Happy Birthday Haley

Dear readers,

(To wish Haley a Happy Birthday, please comment on this post!)

When C., my husband, entered our family circle, first as a boyfriend, later a hubbie, he was shocked by the gusto and intensity with which we tend to celebrate a birthday--in our twenties we still recieve hand-made banners, balloons, numerous phone calls, BBQs, our favourite cakes, etc. Plus birthday boy or girl gets to call all the shots throughout the day. The real kicker for C. was my Grandma's eighty-ith. Picture Mings, the slightly classy Chinese restaurant in downtown Victoria, a round table of elderly Dutchies (plus my immediate family), not yet prescribed hearing aids. One has to speak at a shout to be heard. And everyone wants to be heard. Ome Willam, in a red vest and bowties, black thick-rimmed glasses and a shock of white hair, is snapping at the not-so-young Chinese-Canadian waiter and calling him 'boy.' Ome Gerritt, much to the delight of Dad and B., is calling C. 'Gayleb,' a nickname which still surfaces today...I think Grandma had fun. She certainly was mad when we tried to slip the party just before nine o'clock. I think she said repeatedly, 'but it's my birthday.'

She was right. The birthday takes precedence. Which is why I'm a little ashamed that I failed to announce Moochie's birthday a few days ago. On the last day in March the beautiful Haley turned thirty-one. Wow...two babies, one Mike, still cooking, still looking hot. You've done good Mooch!

To wish Haley a Happy birthday please comment on this post.

Spinach Filo Quiche

Rach -

Happy Easter. Finn just had the sweetest phone call from his cousin Atley- Please visualize, no, I need you to 'hear-ize' in a super cute 2-year old voice- 'HAPPY EASTER FINN!' Finn thinks it's so awesome that someone not a grandma wants to talk to him on the phone, that he starts laughing uncontrollably, and then moves onto yelling random nonsense words into the mouthpiece. Hopefully his social skills pick up before kindergarten.

The annual bun-fest was delicious as always. The overnight rising had us savouring hot-cross buns for a Good Friday breakfast, as opposed to the usual later coffee brunch-fest. I added one cup of finely chopped apple, but it almost absorbed into the dough, anyway we didn't even notice this addition.

I loved the look of your new hot cross bun recipe and I like the idea of the whole wheat - I need to point out though, that I found no evidence of any type of dried fruit in your recipe (must have been the sun in your eyes). What did you put in, how much, and when should I add said fruit? Waiting a whole other year for hot cross buns seems a little long so I might be a little wild this year and pull out, just for kicks, a Canada bun on July 1st (maybe with a maple syrup glaze?), or maybe a special Harvest Bun with cranberries for Thanksgiving? The possibilities are endless. I could rhapsodize about buns at length but had better move on to more exciting topics.

Such as spinach quiche. With filo. This is a post dedicated to those who want to be able to make a meal with 20 min or less prep time. It's also a dish that I like to have the ingredients in my freezer for, so that when I realize that my fresh veggie supply has dwindled, I can whip it up without having to make an impromptu grocery run. Finally, this is a great meal for you Rach - as less than a month since you posted pictures of a splayed brick chick, you and Caleb are now off meat.

What you need for this seriously easy dish is a box of filo and some frozen spinach in your freezer. Here's what I used:

• 4 eggs
• 1/3 cup milk
• 1 package defrosted spinach drained, or the equivalent fresh pre-cooked spinach
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 1/2 cup or so chopped green onions
• 1/3 tsp salt and pepper
  
• 1 cup shredded cheese - I used aged cheddar
• 8 (or so) sheets of filo. Defrost this in your fridge overnight or on the counter for a few hours. You won't use all the sheets but I have successfully re-frozen the remainder of the filo for another day.

This is a flexible recipe. The filling is forgiving and you could easily saute some minced garlic and onion, or any carnivores out there could add some diced bacon or pancetta.

First, while the filo is still covered, make your filling. Combine the eggs, milk, spinach, green onions and cheese. I have to be honest, I don't actually measure the ingredients so you are making this with a leap of faith. I didn't have any feta left, but for a play on spanakopita this would be a great addition.

Next you need to layer your filo into your pie plate. I really took the fast route and used (close your eyes for a second Rach - or please don't judge me) a quick spray of Pam between the sheets. I know, the contents in a can of aerosol Pam can't be good for you. Brushing some olive oil or melted butter between the layers would be the more real food alternative. If the filo breaks a bit no worries. Leave the edges hanging over the pie plate until you've done the layers.

Then you need to pour your filling into the shell. Put the edges of the filo over the filling and bake in the oven for about 40 min at 350 degrees - or until the filling looks set and the crust is brown.

Let it set for 10 minutes or so, toss a salad and there you have it.

Hot Crosses

Hey H.,

How did this morning's bun-fest go? Was the over-night-garage-rise method as trusty as always? I'm going to keep this blog brief as I'm huddled up against my kitchen window in order to maintain an Internet connection. A ray of sunlight is hitting me right in the eyes and bouncing off the computer screen. If this is full of typos it's because I can't see a thing.

We had M and M over for breakie. I think they were sufficiently impressed by our spread of eggs, fruit salad, and hot cross buns. Sigh, sad that so much of what you and I make is less about love and more about showing off. Look what I can do.

I made 100% whole wheat buns because I'm on one of those whole-grains kicks. Laurel's Kitchen Bread Book has become my new best friend. I'm loving the hippy-style, healthy approach the book takes to bread making. While these are nice and grainy, they're still fairly rich... Here's the basic recipe, although I made some fairly significant changes.

3 to 3.5 cups whole wheat flour
1.5 TBsp instant yeast
3/4 cups to 1 cup warm water
1 cup yogurt
1 egg
2 Tbsp honey
2 Tbsp butter

Combine 1 cup of the flour with the yeast. Add the water. Stir smooth. Add the wet ingredients except for the butter. Add the remaining flour 1/2 a cup at a time. The dough will be sticky. Add more flour by the spoonful if necessary. Wet your hands in order to keep the dough from sticking and knead for five minutes. Knead the butter in. The dough should be sticky but smooth. Let rise until doubled (one to two hours). Deflate the dough; reshape it into a ball and let it rise another 1/2 hour to 45 minutes, or until it is back to doubled in size.

Divide the dough into 12 equal pieces and shape into buns. Let rise until doubled.

Mix one egg with 1 TBsp of water and brush over the buns before baking in a 350 degree oven for 20-25 minutes. Meanwhile, mix 2 Tbsp honey with 1/2 Tbsp water and heat in a saucepan until boiling. Remove from heat.

When you take the buns out of the oven brush them with the honey glaze. You may add the decorative cross using an icing mixture but I omitted that step.

Serve them hot. If you plan to serve them later in the day, reheat the buns in a 350 degree oven.

Delish Baby

Rach,

Thanks for making me feel better about my travel-departure struggles. Once again, this is just highlighting our shared genes.

Your Rebar Curry looks awesome. I also find the idea of making a curry paste daunting, but with your guidance I'm going to give it a go. When I saw cilantro on your list of ingredients I started to get excited. Every year around this time I get enthused about planting, and a good herb really gets me ready to dip my hands into the manure bag. Planting I can do- it's the weeding and upkeep that I struggle with. Fortunately for me I have found that Chilliwack is much more forgiving in the green thumb department than Calgary. In Alberta one needs to have that gardening gift (translation:diligence) in order to produce food for the table. In Chilliwack it takes some good soil, lots of watering, and a mother-in-law that manages a garden centre. Last year we had such a bumper crop of cherry tomatoes that even Mike, of the I-don't-eat- fruit-or-anything-that-might-resemble-a-fruit, was bragging. So yesterday, in anticipation of summer days, and summer eats, Finn and I planted our first seeds of the season, snap peas, regular peas, and Swiss chard.

I'm not actually giving a recipe today, though I have lots to impart - during nap times right now I am busy dipping into my stash of peanut butter brownies, and I made the worlds easiest filo spinach quiche for dinner tonight.. but more on those later. I just wanted to show off the more delicious offering that my house has to offer. Couldn't you just take a good nibble on those cheeks?

Oh, and yes, I will be making hot crossed buns. This year I am really going overboard and am planning on adding some diced apple to the dough. I'm also going to follow the overnight garage rising method - why you ask? Overnight guests of course! I'm not sure if Finn is more excited to see Grandma, Grandpa, or Josie. If any of our readers are still with me, I am including a link from last year's Hot Cross Buns.

Overnight Cinnamon Buns

R-

My new food craze? Overnight cinnamon buns. This is a breakfast designed to impress your out-of-town guests, conveniently with all the prep completed the day before. Oh that's right, you and C live in a funky ONE bedroom apartment, and most of your family is within a 15 minute driving distance. Since we have a ferry or a mountain pass between many of our loved ones, Chilliwack, and Chateau Campbell, has become the place to visit. As you know we boast beautiful mountain views, lovely lakes, and Caleb's favourite - a plethora of cheap thrift stores. The newest attraction to the list? You got it, Sunday morning cinnamon bun breakfast.

I use this recipe with the following changes. I use only 1/4 sugar for the dough, I reduce the eggs from 3 to 2, and I use only 2 T butter. Last time, instead of making 12 buns I divided the dough into 14 buns to make them slightly smaller, mostly so that I can eat 2 for breakfast with a little less guilt. Oh, and instead of putting them in my already bursting fridge, I let them rise overnight in the cool garage (To clarify: 'Cool' as in temperature, please don't mistake this as a nod to Mike's NBA Jam video arcade game).

Since we have a household divide on raisins I do half with and half without - they are good without raisins too, but I have a hard time abstaining from food loves. So after I spread the filling on the dough I sprinkle half with raisins and leave half plain.

The final tweak is that I like to make a cream cheese glaze. I cream aprox 1/3 c cream cheese with 3/4 cup icing sugar and then add milk 1 T at a time until I have the desired consistency. I haven't tinkered with whole wheat flour yet, but might need to if I keep pumping these out of my oven at this rate.

OK, Rach nap time is ticking away and I have a new stack of library books!

Please note: While Mike and I love having overnight guests, we have ensured that our 'guest bed' (mattress on the floor), is only comfortable enough for about three nights, thus enabling good times and memories for both parties.

Another Thwack at the Rebar Curry

Mooch, you are getting ahead of me. Congrats, I know that will make you happy. I wrote this in response to your Texas entry but then got in a fight with my computer and couldn't upload. Your cinny buns look awesome, by the way. Always a crowd pleaser...Are you planning hotcross buns? Anyways, here's what I wrote on Sunday:

Hi Haley,

Yes, I understand the pre-trip panic. I can only imagine it must be heightened by the added responsibility of a baby and a toddler. I have enough trouble getting my own underwear and wallet (the two essentials) into a bag. In fact, on departure for Mexico, half way to the school, where we met before leaving for the 7:00 ferry, I felt the panic, reached into my purse to feel for my wallet, and sure enough, realized I was driving without it. Needless to say, I was twenty minutes late. The kids were watching from the bus, sleeping bags and pillows already loaded, as my gold beetle came roaring into the parking lot. Well I made it. And all the way home, too. And I've been cooking.

Much of late has been Mexican inspired, but yesterday, due to the presence of a jalapeno pepper and a handful of cilantro in the fridge (yes, I know, Mexican ingredients), I instead went South Asian and tackled that delicious Rebar coconut curry. Yum. I have always been daunted by making my own curry paste. The Rebar list of ingredients looks long and involved. Plus the added weight of making the curry after I've preped the paste... I discovered the secret, which is to make the paste before hand. I've also simplified the recipe to its essential parts and switched the vegetables. Please try this, Moochie, you won't be disappointed.

My Simple Rebar Coconut Curry

Curry Paste

2 tsp coriander
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp ground pepper
4 garlic cloves
A thumb of ginger
½ cup chopped shallots or onions
2 jalapeno peppers
½ tsp red pepper flakes (sub ground red pepper if necessary)
1 bunch cilantro
Juice of a lime or half a large lemon
1 Tbsp salt
1/3 to ½ cup oil

Whiz it all in a food processor

The Curry- Enough for 2-3 servings (make brown rice to accompany)

1 cup cooked chickpeas
1 to 1 and ½ cups coconut milk
2 Tbsp curry paste
¼ cup water
½ a fist sized potato
½ Tbsp brown sugar
1 Tbsp soy sauce
2 Tbsp fish sauce (optional)
½ a red pepper
½ cup sliced mushrooms
½ cup grate cabbage
A squeeze of lime or lemon juice

Heat a pan over medium heat and add about ¼ to 1/3 cup of coconut milk. Add the curry and mix it in. Add the water and potatoes and bring to a boil. Cover and cook until the potatoes are just tender.

Add the sugar, soy and fish sauce, remaining veggies, chickpeas, and remaining coconut milk. The coconut should cover the veggies. If it cooks down too much you can always add more coconut milk and/or more water. Cover and cook until the veggies are tender.

Just before taking off the heat, stir in the lime juice. Taste, and adjust the seasoning to taste (more soy sauce or salt or lime or curry paste).

Rach-
Hmm.. I seem to recall you and I taking an extended blogging break right around this time last year. Our common Reems-ness finds too much multi-tasking difficult and not really worth the effort. For you, another stint as a traveling chef to Mexico, and for me, a trip to Texas with the family made blogging impossible.

I never do well with preparing for trips. In order to pack the requisite gear for a toddler, infant, and self for a 10 day trip one needs to be organized. First strike. In order to complete such packing it also helps to have a functioning washing machine. Second Strike. Finally, there was the tiny matter of realizing the day before we left that you actually need to register your newborn in order to be receiving health coverage. Third Strike.. In classic Haley procrastination-regret-panic mode, everything came together. Coby got health coverage, me and the Sears Appliance-fix-it guy are tight (turns out you need to empty your pockets before you wash your clothes - crazy, crazy times). As you know Rach, none of this is new or surprising. I got myself through university, actually made it to my wedding, and have perforned many, many events in similar fashion. It drives Mike crazy but I claim that it is the element of the unknown that keeps the love alive (that, and the fact that I make everyone around me feel organized and oh-so together by comparison).

Mike and I, in our classic traveling tradition, this time with a new generation of eaters, ate our way from Houston to Dallas. In terms of sheer caloric intake, this trip came close to our New Orleans honeymoon, or possibly to the very high carb- mainly croissant, baguette and pastry diet that saw me through the France portion of a Europe backpacking trip many years ago (Amen Heather?).

I have several recipes to bring to the table, and will post soon, but just wanted to let you know that I am alive and eating. The Texans are not a bunch that are fond of vegetables. Or even sweets for that manner. No, it's all about that meat. Smoked meat that is. You are not a true Texan until you own at least one smoker. On our journey I ate the following smoked items (in no particular order): pulled pork, various sausages, and brisket. Yes brisket. It was almost enough for a west coast girl to pull out the tofu, but I perservered and let the brisket work the magic. And oh the magic.