BASIL CHICKEN STEW + GIVEAWAY

 

STEW SEASON IS BACK! this past weekend in toronto the weather dropped. the air was crisp, i put on my favourite knit grey sweater & decided it was finally time to make stew. figures it is back to summer weather this week, but let's just ignore that & talk about this stew. you probably thought until now i ate cookies & cake for breakfast, lunch & dinner. however, most of the time i eat healthy, vegetable rich meals. soups & stews are something i can make in my sleep. they are perfect for a cozy sunday afternoon & the left overs make for a healthy, hearty, homemade work day lunch. this particular stew is super healthy, as i pack a ton of veggies & lean chicken into it. if you want to make it even healthier, feel free to swap out the chicken legs for chicken breasts (but i prefer the bones to give it some additional flavour). lastly, using fresh basil, freshens up the dish & gives it a subtle rather then overwhelming flavour. now blow the dust off your cocotte & lets get stewing!

PS. there i am hosting an amazing giveaway on instagram with polders old world market that you should probably check out. it's a $350 giftcard to get yourself some hand carved wood dreamware!

ingredients:

  • 1 large onion, chopped
  • 3 carrots, pealed & chopped
  • 3 celery stalks, chopped
  • 1 red pepper, chopped
  • 1 cup sliced white mushrooms
  • 1 cup diced potatoes
  • 2-3 garlic cloves chopped
  • 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
  • 6 chicken legs
  • salt & pepper
  • 5 cups chicken stock (store bought or homemade)
  • 2-3 sprigs fresh basil
  • 1 teaspoon dried parsely
  • 1 tablespoon cornstarch (optional)
  • 1 cup frozen peas

directions:

  • in a mixing bowl place onion, carrots, celery, red pepper, mushrooms, potatoes and garlic. set aside.
  • to a large stock pot or dutch oven heat two tablespoons of olive oil to medium high.
  • season your chicken legs with salt & pepper and sear on each side. remove from the pot and set aside.
  • add in your bowl of chopped veggies and cook until they begin to soften & the onions begin to turn translucent. season with salt & pepper.
  • add the chicken legs back to the pot followed by the chicken stock, basil and parsely.
  • turn heat on high & bring to a boil. turn back down to medium low & let simmer with the lid on for 45 minutes to 1 hour.
  • if you wish to thicken it with cornstarch add it now by making a cornstarch slurry (to avoid adding it straight to the pot which may result in clumping).
  • finish off with adding your frozen peas and remove from the heat. adding the peas at the end ensures the colour stays fresh & vibrant.
  • serve with a few springs of fresh basil.

MAPLE CINNAMON CAKE

 

my sister is obsessed with fall, maybe even more then me.. ok probably not. while her birthday is technically in mid-august, we weren't able to actually celebrate it with the whole family until september. this then turned into a combined birthday bash celebrating my mom's late august birthday as well. i figured a maple based cake was the perfect flavour combination to go with an early fall celebration! the party was a lot of fun. we ate these ribs & went super italian by holding a boccee tournament. it was like the grown up italian version of a beer pong tournament. anyways, enjoy this dreamy looking cake! it is filled with pure maple syrup & cinnamon, some of my favourite ingredients (i'll get to you in october pumpkin;)). this weekend's gloomy, rainy weather may be the perfect excuse to stay in, get cozy & make yourself this cake!

ingredients

for the cake

  • 3 3/4 cups flour
  • 3 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
  • 1/4 cup vegetable oil
  • 1 1/2 cup raw sugar
  • 3 eggs
  • 1 cup pure maple syrup
  • 2 teaspoon vanilla
  • 3/4 cup whole milk

for the frosting

  • 1 1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
  • 3-4 cups powdered sugar, or to taste
  • 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • 1/8 teaspoon salt

directions

  • preheat oven to 325 degrees. grease & flour two 9-inch round cake pans.
  • in a mixing bowl sift flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon. set aside.
  • in the bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment cream butter and sugar.
  • add oil, eggs, maple syrup and vanilla until light and fluffy.
  • alternate between adding dry ingredients & milk until a smooth batter is formed. do not over mix.
  • evenly distribute batter between the two greased cake pans & bake until a tooth pick comes out clean. about 25-30 minutes.
  • let cool completely before flipping & frosting.
  • to make the frosting beat butter, sugar, cinnamon, vanilla and salt until light & fluffy. about 8 minutes.
  • frost cake as desired. enjoy!

like what you see? get it here. cake stand | cake turntable | linen

SPICED PEAR PIE

 

"PIE IS ON THE BLOG". a phrase you will be hearing a lot over the next few months. apple pie, pumpkin pie, sugar pie, oh so many pies are to be made this season! but today, lets focus on this spiced red pear pie. i have seriously never seen or eaten a pear pie before, which is why i was so intrigued to make one. what does everyone have against pears? i see them as a weirdly shaped apple, yet apples seem to get ALL the attention when it comes to pie making. pear pie results in a similar taste & texture to apple pie, but at the end you get a nice hint of pear flavour coming through. so give it a try this season! any type of pear will work, just pick the firmest ones you can find so your pie doesn't get mushy.

ingredients

for the dough

  • 3 cups all purpose flour
  • 1 tablespoon sugar
  • 1 teaspoon sea salt
  • 3/4 cup unsalted butter, cold & cubed
  • 1/3 cup vegetable shortening, cold
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • 1/2 cup ice water
  • 1 egg, for egg wash (optional)

for the filling

  • 5-6 cups sliced red pears
  • 1/2 raw sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • 1 tablespoon cornstarch

directions

  • begin by making the dough. using a food processor pulse the flour, salt and sugar.
  • add the cubed butter, shortening and vanilla. pulse until a crumb like mixture forms.
  • add the cold water one tablespoon at a time until the crumbs begin to come together. turn out onto a pastry board and shape dough into a disk. if dough seems wet, add a bit more flour. if the dough seems dry, add a bit more water.
  • wrap in cling wrap and refrigerate for minimum 2 hours.
  • for the filling mix pears, sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, vanilla and cornstarch in a bowl. toss until evenly coated and combined.
  • once you are ready to assemble the pie, pre-heat oven to 400 degrees.
  • roll out half the dough between 3/4cm and 1cm thick. transfer to pie dish and clean up & shape edges. poke dough with a fork a few times to allow steam to release.
  • roll out remaining dough to the same thickness for the top.
  • to create a lattice style top, cut dough into equal size strips using a pastry wheel or knife. arrange one set of strips evenly across in one direction, followed by a second set of strips in the opposite direction. weave strips through each other as you lay your second set down. trim & clean up edges.
  • add one tablespoon of water to egg to create an egg mixture. brush all over pie top & bake pie for 35-40 minutes.
  • let cool completely before serving.

like what you see? get it here. pie server | french rolling pin | mug | plates | linens | wooden spoon