Earth Mother

I have a big stock pile of delicious meatless meals to share with you, so I think it's time to start. 

You might have figured out that I love risotto by now and although I usually serve it as a side dish, it doesn't have to be just a side. It can be the whole meal! 

And because rice is such a great food for building flavours with, risotto can taste like anything you want. You can add tons of veggies, herbs, proteins, and anything you want. The possibilities are endless. 

The recipe I am sharing today is full of very earthy flavours and is super healthy (if you forget that there's cheese in there!)

Apple of My Eye

I am a big fan of apple sauce. I use in for baking, for making ribs, tons of other things, and just of eating too of course. 

Apples are really healthy and cooking with apple sauce means that you don't need to cook with as much refined sugar. 

I used to think that making apple sauce would take forever and require a lot of work. But after I made it just one time, I knew that I was very wrong and that making apple sauce was very easy. 

I know that you're going to want to cook some up right away, so I won't make you wait. 

Grate Expectations

I love breakfast for dinner of nearly all kinds. I love waffles, pancakes, eggs, and toast. I love fruit cut into beautiful shapes s and different kinds of speciality teas. I love almost everything, except for cereal for dinner.

Cereal for dinner seems a little sad, a little too much like something a bachelor would do. And I most certainly not a sad bachelor.

So when I remembered that it was Shove Tuesday today, I jumped at the chance to indulge in one of my favourite treats.

The name Shrove Tuesday comes from medieval times and the word shove is derived from "shrived", meaning "to confess". In medieval times, Shrove Tuesday was the last chance to treat yourself before lent and since pancakes have fat, butter, and eggs (no-no's for lent), pancakes have been traditionally eaten on this day.

I do not attempt to give up anything for lent. I know how disappointed I get when I fail at something, and I know if I tried to give up a certain kind of editable treat, I was surely fail. Plus, I am still working on my one meatless meal per week New Year's resolution, so I think I am doing enough.

But, that being said, I love pancakes. So let the indulging begin!

Angry Lobster

By the title of this post you may think I am mad at a lobster or maybe just mad and general and the colour of a lobster. But I'm actually very happy. 

I'm happy because I'm going to tell you about my birthday dinner and I am always happy on my birthday. 

I love to have a day that's all about me. A day that I can relax, drink tea, go shopping, and eat all the delicious treats I can think of. I can read magazines, watch a movie, put my feet up, and I get phone calls filled with love all day long. 

It may come to a shock to you, but the magazines I love to read most are cooking magazines. I know, it's a shocker. And I love reading about famous chefs and trying to recreate or put a spin on their recipes. 

One recipe that has always caught my eye was one of David Burke's recipes- none other than his Angry Lobster. All of David Burke's recipes have unique and creative presentations, but this one is the most memorable to me. He uses a round frog (a spiky holder for flower designs) and impales lemon wedges and cooked lobster on it.

My version of Angry Lobster isn't quite so angry, but it was delicious. And probably a lot easier to make too!

Pretty Please with a Cherry on Top

Happy Valentine's Day everyone!

I'll keep this post short and sweet so that you can go on celebrating today with your loved ones.

But incase you were wondering what I'm going to make for dinner with my Sweetie tonight, you won't have to wonder long. I'll be showing you everything over the next week and you won't be disappointed. It's going to be great!

Today's recipe is a dessert I made inspired by today and there's only one trick to it - make sure your cherries are well drained and dry as possible. Otherwise your dessert will have to dry out on your counter for an hour or so before you can think about enjoying a bite.

Piece de Resistance

Piece de resistance literally translates to piece of resistance, but means the showpiece. And that's exactly what my birthday cake was this year.

Did I forget to mention that today's my birthday?

I know this dessert isn't technically a cake, but it's something I've always wanted to try making and it sure was delicious.

The only problem with making this dessert was that it took a little longer than making a regular cake and now I'm going to want one of these showpieces every year.

Get ready to marvel at my croquembouche!

Raising the Bar

When I was home visiting my mom, I saw a well loved recipe pinned to her fridge. I saw the recipe was from a magazine and checked the date to see how long it had been there. 

I was very surprised to see that the recipe was from a magazine only a year old. The paper was a bit oily and there were a lot of crumpled edges, so I knew this recipe had to have been recreated a few times. And that meant it was good. 

We added a few more dates that were featured in the original recipe and that made the dessert even tastier. 

Check out the bars and let me know what you think!

Stocking Up

Today I am home sick and all I want is for someone to make me some soup.

Unfortunately, no one is home with me.

But fortunately, I have some homemade chicken stock in my fridge and, after a nap, I think I will have enough energy to pull myself off the sofa and put something together myself.

I always like to have a stock of homemade stock (pun intended) in my fridge or freezer. And making stock is very easy and inexpensive. All you need are poultry bones, water, veggies, and seasoning.

Just make sure you have some on hand before you get sick, or else you might have to reach for a can of condensed stuff that's been around forever.

Dress It Up

I love dressing. I think I could eat just a big bowl of the stuff and leave all the other turkey dinner fixings alone.

But when I tried my mom's version of dressing, all my previous thoughts about my favourite holiday disappeared. Now I know what dressing is supposed to taste like and now I really REALLY love it. 

One of the key features about my love for this recipe is how all fruit and veggies are all grated. I thought bigger would be better until I tried it this way. The second key feature is using day-old sourdough bread; the flavour you get from this bread is unbeatable!

I won't make you wait any longer - here it is!

A Feather in Your Cap

If you weren't a big fan of the last brussel sprout recipe I showed you, maybe you'll like this new one and keep it as a feather in your cap for your next holiday meal. 

The sprouts have a cool name, Feathered Sprouts, and taste delicious too. Also, since they're feathered, meaning all the leaves are separated, they barely taste like brussel sprouts at all. 

That got all of you listening didn't it. 

And I'm telling the truth. Separating the leaves from the sprout makes each brussel sprout cook very evenly. The leaves are all the same thickness and they don't take long to cook at all. Just watch them and taste a few leaves to make you take them off the heat at your desired doneness. 

Hopefully this recipe helps you love this veggie as much as I do!

Birthmas

Birthmas is a mashed up holiday for people like me; people who are not able to be with their families at all holiday. It's a time that you can get together between birthdays and Christmas and relax, enjoy each other, and above all - eat.

I just got back to Victoria after visiting with my own family in Ontario for a week and we celebrated the elusive holiday of Birthmas to the fullest extent. And instead of making holiday dishes that I am familiar with, my mom and I made her holiday dishes that I missed out on during Christmas.

This week I will sharing recipes from Birthmas that I know will have you drooling and wishing you could celebrate the holiday yourself.

Remember though, if today is between Christmas and a birthday - you can!

First, here is my mom (and Chef Gordon Ramsay's) version of a delicious moist turkey. It would be a keeper for my recipe files even if my mom hadn't made it for my first Birthmas.