Oh, Canada - July 2011 (Divas in the Canyon!)

Diva:  Mariah


Drinks:  Colleen

The Maple Leaf

2 oz Bourbon

¾ oz Maple Syrup

¾ oz Lemon Juice

Shake and strain into a cocktail glass filled with crush ice.
(From drinkdogma.com)

Autumn Maple Leaf

Cranberry Juice
Canada Dry Ginger Ale 

Appetizer:  Lovina

Pork Pies with Spicy Tomato Cranberry Preserves

For filling
1 pound lean ground pork (I used Morning Star Vegetarian Crumbles)
1 medium onion, finely chopped (3/4 cup)
1 garlic clove, minced
½ tsp dried savory, crumbled
½ tsp salt
¼ tsp ground allspice
¼ tsp black pepper
3 T all-purpose flour

For pastry
1 ½ c all-purpose flour
1 ½ tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
3 T cold vegetable shortening
2 T cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
½ c whole milk

Special equipment: a 3-inch round cookie cutter; a 1 1/4- to 1 1/2-inch leaf-shaped cookie cutter (preferably maple*); 2 mini-muffin pans, each with 12 (1/8-cup) muffin cups

Make filling:

Cook pork with onion, garlic, savory, salt, allspice, and pepper in a 12-inch nonstick skillet over moderate heat, stirring frequently and breaking up lumps with a fork, until pork is no longer pink, 5 to 7 minutes. Sprinkle with flour and cook, stirring, until thickened, 3 to 4 minutes. Cool filling completely.

Make pastry while filling cools:

Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 425°F.

Whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt in a bowl. Blend in shortening and butter with a pastry blender or your fingertips until mixture resembles coarse meal. Add milk and stir with a fork just until a dough forms. Turn out dough onto a lightly floured surface and gently knead 10 to 12 times. Roll out dough on lightly floured surface with a floured rolling pin into a rough 18-inch round (1/8 inch thick), dusting with just enough additional flour to keep dough from sticking. Cut out 24 rounds with 3-inch cutter and 24 leaves with leaf-shaped cutter. Make decorative lines on leaves with tip of a sharp paring knife.

Fit each round into a muffin cup and fill with a rounded tablespoon of filling. Arrange leaves on filling.

Bake pies until crusts are golden, 15 to 17 minutes. Lift pies out of muffin cups and transfer to a rack. Cool to warm, about 15 minutes.

(From Gourmet, December 2003)

Spicy Cranberry Tomato Chutney

1 small red onion, chopped (1/2 cup)

1 (14- to 16-oz) can whole tomatoes in juice, including juice

1 c fresh or frozen cranberries, coarsely chopped in a food processor

⅔ c sugar

⅓ c cider vinegar

2 (4- by 1-inch) strips fresh orange zest

1 (4- by 1-inch) strip fresh lemon zest

¼ tsp dried hot red pepper flakes, or to taste

⅛ tsp salt

Bring all ingredients to a boil in a 2-quart heavy nonreactive saucepan over moderate heat, stirring and breaking up tomatoes. Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, stirring frequently, until thick, 20 to 25 minutes. Cool preserves, then chill, covered, at least 8 hours (for flavors to develop). 

(From Gourmet, December 2003)

Salad:  Tamara

Canadian Salad 

1 package baby spinach leaves (very fresh)
1 red onion
1 Jicama, cut into match sticks (let sit in Ice Water awhile, to crisp)
1 sweet red pepper (chopped)
¾ c carrots, cut into matchsticks
1 c toasted Pecans, whole or chopped

Maple Salad Dressing

¾ c pure maple syrup
1 tsp salt
½ c rice vinegar
1 c canola oil (or other mild flavored vegetable oil)
1 ½ tsp ground mustard

Place mixture of all vegetables on a bed of spinach and drizzle with dressing.  Top with pecans.

(Adapted from recipejoint.com)

Soup:  Stacey

Canadian Cheese Soup

1 lg potato, finely chopped 

1 lg onion, finely chopped 

¼ c carrots, thinly sliced 

¼ c finely chopped celery 

1 c water 

2 c chicken consommé‚ or  2 c  chicken broth 

1 c grated sharp Cheddar cheese 

½ c half and half 

2 T chopped parsley 

  

In a deep, 3-quart, heat-resistant, non-metallic casserole place 1 cup water, potatoes, onion, carrots and celery. Heat, covered, in Microwave Oven 8 minutes or until vegetables are    tender.    

Add remaining ingredients, except parsley, and heat, covered, 5 minutes or until soup bubbles and cheese has melted. Stir occasionally.  Serve garnished with chopped parsley.   

(From recipesource.com)

Side Dish:  Erin

Maple and Tangerine Glazed Carrots

1 ¼ c fresh tangerine juice

3 T pure maple syrup

2 T (1/4 stick) butter

1 tsp  fresh lemon juice

½ tsp grated tangerine peel

2 ½ pounds large carrots (about 12), peeled, cut on diagonal into ½ inch-thick ovals (about 6 cups)

Pinch of cayenne pepper

½ large tangerine, seeded

Chopped fresh parsley
 


Combine first 5 ingredients in heavy large skillet over medium-high heat.  Boil until sauce thickens and coats spoon thickly and is reduced to 2/3 c. , whisking occasionally, about 8 minutes.
 
Steam carrots until crisp-tender, about 7 minutes.  Mix carrots and cayenne pepper into sauce. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover and chill.)
 
Simmer carrots in sauce over medium heat until heated through and sauce reduces to thick glaze, stirring occasionally, about 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Transfer to bowl, squeeze juice from tangerine half over.  Sprinkle with chopped parsley.

Entree:  Sara

Baba’s Perogies and Fried Cream Dip

Dough

9 ½ - 10 c flour

1 tsp salt

1 tsp baking powder

2 c hot water

2 c cold water

1 c melted butter or margarine

Combine and knead dough well.  Roll out and cut out circles.  Place filling in center and fold over.  Crimp the edges well.

Cheese filling

Dry cottage cheese (1 pkg)

1 egg

salt/pepper

Potato filling

Boil potatoes and mash well.  Add grated cheddar and sautéed oinions.

Sauerkraut Filling

Cover 1 can sauerkraut, drained, with water and boil for half an hour.  Strain and squeeze out the water.  Sautee one onion in 3 T oil and 3 T butter.  Add to sauerkraut and salt and pepper to taste.

Fried Cream

½ onion chopped

lots of dill (~¼ c)

1 T butter

1 ½ - 2 c whipping cream

salt

Sauté onion and dill in butter.  Add whipping cream a little bit at a time.  Sal to taste and turn on low until thickens.

Dessert:  Ashley

Nanaimo Bars

2 eggs

1 c melted butter

⅔ c cocoa

½ c sugar

3 c graham cracker crumbs

2 c shredded coconut

1 c finely chopped walnuts

24 oz white chocolate chips

12 oz semi-sweet chocolate

2 T butter

Preheat oven to 350. Line a 13x9 pan with parchment paper and grease.

Whisk eggs, butter, cocoa, and sugar.  Add in graham cracker crumbs, then coconut and walnuts.  Press mixture into the pan.  Bake 10 minutes and cool on a rack.

Melt the white chocolate chips and spred it over the cookie layer.  Let set for 45 minutes.

Melt semi-sweet chocolate ships and butter together and spred over top.  Let layers set up but not harden.  Score the top, put in the fridge and allow to fully set.

(Adapted from the Swilly’s recipe in Pullman, WA)

Lottery:  Aven

Stuffing the truck full of the essential
ingredients for a fun-filled, divalicious weekend!

Setting up camp in Mariah's yard.

Veggie Nachos for dinner on the deck.  Yum!

Pop-rock fun!

Hooray!  We get to celebrate Colleen's birthday with her!

 Aven made Chocolate Pudding Cake for the celebration.  She doubled the recipe, added a teaspoon of cinnamon, used almond milk and left out the chocolate chips.  It was divine!

Saturday morning Breakfast, Diva style, included Mariah's quiche, Lovina's Mojito fruit salad and coffee!

Oh Canada Quiche

Plain Pastry Double Crust

2 c sifted all-purpose flour

1 tsp salt

⅔ c butter

7 T cold water

Sift Flour and salt, cut butter into pea sized pieces and add to flour mixture, sprinkle water one tablespoon at a time are you mix the dough.  Form into a ball, the roll out flat on a floured surface.

(From Better Homes and Gardens Cookbook)

Beat 8 eggs per quiche, mix in about ½ c milk then add your favorite fixin'.  For Oh Canada we added Sharp Cheddar Cheese, Red Peppers and Broccoli for the vegetarian and Canadian Bacon, Red Pepper  and Sharp Cheddar for the meat lovers.

Bake the Quiche at 350 for about 25 minutes.

Making perogies in bikinis

Life on river time!

Pre-dessert walk to the river.

Nothing like good friends, good food and a good fire!

Sunday morning breakfast included Aven's awesome scramble, Colleen's banana bread, Stacey's killer biscuits and homemade jams by Ashley.  Oh, and LOTS of coffee!  (We had quite the mess to clean up before heading home.)

Sunday Morning Breakfast - Divas do it right!

Cinnamon - October 2010

Diva: Aven

Drinks:  Erin
Glogg

2 bottles red wine
2 oz dried orange zest
2 oz cinnamon sticks
20 whole cardamom seeds
25 whole cloves
1 pound blanched almonds
1 pound raisins
1 pound sugar cubes
5 fluid ounces brandy

Pour wine into a large pot.  Bring to a boil over medium high heat.  Wrap orange zest, cinnamon sticks, cardamom and cloves in cheesecloth, tie with kitchen string and put into pot.  Let boil for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Stir in almonds and raisins and continue to boil for 15 more minutes.  Remove from heat. 

Place a wire grill over the pot and cover with sugar cubes.  Slowly pour on brandy, making sure to completely saturate the sugar.  Light sugar with a match and let it flame.   When sugar has melted, cover pot with lid to extinguish flame.

Stir and remove spice bag.  Serve hot in cups with a few almonds and raisins.

Erin’s Note: Don’t add as many raisins/nuts, definitely take the spice bag out prior to flaming the brandied sugar, and don’t add as much sugar as it calls for

(From allrecipes.com)

Appetizer:  Mariah
Crostini with Roasted Garlic, Goat Cheese and Apple Chutney

1 c (packed) golden brown sugar
¾ c rice vinegar
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 ½ tsp minced peeled fresh ginger
⅛ tsp cayenne pepper
1 cinnamon stick
1 ½ pounds Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored, cut into -inch pieces (about 4 cups)
1 c golden raisins
1 French-bread baguette, cut into 1/3-inch-thick slices
Olive oil
Roasted Garlic
12 ounces soft fresh goat cheese room temperature

Stir sugar and vinegar in heavy large saucepan over medium heat until sugar dissolves. Add next 4 ingredients and simmer until mixture is syrupy and reduced to 1/2 cup, about 8 minutes. Mix in apples and raisins. Increase heat to high and boil until apples are tender, stirring frequently, about 10 minutes. Cool to room temperature. (Chutney can be made 3 days ahead; cover and refrigerate.)

Preheat oven to 450°F. Arrange baguette slices on baking sheet and brush with olive oil. Bake until golden and crisp, about 8 minutes. Spread each toast with roasted garlic; top with goat cheese and chutney.

(Adapted from Bon Appétit October 1999)


Salad:  Aven
Fall Salad with Cinnamon Vinaigrette

Mixed Greens (lettuce, mizuna, arugula)
1 Pear, sliced thin
1 Fennel Bulb, sliced very thin

¼  pound dry Gouda, grated 


Toss greens, top with pears, fennel, cheese, and dressing



Cinnamon Vinaigrette



¼ c white balsamic vinegar

¼ c olive oil

1 T lemon juice
2 T agave syrup
½ tsp cinnamon, cumin, coriander, cardamom
¼ tsp cayenne

Side Dish:  Colleen
Corn on the Cob with Cinnamon Honey Butter



Place corn in pot with cold water.  Bring water to a boilover medium-high heat.  When water boils, corn is done.

Cinnamon Honey Butter



1.5 sticks of butter, softened
¼ c honey

1 tsp cinnamon



Whip butter, honey and cinnamon until smooth.



This butter recipe yields a large batch - enough for many ears of corn and leftovers for toast or rolls or anything else you'd like to eat buttery and sweet!

Entrée:  Sara
Cider Brined Pork Loin with Dijon-Brown Sugar Glaze served with Apple Compote

1 center cut half boneless pork loin (4.5-5.5 lbs)
4 c apple cider
1 c apple cider vinegar
1 c light brown sugar
3 T orange juice concentrate
1 T honey
2 tsp cinnamon

Whisk together the ingredients in a heated sauce pan, then allow the marinade to cool.
Take a gallon slide lock freezer bag and stick your pork loin inside it. Make sure you can zip it shut before you pour in any liquid. If necessary, cut the pork loin into two parts so that it fits in your freezer bag (or use two). Pour in the liquid, squeeze out the air and zip the bag shut. Refrigerate 2-3 hours.

Take the pork out of the refrigerator, pour out the marinade, pat the pork dry and let sit for 30 minutes.  At this time preheat the oven to 350.

Place the pork loin on a rack fat side up. Cook 25 minutes per pound and check with a meat thermometer.

At 1 hour 45 minutes to 2 hours, glaze the top of the loin (see below).  When internal temperature reaches 155 degrees, pull it out, cover it with foil and let it rest for 10-15 minutes.

Glaze

1 ½ c light brown sugar, packed
2 T flour
2 tsp Dijon mustard
3 T cider vinegar

Heat the ingredients in a sauce pan and allow to cool (5 mins).

(From baorao.blogspot.com)

Lentil Loaf
3 ½ c water or vegetable broth
2 onions, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
3 T olive oil
2 c pre-cooked rice
½ tsp salt
¼ c ketchup or barbecue sauce
½ tsp sage
½ tsp Italian seasoning

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.

In a large soup or stockpot, simmer the lentils in water or vegetable broth until cooked, about 30 minutes. Drain thoroughly then mash the lentils until they are half mashed.
Sautee the onions and garlic in olive oil for 3 to 5 minutes, or until soft.
Combine the onions, garlic and olive oil with the mashed lentils and add the rice, salt, ketchup or barbecue sauce, sage, and Italian seasoning.
Gently press the mixture into a lightly greased loaf pan.  Drizzle a bit of extra ketchup on top if desired.

Bake for 1 hour.  Allow to cool slightly before serving, as this will help the lentil loaf to firm up.

(From about.com)

Apple Compote

2 c water
⅓ c sugar
½ vanilla bean, split in half
1 T Calvados or brandy
½ tsp ground cinnamon
⅛ tsp ground cloves
⅛ tsp ground nutmeg
Pinch salt
8 large Golden Delicious apples, peeled, cored, and cubed

In a large saucepan, combine the water, sugar, vanilla bean and seeds, Calvados, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, and salt and bring to a boil. Boil gently until the sugar is dissolved and the mixture thickens slightly, about 5 minutes. Add the apples and return to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the apples are very tender and the mixture thickens, about 20 minutes.

Remove from the heat and remove the vanilla bean pods. Let cool to room temperature before serving.  (The mixture will thicken as it cools.)

(From foodnetwork.com)

Dessert:  Tamara
Baked Pears with Cinnamon Soy Ice Cream and Cinnamon Sugar Tortilla Points

Pears

6 pears, peeled, halved and cored
melted butter
1 T cinnamon
¼ c brown sugar

Melt butter in small saucepan over medium heat and stir in cinnamon and sugar.  Baste both sides of pears with butter mixture.  Bake in baking dish, 350 degrees until desired tenderness.

Cinnamon Soy Ice Cream

2 c vanilla soy creamer (or any non-dairy milk)
2 c vanilla soy milk (or any non-dairy milk)
¾ c sugar
2 T arrowroot
2 T cinnamon


Mix 1/4 cup of soy milk with the 2 tablespoons of arrowroot and set aside.
Mix the soy creamer, soy milk, and sugar together in a saucepan. When the mixture has just started to boil, take off the heat and stir in the arrowroot slurry. This should immediately cause the liquid to thicken (not a lot, but a noticeable amount; it will be thicker when it cools).  Mix in cinnamon.

Set the ice cream mixture aside to cool. Freeze according to your ice cream maker's instructions.

(Adapted from veganicecream.blogspot.com)

Cinnamon Tortilla Points

2 whole wheat flour tortillas
cinnamon
sugar
spray oil

Lightly spray tortillas with oil on both sides.  Sprinkle with cinnamon sugar mixture.  Bake in oven at 350 until desired crispiness.

Serve pears with ice cream on top and a tortilla point.

Lottery:  Ashley

Norwegian - April 2009

Diva: Lovina

Drinks: Tamara
Fjellbekk (Norwegian for “moutain stream”)

¾ oz Vodka
¾ oz Aquavit
¾ oz lime juice
Sprite soda

Build over ice in a tall glass.

Berry soda

Wild berry nectar
Sprite Soda

Build over ice in a tall glass.

How to Skoal:






Reviewing the notes...

The Teetotaler and the Preggo give it a "dry" run

Bonnie, Lovina and Mariah Skoal with Style...

Appetizer: Colleen
Marinated Cheese (two variations)

11 oz., scant (300g) Edam Cheese - (I couldn't find Edam so I used Gouda)
1 red paprika, cut in strips (again - no Paprika pepper, so I used Hungarian Wax pepper in one and red bell pepper in the other)
1 ¼ c (3 dl) olive oil
7/8 c (2 dl) white vinegar
1 T red pepper, finely chopped (no cayenne pepper so I used red jalapeno with the hungarian pepper and serano chile with the red bell pepper mix)
1 T oregano
1 T thyme
1 T green peppercorns (couldn't find straight green peppercorns so used a mix of red, green, white, and black)
2 garlic cloves

Dice Cheese the size of Sugar cubes.
Prick with a fork to allow the marinade to be absorbed.
Mix all ingredients for marinade in a heavy-bottomed casserole and bring to a boil.
Cool.
Layer Cheese and paprika in a jar and pour marinade over all.
Cover and chill.
Keeps 2-3 weeks in refrigerator.

Flat Bread

½ c (1-¼ dl) lard, melted (I used vegetable shortening)
¼ c (½ dl) Sugar
½ c (1-¼ dl) oatmeal flour
1 c (2-½ dl) graham flour (substitute for graham flour is 2/3 c unbleached flour, 1/3 c wheat bran, 1.5 tsp wheat germ)
¾ tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1 ½ c (3-½ dl) buttermilk
unbleached flour as needed

Combine ingredients, adding white flour to make dough workable.
Roll out into rounds with grooved rolling pin and a pastry cloth.
Cut into pieces and bake on cookie sheet in a 350 degrees (175 degrees C) oven for about 8 minutes or until crisp.

I'm not sure why the recipe doesn't have you add a lot of unbleached flour to begin. I ended up adding quite a bit to have it be a "workable" dough - maybe a cup or more? Also takes much more than 8 minutes to become crisp. I made some crispy and some not so crisp for a fun texture comparison.

Let's See those poses again, sistas!

Salad: Erin
Fruit salad

Mix sliced strawberries and blueberries in a bowl. Slice avocado and pineapple.

Dish strawberries and blueberries on salad plate. Place avocado and pineapple on salad plate around strawberries and blueberries. Top strawberries and blueberries with yogurt (I used one or two spoonfuls of Brown Cow Maple Yogurt). Add a mint sprig as garnish.

Soup: Stacey
Norwegian Cauliflower Cheese Soup

1 c Jarlsberg cheese, shredded (found in specialty cheese/deli section)
3 T butter
1 c sliced leeks (middle light green part only, and wash very well)
3 T flour
3 c chicken broth
3 c cauliflower, coarsely chopped
1 c ½ and ½

Saute leeks in butter until tender. Add flour, stirring constantly, until bubbly. Remove from heat and gradually blend in broth. Return to heat and cook, stirring constantly. Add cauliflower, reduce heat, and simmer for 20 minutes or until cauliflower is tender. Stir in cream and cheese. Simmer until heated through and cheese is melted. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Makes about 5 servings.


Side Dish: Bonnie
Burning Love (vegetarian style)

1 onion, sliced in chunks
3 c mushrooms, sliced kinda thick
2-3 apples, peeled & sliced in chunks
4-5 lb potatoes, peeled & chunked
white cheddar, shredded
soft tofu
veg broth paste
bacon salt
cornstarch
cinnamon
salt
pepper
butter
oil
milk

Drain water off tofu then press water out but placing it on a plate, between kitchen towels and weighted down with several plates. After about 20 min. Take tofu and crumble it up and add a lot of bacon salt then repeat the pressing process for at lease 30 min. When done fry in oil, remove and let drain on a paper towel.

Boil potatoes, when done make mashed potatoes and season to taste.

Sautee onion in oil until it starts to soften, add mushrooms. Cook until done then add veg broth, cornstarch, salt and pepper, cook for few minuets.

Sautee apples in oil with cinnamon until soft but not smushy.

Put potatoes in greased casserole dish then top with cheese. Add apples to mushroom-onion mixture then pour over potatoes. Bake in oven until heated through, maybe 400 for 25 min. Take out and top with tofu-bacon.

Entree: Sara
Curried Cod Cakes

4 T curry powder--you choose the spicy level
1 T Dijon mustard--dry mustard
½ c flour
1 package Panko bread crumbs
2 T paprika
1 ½ tsp salt
1 ½ tsp pepper
2 avocados
3 lbs cod--poached in the oven in water at 350 for 20 minutes
3 lbs potatoes--boiled and mashed
3 T fresh mint, shredded
1 ½ c sour cream
½ c tomato diced

Make curry flour by combining the first six ingredients together.
Halve, pit and peel the avocados. Cut the halves lengthwise into thin wedges.
Combine the mint, sour cream and tomatoes. Set aside.
Gently mix fish and mashed potatoes together (you ca add onion, garlic and spices if you want)
Separate cod mixture into even balls and flatten into cakes--this recipe should make about 12 cakes 1 x 3 inch.
Dip, Dredge, or Sprinkle on curried bread crumbs
Bake at 400 for 15 minutes and flip if needed, cook for another 15 minutes.
Top each fillet with a few slices of avocado, and a spoonful of mint sour cream sauce.

Curried Potato Cakes

1 tsp canola oil
½ tsp mustard seeds
½ tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp kosher salt
4 ½ c peeled shredded baking potato (about 2 pounds)
2 T chopped fresh parsley
2 T canola oil
¼ tsp ground turmeric
¼ tsp freshly ground black pepper
Dash of ground red pepper
Cooking spray

Preheat oven to 400°.

Heat 1 teaspoon oil in a small skillet over medium heat. Add mustard and cumin seeds to pan; cook 2 minutes or until mustard seeds pop, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Place spice mixture and salt in a mortar; crush seeds with pestle. Set aside.

Gently squeeze potato to remove excess moisture. Combine potato, spice mixture, parsley, 2 tablespoons oil, turmeric, and peppers in a large bowl. Divide mixture evenly into 10 (1/3 cup) portions; place on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray. Flatten to 1/2-inch thickness. Spray with a bit of oil, and dip in or sprinkle on curried breadcrumbs. Bake at 400° for 15 minutes or until golden. Turn over; bake an additional 15 minutes. Serve with sour cream.

Lemon Garlic Sour Cream

1 tsp lemon zest
1 clove garlic minced
1 c sour cream

Love Dip

1 package cream cheese or Neufechel
10 Cloves garlic Minced
3 T tomato paste
2 T fresh cilantro minced
Salt and pepper and cumin to taste (about ½ to 1 tsp of each)

Dessert: Mariah
Old Fashioned Pound Cake & Raspberry Trifle

Pound Cake

4 ½ c flour
1 ½ tsp salt
½ tsp cinnamon
2 c butter
2 ¼ c sugar
1 ½ tsp vanilla (or brandy extract)
9 eggs, slightly beaten

Whipped Cream Layer

1 ½ c whipping cream
¼ c sugar

Cream Cheese Layer

2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
2 tsp lemon juice
1 lemon, zest of, chopped
½ c sugar
1 ½ tsp vanilla extract (or lemon)

Berry Layer

4-8 c fresh raspberries
¾ c sugar
1 c water (optional)

Sprinkle
4 teaspoons baking cocoa
fresh berries


Line bottoms & sides of three 8x4 loaf pans with parchment paper--do NOT grease; preheat oven to 325; place oven rack in lower position.

In a large bowl, mix pound cake dry ingredients; set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, beat butter and sugar until creamy & fluffy, scraping bowl several times; add flavorings, then eggs three at a time--continue beating (a curdled appearance will be "beaten" out with thorough mixing).

Now begin adding the flour in about half-cup portions, mixing well after each.

Turn batter into prepped pans, quickly pushing it higher around edges than in center
(this will keep the top level).

Bake for 20 minutes, then increase oven temp to 350, bake 40 minutes longer (crack on top will be slightly browned--showing no moistness).
Cool for 5 minutes on cooling rack, then remove from pans to finish cooling--DO NOT REMOVE PAPER!

When cooled, wrap waxed paper around two of the loaves, and then plastic wrap & freeze. Slice the remaining loaf into 12-15 slices, then cubes; set aside.

WHIPPED CREAM LAYER: In a mixing bowl, beat cream with sugar until stiff peaks form; set aside.

CREAM CHEESE LAYER: In another bowl, beat cream cheese, lemon juice, vanilla and sugar. Add about 2 cups of the whipped cream and the lemon zest--fold in; set aside.

BERRY LAYER: Set aside one cup of berries for garnish. Sprinkle remaining berries with sugar, then lightly mash/crush them. Let them sit for about 30 minutes to get juicy---if you're short of time, add the water and this makes a nice juice too.

ASSEMBLE THE TRIFLE: Sprinkle a layer of pound cake cubes in the bottom of a 3-quart glass serving bowl.

Drizzle 3-4 tablespoons of berry juice over the cubes.
Spread one fourth of cream cheese mixture over the cake cubes.
Sprinkle one teaspoon of cocoa over this, then some crushed berries.
REPEAT this twice. Add about half of the reserved berries to the last layer.

Top with remaining cream cheese, whipped cream and sifted cocoa; remaining berries added as a garnish before serving.

Cover & refrigerate for about 3 hours, this is ready-to-eat now (taste really does improve!).

Wild Card: Aven
Vikings

1 pound lean ground beef
½ pound ground pork
2 eggs
½ c oatmeal
1 medium onion minced
½ c canned evaporated milk
1 ½ tsp salt
¼ tsp pepper
¼ tsp allspice
¼ tsp ginger
1 T butter
krusteaz pancake mix (I substituted gluten free baking mix)

Saute onion in butter until transparent and soft.

Mix oatmeal, eggs, and canned milk until combined. Mix the beef and pork together then add the oatmeal mixture, onions and spices. Beat with a mixer until fluffy.

Using 1/3 to 1/2 cup of meat mixture (depending on how big you want your Vikings) form a ball. Place meatballs on a baking sheet or pan. Cook in a 400 degree oven for about 15 minutes until done. Remove from oven and allow to cool.

When the meatballs are cool enough to handle, stick a wooden "popsicle" stick in each one (you can usually buy these at any craft store).

Mix the Krusteaz pancake batter with water, make it thicker than usual so that it will coat and stick to the meatballs.

Hold the meatball by the wooden stick and dip it into the batter, then drop it into a deep fat fryer with oil heated to 375. Roll it around so all the sides cook evenly. Cook until golden brown. Remove from oil and drain on a plate covered with paper towels. Serve with ketchup, mustard or what ever you want!

****For the vegan version, I substituted soy creamer for the milk and tempeh for the meat. I omitted the eggs altogether.

Lottery: Ashley (absent)

The wee male imposter!

Spice Hunter - March 2009

Diva: Ashley

Drinks: Mariah
Pink Basil Rising

¼ blood orange section
½ pint loosely packed basil leaves
2oz distilled water
½ oz. squeezed lime juice
½ oz simple syrup

Muddle blood orange and basil leaves add water, lime, simple syrup – shake for several seconds. Stain into chilled cocktail glass and garnish with basil sprig.
Add white wine or tequila for a little zip.

Experiment with different herbs and spices like:
Cilantro, sage or rosemary

Appetizer: Lovina
Red Lentil Rice Cakes

5 c water, divided
1 c dried small red lentils
½ c uncooked basmati rice
2 T olive oil, divided
½ c finely chopped zucchini
½ c finely chopped red onion
½ tsp fennel seeds, crushed
2 garlic cloves, minced
¾ c (3 ounces) shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese
¼ c dry breadcrumbs
1 T chopped fresh basil
1 tsp salt
¼ tsp freshly ground black pepper
3 tsp garam masala
2 large egg whites, lightly beaten

Bring 4 cups water and lentils to a boil in a medium saucepan. Reduce heat, and simmer for 20 minutes or until tender. Drain and rinse with cold water; drain. Place lentils in a large bowl.
Combine remaining 1 cup water and rice in pan; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 18 minutes or until liquid is absorbed. Cool 10 minutes. Add rice to lentils.

Heat 1 teaspoon oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add bell pepper, onion, fennel seeds, and garlic to pan; saute 2 minutes or until tender. Cool 10 minutes. Add to rice mixture. Add mozzarella cheese and remaining ingredients, stirring until well combined. Let stand for 10 minutes.

Wipe skillet clean with paper towels. Heat 2 teaspoons olive oil in skillet over medium heat. Spoon half of rice mixture by 1/3-cupfuls into pan, spreading to form 6 (3-inch) circles; cook 5 minutes or until lightly browned. Carefully turn cakes over; cook 5 minutes on other side. Remove cakes from pan. Repeat procedure with remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil and remaining rice mixture. Serve with salsa.

(Cooking Light)

Apricot Mango Chutney

Dried Turkish apricots
Dried mangoes
brown sugar
chili pepper
cardamom
nutmeg
cinnamon
orange marmalade
papay-orange juice
water

Salad: Bonnie
Chickpea Salad

¼ c fresh lemon juice
¼ c olive oil
1 tsp ground cumin
½ tsp cayenne pepper
2 tsp kosher salt
½ tsp freshly ground black pepper
2 (16-ounce) cans chickpeas, rinsed and drained
2 serrano peppers, grilled, peeled, seeded and thinly sliced lengthwise
1 large yellow bell pepper, grilled, peeled, seeded, and finely diced
¼ c finely chopped flat-leaf parsley
¼ c finely chopped chives

Whisk together the lemon juice, oil, cumin, cayenne, salt and pepper in a large bowl. Add the remaining ingredients and stir well to combine. Transfer the salad to a large serving platter, cover and let sit at room temperature for at least 30 minutes and up to 2 hours before serving.

Red Pepper-Tahini Vinaigrette:

Pinch saffron

¼ c hot water
¼ c sherry vinegar
2 red bell peppers, grilled, peeled, seeded and chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
2 T tahini
2 tsp honey
¼ tsp kosher salt
¼ tsp freshly ground black pepper
½ c olive oil

Steep saffron in a hot water for 5 minutes to bloom.

Transfer saffron mixture to a blender and add the sherry, red pepper, garlic, tahini, honey, salt and pepper and blend until smooth. With the motor running, slowly drizzle in the oil and blend until emulsified. The vinaigrette can be made up to 4 hours in advance, covered and kept refrigerated. Bring to room temperature before serving.

(Bobby Flay, foodnetwork.com)

Soup: Tina (sub for Colleen)
Scandinavian Sweet Soup

5 c water
½ c dried apples, finely chopped
½ c raisins or currents
½ c dried apricots, finely chopped
½ c pitted prunes, finely chopped
1 heaping T pearl tapioca
1 cinnamon stick
1 star anise (optional)
1 c fruit juice (apple or cranberry or lingonberry, if you can get it)

Bring water to a steady boil. Stir in dried fruit, pearl tapioca, cinnamon stick, and star anise, reduce heat to medium, and maintain at a low simmer for 25 minutes. Stir in fruit juice and heat for a final 5 minutes. Remove cinnamon and star anise.

Sweet soup can be served either warm or cold, as a dessert or snack or breakfast selection.

(About.com)

Entree: Stacey
Seared Pork Chops with Cherry Reduction Sauce

4 porkchops-thick center-cut chops
salt, pepper, herbs d' Provence spice mixture
2 T olive oil

Sauce ingredients:
3 T butter
2 T flour
½ c red wine
1 c beef stock
½ c cherry preserves
salt and pepper

Season one side of pork chops with salt, pepper, sprinkle of Herbs d' Provence. Heat skillet to very hot, add olive oil, and sear chops (seasoned side down) for 4 mins. on each side. DO NOT move the chops around once you set them down, except to turn over after 4 mins. Season on other side. Transfer chops to a cookie sheet and bake at 350 degrees for 20 mins. to finish them off.

Sauce: Melt 3 T. butter in pork chop skillet over medium high heat. Whisk in flour, then red wine, then beef stock, then cherry preserves, whisking well after adding each ingredient. Sauce should start to thicken. Season with salt and pepper to taste. You may need to add more flour or beef stock--keep tasting. Drizzle over pork chops and serve with mashed potatoes or stuffing. Enjoy!!

Side Dish: Erin
Cauliflower, Potato and Pea Curry


¼ c cooking oil

1 T ground coriander
1
½ tsp ground cumin

½ tsp turmeric

¼ tsp dried red-pepper flakes

1 medium head cauliflower (about 1 pound), cut into large florets (about 4 cups)

1 ½ pounds boiling potatoes (about 4), peeled and cut into 1 1/2 inch pieces

1 c canned crushed tomatoes in thick puree

½ c chopped cilantro

½ cup water

1 tsp salt

1 c frozen petite peas

In a large deep frying pan, heat the oil over moderate heat. Add the coriander, cumin, turmeric, and red-pepper flakes and stir. Add the cauliflower and potatoes and cook, stirring frequently, until the vegetables start to soften, about 5 minutes.

Add the tomatoes, ¼ cup of the cilantro, the water, and the salt. Bring to a simmer, reduce the heat to low, and cook, covered, until the vegetables are tender, about 15 minutes. Stir in the peas and the remaining ¼ cup cilantro and cook, covered, until the peas are tender, about 2 minutes longer.


Variation: If you like, you can add three tablespoons dried unsweetened coconut to the curry. Put it in at the same time as the peas.

Dessert: Sara
Tropical Fruit Tartlets

Crust:
1/3 c Coconut Cream (full fat) at room temperature--put a can in the fridge for an hour. When opening be careful not to jostle or shake. Spoon out the top portion leaving the liquid.
1/3 c Dark Brown Packed Sugar
1 ¼ c Rice Flour

Whisk or blend the coconut cream until smooth, add sugar and stir until blended. Stir in the rice flour to make a thick, firm, dough that can be rolled in to a ball. Divide dough into 5 or 6 pieces and press with finger into tart pans. Bake at 400-425 degrees Fahrenheit for 18-20 minutes. Cool completely, remove from pans.

Vanilla Cream:
1/3 c rice flour
1 c Rice Milk
2 T Raw Cane Sugar
½ Vanilla Bean*

Combine rice flour and rice milk in a saucepan. Place over medium to low heat and stir consistently until thickened. add sugar and stir until melted and cream is quite thick. Remove from heat. Split vanilla bean in pod in half and remove the seeds with a knife and add to cream mixture.

*Due to the lack of vanilla beans and the high price as well, I used a Tablespoon of Vanilla Extract as a replacement.

Fruit Topping:
3-4 Kiwi Fruits
Tropical Fruits of Choice:
Mango
Pineapple
Starfruit

Spread warm cream on the bottom of the tartlet crusts. Before serving, peel and thinly slice kiwi and other fruits, and arrange on top of cream.

(Gluten Free Gourmet)

Wild Card: Tamara
Ginger Themed Care Packages

Chai Spice Packets

Packet contains:
1 stick cinnamon
1 pod cardamom
2 whole cloves
4 peppercorns
¼ tsp ground ginger

To brew Chai:
Add contents of spice package to 2 ½ c water and bring to a low boil.
Turn down the heat and let simmer for 5-10 minutes.
Add 2/3 c of your milk of choice and 4 tsp sugar and bring to a heavy simmer.
Take off heat and add 3 T of loose black tea or 3 tea bags. Steep for at least 3 minutes.
Mix in ¼ tsp vanilla extract. (1 packet for 2 servings)

(The Joy of Vegan Baking)

Sparkled Ginger Cookies

4 T tubinado or demerrara sugar (regular sugar will work but coarse is best)
2 c all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
¼ tsp salt
2½ tsp ground ginger
½ tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp ground cloves
½ c canola oil
¼ c soy milk
1 c sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350. Lightly grease two cookie sheets. Place the turbinado sugar in a small bowl.

Sift together the flour, baking soda, salt and spices. In a separate large mixing bowl, mix together the oil, molasses, soy milk, sugar and vanilla. Pour the dry ingredients into the wet and combine well. Roll into 1-inch balls, flatten into 1½-inch-diameter disk, press the cookie tops into the turbinado sugar and place 1 inch apart, sugar side up on cookie sheet. Bake 10-12 minutes, let cool on cookie sheets for 3-5 minutes and then transfer to a cooling rack.

(Vegan with a Vengeance)

Spiced Banana Chips

2 T vegetable oil
2 T light brown sugar
1 tsp Chinese five-spice powder
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp salt
½ tsp chili powder
2 c dried banana chips
1 c pecan halves

Preheat oven to 325 line baking sheet with parchment paper or coat with cooking spray.

Whisk together oil, brown sugar, five-spice powder, cinnamon, ginger, cumin, salt and chili powder in medium bowl.

Add banana chips and pecans halves and toss to coat with spice mixture.

Spread banana chips in single layer on prepared baking sheet and bake 10-15 minutes, shaking pan to toss mixture at least once during baking. Cool in pan completely before serving. Store up to 1 week in airtight container.

(Vegetarian Times)

Lottery: Aven