Chili paste adds dash of heat to caramel cookies

Chili paste adds dash of heat to caramel cookies

Chewy and balanced with a dash of lingering heat thanks to the inclusion of gochujang (fermented red chili paste), these treats would make a memorable addition to any cookie tray.

Today’s Homemade Holidays recipe comes from Free Press Arts and Life editor Jill Wilson and is adapted from Eric Kim’s New York Times Cooking recipe.

eva.wasney@winnipegfreepress.com

Free as can be

Katelyn Sawatzky founded Childfree Winnipeg Women in 2021 to bring together women who don’t have kids — be it by choice or circumstance — and do not plan on raising children.

The group is designed to help them share experiences and build meaningful friendships.

The community welcomes cisgender, straight, transgender, bisexual and lesbian women. Parents, including empty nesters and men, are turned away.

“Our group is a safe space where women can hang out with other women without being asked when you’re going to have kids or why you don’t have kids … where you don’t feel like you have to validate or defend your choices in any way, because everyone gets it,” Sawatzky says.

Raiders star springs back to new heights

Fiona Brown’s stellar play during the 2022 season has earned her the No. 1 spot in the Free Press’s inaugural coaches’ poll honouring the province’s best high school varsity girls volleyball players.

Snowbird detour

Canadian snowbirds rethinking their usual winter destinations in the United States in light of the trade war launched by the Trump administration may want to consider looking a bit further south, to Mexico.

Long stays in the U.S. can take many forms and so can extended stays in Mexico. Beach-access options exist all along Mexico’s east and west coasts. There are houses and condominiums in towns and cities from Cancún to Tulum and from Cabo to Escondido available for purchase or rent. Just as in the U.S., the nearer you are to the beach, the more you will pay.

Not all Canadian snowbirds winter in beach communities in the U.S. and not all great long-stay options in Mexico are in coastal communities. I’d like to tell you about some of my favourite non-beach locales in the Latin American nation. You can easily explore these spots through popular apps and services like Airbnb, Booking.com and Expedia, or search for locally based real-estate accommodation services.

But first, an answer to a question I often hear from people who have not been to the country: Is Mexico safe? People regularly hear stories of Mexican drug cartels and their turf wars and killings. These things do happen, but as a Mexican acquaintance once told me, “If you don’t buy drugs, don’t sell drugs and don’t do drugs, you have nothing to worry about.”

Olympian Beckie Scott helping kids through sports

Olympic champion Beckie Scott never imagined herself running a non-profit after retiring from competitive cross-country skiing.

As Canada's most-decorated cross-country skier, she simply knew firsthand the power and value that sports hold.

“I have the lived feel of coming out on the other side of sport with life feel and skill sets and connections to opportunities I would never have access to otherwise," said Scott, who has a gold medal from the 2002 Olympics in Salt Lake City and a silver from the 2006 Turin Games.

"I just think it’s such a beautiful platform to share, especially or particularly with young people who are marginalized or vulnerable.”