Muffins are so simple, and tasty to make. I mean, who doesn’t love a good muffin, right? I pulled out my little muffin recipe book called “100 Muffins from 1 Easy Recipe” and found another nice recipe. The last muffins I made from this book were the Easter Muffins and they were great. These were just as light and just as simple. They could easily be a quick breakfast on the go, or a snack. What I love is that there’s not too much sugar but it has a lovely citrus flavour. Really nice! The kids loved them, but they started to slow down once they hit the middle. I guess there’s no sugar in the middle! They also asked where the frosting was….
I was super excited when I came across this recipe. I love Quinoa. It is by far my most favourite grain. It can be cooked in a variety of ways, and provides many nutritional benefits to my joy and comfort 🙂 I like to make “special pancakes” for my kids. This certainly is a very special pancake. I also wanted to make Apple Sauce to go with it. I got the Quinoa Cakes recipe from Martha Stewart. I swear, her recipes never fail me! Even when I make slight substitutions, whatever I make always comes out great.
I was attracted to this recipe because I wanted to have some kid-friendly quinoa recipes ready to go. I need them to be easy, tasty and enjoyable by my kids. I believe this did the trick. My apple sauce addition paired well with them and tasted awesome! The texture came out so smooth – the quinoa was hardly noticeable. Amazing.
2 Apples, peeled, cores removed, diced (I used Royal Gala)
¼ Cup Brown Sugar
¼ Tsp Cinnamon
2 Tbsp Apple Juice
Instructions
Start the apple sauce first - place apple, sugar, cinnamon and apple juice in a small saucepan. Cover and cook on low heat 30-45 minutes or until you have reached a desired consistency. Stir occasionally every 15 minutes.
In a medium bowl, mix quinoa, flour, baking powder and salt
In a medium bowl, whisk together egg, egg white, butter, milk and syrup until smooth
Add wet ingredients into dry
Lightly coat a non-stick skillet with cooking spray and bring to medium heat
Drop batter by heaping tablespoonful into skillet
Cook until bubbles appear on top for about 2 minutes
Flip and cook until golden brown for another 2 minutes
Repeat in batches until batter is finished
Serve with apple sauce or fruits and maple syrup
Notes
This recipe yields about 18 2-inch pancakes
Quinoa Cake Recipe from http://www.marthastewart.com/329047/quinoa-cakes
The apple sauce took the longest to cook - about 40 minutes to reduce
2.2.6
See the difference between cooked and uncooked Quinoa? It fluffs up quite a bit. A little goes a long way. I usually cook one cup of quinoa at a time and it lasts me a few days – depending on what I end up doing with it.
Uncooked & Cooked Quinoa
Here’s the batter – ready to be spooned into the skillet. Making them this small meant a few batches, but it was well worth it. I’ll try making them a little bigger next time.
Quinoa Cake Batter
I don’t know about you, but I always mess up the first batch. The second set is usually a lot better. They taste the same, but aren’t as pretty.
Quinoa Cakes in skillet
They are so tiny and cook quickly, so you can’t leave them unattended. The most I could do was stir the apple sauce and then get back to the cakes.
Quinoa Cakes in skillet
Confession: I popped a few of these into my mouth before I added the syrup and apple sauce. Sorry. They smelled really good.
I’ve been doing a lot of eating over the past week. I think its time to slow it down and get back into my usual eating habits. I was looking through my recipes and realized that I really don’t post enough salads. That is not to say that I don’t eat salads ~I just haven’t posted. I made a dressing that I adapted from Everyday Food over a year ago. I don’t fancy store bought dressings that much. Generally I have my salad naked – sans dressing. I adore crunchy romaine with garden vegetables. But I also like warm salads that include Quinoa, Zucchini and other root vegetables.
Today’s recipe is a quick and easy, nutritious salad. I usually serve the dressing on the side so that I pour what I desire. For the Tuna, I added only to the plate because it was too spicy for my son so I could not mix it into the main bowl. I find regular tuna to be one of my least favourite things when its plain, so the Spicy Thai version is the one I prefer. It is quite spicy for me, so I don’t eat more than half a can at a time. A little goes a very long way for me. Regular tuna can certainly be substituted and you can use as much as you would like from the can. You can also choose to omit the tuna and serve the salad along with dinner. I am also using Fennel for the first time in a very long time. I forgot how much I liked it. I’m happy I was able to incorporate it in this freestyle salad. I believe the Fennel and Tuna are the unusual suspects and so, I named the salad for them 🙂
I had to share this recipe. It tastes too good to keep to myself. I will also say that this is the last bun recipe I will post until next Easter. Seriously.
However, I will not classify this bun as an Easter Bun even though I found it in The Gleaner’s Easter Cookbook 2012 (Page 26). No, not this bun. This bun can be prepared at any time throughout the year. There are many recipes in the cookbook that I will be trying very soon. I have the best Dad. He mailed me the booklet so that I could have a resource for my posts. He knows how much I like to flip though pages. Isn’t he great? I’m sure you guys remember one of my most favourite things is sending and receiving mail. My dad put a really big smile on my face! Thank you Dad!
The first time I made this bun, and it was a hot mess. I’m not a baker so I had no idea what I did wrong. The batter was thin and after baking it for more than the suggested time, it still came out like a pudding. My husband described the texture of the outside of the bun felt like leather. I was so disappointed because the flavour was quite pleasant but the texture was not good at all. This was my very first baking flop. I decided to look through the ingredients again and compare with all the other bun recipes. I realized that there was probably too much liquid and not enough flour. I made some changes to the original recipe and got it right! Success!!! This is the bun that I will be making next year! I only used raisins and there’s no mixed peel to pick out.
The only way I’ll be making this bun again this year, is if someone specifically asks me to make it or places an order ($$).
A Jamaican style bun, good for any time of the year
Author: Lyn of The Lovely Pantry
Recipe type: Dessert, Snack
Serves: 8-10
Ingredients
1 Cup Dragon Stout (or any stout available)
1 Cup Brown Sugar
2 Tbsp Molasses
2 Tsp All Spice
2 Tbsp Butter, melted
1 Large Egg
3 Cups All Purpose Flour, Unbleached
2 Tsp Baking Powder
1 Cup Pureed Sweet Potato (I used 2 Sweet Potatoes)
1 Cup Raisins
1 Tbsp Butter
1 Tbsp Honey
Parchment paper and cookings spray
Instructions
Pre-heat the oven to 350F
Grease a standard loaf pan using cooking spray. Line with parchment paper then spray again
Peel sweet potatoes then dice into 1 inch cubes
Add to boiling water and cook until soft when pierced with a knife - about 15 minutes or so
Strain to remove excess water
Puree sweet potato chunks in a blender and measure a cup for the batter
Allow to cool
In a saucepan, add stout, sugar, molasses and all spice
Over a low heat, stir just until the sugar has dissolved. Do not bring to a boil
In a small bowl, whisk egg then add it to the stout mixture along with the butter. Whisk to combine
In a medium bowl, add flour and baking powder. Whisk to combine
Gradually add the stout liquid to the flour, mixing well to incorporate
Stir in the sweet potato puree
Fold in the raisins
Pour into prepared loaf pan
Bake for 45 minutes or until a knife inserted comes out clean
In a small ramekin, combine butter and honey. Brush over the bun when cooled.
Slice and serve with cheese and/or butter
Notes
This recipe is adapted from "Sweet Potato Easter Bun" from the Gleaner's Easter Cookbook 2012, Page 26
http://go-jamaica.com/easter2012/cookbook/index.php
2.2.6
I was watching the consistency so closely the second time around.
Stout Batter
I like the contrast in colours here.
Add the sweet potato puree
In go the raisins. The batter at this point is fairly firm and has a thick consistency. Exactly what I want.
Raisins added to batter
Ready for the oven!
Sweet Potato Bun Batter
Fresh out the oven, looking good, smelling great and not feeling like leather on the outside 🙂
Sweet Potato Bun out the oven
Checking for the consistency – looks perfect. And then I realized I had cut my bun before I glazed it. So anxious!
Sweet Potato Bun, Sliced
Now this is more like it!
Sweet Potato Bun, glazed, sliced
This bun was so nice, I had to double up on the cheese. It was moist and dense, as it should be. I think that’s totally acceptable since I’m not having this bun again until next year.
Sweet Potato Bun with Tastee Cheese
I feel great about this bun. Have you had any baking triumphs? I’d love to hear about it.
Ackee, oh Ackee. Ackee is Jamaica’s national fruit. Ackee paired with Saltfish (Salted Codfish) is Jamaica’s National Dish. This is a dish that is near and dear to my heart, as my Mother always prepared it for my family on the weekend. She makes it so very well. I remember having to “flake” the saltfish (not often, a few times perhaps) to remove the bones and to reduce them into smaller pieces the night before for easy preparation in the morning. I hated having to pick out the bones, but boy did I enjoy eating it! I was in the mood for traditional Jamaican fare so I gathered my ingredients to make Ackee and Saltfish served with fried Bammy and fried Plantains.
Jamaica's National Dish, Suitable for Breakfast, Lunch or Dinner. It can be served with Fried Dumplings, Boiled Dumplings, Fried Bammy, Boiled Banana, Fried Plantains, Boiled Yam, Roast Yam or White Rice
Author: Lyn of The Lovely Pantry
Recipe type: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Serves: 6
Ingredients
2 Dozen Ackees (or 2 Tins of Ackee)
½lb Salted Codfish
¼ Cup Coconut Oil (or vegetable oil)
1 Medium Tomato, chopped
1 Red Sweet Pepper, chopped
1 Green Sweet Pepper, chopped
1 Onion chopped, or thinly sliced
Salt and Pepper
A few Pimento seeds (optional)
1 Tsp All Purpose Seasoning (optional)
A pack of Bammy (8 small round Bammies)
1 Ripe Plantain
1 Cup Milk
1 Tbsp Sugar
2 Tbsp vegetable Oil
1 Tbsp Butter
Oil for frying the plantain
Instructions
Soak the saltfish overnight in a covered pot. In the morning, pour off the water. Add fresh water and bring to a boil. Taste the fish to ensure that most of the salt has been boiled off. If it is very salty, pour off the water, add fresh water and boil again. This should be enough. The saltfish should not be bland. Pour off water and allow to cool. Using your fingers, break the fish into small pieces while removing any present bones. Be careful, the bones can be very small. You should end up with a heaping cup full of flaked saltfish.
If using canned ackees, drain liquid from the ackees and add to a pot of boiling water for about 2-3 minutes. Drain and set aside.
If using fresh ackees, boil in salted water for about 15 minutes, or until ackees can be pierced with no resistance with a fork. Do not overcook. Drain and set aside
In a large skillet or dutch oven, warm the oil over medium heat
Add onion, tomatoes and sweet peppers. Sauté until softened about 5 minutes
Add saltfish and stir to combine
Add ackee to the pot
Add salt and pepper
Give a gentle stir so that you don't break up the ackee
Cover and allow to simmer for about 15 minutes
Gently stir to fully combine. Season with salt and pepper to taste
For the bammies:Dissolve sugar in a cup of milk. Pour into a shallow dish. Place bammies into the milk and leave for about 5 minutes. Flip onto the other side. The bammy will absorb the milk.
In a medium-hot skillet with oil, fry the soaked bammy in oil and butter until golden brown, about 8 minutes on each side
Place on a paper towel to soak up oil from the bammy. Set aside
Thinly slice the plantain on the diagonal. Fry each piece in hot oil until brown on both sides. Place on paper towel to absorb oil
Serve and enjoy
Notes
Be careful not to overcook the ackee as it will get extremely soft and turn into mush
If you do not have saltfish available, crispy bacon is a great substitute. Just fry and break into bits.
A whole Scotch Bonnet pepper is an optional ingredient and would be added along with the ackee and allowed to simmer. Remove before serving, taking care not to pierce the pepper
2.2.6
Charlene, a friend and a Jamaican photographer, has allowed me to use her photograph of Ackee in the pods so I can share with you all. This is not something that you can see in North America. I grew up with an Ackee tree on my family property so I saw this often. Here in Canada (and in the United States), you buy Ackee from the tin. I’ve had it an it is not at all bad. It’s a great way to still have Ackee.
To see more of Charlene’s beautiful photography, please click on the photograph.
Soak the saltfish overnight, or at least for a few hours. I soaked mine overnight then started the boiling process in the morning to reduce the salt. The fish should still have a certain amount of salty taste to it, otherwise it won’t taste great and then you’ll have to add salt back to the dish. In this photograph, I have about a pound of saltfish but I only used half. I reserved the other half for another special recipe.
Boiled Saltfish (Salt Cod)
Lovely fresh ingredients (I didn’t end up using the scallion)
Sweet Peppers, Onion, Tomato, Scallion
The main ingredients:
Bammy is a thick version of a flatbread made from cassava. Bammies can be soaked in either milk or coconut milk. Then it can be baked or fried until browned and cooked through. It has a very light and delicate taste and can be enjoyed with a variety of meals. It’s great for soaking up gravy!
Bammies soaked in milk
Such an amazing aroma.
Vegetables in the pot
Ackee and Saltfish are cooked though, and ready to be served
Ackee and Saltfish
Ackee and Saltfish is likely to be served with fried dumplings. My Mom is an expert at making fried dumplings. I have yet to try my hand at that so Bammies are where it’s at until I try the dumplings. This is generally a breakfast dish, but I have had it for dinner too, as I did here.
Ackee, Saltfish, Bammy, Plantains
I hope you enjoyed today’s post. I really like making traditional Jamaican dishes and sharing with everyone. I don’t generally prepare traditional meals but I’m willing to try every now and again.
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