It’s an intriguing claim that needed confirmation – a recipe for the best chocolate chip cookie. On a sunny Mother’s Day weekend we decided to serve these cookies along with homemade challah bread, sandwich fillings, cheese, baked crab and cheese appetizers, strawberries and baked goods.  The baked goods were chosen to appeal to the children and the savory items were for the benefit of the adults.

Thanks go to the good people at the Guardian newspaper for providing the recipe. The cookies were a hit and we already need to not only share the recipe but also check in with friends who have been planning to try it out.

The dough needs to be made the day before and chilled in the fridge.  Since this is a British recipe you will also need a scale to weigh many of the ingredients.   Pay careful attention if you are not used to reading a scale to make sure that you have the right measurements.  The recipe calls for broken dark chocolate; however, we used mini semi-sweet chocolate chips instead.  After it is mixed, the dough will be firm but not too dry.

The next day form golf ball size balls and space them out on an ungreased cookie sheet. If you have parchment paper, you can line the tray.  Do not use wax paper as it is not meant for baking and will stick to the bottom of the cookies.

Set the stove timer for two minutes before the recommended minimum time to see how they are fairing.  Don’t bake the cookies beyond the maximum time of 15 minutes.  Once you take the cookies out of the oven, sprinkle them with sea salt and let them cool for five minutes on the tray.  As they cool, they will continue to cook.  You will end up with cookies that are fully baked, but still moist.

The challah bread was made fresh and timed to be ready just in time for the tea.  We used a recipe from the Canadian Bread Machine Baking cookbook, by Roxanne McQuilkin*.  Since this is a white bread recipe, it is not an ideal choice if you prefer whole wheat; however, it works well for a special tea.

As soon as the bread is baked, you need to rub the surface with butter.  You can also coat it with sesame or poppy seeds.  Since our tea included five young children, we kept it plain.

In this era of Pinterest and gorgeous celebration photos it can feel daunting to put on a tea.  It is best to forget the glam photos you’ve seen, choose your favourite recipes and pile everything on the table.  You’ll end up with a spread that even Martha Stewart would love.

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* BCFamily.ca is connected to the Amazon Associates programme.  Note that the one review of this book looks a bit spammy. You can find a better review on the Indigo.ca site.  The book has many simple and unique recipes that don’t require special trips to the store.  If you’re keen on using your bread machine, you’ll definitely want to have this cookbook on your shelf.

If you were a resident in Kingston, Ontario or a student at Queen’s University in the late 1980s and 1990s, there’s a good chance you ate at a modest cafe called Windmills Cafe.  As you can see from the photograph in the image below,  it was a casual place where you could find hearty food such as deli sandwiches, baked muffins and coffee.  The name of the cafe and the business ownership have changed and the cafe now offers a completely different type of dining experience.  Then again, nowadays everything is sleeker than it perhaps once was in the simpler (relatively speaking) days of the 1980s and ’90s.

At the time one of the most famous dishes at the cafe was their veggie burger.  What a thrill it was to see that they shared the recipe in the local paper.  Here is a scan of the recipe that was clipped out and transported from Kingston to Ottawa, around Vancouver and then off to Yokohama, Japan and back!  Keep in mind that you can adjust the amounts for the herbs and mustard according to your taste.

If you are looking for a healthy and affordable alternative to meat or tofu burgers, do give this recipe a try.  It is delicious!  This is one recipe that you will want to pass along to friends.

We’d love to hear from you so don’t be shy! You can comment about this posting using the comment function below or visit us at our Facebook page.

The following video is from another Windmills Cafe in Lanarkshire, United Kingdom. It is such a heart warming story about how we can do so much more to be inclusive and provide equal opportunities for everyone – including people with learning difficulties and additional support needs. Enjoy!

This recipe was passed on by Al Hardy, who lives on Vancouver Island.   Recently Al shared it with the owner of California-based Buck Oranges, who sells his citrus fruit exclusively to Thrifty Foods.  Al appreciates the quality of the produce and products at Thrifty Foods and is a regular Sendial volunteer at Thriftys.  Sendial is a wonderful programme that provides grocery shopping assistance to people who are elderly or have mobility challenges.  Since Al is an avid chef at home, he enjoys providing informed advice to Sendial clients about the best choice of products and produce to purchase.  Al has been cooking for the last 25 years while living in Canada and overseas, and reports that this is one of his most popular dishes when he entertains.

A major bonus of this recipe is that it is made with chicken thighs, which are cheaper than chicken breasts.  This recipe can be made with mandarin oranges or regular oranges. For the latter, if you live in the Lower Mainland or on Vancouver Island, use the Buck brand available at Thrifty Foods.  If you don’t live near a Thriftys, you will want to choose an orange that is juicy.  This recipe also includes a garnish of almonds.  Almonds are not included in the photo below.

If you decide to try this recipe, do let us know how it turned out.

ORANGE AND ALMOND CHICKEN

Makes 5 to 6 servings.

Ingredients:

2 ounces of seedless raisins (Sultanas or another type of seedless raisins work well.)
1 jigger (2 ounces) of sherry (If you do not have sherry on hand, you can use a dry white wine.  Sherry is the better choice, however.)
2 teaspoons paprika
1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper (If possible use white pepper.)
12 chicken thighs (Bone-in and skinned.  Skinning is important.)
5 tablespoons oil (olive or canola)
5 oranges (4 peeled and in segments and one used to squeeze into the water.)
1 cup water  (Top up the orange juice)
1 garlic clove, minced
½ cup hot beef bouillon (or chicken if you prefer)
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1 tablespoon soy sauce (A light soy sauce is best.)
½ teaspoon powdered ginger
½ cup half & half cream
1 tablespoon butter
2 tablespoons sliced almonds

Preparation:

Put Sultana raisins in a small bowl, cover them with sherry and set aside.

Peel four oranges, trim off excess white pulp, cut them into segments and set aside.

Mix paprika and pepper together and coat one side, only, of each piece of chicken. If you are short of mixture prepare another paprika/pepper mix. Don’t overcoat. Spread the spices around on the chicken skin to ensure it’s not too thick.

Pre-heat a frying pan or Dutch oven and then warm the oil. (Watch olive oil to ensure it doesn’t smoke as it can catch on fire easily.) Add chicken and cook on medium heat until the pieces are golden on all sides (about 10 minutes). Some stove tops are hotter than others. Watch that your chicken isn’t browning too quickly.

Cut one orange in half and squeeze out the juice using a manual juicer. Add the juice to a measuring cup and bring the liquid up to the ½ cup mark. Pour the liquid over the chicken and add the crushed garlic. Pour in the hot bouillon.

Cover and simmer for about 30 minutes.

Add the raisins and sherry to the pan. Cook for 5 minutes. Then remove the chicken pieces with a slotted spoon or slotted server ladle and place them on a warm platter.

Blend the cornstarch with a small amount of cold water and add to the sauce. Stir constantly until thickened and bubbly. Season with soy sauce and ginger. Add orange segments and cream. Heat through but do NOT boil.

Heat butter in a small frypan and add sliced almonds. Cook until golden but not too dark. Return the chicken to the pan and ladle sauce over the pieces. Add the almond slices on top.

Serve with rice or another grain such as quinoa that can absorb the sauce.

Do you have any information about food that you would like to share?  Do you have favourite recipes that your family loves? We would love to hear from you. Send us your piece to bcfamily [at] bcfamily.ca . We will publish your contribution under your name. (Full name or with last initial if you prefer) If you have your own website that you would like to promote, please provide us with the information at the bottom of your piece along with a few lines describing yourself and your interests.

Recently a  budget-conscious friend who is retired from her career advised us that food at the Great Canadian Superstore is 15% cheaper than at other stores.  We believed her.  It is true you cannot beat the overall cost savings at this big box store.  Although if you know your prices you can find sales at the other grocery chains that will match or beat Superstore prices.  So it does pay to compare.  Shopping at smaller chain stores such as Thrifty Foods is also a pleasure because there are carefully chosen product lines, high quality produce and meat and superb customer service.

While visiting Thrifty Foods recently I found three complimentary magazines full of nutrition and health advice.: Thrifty Foods Fresh, Melt by Tre Stelle cheeses and Alive. (Look for them by the cashiers, Customer Service desk and the exit.)  The recipes in these magazine are appealing and the photography makes the food look delicious.  Just this past Christmas we tried one of the sweeter suggestions in the Fresh magazine.  Our two year old toddler twins were able to take part in their first real cooking experience under their grandmother’s guidance.  (Tip: She melted the chocolate in advance and worked with one child at a time.)  

The clusters are decadent, yet not too high in calories and are delicious. At least that is what everyone who is trying them here in the Lower Mainland and on Vancouver Island are saying.  The recipe for these dark chocolate cashew fruit clusters is available online.  JUST in case the link disappears, here is the recipe:

Dark Chocolate Cashew Fruit Clusters

The chocolate needed to make these sweet treats is available in chunks in the Thrifty Foods bakery department.

Preparation time:  15 minutes

Cooking time:  A few minutes

Makes: 20 to 24 clusters

350 grams dark Belgian chocolate, coarsely chopped

1 cup unsalted, roasted cashews

1 cup dried cranberries

1/3 cup currants

Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.  Place the chocolate in a heatproof bowl and set over simmering water.  Stir and heat the chocolate until just melted.  Remove from the heat and mix in the cashews, cranberries and currants.  Drop heaping tablespoonfuls of the mixture on the baking sheet, ensuring they don’t touch. Refrigerate the clusters until set. Store in a tight-sealing container at cool room temperature. If stacking, be sure to layer the clusters between parchment paper.

Options:

Instead of dark chocolate, make these clusters with milk or white chocolate. In place of cashews, use whole almonds or pecan halves in the clusters. Try dried cherries instead of the dried cranberries.

Nutrition:

Per Serving: About 128 calories, 1.6g protein, 6.5g fat (2.8g saturated), 16.8g carbohydrate, 1.7g dietary fibre, 0mg cholesterol, 2mg sodium. %RDI: 1% calcium, 5% iron, 0% vit A, 0% vit C, 4% folate

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Related

Alive Magazine (Complimentary copies of Alive are also available at Whole Foods and Choices.)

Thrifty Foods

Tre Stelle online (325 recipes are available on their website.  They also have a Facebook page.)

We’d love to hear from you so don’t be shy! You can comment about this posting using the comment function below or visit us at our Facebook page.

At the end of a long week you might be looking to try something different as a treat for breakfast.  German Apple Pancakes are a tasty option that always turn out well.  If you do not have an apple on hand, you can use other fruit as well. (Strawberry pancakes are shown below.) These pancakes were traditionally made as a dessert, but are not difficult to make for breakfast.

The following recipe makes about 12 pancakes.  If you double the recipe, consider doubling the amount of fruit by only 50%.

Ingredients

1 cup All Purpose Flour (250 ml)

1/2 tsp Baking Soda (2 ml)

1/4 tsp salt (1 ml)

1 tsp baking powder (5 ml)

1 tsp plus 1/2 tsp cinnamon (5 ml)

1 egg

1 cup milk

2 tbsp. oil

1 tbsp. honey

1 apple (1 banana/pear or strawberries if you prefer)

Butter or margarine for frying

The recipe was developed using a recipe presented in the St. Maur International School Millennium cookbook.

Do you have any information about food that you would like to share? Have you been reading about nutrition advice for families? Do you have favourite recipes that your family loves? We would love to hear about your news. Send us your piece to bcfamily [at] bcfamily.ca . We will publish your contribution in its entirety under your name. If you have your own website that you would like to promote, please provide us with the information at the bottom of your piece along with a few lines describing yourself and your interests.

Flus and colds can bother your children at any time of the year.  During this damp and rainy spring, you might find your little one has come down with symptoms that have knocked out her appetite significantly.  Before you reach for the chicken noodle soup at the grocery store, here’s a recipe for an easy vegetable and chicken broth that young children treat as if it’s liquid gold.  It provides liquid and nutrition that help to reassure you that something nutritious is helping your child.

Utensils

Do you have a large stock pot?  Preferably a pot that’s about 50% larger than a Dutch oven. If not you can use a smaller pot, but you should adjust your ingredients accordingly

Ingredients

1 large chicken breast (Bone in and skinned.  Place your thumb under the skin and start ripping.  The skin will come off easily.  Preferably the chicken should be organically grown, or from a good quality meat supply company)

1 small piece of ginger (Skin removed with a potato peeler and  cut to be the size of two dice)

Water (Enough to fill your pot 3/4 full)

1 large Kobacha squash (Skin on and sliced into triangles.  Be careful making the first cut.)

4 large carrots (Peeled and sliced in quarters)

2 stalks celery (Sliced into quarters)

1/2 red pepper (sliced into chunks)

1 cob of corn (Husk off and cut into thirds)

Sea salt, pepper and dried basil (Added according to your taste)

Instructions

Fill your pot 3/4 full of water.  Bring to a boil.

Add in the skinless chicken and the piece of ginger.  Boil for half an hour.

Add in your vegetables, salt and pepper. Bring water back to a boil and then simmer, cover 3/4 on, at medium low heat  for 1 1/2 hours.

During the last 30 minutes add dried basil or italian seasoning.  This step can be skipped.

When your soup has finished, remove your chicken meat and vegetables and strain the soup through a sieve with fairly large holes.  You want to catch any chunks of vegetables that haven’t yet been removed, but want smaller vegetable and meat fiber to go through to the broth.

Later on the chicken can be pulsed in a food processor with some of the vegetables and added to chopped noodles or rice for your child once his appetite returns.

Serve the soup at warm temperature. (Test to make sure it is not too hot.) Extra soup may be freezed for future use over the course of the next few days.

If you think you will need a fair amount of soup over the next few days, consider making a double batch of soup.

This recipe is as easy as it sounds and your child will love it!

Related

If you like soup recipes, check out the attractively illustrated Blue Moon Soup. Not only does it have a good selection of different types of soups for all occasions, but it is a show piece featuring the illustrations of the talented Jane Dyer.

Do you have any information about food that you would like to share? Have you been reading about nutrition advice for families? Do you have favourite recipes that your family loves? We would love to hear about your news. Send us your piece to bcfamily [at] bcfamily.ca . We will publish your contribution in its entirety under your name. If you have your own website that you would like to promote, please provide us with the information at the bottom of your piece along with a few lines describing yourself and your interests.

The following photos show the results achieved by following a recipe for hamburger cookies.  When you first see the first photo you might think they are plastic toys from a Fisher Price kitchen.  They’re that cute!  Clearly this recipe is a winner.  ….and who doesn’t York Peppermints?    Apparently they’re so easy to make, an elementary child can make them on her own.

Thanks to Stacy W. for sharing these photos.

Recipe

Hamburger Cookie Recipe (on Allrecipe.com)

- use a tube of red icing for the ketchup and yellow icing for the mustard

Do you have any information about food that you would like to share? Have you been reading about nutrition advice for families? Do you have favourite recipes that your family loves? We would love to hear about your news. Send us your piece to bcfamily [at] bcfamily.ca . We will publish your contribution in its entirety under your name. If you have your own website that you would like to promote, please provide us with the information at the bottom of your piece along with a few lines describing yourself and your interests.