thanksgiving basics: onion, celery & sage bread stuffing

This is always a strange time of year for Canadians. We've already had our Thanksgiving weeks ago, so all of this American hoopla over the holiday seems like it's a "been there, done that" kind of deal. But this year it's a little different in our household and we kinda let Thanksgiving pass us by. I was busy and we ate soup. No big deal or so I thought.

But this Saturday, we took a run for the border into Bellingham WA and picked up a pre-brined Trader Joe's turkey (HELP! Quick question: Do I wash/rinse/soak the pre-brined turkey or just rub it with butter and bake it? Answered on Twitter = rinse.) Once I was caught up in the Trader Joe's frenzy, it was like I was on auto-pilot or something. I just wanted turkey and all the things that come with Thanksgiving. And one of the big things I missed this year was stuffing. And this old fashioned and kinda basic stuffing is something you can make without a turkey or even a chicken. It's my mom's age-old recipe and I love it. But this time I added in walnuts and apples just to put my own stamp on it. Don't even want to think about turkey? No worries, just make the stuffing a part of your vegan meal. It's easy. Head over to Poppytalk for the recipe and the story and get stuffed.

magic spicy peanut sauce

Aww yeah, this is where the magic happens. 4 burners on a tiny electric stove in dark and tiny galley kitchen. I definitely dream of the time when I'll have a truly beautiful kitchen with a window, a dishwasher and a gas-powered stove. But this is what I've got. It ain't fancy and it certainly isn't a hindrance when it comes to cooking creatively.

Now what you are looking at may not look pretty, but boy oh boy, eating this made me feel like I unlocked some ancient life-changing secret. This is a peanut sauce and while I've made quite a few delicious peanut sauces, this one knocked my socks off. When I set out to make this sauce, I was just thinking of adding something simple to the tofu and veggie stirfry that I was making for dinner. An almost empty jar of peanut butter in the fridge held my attention. And while I didn't set out to re-create something magical, it just happened that way.

You see, there's a local unassuming Chinese restaurant in Vancouver called Szechuan Chongqing and they have a wonton dish in spicy peanut sauce that is my absolute most favorite thing to order. The sauce is spicy and peanutty and oh-so-perfect and never in my right mind did I think that I could create that kind of magic at home in my dingy little kitchen. But somehow this sauce was revelatory. It was just like the version I know and love. Better even, because my peanut sauce wasn't greasy like Chongquing's version. So toss this up a sauce to mix in with your stir fry or use as a dipping sauce with chicken or tofu. Or go all out and use as a sauce for some pork-filled wontons and let the magic happen to you.

magic spicy peanut sauce
3 T chunky natural peanut butter
1 T sriracha
juice of 1/2 lime
1/4 c water + more
2 T chili garlic sauce
2 T honey
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 T fresh ginger, minced
1 T soy sauce

In a small saucepan, combine all the ingredients over med-high, adding extra water by the tablespoon when or if it gets to thick. Don't use sparingly.

light & fluffy pancakes with maple apples

This past weekend, Cornelius wanted to go out for pancakes. I wavered. There's a diner in our neighbourhood that used to have the very best pancakes and good service, but the last couple times the service really was terrible and the pancakes weren't up to their usual par. So I put my foot down and make pancakes at home. It turned out to be a great option. The pancakes were light and fluffy and the apples simmered in maple syrup that topped the pancakes was liquid gold. They were perfect and they beat out the pancakes from the local diner hands down.

light & fluffy pancakes with maple apples
(recipe adapted from Bon Appetit)

maple syrup apples
2 T unsalted butter
2 large tart apples, like Bramley Seedings, cored and sliced
1 t ground cinnamon
1 T plus 1/3 c pure maple syrup

pancakes
1 c all purpose flour
2 T yellow cornmeal
1 t baking powder
1 t baking soda
1/2 t salt
1 c buttermilk
1 c plain yogurt
1 t vanilla
1 large egg
1 1/2 T unsalted butter, melted

For maple syrup apples:
Melt butter in large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add apples, cinnamon and 1 tablespoon of maple syrup and saute for a few minutes until soft. Add remaining syrup and stir until warm. Set aside.

For pancakes:
Combine first 5 ingredients in large bowl and whisk until blended. In another bowl, blend together buttermilk, yogurt, vanilla, and egg. Add wet to dry ingredients and stir until just blended but still lumpy. Gently mix in the melted butter.

In a large pan, melt a bit of butter or oil over med-high heat and drop in a large spoonful of batter. When bubbles appear on the surface, flip. When the underside is golden, remove and repeat process. Spoon maple apples over pancakes and serve.

chard with fettucini, lemon and cheese & a carrot call-out

It's winter and the CSA I belong to loves giving me chard and kale. My favorite way to prepare it is to saute it with garlic and shallots and then toss it up with lemon and Parmesan cheese. It's easy, quick and super tasty. Get the recipe over at Poppytalk.

Another thing that my csa loves to give me is carrots. I'm practically swimming in them. I've recently made soup, slaw and a spiced carrot quick bread, but I'd love to hear what some of your favorite ways of preparing them are. Help a girl out!

chana masala

Life seems busier than usual. I feel like I'm swallowed by work and while I'm not complaining one bit, it makes day to day tasks a bit more difficult. I usually do most of the grocery shopping, but as I was swamped in HTML code and design dilemmas, I had asked my husband to pick up a few things. Like a can of tomatoes. It seemed easy enough, a no-brainer.

A few days later, I decided to try out a recipe that I had bookmarked ages ago. A delicious-sounding chana masala from Orangette. I had everything so I got right to work. The onions in this recipe do take some time to caramelize, but other than that, this recipe is a snap. Easy to make at the end of a week filled with hard work.

After I had sauteed the spices, I opened the can of tomatoes and suddenly realized that my husband had purchased crushed tomatoes rather than whole tomatoes. Crushed is just another word for pureed into oblivion. I never buy crushed tomatoes and truthfully, I was crushed. It had been a long week and now I was worried about a kink in my plans. But I dumped them in and continued. The result? Delicious. Intensely flavoured with tomato and beautifully spiced with the garam masala and cardamom, it was a great meal. Cornelius topped off his plate with yogurt while I went with a squeeze of lemon. What? Me worry?

chana masala
(adapted from Orangette)
2 T olive oil
1 onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, chopped
2 dried red chilis (or 1/2 t red chili flakes)
1 t cumin seeds
½ t ground ginger
2 T garam masala paste (I use Patak's brand)
3 cardamom pods, lightly crushed
1 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes
1 t kosher salt
2 cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed
lemon wedges, optional

In a large heavy pot, heat the olive oil and add in the onions. Saute over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally until the onions take on a deep caramel colour. The more colour the better here, so wait it out. Turn down the heat and add in the spices, stirring until fragrant. Add in a quarter cup of water and scrape down the bottom of the pan. Next, dump in the tomatoes and salt, turn up the heat and bring to a boil. Stir things a bit and when the mixture has reduced a bit, add in the chickpeas and bring it all down to a simmer. Cook for another 15 minutes to heat through the chickpeas and serve over rice with a squeeze of lemon (or plop on some yogurt, if that's your style). Remember, there are a few cardamom pods floating around in there, so pull them out or remember to tell your guests to watch out for them.

lemon cornmeal shortbread cookies

I know, I know...another cookie recipe. Really, if that's the worst thing in the world then I'm happy I'm living in a cookie-filled world. However, this cookie is a bit different from most cookies that I make. For one, it's got cornmeal in it which gives it an amazing sandy grit. I'm saying sandy grit and you might be thinking, uh oh, kinda weird. But it's good. Trust me. The sandy grit in your teeth is so much better than the sandy grit in your bathing suit after a day at the beach.

The second thing I love about these, it's that they are shortbread cookies. Not too sweet, slightly crumbly and I could satisfy my late night cookie craving even though I was all out of brown sugar. Oh, and they are also lemony which is always a good thing. And like all late-night cookies, they are really simple to prepare. So head on over to Poppytalk and bake up a batch.

chocolate chip maple walnut cookies

I think I have discovered my most favorite chocolate chip cookie ever. This one has it all: chocolate, nuts and that beloved chew and crisp that any true chocolate chip cookie worth its salt must have. It's perfect. Plus, it's got a nice chug of maple in there, so take that you old regular cookie! This one trumps all.

Okay, okay, I haven't made that most famous 36 hour cookie recipe yet from the New York Times, but I did try that exact cookie at a certain Seattle pizza restaurant (yup, that's the one) and still I liked this one more. Yes, really. Want to sprinkle some flaky Maldon salt over top before you bake it? Sure, go ahead because I'm going to do just that next time.

My husband claims that I am prone to exaggeration. Don't believe him. But if you doubt any of my claims, hear me out. A friend who tried these cookies on the weekend declared they were the best chocolate chip cookie she had ever had. And she said it out loud in a room full of people. So take that! If you need more convincing, they're also super easy to make. There's no fussing with sifting dry ingredients or adding in the flour at different times. Nope! No rubbish like that. If you can mix, you can have cookies in no time flat. I think I've set some weekend cookie baking in motion, haven't I? Make the people in your house happy, make yourself happy. Make a double batch.

chocolate chip maple walnut cookies
(adapted from Dinner with Julie)
1/4 c butter, softened
1 c packed brown sugar
1/4 c pure maple syrup (the good stuff!!)
1 large egg
1 t maple extract
1 1/2 c all-purpose flour
1 t baking soda
1/4 t salt
3/4 c dark chocolate chips
3/4 c chopped walnuts

Preheat oven to 350. In a large bowl, combine the butter, brown sugar, extract and maple syrup together. Add in the egg and combine until fluffy. Dump in the flour, baking soda and salt and stir until just blended before adding the chocolate chips and walnuts and stirring again. Drop by tablespoon 2 inches apart onto a parchment or silpat covered cookie sheet. Bake for 10-12 minutes until the edges are just golden. Transfer to wire rack to cool. Makes 24 cookies.