Funfetti Sugar Cookies

Recipe by our in-house chef, @MaddyGoldberg

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 9-11 minutes

Serving Size: 12-14 cookies

Ingredients

1 ¼ cup all-purpose flour
½ tsp baking soda
½ tsp baking powder
¼ tsp salt

¾ cup sugar
½ cup unsalted butter, room temperature
1 egg
2 tbsp rainbow sprinkles
½ cup white chocolate chips

Method

Form dough: Preheat oven to 350. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. In a small bowl, combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Set aside. In a large mixing bowl combine; sugar and butter. Mix with an electric mixer on high speed until combined and fluffy. Add 1 egg and mix on high speed until combined. Add dry mix to the large bowl. Using a spatula, fold until dry mix is fully combined. Add sprinkles and white chocolate chips. Fold until combined.

Form the cookies: Using a slightly damp hand, scoop 1 ½ - 2 tsp of dough and roll into a ball. Continue until all dough is used. Place on parchment lined baking sheet at least 3-inches apart.

Bake the cookies: Bake in preheated oven for 9 minutes, or until the edges are just beginning to brown. Optional: Once you have removed the cookies, place 2-3 white chocolate chips on the centre of each cookie without pressing it into the cookie then sprinkle a pinch of sprinkles on top. It will melt while it cools!

Stuffed Mac N' Cheese Shells

Recipe by our in-house chef, @MaddyGoldberg

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 25-30 minutes

Serving Size: 17 shells

Ingredients

3 tbsp unsalted butter
3 tbsp all-purpose flour
2 1/3 cups milk (2% or 3.25%)
1 ½ cups cheddar, grated

1 cup mozzarella, cut into ½ inch cubes
½ cup parmesan, grated
¼ cup panko breadcrumbs
17 jumbo shells
Salt

Method

Make the bechamel: In a saucepan, add butter and cook over medium-low heat until melted. Add flour and whisk until smooth. Keeping the pan over medium-low heat, add about 3 tbsp of milk, and whisk until smooth. Add another 3 tbsp of milk and whisk until smooth. Continue adding small amounts of milk, whisking between each addition, until all the milk is used. Stir the milk constantly over medium-low heat until the liquid is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon, and it is almost simmering. Remove from heat. Add half the cheddar cheese (¾ cup). Stir with a spoon (not a whisk) until combined. Add 1 ½ tsp of salt then stir. Taste then add more salt if needed. Cover and keep at room temperature while you cook the pasta.

Cook pasta: Fill a large pot with salted water. Place over high heat until boiling. Add 17-20 jumbo shells to boiling water. Cook for 10 minutes. Strain then rinse with cold water until cooled enough to handle.

Form then bake: Preheat oven to 425 F. Line a 9-inch cast iron pan or any oven-safe dish with parchment. Drizzle a small amount of bechamel around the base of the dish. Transfer about ½ of the bechamel sauce to a bowl. Add mozzarella cubes and stir. Working one shell at a time, place a large spoonful of bechamel sauce/cube mixture into the shell. Place shell in the parchment lined dish. Continue until all shells are filled and placed into the pan. Cover with remaining bechamel sauce. Sprinkle remaining cheddar (3/4 cup) and parmesan cheese over top of the shells. Sprinkle panko overtop of the cheese. Bake in preheated oven for 25 minutes, or until golden brown and shell edges are beginning to crisp. Cool for 5 minutes before eating. Serve hot.

Strawberry Cream Crepe Cake

Recipe by our in-house chef, @MaddyGoldberg

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 45 minutes

Serving Size: one 9-inch cake

Ingredients

For crepes:
1 ¼ cup flour
2 tbsp sugar
1 ½ cups milk (any 1-3.25% will work)
2 eggs
2 tbsp butter, melted
Extra butter for cooking crepes

For filling:

2 cups whipping cream
½ cup icing sugar
1 cup strawberries, stems removed and quartered

Method

Make the crepe batter: in a large bowl, combine milk, eggs, and melted butter. Add sugar and flour. Whisk until combined. If batter is lumpy, use a hand blender or whisk vigorously until smooth.

Form crepes: Place a 9-inch skillet over medium-low heat. Add about ½ tsp of butter and stir around pan until it is coated in melted butter. Add a small amount of batter (about ¼ cup) to pan and swirl the pan around to evenly distribute the batter. Cook for 1 minute without touching. Carefully slide a spatula underneath the crepe and flip. Cook for another 1 minute. Set aside on a cutting board to cool. If crepe is beginning to brown, reduce the heat to low. Repeat the process until all the batter is used, and you have at least 12 crepes. Stack crepes and allow to cool in fridge while you make the filling. If you need further guidance on making crepes, check Youtube for a tutorial.

Make filling: In a small saucepan, add strawberries and cover with a tight-fitting lid. Place over low heat for 15 minutes, or until strawberries have broken down and released a lot of liquid. Transfer to a bowl and mash with a fork. It should be a liquid sauce with strawberry chunks throughout. Place in fridge to cool completely. While strawberry sauce cools, add the whipping cream and icing sugar to the bowl of a stand mixer. Whisk on high speed until stiff peaks have formed. Set aside in fridge. Once the strawberries have cooled completely, fold the strawberry sauce into the whipping cream until combined. Keep in fridge until ready to use.

Assemble cake: Once crepes and strawberry filling are cooled you can assemble the cake. Place one crepe on a large plate or cutting board. Add a large spoonful of whipping cream and spread evenly. It should cover the entire crepe in a very thin layer (about 1 mm tall). Place a crepe over the cream and add another spoonful of whipping cream. Spread evenly. Repeat until 12-15 crepes have been used, with whipping cream between each one. Set in fridge for at least 30 minutes. Using a very sharp knife, slice into pieces like you would cut a cake. Serve immediately.

Cheesy Pull Apart Bread

Recipe by our in-house chef, @MaddyGoldberg

Prep Time: 10 mins (2 hours rising)

Cook Time: 45 mins

Serving Size: 1 loaf

Ingredients

For bread:
½ cup milk, warm
1 packet (7g) active dry yeast
2 tbsp (25g) sugar
4 ¾ cup (570g) all-purpose flour
½ tbsp salt
2 tbsp (28g) unsalted butter, melted
1 1/3 cup water, room temperature

For filling:
2 tbsp (28g) butter, melted
1 clove garlic, finely grated
½ tsp salt
2 ½ cups cheddar cheese, grated

Method

Make dough: In a small bowl, combine warm milk, yeast, and sugar. Stir and let sit for 10 minutes, or until yeast is foamy. In the bowl of a stand mixer, add flour and salt. After yeast is foamy, add yeast mixture, water, and melted butter to the bowl of stand mixer. Mix on low speed until fully combined. Cover and let rise for one hour.

Make filling and form bread: Line a loaf pan with parchment paper, set aside. Make filling by combining melted butter, salt, and grated garlic. Set aside. After dough has risen, transfer to a lightly floured surface. Roll out into a large rectangle, about 10” x 5”. Spread butter mix over the dough to cover completely. Evenly sprinkle 2 cups of cheese over the dough, leave remaining ½ cup cheese for topping. Working from the length-side of the dough, cut dough into 6 strips that are approximately 5” long. Stack the strips so they are on top of each other. Hold in place to avoid it falling over. Using a knife, cut the stack into 4. Place each stack sideways into the loaf pan, the layers should be exposed facing upward. Refer to Instagram post if you need clarification. Cover with remaining ½ cup of cheese. Let rise for 25 minutes.

Bake: Preheat oven to 350. Bake in oven for 45 minutes, or until bread is golden brown and cooked through. Cool on rack. Serve warm.

Sticky Pistachio Buns

Recipe by our in-house chef, @MaddyGoldberg

Prep Time: 25 minutes (plus two hours rising)

Cook Time: 25-30 minutes

Serving Size: 9 – 12 buns

Ingredients

For the dough:
2 cups warm milk (1 – 3.25%)
¼ cup sugar
1 pack (2 ¼ tsp) active dry yeast
½ cup butter, melted
5 cups flour (plus extra flour for rolling dough)
1 tsp salt

For the filling:
¾ cup butter, room temperature
½ cup brown sugar
¼ cup sugar
½ cup pistachios, broken into smaller pieces

For the glaze:
1 cup icing sugar
3-4 tbsp milk (1 – 3.25%)
¼ cup pistachios, broken into smaller pieces

Method

Make the dough: In a large bowl, add warm milk, sugar, and yeast. Let sit for 10 minutes, or until yeast is foamy. Add melted butter, flour, and salt. Using a rubber spatula, stir vigorously until dough is completely combined, make sure to scrape the bottom to disperse clumps of flour. It should be shaggy and wet. Cover and let rise for 1 hour at room temperature. 

Make the filling: In a small bowl, combine butter, brown sugar, and sugar. Stir until smooth. Set aside at room temperature while dough rises.

Form the buns: Transfer dough to a floured surface. Roll dough into a large rectangle (approximately 16 inches x 8 inches). The dough should be about a ½ inch thick. Add flour as needed to prevent the dough from sticking to the surface. Spread filling evenly over the rectangle, leaving 1-inch of space on the edges. Sprinkle the ½ cup of pistachios over the filling. Working from the long end, roll the dough tightly into a 16-inch log. Using a serrated knife, cut the pointy ends off the log then cut the log into 9 rolls. Optional: cut into 12 if you prefer more smaller buns. Transfer buns into a 9x12 glass dish. Let rise for 45 minutes.

Bake the buns: Preheat oven to 350. Place buns in the oven and bake for 25-30 minutes, or until golden brown. Let cool for 10 minutes before glazing.

Glaze the buns: In a small bowl, combine the icing sugar and 3 tbsp milk. Whisk until smooth. If the icing is too thick, add another 1 tbsp of milk until desired consistency. Add pistachios and stir. Drizzle glaze evenly over top of warm buns. Serve warm.

Strawberry Swirl Cheesecake Bars

Recipe by our in house chef, Maddy Goldberg

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour

Serving Size: 9-12 squares

Ingredients

For the crust:
1 ¾ cup graham cracker crumbs
2 tbsp sugar
1/8 tsp salt
4 tbsp unsalted butter, melted

For the strawberry swirl:
3/4 cup strawberries, stems removed and halved

For the cheesecake:
500 g cream cheese, room temperature
¾ cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla
2 eggs
1/3 cup sour cream
1/3 cup whipping cream

Method

Make the crust: Preheat oven to 350 F. Line an 8x8 oven safe dish with parchment paper. In a large bowl, combine graham cracker crumb, sugar, and salt. Add melted butter and stir with a fork until combined. Transfer to parchment lined dish and spread evenly to cover the bottom of the dish. Using the palm of your hand, flatten the crust to form an even layer that covers the entire bottom of the dish. Bake for 10 minutes. Set aside to cool.

Made strawberry swirl: In a small saucepan add strawberries and cover. Place over very low heat for 10-15 minutes, or until strawberries have become very soft and produced a lot of liquid. Transfer to a blender and blend on high speed until smooth. Set aside in fridge.

Make the cheesecake: Reduce oven to 325 F. Cut cream cheese into 1-inch cubes. In stand mixer with the paddle attachment, mix cream cheese on high speed until smooth. Scrape down sides with a spatula as needed. Add sugar and mix until smooth. Add vanilla and eggs, mix until smooth. Continue to scrape down sides and bottom of the bowl throughout. Add sour cream and whip cream, mix until smooth. Pour cheesecake over the cooled crust. Using a large spoon, drop about 1 tbsp dots of blended strawberry all around the cheesecake so they are spread out. About 6-10 dots total. Using a butter knife, lightly drag the knife in a zig zag pattern from top to bottom of cheesecake making sure NOT to touch the crust. You are looking to distribute the strawberry swirl around and it should create a nice pattern.

Bake cheesecake: Bake in 325 F oven for 1 hour. Once baked, turn oven off and open the door slightly. Allow the cheesecake to cool in the oven for 45 minutes before touching it. Transfer to fridge and let cool for minimum four hours.

Cinnamon Bun Microwave Mug Cake

Recipe by our in-house chef, Maddy Goldberg

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 1 ½ minutes

Serving Size: 1 mug cake

Ingredients

For cake:
¼ cup milk (any % or nut milk will work)
2 tbsp unsalted butter (or vegan butter)
½ tsp vanilla
¼ cup + 2 tbsp all purpose flour
2 tbsp sugar
¼ tsp baking powder
¼ tsp cinnamon

For cinnamon sugar filling:

2 tbsp white sugar

1 tsp cinnamon

Method

Make cake batter and filling: In a microwave safe bowl, add milk, vanilla, and butter. Microwave for 30 seconds, or until butter is melted and milk is warm. In a separate bowl, mix the flour, sugar, baking powder, and cinnamon. Add the milk/butter to the dry bowl and whisk until fully combined. There should be no lumps. Set aside. In a small bowl, mix the cinnamon sugar filling. Set aside.

Form cake: In a microwave safe mug, add about ¼ of the cake batter. With a spoon, sprinkle about ¼ of the filling overtop. Add another ¼ of cake batter and sprinkle another ¼ of the filling overtop. Repeat until all batter and filling is used. The final layer should be the cinnamon sugar filling.

Microwave cake: Microwave for 1 ½ minutes. If it is not cooked, return for another 15-20 seconds. Top with vanilla ice cream or whip cream (optional). Eat while it is hot!

Lemon Black Sesame Loaf

Recipe Developed by our in house chef, Maddy Goldberg

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour

Serving Size: one 9” loaf pan 

Ingredients

For Loaf:
2 cups all purpose flour
1 tbsp black sesame seeds
2 tsp baking powder
½ tsp salt
½ cup canola or vegetable oil
1 cup sugar
¼ cup brown sugar
2 tsp lemon zest
½ cup fresh lemon juice, strained
3 eggs
¼ cup milk (can use any % or nut milk)

For glaze:
1 cup icing sugar
2 tbsp lemon juice

Method

Make the loaf: Preheat oven to 350 F. Line a 9-inch loaf pan with parchment paper. In a large bowl, mix flour, black sesame seeds, baking powder, and salt. This is the dry mix. In a different bowl, add oil, sugar, brown sugar, lemon zest, lemon juice, eggs, and milk. Whisk to combine. This is the wet mix. Add 1/3 of the wet mix to the dry bowl and combine. Add another third and combine. Add the remaining third and combine until smooth. Do not overmix. Transfer to the loaf pan and bake in preheated oven for one hour. Check with a toothpick in the centre to ensure that it is baked through. If toothpick has batter on it then return to oven for another 5-10 minutes, or until it comes out clean. Transfer to a rack to cool.

Make the glaze: In a small bowl, combine glaze ingredients until you have a smooth glaze. After loaf has cooled for about 15 minutes, drizzle the glaze overtop of the loaf. Allow to cool for at least another 15 minutes.

To serve: Transfer to a cutting board. Slice with a very sharp knife or a serrated knife. Serve warm or keep in a sealed container in the fridge.

Cookie Dough Cheesecake

Recipe by our in-house chef, Maddy Goldberg.

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Cook Time: 6 hours in fridge

Serving Size: one 9” loaf pan 

Ingredients

For Cookie Dough Base:
1/3 cup + 1 tbsp unsalted butter, room temperature
½ cup brown sugar
¼ tsp salt
2 tbsp milk (any % will work)
1 tsp vanilla
1 ¼ cup oat flour (or blended rolled oats)
¼ cup chocolate chips

For Cheesecake Filling:
500 g full-fat cream cheese (not whipped)
2/3 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1 1/3 cup whipping cream

Method

Prepare the base: Line a 9-inch loaf pan with parchment paper. In a large bowl, mix butter, brown sugar, and salt until combined. Add milk and vanilla. Once combined, add oat flour and chocolate chips. Stir until combined. Remove 2 tbsp of the dough and wrap in plastic wrap. Set aside in fridge. This will be used as the garnish at the end. Transfer the remaining dough into the parchment lined loaf pan. Using a slightly damp hand to prevent sticking, pat the dough into an even layer on the bottom of the loaf pan. It should be covering the entire base of the loaf pan in an even layer. Set aside in fridge.

Prepare the cheesecake filling: Place cream cheese in the bowl of a stand mixer. Beat with the paddle attachment on high speed until smooth and soft. Scrape side and bottom of bowl with a spatula, repeat until cream cheese is very smooth. Add sugar and beat on high speed until combined and smooth. Scrape bottom and sides of bowl constantly. You can also do this by hand using a rubber spatula. If using a stand mixer, transfer the mixture into a large bowl and wash the stand mixer bowl. Place vanilla and whipping cream in bowl of stand mixer, beat on medium high speed until stiff peaks form. You can also do this by hand with a whisk. Once stiff peaks have formed, fold the whipping cream into the cream cheese bowl. Try to avoid mixing this mixture for a long time, you want the whipping cream to remain as stiff as possible. Transfer the cheesecake filling into the loaf pan. Using a rubber spatula, smooth out the top to make an even layer. Set in fridge for at LEAST 6 hours.

To serve: Remove the 2 tbsp of reserved cookie dough from the plastic wrap. Roll into tiny balls, just bigger than the size of a chocolate chips. Sprinkle the tiny balls overtop of the cheesecake. Lift parchment to remove the cheesecake from the loaf pan. Using a large knife, Slice the cheesecake into squares or bars. Rinse knife with cold water between slices for best presentation. Serve cold.