Pink Lemonade Popsicles

My little one has been asking to make popsicles for such a long time, so tonight was the night.  Off to bed we would go afterwards and they'd be ready for a delicious snack the next day.  And with the temperatures they're calling for, we are going to need a frozen treat like this to cool off.

Please do not mind my photo of the popsicles.  I couldn't find my moulds for the life of me, so we had to improvise.  What you see is a result of placing the mixture in a parchment lined loaf pan, putting in a popsicle stick through when they were pretty solid and then cutting them into 8 pieces afterwards.

Ingredients:
1 tsp freshly grated lemon zest (I always use a bit more!)
1/2 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (from about 4 lemons)
1/2 cup and 2 tbsp sugar
1-3/4 cup water
handful of frozen or fresh raspberries
pinch of salt

Directions:

1. In a blender or food processor, combine the lemon zest, juice and sugar.  Pour in water.  Add the raspberries and salt and blend until the mixture is smooth and pink.

2.  Pour into your popsicle moulds, dividing evenly among the moulds.  Cover and freeze until solid, at least 5 hours.    If you are using sticks, insert them into the moulds when they are partially frozen and will stand on their own, about 2 hours.  Continue to freeze them until solid.

If you're liking me and you can't find (or don't have) moulds, there are several workarounds.  As I mentioned above, you can line a loaf pan with parchment paper that overhangs on all sides and pour the mixture in.  The directions above didn't work too well for me as the mixture was still pretty liquidy 4 hours after it was placed in the freezer.  So what I did was at that time I placed the popsicle sticks in, went to bed and woke up in the morning.  Of course I couldn't pull out the block, so I cut it into 8-10 squares in the pan.  Then I was easily able to remove it from the pan and put them back in the freezer as individual pops.  If yours freezes up faster, then slice them individually  after 3-4 hours.

You can also use paper cups or individual glasses and follow the steps above for inserting the popsicle sticks.  When ready to eat, you may have to let them sit at room temperature for up to 5 minutes so they can be easily removed.

Alternate flavour: Instead of raspberries, add 2-3 strawberries (fresh or frozen) that have been hulled.

These had quite a tangy flavour, but they are really quite good and refreshing on such a hot day!

Chocolate Zucchini Muffins

I had a lot of zucchini lying around and I was debating between making a bread or muffins.  Since muffins are a staple in my house, it was an easy decision.  And since everything has to have chocolate (my little one's request), we decided to bake chocolate zucchini muffins.  An early wake-up call meant going downstairs, dressing up in our matching aprons and having a fun morning.

Ingredients:

3 cups all-purpose flour

1-1/3 cup sugar

1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp cinnamon

2 eggs, lightly beaten

1 cup unsweetened applesauce

1/2 cup vegetable oil

2/3 cup milk

1 tsp vanilla extract

2 cups grated zucchini

1-1/3 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350F.  Line muffin tins with liners or spray them.

2. In a large bowl, stir together flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon.  Set aside.

3. In a separate bowl, whisk together the eggs, applesauce, oil, milk and vanilla extract.  Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix until just combined.  Fold in the zucchini and chocolate chips.

4. Divide the batter amongst each cavity; each should be pretty full.  Bake for 25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.  Cool 5-10 minutes in pan and then move to a cooling rack until completely cool.

Makes 24 muffins.

These taste especially good while warm as the chips are still gooey, but they still taste delicious when cooled.  They have a nice texture and are really quite moist.  You can't even tell that there's zucchini in them.  We will definitely be making them again - and sharing with our friends!

Coconut Curry Chicken Stiry-Fry

There's nothing like planning to make a stir-fry and then realizing that your husband finished the soy sauce and didn't add it to the "need to buy" list!

I had already prepped everything and was really stumped.  So I took to my good friend Google and found some stir-fries that use coconut milk (which surprisingly I did have in my cupboard).  Working with ingredients I did have on hand, I was able to tweak a recipe and come up with this.  It turned out pretty good, but I wouldn't put it up there as one of my favourites.  Good thing is that it is gluten free (if you need that sort of thing).  I don't know much about paleo, but I think the stir-fry itself could be paleo, if you changed some of the veggies and didn't use the noodles I did.

Ingredients:
Coconut oil for frying (or some other cooking fat)
4-5 boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into stir-fry size
1 large onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
4 handfuls of frozen, shelled edamame
1 carrot, thinly sliced
1 can (398mL) coconut milk
1-1/2 tsp curry powder
3/4 tsp ground ginger
salt to taste

Directions:

1. Prepare the sauce by whisking together the coconut milk, curry powder and grated ginger over medium heat.  Bring to a gentle simmer, stirring occasionally.  Lower the heat and continue to stir on occasion.

2. Stir-fry the chicken in a hot wok with about 1 tbsp coconut oil.  Cook until meat is no longer pink and cooked through.  Remove the chicken and set aside.

3. Reheat the wok and add the onion with some more coconut oil.  Cook the onion for a few minutes until it is translucent and tender.  Add the garlic, frozen edamame and carrot.  Stir-fry until the veggies are tender.  Return the chicken to the wok and add the sauce.  Cook until everything is hot once again.

At this point you can eat the curry on its own, or you can serve it over rice or noodles.  I chose to use bean thread noodles.  To prepare them, simply boil water.  Place 4 sets (50g each) in a bowl and cover with the boiling water.  Let them soak for 15 minutes to soften up.  Drain the water and toss them in with your curry.  Mix everything together to coat.

Serves 6.

Strawberry Blueberry muffins

I know my summer vacation has officially started when I spend my day cleaning, organizing and baking.

We went strawberry picking on the weekend at Strawberry Creek Farms. Much to our surprise (and slight disappointment) they did not have a good year and the basket of strawberries that we picked was free. Part of me thought I should go back and pick some more since it was free, but the other part of me realized that there really wasn't much to pick and it took quite awhile to fill the little basket we had.

Thanks to my husband we were able to enjoy some delicious strawberry-banana shakes and I had just enough left over to make muffins this morning. The recipes I've tried in the past never really made much of an impression. I needed something better for my little one who started in a new room at daycare today (and was not very happy about it). I wanted a delicious treat waiting for us when we got home. 

I took to my trusty friend Google and found a recipe by Ina Garten I knew would be amazing (as her recipes tend to be). I didn't have enough strawberries, so I added some blueberries. These muffins turned out so amazing. They had a nice crust on the top but were so moist in the center. My husband must have polished off 4 within the first 30 minutes. My little one could have had two or three as well. They are just that delicious. I'd say we finished off half the muffins just this afternoon. 

So here is the recipe (made with real Canadian fruit!)

Ingredients:

3 cups all-purpose flour

1 tbsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1-1/2 tbsp cinnamon

1-1/4 cups milk

2 eggs, lightly beaten

1 cup butter, melted

1 tsp vanilla

2 cups diced fresh berries

(I used 1-1/2 cups strawberries and 1/2 cup frozen blueberries, rinsed)

1-1/2 cups sugar

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375F. Line muffin tins with paper liners.

2. Sift the flour, baking powder and soda, salt and cinnamon together in a large bowl. Stir with your hand to be sure the ingredients are well-combined.

3. In a large mixing glass (2 cup) combine the milk, eggs, vanilla and melted butter. Make a well in the middle of the dry mixture, pour the wet mixture into the well, and stir until just combined. There will be some lumps, but don't overmix the batter. Add the berries and sugar and stir gently to combine (fold them in gently).

4. Spoon the batter into the muffin tins with a tablespoon.  Fill the liners.  Bake for 20-25 minutes, until a toothpick inserted comes out clean and the tops are nicely browned.

Makes 24 delicious muffins.

Double Chocolate Banana Muffins

I love baking banana bread or muffins. It's pretty fast and easy to come together, makes a great snack, and I almost always have a couple of bananas that I have left too long and don't care to eat anymore.

All these reasons gave way to my decision bake them for work. To be honest, I had almost forgotten I signed up for this week's snacks and was kind of scrambling (I also needed to do groceries but it was hubby's soccer night so I wasn't going anywhere!).

I pulled up my go to recipe to make sure I had everything (you can find it here: Banana muffins ) and got on my way. As it turned out, I didn't have enough yogurt but I did have a little bit of sour cream so I used both in place of the yogurt; I think it was a bit more than I normally use (of course I didn't measure!). I also was craving chocolate so I added 3-4 tbsp of cocoa (which I also didn't measure but went till it looked chocolate-y enough for me). 

The result: really moist and delicious banana muffins. They seemed more moist than I remembered (now this could be because they really were OR because I hadn't had a gluten muffin in so long that I truly forgot how amazing and moist baked goods can be!) and the cocoa was a great addition. They were a ht at work and with my hubby and child!

I literally just tweaked a couple of things from my original post (Banana Muffins), but here is the recipe in its entirety. 

Ingredients:

1/2 cup oil
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
3/4 cup plain (Greek) yogurt
3/4 cup sour cream
1-1/2 cups flour
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
3-4 tbsp cocoa (Dutch, unprocessed)
3 bananas, mashed
1 cup chocolate chips (semi-sweet)

Directions:

1. Mix oil, sugar, egg, vanilla, yogurt and sour cream in a large bowl.  Set aside.

2. In a separate bowl whisk together flour, salt, baking powder and soda, and cocoa.  Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix well. (At this point, if it doesn't look chocolate-y enough, add another tablespoon of cocoa.)

3.  Add the mashed bananas and fold in.  Add the chocolate chips.

4.  Place the batter in lined (or greased) muffin tins, about 3/4 full. Bake in a preheated 365F oven for 20 minutes.

Makes 24 muffins.

Italian Easter Bread - Pane do Pasqua

I've always wanted to make a traditional Easter bread so this year I actually did it. I had a lot of fun decorating the eggs with my little one and we had a blast making the dough as well. While I didn't taste my own bread (still trying gluten free) it smelled amazing as I baked it and I got positive feedback at Easter lunch!

Ingredients:

1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temp. 

1/2 cup milk

2-1/2 tsp yeast

1/2 cup warm water

3 eggs, room temp. 

2/3 cup sugar

1 tsp vanilla

Zest of one lemon

4-1/2 - 5 cups all purpose flour

1 tsp ground anise seed

1 tsp salt

6 hard boiled eggs (optional, don't have to be hard boiled)

Directions:

1. In a small saucepan, heat the milk and butter just until the butter melts. Set aside to cool. 

2. Add 1 tbsp sugar to the warm water and stir to mix. Sprinkle the yeast over the top and set aside for 5 minutes. 

3. In a stand mixer, whisk together the eggs and sugar until combined. Add the butter/milk mixture, yeast mixture, vanilla, zest and anise. Mix together until all the wet ingredients are combined. 

4. Switch to the dough hook and add in 4-1/2 cups flour and salt; mix until a soft dough forms. Gradually add more flour to make a smooth and slightly sticky dough. 

5. Turn onto a lightly floured surface and knead for a few more minutes until very smooth. Shape into a ball. 

6. Grease the bowl with oil and return the dough, turning to cover in oil. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise for 1-1/2 hours until it has doubled in volume. 

7. Line a very large baking sheet (or 2 sheets) with parchment paper and lightly grease. 

8. When the dough is ready, punch it down on a lightly floured surface and divide into 4 equal pieces. 

9. Roll each piece into a rope about 22" long. Lay two ropes side by side and loosely braid them together. 

10.  Lift the braid onto the baking sheet and pinch the ends to seal into a circle. Place 3 eggs in each circle lengthwise, tucking them between the ropes. (I used hardboiled eggs, but you can put them in uncooked and they will cook as the bread does.)

11. Repeat this process with the other two braids. 

12. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise for another 45 minutes until doubled. 

13. Brush the tops with egg wash (and sprinkle with sprinkles if you desire). Bake them for 30 minutes in a 350F oven until golden and cooked through. (The bread should sound hollow when tapped.)

14. Let cool then slice and serve. 

This picture is deceiving.  These are not small individual buns, but two large breads.

Gluten Free Apple Cake

Having a sweet tooth and a bag of apples normally meant lots of baking: apple crumble, apple pie, apple crumble pie, and so on.    Now this baking doesn't come so easily if I want to enjoy it.  I went on the search for a gluten free apple cake, thinking this would probably be easier than trying to make a gluten-free crust for a pie.  Most of the recipes I found called for xantham gum, which I didn't have in my kitchen (and probably won't ever have because of its cost and "synthetic" nature).

I found a recipe that I was able to tweak, and the end result was really quite good - and baked much faster than the recipe called for.  While I didn't try it, I believe this could easily be made dairy free as well if you substituted almond milk (or your go to milk) in place of the milk and your own butter substitute (or coconut oil).

The cake is really moist and tasted delicious warm.  It was a little crumbly - I'm not sure if that is because of the ingredients or the fact that we ate it warm. It doesn't rise very much, so next time I might consider baking it in a square pan and longer if necessary.  I may also add in some more apples to increase the flavour.  Overall though, it has a nice taste and definitely satisfied my cake craving.  I wouldn't guess it was gluten-free if I hadn't baked it myself.



Ingredients:
3/4 cup rice flour
1/2 cup potato starch
1/4 cup tapioca flour
1 tsp baking soda
1.5 tsp baking powder
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
3/4 tsp chia seeds (or flax seeds or half of each)
1.5 tsp boiling water
1/2 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup white sugar
3 tbsp brown sugar
2 eggs
3 tbsp milk
2 tsp vanilla
1.5 cups apples, peeled, cored and shredded (I used 3 small empire apples)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350F.  Grease a 9" round springform pan with butter or coconut oil and dust with rice flour.

2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the rice flour, potato starch, tapioca flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon and nutmeg; set aside.

3. In a small bowl combine chia seeds and boiling water to create a gel; set aside.

4. Cream the butter with your mixer until it is softened and pale yellow. (I used about 1 tbsp less butter and added that amount in coconut oil.)  Add both the white and brown sugar and beat until well combined.

5. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each one.  Blend in the milk (I used regular milk, but you could use almond or any substitute), vanilla and the chia seed gel, beating well after each one.

6. On low speed, add the dry ingredients in two batches, beating well after each addition until it is well absorbed.

7.  Gently fold in the shredded apples.

8. Spoon the batter into the prepared pan and bake 30-35 minutes (the original recipe called for 40-45 mins but my cake was already browning in 30) or until the cake pulls away from the edge of the pan and a toothpick inserted comes out clean.

9.  Serve warm or cooled.  If serving warm, cool in the pan at least 10 minutes before removing.

10.  Dust lightly with icing sugar if you like.