Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

I know I have found a good recipe when it disappears quickly and everybody asks me for the recipe.  This is one of those recipes and a couple of people have reminded me they would like the recipe so I better post it.
These cookies are soft, lovely and moist.  I love the spice combination in them, I always add extra spice to cookies.  Please note that this recipe has the increased spice values in it so if you want a more subtle spice to the cookies I suggest you reduce the amount of spices you use. These cookies freeze well, but the trick is keeping them in there.  I hope you enjoy this twist on chocolate chip cookies.
*Note these cookies are chilled for 3 hours before they are baked so don't start by preheating the oven.

Pumpkin Chocolat Chip Cookies

1/2 cup butter, softened

3/4 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup white sugar, plus 1/3 cup for coating

1 egg

2 tsp vanilla extract

3/4 cup pumpkin puree

1 tbsp molasses

1 tsp baking soda

1 1/2 tsp cinnamon, plus 3/4 tsp for coating

1 tsp pumpkin pie spice

1/2 tsp ground cloves

1/2 tsp ground nutmeg

1/2 tsp ground ginger

Pinch of salt

2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

1. Cream together the butter, brown sugar, and 1/2 cup white sugar.  
2. Beat in the egg and vanilla until they are light and fluffy.
3. Beat in the pumpkin and molasses.
4. Combine the remaining dry ingredients (sans the cinnamon and sugar needed for the coating) in a separate bowl.  I suggest giving this a smell to see if you want to alter the spices.
5. Gradually start adding the mixture to the wet and make sure it incorporates completely.  
6. Stir in the chocolate chips.
7. Form the dough into balls about the size of two table spoons and place them on a plate.  I suggest having some wax paper between the layers on the plate.  Chill for 3 hours,
8. Preheat the oven to 350. Line baking sheets with parchment paper.
9. Combine the remaining cinnamon and sugar.  Roll the dough in the coating before placing them on the cookie sheets and lightly press them down with a fork.  Make sure there is good spacing between the cookies.
10. Bake for 10-12 minutes, or until the edges and tops have started to set.  The cookies firm up as they cool.

Apple Cheddar Biscuits

I like to have some bread or a biscuit to enjoy soup with, especially when the soup is so tasty I want to mop up every last drop of it to be sure that none is wasted.  I don't have time to make a nice french loaf very often and getting all of us out of the house to go pick up a loaf from the local baker is sometimes a little daunting.  Especially on rainy days when every one is tired.
I have had a bunch of old magazines with recipes I have wanted to try piling up in my house over the years.  Recently I have decided to look through them and tear out the recipes I think I will actually try and then recycle the rest.  After I try the recipe, if I like it I will post it so I don't have to keep the loose recipe around and I know I will always be able to find it when I want it.  The other day I found this wonderful biscuit recipe in Canadian Living.  It is a perfect biscuit to enjoy with fall soups.  They were a hit in our house and one of my little ones kept sliding a chair to the counter so she could help herself to them.  The batch didn't even last 24 hours.  I am sure I will be making these again soon.

 Apple Cheddar Biscuits

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

4 tsp baking powder

1 tbsp granulated sugar

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 cold butter cubed

1 cup shredded extra-old Cheddar cheese

1 cup grated, cored and peeled baking apple

2 tbsp minced chives or green onions

3/4 cup milk

1. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, sugar and salt.
2. Using a pastry blender, cut the butter into the dry ingredients until it resembles coarse oatmeal with a few large pieces.
3. Stir in the cheddar, apple and chives.
4. Using a fork, stir in the milk to form a ragged dough.
5. Drop into roughly 1/3 cup mounds on a parchment lined baking sheet.
6. Bake at 425 for 13-15 minutes or until they are lightly browned.

Coconut Curry Pumpkin Soup

I know it has been a while my friends but life has been very busy with two little ones and lots more.  I have tried lots of recipes and I need to get better at posting my favourites.  Our garden was wonderful this year and I have been trying lots of new ways to use up the various squash and pumpkins we grew this year.  I have also found my new favourite type of pumpkin.  It's colour is amazing, I love it's shape, I love how easy it is to prepare for baking and most importantly it has a wonderful flavour!  For those of you who garden as well I got the seeds from Renee's Garden and they are called Cinderella's Carriage Antique French Pumpkins.

I had some leftover pumpkin puree from making some other delicious pumpkin recipes (I will try to post them soon) and needed to make dinner so I decided on a curried pumpkin soup I came across a while back.  This soup turned out amazing.  Everybody loved it. My husband even said he was sorry he didn't have to take lunch in to work tomorrow because he loves it when his coworkers comment on how wonderful his lunches smell when he heats them up in the office kitchen.

 Coconut Curry Pumpkin Soup

1/4 cup butter

1 large onion, chopped

3 cloves of garlic, minced

3 cups chicken stock

1 tbsp curry powder

1 tsp garam masala

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp cinnamon

2 cups pumpkin puree

1 can coconut milk

1. In a heavy bottomed stock pan, melt the butter and sauté the onions until they begin to brown.  
2. Add the garlic and stir until fragrant.
3. Add the stock, salt and spices and bring to a boil.  Reduce the heat and allow this to simmer covered for 20 minutes to deepen the flavour of the broth.
4. Add the pumpkin and coconut milk and blend using an immersion blender or in batches in a regular blender.
5. Allow the soup to reach desired temperate before serving.

This soup goes well with a biscuit to help clean the bowl with.  I found a great Apple Cheddar biscuit recipe I made along with it.

Zucchini and Basil Frittata

When I have a rare spare moment to myself these days, I go to my cookbook library and flip through one of my cookbooks to try and find some inspiration for future meals.  The other day I picked up one that was given to my husband and I as an engagement gift.  I have tried a few recipes out of it but none recently.  As I was flipping though, I was only a few pages into the book when I found a zucchini recipe.  It is the perfect time of year to stumble across zucchini recipes (Right now I am harvesting between 4-8 from the garden a week!)  Not only did this recipe look tasty, but I had everything I needed for it on hand.  I actually made this recipe twice this week.  It is a great base recipe to use and it is one that is easy to change the basil for another herb or add different vegetables.
The recipe called for two medium zucchinis BUT this does not mean two medium zucchinis from your garden, it means a small one from your garden or two from the grocery store.  To try and save you from preparing too much zucchini and only realizing it afterwards, like I did, I have decided to give you an approximate measurement of how much to use.

Zucchini and Basil Frittata

5 eggs

3 cups zucchini, julienned/matchsticked 

1 tbsp olive oil

1/2 cup ricotta cheese

15 fresh basil leaves, torn

salt and pepper

1. Heat the oil over medium heat in an ovenproof skillet.
2. Beat the eggs together and season with salt and pepper.
3. Add the zucchini and season with salt and pepper.  Sauté for a minute or two, until it is warmed through.
4. Stir in the basil and ricotta.  Add the egg and stir for a minute.
5. Place in an oven at 350.  Bake for 8 - 10 minutes, until it has risen and serve immediately.

Pizza Dough

In our neighbourhood there is a very fancy expensive pizza joint and their pizza is amazing.  They have pizza designed for a sophisticated palate and their creations are delicious.  I decided that I too can make fancy pizzas with what I have at home and cater it to my current cravings.
In order to do this, I could not use something store bought for the crust, I had to find a recipe I could put together without too much effort and that didn't take too much time to be ready to use.  After some searching, this is what I decide on using.  This recipe made a nice light crust.  The crust is fine as it is but if you want to add a little extra flavour you could always add a little seasoning to it.  

Pizza Dough

2 cups flour

2/3 cup plus 2 tbsp lukewarm water

1 tbsp sugar

1/4 tsp salt

1 tbsp yeast

1. Mix together 1 cup of the flour, water, sugar, salt and yeast (and any extra seasonings you may desire).
2. Gradually add the remaining cup of flour until it forms a ball.
3. Knead briefly on a floured surface.
4. Let the dough raise for 10-15 minutes in a bowl covered with a towel or plastic wrap.
5. Spread out onto a pan and cover with your favourite toppings.
6. Bake at 375 for 15-20 minutes.

Rhubarb Jellies

A well established rhubarb crap can be daunting to some but exciting to others.  Right now ours are not too big and very easy for us to use up.  When I visited my Uncle's house recently he had plenty to spare and he kindly shared some with us.
There are so many things I enjoy doing with rhubarb, from muffins, to cakes and stewing it but I felt like trying something new.  I looked online and came across a rhubarb special from Chatelaine magazine and the Rhubarb Jellies recipe jumped out at me.  I love jellies and I had everything I needed on hand so I got to work.
These jellies are so easy to make and have a very impressive taste.  They are best fresh but fine kept in the fridge for a couple of days.  When you are slicing them, I suggest small slices because they are sweet and in my opinion it is better to grab a couple than have one that is too big for you to finish.
*These are what Europeans consider to be jellies, but most North Americans would probably call them gummies.

Rhubarb Jellies

1 1/4 cups chopped rhubarb

1 tbsp water

1 tsp lemon juice

1 cup granulated sugar

42.5 mL liquid pectin (half a package)

2 tbsp granulated sugar for dusting

1. Oil an 8x4 inch loaf pan.
2. In a heavy bottom pan, combine the rhubarb, water and lemon juice.  Heat on medium-high until the rhubarb is tender.
3. Transfer the mix into a food processor and puree until smooth.
4. Return to the heavy bottomed pot and stir in 1 cup of sugar.  Boil until a candy thermometer reaches 210 (about 2-3 minutes).
5. Stir in liquid pectin and boil for another 2 minutes.
6. Poor into the loaf pan and allow to cool and firm (about an hour).
7. Flip out onto a cutting board and cut into small pieces.  Dust the pieces with sugar.

Zucchini Oatmeal Spice Muffins

If you have looked through my blog, you will see I make a lot of muffins.  I find muffins to be a wonderful snack to have on hand.  I will often make a double or a triple batch so I can have some in the freezer to pull out as I need them.  Muffins are easy to grab as you are about to head out the door.  They are great for little ones to much on in the stroller.
Here is a lovely muffin recipe to use up zucchinis.  I will often add extra cinnamon, raisins and pecans.  I used a giant one and scraped out the seeds.

Zucchini Oatmeal Muffins

2 1/2 cups flour

1 cup sugar

1/3 cup flax seeds

1/3 cup wheat germ

1/2 cup oats

1 tbsp baking powder

1 tsp salt

1 tsp cinnamon

1/2 cup mlk

4 eggs

3/4 cup canola oil

1 1/2 cups peeled and shredded zucchini

1/2 cup raisins

1/2 pecans

1. Combine the first eight ingredients in a mixing bowl.  Make sure they are well blended together.
2. Whisk together the wet ingredients.
3. Pour the wet into the dry and stir until just blended.
4. Fold in the zucchini, raisins and pecans.
5. Bake at 400 for 20 - 25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.