dinner club – little siddall studios

Posted on November 17, 2014September 9, 2020 by Becky Gean — Leave a comment

the travelling crockpot – adrienne’s dinner no. 3

so… after a 6 month hiatus…

the travelling crockpot IS BACK!

here’s a quick recap of the previous travelling crockpot dinners – and yes – adrienne does know she’s behind, but we’ve planned a catch up meal in our future. not to worry.

becky | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | nikki | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | adrienne | 1 | 2 | our collective holiday feast

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adrienne’s turn to cook the meal, she started off with apple slices topped with chutney and aged irish cheddar.
for our main meal she toasted up freshly baked crostini’s slathered in garlic butter and served it with a fantastic bolognese sauce and pasta. you can find the recipe she worked off of – here.
for dessert – a dreamy red velvet cake with heavenly goat cheese frosting. seriously – that frosting. i wish i had been there when she made the frosting. i would have gladly licked those beaters clean for her. i realize i didn’t share a photo with you of what the inside of the cake looked like, but believe me when i tell you, it was the colour red. FROM BEET JUICE! not red food colouring! (which is awful for you, ps.) BEET JUICE! adrienne cut up, pureed, drained and strained beets to get the juice to use as dye. *jaw drop* i know – right?!? impressive.

a funny thing about these dinners is that you never know how it’s going to turn out. that’s the joy of cooking. you win some and you loose some. if only you could be a fly on the wall to hear the conversations that happen over a delicious meal and some good wine on a crockpot night. there’s a story that comes along with that red velvet cake – but i’ll save that for an outtake post in the future. why? just because. i’m slightly evil like that – and hey, why not give you a reason to keep coming back and check out the blog. buahh haha

Posted on May 16, 2014September 9, 2020 by Becky Gean

the travelling crockpot – becky’s dinner no.4

hey everyone! it’s friday! of a looooonng weekend! at least here in ontario it is. why not get in that kitchen of yours and cook up a feast! just because! maybe my latest travelling crockpot dinner will inspire to cook up a meal you haven’t before, or perfect a tried and true recipe. enjoy your weekend regardless of – wherever you are.

for some stupid reason i decided to do my dinner only 3 days before josh and i moved to our new apartment. talk about hectic! the real reason though, adrienne left toronto for the summer so it was imperative we get in one more dinner before she departed.

i’d never made gnocchi before. or biscotti’s. or browned butter. or poached a pear before. or made chocolate mousse.
so why not try all of it out at once right!!??!

only recently have i realized that i love mushrooms. i had a craving, and so, mushrooms on toast. i toasted rye bread with olive oil and salt and pepper. cremini, oyster, and hedgehog mushrooms were chopped up and fried with one shallot and a liquid mix of apple juice, vegetable oil, apple cider vinegar, and a splash of amber maple syrup. cooked down for a solid 25 minutes until the liquid is no longer or has become a delicious glaze. topped on the toasted rye bread and topped with chives.

the pears were poached in sugar water with cinnamon, cloves, allspice, lemon… i really can’t remember what else. my reason for poaching them? they weren’t ripe yet! pop them in simmering hot liquid for a bit and soft as can be. arugula was tossed with a dressing of olive oil, balsamic, hot mustard, maple syrup and salt and pepper. my favourite additions were the blue silton cheese and roasted pecans which had been baked in maple syrup, rosemary, thyme and cayenne. hmmm… i just might be addicted to maple syrup.

sweet potato gnocchi in a sage browned butter sauce. delicious. i wish i had some right now in fact. the crispy sage was really tasty too. it’s this light, but decadent earthy taste. hand making gnocchi wasn’t as bad as i thought. although, i didn’t make them look super pretty by adding ridges and such. maybe next time.

and finally, chocolate mouse with an almond biscotti. oh, and two squares of cadbury coconut cashew chocolate because why not right!? the biscotti’s, i should have shaped flatter and pancake like rather than a nice hilly bump. they were super fat and didn’t cook as evenly as i would have liked. one side was darker than the other too. and so – because panic set in about the mediocre biscotti’s i quickly decided chocolate mousse would redeem me. having never made it before either, i could use the practice, but all in all i’d say it all worked out.

Posted on May 4, 2014September 9, 2020 by Becky Gean

the travelling crockpot – nikki’s dinner no.4

first let me start by saying, hi, hey there! it’s been awhile! my life lately has been a sea of boxes. josh and i moved to a new neighbourhood in toronto and are just getting settled in. i hope to be less silent on here as soon as the last box is unpacked. but until then, i think it’s time to share another crockpot dinner, so here she is! the beauty that was nikki’s dinner.

it started off with vermouth soaked blackberries topped off with prosecco. i lost count after 3 top ups of this delicious bubbly drink.

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next came a unique fruit salad. grapefruit, avocado, coconut, mint, blackberries and a sprinkling of salt. super refreshing!

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a single radicchio leaf was topped with a tempura’d egg yolk that oozed when you bit into it, on diced smoked salmon dressed in capers & white wine vinegar. the flavour combination had me wanting more.

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to end, the most decadent french toast i’ve ever had. mascarpone-raspberry stuffed french toast with maple candied bacon.

MMM MMM MMM! take me back to this night please!

Posted on March 12, 2014September 9, 2020 by Becky Gean

the travelling crockpot – adrienne’s dinner ||

the snow has arrived in toronto again and on this chilly blustery day i thought why not warm up the soul by sharing this delicious meal that adrienne made the ladies of the travelling crockpot back in february. adrienne sure knows how to set a mood. it was unbelievably romantic. the lights were dimmed, the candles lit, and flowers adorned the table.

see for yourself what we ate in the pictures below. where do these pictures of her food take you? what do you think it tasted like? what ingredients can you point out? i’m not going to give it all away now. romanticize and fantasize for yourself and maybe, just maybe a little later on i’ll share a recipe or two from her.

stay warm friends – wherever you are!

Posted on January 26, 2014September 9, 2020 by Becky Gean — Leave a comment

the travelling crockpot – becky’s dinner |||

for my third dinner, as it was around the holiday season, i wanted to do something that felt a little more special, and when i say that, i really just mean, i spent a stupid amount of $$ on a gorgeous piece of beef. once it was all cooked up, sliced and in our mouths though, there was no complaining coming from me! i’d buy it again and again and again. as gordon ramsey described it – it’s something he’d be happy to eat as his last supper. i’d have to agree.

i’d say my biggest problem with these dinners is wanting to dig in right away – who needs pictures when it’s staring you right in the face saying EAT ME!!! but then i think about you, my wonderful readers, and i hurriedly snap away.

menu
becky-made amaretto sours
butternut squash soup topped with maple cinnamon roasted squash seeds
beef wellington served with celeriac puree & sautéed kale, apples and onions
gingerbread cookies with royal icing

i really enjoyed making this dinner! i planned the majority of it ahead of time so that i wasn’t scrambling last minute – which around the holidays is KEY to being stress free. you can find the wellington recipe here – i found the video incredibly helpful. it was nikki who gave me the inspiration to roast my squash seeds – never am i ever going to throw out squash seeds again – soooo good! the soup was made with butternut squash and SO MUCH GINGER, which i then drowned out with apples and carrots. the amaretto sours were my favourite though, and the most time consuming out of the entire meal when i think about it. don’t worry, i’ll share that recipe with you soon. it is my favourite drink after all – it deserves a post all to it’s own.

even though the holidays are over and we’re well into january, this meal would be great to serve your special someone on valentine’s day. instead of soup and gingerbread cookies, i’d probably do something light, like starting with a green salad and finishing with homemade raspberry sherbet. mmm.

until the next crockpot – happy eating!

Posted on December 24, 2013September 9, 2020 by Becky Gean

the travelling crockpot – holiday feast.

the holidays are an excuse to have elaborate get togethers with lots of food and laughter. this was the case on the evening all the ladies of the travelling crockpot got together to do a collective feast. the men in our lives were invited – not to cook (crazy talk), but to dine with us. we reminded them of how completely lucky they were to be taking part.

all appetizers provided by marisa included – crusted brie with apple and brown sugar. a cheese platter consisting of raw milk organic old cheddar, applewood smoked cheddar (she knows it’s my favourite and i love her for that) and french stilton. twice baked potatoes stuffed with crispy bacon, sour cream, rosemary & thyme. phyllo-wrapped asparagus with prosciutto.

adrienne provided a couscous salad laced with pomegranates and delicious dill. she also panfried up oyster mushrooms and scallops in a brown butter and white wine sauce. i brought a plate of smitten kitchen’s sweet potatoes with pecans and goat cheese as well as some celeriac root which had been sautéed with fresh thyme and olive oil. nikki also baked those lovely acorn squash halves with raisins, brown sugar and cinnamon.

our main star was cooked by nikki – the two juiciest birds i’ve ate in a long time. so succulent with crispy skin – heaven! one was done with lemon and sage and the other with orange and allspice. finishing off the night with a pomegranate panna cotta made by yours truly and dutch style rice pudding with raisins and cinnamon from marisa.

we drank wine, sangria and mulled cider.
we roasted marshmallows over the fire.
and we laughed – alot.
i’m certain this will need to be an annual thing. come to think of it – it’s coming up on an entire year for the crockpot! how exciting!
eat and be well over the holidays my friends – wherever you are!

Posted on July 24, 2013September 9, 2020 by Becky Gean — 6 Comments

the travelling crockpot – nikki’s dinner.

on my walk home from Nikki’s house – i was in pain. but the good kind. the kind of pain you get when you stuff your face with the most flavourful food and your tongue and mouth can’t stop saying “more more more!”

the dessert? silky, smooth, strawberry goodness. i WILL be attempting to make the goat cheese pudding very soon. i think it’ll become a new favourite go to.