1 red onions, cut into quarters
2 medium sized sweet potatoes, cut into 1” dice
3 beets, cut into 1” dice
4 carrots, peeled and cut into 1” dice
4 parsnips, peeled and cut into 1” dice
2 cups celery root, cut into 1” dice
½ small rutabaga, cut into 1” dice
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp salt
½ tsp freshly ground black pepper
2 tbsp balsamic reduction (optional)
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 400F.
2. Toss veggies in a large bowl with olive oil, salt and pepper. Divide between two large baking sheets. Bake in top and bottom third of oven, for 45 min., rotating sheets and flipping vegetables halfway through.
3. Drizzle with balsamic reduction before serving.
1 tbsp butter
1 tbsp olive oil
1 onion, thinly sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tbsp fresh thyme
500g (½ lb) cremini mushrooms, thinly sliced
½ tsp salt
¼ tsp freshly ground black pepper
4 cups vegetable stock
2 tbsp lemon juice
¼ cup finely chopped parsley
Plain yogurt or sour cream, to serve (optional)
Directions
1. Heat butter and oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add onion and let cook until starting to soften, about 3-4 min. Add garlic and thyme and continue cooking, 1-2 min.
2. Add mushrooms and sauté until mushrooms turn golden brown, about 8-10 min. Add salt, pepper and vegetable stock. Bring stock to a simmer and let cook, 20 min.
3. Using a hand blender, blend soup until smooth. Add lemon juice, parsley and cream (if using) and re-warm before serving. Serve with buttered, crusty bread.
4 Yukon gold potatoes
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp salt
½ tsp freshly ground black pepper
6 slices bacon, diced
3 green onions, sliced
Sour cream, to serve
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 425F.
2. The key to great hasselback potatoes is thinly slicing each potato into an accordion like shape, without slicing right through to the bottom. Place a potato on a large serving spoon. Slice 1/8-inch to ¼-inch slices along the potato, slicing until you hit the spoon. Alternatively, slice on a cutting board and make sure you stop slicing at least ¼-inch before you hit the bottom of the potato.
3. Place the sliced potatoes on a baking sheet. Brush with half the oil olive, salt and pepper. Place in the oven and bake for 30 minutes. After 30 minutes, brush the remaining oil, salt and pepper over the potatoes and continue baking for an additional 30 minutes, until the potatoes are golden brown and crispy.
4. While the potatoes are cooking, cook bacon in a large frying pan over medium heat until crispy. When ready to serve, sprinkle bacon and green onions over each potato. Serve with sour cream.
1 lb (500 g) elbow macaroni
¼ cup butter
¼ cup flour
1 tsp salt
4 cups whole milk
1 tbsp sriracha
2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1 butternut squash, roasted and flesh mashed
3 cups sharp cheddar cheese
Directions
1. Cook macaroni according to package directions. Rinse under cold water to cool and set aside.
2. In a large pot melt butter over medium heat. Add flour and salt and whisk to combine. Let cook, 1 minute. Add milk, mashed butternut squash, sriracha and Worcestershire sauce. Bring to a boil then reduce heat to simmer. Let mixture simmer until thickened, about 4 min. Reduce heat to low and add cheese. Add in pasta and stir to combine.
3. Serve with a green salad or bake in the oven in a 9 x 13” casserole dish and top with more cheese and bread crumbs for a crispy topping.
Thanks to our friend Emily over at Burlap Kitchen for sharing her Grandmothers famous Orange Chiffon Cake. It’s a classic recipe that dates back to the 1940s and we think is worthy of a comeback!
Ingredients:
2 1/4 Cups flour (sifted)
1 1/2 Cups sugar
3 Teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 Cup oil
7 egg yolks
3 medium oranges (for the zest and juice)
3/4 Cup orange juice or water Juice 3 oranges in a 3/4 measuring cup, then add water till you get 3/4 cups of liquid
2 teaspoons vanilla
7 egg whites
1/2 teaspoon cream of tarter (beat egg whites and cream of tarter together on high speed for 4 minutes)
2 teaspoons orange zest ( fold into egg whites)
Preparation Instructions:
Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Zest and juice oranges and set aside. In a mixing bowl add dry ingredients: flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt; mix well. In a separate bowl add wet ingredients: oil, egg yolks, juice and water, vanilla. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix until it looks like cake batter. In a third bowl add egg whites and cream of tartar, beat on high for 4 minutes, until stiff peaks form. Gently add the egg white mixture to the bowl of batter. Pour batter into a greased angel food cake pan or chiffon pan ( do NOT use a bundt cake pan, trust me!). Take center rack out of oven and position the other oven rack two up from the bottom. Bake at 325 degrees for 55 minutes. Let cake cool for 10-15 minutes. Use a knife to loosen the cake from the edges of the pan and carefully turn out onto a tea cloth. Let cake cool completely. Ice cake and enjoy.
Thick Glaze:
Ingredients:
1 orange (zest and juice)
3 cups 10 X Sugar (powdered sugar, icing sugar)
1/2 stick butter (room temp.)
2 tablespoons juice from orange (may be just under 2 tablespoons, if so add milk to make a full 2 Tablespoons
1 tablespoon milk
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
Preparation Instructions:
In a mixing bowl add 10x sugar, butter, juice from orange, milk, and vanilla. Use a hand mixer and beat until smooth. Fold in orange zest, saving a little to sprinkle on top of the cake.
2 lb new potatoes
1 cup mayonnaise
1 tbsp Dijon mustard
4 slices bacon, cooked until crispy and crumbled
2 green onions, finely sliced
½ cup finely diced red onion
3 celery stalks, finely diced
¼ cup finely chopped dill
½ tsp salt
¼ tsp pepper
Preparation Instructions
1. Place potatoes in a large pot of salted, cold water. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer, until tender, about 10 min. Drain and rinse with cold water to cool. Cut each potato into quarters. Place in a large bowl.
2. To potatoes add mayonnaise, Dijon, crumbled bacon pieces, green onions, red onion, celery, dill, salt and pepper. Mix well. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to serve.
Prep Time: 10 min.
Total Time: 40 min, plus cake cooling time.
Ingredients
1 box chocolate cake mix
1 cup 35% whipping cream
3 tbsp sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup toffee pieces
1 cup desiccated coconut flakes
Preparation Instructions
1. Cook chocolate cake in a 9 x 13 inch baking pan according to package directions. Let cool completely.
2. Whip cream with an electric hand mixer until stiff. Mix in sugar and vanilla. Spread whipped cream over top of cooled chocolate cake. Top with toffee pieces and coconut flakes.
2 cups cooked shredded chicken
1 (8 oz) pkg cream cheese, at room temperature
½ cup ranch dressing
½ cup hot sauce
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
Crackers, to serve
Sliced vegetables, to serve (cucumber, peppers, carrots, broccoli)
Preparation Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 350F.
2. In a large bowl combine shredded chicken, cream cheese, ranch dressing, hot sauce and cheddar cheese. Mix well to combine. Scrape mixture into a 9” glass pie dish or equal sized oven-proof container.
3. Place in oven for 20 mins or until bubbling and golden. Serve with crackers, tortilla chips or sliced vegetables.
4 ripe avocados, sliced in half, pitted and peeled
1/3 cup finely diced red onion
1 tomato, seeds removed and diced
1 cup loosely packed cilantro, roughly chopped
1 tbsp lime juice
1 tsp salt
½ tsp pepper
Tortilla chips, to serve
Preparation Instructions
1. Mash avocados in a large bowl with a fork. Mix with red onions, tomatoes, cilantro, lime juice, salt and pepper. Serve with tortilla chips.
With Rosh Hashanah coming up, I turned to our friend Norene Gilletz from Gourmania.com for a great holiday recipe. She suggested her Apple Honey cake from “The NEW Food Processor Bible” (whitecap books). You won’t be disappointed by this recipe – it’s a moist and delicious treat that’s perfect any time!
Ingredients
3 1/4 cups flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp. ground ginger
2 medium apples, peeled and cut in chunks
3 eggs plus 2 egg whites (or 4 eggs)
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup canola oil
1 cup liquid honey
3/4 cup cold tea
1/4 cup brandy
Preparation Instructions
Preheat oven to 325°F.
Steel Blade: Process flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and ginger for 10 seconds, until blended. Transfer to large mixing bowl. Process apples until finely minced, 8 to 10 seconds. Measure 1 cup firmly packed and set aside.
Process eggs and egg whites, sugar, oil and honey for 2 to 3 minutes, until light. Do not insert pusher in feed tube. Add dry ingredients to batter alternately with tea and brandy. Process with quick on/off pulses, just until blended. Do not over-process. Add apples and process with quick on/off pulses, just until mixed.
Pour batter into sprayed 12-cup fluted tube pan (Bundt pan). Bake for 1 hour and 10 minutes, until cake tests done. A wooden skewer inserted into the center should come out dry. If necessary, cover top of cake with foil to prevent over-browning. Let cake cool in pan for 20 minutes. Carefully loosen with a flexible spatula; invert cake onto a serving plate.
Yield: 15 servings. Freezes well.
Note: If you don’t have a large processor, add beaten egg mixture to dry ingredients in mixing bowl alternately with tea and brandy. Mix with a wooden spoon until blended, about 45 seconds. Stir in apples.
Additional Comments: If you don’t have brandy on hand, you can substitute Grand Marnier, orange juice or peach brandy. Apple juice can replace half of the tea for a delicious taste.
