Cauliflower Soup

INGREDIENTS

2 shallots, chopped
1 Tbsp butter
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 large head of cauliflower, cut into florets
1 small potato, quartered
4 cups of water/chicken stock/vegetable stock
salt and pepper to taste
1 cup grated cheese (use whatever you like)
1 cup milk/cream


DIRECTIONS

In a large pot, sauté shallots in butter and olive oil. Add the cauliflower florets and the quartered small potato and stir together for two or three minutes.

Add liquid and put a lid on and let simmer until cauliflower is tender, 15 – 20 minutes.

Purée all of it in a blender, food processor, or with an immersion blender.

Season with salt and pepper and return to pot. Stir cheese into soup until blended. Add milk or cream. Adjust seasonings and serve.

NOTE: You can use this as a simple base and change up the flavours. Add bacon into the frying pan while sautéing the shallots or add fresh herbs like thyme or sage. Mix it up, experiment and make it into your own recipe.

This recipe is also linked to...

It's a Blog Party's Fall Fest Recipes 2011
Sunday Night = Soup Night

Apple Crisp

INGREDIENTS

Apples (enough to fill up a 9x13 pan; approx. 9 to 12 apples)
1 1/2 cups brown sugar
1/2 cup flour
3/4 cup white sugar
2 Tbsp cinnamon
2 cups quick oats
3/4 cup butter, melted


DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

Peel and chop enough apples to fill a 9x13 baking pan.

In a large bowl, combine all dry ingredients. Mix in melted butter.

Spread oat mix evenly over the apples to cover them entirely; lightly pat down.

Bake for 40 minutes.

Variation:

Cran-Apple Crisp: Add fresh or frozen cranberries in with the apples in a large bowl. Add 1 Tbsp flour, 2 Tbsp white sugar and a sprinkle of nutmeg then mix to combine before dumping into the pan. Do the topping the same as the recipe says.


This recipe is also linked to...

Everyday Sisters' Sharing Sundays: Apples
This Week's Cravings: Apples
It's a Blog Party's Fall Fest Apple Recipes 2011

Bienenstich (a.k.a. German Bee Sting Cake)

Bienenstich, or "bee sting cake" has a rich history. With origins in Germany, the cake is called "bee sting" as it is thought that a bee was attracted to the sweet topping on the cake, and that the baker who invented the cake was stung.












INGREDIENTS

For the Filling:

2 cups milk
1/4 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 Tbsp flour
1 Tbsp cornstarch
1 tsp vanilla
3/4 cup whipping cream

For the Base:

4 eggs
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1 3/4 cups flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup milk
4 Tbsp butter

For the Almond Topping:

3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup butter
1 1/2 cup sliced or slivered almonds
4 Tbsp whipping cream


DIRECTIONS

For the Filling:

Heat the milk with the sugar until almost boiling. Stir to dissolve sugar and be careful to keep the heat at medium to low so that you don't burn on the bottom.

Whisk the eggs together with the flour and cornstarch until smooth.

Temper the egg mixture by gradually adding about 1/2 a cup of the hot milk to the eggs, whisking constantly (otherwise you'll end up with scrambled eggs). Then gradually stir the egg mixture into the rest of the milk in a thin stream, whisking constantly.

Keep stirring until mixture starts to thicken but do not let it boil. When it is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon, remove from heat and add vanilla extract.

Pour into a bowl. Stir a few times. Place plastic wrap over the custard, so that it is touching the custard while it cools (this prevents a skin from forming).

When ready to assemble the cake, whip the whipping cream until very stiff, but stop whipping before it becomes clumpy and starts to turn into butter. Stir 1/3 of the whipped cream into the cold custard. Fold the rest into the custard. Do not over mix.

For the Base:

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Line a 9-inch springform pan with parchment paper.

In a large bowl, beat the eggs and sugar together until light and fluffy; add vanilla.

In a small bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder and salt; mix into the egg mixture.

Heat the milk and butter until very hot (not quite boiling). Add the hot milk/butter to the batter.

Bake 25 to 30 minutes or until cake tester comes out clean. Top with Almond Topping and allow to cool while preparing the filling.

For the Almond Topping:

In a medium saucepan, heat together the butter and sugar and the whipping cream until it just comes to a boil (should be a light caramel colour). Add the almonds. Spread onto the baked cake as even as you can (this is easiest while the cake is still warm and in the pan).

Putting it all together:

When the cake has cooled, remove cake from pan and slice in half crossways to make two layers. Place bottom layer cut side up on cake plate and spread with filling. Top with the second layer with the almond glazed side up. Refrigerate until time to serve.


This recipe is also linked to...

Food on Friday: Desserts
Sweet Indulgences Sunday
Crazy Sweet Tuesday
Sweet Treats Thursday
Food on Friday: Cakes
Sweets for a Saturday

Chipa (a.k.a. South American Cheese Bread)

INGREDIENTS

400 grams of cheese (we use 1/2 marbled and 1/2 mozzarella)
3/4 cup oil
2 cups milk
4 eggs
2 tsp salt
5 to 5 1/2 cups tapioca flour


DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

Put cheese, oil, milk, eggs and salt into a blender and blitz until cheese is completely broken up. Pour into a large bowl.

One cup at a time, add the tapioca flour to the wet mixture. Stir until combined before adding more flour into the mixture. The dough will still be fairly runny (slightly thicker than pancake batter).

Pour batter into mini-muffin pans and bake until golden, approximately 17 minutes.

Makes 6 dozen.

NOTE: Freshly baked chipas will have a soft doughy center while still warm. Do not think that the dough is raw and undercooked, when in fact it should be cooked if the outside is golden, that's how it is supposed to be.

Chipas can be frozen and are best served warm. We take them out of the freezer and put them in the oven/toaster oven to heat them up before serving.


This recipe is also linked on...

Gluten-Free Wednesdays
This Week's Cravings: Special Diets (GLUTEN-FREE, DAIRY-FREE, NUT FREE and MORE)

Doughnuts

These have become a family favourite and they never last long. My mom makes them for my nieces' and nephew's birthdays and the kids just can't get enough of them - in all honesty, neither can the adults.






INGREDIENTS

1 pkg. yeast
1 1/2 cups water
1 cup unseasoned, lukewarm mashed potatoes
2/3 cup sugar
2/3 cup soft shortening
1 1/2 tsp. salt
2 eggs
6 to 7 cups flour


DIRECTIONS

Soak yeast in water and set aside for 5 minutes.

Stir in potatoes, sugar, shortening, salt, eggs and 3 cups of the flour. Beat until smooth. Mix in enough of the remaining flour to make dough easy to handle. Turn dough onto a lightly floured surface to knead. Knead dough until it is smooth, elastic and doesn't stick to the board (about 5 minutes).

Place in greased bowl, turning once to have the greased side up. Tightly cover the bowl and refrigerate for at least 8 hours but no longer than 5 days.

Punch down dough and roll out 1/2 the dough to 3/8-inch thick on a well-floured surface. Cut with floured doughnut cutter. Cover and let rise on a floured surface until double (about 1 hour).

Heat vegetable oil (2 to 3 inches deep in a large pot) to 375 degrees F. Slide doughnuts into hot oil with a wide spatula. Turn doughnuts as they rise to the surface. Fry until golden brown (1 to 1 1/2 minutes on each side). Remove from oil (be careful not to prick the doughnuts). Drain on absorbent paper.

NOTE: My mom allows the doughnuts to cool and then covers them with a glaze. I like dipping the warm doughnuts in sugar or cinnamon sugar. This recipe makes about 3 dozen doughnuts.

NOTE: These freeze really well so long as you leave them unglazed. Just take out what you need when you need it and glaze them once they're thawed.


This recipe is also linked to...

Food on Friday: Desserts
Crazy Sweet Tuesday
Sweet Treats Thursday
Sweets for a Saturday

The Breakfast Cookie

INGREDIENTS

2 cups butter, room temperature
1 cup sugar
1 1/2 cups brown sugar
4 large eggs
1 Tbsp vanilla
3 cups flour
1 Tbsp baking soda
2 tsp salt
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp cloves
4 cups rolled oats
2 cups coconut, unsweetened
2 cups dried blueberries
2 cups dried unsweetened cranberries
2 cups whole pecans, gently toasted


DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Cream butter and sugars until fluffy. Beat in eggs and vanilla.

In medium sized bowl mix flour, soda, salt and spices. Slowly add dry ingredients to creamed mixture.

Mix in oats, coconut, nuts and dried fruit.

Place parchment paper on cookie sheets, and measure 1/4 cup of dough per cookie, carefully placing the portions on the paper to allow for spreading. Flatten each mound slightly.

Bake for 6 minutes, then turn sheet in the oven; bake for another 7-8 minutes.

Cool on wire rack; should be firm, but soft and chewy on the inside

Apple Squares

INGREDIENTS

1 cup sifted all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 cup butter or margarine, melted
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup chopped apple
1/2 cup finely chopped walnuts
2 tablespoons white sugar
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon


DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a 9x9 inch pan. Sift together flour, baking powder, salt, and 1/4 teaspoon of cinnamon; set aside.

In a large bowl, mix together melted butter, brown sugar, and 1/2 cup of white sugar with a wooden spoon until smooth. Stir in the egg and vanilla. Blend in the flour mixture until just combined, then stir in the apples and walnuts. Spread the mixture evenly into the prepared pan. In a cup or small bowl, stir together the remaining cinnamon and sugar; sprinkle over the top of the bars.

Bake for 25 to 30 minutes in preheated oven; finished bars should spring back when lightly touched. Cool in the pan, and cut into squares.


This recipe is also linked to...

Sweet Indulgences Sunday
Everyday Sisters' Sharing Sundays: Apples
Sweet Treats Thursday
Sweets for a Saturday
This Week's Cravings: Apples
It's a Blog Party's Fall Fest Apple Recipes 2011

Obst Moos (a.k.a. Pluma Moos)

INGREDIENTS

20 cups water
1 pkg seedless raisins
1 pkg dried prunes
1 pkg dried apples
1 cup dried peaches
1 cup dried apricots
1 cup dried cherries (we use frozen sour cherries)
1 cup sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
5 whole cloves
1 cinnamon stick
1 pkg cherry jello


DIRECTIONS

Boil plums in water for 10 min.

Add the remaining fruits and cook until they are barely tender.

Add cloves, cinnamon, salt, sugar, and jello and continue to cook on low-medium heat until all fruit is cooked and soft.

Check for sweetness. But be careful, you don't want to make it too sweet.

Delicious to serve warm or cold. Allow to come to room temperature before refrigerating or placing in a cold location.

NOTE: We leave the dried fruits as is, but some people cut the apricots in 1/2 and the larger fruits into quarters to make everything more bite-sized.

Cherry Nut Mudslides

INGREDIENTS

3 cups bittersweet chocolate
6 oz unsweetened chocolate
1 cup flour
3 tsp baking powder
1 1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
2 1/4 cups sugar
5 eggs, at room temperature
3/4 cup hazelnuts, coarsely chopped
1/2 cup chopped dried cherries


DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 350°F.

In a double boiler, melt 2 cups bittersweet chocolate with unsweetened chocolate. Cool.

Mix flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside. With a mixer, beat butter and sugar. Beat in eggs and then melted chocolate. At low speed, beat in dry ingredients. Fold in nuts, cherries and remaining 1 cup bittersweet chocolate chips.

Roll into balls and place on baking sheet. Bake 10-12 minutes, just until the tops are lightly cracked. Cool 2 minutes on baking sheet; remove to wire rack to cool.

This recipe is also linked to...

Everyday Sisters' Sharing Sundays: Nuts
Sweet Treats Thursday
Sweets for a Saturday

Caramel Apple Dip

INSTRUCTIONS

1 pkg (8oz) cream cheese
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 jar Smucker's caramel (usually found in the produce section)
1 pkg skor bits
Granny Smith apples, sliced


DIRECTIONS

Beat the cream cheese with brown sugar until smooth. Spread thinly onto large serving plate.

Heat the caramel slightly (about 15 second in microwave) to make spreadable. Spread on top of cream cheese.

Sprinkle the package of Skor bits all over the top.

Serve with sliced Granny Smith apples for dipping.

NOTE: If you are not serving the fruit right away and you are cutting them up a bit ahead of time, squeeze the juice of a lemon over the pieces and give them a bit of a toss to coat them all with it in order to keep the fruit from turning brown.


This recipe is also linked to...

This Week's Cravings: After-School Snacks
It's a Blog Party's Fall Fest Apple Recipes 2011
This Week's Cravings: Apples
Everyday Sisters' Sharing Sundays: Apples
Gluten-Free Wednesdays
Cast Party Wednesday

Sweet Treats Thursday
Sweets for a Saturday