Tag: Recipe

Homemade Spicy Rosemary Garlic Butter

Published on by Vicky1 Comment

I know a lot of you who are avid bakers have had stand mixers for ages. I’ve had mine for less than a year but what a difference it makes! I love the large bowl and being able to leave it running while I’m making stuff like meringues or whipping cream. It’s nice being able to walk away even if it’s only for a minute or two just to wash your hands or start prepping something else. The downside is that I have a short attention span and I get easily distracted. With my hand mixer, I couldn’t WAIT to let go of it — it was loud, messy, heavy and I didn’t have control over the speed. It either mixed things on fast, faster or too fast. So you know the recipes that tell you not to overwhip heavy cream or your meringues. It’s very easy to do with a stand mixer!  Continue reading “Homemade Spicy Rosemary Garlic Butter” →

Whole Wheat Cherry Chocolate Chip Banana Muffins

Published on by Vicky6 Comments

Earlier this week, I decided to take an impromptu weekend road trip. It was one of those “I have to get out-of-town” moments. The weekend started off pretty well– I was packed and had my little survival kit including a batch of cherry chocolate chip banana muffins (recipe to follow). Unfortunately in the mishegosh of packing, it seems a certain someone forgot a certain driver’s license which meant I was stuck doing ALL the driving. Don’t get me wrong, I like driving and I like road trips, but the one thing I realized is that road trips have to be done with a group of people you don’t mind being around for a couple many hours. Especially when everyone in the car wants to play backseat driver.
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Orange Honey Madeleines

Published on by Vicky13 Comments

I have a confession to make. The first time I ever ate a Madeleine was at Disney World and then the next time I had one was at Starbucks. You know the kind that you pick up on a whim at the cash register? The ones from the Boulangerie Pâtisserie in Epcot were also sitting by the cash. I guess they’re an impulse purchase. I’m not sure how authentic those madeleines were but I liked the ones I had so much that I ran out and bought a Madeleine pan but this was a few years ago. I’m a little embarrassed to say that the pan sat unused until last weekend. Continue reading “Orange Honey Madeleines” →

Cherry and Rosemary Focaccia Bread

Published on by Vicky9 Comments

Cherries are in season and I came home with a big bag of them a few days ago. I wasn’t quite sure what to do with them all but I knew I wanted to try something different. I had just finished making a focaccia and thought it would be interesting to see how a normally savoury bread would work with sweet ingredients. I still wanted to keep the savoury element so I added fresh rosemary and some fleur de sel for sprinkling on top.

The focaccia dough proofs in the olive oil but don’t let that throw you off. The oil gives the bread a really nice hint of rosemary flavor – it doesn’t make the bread  heavy or too oily. Finally, the cherries add a bright freshness to the bread. Not something you’d normally expect to find in a focaccia.So give this recipe a try the next time you’re looking for a slightly sweeter bread to serve during your breakfast or brunch. Enjoy!

And now to decide what to do with the rest of these cherries…  Continue reading “Cherry and Rosemary Focaccia Bread” →

Broccoli Salad

Published on by Vicky10 Comments

Is it still too hot to turn on the stove or oven in your part of the world? Over the weekend, we had a small break from the hot weather when it rained on Saturday but it was still humid and muggy. It makes me think of that Simpsons episode where Homer builds a tent onto the fridge because it’s so hot. Ah, fridge tent! I think I’ll be needing one of those this summer. Phew! But back to the subject of cooking and eating. If you don’t want to cook, you can get take out but that gets boring and expensive after a while. I decided to take a recipe for one of my favorite salads and change it up a bit. Okay, it still involves a bit of stove top use but it’s worth it I promise.

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Peanut Butter Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Protein Cookie Balls

Published on by Vicky31 Comments

Looks like July is here and I hope everyone’s summer is going well so far! I have no complaints except for the excessively hot weather. Don’t get me wrong, I’ll take the heat over the cold and snow any day, but I love baking and running. Especially with baking, I’ve only been turning on my oven when I absolutely have to. So I went through some of the recipes I had and came across one for a no-bake cookie that was given to me by my chiropractor Marco.  Continue reading “Peanut Butter Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Protein Cookie Balls” →

Torta All’Olio D’Oliva (Olive Oil Cake)

Published on by Vicky9 Comments

You know how there are some TV personalities that you could just watch for hours on end? It doesn’t matter what they’re talking about or what they’re cooking, they’re just nice to look at and that makes for good TV! Those of you familiar with David Rocco and Dolce Vita know what I’m talking about. So I was really excited to try a recipe from his latest book ‘Made in Italy’. Continue reading “Torta All’Olio D’Oliva (Olive Oil Cake)” →

Chilled Strawberry Yogurt Soup

Published on by Vicky6 Comments

It’s hot and humid, and the city is under a heat alert. You know that blast of heat that hits your face when you open the oven door? It’s kind of like that. The last thing I want to do is pack a lunch for work. Unfortunately it was another busy day at the office and I only had time to run downstairs to grab something at the food court. I thought to myself “I’ll get a soup, because no one else is going to want soup today and I can be back upstairs in five minutes.” Murphy’s law – guess where everyone decides to go for lunch? There was a huge line at the soup place. Because nothing beats the heat like a steaming hot bowl of soup. Did I miss something? Continue reading “Chilled Strawberry Yogurt Soup” →

I’m on Foodgawker

Published on by Vicky12 Comments

On Father’s Day I was taking a few pictures for my blog but not feeling particularly inspired. I was also feeling a bit down for having missed a long run because of some ankle problems. At the same time, my mom was giving me a hard time for not making Father’s Day plans. Can’t you see I’m busy blogging woman?! Truth was, my dad had plans to go golfing but he wasn’t feeling well Sunday so he cancelled his game. I made him a cake and we made him dinner, so all was well in the end. But I still felt a little blah in general and about the photos too.  Continue reading “I’m on Foodgawker” →

Whole Wheat Blueberry Buttermilk Pancakes

Published on by Vicky2 Comments

My dad was away last week and I thought it would be nice for my mom and I to spend some time together, so we went to a well-known breakfast joint.  Why not have someone else do the cooking, clear the table and wash the dishes? A good idea, in theory. The actual breakfast and service left a lot to be desired. I ordered my favourite: blueberry pancakes, while my mom ordered an omelet. It took the kitchen nearly 25 minutes to complete the order and when the food arrived, it wasn’t good. You know how some people make jokes about burning toast. Well, the toast wasn’t burnt but it was rock hard, and my pancakes were cold and somehow hard on the edges and soft in the middle. I couldn’t figure that one out. If a breakfast place can’t make pancakes or toast properly, they’re in big trouble. The lady the restaurant is named after would not be happy to know one of her franchises wasn’t even able to make toast or pancakes properly. Oh c’est la vie, I guess. Oops, I might have said too much. In any case, I decided to make breakfast at my house this weekend. Except… I was out of white flour.

Continue reading “Whole Wheat Blueberry Buttermilk Pancakes” →