Make the meringue:

1. Preheat the oven to 200 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. Fill a medium pot with an inch or so of water and bring to a boil. Use a clean whisk or rubber spatula to stir together the egg whites and sugar in a clean large stainless steel bowl. Once the water reaches a boil, turn off the heat and set the bowl of egg whites over the hot water, so the water isn’t touching the bowl’s bottom, and stir constantly until the sugar has completely dissolved and the mixture is white, frothy and no longer grainy, about 8 minutes.
3. Remove the bowl. Use a whisk, hand-held electric mixer or stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment to beat the egg whites on high to very stiff, shiny peaks, 4 to 5 minutes. Gently fold in the lemon zest.
4. Spoon the mixture into 4 equal mounds on the lined baking sheet. Bake the meringue until it’s dry and crunchy on the outside but still soft and chewy inside, about 6 hours. Let it cool.

Make the whipped cream:

1. Combine the cream and sugar in a large bowl. Use a knife to scrape the seeds of the vanilla bean into the bowl; discard the pod. Use a whisk or hand-held electric mixer to whip the cream to semi-stiff peaks. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use.

Make the strawberries:

1. Combine the strawberries, vodka, lemon zest, lemon juice, balsamic vinegar, salt and black pepper in a large bowl. Use a knife to scrape the seeds of the vanilla bean into the bowl, and add 1 tablespoon of the sugar. Stir gently but thoroughly. Give a taste. You might need more sugar if your strawberries aren’t that sweet.
2. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and pop it in the fridge. Let the mixture chill for at least 30 minutes (with the occasional stir) and up to an hour. The longer it sits, the more flavor the vodka will extract from the berries.

Make the Eton Mess:

1. Crumble the meringues into a large mixing bowl; you should have a combination of small crumbles, medium pieces and large chunks. Add the whipped cream and stir gently just until the meringue pieces are coated. Add about three-quarters of the strawberries and their liquid and stir very gently just until the berries are well distributed but you still see streaks of red in the white cream.
2. Carefully scoop the mixture into a large serving bowl, scatter the remaining strawberries on top, and drizzle on the rest of the liquid. Serve right away.

1. Combine all ingredients in a tightly sealable container.
2. Seal tightly and store in a cool, dry place.

1. Place 8 oz. chocolate in a Bain Marie or in a heat-proof bowl above simmering water. Heat on low until chocolate is melted. Add in crushed chocolate wafers. Pour chocolate wafer mixture onto parchment-lined pan, then using an offset spatula spread chocolate until smooth. Transfer pan to freezer to chill for about 3-5 minutes or until melted chocolate becomes solid.
2. Place remaining semi-sweet chocolate and heavy cream in a Bain Marie or in a heat-proof bowl above simmering water. Let chocolate and heavy cream heat on low and stir until chocolate is melted and combined with heavy cream. Add in Peppermint Kahlua, stir to combine. Place truffle mixture in refrigerator for about 20 minutes or until truffle mixture resembles thick cake mix (homemade – not box cake mix, which is never thick). Remove truffle mixture and pour it over the chocolate layer. Return pan to refrigerator and let chill for another 20 minutes.
3. Place 8 oz. white chocolate in a Bain Marie or in a heat-proof bowl above simmering water. Heat on low until white chocolate is melted. Pour melted white chocolate over truffle layer, then using an offset spatula, spread chocolate until smooth. Sprinkle Peppermint Andes candy on top of white chocolate. Let bark stand at room temperature for 1-2 minutes. Then score the white chocolate with a knife for easy cutting and to prevent cracks while cutting. Set aside bark for another 5-8 minutes to set (white chocolate can set without being refrigerated). Cut and serve.

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter 12 standard size or 30 miniature muffin cups, or line cups with paper liners.
2. Prepare coatings: In a small saucepan, melt 6 tablespoons butter over medium heat and continue to cook it, stirring frequently, until brown bits form on the bottom and it smells nutty and heavenly. Immediately remove from heat and set aside. In a small bowl, combine 2/3 cup sugar and cinnamon. Set aside as well.
3. Prepare puffs: Whisk flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and nutmeg together in a medium bowl and set aside. In the large bowl of an electric mixer, beat softened butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Add egg and vanilla and beat until combined. Mix in 1/3 of flour mixture, followed by 1/2 of buttermilk, repeating again and finishing with the flour mixture. Mix only until combined.
4. Spoon into prepared muffin cups, filling only 3/4 of the way. (I filled mine higher and they ended up spilling over a bit and doming less than they are capable of.) Bake standard sized muffins for 20 to 25 minutes and miniature muffins for 12 to 14 minutes. When finished, muffins will feel springy to the touch and a tester inserted into the center will come out clean. Transfer them in their pan to a wire rack.
5. As soon as you feel you’re able to pick one up, take your first puff and roll the top and upper edges in the browned butter. Don’t be afraid to pick up the browned butter solids at the bottom of the saucepan; they’re the dreamiest part. Let any excess butter drip off for a second before gently rolling the butter-soaked cake top in cinnamon-sugar. I find if you roll too firmly, or have too much wet/not absorbed butter on top, the sugar can clump off, which is heartbreaking. Transfer puff to wire rack to set and repeat with remaining puffs. Eat warm.
6. For an even more indulgent, doughnut-like puff: Make an extra two tablespoons of the browned butter and roll the whole puff in it and the cinnamon sugar. (I usually have enough cinnamon sugar to fully roll the puffs.)
7. Do ahead: Puffs are best within hours after they are baked. They can be made it advance and stored in a freezer bag until needed, too. Simply spread them out on a baking tray and reheat them until warm in the oven.

Notes

If you don’t wish to use buttermilk, you can replace it with regular milk and nix the baking soda (keeping the baking powder). I like to get the toppings ready first because they take so little time to bake, you don’t want to be scrambling to have something to dip them in.[br]Yield: 9 to 12 standard muffin-size puffs or 30-ish miniature ones. Try not to overfill as I did or you won’t get as great domes on them.

1. Make sauce: Bring sugar and water to a boil in a small saucepan over medium-high heat, stirring until sugar melts completely. Reduce heat to a medium-low and add soy sauce, mirin, ginger, coriander and peppercorns. Simmer, stirring occasionally, until reduced by half, about 30 minutes, though this took me a bit longer to reduce it until it was syrupy enough that I thought it would coat, and not just dribble off the meatballs. You can keep it on a back burner, stirring it frequently, while browning the meatballs in the next step. Once it has reduced to your satisfaction, strain through a sieve.
2. Make meatballs: Mix turkey, scallions, cilantro, egg, sesame oil, soy sauce and several grindings of black pepper in a bowl. I like mixing meatballs with a fork; it seems to work the ingredients into each other well. Roll tablespoon-sized knobs of the mixture into balls. The mixture is pretty soft; I find it easiest to roll — eh, more like toss the meatballs from palm to palm until they’re roundish — meatballs with damp hands.
3. In a skillet over medium-high heat, generously cover bottom of pan with vegetable oil. Working in batches to avoid crowding, place meatballs in pan and cook, turning, until browned all over and cooked inside, about 8 minutes per batch. Arrange on a platter (a heated one will keep them warm longer), spoon a little sauce over each meatball, and serve with toothpicks. Alternatively, you can serve the glaze on the side, to dip the meatballs.
4. Do ahead: The sauce can be made up to 2 days in advance and refrigerated until needed. If needed, you can rewarm or keep the meatballs warm in a 200-degree oven until ready to serve. I’m storing mine in the fridge overnight and crossing my fingers they’ll taste fresh tomorrow.

Notes

I fiddled with the recipe a bit, using less cilantro and ginger than called for and cooking the sauce for much longer than suggested, in hopes to make it a true glaze that would hang onto the sides of a dipped meatball. I almost dialed back the sugar, but once the glaze was all reduced, I ended up liking the sweetness to balance out the salty kickiness of the soy and ginger.[br]Note: This recipe is gluten-free if you use a soy sauce that is labeled gluten free. There were many options on the shelf at the store.

Yield: The original recipe suggest 24 but I got 34. This pleased me.

1. Preheat oven to 400.
2. In a large bowl, toss shredded chicken with the buffalo sauce until combined.
3. Lay wrappers flat on a dry surface. In one corner of the wrapper, put 2 tbsp of the spicy shredded chicken. Place about 1 tbsp cheese on top.
4. To fold: pull bottom corner over the filling until it’s completely covered and tip of corner points to the center of the wrapper. Fold in the bottom left corner, followed by the right, so that you now have formed an envelope. Lightly moisten the top corner with a little water. Roll towards the top corner until you have a tidy little bundle of yum.
5. Place a wire rack on a cookie sheet and put the rolls onto the rack. This helps the heat circulate better which means better browning/crispiness on all sides of rolls.
6. Bake for 15 minutes or until golden brown all over.

Peanut/Jalapeno Slaw with Lime Aioli

• 1 bag of your favourite slaw (or 4 cups shredded cabbage)
• 1 cup roasted, unsalted peanuts 
• 2-3 large jalapenos, diced
• 1 large egg yolk, room temperature
• 1/2 tbsp dijon mustard[br]Zest from 1 lime
• Juice of half a lime
• 1 clove of garlic, minced very fine or pressed
• kosher salt
• 3/4 - 1 cup favourite olive oil

1. Add the slaw, peanuts and jalapenos together. 
2. In a large metal bowl, add the yolk, dijon, lime zest/juice, garlic and a small pinch of salt. Whisk until combined. Starting with just a drop at a time, add the oil, whisking constantly as you do. Start slowly adding a stream, whisking constantly, until it starts to thicken. Taste for seasoning, add more salt if needed. 
3. Mine didn’t thicken as much as I would have liked (I assume because I got tired halfway through and started slowing down…pathetic), but it was still just fine as is.
4. Toss the slaw with the aioli. Serve as is, or refridgerate for a few hours. Note: coleslaw tastes better the next day.

1. Preheat oven to 400°F. Lightly grease a baking sheet.
2. In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, salt, baking powder, and baking soda.
3. In a small bowl whisk together buttermilk and melted butter.
4. Make a well in the center of dry ingredients. Pour in buttermilk and melted butter. Mix until combined, though still lumpy.
5. Turn dough out onto floured surface. Kneed dough until it just comes together, about 2 minutes. Form dough into a 10 inch circular loaf. Score top of loaf with a large cross.
6. Bake for 40 minutes

1. Most people think of strawberries as something they'd only eat for dessert, but they work so well in salads. Especially when paired with halloumi cheese, which I just love. It's a Cypriot cheese made from goat's or sheep's milk and you can get it from all good supermarkets. It's like a chewy feta but one you can cook with. When fried or broiled it goes all crispy on the outside and soft and slightly chewy on the inside. A brilliant thing to eat.
2. In a bowl, drizzle the sliced strawberries with a good splash of balsamic vinegar, the lemon juice and some extra-virgin olive oil. Season with salt and pepper. This will draw out and flavor the lovely strawberry juices.
3. Preheat a large nonstick frying pan to medium hot and add a splash of olive oil. Press a basil leaf onto each slice of halloumi. Place the slices, leaf side down, in the frying pan and fry for a minute. Turn over carefully and fry for another minute until the halloumi is light golden and crisp.
4. Get yourself 4 plates and place a couple of pieces of the crispy halloumi on each. Put the mint, the rest of the basil leaves and the salad leaves into the bowl with the strawberries and toss together. Pile some of the strawberry mixture in the middle of each plate and drape the speck over the top. Finish with more salad leaves. To serve, drizzle with balsamic vinegar and extra-virgin olive oil.

1. Place all the vegetables in a large heavy-bottomed saucepan with a big splash of olive oil and the ginger, garlic, chili, basil stalks, coriander seeds and cloves. Season with the pepper and a good pinch of salt.
2. Cook gently over a low heat for 10 to 15 minutes until softened, stirring every so often. Add all the tomatoes and 1 1/2 cups of cold water. Bring to the boil and simmer gently until the sauce reduces by half.
3. Add the basil leaves, then whiz the sauce in a food processor or with a hand blender and push it through a sieve twice, to make it smooth and shiny. Put the sauce into a clean pan and add the vinegar and the sugar. Place the sauce on the heat and simmer until it reduces and thickens to the consistency of tomato ketchup. At this point, correct the seasoning to taste.
4. Spoon the ketchup through a sterilized funnel into sterilized bottles, then seal tightly and place in a cool dark place or the refrigerator until needed - it should keep for 6 months.

1. Blanch the bacon to remove its smoky taste. Drop bacon slices into 2 quarts of cold water, bring to a boil, and simmer 6 to 8 minutes. Drain, rinse in cold water, and dry on paper towels.
2. In a large frying pan, sauté the blanched bacon to brown and crispy slightly. Set them aside and add to the beef before it goes into the oven. Pat cubes of beef dry with a peper towel. Ih a large frying pan over high heat, brown the chunks of beef on all sides in the bacon fat and olive oil, season with salt and pepper, and put them into a heavy-bottomed Dutch oven or covered casserole pan.
3. Remove all but a little fat from the frying pan, add the sliced vegetables and brown them, and add to the meat. Deglaze the pan with 1 cup of wine and pour over the beef along with 2 more cups. Add enough beef stock to almost cover the beef. Add the herb bouquet. Bring to a simmer, cover, and plce in the oven at 325 for 2-3 hours. When finished cooking, the meat should be extremely tender and the liquid should have reduced by almost half.
4. While the stew is cooking, prepare the onions. Blanch the onions in boiling water for 1 minute. Drain and rinse in cold water to stop the cooking. Slice the end tips off of the onions, peel the onions and score the root end with 1/4 inch cuts. Sauté onions in a single layer in a tablespoon or two of butter until lightly browned. Add beef stock or water half way up the sides of the onions. Add a teaspoon of sugar, and season with salt and pepper. Cover and simmer slowly for 25 minutes or until tender. The onions should absorb most of the stock. Drain any remaining liquid.
5. Prepare the mushrooms a few minutes before serving the stew. Sauté quartered mushrooms on high in a few tablespoons of butter and olive oil until browned and cooked through.
6. When the stew is finished cooking to your liking, remove from the oven and strain over a large sauce pan, pressing so the juices come out, so you are left with all the sauce in one pan, and the solids in the strainer. Discard the stewed carrots/onions, reserving the beef. Rinse casserole dish and add reserved beef to it. Boil the sauce until it has reduced to about 3 cups. Remove from heat and whisk in the beurre manié. Return to heat and simmer for 2 minutes until the sauce thickens slightly. Taste for seasoning and adjust accordingly. Pour sauce over stewed beef cubes and fold in the mushrooms and pearl onions. Simmer again to heat everything through, and serve.
7. You can serve this with the classic pairing of boiled potatoes or buttered noodles. Or the less classic (but my favourite) mashed potatoes, or rice or all on it’s own.