PB Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Loaf

Autumn is here and that means time for baking! There is nothing like the smell of freshly baked goods in autumn! This recipe incorporates some of my very favourite flavours!

I came across a version of this recipe last fall. I made it then and it turned out okay but the baking times were way off and I knew I had to play with the recipes ingredients a bit to make it work for me!

First off, when a recipe calls for pumpkin, I ALWAYS substitute with butternut squash - which is far more economical and versatile for baking, side dishes and main courses. Besides, once the usual spices are added, you REALLY can't tell the difference in the flavour between pumpkin and butternut squash in a baked good! I buy at least 3 or 4 good sized butternut squash every fall - when they are the most abundant and cheapest - then cook them up and freeze in 1/2 cup portions. This is the perfect size for baking or individual servings for meals. The pic below shows the steps for preparing and freezing the squash for the freezer. For more details, see the recipe for "Autumn Chippers" from last year which details the process. It also has links to other "pumpkin"/squash recipes.

Adding peanut butter to a "pumpkin" recipe may seem a bit odd, but in this case, it is added instead of traditional fats like oil, margarine or butter. A nice twist on flavour without overpowering. Rather it blends in well and the use of crunchy peanut butter also adds to the texture and flavour of the loaf.  

The original recipe also called for yogurt - which I never buy as it doesn't agree with my digestive system. I used fat free sour cream.

I also never buy pumpkin pie spice as various brands/blends can be quite different in strength, taste and freshness. It should also be noted that not all recipes require all the pumpkin spice mix ingredients so it is better to just add the spices individually. Instead, I googled "pumpkin spice mix" and created my own combo of spices for this recipe after reading several recipe blends. The spice quantities here may seem like a lot but when it is done, the flavour is purely complimentary and not at all overwhelming.

The other major issue I had with the original recipe was the baking times. The poster seemed to like it undercooked and took it out of the oven at about 30 minutes! ICK! I'm not a fan of undercooked loaves so when I baked the original, it took about an hour to fully cook in the middle but by then the edges had started to dry out. I was not impressed!

The baking time variations was a direct result of too much batter for one loaf pan but not enough to divide it into two. The solution? It seemed obvious to me that the quantity of batter needed to be adjusted. I added 50% more of most of the ingredients and a bit more than that of the squash, sour cream and of course more of the chocolate chips! (DUH!) I then divided the recipe into two pans! The results are much more evenly baked loaves that are still bursting with autumn flavour!

As usual, I've passed out samples to several people. Everyone thought it was delicious! 

PB Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Loaf

1 Tablespoon cinnamon

1 1/2 teaspoons ground ginger

3/4 teaspoon all spice

3/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/8 teaspoon ground cloves

1/8 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour

1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour

2/3 cup light or fat free sour cream

1 1/2 cups pure pumpkin OR butternut squash

3/4 cup crunchy peanut butter (I use Skippy)

6 Tablespoons granulated sugar

3/4 cup brown sugar

3 eggs

1 3/4 cups chocolate chips, divided*

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray 2 9"x5" loaf pans with cooking spray.

Combine the spices, baking soda, salt and flours in a medium bowl. Set aside.

In a stand mixer, combine the sour cream, pumpkin/squash and peanut butter. Stir in sugars and combine thoroughly Add the eggs and beat till smooth. Add in the spice/flour mixture and combine thoroughly - stopping to scrape down the bowl as needed. The batter will be stiff. Stir about 1 1/4 cup chocolate chips into batter and mix thoroughly.  

Divide the batter evenly into prepared pans. Smooth out the tops with the back of a spoon or fork.  Sprinkle the remaining chocolate chips over the top and lightly press into batter with the spoon or fork.

* If for some reason, you don't want to add as many chocolate chips, you could also add some chopped peanuts - either to the loaf itself or to press onto the top.

Bake for about 45 minutes or until the toothpick test comes out  just shy of clean clean. DO NOT OVERBAKE!! If the edges seem to be drying out before the center is done, cover lightly with foil and continue baking. 

Cool on rack for about 10 minutes before removing from pan to finish cooling.

Slice and serve. These also freeze well. I cut the loaves in half and wrap each half tightly in plastic wrap then place in a freezer bag for later enjoyment!

Enjoy!

dn

Teaspoons Or Milliliters?

In my last post, I talked about Canada switching from imperial to metric and the confusion/frustrations that still continue 40 years later. Today, I want to share some thoughts on metric versus imperial in the kitchen.

I was helping my mom and grandma in the kitchen before I even went to school. They only knew the imperial system. When metric was introduced in the 1970's, my mom and I bought metric measures and tried a few recipes but just never got the hang of it. There was some metric instruction in the food section of my home economics classes at school (at that time it was a 1/2 day/6 day cycle for half the year) but the main focus was still imperial.

We eventually gave away our metric measures and never bothered with metric recipes.

Why?

When it comes to cooking/baking you can't do a straight conversion without a lot more measuring or adjusting to a recipe. It isn't as simple as following most charts that are available online. Not all charts are created equally. Some give exact conversion to the decimal and others round it off - sometimes up and sometimes down! How it is rounded off can make a huge difference in some recipes! So you have to ask: 1) Was the recipe created in one system and converted to the other? 2) Has it been tested to see how accurate the conversion was?

Measuring ingredients for an imperial based recipe in metric can be tricky. Once a direct conversion is done, the exact numbers are then rounded up or down to the nearest milliliter. Then you have to figure out how much to add or subtract - ingredient wise - using your metric measures.

Imperial measuring spoons are sold in sets of 1/8, 1/4, 1/2, 1 teaspoon and 1 Tablespoon

Metric measures generally come in 1, 2.5, 5, 10 and 15 milliliter.

Imperial measuring cups come in 1/4, 1/3, 1/2 and 1 cup (if you are lucky, your set will also include 2/3 and 3/4 cup measures)

Metric measures can be found in various forms but generally there is a 60 (in some sets it is a 50), 75, 125 and 250 ml.

From the chart above, you can see some of the potential problems in a direct conversion. The metric equivalent to the imperial cup has almost 1 Tablespoon more of that ingredient! The differences may not seem like much for the measuring spoons or even the smaller measuring cups but depending on the ingredient, that difference can make the difference in the success or failure of a recipe.

For example: Too little or too much of a spice/seasoning can ruin the taste. Too much baking powder can make a recipe fall while too little can prevent it from rising. Too much or little liquid can make a recipe fail as can too much or too little flour. Erring on the side of less isn't always a success either. It's a careful balancing act of ingredients.

Just thinking about the conversions is enough to give you a headache!

For home cooks/bakers such as myself, it can be a challenge at times. The imperial system for measuring ingredients was ingrained in my memory hard drive at a very young age. I have a basic grasp of metric but I still think in imperial. I have liquid measures that list both and a kitchen scale that can weigh things in ounces or grams. I don't own metric measuring cups and measuring spoons.

I find inspiration for my recipes by reading other recipes and the comments that others have on what they've done differently but I rarely give a second glance to a metric recipe. For me, it's rarely worth the time and effort.

Thankfully, most web sites give the ingredients in imperial on the left side, followed by the ingredient. Some will give a metric amount in brackets either after the imperial or to the right of the ingredient. Some sites will even give you an option as to which format you wish to view the recipe in (use those with caution!). I stick to imperial whenever I can and often ignore metric recipes rather than attempting to convert them.

I also get really frustrated with recipes that list metric first.

Case in point: The website for Peak Of The Market (Manitoba grown produce) offers a daily recipe.

A little over a year ago, I posted the following comment online:

"I've been subscribing to peak recipes for several years and as much as I enjoy them, I find it extremely frustrating that the metric is on the left side. I know metric is "supposed" to be standard here in Canada, but frankly I don't know anyone who uses it for recipes or even owns metric measures (other than the dual labeling on liquid measures)! When you read recipes, you naturally read the ingredient on the left even when it isn't applicable to your measuring methods. Metric on the left is not just annoying, it can also lead to errors if you aren't really reading carefully. When I want to save one of your recipes, I have to copy/paste it into a doc, delete the metric line by line, then move the imperial to the left line by line before I save and/or print it. This is time consuming and annoying so I don't save/use as many as I might otherwise. IF the imperial can't be on the left then there really should be an option as to which format you want to print/save recipes in. Other sites have that capability and so should Peak."

Their reply - "Hello Thanks for your comments. We are required to list metric first in Canada in everything we do. Whether that is on our bags of vegetables or on our recipes."

My reply -  "I recognize that products here must be listed in metric first, HOWEVER if you check other Canadian sites that feature recipes such as Kraft Canada, Food Network Canada, Canadian Living, etc. you will find that the vast majority of their recipes are listed with imperial first. If they mention metric, it is in brackets after the imperial or for the size of the package required as per Canadian standards.

Also, IF you are in fact required to produce ALL recipes in metric - then why are these Manitoba sites posting the vast majority of their recipes with imperial (and metric in brackets if it is even added)?

http://www.foodmanitoba.ca/

http://www.milk.mb.ca/

http://manitobachicken.ca/

http://manitobapork.com/

http://www.mbbeef.ca/

I am not disagreeing with having the metric version in the recipe - just its positioning. It should be in brackets or to the right - NOT the first thing you see."

It seems they didn't have a response to common sense logic as they never replied - and my remarks were subsequently removed by them..

With the exception of Peak, all of the above listed sites are primarily in imperial - as are many Canadian cookbooks such as the wonderful books and website ofJanet and Greta Podleski. So, despite living in a supposedly metric country, there is lots of imperial based Canadian content to chose from as well as countless other recipe books and websites from around the world.

And YES, I'm sticking to my imperial roots! I have no intention of buying any metric measures or converting my recipes. All of my recipes are based on and/or created with the imperial system.

dn

After 40 Years With Metric. It Is Still Confusing!

The metric system is supposed to be the legal unit of measure in Canada. The federal government began implementing the system back in the early 1970's.

The concept of a base 10 system seems relatively simple. However, the problem is in the conversion.

Here in Canada, my generation (baby boomers) and those before me, grew up using the Imperial system. We were used to imperial. We knew how to do things and how to shop for things in imperial. We weighed things in pounds and ounces. We measured height/distance in inches, feet, yards and miles. Even our rural roads are generally laid out in miles. We measured land in acres. We bought liquids in ounces, pints, quarts and gallons. Our recipes were in teaspoons, tablespoons and cups. Our temperatures were in Fahrenheit.

Over the ensuing years, ALL Canadians were expected to learn and adapt to grams, kilos, centimeters, meters, kilometers, hectares, millilitres, litres and Celsius.

I was in junior high at the time, and like many of my peers, found the system somewhat confusing. Even though we were taught how to convert to metric, our instincts were more attuned to what we'd already learned of the imperial system.

Adapting to metric was even harder to comprehend for most of our parents and grandparents!

The general public was provided with conversion charts and instructions on how to convert the various measures. Note, that this was in the days long before the internet or mini calculators. We did the conversion in our heads or with pencil and paper!

It wasn't an easy sell. Despite the best efforts of the government and those who supported the switch, it has been an expensive and tedious process to get us to think metric.

Thankfully the system was introduced over several years - but it hasn't made it any easier to adjust for those of us who grew up with imperial.

Today - just over 40 years after it was first introduced - metric is still a bit of a mixed bag in Canada. Some items are sold strictly in metric while many others are advertized and labeled in both imperial and metric. Most people have generally gotten used to buying liquids (including gasoline) in litres, but adjusting from pounds to kilograms, teaspoons to millilitres and so on is a bit harder.

For instance. an inch is 2.54cm. There are 36 inches is a yard but the metric equivalent of a yard is a meter which is actually 39.37 inches. Three inches can make a lot of difference! Luckily, most rulers and measuring tapes are still sold with both metric and imperial!

Even so, measurements can be quite off if you aren't really careful what/how you are measuring.

This is especially true when it comes to food - both in selling and in preparation. Some products are labeled in both systems. Dairy, deli and bulk foods are labeled primarily in metric with only some carrying the imperial unit price in smaller print. Meat is advertized in pounds with metric in small print, often labeled in both at the meat counter but sold by the kilo. Produce is advertized and generally labeled in pounds but sold in kilos. Canned/packaged products are frequently labeled in both systems.

Temperatures are reported in Celsius, but many of us still think in Fahrenheit especially when it comes to oven temperatures. Confusion abounds if you post temperatures in Celsius on social media sites. The Fahrenheit people in the US and other countries think that 25C sounds downright cold since many think that means 25F which would be below freezing. WRONG! 25C is actually a comfy 77F! The formulas for temp conversion are as follows:

F to C Deduct 32, then multiply by 5, then divide by 9

C to F Multiply by 9, then divide by 5, then add 32

Confused? Join the club! Yes, there are all kinds of conversion charts and apps available for anyone with an internet connection but we should know how to do at least a little bit of it in our heads or with a pencil and paper shouldn't we?

So, what about those who started school after the conversion started as well as the youth of today and of the future? I asked some acquaintances with current connections to schools (teachers and students) if Imperial is even being taught. To my surprise, only metric is being taught in most Canadian schools. Some curriculum's offer a very short section within science or math programs on conversions but many aren't even bothering to teach students how to convert to either system.

I also learned that some schools aren't even teaching home economics anymore. Among those that are, the students are maybe getting an 80 minute class once per week/cycle for a semester! That's not even enough time to get a basic grasp of cooking let alone preparing recipes! Unless a student has been taught imperial measures in the home or elsewhere, they have no clue as to what a cup, tablespoon or teaspoon even are! (FYI, in the 1970's, the home economics classes in my school were a half day/6 day cycle - half the year in food and the other half in sewing.)

Given our close economic ties and physical proximity to the USA - which has not switched to metric - the Imperial measures are still a dominant force in our society and especially online. So those of us who haven't adapted can still find pretty much anything we need with a bit of effort.

Back when I was in school, I was quite good in math and actually understood metric fairly well - I just didn't like the conversion part.  Almost 40 years later, I've forgotten most of what I knew. I can still do some rough calculations in conversion while grocery shopping but I often have to stop and think about it or grab a calculator.

As for the students that are only being taught metric? Yes, as I stated above, there are umpteen "apps for that" but being able to do at least some basic math and conversion without the use of apps would go a long way in educating and preparing younger generations for the future. Without that, I fear we are raising generations of young people who will be woefully ill prepared for the realities of living and working in the real world. Not to mention that their lack of cooking knowledge/skills is leaving them at the mercy of the convenience/prepackaged world of food.

In the post on September 14. I'll share some thoughts on cooking in imperial versus metric.

dn

Pasta The Salad Please!

During the summer, I rarely turn on my oven. My apartment has no AC, which means that even with fans, the place can get warm in a hurry! So, a lot of my evening meals are salad plates or various kinds of salads.

One of my faves is a pasta salad! There is SO much you can do with a pasta salad! I cook up the pasta in the morning while the kitchen is still relatively cool. After draining and rinsing the pasta, I either make up the salad for that day's evening meal or store the pasta in an air tight container in the fridge till I'm ready to make the salad. I also switch up the type of pasta for more variety. I've used broken linguini or fettuccini for a Greek or Italian inspired pasta salad in the past, but my go to pastas tend to be macaroni, baby shells, spiral/corkscrew or the rainbow mix. I generally buy Catelli brand pasta as I like the quality and flavour. It goes on sale fairly often in this part of the country so I just buy an extra box or two when my supplies are running low.

There really aren't any rules to making a pasta salad - other than adding some kind of pasta of course! You can add as many different veggies as you want in whatever quantities you want. You can add fish such as tuna or salmon. How about ham, shredded pork, beef, chicken or turkey? Cheese can also be a great addition for texture and flavour. Lots of possibilities there! Personally, I go fairly light on the protein and dairy for the salads - choosing to focus more on the veggies and pasta. The choice is yours though, so feel free to play with quantities!

Seasonings - both fresh and dried such as, basil, oregano, thyme, rosemary, parsley, garlic powder or a blend such as the "No Salt Added" ones made by McCormick's add a great dimension to the flavour! I use the McCormick's blends for seasoning SO many dishes as it adds great flavour without the salt! Lots of flavours to choose from on the spice aisle! The dressing can be as simple as mayo, some bottled dressing or a homemade favourite!

A full on pasta salad is a meal in itself! With all the veggies, meat/fish/poultry, cheese and pasta it has all the food groups covered in one dish!  Whole wheat pastas and a light dressing also help to reduce calories! Without the fish, meat or poultry, this is still a great salad on its own or you can serve it alongside grilled meat, poultry or fish.

As you can see, the possibilities are pretty much deliciously endless!

Today, I'm sharing my basic Pasta Salad. This can be made with canned tuna, salmon or a variety of other proteins. Check the notes at the bottom. I've also included a note with other suggestions for dressings.

I'm posting two versions of this recipe. The first is for 4-6 servings. The second is for a single serving. I make the single serving more often than not, but I still cook the full amount of pasta as for the 4-6 serving, then store covered in the fridge to make each days salad fresh. The cooked pasta (without ANY of the additional ingredients!) can be kept in the fridge for up to four days. Any fully prepared salad should be eaten within two days.

Pasta Salad

4 cups cooked pasta such as elbow, corkscrew/spiral, baby shells or rainbow mix (that's about 2 cups of the dried pasta before cooking)

1 170gram/6ounce can tuna (packed in water), drained*

1/3 cup chopped celery

1/3 cup chopped carrots

1/3 cup chopped green onion

1/3 cup diced red or orange sweet bell pepper

1/3 cup chopped broccoli florets

1/3 cup diced mushrooms (about 3 large or 4 medium white)

1/3 cup diced cucumber (I prefer long english as no need to peel or seed)

1/3 cup cheese such as cheddar, Mozzarella, Havarti or Monterey Jack

1/4 teaspoon McCormick's Citrus & Pepper Seasoning (no salt added)

1/4 teaspoon McCormick's Garlic & Herb Seasoning (no salt added)

1/2 teaspoon dried basil OR 1 teaspoon fresh

1/2 cup Ranch or Caesar dressing, light**

dash of salt and freshly ground pepper if desired/needed

4-5 cups torn lettuce - leaf or romaine

2 medium tomatoes, cut in small wedges or 16 - 20 grape/cherry tomatoes halved

In a large bowl, gently combine all but the last TWO ingredients. If the mixture seems too dry, add 1 Tablespoon more dressing at a time, mixing thoroughly to combine. Repeat with another Tablespoon if necessary.

Divide the torn lettuce leaves evenly between four dinner sized serving plates. Place the lettuce in a ring around the edge of the plate.

Divide the combined salad ingredients among the four plates - leaving at least a bit of the lettuce showing around the rim. Garnish with the tomatoes - either on top of the lettuce around the edge or on top of the salad.

Serves 4 as an entrée. This could also be divided into 6 servings on luncheon sized plates if smaller portions are desired. Add a serving of bread such as a baking powder biscuit, baguette, french, or focaccia on the side of each plate if desired.

Pasta Salad (single serving)

1 cup cooked pasta such as elbow, corkscrew/spiral, baby shells or rainbow mix

3 Tablespoons tuna*

2/3 cup chopped various raw vegetables - such as celery, carrot, green onion, sweet bell pepper, cucumber, mushrooms, broccoli etc - in whatever quantities you prefer

2 Tablespoons diced or grated cheese such as cheddar, mozzarella, havarti or monterey jack

dash McCormick's Citrus & Pepper Seasoning (no salt added)

dash McCormick's Garlic & Herb Seasoning (no salt added)

1/8 teaspoon dried basil or 1/4 teaspoon fresh

2-3 Tablespoons Ranch or Caesar dressing, light**

dash of salt and freshly ground pepper if desired/needed

1 - 1 1/4 cups torn lettuce - leaf or romaine

1/2 medium tomato, cut in small wedges or 3-4 grape/cherry tomatoes halved

Prepare as above and serve with a bread if desired

Notes:

* Rather than the tuna, you can substitute canned salmon, (skin and bones removed), 1/2 - 2/3 cup diced ham or diced cooked chicken/turkey, shredded cooked pork or shredded/diced cooked beef (2 - 3 Tablespoons for the single serving). A little fish, meat or poultry goes a long way in a pasta salad!

** Rather than using Ranch or Caesar as the dressing, you could substitute with 1/2 cup of a bottled dressing such as Sweet Onion Dressing (pictured below), Italian, Roasted Red Pepper, Greek, or Sun Dried Tomato. You could also use a light mayo such as Miracle Whip or a homemade dressing. Add the dressing and combine. If it seems a bit too dry, add an additional Tablespoon of your chosen dressing at a time - mixing after each addition so you don't saturate the salad. If making the "Pasta Salad (single serving)" add about 2 Tablespoons of the dressing to start and more if needed.

Enjoy!

dn

Tips For Making Fresh Fruit Salads

I love making fresh fruit salads to enjoy as part of my meal, a dessert or a snack! There are endless combinations! You can create a rainbow of colours, various shapes, an array of textures and mouth watering flavours all in one bowl!

It always amazes me when I see recipes for fruit salads. Do we really need them? Well, maybe some people do, but I like to just look at what is available in fresh fruits at the store or a farmers market and go from there.

There doesn't have to be a set way of making any fruit salads BUT there are a few things to keep in mind as you mix and match your ingredients.

Maybe I'm a bit of a purist when it comes to a fruit salad, but I don't think that they should contain anything other than fruit. Preferably fresh fruits! The only exception to the fresh fruit rule for me is to add canned unsweetened pineapple tidbits and perhaps mandarin orange segments for additional colour or texture.

Personally, I've never liked trying to cut a fresh pineapple. If you can do it and you find a good one on sale - go for it! I'll use my canned pineapple any day! I also use a bit of the juice to keep fruits such as apples from turning brown once cut. You only need a couple tablespoons of the juice and the remaining juice can be used for a beverage, sauces, made into ice cubes or just frozen for later use. Whatever you do - DON'T throw out the juice from the pineapple or the canned oranges if using them!

So, what else shouldn't be added to a fruit salad? Well, in my salads, you will never find marshmallows, nuts, dried fruits or dairy products.

Why? Well, I'm not a fan of marshmallows, but they tend to go rather mushy and ooze into the rest of the salad if not eaten immediately. It makes any leftovers look very unappetizing. Nuts will also go soft and lose their crunch. Dried fruit is just plain unneeded when there are so many fresh options throughout the year. There are any number of dried fruit (cold) soup style recipes on the web if that is what you are looking to make. Dairy products look good for the first hour but then they start to go runny and will even go sour with the juices from the fruits. Dairy is better left as a per serving add-in.

If you think these things are a necessity, then create a condiment bar beside the fruit salad bowl so people can add their own "extras".

There are also some fresh fruits that should only be added at the last minute or for what you KNOW will be eaten that day. Fruits that are soft and can go mushy fairly quickly once cut, such as strawberries, raspberries and bananas.

A very firm strawberry may look and taste okay on the second day of a fruit salad but the riper ones will be mush. I'm not a fan of raspberries which will also go mushy after a day (can't stand the seeds and flavour is a bit too strong for my liking so never add them anyways). Bananas tend to go mushy very quickly and the flavour can permeate the whole salad very fast - leaving the whole thing tasting like bananas! Like marshmallows and dairy, bananas also tend to ooze and looks unappealingly murky after awhile.

By now, you may be asking what DO I put in my fruit salads? At least three of any of the following:

- grapes (red, green or black - halved and seeded)

- mango, (peeled pit removed) cut into bite sized pieces

- cherries, halved and pit removed

- honeydew or other melons cut in bite sized pieces

- peaches or nectarines, peeled pit removed and cut in bite sized pieces

- kiwi (just ripe), peeled and cut

- pears, peeled cored and cut (YA or Asian pears give a great crunch to a salad!)

- apples, unpeeled cored and cut into bite size pieces (I personally prefer Fuji, Gala or Red Delicious for pretty much any apple use)

- pineapple tidbits, with a bit of the juice for the dressing and to prevent other fruits from browning

- mandarin orange segments

- berries as a last minute addition and only enough for that days salad.

The cut fruits are loaded with liquids that will create a bit of its own dressing so I never "make" a dressing. Other than adding a little of the pineapple juice or perhaps a bit of orange juice or even five alive (both high in citric acid) to prevent the browning, I just stir them all together and let the flavours blend on their own. Granted, I have occasionally skipped the pineapple juice in favour of a more adult salad and added a very light splash of Amaretto or Frangelico.

If I have an abundance of fresh fruit, then I sometimes make a large batch of salad such as the one pictured here. It contained about 1 pound each of cherries and green grapes, 4 nectarines, 3 mangoes, 2 apples, pineapple tidbits and mandarin segments. 

Once mixed, I transfer to Rubbermaid or Tupperware containers and keep it in the fridge for several days. 

The colours of the fruits will darken a bit and will even take on shades of the redder fruits such as the cherries but the flavours and textures will still be distinguishable for up to a week as long as you haven't added any of the "extras" or softer fruits listed above. This particular one lasted me eight days - delicious flavours and textures to the end!

What do you serve a fruit salad with? They don't have to be served with anything as they are a refreshing snack or dessert all on their own. But, many people want to have a little "something" with their fruit salad.

Like the yummy fruit salads themselves, the "side" possibilities are endless! How about:

- with a spoonful of whipped topping or a scoop of your favourite ice cream, sorbet,sherbets or ices

- spooned over a serving of pudding (lemon or chocolate are my faves!)

- alongside a slightly warmed muffin, a slice of loaf or homemade cookies. (lots of recipe links for these on my recipe page!)

- alongside a scone - maybe even a chocolate scone!

- over fresh pancakes or waffles

- with a good old fashioned Peanut Butter sandwich or PB on toast

It's all about mixing and matching! Be creative. Savour the mouth-watering flavours of fresh fruit!

Enjoy!

dn

Baking For The Fair

When it came time for the summer fair in my home town, much attention was paid to what could be entered in that year's fair.

There were many divisions and hundreds of categories. Something for everyone. There were numerous divisions for livestock and horticultural. Divisions for sewing, knitting, crocheting and needlework. There were crafting, woodworking, carving, pottery, photography, painting and much more! There were all kinds of categories for school kids to enter.

I never really ventured into any of those things. They weren't my forte!

My heart and youthful skills were in the kitchen!

The areas of baking that could be entered were vast! There were age divisions for 12 and under, 13 to 18, adult and those over 70. The adult, which also included canning, was pretty much open to anybody regardless of age but competition was STIFF so you really had to have a great entry to even attempt any of the dozens of categories there! The seniors division could also have some amazing entries as those people had decades of experience to hone their kitchen skills!

That being said, even those under 18 had some really good competitors! You'd see many of the same names every year!

I was about 11 or 12 when I first started entering a few categories in my age group. I won small cash prizes for a few things and entered a bit more the next year. It didn't take long till I was entering every baking item in my age group. Occasionally I even entered something (and sometimes won a prize) in the adult division if my attempt turned out exceptionally well!!

There were about 15-20 items in the teen division. Some of these included: baking powder biscuits; buns; angel food cake; white cake, iced; brownies; bran muffins; banana loaf; rolled cookies; drop cookies; rolled oatmeal cookies, filled; shortbread; baked pie shell; fruit pie with top pastry crust; baked dainties; unbaked dainties (2 kinds); candy (2 kinds); cup cakes, iced.

I was very confident in my ability to make baking powder biscuits. In fact I still use the same recipe and now make several versions from that recipe! I was also pretty good with the cookies, loaf, brownies and dainties.

The buns were either a hit or a miss. Since this was back in the 1970's, it was well before instant yeast came into general use. Having to proof the yeast before starting to mix the dough always concerned me for some reason. Even if the dough felt good while mixing and kneading by hand, it didn't always guarantee good buns. Then there was trying to shape uniform buns so that your entry looked suitable for presentation. The good part of making a batch of buns was that you'd have at least 3 dozen buns to choose from for the half dozen you entered - assuming that the dough rose and you didn't burn any!

The cakes from scratch could be a challenge. There were times I had to make more than one angel food cake or layer cake before I got one that looked good enough to enter!

In those days, my candy making skills were pretty limited. We didn't have access to many of the things or had even thought of the flavour combos that we have now! The candies that were the most common were fudge, brittle and caramel or sugar candies. I burnt more than my share of peanut brittle! I tried to avoid any of the candies that had to be boiled to specific temps as they were a major challenge for me to see the temp on the candy thermometer and rarely worth my effort.

A couple of years, there was a category that had you use a white cake mix, then divide it into three to create different flavoured varieties of cupcakes. You entered two of each of the three varieties. They had to be iced and you couldn't use paper liners in the muffin tins. The flavours I came up with one year were mocha, cherry mint and an orange coconut. I won first prize!

I recently came across 3 of my old winning recipes. I haven't tried them in years so can't verify if they would still be prize worthy today! BTW, I have no recollection of what the frostings were for the cupcakes!

With the exception of the cupcakes above, everything had to be made from scratch! Everything had to be fresh - no mixes or frozen pastries. So all items had to be made within a few days of the actual submission. That meant marathon baking for about 3 days to enter about 20 categories! It was all about timing. What could be made first that wouldn't go bad or stale. What had to wait till the last minute. And you HAD to allow time to remake at least a few things that didn't turn out to be worthy of entry! 

It didn't matter if the weather was hot or humid. If I wanted to enter all the items in my division or others, then I just had to deal with it! It was a lot of work - and admittedly, more than a few tears were shed and there was a meltdown or two as I strived to do the best that I could! Entries had to be all mine which meant mom could only supervise and answer questions for me. She was a rock though and also kept me in a fresh supply of paper towels, clean dishes and Kleenex. My favourite radio station played through the days as I baked my heart out! I always felt SO bad when a recipe flopped. I felt like I'd failed and more importantly that I'd wasted all those ingredients - and time!

We rarely threw things out though. There were family and friends who were always willing to eat the rejects! Granted, they always wanted to sample the "good stuff" so "DO NOT TOUCH" signs had to be placed on several things and there were times that fingers were slapped!

Entries had to be displayed on disposable trays such as paper plates, foam trays or foil covered cardboard. Pies had to be in foil dishes. Everything had to be covered with saran or clear plastic bags - with the entry label attached. The entries had to be in the display hall for judging fairly early on the day before the fair. Packing all the entries into the car - without damaging any of them was a job in itself! We didn't have the fancy containers that are available now for transport - just a few cardboard boxes to hold all those entries.

The last couple of years that I entered, there were also open judging for a few items. Once submissions were closed, a few categories from various food and hand crafted divisions were picked to be judged in front of anyone who wanted to stay and watch. It was interesting to see. For food categories, they'd look at overall presentation (appearance, colours, uniformity) then cut a slice or open items to see the inside density and texture. Were there air pockets in buns or cakes? Were there doughy parts in loaves? Were any fruit or nuts evenly distributed? Were pies evenly baked? How did it smell? What was the taste? Then they'd narrow it down to a few and choose 1st, 2nd and 3rd. I was thrilled to see my biscuits win 1st at one of those sessions!

On the first day of the fair, we'd go to the display hall to see which of my entries may have won prizes!

The prize money wasn't much - maybe a $1 or $2 for first. It was more the prestige of knowing you'd done well. The baking divisions also awarded a small prize to the person who earned the most points for entries in that division. In 1974 - 40 years ago this summer, I won the Junior division (I was 16). I had entered a few of the adult categories as well and in all won 7 firsts, 5 seconds and 7 thirds! I was thrilled!

My reward was about $20 or so in prize money! (A fair bit for a teen then!) and a really nice pen and pencil set! (I still have this set!)

I didn't enter much after that as I was busy with working at summer camp and other things.

But every summer - about a week or so before the hometown fair, I get to thinking about those summer days of endless baking and how fortunate I was to have learned those kitchen skills from my mom and grandma. Those skills have served me well through all these years and continue to guide me in my recipe creations.

Bravo to all of those who continue to spend those long hours preparing entries for local fairs!

Good luck and happy baking!

dn