mushroom ragout

We decided to make Great Food Fast's Mushroom Ragout the other night.

I used a mix of mostly crimini mushrooms along with shiitake and button. I also used fresh and dried thyme so I expected some big flavours to come through. However, it was really lacking and needs to be amped up quite a bit. If we choose to make this again I'd probably find a way of working in beef broth, wine or cream into this recipe. We ended up finely grated parmigiano reggiano upon serving and that certainly helped. Luckily, the ragout's flavour improved the second day. This would be so delicious over polenta.

lentil soup

Unfortunately there isn't a way to make this dinner of Lentil Soup sound or look delicious. You'll just have to trust me when I say this is a fantastic soup! Definitely the best one we've made from Great Food Fast.

It is so rich and full flavoured. I followed the recipe exactly but also added celery salt while sauteeing the onions and carrots. We ate this for dinner on the first snowfall and there wasn't anything more comforting. Owen just loved it. He kept talking about this soup for days after we ate it. The other big bonuses is how economical and easy it is to make. It can be made in a pinch because all the ingredients are pantry & freezer staples.

winter 2012 playlist

I've put together a second playlist for download.

The Aislers Set – Mission Bells (2003)
Guided By Voices – Don’t Stop Now (1996)
Built To Spill – In The Morning (1996)
Olivia Tremor Control – A New Day (1999)
The Byrds – Lady Friend (1967)
Teenage Fanclub – Discolite (1995)
Essex Green – Cardinal Points (2006)
Butterglory – Edward Brown (1995)
The Acid House Kings – 7 Days (2005)
California Snow Story – Brook Lune (2007)
Jens Lekman – Black Cab (2003)
The Radio Dept. – Where Damage Isn’t Already Done (2004)
Wild Nothing – Chinatown (2010)
Trembling Blue Stars – Idyllwild (2007)
Ride – Sennen (1990)

It can be a challenge to choose songs in compiling a playlist. The way I listen to music is through entire albums which means the songs are more complete, have context and play off each other. When you remove it from its place, many songs can somehow lose something. But on the other hand, some bands sound fantastic right up against each other. Like of how Teenage Fanclub can sit right up against The Byrds and blend nicely. Then there are bands like the Byrds where it's hard to choose just one song because they are a great 'single' band. I don't know how many Byrds songs I removed from this list before deciding on 'Lady Friend'. There is something about David Crosby's voice that gets me. Now I'm music monologuing...

Anyways, if you choose to download you can expect to hear lots of indie jems... Some pop, rock, chamber, swedish & shoegaze. Lots of hooks and harmonies. Hope you all enjoy!

Click here to download

couscous salad with roasted vegetables & chickpeas

Of all the recipes I wanted to try in Everyday Food Light, I was really looking forward to this Couscous Salad with Roasted Vegetables & Chickpeas. We’re on a real kick with couscous & chickpeas so I thought this combo would be a real winner. The other thing I like is to be able to time-bake food in the oven so that it’s ready when we get home - so this recipe suited us perfectly. Along with a tray of cauliflower and carrots, I also roasted a couple trays of sweet potatoes & red onions so that we could make this Roasted Sweet Potato Salsa again.

Here’s the finished dinner and we weren’t all that impressed. It was OK but I combined concepts from this dinner and the Roasted Sweet Potato Salsa to make the most delicious salad/lunch you can imagine. 

I’ll share this recipe:

2 sweet potatoes, peeled and diced small

1 red onion, diced small

2 plum tomatoes, diced small

¼ cup lime juice

Fresh cilantro, small handful, chopped

1 cup cooked coucous

1 can chickpeas, drained, rinsed & cooked till tender

1 avocado, diced small

Spread sweet potatoes & red onion on baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil and season with s&p. Roast at 450 for 20 minutes and cool to room temp.

Mix cooled vegetables with remaining ingredients. Just before serving add avocado and taste for final seasoning.

ham struffed chicken with broccoli

One recipe I’d always wanted to try to make from scratch is a homemade chicken cordon-bleu. While flipping through the new Everyday Food Light book I stumbled upon Ham Stuffed Chicken with Broccoli and assumed that it was exactly what I was after. Turns out this recipe doesn’t include cheese, which I had initially wanted. But we made this dinner exactly as the recipe instructed (except using fresh sage instead of dried and fresh broccoli instead of frozen) and it was truly outstanding. 

The result is a very nice moist chicken and stuffing. Incredibly quick & easy and was perfect for a Sunday night dinner. It certainly didn’t need (and we didn’t miss) the cheese element I had hoped for. What a great start to experimenting with the new Everyday Food Light book. This dinner didn’t taste light – it was just delicious. 

roasted cornish hens with grapes

Seafood, alfredo and cornish hens are three special meals my mom often made to celebrate New Years. That's why I thought it was perfect timing to make the Roasted Cornish Hens with Grapes.

As pretentious as saying you're eating cornish hens for dinner may sound, they are WAY easier and faster than cooking a whole chicken. The meat is more tender and sweeter in flavour. They really should be more popular than they are. The grapes and shallots blend to taste like a sweeter roasted shallot which is nice.

grandpa

We said goodbye to my Grandpa this past weekend. He outlived all of his friends and 11 other siblings so to honour him the burial was attended by close relatives followed by "an Irish wake".  Although we didn't live up to past Butler wakes which found my great aunts dancing Irish jigs, we all shared memories over piles of family photos, tons of catered food and bottles of wine.

I've been reflecting all week on the time I had with Grandpa Butler and no matter which memory I draw from they are all fond and bring a smile to my face. He was an understated, stand-up man with an incomparable sense of humor. How lucky were we to have had him with us to the age of 88.

looking back on the tastes of 2011

My family is on the mend from a stomach bug so there won't be much food blogging for the next little while. I can't imagine even stepping foot inside the grocery store, let alone cooking anything. Besides, I never did much say good-bye to 2011 and hello to a New Year on here, so I thought I'd reflect on my most memorable food discoveries of this past year. This list was devised to include new food and flavour combinations I discovered in 2011, food trends I jumped on, cooking and baking life to-do's checked off and recipes we continually go back to enjoy (and probably will for years to come).

1. First up is the Warm Quinoa and Spinach Salad. I love this salad and reworked it based on a version  I ordered at the Rivoli for dinner in the summer. Their version now has me substituting mesclun mix for spinach and goat cheese for feta. Add parsley and a little bit of finely diced red pepper if there is any lying around.

2. Cobb Salad, a to-do that I wish I'd only discovered sooner. I should also note that this is the year I went nuts-o for blue cheese.

 

3. Eggs with/on Pasta. Whether it's a carbonara or a poached egg over spring vegetables on pasta, I just love how this now completes a day making it possible to eat eggs for any meal. 

4. Fritters. They started with banana, then we got hooked on corn. But fritters can be made with so many different ingredients including zucchini and chopped herbs. Sweet or savoury they are an excuse to eat a pancake as a side.

5. Bacon Jam, a decadent treat that is a versatile condiment anyone who eats meat can't resist.

6. Chocolate-Mint Chip Ice Cream Sandwiches are the best and easiest tasty treat. I've even simplified it in recent months to scooping Chocolate-Mint Chip Ice Cream with Oreo Thinsation Cookies and making sandwiches from two Oatmeal Bear Paw Cookies with Vanilla Ice Cream. 

7. Chocolate/Raspberry Pavlova - is a revelation. One of the best desserts I've ever eaten... and I made it!

8. Whoopie Pies, trendy but fun. I love them because they up the cake to frosting ratio, which works for me.

My food to-do list for 2012 is to make a show stopping Croque Monsieur, cook through Everyday Food Light and blog much more about kid's recipes based on this wonderful cookbook Aunt Katie gave called C is for Cooking.

I've flipped through it and it sounds great for making kid-friendly food and involving them in the kitchen.

curry chicken

This is the other night's Curry Chicken from Great Food Fast. 

It was simple enough to prepare but did not deliver. I've had really great curry chicken before and this one just does not cut it. The thing that bothered me the most was eating potatoes and rice in the same meal. It really was not appetizing at all. To give it a bit of a boost I added golden raisins which was pretty necessary. It could also use a bit of yogurt to make it creamier. But we've got to find a better recipe for curry chicken or it's take-out from now on.

everyday food light

A new Everyday Food book was released on the 27th of December called Everyday Food Light. I was surprised that there was a gimmick behind the latest book. This indicated two things to me - they expect to continue the series(!) and broaden their readership. One major food/diet trend is the New Year's weight loss, so I'm sure this book might appeal to a whole new group of people - those with New Years resolutions to eat more homemade and healthy food. And this book will definitely deliver. I've flipped through it and come across some of my absolute favorite recent recipes which include the Lighter Chef's Salad, Thai Chicken and Noodle Salad, Spring Vegetable Couscous with Chicken, Chicken with Cornmeal Dumplings, Cilantro Lime Rice and Leek, Bacon and Pea Risotto. I'm pleased to see more shrimp recipes because we all really enjoy dinners which include seafood.

Now, just a little bit on food and diet. I've been 140 pounds and 100 pounds in the past 5 years. Since I've been one extreme and the other I can tell you what works for me. I like to be the size I am (between the two) and to maintain a healthy happy weight I've found there are three main factors at work. The first and most important is portion control. In the larger days I'd take second helpings on dinners. I had just learned to cook, successfully, and loved everything I made so thought nothing of going back for more. Not a good idea if you're looking to keep weight off. The second is to be aware of fat in your diet. This one is simple and this Everyday Food Light book pretty much takes care of this part of diet awareness. I don't eat very much processed & packaged foods, which is one thing that will tip you way over on fat intake without realizing it. Finally, I enjoy a good work out and exercise is a  good thing if you enjoy it. I need it because it keeps me more alert, energetic for the day and um... regular. So now that you know much more about me, probably more than you ever wanted to, I hope you continue reading as we eat our way through the Everyday Food Light book. And I might just let you know if we see any weight loss happening because after a week of bacon jam and cookies I think a detox is well in order around these parts.

christmas gift baskets

Growing up, the first sign that Christmas was coming was the arrival of gift baskets. Contractors always sent the most amazing array of chocolates, cheeses, wines, liquors & nuts. I remember as a kid finding it difficult to appreciate these baskets, but now that I've made my own life I realize what an amazing gesture they were and miss them terribly. So I decided to make my own for gift giving. I gave them to people who were hosting Christmas gatherings and have an appreciation for homemade food.

Here is a basket a gave to my in-laws. The wine is from one of our favourite local wineries, Stonechurch which is a sweet Riesling / Gewurztraminer blend that goes over well with those who say they don't like wine. Cheese, Crackers & Tea. I included my summer apricot jam (Anna Olson's recipe), fig jam and bacon jam. Bacon Jam just rocks around the holidays! It fit into just about every meal for us in the past week. We had it spread on our egg in a basket and on waffles some mornings for breakfast and it makes the most perfect left over turkey sandwich with cranberry sauce. Yep, we're livin' large around the holidays.

post holiday rundown

What a Christmas this year was. This is the first year Owen is aware and able to anticipate in the holiday. He enjoyed meeting & talking about Santa and attempting to make his own Frosty the snowmen with his collection of rubber balls. He sang Christmas carols like Santa Claus is Coming to Town and Jingle Bells. 

Christmas morning Owen only had enough attention span to get through his stocking. 

Here we are enjoying Avo & Avo's nativity. Actually, that's me attempting to teach Owen to keep the rocks and pine cones out of his mouth.

Our holiday included driving over 500 kms from one side of Southern Ontario to the other, visiting with over 50 friends and family. Owen wished everyone "Merry Chris-ke-mas" and thanked everyone for his gifts (of which he was truly spoiled to bits). It was so much fun but there just didn't seem to be enough time throughout the holiday. 

I'd say this photo sums it up best - we're exhausted!

merry christmas

From my family to yours, Happy Holidays!

christmas cookies - yum!

Yesterday was my birthday and I feel pretty lucky to be born close to Christmas. I always take my birthday off work and do things I enjoy which usually includes spending time with those I love, wrapping gifts, eating and baking... lots and lots of baking.

Here is the great assortment Christmas cookies this year. I made these gift tags and tin lids for gift giving so everyone knew which cookies are which. 

My holiday baking plan was to make all the doughs ahead of time, keep them in the fridge & freezer and bake everything two days before Christmas.

Worked like a charm! Every single batch of every cookie turned out perfect. I'm really happy with the taste of everything. Most recipes are from the Martha Stewart Cookies book except the Chocolate Orange Biscotti.

Here we are 4 pounds of butter, one bag of sugar and one bag of powdered sugar later. I polished off my stash of pure vanilla, pecans from Georgia and a 10 kg bag of flour. It was too much fun!

steak and onion sandwiches

With the leftover steak from the previous night's Steak au Poivre we had this quick Steak and Onion Sandwich from Great Food Fast.

These are delicious! I initially wanted to add provolone and mushrooms to it, but after making the recipe I wouldn't change a thing. With this sandwich, the simpler the better!