Homemade Sorbet – Without an Ice Cream Maker

Homemade strawberry sorbet in an egg dish

 Sorbet: Fruit, water, sugar.

I think you can manage.

Serves: 4

Ingredients

• 1 pint of strawberries – hulled and sliced
• 1/3 sugar – more or less depending on the sweetness of your strawberries
• 1/3 cup water
• 2 tbsp lemon juice – optional

Step 1: Put all of the ingredients into a medium-sized sauce pan.

Step 2: Stir over medium – low heat for 10 minutes or until strawberries become soft.

Step 3: Remove from heat. Puree in a blender, or by using a hand blender. 

Step 4: Pour into a large shallow pan or dish and put in the freezer.

Step 5: Every half an hour, check the sorbet. Take a spoon and drag it over the sorbet so it remains light and fluffy. Repeat until frozen.

Step 6: Serve! If it gets too hard, let it sit for 5 minutes before serving and then scoop it up.

* The texture of the sorbet with this method isn’t the same as using an ice cream maker, but it’s still just as delicious and refreshing. I’ll use the money I’d spend on an ice cream maker to buy more liquor. Win.

ENJOY!

I just had a really great idea. Add VODKA! Duh, why didn’t I think of this before?! Headed to the store right now. Strawberry Sorbet – Round 2: not for children.

Chocolate Covered Everything

Show someone you care by making chocolate covered strawberries..
… and not eating them all before they come home.

I love strawberries. I love chocolate. The end.

Ingredients

• Strawberries
• Chocolate – chopped
• Oil
• Toothpicks
• More chocolate
• Love

Step 1: Wash the strawberries. Lay them on paper towel to dry. There can’t be ANY moisture on the strawberries or they’re going to be duds. 

Step 2: Heat a small pot filled halfway with water over medium heat (or a double broiler) and place a bowl on top. Add the chocolate and stir continuously until almost completely melted. Remove the bowl from the pot and keep stirring until smooth. At this point it’s acceptable to dip your (clean) finger in the chocolate and have a taste. Mmmmm melty chocolate. 

Step 3: If you think your chocolate is too thick, add a tiny bit of oil to it and stir. Repeat this until you have reached the desired consistency. Make sure not to get ANY water in the chocolate or you’ll be sorry. It gets all lumpy and awful looking. Even I didn’t want to eat it. 

Step 4: Jam toothpicks in the top of the strawberries and dip those bad boys into that sweet, sweet chocolate. If you want to coat your strawberries in chocolate bits or nuts, this is the time to make it happen.

Step 5: Use a colander or a baking sifter to hold the strawberries, or alternatively place them on wax paper to harden. You’ll probably have to put them in the fridge for a bit for them to completely harden, but try not to leave them in too long. When chocolate gets cold or humid it tends to get that white tinge (as some of mine did). Let them cool just until hardened and then remove them from the fridge. Chocolate should be eaten at room temperature.

Step 6: This is the best step. Decorate! Get creative, people might actually be impressed. Make sure to let the base coat of chocolate cool before decorating or it will all smear together. You can decorate with other chocolates, just follow step 2. If you want to make intricate designs, just put a bit of your melted chocolate into a pastry bag with a small tip, or put the chocolate into a plastic sandwich bag and snip one of the corners. After you’ve decorated them, place them back in the fridge for  few minutes to harden and then you’re done!

ENJOY!

Cabbage Soup – Surprisingly good?

 

I don’t know how much there is to say about Cabbage soup, other than it’s surprisingly delicious.

I don’t normally buy cabbage, ever, but lately I’m kicking myself for not buying it sooner. It’s so delicious and generally absorbs flavours really well. The texture of cooked cabbage is really satisfying if you’re trying to have a hearty meal without the meat. And from what I’ve seen on healthy eating websites, it’s pretty decent meal for people trying to lose weight.

Try it out, I dare you.

Ingredients

• 2 tbsb olive oil
• 3 cloves of garlic – minced
• 1 yellow onion – chopped
• 2 carrots – peeled and chopped
• 1 zucchini – chopped
• 1/2 head of cabbage – chopped
• Handful of fresh or frozen spinach
• 1 litre of vegetable broth
• 2 tbsp of tomato paste
• 1 can of crushed tomatoes
• Oregano, basil, salt and pepper to taste

Step 1: In a large soup pot, heat 2 tbsp of olive oil over medium-low heat. Add the garlic and onion and saute for 3 minutes.

Step 2: Add the rest of the ingredients and simmer over medium heat for 30-40 minutes until everything is extra delicious.

Step 3: Eat it.

ENJOY!

Baked Brie – The cheese of Gods

I like Brie cheese. I like it a lot.

I especially like it when it’s baked with other things that I like to make it super likeable. If this recipe were a person it would have so many friend requests on facebook.

Ingredients

• A wheel of camembert or brie – try to get one packaged in a wooden box.
• 1 clove of garlic – sliced
• 2 fresh sprigs of rosemary
• ½ cup dried cranberries
• ½ cup of mixed nuts – almonds and walnuts work just fine
• Baguette or other bread torn into pieces

Step 1: Unwrap the camembert completely and slice off the top of the rind. Stick in slices of garlic and bits of rosemary over the top. Place back into the bottom part of the wooden box that it came in. If it didn’t come in a wooden box, just put some tinfoil around it and place it on a baking tray.

Step 2: Bake in a 200˚C (400˚F) oven for 10 minutes, or until the cheese starts to ooze.

Step 3: Meanwhile, mix together the nuts and cranberries.

Step 4: Serve on a plate  with the nuts and cranberries around it. Dip a piece of bread into the camembert and then into the mixture of nuts and cranberries and enjoy!

Nuoc Cham Sauce

A simple recipe for an amazing Vietnamese sauce.

 

Ingredients

• 2 cloves garlic – minced
• 1 red chili pepper – minced
• 1/2 cup hot water
• 1 tbsp lime juice
• 4 tbsp fish sauce
• 2 tbsp white sugar

Step 1: Mix all of the ingredients in a small bowl. Adjust the ingredients to suit your taste, if it’s too strong add a few tablespoons of water. Refrigerate for at least 15 minutes before serving.

ENJOY!

Tips:

Put it on stuff!

Chocolate chocolates with chocolate (and caramel!)

“Any sane person loves chocolate.” – Bob Greene

Beyond my addiction to wine, I have another amazing addiction. Chocolate. But who doesn’t like chocolate you ask? People without souls. Have I offended non chocolate lovers? Well I’m sorry, I was joking…mostly.

These little chocolates are gooey, salty and totally worth the 30 minutes that it takes to make them. What a great gift this would make too, people love home made stuff – and if they don’t love them they must be seriously disturbed (see above quote).

Ingredients

• 200g dark chocolate cut up into small chunks
• 1 1/2 tbsp. sugar
• 1/4 cup cold heavy cream
• sea salt

Step 1: Heat a small amount of water in a  double broiler over low-medium heat (or a makeshift pot and bowl) and add the chocolate chunks.

Step 2: While the chocolate is melting, heat a small frying pan over low heat and sprinkle the sugar in evenly. Cook until sugar has melted and turned a dark amber colour – check out this picture for reference.

Step 3: Add 1/4 cup of cold cream and stir vigorously for 30 seconds, turn off the heat and continue to stir until completely combined. The cream is going to bubble up when you first put it in, but just stir like crazy and then you’ll have made caramel!

Step 4: Once the chocolate has completely melted add the caramel and stir until combined. Let the mixture sit for 5 minutes to cool, then stir again.

Step 5: Line a baking tray with plastic wrap or wax paper and drop spoonfuls of chocolate on the tray leaving an 1 1/2 inches between each chocolate.

Step 6: Sprinkle each chocolate with a bit of sea salt. To get flat round chocolates like mine, cover the top of the tray with more plastic wrap and with another large flat object, lightly press on top of the chocolates until slightly flattened. Be careful not to squish them too much. Refrigerate until they’re solid and then eat all of them by yourself. 

ENJOY!

TIPS:

Ruffle the top layer of plastic wrap to create a wavy pattern on the chocolates

Coat in cocoa powder for a more lavish look

Wine jelly – Another way to consume wine

WINE JELLY IS GOOD

I can eat wine now?

So wine jelly is awesome. Made more awesome by hot sauce.

Have you ever been really brave while buying wine and decided to try something new only to discover that your moment of spontaneity has resulted in a horrible bottle of foot wine? (foot wine is what I like to call bad tasting wine – simply because it usually smells like feet) What will you do with an entire bottle of wine?! Don’t fret little jelly beans, I can make it all better.

This little gem can be made with any red or white wine no matter how terrible it is. AND it makes a nice gift as well. If someone gave me wine jelly? Hello new best friend.

So let’s get to it!

Ingredients

• 1 cup wine
• 1  cup sugar – you can add more or less sugar to taste
• 2 gelatin leaves – soak in water for 2 minutes before use

Step 1: In a small sauce pan bring the cup of wine to a boil.

Step 2: Add the sugar and stir continuously until dissolved. Let the mixture boil for another 2 minutes.

Step 3: Add the gelatine leaves that have been soaking in water to the hot wine mixture and stir in until dissolved completely.

Step 4: Pour into ramekins and refrigerate overnight until set.

ENJOY!

TIPS:

Top it with Sriracha hot sauce and serve with crackers and brie

Dip the ramekins into hot water for 3 seconds, then tip upside down to remove the jelly

Eat while playing Zombies – Right Cate?

Every time you buy a jar of pasta sauce, an Italian grandmother dies a little inside.

Alright people, enough with the shenanigans. No more store-bought pasta sauce.

Home made pasta sauce is actually incredibly easy. It does take a bit of time, but if you make a big enough batch, you can always freeze it for the future. Future sauce!

Here’s how to make your own Italian inspired, mouth-watering sauce:

Serves 8

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp Olive oil
• 4 cloves of minced garlic
• 1 cup of finely chopped onion
• 2 cans of peeled plum tomatoes (2x 16 oz/450 ml)
• 2 cans of crushed tomatoes (2x 16 oz/450 ml)
• 1 small can of tomato paste
• 2 Bay leaves
• 2 tbsp sugar
• Salt and pepper to taste
• **I also add a bunch of Italian seasonings, whatever I have in the cupboard. Usually:
  • 1 tsp Thyme
  • 1 tsp Oregano
  • 1 tbsp Parsley
  • 1 tbsp Basil

Step 1: Add 2 tbsp olive oil to a large saucepan and heat over medium heat. Add 3 cloves of minced garlic and 1 cup of finely chopped onions. Cook until onions are tender and translucent (about 8 minutes).

Step 2: Add all of the remaining ingredients, stirring them until combined. 

Step 3: Simmer on low heat for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, stirring occasionally.

Step 4: Serve warm over your favourite pasta

ENJOY!

TIPS:

You don’t have to follow the recipe exactly, but don’t forget to add the sugar. It helps bring out the natural sweetness of the tomatoes.

Season your sauce 3 times: once at the beginning, middle, and end.

Crepes! Your new addiction.

Get the stretchy pants out!

Crepes! A.K.A France’s masterpiece (ya know, besides The Eiffel Tower, The Louvre, Champagne and most importantly, wine).

It also holds the title of being one of my favourite desserts. If you haven’t made them before, this is your day.

(I’m sorry in advance for your inevitable addiction to them)

Serves 2

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup Milk
• 1/2 cup Water
• 1 cup All purpose flour
• 2 Eggs
• 1/4 tsp. Salt
• 1 1/2 tbsp melted Butter
• 1 tbsp Sugar (optional if you’re making savoury crepes)
• 1 tsp Vanilla extract (optional if you’re making savoury crepes)
• Butter for pan

Step 1: Add all of the ingredients to a large bowl (minus the butter needed for the pan) and mix with a hand blender until the mixture is smooth and has no lumps. (lumpy crepes = bad) The mixture should be very thin and runny. 

Step 2: Heat your pan over medium-high heat and add enough butter to just cover the bottom.

Step 3: Once the pan is hot enough, add 1/4 cup of batter and tilt the pan until the batter has completely covered the bottom. (using a 9 in. pan works best)

Step 4: Cook for about 1 1/2 minutes and flip. Cook for an additional 30 seconds. RULE: the first crepe will always turn out horribly. You should hide the evidence by putting it directly into your mouth.

Step 5: Serve warm with one of these toppings:

• Sprinkle with sugar
• Mix frozen blueberries, a tbsp of hot water and 1/2 tsp of cornstarch in a sauce pan over medium heat for blueberry sauce
• NUTELLA
• Cooked apples
• Whipped cream
• Bananas
• Ham and Cheese
• Asparagus and hollandaise sauce
• Love

ENJOY!

TIPS: 

If you have leftover crepes, you can freeze them. Perfect for late night snacks..

…( I would know)

The batter should have the consistency of a heavy cream

Carrot Salad – Now with more poppy seeds!

As I sit here writing this, I have a beer resting in my cleavage. It’s a sad sight, so to make myself better I’ll talk about salad.

It’s easy bright and delicious. To be honest, I’m a little inebriated right now and I’m not sure what else there is to say about carrot salad.

Just make it and eat it. Then feel less guilty about having beers later.

Serves: 2

Ingredients

• 3 Carrots
• 1 inch piece of  fresh Ginger – Grated
• 2 tbsp Olive Oil
• Dash of Salt, Pepper, and Garlic Salt
• 1 1/2 tbsp Poppy Seeds
• Handful of arugula – Optional

Step 1: Wash and peel the carrots. Slice them into match sticks.

Step 2: Stir in the ginger, 2 tbsp olive oil, salt, pepper and garlic salt.

Step 3: Cover and chill for at lest 30 minutes.

Step 4: Stir in the poppy seeds and arugula and serve!

Easiest salad ever.

ENJOY!