Creamy Mushroom Soup

Sometimes in July, it gets cold and rainy and all I want to do is curl up with a blanket and a bowl of my favourite soup. 

Today is that day. 

RECIPE: CREAMY MUSHROOM SOUP

Ingredients:

Coconut oil

Large package of mushrooms, diced

1 small onion, diced

1 litre chicken stock (or vegetable or mushroom stock)

2 cans coconut cream

Garlic powder

Salt 

Black pepper

Method:

> heat up a spoonful of coconut oil and sauté the minced onion and mushrooms until soft and slightly caramelized

> pour into a blender and blend with as much of the stock as needed to make it smooth

> return the blundered ingredients to the pot; add in the rest of the stock and coconut cream

> season with garlic, salt, and pepper to taste

> heat and serve

Ginger Beef

It is widely accepted that Ginger Beef was first created in Western Canada. The story goes that a Chinese restauranteur was having difficulty getting locals to try the exotic dishes on his menu. He created a dish with local beef and a Chinese-inspired sauce and a new classic was born. 

Fast forward to this weekend. Nine people in the house, a craving for Chinese food, as a chunk of beef in the fridge. Voila. 

RECIPE: GINGER BEEF

Ingredients:

Beef (prepare however you want - could be left over roast, grilled steaks, or ground beef)

1 tbsp oil for cooking

1 onion, finely minced

1 large hand of ginger, finely minced

A splash of water (maybe 1/2 cup)

1/2 cup maple syrup

1/3 cup fish sauce

1/4 cup Srirachia

2 lemons, juiced

Method:

> prepare beef as usual (grill steak, slice roast into strips and fry, cook ground beef or make meatballs, etc.)

> heat up the oil in a pan and sauté the onions until soft; add in the ginger and water and let cook another 5 minutes or so

> pour onion and ginger mix along with the rest of the ingredients into the blender; blend until smooth 

> pour the sauce over the beef, garnish with bell peppers, cilantro, green onion, and sesame seeds

> serve over rice or rice noodles and enjoy!!

Sloppy Joes

A lot has happened in the last two years. The boys grew (a lot) and both now play football. My new one-year contract job has changed titles three times and should last over a year into the future. Our dog died. We got a new dog. We visited Chris's parents on the island. My parents both turned 70 (and were each thoroughly celebrated). And Chris got sick. It's taken nearly two years, but we might finally have some answers on that front. 

Just before Christmas, our stove died. The dishwasher was also on its last legs. So, we decided to replace the old flooring while we had both appliances out - why not?! And then the flu hit. It has been so awful for all of us for well over a week. The doctor said if Chris got any worse to take him to the hospital. That bad. 

Work has been amazingly busy these past few weeks, and I have zero ability at the end of the day to come home and make dinner. There are times this kind of chaos and difficulty inspire amazing dishes. 

Today was one of those days. 

Sloppy Joes

Ingredients 

4-5lb ground beef (or whatever meat you want)

1-2 tbsp coconut oil

2 onions, chopped

1 large finger of ginger, diced

1/4cup coriander seeds

1 tsp cumin seeds

1 tsp turmeric

2 tbsp fennel seeds

4 sticks cinnamon

20ish green cardamom pods, ground (or 1/2 tsp ground)

15ish dried juniper berries, ground

1 tbsp dried garlic or 1 head fresh garlic, minced

5 dried figs, chopped (or a handful of raisins)

2 green apples, diced 

1-2 tsp salt, to taste

1-3 tsp black pepper, to taste

Garnish

1 bunch cilantro, chopped

1 bunch green onions, chopped

1 loaf French bread

Butter, garlic, salt

Method

1. Heat the coconut oil, add the spices, then the onion, ginger, and garlic

2. Once #1 is fragrant, add the meat. Now really, don't be super concerned about the method or timing here; if you do this 2 minutes after you add the garlic, great - if it's 15 minutes later and the onions have browned and the bottom of the pot is dark, no worries. It will be yummy, I promise. If pieces brown to the bottom, add some water and scrape them off. That's flavour. 

3. Add in the rest, whenever. Figs and raisins always benefit from being in the pot longer. If you'd like the apples to add a punch of fresh, add them right at the end. 

4. Cut the French bread lengthwise, like you're going to make a huge sandwich. Butter, garlic, and salt it; broil or bake like you would to make garlic bread. I like doing this in a cast iron skillet with the loaf cut in quarters. 

5. Serve; garnish with green onions, cilantro (any herb would be great here, including celery leaves), and eat with the garlic toast. 

I can hardly wait to have leftovers for breakfast tomorrow.  

Chickpea Curry

Green onion chickpea curry with fresh ginger. Perfect. Sounds like dinner. Except I don't have green onion. Or fresh ginger. 

No worries!

Put about 1/4 cup coconut oil in a pot and fry 1 heaped tablespoon of cumin seeds until they are fragrant. Add 1 large can diced tomatoes, 1 can coconut cream, 4 cans chickpeas, 2 tablespoons dried ginger, 1 teaspoon of yellow curry powder (Madras curry), and 1 teaspoon salt. 

Bubble.

Stir. 

I sliced up an onion and two rogue apples to add in. No green onions. No need. 

Goes well with a hungry appetite and will be eaten in place of what I really wanted tonight - baked macaroni. Turns out, my body doesn't love wheat and dairy nearly as much as my mouth does. 

Goes well on rice, noodles, with other dishes, or by itself. It's one of my standards.

Hakka Chicken

Re-wind to August 2012 - last year.

My brother-in-law was just a day or two away from moving to Spain. He had to go ahead of his family to procure a home, vehicle, and various other requirements that the government of that country needed to have met. Then the would grant visas to his wife and children.

He was in the city just for a few days - selling the van, tying up a few loose ends, and waiting for his flight.

Let's celebrate this momentous occasion.  Let's go out for dinner. Indian food? YES!!! Let's go to Taste of India.

We ordered rice, naan (pronounced 'naaaaaaaaaaan' - like when you say aaaaaaa for the doctor, not Nan - the name some people use for their Grandmother), and various delicious dishes with veggies and meat.

The "Hakka" portion of the menu caught our attention and I remembered a columnist on CBC talking about this delicious blend of Indian and Chinese cuisines. We were intrigued. We ordered the chicken.

It was amazing. Incredible. DE-Lish-OUS!!!

My newest favourite dish and something I craved from the moment I finished licking the sauce off the plate. I used naan, by the way, not my tongue.

I was instantly addicted.

I need to eat this again. Yes, need. Soon. Like... tomorrow. And the next day. And the next.

How can I make this at home? It is too good... and A Taste of India is too far away to make this a daily order.

RECIPE: Hakka Chicken

Ingredients:
chicken wings
oil
madras curry powder (the yellowish curry powder)
garlic
salt

sweet chilli sauce

Method:

> in a bowl large enough to accommodate all the wings, mix oil, garlic powder, and madras curry powder (I know I have not put quantities here - that is because some will like it more garlicky, others more curried, and the third lot will realize that cayenne is magic in this recipe)

> the idea is to thoroughly coat the chicken wings in the curry oil

> now line a rimmed cookie sheet with foil so the foil goes over all the edges and put parchment paper over that; this will save you from the wings sticking to the cookie sheet and makes clean-up super simple

> here us where a slight deviation occurs and you can do this one of two ways

A> bake the wings at 400°F or 205°C for about 40 minutes or until they are 84°C or 180°F internal temperature

A> pour the sweet chilli sauce into a clean bowl, then the chicken wings on top; I use about 1/2 to 1 cup

A> toss the wings in the sweet chilli sauce and enjoy 

OR

B> bake the wings for 30 minutes, toss them in the sweet chilli sauce, and finish baking them to sticky perfection

Bowtie Neapolitan

Sounds impressive and complicated, doesn't it? It isn't. It's super simple. 

RECIPE: Bowtie Neapolitan

Ingredients:

Pasta

Oil

Onion

Tomato

Basil

Garlic 

Basil

Chives (optional)

Salt & Pepper

Method:

> boil water in a pot and cook noodles as recommended on the package

> chop and fry one onion in the oil over fairly high heat; you will make the sauce and shred the cheese in the time it takes the pasta to cook

> chop and add two tomatoes

> chop and add garlic, basil, and chives

> finish with salt and pepper 

> chop or shred some fresh or aged mozzarella (or ANY other cheese)

> drain the pasta

> toss the pasta in the sauce 

> add the cheese either to the pot and toss or leave it separate to self-serve at the table

This one takes 10 minutes, start to finish (if you start with a pot of water that is already hot from the tap). 

It's a great side to any dinner or lunch and is great served hot or cold. If serving cold, do not toss the cheese in while the pasta and sauce are hot. 

Apparently, it's been a while...

I haven't been on here in a while.

Life is busy and I let my inspiration wane.

What have we been eating lately? Mostly just veggies and meat. I make hash with yams and other chopped veggies sautéed together. Salads with various chopped veggies and simple dressing of mayo, garlic, and wine.

The flooding in Southern Alberta has affected us, but we are dry. Our focus now is disaster recovery and helping out friends.

I will be back on, talking about food, family, and all manner of good things.

Green Salad

This is how I felt tonight.

So we made tomato sandwiches.

Well, we had sliced tomatoes with mayo on stone ground wheat thins.  And I grilled some steaks, which we sliced and put over the top.  Yum.

But dinner needed something... green.

How about salad?

Sure... what's in the fridge?

Um... broccoli, fresh ginger, green onions, and mini cucumbers.

So I made a green salad.

Chop them all up and mince up a little fresh ginger.

Stir in a spoon full of mayo, sprinkle a little salt, and SHAZAM!!!

Green salad.

Who said you had to invite actual leaves for the salad to be green?

Loaf

I invited myself over for coffee. She is a new friend I have only hung out with twice before. But there I was, Sunday afternoon, standing in her kitchen telling her I would come over for coffee on Wednesday.

Well, if I'm going to invite myself over, I may as well bring something along to share and eat. I did after all volunteer her to host me.

But what can I make? She cannot have wheat or diary, so creativity is required to make something.

Loaf. I can stir in nuts, seeds, and dried fruits along with spices to make something incredible.

RECIPE: Loaf

Ingredients

2 cups flour (or chickpea flour)
4 tsp baking powder
pinch salt
nutmeg
green cardamom
1 can coconut milk (or 1 1/3 cups milk)
5 large eggs
vanilla
nuts, seeds, dried fruit

Method

> mix the dry ingredients

> no, there are no quantities for the dry spices - use a bunch, like a teaspoon of each - or whatever you have that will be yummy with the nuts, seeds, and dried fruit (cinnamon, ginger, pumpkin pie spice, chai spiced tea, etc.)

> mix the wet into the dry (eggs, coconut milk, and vanilla or other extract)

> stir in half of the nuts, seeds, and chopped dried fruit you want in the loaf

> split the batter between two lined or buttered loaf pans

> sprinkle the remaining nuts, seeds, and fruit over the tops of the loaves

> bake at 190°C or 375°F for 35 to 40 minutes or until golden brown and a toothpick comes out cleanly when poked in

Enjoy with butter, jam, or toasted with maple syrup!!

Tomato Sandwiches

My plan for today's lunch was a tomato sandwich. Nothing fancy - leftover sliced tomatoes from dinner last night and artesian bread we picked up over the weekend in Calgary.

The bread was stale. The slices were all rock hard. What was I to do?

There are other leftovers in the fridge… I could just throw the bread out and eat other leftovers instead.

Wait a minute.

Throw out artesian bread... are you kidding?

And then I realized I could make a simple French salad for lunch: tomatoes with croutons. It's called something awesome in French that sounds way better than my English version.

But hold on…

Make your own croutons? That sounds complicated.

What's complicated about it? You have bread, an oven, oil, salt, and garlic - you don't need anything else.

Just chop up your two slices of bread into crouton sized bites and toss them with a little olive oil, salt, pepper, and garlic and that's it. Put them onto a lined cookie sheet and roast at 180°C or 375°F for five minutes or until they are golden.

Set the timer for this or you will burn them like I usually do.

Chop the tomatoes into bite-size pieces and any other vegetables you want to add - cucumber, red bell pepper, onion, capers, olives and feta would all be amazing with this.

Then adorn your vegetables with a dollop of mayonnaise and heavenly heaping of homemade croutons.

Voila! Lunch is served. So much better than just a sandwich.

Knish: Roasted Garlic Mashed Potato Goodness

As usual, I was running a few minutes behind when I rushed into Starbucks on a beautiful day in early September around noon. The boys were at their second day back to school and I was meeting a wonderful lady from the local Jewish Temple.

We had a lovely roving visit about all kinds of things for over two hours - it was delightful.

In preparation for the Jewish-inspired lunch that took place after church on September 30th, I needed some culturally appropriate guidance and insight. This coffee date would shed light on my path into culturally appropriate fare.

Near the end of our conversation about food, my new friend's eyes lit up with delight as she started explaining this delicious Jewish treat called "knish". Bread dough with mashed potatoes inside. There were strict instructions, it was difficult to pull off, but INCREDIBLE and culturally appropriate.

But it would be far too difficult to pull off for our purposes - I mean, feeding 200+, scratch making the dough, and then forming them all by hand? It could not be done.

Sounds delicious.

Sounds like a challenge. A challenge I wanted to take on and execute.

I wanted to make knish and make it well. Make it delicious. Make it memorable.

Here is what we made.


RECIPE: Knish with Roasted Garlic Mashed Potatoes

Ingredients:
garlic confit
2 lb potatoes, cubed
1 package phyllo pastry
olive oil for brushing

Method:
1. make mashed potatoes (wash & cube the potatoes and toss them in a pot, fill with water until just covering the potatoes, boil until tender when pierced with a fork, drain from the hot water)

2. you can either add milk and butter as usual (heat them first so your potatoes do not become gluey) or you can just add roasted garlic from the garlic confit - either will work

3. now it's time to get out the phyllo; free it from the plastic, but keep it rolled; slice the roll into 4 equally sized portions

4. put away 3 of the four rolls of phyllo and roll out one so all the sheets are in a stack

5. put about 1 tbsp (I got an ice cream scoop for this) at the top of the sheet

6. now fold over the top corner into a triangle, then follow it all the way to the bottom of the sheet

7. once you reach the bottom of the sheet, brush the phyllo with olive oil or garlic oil from the garlic confit, seal the packet, and lay it on a sheet pan

8. repeat until you're out of potatoes or phyllo

9. bake at 210ºC or 400ºF for 10-14 minutes or until golden brown

It is a little fiddly, but worth the work in the end.

This can be adapted for any number of fillings. It is a wonderful thing to stuff with cheeses as it becomes cheese and cracker. I enjoyed these full of sun dried tomato hummus or made with puff pastry instead of phyllo (think biscuit).

You could pre-make these and freeze them on a sheet pan then put them into zippered baggies once they are frozen solid for baking just a few at a time. I also then write the temperature and time it will take for them to cook on the bag.

Kosher Salt & Mint Crusted Leg of Lamb

When our church announced we would be moving locations for Sunday mornings to a Jewish Temple, we knew we wanted the first church lunch there to be inspired by the Jewish culture.

Clearly, lamb would HAVE to be on the menu.

After some research, we found an amazing local farm with fresh lamb available weekly. To order your own, go here.

RECIPE: Kosher Salt and Mint Crusted Lamb

Ingredients:
1 leg or shoulder lamb roast (with or without the bone)
1 large bunch of fresh mint
1/3 cup kosher salt
2 tbsp kosher salt
up to 1 cup olive oil

Method:
1. in a blender, blitz the mint, 1/3 cup kosher salt, and add olive oil until the mixture blends into a thick, liquidy mixture

2. place the lamb roast and the mint mix into a ziplock bag and allow to marinate for one day

3. once you are ready to cook the lamb, preheat the oven to 190ºC or 375ºF

4.  place the lamb in a roasting pan and pour over the remainder of the marinade then sprinkle 2 tbsp of kosher salt over the works

5. roast until cooked through - the FDA suggests a temperature of 145ºF or 63ºC

6. slice the roasted lamb and serve in the roast drippings

Diablo Cookies

WARNING: these will cause mixed emotions for you. Highly addictive in nature. You've been told.


Last September while travelling in BC, we visited a food truck in Tofino called TacoFino. They have a cookie called the "Diablo Cookie" that a friend said we had to try.

TacoFino Cantina in Tofino, BC

We tried it, and it was good. Amazing, in fact. Chris found the recipe online (I have no idea where).

When we arrived at my parents house a few days later, we had to whip up a batch.

My Mother likes food a certain way. She does not like sweets or chocolate, she does not like cookies and she hates, above all else, spicy food.

I wanted you to know all of that... and these are her favourite cookies.


RECIPE: Diablo Cookies
Pre-heat oven to 190ºC / 375ºF

Ingredients:
[the dry]
1.5 cups all purpose flour
1 cup sifted cocoa powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp ground cayenne
1 cup milk chocolate chips or large milk chocolate chunks

[the wet]
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup white sugar
1/2 cup canola oil
2 eggs
1tbsp vanilla extract
3 tbsp fresh minced ginger (or fresh squeezed ginger juice)
coarse sea salt (for garnish)

Method:
1. mix the dry (if using chunks, reserve to the side for now)
2. mix the wet
3. combine the dry and the wet

4. on a greased cookie sheet, press fist sized dough balls and sprinkle with rock salt (or sea salt or coarse salt of any kind) and sugar; if using large milk chocolate chunks, press two into the middle of the cookie before sprinkling salt & sugar on top

5. bake for approximately 11 minutes or until the cookies start to crack - they should be fudgey in the middle

6. leave on the sheet to cool for a few minutes before removing to a rack

Makes 12 large cookies. Don't eat them all in one sitting.

And as a note - I always try to lower the amount of sugar in EVERY recipe I make; in this one, the amount cannot be lessened with this quantity of cayenne; the sugar helps cut the heat. It should also be noted that the texture is compromised when the sugar is cut.

Makes an AMAZING compliment to a bowl of vanilla ice cream.

As consumed at several Friends Church lunches

Potato Salad

Ever find one of those recipes that is just... the BEST?! When you eat what you've made you think, "How have I lived my life up to this point without this food in my life?!"

Yeah, this is one of those.

Now, I can't take credit for most of this recipe; much of it is owed to Tyler Florence. You can find his original here.

When Chris and I make a recipe, we tend to pare it down and make it with quantities of ingredients that make our life simpler. Also, we tend to cook for a bit of a crowd.

At this point, some of you are thinking of that potato salad you had three years ago that was flavourless, watery, and left you disappointed. Firstly, I did not make that salad and secondly, this is ENTIRELY different from that salad. This one is actually good.

RECIPE: Potato Salad
Serves 12 (for your bbq this weekend)

Ingredients:
5 lb bag baby potatoes
12 eggs
1 bunch scallions (green onions), whites and greens sliced up together
1 small jar capers, drained
2 cups mayo
1/4 cup dijon
8-10 good pickles, diced (I use Kuhn brand as they don't contain preservatives)
reserve the pickle juice
1 small red onion, finely diced
1 bunch fresh flat leaf parsley or cilantro (whatever you prefer), chopped - including stems
1 bunch dill, chopped
the juice of 1 lemon or lime

Method:

> turn the broiler on high

> after washing the potatoes, quarter them, lay them on a sheet pan, and put them under the broiler (second rung from the top) for about 10 minutes; they should be golden and tender when you take them out of the oven; leave them on the pan until they have cooled

> to boil the eggs, put enough water into the pot to just submerge all the eggs; bring the water to a boil then turn it down to medium before lowering in the 12 eggs; put the lid on the pot and set the timer for 9 minutes; cool in cold water, peel, and dice the eggs up fairly small

> add the chopped eggs, scallions, capers, dijon, diced pickles, red onion, parsley or cilantro, dill, and lemon juice to the bowl; stir together

> stir in the potatoes to coat

> lastly, add in the mayo, determining how much is needed for the rest of the salad; thin down with pickle juice to your hearts content

> enjoy

Twenty Minute Dinner

Right now, I don't have time. I don't have extra time at any point in my day. There is just so much going on with the end of the school year, spring sports, our dogs, my husband's job change, garden, family moving... and then it's time to make a healthy dinner before rushing out the door and on to the sport of the evening.

I just don't have time.

But I have these cubes of stewing lamb in the fridge. And I a litre of canned tomatoes. We must be out the door in less than one hour so I have 20 minutes - at most - to make a healthy, filling, delicious dinner. Here I go!

RECIPE: Quick Curry
serves 6

Ingredients:
3 cups white rice (+ water to make the rice)

<for the curry>
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp turmeric
1 tsp garam masala (brown curry powder)
0.5 tsp kosher salt
1 to 1.5 lb (450-700g) stewing lamb, beef, or cubed meat of any kind
1 litre (quart) of canned tomatoes
1 cup raisins
1 cup yogurt

<for the cauliflower>
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp madras curry (yellow curry powder)
1 head cauliflower, chopped into florets

<serve with>
chopped cilantro
unsalted peanuts


Method:

1. measure the rice and get on with cooking it

2. bring the oven rack up to the second from the top and turn the broiler to high

3. over high heat, heat the oil for the curry in a large skillet then add the spices and stir together for 1 minute until fragrant

4. add in the meat and stir to coat the meat with oil and spices

5. in a large bowl, mix the olive oil and madras curry; chop the cauliflower and add in the florets and toss them to coat the cauliflower (I also had a leek in the fridge and chopped that into the cauliflower; any veggies would work here)

6. once the meat is cooked, add the litre of tomatoes and the cup of raisins; stir together

7. pour the cauliflower onto a cookie sheet - in one even layer - and put under the broiler for about 10 minutes

8. chop the cilantro and pour the peanuts into a bowl for the table

9. set the table and pour a glass of wine (or crack open a beer)

10. stir in the yogurt right before serving the curry; it may curdle a little, not altering the flavour at all, it just looks a little funny, like when I made it!

11. ENJOY!!!

Alternate:
- instead of stewing lamb, you could use beef, chicken, shrimp, pork, goat, chopped onions, mushrooms, or chickpeas
- instead of in the oven, you could steam the cauliflower in a pot on the stovetop
- instead of cauliflower, you could use cabbage

This was so delicious, I really did make it two nights in a row!!

Green Onion Chickpea Curry

This is easily one of our favourite dishes. It is simple to make, cook, and easy to eat.

RECIPE: Green Onion Chickpea Curry

Ingredients:
1/4 cup oil
1 tbsp cumin seeds
1 large onion, chopped or sliced
2 large tomatoes, diced (or a can of diced tomatoes)
1 tsp salt
5 tbsp minced ginger
2-4 large jalapeños, minced
3 cans (16 oz each) chickpeas, drained
1 can coconut milk, stirred
8 stalks green onions, cut in 1 cm lengths

Stovetop Method:
> heat the oil and fry the cumin seeds for 30-60 seconds or until fragrant
> sauté the ginger, jalapeños, and onion until soft
> add the tomatoes, salt, chickpeas, and coconut milk and simmer for 10 minutes or until the rest of dinner is ready (add water to thin the curry as needed)
> stir in the green onions just before serving

Oven Method:
> pre-heat the oven to 190ºC or 375ºF
> the oil can be omitted if the cumin and vegetables are not being sautéed
> throw all the ingredients into a deep pan or lidded casserole dish and stir it all together
> put the lid on and bake it

Serve over:
> rice or noodles
> salad greens like spinach, arugula, or endive
> thinly sliced sautéed cabbage

For an interesting twist, add a chopped apple or two to the curry before cooking. Pairs well with tangy chilli sauce.

"Free" Stovetop Muesli

Today, a guest post from my sister-in-law, Kim. She is my husband's sister and one of my favourite people. She and her family are currently waiting on paperwork before returning to international work and are living with Mom and Dad. 

There are lots of challenges that come with cooking for three generations and individuals with very specific dietary needs.

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Our lives changed drastically last May with my dad's leukemia diagnosis, and we quickly learned a new lifestyle: vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, sugar-free, and avoiding a number of foods that my dad had allergies to.

Grilled Salad with Cream Cheese

It's lunch time. There are no leftovers for me from dinner last night. What should I make?

There are half an onion, half a green pepper, and half a red pepper all staring at me in the fridge.

And cream cheese... and fresh tomatoes... hmmm...

RECIPE: Grilled Salad with Cream Cheese

Ingredients:
half a small onion, sliced
one bell pepper, sliced or chopped
1 tomato, diced
1 dollop low fat cream cheese

Method:
> sauté the onion and pepper in a skillet
> once caramelized, pour into bowl
> add tomatoes, cream cheese, and parsley or cilantro garnish
> season to taste and enjoy!!

There are many variation options for this recipe; here are a few that popped to mind:

This would also be amazing with leftover grilled chicken, fish, or beef in place of the cream cheese.

Add to a bun with leftover steak, melt some mozzarella over the top, and drizzle with garlic mayo, hello Philly Cheese Steak!!

Without the cream cheese, this is a great vegetable side dish with very little work - fresh and grilled!

Garlic Confit: easier to make (and use) than pronounce

Garlic confit (say con-FEE) is simply garlic slowly poached in oil. 

Here are the steps:

1. skin garlic

2. poach in oil

3. enjoy

Step 1

- smash the garlic head to break up all the cloves

- place garlic into a metal bowl

- cover bowl with inverted metal bowl

- hold tightly and shake it for all you're worth

Here's how it is done...

Step 2

- place the peeled garlic into a pot and pour oil to just cover the garlic (you can use olive oil for this or any other oil you would like infused with garlic)

- turn the pot on LOW or 2 and allow to bubble away for 40 to 50 minutes or until they are golden and soft like warm butter; stir occasionally

Step 3

Enjoying this treat is the best part! How can you use it? Here are a few ideas:

For the oil...
- use the oil for a vinaigrette salad dressing
- roasted garlic vegetables - use the oil to toss the veggies before broiling to perfection
- for frying eggs in the morning
- lightly garlic toast for two - oil a cast iron skillet with garlic oil, then toast the bread on both sides
- for a lighter pizza, brush the shell with garlic oil instead of pizza sauce
- use in place of butter or oil - the options are almost limitless

For the garlic cloves...
- salad dressing - smash the cloves and mix with mayo and water to thin then salt to taste
- use in cream pasta sauces
- garlic bread - smash the garlic together with butter (and a little salt if your butter is unsalted) and spread on bread to be toasted in the oven
- use whole in recipes that call for a smaller amount of fresh minced garlic, for example, spaghetti sauce, homestyle chowder, or in stir-fries
- in mashed potatoes; pop them into the milk and butter (or garlic oil) while you are warming them before adding the potatoes and mashing the works; is wonderful this way with fresh goat chèvre

Storage

Keep in a sealed glass jar in the fridge. Keeps for about a month in the fridge as long as the garlic oil stays above the level of the garlic. If the garlic cloves are exposed to air, they are able to spoil more quickly.

When I make this, I use it up before it has a chance to go bad. Once you have made and used this garlic confit, I am sure you will find it disappears fairly quickly.

Guatemalan Banana Bread

RECIPE: Guatemalan Banana Bread

(serves 6)

Ingredients:

5 cups flour

2 cups brown sugar

2 tablespoons baking powder

2 teaspoons salt

1 teaspoons cinnamon

1 teaspoons allspice

2.5 cups smashed bananas

0.5 cups milk

1/3 cups vegetable oil

2 eggs

zest of 1 lime

2 tbsp lime juice

Method:

> heat oven to 350ºF; grease bottom of the pan

> mix all ingredients; beat 30 seconds

> pour into pan

> bake until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean (30-45 minutes)

> cool before slicing

And when you bake one that is THIS huge, you bake it a little longer!!

To see a list of what else was made for the Guatemalan lunch, go here.