Final exams

Most of you know that I have one daughter in her first year of high school and one in her last.  So this is the only year I’ll have two girls writing exams at the same time.  Last week, cumulatively, they wrote French, English (grade 12), Functions, Chemistry, Bio, Math and Science.  Teeth were gnashed, brows were beaten, cookies were eaten.

I remember using cookies to help me through exam stress too.  While in university, my friend Sandra and I once ate an entire bag of Fudgee-Os while preparing for a third year Advanced Microeconomics exam.  (All these years later, even thinking about that course makes me feel like reaching for a bag of Fudgee-Os.)

I made these s’mores cookies in an attempt to cheer the girls in the midst of a grim week, and it worked fabulously.  It also cheered me immeasurably, in a week made busy with driving girls to and from exams, and organizing last-minute camp, travel and university plans.  What we didn't eat ourselves were taken to a Science study session at my younger daughter's friend's house.

Next week, cumulatively, the girls will write Calculus, English (grade 9) and Health.  Do you think another round of cookies will be required?

Make these cookies if anyone in your house is writing exams, or if you’re busy planning for summer, or if you just like cookies.  Because the world always needs another cookie recipe, but never more so than when you’re studying for finals.

S’mores Cookies

(adapted from Tracey’s Culinary Adventures)

1 cup graham cracker crumbs

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

12 Tbsp (1 1/2 sticks) butter, at room temperature

1/2 cup white sugar

1/2 cup packed brown sugar

1 large egg

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

1 cup mini marshmallows (approximately; I used three mini marshmallows per cookie)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

In a medium bowl, whisk the graham cracker crumbs, flour, baking soda and salt together.  

In a large bowl, beat the butter and both sugars until light and fluffy, about two minutes.  Beat in the egg and vanilla.  Add the flour mixture and stir until combined, then add the chocolate chips.

Drop heaping tablespoons of the dough onto the prepared baking sheets, spacing about two inches apart.  Bake for 9 minutes, then remove from the oven, and quickly but gently push three mini marshmallows onto the top of each cookie.  (I baked one tray at a time to make this step a little easier.)  Return the cookies to the oven and bake for an additional 2 – 3 minutes. 

Makes 20 – 24 cookies.

Thursday's Child: Valle de la Luna, Chile

Last week I wrote about The Great Wall of China, and promised that I’d post about other breathtaking sights we’ve seen on our travels.  One place that I’ll never forget for its haunting beauty is Chile’s Valle de la Luna, or Moon Valley.

We visited Chile’s Atacama Desert in March 2009, and it was one of the most beautiful and diverse places I’ve ever seen.  Every day we went on one or two excursions in the San Pedro area, and every day was a new adventure. On our first day in the Atacama region, we visited Valle de la Luna.  This valley is one of the driest places in the world; some parts haven’t received rainfall in over a hundred years.  It’s well named, for the bleak, red landscape seems lunar in its beauty and remoteness. 

The diversity in this single valley is incredible. Red craggy hills give way to endless stretches of flat sandy plains.  Jagged stone outcrops have been carved by the wind over centuries.  Salt crystals cling to the stones and, in places, a veil of crystallized salt coats the flats.  The desert is ringed by volcanoes, some of which are still active, and in the distance the Andes soar to the sky.

This valley, barren and inhospitable to the eye, is actually a sanctuary of serenity.  When we visited, we apparently had the miles of desert to ourselves.  Something about this solitude made us feel like time had stopped.  Our guide invited us to close our eyes, and in the silence – no animals, no insects, no other people – we felt like we were wrapped in a cocoon of tranquility.

The Church Musical

Twice a year I have a feature on this blog about recipes inspired by musicals.  Today I’m writing about a musical very dear to my heart – the one my youngest daughter’s youth choir performed in church. 

The musical was called Once Upon a Parable, and my daughter played the role of Judas Iscariot.  (For those of you who don’t know the story, that’s not the good guy role.)  But she was the sweetest, prettiest Judas ever, and my heart burst with pride as I watched her and her friends perform.  From the Pharisees dressed in red choir gowns to the embrace of the prodigal daughter and her mother, from the irrepressible Simon to the lively Palm Sunday crowd, it was a show full of energy, beauty and depth.

A successful musical calls for a celebration, and I can’t think of any better way to celebrate than with these carrot cupcakes.  I must admit, I’ve never really fallen for the cupcake craze of the last few years.  I enjoy the occasional cupcake, but they wouldn’t be my first choice to bake or to eat.   I often find them too sweet – yes, even for my notorious sweet tooth.

These cupcakes are the exception to my stance.  Carrot cake is unbeatable, and served in miniature format they’re just a delight.  I can’t think of a better way to honour a young actress!

Carrot Cupcakes with Maple Cream Cheese Frosting

(adapted from smitten kitchen)

Makes 12 cupcakes

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp ground ginger

1 cup sugar

1/2 cup canola oil

2 large eggs

1 1/2 cups grated peeled carrots

3/4 cup raisins

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line twelve cupcake molds with papers, or butter and flour them.

Whisk flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and ginger in medium bowl to blend.  Whisk sugar and oil in large bowl until well-blended.  Whisk in eggs one at a time.  Add flour mixture and stir until blended.  Stir in carrots and raisins.  Divide batter among cupcake molds, filling each 3/4 full.

Bake cupcakes 20 to 22 minutes, or until a tester inserted into the centre of one comes out clean.  Let cool in pans for about five minutes, then remove from tray.  Let cool completely before frosting them.

Maple Cream Cheese Frosting

One 8-oz package cream cheese, softened

1/2 stick unsalted butter, room temperature

1 cup confectioners’ (icing) sugar

2 Tbsp pure maple syrup

Beat all the ingredients on medium until fluffy.  Chill the frosting for 5 to 10 minutes, if necessary to spread smoothly.  Frost cupcakes and enjoy.

Thursday's Child: The Great Wall of China

How is it possible that I’ve been writing about our travels for nearly two years, and I haven’t written about the Great Wall of China?  This month, I’ll be telling you about some of the breathtaking sights we’ve seen around the world.  None are more staggering than the Great Wall.

I never imagined I’d travel to China.  But that was before our dear friends, the Jay family, moved there in connection with Colleen’s job.  Suddenly, a destination that had seemed out of the realm of possibility was at the forefront of our imaginations.  In March 2008, we flew into Hong Kong and spent a couple of days there, then took the train to Guangzhou and visited the Jays before tackling the rest of the country.

According to this plan, we ended up in Beijing last, which meant that we saw the Great Wall on the second-last day of our holidays.  That’s probably a good thing, because it might have overshadowed everything else we saw.  As much as we loved the rest of the country, I haven’t seen many sights in my life that could compete with the Wall.

We arrived at the Mutianyu section of the wall – a little further from Beijing, but much less crowded – with our adorable guide, Qing.  She took us up the gondola and we stepped off onto the wall.  Sections of the walkway were divided by watchtowers (the wall was originally built to protect China from invaders from the north).  We looked at the miles of wall that snaked ahead of us, and behind us, as far as we could see in every direction.

A picture really is worth a thousand words, and any words I could use to describe the Great Wall of China could only sound like a thesaurus definition for the word “stunning”.  I will only say one thing: there are a few places on earth that you can see pictures of, but not really understand, until you are there.   And the Great Wall is one of them.

Great team meets Great Wall

Celebrations

Reverend Ted Grady

What a busy week, with so much to be grateful for!

-       My oldest daughter performed a Hamlet monologue as part of her English class requirement.  She chose the passage that ends “The play’s the thing/wherein I’ll catch the conscience of the King.”  That passage is 59 lines long.  Where does she get that memory from?  I can’t even remember a five-item grocery list.

-       Andrew and I celebrated our twenty-first wedding anniversary on Friday.  Our wedding day was about 33 degrees Celsius (over 90 Fahrenheit) and very muggy.  Twenty-one years later, it was 15 degrees (59 Fahrenheit) and my hometown got about 2” of rain.  Luckily, we celebrated our love, not the weather, with a beautiful dinner out.

-       We attended two weddings of our dear friends.  We don’t go to many weddings at this stage in our lives – most of our friends are already married, and our friends’ children aren’t there yet.  What’s the chance we’d be invited to two in the same day?  We loved sharing our best wishes with the brides and grooms, and dancing at the end of the evening.  (And the mother of one of the brides asked that I bring my chocolate raspberry cake to the dessert table!)

-       And this morning, we heard the first sermon given by the Reverend Ted Grady.  Ted grew up in our church, and we’ve known him and his wonderful family ever since we started attending.  Ted’s parents, Jack and Isla, are absolute blessings to our church, and it was an honour to celebrate their joy by their sides.

Factor in last weekend’s visit to my oldest daughter’s future university campus, and preparations for my youngest daughter’s church musical performance next weekend, and it feels very much like we’re in a time of transitions. 

When life is super-busy, sometimes it’s hard to find time to eat, let alone to prepare a meal. This recipe is quick to prepare and tastes delicious, and you can feel virtuous about all the vegetables in it.  And whether you’re celebrating weddings, anniversaries or new beginnings of any kind, that’s definitely something to take pride in. 

Tuscan Roasted Chicken and Vegetables

(adapted from Ellie Krieger, Food Network)

3 large red peppers

3 onions

3 medium zucchini

3 Tbsp oil, divided

3/4 tsp salt, divided

4 cloves garlic, finely minced

1 tsp lemon zest

1 Tbsp lemon juice

4 chicken breast halves, skinless and bone-in

Freshly ground black pepper

1 Tbsp fresh chopped rosemary leaves and 1 tsp dried rosemary

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

Cut the peppers and onions into large chunks.  Slice the zucchini in half crosswise, then cut each piece in half lengthwise once again.  Cut each strip into three chunks. 

Put the vegetables in a large baking pan, and toss them with 2 Tbsp oil and 1/4 tsp salt.  Arrange the chicken pieces in the pan with the vegetables.

In a small bowl, combine 1 Tbsp of oil, 1/2 tsp of salt, garlic, lemon zest and lemon juice.  Rub the mixture into the chicken in the pan.

Roast in the oven for 30 minutes, then stir the vegetables and add the rosemary.  Cook for about another 20 – 30 minutes more until the chicken is done and the vegetables are tender.

Thursday's Child: Backpacking in Europe, part 2

Bruges, Belgium

This week, I wanted to share a few final memories from my backpacking days.

As a young person making my way through Europe, I had plenty of company in the “lots of dreams, no money” category.  So when I wasn’t attending free concerts, I was staying up late, chatting with newly-made friends or playing cards.  And it’s amazing how many short and intense friendships I fell into.  When I chatted with other travellers, one of two things happened.  Sometimes we were going in opposite directions, in which case we shared travel suggestions.  And sometimes we were going in the same direction, and decided to travel together for a while.  Having a buddy to chat with en route to the next destination was always fun, and having someone to help find the hostel in the next town was a godsend.  (My strengths are friendliness and trip research; my weakness is navigation.)  I mention literally dozens and dozens of people in my journal, most of whom I can’t put a face to anymore, but all of whom I spent a few hours or a few days with.  And the experiences I had with the travellers that I do remember – an impromptu trip to Luxembourg with Ellen, the Rodin museum with Jon, talking baseball with Mark outside the Pompidou Centre – were some of the highlights of my trip.  

Seeing Luxembourg with Ellen

Sometimes those new friendships got off to a rocky start, though.  I had my first experience with coed washrooms in a youth hostel in Paris.  Somewhat dubiously, the shower curtain didn't completely close.  In fact, you couldn’t really call it a 'curtain'; it was more like two boards that didn't quite overlap.  When I stepped into the bathroom, I realized quickly that the occupant of the other shower was male, so I kept my shower as brief as possible, while simultaneously hugging the walls of said shower. Later, in the common room, a guy came up to me and said, "Oh, hi, you were in the shower next to me."  I literally had no idea what to say, so fortunately he filled in the rest of the sentiment: "I recognized your sneakers."

Admittedly my travel style has changed a little since the backpacking and youth hostel days.  But I learned some valuable lessons.  The key to success in finding my way around every city in Europe is still exactly the same:  learn a few words in the native language, the most important phrase being, “Where is?”  If you know that, and the name of your hotel, you will never truly be lost.

The other lesson I learned from this trip was to keep my heart open to the people I meet.  My most special memories involved the people I shared my time with.  And although I've never travelled by myself since then, the same is still true.  The cities may be fabulous, the countryside may be breathtaking, but every new place I visit is made most precious by the people I have met.

Recipes Inspired by Musicals: The Pirates of Penzance

Every spring, my girlfriends and I make a trip to the Stratford Festival.  We drive down in the morning, enjoy a patio lunch, see a show, and drive back to Toronto by early evening.  Given the name of the venue, it’s unsurprising that many of the plays they perform were written by William Shakespeare.  And most years that’s what we see.  

This year, however, we got tickets for The Pirates of Penzance.  Gilbert and Sullivan wrote frothy confections of operettas – their shows are full of humour and silliness.  Any play that has a plot based on [spoiler alert] a leap year birthday, and which is resolved by appealing to loyalty for Queen Victoria, can only be described as lighthearted.  The production was full of wit, energy, and beautiful costumes.  And for my Canadian readers, the pivotal role of the Major-General is played by C. David Johnson (Chuck Tchobanian from Street Legal)!

Frederic, the apprentice pirate, meets Mabel in a scene where she and her sisters are looking for a secluded spot for a picnic.  (Need I say that romance ensues between Frederic and Mabel, and there was eventually one pirate for every sister?)  I don’t know what they carried in their picnic basket, but if I was packing one today I’d be sure to bring along this wheat berry salad.  It’s wonderfully delicious, can be made in advance, and has so many great summer flavours. Whether you’re serving a band of pirates or a Major-General, there’s something in this salad for everyone to love.

Wheat Berry Salad

(adapted from Gale Gand’s Brunch; I made a half-sized salad as the original recipe was quite large.)

1/2 cup wheat berries

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 cup diced yellow or red pepper

1/4 cup diced celery

1/4 cup dried cranberries

one 6-oz can tuna, drained

1/4 cup feta cheese

1/4 cup zucchini

1 Tbsp coarsely chopped fresh parsley

salt to taste

1/4 cup Lemon-Herb Vinaigrette (or Italian dressing)

Combine wheat berries, 1/2 quart water and salt in medium saucepan and bring to boil.  Turn down heat and simmer 1 to 1.5 hours, until wheat berries are tender. Drain well and cool.

In large bowl, toss cooked wheat berries with bell pepper, celery, cranberries, tuna, feta, zucchini, parsley, salt and dressing.  Cover and chill at least at least one hour, up to 2 days.

Lemon-Herb Vinaigrette

2 Tbsp fresh lemon juice

2 Tbsp red wine vinegar

1/4 tsp sugar

1 medium cloves garlic, finely chopped

pinch dried oregano

pinch chopped fresh parsley

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Whisk together lemon juice through parsley.  Add oil in a thin stream until well-blended.  Add salt and pepper to taste.  Use immediately or refrigerate in a tightly-closed jar for up to 3 days.  Shake well before using.