Inspiration

Today my husband showed me this video that he watched in school. 

All I can really say about it is that this video is true inspiration. Inspiration for me, for this country, and for our world. The speaker, Jamie Oliver, an english chef, known for his cookbooks and TV time has taken it upon himself to inspire the world about growing health problems linked to diets and how the problem can be solved. That's the good news. The problem CAN be solved. 

The video is incredible. He focuses a lot on America but Canada's growing obesity rates make it especially applicable to us as well. 

I want the video to speak for itself. It's powerful and it's provoking. But before I sign off, let me just say food is bigger than you think. As an aspiring chef or baker, sometimes it's easy to get caught up in the taste and richness of food. It's easy to forget reality. That we NEED food. It comes down to survival 101. You may not think that much of food. You may not care what you are putting in your body and you may not care about future generations and current health epidemics. But I'm here to say: You should. You should care. Food is a big part of our lives. Our diets, our food choices and our food education can literally change your life. I'm not being over dramatic, I'm speaking the truth. Food is important. I hope this video provokes you and I hope this video makes you think, but most of all, I hope this video inspires you as much as it inspires me. 

I've said it before and I want to say it again, to me, food is a way for me to show my love and my heart. I can show people I care through food. It's my passion and it's what I love. This video speaks to that. I know some people aren't food people, that's okay. Everybody has a place in this. Use fresh ingredients, try to get healthy food in schools, teach your children to cook the basics, or just try your best to be healthy. Food doesn't have to dominate your life, but depending on what you're putting in your body, it can end it faster. It can end your children's lives faster.
I'm not saying you can't enjoy a special treat, (like those fabulous chocolate peanut butter brownies I posted!), but I hope you do find some inspiration in this video. I hope it sparks some thoughts and makes you think. It's reminded me that my love of food and the love that I put into the food I make, means nothing if the people I care about aren't here or healthy.
Be inspired.
Be healthy.
Always love.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Brownies

I should probably start this post off with a warning of sorts. The following recipe is not only incredibly delicious, they are also somewhat addicting (just ask my parents!) and insanely unhealthy. Sounds perfect don't you think?
I made these brownies about a week and a bit ago, maybe longer. I seem to be losing track of time. Scott had to stay up late one night studying so I thought I would make him some brownies, not only to pass the time but to cheer him up a bit. I must admit, they were probably more for me than for him. He's not the biggest chocolate fan (and yet I still married him?!?) but chocolate and peanut butter is one of my absolute FAVORITE combination of foods. It appears I'm not alone in this either. I wonder if genetics could be involved. After Scott's test the next day, we went to visit our parents for the weekend. I didn't want to leave them while they were still fresh so we brought them with. Let me just say that it is a very good thing that we tried a brownie before we left. My parents gobbled these bad boys up quicker than you could say "Holy macaroni, those look good!"
They are very rich and sweet so if you do try them, only have a small piece. Unless of course you are trying to force yourself into a sugar coma.

If you're ready for it, here it is. The recipe for Chocolate Peanut Butter Brownies. They have a layer of brownie, peanut butter frosting, topped with chocolate ganache.  Happy Baking!

Chocolate Peanut Butter Brownies 

Makes one 9x13 pan

Ingredients


Brownies
6 squares of semi-sweet chocolate
3/4 cup unsalted butter
2 cups sugar
3 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup all-purpose flour

Peanut Butter Frosting
1 cup creamy peanut butter
1/2 cup softened butter
4 cups powdered sugar
1-3 tablespoons of milk (as needed)

Chocolate Ganache
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
3/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. In a heat-proof bowl, over low heat, melt butter and semi-sweet chocolate together. Stir until completely melted. Remove from heat and add to bowl of stand mixer.

2. Stir sugar into chocolate until blended. Mix in eggs and vanilla. Mix well.

3. Add flour and mix until well-blended. 

4. Spread brownie batter to greased 9x13 pan. Bake 30 minutes. Cool brownies completely before adding peanut butter frosting. (While waiting, I got to enjoy a beautiful sunset!)

5. To make the peanut butter frosting, in the bowl of a stand mixer, beat peanut butter, eggs and powdered sugar until smooth. The frosting should be fairly thick, but add 1-3 tablespoons of milk if needed in order to spread frosting over brownies.

6. Place chocolate chips in heat-proof bowl. Heat heavy cream in small sauce pan over medium heat until it begins to boil. Remove from heat and pour over chocolate chips. Whisk together until chocolate is completely melted. 

7. Allow ganache to cool for 10-15 minutes before spreading over peanut butter frosting and brownies. Place brownies in fridge to cool for at least 1 hour.

Hopefully you enjoy these brownies!

Always love.

"Perfect Chemistry"

This past week I was reminded why I want to be a baker.

Scott's brother is getting married in a couple of months and his aunts asked ME to bake a cake for one of the wedding showers. Of course, I was delighted and consumed with anxiety all at the same time. I don't have a lot of experience and this was technically my first "customer", even though it was family.
I set to work planning and designing the cake.
I had a blast.

The shower's theme was "Perfect chemistry" and the colours were based on white and bright blue and after a few details on what they wanted for the cake, (Simple, classy and blue) I was told that I pretty much had free reign. They also showed me a cake which was the inspiration for the shower because of the great layers. The picture was a great inspiration and I knew immediately what I wanted to do. That's why I was reminded of why I want to be a baker. I was so inspired that I was filled with joy. I knew the cake would be a lot of work, but I couldn't wait to get started. I love the creativity that comes with baking and designing cakes. But most of all, I love putting a little bit of myself into everything I make. It's like I'm able to mix a little bit of my heart right into the batter and hope they can feel the love I put into it.
The theme Perfect chemistry went well, not only for the shower, but what I learned through this process. Some people are great bakers and cake-makers. They are quick, they are precise and they make beautiful and tasty cakes. Others may not be the best but they bake from the heart. They bake to show they care. They bake for joy and love. And for those people, it doesn't matter if the cake is perfect or the best, what matters is the love that the cake is baked with. For me, I want a perfect chemistry of the two. Great cakes made from the heart.

I am far less than just a beginner. I have made one other cake of this caliber before (for Scott's birthday-it was legend of zelda and totally awesome!) So making this cake was a wonderful experience. I learned so much that I can't wait to try new things. I may have to just start making cakes for no reason just to experiment.

Being the silly person that I am, I failed to take any pictures of the cake while being made or decorated, so I only have the pictures that were taken at the shower by my wonderful mother-in-law.
The outside of the cake is fondant with a piped buttercream border and gum paste flowers on top.
The inside of the cake contains one original vanilla cake, chocolate fudge cake and a second vanilla cake dyed blue. In between the layers I used chocolate ganache. I did the same for both tiers. It was really great because one cake recipe graciously filled both the 8 inch pan and the 6 inch pan.

Overall, I had a WONDERFUL experience and I can't wait to keep learning and creating.

Next time I find time, I have a wonderful recipe to share with all of you: Chocolate Peanut Butter Brownies. Seriously Delicious. But for now, I have to finish the laundry and start on dinner. :)

Always love.

"Nature sure is Neat"

This past week was vacation week.
And let me just sum it up to you in one word: Bliss. Pure Bliss. (Okay, two words!)

We spent the first few days at the cottage. Loads of sun, boating, fishing, add a little biking, all spent with your best-friend, and you have a wonderful and relaxing week.
My husband and I have different ideas about relaxing. Give me a good book and a place to sit and I'm good for hours. For him, it's a different story. Just imagine a much more handsome version of Wile. E. Coyote. (This guy just can't sit still!) However give the man a fishing rod and we're all set to bask under the sun for hours.

Most days were spent the same way. Get up, eat fruit loops for breakfast (I really question our maturity sometimes), pack up a bag of some refreshments, a good book, a sweater and the camera and head out on the bay where we explored, fished, drifted and talked all day long. Then we'd head back for a quick dinner, maybe walk down the store for some ice-cream and hurry back to watch the BEAUTIFUL sunsets.

It was those days that it was easy for me to reflect upon on how blessed I really am. Sure, not everything is perfect or how I may have imagined it, but life is like that sometimes. But I am BLESSED. I have an amazing husband. Seriously. I know people say that all the time, but he really is a blessing and my absolute best-friend. Our relationship is also a blessing. I know that most people will say that we are still in our "honeymoon" stage and maybe we are, but if so, we've been here for the 5 years we've been together-dating and married. It amazes me that two people who can talk and giggle for hours and hours at a time, can also be perfectly content to say nothing at all and just enjoy life's blessing together. The silence we enjoy together is sometimes just as meaningful and precious as the serious discussions, heartfelt proclamations and funny stories. 

Not only am I blessed with an amazing husband and family, this week, I realized how beautiful nature really is. Even if most of it scares me. (At least the part of it thats alive) We found this really neat frog pond while we were boating around and I was able to capture some really cool close-ups. But not only that, this place, though quite small, was incredibly peaceful, yet full of life. 

If the frogs jumping everywhere, and me trying to get close to them wasn't scary enough, you can imagine how I was feeling when I finally caught a fish. After spending the day reading, I thought I would have a few casts. Don't get me wrong, I like to fish. I find it both calming and exhilarating. Even more so because I am afraid of fish. Scratch that. I am TERRIFIED of fish. I like them from far away and I like them because they are an animal but if that thing even comes close to touching me, that's a whole different ball game. I realize it's a little irrational because the fish I'm talking about are usually no longer than my arm and can't hurt me at all, but they are slimy and unpredictable. Especially when they are "accidentally" dropped in the boat and flopping all around. That, my friend, is not a pretty sight. However, despite my irrational fear, this week I decided to fish a little bit. And low and behold, I caught a fish. Nothing spectacular, just a small Rock Bass, but nonetheless, a fish. 

The picture pretty much says it all. You can see the fear on my face and you can practically hear the screams of fear and excitement. Usually at this point, I would tentatively hand the rod to Scott who would pretend to put it near me, and I would freak out and feel like hyperventilating. Then Scott would take if off the hook and throw it back in. But this time, I wanted to prove myself in a way that I still didn't have to touch the fish. A couple years ago, after I caught my first real fish, Scott's parents wanted a picture of me with the fish. So I held the rod as close as I could, while still feeling safe. Everybody was laughing and after seeing the picture, I realized why. The fish was still probably 5-6 feet away from me. It looked pretty similar to the picture above. So, after relentless torture from Scott and his parents (okay not really, they are quite supportive of my fish fear) I decided to try and get a decent picture with the fish for once. 

There you have. I went from just holding the rod 6 feet away from me, to actually holding the line 2 feet away from me. Don't judge me. Baby steps my friend, baby steps. 

After a couple great days at the the cottage, we spent a couple more lying next to a brand new pool at my parents house. It was great to spend time with family and cool off in the pool. And today, our last day of vacation was spent back on the bay with Scott's whole family. Let me just tell you. Nothing's better than spending a beautiful day on the water with people you love. I am so blessed.