Apple Pecan Granola

Taking a break from all the bread (just for a day, I promise)! I realized I had fallen out of the habit of making granola, more due to my lack of time and organization than anything. But granola is not difficult to make! In fact, while this concoction I whipped up may have a couple odd ingredients, the method can't be simpler - one bowl, one pan, and 45 (mostly hands off) minutes is all it takes.

Granola is also incredibly versatile, as you can see by the fact I have a whole category devoted to it! So while I have kinako, hemp hearts and Kamut flakes in my pantry, feel free to swap out for ground flax or ground pecans (or just leave out the kinako), any other seed (or more pecans) and more large flake oats (or any other flaked grain). Regardless, it will be crispy, crunchy and tasting fantastic!

The only downside to this granola is that it was so good it got snapped up before I could take any sort of photo. I was so excited to gift jars of it (as always) to my friends over the holidays (yup another old post) that it was packed and dropped off before I thought of it - but all the more reason to make some more!

Apple Pecan Granola
Adapted from Chelsea's Healthy Kitchen
Makes 3 cups
1 1/2 cups large flake oats
1 cup Kamut flakes (or more large flake oats)
2 tbsp kinako (optional)
1/2 cup chopped pecans
2 tbsp hemp hearts
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup sweetened apple butter (I used homemade)
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup dried cranberries (I use the reduced sugar ones)

1. Heat the oven to 325°F (convection if you have it) and line a baking sheet with parchment.
2. In a large bowl, combine the oats, Kamut flakes, pecans, hemp hearts, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt.
3. Add the apple butter and vanilla, stirring well with a spatula (or your hands) until everything is thoroughly coated.
4. Spread onto the baking sheet and bake for 15 minutes.
5. Stir and bake a further 10-15 minutes, until toasted and beginning to really crisp up.
6. Turn off the oven and let cool inside for 15 minutes.
7. Stir in the dried cranberries and store.

KCC (Kinako Chocolate Chip) Cookies

Why not have a healthy (er) Kinako Chocolate Chip Cookie for dessert tonight? These melt in your mouth cookies get a nutty flavour and hit of protein from kinako - toasted soy flour.

It's been a while since I wrote about using one of my "secret weapon" ingredients for baking - kinako. I love it for it's nutty flavour, it's great binding ability and of course it's nutritional profile. Now that we're into the latter half of the year, I'm starting to stock my freezer with cookie doughs for holiday baking (I know... sorry), and these babies are definitely on the roster.

I couldn't resist trying these out when I found the recipe in  Kyotofu by Nicole Bermensolo - after all, who doesn't like chocolate chip cookies? Okay, I know a few people too, but most of the world enjoys them. These ones, in particular, enticed me because they relied on chopped dark chocolate for ultimate gooeyness, and were easily veganized. I also added a touch of spelt flour to the mix (as written it was only kinako and AP) and upped the kinako a bit just for flavour and texture. The resulting biscuits were chewy, just crisp on the edges, packed with chocolate and perfectly sweet. The colour was fabulous too - the perfect "sun kissed" tan - and everyone who ate my first batch raved about them.

My favourite part about this dough is that it takes well to the "slice and bake" method too - simply form into a log and wrap in waxed paper, then foil, and stash in the freezer (follow my advice on this chocolate chip cookie post for the best shaped cookies). Slice and bake as needed / wanted / craved - but you'll want to make double batches just to eat the dough itself!

Peanut Butter, Banana & Honey Granola

I've been on a granola kick again this year, using the neutral bulking properties of oats and various grains to carry the flavour I happen to be craving at the time. With treats like Blueberry Crisp and a "Southern Belle"  peach cobbler for inspiration, I turned to one of my childhood comfort foods - the peanut butter, banana and honey sandwich.

I come by my PB love honestly. My whole family is guilty of eating mass quantities of the stuff - whether it's smeared on a slab of Challah, dolloped on crackers alongside a 5-alarm chili or simply on a spoon au naturale. More than that, Dad and I ADORE the sweet and salty combination of peanut butter and honey with the sticky caramelized notes of banana. This granola is everything the sandwich is, in portable, snackable form! Perfect for the holiday rush, a baggie of this crunchy cereal is easy to tuck away into your purse or backpack, and a lot cheaper than picking up something from the mall food court. To up the decadence even more with my second batch, I tossed in some dark chocolate chips as well. Either way, it has no added oil or fat except from the peanut butter (I even used an all-natural style, which worked perfectly), is perfectly sweet without being "brush-your-teeth required", and has an added hit of satiating protein and fibre from the toasted soy flour.

Shared with Gluten Free Fridays #225

Chocolate, Caramel and Cranberry Biscotti #SundaySupper

I love making biscotti for the holidays. Not only are the recipes infinitely variable, but the cookies last ages - perfect for advance baking and last-minute entertaining! While they're not (nor will they ever be) as awesome as my mom's shortbreads, they have become one of my signature gift basket additions along with a variety of Toast Toppers and a candy or two. While most traditional recipes for the crunchy cookie sticks are built on a base of eggs, I've made my way away from using them since I never buy them (I don't eat eggs). This leaves me lots of room for playing with various egg replacers, from a starch based Homemade Egg Replacer to ground flax and chia seeds, custard powder, chickpea flour, psyllium fibre and even aquafaba.

This time around, the biscotti (which I adapted from Cookie Madness) are packed with the rich flavours of butterscotch schnapps, kinako, almonds, dark chocolate chips, cranberries and caramel bits. While eggless, the recipe isn't vegan, but it is a delectably crunchy dunker that cries out for a strong cup of coffee!

This week's #SundaySupper is focused on food gifts. I love watching the looks on people's faces when they receive a box of goodies from me - especially since they're customized for their likes / restrictions, etc. I've always believed that including at least one homemade gift makes a package more meaningful than just a shrink-wrapped item from the store, and it doesn't have to be complicated or expensive. For me, boxes of treats are what I do - it's who I am, and I've yet to hear from a recipient that a jar of jam or a square of fudge wound up in the trash!


Baked Goods

• Chocolate, Caramel and Cranberry Biscotti by What Smells So Good?
• Cinnamon and Spice Granola by Simple and Savory
• Coconut Macaroon Tarts by Asian In America
• Cranberry Coffee Cake by Food Done Light
• Mini Pumpkin Breads by That Skinny Chick Can Bake
• Snowman Poop by Palatable Pastime

 

Candy

• A Trio of Brittle by The Freshman Cook
• Grandma’s Peanut Butter Balls by Cricket’s Confections
• Homemade Peanut Brittle by A Kitchen Hoor’s Adventures
• Homemade Twix Bars by Pies and Plots
• Peanut Butter Fudge by Family Around The Table
• Superfoods Fruit & Nut Bites by My Life Cookbook
• Toffee Candied Peanuts by New South Charm
• Turron de Jijona (Spanish Soft Nougat) by Caroline’s Cooking

 

Chocolate

• Espresso Fudge by Cosmopolitan Cornbread
• Peppermint Bark Candy by Life Tastes Good
• Peppermint Bark Popcorn by A Mind “Full” Mom
• Red Wine Hot Fudge Sauce by The Crumby Cupcake

 

Jams, Syrups, Drinks

• Blood and Sand Jam by Hezzi-D’s Books and Cooks
• Creamy Lemoncello by Monica’s Table
• Homemade Hot Cocoa Mix by My Imperfect Kitchen
• Warm Gingerbread Syrup by Food Lust People Love

 

Mixes and Spices

• Cherry Almond Scone Mix by Baking Sense
• Cranberry Almond Quick Bread Mix by Cindy’s Recipes and Writings
• Lavender-infused Sugar and Lazy Shortbread by Sunday Supper Movement

Join the #SundaySupper conversation on twitter on Sunday! We tweet throughout the day and share recipes from all over the world. Our weekly chat starts at 7:00 pm ET. Follow the #SundaySupper hashtag and remember to include it in your tweets to join in the chat. To get more great Sunday Supper Recipes, visit our website or check out our Pinterest board. Would you like to join the Sunday Supper Movement? It’s easy. You can sign up by clicking here: Sunday Supper Movement.

"Doughnut Shop" Biscotti

I grew up just after the peak of the "true" doughnut shop era. You know, the time where you could walk into any coffee shop selling the slightly sweet, usually glazed pastry and be certain that a pot of boiling lard or tallow would be in the back, creating rings of perfectly light, crisp and ever so slightly greasy perfection ideal for tossing in spiced sugar and serving up in a paper bag. In my childhood, there were a handful of these gems around that I had the fortune of visiting maybe five or six times - and the experience and flavour memory I had of those special trips has stuck with me for decades.

Of course, none of these "real" doughnut shops would have dreamed of serving biscotti - let's face it, most of them barely served anything you could even call coffee (unless bitter, scalding water is your brew of choice). Instead, they prided themselves on freshly fried pastry made daily - sometimes every few hours - to keep up with demand. Coffee was something you could do at home.

Today, the tables have turned - you're likely to find much better coffee in the shops, but thanks to doughnut shops turning into chain franchises demanding consistency it's rare that you'll ever get a truly fresh cruller, bismarck or cake ring anymore. Instead, these (along with all the other sweets and breads) come in par-baked and frozen, ready for last minute finishing and glazing, or else ship in completely done and ready to sell. Of the latter category, biscotti are by far the most successful items. After all, you can't really make a dense, hard cookie taste or feel any more dried out! Since both my Italian stepfamily and a large contingent of my friends love my homemade biscotti, and I have a longtime love of the "old fashioned" style doughnuts, I figured I would try to blend the two. The secret to my success lay in using home-rendered tallow, which added an ever-so-slightly savoury edge, and tossing in both a heady dose of nutmeg and ground espresso beans for that "cafe" nuance in the back of your mouth. A drizzle of icing capped things off, and they were ready to be packaged for the office - still fresher than the box of doughnuts sharing the table!

Pumpkin Date Bars #creativecookieexchange

It's Fall, so it must be pumpkin season!

Unlike most of my family, I am not a devoted fan of pumpkin pie, cake, cookies or muffins. The flavour of the squash, as well as its scent while baking, are rather off-putting to me on their own, and the flavour, to quote some adorable rodents, is "squishy nothing".

However, the merits of the squash are not all lost on me... when added to another flavourful ingredient - say, apple butter, maple syrup or dates - pumpkin puree becomes the perfect flavour vehicle, adding bulk and moisture without any untoward flavours of its own. In fact, over the years I've become well known in the family for churning out a mean apple butter-pumpkin pie, made with tofu instead of eggs for extra creaminess and far less risk of cracking with the heat of the oven (it's also my secret for cheesecake), and I've done similar combinations in my Home Ec classes where some of the kids are leery of the "traditional" custard filling.

This year, in addition to my (now) classic pie, I whipped up a bake-sale-worthy pan of these autumn-flavoured crumb bars. The base and topping is rich with butter and brown sugar, with a perfect texture from the oats and kinako, and reminds me 100% of my mom's apple squares. To temper the richness, I opted for a not-too-sweet filling of pureed dates, pure pumpkin ppuree, apple juice and a touch of stevia. Even without the stevia, the mixture was plenty sweet enough - and depending on your dates you might not need any added sweetness at all (I used Chinese red dates, which aren't super-sweet, but if you used Medjool you would definitely want to taste the filling pre-stevia).

It's time for this month's Creative Cookie Exchange! One of the best things about fall--in addition to sweaters and football--is all of the delightful seasonal themes that come to mind for baking. Pumpkin, apples, late summer and early fall harvest, Halloween, Thanksgiving…. They are all fun and delicious to play around with, so check out what we have for you this month!

You can also use us as a great resource for cookie recipes. Be sure to check out our Pinterest Board and our monthly posts (you can find all of them here at The Spiced Life). You will be able to find them the first Tuesday after the 15th of each month! Also, if you are looking for inspiration to get in the kitchen and start baking, check out what all of the hosting bloggers have made:

• Apple Cranberry Crumble Bars from All That’s Left Are The Crumbs
• Pecan Pie Thumbprints from Oven Delights
• Pumpkin Date Bars from What Smells So Good?
• Momofuku Corn Cookies from Food Lust People Love
• Apple Cider Cookies with Maple Frosting from 2 Cookin Mamas
• Maple Cookies from A Baker’s House
• Caramel Apple Shortbread Cookies from Karen’s Kitchen Stories
• Pecan Butter Cookies from Basic N Delicious
• Caramelized Apple Oatmeal Cookies from A Shaggy Dough Story
• Apple and oat cookies from Flours and frostings
• Spiked Oatmeal Apple Cookies from The Spiced Life

Pumpkin Spice Raisin Bread with Kinako #BreadBakers

Fall has arrived, and with it the inevitable onslaught of all things pumpkin spice (including guinea pigs!). Ironically, I've always loved the flavours in the traditional spice blend, but never liked overly "pumpkin-flavoured" things (pancakes being an exception. Those are delicious). Also, while I will gladly nurse a mug of black PS flavoured coffee, you won't find me fighting over a latte anytime soon either. Give me the spices straight!

So, when it came time for this month's Bread Baker's challenge, I was glad to see we had the option of using either pumpkin or pumpkin spice, as well as a combination of the two. I'm putting off buying any tins of the stuff until right before (Canadian) Thanksgiving, when I make pie for Dad - and I might not even need to do that since I still have some roasted pumpkin puree in the freezer from last year to use. However, I always have a full array in my spice cabinet (or cabinets - they spread over 4 shelves in 2 pantry units). Used judiciously, they perfectly accent the other rich flavours going on in this dense, hearty dough.

I started with a base of nutty kinako (toasted soy flour) and barley flour for flavour and texture, mixed with run-of-the-mill AP and vital wheat gluten for structure. To keep the works moist and soft, I poured in some local half-and-half cream and scooped in a helping of tangy Greek yogurt. Along with making the crumb supple and soft, the acidity helped break down some of the tougher fibrous bits, making for a more even-tasting crumb. A small amount of brown sugar and honey balanced out the combination, not to mention made for a gorgeous golden crust and easily toasted inner crumb. Now, I am a huge fan of raisins in my spice breads, so I wasn't shy here either. Kneading in a big handful of soft, plump raisins mixed with coarse turbinado sugar meant that each slice essentially contained little soft caramel jewels that popped sweetly with each bite.

The dough was not a high riser, and originally I though the loaf a failure. But one slice later and I was converted - this was not only delicious, but it was such a hit I've been asked to make it again and again.

Breads with Pumpkin/Pumpkin Spice:

• Almost Vegan Chocolate and Pumpkin Loaf Cake by Sizzling Tastebuds
• Brown Butter & Pumpkin Seed Scones by Food Above Gold
• Cinnamon Pumpkin Quick Bread by Food Lust People Love
• Cinnamon Spice Pumpkin Bread with Walnuts and a Trio of Frosting by Hezzi-D's Books and Cooks
• Hearty Whole Wheat Bread with Toasted Pumpkin Seeds by Karen's Kitchen Stories
• Italian Pumpkin Bread by Mayuri's Jikoni
• Lal Bhoplyachya Gharge by Sneha's Recipe
• Nutella Swirl Pumpkin Bread by Plated Cravings
• Pumpkin Bread with Cream Cheese Swirl by A Baker's House
• Pumpkin Cardamom Buns by Sara's Tasty Buds
• Pumpkin Chocolate Babka by House of Nash Eats
• Pumpkin Cornbread by Cindy's Recipes and Writings
• Pumpkin Dinner Rolls by A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Pumpkin Muffins with Cream Cheese Filling by Cook's Hideout
• Pumpkin Pepita Muffin Tops by A Salad For All Seasons
• Pumpkin Pie Stuffed Cinnamon Rolls by Kylee Cooks
• Pumpkin Raisin Scones by Palatable Pastime
• Pumpkin Ricotta Pull Apart Buns by Food Smart Mom
• Pumpkin Sour Cherry Sourdough Bread by A Shaggy Dough Story
• Pumpkin Spice Ale Soft Pretzels by Baking Sense
• Pumpkin Spice Raisin Bread with Kinako by What Smells So Good?
• Pumpkin Spice Swirl Quickbread by Baking in Pyjamas
• Multigrain Pumpkin Bread by Herbivore Cucina
• Two Tone Pumpkin Bread by Passion Kneaded
• Whole Wheat Pumpkin Sandwich Loaf by Gayathri's Cook Spot
• Yeasted Pumpkin Bread by Veena’s Vegnation

#BreadBakers is a group of bread loving bakers who get together once a month to bake bread with a common ingredient or theme. Follow our Pinterest board right here. Links are also updated each month on this home page. We take turns hosting each month and choosing the theme/ingredient.

Blueberry Crisp Granola

Are you all prepped for back to school season? As a teacher, this is quite possibly the busiest time of the year - even though I (and most of my colleagues) spend all summer lesson planning, preparing learning materials and generally working, it sometimes feels like we spent the season the way many people think teachers do - on the beach, drink in hand, golfing and/or generally lazing about. 

Regardless, the season of learning starts up again in a few days, bringing with it harried mornings and ever-hungry kids. Personally, I'm not one for scarfing breakfast half asleep while making sure I've got my shirt on the right way and my lunch is packed. Instead, I do what many parents at my school seem to do with their kids - packing grabbable, low-mess, low-fuss baggies of food to eat in the car. My selections range from the "weird" - baby carrots, roasted chickpeas or baked tofu - to the more "standard" - "O" cereal and sliced bananas, a crunchy mix of sweet cereal, dried cranberries and toasted, salted cashews (yes, I wash my hands before going to work!) or, when I'm good at planning ahead on the weekends, homemade granola.

What I love about granola (and I'm sure I've said this before) is that it's almost infinitely variable. I'm almost always inspired by one Toast Topper or another, fleshing out the mix with oats (usually), various grains, dried fruit, nuts and chocolate. This time around, I capitalized on the bright, Summery flavours in my Blueberry Beet Butter, eventually building up to something I could only describe as a "breakfast friendly blueberry crisp". I followed my usual procedure for making granola (simply omitting the nuts and chocolate), but amped up the sweetness of the mix with cookie butter, honey, apple juice and Golden Grahams. Even more texture (and a hint of extra protein) came via a dose of
whole grain Cream of Wheat and kinako , which along with the lemon extract helped temper any overly saccharine notes.

What emerged from the oven was a crispy, crunchy, chunky pan of light-blue tinted delight. Perfectly acceptable to eat out of hand, I also used it to fill the hollows of apple halves before baking them for an impromptu dessert, and Mom has been tossing a bit onto her oatmeal-flax-blueberry porridge in the morning for an extra boost (especially this week, when she's been busy helping both my sister and I prepare to get back to the books). At this rate, I'm not sure if it will last the week!

Maple Pecan Blueberry Bread

Well, another Olympics is in the books, and (to toot our own horn) Canada did respectably - 22 medals, 4 more than the London Games and only 3 shy of the last Winter Olympics. While I admittedly didn't watch most of the Games (not a sports person in the least), I am still immensely proud of my country and how our athletes represented the values of our nation and the Games as a whole. 

In celebration, I decided to capitalize on a few hallmarks of Canadian cuisine to make our weekly loaf of bread. First, I infused some locally made butter with a mixture of Jakemans Pure Maple Syrup and my go-to Grade B (which is now apparently called "Dark Colour and Robust Taste"). Then came the Canadian-grown whole wheat and soy flours as well as a handful of flax seed for texture. To add some fruitiness, home-dried wild blueberries peppered the dough. While not Canadian, I added some pecans to the loaf as well. My mom loves pecan butter tarts, and the occasional buttery crunch just adds extra decadence to morning toast.

Sliced, toasted and topped with butter (or almost any Toast Topper), the loaf was delicious and hearty... and just Canadian enough to be "I am Canadian" cliche. Time to break out the plaid, Mountie gear and canoes!

Mulled Wine Apple Crisps

Its funny - as the weather gets warmer and the days get longer, I've been finding myself craving warmer, spicier and more "comfort food" type dishes rather than the lighter, "brighter" fare so associated with Summer. I've always enjoyed a good, crisp salad as the basis of my lunch, but come dinner, I want the slow-cooked beans, rices, curries and soups. Dessert is no different - I've reverted to enjoying a bowl of chocolatey porridge and a warm cashew-milk mocha more than something like sorbet or my homemade tofu ice cream.

I've been missing my mom's apple desserts lately too - her Harvest Apple Squares have long since fallen off the menu (mostly due to their high sugar content, which my diabetic stepdad can't cope with), and since the family in general doesn't groove on casseroles of bottomless crisps, only the occasional pie makes it out of the freezer for our enjoyment. I used to think crisps were rather "blah" myself - preferring the hearty, buttery oat crust on the squares - but once scaling the dish into individual portions I've changed my tune. When baked in single-serving jars, not only does the combination of fruit and crumble look gorgeous, but you get more crispy bits overall - instant win! The only thing I had to tweak from my mom's "chop and drop" method of crisp making was pre-cooking the fruit slightly - and what better step could I use to really infuse some flavour?

Before I even got to the cooking step, I was faced with a small dilemma. I had bought 7 apples in preparation for making these jars of awesome, but somehow they got mixed in with "communal eating" apples in the fridge. By the time baking day arrived, my stash was down to 4 - not critical mass, but I needed something to bulk up the batch. Luckily, I had one of the most "apple" like vegetables I could think of sitting in the crisper - chayote squash. They are perfectky crisp, slightly sweet and hold their shape similarly to apples, and I knew that once they cooked together with the spices and an oaty topping nobody would be the wiser. Thinking of overall flavouring, I was mostly inspired by a small bottle of mulled apple cider left over from a weekend brunch, plus a bottle of Doppio Passo Botter Primitivo Salento IGT that I had received as a gift a while back and had never opened (I don't drink). Why not make a mulled wine and simmer the fruit in that? It would not only add a gorgeous flavour, but tint everything as well. I decided to give it a shot!

The wine, spices and a touch of sweetener smelled like all sorts of comfort and joy as it heated, which only intensified as the fruit began to cook. I wanted this filling to really be the star of the crisp after that, so instead of the usual butter/flour/oat topping, I opted for a neutral oil, two forms of oats, nutty kinako and just a touch of Truvia Brown Sugar Blend instead. Nobody noticed the difference, but everyone commented on the complexity of the filling underneath, which makes me think about trying the method again but turning the works into applesauce!

Shared with Gluten Free Fridays

Rise and Shine Power Cookies

Sometimes nothing "traditional" quite cuts it for breakfast... cereal, waffles, toast, even scrambled eggs and bacon don't seem to sit right, especially if you (like me) start work early and your digestion doesn't seem to wake up until about 10:30! Rather than packing a baggie of plain dry cereal (as a meal, mind you - I eat plenty of Nature's Path Envirokidz Cinnamon Jungle Munch® Cereal by the handful when I'm peckish), why not opt for something just as portable and convenient, yet more substantial (and definitely "sweet tooth" satisfying)?

While playing around with some of the goodies Nature's Path sent me a while ago, I came up with a cookie that, for me and many of the people I shared it with, is the perfect "bring along breakfast" solution. Normally, you'd never see a nutritionist advocating cookies for breakfast - and I'm not saying these should be for every day of the week, but having one in my lunchbox for those days when I wake up late (!) or am otherwise rushing around allows me to still have a balanced protein / complex carb meal at my leisure. Gluten and dairy free, they're also great for sharing (which is what I did at the Rise Up And Shine II Plan Canada Dance Fitness Fundraiser) last month, and my most recent experiments making them with flaxseed and Homemade Egg Replacer were successful too - meaning these could be (almost) vegan as is, and fully vegan using a vegan granola and either agave or maple syrup for the honey.

However you slice (drop?) it, these gigantic, gluten free cookies are 100% a meal in themselves - packed with vitamins, minerals, protein, fibre and healthy fats, not much in the way of added sweetener, and a delicious hearty texture from the Qi'a and Honey Almond Granola. If you're like some of my gym instructors, you'll enjoy grabbing one to eat after your sunrise bootcamp (and before your next training session), whereas sleepy-eyed students can tuck in at school while their parents nosh on their way to the office. Wherever you enjoy them, they are a delicious way to stay full and energized till lunch!  

Shared with Gluten Free Fridays

Jamaican “No-Beef” Patties #SundaySupper

Are you a sweet or a savoury pie person? If you ask me, more often than not you'll hear me wax poetic about the virtues of a perfectly balanced cherry pie, my mom's sugarless apple pastry, mincemeat tarts for my dad or even memories of my grandma's shoofly mini-pies. Obviously, I'm primed for dessert-pie territory. That said, after thinking about this week's #SundaySupper theme of "Pies - Sweet and Savoury", I realized I enjoy more savoury ones than I thought - many incarnations of cottage and tamale pie (a loose interpretation, granted), deep dish pizzas, Tourtière and Spanakopita.

I had even forgotten about one of the mainstays of my childhood excursions to the corner store after school - Jamaican Beef Patties! Perfectly packaged for on-the-go eating, flaky, spicy and just filling enough for lunch or an after school snack (if you were like me and most of my friends, who had a lunch period at 11:20AM and didn't eat dinner till 8), they were easily spied in the warming cases by their brilliant yellow pastry, the "hot" ones dotted with a single red spot you had to search for before biting into. Making them never occurred to me as a project, though, since I've always been the only one who enjoyed that level of heat, and now with my GI issues severely limiting the amount of fat I can ingest (and excluding meat entirely), any pastry concoction is basically out the window.

I love his filling over a bed of rice!

Right before Christmas last year, though, one of my students was asking me how to make them - her dad's birthday was coming up and she wanted to surprise him with patties and a birthday cake. Now, given that she was only 6, any kind of cooking in the kitchen would have to be supervised intensively, and though I planned to do an afternoon with her life on both ends got in the way. I had promised to make some, though - and in the spirit of using what I had on hand decided to make these almost 100% meat free by using the super-economical TVP I had in the pantry as a base, "fleshing" it out with broth, vegan Worcestershire and veggies and encasing it in a tallow-based pastry dough I had gleaned from an old cookbook of my mom's and spiked with curry powder and turmeric. The home-rendered tallow gave the crust the ultimate flake and just the right amount of "umami" without smelling or tasting like untrimmed steak. That said, I know now many people go about rendering beef fat for kicks at home (actually, I'm pretty sure that's just me...) but I would recommend finding quality suet or leaf lard from a butcher as a substitute, or if you wanted to make the whole recipe vegan swapping in either Earth Balance sticks or coconut oil.

Even without the pastry (which I obviously couldn't eat), the filling itself was divine - in fact better than the patties of my childhood. It's heavily dosed with allspice, thyme and Jamaican curry powder, is 100% vegan and is perfect over rice, stuffing a baked potato or mixing with roasted cauliflower. For the full monty though, nothing beats a true blue (or yellow) patty!

 

Sweet As Pie

• Apple Browned Butter Tart by The Chef Next Door
• Banana Cream Pie from Recipes Food and Cooking
• Blood Orange Pie from The TipToe Fairy
• Brown Sugar Pie from Hezzi-D's Books and Cooks
• Cherry Chocolate Brownie Pie from Sew You Think You Can Cook
• Chocolate Macadamia Nut Tart from Desserts Required
• Chocolate Pudding Pie from The Bitter Side of Sweet
• Coconut Cream Pie from Family Foodie
• Easy Lemon Pie from Basic N Delicious
• Fresh Lemon Hand Pies from From Gate to Plate
• German Sweet Chocolate Cream Pie from Meal Planning Magic
• Gluten-Free Chocolate Cherry Pie from NinjaBaker
• Gluten Free Mini Irish Cream Chocolate Mousse Pies from Cupcakes & Kale Chips
• Grapefruit Pie from Culinary Adventures with Camilla
• Homemade Oatmeal Creme Pies from Pies and Plots
• Irish Cream Coffee Mud Pie from The Crumby Cupcake
• Leaf Topped Apple Pie from That Skinny Chick Can Bake
• Magic Cookie Bar Pie from Moore or Less Cooking
• Mixed Berry Hand Pies from My Imperfect Kitchen
• No Bake Blueberry Cheesecake Pie from Feeding Big and More
• No Bake Blueberry Mini Filo-Pies from Hardly A Goddess
• No-Bake Mixed Berry Cream Cheese Tart from Magnolia Days
• Orange Meringue Pie from Cindy's Recipes and Writings
• Paifala (Samoan Pineapple Half Moon Pies) from Tara’s Multicultural Table
• Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Pie from Sweet Mornings
• Perfect Manhattan Pie from The Texan New Yorker
• Pineapple Meringue Pie from A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Quick Swiss Apple Pie from Confessions of a Cooking Diva
• Raspberry Cheesecake Pudding Pie from Flour On My Face
• Strawberry Mascarpone Tart from Taste And See

 

Mealtime Pie

• Beef & Red Wine Pie from Wholistic Woman
• Cauliflower Cheese Pie with Grated Potato Crust from Food Lust People Love
• Chard and Parsnip Galette from Caroline’s Cooking
• Chicken Tamale Pie from Rants from my Crazy Kitchen
• Cornish Pasties from Palatable Pastime
• Homity Pie (British Potato Leek Pie) from Curious Cuisiniere
• Italian Cheesy Artichoke and Asparagus Phyllo Pie from La Bella Vita Cucina
• Italian Hand Pies from Brunch-n-Bites
• Irish Shepherd's Pie from The Freshman Cook
• Jamaican “No-Beef” Patties from What Smells So Good?
• Mini Swiss Quiches from Family Around The Table
• Mushroom Swiss Quiche from Renee’s Kitchen Adventures
• Pizza Rustica from Monica’s Table
• Salmon Pot Pie from Bobbi’s Kozy Kitchen
• Savory and Spicy Mincemeat Pie from eating in instead
• Shepherd’s Pie Hand Pies from Our Good Life
• Skillet Shepherd’s Pie from Life Tastes Good
• Spaghetti Pie from Grumpy’s Honeybunch
• Spicy Korean Cottage Pie from kimchi MOM
• Taco Hand Pies from Kitchen Gidget
• Weeknight Chicken Pot Pie from Books n' Cooks

• Plus: Baked Puerto Rican Meat Pies and More Pie Recipes from Sunday Supper! Movement

Join the #SundaySupper conversation on Twitter on Sunday! We tweet throughout the day and share recipes from all over the world. Our weekly chat starts at 7 pm ET. Follow the #SundaySupper hashtag and remember to include it in your tweets to join in the chat.

To get more great Sunday Supper Recipes, visit our website or check out our Pinterest board. Would you like to join the Sunday Supper Movement? It’s easy. You can sign up by clicking here: Sunday Supper Movement.

Sticky Toffee Date and Gingerbread Granola

In the crush of computer problems, visitors, lesson planning, traveling and various pet issues with multiple vet visits (a very long, cat / rat / dog story), one thing I never got around to this season was taking many photos! Often, my smartphone was standing in place of my gorgeous (albeit bulky) point-and-shoot, and those I did take with the P&S have yet to be uploaded / edited because there's always something else in the making! That said, all horrible photos aside, the stuff that's been coming out of the oven these days has been nothing short of delicious!

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Of course, all of this is just a cover for the fact that I totally forgot to take any photos of these two amazingly hearty, chunky, stick-to-your-ribs granolas I whipped up for my Christmas boxes this year. I was definitely inspired by a few of my favourite desserts this year (as if the "Date Square" Granola wasn't enough of a hint) and quickly went about doing my "thing" with the mixes - which is to say throwing every grain and avenue of flavouring I had at them. As a result, my Sticky Toffee Date batch is definitely more on the decadent side of things, but it's also significantly higher in protein thanks to the high-protein hot cereal mix I added to the oats, ancient grains, nuts and seeds. A good dollop of date paste, date molasses and a sprinkling of toffee bits don't hurt matters in the flavour department either - and it's not like you're going to sit down to a giant bowl of this stuff every morning! Well, you might, but I'm not judging :-)

If you're on the dessert flavour train with me, but are looking for a little bit of a lighter option for your granola, the Gingerbread recipe is definitely one for you! It's packed with apple butter and pumpkin puree and gets it's sweetness from molasses and stevia - no refined sugar added! For more of a "cookie" aspect I tossed in a handful of graham cracker crumbs, which along with the instant oatmeal helped the clusters "clump" and make a truly chunky granola. A few pumpkin seeds added a little extra crunch for kicks too, and like the Sticky Toffee Date variety, I added some kinako for an extra protein and fibre boost.

So, apologies for the lack of photos, but please don't let that dissuade you from whipping up a batch or two for yourself. Who knows, it could be the kickstarter for your New Years Resolution to eat better (or at the very least, breakfast!).

Sticky Toffee Date Granola
Makes 8 cups, 16 (½ cup) servings
1 cup date paste
¼ cup date molasses or honey
1 tbsp vanilla
1 tsp butter flavour
1 tbsp butterscotch schnapps (optional but yummy!)
½ cup water
2 tbsp canola oil
½ tbsp cinnamon
¼ tsp nutmeg
Pinch of salt
2 cups large flake rolled oats
2 cups high protein hot cereal (I used Dixie Diner’s Cinnamon & Spice Low Carb Instant Hot Cereal)
⅓ cup raw millet
2 tbsp amaranth
⅓ cup shredded coconut
½ cup kinako
½ cup chopped almonds
½ cup sunflower seeds
¼ cup toffee bits
¼ cup raisins
5 dried figs, diced

1. Combine all the “wet” ingredients and seasonings (date paste through salt), then add remaining “dry” ingredients except toffee bits, raisins and figs, stirring well.
2. Bake on a lined baking sheet at 300F for 1 hour, stirring every 20 minutes or so until oats are golden. Turn off the oven and let stand inside for 15 minutes.
3. Remove from the oven and immediately stir in Skor bits, raisins and figs. Cool on the sheet.

Amount Per Serving
Calories: 320.3
Total Fat: 9.3 g
Cholesterol: 1.0 mg
Sodium: 321.7 mg
Total Carbs: 44.5 g
Dietary Fiber: 9.7 g
Protein: 17.6 g

 
Gingerbread Granola
Makes ~ 9 ½ cups, 19 (½-cup) servings
⅓ cup pumpkin puree
½ cup apple butter
2 tbsp canola oil
2 tbsp molasses (not blackstrap)
¼ tsp liquid stevia
¼ tsp salt
¼ tsp cinnamon
2 tsp ginger
¼ tsp nutmeg
¼ tsp cloves
½ tbsp vanilla
1 ½ cups large flake rolled oats
½ cup instant oats
⅓ cup graham cracker crumbs (Mary's Gone Crackers makes a refined-sugar free graham!)
½ cup kinako
3 tbsp millet
½ cup toasted pumpkin seeds

1. Combine all the “wet” ingredients and seasonings (pumpkin puree through vanilla), then add remaining “dry” ingredients, stirring well.
2. Bake on a lined baking sheet at 300F for 1 hour, stirring every 20 minutes or so until oats are golden. Turn off the oven and let stand inside for 30 minutes.
3. Remove from the oven and cool completely on the sheet

Amount Per Serving
Calories: 93.7
Total Fat: 2.8 g
Cholesterol: 0.0 mg
Sodium: 46.7 mg
Total Carbs: 14.6 g
Dietary Fiber: 1.6 g
Protein: 3.1 g

Mini Tourtières

Our family has a few holiday traditions - a big brunch with Mom's infamous Holiday Brioche and Challah taking centre stage, dancing with the turkey and of course as many batches of shortbreads as humanly possible before school starts again in January. Over the years we've added the Italian Feast of the Seven Fishes on Christmas Eve to the docket, too. My own "traditions" during the season involve making granola and biscotti to go into the gift boxes I give in lieu of purchased gifts, and this year I added a new one - homemade freezer meals for both my grandmother and a friend to enjoy in the New Year.

I've always associated meat tarts like Scotch pie and French-Canadian tourtière with spending weekends at my grandma's house - it seemed like that was our go-to dinner at least one night, usually paired with carrots, peas or a salad. It has been ages since I've broken into the flaky shell of one to enjoy the flavourful, spiced meat filling - not only because of my own food restrictions but simply because making them is a process not fit for a fast weeknight dinner. Since it is Christmastime, though, and tourtière is one of the traditional francophonie holiday meals, I decided I'd make some (smaller sized) pastries for grandma to enjoy.

Ironically, these pot pies actually contain no meat at all! With the economic crunch yet again putting strain on the food budgets everywhere, even the cheapest ground meats are getting ridiculously expensive. Our family as a whole has been eating less animal protein and more vegetarian options like lentils, beans and eggs - and in things like chili, bolognese sauce and shepherds pie, we're stretching the meat with TVP. Some foodies will turn their noses up at this, but when soaked in a flavourful liquid (or simply added to the stew or sauce) it's almost indistinguishable - and the same case goes for these tourtières. Not only is the basic recipe spiced well originally, but by combining "unbeef" broth, tamari, vegan Worcestershire sauce and red wine with the vegetable crumbles the umami flavour really shines through and the texture is dead-on. All that was left is to add were the traditional herbs and spices, grated potatoes and onion - and for a festive twist, a shot of cognac too!

Finally, I thickened the works with some kinako from our Asian market, since we were sorely lacking crackers in any form for the traditional binder.

Whether you're looking to save a little money this season or are simply trying to reduce the meat you eat, these little 2-serving pies are a great option. Make a batch on the weekend and freeze for later - just pull one out to thaw overnight and bake, covered, at 350F for 20 minutes.

Kitchen Sink Bread (#BreadBakers)

I love days where I can get into the kitchen with a box of odds and ends, a bag (or four) of flour and a jar of yeast, using up a chunk of the morning or early afternoon to mix, knead, shape and bake a crusty loaf or two of hearty, nourishing bread to nosh on when I need a taste of wholesome comfort food. Bread is one of those perfect "all purpose" recipes - not just because it is infinitely variable in its composition, design and flavour, but because the first bite of a hand made slice can instantly transport you to another time and place. While my mom only ever made bread at the holidays from what I can recall, baking for her now somehow makes me feel closer to her and my grandfather (who was an excellent, and frequent, bread baker himself). I never try my hand at our holiday filled brioche or challah alone though - the magic lives within my mom still, and while she is slowly passing it along to me it will be a lifelong tutelage.

Regardless, my work in the bread kitchen, even when it doesn't take any true effort, is always rewarding. While the recent purchase of a new oven (the temperature gauge on the old one finally went, and a replacement was unavailable) has thrown me a new learning curve in terms of rejigging baking times and temperatures (especially since the new one has True Convection), the loaves I've churned out so far have almost always been edible - if not delicious.

Sometimes the resulting loaves are worthy of a second make, as with this rather rough "throw it all in" dough that basically came about how I described my breadmaking above - the dumping of the dregs of various grain and flour bins into a bowl to form a hearty, semi-enriched dough just right for both toast and straight up with any number of Toast Toppers. The first round, I made one loaf packed with sweet, home-dried cherries, cranberries and blueberries and left the other one au naturale, but the fruity one went so fast that I made the recipe again, doubling the fruit so that both loaves got equal treatment (a fact that is reflected in the recipe below).

Our #BreadBakers theme this month is Whole Grains, and with the plethora of them in this loaf I feel right at home with the host of other delights on offer! Check out everybody's goodies below and don't forget to say hi!



Blueberry Banana Oat Bread from Hezzi-D's Books and Cooks
Bublik - Russian Bagels from Sara's Tasty Buds
Bulgur Wheat Bread from Food Lust People Love
Cilantro and Garlic Oat Bread from Simply Veggies
Corn Pizza on Multigrain Crust from Cook's Hideout
Gluten Free Honey Oat Bread from A Day in the Life on the Farm
Kitchen Sink Bread from What Smells So Good?
Multigrain Country Bread from La cocina de Aisha
Potato Whole Wheat Dinner Rolls from Passion Kneaded
Rosemary, Garlic, and Parsley Whole Wheat Bread from Karen's Kitchen Stories
Tomato and Rosemary Einkorn Focaccia Rounds from A Shaggy Dough Story
Whole Grain Maple Oat Scones from Cali's Cuisine
Whole Grain Oatmeal Blueberry Banana Bread from Hezzi-D's Books and Cooks
Whole Grain Zucchini Macadamia Bread from The Schizo Chef
Whole Wheat English Muffins from Spill the Spices
Whole Wheat Date Nut Bread from Magnolia Days
Whole Wheat Naan from Spiceroots

#BreadBakers is a group of bread loving bakers who get together once a month to bake bread with a common ingredient or theme. You can see all our of lovely bread by following our Pinterest board right here. Links are also updated after each event on the #BreadBakers home page. We take turns hosting each month and choosing the theme/ingredient. If you are a food blogger and would like to join us, just send an email with your blog URL to foodlustpeoplelove@gmail.com.

Banana Power Bars

With the recent heat wave, I've been finding it less and less appealing to have a hot, hearty breakfast before work. My normal oatmeal routine - which I'm pretty stuck on, even in most Summer situations - seems like just a bit too much these days, and since my schedule allows for a little more time at the gym (my third home, after work!) a heavier meal just doesn't sit well.

That said, having a nutritious, balanced breakfast any time of the year or day of the week is important, and even more so if you're on the go. I came up with these portable, decadent-tasting bars packed with protein and fibre so that I'd be able to eat after Zumba, on the way to work or simply when the thought of turning on the stove in the morning was anything but appealing. They're also deceptively moist and tender (almost like a brownie) for being low fat, and the flavour is akin to banana bread! How can you go wrong?

My "secret success" ingredients this go-around were my new favourite flour - kinako - ground tiger nuts and vital wheat gluten. Why can't we have our snacks and eat them this bikini season too?

Multigrain Twist Bread - #BreadBakers

Given how much bread is consumed in our household, it's rare that I ever really get to spend time churning out decorative or lengthy preparation loaves during the school year. Now that we're in the throes of Summer vacation (though granted, I'm still working at our Summer School until August), a small but workable window of extra time has opened up it's arms to me, allowing me the opportunity to garden, read, (start) typing up some long overdue cookbook reviews, begin this year's canning projects and - yes - even bake bread. With our latest major purchase (a convection hybrid oven) sitting primed for action in the kitchen, I've been itching to test out it's bells and whistles!

This loaf looks impressive and tastes even better, but is extraordinarily simple to put together. Thanks to a hefty dose of half and half, the crumb is melt-in-your-mouth tender even though it's 100% whole grain. For a little extra texture, flavour and protein, a bit of toasted soy flour and a hot "cereal" mix of quinoa, amaranth, buckwheat and chia seeds were added to the basic flour/yeast mixture, followed by extra crunch and sweetness from granola. Finally, the whole dough twists into a swirl that fits perfectly in a loaf pan, giving it both an appealing look and a practical form for slicing and toasting!

The #BreadBakers are all about baking with oats this month! Oats of any kind: rolled, flour, steel cut, or quick cooking are all fair game, as well as the overall type of bread - sweet, savoury, quick or yeasted! This go-round is hosted by Kids and Chic. Thanks!


Oatmeal Bread themed #BreadBakers:

• Agave Oatmeal Sour Dough Bread from My Catholic Kitchen
• Applesauce Oatmeal Bread from Hostess at Heart
• Banana Oatmeal Loaf from Basic N Delicious
• Blueberry Currant Oatmeal Bread from Cindy's Recipes and Writings
• Cinnamon Raisin Oatmeal Bread from Karen's Kitchen Stories
• Honey Oatmeal Bread from A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Honey-Oatmeal Muffins from A Baker's House
• Honey Oats Bread Loaf from Gayathri's Cook Spot
• Honey Nut Oatmeal Waffles from Magnolia Days
• Honey Wheat Oat Bread from Hezzi-D's Books and Cooks
• Irish Oat and Whole Wheat Bread from Cali's Cuisine
• Lemon Blueberry Oat Bread from Kids & Chic
• Multigrain Twist Bread from What Smells So Good?
• Oat Breadsticks from Passion Kneaded
• Oatmeal and Whole Wheat Rolls from Sneha's Recipe
• Oatmeal Buttermilk Bread from Ruchik Randhap
• Oatmeal Porridge Sandwich Loaf from Bakers and Best
• Oatmeal Stout Loaf from Food Lust People Love
• Oat & Honey Bread from La Cocina de Aisha
• Oats and Millet Idli from Spice Roots
• Oats Garlic Kulcha from SimplyVeggies
• Peanut Butter and Chocolate Chips Oatmeal Scones from G'Gina's Kitchenette
• Rolled Oat Sourdough Boule from A Shaggy Dough Story
• Savory Oats Scones from Sara's Tasty Buds
• Triple Seeded Oat Bread from Culinary Adventures with Camilla
• Whole Wheat Honey Oatmeal Bread from Spill the Spices

Gluten Free Protein Power Cookies

I don't know about you, but at about 5PM on Wednesdays I hit my weekly "wall". You know it too - that point where you simply start "existing" day to day just to get a few moments of downtime on the weekend away from the bustle of work meetings, bills to pay, files to send and generally draining weekday stuff. My colleagues, by and large, hit the same wall around this time of the week too - especially near the end of term where the last place anybody (child or adult) wants to be is inside and tempers and stress levels run high. Needless to say, by the time I crash through the door after work (usually about 6PM) I'm grumpy and tired. When I was in college, you could add "ravenous" to that list too - but thankfully I've begun planning ahead and packing "car snacks" like fruit, veggie sticks and these nutrient-rich cookies so that now when I come home I no longer feel the need to reach for the first thing I find in the fridge. The second thing, maybe (kidding, but I do go for a snack right before I get home to stave off pre-dinner nibbles).

So, whether you're a busy teacher, a cramming student, the 5AM gym rat I used to be, a busy parent shuttling the kids to dance-soccer-piano-karate or simply someone needing a sweet, nutritious protein and energy boost mid afternoon, these slightly crispy, slightly chewy chocolate chunk cookies fit the bill! Using ground TVP adds a boost of fibre, protein and iron as well as a toasty, nutty flavour and extra binding power (see below for alternates), while the golden syrup adds a touch of chew and the chocolate chunks add sheer decadence. As a bonus, they're gluten free - and easy to modify for dairy and egg allergies too by swapping the butter for coconut oil or Earth Balance and the egg for 2 tbsp extra flaxseed meal or Homemade Egg Replacer.

Shared with Gluten Free Fridays and Waste Not Want Not Wednesday