expiration date

When I made Cornelius' birthday dream pie, I had a lot of egg whites left over and I was pretty excited to make some macaroons. Unfortuntely, my macaroon-making was a total bust. All those egg whites wasted due to the mass humidity of our apartment. Coming out of the oven they seemed okay, but an hour on the kitchen table reduced the cookies into a sticky, inedible mess of goo. Into the garbage for the whole lot. Grrrr, I hate wasting food! I think it's time for a new apartment or a dehumidifier!

The next day, things in the kitchen were much better. I made some of my baked oatmeal for breakfast but I ran out of my skim milk. Luckily, Cornelius had just a little bit of eggnog left over from all the holiday festivities, and the expiration date was still a day away. So along with my 1 remaining cup of skim milk went in a half cup of the 'nog and boy oh boy, did this oatmeal rock my socks! I had already added in a bit more spice than the original recipe called for and with the added kick from the eggnog, this oatmeal was a total flavour sensation. Wondering what to do with some leftover 'nog? Put it to use for breakfast and treat yourself to something extra special. Oh boy, I guess this makes the 2nd of 2 breakfast eggnog posts! And I don't even like eggnog!

Earlier this week, I made for dinner some good ol' rice and beans. Please excuse the photo as I was only able to snap one blurry shot before my camera battery died. But don't judge this recipe by one shoddy picture because this meal is so easy to put together and it's full of flavour and spice. Plus, it's the epitomy of cheap eats which makes it the perfect meal after all of December's excess. You can adjust the heat by adding more or less chili....I went a bit crazy with the peppers but I tamed it with some honey and a big dollop of fat free sour cream. We heated up a few corn tortillas to eat along side. Yum.

red beans and rice
1 c rice
2 c water
1 t olive oil
1 can of red kidney beans, drained & rinsed
1 small onion, chopped
6 cloves garlic, chopped
1 green pepper, chopped
2 stalks of celery, chopped
1/2 c salsa
2 T dark rum
1 T cumin
1 t red dried chili peppers, crushed
a few dashes of piri-piri sauce or your favorite hot sauce
1 T honey or brown sugar (optional)
dash of salt

1. Prepare rice as per usual. I always boil up 2 cups of water and then add in the rice. I keep the lid on and simmer on low heat for 5 minutes or so and then I turn off the heat and forget about it. Just don't open the lid as the steam makes everything perfect!

2. Heat up a large cast iron pan with the olive oil. Add in the onions, garlic, celery, green peppers, and crushed dried chilis. Throw in a dash of salt to help the juices flow and stir until everything gets wilty.

3. Next, add in the kidney beans, spices and salsa and stir about until everything is combined and heated through. Taste to adjust spices and add in the rum and the honey if needed. Simmer for a few minutes and then serve in deep bowls on top of the rice.

expiration date

When I made Cornelius' birthday dream pie, I had a lot of egg whites left over and I was pretty excited to make some macaroons. Unfortuntely, my macaroon-making was a total bust. All those egg whites wasted due to the mass humidity of our apartment. Coming out of the oven they seemed okay, but an hour on the kitchen table reduced the cookies into a sticky, inedible mess of goo. Into the garbage for the whole lot. Grrrr, I hate wasting food! I think it's time for a new apartment or a dehumidifier!

The next day, things in the kitchen were much better. I made some of my baked oatmeal for breakfast but I ran out of my skim milk. Luckily, Cornelius had just a little bit of eggnog left over from all the holiday festivities, and the expiration date was still a day away. So along with my 1 remaining cup of skim milk went in a half cup of the 'nog and boy oh boy, did this oatmeal rock my socks! I had already added in a bit more spice than the original recipe called for and with the added kick from the eggnog, this oatmeal was a total flavour sensation. Wondering what to do with some leftover 'nog? Put it to use for breakfast and treat yourself to something extra special. Oh boy, I guess this makes the 2nd of 2 breakfast eggnog posts! And I don't even like eggnog!

Earlier this week, I made for dinner some good ol' rice and beans. Please excuse the photo as I was only able to snap one blurry shot before my camera battery died. But don't judge this recipe by one shoddy picture because this meal is so easy to put together and it's full of flavour and spice. Plus, it's the epitomy of cheap eats which makes it the perfect meal after all of December's excess. You can adjust the heat by adding more or less chili....I went a bit crazy with the peppers but I tamed it with some honey and a big dollop of fat free sour cream. We heated up a few corn tortillas to eat along side. Yum.

red beans and rice
1 c rice
2 c water
1 t olive oil
1 can of red kidney beans, drained & rinsed
1 small onion, chopped
6 cloves garlic, chopped
1 green pepper, chopped
2 stalks of celery, chopped
1/2 c salsa
2 T dark rum
1 T cumin
1 t red dried chili peppers, crushed
a few dashes of piri-piri sauce or your favorite hot sauce
1 T honey or brown sugar (optional)
dash of salt

1. Prepare rice as per usual. I always boil up 2 cups of water and then add in the rice. I keep the lid on and simmer on low heat for 5 minutes or so and then I turn off the heat and forget about it. Just don't open the lid as the steam makes everything perfect!

2. Heat up a large cast iron pan with the olive oil. Add in the onions, garlic, celery, green peppers, and crushed dried chilis. Throw in a dash of salt to help the juices flow and stir until everything gets wilty.

3. Next, add in the kidney beans, spices and salsa and stir about until everything is combined and heated through. Taste to adjust spices and add in the rum and the honey if needed. Simmer for a few minutes and then serve in deep bowls on top of the rice.

just pudding!

As a child, I was never enamoured with rice pudding. In our house, it was something that my mom made rarely and when she did, she made it for my dad. It seemed like a big production to my young eyes. It was boiled in a large pot, whisked often and then baked in a hot oven. Too much work for something that I didn't think should have even been a dessert in the first place. Much later, as an adult, I made rice pudding a few times to excellent results, and always choosing recipes that didn't call for baking the pudding in the oven. Baking pudding in an oven? Why bother!

Even though, I don't hold fond childhood memories of eating rice pudding, it still somehow reminds me of home. It must be a comfort thing. No cares, no worries. Just pudding.

This is an easy pudding to make. Really. It doesn't take much whisking or watching over. It's also pretty low in sugar (though it does taste quite sweet) and fat. Like I said, no cares, no worries. Just pudding!

rice pudding with dried cranberries
1 c water
1/4 t salt
1/2 c arborio rice
3 c skim milk
1/3 c sugar
1 large stick of canela (Mexican cinnamon stick), broken in half (or into 3 pieces)
4 cardamon pods
2 eggs
1 t vanilla
2 handfuls of dried cranberries

1. In a medium-large saucepot, bring water and salt to a boil. Add rice and turn down heat to low. Cover and cook until water is absorbed, about 20 minutes.

2. Stir in milk and sugar and add in the canela and the cardamon pods. Cook over low heat, covered, and mixing occasionally, until mixture thickens, about 1 hour.

3. Whisk together eggs and vanilla. Whisk about 1 cup hot rice mixture into the egg and then stir into remaining rice. Cook over low heat for a minute or so, until the mixture is nice and thick. Remove from heat and stir in dried cranberries.

4. Transfer into a serving bowl and cover with plastic wrap touching the top of the pudding. This helps to prevent a skin forming. Cool slightly and eat warm or cold.

just pudding!

As a child, I was never enamoured with rice pudding. In our house, it was something that my mom made rarely and when she did, she made it for my dad. It seemed like a big production to my young eyes. It was boiled in a large pot, whisked often and then baked in a hot oven. Too much work for something that I didn't think should have even been a dessert in the first place. Much later, as an adult, I made rice pudding a few times to excellent results, and always choosing recipes that didn't call for baking the pudding in the oven. Baking pudding in an oven? Why bother!

Even though, I don't hold fond childhood memories of eating rice pudding, it still somehow reminds me of home. It must be a comfort thing. No cares, no worries. Just pudding.

This is an easy pudding to make. Really. It doesn't take much whisking or watching over. It's also pretty low in sugar (though it does taste quite sweet) and fat. Like I said, no cares, no worries. Just pudding!

rice pudding with dried cranberries
1 c water
1/4 t salt
1/2 c arborio rice
3 c skim milk
1/3 c sugar
1 large stick of canela (Mexican cinnamon stick), broken in half (or into 3 pieces)
4 cardamon pods
2 eggs
1 t vanilla
2 handfuls of dried cranberries

1. In a medium-large saucepot, bring water and salt to a boil. Add rice and turn down heat to low. Cover and cook until water is absorbed, about 20 minutes.

2. Stir in milk and sugar and add in the canela and the cardamon pods. Cook over low heat, covered, and mixing occasionally, until mixture thickens, about 1 hour.

3. Whisk together eggs and vanilla. Whisk about 1 cup hot rice mixture into the egg and then stir into remaining rice. Cook over low heat for a minute or so, until the mixture is nice and thick. Remove from heat and stir in dried cranberries.

4. Transfer into a serving bowl and cover with plastic wrap touching the top of the pudding. This helps to prevent a skin forming. Cool slightly and eat warm or cold.

my lazy sunday

The weekends are typically times to relax, get stuff done and enjoy life a little more. This weekend was no exception. Every year around this time, there is a huge 30 block garage sale that I go to every year and this time I managed to find some pretty sweet scores. I bought a pretty 1950's teal n' green floral tablecloth for $3, a great pack for 3 day hikes in the woods for $5 and a complete speedball screenprinting kit for $3! But somehow in the kafuffle of thrifting and biking around for groceries, I managed to break the screen on my camera, so this will be a no-picture post.

On Saturday night, I met up with the EMB (Electric Moon Banana) crew at a nearby park at 11pm sharp for a full moon bike ride around the city and although I cut home early in the ride, I still didn't make it to bed until 3am. Sunday was rough and tiring, so I needed something bright and simple to make the day move along a little faster. A brown rice curry salad and some grilled chicken fit the bill. This would make a great picnic meal.

This is a great way to prepare chicken and you can use the meat to add to salads, natchos, burritos, etc. and this chicken is even tasty cold.

lemon & garlic grilled chicken
4 chicken bone-in parts (I used thighs)
1 lemon, juiced
4 cloves garlic, crushed
2 T ground cumin
2 T chili powder
salt & pepper

1. Wash chicken peices in cold water and remove skin and visible fat. Place chicken in ziplock bag with lemon juice and spices. Refrigerate for 2 - 4 hours.

2. Spray cast iron grill pan with a light coating of oil and heat on high. Add chicken, presenation side down. Turn when chicken is slightly blackened, about 15 minutes or so. Repeat on the other side for another 15 minutes.

3. Cover the pan with foil and place in a 400 degree oven. Cook for 20 minutes or until chicken is cooked through.

+++

This salad tastes great the day it's made....but it's almost better the next day as the flavours get real tight! If you've got some chopped almonds, I think they'd be a lovely addition to this flavourful salad.

brown rice curry salad
2 c brown rice, uncooked
4 T curry paste (I use Patak's "korma" paste)
1 T ground cumin
1 t sesame oil
1/3 c vegetable oil
1/3 c major grey or mango chutney
1/2 of a large onion, chopped
1 carrot, finely diced
1 red pepper, finely diced
1 stalk celery, finely diced
1/2 c raisins
1 granny smith apple, diced
1 bunch of parsley, chopped fine

1. Cook rice according to package directions. When all the water is absorbed, pour rice into a large bowl.

2. In a small saucepan, heat vegetable oil with the curry paste until well mixed and add the onion. Cook until translucent. Add the cumin and sesame oil and mix well. Turn off heat and add the chutney, stirring until everything is combined. Add mixture to rice, mixing well. If you want more curry taste, cook up some more oil and curry and add it to the mix.

3. Add in all the finely chopped vegetables and the raisins and blend everything well. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until cool.

4. Stir in chopped apple and parsley and stir the salad once again to combine. Serve.

left overs

Yesterday I decided to spend a bit of time to have a great lunch. I had some red swiss chard and left-over rice and I had remembered seeing Clotide's recipe for Galettes de Riz which seemed like an excellent way to use up leftovers. I made my own variation and added some fresh salsa instead of tomato into the mix and I enclosed a tiny square of cheddar cheese into each rice patty just before frying them up. I served each rice cake with the steamed swiss chard. Delicious! I was a little concerned that they wouldn't hold up to flipping, but it turned out well and I just scooted any stray grains back to it's mother with my trusty spatula. I had enough leftover to serve it again for dinner and Cornelius loved it. In fact, he said that he loved fried patties of "just about anything" and I made a mental note. Yup, good stuff.