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Let It Snow Chef Exchange with Canadian Beef

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This past month the Canadian Beef Centre of Excellence hosted the Let It Snow Chef Exchange Event in coordination with Chateau Lake Louise. Two similar events occurred throughout Canada this year showcasing Canadian beef and community for Canada’s 150th Birthday. We were invited to participate in the third and final leg starting at the Canadian Beef Centre in Calgary and finishing at the Chateau Lake Louise. Each event featured a Chef representing Mexico, China and here in Calgary, Chef Anton from the Philippines.

Once the chefs, ranchers, Canadian beef team and media were gathered at the centre, we started our adventure with greetings from our host, Mairlyn Smith. We were given an overview of the next 24 hours and then shuffled into the kitchen for a cooking demonstration with a beer pairing.

Nick Fodor from The Grizzly Paw Brewing Company hosted the beer pairing section carefully detailing and explaining how the beer was chosen and paired with each beef dish as they came out.

Our first sampling by Chef Anton, Bistek on Green Onion Blini Bites paired with Grumpy Bear Honey Wheat Beer. Next up Beef Wrapped Maple Parsnip Bites accompanied by Rutting Elk Red Beer prepared by Chef Jean-Francois Fortin of the Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise. Last and the tastiest of the three in my opinion, the Beef’n Blue Wagon Wheel Bites from Canadian Beef’s own Chef Mathieu Paré paired nicely with Sleeping Buffalo Stout. The grand finale was a serving of beef and barley soup drizzled with cold-pressed organic canola oil from High River’s Highwood Crossing with a side salad to finish the demonstration leaving us all happily in a beef coma.

 

Bistek-on-Green-Onion-Blini
Bistek on Green Onion Blini
Beef-n-Blue-Wagon-Wheel
Beef n Blue Wagon Wheel
Beef-Wrapped-Maple-Parsnip
Beef Wrapped Maple Parsnip

Hop on the bus gus. We were herded (see what I did there) onto a bus to make our way to WineGlass Ranch, a beef cattle ranch to meet Travis and Kara Eklund. These 5th generation ranchers raise healthy, high quality, hormone & antibody free, grain finished beef. We gathered to hear stories of life on the ranch, the trials and tribulations of operating a ranch through economic ups and downs and how this couple manages to do it with a smile on their face. They allowed us to wander around a little to explore some of the ranch.

WineGlass Ranch Alberta
WineGlass Ranch Alberta

Get back on the bus gus. We were on the road again only this time Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise bound. On our ride we had the pleasure of sharing company with Miriam and Donnie Wilson from the Parks Canada Historic Site – Bar U Ranch. They openly chatted about the Wildlife Corridor protection initiative as well as gave us a heritage talk about Bar U Ranch.

Mairlyn Smith handing out toques
Mairlyn Smith handing out toques

We arrived in Lake Louise in time for a rancher reception welcome hosted by Canada Beef Board Chair Linda Allison. Linda along with two representatives from Alberta and Saskatchewan shared stories of how the summer of 2017 wildfires affected ranches, farms and communities all over Western Canada and how communities banded together to help each other. Brew samples were provided by Grizzly Paw Brewery.

With little time to exhale, Chef Jean-Francois led us on a behind the scenes tour of the hotels large array of kitchens. We move along quite quickly in a few of his kitchens to learn its specific function while the 110 chefs he oversees busily prepare dinner for it’s patrons. Each kitchen stop features a surprise and incredibly delicious small bite for us to sample while taking it all in. We end our tour in the dining room at Lago Italian Kitchen and are seated at our assigned table for dinner.

For dinner Chef Anton and Chef Jean-Francois prepare a main dish featuring Canadian beef and sound off in an epic battle of desserts. Chef Anton delighted many with his Beef Short Ribs Sinigang served on a bed of green mango puree.

beef-short-ribs
Beef Short Ribs Sinigang

Chef Jean-Francois serves up Braised Beef Flat Iron and Seared Tenderloin with Beets and Polenta. A meal fit for a king. Or a bunch of hungry carnivores.

beef-flatiron-and-tenderloin
Beef Flatiron and Tenderloin

Following a delicious meal and equally satisfying desserts, this girl took herself for a quick breath of fresh air outside to inspect Lake Louise after dark and then down to the Alpine Social, the social hub of Lake Louise, to be social of course and for a night cap before retiring for the evening.

Lake-Louise-View from window
Chateau Lake Louise View from room

Chateau Lake Louise offers magical views, adventures and activities for the entire family all year round and should definitely be on your bucket list of places to visit.

This is a sponsored post. Opinions expressed are mine and based on the experience had while on this trip.

 

Moroccan Steak with Couscous

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Couscous, a North African dish of small steamed balls of semolina is considered to be a pasta. It’s also a grain my mom introduced to me back in the 90’s and one we eat as a side dish regularly. We grew up taught to always have a carb on our plate with our meal. This was either pasta, rice or potatoes. But is it really necessary? Not really, as long as you are eating enough of each food group throughout the day.

Moroccan Beef on Couscous

For dinners I love to cook a protein and have a great side, salad or grain to go with it. We always put fresh veggies of some sort of the table for the kids to munch on before and during our meals ensuring they get lots of veggies in them.

If the thought of meat on the couscous doesn’t appeal to you, try a couscous salad on the side. The first one I ever had was made by my mom and full of artichokes, sun dried tomatoes and more. We made a yogurt drizzle using a little Greek Yogurt mixed with a splash of water, juice of one lemon and a pinch of salt.

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Moroccan Steak on Couscous
Serves: 6
 
Ingredients
  • 2 lbs sirloin or top sirloin steak
  • 2 tbsp ras el hanout spice
  • 1 tbsp coarse salt
  • 4 tbsp olive oil
  • 2 cups chicken stock
  • ⅓ cup lemon juice
  • lemon zest from one lemon
  • 2 cups fine couscous
  • salt and pepper in pinch bowls
  • 4 scallions, sliced thin
  • 1 398ml can chick peas
  • ½ cup fresh mint, chopped
  • ¼ cup fresh flat leaf parsley, chopped
  • ¼ cup toasted pepitas
Instructions
  1. At least an hour before (or more) you are ready to cook, rub steak with ras el hanout and salt on both sides. Lightly drizzle with olive oil. Cover and let sit in the refrigerator until ready to cook. Remove to counter at least 30 minutes before cooking steak.
  2. To cook steak heat grill pan over medium high heat. Add 2 tbsp of olive oil and add steak. Get a good sear on one side then turn over cooking til desired doneness. Remove from pan, let rest on plate covered for 5 minutes. Thinly slice and set aside.
  3. Add 1 tbsp olive oil, chicken stock and lemon juice to a medium sized pot. Bring to a boil on stove and remove from heat. Stir in couscous, a pinch of lemon zest, pinch of salt and pepper, and let stand for five minutes Fluff with a fork, taste for seasoning adding more salt and pepper as needed.
  4. To serve, spread couscous out on a platter. Sprinkle on sliced scallions, chick peas, mint and parsley. Top with sliced steak. Add pepitas and leftover lemon zest.

 

Beef Stew with Bacon

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Beef Stew with Bacon
Beef Stew with Bacon

A long time ago my mom used to cook the shit out of pork and beef roasts. Truth be known I was in a recent session with Vikram Vij and he also advised his mom would cook the shit out of things to, so I blame him for my potty mouth. The only way I could choke down her roasts was to smother them in HP Sauce – more truths. This continued mistreatment of roasts while I was a child led me to have trust relationships with roast beef. I do enjoy beef, like I really really enjoy steak, satay, stir-fry. We also enjoy roasts on a regular basis as a family, however I still am not a huge fan of roast beef. But I will eat it.

Beef Stew with Bacon
Beef Stew with Bacon

This leads us to stew, another cut I have a strange relationship with. Possibly for the same reasons – it was made regularly and slightly over cooked. My family enjoys stew so it’s made flavourful and moist in this house. Mostly.

Beef Stew with Bacon
Beef Stew with Bacon

In my quest to love stew, I added some sauteed mushrooms, chopped chives and broken chunks of double cream brie. And a few hot pepper flakes. Go big or go home right? Guess what? I LOVED it! We get a flavour punch from adding leftover frozen beef broth from our last Teriyaki Beef Fondue. What you’ve never had a beef broth fondue? You really should. Regular beef broth is also dandy in a handy. Finally some leftover parsnips resembling potatoes went into the stew and nobody was the wiser (winning).

Beef Stew with Bacon
Beef Stew with Bacon

I finished the stew with a few sprinkles of hot pepper flakes cause I like the heat!

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Beef Stew with Bacon
Author: 
Recipe type: dinner, lunch
Serves: 6
 
Ingredients
  • 4 slices thick cut bacon, chopped into 1 inch pieces
  • 2 lbs beef stew cubs (boneless beef chuck cut into 2 inch cubes)
  • 2 tbsp flour
  • 3 carrots, chopped
  • 2 parsnips, peeled and chopped
  • 4 yellow potatoes,c hopped
  • 1 small onion, chopped
  • 2 celery stalks, chopped
  • 3 cloves garlic.
  • 2 tbsp tomato paste
  • 3 cups beef broth
  • 1 tbsp fresh thyme
  • 2 bay leaves
  • salt and pepper
  • 1 lb cremini mushrooms, sliced
  • 1 tbsp butter
  • 2 tbsp parsley, chopped
  • 1 tbsp chives, chopped into longer pieces
  • ¼ cup double cream brie, tore into smaller pieces
  • 1 baguette, torn into crusty chunks for dipping
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 350F.
  2. In a large wide 6-8 quart heavy pot with a lid, fry bacon pan over medium heat for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
  3. Add your beef to pot in smaller batches, add flour and stir until lightly browned. Remove bacon and beef to platter. Toss in carrots, parsnips, potatoes, onion, celery and garlic. Stir occasionally and cook for another 6 minutes.
  4. Push vegetables aside, making a hole in the middle of pot and add tomato paste. Stir for about one minute then mix in vegetables.
  5. Pour in beef broth, bay leaves, salt and pepper and thyme. Bring to a boil. Drop in beef and bacon, cover and cook in oven until meat is very tender 1 - 2 hours.
  6. Season with salt and pepper, remove bay leaves and serve hot with mushrooms, chives, brie, a sprinkle of parsley and crusty bread.
Notes
To saute mushrooms add 1 tbsp butter to a hot pan. Toss in mushrooms and stir until moisture is released. Season with salt and pepper and cook until brown.

Smokey BBQ Beef on a Bun

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BBQ Beef on a Bun makes you think summer doesn’t it?! It really does for us as we serve up this recipe every summer and get the whole neighborhood smelling our smoked, grilled beef.

This is another one of those recipes I’ve been making for over 20 years and never documented. It’s like your mom or grandma makes something and it’s so ingrained in their brain, they make it without even thinking about it. I’ve got so many of those recipes ingrained in my brain, it’s terrifying.

It was 2003 and I started a new job with a company in the South of Calgary. This rather large company would throw an employee and friends Stampede Barbecue every July. I was in charge of organizing this shindig and ensuring there was enough food and beverages to go around for hundreds of people. The company had a commercial BBQ and every year they barbecued these beef roasts after marinating them all night. I watched, I learned, I oversaw the cooking and this is where my inspiration to make my own beef on a bun came from.

Beef Roast on the BBQ
Beef Roast on the BBQ

This roast serves quite a crowd. We recently had our end of Summer BBQ with 33 adults and kids. We cooked up extra hot dogs for the kids and even after several of the men went back for thirds, but we still ended up with close to half of our roast leftover. Which was great for leftover dishes in the days to follow.

If you have less to feed, buy a smaller roast. And plan for some delicious leftover dishes. We we had beef on a bun twice throughout the week, Beef Pot Pie, beef quesadillas and Beef Soup before I was done with the beef and tossed the rest in the freezer until next time.

You need to prepare this bad boy the day before to let it marinate giving you added flavour. Buy the extra large ziplock bags – the ones for your kids sports stuff and make sure you have wood chips and a smoker, or extra heavy duty tin foil. Watch it become a family favourite.

 

Beef ready for the bun
Beef ready for the bun

 

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Smokey BBQ Beef on a Bun
Author: 
 
Ingredients
  • 10-15lb Top Sirloin Beef Roast
  • 1 tbsp garlic powder
  • 3 tbsp spice rub for beef (your favourite)
  • 1 cup BBQ sauce + more for later (your favourite)
  • 1 very large seal-able plastic bag
  • 24 burger style buns
  • Apple or mesquite wood chips (we use both mixed together)
  • BBQ smoke box or heavy duty tin foil
  • water
  • beef broth
Instructions
  1. The day before: Place your roast on a large baking sheet.
  2. With a small pairing knife gently stab the meat several times all around the entire roast making slits. Not viciously but just enough to add slits allowing the spice and BBQ sauce to permeate the meat while it marinates.
  3. Sprinkle on garlic powder and spice mix rubbing it all over the meat, even in the slits you made.
  4. Place meat in larger than normal plastic bag. Pour in the BBQ sauce moving the roast around to ensure it is entirely coated. Seal up bag and place in refrigerator for a minimum of 12 hours.
  5. The day of the BBQ: Remove beef from bag one hour before cooking and place in large roasting pan. Let sit on counter until ready to BBQ. Put your wood chips in a large bowl of water and let them soak for 30 minutes up to 60 minutes.
  6. Get your smoke box ready by filling with wet wood chips. It's OK if you do not have a smoke box, simply place wood chips on a large piece of tin foil, loosely close it up and poke some holes to allow smoke to escape.
  7. Preheat your BBQ to around 250F. Once ready keep your burner on at one end of your grill, and leave the other side off. Arrange the smoke box over the flame and close lid to let it start smoking. Once you see smoke place your roasting pan with roast on the burner that is turned off. Add ½ cup water to pan and close lid.
  8. Check the wood chips and your roast every 30 - 60 minutes and replenish as needed. This cooking method is low and slow and will take approximately 4-6 hours depending on the size of your roast. Add more water to keep some liquid at the bottom of the roasting pan and baste your roast with the liquid each time you check it.
  9. The meat is done when the inside temperature reaches ~160 degrees. When you check the wood. Remove from grill, tent with tin foil, and let sit. Once cooled we use a meat slicer to slice into very thin pieces, placing back into the roasting pan with juice, some additional warmed beef broth and more BBQ sauce. Cutting and shaving it thin with a sharp knife also works.
  10. Mix together and serve with buns.

 

Beef & Mushroom Spring Rolls

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One of my favourite things to eat (of many) is well spring rolls. The kids and I enjoy making the fresh salad type rolls but my secret love is for fried spring rolls. Sometimes I visit a local Vietnamese restaurant during lunch and pick up an order of spring rolls all to myself. And eat them in the truck lol. It’s that mom time alone where I don’t have to share with anyone. Even in the truck. I’ll take it.

I’ve made them before, but it’s been awhile. My son has recently started liking them as much as I do, so when we order Vietnamese food we end up fighting over the spring rolls. Note above alone time.

Mushroom-Beef-SR-v1

With a blend and extend challenge upon us thanks to Mushrooms Canada, I’ve been trying to think outside of the box to create a blended appetizer. Spring Rolls came to mind and the flavourings I use in the Thai Salad with Jalapeno & Mint I make. I took inspiration from this recipe and went for it. My son loved them so much he must have eaten four within minutes.

Beef, Mushrooms & Veggies ready for rolling
Beef, Mushrooms & Veggies ready for rolling

Made from ground beef and minced mushrooms, plus a few veggies for good measure, these spring rolls contain minced mushrooms and ground beef. This is how you add another serving of vegetables to the plate.

Here’s the method.

4.0 from 1 reviews
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Beef & Mushroom Spring Rolls
Author: 
Recipe type: Appetizer
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 
Serves: 20
 
Ingredients
  • 1 tbsp soy sauce
  • 1 tbsp fish sauce
  • 1 tbsp cornstarch
  • 1 lb lean ground beef
  • ½ tsp sugar
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 tsp ginger, freshly grated
  • ¾ cup minced mushrooms
  • 3 tsp sesame oil
  • 1 cup napa cabbage
  • 1 cup shredded carrots
  • 2 green onions, sliced thin
  • 1 package of spring roll wrappers (20)
  • 1 egg, whipped up in a bowl
  • 1 wok
  • canola oil
  • 2 tbsp cilantro, chopped
Instructions
  1. In a medium sized bowl, combine the soy sauce, fish sauce and cornstarch. Add in the ground beef and mix well. Set aside to marinate while you prepare and slice your other ingredients.
  2. Thinly slice your napa cabbage, leafy parts only. Peel and grate your carrots. Let carrots sit on a paper towel to absorb some of the moisture. Slice onions.
  3. Heat 2 tsp of sesame oil in a large saucepan over medium high heat. Add your ground beef and cook until beef starts to get a nice golden brown. Sprinkle on sugar, add garlic, ginger and mushrooms. Continue to cook another couple of minutes until flavours well combined. Remove from heat and onto plate and let cool.
  4. In second pan add 1 tsp of sesame oil. Toss in cabbage, carrots and onions. Cook approximately 3 minutes until vegetables soft. Remove from heat and set aside in pan to cool.
  5. Once meat and veggies are cool mix together. Mix in cilantro. Set aside.
  6. Place spring roll wrapper in a diamond shape with a corner facing you. Place 2 tablespoons of filling near corner - that will be plenty. Fold over corner and roll tight.
  7. Fold over right and left side trying not to allow any pockets. Keep it tight and roll until it looks like an envelope then stop. With your finger rub a little egg wash along the out edge of the wrapper as though you were licking an envelop. Continue rolling and ensure sealed. Set aside and keep under plastic wrap.
  8. Carry on until all rolled. Do not stack. Keep all under plastic wrap until ready to cook.
  9. When you’re ready to fry, heat up 1½″ of canola oil to 350F. I like to use my wok.
  10. Carefully drop spring rolls in frying 4-5 at a time and turning constantly for even browning.
  11. Once they are golden brown place on a rack to cool down and drain.
  12. Serve with Thai Chili Sauce or your favourite dipping sauce.

Mushroom-Beef-rolling
2 tablespoons of filling on the wrapper

 

Mushroom-Beef-blend
Little envelope ready for some egg wash

 

 

Grilled Beef Satay

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Beef Satay is the perfect, light summer meal. Use your favourite marinade or try this one the next time you make these. They literally melt in your mouth. Make sure you cut your beef thin and let it marinade for at least an hour or more depending the cut of beef you use.

If you are using a cheaper cut of steak like I did (inside round), ensure you have acid in your marinade to tenderize the steak and let marinate for longer than an hour if you can. With this meal I par-boiled some baby potatoes, let them cool, skewered them and added olive oil, salt and pepper. A few minutes on the grill finished them off.

This is an easy and tasty meal to get your Summer Grilling on!

Grilled Beef Satay
Grilled Beef Satay

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Grilled Beef Satay
Author: 
Recipe type: Lunch, dinner
Serves: 6
 
Ingredients
  • 1-2 lbs Inside Round Steak
  • ¼ cup sherry
  • ¼ cup soy sauce
  • 1 garlic scape rough chopped and pressed a few times to soften
  • 1 tbsp sesame oil
  • 1 tbsp oyster sauce
  • ½ tsp sambal oelek
  • 20 bamboo skewers, soaked in water
Instructions
  1. Mix together sherry, soy sauce, garlic scape, sesame oil, oyster sauce and sambal oelek. Pour into a clear plastic zip up bag and set aside.
  2. Cut your steak into thin slices. Add to marinade. Squish all together, close bag and place in fridge to marinate at least one hour or longer. Let your bamboo skewers soak during this time.
  3. Remove from marinade and thread beef onto skewers.
  4. On a preheated grill over medium-high, grill the satay skewers for 2-3 minutes per side or until done.
  5. These skewers are so flavourful they do not need any dip or sauce. Enjoy!

 

Bringing families together for Dinner With Canadian Beef

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Growing up in a Small Town [cue song from Paul Brandt Small Town & Big Dreams] in Northern British Columbia, we weren’t a busy family, but one who had more time to sit down and enjoy regular family meals together. We were a family of four and my father was a Canadian Beef lover so we often had beef roasts or steak on the weekends.

As a child I watched my dad grill the steaks and helped my mom cook the roast whenever I was allowed to help. It’s these memories and times spent together eating meals at the dinner table as a family that helped instill so many values in myself and remind me about the importance of taking the time to just “be” with each other at the table.

Today I have a family of my own, a family of four, and we call Calgary, Alberta our home. We take in International Homestay Students for 10 months out of the year and so we become a family of five. We enjoy introducing our students to new tastes and Canadian Beef is one of those they get introduced to early on.

When my husband and I got married in 2004 we contacted Alberta Beef about promotional items for our guests, and they sent us stickers to hand out at our wedding, that is how much we enjoy our beef.

I Love Alberta Beef Stickers from our Wedding
I Love Alberta Beef Stickers from our Wedding

On April 6th the Canadian Beef Centre of Excellence hosted a Media Cook off and Canadian Beef Family Dinner Event. They brought in Country Music Star Paul Brandt to perform a few songs for us during dinner and judge the media burger cook off between 3 well known local competitors. While we dined on beef sliders, ribs, tacos and more prepared by Chef Marty Carpenter, Director Canadian Beef Centre of Excellence and his team, we listened to Paul sing. It was an epic moment as I’ve been a Paul Brandt fan since I moved to Calgary 16 years ago. There weren’t many at the event who knew his songs well (or as well as me) and I may or may not have been singing quite loudly along with him during dinner. Thank goodness Periscope videos disappear.

It was an exciting evening spent with several friends in the blogging and media world. We were fortunate to hear Canadian Beef announce Paul Brandt as the spokesperson for over 67,000 ranchers in Canada. What an honour to have someone like Paul representing Canadian Beef. To learn more about what Canadian Beef looks like click on the video below.

 

FAMILY

Even though there are four of us originals in the family at any given time, we are very busy with activities and events that I attend. We make it a habit whenever we can to sit down as a family and eat our meal together before rushing off somewhere, even if we only have 15 minutes and it’s sandwiches. A little advance meal planning and shopping helps make this happen.

I am also a big fan of cook once, eat two or three times. We eat Family Style, allowing the kids to serve themselves, try one bite of everything (house rule) and clean their plate before going in for second helpings. These rules have worked well and our kids are very good eaters. More often than not I am sending them to school with leftover beef wraps, beef in pitas or even beef on a bun. This makes me a very proud mom!

Family Dinner
Family Dinner – Grilled Steak Salad

We cook a lot of beef and every summer we are known for our Bakers Beef on a Bun. We host a barbecue for friends and/or family which involves about a 13 lb beef roast smoked and barbecued for several hours. It’s our way of giving back to the ones who matter most and bringing everyone together to enjoy a family style meal.

Bakers Beef on a Bun
Bakers Beef on a Bun

 

RECIPES

With beef being a staple in our family, we wanted to share a few of our favourite recipes and offer some inspiration for new family meals.

Get the family together at the table with a fondue. We’ve been fondueing as a couple for as long as we’ve been together (14 years) and have tried many variations over the years. We prefer to dip our meat into broth fondues and one of our favourite is Teriyaki Beef Fondue

We often make burgers but whenever we are camping we mix up some Pizza Burgers and freeze them individually (raw) a couple days before we go. We pack the burgers in our cooler with ice and usually cook them the first night or second when they have defrosted. The kids request these regularly.

Change up your burger routine and try these Alberta Burgers. We eat them with pitas and they are delicious.

Meat on a Stick is a family favourite here. Our Beef Keftas are popular and fun to eat!

Whip up this Taco Pasta in 30 minutes or less for those busy nights where you have to eat and run.

Family Style Fondue
Family Style Fondue with Friends

 

CANADIAN BEEF

Did you know Canada is the 8th largest exporter of beef in the world? Here’s a few more interesting facts about Canadian Beef:

  • Wide open spaces for cattle to graze: an environment that’s been conducive to grazing herds since time began
  • Cooler climates that are like a natural meat locker: much less stressful on cows than any hot-weather ranchland
  • A heritage of hardworking ranching and farming families that are part of the nation’s culture
  • Cattle are fed high energy grains which lowers the environmental footprint of finishing cattle
  • The average beef cow herd size in Canada is 63
  • Almost 25,000 Canadian farmers and ranchers are under the age of 35
  • Canadians enjoy around 930k tonnes of beef a year

Learn more about Canadian Beef by following them here: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube and find them on Periscope @LoveCDNbeef

Disclosure – This post is part of the #makeitCDNbeef influencer program. All thoughts and opinions on this blog are my own. Beef facts provided by Canadian Beef.

Baked Ziti

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My mom started buying me cookbooks in the late 80’s, so I blame her for my obsession. I have to blame someone right? It was around the same time she started entering her recipes, my recipes and any family member who was willing to give up a recipe into our local town cookbooks. I’ve got two of these small town family cookbooks with a handful of my recipes in them. Seems so ironic to me with where I ended up in life, as a food blogger and writer with a full time passion for food. Destiny perhaps or, someone knew before I did where my path would go.

Baked Ziti
Baked Ziti

My cookbook obsession runs deep. For years I’ve had cooking magazine subscriptions. In fact I’ve only within the past two years cancelled a few of them because I’m running out of room. I’ve also been lucky enough to receive many cookbooks as gifts from media events, and I take them out from the library from time to time. In fact I’m even thinking about joining a 12 month Instagram Monthly Cookbook Club this month because I love cookbooks so much. It could be worse I think.

Guy On Fire
Guy On Fire

A recent trip to the library with the kids to pick up some books and I ended up coming home with Guy Fieri’s “Guy on Fire Cookbook”. I refrained from bringing home a huge pile, as I have in the past (new goals right) and only brought home one cookbook. See cookbooks inspire me, and I certainly do enjoy this book by Guy.

After choosing no less than 20 recipes to try I had to narrow it down to one. So I choose pasta. My family loved this recipe. Guy uses olive oil, I used canola oil. I also used less red hot pepper flakes and it was still a bit spicy for one of the minions, but it was oh so delicious. And that fresh rosemary on top – a show stopper.

In this cookbook Guy shares 130 recipes for adventures in the outdoors. I noted several of the BBQ’d meat recipes required brining the night before so you will have to allow yourself the time to do this. After pouring through it several times, I can tell you it’s fun and has several recipes I would like to try. I love that he’s dedicated it to his dad and father-in-law. Lucky “guy”.

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Baked Ziti
Author: 
Recipe type: Dinner
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 
Serves: 6
 
Ingredients
  • 2 tbsp canola oil
  • 1 yellow onion, diced
  • 3 garlic cloves, minced
  • 3 Italian sausages, uncooked
  • 1 lb ground beef
  • 1 28 oz diced tomatoes with juice
  • 1 28 oz crushed tomatoes
  • 1 tbsp dried thyme
  • 1 tbsp dried basil
  • ¼ tsp dried red pepper flakes
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • 1 lb ziti or penne
  • 1 lb fresh mozzarella, grated
  • 1½ cup ricotta chesee
  • 1 egg
  • ½ cup parmesan, grated
  • 2 tbsp fresh parsley, for garnish
  • 1 tbsp fresh rosemary, chopped for garnish
  • Cooking spray
Instructions
  1. Heat canola oil in a large pan over medium high heat. Add the onion and garlic and saute for 5-7 minutes, until the onion starts to soften.
  2. Add the sausage and beef, breaking it up with a masher or spoon. Saute until it's cooked through and is starting to brown nicely.
  3. Add thyme, basil, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper. Stir and cook another 2 minutes.
  4. Add tomatoes and any juice, stirring occasionally for 25 minutes. Remove from heat, seat aside to cool slightly.
  5. Preheat oven to 375 F.
  6. Cook the pasta in a large pot of boiling, salted water until just short of al dente. Drain the pasta and reserve.
  7. In a large bowl, combine ¾ of the mozzarella, ricotta, egg, salt and a pinch of pepper. Mix well and toss in the pasta. Add the meat mixture and toss all ingredients to combine.
  8. Spray a casserole dish or large cast iron pan with cooking spray. Pour the mixture in and top the ziti with remaining mozzarella and parmesan cheese.
  9. Bake for 20-25 minutes until bubbly and golden brown. Garnish with parsley & rosemary.

 

Beef Stir-Fried with Asparagus

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I love cookbooks. In fact my mom started buying them for me back in the 80’s. I started watching cooking shows on the PBS in the 70’s and with my mom buying me cookbooks, well it lead to a small cookbook obsession. Which could be worse right? It’s a good thing except when it comes time to move!

Today I’m sharing a Beef Stir-Fried with Asparagus Recipe from a cookbook called Simply Vietnamese Cooking by Nancie McDermott. This cookbook has 135 recipes and they are all straight forward and easy to make. You’ll find speedy stir-fries, vibrant salads, soothing soups and tasty snacks. Even recipes for seafood on the grill and desserts. Ever wanted to learn how to make a Vietnamese Coffee? You will in this book. The photos are colourful and mouth watering, exactly what I like in a food photo. I love how they’ve even included some local photos of Vietnam.

Simply Vietnamese Cooking
Simply Vietnamese Cooking

I found several recipes I would make and several similar to what I have made in the past (I make spring rolls all the time). I’m always up for learning new tips & tricks and this book has several of them. It was an activity night when I made this recipe, and only 3 of us home to eat dinner [the girl was out selling cookies]. I was able to marinate the beef for almost an hour so this helped with the flavour. The recipe was easy to follow, simple to execute, and the sidebar tips very informative.

Vietnamese cuisine is delicious, unique, fascinating, healthful, and irresistible. Everyone can cook Vietnamese dishes in their own home and this cookbook will help you get started.

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Beef Stir-Fried with Asparagus
Author: 
Recipe type: dinner, lunch
Serves: 4
 
Ingredients
  • 4 oz boneless beef like sirloin, sliced thin (partially freezing first helps)
  • 2 tbsp fish sauce, divided
  • 1 tbsp soy sauce
  • ½ tsp black pepper
  • ½ tsp sugar
  • 8 oz asparagus
  • 2 tbsp oil
  • 1 tbsp garlic, chopped
  • 2 tbsp water
  • 2 tbsp scallions, thinly sliced
Instructions
  1. In a medium bowl, combine beef with 1 tbsp of the fish sauce, soy sauce, black pepper and sugar. Toss to mix well and let marinate for up to an hour.
  2. Trim asparagus, breaking off bottom stalks. Cut green upper portions diagonally into 2 inch lengths. You should have about 2 cups of sliced asparagus. Set aside.
  3. In a large skillet or wok, heat oil over high heat for 30 seconds. Add garlic and toss. Scatter beef in pan and cook briefly on one side, then toss once to sear other side. Add asparagus and toss well. Add remaining fish sauce, water and green onion. Cook tossing once or twice, until asparagus is shiny and tender, but not soft, about 1 minute. Transfer to a serving dish and serve with hot rice.

 

Courtesy of Simply Vietnamese Cooking by Nancie McDermott, 2015 © www.robertrose.ca Reprinted with publisher permission.

 

Thai Beef in Toast Cups with Mango Salsa

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In my daily activities I come across many contests and challenges out there for food bloggers. What you learn along the way is you have to be picky and choosy with what you take on as recipe testing, buying ingredients, making notes, testing again until you get it right, photographing and the like all takes a tremendous amount of time. Which is why I admittedly do not enter as many as I used to. Although I still love a challenge which is where this Thai Beef in Toast Cups with Mango Salsa recipe comes in.

Weeks ago I caught wind of a contest featuring ground beef and mushrooms encouraging us Food Bloggers to Blend & Extend these two special ingredients to show you can get more vegetables (in this case mushrooms) into your meals without the family knowing. We are fortunate in that our kids love almost all vegetables fresh with mushrooms being one of them. My daughter actually eats them whole and peels them like a banana (there’s one in every crowd)!

Thai Beef in Toast Cups with Mango Salsa
Thai Beef in Toast Cups with Mango Salsa

When I started recipe testing for this challenge I made three separate beef and mushroom dishes over the course of a couple of days. Each recipe had it’s own unique flavour profile and was inspired by recipes I already make. The caveat, they needed to be bite size.

To each recipe I added just over a cup of minced fresh white button mushrooms. I was pleasantly surprised you couldn’t even tell there were mushrooms mixed in with the beef. The kids, not any wiser, enjoyed each recipe for different reasons. As such new recipes have been born and at least one will be entered into the contest.

 

Thai Beef in Toast Cups with Mango Salsa
Thai Beef in Toast Cups with Mango Salsa

 

The inspiration for this recipe comes from two I currently make which are both very popular on the blog. Cesar Salad in Toast Cups and a Pork Thai Salad with Jalapeno & Mint. I took the flavour profile from the Pork Thai Salad and infused it into the beef, mixing in mushrooms, and topping it with a delicious mango salsa. I make varieties of the Salad Toast Cups so using the toast cup itself as the vessel to hold the beef and mushroom mixture worked perfectly. I knew I wanted to top it with something fresh so a minced mango salsa was prepared to top the beef. The flavour combination worked well. Out of six taste testers (young and old) I’d say only 1 gave it a thumbs down.

Here is how I made Thai Beef in Toast Cups with Mango Salsa.

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Thai Beef in Toast Cups with Mango Salsa
Author: 
Recipe type: Appetizer
Serves: 12
 
Ingredients
  • 1½ lbs ground beef
  • 1 cup white button mushrooms, finely diced
  • 1 tsp olive oil
  • 2 tbsp fish sauce
  • 2 tsp sugar
  • 2 tsp sesame oil
  • 2 tbsp soya sauce
  • ½ cup water
  • 1 cup mango, diced small
  • 2 tbsp red onion, small dice
  • 1 jalapeno pepper, remove seeds, small dice
  • 2 tbsp cilantro, chopped
  • salt
  • ½ lime, juiced
  • 6 pieces of normal size bread (like wonderbread) with all 4 sides/crusts removed
  • Cooking spray or melted butter
  • Mini muffin tins
Instructions
  1. Heat 1 tbsp oil in large saucepan over medium-high heat.
  2. Add beef and break it up into smaller crumbles. Cook a few more minutes and add in your mushrooms. Continue to cook until you get a good brown on the beef. Brown = flavour.
  3. In a bowl or cup mix together ½ cup water, fish sauce, sugar, sesame oil, soya sauce and stir. Pour into beef mixture, cook until almost all liquid is gone and flavours combined. Set aside to cool a bit.
  4. To make the salsa, in a bowl mix together mango, red onion, jalapeno, cilantro, pinch of salt and lime juice. Set aside.
  5. To make toast cups, preheat your oven to 350F
  6. Cut the crusts off each piece of bread. Cut each piece into four equal squares.
  7. Spray mini muffin tins with cooking spray or brush with melted butter.
  8. Flatten each piece of bread a little with your hand or a rolling pin. Gently press each bread square into a mini muffin cup. Give another quick spray or brush of melted butter. Continue until you have filled all 12 mini muffin cups or if you have two pans, 24. If you do not have two pans, you will need to do this two times.
  9. Place in oven and bake for 6-8 minutes or until the bread has turned lightly brown. Remove from pan, place on platter and begin assembling.
  10. Scoop a little beef mixture into each toast cup. Top with a small amount of the mango salsa. If you have juice in the salsa sprinkle a little on top. You can either top with a cilantro leaf or serve as is. Serve immediately.

 

Slow Cooker Beef & Barley Stew

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One thing we love to do as a family is fondue. Husband used to fondue as a kid, I was introduced to fondue in the 90’s, and currently own at least 4 or 5 fondue pots. A fondue variety is so much fun, especially when it includes broth, cheese and chocolate all in one night. When we beef broth fondue we add flavour enhancers like ginger and garlic to the broth plus we’ve usually marinated the beef and add those marinating juices as well. As the broth cooks down it intensifies the flavour.

Beef Stew is a comfort food we can’t get enough of. If you do not have leftover fondue broth, beef broth is just as delicious, and you can easily toss some additional garlic, and ginger into the pot as it cooks away.

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Slow Cooker Beef & Barley Stew
Recipe type: Main, Slowcooker, Supper, Entree
 
Ingredients
  • 1-2lbs stew beef (1/2-1 inch cubes)
  • oil
  • 1 small onion, chopped
  • 3 stalks celery, chopped
  • 3-4 med sized carrots, chopped
  • ¾-1 cup barley
  • 3 bay leaves
  • 1 tbsp soy sauce
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • ½ tsp ginger, minced
  • 6 cups beef broth
  • salt & pepper
Instructions
  1. In a skillet over medium high heat add your oil and brown/quick sear your beef in small batches. Remove from pan and place in slowcooker. Continue until all beef is browned.
  2. Turn heat down, pour a little more oil into pan and add your onions, carrots and celery stirring for about 5 minutes. IN the last 2 minutes add your garlic. Pour in a splash of beef broth and scrape up all the brown bits from the pan. Add contents of saucepan into slowcooker with beef.
  3. Pour in the remaining beef broth. Add your bay leaves, soy sauce, ginger and a pinch of salt & pepper. Give a stir and pour in your barley.
  4. Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours.

 

Grilled Steak with Chimichurri Sauce

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Steak has always been one of my favourite things. My dad would grill it up on occasion, but it would always be the same cut of steak and have to much of the same barbecue sauce added every time. This my friends is what food memories are all about – ahhh the good ole days!

These days I do steak a variety of ways. This Grilled Steak with Chimichurri Sauce is simple, yet the sauce packs a punch of flavour. Today I am using a top sirloin steak to go with my chimichurri. Mix together a few spices, some garlic and olive oil. Rub onto the steak and let sit for awhile. Mix up your chimichurri, grill your steak to your liking and Bob’s your uncle.

Chimichurri sauce originates from Argentina & South America and is a green sauce used to accompany any grilled meat or veg. I’ve had green, red and even a white chimichurri and it’s such a delicious flavour boost. Try adding some to roasted potatoes – super yum right?

As a side to the steak we grilled up some mushrooms and asparagus and filled half our plate with veggies.

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Grilled Steak with Chimichurri Sauce
Author: 
Recipe type: sauce, side
Serves: 4
 
Ingredients
  • 2 lbs steak (whatever you enjoy, striploin, sirloin, filet)
  • ½ tsp cumin
  • ½ tsp coriander
  • ½ Pepper
  • 1 tsp sea salt
  • 1 tbsp + ½ cup olive oil
  • 3 garlic cloves, minced
  • ½ cup fresh parsley leaves
  • 2 tbsp lemon juice, fresh
  • 2 tbsp fresh oregano
  • 5 cloves garlic, peeled
  • ½ tsp each salt & pepper
Instructions
  1. Combine cumin, coriander, salt and pepper in a bowl. Sprinkle onto your steak. Add minced garlic and approximately 1 tbsp olive oil and rub everything onto the steaks. Let sit and marinate in fridge until ready to grill (at least 30 minutes).
  2. Mix up your chimichurri by blending together ½ cup olive oil, parsley, lemon juice, oregano, garlic and salt/pepper. Blend until combined and set aside.
  3. Grill your steak to your liking and serve with chimichurri sauce.

 

 

Steak with Chimichurri Sauce
Steak with Chimichurri Sauce

 

 

Sundried Tomato Beef Burgers

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In a city known for it’s quality Canadian and Alberta beef, there’s no shortage of amazing burgers to be found here in Calgary. And with tasty burgers in every quadrant, inspiration comes from everywhere. One of our family favourite burgers just so happens to be our Pizza Burger. Every time we say we are having burgers tonight, my son always enthusiastically asks, Pizza Burgers?

The world is your oyster when it comes to making burgers although many feel burgers are best left without any add-ins. Just burger, salt and pepper. We say each to their own and we love a good burger oozing with flavours.

Our burger today is the Sundried Tomato Beef Burger combining simple Italian flavours of parmesan cheese and sundried tomatoes. If you are using sundried tomatoes packed in oil, pour in a little oil from the sundried tomatoes to kick up the flavour a notch. Pick up some soft delicious buns, all your favourite condiments (I like to top my burgers with feta cheese) and fire up that grill.

Here’s how we make them.

Sundried Tomato Burgers
Sundried Tomato Burgers

 

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Dried Tomato Beef Burgers
Author: 
Recipe type: lunch, BBQ, dinner, Camping
Serves: 6
 
Ingredients
  • 1 lb ground beef
  • 1-2 tbsp finely chopped sundried tomatoes packed in oil + 1 tbsp of the oil
  • ½ tsp dried basil
  • ¼ tsp dried thyme
  • ¼ cup parmesan cheese
  • salt and pepper
Instructions
  1. Combine ingredients and season with salt and pepper. Shape into 4-6 patties and grill over medium high heat until completely cooked.
  2. Add your favourite fixings and enjoy.