Search Results for: ice cream

vij’s lamb with fenugreek sauce

October 6, 2014 By Fareen Leave a Comment

Today we celebrated Eid Al Adha, also known as the Festival of Sacrifice. It seemed appropriate to have lamb and a great excuse to try out a recipe I had been eying.

Most people who know of Vikram Vij know that the dish he seems to be most associated with is his lamb popsicles in a fenugreek cream curry. I had been meaning to make it for a while and luckily remembered this recipe the last time I was at the grocery store. I was unable to find a whole rack of lamb but was lucky to find some individual chops.

The recipe seemed easy and even with a couple of sides, dinner came together really quickly. The highlight of the meal was the vibrant yellow fenugreek sauce. It paired perfectly with the lamb chops and even worked with the mashed potatoes and green beans.

It was a really tasty meal and definitely a special one to celebrate Eid. I’m also very happy to have a jar left of the creamy sauce.

Vikram Vij’s Lamb Popsicles in Fenugreek Cream Curry
From FoodNetwork.ca

Lamb:
¼ cup sweet white wine
¾ cup grainy yellow mustard
1 tsp salt
1 tsp ground black pepper
4 lb. French-cut racks of lamb, in chops

Curry Sauce:
4 cup whipping cream
1 Tbsp salt
1 tsp paprika
½ tsp ground cayenne pepper
1 Tbsp dried green fenugreek leaves
¼ cup lemon juice
¼ cup canola oil
3 Tbsp garlic, finely chopped
1 tsp turmeric

Lamb
Combine wine, mustard, salt and pepper in a large bowl. Add lamb and coat well with the marinade. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 2 to 4 hours.

Finish lamb: Preheat a stove-top cast iron grill or barbeque to high heat. Place lamb on the grill and cook for 2 to 3 minutes per side.

Curry Sauce
In a large bowl, combine cream, salt, paprika, cayenne, fenugreek leaves and lemon juice. Heat 3 to 4 Tbsp of the oil in a medium pot on medium heat and sauté garlic until golden. Stir in turmeric and cook for 1 minute. Stir in the cream mixture and cook on low to medium heat for about 5 minutes, or until it is gently boiling.

To serve: Serve popsicles piping hot off the grill. Place four to five lamb chops on each plate. Pour the cream curry over the meat or ladle it into a small bowl and use it as a dipping sauce for the popsicles.

avocado pasta sauce

April 11, 2014 By Fareen Leave a Comment

I have a new favourite pasta sauce / dressing! After seeing so many people post pictures of the avocado pasta on Instagram, I decided that it was something I needed to try. I know the recipe is in Angela Liddon’s new “Oh She Glows” cookbook but I was so happy that I was able to find it on her blog.

With lemon, garlic and basil incorporated into the creaminess of the avocado, it is perfect on pasta – so fresh and flavourful! I find it also goes great with salad, brightening things up immensely.

The sauce comes together easily in a food processor and was so simple to make. Q took charge of this one, tossing things in. He loved it so much, he licked the processor bowl! We threw the sauce with orecchiette and topped it with roasted salmon. Just thinking about that satisfying meal makes me hungry.

Avocado Pasta
From Oh She Glows

1 medium sized ripe avocado, pitted
1/2 lemon, juiced
1 – 3 garlic cloves
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup fresh basil
2 TB extra virgin olive oil

Place the garlic cloves, lemon juice, and olive oil into a food processor. Process until smooth. Add the avocado, basil and salt. Process until smooth and creamy. Pour sauce onto pasta and toss until fully combined. Serve immediately.

happy heart day! celebrating with chocolates, cookies and treats

February 14, 2014 By Fareen Leave a Comment

Happy Valentine’s Day! Hope you all have a fabulous day spending time with the ones you love…or take the time to spoil yourselves rotten!

Hubby and Q woke up to a bouquet of chocolate dipped strawberries and some homemade chocolate turtles. Cocoa spiced pecans were also packed into jars for my two loves.

Every year, I make hubby a chocolate treat. In the past there have been truffles, home made Ferrero and even Almond Joy. This year, I decided on Turtles! They were super easy to make, although a little less time cooking the caramel would have been ideal.

In case you overcook your caramel like I did, just chop the chocolates up and use them to top chocolate covered strawberries! It adds the perfect crunch to the juicy berries.

Shortbread cookies for work and cupcakes from yesterday’s kindergarten party rounded out our Valentine’s table. I had a box of President’s Choice Red Velvet mix from the holidays so made up the batter for that as well as the batter for sour cream cake. A scoop of each created the perfect red and white cupcake for Q to decorate with cream cheese frosting.

Chocolate Turtles

1 cup whole pecan pieces
1/2 cup cream
1/2 cup butter
1 1/2 cup brown sugar
1 TB water
1 cup chocolate

Toast the pecans and place them in pairs on a parchment lined cookie sheet.

Combine the cream, butter, brown sugar and water. Stir over medium heat until combined and smooth. Let the mixture come up to a boil and cook without stirring until 240 degrees on a candy thermometer. Watch the caramel mixture carefully. Let the caramel sit for a minute and then pour a spoonful on each pair of pecans. Let the caramel set for at least an hour.

Melt the chocolate in a microwave, stirring after every 30 second interval. Pour a spoonful on each caramel pecan bite. Let the chocolates set in the fridge.

cauliflower alfredo sauce

February 3, 2014 By Fareen 2 Comments

The other day, on Facebook, I noticed a recipe for cauliflower alfredo sauce. I was intrigued and knew I had to try it. Cauliflower seems to be the “it” vegetable lately, transforming into a variety of things like “bread” sticks and pizza crusts.

This sauce is super easy to make. In a blender, just whiz together the cauliflower, the water that it was cooked in, some garlic that’s been cooked in butter and a little bit of milk and you have a creamy, delicious sauce. I used a lactose-free milk so that the sauce could be enjoyed by everyone.

Top the pasta and sauce with some cheese and elevate the dish even further with a drizzle of truffle oil. So divine! It’s a perfect dish for Meatless Monday or with some chicken or shrimp.

Cauliflower Alfredo Sauce

1/2 head cauliflower
4 cloves garlic, or 2 tsp minced
butter
salt
pepper
1/4 cup milk

Saute the minced garlic in butter over low heat. Cook for several minutes until garlic is soft and fragrant.

Bring water to a boil in a large pot.Add the cauliflower and cook for approximately 10 minutes or until the cauliflower is tender. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the cauliflower to the blender. Add 1 cup of the cooking liquid, the garlic and butter, salt, pepper and milk and puree until smooth.

key lime pie

January 4, 2014 By Fareen 5 Comments

With all the snow that came down last night, and the nasty roads I kept hearing about, today seemed like a great day to stay in. We were reminiscing about the cruise we took last month (more to come on that), and recalled the fabulous weather at all the ports. Q wished that he could live in the Bahamas, and on days like today, I wish we did!

Our first port was Key West, Florida, and all the reviews about the quaint little town said that we needed to try the Key Lime Pie. We happily obliged. We had lunch at a restaurant near the water and ended our meal with the much talked about pie. It was delicious, and even hubby, who normally does not have a sweet tooth, enjoyed it.

It was a great after lunch project, the smell of the citrus reminding us of summer and hot places. Q did most of the work since it’s super simple to make. The crust is sweet, the luscious filling is tart and the dollop of whipping cream rounds it all out.

Key Lime Pie
Adapted from Christine Cushing

Crust:
1 cup graham crumbs
1/4 cup melted butter
2 TB sugar

Filling:
1 can condensed milk
3 egg yolks
1/2 cup key lime juice

Topping:
1 cup whipping cream
2 TB icing sugar

Combine the graham cracker crumbs with the melted butter and sugar. Press into a pie dish and bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes.

Combine the condensed milk, egg yolks and key lime juice and mix until well combined. Pour into the prepared crust and bake at 300 degrees for 25 to 30 minutes. Once cool, refrigerate.

Combine the whipping cream and icing sugar and beat in a mixer until you get peaks. Dollop onto each slice of key lime pie and garnish with a slice of key lime.

food blogger cookie swap: lavender shortbread

December 11, 2013 By Fareen 2 Comments

I had a really fun experience last year when I participate
in the 3rd Annual Food Blogger Cookie Swap. I got to connect with bloggers that I didn’t know and of course, taste some delicious cookies!

This year, with us leaving on holidays, I had to think twice
whether I could make the deadlines. I decided I just couldn’t miss out. For the
swap, we needed to make a new recipe we hadn’t tried before and send it to
three assigned food bloggers.

I knew I wanted to try something with lavender. Most of the
cookies I had found with lavender were of shortbread. Mmmm….shortbread!

I chose this recipe from Dessert First because it was simple
– butter, sugar, flour. My kind of shortbread. You don’t need a lot of
lavender, a little goes a long way.

In the midst of work deadlines, Q’s activities and packing,
I managed to find a chunk of time to bake, wrap and send the cookies. In my
haste though, I completely forgot to include the personalized letters along
with the recipe – sorry folks!

Thanks to the bloggers that sent me cookies. I did receive
one package before I left and they were a nice sweet treat. Looking forward to
devouring more when I get back home!

Thanks to Lindsay and Julie for organizing another
successful cookie swap! Through blogger participation, over $13K was raised for
Cookies for Kids’ Cancer.

Lavender Shortbread
Adapted slightly from Dessert First

1 cup butter, softened
2 cups flour
1/2 cup icing sugar
1 tablespoon dried lavender

Beat the butter and sugar in a mixer until creamy.
Add the flour and beat until combined. Add the lavender and beat just to
distribute through the dough.

Form the dough into a log, wrap in plastic and chill for about an hour.

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Cut the logs into rounds and place on parchment lined baking sheets
and bake until just golden, about 18 minutes.

white chocolate mocha cupcakes

October 29, 2013 By Fareen Leave a Comment

Today is hubby’s birthday! Happy Birthday honey!!

Since our week is usually filled with tons of activities for Q, we celebrated with family over the weekend. We had a tandoor party and made some delicious stuffed naans. I’ll have to fill you in on this soon. As for cake, his request this year was for white chocolate mocha cupcakes.

After a few searches, I settled on a recipe from Ali from Gimme Some Oven. I’ve recently started following her and love all the food that she posts. Since it seemed like I was catching my son’s cold, I needed something quick and simple and this recipe seemed pretty easy.

The whipped frosting was so nice and light, and very reminiscent of a mocha drink. Dusted with cocoa powder and topped with a chocolate covered espresso bean, it was a birthday treat that hubby really enjoyed.

White Chocolate Mocha Cupcakes
From Gimme Some Oven

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups sugar
3/4 cups cocoa powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup buttermilk, shaken
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 eggs, at room temperature
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 cup freshly brewed hot coffee
1 1/2 teaspoons instant espresso granules

Frosting:
6 oz. white chocolate, finely chopped
1 1/2 cups cold heavy cream

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line 24 muffin tins with paper liners or spray with nonstick cooking spray.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder, and salt until combined.

In an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the buttermilk, oil, eggs, and vanilla. With the mixer on low speed, slowly add the dry ingredients to the wet until combined. Add the 1 ½ teaspoons of espresso granules to the cup of hot coffee and stir to combine. With mixer still on low, add in the coffee/espresso mixture and stir just to combine, scraping the bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula. The batter will be really runny, but don’t worry!

Using a large scoop (about 3 tablespoons), distribute the batter into the prepared muffin tins. Bake for 18-22 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool in the pans for 15 minutes, then remove them onto a cooling rack and cool completely. Top with the white chocolate whipped cream frosting, and either serve immediately or refrigerate for up to 48 hours.

To Make The White Chocolate Whipped Cream Frosting:

Place the chopped white chocolate in a heatproof bowl and set the bowl over a pan of simmering water. Melt, stirring occasionally. Meanwhile, bring 1/2 cup of the cream to a boil in a small saucepan. When the chocolate is fully melted, move the bowl to a work surface and pour in the hot cream. Let stand for 1 minute. Stir gently until the cream is incorporated and the mixture is smooth. Let the chocolate/cream mixture stand until it is completely cool. The mixture must be at room temperature before it is added to the whipped cream.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the remaining 1 cup of heavy cream only until it holds the softest peaks. With the mixer on high speed, add the white chocolate all at once and continue to beat just until the mixture holds firm peaks. Transfer the cream to a bowl, press a piece of plastic wrap gently against the surface and refrigerate for at least 2 hours. Once cooled, frost cupcakes as desired.

turkey chili

October 8, 2013 By Fareen 1 Comment

When given a choice, Q would rather have a home cooked meal over eating out. He doesn’t like the usual things you can find on a kids menu. Chicken strips and mac and cheese, forget about it. A bowl full of chili though, and he’s a happy camper.

I tweaked my original chili recipe, omitting chili powder all together and adding more of everything else to ensure a flavourful bowl of goodness. With everything thrown into the slow cooker the night before, we have a hearty lunch ready in the morning with hardly any effort.

You know its a great recipe when my picky little guy asks for seconds. Q likes his topped with cheese, lots of it. It’s also great with some sour cream and green onions or over a baked potato.

Turkey Chili

2 pounds ground turkey, browned and drained
2, 19 oz cans of mixed beans, drained
1, 28oz can crushed tomatoes
2 cloves garlic, minced
3 tsp coriander powder
2 tsp sweet paprika
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
1 TB olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
1/2 cup water

Combine all ingredients in slow cooker and mix thoroughly.
Cook on low for 8 hours. Top with cheese, onions or sour cream.

Combine all ingredients in slow cooker and mix thoroughly.
Cook on low for 8 hours. – See more at: http://www.foodmamma.com/2010/09/comforting-slow-cooker-chili.html#sthash.Xk50XJIz.dpuf

mentions

Reviews on Urban Spoon
Calgary Herald Top Blogs
Foodista Blog of the Day (May 12, 2013)
Pop Sugar – Kid-Friendly Recipes for Cinco de Mayo (April 2013)
Club Life Magazine – Red Lentil Curry (April 2013)
Anyday Magic, Caramel Challenge – Caramel Creme Brulee (April 2013)
Ismaili Mail (February 2013)
Energy for the Good Life – Peanuts, a favorite of the South (January 2013)
Parents Canada – 30 minute chicken and spinach curry (November 2012)
Recipe Makeover, Anyday Magic – Indian Rice Pudding (August 2012)
Featured on Yummy Mummy Club, Foodie of the Week (August 2012)
Winner of Family Kitchen’s Best Homemade Chocolate Recipe (February 2012)
Mentioned on BC Tree Fruits (February 2012)
Featured on Anyday Magic – Red Velvet Crepes (December 2011)
Recipe in Club Club Community Cookbook (2011)
Mentioned on Ceci n’est pas un food blog: A Brunch Potluck (October 10, 2011)
Mentioned on Christie’s Corner: Brunch (September 30, 2011)
Mentioned on Dinner with Julie: A Potluck! (May 29, 2011)
Mentioned on Circle of Moms – Top 25 Foodie Moms (March 2011)
Featured in The Calgary Herald – Food Porn Friday: Pain au Chocolat aux Amandes (February 25, 2011)

meyer lemon curd

April 22, 2013 By Fareen Leave a Comment

Every time I bring home some meyer lemons, I always think I’m going to make some curd and then never get around to it. This time, I was determined to make it happen and I’m so glad I did!

Lemon curd is made by combining lemon juice with butter, eggs and sugar and cooking it into a custard. This tangy and sweet curd is bright, both in taste and colour, I used a recipe by Ina Garten and it was super easy to make. The result was a curd that was luscious and creamy.

Light and refreshing, the curd is perfect with fruit, spread on toast or even served with a slice of some peppercorn shortbread.

Meyer Lemon Curd
From Ina Garten, Barefoot Contessa

3 lemons
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/4 pound unsalted butter, room temperature
4 extra-large eggs
1/2 cup lemon juice (3 to 4 lemons)
1/8 teaspoon kosher salt

Using a carrot peeler, remove the zest of 3 lemons, being careful to avoid the white pith. Put the zest in a food processor fitted with the steel blade. Add the sugar and pulse until the zest is very finely minced into the sugar.

Cream the butter and beat in the sugar and lemon mixture. Add the eggs, 1 at a time, and then add the lemon juice and salt. Mix until combined.

Pour the mixture into a 2 quart saucepan and cook over low heat until thickened (about 10 minutes), stirring constantly. The lemon curd will thicken at about 170 degrees F, or just below simmer. Remove from the heat and cool or refrigerate.