Crisy Corn Bread

Well, it's still pretty cold out these days and nothing tastes better on a cold night than a steaming hot bowl of chili.  Or beer.  Or both.  But what can get ANY better than some really great corn bread to round out the mix??

I found this recipe at All Recipes and if you're really looking for a good recipe for ANYTHING, this is a great site!!  Anything you dream can be found here, with photos of the final produce (love that) and each recipe is rated by the users, so you always know what's good!  Check it out!

So, here's a fool proof corn bread recipe that I tried once, and have never looked back with.  It's perfectly sweet, crunchy and heck - a big old blob of butter on it really is like the icing on the cake!!

Prime Rib Dinner - Yorkshire Pudding

I struggled for quite a while many years ago when I lived with my Aunt and Uncle and we all took turns making dinner and I wanted Yorkshire Pudding.  My Grandmother used to make them and they were so wonderful covered in rich gravy.  That crispy outside and soft inside, hot and steamy.  Amazing!!

So, after many trials and experiments, I finally found what worked for me to produce a well puffed and beautifully crispy Yorkshire Pudding.  Here's what I do, and hopefully it will help someone who's scared to try, be able to share what I think are the BEST Yorkshire Puddings ever!  And you're not going to believe just how easy they are to make!

Prime Rib Dinner - Roasted Garlic Mashed Potatoes

I don't know many people that don't like mashed potatoes.  And unfortunately, I happen to live with three.  There's only 4 of us in the house!!  And I could live, breath, exist on mashed potatoes.  But, I think I've nearly converted Mr. Hungry to being a mashed potatoes fan.  He's come a long way in 10 years!  The kids, well they aren't sold on the whole matter JUST yet.  But I have hope.

These are the potatoes Mr. Hungry likes.  Dare I say 'loves'??  Not just yet, dont' want to jinx anything!!  And the good news, just add a bit more butter and a bit more cream cheese and you can make these a day ahead and heat on low in a slow cooker the next day!

I think the cream cheese, butter and milk create a very smooth texture and the addition of roasted garlic takes the flavour up a notch that just tastes >that much< better than the plain old potatoes I used to make! 

Again, a combination of recipes and research and experimenting have brought me to this combination for terrific mashed potatoes.  Feel free to use different spices in place of the parsley that suit your tastes.  Dill is a terrific alternative!

Prime Rib Dinner - Prime Rib Roast

Remember when Sunday dinners were a big event, surrounded by family around the table.  Sharing a meal, memories and stories??  We need more of that in our busy world.  Everyone should plan a Sunday dinner, if not once a week, then at least once a month.



And at our house, we do plan these family-centred meals.  Not every week, but when everyone has time in their busy schedule to stop by and pay a visit to play with the kids and hover around the kitchen waiting for a delicious meal.



A beautiful roast is the
essence of a Sunday dinner!



This Sunday, we had one of our dear friends over for dinner.  And luck would have it, prime rib roasts were on for a steal of a deal at one of the local markets...so how could I resist!

The nights meal will come in 3 parts.  In different posts. 

The roast.

The potatoes.

The Yorkshire puddings.

Meatball Submarine

OK, so last post I told you about making meatballs that can be used in a variety of ways and how we use them for meatball subs.  I decided to break up the meatballs vs the meatball subs posts so they don't get lost in cyber space.  And this recipe (if you can even call it that) is to show you that I don't ALWAYS cook full meals.

At least once or twice a week we have something simple and easy to do, or leftovers.  Gone are the days when we had loads of time to stand in the kitchen baking, cooking and creating a new meal each day.

But, it's so easy to get into the habit of the same.old.thing over and over again.  I've been there before!  You find a meal that is easy and tastes good and before you know it - you're tired of it because you've had it 5 times in the past month.

So what a great way to take something and change the way you use it!  And really, soup and a sandwich really isn't a bad meal after all!

Meatball Submarine
Makes: as many as you want


Submarine buns, parisian rolls or hoagie rolls

2-4 slices of cheese per 6" bun (we use mozzarella most days but any kind of cheese works nice)

2 tbsp butter or margarine
1 jar of spaghetti sauce (I use Classico Four Cheese Sauce because it's got a really nice/rich flavour)








Put your thawed or fresh meatballs (about 6-8 per 6" bun) into a pot and pour in enough sauce to just cover them.  Simmer over low heat until heated through.

Preheat your oven to broil.  Low if you have a choice of settings.

Cut open your roll, without fully cutting it into two pieces.  You want to have a healthy 'hinge' part still holding the top and bottom pieces together or you'll give your meatballs another place to escape from when you bite into this great sub!  One side open is enough!

Carefully lay your buns open on a baking sheet and lightly coat each side of each bun with butter or margarine.  You could also use Extra Virgin Olive Oil or a flavoured oil (I suggest chili oil if you can find it) but be careful you don't soak the bun too much.  Put sheet into the oven to lightly broil (about 3-5 minutes).

Remove from oven and, keeping the buns on your baking sheet, load one side of the bun with meatballs and sauce.  How much sauce you add is up to you, knowing that more sauce = messier sub.  But hey, that's the whole point of this meal!  Layer mozzarella cheese on top of meatballs and put the baking sheet and subs back into the oven until the cheese is melted and slightly toasted.

Gently close your sub, cut if required and slide onto a plate for devouring!  Don't mind the mess of sauce and cheese dripping through your fingers - it's the joy of a great tasting, messy meal!  And watch for that one meatball that just wants to try to escape out the side!

Enjoy your simple, tasty supper!

--The Cook

Meatballs for Any Occasion!



These meatballs can be used a number of ways!

As mentioned before, we're a working family and having meals made ahead, or at the minimum PLANNED ahead takes the guess work out of dinner and the stress level stays low.  I don't plan each meal, each week but I do spend weekends making things ahead of time to freeze or use as leftovers for a few, more simple meals. 



And Mr. Hungry knows what's going on too - so he can have dinner ready by the time I get home from work (or the gym) and I can do the same when he's working late.  Even Biggie Wiggie and Loo Lee eat them!



So, this weekend the project was to make meatballs.  These are very versatile because you can cook them in large batches and freeze for super simple supper plans.  They are also not cooked in any sauce, so you can use them a variety of ways - they can be added to your favorite spaghetti sauce (you can alter the Spaghetti Night recipe to omit the beef and do meatballs instead), BBQ sauces, stews, soups or served by themselves.  And our favorite way to use them has been Meatball Subs!

Indian Roti (or Chapati)

We love Indian food, particularly curry.  And even more specifically, Butter Chicken.  Thankfully, we have a really great lady (Pam) in town who makes Butter Chicken and sells it at the Farmer's Market in frozen tubs.  Just cook your chicken, add the sauce and finish with cream or yogurt and enjoy.

My stash was running low.  ACK!  So, I scoured the Internet that had recipes that had spices like I remembered Pam's to have and found thousands.  I guess Butter Chicken is like Chili - each region makes it's own, and in each region - each family makes their own.  It was amazing how many recipes there were!

I mixed up a few different recipes and created one that we love, and I now make it in large batches and freeze, just like I did with Pam's.

In doing research for the Butter Chicken, I came across many recipes for Roti.  The best I can compare it to is fresh tortillas.  An Indian flat bread.  Thin, tasty and terrific for scooping up bits of chicken or rice floating in Butter Chicken Sauce. 

And yes, I will add the Butter Chicken Sauce to my blog the next time I make it!!

So, for all those curry Indian cuisine lovers, here's a very common recipe for roti.  I hope you love it was much as we do!

Prawn and Cream Cheese Ravioli with White Wine Cream Sauce

I have, over the years, nearly made myself crazy thinking, dreaming, drooling over stuffed pasta recipes.  I've seen thousands and in my sleep - ate thousands!  Do you see colour when you dream??  I sure do!  And surprising enough, I can taste things in my sleep too (go ahead, call me strange).

Did you know that once you mix up the fillings you can put INTO pasta with the sauces you can put ONTO pasta - you'll probably have as many options as there are stars in the sky!  The possibilities are endless!!

So yes, I've been dreaming of making my own filled pasta.  Now, I'm not yet ready to tackle the pasta itself (my beautiful blue Kitchen Aide can work with an attachment that lets me roll pasta and I'd rather use that than do it all by hand beause I'm afraid of a pastry fiasco like I've experienced before) just yet.  Mr. Hungry and I decided that we'd attempt some over the weekend and (let's be honest here, right) it went well but ONLY after I changed my plan of attack!




Prawn and Cream Cheese Ravioli with
White Wine Cream Sauce


I first tried this recipe using fresh Olivieri Lasagna Sheets, which to my brain meant it was pasta and pasta would STICK to pasta.  Did not work.  At all.  I tried the right out of the package, soaked for a few minutes and soaked for a few more minutes.  Nothing I tried would make them darn things STICK together.  *sigh* 


Thankfully Mr. Hungry was hungry enough (yet still interested enough) to run to the store and make an emergency purchase so we could make our meal (we had these the same night as the Roasted Garlic and Peppers with Goat Cheese Baguette) with as little screaming as possible.  Me screaming.  He saved the day, but don't tell him that!!


So here it goes!

About the recipes you find on my blog ...

So, like all really great things, recipes change over time and with little additions and alterations - we make them our own.  That is what I do here.  I hardly ever follow a recipe word-for-word, step-by-step.  I do, however, do research and look at a number of different recipes and find what works for my tastes in a number of them, and then re-group them into a new recipe that I love and either use as-is over and over again - or change just a little bit more.


Mostly, I know what I want to do with a certain (meat, vegetable, product or item) and go from there.  I've been known to make something up, just because I want to see if that something will turn into something GREAT.  And many times it does work.  Or not.


So, if you've ever wondered or ever will wonder - these are recipes that work for me.  Researched by me and compiled into what works for me.  And those I feed.  It's like taking a little bit of a number of things and adding them all together.  Huh.  Like cooking!  Like a recipe!  Ah ha!


If ever I copy a recipe from someone else, I will give credit to them.  I promise.  And I do sometimes cook from what someone else has researched and from what has worked for them.  Because I don't know everything and I'm still learning how things go together.


So, there you have me.  And honestly, most times I don't actually use a recipe.  My Mom and my Grandma use to let me help them cook and it was a pinch of this and a pinch of that - a few handfulls here and there.  They didn't need a recipe!  I follow that.  Not every chili is the same, not every sauce is the same.  Thank you Mom and thank you Grandma for teaching me that it's not all about a cup or a teaspoon. 


--The Cook

Roasted Garlic and Peppers with Goat Cheese Baguettes

Roasted Garlic and Peppers with
Goat Cheese Baguette

Mr. Hungry and I love to eat together.  And sometimes cook together.  It's like I have my very own helper, who's not scared to roll his sleeves up and do the dirty work (which is usually running down to the freezer and washing the dishes) plus chop, mix and prepare anything I need.

We also have Date Nights.  Getting out of the house can be tricky at times, and expensive!  But why go out when we can eat in and have a pretty splendid meal for next to nothing!

So, after the kids go down for the night, we have Date Night.  It's relaxing, it's romantic - it's just the two of us! 

 Tonight is Date Night.

And I have a secret addiction.  A few really - but lately it's been goat cheese.  Soft, spreadable, delightful goat cheese.  And this appetizer is good for a crowd, low maintenance for the cook (just plop it all on the table and guests can create their own) and ever so good! 

Spaghetti Night

So I wanted to make spaghetti.  Lots of spaghetti.  Enough spaghetti to feed the whole neighbourhood AND more!

Isn't that a good looking pot of spaghetti?

OK (let's be honest here), I wanted to make spaghetti to feed us, some friends and (because we're a working family) some to put in the freezer for a quick meal.  I usually make things like this in huge bunches, because coming home and heating something yummy is far better than hot dogs and grilled cheese - although the kids never complain when it's hot dogs and grilled cheese.  But then, some days neither do the adults!

So, prepare to witness the biggest pot of spaghetti EVER.  Massive.  And honestly, I'd have made more if I had a bigger pot.  *Note to anyone interested in what to get me for -insert holiday here-, I want a pot.  A big, huge, like-grandma-used-to-use pot.

Chocolate Pecan Tarts

Chocolate Pecan Tarts

Mr. Hungry asked for these.  He's got a sweet tooth like no one I have EVER seen.  Candy, chocolate - anything sweet doesn't stand a chance in our house unless it's hidden well.

He's still not found the Purdy's Chocolate Santa I have hidden for a rainy day.  Ha ha!

I love pecans.  I'm sure they can now be considered my favorite nut.  Probably because they are one of the few left that don't make my throat itch and my ears burn.  Dang nuts anyways.....

It's coming, I promise!

So, over the weekend I managed to put together a couple of stories for you!



Saturday was Chocolate Pecan Tarts.  Yum.



Sunday was Spaghetti and Meat Sauce.



As soon as I have time, I will post them.  Tonight perhaps??  Sadly our Loo is under the weather so I'm hoping she feels good enough to let me find the time to get on here!  I never realized just how long it takes to make a meal when you want to take photos of each step along the way!  I can just imagine that adding that all into a Blog can be even more interesting!



Is anyone reading, or am I still talking to myself? 



--The Cook