Dijon & Italian Breadcrumb Salmon with Lemon Dijon Green Beans and RR's Sesame Rice

Tonight I put together a meal using three recipes from three different places. We're moving in less than two weeks, so I'm working on building meals with what we have in the house rather than buying specific ingredients. Less to move that way! We're running low on meat, and my only options tonight were hamburger, pork tenderloin, or salmon. (I think I might have one more pack of chicken thighs in the back of the freezer but I didn't feel like digging to look for it.) We just had hamburger chili a couple nights ago (and of course for lunch yesterday) and I'm a bit sick of tenderloin since I've made 4 of them in the past 2-3 weeks, so I opted for the salmon. After a couple of recipe searches I settled on a recipe that combined salmon with Dijon mustard and breadcrumbs; it sounded good and I had all of the ingredients. Well, sort of. The recipe called for Italian-style breadcrumbs. I just had regular ones. So I combined them with Parmesan cheese and Italian seasoning to make my own version of Italian-style breadcrumbs. Yum! I also had beans in the freezer and another online search resulted in finding a recipe that used Dijon mustard to create a flavour tie-in with the salmon. Finally, since rice always goes well with fish, I decided to also make an easy and versatile Rachael Ray recipe that I've made several times, sesame rice (I posted a link to the recipe awhile ago but now you can find it below). I love the crunchy, nutty sesame seeds in the rice and the sesame oil adds a nice level of flavour. Below are all three recipes and the super simple preparation instructions.

Dijon & Italian Breadcrumb Salmon

1/4 cup fine bread crumbs

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1 tbsp Italian seasoning

2 salmon fillets (I used wild Sockeye)

2 tbsp Dijon mustard

salt & pepper to taste

3-4 tbsp butter, melted

Preheat oven to 400°F. Combine first three ingredients in a food processor, blending until the Parmesan is processed into fine pieces. Place salmon fillets, skin-side down, in a small casserole dish. Spread about a tbsp of Dijon mustard on each fillet (I used a pastry brush to spread it evenly). Sprinkle salmon with salt & pepper, then cover with the bread crumb mixture. Finally, pour the melted butter over the bread crumbs. Bake for about 15 minutes, until bread crumbs are browned and salmon is flaky.

Lemon Dijon Green Beans

about 2 tbsp butter

about 1 cup fresh or frozen green beans

about 1/2 tbsp Dijon mustard

about 1/2 tsp lemon juice

about 1/2 tsp dried dill weed

salt & pepper to taste

(I totally just eyeballed this recipe, hence the "about" amounts.)

Melt butter in saucepan and add beans, sautéing until tender crisp. (If you're using frozen beans, rinse in warm water first to soften them before sautéing). Add a spoonful of Dijon mustard, a splash of lemon juice, a few shakes of dried dill weed, and some salt & pepper if desired. Stir to combine and warm up the sauce.

RR's Sesame Rice

1 1/3 cup chicken stock

2/3 cup white rice (I used Jasmine)

2 tbsp sesame seeds, toasted

2 tbsp chives, chopped

1 tbsp sesame oil

Cook the rice in the chicken stock (I use a rice cooker. If you don't have one, it is worth your investment, especially since they don't cost much at all - you should have no trouble finding one for under $20). Once the rice is ready, add the remaining ingredients and stir to combine. I like to let it sit for a few minutes to allow the rice to absorb the oil. (Note: I toast my own sesame seeds - a couple minutes in the oven under the broiler - but you can buy them already toasted. If you toast your own, watch them carefully! I've burnt many a batch of sesame seeds...)

And there you have three quick and simple recipes that make a great meal when served together. My hubby raved about dinner tonight, so I guess it was good!

Chicken Balsamico Casserole

The home ec teacher at the school where my husband works made this amazing casserole for us when our daughter was born. I told Bill he had to get me the recipe since we both loved it so much. Turns out it's a Campbell's Kitchen recipe that she simply modified into a casserole. You can find the original recipe here, but if you want to make it into a casserole, follow the directions below.

Ingredients

1-1/2 cups rotini or penne pasta (use whole wheat or multigrain for extra nutrition)

2-3 boneless skinless chicken breasts

1-2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1-2 tsp Greek spice mix (recipe below)

1/2 cup chopped green pepper

1/4 cup chopped white onion

1 large clove garlic, minced

3 tbsp balsamic vinegar

3/4 cup water

1 can Campbell's Condensed Cream of Chicken soup

1 cup diced tomatoes

1/2 cup diced pitted kalamata olives

1/2-3/4 cup crumbled feta cheese

salt and pepper to taste

Greek Spice Mix

equal parts of dried parsley, thyme, marjoram, and oregano

1/2 a part of coarse black pepper

Method

Preheat oven to 350°F.

Bring several cups of water in a large pot to a boil, season with salt, and add pasta. Cook to al dente (don't overcook as it will finish cooking in the oven and you don't want the pasta to be soggy).

Drizzle the chicken breasts with olive oil and season with the Greek spice mix and either fry in a pan or bake in a 350°F oven until cooked through. Chop into bite-sized pieces.

While the chicken and pasta are cooking, heat a bit more olive oil in a large skillet or saucepan over medium high heat and sauté the onion and green pepper until just tender, about 2-3 minutes. Add the minced garlic for the last minute, just to soften it up a bit. Add the balsamic vinegar and water, cook and stir for 1 minute. Add the soup, tomatoes and olives, and heat to a boil, stirring constantly to ensure the soup breaks down and mixes well with everything.

Once you've drained the pasta, combine it with the chicken, feta, and sauce (in the skillet if there's room, or combine all in a large bowl).

Transfer to a large casserole dish, cover with tin foil, and bake in oven until heated through and bubbling, about 20-25 minutes.

Serve hot alone or with a green salad. Quick, easy, and delicious!

Note: I made this with pork once and it was just as delicious.

RR's French-Style Mac n' Cheese

Do you love macaroni and cheese? Do you want to try it with a twist? Look no further than Rachael Ray's French-Style Mac n' Cheese. It is amazingly delicious. I will definitely be making it again. Soon. (The only thing I did differently was add some asparagus and it worked perfectly in this dish. I also think it would taste yummy with grilled chicken in it if you wanted to add some meat protein.)

Greek-style Chicken in Phyllo

This recipe is from an awesome cookbook entitled The Best of the Best, given to me by my dear friend Janine. She made this dish for me once and I loved it so when she also gave me the cookbook I couldn't wait to try it. As usual, I changed it a bit to suit my tastes, and here is what I came up with. I've made this well over a dozen times in the past couple of years, in spite of the work involved, because it's just so delicious. And it's always a hit with company, so if you're looking for something to try out with guests, give this a whirl. This recipe makes 8 servings. Men (or women!) with hearty appetites will eat 2, so keep that in mind when you're deciding how many to make.

Greek-style Chicken in Phyllo

Ingredients

8-16 sheets phyllo pastry sheets (I buy them frozen at Safeway; be sure to thaw before using)

1/4 cup butter, melted

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, halved

salt to taste

1-2 tbsp Greek spice mix (recipe below)

1 bunch or half a small bag of fresh spinach leaves, stems removed (important)

1 bunch of fresh basil leaves, chopped (dried won't cut it)

1 large red pepper, cut into strips

1 cup feta cheese, crumbled

Greek Spice Mix

equal parts of dried parsley, thyme, marjoram, and oregano

1/2 a part of coarse black pepper

Method

Preheat oven to 375°F. Place rack in the middle of the oven.

It is VERY important that you prepare all of your ingredients before you begin assembling them in the phyllo dough. Phyllo dough is finicky, and can't be left out for long periods of time, so you want to have everything ready to go and within easy reach before you take the dough out of its packaging. I make an assembly line in the following order and it works really well: on the far left, the package of phyllo dough, then a bowl with melted butter and a pastry brush, then a plate with the chicken breast halves, then three small bowls - one with salt, one with greek spice mix, and one with the chopped basil, then the a bowl with the spinach, a plate with the red pepper, and finally, a bowl with the feta cheese. Leave enough counter space in front of your assembly line for the actual assembly. If you don't have a long enough counter, work around a corner, or use your dining room table.

Note: the easiest way to assemble these is with your hands and since you have to work quickly, you're going to be handling raw chicken, then the other ingredients, so only prep what you need. Anything extra will have to be thrown out due to cross-contamination.

Once your assembly line is ready to go, set out 1-2 baking dishes or cookie sheets with sides (depending on their size and how many servings you're making) at the end of the line and cover with a damp towel. This will prevent the rolled phyllo servings from drying out as you make the rest.

Now you're ready to begin putting these tasty packages together. Take out 1-2 sheets of phyllo dough per serving. I like to use two to help prevent tearing the dough while rolling, but if you don't want the corners where the dough is concentrated to be doughy, then only use one sheet. Once you've done this a couple of times you can assemble two at once, but I'd recommend just doing one at a time to being with.

Fold the phyllo sheet(s) in half (not lengthwise) and brush melted butter on the edges. Place a piece of chicken in the middle, near the bottom (or side, depending on how you have the dough positioned) of the phyllo. Season with salt and greek spices by sprinking some on with your fingers. Then add some of the chopped basil (I do about 1/2 tsp per serving). Next layer on the spinach leaves (6-8 per serving) and red pepper (3-4 slices per serving), and finish by sprinkling a healthy portion of feta on top of it all. Roll the chicken and phyllo over once, then fold edges toward the middle and continue rolling to form a small rectangular package. Use a bit more melted butter to help the dough stick if necessary. Place the finished package in the baking dish, brush with a little butter, and cover with the damp towel while making the others.

Once they are all prepared, remove the towel and bake for 25-30 minutes, until golden brown and chicken is cooked through. Serve hot with lots of Greek salad (see my next post for a killer Greek salad recipe). Absolutely scrumptious!

Marinated Fried Chicken with Warm Potato Salad

My husband loves fried chicken and I've been on quest to find the perfect fried chicken recipe. This past weekend, we were visiting his family in the Edmonton area and one afternoon my sister-in-law and I were watching the food channel. On one show, Art Smith's recipe for friend chicken was featured and I knew I had to try it. (For those of you who don't know - as I didn't - Art Smith was Oprah's personal chef for 10 years.) I didn't expect to find the recipe online since he serves it at his Table Fifty-Two restaurant in Chicago, on Sundays only, and charges about $24 for it. I remembered the basic process from the show and thought I'd just wing it, but after an online search, I found several recipes for fried chicken claiming to be Art Smith's. I'm not sure which, if any, is authentic; my guess is they're all close, but the real recipe remains a secret. Regardless, I knew the basic process of brining and marinating in buttermilk would be delicious, so I attempted my version of it for my hubby's birthday. Here's the recipe I followed and below is exactly what I did. My recipe is for 4 pieces of chicken (2 servings) so simply double if you're using a whole chicken to serve 4-6 people.

Marinated Fried Chicken

Ingredients

1/4 cup sea salt

8 cups cold water

2-3 sprigs fresh rosemary

2-3 sprigs fresh thyme

4 pieces of skin-on chicken (I used thighs because they're my hubby's favourite)

2 cups buttermilk

1 tbsp Tabasco sauce

1 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 tbsp baking powder

2 tsp garlic powder

2 tsp onion powder

2 tsp coarse ground pepper

2 tsp dried thyme

1-2 tsp sea salt

1/4-1/2 tsp cayenne pepper

Canola, or other frying oil

Method

In a large bowl with a lid, dissolve the salt in the water (I dissolved it in about a cup of hot water, then added the rest of the cold water). Add the sprigs of rosemary and thyme, then submerge the chicken. Put the lid on the bowl and place in the fridge for 12-24 hours. Make sure you brine the chicken for at least 12 hours - this is super important for moist, tender chicken. If you really want the flavour of the herbs to get into the meat, brine for the full 24 hours.

After chicken has brined for the appropriate amount of time, drain and rinse the chicken. Reserve the herbs. Transfer chicken to another bowl (or the same one rinsed) or a large ziploc bag. (I prefer a ziploc bag because you can usually get away with a little less marinade.) Add the buttermilk, Tabasco and reserved herbs. Refrigerate and marinate for at least another 12 hours.

Once your chicken is fully brined and marinated, it's time to prepare the breading. This is where I got frustrated because the recipe I used called for Old Bay seasoning which I cannot find anywhere. Perhaps they don't sell it in Canada? I don't know, but if you know where to find it, please fill me in! I did find a "make your own Old Bay seasoning" recipe online, which I will make before I try this chicken again, but I didn't have all the necessary spices on hand. I think that the Old Bay would really make the chicken taste better, as both Bill and I found the breading a little bland. It wasn't bad; it just needed a bit more a kick. SO - if you want a really flavourful breading, try adding some of your own spices to what I've listed above, or use Old Bay or make your own (recipe here).

Combine the flour, baking soda, and spices of your choosing in a shallow bowl. Remove chicken from the buttermilk mixture, shaking a bit to remove excess moisture, and put aside,within reach. Remove the herbs from the buttermilk and transfer buttermilk to a bowl if you were marinating the chicken in a ziploc bag. If you want to, whisk an egg white into the buttermilk to help the breading stick to the chicken. I didn't do it, and it worked okay, but the breading didn't adhere to the chicken as much as I would have liked, so I'd add the egg white next time. If you've added the egg white, dip each piece of chicken in the buttermilk mixture, then dredge in the flour. Then - and this is really important for crispy chicken - dip the chicken in the buttermilk again and re-dredge in the flour. Double dipping is the best for fried chicken!

If you are fully immersing your chicken to deep-fry it, get the oil heating in a large dutch oven on the stove over medium-high heat or in a deep-fryer if you have one, before you begin breading the chicken. If you are going to fry the chicken in a large cast-iron skillet, wait to heat the oil until your chicken is prepared so it doesn't get too hot (and smoke or start a kitchen fire). Once your oil is hot enough for frying, you can begin cooking your chicken.

If you're frying the chicken in a skillet, use about an inch of oil and fry chicken for about 6 minutes on each side (12 minutes total). If you're using a dutch oven on the stove-top, like I do, make sure you immerse the frying basket in the oil before you add the chicken so it doesn't stick to the basket. Fry the chicken for about 12 minutes, keeping the heat on medium-high to maintain the temperature of the oil. For both of these methods, heat oil to about 375°F. If you don't have an appropriate thermometer for this, a couple easy ways to ensure your oil is hot enough is to either drop a couple popcorn kernels in the oil - they'll pop when the oil's hot enough for frying - or place a wooden spoon handle in the oil - if bubbles run up the handle, the oil's hot enough. If you're using a deep-fryer, follow its directions for use.

Once the chicken is fried (you may have to do 2-3 batches - the chicken really plumps up from the brining and double-breading, so you won't be able to fit a lot of pieces in your deep-frying container), drain it on a paper-towel covered plate let it rest for 5-10 minutes before serving. Then prepare to be amazed at how moist, tender, and delicious this chicken is. SO GOOD. (Yes, I'm stealing that tag from KFC because this friend chicken is so much better than KFC's. And I feel I have a right to make that claim, having worked at KFC for 5 - yes, 5! - years.)

I served the chicken with the most delicious Warm Potato Salad, taken from a Company's Coming cookbook entitled Choosing Sides. Of course I've put my own twist on it, adding some ingredients to increase the flavour. Again, this recipe is for 2 generous portions - double it if you're serving 4-6 people. Here's the recipe and method:

Warm Potato Salad

Ingredients

1 lb (half a bag) baby potatoes, quartered

1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1-2 tsp cajun seasoning

1/2 large red pepper, cut lengthwise

1/4 cup mayonnaise

1/4 cup sour cream

1 large clove garlic

2-4 sliced green onions

2-4 bacon slices, cooked crisp and crumbled

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Method

Preheat oven to 400°F

Place red pepper cut side down on a pie plate and place in oven on top rack, roasting for 25-10 minutes, until tender. The skin will turn black in spots; this is fine. When red pepper is done, place in a small bowl and cover with saran wrap. Let sweat for about 10 minutes, until cool enough to handle. Then remove and discard the skin. The skin should just peel right off. Chop the pepper.

Toss cut potatoes with olive oil and cajun seasoning until coated. Spread in a single layer on a baking sheet with sides (to prevent spillage). Place in oven with red pepper, but on the bottom rack and roast until tender, about 30 minutes. When they're almost done (and red pepper is done and taken out of oven), turn off the oven, but leave potatoes in there to keep warm, but for no more than 10 minutes, otherwise they'll dry out.

While potatoes and pepper are roasting, fry bacon in a skillet, cool, and crumble. Or alternately, cut bacon into small pieces before cooking and then you don't have to crumble it afterwards. Combine the bacon pieces with the remaining ingredients in a large bowl. When potatoes and red pepper are done, add them to the bowl, combine well, and serve immediately, while still warm. Delish! Makes a perfect side for fried chicken.

Also, if you're concerned about the fat content of this meal, use low-fat mayonnaise and sour cream for the salad and call it good. Some foods just have to be fatty to taste their best! And trust me, this food is worth every gram of fat in it.

Pork Tenderloin with Mushroom Sour Cream Sauce

Tonight I made pork tenderloin for the first time. I had no idea how to cook it so I did an online recipe search. I had to work with limited ingredients as I haven't done my full beginning-of-the-month shopping trip yet, but I had some fresh ingredients from our Costco run today (which is why I had pork tenderloin to begin with). I found this recipe for Pork Tenderloin in Sour Cream Sauce. The sauce sounded delicious, but I didn't like that the tenderloin would be cut before cooking and then cooked on the stove top. I wanted to roast it. So I found some oven cooking directions for pork tenderloin online and proceeded to make the following:

Pork Tenderloin with Mushroom Sour Cream Sauce

Ingredients

1 pork tenderloin

1-2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1/2 tsp ground sage

1/2 tsp dried rosemary

1/2 tsp dried thyme

1 tsp sea salt

1/2 tsp coarse black pepper

2-3 tbsp butter

1/2 small white onion, chopped

about 8 large white mushrooms, sliced

salt and pepper to taste

1/4-1/3 cup beef stock

1 cup sour cream

1 tbsp flour

about 1 cup egg noodles

12-14 asparagus spears

2 tbsp grated gruyère cheese

sea salt to taste

Method

Preheat oven to 425°F and heat a large skillet over medium high heat.

While skillet is heating, combine sage, rosemary, thyme, salt and pepper in a small bowl. Brush pork tenderloin with olive oil then rub spice mixture all over, making sure it sticks. Brown tenderloin on all sides in hot skillet, transfer to a baking dish, and place in oven for 20-25 minutes until cooked through. If you have a meat thermometer, it should read between 150° and 165° when done. Remove from oven, cover loosely with foil, and let rest for 5-10 minutes before slicing.

Without cleaning the skillet, lower temperature to medium and melt the butter. Add chopped onions to the butter and sauté for a minute or two. Then add the mushrooms and cook for another 5 minutes or so until mushrooms are soft. Next add the beef stock (I just use powdered stock mix and add water, but you can use boxed stock as well) and salt and pepper to taste (remember that there's salt in the stock too so don't overdo it!). Simmer for a couple more minutes, then drain the liquid into a cup. In a separate small bowl, combine sour cream with flour and then pour the drained liquid into the sour cream, stirring constantly. I used a whisk to ensure there were no lumps. Add the sour cream mixture back to the skillet with the mushrooms and onions, stir to combine, and heat through.

While you're making the mushroom sour cream sauce, put several cups of water to boil in a medium size pot, salt the water, and add the egg noodles once the water boils. They only take about 5 minutes to cook so try to time it accordingly. I put the noodles in just before I took the tenderloin out of the oven and the timing worked well. Once I drained the noodles, I just put a lid on the pot to keep them warm until I was ready to plate the meal. By the way, you can use any kind of egg noodles that you'd like; I used Catelli Healthy Harvest Whole Wheat Egg Noodles for some added nutrition over regular egg noodles.

During all of this you're also going to need to put a deep skillet or pot with a couple inches of water on to boil. (The trickiest part of this meal is juggling all the different things that need to be cooked and getting the timing right - good luck!) Once the water's boiling, add the asparagus spears (with the tough ends cut off) and simmer for several minutes until asparagus is tender but not squishy. Drain water.

Now it's time to plate everything. Place hot asparagus spears on one side of plate and top with grated gruyère cheese and sea salt. Portion noodles onto one quarter of the plate and place the sliced tenderloin on the remaining quarter. Scoop or pour the mushroom sour cream sauce over the meat and noodles. Serve immediately. I plate individual portions since it's just me and my hubby, but if you want to serve this to more people, put the asparagus on a serving dish and top with cheese and salt, and combine the noodles with tenderloin on another serving dish and pour sauce over them both.

I was absolutely thrilled with how delicious this meal was, since it was a bit of a shot in the dark. Bill loved it as much as I did and I will definitely be making this again.

Walnut & Parm-Crusted Chicken with Vegetable Quinoa

I wasn't very inspired to make dinner tonight, and this looked fairly quick and easy, so I put my own twist on these recipes for Walnut-Crusted Chicken Breasts and Quinoa with Veggies. Both of my modified recipes below make 2 servings, since I was just cooking for my hubby and myself; simply double it if you're making this for a family or company.

Walnut & Parm-Crusted Chicken

Ingredients

2 chicken breasts

1 egg

1/4 cup buttermilk

1/4 cup walnuts

2-3 tbsp parmesan cheese

1/4 cup breadcrumbs

1/2 tsp oregano

1/2 tsp sea salt

1/2 tsp coarse black pepper

Method

Preheat oven to 425°F.

Beat egg with a whisk, then whisk in the buttermilk. Place in shallow bowl and add the chicken breasts. Turn the chicken so both sides are coated with the egg & buttermilk mixture. Allow the chicken to sit in the mixture while you prepare the walnut breadcrumb mixture. You can just use egg whites if you're concerned about cholesterol or you want a lighter taste, but I like the added layer of flavour provided by the richness of the yolk.

Put walnuts and parmesan cheese (I just use Kraft parmesan grated cheese) in a food processor and chop/grind until a fine breadcrumb-like mixture is achieved. Then add the breadcrumbs, oregano, salt and pepper and process a bit longer until all ingredients are well mixed. Put mixture in a shallow bowl or on a plate.

Remove chicken from egg and buttermilk, allowing excess to drain off. Then press chicken into the walnut parm mixture, turning to coat the whole breast.

Now comes the "secret" to baking it perfectly. I have to credit Rachael Ray for this trick. Place your cooling rack on top of a cookie/baking sheet and place the chicken on the the cooling rack; this ensures your chicken gets crispy all around, not just on top.

Place chicken in the oven and bake for about 20 minutes, until coating is brown and crispy and chicken is cooked through. Serve on top of Vegetable Quinoa.

Vegetable Quinoa

Ingredients

1/2 cup quinoa

1-2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

3 small cloves of garlic, minced

1/2 green or red pepper, chopped

1/2 large carrot, chopped

1/4 medium white onion, chopped

1/4 tsp cumin

1/2 tsp oregano

salt and pepper to taste

Method

Cook quinoa as you would rice. I use my rice cooker, using twice as much water as quinoa. Since I was adding veggies and spices, I didn't add any flavourings to the quinoa before I cooked it, but I often use chicken or vegetable broth instead of water when I'm cooking quinoa.

As quinoa is cooking, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add minced garlic (I used a garlic press) and cook to soften and mellow the garlic (about 2 minutes, but watch carefully and stir often so garlic doesn't burn). Then add the chopped pepper, carrot, and onion. I used my hand-held food chopper from Pampered Chef, which I love, but you can use a food processor or chop them by hand if you prefer larger pieces of veggies in your quinoa. You can also use any combination of veggies that you choose or have on hand. I'd try celery, red pepper, red onion, zucchini, etc. Sauté veggies until soft, about 5 minutes, then add cumin, oregano, and salt and pepper. Stir and cook about a minute longer. Add veggie mixture to cooked quinoa and combine.

Spread the vegetable quinoa on a plate, and top with walnut & parm-crusted chicken breast. Serve hot, with optional lemon wedges (I didn't have any fresh lemons but I think a splash of fresh lemon juice would taste good on both the chicken and quinoa).

Both my husband and I enjoyed this meal and I'm sure I'll make it again. What's not to like about a dish that's easy to make, tasty, and nutritious?

Smoked Bratwurst Sausage Soup/Stew

On Saturday, I was looking for something to make for lunch, but I didn't have a lot to work with, plus I had a bunch of stuff in my fridge nearing the end of its shelf life. Basically, I wanted to make something delicious out of the dregs of my fridge and cupboard. So I decided on soup or stew - again - because it's very forgiving on what you can put into it. I did an extensive recipe search but nothing I found fit what I had on hand, so I just started from scratch. I had some smoked bratwurst sausages (Johnsonville brand - unbelievably delicious, especially barbecued and eaten on a bun) that needed to be eaten and I thought they could work well in a soup/stew, so here's what I put together:

Ingredients

3 smoked bratwurst sausages, cut into small bite-sized pieces

1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1/2 white onion, chopped

2 celery stalks, chopped

1/2 red pepper, chopped

about 2 cups chicken or vegetable stock

1 can whole sweet kernel corn (you could use frozen as well)

several baby potatoes, quartered

1-2 tsp dried thyme (depending on taste)

1 tbsp dried parsley

salt and pepper to taste

Method

I warmed the olive oil in a medium sized dutch oven (you can use a soup pot or heavy sauce pan instead) over medium high heat, then added the cut up sausage and cooked it for several minutes, until it browned up. Then I added the onion, celery, and red pepper and cooked it for several more minutes, until the vegetables began to soften. (I put the lid on the dutch oven and stirred the mixture several times while it was cooking to ensure everything cooked evenly.)

Once the veggies were soft, I added a couple cups of vegetable stock (I didn't have any chicken stock in my cupboard, otherwise I think I would have used that instead) and the can of corn (liquid included). Then I added the potatoes and spices, mixed it all up, put the lid on and let it simmer for close to an hour, stirring occasionally. If there doesn't seem to be enough liquid, add a bit more stock or water, but be careful not to add too much or you'll have watery soup (which can be remedied later, but will affect the flavour).

Once the potatoes are soft, taste your soup! Chances are you'll have to add more spices, especially salt. After adding any additional seasonings, make sure you stir well and let it simmer for a couple more minutes before tasting again, to ensure the flavours have had a chance to mingle.

If your soup is thin, like mine was, you can add some flour or cornstarch mixed with water to thicken it up. I used flour; I mixed a couple tablespoons of it with cold water in a mug, and then ran it through a strainer into the soup and stirred immediately to prevent lumps. It only took a couple minutes to thicken up. Depending on how thick you like it, you'll end up with a either a soup or stew consistency. (Another trick I learned from a corn chowder recipe is to use creamed corn instead of or in addition to the whole kernel corn to help thicken it up, although I would add it after the potatoes have cooked so they can easily absorb the water they need.)

Upon tasting, I give this simple recipe a thumbs up. The smoky, salty flavour of the bratwurst sausages went very well with the sweetness of the corn and red pepper (for that reason, as my husband said, this would also taste great with bacon. Mmmmm... bacon). The thyme added a nice level of flavour as well. (I am coming to the conclusion that thyme tastes good in just about everything; it's my number one go-to spice.) Overall, I was pleased with how this slap-together soup turned out - lots of flavour and nutrition for minimal work. Now that's some good cookin'.

Greek Pizza

Tonight I made the most delicious pizza and I'm very proud of it because it's entirely my own creation. Two years ago, my husband Bill and I went to Greece for our honeymoon and we've been obsessed with Greek food ever since. I have a signature Greek meal that I put together once we got home from Greece, based on how the Greeks prepared food for us. I make this meal pretty much every time we have company and it's amazing, if I may say so myself. Don't worry; I'll be sharing that meal with recipes next time I make it.

But back to the meal at hand. For awhile now, I've been thinking of taking some of the elements from my Greek meal and putting them on a pizza. Namely, I wanted to include flavours from Chicken Souvlaki and Greek Salad as well as the Greek spice mix that we discovered in Greece. So I marinated some chicken in my souvlaki marinade, added the spice mix to the dough, and made Greek salad ingredients my main pizza toppings (minus the cucumbers, of course, because that would be gross).

This is what I came up with:

Greek Pizza Crust

(The base for this recipe comes from my mom - it's in the cookbook that the home ec department from my old high school recently put together.)

1 cup warm water

1 tsp sugar

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

1 tsp salt

1 tbsp instant yeast

2 1/2 cups white flour, split in half

2 tsp dried parsley

2 tsp dried oregano

2 tsp dried marjoram

2 tsp dried thyme

1 tsp coarse black pepper

Put the first four ingredients in the mixing bowl of your stand mixer (if you don't have one, just use a large bowl and a hand-held mixer). Add the yeast and 1 1/4 cups of the flour to the wet ingredients and beat for 5 to 6 minutes in your stand mixer, using a beater or paddle attachment. Once it's done beating, switch to your dough hook and add the remaining 1 1/4 cups of flour and the spices and knead the dough in your mixer until the dough is smooth and elastic. If it seems too dry, add a splash of water while it's kneading, but be careful not to add too much.

Remove the bowl from the mixer, cover it with a damp towel (this is important so the dough doesn't dry out) and let the dough rise until it doubles (about an hour). I like to put it by a heat register so it rises better. Once the dough has doubled, punch it down, shape it into a round ball, place it on a lightly floured surface, and roll it into the shape of pizza crust you desire. I just roll my dough out right on my pizza stone so I know exactly how big to make it. If you like a lip on your pizza, make sure you roll out the dough a bit bigger than you want it to be and then roll up the edge to create a ridge. Prick the dough several times with a fork and set aside to let it rise again (about an hour). Once it's the thickness you like, bake it in a 350°F oven for 10-15 minutes, just to set the dough before you pile on the toppings. (You can also make the dough ahead of time, and freeze it at this point; just make sure you thaw it completely before you add toppings and bake the pizza.)

Greek Pizza Toppings

Souvlaki Chicken

juice of 1 lemon

3 large cloves of garlic, minced

2-3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1/2 tsp salt

2-3 tsp of Greek spice mix (see below)

2 chicken breasts, chopped into small bite-size chunks

Combine the first five ingredients in a bowl. Place chicken pieces in a sturdy plastic zip bag, add the marinade and close the bag. Knead and/or toss until all of the chicken is coated in the marinade. Place in the fridge for 2-5 hours. Once the chicken is marinated, heat a small frying pan over medium high heat. Add the contents of the bag to the pan and cook the chicken in the juices for several minutes until the chicken is no longer pink. Then drain the liquid and put the pan back on the heat for a few minutes so the chicken browns a little.

Greek Spice Mix

equal parts of dried parsley, thyme, marjoram, and oregano

1/2 a part of coarse black pepper

I usually keep a small container of this mixture in my spice cupboard for easy Greek seasoning.

Sauce

1/2 can of tomato sauce

1/2 can of tomato paste

salt and pepper to taste

I didn't want to add any spices to the sauce, since there were already spices in the crust and on the chicken. If you don't like things very salty, you may want to skip putting any salt in the sauce since there's already some in the tomato sauce and a lot of the toppings are salty as well.

Toppings

about 1 cup chopped fresh spinach

1/4 red pepper, chopped

1/4 green pepper, chopped

1/4 red onion, chopped

about 1/3 cup chopped fresh kalamata olives (canned won't taste the same)

1/2-3/4 cup crumbled feta

1-2 tbsp capers (optional)

about 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

1 tomato (I like vine-ripened), sliced

Method

Spread tomato sauce over the crust - I like to use a large silicone pastry brush or a spatula. Next spread the chopped spinach onto the pizza and then layer the browned chicken over top of the spinach. Sprinkle on the peppers, onions, olives, feta, and capers if using them (I didn't add them because I was out of them, but they are commonly used in Greek salad and I think they'd be a nice touch on this pizza). Then smother everything with the mozzarella cheese.

Bake the pizza in a 350°F oven for about 20 minutes, until the cheese starts to brown and the crust is nicely browned on the bottom (I used a spatula to lift the edge of the crust so I can take a peek under there). Once you've taken your masterpiece out of the oven, arrange the fresh tomato slices on top of the pizza, and then let it sit for at least 10 minutes before you cut and serve it so the ingredients can set and so the pizza can cool a bit. You might want to just leave the kitchen for those 10 minutes, because really, it will look and smell so delicious, you'll have a hard time waiting. But it'll be worth the wait, I promise. Otherwise, your pizza will leak liquid and you'll likely burn your mouth biting into it.

Doesn't that look delicious?! If you decide to make this, I'd love to hear your (and your family's) reactions to how it tastes. Both Bill and I loved it and I will definitely be making this again. Soon. YUMMY!

RR's Sloppy Maple-BBQ Turkey Joes

Last night I made this Rachael Ray recipe that I've been eying for awhile. It looked and sounded so yummy. And it was good, just not as good as I'd hoped it would be. I'd probably make it again, but I think I'd change a couple things. I found the sauce a bit too sharp - I think I'd use a bit less cider vinegar. I was also hoping it would taste more maple-y, but I only had a light maple syrup, so that might be why the maple flavour didn't really come through. As you can see in the picture, the mixture was a bit runny but it turned out okay because the bread sopped up the added moisture.

I didn't have any buns in the house, so I made my own by adapting this recipe from my sister. As I didn't need a lot of buns, I halved the recipe and made four large buns rather than one large round loaf. I also substituted fresh thyme for the rosemary, since I had it in the fridge and it's an herb that goes very well with poultry. I added a touch of cumin (about 1/4 tsp) in the dough as well and I liked how it tasted in the finished product. The buns turned out great and were a nice flavour complement to the sloppy joes.

The best part about this meal was how quick and easy it was (minus the time I had to wait for the dough to rise - but you can definitely just use store-bought buns) and for that reason alone I recommend it. As I said before, it has a good flavour and it's also quite nutritious, so you really can't go wrong making this for dinner one night.

Rachael Ray's Pork Chops with Plums and Red Onions and Sesame Rice

I have a bit of a Rachael Ray obsession. While I have to admit I find her slightly annoying on her show, I love her recipes and I love trying to make new types of food. I've picked up on some of her techniques, tips and tricks and I've learned a lot about cooking and various cooking tools that have made my kitchen adventures better and easier. I have yet to make one of her recipes and be disappointed. I can guarantee you'll see a lot of her recipes along with my feedback on this blog. Tonight I made a recipe that I've made three or four times in the past couple of months because it's absolutely delicious: Pork Chops with Plums and Red Onions and Sesame Rice. I follow this recipe quite strictly (why mess with perfection?!); you can find it here.

My thoughts after preparing this several times:

• I toast my own sesame seeds by putting a single layer in a pie plate and putting it under the broiler in my oven for a minute or two. Watch closely! They brown quickly and burn even faster.
• You can use green onions instead of chives in the rice, but it's not quite the same. And dried chives won't cut it.
• I'd never even heard of Chinese Five Spice before I made this recipe. If you have, I'm impressed by your spice savvy. If you haven't, go get some and try it. And don't even bother making this recipe without it. It makes the pork chops.
• Once I couldn't find any fresh plums at the store, so I used apricot preserves (jam) instead and it was still good. The plums are better, though.
• I prefer the boneless loin pork chops that are cut really thick. I buy my pork chops from Costco and they're awesome. The key is to cook them a bit longer at a slightly lower temperature so they cook through but stay nice and juicy.
• Tamari is a type of soy sauce - it's darker and more flavourful than regular soy sauce. It's worth the added expense to get some; regular soy sauce won't do this recipe justice.
• Use actual ginger root - the powdered stuff doesn't taste the same. I just run a piece of peeled ginger root over a small handheld grater to get it minced up quickly and easily.

Overall, while this dish seems like a lot of work, it really isn't, and regardless, it's worth the time and energy.

Butternut Squash and Red Lentil Soup

Cold Saturday mornings are perfect for making soup. They're relaxed and my husband is home to help me look after our 7 month old daughter, Abigail. There's been a large butternut squash sitting on my counter for over a week and I've been wanting to turn it into a soup since I bought it. I also recently bought red lentils for the first time to make into baby food. Turns out I really like the taste of them - they're kind of nutty and spicy. As soon as I tasted them, I knew they'd be a great addition to a soup. As I thought about making butternut squash soup, I was convinced the lentils would add a nice rich taste. Turns out, I'm not the first one to think of this. Surprise! Ha ha. The web is full of recipes for butternut squash and red lentil soup. I looked at a few of them, but none really appealed to me, so I decided to make my own recipe. Here are the ingredients I used and what I did with them:

Ingredients

1 large butternut squash

1/4 cup butter

1 medium white onion

1 small leek (I would've used 2 if I'd had another)

2 celery stalks

4 large garlic cloves

2 large carrots

1/2 head of cauliflower

6 cups of chicken stock

3/4 cups of dried red lentils

several stalks of fresh thyme (you can use dried)

1/4 cup of chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley (you can use dried)

1 tsp of dried rosemary (I would have used fresh if I'd had it)

1/2 teaspoon of dried chopped bay leaf (again, I would have used fresh)

sea salt and pepper to taste

paprika, nutmeg, cumin and coriander to taste

Method

I prefer the taste of roasted squash so I started by halving the squash and scooping out the seeds, then laying it cut side down in a baking dish with about an inch of water. I put it in a 400° F oven for about 45 minutes until the squash was soft.

While the squash was baking, I melted the butter in a large stock pot and chopped up the onion, leek, and celery. I didn't worry about chopping anything too small as I planned to puree the whole mix after it was cooked. I also peeled 4 large cloves of garlic and crushed them by pressing them between the flat side of my knife and the cutting board. I added all of this to the butter and sautéed it for about 5 minutes, until the vegetables were soft. While they were sautéing, I chopped up two carrots, two celery stalks, and half a head of cauliflower. I added these to the pot and then added about 6 cups of chicken stock. I just added water to powdered stock mix but you can use boxed or homemade stock as well. And if you want to keep this soup vegetarian, you can use vegetable stock instead. Next I rinsed the lentils and added them to the pot as well. I brought everything up to a boil and then turned down the heat to medium low, added some salt and pepper, and let it simmer for about 45 minutes, with a lid partially on. When the squash was finished, about halfway through the simmering time, I took it out of the oven, peeled it (the skin comes off fairly easily once it's cooked), chopped it up, and added it to the pot for the remainder of the simmering time.

Once everything was soft and the flavours had had a chance to blend together, I turned off the heat and let it cool a bit. I fished out the thyme stalks as they're a bit woody, and then I scooped portions into the blender and pureed it until I had a nice smooth consistency. I had to add a bit of water to each blender-full to help loosen it up and make sure everything pureed evenly. Once it was all pureed, I put it back in the pot and did some tasting and seasoning. I added some more pepper, as well as paprika, nutmeg, cumin, and coriander to taste (I used about 1 tsp of nutmeg and about 1/2 tsp each of paprika, cumin, and coriander).

I served it with a dollop of sour cream and a sprinkling of chopped fresh parsley. Delicious!!