Elegant Meals for Entertaining (and deadly simple)

My first comment today is that making Prime Rib at home is incredibly easy. I made a small one on the weekend. The only thing you must have is a meat thermometer. This is crucial.

I started by preheating the oven to 450 F. I know it's high but this sears and browns the meat. I put the meat in a roasting pan with onion and celery chopped large on the bottom as a rack and sprinkled the meat all around with my favorite Ryan Duffy's Steak Spice and a little Emeril's Essence. Any of your favorite beef spice mixes will do or just salt and pepper the roast. The roast cooked at 450 for 20 minutes. Then I turned it down to 350 for another 20 minutes and ours was done. It was only small. But I would never have dreamt it was done so quickly had it not been for my handy dandy thermometer. You only want it to be about 110 F internally. I know that sounds low but let it sit, tented under foil for 25 minutes. It will be perfect.

This is a great meal for company. Elegant yet easy. Roast some veggies in the same oven and you'll be sitting down to a great meal with little sweat!

Another meal fit for company was the Smoked Salmon Pasta I made on Sunday. This was inspired by a dish I saw on Gordon Ramsey's Kitchen Nightmares. It looked delicious but I couldn't find the recipe anywhere so I came up with my own version.

Smoked Salmon Pasta with Sugar Snap Peas
Serves 2

Ingredients:

• 1 cup or so of dried bowtie pasta
• 1 tsp capers
• 1/2 lb or 200g sugar snap peas, sliced into 1/4 inch pieces
• 1/2 clove garlic, minced
• 3 tbsp fresh chopped dill
• 2 -3 oz smoked salmon
• 1/2 -3/4 cup of light cream (I used coffee cream at 18%)
• 3 tbsp shredded parmesan, plus more for serving

Instructions:

1. Bring a pot of water to boil and cook pasta according to box directions. Save 1 cup of the pasta liquid when draining.
2. Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Spray pan with olive oil cooking spray if you wish.
3. Add capers and cook for 2 minutes.
4. Add sliced sugar snap peas and cook another 2 minutes.
5. Add garlic and dill and cook for 30 seconds.
6. Add smoked salmon at the same time you add the pasta.
7. Toss in the cream and heat through.
8. Add in the parmesan and mix thoroughly.
9. If the sauce is too thick, add some of the pasta water.
10. Serve sprinkled with a little more parmesan on top.

A glass of white wine is a great accompaniment.

One more thought on Taco Salad and a Light Hollandaise Sauce

I was thinking of having some more tasty Taco Salad tonight but I don't have any boneless chicken or lean beef to add to it. Darn! Oh wait, I do have individual servings of ground beef already made up with taco seasoning in the freezer. Yup, once again I turn to my handy, dandy freezer. When we have taco night I make a batch of the traditional ground meat with the packaged seasoning for The Kid while we have leaner chicken or beef that I season myself to cut down on the sodium. I freeze the leftovers so I have them for future taco nights. I'm thinking I could take out one freezer pack of the ground beef, add some black beans while reheating and split it between 2 main course salads. All the flavour but less sodium and fat! Perfect. Moral of the story - cook once, freeze the leftovers and you'll eat again and again!

Since Easter weekend just passed I have been in the mood for some of the more traditional Easter tastes. Hollandaise is one of them. On the weekend I made a sort of Eggs Benedict wrap. I used one slice of bacon per wrap, a weight watchers tortilla wrap, 4 eggs whites (I used the yolks for the Hollandaise) and 1 egg between 2 wraps, 1 tbsp shredded mozza cheese and Hollandaise sauce. They were really good for a Sunday Brunch meal. Let me share the Hollandaise sauce. I lightened up a bit without losing the taste.

Lighter Hollandaise Sauce

Ingredients:

• 1 c fat free yogurt
• 4 egg yolks
• 1/2 tsp salt, or to taste (I use about 1/4 tsp)
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• 1-2 dashes of hot pepper sauce
• 1 tbsp butter

Instructions:

1. Blend everything but the butter together in a pan.
2. Whisk continually over medium heat until the mixture starts to bubble.
3. Add in the butter and continue whisking until melted.
4. Remove from heat immediately and serve.

You can adjust how much yogurt and butter you use. You may want just a half a cup of yogurt and 2 -3 tbsp of butter. It's a personal choice but the point is that you can lighten up the sauce!

I was able to save the leftovers and reheat in a low heat microwave (power of 3 out of 10) slowly, while stopping and whisking every 30 seconds. We had them last night over Salmon and Asparagus. I was surprised because I didn't expect the Hollandaise to reheat that well. Power buttons on the microwave are a wonderful thing.

Yo quiero Taco Salad!

We were suppose to have taco night on Saturday night but went out instead. Today I was going to make a Prime Rib for easter but eating out and too much chocolate meant we weren't really in the mood for a big dinner. I was in the need for a feed of veggies. I get like that sometimes if I feel like I haven't been eating right. So I decided to make a taco salad. I had some chicken breast which I sprinkled chili powder and cumin on and let sit in the fridge for 1/2 - 1 hour. I was going to use Ranch dressing and rely on the chicken for the mexican flavour but decided that just wouldn't be enough so I tinkered around. The result was fantastic! (Sorry had to go get a mini -reeses cup... damn easter bunny...)


So here is just the dressing. I'll share what I used to construct the salad in a minute.

Tex Mex Salad Dressing
Ingredients:
3 Tbsp Light Ranch Dressing
2 Tbsp Salsa, your favorite
(this makes enough for 2 big size main course salads)
That's it. Yup! Mix or blend. That's it.

Like I said, I sprinkled the chicken breast with chili powder and cumin. Then I sauteed them in a pan.

My salad consisted of Romaine lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, orange pepper, red and green onion. Just whatever I had in the house.

I also grated some cheddar cheese.

I tossed the salad ingredients with the dressing and some of the cheese.

I did take some flour tortillas and slice them into strips. I put them in the oven at 400 for about 10 minutes to brown and crisp them up.

I piled the mixed salad on some plates, sliced the chicken breast and put it on top, placed some of the crispy tortillas on top of it and sprinkled with some more cheese.

It was a huge hit around here. I'll be pulling out this dressing recipe again and again for taco salads all summer! (it's snowing and really cold here, still but I was in the mood for a salad gosh darnnit so I was having one!)

And you can use whatever meat or salad ingredients equal mexican taste for you. Want to make it more hearty, add a some drained and rinsed black beans. Want to vegetarian? Use the meatless mex ground soya mix or just add more beans!

Pork Tenderloin - Stuff it!

Last night we had a little, inexpensive pork tenderloin. To make it more interesting I decided to stuff it. It doesn't take much to stuff a pork tenderloin. I cut it down the centre and pounded it out to about 1/4 inch thickness. You don't have to pound it if you can't be bothered, it's fine. I put in one slice of pancetta, yup, one slice is all it needed to give it a fantastic flavour. Then I put in some spinach that had been defrosted and I had squeezed the moisture out of it. I then sprinkled on about 2 tablespoons of feta (that was all we had) and about 3 tablespoons of shredded parmesan. I tied it up with kitchen twine but if you don't have that you can use toothpicks to keep it closed. I seared all around and then put it in the oven for 15 minutes. I let it rest for 15 and it was moist and tasty. We had it with a pile of broccoli. Super healthy meal that was properly elegant for a Friday night.

Inherited Glassware

So Manon asked if my relatives liked blue... She has no idea.


This is the pile of 93 blue glasses, several vases and candles holders (yup, all blue) that came from my Nana's house. They actually belong to her daughter, Gail who started me on the road to blue with a set of old dishes that belonged to her late husband's mother. They are from around World War 2. There were only a set of 4 but mom gave me a modern set that almost matches so I have a set of 8. They are really beautiful and on a table with everything else blue and white, they really stand out.

Back to the blue glassware. I have 4 different types of drinking glasses, 4 different type of wine glasses, 3 different types of hot beverage glasses. Each one of these is a set of 8. Plus there were 5 other large latte type mugs. I didn't even count the vases or candles holders as we were wrapping them up. There is also set of cobalt blue canisters that my Nana had had made for Gail. I really do love them! Aren't they beautiful!!?? I'm totally in love with them all. I think there was a point where Gail started buying them just for my collection since she never used them. I will cherish them for years to come.

Last week when I was cleaning I complained to my friend Alana about the greasy build up in some of the areas of the kitchen. She asked if I had a splatter screen. I thought, oh crap, another gadget. Last thing I need is another gadget in this house..... While in Halifax I stopped by Linens N Things and picked up a set of splatter screens. I'm weak, what can I say....

The Princess and the Pea

Last night I did my "Princess and the Pea" impersonation. My folks have just moved and this is my first visit to see them in their new house. I arrived to find their dog wondering aimlessly outside by himself. We came inside to find my folks arguing while assembling their bed. Nothing puts stress on a relationship like moving but that's another blog topic altogether. In the room I was to sleep in there were 2 sets of mattresses and box springs piled on top of each other. I was to sleep on 4 X 15" layers. I had to use steps to get into bed! At almost 40, I'm a little old for bunk beds....

So here's an important tip for when you move or cook at in a strange oven. The oven at this new place is a basic model with a single dial to operate the oven part. It took me an hour to cook 2 pork tenderloins (lets be clear, that is usually a 20 minute job). Luckily my mom had borrowed my oven thermometer so we were able to put that in the oven and get an accurate read. It took the oven forever to heat up, but it may be the dial because later it was totally accurate and this morning we had no problem with it. Moral of the story, when you are faced with a new oven, give yourself time to figure out it's nuances. and if you can bring along a oven thermometer, all the better. And don't cook an expensive piece of meat when using the oven for the first time. Buy something cheap to experiment with!

Austrians, Creme Brulee and A Quick Side Dish

Last week we entertained some Austrian business associates of Tim's. I forgot how much we love to entertain. And I think we are pretty darn good at. I don't think there was a topic we didn't hit on at least once during the evening. You know, I spend all day talking to this computer but it never talks back. Neither do the dogs. It's nice having someone talk back, to discuss ideas and such. I forgot how charming I was.


Tim thinks I worked so hard to pull together such a wonderful meal. Really it's pretty easy. I keep it simple and do as much ahead of time as I can. Really it's all about project management. Break the tasks down, order them so they make sense, time estimate, schedule and get to it. But I'll let Tim think I'm wonderful, talented and worked my butt off. We'll see what that gets me. On the other hand, cleaning this dog infested pig pen was a shite load of work and for that I do deserve some kudos. Luckily we have wine leftover from last week so I see a nice big glass of it in my future later this evening...


Last week's menu was as follows:

Lobster Bisque

Maple Glazed Salmon

Sauteed Spinach and Orzo

Creme Brulee



Creme Brulee is actually quite easy and a great make-ahead for entertaining. You can make them up to 2 days ahead of time and then all you have to do is brown the tops right before serving. I use a basic recipe from Fine Cooking. They have a great resource on line that also includes an article that discusses these wonderful silky custards. http://www.taunton.com/finecooking/recipes/creme_brulee.aspx



But I want to share my side dish recipe for Sauteed Spinach and Orzo. You can boil the Orzo before your guests arrive so it is all ready to toss into this dish.



Ingredients: (for 4-5 servings)

• 3/4 cup dry orzo


• 1 1/2 tbsp olive oil


• 3 shallots, chopped


• 2 cloves of garlic, minced


• 1 box of fresh baby spinach


• 1/2 cup grated parmesan

Instructions:

1. I have everything all ready to go before my guests arrive so I can just pull this together quickly.


2. Boil the orzo as instructed on the package


3. Heat the olive oil over medium high heat in a saute pan


4. Brown the shallots and garlic


5. Add in the spinach


6. Once the spinach starts to wilt (about 1 -2 minutes) toss in the pasta


7. Toss in the cheese and serve.

It's really great with fish!



Just a note about Austrian wine. I had experiences some of the good stuff when I was in New York City last November. We stumbled across a great little Austrian Restaurant when we were looking for a place to get a drink. We ended up having an appetizer plate as well to share. It was full of Austrian meats, cheese spreads, spreads and breads. It was really lovely. My friends had beer, which they both enjoyed but I had a glass of white wine from Austria. It was really good. I didn't write down the name because in my wine lovers delusion, I assumed I would remember the name. Do I?! Of course not. It started with an 'S' and I think that was the grape name, not the brand name. Since I got back I've checked each liquor store I've been in for Austrian wines but hadn't seen anything until last week. I was able to pick up a bottle for dinner. And once again I forget the name! Okay, name's aren't my thing but you would think I could write it down if I was going to discuss it here... My point is that Austrian Wines are quite lovely so try one!

Our guests told us that almost all Austrian wine is made from little wineries where they often sell the wine on site. These places have a special license which allows them to sell anything they produce on the farm in an on-site cafe. It seems the appetizer plate we had at the restaurant in NYC was very much like something we would get at a winery cafe in Austria. How cool is that?

Chicken Pot Pie

Last night I made Chicken Pot Pie. I used some leftover turkey. Some of it was from Christmas 2006! I didn't realize this until I went to unwrap it. It tasted fine. Now that's some shelf life! Anyway, I diced and partially cooked some carrots, added in some frozen cauliflower, onion powder, garlic powder and dried sage. I added some of the Ms. Dash original and a pinch of salt. Then I added in my leftover, from the freezer, gravy. Tossed in the diced leftover turkey. Warmed it all through. Added some water when it got too thick. That's it. I dished it into casserole dishes, sprinkled on some frozen peas and put the unrolled crescent rolls on top. Bake at 350 for 20 minutes and dinner was ready. It was super tasty. Even The Kid liked it and he'd never had chicken pot pie.

I made one big casserole that we ate last night.

And 2 individual casseroles to put in the freezer. It will be interesting to see how it freezes. The biggest issue really is reheating it so the crust stays firm. It will have to be in the oven.

If you don't have leftover cooked turkey in the freezer, no need to buy the pre-packaged stuff. Just bake extra the next time you bake some chicken or buy parts and bake them up for the leftovers. That way you control the salt and seasonings. Plus you can make gravy out of the pan drippings! Your half way to a chicken pot pie already!

The Pillsbury Dough Boy lives on

Last night was pizza night. We do pizza crust many different ways but one of the quickest is using the refrigerated pizza dough in the tubes, you know, the Pillsbury stuff. The Kid makes his own (obscene amounts of cheese which he is responsible for grating) and everyone is happy. The best part about Friday night pizza night is Saturday morning leftover cold pizza breakfast. It's great to be able to hit Saturday morning running with breakfast good to go. And surprise, it's a healthy breakfast. Actually, in most cultures there are no specific breakfast foods. Breakfast is just like any other meal, maybe some rice or a sandwich. Not all cultures have fruit loops! So I like to pretend that we are being very international when we have our leftover pizza for breakfast.

Tonight I'm making Turkey Pot Pie. I have leftover turkey out of the freezer from Christmas, gravy from the last beer can chicken I made and I picked up some Pillsbury crescent rolls to use for the top crust (second time you've heard me say Pillsbury products because, guess what?! They were on sale last week at the Sobey's - see last post!). Just add some frozen peas and carrots and we're all set. I'm debating whether to do them in individual casseroles since I have quite a few ramekins or if I should do it as one big casserole. The benefit of doing it in individual casseroles is that I can freeze them easily and defrost them later faster. Plus I can make them customized for The Kid. Although I can't think of how I would make them any more kid friendly ...

Toblerone Biscotti

I'm waiting patiently for the coffee to finish brewing. Yesterday I made Toblerone Biscotti. I like making biscotti. Even us non-bakers can manage a biscotti recipe. After all, they're just overcooked cookies. Even I can manage to do that! And these turned out tasty even though I didn't really follow the recipe. I just threw everything in a bowl, mushed it together, made a log and baked it. So it seems you can't screw up biscotti.

The recipe is super easy.
3/4 c sugar
3 eggs
2 1/2 c flour (I used half white flour and half whole wheat flour)
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
150 g of chopped almonds (I used only about 55 grams and I used natural almonds and pistachio nuts)
100 g of chopped toblerone bar

You are suppose to mix the sugar and eggs until smooth then add in the flour and baking powder. Fold in the nuts and chocolate. Form into a flat log on a greased cooking sheet.
Bake at 350 for 30 minutes until firm and lightly browned. Cool 15 minutes then cut into 1/2 inch slices. Put those slices on a cookie sheet and cook them at 325 for another 15 - 20 minutes.

I let them set on the cooling rack overnight so they get good and hard. Perfect for dipping in my morning coffee. Which is exactly what I'm doing right at this very moment. Life is good..

These days I'm trying to enjoy my beverages more. Most days I putter around all morning and then suddenly realize I've drank 3 cups of coffee (I try to only have 2 full caffeine cups per day) and I didn't really savour any of them. Now I wait until I'm sitting and can give my coffee the attention it deserves. So often we are just inhaling things today and not savouring the moment. I'm trying this with wine too. I'm only having a glass when I will give it my full attention and truly savour the moment. If I'm consuming the calories then I really should fully enjoy it!

Cheers!

Sales Flyers!

Today I want to talk about sales flyers. Most of us don't bother with the sales flyers from the grocery stores. Lets face it, it's not really exciting to look at a colour brochure for stuff we have to spend our hard earned money on. No one dreams of a can of spaghetti like they do a big screen tv. Grocery flyers just aren't part of the "if I could afford it, I'd buy it" fun of the weekly flyers. But they should be part of your "I have to spend it, so I might as well get the best deal" approach to parting with your dollars.

I see what's on sale in meat and fish and start planning my menu around it. For example, this week one grocery store had a good price on frozen shrimp so I put Coconut Curry Shrimp on the menu. The shrimp were a really good price and I had been keeping my eye out for a sale so I could make this dish. I also added pork roast to the menu since the centre loin roasts were on sale (we're having it tonight). If something is on sale it usually means it's plentiful and typically fresh. Buy it!

This is especially true for produce. I devise the rest of my grocery list based on what is on sale and what I know is in season which is also priced well, looks good and tastes great. Typically these are two of the same! I got some nice Campari tomatoes and baby cucumbers at 2 for $4. I bought my cheese, bread and even toilet paper because of the sale prices. I write the name and price on my grocery list so I don't have to try and remember what it is I'm looking for, this lets me zip through the grocery store!

Take advantage of the sales at your grocery store. It someone is offering you a good price, take it! And this week, no cheap scratchy toilet paper for us, no sir, we got the good stuff - on sale of course!

Stew Secrets from my Mom

I promised I would share my mom's secret for great stew. So here it is.

You can add whatever veggies you usually do for your stew (potatoes, carrots, turnip, parsnip, etc) and of course, your beef. I'm just going to talk about the flavour base.

Ingredients:
1 tsp chili powder
1 onion, chopped into large chunks
2 tsp minced garlic (about 3 -4 cloves)
2 tbsp white vinegar (this is the secret so don't leave it out)
6 cups beef broth
2 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tomato sauce (I used about 1/4 c tomato paste instead)
20 -25 shakes of Worcestershire Sauce.

This will make a large pot of stew for about 8 - 10 servings. If you are making a smaller pot, adjust the amounts as necessary.

I'm serious, these flavours are awesome. And if you can let it sit for a day or two in the fridge, the flavours only get better!

We had yet another snow storm this weekend and are forecasted 30 cm for Wednesday but +9 degrees for Tuesday. I love winter but this up and down weather is driving me crazy! Time for a bowl of stew, a hunk of good bread and maybe a Hot Toddy! Join me, won't you?!



Just a note. I made an adjustment to the Swiss Steak and Tomatoes Recipe found here http://thegourmetgoddess.blogspot.com/2008/01/swiss-steak-and-tomatoes.html after I had some out of the freezer. Tim thought the leftovers from the freezer were great but I thought a slight change to the recipe for freezing could make it even better!

Staples to get a homecooked meal on the table when the craving grabs you..

I love my freezer, it's no secret. However, even I like to have a fresh homecooked meal from time to time. This weekend Tim returns home from being in Europe on business which is not as glamorous as it sounds, trust me. I used to do that sort of travel and it wrecks havoc on your eating habits. So this weekend I need to do hearty, satisfying meals that will start to re-adjust his system. I also don't want to go to the grocery store on until Monday when the Kid arrives for March break. Friday night we'll eat a nice light Chickpea Chowder from the freezer (I do love my freezer, did I mention that?). This recipe is a variation on the Chickpea Chowder recipe from Looneyspoons. If you haven't got a copy of this cookbook then I highly recommend it. In fact, you should have all 3 of the cookbooks written by the Podleski sisters. They are awesome... and the books are pretty great too! I've been making this recipe for about 10 years and it still stands up to the test of time and taste.

Now what to make for the rest of the weekend, keeping in mind that Tim's tummy will be used to large, heavy meals eaten out. Just by keeping a few root veggies on hand, potatoes, carrots, parsnip, turnip, onions, squash - you can whip together a stew. Now not everyone thinks of this but you don't have to use beef if you don't have some on hand (I happen to have a chunk of lean beef that will work perfect here). You could use chicken parts, removing the skin so you don't end up with a greasy stew, or you could use pork, veal or lamb. Whatever you have. Just be sure to brown the meat first as it adds so much to the flavour. My mom keeps a bag of stew veggies (it actually says that on the bag "stew mix") in her freezer and some stew beef. She whips up an excellent stew in a pinch. I'm going to find out what she puts in her broth to make it so tasty and I'll share the recipe with you. It's really good!

Another healthy option is to keep arborio rice to make risotto on hand. Toss in some frozen veggies, like spinach or asparagus and you are all set. A great vegetarian dish is good to go. However, to make a good risotto you need good parmesan or some type of hard Italian cheese. That is not a staple around here. When good Italian cheese comes into this house it never lasts long unless I hide it. I swear! The Kid is totally hooked on good Grana Padano.

Okay so what else is good to have on hand? Well how about pasta. Any shape or size will do. Keep a can of your favorite good Italian tomatoes in the cupboard. I add some frozen veggies like spinach, broccoli or brussel sprouts and a healthy meal is done! You can open a jar of your favorite sauce if you want to keep it super simple. The sauce is a veggie! Add meat if you are so inclined. This dish doesn't require good hard italian cheese to sprinkle on top but it's nice or you could add in diced feta, mozza or whatever tickles your fancy. But you don't have to if you don't have it on hand.

Do you know what my favorite pantry staple meal is? Tomato soup. Right from the can. It's nutritious, low fat and super tasty. Now that's comfort food even if it's not 'homemade'.

Bon Appetite

Still going on about leftover chicken... And The best Chili recipe ever.

First off, my pizzas last night were delish! I just put on some pizza sauce from a squeeze bottle from the grocery store, some chopped frozen broccoli (mostly defrosted), some diced chicken, green onion and a mix of leftover cheeses I had in the fridge, provolone, mozza and a bit of parm. That bun made a perfect pizza crust.

Here is my chicken salad. I used some diced chicken, some leftover matchstick carrots I had on hand but you could just add peeled or shredded carrot and chopped green onion. I mixed this with half mayo, half ranch dressing and a splash of tabasco sauce. It's buffalo inspired chicken salad. I would have used blue cheese dressing if I had some on hand but I did have some blue cheese so I crumbed up a little of that to toss in.


I had to share this recipe. I made Chili with Chipotle and Chocolate out of December's Cooking Light magazine. Tim thought it was the best chili he has ever had. I found it bit too spicy for me but I would just take the seeds out of the chipotles as I was dicing them up. Or you could reduce it to just one chipotle to lesson the heat.

Here is the recipe on Cooking Light.com. http://find.myrecipes.com/recipes/recipefinder.dyn?action=displayRecipe&recipe_id=1687650 It works out to 5 points per serving.

Beer Can Chicken - it's not just for BBQs

Saturday night I did a beer can chicken in the oven. I'd rather cook a chicken the beer can way than just straight roasting because even if I over cook the chicken, it's still really moist. My beer can turkey at Christmas won over 3 other entries that the Kid had on Christmas day. It was the moistest! And because you have to put it in a pan of some sort to avoid completely ruining your oven, you catch the drippings for gravy. And some days ya just need gravy...

Saturday night I kept it simple. We were going to have movie night so I didn't want to be slaving away in the kitchen, mashing potatoes, boiling veggies, etc. I cut up potatoes, parsnip and carrots into wedges and roasted them to make "veggie fries" for dipping in the gravy. I put the parsnip and carrots in for 20 - 30 minutes before adding the potato wedges since the parsnips and carrots took longer to cook. I didn't think I like parsnips as a kid but I find them sweet and tasty now. This was an easy side dish to make since all I had to do was peel and cut. I roasted them in the same oven with the chicken. Easy! All I had to do while the chicken rested (for a minimum of 20 minutes - don't forget this important step!) was make the gravy out of the pan drippings and some chicken broth from a box and dinner was served.

My favorite part of beer can chicken is the leftovers. I always have at least enough for a chicken salad sandwich or two after feeding 3 people. This time I have enough for at least 2 meals for me and a couple of sandwiches. I'm home alone this week so having chicken leftovers in the fridge discourages me from eating popcorn for supper... (see previous posts)

Last night I threw some chicken in with whole wheat pasta, spinach, a little crumbled bacon, and some bottled light caesar dressing thinned with some of the pasta water. It was sinfully good. I munched on that while watching the Oscars! It was definitely decadent enough to match the fanfare of the show.

Tonight I'm really looking forward to "A Raisin in the Sun" on TV. It's a historic story but I've never seen it. Before I hit movie time and the popcorn (it's okay if it's not in place of a meal!) I'm making chicken and broccoli pizzas. I have some flat bread hamburger buns in the freezer. These come from the Superstore. I think they will make great pizzas. I'll try to make just about anything bread like into a pizza! It's one of my favorite home alone meals.


If I still have enough chicken leftover after making some chicken salad I might do Chicken burritos/tacos tomorrow night. I have a first rate salsa in the fridge, some cheddar, green onions, tortillas and a bit of sour cream. Oh and I know I have some leftover refried beans in the freezer. Mmmmm.

ps. Don't want to eat leftover chicken all week? Carve it all off the bones and freeze it in 1/2 cup or serving size packs. Then you can just take some out when you want cooked chicken fast. Imagine pulling out a pack of cooked chicken, grabbing a pizza shell of your choice, assembling your pizza, baking it and wheeeee - you've got dinner. Or piling that chicken in a tortilla, top with salsa and cheese, baking it and again - wheee - you've got dinner!

Nana's Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Squares

If you read my other blog you know that this month we said goodbye to my Nana. She suffered for 6 long months before finally finding peace. She and Grampie were married for 67 years. Grampie just celebrated his 90th birthday in December. Two days after he was diagnosed with terminal cancer. As he says, he's had a good life. Nana gave him a family which was everything to him. I hope that he does not suffer.

Grampie's diagnosis was the third in my list of 3's. First a dear friend of ours in Sweden, Harry, was diagnosed with terminal cancer almost 2 years ago. He passed away at the end of January. Then Nana got sick this past summer. And now Grampie. I have been blessed with the opportunity to say good bye to both my Nana and I went to Sweden to say goodbye to Harry. He was a wonderful man.

Sweden is a wonderful place. I love it dearly for many reasons but since this is a cooking blog, we'll stick to that topic. Here is a little courtyard I discovered one summer. In the summer all the restaurant in the courtyard have tables outside. It's really lovely.

This was the restaurant I ate at. Yes, it's nicer when the trees are in bloom. But note the lack of snow... This is Stockholm in February!
Right outside this courtyard is the one of the best pizza restaurants "Al Forno" on Drottingatan, the main shopping street in central Stockholm. The best pizza I've ever had has been in Sweden. Odd place for great pizza, eh?

I wanted to share with you a recipe of Nana's in her honour. It's one of my favorites and she always made them for me. I wasn't much of a chocolate eater as a kid so these were just right for me.

Nana's Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Squares

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup Margarine
• 1/2 cup peanut butter (use the regular kind, not the all natural)
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 cup flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 cup chocolate chips
• Icing sugar.
  

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 350, grease a square brownie pan
• Mix margarine, peanut butter, brown sugar and eggs until fluffy
• Add vanilla
• Stir in dry ingredients until smooth
• Blend in chocolate chips.
• Bake for 30-35 minutes
• Let cool completely then sprinkel with icing sugar.

All Hail the New York Giants!

Not a lot of serious cooking got done this weekend as it was Super Bowl weekend. So I have just one thing to say

All Hail the New York Giants!!!!!!!

It was an amazing game. For those of you who routed for the underdog, I salute you. See, you just have to have faith!

Looking for a tasty TV watching snack, see below for the Onion Ring recipe. I also made some boneless chicken wings. Just take some boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut each into 2 or 3 pieces, shap them like wings and put in a baking dish, like a lasagna pan. Pour on some of your favorite sauce. You can buy something from the store or make one. I had a nice variation of one out of "Eat, Shrink and Be Merry" that was suppose to be like a honey garlic sauce but I left out the honey and added more spicyness. I served mine with a buffalo inspired sauce of sour cream, mayo, tabasco and feta cheese. They were awesome and not too heavy. I'll be making these again for any other pub food type gathering!

Popcorn as the Main Course

Last night I had popcorn for dinner. How sad and single is that? (I'm home alone) It was the perfect snow day. I was hunkered down under a blanket with my knitting (see other blog) and some good DVDs. I had taken out Light Salmon Carbonara (I'm in a "carbonara" phase). But by 9 pm I still wasn't hungry so I decided to skip it. By 10 pm I was hungry for a snack. Popcorn won! I had a late lunch of a veggie quesadilla so I did have something healthy. What is it about popcorn that makes it seem like a suitable meal alternative? Okay, it's low fat and has some fiber.... but I'm not sure it meets any one's standards for a healthy, well balanced meal. Is it because it makes you feel like your being naughty without really being that naughty? I don't know but today, nothing but healthy eating. Yeah right. We'll see. I'm still pretty much house bound as we have a freezing rain warning in effect. So that makes it a pseudo snow day. Sigh, that just sounds like trouble....

Portion Control

I've talked before about my weakness for Lipton's Creamy Bacon Carbonara. I'm not perfect, I eat naughty things from time to time...
Last night I ate a whole package myself. It was sooooo good. I had some fresh parmesan on it. I did have a nice big salad beforehand. But still - the whole package! I don't even want to think about the calorie count.

This brings me back to my freezer. Another nice thing about putting meals in your freezer is that you can control the portions. When you dish up dinner you can divide the portions out and fill your freezer containers at the same time. Pop those in the freezer and the next time you need a meal you can take out a sensible serving size. You can't eat what you don't take out so - there you have it! - portion control!

Hmmm, what to have for dinner tonight...?

Quick Creole Jambalaya

Here is an old recipe I dug out. It's super quick, got rave reviews when I made it this past week, cheap, freezable and healthy. Only 5 points per serving!
Jambalaya is just a Louisiana version of the Spanish Paella. You can add whatever meat you want. I used ground Pork but you can use ground chicken or turkey, boneless turkey, pork or chicken. I will add in a diced chorizo sausage, just one adds a nice flavour. You can add seafood like shrimp or scallops at the end to make it more authentic. But it's awesome just as the recipe says below. Authentic versions from Louisiana might have alligator, turtle or boar in it... Yeah, I dare ya.... tastes like chicken I hear.



Ingredients

• 1/2 tbsp vegetable oil
• 1 lb lean ground pork
• 1 onion, chopped
• 3-4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tsp curry powder
• 1 tsp dried thyme
• 1 ½ tbsp Cajun seasoning
• 1 green pepper, chopped
• ½ red pepper, chopped
• 28 oz/796ml can diced no salt added tomatoes
• 3 cups cooked long grain rice
• ½ cup chicken broth
• 1 tsp Tabasco sauce (optional)

Instructions

1. Heat oil in a nonstick pan over medium high heat.
2. Brown the pork and onions
3. Add the garlic, curry, thyme, Cajun seasoning and peppers and brown.
4. Mix in the tomatoes, rice and broth
5. Reduce heat and let simmer for 10 minutes
6. Taste and add Tabasco sauce if a hotter dish is desired.
   

I used cooked rice since I make a big batch at once and freeze it in 1 -2 cup containers. But you can use raw rice and simmer it in the pan with the rest of the ingredients. Just add equal amounts of broth and rice (about 1 ½ cup each), simmer it for as long as the rice package instructions say and keep a close eye on it to make sure it doesn’t dry out. Add more broth if needed.

Nutrition Information based on 6 servings:
Calories 262, Calories from Fat 54; Total Fat 6g, Saturated Fat 2g, Trans Fat 0g; Cholesterol 46mg; Sodium 120mg; Carbohydrates 32g; Fiber 3g; Sugars 5g; Protein 20g; 5 Points.

The Good
This food is low in Sodium. It is also a good source of Niacin, Vitamin B6, Manganese and Selenium, and a very good source of Protein, Vitamin C and Thiamin.

The Bad
There is nothing bad to report!

Gravol and Rare Meat

If this doesn't make any sense, forgive me, I'm whacked out on Gravol. For those of you south of the border, Gravol is this wonderful over the counter drug for nausea. It can cause drowsiness which means it knocks me out. Oddly enough, it never touched me when I used to fly international and wanted to be knocked out for the journey in cattle class... Go figure.

Why did I take Gravol you ask? Well I think I may have gotten a bit of food poisoning. See I'm not so delusional to think it's a "touch of the stomach flu" because true stomach flu is rare. Speaking of 'rare', I think that's how I got sick. Food poisoning or ingesting food bacteria results in symptoms very flu like. I have had a headache, abdominal discomfort, body aches and of course, nausea. There was also cheap homemade wine involved, which always does somethng funky to my digestive system, and potato chips, something I never eat so my system is seriously revolting. Let me tell you about the rare meat.

I brought home a beautiful, inexpensive, lean roast of beef Friday from the grocery store.

This is how I get steaks. I trim the fat (the dogs enjoyed the treat of beef fat - dogs don't have issues with cholesterol).
Then I cut the roast into pieces that become steaks. We had the 2 large piece on the left for dinner Friday night. They were 7 oz each which is actually a huge serving of beef. The ones on the right area proper serving size and what I would normally serve. But I was having a craving and had been eating healthy all week so we had the big ones. The odd shaped piece in back will go into a stir fry at a later date.
When cooking such lean steaks it is vital not to overcook them or they will be tough. I go by touch to make sure the steaks are done. You poke the steak with you finger and see how spongy it is. You want it to stay fairly spongy so you don't end up with a well done steak. I cooked these for about 4 minutes a side then took them off the heat, covered them in foil and let them rest for 15 minutes.

The problem was that the sides showed a ring of red, uncooked meat. These were so thick that I should have seared around all the sides. And the meat inside was blue rare which is a little rare for my liking but I ate it anyway. I'm not sure I really got food poisoning off of it or if it is just the combination of bad eating, bad wine and a complete lack of healthly foods but a couple of times over the last couple of days I've felt like I was seriously going to toss my cookies, hence the Gravol. Moral of the story - sear your meat, any that is exposed to air can carry bacteria. Also, don't eat crap all weekend when you are used to eating healthy. Lastly, even professionals can screw up. I can't tell you how many times I have gotten food poisoning in restaurants. I'd say I'm pretty luck this time because when I get a good solid case of food poisoning, Gravol isn't going to stop the food from making a repeat performance. Maybe it's just stress... Either way, I think I'll stay away from red meat, red wine and chips for a while. Something green might be good.

I also bought a piece of salmon at the grocery store.

And divided it into 4 servings of about 4 oz each. I love my scale. If you find you are carrying a few extra pounds get a scale and you'll see how large your portions really are.

Note the different cutting board. I change boards whenever I change meat or fish to avoid any cross contamination. I also wash them immediately and then I put them through the dishwasher for a final cleaning. Better safe than sorry.

Now if you'll excuse me I must go lie down.

To Shop, or Not to Shop.. Actually, where to shop is the question.

Today is grocery day. Somehow just knowing I get to go to the grocery store perks me right up when I open my eyes in the morning. It's a sickness. The odd part is that once I am at the grocery store, I'll be totally impatient and frustrated. It's a love/hate relationship really. I love the smells and sights at the grocery store but I hate the slow shoppers. And god forbid there is an empty space where there is suppose to be something I need! That makes me crazy. You only go to the store once a week or less (hopeful, or else you are like my mom who goes about every other day in which case I can direct you to the proper support group) so if you need something and it's not there what are you going to do?! Come back tomorrow? I think not! I will go get my item at another grocery store, that's what I'll do. And I won't go back to that one for a while.

This is my big dilemma. Which of our two major grocery stores to go to today. They each have their charms. One has a great health food section which has lots of low sodium products but it has seasoned pork which means added sodium to all their pork. And I need to buy pork today but I also need canned chickpeas and tomatoes and I really want all if it with no added salt. The other grocery store has great pork but it's hard to find no salt added canned goods. They do have nice frozen spinach that done up as chunks in a bag versus one block in a package. It's great to add a chunk or two of spinach to sauces, casseroles or soups without having to add a whole package. Choices, choices

The other thing that tends to suck some of the fun out of grocery shopping for me is the cost. I stick to a budget, tallying in my head as I go along. It can be frustrating to see something interesting and know that you shouldn't buy it. I always allow myself one or two items that aren't on my list just to keep me from completely tossing the list and just going whilly, nilly through the aisles. I'm not sure what kind of income one would have to have to be able to just trot through the store grabbing whatever they wanted from the shelves.... And the tough part is, it's a football playoff weekend so we have to have snacks.... I'm trying to make a list, a short list of healthy snacks. Ha, ha, ha. I think "healthily snacks" is an oxymoron. There really is no such thing. I do have recipe for onion rings I came across. Oooo, must try this one this weekend. Here it is:

Ingredients:

• 1 large white, red or yellow sweet onion for every 2 people you are feeding (okay, go more if you want, I won't tell)
• flour
• garlic powder
• dry mustard powder
• salt or Ms. Dash
• Buttermilk
• Bread Crumbs (I may add some spiciness here like a dash of chili powder or cayenne pepper)

Instructions:

1. Preheat the oven to 400. Cover a baking sheet with foil and spray or drizzle and shmear olive oil over the foil.
2. Cut the Onion into rings. Mix the flour, garlic, mustard and salt/Ms.Dash in a bowl. Pour the buttermilk in another bowl, put the bread crumbs in a third bowl.
3. Toss the onion rings in the flour bowl, then dip them in the buttermilk bowl, then toss them in the bread crumb bowl. Lay in a single layer on the prepared baking sheet
4. Bake at 400 for 35 minutes.

Serve with your favorite dipping sauces like ketchup, different mustard and ranch dressing!
Enjoy the playoffs or a good movie! Go Green Bay and San Diego!!

Inspirational Reading

I was watching TV last night, waiting patiently for the new episode of "The Rick Mercer Report" to start when I picked up a recipe magazine to thumb through. I've been working on my cookbook and I am 3 weeks ahead on menus so I wasn't really looking for menu ideas but low and behold, I ended up with a ton. The recipes for this cookbook all have to be reasonably simple, healthy and appealing to the average family, not too gourmet, too complicated or full of heavy ingredients. I love cooking in winter. The soups, the stews, the casseroles.... yum! It all lends itself quite well to cooking ahead with leftovers to fill the freezer. It feels so good to be this inspired!

So let's see if I can get you inspired too. One of my favorite inspirational magazines is free! Yes, you don't even have to pay for a subscription to get Kraft's seasonal mailing. Just go to kraftcanada.com . It's a great site and all the ingredients can be found easily at your local grocery store. Watch for the healthy recipes. Not all of them are tagged "healthy", you have to look for the sunshine symbol. Of course the site pushes the kraft product line so you'll have to use your judgement, sometimes opt for cheaper products and watch the sodium levels but you should leave the site feeling inspired to get into that kitchen and shake out the cupboards. Did I mention it's free!? The magazine comes out 4 times a year, once per season. Last night I was reminded of chicken pot pie, sheppards pie, fajitas, easy stir-fry dishes, some great chicken dishes.... mmmmmm.

I have another favorite. I recommend this magazine for the health conscious foodie. The recipes are a step up from average in skill and taste. But they are all pretty healthy and a lot of fun. Check out their site at www.cookinglight.com

Cooking Light also has a regular exercise article. There is also information about healthy trips and great destinations. They also do a yearly feature on a 'fit' house, a house that is healthy. The last issue had a whole section on Chocolate (which I feel is a necessity during these dark days of winter!) including a recipe for Chili with Chipotle and Chocolate. I'm dying to try that one! You can get this mag on your newsstands to try it before you decide whether or not to subscribe to it. It does have a lot of recipes though, you may get overwhelmed. I do. I end up tearing out recipes and piling them up to try throughout the month. I never get through the pile but, again, it's great to get inspired once a month! And Cooking Light does an annual cookbook each year. You can always get last years annual on the website. I have "The Best of Cooking Light" and it is one of my favorite cookbooks.

I have one more recommendation. www.finecooking.com

This magazine has some nicely gourmet type recipes that aren't typically low fat or low sodium but the nutritional information is included for every recipe so adaptations can be made. While the magazine isn't packed full of recipes, it does focuses thoroughly on a couple of key ingredients or cooking styles in each issue. So you will learn quickly and easily how to do whatever it is the magazine is showcasing in that issue. This is a great magazine for those who love to cook and know a bit about nutrition so they can adapt the recipes and make them a little more healthy. They also do product reviews. I have never made anything out of this magazine that didn't turn out perfect. The magazine only comes out once every 2 months so it's great for the occasional chef-wanna-be. And yes, it leaves me inspired. Because of this magazine I've made my own Creme Brulee, I've ventured into the world of "sunday gravy" in the form of Ragu, and I've braised just about anything that will stand still. The end results seem complicated but this magazine shows you how to make great food quite easily.

Now after all the inspiration I'm not even cooking tonight! Nope, instead I'm eating out of my freezer. I'm in the middle of test running the first chapter's menu from my cookbook. Tonight it's Coconut Curry Shrimp and Veggies.

All I have to do is make rice or noodles to go with it. Luckily, after all the inspirational reading, I took the lid off this container and the yummy smells smacked me hard. I can't wait for dinner!

Swiss Steak and Tomatoes

I have to share this recipe. I came across it while searching my archive for cookbook menu ideas. It is such a great recipe, a great do-ahead, freezes well, cheap, healthy and nice enough for company. And it's one of my favs. What more could a recipe be?!

Normally I cook it in a roasting pan but mine was too small. So I had to use the other style of roasting pan. But then I said the heck with it and put it in my crock pot. I'll be serving this with some dirty mashed potatoes (unpeeled potatoes, cut into chunks, boiled with some roasted garlic that I have in the freezer and mashed)

Serves 6-8
6 Points per serving based on 8 servings

Ingredients:

• 2 lbs/900g Round Steak
• 1/3 cup flour
• ½ tsp salt (optional if on a low-sodium diet)
• 1 tsp Ms. Dash Grilling Blends - Beef
• ¼ tsp pepper
• 2 medium onions, sliced
• 1 green pepper, cut into strips
• 1 red pepper, cut into strips
• 28 oz/796ml can of stewed or no salt added diced tomatoes
• 1 garlic clove
• ½ cup apple juice
• 4 tsp red wine vinegar
• 2 cups low sodium beef broth (only use 1 cup if cooking this dish in the crock pot)

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350
2. Heat a sauté pan over medium high heat.
3. Cut the meat into bite size pieces
4. Mix the flour, salt and pepper in either a bowl or a bag
5. Toss the meat in the flour mixture
6. Brown in the pan in a single layer, you will probably have to do 2 batches
7. Prep the vegetables **I like to brown the onions and peppers in a saute pan before adding them in, it's optional but it gives more flavour especially if you are using your crock pot**
8. Put the meat in a roasting pan or casserole dish (2+quart size) **or the crock pot
9. Add in the rest of the ingredients into the roasting pan or crock pot. Mix well.
10. Bake for 1 ½ hours in a 350 oven or for 6-8 hours on low in the crock pot.
11. Serve with noodles, mashed potatoes or rice

Edit Note: Try roasted peppers if you are going to freeze this dish. I found that the skin from the fresh peppers really separate from the flesh when frozen. Roasted peppers already have the skin removed. Also, if peppers bother your stomach it may be from the skin, try the bottled roasted red peppers to see if they are more agreeable to you

Add mushrooms, celery and carrots if you don’t like peppers. Or in addition to the peppers if you want to cut down on the meat.

Make it vegetarian by leaving out the meat and adding all the veggies listed above and in the recipe. I also would include a can of beans, red kidney beans would work, to up the protein.

Nutrition Information based on 8 servings:
Calories 284, Calories from Fat 43; Total Fat 5g, Saturated Fat 2 g, Trans Fat 0g; Cholesterol 101 mg; Sodium 494 mg; Carbohydrates 14 g; Fiber 2g; Sugars 6 g; Protein 44 g

The Good This food is a good source of Vitamin B12, Phosphorus, Zinc and Selenium, and a very good source of Protein and Vitamin C.

The Bad This food is high in Cholesterol. Reduce this by only using half the meat and adding more veggies.

Mac and Cheese - Breakin' It Down

I'm here, I'm here. No, the holiday's didn't suck me into a vortex of blabbering idiocy. They were actually quite relaxing. I hung out, continued knitting Christmas gifts (finished my last one 2 nights ago) and watched obscene amounts of hockey and football. I kept the cooking simple. Probably the most difficult thing I did was try to make pizza with my pizza stone and a pizza with waaaay toooo much cheese on it (think 14 year old boy with a serious cheese addiction). Aside from taking days to scrap the burn cheese and crust bits off my pizza stone, I pretty much took it easy in the kitchen. I thoroughly enjoyed my freezer. After the big meals Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, Boxing Day,.... well lets just say it was time to relax! Now I have to think about restocking the freezer a bit.

This brings me to last night's meal. I made Mac and Cheese. A true perennial favorite. It freezes so beautifully that I only make it once a year and end up with enough in the freezer to keep us happily in this fav comfort food until spring. And you can do so much with it. What do I mean, you ask?! Well lets start with the pasta, you don't have to use macaroni. You can use any similarly sized pasta. Bowties, fusilli, wagon wheels. Okay, I used macaroni but it was only because I actually had whole wheat macaroni in the house which is quite rare. I like the whole wheat but if you or your family is picky, try using half whole wheat and half regular. It's a great fiber boost.

Next lets move on to the cheese. I used gouda in mine because that is what I had on hand. Everyone has had mac and cheese with cheddar but why not try some Jarlsberg, or emmenthal or gruyere. Just think of a cheese that will melt well. I would stay away from any of the blue cheeses unless you want to do a sprinkling of them tossed in. They can be strong and rich for the main cheese of the dish. Mix and match. I've seem recipes for smoked gouda and gruyere. Or fontina and parmesan. Just remember to go lightly on the cheeses. You can always add more but once you make your cheese sauce too rich, it's hard to un-rich it.

Now lets talk about other additives. I like to add veggies to make my mac and cheese a complete meal. Last night I added arugula and butternut squash. The squash was from a package of frozen so I just tossed it in with the macaroni and then mixed it all with the sauce. The arugula was fresh so I wilted it down in the sauce before adding in the macaroni and squash. The flavour had a nice gourmet flare. But you can add any veggies. Broccoli, cauliflower, spinach, brussel sprouts (cut up), tomatoes, peppers, mushrooms, any greens like kale or swiss chard. Use frozen when you can, it then bakes nicely with the sauce and you don't have to take the extra time to cook the veggies first. You are only limited by your own imagination. Or your kids tastes. The great thing about making mac and cheese is that you can keep the kids version fairly basic, dish theirs out, then kick it up for the adults. I might make a plain cheddar sauce for the kid and add only broccoli and cauliflower to his macaroni. Mix some of that sauce with the macaroni mix and put it in a baking dish. Then I might add another cheese to the sauce and some more adventurous veggies for us adults. Wheeee!

I have a secret ingredient I add to my mac and cheese. Ketchup! Yup, just a tablespoon or 2 and it really adds another dimension to the mac and cheese. Try it, I'm not kidding.

When freezing your mac and cheese keep one thing in mind. It is easier to defrost a serving or two instead of a big casserole. And you aren't committed to eating up a big casserole of mac and cheese within the next 5 days. I use small casserole dishes and aluminium pans to freeze one or two serving sizes. And when the kid is here, I can just grab a single serving of his kid-friendly version when Dad and I are eating something more gourmet. So easy.

Why I don't bake.

I'm not one much for baking and there is a good reason for that. Aside from the fact that baking is more of a science and you must be precise, while I prefer to toss things in and use a recipe more as a guideline, I have another reason I don't bake. We eat it all. I have no self control. I made these fantastic Skor Bits Cookies on the weekend for the holidays. I ate 7 on Saturday. So did Tim. We had such a sugar high going. But for 2 people who don't eat a lot of sweets, it left us with a yucky feeling in our stomachs. I finally had to freeze most of them. I left us out a dozen. This is what was left by Tuesday....

Here is the recipe I got from a friend who got if from her mother. If anyone knows where it originally came from, let me know so we can give credit where credit is due. These really are fantastic and they freeze beautifully!

SKOR COOKIES

2-1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter or margarine, softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 eggs
1-3/4 cups (10-oz. pkg.) SKOR English Toffee Bits

1. Heat oven to 350F. Lightly grease cookie sheet or use parchment paper.
2. Stir together flour, baking soda and salt. In large bowl, beat butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar and vanilla until well blended. Add eggs; beat well. Gradually add flour mixture, beating until well blended. Stir in toffee bits. Drop by rounded teaspoons onto prepared cookie sheet.
3. Bake 9 to 11 minutes or until lightly browned but still soft, don't over cook!! Cool slightly; remove from cookie sheet to wire rack. Cool completely. About 4 dozen cookies

I cooked mine for 14 minutes because I thought they were too soft and they ended up too hard, still tasty and will dip nicely in coffee or hot chocolate over the holidays but won't cook them that long again.

Grocery List Efficiency

Yesterday a friend showed me a new gadget for grocery shopping. It's a SmartShopper Grocery List Organizer. I thought this was hilarious at first. There really is a gadget for everything. Some people love their gadgets. Although I have to admin, I'm a pretty big kitchen gadget gal myself but I am learning that no matter how big the kitchen, you can't have everything and there are a lot of good multi-purpose gadgets out there so I like to maximize my space and spending by only buying things if I really need them or if they can do more than one thing.

For people with severe arthritis or any other type of condition that makes writing difficult, these new electronic list keepers are a real god sent. Call me old fashioned but I use paper and a pen to do my lists. And I do a lot of lists. Now some may say, electronic lists save trees. True but a lot of electronic parts are hard to safely dispose of. In the future there are federal acts to ensure electronic equipment is made without some of the harmful parts so there is hope. In the meantime I use the old pages from my 'quote-a-day' calendar.

This gadget does something that both my friend and I agree is a necessity for efficient grocery shopping and general sanity. It organizes the list for you by category. That is the most important thing you can do before hitting the grocery store. Organize your list! I rewrite mine and have different areas of the page for different sections of the grocery store, top left is always fresh fruit and veggies, under that is shelf items, bottom left is household items, top right is meats, bottom right is dairy. But if you don't want to waste time and paper, pull out the highlighter set. Go through your list and highlight all the items in the dairy section in one colour, use another colour for the freezer section, another for meats, another for fresh items, another for items on the shelves, etc. You get the idea. Don't have highlighters in the house? Crayons will work too! Then when you get the the store, don't leave a section until you have all the items of that colour group. Easy!

Let's Talk Tofu!

I'm going to be honest. I'm not a huge tofu fan. I can have it out in a restaurant and enjoy it just fine but I hadn't had a lot of success cooking it at home. And Tim enjoys Tofu. It's certainly very healthy. As we head into the holiday season where eating delicious treats are as much a part of the season as Santa Claus and reindeer (which makes a lovely roast by the way, but that's another conversation altogether) I try to make sure we have healthy meals on the table in the time leading up to the actual holidays. So last night I attempted tofu again.

Armed with a recipe for Five Spice Tofu Stir-Fry from Weight Watchers magazine, Sept/Oct edition, I was prepared. I had extra veggies to add in, something I often do and I had soft tofu instead of extra firm but that was all I could find at the grocery store and it still felt pretty firm.

As per usual, I didn't follow the recipe but used it more as a guideline. First thing I learned this time was that tofu must be cooked in a little canola or vegetable oil (1/2 tbsp for about 1/2 lb) over a very high heat. I let the wok heat up over a medium high heat with the knob turned more to the high than the medium. Then I seared the tofu on all sides. It gives it a nice crispy outside. Take the tofu out of the pan, cook the rest of your veggies and such. Add the tofu back in at the end with any sauce to heat through.

The second thing I learned when cooking tofu is to marinate it. Tofu acts as a sponge for marinates. I marinated mine for the afternoon but not everyone is home in the middle of the day to put their tofu in marinade. I would say to prepare the marinade and tofu (cut it in chunks) the night before and then before you head out for the day, simply toss the tofu in the marinade and let it sit all day. There will be some serious flavour absorption. At the very least, if you can't get it together in the morning to get the marinating action started, when you come home get that tofu right in the marinade and let it sit for at least 30 minutes but preferably for an hour. Asian inspired marinades are the best starting place since tofu is often used in this style of food. Yes, you can cheat and use a bottled sauce just watch the sodium content. I had a nice Szechuan-style sauce I added into mine.

I have leftovers for lunch and I can't wait!

Some entertaining advice. Or "the holidays don't have to suck the life out of you"

This is the time of year when people start baking and planning their holiday party menus. This year I'm a humbug! I'm so overwhelmed with Christmas knitting (see other blog) that I can't be bothered with anything else. Luckily we have a freezer full of leftovers so there is no need to cook most nights. I'm not a baker so my Christmas baking has always been minimal at best. I made some pumpkin biscotti the other day. It was good but the friend I got the recipe from put white chocolate chips in hers which made them taste quite a bit better but I didn't realize this so mine didn't have the chips. I have since added it to the written recipe. I like making biscotti, since they need to end up dried out and hard, it's a pretty easy recipe for a non-baker. And they are great to have on hand to dunk in warm drinks when guest stop by.

Last night Tim informs me that he wants for finally do a tapas type party for his team at work. We had talked about this last year but the team couldn't set a date so it fell off the Christmas schedule. This year they have a date set. Great. Tim says he is going to do all the cooking (which is better than last year when he wanted me to help even on the night of the event). He only needs my help to set the menu. We had solidified a menu last year but do you think I can find that now? No, of course not. So we have to sit down and do it again. And argue over it again. As an inexperienced caterer, Tim wants to do unrealistic things. So I have to burst his bubble to make sure he doesn't make the whole thing too labour intensive.

That's the problem when people entertain, they tend to make the whole event too labour intensive. My advice, do as much a head as possible, pick only one labour intensive item for the time of the event, and plan out everything in advance. Make a project plan like itinerary for the food prep during the event. What has to go in the oven at what time, what you can put out on plates while waiting for the oven stuff to get done. Plan what order you will serve things. Even plan what serving dishes will be used for what items.

Here is how I break it down. For each item I write out the following:
Preparations - ahead and at serving time
Cooking or chilling instructions and times
Serving instructions and serving ware.

Then I piece it together like a puzzle, not thinking of the dishes as a whole but as each task as an event that can be done when it best fits in the puzzle. You'll be surprised as how much you can do ahead of time. For example Tim wants to do a version of my layered salad on a stick. That's his theme, "Everything on a Stick". So he can put the cherry tomato, a small boccochini, a slice of proscuitto and a basil leaf on each skewer ahead of time on serving trays if he can fit them in the fridge. This can be done the day of the event (some things can be done a couple of days ahead of time). Then about 20 - 30 minutes before serving, he can drizzle the skewers with a olive oil balsamic drizzle. And they are good to go! So as soon as he gets to the event, he would drizzle these skewers and have them ready to go out as the first course while doing everything else he needs to do. I always try to have something either waiting for my guests as soon as they arrive or within minutes of their arrival. Best to get some food into those bellies as the drinks start to flow!

Planning how you are going to serve the food is actually more important than what you serve, in my opinion. If your guests are waiting around for food or it is overcooked, undercooked or turns out wrong, it's a bad thing. Do less but do it right. Less really is more!

Now back to knitting!

Leftover Mania and the Wonder of the Freezer

Last night I made a simple meal based on some leftover chili. Never freeze your leftover chili in one big container. To defrost it requires a commitment to eat chili for many days. If you freeze it in 1 cup servings you only have to commit to a lunch or dinner of chili. Or better yet, you can use it in other dishes. I made a frittata or omelet out of 1 cup of leftover chili. I added in some salsa, green peppers and onions, topped it with some cheddar and it was really tasty. It worked out to 4 points per serving with 3 ounces of cheese and 3 eggs. We had a side of refried beans to round out the meal.

Did I mention how much I love my freezer. Tonight we're having leftover Sicilian pasta and sauce (I must have gotten the recipe from a book or mag because it's not on the blog) with some fresh grilled swordfish. All I have to do is quickly grill the fish, heat the leftovers and dinner is ready! Which is a good thing because there has been some talk of heading out to do some Christmas shopping tonight. Bah humbug!

Time for Turkey Tips! - Homemade Broth

Yup, it's that time of year again, when I make 3 turkeys in 3 months. 2 down, 1 to go! I had some beautiful pictures of the turkey I made for friends for the American Thanksgiving but some divine intervention caused them to be erased from my camera. I believe this was due to the inclusion of an incriminating video of a certain Wii boxer hitting his head during game play, resulting in fits of laughter from the spectators. Or it could just be because I should not be allowed to play with the menu on my camera after too little sleep and too much wine... Either way - no pics. And she was a good looking bird too. And really, really tasty!

My friend and host finally came clean this year and told me he has found my stuffing dry in the past. Usually I am manhandling a 25+ pound bird which I feel would never cook if I put the stuffing inside so I make it as dressing in a separate dish and baste it with turkey drippings. This time I had a totally manageable bird of just 16 pounds so I stuffed 'er up! The stuffing was almost too moist! Boy was it good, especially mixed with some gravy and layered on top of turkey for the requisite day after, and after, and after, turkey sandwich.

One thing that I have been doing for the last few years is making a homemade turkey stock or broth the night before. It's pretty easy and a flavourful touch to the big meal. Now for those of you thinking to yourself... 'yeah, because I don't have enough to do before the big day!', don't panic. You can just buy a couple of boxes of chicken broth from the grocery store. It's not the same but it's better than just using water to boil your potatoes in, steam veggies and add to the turkey drippings for the gravy. But if you really want to add a special touch give homemade broth a go. And you can do this anytime ahead of the big dinner. I do it the night before but you can do it earlier. Just buy a turkey neck in the grocery store instead of taking the neck and gizzards out of the bird you are going to roast.

Ingredients:

• Turkey neck and gizzards from the inside of the turkey. DO NOT USE THE LIVER - it will give it a bitter taste
• 3 or 4 celery stalks, cut in chunks
• 1 onion, cut in chunks
• 3 or 4 carrots, cut in chunks
• Fresh herbs, I use thyme, sage, rosemary and flat leaf parsley, just throw in a couple of stalks of each
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 4 - 6 cups of water

• Throw everything in the pot and set it over a medium low heat to simmer, covered. If you get a good boil going it will start to develop a foam on top. Scoop this foam off but don't worry about it too much, nothing you are using the broth for will require it be perfectly clear.
• Let it simmer for a couple of hours until the neck is falling apart. Once that starts to happen, uncover the pot and let it reduce for 30 - 40 minutes. I like a nice intensely flavored broth.
• All that is left is to drain the broth and discard the solid bits of veggies, gizzards, neck and herbs. Chill the broth overnight and then in the morning you can scoop off any fat that has risen to the top.
• I put aside one cup for my gravy. I use the rest to boil the potatoes and turnip in and to steam any veggies I might be making.
• You can freeze any leftovers but make sure the container you put it in has LOTS of room to expand. I have come across leftover broth in my freezer in a broken jar months later.

Lunch Wrap

Hello!

I finished my cookbook query, I think. Maybe. I have reviewed it once and will do that again before I send it out to literary agents. Wish me luck! It's hard to 'wow' anyone with just one page.

I've been eating out of my freezer so I don't have any new dinner ideas but I do have a lunch idea that is worth sharing. It's a fantastic wrap. Points per wrap is 3!! And it's quite filling.

One whole wheat wrap (I use the Weight watchers ones since they are just 1 point)
1 tbsp hummus, store or homemade
diced up veggies of your choice. I use tomatoes, cucumber, red onion, green onion, peppers
1 tbsp of crumbled light feta cheese.

Layer it all in the order above, roll it up and eat. It's one of my favs for a quick, light lunch. Grab a piece of fruit or add a fat free pudding snack and you have a full meal! Enjoy!

The mad rantings of a cookbook writer to be - and a Pumpkin Soup recipe.

I'm still trying to figure out how to work on my cookbook. One would think you would just sit down, grab some recipes (I have tons), organize them in some fashion and put it out there. Writing is hard work! And organizing your thoughts and ideas is hard work! And I'm lazy! I'm trying to figure out a way to approach this task methodically. I'm torn between a project management approach with a work breakdown structure (WBS to those of you in the know) or my old term paper approach that got me through high school and university. It involves index cards and a filing system. A highly effective system but time consuming. UGH! I have no excuse this week. Tim is away and I can totally focus. I have a freezer full of good food (more about that in a minute) so I can't get distracted by cooking which is still my favorite distraction from reality. Focus, it's all about focus. Did I mention I am typically doing 3 things at once? Right now I am playing ball with the dog, considering knitting patterns for some gifts for friends I'm going to visit next week and writing this. Oh, and I'm job searching and about to go start my breakfast. I'm so screwed.

On a happier note, yesterday I totally ate out of my freezer. I had pumpkin soup for lunch. Holy snappin' arseholes, was it tasty! I have no idea why I haven't blogged about this one before but here is the recipe.

Perfect Pumpkin Soup

Here is a quick and delicious pumpkin soup that makes a great meal. And it’s cheap! It is also an excellent starter when you don’t have fresh salad ingredients on hand. Even though there is real cream in this, don’t sweat it. It’s only 1 cup worth for the whole recipe which works out to 1.33333 ounces of cream per main course dish. But don’t skip it, it really smooths out the soup.

I keep a can of pure pumpkin on hand at all times just so I can throw this together in a pinch. Where do you find can pure pumpkin in the grocery store? Why with the canned pie filling, of course! (I spent 15 full minutes racing up and down aisle looking for it the first time…. I figured it would be with the canned fruits! Nope)


Serves 6 as a main course or 8 as a starter course - 2 Points per serving! (it tastes way naughtier than that!)

Ingredients

· 1 Tbsp Olive Oil
· I onion, chopped
· 1 carrot, chopped (optional)
· 1 rib of celery, chopped (optional)
· 2 tsp or 2 cloves of minced garlic
· 5 cups of low sodium chicken broth (almost 2 large cartons of the store bought kind)
· 1 796ml of pure pumpkin
· 1 tsp of dried sage or thyme or savory
· 1 cup of whipping cream

Directions
1. Heat the oil in a frying pan over medium-high heat

2. Sauté the onion, carrot and celery until softened, about 3 minutes

3. Add in the garlic and cook one more minute

4. Add in 3 cups of the broth and cook for 5 minutes. Puree the mixture using either a blender, immersion blender or potato masher.

5. Stir in the can pumpkin, the rest of the broth and the sage. Cook for another 5 minutes.

6. Stir in the cream and just heat it through, about another 2-3 minutes.

7. Enjoy!

This recipe freezes beautifully. (See, I can say that for sure, having just eaten some that has been in the freezer for 6 months!)


Nutritional Information 6 Main Servings with Carrot and Celery: 117 Calories, 11g Fat, 5g Saturated Fat, 0g Trans Fat, 27 mg Cholesterol, 87mg Sodium, 4g Fiber, 16g Carbohydrates

Then for supper I had Lamb Ragu on pasta. Wowzers! Both dishes survived the freezer unscathed. So the term "freezes beautifully" really does have meaning.

Today is a holiday, in lieu of Remembrance Day... Maybe I should just take the day off, drink coffee and knit.... FOCUS, FOCUS -man I suck.

Risotto again and the rumblings of a future cookbook

I've been trying to get my act together to work on a cookbook but often I feel as if I am not a prolific cook. This blog does not get the input like my knitting blog does. I try to remember that my knitting blog isn't about trying to share my knowledge of how to knit, it's just a place to show off my work. This blog has always been more about sharing my knowledge and experience with food. Teaching is hard. That's why people make a commitment, go to school and get paid to teach! And writing is even harder. Not everyone can be a writer, even those of us who are passionate about that which we write. It still doesn't mean we are good at it. I looked back and reviewed my entries. There is some good stuff here! Maybe I will take a stab at that cookbook. I have this nasty habit though... I tend to do at least 3 things at once. No wonder I can't focus to write... Wish me luck!

While I'm here I might as well once again preach about the virtues of risotto. It's one of my favorite elegant, quick, easy and cheap meals. Don't be intimidated! Here's my last rant about risotto "Let's Talk Risotto" . I want to share my latest risotto. One thing that really makes risotto sing is to add a dash of wine or I used vermouth this time, even a dry sherry would do. But what if you don't want to add alcohol to your dish? Use a bit of apple juice! This is a standard substitution for white wine. I buy the juice packs and keep them on hand. Then when a recipe calls for white wine and I don't have it, I just pop open a juice pack!

Serves 4 - 5 points per serving

Ingredients:

• 1/2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 finely chopped onion
• 1 clove of garlic, minced
• 3/4 cup of arborio rice
• 5 cups of low sodium chicken or veggie broth (you may use more or less, one carton of the campbells broth will cover it)
• 1/3 cup white wine, vermouth or apple juice
• 1 1/2 cup chopped broccoli, frozen or fresh
• 2/3 cup grated parmesan

Heat the oil in a pot or high sided saucepan over medium heat. Saute the onions until soft but don't brown them. Add the garlic and saute for one more minute. Add the rice and saute for 2-3 minutes.

Start adding the broth 1/2 cup or so at a time. Stir a bit and keep an eye on the pot. You don't want it to go dry. When the liquid seems mostly absorbed, add more. Keep doing this for about 20 minutes. Then taste a piece of rice. It should taste like it is just got a little bit of give to it. it's almost done but not quite. Which is fine. Now we add the veggies!

You will still be adding broth, add in the veggies too. Let the liquid cook out. Add the wine/vermouth/apple juice. Taste a piece of rice again. It should have no give and no crunch. It should be smooth, like a well cooked pasta.

Remove from the heat and stir in your cheese.

Someday soon I must do a video of this. It's easy but seeing it done will really make you feel comfortable making it.