Whole Wheat Hokkaido Milk Bread and #TheGivingPlate

Hokkaido Milk Bread is given a whole wheat twist in this recipe, which stays incredibly soft and moist thanks to lots of cream, milk and eggs!

I love making bread, and it's no secret that I love trying new recipes almost every time I bake it. I've always been tantalized by Hokkaido style bread because of it's impossibly soft and tender texture, but the effort that goes into making the tangzhong (not much I know) just put me off of it. Bread making tome is supposed to be cathartic and by feel, not fussy about temperatures. Anyways, I finally came across a straight-dough Hokkaido bread that maintains it's super-soft texture thanks to a multitude of cream and milk, and decided to adapt it to a whole wheat version since that's what we eat around here!

In addition to boosting the fibre (and flavour) of my loaves with whole wheat flour,  I also filled each of the "rolls" in the loaf with sesame seeds for added crunch! What dough I had left over (it made just a bit too much for my loaf pans) I filled with cinnamon and sugar instead of sesame seeds for a sweet treat. Like everything I bake, the rolls are perfect sharing, and to pass them on I used a lovely "giving plate" that I received from the people at Precious Moments.

The script on the plate is gorgeous and is a lovely poem in itself:

“Celebrate life’s precious moments with FAMILY and FRIENDS

Enjoy the gifts on this plate and the LOVE it sends

To make sure the GIVING never ends

Fill it up pass it on and watch how JOY transcends!”

In addition, the slightly beveled edge keeps treats on the plate without unduly tilting them, which is great for frosted cupcakes or round items like truffles. On the back is an inscription detailing how the plate is helping the community (see below). It would make a wonderful housewarming or hostess gift and is meant to be passed from person to person. I'm looking forward to seeing where this plate travels to!

From Precious Moments:

This year, with the Precious Moments Giving Plate, start a new holiday tradition that will last for many years to come. A giving plate is filled with goodies and given as a gift to a friend or family member. But this is just the start of the journey because the recipient then refills the plate and gives it to yet another friend. As the plate travels from home to home between family and friends, blessings are shared again and again. In a way, the beautiful journey of a giving plate never really ends.

Along with the heartwarming feelings inspired by the giving plate, the pure joy of charitable giving will inspire your loved ones each and every time they exchange this beautiful gift. From July 15, 2018 through December 31, 2020, Precious Moments will donate 5% of the sales price of each Giving Plate to Feed the Children. These donations are used to help eradicate childhood hunger and create a healthy foundation for children and families to break the cycle of poverty.

Find the Giving Plate here

Guest Post #infographic: Gluten Free Halloween Candy for 2018

With Halloween coming up quickly, and candy sales rampant in almost every store you walk into, navigating the holiday with food allergies, intolerances or other restrictions can be tough. For kids going trick-or-treating, restricted diets often result in their haul being carted away and replaced with home-made or "safe" snacks. However, for those with celiac or who are gluten free for other reasons, there are many options available! The kind folks at Dentably Magazine sent me this infographic, updated for 2018, featuring the gluten-free-friendly treats you can enjoy worry-free this Halloween.

This is a sponsored post.

Apple Crisp for One

Apple Crisp for One is buttery, sweet and full of apple-y goodness, all while being gluten free!

 

Happy Canadian Thanksgiving to everyone! While today I am deliberately doing no cooking (the kitchen has been usurped in favour of turkey / stuffing / potatoes, etc), I did have a chance to whip up a few little Thanksgiving-y desserts. The first round of baking featured mini-versions of my "famous" apple butter pumpkin pie - one for yesterday's feast with Dad, the other for my boyfriend's mom. Now, I'm really not a fan of pumpkin pie at all (yeah yeah, I know), my mom's apple pie has always been the perfect ending to fall dinners. She doesn't add sugar, uses a simple, shortening-based crust, and packs each pie with as many apples as she can fit. 

That said, while tonight will feature mom's signature pie, not everyone is a fan of the dessert. The boyfriend (A) is one person who doesn't enjoy pie crust, and loves his fillings sticky-sweet. So, instead of leaving him dessert-less this holiday, yesterday I whipped up an apple crisp perfect for one, fitting neatly into a little stoneware ramekin. While the methodology of crisp-making remained the same, I added a few little flairs of my own. First, since A is lactose intolerant, I used a fantastic lactose free butter I found - it tasted like European style cultured butter but wasn't labeled as such. The second thing I did was to change up the filling a bit. Instead of your standard sugar-flour combination, I used honey, cornstarch, a pinch of nutmeg and a dash of vanilla. Finally, I bumped up the protein in the "crisp" portion by swapping out the all-purpose flour for red lentil flour that I had ground in my Mockmill - it adds no taste, but adds a lovely colour and extra nutrition.

At any rate, this apple crisp is a satisfying, early-fall comfort food that not only is perfect for Thanksgiving dessert but even a decadent breakfast! What is your favourite fall dessert? Comment below!

Homemade Banana-Oatmeal Meal Replacement Shake

Sometimes we just don’t have the time to prepare a healthy breakfast or lunch. We could grab a snack and go but within an hour, those hunger cravings are sure to pop up. Furthermore, if it’s a processed snack, chances are you’re just taking in a bunch of empty calories or excess sodium and saturated fats.

Meal replacement shakes pack all the nutrition you need for an energetic day, but they are drinkable, quick, tasty AND they keep you full for hours!

The following is an example of a nutritious and easy to make meal replacement shake, including why it’s so great for keeping hunger cravings at bay.

Beetroot Cranberry Conserve

Beetroot Cranberry Conserve is tangy, sweet and slightly earthy, not to mention a brilliant colour! A nice Chianti makes it a little savoury, perfect for the holidays.

It's almost Thanksgiving weekend here in Canada - where the heck did September go? While my mom is stocking up on turkey, stale bread, potatoes and lots of butter, I took on the task of making one of the cult favourite condiments on every holiday table - cranberry sauce.

What emerged from my kitchen last year - and soon to be this year as well - is a delicious sweet-tangy conserve with a hint of savoury flavour, but I do hesitate to really call it a cranberry sauce. For one, the only cranberries in this recipe are dried (although they were unsweetened) - the brilliant ruby colour is the result of heirloom beets from my garden and a glug or two of red wine. For added body and cohesion, I used apples (of which we always have a ton of this time of year). Of course, many of the standard "holiday" seasonings found their way into the pot, including the zest and juice of a blood orange. Taste tests along the way were quite rewarding, and leftovers that didn't fit in either the canning jars or the sauce bowl were eaten by house guests on crackers with cheese.

Speaking of canning, I highly recommend making at least this one batch, if not two, and preserving half for Christmas season. That way, you have a side dish done and you don't need to take up another stove burner in the middle of holiday feast-making!

Beetroot Cranberry Conserve
Makes 32 fl oz, 32 (2 tbsp) servings
3 apples, peeled and diced
1 lb (about 5 small) beets, peeled and diced
¾ cup dried cranberries (preferably unsweetened)
¾ cup sugar
¾ cup red wine (or cranberry juice for non-alcoholic)
Zest and juice of 1 large orange (I used a blood orange)
¼ tsp nutmeg
Pinch cloves
Pinch sea salt

1. Combine all the ingredients in a deep, heavy saucepan over medium heat.
2. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer until thick and mounds on a spoon, about 1 hour.
3. Can 15 mins in a waterbath or freeze leftovers within 1 week.

Amount Per Serving
Calories: 50.4
Total Fat: 0.1 g
Cholesterol: 0.0 mg
Sodium: 11.3 mg
Total Carbs: 12.0 g
Dietary Fiber: 1.2 g
Protein: 0.3 g