The Year of The Hash

I do love eggs. I had already eaten them for two meals today and was contemplating including them in a third when I decided to post this recipe. That yolky goodness adds dimension to any dish, which is why I've posted my fair share of egg dishes. It's also not the first time in recent history that I've tried a hash casserole. You can thank Jamie Oliver for this somewhat repetitive post. I'm now following him on Instagram and have been making nothing but Jamie's recipes ever since. Pictures really do sell a product and his are phenomenal. Hope you enjoy this one as much as I do!

Giant Veg Rosti

From: http://www.jamieoliver.com

Serves 6

Ingredients

• 600g potatoes
• 3 large carrots
• 1/2 t dijon mustard
• 1/2 lemon
• extra virgin olive oil
• 100g frozen peas
• 100g baby spinach
• 4 large eggs
• 50g feta cheese

Method

Preheat oven to 350F. Peel the potatoes and carrots and grate them either using a box grater or a grating attachment of a food processor. Add a pinch of salt and toss the mix well.  Set the potato, carrot mix aside to allow the salt to draw water from the vegetables. After a few minutes and using your hands, squeeze out as much water from the potatoes and carrots as you can.

In a bowl, combine the lemon, dijon, one-and-a-half tablespoons of olive oil and a pinch of salt and pepper.  In another bowl, add a few tablespoons of olive oil and toss in the potato and carrot mixture. Season the mix with salt and pepper and spread the mixture into a baking dish about 9" X 13". Roast the veggies for about 35 minutes or until they're golden on the surface.

To prepare the peas, either blanche them in boiling water for two minutes or microwave them for three. Add the peas and spinach to the bowl with the prepared dressing and toss well. Poach the eggs to your liking. I needed a little coaching from Jamie Oliver: www.jamieoliver.com
To finish the dish, place the salad on top of the hash, follow with the eggs and crumble the feta over the baking dish.

A few more eggs to go!

Sweet Potato, Spinach Bacon Burgers

Feedback is important to any endeavour and food is no exception. I made these burgers about 6 weeks ago and brought some to work for my colleagues to sample. They were really well received and even made by a colleague who hasn't stopped raving about them.

When I was new to the cooking scene, I evaluated recipes based on the number of instruments required to make the dish and the number of ingredients. If the ingredients list has more than 6 items and called for food processors or double boilers, I wasn't making it. If you take the same approach, the burgers may appear daunting at first, but I'd ask you to ignore your initial judgement and persevere. The recipe makes about 15 burgers and they're not the kind of food one would tire of quickly.  I should know. I suffer from leftover phobia and can't stomach eating the same dish more than two or three times. Oy, that sounded like a first world problem, if there ever was one! My point is the effort is definitely worth it. I plan on making these again over the weekend. I've served them neat, on a toasted english muffin and on top of a salad. They are filled with all kinds of great ingredients such as sweet potato and spinach, which makes them even more endearing.

Adapted from: http://www.tastesoflizzyt.com


Ingredients

• 1 package of bacon
• 2 medium sweet potatoes
• 1/2 onion, finely chopped
• 2 cups fresh spinach, chopped
• 1 t salt
• 1 t minced garlic
• 1 t paprika
• 2 t hot mustard
• 4 t dried rosemary
• 2 eggs
• 4 T all purpose flour
• 2 lbs ground chicken or turkey

Method

Cook the bacon until crispy, either in a frying pan or my preferred method, on a cookie sheet in the oven at 350F. Once cooked, remove from heat, pat dry and chop into small pieces.

Use a food processor to finely chop the spinach, sweet potato and onion.

In a bowl, combine the bacon, sweet potato, spinach and onion. Add the remaining ingredients and mix well. Form the mixture into about 15 patties. Place the patties on a line cookie sheet and bake for about 10 minutes at 375F. Remove from oven, turn the patties over and return to the oven for another ten minutes. Check the centre of a patty to ensure it is cooked through. Remove from oven and serve.

Balsamic Roast Chicken with Tomatoes & Mushrooms

I didn't realize it was already time for my annual thumb grating culinary fiasco, but here we are again. While cooking this morning, I attempted to pull off the guard on my new microplane and ended up shredding my right thumb in the process. Last year was the left with a mandolin. It appears my thumbs are taking turns sacrificing themselves in order to give each other a break.

My sous-chef did much of the preparation on this recipe due to my wound. Handling raw chicken with an open cut isn't sanitary for the chicken or the cook, so I needed a spare set of hands. I was grateful for the help and he was grateful this recipe was easy. 

My take on this dish is as follows:
While the dressing seasons the chicken quite nicely, the selling point of this recipe is the vegetable combination. It is bright and light as a side to the chicken. It was also welcome on Edmonton's first snow day of the season. If you've got a piece of fish you'd like to use, I would expect good results swapping out the chicken for your fish.

Adapted From: http://www.domesticate-me.com

Serves 4

Ingredients

• 1, 3lb chicken or chicken parts (I used 4 chicken breasts & modified the instructions to suit)
• 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
• 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1 T salt
• 1 t pepper
• 4 garlic cloves, 2 minced and 2 sliced
• 1 lemon sliced
• 4 large basil leaves
• 1 large red onion, cut into wedges
• 2 cups crimini mushrooms, quartered
• 1 pint cherry tomatoes
• fresh arugula or spinach leaves for serving

Preheat the oven to 375F. Whisk the vinegar, oil, minced garlic, salt and pepper in a bowl. 

In another bowl, combine the onion, mushrooms and tomatoes. Pour a third of the dressing over the vegetables and toss to coat.

Rinse the chicken with cold water and pat dry. Pour a third of the dressing under the skin of each of the breasts. Place a lemon slice, a few slices of garlic and a basil leaf under each of the breasts (if you are using a whole chicken, visit the website for prep instructions.

Pour the remaining third of the dressing over the breasts. Rub the dressing all over the meat to coat it well. Place the breasts in an uncovered casserole dish and bake for 15 minutes. Flip the breasts, baste them with the juices lurking in the bottom of the dish and cook on their other side for 15 minutes. Remove from the oven and add the vegetables around the chicken, tenting the dish with foil before returning it to the oven for another 15 minutes. Remove from the oven again (last time!) and place the vegetables and juices in a pan, simmering until the juices thicken. Once thickened, serve the vegetables and chicken on a bed of fresh spinach or arugula.

A Soup Affair

Thai sweet potato bisque

 On this do-nothing October weekend I have defied the odds and done something: cook! Soup is on the menu and it's going to be a doozy, due to the multitude of soup recipes I've found that I must try. Ruedi is sporting his baking hat and is all over the bread. One cannot experiment with soup without plenty of crusty bread.

First off is a Thai-inspired sweet potato bisque. For those of you who don't do spicy, omit the jalapeño. Heat or no heat, you'll still get a delicious soup. I opted to add sambal oelek in addition to the jalapeño because I'm on a heat kick. After tasting this soup I added minced basil to it. I felt it needed a bit more oomph and basil was the ticket.

Italian parsley soup with ricotta spaetzle

Following this, I experimented with an Italian parsley and ricotta spaetzle soup. Spaetzle is a German pasta or dumpling which is often served as a side dish. This time, it was added to a clean-tasting, but flavourful soup. The recipe calls for watercress leaves, but I had spinach on hand. Just make sure to trim your greens' stems well to avoid the stringy remains in your blended soup.


Thai Sweet Potato Bisque

From: http://jillyinspired.blogspot.ca

Serves 6

Ingredients

• 3 large sweet potatoes, peeled and chopped
• 1 red pepper, halved and seeded
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 1 jalapeño, diced
• 1, 1 inch piece of ginger, peeled and grated
• 6 reduced salt bouillon cubes
• 1/2 t ground cinnamon, plus more for sprinkling on top of the soup
• 6 cups of water
• Canola or coconut oil for cooking
• 14 oz can of coconut milk (I chose light)
• Sea salt to taste
• Lime zest from half a lime
• 2 T, minced fresh basil
• To serve, wedges of lime, basil (thai if you have it), ground cinnamon and sea salt

Method

Place the red pepper face down on a foil-covered cookie sheet and broil on high for 10-15 minutes. The skin should be blackened at that point, but if not, keep broiling until blackened. Remove from cookie sheet and place in a bowl, covering to allow to steam for a few minutes longer. Once cooled, remove the skins, chop and set aside.

In a large pot, saute the onion and jalapeño in a little oil until the onion has softened. Add the potatoes, ginger, bouillon cubes and water to the pot. Cover and bring the pot to a boil, reduce heat and simmer until the potatoes have softened, about 10 minutes. Add a dash of cinnamon to the pot. Puree the soup with an immersion blender. Add the lime zest, basil and season with salt and pepper.

Serve with lime wedges and any combination of the seasonings mentioned in last bullet of the ingredients section. While this soup can be served immediately, it ages quite well. 

Italian Parsley Soup with Ricotta Spaetzle

From: http://www.playinwithmyfood.com

Serves 4-6

For the Soup

• 3 T olive oil
• 2 medium onion, peeled and thinly sliced
• 2 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
• 1 large red potato, peeled and diced
• 4 cups of vegetable stock
• 1 bunch of watercress, washed with stems removed (I used spinach)
• 2 cups fresh italian parsley, washed with stems removed
• 1 t sugar
• salt & pepper to taste

Method

Heat the oil in a sauce pan and add onions, sautéing until softened, but not browned. Add the potato and garlic and cook for 5 minutes. If the mixture starts to stick, add a little stock to loosen the vegetables. Add the spinach, parsley, stock, sugar, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, remove from heat and puree with an immersion blender. Set aside while you make the spaetzle.

For the Spaetzle

• 1 cup all purpose flour
• 2 large eggs
• 1/2 cup whole milk
• 1/2 cup whole milk ricotta
• 1 garlic clove, peeled and crushed
• 1/4 cup finely grated parmesan
• 1/4 t ground all spice
• salt & pepper to taste

Method

Sift the flour, salt and pepper in one bowl. In another, whisk in the remaining ingredients until blended. Add the flour in batches until completely combined. 

Bring a medium-sized pot of water to a boil. Spoon some of the batter into a colander placed over the pot (I used a slotted spoon since I didn't have a colander with large enough holes). Push the batter through the colander. The batter will drop into the pot in chunks and once blanched, rise to the top of the pot. With a slotted spoon, scoop the spaetzle out of the pot and into the soup. Continue cooking the batter until all of it has been blanched. 

I ended up with more spaetzle than I knew what to do with, so I set some aside for other, yet to be determined uses. This soup can be eaten immediately. I topped mine with a bit of leftover parsley and served with some crusty parmesan french bread.

Palak Paneer & Aloo Gobi

If you've visited Remedy Cafe in Edmonton and haven't tried the Palak Paneer, come over here so I can smack you across the head. It is the reason why I have no idea what anything else at Remedy tastes like (except the chai...ooohweee, yummy!). When a friend of mine offered to take me to a local Indian supermarket called Fruiticana, I figured this was an opportunity to attempt my own rendition of Palak Paneer and Aloo Gobi, another recipe I'd been pondering. Fruiticana is on 34th Avenue and 93rd Street and is one of a few markets in the city that offer a great selection of Indian treats.  

Make sure that you include tamarind sauce and roti or naan bread with your purchase. The palak paneer needs that sweet compliment to balance the salty one. Oh and of course, don't forget the beer!

Aloo Gobi

Serves 4

Adapted from: http://www.7spice.net

Ingredients

• 2 large russet potatoes, diced, but not peeled
• 4 cups cauliflower, chopped into bite-size pieces and parboiled
• 1 cup frozen or fresh peas
• 2 T oil
• 2 t mustard seeds
• 1 t cumin seeds
• 2 T garlic chutney plus 2 t
• 2 t garlic paste
• 2 t turmeric
• 2 t chili powder
• 2 t coriander powder
• 1 t garam masala
• 1 pinch of kasuri (kasoori) methi
• salt to taste
• water as required

Method

Wash and dice the potatoes and set aside. Boil the chopped cauliflower for two minutes and remove from heat. Drain and rinse the cauliflower with cold water set it aside until required.

Heat the oil in a large frying pan. Add the mustard seeds and let them crackle for a few seconds before adding the cumin seeds. Add the 2 tablespoons of garlic chutney, 1 teaspoon of the garlic paste and the potatoes, mixing well.  Season with salt and add about two tablespoons of water to the pan. Cover and let cook for about 5-8 minutes. Check after 5 minutes and if the potatoes, once poked feel like they're about 50% cooked, add the cauliflower. If not, let them cook another 3 minutes. Add the cauliflower, another 2 tablespoons of water, cover and cook for another 5-8 minutes. If you're using fresh peas, add them with the cauliflower. The resulting curry will be dry. 

If cooking with frozen peas, add them after the cauliflower has cooked. Once the cauliflower and potatoes are tender when poked, but still hold their shape, add the coriander turmeric and chili, mixing well. Add the second teaspoon of garlic paste and the remaining 2 teaspoons of chutney at this point. Cook for another 2 minutes on low heat. Remove from heat and add the garam masala and kasuri methi. Season with more salt if required. 

Serve with warm roti and a cold lager.


Palak Paneer

Serves 4

From: The back of a box of National Palak Paneer Spice Mix (50g)

Ingredients

• Paneer 200g (I used a 340g brick of it), cut into cubes
• 1/2 kg spinach
• 1/2 cup oil/ghee
• 1 T ginger paste
• 1 T garlic paste
• 2 green chilies, finely chopped
• 1 cup fresh milk
• 1/2 cup fresh cream
• 1 T soy leaves (didn't have these and did not substitute with anything)
• National Palak Paneer Spice Mix (50g)

Method

Boil spinach and grind in a food processor.

In a sauce pan, fry the ginger and garlic paste in the oil/ghee for 2-3 minutes or until light brown. Add the spinach, chillies and spice mix and fry for about 5 minutes. Add the milk and cook for 2-3 minutes. Finally, add the soy leaves and cream and cook for another 5-10 minutes.

In a separate fry pan, heat a tablespoon of oil and brown the paneer. Remove from pan and soak in ice water for 10 seconds, then remove.  

Add paneer to the spinach mix and cook for 2 minutes. 

Serve with roti or naan and tamarind sauce.  

Feta & Basil Crusted Halibut with Wilted Spinach & Risotto

And we are back! After a two-month hiatus, I am back in the kitchen preparing new dishes worthy of blogging about. My summer sandwich assembly and barbecue routine just didn't make the EBF cut, so I set the blog aside until I could devote a little time to trying something new. 

A recent trip to Iceland has given me a new appreciation for all Scandinavian foods, so I was poking around Billingsgate Seafood Market yesterday looking for Gravlax and other Nordic delights. What I picked up instead was a nice piece of halibut, so I spent last night working with it. This is a recipe I would make again, especially for company. The entire meal took me about an hour to prepare from start to finish and is visually pleasing. The combined flavours are surprisingly bold and if you have guests that appreciate good fish, I would add this to you entertaining menu.

From: http://thebitehouse.com

Serves 4


Risotto

• 1 cup Arborio rice
• 2 small onions, chopped
• 3T plus 1T butter
• 2-3 cups of water or vegetable stock
• 1/2 cup white wine
• 100g aged cheddar, grated
• Salt and pepper to taste

Feta and Basil Halibut  

• 4 T dijon mustard
• 1/2 cup bread crumbs
• 100g crumbled feta
• Handful of chopped basil
• 2 T olive oil
• Ground pepper
• 4 pieces of halibut 

**I opted for fillets, but the recipe I followed used steaks

Wilted Spinach

• 4 handfuls of baby spinach
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced
• 4 T butter
• Salt and pepper to taste

For the Risotto

Simmer the stock in a pot to keep it warm (I used what I had left for stock and topped it up with water). Saute the onions in three tablespoons of melted butter in a large pot until they are soft, about five minutes. Add the rice and the wine, mixing well until the wine is absorbed by the rice. Add the stock, about a half-cup at a time, letting each portion be absorbed by the rice before more is added. This should take about twenty minutes. Test the rice to ensure it is cooked through, adding a little water if required to soften it further. Remove the risotto from the heat and add the remaining tablespoon of butter, the cheddar and salt and pepper to taste. Stir until all ingredients are well incorporated.

For the Halibut

Preheat oven to 400F. In a bowl, combine the feta, basil, breadcrumbs, olive oil and pepper. Place the fish in a well-oiled baking dish. Cover the fillets each with a tablespoon of the mustard. Coat the top of each fillet with the breadcrumb mixture. Bake uncovered for ten to fifteen minutes, depending on the thickness of the halibut. 

For the Spinach

Saute the minced garlic in the melted butter for about two minutes. Add the spinach, coating it with the butter and garlic mixture, cover it and remove it from the heat. Let stand for a minute before serving. Season with salt and pepper.

Pesto Pea Salad

I know this blog is drowning in salad recipes, but I'm hoping they are as useful to others as they are to me. I enjoy creamy potato and pasta salads, but am well aware that they are loaded with mayo, other hidden fats and sugars. This version of a pasta salad supplements some of that mayo with yoghurt, which not only offers more in the way of food value, but reduces the fat content too. Go for 2% greek yoghurt and you'll cut out even more fat (although, I did not do that here!). While pesto is loaded with olive oil, again it is a better alternative to mayo as far as nutritive value. I did the unthinkable and fattened up this bad boy with parmesan and prosciutto. I am ok with this decision. I was a delicious one.

Adapted from: http://soupaddict.com/

Serves 6 

Ingredients

• 350 g of dried pasta
• 1/2 cup basil pesto
• 1/2 cup greek yoghurt
• 2 T mayonnaise
• 1 T lemon juice
• 1/4 t salt
• 1/2 cup fresh or frozen peas (thawed)
• 2 big handfuls of spinach
• 1/4 radishes sliced
• grated parmesan to garnish
• pepper to taste

Method

Prepare the dressing by combining the yoghurt, mayonnaise, lemon juice, salt and pesto and mixing well.  Cook the pasta according to package instructions, drain and set aside. Blanch the spinach in boiling water for approximately one minute. Mix the pasta with half of the salad dressing, adding more to taste as per your preference.  Finally, add the vegetables and toss well. I topped my salad servings with fresh pepper, parmesan and some leftover prosciutto.

Bring on the Salads!

Warm Shrimp & Edamame Bean Salad

Chatelaine was always my mom's magazine. I remember seeing it in the kitchen on many occasions with the pages folded in several directions to bookmark articles and recipes. This year, I received a gift subscription and have been pleasantly surprised with it. Local fashion content means I can get to the clothes on display and the recipes are varied and delicious. I found a month's worth of salad recipes via Chatelaine online and immediately perked up. I love, love, love bringing salads for lunch, so this in essence became a lunch guide for Liv. Only tried two so far, but if you get a chance to sample others, let me know how they turn out!

Warm Shrimp & Edamame Bean Salad

Adapted from: http://food.chatelaine.com

Serves 4

Ingredients

• 500g frozen, shelled edamame beans (Superstore and T&T Supermarket had these in stock)
• 340g or 1lb or frozen, peeled, uncooked shrimp
• 2 large lemons
• 2 t honey
• 3 T olive oil
• 1/4 cup fresh, chopped dill
• 1 red pepper, finely chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 red onion, sliced thinly
• Salt & pepper to taste

Method

Mix honey, dill, onion, 2 tablespoons of olive oil and several generous pinches of salt and ground pepper in a large bowl. Mix well and set aside. Fill a large pot with water and bring to a boil over high heat. Once boiling, add the edamame beans and a little salt and let boil for 4-5 minutes. The beans should be tender, but not disintegrating when done.

Lightly coat a frying pan with the remaining tablespoon of oil. Add the shrimp, chopped pepper and garlic and let simmer for approximately 3 minutes, or until the shrimp turn pink. Add the shrimp mix and beans to the vinaigrette bowl and toss well. Serve warm.

Super-Fast Antipasto Salad

Super-Fast Antipasto Salad

Serves 4

From: http://food.chatelaine.com

Ingredients

• 1 lemon
• 2 T olive oil
• 1 1/2 t dried oregano
• 3 cups baby spinach
• 8 slices of salami, chopped (about 56 g)
• 1, 540 ml tin of chick peas
• 1/3 cup kalamata olives sliced in halves
• 1 red pepper, finely chopped or two roasted red peppers chopped
• 1/4 cup chopped chives or mint
• Salt & pepper to taste

Method

To make the vinaigrette, combine the juice of a lemon with the olive oil and oregano. Add generous pinches of salt and pepper and mix well. Toss chick peas into dressing and mix well. Combine remaining ingredients into bowl and serve. If making ahead, combine all ingredients except the spinach and add spinach when ready to serve.

Eggplant Involtini with Herbed Ricotta

This recipe called for slices of eggplant to be wrapped around a ricotta filling. My eggplant slices weren't thin enough to make it work and I was on a schedule. Instead I built this dish quickly, like a lasagna: a layer of tomato sauce, layer of ricotta, and layer of eggplant repeated. I topped this off with a few cups of spinach left over from a half-finished salad. Not bad, not bad at all. 

The meatless dishes I'm finding are pretty concentrated in the cheese department and although I won't forego dairy, cutting back wouldn't hurt with respect to other recipes. Don't cut back on this one. Ricotta and cottage cheese give it a wonderful texture and build on it's already zesty flavour. 

Adapted From: http://simply-delicious.co.za

Serves 8

Ingredients

• 2 large eggplants, sliced into ½ inch slices
• Olive oil, for brushing

Ricotta Filling 

• 1 cup ricotta cheese
• 1 cup cottage cheese
• 2 T each fresh mint, parsley and basil, finely chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, crushed
• Salt & pepper to taste
• 1 chilli, finely chopped (optional)

Tomato sauce 

• 1 28 oz tin of whole tomatoes
• 1 red onion, roughly chopped
• 1 garlic clove, sliced
• 1 t sugar
• 2 t salt
• 2 t dried Italian herbs
• Black pepper, to taste
• Grated asiago, for topping

Method

Pre-heat the oven to 400F.

Start by grilling the eggplant. Simply brush each eggplant slice with olive oil and place on a very hot pan. Grill for 2-3 minutes per side. Remove from the pan and set aside. Continue until all the eggplant slices have been grilled.

To make the filling, simply combine all the ingredients and mix well.

Before making the involtini, make the tomato sauce. I use my food processor for this but you could use a hand blender or just finely chop everything and mix. I place all the ingredients in my food processor and blend until the sauce is relatively smooth.

Pour the tomato sauce in the bottom of an oven-proof dish.

To make the involtini, place a dollop of the ricotta filling onto a slice of eggplant and roll up.  Place in the tomato sauce and continue until all the eggplant slices have been used.

If you have any filling left over you can dollop it on top of the eggplant slices.

Scatter the grated asiago over the top and place in the oven.

Allow to bake for 15-20 minutes until the sauce is bubbling and the cheese is golden brown.

Remove from the oven and serve with grilled bread and a green salad.

Tuscan White Beans with Spinach, Shrimp & Feta

Heavy meal, light meal, heavy meal, light meal. I don't post everything I cook, so the cycle may not be as obvious on this blog, but I have a tendency to make a heavy meal and follow it with a light meal. This isn't any astounding observation, just a little build-up to my dinner menu for this evening. Ta-da!!

From: http://www.skinnytaste.com

Serves 4

Ingredients

• 2 tsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1 lb large shrimp, peeled and deveined (weight after peeled)
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 tsp chopped fresh sage
• 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 1/2 cup low sodium, fat-free chicken broth
• 15 oz can cannellini beans rinsed and drained 
• 5 cups baby spinach
• 1 1/2 oz crumbled reduced-fat feta cheese

Method

Heat 1 teaspoon oil in a large non-stick skillet over medium-high heat. Cook shrimp until just opaque, about 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer to a plate.

Heat remaining oil in the same skillet over medium-high heat and add onion, garlic and sage; cook 4 minutes stirring occasionally until golden. Stir in vinegar and cook 30 seconds.

Remove from heat and stir in shrimp. Top with feta cheese and divide in 4 bowls.

Basil, Goat Cheese, Tuna, Red Pepper, Spinach and Mozzarella Orzo

I might obsess about food a little...


Mmm, maybe a lot. I don't know of too many individuals that mull over their meal plans as much as I do, although I know my female colleagues definitely talk about what they should have for dinner near the end of the day. If I don't have a stocked fridge, I feel naked in the food department. At times like this you may here remarks such as:
"Well, I guess I should just raid the vending machine, because that's as good as it gets tonight for this cook".


The reality is usually quite different, although I didn't feel that way when I got home last night. We had goat cheese, mozzarella, rice, orzo, old spinach, two red peppers, half an old shallot, some fresh basil I had forgotten about and many other ingredients. I had been dying to do something with a can of tuna we bought for a backcountry hike and never used, so this recipe took shape pretty quickly. 


My new cast iron skillet (perfect murder weapon, by the way) was coated with olive oil so that the garlic and shallots could saute themselves silly. While this was happening, I let the red pepper roast face down on a cookie sheet in the oven for about 20 minutes at 350 degrees. Once the garlic and shallots were sauteed, I added the goat cheese and chicken stock to the pan. Once the cheese had melted the orzo went in and was tossed to mix with the cheese sauce. The spinach, chopped roasted red pepper and tuna followed about 2 minutes later to mix with the other flavours. I topped this off with some grated mozzarella and basil and mixed them in well. Salt and pepper was added to taste. Call it a modern day tuna casserole.


Serves 4-6


Ingredients

• 2 T olive oil
• 1 clove of garlic, minced
• 1 shallot, minced
• 150g of goat cheese
• 3/4 cup chicken stock
• 1 1/2 cups orzo cooked
• 1 red pepper
• 2 cups baby spinach, packed
• 1/2 cup grated mozzarella
• 3 T basil, chopped
• 1 can of tuna
• salt and pepper

Chicken & Spinach Soup with Fresh Pesto

From: www.deelish.com


Serves 6


Ingredients

• 3 T olive oil
• 1/2 cup carrot or diced
• 1 large boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into quarters
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 5 cups chicken broth
• 1 1/2 t dried marjoram
• 3 cups baby spinach, coarsely chopped
• 1, 15-oz cannellini beans, rinsed
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 1/3 cup lightly packed fresh basil leaves
• Freshly ground pepper to taste
• 3/4 cup croutons for garnish 

Heat 2 teaspoons oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add carrot and chicken; cook, turning the chicken and stirring frequently, until the chicken begins to brown, 3 to 4 minutes. Add garlic and cook, stirring, for 1 minute more. Stir in broth and marjoram; bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the chicken is cooked through, about 5 minutes.


With a slotted spoon, transfer the chicken pieces to a clean cutting board to cool. Add spinach and beans to the pot and bring to a gentle boil. Cook for 5 minutes to blend the flavours.
Combine the remaining 1 tablespoon oil, Parmesan, and basil in a food processor (a mini processor works well). Process until a coarse paste forms, adding a little water and scraping down the sides as necessary. 


Cut the chicken into bite-size pieces. Stir the chicken and pesto into the pot. Season with pepper. Heat until hot. Garnish with croutons and serve.

Stuffed Steak Pinwheels

THIS is a lump of meat. Doesn't look like much... scroll past the recipe for the end result. I deviated from the instructions a bit and ended laying the bacon and rolling the steak in the opposite direction. Doesn't look like much, but the end result was a tasty steak. Anything with bacon can't be bad.


From: Better Homes and Gardens - Grill It


Serves 6

• 8 slices bacon
• 1 1/4 1 1/2 pound beef flank steak or boneless top round steak
• 3/4 t lemon pepper seasoning
• 1/4 t salt
• 1 10-oz package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and well drained
• 1/3 cup crumbled feta cheese
• 2 T fine dry bread crumbs
• 1/2 t dried thyme, crushed
• grilled cherry tomatoes (optional)

In a large skillet cook bacon over medium heat just until brown, but not crisp. Drain bacon on paper towels. Trim fat from steak. Score both sides of steak in a diamond pattern by making shallow diagonal cuts at 1-inch intervals. Cut meat in half lengthwise. Place portions of meat between 2 pieces of plastic wrap. Using the flat side of a meat mallet, pound steak lightly to a 10X6 inch rectangle, working from the centre to the edges. Discard plastic wrap. Sprinkle meat with 1/2 tsp of the lemon-pepper seasoning and the salt. Arrange bacon slices lengthwise on meat.


For stuffing, in a medium bowl combine feta, spinach, bread crumbs, the dried thyme, and the remaining 1/4 tsp lemon-pepper seasoning. Spread stuffing over meat. Starting from a short side, roll each portion of meat into a spiral. Secure with wooden toothpicks at 1-inch intervals, starting 1/2 inch from 1 end. Cutting between the toothpicks, slice each roll into six 1-inch-thick pinwheels. On each of six 6-inch skewers, thread 2 pinwheels.


For a charcoal grill, grill pinwheels on the rack of an uncovered grill directly over medium coals for 12 to 14 minutes for medium doneness (160F), turning once halfway through  grilling. (For a gas grill, preheat grill. Reduce heat to medium. Place pinwheels on grill rack over heat. Cover and grill as directed.)


To serve, remove pinwheels from skewers; remove toothpicks. If desired, garnish pinwheels with grilled tomatoes. The end result below was served with potatoes and greek salad.

Artichoke & Red Pepper Melt

Artichoke and Red Pepper Melt

Serves 2

Adapted from http://pinchofyum.com;

Ingredients

• 2 slices whole wheat bread, crust on the outside
• 6 T hummus
• 1 red pepper, roasted and sliced
• 1/2 cup artichokes, drained and chopped 
• 1/2 cup fresh spinach
• 4 T mozzarella cheese (I found smoked mozza at the market and used this)

Method

Divide toppings between the two bread slices in this order: hummus, red pepper, spinach, artichokes, and cheese.  Broil at 400 degrees for about 10 minutes or until cheese is melted.  Sprinkle with cayenne and serve with a drizzle of olive oil.