Things That Make Us Happy, and Gift Giving This Season

Today, I was driving back home, after getting my winter tires put on the van, listening to Q, with Jian Gomeshi. He was presenting the panel for next year's Canada Reads competition. I was grinning from ear to ear while listening to the banter between the host, and the panelists. I cannot exactly put it in words, and if I were to describe the conversations to someone else, they would wonder why I was so amused. It just pleased me, listening to these people talk, and poke fun of each other, and themselves.

I don't know about you, but I love listening to quite a few CBC Radio programs. I find them engaging, interesting, illuminating, and entertaining. The problem with listening to the radio, much like reading, is that you cannot do anything else while you are listening. Actually, this it not entirely true. With radio in vehicles, and podcasts, you can listen to the radio while driving, or doing some physical task which does not require your undivided attention, like exercise, house cleaning, or sewing. You can't really knit, and read at the same time.

Radio feels so intimate. I often feel like I am right there, listening to the interview. I feel as though these people are doing the show, just for me. This feeling is certainly amplified if I am listening on my own, or on my iPod. I have to check myself, and realize there are thousands of people hearing the same thing as me, and perhaps having a similar reaction. Regardless, I was grinning like a fool in my van this morning.

Someone told me recently we don't smile, or laugh as much as we used to. I am trying to find things that make me happy. Being happy is so much better than not. I spent the morning, by myself being quite contemplative. I was buying things for my children's advent calendar, and thinking about gift giving during the holidays. My kids are happy when they get things. Sometimes, they are happy when they give things, but I think I am happier when I give them things, than they wound be giving. But, they don't really need more things. Even the books we buy, which are engaging, and educational, are not necessary. I go to the library every three weeks. We don't need to buy books.

I like making things too, but we do not have too many people we exchange with. Right now, it is limited to immediate family. Both my mom, and my mother in-law do their own baking for the holidays. I would love to do some baking, but the last time I did, no one ate my stuff because they already had their staples.

I want to make homemade gifts, but I do not have enough people to give gifts to. Last year, I made felt mice for my daughter's class. I might have to come up with another cute little decoration for her to give this year. I am also thinking of making homemade marshmallows. Food is a tough thing to give, because there is always the risk of allergies, or you are not sure how thrilled people are to receive unwholesome food. I find people nowadays are so paranoid about eating sweets, and rich foods, it makes giving food gift a challenge.

For now, I think I will finish the felt penguins I started last year. I got sidetracked, and made a bunch of bird ornaments instead, as well as the felt mice. I have also decided to make my daughter a Velcro "cache-cou", neck-warmer, because I have all this fleece left over from the Halloween costumes. I do not feel like paying $5 for a neck-warmer when I can copy my son's, and make a new one for my daughter. Just wondering how to attach the Velcro, but I am sure to come up with a solution.

Meanwhile, I will continue to get my grin on, and listen to more CBC Radio. Love it!

http://www.cbc.ca/radio/

 

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Making Stollen: Part 2

So, my mother and I hunkered down, and made stollen last week. I decided to start it early, as my mom said it would take all day. My family is usually all up around 6:35 to 6:45am every morning to get to work, and get my daughter onto her very early bus. I decided to get the first dough ready, and rising in order to be able to go to playgroup with my son later that morning. I started this in my largest bowl.

First dough:

125g of fresh yeast, 350mL of milk, 625g (1 1/4 lb) flour

I have no idea where you can buy fresh yeast in the Sudbury area. My mother usually buys it at a specialty German shop, called Denninger's, in Oakville. This year, she bought it at Starsky's in Mississauga. She hadn't looked at the weight when she bought it, but probably knew the amount from experience. We used a slightly smaller amount than the recipe called for (110g), but it did not seem to affect the results.

 

I heated my milk to about 115F. This was the temperature recommended for the pretzels I make, so I figured it would be a good temperature for the stollen. I should have broken the yeast into smaller pieces before pouring the warm milk over top. I found the large block was much harder to dissolve, and the milk was cooling down as I was stirring.

When the yeast was completely dissolved, I added the flour to the mixture. I used a wooden spoon to fully incorporate the flour. I covered the bowl, and then let it rise for an hour in a warm, dry place. I do not know how many cups (volume-wise) of flour is equal to 625g. I used a small kitchen scale, probably from the dollar store.

As I was heating up the milk, my husband informed me there was only one egg left. I ended up running down the road to the grocery store at 8am, to buy another carton of eggs. The other part of the recipe calls for three eggs. Luckily, we live very close to a grocery store.

My oma's recipe said to only let the first dough rise for 1/4 hour, but my mom says she always lets it rise for an hour. We let the dough rise for an hour, and got the next step ready.

 

 

Fruit Prep:

20g salt, 175g sugar, 100g almond paste, 125g chopped sweet almonds, 500g mixed citron peel, 3 eggs (slightly beaten)

Now, here's the confusing part. We are not sure what my oma meant by almond paste, and chopped sweet almonds. We are not sure if one of these is referring to marizpan (which my mom forgot in Oakville), or if it means ground almonds. My mom had bought ground almonds, and when we weighed it, it came to about 325g, so we substituted the ground almonds for both the paste, and the chopped sweet almonds. Citron peel can be found at Bulk Barn, or grocery stores. I used about a teaspoon of salt.

After the hour, I added an additional 125g of flour to the first dough, and then my mom mixed in the fruit prep.

Second dough:

375g softened butter, 125g shortening, 500g flour

I used a pastry cutter to mix the flour with the butter, and shortening. My oma said to mix carefully, as one would when making shortbeard. I have never made shortbread, so I cut in the butter until it was thoroughly mixed with the flour.

We added this to the first dough mixture, along with 1/8 cup of rum, and the zest of 3 lemons. We used less rum (the recipe calls for 1/4 cup) because the dough was quite sticky. We ended up kneading in an extra 500g of flour to get the dough to the consistency we liked (almost like playdough, but slightly moister).

Finally, we added about 500g (1lb) of dried currants. Be careful when adding the currants. They do not mix well into the dough, and many will end up on the kneading surface, the floor, behind your stove, everywhere. We chose to take the dough out of the bowl to knead it. My oma's recipe does not say to knead the dough at all, so presumedly you could mix everything in the large bowl. She said it should be a paste of firm consitency.

We left the dough to rise again, and went to playgroup for a couple of hours. This first part was done by 9:30am. When we came back home, it was around 11:30am, and I divided the dough into five equal parts weighing about 2lbs each.

Pat each portion out into a circle. Take one edge, and fold it over about 2/3 of the way. If you have good quality marzipan on hand, you can tuck some into the inside of the fold. Press the edge down into the dough, so it will not lift up during baking. What you end up with is a somewhat teardrop cross-section shape.

Make sure the oven is at 400F initially. When the loaves are brown on top (it took about five minutes in our oven) reduce the heat to 350F, and bake for another 30 to 40 minutes. The total baking time should be about 35 to 45 minutes. I prefer my stollen on the golden brown side, but my dad likes it a little browner.

Coating:

250g butter, melted, but not liquid, sugar (half superfine granulated, half icing), 2 vanilla beans

Process the granulated sugar with the vanilla beans until the vanilla is finely chopped. Combine the granulated sugar, and vanilla mixture with the icing sugar.

Once the loaves are done, remove them from the oven. You can turn the loaves over, and tap them on the bottom to test for doness. The loaves should have a hollow sound when tapped.

Brush a loaf with the melted butter, then sprinkled with the sugar, and vanilla mixture. Use your hands to make sure it is tightly packed onto the loaf. Let the loaf cool completely on a baking rack before wrapping it up. The loaves can be cut in half, and tightly wrapped in wax paper, or plactic wrap before wrapping them in foil. Store the wrapped loaves in freezer bags, in the freezer, until you are ready to enjoy.

You can wrap up half or third of a loaf, and put it in a holiday themed plastic bag to give as a holiday gift. I have not tried this year's batch yet, but the stollen tastes better if you let it sit for a bit.

We were done by 2pm, so it really did not take a whole day, and it turns out my kitchen is not too small to make stollen!

 

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Roasted Chicken with Apricots

When I was growing up, we used to have a roasted chicken dinner on Sunday nights. I always thought it was such an effort to cook a whole chicken, and worried it would end up too dry. I was flipping through one of my older Food and Drink magazines (seriously the BEST magazine ever), and came across a recipe for roasted chicken, and apricots. It has a Moroccan flare to it. It is also super fast, and ready in about an hour.

So, the other day, I ran to the grocery store with my daughter to pick up a chicken. We were home by 3:45pm, the chicken was in the oven by 4:15pm, and supper was ready by 5:20pm, without much prepping required on my part.

MOROCCAN BAKED CHICKEN WITH DRIED APRICOTS AND LEMON

FOOD AND DRINK, EARLY SUMMER 2012

By: Lucy Waverman

You will want to use a small Dutch oven for this dish—one that fits the chicken fairly tightly. A larger pot may mean you need to thin the sauce slightly with more stock.

2 tsp (10 mL) ground ginger

½ tsp (2 mL) crushed red pepper flakes or to taste

2 tsp (10 mL) ground cumin

2 tsp (10 mL) paprika

1 tsp (5 mL) cinnamon

1 tsp (5 mL) turmeric

2 tbsp (30 mL) olive oil

1 whole chicken

Salt and freshly ground pepper

2 onions, thinly sliced

1 tbsp (15 mL) chopped garlic

2 tbsp (30 mL) lemon juice

½ cup (125 mL) chicken stock or water

½ cup (125 mL) sliced dried apricots

½ tsp (2 mL) grated lemon rind

2 tbsp (30 mL) chopped parsley

2 tbsp (30 mL) chopped fresh coriander

Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C).

Combine ginger, red pepper flakes, cumin, paprika, cinnamon and turmeric in a small bowl. Set aside.

Heat oil over medium-high heat in an ovenproof casserole or Dutch oven that fits the chicken. Season chicken with salt and pepper.

Add chicken, breast-side down, and fry for about 2 minutes or until chicken is rowned. Turn and brown each side; finish with browning the back. Transfer to a plate and season with salt, pepper and 1 tbsp (15 mL) spice mixture. Drain any excess oil from pot, leaving 2 tbsp (30 mL).

Stir in onions and sauté about 3 minutes or until softened and reduced in volume. Stir in garlic and cook 1 minute longer. Add remaining spice mixture and sauté until fragrant then add lemon juice, stock and dried apricots. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium-low, and return chicken to pan, cover and bake for 1 hour or until chicken is almost fully cooked. Remove cover and add lemon rind to sauce. Bake 10 minutes longer or until chicken juices run clear.

Remove chicken from pot. Stir parsley and coriander into sauce and adjust seasoning if necessary. Skim any fat.

Carve chicken and coat with sauce. Serve over couscous.

Serves 4




Lucy Waverman also has a great recipe for roasted chicken with sausage, and apples in her recipe book, A Year In Lucy's Kitchen. The thing with these recipes is that the chicken ends up being quite juicy, and tender. You do not have to woory about it drying out because it is in a covered Dutch oven. If you are not a fan of fruit with your meat, you might want to pass on this, otherwise, this is a tasty meal. My kids enjoyed the chicken, although I was careful to give them meat without too much spice on it.

 

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Spaghetti Squash Salad (with my signature salmon dish)

I will get to making stollen, part 2 very soon, but first here's a recipe for an easy vegetarian side, or a main, if you add cheese.

My son tried the spaghetti squash plain, and liked it. My daughter was not a fan, and ate it, even without all the green stuff, under duress. She only ate some more when she knew it as the only way to get some dessert. They both enjoyed the cranberries, but that it a given.

Take one spaghetti squash. Cut it in half, and remove the seeds. I have never roasted spaghetti squash seeds, but I would assume they are similar to pumpkin seeds. Brush the inside of the squash with olive oil, and lay cut side down in a baking dish, roast the squash at 350F for about 30 minutes, or until tender.

Once the squash is cooked, scrape out the insides into a bowl, with a fork. You might want to wait until the squash has cooled enough to handle, or wear oven mitts to hold the squash. Squeeze the juice of half a lemon over the spaghetti squash, and drizzle some more olive oil. You also need to chop up 3 tablespoons of each of the following fresh herbs: rosemary, thyme, mint, basil, and chives. Add the fresh herbs to the squash. Add a few handfuls of dried cranberries, and unsalted shelled pistachio nuts, (optional). Mix all together. My mom also added some sweet Thai chili sauce to taste.

Serve the "salad" warm, along side your favourite main entrée. We ate it with salmon fillets, topped with basil pesto, cherry tomatoes, fresh unripened goat cheese, and green olives, and tiny red potatoes. This is actually a quick meal to prep, and could take about 45 minutes if you put the fish in 15 minutes after the squash.

Enjoy!

 

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Making Stollen: Part 1

My parents came up for a visit this week. The purpose of their trip is two fold. First, it has been more than a month since they have seen us, and their grandkids. We are not planning on visiting them for the holidays until December 21st, so it would have been a long time between visits. Second, my mother would like to make Christmas stollen with me. It is pronounced STALL-en.

My mother is of Trinidadian origin, ethnically East Indian. My father is German, and my Oma used to make stollen every Christmas. Stollen is a cross between a sweet bread, and a fruit cake. The version my family makes is about the consistency of those dense German breads. I have seen other recipes, but the result is more like an egg bread with bits of fruit. Not the stollen I know.

My mom has always been into cooking foods of different countries, and she has taken over a couple German recipes. She also makes some really good Greek foods, spanokopita, and tiropita, but that is another post. So, aside from Königsberger klopse (meatballs in white sauce with capers), my mom makes an excellent Christmas stollen. The problem is, she never makes it the same way twice, and the multiple recipes we have do not quite jive.

I have spent the afternoon trying to figure out the recipe so things will go smoothly tomorrow, but there are some discrepencies between the different versions. My mom has been suffering from declining mental capabilities over the past few years (memory and cognitive abilities), so she is not much help in illuminating why there are these differences. Plus, she forgot the marzipan at home. Now, it is not clear if this is a necessary ingredient, but I know my parents made a special trip to the German shop to buy this marzipan. I think my father was quite exasperated she left it at home.

My mom told me it takes all day to make stollen, and my father does not think we should attempt to make it here. We have a small kitchen, and there is limited counter space. He is worried the cat will jump on the counter since she often jumps on the table (with the help of a chair). Today was a PD day, so both kids were home. He figured their house would be the better place. It probably is, but I have made more elaborate things with less space. My father finds our house small, and often needs to come up with examples as to why we need to upgrade. Yet another post!

However, after reading the recipe, I am not sure why this is going to take all day. The pretzels I make have to rise twice, and they take me about three hours total. Now, my mom has been making stollen for many, many years, and she says she needs a day. Of course, I am trying to be logical, based on what I have read in the recipe, but I have never actually made stollen. Maybe it does take much longer than I think.

Tomorrow is going to be an interesting day. We shall see how it unfolds. I want to go to playgroup in the morning, for a bit. I have meeting at 4:30pm, so I have to be out of the house by 4pm. We are going to start the stollen tomorrow morning, after my daughter gets on the bus, but before playgroup. Then, we're off!

 

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Smarties Cookies

I don't know about you, but Smarties are not the favourite candy in our home.  After Halloween, when candy is on sale, my husband will invariably buy a box of Nestle chocolate bars.  The Coffee Crisp and Kit Kat will be eaten first, followed by the Aero, while the Smarties boxes will still be sitting at the bottom.  No one really wants to eat them.  They are like poor quality M&Ms, at best.  So, what to do with all these left over Smarties?  Make cookies with them!

I followed a simple chocolate chip cookie recipe from The Joy of Cooking, but I was missing some ingredients, and I always cut down on the amount of sugar and fat in my baking.  I also subbed in some whole wheat flour.  Here's what I ended up doing.

Smarties Cookies

In a medium bowl, whisk together 1 cup whole wheat pastry flour, and 2/3 cup all-purpose flour with 1 3/4 tsp of baking soda, 3/4 baking powder and 1/4 tsp salt.  Set aside.  I added some cinnamon and nutmeg, to spice it up a little.

Cream a scant 1/2 cup of softened butter with a hand mixer, until smooth.  To the butter add 2/3 cup granulated sugar, 2/3 cup brown sugar, not packed, 1 egg, 2 tsp vanilla, 1 tbsp milk.  Mix with the hand mixer.

Using a wooden spoon, incorporate the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients.  Mix until fully combined.  Grind 1 cup of rolled oats in a food processor, or blender (I used 1/2 cup of flax seed because I didn't have any oats).  Add the ground oats to the batter.  Stir in Smarties.  I used nine mini boxes of Smarties.  You could use M&Ms, or chocolate chips.  You can also add nuts if you like.

Roll the batter into 1 1/2 inch balls and place on a greased baking sheet, or one lined with parchment paper.  The cookies spread out a lot, so leave at least 2 inches between the balls and flatten them slightly.

Bake at 375F for 8 to 12 minutes, until the edges just start to brown.

The Smarties do not maintain their colour very well through the baking process, but the cookies are mighty tasty.  My husband said, "I know there are wholesome ingredients in these, but the sweetness has won out.  These are good."

Not feeling the writing bug.

This month, I have been having trouble finding things I want to write about. I was actually doing quite well, the last couple of months, writing every second day. However, I have not felt a pressing need to write stuff of late. I have been spending a great deal of time reading, recently. Maybe I have been too wrapped up in my novels. I have been reading some entertaining, but ultimately disposable works of fiction. Almost as bad as watching TV!

Maybe, I will start looking for some crafty thing to write about. As I said before, my son seems to be giving up his nap, and I will need to find ways to occupy his time during the afternoons. I don't want to plunk him in front of a television for a few hours every afternoon. I did manage to get him to nap yesterday. He cuddled in bed with me while I read one of my novels. It took him about 45 minutes to settle, but he did fall asleep, which indicates to me that he still needs to nap.

Alright, so my most recent goal is to come up with easy activities I can do at home with my son on afternoons he refuses to nap. Something that does not require a lot of materials, possibly reuses household items, and it fun to do. Any ideas?

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