Ginger Molasses Cake with Apple Cider Sauce

Ginger molasses cake was a classic winter dessert growing up. We often had it around the holidays - warming, aromatic, and so cozy. Most recipes make a 9 x 13 pan which is simply too much dessert for someone living alone. This version keeps all of the comfort of the original recipes but adjusts it to make 1 circle cake pan, or 8 servings, instead of what sometimes feels like 400 servings. I’m being dramatic, but small batch baking is needed in 2020! The sauce uses pressed apple cider (the kind that comes in jugs at the farmers market), but if apple cider is out of season I’ve included a modification below for a brown sugar sauce. Served best warm with whipped cream or ice cream.

---

Ginger Molasses Cake w/ Apple Cider Sauce

8 servings, 35-45 mins total

Cake Ingredients:

1/3 cup butter, room temperature

1/3 cup white sugar

1 egg

1/2 cup molasses

1 1/2 cup all purpose flour

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1 tsp ground ginger

1/2 tsp kosher salt

1/2 cup hot water

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 375F. Line the bottom of a 9 inch cake pan (circle) or 8x8 square pan with parchment paper and grease the sides.

2. Cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add in egg and continue to mix until well incorporated.

3. Mix in molasses - if using an electric mixer  beat for 2-3 mins until light and fluffy. Otherwise mix by hand for 5-6 mins until light and fluffy.

4. Add in dry ingredients, mixing until just combined. Texture should be like cookie dough.

5. Pour in hot water and mix until batter becomes looser. Do not overmix, you just want the batter to look uniform.

6. Pour into a greased and lined cake pan and bake at 375F oven for 20-25 mins, until the cake tester comes out clean.

Sauce Ingredients:

1 cup of apple cider 

¼ cup of brown sugar

2 tbsp of flour

2 tbsp of butter

Method:

1. In a small pot combine apple cider, brown sugar and flour over medium heat. Whisk until clumps of flour are gone and bring to a boil. 

2. Boil until sauce thickens (3-5 mins). Remove from heat. Add butter and whisk until combined. Serve warm over gingerbread.

** if you don’t have apple cider, you could do 1 cup of brown sugar, ½ cup water, and 1 tsp of lemon juice, plus the above flour and butter ratios for a tangy brown sugar sauce.

Zucchini & Grilled Chicken Quesadillas

I love quesadillas but always find my homemade attempts have led to inconsistent filling and structural issues (read: the filling falls out when I flip them). Inspired by Smitten Kitchen’s method, this veggie filling has the cheese folded in, which allows it all to stick together and create more even quesadillas. The cooked down zucchini makes these taste almost cheesier than they are because it takes on a jammy texture. Super filling with all that veg, but you would hardly know it’s there!

---

Zucchini & Grilled Chicken Quesadillas

Makes 4 quesadillas, This recipe is inspired by Smitten Kitchen’s Zucchini Quesadillas

Ingredients/Method:

Chicken marinade:

• 2 chicken breasts

• 1/2 tsp ancho chilli powder (or any chilli powder)

• 1/2 tsp ground cumin

• 1/2 tsp smoked paprika

• 1/2 tsp garlic powder

• 1/2 tsp kosher salt

• 1.5 tbsp olive oil

Let the chicken marinate for 30 mins at room temp (or in the fridge for 30 mins - 4 hours). Grill on bbq until internal temp reaches 165F.

Quesadilla filling:

• 1/2 white onion, thinly sliced

• 1 red pepper, thinly sliced

• 2 medium zucchini, halved lengthwise and thinly sliced

• 1 clove garlic minced

• 1/2 cup - 3/4 cup shredded cheese (cheddar or havarti would work)

• Olive oil

• Salt n pepper

Sautée onions with olive oil over medium heat until soft. Add in garlic and red pepper, continue to cook until peppers are softened. Add in zucchini and 1/2 tsp kosher salt. Continue to cook 5-7 minutes over medium until zucchini is translucent and jammy. Remove from heat and fold in shredded cheese. Taste and adjust seasoning if needed.

To assemble, scoop 1/4 of veggie/cheese mixture onto flour tortilla (I used whole wheat!). Add sliced chicken. Top with another flour tortilla. 

Bring a clean non-stick pan to medium heat, with a little bit of oil. Cook one side of the quesadilla until crispy, about 3 minutes. Flip with confidence! Cook the other side until crispy. Remove from pan and keep warm in the oven on a cookie sheet while you repeat with the others.

Serve with sour cream, salsa and top with shredded lettuce with lime juice and a pinch of salt!

Nanny's Banana Bread

There are a million banana bread recipes on the internet. It’s hard to know which one to follow; which one will give the best result? All I can say is, in my eyes, this is the best banana bread out there because… it’s my Nanny’s recipe. This is the banana bread I ate my whole childhood - dark in colour and rich in flavour. I’ve tweaked it slightly to reduce the sugar and use whole grain flour (optional). But otherwise, it’s pretty much exactly how my darling grandmother made it.

---

Nanny’s Banana Bread

NOTE: This bread will keep on the counter for 2-3 days if you top with a banana slice like pictured. Without the banana on top, 4-5 days. It also freezes very well - recommend slicing and putting parchment paper between each slice. Reheat individual slices at 350F until toasty!

ingredients

4 small or 3 large bananas, very ripe and browned (+ one additional for topping if you’d like)

½ cup unsalted butter, melted

½ cup white sugar

2 eggs

1 cup all-purpose flour

¾ cup whole grain flour (or you can do all AP if you do not have WG)

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp baking powder

¾ tsp kosher salt

method:

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Prepare a loaf pan by greasing with butter or cooking spray and lining with a parchment paper “hammock” (parchment paper covers bottom and sides length wise).

2. In a large bowl, mash your ripened bananas. Add in melted butter, sugar and eggs, mixing until well combined.

3. In a medium bowl, whisk together dry ingredients.

4. Pour dry ingredients into the wet ingredient bowl and fold in, being careful to not overmix. No flour should be visible, but clumps are ok!

5. Pour into your prepared loaf pan. If you have an extra banana, slice in half lengthwise and place on top of the batter.

6. Bake for 60-75 mins, until deeply browned and a cake tester comes out clean. Allow to cool completely before slicing.

Warm Potato Salad with Leek and Bacon

I developed this recipe a few years ago when trying to think of a mayo alternative for potato salad. I have a few friends who do not like mayo based foods, and my paranoid #foodsafety makes me weary of white sauces in the summer. I wanted something that would taste delicious warm or room temperature without fear of illness. I had been playing around with mustard, apple cider vinegar and maple syrup for other salads and roasted vegetables, and thought the combination with bacon and leeks would make for a flavourful side. The result is zingy, savoury and hearty - the perfect sidekick to any BBQ this summer.

---

Warm Potato Salad with Leek and Bacon

30 mins total

Ingredients:

Dressing:

2 tbsp grainy mustard

½ cup apple cider vinegar

1 tbsp maple syrup

¼ tsp of kosher salt

¼ cup extra virgin olive oil

Salad:

2 bags of baby potatoes (3 lbs total)

2 leeks, white parts sliced (yields roughly 2 ½ cups sliced)

8-12 strips of bacon, preferably from a market or local butcher

¼ cup fresh parsley, roughly chopped

Salt and pepper to taste

The prep (you can do these three steps at the same time - mostly inactive cooking):

1. Rinse the potatoes and place in a large pot and cover with water. Bring to a simmer and boil until potatoes are fork tender (about 15 minutes). Once cooked through, drain and set aside.

2. Bake the bacon: this is my favourite way to cook bacon. Less mess and a more even cook. Preheat oven to 350F and place bacon onto a parchment paper lined cookie sheet in a single layer. Bake until the bacon is cooked and crisp - about 20 minutes. Remove from cookie sheet and place on paper towels. The bacon will crisp up more as it cools. Once cooled, chop into bite sized pieces and set aside.

3. In a large bowl whisk together the grainy mustard, apple cider vinegar, maple syrup and kosher salt. Slowly pour in the oil while whisking until the vinaigrette is emulsified. Take ¼ cup of the vinaigrette out and set aside in a small bowl or mason jar.

The assembly:

1. In a medium sized frying pan, add any bacon fat that pooled onto your cookie sheet while it baked. If there isn’t much, add about 1 tbsp of olive oil. Heat to medium. Add in your sliced leeks and cook gently until translucent and tender, about 10 minutes.

2. Add your leeks into the large bowl with 3/4 of your vinaigrette and allow them to soak while you cut your potatoes small bite sized pieces (½ inch). Add to the leek/vinaigrette mixture, along with your chopped bacon. Toss.

3. Taste - does it need salt? If it doesn’t taste yummy and addictive yet, you likely need to season it more. Remember that potatoes are inherently bland and need a lot of help. I usually end up adding about ½ tsp more kosher salt during the final taste and season.

4. Serve warm or chill until ready to serve.

5. If chilling before serving, use your reserved vinaigrette right before serving - the potatoes will likely have soaked up most of the sauce. Top with chopped fresh parsley.

Mocha Almond Cookies (Gluten Free)

These cookies are like if a brownie and an almond cookie had a baby. Not too sweet, more cake-y than cookie, they are a quick and easy (+gluten free) dessert. I have a sincere love/hate relationship with baking. The precision of traditional recipes can sometimes be too much for my patience. What if I forgot to leave the butter out and it’s not room temperature? Soften in the microwave for a touch too long and your butter is melted, ruining any chance of a fluffy cream with the sugar. This recipe is designed to be fool proof. Even when I shot these photos I forgot the cocoa powder and had to add it at the end. All was well. That’s my kind of baking!

---

Mocha Almond Cookies (Gluten Free)

30 mins

Yields: 12-15 cookies

Ingredients:

1 ½ cups almond flour

¼ cup cocoa powder

1 tsp instant coffee

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp kosher salt

½ cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

¼ cup unsalted butter

¼ cup natural almond butter

1 egg

⅓ cup white sugar

1 tsp vanilla

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 375F. Prepare a cookie sheet with a silpat mat or parchment paper.

2. In a small mixing bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients (almond flour, cocoa powder, instant coffee, baking powder, kosher salt). Set aside.

3. In a microwave safe bowl add the semi-sweet chocolate chips, butter and almond butter.  Microwave on medium-high in 45 second increments (likely only need 2) until the chocolate chips and butter melt.

   • Stir in between to combine - it may look like the chocolate isn’t fully melted but when you stir they may melt into the heat. Stir until smooth. Set aside to cool for 5 mins.

4. In a large mixing bowl whisk together the egg, sugar and vanilla until combined.

5. Pour your melted butter/chocolate mixture into the egg mixture, and stir until smooth.

6. Add your dry ingredients and fold in until everything is well incorporated.

7. Scoop 1.5 tbsp portions and roll each into a ball. Place onto prepared cookie sheet and press down with three fingers to slightly flatten. Cookies won’t spread much but leave 1 inch in between.

8. Repeat for 12-15 cookies.

9. If desired, top cookies with flaky sea salt or a little extra kosher salt.

10. Bake in preheated oven for 12 minutes.

11. Allow to cool on the sheet - enjoy!