Month: March 2011

Stove Top Mac & Cheese

~ Lynn ~ 21 Comments

Have you ever heard those stories about people who win the lottery multiple times, yet still end up broke? Those stories fascinate me. I like to think if I ever won big I would use the money wisely, but it’s entirely possible I’d spend it all on shoes. At work we play the lottery whenever the jackpot is big. Even though we all know we’re probably just throwing away our money, no one in the department wants to risk being the only one who has to show up at work on Monday morning.

That’s not to say I’ve never won anything. Last Friday I found a penny, picked it up, then won a free coffee from Tim Horton’s Roll up the Rim. Free coffee makes me ridiculously happy. And in December I entered the Holiday Recipe Exchange from Good Life Eats and My Baking Addiction with my Maple Butterscotch Pudding. Thanks to your kind votes I won a gift package from Kerrygold. The package had TONS of cheese and a selection of butter. Looking at all the cheese I received I knew I had to make something with it. The first thing that came to mind was Macaroni and Cheese.

I’m not going to say this is the best recipe ever, because I’m sure there are many of you out there who make a mean mac and cheese, but it was definitely the best I’ve ever made. I used Kerrygolds Garlic and Herb Butter to make the roux, and their Red Leicester cheese in the sauce. It’s a mild, cheddar like cheese with a nice tang to it. The sauce was pure cheesy goodness. I can’t wait for my next Kerrygold experiment!

Stove Top Mac & Cheese

  • 1 pound macaroni
  • 2 tbsp Garlic and Herb Butter
  • 2 tbsp flour
  • 2 cups milk (warm)
  • 7 oz Red Leicester Cheese (or sharp cheddar)
  • salt and pepper to taste
  1. Cook the macaroni as per package instructions until al dente.
  2. While the pasta is cooking, make the sauce. In a large sauce pan on medium high heat, melt the butter. Add the flour and stir until it starts to bubble slightly. Add the warm milk. Lower the heat to medium and stir constantly until the sauce begins to thicken (about 5 minutes).
  3. Once thickened, add the cheese and stir until completely melted. Taste the sauce, add salt and pepper if necessary.
  4. Drain the pasta and toss into the sauce.
  5. Serve immediately.

Enjoy!

Banana Nutella Muffins

~ Lynn ~ 49 Comments

One year ago today I wrote my first post for this blog. When I started I really never thought anyone would read it. For a couple of months I was writing just for myself and the two other people I had told about the blog. Then I discovered Foodbuzz, and was introduced to a wide world of food bloggers. They were kind and supportive, and I like to think that some of the people I’ve “met” through Foodbuzz are my friends.

When I started writing the blog, I had a hard time coming up with what to say. What is it people want to read? Then I came across this quote:

Better to write for yourself and have no public, than to write for the public and have no self.  ~Cyril Connolly

It helped me realize that writing for some imaginary potential audience won’t work. This blog is a place for me to share my experiences with food, recipes I enjoy, and the occasional anecdote about my day. It’s an escape from the day to day more than anything else (sometimes I even write my posts while at work when I need to clear my head; sshh, don’t tell anyone!)

I’ve been fortunate enough to get a few subscribers and regular readers. I want to thank all of you for reading my ramblings and sharing your thoughts with me. Your comments are always very much appreciated!

My original plan was to remake the Amaretto Cheese Tart I wrote about in my first post. An unexpected condo visit on Sunday changed my plans. Instead I’m sharing these Banana Nutella Muffins with you. They seem fitting since muffins are probably the baked good I make the most.

I was hoping for more of a Nutella swirl look to them, but I over-mixed the batter and lost the swirl. It’s ok, they still taste great, and the Nutella drizzle on top completely makes up for the lack of swirl inside.

Don’t worry, I’ll make the tart soon!

Banana Nutella Muffins

  • 1 1/2 cup all purpose flour
  • 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 3 very ripe bananas, mashed
  • 1/4 cup melted unsalted butter
  • 1 egg
  • 1/2 cup plain yogurt (anything but fat free)
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 1/2 cup Nutella, plus more for drizzling
  • 1 ripe but firm banana for garnish (optional)
  1. Preheat the oven to 375. Line a 12 cup muffin tin.
  2. In a large bowl, mix the flours, baking powder and salt together.
  3. In a separate bowl, mix the mashed banana, butter and egg together. Stir in the yogurt and vanilla.
  4. Mix the wet into the dry until just combined. Stir in the Nutella.
  5. Pour batter evenly into the prepared muffin tin. Top each muffin with thin slices of banana.
  6. Bake for 25-30 minutes.
  7. Once done, cool on a wire rack. Drizzle with Nutella.

Enjoy!

Orange Tea Loaf

~ Lynn ~ 18 Comments

I switched departments in my company a little over a year ago. The work I do now is a lot more interesting, but the environment is … less fun. I used to work with a team the handled Canadian trades only, then switched to the International side. The work in both departments is very stressful. They are high risk jobs with tight deadlines. My old department dealt with the stress by joking around and helping each other out. Even though there was a lot of pressure coming to work was fun.

Now it’s every man for himself. In my new department I sit beside a man who swears all day long and likes to slam his phone. The other day he picked it up and slammed it down even though it wasn’t even ringing. I think he got an email that upset him; you can’t slam an email.

I’m thinking of starting a swear jar in the office. I’m pretty sure it will pay for my morning coffee. It might even cover lunch sometimes. And if it manages to curb the swearing, then it will make coming to work that much more pleasant.

Until the day my neighbour calms down, I have an afternoon ritual that gets me through the day. Just before 3PM (when the Fed closes and things get extra stressful), I make myself a tea, put on my noise reducing headphones, and I listen to music that makes me happy. This afternoon it was Graceland. Sometimes it’s the Dirty Dancing soundtrack.

If I’ve got my act together, I have a piece of cake with my tea.  This cake is one of my favourites. It’s a modification of one of my moms recipes. She uses raisins and walnuts, and puts an orange glaze on the cake. Today was particularly bad, and I could have used a little glaze on my cake, so I’ll post the recipe for even though I didn’t use it.

Orange Tea Loaf

  • 2 cups flour
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 1/2 cup butter
  • 3/4 cup sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • zest of one orange, divided
  • juice of one orange
  • 1/4 cup yogurt
  • 1 cup dried cranberries
  • 1/2 cup pistachios

For glaze

  • orange zest (leftover from cake)
  • 1 cup powdered sugar
  • 1/4 tsp vanilla
  • 4-5 tsp milk
  1. Preheat the oven to 350, line a loaf pan with parchment paper (or grease it)
  2. In a large bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder and salt.
  3. In a separate bowl, beat the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Mix in the vanilla and 1 tsp orange zest.
  4. Add 1/2 the flour mixture the butter, mix well. Stir in the orange juice and yogurt, followed by the remaining flour. Stir in the cranberries and pistachios.
  5. Pour batter into the prepared loaf pan. Bake for 1 hour to 1 hour 15 minutes. Test the loaf after an hour with a toothpick to see if its done.
  6. Once done, let cool in the pan for 10 minutes then cool on a wire rack.
  7. For the glaze: Stir together the powdered sugar, vanilla, milk, and remaining orange zest. Pour over cooled cake.

Enjoy!

Chicken with Vegetables & Spinach And Ways to Help

~ Lynn ~ 9 Comments

Last week when I decided to cook this dish, I planned to write a silly little post about the pot holes in Montreal, or “nids de poules” as they are called in French (chickens nests). But then Japan happened. Seeing all the devastation caused by the earthquake and tsunami made writing about a few bumps in the road seem so petty.

People around the world are looking for ways to help. The easiest thing to do is to make a donation to a non-profit that is helping in the area. Which non-profit to donate to is always a tough call. The safe choices like The Red Cross have high overhead costs, and the smaller organizations may not be legitamite. Because of their reputation, I choose to donate to organizations like The Red Cross or Medecins Sans Frontieres (Doctors Without Borders); they may have more overhead but they are trusted, well known organizations.

If you are looking for another way to help, Sabrina from The Tomato Tart is hosting an Online Bake Sale to help Japan. Check out her post if you want to donate goods or bid.

If you simply want to donate, here are a few links.

In Canada:

The Canadian Red Cross

Medecins Sans Frontieres

Unicef

Oxfam

In the United States:

The American Red Cross

Doctors Without Borders

Oxfam

Unicef

And now for the recipe…

Chicken With Vegetables and Spinach

  • 2 chicken legs
  • 1 medium onion, roughly chopped
  • 1 red bell pepper, cut into large pieces
  • 5 Yukon Gold potatoes, cut into large pieces
  • 4 garlic cloves
  • olive oil
  • salt, pepper and thyme to taste
  • 1/4 cup white wine
  • fresh spinach
  1. Preheat the oven to 425.
  2. Clean and pat dry the chicken legs. In a large bowl, toss the chicken with the onion, garlic cloves, bell pepper and potatoes with oil so that everything is coated. Season with salt, pepper and thyme.
  3. Place the vegetables on a large baking sheet in an even layer. Place the chicken legs on top of the vegetables. Bake for 40-50 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through.
  4. Remove the chicken and vegetables from the pan. Place the pan on a burner on high, pour the wine into the pan and deglaze (scrape up all the brown bits).
  5. Place the chicken and vegetables on a bed of spinach and top with the wine sauce.

Enjoy!

Daring Cooks Peruvian Ceviche

~ Lynn ~ 8 Comments

Kathlyn of Bake Like a Ninja was our Daring Cooks’ March 2011 hostess. Kathlyn challenges us to make two classic Peruvian dishes: Ceviche de Pescado from “Peruvian Cooking – Basic Recipes” by Annik Franco Barreau. And Papas Rellenas adapted from a home recipe by Kathlyn’s Spanish teacher, Mayra.

Once again, I found this months Daring Cooks Challenge to be quite intimidating. Ceviche is fish or seafood that is “cooked” in lime or lemon juice. In a restaurant I wouldn’t hesitate to order it, but making it at home had me worried about food poisoning. I read up on the safety of making your own ceviche and found that the most important thing is to have fresh fish. If you don’t have a trusted fish monger, the secret is to buy fish or seafood that has been frozen at sea. Freezing at sea means the freshness is basically locked in.

I chose to use Argentinian scallops that were frozen at sea. At my local grocery store they come in packages that are vaccum sealed; if you use the same ones make sure the seal isn’t broken. If it is the scallops may be freezer burned. Argentinian scallops are quite small so I didn’t cut them into pieces.

Even though I used all the precautions I could when making the ceviche, I was still very nervous about eating. I took a bite. It tasted good. I took another, then another. I finished my plate, then waited. No food poisoning! This was a ceviche success!

I was also going to make the Papas Rellanas. Papas Rellanas are fried mashed potatoes with a ground beef filling. I was sure I had the ingredients on hand, but it turns out I was missing quite a few. Instead of making something that was very far from the original recipe, I chose to skip that part of he challenge.

Peruvian Ceviche

  • 2 lbs. scallops
  • 2 garlic cloves, mashed
  • 1 chili pepper, mince
  • 1 cup (240 ml) freshly squeezed lime or lemon juice (between 8-12 limes)
  • fresh coriander (I omitted this)
  • 1 red onion, thinly sliced lengthwise
  • Salt and pepper (to taste)
  1. Combine the lime juice, garlic, chili and coriander. Pour over the scallops, making sure all are covered.
  2. Put sliced onion on top. Let sit for 10 minutes as it “cooks”.
  3. Lift fish out of lime juice mixture and serve with sweet potato or corn.

Enjoy!

Canadian Beef Tacos

~ Lynn ~ 10 Comments

The people at Canadian Beef are giving five Canadian bloggers the opportunity to go to Eat Write Retreat this May. Eat Write Retreat is a food blogging conference with workshops on writing, cooking and photography. And I’m dying to go.

Although I have several vegetarian posts up, I am a meat eater. I often mess up beef so when making it for myself I tend to stick to simple recipes. These tacos are incredibly simple,perfect for a weeknight meal. They are by no means authentic Mexican cuisine, just a combination of flavours I enjoy.

I used sirloin tip steak. This is not the same as top round; if not marinated or cut very thinly it can be chewy. This recipe calls for both of those steps, so the meat works well in the tacos.

Canadian Beef Tacos

  • Sirloin Tip Steak
  • Juice of 2 lemons
  • 2 tbsp Olive oil
  • Chilli powder
  • Red onion, sliced
  • Red and green peppers, sliced
  • Salt and pepper
  • Tortillas
  • Avocado, mashed
  • Lemon wedges for serving
  1. In a large Ziploc bag, combine the lemon juice, olive oil, and chilli powder. Add the steaks to the bag, seal and marinate for 20 minutes to an hour on the counter, or up to 4 hours in the fridge.
  2. When ready to serve, sautee the onions and peppers for a few minutes until slightly softened but not cooked through. Season with salt and pepper.
  3. Remove the steaks from the plastic bag and dry them with paper towels. Season with salt and pepper. In a large skillet on high heat, fry the steaks for 2-3 minutes a side. Let rest of 5 minutes then thinly slice. While the meat is resting warm the tortillas.
  4. Assemble the tacos. Place some meat on a tortilla, then the peppers and onion, and top with the mashed avocado.

Enjoy!

Vegetarian Lasagna

~ Lynn ~ 22 Comments

Food photography is probably the hardest thing I’ve ever tried to learn. I try to take nice pictures; sometimes I succeed, sometimes I don’t. One of the things you realize almost immediately when writing a food blog is that pictures can make or break your blog. People want to see big gorgeous pictures of scrumptious looking food. I’ve read a lot about lighting and composition over the last year, and I’ve tried to implement some of the things I’ve learned. I think what it comes down to in the end is talent and practice.

Every time I’ve seen a picture of lasagna in a magazine it’s had perfectly even layers, with the ruffled noodles poking out just so. My lasagna didn’t look like that. I’m pretty sure I cut off the ruffles while slicing the pieces, and my sauce and cheese layers kind of melded together. It tasted incredible, but it was incredibly difficult to photograph. My experience made me wonder if all the lasagna I’ve seen in magazines was ever actually baked.

I still have a lot to learn when it comes to food photography and styling, but when it comes to taste I think I know what I’m doing. This was the first time I tried making a vegetarian lasagna. I wanted it to be pretty packed with vegetables to make up for the absence of meat. The sauce has zucchini and mushrooms, and the cheese lmixture has spinach. I was a little nervous about leaving out the meat, but the four kinds of cheese and tons of veggies were very satisfying. I couldn’t even tell that I had used low fat cheese.

Vegetarian Lasagna

  • 9 Whole Wheat Lasagna Sheets
  • Olive oil
  • 1 small onion, diced
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 2 zucchini, diced
  • 1 cup mushrooms, chopped
  • 1/4 cup red wine
  • 1 can diced tomatoes
  • salt, pepper and chili flakes to taste
  • 1 tsp dried oregano
  • 1 tsp dried basil
  • 1 cup low-fat ricotta
  • 1 cup yogurt
  • 1 egg
  • 1 packaged frozen spinach, thawed and liquid squeezed out
  • 1 cup shredded mozzarella
  • 1 cup shredded gouda
  • 1/4 cup grated parmesan
  1. Follow package instructions for noodles.
  2. In a large pan over medium high heat, heat the oil then sautee the onions for 2-3 minutes until translucent. Add the garlic, cook until fragrant.
  3. Stir in the zucchini and mushrooms, cook until the zucchini starts to brown. Pour in the red wine. Scrape up any brown bits at the bottom of the pan, then add the tomatoes. Season with salt pepper and spices. Let simmer 20-30 minutes.
  4. While the sauce is simmering, put together the cheese layer. In a large bowl, mix the ricotta, yogurt and egg together. Stir in half the mozzarella and gouda, as well as the spinach.
  5. Once the sauce has cooked assemble the lasagna. Pour a bit of the sauce in the bottom of a large glass baking dish. Top with three sheets of lasagna. Pour half of the ricotta mixture over the lasagna sheets, top with a third of the remaining sauce. Place three more of the lasagna sheets, topped with the remaining ricotta mixture and another third of the sauce. Place the final lasagna sheets, topped with the remaining sauce, then cover with the remaining mozzarella, gouda and parmesan.
  6. Cover tightly with foil. Bake at 350 for 45 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for 10 to 15 minutes more until the cheese is golden.
  7. Let set for 10 minutes before serving.

Enjoy!

Polish Apple Pancakes

~ Lynn ~ 29 Comments

This Tuesday is Pancake Tuesday, aka Fat Tuesday or Mardi Gras. Fat Tuesday is the last day before Lent. Traditionally people would prepare for 40 days of fasting before Easter by eating all the fatty foods they possibly could. Unfortunately, I don’t have time on weekday mornings to make myself a pancake breakfast, so I decided to celebrate a few days early.

Generally I prefer crepes to pancakes, but these apple pancakes are the exception to that rule. My mom used to make them for me and my brother pretty often when we were kids. My memories might be a little exaggerated, but I remember being to eat tons of them in one sitting. The apples stay a little crisp, and have a bit a tart flavour. The tartness is balanced by maple syrup in this case. My mom usually sprinkles cinnamon and sugar on them, I think that might be my favourite way to eat them.

These are really easy to make. Apple slices are dipped into a standard pancake batter then fried in butter. You could use oil, but the flavour just isn’t the same. Top them with any syrup or sweetener you have.

Polish Apple Pancakes

  • 2 apples, peeled, cored and sliced into rounds
  • 2 eggs
  • 3/4 cups milk
  • 3/4 cup flour
  • 1/2 tsp baking powder
  • 1 tbsp melted butter
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp cinnamon
  • butter for frying
  • maple syrup for serving
  1. In a large bowl, whisk the milk and eggs together. Add the flour, baking powder, melted butter, salt, and cinnamon. Stir together. If the batter is very lumpy set it aside for a few minutes to rest then stir again.
  2. Pour the apple slices into the batter and coat them.
  3. In a large frying pan melt about 1 tbsp of butter. When the pan is hot, place 2 or 3 apple slices in the oil. When the bottom is golden and the pancakes can easily be moved, flip and fry the other side.
  4. Repeat with remaining apple slices. (any left over batter can be used for regular pancakes)

Enjoy!

Quinoa Puttanesca

~ Lynn ~ 22 Comments


I like food that comes with a good story. Food with a story has been passed down through generations and is pretty much guaranteed to be good. Pasta a la Puttanesca is one of those foods. As the story goes, it was invented by prostitutes in Naples (“puttanas”). Whatever you think of the profession, you will probably agree that the sauce is pretty darn good.

It is also very easy to put together. The ingredients are sauteed together quickly and then tossed with pasta. I decided to mix things up a but by using the sauce with quinoa. It made an excellent side dish; I served it with some baked talapia and a salad for a tasty, healthy meal. I also had some leftover for lunch with some goat cheese.

Most puttanesca sauce recipes contain garlic, anchovies, peppers, olives and capers. If you like all those ingredients, use them. If not, leave something out or replace it with something you do enjoy. Having a story doesn’t make a recipe un-alterable.

Quinoa Puttanesca

  • 1 cup quinoa
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 small onion, diced
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 tsp anchovy paste
  • chili flakes to taste
  • pepper to taste
  • 1 red pepper, diced
  • 1/4 cup olives, diced
  • parley, chopped
  1. Cook the quinoa as per package instructions.
  2. As the quinoa is cooking, heat the olive oil in a large pan. Sautee the onions until translucent. Add the garlic and anchovy paste, sautee until you can smell the garlic.Add the spices.
  3. Add the red pepper and olives, stir until the red peppers are slightly cooked. Stir in the parley.
  4. Mix the sauce with the cooked quinoa.

Note: I didn’t add any salt to this recipe because the anchovies and olives add quite a bit. If you are omitting either, taste the sauce to see if it needs any salt.

Enjoy!