Blog Archives: Recipes
Chocolate chip cookies
Chocolate chip cookies are one of my favourite treats. We in the Stebila family pride ourselves on enjoying cookies and chocolate, so believe me when I say that the recipe below is worth the effort.
Last year the New York Times had an article about chocolate chip cookies entitled Perfection? Hint: It’s Warm and Has a Secret, in which they sought out the recipe for perfect chocolate chip cookies. Their poor reporters tried dozens of chocolate chip recipes until settling on what they believe is the perfect chocolate chip recipe. Perhaps I’ve had a better chocolate chip recipe from somewhere, but these are pretty darn good homemade cookies.
Chocolate chunk cookies They’re not your everyday chocolate chip cookies, however. They’re not cookies that you sit down and eat half a dozen of. These are gourmet chocolate chip cookies that are 5″ in diameter and taste best straight out of the oven. These are cookies that you make for company (which, incidentally, I’m planning on doing tomorrow night).
The three secrets to the recipe are simple: use chunks of really good chocolate, make the cookies big, and refrigerate the dough for 24 hours before baking.
This last trick, refrigerating the dough for at least 24 hours before baking, seems to be the most important. I’ve made these cookies a number of times. On the occasions when I’ve been so eager to eat them that I bake them right away instead of waiting, the cookies have not come out as good. And for experimental control, I have done an experiment where I bake half of the dough it immediately and save the other half to bake a day or two later. The day or two later cookies always taste much better.
Here’s the recipe from the New York Times. Enjoy!
Chocolate Chip Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cups cake flour
- 1 cups bread flour
- 2/3 teaspoon baking soda
- 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
- 3/4 teaspoon coarse salt
- 2/3 cup unsalted butter
- 2/3 cup brown sugar
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 pound bittersweet chocolate disks*
- sea salt
* Use high quality chocolates disks, or chocolate fèves, or chunks of couverture chocolate, with at least 60% cocoa. I use Nestlé Plaistowe 63% Cocoa Couverture chocolate, but that doesn’t appear to be available in Canada.
Directions
- Sift flours, baking soda, baking powder and salt into a bowl. Set aside.
- Using a mixer fitted with paddle attachment, cream butter and sugars together until very light, about 5 minutes. Add egg, mixing well. Stir in the vanilla. Reduce speed to low, add dry ingredients and mix until just combined, 5 to 10 seconds. Drop chocolate pieces in and incorporate them without breaking them. Press plastic wrap against dough and refrigerate for 24 to 36 hours. Dough may be used in batches, and can be refrigerated for up to 72 hours.
- When ready to bake, preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a nonstick baking mat. Set aside.
- Scoop 9 3 1/2-ounce mounds of dough (the size of generous golf balls) onto baking sheet, making sure to turn horizontally any chocolate pieces that are poking up; it will make for a more attractive cookie. Sprinkle lightly with sea salt and bake until golden brown but still soft, 17 to 20 minutes. Transfer sheet to a wire rack for 10 minutes, then slip cookies onto another rack to cool a bit more. Eat warm, with a big napkin.
Makes 9 cookies.
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Mushroom Risotto Recipe
A few weeks ago I came across a recipe for risotto that I wanted to try, so I picked up a bag of risotto rice. My first attempt was a disaster, but I tried again with a different recipe a few days ago and it was great. From the BBC, here is a tasty and easy mushroom risotto recipe.
Mushroom Risotto
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup chestnut mushrooms, chopped
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1/2 onion, chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, diced
- 3/4 cup arborio rice
- 1/4 cup white wine
- 2 1/2 cups vegetable broth
- 1 tablespoon fresh parsley, chopped
- 1 tablespoon butter
- salt and pepper
- parmesan cheese
Directions
- Soak the mushrooms in hot water for 10 minutes, then drain well. Heat the oil in a large, heavy-bottomed saucepan and add the onion and garlic. Fry over a gentle heat for 2-3 minutes, until softened. Add the mushrooms and fry for a further 2-3 minutes, until browned.
- Stir in the rice and coat in the oil. Pour in the wine and simmer, stirring, until the liquid has
been absorbed. Add a ladleful of the stock and simmer, stirring again, until the liquid has been absorbed. Continue adding the stock in this way, until all the liquid has been absorbed and the rice is plump and tender. - Stir in parsley, butter and salt and pepper. Serve with freshly grated parmesan cheese.
Makes 2 servings.
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Mini Blueberry Cheesecakes
Blueberry cheesecakes I picked up a pint of local Ontario blueberries on Saturday at the St. Jacob’s Farmer’s Market. From a number of sources on the Internet, I pieced together this tasty recipe for mini blueberry cheesecakes.
Mini Blueberry Cheesecakes
Ingredients
- Crust
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 3/4 cup graham cracker crumbs
- 1/8 cup sugar
- cinnamon
- Filling
- 1 package cream cheese, softened
- 3/8 cup sugar
- 1 egg
- Topping
- 1/2 pint blueberries
- 1 teaspoon cornstarch
Directions
- Line muffin tray with 12 medium paper cups. Preheat oven to 350°F.
- Blend blueberries and cornstarch. Cook over medium heat until thickened, stirring constantly.
- Melt butter. Add graham cracker crumbs, sugar, and cinnamon; mix together with fingers. Pack into bottom of muffin cups.
- Beat together cream cheese, sugar, and egg. Stir in vanilla. Spoon into muffin cups. Spoon blueberry mix over top.
- Bake for 15 minutes at 350°F.
- Top each with a blueberry. Remove from tray and let cool. Serve or refrigerate.
Makes 12 mini cheescakes.
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Cadbury Creme Egg Muffins
Cadbury Creme Egg muffins My friend Laura, knowing my affinity for Cadbury Creme Eggs, sent me this recipe (originally from bakingbites.com) for Cadbury Creme Egg Muffins. When baked, the muffins are kind of plain looking, but they’re delicious with a nice treat waiting inside. Best served warm; reheat in the microwave for a few seconds before eating. A great way to make use of discount Easter candy now on sale!
Cadbury Creme Egg Muffins
Ingredients
- 1 cup all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ⅜ cup sugar
- 1 large egg
- ⅙ cup butter, melted and cooled
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¼ cup milk
- 6 mini Cadbury creme eggs
Directions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Line a 6-cup muffin tin with paper liners.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder and salt.
- In a small mixing bowl, whisk together sugar, eggs, melted butter and vanilla until smooth. Whisk in milk.
- Pour wet ingredients into dry ingredients and stir until just combined and no streaks of flour remain.
- Evenly distribute muffin batter into prepared pan. Place 1 mini Cadbury creme egg in the center of each muffin. You can use a small knife to pull a bit of batter over the top of the mufin, if you like.
- Bake for 14-16 minutes, until the top of the muffin springs back when lightly pressed and the edges are a light gold.
- Cool on a wire rack before slicing.
Makes 6 muffins.
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Hot chocolate recipe
For a short period, Starbucks offered a premium hot chocolate beverage called Chantico. It was the best hot chocolate drink that could be bought: it was an intense rich chocolate beverage, coming in a tiny cup and enough to fill you up. Sadly, not enough people bought it and it was discontinued. But I’ve found a good recipe on this site and adapted it a little bit for my tastes, and let me tell you, the result is amazing. If you decide to make this on a cold wintry December night, just don’t try to drink too much — it’s very rich!
Old-Fashioned (Chantico-style) Hot Chocolate
Ingredients
- 1¼ cups 3.25% milk
- 2 teaspoons corn starch
- pinch salt
- ¼ cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- pinch cinnamon, chili powder, or cayenne, (optional)
- 4 tablespoons skim milk
- cocoa, one of two below
- Solid Cocoa
- 4 squares semisweet chocolate, grated
- Powdered Cocoa
- 9 tablespoons cocoa powder
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
Instructions
If using solid cocoa: Grate chocolate (manually or in food processor fitted with steel blades). Add in corn starch, sugar, and salt.
If using powdered cocoa: Mix solid ingredients, butter, and a little milk to make a smooth paste; add remaining milk.
In a one-quart, heavy-bottomed, non-aluminum saucepan, heat milk over medium low heat, stirring often with small whisk, until it is steaming hot. Carefully add chocolate mixture. Continue cooking mixture, stirring almost constantly with whisk and scraping bottom and sides of pot with rubber spatula frequently. Mixture will steam for several (15-20) minutes before coming to a boil, and will thicken slightly. When mixture boils, continue cooking and stirring for just 30 to 45 seconds. Remove from heat; whisk in vanilla and any optional ingredients.
This syrup can be refrigerated for future use; reheat in microwave at 50% power, stirring frequently. To serve: Divide syrup among small 4 mugs, and mix 1 tablespoon of skim milk in each mug to achieve desired consistency; you may need to warm in microwave once skim is added.
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Picnic and Lemonade
This afternoon Lana, Joe, and I enjoyed a picnic at the Laurel Creek Conservation Area, just north of the University of Waterloo’s north campus. Not only was it an excellent day for a picnic, we had some excellent snacks (strawberries and cream! homemade lemonade!), tossed around a frisbee, and waded in the reservoir.
If you’d like to reproduce Douglas’ top quality lemonade, here’s the recipe. It’s not entirely from scratch, but still tastes pretty darn good, as long as you don’t mind it a little tart.
Lemonade
Ingredients
- 1 can frozen lemonade, thawed
- 1/2 lime
- 1 lemon
- 6-10 berries (raspberries, blackberries, strawberries)
Directions
- Prepare canned lemonade according to directions on can.
- Squeeze in lime and lemon, being careful to avoid getting seeds in the container. Grate lime and lemon peel and add to the lemonade.
- Squish berries with a spoon in a small bowl, then press through a sieve to remove seeds and add to the lemonade.
- Shake/stir and enjoy!
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Stebila family pyrogies
Uncle John and Aunt Irma Last night my aunt Irma and uncle John came over for dinner and I made pyrogies. I haven’t made them in a few years now, and I must confess I was a bit rusty. My dough was too sticky and rolled out too thick, the potato filling was a little too watery, I undercooked them like I usually do (though not quite as undercooked as previous times), and top it all off I forgot to put one ingredient in the brownies. But for my uncle who doesn’t cook at home and hasn’t had pyrogies in probably 10 years, they were pretty good.
In case you’d like to give them a try, here’s the Stebila family recipe, handed down for generations, or at least from my grandma to my mom and I. My cousin Jonathan and I were taught by the master many years ago, as you can see in this picture.
Pyrogies
Filling – Ingredients
- 4 lb. potatoes
- 8 slices sharp cheddar cheese
- salt and pepper
- 6 heaping tbsp. of Kraft grated cheddar cheese product (blue package)
- 1 tbsp. grated parmesan cheese (optional)
Filling – Instructions
- Cook and mash potatoes.
- Add other ingredients. Mix well until all are melted.
- Let cool.
Pyrogies – Ingredients
- 1½ cup water
- 1 tbsp. salt plus 1 tsp. salt
- 4 eggs
- 5½ cups flour
Pyrogies – Instructions
- Mix ingredients together until well blended.
- Roll dough out on floured surface until ¼” thin.
- Cut in 2″ wide strips and then into 2″ squares (approximately).
- Put filling on each piece.
- Fold up and seal edges tight. (Recommend folding squares into triangles).
- Put each pyrogy on floured surface until ready to use.
- Boil large pot of salted water.
- Add pyrogies and stir carefully to prevent sticking.
- Return water to boil and cook for 10 minutes. Stir occasionally.
- Drain and rinse with a little cold water.
- Melt ¼ cup butter and pour over. Salt to taste.
Makes 50-70 pyrogies.
Reheating instructions
Pyrogies can be reheated by pan-frying them with butter until hot and slightly golden on the outside. For a less artery-clogging meal, reheat in the microwave for about 3 minutes on 60%; put a small glass of water (¼ cup) in the microwave as well to provide moisture; flip half-way through.
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mmmm… chocolate
Last night my housemate Caroline and I had a wonderful date with chocolate. We spontaneously decided that we both wanted ludicrous amounts of chocolate, so we wandered to our neighbourhood Tesco grocery store (2 minutes walk, open until midnight!) and bought chocolate muffins, ice cream, cream, baking chocolate, and eating chocolate. We warmed the muffins in the oven, melted the baking chocolate to create a sauce, and poured the hot chocolate sauce over warm muffins and cool vanilla ice cream. So, so good. Of course, every luxury has its cost, and this morning I woke up with a chocolate hangover.
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