Aaaah, Friday

Hat all done. I used Naturally Colourworks 100% wool (so soft) and cast on 64 sts on 6 1/2 DPN's. I don't know what kind of wood they are by the way, the hardware store just has their dowels labeled as hardwood. I assume that they must be birch or maple since they are so pale. Considering the price of them, I say birch. Anyway, I knit about 2" of 2x2 ribbing then switched to garter stitch until it was time to decrease. After consulting the Yarn Harlot's section on hats, I determined that I wanted a Type A personality finish. Although I still managed to mess that up so the hat came to a bit of an odd point. Thus, some braided dangly things to the rescue!

It even fits me pretty well!

Girly has to roll up the brim a little, but since the hat has ponytails, she doesn't want to take it off yet. Yay! A kid who will wear a handmade hat by Mom!

"Hey, that's not food. Where's the food, Lady?!"

Since tomorrow is Rememberance Day and I will be busy honouring all the men who have died, are dying and will die in the name of war, these will be the last recipes. Sunday is my Blogiversary and I will be sharing recipes of a different nature. One of them is my favourite design by me so far.

Salmon Citrus Bake

2 large grapefruit (thinly sliced)
2 large salmon fillets or steaks (skinned)
Fresh Rosemary
Butter
Salt and Pepper

Preheat oven to 375*F/190*C.
Line a large pan with parchment paper. Lay slices of grapefruit on an area large enough for both salmon fillets. Lay salmon fillets on grapefruit slices. Sprinkle with salt, pepper and fresh rosemary (you can also just lay whole sprigs on fillets) then lay remaining grapefruit slices on top of fillets. Dot with bits of cold butter. Place in oven uncovered and bake for 20-30 minutes or until salmon is pale pink throughout and flakes easily.

Have friends coming over? Switch the grapefruit for lemons, cut the salmon into bite sized pieces and put on a soaked skewer between lemon slices. Lay on parchment lined baking sheet and sprinkle with rosemary, salt and pepper. Bake at 375*F/190*C for 15-20 minutes or until salmon is pale pink throughout and flakes easily. If using something other than parchment paper, make sure to grease well.

Easy Fancy Rice

1/3 cup wild rice
1/3 cup brown rice
1/3 cup parboiled white rice
1 tbsp butter
2-3 shallots (finely chopped)
1 clove garlic (very finely chopped)
4-5 stalks chives (cut into smallish pieces)
2 1/2 cups cold water.
salt and pepper

In large saucepot bring water, 1/2 tsp salt, rices and butter to boil. Turn heat down to med high and continue to boil for a few minutes. Add remaining ingredients and cover. Continue to prepare rice according to directions for wild rice. Fluff with fork and serve hot or cold.

Maple Apple-Cherry Tart


Prep

1 cup dried Montmorency cherries (regular cherries would work well too)
1 cup boiling water
2 tbsp maple syrup

Combine all three, stir, cover with a bit of tin foil and let sit for a least one hour or all day if making after work.

Crust

2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tbsp oats
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup cold butter (cut into pieces)
2 tbsp sour cream
2 tbsp maple syrup

In a medium sized bowl combine flour, oats, baking powder and salt. Cut butter in with pastry cutter or large fork if you don't have one. Stir in sour cream and maple syrup. Mixing until it comes together. If it is still really dry, add a bit more maple syrup. You should be able to shape it into a disc that cracks easily when pushed on hard. Shape dough into thick disc, wrap in plastic wrap and chill for 15 minutes (or until you are finished with the apples).

Filling

5 Golden Delicious apples
4 tbsps of juice from prepped bowl of cherries
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 tbsp cold butter (cut into small pieces)
1 egg beaten with a bit of cold water
1/2 cup slivered raw almonds (sliced would work just as well)

Peel, core and slice apples. Drain remaining juice from cherries and set aside. In large bowl, toss apples and cherries with cinnamon and the 4 tbsps cherry juice.

Assembly

Preheat oven to 350*F/180*F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. On a lightly floured surface, roll out dough to about a 1/4" thick. Very carefully roll dough onto rolling pin and place on lined baking sheet. Pour apple mixture into centre of dough. Fold sides up around filling. Dot filling with butter. Brush sides of dough with egg wash and bake for 15 minutes. Take out of oven and sprinkle with raw almonds. Drizzle with another tbsp of leftover cherry juice. Put back in oven and bake for another 15 - 25 minutes or until crust is golden brown.

Top with whipped cream or serve as is.

Notes about Recipes

Most ingredients including molasses can be found at a bulk foods store. That way you can purchase just what you need if it is something you don't use often. Most bulk food stores let you bring your own containers. Just ask if they will weigh them on their scale first and mark the weight on the bottom of the container or on a label if you don't want your container written on. Most of them also have prep methods attached to the bins too, so take a recipe card or two if you are not sure how to make something like wild rice. Most prep instructions can also be found on-line if you forget to bring cards or where you put them.

All of the food recipes are my own. The bread recipes were not, however, I did have permission from my Grandma to share them. Although, recipes are not copyright protected the way patterns are. What is protected is the way the recipe is worded and how the book is put together. If I take a recipe from a book or a wesite and change the wording in it, I can consider it mine and share it should I so choose even if I do not add or subtract any ingredients or measures. If I were to write a recipe book, I could technically take someone else's book, change the order the recipes are put in the book and the wording of the recipes, the cover and illustrative pictures and sell it legally. Although I wouldn't do that since I don't think that's right.

The Maple Apple-Cherry Tart was originally seen on Sugar although I added the cherries, almonds and wording which means that this recipe has been altered enough for me to be comfortable sharing it and considering it mine and I don't mind sharing.

Happy cooking and baking! I hope you enjoy all the recipes I have shared.