Monday, September 30, 2013

Pumpkin Pancakes



I had a little left over canned pumpkin after making my Pumpkin Coffee Cake yesterday.



I remembered seeing a recipe for Pumpkin Pancakes in A Cozy Kitchen’s new cookbook “Pancakes”.

I just love Adrianna’s site and her cookbook is amazing!



These pumpkin pancakes are fabulous! They are light and fluffy and full of flavour!

What you need,

1 cup all-purpose flour
2 tbsp. brown sugar
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
¼ tsp. salt
1 tsp. cinnamon
¼ tsp. ground nutmeg
1/8 tsp. ground cloves
1/8 tsp. ground ginger
1 cup buttermilk
1 large egg
¼ cup pumpkin puree (canned pumpkin)
½ tbsp. butter, melted and cooled

In a large bowl whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves and ginger.

In a 2 cup glass measuring cup combine the buttermilk, egg, pumpkin and butter. Stir until fully combined.

Add the buttermilk mixture to the flour mixture and stir just to combine, do not over mix, some lumps are ok.

Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add a little butter or spray with non-stick spray. Scoop about ¼ cup of the batter into the pan and cook for 2-3 minutes until the small bubbles form and the edges brown.
Flip the pancake and let it cook another 2-3 minutes until browned and cooked through.

You can keep the pancakes warm in a 200 degree oven on sheet pan.

Serve with a little smear of butter and your favourite syrup!



My in house taste tester loved these pancakes. He was like “how have you never made pumpkin pancakes before!”

Make them, eat them, love them!

Jen

Sunday, September 29, 2013

Pumpkin Coffee Cake



It has been cold and rainy here all weekend.
I am wearing my wearing slippers and drinking a warm tea. I have a big pot of hearty chili on the stove for dinner.
You know what all of this means??



I can finally start baking with Pumpkin‼ Hooray!



This Pumpkin Coffee Cake seemed like the perfect place to start!

What you need,

For the cake,
2 cup all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. salt
2 tsp. ground cinnamon
½ tsp. ground nutmeg
¼ tsp. ground cloves
1 cup canned pumpkin
½ cup packed brown sugar
½ cup vegetable oil
¼ cup maple syrup
¼ cup buttermilk

For the topping
½ cup all-purpose flour
½ cup packed brown sugar
¼ tsp. salt
2 tsp. ground cinnamon
¼ cup butter, cold and cut into small pieces

For the glaze,
1 cup icing sugar
1-2 tbsp. buttermilk

Start by heating your oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9x11 cake pan with non-stick spray and set aside.

In a large bowl whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves.

In a separate bowl combine the pumpkin, brown sugar, vegetable oil, maple syrup and buttermilk. Stir until smooth.

Add the wet ingredients into the dry and stir until just combined, don’t over mix.
Spread the batter into the prepared pan.

In a small bowl make the topping. Whisk together the flour, brown sugar, salt and cinnamon. Add the cold butter pieces and using a fork cut the butter in until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs.

Sprinkle the topping over the batter.
Bake the cake for 30-35 minutes until golden brown and a tooth pick comes out clean.

Make the glaze by whisking together the icing sugar and 1 tablespoon of the buttermilk. Add just enough of the second tablespoon of buttermilk to make the icing thin enough to drizzle.

Let the cake cool for 5 minutes then drizzle the glaze all over the top.

Store in an airtight container for 3 days, if it lasts that long!



This Pumpkin Coffee Cake is so full of pumpkin flavour. It is moist and the topping is crunchy and full of cinnamon. YUM!


Make yourself a nice hot latte and cut a big slice of this amazing cake, turn on Hart of Dixie or whatever TV show floats your boat and enjoy a perfect Fall afternoon!


Jen



Wednesday, September 25, 2013

Chicken Parmesan Pasta



Dear Hot Cheesy Pasta,

Please stop being so amazingly delicious. I am trying SO hard to quit you! It nothing personal but my pants called and they are NOT happy with the snugness lately.

Thanks for your cooperation!

Love Always, 
Jen



Chicken Parmesan is one of my all-time favourites. This super simple dish is fantastic! It really isn’t helping with my snug pants situation.



What you need,

2 boneless skinless chicken breasts cut into bite sized pieces
1 tbsp. vegetable oil
Salt and Pepper
1 - 28oz. can whole tomatoes
5 cloves of garlic, minced
½ tsp. dried oregano
1/8 tsp. dried red pepper flakes
2 ½ cups low sodium chicken broth
8 oz. of penne or other short pasta
¼ cup heavy cream
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1 cup grated mozzarella cheese
¼ cup chopped fresh basil

Heat your oven to 425 degrees.

In a large oven safe skillet heat the oil over medium high heat. Season the chicken with salt and pepper and cook until starting to brown and cooked through.

Add the garlic, oregano and red pepper flakes. Cook for 1 minute or so until the garlic is fragrant.
Add the tomatoes and juice to the pan. Crush up the tomatoes with the back of a spoon.
Add the chicken broth and pasta and stir to combine

Bring to a boil then reduce the heat to medium and simmer for 12-15 minutes until the pasta is tender.

Stir in the heavy cream, half the fresh basil and ¾ cup of the Parmesan cheese.
Season the pasta with salt and pepper to taste.

Top with the remaining Parmesan cheese and the mozzarella.
Bake in the oven for 10-12 minutes until hot and bubbly. You can turn on the broiler for a few minutes to really brown up the cheese.

Garnish with the rest of the fresh basil.



This was a perfect weeknight meal. It took less than 45 minutes and it tasted amazing!

Enjoy!

Jen

Recipe adapted from Tracey’s Culinary Adventures

Monday, September 23, 2013

Slow Cooker Butter Chicken



I love Indian food! Growing up in Regina it really wasn’t a very big thing. When I left to move out here I think there was only 1 Indian restaurant in town.



Here in Vancouver there are a ton of amazing Indian places. My favourite thing to eat is Butter Chicken. The spicy creamy tomato sauce just kills me. A nice hot buttery piece of Naan to soak up the sauce is to die for.



I have never tried to make it from scratch before until now.
When I saw this Slow Cooker Butter Chicken on Half Baked Harvest’s site I knew I was finally gonna give it a try!

What you need,

1 lb. boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite sized pieces
1 small white onion, finely minced
1 14oz. can coconut milk (I used full fat)
½ cup Greek yogurt
¼ heavy cream
1 6oz can tomato paste
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tbsp. freshly grated ginger
2 tsp. curry paste (I used the Thai Red Curry Paste)
2 tsp. curry powder
2 tbsp. garam masala
1 tsp. turmeric
1 tsp. cayenne pepper (this made a pretty spicy sauce, use less if you want it less spicy!)
¼ tsp. salt
1 ½ tbsp. brown sugar (I felt like it needed a bit of sweetness so this is my addition to the original recipe)
2 tbsp. butter cut into small pieces

Cooked Basmati Rice, for serving
Warm Naan, for serving
Chopped fresh cilantro or parsley for garnish (optional)

In a large bowl whisk together the coconut milk, yogurt and cream.
Add the tomato paste, ginger, garlic, curry paste and all the spices.
Stir to combine.

Spray the inside of your slow cooker with non-stick spray. Layer the onion on the bottom. Place the chicken on top of the onion.
Pour the sauce over the chicken be sure to cover all the chicken.
Dot the butter over the top of the sauce.

Cook on low for 7-8 hours or on high for 4-5 hours.

I stirred the mixture twice during cooking just to make sure it didn’t stick and to be sure the chicken was well coated in the sauce.
You don’t have to do this if you don’t want to.

Right before serving, sprinkle with cilantro or parsley.
Serve immediately with the rice and naan.



This recipe is amazing! It is super easy and it tastes SO VERY GOOD!
I will be making it again for sure! I made a cool cucumber salad to go with to help with the heat!

Enjoy!

Recipe from Half Baked Harvest