Corn Bread Loaf

My mum made this cornbread all the time when we were growing up and now I make it quite a bit as well. It slices perfectly, is really moist and is a little different from other cornbread because it is filled with corn kernels. Our dog Brinkley loves it too:)

1 ¼ cups unbleached flour- plus extra for dusting the pan

1 ¼ cups cornmeal

½ cup sugar

1 teaspoon baking powder

½ teaspoon salt

2 large eggs

½ cup melted butter

1 cup milk

1 cup frozen corn, thawed

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Butter and flour a 9 X 5 inch loaf pan.
2. In a large bowl thoroughly combine the flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder, and salt.
3. Beat the eggs in a medium-size bowl. Beat in the melted butter and milk. Pour into the flour mixture and stir just until evenly moistened. Stir in the corn. Scrape the batter into the prepared loaf pan.
4. Bake 15 minutes. Lower the heat to 325 degrees and bake 1 hour more, or until a knife inserted in the centre of the bread comes out clean. Let the loaf cool in pan for 15 minutes before removing it. Cool on a wire rack until warm or at room temperature before slicing, at least 1 hour.

Three Sisters Stew

This recipe is a variation of the “Three Sisters at Four Corners Stew” from the Moosewood Cookbook.

In Native American mythology squash, corn, and beans are known as the “three sisters”. The three together are delicious and so healthy!

Ingredients

3 or 4 cups peeled and cubed butternut squash

3 cups chopped onions

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 fresh chile minced

5 garlic cloves minced

1 stick celery chopped

2 carrots chopped

1 teaspoon salt

ground pepper to taste

1 cup vegetable broth

2 tablespoon masala spice mix

1 teaspoon chili powder

1 teaspoon dried or fresh thyme (more if fresh)

2 cups chopped fresh tomatoes or 1 can tomatoes

3 cups or cooked black beans or 2 cans black beans

2 cups fresh or frozen corn kernels

grated sharp cheddar cheese (optional)

chopped fresh parsley (optional)

Method

1. In a large soup pot on high heat, cook the squash and onions in oil for 5 minutes, stirring constantly. Add the celery, carrots, chiles, garlic, salt, black pepper, and vegetable broth, lower the heat to medium, cover and cook until ingredients start to soften, about 5 minutes.
2. Stir in masala mix, chili powder, thyme, tomatoes, black beans, and corn. Cover and cook, stirring frequently, until the vegetables are tender, about 20 minutes. Serve topped with parsley and grated cheese, if desired.

Variations:

Instead of black beans use edamame, red, pinto, kidney or other beans.

It’s also good with ½ chopped olives. Use water instead of vegetable broth to reduce salt if adding olives.

Baker's One Bowl Brownies

These brownies are gooey and rich! I got the recipe from the inside of the Baker's semi-sweet chocolate squares box. I made a few changes to make them a little more fudge-like and they turned out perfectly.

Ingredients

4 squares unsweetened chocolate chopped
3/4 butter
2 cups granulated sugar
3 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
3/4 cup flour
1 cup coarsely chopped pecans (roasted first)

Method

1. Lightly grease

8 X 8 baking pan.

2. In a double-boiler melt chocolate. Then add butter and melt as well.

3. Stir sugar into chocolate until well blended; mix in eggs and vanilla.

4. Stir in flour and nuts, spread in pan.

5. Bake in preheated 350 F oven for 35 mins or until done. Do not overbake. Cool completely.

Potage aux Tomates

I learned how to make this simple and delicious soup from Gisele Kassen, my friend Annah Kassen's mother. She had us over for a cooking class and this was one of the appetizer dishes. I have made it about 10 times since then!

Ingredients

4 tbsp butter
2 onions
4 cloves garlic
1 stick celery
1 can high quality whole tomatoes (I recommend Angelos- easy to purchase if you live in Vancouver or Salmon Arm:) See previous post).
1- 2 tbsp flour
2 cups vegetable broth
1 tbsp fennel seeds
1 tsp rosemary seeds
salt and pepper to taste
cayenne pepper

Method

Heat butter over stove on medium heat. Add onion and saute for about 5 mins. Add herbs and salt and pepper. Add garlic and celery and saute for about 5 more minutes. Add tomatoes and crush with a mash potato crusher. Sprinkle flour on top when mixture is bubbling and mix well. Add vege broth and bring to a boil. Then simmer for about 20 minutes. Let cool a little and then put all of the soup in the blender. Serve soup with a sprinkle of cayenne pepper in each bowl.

Enjoy!:)

Mum's Whipped Cream Cake

My mum gave me the recipe for this cake, which I think she clipped from a newspaper at some point. I have had trouble making white cake in the past (didn't turn out light and fluffy) but so far this recipe has been foolproof. It is tender and the light crumb and crunch cinnamon topping really makes it. I always serve it with strawberries (or whatever fruit is in season) and whipping cream to make it into strawberry/peach or other fruit shortcake.

Cake:

1 cup whipping cream
2 eggs
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt

Topping:

2 tablespoons sugar
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease an 8-inch square cake pan.
Sift together and stir the flour, baking powder and salt.
Whip cream until it holds firm peaks when the beater is lifter out of the bowl. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add the 1 cup of sugar and the vanilla and beat until combined.
Stir in the flour mixture until blended.
Pour the mixture into the prepared pan and bake in the preheated oven for about 35 minutes, until a test inserted into the centre comes out clean.
While cake is baking, stir together the topping ingredients. When the cake is baked, remove from the over and place on a rack. Sprinkle the topping over the cake and cool completely.

Polenta Casserole with Winter Squash and Greens from the Moosewood Cookbook

This recipe is straight from the Moosewood Cookbook. I would be surprised if anyone didn't love this dish! Nice way to use kale too.


Polenta Layer
2 1/2 cups water
2/3 cup whole grain cornmeal
2 sun-dried tomatoes, chopped
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
3/4 cup sharp cheddar cheese

Greens Layer
2 tablespoons olive oil
3 garlic cloves, minced or pressed
8 to 10 cups stemmed and chopped kale or collars
1/4 cup water
1/4 teaspoon salt

Squash Layer
1 1/2 mashed or pureed winter squash
1 large egg, beaten
1/4 teaspoon salt
Generous pinch of ground black pepper
2/3 cup grated sharp cheddar cheese

1. For the polenta layer: Bring the water to a boil in a heavy saucepan and whisk in cornmeal. Add the sun-dried tomatoes, salt, and thyme and cook on low heat, stirring often, until the polenta is thick and cream, about 10 minutes. Stir in the cheese. Pour unto a lightly oiled 8-inch square baking pan and set aside.

2. For the greens layer: In a soup pot on medium heat, warm the oil. Add the garlic and cook briefly, stirring constantly. Add the chopped greens, water, and salt. Cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until the greens are tender but still bright green , about 10 minutes. Drain and add more salt to taste. Spread the greens over the polenta.

3. For the squash layer: In a bowl, stir together the squash mixture over the greens and sprinkle the rest of the cheese on top.

4. In a preheated 350 degree oven, bake uncovered for 36 minutes. Uncover and bake for 10-15 minutes more, until golden and set. The casserole will be easier to servie if you let it sit for 5-10 minutes before cutting.

Chocolate chip cookies with dates and oatmeal

 This recipe is from the Canadian Living Magazine, July 2006. The changes I made the recipe below was to add dates, extra chocolate chips, and roasted nuts, and to put the cookie dough in the fridge for 3 hours before baking. They are really good cookies! I much prefer them to the basic chocolate chip cookie recipe on the back of the Chipits package.

Ingredients

• 2/3 cup (150 mL) butter, softened
• 1 cup (250 mL) packed brown sugar
• 1 egg
• 2 tsp (10 mL) vanilla
• 1-1/2 cups (375 mL) large-flake rolled oats
• 1 cup (250 mL) all-purpose flour
• 1/2 tsp (2 mL) baking powder
• 1/2 tsp (2 mL) baking soda
• 1/4 tsp (1 mL) salt
• 1 & 1/2 cups (375 mL) milk chocolate chips
• hand-full of chopped dates soaked for about five minutes in boiling water to soften 
• 1/2 cup roasted hazelnuts (optional)

• Preparation

  Line rimless baking sheets with parchment paper or grease; set aside.
  In large bowl, beat butter with sugar until fluffy; beat in egg and vanilla. In separate bowl, whisk together rolled oats, flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt - stir into butter mixture until combined. Stir in chocolate chips and dates.
  Put cookie dough in fridge for several hours or overnight until it hardens. This will help to prevent the cookies from spreading out becoming crispy on the sides rather than nice and chewy.
  Drop by heaping 1 tbsp (15 mL), about 2 inches (5 cm) apart, onto prepared pans. Bake in top and bottom thirds of 375°F (190°C) oven, rotating and switching pans halfway through, until golden, about 12 minutes. Transfer to rack; let cool.  
  
  (Make-ahead: Store in airtight container for up to 5 days or freeze for up to 2 weeks.)