Apple Spice Cake

Living at my parents is... challenging. Not only are they pack rats with non-consumables, but their fridge, freezer and deep freeze are all overflowing with food. (I will admit that me moving my refrigerated goods from my old North Vancouver home to this one didn't help). One of my "resolutions" was to help them eat all the food that hadn't expired yet.

A quick peruse of their "fruit" drawer (none of the drawers were really organized but the majority of the items in this drawer appeared to be fruit) identified that there was an abundance of apples. A quick search on the internet resulted in this Martha Stewart recipe:

http://www.marthastewart.com/recipe/apple-spice-cake?autonomy_kw=apple%20cake

Ingredients:
1 1/3 cups vegetable oil
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups sugar
3 large eggs
3 to 4 Granny Smith apples, cored and cut into 1/2-inch pieces (3 cups)
1 cup chopped assorted nuts, such as pecans and walnuts (optional)
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Caramel Sauce
Nonstick cooking spray with flour
Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Spray a 12-cup Bundt pan with cooking spray; set aside.
Working over a large sheet of parchment paper, sift together flour, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt; gather sifted ingredients into center of sheet; set aside.
In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine vegetable oil, sugar, and eggs; mix on high speed until lemon yellow.
Fold reserved parchment in half lengthwise; with mixer on medium speed, gradually shake in dry ingredients until just incorporated.
Add apples and, if desired, nuts, to batter; mix to combine. Add vanilla, mixing until incorporated.
Pour batter into prepared pan, and bake until a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean, 75 to 90 minutes.
Remove from oven, and cool slightly on a wire rack.
Invert cake onto rack; turn cake right-side up to cool completely on rack, and serve drizzled with caramel sauce

Here's the recipe for the caramel sauce:

1 cup light-brown sugar
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
1/4 cup evaporated milk
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Pinch of salt

Combine ingredients in a small saucepan over medium heat. Cook, stirring, until thickened to desired consistency.

My first attempt wasn't so great - mom didn't have her bundt pan readily available (it was in the depths of the crawlspace) so I had to use a 9 inch square pan. This resulted in the mix being more concentrated so it didn't rise so well. also, I used four apples instead of three and finally I didn't use any nuts. It took FOREVER for the cake to finish baking (at 325 degrees in a convection oven). Plus I was trying to juggle a crying baby.

The caramel sauce made loads - more than the "one cake" it said it would cover. I used golden sugar which I assumed was the same as "light-brown" sugar. My review? 6 out of 10.

My second attempt was much better after Mom finally found her bundt pan. Instead of 2 cups of regular sugar, I used one cup Splenda and one cup regular sugar. I still used 4 apples which I think was probably too much and I need to cut up the apples a bit more. I still didn't use any nuts. I used the regular "bake" function on the oven instead of the convection option. the result? MUCH better. after 75 minutes of baking, it was done although in my opinion it was too dry. It looked better but tasted ehhh. I would give it a 5 out of 10.

Easy recipe and both cakes were consumed within a day but will probably try another recipe next time.

The cake is still still in the pan because I didn't trust myself to take it out.

Chocolate oatmeal cookies

My prenatal class instructor gave us a little treat every time we went: cookies! She's an amazing baker and even though I wasn't suppose to, I did take a little nibble on a couple of occasions. Ohmigod, her cookies were delicious. I asked her for the recipe and unfortunately, she conveniently "forgot" to send it. I don't think she wanted to part with the secret.

Since then, I have been DREAMING of the chocolate oatmeal cookies she made. Tomorrow, I am going to attempt to recreate them!

This is the first recipe I'll try:
http://allrecipes.com//Recipe/chewy-chocolate-chip-oatmeal-cookies/Detail.aspx

Chewy Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies
Ingredients

1 cup butter, softened
1 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
3 cups quick-cooking oats
1 cup chopped walnuts
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
Directions

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C).
In a large bowl, cream together the butter, brown sugar, and white sugar until smooth. Beat in eggs one at a time, then stir in vanilla. Combine the flour, baking soda, and salt; stir into the creamed mixture until just blended. Mix in the quick oats, walnuts, and chocolate chips. Drop by heaping spoonfuls onto ungreased baking sheets.
Bake for 12 minutes in the preheated oven. Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

Update January 7, 2011:
Not bad, not bad!!! I omitted the walnuts from the recipe above but overall, 8 out of 10. They're a little chewier than the ones Alexis made (Mom complimented the moistness) and I think if I make these again I'll use 1/2 teaspoon less salt.

World's Easiest Almond Roca

Theresa Volk from work had a kitchen party and one of her friend's brought this homemade almond roca. It was so good that wherever it went, it immediately attracted a throng of people who would suddenly decide to "hang out" around it! Needless to say, a total hit at the party. Here's the recipe that she was able to finagle out of one of her friends:

Worlds Easiest Almond Roca

Ingredients:

1 pound of unsalted butter
1 1/2 cups brown sugar
1 box (454 g) graham crackers (two rows)
2 packages (100 g each) sliced almonds
1 package (270 g) milk chocolate chips
1 package (270 g) semi-sweet chocolate chips

Directions:

1) Melt the butter over medium heat
2) Add the brown sugar. Gently boil for three minutes, stirring occasionally
3) Line two cookie sheets (cookie sheets need to have a lip around the edge as the liquid will spread) with the graham crackers
4) Sprinkle one package of almonds over each sheet
5) Pour butter/sugar mixture on top, spreading gently with a spatula to cover all the crackers
6) Bake for 5-6 minutes at 350 degrees
7) Combine the milk chocolate and semi-sweet chocolate chips together. Sprinkle the chips on top on let it sit for a minute or two until the chocolate starts to melt - then gently spread the chips around with a spatula
9) Refrigerate overnight

Enjoy!!!
PS: it freezes really well too!

Caesar Salad Dressing

I'm on the hunt for a good Caesar salad dressing recipe. So far, memorable dressings have included Mike's homemade dressing (but he never parted with the recipe) and the dressing at Santali's Greek restaurant in New Westminster. Also homemade but the owner won't give the recipe out either.

Tomorrow I'm going to attempt my first homemade caesar salad dressing. I think the secret to making one similar to the one I had at Santali's is anchovy. So, I'm going to try this recipe I found on the food network:
link: http://www.foodnetwork.ca/recipes/Salad/Vegetables/recipe.html?dishid=5594

Ingredients
Roasted Garlic

* 1 head roasted garlic (see below)
* 1 tablespoon vegetable oil (15 mL)

Dressing

* 2 cloves garlic
* 2 anchovy fillet
* 2 tablespoons capers, drained and rinsed (25 mL)
* 1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard (2 mL)
* 1 tablespoon lemon juice(15 mL)
* 1/4 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce (1 mL)
* 1/4 cup (50 mL) vegetable oil
* 2 tablespoons low fat mayonnaise (25 mL)
* 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper (1 mL)
* 1 head romaine lettuce, outer leaves removed
* 1/4 cup freshly grated or shaved parmesan (50 mL)


Directions
Roasted Garlic

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 C).
2. Slice stem end off garlic. Place on a sheet of aluminum foil. Drizzle with the oil. Wrap garlic and place on a baking sheet. Bake for 35-45 minutes or until softened. This can be done ahead up to one day ahead. Let cool.

Dressing

1. In the bowl of a food processor, pulse roasted garlic, raw garlic, anchovy, and capers.
2. Process until finely minced. Add Dijon mustard, lemon juice and Worcestershire sauce. With motor running, slowly drizzle in vegetable oil and finish with mayonnaise to achieve a creamy consistency.
3. Season with black pepper and salt if needed, to taste.
4. In a large bowl, tear lettuce into bite size pieces, Add dressing, croutons, and cheese to the bowl, and toss well.

Wish me luck!

Mint Limeade

As noted in my last post, we had mint limeade at our SYTYCD marathon and I made it again for my dad's 40th BBQ lunch (again, a bit hit!)

Here's the recipe for 2 cups of simple syrup:
Bring 1 1/2 cups of sugar and 1 1/2 cups of water to a boil, stirring until dissolved. Let cool.

Mint Limeade:
Muddle 2 lime wedges and some mint leaves in each glass and add ice. Mix 2 cups simple syrup, 2 cups water, 1 1/2 cups fresh lime juice and 1/2 cup fresh lemon juice in a pitcher; pour into the glasses.

Zesty Lemon Potato Salad

The other night while having a SYTYCD marathon, we did a potluck dinner at Janine's house. I brought grilled vegetables and a crab appetizer and Janine made chili salmon and a zesty mint limeade. I can't tell what was better: the show or the food!

The potato salad was just right for a hot summer's night and the dill and lemon just added that lift that a boring potato salad is always desperately in need of. The mint limeade was a little tart but a perfect non-alcoholic accompaniment to a summer's night dinner.

Here's the recipe for the zesty lemon potato salad (thanks Victoria!)

Ingredients:
600g of fingerling potatoes (sliced),
50g shredded rocket (arugula) leaves

Dressing:
2 tbsp chopped preserved lemon rind,
1 tbsp wholegrain mustard,
1/2 cup whole egg mayonnaise,
2 tbsp lemon juice,
sea salt and cracked pepper.

Place the potatoes in a saucepan of boiling water and cook until tender (usually about 8 minutes). Drain and rinse under running water. toss the potato with the rocket.

To make the dressing, place the preserved lemon rind, mustard, mayonnaise, lemon juice, salt and pepper in a bowl and whisk to combine. to serve pour the dressing over the potatoes and rocket and toss gently. serves 4.

Note: we dropped the arugula from the recipe (thank God) because I find the green a little too bitter for my liking.

Meatball Bonanza!

When Sacha and Kat had their baby Lukas, two years ago, I had the privilege of going to the baby shower at Diana's house. She had these AMAZING meatballs that I just couldn't get enough of. Here's her recipe share:

1 cube vegetable bouillon
1 cup boiling water
1 1/2 cups ketchup
2 tbsp worcestershire
1 tsp dried mustard
1 tsp dried onion flakes
1 1/2 tsp salt
2 tbsp brown sugar
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
2 tbsp brown sugar
1/2 tbsp vegetable oil
1/2 squeezed lemon
1/2 cup honey
4 cloves garlic
1 bag of italian meatballs from M&M meatshop

Mix the bouillon and water together. Then mix all ingredients and boil, then simmer for 10 minutes.

She served it in a slowcooker, which always makes me think that you have to slow cook this recipe, when in fact it's actually super simple and super fast. I have made it twice now (both times, served in a slow cooker for ease of transport) and have always received compliments! Thanks Di.