The Arbolog |

I’m on the mom diet lately, which is as follows in my world:

• Tea and cereal in the morning for breakfast. Today was oatmeal because we are out of milk until I hit the store later. Also, the lack of milk meant it was Earl Grey today. Fancy organic fair trade earl grey. 
• Maybe something for lunch if I remember, like a slice of havarti and some crackers, or maybe a banana or a pear or a granola bar. 
• Some sort of snack when Kale naps in the afternoon. Occasionally I get motivated and make a lovely lunch with leftovers or perhaps a sandwich with my homemade bread, or whatever. More often than not, its a cup of tea and a cookie or two or five. 
• Dinner is in between 7-8 at our house – Kale goes to bed at 7 and so if we manage to get our collective poop together and eat with him before, then that’s great, and that’s what I am aiming for on a more constant basis. But Ross isn’t generally home until at least 5:30 and with Kale having some dinner, and a bath, and then some nakey baby time and then some boobie and then bed at 7 – well, dinner tends to get forgotten till he’s tucked into bed. 
• Usually I crave a sweet of some sort for dessert an hour or so after dinner. Sometimes its a handful of gummies, or other times it’s a small bowl of Moose Tracks (OMG I love Moose Tracks Ice Cream) and occasionally its more cookies. 

I heart cookies. And the walking I do seems to be burning them off. I walk about 2 km most days now with Kale.

For Christmas, one of the things I asked for was a cookie jar. I was actually given TWO cookie jars, and ended up returning the one Ross’ folks gave me and exchanging it for some placemats and napkins. Ross bought me the one I kept because well, seriously, how could I not want this?

From Miscellaneous

From Miscellaneous

He found this one on Craigslist, and in keeping with our recycled/handmade gift giving theme, I’d say he scored. The cookie jar features a mother hen and a chick sitting on a nest of eggs. Cookie shaped and cookie flavoured eggs, I’d say! Ross thought the cookie jar has a bit of a sweet meaning too – this was our first Christmas with Kale and so the mother hen and chick represents Kale and I. I’d like to think this cookie jar will be something Kale remembers as an adult about growing up – about how there was this chicken cookie jar on the counter his whole life filled with delicious homemade cookies. 

So I’ve made a point of keeping the jar filled with cookies whenever I can. I have to admit that right now its empty, and that’s because I gobbled back the entire batch of Bird’s Nest cookies I made. These are my favourite cookies, I think. These are tiny little almond flavoured cookies with nests full of jam and sprinkled with almonds. Gillian shared a recipe today that sounds delicious so I am going to make them this afternoon because the jar is empty and I have all the ingredients the recipe calls for, but I thought I would share my Bird’s Nest recipe I use to make these awesome balls of jammy goodness.

Almond Thumbprint Cookies – Reduced Fat (from the Joy of Cooking)

• 1 1/2 c all purpose flour
• 1/3 c cornstarch
• 1/4 t baking powder
• 1/4 t baking soda
• 1/4 t salt
• 3 1/2 T unsalted softened butter
• 3 T oil
• 1 T light corn syrup (I used honey)
• 1/2 c sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1/4 t grated lemon zest or 1/4 t orange extract
• 2 1/2 t vanilla
• 1/4 t almond extract
• your favorite jam, about 2/3 c
• 2-3 T chopped up sliced almonds, skin on or off, your choice

Whisk together: flour, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In a separate bowl, cream: butter, oil, honey, sugar, and egg. Add lemon zest/orange extract, vanilla, and almond extract. Add the dry ingredients to the wet, a bit at a time and mix until combined and smooth. Grease your fingers, and pinch off small bits of dough and make 3/4″ balls. Don’t make them bigger- they do puff a bit when you bake them and they will spread. Place them at least 2″ apart on the cookie sheet. With your thumb, indent a well in each ball. Fill the well with your favorite jam – fill it full – as it will stay the same while the cookie puffs up around it. Make sure you use a thick jam or jelly as it needs to set. Sprinkle liberally with chopped up almond bits and bake for 6-9 minutes, until golden brown, at 375°F. Makes about 3 1/2 dozen or 4 dozen cookies. Cool well, and store and make sure you hide them from me because I will break down doors for these cookies.

This is one of my all time favorite soups. It’s from a cookbook my mom gave me years ago and it is our go-to recipe for what to do with turkey leftovers. You can also use chicken, of course. This soup is creamy without being too thick, flavourful without being spicy, and is delicious served with some hot rolls, and followed up with ice cream (heh).  As with all my recipes T = tablespoon, t = teaspoon. 

Ingredients:

3 T butter
1 onion, finely chopped
1 celery stalk, finely chopped
25 large fresh sage leaves, finely chopped (although we often leave ours whole)
3 T all purpose flour
5 c turkey or chicken stock
2/3 c brown rice
9 oz mushrooms, sliced (we often also throw in some dried shitakes as well)
7 oz cooked turkey, shredded 
3/4 c heavy cream (we use half and half)
freshly grated Parmesan cheese, to serve

Instructions:

1.  Melt half the butter in a large saucepan over medium low heat. Add the onions, celery and sage and cook for 3-4 minutes until the onion is soft, stirring frequently. Stir in the flour and continue to cook for about 2 minutes.
2. Slowly add about 1/4 of the stock and stir well, scraping the bottom of the pan to mix the flour. Pour in the remaining stock, stirring to combine, and bring just to a boil.
3. Stir in the rice and season with salt and pepper. Reduce the heat ad simmer gently, partially covered, for about 30 minutes or until the rice is just tender, stirring occasionally. 
4. Meanwhile, melt the remaining butter in a large skillet over a medium heat. Add the mushrooms and season with salt and pepper. Cook for about 8 minutes until they are golden brown., stirring occasionally at first, then more often as they start to colour. Add the mushrooms to the soup.
5. Add the turkey to the soup and stir in the cream. Continue simmering for about 10 minutes until heated throughout. Taste and adjust the salt and pepper. Ladle into warm bowls and serve with Parmesan cheese. 

 Serves about 4 hungry peeps, takes you about 15 minutes of hands on time and about 60 minutes of cook time. 

Enjoy!

I was asked for this recipe and decided to post it here as well. This is my all time favorite cookie recipe. Ross loves these. They take hardly any time to make if you have a Kitchen Aid and are SUPA YUM. I purposely undercook them so they are even more chewy and I make a point of buying the plumpest juiciest raisins I can. I was never a “raisin” person but these cookies changed my outlook. I would not call these low-cal.

• 3/4 cup softened butter (leave it on the counter, do not melt it to liquid)
• 3/4 cup white sugar
• 3/4 cup packed brown sugar (we use demerera)
• 2 large eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 1/4 cup flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 3/4 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 3/4 cups quick oats
• 1 heaping cup raisins (don’t scrimp!)

1. Cream butter with sugars.
2. Add eggs and vanilla and beat until well blended.
3. In a separate bowl, mix the flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt.
4. Add dry mixture to wet mixture a bit at a time.
5. Add oats and raisins and mix well.
6. Drop by rounded teaspoonfuls onto cookie sheets.
7. Bake 8-10 minutes at 375 degrees and remove to racks to cool.

Yield is 4 dozen-ish.

Nods to the “Canadian Living Test Kitchen” for this recipe. It was easy and very tasty and yielded a lot of pulled pork that was good for a few dinners and lunches.

• 3 1/2 pounds pork shoulder blade roast (we used a tenderloin as that’s what we had in the freezer)
• 3/4 tsp each of salt and pepper
• 2 tbsp oil
• 2 onions, diced
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 tbsp chili powder
• 2 tsp ground coriander
• 2 bay leaves
• 1/4 cup tomato paste
• 1 can (the 14 oz size) tomato sauce
• 2 tbsp each packed brown sugar and apple cider vinegar
• 2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
• 2 green onions, thinly sliced

Sprinkle pork with salt and pepper. In large pot on stove, heat oil over medium high heat, brown pork all over. Transfer to slow cooker.

In pot on stove, add onions, garlic, chili powder, coriander, and bay leaves. Fry, stirring occasionally, until onions are softened, about five minutes.

Add tomato paste and cook, stirring, until darkened, about two minutes. Add tomato sauce, sugar, vinegar, and Worcestershire sauce, scraping up any brown bits from the bottom of the pan. That’s the good stuff! Pour everything into slow cooker. Cover and cook on low until pork is tender, about 8-10 hours.

Transfer pork to cutting board and tent with foil – let rest for ten minutes. With two forks, shred or “pull” pork.

Meanwhile, pour liquid from slow cooker into large saucepan, and skim off the fat. Bring to a boil over high heat, and boil vigourously until it reduces to about 3 cups, which is about 15 minutes. Discard the bay leaves.

Add the pork, and reduce and simmer until hot,about 4 minutes. Sprinkle with green onions and ENJOY!