Spring

Salted Caramel Brownies

March 22, 2019 by Danielle 1 Comment

Super fudgy brownies with pockets of delicious salted caramel!

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Brownies are probably one of my favourite desserts, and you already know about my love of salted caramel (here, here and here!). I love brownies because I can whip them up in one bowl. Fast easy and impressive… totally my jam! Now of course salted caramel is a wee bit more involved than a one bowl brownie, but I promise it is worth it! For this recipe we will be using my favourite Homemade Salted Caramel Sauce! It’s straightforward, delicious and there might be leftovers for your ice cream.

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Before we get into this mouth watering recipe I have a few tips.

Freeze your caramel, this helps prevent over spreading when the brownies bake
Don’t over bake, I life a gooey brownie so stick to the cook time below
If cutting them is a challenge pot them in the fridge
Sprinkle with sea salt at the end

These are seriously delicious and I defiantly need to make another batch very soon!

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Salted Caramel Brownies

Yields: 9-12 brownies (I recommend cutting these small since they are super rich!)

Ingredients:

Homemade Salted Caramel Sauce (we will use 2/3 of the recipe in the brownies the rest can be saved for another use – ps. it freezes great!)
4 oz Unsweetened Chocolate
1/2 cup Butter, melted
1 1/4 cup Sugar
2 Eggs
1 Tsp Vanilla
1 cup All Purpose Flour
Pinch of Salt
1/2 cup Chocolate Chips
Optional: Flaked Seas Salt for finishing

Directions:

Make my Homemade Salted Caramel Sauce recipe. Pour 2/3 of the recipe into a square baking dish lined with parchment paper. Place in your freezer. Store the rest in an air tight container in your fridge or freezer.

Preheat the over to 350°F. Line an 8×8 inch baking dish with parchment paper, spray with baking spray. Set aside.

In a large microwave safe bowl place butter and chocolate. Microwave in 30 second intervals, stir in between until the chocolate and butter have just melted. Add sugar, eggs, vanilla and salt. Stir well until smooth and combined. Add flour, fold into batter until combined. Once combined stir in chocolate chips.

Pour brownie batter into prepared baking sheet. Remove caramel from the freezer. Break or cut into small squares. Place the caramels on to the brownie batter. Space evenly and press slightly into batter.

Bake the brownies for 20-30 minutes until set. Sprinkle with flakey sea salt if desired. Cool before serving. Enjoy!

Adapted from Pinch of Yum.

Guinness Shepherd’s Pie

March 8, 2019 by Danielle 1 Comment

Seriously delicious and very comforting!

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St. Partick’s day is just over a week away. On Wednesday I shared my St. Patty’s party fav’s and now I’m sharing the perfect meal to serve at your party! It also has Guinness in it which adds a nice festive twist! Not only is this recipe great if your hosting people for St. Patrick’s day, but it’s also amazing for dinner year round. It’s delicious, filling and comforting.

When I was a kid my mom used to make shepherd’s pie out of leftover roast beef. It’s so good that way but today I’m using ground beef since it’s easy and readily available. Did you know that technically when you use beef you’re making cottage pie. Seriously lamb is traditionally used in shepherd’s pie. It gets it’s name from the shepherd’s who tend to the sheep. But since I know it as shepherd’s pie that’s what we’re going with.

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The first time I made Shepherd’s pie it was a failure. It was dry and tasteless. Since then I’ve discovered a few very important secrets to making a delicious Shepherd’s pie. First things first you need to make a thick flavourful gravy. Nothing is worse than dry filling. Cook down onions, garlic and carrots to create a flavourful base. brown off your ground beef add flour to thicken and then deglaze with Guinness. Seriously this creates an insane amount of deep flavour. Then add beef broth to create a thick luscious gravy.

The other tip I have is to make a super flavourful spreadable mashed potato. You need pretty loose mashed potatoes. You want them to still be soft and smooth when you eat them. Since they have to go in the oven if you dont add enough butter and milk they will really dry out. Also adding parmesan or another cheese can’t hurt either!

This recipe is seriously delicious and a must make for St. Patrick’s day, or any day!

Guinness Shepherd’s Pie

Yields: 6 servings

Ingredients:

Filling:

2 tbsp Olive Oil
2 Garlic Cloves, minced
1 Onion, diced
2 Carrots, diced
1 tsp Dried Thyme
1 tsp Dried Rosemary
1.5 lbs Extra Lean Ground Beef
1/4 cup All Purpose Flour
1/4 cup Tomato Paste
1/2 cup Guinness
2 cups Beef Broth
1 Beef Bouillon cube
1 tbsp Worcestershire Sauce
Salt and Pepper, to taste
1 cup Frozen Peas
1 cup Frozen Corn

Mashed Potato

2 lbs Russet Potatoes, peeled and quartered
3/4 cup Milk (I used 2%)
1/4 cup Butter, melted

Topping

3 tbsp Parmesan Cheese, grated
2 tbsp Butter, melted

Directions:

In a large skillet over medium heat warm oil. Add onion, cook for 1 minute. Add carrots, cook for 1 minute until starting to soften and brightening in colour. Season with salt and pepper. Add garlic and cook for an additional 3 minutes until vegetables are soft.

Turn heat up to medium high and add ground beef. Break into small pieces and cook until browned.

Add flour, stir and cook for one minute to remove the raw four taste. Add tomato paste, bouillon cube, Worcestershire sauce, thyme and rosemary. Mix seasoning into meat until well distributed. Deglaze the pan with Guinness. Scrape brown its off the bottom of the pan until the beer cooks don and the pan becomes mostly dry again.

Add beef broth to the pan. Continue to scrape the pan to release the brown bits. Bring the mixture to a simmer, turn down the heat to low. Cook for 20 minutes, string occasionally. A thick gravy will develop. Taste gravy, add additional salt and pepper if desired. Stir in peas and corn. Cook for an additional 3-5 minutes to defrost the vegetables.

Cool the mixture and place in the fridge until ready to use.

Place potatoes in a large pot, cover with water, season with salt and bring to a boil. Cook for 15 minutes until the potatoes are fork tender.

Drain potatoes. Leave in the colander to dry for 5-10 minutes. In the mean time melt the butter in the microwave and measure out the milk. Return the potatoes to the pot. Using a potato masher or a hand mixer mash the plain potatoes. Add half the butter and milk to the potatoes, mash together. Check the consistency. The potatoes should be looser then regular mashed potatoes. They should be spreadable but not runny. Continue to add milk and butter until the mashed potatoes reach the desired consistency.

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Pour filling into a 9×11 inch baking pan, spread evenly. Spread mashed potatoes out evenly to cover the filling. Sprinkle parmesan cheese over the potatoes evenly. Spoon melted butter evenly over potatoes. Bake for 45 minutes or until the filling is bubbling and the top is golden brown.

Allow to cool for 10-15 minutes to make serving easier. Serve with peas or a side salad.

Adapted from RecipeTin Eats.

Mango Coconut Overnight Oats

March 3, 2019 by Danielle 4 Comments

A healthy, but decadent make ahead breakfast.

Ok guys this recipe is a real winner. It is decadent, sweet, filling and healthy. Whole grains, unsweetened coconut milk, high protein greek yogurt, a touch of honey and fresh mango make this breakfast fast filling and delicious. I was shocked how good this tasted. How had I never though to add coconut before? I love overnight oats for the ease and convenience. You can even prep a few days worth and have breakfast to go all week.

If you’ve been reading my blog for a while now you know I love a fast recipe, especially for breakfast. it brings me so much joy to experiment and make delicious recipes that take a little extra effort. But that isn’t always realistic. Life is just busy. And I just cant bring myself to make some elaborate breakfast during the week. Honestly I rarely do it on a regular weekend. These kind of delicious make ahead breakfasts are perfect. They feel special but are really simple. And just freakin delicious!

Mango Coconut Overnight Oats

Yields: 2-3 servings

Ingredients:

1 cup Rolled Oats
1 cup Canned Coconut Milk
1 cup Coconut Greek Yogurt (I used 2%)
1 tbsp Honey
1 tsp Vanilla
4 tbsp Unsweetened Coconut Chips, toasted preferred
1/2 Mango, chopped

Directions:

In a bowl combine rolled oats, coconut milk, greek yogurt, honey and vanilla in a medium bowl. Transfer to an air tight storage container and place in the fridge overnight.

If you can’t find pre toasted coconut chips (or flakes) you can make your own by baking then on a sheet pan for 5-10 minutes at 325°F. Once bake cool and store in an air tight container for up to a week.

When ready to eat, place oats in a serving bowl. Top with toasted coconut and chopped mango. Enjoy!

Adapted from Eat Drink Love.

Healthier Chicken Salad

February 20, 2019 by Danielle 2 Comments

Seriously the best lightened-up chicken salad.

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I really hate lunch. I hate making it, I hate eating it. I find it a complete inconvenience. So it’s always been tough for me to come up with lunch ideas that I will actually want to make and eat. I’ve got work day lunches down. Leftovers, homemade soups and salads keep me fed Monday through Fridays, but on the weekends I’m always at a loss. It results in either picking up some sort of unhealthy high calories fast food, or just skipping lunch all together. Neither are good options in my book. In an effort to eat whole healthy food (80% or the time) I knew I had to try to find some new ideas for weekend lunches. This chicken salad recipe has ben added to the weekend rotation.

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I like lots of crunch in my chicken salad, so I load it with crunchy celery, crisp apples and a sweet pop from red grapes. I love the freshness it gives. I also like using pulled chicken breast instead of chopped. I prefer the texture of pulled chicken it really makes the chicken, fruit and celery stay together and prevents the filling of the sandwich from falling out. The dressing of this chicken salad is made with greek yogurt, mayonnaise, lemon juice, garlic, salt and pepper. Not only is it delicious but it isn’t your typical high fat, high calorie chicken salad.

Greek yogurt has tons of protein, combine that with chicken breast a delicious dressing and yummy add ins and you have a great high protein lunch. Skip the croissant and your lunch is even healthy…. but I highly recommend the croissant!

This recipe is a must try for lunch, or to put on a lunch buffet.

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Healthier Chicken Salad

Yields: 4 large servings

Ingredients:

2 Chicken Breasts
1 Stalk of Celery, diced
1/2 An Apple, diced
1/2 cup Red Grapes, halved
1/2 cup Plain Greek Yogurt
1/4 cup Half the Fat Mayonnaise
1 tbsp Lemon Juice
1/2 tsp Garlic Powder
Salt and Pepper to taste

Directions:

Preheat oven to 425°F. Roast chicken for 25 minutes or until the internal temperature reaches 165°F. Cool slightly. Shred the chicken using two forks, or the mixer method. Place chicken in the fridge to cool completely.

Whisk together greek yogurt, mayonnaise, lemon juice, garlic powder, salt and pepper. Slice grapes, dice celery and apple.

Combine cold chicken, celery, apple, grapes and dressing and mix throughly.

Serve salad on bread, croissants or salad greens. If desired add lettuce or tomatoes to your sandwiches. Serve immediately or store in your fridge for 2 days.

Raspberry Lemon Linzer Cookies

February 9, 2019 by Danielle 4 Comments

Lemon and raspberry cookies cut in heart shapes, perfect for Valentine’s Day!

Valentine’s Day is now less then a week away! Have you bought your sweetie a gift? If you haven’t check out my Valentine’s Day gift guides. Have you made your reservations? Planned a special date? Or are you a last minute planner? We booked our dinner reservation and I got my husband a gift a few weeks ago. This year we are going to our favourite restaurant. It’s walking distance from our house so we can enjoy a long dinner, share a few too many drinks before safely walking home.

For our first Valentine’s Day we dressed up and went out to a fine dining restaurant, ate a very expensive preset menu and ordered oysters. We thought it would be the perfect dinner. But of course Calvin hated his duck and we discovered that neither of us like oysters. The dinner was so expensive my husband still won’t tell me how much the dinner costs. We were collage kids with no money so this dinner was a really big deal. Although it wasn’t perfect we still look back at it as a great memory of our early days.

The year after that we got teen burgers from A&W, I made some treats and we had a picnic in the living room. Over the last six years we’ve done everything from fancy dinners to fast food. Last year we made homemade heart shaped pizza (my pizza dough recipe) and chocolate lava cakes (YUM!). Regardless of how we’ve celebrated we’ve spent quality time together showing our love for the other and reminding ourselves how important our relationship is.

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I love to celebrate everything, big and small. I like to show people that I care about them. I love to give gifts, but giving people something you made is so special. These cookies are perfect to give to family and friends or serve to your sweetheart. They are also just really cute and festive!

Linzer cookies are super simple to make kind of like a sugar cookie but way better! But they have almond flour and are made without leavener. They are delicate, flavourful and rich. The addition on lemon zest adds a fresh light citrus flavour to the cookie. Raspberry jam is sandwiched between two cookies to add a delicious berry flavour.

These cookies are so so so good. They are also really fun to make. They look really impressive too so they are perfect to giveaway. I love when a simple baked good makes someones day! These are totally worth it!

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Lemon Raspberry Linzer Cookies

Yields: 12 cookies

Ingredients:

3/4 cup Unsalted Butter
1/2 cup White Sugar
Zest of One Lemon
1 Egg Yolk
1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
1 cup All Purpose Flour
3/4 cup Almond Flour
1/8 teaspoon Salt
Seedless Raspberry Jam
Confectioner’s Sugar

Directions:

In a medium bowl whisk together all purpose flour, almond flour and salt together. Set aside.

Using a stand mixer beat butter, sugar until pale until fluffy. About 2 minutes. Add lemon zest, egg yolk and vanilla extract, beat until smooth. Add dry ingredients to the bowl and mix on low until just combined. Divide dough into two disks, wrap in plastic wrap and chill in the fridge for 30 minutes.

Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside. Roll dough a quarter inch thick. Using a medium sized heart shaped cookie cutter cut out 24 hearts. Using a smaller heart shaped cookie cutter cut the centre out of 12 of the cookies. Place the cookies on the baking sheets. Place the cookie sheets in the fridge for an hour to chill.

Preheat the oven to 350°F.

Bake cookies for 8-10 minutes until the edges are just beginning to turn brown. Allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack.

Once completely cool dust cookie tops with confectioner sugar. Spread 1/2 teaspoon of jam on each of the cookie bottoms. Leave a boarder around the jam to ensure the jam doesn’t spill out the sides of the cookies. Place the tops pf the cookies on the bottom.

Chill the cookies in the fridge or 30 minutes before serving to set the jam. Store in the fridge for up to one week.

Recipe adapted from King Arthur Flour.

Blueberry Oat Muffins

January 26, 2019 by Danielle 7 Comments

Whole wheats and oat muffins, bursting with juicy blueberries.

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Every weekend I try to make muffins or banana bread. Some sort of baked good that can be grabbed on our way to work in the morning. Or thrown in my purse for a mid morning snack. Bonus points if it’s tasty enough to enjoy as dessert. Anything that keeps me away from a chocolate bar is key to keep my waist line from growing!

Blueberry muffins are one of my favourite kinds of muffins. I like that they are fresh and light while still providing the comfort of a baked good. I personally am not a fan of the baker style muffin. To me those are truly a dessert. They are more like cake than muffin and you will rarely find me baking them. If a baked good is going to be part of my regular diet as part of a meal pr snack I have a few requirements:

Mostly whole wheat or whole grain
Low in sugar
Healthy fat source
Delicious!

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These muffins fit my rules. They contain whole wheat flour, rolled oats, honey, cinnamon, apple sauce, coconut oil and blueberries! Lots of filling healthy ingredients to fuel your day.

We’ve enjoyed these so much I’m going to me making another batch on Sunday!

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Blueberry Oat Muffins

Yields: 14 Muffins

Ingredients:

1 cup Whole Wheat Flour
1/2 cup All Purpose Flour
1 1/2 cup Rolled Oats
1/2 tsp Salt
1/2 tsp Cinnamon
1 tsp Baking Powder
1/2 tsp Baking Soda
1/4 cup Brown Sugar, loosely packed
1/3 cup Honey
1/3 cup Unsweetened Apple Sauce
1/3 cup Coconut Oil, melted
1 cup Milk (Cows milk, nut milk, oat milk – your favourite!)
1 tsp Vanilla
1 Egg
1 cup Blueberries (fresh or frozen, do not defrost frozen)
Optional: Rolled Oats and Turbinado Sugar, for topping

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Prepare your muffin tins with cupcake liners or grease with oil or non stick spray. Set aside.

In a medium bowl whisk together whole wheat flour, all purpose flour, oats, salt, cinnamon, baking powder and baking soda. Once ingredients are evenly distributed, set aside.

In a large bowl whisk together brown sugar, honey, apple sauce, coconut oil, milk, vanilla and egg. Whisk until smooth. Pour dry ingredients into the wet. Fold in the dry ingredients until just combined. Add blueberries, fold into batter.

Pour batter into the prepared muffin tins. Fill each tin 3/4 of the way full. Do not over fill. Sprinkle tops of muffins with rolled oats and turbinado sugar if desired. Bake muffins for 20-30 minutes. Muffins are done when a toothpick comes out clean.

Store in an airtight container in your refrigerator for about a week. These muffins also freeze and defrost well.

« Previous Page

Spring

Salted Caramel Brownies

Guinness Shepherd’s Pie

Mango Coconut Overnight Oats

Healthier Chicken Salad

Lemon Raspberry Linzer Cookies

Blueberry Oat Muffins

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