Desserts

Desserts

Strawberry Rhubarb Cake

Like most people, summer is my favourite time of the year. The weather (for the most part) is warm and restaurant patios are a buzz with tons of people in great moods. I particularly love summer because of the selection of fruit in season. Blueberries, strawberries and raspberries are in abundance in grocery stores, farmers markets are open, and U-pick fruit farms are everywhere. Some of my favourite summer memories growing up were when Claudia would take me and my  brother to U-pick farms outside the city and we’d pick pails and pails of strawberries (and fill our bellies just the same).

I also find baking to be much more enjoyable with fresh in-season fruit. One of my favourites to bake in the early summer is Strawberry Rhubarb Cake. This recipe is another gem of Claudia’s. There are a lot of strawberry rhubarb recipes out there. This one is more like a cake, but still has the same delicious flavour as a crisp.

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Desserts

Layered Lemon Bars

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Claudia will be heading off shortly to the lovely state of Arizona. She reminds me frequently that the weather is averaging 80 degrees fahrenheit and that she will be basking in the sun’s rays for a few weeks, while I struggle to leave my home in -30 celsius weather here in Winnipeg. Therefore, I figured this dessert is perfect for the present occasion. Layered Lemon Bars not only remind me of summer evening BBQs at my parents, but are also a refreshing and light dessert that perfectly follows the heavier and hearty meals of winter.

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Desserts

Peanut BETTER Gingersnap Cookies

This recipe is not a Claudia original. But these cookies are so delicious we had to share them immediately. One of my coworkers made these a few weeks ago and was nice enough to share one with me. After one bite I knew I had found cookie love. This recipe is from the Food Network Canada show Eat, Shrink and Be Merry. Not only are these cookies absolutely delicious with it’s creamy, gooey peanut butter texture and sweet gingersnap flavour, they’re also not that bad for you! In moderation of course. If you ate all 20 of these babies, you would probably need to do a little run on the treadmill…for 3 hours. Still…totally worth the 3 hour sweat.

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Desserts

Bavarian Cheesecake

My Baba is well known for 3 of her culinary endeavours in our household. #1 – Perogies. #2 – Spaghetti and meatballs. I have no idea where a Ukrainian woman learned how to cook Italian food, but it was amazing. #3 – This Bavarian Cheesecake recipe. It is to die for. I remember every summer when Claudia, my Dad, my brother and I came back from our 3-week stints in Saskatchewan, Baba would have a big batch of spaghetti and meatballs and this dessert to welcome us home. It was so comforting and definitely worth sharing. Apples, cinnamon, cream cheese, crunchy walnuts and my own optional addition – caramel sauce. How can you possibly go wrong with this rich delight? You will win friends, boyfriends, girlfriends, and probably even world wars with this dessert. Trust me, it’s a winner.

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Desserts

Nanaimo Bars

Growing up I never realized two very important things about Claudia’s Nanaimo Bars. Number 1 – they are a classic Canadian dessert. Number 2 – they are delicious! Like a spoiled brat child, I didn’t really care for Nanaimo Bars. I’m fairly certain it was the texture of the coconut. I wasn’t a huge fan. Fun fact: to this day I’m still not a fan of Bounty chocolate bars either! However as I got older and my palate became more sophisticated, I learned to love these Nanaimo Bars in all their glory. To this day, Claudia only makes these beauties for Christmas. I think that is part of the appeal. Sweet, creamy and chocolatey rich, they are definitely a once a year treat that everyone should enjoy.

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Desserts

Chocolate Chow Mein Clusters

I know what you’re thinking. You’re thinking, “I ate three times my body weight in holiday baking a mere month ago. Why would I want to bake and eat any more – especially when my New Years Resolution is to eat healthy?!” I hear what you are saying and feel the same way. Except when I am faced with these amazing chocolatey treats (like last night when I went over to my parents for dinner) and throw all my good eating intentions out the window.

Claudia has made these little treats for Christmas for as long as I can remember. I don’t know how it’s possible, but I seem to fall further and further in love with them every year. They are probably one of the simplest desserts to make and fulfill even the biggest chocolate cravings. Sweet with a hint of salty, these crunchy gems are a must try.  You will thank me – I promise!

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Desserts

Red Velvet Cake Balls

We are just waking up from our holiday food comas. We hope that the holiday season is being kind to you all! We did a fair amount of baking leading up to Christmas, therefore the next few posts will be of the dessert variety. We honestly couldn’t wait to share this new recipe of ours with you.

This recipe is actually not a Claudia original. I actually found it on the blog by the wonderful and talented Bakerella. We tried it for the first time last week and everyone who has tried these little darlings has fallen in love. So of course, we simply had to share the love with you as well!  I think these little babies would be a fun addition to any New Years Eve potluck party. The only downside to this story is that you need Red Velvet cake mix. I haven’t been able to locate this in Canada, so I typically stock up on this when I hit Target in the USA. I highly recommend you give the Duncan Hines variety a try.

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Desserts

Date Squares

For as long as I can remember, Date Squares (aka Matrimonial Cake) were always on Claudia’s Christmas baking list. I’ll admit that when I was younger I didn’t fancy them too much and chose holiday desserts on the table that had a lot more chocolate on them. But as I get older (and wiser of course) I have grown to absolutely love them. The buttery crumbly layers and the sweet date filling makes this the perfect recipe for your own holiday baking list.

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Desserts

Pumpkin Pie

With Canadian Thanksgiving coming up this weekend, we decided it was a perfect opportunity to share Claudia’s special pumpkin pie recipe.

Now, there is a furious debate in our household on whether or not pumpkin pie should be eaten warmed up with vanilla ice cream or with whip cream. Now, when I say in our “household” I mean it’s a debate between my immediate family (i.e. my brother, Claudia, my Dad and me)  against the newcomers – my boyfriend and my brother’s girlfriend. My family feels that anything other than vanilla ice cream on pumpkin pie is simply absurd. The newcomers (and apparently everybody poled on our Facebook fan page) think otherwise. I still stand by my ice cream opinion.

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Desserts

Poppy Seed Chiffon Cake

Claudia is finally back from her 3-week vacation in the country. Just in time for her birthday. Last week, I posted my absolute favourite birthday cake that Claudia makes for me every year. With Claudia’s return and birthday looming, we figured it would be fitting to post HER favourite birthday cake.

Because I pride myself on being a good daughter, I asked Claudia upon her return from vacation last week what kind of cake she would like for her birthday. Not even a split second went by before she blurted out excitedly “Poppy Seed Chiffon Cake!”  Looks like Claudia prepared herself for this question and contemplated it quite heavily on the 5-hour drive back to the city!

Up until last week I had no idea what this cake was, let alone how to make it. So Claudia showed me her favourite recipe (a combination of two recipes – one consisting of a recipe card with ingredients written via typewriter and the other out of an old classic cookbook for the assembly and baking instructions). She wasn’t kidding around. A few days went by and I received a phone call from Claudia, insisting that she help me with her birthday cake. Yes folks, she wanted to make her own birthday cake.  Mother-daughter baking trust issues? Perhaps. Perfect opportunity for a blog post? Absolutely.

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