Post Thanksgiving Deets

So as you may or may not know...this Monday (aka yesterday) was Thanksgiving here in the magical land of Canada.  It was lovely!

Anyhoar, Mr. Dan and I were unable to head to the relatives due to him being on-call for work all weekend. No matter to me...I decided I could cook a perfectly good Thanksgiving dinner on my own (see post here for my menu).  And it went REALLY well.  We didn't do turkey (why get a huge turkey when a small chicken will do?!) but we did do all the fixin's.  From potatoes to veggies and even some bubbly - we had it all.  And the one thing that Mr. Dan (and our two friends that showed up to help us eat all this food) said was AMAZABALLS was the cheesecake squares.  So I decided that, in the spirit of Thanksgiving...and deliciousness, I would share the recipe.  I found it on allrecipes and then did some mod's to make it work for us.

Pumpkin Cheesecake Squares

What you'll need:

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/3 cup packed brown sugar
• 5 tablespoons cold margarine
• 1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup canned pumpkin
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon ground allspice

What you do:

1. Preheat oven to 350F
2. In a bowl, combine flour and brown sugar. Cut in butter until crumbly. 
3. Set aside 3/4 cup for topping cheesecake later. 
4. Press remaining crumb mixture into a greased 8-in. square baking pan. 
5. Bake at 350F for 10 minutes or until edges are lightly browned. Cool on a wire rack.
6. In a mixing bowl, beat cream cheese (make sure it's soft!! Otherwise you'll get chunky cheesecake) and sugar. Beat in the pumpkin, eggs, vanilla, cinnamon and allspice. 
7. Pour over crust. 
8. Sprinkle with your crumby mixture. 
9. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until golden brown. 
10. Cool on a wire rack. 
11. Cut into bars. Can be stored in the fridge

NOMMMMMM...slow cooker beans...

Here is some nom for your first day of December.  

What you need:

1 lb	dry white pea or navy beans	454 g
1	large onion, chopped	1
1 can (5.5 oz)	tomato paste	1 can (156 mL)
3/4 cup	ketchup	175 mL
3/4 cup	molasses	175 mL
2	garlic cloves, minced	2
1/4 cup	brown sugar, packed	60 mL
2 tsp	dry mustard	10 mL
1/2 tsp	salt	2 mL
1/2 tsp	black pepper	2 mL

* do not add extra molasses: it will make the beans hard instead of tender

What to do:

Rinse beans and soak overnight in water. Drain.

Place beans in a large pot, cover with water and bring to a boil. Simmer for 10 minutes. Drain and rinse beans.

Transfer the beans to a slow cooker and add enough water to completely cover them (I used about 6 cups). Set the temperature to LOW and cook for 10 to 12 hours. Drain, but save 2 cups of cooking liquid.

In a separate bowl, combine onion, tomato paste, ketchup, molasses, garlic, sugar, dry mustard, salt and pepper. Stir in your 2 cups of cooking liquid and mix well.  Pour over beans in slow cooker and stir. Cover and cook on LOW for 4-6 hours or on HIGH for 2-3 hours....your choice. 

Sprinkle with green (or red) onions.  ENJOY!

Nom...nommmm...NOM!!!

Cha...cha...changes!

So recently I've decided to do an over-haul of my life.  I need to stop living in the "I'm in university/poor student" mode and move on to adult mode.  The first part of this process is personal:  update my skincare and beauty regimen, revamp my fitness routines, overhaul our eating habits and really spend some time on our relationship as a couple and our relationships with family/friends.  The second part: financial, but we'll talk about that another time.

A few weeks ago I asked some friends for recommendations on skincare/beauty regimens.  While this may not seem like it should be the first step in my over-haul, I believe that the better you feel about yourself the more confident you will be and the more you will accomplish.  So I set off getting recommendations and trying new products.  It's only been about a week but my skin is already noticeably clearer and softer.  I have less pimples and find myself wearing less make-up.  Step one is in progress!

Step two is my fitness.  While I have been actively trying to lose weight/get fit/ be active for the past 5(ish) years I've never pushed this hard.  Before it was to the gym once or twice a week.  Now I've upped it.  Twice a week minimum( I try for 3x a week), swimming/yoga/biking/something stretchy/cardio at least twice a week and walking the dogs at least once a week.  I've only been on this new kick for 2 weeks but I'm already feeling better about myself and my body.  I'm feeling more active, more alert and better about myself.

Step three overhauling our menu.  Dan and I eat pretty well.  We limit the sweets/junk and fast food but we know when to treat ourselves.  What I've noticed recently, though, is that our portions are off.  We can't usually finish what we have and for the longest time I couldn't figure out why.  Now I understand.  I used to cook for three, when we had a room mate, now I'm only cooking for 2 but I haven't cut back any of my recipes or done much to modify portions.  So step three is scaling them back.  Oh, and adding more veggies.  You can never have too many veggies;)

So the final step, for today, is our relationship.  Dan and I have a wonderful relationship.  He's my best friend.  *insert girly sigh here* But it's because we work at it.  We recently agreed that work was stressing us both out so we've made our minds up that once a week will be date night.  During date night there is only us.  We can do whatever we want - go out, stay in, cook, sleep, play video games, BUT we must do it together.  We've also started taking more vacations.  I'm not talking to far away exotic lands but even just to the Valley for the weekend or the cottage.  It's been really great to get out and explore with him and it's given us lots of time to chat.

So there it is, the first half of my new life plan.

Made any big life changes lately?

Crock-pot pulled pork

Dan got me a crock pot for Christmas 2008.  I thought it was a wonderful invention and while I was in school we used it several times a week.  Since getting a "real" job, moving and subsequently getting a car, we haven't used it much.  I decided to clean the kitchen last weekend and re-discovered my long lost crock pot.  So imagine my joy when I also came across a sale on pork at the grocery store! ZOMGKITCHENNERD!  I decided it was time to do some of my delicious pulled pork so, without further ado here is my recipe for crock pot pulled pork...

Crock Pot Pulled Pork
2 -4 pork chops
1 large onion, diced
1 cup diced carrots
1 cup sliced sweet red, orange or yellow pepper
1/2 cup Diana Sauce (the yellow label)
1/2 cup Bulls eye BBQ sauce (red label is the best for this)
1/4 cup ketchup
1 cup water
garlic, salt and pepper to taste

Throw it all in and cook in the crock pot on low for 8-10 hours.  Once you're done open it up and pull pork apart with a fork.  Yum yum!

Left overs!

So tonight Dan and I needed a quick supper.  I still had some Sun dried-Tomato Pasta Salad left so I decided to use that.  I took some skinless boneless chicken breast poured a bunch of garlic powder and some olive oil in a pan and cooked it up.  Then I added the rest of my leftover pasta salad.  Let it simmer for 5-10 mins on medium heat and VIOLA! Sun dried-Tomato Pasta.  It was fabulous - maybe even better than the pasta salad.  And we have some still left over.

nom nom nom

Sun dried-Tomato Pasta Salad

So I was heading to a BBQ this weekend and thought I should bring along a salad.  I wasn't sure what type to make until I stumbled across sun dried tomato pesto at the grocery store.  Once I saw that pesto I knew I had to make Sun dried-Tomato Pasta Salad.....YUM!

Sun dried-Tomato Pasta Salad

What you will need:

• 1 box of rotini noddles
• 1 container of sun-dried tomato pesto (I think I got Bertolli brand)
• 4 cloves of garlic
• 2 tbs of olive oil
• 1 small or medium onion, diced
• 1/2 cup of assorted olives, diced
• 3 vine tomatoes, in small chunks or a pint of cherry tomatoes, halved
• salt and pepper to taste
• grated cheddar or Parmesan cheese

What you do:

• Take the sun-dried tomato pesto, garlic, onion and olive oil and place it in your food processor.  Whirrrrrr it up.  Put this aside (preferably the day before) and let it rest.
• Cook rotini noodles and set aside to cool.
• Once noodles are cool take your pesto concoction, add tomatoes, olives and onions and mix together. 
• Add salt and pepper to taste.
• Place in a decorative bowl with serving spoons.  Sprinkle with cheese.
• Enjoy!!

Cupcake Fever!!

I blame this all on The Katie Chronicles, but lately I have an obsession with cupcakes!!!

Funny thing is - I don't like cupcakes that much!  I'll have one every once in a while but I just make them because they're fun and pretty.  This weekend I had a BBQ/bonfire to attend.  I decided I would bring some of Katie's delicious margarita cupcakes.

It was really hot, and my slime green icing started to melt BUT they turned out deliciously.  So good, in fact, that I made more!! I'm hoping to move on to pink lemonade cupcakes next.

nom nom nom

Happy Canada Day!!!

I know, I know, I'm bad at updating.  Leave me alone - I'm a busy lady!

This weekend coming is my parents annual Keji Fest.  Now what, you might ask, is Keji Fest.  Well, my friends and loyal (or not to loyal) readers, this is an annual party that mom and dad have been throwing for over 30 years.  We all head to our farmhouse (located outside of Kijimkijik National Park), get a theme, get some friends, get lots of booze, set up the croquet tournament and head on out!  This is an event that is looked forward to all year! It's a blast!!!

This year our theme was Cuban.  Everyone brings something along so I decided that I would bring along that wonderful Cuban drink - a mojito.  So below is my recipe for a delicious Cuban mojito.  They were a hit, so try one for yourself!!

Paige's Cuban Mojitos

What you will need:

• A tall glass
• Ice
• A drink muddler (If you don't have this then the back of an ice cream scoop will work)
• White Rum (preferably Havana Club)
• Limes (lots of limes)
• Powdered white sugar
• Fresh mint
• Club Soda

What you should do:

• Put 1 tsp sugar, some mint and about 1 oz lime in the glass.
• Use the muddler (or ice cream scoop) to crush it all up together.  The sugar and lime should be kind of oozy, not too dry.
• Put 1.5 (or more!) oz of white rum in and give it a stir.
• Add ice
• Fill glass the rest of the way with club soda.
• Garnish with a lime
• Consume
• Repeat.

Receipe Share!

It's that time of the year again - ASPARAGUS SEASON!!!!  Dan and I ADORE asparagus.  I will eat it for breakfast, lunch and dinner if he'll let me (he won't but that's another story).  So in honor of one of my favorite veggies I will now present you with my three favorite asparagus recipes.  One for breakfast, one for lunch and one for dinner.  Enjoy!

Asparagus Breakfast Casserole

Ingredients:
1-1/2 pounds fresh asparagus, cut into 1-inch pieces
3 tablespoons margarine, melted
1 loaf  sliced bread, crusts removed
3/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese, divided
2 cup cubed fully cooked ham
6 eggs
3 cups milk
2 teaspoons dried minced onion
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground mustard

Instructions:
In a saucepan, cover asparagus with water; cover and cook until just tender but still firm. Drain and set aside.

Lightly brush margarine over one side of bread slices. Place half of the bread, buttered side up, in a 13-in. x 9-in. baking dish. Sprinkle with 1/2 cup cheese. Layer with asparagus and ham. Cover with remaining bread, buttered side up.

In a bowl, lightly beat eggs; add milk, onion, salt and mustard; pour over bread.

Cover and refrigerate overnight. Bake, uncovered, at 325° for 50 minutes. Sprinkle with the remaining cheese. Return to the oven for 10 minutes or until cheese is melted and a knife inserted near the center comes out clean. Makes 10-12 servings.

Cream of Asparagus Soup
I got this from Canadian Living a few years ago.  It's FANTASTIC!
Ingredients:
1-1/2 1-1/2lb  asparagus
2 tbsp butter (I use margarine)
1 chopped leek (use the white part only)
1 tbsp chopped fresh parsley
1 tsp grated lemon rind
2 tsp lemon juice
1/4tsp pepper
4 cups chicken broth (if vegetarian you can use veggie broth as well)
1/3 cup 10% cream (I use 2% milk)
chopped Fresh chives

Instructions:
Cut asparagus into stalks into 1-1/2-inch lengths. Set aside.
In large saucepan, melt margarine over medium heat; cook leek until very soft.  About 10 minutes.

Add asparagus, parsley, lemon rind, lemon juice and pepper to pan. Pour in broth and bring to boil; reduce heat and simmer until asparagus is tender, about 5 minutes. Using tongs, remove 1 cup  of the asparagus tips; chop coarsely and set aside.

In batches in  food processor, puree sou.  You should also press it through sieve over saucepan to remove any fibre. Pour in cream and heat until steaming. Serve garnished with set-aside chopped asparagus and sprinkling of chives.


Broiled Asparagus
Use this as a side with a delicious steak or BBQ chicken breast.

Ingredients
12-24 asparagus stalks, trimmed

1 tbs olive oil
1 tbs lemon juice
a pinch (maybe like 1/6 or an 1/8 of a tsp) ground cumin
1/4 grated lemon rind
a pinch black pepper & salt to taste
Instructions:
Mix all ingredients, expect asparagus in a bowl.  Spread over your veggies then broil them for about 10 minutes(on the highest rack) in your oven.

I hope you enjoyed my recipes.  I look forward to having LOTS of asparagus this season.

Sunshine, seasalt and steak!

While at the grocery store today I saw "top sirloin grilling medallions" on sale.  Like REALLY on sale.  So I grabbed two for Dan and I to try.  When I arrived home I thought - What a great time to try a new recipe! So I did!!  Here it is:

1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil
1-3 cloves of fresh crushed garlic

1 tablespoon freshly cracked black pepper

1 1/2 teaspoons sea salt

2tbs Olive Oil

2 top sirloin steak

Instructions:
Mix basil, garlic, pepper and salt in large bowl with olive oil.  Brush liberally over sides of steak.  Place steak in pan and grill evenly.  5 minutes for rare, 8 for medium rare, etc.

I added grilled baby potatoes and a garden salad to ours.  It was delicious!! Enjoy!

Cooking with class

I don't think I'm a horrible cook.  I can whip up a meal in good time.  And I have some  tested and true receipes that I follow.  Dan, almost, always likes what I make for dinner and I've heard few complaints from guests that stop by.  However, I'm leary of trying new things in the kitchen.  I always enjoy new tastes when I'm out, but ask me to cook it and I'm going to freeze.  I can take my old recipes and adjust them...add more of this, less of that, throw in pork instead of chicken, etc.  But brand new flavours make me nervous. 

So last night I challenged myself.  I wanted to try something new, something different.  So I made Katie's Mustard Baked Chicken.  (I must confess that I've made the chicken before just not the pasta...and I only put a LITTLE of the paprika last time.  I was ascared!)

So how did it turn out, you ask? WONDERFUL!!  The chicken was delicious (this time I followed the receipe to a T) and the pasta (with some grilled veggies) was delicious!  I think I'm on the road to new adventures in the kitchen.  But we'll see...