chili con carne and cheesy garlic bread

Have I told you that I go to school on the weekends? I'm in an MBA program at the University of Windsor that supplements my time away from work. Yah! Busy. Last Saturday while intently listening to my fascinating accounting prof discuss the new IFRS accounting standards, I glanced out the window and noticed the snowflakes. In my brain (or stomach) the first sign of snow, means the first chili should be made. And, what better to way to complement chili than with gooey-cheesy garlic bread (and I mean stupid-gooey-cheesy garlic bread)?

Pioneer Woman's Firecracker Shrimp Appetizer

Pioneer Woman's Garlic Cheese Bread
~I substituted Mozzarella for Monterrey Jack cheese~

Jamie Oliver's Chili Con Carne

~I used a cinnamon stick instead of ground cinnamon and added a small can of tomato paste~

The evening ended with us playing Taboo by the fire. Almost as cheesy as the garlic bread...I know.

shrimp shack

Inspired by David's recent trip to Martha's Vineyard, we had a casual east coast supper on Saturday night with our friends Lisa & Greg. Greg's a meat and potatoes kinda guy; it was fun to encourage him to try something different!

Tomatoes with dill

Shrimp sandwiches with tarragon-caper mayo

~I grilled the shrimp and used hot-dog buns~

Corn on the cob with lime-chive butter

You can make this meal in less than an hour. And, it certainly beats the monotony of hamburgers and hot-dogs at this time of year!

P.S. We washed down this meal with St-Ambroise Apricot Wheat Ale and Daniel Lenko's Unoaked Chardonnay. Two of our favourite summer drinks.

P.P.S. The shrimp sandwich and lime butter recipes were both from Bon Appetit! One of my favourite magazines!

grilled shrimp on salad

Grilled shrimp on Greek-like salad

What to do?

• Grill shrimp on the barbecue until opaque
• Toss together salad veggies of your choice
• If you want, throw on some cheese...I chose feta
• Chop some fresh herbs from your garden, in this case, parsley and dill. If fresh isn't an option, sprinkle dried herbs of your choice; I do it all the time.
• Add kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
• Drizzle white vinegar (yes, white vinegar) and extra virgin olive oil
• Toss salad
• Top with shrimp
• Eat...
• Drink a glass of wine (optional but highly recommended)

Do you have a simple, protein-packed salad that you'd like to share?

peel 'n' eat shrimp

Not knowing what to make for dinner after a heavy 3 p.m. Italian lunch, I decided we should have something summery. Besides, yesterday's weather turned from dreary to sunny in the late afternoon. Grilled shrimp, corn on the cob and a light salad made sense to me.

Marian's peel 'n' shrimp (serves 4)

Generously sprinkle a dozen shrimp with kosher salt & pepper. Place seasoned shrimp on the BBQ and cook until shells turn pink and meat is opaque.In the meantime, melt a stick of butter. Once the shrimp is cooked, pour the butter into small dishes appropriate for dipping and add a few drops of Worcestershire sauce. Peel, dip and eat shrimp.

In case you were wondering what to drink, a bottle of prosecco and a bottle of chardonnay worked well for us!