Recipes — The Renata Collective

Mailanderli

Mailanderli are a traditional lemon butter Swiss Christmas Cookie that I have known, loved and made my whole life. They are THE most made Christmas cookie in Switzerland. My heritage being Swiss, growing up, making these with my Mom in December was the first sign of the upcoming holidays! The fun is in the rolling out the dough and pressing out the traditional shapes. I become very nostalgic when I see the cookie cutters every year as they are like seeing old friends. The recipe is easy and foolproof and delicious and is a wonderful accompaniment, evoking many wonderful memories, to have with a hot cup of tea, coffee or hot chocolate!

Nanaimo Bars

A Nanaimo Bar consists of three layers – a crumb base made with butter, sugar, unsweetened cocoa, graham crumbs, finely chopped nuts, coconut and an egg. The middle layer is a thick, sweet custard and the top layer is a chocolate layer. These are a decadent sweet treat and we love them – as does everyone we know and all of Canada as well, as they have been voted Canada’s favourite confection for many years. I make Nanaimo Bars every Christmas (and a pan or two throughout the year as well!) and need to make a few pans as the holidays go by as they go quickly!

No bake goods, Snacks, DessertRenata RichardsonDecember 13, 2021Nanaimo Bars, Canadian COnfection, Sweet Treat, CustardComment

Herbed Cheese Sauce and Nut Crusted Hoisin Salmon

Salmon is one of the most popular and versatile fish varieties for chefs and gourmets alike. It’s delicate flavour, pretty colour and presentation styles make it a perfect main dish to serve for any festive occasion or celebration, year round. Consider making this delicious and nutritious, easy and quick to make, recipe to nourish and impress your loved ones over the holidays

Weeknight Coconut Hoisin Chicken Stir-fry

December is a busy month with the holidays, shopping, wrapping, festivities & events & entertaining (all with Covid still dictating restrictions), cooking, baking, sweets and indulgences, so it’s nice to have a quick and easy healthy meal during this hectic busy time!

Stir-frys are quick to cook to serve your family and friends and they are filled with nutrition – veggies, a healthy fat to cook with, a healthy carb, like rice, to serve with and a protein, in this case chicken breast, but you could use another meat, tempeh, marinated tofu or white beans or chickpeas, all round out this complete and balanced delicious meal

Herb Bombas

Herb Bombas, or Herb Bombs, are frozen wonders of savory goodness, fresh frozen from your garden or your herb haul when grocery shopping. So easy to do! There are two ways to make herb bombas – the method is slightly different but the outcome is the same so pick which one works for you.

Condiment, Inspiration, Kitchen Hack, TipRenata RichardsonDecember 4, 2021herb bombas, herb bombs, savory, herbsComment

Waffle Iron Hashbrown

Here’s a quick breakfast tip and trick! Who hasn’t had one of the delicious (and somewhat greasy) hashbrowns in a fast-food breakfast sandwich or on its own? They are practically the best part of the breakfast! Now you can make fancy ones at home. Store bought hashbrowns in your waffle iron – serve as a side with any meal.

Breakfast, Dairy Free, Dinner, Light Supper, Lunch, Tip, VegetarianRenata RichardsonDecember 1, 2021Waffle Iron Hashbrown, Waffle iron, hashbrownComment

DIY Breaded Coating Mix Baked Chicken

Breaded, coated, baked chicken is a go-to in our home for a ‘can’t think of what to make for dinner tonight’ moment. This is a ‘copycat’ recipe of Shake & Bake made without the preservatives and levels of salt that many conventional coating products contain – just plain breadcrumbs (regular or gluten free), a bit of cornmeal, arrowroot, spices and some nutritional yeast for the yummy flavour and nutrition it provides.

Meal Prep Alert: Make up the coating mix ahead of time – double or triple the recipe – to have it on hand when you want to make this recipe.

Roasted Sweet Potato Garlic Hummus

Roasted Sweet Potato Garlic Hummus – YUM! It’s an easy and nutritious recipe to make and makes a generous amount to have in your fridge as an appetizer, to have as a protein packed snack, to spread on a sandwich, dollop on pasta or roasted veggies – so many ways to enjoy it!

Oat Cups

These Oat Cups are healthy and delicious, with protein, healthy fat and carbs – a perfect combo to fuel efficiently for busy mamas, grown-ups and kiddies alike! Great to have on hand for a quick and nutritious breakfast, snack or dessert that feels like a wonderful indulgence but is actually healthy for you. Fill with your choice of filling – dark chocolate melted with PB, cashew cream and diced fruit, yogurt and berries, yogurt and granola, PB and Chia Jam... the combinations are endless and delicious!

Best Ever Baked Meatballs

Here is an easy baked meatball recipe – healthier since they are baked and not pan fried in oil. Use lean meat, ground chicken or turkey to further reduce the fat content. I make up a batch of these to have for dinner one night and keep the rest in the fridge for leftovers or to grab a meatball as a snack when the afternoon hungries hit and when energy is running low. Toss them in some Renata Collective Bang Bang Sauce or Harissa Sauce - SO GOOD! These meatballs are great to add to a broth for soup, to simmer in a tomato or a mushroom sauce for dinner served over pasta or rice, or put into a bun for a meatball sub! Yum!

Dinner, Light Supper, Lunch, SnacksRenata RichardsonNovember 18, 2021Best Ever Baked Meatballs, Baked Meatballs, Meatballs, Healthy DinnerComment

Harissa Sauce

My version of this spicy chili sauce is easy to make and delicious! And like the Bang Bang Sauce, a little goes a long way of this fabulously flavourful spicy condiment!

Condiment, Mix, VegetarianRenata RichardsonNovember 17, 2021Harissa Sauce, Harissa, Spicy, Condiment, Burger Topping, Roast Veggie Topping, Meat ToppingComment

Bang Bang Sauce

I love to have homemade condiments in the fridge to add to burgers, sandwiches, wraps, meat dishes, roasted veggies… My version of the spicy mayo Bang Bang Sauce is always available in our fridge as it’s super easy to make up and adds fabulous flavour to what you add it to. Mayo and sour cream (the two main ingredients) are higher in fat so go easy using it. Luckily, a little goes a long way of this spicy mayo deliciousness!

Gluten Free, Tip, Vegetarian, CondimentRenata RichardsonNovember 15, 2021Spicy Mayo, Bang Bang Sauce, Sour Cream, Spicy Comments

Perfect Pumpkin Loaf (GF, DF)

This delicious and nutritious perfect Pumpkin Loaf fits in perfectly with all the ‘cozy’ we crave this time of year and through the winter months – in the clothes we wear, the blankets we use to throw over ourselves, the food we eat and the warm beverages we drink. This loaf is soft and flavourful, has a crunch to it with the walnuts or pecans that are chopped up in the loaf and with the pumpkin seeds sprinkled on top. Add a hot cup or tea or a latte and you have cozy wrapped up tight!

Homemade Vanilla Extract

Vanilla adds that special quality to baked goods. With the crazy price that store bought vanilla is these days, due to its labour-intensive hand pollinating the vanilla flower production process, and with the quality questionable for a lot of brands that I have tried, I started to make my own vanilla extract. It is so simple to make.

Pumpkin Spice Granola

This granola recipe is super easy to make and delicious to eat. It’s healthy and versatile as you can serve it plain with milk, add some berries or sliced banana, make a parfait with layering yogurt, the granola and some berries, you can sprinkle it on your peanut butter or almond butter toast, or eat a spoonful plain for an energy pick-me up. This granola is FULL of goodness and fabulous nutrition!