Sweet Girl Confections

raspberry coconut bars.

sweetgirl — Mon, 14 May 2012 22:15:44 +0000

Is it awful that for Mother's Day this year all I wanted was a few hours completely to myself in which to bake delicious morsels and madly snap photographs of my sweet creations? It's not that I don't fully enjoy a rollicking day with the family, but (in my view) Mother's Day should be the one day a year that mamas get to do whatever they want: sleep until the sun is high in the sky, relish in a total lack of distraction... and focus on nurturing yourself, just for one day. And yesterday, (Mother's Day) I was craving a sleep-in, a little bit of solitude to bake myself into a tizzy and snap oodles of photos of my tasty treats, and then spend the rest of the day with my girls and number one guy. And that's exactly what I got: thanks babe. [caption id="attachment_1635" align="aligncenter" width="600" caption="a few easy steps to this delicately delicious Mother's Day dessert."][/caption] In honor of Mother's Day, I've crafted a variation of a recipe found in an old, staple-bound church cookbook that my mother inherited from her mother; a cookbook lovingly compiled by a community of strong, devoted and talented Cape Breton mothers. The result? Buttery shortbread that meets the crimson zing of raspberry, all swathed in a chewy, coconut-crusted macaroon topping. [caption id="attachment_1633" align="aligncenter" width="600" caption="with the melt-in-your-mouth buttery base, the flavor-packed chewy middle and delicate outer crunch, these squares wont last long."][/caption] Raspberry Coconut Bars Preheat oven to 350 degrees F Ingredients

Bottom Layer

1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour ½ cup butter, softened ¼ cup granulated sugar

Filling

1 cup raspberry jam

Top Layer

2 eggs 1 cup granulated sugar 2 cups long thread coconut ½ tsp almond extract ½ baking powder 1 tbsp all-purpose flour

[caption id="attachment_1636" align="aligncenter" width="600" caption="jammin'! spoon dollops of jam all over the shortbread base and spread carefully."][/caption] Directions Bottom Layer

Combine all three top layer ingredients in a food processor or medium bowl; pulse (or mix) until the mixture is crumbly and resembles rough cornmeal.
Press mixture into an ungreased 9x9-inch pan; bake in preheated (350 degree F) oven for 15 minutes.
Remove from oven and set on cooling rack; leave the oven on, at temperature.

Filling

Dollop spoonfuls of jam all over the (baked) bottom layer; distribute roughly evenly and spread carefully.

[caption id="attachment_1631" align="aligncenter" width="600" caption="i never cease to be amazed: it's magical how a few simple ingredients can be transformed so dramatically."][/caption] Top Layer

In medium bowl, beat eggs until frothy using a hand- or standing mixer (or you can give your arms a workout and use a heavy duty whisk). Beat in sugar, coconut, almond extract, baking powder and flour; be sure to mix well.
Drop heaping spoonfuls of the topping evenly over the jam filling; spread delicately with a knife or spatula to fill in any gaps, being careful not to flip over any jam onto the top layer. [caption id="attachment_1632" align="aligncenter" width="600" caption="yummy assembly line."][/caption]
Bake in preheated (350 degree F) oven for 30 to 35 minutes until the topping is golden brown. Cool.
Cut into squares; the topping will crackle a bit when you cut them — no worries: just enjoy the mind-blowing taste.

[caption id="attachment_1634" align="aligncenter" width="600" caption="perfect for tea time, mother's day, bridal and baby showers... or just because."][/caption]

blueberry oat pancakes.

sweetgirl — Sat, 12 May 2012 01:30:46 +0000

It has been brought to my attention that my children are shamefully hard-done-by: most weekday mornings they must suffer through the burden of torturous breakfasts consisting of cereal, granola, porridge, toast, French toast, eggs, bacon, and occasionally, even English muffins. Oh, the horror! [caption id="attachment_1601" align="aligncenter" width="600" caption="a weekday luxury: blueberry oat pancakes drizzled in molasses... gobbled up, lickity-split."][/caption] The messenger of this injustice, was (of course) my four year old daughter, who is somehow under the illusion that my mother serves blueberry pancakes each and every morning at her house. This earnest belief is due to the fact that almost any morning (or even afternoon) my wee ones visit my parents' home, their grandmother reliably whips up a batch of buttery blueberry pancakes on her counter-top griddle. I've tried to explain Grandma's pancake fests are special occasions which coincide with the arrival of the seven grand-progeny each week chez "Grandma-and-Poppy's" (all one word). That I, too, endured dry breakfasts drenched with non-dairy milk alternatives on a regular basis growing up with her grandparents... But, alas, the myth of the daily pancake breakfast at Grandma-and-Poppy's persists; as perhaps it should. Not withstanding the sheer and utter madness that is my house each weekday morn, as I wake, feed, groom and prod my babes into readiness for the day, I do take pleasure in mixing things up a bit with a special "fancy" breakfast every now and then, just to show the kiddies that breakfast at home can be fun, too... that is, if I can manage to wrench myself out of bed a few minutes earlier. So, puttering through the fridge and pantry this past Tuesday morning, I grabbed a bag of rolled oats to incorporate some stealth fiber into these pancakes, along with the last of an overpriced tray of giant organic blueberries. And the splash of olive oil adds an unexpected, flavorful twist... The result? They like it, they like it! Yum. [caption id="attachment_1600" align="aligncenter" width="600" caption="more, please!"][/caption] Blueberry Oat Pancakes Ingredients

1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour ¼ cup rolled oats 1 tbsp baking powder 1 tbsp granulated sugar ½ tsp salt

2/3 cup blueberries (Preferably fresh; if using frozen, see tip below*)

1 egg 1 ½ cups milk 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

¼ cup unsalted butter, melted for skillet or griddle

Tip & Substitutions

The exact cooking time of pancakes will depend on the temperature of your griddle; I find that even small differences in the heat level on my gas stove make a huge difference between perfect pancakes and blackened bottoms (as demonstrated in the photos above). Find the sweet spot for your stove and stick with it.
You can use whole wheat flour instead of all purpose; just add a little extra milk if you find the batter is too thick.
Feel free to toss in some extra blueberries; but I prefer pancakes that aren't completely riddled with millions of tiny blueberries, but instead, lightly speckled with big-ass berries.
If you're using frozen berries — which may be a necessity of the season — add the frozen blueberries last, mixing with as few strokes as possible; this decreases the likelihood of ending up with blue pancakes... unless you like blue pancakes, in which case, go to town.*

Directions

In medium bowl, mix together dry ingredients — flour, oats, baking powder, sugar and salt.
In large bowl, whisk together egg, milk, and olive oil.
Add dry mixture to liquid ingredients, mixing just until fully incorporated; disregard small lumps and be careful not to overmix.
Heat skillet or griddle over medium heat; brush with melted butter.
Ladle batter onto cooking surface using a ¼ cup measure for each pancake.
When underside is a light golden brown and bubbles erupt on topside (after roughly 1½ - 2 minutes), flip over and continue baking for a further 30 - 60 seconds, until the second side is golden brown.
Wipe the griddle or skillet clean and brush with melted butter between each batch.
Serve pancakes hot, with blueberry maple syrup**, (more) melted butter, molasses, jam... or just grab one and scoot out the door if it's that kind of day.

**I have no affiliation with Acadian Maple Products. They're local, based in Tantallon, Nova Scotia (very near Peggy's Cove) and we just really love their syrup.

golden cornbread.

sweetgirl — Tue, 08 May 2012 01:44:47 +0000

Hey folks. Sorry for the unseemly lack of posts; since I last posted I've stopped teaching fitness classes and started back to work full time (outside the home) and have been swamped with a daily routine of schlepping my eldest to school with the twins in tow, picking up the hubby each morning after he finishes teaching an early morning anatomy class, catapulting myself to the office, and then racing back home for dinner time, and collapsing after extracting my remaining drops of energy while kicking and punching my way through an hour of my mom's Turbo Jam DVDs (love it!!). This is all to say that I've sadly had little time to glance at (never mind use) my trusty camera with which to document my increasingly infrequent baking adventures. But I'm back. And I'm resolving to carve out more time — at least one session a week — in which to lose myself, fusing together any number of concoctions of flour, sugar, eggs and other tasty ingredients into baked heavenly bliss... and to shunt a much needed outlet for my OCD/artistic tendencies, painstakingly documenting baking fervor with my much-neglected partners in crime: my camera and the sunlight with which I aim to capture the story of each sweet saga. [caption id="attachment_1580" align="aligncenter" width="600" caption="warm and delicious bars of gold."][/caption] And to mark my reprisal in the role of Sweet Girl, I'm starting with something both sweet and savory: cornbread, made as the toothsome, sun-kissed accompaniment to a steamy, spicy batch of turkey chili. [caption id="attachment_1578" align="aligncenter" width="600" caption="quick and easy, cornbread is a sweet and savory treat."][/caption] Golden Cornbread Preheat oven to 375 degrees F Ingredients

½ cup unsalted butter 2/3 cup granulated sugar 2 eggs 1 cup buttermilk (or 1 cup milk + 1 tsp white vinegar) ½ tsp baking soda 1 cup cornmeal 1 cup all purpose flour ¾ tsp salt

[caption id="attachment_1583" align="aligncenter" width="600" caption="pour and shimmy the batter into the baking dish."][/caption] Directions

Grease an 8-inch square pan.
If using milk and vinegar instead of buttermilk, combine milk with vinegar in a small bowl; set aside for at least 5 minutes.
Meanwhile, crack eggs into a small bowl, whisk lightly and set aside.
Melt butter in medium saucepan. Remove from heat and stir in sugar until it dissolves.
Quickly add eggs and beat furiously until blended.
In a small bowl, combine buttermilk (or milk-vinegar mixture) with baking soda; stir into mixture in saucepan.
Fold in cornmeal, flour, and salt until well blended and few lumps remain. Pour batter into the prepared pan.
Bake in the preheated (375 degrees F) oven for 30 to 40 minutes, or until a toothpick tenderly inserted in the middle comes out clean.
Let stand 5 - 10 minutes before slicing; serve warm. [caption id="attachment_1582" align="alignnone" width="600" caption="a chunk of cornbread served with chili makes for a heartwarming meal."][/caption]

piepalooza: blueberry pie.

sweetgirl — Sat, 21 May 2011 03:20:08 +0000

Earlier this year I was asked to bake six pies (of the blueberry and apple varieties) for Select Nova Scotia’s winter television commercial campaign to help promote the use of locally grown food and produce within the province. And so began piepalooza at our house. This challenge got me over any residual trepidation I might [...]

chocolate peanut butter jammers.

sweetgirl — Wed, 18 May 2011 01:44:22 +0000

Peanut butter and chocolate: it’s a match made in candyland heaven, no? Yes. Perhaps the simplest and most enduring commercial manifestation of this tasty pairing is in Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups, a peanut butter-filled chocolate candy created way back in 1928 by Harry Burnett Reese, a former dairy farmer and shipping foreman to Milton S. [...]