help me with chicken and leek pot pie

Some people say I'm relentless. Of course, I always take this to mean driven, ambitious, dedicated, committed, etc. So, I guess it's not surprising that I tried to make Jamie Oliver's Chicken and Leek Pot Pie again. The last time I made it was for my good friend Mishka and I forgot to take the puff pastry out of the freezer. This time I made it for George & Kara and it was too runny. I used flour (maybe not enough), simmered for much longer than recommended by Jamie (maybe not long enough) and chilled the stew in the fridge for a few hours before reheating (maybe not for long enough). Any suggestions on how I could have thickened the stew?

simple thai menu

While my American friends were celebrating Thanksgiving, I was having an impromptu dinner with two friends and their new baby boy. Craving some kind of Asian fare, I decided on a simple Thai menu. I don't have recipes for the spring rolls but I've included links to the chicken and pineapple rice (just omit the shrimp in the recipe) both from Nancie McDermott's Quick & Easy Thai.

Grilled (in our case roasted) garlic chicken, issahn style

Pineapple fried rice

I encourage you to give Thai home cooking a try, and let me know how it goes!

awesome pita chips, autumn salad, roast chicken

Have you checked out Food52? I'm addicted to the videos, the Piglet and their weekly recipe contests. This week, Amanda and Merrill are asking home cooks to submit recipes for their best autumn salads and best sweet potatoes. I thought about the salad, and what flavours/foods I'd like to include, then I built a Sunday night dinner around it.

Fall Sunday Night Dinner

Rosemary thyme pita chips (awesome recipe from Food52)
Roasted garlic & sage cannellini bean dip
Autumn salad (I'll post on Food 52 later this week)
Roasted chicken with lemon and rosemary potatoes

Let me know what you think about Food52. Could it become one of your go-to recipe sources?

roasted chicken breasts with lemony bombay potatoes

How much do you love roast chicken? Interested in trying something Indian-inspired? Trust me, it's not too "weird" and it's weeknight simple.

Jamie Oliver's roasted chicken breast with lemony bombay potatoes only calls for ingredients that can be purchased at your local, small-town supermarket. I often quadruple the recipe and add extra veggies like sweet potatoes, brussel sprouts and/or cherry tomatoes.

Buy everything you need this weekend and plan to make this next week. Let me know what you think. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do!

P.S. We were lucky tonight to have some leftover Tomato, Coriander & Ginger soup from Terry the Firefighter's visit. It was the perfect appetizer. Thanks T!

P.P.S. This chicken recipe is from Jamie Oliver's Cook With Jamie. I blogged about it on WindsorEats.com last year. :)

metabolic cleanse menu #4: grilled chicken with brown rice pasta

Earlier today, I was trying to follow a Bob Lutz Twitter chat at work. Shortly after it finished, this tweet from Canadian culinary personality Lucy Waverman caught my eye:

Butter 2 slices challah on both sides. Add 1/2 cup taleggio, 6 thin slices crisp apple,1T chutney.Fry slowly on each side pressing down.#yum

I almost stopped my cleanse on the spot. Luckily Maria from Fresh Eats was nearby. She talked me out of aborting the cleanse during a moment of severe weakness. A few hours later, I was still planning my "quit" but my Pilates instructor half-told me to keep on truckin'. {wow! just realized how chi chi this all sounds}

So, here we are. I've now completed four days of detox. I feel great on the inside but I've become completely ambivalent about food. I don't really care what I eat, nor do I really enjoy it. And, that's bothering me a lot! The only thing I'm craving is to start caring again.

Metabolic cleanse dinner menu #4

Red leaf lettuce and grape tomato salad with balsamic vinaigrette

Grilled chicken on top of brown rice spaghetti and store-bought tomato sauce

Big unknown: Will I make it through detox day #5?

metabolic cleanse menu #1: roast chicken

On Sunday, I started a metabolic cleanse. It was recommended by my naturopathic doctor who basically said that detoxing my liver and gastrointestinal tract would build a strong foundation for my immune system. Apparently, this will help me not get a million colds this winter (I'm hoping that it will also prevent swine flu). So, for the next seven days I'll be drinking icky rice and pea protein shakes and eliminating alcohol, beef, dairy and wheat from my diet.

Metabolic cleanse dinner menu #1

Homemade hummus and Mary's Seed Crackers

Roast chicken

Grilled vegetables with balsamic basil dressing

Tossed salad

No wine

Betcha can't wait to hear about menu #2...

a not so traditional rosh hashanah dinner menu

Years ago, when my then soon-to-be hubby and I were negotiating my move to Windsor, I requested that we spend the first night of the Jewish holidays with my family. So on Friday, hubby and I drove four hours to spend the first night of Rosh Hashanah in St. Catharines. Luckily, his CTS has an input for our iPod so we were able to chill and prepare ourselves for this:

Appetizers included cheese plate, smoked oysters, chopped liver and hummus

World's best chopped chicken liver (made by my mom, of course!)

Aunt Shelley's Greek salad

Challah

Kinnereth Cookbook chicken

Brisket

Scalloped Potatoes

P.S. Like usual, the more wine I consumed the less focused the photos! :) Sorry.

mishka's visit

On Friday, my dear friend Mishka drove from Toronto to Windsor in the rain. And, when she arrived it was still raining and cold. Talk about dreary. The weather warranted a special meal for a special friend.

Homemade pesto with buffalo mozzarella and roasted red peppers

~Throw a few handfuls of basil leaves, a small handful of toasted pinenuts, some shredded parmesan, juice from 1/2 lemon, pinch of kosher salt and freshly ground pepper in a small food processor. Pulse. Eat.~

To warm us up, I decided to make Jamie Oliver's Chicken and Leek Pot Pie (you can find the recipe in his book Jamie's Dinners). Unfortunately, I forgot to take the puff pastry out of the freezer (and I don't bake!) so we decided to eat the filling as a stew served on top of mashed red potatoes. I wish this would have photographed better because it was damn tasty.

A rainy day is a perfect day for comfort food. I'm sure you can agree.

friday night dinner

Friday nights aren't given enough credit. Most people avoid hosting dinner after the work week but, in my opinion, it's a fine night to enjoy good food and wine with friends. It's even better if your friend is Julie and she wants to bring homemade challah.

Challah is a traditional Jewish egg bread and it's often served at Shabbat dinner (Friday nights!) and at holiday time. Truly, it's a bread to be enjoyed at anytime.


Last Friday I introduced challah to muhammara, a Syrian roasted red pepper and walnut spread (I found the recipe in Bon Appetit). The slighty spicy dip paired beautifully with the sweetness of the homemade bread. Best of all, muhammara is a cinch to make if you have walnuts and a jar of roasted red peppers handy and it's a great substitute for hummus.

The remainder of our meal included basil breadcrumb chicken, green beans, a tossed salad and a raspberry-buttermilk cake (also courtesy of our friend the bake!). Fun Friday times!

reminiscent of a childhood meal

It started to rain so I knew better than to ask hubby to turn on the barbeque. Instead, I went with old-school home cooking. On the plus side, most of meal was local. The tomatoes and cauliflower were from the region and the basil and mint were grown in my backyard. I can't wait for my garden tomatoes and eggplant to be ready for harvest.

Bonnie Stern's Basil-Panko Crusted Chicken

~Chop 2 handfuls of fresh basil, 1 clove of garlic, 2 handfuls of Panko or breadcrumbs, kosher salt and freshly ground pepper in a small food processor. Pulse in a couple of glugs of extra virgin olive oil. Put the mixture on the chicken legs and thighs. Cook at 350 degrees for 40 minutes.~

Roasted Cauliflower

~Toss cauliflower pieces with olive oil, kosher salt and thyme (or other herbs of your choice). Put on a parchment paper lined cookie sheet and cook at 350 degrees for 40 minutes.~

Tomatos with Olive Oil, Balsamic Vinegar & Fresh Mint

~Bad idea. The mint was far too overpowering. Stick with thyme and basil.~

If you haven't done it already, go buy Bonnie Stern's Essentials of Home Cooking. It will make your life just a little bit better.

beastie boys and a bbq

The Weather Network predicted thunderstorms for Saturday but the rain held off in Windsor. Our old friends/new neighbours, Noah & Julie joined us for a BBQ.

Menu:

• Two kinds of bruschetta: green olive and roasted red pepper chickpea, served with prosecco
• Basil, tomato and pea salad
• Grilled chicken wings with provencal flavours, served with Daniel Lenko's Unoaked "Chardonngay"
• Corn on the cob
• Blueberry crumb bars, served with Daniel Lenko's 2003 Late Harvest Vidal
• Beastie Boys, served with Glenmorangie, Extremely Rare, 18 year single malt scotch

Green olive bruschetta

~1 cup of green pitted olives mixed with fresh herbs from my garden~

~Recipe in Bonnie Stern's Friday Night Dinners~

Basil, tomato, and pea salad

~slice cherry tomatoes in half, salt and leave in strainer for 20 minutes; toss with fresh peas, fresh basil, balsamic vinegar and extra virgin olive oil~

Chicken wing marinade

~thyme, rosemary, parsley, kosher salt, pepper, olive oil~

Grilled chicken wings

~Quadrupled Bittman's recipe; the extra work was worth it~

Local corn on the cob Blueberry crumb bars served with vanilla bean ice cream
~According to Julie, who made this awesome dessert, it took a little bit of time to prepare but wasn't too difficult~ Glenmorangie + Beastie Boys = Dance Party

Nothing like closing the evening with Paul's Boutique.

festival epicure wrap-up

We finally made it to Festival Epicure, Windsor's local restaurant event alongside the Detroit River (where we had a beautiful view of the "New GM" headquarters...what can I say? I love my job and am excited about our new company!). Festival Epicure takes place every summer but usually we're not in town. So glad we made it this year!

"Lambwich" and gazpacho from Three

~essentially a pulled lamb sandwich with julienned cucumber and garlic sauce~

Pulled pork taco from Tecumseh Roadhouse

~would drive 20 minutes to eat this again~

Jerk chicken from Tiki Catering (Ted, if you're reading this we need to talk about lamb on the spit!)
~quintessential grilled chicken and not too spicy~
Voted best barbecue in Detroit's Metro Times
~Detroiters try coming south of the border for some barbecue~ Smoked chicken wings with homemade chipotle bbq sauce from Smoke N Spice Happy me! If you went to Festival Epicure or have a favourite food festival, tell us about it!

wednesday night wok

Spring is almost summer. That means that local asparagus is just about done for the season. However, as long as it's available, I'm buying and cooking.

Tonight's dinner criteria, according to hubby, was that he wouldn't have to barbecue. I guess he's afraid of the rain. So, I picked up some green veggies and boneless skinless chicken breasts for our evening meal.

We started with Ping's homemade spring rolls served with Thai Sweet Chili Sauce for Chicken. We're lucky that Ping makes spring rolls for us. They are the perfect size and perfectly spicy. In an attempt be healthy, we bake rather than fry this appetizer. Set your oven at about 400 degrees and bake for 18 minutes, turning once.
For our main, we tried a Chicken, Asparagus, Broccoli Stir-Fry; a recipe I found on BonAppetit.com. I added a thumb-sized piece of chopped ginger to the wok for some added flavour. If you decide to try this recipe, I suggest you do the same. With or without the added ginger, I have a feeling that this dish would be great choice for a family meal with kids or for picky eaters (it was a little boring!). For my vegetarian friends, why don't you try it with a chopped red pepper or shrimp instead of the chicken?Do you have a weeknight stir-fry recipe that you'd like to share? We could use suggestions.

grilled chicken sandwich with charmoula mayo

Often I read recipes and think "why didn't I think of this myself?"

Recently, we tried grilled chicken sandwiches with charmoula mayo. After a quick google, I found out that charmoula is a marinade generally used in Moroccan cooking. In this recipe, you mix it with mayo (I chose low-fat, olive oil mayo) to top a brown-sugar rubbed, grilled boneless skinless chicken breast. At the suggestion of recipe author Bonnie Stern, I also grilled a large red onion and red pepper which complemented mix of sweet and spicy.

While the chicken was cooking, I put some corn on the cob in boiling water and made a simple salad. Everything was washed down with a bottle of Ironstone Obsession Symphony, which I know didn't "match" but we didn't care. Actually upon reflection, the wine pairing wasn't too far off since the sandwich had a bite to it!

By the way, for my vegetarian friends, charmoula (minus the mayo) is typically used as a marinade for fish or seafood dishes in North Africa. I suggest that you try a version of this sandwich with a fresh peice of halibut or swordfish.

Do you have any sandwich recipes that you think I must try? I'm always game.

grill chicken wings and baby back ribs

A spontaneous dinner with friends always makes for an entertaining evening. We ran into a couple of friends today at Windsor's Art In the Park and threw together a menu that was perfect for drinking Corona splits and wine!

Menu:

• Guacamole and salsa
• Zwiebacks with butter
• Jay's favourite chicken wings
• Aunt Shelley's baby back ribs
• Tossed salad with shredded mozzarella

Zwiebacks are a crispy, sweetened bread. Our friend picked up a dozen from the United Mennonite Educational Institute Community Festival in Leamington, Ontario. We popped them in the oven for a few minutes to warm them up, split them open and smothered them in butter. If something this good was available at the local grocery store, I would be in real trouble; they were that fabulous!
Jay's favourite chicken wings are typically made by placing split chicken wings on a parchment paper lined cookie sheet. Sprinkle them with a garlic and roasted red pepper spice medley. Bake them at 375 degrees for 35 minutes. When the chicken is cooked, place the wings in a bowl and toss with Frank's Red Hot Sauce and a little celery salt. If you want to increase the authenticity of these Buffalo-inspired wings, include some melted butter when you toss. Tonight, the oven was full, so we barbecued the wings instead of baking.
Aunt Shelley used to make baby back ribs at least once a month for me. Her recipe is simple and foolproof. Put the ribs in a roasting pan, cover and bake at 350 degrees for 1.5 hours. Remove from the oven, brush with your favourite barbecue sauce and grill them on the barbecue for about 5 minutes per side. Surprisingly, they are really tender and always a hit!The nice thing about this meal is that it's really hard to screw up so it's good for relaxing with old friends on a summer night.

sunday dinner with the in-laws

We invited my in-laws over for dinner but I wasn't feeling at all creative. I just wanted to make something that wouldn't involve any new recipes or measuring. Something pedestrian. You know that kind of meal that you can pull together with your eyes closed...

Pita and dip pretty much make a daily appearance in our home. Tonight I wanted it to look pretty, so I arranged the appetizer on a large plate. I made hummus with canned chickpeas, tahini, chili flakes, cumin, garlic, lemon juice, olive oil, kosher salt and freshly ground pepper. To jazz it up, I topped the hummus with my best extra virgin olive oil and chopped parsley.

Our main course included grilled chicken breasts, roasted asparagus, mushroom medley quinoa and salad. The chicken breasts marinated for an hour in a mixture of pantry staples: grainy mustard, wildflower honey, olive oil, herbes de Provence, kosher salt and freshly ground pepper. Unfortunately, the chicken spent a little too much time on the barbecue so it was a bit dry. Our salad was comprised of romaine, arugula, chopped tomato, crumbled goat cheese, toasted pine nuts and a light lemon vinaigrette.

All in all, it was a nice evening that finished with a slice of rhubarb crisp.

Review: Jamie's Food Revolution

I love Jamie Oliver.

So when I was searching online for books about Albert Kahn for my hubbie, I couldn't help but purchase Jamie's Food Revolution. The book's subtitle is "rediscover how to cook simple, delicious, affordable meals." Perfect for a recession, right? Now, there's no excuse for takeout.

Jamie's Food Revolution is simply laid out for the home cook. There is absolutely nothing pretentious about it. In fact, cooks are encouraged to use prepared items like Patak's Curry Paste before trying to make their own.

As you might know, about once a week we eat a version of Jamie's Quick Salmon Tikka with Cucumber Yogurt (we use salmon or chicken). This dish is featured in Jamie's Food Revolution' s chapter on 20-minute meals. 20 minutes...he's not kidding! I always found that Rachel Ray's 30-minute meals took way longer than 30 minutes and were a little strange. But in this case, you really can be eating in about 20 minutes. And, that's exactly what we all need after a long day of work and a trip to the gym.

Chicken Tikka

Two nights ago, I tried the Crunchy Garlic Chicken recipe and the "Philosophy of a Great Salad, Pick-And-Mix Style". First let me say that the salad recipe made me giggle. Basically, it's a page full of pictures of soft lettuce, crunchy lettuce, herbs, veggies, cheese and toppings. You are supposed to choose one item from each section. I guess the good thing is that it inspired me to make something besides Caesar or Greek salad. The Crunchy Garlic Chicken was anything but crunchy. Nonetheless, I'd make it again because it was tasty but I don't think I'd use butter. I think the butter is what prevented it from being crunchy.

Crunchy Garlic Chicken with "Pick-And-Mix" salad

Tonight, we tried the Sweet and Sour Pork recipe. Although it wasn't the most authentic tasting Chinese dish, served on Basmati rice it was full of fresh ingredients and was healthier and more interesting than most weeknight meals.

Sweet and Sour Pork

Other recipes that I'm eager to try include:

• Shrimp and Avocado with an Old-School Marie Rose Sauce
• Lamb Rogan Josh
• Lasagne
• Salmon Baked in a Foil Parcel with Green Beans and Pesto
• Fish Pie
• Banana Tarte Tatin (I know I'll screw this up so I hope that one my friends reading this will make it for me! hint! hint! nudge! nudge!)

So, who would I recommend this book to? Well, it's definitely perfect for beginner cooks. I also think that it's great for beginner or intermediate cooks who are seeking some variety in their weeknight cooking. I know it inspired me to go a little beyond the usual offerings.

Really, there's not much in this book that can't be made on any given Monday.