Posts Tagged ‘Recipes’
dessert, Food, Recipes, vegan, vegetarian
In Other Desserts on May 16, 2012 at am
Wild blueberries will forever remind me of the trip that my sister and I took to New England (East coast of Canada and USA). (See my New England clam chowder recipe and review here and my review of a New England restaurant that Barack Obama ate at here.) I was feeling nostalgic when I discovered that President’s Choice sells frozen Canadian wild blueberries, so I purchased a very large bag and have been making this simple wild blueberry sauce ever since. (On a side note, I really like the quality of this PC product and have since purchased another large bag. I’m hoping to come up with a recipe that uses frozen blueberries to make a good wild blueberry pie. I’ve had a failed attempt so far. I’ll keep you posted.) I have made this sauce for family, friends, and Ed, and everyone has loved it. It’s subtly sweet and natural tasting and is versatile for a range of simple and delicious desserts. For example, you could serve it warm over ice cream (photo below) or a slice of pound cake (recipe here) with a dollop of whipped cream. I’ve also used this sauce (cooled) in trifle (photo above). I don’t recommend making this sauce with regular blueberries, because they’re not as flavourful, they’re more tart, and they don’t hold their shape as well as wild blueberries.
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Chinese Food, Food, gluten free, Recipes, side dishes
In Meat and Eggs on May 11, 2012 at am
Cooking with Alison’s Grandma (Part 3 of 4)
During my last visit with my grandma, she showed me how easy it is to make your own Chinese salted eggs! Chinese salted eggs are simple, delicious, cost-efficient side dishes. Personally, I find them addictive. They can be enjoyed as a side dish to compliment a plain bowl of white rice or congee, or they can be used to flavour many different Asian dishes; just to name a few: steamed egg dish, claypot rice, steamed minced pork, rice dumpling (joong/zhong zi), etc. You can even add salted eggs to simple Chinese vegetable soups. This recipe makes a very large amount, which is perfect for making a large batch of Chinese rice dumplings (joong / zhong zi). Feel free to scale it down if you’re not making rice dumplings. My family never has trouble finishing a batch.
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Chinese Food, Food, gluten free, Recipes
In How To, Meat and Eggs, Poultry on April 19, 2012 at pm
Cooking chicken by boiling or poaching is easy and great for making healthy, oil-free, meals. It may sound bland, but this results in deliciously moist meat and a pot of chicken stock. When boiling or poaching chicken, you want to use meat that still has the skin on and the bone in, so you can purchase cheaper cuts of meat and save money while eating healthy. You can boil a whole chicken or pieces of chicken. Shred the cooked meat and use it in salads, sandwiches, wraps, soup or, my favourite, bang bang chicken (recipe here). Another healthy and simple way to cook chicken is by steaming (see recipe here).
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Food, Recipes, side dishes
In Appetizers, Hors D'oeuvres, Snacks on April 5, 2012 at am
I am in love with beef jerky, but I rarely buy it because store-bought beef jerky is often too salty, contains unnatural ingredients, and is very expensive. So I purchased a Ronco food dehydrator to make my own. Everyone that’s tried my homemade beef jerky has liked it. I’ve even had people say that they like it more than store bought beef jerky. You can control the salt and sugar content, the spiciness, and even the texture when you make it yourself. This makes a great snack for hiking, camping, and days on the beach. For those of you with pets, use the food dehydrator to make healthy treats using unseasoned liver, gizzards, thinly sliced chicken, etc. (See other healthy dog treat recipes here.)
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baking, dessert, Food, Recipes, vegetarian
In Pies & Tarts on March 31, 2012 at am
I love this lemon dessert. As you can probably tell from the picture below, I over baked my tart a little bit, and it was still delicious. I made it for Thanksgiving last year and it was the perfect finish to a hearty prime rib dinner. When I was making the tart crust, I was doubtful of the recipe, because it was more crumbly and dry than any other crust I’d ever made, but it turned out beautifully crispy! The crispy crust is the perfect compliment to the tart filling. I love that the filling is so fresh and natural tasting; it’s not too tart and it’s not too sweet. This is simple to make and elegant enough to serve for a special occasion. Note that although the crust only stays crispy for the first day, it’s still very good the next day. In fact, my mom loved the crust and she didn’t try it until the second day. The word she used was “success” in Chinese.
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Food, Recipes, side dishes, vegan, vegetarian
In Sides and Sauces on March 26, 2012 at pm
I made this brussel sprout side dish for Christmas one year and, to my surprise, it was my dad’s favourite dish of the meal. I love brussel sprouts, even when they’re simply steamed with a sprinkle of sea salt. I’m surprised by how much they usually cost at the grocery store, because I discovered this past summer that they’re actually really easy to plant.
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Food, recipe, Recipes
In Red Meat and Eggs on March 12, 2012 at pm
I made pulled pork sandwiches for my sister’s lunch club at work and people loved it. (Ed and my brother love this recipe too.) The homemade BBQ sauce is great and could be used as a condiment or with other recipes. This also happens to be my favourite slow cooker recipe. I served the pulled pork on fresh kaiser buns with a side of coleslaw (recipe here) and pickles.
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baking, breakfast, brunch, Food, gluten free, Recipes
In Breakfast, Rice and Noodle Dishes on March 7, 2012 at pm
These breakfast muffins may not look very appealing, but they’re tasty, easy to make, and great on-the-go snacks or breakfast. Also, if you use coconut flour instead of all purpose flour, you’ll be adding fiber and eating gluten free. I have my old housemate to thank for introducing me to cooking with coconut flour and for sharing this recipe.
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Food, gluten free, Recipes, side dishes, vegan, vegetarian
In Soups and Salads on February 15, 2012 at pm
Years ago, Ed’s mom introduced me to her ketchup soup. I couldn’t get enough of it! It’s sweet and sour and hearty. I am very grateful to her for telling me how she makes it. Hopefully you’ll like it too!
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baking, dessert, Food, Recipes
In Cakes on February 9, 2012 at am
As a child, my favourite comfort drink was the malted milk drink, Horlicks. When I grew up, it became hot chocolate. Now I am revisiting malted milk by baking with it, and everyone around me is falling in love with it all over again (or for the first time). (See my malted chocolate chip cookies recipe here.) I made this delicious, 3-layer, chocolate malt cake for my sister’s birthday. My family really liked it even though they’re not normally fans of chocolate cake. My mom kept picking the Maltesers off the cake and my sister kept stealing them from other peoples’ plates, so the next time I make this cake, I may cover the entire top of it with Maltesers. 
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Chinese Food, dessert, Food, Recipes
In Asian Desserts on January 27, 2012 at pm
Jien duy are deep fried, sesame seed coated, glutinous rice balls with a sweet red bean paste filling. These homemade jien duy are the best that I have ever had and I’ve even tried the jien duy in China. These are crispy on the outside, light and airy on the inside, and they have a perfectly thin layer of sticky and chewy glutinous rice flour. These are best when served warm and the day that they were made. They’re surprisingly easy to make, but getting the oil to the right temperature can be a bit tricky.
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Chinese Food, Food, Recipes
In Asian Desserts on January 22, 2012 at am
Happy Chinese New Year! “Nian gao” or “leen go” (translation: year cake) is a cake that is traditionally eaten at Chinese New Year. It has a soft, dense, sticky and chewy texture and is not meant to be very sweet. Traditionally, it is vegan and steamed. See the traditional recipe here. However, the non-traditional, non-vegan baked variation tastes even better (in my opinion). This baked version combines a Western cake-like crust with the traditional sticky and chewy middle. Traditional nian gao / leen go is usually made in 9″ or 10″ pie plates, but for the baked version, I prefer to make small individual sized cakes, because the crispy edges are the best part. These make cute gifts for Chinese new year and are great for introducing people to Chinese new year cake, because nian gao could be considered an acquired taste. Baked nian gao tastes best when served hot.
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