Cranberry Crumble Bars

Christmas often goes by, and I am left with a bag or two of fresh cranberries that I have stashed away in the freezer. Truthfully, I'm not a huge fan of cranberries in baking-maybe it's the tartness, but either way I never have that many recipes to use them. Recently I discovered this recipe, and fell in love with it. These bars are like a crumble, with some orange cutting the tartness of the cranberries and the almond topping giving it a healthy feel. These bars are not hugely sweet and make a great lunchbox snack. I made them a little more adult oriented by adding some Grand Marnier to the cranberry filling, but you can easily skip that.

Adapted from Whitewater Cooks With Friends 

Base
¾ cup butter, room temperature
½ cup sugar
½ tsp vanilla
½ tsp cinnamon
1 ½ cups flour
½ cup ground almonds

Filling
½ cup water
½ cup orange juice
1 cup sugar
2 tsp orange zest
3 cups fresh or frozen cranberries
2 tbsp Grand Marnier

Topping
¼ cup flour
2 tbsp brown sugar
¼ tsp cinnamon
½ cup almonds, roughly chopped
2 tbsp cold butter

Pre-heat the oven to 375 F.

To make the base, stir the sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, flour, and almonds together in a bowl. Cut in the butter with a pastry cutter or your hands until everything is combined. Press the base into a greased 9x13 inch cake pan. Bake the base for about 25 minutes, until golden brown. Let cool slightly.

In a saucepan, heat the water, orange juice, sugar, and orange juice over medium heat until it comes to a boil. Let the mixture boil for about five minutes stirring in the cranberries. Continue to cook and stir for five minutes more while the cranberries pop. Cool somewhat and stir in the Grand Marnier before spreading over the base.

Stir together the flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, and almonds together in a bowl. Using a pastry cutter, cut in the butter until the mixture resembles small peas. Sprinkle over the filling and place the pan in the oven. Bake for about 15-20 minutes. Watch them carefully, as mine had a tendency to cook a little too much around the edges.

Cool and cut into squares. Store in an airtight container in the fridge for a few days, or freeze in a single layer for a few weeks.

Makes about 16.

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Whole Wheat Sunflower Baguettes

Warm bread, straight from the oven, is a favorite in our house. Specialty breads are available at the store, but often they are about $4-5 a loaf and are never as good as homemade. This recipe is something that I used to make long ago, but then forgot about until recently. These are really difficult not to just slather with butter and devour seconds after you take them from the oven, but the bonus is that you get not one, but two baguettes with this recipe.

Today as the wind howled and the rain pounded the windows outside, and I lay in bed sick with a cold, I dreamed of these baguettes. Too sick to actually make them, I thought all was lost until I remembered the thick slice I had tucked into my lunch in anticipation of going to work.

All was not lost - I finally had my warm bread slathered with butter for lunch, and you can too!

Adapted from Canadian Living

2/3 cup raw sunflower seeds
1 1/2 cups flour
1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
2 tbsp flax seeds
2 tsp quick rise instant dry yeast
1 1/4 cup warm milk
3 tbsp packed brown sugar
2 tbsp vegetable oil
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 egg, beaten

Toast 1/2 cup of the sunflower seeds in a dry skillet over medium heat until golden.  Watch them carefully! Seeds go from perfect to burned in seconds.  Set them aside to cool.

In a bowl, whisk together 1 cup of flour, the whole wheat flour, flax, and yeast.  Set aside.

Using a small saucepan, warm the milk, brown sugar, oil,  and salt until the milk is steaming. Set it aside to cool, but you want it to be around 110 F, or as warm as a baby bottle.

Pour the milk mixture into the flour mixture, stirring.  I have a stand mixer so I just let it go using the dough hook.  Sometimes I have to stop it and with a wooden spoon, scrape down the sides to get the flour incorporated into the dough.  Add the 1/2 cup of remaining flour if you need it, but the dough should be somewhat sticky. Turn out onto a lightly floured counter and knead for about 8-10 minutes until smooth and elastic.

Place the dough into a greased bowl, turning to coat,  and cover with a clean tea towel.  Let rise for about an hour and 15 minutes.

Punch down the dough, cut in half, and roll out out each piece  to about a 16x4 inch rectangle.  They make fairly skinny baguettes, so I usually make mine about 12x 5 inches.  Starting at the side closest to you, roll up until you have a long roll, pinching the seams when you get to the end.  Set each onto a baking sheet and cover with a clean tea towel.  Set aside in a warm place to rise, about 30 minutes.

Pre-heat the oven to 375 F.

Brush the risen baguettes with the beaten egg, and sprinkle with the remaining raw sunflower seeds. You have to press them onto the dough a little, as they will tend to fall off.  When the oven is good and hot, put the baguettes in on the middle rack, and bake for about 15 - 20 minutes, until the bottoms are golden and sound hollow when tapped.  Keep an eye on them, the original recipe said to bake for 25 minutes but I didn't go near that long and they were definitely done early.

Remove from the oven and let cool on a wire rack.

These are best served the same day, or you can wrap one up in plastic film and then foil, and put in the freezer for another day.  Being home made, they do go stale a little quicker than bread that you buy from the store.

Makes two baguettes

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Oreo Cookie Bark

A few years ago I made this addictive snack for Christmas, never dreaming how utterly amazing it is.  My guys are not into chocolate bar, and yet as I sat the pan to cool on top of the deep freeze in the garage, they couldn't help but break off bits as they walked by.  One evening, I found my husband, lips covered in chocolate.

Yes. He'd been into the Oreo bark.  It's addictive and downright scrumptious.  Also really easy, as there's only 3 ingredients and you can easily get the kids to help you.  Break up bits and divide into bags, then give to friends and family for Valentine's Day or Easter.

Adapted from Kraft Canada

15 Oreo cookies, cut into quarters
12 oz semi sweet chocolate
6 oz white chocolate

Melt the semi sweet chocolate in a microwave or on low heat in a saucepan. Remove from heat. Add the Oreo cookies and stir very gently. Turn out onto a foil lined cookie sheet and spread out with a knife-try to spread out the cookies so they aren't in a clump but instead a single layer. Make sure to keep it thin so it's easy to break when cooled.

Melt the white chocolate and drizzle on top, filling in the thin spots.

Allow to cool and harden.

Try not to eat the entire pan.

Variation.....broken pieces of candy cane would be delectable in this, or you could add Easter colored M&Ms, or for Valentine's day even some cinnamon hearts.

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Karen's Lamb Pasta Sauce

When Kevin was about seven, we lived on Vancouver Island.  One summer day we went to the Filberg Park in Comox, BC where inside the park they run a small petting zoo that we often visited.  There were all sorts of animals, including a tiny pot bellied pig that followed us everywhere but refused to be touched, and cute little lambs running around.  As Kevin absentmindedly stroked their wool, he asked,

"What are we having for dinner tonight?"

I didn't know what to say.  Do I let him know that lamb would be on his plate? Or should I kill that fantasy (pun intended) that meat just magically appears in little styrofoam containers in the supermarket? I hesitated but eventually met his gaze.

"Um, it's lamb.  Pasta with lamb sauce."

Kevin's hand stopped mid stroke, and his blue eyes widened.  He looked down at the wooly little lamb standing beside him, then back at me.  I'd like to say I was a sympathetic mother but on that day, I didn't offer words of consolation.

I bleated.  Loudly. 

Needless to say, it's a good thing that my son loves his meat and isn't deterred by the fact that we eat the flesh of cute animals, because he went home that night and ate a huge bowl of lamb pasta sauce, afterwards declaring that lambs were cute AND tasty.  The other night, about nine years later he wolfed down another bowl of pasta and lamb sauce, again smacking his lips and reminiscing about the time that I horrified him about what he was eating. Where did I get the recipe for this one, he wanted to know.  The truth is there was no recipe, just a vague idea of what I wanted to eat as I wandered through the grocery store.  I had a craving for some type of rich, meaty sauce topped with feta cheese, and then went home and created it.

I think what made this one different than another sauce I make is that the lamb I used was not the typical frozen kind in a tube,straight from New Zealand that I usually find at the store, but instead fresh lamb patties, with their edges rolled in chopped fresh mint.  I may not have even bought them but they were a full $3/lb cheaper than the frozen meat, so they went into the cart.  After tasting the difference, I'm not sure I can buy the frozen meat again.

1 lb lamb (fresh is best, but frozen and thawed will do)
1-2 tablespoons fresh mint, chopped fine
1-2 tablespoons fresh rosemary, chopped fine
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 onion, chopped
1 red pepper, seeded, cored, and chopped
6 mushrooms, chopped
2 ribs celery, chopped
1 can of italian plum tomatoes (I like cortina brand, the juice is nice and thick)
3 tbsp tomato paste
1 tbsp brown sugar
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
2/3 cup red wine

In a large pan with a little olive oil, saute the onions and garlic over medium low heat until softened and translucent.  Stir in the rosemary and continue to saute a few minutes longer.  Push the onions and garlic to the side of the pan, then crumble in the lamb, breaking apart with a spoon and turning the heat up to medium.

Cook, stirring occasionally and breaking up the chunks of meat until cooked through and no longer pink.  Add the mushrooms, red pepper, mint, fresh cracked pepper and salt to taste. Continue to stir and cook until the vegetables soften and the pan becomes somewhat dry (juices from the meat will be absorbed by the vegetables).  Stir in the wine and tomatoes, breaking up the tomatoes with a spoon.  Using the can from the tomatoes, fill it about 1/3 full with water, and pour it into the pan. Stir in the balsamic vinegar, tomato paste, and brown sugar.  This will look very watery, but the liquid will evaporate and you will be left with a delicious, meaty sauce.  Be patient!

Bring the mixture to a boil, then turn down the heat to low and let simmer for about an hour and a half, until it's thickened, stirring now and then. 

Serve with pasta and feta cheese.

Makes about 6 servings.

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Why You Shouldn't Copy and Paste Recipes to Your Blog

Food blogs are a lot of work.  More work than other blogs; you don't just sit down and write a post when you blog about food.  No, you are researching food trends, scouting out new recipes, then planning, shopping, and cooking the food.  You work on plating it, taking photographs, then downloading and tweaking the photos.  Sometimes I have to shoot things twice if the first batch don't turn out, which is pretty common this time of year when the light is bad.  Often my weekends are full of shopping, cooking, and taking photos so that I have content both for this blog and Yummy Mummy Club.

Afterwards, I sit down and write the recipe, and post.  Often I'm up very late at my laptop, typing well into the wee hours.   In total, each recipe on this site represents hours of work.

Many people are unsure about copyright laws and how they pertain to food blogs, and since I've had a number of people come and help themselves to my work here, I'm going to explain what readers are allowed, and not allowed to do with my work on Chasing Tomatoes.

You are allowed to:

-try the recipes in your kitchen (in fact, I hope you do!)
-post the recipe on your blog if YOU write the instructions in your own words and use your own photos.
-link to my site.
-print the recipes for your own personal use.  It's hard to cook in a kitchen via laptop!

Many of the recipes on my site are adapted from elsewhere.  This is because lists of ingredients can NOT be copyrighted.  Help yourself!  Make the recipe, re-blog it elsewhere.  I don't expect you to write "adapted from Chasing Tomatoes" if the recipe is something that I sourced from elsewhere and changed very little.  It would be nice of you to mention me, but I expect that you'll credit the original source, which is who I've credited.  However, there are recipes that I have come up with on my own, and with those it would be nice to be credited.

But read on to the ONE thing that stops you from straight copy/paste even if you include a link back.

You are NOT ALLOWED TO:

-use my photos without my written permission
-copy and paste entire posts or recipes without my written permission

Here's where it gets trickier.  While you CAN use the ingredient lists, you can NOT just take the written instructions.  Those words are absolutely mine and protected by copyright.  Don't be lazy, write your own!  The photos are also protected by copyright, and belong to me.  I do NOT want them used anywhere without my written permission.  Ask!  If you are doing a post where you feature other's work, just let me know what you are doing, include a link back to the recipe, and many times, I will say yes.

Do not take posts, then leave a comment telling me "Thanks for sharing. I reposted this on my blog with a link back to you."  I have had this happen a bunch of times in the last year.  Asking after you've already take the post is still stealing.Then, it becomes awkward because I need to write you and convince you to take it down. Even if you have no malicious intent, it feels like my work is being held hostage and the likelihood of me ever giving you permission to use ANY of my work ever again is nil.

Is that the kind of blogger you want to be?

The first time this happened, a reader took an entire post and photo. When I protested and tried to explain copyright, they said that they just "borrowed it" to "make things easier for their readers".   Copying posts is not borrowing.  It doesn't make things better for their readers, it makes things easier for the blogger who is too lazy to come up with their own work. When I continued to protest, they removed the photo but kept the written recipe which is, in fact, mine.   They altered it slightly, probably so that I'd leave them alone.  In place of the photo they left a blurb which made me sound mean because I wouldn't let them use it.  If they had just asked first, I would have.  I even offered to guest post and write the beginning of the post to better suit their blog and allow them to leave it.  I wanted to be nice, really.

The second time, a reader took a post and when I emailed to explain copyright, they removed it and then began asking me for blogging advice on how to increase their traffic.  SERIOUSLY? Perhaps one should start with not using other people's work.  If you want advice about how to get traffic just email me, but don't take my words.

Someone else didn't leave a comment, but instead copied a post and added it to Food.com. Yes, she did leave a link.  But those are MY words, not hers and she didn't ask me.

Another has left a comment saying they have re-posted one of my recipes on their blog with a link back, but no such link is to be found.

The bottom line is this: 


Just because things are on the Internet doesn't mean they are free for the taking. I will not be grateful that you have chosen to feature my work on your site, no matter how famous you are or how much traffic your site gets.  It doesn't matter if you add a link back and tell me after the fact, taking other people's work is stealing, plain and simple. 

Besides, I'm sure that you have a ton of fantastic ideas that I could never come up with.  You are fantastic and creative on your own, and the last thing you need to do is sell yourself short by copying someone else's work.  I will freely offer advice and support to people who are trying to establish themselves in the blogging world, but I won't give you my work.   That is personal.  It's the food shared around the table by my family, it's hours spent tweaking photos and words until they are just right, it's recipes perfected so that my readers will enjoy them at home.   It's a piece of ME.

Don't steal it.

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Sundried Tomato and Feta Hand Pies

At first I wasn't sure about the lentils and olives, but they are mighty tasty!

These flaky little pockets stuffed with tasty feta, sundried tomatoes, olives, and lentils make a great snack or appetizer. I admit, at first I wasn't sure about the filling but in the pie it totally works.   You could even tuck them into a lunch box for the kids!  Don’t let pastry scare you off-I’m still learning how to work with pastry and found them surprisingly easy. The thing is, they are so good that you will have a very hard time not scarfing them down before they hit the lunch box!

Adapted from Spill the Beans

2 ½ cups flour

½ tsp sugar

½ tsp salt

¾ cup cold butter

5 tbsp ice water, plus more as required

Filling:

¼ cup dry green lentils (or ¾ cup canned lentils, drained and rinsed)

¼ cup kalamata olives (about 8-10), chopped finely

¼ cup sundried tomatoes in oil, chopped finely

¼ cup feta cheese, crumbled finely

1 Tbsp Italian parsley, chopped finely

freshly cracked pepper

1 egg, lightly beaten with 1 tsp water

In a bowl, stir together the flour, sugar, and salt with a fork.  Using the coarse side of a grater, grate the butter into the bowl.  Cut in the butter with a pastry cutter until the mixture resembles crumbs.  Add the water tablespoon by tablespoon, stirring with a fork until it begins to clump together, adding as little water as you have to.

Turn the dough out onto the counter and bring it together into two disks.  Handle the dough as little as possible.  Too much handling makes pastry tough, and you don’t want the warmth of your hands to melt the butter in your dough either.  Cover the disks with plastic wrap and chill in the fridge for a few hours or overnight.

Make the filling:

Pre-heat the oven to 400 F.

In a small saucepan, cook the lentils in 1 ¼ cups of water with the lid on for about 30 minutes.  Take them off the heat and allow to cool.  In a bowl, combine the olives, sundried tomatoes, lentils, feta, parsley, and pepper.

Roll the dough out on a floured counter to less that 1/8^th of an inch thick.  Cut into 4 inch round circles-fill each with a scant 1 tbsp of filling, then crimp closed with a fork.  Re-roll the scraps of pastry only once before re-cutting out.  Place the filled pockets 1 inch apart on a baking sheet.  Brush with the beaten egg and cut three tiny slits in the top before baking for about 10-14 minutes until puffed and golden brown.

If you have leftovers, these are easily re-heated.  Just pop them into a 350 F oven for a few minutes until hot, and serve.

Makes 12-15 pies

After taking this photo I ate FOUR.  Yes, four. 

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Sugared Cranberries

I don't know about you, but after Christmas and Thanksgiving I always have cranberries left over.  Maybe it's because when I make turkey I never use the whole bag and stash the rest in my fridge, or I buy more than I need and days later find them sitting in the crisper forlornly.  Honestly, I was never much of a cranberry fan, whether it was in the sauce that you make to top your turkey or in muffins.

You see, I have a sweet tooth and I find them a bit sour. Until, of course, a friend of mine gifted me with some of these sugared cranberries last Christmas.  They sat on the counter in a bowl and unable to resist their bright red, yet sparkly exterior, I nibbled at them one by one (okay, possibly it was more like handfuls) until they were gone.  This year, I couldn't resist making some more and even bought extra cranberries!

Adapted from 101 cookbooks

2 cups fresh cranberries, picked over
2 cups water
2 cups sugar

In a saucepan over medium heat, make a simple syrup by combining the sugar and water over medium heat until the sugar melts and the mixture comes to a simmer. Remove from the heat and allow to cool to room temperature.   This is important-if you add the cranberries when it's still hot, they will burst.

Combine the simple syrup and cranberries in a jar/bowl/glass measuring cup.  Cover with plastic wrap and put in the fridge to chill until the next day.  I have been known to forget about these and leave them 2 days, which didn't make a differences, really.

Drain the cranberries.  If you want to make more, you can actually save the simple syrup and use it again.  In a large bowl, toss the berries with sugar, spoonful by spoonful.  You don't want the sugar to clump up from the moisture, but rather coat the berries well.  When they seem sufficiently sugared, spread on a parchment or waxed paper lined baking sheet and let them dry for about two hours.  You can, if you wish, toss them with sugar again to take care of any missed spots, but I don't really bother.  Let them dry well.

Makes 2 cups

I store these on the counter in an airtight container.  They will last a few days, and then will start to become soft so it's best that you eat them fairly soon after making-as IF you'll be able to resist!

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