Ginger Chai Tea Soda - SodaStream

Ginger Chai Refresher (submitted by Jessie A.)

4 Chai teabags

3 Cups boiling water

1 liter Sodastream Ginger Ale (or Diet Ginger Ale)

Cinnamon Sticks (optional)

Brew Chai in a teapot for 10 minutes, using 4 teabags and 3 cups of boiling water 

Cool completely. 

Over ice in an iced tea glass, pour 3/4 of a cup of tea. 

Top with Sodastream Ginger Ale (or Diet Ginger Ale.)

Garnish with a cinnamon stick.

..... 

  I Sweetened mine with Honey 

Pomegranate Pistachio Pavlova

Pomegranate Pavlova with Pistachios and Honey


Makes: 12 servings
Prep 35 mins
Stand 1 hr 30 mins
Bake 250°F 1 hr

Ingredients:

6 egg whites

Dash salt

Dash cream of tartar

1 1/2 cups sugar

1 1/2teaspoons vanilla

1 teaspoon lemon juice

2 1/2 teaspoons cornstarch

Topping:

1 1/2 cups pomegranate juice

1/4 cup honey

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1 1/2 cups whipping cream

1 tablespoon sugar

1 cup pomegranate seeds

1/4 cup pistachio nuts, coarsely chopped

Directions:
1. Allow egg whites to stand at room temperature for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, line a baking sheet with parchment paper or foil. Draw a 9-inch circle on the paper or foil. Invert paper or foil so the circle is on the reverse side.
2. Position baking rack in center of oven. Preheat oven to 250 degrees F. For meringue, in a large mixing bowl beat egg whites, salt, and cream of tartar with an electric mixer on medium speed until soft peaks form (tips curl). Add 1 1/2 cups sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, beating on high speed until stiff peaks form (tips stand straight). Beat in 1/2 teaspoon of the vanilla and 1 teaspoon lemon juice. Sift cornstarch over egg white mixture; fold in gently.
3. Spread meringue over circle on paper or foil, building up edges slightly to form a shell. Bake for 1 hour (do not open door). Turn off oven; let meringue stand in oven with door closed for 1 hour.
4. Meanwhile, for pomegranate syrup, in a small saucepan combine pomegranate juice, honey, and 1 tablespoon lemon juice. Bring to boiling over medium heat; reduce heat. Boil gently, uncovered, for 30 to 40 minutes or until mixture is reduced to 1/2 cup. Transfer syrup to a small bowl; cool.
5. In a chilled large mixing bowl beat whipping cream, 1 tablespoon sugar, and the remaining 1 teaspoon vanilla with chilled beaters of the mixer on medium speed until stiff peaks form (tips stand straight).
6. Carefully lift meringue off paper or foil and transfer to a serving plate. Spread with the whipped cream. Sprinkle with pomegranate seeds; drizzle with the pomegranate syrup. Top with pistachio nuts.
nutrition facts (Pomegranate Pavlova with Pistachios and Honey)
Source: Better Homes and Gardens 

First time making pavlova or meringue for that matter.  I halved the recipe for the pavlova above and made it the night before, baking for 1 hour and then leaving it in the oven all night.

When ready to serve I whipped up some whipping cream with a few tsp of powder sugar and a splash of natural vanilla extract and spread it over the meringue disk then garnished with the fruit and nuts.

Please use a kitchen aid of mixer to whip up the meringue, I did it all by hand and can't say it was worth it, felt like my hand was going to fall off.  Really need to get a kitchen aid soon, my stupid professional model broke down over a year ago and it's past it's repair warranty. Ugh. 

This pavlova was delicious! The tart pomegranate really complements all the other sweet layers, I enjoyed it very much even though I'm not a big meringue fan.

Honey Walnut Oatmeal

Oatmeal is one of those foods that we've been eating since childhood,  whenever we visited my German grandma in Canada she always sprinkled some natural dried oats (quaker) into a bowl and then poured some chocolate milk over and told us to eat up for breakfast.  This cereal would keep us full all day long and especially on those days that we were out taking the bus  to explore the city with my aunt or uncle.  We loved it.

Never met anyone else who ate it this way, I guess it's a bit like Muesli but this is just your ordinary quaker oats (not the instant, but the blue bag) and it doesn't really melt in the cold milk.  It's amazing with chocolate milk, that's for sure. 

It's a little ironic that I haven't actually learned to eat warm cooked oatmeal until I travelled to YEMEN, yep, 

There have been a few times that my mother attempted to cook oatmeal and eat it, but she always cooked it with water and I always turned it down.

It wasn't until I was visiting Yemen at 19 years or age and noticed that they sell these small bags of Quaker oatmeal at every corner store, all I could think of was what the Yemeni people were doing with these oats until one day the people I stayed with told me that they're going to make some "Shorba" -  Shorba in Arabic means soup, like shorbat Ads (lentil soup) shorbat dajjaj (chicken soup) ... etc.   I expected them to whip up some soup but instead they reached for the little bag of oats and began soaking them in some water in a  sauce pan. 

This was getting interesting, I watched attentively as the oats absorbed the water and then they poured milk over it and sprinkled in a bit of salt.  The pot was set on the heat (medium low) and it was slowly stirred until the oats softened and the milk was absorbed into it, like a thick porridge/pudding but not too thick as it continues to cook after removing from the heat.

They poured it into a shallow pan/dish and then dotted the top with small cubes of butter which melted from the still warm oatmeal. 

I remember really enjoying it, thinking to myself that I "could" eat this!!  Now whenever I make it I sprinkle a bit of sugar on top and add some dried fruits (and of course the butter!) or whatever I'm in the mood for and it's a fabulous breakfast.  I still refuse to eat the oatmeal cooked with water but if it is cooked with milk (2% should be ok) then why not.    I love the dash of salt added before cooking, it really does make it.

In the photo below I topped it with butter, a drizzle of honey (which I brought back from Cuba, it's $1 a jar and organic, who could refuse?) and some soaked walnuts - dried walnuts soaked in water for 6 hours or so - ups the nutritional value and makes a crunchy topping, I just love 'em. 

It might be stupid for me to be going on about oatmeal, something that half the population is eating and the other half probably just despises but I'm just really happy that I came around even though it took a trip half way across the world, haha!

So if you want to try it out you just need:

- Regular oats (Quaker oats are great, in the dark blue and red bag, NOT instant or 1 minute)
- Water (soak it just enough to cover, then let it sit until almost absorbed in the pot - just until you get your milk and other ingredients ready,  2-5 mins)
- Milk, top it up with milk, and about an inch to cover the surface of the oatmeal, you can add more as you cook if it needs more.
- Pinch of salt
- Knob of butter (for dotting when it's done and poured into a bowl)

- Toppings: Sugar, cinnamon, cooked apples, dried fruit, honey, whatever floats your boat. 

Honey Beehive Cupcakes

On sunday we all went to see the new Winnie the Pooh movie in theatres. Unfortunately we didn't like the movie all that much (and we're fans of the old Winnie the Pooh movie) but the treats we had afterwards made up for it.

These brown butter banana honey cupcakes are one of my new favourites, you can really taste the honey and the banana creates a moist cupcake. Try a swiss meringue buttercream with a bit of honey folded in, or if you like whipped cream that's fine too, sweetened with a hint of honey they are super easy to do and only require a handful of ingredients.

Brown butter banana honey cupcakes:

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter

2 ½ cups all-purpose flour

1 ½ teaspoons baking powder

¾ teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon salt

1 cup sugar

½ cup honey

1 teaspoon vanilla

2 eggs, room temperature

1 ½ cups banana puree (about 4 bananas)

½ cup buttermilk (or yogurt watered down into the consistency of melted ice cream)

Preheat oven to 350°F.

To make brown butter: In a small heavy bottomed saucepan cook the butter over low heat until the butter is caramel coloured and smells toasty. DO NOT skim off any foam because those are the milk solids and they are what create the flavour once they toasts, because the rest is just melted fat and will not develop flavour on it's own.

Strain the mixture to remove the brown bits. (You can do this step a day ahead, it keeps in the fridge and then you just melt the butter again in the microwave when you're ready to use)

To make the cupcakes:

Using the paddle attachment, beat together the brown butter (which is now melted), sugar, honey and vanilla until it is cooled off slightly. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each. Add the banana puree and mix until incorporated.

In a medium bowl whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt. Set aside.

Alternate adding the flour mixture and buttermilk, starting and ending with the dry ingredients.

Line your cupcake pan with wrappers and begin filling them (not too much or it will over flow!)

Bake for 15-17 mins (17 worked great for me)

Swiss Meringue Buttercream:

Follow this recipe but instead of using the berry mixture add in a bit of honey at the end, 2 tbsp or so and a dash of salt and incorporate.

For honey Whipped Cream:

Pour your chilled heavy cream in the bowl and add some powdered sugar and whip until it's a beautiful creamy whipped consistency, add vanilla and drizzle in a bit of honey and fold in.

Decorate your cupcakes with either of the frostings above using a piping bag and a large round piping tip (I used Wilton No.2A) and begin piping a flat disk onto the cooled cupcakes and making circles smaller and smaller as you go higher to create a beehive look.

Later in the day we enjoyed Chicken and Dumplings, click here for the recipe.