Saturday Market

The most beautiful Rainbow Chard ($2.50) I've ever seen, Baby Bok Choy ($3), delicious peas ($5), carrots ($3) and beets ($3) because I was watching Forever Summer this morning and Nigella made cold beet soup.

Saturday Market

The most beautiful Rainbow Chard ($2.50) I've ever seen, Baby Bok Choy ($3), delicious peas ($5), carrots ($3) and beets ($3) because I was watching Forever Summer this morning and Nigella made cold beet soup.

Brine your pork

That brined pork tenderloin we made the other day was really something. We finished up the last of the leftovers in sandwiches (yum!) and I bet we will make this again soon. Pork tenderloin is really the only cut of pork I like anymore. Chops and all that are just too dry, not like the pork chops I remember my parents buying when I was little. When pig breeders started altering pigs so they would grow faster and be leaner (which is just so very WRONG, WRONG, WRONG on about 11 million levels) they got rid of the flavor too. I do not buy chops anymore, but if I had any in the freezer (which is a possibility) I would try them too in this brine.

Soy Orange Brine from The Complete Book of Pork

1/2 cup soy sauce
1 tb freshly ground or chopped ginger root
2 - 2 inch strips of orange zest (i just hacked some off an orange - no measuring)
1 1/4 cup orange juice
2 tb salt
2 tb brown sugar
1/2 tsp chinese 5 spice powder

1 cup ice cubes (i used about 1/2 cups)

Place the soy sauce, ginger and orange zest in a small pot on the stove. Bring to a boil and simmer for 2 minutes. Remove from heat.

Place the orange juice in a large bowl. Whisk (or stir) in the salt, sugar, and 5 spice, until all or most of the crystals have dissolved. Add in the soy-ginger-orange mixture, and stir well. Add in the ice cubes, and stir again. I let the brine sit until it was cold, then removed whatever ice had not melted.

Place your pork in the brine, or place the pork and brine in a plastic bag and seal, cover and refrigerate for 3-6 hours.

Remove the pork from the brine and pat dry. Grill, bake or whatever.

I rubbed my pork with a dry rub before grilling. I didn't follow a recipe, just mixed brown sugar, paprika, 5 spice and salt, then let it sit on the meat while the bbq heated up.

Enjoy!

Brine your pork

That brined pork tenderloin we made the other day was really something. We finished up the last of the leftovers in sandwiches (yum!) and I bet we will make this again soon. Pork tenderloin is really the only cut of pork I like anymore. Chops and all that are just too dry, not like the pork chops I remember my parents buying when I was little. When pig breeders started altering pigs so they would grow faster and be leaner (which is just so very WRONG, WRONG, WRONG on about 11 million levels) they got rid of the flavor too. I do not buy chops anymore, but if I had any in the freezer (which is a possibility) I would try them too in this brine.

Soy Orange Brine from The Complete Book of Pork

1/2 cup soy sauce
1 tb freshly ground or chopped ginger root
2 - 2 inch strips of orange zest (i just hacked some off an orange - no measuring)
1 1/4 cup orange juice
2 tb salt
2 tb brown sugar
1/2 tsp chinese 5 spice powder

1 cup ice cubes (i used about 1/2 cups)

Place the soy sauce, ginger and orange zest in a small pot on the stove. Bring to a boil and simmer for 2 minutes. Remove from heat.

Place the orange juice in a large bowl. Whisk (or stir) in the salt, sugar, and 5 spice, until all or most of the crystals have dissolved. Add in the soy-ginger-orange mixture, and stir well. Add in the ice cubes, and stir again. I let the brine sit until it was cold, then removed whatever ice had not melted.

Place your pork in the brine, or place the pork and brine in a plastic bag and seal, cover and refrigerate for 3-6 hours.

Remove the pork from the brine and pat dry. Grill, bake or whatever.

I rubbed my pork with a dry rub before grilling. I didn't follow a recipe, just mixed brown sugar, paprika, 5 spice and salt, then let it sit on the meat while the bbq heated up.

Enjoy!

This sh*t is bananas

Awesome! You guys have shared with me a ton of delicious sounding banana bread recipes! Thanks to Bowreality, Vicki, Claire and Jenny for their delicious recipes left in the comments, and thanks to Mary , Lisa, Mags, Kelly, and Mel for their emails.

Scott's got a tough choice ahead of him!


Banana pancakes - Jack Johnson

This sh*t is bananas

Awesome! You guys have shared with me a ton of delicious sounding banana bread recipes! Thanks to Bowreality, Vicki, Claire and Jenny for their delicious recipes left in the comments, and thanks to Mary , Lisa, Mags, Kelly, and Mel for their emails.

Scott's got a tough choice ahead of him!


Banana pancakes - Jack Johnson

Help Please!

This is a shorty post today....I'm pooped from lack of sleep; being at the running track at 6:30 this morning for Day Two of my walking program my friend Tito decided on a whim that we should start; and yard work when I got home tonight. So instead of telling you about dinner, which I can't do because we haven't eaten yet, I need your help.

I've got 6 or 8 bananas that are rapidly spoiling. I don't want to freeze them, because I'll never use them and my freezer is too full. Scott wants banana bread, but I don't have any recipes.

If anyone has a good (naturally) recipe for banana bread, preferably with no nuts, would you please email me (iliketocook AT shaw DOT ca), or leave something in the comments?

I'll love you forever!

Help Please!

This is a shorty post today....I'm pooped from lack of sleep; being at the running track at 6:30 this morning for Day Two of my walking program my friend Tito decided on a whim that we should start; and yard work when I got home tonight. So instead of telling you about dinner, which I can't do because we haven't eaten yet, I need your help.

I've got 6 or 8 bananas that are rapidly spoiling. I don't want to freeze them, because I'll never use them and my freezer is too full. Scott wants banana bread, but I don't have any recipes.

If anyone has a good (naturally) recipe for banana bread, preferably with no nuts, would you please email me (iliketocook AT shaw DOT ca), or leave something in the comments?

I'll love you forever!

I brined a pork tenderloin, and I liked it.

We bought a huge pack of pork tenderloin from Costo last month, and I wrapped each of the 5 'loins in plastic wrap and froze them. I thawed one to cook on Saturday but hadn't thought of what to actually do with it, so we made something else for dinner that night and I pulled out some cookbooks to see what I could find. Not surprisingly, I found a nice sounding recipe in Bruce Aidells' Complete Book of Pork. The recipe called for brining and grilling the tenderloin, and at the end of the recipe, there was a note about butterflying the tenderloin to lessen the time needed for brining and grilling. We out of the house longer than we'd intended on Sunday, so butterflying the tenderloin was a perfect solution. The brine - soy sauce, ginger, orange zest, orange juice, salt, sugar, and Chinese 5 spice - soaked through that pork in about 3 hours. Once it was removed from the brine and blotted off with paper towel, I rubbed it with a dry rub - paprika, more 5 spice, brown sugar, and salt. It grilled up quickly, and had a great color and crust from the brine and rub.


So good! The orange was a strong flavor, but not overpowering. It was juicy and tender, and very excellent with a side of stir fried bell peppers.

I'm trying to get back in the habit of writing out a menu plan for the week, or even just for the few days ahead. I've been very unorganized in the kitchen lately, and have had to toss out more leftovers/moldy produce than I'd like. Which is why this week there was no farmers market post! I went to both markets this week - the Wednesday day market downtown and the Saturday market, and kept my hands in my pockets.

There will hopefully be a little less food to chop up for the worms this week (who seem to be all or mostly all still alive!). And I'll be able to start fresh next Saturday at the market, with more room in the fridge.

I brined a pork tenderloin, and I liked it.

We bought a huge pack of pork tenderloin from Costo last month, and I wrapped each of the 5 'loins in plastic wrap and froze them. I thawed one to cook on Saturday but hadn't thought of what to actually do with it, so we made something else for dinner that night and I pulled out some cookbooks to see what I could find. Not surprisingly, I found a nice sounding recipe in Bruce Aidells' Complete Book of Pork. The recipe called for brining and grilling the tenderloin, and at the end of the recipe, there was a note about butterflying the tenderloin to lessen the time needed for brining and grilling. We out of the house longer than we'd intended on Sunday, so butterflying the tenderloin was a perfect solution. The brine - soy sauce, ginger, orange zest, orange juice, salt, sugar, and Chinese 5 spice - soaked through that pork in about 3 hours. Once it was removed from the brine and blotted off with paper towel, I rubbed it with a dry rub - paprika, more 5 spice, brown sugar, and salt. It grilled up quickly, and had a great color and crust from the brine and rub.


So good! The orange was a strong flavor, but not overpowering. It was juicy and tender, and very excellent with a side of stir fried bell peppers.

I'm trying to get back in the habit of writing out a menu plan for the week, or even just for the few days ahead. I've been very unorganized in the kitchen lately, and have had to toss out more leftovers/moldy produce than I'd like. Which is why this week there was no farmers market post! I went to both markets this week - the Wednesday day market downtown and the Saturday market, and kept my hands in my pockets.

There will hopefully be a little less food to chop up for the worms this week (who seem to be all or mostly all still alive!). And I'll be able to start fresh next Saturday at the market, with more room in the fridge.

Sunday

Firstly, residents and visitors to Kamloops - the best hash browns in the city are to be found at Scotts Restaurant downtown. Oh my. That is really all I can say. A nice portion with a crispy crunchy crust on the bottom. Nothing that you could recreate at home with a non stick pan, that's for sure. Scott is in love with the place and I can't blame him. Cheap too. Breakfast for the 2 of us was under $15.

After our tasty breakfast yesterday and a couple more errands we went to Value Village so Scott could look for a storage box. He didn't find anything, but I found these great wooden salad bowls, 4 for $2.99.

Salad for dinner tonight!

On the way home we stopped at Chapters to check out their book sale.

Sunday

Firstly, residents and visitors to Kamloops - the best hash browns in the city are to be found at Scotts Restaurant downtown. Oh my. That is really all I can say. A nice portion with a crispy crunchy crust on the bottom. Nothing that you could recreate at home with a non stick pan, that's for sure. Scott is in love with the place and I can't blame him. Cheap too. Breakfast for the 2 of us was under $15.

After our tasty breakfast yesterday and a couple more errands we went to Value Village so Scott could look for a storage box. He didn't find anything, but I found these great wooden salad bowls, 4 for $2.99.

Salad for dinner tonight!

On the way home we stopped at Chapters to check out their book sale.

Presto Pasta - Thai-ish Beef and Broccoli Noodles

I've really been craving Asian food lately - rice, noodles. I found a recipe to try the other night, but much like my last pasta dish for Ruth's Presto Pasta Night I struck out when I went to the grocery store for ingredients. I couldn't find the right noodles, the right sauce ingredients. By the time I was done, what I ended up with had little in common with the recipe I started out with. It's still a work in progress, but I'm pretty happy with what I've got so far.

Thai-ish Beef and Broccoli Noodles

serves 4

200g lean beef, cut into thin strips
2 tb oil
1/4 lb wun tun noodles (or noodles of your choice)
400 g broccoli, chopped into smallish bite sized pieces
1 tb (or to taste) black bean garlic sauce
1 tb oyster sauce
1 tsp cornstarch
1 cup water

Heat the oil in a large pan over medium high heat. Add the beef, and cook until the meat is about half cooked. Add the broccoli, black bean sauce, and oyster sauce. Stir the cornstarch into the water. Add to the pan, and cook until the sauce is thickened, and the broccoli is tender crisp. While the beef is cooking, cook the noodles, drain, and place on your serving dish. When the broccoli is ready, pour the beef and broccoli mixture over the noodles. Serve straight away.

Gay from A Scientist in the Kitchen is hosting Presto Pasta this week. Check with her for the round up on Friday!

Presto Pasta - Thai-ish Beef and Broccoli Noodles

I've really been craving Asian food lately - rice, noodles. I found a recipe to try the other night, but much like my last pasta dish for Ruth's Presto Pasta Night I struck out when I went to the grocery store for ingredients. I couldn't find the right noodles, the right sauce ingredients. By the time I was done, what I ended up with had little in common with the recipe I started out with. It's still a work in progress, but I'm pretty happy with what I've got so far.

Thai-ish Beef and Broccoli Noodles

serves 4

200g lean beef, cut into thin strips
2 tb oil
1/4 lb wun tun noodles (or noodles of your choice)
400 g broccoli, chopped into smallish bite sized pieces
1 tb (or to taste) black bean garlic sauce
1 tb oyster sauce
1 tsp cornstarch
1 cup water

Heat the oil in a large pan over medium high heat. Add the beef, and cook until the meat is about half cooked. Add the broccoli, black bean sauce, and oyster sauce. Stir the cornstarch into the water. Add to the pan, and cook until the sauce is thickened, and the broccoli is tender crisp. While the beef is cooking, cook the noodles, drain, and place on your serving dish. When the broccoli is ready, pour the beef and broccoli mixture over the noodles. Serve straight away.

Gay from A Scientist in the Kitchen is hosting Presto Pasta this week. Check with her for the round up on Friday!

Lighter Eggs Benedict

I tried out this recipe last weekend as a healthier "decadent" weekend breakfast.

The last recipe I tried from the Podleski sisters didn't turn out so well. But I have a weakness for Eggs Benny, so I gave it a try. The sauce is made with mayo and sour cream (both low fat) and lemon juice and mustard, instead of butter and egg yolks. You are not going to fool anyone into thinking this is a "real" benny, but it's pretty good. The mustard and lemon juice give it a nice tang, and of course the sour cream and mayo make it creamy. Scott liked this more than I thought he would, although he would still choose a "real one" over this every time.


"Benaddicted to Eggs"
from Crazy Plates by Janet and Great Podleski

serves 4

8 slices back bacon (Canadian bacon)
4 eggs
1/4 cup low fat mayonnaise (I used fat free)
1/4 cup low fat sour cream (I used fat free)
1 tb honey mustard
1 tb lemon juice
pinch salt
pinch cayenne pepper
2 english muffins, split and toasted

Lightly brown bacon on both sides. Remove from skillet and keep warm. Cook your eggs (poached for real Eggs Benedict, although I only like scrambled). While your eggs are cooking, whisk together the mayonnaise, sour cream, mustard, and lemon juice in a small pan. Season with salt and cayenne pepper. Heat over low heat until warm. Do not let the mixture boil. Place 1 muffin half on each plate. Top with 2 pieces of back bacon each. Place one egg on top, then top with the sauce. Serve straight away.

Lighter Eggs Benedict

I tried out this recipe last weekend as a healthier "decadent" weekend breakfast.

The last recipe I tried from the Podleski sisters didn't turn out so well. But I have a weakness for Eggs Benny, so I gave it a try. The sauce is made with mayo and sour cream (both low fat) and lemon juice and mustard, instead of butter and egg yolks. You are not going to fool anyone into thinking this is a "real" benny, but it's pretty good. The mustard and lemon juice give it a nice tang, and of course the sour cream and mayo make it creamy. Scott liked this more than I thought he would, although he would still choose a "real one" over this every time.


"Benaddicted to Eggs"
from Crazy Plates by Janet and Great Podleski

serves 4

8 slices back bacon (Canadian bacon)
4 eggs
1/4 cup low fat mayonnaise (I used fat free)
1/4 cup low fat sour cream (I used fat free)
1 tb honey mustard
1 tb lemon juice
pinch salt
pinch cayenne pepper
2 english muffins, split and toasted

Lightly brown bacon on both sides. Remove from skillet and keep warm. Cook your eggs (poached for real Eggs Benedict, although I only like scrambled). While your eggs are cooking, whisk together the mayonnaise, sour cream, mustard, and lemon juice in a small pan. Season with salt and cayenne pepper. Heat over low heat until warm. Do not let the mixture boil. Place 1 muffin half on each plate. Top with 2 pieces of back bacon each. Place one egg on top, then top with the sauce. Serve straight away.

Wordless Recipe - Grilled Proscuitto Wrapped Asparagus

Wordless Recipe - Grilled Proscuitto Wrapped Asparagus

Wednesday/Thursday

Last night I made something for dinner that I wanted to make for years and years but at the same time has scared me - Watermelon and Feta salad.

I pared down Nigella Lawson's recipe a little - cubes of watermelon, smaller cubes of feta, chopped black olives from the deli, and thinly sliced red onion marinated for 15 or 20 minutes in fresh lime juice.

It was great, of course. Really great. Sweet, salty and rich. And fast. I can see myself making this a lot over the summer.

___________________________________________________________

Tonight for dinner we stopped by the Wok Box, which opened a week or so ago. We took our order of coconut shrimp, wontons, and a Mongolian stirfry to go. I have become a fan of coconut shrimp, and these were pretty darn good, especially for take out. The sauce - "spicy coconut curry" was pretty bland and not that interesting. The wontons were fine, but their sauce - "spicy chile garlic" was atomically hot. Too hot. The stir fry was alright, but there was wayyyyyy more rice than veggies and tofu. The tofu was weird; chewy and stiff. Fortunately there wasn't much of it. The menu lists snow peas, celery, carrots, broccoli, water chestnuts and baby corn as the veggies in that particular stir fry. There were maybe 3 snow pea pods, no celery, no water chestnuts, and one small piece of baby corn. It was all carrot. Which was ok. The sauce was nice, and the dish filled us up. I'll go back one or two more times at least, and hopefully it will get a little better as time goes by.

Wednesday/Thursday

Last night I made something for dinner that I wanted to make for years and years but at the same time has scared me - Watermelon and Feta salad.

I pared down Nigella Lawson's recipe a little - cubes of watermelon, smaller cubes of feta, chopped black olives from the deli, and thinly sliced red onion marinated for 15 or 20 minutes in fresh lime juice.

It was great, of course. Really great. Sweet, salty and rich. And fast. I can see myself making this a lot over the summer.

___________________________________________________________

Tonight for dinner we stopped by the Wok Box, which opened a week or so ago. We took our order of coconut shrimp, wontons, and a Mongolian stirfry to go. I have become a fan of coconut shrimp, and these were pretty darn good, especially for take out. The sauce - "spicy coconut curry" was pretty bland and not that interesting. The wontons were fine, but their sauce - "spicy chile garlic" was atomically hot. Too hot. The stir fry was alright, but there was wayyyyyy more rice than veggies and tofu. The tofu was weird; chewy and stiff. Fortunately there wasn't much of it. The menu lists snow peas, celery, carrots, broccoli, water chestnuts and baby corn as the veggies in that particular stir fry. There were maybe 3 snow pea pods, no celery, no water chestnuts, and one small piece of baby corn. It was all carrot. Which was ok. The sauce was nice, and the dish filled us up. I'll go back one or two more times at least, and hopefully it will get a little better as time goes by.