Party for One

Now and then, life will catch you off guard. On some days it'll be in the form of a defunct toilet, finding you're out of toilet paper while sitting on said toilet, or flooding that bathroom with that same toilet.

On other days, shall we say less crappy days, it can take the form of unexpected house guests. Hungry house guests. It's an occurrence that's more common than you think.

Sometimes company will find themselves over at your place for a study session. Sometimes you'll be recuperating after a long and arduous group project and everyone's in need of some serious fuel.

Well if you've got 10 minutes to spare and the fixings for what would be a strange sandwich, yet tasty group appetizer, then why not try some Ham and Asiago Crisps?

Quick to make and more versatile than a Swiss army knife, these bite-sized snacks will fill you and your company up so everyone's ready to head out the door.

What's nice about these appetizers is that you can easily change the type of dip to suite whatever cold-cuts you've got on hand. For example, switch the ham for roast beef and pair with a French onion dip with a swiss cheese and horseradish garnish for some tasty experimentation.



Ham and Asiago Crisps

What's In It:
-Half a French baguette
-1 package of Longo's Artichoke & Asiago Dip
-100g of Rosemary Ham, thinly sliced
-Cucumber, julienned to garnish

Makes 24 crisps



1. Slice the baguette into inch-thick slices. Next, slice the ham lengthwise into half-inch long strips. Pile on meat onto the sliced bread.


2. Arrange the baguette slices on an oven rack and toast for 10 minutes @ 350°F


3. While the crisps are toasting, julienne the cucumber.


4. Remove crisps from the oven. Ham should be, well, crispy and the bread toasted.


5. Spoon about half a tsp of the artichoke and asiago dip onto the ham and top with the sliced cucumber.



6. Savour with some friends.

Blond(ie)s Do It Better

"Tell me how does it feel. When your heart grows cold," sings Bernard Sumner. You'd recognize those words, as would any New Order fan, as part of their hit "Blue Monday".

Blue Monday is also more than just a song; it's also known as the most depressing day of the year and this year it fell on January the 17th. That's a Monday to anyone still without a calendar. As if Mondays weren't crappy already...

Yes, Blue Monday may be a made-up day created by a now-defunct in-house TV channel, but with many universities already underway into their second or third week of school, those readings and assignments are probably piling up and that can be kind of a bummer.

Fortunately, there's a recipe out there that's sure to put a smile on your face or at the very least, get your serotonin levels ragin'. With that thought, The Project presents to you: (through the help of TasteSpotting) M&M Blondies.

You'd best check out the original recipe as this one was made with all ingredients adjusted to half a cup of M&M's, but the recipe works just fine despite the odd amounts listed below. If you can get through finding all the ingredients you'll be sure to have a colourful and fragrant treat that'll help digest those negative notions.



M&M Blondies
Recipe from The Recipe Girl

What's In It:
-1/2 a cup of M&M's (125mL)
-4 Tbsp of unsalted butter
-100mL of dark brown sugar
-4 tsp of sugar
-1 tsp of vanilla extract
-1/2 a cup of shredded coconut (125mL)
-1/2 a cup of all-purpose flour (125mL)
-1 large egg
-pinch of salt

Makes 8 blondies



1. Pre-heat the oven to 350°F. Next line a small pan (3 X 4 inches will do the trick) with parchment paper.



2. Now, in a small sauce pan, heat the butter until it browns. Look for a change in colour and a seductively sweet nutty smell to let you know that the butter's ready. Just don't be distracted long enough to let it burn. Set aside and cool.



3. In a large bowl, combine the browned butter with both sugars. Mix well to combine.



4. Add the egg, vanilla, salt and mix well.

5. Stir in flour, coconut and the M&M's.



6. Mix everything together and with a wooden spoon or spatula and spread the mixture into the pan.



7. Bake for 30 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool for 15 minutes.



8. Cut into eighths and serve warm with a glass of cold moo moo juice.

We're Back and We Brought Waffles

Another year and another Christmas come and gone. But what remain are the memories with friends and family; the sense of rest and restoration after working your butt off for three months of post-secondary schoolin'; and the presents. Or at the very least, some cash to balance out all that holiday giving.

Now, we've all received strange gifts through out the years. Knitted socks, balaclavas and a gift certificate to MacDonalds valued at $5.00 all make the list but Christmas is that time of the year where you can end up with something you would never purchase yourself, for better or for worse.

Case in point: the waffle iron.

Now, waffle irons are a great appliance. They make waffles. Not many other kitchen devices can live up to that claim.

Can my microwave make waffles? Nope.

What about my Magic Bullet? Probably not.

How about my toaster? Can it make waffles? Many signs would point to no.

But the better question is, who wakes up after 6 hours of sleep and goes, "I'm going to go buy a waffle iron today."? Well if that's you, then this recipe is for you and all you waffle lovers out there.



Gingerbread Belgian Waffles

What's In It:
-1/2 cup of water
-1 tsp of sugar
-2 1/4 (11 mL) tsp of active dry yeast
-1 1/2 ups of all-purpose flour
-1 cup of graham cracker crumbs
-1/4 cup of sugar
-pinch of salt
-1 tsp of ground ginger
-1/2 tsp of lemon zest, finely chopped
-2 cups of warm milk (any type will do)
-3 large eggs, separated
-1/2 cup of unsalted butter, melted and cooled
-1 tsp of vanilla extract

Makes six waffles




1. Let's start by combining the yeast and the tablespoon of sugar in a largemixing bowl. Now add the water and let stand for 10 minutes.



2. In a smaller bowl, mix together your dry ingredients: the flour, graham cracker crumbs, salt, ginger, lemon zest and the remaining sugar.



3. You can now add the milk, egg yolks, butter and vanilla to the yeast mixture and stir till everything's smooth.



4. Pour the dry ingredients into the yeast mixture and stir till smooth. You can use an electric mixer if you have one or stir everything together by hand.



5. Cover the batter with wax paper or a towel and it stand at room temperature for 30 minutes.



6. While that's going on you can start beating the egg whites until stiff. If you're using an electric mixer, wait near the end of the 30 minutes to start. When peaks have formed in the egg whites, gently fold them into the batter. [Read: Don't just plop them on top of the batter like I did :(]



7. Pour the batter into your iron and you're set. Serve with any number of toppings. Maple syrup and vanilla ice cream are a fantastic addition and compliment the subtle gingersnap flavour of these waffles.