Fruit Smoothie with Soy Milk

It's been a couple weeks since my last post - but there have been a string of illnesses in the family and food has been the last thing on my mind! We have been living on tea and saltines trying to get over various stomach bugs.  Fingers crossed sick season is over now.

I try to drink one of these every day...I am not the best at eating a piece of fruit but if I blend it up with some vanilla soy milk it goes down so much easier.  My daughter loves these too and it is a good way to get her to eat fruit other than bananas. Frozen berries are a dream come true for me.  If I do buy fresh fruit it can generally be found weeks later looking very poorly at the back of the produce drawer.

This 3 ingredient smoothie is awesome for breakfast, as a healthy snack or dessert and takes only a couple of minutes to make with a hand mixer.


Method and Preparation: Serves 2 adults + a toddler

• 1 cup frozen mixed berries (raspberries, strawberries, blueberries, blackberries)
• 1 1/4 cups Vanilla Soy Milk (I use Natura brand)
• 1 banana

Put the fruit, soy milk and banana into a tall plastic container, take out your hand blender and whizz up until smooth!  It's that easy.


*Another smoothie option I like is Litchi juice (Ceres brand), frozen blueberries and banana.

I use a Cuisinart hand blender and it is the most used tool in the kitchen. I highly suggest buying something like this if you don't have one already.

Chocolate-Dipped Fruit

This is a great idea if you are looking for a small treat to take to someone as a hostess gift. Just package with some parchment in a nice box with a pretty bow and you are set.  It's also a nice way to treat yourself!  Super easy to do and doesn't take much time at all.  These would also be nice on each table setting for Easter brunch or a birthday party.

Recipe adapted from the Food & Drink magazine Spring 2011.

Buy the best Belgian or Swiss chocolate you can and choose dried fruit that is soft and pliable. Don't use chocolate chips as they will not harden when cooled. Layer a baking sheet with parchment paper.  You will need about 8 oz of chocolate.  Melt the chocolate in a glass bowl over a saucepan of boiling water (about 1-2" of water will do) stirring until smooth.


Once your chocolate is melted keep it in the glass bowl over the sauce pan to keep it from getting too gummy or hardening while you are working with it. Work fast and dip your fruit by using a toothpick in each piece. Let the excess drip off and then place on the parchment to cool. Continue until all your fruit are dipped. Cool about 2 hours or so. Remove toothpicks.  You can keep them out at room temp but i prefer to keep them in the fridge.

I used crystallized ginger and dried papaya.

Fruit ideas:

• dried cherries
• dried cranberries
• dried blueberries or raisins
• dried figs
• dried apricots
• chunks of dried pineapple
• dried papaya
• crystallized ginger

Banana Bread with Wheatgerm & Walnuts

Do not be scared off by the wheatgerm...it does not contain actual germs! The wheat germ is just the tiny part of the wheat kernel that contains an amazing about of nutrients & vitamins plus loads of potassium and iron.

This is a fantastic banana bread recipe from the Rebar Modern Food Cookbook - a great source for vegetarians or anyone who is into healthy food with a twist.


Ingredients and Preparation from Rebar Modern Food Cookbook: Yields 1 9"x5" Loaf

• 2 1/2 cups unbleached flour
• 2 tsp baking soda
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup wheatgerm, toasted
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
• 3/4 cup brown sugar
• 3/4 cup white sugar
• 4 eggs
• 3 very ripe bananas
• 1/4 sour cream(or plain Greek yogurt)
• 3/4 cup walnuts, roasted and chopped

Pre-heat the oven to 350F. Butter and flour a 9"x5" loaf pan. Comine the flour, wheatgerm, baking powder, soda and salt in a small bowl and set aside.

In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugars. blend in the eggs one at a time until well incorporated. Mash together the bananas and sour cream. Add one third of the flour mix into the creamed butter/sugar mix. Next, stir in the banana mash and mix thoroughly.  Add the remainder of the flour and mix on low until well combined, taking care not to overmix. Gently fold in the walnuts.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan, smoothing the top and bake for one hour or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean.  Cool the cake in the pan for 10 minutes, then run a knife along the edges and turn the loaf gently out. Cool on a wire rack.

Pumpkin Bars

Who doesn't have a stray can of pumpkin puree lying around in the cupboard, right? Well, mine had been there for a while and I want a clean slate so to speak so I am using up the old forgotten items. I googled pumpkin puree recipes and up popped an epicurious tag for a Paula Deen Pumpkin Bar. I love Paula Deen for her crazy personality and her free use of all things sugar and butter.

These bars (or "muffins" which I also made which the extra batter) are delicious and really moist. Super easy to do as well. I can guarantee they are easy as I made them while holding the baby (she was put down away from the stove though before I put them in - no children harmed during the making of these muffins/bars!).

Here's what you have to do...

Ingredients

Bars:

• 4 eggs
• 1 2/3 cups granulated sugar
• 1 cup vegetable oil
• 15-ounce can pumpkin (that’s about 444ml for the Canadians reading - I had to check)
• 2 cups sifted all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking soda

Icing:

• 8-ounce package cream cheese, softened (1 standard size package of Philly)
• 1/2 cup butter or margarine, softened
• 2 cups sifted confectioners' sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Using an electric mixer at medium speed, combine the eggs, sugar, oil and pumpkin until light and fluffy. Stir together the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, salt and baking soda. Add the dry ingredients to the pumpkin mixture and mix at low speed until thoroughly combined and the batter is smooth. Spread the batter into a greased 13 by 10-inch baking pan. Bake for 30 minutes. Let cool completely before frosting. Cut into bars.

To make the icing: Combine the cream cheese and butter in a medium bowl with an electric mixer until smooth. Add the sugar and mix at low speed until combined. Stir in the vanilla and mix again. Spread on cooled pumpkin bars.

Enjoy with a cup of tea!

Mom's German Cheesecake with Blueberries & Raspberries

This cheesecake has been a family favorite since the 70's! My Mom calls it a German cheesecake but I have no idea what makes it German and I have yet to ask - I think it may be the use of cottage cheese instead of cream cheese. Usually she makes it with strawberries but the last time it was a raspberry and blueberry surprise (see pics). I hope you all enjoy it as much as we do...

Ingredients and Preparation:

Base

1 (generous) cup cake & pastry flour 1/3 cup sugar

Pinch salt 1 egg (beaten)

½ cup Becel

Filling

500g tub 1%, or 2% cottage cheese (chunky kind, not creamed) ½ cup sugar

Small tub (175g) plain yoghurt OR 3 tablespoons sour cream 2 eggs (beaten)

Method

Special equipment – 10” spring form pan. Arrange rack in oven so pan can be placed on centre rack. Turn on oven to 350F.

In large mixing bowl, sift flour, add pinch salt, cut in Becel (with round ended knife) until mixture resembles bread crumbs. Fold in sugar. Add beaten egg and mix in with knife just until blended but maintaining appearance of bread crumbs. Sprinkle/spread mixture in bottom of spring form pan, press down and out to sides of pan gently with finger tips. Put aside and prepare filling.

Put cottage cheese in mixing bowl (you can use the same one you just used for the base mixture, no need to wash it!). Blend in yoghurt or sour cream with spoon. Gently blend in sugar. Gently stir in beaten eggs – do not beat or whip. Pour mixture onto base in spring form pan. Place on middle rack in oven and cook for 1 hour or until top is firm and golden yellow coloured (not brown or it will be dry). When cooked, leave to cool then add topping of your choice. Cake improves in taste and texture if served the next day (if you can wait!).

Topping

Cover top of cheesecake with generous amount of halved, fresh strawberries, or raspberries, or blueberries or mixture of all three if you like! You can also use frozen fruit or unsweetened canned fruit. Pour glaze over top (recipe below for the gourmet pastry chef – or cheat and use package glaze mix from store…) and allow to set. Share and enjoy!

Strawberry Glaze

1 quart strawberries 1 tablespoon cornstarch

1/3 cup sugar 1 teaspoon butter

¼ cup water

1. Wash and hull the strawberries. Crush enough berries to make one half cup.
2. Boil the crushed berries, sugar, water and cornstarch two minutes, stirring. Add the butter. Strain and cool.
3. Arrange the berries (whole or sliced in half) over the cheesecake and pour the glaze over the berries. Chill.

Delicious Banana Bread with Chocolate Chunks

I was cleaning out the freezer the other day and discovered 3 sad, old bananas. Not wanting to throw them out, I made the following recipe - and it was so good there was no time for a photo opp. It is also one of the easiest recipes I've ever made!

I used chunks cut from a huge milk chocolate bar instead of the chocolate chips and it was delicious. The recipe called for 40-50 minutes but it took my loaf about 1 hour to bake. Keep checking yours towards the end of the recommended time just to be sure it is cooked all the way through. It could have been because I used a silicone loaf pan instead of a metal one.

Ingredients & Prep: (Recipe from www.bestbananabreadrecipes.com)

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
3 bananas
1/2 cup butter
2 eggs
1 cup chocolate chips or chunks

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees.
   
2. Combine and mix all ingredients together in a large mixing bowl.
3. Place batter in a greased bread pan (bottom only) or in muffin tins.
4. Bake 40 to 50 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean.
5. Cool for 10 minutes then remove from pan. Complete cooling on a wire rack.

Christmas Cookies!

Ginger on the left, Sugar on the right

Let me start by telling you I am not a baker, yet for some reason last night, I had the urge to make cookies...and they turned out very well! My husband started out with a big sigh asking why I wasnt making chocolate chip cookies. He later recanted when he tasted the first of these! Two very easy recipes below for any of you non-bakers out there - Merry Christmas!

This afternoon I will be taking over a treat (these cookies) to our neighbours as a little Christmas gift! In good 'Martha' fashion, I have included the recipes with their cards.

Ginger Cookies (recipe from a person I "know" online - Thanks LHC!)

Ingredients:

3/4 cup butter, softened
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1/4 cup molasses (I used Lyle's Golden Syrup instead - yum!)
2 1/4 cups flour
2 tsp. ground ginger
1 tsp. baking soda
3/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ground cloves (I omitted these b/c I had none in the house)
Sugar

Directions:

Cream butter, 1 cup sugar, egg and molasses until well blended. Stir in flour, ginger, baking soda and cinnamon. Shape dough into 1 1/2" balls.
Roll balls in sugar. Place balls on un-greased cookie sheet (put parchment paper down to prevent burning on the bottoms). Bake at 350°F for 10 minutes or until lightly browned and still puffed. Cool on cookie sheet for 2 minutes; remove to plate with wax paper to finish cooling.

IF YOU WANT THEM CRUNCHY: Store on a plate covered with aluminum foil.

TO KEEP THEM CHEWY: After ten minutes of cooling, put them in a tupperware/gladware container lined with wax paper and keep the lid on. After a couple of days, if they get hard, put a piece of bread in with them. The cookies will retain the moisture from the bread and stay chewy.

Sugar Cookies (recipe from allrecipes.com)

Ingredients

2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup butter, softened
1 1/2 cups white sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). In a small bowl, stir together flour, baking soda, and baking powder. Set aside.

In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until smooth. Beat in egg and vanilla. Gradually blend in the dry ingredients. Roll rounded teaspoonfuls of dough into balls, and place onto ungreased cookie sheets.

Bake 8 to 10 minutes in the preheated oven, or until golden. Let stand on cookie sheet two minutes before removing to cool on wire racks.

Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Icing

Laugh all you like, but until last week, I'd never made a carrot cake. It's one of my favorite desserts to eat so why have I never baked one before? No one knows. Thanks to Amber's Delectable Delights (http://amberskitchen.blogspot.com) for answering my online call for a great recipe. I have copied the recipe below just as Amber sent it to me. It is originally from Baking Illustrated by Cooks Illustrated.

If you need some sort of orange dessert for the fall/Halloween season coming, this would be ideal! Add some scary bugs made out of jube jubes and licorice string on top for some spooky flair! ;)

Ingredients & Preparation (recipe from Amber's Delectable Delights & original from Baking Illustrated). If you like nuts in your cake, stir in 1 1/2 cups of toasted chopped pecans or walnuts into the batter, along with the carrots. Raisins are also a good addition. 1 cup can be added with the carrots. If you add both nuts & raisins, your cake will need an extra 10-12 minutes in the oven. Below are instructions for using a hand-held or standing mixer.

• 2 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour (12 1/2 ounces)
• 1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 1/4 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves (I didn't have cloves so they were not used in my version)
  
• 1/2 teaspoon table salt
• 1 pound medium carrots (6 to 7 carrots), peeled (I used organic)
• 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar (10 1/2 ounces)
• 1/2 cup packed light brown sugar (3 1/2 ounces)
• 4 large eggs
• 1 1/2 cups vegetable oil , safflower oil, or canola oil

Cream Cheese Icing

• 8 ounces cream cheese , softened but still cool
• 5 tablespoons unsalted butter softened, but still cool
• 1 tablespoon sour cream
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 1/4 cups confectioner's sugar
  

Directions

1. For the cake: Adjust oven rack to middle position; heat oven to 350 degrees. Spray 13 by 9-inch baking pan (or 2, 9" round cake pans) with nonstick cooking spray. Line bottom of pan with parchment and spray parchment.

2. Whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and salt in large bowl; set aside.

3. In food processor fitted with large shredding disk, shred carrots (you should have about 3 cups); transfer carrots to bowl and set aside. Wipe out food processor workbowl and fit with metal blade. Process granulated and brown sugars and eggs until frothy and thoroughly combined, about 20 seconds. With machine running, add oil through feed tube in steady stream. Process until mixture is light in color and well emulsified, about 20 seconds longer. Scrape mixture into medium bowl. Stir in carrots and dry ingredients until incorporated and no streaks of flour remain. Pour into prepared pan and bake until toothpick or skewer inserted into center of cake comes out clean, 35 to 40 minutes, rotating pan halfway through baking time. Cool cake to room temperature in pan on wire rack, about 2 hours.

4. For the frosting: When cake is cool, process cream cheese, butter, sour cream, and vanilla in clean food processor workbowl until combined, about 5 seconds, scraping down bowl with rubber spatula as needed. Add confectioners' sugar and process until smooth, about 10 seconds.

5. Run paring knife around edge of cake to loosen from pan. Invert cake onto wire rack, peel off parchment, then invert again onto serving platter. Using icing spatula, spread frosting evenly over surface of cake. Cut into squares and serve. (Cover leftovers and refrigerate for up to 3 days.)

Organic Blueberry Crumble

I normally don't make dessert but I had a lot of organic blueberries this week in my produce delivery so I decided to make a crumble. This recipe is too easy. I thought I made a mistake somewhere because it took only 5 minutes to prep (+ 30 minutes in the oven). Unfortunately, we had no ice cream in the house and there was no way either of us were going out to get it so we each poured a big glass of milk and sat down with our crumble.


Ingredients & Preparation (Recipe from www.wholefoodsmarket.com)
Serves 4-6

• 6 cups blueberries (I used organic)
  
• 1 tablespoon flour
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 2/3 cup flour
• 3/4 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup oats
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 4 1/2 tablespoons butter

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Rinse fruit and drain thoroughly. Put berries in a mixing bowl and add lemon juice and one tablespoon flour. Combine, and pour into a 10”pie plate. In a food processor, pulse together the remaining ingredients until they resemble coarse breadcrumbs. Cover the berries with the topping and bake for thirty minutes until the top has browned and the fruit is bubbling.

Can be served hot or at room temperature. Goes very well with ice cream (or so I hear).

I normally don't like blueberries but this is to die for - Enjoy!

English Trifle - a guest blogger post (btt's Mum)!

This post & recipe was written by my Mum. Here it is in all its glory - word for word - direct from my inbox (complete with details on my dirty laundry). It's a bit heavy on photos for instructional purposes. I will have to convince her to do her German Cheesecake next!

Thanks for a great weekend - we had a good time and enjoyed your company and the laughs - folding the washing was comme ci, comme ca! Just kidding - it was my pleasure... Anyhow, here's the trifle recipe as best as I can muster at this time of night and not ever having had a recipe for it in my life!

Ingredients & Preparation: (Original recipe by Mum and Nana)

You will need a large fancy glass fruit/serving bowl

• 1 large pkg. or 2 small pkgs. jello powder (raspberry flavour is best)
• 1 pkg. small jelly sponge cake rolls (usually 8 per pkg - red jam, no cream)
• 1 large tin sliced cling peaches (in fruit juice, not syrup)
• 1/2 - 3/4 large pkg. frozen 4-berry fruit (strawberries, blackberries, blueberries, raspberries)
• 1 small pkg frozen raspberries (or one can)
• 1 or 2 cans ready made custard or make 2 1/2 cups custard using 2% milk and Horne's or Bird's custard powder
• 1 carton (small) whipping cream
• 1/4 cup sliced raw almonds, toasted

Method

Cut each jelly roll into 4 slices and place in bottom of glass bowl, then around sides - any bits left over can go in the middle of bowl.

Drain peach slices reserving juice. Put one peach slice between the jelly roll slices which are around the sides of the bowl - then arrange remainder of peaches in centre of bowl covering the sponge cake entirely (reserve few slices with which to decorate top of trifle).

Mix jelly powder with one cup boiling water per small pkg, (2 cups for large). Stir until well dissolved, then add 1/2 cup reserved peach juice for each cup of hot water used. Mix well, then add frozen berries and stir gently for one minute. Pour carefully into bowl on top of the peaches & cake making sure the cake slices on side of bowl stay in place. Put bowl in fridge and leave to set (about 1/2 hr).

Meanwhile, make the custard according to directions and when ready, cover pan and allow to cool for about 5 minutes (don't leave it too long or it will not pour easily). Once jelly has set (almost set is fine) pour warm custard over the top of fruit/cake mixture (or, if using canned custard pour contents of two cans over mixture). Put bowl back into fridge and allow custard to set (20 mins or so). In a small pan, lightly toast the almonds and set aside. Whip cream until soft peaks form and they hold shape easily (don't over-whip the cream or it will be lumpy) Spread the cream over top of custard, use reserved peach slices to decorate centre. Sprinkle all over with toasted almonds. Ready to serve and enjoy!

A true English Trifle will contain about 1/4 - 1/3 cup of sherry or port but this is an individual taste choice - just add sherry to the hot water/jelly powder mix before adding frozen fruit - give it a try!

Mock Skor Bar

This is the easiest dessert ever! I've been making it for about 8 years now after tasting it at a volleyball weekend up at a friend's cottage. With only 4 ingredients it takes very little energy to make this recipe. The result tastes like you spent hours on it. It's perfect for a last minute potluck or if you package it nicely, a hostess gift. Make sure to keep very cool when transporting so the chocolate doesn't melt. My husband made this last night (with a little help) for a picnic we are having today.

Ingredients & Preparation:

• 24 regular salted soda crackers (i.e. premium plus)
• 1 cup butter
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350F. Line a 13 x 9 inch pan with parchment paper for easy clean up. Arrange crackers evenly in pan. In saucepan over medium heat melt butter. Stir in brown sugar until melted and smooth. Bring mixture to a boil, whisking constantly, until mixture is smooth and bubbly. Boil for 2 minutes and then pour mixture evenly over crackers. Bake in oven for 5 minutes. Sprinkle chocolate pieces evenly over caramel mixture. Return to oven just long enough for chocolate to melt. Spread chocolate evenly with spatula. Place pan in refrigerator or freezer until chocolate is firm. Cut or break into pieces.

Berry & Rhubarb Pie

After my produce delivery last week, I attempted to make a strawberry rhubarb pie. Unfortunately, I didn't have enough rhubarb for the filling so I needed to add some more berries. My pie soon became a strawberry, raspberry, rhubarb pie. All the fruit used in the recipe was from local farms. The berries were smaller and they go soft much more quickly than other berries I have bought in the past so you have to eat them fast or else they don't last. This pie was a great way to enjoy their flavour!

I admit I bought a store-made crust because I really didn't have time to make one from scratch. Forgive me! Use your favorite crust recipe when you make this pie.

Ingredients & Preparation: (loosely based on the original recipe from Bon Appetit, April 1997)

• 3 1/2 cups 1/2-inch-thick slices trimmed local, organic rhubarb
• 1 container local, organic strawberries, hulled, halved (about 2 1/2 cups)
• 1 cup of local raspberries
• 1/2 cup (packed) organic golden brown sugar
• 1/2 cup organic sugar
• 1/4 cup cornstarch
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon salt

To make the filling; preheat oven to 400°F. Combine first 8 ingredients in large bowl. Toss gently to blend. Fill up the pie shell and cover with second shell. Cut a little slit in the top to let steam escape. How easy is that!?

Transfer pie to baking sheet. Bake 20 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 350°F. Bake pie until golden and filling thickens, about another 25 minutes. Transfer pie to rack and cool completely.

Sweet Mango & Banana Wontons

What is better to end a meal than a deep fried wonton? These delicious little triangles are so simple to make...have them with vanilla ice cream if you prefer but they are amazing just as they are dipped in mango puree.

I am still in the process of clearing out the fridge and freezer so this was a quick, impromptu dessert. I was craving something sweet and this was the result - no recipe, just imagination!

Ingredients & Preparation:

• small wontons, cut in 2 on the diagonal
• about 2 cups of mango, diced
• 1/4 banana
• 1/4 cup of raw brown sugar
• 1 squeeze of honey
• 3-4 cups of peanut oil for deep frying
• icing sugar for dusting

Put the mango, banana, brown sugar and honey into a blender and puree until fairly smooth but not runny. Leave a few bits in it. Cut your wontons on the diagonal. Put a little of the mixture in the centre of the triangle. Wet the sides with a little water on your finger and fold over being careful to seal the edges. You should now have a triangular pocket.

Heat your oil up to 350F in a deep, heavy pot. Once hot enough, place 3 wontons in the pot. Let them turn golden one the 1st side, then flip over and do the same for the second. Let the wontons cool on a wire rack or on paper towel.

When ready to serve, dust with a little (or a lot!) of icing sugar. Serve with ice cream or a small bowl of the leftover puree. A perfect end to an Asian-inspired meal!

Creme Caramel

So this was a midnight experiment...I have no idea why I was inspired at such an odd hour to make my first creme caramel. I stayed up until 2AM so I could take some pictures once it set and then ate a piece of this delicious thing and tried to get to sleep while fighting the sugar high. Needless to say, I am tired this morning but it is Friday so I should survive.

I watched Laura Calder from French Food at Home make this dessert the other night on FoodTV and thought I just had to try it. My result was very good for a first go. Next time, I think I will use a deeper pan and perhaps regular organic sugar as mine didn't caramelize to the rich, dark colour I hoped for. I used organic Demerara sugar which has a great flavour but perhaps is too crystallized to caramelize properly. I don't really know though.

Ingredients & Preparation: [From FOOD TV, Laura Calder: French Food at Home (episode Classic Bistro Desserts)]

Serves 6-8 people

• 1 cup sugar (for the topping)
• 2 cups fresh whole milk
• 1 x vanilla bean (or vanilla extract if no beans available)
• 6 x free-range eggs
• 1/2 cup sugar
• pinch nutmeg

Heat the oven to 325°F. Bring a full kettle of water to the boil, and turn off the heat (this is for the water bath later).

Dissolve the sugar for the topping in a saucepan with 1/4 cup water, and boil until it turns a dark, fragrant, liquid caramel. Pour into the cake tin and swirl to coat the bottom evenly. Set aside.

Pour the milk into the same saucepan, so that it laps up the caramel on the bottom and sides (this is the most brilliant trick for flavour!) Split the vanilla bean, scrape the seeds into the milk, and add the pod. Heat to the boiling point, turn off the heat, cover, and set aside to infuse 10 minutes. Meanwhile, beat the eggs with the sugar. Add the nutmeg. Once the milk has infused, whisk it into the egg mixture.

Strain the custard over the hardened caramel and set the pan in a larger dish or roasting pan. Pour the boiled water into the bottom pan to come half-way up the sides of the flan. Transfer to the oven and bake until set, 45 minutes to an hour.

Remove the flan from the oven and from the water bath. Run a knife around the outside edge to loosen the flan. Cool completely – even chill, if you like. To serve, flip the flan onto a plate, pour over any caramel remaining in the pan. Serve in wedges.

Cook's notes: Use a very sharp knife around the edges. I learned the hard way and didn't have a smooth finish around the edges. Also, the straining step is key so you don't get bubbles in the custard. And ensure your dish that you flip the creme caramel on to is big enough and has a slight rim or you'll have a mess on your hands.

White Chocolate Tarts with Berries & Pistachio

These little tarts are inspired by one of my favorite Italian restaurants in the city. Grano has a crostata tri-colore (http://www.grano.ca/) and I absolutely adore it. I had a craving one day and couldn't get to the restaurant so I made my own version. It has been a staple in our house ever since.

The three colours are red, white & green. Raspberry, white chocolate and pistachio. I added some blackberries to the batch I made today. I cheat and use pre-made mini shells.

This dessert is so simple to make and so, so good.

Ingredients & Preparation:

• 18 Mini pie shells
• Approx. 12 squares of white bakers chocolate (I didn't count!)
• 10% cream, until chocolate is smooth
• pistachios, shelled and chopped into pieces
• raspberries, cut into 1/4's
• blackberries, cut into 1/4's

Pre-bake your mini shells according to directions. Melt your chocolate however you can - I use a pot of boiling water with a small sauce pan on top so the heat from the steam melts the chocolate. Add the cream and keep stirring until the chocolate is smooth, thinned out and creamy. I do this by feel so I have no idea how much cream I use. Maybe about 1/2-3/4 cup?

Place some chopped pistachios in the bottom of all your shells. Fill just below the top with white chocolate and place raspberries or blackberries into the centre with some more pistachios. Let cool in the fridge for a couple hours.