The last time I made this soup, William and Kate were wed, Kim Kardashian divorced after a 72 day marriage, Oprah’s final episode aired and Charlie Sheen had an epic meltdown. The year was 2011. Here’s a photo from that blog post.
Both my photos and the recipe were in need of a makeover! I replaced the beef stock with a roasted vegetable stock and I think it’s even better. Taking the time to roast the vegetables for the stock add a depth of flavour that most boxed vegetable stocks are missing. But if you’re pressed for time, Swanson and Imagine brands both make a pretty decent boxed organic low sodium veggie stock.
The other change I made was to swap out the barley for farro. Farro, is a nutty wheat grain that stays a bit chewier than barley. Both are quite high in fibre and protein. The soup uses both fresh and dried mushrooms. The flavour of dried mushrooms is concentrated and intense, which makes them spectacular for adding depth and richness to soups and sauces.
Finish the soup with 2 tablespoons of sherry vinegar. It brightens the soup and adds a welcome hit of acidity to this rich broth. A generous sprinkling of dill and parsley make a pretty and tasty garnish.
Homemade cookies were not really a big part of my childhood. My mom was more into creating fancy whipped jello molds and elaborate gingerbread villages.
So, it was boxed cookies for me and my siblings. For special occasions my mom bought Peak Frean Playbox Cookies. They were iced cookies with beautiful colours and designs. For everyday, we loved Dad’s Oatmeal Cookies, Oreo and Arrowroot baby cookies. I am one of 6 children, so there were always babies in the house! My very favourite cookies were Nice biscuits.
I was craving them recently, but couldn’t find them at the grocery store. So, I did what any sane person would do, and decided to make my own. A quick online search led me to Martha Collinson’s blog. I knew that her copycat version would be a great place to start. Martha was a contestant on The Great British Bake Off in 2014. As the youngest ever contestant to date, aged just 17, she managed to make it all the way to the quarter-finals!
I slightly adapted Martha’s recipe by adding some lime zest to the dough.
I wanted that trademark fluted edge so I busted out my fluted pastry cutter. I bought it when I was in cooking school in the last century, and this was my first time using it! As a nod to Valentine’s Day, I cut out little hearts.
Tender with a crunchy bite, these cookies took me right back to my childhood. The lime zest added a welcome hit of slight acidity and they smelled amazing.
Cookies are a subject I take very seriously. They are my passion. I won’t waste your time by posting meh cookies. I’m really stoked to share this cookie recipe with you. Created by Molly Adams over at thefeedfeed.com, they are an outrageous, over the top indulgence. Make them this week for someone you love.
I’m not gonna lie, these cookies are a bit of work. Start by browning the butter. I promise, it’s worth taking the extra time and and dirtying another pot. If you have never browned butter before, here’s an excellent tutorial to guide you. You could skip this step, but why would you want to? It adds a deep, rich, nutty flavour and everyone will ask why your chocolate chip cookies are so good.
The browned butter needs to chill in the freezer for about 30 minutes, before creaming with brown and white sugar. Eggs and vanilla are added, then flour, baking soda and salt. And then, it gets exciting!
https://youtu.be/JvARwiD3rno
Let’s talk about chocolate. So often, friends have told me, “My cookies never taste as good as yours. I followed the recipe. What went wrong?” 90% of the time, the answer is the kind of chocolate they used. (The other 10% of the time, its the temperature of the butter – too warm). Avoid regular chocolate chips and spring for the good stuff. I have made these with chopped Lindt 70% bittersweet bars, Valrhona 64% bittersweet feves, and this week, I discovered these delicious Belgian bittersweet wafers at Bulk Barn.
Mini pretzel twists work best in this recipe. Chopped pretzels go into the dough and then after scooping the cookies, I topped each one with a whole pretzel.
Let’s chat about the toffee addition. Molly suggests making your own toffee bits to add to the cookies. It’s not a difficult process, if you have a candy thermometer. Using Skor bits is an excellent ready-made option, if homemade is not for you. No judgement! if you decide to make it, here’s a how-to video.
I think we need to celebrate the fact that that we made it through January. Winter has never been my favourite season. I have tried to embrace the season by getting outdoors, cross country skiing and ice skating on the world’s longest skating rink, but, as my husband and I like to remind each other, “Don’t pretend to be someone you’re not.” Wise advice for many life situations.
One of the few things that I do love about winter is blood oranges. They taste similar to navel oranges, with a slightly more floral, almost, raspberry flavour. They’re not quite as sweet as a navel orange and they have a slight hint of bitterness, which is part of their unique allure.
My favourite thing about blood oranges is the surprise element. You never know what you’re going to get when you slice one open. Sometimes they’re mostly orange, lightly veined with some ruby colouration, other times they’re vermillion and once in a while a vivid crimson is revealed. Blood oranges are one of the few good surprises left in life anymore.
I love the fact that, in this age of instant gratification, when we can get anything we want, at any time, blood oranges are only available for a few short months each year. What gives the flesh their unique hue is the presence of anthocyanins which is an antioxidant pigment. This pigment only develops if the fruit develops with low temperatures during the night. The pigment continues to develop after harvest if they are kept in cold storage.
There is something so gratifying about pulling a loaf of freshly baked bread from your oven. A yeast raised loaf takes time and a moderate amount of skill. Not everyone has the patience or desire. That’s where soda bread comes in. No yeast required. The leavening comes from baking soda. When baking soda comes into contact with an acidic liquid, such as buttermilk, yogurt, lemon juice, or even molasses and coffee, it produces carbon dioxide gas, and the bread rises.
The simplicity of soda bread is what makes it so appealing. You probably have all of the necessary ingredients in your house already. The only thing you’ll need to go out for is some buttermilk. Regular milk soured with some lemon juice or vinegar just won’t produce the same results. If you’re like me, you likely have some leftover buttermilk in the freezer, because most recipes never use up the whole container. The addition of dried fruit and nuts is considered heresy in Ireland, but I added some raisins and toasted walnuts and thought it was delicious. Your call.
This soda bread is the perfect vehicle for delivering butter and honey to your mouth.
This recipe was created by Chef Karen Barnaby I have a very soft spot in my heart for Chef Karen. I worked for her many years ago, at the David Wood Food Shop in Toronto. I was pregnant with my first child. During my first trimester I had very powerful carb cravings. Everyday for lunch, Karen would make me a huge bowl of mashed potatoes, whipped with butter and cream, and then she would melt in a big handful of aged cheddar cheese. It was heavenly.
This soda bread is made with whole wheat flour and oats, so it’s quite a dense loaf but that’s what I love about it. The crust is craggy and the inside has a coarse open grain. Karen’s recipe is unique, as the dough contains a small amount of butter. It really helps to add some tenderness to the crumb. Watch how quickly the dough comes together.
The key to great soda bread is minimal mixing. Basically, you’re just coaxing it into shape. No vigorous kneading required . After adding the buttermilk you will think you made a mistake, as the dough will be very wet. It’s supposed to be. The high hydration level is necessary for the whole wheat flour and oats.
Honey adds a touch of sweetness and buttermilk gives it a tangy note.
Because it is such a wet dough, it must be baked in a pot with a lid. An 8 or 9 inch Dutch oven is ideal for this. In a pinch, you could also use a deep cake pan and turn a stainless steel bowl upside down as a lid. Line your pot or pan with parchment paper and gently pat the dough into a round. Using a sharp knife, score the top with an X, to let the steam, or as some legends go, the fairies, escape.
If you’re a skier or snowboarder, this weekend’s bomb cyclone has undoubtedly left you feeling elated. For the rest of us, we will have to source our joy elsewhere. I’m finding my winter bliss in a monochromatic salad. I have gathered all shades of white and pale green and put them together in a bowl for a yummy winter white salad.
I pickled some shallots and golden raisins for a hit of sweet and sour. They really help to balance out the bitter greens. Pickling is so fast and easy. Mix together vinegar (any kind you like), water, sugar and salt and stir in the raisins and shallots. Let it sit for about 15 minutes and then drain it. You will be surprised at how effective it is in it taming the bite of the raw shallots.
The dressing is quite assertive with the punch of anchovy paste, shallots, dijon mustard and capers. Even if you think you don’t like anchovies, add a squeeze of the paste to this dressing. It packs a wallop of umami. A generous shaving of pecorino Romano cheese adds salt and funk. Top with toasted almonds or pine nuts for crunch.
On days when I have a photo shoot, the kitchen looks like a tornado went through it. The food has been thoroughly manhandled by me trying to get it to look just right for the photo. It has been sprayed with oil for shine, pinned with T pins to hold things in place and sprinkled so heavily with flaky sea salt and coarsely ground black pepper for texture, that it is no longer appetizing. On those days, dinner is fried eggs topped with tomatoes and Gruyere cheese.
I love it when friends invite me to dinner. I get new ideas about what to cook, plus, salad always taste better when someone else makes it. On New Years Day we went to visit our friends The Grizzlies. Mrs. Grizzly whipped up this spiced salmon for lunch. Garam masala, smoked paprika and cumin combine for a flavourful rub.
The spices are mixed with honey, olive oil and lemon juice and the salmon is roasted for about 15 minutes. I threw some broccolini on the sheet pan as well. Cauliflower or Brussels sprouts would also be delicious.
Mrs Grizzly served this with a cilantro salsa, but I had a surplus of pomegranates wilting in the fridge, so I whipped up a pomegranate yogurt raita sauce. Really fresh and yummy with the spiced salmon. I think I’ll be adding this salmon dish to our regular dinner rotation.
Leave me a comment and let me know what’s on rotation in your kitchen. I’m curious!
Happy New Year! Hope everyone survived the holidays. We had lots of family time over at the saltandserenity homestead, which explains why you have not heard from me since December 19! We managed to consume most of the cookies I posted about last month and I made latkes twice. All in all, a very delicious month.
As is customary around here, the first post of the new year is something healthyish, emphasis on the “ish”. Let’s start with the crunch. Of course we have the obligatory vegetable crunch, provided by raw kale, Brussels sprouts and sugar snap peas. Walnuts add supplemental crunch and a slight bitterness, which I have recently learned to appreciate. If you’re not into them, pecans or hazelnuts would be great. Just DON’T FORGET to toast them.
Apples provide a sweet-tart crunch. I found some Cosmic Crisp apples to use in my salad. If you see them, grab them! A cross between the Enterprise and Honeycrisp apple, Cosmic Crisps are out of this world crunchy and juicy and a bit more tart than Honeycrisps. They are excellent in salads as they are slow to brown.
The final crunch in this salad is provided by coarse homemade breadcrumbs. I took some stale sourdough bread, cut it into cubes and tossed it liberally with extra virgin olive oil and salt. I toasted them in a moderate oven until browned, and then crushed the croutons into coarse crumbs. That way, each bite of salad has some of this delicious crunch. They are also excellent in soups.
The addition of wheat berries make this salad a nutritional powerhouse. They are a whole grain and are packed with fiber, protein and iron. If you have never tried them, you will love their chewy texture and nutty taste.
We’re not going overboard with healthy. Baby steps here. There is cheese in this salad, Pecorino Romano, to be specific. The delicate funk and rich tangy flavour of pecorino is a perfect foil for the sweet apple and the bitter greens.
Martha just told me that it’s National Bake Cookies Day! There’s actually a special day for that? In my kitchen, everyday is bake cookies day. My Instagram feed is flooded with cookies this month.
Today’s cookie is a Linzer cookie. I have long been an admirer of these pretty jam filled treats, but until this week, I have never baked them. The talented food photographer Bea Lubas frequently bakes and shoots Linzer cookies and her work is so inspiring.
While they may look like just another pretty jam filled sugar cookie, the addition of ground nuts to the dough turns them into a cookie so tender that it just about melts in your mouth. The dough for a traditional Linzer cookie is made with ground almonds. Since I happened to have a surplus of pistachios on hand, from a greedy shopping spree in Sicily, I used those instead.
The classic filling for linzer cookies is raspberry jam, but I went with sour cherry. The sweet-tart flavour is a perfect complement to the rich tender crumb of the pistachio cookies.
Here are a few tips for success when baking these cookies:
The dough is quite sticky. Make sure to roll it between 2 sheets of parchment and dust with flour.
Chill the dough well before cutting out shapes. The cookies will keep their nice crisp edges and won’t spread too much if they hit the oven cold.
Dust the tops with icing sugar before covering the sandwiches. That way you won’t hide the pretty jam filling.
If you want to make these ahead, bake the cookies and freeze. Thaw, fill and dust with icing sugar the day you plan to serve them.
These biscotti are adapted from a very old recipe, in the now defunct Gourmet Magazine (a moment of silence please!!). The original recipe used dried cranberries and was dipped in white chocolate. I decided to switch it up with dried cherries, used chopped white chocolate in the dough, instead of dipping them and added shredded coconut because everything tastes better with coconut!
I first posted a version of these biscotti almost 10 years ago, in 2010. While the recipe has stood the test of time, my image from 10 years ago (see below), has not! I find it rewarding to look back and see my progress over the years.
Traditional biscotti is made with eggs and no additional fat. This recipe adds butter which keeps them a bit soft and chewy in the centre. If you like a crunchier biscotti, just bake them for longer. These are perfect cookies for mailing as they stay crunchy for a long time. They are also perfect for freezing and pulling out when you need a quick sugar fix.
The dough is formed into a loaf and baked until it just begins to set. Then it is cooled and sliced and baked a second time, until crunchy.
