Month: July 2012

Serendipity Dinner

In an effort to use up last year’s batch of canned tomatoes before the new ones are ripe, we made a huge pot of marinara on the weekend. Some has gone to the freezer, but the mother of all sauces is so versatile, it’s getting used in all kinds of dishes. Yesterday, pizza toast for lunch. Then on a stroll to Plank Road for a chicken breast big enough for two, we spotted these luscious two-colour egg noodles. They went perfectly with the chicken…which we cooked in a 400F oven for about 40 minutes. Here’s what was in the pot: 1 boneless, skinless chicken breast, 1 carrot and one yellow bell pepper, diced. Five large white mushrooms, quartered. 1 cup/250ml of marinara. Cover and bake.

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Stacking Up to be a Great Day

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How to start the day? Perhaps like this! For two, begin by poaching two fresh, large eggs. Meanwhile, toast a whole wheat English muffin.

Spread some of Kozlik’s Dijon by Anton on each muffin half. Top this with some Char Pastrami from Hooked. Next, a thick slice of fresh yellow tomato and a basil leaf from the garden. Finish the stack with the soft poached egg and a sprinkling of paprika. Serve with a cup of Prince of Darkness coffee…we got ours at Better Bulk on the Danforth. You’ll wake up your mouth!

Shiitake Special Pizza

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When this pizza came out of the oven, it looked almost too beautiful to cut! We started with a whole wheat crust (find out how in our recipe pages). Then we turned to the pantry and last summer’s canning for ideas. A little salsa for the first layer, topped with slices of roasted red pepper. After that, half a shallot, thinly sliced, and the caps of a plethora of baby shiitakes from Waymac Farms, by way of our local farmers’ market. Then, to top it off, some aged cheddar and mozzarella from Black River Cheese. We’re so glad we can buy it just down the street at Better Bulk!

Cut it we did, by the way, and ate it with gusto.

Keeping it Simple

20120708-081214.jpg Today our daughter is celebrating her 30th birthday, and we are so grateful for her. She’s an amazing young woman. Last night when we returned home from gathering the ingredients for her birthday dinner, a simple dinner was in order. So we grilled the lamb chops himself had picked up at the East Lynn Farmers’ Market, and used some more of Nick’s delicious romaine to make a simple Caesar salad. The fresh Ontario garlic in the dressing was piquant!

Looking Backwards

20120704-100325.jpg Those of you who read our last post will realize that this meal actually preceded that one; I just couldn’t find the photo!

It’s hard to imagine why, but we decided to eat a real cold day food on one of the hottest days of the year. When we returned from golf the other day, we coated this lovely rack of Ontario lamb with Dijon and chopped rosemary from our garden. We surrounded it with halved new potatoes, rubbed with oil and decorated with a single sage leaf on each half. We roasted the lot for about 30 minutes (start at 450F then immediately drop the temp to 350F – check doneness with an instant-read thermometer; 125 for rare). On the side, steamed broccoli.

While it was cooking, we enjoyed the cool shade and watched the world go by from our front porch.

A Little Lamb

20120704-095152.jpg Yesterday was a slow, sultry day, the kind where salad is the best option for any meal.

We had a bit of leftover roast lamb (the roast came from the East Lynn Farmers’ Market, just down the street) and a small chunk of feta (from Better Bulk) begging to be used. So we put this salad together:

15ml/1T each of balsamic vinegar and olive oil, whisked together in a medium bowl
A good handful of fresh oregano leaves, chopped
90g/3oz of diced cooked lamb
6 black olives, pitted and chopped
1 medium tomato, diced
250ml/1c broccoli florets

Our lamb had been roasted in a coating of Dijon; otherwise add about 5ml/1t of that to the dressing as well. Toss the vegetables and lamb in the vinaigrette. Serve on a bed of:

500ml/2c romaine

Over the top of the salads, sprinkle:

30g/1oz feta, crumbled

Serves 2