Because my Banana Muffin Recipe was so incredibly popular, I decided to post the recipe for my favorite Carrot Cake as well. This recipe comes from a Canadian Living Cookbook I was given as a gift many years ago. It is a moist, and delicious cake that is easy to make. I made it for Liam’s first birthday, and he loved it (and still does!)
Instead of icing it, I just spread some cream cheese on a slice. Less sugar, and just as yummy as it is sweet enough without extra icing in my opinion.
Carrot Cake
4 Eggs
1 Cup White Sugar
1 Cup Brown Sugar
1 Cup Vegetable Oil
2 Cups All Purpose Flour
2 tsp. Baking Powder
1/2 tsp. Baking Soda
1 tsp. Salt
1 1/2 tsp. Cinnamon
1/2 tsp. Nutmeg
3 Cups Grated Raw Carrots
1/2 Cup Raisins
1/2 Cup Finely Chopped Nuts (optional - and omit if serving to small kids)
Beat eggs well in a large bowl, and add sugars in gradually, beating until light. Beat in oil. In a seperate bowl, mix flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Stir into egg mixture. Stir in carrots, raisins and nuts(if using). Pour into a greased and floured 13X9 pan, and bake in a 350 degrees oven for 35-40 minutes. Enjoy!
I decided today that due to the cold and snowy weather out there, it was the perfect time to make some hot homemade soup. After a huge potato sale at Zehrs the other day, I had 20 pounds of potatoes in my kitchen waiting to be used up. Granted, I didn’t use the entire 20 pounds, but I did manage to make up this recipe for a really yummy potato soup.
Cat’s Potato Soup
1/4 Cup Margarine
6 Medium Size Potatoes, chopped
2 Ribs Celery, chopped
2 Medium Onions, chopped
2 packets Chicken Oxo Soup Broth
Water to cover the veggies in the pot
1 1/2 Cups Milk (I used Homoganized as it is creamier)
Saute the onion, celery and potatoes in the margarine until the onion and celery are slightly soft. Transfer all of the vegetables to a cooking pot, and add enough water to cover the contents of the pot. Add in chicken broth and simmer for a half hour until potatoes are fully cooked and soft. Blend soup with a hand blender until smooth. Add milk, and a dash of fresh ground pepper and heat through for a few minutes until hot. Mmmm!! So good, I actually had thirds!
Here is a great recipe for an easy casserole that literally takes about 5 minutes to prepare, but is very nice looking, and yummy too! A simple one-dish-meal that saves on dishes for busy Moms, and may even be appealing to a fussy toddler!
1 Can of Cream Soup (Chicken, Mushroom or Celery)
1 1/3 Cups Water
3/4 Cup Uncooked Rice (white or brown)
2 Cups Frozen Veggies (any type will do)
1/2 tsp Onion Powder (feel free to also add salt, pepper, parsley flakes..etc.)
4 Skinless and Boneless Chicken Breast Halves (fresh or frozen)
1/2 Cup Shredded Cheddar Cheese
Combine soup, water, rice, veggies and onion powder in a shallow baking dish. Top with chicken, and season as desired. Cover with foil and bake in a 375 oven for about an hour. Top with shredded cheese and reurn to oven for five minutes.
I recently tried my own version of this traditional British dish, after laying awake one night wondering what it is and how it is made (no I am not kidding, and I guess I must have been hungry at the time!)
I looked up several versions of it on-line, and finally settled on my own rendition. Again, this is a really simple recipe, and takes no time at all to make. It was also pretty good, although Liam wouldn’t touch it. Big Surprise there!
Bubble and Squeak
1 Package Ground Meat (I used cooked ground turkey)
1 Onion (chopped)
Leftover Boiled Potatoes (cubed)
Leftover Boiled Cabbage (sliced)
Combine meat and onion in a frying pan over medium heat to brown meat and cook onion. Once cooked through, add in potatoes and cabbage. Slightly brown the potatoes (like you would home fries) and cook until thoroughly heated.
That’s it! Easy as anything!
This was my Great Grandmother’s recipe, and I am honoured to continue the tradition of making it for my family every year. I hope that one day, my children will continue this tradition.
As a child, on Christmas Day, we went to Gramma Katie’s farm, and she had always made the most beautiful meal, complete with about six desserts including this one. As children, we were never really all that fond of the pudding, but we did like the brown sugar sauce and ice cream which Gramma served with it! Nowadays, my husband and I practically fight over the left over pudding! It really is a special Christmas treat!
Traditional Christmas Pudding (Also called Carrot Pudding)
1 cup Brown Sugar
1 cup Raisins
1 cup Dates
1 cup Currants
1 cup Margarine* (scant — just under 1 cup)
1 cup Shredded Carrot
1 cup Grated Potato
1 1/4 cups Flour
1 tsp Baking Soda
1 pinch Salt
* Traditionally Suet would have been used instead of Margarine
Directions
Mix all the ingredients together in large bowl
Cover the bowl with tinfoil
Steam for 3 hours**
** To steam the pudding, you can use a large pot with a small amount of water in the bottom. We use an inverted pyrex bowl in the bottom of the pot to keep the bowl with the pudding above the level of the water. Cover the pot, and cook on medium heat (keep water to a low boil) Make sure you continue to carefully add small amounts of water to the pot so that it doesn’t boil dry over the 3 hours steaming time.
Serve with a Brown Sugar Sauce or Custard.
These yummy little cookies are so easy to make for Christmas! They freeze really well, and make a pretty addition to a festive cookie tray too. Once you see them, their name makes perfect sense!
Cathedral Windows
1/4 Pound Margarine
12 Ounces semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 Cup chopped walnuts
12 Ounces coloured mini-marshmallows
7 Ounces sweetened grated coconut
Heat butter and chocolate on low heat until chocolate is melted. Allow to cool slightly, then add walnuts and marshmallows. Spread a thin layer of coconut on parchment paper, and drop chocolate marshmallow mixture on top of coconut in batches. Roll into 2 inch diameter “logs” then refrigerate overnight. Slice into rounds once thoroughly chilled and serve.
I sampled these great little cookies recently at an open house, and they are wonderful (especially hot from the oven) I can’t give credit to the proper person for the recipe, as I am really not sure where it came from originally.
I always thought my Gramma made the best Ginger Cookies ever, but these ones give hers a run for their money! I am going to try the recipe this weekend. A great little fall treat! Serve with a glass of milk or hot apple cider. Yum!
Ginger Cookies
Melt 1/2 Cup Crisco in a pan, and let cool slightly
Add: 1 Cup White Sugar
1 Egg
1/2 Cup Molasses
2 Cups Flour
1 tsp. Baking Soda
1 tsp. Cinnamon
2-3 tsp. Ginger
1/2 tsp. Salt
Mix well. Chill in fridge for at least an hour, then roll into small balls and bake in a 375 oven for 8-10 minutes. Enjoy!
This is a bean dip that I make often to take to parties, potlucks or just to pig out on right here at home! I made up the recipe myself, and if I do say so myself it’s pretty darn good. Always a big hit with friends! But watch out, serious garlic breath may ensue… 
Cat’s Layered Bean Dip
1 Can Re-fried Beans (I use PC brand, but any type will do)
1 tsp Cumin
1 Small Tub 500 Ml. Fresh Salsa
2 Ripe Avacadoes
2 TBSP Mayonnaise
3 Cloves Garlic
1 tsp Lime Juice
1 Small Tub 500 Ml. Sour Cream
1 1/2 Cups Shredded Cheddar Cheese
1 Ripe Tomato (optional)
In a medium size see-through bowl, layer beans mixed with the cumin then salsa. Mash pitted avacadoes, mayo, garlic and lime juice until well blended and smooth, and spread this guacamole layer over salsa layer. Next spread sour cream, and top with shredded cheddar cheese and chopped tomatoes if using. Serve with nacho chips.
*You can also use ground beef, or chicken in place of the re-fried beans if you wish.
*This also makes a great filling for wraps. Grill some sliced chicken breast, and top with dip inside of tortilla wraps.
This is a great and super easy fudge recipe that I found on-line and made this Christmas. It doesn’t require any skill in the art of confection making whatsoever, and no candy thermomether is needed. My serious chocolate cravings lately inspired me to post this…Enjoy!
Easy Chocolate Fudge
3 Cups White Sugar
3/4 Cup Margarine or Butter
1 Small Can Evaporated Milk
12 Squares Baker’s Semi-Sweet Chocolate
1 Jar Marshmallow Creme (available with Ice-Cream Toppings in Grocery Stores)
1 Cup Chopped Nuts (I use Pecans)
1 tsp. Vanilla
Method:
Grease a 9X9 pan and set aside. Put sugar, butter and evaporated milk into a heavy saucepan, and bring to a full rolling boil on medium heat stirring *constantly* Boil approximately 4 minutes, but be careful not to scorch!
Add chocolate pieces and marshmallow creme and nuts, and stir to melt and blend. Add pecans and vanilla, and stir well.
Pour into greased pan, and allow to cool for at least 4 hours before cutting into bite-size squares.
Seems I have been rather negligent about putting recipes on my blog lately…I guess I’ve had other things on my mind. At any rate, here’s one that I think everyone loves. I grabbed a picture off the web of a 7-layer salad which looks very much like the one I make. I didn’t have the gusto today to “whip one up” just for the photo! 
I am however, making one later in the week for a pot-luck brunch…
This is the prettiest and best tasting salad!!! It’s easy to make and is a great summer dish to take to a barbeque or potluck dinner. I improvise slightly by using turkey bacon instead of pork bacon. I must admit, I have never actually counted the layers, as there are always ways to “jazz it up” by adding this and that…you can add more layers if you like by throwing in the extra things you have in your veggie crisper!
Seven Layer Salad
1 Bag of Salad Greens
1 1/2 cups Frozen Peas, Thawed
1 can Water Chestnuts, drained and chopped
1/2 Red Onion, chopped
1 Red Pepper, chopped
1 Cup Mayonnaise
2 TBSP. White Sugar (to taste)
1 tsp. Seasoned Salt (to taste)
1 Cup Cheddar Cheese, grated
1 Cup Turkey Bacon bits (optional)
4 Hard Boiled Eggs, quartered (optional)
Arrange salad greens in a see-through salad bowl. Layer peas, then water chestnuts, onions and then the red pepper.
Mix together Mayo, sugar, and seasoning salt to taste. Top red pepper layer with the dressing. Sprinkle grated cheese on top of salad. Top with bacon bits and eggs.
