Having tried their Lemon Lime drink, I decided to try a slightly different version, their Raspberry Lemonade. Like the lemon lime, Santa Cruz uses lemon juice for the lemony bits, cane sugar for its sweetness, it adds raspberry puree to make it, if this is a word, raspberry-ish (plus natural flavours). It tastes pretty good, though it's still more expensive than buying a can of pop.
I picked up this offering by Ferrero on sale after Christmas. Along with the normal Ferrero Rocher hazelnut chocolates, it also contains two other Ferrero confections. One of them Ferrero Rondnoir, which is filled and encased with dark chocolate. These were pleasantly chocolatey. As well, the almond-coconut confection from Ferrero Garden is included. I liked the coconut flavour of these. The container is filled with 249 grams of product, as opposed to if you buy the similar Ferrero Rocher version, which gives you 300 grams of product.
Here's the wonderfully decorated cupcakes my beautiful Bride created for our Christmas Eve meal.
Silicon baking forms work well in some respects, and not so well in others. To be sure, you need to grease them in some way in order for them to release well. They are not good conductors of heat, thus have good application used like parchment paper on baking sheets or when taking hot things out of an oven, but you also need to increase the amount of cooking time. Too, they are kind of wobbly, and you need to put them on a baking sheet to give them stability, otherwise, you might end up with some of your batter in the oven (he said having had personal experience with this). This particular silicon form makes the baked good look like a rose, the possibilities are endless.
This is what the finished product could look like.
Ferrero Rocher is a popular chocolate gift at Christmastime in Canada; I like them, even though they are a bit pricey, because they are filled with hazelnuts. I see this year they have added a dark and a white version to their normal milk chocolate version. Ferrero also makes Mon Cheri, Nutella, Tic Tac and the large Kinder line (KinderSurprise, KinderBueno and more), among others. Like all manufacturers who export to other countries, often they offer different and interesting variations in their home markets. I received this package as a gift from my aunt in Germany, Ferrero Garden.
There are five different flavours in this garden; Almond, Pistachio, Raspberry-Strawberry, Hazelnut and Coconut. It will be interesting to see how they taste.
One of the Christmas presents I received this year, is this one kilogram in size, very large Cadbury Dairy Milk candy bar, imported from the UK. I think, with this one, I'm going to have to share, it's so big (I couldn't even fit it in the picture).
The first recipe I made with the mesquite pod meal is a variation on a honey based chocolate chip cookie recipe that is one of my favourites. Too, I substituted spelt flour for the all-purpose wheat flour, light muscovado sugar instead of brown sugar, cane sugar instead of white sugar, and added salba seeds, to make it really a more nutritious cookie. I have to play with the amount of flour, I think, as these spread quite thin on being baked, where the original recipe, they do not spread much (I think it requires more spelt flour, is all). But they tasted great! The mesquite adds a smokey flavour that works very well with the chocolate. And it smells great baking in the oven. Wow, I'm pleased with the results, other people have enjoyed it as well, and I am looking forwarded to incorporating mesquite in other recipes.
Spelt Mesquite Chocolate Chip CookiesPreheat oven to 375F/190C.
Combine flours, soda and salt and whisk together.
Cream together butter and sugars. Add egg and beat until fully incorporated. Stir in vanilla and honey.
Add dry ingredients to the sugar mixture in two additions. Stir in chocolate chips and salba seeds.
Drop by heaping teaspoonfuls onto a parchment lined baking sheet. Bake for 10 minutes, or until cookies all golden all over.
Cool for 2 minutes on baking sheet, then transfer to a rack.
I first came across mesquite pod meal, or mesquite flour, in a recipe for Mesquite Chocolate Chip Cookies, I was intrigued by the account of the wonderful smoky flavour of the mesquite pervading the kitchen and whole house. I had heard of mesquite in terms of grilling, usually in the form of mesquite chips, made from the wood, that add a wonderful smoky flavour to your grilled foods. In researching mesquite flour, using the previous recipe as a springboard, I found that mesquite as a food has many health benefits, and has been used by the Native Americans for a long time to supplement their diet. I look forward to trying this intriguing ancient grain in various recipes.
Some things I found out:
Mesquite flour is low in gluten, and is suitable for gluten-free diets. Because of this, too, you need to combine it with other gluten-rich flours, especially if you want to make bread. Typically, you can substitute 1/4 to 1/2 cup of mesquite flour in each cup of wheat flour, though I lie on the conservative side.
Mesquite flour is low glycemic; its glycemic index is 25 (where Sugar is 100), it's potentially good for diabetics. It is interesting to note that once Native Americans adopted the European diet of white sugar and white flour, incidence of diabetes increased within the population.
Mesquite is high in protein, typically 11 to 17 percent protein. It also has a high lysine content, and is rich in calcium, magnesium, potassium, iron and zinc.
The mesquite tree's flours can be used to make distinctive tasting honey.
Medicinally, parts of the mesquite tree are antifungal, antimicrobial, astringent, antiseptic, and antispasmodic.
Spekulatius is a traditional spiced Christmas cookie in Germany, this one features a coating of dark chocolate on the underside. Here is a recipe to make your own, a better tasting, more healthy version.
My sister introduced me to this Mediterranean-style dish, I immediately got the recipe from her, as it tasted so good. Looking for a quick recipe to make last night, I decided to introduce my beautiful Bride to the same recipe, and she enjoyed it as well, not even adding her normal spice to try it as it was intended. We did make one change, we upped the amount of fresh herbs, originally it called for 1/3 cup parsley, instead we put in basil and cilantro. This makes for a quick and tasty lunch, we ate it with some whole-wheat Naan that we also wanted to try, pita bread or roti also would work well.
Chickpea and Tomato StewIf using fresh tomatoes, drop the tomatoes into boiling water for 15 seconds. Remove with slotted spoon and peel. Mince the tomatoes.
Heat the oil in a 7- to 8-inch wide pan over a medium flame. Put in the onions and garlic. Stir and fry for 3-4 minutes or until the onions are soft.
Put in the tomatoes. Stir and cook them for 3-4 minutes or until they are soft and paste-like.
Add the chickpeas, herbs, thyme, salt and water. Bring to a boil. Cover, lower heat and simmer gently for 10-15 minutes.
