Let me introduce you to my new favorite dress! I've probably worn it too many times in the last couple of weeks, but I can't help it! It's super soft and comfy, and can so easily be dressed up or down.
Also....check out the bow in the back. And POCKETS! If the pockets don't sell you, I don't know what would.
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I knew that I wanted to create a recipe for Canada Day, and I really wanted to come up with something that was uniquely Canadian (kind of like these Nanaimo Bars!).....and I also apparently really love frying dough. So, Beaver Tails Elephant Ears won!
For those of you who are still confused, Elephant Ears are kind of like a giant stretched out doughnut that's in the shape of a elephant ear! There's a company here in Canada that sells the most amazing ones topped with anything you want, and they'd like me to remind you that this is NOT an official recipe for Beaver Tails, but rather my own version of Elephant Ears.
Now, you might look at the recipe and go: "Ugh...it's a yeast bread. Ain't nobody got time for that.". BUT I'm telling you that this recipe is super quick! You only let it rise ONCE, and only for HALF AN HOUR. That's it! Let's be honest, that's barely enough time for you to get your cinnamon and sugar ready, and your oil heated up. So go on....make these!
recipe by: Kelsey Siemens
yields: approximately 1 dozen elephant ears (*this depends very much on the size you choose)
Ingredients
1/4 cup hot water (not boiling)
1/2 tsp sugar
2 1/4 tsp yeast
2/3 cup milk
1/4 cup white sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1 egg
3 Tbsp shortening
3 cups flour
Directions
1) In a small bowl, mix together hot water, sugar, and yeast set aside for about 10 minutes until nice and frothy.
2) In a large bowl, whisk together yeast mixture, milk, sugar, salt, egg and shortening.
3) Slowly whisk in 1 cup of flour.
4) Gradually add in remaining flour (2 cups), half a cup at a time, stirring with a wooden spoon (or you can use your mixer and a dough hook) until the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl. *You may not need to use all of your flour!
5) Knead by hand for about 5 minutes, or until your dough is nice and smooth. (You may need to add a bit of flour as you need if your dough is super sticky...that's totally normal!)
6) Place the dough into a greased bowl, cover with a clean dish towel, and place somewhere warm to rise until it has doubled in size (about half an hour).
7) While your dough is rising, get your toppings ready! I melted a couple tablespoons of butter for coating the elephant ears; and also made up some cinnamon and sugar and placed it into a large, shallow pan for dipping.
8) Heat oil in a deep-fryer or a large electric skillet to 350 degrees (you can use a large, deep skillet on your stove, but it's harder to control the temperature of your oil safely).
9) When your oil is ready, pinch off an egg sized piece of dough, and use a lightly floured rolling pin to roll it out into a large oval. It should be about 1/8" thick, and you can stretch it by hand if that's easier for you (that's the authentic way to do it!).
10) Gently place your elephant ears into the oil, and cook it until it is golden brown. Flip, and repeat.
*We noticed that if we rolled more out right away, they got quite a few bubbles in them, which made frying a bit interesting. So that's why I recommend doing them one at a time. They'll all taste the same though!
11) As soon as you remove your elephant ear from the oil, gently blot onto a paper towel, brush lightly with butter, and then cover with cinnamon and sugar.
(*You can skip the butter in this step if you'd like....as long as you cover it in cinnamon and sugar while it's still super hot. We like the slightly salty taste the butter adds!)
12) Repeat steps 10 & 11 until all your dough is used up.
13) Devour all of your elephant ears! (You can store any extras for a day or two, but they are best the first day!)
Happy Canada Day!
Now go out and eat all the things!
-Kelsey
Sunrises are the best. And this was a morning where I allowed myself to imagine that I had just stepped out of an Austen novel, and was wandering the English countryside.
(Bad news...I wasn't actually in England. More bad news...Mr. Darcy never showed up!)
Ever since I was a little girl, mint chip ice cream has always been my favorite. Call me boring....but it's still the flavour I will get 99% of the time. My logic is that I know that I love mint chip, so why bother trying other flavours? Right?
Now this logic only holds true unless there's salted caramel that is! Then it's anybody's game.
Not only is today special because it involves ice cream, but we also were able to collaborate with the lovely Rosaura from Pigment and Parchment! I discovered her gorgeous work on instagram, she then followed me back and suggested a food post collab! I said "heck yes!", and the rest is history. She painted us the most darling ingredient list, which you can see below. Love!
artwork by:
Mint Chip Ice Cream
by: Kelsey & Jordyn
Ingredients:
2 cups whole milk
2 cups heavy cream
1 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 teaspoon spearmint extract
3-4 drops green food colouring (optional)
1 cup mini semisweet chocolate chips
Directions:
1) In a large bowl, mix together milk, cream, sugar, salt, vanilla extract and spearmint extract, making sure sugar is dissolved.
2) Add food colouring if you wish, until it is as green as you want!
3) Pour the mixture into an ice cream maker, and follow the directions of your ice cream maker.
4) Once the mixture has started to thicken (about 10 minutes), add the chocolate chips in gradually.
5) When the ice cream has thickened sufficiently (ours took 20 minutes), scoop into a container (we used a loaf pan and it fit perfectly), and freeze until it's ready to serve (around 2 hours).
6) Enjoy!
*If you find mini chocolate chips freeze too hard to eat, you can always substitute chocolate shavings instead!
Ever since Jordyn bought her new fancy schmancy "I can make ice cream in 15 minutes" ice cream maker....it sure is tempting to make a new flavour each week. I suppose it'll be a good lesson in practicing our self control!
Who are we kidding? Good-bye bikini body! Hello delicious ice cream!
-kelsey & jordyn
Rhubarb! Oh, how I love thee.
This is the part where I talk about living on a farm with (almost) unlimited amounts of rhubarb, berries and apples at my fingertips, and you all hate me.
Well, I hope you can try and not hate me, and maybe just settle for bitter jealousy? Or let's become friends and you can come visit and I'll give you a cake to make up for it. But seriously, can I just mention one more time how lucky I am to live on a farm that grows so many incredible fruit and veggies? I don't ever want to leave!
Although I'm a real chocolate girl....I have to say that this just might be my favorite cake in the world. It definitely wins best coffee cake, hands down. It's just so light and fluffy, and the pieces of rhubarb bring such a delightful balance with their tartness. The minute our rhubarb is long enough to justify picking it...this cake will be baking in our kitchen. Now that's a fact.
I also love the fact that this recipe comes from my great grandma. Baking runs in the family!
Rhubarb Coffee Cake
recipe from: My Great Grandma Enid!
Ingredients:
1/2 cup butter
1 1/2 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup sour milk (mix 1 cup milk with 1 tbsp vinegar/lemon juice - let stand for 5 minutes before using)
1 tsp baking soda
2 cups flour
1 1/2 cup rhubarb, chopped
Topping:
1/4 cup sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
Directions:
1) In a large mixing bowl, cream together butter and sugar.
2) Beat in eggs and vanilla until light and fluffy.
3) Mix in sour milk and baking soda.
4) Add flour and mix until just combined.
5) Stir in rhubarb pieces.
6) Pour batter into a greased 9x13 pan, and top with cinnamon and sugar.
7) Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.
This is best served the first day, although it rarely lasts longer than that at our house anyway!
Happy Summer!
Now go and find some rhubarb and make this cake asap!
p.s.
♥
kelsey
It feels like Summer here, and I couldn't be happier. Bright, sunny days and long, warm, relaxing evenings. It's perfection!
Moving on....we are so so excited to have collaborated with Bootlegger for this post! We love their new Free Spirited Summer collection, which is full of charm, whimsy, and a wonderfully effortless boho feel.
I'm totally in love with their hampton dress. It's simple and sweet, and yet full of delicate details. The tiny buttons running up the back of the dress are my favorite! And I so appreciate the high-low skirt, and the fact that it has a longer length overall. I feel completely comfortable to run, jump, and frolic around fields without any fear of my dressing flying up. It's the best.
I never want to overthink my outfits in Summer, and have a weakness for no fuss dresses.
I kept things simple here by adding a lace vest, a skinny brown belt, and my favorite brown booties. Nice and easy!
dress:hampton-bootlegger
// vest: garage // belt: my closet // boots: hand-me-downs // bracelet: hand-made by me // arrow necklace: forever21
The only unfortunate thing about the constant sunshine is the state of my tan lines. Let's just say that my farmer tan game is strong. As in, disgustingly strong. Not to mention the wicked neck tan I got last weekend in Kamloops (where Clara and I shot a wedding together! More on that soon!). Seriously, it is horrid. And I will admit I totally smoothed it out in photoshop. No shame.
It honestly looked like I had painted my neck ten shades darker than the rest of my body.
Gross. Sorry for the visual.
#sorrynotsorry
- kelsey
p.p.s. This is the sequel to "Kelsey takes her own photos"! Ten points to whoever can spot the remote. Ha!
Hello, I'm Kelsey!
I grew up on (and now work at) my family's apple farm in the beautiful Fraser Valley, BC. I love cats, salted caramel anything, and have an unhealthy addiction to doughnuts. Read more here!
©2014-2016 KELSEY SIEMENS. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
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