{Etta James Style}

This has been a long time coming.

A Very. Very. Very. Long time coming.

I have wanted a new camera probably since I started this blog in 2008. Not just any camera, but a Canon.

I have had my eye on a Canon Rebel for quite some time. A couple things held me back from getting one right away, but mostly the cost. As a ‘starving student’ (Hah) I just couldn’t bring myself to spend upwards of 500-600$ on a camera when I wasn’t exactly working, and in school full time. So, I made do with what I had. Adam and I bought a Panasonic Lumix camera back when we went to Mexico the first time. This was a major upgrade to my old point and shoot Nikon. However, that was about 300$ on sale at the time we purchased it, and we split it 50/50. It was also a point and shoot, but a huge step up, and only a few steps down from a DSLR. It was a pretty good camera, but it just wasn’t what I was looking for in a camera.

Bloggers will know, especially food bloggers, that the pictures are everything. A very appetizing dish can quickly become un-appetizing with a bad photograph. So many times I have made wonderful, delicious recipes that I wanted to share with you, but the photo’s just weren’t great. It’s hard to sell a recipe when the photograph looks so unappealing. I can go on and on about how amazing good it was, but if the photo isn’t great you may not be up to trying it out. Somewhat like my cookbook theory; if there’s no pictures in the book I don’t buy it. I need a photograph! Otherwise, how else am I going to know if it turned out right? Or, if it looks like something I might want to try. I need at least 80% of the recipes to have photographs accompanying them! If I ever made a cookbook, or maybe When, I make my own cookbook I would make sure Every Single Recipe has a picture. Cooking is very visual.

People, the photographs are the food relationship deal breaker.

I had been trying to use the point-and shoot Lumix, but it just wasn’t capturing the photographs right. It’s sad to say that my iPhone camera worked better for me, and about 70% of the photo’s on the blog recently were probably from my iPhone.

I had said I wasn’t going to partake in the Black Friday madness, but I was sucked in. I was browsing the flyers and sales and noticed a Canon Rebel T3 on sale at Black’s Photography (no pun intended.) The deal was $399 for the Rebel T3, including a lens. Now, I have been hunting and drooling over, and stalking Canon cameras for probably the last year or two religiously. Adam can confirm my lamenting about wanting a new camera forever. So, when I saw one on sale for LESS than 400$ I was shocked! Then, I also saw Shoppers Drug Mart had one on for $379! As well, WalMart had it on for $398, plus they Ad-Match, so you could bring in the Shopper’s Ad and price match it. So, I asked Adam to kindly stop on his way home from work to pick me one up! What a great boyfriend =)

Now, I’m still a starving well fed student, but I had recently sold a few new/recently won un-needed items on Craigslist, and had been saving up my money specifically for a new camera, stored in my great-aunts teacup on my dresser. Thankfully the amount I had saved in my antique teacup was the exact amount needed. Therefore, not money out of pocket for me!

{Adam’s dog, Chubby. One of my first photographs}

It’s nice to know that after saving up, and waiting I finally have what I’ve wanted. It also makes you appreciate it more knowing that you’ve been wanting it for so long.

Good things come to those who wait.

Now, of course to celebrate I had to break in the new camera with a recipe. I needed something to take pictures of clearly.

I brought these to a Cousins get together last night, the first holiday party of the season! They were a hit, and definitely going to be making them again this season. They reminded me of my Blackberry Crumb bars, but the base and topping were a little more firm.

Cranberry Lemon Squares
Adapted from: Kitchen Culinaire  

For the dough:

3 cups of flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 cup sugar
1 lemon, zested and juiced (juice reserved for filling)
1 cup,  cold unsalted butter, cubed
1 large egg
2-3 tbs. water
2 tsp. vanilla

For the filling:

1 bag frozen cranberries, plus a little more depending on your baking dish size.
1/2 cup sugar
reserved juice from 1 medium lemon
2 tablespoons corn starch

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

1. Mix the cranberries, sugar and the lemon juice in a medium bowl. Add the 2 tablespoons of cornstarch and mix well. I always have lemon juice on hand, so I added a bit more to the mixture.
2. For the dough combine the flour, baking powder, sugar, and lemon zest in mixer with paddle attachment. Mix on low to combine dry ingredients.
3. Slowly add chilled cubed butter and mix on low until dough forms pea sized crumbs, don’t over mix. Add the egg and vanilla and mix again. Add a couple tsp. of water if needed, more or less, until dough just comes together but still slightly crumbly. You can also use a food processor if you like.
4. Press a little more than half of the dough into the bottom of a  9 x 13 inch baking dish with your fingers. Set remaining dough aside for topping.
5. Next add the cranberry filling, in a single layer so that the top is evenly covered, you don’t want any gaps.
6. Crumble the remaining dough evenly over the top in small/pea sized clusters using your fingers to crumble it.
7. Bake in preheated oven for 30-35 minutes or so until the top starts to brown.
8. Cool on countertop, you can also move it to the fridge to cool completely. Let sit at room temp for a few minutes before cutting.

These would also freeze nicely for the holiday season!

My Grandma Alice was well known for her sweet tooth. I blame my Mother’s side for my sweet tooth, and my Father’s side for my love of savoury foods (the Italian side).

When my mom and I would go to visit my Grandma, we would take her out to shop, and then for lunch (almost always for Chinese food), and afterwards my Grandma would want something sweet for dessert. One of her favourite desserts were lemon tarts, or lemon squares. She loved lemon desserts. She was also Diabetic, but she never passed on dessert. My Grandpa was also notorious for eating an entire bag of chocolate bars (they would try and hide them from him, but he found it).

{Grandma}

When we would get together for family functions my Grandma would make one of her specialties – Nanaimo bars (tooth-achingly sweet), Butter Tarts, or Matrimonial Squares. Now, My moms sisters, my cousins and myself carry on these recipes (I’ve mentioned it before here and here ) I loved Matrimonial Squares, and would always look forward to a family gathering because I knew one of the above treats would be served. Apparently my Grandma would even add lemon to her matrimonial squares, so I’ll have to try that next time. I haven’t had them in a quite a while, but when I was searching the other night for a ‘bar’ recipe, I happened to stumble upon a recipe for 5 Ingredient Date Bars. They reminded me so much of Matrimonial squares, or cake,  that I didn’t hesitate to make them. If my Grandma were here I know she would have loved these, and wouldn’t have even missed the sugar! I’ll have to try these out with my Mom’s family at the next gathering to see how they like them. I don’t think they will be disappointed.

I probably could have eaten the entire tray myself. They are amazingly close to the real thing, with no added sugar, wheat free, dairy free, and vegan! And, no bake. Definitely a repeat recipe for the future. And even great as a dish for a brunch or breakfast buffet.

Healthier Matrimonial Squares or “5 Ingredient Date Bars”

From, Oh She Glows, original adapted from Karen

Base:

• 1.5 cups whole raw almonds
• 1.5 cups oats (I used Gluten Free/Wheat Free Oats)
• 10 Medjool dates, pitted and roughly chopped
• 1/4 cup coconut oil
• 1/2 cup unsweetened coconut

Date filling:

• 25 Medjool dates, pitted and roughly chopped (about 2.5 cups)
• 6-8 Honey Dates
• 1/4 Cup Water

Directions:

1. In a food processor, process the almonds and oats until fine. Next, add in the 10 dates and coconut and process until crumbly again. Melt the coconut oil and add to the mixture and process until it becomes sticky, and clumps together, You can do this on pulse mode.

Remove from processor, set aside about a cup to use as top layer later, and press the rest of the mixture very firmly and evenly into an 8×8 or 9×9 un-greased pan. You can use your fingers, or the back of a spoon to do this.

2. Next, take your pitted and roughly chopped 25 Medjool Dates + Honey Dates and water and process in the food processor until a paste forms. You will have to stop and scrape down the sides of the bowl often. Feel free to add more water if the paste is too thick, but you don’t want it to be too thin either. Scoop out the date mixture with a spatula and spoon onto the nut/oat base. Gently spread with a spoon to get it even.

3. Last, sprinkle by hand the 1 cup of mixture you set aside and gently press down. Refrigerate in the fridge until firm – about two hours or overnight.

Cut into squares and serve. Store in the fridge or freezer.

Yesterday my mom, aunt, another aunt, two cousins and I jumped on a ferry to the island. My mom’s aunts live in Half Moon Bay, near Sechelt, and we were also able to visit to my grandmother (my mom’s mom) who is no longer with us, but who rests in a quaint family site. We spent the afternoon having tea, and lunch (which included my family’s famous pickled beets), while reminiscing with my great aunts over old photo albums. I miss my grandma, and my mom misses her mom, however, being with the great aunts felt like being at Grandma’s again. I love the old decorations, the antique tea cups, and the feeling of being at a grandparents. My mom’s aunt said she can just call her momma now too. It was a really great afternoon with family, finding out about our heritage (my mother’s family actually has First Nations in their bloodline, and some of her family has gained First Nations Status.) Looking at photos from the early 1900s, in the photo albums we were looking at, you can really tell some of her relatives were of native descent. This is interesting to me, because I’ve just begun my PDP for teaching, and we are now being made more aware of Indigenous education, and teaching First Nations children in the education system.

{my awesome fishing teacup}

{one of the old photographs, my moms grandma as a baby at their home in old North Van, circa 1910}

Her house had a beautiful view of the water, and just outside her balcony was a large apple tree. She said she wasn’t able to pick the higher ones, so my two cousins and I decided we would try and get some down (without the crabby neighbour downstairs making too much of a fuss.) We knocked down quite a few, and filled up an entire paper grocery bag full. They are currently sitting on the counter in the kitchen, what they will be baked into is still yet to be determined.. though I’m thinking some sort of pie most likely. They aren’t very crisp apples, pretty soft. Good for baking.

 {Melis and I gathering up the apples}

{Our bushel of apples! Quite impressive, thanks to my cousins climbing skill ;) }

Once we were finished picking apples, my great aunt told us there were a ton of blackberries down the trail beside her house – so off we went to pick some. My cousin Melis went full force with another branch to get right in there, while Andrea and I stayed on the outskirts of the bushes – FYI sandals and a dress are not great blackberry picking clothes.

{Basket of berries}

{Walking back to the house with our berries}

I actually made these bars before I left to go to Europe, but I was having problems uploading the photos. Now I’ve got it all fixed – so I thought I would share it.

My family is sort of a square family – in the sense that they were all great bakers (perhaps where I get it from..) and squares and bars are kind of their thing, along with canning of course (salmon, beets, pickles.) My grandma made matrimonial squares (date squares,) nanaimo bars, lemon squares etc. and they were good. My aunts and cousins and I have tried to re-make her recipes, and we’re pretty close I think.

These can be made with any berry really, I was thinking of making them again this week with the blackberries, and maybe some of Adam’s mom’s rhubarb. Perfect for back-to-school lunches.

Blackberry Crumb Bars

Ingredients:

• 1 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 cup butter, cut into small pieces
• 1 egg
• Zest and juice of a lemon
• 4-5 cups fresh berries of your choice (blackberry, blueberry, raspberry etc)
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 teaspoons cornstarch

What to do:

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Spray a 9×13″ pan.

2. In a food processor, add 1 cup sugar, flour, and baking powder. Add in lemon zest, and butter and egg. Pulse until well blended, dough will be crumbly and resemble small pea-sized pieces. Pat half of this dough into the pan gently.

3. In another bowl, stir together the rest of the sugar, cornstarch and lemon juice. Gently mix in the berries. Sprinkle the blackberry (or whichever berry you chose) mixture evenly over the crust. Crumble remaining dough over the berry layer.

4. Bake for 45 minutes, or until top is slightly brown. Cool completely before cutting into squares.

These tasted even better once refrigerated, but feel free to dig in while their still warm! Best if kept in the fridge, or freeze.