I was having a wicked craving for something sweet last night and there was a bag of Skor Toffee Bits in the cupboard calling out my name. I tweaked an old chocolate chip cookie recipe I had lying around and came up with these. They are sweet, salty, crispy and chewy all at the same time. In other words, perfect.



Chocolate Chip Toffee Bit Cookies

Yields 3 dozen

1 cup butter, softened
1 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 tsp salt
3/4 tsp baking soda
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 bag semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 bag Chipits Skor Toffee Bits

1. Preheat oven to 350F. In a large bowl, beat butter and sugars until light and fluffy, scraping down sides of bowl occasionally. Beat in eggs and vanilla extract until combined.

2. In a separate bowl, mix flour, salt and baking soda. Add to the butter mixture at low speed until just combined. Beat on medium speed, scraping bowl down, until blended. Stir in chocolate chips and toffee bits until thoroughly combined.

3. Drop heaping spoonfuls of batter 2 inches apart onto lined baking sheets and bake until golden brown around edges approx. 10-12 minutes.

Labels: cooking, food, recipes

I know it's still mid-summer and we have a few weeks left to go, but I am so rooting for fall. Mostly because fall equals THE best shopping season! (For me anyway.) At this point of the year, I am beyond sick of looking at flimsy, skimpy bits of fabric in colours that make me look like a corpse. The best part about this time of year though is that all the fall collections are slowly starting to creep into stores, allowing me to molest all the fantastically soft and fluffy sweaters and get first choice on the good stuff while everyone else is too busy combing the summer clearance racks. This week has been no exception, I am a shopping MACHINE!

I spent no less then FOUR HOURS in my favourite store yesterday which my mom was nice enough to drive me to Etobicoke for, since it doesn't exist in the downtown core anywhere. The sales girls were the absolute best ever, constantly bringing me new things to try just because they hadn't 'seen anyone wear it yet.' My new wardrobe now consists of: 2 pairs of dressy pants - 1 olive, 1 brown, 1 brown leather belt, 1 pair of brown suede ballet flats, 1 short sleeved brown blouse, 1 white pinstripe 3/4 length blouse, 1 teal satin blouse, 1 burgundy sleeveless top and 1 teal scarf. Also with a recommendation from D that we go back when his trip is over to see if the matching jacket to my pants 'is still there.' Spoiled rotten? Pffft.......no....

Something actually rotten: I've been craving a good turkey sandwich for just about forever now and bought some fresh rolls to make some the other day. Well I guess I waited a day too long because they were so stale I could barely cut through them. I thought about popping out to the store to get some more but then felt guilty when I realized I had half a batch of bread dough still sitting in my fridge. I decided to bake it all and have a sandwich on fresh delicious bread. Now to get a crispy crust you need steam, which you do by heating a pan in the oven and pouring water into alongside your bread. I have always used a 8x8 cake pan. For some reason, all I own at our new place is Pyrex dishes which I thought would work just as well. I don't know what provoked me to act so retardedly...I studied glassblowing for God's sake...but I poured water--hot water, mind you, I know way better then to use cold--into my 425F pan and low and behold it EXPLODED LIKE A BOMB.

Shit.

I managed to slam the door shut and shield my eyeballs from being sliced to ribbons but I am far too scared to go survey the damage to my oven and I am still sandwich-less as my dough is surely embedded with shrapnel. It is a sad day on the lunch front.

Labels: accidents, cooking, food, ridiculous

Over a month ago when I said I would attempt NaBloPoMo yet again, mainly because it was about food (and I am serious about food!) I made a list of things I wanted to make by month's end, but with the exception of pizza dough I more or less failed miserably. I did manage to cook quite a bit, documenting it though, was another story. First off I do not own a proper camera so getting decent shots are always few and far between. Secondly, I am horrible at remembering to take photos before diving into dinner. Remembering after yes, but never before.

But today I had to share what I made, even though I am resenting not having a decent camera to get a good quality shot. It's one of the things I had on my previous list: Dulce De Leche.


Dulce De Leche is practically effortless, with the exception of devoting time to babysit it while it boils away in the pan. There are various methods of making it but I went with the easiest and supposedly more 'dangerous' version of simply covering a can of sweetened condensed milk with water and boiling it for hours on end--I say dangerous because there are apparent rumours of cans exploding. I did not have this problem but I was sure to keep my cans covered with water at all times and let them cool before I opened them. (Actually, I dumped half a bag of ice in the pot to help speed up the cooling because I was too impatient to see if it had worked, so the whole cooling part is only a half-truth. The caramel did sort of spurt out the top when I pierced the can, but nothing close to what I would call an explosion. Regardless, just make sure they aren't HOT and things should be fine.)

I wanted to make thick spreadable dulce de leche so I boiled my cans for 4 hours turning them upside down halfway through. (And I use the term 'boiled' loosely, I don't think the water ever broke a simmer.) Less time is said to give you a more syrupy like consistency but I wouldn't recommend anything less then 2 hours because you want the sugars in the milk to caramelize and turn golden.

Dulce De Leche - The 'Danger' Method

1. Place a can or cans (you may as well do a bunch) of sweetened condensed milk in sauce pan or stockpot deep enough to cover tops with at least an inch of water.

2. Bring water to a low boil and continue to simmer for 3-4 hours depending on desired consistency, making sure to add boiling water to pot in order to keep tops of cans covered.

3. Allow cans to cool before opening. Empty into a bowl or dish and whisk until smooth. Store unused dulce de leche in a covered container in the refrigerator.

Labels: cooking, food, recipes

Really, I think someone should just give me a job as a party/event planner because it's one of my favourite things to do. I love doing the cooking for parties and the decorating for parties and just generally showing off how awesome I am. I'm just really good at paying attention to detail, like using gold cupcake papers when I make Guinness cupcakes to match the harp or remembering to stick the toothpicks with the coloured stuff on the ends into appetizers so they are easier for people to eat. When it comes to parties, I kick some serious ass.

We've decided to just have our 'Come check out our new place/apartment warming' the same day as D's birthday since it seems ridiculous to have it after, when everyone will have already seen our place. Our building has a sweet party room with a pool table available for our convenience but I'm the only person who seems to think that is cool. Basically this year will be a repeat of last year only with mandatory coaster use, a smaller guest list (75 vs 200) and with a pre-warning to come hungry so that I don't have to shove appetizers down peoples throats. We have air conditioning this year too so I can make hot appetizers without turning the apartment into an sweaty oven of death.

Here's a list of things I am considering making so far:

Chocolate Cake (D's only request)
Stuffed Mushrooms
Spinach Dip
Meatballs (Because I have a slow cooker now and didn't get to make them last year)
Chipotle Deviled Eggs

And if I'm feeling up to it, a Croquembouche because I've been dying to make one but haven't had a reason to. French weddings, house parties...does it really matter?

I'm expecting this list to double because those were just the no-brainers. I've yet to finish ransacking my cookery shelf and scoping Epicurious for more ideas. What are your favourite party foods?

Labels: cooking, food, parties

Today was a lazy, lazy day, spent mostly on the neighbourhood patios people watching and drinking pitcher after pitcher. We visited a kitchen store though we only bought practical boring thing and breakfast was the only cooking I did. I made Pop Up Pancakes (or as I call them 'Puffy Pancakes') from Make and Takes, which I've had my eye on for a while now. I decided to half the recipe since there was only three of us and I'm not sure what I did wrong but they were almost impossible to get out of the pan even though I greased it like nobodies business. They were good though, a bit like mangled Yorkshire puddings once I ripped them out but I made a hot strawberry topping out of frozen strawberries and sugar to pour over them that was really yummy.

Other then that I managed to come down with a cold and get sunburnt at the same time as well as seriously consider stealing this guys 3 month old Boston Terrier puppy. It was gouge your own eyes out cute! Walking around with a puppy that cute should be illegal.

Labels: cooking, food

Somebody got herself a pasta machine for an AMAZINGLY good deal today! It is totally feature-rific and was a complete and total steal! We're talking two widths of noodles in addition to sheets and a tool for crinkle cutting circles and squares. I can't wait to start making ravioli and angel hair and big gorgeous lasagna sheets. I'm telling ya, Dave better learn soon how to start eating like a normal person because I already have sweet bread and cake baking skills and now pasta skills are on their way. I can't very well let all my awesome skills go to waste now, can I?

When I say 'Eat like a normal person' I mean I called him at 5pm and he told me he was just about to grab ' a little lunch.' I said, 'Lunch? It's 5pm.' Then he said that he meant dinner, which is a lie because I know very well that at 10pm tonight he will be going out to eat. I know this because every time I go visit, breakfast out with friends doesn't happen until 2pm sometimes, lunch is usually 4pm and dinner is almost always after 9. I am usually found half-dead on the floor somewhere trying to gnaw through my arm. I seriously need to eat every 4 hours or I shrivel up and die and D frequently 'forgets' to eat all together. Unless it's a loaf of bread. Bread does not stand a chance against the Davebot. Or chocolate cake. I finally learned my lesson to not to split dessert with him if I actually want to get to eat any of it myself. Men are weird.

Anyways, Cori and I are attempting the NaBloPoMo thing again this month. The theme is 'Home' which I think should be interesting as we're both home-makey type of girls. Too bad 90% of my home is stuffed into a cardboard box right now, because I have so many shiny neat things to share!

Labels: boo, cooking, NaBloPoMo

This past week I have wanted to eat nothing but pure unadulterated macaroni and cheese, exempt from peas, meat and all those unnecessary add-ins. This recipe was exactly what I was looking for, and I've made it twice now in the past 3 days. Use the sharpest cheddar you can find as well as good quality bread crumbs. I also recommend mixing a little extra cheddar into the topping as the first time mine came out quite powdery instead of crunchy, browned and delicious.


Macaroni and Cheese

Recipe from Gourmet | February 1994

Serves 6 to 8

Ingredients

7 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
4 cups milk
1 1/2 teaspoons dry mustard
1/8 teaspoon cayenne, or to taste
1 pound elbow macaroni
3 cups coarsely grated extra-sharp Cheddar cheese (about 12 ounces)
1 1/3 cups freshly grated Parmesan cheese (about 4 ounces)
1 cup fresh bread crumbs

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350°F. and butter a 3- to 4-quart gratin dish or other shallow baking dish.

In a heavy saucepan melt 6 tablespoons butter over moderately low heat. Add flour and cook roux, whisking, 3 minutes. Add milk in a stream, whisking, and bring to a boil, whisking. Add mustard, cayenne, and salt and pepper to taste and simmer sauce, whisking occasionally, until thickened, about 2 minutes.

In a kettle of salted boiling water cook macaroni until just al dente, about 7 minutes, and drain well. In a large bowl stir together macaroni, sauce, Cheddar, and 1 cup Parmesan and transfer to prepared dish.

In a small bowl stir together bread crumbs and remaining 1/3 cup Parmesan and sprinkle evenly over macaroni. Cut remaining 1 tablespoon butter into bits and scatter over topping.

Bake macaroni in middle of oven 25 to 30 minutes, or until golden and bubbling.

Labels: cooking, food, NaBloPoMo

I have wanted to attempt making bread for a really long time. At least once a month I say I am going to do it. Well today I finally did.

I used the basic bread recipe from Jamie Oliver's 'Happy Days with the Naked Chef' because seemed the simplest and quickest of the recipes I had researched. None of that proofing for 15 hours crap. That wouldn't work for me, I'm more of an instant gratification type of girl.

Here we go:

Step 1: Put on a sexy apron. This is going to get messy so you may as well look good doing it.


Step 2: Gather your ingredients. Here I have bread flour, whole wheat flour, sea salt, yeast and I should have sugar but it got left out of the picture. You will also need 2 cups of lukewarm water.


Step 3. Read the label of the flour you are using before dumping it out on the counter and realizing it is the wrong one. Measure 6-8 cups of flour. I used 6. It was not enough.


Step 4: Make a well in the centre of your flour.


Step 5: Add 2 level tablespoons of sea salt and 2 level tablespoons of sugar to the centre of the well.

Step 6: Add half the water to the well.


Step 7: Add the yeast. For this recipe you need three 1/4 ounce packages. Also, make sure to use scissors to open the package. Otherwise you will have tiny yeast particles all over your kitchen, as you would see if this picture had been bigger.


Step 8: Stir those babies in. It will start to look like gross porridge.


Step 9. Start adding more flour. At this point my well wall broke and water went everywhere so I just smooshed everything into a pile of sticky goo. It was not pretty at all. It should have looked like this:

Step 10: Finish incorporating the flour. The dough will look lumpy like Britney Spears' thighs, but don't worry, we will fix that later.


Step 11. Knead. Knead until your arms feel like they are going to fall off and you're screaming for sweet death to come. At this point you can cry, wail or curse out your dough. Don't even think about stopping until your dough looks like this:


At this point you might want to go have a nap or go make yourself a sandwich. You need to leave the dough until it has doubled in size, anywhere from 30 mins to an hour should be good. I found it took the latter.

Step 13: Punch that dough down. Make it pay for all that kneading. A 30 second violent beating should be just about right.



Step 14: Reconstructive surgery. Shape the dough as you wish. I split the white dough into two and shaped one half into a pseudo-focaccia with parmesan and oregano on top and the other half I dumped into a loaf pan. The wheat dough I made while the white dough was rising, I shaped into a boule with some fancy slashes on top. Place them on a floured baking sheet.


Step 15: Let them rise again for about an hour. This will allow the dough to get fluffy and delicious. I started to preheat my oven at this point so they had a nice toasty place to fatten up.

Step 16: Bake. Now because I didn't follow Jamie's exact recipes I kind of had to guesstimate at the baking times for my bread. I was basing mine on the focaccia, the walnut bread and the banana honey bread out of his book, so I used those times to start. I first baked the parmesan-oregano bread at 350F for 25 minutes, but the bottom was still a bit doughy so I put it in for another 10 minutes. Then I baked the wheatie ball at 350F for 30 minutes, it looked like a giant muffin and had cracked around the bottom, but it didn't seem done (as it's supposed to sound hollow when tapped) so I cranked the oven to 375F and threw the loaf bread in with it for another 20 minutes. The loaf bread actually rose for almost 2 hours before I put it in the oven as I baked it last. I'm hoping that made it light and fluffy.


The parmesan-oregano bread is delicious, crisp on the outside and chewy and dense on the inside. We've already eaten half of it. I haven't tried the other two yet as that is a lot of bread to eat, so maybe I will slice them up and freeze them tomorrow. I still can't believe these came from my own two hands. I'm quite impressed with myself and can definitely feel an addiction coming on.

I know what I'll be snacking on when Nigella Express premiers tonight that's for sure!

Labels: cooking, food

D loves Tortuga rum cake. Unfortunately they are only available in the Cayman Islands or from importers in Florida. You can buy them online but it will cost you $35 plus shipping and quite frankly, that's a lotta money for a just a little cake!

So it is quite fortunate for D to have me, as I possess both supreme cooker and caker skills. I also have a stubborn streak which requires me to know how to do everything myself all of the time. So naturally when he professed his love for Tortuga rum cake I had to learn how to make one from scratch. The reaction was excellent and got a 9.8/10 compared to real Tortuga. I used 3/4 of a cup of walnuts but D said that was too many. Anyways, here is the recipe I found somewhere on the internet, only re-written to eliminate confusing and pointless steps:

Almost Tortuga Rum Cake

Cake:
2 c flour
1½ c granulated sugar
4 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
½ c butter, cut into bits
3 tbsp vegetable oil
1 pkg vanilla instant pudding mix
½ c milk
4 eggs
½ c dark rum
½ c vegetable oil
1 tsp vanilla extract
½ c finely chopped walnuts

Rum Glaze:
½ c butter
¼ c water
1 c granulated sugar
½ c dark or spiced rum

Directions:
Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
Grease and flour a large Bundt pan. Sprinkle the chopped walnuts on the bottom.
In a large bowl combine flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, butter and 3 tbsp oil on low speed until the mix is the consistency of fine gravel.

Add pudding mix, milk, eggs, rum, remaining oil and vanilla extract. Combine on medium speed with electric mixer for 2 to 3 minutes, until batter is smooth, scraping down the bowl halfway through.

Pour batter into pan over walnuts and bake for approx 55 minutes or until fully golden and tester comes out clean.

Rum Glaze:
Combine butter, water and sugar in a small saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook until sugar is dissolved and syrup has slightly thickened.

Remove syrup from the heat and stir in the rum. While cake is still cooling in pan, pour some of the hot syrup on top of the cake, allowing it time to soak in. Continue to add syrup until all of the syrup is added. (It will seem like there is way too much syrup but it will absorb eventually! - You can help it along by poking some holes with a cake tester in the cake.)

The cake is best when let to sit in pan for a few hours or overnight before turning out onto platter.

So there you have it. I should also mention this cake has something like 600 calories a slice and that your dog may act a little more idiotic after stealing a piece off the table. But damn it, it's delicious!

If you wanted to get really crazy you could use a flavoured rum to make it banana or coconut flavoured. I saw Passion Fruit Malibu rum in the LCBO the other day. Ehhhh? That could be interesting.

Labels: cooking, food, recipes

So I starting coming down with this horrendous cold the morning of my birthday and everyone recommended I take this Cold FX stuff. Well I did and my cold never got worse, that is until I stopped taking it at the end of the 3 day 'program' they have on the side of the bottle. Then it came on full blast, so bad that when I went to have my makeup done for my party the girl had to apply moisturizer 3 times before she actually started putting crap on my face to help soften the scales.

D wouldn't touch me with a 10 foot pole for the entire weekend, I guess he just doesn't appreciate the hotness of his snotty, chapped-lipped, walrus-lung-ed girlfriend in stilettos and fake eyelashes. Ally and I drank two bottles of pink champagne between the two of us before we headed out to the Mod Club. On any other night this probably would have been fine, but mixed with cold medicine it was a nightmare. At some point the club turned into a bad, bad rave and I could feel the floor bouncing beneath us. So I declared it time to leave after what felt like an hour but had really been three. Again, on any other night I'm sure it would have been awesome, just sickness and me go together like fried and chicken.

Speaking of chicken...I roasted one. All by myself. For the first time ever! And not to boast or anything but it was freaking DELICIOUS. It took me a good while to work up the nerve to pick it up and I may or may not have had to make up a chicken song to sing to myself while doing it but it turned out beautifully. I totally killed the asparagus though trying to keep it hot while D ran out to get wine but whateva. Everything else was really good. It was tasty and that is that.


Recipe for never cooked a chicken-chicken.

1. Shove a lemon half or two in the cavity. Add some rosemary and garlic if you want.
2. Tie the chickens legs together like you know what you are doing.
3. Rub butter, salt and pepper all over the outside of said chicken.
4. Throw some vegetables around any negative space. Douse everything in olive oil.
5. Shove that baby in the oven at 425F for an hour and a half.

Congratulations, you just cooked the world's most awesome chicken.

Labels: cooking, food