Walk Widely. Eat Wisely. Live Gratefully.
I might have made this delectable breakfast treat for our team meeting on Wednesday, but Marianne wanted bacon. She is an expert at making people feel welcome, so I took her advice – bacon it was. But today, there was an avocado still calling my name, so it became the starting point.
Toasted English muffins, topped with avocado (mashed with a squeeze of lemon) and finished with a perfectly poached egg. They have the creamy goodness of a Benny without the work – great for a weekday breakfast!
Finally the snow is receding and the barbecue is accessible. We are working on the “use what is on sale or in the freezer” methodology, and this week we found a great deal on local ground beef. So in addition to making a batch of meatballs for later in the week, we made tomato, avocado and bacon ( salute to the lovely Marianne) burgers. Yum!
Turkey soup…again?
Our quest to find as many ways as possible to use our roast turkey had to include soup, of course. But this week’s version took a turn for the tasty! In addition to onion, garlic, carrot and mushrooms, we added in a thumb-sized chunk of ginger, julienned. Just the thing for fighting off the bug that has been going around (and finally caught us). We finished it off with the stock we made from our turkey carcass, some leftover turkey, and tipped in a good handful each of short grain brown rice and red lentils.
It simmered into a thick, hearty consistency that doesn’t taste like the same old turkey soup at all – and warmed us for our excursion out into the rainy world.
We roasted a turkey on Wednesday, and set a challenge for ourselves – use it as many ways as possible, given that there are only two of us now, without getting that, “oh, no, turkey again?” feeling.
Of course we started with the roast dinner, and then the possibly predictable hot turkey sandwich. Next, a lunch salad of mixed greens, turkey, dried cranberries, dressed with a spicy Dijon vinaigrette. Having been felled by the crazy cold/flu that is going around, something spicy and comforting was in order, and this turkey chili was just the ticket. It also had the advantage of using up some of the beans and veg we had put up in the freezer.
At 88 cents a pound, this little bird is working wonders for our grocery budget.
The calendar SAYS it’s spring, but the wild weather we’ve been having here on the east coast sure doesn’t seem like it. Somewhere between “the best defense is a good offense” and “if you can’t beat ’em, join ’em”, we came up with last night’s dinner idea.
On the table in a couple of hours, while we watched the freezing rain coating the trees outside: Apple braised veal shank with roasted winter vegetables. We started with some delicious veal shank from Halifax’s Seaport Market. Four servings meant we would have leftovers for today’s lunch.
After browning the shanks in olive oil, we put them aside on a plate and added a sliced onion, a sliced clove of garlic, and a stalk of celery to the pan, stirring until translucent. At the same time, we reconstituted a package of wild dried mushrooms in 1-3/4c boiling water and 1/4c or 60ml apple brandy in a heatproof measuring cup. 2c/500ml of apple slices went in next, along with 1c/250ml of sliced fresh mushrooms, and the reconstituted fungi and their broth. A sprinkle of tarragon and nutmeg rounded out the flavour.
We nestled the shanks in the vegetable mix, and covered it in preparation for the next step.
Meanwhile, in a separate casserole dish, we put a carrot, a small turnip, and some sweet potato, roughly chunked. This was tossed with dried rosemary, and 2T/30ml each of olive oil and maple syrup.
Everything went into a 350F oven for the remainder of the 2 hours. The meat was strictly “do not disturb”, but we stirred the veg about 3 times.
Our conclusion? Winter WILL go away eventually, but until then, we will stave off the chill with one last go at some of our favourite winter recipes.
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Before our recent holiday, we packaged up any fruit we couldn’t finish, and threw it in the freezer. These sweet dark cherries and apple slices came in handy when we wanted a warming breakfast for a gray, drizzly spring day. Brown sugar, rolled oats and butter formed the crisp topping, spiced up with a shake of cinnamon. The addition of some tangy, fat-free yogurt made it just right.
For two:
Preheat oven to 350F.
In a heatproof glass dish, put 3 cups of fruit. Meanwhile, in a bowl, mix 2c/500ml large-flake oats, 3T/45ml brown sugar, and 1/4c/6oml melted butter with a shake of cinnamon. Pour this on top of the fruit and bake – 30 minutes if you use fresh fruit, or 45 if you use frozen, as we did.
Top each serving with 1/4c or 60ml of yogurt.
Storm of the year! Here we are, having been tested by snow, ice and wind. Fortunately so far all is intact, we have heat and light, and we have managed to clear a path to the road.
What made us leave our walk-to-the-subway-and-avoid-the-elements existence? Who knows. But the call of this land is strong and the battle of the wind and water seems to actually strengthen our pioneer spirit. What we do know, is that the pioneers knew sustenance when they saw it. Our Grammy was a comfort food expert, and she always made us feel better by serving this: onion gravy pork chops with mashed potatoes and veg (any veg!)
Travel safely wherever you are, and honour your grandmothers. They’re worth it. And while you’re at it, learn to cook the favourite thing they make. Someday you’ll need it.
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When we were kids, my grandmother used to make this simple salad in the wintertime – usually for breakfast, but sometimes as a surprise for lunch. It consists of peeled and cubed oranges and pink grapefruit, with a small sprinkling of sugar a teaspoon, maybe a tablespoon if you are making enough for the whole family. I’m sure it can be made without the sugar, but somehow it helps the juice along.
These days we still have it for breakfast, usually with a slice of peanut butter toast, or occasionally a yogurt. And when we have it, we remember her, and smile.
It snowed overnight, which we suppose is Mother Nature having the last laugh after we were so excited at yesterday’s promise of spring. We’re fighting back, though, by having a lunchtime salad that combines the flavours of a winter Tagine with the crunchy green-ness of spring.
On a bed of greens, we added celery slices and chopped up last night’s leftover lamburgers. The dressing consisted of balsamic vinegar, olive oil, and maple Dijon mustard from Kozlik’s. To top it off, some feta, raisins, and pine nuts gave us a salty-sweet finish with just the right spiciness.
Yesterday Mother Nature gave us a peek into springtime, with bare lawns, sunshine, and temperatures above the freezing mark. We knew the forecast was for snow, so after a long walk, we wanted to take advantage of this temperate turn of events while it lasted.
On the grill: lamb burgers – topped with feta cheese, a little corn relish, and some Dijon, with a green side salad to make sure it really felt like spring!
