Cranberry Almond Biscotti

This year, my aunt was hosting Thanksgiving dinner at her house. She was doing all the heavy lifting with the turkey, gravy, potatoes, vegetables, and various other side dishes. The least my mom and I could do was to bring over some cranberry almond biscotti for the coffee and tea portion after dinner. I know, it just doesn't sound fair!

We made one batch of biscotti with Robin Hood's All-Purpose flour and the other using the Omega-3 & Fibre flour blend.

The Omega-3 & Fibre is an all purpose flour blend made from whole wheat flour and flax seeds. We're just trying to insert some goodness after the heavy Thanksgiving meal!

Aside from what the flours are composed of, the most obvious difference between the two flours is the colour. You get white with All-Purpose and a light brown or beige with the Omega-3 & Fibre.

Cranberry Almond Biscotti
Makes about 18-20 biscotti

3/4 cups of almonds
1/2 cup of unsalted butter at room temperature
3/4 cup of granulated sugar
2 large eggs
2 cups of All-Purpose flour or Omega-3 & Fibre flour
1 1/2 teaspoons of baking powder
1/4 teaspoon of salt
1 cup of cranberries
1 large egg
2 tablespoons of water

1. Preheat your oven to 175°C (350°F).
2. Place the almonds on a baking sheet and bake in the preheating oven for about 10 minutes or until lightly toasted. Flip at the 5 minute mark to evenly toast the other side of the almonds. Remove from the oven and cool.
3. Using a mixer, cream the butter and sugar on medium until it is light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time and mix briefly.
4. Add in the flour, baking powder, and salt and mix on low until combined. Add in the cranberries and give it a short mix (less than a minute).
5. Using a spatula, mix in the almonds until it is evenly distributed into the batter. 
6. Divide the dough in two and place it on a silicone mat or parchment paper over a cookie sheet. Shape the dough into a log about 3 inches wide and 10 inches long.
7. Whisk the one egg with the water and use a pastry brush to coat the top and sides of the logs with the egg wash.
8. Bake in the oven for 20-25 minutes or until the top is firm. Remove from the oven and carefully flip the biscotti over and place it back in the oven for another 10-15 minutes.
9. Remove from the oven and let it cool.
10. Carefully transfer the logs to a cutting board and using a serrated knife, cut the log into even slices.

Enjoy with tea, coffee, or hot chocolate!

The photos above depicts the biscotti that used the All-Purpose flour, notice the lighter colour. The photo below shows the Omega-3 & Fibre biscotti in a darker colour tone. The flavours are also noticeably different, but I liked it! Mom didn't, claiming that she detected bitterness and found it more difficult to work with as the dough was stickier. I rather enjoyed the taste (not bitter to me, in fact, it tasted sweeter) of the biscotti made with the Omega-3 & Fibre, but maybe it's because I liked thinking that I was eating something healthy!

Disclaimer: The new Robin Hood Nutri Flour Blend varieties were sent to us for review. All opinions are our own.

Robin Hood Nutri Flour Blend

I'm excited to tell you about the new Robin Hood Nutri Flour Blend varieties! They're easy to spot in the grocery stores thanks to their new packaging. Yes, a part of me misses the nostalgic paper bag, but those large sacks of flours sometimes rip or leak near the seams. I like that they kept the bag flexible because I rarely use a metal spatula to level off the top of measuring ups. I actually use the sides of the bags to do a clean sweep (this is probably frowned upon, but it works for me)! Plus, these bags are resealable!

The one I was most excited to see was the Omega-3 and Fibre, this is blended from whole wheat flour and flax seeds! The Gluten Free is made from a blend of rice flour with sugar beet fibre and potato and tapioca starches. While Tastes Like White is a combination of unbleached flour with oat hull fibre.

Now that I'm armed with four bags of flour, what should I make? Well, I'm going to make some simple pizza dough and maybe some cookies so that I can compare their tastes and textures after baking. Be sure to stay tuned for my baking experiences this Thanksgiving long weekend!

Disclaimer: The new Robin Hood Nutri Flour Blend varieties were sent to us for review. All opinions are our own.

Mile End Deli

Mile End Deli

53 Bond Street

New York City, NY 10012

(212) 529-2990

Noah and Rae Bernamoff opened Brooklyn's Mile End Delicatessen in 2010. Their goal was to share the classic Jewish comfort food of their childhood and they did this by using their grandmother's recipes - updating and tweaking as they went. Next, Mile End Sandwich opened May 2012 but has now renovated into Mile End Deli as well - lucky us!

The reason I wanted to visit was because I own a copy of their cookbook, also titled Mile End Deli. I didn't even know what the book would include when I bought it, but I was taken away by the book's design. Bold graphics, spot UV with matte lamination, and debossing. I couldn't resist taking the book home and it found a spot on my shelf. So when it came time to planning our trip to New York, I knew we would have to make a visit! One might think it's silly since we have Montreal's famous delis in our country, but places like this and Russ & Daughters (which we sadly didn't get to this year around) are making some noise in the culinary world and we wanted to taste what it was all about.

We went to have lunch or brunch on a Sunday afternoon and was greeted at the door by a friendly host. It looked pretty busy at first, but there was no wait (mostly people coming in for take out) and were seated right away.

We debated long and hard before deciding on what to order. My initial thought, Smoked Meat Hash, was thwarted because Howard was getting the Smoked Meat Sandwich. Plus, I really wanted to try their latkes, so by ordering the Classic Breakfast, I would get two eggs, potato latkes, and smoked meat.

We tried making latkes once and felt that we over fried them, but now seeing how the latkes were, I guess we didn't do so poorly at home! They were delicious with the sour cream. Amazing with the apple sauce. They were also great for mopping up runny egg yolk. And even better with the smoked meat.

Howard's order of the Smoked Meat Sandwich was off the chart. I mean, just look at that thing! A pile of cured and smoked brisket with mustard and rye. We tip our hats off to you Mile End Deli, you do smoked meat well!

And it wouldn't be a grand start to our New York City trip if we didn't upgrade the side to a Smoked Meat poutine with fries, cheese curds, brisket, and gravy. You might think that we had too much smoked meat, we learnt that there's no such thing as too much smoked meat here. It's delicious and we even recommended it to the table beside us when they were ordering.

When we returned home, I quickly flipped to the recipe to see how they make their smoked meat. Instructions indicate it would take us two weeks at home. And we would need a smoker. We suggest you visit Mile End Deli instead!

Central Park is Engaging

So we have some news (that can be deemed exciting) for you. Howard and I took our annual trip to New York City and explored Central Park for the first time! Ridiculous, I know. All those years and we never stepped foot in the famous and beautiful park in the middle of Manhattan. It turns out there was a reason for that.

Was it years of planning? Some people might agree. I always chalked it up to bad luck. There was our first New York visit together and we wanted to see so many things that we didn't take time to unwind in nature. Then there was the other time where it poured and rained on the last day of the trip, the day we were supposed to explore the park. But no, this year was different. I was determined that we make the trip into the park. There would be no backing out, I even rented us bikes so that we could see the entire park.

We picked up our bikes and map from Columbus Circle and followed the counter-clockwise bike path. We barely rode for five minutes and we had stopped at the first landmark - the Central Park Carousel.

Then the Literary Walk and the Mall, I love the arching trees! This is such a beautiful spot in the bustling city of New York.

It wouldn't be a proper trip if we didn't visit the Bethesda Terrace. Come on, musicals on screen have spontaneously sprung up here!

We had to find an alternative path since we were walking our bikes beside us. No steps for us!

The famous Bethesda Fountain!

The Minton Tiles at Bethesda Arcade, it's felt like being in a different country. A lovely spot where we saw many couples having their wedding photos taken.

The Loeb Central Park Boathouse. Just beautiful. I absolutely want to return and have lunch there one day.

I also wanted to see the Conservatory Water, known for the toy boats that grace it and the Alice in Wonderland statue nearby. We then walked our bikes up to the Belvedere Castle, biked around the Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis Reservoir, huffed and puffed our way around the North Woods, and made our way back to return our bikes.

We were quite exhausted by then, but Howard insisted we walk back in and see the Sheep Meadow (where bikes are not allowed in). I was a little grumpy and hungry at that time, but walked hand-in-hand with Howard to see the meadow.

We found a warm sunny spot to sit down. That didn't last too long as the sun set behind the buildings pretty quickly.

But that was okay because something else sparkly showed up. After some disbelief, I said YES. And just like that, we're engaged! Then to celebrate, we had a lemon macaron (Howard) and a PB&J macaron (mine) from Bouchon Bakery.

Umbra Bento Cut and Prep Set

We were excited to hear from Umbra about reviewing some of their kitchen related products on our blog. Howard and I have been admirers of Umbra products for a long time, we used to go to the factory sales to decorate our rooms in university! We still have a small collection of frames and knick-knacks that we use around the house and office.

Umbra sent us the Bento Cut & Prep to try out. Like a bento box, it's a large plastic pan with compartments nested inside.

The containers inside come in three varying sizes, there are two 1 cup, two 2 cups, and one 3 cup prep dishes.

With some easy conversions on the bottom of the containers. It would be neat if these had snap on lids of their own. That way you can prep your ingredients and store them in the fridge without having to put the whole Bento set into the refrigerator or use plastic wrap or aluminum foil.

The lid of the Bento set is a bamboo cutting board. The recessive edge on the one side of the cutting board allows it to stay snug over the top as you're using the surface. There's also grip on the bottom of the plastic box (not the smaller inserts) so that the whole thing stays put. The extra height allows you to gently sweep all your ingredients into the bowls that fit flush beside it. (Great for those who, like me, aren't experts at picking up the diced/chopped food with the knife and moving it to a bowl.) Or you can use it as a board by itself and flip it over so that juices are caught in the edge.

The design of the Bento Cut & Prep is simple and rather useful, however, we understand that most people may be uncomfortable with the extra height and it can only be used for lighter prep work. We wouldn't recommend it for heavy chopping (for instance, watermelon slicing or meat items). However, it would be useful for prepping easy meals (especially for kids) where all the ingredients are ready for the choosing. We suggest using the Bento for do-it-yourself meals where your eaters get to choose the pizza toppings, taco fillings, or ice cream sundae toppings they want. Or, put out healthy snacks and use the Bento as veggie and fruit platters.

We also wished it came with instructions for how to take care of bamboo cutting boards. We love that bamboo is environmentally friendly, and after doing some quick research, we found that you need to use mineral oil to help preserve the natural oils and prevent the fibers of the bamboo from drying out. You should also never soak or place your cutting board in the dishwasher to clean it!

Disclaimer: Umbra sent us two Bento Cut & Prep Sets for review. The first one we found various splinters on the bamboo board and deemed it unsafe for food contact. After inquiring with Umbra, they checked with their quality control team and pulled the item to see if there were any issues. There were no problems so we believe it was a one off. They sent us a second sample to replace the damaged one.