Moroccan Dinner

Too tired to post the full recipes or photos, but wanted to make a note of these 3 excellent Moroccan recipes. Everything pairs so well together. Much of it can be made-ahead, making it the perfect meal for company.

Moroccan Carrots
... I served these warm, but they taste great at room temperature too

Moroccan chicken
... I left out the prunes, browned the chicken in a pan with olive oil and then put everything in the crock pot for 4 hours to slow-cook. Instead of using lemon and orange rinds, I just set everything on top of a bed of full wheels of lemon and orange in the bottom of the slow cooker. The mint and lemon juice before serving is a must!


Moroccan Chickpea Barley Salad
... One of my fave salad recipes of all time. This is only the second time I've made it, but I simply adore the fresh flavours.

Potatoes
Tonight, I also added roasted potatoes to the meal as 'filler' to make sure everyone was nice and full... used my standard olive oil, garlic, salt, pepper and paprika... yum :-)

Chicken Cacciatore

4 Boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch cubes
1 Cup chopped onions
3 Cups sliced mushrooms
2 Cans whole tomatoes (I prefer no salt added)
1 Can tomato paste
1/2 Cup dry white wine
1.5 tsp dried basil
1.5 tsp dried oregano
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp salt (I prefer kosher salt)
1/2 tsp ground black pepper

4 servings of uncooked spaghetti, linguini, egg noodles or the rice of your choice

Preheat oven to 300 F

Combine all ingredients (minus the pasta/rice) in a large bowl and mix well.
Transfer mixture to a small roasting pan or large casserole dish.
Cover and bake for 2 hours or until chicken is very tender

Ten minutes before cooking time has ended, prepare pasta or rice according to directions.

Serve chicken & sauce mixture over hot pasta or rice.

Serves 4.

Credit: This recipe is a variation on Chicken Catcha Tory from the LooneySpoons cookbook.

Coconut Encrusted Chicken Salad

Ingredients:

• 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• ½ cup coconut flakes
• ½ cup flour
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 2 eggs
• 3 tbsp of virgin olive oil
• 1 bag/8 cups of mixed salad greens or spinach
• 2 avacados, diced
• 2 plum tomatoes, diced
• 1/2 cucumber, thinly sliced
• 1/4 red onion, thinly sliced
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 2 tbsp lemon juice
• 1 tbsp honey
• 1/2 tbsp dijon mustard
• 1 tsp mayo

Directions:

Rinse chicken under cool water and pat dry using a clean kitchen towel or parchment. On a chopping board, cut the chicken into strips somewhere between ½ an inch and an inch thick. Set aside. In a shallow dish, combine coconut flakes, flour and salt and pepper. In a bowl, crack eggs and beat lightly. Dip the chicken strips first in the egg and then roll in the coconut/flour mixture. Heat the oil in the pan over medium-high heat and sauté the chicken strips until the exterior turns a golden brown and the inside is no longer pink. keep warm on a baking sheet in the oven on low until ready to serve.

Chop and combine all other ingredients to make the salad.

Mix dijon mustard, olive oil, lemon juice, honey and mayo together vigorously to create salad dressing. Toss with salad and divide onto 4 plates.

Remove the chicken from oven and place atop salad bed. Drizzle with any remaining dressing and salt and pepper to taste and serve immediately.

Serves 4.

*Note: this is a variation on this recipe from Mark's Daily Apple blog.

Buttermilk Biscuits

Mark seriously LOVES biscuits. When Saturday and Sunday mornings roll around, he typically requests it when I ask what to make for breakfast.

For a while, Bisquick became a pantry staple for us so that we would always have a quick and simple way to get Mark's fave breakfast on the table. When I discovered how simple it is to make them from scratch, I banished the Bisquick from my pantry.  Ever since, I've been in search of the perfect biscuit recipe and this morning I'm happy to say that I found it. They're best when served-up with a fine selection of Jams for a deliciously satisfying breakfast, although you could have them on the side of any dish (doesn't have to be breakfast).

I often intend to make biscuits as a small part of a much larger breakfast (eggs, hashbrowns, etc...) but it usually just ends up being biscuits and jams (which the hubby seems to be more than OK with).

Here's the glorious recipe - enjoy!!



Buttermilk Biscuits

• 2 cups all purpose flour (although I prefer healthier 'whole wheat' flour, this is nor the time or place for it - it's too heavy for these light & flaky biscuits - use all purpose bleached, or unbleached)
• 1 Tbsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp table salt
• 6 Tbsp unsalted butter, chilled
• 3 Tbsp solid vegetable shortening, chilled
• 1/2 cup cup cold milk
• 1/4 cup buttermilk (I don't know about you, but I NEVER have this on hand... see below for the easy DIY substitute)
• 1 Tbsp butter, melted

Preheat oven to 425 degrees and make sure the rack is in the center of the oven.

In large bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder and salt and mix well. Add butter and with 2 knives or a pastry blender, cut in the cold butter and shortening until the mixture resembles cornmeal. Stir in the cold milk and buttermilk and mix just until dry ingredients are moistened - the key here is to NOT over-mix. Gather the dough into a ball and place on a lightly floured work surface.

Roll the dough into a 4" by 10" rectangle. Brush lightly with the melted butter. Fold the dough in half and roll to about 1/3 inch thickness. (This step is KEY - it ensures that you don't have to cut the biscuits in half to eat them - they just break apart so you can spread-on the delicious jams).

Cut-out the biscuits with a round cutter, flouring the cutter in between cuts. Make sure that you press straight down with the biscuit cutter so your biscuits will have straight sides. Handle the dough carefully, as it's quite delicate.

Place biscuits side by side, touching each other on an ungreased cookie sheet. For fancy biscuits, you can brush the top with beaten egg whites and sprinkle coarse sugar on top. I only do this for extra-special occaisions.

Bake at 425 degrees for 11-14 minutes or until golden brown. Serve immediately with a fine selection of fresh jams, jellies and/or marmalades. If you're in Ontario, or if you care to buy your jams online, I highly recommend Greaves Jams. Mark and take a trip to Niagara on the Lake at least twice a year to stock-up on our fave flavours.

To keep the biscuits warm while eating, I usually put a clean tea towel in a a basket, place the biscuits inside the tea towel, and keep covered while at the table as we eat them one by one. This keeps the biscuits fresh and warm so that each one is melt-in-your-mouth delicious! yummy yum yums!

 

Buttermilk Substitute

Making a recipe that calls for buttermilk? Use this simple substitute, and you won't need to buy any:

• Milk (just under one cup)
• 1 Tablespoon white vinegar or lemon juice

Place a Tablespoon of white vinegar or lemon juice in a liquid measuring cup. Add enough milk to bring the liquid up to the one-cup line. Let stand for five minute. Then, use as much as your recipe calls for.

 

 

Philly Cheese Steak Sandwiches

I came home to a very hungry husband today, and we both got home relatively late. Spice had busted-out of her crate houdini-style and had peed all over the floor in the basement. Hubby cleaned the pee while I started dinner, then he joined me in the kitchen to help fetch items from the fridge (I love having kitchen help, especially when it's from him!)

Because we were both so hungry, we whipped-up some quick sandwiches. (In my own humble opinion, sandwiches can be so underrated as a dinner-meal!)

I've never made Philly Cheese Steak sandwiches before, but they certainly are delicious!! Whenever I have a craving and an itch to make something new, I do what I always do and search my Google Reader for recipes from my fave food blogs. Todays inspiration came from We are not martha.com.

Enjoy!

Philly Cheese Steak Sandwiches

1 green bell pepper, thinly sliced 
1 yellow onion, thinly sliced
3 mushrooms, you guessed it, thinly sliced
Splash of Olive Oil
1 clove of garlic, minced 
1 small tomato, sliced
2 grilling steaks, thinly sliced
2 fresh kaisers
Your favourite BBQ sauce 
Worcestershire sauce
Sliced Mozzarella cheese 
Salt & Pepper
Butter or margerine

Warm a large non-stick frying pan over med-high heat, add a splash of olive oil, once heated add sliced pepper, onion and mushrooms. Cook, stirring often, until caramelized (aprox. 6 minutes)

Add garlic, salt and pepper to taste, stir and push your veggies to the side in the pan. Add sliced steak, splash of BBQ sauce and Worcestershire sauce. Stir together and cook until steak is medium-rare. Gather everything in the pan into one section of the pan and lay cheese slices on top to melt slightly.

Meanwhile, pre-heat the oven broiler, cut and butter the kaisers and toast until desired crispiness.

Lift steak & veggie mixture from pan and place on toasted buns. Top with sliced tomatoes and enjoy the sandwich while warm. Yummy!

Drink selections for tonight were a "Three Brewers India Pale Ale" (courtesy of the Canadian Beer Awards judging this past weekend - his of course) and a Jackson Triggs Proprietors Selection Cabernet-Merlot (hers). I tasted the beer and it was far too hoppy for me - tasted more bitter than earwax (don't ask how I got to that comparison!) Won't be trying IPAs again for a while I guess... yuk. The cab-merlot was just fine.

 

Salad to die for

Salad... it doesn't always sound very exciting... usually reminds you that there is a healthier alternative (when you're eating out, saying "I'll have the salad" vs. the fries usually isn't as satisfying and can just sound BLAH- insert picture here of wilty iceberg lettuce, over-ripe tomatoes and too-strong house dressing). Here's a scrumptious example of a salad that can wipe-out negative salad connotations for good. No salad has ever made my mouth water quite like this one does.

I feel I need to preface this recipe by crediting that many of my recipes are inspired by the charming, wonderful and talented Michael Smith. I own two of his marvelous cookbooks and watch his show religiously. My pantry shelves are lined with mason-jar filled pantry staples and I daydream about it someday being a walk-in pantry like his with well lit shelves stocked with exotic, flavourful ingredients. This recipe is a not-too-far departure of his 'Southwestern Bean Salad' from The Best of Chef at Home

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

SOUTHWESTERN BEAN SALAD (to die for)
3/4 Cup   Olive oil
1/3 Cup   Red wine vinegar
2 Tbsp     Dijon mustard
1 Tsp       Hot Sauce
2 Tbsp     Honey
2 Cups    Canned mixed beans (rinse well to get rid of can-gunk)
2 Cups    Canned black beans (again, rinse well... I find that throwing them in a colander and running under cool water for a few mins works well)
1 Cup      Cooked corn (from frozen, or cut off the cob)
1 Red bell pepper, diced
1 Basket of cherry tomatoes, halved (I used 1/2 yellow grape tomatoes and 1/2 cherry tomatoes - both from my garden  yummy!) 
1/2 Large red onion, finely diced
1 Jalapeno pepper, finely diced  (also fresh from my garden - did I mention yummy?)
A bunch of fresh cilantro, minced
A Sprinkle of kosher salt and freshly ground pepper

In a large salad bowl, whisk together oil, vinegar, mustard, hot sauce and honey. Add the beans, corn, pepper, tomatoes, cilantro, salt and pepper. Toss to combine. Season to taste. Serve immediately or rest for a few hours.

Tip - Try grilling the bell pepper, corn, and red onion for a spin on southwestern flavour. Also, try serving with blackened chicken skewers.

 

WINE 
I fully admit that I know nothing about wine or wine and food pairings. What I do know however, is what I like and I know that I simply CANNOT get enough of the new Open Sauvignon Blanc. Drank 2 bottles in the past 2 weeks and just finished off bottle #2 this evening. I will be sad not having it tomorrow with dinner.

A food blogging revival

That's it. It's time that I brought Spice & Pepper back to life.  My last attempt at food blogging was extremely short-lived, but I think it's because I tried to do too much too quickly and didn't make it part of my regular routine. My motto this time is SIMPLIFY the content, and post more often.

What's fuelling this? My little sister moved away last week to Abu Dhabi for two years to teach kindergarten. I made a promise to her that we would share recipes weekly as we discovered them, so this will be my forum to do just that.

I believe that there's nothing more satisfying than combining simple, raw ingredients from the earth in order to create flavourful, healthy meals. When you cook a meal yourself, you can feel good about knowing exactly what's inside and can customize the flavours to suit your own taste preferences. What's better than that?

Thanks in advance for following me and being open with your comments.

Enjoy!

Canada Day Ice Cream Cake

Originally uploaded by ldgibson

More on this later :-)

... it's "later" and I still haven't explained this masterpiece. Saving it for Canada Day next year ... or that's my latest excuse at least for now.

Bacon Wrapped Scallops & Pesto Bowtie Pasta

Another one of my new favourite quick & delicious meals!!!

PESTO BOWTIE PASTA
I've made my own Pesto before, but nothing compares to the Epicure Selections 'Pesto Herb Mix' It's so easy to whip-up in the food processor. Just add Olive Oil, Pine Nuts and Parmesan Cheese. Oh so yummy!!

Cook the bowtie pasta. My fave brand is PC whole wheat pasta. Toss with pesto mix and keep on low-heat until the rest of the meal is ready. This plate cools pretty quickly because there is no Warm-sauce, so keep on low-heat until right when you're ready to eat.

BBQ BACON WRAPPED SCALLOPS
The bacon-wrapped scallops are a cinch too... thaw frozen scallops - these are a new staple in my freezer - so healthy and delicious, plus they cook-up really fast, so they're good for quick weeknight dinners. Throw them into stir-frys, pastas and more. I digress... take a pre-soaked wooden skewer, alternate bacon, scallop, bacon, scallop... threading the bacon around the scallops each time it's looped onto the skewer like the letter 'S'.. keep going until the bacon is all used up, then you'll probably need a second piece. For me, each skewer uses up two piece of bacon and a handfull of scallops (# will depend on their size). Throw on the BBQ (or have your kitchen assistant do-so... this is even easier than doing it yourself)... for a few minutes and cook bacon to desired crispiness. These flavours are meant to be together - like a match made in heaven.

WINE
We enjoyed a 2-year old Peller Estates Riesling with this meal and it seemed like a perfect pairing. I'm no wine-pairing expert, but this was delicious! :-)

Mother's Day Brunch - the day-of

so... I didn't quite capture Mother's day on camera the way I had hoped... made too many dishes to have time to take photos of every step along the way.

I ended up forgetting to make the bubbly-syrup mixture for the French Toast before I popped-them into the oven, but remembered about it half-way through the cooking process, so I added it then.

Even with this mistake, everything turned-out great! Here are the photos to prove it :-)

oh... and My kitchen assistant knocked the table when we sat down to eat and spilt coffee ALL OVER THE TABLE, saturating the table cloth and soaking the placemats. No biggie (well, it was at the time)... we all survived and enjoyed a lovely Mother's day brunch.

The French Toast was a huge success - can't wait to make it again. Using French Bread is the key, and soaking it overnight really goes a long way in helping the flavours soak into the bread.

Yummm!! :-) It was almost like dessert instead of breakfast!!!

Spice ... 'helping' in the kitchen.. she can be such a bad girl sometimes.

Baking the Bacon... I read somewhere that baked bacon was the way to go.. the slower you can cook it, the yummier it can taste. No matter how it's cooked, bacon is pretty darn good. One of the best foods around if you ask me. In any case, don't bake for too long if you don't want it to be too crunchy.. about 30-40 mins on medium heat for a whole package of Bacon should do the trick. You can cook shorter or longer depending on how crispy you like YOUR bacon.

Here I am, cooking the syrup at the last minute, scrambling to get everything back in the oven. My kitchen assistant was happy to lend a hand with the camera work to make sure some of these important screw-ups were documented.

Laura.. cutting the fresh fruit - will be used on top of the French Toast - YUMMMM!!!

One of my favourite photos - everyone digging in! There were too many different dishes to serve at the table, so we set-up the kitchen island as a buffet.

Don't cry over spilt coffee... just get out of the way or you'll get it all over yourself!

All in all, Mother's day brunch was a great success... yummy enough to make again for sure!