Indian Chai Milk Tea
Makes 1 serving, but is easily doubled or tripled.
Chai Mix:
1 tablespoon whole cloves
1 tablespoon whole fennel seeds
1 tablespoon whole cardamom seeds (not in pods)
2 small cinnamon sticks, broken into small pieces
1 cup milk/soy milk/rice milk
1 teaspoon honey
Stir together all chai mix ingredients. Add 1 tablespoon chai mix to milk and bring to a boil. Remove from heat and steep for 3 minutes. Strain and stir in honey. Store extra chai mix together in an airtight container.
Sweet Cinnamon Zucchini Bread
I eat a lot of banana bread, so this recipe is a nice change!
Makes two small 9x5” loaves, 12 slices per loaf. If doubled, it will make two full size 9x5” loaves, 12 slices per loaf
Preheat oven to 325 F.
Sift into a large bowl:
3 cups all-purpose unbleached white flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 tablespoon cinnamon
¼ teaspoon baking powder
Whisk dry ingredients with a wire whisk or fork until thoroughly blended. In large bowl beat well with an electric mixer:
6 egg whites, beaten light and foamy
½ cup canola oil
1 ½ cups brown sugar
2 cups grated unpeeled zucchini
2 teaspoons vanilla
Add dry ingredients to wet with a few swift strokes of a wooden spoon just until blended. Pour batter into two non-stick loaf pans sprayed with cooking oil. Bake for about 1 hour or until a toothpick or cake tester inserted into the centre of the load comes out clean. Cool on racks.
Curried Pumpkin Soup
My mom has been making this for many years, I finally got the secret recipe! ;)
4 MacIntosh apples
1 tablespoon butter
1 onion
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 tablespoon curry powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
14 oz. can pumpkin puree (not pie filling)
4 cups chicken broth
1 cup water
1 teaspoon sugar
sour cream/yogurt to taste
Peel and chop apples. Melt butter, add onion, garlic, curry & cumin. Stir in apples, pumpkin, broth, water & sugar. Bring to boil, cover & reduce heat to low. Simmer for 25 minutes. Puree soup in food processor/blender. Return to stove, reheat & add yogurt/light sour cream.
Soup will keep well for up to 3 days OR freezes well.
Beef Stroganoff
A classic!
1 Tablespoon butter or margarine
1 medium onion, chopped
2 lbs. sirloin steak, trimmed and cut
1 lb mushrooms
1-10 oz. can condensed beef broth or consomme - undiluted
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
pinch of salt
1/4 cup dry red wine
3 tablespoons cornstarch or flour
1/4 cup sour cream
Cut steak into strips, trimming away all fat. In large frying pan, saute onion in butter or margarine until soft, but not brown. Add meat strips and sear, turning constantly (not more than 5 minutes). Remove pan from burner. Scrub and quarter mushrooms and add to pan along with beef broth, Worcestershire sauce, and salt.
Meanwhile, cook half pound noodles until almost tender. About 5 minutes before serving time, heat contents of pan to boiling then stir in sour cream until just below boiling. Make a smooth paste of the flour and wine and stir in until thickened. Drain noodles and serve Beef Stroganoff over them.
Apple and Raspberry Crisp
While everyone probably already has a variation of this, I couldn’t resist including it since it is certainly one of my favourites. It’s quick, healthy and you can substitute for any fruit in season!
6 cups sliced, peeled apples
1 package (300g) unsweetened frozen raspberries
1/3 cup sugar
2 tablespoons all purpose flour
2 teaspoons cinnamon
Topping:
1 cup quick-cooking rolled oats
¼ cup packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon each cinnamon and nutmeg
¼ cup margarine
In 8 cup/2L baking dish, combine apples and raspberries (thawed or frozen). In small bowl, combine sugar, flour and cinnamon; add to fruit and toss to mix.
Topping: Combine rolled oats, sugar and cinnamon. Cut in margarine until crumbly. Sprinkle over top of fruit mixture.
Bake in 350 F/180 C oven for 55 minutes or microwave at high power for 15 minutes or until mixture is bubbling and fruit is barely tender. Serve warm or cold. Makes 8 servings.
