Pan con Tomate aka breakfasty/brunchy/lunchy tomato toast

Pan con Tomate

Pan con Tomate

You know that whole “more than the sum of its parts” thing?

Well, this recipe is just that. It’s almost absurdly simple yet so stinking delicious, easily customizable to any tastes, and perfect for breakfast, brunch, lunch, linner, or even a light dinner.


Pan con Tomate (aka tomato toast)

Serves 2 to 4

4 thick slices ciabatta or sourdough
1 garlic clove, halved
2 large ripe tomatoes, halved
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, divided
Kosher or flakey sea salt
Freshly ground black pepper
Toppings such as torn basil and/or oregano, anchovy fillets, crumbled cheese (feta, soft goat cheese, or pecorino would be nice), chili flakes, etc.

Lightly toast the bread until golden brown. As soon as the bread is toasted, rub the cut piece of garlic onto the hot toast. This will give subtle garlic flavour to the bread and make for some delicious toast. Set aside on two serving plates.

Using the large holes of your box or cheese grater, grate the cut side of the tomatoes over a bowl. The pulpy flesh of the tomatoes will grate into a fresh tomato sauce leaving the skins behind. Discard the skins.

Stir 1 tablespoon of the olive oil into the grated tomatoes and season well with kosher salt and black pepper. Spoon the saucy tomatoes over the toast and garnish with whatever toppings you’d like. Drizzle over the remaining tablespoon of olive oil, season with salt and pepper, if needed, and serve immediately.

Hot Cross Buns!

Orange Spiced Hot Cross Buns

Orange Spiced Hot Cross Buns

I used to think hot cross buns were super gross. 

Maybe it was the raisins or that weird floury cross atop those strangely sweet burger-ish buns, or perhaps it can all be boiled down to the fact that my mom loves them and would force them upon me and my brother every Easter.  Whatever it was, I am happy to say that, with the help of these little babies, I am a true convert!

I've ditched classic raisins in favour of their golden cousins, funny little currants, chopped dried apricots, and slightly sour dried crans and scrapped the floury-paste cross altogether.

Yes, the ingredient list may look long but these little lovelies are a cinch to throw together!  If you're more of a traditionalist, feel free to scrap my melange of dried fruit in favour of classic raisins but definitely don't skimp on the spices and orange zest!  They take these sweet little guys to the next level!


Simple Classic Hot Cross Buns

Makes 16 buns

¼ cup apple juice
¼ cup finely diced dried apricots*
¼ cup chopped dried cranberries*
¼ cup dried currants*
¼ cup golden raisins*
1 ¼ cup whole milk, warmed
2 ½ teaspoons instant yeast
4–4 ½ cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
¼ cup brown sugar
1 ¾ teaspoons kosher salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
¼ teaspoon ground clove
¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 tablespoon orange zest
2 large eggs + 1 large egg yolk
6 tablespoons butter, melted
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons cold milk

For the icing
1 cup + 3 tablespoons icing sugar
1 ½ tablespoons milk
½ teaspoon vanilla extract

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.

In a small microwave-safe bowl, stir together the apple juice and dried fruit.  Pop the bowl into the microwave and heat for about 30 seconds or until warm.  Set the fruit aside to cool to room temperature.

In a glass measuring cup, stir together the warmed milk and instant yeast and allow it to sit aside and get a little foamy.  Meanwhile, in a large bowl or the bowl of your stand mixer, combine 4 cups of flour, baking powder, brown sugar, salt, cinnamon, clove, and nutmeg.  Make a well in the centre and pour in the yeast mixture.  Add in the orange zest, eggs, egg yolk, melted butter, and vanilla and strain the cooled juice from the dried fruit on in as well.  Set the fruit aside to incorporate later.

If using a stand mixer, knead the mixture using the hook attachment until the dough is soft and elastic, about 5–7 minutes, adding the remaining ½ cup of flour if needed.  If using a bowl, stir until a shaggy dough forms then turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until the dough is soft and elastic, about 7–9 minutes, adding more flour as needed.

When the dough has reached a lovely consistency, knead in the fruit and form the dough into a ball.  Pop the dough into a bowl, cover with plastic and a clean kitchen towel, and allow it to rise for 1 hour in a warm place or until doubled in bulk.

Punch the dough down and divide it into 15 equal pieces.  Roll each piece into a tight-skinned ball and arrange them in three rows of five on your prepared baking sheet (note: the buns should be placed about 1-inch apart).  Lightly drape the buns with plastic and a kitchen towel again and allow them to rise for another hour or until they have puffed up and are just touching.  While the buns are rising, preheat your oven to 375F.

Uncover the buns and lightly brush each with cold milk.  This will help make your buns become a lovely golden brown.  Pop the buns in the oven for 18–22 minutes or until golden brown and lovely.  Remove them from the oven and transfer the buns to a cooling rack to cool completely.

Meanwhile, whip up the icing by mixing together the icing sugar, milk, and vanilla.  Transfer this into a piping bag fitted with a small round tip or a zip top bag with the corner cut out and pipe a cross on top of each cooled bun.

*Feel free to use whatever mixture of dried fruit you’d like!  Just make sure it adds up to 1 cup of fruit.

Braided Golden Challah

IMG_2408.JPG

Challah: what isn't it good for?

Stuffing? Yes please!
French toast?  Oooohhhh baby
Slathered with butter and jam for breakfast?  OK!
Oozy grilled cheese?  Yuh-huh!
Fresh out of the oven?  Duh!

Sure, you could pick up a loaf at the store but making this beautifully braided bread at home is so easy!

The perfect eggy bread for your Easter feast or really any occasion that could use a slightly sweet, super simple, perfectly plaited loaf!  


Classic Challah

Makes 2 loaves

2 ½ cups very warm water
4 teaspoons active dry yeast
2 teaspoons sugar
½ cup honey
¼ cup vegetable oil
2 large eggs
7–8 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon kosher salt
2 large egg yolks
1 tablespoon sesame seeds and/or poppy seeds

In the bowl of your stand mixer, whisk together the warm water, yeast, and sugar and allow the yeast to bloom and bubble up for around 10 minutes.

When the yeast is all lovely and foamy, beat in the honey, vegetable oil, and eggs.  Holding the hook attachment for your stand mixer in your hand, beat in one cup of flour at a time until it gets too difficult to mix by hand.  Add in the salt.  Attach the hook to the mixer and knead the dough until it is smooth, elastic, and no longer sticky, adding more flour as needed.

Cover the bowl with a small piece of plastic wrap and a clean kitchen towel and allow the dough to rise in a warm place for 1–1 ½ hours or until doubled in bulk.

When the dough has risen, punch it down and turn it out onto a lightly floured surface.  Divide the dough in half and give each a few kneads.  Set the balls of dough aside for about 5 minutes to relax the gluten then divide each ball into three equal pieces.  Roll each into a long snake about 1 ½ inches in diameter.  Pinch the ends of three snakes together and braid them into one loaf.  Do the same to the other three pieces of dough and lightly grease two baking sheets.  Place the braided loaves onto the baking sheets and lightly cover each with plastic wrap and a clean kitchen towel and allow them to rise again in a warm spot for about one hour.

Preheat the oven to 375F and beat the egg yolks with 2 tablespoons of water in a small bowl.  Using a pastry brush, lightly brush the loaves with the egg wash and sprinkle each with sesame seeds and/or poppy seeds.  Pop the loaves into the oven for 20–30 minutes or until a deep golden brown then loosely tent the loaves with aluminum foil.  Continue baking the loaves for 10–15 minutes or until the internal temperature of the bread registers 190F.

Remove the loaves from the oven and transfer them to a wire rack to cool.

Store the loaves well wrapped at room temperature for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 1 month.

No Knead, No Problem! My go-to bread for lazy days

No-Knead Bread

No-Knead Bread

This bread is literally the easiest bread out there.  No snazzy yeast, no finicky sourdough starter, just some baking soda, baking powder, and buttermilk to get this dense and delicious loaf ready for your plate!


Easy No-Knead Bread

Makes 1 loaf

2 cups all-purpose flour
2–2 ½ cups spelt or whole-wheat flour
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 ¾–2 ¼ cups buttermilk, plus a little for brushing
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
2 tablespoons runny honey
¼ cup pumpkin seeds

Preheat your oven to 425F and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.

In a large bowl, whisk together the all-purpose flour, whole-wheat or spelt flour, salt, baking soda, and baking powder.  Make a well in the centre of the dry ingredients and pour in 1 ¾ cups of the buttermilk followed by the melted butter and honey.  Using a wooden spoon, stir until all of the liquid has been evenly mixed in.  If needed, feel free to add some of the remaining buttermilk to make the dough come together.

Once the dough is too stiff to stir with the spoon, lightly flour a work surface and turn the dough out onto it.  Gently knead the dough to form it into a rough loaf but be careful not to overwork it.

Transfer the dough to the parchment lined baking sheet and, using a large knife, score an ‘X’ across the top making sure to cut about halfway down.  Use a pastry brush to paint a thin layer of buttermilk all over the top of the loaf and scatter the top with pumpkin seeds.

Bake the bread in your preheated oven for 25 minutes then reduce the heat on your oven to 350F and continue to bake for an additional 20–25 minutes or until the loaf sounds hollow when you rap on the top with your knuckles.

Transfer your loaf to a wire rack and allow it to cool.