Sunday, August 30, 2009

It didn't work


I tried making a butterscotch swirl loaf.
But it failed.
I have no idea what I did wrong either. Followed the instructions.

First off, it didn't rise.
Second, the chips just became this greasy mess.

It tasted like a pancake. Not what it was suppose to at all.


Here is the recipe, even though it failed,

1 cup sugar
1/2 c margarine
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 c milk
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 c flour
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 c butterscotch chips

Bake for 1 hour at 350 degrees

Should have been simple right?
So what happened ?

Fish and Brewis

Photos by Kimberly Hulst

I wish I had a photo of what the original recipe is suppose to look like to compare, but I don't.Grandma Perry used to make this about once a week.

Fish and Brewis

*1 package salt cod
*3 cakes hard bread
*1 onion
*1 package salt pork

You have to soak the salt cod for close to 8 hours, so it's usually done over night. Same with the hard bread. And it's called hard bread because it looks like a hockey puck and is just as dense.

Drain the cod, and boil in fresh water. Roughly 25 minutes.

Boil the hard bread. At this point, the hard bread should be flaked off and have absorbed all the water making it pliable.

Chop up the salt pork into bit size pieces, and fry it. This is the beginning stage of making the pork into scrunchions.

Chop up the onion.

Remove the now fried salt pork from the reduced fat. You Need that fat to fry up the onion.

You need to drain the cod and debone it.
Mix the fried pork and onion together with whatever is left of the fat from the pan.
Mix the cod and the hardbread together and use the scrunchions as a type of gravy.



Here is how I made my vegetarian version:

*1 cake of hardbread
*1/2 package of extra firm tofu
*1/2 package of Veggy Bacon
*1 onion
*2 tablespoons vegetable oil
* salt and pepper to taste

Soak the hardbread for 4 hours
Boil 15 minutes, drain whatever water is left

Chop up tofu into smaller pieces and fry in a non stick pan till it starts to get slighlty brown. Then remove and add it to the hardbread.

Cut up veggy bacon and fry in the oil, add your chopped onion. Depending on the brand of veggy bacon, it may not brown up, so fry it for about 5 minutes per side.

Add salt and pepper to the tofu and hardbread, then mix.

Then add your onion and veggy bacon mix like you would a gravy.


Photo of Veggy Version


Monday, August 24, 2009

Empty Cupboards

I know it's been a few days since I posted on here.
The last few days have been an odd rush of well odds and ends. Trying to get a few of my deadlines met so meals have been just quick pasta and bagels mostly.
MMMM.... starch.

Looking at a stack of recipes and trying to figure what to use in place of salt pork, salt beef, and lobster. Cause, vegetarian I don't eat that.

When I figure out how to adjust a few more recipes I will be back with the trial and errors and hopefully successes. Most likely this weekend.

Big question how would you make Seal Flipper Pie without the seal ?

Thursday, August 20, 2009

Menu: Aug 19th 2009

Photos by Kimberly Hulst copyright hcvp'09

This is one of those times it half way turned out. These are two recipes that I was disappointed with.

The first one is my version of traditional Newfie Fish Cakes. Since Grandma Perry's recipe did not have any measurements I had to guess at it.


Grandma Perry's Fish Cakes

6 cups cooked potatoes
1 onion chopped
2 cups salt cod- cooked, boned, torn
1/2 cup flour
1 piece of salt pork fried

Mash potatoes adding rest of the ingredients.
Form into patties
Roll into the flour and fry in the rendered pork fat


Seems simple enough right? Okay my version of the recipe was taking the cod out and replacing it with squash.
Yep, squash.
And using vegetable oil instead of the pork fat. So the fish and pork were taken completely out of the recipe and replaced.

Kimberly's Veggie Cakes

3 medium potatoes chopped
1 onion chopped
1 package chopped squash
1 cup vegetable oil
salt and pepper to taste
2 cups flour


Mash the cooked potatoes and add the onion and stir in squash, salt and pepper
Form into patties
Roll in flour and cook in the vegetable oil





Photo of Veggie Cakes

If you have been working some of the recipes out there for sneaking veggies into thing so your kids won't know, this is actually a great way to do it.

Monday, August 17, 2009

Menu: Aug 17th 2009

Photos by Kimberly Hulst copyright hcvp'09

I had decided to make my apple and potato dish today so I went off to mom's.
Why have I not been doing the cooking in my own little kitchen? Because mom has air conditioning.

While I was there, we decided to make a cheese cake as well. (photo of Me)


Apple and Potato


2 apples
2 large potatoes or 5 small ones
1 medium onion
3 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons nutmeg

*peel potatoes and cut into smaller pieces (sliced or cubed it's up to you)
*peel apples and cut into smaller pieces (sliced or cubed it's up to you)
*slice onion

mix together in baking dish.
Spoon in butter
add nutmeg and mix all together

Bake for 1 hour at 325 degrees



The cheesecake was a simple one. We used a Kraft recipe for No Bake cheese cake.

*Premade Graham cracker crust

227 ml cream cheese softened
1/3 c sugar
227 ml cool whip
375 ml cherry pie filling


Beat cream cheese and sugar
Stir in cool whip
Spoon into crust

Put in fridge for 3 hours

Spread on the pie filling




The apple and potato dish can be made for under $10
The Kraft No Bake Cheese Cake can be made for under $15




Sunday, August 16, 2009

Menu: Aug 16th 2009

Photo copyright hcvp'09 by Kimberly Hulst


10 Minute Noodles

1 cup Eggplant
1 cup Mushrooms
Tomato
Onion
Peppers 1 Green and 1 Red
1/2 cup Pea Pods
1 cup Broccoli
1/2 cup Green Beans
1 Carrot
1/2 cup Celery
1/2 cupWater Chestnuts
1 cup Zucchini
3 cup Water
2 handfuls Steamed Noodles


Chop all but the pea pods and green beans.
Boil broccoli till tender, then add the rest of the vegetables and the noodles.
Boil for another few minutes.
Stir and serve.


I say 10 minutes for this dish because I used a cheat. Frozen mixed veggies. One half bag of stir fry veggies, one half bag of spaghetti mixed veggies. Boil them for about 5 minutes then add the noodles. If you use frozen you can make this meal for under $10.

Saturday, August 15, 2009

Newfoundland Beet and Potato Salad

Ingredients :
5 large potatoes peeled and cooked in salt water
1 can of sliced beets with juice
1 onion chopped (or 3 green onion chopped)
1 cup mayo


How to:

*Drain the potatoes and cut them into smaller pieces
*mix in the chopped onion
*chop up the beets into smaller bite size pieces and add to mix
*add in mayo
*add in 1 tablespoon of the beet juice
*Mix till you have a bright pink colour

Put in fridge for 1 hour before serving. Serves 4


Some people are off put by this salad as it is pink. The juice from the beets not only gives it the colour but the main part of the taste.
This is one of the simplest recipes I have ever tried. I have been making this one for over 20 years.

Tofu Mayo

1/2 pound (250 g) Regular tofu
1/4 cup (50ml) lemon juice
2 tsp. (10ml) dijon mustard
1 tsp (5ml) salt
1 tsp (5ml) sugar
1 cup (250ml) vegetable oil

Mash tofu with a fork, and place in a strainer over a bowl. Weight it down with a plate to allow extra liquid to drain for about half an hour.
Place drained tofu into the blender. Add lemon juice, mustard, salt, sugar and blend until smooth.
With motor of blender running, pour in the oil, gradually. Once it is blended evenly it may be used.

Will keep refrigerated for about a week. This makes 2 cups.


A friend of mine had made this awhile back, and it was fabulous.
I tried it and it was horrid. I have no idea what I did wrong but I messed it up, twice.
Not sure I want to try it again. I know one thing without a doubt, it does not work at all for potato salad.

Chocolate Chip Cookies

Photo is by me, Kimberly Hulst copyright hcvp '09
And originally posted on my other blog My Cup Is Empty on Aug 15th 2009

2 and 1/4 c flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 c butter softened
3/4 c white sugar
3/4 c brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 eggs
1 c chocolate chips
1 c of white bakers chocolate chunks
Mix flour/soda/salt in one bowl
Beat butter/white sugar/brown sugar/vanilla into another bowl
add eggs
mix the dry into the wet
stir in chocolate chunks/chips
drop rounded spoonfuls into Ungreased tray

Bake 375 ' F for 10 minutes
Makes 5 dozen


Yes I know right off the bat I put up a recipe that has eggs in it. But, I am just a lowly vegetarian who still has eggs and dairy.

Besides mom went to alot of trouble to help me with this one.

What Am I Doing Here?


I think I might be having a melt down is what I am doing.

I am armed and very likely dangerous. I have a fry pan and I am not afraid to use it!
In my mother's kitchen that is.

The goal is to take as many traditional Newfie dishes as possible and make them Vegan dishes.

The highs, the lows, the splattered batter on the walls and even cookies too will be reported here as they happen in pure Gonzo Journalism man.