Traditional recipes of Scotland

I'm from Nova Scotia, which is Latin for New Scotland. The British named it because it has many geographic similarities to Scotland and the Scottish settled in many areas of that province.

A friend of mine gave me the following traditional recipes. Give them a try! Click on the text to see full size scans for download.

Clootie Dumpling
Forfar Bridies

Cock a Leekie
Dundee Cake
Scots Gingerbread

Chocolate Apricot Flan

It's my hubby's birthday today. Birthdays close to the holidays sometimes don't get the proper attention paid to them so, to ensure the day is special, I acquired the cake ingredients in November so he could have a unique cake to enjoy.

Also, I'd like to share the recipe so perhaps you may enjoy it, too. I can't attribute the recipe to anyone because I acquired it many years ago and it was written on a recipe card by me.

Chocolate Apricot Flan


Preheat oven to 375°F

Cooking time: 20-25 minutes

Special tools needed:
- flan tin
- cake rack
- basting brush



Prepare your flan tin by rubbing it with butter, swish some flour around the pan until the butter is covered. Shake off the excess flour and set aside.

Melt together:
- 3 squares of unsweetened chocolate
- 1/2 cup butter

Once the melted mixture has cooled, transfer it into a mixer and then add the following, mixing on low after each ingredient addition:
- 2 eggs

Mix in on low.

- 1/2 cup milk
Mix in on low.

- 1 tablespoon of Grand Marnier
Mix in on low.

- 1 teaspoon of pure vanilla
Mix in on low.

- 2 teaspoons of baking powder
Mix in on low.

- 3/4 cup of sugar
Mix in on low.

- 3/4 cup of flour
Mix in on low.

When finished, your batter should resemble chocolate mousse. Pour into your prepared flan tin and bake for 20 to 25 minutes. You can check done-ness by touching the top, middle of the flan. If it springs back after you touch it, it is done.

Remove from the oven and place the flan tin on a baking rack to ensure the flan cools evenly.

Once cooled, place a plate over the top of the tin and flip it over. Remove the collar and then the flan disk.

Brush 2 tablespoons of Grand Marnier on the top of your flan.

Then arrange on top of the flan:
- 1 can of drained, apricot halves

Heat together to make a glaze:
- 2 tablespoons of Grand Marnier
- 2 tablespoons of apricot jam

Brush the glaze on top of the apricot halves.

Sprinkle some almond slices on top, if you desire.

C'est fini...enjoy!

'Go to' cookbooks

I love food, ergo I must cook. The best times in my life are associated with food preparation and consumption, surrounded by the people I love. Winter always spawns activity in my kitchen because venturing outdoors in Canada is a chilly endeavour.

I've been churning out meals for over 35 years and have the resultant plethora of cookbooks to liberally cover that time span. Mostly now, I just whip stuff up without consulting any of these books but, when I do need to find a recipe, these are the cookbooks I revisit, time and again.

Over the years, my preferences gravitated to recipes providing good methodology and ease in both comprehension and execution. I've listed them in descending order of visitation.


The Fanny Farmer Cookbook
America's great basic cookbook completely revised to provide, for our generation, a full repertory of wonderful dishes and ways of good cooking in the best American tradition. With an introduction by James Beard
By: Fannie Merritt Farmer, Originally published in 1896 under the title The Boston Cooking School Cookbook by Fannie Merritt Farmer
Obtain a copy: No longer in print but a version has been revised by Marion Cunningham to take into account newer preparation techniques and newer dietary preferences.

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1,000 Vegetarian Recipes
By: Carol Geddes
Obtain a copy: Amazon

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Betty Crocker's Cookbook
By: Betty Crocker Food and Nutrition Center
Obtain a copy: Amazon

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Traditional Recipes of Atlantic Canada
By: Shirely Jones and The Culinary Institute of Canada
Obtain a copy: No longer in print because it was a promotional item put out by Ultramar, where chapters were offered each week and you could also purchase the binder to hold them. Sections of it come up for auction sometimes on Ebay, Canada.

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Recipes: Middle Eastern Cooking
By: Time Life Books' Foods of The World series
Obtain a copy: Dig Modern

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The Southern Accent Cajun & Creole Cookbook
By: Elena Embrioni & Frances Wood
Obtain a copy: Wikio

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Betty Crocker's Southwest Cooking
By: General Mills
Obtain a copy: Amazon

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Better Homes and Gardens Cajun Cooking
By: Better Homes and Gardens
Obtain a copy: Amazon

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A World of Baking
By: Delores Casella
Obtain a copy: Amazon

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Canadian Mennonite Cookbook
By: Rita Kaethle & Pat Gerber Pauls. Originally published under the title Altona Women's Institute Cookbook.
Obtain a copy: Amazon

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The Silver Palate CookbookDelicious recipes, menus, tips, lore from Manhattan's celebrated gourmet food shop.
By: Julee Rosso & Sheila Lukins with Michael McLaughlin
Obtain a copy: Amazon

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The Alice B. Toklas CookbookForeward by M. F. K. Fisher
By: Alice B. Toklas
Obtain a copy: Amazon

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Life, Love and LobstersAn Anecdotal Collection of Recipes from Harris' Seafood Restaurant
By: Clara Kathleen Harris & Gaynor S. Kleiber
Obtain a copy: Email Gaynor Kleiber at kleibergay@hotmail.com

Watermelon lemonade

I intend to sip on this all summer this year. In addition to sounding absolutely delicious, both ingredients rate high as an alkaline food.
Adapted from Southern Living

- 15 cups seeded and cubed watermelon
- 2 (12-ounce) cans frozen lemonade concentrate, thawed
- Ice
- Garnishes: watermelon wedges

Process watermelon, in batches, in a blender or food processor until smooth. Strain through a fine mesh strainer into a large pitcher. Add lemonade concentrate and whisk to combine. Serve chilled and over ice.

10 vegetarian stumbles

YIKES! My husband and I made the switch. I don't know what you would officially call us but we've decided we won't eat anything with a face.

A few weeks ago, I received the current National Geographic magazine. There was a picture of a turtle being held by someone and it seemed to me that the turtle was screaming. Underneath was a caption about the probable destination as turtle soup. The initial impact of that photograph was startling. It continued to haunt me for weeks while I kept noticing what I was consuming. I talked to my husband about it and he thought it was a good idea for both of us to discontinue eating meat.

We are experimenting with vegetarian products and recipes. Here are some of the internet resources we have come across while bumbling through our new lifestyle:

Mayo Clinic: Vegetarian Diet - how to get the best nutrition

American Heart Association: Vegetarian Diets

American Dietetic Association: A New Food Guide for North American Vegetarians

Better Health Channel: Vegetarian Eating

Foodbuzz: Vegetarian Recipes - submitted by members

Nibbledish: Vegetarian Recipes - submitted by members

Allrecipes: Vegetarian

GoVeg

Vegetarian Times

Fat-Free Vegan Recipes

Donairs

The photo above is a beloved fast food location in Halifax, NS.

My husband and I came to Mississauga 4-1/2 years ago and began our donair history, geography and home economics education.

The GTA (Greater Toronto Area) is a melting pot of every culture so we assumed that there would be donair shops here and were surprised to find none.

At first, we were fooled when we saw that local shops had spits. We speculated that the name was regional and that we were actually getting the same product as in Halifax. Trust me, for anyone craving a donair there is nothing more disappointing than biting into a gyro with tsatsiki sauce. YUK. I'm sure that concoction is far healthier but that is not the prime concern of anyone who has set their sights on consuming a donair.

Here are our findings of what a donair IS NOT. Don't be fooled by any placations from fast food staff. You can take this to the bank...these are NOT donairs: gyro, doners, donners, shwarma, Döner, or kebabs.

Our cravings have been completely satisfied only once during the time we have lived here. A very thoughtful friend once brought one up from Halifax when he came here on business. Jonathan's fellow travelers on Air Canada were not amused to be assaulted for two hours with the strong odour emanating from his King of Donair cargo.

We've discovered that donair was a regional dish and that King of Donair in Halifax was the first to introduce donairs to Canada in 1973. The recipe was conceived in a small tavern in Greece and brought to Halifax, NS.

Those separated from the herd can find solace in the following recipe. It's not King of Donair worthy but it will get you by when there is nothing else in sight.

Donairs – the Halifax, Nova Scotia version

King of Donair was the first to introduce donairs to Canada in 1973. The recipe was conceived in a small tavern in Greece and brought to Halifax, NS.

Preheat oven: 450ºF

Put in a plastic bag and shake to mix together:
- 2 TBSP oregano
- 1 TBSP salt
- 1 TBSP cayenne pepper
- 1 TBSP black pepper
- 2 TBSP powdered chicken OXO
- 2 TBSP garlic powder
- 2 TBSP onion powder
- 4 TBSP paprika

Add:
- 2 LBS medium, ground beef
- 2 LBS medium, ground pork
Knead the spices into the meat like you would for making bread. The meat is mixed enough when there are fat deposits on the sides of your bowl.

Bake at 450ºF for 45 minutes.
- The inside is still rare so it isn't dried out when you refry the slices.
- Don’t drain off the fat. You will need it for frying later.
- Cover with foil and let it rest so the juices will stay in the meat.

Sauce:
Make ahead and let cool before using.
Mix and then microwave for 1 minute. This will thicken the sauce.
- 1 cup evaporated milk
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 1/3 cup vinegar

Garnishes:
- Diced tomatoes
- Diced onions

Fry:
- Slice the meat very thinly.
- Fry your slices in the donair fat.

After the meat slices are fried:
- Dip a pita bread slice into warm water.
- Then fry in the donair fat.

Assemble:
- Pita
- Meat
- Garnish
- Sauce

10 food stumbles

While stumbling, I saw a fellow stumbler's blog where he shared his 1,000 favourite stumbling links of 2008. It was quite list! I would like to share some of my favourite stumbles periodically, too. I'll keep the list a little shorter...say about 10 every once in a while.

I hope this list of some of my favourite food stumbles inspires you to experiment. You'll notice there are no low-cal offerings on this list. Enjoy!

Zuni Roast Chicken with Bread Salad

Warm Churros & Hot Chocolate

Outback Steakhouse Bloomin Onion

Bacon-Sweet Corn Muffins

7-Layer Dip

Individual Beef Wellingtons with Sherry Cream Sauce

The Best Lemon Bars

Springy Flower Pot Desserts

Cheddar Pac Man Crackers

French Toast Casserole

Links Updated: March 20, 2013

Yummy supper

This was in the local grocery store flyer. It looked so good that I had to try it. It exceeded my expectations. I've got a feeling that I'll be using this on more vegetables, too.

Green Beans with Pecans & Cranberries

Boil until tender crisp (about 4 minutes), drain and set aside:

- 2 lbs. green beans

Mix together the following over medium heat:

- 2 tbsp. butter

- 2 tbsp. honey

- 1 tsp. grated orange zest

Add and toss together:

- the cooked green beans

- 1 c. chopped pecans or walnuts

- 1/2 c. dried cranberries or blueberries

- freshly ground black pepper