Strawberry and Cake Kebobs

In contrast to my last post, where I shared a hearty and comforting chowder for those chilly evenings, I now bring to you a light and airy treat perfect for those hot summer days. Strawberry and Cake kebobs combine tasty bites of strawberries, and fluffy, oh-so-tasty bits of angel food cake with your favourite topping. You don't even need the topping if you don't want it, but come off it, who wouldn't want a drizzling of chocolate or caramel or honey, even?

Now I can't take full credit for these beauties, as I spied them on Pinterest several months back, but I just had to try them for myself! They require very little effort to make, and to be honest as I was chopping my store-bought cake and strawberries, and taking all the shortcuts, I felt as though I was hosting my own episode of Nigella Express! Such a simple but delicious treat.

Fish Chowder

I was wondering about the timeliness of this post, as Fish Chowder is more of a wintery/cold, dreary-day type meal, but then I looked at the forecast for the coming week, and remembered where I live, and decided I was good to go. After all, I got married in August (typically one of the better months in Newfoundland) only to face rain, drizzle, wind and 5 degree temperatures... so really this hearty and oh-so-satisfying, soul-warming chowder is great any time of year.

It's also really easy, and pretty quick to make.

Quick & Easy Homemade Pizza Crust

I'll be honest, any time the word yeast pops up in a recipe, I immediately move on. In my mind, yeast translates to waiting around, and if you lack patience - which I always do when I'm hungry - 'waiting around' isn't an option.

Lucky for me, the hubby has a bit more patience, and decided to whip up this crust one night for supper. I was shocked at how easy it was to make, anddddd the fact that it only takes 20 minutes. I mean really, it'll take you that long to prep the toppings! For this recipe recap, I topped our pizza with pesto, chicken, mini heirloom tomatoes, artichokes, shallots and mozzarella - but the possibilities are endless. Definitely one of the best tasting crusts I've had. Apparently, 'yeast' isn't such a bad word after-all!

FYI this is yet another delicious recipe, courtesy of the Looneyspoons!

My Food Infatuation Turns 2!

Photo Credit

Yesterday My Food Infatuation turned 2! And there has been quite a bit of blogging happening over the last 730 or so days! To date I've had nearly 90,000 views on over 130 posts, and I've been very busy on social media. In addition to my Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and Instagram, I've created my first two YouTube videos and a Google+ account. Still really enjoying the blogging-life and looking forward to keeping it going for a third year!

Once again, thanks to all my followers and supporters. Keep the comments and shares coming, and stay tuned for lots of new recipes and foodie fun! ;)

xo,
Food Diva

Fee, Fie, Faux, Fried Chicken

If you're looking for a crowd-pleasing recipe, your search stops here - Fee Fi Faux Fried Chicken is wicked! There's a bit of work involved, and you will have to get your hands dirty, but that's half the fun! Definitely adding this recipe to my favourites. Serve this Looneyspoons recipe up with some corn-on-the-cob and homemade scalloped potatoes (The Greater Scalloped Potater) and you'll be loving life.

Fudgy Brownie Cake with Salted Caramel Drizzle

Last year for my sister's birthday, I put together quite the elaborate fondant cake that included as many things as I could think of, that she enjoyed. This year, I decided to take a different route and opted instead to focus on her favourite dessert - brownies! For as long as I can remember she has loved brownies, and for her, the richer the better. I swear if she put her mind to it, she could polish off an entire pan by herself, though unlike me she has control, so maybe not ;) In any case, since it was her birthday, and birthdays require cake, I decided to mix up the usual presentation and give her a true brownie cake.

To counteract all the sweet, I added some salted caramel drizzle to the top - it definitely could have used more salt to pair with the cake, or maybe it just needed more drizzle? Ether way, the leftover salted caramel is phenomenal on ice cream! You can find the recipe here on Food Wishes.

Molasses Tart

If you've never experienced a freshly baked Molasses Tart filled with jammed, wild Newfoundland berries, you don't know what you're missing! Hands down one of my all time favourite desserts. I'm not sure where the recipe originated - probably a G.F.S. Cookbook somewhere along the way - all I know is that my mom has been making these tarts for as long as I can remember.

A few weeks back I decided to give the recipe a go, myself. One thing I've learned about family recipes (or at least my family's recipes), is that you must always call the person who gave you the recipe, the first time you attempt to make it - trust me on this! Guaranteed, time and time again, there will be tweaks and adjustments in their head that haven't quite made it to the original recipe you've copied. I can't even begin to tell you the number of times I've prepared one of my mom's recipes only to have it turn out completely different, then discover when chatting after the fact, that I should have...  doubled the sauce portion, halved the dough recipe, left out such and such ingredient, included such and such ingredient (listed nowhere in the recipe), baked for only half the time, or 3/4's of the time, or way longer... all actual examples I've encountered over the past few years. It's laughable at this point, and I know now to give her a call, butttt it can still be frustrating if I forget, or if I can't get ahold of her when I'm making it.

Note: This recipe yields 4 tarts - mom typically halves the recipe and prepares 2, but I prepped the full amount - I'm always wary about having enough crust for double crusted pies, so I figured I would make it all and use the leftovers in my mini cupcake tray to make mini tarts!

Lemon Panna Cotta with Blueberry Sauce

I love trying new recipes, especially desserts! However, like a good chunk of the population these days, I'm constantly trying to 'eat better', which means my experiments in the recipe world usually revolve around meals or apps or snacks... not desserts. God knows I have no restraint when they're in my house. In any case, special occasions present the opportunity for experimentation with sweets, and for Valentine's Day I gave Panna Cotta a try. After the tasty rack of lamb, I knew we would want something refreshing and this recipe from Italian Food Forever, sounded ideal.

I had never had panna cotta prior to making this recipe, so I wasn't sure what to expect - it was amazing! It requires a bit of time to set up in the fridge, but, once it does, it is silky, creamy and incredible. The Lemon Panna Cotta on its own was good, but the topping made it better again. I would highly recommend this recipe.

Crispy Rack of Lamb with Honey & Mascarpone Sauce

After some careful consideration of what to make for our Valentine's Day supper, we decided on Rack of Lamb. This recipe came courtesy of Giada de Laurentiis from the Food Network, and boy oh boy was it ever good! It was my first time cooking rack of lamb and I was blown away by how easy it was. We served it with garlic mashed potatoes and carrots that were suateed in the same pan in which the lamb had been seared. We deglazed the pan with some chardonnay (a.k.a. added liquid to the reheated pan to get all the tasty bits off the bottom), heaved in a bit of salt and pepper and produced some of the yummiest carrots I've ever eaten. So good. What better way to spend Valentine's day than dressed in your finest comfy clothes, drinking copious amounts of wine, and feasting on a gourmet level home-cooked meal with the love of your life ;)

S'mores Poutine

So apparently this is poutine week?! I love poutine! Poutine is the best! It's total comfort food and totally worth the splurge, every time! In honour of Poutine Week, I decided it was time to finally make that dessert poutine I've been dreaming of - S'mores Poutine!! I'll stop saying poutine now...

It's a dangerous little dessert to learn, simply because if you like to bake, you probably have these ingredients on hand at all times. It also takes less than 10 minutes to make. Requires very little cleanup and tastes amazing! Plus, who doesn't love s'mores?!