Try Thai Food

Try Thai Food

      

I am bored.  Bored with making dinner and having the same old, same old.  My repertoire is rather pathetic, about a dozen tried and true that everyone is so bored of (but too lazy to cook anything different).

Then came the inspiration to have the month of November be Thai food – Thaivenmber!  Opened my trusty Moosewood Restaurant New Classics and found Pad Thai.  Thankfully we have a grocery store nearby that stocks everything on the list.  Just to let you know, I made it last night and I am dreaming of making it again.

• 8 oz package of rice noodles
• 2 TB rice vinegar
• 2 TB soy sauce
• 1-2 tsp Chinese chili paste
• 1 TB tamarind concentrate
• ½ cup water
• 3 TB vegetable oil
• 8 oz firm tofu, cubed
• 1 cup diced red bell peppers
• 1 cup snow peas (I subbed in frozen peas :)
• 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
• 3 TB chopped fresh cilantro

Cook the rice noodles according to package directions.  Combine the vinegar, soy sauce, chili paste, tamarind and water in a small bowl and set aside.  Drain your noodles, rince in cold water and drain well again.

Have all the prepared ingredients nearby before you begin to stir fry.

Heat large wok or skillet, pour in 1 TB of oil and add tofu and stir fry,  Add the bell peppers, snow peas and stir fry for 2 minutes.  Remove tofu and veggies and set aside.

Add remaining 2 TB of oil, pour eggs in the centre and stir briskly for a few seconds.  Add the reserved sauce, drained rice noodles, tofu, veggies and toss well.  Cook for 3-4 minutes until the noodles are tender and the mixture is dry.  Transfer to large platter and garnish with cilantro, lime wedges and a spring of peanuts.

Easy peasy and it was delicious.  I threw in bean sprouts and omitted the peanuts. And I doubled the sauce because I know my family and sauciness is always a plus and I am glad I did.  You can vary the heat levels with the chili paste, this is the ultimate winter dish and so much more cost effective than getting local take away.  You could sub any noodles if you didn’t have rice noodles but keep the lime wedges, it was so good to squeeze fresh lime all over the dish.

Just let me know when you’re coming over for dinner and I’ll make this, soooo good!

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Caron is one of the blooms of Two Blooms Design Studio Est. 2002. She is the dreamer, production manager, self taught chef and the social media wannabe. Caron is married to the word adventure and she will never stop dreaming.

Want a recipe to make the most drool worthy jam that kids and adults will swoon for?

Photo Credit: Wikipedia

   

Do you want to make the most drool worthy jam that kids and adults will swoon for?

Not sure when it all started but the fascination with jam has been a long standing one.  Originally from Toronto I remember Damson plum season and the first time I tried that jam, my taste buds explored over it’s distinctively rich taste. Let’s just say I’ve been on the Damson plum jam hunt ever since.   Every year I had to buy this delicate treat.

Then I moved to beautiful Vancouver Island years ago and it’s been hard to find Damson plum jam. I’m sure it’s somewhere but I haven’t found it yet and if I have it hasn’t tasted like the one I had in Toronto.

So since I couldn’t make Damson plum jam here and we have pear trees in our yard, we often make pear jam. Well one day a happy accident happened and we came up with a ginger/pear combination that rivals the Damson plum variety. Our variety has thick chunks of pear and ginger throughout and it’s made without pectin so it’s more of a marmalade. Okay just writing about this is making me hungry and I’m dreaming of toasting a slice of bread with this chunky beauty smeared all over my toast.

What, you want the recipe? Well here is it and it’s free.  Gratis.  My treat to you.  To top it all off it’s only 4 ingredients.

• 8 pounds of pears
• 4 pounds of sugar
• ¼ pound fresh ginger
• 3 lemons

1. Wash, quarter, core, pare and chop pears.
2. Add sugar and ginger and let stand overnight.
3. Add lemons, sliced thinly; cook slowly for 3 hours.
4. Bottle up.

• Spread on toast or a bagel
• Put a few spoonfuls in plain organic yogurt
• Add some to your home made or store bought granola
• Top a fruit bowl for a quick breakfast in the morning

So there you have it, a simply delicious ginger/pear marmalade that will delight your family or friends. What is your favourite jam recipe?

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Hi, I’m Michelle the founder of Two Blooms Design Studio Est. 2002. I’m in charge of production, designing all of our labels in house, photography, customer service, alchemist behind all of our scent blends, designer, creator and pretty much whatever else needs to be done.

 

 

The Best Coconut Custard Pie Now

Many of you will remember The Classic British Dessert Recipe I did many posts back.  It was one of our most popular posts. I think it's because custard is a favourite. It's comforting, sweet, yet light and the sunny cheery colour just perks up your mood. It's perfect almost any time of the day which reminds me of our naturally blissfully scented candles that bring about that cozy warm feeling. Even better why not have a piece of pie while you light one of our candles on a rainy fall evening. If you loved that recipe you will love this one even more. It's one of my all time favourites from my mom's recipe book and I've perfected the recipe. I love how light it tastes and it has no crust so gluten free people can rejoice.  This recipe is not vegan and I have not yet attempted to try it without eggs.  If you do try that let me know as I'm not sure if it would work well or not. The eggs give it the flurry sponge like texture.

The Recipe:

• 3 eggs
• 1/2 cup of flour (gluten free flour can be used here)
• 3/4 cup of sugar
• 1 cup of shredded coconut flakes
• 3 TBSP of margarine
• 2 cups of milk
• 1 tsp of vanilla

Put all the ingredients in the blender (I love using my Vitamix) except the coconut flakes and blend several seconds.  Then add the coconut. Pour into a greased 10" pan. The pie will form it's own crust.  Bake at 350 degrees for 50-60 minutes.  Serves 8.

It's delicious on it's own but feel free to add maple syrup as a topping. To make it even more decadent it's wonderful with ice cream, frozen yogurt or add some raspberries or blueberries on top.

I'd love to hear your thoughts it you give it a try.

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Hi, I’m Michelle the founder of Two Blooms Design Studio Est. 2002. I’m in charge of production, designing all of our labels in house, photography, customer service, alchemist behind all of our scent blends, designer, creator and pretty much whatever else needs to be done.

Matcha Tea Snack Bar Recipe

Photo Credit:  naturallivingideas.com

Matcha Tea Snack Bar Recipe

   

It's that time of year when summer is almost over and you are looking for healthy snacks to get you through Fall. These are perfect for on the go meals and we love to bring them to our local market where we sell as a quick snack. 

I love Matcha Green Tea lattes. We’ve even used matcha in our soap for a beautiful green colour.  There are days when I’m on the go ie. running errands and I don’t want order a meal because it takes extra time during my day (although sometimes that’s a good thing). Or maybe I’m hiking and want to pack light nutritious snacks to just munch while I'm enjoying the great outdoors. Maybe some of you have kids and want to pack them a healthy lunch snack. Or you are running out to a fitness class and want a snack after you are finished.

Granola bars have always been a fun treat to eat but adding Matcha Tea makes them extraspecial. Did you know that Matcha Green tea is full of antioxidants?  It has the nutritional benefits of 10 cups of regular green tea.  It’s rich in vitamins, chlorophyll and fiber.   It can boost metabolism and help burn calories (but you have to be watching what you are eating and exercising as I know some people think they can eat whatever they want and drink Matcha Tea (if only it were that simple).

We used to host International students at our house as we live near a university and one year a student from Japan brought us Matcha Green Tea and a ceremonial Japanese tea whisk with instructions. Every time I use it I think of her.

Here is the "Matcha Tea Go-Go Bars" in a handy recipe card. Click to read, then there is a little arrow type button on the bottom kinda pointing in one direction and if you click on that there is an option to download it.  

Tips for making this recipe. Really cut dried fruit finely or bars are harder to cut. If you leave it in the fridge too long before cutting it's crumblier. A lower bar height wise will produce a cleaner cut.

Have your tried Matcha Green Tea or used it in some special way?

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About Michelle

Michelle is one of the blooms and founder of Two Blooms Design Studio Est. 2002. She is in charge of production, designing all of our labels in house, photography, customer service, alchemist behind all of our scent blends, designer, creator and pretty much whatever else needs to be done.

The Classic British Dessert Recipe

Photo Credit:  Pinterest

Years ago my mom went to England and loved the way they served custard. They poured it from a pitcher (they made it thinner, so it poured.)  Ever since then we’ve made it often for a dessert. The creamy yellow sunshine like colour is so comforting and delicious. Some people like their custard runny but we like ours a bit thicker.

We made it last night for dinner and I ran and grabbed my camera to take some shots of this yummy treat and thought I’d share a new twist we’ve added to this.

Let’s get started, you will need:

• a pot
• pan to pour your custard into
• a spoon to stir with
• graham wafers
• bananas are optional but make a nice addition
• whisk 

 The other half was devoured before I could snap a photo.  Photo Credit:  Michelle Somers

• 1.  Mix 6 TBSP of custard powder and 6 TBSP sugar in a saucepan.
• 2. Gradually add 5 cups of almond milk (regular milk is fine) stirring with a whisk until well combined.
• 3. Bring this mixture to a full boil on medium heat stirring often. Serve warm or chilled (I really like it room temperature myself)
• 4. Lay graham wafers on the bottom of a pan (I used a square brownie size pan). You can also add a layer of bananas on top of the graham wafers.
• 5. Top with warm custard and let set.

 Photo Credit:  Michelle Somers

It is sweet on it’s own, if you want it a bit sweeter you can top your custard with maple syrup for a really nice maple taste. Or you can use agave.  Honey would also make a great choice.

Custard is also great as a filling for cakes as it adds a nice layer of creaminess.

Have you tried custard and if not what is your favourite treat to whip up?  #IBN30

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About Michelle
Michelle is one of the blooms and founder of Two Blooms Design Studio Est. 2002. She is in charge of production, designing all of our labels in house, photography, customer service, alchemist behind all of our scent blends, designer, creator and pretty much whatever else needs to be done.