TGIF! Friday’s are usually pretty casual eats around here, after a busy week it’s nice to just relax. I made some lemonade for the boys for tonight…yes I know it’s not summer, but I had a bowl full of lemons on my counter, so I went with it. I have included an adult variation on the bottom that I have yet to try, but am tempted to brave the cold and give it a shot. – 1 cup sugar – 5 cups cold water – 1 1/4 cups fresh lemon juice (about 5-7 lemons) In a saucepan combine sugar and 1 cup of the water. Bring to a boil, stirring until sugar…
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Apricot Quinoa Salad
This recipe is also courtesy of Rose Riesman (I really love her cookbooks). Quinoa is prounounced “Keen-Wah”, in case you were wondering. It is super healthy for you as it is a complete protein (high in calcium and iron). I buy it at the health food store, but most grocery stores should carry it too. Salad: – 2 cups veg or chicken stock (I used my homemade chicken stock) – 1 cup quinoa – 1/3 cup chopped snow peas – 1/3 cup finely chopped red pepper – 1/4 cup finely chopped red onion – 1/4 cup raisins – 1/4 cup finely chopped dried apricots – 1/4 cup toasted slivered almonds – 1/4 cup chopped fresh basil or parsley (I…
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Chive Biscuits
Made some chili this morning for supper tonight, and decided to make some biscuits to go along with. Used a recipe from Ina Garten’s book. They turned out really good. I ended up adding a bit more cream because my dough was a little too dry, so feel free to add a bit if you have to. – 2 cups flour – 1 tbsp baking powder – 1 teaspoon kosher salt – 1 teaspoon sugar – 1 stick (1/2 cup) butter (cold and unsalted) – 3/4 cup half and half (yep they aren’t figure friendly biscuits) – 1/2 cup chopped fresh chives (or parsley) – 1 egg mixed with 1 tbsp of water, for egg wash Preheat…
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Whole Wheat Fruit and Nut Granola
I can’t take credit for this recipe, as I didn’t change anything. Although I did mistakenly add the dried fruit into the mixture and into the oven (oops you are supposed to add the dried fruit in at the end) – it still turned out delicious. I think I am converted! No more store bought granola for us. This has fewer calories than most granolas due to a smaller amount of oil and the use of apple juice and maple syrup. Serve with Milk or Yogurt. (Recipe courtesy of Rose Riesman) Preheat oven to 300F Mix together: – 2 cups large rolled oats – 1/2 cup whole wheat flour – 1/2 cup…
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Buckwheat Crepes
Family Day here in Alberta, so I am venturing out to the ski hill with the boys to enjoy the day. It will be Andrew’s first time on skis, so hopefully I don’t spend the whole day at the bunny hill. Decided to make the boys crepes this morning, I added half buckwheat flour to the recipe and it turned out great, you could probably add all buckwheat flour if you wanted, but I haven’t tried that yet. – 1/2 cup all purpose flour – 1/2 cup buckwheat flour – pinch salt – approx. 1 1/4 cups milk. – 2 eggs – 2 tbsp melted butter – 1 tbsp of sugar (if…
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Brownies
I tried a new brownie recipe for Valentine’s Day last week that although the kids devoured, I thought they were a little too sweet. I made the recipe again tonight, but cut out 1/2 a cup of the sugar. If you prefer your brownies sweeter, by all means add the full amount or even somewhere in between. You may also add in some nuts if you like. 1 cup butter, melted 2 1/2 to 3 cups white sugar 1 tablespoon vanilla extract 4 eggs 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour 1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder 1 teaspoon salt 1 cup chocolate chips Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly…
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Homemade Won Ton Soup
Had bought a rotisserie chicken to make sandwiches for the boys the other day, so I saved the carcass and decided to make some chicken stock this morning. I then decided to make some asian dumplings to make a won ton soup as I had some groud turkey in my fridge and some won ton wrappers. I usually make dumplings with ground pork (I would have to say we still prefer ground pork – the kids didn’t like the turkey ones as much) but you can use ground chicken or turkey as we did for a leaner alternative. For the stock (I made just a basic chicken stock to begin…
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Chicken Breasts with Fig Onion Sauce over Brown Basmati Rice Pilaf
OK so this title sounds way fancier than it actually is. I had 3 chicken breasts left in my fridge so I marinated them this morning in the following: Chicken Marinade (for three breasts) – 1/3 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil – 1/6 cup Red Wine Vinegar (half the amount of the oil) – 3 garlic cloves, sliced thin – couple sprigs of fresh thyme – 1 tsp dried basil – 1 tsp dried oregano Then tonight when we got home from hockey I threw some brown basmati rice in our rice cooker using half chicken broth and half water for the liquid measurement (I know most of you can cook rice so I won’t include…
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Strawberry Spinach Salad with Brie and Almonds
I know everyone has had some version of a Strawberry Spinach Salad, we had all these ingredients in our fridge so I thought we would enjoy for supper. I think that goat cheese would also be good in this salad instead of brie but use what you have. We made a balsamic vinegrette to go with this..and I actually measured in order to post on here – which is a first. I use little mason jars to make our salad dressings in, therefore you can just throw in put the lid on and shake, no need to whisk and dirty another dish. Strawberry Spinach Salad (sorry no measurements for the…
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Tzatziki
I often keep this dip/sauce in my fridge. It is a nice alternative to a mayo based dip for veggies and also tastes great in a wrap or as a condiment for fish or chicken. Very versatile indeed. The recipe is versatile too – as in fact today was the first time I ‘measured’ in order to include on this blog. Mint I believe is the authentic herb used in this dip, but I have also used italian parsley or dill with good results. The lemon zest is optional, although I really think it tastes great added in. Enjoy. – Plain Yogurt 750g (if you can find a thick greek style yogurt…
