Author Archives: saltandserenity

Creamy Broccoli Soup with Cheddar Fricos

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Anyone else out there struggling with a bad case of spring envy? My Instagram feed is flooded with images of asparagus spears, rhubarb stalks and tulips emerging from the earth of my west coast friends.

Here in Ottawa, spring is taking it’s sweet time to arrive. This was the view out my window yesterday.

I’ve had enough braising and simmering. I’m ready for fast, fresh and green. While I’m waiting for local produce to arrive, this broccoli soup creates the perfect bridge between winter and spring. This recipe comes from the genius mind of Sohla El Waylly. Fans of Bon Appetit test kitchen videos will remember the charming Sohla. She is still busy creating recipes and videos over on YouTube. She also writes a weekly newsletter called Hot Dish, which is where I found this soup recipe.

I love this soup for so many reasons. It’s creamy without adding any cream. It takes only a few ingredients and about 10 minutes to cook. It has two additions of texture. When it comes to soup, I’m all about texture. A creamy soup is delicious for the first few spoonfuls, but then soup fatigue kicks in and I get bored by every mouthful being exactly the same as the last.

I adapted Sohla’s recipe only slightly, with the addition of a chopped shallot and a pinch of red pepper flakes. Start by sautéing the shallots for a few minutes, Add the florets and thinner stems. Once they become tender, add some 2% or whole milk and simmer for a few more minutes. Transfer to a blender and puree until smooth.

Peel the tough larger stalks and dice into 1/4 inch cubes. Sauté them and add to the velvety puree for a nice textural contrast. To garnish the soup, make a cheddar frico. For the uninitiated, a frico is essentially a lacy cheese cracker. Fricos originated in the Italian region of Friuli, as a way to recycle cheese rinds during lean times. Simply grate 2 ounces of cheddar (Parmesan or Asiago will also work) and spread it out in a 10 inch non stick pan. Cook on medium heat until the cheese smells nutty and starts to brown. it will take about 5 minutes. Flip onto a paper towel to drain and cook. Break into shards to dip or crumble and sprinkle on top of your soup.

I set aside a few pretty broccoli florets to garnish the top of the soup , and drizzled a bit of olive oil over the top for shine and richness. Neither garnish are necessary, but they sure make for a pretty bowl. I’m a Libra with a strong sense of aesthetic. I can’t help myself.

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Black and White Seeded Challah

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I intended to share this gorgeous challah with you about a month ago, but right after baking and shooting it, I got sick with a respiratory virus that knocked me out for most of April. I went for three COVID tests over 10 days and they were all negative, so it wasn’t that, but some other gem I somehow picked up. Four weeks in and I’m still coughing and tired but starting to feel better. Hope you’re all doing well.

When I first saw this 12 strand Black and White seeded challah on the Instagram feed of @misspetel, I was mesmerized. She is an insanely creative Tel Aviv based food blogger. For years, I have been baking the same 3 braid challah every Friday and it was getting a bit boring. It was time for me to upgrade my challah baking skills.

I’m not going to lie, you will be sweeping up poppy and sesame seeds for a few days after baking this, but the results are so worth it. The braiding looks complicated, but it’s really quite simple. I created a video for you to watch and see how it it all comes together.

I learned the shaping technique in the above video from a little e-book called “My Favourite Braids” from the talented German baker Katharina Arrigoni. Check out her Instagram account @besondersgut She’s a braiding wizard. The e-book is a great resource if you’re keen to learn more. The e-book is a great resource if you’re keen to learn more.

Slicing into the challah yields a beautiful swirly pattern of seeds and adds a great crunchy contrast to the pillowy soft bread. It’s a very impressive presentation. The best part is leftover challah on Saturday morning, slathered with butter, sour cherry preserves and flaky sea salt.

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I hope you’ll try baking this one. It’s become a favourite at our house. Take a picture and send it to me if you bake it.

Pretzel Crusted Turtle Brownies

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I posted these decadent bars 8 years ago and decided that it was time for a makeover. Here is my image from 2014. I have learned a few things about photography and styling since that time and it’s so rewarding to look back and appreciate my progress.

In addition to new photos, I have also updated the recipe slightly. I replaced the middle chocolate layer with Michael Smith’s brownie recipe, the best ever brownie recipe. And I changed the top caramel layer to a sturdier, chewier consistency, using Sally’s recipe for caramel candies.

I produced a little video so you can watch how they come together.

One bite of these bars transports you through an amazing texture and flavour journey. Crunchy pecans, chewy caramel, fudgy brownies and a salty crumbly pretzel crust. All in one little bar.

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Lemon Meringue Poppyseed Tarts

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Mini lemon meringue poppyseed tarts

Bake these lemon tarts for the lemon lover in your life. The balance of flavours and textures in them are what make them so special. The crust is slightly sweet, almost cookie-like, with the crunch of poppyseeds. The lemon curd is more like a billowing silky lemon cream. The sweet meringue topping balances the ultra-tart lemon cream.  

Tarts are one of my favourite things to bake. I always feel like a professional pastry chef when I whip out my mini tart pans and piping tips. I added some poppyseeds to my favourite pâte sucrée (sweet pastry dough) recipe from Jim Dodge’s classic tome, American Baker . This book was written in 1987 and has stood the test of time. It’s an excellent resource book.

In order to avoid soggy bottoms, you need to blind bake the tart shells. I keep a jar of dried beans in the pantry and use them as weights, so that the pastry does not puff up when I bake it. It’s worth taking the time to pre-bake the tarts, so that you end up with a beautiful, almost cookie-like pastry shell. The dough is rolled quite thin, about 1/8 inch in thickness. If you struggle with rolling dough evenly, like I do, invest in a set of these. They changed my tart game immensely.

Blind baking tart shells using dried beans as pie weights

The lemon curd for these tarts is a bit unusual in that it is finished in the blender, turning it into a billowing silky lemon cream. I learned this unique technique from Lynne Rossetto Kasper of thesplendidtable.com. Making lemon curd is a bit of a delicate procedure, but I walk you through it, step by step, in the recipe. An instant read thermometer is very useful. Once you master lemon curd, you can play with all sorts of fruits. How about rhubarb curd?

Eggs in a vintage wire basket
Lemons and lemon leaves

The sweet meringue topping balances the ultra-tart lemon cream.  There are several different methods for making meringue to top a pie or tart. The most basic is a French meringue, which is uncooked. Egg whites and sugar are simply beaten to firm peaks. I would not recommend using this method for pies or tarts, as it is not very stable and the meringue will begin to weep after about an hour of sitting on the tart.

I used the Italian meringue method, whereby a sugar syrup is heated to the firm ball stage (248°F) and then slowly poured into the mixer once the egg whites are at the soft peak stage. This results in a stable meringue that is ultra smooth. The finished tarts held up in the fridge for about 2-3 days.

I got to try out my new piping tip. So easy to use but looks so professional. Here’s a link to a video to show you how to use it.

If you want to brown the meringue, a kitchen torch is fun to wield, or you could just put them under the broiler for a quick minute.

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Provençal Chicken Thighs

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I like to think of chicken as a blank canvas and that’s why I find it so exciting to work with. It has a mild flavour that can stand up to almost anything you combine it with.

I decided to go to the South of France this week with Chicken Provençal. Tomatoes, garlic, olives, and capers are the big flavour enhancers here. If you can find some cherry tomatoes on the vine, they make for a gorgeous presentation. I roasted them separately and put them on top of the finished dish. I find that it you cook them with the chicken, they break down too much. My olives of choice are Castelvetrano, which hail from Sicily and are worth seeking out. They are bright green with a meaty buttery flesh. Many specialty stores now stock them in their olive bars and you can find some good jarred ones.

I like to use bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs as I think they have the most flavour. You could certainly use chicken breasts, but just make sure you don’t use boneless and skinless. You need the protection that the skin and bones provide, so that they don’t dry out.

Brown the chicken pieces well, to get a nice crispy skin. Then remove the chicken from the pan and add your flavouring ingredients. Garlic, thyme, red pepper flakes, olives and capers figure prominently in this version. I tucked in 2 peeled and quartered onions into the mix as well. Chicken stock and white wine go in next. Then place the chicken pieces back on top, making sure that the liquid only comes about halfway up the height of the chicken. You don’t want to submerge the chicken in liquid and ruin that crispy skin you worked so hard to achieve. Tuck it into the oven to finish cooking.

My twist on this classic dish is to create a “cream” sauce to finish the dish. But, I didn’t use any cream at all to create this velvety smooth sauce. Once the chicken is finished braising, strain the cooking liquid and puree it in the blender with the braised onions. It’s a trick I learned from Food 52 Genius recipes. It creates ta luscious creamy sauce that begs for some crusty bread to sop it up.

I highly suggest you use a digital thermometer to test when the chicken is done. This is my favourite thermometer. A bit of an investment but it lasts for years. It takes all the guess work out of cooking. Chicken breasts are done at 150°F and thighs are most tender if cooked to 195°F. I also use my instant read thermometer for baking bread and cakes. I get perfect results every time.

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Cara Cara Orange Buttermilk Ice Cream

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The truckers have finally left Ottawa . Russia has invaded Ukraine and the world feels like a very scary place right now. Ice cream might not be the first thing you think about making in late winter, but the world seems a bit upside down right now, so I vote for winter ice cream.

I don’t normally comment on world events on this blog, but it feels wrong to go about business as usual and not acknowledge what is happening. My thoughts and prayers are with the people of the Ukrainian nation. If you’re looking for ways to show your support, the Globe and Mail published an excellent list a few days ago. And if you’re looking to educate yourself a bit more about the conflict and understand a bit of the history of this region, I highly recommend these podcasts by Today Explained.

Back to the regularly scheduled program. Do you guys know about Cara Cara oranges? I feel like they don’t get as much attention as they deserve, because of their more flamboyant cousin, the Blood Orange. Cara Cara oranges are a bit more bashful, but, in my humble opinion, much more delicious than blood oranges. While they look like a regular navel orange on the outside, inside, their flesh is a lovely pink colour. They’re sweeter and less acidic than a regular navel orange. They have a delicious “berry-like” flavour. They’re only available for a few short months each winter.

If you have an ice cream maker, (I have and love this one) this is a really simple recipe to put together. Mix orange zest, juice, sugar, buttermilk and cream together and pour into ice cream machine for about 20 minutes. Transfer to a covered container and freeze for a few hours.

The buttermilk gives the ice cream a nice tangy flavour that really complements the sweet Cara Cara oranges. Scoop it into a cone or bowl or get fancy like me and hollow out some orange halves. The best tool for removing the inside flesh is a grapefruit spoon. It’s one of my favourite kitchen tools. I also use it for scraping out the stringy bits of squash after you pull out the seeds.

I garnished with some dried orange slices from this Etsy shop. They arrived so quickly and in perfect condition. They would look beautiful on a Cara Cara Orange Pound Cake too!

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Maple Walnut Cinnamon Star Bread

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Google “star bread” , and you will slide down into very enjoyable rabbit hole . It is one of the baking world’s most amazing feats of engineering. It looks complex to create, but it’s actually easy to accomplish. Check out my video to see how it’s done.

The filling possibilities are endless. I decided on a maple walnut with a hint of cinnamon, a classic and very delicious combination. Maple butter (sometimes called maple spread) provides the maple flavouring. There is no actual butter in maple butter. It’s just maple syrup boiled to 234°F, cooled and then whipped to obtain a creamy consistency. I buy mine at Loblaws, but it is widely available online. It makes a delicious rugelach filling too.

You could fill yours with jam, cinnamon-sugar, Nutella or even go savoury with pesto or cheese. The possibilities are endless. They are so satisfying to create, not to mention, very delicious to eat.

The dough for this pull-apart bread is pillowy soft and tender. I tested a few different recipes and settled on the one from kingarthurbaking.com. Their recipe includes an unusual ingredient, dried potato flakes (also known as instant mashed potatoes). The starch in potatoes attract and hold more water than the starch in wheat flour, making the dough moister. The starch molecules in potatoes also inhibit gluten formation, making the dough light and airy. I found instant mashed potatoes at Bulk Barn, but most supermarkets carry it as well.

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Blonde Chocolate Ganache Sandwich Cookies

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Cookies are my love language. It’s how I show those nearest and dearest to me that I care. I think the ultimate cookie needs to be both beautiful and delicious. While I admire cookies artfully decorated in royal icing, I have no desire to eat them. Too sweet and lacking depth of flavour.

These are the cookie equivalent of conversation hearts. Remember those awful chalky candies? These are much more delicious. Who wouldn’t want to receive a box of these?

We don’t really celebrate Valentines Day in our house, but I’m helpless when it comes to buying baking gadgets. These fondant alphabet stamps work beautifully on cookie dough too. The most challenging part of making these was arranging the letters onto the handle, because you need a mirror image of what you actually want to spell. The part of my brain that understands directions and left and right is significantly underdeveloped, so I struggled with this. I had to arrange the letters and then hold it up to the mirror to make sure it was correct. (I can hear the laughter from my family!)

The filling in these sandwich cookies is a ganache made with blonde chocolate. A ganache is essentially hot cream poured over chocolate and sometimes some butter. It is stirred until the chocolate melts. A warm and fluid ganache can be poured over cake. If you let the ganache firm up, it can be rolled into little balls and dipped in melted chocolate to create truffles, or you can do as I did here, and pipe the ganache onto cookies.

My chocolate of choice here was blonde chocolate. For the uninitiated, blonde chocolate is caramelized white chocolate. You can buy it already caramelized (Valrhona Dulcey), or you can make it yourself by roasting white chocolate in the oven. Buttermilk by Sam has an amazing tutorial on her blog. You could also make a milk or dark chocolate ganache.

Blonde chocolate is less sweet than white chocolate and has an amazing toasted almost caramel flavour. Even white chocolate haters like it!

For the cookie, I used Alice Medrich’s recipe for butter cookies. They are plain, in the very best sense of that word. “Plain” was the ultimate compliment from my dad. These tender yet crunchy cookies perfectly showcase the creamy blonde ganache.

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Winter Red and Green Salad

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Unless you’re a close family member, it may surprise you to learn that I eat the same salad for lunch everyday. Arugula, thinly sliced romaine and radicchio, tossed with my home-made sherry and honey vinaigrette. I will toss in a bit of protein, either chickpeas, turkey, chicken, tuna or egg. A small handful of my house croutons is non-negotiable. It is always eaten, standing over the sink, from the stainless steel mixing bowl I tossed it in. Somehow it tastes better that way.

I created this salad as a way of forcing myself out of my rut. I wanted lots of vibrant colour on my plate, and I challenged myself to see if I could do it without any lettuce. In my mind I envisioned a red and green colour palate. The red was easy. Pomegranates added a sweet pop of texture and colour and blood oranges added the vibrancy I was craving.

For the green, I settled on green beans, sugar snap peas and frozen green peas. I made sure to refresh the green beans and sugar snaps in ice water after boiling, to preserve their verdant shade.

For the dressing, I started with mixing the juice of the blood oranges with some olive oil, but found that the oranges were missing the acidic punch I needed. A bit of red wine vinegar fixed that issue. Extra crunch in the form of toasted hazelnuts was a welcome textural addition.

Break out of your salad rut with this winter red and green salad. You’ll thank me.

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Mocha Rugelach

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If you’re a fan of mocha (coffee +chocolate) then these rugelach are sure to satisfy. These little cookies are for an adult palate. Not too sweet, almost pleasantly bitter from the intense coffee flavour.

I adore all coffee flavoured foods, especially coffee ice cream and coffee crisp chocolate bars! But I didn’t start drinking coffee until I was in my late 30’s. I always found the taste of plain coffee (even with milk and sugar) too intense. And then my friend Brigitte made me a big bowl filled with hot foamy steamed milk and just a bit of coffee. I was hooked. Over the years, the amount of coffee has increased and the milk has decreased, but I still think of her every morning when I’m frothing my milk.

These rugelach start with a flaky cream cheese dough, studded with instant coffee crystals, to really amp up the coffee flavour. Those brown streaks in the dough, in the photo above are Folgers Instant Coffee Crystals. It gets mixed into the dough, at the very end of the process, so that the dough stays prettily speckled.

Roll the dough into a circle and then cut it into wedges. Coat each triangle with a thin layer of mocha ganache and then sprinkle with hazelnut-chocolate streusel. Roll up into little crescents.

Brush with egg and bake. Enjoy with a latte. Any leftovers freeze perfectly.

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