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Archive for March, 2010

Chocolate Crinkle Cookies

Posted in Desserts, tagged , , on March 28, 2010 | 4 Comments »

It’s 2:00 a.m. and I’ve been tossing and turning for the past 20 minutes. I stumble out into the living room and turn on the t.v. for some comfort, but the only thing coming up on the guide is infomercials and a documentary on streakers.

I choose what I think to be the less of two evils, but it turns out the nudie-mentary is actually a man sifting through cow excrement that is somehow related to e-coli. Just when I think it couldn’t get any worse, the cameraman brings up an inhumane image of a cow being shoved around by a tractor.

I can’t help but think of those three packs of ground beef I bought this afternoon.

My boyfriend and I have been fighting a lot lately, which is why I am out here, watching bizarre late-night shows on television.

We’re not fighting about anything in particular, just life in general. We’re growing up, and it’s not as fun as we thought it would be. Graduation is less than two months away, and our thoughts are drifting toward our inevitable future.

I thought we’d have it figured out by now. Turns out we’re just a couple of kids being thrust into the real world, desperately clinging on to each other with all we’ve got. And so, when we can’t direct our inner frustration at anything else, we turn on each other.

After six and a half years of dating, we’ve managed to find each other’s soft spots, and have no reservations when it comes to using that to our advantage during an argument. We raise our voices and come up with clever snide comments, and it feels good to think we’ve won. But at the end of the day, all we’ve done is hurt each other.

Everything seems simpler as I’m sitting out here on my couch, the blue glow of the television casting familiar shadows across the room. I shuffle into the kitchen in search of munchies, coming out with a plastic container of cookies I made earlier this week. I remember being in a similar rut when I made them. They made me feel good that time, so I figured I’d give them a shot.

The powdered sugar sticks to my lips, but the rich cocoa melts in my mouth, tasting just as good as the night I made them. I take a big gulp of cold, white milk, brush my teeth for the second time tonight, and head to bed.

Hopefully things will be better in the morning.

Tools

large mixing bowl
medium mixing bowl
hand mixer
wooden spoon
measuring cups
measuring spoons
cookie sheet
wire cooling racks

Ingredients

2 cups sugar
3/4 cup vegetable oil
1 cup cocoa powder
4 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 1/3 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup icing sugar

Instructions

In large mixing bowl, combine sugar and oil, beating well. Add cocoa powder, eggs and sugar and beat until combined.

In medium mixing bowl, mix together flour, baking powder and salt. Gradually add to cocoa mixture, beating well.

Cover bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least six hours.

When ready to bake, preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Grease cookie sheet. Shape dough into one-inch balls and roll in icing sugar until coated. Place on cookie sheet at least two inches apart.

Bake for 10 minutes. Cool in pan for at least 10 minutes before transferring to wire cooling rack.

Enjoy!


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Spinach and Feta Pizza

Posted in Entrées, tagged , , , on March 22, 2010 | 1 Comment »

I met Ashleigh in the fourth grade. It was my first day at a new school that was five times the size of my previous one, and I was absolutely petrified.

Noting the look of sheer terror on my face as I approached his large wooden desk, my homeroom teacher sat me beside a girl with long brown hair tightly bound in a low ponytail by a multi-coloured scrunchie. She was wearing an Eeyore sweatshirt, which conveniently matched my purple Pooh sweatshirt.

“Hi,” she said, her voice wavering with uncertainty. “I’m Ashleigh.”

I can’t remember if I ever said anything back. I was too focused on my mom, who was lingering in the hallway outside. Tears welled up in my eyes as she mouthed ‘Goodbye’ and gave me a sympathetic smile, her eyes brimming with motherly guilt for leaving me in this strange place.

I remember constantly rearranging things in the cavity of my desk, lifting my head only to sneak peeks at the new arrivals coming through the door.

When we recount this day, Ashleigh likes to add that while I was fiddling with my pencils, I continually scribbled ‘Mommy I want to go home’ on my notepad. She likes to embellish.

Ashleigh and I didn’t say a word after that, not until the bell above the door buzzed obnoxiously, signaling break time. I had been dreading that moment, knowing I would be the only kid in that classroom who didn’t have a friend to share summer stories with or compare notes on the teacher’s sweat stains.

As Ashleigh got up to leave, the teacher signaled her to go over to his desk. They talked for a few minutes, then Ashleigh came to my desk and asked if I wanted to hang out with her. I could tell she didn’t want to ask me; I was the dorky new kid with buck teeth and a mushroom cut.

She introduced me to her friends while I nervously chewed on my fruit snacks and granola bar. My eyes darted around the seemingly never-ending hallway, shying away from the stares of strangers.

It gets blurry after that. We continued to sit together, and she still invited me to hang out with her on break. But somewhere between those awkward exchanges, we became friends.

I still remember the first time she invited me over to her house. I was so excited that day, not only for the fun we were going to have, but because it meant we were real friends, the kind that have sleepovers and tell each other secrets. I always laugh when I think of the first time she directed me to her house:

“It’s the last house on the street, the one with the dead flowers hanging from the stick.”

From there, things only got better. We spent every weekend together, riding our bikes around town and pretending to camp out in my backyard.

It’s been 12 years since that first day of school. We don’t get to see each other as often as we’d like; I live in Fredericton and she goes to school in Charlottetown. But on those special days that we do get to spend together, it’s like we were never apart.

I first made this pizza dough recipe last spring, when I was visiting Ashleigh at her apartment for a week. Ashleigh is incredibly cheap, so rather than go out to eat most days, we scrounged around her kitchen for food. We made this pizza dough recipe, and since she’s a vehement vegetarian, topped it with cheddar cheese, spinach and feta. I make this recipe almost every weekend as an alternative to delivery, switching back and forth between pepperoni and this vegetarian option. It’s much cheaper to make, and it really does taste better.

Tools

large mixing bowl
fork
measuring cups
measuring spoons
tea towel
pizza stone
cheese grater

Ingredients

Dough
2 1/ 2 cups flour
1 cup warm water
1 1/2 tablespoons yeast
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons vegetable oil

Toppings
2-3 tablespoons pizza sauce
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
1-2 cups mozzarella cheese
1/2 cup feta cheese
1 cup fresh spinach

Instructions

Preheat over to 450 degrees Fahrenheit. In large mixing bowl, combine 1 cup of flour, water, and yeast. Mix with a fork. Add sugar, salt and vegetable oil, in this order. Mix well, then add remaining 1 1/2 cups flour. Mix with fork, then knead with your hands until dough forms a firm ball. Sprinkle flour in bottom of bowl, then place dough ball back inside the bowl. Place bowl on the warm stove and cover with a clean tea towel for 10 minutes.

Once dough has risen, roll out on a floured pizza stone into desired shape. Roll over the edges to form a thick crust and pinch crust to bevel the edges.

Top with 2-3 tablespoons pizza sauce and desired toppings.

Dab crust with butter or margarine and cook for 18 minutes or until edges begin to brown.

Enjoy!


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Broccoli and Garlic Penne

Posted in Pasta, tagged , , on March 15, 2010 | 1 Comment »

I’ve been under a lot of stress lately. It’s crunch time in my final year of university and it feels like life won’t allow me to breathe. But the funny thing is, every time I’m free from my scholarly obligations, my mind drifts to something much more uncomfortable and scary.

I graduate in two months. For the first time in 16 years, I’m going to be able to choose what I want to do with my life, and frankly, this scares the hell out of me.

I’d like to able to say that I have a plan, or at least a vague idea of what I want to do after I graduate, but I don’t. The thing is, I’ve grown up around people who settle for whatever comes their way first, and I’ve seen how unhappy they are because of it. But to get what I want, or what I think I want, I have to take a risk, and that’s something I’ve never really done.

I applied for jobs I really wanted and got shot down. I then applied for jobs I didn’t want, and got shot down again. I’m beginning to feel like maybe it’s just not in the cards for me, that all I can ever attain to be is ordinary.

And it’s not that bad, really. I could get a cozy little apartment in town with my boyfriend, just blocks away from my office. We could decorate our first Christmas tree together, get married and have kids, all before I reach the age of 30. I wouldn’t have to live off Kraft Dinner for a year or survive in a cramped rat-infested apartment, the way people always claim to have done before their big break. Best of all, I wouldn’t have to fail.

As tempting as this life is, I know it won’t make me happy. Because no matter how pretty my wedding dress is or how good my job benefits are, I will always ask myself the same question: ‘what if?’

What if it takes turning down a perfectly fine job to get what I really want? What if I have to move out of my comfort zone in order to move into something better?

These are the things that race through my mind when I’m walking home from school or cleaning my apartment. They take over my life when I let them, paralyzing me so that I can’t actually do what I need to.

But then there are times, those rare fleeting moments, when everything settles, and I think that maybe, just maybe, everything will turn out right. It’s these simple little times that get me through the day, the everyday pleasures that remind me why I’m here and what I’m supposed to do.

It’s the sound of my cat purring when I rub under her fuzzy little chin, reassuring me that my sole duty in this world is to make her happy. Tonight, it was the sheer satisfaction of making a recipe to perfection, for the very first time.

This broccoli and garlic penne is exquisite. It’s simple, requires very few ingredients, and takes under a half hour to make. Best of all, it is absolutely delicious, and it leaves plenty of left-overs for tomorrow’s lunch. Freshly grated parmesan is a must for this recipe. I’ve tried the canned stuff, and it’s just not the same.

Tools

large saucepan
colander
medium saucepan
wooden spoon
skillet
cutting board
large knife

Ingredients

1 lb penne
2 heads broccoli
3/4 cup olive oil
10 cloves of garlic
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
freshly ground pepper

Instructions

In a large saucepan, cook penne according to package instructions until al dente. Once done, drain in a colander and run under cold water.

Cut broccoli florets into small pieces. Bring medium saucepan to a boil. Add broccoli and boil for two minutes. Drain in a colander, rinse under cold water, and pat dry with paper towel or a clean dish cloth.

Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add garlic and cook for one minute or until edges are brown, shaking the pan often. Add cooked and drained broccoli to the skillet and stir well. Sprinkle with some pepper and cook for two minutes, stirring often. Add penne and butter to the skillet. Stir well, until all ingredients are mixed together. Cook for four minutes.

Sprinkle with freshly grated parmesan cheese and serve.

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Homestyle Cocoa Chili

Posted in Soups, tagged , , on March 8, 2010 | 1 Comment »

Home is a special place for me. It’s a place where I don’t have to wear make-up or wash my hair. There’s no need to impress anyone or put up a pretty front: the cats don’t care and my mom and dad aren’t that picky either.

It’s a place where I always have someone to talk to when I’m angry or upset; all I have to do is pad into my parents’ room and lie down on the empty side of the bed beside my mom.

Home for me is a great big Victorian house on the main road of a rural town. It was built in the 1800’s and holds about as much history as the local museum, which happens to be just across the street.

I remember the very first day we moved in to that house. It felt so big to my nine year-old self, like I would get lost if I wasn’t careful. My parents allowed my sister and I to pick our own rooms. Of course, my sister chose the big one in the main section of the house, but I wanted something a little more unique.

Set off from the rest of the house was a narrow room with slanted ceilings and a skylight that opened up to the stars at night. It even had its own set of slender wooden stairs that led down to the kitchen: the perfect passageway for a midnight snack, or as my mom used to say, an escape route for boyfriends when I got older. It used to be the maid’s quarters when the house was built, but it became my room.

Over the years my room changed, and I changed with it. The pink walls and flowery wallpaper vanished when I turned 12, replaced by a creamy yellow that remains there today.

The lack of size and beauty in my former one-storey bungalow was certainly made up for in my new home. This house had two living rooms, one with a marble fireplace to hang my stockings from at Christmas. It had a cozy little den to watch movies in, and a kitchen with a wood stove that heated my body from the inside out, the kind of warmth you can only get from slowly burning logs.

But the best part of the house wasn’t in the house at all. Surrounding my new home were acres and acres of field and trees, and a huge yard to ride my bike in. I spent most of my childhood out there, creating forts within the shadowed enclaves of birch trees and fragrant maples. I was free there, chasing after my dog on warm summer afternoons, seeing who could get to the blueberry field faster.

It’s been four years since I moved out of that house, but it will always be my home. Whenever I go home to visit my parents, I make sure to unpack my suitcase and put all my clothes in the dresser, even if it’s only a weekend trip. There’s something unnatural about living out of a suitcase in your own home.

I went home last week for March Break and spent a whole week and a half basking in the warmth of the wood stove and the company of my mom and dad. I walked down in the field that I used to love so much, taking in the smells of the first peek at spring. I huddled in my little yellow bedroom, reading into the wee hours of the night, knowing I didn’t have to get up the next morning.

While I was home, I made my parents a batch of chili I came across in a recipe book in the clearance section of Chapters. This chili particularly caught my eye because the cookbook was for chocolate recipes, so I knew it had to be good. The cocoa powder really richens the flavour of the beef, and it smells delicious. This recipe has a lot of ingredients, but it takes less than an hour to make, and is well worth it.

Tools

large, deep saucepan or dutch oven
cutting board
large knife
measuring cups
measuring spoons
wooden spoon

Ingredients

1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 1/2 cups chopped onion
2 lbs ground beef
2 tablespoons cocoa powder
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon allspice
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
2 (28-ounce) cans diced tomatoes
1 (12-ounce) can tomato paste
1 cup water
1 can kidney beans
1 can chickpeas
handful of grated cheddar cheese

Instructions

Chop onions finely. In large saucepan, heat oil, then add onions. Cook, stirring often, for three minutes. Add thawed ground beef and cook until brown. Drain out any excess liquid in the saucepan and discard.

Add cocoa, chili powder, cayenne pepper, salt, allspice and cinnamon to saucepan and mix well. Add cans of tomatoes (undrained), tomato paste and water and heat to a boil. Reduce heat and let simmer for 30 minutes.

Serve topped with grated cheddar cheese and chopped onion if desired.

Enjoy!

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