Pastizzis: the grand finale!

Hello Sweets,

Happy Friday! I hope you all had a fantastic day, I've been busy in the kitchen with my grandfather, completing the pastizzi adventure :)  Did any of my American readers venture out for the crazy black Friday sales?  If you did you are a brave soul, I'm not sure I could handle all that craziness even for a good sale lol.

So today my grandfather and I were able to complete our pastizzis today!  I honestly didn't know that much work went into them, but they are definitely worth it.  One thing I thought I should mention is in regards to the dough, I would probably double it because the filling supersedes the amount of dough, apparently he will be making more next week to freeze (after today I feel I may be getting a phone call lol).  Okay lets get to the pastizzi finale!  Oh and remember I have the ricotta filling recipe today and how to put it all together :)

Ricotta Filling

Ingredients

1 container ricotta cheese

1 egg

dash pepper

Directions:

1)  Mix all ingredients together.  Set aside (yea it's really that easy lol)

bakes in the oven with the pastry :)

Remember the meat filling from my first post, put it on the stove to heat it up and add 3Tbs of HP sauce to it to add some zest to it.  Set aside.

Putting the Pastizzis together

Directions:

1)  Take you ball of dough and cut an inch and a half, then flatten it slightly with your hands and rub a little shortening on it.

2)  Take a  rolling pin and roll the dough until it is paper thin, it will start to stick to the rolling pin and pull apart, this is what we want.  Rub with more shortening (do not use flour at all, the shortening should prevent most of the stickiness).

3)  Repeat step two with another piece of dough, you are going to roll this piece over the first (creates a yummy flakiness).  Rub with shortening.

4)  Now start rolling the dough on to itself, rolling as tight as possible.  Try to keep it as uniform as possible, folding in loose ends as they form.  Rub with shortening and set aside, continue this until all dough is rolled.  You can do three layers, but make sure the dough is super thin.

5)  Have both fillings ready, now comes the messy but fun part!  Cut one and a half inch sections of dough, and flatten with your hand like a tiny pizza.  You want them ideally the size of your palm (size of a coaster).

6)  Place a tablespoons amount of one of the fillings and place it not quite center in the dough.  Then fold the dough over the filling and pinch closed like a little pocket.

 meat and peas

ricotta

7)  Repeat steps until dough is completely gone.  Place on a baking sheet and bake at 375F for 20 minutes, or until the bottom are golden brown, then turn on broil for 5 minutes to brown the top.  Remove and let stand for a couple of minutes, then enjoy!

my grandfather said I had a beginners touch because his are the ones that look like a newbies lol

I don't think I could have thought of a better way to spend a dreary afternoon than being in the kitchen with someone I love :)  We had lots of fun, he got to pass the torch down to the closest to next generation, and we even had some laughs at our own expense.  I have loved these savory little treats for as long as I can remember, although when I was young I thought the ricotta ones were gross but not anymore ;)  And know I can make them whenever my little heart desires!

So remember a few posts ago when I said I was starting to think about Christmas baking?  Well the baking is going to officially start tomorrow, because my grandmother has decided to make her brandy Christmas cake early because I'm leaving in early December :)  Now I know what everyone is thinking, "fruit cake, ick!", but this is not a typical fruit cake.  It is much more moist and flavor full, and well it has brandy in it so it is more adult.  She doesn't ice it like the fruit cakes that get re gifted over and over lol actually there is never any left at the end of Christmas day, and if that doesn't scream yummy goodness to you well I'm stumped lol :)

Another yummy treat she always had on Christmas day was Christmas pudding with a brandy sauce (this is sort of making her look like a drinker, but she is not at all lol), but I found out a couple years back she bought this pudding at Christmas bazaars and only made the sauce.  I was shocked, because my whole life I thought she made this cake with forbidden sauce (that my mother would sometimes sneak me).  Well, I have convinced her to make a Christmas pudding with me, and I'll have that post for you in the next week or two :)  I'm just going crazy for Christmas, which is rare for me because I am used to a low key Christmas, but at Nathan's it is a couple days worth and I've got to say that I love it more like that ;)  Until next time.........

Stay sweet,

Jennifer xoxoxo

Leftovers, but not left out

Hello Sweets!

I hope you all are enjoying the fact that it's the middle of the week.  I am having a very bad health day, but have decided to at least write a small post about the "misfits" of the refrigerator; the leftovers.

I am the kind of person that doesn't like to waste food, and since being taken off of work for health reasons, it is all the more important that I don't waste food. Yesterday being my first day back to Canadia, meant I had a doctors appointment, and that I'd being seeing my grandfather and going to the pharmacy in my local grocery store. When I took my prescriptions in, I was told it would be about forty five minutes (yikes just a bit of a wait lol), and having just gotten multiple shots, there was no way I'd be going home and walking back. I am fortunate enough to be a granddaughter to my loving wonderful grandparents, who would do anything for me and when it comes to my health, they don't skimp even when I say it's okay. Since my grandparents had just gotten back from a cruise, we sat down in the waiting area and chatted about both of our trips. While sitting there, the delicious smell of slow roasted chicken was wafting over our way and making my stomach growl, lol in typical Jennifer fashion I hadn't located my bank card yet, which meant I had not gone grocery shopping. My grandfather saw I was hungry from being at the doctors, and the near hour that had passed, so he asked me if I wanted a chicken (it was also on special that day).  That was an offer my stomach was not going to pass up! Needless to say, being one girl I obviously could not finish the chicken at all lol.

too much chicken for one little girl!

So earlier this afternoon I started thinking to myself; how was I going to eat the rest of the chicken?  As is? Shredded on a sandwich or salad?  I could even make it into a whole new dish :).  I love to have turkey sandwiches during Thanksgiving or Christmas, so I decided I would shred the rest of the chicken and have it on hand to create anything my heart desired with the scraps.

looks like I'll be eating chicken for a while

After breaking the chicken down and disposing of the bones, I had worked up quite the appetite, so I decided to have a simple yet delicious chicken sandwich. All I needed was some bread, whipped dressing, salt, pepper, and some sharp cheese to accompany the already delectable seasoned chicken.

nothing fancy, just simply flavor

Now there are plenty of ways to make chicken salad, but I chose to make more of a traditional sandwich.  Normally, I would add all sorts of different veggies, but since I still haven't made it to the grocery store I settled with what I had on hand. Now not everyone likes a warm or toasted sandwich, but when it comes to left over chicken or turkey, I do! So I start by toasting the bread, not very dark at all, and add a thin layer of whipped dressing.

boring lol

After warming the chicken up, I place a hearty layer of chicken and sprinkle a small amount of salt, and some pepper, then topped with some of the sharp cheddar cheese (maybe 2Tbs).

I'm starting to get hungry

I then place a very, very small amount of whipped dressing on the top slice of bread (just to help hold it in place), then close the sandwich, cut, and enjoy with veggies, chips, or salad.

yum!!

Now you can do this with any type of left over, maybe not a sandwich, but wraps, salads, soups, and so much more. Don't let generic options limit you(although mine sort of is lol), think outside the box and get creative, experiment with your pallet and enjoy what you eat. Try not to waste anything, but don't do the boring, have fun with your food (even if your mom told you not too ;)). I promise to have a longer post tomorrow, until next time........

Stay sweet,


Jennifer xoxoxo

The quickest way to a mans heart, is through his stomach!

Hello Sweets,

One of my favorite times to bake or cook is for those that mean the most to me.  Nathan is my absolute favorite person to cook for, and cooking for his family is very important to me, or better yet that they like what I make.  At the risk of sounding old fashion or dated, I really do want to be that wife and mother who cooks and bakes on a regular basis.  Some of my fondest memories as a child were being in the kitchen with my grandmother baking (my favorite part was the flour sifter lol), and watching my mother in the kitchen cooking dinner, but not following a recipe but using her sense to determine the right flavors.

Needless to say, today's post is about not one, not two, and but three recipes!  I made Nathan and his father a yummy chuck roast dinner last night with all the fixings.  I went out immediately after to spend some quality with Nathan's aunt, so I only got the "thanks for dinner Canuckette, that was good".  So of course when I returned later that evening, I asked Nathan what his dad really thought, and this is the direct quote from his father,"girl can cook".  This makes me very happy because I love knowing how much his family likes me, family is very important to me, and when you date someone, you connect two families together, and that is precisely what I want.  So for dinner last night I made a chuck roast with roasted potatoes, onions, carrots, corn, gravy, and Yorkshire pudding (a little bit of English to our country dinner).  Everything is relatively simple to make, but remember as with anything you make, make it from the heart ;)

Okay on to the recipes!!

Chuck Roast

Ingredients

coarse black pepper

 garlic powder

some fresh roasted garlic

Lea & Perrins Worcestershire sauce

 Lowry's Steak and Chop marinade

sea salt, Lowry's seasoning salt

 Adolph's meat tenderizer

5 medium sized potatoes, chopped

5 whole carrots, chopped

1/2 a large yellow onion, chopped

1C beef broth or 1 bullion cube, dissolved

My roast soaking in its bath lol

Directions:

1)  Go to the butcher and ask for a chuck roast or seven bone roast (the bone in the center is shaped as the number seven), the more marbling, the better the flavor.  Now I cannot give you the weight of the one I made last night as they bought a whole cow and just had the butcher package their meat for them, but we fed about 6 people.  Now, if you have time you should season or marinade the beef overnight, this way the meat really soaks up all the flavor and will fall apart.  Also, pierce the meat with a fork to allow that much more absorption.  Choose what ever seasonings/marinade you would use of a steak, I do not use BBQ sauce on a roast but that is my preference.  Apply any liquids you chose to use first as to not wash away the seasonings.  Your marinade mixture doesn't necessarily have to submerge the meat, about half full will do, just be sure to flip the roast over at least once (preferably about halfway from prep to cook), then place in the fridge overnight. If you don't have time for overnight, try and get a least a couple of hours. Be sure not to dispose of the mixture the roast is in, as it will contribute to cooking in the flavor, moisten, and will serve as the main ingredient in the gravy 

2)  Preheat your over to 375F. While the oven is preheating, cut up your potatoes, onions, and carrots.  I like a rustic type of meal with my roast, so I tend to cut bigger and not uniformed.  Place the veggies around and on the roast, top with a little bit of beef broth or bullion, cover with tin foil.  Place into the oven for 2 hours, checking after one to ensure the veggies are not drying out, if they are, add a little more of the broth to moisten the veggies.

standing room only!

While that was cooking, I moved on to prepare the Yorkshire puddings!  I start this one hour into the roast cooking to allow the batter to sit for 30 minutes, and then cook in the oven with the roast for the last 30 minutes.

Easy Yorkshire Pudding

Ingredients

3 eggs

1C milk

1C all-purpose flour

2tbs butter

Directions:

1)  In a medium bowl, beat eggs with milk.  Stir in flour and set aside. 

2)  Divide butter evenly into the 12 cups of a muffin tin, about 1/2 tsp per cup.  Place empty tin into the oven to melt the butter for 2-5 minutes.  Remove tin from oven, and distribute batter evenly among buttery cups.

Completed batter and butter divided 

notice the brown on the edges?  That's the melted butter

 3)  Bake in preheated oven for 5 minutes.  Reduce heat to 350F, and bake for 25 minutes more or until puffed and golden.  It is okay to drop the heat while the roast is still cooking as it is only for the last 30 minutes.

All done, YUM!

Next up is the gravy!

Simple Gravy

Ingredients

1 1/2C of the roast drippings

flour

Directions:

1)  Transfer 1C of the drippings into a sauce pan and bring to a boil.  Slowly add flour to thicken the consistency.  If lumps form, add a little more of the drippings.  Depending on your preference of thickness, continue adding flour until you've reached your desired consistency.

2)Enjoy!

Completed feast in all its glory, boys couldn't wait to dig in obviously lol

Needless to say, no one went hungry last night, and we even enjoyed some for lunch today :)  Now tonight I am going to make the famous pumpkin spice cupcakes and will be posting that little gem tomorrow!  Until then....

Stay sweet,

Jennifer xoxoxo