Caramelized Shallots

Shallots, white onion's milder cousin, are peeled after boiling (so no tears) then roasted to a golden perfection. Lovely alongside roast beef, pork chops or even turkey. They can also be made a few days ahead of time.

Ingredients:

12 oz (340g) pkg dry shallots

2 tbsps semi salted butter

1 tbsp balsamic vinegar

1/4 tsp sea salt

1/4 tsp black pepper

pinch of sugar

fresh parsley to garnish

To peel the shallots, drop them into a pot of boiling water for 1 minute then drain. Just slice off the root and stem ends and slip the rest of the peel right off.

Melt butter in a skillet and brown shallots on medium heat about 10 minutes.

Remove from heat and add balsamic, salt, pepper and sugar. Toss to coat then into a 400°F oven for 25-30 minutes, turning every 10 minutes.

That's it! Top with fresh parsley and serve.

If made ahead of time (or on the off chance you have leftovers) simply microwave to reheat.

Cabbage Roll Soup

Do you love cabbage rolls but not the work involved in making them? If the answer is yes then this hearty one pot soup that eats like a meal is for you!

Ingredients:

2 tsps olive oil

salt and pepper to taste, or Original Mrs. Dash

1 lb ground beef

1 medium onion, diced

2 tsps minced garlic

4 cups roughly chopped cabbage

1 cup sliced young carrots

4 cups beef broth

28 oz (796 ml) can diced tomatoes

9 oz (284 ml) can tomato soup

1 tbsp tomato paste

1 tsp smoked paprika

1/2 cup long grain rice

1 bay leaf

1 tbsp brown sugar

1 tbsp dry parsley

Heat the olive oil in the bottom on a large pot. Add the beef, salt and pepper (or Mrs. Dash) and cook, breaking up the meat, until no pink remains. Add the onion and garlic and cook 2 minutes. Add the cabbage and carrots and stir together.

Pour the broth in along with the tomatoes, tomato soup and paste, paprika, rice, bay leaf and brown sugar. Stir and make sure the rice is submerged in liquid. Bring to a boil then reduce heat and simmer uncovered for 30 minutes or until carrots and rice are cooked. Remove the bay leaf and add the parsley.

Serves 4-5

Roasted Beet and Asian Pear Salad

A lovely light dressing compliments the sweet beets, crisp Asian pear and creamy goat cheese.

Ingredients:

5 medium sized beets

1 Asian pear, diced

1/4 cup dried cranberries

2 tbsps light olive oil

1 1/2 tbsps balsamic vinegar

2 tbsps cranberry juice

1 tbsp orange juice

1/4 tsp salt

4 oz crumbled goat cheese

2 tbsps fresh chopped parsley

salad greens

Wash and scrub the beets with a vegetable brush, then wrap in foil and roast at 425°F for 45-50 minutes or until a fork pierces the beet easily. Unwrap and let cool. Peel and dice. Add the pear and cranberries. Whisk the olive oil, balsamic, cranberry juice, orange juice and salt and toss together with the beets, pear and cranberries. Cover and refrigerate several hours or overnight.

When ready to serve take the salad out of the fridge for 30 minutes, then add some greens to a plate and a nice helping of the salad. Sprinkle on some goat cheese and top with fresh chopped parsley.

Serves as a side, 6-8 people

Chocolate Berry Trifle

With juicy fresh berries, chocolate cake and decadent eggnog mascarpone filling this trifle is sure to be a hit with your guests! And because it's a no-bake, make-ahead dessert it'll be a hit with you too!

Ingredients:

2 - 12 oz chocolate (store bought) cake rolls, chilled

3.4 oz pkg instant vanilla pudding mix

1 1/4 cups eggnog

1 1/2 cups whipping cream

1/3 cup icing sugar

8 oz mascarpone cheese

Zest of 1 or 2 oranges

2 tsps vanilla

3 tbsps seedless raspberry jam

2 1/2 cups raspberries

1 1/2 cups sliced strawberries

plus more berries to garnish

more whipped cream to top or aerosol whipped cream (optional)

Have the cake rolls chilling in the fridge, or they could even be frozen. Whisk the pudding mix and eggnog together for 1 minute, then refrigerate. Whip the whipping cream and icing sugar together on high for 2 minutes or until thickened, and refrigerate. Next beat the mascarpone and add the pudding/eggnog mix. Beat until smooth then add the orange zest and vanilla. Fold in half the whipped cream/icing sugar mix.

Melt the jam in the microwave... it'll only take a few seconds, then mix with the berries.

Assembly:

Cut the cake with a sharp knife in 1/2" slices, wiping off the knife after each cut. Place one or two slices in the bottom of a 4 quart size bowl and stand more around the sides. Add about 1/2 the filling to the bowl.

Fill with the berry mixture. Stand more cake slices around the sides and put a couple on top of the berries too. Now spoon on the remaining filling.

Top with the remaining whipped cream making sure all of the cake slices are covered. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate. This can be made up to this point 1-2 days ahead of time.

When ready to serve garnish with more whipped cream and berries. Dig in with a large spoon and serve in bowls.

Serves 10 - 12

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Red Velvet Crackle Cookies

Crackle or crinkle? Tomato, tomahhhto? Whatever you call these, I call them delicious! 

Ingredients:

2 cups flour

1/3 cup cocoa powder

1 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature

3/4 cup sugar

1/2 cup brown sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla

1 tsp lemon juice

1 tsp "no taste" red gel food colouring

1 1/2 tbsps milk

For rolling:

1/4 cup granulated or coarse coloured sugar

1/4 cup icing (powdered) sugar

Whisk the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda and salt together. In a large bowl beat the butter and sugars together, then add the eggs one at a time. Mix in the vanilla, lemon juice and red food colouring. Slowly add the dry ingredients, alternating with the milk. Chill 2-4 hours or even overnight if that works for you. Isn't the colour awesome?

Mix the two rolling sugars together. I did some with granulated and icing sugar, others with coarse green sugar and icing sugar... I really like how the coarse sugar ones look! Anyway, take a teaspoon full of dough and roll into 1" balls, coat with sugar, then place on parchment lined cookie sheets.

Bake at 350°F for 13-14 minutes and watch the crackling magic happen! Cool a few minutes before transferring to cooling racks to cool completely.

Merry Christmas!

Makes 50 crackle cookies

Frosted Sugar Cookies

Another must-have at Christmastime ... sugar cookies topped with frosting and as much nonpareils and paraphernalia as your heart desires 🥰

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups flour

1 1/2 tsps baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 cup butter

1/2 cup sugar

1 egg yolk

3 tbsps milk

1/2 tsp vanilla

Combine flour, baking powder and salt. In a large bowl cream the butter, gradually adding sugar. Add egg yolk and mix well. Add dry ingredients alternating with milk and vanilla.  Cover and chill dough then roll on floured surface, about 1/4" thick. Cut with your favourite cookie cutters. I used a few drops of green gel colouring in half the dough. Tapped some trees into coarse green sugar too.

Space the cookies about 2" apart on a parchment lined cookie sheet and bake  at 375°F for 8-10 minutes. Cool completely.

(Recipe from Five Roses Flour Cookbook.)

Then use a buttercream frosting to decorate. Basically it's just creamed butter, a little vanilla, a bit of milk or cream and enough icing sugar to make a good consistency. I don't measure my ingredients for icing but it's about 1/4 cup butter, 1 1/2 cups icing sugar, 1 1/2 tbsps of cream and 1/2 tsp vanilla. If you want to colour your icing use gel colorants. Spoon into plastic zip baggies, snip a corner off and pipe away. Add any sprinkles and stuff immediately before the frosting starts to set.

Have fun, go crazy!

Oh, and that egg white that's left over? Try some Meringues.

Choco Mint Meringues:

1 egg white

pinch cream of tartar

1/8 tsp peppermint extract

2/3 cup white sugar

1 tsp cocoa powder

Beat egg whites and cream of tartar to soft peaks. Add extract and slowly add the sugar, beating until sugar is dissolved and stiff peaks form. Add in the cocoa. Drop by spoonfuls or use a piping bag and fancy tips onto a parchment lined sheet. Bake at 200°F for 40-45 minutes. then turn off oven but leave the meringues in for another 30 minutes.

Two Bite Sweet Mincemeat Tarts

Mincetarts are a must-have in our house for Christmas! They're Santa's favourite 🎅

Ingredients:

All you need is a pound or so of pie dough and a jar of sweet mincemeat.

Buy your favourite sweet mincemeat or in the fall cook up some green tomatoes and make your own sweet mincemeat with this recipe ⬇️ which includes both regular and slow cooker methods.

https://hotandcoldrunningmom.blogspot.com/2015/10/slow-cooker-sweet-mincemeat.html

I must say I have been making tarts for years (decades) and have always struggled with how to make them and keep the edges crimped and not have the filling all ooze out through baking. I was just never really happy with them. This year... success!

Usually I would use either a tart pan, placing the bottom in, filling then awkwardly pinching the edges together. Or the hand pie method, place the bottom on a baking sheet, filling and crimping. I even tried making them like Chinese dumplings one year! (They were actually pretty cute!) But this year I did it this way.

Place a circle of pie dough the size of the tart pan on the work surface, spoon just enough mincemeat to mound in the middle. Take a slightly larger circle of dough, use a finger to wet the edge with water and lay on top. Gently press the edges, try not to have air bubbles, then crimp all around with a fork. Take a glass and place it over the tart and press down to cut the edges evenly again because they will be a little jagged after the fork crimping. With a thin spatula, lift the little pie off the counter and into the tart pan where it will drop into the space. Poke the top with a fork.

Bake the tarts at 375°F for 16-18 minutes or until golden.

Not traditional, but if you want to be a little extra, whisk 3/4 cup icing sugar and 1 1/2 tbsps fresh lemon juice together and drizzle some glaze on top of each tart....and spr!nkles. Can't forget the spr!nkles 😊

Pistachio Lemon Glazed Shortbread

A tart lemon glaze studded with salty, roasted pistachios elevates this simple, buttery Scottish shortbread.

Ingredients:

1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature

3/4 cup icing sugar

1/2 tsp vanilla

1/4 tsp salt

2 cups flour

Topping:

3/4 cups icing sugar

1 1/2 tbsps fresh squeezed lemon juice

1/8 cup chopped pistachios, salted and roasted

Beat the butter, icing sugar, vanilla and salt together until smooth. Add the flour in 2 or 3 additions mixing just until combined. Line the bottom of a 9" round tin with parchment and press the dough in, smoothing the top. Score the top with a sharp knife making 16 wedges. Poke each wedge with a fork 2 or 3 times then refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 300°F then bake for 50-55 minutes or until lightly golden. Cool 5 minutes then, again with a sharp knife, cut right through the previously made score marks. Leave to cool completely in pan.

Whisk the icing sugar and lemon juice together and place in a shallow bowl. Dip the top of each cookie in the glaze (or you may want to spread it with a knife) then top with chopped pistachios. Sprinkle the nuts after each one or two wedges as the glaze will start to set quickly. Note: I had just enough glaze with this recipe for the tops of each cookie. If you need more just whip up a second batch.

They will be completely set and ready to be stored in an airtight container after 1 hour.

Spot of tea anyone?

Adapted from: seasonsandsuppers.ca

Chicken Salsa Dump and Bake

Just 10 minutes prep time and this seasoned chicken over a colourful mix of veggies, legumes and salsa is ready to pop in the oven. You literally dump everything in the baking dish, top with chicken and bake! What could be easier? 

Ingredients:

3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

2 cups white or black beans, or chickpeas

1 1/2 cups kernel corn, canned or frozen

1 cup diced canned tomatoes

1 1/2 cups salsa

1/2 cup edamame beans

1/2 cup diced red onion

2 tsps minced garlic

1 tsp onion powder

1 tsp cumin

salt and pepper to taste

avocado oil

Mix everything from the beans to the salt and pepper in a bowl then dump it all into a 13 X 9" baking dish. I oiled the dish first, but not sure if it was necessary. Slice each chicken breast in thirds and place on top of the veggies. Brush them with avocado oil and season with more onion powder, cumin, salt and pepper.

Bake at 375°F for 40-45 minutes or until chicken is cooked and you've got supper on the table!

Have it with your favourite rice and this serves 4-6 people.

Berry Chocolate Turnovers

Cream cheese chocolate dough filled with the most delicious chocolate, raspberry and cranberry filling!

I found this recipe awhile ago, it was for rugelach. When I made them the filling oozed out all over the baking sheet and burned. But I liked the dough and I loved the filling, so I thought I'd give it second try. I added cocoa to the original dough recipe, which is a very easy dough to handle. And made mini turnovers instead of rolled crescent cookies. It worked out much better!

Ingredients:

Dough:

1 cup + 2 tbsps flour

1 1/2 tsps sugar

1/4 tsp salt

2 tbsps cocoa powder

1/2 cup butter, room temperature and cubed

1/2 cup cream cheese

1 tbsp Greek yogurt

Filling:

3/4 cup dry cranberries

1/2 cup water

1/4 cup brown sugar

1 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp vanilla

1/2 cup seedless rasperry jam

1/2 cup toasted walnuts, finely chopped

1/2 cup mini chocolate chips

Icing sugar for dusting

To make the dough combine the butter, cream cheese and Greek yogurt together in a food processor. Mix the flour, sugar, salt and cocoa and add it in 3 additions at first pulsing then processing on high until a ball forms. Make 2 discs out of the dough and wrap in plastic wrap. (They look like hamburger patties) Refrigerate the discs for 1 hour.

Meanwhile prepare the filling. Toast the chopped walnuts in a frying pan then set aside. In a saucepan combine the dry cranberries, water, brown sugar and cinnamon. Simmer on medium heat about 15 minutes or until the liquid is absorbed.

Remove from heat and stir in the chocolate chips. Stir until melted then add the vanilla, raspberry jam and toasted walnuts. Let cool.

When the dough has chilled sufficiently take one disc out and roll it to about 1/8" thickness. Cut 2 1/2" squares, fill with a scant tsp of filling and fold in half to form a triangle. Seal edges with a fork and cut a couple of small vent holes in the top. Place them on a lined cookie sheet. Repeat with the second disc.

Bake at 375°F for 10 minutes, and yes a little of the filling oozed out but not nearly like it did with the rugelach.

Once cooled, dust with icing sugar.

Makes 22-24 mini turnovers.

Note: I had a good amount of filling left over. I might make up another batch of this dough, make little pies or I may spread it between two sugar cookies 😋

Dec 17 note: Got around to making little pies out of the leftover filling with some store bought pie dough and we've got a dozen or so chocolate cranberry mini pies 🙂

375°F for 15 minutes