Baked Pumpkin Custard
Added on: Monday November 17, 2008

I bought two pie pumpkins at the Clean Food Connection last week. To make fresh pumpkin puree, I cut the pumpkins in half, baked them in a 375 degree oven, covered with tin foil, for about 1 1/4 hours (until a knife goes through the pumpkin flesh easily). When the pumpkins are cool, scoop out the seeds and discard or set aside for another use. Scoop the pumpkin flesh away from the skin and process until smooth in a food processor. Pumpkin keeps for a week in an airtight container in the fridge, or freeze until needed. Each pumpkin I baked had a slightly different colour and texture, as you can see from the picture. Fresh pumpkin puree – Yum!

• 2 c. milk
• 1 c. cream
• 1/2 vanilla bean, split lengthwise (or 2 t. pure vanilla extract)
• 6 whole eggs
• 2/3 c. light brown sugar
• 1 c. pumpkin puree
• 1/4 t. ground cinnamon
• 1/4 t. ground nutmeg

1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees. In a saucepan, heat the milk, cream, and vanilla bean over medium-low heat, until bubbles form along the edges of the pan; do not let it boil. Remove from heat.

2. In a bowl, beat the eggs lightly with a fork; avoid over-beating. Stir in sugar and the salt. Add the milk and cream gradually into the eggs. If using a vanilla bean, scrape the seeds into the mixture.

3. Mix the pumpkin puree with cinnamon and nutmeg. Add puree to the egg mixture. Fill a 2-quart baking dish or 8 ramekins with custard mixture. Place the baking dish or ramekins into a larger baking pan. Place pan in the oven, and pour enough hot (not boiling) water to reach about two thirds of the way up the sides of the container(s). Bake until knife inserted comes out barely clean, about 45 minutes. The center should still wobble slightly when the dishes are shaken.

4. Transfer the custards to a wire rack to cool. Serve warm or at room temperature, or cover tightly and chill for several hours or overnight.

Bartlett Pear Cake
Added on: Monday October 20, 2008

This is my favourite time of the year for baking. Leaves are falling, along with the temperature, and a slice of this pear cake will definitely take the chill off. But remember, there can be no better way to top this fall-inspired cake than Mapleton’s Organic Ginger Ice Cream.

• 1 1/2 c. all-purpose flour
• 3/4 t. baking powder
• 1 1/2 t. baking soda
• 1/4 t. salt
• 1 t. nutmeg
• 1/2 t. cinnamon
• 6 T. butter, softened
• 3/4 c. sugar
• 1 t. pure vanilla extract
• 1 egg
• 1 1/2 c. + 2 T. sour cream
• 1 c. grated Bartlett pear

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter and line a 9-inch spring form pan with parchment paper. Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, nutmeg, and cinnamon.

2. In bowl of mixer with paddle attachment, cream butter and sugar together until light. Add eggs and vanilla. Reduce speed to low and add flour, alternating with the sour cream, in three additions. Stir in grated pears.

3. Scrape batter into the prepared pan, sprinkle with coarse sugar, and bake for about 40 minutes or so. Serve warm or at room temperature with Mapleton’s Organic Ginger ice cream.

Brown Basmati Pudding
Added on: Wednesday April 30, 2008

The "Rebar Modern Food Cookbook", from Victoria, British Columbia, has so many great recipes. The brunch chapter has enough ideas to make you want to invite friends over every Saturday morning.

This pudding is not only delicious, but very healthy, as far as puddings go! I love to eat this pudding any time of the day (and so do my kids), topped with sliced bananas and extra milk.

• 1 c. brown basmati rice
• 2 c. water
• 1 c. rice milk, unsweetened or vanilla-flavoured
• 1/2 t. salt
• 1-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and thinly sliced
• 6 cardamom pods, crushed
• 3-inch cinnamon stick
• 1/4 c. brown sugar
• 1 can coconut milk, regular or light

1. Rinse the basmati rice and place in a heavy-bottomed pot. Add water, rice milk, salt, ginger, cardamom and cinnamon. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low and cover for 45 minutes.

2. Stir in the sugar and coconut milk and simmer the rice without a lid over low heat. Cook until the liquid evaporates and the pudding thickens, about 30 minutes. Remove the ginger slices, cardamom pods and cinnamon stick. Serve hot, warm, or at room temperature.

Custard Eggnog
Added on: Monday December 22, 2008

For custard-lovers everywhere, this is one of my favourite Christmas recipes. Normally, eggnog has lots of fat in it, but this version is much lighter. Imagine how impressed your family will be when you serve them homemade eggnog!

• 1 1/2 c. sugar
• 1/4 c. all-purpose flour
• Pinch of salt
• 4 extra-large eggs + 2 egg whites
• 8 c. skim or 1% milk, hot
• 2 t. pure vanilla extract
• Pinch freshly grated nutmeg
• 1/2 c. dark rum (Alan swears by Mount Gay rum) optional

1. Whisk the sugar, flour and salt together in a large pot. Add eggs and egg whites; combine thoroughly. Gradually whisk in hot milk. Cook over low heat for 15 minutes or until the custard has thickened enough to coat a spoon. Remove from heat and strain into a large bowl. Cover and refrigerate until chilled, at least 2 hours or overnight.

2. Before serving, stir in the vanilla, nutmeg and rum, if using. Pour 2 cups of custard into a blender, add 2 cups of ice cubes and blend until frothy. Repeat with remaining custard. Serve immediately.

Oatmeal Flax Cookies
Added on: Wednesday October 29, 2008

I have had a big bag of flax seeds in my freezer for… well, quite a while. When I saw this recipe in the new Canadian Living Baking Cookbook, I decided to pull that bag out of the freezer and make a dent in it. They were really good, and they definitely had a healthy edge because of the flax. Less guilt is a good thing!

• 1/2 c. butter, softened
• 1/2 c. packed brown sugar
• 1/3 c. granulated sugar
• 1 egg
• 1/2 t. vanilla
• 1/2 c. all-purpose flour
• 1/2 c. whole-wheat flour
• 3/4 c. rolled oats
• 2/3 c. flax seeds
• 1 t. baking soda

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line baking sheets with parchment paper.

2. In a bowl, beat butter and sugars together until fluffy. Beat in eggs and vanilla. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flours, oats, flax, and baking soda. Stir into butter mixture until all the dry ingredients are incorporated.

3. With a tablespoon or a small ice cream scoop, drop dough onto the baking sheet, leaving 2 inches between each cookie. Bake for 12 minutes, or until golden brown. Let cool on pans for two minutes and then transfer to cookie racks to cool.

Pumpkin Pie
Added on: Wednesday October 8, 2008

This pumpkin pie is a multiple ribbon winner, including a first place at the Mount Albert Sports Day baking contest. My secret ingredient is coconut milk. Harmony whipping cream, sweetened with a little sugar, is the perfect way to top this pie. Happy Thanksgiving!

• 2 - 9 inch unbaked, deep-dish pie shells
• 2 c. brown sugar
• 1 t. salt
• 2 t. cinnamon
• 1 t. ground mace
• 4 eggs, slightly beaten
• 1 - 28oz can pure pumpkin (never pumpkin pie filling)
• 1 1/2 c. coconut milk
• 1/2 c. cream

Mix together brown sugar, salt, cinnamon and mace thoroughly. Stir in eggs. Add pumpkin taking care that mixture is well blended. Stir in coconut and cream. Bake at 450 degrees for 20 minutes, then reduce heat to 350 degrees and continue baking 25 minutes longer (sometimes longer) or until firm and crust is well browned.

*I sometimes use this double recipe for just one pie. If the pie plate is deep enough, it will hold most of the mixture. You just have to make sure that the crust doesn't burn before the filling sets. You can put the leftover filling into a ramekin and bake it for 15 minutes or so and you have a nice little pumpkin custard for a snack.

Rhubarb Strawberry Crisp
Added on: Saturday June 20, 2009

Local strawberries are finally starting and they are the perfect partner to my other spring favourite, rhubarb. This recipe makes enough for a small crowd so make sure you have a few friends around to share it. Served warm, this will knock their socks off!

Filling:

• 4 cups fresh rhubarb
• 4 cups fresh strawberries
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/3 cup cornstarch
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Combine all of the ingredients for the filling and let sit while you prepare the crumble topping. Make sure all of the cornstarch is mixed in to the fruit.

Topping:

• 1 c. brown sugar
• 3/4 c. flour
• 3/4 c. oatmeal
• 1/2 t. each of ground nutmeg & cinnamon
• 1/2 c. melted butter

Combine the brown sugar, flour, oatmeal, nutmeg, and cinnamon. Add the melted butter and work together with your fingertips until combined.

Place the fruit in a 9x13 baking dish and top with the crumble mixture. Bake until the top is golden and the fruit is bubbling, about 45-50 minutes. Serve warm with Mapletons vanilla ice cream. Serves 8.

Triple Ginger Biscotti
Added on: Wednesday April 30, 2008

These “twice baked” cookies are full of tasty little morsels and go exceptionally well with a cup of hot chai (for a homemade chai recipe, go to The Good Egg). I once shipped these biscotti to Newfoundland for my friend’s birthday and they were a huge hit. A good little traveling cookie!

• 1/2 c. butter
• 1 c. sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 t. almond extract
• 2 T. fresh ginger, peeled and grated (on a microplane rasp is the easiest)
• 1 t. baking powder
• 1/2 t. baking soda
• Pinch of salt
• 2 c. unbleached, all-purpose flour
• 2 t. ground ginger
• 1/2 t. cinnamon
• 1 c. whole almonds
• 3/4 c. candied ginger, coarsely chopped

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Set aside.

2. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs 1 at a time until well blended. Scrape the sides of the bowl after each addition.

3. Add the almond extract, ginger, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Blend well. Mix the ground ginger and cinnamon with the flour. Add to the butter mixture, mixing only until completely blended.

4. Remove bowl from the mixer and fold in almonds and candied ginger by hand. If the dough is sticky, dip your hands in flour. Divide the dough in half. Form each half into a flat log, about 12 inches long and 3 inches wide.

5. Sprinkle with sugar. Bake for 20-25 minutes until light brown. Cool out of the oven for 10 minutes. With a serrated knife, slice the loaf into 1-inch slices. Place cut side down on the baking sheet.

6. Return to the oven and bake an additional 15 minutes until golden brown and crisp. Cool and store in an airtight container.