zesty barbecue sauce

The weather here has been very good (for November!). My children even ran around yesterday without jackets on.

So that means the trusty barbecue can still be in use. Prolonging the grill season is always a good thing. But just because it's called "barbecue" sauce, don't you worry, it works just fine in the oven too ;) tee hee. Works for any type of meat: chicken, ribs, fish, etc.

This is an easy to make sauce and so very tasty. Both my kids liked it and wanted more, which is a pretty big deal in this house.

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zesty barbecue sauce
makes 2 cups of sauce
(enough for 8 servings of ribs)

1 cup beef stock
1 cup red chili sauce
1/2 cup molasses
2 tbsp wine vinegar
4 tsp dijon mustard
2 tsp chili powder
2 tsp worcestershire sauce
1 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp each salt and pepper
2/3 cup water

Stir together all the ingredients in a saucepan to a boil. Simmer and reduce for about 20 minutes.

Brush the sauce over ribs during the last 5 minutes of cooking. Serve.

Recipe adapted from: Canadian Living, Let's Barbeque! magazine

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margherita pizza

I quite like pizza.

I would probably make it more often but I can't usually stop with just one slice. Or two. Sometimes I get a wee peckish right before bed (of course!) and must have "just a little slice". Then it's cold pizza for breakfast the next day. I look for any little occasion or tummy grumble to justify having another slice.

Quite simply, I find pizza intoxicating.

But, let me set the record straight.

Only if it's good pizza. And as always, what I find good may not be your good.

This pizza dough recipe is my go-to recipe. And I think the reason is that the crust is so great. The pizza crust is chewy but with a nice crispy crust. And I think the reason is due to the bread flour.

Bread flour has more protein in it which allows more gas to be trapped during baking process. This in turn, gives a nice bread rise and a hearty feel to the crust.

Bread flour, you say? Don't have any? Don't want to buy any? I'm with you. I don't need a pantry cluttered with big pails of flours. So what I do instead is buy gluten. By adding gluten to your all purpose white flour, you essentially, make your own bread flour.

The question is how much do you add?

Many sources on the web say to add one teaspoon of gluten to each cup of all purpose flour. I did that once and my bread rose sooooo much, that it was a super thick deep dish. It was however, still a great texture... chewy inside with a nice crispy crust.

I prefer a thinner crust so I use half as much gluten. I would advise that you experiment at home for yourself to find your preference.

You can find gluten in most stores. I buy it in the bulk aisle at my local Save-0n.

This margherita pizza was good but I think I still prefer my basic tomato sauce and toppings.

So there you have it, my secret to good pizza dough. I have people ask me sometimes when they try my pizza. Now you too can have a delicious crust. Though I'm not telling you my "secret" tomato sauce recipe. I'm taking that one to the grave. :)

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margherita pizza
makes 2 pizzas

2 pkg active dry yeast
2-1/4 cup warm water
2 tsp sugar
1/4 cup oil
5 cups bread flour, plus extra if needed (you may substitute 1/2 tsp or up to 1 tsp for EACH cup of all purpose flour instead of bread flour).
1 tbsp salt

parmeson cheese
fresh tomatoes, diced
fresh basil leaves
grated mozzarella cheese
olive oil

In a mixer, dissolve yeast in warm water and let stand until foamy (about 5 minutes).

Add sugar, oil, flour and salt and knead with dough hook until soft and smooth, about 8-10 minutes. Add up to one cup of flour while kneading so cough will pull away from sides.

Form dough into ball and tranfer to lightly oiled bowl. Cover and let rise until doubles, about 1.5-2 hours.

Punch down and take dough out onto lightly oiled surface and divide into two. Let rest for 10 minutes. Dust with all purpose flour and roll out to fit pan. Pizza pan should be oiled and dusted with cornmeal.

Spread parmeson cheese, diced fresh tomatoes, fresh basil leaves and mozzarella. Drizzle with olive oil.

Bake until brown 10-15 mintues at 500F. Serve hot.

Crust adapted from: Pizza margherita, Williams-Sonoma Essentials of Baking

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hangem' high chili

Seeing Sharon's post on the 2009 chili cook off reminded me the recipe I picked up after a chili cook off many, many years ago. I can't remember when but probably a good 7-8 years ago. Geez, where has the time gone?!?

I adapted the recipe below for our needs, using lean ground beef, less sweet peppers and fresh tomatoes when my child's preschool had a chili dinner fundraiser for some 80 folks. A friend and I also catered a 100+ people event later on with the same recipe. It was well received both times.

When I make this recipe at home, I adapt it down to make a large potful. We eat it over two days and the rest goes into the freezer to eat for another time. It's never the same chili every time I make it because I tend to throw in a little of this or a little more of that. I'm not one to follow recipes very well unless it's baking (and sometimes never really then!) I'm a rebel without a cause... I'm like the James Dean of cooking.

Watch out, I got a whisk in my hand and I'm not afraid to use it!

Yeah, right... only in my dreams :) hahaha.

Thus, I'll leave you the bulk recipe to adapt for yourself too.

Enjoy!
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hangem' high chili
"serves 200 hungry cowboys or 150 hungry Albertans".

35 lbs inside round alberta beef
10 jumbo onions
3 celery stalks
30 fresh tomatoes, diced 1/2"
2 - 100 oz cans crushed tomatoes
3 - 100 oz. cans kidney beans
12 garlic cloves
10 oz. tequila
12 tbsp chili powder
8 oz. fresh oregano, chopped
8 oz. fresh basil, chopped
1 tbsp cumin
4 red peppers
4 green peppers
2 tbsp crushed peppers

Trim fat & dice beef into 1/4 " pieces. Dice celery,onions, red & green peppers. Heat skillet, add oil and saute onions, cleery and garlic. Halfway through add peppers and saute. Add tequila and remaining ingredients. Cook on low heat for approximately 45 mintues. Serve.

Recipe: Hangem' High Chili: courtesy of Coast Edmonton Plaza Hotel.

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coconut krispies

I have to admit, I didn't make these beauties, I just photographed them. A friend who lives in my neighborhood made them and she just so happens to read my blog.

*** Hi!!! ***

And you lucky readers, I just so happen to get the recipe!

My hubby and I love these cookies. My friend sent over a get-well batch many months ago after my hubby had surgery and we were instantly salivating with each bite. Crispy and crunchy on the outside with a chewy center. It reminds me of delicous shortbread.

Last week, she brought me another batch (don't I know nice people!) but this time around, we paced ourselves. It actually lasted through the weekend but that's because I hid them.

As I type this up, my hubby just asked "Are there any more of those cookies left?"

I can't remember how many are left so my food hoarding instincts kick in. "If there is only one left, you have to share."

Listening to him rummage in the pantry "There's more than one. suh-weet".

Suh-weet indeed.

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coconut krispies

1 cup brown sugar
1 cup white sugar
1 cup margarine, room temperature
1/2 cup oil
1/2 cup applesauce
1 egg
3.5 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cream of tartar
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup rice krispies
1 cup flaked coconut
1/2 cup nuts of your choice. chopped (optional)

Cream together margarine, oil, applesauce and both sugars until fluffy. Add egg and mix well.

In a separate bowl, mix together flour, baking soda, cream of tartar and salt. Add it to the above mixture and mix until well blended.

Fold in rice krispies, coconut flakes and nuts.

Drop by spoonfuls on a prepared cookie sheet. Bake at 350F for 12-15 minutes and cookies start getting golden.

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almond lemon ricotta cheesecake

Remember when I complained about misplacing my ricotta cheesecake recipe. Well, I found it, the little scribbled note that I put aside for later. Glad I only temporarily lost it :)

I made this cheesecake for my hubby's birthday (which was MONTHS ago). He's a low carb freak and so when it's his birthday, I try to adapt recipes to make it low carb or low sugar. This recipe is gluten free and sugar free (ONLY if you use splenda or some other sweetener as a substitute)

The cake was tasty though I, personally, would prefer the carb-y version. I mean, really, it's an apples and oranges comparison. However, if you can't have wheat or if you are carb-conscious, then it's a great option.

One thing I would change for next time is add some sweetener to the crust. I found the crust could have used a touch of sweetness.

As for the sauce, I used mango and raspberries. Yellow and red makes ... orange! Funny, didn't think of this beforehand at all but is sure does look like carrot sauce. haha. I don't have a recipe for it, i just mixed equal parts of fruit, mixed in some water to thin it out a bit, sugar (or splenda) to sweeten to taste and tsp of lemon juice. Remember to sieve it before serving.

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almond lemon ricotta cheesecake

2.5 cups ground almonds
1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted
4 cups ricotta cheese
1 cup granulated splenda (or sugar)
4 eggs
2 tsp almond flour
2/3 cup whipping cream
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
Zest of 2 lemon peels
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp lemon extract

Crust:
Mix together 2.5 cups of ground almonds and 1/2 cup melted butter.

Press 1 cup of the mixture into a 9 inch springform pan. Press evenly with some coming up the sides. Place in the fridge to cool while preparing filling. Set aside the leftover crumbs to be used later for topping.

Filling:
Blend together the ricotta cheese and splenda (or sugar) until fluffy. Add eggs and mix well. Add the remaining ingredients until well blended.

Take out the springform pan and add filling. Sprinkle the leftover crumbs set aside from earlier over the top of the filling.

Bake at 350F for 50-60 minutes. The cheesecake center should move very slightly when the pan is shaken. Place on a rack and cool completely.

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Are you a produce sampler?

I was shopping around in the produce section of my local grocery store. Looking at the grapes, I couldn't decide whether I wanted green or red ones this time around. I usually choose whichever looks fresher or is on sale. Sometimes I just alternate. Last time, the green ones were chosen so this time, the red ones were catching my eye.

A woman walked up beside me, in a hurry and pulled off a grape and plopped one into her mouth. She then turned to her significant other and stated with almost a self-righteous tone "Yes, THESE will do." She then looked at me and responded with a "these ones are good" and grabbed the bag to put into her cart.

I stood there stunned by her demeanor. It was then I wanted to open my mouth and ask her how the tomatoes or better yet, the watermelons, were. But I refrained.

I'm not really sure why I was irked. I think it was her attitude by it all, not necessarily that she took a taste. It was a sort of sense of entitlement she had that I just didn't like.

I'm sure everyone has seen someone test out a grape or cherry at the supermarket. It's a monkey-see, monkey-do type of thing. I can't tell you how many times I've observed people knock on melons, smell their produce, pinch their kiwi's or squeeze their tomatoes which have led me to try out these techniques too.

I'm not going to lie, I have tasted a grape or two in my past. However, I would do it secretly. You know, look around nonchalantly, to see if anyone is watching, grab the bag to "examine" it, while plucking off a grape and then "cleverly" pretending to cough or scratch my face while I throw the grape into my mouth. Don't groan, I know, it's still sad.

But I mentioned earlier, you wouldn't go crack open a watermelon and test it out before you buy it! So, what makes grapes ok to eat or other small fruit ok? Because they are small and we can get away with it? I'm not really sure.

You won't catch me testing out any produce now. I remember thinking one evening that if only 25 people everyday had a sample of grapes, that would really add up! We're talking almost 10,000 grapes in a year! That's a lot of waste that the grocery stores have to add to their accounting and add to your final bill. And if you think about it, it's stealing, sure it cost a penny but you didn't pay for it.

I'm not going to judge you if I see you at the supermarket picking up a small sample size of fruit however, I will snicker. But please, for my amusement, at least try to conceal it. I enjoy the bad acting. And remember, chew! Think of the your embarrassment if you made headline news ... "EXTRA EXTRA: Heimlich performed on choking grape tester in the produce section of local grocery store."

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Litfest's Savouries

I mentioned yesterday that I was going to attend Litfest's Savouries Event.

It was held at the Kid's in the Hall Bistro at Edmonton's City Hall.

The event was packed and readings from four different writers were on schedule, along with appetizers inspired by their writings.

Clockwise: Liane Faulder, Marusya Bociurkiw, Jennifer McLagen, Janice Wong.

I chuckled of the thought of dining in the dark, as Liane spoke of her dining experience in Paris and thought of my own mother as Lianne spoke of her's and their apple pie making event. Marusya made the crowd laugh with stories of her Ukrainian heritage, so much so that I was was craving pyroghies afterwords. She's a funny lady. Jennifer's fervor on the subject of fat made me nod my head in agreement so many times. I wanted to stand up and scream "YES" when she talked about bringing butter, lard and other delicious flavour back into our foods. I truly agree with her that fat has gotten a very bad rep. And Janice brought near tears to my eyes as she spoke of her food memories and tales of her parents from China to living in the Prairies.

I was looking forward to the event and I enjoyed it even more than I expected. I think it's so wonderful that Litfest came to pair the literary world and food together. Each speaker brought forth such wonderful readings. I was moved by many of their words. And to listen to them speak while enjoying appetizers and a nice glass of wine added so much more to the whole evening.

The appetizers were tasty and the recipes were found in their books. Olive tapenade, chipotle popcorn, pork belly, grilled tofu and pineapple & carrot cake.

I hope that Litfest brings more food and writing together next year, as I for sure will make it out and would highly recommend it.

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