30 March 2010 Maple Syrup Dumplings

Maple Syrup Dumplings

March 30, 2010 By
Maple Dumplings

Maple Dumplings

My Grandma’s sister, Eva Rose, was a fabulous dumpling maker and here is her simple recipe that I’ve used with maple syrup to celebrate Spring.

Dumpling ingredients:

  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1 pinch of salt
  • 1 large egg
  • 2 tsp melted butter, cooled
  • ¼ cup whole milk

Maple syrup poaching liquid ingredients:

  • 2 cups maple syrup
  • 1/2 cup water

Dumpling directions:

  1. In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder and salt.
  2. Add egg, butter and milk to the flour mixture and mix to incorporate. Do not overmix. Dumpling batter will be lumpy.
  3. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Maple syrup dumpling directions:

  1. In a medium saucepan, bring the maple syrup and water to a boil over high heat. Turn heat down to low.
  2. Drop dumpling batter by the tablespoonful into the hot liquid. Cover pan with a lid and simmer on low heat for 10 minutes.
  3. Serve hot with vanilla ice cream.

Makes 4 servings.

Note: These dumplings are delicious with berries instead of the maple syrup poaching liquid.

Filed Under: Canadian, Desserts Tagged With: , , ,
15 March 2010 Maple Taffee Goodness

Maple Taffee Goodness

March 15, 2010 By
Sugary Treat

Sugary Treat

So, who’s ever experienced maple taffee on snow? And who’s ever had that sweet smirk my niece has on her face after a taste?

Filed Under: Canadian, Desserts, Maple Syrup Tagged With: ,
26 February 2010 Quebec White Cookies with Cooked Glaze

Quebec White Cookies with Cooked Glaze

February 26, 2010 By
Quebec White Cookie

Quebec White Cookie

When we were small kids, my sister and me attended a birthday party where our friend’s mom made these cookies.  For years, we talked about them and how great they were and a few years ago, our childhood friend got her mom to share her recipe with us.

These types of cookies are popular in Quebec, where I grew up, to eat along tea or coffee.  They are not overly sweet and keep well in a cookie jar in a dry place.

Cookie batter ingredients:

  • 2 eggs
  • 1 cup sugar
  • ½ cup melted vegetable shortening (microwave 1 minute)
  • Pinch salt
  • 3 cups flour
  • 3 tsp. baking powder
  • ¾ cup milk
  • ½ tsp. vanilla

Quebec White Cookie Batter

Quebec White Cookie Batter

Cookie instructions:

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  2. In a large bowl, beat eggs, sugar and Crisco with an electric mixer to incorporate.
  3. In another bowl, combine flour, salt and baking powder.
  4. Incorporate flour mixture to egg mixture.  Combine well.
  5. Add milk and vanilla to batter.
  6. Drop batter by tablespoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheet about ¼ inch in interval.
  7. Bake 15 minutes.

Glaze ingredients:

  • ½ cup butter
  • 1 cup light brown sugar
  • ½ whole milk
  • 1/3 cup corn starch
  • 1 cup powdered sugar

Glaze instructions:

  1. Bring all glaze ingredients to a boil in a medium saucepan until thickened, approximately 3 minutes. Cool for 5 minutes.
  2. Thicken glaze further with powdered sugar if needed to reach a thick spreadable icing.
  3. Glaze cookies while they are still hot.

Makes about 20 cookies.

Notes: For the glaze, you may dissolve corn starch into the milk until smooth before adding to the saucepan to help prevent lumps in glaze.

Filed Under: Canadian, Desserts Tagged With: , , , ,

Maple Taffee on Snow (Tire sur la Neige)

December 28, 2009 By
Maple Taffee on Snow 2

Maple Taffee on Snow 2

As my family began getting ready for the food frenzy my visit to Quebec would bring on, one thing that my oldest niece, Maude, wanted to be sure my sister would fix for us is Tire sur la Neige, or Maple Taffee on Snow.  This treat is one most popular at sugar shacks during maple syrup season, but great anytime there’s snow outside.

Ingredients:

  • 2 – 3 cups maple syrup
  • Freshly gathered snow packed tightly into a wide, low container

Directions:

  1. Maple Taffee on Snow

    Maple Taffee on Snow

    Pour the maple syrup into a medium saucepan and bring to a boil on high heat.  Reduce heat to medium and simmer until it reaches 240°F on a candy thermometer, approximately 4-5 minutes.

  2. Using a ladle,  drizzle some of the hot syrup onto the snow, making certain not to cover the entire surface (you can re-pour additional syrup after the first round of taffee is gone).
  3. Let the taffee set for a minute then pick up by rolling on a fork or wooden chopstick.

Notes:  Don’t have snow where you live?  Finely-crushed ice from a blender would work!

Filed Under: Canadian, Desserts, Maple Syrup Tagged With: , ,

Grandma's Chocolate and Peanut Butter Treats

December 28, 2009 By
Chocolate and Peanut Butter Treats

Chocolate and Peanut Butter Treats

These treats come straight from my childhood as my Grandma made them for the holidays as far back as I can remember.  She’d make a double batch and freeze the finished treats so we’d have them well into the new year.

Ingredients:

  • 1/3 cup grated paraffin wax
  • 8 ounces milk chocolate chips
  • 1 cup smooth peanut butter
  • 2 cups powdered sugar, sifted
  • 2 cups puffed rice cereal

Directions:

  1. Melt paraffin and chocolate in a glass or metal bowl placed over a pot of simmering water over medium-low heat.  Don’t allow the bowl to touch the simmering water.
  2. Add peanut butter to the melted chocolate and blend well until fully incorporated.
  3. Stir the powdered sugar into the mixture.  Remove from heat and add the puffed rice cereal, making certain that the cereal is fully coated with the chocolate mixture.
  4. Drop spoonful of the mixture on a wax paper-lined cookie sheet and cool.  Refrigerate cooled treats.

Makes approximately 24 treats.

Notes: Paraffin wax can be found at most grocery stores in the canning section where Mason Jars are found.  Only use consumable wax such as Gulf Paraffin Wax.  Grate the paraffin using a box grater or microplane.

Filed Under: Canadian, Chocolate, Desserts Tagged With: , , ,

Cherry Blossom Treats

December 15, 2009 By

I’m Canadian and one of the candy bars I loved as a kid was the Cherry Blossom.  This treat features a thick chocolate, peanut butter and coconut shell with a tasty cherry syrup and maraschino cherry center.  The Cherry Blossom is a treat I always look forward to having when I go visit my folks in Quebec, and my mother shared the recipe we’d made when I was a kid.

Cherry Blossom

Cherry Blossom

For the chocolate treat:

  • 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
  • 1/4 cup grated paraffin wax
  • 1 cup confectioner sugar
  • 1/2 cup crunchy peanut butter
  • 1/3 cup grated coconut
  • 12 whole, red maraschino cherries

Chocolate treat directions:

Combine all the chocolate treat ingredients in a microwaveable dish and microwave in 1 minute increments, stirring after each minute, until the mixture is nearly completely melted, 2-4 minutes.  Stir mixture thoroughly to ensure any un-melted bits are completely melted.

Cherry syrup:

  • 1/2 cup cherry liquid from a red maraschino cherry jar
  • 1 cup confectioner sugar

Cherry syrup directions:

In a small bowl, combine the liquid and the confectioner sugar, stirring until a thick syrup is created.

Assembly directions:

  1. Wash and dry a Styrofoam egg container, cut off the lid with scissors then oil each egg compartment well.
  2. Take melted chocolate mixture and cover each egg compartment with a thick coating using a spoon.  Work fast as the mixture will harden quickly.  If the mixture gets too hard, microwave it for 30 seconds.
  3. Add a cherry and about 1 tablespoon of cherry syrup to each egg compartment, then use additional chocolate to create a ‘lid’ for each treat.  Ensure the chocolate ‘lids’ seal in the syrup completely to avoid leaks.  Cover the egg container with cling wrap.
  4. Refrigerate overnight or at least 12 hours.  Unmold each treat carefully, then wrap each treat with aluminum foil.  Keep refrigerated.

Yields 12 treats.

Notes: You could use a cardboard egg container, but you’d need to line it with cling wrap that you’d then oil thoroughly.  Paraffin wax can be found at most grocery stores in the canning section where Mason Jars are found.  Only use consumable wax such as Gulf Paraffin Wax.  Instead of using oil on the egg container, you could also use cooking spray.

Filed Under: Canadian, Chocolate, Desserts Tagged With: , ,

Quebec Cretons

November 17, 2009 By

This spreadable meat dish is similar to pâté but with more texture.  Cretons are a very typical eastern Canada dish served at breakfast time on toasted bread.  Cretons are sometimes also served on a cheese platter.

Cretons

Cretons

Ingredients:

  • 1 lb ground pork
  • 1 lb ground veal
  • 2 onions finely minced
  • 2 tbsp chicken bouillon granules
  • 1 1/2 tsp garlic powder
  • 1/4 tsp pepper
  • 2 tsp salt
  • 1 pinch of ground cloves
  • 1 cup evaporated milk
  • 1 cup water
  • 1 envelope flavorless gelatin

Directions:

  1. Place all the ingredients (except gelatin) in a heavy saucepan.  Mix well and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat to medium, and simmer for one hour, stirring often.  Turn off heat.
  2. Mash down the mixture with a hand potato masher to a coarse consistency.
  3. Incorporate the gelatin to the mixture.
  4. Cool completely, then stir the mixture.  Put mixture in small containers and refrigerate or freeze.

Will last in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks or up to 3 months in the freezer.

Filed Under: Canadian, Pork, Sides, Veal Tagged With: ,
7 November 2009 Maple Syrup Pie

Maple Syrup Pie

November 7, 2009 By

Not many dishes exemplify true Canadian goodness like the Maple Syrup Pie, known as Tarte Au Sirop D’Erable in French.  Served around the holidays, or for special occasions, this simple-to-make pie is both beautiful and delicious. My Grand-Mother probably would not approve of this microwaveable version, but those of us who have a limited amount of time to bake will be thankful. 

Tarte au Sirop D'Erable

Pie Ingredients:

  • 1 3/4 cups pure maple syrup
  • 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 tsp. salt
  • 1 1/4 cups whole milk
  • 2 large eggs, slightly beaten
  • 3 Tbsp. unsalted butter, room temperature
  • 1  9-inch Press-In Shortbread Pie Crust, baked

Pie Directions:

  1. Place all pie ingredients, except for the crust, in a large, microwaveable bowl. Whisk well to incorporate all the ingredients. Note that there will initially be lumps due to the butter.
  2. Microwave on high for 9 minutes, whisking every 2 minutes to smooth out the mixture.
  3. Pour mixture into the baked pie crust and refrigerate at least 2 hours.

 

Serves 8-10.

Notes:  Pie can be covered with plastic wrap and refrigerated up to 4 days.  If doubled or tripled, the pies can easily be frozen wrapped in plastic wrap, then in aluminum foil.

Filed Under: Canadian, Desserts, Maple Syrup Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Lasagna a la Laetitia

October 4, 2009 By
Lasagna Final Product

Lasagna Final Product

This simple lasagna recipe uses my grand-mother’s untraditional meat sauce.  The unbaked lasagna can be made and refrigerated the day before serving or can be frozen for up to a month (thaw overnight before baking per step 10).

Ingredients:

  • 12 lasagna noodles from a 9-ounce package, no-boil lasagna (used Barilla)
  • 1 32-ounce container, large curd cottage cheese
  • 5 cups, Bolognese Sauce a la Laetitia
  • 1 8-ounce package of 5-Italian cheeses (from dairy aisle)
  • 4 tbs, grated parmesan cheese

Instructions:

  1. Heat oven to 375F.
  2. Butter a 13x9x3 lasagna pan.  Ladle 2 cups Bolognese Sauce a la Laetitia on bottom of pan.
  3. Layer 4 uncooked noodles over the sauce.

    Lasagna Step 3

    Lasagna Step 3

  4. Empty cottage cheese container over the noodles in the pan and spread evenly.  Sprinkle 2 tbs grated parmesan cheese.
  5. Layer 4 uncooked noodles over the cheeses.

    Lasagna Step 5

    Lasagna Step 5

  6. Ladle 2 cups Bolognese Sauce a la Laetitia over the last noodle layer.
  7. Layer 4 uncooked noodles over the sauce.

    Lasagna Step 7

    Lasagna Step 7

  8. Ladle 1 cup Bolognese Sauce a la Laetitia over the last noodle layer.
  9. Spread the package of 5-Italian cheeses, then remaining 2 tbs grated parmesan over the sauce.

    Lasagna Step 9

    Lasagna Step 9

  10. Bake covered with foil for 50 minutes.  Uncover and continue cooking until cheese is melted, about 10 minutes.  Remove from the oven and let stand 15 minutes before cutting.

6 Servings.

Filed Under: Canadian, Entrees, Italian, Pasta Tagged With: , , ,
19 August 2009 Quebec Meat Sauce a la Laetitia

Quebec Meat Sauce a la Laetitia

August 19, 2009 By

Grand-Mother’s non-traditional meat sauce that I’ve enjoyed since birth and now make regularly.

This meat sauce is ideal when making a lasagna or simply over spaghetti. The chili powder and touch of clove gives this sauce a little taste unlike others.

I suggest this Bolognese sauce recipe be doubled as it freezes very well and makes weeknight meals a breeze.

Love a Big Sauce Pot!

Ingredients:

  • ¼ cup vegetable oil
  • 1 large onion, diced
  • 8 ounces celery, diced
  • 2 large garlic cloves, minced
  • ¾ pound ground pork
  • ¾ pound ground beef
  • ½ Tbsp. red pepper flakes
  • 1/8 tsp. ground cayenne pepper
  • ½ Tbsp. each chili powder, salt and pepper
  • 1 bay leaf
  • ¼ tsp. cloves
  • 1 Tbsp. granulated sugar
  • 1 20-ounce can tomato juice
  • 1 28-ounce can Italian-style tomatoes, chopped
  • 2 6-ounce cans of tomato paste
Pantry Ingredients
Meat and Veggies Cooking
Sauce Simmering

Directions:

In a large saucepan over medium-high heat, warm the oil. Add the onion and celery and sauté for 5 minutes. Add garlic and sauté another minute. Add meats and sauté until completely cooked, 5-7 minutes. Add spices and sugar and cook 1 minute. Add tomato juice, Italian-style tomatoes and the tomato paste and stir to combine. Bring mixture to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, stirring occasionally, for 2 hours. Season again with salt, pepper and sugar as needed.

8 Servings.

Filed Under: Beef, Canadian, Entrees, Italian Tagged With: , ,
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