Three Things I'm Longing To Eat...

...But will not be able to for another 34 days. I gave this all up for lent this year. All indulgent sweets. Even lattes. It might be crazy to some, perhaps it is, but it is honestly so hard!! I never realized how addicted I was until I cut it out. Well, I suppose I can dream about my super indulgent chocolate party I'm going to have at the end of this. These will ALL be on the menu.

Nutella Stuffed French Toast from Spearmint Kitchen

Molton Chocolate Cake from The Year In Food

Reese's Cheesecake Brownies from Pip & Ebby

Top 5: Favourite Things About the Holidays!

Hurrah! I am officially on holidays! I finished my last exam this morning and am now fully in holiday mode. So to celebrate, I would like to share with you my favourite things about the Christmas season (as it is one of my favourite celebrations! I think Easter and Valentine's day are in close comparison...) I've compiled some images/videos/recipes to go along with the list, so I hope you enjoy!

1. Celebrating the Saviour's birth! THE most important part of the season and the reason why we celebrate! He is the basis of Christianity and (as I heard in church on Sunday) the definition of reality:

"In the beginning was the Word (meaning Jesus), and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of men." John 1:1-4

2. Listening to Christmas Albums. I have a few favourites that I listen to every Christmas, without fail. My all time favourite album is "Home For Christmas" by Amy Grant! It brings back nostalgic memories of Christmas of years past. This year though, I have been enjoying:

        a. "A Very She & Him Christmas" by She & Him- itunes download

b. "Born Is the King" by Hillsong- itunes download

        c. "Silent Night" by Timbre (magical, enchanting sounds!). The album is available for FREE 

    download on bandcamp!

3. Doing Christmas Crafts. Christmas crafting is such fun and so relaxing, especially when you don't have any exams left to worry about! I can't wait to try out making some of the crafts I've found on Pinterest such as these lovely ornaments from A Field Journal. 

4. Doing Christmas baking/ eating sweets. I am all about anything sweet. I've got a sweet tooth like no other! I especially love any baked goods that I can whip up over the holidays. I'm excited to try out these Caramel Stuffed Apple Cider Cookies from The Cooking Photographer. And why not make a little Apple Cider to go with, like this recipe from A Beautiful Mess blog:

Needed: 4-5 cups apple juice, 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg, 3 ounces spiced rum (optional), cinnamon sticks and apple slices to garnish.

In a small pot heat the apple juice, spices and rum (if using) over low/medium heat. Stir often while the mixture is heating so the spices will blend into the juice (you don't want any spice clumps). Once it's hot pour into two mugs and garnish with apple slices and cinnamon sticks.

5. And finally, I LOVE all of the outdoor fun in the snow! I can't wait to go, sledding, cross-country skiing, and skating! Hopefully, there is a big snowfall before Christmas. My fingers are crossed!

Picture from: Dirty Pretty Things

Wow. That was a loaded post. I guess it makes up for all of the times I haven't posted in the last few weeks! What are your top 5 favourite things about Christmas?

Polly Want A Cracker?

Yesterday, I decided to venture into new territory- into the world of crackers! These babies are not as hard as they might seem! And they are delicious. I had a funny conversation with my brother-in-law as I was making them, though:

B.I.L: What are you making?

Me: Crackers!

B.I.L.: I didn't know you could make those things...

Me: Well, they have to get made somehow!

B.I.L.: Oh! I just thought the factory pumped them out...

Silly boys. 

Both the recipe and pictures come from: LoveFoodEat blog from this post. I was going to try to take pictures myself, but they wouldn't have turned out nearly as nice and delicious looking as these! Some people are food photographers, but I am not one of them! Here's the very simple and yummy recipe:

Chickpea Crackers

*250 grams of dry chickpeas (I used 1 cup of canned, drained chickpeas)

*1 cup whole wheat flour

*1 tsp salt

*1 tsp dried thyme (I did not have this, so I used dried rosemary- tasty!)

Soak dry chickpeas in water for 5-6 hours or overnight. Cook them with a pinch of salt till soft.

Drain all the water and mash the chickpeas well by hand or in a food processor.

Add the thyme and salt and mix well.

Now add the whole wheat flour little by little, enough to make hard dough. I used almost a cup.

Roll the dough between two cling films as thin as possible and cut into desired shapes.

Bake in a preheated oven at 160 degree C for 25 to 30 minutes till golden and crisp.

Annnddd as an end note to this post, I would like to share with you a new band that I heard at the Civil Wars concert last night (who were AMAZING live, by the way! Wow. Enchanting.) But the opening band was called Milo Greene and they were also quite amazing. Normally you expect opening bands to be, well, not all that good- this band surpassed my expectation! Here's a sample:

I do have a funny story to tell about the concert, but I will save that for another day...

Coconut Milk Crepes with Raspberry Compote and Mangoes

Get ready for a treat for your mouth! This morning was a crepe morning for me- I woke up hungry and needed something satisfying. So out came the cooking utensils and ingredients as I turned on the soothing sounds of The Essential Yo-Yo Ma. My original plan was to make a raspberry sauce to go with peaches...turns out we had no peaches. But we did have mango, lots and lots of mango. I figured, why not? Let's see what happens. And oh, it happened. Try it for yourself, it's fabulous. And the coconut milk compliments so well. It's like a rolled up raspberry pina colada. Well, maybe not quite, but it is tropically pleasing.

p.s. I'm showing it off on my new vintage MCC finds which I will post about tomorrow!

Coconut Milk Crepes with Raspberry Compote and Mangoes

1 cup flour

1 tablespoon sugar

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon vanilla

3 eggs

3 tablespoons melted butter

1 1/3 cup coconut milk

Combine dry ingredients in large bowl. Combine vanilla, eggs, melted butter and coconut milk in separate bowl and add to dry ingredients. Whisk together.

Cook in a smaller pan on medium-low heat by using a ladle to spoon a small amount to pan. Lift and tilt to distribute evenly. Cook until light (really light!) brown and flip.

Ok now to add the good stuff. Slice up a mango. If you prefer whip up a batch of whipped cream. And make this raspberry sauce:

Raspberry Compote

1 cup berries

1/4 cup sugar

1/2 tablespoon corn starch

1/2 tablespoon lemon juice

Heat until berries burst and create a thick sauce.

Now, eat until your heart's content! Soo delish.

Going Bananas

In an effort to rid myself of the mound of frozen bananas I have, I've been making everything with a bit of banana lately. Those things just pile up in my freezer before I can actually make use of them! I first off made my favourite classic, banana bread- so good, I could eat it all day! Then I wanted to try out this popular recipe post from The Kitchn. It turned out pretty good, but not pretty enough for pictures so I didn't take any- I even added some peanut butter. Yum.

And then this thought came to my mind. What would happen if I made a little chai tea, mashed it together with a banana and threw it in the freezer? Well, I found out after a little experimentation and the results were pretty fabulous. So without further ado, The Banana Chai Granita!

Step 1: (These steps do not involve a whole lot of effort, so do not worry about exerting yourself...) Make a cup of chai tea- although I only ended up using half of the liquid, so you could make half a cup if you prefer.

Step 2: Take a fresh banana, cut it into pieces (I ran out of knives so I resorted to breaking it apart as you can tell by my uneven lines...) and toss it into the freezer for about 1-2 hours.

Step 3: Take the bananas out, whip out your blender or hand mixer, add 1/2 cup of the chai tea and blend, blend, BLEND!

Step 4: Put in a container into the freezer and stir every so often so it does not turn into a chunk of ice.

And there you have it ladies and gents, the delectable fancy granita perfect for a hot summer's day! Enjoy!

French Cooking and a Peony Hunt

With all of the peonies now in bloom, seeing them in EVERY single person's yard has made me a bit jealous. I admit to that. They are such a beautiful spring flower, and I wouldn't mind enjoying them for myself. So. Recently I discovered the art of flower stealing. As in, I walk the ally ways of my neighbourhood with my shears in hand and snip all the overhanging flowers that spill into the depths of the ally. I figure if no one will enjoy these, I might as well! This is how the peony hunt came about. I set out on a journey to find the perfect peony. After 5 long blocks and numerous temptations to sneak onto a yard, I found what I considered free for the taking...some on the other side of someone's fence. Success! And no one stopped me! They are now making my home smell beautiful.

Another recent interest of mine lately has been to try new recipes and flavours. I admit, I've become a bit of a foodie. Just a little bit...So I was ecstatic when I received this early birthday gift yesterday from the girls at my work. (Well...ex-workplace...yesterday was my last day! woohoo!) French Taste~Elegant Everday Eating. I'm excited to try this out!

And speaking of French cooking, we had my favourite breakfast of all this morning- French Toast. (In a close second comes another french favourite, crepes.) I am happy to share this delicious morning delight with you.

1/4 cup all-purpose flour
3 teaspoons sugar
1 1/3 cups milk
4 eggs
2 teaspoons melted margarine or butter
nutmeg
cinnamon

Beat flour, sugar, salt, milk and eggs with hand beater until smooth. Soak bread in egg mixture until saturated.

Heat margarine in skillet until melted. Cook bread until golden brown, about 12 minutes on each side. Makes about 12 slices.

Blueberry Compote
2 cups blueberries
1/2 cup sugar
1 tablespoon corn starch
1 tablespoon lemon juice.

Mix all ingredients in a bowl and cook until thick over medium heat.

Delicious Eats

Lately I have been in the mood to try new recipes and have been finding fabulous looking baking among my searches. I don't get in this mood often, but it has been fun trying new things and discovering new favourites. I've already found that my previous recipe for banana bread, which I thought was THE best, has been exceeded by this one: Hurricane Ridge Banana Bread (seen below). These other two I have yet to try, but they look fantastic!

Chocolate Pop Tarts

Pumpkin Rolls with Brown Sugar Glaze

Lovely Links

I've been really into checking out the recipes from Kiss My Spatula lately. There are so many good recipes that I'm dying to try...when I have the time someday! Like the one shown above- Heavenly Hummus, or since I made homemade granola the other day, Homemade Granola Bars. I suggest checking this little gem of a website out- it seems quite fabulous!

Alright the next link you should check out is my new flickr site! I finally joined forces with this internet force where I will be posting my creative shots. And if you care to check them out, you can view them under my user name, Impressionsofjenni.

No Pie Chicken Pot Pie

So the other day I had this intense craving for homemade hot stew. There's nothing like a hot bowl of stew on a cold day. Unfortunately, I had no beef except for ground beef, but I did have some leftover chicken so I experimented a little and came up with this delicious recipe!

Chicken Stew for Two

2 potatoes, peeled and diced
1/2 onion, chopped
1 or 2 carrots, diced
sprinkle of flour
1 1/2 C. chicken stock
salt and pepper
1/2 lb cooked chicken (or enough to balance potatoes), cut in small pieces
1/8 C. cream
garlic
basil

1. In saucepan, combine potato and cold water to cover. Bring to boil and cook until almost cooked through. Remove from heat. Cover and set aside.

2. In a skillet cook onions, carrots and celery (if desired), until carrots are softened, about 7 minutes. Add basil and flour- cook for 1 minute. Add stock, cook until mixture comes to a boil and thickens, about 4 minutes. Drain reserved potato and add to mixture. Season with a sprinkle of garlic, salt and pepper.

3. Add chicken and cream. Cook until hot and bubbly.

Serve with grainy brown bread and butter!

Mmmm...Squash

I've had a lot of time on my hands lately. A lot of time means a lot of time to experiment in the kitchen and find new recipes to try. So despite the fact that I am ill with a cold, yesterday I just had to try making this recipe because I was craving soup. Now, I didn't have pumpkin, but I had a squash, and I liked it just the same! I didn't even have a butternut squash, but really, squash is squash is squash...It all tastes delish. So here it is! The best squash soup for curing colds! I do not take credit for the picture, but mine looked just the same!

Pumpkin Apple Soup (from Canadian Living Magazine)

1. First off you will have to make yogurt cheese for that lovely white design on the top of the soup. To make simply find a clean linen or cotton tea towel (I used a thin cloth napkin). Plop a few scoops of plain yogurt inside, gather up the corners secure with rubber band or something of the sort, and hang for 8 hours over a container to separate the whey from the rest of the yogurt. (DO NOT try cheesecloth. It doesn't work. Trust me, I tried.) What's left in the towel becomes your yogurt cheese which can be stored in the fridge for 1 week.

Ok now for the actual recipe....

You will need:

1 1/4 lb (625 g) sugar pumpkin or butternut squash (or any squash) halved and seeded.

2 onions, quartered (I only used one and it turned out great)

1 large apple, halved and cored

1 clove garlic

2 C. sodium reduced vegetable broth

1/2 salt

pinch of white pepper (or regular black pepper...)

1. Peel and cut pumpkin (or squash) into 1/2 inch cubes; Place in roasting pan. Add onions, apple and garlic; drizzle with oil and toss to coat. Roast in 425 degree F oven, stirring once, until pumpkin is browned and tender, about 40 min.

2. Peel apple (which I did not. Peels are healthy) ; transfer along with roasted mixture to food processor.

3. Heat roasting pan over med-high heat; Pour in 1 C. of broth and bring to boil, scraping up browned bits. Add to food processor and puree until smooth.

4. In dutch oven, add 1 T. olive oil. Stir in vegetable puree, remaining broth, 2 C. water (though you may only want to do one depending on how thick you want your soup. I did 1 C.), salt and pepper; bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes. Serve drizzled with yogurt cheese, sprinkled with bacon, or toasted pumpkin seeds. Enjoy!

Ode to Blueberries

This is my ode to blueberries. It doesn't come in word form. It only comes in the form of a picture. But these lovely little fruits have been taking over my every meal, snack, and dessert lately. I can't stop eating them. They are SO good! And since they are also taking over my refrigerator, I think I will make something with them and this may be making it's place in my belly later on...

Blueberry Cobbler (from Mennonite Girls Can Cook blog)

Berries:
-5 cups of fresh or frozen blueberries
-2/3 cup sugar
-3 tbsp corn starch
Place all ingredients in a microwaveable bowl. Heat for 3 minutes stirring once half way through. You just want to get them hot, but not bubbling. Pour hot berries into a 8" square pan or deep dish pie plate.

Biscuit topping:
-1 cup flour
-1/3 cup sugar
-2 tsp baking powder
-1/2 tsp salt
-3 tbsp butter
-1/2 cup buttermilk (you can use regular milk)
Measure dry ingredients into bowl. Cut in cold butter until crumbly. Add milk all at once and mix with a fork until moistened. Drop by spoonfuls over hot berries. Bake at 425º for 20-25 minutes. Enjoy.

Delicious Granola Bars!

Do you ever get that craving for wheat germ, coconut or sunflower seeds? Well, I have the perfect solution to your craving, and it's super yummy too! And also super simple and a little bit healthy- the perfect combination! Here it is- I wish I had a picture, but you will just have to take my word for it. I made them the other day and can't stop eating them. So good! Here it is:

Chewy Granola Bars

1 cup brown sugar, not packed

2/3 cup peanut butter (I used half crunchy, half smooth)

1/2 cup corn syrup (Rogers Golden Syrup works too, I ran out of corn syrup and it turned out fine!)

1/2 cup margarine, melted

2 teaspoons vanilla

3 cups rolled oats

1/2 cup coconut

1/2 cup sunflower seeds

1/3 cup wheat germ

2 tablespoons sesame seed

1 cup chocolate chips

*Mix first 5 ingredients. Add the rest and mix well. Bake at 350 degrees F for 20 minutes in a 9x13" pan (until golden brown). Let cool and enjoy!

Hope this works as well for you as it always does for me! And I just realized how many exclamation marks I have used in this post, but that is because I am so excited about this recipe! It's that good!!!!