February « 2010 « Hot Polka Dot

25Feb/10

The Debate: Brownie or Cookie?

Is it a cookie?

a. Yes
b. No
c. Maybe

Is it a brownie?

a. No
b. Yes
c. Maybe

Does it matter?

a. Yes
b. No
c. Heck no! Can I eat it now?

Would you step over your own mother for a bite of one?

a. Um no
b. Maybe
c. Shamefully yes

Mostly a's: Really? Are you feeling alright?

Mostly b's: I think you need to take another look at that picture.

Mostly c's: I like you. Let's be friends. By the way, this is the cookie for you.

Tagged as: Brownies, Chocolate, Chocolate Chip, Cookies, Recipe Continue reading

24Feb/10

Cookies to the Rescue!

Today it seems like all the technology I rely on day to day has turned against me. My exercise bike has shed a mysterious screw. I can't, for the life of me, figure out where it belongs and I feel like the whole thing might fall apart beneath me the next time I try to ride it. My dishwasher has decided to deposit lovely soap scum all over my supposedly clean dishes. No combination of more soap, less soap, another soap or rinse aid seems to appease it. My television has spontaneously started making it impossible for me to watch either the Discovery Channel, Home and Garden TV or the Food Network. The sound and picture of exclusively those three channels is intermittent so when I sit down with a cupcake and settle in to watch French Food at Home or Dirty Jobs or Holmes on Homes I get annoyed and instead eat my dessert with disdain.

At least my lap top hasn't revolted because then I couldn't be sharing this story with you fine people.

It's ok because when the modern world fails you take comfort in the fact that there's always traditional Chocolate Chip Cookies to fall back on.

Tagged as: Chocolate, Chocolate Chip, Cookies, Recipe Continue reading

23Feb/10

Yay for Yorkshire Pudding!

There is no other recipe that is so simple and yet so personally challenging than Yorkshire Pudding. Three ingredients. Sounds easy? Wrong!

I've never had this much trouble with such a small recipe. I guess it's the tiny ones you have to watch out for though right? The smaller the recipe the bigger the chance that you'll mess it up.

Well, Yorkshire Pudding, I have bested you. What do you think about that? Huh? You eggy dream of puffiness. You're not short and defiant anymore now are you? You rose and grew just like I told you to. You kept your little hole in your middle and made such an adorable little spot to fill up with tasty beef gravy laced with onions and garlic. I tamed your wild ways and made a delicious dinner out of you.

It's a love/hate relationship.

There was this one time that I was craving the delicate, soft eggy beauty that is the Yorkshire Pudding and caved in to purchase the instant version from the spice isle in my supermarket. My mother was horrified to hear of this culinary misadventure and made me promise never to repeat it.

My mother has mastered this recipe. She has learned the ways of the Yorkshire Pudding and passed it's secrets on to me in the form of a three part recipe card. I will now pass that mysterious knowledge on to you.

Tagged as: Muffins and Scones, Pudding, Recipe Continue reading

22Feb/10

Apples and Oranges.

There are many things in life that I can do, but I really shouldn't. I can eat a stick of butter, but I shouldn't. I can hold my hand over a burning hot stove element, but I shouldn't. I can avoid doing laundry for a month, but I shouldn't. And as I stood over a fresh batch of these amazingly delicious Apple Yogurt Muffins with Cinnamon Streusel I knew I was capable of eating the entire dozen in one sitting, but I also knew I shouldn't.

The thing that really made me fall in love with these muffins is the combination of apple and orange. I get it, the apple is pomaceous and the orange is citrus, but that doesn't mean they can't make a tasty marriage. You may not be able to compare apples and oranges, but you can darn well eat them! So that's what I did and oh my god was it good.

Tagged as: Apple, Citrus, Muffins and Scones, Orange, Recipe, Streusel, Yogurt Continue reading

20Feb/10

Orange You Glad I Didn’t Say Banana?

Knock knock.

Who's there?

Banana.

Banana who?

Knock knock.

Who's there?

Banana.

Banana who?

Knock knock

Who's there?

Orange.

Orange who?

Orange Cake with Chocolate Spiced Rum Ganache, that's who.

Heck yes. I know there are so many good combinations with chocolate. Chocolate and strawberry. Chocolate and banana. Chocolate and peanut butter. Chocolate and raspberry. Chocolate and almond. Chocolate and...my mouth. But really I think chocolate and orange is my favourite.

So, not much new here. This is just a variation of my Lemon Raspberry Cake, the only difference is the orange and the chocolate...and the rum. The devil is in the details. That's the beauty of this recipe, it opens so many doors, so many possibilities, so much deliciousness.

Tagged as: Cakes, Chocolate, Citrus, Ganache, Orange, Recipe Continue reading

17Feb/10

Baking Gone Bananas.

I don't think anyone can argue how comforting the smell of fresh baked food is. Baking apple pie is one of my favourite smells. The way the apples combine with the cinnamon and pastry is intoxicating. It makes my mouth water just thinking about it.

It reminds me of my mother's bread maker. She would start making it before bed and during the night it would mix, rise and bake. By about five or six in the morning the house would fill with the amazing aroma of fresh bread. We'd all wake up super early because, let's face it, it's not so easy falling back asleep after smelling that.

These banana muffins are much like that. The smell is just amazing and when they bake I feel instantly happy. When the timer goes off I probably wait all of one minute before I stuff one in my face. It's amazing I manage to unwrap the muffin liner, but even that probably wouldn't ruin the taste.

Tagged as: Banana, Chocolate, Muffins and Scones, Recipe Continue reading

16Feb/10

Gimme Gimme Grapefruit.

You know that ridiculous grapefruit diet that people used to go on? The one where they would eat exclusively grapefruit and nothing else then expect to lose weight. I would do that. I so would.

I. Heart. Grapefruit.

I eat at least two maybe three grapefruits every morning. I've been doing that for about a month now and I haven't gotten sick of it and I probably never will. I actually wake up looking forward to it.

I used to have a weird problem with breakfast. On the one hand it's my favourite meal. The crêpes. The bacon and eggs. The waffles. The pancakes. The muffins. The bagel sandwiches. Etc...etc... On the other hand all those things are delicious but, like most of us, I just don't always have the time to make them in the mornings. So the breakfast we get stuck with instead is something like soggy cereal, half-burned toast or a bruised banana. Yum...

Then there's grapefruit. Aaah beautiful grapefruit. So easy and yet so good.

I'm thinking that if I had to eat grapefruit and only grapefruit every day it wouldn't get boring as long as I got to jazz it up with some grapefruit recipes like this little gem. Pink Grapefruit Yogurt Cupcakes with grapefruit cream cheese icing. Heck yes!

Tagged as: Citrus, Cream Cheese, Cupcakes, Grapefruit, Icing, Recipe, Yogurt Continue reading

15Feb/10

Nothin’ Says Lovin’ Like Somethin’ from the Oven.

Some people give flowers. Others jewelry. And then there's sweets. Can you guess which one I like best? If you guessed sweets you would be correct. The giving and receiving of tasty treats has always been one of my favourite things.

This Valentine's Day I baked my honey something yummy. Chocolate hazelnut yummy to be precise. Such a good combination.

I found this mysterious recipe in my recipe box one day while browsing. I've never made them before and after a phone call to my mother I discovered neither had she. Only one way to find out how delicious they are and after making exactly four dozen and one of these cookies I've realized they are just that: delicious. They're like a thin hazelnut shortbread that seriously melts in your mouth. Since I've rediscovered this family recipe I reserve the right to rename them. Jitterbugs it is.

Tagged as: Chocolate, Cookies, Hazelnut, Recipe Continue reading

12Feb/10

Cake Because I Can.

Generally baking is something people do on occasion. A cake for a birthday party. Hour d'ouvres for a get together. Shortbread for the holidays. Chocolates for Valentine's Day. Rarely do people bake for the fun of it. Instead baking is this stressful thing built around high expectations and consequential disappointments when it crumbles.

Well last weekend I spent hours in the kitchen making a cake. Yes a cake. And here's the best part: there was no occasion. I just woke up that day and said to myself, today's a good day to make a Lemon Raspberry Cake. So I did. And no one complained. Why would anyone complain about cake? It's cake.

I propose we all bake more often. And maybe exercise a little bit more to compensate come think of it. Making delicious food is one of the simplest, most gratifying, tasks that a person can do and it makes everyone around you happy.

So here you are. Lemon Raspberry Cake complete with raspberry jam filling and lemon cream cheese icing.

This recipe was transformed from my Oma's Lemon Loaf recipe into the cake you see before you. My Oma is an amazing cook and baker. She always has the kitchen stocked with chocolate chip cookies among other sweet things. My Opa has at least one of her cookies each day and complains innocently if the supply runs out.

Lemon Loaf is one of my absolute favourites of her many recipes. I love anything with citrus in it as you might have already guessed. I remember when I was a kid she would bake Lemon Loaf and wrap it up in wax paper then keep it in a re-purposed dairy milk bag as she still does today. See in Ontario, milk comes in bags more often than jugs or cartons. Might seem strange but it's worth clearing up in order to understand the whole milk bag thing. A very Grandmotherly thing to do I suppose, save bags and containers to make use of them elsewhere. Anyways that bag of delicious Lemon Loaf would not remain in it's place on the kitchen counter for long. It would disappear slice after yummy slice until we made short work of the dessert.

Tagged as: Cakes, Citrus, Cream Cheese, Icing, Lemon, Raspberry, Recipe Continue reading

11Feb/10

Crêpes and Cookies.

Yesterday was my birthday. I've had a few birthdays and they've all been pretty great. No complaints here. Well there was that one birthday when a few of my friends left the party early. Something about not wanting to play hide-and-go-seek. I think that was my seventh birthday and to this day I still don't remember their names so I guess I'm over it.

But this birthday, this birthday was different. For starters it's my first birthday I got to spend here in Edmonton with my sweetheart Lee and his beautiful daughter Sable. Then there was a sweet surprise I woke up to that morning.

It started out like most mornings. I woke up to my hungry cat Jaden whining at me. I texted Lee good morning and got a message back. Then I groggily went downstairs to feed the cats, Jaden's water dish in hand. When I rounded the corner into the kitchen there was Lee making me strawberry banana crêpes with a bouquet or flowers. He was very much not at work and very much upset that I'd woken up early and foiled his breakfast in bed plan. He's so cute when he pouts.

So of course I take over making the crêpes. I often do that in the kitchen. I don't mind. It's nice to think about Julia Child before 9am. I think I've decided that crêpes are my favourite breakfast food. Strawberry, banana, Nutella crêpes topped with whip cream of course. Aren't they glorious?

And that's not all. What do most people do on their birthday? Why, invent cookies of course! What, you mean you don't do that too? Well I did. When I started creaming butter and sugar together I had a fleeting thought, several in fact, about how tainted my birthday was going to be if these cookies didn't turn out exactly – no better – than I planned. What was I going to do with myself when I took these crunchy, malformed, half burned disappointments out of the oven? I was going to cry, that's what I was going to do. Why wouldn't I take it personally? Food is very personal.