moccasin cake

I've been spending a lot of time in the kitchen lately whipping up my favourite recipes, but when a coworker's retirement party came up I decided to try something new. I thought a moccasin shaped cake would be the perfect design for someone leaving the north behind. The piping (for an inexperienced piper like myself) was time consuming but the overall look is worth it. I can't wait to try this one again with more colours and a more intricate design.
Final touches: arrange a few spruce boughs around the cake once it is done to add to the northern look and feel!

almond biscotti

I used a great recipe from epicurious.com to make these chocolate-dunked almond biscotti. The recipe was actually called for hazelnuts but the switch still tasted great. I couldn't believe how well they turned out: delicious and chewy even after a few days. Now if only I had an espresso machine!

Ingredients:
1 1/2 Cups hazelnuts (7 ounces)
3/4 Cup sugar
2 Cups self-rising cake flour
2 large eggs
1 Teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Method:
1. Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 350°F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. Pulse together sugar and 1/2 cup chopped hazelnuts in a food processor until finely ground. Transfer to bowl of mixer along with flour and beat at medium speed until combined well. Add eggs and vanilla and beat just until a dough forms. Reduce speed to low, then add remaining chopped hazelnuts and mix until incorporated. Turn off mixer and knead in any loose hazelnuts with your hands.
3. Halve dough and, with dampened hands, form each half into a roughly 10- by 2- by 1-inch log on lined baking sheet, arranging logs 3 inches apart.
4. Bake until golden and set but still soft to the touch, 25 to 30 minutes. (Leave oven on.) Cool logs on baking sheet on a rack 10 minutes.
5. Transfer logs to a cutting board, discarding parchment, and cut logs with a serrated knife on a slight diagonal into 1/2-inch-thick slices.
6. Arrange slices, cut sides down, in 1 layer on unlined baking sheet. Bake slices, turning over once, until golden and crisp, 20 to 25 minutes more. Cool biscotti completely on sheet on rack, about 30 minutes.
Read More:
http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Hazelnut-Biscotti-236948#ixzz1TMp70shX

Final touch: I opted to melt milk chocolate over the stove to dunk one side of the biscotti in. While the chocolate was still warm, I sprinkled about 1/2 a teaspoon of hazelnuts on top. Lean them over the edge of a dish to cool and harden then munch away! The chocolate is a tasty addition!

style envy: emma watson

backyard baking 2

Here's another wonderful recipe to try! I trekked along Ingraham Trail (near Yellowknife) to pick wild roses, plucked the petals and washed then dried them over two days. Once they were dry I ground them in a medicine bowl (a food processor works too) then combined with sugar. What was left was a delicious wild rose petal sugar that is a great addition to any dessert. I've added a cup to shortbread and topped french toast with it. It adds wonderful colour and flavour!

land of the midnight sun

Last December I posted some photos of a typical day at -47degrees Celsius in Yellowknife. (Click here to see the chilly pics!)

Well, here's the flip side! I took these photos during an impromptu fishing trip on Prelude Lake between midnight and 3am a few weeks ago. The photos really don't do the scenery justice. I've lived here for years and my jaw still drops on gorgeous nights like this. We didn't see a single boat or hear another person - though a couple curious beavers played alongside us.

necklace rack

I'm always looking for new ways to display my jewellery that is both functional and aesthetically pleasing. On a recent hike I couldn't help but admire all of the birch bark trees. Birch bark is used in a lot of crafts in the Northwest Territories, and my mum once bought me a beautiful heart shaped birch bark basket. Unlike the baskets, the necklace rack I made requires just about zero skill! I simply cut a section of birch tree, hammered nails in and secured it on the wall. Minimal cost, minimal effort...sounds like a great Sunday project.

I love the cabin-feel it gives my room, as well as a hint of enchantment.

backyard baking 1

I stumbled upon this unusual recipe on a great blog (www.borealgourmet.com) by a Yukon-dwelling woman named Michele Genest. There's something charming in cooking with what you find in your backyard and I was out collecting spruce tips immediately. If there are spruce trees in your area, this is a recipe you ought to try.

Ingredients:
1/2 Cup plus 1 Tbsp granulated sugar
2 Tbsp chopped spruce tips
1 Cup unsalted butter at room temp
2 1/4 Cups all-purpose flour
1/4 Tsp salt

Method:
1. Pick a handful of spruce tips

2. Combine sugar with the chopped spruce tips and set aside 1 Tbsp of the mixture for garnish.
Cream the butter until light and fluffy, add the remaining sugar/spruce tip mix and cream together. Add the remaining dry ingredients and mix well.

3. Gather the dough into a ball and press into an 8-inch shortbread mold and bake at 325 degrees for 30 - 35 minutes or until edges begin to brown. Remove from oven and set on a rack for 10 minutes. Sprinkle the reserved spruce + sugar mixture on top of the shortbread, cut in sections and leave to cool.

Serve with black tea and a small spruce bough!