Tag Archives: delicious

Coconut Prawn Curry

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This sauce is incredibly good.  How, I wondered, did so much flavour show up in 25 minutes?

Garlic Herb Naan 3

I managed to get a few sprigs of cilantro on here for a photo, but it was ready so quickly, and smelled so heavenly there was no fancy plating for a photo!

I’ve made it with some jumbo prawns tonight but you could easily substitute any protein you like, or go straight vegetarian and you will be so glad you tried it.

SHRIMP & MARINADE

  • 1 lb extra large shrimp, peeled & deveined
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
  • 2 tbsp lemon juice (freshly squeezed please)

CURRY SAUCE

  • 1 tbsp coconut oil
  • 1 medium onion, finely chopped
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 tbsp fresh minced ginger
  • 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp turmeric powder
  • 2 tsp ground coriander
  • 1 tsp Madras curry powder
  • 1 can (14.5 ounce) diced fire roasted tomatoes
  • 1 can (13.5 ounce) coconut milk

cilantro for garnish

rice for serving

INSTRUCTIONS

  • In a small bowl toss the shrimp with the marinade ingredients. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 10 minutes.
  • While the shrimp is marinating, heat the oil in a medium size skillet. To it add the onion, and cook for 2 or 3 minutes until the onion softens and becomes translucent. Stir in the garlic, ginger, pepper, salt, coriander, turmeric and curry powder. Cook for another minute.
  • Add the diced tomatoes with juices and all, the coconut milk, stir and bring to a boil. Cook for about 5 minutes stirring occasionally. Add the shrimp with the accumulated juices from the marinade and cook for another 2 minutes or until the shrimp is pink and cooked through.
  • Serve over hot rice and garnish with cilantro or parsley.

I’d say the only way you could be disappointed by this dish is if your spices are old.  They really aren’t meant to last forever just because they are dry!

Coconut curry 2

Get your prawns gently tossed in the marinade and put in the fridge until you are ready to add them to the curry sauce. (I used chili flakes rather than cayenne pepper today)

Coconut curry 3

Follow the instructions on how to build your flavour base – it really is important in many dishes, but I find especially so in Indian food.

Coconut curry 6

Coconut Curry 5

The next night we still had enough for another meal – so I lightly sauted some fresh vegetables in a sauce pan until just tender crisp.  Then add the sauce and heat only enough to warm through.  This keeps the individual flavour of your vegetables and doesn’t overcook either the remaining prawns or the curry sauce.

Make sure to serve these with Garlic Herb Naan – just what you need to sop up this inviting sauce.

These were my best naan ever!  So tender, with dough that is very easy to work with.  As an added bonus they freeze well so for nights when it is just the two of us I only cook half and freeze the other half …. ready for fresh frying when I am.

 

I have a lot of “authentic” food bloggers I follow for cooking dishes from India, Thailand, and Mexico just to name a few.  This recipe came from a fellow Canadian!  If you haven’t been to Jo’s website …..   http://www.jocooks.com then I recommend you do.  She has specific hints to make everything better, and is well worth a read.

 

Rhubarb Blueberry Oat Bars

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Is there anything better than oat bars that you can grab and eat while doing whatever you need to be doing?  These are absolute perfection, with a hint of sweetness from the blueberries (last years frozen) and a bit of tang from the rhubarb (fresh this year).

Rhubarb 2

These bars have the exact perfect ratio of fruit to oat bar, I could have devoured many more than I did.  Thank goodness I didn’t.  It’s hard enough not to eat all the sourdough I’m baking!

Ingredients

  • 3 cups Rhubarb Cut Into 1 Inch Pieces
  • 3 cups Blueberries
  • 2 Tablespoons Lemon Juice
  • 3/4 cup Sugar
  • 4 Tablespoons Cornstarch
  • 1-½ cup All-purpose Flour
  • 1-½ cup Uncooked Quick Cooking Oats (not Instant)
  • 3/4 cup Brown Sugar
  • ¾ cup Softened Butter
  • ½ teaspoon Baking Soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
  • ¼ teaspoon Salt

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350ºF.

Combine rhubarb, blueberries and lemon juice in a large saucepan and cook over medium heat until rhubarb is softened. No added liquid is needed as the water from the rhubarb and blueberries will come out naturally.

In a small bowl, combine sugar and cornstarch. Mix well to break up the lumps of cornstarch. Set aside.

While rhubarb and blueberries are cooking, begin making the crust. Combine flour, oats, brown sugar, butter, baking soda and salt together in a bowl until well mixed and crumbly. Reserve 1 1/2 cups of crust to be used as a topping. Grease a 13×9 pan with cooking spray. Press remaining crust mixture into the pan in an even layer. Set aside.

When rhubarb and blueberries are softened, use a potato masher to mash and smooth out the larger chunks. Once bigger pieces are broken up, mix in the sugar/cornstarch mixture. Continue to stir until thickened.

Once mixture is thickened, pour over crust. Top with reserved crust mixture.

Bake at 350ºF for 30 minutes.

Rhubarb 1

Ready for the oven, and it already smells heavenly.

Rhubarb 3

Make sure they cool completely before cutting them.

I found this recipe on http://www.tastykitchen.com, and the only changes I made were to include some cinnamon in the crust/topping mixture and reduce the sugar a bit … these are also their tips:

Tips:
1. Mixing the sugar and cornstarch together will prevent lumps of cornstarch in your mixture.
2. The bars will puff up considerably, so don’t be alarmed when you open the oven to take out the bars. They will be a bit jiggly. That’s OK! They are done!
3. When they cool, they’ll “deflate” a bit and set up nicely.

Energy Balls

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Energy Balls 3

Nailed it!  These energy balls are perfect for a bite on the go, or if you just realized you forgot to eat today …… (Hello Hayley).  This is the perfect recipe for a little creative flexibility.  We don’t like raisins, so you won’t find any here but they could easily be used in place of cranberries or the dried cherries.  The only thing that matters is that you use 2 cups of dried fruit – use any combination you like.  With all the peanut allergies in schools and restrictions with it (Hello Liv), you can easily replace the peanut butter with any nut butter you like.

Energy balls 2

A big part of the success story is your ingredient source …. Rancho Vignola has amazing nuts, seeds, and baking products.  Make sure you have great quality supplies.                                         Nope, this isn’t a sponsored post, I just love their products!

  • 1 cup toasted sunflower seeds
  • 1 cup toasted sesame seeds
  • 1 cup oats (I use a combination of quick cooking and large flake oats)
  • 1 cup dark chocolate chips
  • 1 cup dried cranberries
  • 1 cup dried cherries (chopped)
  • 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 2 cups smooth peanut butter
  • 1/2 cup honey
  • 1 1/2 cups toasted coconut flakes
  1. Combine all dry ingredients together in a large bowl and mix thoroughly with your hands.
  2. In a separate small bowl stir peanut butter and honey together until smooth and well incorporated.
  3. Stir into dry ingredients, and mix well.  Again, I find your hands the best tools you’ve got.  Make sure you mix well …. those pesky little sesame seeds like to hide in the bottom of the bowl.
  4. Once you’ve got it all mixed, form balls and roll in the toasted coconut.  I find it helps to put a little coconut in my hands too and that really helps it to adhere.

Energy Balls 1

Store in the fridge for up to a week, or keep them in the freezer for a couple of months (if they last that long).

 

 

Mini Pumpkin Cheesecake Bites

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Delicious!  Not only do these look pretty darn cute on a serving platter, you will love how they taste.  A couple quick bites of pure pumpkin cheesecake heaven ….

pumpkin-cheesecake-minis

INGREDIENTS:

For the crust:
8 gingersnap cookies
1 graham cracker rectangle
1/4 cup chopped pecans
1 1/2 tsp brown sugar
1/8 tsp salt
1 1/2 TBSP melted butter

For the cheesecakes:
1 package (8 oz.) cream cheese, room temperature
1/4 cup + 2 Tablespoons granulated sugar
1/2 cup pumpkin puree
1 large egg
2 teaspoons heavy cream
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/8 tsp ginger

For whipped cream topping:
1 cup heavy cream
1 TBSP powdered sugar
1/4 tsp vanilla extract

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Arrange oven rack in the lower third of your oven. Lightly grease a 12-cup mini cheesecake pan or mini muffin pan with nonstick cooking spray.

In the bowl of a food processor, grind all ingredients for crust (except for melted butter) until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add melted butter and process until crumbs resemble wet sand. Press mixture by the tablespoon (1/2 Tbsp. if using a mini muffin pan) into each cheesecake/muffin pan cup*. Bake for 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, prepare cheesecake. In a large bowl, beat cream cheese, sugar and pumpkin puree with an electric mixer on medium speed until smooth. Mix in egg, heavy cream, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger until just combined. Evenly pour filling over each crust. Bake for 20 minutes. Remove from oven and cool in pan for 20 minutes. Refrigerate at least 1 hour before removing cheesecakes from pan.

Remove cheesecakes from pan by gently running a blunt knife around the edges of each cheesecake and popping out.

Before serving, prepare whipped cream. Beat heavy cream, sugar and vanilla in a medium bowl with an electric mixer on medium-high speed, until stiff peaks form. Refrigerate until ready to dollop on top of cheesecakes.

If these get past your original serving, refrigerate the rest until they disappear!

Mexican Chocolate Snow Caps

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These delicious little bites were waiting for Hayley, Sloan, Stella and I when we arrived at big sister Meghan’s house – you can’t have just one!  She made them as peppermint, and they are fabulous.  Gluten free too!

 

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8 oz semi sweet chocolate, chopped

2 tbsp butter

1 1/4 cup ground almonds

1/4 tsp salt

2 large eggs (room temperature)

1/2 cup white sugar

1 tsp ancho chile powder 

1/2 tsp cinnamon

Sifted icing sugar to roll cookies

In a heatproof bowl (over pan of gently simmering water) melt chocolate and butter, stirring until smooth.  Remove from heat.  Stir in almonds and salt.

in a mixing bowl, whisk eggs and sugar until pale and thickened, about 2 minutes.  Add in chocolate mixture and spices.  Fold until well blended.  Cover and put in the fridge until very firm – about 3 hours.

Preheat oven to 350.  Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.  Form dough into 1 1/4″ balls.  Roll balls in icing sugar.  

Place 2″ apart on trays.  Bake until puffed, starting to crack on top and the edges are firm – about 12 minutes.

So easy to switch these up and make them into Peppermint Caps – substitute the chile powder and cinnamon for 1 tsp peppermint extract.