This week’s recipe (from The Food Network) provides a nice twist on traditional orange cranberry muffins by adding carrots. I opted to steam and purée my own carrots, but feel free to use the jarred variety if you can’t be bothered to make yours from scratch. Having been recently gifted a lovely looking jar of Orange Brandy Cranberry Sauce, I decided to use this in place of the cranberry relish called for in the recipe. I also puréed an entire orange and added it into the mix, wanting to really ramp up the orange flavour beyond zest.

While these muffins are more of a labour of love, the results were great and I would definitely make them again. Crispy tops paired with an intense orange flavour and cranberry zing, these muffins were unbelievably rich and moist. The carrots were barely detectable in the same way they are when used in carrot cake. I adored the cranberry sauce, but next time would add twice as much and maybe even throw in a few fresh cranberries for good measure. The Demererra sugar sprinkled on top gave the muffins a lovely crunch while providing a level of sweetness that balanced out the tartness perfectly.

While these muffins would be great at Thanksgiving, there is no reason to holdback making them throughout the rest of the year. Like now. Go.

For a copy of the original recipe for Cranberry Orange Muffins, please visit Baker Street’s site and be sure to check out what the other food bloggers have baked up this week!

Muffin Monday is an initiative by Baker Street. A culinary journey of sharing a wickedly delicious muffin recipe every week. Drop in a quick line to join her on her journey to make the world smile and beat glum Monday mornings week after week.

Interview conducted & written by contributing writer Helena McMurdo

Photo courtesy of Deborah Jones

Mourad Lahlou is the Chef behind San Francisco’s Aziza, where his cuisine marries the traditions of Morocco with the fresh local ingredients of the Bay Area and the advanced culinary techniques employed by only the most modern of chefs.

Virtually self-taught, he learned to cook “accidentally” while at university, trying to recreate the dishes of his childhood Morocco and longing for a connection to home. Eventually abandoning his studies to open a restaurant with the support of friends and his former professors, his restaurant became a success almost overnight and took him from economics major to major chef. Today, he is known as the Chef behind the innovative cuisine at Aziza and has a Michelin Star to boot!

I spent an hour with Mourad recently when he stopped in Vancouver on a whirlwind trip to our beautiful city to talk about his first book; Mourad: New Moroccan. Nostalgic and passionate, he shared childhood memories of his upbringing and the place that food holds in his culture. Inquisitive and curious by nature, he also spoke about his somewhat trial-and-error process and new techniques he’s employing in his kitchen. It was a pretty inspiring conversation and I ran home to start my preserved lemons so I’d be ready to start cooking! I left feeling that even I could learn to hand-roll couscous and with a wonderful reminder of the very important role that food plays in all our lives.

What was the inspiration behind this book?
People write the same book (on Moroccan cooking) over and over again. Every book has the same table of contents, the same dishes, the same pictures. It’s stuck in people’s heads in the west that ‘that’s what it is’.  So I felt like, you know what, we’ve done some really amazing things here and we need to document it and share it with the world. We need to change this notion that Moroccan food does not evolve. If we can convey this knowledge that we’ve gathered over the years to somebody who can take it further then that would be awesome.

The book is stunning! It’s a beautiful story, visually beautiful and a wonderful read. How involved were you in the design and the day-to-day production of it?
There were five of us and we were all involved in every single aspect of the book for two years. So it literally took a total of 10 years – two years of five people’s lives. I came up with the recipes and when I wanted to write the book, Suzie Heller (the producer) said instead of thinking about two years from now (when the book was scheduled to come out), that we needed to take it back. People are not accustomed to seeing this kind of Moroccan food and they’ve been told that Moroccan food is what has been previously documented in other cookbooks so let’s bring them a little bit further. Crack open the door and let them see through it.

What is the biggest misconception about your book?
I think, and I never thought about this before doing the book, that one of the biggest misconceptions was that people assume that because I’m a Chef and I have a restaurant, that the recipes are going to be really hard. When we first started working on the book what we really wanted to do was to get home cooks inspired with Moroccan food. But, we wanted to do it from a different perspective. We didn’t want to ‘dumb’ down the recipes. I refuse to think that people are dumb when it comes to cooking, or that people are intimidated. I think that if people are given the right instructions, the right guidelines, they’ll be able to make some really amazing food.

I was really intrigued about the way you set up the book with the seven lessons at the beginning. It seems that would be a really great starting point to work through the book.
I felt like if somebody is going to cook Moroccan food for the first time, these are the things they need to know. If you read the first chapters, it’s basically like a lesson. It’s a guide for “what you need to know”. You need to build your pantry, you need to make the preserved lemons, make the Ras El Hanout. Once you have the pantry ready, then you have the tools and you can go to virtually any recipe and be able to do it a couple of hours.

I love that approach because it makes it easy for people in the long run.  What about making your own couscous? I read that and I thought WOW! Is that feasible for everyone?! What advice would you give to people who might be daunted by the thought of attempting something like making couscous from scratch?
Making couscous is something that people read about and it’s something that has become so romanticized. You know, it’s like this ‘mysterious thing’, it’s so ‘weird’, it’s so ‘hard’. And it’s true it’s really hard, but it’s just like riding a bicycle. Once you make that first turn and get going, there’s no stopping you. It’s the same with couscous.

You take semolina, you take flour and water, then you try to make a pasta basically. You’re rolling it and it’s all in the feel. It’s something that you have to do over and over and over again but it’s so rewarding and once you taste the difference there is no going back. I said in the book that the couscous you buy from a store (that is precooked) –  I compare that to those noodles, you know in the little boxes. It doesn’t compare to a nice bowl of fresh pasta.

That’s interesting. I feel like there are lots of things in your book that are really teaching people techniques. Like making cheese for instance – that would be attractive to a home cook to learn how to do.
You know, the purpose of the book is not to say “hey this is how you make Morroccan food.” At the end of the book, people will be better cooks. They will say “I made cheese in this Moroccan way. Why can’t I apply that to something else?” People will be more willing and inclined to do things. If we can achieve that, then it’s great! I want people to be able to shed those fears of “I can’t cook at home so now I’m going to order a pizza”. It’s so easy once you have the skills to cook at home.

What lessons can we learn as a society with regard to the way we eat in North America? Are there lessons we can take from your cuisine, but also from Moroccan cuisine and the way people eat in Morrocco that are helpful?
If you were to go to Morocco even today, lunch is huge. People go back home for lunch. Lunch does not start before everybody is there seated at the table. It breaks the day into two parts – you know, you go to work, you go back home, be with your family for two hours and then you go back to work. Here it is the other way around. Work takes you away form everything. You are continuously being yanked from your family. The kids are in day care, you don’t see your kids.

The way it’s looked at in North America, food is something that gives you fuel. The whole nurturing part of food is taken out of the equation. The Italians do that so well. The Moroccans do it. The Spanish do it. The French do it. It’s an emotional experience every single time. Food is what brings people together. Food is what allows people to tell stories. It allows them to gossip, it’s therapy. It’s your shrink. When I came here I was astounded about how many people go to shrinks. In Morocco people don’t go to therapy. In California, if you don’t have a shrink, there’s something wrong with you. You need a shrink for the fact that you don’t have a shrink.

Ha, ha! So you’re saying maybe if we just ate better…?
It’s not just about eating better. It’s about allowing food to do it’s job which is to bring people together. To bring the family together. Don’t get me wrong – I’m not saying that Morocco is better than the USA. But when it comes to food, I consider an approach similar to the Moroccan way to be critical to people’s lives.

Your book really speaks from the heart. What is it about Moroccan cuisine that has captured your heart?
It is typically food that is not put together quickly. It’s food that involves skill. It’s food that allows people within the family to have importance. Like in my case, my grandma was the master of the couscous. My mom, she made these pancakes. Nobody could make them. It gave her status in the family. My grandfather would make the Tangia. Nobody would make it but him. Each person had something important to do. People express their love through cooking, through what they make for you. If you go to somebody’s house, they could be a family that’s struggling to survive but they’ll somehow manage to provide lots of food. It’s just a way of expressing love. And that is unique. It’s refreshing.

How much of your book is inspired by your life in America?
Oh my life in America was a tremendous source of inspiration for my book! You know, some Moroccan people will come to the restaurant and I will serve them my food and their first reaction is “this is not how my grandma made it” and I will tell them “Do I look like your grandma? I’m not your grandma! She made it that way because she loved you and you made that connection with her but I’m here giving you an expression of what I think”.

I came here when I was 17 and I have lived in America for 25 years, so the majority of my adult life has been in America. And not just in America, in the Bay Area specifically, where it’s just the mecca of food right now. For me to say that I was not influenced by the Bay Area, and what’s happening there with the food world, would make me a hypocrite.

I felt like I was so dishonest when I first opened the restaurant in trying to convince people that I was making Moroccan food. Even when we were making the most traditional Moroccan food – because at the beginning I did not open with this idea of evolving Moroccan food – I just wanted to recreate the dishes that we had in Morocco and I did the best that I could. But I realized that it was wrong. I realized that the food that I was making did not have a sense of place. For that food to be enjoyed fully, it had to have the surroundings, it had to have the families, it had to have the stories. It had to have the smells, the sights, the noises. If you take a sandwich of Merguez and you eat it in the middle of Marrakesh with the smoke from all the stalls and the people walking by, there’s no traffic, and people are screaming, and the kids, and all the people – when you taste it, you are taking a bite of everything that’s around you. You see the light against the sun but it bounces off differently in Morocco. All of that plays a part in what we eat and how we taste. It’s a whole package. You can’t just take the sandwich and take it to San Francisco and give it to somebody in the middle of the Ferry Building and tell them to eat it and they are going to get the whole experience. So I felt I was being dishonest. I felt like what I needed to do is to be honest with myself and be honest with the people who are giving me their money every night. I’m going to make food that makes sense to this place, which is the Bay Area. I’m going to make food that has a connection with this place. That is the only way to be successful and to make a connection and to be direct and honest.

You’ve been quite a champion for local products haven’t you?
Yeah Yeah. We started out 10 years ago. We go to the farmer’s market four days a week. We have strong connections. That was so weird for me! We were not just this Moroccan restaurant, but we were this Moroccan restaurant that was doing all these things that American chefs were supposed to be doing. You know this vision… Alice Waters, David Kinch, Daniel Patterson. We became really at the forefront of this movement; slow food and sustainable food and relationships with growers and ranchers. And when the tide started to turn a little bit and molecular gastronomy started to come to the fore, we were at the forefront of that as well. So people started to think of us not as this Moroccan place, but as this Moroccan place that is doing really cool things. It was great! I wanted Moroccan food to be in the conversation. I didn’t want people to think of Moroccan food as something that they go eat every six months. I didn’t want people to go to a Moroccan restaurant and expect a belly dancing show, like they are on some desert island with Aladdin coming out as a server. That’s just gimmicky, it’s Disneyland. It’s not real. So I took away all those clichés.

Some may be surprised to find ingredients such as xanthan gum, lecithin, in a book about Moroccan cuisine. Understanding that your cuisine is more modern, how did you come to use these things?
Basically it’s just the nature of how I taught myself to cook. I’m always curious. I’m friends with some of the best chefs in the USA and in Europe, and when I see what they can do and how they don’t limit themselves to traditional methods I ask why can’t I apply that to Moroccan food? That sauce would be so much better if we could manipulate it a little bit without sacrificing the taste.

In terms of using those emulsifiers and stabilizers, for some home cooks some of those ingredients are not familiar. What advice would you have for using these ingredients?
To look at them for what they are, that they are not chemicals. Xanthan gum is used in probably 90% of things you buy from stores. It’s everywhere. It’s a natural product. It’s an emulsifier. It allows you to do things, to have consistencies in sauces. Let’s say I’m making a sauce and it needs to be reduced so much that it would become gummy and sticky on your palate – if you use a little bit of xanthan gum, and you know how to use it, you can give it the consistency you want without having to reduce it so much. There’s a huge amount of trial and error. We failed many times. We fell over and over. You have to be cautious with those things. It shouldn’t become a habit. It’s not something to use whenever you want. You have to know which door to open and which to leave alone. Practice a lot of discipline.

What does the future of food hold for you?
I just want Moroccan food to be able to evolve, to have it be a circle where we could go through this whole process and get back to the source. Sometimes we feel that what we are doing is not as good as what has been done and we just try to go back and we have the discipline to do that. The future is for somebody to take what we are doing and to take it to the next level. Maybe five years from now, maybe tomorrow, maybe ten years from now, maybe 20. I have no idea who is going to get this book and be really inspired by this to the point that they’d be willing to do what we are doing now. That’s going to be beautiful. It will open a lot of doors. All the Moroccans that I know, and the reception that we had in Morocco because of the book, tell me that people are so hungry for it.

How do you see food in North America evolving? What trends do you see coming?
I think America is one of the best places to be right now when it comes to food. I think America allows people to think freely and it allows them to evolve in a way, that if you are doing something that makes sense, it’s embraced. Change is good. That doesn’t happen very often in a lot of places. We can see that in France, where the French are having a hard time breaking away from the sauces, the mother sauces and things like that. Denmark is doing a great job at evolving. Spain is doing a great job at evolving. Japan is doing a great job at evolving. But I think right now, America is really turning a lot of heads. You know, 20 years ago, if you were to tell someone outside of America that Thomas Keller is the best Chef in the world, they would laugh at you. But now nobody questions that fact. When you tell people that we have some of the best restaurants in the world, people don’t question that statement. They don’t say American doesn’t have a history, that it has only been around for less than 300 years. I think the trends now are for constant change.

Do you think that’s because Americans are not constrained by their past, like say the French may be?
Yes I think so. In America, this notion of innovation is embraced. That’s what’s keeping America at the forefront.

What other global cuisines influence you?
Right now it’s Japanese. And I’m not talking about sushi. I’m talking about the whole idea of how they eat. I started asking myself “Why are they using chopsticks? Why aren’t they using a spoon or a fork like the rest of the world?” And it makes a lot of sense for their food. Their palate is so clean. It’s so delicate that when they eat, they want to make sure that whatever utensils they are using are not so huge that they consume large amounts of food with each bite. They don’t pile their food on a spoon and shove it all in their mouths to the point where they can hardly tell what they’re tasting. There are so many components. When was the last time you heard of a Japanese person using salt? They use things that are better than salt. Things that have umami. I think Japanese cuisine will have the biggest influence on chefs in the next 5-10 years.

What’s the one thing that you want readers to take away from this book?
That food is about a lot more than just feeding yourself. It can feed a lot of things in you. It’s not just like “OK, I’m hungry – I’m going to eat”. Food evokes so many emotions in you. When you are cooking for somebody you love, it’s different. When you are cooking for your kids, it’s different. When you are in a hurry and are cooking just because you need to get some food so you don’t pass out, it’s different. Food is a language, it’s an art, it’s a science. It’s what keeps us going. We’d be nothing without food. And it’s just cool for people to become reacquainted with that, to the point where they make food a really important part of their lives. And the purpose of the book is to give people an alternative. To show them that this is something you can do. It doesn’t take much but if you get it planned right, it could dramatically change the way we eat.

Food can make the gulf between people smaller. It really brings people together. It goes beyond calories. It goes beyond how hard it is to make. I’m here because of food. And I’m talking to you because of food and that’s not a bad feeling.

For more information on this cookbook, please visit Thomas Allen & Sons

Food Network Magazine Great Easy Meals: 250 Fun & Fast Recipes is available for purchase through our online store or at local bookstores. For more information on this cookbook please visit HarperCollins Canada 

Cookbook review written & photographed by
Stay-At-Home-Chef

Put together by The Food Network, this cookbook (published by Hyperion, $24.99 USD) is a compilation of quick and easy dishes all geared towards busy weeknights when a lot of people find themselves reaching for takeout menus. Recipes offer a wide variety of options that are easily adaptable depending on dietary requirements or specific food cravings.

Helpful hints are scattered throughout the book, such as tossing cooked pasta with milk to prevent it from getting gummy. Works like a hot damn! However, if you purchase this book specifically because of the blurb on the cover that says it includes kitchen tips from Food Network stars, prepare to be disappointed. The insertions are not so much tips as personal trivia, which may be interesting to Food Network fans but is rather misguiding from the consumer’s perspective.

Side dish suggestions are often included at the bottom of recipes, allowing you to easily complete your meal. I tried a number of side dishes, including the Tomato-Basil Lima Beans, Bacon-Cheddar Mashed Potatoes, and Black Bean Salad. All of them were fantastic.

Not sure what to do with the leftovers? At the bottom of some of the recipes you will find a variety of tasty options, which are also designed to help you use up a particular ingredient that may have only called for a sparse amount.

If you are familiar with The Food Network Magazine, you will recognize the Mix & Match feature which offers a variety of different flavour options for the same basic recipe. For example; with chicken soup the book outlines a Mexican, Italian or Asian option outlined in a flowchart layout.

For those with more visual tendencies when it comes to preparing food, you will be happy to hear that there is a corresponding photo for each recipe. Even the index is arranged with a thumbnail pic of each dish. The overall layout and photographic elements are all bright and fresh, making you feel as if you’ve just stepped into a clean kitchen full of great light.

I really, really enjoyed reviewing this cookbook. Everything I tried turned out great, and I will definitely be keeping this one within easy reach for those busy weeknights. I appreciate the level of detail that went into the recipes as well as the overall layout. Highly recommend this one folks!

Chicken Korma

RATING: 4.5 out of 5 (lightening quick, great flavour)

For a copy of the recipe for Chicken Korma, please click here

THE TEST: Finding myself completely short on time but craving something exciting and healthy, I turned to this recipe. Thanks to the accompanying photograph, my expectations were high! The Chicken Korma just looked so warm and satisfying in the picture, full of great flavour all perched on top of a pita.

© 2012 CookThatBook

The cooking process went ahead quickly and smoothly. Basically you sauté half an onion while puréeing the other half along with ginger, garlic, ground coriander and cumin. Let me tell ya the smell was fantastic, and only got better once the onion purée was added to the pan and reduced. You then add ground chicken (turkey would also work), plain yogurt, and finish by adding frozen peas, cilantro and cashew nuts. Honestly, this dish was ready in 30 minutes and my house smelled like I had been slaving away in the kitchen all day. Fantastic.

© 2012 CookThatBook

Wanting to avoid gluten, I ended up serving this dish along with basmati rice which worked really well. Be sure to serve with the suggested extra yogurt and hot sauce, and if you’re a cashew fanatic like my children you might want to have extra nuts on hand to sprinkle on top.

© 2012 CookThatBook

THE RESULTS: I loved this dish. In fact, subsequent to this test I’ve made it several times and each time have fallen a little bit more in love. The flavours are incredible, and far surpass the imagined depth of such few ingredients. The spices are perfect (feel free to add more or less depending on your personal preferences), the cilantro adds a lovely freshness to the whole dish, and the cashews provide great texture.

© 2012 CookThatBook

My only quibble is in regards to the meat, which didn’t brown while cooking in so much liquid. My results looked nothing like the crispy, caramelized mixture pictured in the book which is a bit of a pet peeve of mine. Don’t get me wrong; I understand food styling needs occasionally demand that an ingredient be added/omitted for the sake of visual appeal. It’s just that I get disappointed when I drool over a photo, make the recipe based on this image I have in my head and it doesn’t turn out the same.

Next time I would try browning the chicken along with the onions and spices prior to adding the onion purée, giving the dish more robust flavour and providing the meat with more of a visual appeal. Not sure about you, but greyish meat doesn’t really turn my crank. 

© 2012 CookThatBook

Croque Monsieur Mac & Cheese

RATING: 4.5 out of 5 (quick and easy, leftovers will be fought over!)

THE TEST: My husband has been obsessed with croque monsieur for the last few weeks, himself never having indulged in this famed grilled sandwich. I figured a mac & cheese version would help satisfy his cravings (or create new ones!)

I tend to view macaroni and cheese as a time consuming venture, probably because most of my usual recipes take the good part of a day to make. So imagine how happy I was to whip this puppy up in 20 minutes and have it be on the table in an additional 40 minutes. Yup – I was a happy camper. So were my hungry kids.

Tossing the cooked pasta in milk really helped cut out the gumminess factor, a helpful tip that was included as a side note. It definitely helped the noodles to retain a nice texture.

This recipe came together quickly and was fairly straightforward to make. Layers of béchamel drenched pasta with ham (I used black forest) are topped with cubed fresh bread and more cheese. I recommend experimenting with your choice of bread, making sure that no matter your flavour decision that the bread is a good quality loaf. Like an actual croque monsieur sandwich, the bread plays an important role in this dish and is not to be underestimated. The first time I used herbed focaccia, followed by a secondary attempt using a roasted garlic and Brie loaf. Both were fantastic.

© 2012 CookThatBook

THE RESULTS: What I loved most about this recipe is its level of accuracy. Now this comment may seem strange, but how often can you really say that about a recipe? The suggested prep and cooking times were bang on, the listed ingredients resulted in the dish being perfectly seasoned, and even the proposed servings were accurate. It may seem like a little thing but as a lover of cookbooks I really appreciate such dedication to detail.

© 2012 CookThatBook

While I happened to like the tang of Parmesan, Mr. Spock found the flavour too bitter after baking and would have preferred another milder, creamy cheese. The kids both gave this recipe thumbs up, and we will definitely be putting it into regular rotation around our house.

Turkey Picadillo Sandwiches

RATING: 4 out of 5 (healthy and tasty twist on Latin American classic)

THE TEST: This recipe is a fun twist on traditional picadillo; a Latin American dish typically made using ground beef. It comes together so easily I almost felt guilty. Almost.

© 2012 CookThatBook

Ground turkey is sautéed with onion (shhh…don’t tell my onion hating three year-old) and garlic, along with a variety of spices that include bay, cumin, chili powder, and allspice. Near the end of cooking tomato paste, raisins and pimiento-stuffed olives are thrown in the mix before the whole thing is served sloppy joe style in a crusty bun with sliced avocados.

© 2012 CookThatBook

THE RESULTS: This is the quintessential dish to make on a busy weeknight. Easy, quick, tasty and healthy. What’s not to love?

I enjoyed the combination of flavours which reminded me of a slow-cooked Moroccan stew. The turkey stood up to the strong flavoured ingredients in this dish, absorbing the spices nicely. The raisins provided a nice sweetness that complimented the salty olives, while the avocado added a mild creaminess to the sandwich.

© 2012 CookThatBook

Mr. Spock suffers from a rare tastebud disability that prevents him from enjoying green olives. Black olives? No problem. He felt the green ones overpowered the dish. The kids devoured the bun and then reluctantly sampled the turkey, which they actually ended up liking. That being said, I still got the stink eye from my youngest who was able to detect the presence of onions.

© 2012 CookThatBook

As we sailed slowly into the small harbour, I noticed someone on the hillside making their way down the steep slope. This person had a giant load of what I guess you could call brush on their back; a huge pile of gnarly twigs and small pieces of assorted types of wood. It was quite a load – the person looked almost bent over double with the large pile on their back.

Finally we got the sailboat docked and made our way slowly up to the restaurant, hoping they had ice to fill the glasses of our desperately needed gin and tonics. As we were quick to learn, ice is a commodity in these small harbours in southern Turkey.

We were part of a group of 12 nearest and dearest who had sailed from Greece through the islands into the South Western area and the small ports of Mediterranean Turkey. Small rocky ports with magical names like Datcha and Bodrum and Maramis, the area they call the Turquoise Coast where the Aegean and Mediterranean meet and mingle.

Paradise.

Hundreds of thousands of authors at one time or another have tried to describe the perfect blue of these waters and nothing ever really does it justice. I’m not even going to try. The ports themselves are rocky outcroppings that look like little mountaintops surrounded by blue water, where the planet decided to split itself open allowing the water to fill the valleys below. Time has made the peaks round with wind and sun. There is not a ton of fresh water, so the land is quite arid and scrubby plant life and knobbly trees cover the hillside. Perfect fuel for a fire.

As we walked towards the restaurant that was imbedded into the rocky hillside I immediately noticed a huge outdoor oven. It looked like it was well used and as we came up next to it I could still feel the gentle heat coming off the sides. This was a working and well-used oven. I was immediately excited – wondering what was cooked in there and how.

It was nearly night.

We went up to the restaurant and rejoiced in the fact that they had a very small icemaker, and sat down to enjoy a cold drink as we soaked in the view overlooking the amazing harbour. There are few places on the planet that could rival this place for its rugged beauty.

You know how when you are on vacation that drinks somehow just taste better?!

Now I must stress this is a very small place. Probably eight boats tied up and a small dock, outdoor restaurant, bar with about ten tables, all of which was overlooking the water. The family that lives on this small island occupy a house above and behind the restaurant, which terraced into the rock.

As we sat there and chatted with the owner’s sons who were working front of house, I enquired as to who used the wonderful oven we had passed on the terrace below leading up to the stairs of the restaurant. They told me their mother made bread in that oven every day. She would get up before dawn. They proudly procured a loaf and I marvelled at its lovely round shape and colour. We ate some with olives and it was bliss.

They told me their Mom would be down later in the evening to run the dinner service and they would introduce me. I asked if they thought she would mind if I watched her make bread the next morning. They kind of looked at me like I was a crazy tourist.

The next day I saw a light moving on shore and scampered down the now steep plank and up the rocky stairs to meet my future bread guru. I think she was a bit surprised to see me. Nonetheless, she immediately said “come” and we were off.

She had a huge bag of flour – probably 100 kilos. In a plastic tub (I hate to admit that it reminded of a tub for pedicures) was approximately 10 kilos of flour. The flour was self-rising but as far as I could tell there was no other ingredient. There may have been salt, but I wasn’t sure.

The woman then went into the kitchen and came out with a big plastic container filled with warm water. She gave me a nudge and poured a few cups of water into the tub and we got started. We stood there side by side, not saying anything, with gummy dough up to our elbows mixing the water into the flour. Occasionally she would add more water. We kept mixing.

Let me tell you – it was hard work! The mix was dense and heavy and quickly became increasingly stiff and hard to push around. I could only imagine how much longer it takes her when she is by herself.

To watch her efficient movement was truly a marvel. She had placed the tub on this rickety old wooden table that had one leg a good half inch higher than the other three, so it made the whole process kind of comical! She didn’t even have to think about what she was doing; her movements were natural and innate. She would lean over and put her physical weight into the mixing. She knew the exact texture she was looking for by rote. I was inspired.

The woman kept adding water and we just kept grunting away kneading this now enormous ball of dough. My arms felt like they were lead by the time she finally gestured that we were done. She then grabbed the big dough filled tub and moved away from the rickety table.

In the end a total of 24 loaves of bread were produced as we sat in the ever-brightening morning light.

Watching the natural rhythm behind each of her movements, I knew this was not a skill learned later in life. Her inherent movements were a result of a lifetime of making bread this way. Your mother needs to teach you this skill the same way she teaches you to have manners and make your bed. Her movements were supple and skilled. Her hand was so light and sure, yet controlling and unyielding. Watching her work was similar to observing a piece of art slowly unfold before your eyes.

Rating: 5 out of 5 (incredibly fresh & full of exciting flavours)

Initial Thoughts: Hallelujah – no diet food!

THE TEST: Each year I cringe at the thought of starting a new year with the clichéd diet. It’s so been done before. As a result, I stage my own private revolution and keep eating as per our family status quo. Don’t get me wrong; there is no more eggnog in our fridge or boxes of chocolates on the counter as per the whole month of December. But I like to think overall we eat a healthy, balanced diet. Everything in moderation, right?!

So when I saw the first cover of the year for Food & Wine Magazine I breathed a sigh of relief. Bobby Flay’s juicy, cheese sauce drenched Nacho Burger was right up my ally. Although for the record I did resist making fries and opted instead for this fantastic Black Bean Salad. See? Balance.

There are three elements to this burger: patties, salsa, and cheese sauce. The patties themselves are simple, consisting solely of ground beef (with some olive oil and s&p for seasoning). Both the salsa and cheese sauce are straightforward to prepare, taking hardly anytime at all. I ended up making the cheese sauce just before firing up the BBQ, which allowed the sauce to cool and thicken while the burgers were grilled.

THE RESULTS: Wowsa. Now this is a burger I will definitely be making again. And again.

In terms of flavour there is a lot going on, but what I loved was how everything turned out incredibly balanced. The freshness of the salsa complimented the creamy richness of the cheese sauce, the crumbled nachos added a great crunchy texture while the pickled jalapeños provided a subtle amount of heat and pickled tang. When dealing with such powerful ingredients keeping the patties simple and pure is the only way to go. Genius move.

I enjoyed having the traditional burger toper (cheese) in a sauce format, and next time would try using jalapeño Monterey Jack for some extra heat. And the salsa? Definitely my favourite part of this recipe. It was so fresh and bright! I loved the use of chipotle chili which provided heat traditionally achieved with a fresh jalapeño or serrano chili, but also lent a nice smokiness through the adobo sauce. Confession? I made tacos the night after making these burgers just so I had an excuse to whip up another batch of this salsa. Seriously good.

Now I’m going to hop on over to Food, Je t’Aimée to see what Aimée thought about this month’s cover recipe. Both of our significant others were ecstatic when they saw this month’s cover and couldn’t wait for us to test the recipe. If any of you would like to join Aimée and I each month, the more the merrier! And don’t forget to check out Kendall Harris’ wine pairing suggestion – it’s one of our favourites.

Cover Recipe:
Nacho Burgers

As part of my culinary New Year’s resolutions, I have committed to creating each month’s cover recipe from Food & Wine Magazine.

NOTE: If any of you would like to follow along with me and join in on the fun, I’d love to compare notes! So pick-up a copy of the latest issue of Food & Wine and get cooking. Be sure to send your comments and photos to info@cookthatbook.com.

The mission of Food & Wine Magazine is to find the most exciting places, new experiences, emerging trends and sensations in the culinary and wine industries. From travel and entertaining to luxury and design, this magazine brings an energetic and stylish take on food and wine. For more information on Food & Wine Magazine, please visit www.foodandwine.com

NOTE: This month’s wine pairing once again comes courtesy of our resident wine expert, Kendall Harris, who rose to the occasion to provide us with an excellent pairing suggestion that just might be my new beverage of choice when it comes to burgers!

Wine Pairing by Kendall Harris of Wine2Three
I was thrilled to be asked to pair a wine with this gourmet burger recipe. All too often people hear burgers and think beer! But when you taste this delicious recipe when paired with a bold, fruity California Zinfandel I think you may be converted. The Zinfandel grape is as American as a good hearty burger, having been one of the earliest grape varietals planted on California soil by Italian immigrants in the late 1800s and it continues to thrive today. I can recommend the Klinker Brick Old Vine Zinfandel from an area of California called Lodi, which is well known for its Zinfandel production and hosts an annual ZinFest every Spring. This wine comes from vines with an average age of 85 years old, so you’re literally sipping a bit of American history! You’ll smell and taste some big, beautiful fruit – black cherry, wild strawberry and rich plum, with a hint of vanilla. Burgers and Zinfandel may just become your weekend preferred pairing!

Kendall Harris shares her adventures in the wine world as Wine2three on Twitter & Facebook. She is WSET (Wine & Spirits Education Trust) Advanced Certified & is currently developing a weekly wine series on ShawTV, where she is a full time reporter. Join her on Facebook – click LIKE at www.facebook.com/wine2three for regular fun wine info! 

Very straightforward and easy, this recipe does not deviate from the norm except it does call for adding a tablespoon of dry ingredients to the blueberries. This is a fantastic trick to ensure your berries don’t bleed into the batter and are evenly distributed. It is a genius move and one that I will definitely use again in the future.

The only change I made to the recipe is that I opted to add the zest of one lemon to the batter. I love the added tang of citrus to my blueberry muffins, and in the past have also been known to dip the muffin tops into a combo of melted butter, sugar and lemon zest. Sinful – purely sinful.

These muffins were simple and pure. It’s a great recipe and I loved how moist they turned out with the addition of plain yogurt. Was it my ultimate blueberry muffin? Not quite – my search continues but in the meantime I highly recommend whipping up a batch of these beauties as it’s the perfect way to start a Monday morning.

For a copy of the original recipe for Blueberry Muffins, please visit Baker Street’s site and be sure to check out what the other food bloggers have baked up this week!

Muffin Monday is an initiative by Baker Street. A culinary journey of sharing a wickedly delicious muffin recipe every week. Drop in a quick line to join her on her journey to make the world smile and beat glum Monday mornings week after week.

© 2012 CookThatBook

The recipe for Crusty Cheese & Onion Muffins is unlike any I’ve tried before. Be warned that there are quite a few steps involved and the preparation takes longer than with your typical muffin batter, but the results are well worth the effort! To be honest, I was ready to shake things up a bit in the muffin department.

First up? All-purpose flour and butter are mixed together with a touch of water until the dough can be formed into a ball, which is then placed in the freezer till firm (approximately 30 minutes). Meanwhile, get the frying pan out because we’re gonna sautée us some onions! I added bacon, finely chopped rosemary and some roasted garlic for kicks. The smell was tantalizing.

© 2012 CookThatBook

Once the onion mixture has had a chance to cool, it is mixed with self-raising flour, cheese (I opted for cheddar), chives (I used green onions), an egg, buttermilk (I had to use half and half as I didn’t have any buttermilk), and vegetable oil. The batter is spooned into a greased muffin tray, and topped with an interesting combination of leftover onion mixture, cheese, and the frozen dough from earlier which is grated into the mix.

© 2012 CookThatBook

Fresh out of the oven and slathered with butter, these muffins were incredible. The texture was perfect; super moist with the most delightfully crusty tops. I loved the fragrant punch that came from the rosemary, and the bacon and garlic all took this muffin to the next level. Even though the half and half substitution ended up working well, I could see how using buttermilk would have added a nice tang that would have complimented the muffins well. Next time.

© 2012 CookThatBook

For a copy of the original recipe for Crusty Cheese & Onion Muffins, please visit Baker Street’s site and be sure to check out what the other food bloggers have baked up this week!

Muffin Monday is an initiative by Baker Street. A culinary journey of sharing a wickedly delicious muffin recipe every week. Drop in a quick line to join her on her journey to make the world smile and beat glum Monday mornings week after week.

© 2012 CookThatBook

Fabulous Brownies is available for purchase through our online store or at local book stores. For more information on this cookbook please visit Thomas Allen & Sons Ltd.

Cookbook review written & photographed by contributing writer Anuradha Sharma

When it comes to brownies I know most people like to stick with their tried-and-tested recipes, which are usually quick and tailored to their own palette. Their idea of experimenting is trying a different nut or substituting spices. I know this for a fact because I used to be that person.

But people change. Nowadays I rarely go back to the same recipe twice! And as for brownies, I say life’s too short to stay in the comfort zone. Experiment. That’s my new mantra when it comes to food. So now that you are aware of my enlightened approach to cooking, it should put into perspective my excitement when CookThatBook asked me to review a cookbook dedicated entirely to brownies.

As you flip through Annie Rigg’s Fabulous Brownies (published by Ryland Peters $15.95 USD), you will come across a few cute ideas that can take your basic brownies to the next level. But my happiness was short lived because there are only 27 recipes. Honestly, I was expecting more.

I had to pick three recipes to test for the review and I wanted to make sure there was a variety of different brownies; something for everyone. A simple Salted Caramel Brownie to keep you warm on a rainy day, luscious Gingerbread Brownies for some late night indulgence, and delectable Cupcake Brownies which are perfect for not sharing.

Now you should know that when it comes to brownies, there are three things that I absolutely need to have present:

1. A cracked top

2. A gooey core

3. Easy to bake

Overall while I did like the book, there were some issues. The photography by Laura Edwards is good but from a design perspective I found not enough importance was given to the layout of the recipes. Personally, I think cookbooks must have a clean design with a decently sized, readable font. This book falls short on both counts. And even though the recipes themselves provide great inspiration for experimenting with new and exciting brownie flavours, I was disappointed in the limited number of recipes.

The instructions are fairly simple but the author provides no tips for serving suggestions or storage. Sure, there is one short line included in the introduction that tells you the brownies should last 4-5 days at room temperature but this is not a universal rule. For instance, I think the brownies with ganache would be better stored in the fridge or at least kept in a cool place.  A variety of flavors and combinations would have taken this book to the next level.

There were definitely some nice decorative ideas, such as the Brown(ie) Owls which are absolutely adorable and the Whopper Brownies which would be a surefire hit with the kids. There’s no denying this book contains lots of inspiring ideas guaranteed to expand your typical brownie repertoire. I just wish there were more.

In conclusion, everyone loves brownies. They are the ultimate rich, gooey and pure indulgent treat. With three recipes down, I’ll be surely trying more and eating my way through this book one brownie at a time while adding to my brownie repertoire. But is it the ultimate brownie book I’ve been waiting for? Not quite.

Cupcake Brownies

Recipe Rating: 4 out of 5 (great texture & visually elegant)

For a copy of the recipe for Cupcake Brownies, please click here

The Test: I picked this particular recipe for two reasons: My love for individual treats, and my wish to bake another brownie that used the ganache recipe. Moreover, a brownie + cupcake combo is one that few would be able to resist. Would you be able to say no?!

The Results: As with the other recipes I tested, this one was simple and straightforward to prepare. It used easily sourced ingredients and resulted in a very elegant looking dessert. The results are rich and hold a lovely caramelized flavour due to the use of brown sugar over regular granulated sugar. If you’re making these treats for kids, I suggest opting for the milk ganache but if you’re looking for a more grown-up taste try the dark ganache. Want to play naughty? Add a splash of rum. Don’t give up on the ganache; it does take time to thicken but have faith – it will come together. (I have some ideas for variations I’ve put down along side the author’s recipe.)

These brownies make for a great treat no matter how old you are. They take the cupcake form easily, and have a nice, firm, crackly top while maintaining a gooey center. With or without the ganache these can easily be put in a basket and whisked away for a picnic or snuck into the office for a mid-day snack.

Gingerbread Brownies

Recipe Rating: 2 out of 5 (dense & one dimensional)

The Test: Although this recipe is easily executed, be warned that it does call for quite a few different spices and I recommend you skip none; even the hot chill powder. The best bit about these brownies was the whiff of warm spices and sweet chocolate filling the kitchen in the morning while they were in the oven. This was the recipe I was most excited to try.

The Result: As warned by the author, the brownies should not be eaten on the same day. Give it a day or even two for the flavours to deepen and the spices to develop fully before adding the ganache. That being said, I still found them to be overly dense in texture and disappointing in the flavor department. Considering the amount of spices that went into the batter, they tasted flat and held none of the punch I expected. I also wouldn’t recommend trying these without the ganache topping, as by themselves the brownies were rather dry.

Salted Caramel Brownies

Recipe Rating: 4 out of 5 (simple recipe, great combination of salty & sweet)

The Test: The instructions for this recipe are straightforward. The salted caramel turns out perfectly if you follow the directions. However, one tip you need to keep in mind is the cream you add should be at room temperature. And if you add the cream and find the caramel starts to clot, don’t worry because it will sort itself out once you put it back on the heat. I strongly suggest to not leave the caramel unattended until it reaches the cooling stage. Trust me.

The Results: The brownies turned out wonderfully! They achieved the ultimate balance of salty caramel and deep dark chocolate brownies. If you happen to prefer your brownies a little more on the gooey side like I do, I suggest you take them out of the oven a couple of minutes before the suggested bake time. Switch the pecans with a choice of your nuts or avoid them completely if you wish. The lack of serving instructions led me to cut the brownies into various sizes. In the end I served half of the batch in bite sized pieces, which were perfect with coffee after a dinner party, while the other half I cut into regular sized squares and dusted with sugar and garnished with fresh strawberries.

We are all excited to have An join our team! As CookThatBook’s newest contributing writer, she will be dedicated to reviewing dessert specific cookbooks so check back often for some sweet reviews!

Visit Anuradha’s blog Baker Street 

You can also follow her on Twitter and Facebook

Eggnog has always been one of my favourite holiday consumables. I adore the intense flavour of nutmeg, the rich and velvety texture that just begs for it to be added to pretty much everything. Cookies, pancakes, French toast, trifles, cupcakes…you name it and I’ve probably added eggnog to it at some point. But by far my most coveted way of enjoying this holiday treat is in a glass mixed with rum and a splash of Amarula (my brother-in-law’s secret ingredient).

While I have been a fan of eggnog ever since childhood, it is something that I have never attempted to make myself. To be honest, the whole raw egg thing kinda freaked me out. But by all accounts homemade is best so I was determined to give it a try this year. Then I picked up the winter issue of Edible Vancouver which included a recipe for old-fashioned eggnog. After speaking to our contributing writer Helena McMurdo who photographed the article and raved about the recipe, my mind was made up: the time had come for me to set aside any qualms and whip up a batch of nog.

Now I should add a disclaimer that whenever you consume raw or lightly cooked eggs there is a possibility of exposure to salmonella bacteria, which can be particularly harmful to more vulnerable people such as children, the elderly, pregnant women or others with weak immune systems. For more information on this topic along with some handy dandy egg safety tips, you can visit The Canadian Food Inspection Agency’s site.

Now that the nitty gritty is out of the way, let’s get back to the recipe!

Kera Willis is the person responsible for my new appreciation for eggnog, and it is her family recipe that is included in the Edible Vancouver article. The process involves whipping egg yolks with sugar, to which you can then add the alcohol of your choice (rum is the most common option although brandy is also a coveted addition). Whipped egg whites are then folded into the yolk mixture, and the whole thing is finished off by folding in a litre of whipped cream along with some freshly grated nutmeg.

The results are incredible and to be honest I’m not sure if the English language has enough adjectives to accurately describe its perfection. Impossibly velvety, this eggnog is unlike any I have ever tasted. The level of creamy goodness is so far beyond that of regular commercial variety eggnog you can’t really compare the two. The texture is incredibly thick and rich – the ultimate boozy milkshake! It is perfect for sipping, savouring and moaning over this holiday season, and we will definitely be making another batch to ring in the new year in style (and taste!)

For a copy of the recipe for Old-Fashioned Eggnog please visit Edible Vancouver