Category Archives: baking

Camping: S’more Goodness

21 Tuesday Jun 2011

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The first campfire of the season along with the first roasted hot dogs, marshmallows, and the best of all – s’mores.  Make sure you watch the video below!

I decided to see what was said about s’mores on the internet.  Here is Wikipedia’s definition of a S’more and where they might have originated from.  You can decide whether it is true or not (where they originated that is.  They have the definition pretty bang on – except for variations that people have created over the years.  You will see ours later in the blog.)







Definition:
A s’more (sometimes spelled smore) is a traditional nighttime campfire treat popular in the United States and Canada,[1] consisting of a roasted marshmallow and a layer of chocolate sandwiched between two pieces of graham cracker.  

Etymology and Origins:
S’more appears to be a contraction of the phrase, “some more”. While the origin of the dessert is unclear, the first recorded version of the recipe can be found in the publication “Tramping and Trailing with the Girl Scouts” of 1927.[3] The recipe is credited to Loretta Scott Crew, who reportedly made them by the campfire for the Scouts.[4] It is unknown whether the Girl Scouts were the first to make s’mores, but there appears to be no earlier claim to this snack. Although it is unknown when the name was shortened, recipes for “Some Mores” are in various  Girl Scout publications until at least 1971.


Recipe to make the perfect S’More
Watch the video and see for yourself!  Enjoy!  Be sure to attend at least one camp fire this summer and be sure to try out this s’more goodness recipe to have the perfect s’more every time!  Your friends will be amazed!  

By the way, don’t be too nervous about balancing the s’more on the end of the stick (necessary to have a two pronged stick for this!).  Be careful when you take  off the s’more … it’s hot.  We had a drop because of this.  I am happy to say while balancing and roasting the s’more we had none fall in the fire.  If you do not have a steady hand, find someone at your camp fire who does!  

 hile these S’mores were not made while camping, it is a camping must, so it is now part of the Series: Camping.  Check out more posts on camping here.

Nothing Like a Good Banana Bread Gone Healthy

02 Sunday Jan 2011

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I love Banana Bread.  For some reason I don’t have a recipe for it.  Banana Muffins, yes, but not bread.  I’m sure they are similar, but I thought I would find a recipe for it anyway.  I ventured to my favourite online spot right now to find a recipe.  www.allrecipes.com  And of course I try to make my baking a bit healthier.

From the recipe I found and people’s comments and my own substitutions, here is what I came up with:

Ingredients

1/2 C    margarine, softened
1/2 C    brown sugar
1/2 C    white sugar
2 eggs
3 bananas mashed
1/2 tsp   vanilla
pinch of cinnamon
1 3/4 C  whole wheat flour
1/4 C     ground flax seed
1 tsp      flour

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (My oven is hot so I cooked it at 300).  Grease and flour one 9×5 pan.
2. Cream together margarine and sugar until smooth.  Beat in eggs, vanilla, cinnamon, and bananas.
3. Add flour and soda, stirring just until combined.
4. Pour into prepared pan and bake at 350 F for 40 – 60 min (depending on your stove, mine took 50 min at 300) or until toothpick comes out clean.  Remove from pan and let cool, store in refrigerator or freeze.


Changes for Next Time
I might try only 1 1/2 C of flour to see if it will be a bit more moist or take it out 5 min earlier.  It is not too dry, but not as moist as most banana breads.  I did read in someone’s they left out some flour and didn’t cook it as long, so that is what I will try.  Also, since it is whole wheat flour and has flax seed you probably don’t need as much flour.


The Verdict
I will definitely make this Banana Bread again.  It is tasty.  I enjoy it and it’s a bit healthier now than the original recipe.  Any suggestions for replacing the sugar?


Christmas Cooking

27 Monday Dec 2010

Posted by in baking, Cooking

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I love Christmas food!  Particularly Christmas dinner!  I made dinner on Boxing day.  We had friends from church join us.  It was a wonderful meal and a wonderful time with good friends. 

The turkey turned out to be wonderful.  I put the turkey in at around 8am and took it out around 12 noon.  I cooked it in a bag.  It is so much easier this way, except you do not get as many drippings.  It is cleaner.  You just throw out the bag after and it does not take as long to cook.  The meat was falling off the bone.  Wonderful!

Hot steaming turkey with dressing! 
I didn’t think that there was enough drippings to make gravy, but I tried it anyway and it turned out perfect!  My Daddy taught me well! 
Gravy


I also made Apple Pie and Rhubarb Custard Tarts.  I don’t make pie very often because the crust is not easy to make, but it turned out great!  I think the more I make crust the easier it will become.  I guess I have to make it more than two or three times a year.  My Mom told me the secret to a good pie crust when she gave me her apple pie recipe.  I would tell you, but then it wouldn’t be a secret anymore.  This is one recipe that I will not be sharing! Some things you need to keep in the family. 

Santa Says:  “Don’t Eat My Pie!”
We also had masshed potatoes, carrots, squash, and coleslaw.  We enjoyed some homeade pickles, relish, and beets that my cousin made.  We ended dinner with our pie and tarts followed by a great game of Phase 10. 
Our Christmas dinner brought back good memories growing up with my family.  Now I am forming new memories with my fiance and remembering the old ones.  What will Christmas look like next year?  I don’t know but hopefully surrounded by people I care about a traditional Christmas dinner and apple pie.  

It doesn’t always turn out!

27 Wednesday Oct 2010

Posted by in baking

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Cooking.  I love to cook and for the most part what I make is good!  I enjoy my food.  But I made something new and it didn’t quite taste great.  Butternut Squash Soup.  I’m doing a little more cooking with different kinds of squash like spaghetti squash and now butternut squash and soon acorn squash.  I never knew all these different types of squash existed!   I didn’t like squash as a kid, no matter how much brown sugar Dad put in the mashed up squash.  Maybe that’s why it didn’t turn out so good.

I followed the recipe except I had some asparagus so I added that in.  Maybe that is what made the difference.  Even the fiance didn’t care for it too much and he loves food.  After he had it I knew it wasn’t just me!  We had a little bit of it and then went out.  When I got back I decided to heat it up and add some brown sugar.  My Dad put brown sugar in his squash so maybe that will work.  Or wait, now that I think about it was it turnip?  Either way I didn’t like either vegetable.  Ok, back to the soup.  I didn’t have a bowl of it, but I did try some on a spoon.  It seemed to bring out the taste a little more.  It still isn’t a favourite and won’t make it into my personal cookbook.  I’m going to have it for lunch today and see if I change my mind, but I highly doubt it.

Maybe if you are a squash loving person you would love the soup!  Here is the recipe if you want to try it out:

Butternut Squash Bisque


  • 1 tablespoon canola oil
  • 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
  • 1/2 cup diced onion
  • 3/4 cup diced carrots
  • 4 cups peeled and cubed butternut squash
  • 3 cups vegetable stock
  • salt and ground black pepper to taste
  • ground nutmeg to taste
  • 1/2 cup heavy cream (optional)


  1. Heat the oil and melt the butter in a large pot over medium heat. Cook and stir the onion in the butter and oil under tender.
  2. Mix the carrots and squash into the pot. Pour in vegetable stock, and season with salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer until vegetables are tender.
  3. In a blender or food processor, puree the soup mixture until smooth. Return to the pot, and stir in the heavy cream. Heat through, but do not boil. Serve warm with a dash of nutmeg.

Things I changed:
I used Olive Oil instead of canola and butter.  I baked the squash first.  It is really hard to cut when it is raw.  Others on the site that I got the recipe recommended doing this.  I didn’t have nutmeg.  I also used a little bit of skim milk instead of heavy cream.  Others recommended not using the cream or using 1/2 and 1/2.  I also added asparagus (not recommended).

Maybe I should give it a second chance without the asparagus.  What do you think? 

For more great recipes visit http://www.allrecipes.com


Today I am going to try making Honey & Orange Glazed Chicken.  It looks very tasty. 

Healthy Food & Recipes

27 Tuesday Jan 2009

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* Note – blue notes are new on June 4, 2011 *


Ok, so I have been reading this book called the GI Diet…I actually have the clinic workbook and they have some recipes in the back that I finally tried! You can find out more about the diet at
www.gidiet.com

So the first one is for wonderfu Oatmeal Buttermilk Pancakes and the other is for Apple Bran Muffins. You know how sometimes you eat something that has the word oatmeal or bran in it and it is so dry and just tastes way to healthy!? Well, these taste healthy, but they actually taste really good! I have made the pancakes a few times and make them a nice size so that I can freeze them and then pop them in the toaster for breakfast. Let me tell you, two of these pancakes and some fruit for breakfast and you won’t be hungry until lunch time!! The muffins are pretty filling as well. I highly recommend you try at least one of these recipes out!

Oatmeal Buttermilk Pancakes

3/4 cup large flake oats
2 cups buttermilk
1 cup whole wheat flour
1/4 cup wheat bran or ground flaxseed (I make them with wheat bran) * I only use ground flaxseed now
1 tbsp splenda or sugar alternative * I use honey instead of splenda or sugar
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup liquid egg (or one large egg -I use O3 eggs) * I use 2 eggs of any colour and size
2 tbsp canola oil * I use olive oil
1 tsp vanilla * I ran out and tried with 1/2 tsp of almond extract – very tasty

1 – Soak oats in buttermilk for 20 min in a bowl
2 – In anther bowl, combine dry ingrediants
3- In another bowl, combine oil, vanilla, and egg
4 – mix oats and wet ingrediants together
5 – Pour oat mixture over dry ingrediants and mix * if you let the mix sit for a few minutes before you make them they tend to be a bit fluffier.  
6 – Heat non-stick griddle or pan over medium heat. When warm laddle 1/4 cup batter in pan
7 – Spray pan with cooking spray after each pancakes is cooked so they won’t stick (added by me)
8 – Cook until bubles on top approx. 2 min on both sides or golden.

Makes 16 pancakes – 4 – 6 servings.

Tips: Ok, you do need to spray the pan with cooking oil or they tend to stick. Do not make them too big, especially if you want to heat them up in the toaster later. They are not intended to make big pancakes. I’ve only ever gotten about 14 pancakes. I eat them with unsweetened apple sauce or peanut butter and honey. Pure maple syrup would also be all right.  * If you are using a non-stick griddle you do not need anything on the pan first.  If you follow the recipe with the changes that are in blue you will get a wonderful pancake!  I’ve made them for others many times and they love them.  I make them on the weekend and then toast them throughout the week for breakfast.  Lately I have been eating them with pure maple syrup since I have it in the house!  Delicious!  

 Mmmmm……



Apple Bran Muffins 
* I haven’t made these in so long!  I forgot the recipe was on here!  
3/4 cup all-bran cereal
1 cup skim milk
2/3 cup whole wheat flour
1/3 cup splenda or other sugar allternative
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp ground allspice
1/2 tsp ground cloves
1 1/4 cups oat bran or wheat bran (I have only tried with wheat bran)
2/3 cup raisins
1 large apple
1 Omega 3 egg
2 tsp canola oil
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce

1 – pre-heat ovent to 350 – place large paper cups in muffin tin
2 – combine cerial and milk and let stand for a few min
3 – combine dry ingrediants and apple (cut into 1/4 or smaller pieces)
4 – combine wet ingredians with ceral mix, then combine with dry ingrediants
5 – spoon into paper cups
6 – bake until lightly browned, about 20 min.

Tips: It is a thick mixture when you are ready to put into paper cups. You can fill them 3/4 way because they do not rise very high. That’s all!

Well, I hope you like the recipes. Let me know what you think of them if you make them! I’d be glad to hear about it. Or if you have recipes that you love, please feel free to share them! I love cooking and I love recipes! If you send me a recipe let me know if I can post it on my blog for others to enjoy!

Happy Cooking,
Jackman