A Chip Off the Old Block

Hello Sweets,

I hope y'all are enjoying your weekend, and maybe even creating something delicious in your kitchens.  I had a lovely lunch date with my very good friend Miranda, and then we caught a movie; a horror movie that is.  We saw "The Conjuring" and it was actually pretty scary, which probably will come back to haunt me since I'm home alone :/  I'm pretty sure I'll be fine, but there were a few scenes that literally gave me goosebumps all over my body lol probably doesn't help that it's based on a true story.  But that's not why you stopped by today is it?  Today I am bringing you (insert silly drum roll), cookie number three!

 

old pic but still a goodie :)

Today's cookie was the one made for my brother in-law Jose (sorry can't figure out how to get an accent on the e), and he actually stole the cookie my sister wanted lol.  This is the kind of cookie my mom used to make for us as kids, actually it was pretty much her go to cookie lol.  Personally I like eating the raw dough (yes I know bad for me lol) more than the cooked cookie, can you guess what it is?  If you guessed chocolate chip you should reward yourself, perhaps with a cookie ;)  What I really enjoyed was the small amount of cocoa you put in additional to the chocolate chips, just gives it a little extra bit of chocolate love.

Gooiest Chocolate Chip Cookies (adapted from 1001 cookies and other treats)

Ingredients

1/2C butter, softened

  1 1/4C light brown sugar

1 large egg, beaten

2Tsp vanilla

2C all-purpose flour

1Tbs cocoa

1Tsp baking soda

1Tsp salt

1 1/4C semi-sweet chocolate chips

1C milk chocolate chips

Directions:

1)  Preheat oven to 350F, lining 2 baking sheets with non stick parchment paper.  Place the butter and sugar in a large bowl and beat together until light and fluffy.

2)  Place the egg and vanilla in a separate bowl and whisk together, then gradually add to the butter mixture and beat until smooth.

3)  Mix in the flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt until well combined.

4)  Add 3/4 of the chocolate chips (I mixed the two) and mix well (forgot to take a pic).  Spoon 6 heaping tbs of the batter on to each baking sheet, spacing well apart.  Top with remaining chocolate chips and press lightly.  Bake 15-17 minutes or until golden brown on the edges.  Cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack.

There you have it, the "Jose" :)  I found that the dough can be a little dry, so I added 1-2 tbs of milk to add a little moisture and it worked perfectly!  So for those of you not keeping track, so far we have "JAM" and I saved the best cookie for last.  I'm not going to tell you guys too much about it, but what I will tell you is it's the perfect symbol for a wedding cookie.

And with that I will leave you in suspense, yea I know I do that a lot don't I?  Whatever I can do to keep my readers engaged, smiling, and of course, coming back for more.  Tonight I am going to continue a painting I started last night, and yes I will do a post about my newest passion soon I promise.  For now I will enjoy the soothing sound of the rain :)  Until next time...........................


Stay sweet,



Jennifer xoxoxo

The Unconventional Peanut Butter Cookie

Hello Sweets,

I know I've been a bad blogger lately as summer is a very distracting season for me, and for that I apologize.  I know I left you all in suspense because I only ever gave you one of the four cookie recipes, so what do you think you're getting today?  Yup another cookie recipe, and to be perfectly honest I have not baked many cookies since the wedding but that doesn't mean I've avoided the kitchen as a whole ;)  As I write this I am in Texas and it's Independence Day here (well it was when I started it lol), which means I prepared a few delicious holiday treats that I will be blogging about in the coming weeks!

So I know what you're thinking, how can a peanut butter cookie be unconventional?  Trust me when I say this was not what I was expecting when researching for a new recipe to try, but it is by far the best peanut butter cookie I have ever had!  Normally I have a go to recipe that is literally three ingredients.  It is a darn good cookie itself but it doesn't hold a candle to the recipe I'm going to share with you today :)  There is one specific ingredient in this recipe that really had me perplexed, but instead of sharing it now I'll wait until the end (always keeping you in suspense).

Peanut Butter Cookies

Ingredients

1/2C butter, softened

3/4C smooth peanut butter

heaping 1/2C superfine sugar

heaping 1/2C dark brown sugar

1 egg, lightly beaten

1 1/3C rolled oats

1/2tsp vanilla

1/2C all-purpose flour

1/2tsp baking soda

1/2tsp baking powder

pinch of salt

Directions:

1)  Preheat oven to 350F.  Grease 3 large baking sheets.  Place the butter and peanut butter in a bowl and beat together, then beat in sugars.

2)  Gradually beat in the egg and vanilla.  Sift the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt into the mixture.

3)  Add in the oats and stir until just combined.  Place spoonfuls of the dough onto the baking sheets, spaced well apart and flatten slightly with a fork.  Bake for 12 minutes or until lightly golden.

4)  Cool on a baking sheet for 2 minutes,, then transfer to a wire rack.

So did you guess what the unusual ingredients was?  If you guessed rolled oats, then you would be correct :)  I have never in my life come across a peanut butter cookie recipe with rolled oats, but needless to say this is now my go to recipe.  It's so good my sister (Asha, the bride) has dropped subtle hints that she really enjoyed them, lol unfortunately for her I am taking a small break from cookies and delving into some uncharted territories in the kitchen.

Do you want to know something?  It feels SUPER good to be blogging again, and I am feeling motivated to get back to doing it almost daily YAY!!  I also wanted to share with all my lovely readers that I have discovered a new passion that I eventually will share pictures and my progress in this new endeavor.  My newest passion is painting, no I am not professionally trained and even in school I took other forms of art but never painting.  The way I discovered my new passion was by attending a birthday celebration, after dinner we went to something called Painting with a Twist (it's only in the USA right now, hopefully they'll cross the border soon).  Needless to say I caught the creative painting bug, but I'll write a post dedicated to the experience because a few sentences just won't do them justice ;)  Until next time..............................


Stay sweet,



Jennifer xoxoxo

Not Your Average Sheppard

Hello Sweets,

Are y'all having a wonderful weekend?  Mine is pretty quiet and that's only because I'm dealing with a lot of pain, surprise surprise :(  But none the less I am alive and smiling (most of the time), so I really can't complain right?  I know it's been forEVER since I have written a post and for that I apologize, but I have still been creating in the kitchen so I think once this post is done it will really get the ball rolling again!  So I know I gave you guys fair warning of cookie overload due to my little sisters upcoming wedding, but I thought today I'd step away from the sweets (only for a moment though lol) and get back to where my love of cooking really came to head :)

Like most little girls, my kitchen adventures started by helping mom and grandma with baking. One of my favorite things to help with when I was little was, and yes it is silly, sifting flour.  I don't know what it was but I loved the noise the sifter made with each click of the handle and I ALWAYS had to do it lol.  But it wasn't until I was about twelve years old that I cooked a meal for my family all on my own, yup no help at all :)  First I'd like to give you a little background on my family so you can understand why this was my first dish that I made :)  My grandmother in English, her grandparents immigrated here after world war one so we had typical dishes such as fish and chips, now don't get me wrong I love my grandma but she doesn't use a whole lot of spices lol I don't know if that's part of her upbringing or what but my grandfather hates that.  My grandfather is Maltese (Italy kicked Sicily and pushed Malta, seriously that's what it looks like lol), he immigrated here when he was nineteen years old, he comes from a lot of pasta dishes....obvious huh.  So naturally my mother stuck more to the English side of the cooking, but thank the Lord she used spices lol she's the one the taught me no measurements just the nose ;)  So I made a dish that she had made my entire life, Sheppard pie :), except for one little thing that I don't think she even realized.  Sheppard's look after sheep/lambs so naturally the meat in the dish is corresponding with the association, well not quite at our house because we used beef.  No big deal right?  Well funny thing happened today, it's no secret I'm a huge fan of Gordon Ramsey so I watch a lot of Kitchen Nightmares and Hell's Kitchen, and by a lot I mean all lol.  So while relaxing early I decided to watch some reruns and what happens?  He orders Sheppard's pie from this restaurant and it's made with beef, he looks at the waitress with one of his priceless looks and says "it's not Sheppard's pie, it's a cottage pie when it has beef in it".  Well you know the saying 'you learn something new every day', well I just learned something new and I'm glad I did because I wouldn't want to misinform my lovely readers :)  And I was surprised when they served it with gravy  and thought to myself jeez I think my mom invented a whole different dish, but then he pointed out it shouldn't have it lol.  Any-who here is my "updated" version of Sheppard's, I mean Cottage Pie, and I say updated because I've added some new things :)

Cottage Pie

Ingredients

1lb extra lean ground beef

2 large russet potatoes, cubed

1/2 onion, diced

1 can of corn, drained

2Tbs butter

couple dashes of milk

1/2Tbs garlic powder

1Tsp cayenne powder

1/2Tsp black pepper

pinch of salt

Directions:

1)  Wash the potatoes and cut into smaller cubes to boil, I left the skins on but you can peel them if preferred.  Place in a pot of water and boil until they become soft, or until a fork pierces them easily. 

 

2)  While the potatoes are boiling, place the onions into a frying pan and sweat them off (soften).  Add the ground beef cooking thoroughly with a little of each of the spices added and then drain the excess grease from the pan.  Place the meat and onions in the bottom of a casserole dish.

 

3)  Next you want to mash your potatoes; drain the water from the pot and add the salt, some pepper, garlic, and a pinch of  cayenne.  Add the butter and milk and mash away!

 

4)  Place the corn in a layer over the beef, and then finally the mashed potatoes.  Finish it off in the oven at 400F until the potatoes have slight color and crispiness to them.

 

There you have it, the very first meal I ever made on my own when I was young :)  I know some people like to add gravy to theirs, but if you season everything correctly you won't need it ;)  

Just so y'all are aware the cookie overload commences again tomorrow, so be prepared to see something sweet, besides me that is lol just kidding.  Until next time................

Stay sweet,

Jennifer xoxoxoxo

Candied Bacon, Need I Say More?

Hello Sweets,

Well you've made it to the middle of the week :) in a couple of days it will be the weekend again!  Do you have any fun plans considering the unseasonable weather (my Ontario friends)?  So far for me it sounds like it will be a nice quiet weekend, maybe a visit with my favorite little man Miguel (my nephew), which is always a blast.

Lately I've been feeling very blah -_- and frankly I don't like it, so today I decided to get back to my passion and create a recipe from scratch :)  Over the next three posts I will be doing one recipe (three total) and on the final post you'll be able to see the final product.  Now I won't be telling you what I'm making now, but I'm going to treat it sort of like a puzzle :)  With each recipe I want you guys to try and guess as to what is being put together, and I am sure you'll be in the right ball park once you have tomorrows post to combined with today's.  If you think you know what I am making please leave a comment below, I love hearing from all of my lovely readers.

So I know the title of the post tells you exactly what I made today, but honestly what more can I really say about candied bacon lol.  I had never made this before, but since I wanted a completely original Canuckette recipe, I decided to try my hand at it.  I did a little research since I knew I'd be making it in the oven, which is completely foreign to me lol.  I still make bacon the old fashion way  in the frying pan.  Do you ever find that when you think it's an easy straight forward recipe, then you look online for some basics and it seems like everyone does it completely different, and with random ingredients?  Well that is how I felt lol but I felt confident that I had the general knowledge to move forward in my quest, so I went ahead with it and now you will too ;)

Canuckette's Candied Bacon

Ingredients

bacon

dark brown sugar

cinnamon

black pepper

allspice

 

the allspice was a last minute addition, and a good one at that!

Directions:

1)  Preheat oven to 325F.  Line a baking pan with tinfoil (sugar drippings are very hard to clean of a pan), place a wire rack on top and spray very well with cooking spray.  Line bacon across the wire rack.

 

2)  Sprinkle a pinch of pepper and allspice over top, then lightly dust with cinnamon.  Completely coat with brown sugar, make sure to press down to get the sugar to stick and not fall off when you flip to do the other side.  Flip over and repeat.

3)  Place in the preheated oven and bake for about 30 minutes, or until the bacon is a darker brown.  Remove from oven and move to a plate to cool.

4)  Cut into smaller pieces and enjoy on top of many dishes or as a small snack!

the sugar gives it a shimmery look

I am so glad I finally made this (thanks for putting the idea in my head Dave!) because it is the perfect balance of salty and sweet.  Let's just say that everyone who has tried it thinks it's delicious :)

It is killing me to not share the surprise of the final delicious treat, but the mystery is half of the fun right?!  Now I have to go do some more research for tomorrows recipe because I will be giving you yet another Canuckette original, and I am super excited.  What I will tell you is that I'll be utilizing my Canadian roots with tomorrows creation ;)  I am also glad to report that in the time it took to write this post I am already feeling a little better :)  Until next time...............

Stay sweet,

Jennifer xoxoxo

 

Happy (belated) Birthday to My Love

Hello Sweets,


I hope everyone is having a great week and hopefully it is flying by for you, because it is definitely flying for me lol I think it's because it is the Christmas season and there is just that much more to do!

In an attempt to finalize everything I need for the homemade Christmas gifts I am creating, we went to Michael's (craft store), and I was like a kid in a candy store.  Let me tell you I found everything I needed and more to make these gifts super adorable that I didn't even think of.  I cannot wait to show you guys the finished products once they are given out :)  Did you know that Michael's carries baking supplies?  I'm not talking about a few things, we're talking about 3 full aisles of a baking wonderland!  I got some more decorative accents for the Christmas cookies we will be making over the next couple weeks, and even a reindeer kit for our cookies.  Lets just say I'll probably do a few different Christmas cookie recipes so I can write multiple posts about my decorating adventures, and I'm not a pro yet but I am giving it more effort than ever!

So as you all know I missed Nathans birthday last week :( but I have been making it up to him since I got here, slowly but surely giving him little birthday surprises.  For example, the day I landed, Nathan and I swapped our birthday cards, and when I pick a card it has to represent our relationship, and then I always write a little something extra special in it.  Early next week he will get a small present (although I know it will get a great reaction from him), and today, well today I made him an old fashion chocolate cake with chocolate icing and blue sugar (his favorite).  He loves it when I bake for him to begin with, but chocolate cake is his favorite, and since we've been dating, I promised him I would always bake him a birthday cake.  I know I had tested out a new chocolate cake recipe last week, but I decided that I would try another one today so I had a fresh new recipe for tonight's post.  Get your aprons on, because we're headed to chocolate town!!

Old Fashion Chocolate Cake

Ingredients

3/4C butter, softened

1 2/3C brown sugar

3 eggs

1 Tsp vanilla

2C all-purpose flour

2/3C cocoa

1 1/4Tsp baking soda

1 Tsp salt

1/4Tsp baking powder

1 1/3C water

Directions:

1)  Preheat oven to 350F.  Grease and flour 13"x9"x2" cake pan (or 2 9" round pan).

2)  Beat butter, sugar, eggs, and vanilla on high for 3 minutes.

3)  Mix flour, cocoa, baking soda, salt , and baking powder; add alternately with water to butter mixture until smooth.

 

4)  Pour batter into pan.  Bake for 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.  Let cool for 10 minutes; remove from pan to wire rack.  Cool completely.

 

I used wax paper to ensure it would come out perfectly :)

Let's get to the yummy frosting while the cake is cooling.

Perfect Chocolate Icing

Ingredients

1/2C butter

2/3C cocoa

3C confectioners sugar

1/3C milk

1 Tsp vanilla

 

Directions:

1)  Melt butter, then alternately add confectioners (powdered) sugar and milk, beating on medium speed spreading consistency.  Add more milk, if needed.  Add vanilla, makes about 2 cups worth.

 

I'm sorry for not taking progress pictures :(

The cake turned out completely delicious, and Nathan is a very happy and satisfied man (goal achieved)!  Probably one of the best ways to end a delicious steak dinner, grilled by none other then the master himself, Nathan!

 Final product :)

What is your go to birthday cake flavor?  Do you prefer to bake for your loved ones, or do you have a special bakery that makes all of your treats?  Not many more things can top the feeling of baking something I know Nathan will love, and I know he'll tell you that he loves everything I make him.  I really do have the greatest boyfriend in the world!!  

Well now I have to find a few Christmas cookie recipes to start making over the next few days, maybe I will try and do one new recipe a day, or maybe every couple of days with a few random recipes in between.  If you have any suggestions or favorites I would love to hear from you, feel free to drop me a line anytime :)  Until next time.......

Stay sweet,

Jennifer xoxoxo

Canuckette's Passion

Hello Sweets,

I hope you all are having a relaxing Sunday :)  Did you do anything fun this weekend?  Maybe you baked a special little treat? I would love to hear from all of you.  Me, well today hasn't been too great, I feel pretty awful so I don't have the energy to whip up something creative in the kitchen (I know, no recipe I'm sorry :( ).  With my migraines sometimes it's best for me to take a break from the kitchen because I never know what sound, smell, or even temperature will make things even worse.  You would think after more than a year of this I would be used to it, but sadly no, I'm just as big of a suck now as when it all first started lol.

So I started thinking to myself, what should I write about today?  The idea was all too clear to me, why not write that post about passion I was going to do earlier this week!  This won't be a super long post, rather quick and to the point, but I really want to make sure I tell you guys what passion means to me, and what it has done for my life. 

Dictionary Reference website defines Passion as;

passion ~ noun

1.  any powerful or compelling emotion or feeling, as love or hate.

2.  strong amorous feeling or desire; love; ardor; lust.

4.  an instance or experience of strong love.

5.  a person toward whom one feels strong love.

6.  a strong or extravagant fondness, enthusiasm, or desire for anything: a passion for music.

7.  the object of such a fondness or desire: Accuracy became a passion with him.

8.  an outburst of strong emotion or feeling: He suddenly broke into a passion of bitter words.

Now I removed a couple of points that referred to sexual desire, anger, and religious references because they were not applicable to my reference to passion, but you can find the complete definition through the link above :)

What I take away from this definition, and what I know applies to my passion for everything about being in a kitchen, is that I absolutely love creating and making food for others.  I can't even begin to explain the sheer emotional feeling I get inside when I see someone smile, or that they absolutely love what I have made for them.  I guess the closest I can describe it to is when I volunteer, for any organization, knowing that I can make even the smallest impact on someones life and be a little ray of sunshine for them.  It's that warm feeling you get when your with the ones you care about the most, laughing and smiling, being in that moment and not caring about anything else that is going on.  It's been this passion for baking, cooking, and blogging that has really helped me deal with all the stress of my illnesses and to have a sense of normalcy to my life, and even bring me back over to the happy side when I am feeling down.

When I am in the kitchen, I want to be there, actually I love being there, it makes me forget about all the other things going on in my life and I can just create and explore new things.  I can make mistakes and be okay with them,  or even laugh about them because it is all part of the experience for me.  I love trying new recipes and flavors.  I have that unmistakable desire of wanting to better myself at each task.  I take the utmost pride in what I create, and I put some much care into my work because I want to see people enjoying what I create for them.  I can get lost in the moment when I'm baking and cooking, and forget about everything else that is going on in the world.  Now I'm not perfect, nor do I claim to be.  I will have my moments where I can get frustrated when something is not going according to plan or even get overwhelmed (Nathan will tell you!), but there are definitely more smiles, laughs, and silliness that tend to take place in whatever kitchen I am in :p

For me, my passion is baking and cooking for others, almost nothing feels better then that.  It is something I've always loved; from helping my grandmother at Christmas (I started out on the cheese and veggie platters lol), to creating yummy treats so I can watch my cutie nephew Miguel dive right in, and most importantly learning to make the things that my wonderful other half loves :)  I mastered coconut meringue pie (find the recipe here) just for him, and I put a lot of pressure on myself to make it perfect, but I put even more love into it because I have this need to create and master.  The feeling of when what you are trying so hard for something, then it comes out exactly or even better than you planned, is beyond words.

Kid knows how to eat a cupcake lol!

He loves auntie Jemmy's Peanut butter chocolate chip banana muffins 

These are the things that make life worth while.  I do it all for the smiles :)  What are you most passionate about?  I would love to hear from all of you, anytime, so please feel free to contact me.  Now I am off to relax with my trusty ginger ale, one thing I always reach for when I'm sick :)

Until next time.......

Stay sweet,

Jennifer xoxoxo