Monthly Archives: October 2011

My American Appetite: [Recipe] Chocolate Rice Krispie Squares

Posted on October 21, 2011 by | 1 Comment
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As a kid, I was always very excited to be able to help my parents cook. It didn’t matter what Mom or Dad might be making, I was there. I have so many fond memories of standing on a chair on one side of our kitchen counter, waiting for the moment I could mix or dump or taste.

Some of my favourite things we made reguarly were pizza, shepherd’s pie, chicken wings, waffles, macaroons, and rice krispie squares.

As an adult food lover, I’m always looking for new foods to try and creative ways to use them. We often go to the US, where I found many interesting and strange ingredients to bring home. I was VERY excited when I found these:

Nope, you’re not seeing things – those are chocolate marshmallows and gluten-free rice krispies! What you really see here though, is an opportunity – an opportunity to indulge in a childhood love in a whole new way.

I followed the recipe on the box, sort of… Alright, so I added an extra tablespoon of butter and handful of chocolate chips to the pot. Clearly this can only make them better, right?

Off we go!

Classic Rice Krispie Squares

3 Tbsp (or 4) butter
1 bag marshmallows (chocolate!)
6 C rice krispies cereal
delicious chocolate chip add-ins (optional, but encouraged)

First, we melt the butter:

Dump in our marshmallows:

Melt:

Add crunch:

Mix:

Add extras:

Spread and set:

Wait, not so patiently.

These made for a very good Friday dinner, along with a few extra handfuls of chocolate chips. They will make a wonderful Saturday morning breakfast too, with coffee.

Psst! The stack below may have gotten shorter since this picture was taken. Maybe.

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Successful Sunday: [Recipe] Cinnamon Cake with Chocolate

Posted on October 16, 2011 by | 1 Comment
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Today is a good day.

I am a baker. I love spending time in the kitchen to do anything except the dishes, but my most favourite thing to do in the kitchen is bake. It really tickles two parts of my psyche – the people-pleaser and the scientist.

My husband is the man found roaming in and out of the kitchen as I bake… “Whatcha makin’? What’s that?” This is kind of a trick though since my husband is not actually a fan of many things of the sweet variety, and while baking isn’t always sweet, it quite often is.

The fact that he doesn’t like a lot of sweet things makes my husband my harshest critic. But not today. I woke up early this morning, and went straight to the kitchen to make this cinnamon and chocolate cake. Our house was filled with the smell of a cake baking by 9am. By 10am, I knew I had him. He was drifting in and out of the kitchen while I was making the frosting, asking when he could try it.

Success!

If you need something to please the “I’m not a fan of sweet stuff” person in your life, try this cake.

[Recipe] Cinnamon Cake with Chocolate

Adapted from Dorie Greenspan’s Cinnamon Squares
Serves 9

Cake:

1 1/4 C plus 2 Tbsp sugar
1 Tbsp plus 2 1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 1/2 tsp instant espresso powder or instant coffee
1 3/4 C all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
pinch of salt
3/4 C buttermilk
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 C plus 2 Tbsp butter, melted and cooled
3/4 C chocolate chips

Frosting:

6 oz semisweet chocolate chips
3 Tbsp butter
1/4 tsp cinnamon
pinch of salt

Preheat oven to 350F. Grease an 8-inch square pan with butter and line the bottom with parchment paper.

Mix 2 Tbsp of sugar with 2 1/2 tsp cinnamon and the espresso powder. Set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk the dry ingredients together.

In another bowl, whisk the wet ingredients, except the butter together.

Pour the wet ingredients over the dry ingredients, whisking until incoporated.

Finally, whisk or fold the melted butter into the batter.

Pour half of the batter into the prepared pan. Sprinkle chocolate chips and cinnamon sugar mixture over the batter.  Add the remainder of the batter and smooth the top of the cake.

Bake for 35-40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Transfer to a cooling rack and allow the cake to cool to room temperature before frosting.

To make the frosting, melt the frosting ingredients in the top of a double boiler until smooth. Do not cook past melting. The chocolate should be smooth, shiny, and easily spreadable. Spread frosting over the cake.

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On My Bookshelf: Baking: From My Home to Yours by Dorie Greenspan

Posted on October 13, 2011 by | Leave a comment
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I’d like to start a regular installment here to profile some of the cookbooks I’ve collected over the years. I have so many now that I can no longer keep them all in my kitchen and dining room area. I’m sure to some, this indicates that I have some sort of “problem”. In my mind, my only problem is the lack of bookshelf real estate in my kitchen.

Baking: From My Home to Yours: Dorie Greenspan, Alan Richardson: Books | chapters.indigo.ca

I’ve owned Baking for close to 4 years now I’d guess. I remember when I saw it that day in Chapters – I saw it sitting alone on a shelf, a bit awkward and tall, thick in the middle. I can see how someone might think it was intimidating, but I’ve always enjoyed a challenge. I started walking over. Our eyes met and from that moment forward, I knew we’d be inseparable.

Baking has become my no-fail, go-to book for all tasty things that come out of the oven. (As an aside, Du Four is French and is loosely translated to ‘from the oven’. There is good reason why I spend so much time in the kitchen.) This book is the first resource I consult when I want to do any baking. It is rare that I have to search out a second resource.

Dorie’s (@doriegreenspan) writing style is easy to read, and casual, even when she is writing about something as seemingly difficult to create as croissants or creme brulee. The personal stories included with each recipe let you know that you can do just what she has. Another bonus: almost every recipe comes with at least one delicious variation.

I’ve enjoyed cooking and reading this book regularly since I bought it, and I have no doubt that this book will be one of the ones that become dog-eared and speckled with ingredients – tell-tale signs of a classic. Thank you Dorie for writing such wonderful cookbooks. I look forward to settling in on the couch then at the counter with each and every one.

Should a kitchen fire ever break out in my home (let’s hope this doesn’t happen since I’d much rather spring for another cookbook than a fire extinguisher), I’m grabbing this book and bookin’ it for the door.

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The All Good Things Fall Cake

Posted on October 8, 2011 by | Leave a comment
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This cake is actually called the All-In-One Holiday Bundt Cake.

When you think of fall, tell me with a straight face that you don’t think of things like pumpkins, cranberries, nuts, and spice. Go on, try to tell me you don’t think of those things.

That’s what I thought. It’s near impossible to not have one or all of these things on your mind when October rolls around. The only thing this cake is missing is a sweater – now THAT would make even those living under rocks think of fall.

It is easily one of the best cakes I’ve ever baked. I may have eaten two slices of it, right out of the oven. Maybe.

This is yet another Dorie Greenspan recipe, from her book Baking: From my home to yours. There are no bad or iffy recipes in this book. None. It is my most favourite recipe collection, and trust me when I tell you that I have a lot of cookbooks and recipe collections with which to compare. This one is just wonderful – every day ingredients, minimal fuss, no fail and satisfying results, and really lovely anecdotes and stories.

Out of respect from Dorie, I will not post the full recipe here, but you’re free to ask me for it if you’d really like to have it. Then it’s just a recipe exchange amongst friends, right?

Here is the story of this cake, in pictures:

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Lovely October

Posted on October 1, 2011 by | Leave a comment
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October is finally here again – my most favourite month of the year. I am always so sad to see it go, and elated to see it come back.

When I think of October, I think of cool nights and warm spices, of crunchy leaves and soft gingerbread, of orange leaves and well… orange pumpkins. October is the month I start nesting for Winter, baking and pickling, and sewing and crafting.

I thought it would be nice to start October with a chat about pumpkins. Not that I think that October is the only month we should concentrate on pumpkins – they are a wonderful and versatile fruit (that’s right, fruit!) that can be used in both savory and sweet dishes.

These pumpkins, used decoratively at our wedding and currently sitting on our front porch and veranda, will be made into pumpkin puree and canned, probably before the end of the month.

Pumpkins and nutrition go hand in hand. Pumpkins are packed full of the antioxidants alpha-carotene and beta-carotene, which are converted by our bodies into Vitamin A. Vitamin A is good for immunity and vision. And listen to this, ladies – alpha-carotene is thought to slow the aging process. Pumpkin Olay anyone?

Alright, back to food. Canned pumpkin found on store shelves can stretch across several recipes, so you can make muffins, cake, pudding, bread pudding, pasta sauce, scones, and creme brulee all from the same can!

If you haven’t tried pumpkin puree, now is the time! If you’d like to try to make your own pumpkin puree, give it a go. It’s really quite easy. The following method is taken from Joy of Baking:

“If you want to make your own pumpkin puree you need to use the small Sugar Pie, Baby Bear or Cheese Pumpkins (approximately 5-7 lbs., 2 1/2 – 3 1/2 kg.) which are sweeter and less fibrous than the larger pumpkins we typically use for jack-o’-lanterns. When choosing pumpkins look for ones that feel solid and are heavy for their size, free of blemishes, cracks, and soft spots. Once you are ready to make the puree; cut the pumpkin in half lengthwise, remove seeds and stringy fibers, and place cut-side down on a greased baking sheet. Bake at 350F for approximately 45 minutes to 1 1/4 hours (depending on size) or until easily pierced with a knife. Then scoop out the pulp and puree in a food processor until smooth. You can then strain the puree through a cheesecloth-lined strainer to extract all the liquid. Make sure to cool the puree before using.”

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