Crespelle with Sweet Ricotta and Italian Amarena Cherries Perfect for Brunch

Crespelle with Sweet Ricotta and Amarena Cherries

These luscious and intensely flavourful cherries from the province of Emilia-Romagna are one of the most sought after all over Europe. The Fabbri family has been producing these luxurious wild cherries in syrup since 1905 from the guarded original recipe of founder Gennaro Fabbri. The local wild cherries which are a dark red variety with a sweet and slightly bitter flavour are preserved in a rich syrup made from the juice of the same fruit with a slight almond flavour. Amarena cherries are not inexpensive so when I had some leftover from making panna cotta I searched for a tasty way to use them. Enter these Italian style crepes based on a recipe from Taste.com the Australia version.

Waffle Iron Shredded Hash Browns and Maple Glazed Bacon for Slow Sundays

Waffle Iron Shredded Hash Browns

Welcome back to my kitchen my friends. Once again sleepy heads we have embraced S-l-o-w Sundays, a feature here at More Than Burnt Toast. Pull up a cozy chair and join me a while on this S-l-o-w Sunday. Let me make you a steaming mug of chai tea or your favourite "joe" and a memorable breakfast just as you like it. Would you enjoy a "sunny side up" or poached egg perched on top? Or for fun lets cook an egg in the waffle iron too. It saves heating up the kitchen because in truth it is going to be a hot day. Consider it done. 

Celebrate Fathers Day with a Meyer Lemon and Ricotta Puffed Pancake with the First of the Season Macerated Strawberries

Meyer Lemon and Ricotta Puff with Macerated Strawberries

Celebrate food and family, and start your day with a lovingly prepared breakfast from the heart of your own kitchen to express your appreciation. Most importantly give your Dad the royal treatment and treat him like a King. To celebrate Dad on his special day I tried this version of a puffed pancake, or Dutch Baby, from the San Francisco Chronicle.

While attending the Okanagan Food and Wine Writers Workshop last week I was thrilled to discover during one of the farm-to-table-dinners that red, luscious, strawberries were ready here in the valley. Strawberries are a sure sign that summer is coming, but you have probably noticed, it is coming slowly. What better way to bring in the season than to share this special treat with the ones you love. My own dad is on the other side of the country but as the old Crosby,Stills, Nash and Young song goes, "If you can't be with the one you love, honey, love the one your with."

Start Your Weekend with Seasonal Asparagus Bread Pudding for S-l-o-w Sundays

Seasonal Aspargaus Bread Pudding

This morning I lifted my weary head from my sleep-induced coma and crept from under the comfort of my down duvet. Peering through the fog I seemed disoriented and every fibre of my being thought I had awakened in the wrong city, in the wrong province, or even on the wrong continent. I wondered if somehow I had ended up on the coast where the skies pour their hearts out for days on end, or found myself in a tropical rainforest? I shook my head to clear my thoughts and heard morning doves and swallows and not the excited chatter of monkeys or the beating of drums. I don't recall having too many glasses of wine at dinner last night. Am I not in the "sunny" Okanagan Valley where the relentless summer sun beats down on the sunbaked rolling hills? Yes it has rained for an entire week and we the smug raincoat-less, umbrella-less society have been speaking our minds on the subject.

Strawberry Shortcake for One For Slow Sundays...all you need are doughnuts

Strawberry Shortcake for One

Welcome back to another instalment of S-l-o-w Sundays. Now that long, warm days are here breakfast in the More Than Burnt household quite often needs to be quick and yet satisfying so that we can move forward with all the exciting plans for the day, even if that just means heading over to my little plot in our neighbourhood community garden. Sometimes Sundays are just not that s-l-o-w when you are headed out on another adventure. With warm weather comes the need to make the most of every moment of the day.

Celebrate Mothers Day with a Cheesy Puff

Cheesy Frypan Puff

Happy Mothers Day to all you mothers, sisters, daughters, aunts, grandmothers, great-grandmothers!!!! When Mothers Day arrives not only is it a special time to celebrate those nearest and dearest to us but it seems to be the weekend when I finally give up comfort foods for good and I’m ready to move into summer food and barbecuing. While summer may be in the air, it hasn’t fully reached our markets yet. 

Breakfast Cookies for Slow Sundays

Breakfast Cookies 

Sometimes Sundays are just not that s-l-o-w when you are headed out on another adventure. With warm weather comes the need to make the most of every moment of the day. This is when these nutritionally packed cookies come in handy. They are easy to take on the road for a quick breakfast enroute. I used dried sour cherries for these not too sweet breakfast treats.

April Bloomfield Cherry and Almond Pancakes with Brandy Syrup

April Bloomfield is the chef and co-owner of a trio of hot-as-they-come New York City restaurants: The Michelin Star restaurant The Spotted Pig, The Breslin another meat-centric enterprise and The John Dory Oyster Bar focusing on seafood both at the Ace Hotel. Each of these restaurants offer a dining-with-benefits experience with exceptionally flavourful and decadent cooking.

Dreaming of Italy Caprese Toast for Slow Sundays

Caprese Toast

Good morning/afternoon ladies and gents..what a bunch of sleepy heads we are. Welcome  back to a new addition to our Slow Sundays feature here at More Than Burnt Toast. This has been a gloriously lazy weekend of staying up late and sleeping in, just as it should be. A Sunday should be slow, no rushing around, no big errands, just taking our time and mozying along. We have Meatless Mondays, Wordless Wednesdays so today we are back on track with our S-l-o-w Sunday feature. I took a little detour where my Sundays were spent developing peanut butter recipes but that is a story for another day.  My idea of enjoying a Sunday morning is to have a warm cup of tea and a long and lovingly prepared breakfast but often, especially when the weather turns warm, they are quite often all about being quick and no fuss as we head out the door on yet another adventure.

Let's Celebrate Pancake Style

The Breslins Ricotta Pancakes with Orange Sauce

Today is Shrove Tuesday which to me has always been referred to as "Pancake Day."  Perishables like eggs and dairy products, which are generally banned during Lent, need to be used up and if you practice religious holidays this is your last night to indulge in rich, fatty foods before the ritual fasting of the Lenten season. There is no better way to use up these ingredients today than in our favourite breakfast treat... pancakes!! 

Fruit Skewers with Sweet Honeyed Yogurt Dip for S-l-o-w Sundays

Sundays are all about keeping it simple. When blessed with a morning with nothing pressing to do I revel in the thought of the possibilities. I rise before the dawn, despite my best intentions to sleep in, stretch each and every sleeping bone in my body, and marvel at the peace and solitude. The birds have risen before me and may in fact be an unintentional alarm clock to let me know that another glorious day has bloomed.

Breakfast Bruschetta Topped with Herbed Ricotta for Slow Sundays

Breakfast Bruschetta

Welcome back to my kitchen my friends. Pull up a cozy chair and a warm blanket and join me a while on this Slow Sunday. Let me make you a steaming mug of chai tea or your favourite "joe" and a breakfast bruschetta just as you like it. Would you enjoy a "sunny side up" or poached egg perched on top? Consider it done. Once again sleepy heads we have embraced Slow Sundays, a new feature here at More Than Burnt Toast.

Greek-Inspired Filo Breakfast Bundles with Roasted Tomatoes for Slow Sundays

Greek Inspired Filo Breakfast Bundles with Roasted Tomatoes

What do you do on a Sunday when you are faced with bits and pieces in the fridge, heading to the store in your pyjamas in a snow flurry is not tempting...and did I mention you are in your pyjamas? Can you think of any more reasons why I would just want to cozy up and head to the kitchen? You have me convinced! Well once again sleepy heads we have embraced Slow Sundays, a new feature here at More Than Burnt Toast.

The Breslins Ricotta Pancakes with Orange Sauce for Slow Sundays

We have Meatless Mondays, and Wordless Wednesdays so today is the second instalment in a new feature around here on MTBT...Slow Sundays...well because a Sunday should be slow, no rushing around, no big errands, just taking our time and mozying along. My idea of enjoying a Sunday morning is to have a warm cup of tea and a long and lovingly prepared breakfast. This mornings breakfast consisted of these navel orange-sized pancakes from The Breslin. 

Apple Crumb Coffee Cakes for Slow Sundays

Good morning/afternoon ladies and gents..what a bunch of sleepy heads we are. Those of you who follow this blog know that I am a morning person and have already risen before the sunrise. I have already accomplished several things on my mental "to do" list and can now enjoy the rest of my day. A nice slow day of sitting in my pyjamas all day if I want to, or heading out for a new adventure. That is the beauty of a slow Sunday we can do whatever we like! Sunday is my only day to myself and as the day unfolds before us we can do whatever our heart desires.

Gingerbread Waffles with Apples and Cranberries for Slow Sunday

Gingerbread Waffles with Apples and Cranberries

Christmas is right around the corner. The smells of apple pie, cinnamon, cookies, pine needles, spiced oranges, peppermint and gingerbread make the holiday season feel satisfying and complete.  For me nothing speaks to the season more than the spicy sweetness  of gingerbread permeating your home to add a pinch of excitement in the air.

Many of us love these scents because they remind us of holiday celebrations, and cooking and eating with our loved ones at Christmas time. I can't think of a better way to wake up family and friends for breakfast Christmas morning than with the aroma of warm, holiday spices wafting all through the house. The enticing aroma will fill your kitchen with hungry guests.

La Brea Bakery Bran Muffins

La Brea Bakery Bran Muffins

The kids are coming for a visit from Vancouver this coming weekend. Since I will be working both Friday and Saturday I needed to have a few snacks in the freezer. Barbara of Moveable Feasts posted a Bran Muffin from Nancy Silverton and La Brea Bakery. I was curious about the technique which involves lightly toasting the bran as well as blitzing the raisins and incorporating them in the batter. I needed a bran muffin recipe so headed to the kitchen. These bran muffins have my undivided attention and are now my "go to" recipe!!!!!!! Not too sweet and loaded with toasty bran flavour. Thanks Barbara!!!!

Game Changers French Toast with Berry Butter

French Toast with Berry Butter

(photo from Pioneer Woman Cooks soon to be replaced by my own)

I don't need to tell you how times flies. One moment we will be starting a new work week and then all of a sudden here it is Friday again. Our group has now reached #21 on the list of Gourmet Live's 50 Women Game Changers. The past few months have flown by as we experiment with dishes from each of the 50 influential women on "the list" so far. Whether you agree or disagree with the authors chosen fifty and their order it has been an enjoyable and creative outlet to cook from the masters and those we admire. There are even a few bloggers on the list. We have checked out books from the library, borrowed cookbooks from friends, surfed the Internet and browsed our own cookbook collections seeking that one recipe that will highlight that weeks outstanding woman.

Molly Wizenberg Sweet Potato Biscuits with Ham, Mustard and Honey

Sweet Potato Biscuits with Ham, Mustard and Honey

Here it is Friday again and our group has now reached #20 on the list of Gourmet Live's 50 Women Game Changers. For the past few months we have been experimenting with dishes from each of the 50 influential women on "the list" so far. Whether you agree or disagree with the authors chosen fifty and their order it has been an enjoyable and creative outlet to cook from the masters. We have checked out books from the library, borrowed cookbooks from friends, surfed the Internet and browsed our own cookbook collections seeking that one recipe that will highlight that weeks outstanding woman.

If you are a foodie, you will know the name Molly Wizenberg. She's a Seattle-based food writer who is best known in our world from her pioneering food blog Orangette. It is here that we first discovered her friendly, conversational approach to writing, cooking and exploring food where each post is a jewel box with an impeccable recipe attached. She has been compared to such greats as M.F.K. Fisher and has thousands of fans, me included. The foods she writes about and photographs, she said, helps her understand who she is and where she came from, her city and the people in her life. "It's a way of making sense of the world."

Powerhouse Pumpkin Muffins

Powerhouse Pumpkin Muffins

Today is Sunday and it is time for confession.

"It has been one week since I last ventured into my own kitchen".

As a foodie I have committed the cardinal sin, but I have been "down and out" with a cold so I suppose I can forgive myself. Compound that with starting a new job, working 6 days a week and just being overwhelmed, today I finally immersed myself back into the kitchen for some baking therapy. My body however was not craving sweet, sugary, chocolate treats but nutritious powerhouse dishes. I have a butternut squash chowder on the stove for some TLC  and also baked a batch of these Powerhouse Pumpkin Muffins. They are packed with dates, cranberries, raisins, sunflower seeds, pumpkin, walnuts and  flax for some antioxidant and body rejuvenating goodness. I will be back to my old self before you know it, obsessed with "all things foodie."