Next Time: Strathcona

Let's chat one more time this summer about cafes. Just one more time. Anyway, it's that time for lamenting when we're all trying to hang on to the last breeze of summer and psyche up for all the pumpkins and apples and squash.

I'm going to lament in this post about a neighbourhood that we casually strolled through in Vancouver, one that I promised myself I would visit again the next time around. It's the beautiful neighbourhood of Strathcona. Beautiful houses, quiet streets, a huge park, cute corner stores that double as cafes, not to mention a beautiful young lady bicycling down the street selling gourmet, Popsicles. It's like a neighbourhood that I dream of living in "when I grow up" whenever that may be. We spent our last day in Vancouver camped out on a bench, napping, re-living our two week adventure that seemed to pass by way too quickly.

We only managed to visit a few places in Strathcona, and sampled only one coffee -- from The Wilder Snail. Our perfect bench was right across from this grocery store/cafe. It kept us caffeinated and satisfied with gourmet, locally-made energy bars and hot drinks, as we waited patiently, our backpacks stuff to the brim, for time to pass so that we could make our way up to the airport and say good-bye to Vancouver. 

We also strolled by Union Market which I've heard so much about -- namely their treats. I had read about addictive chocolate macaroon bars and irresistible cinnamon buns, but seeing as our stroll was later in the day, the only treats to be found were a few sugar-dusted orange cookies. At 75 cents for two, they made for a perfect strolling snack. Cakey and light, with a big hit of orange and slight almond flavour, these treats didn't last too long, and I was wishing that we had bought more. They'll always be next time .. right?

To curb my Strathcona cravings until the next time I visit Vancouver, I made a batch of orange scented, almond cookies. I kicked it up with some ground cinnamon and nutmeg and instead of dusting with powdered sugar, which I didn't have, went for a sprinkling of crunching demerara sugar. If you're in the mood, adorn each cookie with some flaked almonds and powdered sugar like the original recipe. I think I'll try it like that next time.  Perfect way to console a summer longing that will have to wait until next year.

Spiced Orange Almond Cookies
adapted from Shutterbean
makes about 20 smallish cookies

3/4 cup of ground almonds
2/3 cup of brown sugar
zest of an orange
1 cup of spelt flour
1/2 teaspoon of ground cinnamon
a pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
1 egg, beaten
1/4 cup of olive oil
1/4 cup of orange juice
demerara sugar, for sprinkling

1. In a large bowl, combine the ground almonds, brown sugar and orange zest. With your fingers, rub the zest into the almonds and sugar to bring out the oils.

2. Add the flour, cinnamon and nutmeg and mix well. Add the egg, olive oil and orange juice and mix to combine. You should get a fairly sticky dough.

3. On a parchment-lined sheet, drop spoonfuls of dough making sure that you leave about 2 inches between each cookie -- they expand quite a bit. Wet your fingers and flatten each cookie. Sprinkle with coarse sugar (or flaked almonds)

4. Bake at 350 for about 10 minutes, or until the cookies get golden brown and your house spells like oranges. Enjoy with your coffee.

Super Citrus

March break is here! Sorry to all of you that aren't working in the public school system .. but .. March break is here! It's totally exciting, especially since March break this year brought along with it some warmer temperatures and spring-like conditions. Spring-like also means lots of nourishing rain -- totally necessary if we want beautiful stalks of rhubarb, tender asparagus, fiddleheads and early strawberries in just a couple of months. Yesterday was warm and rainy -- a perfect day for an early morning walk before the clouds rolled in, a mug of fragrant and almost decadent Cream of Avalon tea at a local cafe, and a sprint indoors just as the rain started coming down.



Rainy cozy weather is perfect for two things: curling up and relaxing, or engaging in a cooking project. Yesterday, I opted for the latter. Last year during March break, I posted a series of slow food recipes to remind myself that cooking isn't always all about convenience. It can be more about the process of getting the result that leads to relaxation and a wonderful sense of accomplishment. I kept that in mind as I set about making a mixed citrus marmalade. I thought it was the perfect way to say good-bye to winter and hello to spring.



I had never made marmalade before, but I've always loved eating it, especially after I recently discovered that it's delicious as a base for coleslaw dressing. There's also a muffin recipe that I'd love to make with homemade marmalade, and when I saw things like cara cara oranges and meyer lemons at the market, I knew I had to make some. I followed this recipe and method from this cute blog called Apt. 2B Baking Co. It's a bit of work -- not going to lie. You first have to cut off the zests if your fruit (without pith!), cut it up and poach it. Then, you have to supreme your citrus -- that's remove just the flesh and leave the pulpy skins behind. Then, it's genius -- you save the seeds and pulp, tie it up in a cheesecloth bag, and that's your source of natural pectin. Brilliant! And you can use whatever citrus you like! I used meyer lemons, blood oranges and the beautiful pink grapefruit-like cara cara orange. All mixed up, it was like a tart, tangy, floral citrus soup. Nothing like marmalade from the grocery store.



That being said, I don't think my marmalade turned out perfectly. It smells and tastes beautiful -- sweet and tart and bitter, just like marmalade is supposed to taste. But my marmalade didn't gel up like it's supposed to. Maybe I didn't cook it long enough? Maybe I didn't add enough sugar? I did take out about half the sugar (3 cups seems like A LOT for 2.5 pounds of fruit). When I put my marmalade into jars, it was still quite liquidy. It did firm up a bit when cooled, but it's definitely not jelly consistency. But anyway, I think the taste makes up for it. I had never used blood oranges and cara cara oranges before, and had only once played with a meyer lemon, so this was definitely an experiment for me. I'm also excited to open up a beautiful, homemade citrus marmalade in the middle of July .. just like opening my blueberry preserves in December.




Back to the recipe: I used 2 cara oranges, 3 small meyer lemons, and 3 small blood oranges. I used slightly less than 1.5 cups of raw sugar. Those were the only changes I made to the original recipe. But I'd love next time to use just clementines -- those little sweet tangy California cuties .. there WILL be a next time.

Traditions in Cookies and Muffins

In the past week, I've baked 7 different types of cookies! Whew! They were all deliciously fun to make. I among the most interesting were these brown sugar chocolate cookies, and these maple nutmeg sugar cookies -- I even used freshly grated nutmeg for the first time! Score! I made some old favourites : peanut butter cookies made with all natural crunchy peanut butter, oatmeal cranberry cookies for our school's healthy holiday bake sale (as if I it wasn't enough to be up to my elbows all morning in gingerbread, icing sugar and sprinkles!) and these salty-sweet additively delicious oatmeal butterscotch cookies -- thanks goodness the majority went into a jar to be given as a gift!



I also found these -- rosemary maple pecan cookies with chocolate chunks. If you've ever made this popcorn, or these spiced nuts, you'll love these cookies. And they're vegan! The recipe is via a blog I found through Tastespotting: Bittersweet. You have GOT to make these cookies, stat!

I know I'm a little late in posting cookie recipes, but when I was little and living at home, I'd always bake at least one batch of cookies on Christmas day. While they were in the oven, we'd sing Christmas carols or watch The Sound of Music again. A lovely tradition, that we've kind of kept up with. I now usually bake up a batch of something breakfasty to take to my parents' on Christmas morning. So I thought I'd leave you with 2 recipes: cookies and muffins, and you can make your own tradition on Christmas morning.


Orange-Scented Sugar Cookies
makes lots!

These cookies are lightly sweet, crisp, buttery and fragrant from the orange zest. Lemon or lime zest would be perfect as well .. even grapefruit. Why not? If you refrigerate the cookies for a bit once they're cut out before you put them in the oven, they'll hold their shape nicely. A sprinkle of coarse sugar on top would make these sparkly and extra special.

1/2 cup of butter, softened
1/3 cup of sugar
1 egg
zest of one small orange
1/4 teaspoon of baking powder
1.5 cups of all purpose flour

1. In a large bowl, mix together the butter and sugar until well-combined. Add the egg and mix vigorously until everything is incorporated.

2. Add in the orange zest, baking powder and flour. Mix well.

3. Chill the dough in the fridge for at least 1 hour.

4. Working in batches, roll out the dough on a floured surface to about 1/8 of an inch. Use as many fun cookie cutters as you can to cut out your cookies. Place them on a baking sheet and chill briefly in the fridge -- chill them while your oven is pre-heating.

5. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 10-12 minutes, or until the edges get brown. Cool and enjoy!



Clementine and Spice Christmas Muffins
makes 24 mini-muffins or 12 regular muffins

These muffins are the perfect wholesome breakfast treat to wake up to on Christmas morning. They have a beautiful tender crumb and an almost crunchy exterior. Made with oats, whole wheat flour and honey so there's no need to feel guilty at all! They're also egg-free so it's easily veganized.

1/3 cup of milk (I used soy)
1/4 cup of yogurt
2 tablespoons of honey
1/2 cup of rolled oats
zest of three clementines
3 tablespoons of canola oil
1/3 cup of brown sugar
a little grating of fresh nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon
a pinch of cardamom
1/2 teaspoon of baking soda
1 cup of whole wheat flour
1/2 cup of chopped fresh cranberries

1. In a large bowl mix together the yogurt, milk, honey and oats. Let stand for ten minutes.

2. Add the oil, sugar and zest. Mix well. Sift in the spices, baking soda and flour. Stir until just combined. Add the cranberries and mix once last time.

3. Spoon into muffin tins and bake in a 350 oven. Mini muffins should only take about 15 minutes, and regular muffins about 20.

4. Enjoy with coffee. Happy Holidays!

Snacky Snacks

Are you a snacky person? I definitely am. I know people that eat three meals and nothing in between. I just can't do that. Snacks are wonderful. They perk me up and refuel me for the next chapter of the day. They are definitely worth taking time out to prepare. I usually make a nice big batch of snack-worthy treats that are enjoyed throughout the week. More than often, these are super healthy snacks loaded with good things that nuts, fruits, fiber and natural sugars. I love decadent treats as snacks --hey, who wouldn't love some chocolate smack in the middle of the day to keep you going? But usually these treats just give you a short term high, when what I mostly need is some long-term sustenance.



Healthy muffins and oatmeal cookies are definitely popular in my snack repertoire, as are fruit-packed or nut-butter loaded quick breads. But lately it's been granola. I love granola. I love it with soy milk, or yogurt, or most lately kefir. But usually, it's just on it's own, crunched while walking to the streetcar stop, forgotten about until the 3:30 bell and then happily munched on the way home. I've made fancy granola chunks, batches with ancient grains like kamut and spelt, and even peanut butter granola and tahini granola.



I've seen many different granola recipes lately, and my best friend raved about one from the New York Times made with olive oil, but I have to say that I love to play with this recipe that uses apple sauce instead. I made this granola batch beautifully fragrant with the addition of orange zest, and I added chopped dates instead of raisins or dried cranberries, a lovely, sweet and sticky alternative that goes great with the orange flavour. There's also chopped almonds and sunflower seeds in there too, because a snack always needs to give you a little protein boost, right? Right?! Get snacking people!

Orange Scented Granola with Dates
adapted from Everybody Likes Sandwiches
makes a big batch!

***3 little apples or 2 big ones -- I used empires, chopped and peeled (if you like .. I left the peel on)
splash of water
1/2 teaspoon of almond extract
3 tablespoons of honey or maple syrup
3 tablespoons of orange juice

2 cups of spelt flakes
1 cup of old fashioned oats
1/2 cup of raw sunflower seeds
1/2 cup of chopped raw almonds
1/2 cup of chopped dates
1 teaspoon of ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon of ground cardamom
zest of 1 large orange

1. In a small saucepan, place the apples and water and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Turn the heat to low, put the lid on, and let them cook for about 15-20 minutes, or until the apples gets nice and soft.

2. Take the apples off the heat and let them cool a bit. Add the almond extract and honey, and give mix well. Set aside.

3. In a large bowl, combine everything else except that dates and mix well so that the spices and zest are well distributed. Add the apple sauce mixture and mix carefully so that everything is coated.

4. Spread the mixture out on a cookie sheet and bake in a 350 degree oven, tossing frequently, until the mixture has dried out and turns golden brown. For me, this took about 45 minutes, turning every 15 minutes.

5. Remove the granola from the oven and add the chopped dates immediately. Toss and let cool. Snack away!

***If you don't feel like making home made applesauce, or already have a nice batch, use about 1 cup

Fun with Rhubarb

I'm having lots of fun with rhubarb this year. Lots and lots. Last year, I felt like I missed out on the deliciousness of rhubarb. But not this year. In fact, there are still 2 thick, pinky-red stalks in my fridge waiting to be turned into something delicious. I've made strawberry rhubarb crisp a couple times. Very simple: just toss strawberries and rhubarb together with a sprinkling of sugar, some lemon juice and zest, and top with this easy vegan crisp topping. A very perfect summer dessert. I've also made these fantastic, moist, healthy rhubarb and walnut bread/muffins. So delicious. The oatmeal and lemon zest topping really make it special.


But, the most interesting thing I made with rhubarb were these orange rhubarb madeleines. There weren't really supposed to be madeleines, and any traditionalist would probably scoff, but I thought it would be fun to bake up some of the batter in a mini madeleine pan that my love bought for me a while ago. Me and madeleines have a very special relationship. In the name of romance, I sought out a madeleine recipe after studying Marcel Proust's À la Recherche du Temps Perdu in 4th year university. I don't remember much about the book (only that his sentences sometimes took a page to finish!), but I do remember the famous reference to madeleines. Apparently, a taste of the lemony, spongy cookie/cake sent him back to his childhood, where he would have madeleines and dip them into his tea. I found that so romantic and beautiful, and even made them as a parting gift to one my favourite profs who was retiring that year. I used a recipe from my old favourite cookie book, and seeing as the madeleine pan I recently purchased wouldn't fit in the toaster oven that I baked in at the time, I used pretty, shell-shaped moulds instead. They were a great hit with my family, and with my prof, who very much appreciated the gesture.


When I moved out, I searched high and low for the pan, to no avail. One day, I came home to the lovely smell of lemon and butter and two brand new madeleine pans. When I had batter left over from this recipe, I thought it would be so cute and fun to make madeleines instead of muffins. The recipe is tweaked from kickpleat's citrus yogurt cake. I used only orange zest and juice, threw in some oatmeal for extra nutrition, and added a good amount of rhubarb compote. The compote really spread the rhubarb around so that each bite was infused with its tangy goodness. It was perfectly matched with the fruity olive oil, and sweet, frangrant orange juice and zest. I think the madeleines were perfect as they were, but if you wanted a little extra, I would throw in a pinch of cardamom to give it a bit of depth and mystery. Can't go wrong with cardamom, can we?

My rhubarb adventures aren't over yet. Maybe it's time for pie .. I'm afraid of pie ... but maybe, just maybe ...?

Rhubarb Orange Madelines
adapted from Everybody Likes Sandwiches and poppytalk

Rhubarb Orange Compote:
2 stalks of rhubarb, chopped
3 tablespoons of sugar
1/4 cup of orange juice

Cake:
3/4 cup of skim milk yogurt
1/4 cup of orange juice
zest of one large orange
1/3 cup of olive oil
1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
1/2 cup of sugar
1/2 cup of rolled oats
1 egg, beaten
1.5 cups of whole wheat pastry flour
1 teaspoon of baking powder
a pinch of salt

1. To make the compote, combine all the ingredients in a small saucepan and heat over medium until the mixture bubbles. Turn the heat down to medium-low and simmer with the lid on, stirring occasionally, until the rhubarb breaks down (about 10ish minutes). Set aside

2. In a large bowl, combine the oats with the yogurt and orange juice. Let stand for 10 minutes. Add the zest, oil, egg, sugar and vanilla, and whisk to combine.

3. Sift in the flour, baking powder and salt and stir gently until just combined. Add the rhubarb compote and mix well.

4. Spoon the batter into a madeleine pan, and pour the rest into muffin tins or a mini loaf pan. Bake in a 350 degree oven. The madeleines or muffins should only take about 10-15 minutes. The mini-loaf should take about 20 minutes.

5. Enjoy with a good book and a cup of tea.

Cranberry Update

In between making cocoa banana millet porridge for breakfast, washing the bathroom and doing my day plans for next week during the wee hours of this morning, I managed to squeeze in some cranberry baking! That loaf with oatmeal and cranberries? It also makes 24 mini muffins and tastes even better when you use orange juice and add the zest of half a large orange ... just in case Insomnia has come for a very early morning cup of tea ...

Coffee Update from last weekend ...
Te Aro on Queen: cappuccino, flat white with soy (long shot of espresso with steamed soy) and a vanilla soy latte .. enjoyed in the rain.

Lavender Manifesto

If you haven't already checked out the blog Sociologists Eat Chocolate, written by the mysterious and thoughtful Blackcurrent Productions, please go now. I'll wait ...

Isn't it great? I love all the different types of chocolate that are showcased and all the quirky and sometimes random comments from the tasters. I especially like the "Manifesto" -- the most interesting, funny or thought-provoking comment. It's brilliant and I wish that I were one of the tasters -- especially when the theme of Chocolate and Lavender came about. Lavender? I've never cooked with lavender before, though I know it's sometimes added as one of the herbs in the popular herbes de Provence mix. The thought intrigued me; I could almost taste it. Dare I try? When my little, non-nonchalant comment about making cookies with lavender got a response that suggested shortbread, my mind was made up. But I wasn't just going to make lavender shortbread. I was going to make different kinds, and have tasters judge each one, in a little tribute to my elusive inspiration.


I began with a little research -- a study on shortbread. Others have done it. And I found out that people put all sorts of things into shortbread -- not just lavender. Rosemary and honey were among the ones that definitely intrigued me. And of course, there's chocolate. And lemon mixed with lavender.. how can I resist my favourite citrus? In the end, I came up with four combinations:

1) honey and lavender
2) honey, lavender and lemon
3) chocolate/cocoa and lavender
4) chocolate/cocoa,rosemary and orange orange -- to mimick Organicfair's Provence chocolate featured her in the the Lavender Chocolate tasting.

I used a combination of fresh lavender (sneakily snipped from my parents' neighbour's garden .. thanks Jacquie!) and dried, a summer blossom honey, and high quality fair trade Camino cocoa powder. Here's what the tasters had to say:


Honey and Lavender

1. It’s delicious (turns away shyly). I can very much taste the lavender, but it’s not to say that’s too much lavender.
2. There is it ..nice and floral, but something is missing ...
3. I think I can taste honey more than lavender – it’s a good cookie, but .. (has sinus problems) I don’t know if this is affecting my taste buds or not.



Honey, Lavender and Lemon

1. My body feels tingly when I eat it. Very light lavender – good balance with the lemon.
2. I get the lavender hit first .. and then comes the lemon, barely sour tang. Crisp, not a tender shortbread texture, but still buttery and rich.
3. Ok I’m getting little hints of citrusy but again, I don’t taste the lavender.


Chocolate and Lavender

1. Wow, it’s really like pooof! Lavender! The first thing I taste is lavender, right in my cheeks and then the chocolate starts melting in my mouth.
2. Rich chocolate and delicate flowers ... I get a real lavender hit on this one.
3. Ok I get some now (lavender!).



Chocolate, Lavender, Orange, Rosemary

1. First it’s the rosemary, and then it instantly blends with the chocolate, and then when I swallow it, I get the orange. The lavender.. it’s not lost, but the first thing I taste is the rosemary.
2. It’s orange and chocolate first and foremost – and then little hints of rosemary here and little hints of lavender there.
3. Ohhh.. crumblier, softer, melting in my mouth. I like the cocoa chocolate taste – to me it just tastes like chocolate shortbread. The only time I taste the citrus is when I get little bits of the peel, little sparkles of citrus that surprise the tongue amidst the sea of cocoa. I didn’t even taste the rosemary.

So I learned a few things. First, the lavender taste and scent is much stronger when you taste the cookie right from the oven (taster 3 tasted the cookies after they had cooled for a few hours .. she also had sinus issues but we won't go there). Confectioners sugar results in a crisper, tighter cookie -- the crumblier, tender texture was preferred. The lavender almost needs something to go along with it -- chocolate, lemon .. --it's the floral hit that needs something to balance it out. And ... I love playing with lavender! There will be more to come -- I'm going to going to modify the lemon and lavender one (which seemed to be the favourite) and see what the tasters think of that. In the mean time, I'll leave you with the recipe sources and ...

Today's manifesto: I can tell there’s something different but I don’t know that it’s necessarily lavender which is a good thing because I think then it would just taste like potpourri and I’m not into tasting potpourri. (gigglejuice is not only a critical criminology sociologist --I hope I got that one right! -- but is also known to keep large bars of chocolate by her desk during exam time AND likes to cook and bake!)

Honey and Lavender Shortbread Honey, Lavender and Lemon Shortbread

I was nudged in the right direction by this post from tara at Sevenspoons, who made a honeyed-rosemary shortbread based on this original recipe from Epicurious. I just substituted the lavender for the rosemary and followed the recipe exactly. The idea to add lemon came from this post at Jules Food. I did exactly what was suggested: added the zest of one lemon and a little squeeze of the juice.

Chocolate and Lavender Shortbread Chocolate, Rosemary, Lavender and Orange Shortbread

The original recipe for chocolate shortbread came from this post at Epicurious. I just added a tablespoon of lavender. The flavour combination of chocolate, rosemary, lavender and orange was, as mentioned, inspired by one of Blackcurrent's chocolates: Organicfair's Provence. For this, in addition to the tablespoon of lavender, I added a teaspoon of finely chopped rosemary, and 2 teaspoons of orange zest.