Pancakes for Breakfast

I'm on holidays and every day feels like the weekend. Waking up at noon is a luxury I'll soon miss. And with waking up at noon and having no responsibilities this leaves me with a lot of time to make weekend style breakfasts.  So here is a new recipe I tried for basic pancakes. They were light, fluffy and delish! And I added blueberries to the mix, making them even more tasty.

Simple Pancakes
Adapted from WeightWatcher's complete cookbook
Serves 2-3 people

1 cup flour
1/4 Splenda
1 tsp baking powder1 1/3 cups skim or 1% milk
1/4 cup of egg whites or 2 egg whites
1 tsp canola oil
Blueberries, raspberries, chocolate chips (optional)
Syrup

Combine the flour, Splenda and baking powder in a small mixing bowl. In a larger bowl whisk together the egg whites, milk and oil. Add half the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and stir. Add the remaining dry ingredients and whisk until combined. If you want to make berry or chocolate chip pancakes add them to the batter. Spray a non-stick skillet with cooking spray and pour the desired amount of pancake batter onto the preheated pan. The pancakes should be cooked for about 1 minute on each side. This recipe made 8 pretty big pancakes.

re: Stacks

Perfect Wednesday morning

Home for the Holidays - Ginger Crackle Cookies

Along with the fudge, shortbread cookies, apple pie and large quantities of chocolates that my mom has available during the holidays, I thought I would try to make a new cookie recipe courtesy of my good friend Amanda (why do I do this to myself?). These cookies are easy to make and are full of holiday flavour (cinnamon, molasses and cloves)!!

Ginger Crackle Cookies

Ingredients
3/4 cup butter or margarine
1 cup white sugar + extra to coat the cookies
1 egg
1/4 molasses
2 cups + 2 tbsp flour
2 tsp baking soda
2 tsp ginger (if you aren't a huge fan of ginger you can use 1 tsp)
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp cloves (can substitue all spice)

Preheat oven to 350F. In a mixing bowl stir together the butter and sugar. Add the egg end mix until well combined. Add the molasses and stir. In a separate bowl combine the dry ingredients in stir well. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients 1/3 at a time. Once the dough is well mixed roll the dough into balls (about i inch in diameter). Roll the balls in a dish of white sugar and place on a cookie sheet (about 8 cookies should fit on a standard cookie sheet. Make sure to leave lots of room for them to expand). Bake the cookies for 12 - 14 mins. When they come out they should be golden brown and still a little soft. If you prefer a crispy cookie bake for an extra 2 minutes. Enjoy them while they last!

* If you want to make these cookies a little more special you can melt white or milk chocolate and dip half the cookie in the chocolate mixture then place in the fridge to harden.

Winter Salad and Hot Cocoa Cookies

Today was probably the coldest day of the winter so far, which was quite a contrast to the 25+ degree weather I just experienced for the last week while in Mexico. You might be wondering why I'm not making something Mexican themed but honestly I need a few avocado free days before tackling a guac recipe.

This salad is perfect for a cold winter day and the hot cocoa cookies do more than warm you up.

Baked Squash Salad

Adapted from http://kirantarun.com/food/2011/12/16/warm-acorn-squash-salad/
Serves 2

Ingredients
1 small acorn squash
1 endive
3 small clementines
1 small Macintosh apple
1/3 cup dried cranberries
3 cups baby spinach
1 tbsp brown sugar
2 tsp olive oil
1 tbsp honey
1 lemon
1 tsp cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350F. Cut the squash in half lengthwise and scoop out the pulp with a spoon. Flip the squash flat side down and slice into 1 cm thick slices. Arrange the slices on a cooking sheet sprayed with cooking spray and sprinkle with brown sugar. Bake for 20 mins on each side.

For the dressing combine the honey, lemon juice, cinnamon and cranberries in a bowl and stir until combined. Set aside.

For the salad chop the endive into bite size pieces, peel the clementines and slice the apple. Arrange the spinach in a bowl and layer the endive and fruit on top. Top with the warm squash and the dressing. To make serving the salad easier I arranged half the ingredients into two bowls and served the salad as individual portions. A nice addition would be goat cheese or roasted cashews for a little more protein. Enjoy!

Sprinkle acorn squash with brown sugar 

Perfectly golden acorn squash

Fresh apples and clementines

Sliced endive

Cranberry cinnamon dressing

Layered warm squash salad

Now for desert!

These hot cocoa cookies are a combination of the Joy of Cooking's chocolate chip cookie recipe and the mouth watering recipe from http://www.pipandebby.com/pip-ebby/2011/11/14/hot-cocoa-cookies.html

Hot Cocoa Cookies

Makes 16 cookies

Ingredients
Dry Ingredients:
1 cup + 2 tbsp flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/4 cup cocoa powder

Wet Ingredients:
1 cup butter
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1 large egg

16 large marshmallows
4 cubes semi-sweet baker's chocolate

Combine the dry ingredients in a glass bowl and mix well. In a separate bowl combine the butter and sugar and mix until combined. Add the egg and vanilla and stir. Once all the wet ingredients are combined stir in the dry ingredients 1/3 at a time. Roll the dough into 16 balls and place on a cookie sheet. Press the cookies down and bake for 8 minutes. Meanwhile, cut the bakers chocolate into 16 pieces and press them into the marshmallows. Once the cookies have baked for 8 minutes remove the tray from the oven and place the marshmallows on top of the cookie, with the chocolate piece covered. Return the cookie tray to the oven for 2 more minutes. Remove the cookies and allow them to cool slightly before serving. I dare you to eat only one!

Tobey loves cookies!

Mexican Style Bean Salad

My mom is coming into town today and after the 4 hour drive from Shawville I'm sure she'll be hungry. I've decided to make one of her favorite meals, a mexican style bean salad. This salad is great in the summer or winter and can be eaten as a meal on its own or as a side. It would go great with burgers or a sandwich. So here it is...

Ingredients

1 can black beans, washed

1 can corn kernels, drained

1/2 medium red onion, diced

1/2 red pepper, diced

1 green onion, sliced

1 tbsp chopped fresh mint

1 tbsp cumin

1 tsp cayenne pepper

1 tbsp chilli powder

3 tbsp white wine or white balsamic vinegar

1 tsp olive oil

This recipe is so simple and easy, and only takes about 10 minutes to prepare. Combine all ingredients in a glass mixing bowl and stir. Let chill in the fridge for an hour so the beans can absorb the spices (optional). Makes about 4 servings. 

 

Stuffed Acorn Squash

I had an acorn squash in my pantry and needed a new way to eat it. Yes, the smother in butter and brown sugar technique is delicious, but I needed something healthier, with protein and flavor! So here is my stuffed squash recipe.

Ingredients
Butternut squash
1/2 cup quinoa, uncooked
4 slices of chicken bacon
1/3 cup dried cranberries
2 portobello mushrooms, sliced
Cooking spray
1 tsp butter or margarine
1/2 large red onion, sliced
1/2 large white onion, sliced
1 tbsp fresh rosemary, diced
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
Juice of one lemon
Salt and pepper
60 grams goat cheese

Preheat oven to 400C. Cut the squash in half lengthwise and place on a cooking sheet. Bake for 45 minutes or until a fork pierces the flesh without any effort.

In a frying pan fry the chicken bacon about 3 minutes on each side. Meanwhile, in two separate pans fry the mushrooms and onions, first spraying the pans with cooking spray. Caramelize the onions by adding 1 tsp margarine or butter and one tbsp brown sugar. The mushrooms and onions should take about 5 minutes. Chop the bacon and add it, the mushrooms and the onions to a large mixing bowl. Cook the quinoa according to package instructions and add to the mixing bowl. Stir in the cranberries, lemon juice, olive oil, vinegar, rosemary and season with salt and pepper to taste. Stir all the ingredients together and stuff the squash once it is cooked. Place the stuffed squash back in the oven for 5 minutes to heat. Top each half with 30 grams of goat cheese and serve.

I really liked this dish but according to Katie "it tastes like it should be fattening!"

Chicken bacon

Butternut squash

Quinoa stuffing

Purple Cabbage Side Salad

So sticking to the new diet (aka lifestyle change...) can be a little challenging but luckily vegetables are a free for all. So here is a recipe for a sweet side salad that goes great with a sandwich for lunch or with dinner. And its quick and easy to make!

Ingredients
1/2 purple cabbage, chopped
1 onion, sliced
1/3 cup raisins
2 large carrots, grated
1 tsp olive oil
2 tbsp low fat mayo
2 tbsp white wine vinegar
1 tbsp honey

In a large pot saute the onions in the olive oil for about 2 minutes. Add the cabbage and cook covered for about 5 minutes until the cabbage is slightly softened. Remove from heat and place in the fridge until cooled. Add the mayo, vinegar, carrots, honey, raisins and stir until combined. Keep refrigerated until ready to serve.

Pumpkin Soup

Its that time of year again...fall (we have a love hate relationship; love the pretty colors and that I get to wear sweaters and scarves, hate the wind and rain blowing in my face and turning my umbrella inside out). Tonight I had Tiiu over for dinner and had to come up with an idea for what to serve that little princess-sexy-beast friend of mine. Pumpkin soup seemed fitting considering the windy weather outside. (Not to tease, but I served the soup with grilled squid and a marinated portobello mushroom topped with caramelized onions and sharp cheddar). So here is the recipe for the soup (so simple and quite amazing). On a side note, the recipe is from my travels to Vietnam...

Pumpkin Soup

Ingredients
1 medium sized pumpkin
1 cup skim or 1% milk
1 tsp brown sugar
1 tbsp concentrated soup stock (I used vegetable)
Kosher salt and pepper to taste

Dealing with the pumpkin is the hardest part. I cut around the stem and removed the top, scooped out the pulp and seeds and then cut the pumpkin in half. I finished cleaning the inside and then sliced the pumpkin and peeled it. This took me forever and I'm sure there must be an easier way. I think cutting the pumpkin in half and baking it for an hour, then scooping out the flesh and using it in the soup would also work and may be less energy consuming.

Anyway, once I got that bad boy sliced and peeled I diced it into think pieces and added it to a soup pot.

Regarldess of how you get the pumpkin ready, once its in the pot add enough water to cover the pumpkin and cook it on high heat for about 20 minutes. Once most of the water has evaporated check to see if the pumpkin is cooked. If not, add another cup and finished cooking the pumpkin. Once the it is cooked add the milk (add more if you want the soup to be less creamy and thick). Add the condensed stock and sugar, and season with generous amounts of salt and pepper. Puree with a hand blender until it is creamy and smooth. Serve as an appetizer or add croutons and cheese and have it as a main.

Also, you can roast the seeds which are a great addition to salads. Simply toss them in a tsp of olive oil and sprinkle with salt, then bake them at 400C for 3-4 minutes. Take them out, flip them and bake for a few more minutes until golden.