparation I have to try it.

This little experimentation has actually allowed me to learn to enjoy some things that I have previously disliked. I've done it with brussel sprouts, ginger (albeit in very small doses) and even oatmeal. Granted with the oatmeal I simply had to get past the texture by forcing myself to eat it every day for 2 weeks until I loved it. But I digress.

It so happens that last year around this time I volunteered to cook a Thanksgiving dinner at my parents house. One thing that my Father demanded was pumpkin pie. Naturally I did not want to make one, but decided to give it a shot anyways. I ended up making a slightly less traditional version of it and made myself try at least one bite. Well turns out that I liked it and it sent me off onto a pumpkin baking spree for the rest of the fall. Thank goodness for changing palettes!

This year I'm kicking off my fall baking with some Iced Pumpkin Cookies. I can't remember where I got the recipe from, but it is a delicious one. They're soft and chewy, even a few days after they are made, and have almost a muffin like consistency. Good thing it makes about 3 dozen cookies because they go fast!


Iced Pumpkin Cookies

• 1/2 cup butter, softened
  
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 1 cup pureed pumpkin (not pumpkin pie filling)
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 1/2 cups All-purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
  
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp nutmeg
• 1/2 tsp cloves
• 1/2 tsp salt

For The Icing

• 2 cups icing sugar
• 2 TBSP milk
• 1 TBSP melted butter
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. In the bowl of your stand mixer cream together the butter and sugar. Mix in the egg, pumpkin & vanilla.

Meanwhile, in a separate bowl, mix together all the dry ingredients. Pour into the bowl with the wet ingredients and stir until combined.

Drop the cookie dough by tablespoonfuls onto a lined cookie sheet. Bake for 15-20 minutes then remove and cool on a wire wrack.

Combine together the ingredients for the icing. (I ended up with a lot of icing left over so you may want to halve the amount and make more if you run out). Drizzle, or if your like me spread a generous amount, of icing onto cooled cookies. Store in an air tight container.

Cooking Around

A couple Friday's ago Cory was brave enough to accept the challenge of cooking me dinner. He is a self expressed non-cooker. When he cooks for himself he leans towards take out, frozen dinners or other simple to heat up meals. Of course I don't mind this since it gives me more reasons to cook when he's around. Especially since it's much easier to cook for two people instead of one.

Now on top of my challenge for him to cook, he had challenged me to make him lemon meringue pie. Well actually, my Mother mentioned to him how good I was at making it and he yelled "Prove it!" at me from across the dinner table. So I told him if he cooked me dinner I would provide dessert.

The chosen dinner was a chicken stir fry, and a wise choice in my opinion. Fairly straightforward, not too difficult or labour intensive, especially if you buy pre-cut fresh veggies.

It also happens to be a fairly well rounded meal. All in all the dinner was very yummy and earns an A. Naturally I don't let my personal bias towards the chef cloud my judgement or grading.



Now on to dessert! I took a slightly lazy route with the lemon meringue pie. Actually I ended up making tarts, which are no less delicious but more practical for transport. Not to mention that I happened to have a small batch of frozen lemon curd I had made a while ago in my freezer that wouldn't have filled an entire pie shell. So tarts it is!



Speaking of lemon curd. This leftover batch I used was (if I can remember correctly) from an Ina Garten recipe for lemon raspberry tarts I had made a while ago (but didn't survive long enough to be photographed or blogged about).

Lemon Curd
adapted from Ina Garten Recipe

• Zest & Juice of 4 lemons
• 1 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 stick unsalted butter; room temperature
• 4 large eggs
• 1/8 tsp salt

In a food processor, pulse zest and sugar until until zest is broken down and mixture is
combined.

Cream butter with lemon sugar. Add eggs one at a time, stirring after each until combined.

Add lemon juice and salt. Mix.

Heat mixture in a saucepan on low heat until it reaches 175 degrees

Take mixture off heat and spoon into tart shells, pie crust, or freeze for later use.



I will leave you with this picture of my soldier fighting in the trenches of the kitchen.