We wanted to share something delicious with all of you to kick off 2022, so we reached out to a couple of our BC NDP MLAs who’d held cooking events last year, and asked if we could share their recipes with you.

Vancouver-Hastings MLA Niki Sharma offered up her Pumpkin Loaf recipe to try, and Vancouver-Fraserview MLA Brenda Bailey shared her family recipe for Classic Nanaimo Bars (drool).

Let’s get baking!

Classic Nanaimo Bars from Vancouver-Hastings MLA Brenda Bailey

Ingredients

• ½ cup butter
• 5 tbsp cocoa
• 1 cup coconut (unsweetened)
• ½ cup chopped walnuts
• 5 tbsp. white sugar
• 1 box semi sweet chocolate (Bakers)
• 2 cups graham wafers (26 wafers)
• 1 egg
• 2 tbsp. milk
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 2 tbsp. custard powder
• 2 cups icing sugar (sifted)

Place softened butter, sugar, cocoa, vanilla and egg in a bowl. Set the bowl in a pan of boiling water (or use double boiler). Stir mixture until butter has melted and is the consistency of custard.

In separate bowl, mix wafer, crumbs, coconut and nuts together. Add to the cocoa mixture. Pack into ungreased 9 inch square pan and spread with the following icing:

Icing: Cream 4 tbsp. butter. Combine 2 tbsp. milk with 2 tbsp. Of Bird’s custard powder and add to butter. Mix in 2 cups of sifted icing sugar.

Spread over chocolate base and allow to harden.

Cover with melted semi-sweet chocolate, mixed with 1 ½ tbsp butter (melt chocolate and butter in a small glass dish in a saucepan containing a small amount of water over medium heat). Spread evenly.

Refrigerate if desired.

Pumpkin Loaf from Vancouver-Hastings BC NDP MLA Niki Sharma

Ingredients

• 2 cups. all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp. baking soda 1/2 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp. kosher salt 1/4 tsp. ground ginger
• 1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg 1/2 c. butter, melted
• 1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
• 1 cup pumpkin puree
• 1/4 c. sour cream
• 2 large eggs
• 1 tsp. pure vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350°. Line an 8“-x-4” loaf pan with parchment paper then grease with cooking spray (or softened butter).

In a large bowl, whisk together flour, cinnamon, baking soda,baking powder, ginger, nutmeg, and salt.

In a separate large bowl using a hand mixer, beat melted butter, sugar, pumpkin puree, sour cream, eggs, and vanilla. Gradually add dry ingredients to wet ingredients until just combined. Transfer batter to prepared pan, then sprinkle with cinnamon-sugar, if using.

Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center of the loaf comes out clean, about 50 minutes to 1 hour.

That’s it! We’re hungry now.

Thanks to our MLAs for sharing these tasty recipes with us. Happy baking everyone. If your attempts are successful, and even if they’re not, be sure to share a picture with us on Instagram, Twitter, or Facebook by tagging us.