Chicken Soup With Dumplings

Feb 20, 2012 by lovelypantry

Some recipes show up when they are most needed. If ever there were a time that I needed something to comfort me and make me feel better, now would be it. Last week was a rough week. Between eye infections, visits to the doctor, a trip to the hospital and a root canal, I’d say the members of my family have been pretty active. I think this is the first time in my young family’s history where we’ve all been hit with “something” in such a short space of time. It was a lot to deal with but I sure hope we are finished. Mama’s got things to do.

To put everyone at ease, we are all doing much better now. Apparently we bounce back very well. I was the one who ended up at the hospital after picking a strange infection after frolicking in a pool. The following day I went in for a root canal. I’m still eating soft foods for now. Which of course sent me looking for recipes – ah! the silver lining! Today’s recipe  is from Everyday Food, Issue 89. It was just perfect. I’ve made it twice so far and plan to make it again this week.

These are not the dumplings my mother makes! I’ve never had dumplings like this before. They were so good! Making them was fun too. Scoop with two spoons and drop in the broth. Its way better than rolling the flour in your hands and getting all messy. 🙂

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Now this was a soup worth  making!

Happy Monday! And to all my  Canadians in ON, AB & SK – Happy Family Day!

 

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Red Velvet Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting

Feb 14, 2012 by lovelypantry

Today is Valentine’s Day and although I don’t celebrate it, I thought it would be awesome if I made something I’ve been wanting to make for a while now. A friend of mine made it and it was really nice and ever since, I keep seeing the recipe everywhere. It was a sign! So I did it. And it was FABULOUS. I swear, I ate my cupcakes in moderation.  I will not swear the same for the frosting! My daughter ate the frosting and half a cupcake. She then refused to eat any other cupcake without frosting. Major meltdown if her frosting had no sprinkles.  MAJOR.

 

 

 

I’ll say this now – I will likely make these Red Velvet darlings once per year. Or maybe on a REALLY special occasion. No more than that. Perhaps this will be my Valentine’s Day treat for the family. I guess it’s better than nothing 🙂 It tastes great but oh my, could we use a bit more oil? Sugar? Please? I’m sure there’s a “light” version out there somewhere in cyberland. I’ll come across it eventually.

A general warning…don’t wear white or a light coloured shirt while making this recipe. Don’t say I didn’t tell you. I really ought to invest in an apron 🙂

 

Here’s the recipe and a few photographs. Cupcakes are awesome models.

 

This recipe was adapted from Annie’s Eats.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

So anyway, I had a great time photographing my cupcakes. Like my silicone hearts? Beats the reusable cupcake liners! There were only 12 in a pack so I used 12 paper liners also. Fact: The cream cheese frosting was the star of the show. It’s just so GOOD!

 

 

 

I won’t be doing much romancing today – no more than the usual (wink). But I’m sure I’ll be watching some romantic comedy or the other on television tonight with the husband. If you celebrate Valentine’s Day, have a good one. If you don’t celebrate, have a good one!

 

~Lyn

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Special Banana Pancakes

Feb 10, 2012 by lovelypantry

My children enjoy pancakes immensely. When I have time, I like to make what we call “special pancakes”. These are the pancakes that… don’t come from the freezer. Mommy gets the ingredients together, and lovingly prepares a variety of pancakes to everyone’s delight. Very special indeed! I experiment with pancake recipes to ensure that we are experiencing different tastes, and sometimes different textures too. I came across a recipe that made me so eager to try – Banana Bread Pancakes. Oh my goodness. So light and fluffy and banana filled. I did make a small change… I added Quinoa Flour. I went half and half with it. Good choice.

The itsy bitsy spider… climbed up the water spout…

Of all the bugs, they liked the spider. And so they sang while they waited for their pancakes.

 

 

I can’t tell you how this little pancake griddle brought such delight to my children. I told them we were having “bug pancakes”. Somehow, they found that really, REALLY funny. The sound of your children’s laughter truly is a beautiful thing. Now every time I see this griddle, I’ll remember their smiles, and how much we enjoyed these mini-pancakes.

 

 

This recipe is adapted from The Slow Roasted Italian.

 

 

 

 

These pancakes were so delicious. I honestly did not need any syrup. The kids started to eat them without any syrup but half way through, they asked for it. I guess pancakes are supposed to have syrup on them. I look forward to making these again. Using the griddle did take more time, since the pancakes are smaller. Maybe next time I’ll use a regular griddle. Bigger pancakes 🙂

 

 

Have a great weekend everyone! Make special pancakes! ~ Lyn

 

 

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Chicken Rundown

Feb 6, 2012 by lovelypantry

 

 

Today’s recipe came to fruition from a simple request from a friend on Facebook. “Lyn, do you have a recipe for Rundown?” I love questions like this. Really I do.

I’ve only had Rundown twice in my life. It was Mackerel Rundown. And it tasted so GOOD. I had it with boiled dumplings and boiled green bananas. It wasn’t an attractive dish, but it was very nice. Which explains why I had it a second time. Rundown always seemed to be an exotic dish in my eyes. It was not a dish that was prepared in my own home growing up, and I had not met anyone who made it until I was an adult. Furthermore, I thought there was only one type of Rundown ~ Mackerel. As I jumped into my research, I found out that Rundown itself is in fact the sauce (Coconut Milk) in which the mackerel is cooked in. It only stood to reason that you could use Chicken. Right? I did see some recipes out there on the internet but they did not seem to be exactly what I wanted to do. So I just did it how I felt comfortable. As long as the basic ingredients are present, I’m quite happy to call my dish Chicken Rundown. Thanks to “Farmgirl” for asking me and getting my creative juices flowing!

It tasted good. Yes, I’ll make it again. I’ll even make it with scotch bonnet pepper! Maybe.

I served it with rice because I felt it paired better than if I tried to serve it with boiled dumplings.

 

 

 

I think this came out quite well. I’m toying with the idea of a vegetarian version using root veggies. Hmmmmm….

 

Happy Monday! Have a splendid week 🙂

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Lyn’s Oxtails

Feb 3, 2012 by lovelypantry

 

 

Oxtail is one of my most favourite and beloved dishes – ever. It’s a popular Jamaican meal which has a deep, rich flavour that I love so much. It’s a heavy meat so I choose not to eat it too often. I think its safe to say I have it about 3-4 times per year, at most. I’ve had it at a few restaurants here in Canada as well as in Jamaica but I’ve always been concerned with the taste and how it is prepared. Oxtails taste differently every where I go. Some places are better at preparing it than others, and that’s expected.

Traditionally, the Oxtails are seasoned (often overnight) then browned in oil before being cooked down in water over a few hours, and may include dumplings or as we call them in certain dishes – “spinners” (elongated shaped dumplings). This is how my maternal grandmother used to cook it for me and it took her hours! I have fond memories of her at the stove making it, because we both loved it so much. Alas, this is when I was young and slender and nothing could change my figure (LOL). So now that I’m older and more conscious of what I consume, I try to have my favourite things in moderation. I also find ways to prepare them that I find acceptable. For me, this means no frying in oil. This may not be acceptable to some traditionalists, and that is okay 🙂

I bake my Oxtails in the oven. I’ve been doing this for years and I’m thinking it tastes better than some of what I’ve had at restaurants… hmmm…

Here’s how I do it.

 

 

I should mention that there is usually a certain amount of “heat” in most Jamaican fare. And by “heat”, I’m referring to Jamaican Scotch Bonnet Pepper. If you wanted to add heat, I would probably add the pepper at the beginning and remove it half way through so that it does not burst. I personally cannot eat too much pepper because it gives me some major heartburn! Plus, my little ones palates are so darn sensitive. A little is fine though, it gives it a little extra kick.

There are so many variations of Oxtails that I would love to try. One of my Aunts introduced me to this method (as in, using the oven). Another Aunt of mine prepares her Ox with BEER. I think I’ll be giving her a call soon for that recipe 🙂

 

A special shout out to my cousin Shelley – Happy Birthday sweetie! This recipe is for you ~ now at least you’ll have it in writing 🙂

Take care, guys! Have an awesome weekend! ~ Lyn

 

 

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