The Beginnings Of A Pie A Shepherd Would Be Proud Of

And so it begins...as I mentioned in my previous post, this year Ginger Rose will be looking a little different as I begin to share my experiences in recipe development, taking you through all of the stages I experience in creating a recipe that I will eventually give the stamp "From Ginger Rose's Kitchen", meaning it has been tested, tweaked, and revised until I am satisfied with the tasty results enough to call it my own. 

My first adventure in recipe development for 2014 reflects the icy, arctic, colder-than-Mars weather Torontonians have been experiencing as of late. Shepherds pie, in my opinion, is one of those staple comfort foods that this freezing weather just begs for. In the past, the only Shepherds Pie that I have attempted has been my Leftover Lovin' Pulled Pork Shepherds Pie, which featured leftover spicy, juicy, and flavourful pulled pork as the base. With such flavourful meat (simmering it for hours upon hours in a spicy sauce certainly helps) it's easy to create a spectacular dish, so starting from the bottom with plain old ground beef or what is traditionally used, lamb, can be a bit of a challenge. After much research, I put together a basic recipe for Shepherds Pie that I think is a great start to get me to that final, delicious, savoury, pie that would make any shepherd proud! Although I would have loved to have used lamb as the base for my shepherds pie, I began my experimentation with lean ground beef, a more cost friendly option as myself, and I know many of my readers, are on a budget. Due to convenience, I also used yukon gold potatoes for my mashed potato topping, as opposed to the preferred Russet baking potato, simply because that is what I had on hand. Using yellow potatoes won't make a huge difference in your final product, but it will slightly affect the texture, as baking potatoes are higher in starch and sugar than the yellow variety, which is waxy, with less starch, and less sugar. The below Shepherds Pie is a lovely and simple Shepherds Pie for first timers. Give the recipe a try and share your notes with me! What did you like or not like about the recipe? What would you add or change? I want to know! I hope you find this recipe as comforting as I did! Stay warm out there kiddies! 

* Cooking until softened is also known as "sweating". Sweating means to cook something until softened,  but without adding any colour. This is often done at medium to medium-low heat or for a very short time at medium-high heat.

** Mashed potatoes may be made in advance. Leftover mashed potatoes work great!

Ingredients:

4 potatoes (preferably Russet baking potatoes), peeled and cut into medium chunks

1 tbsp vegetable oil

1 medium onion, small dice

2 medium carrots, small dice

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 cup milk

1 tbsp butter
1 cup cheddar cheese, grated

salt & pepper to taste (use white pepper for mashed potatoes)

1.5 Ib lean ground beef 

2 tbsp flour

5 tsp tomato paste 

1 cup beef broth

1 1/2 tsp Worcestershire  

1 tsp fresh thyme

1/2 cup frozen green peas

1 tsp Sriracha hot sauce

1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

paprika, to dust on mashed potatoes

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 450º.
2. Place potatoes in a small pot and fill with enough water to cover 1-inch over the potatoes. Bring water to a boil, then drop heat and simmer until tender (about 20-minutes). 
3. In a large heavy-bottomed sauté pan (large enough to fit ground beef) set to medium hear, heat 1 tbsp oil. Add the onions and cook until softened*. When the onion begins to soften, add the carrot and cook until slightly softened. In the last minute of cooking, add the garlic. 
4. Add the beef to the vegetable mixture and break up with a spatula. Cook until all meat has browned and no red remains. 
5. While meat is cooking, drain the potatoes. Return the potatoes to the pot and set to medium heat. Dry the potatoes for 1-2 minutes and remove from heat. Mash the potatoes and add the milk, butter, and cheddar cheese, stir to incorporate. Taste and season with salt and white pepper. Set aside.**
6. When meat has browned, add flour to beef and stir to coat. Cook for 1-minute. While it is cooking, add the tomato paste.
7. Add the beef broth and bring to a boil. Add Worcestershire and thyme and simmer until thickened and slightly reduced. 
8. Add the peas, Sriracha, and cayenne. Taste and season as needed with salt and pepper, and additional hot sauce.
9. Spread meat mixture evenly in a 10.5 x 12.5 glass baking dish. Top evenly with mashed potatoes making sure to create a seal around all of the edges so that the mixture does not bubble up to the surface during cooking. Sprinkle the top lightly with paprika. Bake for 25-minutes. Cook 3-4 minutes and serve hot. 

Notes for next time:

• I would like to try using dried thyme, adding it into my vegetable mixture as it softens. I think this flavour may work better.
• Add 1/2 cup fresh or frozen corn niblets for more flavour and texture.
• Add more tomato paste.
• Play with other flavour enhancers.

Listening To:

Joy Division - Shadowplay

S'more Pie

I am very lucky to have a lot of people in my life that I care deeply about. These are the people that I would do almost anything for, but there are a special select few in that group of people that I would literally do ANYTHING for. We're talkin' going to the moon and back, taking a bullet, above and beyond, I would do anything. Two of the people who have been in this "I would do anything for you" group have been exclusive members since the day they were born, my cousins Lucas and Evan. As I've watched my cousins grow from newborns to the tall boys they are now, I've found myself become more and more amazed by their character. Never before have I known young boys with such wisdom, compassion, curiosity, motivation, and strength...not to mention, they're also insanely cool. At only twelve and nine years old, these boys have become my role models, reinforcing some of the most important basic life lessons that age seems to make us forget, not to mention inspiring me to embrace my talents, set goals, and be the best that I can be. With such intelligence, talent, creativity, and love, I can't help but want to spoil these boys in any way I can. With Lucas and Evan saving up to buy their own toys and gadgets, I choose to spoil them in other ways like playing silly games with them, inviting them over to the house for a swim and yummy snacks, taking them on hikes and to sporting events, and, of course, cooking and baking special treats for them! 

In the past I've made lots of fun treats that we've all enjoyed, but nothing came close to the most recent one I made for Evan on his birthday and as a belated birthday treat for Lucas, S'more Pie! Every summer we make a point of making s'mores, whether that means using the outdoor chiminea, making them in the toaster oven, or even on the gas flame on the stove, it's a summer tradition we can't go without. I had been thinking about doing something special and s'more related for Lucas' birthday in July, but unfortunately, with crazy hours at work and a cottage weekend away, I wasn't able to find the time. A few weeks ago was Evan's 9th birthday, and this time I made sure to fit some baking into my schedule. A quick Google search led me to an incredible looking recipe for S'more Pie that I knew the boys would go crazy over! I knew the boys would love the dessert but I had to find a way to make it adult friendly as well. I decided to substitute dark chocolate for the recommended semi-sweet chocolate to balance out the sweetness from the marshmallows. To give it a bit more complexity I tossed in a splash of vanilla extract to the filling and a pinch of salt to the crust. Next time I make the pie, I'd like to try adding pecans, crushed in a food processor, into the graham cracker crust.

The dessert was absolutely to die for! The boys went crazy over the it, devouring not one, but two pieces in record time, and to my surprise the adults went nuts over the pie as well! My mom, who had originally thought the dessert would be too sweet for her, kept declaring "I LOVE this!!" before going back for just a sliver more a few times. It made me so happy to see Lucas and Evan so happy enjoying the dessert I made! A true success!

Tip: The simplicity of this dessert makes this a great recipe to make with kids! I can't wait to make this with Lucas and Evan one day soon!

Adapted from Pastry Affair

Ingredients:
Crust
2 cups graham cracker crumbs
8 tbsp (1 stick) butter, melted
a pinch of salt
Filling & Topping
3/4 cup heavy cream
3/4 cup milk
10 ounces good quality dark chocolate, chopped (I used dark chocolate chips so I could skip the chop)
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
pinch of salt
2 eggs, whisked
about a half a bag of large marshmallows

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 325º. 
2. In a medium mixing bowl, stir together the graham cracker crumbs, melted butter, and salt until evenly coated. Press mixture evenly into a 9-inch pie plate. Bake for 8-10 minutes. Keep oven on.
3. Create a double boiler by pouring 1-2-inches of water into a saucepan, and topping with a glass or ceramic bowl, so that the bowl creates a tight seal with the saucepan and no water will boil into the bowl. Over medium heat, pour the cream and milk into the bowl. Add the chocolate and stir until the chocolate is melted and smooth. Stir in the vanilla extract. Slowly add the whisked eggs and mix until smooth.
4. Pour chocolate filling into baked pie crust and bake for 15-20 minutes, or until chocolate filling is set and does not move when lightly shaken.
5. Using kitchen shears, cut marshmallows in half. Place halves in concentric circles over the top of the pie until covered.
6. Set oven to broil and place pie under the broiler and lightly toast the marshmallows. DO NOT LEAVE THE OVEN. They will go from lightly toasted to burnt in a matter of seconds, so be ready to take the pie out the oven as soon as the marshmallows are golden!
7. Chill pie for 2-3 hours. To serve, cut the chilled pie into slices, and individually microwave for 10 seconds to get the perfect velvety texture! 

Listening To:
Miguel - Sure Thing

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Guilt-Reduced Apple Pie Muffins

My mom has always been the pie-maker in the family, always there for each and every season to bring a sweet and delicious fruity creation to our table. A skill she must have picked up from my pie-making grandmother, my mom makes all of my favourite pies including apple, peach, strawberry, blueberry, and an assortment of other mixed fruit creations that drive me wild! Since being promoted at her job, my mom has had less and less time to make pies, and I've had to step up my baking game to keep my family's sweet tooth satisfied. Having never had any luck with pie-making myself, I wasn't exactly looking forward to trying my hand at rolling out that dough that never seems to fit the pie plate. How come the pies that I've made never look like the picture perfect creations you see in magazines and on TV? And how come my mom seems to be able to replicate those beautiful fluted edges with such ease while I complain and struggle? I'll never understand it.

Some may say I gave up at this point, but I choose to think of it as "adapting". Instead of going through what I consider to be agony, struggling to roll out that darned pie dough, I decided to switch up the recipe. I wanted to keep the same flavours that you find in a traditional apple pie, but get rid of the labour and mess (just imagine all that flour and dough stuck to your countertop!) that comes with preparing the dough. Being so incredibly sick of the pub food that I get 50% off of at work, I also liked the idea of making a sweet snack that I can take to work with me so I wouldn't have to eat another frozen chicken finger. After doing some research I decided to make Food.com's recipe for Apple Pie Muffins, but get rid of the guilt that comes along with eating pie, by swapping out some ingredients and adjusting the flavours and textures to my liking. The muffins turned out great! Despite being "guilt-reduced", my Apple Pie Muffins totally satisfied my apple pie craving as a late night snack, as well as being the perfect little sweet treat to munch on at work! I also loved that I could happily eat a second muffin without feeling that same guilt that comes along with eating a second helping of pie. So say farewell to the dreaded rolling pin this time around, and make life a little easier and sweeter for yourself and whip up a batch of my Guilt-Reduced Apple Pie Muffins! 

Note: This recipe was updated on October 27, 2015. Click here to see the updated recipe!

Recipe adapted from Food.com
Ingredients:
Topping
1/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/3 cup rolled oats
1/4 cup butter, melted
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
Muffins
1 1/4 cups firmly packed brown sugar
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1/3 cup apple sauce
1 egg
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup buttermilk
3 cups shredded firm and tart apples, with a bit of lemon juice squeezed on top

Directions:

1. Make the muffin topping by stirring together the brown sugar, all-purpose flour, rolled oats, melted butter, and cinnamon in a small bowl. Set aside.
2. In a large bowl whisk together the brown sugar, oil, apple sauce, egg, and vanilla until smooth.
3. In a separate bowl sift together the all-purpose flour, whole grain flour, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt. Some of the whole grains from the flour may get caught in the sifter so just toss those remnants in with the rest of the flour after. 
4. Stir oil mixture into flour mixture alternately with buttermilk.
5. Fold in the shredded apples, until just combined.
6. Using a retractable ice cream scoop, spoon in the batter into a lined muffin tin so that the cups are almost full.
7. Sprinkle the topping evenly over all of the muffins and bake in a 350º oven for 25-30 minutes, or until golden brown.

Listening To:

Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros - Home

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Leftover Lovin': Turkey Pot Pie

I am the queen of procrastination, as I'm sure you all know by now. I can turn any simple task into a trek up Mount Everest, making myself believe that something is much more difficult and grueling than it truly is. The mind is a funny thing, tricking me into believing that writing a blog post on how I used up my Christmas leftovers is a far more intimidating task than cleaning my bathroom, or in some cases even cutting my own hair.

"Nope, I can't write that blog post right now, I have to clean the bathroom! And what better time to see if I can give myself a haircut! And hey, while we're at it, why not walk all the way to the drugstore and buy an at home waxing kit!"

Some would call my justification and excuses for procrastination absolute insanity! The problem with procrastinating is that the longer you leave a task, the worse it gets, giving you more and more reasons to put it off even further. Which brings me to this very entry, my recipe for Turkey Pot Pie, or how I used up my Christmas leftovers...yup, you heard me! Christmas leftovers! UGH! What the heck is wrong with me?! In case you've been hibernating these past few months, we are now three days into March! March! Christmas has been over for more than two months! What the heck is wrong with me?! As ashamed as I am that I left a Christmas leftover recipe until March, I can see the bright side of this sad little situation I've gotten myself into. I'm hoping that this entry will become a reminder for me about why I should kick my procrastination habit in the bud, and in the future just suck it up and DO THE WORK!

As much as this recipe seems irrelevant at this point in time, it is absolutely a recipe that you can make all year round. No, most of us don't exactly have turkey leftovers kicking around our fridge very often, but luckily you can easily substitute cooked chicken into this recipe, making it the perfect weeknight fix all year! What I love about this recipe is that you are totally transforming your leftovers so that you don't feel like you've been eating the same thing all week long (really, how many turkey sandwiches can one have in a week?), while still achieving that same comfort factor that you originally had with a roasted turkey (or chicken) dinner. Because I was short on time, I wanted to simplify the pot pie even further. I thought back on some of the best pot pies I've had in my life and the one that stood out the most was made by my good friend Rita, who made Ina Garten's Individual Chicken Pot Pies at a dinner party once. The individual pot pies did not have a crust inside, only a thick, flaky crust on top. I initially thought that I would miss the crust on the bottom, but the filling was so delicious, and there was so much pastry on top that I didn't notice the missing pastry inside! Although I wasn't making individual pot pies as Rita had, I still only wanted to put the pastry on the top to save myself some time on a busy weeknight. I was a little concerned that the final dish wouldn't be successful because I was also not making my pastry from scratch, as Rita had also done (she's putting me to shame right now!). Thankfully the puff pastry topping turned out great! I still achieved that delicious flaky crust that I was craving, and had enough so that I could get a little bit of that yummy pastry in each bite, a great contrast in texture and flavour with the hot and bubbling savory filling. Turkey is a holiday menu staple for my family, and I have a feeling this Turkey Pot Pie will make its way onto our table as our holiday leftover staple after each and every one of those holidays!

Ingredients:

2 tbsp butter

1 onion, chopped

2 cups carrots, chopped

2 stalks celery, chopped

1 tsp dried oregano

1 bay leaf

2 cups chicken stock

1/3 cup butter

1/3 cup flour

1/3 cup cream, heat to hot

1 1/2 cups cooked turkey, shredded (may substitute with chicken)

1 1/2 cups frozen peas

2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

1 sheet frozen puff pastry, thawed

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400º. Grease an 8-inch casserole dish with butter, set aside.

2. In a large skillet, melt the 2 tbsp butter over medium heat. Add the onion, carrots, celery, oregano and cook, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are soft. Add the chicken stock and bay leaf and continue cooking over medium-low heat, until stock is hot.

3. In a medium saucepan, melt the 1/3 cup butter over medium-low heat. Add the flour and continue cooking, stirring constantly, for 2 minutes. Add the hot cream and continue cooking f while stirring until mixture thickens. Slowly begin adding in the chicken stock mixture a little at a time, while stirring. Remove the bay leaf. Add the shredded turkey, frozen peas, salt, and pepper.

4. Pour the mixture into the greased casserole dish. Roll out the puff pastry to cover the top of the casserole dish. Place puff pastry over dish trimming excess pastry. Bake for about 30 minutes, or until puff pastry is puffed up and golden. Remove from oven and let stand for 5 minutes. Serve in shallow bowls.

Listening To:

DoYaThing - Gorillaz ft. Andre 3000 and James Murphy

Leftover Lovin': Pulled Pork Shepherds Pie

I honestly don't know how I could get through a workweek without a fridge full of leftovers. I rely on leftovers almost every day to give me the fuel I need on my quickie 15-min lunch break at work to get me through the rest of the day. Yeah, a sandwich will do in a pinch, but you can't compare a cold (and often soggy) sandwich that you have to rush around to prepare in the morning before flying out of the house to catch the bus, to warm and comforting leftovers that you simply transferred to a travel container. But what happens when leftovers extend beyond two days? This year for my 24th birthday fiesta at my house I accidentally made enough pulled pork to feed an army! My army of drunk friends just wasn't enough to tackle that immense batch of sweet, smokey, and tender pork. In fact a family dinner with my pulled-pork loving aunt, uncle, and cousins STILL wasn't enough to tackle all that pork the next night. By the third night my parents and I were all pulled porked out. We didn't want that delicious pork to go to waste, but there was no way we could bring ourselves to have pulled pork tacos for yet another night. I needed to transform the pork so that we could still enjoy it, but it could be disguised in such a way that we wouldn't even think about the fact that we were eating the same thing for the third night in a row.

I've been wanting to make a really good shepherds pie for a while now, and with the meat already prepared and a bag full of potatoes on the counter I knew I had found our solution to the pulled pork leftover blues. Following my instincts, I quickly boiled some potatoes, sauteed some onion for extra flavour, pulled out the leftover fiesta salad (two birds one stone!) to add even more flavour and texture, thawed some green peas from the fridge, and pulled out some already shredded cheese. In hardly any time at all I had prepared my family's new favourite comfort food! Warm and fluffy mashed potatoes are topped with salty melted cheddar cheese, resting on a bed of sweet, smokey, and tender pulled pork, with a layer of sweet vegetables in between. What a winner! It's worth it to make a giant batch of pulled pork all over again just to be able to make this fantastic quick dish!

Click here for Pulled Pork and Fiesta Salad recipe!

Ingredients:

4 large potatoes, chopped

1/2 onion, sliced

olive oil for sauteing

2 tbsp butter + more for sauteing

1/4-1/2 cup hot milk

2-3 cups leftover pulled pork

1/2 cup leftover fiesta salad (or a mixture corn and black beans)

1/2 cup frozen green peas, thawed (add more if not adding corn and beans)

1/2 cup cheddar cheese, shredded

Directions:

1. Add potatoes to a medium pot filled with cold water. Bring to a boil. When water has boiled reduce to a gentle boil. Continue to boil until potatoes are tender, about 15-20 min.

2. While potatoes are boiling, add a dab off butter and a bit of olive oil to a medium pan set at medium heat. When butter and oil are hot and bubbling add the onions and saute until golden brown.

3. When potatoes are tender, drain water and let potatoes sit in the covered pot for another 5 minutes to dry them out slightly. Add the butter and hot milk and mash using a potato masher until potatoes are fluffy and smooth.

4. Grease a medium-sized glass baking dish. Spread the leftover pulled pork evenly into the bottom of the dish. Top with the sauteed onions, leftover fiesta salad, and green peas.

5. Layer the mashed potatoes evenly overtop and top with shredded cheddar cheese. Broil for about 20-25 minutes to allow pork to reheat and cheddar to melt. If topping begins to burn, cover with tin foil. Serve hot.

Listening To:

Rihanna feat. Calvin Harris - We Found Love

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Love Of My Life Peaches n' Cream Pie

Some people find the love of their life in high school, others at parties and clubs, or even online...I, on the other hand found mine in my very own house. Fickle is a word often used to describe my heart, but my love for my moms peach pie will never die. Here I go again making these hyperbolic statements, but kids, I ain't kidding because this peach pie is outstanding. To be honest with you, I've never tasted a pie of my moms that I haven't fallen head over heels in love with. In fact, I even promised her I would give her the very official title of "Worlds Best Pie Maker" if I could put her recipe on my blog, a title she rightfully deserves. But out of all my moms delicious pies, her peach pie tops them all. The unique addition of the sweet sour cream and brown sugar mixture on top turns a classic peach pie into a Peaches n' Cream Pie, and turns me into one very happy lady.

Ingredients:

19" unbaked pie shell

6-7 peaches peeled and sliced

1/4 cup all-purpose flour

1/3 cup sugar

3/4 cup sour cream

2-3 tbsp brown sugar

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 425º. Slice the peaches straight into the pie shell and spread them out evenly.

2. In a small bowl, combine the flour, sugar and sour cream. Pour evenly over peaches.

3. Bake for 12 minutes, then reduce heat to 350º. Continue baking until fruit is tender and sour cream mixture is set, about 40 min.

4. Sprinkle the top of the pie with brown sugar and return to oven for another 5 min. Cool to room temperature before serving.

Listening To: Je n'attends Plus Personne - Francoise Hardy

Strawberry Picking = Strawberry Pie

Me (Danielle Rose) and my cousin on the hay bales

After I attended sip & Savour Ontario last week, I really began to realize the importance of supporting local Ontario produce.  I immediately consulted my seasonal food chart so that I would know exactly which fruits and vegetables are in season in Ontario this summer and exactly when.  To my delight, I learned that right now is strawberry season! I made it my mission to get out of Toronto and head north to St. Andrews Acres to support Ontario strawberries...and let's face it, a delicious strawberry pie at the end of the day ain't so bad either. 

Not only was the day successful for bringing home a few pounds of juicy and flavourful strawberries, it was successful because I had so much fun in the process! I went with my mom and 5 year old cousin and, although the heat was pretty brutal in the fields, we had so much fun gathering all the strawberries.  My cousin just thought it was the greatest thing that we got to take them all home!  After the strawberry picking, we visited the little shop that they had, where they were selling strawberries that had already been picked, fresh picked rhubarb, and asparagus and tons of preserves, fudge, soup mixes, and more! They even had a large selection of free recipe cards from Ontario Farm Fresh, which I made sure to get one of each of! We supported the shop by purchasing our freshly picked strawberries, a package of fresh butter tarts, blueberry sauce, and 2 cups of frozen yogurt! What a great way to enjoy the beautiful summer weather in Ontario! If you are from Ontario and are interested in picking your own fresh produce, visit the Ontario Farm Fresh website to locate a farm.  

When I got home, I was so excited to bake with my fresh strawberries! I ended up making a strawberry pie. My mom usually makes this pie with a classic pie crust, but I wanted to switch it up and try to make it with a graham cracker crust...and I have had a few unfortunate experiences making pie crust, so I took the easy route.  The results were delicious but incredibly sweet!  If you have a sweet tooth, then you will love the graham cracker crust! If you prefer your pie a little less sweet, then I would suggest making a regular pie crust. What is also great about this pie is that there is no baking except for the crust.  This is perfect for strawberry season, because you won't have to heat up your house with the oven on.

Tip: Make this strawberry pie for your Canada Day celebrations on Wednesday! The red of the strawberries and white from the whipped cream are a perfect way to make your dessert table festive!

Ingredients:

4 cups fresh strawberries

1 baked pie shell (regular or graham cracker crust, see above)

1/2 cup sugar

3 tbsp cornstarch

1 cup water

1 tsp vanilla

whipped cream, optional for garnish

Directions:

1.  Hull washed and dried strawberries.  Set aside 1 cup of strawberries.

2.  Lay whole berries in pie shell, stem end down.

3.  Puree reserved cup of strawberries.  In a small saucepan, add pureed strawberries, water, cornstarch, sugar, and vanilla.  Cook and stir over medium heat until mixture comes to a boil.

4.  Simmer for 5 minutes.  Cool slightly and then pour evenly over whole strawberries in pie shell.  Chill for at least 3 hours or until pie is set and no longer jiggly.  Serve with fresh whipped cream if desired.