Gooey Layered Everything Bars

Maternity leave has so far been like a holiday. 

It probably helps that there is, as of yet, no baby who needs to be taken care of. 

I know my daily routine will be thrown up and flipped around in ways I can't even imagine once she arrives. 

Currently, after a terrible nights sleep, I get out of bed around 8-8:30 and have breakfast. Then the dog and I go for a long 90 minute to 2 hour walk in the park. Then we come home, she naps and I listen to Serial (the most amazing podcast - if you haven't gotten hooked on this yet, do it). 

Then I run errands, tidy up, think about dinner, etc. 

Last night I finally got around to baking some tea cookies (after having the dough sit in the fridge for about a week - the sugar cookie dough is still there begging to be baked) and I decided that today I would do a bit more baking. 

I did a quick search through Martha's recipes and found one that I haven't tried yet. 

So today's recipe is a fairly easy and delicious one, one that you can pretty much tailor to your tastes and one that would be well received by anyone you'd like to gift these too. 

And when it says gooey, it really means gooey.

Like, good-luck-getting-it-out-of-the-pan-in-proper-pieces gooey.

Gooey Layered Everything Bars

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Place a layer of parchment paper in a bar pan.
• Using an electric mixer or a pastry cutter, mix 3/4 cup butter, 1/2 cup confectioners sugar, 1 1/2 cup flour, 3/4 cup rolled oats, and 1/2 tsp salt. Cut or pulse until mixture resembles coarse meal. Pour mixture into pan and press evenly into bottom of pan. Bake for 20 mins until lightly browned and firm.
• Remove from oven. Over crust, sprinkle 1 cup chocolate chips, 1/2 cup dried cranberries*. Drizzle with 1 can condensed milk, and 2 cups shredded sweetened coconut.  
• Bake until coconut is golden, about 20 minutes. Then remove, let cool and serve!

*I substituted dried cranberries. Martha's recipe calls for 1/2 cup raisins and 1 cup walnut pieces.  

A Merry Mat Leave Christmas : Toronto Christmas Market

I'm not normally one to brag about the sweet things my husband does for me but this one I have to share.

He knows I love Christmas.

He begrudgingly got and put up our tree earlier than usual this year so we could have it for the bad sweater party. 

On Friday he said he wanted to take me out on a date on Saturday.

We went to the Christmas Market, the most beautiful place during the holidays with all of its lights and christmas carols, warm drinks and inviting smells. 

While we wandered in the market he told me that this was day one of his 12 days of Christmas for me.

Earlier in the day he had gone shopping and after wrapping them up, plopped a bag of gifts under the tree. I assumed these were the gifts for his family being kept separate.

Nope.

All gifts for me to last the remaining days until Christmas.

He is the sweetest. 

I love that man. 

Our evening at the market was wonderful.

We had apple cider (with whiskey for the one who isn't pregnant) (I miss you, mulled wine) and shared a giant soft pretzel cuddled under a heat lamp.

This is the second year we've gone and the second year that we didn't buy anything other than food and drink. But it's so beautiful that walking around is more than enough. 

If you get a chance, check it out before it's gone!

It's open daily until December 21st 

Countdown to Baby E's due date: 8 days!

A Merry Mat Leave Christmas: DIY Garden Christmas Trees

I saw a really cute DIY project on Pinterest that I wanted to try, especially because we have limited lighting in the living room.

DIY Tomato Basket Christmas Trees.

As seen on Pinterest:

I was really inspired to try this project out when I found our umbrella lights in the shed. 

We never put up an umbrella in our table outside during the summer so the lights hadn't even been opened.

We grew a lot of cherry tomatoes this summer in the garden so we had tomato baskets galore. 

I brought one inside, washed off the dirt, and got to work.

I think standard lights would look great wrapped around the baskets, like in the Pinterest picture above, but I like the way the umbrella lights hung down from the  top of mine.

It's such an easy DIY Christmas decoration and looks wonderful. 

And then on Saturday we picked up our tree from Ikea and hung our stockings by the fire with care. 

Having done a lot of my Christmas shopping already, there are a fair number of gifts under the tree right now. 

It's beginning to feel a lot like Christmas!

Countdown to Baby E's Official Due Date : 14 days.

A Merry Maternity Leave Christmas: White Chocolate Cranberry Fudge

Though my maternity leave officially starts on Monday, I worked my last shift on Thursday so I am done work for the next 10 months!

On the first day of mat leave my true love gave to me 

a project and a recipe

(it kind of rhymes)

(also in this case 'my true love' = pinterest)

If you want a very simple recipe for fudge, I have just the one for you!

White Chocolate Cranberry Fudge

• Over low heat, melt 3 cups white chocolate chips with 1 300 ml can of sweetened condensed milk.
• Once the chocolate has melted, remove from heat and stir in 1 tbsp vanilla extract and 3/4 cup cranberries (I used craisins). 
• Pour into a pan lined with tinfoil. Allow to set in the fridge for 2 hours or until set. Then cut and enjoy!

The DIY project (which is also crazy easy if you have the necessaries) I'll post tomorrow.

We'll end with a baby update - 

37 weeks + 5 days today!

We're playing the waiting game now for baby E's arrival :)

Her official due date is December 22nd but she's fully cooked and could come any day now.

Baby Watch 2014 begins!

Last Minute Christmas Printables (and ice storm 2013 pictures)

It's Christmas Eve!

Our beautiful city was pummelled by an ice storm over the weekend and many people are still without power (including my parents).

We've been lucky and haven't been without power & heat but my parent's have been wrapping themselves in blankets upon blankets to stay warm since Sunday morning. 

I finally convinced my mom to come over yesterday for a shower and dinner but I haven't been able to talk them into sleeping here yet. 

Hopefully tonight.

Freezing rain and high winds caused a lot of trees to snap and pull down power lines all across the city. Roads and walkways were turned into skating rinks seemingly overnight.

Driving home on Sunday morning we saw a lot of the damage first hand:

This is the dog park we frequent. John took the dog but wisely didn't stay long as the trees were making ominous creaking noises and the possibility of having large branches come crashing down was too great.

This was a common sight on the roads.

But despite the destruction and danger, the ice has actually been quite pretty. 

I snapped this picture of John last night on our walk back to the apartment.

As a result of the lack of power we're switching up our Christmas Eve tradition this year (also cause my dad is working) which, as a big fan of traditions, I find really sucks. But I'm sure tonight will still be as magical as every other year.

Christmas Eve is hands down my favourite day of the year. 

Hopefully everyone is finished their shopping.

If you're struggling for some last minute gifts you could whip up some bacon jam, knit mittens (that post to come), or bake a batch of Christmas cookies (with Bailey's icing on those snowflakes)

And if you're wrapping up your gifts, why not print out and use these adorable rustic gift tags? I've been using the gift tag templates found HERE or you could use the tags found  HERE

If you're throwing a party why not make some props for people to take photos with?

Simply save and print this image to size, cut out and attach to sticks.

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVE EVERYONE! 

Red Velvet Christmas Chip Cookies

The first step in getting better is admitting you have a problem.

I have a problem.

My diet as of late has been shameful.

Just absolutely shameful.

I wake up and the first thing I do after brushing my teeth is I throw on a bunch of layers and take the dog for a long walk in the park. 

Usually I grab something to stuff into my mouth as I'm heading out the door and this, unfortunately, is usually a cookie or 2 or 3 Quality Street chocolates. 

Then I get home and have another cookie or more chocolates and make myself a giant mug of coffee.

Then I'll think about having a real meal.

But you better believe there are plenty more holiday treats sprinkled in between.

I should probably slow down on the sugar.

Anyway, it was a sugar craving and need to get into the kitchen that got me making these cake based cookies.

They're soft and chewy (or can be crispy if you don't put them into an airtight container) and delicious.

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix 1 box of red velvet cake mix with 1 egg, 1/2 cup softened butter and 2 tbsp canola oil. 
• Mix in 1 cup green & red mini m&ms.
• Drop a tablespoon of dough on a greased cookie sheet and press flat. Bake for 10-12 minutes then let cool. 
• Place cookies in an airtight container to maintain their softness.

And that's it!

Easy and delicious and festively coloured for the holidays.

Wreath Making

On Wednesday night we had some friends over for eggnog, wine & cheese, to watch Christmas Vacation, and to make Christmas wreaths. 

John got our supplies in the forest so they were fresh and (more importantly) free.

We took beautiful red dogwood branches and gently bent them into circles, tying areas together with twine to keep them together. Then we covered them with cedar boughs and pine cones. 

Dogwood branches are flexible and the small twigs can be wrapped around the bigger areas to make the wreath look cleaner. Having some of the twigs poking out makes the wreath look more rustic so we didn't bother worrying about tucking all of the twigs in.

To keep the branches together and to help the wreath hold it's shape, we tied pieces of twine around the wood at certain points. 

After securing our base together we stuck cedar branches in between the twigs.

They stayed put, there was no need to secure them in with twine.

Then to spice it up a bit we added pine cones to our wreaths. 

We tied fishing line around the bottom of the pine cones then tied the pine cones to the wreath. 

We hung ours on our door immediately.

You could add berries, ornaments, anything you wanted for a splash of colour. We may add more to our wreath but for now it smells and looks wonderful. 

Christmas Market & Mulled Wine

On Friday night John and I made our way down to the Distillery District to meet up with some friends to check out the popular Christmas Market. 

Having never gone before, my expectations were high from seeing pictures in years past. I was not disappointed.

When you get to the Distillery District the first thing you see is lights, lights, and more lights.

It's magical.

Unless you go during the day, then I can't promise the lights will be as magical. 

It's just beautiful. I spent the first few minutes just squealing.

We stopped first for some free scotch (John) and apple cider & rum (me, because they had temporarily run out of mulled wine) and warmed up by the fires they had going in their beer market (see the first picture).

Then we walked around to check out the tree, the carousel, and the ferris wheel. 

On our way to the wine sampling (where there's wine, we'll find it) we stopped to pose with the Gingerbread house. Then we sampled a selection of Ontario wines from Malivoire, Henry of Pelham, and a few others we've yet to visit.  

Then after a quick stop for a grilled cheese with bacon sandwich, we made our way back to the adult beverages for some mulled wine and more scotch.

My first time trying mulled wine was Friday afternoon when I made my own. 

I'm hooked. 

I used Martha Stewart's recipe and made a few changes based on what I had handy.

Follow the original Martha recipe here 

Or my slightly different version below

1. Set a pot over high heat. Pour in one bottle of red wine.
2. Add in the zest  and juice from 1 orange, 1 tbsp black peppercorns, 1 tbsp cloves, 1 cinnamon stick, and 1/2 cup brandy.
3. In a tea bag, spoon in 1/2 tbsp nutmeg and 1/2 tbsp all spice. Bring up to a boil and add teabag to the mix. Reduce heat to low and let simmer for about 30 minutes. Turn off heat and let wine cool slightly.
4. Pour wine through a strainer to remove the zest, peppercorns, cloves, cinnamon, and teabag.

Then pour contents back into the original wine bottle.

Mulled wine is best served warm so if you don't drink it right away heat it up again before serving.

And if you're feeling crafty - make a fancy new label for your bottle.

I made this one for the bottle I brought to my brother in law's birthday dinner last night.

Most of the alcohol burns off during the process so if you want you can add a dash of brandy to the finished process for more of a kick.

If not, just enjoy the wonderful taste of Christmas Sangria! 

Winter Wonderland

 

This week I've had a lot of time off which has been wonderful.

It means long walks in the park with the pup every morning which has given me a greater appreciation of quiet mornings spent surrounded by nature.

 

Last week during the cold snap we had I was lucky enough to snap this picture on my phone of Reese enjoying the snow.

As cold as it was it was hard to be upset when it looked that beautiful outside.

 

I also put the finishing touches on John's Advent jar (minus one gift that I'll need to pick up still). It's been a trial in patience not eating any of his Lindt or Terry's chocolate orange chocolates.

 I used tickets I bought from the dollar store for the Bad Christmas Sweater fundraiser raffle two years ago. On them I stuck numbers from a bunch of sheets I had (I used a lot of the letters but thankfully had almost all of the numbers I needed left). Then I stapled them to the chocolates or taped them onto the gifts and left them for John to take.

 

I also had some time to bake up a batch of sugar cookies and a batch of gingerbread cookies. There's more dough in the freezer just waiting for the next time I want cookies.

 

 

The gingerbread batch turned out phenomenal - easily the best batch I've made. No cracks in the dough, perfect colour, and that lovely taste of molasses.

I used the Martha Stewart recipe from her Cookies book which can be found here.

 

Tonight John and I are hitting the Christmas Market in the Distillery District (and going to see the Nutcracker on the 28th!). Aside from missing the Cavalcade of Lights (I was working, maybe next year) I will have done everything on my Christmas To Do list.

 

And Saturday we're putting up the tree!

 

 

Bacon Jam: the ultimate stocking stuffer

As I was perusing this month's issue of Martha Stewart Living, I kept coming back to one page in particular because it looked too good to be true. 

It was a recipe for a homemade gift, a perfect stocking stuffer for carnivorous friends and family.

It was Bacon Jam. 

So yesterday I spent the afternoon in the kitchen, surrounded by the happy smells of frying bacon, onion and garlic, bubbling brandy, maple syrup and brown sugar.

If you're looking for something to wow your friends, make this for them. 

This recipe is based on the Martha Stewart Living recipe found here but with my own substitutions.

1. Cut 2 500-gram packages of bacon into 1 inch pieces. Spread half of the bacon in a single layer in a large skillet and cook over medium heat until brown, about 20-25 minutes. Repeat with the remaining bacon, making sure to drain off as much fat as possible in the process. 
2. Save 1 tbsp bacon fat in the skillet and add to that 1 large red onion, diced, and 4 cloves of garlic, also diced. Cook until translucent, about 5 minutes. 
3. Stir in 1 tbsp paprika and 1 tbsp freshly grated ginger and cook for another minute. 
4. Turn heat up to high. Add in 1 cup brandy, 3/4 cup maple syrup, 1/2 cup brown sugar and 1/2 cup red wine vinegar. Bring to a boil then add in bacon.
5. Reduce heat to low and let simmer, stirring occasionally, until liquid reduces to a thick glaze. I added in 1/4 cup molasses and a bit of corn starch to get my liquid to thicken.

Warning: your kitchen and subsequently your home is going to smell like heaven at this point.

6. Once thickened, let it cool then transfer to a blender or food processor and puree to the consistency of a thick/chunky jam. 

7. Put jam into airtight containers or jars for gifting or saving and refrigerate for at least one hour. The jam should keep in the fridge for about a month. 

Make sure to sample some for yourself as well. 

Enjoy!

Easy Holiday Ornaments

As I patiently (kind of) wait for this weekend to hurry up and get here so we can get our tree and finish Christmas decorating the apartment, I've been keeping myself occupied with other holiday things.

I've made cookies, I've started putting up decorations, and I've been wrapping presents.

 

Inspired by my friend Emily (who invited me to do a nursing/first aid talk with her Brownie troupe last Wednesday which was SO much fun) who does a handmade ornament swap, I thought I'd try and make some of my own.

 

After a Pinterest browse I came across a cute idea using scrabble tiles.

My best friend's husband calls me Scrabble (long story involving me trying to use code to talk about him with my friend wen they first started dating) so I though this craft was particularly appropriate.

 

I googled where I could buy extra scrabble tiles but ultimately ended up buying a bag off of Ebay.

 

I'm sure many stores that sell games also sell additional tiles. You can also purchase them on Etsy (as well as purchasing only the tiles you need).

 

All you need for this craft is scrabble tiles, something to make the ornament hang on the tree like a hook or ribbon, and a glue gun.

 

 

I spent more time than I'd like to admit trying to arrange words and sentences into scrabble patterns (Silent Night worked pretty well with the night coming off of the N in silent) and racked my brain for holiday phrases.

 

On the docket for today: making bacon jam.

Yep.

Apparently it's a real thing.

And it sounds gloooooorious.