Homemade Iced Tea

I am writing this in the midst of a heat wave, on the warmest day of the year so far.  Needless to say I couldn’t possibly imagine using my stove in this weather, much less heating my house up with the oven! As a result, most of the recipes I’m making these days are of the no cook/serve cold variety.

Loaded Potato Salad

[When it comes to summer recipes, potato salad is definitely high up on the list.  Whether you’re heading to a summer potluck, or firing up the barbecue for dinner at home, this recipe for potato salad is certainly going to make a great addition to whatever it sits next to on your plate.

Raw Hazelnut Brownies

This is my column as it appeared in the May 7th edition of The Hinton Voice. 

[Not only is this recipe raw, vegan, and gluten free… it’s also delicious.

I know, right?  How on earth could a healthy brownie made with only 4 ingredients that doesn’t include butter, sugar, or flour taste that great?  Well dear readers, I’m here to tell you that these brownies are every bit as good as their sugary baked counterparts.  In fact, this recipe satisfies even your most die-hard chocolate lovers.  Even friends of mine that despise all things healthy can’t get enough of the rich fudgy flavour of these decadent treats!

Thai Curry Soup

Last week 2 major things happened in my kitchen.  One, I finally perfected the Thai Curry Soup recipe that I have been working on for a couple of months now, and two, I pulled one of the most rookie kitchen mistakes of all time.

I sliced hot peppers and then touched my eyes.

Creamy Caesar Salad Dressing & Homemade Croutons

    [This recipe was my April column for The Hinton Voice, my local newspaper.]

Back when I still lived at home with my parents, whenever my family was invited to a potluck dinner, everyone always asked me to bring my famous Caesar salad.  They raved about the Caesar dressing, saying it was the best they had ever tasted by far.    Like any young girl trying to impress her family, I didn’t divulge the secret, nor did I have the heart to tell everyone, that the dressing they loved so much was actually available in the refrigerator section of the local grocery store.  They were right to love it - this dressing was the perfect combination of creamy, garlicy bliss.   As I started to branch out and learn how to make my own sauces and dressings from scratch, I knew that I would need to try and replicate this store bought version that everyone adored so much.  I’m happy to report, that this dressing not only matches its store-bought counterpart, it is even better (because isn’t everything that’s homemade 100 times better?).

Crab Rangoon

To celebrate the premier of Mad Men on Sunday, I teamed up with Modcloth and a group of my favourite bloggers to bring you Mad Men inspired vintage recipes, as well as an awesome themed giveaway! 

Today I'm sharing a vintage inspired recipe for crab rangoon, a common fare at Trader Vic's (a popular restaurant on the show).    

Homemade Dinner Buns and Flavour of Home

This post is sponsored by Knorr Canada. I received compensation in exchange for this post, though as always, all thoughts and opinions are 100% my own, and I only work with brands I use in my own kitchen. 

Do you ever get nostalgic when a certain food scent hits your nose?  If you do, you're not alone.

"According to recent studies,  80% of Canadians are reminded of their childhood simply from the aroma of certain foods."* 

For me, the smell of freshly baked buns always brings me back to much simpler times, when the only concerns I had were whether or not I would be able to sneak an extra cookie or two out of my Grandma's homemade cookie jar.  

Me as a child, snacking on something delicious in Grandma's kitchen.

When I was a little girl, I used to spend a lot of time in the kitchen with my Grandmother.  Every Saturday my Mom had to work, so she would drop my brother and I off at her Mom's house and Grandma would teach me how to create something delicious.