How To: Eat a Banana, Chicken Wings and a Cupcake like a Gentleman or Gentlelady

So apparently I have been eating bananas, chicken wings and cupcakes my entire life.

No word of a lie. My world has been flipped upside down and backwards. I can't even contain myself right now.  I have MOUNTAINS of homework and marking to do, but who gives a flip? I need to immediately go out and get myself a banana, some chicken wings and one badass cupcake.

I stumbled upon this cupcake method a few months ago and never looked back. But when a classmate of mine took out a banana and peeled it like this...I couldn't look away - genius! Then I had to go on a search for video tutorials to share with everyone. Secrets this amazing should not remain a secret! (AMEN brotha!)

THANK GOODNESS for social media tools or else I would still be eating bananas like a chump, chicken wings like a sucker and cupcakes like a fool. Keep reading/watching so you also don't have to.

How To: Segment an Orange

Like oranges? Don't like the skin? Nah no one eats that.

What about the pith? .. wait.. what the heck is pith?  Well I will tell you.

It is that white stuff inside the orange (or any citrus fruit). The stuff that keeps the oranges into little segments. The stuff you always eat anyways.

But today I decide to rebel and not eat the pith.

Stay tuned for the next post...where I actually put this skill to good use ;)

Baked Prosciutto Wrapped Figs Stuffed with Blue Cheese and a Balsamic Reduction

Some of you may or may not remember the amazing birthday dinner my foodie friend made for me a few months ago. Well if you can recall, one of the appetizers she made me consisted of Prosciutto Wraped Figs Stuffed with Blue Cheese and they were absolutely friggan fantastic. At the time she couldn't find fresh figs, only dried, but they were still SOOOOOO good. So now that I had my hands on fresh figs, how fitting would it be to try and replicate what she did and add a little spin.

How To: Take the BITE out of Raw Red Onions

Find yourself eating a lot of raw red onions? I know I sure do - mostly in salads. They are sweeter than white and yellow onions and in my opinion... prettier. Thats riiiiight.

But what I don't like about them is that they are called red onions, but in fact they are PURPLE. Make up your mind foo!!!

No seriously what I don't like about them is sometimes they are uber strong and have quite the bite to them. Then they overpower any salad I put them in and I have the unfortunate onion breath for the rest of the day.

So here is my little trick on how to take them down a notch:

How To: Make Modeling Chocolate



Birthday cake I made for a beautiful lady. I actually did make this whole thing from scratch!

Following up on my post on Chocolate Buttercream Icing that focuses on turning ordinary box-cake into your own masterpiece. What is a cake/cupcake without some decorations?

Now if you have ever ventured into the world of cake decorating, you would know what I am talking about when I say fondant, gumpaste, marzipan, etc.... if not... don't worry about it, you are not missing much, all you need to know is that this stuff is quite difficult to make at home but extremely expensive to buy. Am I right? Or am I right.

How To: Make Risotto

Risotto - are you scared?

Well I'm not so snap out of it!

 Risotto is nothing to be scared of. In fact it is something to love. And a great recipe to have in your back pocket. Why is that? Because it is like a blank canvas on the road to flava town. Add anything you want to it and I guarantee it will taste great. The worst part about it though is that it takes a long time (in a student's world 45-1 hr means 3 chapters read or 2 tv episodes watched online). And you can't set it and forget it.

How To: Bedazzle your Veggie Tray

Tired of your boring veggie platter? Carrots, celery, broccoli and maybe some peppers. It is definitely easy I'll give ya that. And its a healthy tid bit to your party spread. You can even buy them pre-made at the grocery store (although it may cost you an arm and a leg). 

How many times does this happen to you. 

-You decide to host a party. 

- You think of some awesome snack ideas

- Day of, you go pick up all the ingredients at the grocery store and realize - crap there is nothing good for me on the menu, lets throw in a veggie tray

Bah ...always an afterthought. 

How To: Poach an Egg

Eggs.

I say the skill of cooking eggs is a pretty basic one to have.

Hard boiled? - Hot water, drop, wait, take out.
Over easy? - Hot pan, crack, flip.
Sunny side up? - hot pan, crack, don't flip.
Scrambled? - Hot pan, mix with fork, flip a bunch of times.

But then there is poached eggs....

How To: Toast Your Nuts

Toasted nuts? Everyone likes toasted nuts. And for some people like me, its the only way to eat them without getting an allergic reaction. Its a very simple procedure, but your nuts can go from toasted to burnt in no time flat. An NOBODY likes burnt nuts.

This method can be used for any type of nut, but make sure you don't try to toast nuts of different sizes at the same time because bigger ones take longer than smaller ones.

Okay, there are 2 ways to do this: In a frying pan and in the oven. Both methods require your 100% attention.

How-To: Keep Brown Sugar Soft

Don't you hate when you go to use your brown sugar, and it is hard as a rock? You try to break off pieces with a knife, cursing the whole time, but no matter what, it is still a sugary brick. BAH!!

So what do you do? Well I have some tricks, some may be a bit crazy sounding (ok.. really crazy) but they work I swear.

But first, ever wonder why brown sugar gets so hard? Well it is because of the molasses in it. Yep, brown sugar has molasses in it, that is why it has such a dark brown color. And the darker the sugar, the more molasses it contains. So the reason the sugar becomes a brick is because the liquid in the molasses evaporates. Go figure.

I know there are multiple ways to soften the brown stuff, but these 3 are ones that I have used multiple times and have had great success with. So lets battle the block together and try these at home.

Trick 1: Zap it Soft. 
This trick is for when you need to use your brown sugar right away. Put some sugar in a container in the microwave and put a bowl of water in the microwave beside it. Zap it on high for about a 1 minute. Still hard? Put it in for another 30 seconds, continue this until soft.

Trick 2: The Pulse and Grind. 
Also good for when you need brown sugar right away. Put some in a food processor/blender/coffee grinder and pulse until it is a usable texture.

Trick 3: The Bread Trick (WARNING: Crazy Alert!)
Yes, extreme warning. This sounds crazy. I honestly didn't think it was crazy the first time I heard it, I thought it was nifty and I have been using this trick ever since. The crazyness comes from my friends reaction when they look at me like I am a nutball for putting bread in my brown sugar jar. Ya that is all you have to do! Put a slice a bread in your brown sugar jar and leave over night, I swear to you it will be soft and luxurious the next morning. Seriously...just try it. Don't hate.

Cheers to soft brown sugar!

How-To: Make Warm Apple Topping

Sneak peak of topping with rice pudding

Apple season is coming to a close and I decide to stock up while they are still cheap and fresh. With so many apples, I need to think of new ways to use them (such as in my Apple, Raisin, Toasted Walnut and Spinach Salad). Here is a quick an easy recipe that can be used in soooo many ways.

This little mixture of warm apples, spices and almonds can go on many tasty treats to take them to the next level and it is so quick and easy to make. It is a great basic recipe to get started with, and you can add different spices and flavours to make your own variation.

You can use this on top of pancakes, french toast, ice cream, pastries, yogurt, oatmeal and so on and so on and so on. My recent use was on rice pudding when a foodie friend of mine and I put our heads together to make a quick and easy dessert on the spot (more on that recipe later).

Warm Apple Topping

2 Apples
2-3 Tbsp of Slivered Almonds
1 Tbsp of butter
2 Tsp of Cinnamon
1 Tsp of Nutmeg (optional)
Splash of lemon juice (optional)

Pre-heat a pan to medium heat and melt the butter. In the mean time, slice n dice the apples how you like em. Throw the almonds in the pan and toss in butter, slightly toasting them - about 2-3 minutes.

Add your apples and sprinkle spices over apples. Toss (or stir) apples until the are completely coated by butter and spices.

Cook until apples start to get a little soft, about another 5-7 minutes. Take off heat and serve!

I want some right now....

How-To: Make Basic French Toast

I love french toast. It is easy to make and composed of ingredients I nearly always have on hand. It is extremely versatile and can please anyone. My french toast has been a bit of a crowd pleaser for the past few years, and it is all because of 1 little secret. Well guess what...my secret is about to be a secret no longer!

(Oh man... I can't believe I am about to give this one away...!)

So there are 2 parts to french toast: the batter and the bread.

Part 1: The Bread
Some professionals will tell you that the bread you use is what makes the french toast awesome. While that could be true, I don't usually use fancy bread. I don't really have fancy bread on hand, nor do many people I know. But I will tell you what fancy bread I am referring to - brioche or challah bread -  or otherwise known as "egg bread". It is light and fluffy, yet sturdy enough to handle the egg batter and a #1 choice for french toast.

You can really use any type of bread you like and different breads will change up the flava, so go ahead and be creative.

Part 2: The Batter
The batter is composed of egg and a liquid (milk, cream, water whatever). That is really all you need. But add flavour to the batter and you add a wow factor to your french toast. I am going to show you some basic ideas to get you started, and then I will set you free! Typical flavours would be cinnamon and/or vanilla.

Okay... here it is.... man oh man.

Basic French Toast

2 Pieces of bread
2 Eggs
Splash of liquid (milk, cream, water)
1 tsp of vanilla
1-2 tsp of sugar

Whisk together egg, liquid, vanilla and sugar (there you have it people! That is it! My little secret! I add sugar and vanilla to my batter! And I DON'T use cinnamon aaaallll the time! Whew.)

Heat a skillet at med-high and melt butter or use coat with cooking spray.

Dip bread in liquid. Be sure not to let it soak too long because if you are using ordinary sandwich bread (like I always do) the bread will fall apart and become soggy.

Place in hot pan and let cook for 2-3 minutes or until golden brown and flip.

Simple. As. That.

Top with your favourite toppings. I like to be inventive with french toast, so please stay tuned for some ridiculous recipes!

How-To Roast a Red Pepper

I am not a huge pepper fan. Actually, the only reason I eat them is because a few years ago I started forcing myself to eat them because I knew they were good for me. But then, I discovered roasted red peppers and I fell in love. Red peppers are slightly sweeter than other peppers, but when roasted, they are transformed. The flavour is sweeter, deeper and simply awesome.

Here's the kicker...ever try to buy some at the grocery store? Ouch! EXPENSIVE! Well, at the rate I consume them, yes expensive. So I decided to try to master the art of roasting them myself. When I really got hooked on them was late this summer when they were in season. At the Trails End Market in London, Ontario, I found 7 peppers for $1.00...MADNESS!!! Right now at grocery stores, peppers are like 4/$5.00 (or something like that). See the power of buying in season?

Anyways, just because peppers are no longer in season, doesn't mean you can't enjoy a really good roasted pepper now and then. Just can't eat them on everything haha.

Step 1

Let me show you the process. Its really quite simple, and once you do try it, you will never have to buy the jarred stuff again.




Step 1: Clean peppers, cut out the inside and lay them flat on a baking sheet.

Step 2

Step 2: Put your oven rack up to the very top and put the oven on broil. Put your baking sheet on the top rack so the peppers are extremely close to the flame. If you were using a BBQ in the summer you can just put it right on grill (this is my preferred method, the peppers get a smoky flava)

Step 3

Step 3: Once the skin of the peppers get blackened, take them out. I know, this seems like they are completely burnt (and maybe I left them in about 30 seconds to long in this picture) but you want to char the skin. It also makes it easier to peel off later.

Step 4

Step 4: Put the peppers in a bowl and put saran wrap on top. This will capture the steam and help the skin lift off the pepper (also making it easier to peel)



Step 5: Once the peppers have cooled down a bit and you can handle them, peel the skin right off.

And there you have it folks, a roasted red pepper.
  

Tip: If you want to make a ton at a time, you can put them in a jar with some olive oil. They will last in the fridge for about a week (possibly 2 weeks). Actually, they can last a whoooole lot longer if you use propper jarring techniques. But I don't have patience for that. Plus in my house, roasted red peppers wouldn't last that long enough to have to worry about it.