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Pepperoni Pizza Wraps

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Pepperoni Pizza Wraps are one of those fun recipes I’ve been making for years, and one that my son asks for all the time!

Before my kids started school I used to look after other kids along with my own and would always have fun creating new lunches for them. I had several guinea pigs to test out recipes on and the food was always fresh and never frozen, so I took full advantage of fun kid lunches.

Add sauce to your pepperoni pizza wraps
Add sauce to your pepperoni pizza wraps

My son is obsessed with everything pizza so I do try to make different “pizza” type meals. Pepperoni Pizza Muffins have been a hit in school lunches and bake sales, our Pizza Soup is one my mom got me hooked on back in the 90s and we take these Pizza Burgers camping with us making them in advance, freezing and they are thawed when it’s time to grill. I wrote about some of these pizza recipes on Food Network Canada, so check them out here: 3 Tasty Ways to Jazz Up Pizza Night.

Serve extra pizza sauce for dipping
Serve extra pizza sauce for dipping

In our family we all like our pizzas slightly different. The boys like all meat pizzas, the girl jazzes hers up with olives, pineapple, sometimes fresh basil and me, well after putting on YYC Pizza Week for 4 years and trying oodles of combinations, it depends on my mood but my go to is always a flavourful vegetarian.

These pizza wraps can be modified to suit your own tastes with added in mushrooms, peppers, onions, or even olives (we don’t judge here)! They do not have to be cooked or warmed up and we keep them simple with pepperoni and cheese, serving the veggies on the side.

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Pepperoni Pizza Wraps
Author: 
Serves: 2
 
Ingredients
  • 2 medium whole wheat tortillas
  • 2 tbsp pizza sauce
  • ½ tsp pizza seasoning or oregano or basil
  • 8 slices pepperoni sausage
  • 4 mozzarella cheese strings or 4 thick slices mozzarella cheese cut into long strings
Instructions
  1. Brush pizza sauce on tortillas. Add more sauce if you like a little more.
  2. Sprinkle pizza seasonings over top of sauce.
  3. Lay out 4 pieces of pepperoni on each tortilla.
  4. Place cheese on top of pepperoni.
  5. Wrap tortilla up like a burrito, folding the sides in first, then rolling it up from the bottom.
  6. For lunches or picnics I cover our wraps in plastic, add a cold pack and away they go.

 

Pepperoni Pizza Wraps
Pepperoni Pizza Wraps

Wraps are one way to change up lunches. We do a variety of them including Greek Salad Wraps, BBQ Beef Wraps and Cesaer Salad Wraps to keep lunches fun and interesting! What are your favourite ways to change up lunches?!

Pork Schnitzel with Israeli Salad & Halloumi

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Our final recipe for Pork Month in June in collaboration with Sunterra Market involves utilizing one of their pick up and cook at home meal options. I love to cook, but even I get tired of cooking and look for an easier way without giving in to take out.

In the meat department in Sunterra Market they have several ideas for those who do not wish to cook at all, aka take out, those who want to cook but very little time for prep, aka pick up and cook at home, or those who want to start from scratch like we did with the Pork Souvlaki with Cucumber Pineapple Salsa and Vietnamese Pork Meatball Banh Mi recipes.

Sunterra offers a large variety of take home options both on their website and in the store. Some of the pork options we spotted include marinated ribs, pork steaks, pork meatballs and meatloaf, sliders, ready made pork skewers and stir fry options, plus pork schnitzel all ready to go to be cooked at home.

Pork Schnitzel Ingredients
Pork Schnitzel with Israeli Salad & Halloumi Ingredients

One of the easiest meals to make is one where most of the work has been done for you. We decided on the Sunterra Farms Pork Sirloin Schnitzels for our quick meal to help combat busy baseball evenings.

Earlier this year we made a recipe out of Gail Simmon’s new cookbook that included a chicken schnitzel with an Israeli style salad. The combination of a cooked protein and salad as your meal is exactly how I like to cook, and this became my inspiration for making our Israeli Salad to accompany this schnitzel. When we grew up meals had to be a protein, carb and veggie.

An Israeli salad is a chopped salad of finely diced tomato, onion, cucumber, and bell or chili peppers. We went for a chunky salad and changed ours up a bit by adding grilled halloumi cheese and no peppers.

If you are shopping for a particular ingredient and can not find it, always find an employee or someone to talk to about the product. The pork schnitzel I was after wasn’t in the meat counter so the butcher happily prepared me a package in less than ten minutes. Do not be afraid to talk to the staff in the store to ensure you find what you are after. The Sunterra team has always been so helpful and easy to chat with every time I visit.

Sunterra Farms Pork Schnitzel
Sunterra Farms Pork Schnitzel

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Pork Schnitzel with Israeli Salad & Halloumi
Author: 
Recipe type: dinner
Serves: 4
 
Ingredients
  • 4 pork schnitzels, set aside
  • 1 pkg Halloumi cheese, sliced lengthwise into 4-5 slices
  • 2½ cups cucumber,
  • ½ cup red onion, sliced
  • 2 green onions, chopped
  • 2 cups cherry tomatoes, halved
  • 1 cup flat leaf parsley, chopped
  • 2 tbsp mint, chopped
  • 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
  • ½ tsp lemon zest
  • juice from one lemon
  • cracked black pepper
  • sea salt
  • ½ cup toasted pistachios
Instructions
  1. Brush the cheese with olive oil and place onto a medium hot grill for 3 minutes on each side, or until grill marks appear. Remove from heat and set aside.
  2. Add cucumber, red onion, green onions, cherry tomatoes, parsley and mint to a bowl. In a separate cup whisk together 2 tbsp olive oil, lemon zest and juice. Pour over salad, add a good turn or pinch of freshly cracked black pepper and pinch of salt. Cut cheese slices into chunks and add to salad. Gently toss.
  3. Heat oil in large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Working in batches, add cutlets to skillet; cook, turning once, until golden brown, about 3 minutes per side. Remove cutlets to warm platter.
  4. With a slotted spoon add your salad to the platter. Sprinkle with pistachios and serve immediately.
Notes
To toast the pistachios: Preheat oven to 350 F. Spread the pistachios evenly on a rimmed cookie sheet. Place in the oven for about 5 to 8 minutes. When they become fragrant they are done. Remove from oven and let cool down on a cutting board. Once cool rough chop and they are ready to go.

 

 

Pork Schnitzel with Israeli Salad & Halloumi
That Israeli Salad with Halloumi

 

Expect simple flavours from the crispy Israeli salad with fresh herbs and grilled cheese. We served this meal family style on a platter with a sprinkle of chopped toasted pistachios adding a little extra crunch.

 

Sunterra Farm Facts:

  1. Sunterra Farms started in Acme in 1970 by Stan and Flo Price and their eldest son Dave.
  2. All three Sunterra companies are still owned and operated by the Price family.

Sunterra Market has seven locations in Calgary and two in Edmonton. Each location may offer a slightly different set up, but they all have the same great local products, good quality and awesome selection.

We are working in collaboration with Sunterra Market and they have provided the ingredients for this recipe. All opinions, views expressed and recipe development are, as always, my own.

Vietnamese Pork Meatball Banh Mi

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While most of the school year tends to be busy, we really gear up in May and June. The kids are already in activities and then baseball starts. Two different leagues and commitments tend to have us running 6 nights or days a week and all over Calgary and beyond for games and weekend tournaments. This is when organization and menu planning is key to ensure there are no greasy food stops along the way, but instead we keep pace with healthy, quick meals filling bellies and giving everyone tons of energy for the evenings adventures. We are big fans of the cook once, get two or three unique meals out of it to help with those crazy Spring nights.

For the next month we have partnered with local business Sunterra Market to help promote their own farm pork in celebration of pork month in June. We will be creating some quick family meals using pork and accompanying store products.

With quick and easy meals our theme, for this recipe we’ve created a Vietnamese Port Meatball Banh Mi. We initially had planned on a variation of a Pork Kofta recipe, (also an easy way to use pork for a quick meal) but changed our thoughts to meatballs, because who doesn’t love a good meatball?!

Ingredients
Pork Meatball Ingredients

This recipe can be started the night before by mixing the meatball ingredients, even making the meatballs and leaving in the refrigerator, covered and uncooked. Making the mayonnaise spread in advance also allows the flavours to enhance and hello flavour bomb.

For those on a low carb diet or keto, all the ingredients can be placed into a lettuce cup or on top of a salad using all the ingredients you have prepared for the Banh Mi’s. This recipe makes up to four dozen meatballs or 8 sandwiches. After feeding our family of four we had only about 8-10 meatballs left!

Pork Meatball size
Pork Meatball size before cooking

The traditional Banh Mi sandwich itself is actually a French-Vietnamese hybrid consisting of a baguette, pickled vegetables, cilantro, a spicy chili component, cooling cucumber, a spicy or garlicky sauce and a protein. These days any protein can go into one of these sandwiches creating something quite tasty. When we make ours, we confess we do not add the pickled vegetables since I am the only one who enjoys pickles of any sort, therefore we keep our vegetables crunchy and we keep everyone happy!

Cooked Vietnamese Pork Meatball Banh Mi
Cooked Vietnamese Pork Meatball Banh Mi

Did you know Sunterra Farms started over 40 years ago in Acme, Alberta. Since then they have been perfecting their pork. You can read more about Sunterra Farms and how they came to be through a conversation in Oxfordshire, England and the Pig Improvement Company (PIC) back in the 1960s by clicking on the link: Over Forty Years of Perfecting Pork

Sunterra Farms Facts:

  1. Sunterra Farms raises pigs in rural Alberta, producing top-quality pork that is processed at Sunterra Meats and available at Sunterra Market locations. The pork is traceable from farm to fork.
  2. All the pork sold in Sunterra Market comes from Sunterra Farms. Valbella processes their hams in Canmore then sends them to Sunterra Markets.

 

Vietnamese Pork Meatball Banh Mi
Vietnamese Pork Meatball Banh Mi

 

 

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Vietnamese Pork Meatball Banh Mi
Author: 
Recipe type: lunch, dinner
Cuisine: Vietnamese
Serves: 8
 
Ingredients
  • 2 lbs ground pork
  • ⅓ cup finely chopped fresh basil
  • ¼ cup finely chopped fresh mint
  • 2 finely chopped green onions
  • 2 stalks lemon grass, pale section, bruised & finely chopped
  • 3 tbsp fish sauce
  • 2 tbsp chili garlic sauce
  • 1 tsp sugar
  • 1 tbsp finger minced ginger
  • 1 tsp sea salt
  • 1 tsp cracked black pepper
  • ⅔ cup mayonnaise
  • 1 tsp lime zest
  • 1 tsp lime juice
  • 1 tbsp cilantro, chopped
  • 2 tsp chili garlic sauce
  • pinch sea salt
  • 2 carrots, julienned
  • 2 radishes, julienned
  • ½ cup cucumber shredded or thinly sliced lengthwise
  • 1 jalapeno, sliced thin
  • 1 red thai chili pepper, sliced thin
  • cilantro, fresh sprigs
  • 2 limes, sliced into wedges
  • 2 baguettes
  • 2 tbsp sesame oil
  • Butter Lettuce
  • Cooked vermicelli noodles
Instructions
  1. For the pork meatballs: In a bowl mix together pork, basil, mint, green onions, lemongrass, fish sauce, 2 tbsp chili garlic sauce, sugar, ginger, salt and pepper. Once combined set back in fridge.
  2. For the spicy mayonnaise: Mix the mayonnaise, lime zest and juice, cilantro, 2 tsp chili garlic sauce and a pinch of salt in a small bowl. Set back in refrigerator until ready to use.
  3. Prep work: In individual bowls add your carrots, radish, cucumber, jalapeno and red thai chili peppers, cilantro sprigs and lime wedges.
  4. Cut your baguettes lengthwise without cutting all the way through, and then into 4 equal pieces.
  5. Take your pork mixture and roll your meatballs into 1 inch balls or roughly the size of a walnut.
  6. Cooking the pork: Heat 1 tbsp of the sesame oil in a large cast iron or non stick frying pan over medium heat. Cook half the meatballs, turning often, for 5-9 minutes or until browned and cooked through. Set aside on a parchment lined baking sheet and keep warm in the oven while you cook the second batch of meatballs in the remaining 1 tbsp of sesame oil.
  7. Once they are all cooked start preparing your Banh Mi.
  8. Make the sandwich: On each piece of baguette slather on some spicy mayonnaise. Add a few pieces of butter lettuce, 3-4 meatballs, a sprinkle of carrots, radish and cucumber. Top with cilantro, hot peppers and a squeeze of fresh lime.
  9. The lettuce cup: To eat as a lettuce cup, use medium size pieces of butter lettuce, add some vermicelli noodles, carrots, radish, cucumber, cilantro and hot peppers. You can add a small dollop of the mayonnaise if you wish and fresh lime juice.
  10. Put all the ingredients on the table allowing everyone to add more.

Bright, yet simple flavours are what make this Vietnamese Pork Meatball Banh Mi shine. We served the meatballs in a traditional Banh Mi style bun, in a lettuce cup, and the next day in a salad for lunch.

Do you enjoy Vietnamese food?! If so what are your favourite dishes?!

We are working in collaboration with Sunterra Market and they have provided the ingredients for this recipe. All opinions, views expressed and recipe development are, as always, my own.

Grilled Sausage Skewers

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There’s no doubt about it, summer took a long time to get here. Officially it’s still Spring, I know, but when you’ve had 8 months of winter you just want to say summer over and over again. So I say welcome summer, it’s been awhile, we hope you stay until December.

Grilled Sausage Skewers
Grilled Sausage Skewers

Grilling through the winter months is fairly easy for us – unless we hit -20 and our barbecue refuses to cooperate. When warmer weather hits barbecuing is almost a daily event. Sausage is always a reliable guest when you decide to grill so for this recipe we opted to grill our sausage about 75% of the way through. Remove it from the grill, place onto a plate and cover with aluminum foil to cool down. After all the other prep work is done it’s time to skewer and grill.

Grilled Sausage Skewers
Grilled Sausage Skewers

Any kind of sausage will do and of course pick your favourite vegetables or go out of your comfort zone and try something new. The kids admittedly were not thrilled with the ribbon zucchini, however the adults loved it as it retained some of its crunch. I told the kids there would be more zucchini in their life so they should probably suck it up. You can imagine how they responded of course since they are tweens.

You won’t believe how easy this is. Let’s get started.

 

Grilled Sausage Skewers
Grilled Sausage Skewers

 

 

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Grilled Sausage Skewers
Author: 
Serves: 4
 
Ingredients
  • 5 uncooked sausage links
  • 2 small zucchini
  • 1 small red onion, peeled
  • 1 tbsp za'atar spice
  • Olive oil
  • white wine vinegar
  • salt and pepper
  • skewers
Instructions
  1. Soak eight wooden skewers in water for 15-30 minutes.
  2. Preheat your grill to medium high.
  3. Cut ends off zucchini. Using a vegetable peeler carefully slice lengthwise until you have several zucchini ribbons. Lay onto paper towel lined baking sheet and salt each piece well. Set aside letting them sit for at least 30 - 60m minutes turning occasionally. Wipe off excess water and salt.
  4. Brush grill with olive oil, and then grill the sausages until partially cooked, about 7 minutes, rotating while cooking. Remove from heat, tent and set aside to cool.
  5. Slice onion in half lengthwise and into four wedges. Cut the wedges in half crosswise if the onion is large and into smaller chunks roughly the same size as the other pieces going onto your skewer.
  6. Slice the cooled sausage into chunks about the same size as some of our skewered vegetables for even cooking.
  7. Meanwhile whisk together olive oil, white wine vinegar, za'atar spice and a good pinch of salt and pepper.
  8. Alternate sausage with zucchini and onion on your skewers. Brush with your olive oil mixture and grill, turning every couple of minutes. Do this for another 7-10 minutes, brushing with olive oil until all used, to ensure your sausages are cooked through.
  9. Remove from grill and serve.

 

Smoked Salmon on Pumpernickel Rye

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Coming from the Pacific West Coast, I’ve eaten my fair share of smoked salmon. Even freshly smoked then canned via my momma. As a child my dad would catch river salmon and smoke it regularly. I craved it. When I moved to Vancouver I had a hard time eating smoked salmon that was not his. Eventually lox and cream cheese on bagels won me over and I let go of that craving. But it still resides in my thoughts as a taste I will never forget.

Did you know this recipe’s origins are German? We were asked to bring an appetizer to a recent celebration. An appetizer that celebrates one of our cultures. Since we have a Spanish student living with us, I wanted to hi-light some Spanish food. But he’s 16 and we couldn’t get it together. So I reached out to another former student from Germany, one who has become a second daughter to us. I am partially German with relatives living in Germany so I was intrigued to see what she would suggest. She sent me pictures of lox on Pumpernickel German Rye Bread and advised it’s very popular in Germany. I clearly had no idea! Uber excited, I set off to track down the bread and the lox.

Smoked Salmon on Pumpernickel Rye
Smoked Salmon on Pumpernickel Rye

Pumpernickel German Rye Bread is a heavy, dense and simply flavoured bread. Lox is sold everywhere here but as a touristy item. Fortunately thanks to twitter I located some that was both a decent price and delicious. The bread came from the European deli. #Bam

 

Smoked Salmon on Pumpernickel Rye
Smoked Salmon on Pumpernickel Rye

 

What I put together really didn’t look much like the photos she sent me but more based on my memory of lox on bagels with cream cheese. And the best part of it all, our Spanish student helped me assemble these German appetizers!

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Smoked Salmon on Pumpernickel Rye
Author: 
Serves: 15
 
Ingredients
  • Smoked Salmon
  • Cream Cheese, room temperature
  • Capers
  • Red onion, sliced thin
  • fresh dill
Instructions
  1. Cut your bread into smaller pieces. It's a firm bread so it will hold up well.
  2. Spread on cream cheese.
  3. Add some of your smoked salmon.
  4. Sprinkle on some red onion, capers and dill.
  5. Serve immediately.

 

 

Yogurt Drop Scones

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Since I was small child I have loved cookbooks. Most likely because my mom had cookbooks I could peek at (Joy of Cooking, Five Roses Cookbook) and secondly because I’d been watching PBS Cooking Shows on Saturdays since the 70’s. When I moved away from home and to Vancouver, I would always fly home for Christmas. It was then my mom always had some cookbook or cooking wares item under the tree for me. My suitcase went home full of inspiration and my cookbook collection slowly increasing in size.

This year I joined in on a cookbook of the month club. I have been enjoying discovering new cookbooks through this club and trying new recipes, several I will make again. The cookbook for September is Mamushka, A Cookbook by Olia Hercules. This book shares recipes from Ukraine & Eastern Europe and is a cookbook I would have never found on my own. I’ve enjoyed several recipes from this book and will be sharing a few on the blog.

Olia’s scones recipe is what we would call small pancakes. This recipe makes a small batch so you will need to double it if you are feeding a family of four. Or a teenager. I’ve never played with Kefir before and was thrilled to find it locally for this recipe. These scones/pancakes were simply delicious and with only five ingredients in this recipe, one I will make again.

Olia calls these one of her most favourite recipes of all time, ones he makes for her son often as her mom did for her.

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Yogurt Drop Scones
Author: 
Recipe type: Breakfast
Serves: 2
 
Ingredients
  • ¾ cup plain yogurt or kefir
  • 1 egg lightly beaten with a pinch of sea salt
  • ¾ cup flour
  • ½ tsp baking soda
  • pinch of sea salt
  • 2 tbsp oil
Instructions
  1. Mix all of the ingredients except the oil together in a bowl with a fork. The batter should be a soft dropping consistency.
  2. Brush a frying pan over medium heat lightly with the oil, then drop separate large tablespoonfuls of batter into the pan and cook for 2 minutes on each side. Repeat with the remaining batter and add more oil if necessary. Serve warm with Greek yogurt or jam.

 

Italian Sausage, Zucchini and Bocconcini Pasta Salad

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Summer fresh grilled veggies with fresh basil and bocconcini is favourite dish around here when it gets to hot to cook. Leftover veggies are an easy addition the next day to any dish, like these Grilled Veggie, Pesto & Bocconcini Pizzas.

Today we jazzed up our grilled veggies with bacon, grilled Italian Sausage and lots of fresh garlic. It was a hot one so making something easy and cool for dinner was right up our alley. If you have a side burner on your grill you could also cook the bacon and pasta right there to avoid your oven all together.

In our family we have some who don’t like peppers, some zucchini and some bocconcini cheese (insert gasp). Since I don’t cater to anyone’s likes or dislikes when I make a meal, I always tell them to pick out what they don’t like and eat what they do.

This would be an easy dish to partially prepare in advance and take camping. Make your dressing and store in a sealed jar. Cook all veggies and store in the fridge in a sealed container. Cook the rest when you are there and assemble.

 

Italian Sausage, Zucchini and Bocconcini Pasta Salad
Italian Sausage, Zucchini and Bocconcini Pasta Salad

 

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Italian Sausage, Zucchini and Bocconcini Pasta Salad
Author: 
Recipe type: lunch, dinner, potluck
Serves: 6
 
Ingredients
  • ½ green pepper, cut in chunks
  • ½ red pepper, cut in chunks
  • ½ red onion, cut in chunks
  • 1 small zucchini, cut in chunks
  • 3 mild Italian sausages, grilled
  • ½ pkg bacon, cooked
  • 5 cups uncooked Catelli Ancient Grains Fusilli
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1 tsp cracked pepper
  • olive oil
  • 3 tbsp white vinegar
  • 1 container small bocconcini
  • 1 tbsp lemon
  • ¼ cup fresh basil, sliced thin
Instructions
  1. Add peppers and onion to a bowl. Drizzle in 1 tsp of oil, a pinch of salt and cracked pepper.
  2. Add vegetables to a grill pan set over medium high heat on the BBQ and grill for about 5 minutes. While they are grilling, toss zucchini into same bowl, drizzle in 1 tsp of oil and a pinch of salt and cracked pepper. Mix and add to grill pan with other veggies. Cook an additional 5 minutes or until tender and lightly charred all over.
  3. In a pan of salted boiling water add fusilli. Cook according to package instructions. Drain and spread on to a baking pan with edges to cool down.
  4. Drain and cut each bocconcini into fours. Set aside.
  5. Sliced sausage into thin slices. Set aside.
  6. Cut bacon into chunks. Set aside.
  7. In a cup or small bowl mix minced garlic with olive oil, salt and pepper. Whisk in vinegar.
  8. In a large pasta bowl add cooled pasta, sausage, cheese, grilled veggies, bacon and dressing. Toss to combine.
  9. Sprinkle with fresh lemon, salt, pepper and basil. Serve immediately.
Notes
You could also use the Catelli Ancient Grains Rotini or Penne pasta in this dish.

 

Aiden’s Gouda Fruit Salad

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My kids love to get into the kitchen and create things. More often then not they announce what they want to make without checking on ingredients first. This salad was the exception as we just so happened to have all the fruit available. Aiden’s Fruit Salad is made by my son Aiden and on this night accompanied quick sandwiches before a busy activity evening.

A fruit salad can include any fruit you want. We never add a dressing or drizzle of honey to our fruit salads as we let the sweetness of the fruit speak for itself.

Aiden's Gouda Fruit Salad
Aiden’s Gouda Fruit Salad

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Aiden's Gouda Fruit Salad
Author: 
Recipe type: salad, side, lunch
Serves: 6
 
Ingredients
  • 1 cup strawberries, rough chop
  • 2 cups grapes
  • 1 cup blueberries
  • 1 cup green apple, rough chop
  • 1 cup fresh pineapple, rough chop
  • 2 cups watermelon, rough chop
  • 1 tbsp fresh mint
  • ½ cup cubed Gouda, Monterery Jack or grilled Halloom cheese
Instructions
  1. Add all fruit to a bowl. Light stir to combine.
  2. Tear off pieces of mint. Pour cubed cheese on top and serve.

 

 

Greek Pasta Salad

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Back in 2002 I used to play on a local softball slow-pitch team. I was fairly new to Calgary and looking to get out and meet people. The same year I also joined an indoor soccer team and billiards team. It was around then I met my husband, through work of all places, and life was forever changed.

During our ball season, our team did a few weekend tournament camping trips. Let’s be honest. They are beer tournaments and lots of beverages were consumed. Lots of fun though! We planned potluck style meals and it was around this time someone from work introduced me to Club House Pasta Salad Dressing Mix. I was hooked, it was so delicious. So every camping trip that followed I would precook the pasta, store it in a zip lock bag, chop up a bunch of vegetables, store them in a plastic bag, mix up the dressing and keep it in a sealed jar and wrap up some feta as the finishing touches. Always a hit and a salad I make regularly now. Our Greek Pasta Salad was created when leftover Greek salad met pasta using the Club House Pasta Salad Dressing.

Did you know you do not have to rinse your pasta to cool it down? Last year at an event with Canadian Chef Lynn Crawford she made a delicious noodle salad. She advised not to rinse your pasta while letting it cool down – it’s not necessary. Instead lay it out on a cookie sheet and let it cool that way. I’ve been doing this ever since and it works like a charm!

 

Greek Pasta Salad
Greek Pasta Salad

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Greek Pasta Salad
Serves: 12
 
Ingredients
  • 400 gr pasta (fusilli, rotini)
  • 1 cup of peppers, chopped
  • ½ cup red onion, thinly sliced
  • 1 cup cucumber, chopped
  • ½ cup Kalamata olives
  • 1 cup small grape tomatoes cut in half
  • ½ cup feta cheese, crumbled
  • 1 pkg Club House Pasta Salad Dressing Mix
  • 1 tsp Dijon mustard
  • White vinegar
  • Olive oil
Instructions
  1. Cook your pasta according to instructions on box. Drain and lay out on cookie sheet to cool down.
  2. Whisk together your pasta salad dressing as per instructions using vinegar and oil. Mix in Dijon mustard. Set aside.
  3. In a medium sized bowl combine peppers, onions, cucumber, olives, cooled pasta and dressing. Gently toss in tomatoes and feta. Let sit in refrigerator for at least an hour before serving.

 

Roasted Jalapeno Hummus

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Chick peas are a good source of protein, iron and several other vitamins and minerals. I try to rotate them into my diet weekly by roasting, adding them to salads, or whipping up a batch of hummus to munch on when hunger hits since I tend to not eat a ton of meat. I secretly eat them right out of the bowl once roasted. So delicious.

This slightly spicy hummus came to be when I needed to use up some jalapenos I had in the fridge. I roasted four and these jalapenos were not all that spicy. The second time I made this hummus the jalapenos had some zing to them and the hummus was spicy. Depending on how much you like heat, you may want to sample the jalapenos first as this will give you an idea of how spicy they are. Then start anywhere from 1 jalapeno to 4 depending on your heat level tolerance.

I also love roasted garlic and roast up to 4 bulbs at a time and keep them in the refrigerator to use as needed. Squish out the entire contents of one roasted garlic bulb into this hummus for added flavour.

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Roasted Jalapeno Hummus
Author: 
Recipe type: snack, lunch, supper
 
Ingredients
  • 4 jalapenos
  • 1 can (540ml) chick peas
  • 3 tbsp tahini
  • ½ cup water
  • 1 head roasted garlic (remove garlic itself)
  • 1 lemon, juiced
  • 3 tbsp olive oil
  • sea salt and pepper
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 400F. Drizzle olive oil on your jalapenos and place on parchment lined backing sheet. Roast for 15 - 20 minutes turning at least once. Remove from oven when they are darkly roasted. Set a bowl over top upside down and let them steam for 5-10 minutes.
  2. Peel off the skin of the jalapenos, cut open and remove seeds. You may want to use kitchen gloves while doing this or ensure you wash your hands well after. Set aside.
  3. In a blender or food processor add jalapenos, chick peas, tahini, water, roasted garlic, lemon juice, olive oil and a good sprinkle of salt and pepper. Blend for about 3-4 minutes scraping down sides as needed.
  4. Taste and add additional salt if required. Drizzle with extra olive oil and serve with pitas or bread sticks, in a wrap as a sandwich or with vegetables.

 

Gouda and Olive Tapenade Grilled Cheese

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April is National Grilled Cheese Month and that makes me one very happy camper. I grew up eating pretty simple grilled cheese sandwiches made with Kraft singles. As yummy as they were my tastes changed when I hit my twenties and my love for cheese and/or melted cheese exploded. As I aged I started adding new cheese variations to my grilled cheese and then BAM grilled cheese became cool and popular which made me even happier as there were new variations I hadn’t even thought of.

One of my favourite things to do as a teenager was melt cheese in a pan and scoop it out with fresh bread (this was how I fondued). From here I moved on to toasting the bread, pressing it into the melted cheese and this is how I’ve always made my cheese toast. My kids love it and it’s perfect camping where there is no toaster oven.

This inspired me to up my grilled cheese game one day by pressing my grilled cheese into some melting cheese that was left in the pan instead of scooping it out and burning my mouth like I usually would. So I did both sides. Cheese on the inside and crispy cheese on the outside. It was reaaallly good!

Here’s how we do it.

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Gouda and Olive Tapenade Grilled Cheese
Author: 
Recipe type: lunch, snack, camping
Serves: 1
 
Ingredients
  • 2 pieces thick sliced french bread
  • mayonnaise
  • ½ cup grated gouda and medium cheddar
  • ¼ cup olive tapenade
  • 2 sun dried tomatoes packed in oil, drained and chopped
Instructions
  1. Heat non stick skillet over medium heat.
  2. Mix sun dried tomato with olive tapenade.
  3. Spread mayonnaise on one side of each piece of bread. Place one piece of bread mayonnaise side down in hot pan.
  4. Sprinkle on a little cheese.
  5. With spoon add and lightly spread on your olive tapenade.
  6. Top with a little more cheese and your second piece of bread, mayonnaise side up pressing lightly.
  7. Turn heat to medium low and cover.
  8. Cook until golden about 3 minutes.
  9. Flip and cook other side until cheese is melted and bottom golden.
  10. Remove from pan to board or plate and let site for a minute before eating or cutting.
  11. If you want to add the crispy outer cheese add about 1 tbsp of shredded cheese to hot pan in a small circle. As it melts place your uncut hot grilled cheese sandwich onto the melting cheese. Once the cheese has melted completely and turned golden carefully remove with a flipper and set aside.
  12. Add another tablespoon of melted cheese to hot pan and repeat with other side of grilled cheese until melted and golden. Remove and let sit. Cut and enjoy.

 

 

Gouda and Olive Tapenade Grilled Cheese
Gouda and Olive Tapenade Grilled Cheese

 

Grilled Bread & Tomato Salad

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Sunny days make me want to get outside and eat all the things and plant or harvest my garden and eat fresh grown tomatoes. Right? We’ve had an unusually warm start to 2016 which is great for us Calgarians but not so great for the farmers and producers who rely on the moisture to plant their seeds.

I am slightly addicted to bread so anything that involved bread makes me happy. Having to make up something for a BBQ I decided on a bread, tomato, parsley salad. Simple but delicious. I picked up some roasted garlic bread, gave it some lovely brown char marks and tossed it with the tomatoes. Don’t dress your salad or even add the bread until you are ready to serve it or the bread gets soggy. And serve it immediately for as it sits the bread soaks up the tomato and dressing goodness and it becomes soggy. A little added chunky salami or even cooked chicken would make this the perfect meal in one.

Since I’m using garlic bread I opted not to add garlic to my oil. This dish is beautiful served alongside grilled steak or chicken.

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Grilled Bread and Tomato Salad
Recipe type: Wanda Baker
Serves: 8
 
Ingredients
  • 4-5 slices of day old bread, cut about 1 inch think
  • 2 tbsp + ¼ cup olive oil
  • 5 large ripe beefsteak tomatoes
  • ¼ cup red onion or scallions, minced
  • ½ cup feta, crumbled
  • 2 tbsp fresh basil, chopped
  • ¼ cup fresh flat leaf parsley, chopped
  • 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
  • salt and pepper
Instructions
  1. Pour 2 tbsp of olive oil into a small bowl and with a pastry brush drizzle and dot it over your bread. Grill over medium high heat for 1-2 minutes or until pale golden. Tear into pieces, or cut into cubes. Set aside.
  2. For the dressing, whisk together ¼ cup olive oil and balsamic vinegar.
  3. Chop tomatoes into large pieces and add to a large bowl. Toss in onion, feta, parsley, basil, and bread.
  4. Pour dressing on salad and season well with salt and pepper.
  5. Allow salad to sit for 30 minutes for flavours to blend.

 

 

Homemade Sausage Patties

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I remember my sister in law serving up sausage patties while we were all out camping one summer. They were these perfectly formed sausage shaped coins (twoonie sized for my Canadian readers) purchased from the local Costco as an easy to cook main to accompany breakfast eggs or a dinner salad. I thought they were pretty cool and was left wondering why I didn’t think to bring something so convenient and easy.

These patties have the delicious addition of roasted garlic. If you can roast your garlic the night before or earlier in the day so it’s ready to go. They are an easy dinner served with green apple & jicama slaw, eggs, a light pasta or a salad. If you have time prep the ingredients the night before allowing the pork to infuse the flavours overnight.

A simple and healthy meal you can have on the table in less than 30 minutes.

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Pork Sausage Patties
Author: 
Recipe type: dinner, lunch
Serves: 6
 
Ingredients
  • 2 lbs ground pork
  • 1 tbsp fresh sage, chopped
  • 1 tbsp fresh rosemary, chopped
  • 1 tbsp fresh thyme, chopped
  • 2 tsp fennel seeds
  • 1 tbsp dijon mustard
  • pinch red pepper flakes
  • 1 entire head roasted garlic (removed from shells)
  • 1 tsp salt
  • ½ tsp ground pepper
  • oil
Instructions
  1. Combine the pork, sage, rosemary, thyme, fennel seeds, dijon mustard, red pepper flakes and roasted garlic.
  2. If you have time to cover the bowl and let it sit in the fridge, the flavours improve. If not form into 12 equal patties.
  3. In a cast iron pan over medium high heat, add your oil.Depending on the size of your pan you will need to cook the patties in batches. Do not over crowd the pan. Fry the patties until completely cooked through and golden brown about 3-4 minutes per side. If you are not sure, your internal temperature should read 165F.
  4. Remove from grill, lightly tent and let sit a few minutes until ready to serve.
  5. We enjoy these patties with green apple & jicama slaw.

 

Homemade Sausage Patties
Homemade Sausage Patties

Mango Coconut Smoothie

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January is typically about smoothies for me. Trying to eat better following December’s eating palooza of treats, fatty foods and alcoholic beverages. By the time New Years comes around I’m feeling it and need a healthy kick. Enter smoothies.

Versatile and delicious, anything goes right. You don’t have to put a lot of thought into them. Juice, coconut milk, even water can be the liquid that loosens it all up. Keep some frozen berries or fruit on hand. Add in cinnamon, or not. Play a little and find a combo that works for you.

I was low on supplies when I made this. I alway try to have coconut milk on hand and some form of frozen fruit. Every thing else is bygones.

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Mango Coconut Smoothie
Author: 
Recipe type: breakfast, snack, lunch
 
Ingredients
  • 1 cup frozen mango
  • ½ avocado
  • ½ cup coconut milk
  • ½ cup pineapple or mango juice
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • Toppings: toasted coconut flakes, chia seeds
Instructions
  1. Place all ingredients into a blender and puree until smooth.
  2. Pour into glass, sprinkle on your toppings, add a straw, and serve.

 

Tomato Soup with Sausage

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Lately I’ve been craving soup. Specially french onion soup but I haven’t had the booze I needed to make the broth sing. Recently I took some out of town clients to Charbar for lunch, a fairly new Argentinian style restaurant I’ve admittedly been to several times. I ordered the lunch special (and they did to) of half a salad and the daily soup. I encouraged them to have the fugazza (pizza) with their soup. The soup was an Argentinian inspired tomato & sausage soup. Wow was it ever good. In fact all four of us at the table completely enjoyed the soup. I decided to try and make my own version of this soup at home.

Have you heard of Spolumbo’s sausage? They are local sausage maker and the sausage is preservative and chemical free. I use it in pasta sauces, soups and we especially love it grilled on the BBQ. You can use whatever uncooked sausage you love in this soup. I also added a small piece of leftover parmesan rind as I’ve seen chefs do this to add flavour and depth. It did something because the soup was the best tomato soup I’ve ever had.

It’s a simple soup that screams flavour.

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Tomato Soup with Sausage
Author: 
Recipe type: lunch, dinner
Serves: 4
 
Ingredients
  • 2 cups uncooked Italian sausage
  • 3 strips bacon
  • canola oil
  • 1 medium onion, diced
  • 3 cloves garlic
  • 1 - 28oz can whole tomatoes
  • fresh thyme, couple sprigs
  • parmesan rind, any size
  • 2 cups chicken broth
  • 2 bay leaves, dried is fine
  • salt and pepper
  • ¼ cup cream
  • 1 tbsp butter
  • parsley
Instructions
  1. Heat a sauce pan over medium heat and add the bacon. Cook until crisp, remove from pan, chop and set aside. Pour out all but approximately 1 tbsp of the bacon fat.
  2. Remove sausage from casing and add to pan breaking up into smaller pieces. Cook for 3 minutes and add the garlic and onions and cook until the onions are translucent, about 5 minutes. Drizzle in a little oil if needed.
  3. Add tomatoes, thyme, parmesan rind. chicken broth and bay leaves. Turn heat down to simmer. Season with salt and pepper and let cook for about 25 minutes. Add more chicken broth if soup cooks down.
  4. Discard the thyme, bay leaves and Parmesan rind. Puree the soup in a food processor or with an immersion blender until smooth and leave in pan. Stir in the cream and butter. Season with salt and pepper.
  5. To serve, ladle the soup into bowls and sprinkle with the bacon and parsley.

 

 

How to Assemble a Charcuterie Board

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Charcuterie boards have become all the rage in recent years with many restaurants offering it on their menus. When you think about it, charcuterie is a term that’s been in our vocabulary for a long time, just called something different. Like sausage and cheese plate. Right?!

When I put together a charcuterie board, or a cheese board, it’s essentially different every time. It always depends on the season, the event, and what I feel like when I shop for ingredients. Sometimes I go into the store with a plan, other times I wing it knowing I need the basics of meat and cheese.

With the holidays fast approaching, and several gatherings in our future, I will most likely end up preparing charcuterie boards. Here we show you how easy it is to prepare one for your next event.

Charcuterie Board
Charcuterie Board

First thing you need to consider is presentation. How will you display your items? Pieces of tile purchased at a home reno store, wooden boards, pottery or rustic platters, a cake stand or tray with handles along all become the perfect platform for your spread. Pair it with some smaller bowls or dishes and cheese knives, tools or markers. Have extra fresh herbs on hand? Pretty up your board with the addition of herbs.

The Cheese. If you go to a specialty cheese or European store to buy your cheese, the selection can be slightly overwhelming. Plan on purchasing both soft and firm cheese. Consider the type of cheese it is: cow, goat or sheep milk. Choose a couple in each category (soft and firm) including a blue, and an aged cheese. Be sure to include a popular, common cheese. Ask an employee for assistance if you are still uncertain in your selection. Remember to bring your cheese out and let sit on the counter for at least 15 minutes before serving.

The Meat. Pick 3 different types of meat. A salami (ie: sopressata), bresaola, prosciutto or sausage all sliced thin. Try to arrange the meat on your board looking a bit messy or whimsy. Roll it if you choose, layer sausage pieces, in the end it doesn’t have to be perfect. Smoked salmon or pate could also be included on your board. The meat, like cheese, should be served at room temperature.

Sweet, Salty, Crunchy. Think nuts, olives, pickles, artichoke hearts, sun-dried tomatoes, peppers, tapenade, dried fruit, compotes, preserves. These items really enhance the flavour element you have created on your board, and are perfect in those smaller bowls or dishes we talked about.

Crackers & Bread. Offer a variety of breads and crackers. Thinly sliced baguette, crostini, bread sticks, and a small selection of crackers are great choices. I really like the thin water crackers and Leslie Stowe style crisps.

Fresh. Ensure you have some fresh fruits or veggies on your board. Have you ever tried apple slices with cheddar cheese or brie? Pear with blue cheese? Grapes or figs are a lovely addition to any board. We encourage you to try different fruits with the cheese you have selected for a little wow factor.

Your board doesn’t have to be jam packed with all the things. Keep it simple, do what works for you. Some boards we’ve created over the years: Greek, Mediterranean, seafood, grilled, meats and mustard’s, cheese and pickles, and even as simple as crudites. A little goes along way, just make sure you have some variety.

 

Mango Ginger Smoothie

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Smoothies in our house happen fast & furious. Never a lot of thought goes into making smoothies, but more searching through the freezer and fridge for fruit or veggies needing to be used up. That’s what so great about smoothies is anything goes. My kids now know how to make them and are totally ok with spinach going in, cause they can’t taste it.

This time we were under the weather so I added fresh ginger. You need to puree it really well to break up that ginger, and it’s never so strong it takes over the taste. Just a hint. Pomegranates never last long in this house. The kids are totally addicted. So this last tablespoon full is all I got out of two pomegranates. They both inhaled them. Not a bad thing since they are full of antioxidants. I just need to teach them how to clean them. This is a fun smoothie to make.

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Mango Ginger Smoothie
Author: 
Recipe type: snack, breakfast, lunch
Serves: 1
 
Ingredients
  • ½ pear, seeded
  • ½ avocado, peeled
  • 3 coins sliced fresh ginger, peeled
  • 1 cup frozen mango
  • 1 cup spinach
  • ½ cup coconut milk
  • ¼ cup water
  • ½ cup ice
  • 1 tbsp pomegranate seeds
  • ½ tsp chia seeds
Instructions
  1. Add all ingredients (pear through ice) to a blender and puree until smooth.
  2. Pour into glass, top with pomegranate and chia seeds, add a straw, and serve.
  3. Mix ingredients together and enjoy.

 

Panzanella Salad with Summer Cherries

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I enjoyed a childhood filled with an abundance of tree fruits. Cherry, apple, prune plums and crab apple trees adorned the front yard. I often wonder if the people who live in that house now enjoy the fruit trees as much as we did. I have fond memories of the battles my father would have with the birds (Robins mostly) eating his cherries. Sometimes when I think back to those battles, he reminds me of Mr. McGregor in The Tale of Peter Rabbit.

There are many variations of panzanella salads and I love how versatile this salad is especially in the summer months. Summer cherries just seems to work in this salad. It’s a salad that’s actually been around a very long time. Did you know Panzanella was based on onions, not tomatoes until the 20th century? And modern panzanella is generally made of stale bread soaked in water and squeezed dry? I’m not much on eating stale bread soaked & squeezed…I prefer my crunchy croutons!

It’s easy to toss the bread on the grill, chop up some veggies, mix up a dressing, pick your favourite cheese to add and you have a delicious dinner ready to go. Firmer veggies are best for this salad. It’s perfect for a potluck or to take camping. Days like today when it’s to hot to cook, we like to pick up a cooked roasted chicken, whip up an easy salad and dinner is done. Toss some firm fruit or berries into your salad and change it up again.

Better photo coming soon!

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Panzanella Salad with Summer Cherries
Author: 
Recipe type: Panzanella Salad with Summer Cherries
Prep time: 
Total time: 
Serves: 6
 
Ingredients
  • 1 loaf day old french bread, sliced 1 inch thick
  • 2 cups cherry tomatoes, halved
  • 1 cup fresh cherries, halved & pits removed
  • 2 tbsp toasted pepitas (pumpkin seeds)
  • 1 package halloumi cheese grilled and cut into smaller pieces
  • fresh basil
  • olive oil
  • red wine vinegar
  • honey
Instructions
  1. Slice your bread into 1 inch pieces and drizzle with olive oil on both sides.
  2. Preheat your grill to medium high. BBQ on both sides until grill marks or a little char occurs.
  3. Chop into bite size pieces. You will want between 5-6 cups.
  4. Lightly toss cherries, tomatoes, halloumi cheese, grilled bread and dressing.
  5. Sprinkle with fresh basil and pepitas. Serve immediately.
Notes
To make dressing mix together ¼ cup each oil and red wine vinegar. Add in a little honey or agave syrup and sprinkle of salt and pepper. Whisk until combined.

 

 

 

Crispy Molasses Coleslaw

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We had an International German student living with us for almost a year. She had a few food allergies and one of them was carrots. So I got used to cooking without carrots. Although the allergy was mainly to raw carrots, I just stopped using them so as to not “forget”. With my coleslaw’s I always experiment. Sometimes I’d add apple or pear, other times it’s nuts or seeds. But the basics of my coleslaw are always the same; cabbage, onions, cilantro with a mayo/sour cream/vinegar dressing.

As I was making the dressing to go with our Beef on a Bun, I asked my father in laws girlfriend/partner what she thought about me adding molasses into my dressing. She wasn’t sure at first so I pulled a little out & mixed in some molasses. Let her try it to get her opinion and Bam she liked it. I know some people add sugar to their dressings, so the molasses could add the sweet factor. And since I’m more of a salty person to begin with I needed feedback and second opinions. It was well received that evening by everyone. And so the Crispy Molasses Coleslaw recipe was born.

This recipe feeds a crowd so if you are cooking for a smaller family you may want to half it. And yes I put cilantro in my slaw. You can always replace it with flat leaf parsley.

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Crispy Summer Molasses Coleslaw
Author: 
Recipe type: salad, dinner, lunch
Serves: 12
 
Ingredients
  • 1 small-med size head napa cabbage, shredded
  • 2 cups red cabbage, sliced thin or shredded
  • 4 green onions, sliced thin
  • 1 cup of cilantro, rough chop
  • salt and pepper
  • 2 cups dressing
  • 1-2 tsp black sesame seeds
Instructions
  1. Mix first four ingredients together in a bowl.
  2. Add dressing stirring to combine. Season with salt and pepper if needed.
  3. Let sit for at least 30 minutes in the fridge.
  4. Sprinkle with black sesame seeds before serving.
Notes
In a bowl whisk together ½ cup sour cream or plain greek yogurt, 1½ cup mayonnaise, 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar, 1 tbsp prepared mustard, 2 tsp Crosby's Molasses, 1 tsp old bay seasoning, 1 tsp cumin, and a good pinch of salt & pepper. Taste and adjust seasoning if needed (ie add more salt).

 

Crispy Molasses Coleslaw
Crispy Molasses Coleslaw

Ginger Peach Smoothie

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Trying to get some frozen berries used up from the freezer so I can buy some more. Realizing tummy growls meant I hadn’t eaten breakfast yet. 10am & I started tossing items into my blender to make a smoothie.

I’m a big believer in raw ginger in various forms. 20 years ago I worked in a high rise in downtown Vancouver. The penthouse housed actors & I even rode down the elevator once with David Duchovny. No bigs really. I’m never awed by celebrities, maybe cause I’ve met so many, but it was still cool to share elevator space with him even though I never gave him a second glance. At the bottom of the highrise was a little convenience store. I got to know the lady who owns/runs the store quite well. Late 50’s, looked amazing and one day she told me she hasn’t been sick in over 30 years! I asked how and she said “I cut up fresh ginger/garlic and eat it every single day”. Have been for 30 years. Inspired by this I started cutting up raw ginger & garlic and eating it. Now to be honest I don’t do it every day but it’s been a habit I can’t break for 20 years. It’s easy enough to cut up and store in the fridge for hubs & I. I even try to get my kids to eat it like this when they are not feeling well. We do 1 tsp every day – mornings/bedtimes, push it to the back of your mouth (don’t chew) and swallow. No bad breath either! I’m so in love with ginger I even grate it into my green tea.

Why not put some in my smoothie, I said. Delicious and only a hint of ginger taste. There is enough smoothie here for two, but I didn’t share today. If you do not have or can not find frozen smoothies, any frozen fruit will do. Here’s how I did it.

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Ginger Peach Smoothie
Author: 
Recipe type: snack, treats, breakfast, lunch, smoothie
Serves: 2
 
Ingredients
  • 1 banana,
  • ½ avocado
  • ½ cup pineapple juice
  • ½ can coconut milk
  • ½ cup fresh spinach
  • 4 coins fresh ginger, peeled
  • ½ cup frozen peaches or 4 slices frozen peaches
  • ½-3/4 cup frozen berries
Instructions
  1. Toss all ingredients into blender in order listed. I find frozen berries blend better when they are closer to the top.
  2. Blend away and enjoy immediately.

 

Brussels Sprouts Brown Rice Bowl with Cilantro Lime Drizzle

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I love bowl food. It’s hearty, filling and mostly healthy depending on ingredients. When I make it at home, it’s always healthy. When I have it out it’s full of inspiration and for the most part a bowl full of good stuff.

I’ve had a love affair with brown rice going on for over 20 years thanks to my mom and since it’s part of the rotation, my husband even likes it. We top it with salty feta cheese & fresh herbs. If brown rice is not your thing try making this bowl with white rice or even quinoa.

I finished it with a Cilantro Lime Drizzle but you can use your favourite dressing if cilantro is not your thing or use a different herb like basil or parsley. If you are on the Wild Rose Detox you have to keep your dressing simple (olive oil, citrus, herbs, s&p). I called this a drizzle as it doesn’t contain vinegar and technically a vinaigrette does.

As always recipes can be changed up to suit your tastes. Add chicken or protein if you want some meat, omit the jalapenos if you don’t like the extra heat!

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Brussels Sprouts Brown Rice Bowl with Cilantro Lime Drizzle
Author: 
Recipe type: lunch, dinner, snack, bowl food
Serves: 1
 
Ingredients
  • ½ - 1 cup cooked brown rice
  • ¼ cup peppers & spanish onion, chopped
  • ¼ cup cooked lentils
  • ¼ cup brussels sprouts, lightly sauteed
  • ¼ cup baby tomatoes, halved
  • 1-2 radishes, sliced thin
  • 1 jalapeno cut thin and sauteed lightly
  • 2-3 small bocconcini balls
  • Cilantro Lime Dressing
Instructions
  1. Put brown rice in bowl.
  2. Add each item on top of brown rice.
  3. Pour on some of your Cilantro Lime Drizzle & serve.
Notes
To make Cilantro Lime Dressing: Mix together 1 part lime juice to 3 parts olive oil. Add ½ cup cilantro, pinch of salt & pepper & puree with a hand mixer, food processor or blender. Use within a day or two.

 

Chilled Noodle Salad with Ginger Wasabi Dressing – Cooking with Catelli

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What’s old is new again – at least when it comes to eating grains. Catelli Foods Corporation shared this message with us at a recent event here in Calgary. Several bloggers & food writers were invited to attend a one on one cooking demo with Canadian Celebrity Chef Lynn Crawford and Catelli Foods. The evening started with us sampling some tasty snacks from the SAIT Culinary Campus and watching Chef Crawford whip up two pasta dishes. Each pasta dish was passed around for us to sample. The demo was fun, entertaining, and we quickly learned Chef Crawford has quite the sense of humour. While we ate, Chef Crawford moved into making a delicious Chilled Noodle Salad with Ginger Wasabi Dressing. Once she was finished her demo we all donned chef hats and aprons, and picked a cooking station to get started making our own delicious salad. The evening concluded with photos and swag bags.

Catelli® Healthy Harvest® Ancient Grains pasta blends 100 per cent Canadian whole wheat with five wholesome ancient grains: quinoa, teff, amaranth, millet and sorghum. Certified GMO-free (NON GMO Project Verified), Catelli® Healthy Harvest® Ancient Grains pasta is available in three cuts –  Spaghetti, Spaghettini and Rotini.

Chef Lynn Crawford
Chef Lynn Crawford

The health benefits of eating 100 per cent whole grain wheat have been touted for years, but what makes the other grains so healthy? Here’s the ancient secret:

Quinoa: Dating back to the 13th century South American Inca Empire, quinoa is high in fibre, protein and minerals – including magnesium, potassium, zinc and iron – and low on the glycemic index.

Amaranth: Native to the Americas and prized by Aztec civilization, amaranth is rich in protein, containing all the essential amino acids, key vitamins, and minerals such as calcium, magnesium, potassium, phosphorus and iron.

Teff:  Originating in Ethiopia and Eritrea between 4,000 BCE and 1,000 BCE, this poppy seed-sized grain is high in protein, fibre, calcium, thiamin and iron.

Sorghum: Domesticated in Northeastern Africa more than 5,000 years ago, sorghum – a good source of vitamin B6, riboflavin, thiamin and magnesium – is known to support digestive health, help fight cardiovascular disease and help control blood sugar levels.

Millet: Cultivated 4,000 years ago from wild West African grass, this nutty-flavoured grain is known to be heart healthy, containing a high level of protein, magnesium and niacin. Alkalizing to the body, millet is considered one of the most digestible and non-allergenic grains available.

Catelli® Healthy Harvest® Ancient Grains pasta retails for $3.29 and is available at major retailers in Western Canada.

 

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Chilled Noodle Salad with Ginger Wasabi Dressing
Author: 
Recipe type: lunch, dinner, picnic
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 
Serves: 4
 
Ingredients
  • 1 pkg (340 g) Catelli Healthy Harvest Ancient Grains Spaghettini
  • 2 cups snow peas, thinly sliced diagonally
  • 1 cup shelled edamame
  • 1 small English cucumber
  • 2 cups napa cabbage, finely shredded
  • 1 cup red pepper, cut into matchsticks
  • 3 green onions, thinly sliced
  • 1 ripe avocado, sliced
  • ¼ cup cilantro leaves
  • 2 tbsp black sesame seeds
Instructions
  1. Cook pasta according to package directions; drain well. Rinse under cold water until well chilled; transfer to large bowl and set aside.
  2. In a pot of boiling water, cook snow peas and edamame until tender-crisp. Drain and rinse under cold water until well chilled; set aside.
  3. Meanwhile, halve the cucumber lengthwise and use the end of a spoon to scoop and discard seeds; cut cucumber into julienne strips.
  4. Ginger-Wasabi Dressing: Whisk together rice vinegar, canola oil, soy sauce, lemon juice and zest, brown sugar, sesame oil and ginger. Season with wasabi to taste.
  5. Add cucumber, snow peas, edamame, napa cabbage, red pepper, green onions and avocado to noodles; toss with enough dressing to coat.
  6. Garnish with cilantro leaves and black sesame seeds.
  7. Tip: If you have time, you can chill the noodle dish by refrigerating for 1 to 4 hours.
Notes
To make Ginger-Wasabi Dressing whisk together ¼ cup seasoned rice vinegar, 3 tbsp canola oil, 2 tbsp soy sauce, 2 tbsp lemon juice, 1 tsp lemon zest, 2 tsp brown sugar, 2 tsp sesame oil, and 1 tsp grated fresh ginger. Add wasabi to taste.

 

 

Chef Lynn Crawford shares her recipe for Chilled Noodle Salad with Ginger Wasabi Dressing using Catelli Noodles
Catelli Healthy Harvest Ancient Grains Pasta – so delicious

 

Berry Lentil Smoothie

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Smoothies and lentils are not two words you would normally find together. I’d never heard of a smoothie being made with lentils before so when a Canadian Lentils Contest came round for Canadian Food Bloggers, I decided to make smoothie made with lentils and enter the contest.

I didn’t win the contest but I won my kids over as they had no clue their smoothies were made with lentils!

It’s important to use cooked lentils in this recipe as they are soft and puree easily. I add everything into my blender or container at once. We enjoy our smoothies thick like milkshakes as they tend to melt quick. Adding smoothies is a great way to get an added protein boost.

5.0 from 1 reviews
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Berry Lentil Smoothie
Author: 
Recipe type: snack, breakfast, lunch
Serves: 2
 
Ingredients
  • ½ avocado
  • 1 tsp fresh ginger, peeled & sliced into coins
  • ½ cup apple, peeled & diced
  • ½ banana
  • ½ cup cooked green lentils
  • 1 cup frozen berries
  • ½ cup fresh spinach
  • ¼ cup water
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • ½ cup coconut milk
Instructions
  1. Add everything into your blender or mixer container and blend until smooth.
  2. Serve immediately.

 

Bacon Turkey Chili

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When my husband and I first met we were all sports all the time. Then kids came along and sports went by the way side. Kids are only little once and we choose to do family activities vs spending tons of time in front of the TV. Doesn’t mean we can’t enjoy game day food however!!

Super bowl was coming, we all love bacon, and chili (well the boy picks the beans out), so while shopping for groceries I decided on a bacon turkey chili for game day supper. And to add another level of flavour, I was going to add in some of the chipotle in adobo sauce I had resting in the fridge. Even though we didn’t get to watch the game, we enjoyed our game day chili.

My husband loves deviled eggs and admittedly I do to. But it’s a once a year kind of ordeal. We hadn’t had them in so long I again decided on a whim to make deviled eggs. After all it was super bowl Sunday. In addition I sliced up some sweet potato into thin slices and sauteed in the pan for some extra goodness.

It’s really popular to “put an egg on it” these days, so I put a deviled egg on the chili. I had an aha moment. One of my new favourite things and next time it will either be a fried or poached egg that goes on top.

 

Bacon Turkey Chili
Bacon Turkey Chili

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Bacon Turkey Chili
Author: 
Recipe type: dinner, lunch, game day food, snack
 
Ingredients
  • ½ package bacon, chopped
  • 1 large shallot (or two smallish ones), diced
  • 2 lbs ground turkey
  • 1-2 tsp cumin
  • 2-3 tsp chili powder
  • ½ tsp chipotle in adobo
  • salt & pepper
  • 1 - 796 ml can diced tomatoes
  • ½ cup chicken stock
  • ½ can tomato sauce
  • 1 - 340 ml can red kidney beans, rinsed
Instructions
  1. In a large pot add bacon and render over medium heat until cooked.
  2. Add shallot and saute for 2 minutes. Add in your turkey and cook with bacon & shallot until no more pink remains breaking it up as you go.
  3. Stir in cumin, chili powder, a good pinch of salt & pepper, chipotle in adobo, diced tomatoes, chicken stock and tomato sauce. Bring to a boil then reduce to a simmer.
  4. Let flavours marry for about 30 minutes or so. Pour in your beans stirring to mix in.
  5. Simmer another 10 minutes and then serve with your favourite fixins or put an egg on it.
Notes
Eggs: poached, deviled or fried
Fixins: chopped peppers, onion, grated cheese, chopped tomatoes