Vegetables Are a Must.....

"Vegetables are a must on a diet; may I suggest carrot cake, zucchini bread and pumpkin pie."- Jim Davis

I am officially on a diet. A new job, a little stress and a bit of over-indulgence has lead me down a slippery slope over the last year and that slope stands between me and my best self. I am travelling to Mexico in a couple of months and am whipping my arse in high gear. I know, diet is a nasty term but bathing suit shopping is a term and practise that originates from the deepest, darkest, bowels of hell. I would probably rather donate a kidney and get a bikini wax at the same time than go bathing suit shopping. I would rather carve my nipples off with butter knives while simultaneously rubbing hot peppers in my eyes. My hatred runs that deep.

This year it won't get the best of me! I have been enjoying hunting for alternative recipes that taste good and that are fun to make. I have a new found love for spaghetti squash and cauliflower may be my new favourite veg. Looking for an easy side that tastes good AND is good for you? Find my roasted cauliflower recipe below. I could eat this every day, it's that tasty!
Happy taking care of yourselves all!
-m
PS. I just got back from NYC and can't wait to share all of my travel tips and suggestions from locals! Eep!

Oven Roasted Cauliflower

This is literally the EASIEST thing in all of the world to make. Pre-heat your oven to 375. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Wash a head of cauliflower and cut into bite sized florets. Lay florets on parchment paper and drizzle with good quality extra virgin olive oil. Sprinkle with smoked paprika and cayenne pepper then finish with a good sprinkle of sea salt. Roast in oven for 15-20 minutes and serve hot! Nom, nom, nom. Easy right?

All You Need Is Love...

"All you need is love. But a little chocolate now and then doesn't hurt.."- Charles M Schulz

Tomorrow is love day. The day that chocolates, roses and jewelry all go up in price. Tulips that a week before are seven dollars double to fifteen and don't even get me started on a dozen roses.... "Hallmark" holidays have restaurateur's busting their butts to bring ambiance and romance to countless couples. Do I love valentines day? No... I don't think you should need a day to tell someone you love them or care about them. That said, it is always nice to send everyone you love a little reminder every once and while..so why not on valentines day and any other day!

This year I made valentines. I went to Target and bought blank cards on the cheap (eight for a dollar). I also picked up a couple of sheets of bright printed card stock and some sticky-foam conversation hearts. Card stock cost just under two dollars and the conversation hearts were also a dollar (for dozens) at Target. I stuck them all together, addressed them and sent them to my friends and family. Lets face it, nothing beats snail mail! Each card cost 37 cents; with a stamp, less than a dollar total. That is a pretty cheap way to tell someone you are thinking of them! Cheaper than buying a card and much cheaper than a dozen roses. Probably even cheaper than a short long distance call! Equally as effective.

Tomorrow we are also holding a bake sale at work in support of our education fund. Working in a pediatric or neonatal intensive care unit lends itself to all kinds of learning opportunities. Many hands on as well as conferences, lectures and education days. It is always important to stay up to date on current practices and current research. Doing so lets us provide the best care we can while improving both long and short term outcomes. Win- win right? Some of these conferences are pricey and our education fund helps foot the bill, allowing us to attend things we may not have been able to afford otherwise.

Anticipating the bake sale tomorrow, I decided to make whoopie pies. Yes..whoopie pies. Innocent little cookies made from layers of soft cake and butter cream. I had never heard of them until a couple of years ago. My research tells me they originate from the New England area and much like funnel cakes they are just starting to become popular in Eastern Canada. Well...I cursed and I swore almost the entire time making these bad boys. I love to bake but these little f#*kers were no fun at all. Because they are made of cake batter, they spread significantly when baking. That let me bake seven at a time..which makes three and a half cookies (because they are sandwiches). Time consuming is an understatement. Then came the butter cream icing...sandwiching and packaging. Needless to say I could have baked and frosted approximately three entire cakes in the time it took me to whip up these little sandwiches from hell. I hope they sell and I hope I never see a whoopie pie for a long time! Happy baking all, may the force be with you!
-m

It Takes A Long Time...

"It takes a long time to become young."-Picasso

In the fall my sister and I threw a birthday party for my dad at my house. I won't tell you which birthday it was (hint-it was a big one!). Many of his friends and even more of our family attended. There was good food and good wine and a good time was had by all. It always surprises my how fast any get together can turn into a kitchen party here on the "Best Coast". It is almost as if once a couple drinks are ingested there is this magnetic pull that drags people into the kitchen.  I am not complaining, it's fun and feels like home! I think I had close to 20 people in my postage-stamp sized kitchen, it really was impressive!

Instead of cake I whipped up cupcakes and keeping my dad and his tastes in mind I decided upon Irish Stout cake with Irish Cream frosting. The strong hint of warm spices elevated these bad boys well above a classic pink birthday cake. Bite sized and moist, they were a major success! Recipe follows!
-m

Stout Cupcakes (adapted from Martha Stewart)

• 3 3/4 cup of all purpose flour
• 1/2 plus 1/8 tsp baking soda
• 1 3/4 tsp baking powder
• 1 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 tbs of ground cinnamon
• 1 1/4 tbs of ground ginger
• 1 tsp of ground cloves
• 1 1/4 c of veg. oil
• 1 1/4 c of molasses
• 1/2 c plus 1 tbs packed brown sugar
• 2 eggs plus one yolk
• freshly grated zest of an orange
• 1 1/4 c of stout beer (such as Guinness) settled

Pre heat oven to 350 and line muffin tins (of choice) with paper liners. Whisk together all dry ingredients and set aside. In a separate bowl combine rest of ingredients and mix on medium-low speed (either with beater or the paddle attachment of a stand mixer). Gradually add flour mixture to wet batter mixing until just combined. Pour into cup cake liners (filling 3/4 full) and bake for ~20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Allow to cool and frost as desired!

Baileys Irish Cream Frosting (...good lord this is decadent!)

• 1.5 cups  of softened butter
• 4 cups of icing sugar
• 1 tsp pure vanilla
• 3 tbs of Baileys...nomnomnom

With an electric mixer or with the paddle attachment in your stand mixer, cream butter until smooth and whipped (approx 2 min).On medium add sugar 1/2 cup at a time, beating well between additions and scraping down sides of bowl. After every second addition, beat on high for 10 seconds to aerate frosting- making it light, fluffy and airy. Add vanilla and Irish cream- beat on medium until mixed and smooth. Frost with knife or pipe as desired. Can be kept for a few days in an air tight container if needed!