Movin' on...

I'm not sure how many people still read this blog, since my updates have been nonexistant for what seems like forever. But for those who may see this pop up in their feed reader, or who check in from time to time, you can find me on my new blog, where I'll be consolidating all things crafty, foodie and photography all in one place.

So please, come on over and visit me at Blissful Domesticity! I promise I'll try harder to keep things interesting over there. :)

Super Easy Candy-Coated Popcorn

My daughter's preschool class is having a valentine's day party tomorrow. My plan was to send little marshmallow pops for her school friends, but those hopes were dashed last night when the only marshmallows I could find in the house were grotesquely misshapen. There was not a hope in hell that they would look at all good. I resigned myself to just providing little cards for her friends, until I remembered something I'd seen on a blog a few days earlier. This Blessed Nest posted lovely candy-coated popcorn-and-m&ms treat bags. I just so happened to have Wilton candy melts in my pantry in a rainbow of colours, so I adapted her idea a little bit for what I had in my pantry.

Super Easy Candy Coated Popcorn
(adapted from This Blessed Nest)

Popcorn
Candy Melts in desired colours, ~1 oz per generous cup of popped popcorn
Salt (optional)

Pop your popcorn. Place in a large bowl.

In a double boiler or a heatproof bowl over a pot of boiling water, melt candy melts. Drizzle candy melts over popcorn, and toss to coat. Sprinkle a little salt as you toss if you like your popcorn salty & sweet.

Spread popcorn on a parchment-covered baking pan, and let sit for half an hour or so, until candy coating has set. Break apart gently with your hands, since the pieces will have stuck together.

The tags are also homemade - now that my craft area has been reorganized, I was able to find exactly what I needed to make these cute little tags, the perfect size for ziploc sandwich baggies! For my crafty readers, the supplies are all from Stampin' Up - Whisper White & Real Red cardstock, Wild Wasabi, Real Red & Pink Pirouette ink, and stamps from Wild About You, and Goody Goody Gumdrops.

Swedish Meatballs

One of my most favourite things to make with ground beef is meatballs. Meatballs are so much fun - add them to pasta, make a sweet chili sauce, cook 'em up with pineapple and peppers in a sweet and sour dish... the possibilities are endless! One of my foodie friends once told me about the amazingness that is the meatballs from the Ikea cafeteria. I was skeptical of how good meatballs at a furniture store could be, but these ones blew me away, especially with the tangy lingonberry sauce. Weeks later, I happened across lingonberry sauce in Superstore and bought it in case I ever had the inclination to recreate the Ikea-style meatballs. Sure enough, the craving hit again, and I ended up making the following recipe. The meatball recipe is now my go-to recipe whenever I want to make a meatball dish - all I do is change the sauce, and sometimes the seasoning. Also, there's an adaptation at the bottom to make these meatballs gluten-free for those in your family who may be sensitive to wheat.

Swedish Meatballs
Adapted from Joelen's Culinary Adventures

Meatballs:
2 eggs
1/3 cup cream or milk
5 slices bread, torn into small pieces
1 large onion, finely diced or grated
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp allspice
1/2 tsp garlic powder
2 tbsp dried parsley
2 tsp brown sugar
1/4 tsp pepper
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
1 lb ground pork
1 lb ground beef

Sauce:
1/4 cup + 2 tbsp butter, divided
1 tbsp olive oil
1 lb button mushrooms, sliced
salt & pepper
2 tbsp water
1/4 cup flour
1 1/2 cups chicken broth
1 1/2 cups beef broth
2 tbs brown sugar
1/3 cup cream
1 tbs apple cider vinegar

In a small bowl, whisk together eggs and cream. Stir in bread and set aside.

In a large bowl, combine grated onion, spices, sugar, baking powder and ground pork and mix well. If you're not squeamish, now is a good time to get in there with your hands.

Mash bread mixture with a fork until no large bread chunks remain. Add to the pork and mix until well combined, then add beef and mix in thoroughly.

Form into 1-1.5" meatballs with wet hands or a small ice cream scoop - should make 48 meatballs.

Place meatballs on a greased baking sheet, or in the wells of a greased mini muffin pan, and bake at 350F for 25 minutes. Remove from oven and set aside.

In a wide-bottomed, heavy saucepan with a tight-fitting lid, melt together olive oil and 2 tbsp butter over medium high heat. Add mushrooms, season with salt & pepper, and water - stir and cover with lid. Let cook 3-4 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Remove lid, lower heat and allow mushrooms to continue cooking, stirring often, until liquid has evaporated and mushrooms are a lovely golden brown all over and are nicely caramelized. Deglaze pan with a splash of white wine or water, cook until liquid has evaporated, and remove mushrooms to a bowl. Set aside.

In the same saucepan, melt 1/4 cup butter over medium high heat until sizzling. Add flour and whisk together to make a roux. Whisk constantly until mixture is a light golden brown, then whisk in broths. Stir in mushrooms & sugar, bring to a simmer and allow to reduce until nice and thick. Stir in cream and reduce heat to medium.

Add meatballs to the sauce, and simmer until heated through. Stir in vinegar and serve.

Serves 6-8

To make gluten-free, cook 1 cup of brown rice in 1.5 cups water. Omit milk but soak cooked rice with egg as per directions above. Mash and proceed with the recipe as usual.

I've been a bad blogger...

I've been bad. I started this food blog with the intention of sharing at least one recipe a week, and I seemed to have dropped that ball back around the middle of December with the Christmas rush. I had high hopes but not much time, unfortunately. However, it's a new year, and I'm going to do my best to bust out some of the things I've been working on in my wee kitchen. I've been playing with some fun new ingredients, like red quinoa and black rice. I can't wait to share some of these delicious flavours with you all, and I'm working on getting something up by the end of the week to tempt your tastebuds.

Happy 2011, my friends, and happy eating!

Guinness Cottage Pie

Growing up, shepherd's pie was one of those meals that my mom used to make on a regular basis. It was never one of my favourites, and after I moved out on my own, it took me over a decade to even want to give it a try again. My husband and I love casseroles, and we love things made with beer, so we decided to give this Gordon Ramsay recipe a go. Needless to say, my opinion of this dish has changed immensely! And something I did not know - shepherd's pie is made with lamb, and the same dish with beef is cottage pie. Interesting!

I adapted this recipe a little, to make it less meaty and to add some vegetables. The original is fabulous, but a one-dish meal that has vegetables other than potatoes is important for feeding my kids.

This recipe is also a great way to use leftover roast beef, diced into 1/2" cubes, instead of ground beef. Substitute about 2 cups of cooked roast beef for the ground beef. In addition, if you have leftover gravy, warm it up (with some water to thin it if necessary) and substitute for some of the chicken stock. This substitution may change the stovetop cooking time, so watch your pan accordingly.

Guinness Cottage Pie
(adapted from Gordon Ramsay's Great British Pub Food)

Olive oil
1 lb ground beef
salt and pepper
1/2 lb mushrooms, sliced
1 medium onion, diced
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 tsp dried thyme
2 plum tomatoes, chopped
2 tbsp tomato paste
1 bottle (341mL) Guinness
5 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1 1/4 cup chicken stock
1 cup frozen corn kernels
1 cup frozen peas
2 lbs potatoes, peeled and cut into 1" cubes
3 tbsp butter
1/4 cup finely grated cheddar
1 egg yolk
2 tbsp parmesan cheese

In a large saute pan, heat 1 tbsp olive oil over medium heat. Add ground beef, season with salt and pepper, and cook until nicely browned. Remove from pan and drain excess fat. Set aside.

Add another tablespoon of oil to the pan and add sliced mushrooms. Shake pan so they are evenly distributed, reduce heat to medium and allow to cook 4-5 minutes without touching, until they are a nice golden brown underneath. Stir and continue to cook until mushrooms are nicely caramelized. Remove from pan & set aside.

Heat another tablespoon of oil, and cook onion until soft and beginning to brown. Add garlic and thyme, cook for another 30 seconds while stirring constantly to prevent burning. Add tomatoes, tomato paste & cooked ground beef, cook for 4-5 minutes, stirring constantly. Add Guinness and worcestershire sauce, simmer until liquid has reduced by half. Stir in chicken stock and let simmer until thick and glossy, about 25 minutes. Stir in corn, peas and reserved mushrooms. Remove from heat.

Cook potatoes in a pot of salted water until tender. Drain, return to pot and mash roughly with butter & cheddar cheese.

Spoon beef mixture into a 3-quart casserole dish. Top evenly with mashed potatoes, roughing up the top with a fork. Sprinkle parmesan cheese over top, and bake until golden brown and bubbly, about 30 minutes.

Serves 4-6

Maple Beer Ham with Sweet Hot Mustard

I realize that a lot of the recipes I post are not always the simplest meals, or the quickest to prepare. This one takes a long time to make, but most of that time is in a slow cooker! It's a great one to prep in the morning, or even the night before. The ham is absolutely delicious... it practically falls apart when it's done, and the maple & beer add a really amazing flavour to it. We make the biggest possible ham that will fit in our slow cooker, and use the leftovers to make ham sandwiches, or fry up some bigger chunks for a ham & egg breakfast. The sweet hot mustard is an adaptation of a recipe my grandmother passed on to me - mine's a bit spicier than hers is, though! It doesn't taste like much immediately, but develops a great flavour after a couple of hours.

Maple Beer Ham with Sweet Hot Mustard

Ham:
One bone-in ham, 3-7lbs
1 large onion, sliced
1/2 cup maple syrup
1 tsp dry mustard
1 1/2 cups beer (nothing too pale or too dark, a nice medium brown beer is best)

Lay the sliced onions in the bottom of your slow cooker. Place the ham on top, season with salt & pepper.

In a bowl, whisk together maple syrup & mustard. Stir in beer, and pour over ham. Cook on low for 6-8 hours.


Sweet Hot Mustard:
1/2 cup flour
5 tbsp dry mustard
2/3 cup sugar
2 tsp salt
1/3 cup vinegar
2 tbsp water

Combine flour, mustard, sugar and salt in a bowl. Add vinegar and water, stirring into a smooth paste. Pour into a jar and refrigerate for a few hours or overnight before using.

Peanut Butter Caramel Squares

Peanut butter cups are one of my all-time favourite candies, and a close second are those delicious, chewy Kraft caramel squares. This recipe combines the best of both worlds - a sweet and peanut-buttery base, a smooth, soft caramel middle and a bit of chocolate on top. They're also sinfully addictive... I've been eating them by the fistful for days. Usually 'out of sight, out of mind' works for me, but even hiding them hasn't helped the rate at which they're being devoured!

I suggest keeping these refrigerated, as the caramel is quite soft at room temperature, and such a thick layer will tend to ooze a little. They look a little funky if that happens, but are no less delicious!

Peanut Butter Caramel Squares

Peanut butter layer:
1 1/2 cups icing sugar, sifted
3/4 cup graham cracker crumbs
3/4 cup smooth peanut butter
1/2 cup butter

Caramel layer:
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup butter
1 1/2 cups brown sugar
1 tbsp water

Chocolate layer:
1 cup chocolate chips
1 tbsp butter

In a bowl, mix together icing sugar and graham cracker crumbs. Set aside.

In a small saucepan over medium heat, melt together butter and peanut butter. Pour into dry ingredients, and stir until the mixture comes together and forms a ball. Press into a parchment-lined 9x9 pan and set aside.

To make the caramel layer, combine cream, butter, sugar and water in a large saucepan over medium heat. Stir until mixture is smooth, then allow to boil untouched until it reaches 240F (soft ball stage) on a candy thermometer. Pour over peanut butter layer and let set for 20 minutes at room temperature, then place in the freezer for 10 minutes to firm up.

For the chocolate layer, melt together chocolate and butter in a heatproof bowl over a boiling water bath. Spread over chilled caramel and let cool before cutting into 1" squares.