Summer is finally here! As we all know, one of the hallmarks of the summer is the smell of grills being fired up after long winters and the sounds of people gathering on their decks to enjoy the sun. Ice cold drinks, grilled meals, and good company are what we wait for every year. As a Canadian cook, I love the versatility of cooking over a fire and eagerly wait every year for our brief northern summers. This grilled pound cake is my new favorite summer dessert.

Everyone has that one main course that they can’t wait to grill, but what of dessert? This year, instead of turning off the grill after the mains are done, keep it on and impress your guests! This grilled pound cake is sure to delight, and can be used multiple ways.

Here, I top it with strawberries and cream, but you can create your own flavor combinations with whatever you like.

Grilling this sweet and buttery pound cake gives it such a delicious depth of flavor. You get notes of caramelization from the sugar, and toasty brown butter flavors as well. The smoky char of the grill takes it over the top and it is sure to impress at your next BBQ.

Some other ideas for pairing with your grilled pound cake:

• Grilled peaches or pineapple
• Ice cream and caramel sauce
• Bananas and peanut butter
• Toasted marshmallow and chocolate sauce
• Blueberries and honey

Let your imagination run wild!

Tips for success:

• Make the pound cake the day before so it has time to cool thoroughly
• Be sure to cream the batter the full length of time. If it is not fluffy enough, the cake can become flat and much more dense. This will also prevent it from coming out greasy
• Add the flour and milk in stages to ensure proper incorporation and a smooth batter
• Make sure to monitor your cake for doneness; it can overcook easily if left too long resulting in a dry cake
• Clean your grill! Make sure that the grills are clear of other food debris and lightly greased before grilling your pound cake slices

Let me know how you dressed up your grilled pound cake in the comments!

Happy grilling!

For the whipped cream:

1 c 35% cream, chilled
1/4 c confectioner’s sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Whip the cream in a stand mixer or with a hand mixer until soft peaks form. Add in the sugar and vanilla and whip until stiff peaks form. Keep chilled until serving.

To grill:

Slice your cake into at least 1/2″ slices. Any thinner and they risk falling apart. Grill your cake slices on a clean, greased grill on medium high heat until both sides are toasted and grill marks are achieved. Serve with your toppings.

This recipe was proudly featured in the Spring 2021 issue of 50+ Lifestyle magazine.

The post Grilled Pound Cake With Strawberries and Cream appeared first on A Rise Above.

The post Protected: Grilled Chicken and Vegetables for magazine appeared first on A Rise Above.

Spring has finally sprung! Or, if you’re in Canada, it sprung for a week and is now recoiling.
As we face another Easter in lockdown, the traditional family feast for the spring holidays might be off the table, but that’s no reason not to make something special to put on the table! Enter this hearty and tender lamb and Guinness stew.

Stews are a great one-pot meal that pack amazing flavor. The key to a flavorful stew is to layer your flavors properly. Building your flavors allows for each ingredient to shine at its full potential and turns the dish into a spectacular marriage of flavors.

Lamb shoulder is a wonderful option to choose for a stew. It can withstand long simmering times, and the marbling of the meat allows it to render into a deliciously tender bite packed with flavor.
Because of the marbling, we need something to balance out the richness of the meat. Guinness (or your favorite stout beer) is the perfect pairing. The bitterness balances out the richness of the lamb, and stout is packed with a deep flavor that brings the stew to a whole new level.

Since the weather has not warmed up as much as we would have hoped, there’s still time to enjoy a warm bowl of something filling. And as we are in yet another lockdown here in Canada and large family gatherings are not an option. So, making a large meal makes no sense. But we should still celebrate somehow and make something special, no? This tender and hearty lamb and Guinness stew is a fantastic option to a full family feast for the spring holidays.

Paired with our Easy, No-Knead Irish Soda Bread, this hearty lamb and Guinness stew is sure to make the holidays special!

Some tips for success:

• Make sure to pat the meat dry in order for it to brown nicely. If there is too much moisture on the meat, it will end up steaming instead of browning
• Take your time when cooking off the vegetables. The more time you give to each layer, the more flavorful the stew will be!
• Leave the pot uncovered while simmering! If you are concerned about splatter, you can use a mesh splatter guard. We want some of the liquid to evaporate as this will thicken the stew. Covering it will inhibit reduction and leave you with too much liquid and a soup instead of stew!

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Lamb and Guinness Stew

Hearty and bold lamb and Guinness stew is an easy and delicious way to celebrate

Course dinner

Cuisine American, irish, uk

Keyword dinner, guinness, lamb, one-pot meal, soup, stew

Prep Time 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time 1 hour hour 30 minutes minutes

Servings 8

Calories 355kcal

Ingredients

• 1 large onion diced
• 3 medium carrots rough cut
• 1 lb yellow potatoes
• 2 lb lamb shoulder cubed
• 2 tbsp garlic minced
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 2 cans Guinness
• 1 liter beef stock
• ¼ cup parsley chopped
• 1 tbsp rosemary fresh, chopped
• 1 cup peas frozen
• 2 cups mushrooms rough chop
• 2 tbsp tomato paste
• 2 tsp cornstarch

Instructions

• In a large pot over medium heat, add 2 tbsp olive oil.
• In small batches, brown the lamb and reserve in another container.
• Add onions to the pot to lift the fond and cook until translucent.
• Add the mushrooms and cook until soft,
• Add the garlic and cook until fragrant.
• Toss in the carrots and potatoes, and add in the tomato paste. Cook for 1-2 minutes.
• Add the meat back in and combine.
• Pour in one and a half cans of Guinness and bring to a simmer. Stir in rosemary.
• Once the pot has come to a simmer, add 1L beef stock, season with salt and pepper again, and simmer on medium low uncovered for 1-2 hours.
• Using 2-3 tbsp of the stew liquid in a separate bowl or ramekin, whisk in the cornstarch until it dissolves. Add it back into the stew and cook for 5-10 minutes, or until thickened.
• Toss in the peas and cook until just heated through.
• Stir in the parsley and serve with some Irish soda bread!

Video

The post Hearty Lamb and Guinness Stew appeared first on A Rise Above.

With St. Patrick’s day upon us and another year of staying at home, what could be more comforting than a loaf easy, no-knead Irish soda bread?

Back in the early days of the pandemic, everyone was ambitiously learning how to make complicated sourdoughs. We spent hours of proofing, kneading, and starter feeding.
This loaf is the exact opposite, and so beginner friendly. And you only need one bowl, so clean up is a breeze!

Between a biscuit and a bread, Irish soda bread is buttery, and tender. It has a dense, tight crumb perfect for soaking up soups and stews. It gets its leavening from baking soda and baking powder, and requires no proofing or extensive kneading. Therefore, this easy, no-knead Irish soda bread is the perfect quick loaf to make to accompany a weekday meal.

Some tips for success:

• If you are using a mixer, try not to overwork your mixture or it will become tough
• If you are combining everything by hand, I have found that using your hands or a flexible bowl scraper is the best way to combine everything as a spoon will be too difficult
• You do want the butter to be softened to room temperature so it combines easily with the flour — if the butter is too cold it will end up too flaky and will be harder to cut into slices.
• Do not cut your cross too deeply or your loaf will remain low and thin and will not expand upwards as much. Shallow cuts, approximately 1/2 an inch!
• You can shape this into a loaf instead of a ball if that is your preference! Just cut lengthwise down the loaf so it can expand
  

This loaf pairs perfectly with a Lamb and Guinness stew! Follow along for that recipe in our next post!

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Irish Soda Bread

Buttery and tender soda bread, no kneading required!

Course dinner, lunch

Cuisine American, irish, uk

Keyword biscuit, bread, no-knead, no-knead bread, quick bread, side dish, soda bread

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 45 minutes minutes

Servings 20 Slices

Calories 155kcal

Ingredients

• 4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 2 tbsp sugar
• 1 tsp salt
• ½ cup butter softened
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 1 egg room temperature
• 2 tbsp butter melted

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 375°
• Line a baking sheet with parchment, or lightly spray a cast iron pan with non-stick spray
• In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, sugar, salt, and butter. Mix with paddle attachment until crumbly.
• Add buttermilk and egg and mix until dough forms a mass.
• Turn the dough out onto a work surface and knead once or twice to shape the dough into a ball.
• Place your dough round onto your baking sheet or cast iron pan and cut a shallow cross on top.
• Brush with melted butter and bake for 45-60 minutes, until golden brown.
• Cool for at least half an hour before cutting to maintain the structure of the loaf.

Video

Notes

The post Easy No-Knead Irish Soda Bread appeared first on A Rise Above.

One night at around 12am, I was gaming with some friends and was struck with the strongest craving for a bran muffin.

That craving stayed with me for three days, nagging at my brain and belly, until I finally gave in and made some.

Bran muffins are underrated. They’re extremely flavorful as well as semi-nutritious, owing to the fiber content, and they can stand up to creative add-ins such as chopped dates, dried cherries, or fresh berries.

They are also the only type of muffin that I can trick myself into eating without just thinking to myself “isn’t a muffin just cake that we decided was acceptable to eat for breakfast?”

Anyways, here they are, midnight crave-worthy bran muffins, ready for you to enjoy plain or with a cup of your favorite mix-ins.

Tips for success:

• Be sure to soak your bran cereals for enough time. You really want them to soak up the milk and become soggy.
• Don’t overmix the muffins or they will become tough
• This recipe holds approximately 3/4 cups of mix ins if you are adding fruit or nuts
  
  Go forth and be regular.
  

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Bran Muffins

Tender and hearty bran muffins are good any time of the day!

Course Breakfast, Dessert, Snack

Cuisine American

Keyword bran, bran muffin,, breakfast, fiber, healthy, muffin

Prep Time 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes minutes

Servings 12 Muffins

Calories 176kcal

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup wheat bran
• 1 cup bran cereal (no added sugar)
• 1 cup milk
• 2/3 cup brown sugar
• 1/3 cup vegetable oil
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 pinch nutmeg

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 400°
• Combine your wheat bran, bran cereal, and the milk; set aside for 5 minutes to soak
• Combine egg and sugar, slowly add in the oil
• Combine the remaining dry ingredients and set aside
• When the bran mixture is fully soaked, mix it into the other wet ingredients
• Add your dry ingredients to the wet mixture and mix until just combined. Do not overmix.
• Line a muffin tin with baking cups or spray with pan spray and portion out the muffins
• Bake for 10-15 minutes

Video

Notes

The post The Best Damn Bran Muffins appeared first on A Rise Above.