As I alluded to in my previous post, I have a new blog home!  You can now find me at: http://lublink.org/alison!   

My husband Peter and I decided to combine our efforts into one blog!  So we have a family start page which links you to either me or him, and you can see what we’re up to!  All of my content is the same as this blog (so none of the posts are lost!), but of course I’ll continue adding new and exciting posts.  In fact, coming up I have a new venture to share with you about a family who has accepted a healthy lifestyle challenge from me! 

So head on over, get familiar with the layout, and leave me a comment there!  Oh yah - and change your bookmarks/links for future reference!  :) 

UPDATE: My latest Monday Dinner Menu Planner is up and running on my new blog!!  Check it out! 

Stay tuned in the next few days for Hospitality Haven to make its move to a new location!! 

My husband and I have our own domain name and are moving in the direction of having a centralized location for his blog, my blog and more! 

Hospitality Haven will still have all the same content and stay with the same focus, but will just have a new location!

So stay tuned to the new address that I will post shortly…!  I hope you’ll join me there for this new exciting venture!!

We just spent 12 days in the mid-west USA as guest speakers at a Bible camp, and had an INCREDIBLE time!!  God is so good, and we were so incredibly blessed by the people there.  We met some great new friends and we can’t wait to see them all again.

On the flip side, we ate camp food for those days…lots and lots of processed, starchy, bad-for-you foods.  Yuck!  SO, we’re doing a bit of a "cleanse" this week as we try to rid our bodies of the junk.  We don’t have a set menu, but we’re eating only vegetables, quinoa, legumes (lentils, black beans, chick peas, etc.), and nuts/seeds.  And of course tons of water.  We’re going to avoid junk food, dairy, and starches.  We’re also looking forward to getting back into our exercise routine.  The veggies that we have on hand are: artichokes, eggplants, tomatoes, sweet potato, spinach, onions, zucchinis, broccoli, and tons more I can’t think of off the top of my head! 

If you have any recipe ideas, let me know in the comments!!  It would be greatly appreciated.  :)

Here are a couple of pictures that reflect our time away: 

I don’t know about you, but narrowing down toiletries over the years has definitely helped me save room in my suitcase!!  I think we do a fair amount of traveling and as such, it’s nice to keep things to a minimum!  This time around I think I’ve narrowed down even more than usual, and Peter and I are both using one toiletry case together!  Here’s how we’re doing it:

1. Shampoo: We’re taking a small plastic container with our homemade shampoo mixture without the water.  When we get to our destination we’ll top it up with water, shake, and use while we’re there.  When we’re done, we can just empty it out and bring it home empty! 

2. Body wash: We have a product called camp suds which is fairly "natural" (not as good as the body wash we use regularly, but you do what you can while you’re traveling!).  It’s rather concentrated so we’re taking another small plastic container and we have about 2/3 of the container full of the liquid.  We’ll top it up with water as well when we get to our destination, use it while we’re there, and be done when we’re coming home! 

3. Shaving cream/moisturizer/anti-bacterial ointment/hair wax: Peter will need to shave his face, I’ll need to shave my legs, I’ll want to moisturize my face a bit, and you never know if you’re going to cut yourself or need to put some antibacterial ointment on a bug bite…AND I need to use some sort of hair styling wax to tame my waves.  SO we’re taking coconut oil in a small mason jar!  This will do all of the above and I’m pretty excited that I only need one product for it all!!  It save SO much space, and because coconut oil is anti-bacterial it won’t be a problem for me to dip my fingers in and out each day for various needs.

Of course we have a few other items to pack like mascara or toothpaste and toothbrushes, but all in all, we’ve narrowed it down nicely, and this helps in our regular routine as well!  How do you minimize toiletries when you travel??

I have a favourite recipe for Mac ‘n’ Cheese that I use constantly!!  I used it recently and made it slightly more "gourmet" in order to get more protein and veggies in it, without losing it’s flavour and consistency!  I was pleasantly surprised at the results.  Here’s what I did:

3 tbsp. butter

3 tbsp. flour

1 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. pepper

1 tsp. garlic powder

3 tbsp. fresh chives, finely chopped (I just rip it by hand)

2 tbsp. fresh parsley, finely chopped (I just rip it by hand) 

1 tbsp. fresh rosemary, finely chopped (I just rip it by hand)

3 cups coconut milk

2 cups of grated cheese

1/2 tsp. prepared mustard (you could use dijon if you want to really spice it up!)

3 cups of small pasta (macaroni, penne, etc.), cooked and drained

2 cups of quinoa, cooked and drained

1/2 large sweet potato, cooked and mashed  

1/3 cup of crushed crackers (I use tortilla chips)

1/2 cup grated cheese for sprinkling

Various fresh herbs used for sprinkling

Melt butter and blend in flour and seasonings (including the herbs).  Add coconut milk, stirring constantly until thickened.  Remove from heat and add cheese and mustard.  Stir until smooth.  Add sauce to cooked pasta and quinoa and mashed sweet potato.  Mix into a 3 qt. dish.  Sprinkle with crackers, then grated cheese, and place some fresh herbs on top for decoration and added flavour!  Bake uncovered at 400F for 20 minutes.

The quinoa and sweet potato really add some extra protein and heartiness to this meal without being too noticeable in flavour, texture or colour!   

This post is linked to: Tempt My Tummy, Tuesdays at the Table, Tasty Tuesday and Tuesday Tastes. 

We received another letter today from our sponsor child, Mariam.  She’s 10 and lives in Tanzania.  I really look forward to her letters and especially the photos that we sometimes receive.  She is a blessing to us, regardless of the fact that we’re sponsoring her.  

In conversation with a friend, he mentioned that instead of having a gym membership he’s going to let it expire and use that money to sponsor another child.  Instead, he’ll work out at home.  

It got us thinking…why can’t we sponsor another child?  We have the resources.  God has blessed us.  What are we doing with the blessings he’s poured out to us?  

So tonight we went online to Compassion (who we already sponsor Mariam through) and chose to sponsor Anil, a 7 year old boy from India.  It is such a blessing to be able to add to our "family" in this way.  The drawings and letters from Mariam (and soon, Anil!) are such as source of encouragement and a reminder that the simple things in life are what really matter.

In the letter that we received today, Mariam ended it with "May God bless you for your heart for hospitality."  It struck me because I have no idea what I could have possible written about in my previous letter that would cause her to say this.  Of course, knowing the title of my blog, you can see why it touched me.  And it challenged me - do I really have a heart for hospitality?  Is it enough to just have a heart for it?  Or am I stunting the potential with my own human idiosyncracies.  God bless children for causing us to stop and ponder, eh? 

If you want to change the world, why don’t you prove it?  Watch this video to find out what I mean. 

I discovered two DELICIOUS curries for the crock pot a while back, and I was SOLD!  I didn’t cook them in my crock pot as I was at home and had the ability to simmer them for the allotted time, but if you aren’t able to do that, using your crock pot is a fabulous option!  I’ll probably try that the next time I make them. Below you’ll see the recipes as I made them (very few changes), but click on the links to see the originals.

Thai Curry: 

1 13.5 oz (400 mL.) can of Coconut milk

1 tbsp. molasses (or honey)

1 tbsp. soy sauce

1 tbsp. red chili paste

2 tbsp. shredded coconut 

1 onion, chopped

2-3 cloves of garlic, minced

1 red bell pepper

1 green bell pepper

1/2 large eggplant, diced

1/2 large sweet potato, diced

2 lbs. Chicken (whatever style you like best, but I use thighs)

Combine all the sauce ingredients into your pan (or crock pot )and mix.  Add in the veggies and chicken and toss to coat them all.  If you’re cooking it in a pan on the stovetop, cook on medium heat and bring to a good simmer and stir every once in a while.  Do this for at least 45 mins. but preferably an hour.  The longer the food simmers the more the flavours blend.  If it’s simmering too much turn it down to medium-low.  If you’re cooking it in your crock pot, put it on low for 6-8 hours or high for 4-6 hours.  Serve over rice.

Indian Curry:

1 13.5 oz. (400 mL.) can of Coconut milk

3 cups of chickpeas (use 6 cups if omitting chicken) 

1 lbs. Chicken (optional - I didn’t use it)

1 tbsp. tomato paste

2 tbsp. shredded coconut 

2 tbsp. curry powder

1 tbsp. ground coriander

1 tbsp. ground cumin

1 tbsp. ground ginger

A few dashes of hot sauce (or 1 tbsp. crushed red pepper - I did this but would prefer hot sauce if I’d had it in the house)

1 onion, chopped

2-3 cloves of minced garlic

1 bell pepper, diced

1/2 large eggplant, chopped

1/2 large sweet potato, chopped 

Combine all the sauce ingredients into your pan (or crock pot )and mix.  Add in the veggies and chickpeas/chicken and toss to coat them all.  If you’re cooking it in a pan on the stovetop, cook on medium heat and bring to a good simmer and stir every once in a while.  Do this for at least 45 mins. but preferably an hour.  The longer the food simmers the more the flavours blend.  If it’s simmering too much turn it down to medium-low.  If you’re cooking it in your crock pot, put it on low for 6-8 hours or high for 4-6 hours.  Serve over rice.  

*With both recipes, if you don’t have all the veggies or would rather substitute some, go right ahead!  These veggies are best suited to their style of dish (based on what’s typically used), but it’s all up to you! 

This post is linked to: Tempt My Tummy, Tuesdays at the Table, Tasty Tuesday, Tuesday Tastes and Ultimate Recipe Swap.

We have a summer student staying with us for two months and so we decided that since her time with us is ending soon, that we would take her out around town and just spend some time together.  Here’s a few snapshots of our day:

This is our awesome Indonesian food (super spicy!!): 

This is Bana, who cooked our awesome food!!  (And Olivia our summer student with me!) 

This is us in Fan Tan Alley - a VERY narrow alleyway (we’re actually in the wider section of it): 

And this is us at the end of the day:

In keeping up with my 2010 Book List, I made my way through Ree Drummond’s (a.k.a. The Pioneer Woman!) delightful cookbook!  It was so light-hearted and witty and just an enjoyable cookbook.  It was more than just recipes - it was a book that shared some of The Pioneer Woman’s life and just the essence of who she is.  All of the pictures were taken by her, and she poured her heart into it.  And of course, the recipes were amazing!!  I’ve compiled a little list of the ones that really stood out to me that I want to try (but of course, they’re all fabulous!).  I’m including the list for you, and giving you links to similar recipes of hers that she’s posted online.  But don’t just use those recipes - get the book (from the library if you can’t afford to buy it!) and check the originals out for yourself, because many of them are only printed in the book…and they’re good!!!

My Pioneer Woman Faves:

1. Hot Artichoke Dip (p. 30)

2. Egg-in-a-Hole (p. 46)

3. Maple Pecan Scones (p. 68) 

4. Edna Mae’s Sour Cream Pancakes (p. 76)

5. Cowboy Calzone (p. 114)

6. Chicken Pot Pie (p. 126)

7. Perfect Pie Crust (p. 128) 

8. Twice Baked Potatoes (p. 152) 

9. Simple, Perfect Enchiladas (p. 176)

10. Creamy, Rosemary Potatoes (p. 204)

11. Olive Cheese Bread (p. 206) 

12. Flat Apple Pie (p. 216)

13. Chocolate Sheet Cake (p. 218) 

Enjoy the book, and take the time to read the anecdotes and look at the pictures…they really make this cookbook more unique than others!! 

When we were in Hong Kong last fall, we had mango pudding with almost every meal that we ate out!  It was very popular…and I LOVED it!  It’s been almost a year, and I decided I wanted to re-create it for myself with a pile of fresh mangos I had sitting around!  Excuse the picture, as we’d already started eating it…!

I’m going to stick with my plan from last week, and instead of assigning meals to each day I’m going to choose 5 meals and simply choose one each morning to prepare for that night.  That way I can mix and match as I feel led!  Here’s what’s potentially on the menu this week:

1. Steaks with Veggies

2. Bean burritos on homemade tortillas with fresh guacamole, Spinach salad on the side

3. Mixed tomato and chickpea salad with Fish

4. Greek Chicken with Grilled Vegetables and Couscous (See below for Greek Chicken Recipe!)

5. Asian Beef and Veggie Kebabs over Rice (loosely following the linked recipe)

Greek Chicken:

1/2 cup mayonnaise

1/4 cup parsley

1/4 lemon juice

2 tbsp. chicken broth

1 tbsp. oregano leaves

1 1/2 tsp. pepper

2 garlic cloves, minced

3 lbs. chicken pieces

1 tbsp. olive oil

Combine all ingredients and marinate 2 hours in fridge.  Remove chicken from sauce and place on cookie sheet.  Bake for about 45 minutes or until golden brown in a 350F oven. 

See what others are eating this week! 

Nothing is more refreshing on a hot summer’s day than a cup of cold lemonade!  And the way I like my lemonade is with lots of berries!!  We have a plethora of blackberries from last summer in our freezer, and so I whipped up a batch of blackberry lemonade the other day.  I thought you might like to try it too!

Blackberry Lemonade:

6 1/2 cups of water

1 cup of lemon juice (either freshly squeezed or straight from the bottle like I used!!) 

1/2 cup of honey 

1 cup of berries (any kind will do!)

Mix it all together and chill in your fridge so you can have some at a moment’s notice! 

(My jug strains the blackberries so that they don’t fall into my cup, but you can let them do that if you want them to!) 

Today is our 4th Wedding Anniversary!  Time flies, that’s for sure.  I can hardly believe that 4 years have gone by!  It feels like just yesterday…

Are you interested in how we met?!  Of course you are!!  :)  Well, I was 14 and Peter was 15 and we were at a church camp for a week.  He remembers meeting me on the basketball courts during some free time, but I have no recollection of that…I simply remember knowing him.  Which, in reality, probably means that he’s right!  Nevertheless, we hit it off right away.  One night during that week we sat in the gazebo at the camp and just chatted…and we both will admit that we felt something different and knew that eventually we’d get married.  Of course, at 14 and 15 you simply don’t say that!!

For the next two years we were long distance friends and kept up our phone calls and occasionally saw each other at events.  Peter says he pursued me, but that I was hard to get!  Hey!  I was 14!  :)  Two years after originally meeting, we started dating and the rest is history.  

We’ve now known each other for 12 years, and have been together for 10 of those years!  He is my best friend and I love him dearly.  Happy Anniversary Peter!

This is a picture of that week that we met (say "hello" to my friend Meaghan in between us!)…yup, we were young and looked a little silly!  It’s also a picture of a picture so it’s a little poor quality.  But you get the idea!  :)  

I was really wanting something dessertish (is that a word?!) the other night, and I was completely out of chocolate chips and cocoa powder - two things that generally create some lovely desserts!  I can’t remember where I was looking, but someone had posted Grandma Iny’s Prune Cake from The Pioneer Woman.  It caught my attention not because I’m a lover of prunes, nor did I have any at home, but because I immediately thought I could substitute prunes for the dates I had on hand…

So I printed the recipe and started doing some recalculations to make the cake a little healthier and a little more "Alison-friendly"!  In the end, I think I’ve come up with Auntie Alison’s Date Cake (seeing as I’m not a Grandma, nor am I named Iny - thank goodness!).  If you like using sugar and buttermilk and all that jazz and you enjoy prunes, then just stick to the regular recipe.  But if you’re interested in dates and using maple syrup instead of refined sugar…then read on!

Auntie Alison’s Date Cake: 

Ingredients for the cake:

1 cup dates

3/4 cup maple syrup

3 whole eggs

1/2 cup olive oil

1 1/2 cups flour (you can use whole wheat, unbleached white, or a combo)

1 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. nutmeg

1 tsp. cinnamon

1 cup coconut milk

1 tsp. vanilla extract

Ingredients for the icing:

3/4 cup maple syrup

1/2 cup coconut milk

1/2 tsp. baking soda

1 tbsp. honey

3 tbsp. coconut oil

1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

4 tsp. arrowroot powder mixed with 4 tsp. water

Instructions: Preheat oven to 300F.  Cover the dates with water and bring them to a boil for about 8-10 minutes.  Remove them from heat, drain the water, and mash them on a plate.  Set aside.  Mix together the oil, maple syrup, eggs, vanilla and coconut milk.  Set aside.  Sift together all the dry ingredients.  Mix the wet and dry ingredients together and stir gently until just combined.  Throw in the mashed dates and stir gently to combine.  Don’t overmix!  Pour the batter into an ungreased 9x13 glass dish and bake for 35 minutes.  In the remaining 5-10 minutes while the cake is baking, mix all of the icing ingredients together in a medium saucepan and stir over medium heat.  Bring to a slow boil.  It should start to thicken but still be pourable.  Remove the cake from the oven and pour the icing on immediately.  Allow the cake to rest on the counter for about 5 mins. or so and then serve it warm!

Honestly, I never make cakes like this as I just don’t gravitate to them, but this was DELICIOUS!!!!  My husband really liked it as well.  Even without the sugar in the icing, it was still the perfect consistency and it was a great topping.  I was pleasantly surprised by my concoction!  The cake itself was very moist and stayed that way even for the next few days as we ate leftovers and re-heated them in our toaster oven on 300F for about 10 mins.   

It’s been a fabulous week, despite terrible weather!  Well, not terrible…just not warm.  Shouldn’t it be hot and sunny and threatening me with a sunburn?!  But it’s not.  There are reports it might go that way this week though…I’ll keep my fingers crossed!!  

In other news, my beloved Moroccan sandals that I bought 2 years ago at a souk in Marakesh finally died.  So, today I bit the bullet and bought Birkenstocks!  I’m pretty happy.  I also got a new camera…so you’ll be seeing some new (and less fuzzy!) pictures soon!

This week is a little up in the air, so I’m not actually assigning days to the meals!  I figure I’ll make them as I please.  And since I’m feeling kind of lazy and hoping to spend lots of time in the sunshine, most of these meals are leftovers or in the crockpot!  Here’s what we’re aiming to have:

Leftover Homemade Pizza 

Crockpot Chow Mein (using beef), served with bok choy (straight from our garden!) and other veggies over rice noodles.

Coconut Red Beans and Rice, served inside bok choy wraps (using the bok choy instead of tortillas!).

A layered pasta dish in the crockpot following this lasagna recipe, but not using lasagna noodles! 

Crockpot Baked Bean Soup 

Quinoa Salad (using this recipe for a couscous salad!)

And in other news, our anniversary is on Thursday, July 8th, so we’ll be using a gift certificate to enjoy a delicious meal out!  I’ll try to document it with pictures to share with you all!  We’re celebrating 4 years.  More on that story on the actual day…come back for details on how we met, cheesy pictures and lots of sappy stuff.  :) 

Sometimes you just need to make a quick casserole and you need to use what’s on hand!  There are some awesome casserole recipes out there that use all kinds of crazy ingredients and are absolutely delicious!  BUT, sometimes you need to do something simple.  So here’s a basic casserole formula that you can keep on hand to use up leftovers or whip up something quick.

Casserole Formula:

2 cups of pasta, rice or potatoes, cooked

1 cup of veggies, frozen or fresh, diced

1 lb. of meat browned (or 2 cups of beans)

2 cups of white sauce or condensed soup (or, you could use a tomato based sauce if you wish)

1 cup of milk

1/2 cup of cheese

Salt and Pepper (or any other spices)

Mix all of the above.  Put into a greased 9x13 casserole dish at 350F for 30 mins. 

This post is linked to: Tempt My Tummy, Tuesdays at the Table, Tuesday Tastes, Tasty Tuesday.

This week we picked up a package of mangoes that were on clearance at our local produce market, and so I’m incorporating those a little into our menu instead of just eating them all fresh or drying them in my dehydrator!  It’s made for some yummy menu prospects.  :)

Monday: Chicken Bombay (I added diced mango, green onion and orange pepper into the sauce mix while the chicken was cooking!  Yum!), served over rice

Tuesday: White fish with Mango Sauce overtop (loosely based on that recipe), Baked Potatoes and Steamed Cauliflower and Red Peppers. 

Wednesday: Out for Dinner

Thursday: Happy Canada Day!  Not sure of our plans yet…

Friday: Black bean Burritos with fresh mango salsa on homemade Whole Wheat Tortillas and Veggies on the side.

Saturday: Leftovers

Sunday: Leftovers 

Now, you have to consider that I did use chocolate chips that have sugar…but perhaps y’all can give me a suggestion for getting rid of that too!  For now, here are some brownies that were made without sugar, and instead with maple syrup!

Sugarless Brownies:

Ingredients:

2/3 cup chocolate chips

1/2 cup unsalted butter

3/4 cup maple syrup

2 eggs

1 1/4 cups flour

1 cup chocolate chips (for sprinkling) 

Melt chocolate chips and butter over low heat; cool.  Stir in remaining ingredients except 1 cup of chocolate chips for sprinkling.  Pour into greased 8" square pan.  Sprinkle remaining chips on top.  Bake at 350F for 25-30 mins.  Cool.   

This post is linked to: Tempt My Tummy, Tuesdays at the Table, Tasty Tuesday and Tuesday Tastes.

I’m suffering from a cold.  Again.  Yuck.  I had a friend tell me today that taking zinc tablets when I start to feel that itchy scratchy feeling can ward off a cold.  Any one had any luck with that??  I’m willing to try next time, because I just hate getting run down like this!  It makes me not want to cook…which is when I know I’m sick!  Here’s to hoping I feel well enough to cook this food this week… 

Monday: Steak, Mashed Potatoes, Veggies

Tuesday: Masoor Daal, Channa Masala, Homemade Tortillas, Veggies

Wednesday: Crock pot Korean Beef, Rice and Veggies (didn’t get to eat this last week)

Thursday: Homemade Ranch Burgers (using homemade ranch dressing instead of caesar as the recipe calls for!) Homemade Buns (recipe coming soon!), Toppings, Spinach Salad

Friday: Potluck @ My House - Easy Herb Frittata (I’ll be using fennel instead of cilantro, and adding a couple other spices and omitting the meat since I have vegetarians coming over!)

Saturday: Leftovers

Sunday: Leftovers

See more menu plans here! 

Have you heard of fiddleheads??  I’d heard of them a few years ago when a friend of mine ate them.  I just love the name!!  I hadn’t thought about them since my friend had cooked them.  When we were at our produce market picking up some fresh local produce, I saw them!  They were VERY expensive ($12 a lb.!!), so I grabbed a VERY small handful, and we brought them home.

I added them into a very veggie-filled stir-fry, and they were delicious!  In case you don’t know what fiddleheads are, or how to cook them, check out this link.  Did you know that they’re actually little ferns that haven’t unfurled yet??  Cool, eh?  Make sure you read how to cook them though, because it’s crucial to boil or steam them first prior to eating them or cooking them any other way.  You can get ill if you just chow down on them!

If you see them at the market, pick some up!  It’s a fun veggie.  

We’re entering the season of hamburgers and hotdogs and eating outdoors and I’m excited!!  I love eating on our back deck overlooking our garden and enjoying the longer days.  However, I don’t love the crazy chemicals and preservatives found in processed burgers and whatnot.  So, I came up with my own fish burgers which could easily be applied to hamburgers!  Here’s the recipe:

Ingredients:

1 can of fish (I like salmon!)

3 eggs

1/4 cup of whole wheat flour

1 tbsp. garlic powder

1/2 tbsp. chili powder

1/4 tsp. black pepper

Butter for frying

Mix together all of the ingredients except for the butter.  When it feels like pancake batter then you’re ready!  If it’s too watery add a bit more flour a tbsp. at a time.  If it’s too cakey, then add a tbsp. of water at a time.

Heat a small frying pan on medium heat and put 1/2 tsp. of butter into the pan and wait until it sizzles.  Add a ladle full of fish batter and leave it for about 1-2 minutes until it’s pretty solid.  Flip it and continue to flip back and forth until both sides are golden.  Do this with all of the batter until you’re finished.  This should give you about 4 good sized patties.  Put them in a bun with some mayo, spinach and tomato and you’re all set!

To make this recipe using hamburger instead of canned fish, add in 1/2 lb. of ground beef instead.  You can alter the spices to reflect whatever you enjoy!  For fish you could incorporate parsley, chives, dill, onion powder, etc.  For hamburger you could add beef bouillon, parsley, cumin, oregano, basil, etc.  The sky is the limit!

These obviously aren’t cooked on a traditional bbq, but when they’re in the midst of a delicious bun and you’re soaking in the sun on the patio, it will have the same effect!  ENJOY! 

This is linked to: Tempt My Tummy, Tuesdays at the Table, Tasty Tuesday, Tuesday Tastes.

I’ve been slacking on my book list.  It’s true.  It’s not that I haven’t been reading!  I have!  I’ve just been reading other books…not on my list…!

And, I’ve also read books that are on my list but I haven’t updated you guys!  So, as you’ll notice on my 2010 reading list, I definitely have a bunch of reading to do.  But don’t fear!  I’ve read half of the Anne of Green Gables books (which I’ll review all at once), and I’m working on a few others…

A book that I finished months ago that I haven’t reviewed yet is "The 21 Most Effective Prayers in the Bible" by Dave Earley.  This book was EXCELLENT!  Obviously there are more than 21 prayers in the Bible, and of course they’re all good.  But the way Dave wrote this book was great in making it manageable. 

It’s designed for you to read one chapter a day for 21 days.  They’re short, but deep enough to have a significant impact.  I found that after every chapter I was telling someone about something I’d read!  Some of the stuff was regular stuff, but it was so great to read it.  I also liked how he used real life examples paired with the biblical text.  Those examples were key to me understanding the prayers and really soaking them in. 

It truly encouraged me in my prayer life, and I would recommend it to any of you.  It’s a short read, really interested and powerful.  I think you’d enjoy it! 

We recently started including lamb chops into our diet and as such I’ve been on the look-out for some yummy recipes!  My husband requested that I use one that included curry and so I looked into that.  Some of the recipes seemed so long and complicated and required a few ingredients we had run out of.  I came across this recipe but my husband doesn’t like citrus and it didn’t seem as "Middle Eastern" as my husband desired, so I took it and altered it a lot and made it "mine" and here is the result which my husband loved:

Curried Lamb Chops

Ingredients:

4 small lamb chops

1 tbsp. olive oil

3/4 cup apple juice

2 tbsp. soy sauce

2 tbsp. honey

1 tbsp. curry powder

1 tsp. each of coriander powder, garam masala powder

1/4 tsp. each of cinnamon, turmeric, garlic powder

1 garlic clove, minced

2 tbsp. of raisins 

Combine all ingredients except the lamb and olive oil and pour into your crockpot.  Mix together.  Put the oil into a frying pan and brown each side of the lamb chops.  Add the lamb chops to the crockpot and evenly space them out.  Turn on low for 4-5 hours.  Turn the chops, if possible, half way through so each side gets the chance to simmer in the juice.  Pour some juices on the lamb chops once they’re on the plates ready to be served. 

Add to a side of masoor daal, couscous or rice and naan bread, throw some fresh veggies on the side and you’re good to go!

This linked to: Tempt My Tummy, Tuesdays at the Table, Tasty Tuesday, Tuesday Tastes and Ultimate Recipe Swap.

You might notice that my blog has had a little change!  My husband is still working out a few details here and there, but generally it’s ready to go!  Hopefully you enjoy the new layout as much as I do.

Here’s the menu for the week:

Monday: Baked Quinoa with Sausage, Spinach and Mushrooms

Tuesday: Lentil Loaf, Homemade Bread, Roasted Carrots 

Wednesday: Chicken Tikka Masala, Rice, Asparagus

Thursday: Black Bean Burgers, Breadmaker Burger Buns, Fresh Carrots, Sweet Potato Chips (store bought!)

Friday: Crockpot ribs, Mashed Potatoes, Green Beans

Saturday: Leftovers, Random Meals, etc.

Sunday: Leftovers, Random Meals, etc.

Friends of ours got married this past weekend, and we had such a fabulous time at their wedding!  We were really honoured to do the ceremony, and it was such a great day.  

Back in March I hosted a shower for Serena at my house, and gave her this gift.  In keeping with the idea to give them something useful but unique, we decided to do something we’re starting to make a wedding gift tradition!  At Christmastime (yes, this required thought!!), we went to a local Ten Thousand Villages store and when the fair-traide, hand-made ornaments were on sale we picked out a few that we really liked and thought would mean something to them.  Although it might seem strange to give someone Christmas ornaments for a gift I think it’s nice for them to have some "sentimental" ornaments for their 1st Christmas together.  Often you end up buying brand news ones and that’s just not nearly as fun!  So hopefully they enjoy that.

Something else that we REALLY enjoyed (especially Peter!) at their wedding was the amazing food.  From the time we entered until the time we left there was TONS of food.  When we arrived, there was a table set up beautifully with all kinds of vases filled with candies!  We were given little take-out boxes and people could fill up their boxes at the candy bar!  Genius!  Here’s what Peter’s box looked like:

And beyond the great dinner buffet, and the amazing chocolate wedding cake, there was also a dessert buffet!  Peter was so thrilled about that that he took my picture to show how close we were to the dessert buffet (LOL):

All in all it was a fantastic day, and us and our friends who attended the wedding had a great time!  Here is a picture of the bride along with me and our other friend Robin:

Happy June everyone!!

I used to be one of those people who purchased bread crumbs from the store, or bought shake-n-bake to use to coat meat.  In reading the packages of those things a long while ago, I realized I wasn’t that interested in consuming what was in them!  I didn’t readily make bread often enough either to save the crusts and make my own bread crumbs.  So I had to come up with some creative idea when making "bread" crumbs in order to incorporate them into some of our favourite meals!

After a little creativity, I came up with something that both my husband and I love and truthfully isn’t much different than the consistency of normal bread crumbs.  Here is my recipe:

Depending on how much you need, you’ll have to alter this recipe.  But for approximately 1 cup of "bread" crumbs, here is what I use:

3/4 cup of rolled oats, 1/2 cup of sliced almonds.  You can add various seasonings depending on your recipe such as garlic powder, salt, pepper, chili powder, cumin, etc.  

Put it all in your blender and grind until it creates a fine consistency like sand.  Use like you would any normal bread crumbs!

This has worked fabulously for us, and as such, since I always have oats and sliced almonds in our house, I never have to worry about needing bread crumbs.  I just make them up as I go!   

This is linked to: Tempt My Tummy, Tuesdays at the Table.

Last week we had friends visiting from out of town, and so we had a busy week!  We ate out a few times, toured around, and enjoyed one another’s company!  It’s always good to reminisce about the past and dream about the future.

Speaking of the future…when it is going to get warm around here?!?!  I feel like lots of people are experiencing nice warm weather, and that’s not my experience currently… 

Anyway, here is the proposed menu for this week:

Monday: Quebecois Chicken over egg noodles, roasted Brussels sprouts and red peppers.

Tuesday: Baigan Choka, Masoor Daal, Couscous, Veggies, Naan.

Wednesday: Meatballs and sauce over rice, Asparagus.

Thursday: Eggplant Pasta with Garlic and Rosemary.

Friday: Stir-fry beef with veggies in a soy sauce/honey based sauce.

Saturday: Leftovers, Sandwiches, etc.

Sunday: Leftovers, Sandwiches, etc.

See what others are eating this week. 

…WAIT!  Don’t stop reading and get all grossed out.  Let me explain!  

I’ve stopped using store-bought shampoo and conditioner these days, and I’m on the "no ‘poo method"!  I thought it sounded funny at first too, but I’ve realized how great it is!

Here’s the deal: I was spending a great deal on all natural and safe shampoo and conditioner so that our bodies didn’t ingest all those crazy chemicals out there.  However, it was a bit of a struggle on the budget.  So I came across Stephanie’s post on not using shampoo and I was sold! 

I put my natural shampoo aside (there was only a little left) and decided to save it for trips when we’re away or other seasons like that.  I went to the store and bought two squirt bottles like the kind you’d find ketchup in at a hot-dog stand!  They’re only 99 cents, so it’s not like I the broke the bank.  And then, I grabbed the necessary ingredients that I already had in my home, and made my shampoo and conditioner!  Here is a picture of my shampoo and conditioner:

Here are the recipes as were told on Stephanie’s post:

Shampoo:

Grab a container that you plan on storing your shampoo in.  Fill it 1/8 full with baking soda.  Add 1 tbsp. of dried rosemary (this helps with dry skin).  Fill the rest of the container with water.  That’s it!  Mix it all together and you’ll have to shake it every time you go to apply it to your hair.  It won’t suds like shampoo normally does. 

Conditioner: 

Grab another container that you plan on storing your condition in.  Fill it 1/2 full with apple cider vinegar.  Fill the rest of it with water.  Shake it all around each time and squirt it on the ends of your hair.  You don’t need to condition your scalp as this might cause it to get greasy.

The verdict?  So far so good!  I was able to go 48 hours after my first use without washing my hair which is pretty remarkable because I usually shower every 24 hours and I need to.  So I’m impressed!!  It has continued on this 48 hour cycle, and I could probably squeeze it to 72 hours, but my hair would be a little more difficult to style.  My hair feels fluffier, softer and happier!  The only complaint I have is that I didn’t like the smell while I was washing it at first, but that wore off.  I’ve been doing this for a couple of weeks now and I’m very happy!  Wouldn’t go back any day.

The title of the recipe sounds a little more daunting than it really is!!  These are SUPER easy and delicious.  AND, they don’t contain any flour or unnatural sweeteners.  I got the original recipe from my friend Emily, and based on her suggestions and an addition of my own, here are the delicious cookies:

Peanut Butter Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies:

1 cup peanut butter

1/2 cup honey

1/2 cup rolled oats

1/4 cup chocolate chips

Combine all of the above ingredients and place small dollops of the dough on an ungreased cookie sheet and bake at 350F for 8 minutes.  OR, you can spread it into an ungreased 9x13 pan and baked at 350F for 8 minutes.  I personally like doing it in the pan so that they’re like bars when they come out.  They will be very soft at first, so let them sit for a few minutes once they’re out of the oven.   

This past week I made spaetzle for my German dish of the week!  Basically it’s a noodle dough that you use.  It seems to me that you can eat spaetzle as either a sweet noodle or a savoury noodle.  Some people suggested topping them with some butter and cinnamon, and others suggested butter and salt.  Nevertheless, I went with the savoury version and cooked it up with asparagus and sausage!  We coated ours in butter and garlic salt - and it was yummy!

If you want to learn more about the history of spaetzle, etc. check out this link! 

Here is the original recipe, which I followed.  I don’t have a spaetzle maker, so my husband and I used our fingers and and rolled them into "noodles".   

Overall we really enjoyed them, and they were super filling.  If you could roll them thinner, or roll them into tiny balls, that would be helpful.  Generally this dough makes a generic pasta dough, so if you wanted to use a pasta press to make your own pasta, this would be a good recipe! 

When we were having company over a while ago, I wanted to make some bread to go with our pasta dish.  I couldn’t use any dairy as one of our friends is lactose intolerant, so I did some research!  I ended up finding this recipe for jalapeno foccacia bread, but I altered it ever-so-slightly and we really enjoyed it!!  Not only that, but I found it made two HUGE pans of foccacia bread.  So I made one proper pan, and then I took the dough and separated it into a 6-cup muffin tin and baked them that way.  They turned out into perfect little buns!  The dough is so light and fluffy and we really enjoyed it with our pasta and then for lunches with soup!  I would definitely use this recipe again and again, and more specifically in muffin tins to make buns - perfect for individual portions!

Here is the altered recipe:

Breadmaker Foccacia Bread:

1.5 cups of water

2 tbsp. plus 1 tsp. of olive oil

1 tsp. honey

1 tsp. salt

1.5 cups of whole wheat flour

1.5 cups plus 3 tbsp. of white flour

1.5 tsps. yeast

Toppings:

Olive oil

Chili powder, to taste

Ground black pepper, to taste

3/4 cup shredded cheese (more or less depending on your tastes!) 

Place all ingredients into your breadmaker as suggested by your manufacturer.  Select dough cycle.  When the cycle is finished, remove the dough from the pan and place it on a lightly floured surface.  Punch it to deflate it.  Let it rest for 10 minutes.  Brush a round pie pan lightly with olive oil.  Roll out the dough into the shape of the pan and then transfer the dough into the pan (I only used half of the dough in the pan - I put the rest into a 6-cup muffin tin).  Cover it loosely with a tea towel and let it rise for another 40-50 minutes or until doubled.  Preheat the oven to 425F.  Uncover the dough after it has doubled and use your fingertips to create evenly spaced indentations all over the dough.  Lightly brush it with olive oil, and season it with the chili powder and black pepper.  If no one is lactose intolerant, then sprinkle the cheese all over!  If someone is, then only sprinkle half of the dough so they can enjoy it later too!  Put it in the oven and bake for 15 minutes or until golden.

This is linked to: Tasty Tuesday, Tempt my Tummy, Tuesdays at The Table, Ultimate Recipe Swap.

This past week both felt long and extremely fast!  Weird how that is sometimes, eh?  On the weekend we were SO blessed to marry friends of ours (You can see a picture here, and find out more about their shower gift here!).  The weather was absolutely INCREDIBLE.  Everything about the day was wonderful and we’re just so happy for them!  Here’s a picture of us at the reception:

I’m also really excited this week because we found a new produce store where they sell only produce and it’s got a TON of local stuff!  So we made a point to only purchase local fruits and veggies and it’s fantastic!  We’ll be enjoying red peppers, yellow peppers, orange peppers, red onions, asparagus, spinach, mushrooms and bok choy! 

Now on to the menu!

Monday: Sausage, Asparagus and Spatzle (I’ll give a review of the spatzle on Friday as a part of Taste the World!)

Tuesday: Rice noodle stir-fry with beef and assorted veggies (bok choy, mushrooms, peppers, onion, etc.) mix with soy sauce and various spices (anyone have a good soy sauce based sauce recipe?!).

Wednesday: Falafels with plain yogurt on the side, Spinach salad, and Couscous.

Thursday: Curried Coconut Chicken (loosely based on this recipe), Rice and Veggies.

Friday: Out for dinner but I need to provide the dinner.  I’ll be making the Mexican beans/beef which is option #2 out of my suggestions for meals to feed herbivores and carnivores!  Oh yah, and these awesome cookies!!

Saturday: We have friends from out of town visiting for a week!  YAY!  We haven’t seen them in a year.  We’ll be doing homemade pizzas that night.  One vegetarian with cheese and various delicious local veggies, and the other with sausage and veggies!  Spinach salad on the side and homemade dressing!

Sunday: Potluck @ Church - not sure what to bring.  Suggestions?!

Today, May 15th is my brother Mark and sister-in-law Naomi’s 12th anniversary!  I can hardly believe it was that long ago…it’s crazy!!  I wasn’t even in high school at that time…  Here is a picture of them and my delightful niece and nephew:

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY GUYS!

And tomorrow, May 16th is my sister-in-law Rachel and her husband Brian’s 1st anniversary!  Last year we were blessed to be able to go and be a part of their big day in Ontario.  Here they are recently (she’s pregnant with our next niece - that’ll make 3 nieces and one nephew!):

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY YOU TWO!

And last but not least, today we had the incredible blessing of doing the wedding for two great friends of ours, Brad and Serena.  Being able to officiate their wedding was so great.  The weather was FABULOUS and they looked wonderful!  God is so good.  Here they are (with us!) just hours ago:

I pray continual blessings on all three of these marriages and obviously the others in our family and all of you who are married!!!  

"This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins." 1 John 4:10

I really enjoy desserts, but it’s SO much easier to serve when you don’t have to cut it up and serve it out and create all kinds of mess when guests are over!  So I took this streusel recipe, adapted the ingredients to our tastes and instead of making a sheet cake, I made it in a muffin tin!  If you’d rather make it in the cake form just pour it into a shallow cake sheet and follow the same instructions.  

German Streusel Muffins

Muffin Ingredients:

2 cups of flour

2 tsp. baking powder

1/4 tsp. sea salt

Just less than 1/4 cup maple syrup

3/4 cup unsalted butter

2 eggs

1 cup coconut milk

1/2 tsp. vanilla

Oil/butter for greasing

1 cup canned or fresh fruit (i.e. berries, apples, etc.)

Mix flour, baking powder and sea salt together in a bowl and set aside.  In another bowl mix together the maple syrup, butter and eggs.  Add in the milk and vanilla.  Mix until well blended.  Add in the flour mixture to the wet mixture.  Mix until smooth.  Grease muffin tins and pour in the batter.  Top with a tablespoon of fruit in each muffin cup.  Make the streusel topping:

Streusel Ingredients:

1/4 cup of butter, in small chunks

1/2 cup of shredded coconut

1/2 tbsp. cinnamon

1/2 cup flour

Mix together with a fork until you have a soft yet cakey streusel topping.  If the mixture seems to wet, add more flour.  If it seems too dry, add more butter.  Work this until you have the mixture you desire.  Sprinkle it on top of the muffins.

Bake in the oven at 350F for 30 mins. or until toothpick inserted comes out clean.   

Although I meal plan every Monday, I still need some help making the meals go quicker during the week.  So lately I’ve been doing a few things that I thought I would share with you!  They’re not revolutionary, and perhaps you already do them, but for the sake of perhaps one person who’s reading this who didn’t think of this, this is for you!  :)

1. At my grocery store they sell a lot of items in bulk for local restaurants.  This includes produce.  So I often go and check the reduced shelf and grab some great produce at 50% off!  Within this, I usually purchase sweet peppers (red, green, orange and yellow).  However, it comes in a large quantity of about 15-20 peppers!  Now, that’s a lot, especially for two of us!  And I don’t want them going bad, so I immediately come home and slice them all up stir-fry style.  I baggie them in small snack-sized freezer bags and pop them directly into my freezer.  I don’t blanch them, or cook them or anything.  Once they’re in there, I have them ready at the drop of a hat!  This has been SO useful in preparing soup, stir-fry or casseroles in a jiffy.  Just pop them in, and they thaw within minutes.  

2. Similar to the peppers I do the same with onions.  I don’t often use a full onion in one meal, but I will chop up the entire onion right away and freezer portion the rest for future use.  Not only does this help for preparing another meal, but it doesn’t allow the onion to go bad.

3. Again, since there’s only two of us, a lot of things go bad quickly.  Cheese is one of those.  We use cheese frequently, but not on a daily basis!  If we buy a block of cheese I make sure to portion it (usually we get the biggest block) into 4 chunks.  I saran wrap them and pop them into my freezer and just pull it out in advance to thaw when I need it.  The other option is that I sometimes pre-shred the cheese and baggie it and then put it in the freezer.  Cheese that is shredded thaws very quickly, but a frozen block takes a little while.  Pull the block out at the beginning of the day to thaw, but you can pull out the shredded cheese while you’re prepping your meal and it should be ready when you eat.

Do you have any great kitchen tips to share with me? 

Often I’m craving chocolate…and I don’t think I’m alone!!  I had heard about a recipe for brownies made up of black beans, and I was a little skeptical.  I mean really - beans?!  In my brownies?!  It was so weird that I had to try it out!  As I looked online, I found a few recipes for black bean brownies in my search and with a bit of trial and error, out came this recipe.  It’s a good and healthy alternative (and gluten free!) to regular chocolate brownies.  They’re not as "chewy" as brownies usually are, but they’re good, and my 5 year-old nephew didn’t shy away from them!  :)

Black Bean Brownies:

Ingredients:

2 cups of cooked black beans

3 eggs

3 tbsp. olive oil or coconut oil

1/4 cup + 2 tbsp. cocoa powder

Pinch of salt

1/2 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. vanilla

3/4 cup white sugar (I’d like to try it with 1/2 cup of honey instead!)

3/4 cup chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350F.  Lightly grease an 8x8" glass pan.  Combine beans, eggs and oil together in a blender.  Puree until mixed well.  Then add in the cocoa powder, sugar, baking powder, pinch of salt and vanilla - puree until it’s all smooth.  Pour the brownie batter into the pan.  Mix in 1/4 cup of chocolate chips throughout the mixture and then sprinkle some more on top.  Bake it for 30 mins.  As the brownies bake it pulls away from the edge of the pan which is normal.  Check the centre with a toothpick to make sure that the batter is done.  The brownies will be moist but they won’t be "gooey" like normal brownies.  ENJOY! 

This post is linked to: Tasty Tuesday, Tempt My Tummy and Tuesday @ The Table.

Monday: Masoor Daal, Couscous, Naan Bread, Curried Lamb Chops (some alterations, so I’ll post this again with my revisions), Carrots

Tuesday: Simple Fish cooked with lemon/lime juice and dill served over Quinoa with Veggies on the side

Wednesday: Homemade Meatballs served over rice with steamed broccoli.

Thursday: Quebecois Chicken served over pasta, Veggies  

Friday: At a wedding rehearsal (we’re the officiants!)!

Saturday: At a wedding!

Sunday: Mac ‘n’ Cheese, Focaccia Buns, Veggies and homemade ketchup on the side!

For Taste the World this week I’ll be attempting to make German Streusel Cake to serve to various guests we’re having over for meetings, cell group, etc.! 

See what others are eating! 

Since we’re still focusing on German cuisine, this week for Taste the World I made German Meatloaf!  I took the original recipe and tweaked it slightly so that the portion was correct for us, and altered a few of the ingredients.  Here is what it looked like:

Here is the German Meatloaf Recipe a la Alison:

Ingredients:

1 cup of bread crumbs

2 cups of sauerkraut, rinsed and drained

1 egg, lightly beaten

1/4 cup coconut milk (any milk will do)

1/2 cup chopped onion

1 tsp. cumin

1 tsp. chili powder

1 tsp. black pepper

2 lbs. ground beef

Combine all the ingredients together in a bowl and mix well.  Pour the mixture into an ungreased loaf pan and spread evenly.  Bake at 350F for 60 minutes or until cooked in the centre.  Remove from the oven and and let it sit for 10 minutes before cutting.

The review: It was a nice change to the regular meatloaf that we enjoy.  Ironically I didn’t really taste the sauerkraut!  There wasn’t really one flavour that stood out more than another.  It wouldn’t call it bland, but I wouldn’t call it super flavourful either.  The original recipe called for 2 tbsp. of ketchup or chili sauce, neither of which I had on hand, so perhaps that might have helped it, but I’m not sure it wouldn’t done a whole lot.  And of course, I skipped the caraway seed which would definitely have given it that German feel.  I think since I don’t keep the caraway seed in my home usually the cumin was a good substitute (or so I’ve been told), but I’d up it to 1 tbsp. maybe.  All in all a lovely dinner though!  My husband ate seconds, and that’s usually a good sign…     

This post is linked to: Finer Things, Food on Fridays and Frugal Friday.

Not only do I love cooking, and therefore anything to do with it, but I also love sharing my love of cooking with others! Something I find I can just create is spice mixes, and so I don’t really have that many pre-made mixes on hand. I just whip them up depending on what I’m making! But I know that’s not the case for everyone!

A friend of mine is getting married VERY soon, and so for her shower I decided to make her a gift basket that would be useful.  I used a mixing bowl as the basket, lined it with dish cloths, and then filled it up with homemade mixes!  I did 2 different mixes (Mexican and Middle Eastern), and then I included jars that held crepe mix and Dutch breakfast bread mix!  Not only that, but I made up a small recipe card for each one, and included a recipe that would be appropriate for each mix. Here is a picture of the gift:

I found the mix recipes online, and although there are many out there, this is what I came up with for my Mexican Seasoning after combining a few:

Mexican Seasoning: Makes about 2 cups

1 cup chili powder, 1/4 cup ground cumin, 1/4 cup coriander, 1/4 cup dried oregano, 1/4 cup dried basil, 2 Tbsp dried thyme, 2 Tbsp garlic powder, 2 Tbsp freshly ground black pepper, 1.5 Tbsp cayenne pepper, .5 Tbsp red pepper flakes.

I actually didn’t measure my Middle Eastern spice mix, so I can’t share that one with you. Sorry!

What do you do for shower gifts or gifts to your friends?

I originally took this recipe from a Cherry Coffee Cake recipe, and I altered it to suit our tastes! I got rid of the sugar and replaced it with honey and added in some fun stuff to sweeten it up in other ways. This is the result!

Cherry Chocolate Coconut Coffee Cake:

Ingredients:

1/2 C butter

1/2 C honey

1 tsp. maple syrup or maple extract

1 egg, beaten

1 C plain yogurt

2 1/2 C whole wheat flour

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. baking soda

1 can cherry pie filling

1/4 Cup shredded coconut

1 1/2 tsp. cinnamon

1/4 cup of chocolate chips

Directions: Mix together butter, honey, eggs and plain yogurt; stir well. Mix flour, salt and baking soda together and add to the wet mix. Combine coconut and cinnamon in a small bowl for topping. Layer half of the dough in the bottom of a greased 9x13 pan. Pour pie filling over the bottom dough layer. Sprinkle with half of the cinnamon-coconut mix. Sprinkle the chocolate chips on top. Top with remaining dough. It works best to plop the dough over the cherry mixture and spread it a little bit to fill in the holes (but you don’t have to cover it!!). Top with coconut and cinnamon mixture.  Bake at 350 for 45 minutes. This is really tasty as a dessert for company or to eat for breakfast!! If you’re freezing it for breakfasts, portion it for your family and wrap it in tinfoil or put it all in a well-sealed container into your freezer/fridge. Heat it up in the toaster oven or in a pan on your stove top. YUMMY!

This post is linked to: Tasty Tuesday, Tempt My Tummy and Ultimate Recipe Swap.

We’re still working through some leftovers as well as the remainder of our freezer order (we order our meat in bulk!), and so we’re in the process of using up what we have.  With that in mind, here is our menu for this week:

Monday: Homemade Pizza with tomato sauce, ground beef, green peppers and cheese

Tuesday: German Meatloaf, Green Beans, Roasted Potatoes (Review and pic of the meatloaf on Friday as a part of Taste the World!)

Wednesday: Crunchy Japanese Fish with Vegetable and Noodle Toss (Rachael Ray’s recipe - see below!)

Thursday: Homemade Mac ‘n’ Cheese, Roasted Squash

Friday: Salmon Fritters, Veggies, Couscous

Saturday: Leftovers

Sunday: Roast, Yorkshires, Veggies  

Crunchy Japanese Fish with Vegetable and Noodle Toss:

Japanese Fish: 1/2 lb. thin spaghetti, coarse salt, 2 lbs. haddock fillets, 1 pinches of cayenne pepper, zest and juice of 1 lemon, 3 cups of bread crumbs, 3 tbsp. parsley, 3 tbsp. chives, 1/2 cup butter melted.

Lo Mein: 3 tbsp. oil, 3 garlic cloves chopped, 2 inch piece of fresh ginger minced, 1 cup shredded carrots, 2 cups bean sprouts, 1 8 oz. can of water chestnuts drained and chopped, 1 red bell pepper thinly sliced, 6 green onions thinly sliced, 1/3 cup tamari sauce.

Preheat the oven to 400F.  Bring a pot of water to a boil, add the pasta and salt the water.  Cook the pasta until slightly undercooked.  Drain.  While the pasta works, prepare the fish.  Season the fish with salt, cayenne pepper, lemon zest, and the juice of 1/2 lemon.  Cut the remaining 1/2 lemon into wedges and reserve.  Combine the bread crumbs, parsley and chives.  Dip the fish in the melted butter, then coat evenly in the crumbs and place on a non-stick cookie sheet.  Bake for 17-18 mins. until evenly golden and crisp.  After the fish goes in the oven, heat a large non-stick skillet over high heat.  Add the oil, garlic, ginger, and carrots.  Cook for 1 minute, stir-frying the mixture, then add the bean sprouts, water chestnuts, red bell peppers, and green onions.  Stir-fry for another 2 minutes and add the drained, hot pasta.  Add the tamari and remove from the heat.  Toss for a minute for the pasta to absorb the tamari and vegetable juices, and divide the No-Pain Lo Mein among 4 plates.  Serve with the crispy oven-fried fish.  Pass the lemon wedges at the table.

What are you cooking for dinner?

Well a couple of weeks ago we decided to update our house a bit… Instead of blabbing on about it, here are some before and after shots for you to peruse:

Looking into the living room from the dining room Before (left) & After (right): 

The kitchen corner Before (left) & After (right):

So, what do you think??  :) 

Although my post is a little delayed, it’s still Friday, and I’m still posting about the recipe I promised for this week’s Taste the World!  All is not lost.

Since we’re working on German food right now, I decided to make panekuken this week!  I actually made it for a potluck and movie night that I had at my house!  As the recipe suggests, it tastes great with maple syrup!  It was really tasty and it will make delicious leftovers for breakfast tomorrow morning.

Here is my picture of my panekuken:

For a complete list of all the German recipes people have submitted, check out this link. 

This post is linked to: Finer Things and Food on Fridays. 

And so I failed…

Last week I didn’t even get a menu plan posted because life was busy.

Last week I didn’t post pictures of our renovations as promised.

Last week I said I’d make my recipe for Taste the World, and I didn’t.

My goodness!  I didn’t do so well, did I??  It’s a good thing, as Anne of Green Gables says, that "Tomorrow is fresh with no mistakes in it."  That’s a comforting thought, isn’t it?

Here is my proposed menu for this coming week:

Monday: Roastbeef/Sausage (leftovers!), veggies, yorkshires

Tuesday: Leftover Crockpot Chicken Fettuccini

Wednesday: Thai stirfry with rice noodles, veggies and peanut sauce

Thursday: Masoor Daal, Naan bread, Veggies

Friday: Potluck @ My House - Not sure what I’m bringing yet!

Saturday: Leftovers

Sunday: Leftovers

I will attempt to make Panekuken for my German themed Taste the World feature this Friday!  Stay tuned! 

And this week I really will try to post pictures of our renovations!!  But unlike last week, I make no promises.  Life happens, and it’s a beautiful thing!  :)  ENJOY your week! 

As mentioned yesterday, it was my birthday on Monday.  :)  It was a FABULOUS day!!  I have the most wonderful husband - really.  He planned the day completely and I was given various clues to figure it all out!  Our favourite show is "The Amazing Race" and so he themed it after that by calling it "The Amazing Wife"!  

It started off with a delicious breakfast made by him in our newly renovated kitchen:

Then, we went downtown, and being completely forgetful, I realized that I had to renew my drivers license.  So I did that, and then we were off!  The clues took us to various stores, historic landmarks, and more!  Throughout the adventures I got a food dehydrator (yay!!), a new pair of shoes (another yay!) and a wonderful day with my husband.

We ended it off by eating at a new Moroccan restaurant in town and it was delicious.  It was just the two of us in the empty restaurant and we had a great chat with the owner.  Here are some pictures of the day:

Me with one of my clues and us with the Japanese gardens. 

My favourite picture of the Japanese gardens! 

Now today my childhood friend is coming to visit, and I’m making crockpot chicken fettucini for her for dinner!  It’s one of her favourite meals (I think…), and so I’m glad my crockpot can help out!  :) 

And, to satisfy your curiosity, I’ll post more pictures later this week of our renovated kitchen, and living/dining room area which looks fabulous!!!! 

This post is linked to: Tasty Tuesday, Tuesdays @ The Table and Tempt My Tummy. 

Due to the fact that I’m celebrating the joyous occasion of my birthday today, there won’t be much of a post!!

This past week we had some AMAZING friends help us with all our renos…pics and updates later this week, hopefully!

I learned how to cook in a completely dismantled kitchen, and we didn’t eat out once!

I have a wonderful friend coming to visit as of tomorrow, and I’m excited to see her.  We’ve been friends since we were 12.  Makes you wonder how old I am today, and how long we’ve been friends, eh??  ;)

Even though I’m not posting a regular menu plan for this week, we’re obviously still going to eat.  But for Taste the World I’ll be making Panekuken!  

This past year has been one that’s been filled with many joys and many challenges, but God has been by my side the entire time, and I’m thankful how he’s blessed me in the good and the not-so-good.

So, in honour of me, go and enjoy some super-chocolately ice cream!  It’s what I’d want you to do.  :) 

Oh, and I’m 26 today.  And no, I’ve never read the book "1984" even though I was born in that year. 

As mentioned in my Monday Menu Planner, I made German Sausage & Sauerkraut this past week!  It was my second dish in the Germany family of food.  Check out my first dish - a dessert!

Is this your first time here?  Not sure what all this "Taste the World" stuff is about?  Check out the previous posts to find out more info! 

As per usual, here is the picture of the food:

I fully admit that it’s not the most attractive looking meal!!  But for what it was worth, it tasted pretty good.

Here is the recipe if you haven’t checked it out yet.  The dish is pictured on the bottom right.  You can see the sauerkraut!  Now, I realized when I started making it that it wasn’t going to fill us up, especially since we’re doing renovations right now!  So I decided to whip up some pasta and find a German tasting sauce to go with it.  This is the sauce I used.  It was quite strong and as was the sauerkraut, so the combo was a little potent together.  However, each on their own they were just fine.  The sauerkraut dish was super easy to make, and it took no time to get it on the table.  I probably wouldn’t go out of my way to make it again, but it was nice!

Make sure you check out all the German recipes people have linked up so far!  Do you have one to add?  Just leave a comment and I’ll add it in! 

As promised, here are some pictures of our very first trip to German in 2005: 

This is us eating some delicious German food - FIVE years ago!!  Wow, time flies… 

The beautiful castle in Heidelberg, Germany. 

The gorgeous view of Heidelberg from the castle!! 

This post is linked to: Finer Things, Frugal Friday and Food on Fridays. 

HAPPY BLOGIVERSARY TO ME!  :)

It’s been exactly one year since I started blogging.  It’s been a fantastic and exciting journey getting to know all of you and sharing the things on my heart and mind.  In honour of such a special occasion, I thought I’d do something I’ve never done before…a vlog! Are you ready to see what I’m like "live and in person?"

Click on this link to see the video. (I reallllllllly tried for more than 24 hours to get this up embedded, but I can’t figure it out.  Help?!) 

The blog post I mentioned about my tea station is located here. To see some pictures of what our living room looked like before click here, and to see it with the hardwood, click here.  I’ll post more detailed pictures next week hopefully to give you a full run-down of all the ins and outs of our renovations and home improvements!

Thanks again for being fantastic readers - without you, this blog wouldn’t be half as interesting! Big love to you all!!!

Shonda, my new blogging/facebook pal has graciously given me the honour of receiving the Prolific Blogger Award!!  What a fun surprise!!  

Shonda is an awesome mom who blogs over at The Knowlton Nest.  She is a great supporter of various blogs and she loves to post handy tips and recipes that work for her.  She’s also an avid reader who LOVES the library!  :)  

Thank you, Shonda!!!

To find out all about what it means to get this award, check out this link.

And now, it is my distinct pleasure to pass along this award to seven fantastic ladies!!  *Drum roll please…*

1. Tammy @ The Sabourin Family - My pal from our seminary training school!  A great mom and friend of mine who is very crafty and loves to hi-light her awesome family.

2. Angela @ Domestic Godliness - A new friend who I met through some blog surfing.  She’s a fantastic woman with some amazing ideas for keeping a natural home.

3. Melissa @ Wit & Wisdom - A good friend of mine that I don’t see often enough!  She shares her hilarious yet wise thoughts via her blog.  She always gets me thinking! 

4. Sarah @ Clay In His Hands - I like frequenting Sarah’s blog because she’s down to earth and has some delicious recipes, plus she posts some great photography!

5. SnoWhite @ Joy in My Kitchen - SnoWhite is a big dessert lover and her recipes always make me drool!!  I love going to her blog to see the pictures of the new and creative recipes that she’s been working on.  Always inspirational! 

6. Melissa @ Home Is Where Your Heart Is - Another good friend of mine from my seminary days!  She’s a mom who’s living her lift to the fullest in the Prairies and sharing about her ministry and her family.

7.  Stacey @ Another Step Along the Path - Stacey is a friend of mine who blogs about what’s going on in her life and what’s touching her heart and she shares some recipes along the way.

You are all fantastic bloggers!!  Share this award with some other great bloggers that you love.  :) 

To be honest, generally cookies aren’t "healthy" for you in the grand scheme of things.  HOWEVER, if you’re going to make a cookie, I highly recommend the following cookies because they are simply amazing!!!

When we had our carpet-ripping party on Saturday (check out the before pic on that link, and then the after pics with some updates on this link!!)  I served up a plate of these cookies and people devoured them!  They are SO delicious.  Chewy but soft, and full of flavour.  :)  They’re sure to be a crowd pleaser!

I originally found this recipe because I wanted to make cookies that didn’t involve sugar as I was out of it.  So I researched cookies involving maple syrup as the main sweetener!  And I am SO glad that I did, or else I may not have discovered these delectable treats. 

And now, while you read this recipe, I’m off to make some more…

Healthy Oatmeal Chocolate Chip and Raisin Cookies

Changes I made: I didn’t use canola oil.  Instead I used melted butter one time and olive oil another time.  Both worked well!  Also, when I put the cookies on the baking sheet I used a fork to press them down a bit as they don’t spread when they cook. 

ENJOY!

P.S. This Thursday is my Blogiversary, so come back on Thursday for something fun!  :) 

This post is linked to: Tasty Tuesday, Tuesdays @ The Table and Tempt My Tummy.

It’s that time again…

Do you ever feel like your week is made up of all Mondays?!  Wow.  Time flies!

This past week has been CRAZY for home renos!!  I don’t know what I was thinking, but after a conversation with a friend on Wednesday, we ended up making plans to rip up all the carpet on our main floor!  We are blessed to have beautiful hardwood underneath and so it was worth the work.

Check out this link for the before photo…

Here is an after photo:

I promise that I’ll post pictures either later this week or next week (depending on how long it takes) of all the ins and outs of our renovations, and how we did certain things, etc.  It’s going to involve a lot of wall-painting, baseboard painting, creating a window in a wall, painting cabinets and painting a fireplace!!!  Stay tuned… 

Today, as I type this, we have another friend (husband of said friend who convinced us to rip up the carpet!) helping Peter move the baseboards down.  Then this coming week we’re going to paint.  And it’s going to be A LOT of work. But we can do it.  I want to paint our living room/dining room area a red (not sure of the shade) and then the hallway area a more neutral tan colour (again, not sure of the shade).  Also, we’re going to paint our kitchen.  But this is the big debate: do we paint the kitchen the same tan colour as the hallway and paint the cabinets a deep chocolate brown?  Or do we paint the walls a deep chocolate brown and paint the cupboards white?  Please leave me a comment with your advice!  Here is the kitchen (I apologize for the poor lighting!):

Now, speaking of kitchens, on to the menu for the week!

Monday: Middle Eastern Rice with Black Beans and Chickpeas (substituting ground beef), Couscous, Veggies

Tuesday: Quinoa with Carrots and Raisins

Wednesday: Pasta, Homemade Tomato Sauce with ground beef, Veggies

Thursday: German Sausage and Sauerkraut (I’m making this for "Taste the World"!  Come back on Friday for a review including a picture!)

Friday: Red Lentil Curry, Veggies, Naan Bread

Saturday: Leftovers

Sunday: Leftovers 

See what others are eating this week! 

My husband grew up in Germany and so I’m very excited to embark on German food!  I probably won’t live up to any of his expectations for what he ate as a child, but I’ll try.  :)   

For the first German dish I made kugel.  This isn’t a new dish to me as it’s one that we make each Easter, and have for the last 3 years.  However, I couldn’t find my original kugel recipe, so based on this one and my memory I created my own version of it.  It’s a pretty easy recipe anyway as people alter it to their own tastes all over Europe.

To read more about the history of kugel, check out this link.

Here is the picture of what my kugel looks like after being baked:

Here is my own recipe for Kugel:

Ingredients: 4-5 cups of dry egg noodles cooked and drained, 1 can of apricots, 1 cup of cottage cheese, 3/4 stick of butter melted, 2 eggs beaten, 2 tbsp. lemon juice, 1-2 cup of raisins, 1/2 cup of sugar, 1 1/2 tsp. cinnamon, 1 cup plain yogurt, 1 tsp. salt.

Directions: Mix all together and pour into a well-greased shallow casserole dish.  Cook at 350F for 45 mins. 

That’s it!  You can alter the fruit to your own tastes.  I always use apricots and raisins, but other recipes call for apples, pineapple, etc.  I am allergic to pineapple so apricots work well for me.  

It’s a sweet dessert dish but it’s not too sweet.  It’s very filling and heavy, so you really only need a small amount.  The dessert would probably serve 6-8 people comfortably.  Since there’s only two of us it provides us with some delicious leftovers.  :)  We really enjoyed it as per usual.  I served it to three different people outside of our home as well, and they liked it too!!  Most were a little hesitant as it doesn’t "look" like dessert - but they loved it!  

It is my hope through this weekly segment that all of us would learn to cook different tastes from around the world, and share with one another our successes and failures and our overall learning experience.

Here is how it works: I will set a theme country that will last for a month.  On Mondays you will see one of the recipes in my menu planner, and on Fridays I post my segment of Taste the World where I post pictures of the food, give history about the food from that particular country, share a recipe, share my success or failure at cooking it, etc.!  The sky is the limit, but it will be based upon that theme country. 

How can you be involved?  Simple.  On Fridays please feel free to link up to your own Taste the World in my comment section.  This link should take us to where you discuss a recipe from the theme country (and only that theme country!!), pics from your attempt at making the theme dish of the week, your successes and failures, and your insight on cooking the food of that country.  You can also add the button located at the bottom of this post to your own posts so that people know where to link back to.  At the very least, please make it known that you are linking to Taste the World @ Hospitality Haven.  It’s nice for people to be able to find the central zone for all recipes of that theme!  Once you leave your comment and link I will update the post to reflect an ongoing list that people can easily access.

If you already have existing dishes on your blog from the country of GERMANY (and only Germany!), please feel free to link up today directly to those posts.  This will help me and others as we prepare to cook from Germany!  Over the course of the next few weeks I’ll be learning to master at some of each of the following (depending on what I can do!):    

-Appetizer

-Main dish with meat

-Main dish without meat

-Side dish

-Dessert

-Bread

I really hope you’ll enter into this challenge with me and enjoy learning about and cooking different tastes of the world!  I’m excited to Taste the World - are you?? 

Recipes Entered So Far (feel free to keep commenting with new ones and link back to Taste the World!): 

Beverages: 

Hot Spiced Orange Juice by Alison @ Hospitality Haven  

Main Dishes:

German Meatloaf by Sarah @ Mum in Bloom

Side Dishes:

Sauerkraut by Cara @ Health, Home, and Happiness 

German Potato Salad by SnoWhite @ Finding Joy in My Kitchen

Spatzle by Lindsay @ When the Smoke Alarm Goes Off… 

Desserts:

German Chocolate Toffee Cake by Courtney @ Women Living Well 

Pfeffernuesse Cookies by Sarah @ Mum in Bloom

Black Forest Cake by Quinn @ On Just A Couple Acres

Panekuken (German Pancake) by SnoWhite @ Finding Joy in My Kitchen

German Fruit Pancake by SnoWhite @ Finding Joy in My Kitchen

Popover Muffins by Katie @ goodLife {eats} 

German Cut-Out Cookies by Katie @ goodLife {eats} 

Next week I’ll post some pics of our trips to Germany as well!

This post is linked to: Finer Things, Frugal Friday and Food on Fridays. 

I am ECSTATIC for Saturday to come!!!  We are FINALLY ripping up the carpets on our main floor.  All of the owners previous to us have had pets, and I’m allergic to dogs and my husband is allergic to cats, so quite frankly there’s a whole host of things in that carpet that isn’t working for us.  Also, we have so many spills on the carpet that it’ll just be nice reveal the lovely hardwood underneath!! 

We’re having a carpet-ripping party, so hopefully it’ll be lots of fun as we entertain some friends who are graciously helping us!  It’ll be messy…and dusty…and time consuming…but hopefully well worth it. 

We’ve tried to over compensate with decor and whatnot, but up close and personal, the carpet has a life of its own… Here is what our living room looks like currently (you can’t really see the wear and tear…except look at the chair, and look right down on the floor…see that dark spot?  Yup.  It’s tea.):

I’ll be sure to post a picture(s) after the weekend to show you what it looks like!  We’ll be painting in the next couple of weeks as well, and then EVENTUALLY we’ll get the floors sanded/stained so they’re up to par.  But until then, we’ll enjoy them as-is.

Any colour suggestions on the walls??  The natural hardwood is a rather light yellowy colour, and for now we’re stuck with the furniture you see.  We like earthy, deep colours.  Our bathroom is deep red, and we have fairly beige bedrooms (it’s not deep, but at least it’s not offensive, and not weird blue/gray like our living room is now…). 

I’ll be serving blackberry muffins, perogies or chili (depending on whether I have vegetarians or non-vegetarians helping), salad, homemade bread and perhaps some chips to keep the troops full! 

If you have any tips on home renos involving carpet ripping, staining, sanding, or feeding a multitude of people, leave a comment! 

Jam is absolutely AMAZING for cooking meat.  My brother used to eat cheese and jam sandwiches when we were younger which never appealed to me…but THIS appeals to me! 

The sweetness of the jam is delicious and it tenderizes the meat so beautifully.  You can use store bought or homemade.  I’d like to share with you a few simple recipes for meat that incorporate jam.  Regardless of the type of jam that the recipe mentions, I’m certain you could substitute it for your favourite flavour!

Strawberry Chicken: I originally discovered this one when looking for a way to use up some strawberry jam!

Ingredients - 4 chicken breasts or pieces, 2 tbsp. olive oil, salt and pepper to taste, 1 tsp. butter, 2 tsp. onion chopped fine, 1/4 tsp. chopped garlic, 4 tsp. strawberry jam, 1 tsp. sugar, 8 sliced fresh strawberries (optional), fresh spinach leaves (optional).

Rub chicken pieces with olive oil and salt and pepper.  Broil or grill until chicken is completely cooked throughout.  While chicken is cooking, prepare the strawberry glaze: in a small sauceplan add butter, onion, garlic, jam and sugar.  Heat for 5 mins. over medium heat, stirring so ingredients are well blended.  When chicken is done, brush with glaze and continue grilling for two minutes.  Place chicken on a bed of fresh spinach and drizzle glaze on top.  Garnish with strawberries.  DELICIOUS in the summer! 

Sweet Chicken: A friend served this at her house, and I grabbed up the recipe!

Ingredients - 1 bottle of Russian dressing, 1/2 jar of apricot jam, 1 pkg. of onion soup mix, 2 lbs. of chicken pieces or chicken breasts. 

Place chicken in a dish.  Mix together other ingredients and pour over chicke.  Bake in the oven at 350F for 1 hour covered, and uncover for the last 15 mins.  OR cook in the slow cooker on low for 6-8 hours or on high for 3-4 hours.

Grape Jelly Meatballs: My mom always made this one for guests with a big batch of rice!  Yummy!

Ingredients - 1 bottle of chili sauce, 1 jar of grape jelly, 1 bag of meatballs (80 or so)

Place meatballs the crockpot and top with the mixed chili sauce and grape jelly.  Stir, and let simmer for as long as it takes for the meatballs to thaw! 

How do you use jam in your cooking?

This post is linked to: Tasty Tuesday, Tuesdays @ The Table, Tempt My Tummy and Ultimate Recipe Swap. 

I’d be a liar if I said I followed my menu last week.  In fact, I think we only ate one meal on the list.  You see, we had a chaotic week, and we both came down with colds (that I’m still battling)…and so, I made some soups, we were out for some meals with some awesome people, and we just generally didn’t follow it.  BUT, it was there in case.  And so I’m not too worried.  We’ll get back on track this week!

Monday: Roast, Yorkshires, Veggies, Kugel (see this post for the details)

Tuesday: Fish, Potatoes, Veggies

Wednesday: Homemade refried beans, tortilla chips, veggies

Thursday: Good ol’ fashioned spaghetti with ground beef tomato sauce and garlic toast.

Friday: Middle Eastern Rice with Black Beans and Chickpeas (substituting ground turkey for ground beef), Couscous, Naan Bread, Veggies

Saturday: Leftovers

Sunday: Leftovers

Come back on Friday to start exploring German food with me!  As a part of "Taste the World" I’ll be making Kugel this week and telling you all about it on Friday.  Plus you can link up your own German recipes and see pictures from my trips to Germany! 

See what others are eating this week! 

This week has been interesting to say the least.  The lack of posts is attributed to a very busy real life.  We had house guests staying with us (who were fabulous!), various people and situations that required our attention, and all of it was very physically, emotionally, mentally and spiritually exhausting.  And on top of that, we are both sick with colds.  Delightful.  :)  

HOWEVER, God is amazingly good, and that is something that has been proven to me over and over this week.  I apologize for lack of interesting reading material, but I know you’ll forgive me.  After all, it’s Easter!  The thought that came to me this week is this: In light of this being Holy Week, and in light of the incredible forgiveness, love and mercy that God has bestowed on us, I’m working on expressing that in my own life.  To those I have hurt, I am sorry.  To those who have hurt me, I forgive you.  And to everyone: remember the incomprehensible gift that God has blessed us with.

With that said, let me give you a run-down of how Taste the World: Chinese Food has gone!

I have truly enjoyed cooking Chinese food.  If you want to see all the recipes that others submitted for Chinese food, go here.  Here is a list of what I cooked:

Easy Chinese Fish Fillet

Egg Drop Soup & Chinese Dumplings

Baked Teriyaki Chicken

Spiced Chinese Fish Fillet

Almond Cookies

Overall, although I enjoyed it, I didn’t cook everything I wanted to cook.  Life happens, and so I’m not upset about that.  I look forward to working on my next Taste the World segment which will focus on German food!  I posted a recipe for Kugel on my menu planner, but alas, as you can tell, I have not posted a review.  There are two reasons for this: 1.) I am not cooking it until Saturday, and 2.) I just don’t have the energy to post anything else about it today!

So, stay tuned next Friday for an update on how the Kugel turns out.

Blessings to all of you on your Easter!  He is Risen! 

 This post is linked to: Food on Fridays.

Sorry for the delay in posting.  I had a busy week, and an especially busy weekend!  Needless to say, I got some well-deserved rest this morning and I’m now updating my menu plan for this week!

We’re trying again to not buy anything but work with what we have in our freezer and fridge. 

This week we have friends staying with us for a few days while the floors in their house are re-done, so our menu might go astray depending on what happens for today and tomorrow.

Monday: Masoor Daal, Fresh Veggies, Naan Bread.

Tuesday: Not sure…this is one of those days we have people staying with us.  

Wednesday: 

Thursday: Fish, Potatoes, Veggies.

Friday: West Coast Enchiladas (using beef instead of chicken). 

Saturday: Roast in honour of Easter.  We also traditionally eat Kugel for dessert at Easter (I make a variation on this recipe).  The Kugel recipe is a part of my "Taste the World" Fridays!  Come back on Friday to see a picture of the recipe and a review.  This week we’re starting to explore German food!  I’ll also post some pictures of our various trips to Germany over the years. 

Sunday: Leftovers

This week I decided to try a Chinese dessert.  Now, these aren’t overly "Chinese", but at the same time, desserts with almonds are very typical from what I understand.  So trying this was a good option!

Take a look at past posts to find out what "Taste the World" is all about.

I made Almond Cookies, as I mentioned in my Monday Dinner Menu Planner.  Here is a picture of the cookies:

They were DELICIOUS!  Really soft, chewy and light.  I served these to two separate groups of people who were at my house and both groups loved them.  A few people said, "did you really make these yourself??"  Now, I think they looked/tasted completely homemade, but hey!  The compliment was nice.  :)  The recipe called for 1 cup of flour, and I used 1/2 cup of whole wheat and 1/2 cup of white flour.  This didn’t seem to affect the texture, so that was good.  When I ground up my almonds to make almond flour I didn’t get it completely "chunk free", but I think that added to them being authentically homemade.  Overall, a very pleasant result!

Here are a couple of pictures from our trip to Hong Kong:

I am holding some very large prawns in that net…and no, I don’t know the man next to me.  We were just touring together.  But he seemed nice!  

I just really like this picture…it was taken in the Tai O Fishing Village. 

So, are you adventurous enough to join in on the challenge?!  Link to Taste the World @ Hospitality Haven and come back each week to link up how it’s going for you.  Make sure that this coming Monday you post a recipe for whatever Chinese dish you’re cooking.  Starting in April we’ll be trying…GERMAN FOOD!  Get your links ready and you’ll have the opportunity to share with others your German specialties! 

 This post is linked to: Finer Things, Frugal Friday and Food on Fridays.

I have made this card a bunch of times, and in multiple different ways!  It is something that can be done for birthdays, showers, weddings, you name it!  For weddings I have incorporated recipes for date nights, and their colours.  For birthdays I have included pictures, Bible verses, etc.  I think you could do this for Easter as well, incorporating Scripture, pictures from last year, etc.  Here is how you do it:

Supplies:

Two 6" squares of printed paper (not cardstock) for the covers

Three 8 1/2" squares of cardstock for the pages

Two 4 1/2" squares of cardboard

24" of ribbon

Making the Pages:

The three 8 1/2" squares of cardstock are folded into something similar to a basic origami square base, and are then taped together into a collapsing accordion shape.

Bring one side over to meet the opposite side and fold in half (book fold).  Open and match the two remaining sides and fold in half again.  Turn the paper over so the creases appear as "bumps" rather than valleys, and take one corner and match with the opposite corner, making a diagonal fold.  With the side facing up that has a "mountain" diagonal fold, match the corners of the two remaining full squares and tuck in the two squares that are divided into triangles (by the diagonal folds).

Overlap the three sheets joining the square blocks to form an accordion chain.

Making the Album Covers:

Wrap the 2 cardboard squares with the 6" square patterned paper.  Attach the length of ribbon across the middle of the back of one of the cover pieces (place the mid-point of the ribbon at the midpoint of the 4 1/2" square, the ends of the ribbon extending beyond the sides).  Tape each cover piece to the top and bottom squares of the stack of pages.  The ribbon wraps around the card and ties it shut.

It works for me! 

I have had MANY issues with under cooked or over cooked brown rice.  It’s either crunchy or soggy.  Neither of which is desirable in my opinion!  So I was on the hunt for a good way to cook it.  This is what I discovered as the perfect way to cook brown rice:

1. Soak your brown rice in water for a few hours.  This will help break it down a bit.

2. Drain the rice.

3. Fill a pot with 3 cups of water per 1 cup of rice.

4. Bring the water to a boil.  Pour in the rice.

5. Reduce the heat to medium-high.  Stir every once in a while for 30 minutes.

6. Remove it from heat and cover it for 10 minutes.

7. Fluff and eat!

So far this has worked for me and made life MUCH easier!  So long crunch and soggy brown rice! 

This post is linked to: Tasty Tuesday, Tuesday @ The Table, and Tempt My Tummy. 

My goodness last week flew by and I can hardly believe we’re into a new week!  Crazy!  We had our 5-year-old nephew last week, and we had lots of fun!  We ate some kid friendly meals, and had a St. Patrick’s Day Party!  How was your week?

This week I am attempting to use up things we already have in our freezer/cupboards/fridge in the attempts of not going shopping.  I think all I’ll need to get is an onion, so that’s pretty good!  

Of course, I’m hosting a bridal shower on Saturday, so I’ll need to grab a few things for that, but ultimately the weekday meals should be all from my house!

Monday: Beef pot roast, potatoes, carrots, yorkshire puddings (If you’ve never made a roast, see below for details!  It’s really easy!)

Tuesday: Turkey pot pie filling (I made it after Christmas and put it in the freezer!) on toast, carrots on the side.

On Tuesday we also have a meeting at our house in the afternoon, so I’ll be making Guacamole to serve with homemade crackers, Moroccan Lentil Soup (NEW!  See below!), Cheesy Pepper Bread, and Almond Cookies.  The Almond Cookies are a part of my "Taste the World" Friday theme!  Check it out and join in!  Come back on Friday for a picture and a written review, plus some pics from my trip to Hong Kong this past October! 

And THEN, we have a meeting at our house at night too, so I’ll be thawing my pear crisp from the freezer and serving that with tea!  BUSY DAY!! 

Wednesday: Homemade pizza with some leftover homemade pizza sauce, sausage, assorted veggies including spinach, onion, carrots (shredded), and olives!  Cheese too, of course!    

Thursday: Channa Masala, Homemade Naan Bread, Carrots on the side.

Friday: Potluck at my house.  I’ll be making Pumpkin Soup and Homemade Bread!

Saturday: Bridal Shower at my house.  I’ll be doing the punch (cranberry juice, ginger ale and frozen blackberries), making my surprise layer dip and providing a cake!  Haven’t decided if I’ll make it or buy it yet… 

Sunday: Leftovers! 

Roast: Okay, don’t be daunted by a roast!  It’s the TASTIEST meal that requires very little effort - just time.  And not much of yours!  So that’s the good news.  Here is what you need:

Roast (any size will do!), spices (I use salt, pepper, rosemary and thyme), butter, minced garlic, and it’s optional to have carrots, onions and potatoes.

For a small THAWED roast, cook at 350F for 1.5-2 hours.  For a small FROZEN roast, cook at 350F for 2.5-3 hours.

Add water about 1 inch deep to cover the bottom of your roast pan.  Put the roast into the pan.  Cover each side with butter and sprinkle your spices on each side (if you don’t like the spices I mentioned you can change them up!  It’s your choice!).  Throw in your carrots and potatoes if you’re interested, and put the lid on.  Put it in the oven and wait the allotted amount of time.  

When it’s done, use the liquid in the bottom of the pan to make the gravy.  Add a bit of beef bouillon, some corn starch and heat it in a saucepan to thicken.  

Enjoy! 

Moroccan Lentil Soup: 1 tbsp. oil, 1 chopped onion, 1 chopped carrot, 1 minced garlic clove, 1 tsp. cumin, 1 tsp. onion salt, 1/2 tsp. nutmeg, 1/2 tsp. cinnamon, 1/2 tsp. ginger, 1/2 tsp. coriander, 1/2 tsp. pepper, 4 cups chicken broth, 1 1/2 cups dried lentils, parsley, yogurt.  

Heat oil in a large saucepan set over medium heat.  Add the onion, garlic, and all other spices; cook, stirring often for 5 mins.  Add chicken broth and bring to a boil.  Cook lentils as per instructions.  Rinse lentils and drain well.  Add to pan; return to boil.  Simmer for 7-10 mins.  Working in batches, puree soup in a blender or food processor until smooth - or almost smooth if you prefer a more rustic soup.  Return to saucepan (or crock pot!) and reheat.  Stir in parsley and serve with a dollop of yogurt in the centre! 

See what others are eating this week! 

We had another yummy week here in our house featuring a Chinese dish!  Just TWO more Chinese dishes and then we’ll be on to another country…any guesses?!  I’m still debating between two countries, but let’s just say it’s east of North America…

Do I have your interest peaked??  :)

If you’re not sure what all this "Taste the World" jazz is all about, you can check out past posts to see what I’m talking about.  

As mentioned in my Monday Menu Planner, this week I cooked Spiced Chinese Fish Fillet.  Firstly, here’s a picture for you:

Now on to the review…

It was really very tasty (no pun intended!)!!  You can see the breaded fish fillet here on the plate, and on top is the tomato/green onion "garnish".  The breading was very tasty and definitely had a hint of Chinese food as it included the Chinese 5 spice.  The recipe only calls for the 5 spice in the first set of breading (read the recipe to know what I’m talking about), and not the second set.  But I included it in both anyway, and doubled it.  I think it was still subtle but yummy!  Also, the tomato/onion garnish was cooked with soy sauce, but it was light and tasty and added a different flavour to the dish.  Overall, a very delicious meal!  My husband LOVED it.

Here are a couple of pictures of our trip to Hong Kong: 

Mmm…wouldn’t you want to pick up some eels or snakes for dinner??? 

What about preparing your food in the alley way? 

Or storing your LIVE chickens in a mesh bag?

Every culture is different - and so are their food and safety issues!  :)

Are you adventurous enough to join in??  Link up to Taste the World @ Hospitality Haven and come back each Friday to link up how it’s going for you.  Make sure that each Monday if you post a menu plan that you include a Chinese dish you’re trying for the week.  I look forward to sharing in this adventure with you!

This post is linked to: Finer Things, Frugal Friday, Food on Friday. 

As Pastors we have a lot of opportunities to meet amazing people who have experienced God’s transformation in their life. 

Heather, a girl from our Church, shared her story with a local newspaper and through it has been blessed to share her story with many other teen girls who have contacted her for help!  Heather is amazing, and the transformation God has done in her life is fantastic!

Read the story to be inspired.

Happy St. Patrick’s Day!!!

Here is a picture of us in Ireland almost 2 years ago at the Cliffs of Moher:

Ireland is SO beautiful! 

Also, since my 5 year old nephew is visiting, and we have other commitments tomorrow night, we decided to have a pre-St. Patrick’s Day party last night!  Here are some pictures of our fun:

We made a fort in our dining room out of chairs, and green blankets!  We had Irish music playing, and we sat inside the fort and ate "green" food!  We had my perfect guacamole and smoothies…and although they’re purple smoothies, they had green sprinkles on top and…….SPINACH!  Little did he know.  :)  The spinach was good for him, green, and he didn’t have a clue!  We also read a story about St. Patrick that I got from the library.  All that was followed up by a few rounds of uno!  He beat both of us.  :)  It was good fun all around! 

In honour of my Irish ancestors, here is a fabulously easy scalloped potatoes recipe!

Ingredients: 2 tbsp. butter, 1 onion peeled and chopped, 6 medium-sized potatoes thinly sliced, sprinkle of salt and pepper, 2/3 cup milk (I’ve used regular, soy and coconut, all of which are fine!), 2 cups grated cheese.

Put butter and onion in a pan and saute until tender.  Put half the potatoes into a large casserole dish.  Spread half of the onion mixture over the potatoes.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Put half of the cheese on top.  Arrange the rest of the potatoes evenly over that layer.  Spread the remaining onion mixture over the potatoes.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Pour the milk over top.  Sprinkle cheese on top.  Bake at 375F for 50-60 mins.

Do you celebrate St. Patrick’s Day?  If so, how?

It works for me! 

A couple of weeks back I tried making guacamole for the first time EVER!  I think I started an addiction…seriously.  It is WAY better than salsa!!!  So with a combined bunch of recipes for inspiration, here is my personal recipe for guacamole:

Alison’s Guacamole:

2 ripe avocados, 1/4 red onion diced, 1 clove of minced garlic, 2 tbsp. cilantro, 1 tbsp. lime juice, 1/2 tsp. sea salt, a dash of freshly grated black pepper, 1/2 tsp. ground cumin, 1/2 tsp. ground cayenne.

Mash it all up together and chill in the refrigerator until ready!  A friendly reader also told me that if you have leftover guacamole that you should keep the seed and add it to the bowl as it will keep the guacamole fresh.

So go grab your tortilla chips and start eating!!   

This post is linked to: Tasty Tuesday, Tuesdays @ The Table and Tempt My Tummy. 

This week I have to be a little more "kid-friendly" as my 5 year old nephew is visiting!  We’re excited to have him.  Hopefully he’ll eat what I cook, but you never know!  It’s hard when it’s not your kid, so they’re used to different foods!  Nevertheless, it’ll be a great week.

Monday: Spiced Chinese Fish Fillet NEW!  This is a part of my "Taste the World" Friday theme.  Check it out and join in!  Come back on Friday for a picture and a written review, plus some pics from my trip to Hong Kong this past October!

Tuesday: Sloppy Lentils, Carrots

Wednesday: Mac ‘n’ Cheese, Carrots

Thursday: Meatballs, Mashed Potatoes, Veggies

Friday: Quesadilla Torte (with ground beef and beans)

Saturday: Leftovers

Sunday: Potluck 

See what others are eating this week! 

Well it’s Friday again and you know what that means…it’s "Taste the World" time!!  Feel free to look back at the intro to see what I’m talkin’ about, and click on "Taste the World" on the sidebar and you can easily access the previous recipes that have been discussed!  Right now we’re focusing on Chinese food until the end of the month, and then in April we’ll be trying out a new country’s food!  YUM!  If you have a favourite Chinese recipe, please feel free to leave a link in the comment section for me to share with others!

So, as mentioned in my menu planner from Monday, I made Baked Teriyaki Chicken this past week!  I didn’t do fried rice, but just regular rice and stir-fried veggies.  If you missed the recipe link from my blogger buddy Emily @ Inspired Homemaking, check out the menu plan here!

Firstly, here is the picture of the meal:

Now on to the review…

DELICIOUS!  We really enjoyed it.  The ingredients definitely reminded me of my Quebecois Chicken recipe, but there was an extra zest (presumably the cayenne pepper!) that tasted really delicious.  Paired with the rice and veggies it definitely felt "Asian"!  Both my husband and I really enjoyed it, and my husband’s plate was practically licked clean!  So all in all, a winner from Hospitality Haven! 

The only variation that I made on this recipe is that it calls for it to be baked in the oven and covered with the juices on and off throughout the baking process.  However, this week is ridiculous for me, so I cheated.  I marinaded the chicken overnight in the ingredients, and then I put it all in the crock pot for the day on low for 4-6 hours.  I’m sure it wasn’t as "baked", but it still worked and was still very tasty! 

Here are a couple more pictures of our trip to Hong Kong: 

Here we are with the Jumbo Floating Restaurant.  It’s a HUGE restaurant that is a boat that floats!  Very cool. 

Here are some random eggs.  Our tour guide didn’t know the name in English.  Any guesses?

Are you adventurous enough to join in??  Link up to Taste the World here @ Hospitality Haven and come back each Friday to link up how it’s going for you.  Make sure that each Monday if you post a menu plan that you include a Chinese dish you’re trying for the week.  I look forward to sharing in this adventure with you! 

This post is linked to: Finer Things, Frugal Friday, Food on Friday.

I don’t know about you, but we’re not rolling in money. However, I do have the time to spend with my husband!  For his birthday (which was Valentine’s Day!), instead of spending oodles of money on a gift, or a dinner out (see what I made!), we chose to spend the day together doing his favourite things.  Mostly that just included wandering around downtown going in and out of shops together. 

However, I decided to make that slightly more interesting by preparing 14 things that he had to take pictures of (14 because he was born on the 14th!).  Here is the list of what he had to take pics of, and some of the pics:

1. A building with a unique sign.

2. Something red.

3. Something that reminds you of our first date.

 (This is how we held hands during the movie!  Don’t laugh…we were 16/17!)

4. Architecture that makes you say, "wow!"

5. Something that most people will not notice.

6. Nature in the city.

 (I LOVE Cherry blossom trees!)

7. Love.

8. Contrast.

9. Seeing double.

10. Something with your birth date.

11. A simple message.

12. Reality vs. Fiction.

13. A throwback to the past.

14. How you will remember this day.

I came up with this list myself, but feel free to steal it and change it up!  It was lots of fun, and it gave us a creative purpose to our walk!  What are some ways that you like to save money and create memories instead?

I’m not necessarily some fashion guru, and I don’t look great everyday.  I know, it’s shocking.  Somedays we’re lucky I’m clothed and remotely clean!    However, there are a couple of things in my books that are "must haves"!  Let me share those with you:

1. Pashminas - LOTS and LOTS of pashminas!  You can get these for super cheap at various stalls in markets, malls, and beyond!  I have many of them in various different colours, and they can easily change up our outfit!  Here are a couple of ways that you can wear the pashmina (Keep in mind these pics were taken at midnight, and I was tired, hence no head-shots!):

2. Hoop Earrings and Stud Earrings.  If you have pierced ears there are two classic types of earrings to hold onto.  I have studs that are fake and from wal-mart.  But you know what?  A ton of people ask me if they’re real diamonds!  Either those people aren’t smart, or my earrings just look that good!    Either way, they’re awesome.  And as for hoops, I like ‘em big.  But if you’re not interested in big ones, small ones will do too!  Choose gold or silver, but you’ll be happy you have them! (Dude, you can totally tell that a.) I am growing out my hair and thus look like I have a mullet and b.) I wore one of each earring for the pics…)

3. My wedding rings.  This one is just a sappy one for those romantics out there!!  I always wear my wedding rings, and they’re a reminder to me of the love and commitment I have to my husband!  No matter what I look like, I’m wearing them, and I know that regardless of how I feel that day, my husband loves me.   

What are your favourite fashion accessories?

It works for me!

Meatloaf is one of my husband’s favourite meals, and so I thought I’d share with you my favourite meatloaf recipe.

Easy Meatloaf: 1 cup finely chopped onions, 1/4 cup italian dressing, 2 lb. ground beef, 3/4 cup ketchup divided, 1 pkg. stuffing mix (OR 3 cups of bread crumbs), 1 cup water, 2 eggs, 1/2 cup shredded cheese.

Preheat oven to 375F.  Cook onions in dressing on medium heat for 8-10 mins. until golden.  Remove from heat; cool slightly.  Combine meat, 1/4 cup ketchup, stuffing/bread crumbs, water, eggs and onions; mix well.  Place meat mixture in loaf pan.  Spread with remaining ketchup.  Bake 55-60 mins.  Sprinkle with cheese; bake 2 mins. until cheese melts.

Voila!  Add a side of mashed potatoes, and some steamed veggies and you’re good to go!

This is linked to: Tempt My Tummy, Tuesdays @ The Table and Tasty Tuesday. 

I don’t know about where you live, but where I live the sun has been shining brightly this past week!  We had a couple of bouts of rain, but nothing that could dampen the overwhelming beauty of the sun of the previous days!  :)  God is good!  Here is my menu for this week:

Monday: Baked Teriyaki Chicken with rice (potentially fried rice, not sure yet) and veggies - NEW!  This is a part of my "Taste the World" Friday theme.  Check it out and join in!  Come back on Friday for a picture and a written review, plus some pics from my trip to Hong Kong this past October!

Tuesday: Lentil Casserole (I’m using this recipe for the condensed cream soup) - NEW!

Wednesday: Steak, roasted potatoes, veggies

Thursday: Confetti Quinoa - NEW!

Friday: Ground beef stew (no recipe, just a basic broth, meat and veggies soup, perhaps with some white beans thrown in!)

Saturday: Leftovers

Sunday: Leftovers 

Get some new recipe ideas here! 

Go ahead and check back in time at the intro and then the next post to see what this whole "Taste the World" thing is about!  I’m tasting various recipes from around the world each Friday and reporting to you each recipe!  This month I’m working through Chinese food, and lots of people sent me some great recipes to try out.  You should take a look at those!  Also, if you have a favourite Chinese recipe, leave a comment on this post and I’ll be sure to add it to the list! 

As mentioned in my menu planner from Monday, I made the recipe for Egg Drop Soup and Chinese Dumplings.  If you missed the recipe links, check out my menu plan to see those!

So here is my review for each item:

Egg Drop Soup: I followed the recipe pretty closely except I didn’t make the gyoza as listed in the recipe.  In general, we both really enjoyed it.  Good flavour, enjoyable texture, and my husband said that it tasted really "Chinese" to him!  So that’s a good review!

Chinese Dumplings: Epic fail.  Seriously.  It was gross, and we didn’t finish them.  I think part of the problem is the following: a.) I didn’t use meat in the filling as I wanted to make them vegetarian, so perhaps they didn’t hold together well. b.) I used whole wheat flour.  White probably would’ve been better. c.) The dough recipe in the second link called for water, and I used double the water because it didn’t feel right.  And then they got soggy.  And it was gross.  d.) I boiled them instead of frying/steaming them.  I would DEFINITELY change this part if I was adventurous enough to try it again.  They fell apart, and then water got in them, and if you look closely you can see the purple cabbage water around my soup…So all in all, I should’ve followed directions and not strayed so much.  But then again, I like to be creative, so if I can’t be creative enough, then I probably won’t make them again.  Oh well!

Do you have a good Chinese dumpling recipe that’s easy?  If so, leave a comment with a link!  

Here is a picture of us eating dim sum in Hong Kong:

And here’s a picture of me standing in a typical street in Hong Kong: 

Are you adventurous enough to join in??  Link up to Taste the World here @ Hospitality Haven and come back each Friday to link up how it’s going for you.  Make sure that each Monday if you post a menu plan that you include the Chinese dish you’re trying for that week.  I look forward to sharing in this adventure with you! 

This post is linked to: Finer Things, Frugal Friday, Food on Fridays and Foodie Fridays!  

Sometimes getting inspiration for making meals is a little challenging.  I love checking out other blogs and doing searches online to find some fresh ideas, but I also enjoy using Kraft’s handy tools!  

On their website they have a spot where you can enter in up to three ingredients and search for meals with those ingredients.  This is perfect if you’re trying to avoid grocery shopping, or if you’re running late and need to whip up something quick!  Let me give you a quick tutorial:

For Canadian Residents:

1. Check out this link. 

2. You can see on the left-hand side the spot to add up to three ingredients.  Go ahead: test it!  Add in three things you have at home, and choose the type of meal.  See what inspiration it gives you!

For American Residents:

1. Check out this link. 

2. You can see on the right-hand side the spot to add up to three ingredients.  Go ahead: test it!  Add in three things you have at home, and choose the type of meal.  See what inspiration it gives you! 

Another feature I enjoy about Kraft is that they send out e-mails with recipes included in them that you can access straight from your inbox!  This is fabulous and they always seem to pop up just when I need an idea for a potluck or a gathering.  Here is how you can sign up for those e-mails:

For Canadian Residents:

1. Click on this link.  

2. Fill out the info to be a member.  It’s FREE so don’t stress about it.  And I’ve never received any obnoxious e-mails from them. 

3. Follow all the prompts and enter the info you need.  You’ll see the ability to get the weekly newsletters at some point in your sign-up process. 

I know for Canadian residents that when you’re signing up you’re given the option to receive their FREE quarterly food magazine.  I signed up for this, and it’s AWESOME!  I get a FREE magazine delivered to me quarterly and it always has awesome ideas.  Take advantage of that opportunity!  Americans, I’m not sure if your sign-up process has this, but if it does, make sure to do it!  And let me know in the comment section.  :) 

For American Residents:

1. Click on this link. 

2. Fill out the info to be a member.  It’s FREE so don’t stress about it.  And I’ve never received any obnoxious e-mails from them. 

3. Follow all the prompts and enter the info you need.  You’ll see the ability to get the weekly newsletters at some point in your sign-up process. 

So that’s my tip for you guys!  It works for me! 

When it’s still a littly chilly outside, I love to eat this really quick but really comforting pumpkin soup!  It’s one of my favourites.

Pumpkin Soup: 2 tbsp. butter, 1 small onion chopped fine, 2 tbsp. flour, 1 tsp. salt, 2 cups of chicken broth, 2 cups of cooked mashed pumpkin (I use canned), 2 cups of milk, 1/4 tsp. nutmeg, 1/8 tsp. thyme. 

Melt butter in a large pot.  Add onion and saute until soft but not brown.  Blend in flour and salt.  Add broth, pumpkin, milk and spices.  Cook, stirring constantly until slightly thickened.

That’s it!  It’s really delicious with Cheesey Pepper Bread!  Enjoy!

This post is linked to: Tempt My Tummy, Tuesdays @ The Table, Tasty Tuesday and Crockpot Wednesday.  

What a lovely week it has been!  Very busy, as per usual, but I’m looking forward to seeing what God has in store this coming week.  God is good!  

Monday: Beef Fajitas and Carrots (I might try making my own guacamole too!  Anyone have a recipe?!)

Tuesday: Egg Drop Soup & Chinese Dumplings (a combo of this recipe and this recipe)  This is part of my "Taste the World" meme!  Check it out and join in!  Come back on Friday for a picture and written update, plus some pics of our trip to Hong Kong from this past October.  READ THE REVIEW OF THESE RECIPES HERE!

Wednesday: Pasta with sausage and veggies and an alfredo sauce

Thursday: Chicken Bombay with rice and veggies

Friday: Couscous, chickpeas, raisins, etc. (this didn’t happen last week!)

Saturday: Leftovers

Sunday: Leftovers 

Check out what others are eating this week! 

Did you read last week’s post to see what all this is about??  If not, check it out!  I’ll be tasting various foods from around the world each Friday and reporting in to you about it all.  This month we’re checking out China, and tonnes of people added recipes for their favourite Chinese recipes!  You should take a look.  Also, if you have a favourite Chinese recipe, leave a comment on this post and I’ll be sure to add it to the list.

As mentioned in my menu planner, I made a recipe for an Easy Chinese Fish Fillet this past week.  If you missed that recipe, check out my menu plan and grab it!  

Here’s the delightful fish as we enjoyed it:

Initial thought: waaaaaay too salty.  I halfed the recipe because it was just two of us, but I think the soy sauce produced a lot of salt.  I would use honey instead of brown sugar and most likely keep that at the regular amount even when halving it.  Other than that, it was a decent fish dish - but not necessarily one that I would repeat.  

Do you have a preference for the dish I should try on my menu next week?  Anything in particular you want me to try? 

Here we are on our way to Tai-O Fishing Village on Lantau Island in Hong Kong.  This is me touching the South China Sea:

Tai-O Fishing Village: 

Here is a picture of some fish drying at a local market in Tai-O Fishing Village on Lantau Island: 

This is shark drying:

Peter and me with the fishing village: 

Are you adventurous enough to join in??  Link up to Taste the World here @ Hospitality Haven and come back each Friday to link up how it’s going for you.  Make sure that each Monday if you post a menu plan that you include the Chinese dish you’re trying for that week.  I look forward to sharing in this adventure with you! 

This post is linked to: Finer Things, Frugal Friday, Food on Fridays and Foodie Fridays! 

This recipe is another one of our faves, and a real hit with my husband! 

Chicken Bombay:

1/4 cup butter, 1/4 cup mustard, 1/2 cup honey, 1 tsp. garlic salt, 1 tsp. chili powder, 1/4 tsp. onion powder, 1/2 tsp. curry powder, 1/4 tsp. pepper, 4-5 chicken breasts.

Combine all ingredients, except chicken in a small sauce pan.  Heat over medium heat until smooth and slightly warmed.  Roll each piece of chicken into the sauce and place in a grease 9x13 baking pan.  Bake uncovered for 30 mins. at 375F.  Spread remaining sauce over chicken, and bake for an additional 30 mins. or until chicken is done.  Serve over rice, if desired.

For more recipes, check here. 

I have been enjoying actively reading through my list of books for 2010 although I feel I’m going a bit slower than I’d like!  But such is life. 

If you missed my first review, you can check it out here, along with an awesome recipe for baked apples!

Also, take a look at my original book list for 2010 and see which ones I’ve read thus far and which ones I have yet to get to!  I’m almost done the first book in the Anne of Green Gables series so I look forward to reviewing that soon.  Such a classic children’s novel!

So, on to the review!

I’ll be honest: sometimes it was hard to make it through this book, "Burnout: The Cost of Caring" by Christina Maslach.  There was a lot of jargon on studies that had been done and stastics on various things that made my eyes glaze over…more than once…

However, it DEFINITELY has some redeeming qualities.  First of all, there are often stories from real-life cases of people burning out.  These snippets make the information tolerable and provide much more interest for someone like me who cares more about what other real people have experienced!

Also, particularly in chapter 6 there were quite a few good ideas on how to handle burnout on your own.  I’d like to hilight some of the quotes that stood out to me:

1. "Working harder, then, is not the best solution for coping with burnout - but working smarter is.  By ‘working smarter,’ I mean making changes in the way you handle your job so that you are less stressed and more efficient.  If we use the analogy of driving a car, when going up a steep hill, it is better to shift down to a lower gear than just to give it more gas at a high gear.  There are many possible ways of shifting gears in your work, rather than always being in automatic drive." (148)

2. "When a helper [that is mothers, teachers, ministers, caregivers, etc.!] feels helpless - trapped, in a rut, powerless - burnout is more likely to set in.  Helplessness can produce frustration and anger, and these twin demons, in turn, can leave the helper emotionally exhausted and hostile.  Handling burnout at this level means conquering the sense of helplessness." (151)

3. "The stress of people-work can be reduced by arranging intermittent breaks or rest periods.  Such breaks serve as emotional breathers, allowing you to relax, ’take five,’ and get a little psychological distance from a particular problem." (153)

4. "The emotional exhaustion of burnout escalates when you get overly involved with people - taking on their problems as your own, reacting to negative comments as if they were personal insults, and so on.  When things begin to get this intense, you should try to stand back and look at the situation in more abstract and intellectual terms." (157)

5. "When people experience chronic stress, they often display a set of symptoms including tense muscles (especially in the face and neck), increased blood pressure, and an upset stomach that feels ‘tied up in knots.’  Not only are these symptoms unpleasant, they have serious long-term implications for health.  In particular, high bloog pressure is a major cause of heart attacks and strokes.  Reduction of these health risks can be achieved by learning how to relax, both physically and mentally.  Indeed, relaxation techniques are often at the heart of various stress management programs.  Since people who burn out often suffer from these same physical symptoms, learning to relax can be an effective way for them to cope with this type of chronic emotional stress." (167)

6. "What do you do when you are not at work?  What are you besides your job title?"

These are half a dozen thoughts that provoked me, and that I wanted to share with you. 

What are your thoughts on them?  Are you able to answer the final question with conviction?  Have you ever experienced burnout?  How did you deal with it? 

Reading this book taught me a few things, and it works for me!

While surfing facebook one day I noticed a video posted to a friend’s wall.  Seeing as I had the time on that Saturday to watch it, I let it load up (which took a while!) and settled in.  It is a documentary, and tackles the notion of how what you put in your body affects your health.  If you have the time, I would strongly recommend you watch it.  The video is about an hour and a half, and it takes a while to load, but it was good.  Let me know what you think!

Raw Foods Can Cure Diabetes: This video shows the lives of 6 people who spend 30 days on a ranch eating raw food in an attempt to cure their Type 2 diabetes.  It is truly miraculous, and very interesting.

Also, on another interesting note, I saw a video on youtube where Jamie Oliver is accepting his TED award.  It talks about the state of health in the United States and how heart disease is killing people at an alarming rate.  He also particularly speaks into the school system lunches and how children are not getting proper nourishment.

This post is linked to: Tempt My Tummy, Tuesdays @ The Table and Tasty Tuesdays. 

This past weekend we’ve had lots of fun with friends who are visiting!  It’s always good to share together in life.  Here is this week’s menu:

Monday: Out for dinner with our friends who are visiting!

Tuesday: Easy Chinese Fish Fillet (as a part of my "Taste the World" meme!  Check it out and join in!), Rice, Steamed Veggies - Come back on Friday for a picture and written update, plus some hilights from my own fish experience in China from this past fall.  CHECK OUT A REVIEW OF THIS RECIPE HERE!

Wednesday: Baked Curried Lentils

Thursday: Ribs, Potatoes, Veggies

Friday: Potluck at my house

Saturday: Couscous, Chickpeas, Raisins, Curry sauce (no recipe, just out of my head and different every time!)

Sunday: Potluck at Church

If you didn’t catch my "Taste the World" meme on Friday, you should go check it out!  I’m discovering the cooking of a different country each month and from now until the end of March I’m learning about China!  Check out the post to find more info and join in!!! 

While wandering through Chinatown earlier this week, my husband and I came up with a fantastic idea!  We love international cuisine, and we really enjoy sharing it with others, and so I decided that through my blog I would create a venue where bloggers like me could trade, share, and research international cuisine together, and effectively Taste the World!

It is my hope through this weekly segment that all of us would learn to cook different tastes from around the world, and share with one another our successes and failures and our overall learning experience.

Here is how it will work: I will set a theme country that will last for a month.  On Mondays you will see one of the recipes in my menu planner, and on Fridays I will post my segment of Taste the World where I will post pictures of the food, give history about the food from that particular country, share a recipe, share my success or failure at cooking it, etc.!  The sky is the limit, but it will be based upon that theme country. 

How can you be involved?  Simple.  On Fridays please feel free to link up to your own Taste the World in my comment section.  This link should take us to where you discuss a recipe from the theme country (and only that theme country!!), pics from your attempt at making the theme dish of the week, your successes and failures, and your insight on cooking the food of that country.  You can also add the button located at the bottom of this post to your own posts so that people know where to link back to.  At the very least, please make it known that you are linking to Taste the World @ Hospitality Haven.  It’s nice for people to be able to find the central zone for all recipes of that theme!  Once you leave your comment and link I will update the post to reflect an ongoing list that people can easily access.

So what is the first theme country?  I’m glad you asked!  We’ll be starting with China!  If you already have existing dishes on your blog from the country of CHINA (and only China!), please feel free to link up today directly to those posts.  This will help me and others as we prepare to cook from China!  Over the course of the next few weeks I’ll be learning to master at least one of each of the following:    

-Appetizer

-Main dish with meat

-Main dish without meat

-Side dish

-Dessert

-Bread

I really hope you’ll enter into this challenge with me and enjoy learning about and cooking different tastes of the world!  I’m excited to Taste the World - are you?? 

Recipes Entered So Far (feel free to keep commenting with new ones and link back to Taste the World!):

Appetizers:

Egg Drop Soup & Gyoza by Sammy @ Surviving the Kitchen

Chicken & Pork Potstickers by SouffleBombay 

Chinese Dumplings by The Runaway Spoon

Main Dishes with Meat:

Cantonese Chicken by Alison @ Hospitality Haven

Almond Chicken by Alison @ Hospitality Haven

Slowcooker Teriyaki Pork Tenderloin by Lori @ My Kinda Rain

Crockpot Pineapple Chicken by Lori @ My Kinda Rain

Asian Chicken Skewers by Lori @ My Kinda Rain

Baked Teriyaki Chicken by Emily @ Inspired Homemaking

Hearty Beef Stir Fry by Hallee @ Halle the Homemaker

Orange Chicken by Melissa @ Love At First Bite

Asian-Style Pepper Steak by Alison @ My Vintage Kitchen 

Gluten-Free Crockpot Pepper Steak by Lisa @ Extraordinary Life

Green Bean Pork & Noodles by Stacy @ Recipes for Moms  

Pork Chow Mein by Stacy @ Recipes for Moms 

Side Dishes:

Seven-Layer Chinese Chicken Salad by Melissa @ Love At First Bite

Fried Rice by Diana @ Dianasaur Dishes 

Stir-Fry Rice by Diana @ Dianasaur Dishes 

Dressings/Sauces:

Asian Toasted Sesame Dressing by Katie @ Kitchen Stewardship 

Plum Sauce by Diana @ Dianasaur Dishes 

This post is linked to: Finer Things, Frugal Friday, Food on Fridays and Foodie Fridays! 

This bread is a simple loaf that even I can master!  I’m horrible at making bread, but this, I can do.  It’s delicious with soups, or as a mid-day snack, and we both love it.

Cheesey Pepper Bread:

2 1/2 cups flour (I split whole wheat and white), 1 tbsp. sugar, 1 1/2 tsp. ground pepper, 1 tsp. baking powder, 3/4 tsp. salt, 1/2 tsp. baking soda, 2 eggs, 1 cup plain yogurt, 1/2 cup oil (I split regular oil and coconut oil), 1/4 cup milk, 1 tbsp. dijon mustard, 1 cup shredded cheese, crushed red pepper flakes to sprinkle.

Preheat oven to 350F.  In a large bowl, combine the first 6 ingredients.  In a small bowl whisk eggs, yogurt, oil, milk and mustard.  Stir into the dry ingredients just until moistened.  Gently fold in cheese.  Transfer to a greased loaf pan.  Sprinkle crushed red pepper flakes on top.  Bake 45-55 mins. or until a toothpick inserted near the centre comes out clean.  Cool for 10 mins. before removing the pan to a wire rack.

*I also own a red pepper dip mix, and I added about 1 tbsp. of that to the mixture.  If you don’t own that you can just leave it out!

This is linked to the Ultimate Recipe Swap.

There are just some random things I’ve been thinking about in regards to my kitchen, and so I figured I’d put together this mish-mash of my thoughts! 

Firstly, I’m not an expert cook, nor do I claim to be.  However, I do have a few tips that I can share with you that I use in my own kitchen and have found helpful!

1. Use minced garlic to cook your ground beef or other meat, instead of oil.  The meats will produce their own oil, and the garlic will flavour it.

2. Pour a tbsp. of oil into your water when it’s boiling so your pasta won’t stick together.

3. Using a French Coffee Press can help to strain things like quinoa that are small and hard to strain.

4. Peeling the entire carrot into strips makes it easier to saute, lighter to eat, and looks pretty.

5. I read this on someone’s blog the other day, but if you crack an egg and a shell falls into your batter, take a bigger piece of shell and the little ones will be drawn to it like a magnet!  Genius!

On another note, I’ve been greatly simplifying my kitchen.  I’ve been getting rid of all kinds of items that are unsafe (plastics, etc.) and also downsizing.  I’m minimizing how many I have of each thing because I really don’t need that much!  I’ve also "upgraded" and gotten a few new purchases I want to share with you!

1. Salt and Pepper Grinders.  So simple, but SO needed!

2. A set of 3 glass bowls with lids.  Perfect for mixing, storing, taking with me, etc.!

3. My stoneware baking sheet from Pampered Chef.  I’m in love!

4. 4 small creme brulee styled dishes…fabulous for making my baked fudge with a twist!

5. My new glass loaf pan. 

This isn’t a purchase, but I’ve also cleaned out my fridge lately (in terms of junk but also physically washed it!) and I re-organized my pantry to incorporate glass jars as storage.  Here are the pics of that: 

So there you have it!  Just some random thoughts and excitement from my kitchen to yours!  It works for me! 

Monday night we ate a Chinese Dinner Extravaganza and it was FABULOUS!  I’ve already got my mind swirling on new possibilities to add to this meal…

Here are some pictures of what we enjoyed:  

This is the spread on our table ready to be eaten!  Our table runner is from Hong Kong and so is our tea set, so it was perfect!

This is the coconut fried shrimp (but I baked them!).

Pepper Steak on a bed of rice noodles.  YUM!

Cantonese Chicken on a bed of spinach leaves.  So tasty!

Vegetable Stir-Fry.  I love my veggies!  Just lightly tossed in soy sauce and coconut oil to cook.

Shrimp Brown Fried Rice with Green Onions (not my best picture, but still yummy!)

Fortune cookie!  I picked them up in Chinatown today and they were a perfect addition to our meal!  Peter’s fortune read, "Act now for good results in the spring."  And I got two, which read: "Easy times are ahead for you" and "Your anxieties are beginning to clear."  

This is my sweet husband enjoying his dessert!  It was a very sentimental dessert as when we were in Hong Kong we ate coconut cocktail buns and mango pudding every day!  I hadn’t seen the buns until today in Chinatown, and I knew he’d be excited!  :) 

I just LOVE international cuisine, and Peter and I were talking about this a lot today on our walk around downtown (we love to do that!).  It gave us a great idea for my blog which I plan to reveal on FRIDAY, so check back to see what I’m talking about and how you can be a part of it!! 

This post is linked to: Tempt My Tummy, Tuesdays @ The Table, Tuesday Twister and Tasty Tuesday.

It’s been a great week, and Peter’s birthday was fabulous!  Here is our line-up for this week:

Monday: I was going to make Peter’s special birthday dinner on his birthday, but friends had us over for an amazing curry chicken dinner!  So tonight we will be eating my Chinese Dinner!  Stay tuned this week for pics of the decor and meal.

Tuesday: I’m out / Peter gets leftovers

Wednesday: Honey Lentils, Spinach Salad (See below for lentil recipe!) 

Thursday: Beefy Rice Casserole (See below for recipe!) 

Friday: Fish cooked in coconut milk/curry paste, veggies, rice (See below for recipe!) 

Saturday: Ribs, Potatoes, Veggies

Sunday: Spaghetti with meat sauce, Salad, Garlic Bread 

Honey Lentils: 1 1/2 cups lentils, 3 cups water, 1/2 red onion diced, 1 can of chickpeas drained and rinsed, 1/2 cup shredded carrot, 1 tsp. salt, 1 tsp. dried mustard, 1/4 tsp. ground ginger, 2 tbsp. soy sauce, 1/3 cup honey, 1 dried bay leaf.

Put the lentils into the crockpot.  Add the water.  Chop up the onion, and add along with the carrots.  Add the chickpeas.  Stir in the dried mustard, salt and ginger.  Add the soy sauce and honey.  Stir to combine.  Float the bay leaf on top.  Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours or on high for 3-5 hours.  If desired, stir in an extra tbsp. of honey. 

Beefy Rice Casserole: 1 1/2 lbs. of ground beef cooked, 1 1/2 cups of cooked rice, 1 pkg. of onion soup mix, 1 can of diced tomatoes (28 oz.), 1 1/2 cups chopped onion, 1/4 cup of chopped bell pepper, 1 tsp. chili powder, 1 tsp, chili sauce, 1/4 tsp. salt, 1/4 tsp. pepper.

Mix all ingredients, except for beef and rice.  Then add beef and rice to the mix one at a time.  Spread into a medium-sized casserole dish.  Cover with tinfoil.  Bake in the oven at 350F for 1 hour.  OR cook in a slow cooker for 5-6 hours on low or 3-4 hours on high.  Serves 6. 

Coconut-Curry Fish: This recipe is a bit of an "eye-ball" one where you need to use common sense.  I have two pieces of white fish that I put into a small casserole dish and cover with a can of coconut milk mixed with 1 tbsp. of madras curry paste.  I use my homemade version.  Cook in the oven at 425F for 20 mins. or until cooked.   

Coming up this week in posts: some of my own cooking/kitchen tips, an amazing recipe for chicken bombay and more! 

What are you eating this week?  For more vegetarian recipes, check out here.

Today, Valentine’s Day, February 14th, is my dear husband’s birthday and I love him.

Today marks a day filled with so much love and joy - which I am grateful to be able to share with Peter!

Today we celebrate another year in his wonderful life, and it’s my pleasure to be able to treat him to something special!

Today is also the Chinese New Year.  And having just been to Hong Kong in October, we have a true appreciation for this festival.  

And so today I am making Peter an Asian-inspired extravaganza of a meal!  He loves trying new food; I love cooking new food - it’s a win-win situation.  He has no idea what his day will hold today, so he’s trying not to read my blog - which he really does read!  Did I mention I love him??

Here is the dinner line-up for this evening (excuse the links, but it’s more important for me to spend time with my husband than type up all the recipes!!)…

Pepper Steak

Cantonese Chicken

Shrimp Fried Rice

Coconut Fried Shrimp 

Veggie Stir-fry with Rice Noodles (broccoli, water chestnuts, mushrooms, sprouts, snow peas, red pepper, bamboo shoots)

Mango Pudding (you can buy this in a store like I am!!) 

I’ll be sure to post some pics this week of our Asian dining experience!  Happy Valentine’s Day to all of you, and again…

HAPPY BIRTHDAY PETER!!! 

I’m often bringing a dish to a potluck and I thought I’d share one with you that people always seem to enjoy!  It’s super easy, and delicious!

Perogy Casserole:

16-20 frozen perogies, 1 onion chopped, 1/4 cup milk, 1/2 cup cooked ham/bacon/pepperoni/sausage diced (optional), 1 tbsp. butter, 1 green pepper diced, 1 can of condensed mushroom soup, paprika to sprinkle, shredded cheese to sprinkle.

In a small skillet, melt butter.  Saute onion and green pepper for 5 mins.  In a medium casserole dish, lay out perogies in a single layer.  In a medium bowl mix together onion, green pepper, meat (optional), milk, and mushroom soup.  Pour over perogies.  Top with a layer of shredded cheese.  Sprinkle with paprika.  Bake for 35 mins. at 375F. 

I’ve done it with meat, but when there are times that I know there are quite a few vegetarians (as I seem to know quite a few!) I leave the meat out.  It doesn’t really need to be there, and then this way everyone can eat it. 

For more ideas on how to feed both herbivores and carnivores, check out a previous post I wrote!

This is a finer item for a potluck and it’s fairly frugal too!  For more potluck ideas, check out here.

When we lived in Winnipeg we spent time working with an Afghani community, and then we visited Morocco.  Both of these things have contributed to my LOVE for Indian/Middle Eastern cooking.  Am I good at it?  Probably not in comparison to those who really know what they’re doing.  BUT, I press on.  And to my non-Indian and non-Middle Eastern friends, they think I’m wonderful at it.  :)  I’d love to share with you the "traditional" menu that I use when preparing this meal, in the hopes that you’ll enjoy it too!  It’s the key to my husband’s heart…it might be the key to your husband’s heart this Valentine’s Day too!  He probably thinks I’m making this for Valentine’s Day (which is more importantly his BIRTHDAY, but I’m not…it’s a surprise that I’ll share ON Valentine’s Day!)

First of all, you should know that this meal is excellent for serving vegetarians and non-vegetarians.  It has an abundance of protein in the various dishes, so you don’t have to worry about it.

1. Channa Masala: This is a delicious chickpea based dish that includes tomatoes, chickpeas, and tons of spices.  To be honest, out of all the dishes, this one is my favourite!

2. Masoor Daal: This is a lentil dish that includes onions and other spices.  It’s SO simple to make, and adds to the whole meal.  I’ve made this one a bunch of times on its own as well!!

3. Beef Keftas: Obviously this one is not so great for the vegetarians.    This is like little meatballs flavoured with cumin and oregano.  They’re very yummy and easy to cook in the oven if you don’t want to cook it the other ways. 

4. Naan Bread: I have never made my own naan bread.  It’s something I’d like to try some day, but not yet.  You can check out the link to making naan bread, but be warned that I’ve never made it!  Naan bread is perfect for scooping up the channa masala and masoor daal.

5. Couscous: I buy organic couscous and then I cook it in chicken or vegetable broth with a touch of cumin, some raisins and sliced almonds.  I usually put the raisins into the broth for a while before cooking the couscous so that they soak and plump up!  You can use the link to see how to cook couscous.

6. Fresh Veggies: There’s no link for this!  I simply slice up cucumbers and tomatoes and put them on a plate for people to enjoy.  The freshness of the veggies cools your mouth down and works perfectly with the rest of the dishes.  I like serving a dish of olives as well! 

Have you ever cooked any middle-eastern food?  If so, what are you favourite recipes?  What are your tips?  Would you consider making this your special Valentine’s Day meal, or do you have a traditional meal that you make?

To see more of my favourite recipes, click here. 

This is an ultimate recipe in our family’s eyes. 

A lot of people have been sharing lately how they keep track of their recipes.  

I suggest you also check out Stephanie @ Keeper of the Home’s system and Aimee @ Living, Learning and Loving Simply’s system for more ideas.

I would also like to add to that discussion!  I’ve included some pictures so you can see what I’m talking about. 

Firstly, there’s a bit of history to system.  I received this lovely recipe binder as a shower gift when we were engaged more than 4 years ago!  It was given to me at a family shower from all my aunts, cousins, great-aunts, grandmother, etc.  It was a really lovely gesture and I am still so appreciative of it now.

This is the outside:

This is the inside flap.  There’s a handy slot that I keep small miscellaneous recipe books in.  I keep my bread maker book, a mocktail guide I got in the mail, and a recipe for a dessert that a friend of my printed for me.  

You can see how there are little tabs along the side that divide the book up into the various categories (my apologies for the terrible picture!):

I keep all of my recipes in a word document on my computer that I update frequently.  Every few months I re-print it and I put it into my binder in its appropriate sections.  This keeps it organized, clean, and up-to-date!  

I also have the original recipes that my family gave to me.  To be honest, some of them I have never tried, but I really appreciate that family spent time sharing them with me and I’m keeping them in there as a nice memory!

How do you organize your recipes?  Any tips you can share with me? 

It works for me!

I bought apples in bulk and on sale the other week, which meant I needed to be creative in using them up quickly!  Other than eating them as they were, I made baked apples, and I also made a DELICIOUS apple cinnamon cheesecake.  Seriously, it was heavenly.  I served it to some great friends who were here for a meeting and of course my husband and I enjoyed it as well…for dessert…for breakfast…for snacks…!  Here is the beauty:

And now, for the recipe.  I took it from this site, so take a look at what they did.  

Note: I didn’t use frozen apple juice.  Instead I used cooled apple cider, because it’s what I had!  Also used apple pie spice instead of straight cinnamon.  I also drizzled caramel sauce on it as well.

Let me know if you try it, and if you have any delicious cheesecake recipes to share!

This was both tempting and tasty and it’s perfect on your table this Tuesday! 

Monday: Easy Oven Stew, Baguette (See below for stew recipe)

Tuesday: Channa Masala, Naan, Veggies (If you like Indian food you should check out here and here and here!)

Wednesday: Meatballs, Potatoes, Veggies

Thursday: Baked Curried Lentils

Friday: Homemade Pizza (I use my breadmaker, which I LOVE to make the dough!)

Saturday: Mac ‘n’ Cheese, Garlic Bread

Sunday: Peter’s Birthday & Valentine’s Day!!!!!!  We’re actually eating dinner at a friend’s house and so I’ll make him a special meal on the Monday, which you’ll have to wait a week to find out about.  HOWEVER, watch out on Sunday for a special dessert post!!  

Easy Oven Stew: 1 lb. stewing beef, 1 can cream of mushroom soup, 1/2 pkg. onion soup mix, 1/2 soup can of water, mixed vegetables (I won’t lie, I use frozen veggies as well as a couple of diced potatoes).

Combine all ingredients and bake for 1.5 hours at 350F.  Voila!  It really is easy.  

Stay tuned this week for other such exciting topics as how I organize my personal recipe binder, the full-blown recipe list for my favourite middle-eastern meal, and a potluck hit!

I’m also planning on adding more pictures to the blog posts in the future!  I like visuals, and I’m sure you do too.

Find out what others are eating this week, here.  To see more blogs worth visiting check out here. 

My sister-in-law Rachel sent me a recipe for butter chicken and I was very eager to try it!  But before I did that I made some adjustments to make it a little healthier.  With that in mind, I’d like to share my butter chicken recipe with you! 

Butter Chicken:

1/4 cup butter, 4 chicken breasts in pieces, 1 tbsp. garam masala, 1 tsp. paprika, 1 tsp. cinnamon, 1 tsp. sugar, 1/2 tsp. chili powder, 1 tbsp. madras curry paste (see below for recipe), 1 tbsp. peanut butter, 1 can of tomato soup, 1/2 can of coconut milk, 1/2 soup can of milk, 3/4 cup chicken broth, 1/4 cup cilantro.

Melt butter in a large stove top pot at medium high heat.  If you’re using unsalted butter, you’ll need to add at least 1 tsp., maybe more, of salt.  Add the chicken pieces to the melted butter and toss until no longer pink.  Add garam masala, paprika, cinnamon, sugar, chili powder, madras curry paste and peanut butter.  Stir to coat.  Gradually stir in the tomato soup (check out my homemade recipe!), coconut milk, milk and chicken broth.  Add cilantro.  Bring to a boil while stirring at high heat.  It will look runny.  This is okay!!  Let it simmer for a while, and the flavours will blend, and it will thicken a bit.  Serve it with rice, salad and naan bread.

Madras Curry Paste:

Instead of buying the store-bought kind, I decided to make my own madras curry paste!  It was very easy, and from what I can see, it will last for a loooong time - not only in quantity, but also in shelf-life.  Make sure to store it in the fridge.

1 cup ground coriander, 1/2 cup ground cumin, 1 tbsp. ground black pepper, 1 tbsp. ground turmeric, 1 tbsp. ground black mustard (I used dijon and it seemed fine), 1 tbsp. chili powder, 1 tbsp. salt, 2 tbsp. crushed garlic, 2 tbsp. finely grated fresh ginger (I used powdered), 3/4 cup oil, vinegar for mixing.

Combine ground spices and salt in a bowl.  Blend.  Add garlic and ginger and sufficient vinegar to mix to a smooth and thick puree.  You might use upwards of a cup or two for this.  Just add it in small dosages.  Heat oil in a saucepan, and when it’s very hot turn the spice mixture into it and reduce heat.  Stir constantly until spices are cooked and oil separates from spices.  Cool and bottle.

Have you tried butter chicken?  How does your recipe vary? 

This recipe is a finer thing, and it’s frugal with some of the changes I’ve made!

This dessert is SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO good!  It’s heavenly, actually.  And even my husband who doesn’t love chocolate like me, really enjoyed it!  I took the recipe from The Pioneer Woman, and tweaked it a bit.  Here is my version of her recipe:

The Pioneer Woman’s Baked Fudge a la Alison:

2 eggs, 3/4-1 cup sugar (I did more of 3/4), 2 heaping Tbsp. cocoa, 2 Tbsp. flour, 6 Tbsp. butter, 1 tsp. vanilla, 4 Tbsp. of cherry pie filling, icing sugar.

Preheat oven to 325F.  Beat eggs until scrambled, and then beat in sugar until well mixed.  Add cocoa, flour, melted butter and vanilla.  Mix well.  Pour the batter in 4 creme brule-style dishes (I think this is a must!), but if you don’t have them, you can do an 8-inch square glass pan.  Set dishes or pan into a larger pan, filled halfway with water.  Bake for 40-50 mins. or until the upper crust is crispy and the rest of the batter is set.  A toothpick will NOT come out clean, but it shouldn’t be really runny.  Just don’t let it turn into brownies. 

Now, this is why the ideal dishes are creme brule-style dishes.  You take a heaping Tbsp. of cherry pie filling and put it on top of each of the baked fudge dishes, and sprinkle each with a dash of icing sugar.  Not only does it LOOK amazing, it TASTES amazing!!!  It’s SO easy, but it looks fabulous for company.  Or for a midnight snack for yourself…

If the title makes you feel awkward, you can just go ahead and browse around at another blog post, because this one is going to be about what it says: cloth menstruation pads! 

About a year ago my sister-in-law talked to me about how she uses cloth menstruation pads and how much more economical they are, etc., etc.  She sold me instantly!  As soon as I used up my store-bought stuff I moved on to cloth pads.

TMI?  Too bad.

The average woman uses almost 17,000 tampons or pads in her life.  Isn’t that insane?!?!  I’m just imagining what that looks like…it’s crazy!  The National Women’s Health Network estimates that in the USA over 12 billion pads and 7 million tampons are used once and disposed of every year.  EVERY YEAR!!!  That takes a VERY long time to break down.  And while it’s doing that, it’s releasing toxic chemicals into our precious earth…

Not only is it bad for the environment, but it’s also bad for your wallet!  Click here to calculate how much you spend on disposable pads/tampons. 

Now, to purchase (or make) cloth pads is an investment at first.  I would suggest you keep record of one of your cycles and see what types of pads/tampons you require (light, medium, heavy, wings, no wings, etc.) and how many of each.  Once you know this it will make it easier to purchase the right amount. 

I purchased mine from Lunapads which is an awesome Canadian-based company.  They come in a variety of colours, patterns, styles, and they meet all your needs.  They also sell the diva cup (which I have not used) which is more of a replacement for tampons if you wish to go that route.  You can read their testimonials on the diva cup here. 

To wash the cloth pads, simply soak them after you use them in warm water and soap.  I use regular dish soap.  It’s best to wash them in the washer on gentle/handwash in a mesh laundry bag.  Try not to leave them soaking too long because of bacteria.  But a couple of days hasn’t hurt in my experience.  Put them in a bucket under your sink.

If you’re in a different stage right now and you’re pregnant, then you can also check out lunapad’s nursing pads, baby bath gift set, and their post-partum liner inserts.

If you want to try making your own, Cara @ Health, Home, and Happiness has a tutorial on how to make your own cloth pads.  Take a look!

Any questions?  And no, I don’t get anything out of promoting these people. 

It works for me! 

I promised a review from eating Dum Aloo and Lentils with Scallions, and here it is!  Click on the words to see the original recipes.

Both were DELICIOUS and absolutely passed the husband taste test!  :)  I altered them slightly to fit our needs, so I’ve retyped out the recipes below so you can see exactly how we ate them.

Dum Aloo:  4 medium-sized potatoes cut and sliced into smallish edible chunks, 6-7 tbsp. cooking oil, 1 1/2 cups finely chopped onion, 1 tsp. ginger powder, 2 tsp. ground cumin, 4 tsp. ground coriander, 1 tsp. turmeric, 1 tsp. (or less if desired) of crushed red pepper flakes, 1 tsp. garam masala, 1 cup canned tomatoes with juice, 2/3 cup plain yogurt, 4 tsp. sea salt.

Place cut potatoes into water and bring to a boil.  Boil for approximately 4 mins. until they are tender but nowhere close to falling apart.  They need to remain firm.  Meanwhile, in a frying pan add all of the spices, oil, and onion up to and including the garam masala.  Cook until onions are tender.  Drain potatoes and add to the frying pan.  Add tomatoes, yogurt and sea salt.  Bring to a strong simmer and cook until potatoes are cooked through and edible.  They should still be firm though.  Once this is done, the recipe is complete!

The original recipe asks you to fry the potato slices and then incorporate them into the oil/onion/spice mix.  I didn’t do this as I didn’t see the need to fry them.  It was still delicious and my husband agreed that frying would have been okay but definitely not necessary! 

Lentils with Scallions: 1/2 cup lentils, 1 cup water, 1 tbsp. cooking oil, 1/2 tsp. ground cumin, 1/2 tsp. ground mustard, 1 cup green onions, 1 clove minced garlic, 1 tbsp. chopped onion, 1 tbsp. cilantro or parsley, 1 bay leaf, 1 tsp. coriander powder, 1 tsp. sea salt, 1/2 tsp. garam masala, 1/2 tsp. turmeric, 1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper.

Cook the lentils in the cup of water in a small saucepan.  In a frying pan add the oil, spices and onions.  Saute until cooked.  When the lentils are cooked and the water is absorbed add to the frying pan.  Saute all together until flavours are blended and everything is mixed well.

I served both of these together with naan bread on the side!  The naan was great for eating the sauce of the dum aloo.  My husband heartily agreed that we should save these recipes and add them to our ever-growing Indian/Middle Eastern cuisine!  In fact, I’ll be sharing that cuisine with you in a post coming up.  Stay tuned!  These are some of our new favourites.

Both were tasty and tempting! 

Monday: Dum Aloo (Potato Curry) and Lentils with Scallions (NEW!  I’ll post a review tomorrow!)

Tuesday: Meatloaf, Mashed Potatoes, Veggies 

Wednesday: White bean pasta sauce, Pasta, Veggies (I read about using white beans to make a pasta sauce, but alas, I cannot find that blog…so if it’s you, add a link!  Otherwise, I’m making it up and I’ll let you know specifics later.)

Thursday: Beef Stir-fry, Rice Noodles, Veggies, using up last week’s best ever peanut sauce!

Friday: Quesadilla Torte (See below!)

Saturday: Sausage, Scalloped Potatoes, Veggies

Sunday: Leftovers

Quesadilla Torte: 1 onion chopped, 1 pepper chopped, 15 oz. cooked beans (I use pinto and black beans), 1 cup frozen corn, 1 3/4 cups shredded cheese, 5 tortillas, 1 1/2 cups salsa

Cook onions and pepper until soft.  Drain and rinse beans and add to pan with onions/peppers.  Add 1/2 cup water and 1/4 tsp. pepper.  Cook on low for 5 mins. until beans are heated through and water absorbed.  Mix in corn.  Place 1 tortilla in a spring form pan.  Spread with 1/3 mixture, 1/3 salsa, 1/3 cheese.  Repeat these layers until complete.  Cut final tortilla in "pie slices."  Place on top in original shape.  Brush with oil; sprinkle with cheese.  Bake at 400F for 20-25 mins. until crisp.  Let cool remove side of pan and serve in wedges.  Delicious with sour cream and salsa. 

What are you eating this week? 

About a year ago I realized I was using many cotton balls to remove make-up and put on other facial products.  I was using at least 5 a day, and that was a bit of a waste!  I thought about how I could reduce that, and so baby wash cloths entered the scene!  

Instead of using cotton balls, I now use the baby wash cloths cut into 4ths.  I bought a normal package at a pharmacy and I cut each cloth into 4 pieces.  I keep them in a little basket under my sink.  I use one to remove eye make-up, or one to put on toner or other such products.  I am now using 1 or 2 a day, and because I am washing them they are much more earth-friendly!  

One tip I would recommend is that as you use them rinse them well under the tap so that any make-up residue is cleaned out of them prior to washing them.  This will reduce staining and allow them to last longer.

Do you use cotton balls?  If not, what do you use? 

Saving the environment is a finer thing for me!  This is also linked to Follow Me Fridays.

I asked my husband which of his favourites he wanted me to post, and he chose this recipe!  It’s a family favourite of his from growing up, and it’s one that I have changed a tad here and there. 

Stuffed Spaghetti Squash:

1 lb. ground beef, 1 red pepper chopped, 1 green pepper chopped, 1 onion chopped, 1 can diced tomatoes, 1 large spaghetti squash, salt and pepper, garlic powder, chili powder, bread cubes or croutons, grated cheese.

Cut the squash in half and cover inside with butter.  Put squash in over for 60 mins. at 350F.  Meanwhile, fry ground beef, onions, peppers, and season to taste with spices.  Stir in cheese, tomatoes, and bread.  Remove squash from oven.  Loosen the cooked squash with a fork.  You can then either remove all squash and mix with the meat/bread mixture and put back into squash.  Or you can just loosen the squash and put the meat/bread mixture on top.  Either way, bake at 350F for 30 mins.  Sprinkle with cheese.  Continue to bake until cheese is melted.

Since we’ve been married (3.5 years!), we’ve lived away from friends and family.  We’ve also moved 2 times in those 3.5 years, and have lived in 4 different provinces (don’t try to do the math!).  SO, we have lot of people to connect with.

I’m not sure what the telephone plans are like where you live, but I know where we live and with the amount we make, it’s expensive.  If you’re paying for internet, and cable and all that good stuff (which we’re not!) on top of that, then you have even more to pay!

But you still want to talk to friends and family.  I hear ya.  I really do.  Enter: iChat and Skype.

Both of these are great because not only can they help you connect with loved ones, but they are FREE!  

If you are mac lovers like we are, the iChat is a feature that automatically comes on your computer.  Our laptop has a built in webcam which is brilliant, and very helpful.  When you’re signed into iChat you can see if someone is online (green), if they’re idle (yellow) or offline (red).  If you have a mac, you can use iChat.  As far as I know, if you don’t have a mac, you’re out of luck.  But hold on, I’ll get to you PC-lovers soon!  For those of you with a mac,   

Then there’s Skype.  Skype is very similar to iChat.  You can download Skype to your computer by clicking here, and it will prompt you to choose what you need.  Follow its instructions.  With Skype you can type-chat to others, you can voice-chat, and you can video-chat!  For more info on how to find friends or family, go here.  You can make calls from your computer to a land-line or mobile phone, but that costs you money.  To call computer to computer is free.  Something you need to watch out for on skype is people who are not on your list "calling" you.  Sometimes sketchy phone calls will try to come through.  Simply disconnect the call, and don’t answer it and you’ll have no problems.  Now, if you want to talk to people you don’t know, that’s your prerogative…

Of course, you can sit around waiting for people to come online, or you can make "dates" to meet up with people so that you know they’ll be online.  This has been especially helpful for people I know who have significant others in other parts of the country or world.  

And if you have children, it’s a great way for grandparents who don’t live nearby to see the kiddies grow!  My parents love to see my niece and nephew on the webcam and weekly spend time on iChat chatting to them.  

Have you tried either iChat or Skype?  How do you find them?  Do you have another way of keeping in contact with loved ones through the virtual world? 

*And no, I don’t get anything out of this for promoting the products.  But I’m still sharing.  

It works for me! 

As a part of my book list for 2010, I have read "Major Eva of Calcutta."  I am a pastor with The Salvation Army, and we have a long and rich tradition of working in other countries around the world.  One of the countries that interests me most currently is India, and so I have a few books on my list that are about Salvationists (those who are apart of The Salvation Army Church) in India.  "Major Eva of Calcutta" is one of them!

This book is really short, and thus it was simple to finish within a few hours!  I read it in an afternoon.  It was light and didn’t require too much brain power.  It spoke of her history growing up and then focused mostly on her life in Calcutta as she worked in a children’s home, and how she dealt with the many social issues of class, gender, and poverty.  It was moving on many occasions as she spoke about the children as her own.  She served in India for 27 years as a single woman, and worked tirelessly, giving all of her extra money to the care for the children or building.  

The book continued right on until her passing, and included a few comments by friends who knew her well.  She seemed to be a remarkable woman with lots of determination, patience, and perseverance!  

If you are interested in stories of people’s faith and how they have served God in a foreign country, then this book might interest you!

On a completely unrelated note, while reading one of my book list books last night, I decided to indulge in a tasty treat…I had a baked apple.  I made one for me and for my husband, and we both agree that they were delicious!!  Here’s the recipe:

Baked Apples:

2 apples, 2 heaping tbsp. of brown sugar, 1/2 tsp. cinnamon, 1/2 cup chopped pecans (I used almonds), 1/2 cup raisins, 2 tsp. butter, 3/4 cup boiling water.

Core out the apples, but don’t cut all the way through!  Make it like a deep hole that stops short of hitting the bottom.  Mix up the brown sugar, cinnamon, nuts and raisins and pack it into the apples.  Top each apple with a tsp. of butter, and then place them in a loaf pan and fill the pan with the boiling water.  The water should be about an inch high.  Bake at 350F for 30-40 mins. and enjoy warm!  It would be great with a side of vanilla ice cream, but we didn’t have any.  

This was definitely tempting and delicious while reading a good book! 

So last week a few meals didn’t happen.  Why?  Because I realized that we had WAY too many leftovers and instead of making new meals I decided to clean out our freezer a bit!

Monday: Steak, Mashed Potatoes, Veggies

Tuesday: Thai Peanut Noodles

Wednesday: Fish, Quinoa, Veggies

Thursday: Perogies, Veggies

Friday: Pumpkin Soup, Veggies, Bread

Saturday: Chili (from my freezer!)

Sunday: Turkey Soup (from freezer!)

Coming up this week: my first of many book reviews, a fave recipe for spaghetti squash, and some economical and "green" ways I use for make-up and make-up removal!  Stay tuned!

What are you cooking this week?

I like reading…in fact, I love it!  I often read mostly fictional books, and I can’t even count how many I read each year.  But this year I plan on making an intentional list of books - both fictional and non-fictional - that I want to read.  I am posting them here so you can see them, and so that I can keep myself accountable!  If it’s crossed out, then I’ve already read it!  Some are fictional, some are not, but either way, here is my list in no particular order:

If you plan on having a party, or taking something to a potluck, you should definitely make this surprise layer dip!!  It is AMAZING.  It always gets completely finished off, and it’s not hard to make!  It’s one of our favourite recipes.

Check back on Thursdays for more favourite recipes, and check the category on the right labeled "favourite recipes"! 

Surprise Layer Dip:

1 block cream cheese, 1 cup sour cream (or plain yogurt), 1 cup mayonnaise, 1 jar cocktail sauce, 1 can small shrimp (optional), chopped green onion, diced tomato, shredded cheese.

With mixer, cream together sour cream, mayonnaise, and cream cheese until smooth.  Spread onto round flat baking pan or pie plate.  Spread the jar of cocktail sauce over cream cheese mixture, and place shrimp (optional) on top.  Cover with cheese.  Top with green onions and tomatoes.  Serve with crackers or tortilla chips.

Check out more recipes here.  Enjoy! 

Last week I wanted to make a quick and delicious meal using lentils, but not the kind I usually make.  I’m a fan of sloppy lentils and masoor daal, but I wanted something different to add to my repertoire.  I came across a baked lentils recipe, and I basically just took the notion and ran with it!  Here is what I came up with:

Baked Curried Lentils:

2.5 cups of lentils, 2.5 cups of water or chicken broth (I used broth), 1-2 cups of minced vegetables (I used zucchini, green onion and red pepper b/c that’s what I had on hand!  It also included nice colour into the mix.), 2 tbsp. of coconut oil, 2 tbsp. minced garlic, 1 tsp. of cumin, 1 and 2 tbsp. of curry, 2.5 cups of shredded cheese.

Cover 2.5 cups of lentils in water or chicken broth with the 2 tbsp. of curry and cook until all the liquid is absorbed and they’re soft.  Meanwhile, in a frying pan, saute minced vegetables in coconut oil.  Add the minced garlic, cumin, and 1 tbsp. of curry, and cook until all veggies are soft.  Mix veggies in with the cooked lentils, and stir.  Add 2 cups of shredded cheese to the mixture, and stir until cheese is melted through.  Pour the entire mixture into a 2 qt. casserole dish, and sprinkle freshly ground pepper over the top, and cover with another layer of cheese.  Bake in a 350F oven for 20 mins. or until warmed right through.  Serve with freshly baked bread, or a salad.

It works for me!  You can find more vegetarian recipes here.

So yesterday in my menu planner I posted that we would be trying "California Chicken" on Monday night.  Which we did!  I have made my own adjustments to it, and I have a few more I’d like to try the next time.  So, with all that in mind, and due to my current changes and future changes I decided to rename the recipe "West Coast Enchiladas" since I live on the west coast, they were originally inspired from California, and I’m adding a hint of Mexico next time!  I think it’s appropriate.  ;)  Here we go…

West Coast Enchiladas: 

Ingredients: 4 tbsp. butter, 4 tbsp. flour, 1/2 tsp. salt, 1/4 tsp. pepper, 2 cups milk, 2 cups chicken cooked and shredded, 1.5 cups of assorted finely chopped veggies (I used garlic, red pepper, green onion and olives), 1 tbsp. oil, 1 tbsp. chili powder, 2 cups shredded cheese, 6 tortillas (I used 3 spinach and 3 tomato for colour!), 1 cup salsa, 2 tbsp. chopped parsley. 

Preheat oven to 350F.  Mix flour, salt and pepper in a small bowl.  Melt butter in a saucepan over low heat.  Add the flour mixture all at once.  Whisk until it’s mixed well.  Cook over low heat, stirring until the mixture is smooth and bubbly.  Slowly stir in milk, whisking constantly and heating to a boil.  Meanwhile, saute veggies, 1 tbsp. chili powder and 1 tbsp. oil in a pan until softened.  When sauce is thickened, set aside.  Put a tbsp. of sauce on each tortilla, followed by salsa (divided amongst all tortillas), chicken, veggies, and cheese.  Roll up, and place in 9x13 pan.  Follow the same process for each tortilla, rotating the colours if you’re using spinach/tomato wraps like me.  Once all the wraps are in the dish, cover with the remaining white sauce, cover with a layer of cheese, and sprinkle with a bit more salt and pepper, and parsley if you desire.  

Bake uncovered at 350F for 20-25 mins.

The things I added for the future time is the chili powder and salsa.  My husband and I agreed that they needed a bit of a kick inside the tortillas, and that those two things would do the trick!  You can try it without if you like things a little more bland.  They’re really filling, and we were both stuffed with one enchilada each.  Also, to cook the chicken I simply put two skinless, boneless chicken thighs in the crockpot with an inch of water and some garlic, salt and pepper and let it cook on low for most of the day.  It was moist, shredded and ready to go when I got home, which made this even easier!  Voila! 

See what else is tempting people on this Tuesday! 

Monday: Chicken California (NEW recipe involving creamy goodness, and tortillas!  It’s a sort of enchilada-type dish…I’ll post it if I like it!)

Tuesday: Thai Noodles (NEW!  See below)

Wednesday: Ribs w/ veggies, mashed potatoes

Thursday: Pasta w/ white garlic sauce, lentils and veggies, and Cheesey Pepper Bread (recipe TBA!).

Friday: Pumpkin Soup w/ Cheesey Pepper Bread.

Saturday: Homemade Meatballs, Baked Potato Slices, Veggies

Sunday: Leftovers

Thai Noodles: 1/2 cup. chicken broth, 3 tbsp. peanut butter, 1 tsp. chili powder, 1 1/2 tbsp. honey, 3 tbsp. soy sauce, 1 1/2 tbsp. ginger, 2-3 cloves of garlic minced, noodles, chopped green onions, cilantro, peanuts.

Cook noodles in salted water.  Combine chicken broth, peanut butter, chili sauce, honey, soy sauce, lime juice, ginger and garlic in a small saucepan over medium-low heat.  Stir until it’s smooth, and then remove from heat.  Toss the noodles with the sauce, top with sauteed veggies (I used peppers, onions, etc.) and then sprinkle with green onions, cilantro and peanuts.  Serve!

Another goal this week is to assure that we eat fresh fruit with our lunches and fresh veggies with our dinner.  This will include pears, peaches, oranges, carrots, cucumber, snap peas, etc. 

What are you cooking this week? 

Well.  I had heard a bunch of reviews on the movie Julie & Julia from fellow bloggers, as well as friends in real life!  Many people had told me I should see it because I would like it!  I didn’t really know the premise of it, but in faith, I went to the movie store, and bought it.  That’s right - I bought it even without watching it first! 

I was NOT disappointed!!!  I LOVED the movie.  If you’ve seen it, and you’ve read my blog, or you know anything about me, then you’ll understand why I love it.  Julie Powell, in the movie, suggests that the reason she loves cooking is because it takes her away from all the issues of her day job.  I would have to agree.  My job has so many variables, and although I can suggest many things to many people about how to change their lives, it’s ultimately up to them to do it.  I have no control.  But in the kitchen…if I combine a certain set of ingredients, I KNOW, that 98% of the time it will produce what I want it to produce.  It’s an amazing feeling, and it’s one that receives instant gratification when you eat something!  The kitchen is a comfort place for me, and I identify with both Julie and Julia in this movie. 

It’s well worth seeing if you’re anything like me!    Let me know if you like it!

There is SO much devastation in Haiti.  We can’t even fully understand what the people are going through.  As you think of it, please pray for all those in that country who live there, who work there, and those around the world who are affected by the loss.

If you would like to donate, please donate through The Salvation Army.  Not only am I a pastor with them, but they are the largest Army in the world without weapons!  We fight with a different kind.  :)  

To support The Salvation Army’s relief effort in Haiti, you can call 1-800-SAL-ARMY (725-2769) or go here.  Donors should specify their gift to the Haiti Earthquake Disaster Relief Fund.  

You can see what some other people and even more are saying about all this too and how blessed we are. 

This is a recipe I have included in various meal planners, and it’s one that my husband loves!  It’s pretty simple, but it’s delicious and flavourful, so I wanted to share it with you as a part of one of my favourite recipes!

Come back each Thursday to see some of my favourite recipes posted!  You can access more in my category "Favourite Recipes" (creative title, eh??) 

Quebecois Chicken:

2 lbs. chicken pieces, 1/2 cup maple syrup, 3 tbsp. apple cider vinegar, 2 garlic cloves minced, 3 tbsp. soy sauce, 1 tbsp. ground ginger, 1 tsp. black pepper.

Combine all ingredients and mix with chicken.  Bake in the oven at 350F for 1 hour covered, and uncover for the last 15 mins.  OR cook in the slow cooker from 6-8 hour son low or 3-4 hours on high.  OR barbeque on medium-high heat until the middle of the meat is white.  Turn frequently.  Serves 4.

I enjoy this over pasta or rice.  Pour the sauce onto the starch, and it’s delicious!  Add some veggies and you’re good to go! 

To see other suggestions for crock-pot meals, go here! 

I don’t know about you, but I reallllllly dislike using canned condensed soups because they’re so high in sodium and msg!  About a year ago I came across this recipe for condensed cream soups which has worked fabulously for me for the past year.  I wouldn’t go back to a can any day! 

But recently I’ve needed condensed tomato soup for recipes such as butter chicken (which I’ll share soon!!), and I just didn’t want to give in to buying it in the store just for the recipe.  I figure there MUST be a homemade way to do it. 

Here is a recipe I came across on one of the many discussion boards I searched:

Condensed Tomato Soup: 2 cups water, 4 tbsp. corn starch, 3 tbsp. butter, 2 small cans of tomato paste (read the label!), season with salt and pepper.  You can also add a little garlic salt if you desire. 

In a small sauce pan mix the water and cornstarch until they’re well blended.  Heat to a boil until it’s thickened, stirring constantly.  Stir in the butter and tomato paste and blend again with a whisk.  It should end up nice and thick and just the way you need it for its condensed state!

For the past 9 months I have been dealing with a physical ailment that has had me at the doctor’s, had me scared, worried, and concerned.  Now, before you all stress, I was given the all-clear, and so I really had nothing to worry about.  But I did.  Because I didn’t trust, or have faith, or believe.  Recently I had personally been struggling with the fact that it consumed a lot of my sub-conscious thoughts. 

I spent time in serious prayer last night talking to God, and I not only confessed of my fears, and my worry, but I spoke to God about all the miracles I had read in the Bible, and had seen through those I know.  I know God is all-powerful, and He can do all things.  So why was I so hung up on something that didn’t need to be?  I prayed that this morning God would give me a new sense of peace and healing.  And that I would be completely, 100% healthy. 

I am blessed to report that this morning I am healed from this physical ailment.  Now, perhaps it was simply my mind keeping me "unhealthy", or perhaps the ailment was really still there.  Either way, I don’t care.  God is good, and He has given me the miracle I prayed for.  I wanted to share it with you, because I serve a God that cares, and that is incredible, and who does what no one else can do.  Trust in Him.  Believe in Him.  Even if you don’t, He believes in you.

So, how do you like the blog re-design?!  My fabulous husband worked long and hard on it for me!!  That picture was taken downtown here where we live, and it was taken on…Jan. 9th.  I know.  For those of you covered in snow, and suffering with freezing temperatures, you’re jealous.  But just remember: not all of Canada is cold!!  The part I live in looks like this all winter.   

You’ll notice that all of my categories, links, archives, and more are on the right column!  Now instead of just seeing what some of my posts were in certain categories, you can now search for a post you remember in the past, or check out the posts from a particular month!  Some of you were asking for this, so here it is!  If you find a broken link, or anything strange, please let me know!

Also, as a part of the categories, I have added "Favourite Recipes".  There are already a few in there, but as I post specific blogs with single recipes that I absolutely love, they’ll be added into that category, so you can easily access all of my favourite recipes!  I’ll be working on regularly adding to that one on Thursdays, so keep your eyes open!! 

Now onto the Monday Dinner Menu Planner! 

Monday: Butter Chicken w/ Rice, Veggies (I have a recipe I’m trying, so I’ll post it later!)
Tuesday: Chickpea & Rosemary Soup
Wednesday: Brown Rice & Black Bean Casserole
Thursday: Mulligatawny Spicy Soup
Friday: Homemade Pizza
Saturday: Pasta with Homemade Spaghetti Sauce
Sunday: Leftovers 

What are you cooking this week?

I don’t know if you’re like me, but if you are, you either have some fruit in your fridge that is on the verge of being too gross to eat, and possibly some other fruit in jars or in your freezer from some bulk shopping in the summer or produced in your garden!

Whatever the case, this past week I had a bag of pears that were about to get gross and I have about 3 bags of frozen plums in my freezer.  Earlier this week on a very rainy and gray day I decided to do some more baking and put away some desserts in my freezer to take to friends, or potlucks, or to eat myself!  I thought I’d share the two recipes I used:

Pear Crisp:

6 ripe pears, peeled, cored & sliced, 1 tbsp. lemon juice, 1/2 tsp. cinnamon, 1/4 tsp. nutmeg, 3/4 cup flour (I split this between white and whole wheat), 1/2 cup butter softened, 1/2 cup quick-cooking oats, 1/2 cup brown sugar.

Place pears in a greased 2 qt. baking dish.  Toss pears with lemon juice, cinnamon and nutmeg.  In a bowl, combine flour and butter until mixture resemble crumbs.  Add oats and brown sugar.  Stir well; sprinkle over pears.  Bake in a preheated 375F oven for 20-25 mins. or until browned and pears are tender.  Serve with ice cream or whipped cream!  I baked mine for about 20 mins. and then cooled them off and tossed them in the freezer for a later date.  I’ll just have to warm them in the oven when the time comes. 

Plum Cake:

2 cups fresh plums halved, 1 1/4 cups sugar, 4 tsp. lemon juice, 2 eggs, 1/2 cup butter, 1 cup flour, 2 tbsp. sugar, 1 tsp. baking powder, 1 1/2 tsp. cinnamon, 1/2 tsp. salt.

Preheat oven to 375F.  Arrange plum halves in the bottom of a greased 9" pan.  Sprinkle with half of lemon juice and 1/4 cup sugar.  Cream butter, 1 cup sugar and 2 tbsp. lemon juice.  Beat in eggs.  Mix in flour, salt, baking powder and cinnamon.  Bake for 45 mins. or until cake pulls away slightly from sides of pan.  Again, I cooked this for about the alloted time and then let them cool and popped them in the freezer for a later date.

What ways are you using up fruits in your house?  Any tasty baked goods you can share?  

Since it’s the New Year, it’s the perfect time to go through your old stuff and do a good purge!  Back in the day "Boxing Day" was actually meant for boxing up all of your old toys or items that were replaced through Christmas gifts.  You boxed them up and took them to the thrift store or delivered them to families who needed them.  I think we’ve gotten away from that (sadly), but there’s still time!   Why not sort through your closet now?!

Every few months my husband and I re-evaluate our "worldly goods" and consider items to be purged.  We did this a week ago on New Year’s Eve, and it felt great!  It can be hard to part with items, but you need to consider the fact that we don’t need to hold onto tangible items to remind us of the person who gave it to us.  If you’re that sad about it, take a picture with you and the item and spend some time remembering how special they are to you and the thought behind the gift.

When going through our clothes, we like to consider how often we wear something.  When I looked at a few items from the summer that I was unsure about, I kept them, because it’s hard to determine if you’ll wear it when it’s out of season.  So you can leave those items until the season approaches and re-evaluate them at that time.  But if it’s winter and you haven’t touched your blue sweater and you don’t forsee wearing it anytime soon, you might as well toss it.  Someone else can get better use out of it!  

Also, consider how many pieces of the same style of item you have.  For example, do you own 12 pairs of jeans?  The reality is that you gravitate to one or two pairs most often anyway, so pair it down.  I would say you really only need 2 or 3 at the most, but a good rule of thumb is to cut the amount in half.  So if you currently have 12 pairs, considering going down to 6.  

You could also try colour co-ordinating your closet, at least temporarily.  If you colour co-ordinate your t-shirts and find out that you have 10 black shirts, you might want to consider how many you really need in that colour.  It will show you what you have too much of!

This also goes for organizing your closet by "type" of clothing (i.e. pants together, long-sleeved shirts together, dresses together, etc.).  It will show you what you own too much of (do you have 15 dresses and yet never have the occasion to wear them?!) and what you lack (perhaps only one nice sweater and you really need another).  

Regardless of how you do your sort, consider how blessed you are by even being able to sort your clothing, and then share that blessing with someone else!  Perhaps you know someone your size who could use a "new" wardrobe.  

Happy sorting!  Take before and after pics and post them on your blog and link back here! 

I have updated my links section to reflect some other blogs/resources that I have been following for a while.  You should skip on over to see them!  To give you a brief run-down, here is what they are:

Food Resources: Crock pot Cooking - this is a FABULOUS resource if you love your crock pot!  Steph used her crock pot for an entire year for every meal, and so she has a wealth of recipes.  She continues to post new ones, and you can easily see on the left-hand side the recipes she made on the corresponding day in the previous year.  It’s well worth checking out.

Friends: Melissa Frye - a dear friend of mine is now blogging again!  It’s her New Year’s resolution to blog more frequently, so stop by and encourage her with your comments.  She is witty and thought-provoking and I know you’ll enjoy reading what she writes from her heart.

Blogs I check out once in a while: Inspired Homemaking - Emily is a lovely blogger from Cincinnati who blogs about healthy recipes, green living and other such topics!  I have enjoyed her blog for months now and wanted to share it all with you!  She updates quite frequently and I’m sure she’d appreciate you stopping by and not only enjoying her blog but commenting too!  

Enjoy checking out these new blogs, and don’t forget…commenting on my blog encourages me too.  :) 

And…..we’re back!

Now that the holidays are over I’m looking forward to more organization…more normal meals…and less junk food!  I think my stomach is crying out at me for all the random food I fed it during that crazy season.  

Stay tuned for more blog posts throughout the week including how to minimize your closet!

Here’s this week’s menu: 

Monday: Out for dinner

Tuesday: Baked lentil curry (NEW!  See below!)

Wednesday: Meatballs, rice and veggies

Thursday: Something with blackbeans…any suggestions??  Leave a recipe in the comment section!

Friday: Creamy Quinoa Primavera (NEW!)  For more details on what quinoa is and how to cook it, check out this link.

Saturday: Chili and homemade bread

Sunday: Leftovers 

Baked Lentil Curry:

1 tbsp. olive oil, 2 large onions chopped, 2 cloves of garlic minced, 1 tbsp. curry powder, 5 cups chicken broth, 1 lb. lentils, 1 cup shredded cheese, 1-2 cups of finely chopped fruits, vegetables and nuts (i.e. pears, apples, raisins, carrots, almonds, etc.).

Heat oil in 5-6 quart pan over high heat until hot but not smoking.  Add onions and garlic; cook, stirring, until onions are tinged with brown (about 8 mins.).  Stir in curry powder.  Add broth and bring to a boil.  Meanwhile, sort and discard debris from lentils.  Rinse lentils, drain, and add to broth.  Cover and simmer until lentils are tender to bite (30-35 mins.).  If mixture is soupy, boil uncovered until liquid is just below surface of lentils; stir often.  At the same time, saute fruits/veggies together in a frying pan with a 1 tbsp. of oil to soften them.  Pour lentils into a bowl and mix with sauteed fruits/veggies.  Then pour the combination into a shallow 2.5-3 quart casserole dish.  Bake, covered, in a 350F oven until lentils absorb most of the liquid (about 30 mins.).  Uncover and sprinkle with cheese.  Bake until cheese melts.  Makes 8-10 servings. 

I find that New Year’s resolutions are a bit problematic.  You set yourself up to do all of these great ambitious things, and then when you don’t accomplish them, you feel like a failure.  I’ve never been too keen on New Year’s resolutions, but I suppose I’ve had some basic goals that I set in the New Year.  I don’t think I do it necessarily as a "New Year’s" thing, but at the same time January 1st always brings with it a sense of freshness and new beginnings.  

In celebrating last night with my husband, we had a casual evening watching a movie, playing cards and eating lots of junk.  As a part of that we discussed some of our hopes and dreams for 2010.  Of course, we can’t predict everything, but we did commit to continue to spend lots of time together, making sure it’s a priority for us.  Our ministry can sometimes get in the way and we can lose sight of our own needs.  We also discussed our next vacation which we hope will be India.  And we talked about some practical goals for staying focused on God in this New Year.

Do you have New Year’s resolutions or goals?  

May God pour out His blessings on you in 2010! 

I made a delicious spiced orange juice for my cookie swap last week which was a great change from the usual apple cider!  I plan to make it again over the Christmas holidays for a family gathering I’m hosting.  This is what I did:

Make two cans of frozen orange juice as per the instructions on the can directly in the crockpot.

Add 2 tbsp. of mulling spice.

Cover and simmer on low for several hours!  Voila!

It’s VERY easy.  If you don’t have a pre-made mulling spice mix like I do (mine is with whole ingredients that you need to strain either before serving, or as you pour each cup), here is a simple homemade mulling spice mix:

1 cup brown sugar, 2 tsp. ground cinnamon, 1 tsp. ground cloves, 1 tsp. dried ground orange peel (opt.), 1 tsp. ground allspice, 1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg.  Use about 1/2 a cup or more.  Taste to see how much you need!

Toward the end, right before you serve it to guests, slice up an orange including the peel and let it float in the juice.  It looks pretty and adds a little extra orange zest!

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!

A popular cookie for my husband growing up was Speculaas cookies.  They’re the traditional cookies for St. Nikolaus Day!  I made them last weekend for a cookie exchange, which was lots of fun!

Here is the recipe:

3 cups flour, 1 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon, 1 tsp. ground cloves, 1 tsp. ground ginger, 1/8 tsp. baking power, 1/8 tsp. salt, 1 cup butter softened, 1 1/4 cups packed brown sugar, 1 egg, 1/2 cup sliced almonds (opt).

In a medium-sized bowl, mix the flour with spices, baking power and salt.  In a large bowl, beat butter and sugar at high speed until light and fluffy.  Beat in the egg and mix well.  Stir in by hand half of the flour mixture and then add the remaining flour and almonds.  Knead with your hands.  Chill the dough overnight.  Preheat the oven to 350F and grease cookie sheets.  Flatten the dough with your hands, roll it out if necessary.  The typical speculaas cookie is made with a windmill cookie cutter, but if you don’t have one, just use whatever shape you like best.  I used a star!  Bake cookies for 12-15 minutes.  Keep checking.  It depends on your oven as to how long it takes!  Store in the fridge.  Could be frozen as well until ready to eat!

Watch next week for a delicious spiced orange juice recipe…!  Perfect for entertaining!

So I’m a little behind this week!  Life has been crazy!  We had a great weekend and got to see a Toby Mac concert, and visit with family.  My grandmother is visiting with us from out of town, so it’s been a weekend/week full of good things!  Here is my menu for this week:

Monday: Sloppy Lentils

Tuesday: Almond Chicken (NEW! See below.)

Wednesday: Baked Beef & Pasta (NEW! See below.)

Thursday: Out for Dinner

Friday: Fish, Mashed potatoes, Veggies

Saturday: Potluck - I’m bringing scalloped potatoes!  (NEW! See below.)

Sunday: Leftovers

Almond Chicken:

1 1/2 lbs. boneless chicken, 1 can chicken broth, 2 tbsp. bacon bits, 1 1/2 cups diced celery (optional), 1/2 cup sliced onion, 1 can mushrooms, 2 tbsp. soy sauce, 1 tbsp. corn starch, 2/3 cup slivered almonds.

Combine chicken broth, bacon bits, celery, onion, and drained mushrooms.  Dissolve corn starch in soy sauce and add to chicken broth mixture.  There are three ways to cook this: 1.) place all of the above including the almonds into a ziploc bag and put in the freezer.  Then put into the crockpot when you’re ready, and cook on low for 6-8 hours or high for 3-4 hours.  OR 2.) Stir fry immediately in a pan on the stove top.  OR 3.) Don’t freeze, but immediately put into the crockpot (I do this!).

Half-way through the cooking you can add more veggies.  I added a can of water chestnuts and half of a sliced green pepper!  Serve this with rice!

Baked Beef & Pasta:

1 lb. ground beef, 1/2 cup chopped onion, 1 cup sliced carrots, 1 1/2 cups frozen peas, 2 cloves minced garlic, 1 tsp. dried thyme, 1/2 cup grape juice, 1 can tomatoes (28 oz.), 1 1/2 cups uncooked pasta, 1 cup shreeded cheese. 

Place 2 1/3 cups browned ground beef into crock pot.  Add 1/2 cup onion, 1 cup frozen carrots, and 1 1/2 cups forzen peas to the pot.  Combine garlic, thyme, juice and diced tomatoes.  Mix thoroughly and distribute evenly over the ingredients in the crockpot.  Cook the pasta until tender but firm and then combine with the meat mixture just before serving.  Sprinkle cheese on top just before serving. 

Scalloped Potatoes:

2 tbsp. butter, 1 onion peeled and chopped, 6 medium-sized potatoes thinly sliced, sprinkle of salt and pepper, 2/3 cup milk, 3/4 cup grated cheese.

Put butter and onion in a sauce pan and saute until tender.  Meanwhile arrange half of the potatoes in a round casserole dish.  Spread onion and butter over.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Arrange rest of potatoes evenly over.  Pour the milk over.  Sprinkle cheese on top.  Cook at 375 for 60 minutes or until cooked through.  It might be necessary part-way through to stir and return to the oven.  Sprinkle with more cheese to serve!

Monday: Fish, Rice, Veggies

Tuesday: Mac ‘n’ Cheese

Wednesday: Chicken Pot Pie - SO great in a crock pot and easy to assemble and just cook up for busy nights!!

Thursday: Appetizers Galore!  Check out this vegetarian appetizers link, and this one too for appetizers including meat!  I’ll post some of the recipes next week after our guests come.  My dear friend Serena just discovered my blog, so I wouldn’t want her to cheat and know what she’s having! 

Friday: Out for dinner

Saturday: At a Christmas Party!

Sunday: Potato Latkes (we like to make these when Hannukah starts, even though we’re not Jewish!  Hannukah really starts on the 12th, but we’re not home that night!)

Potato Latkes:

3 large potatoes, 1/2 onion finely chopped, 1 egg, 1/4 cup flour, salt and pepper, oil

Peel the potatoes and finely grate.  Let them drain in a colander for 10 mins.  Press down with the palms of your hands to extract extra liquid.  Combine the potatoes in a bowl with the onion, egg and flour.  Mix well.  Add salt and pepper to taste.  Heat frying pan to medium heat.  Coat the bottom with oil.  Drop enough batter to form a potato latke (pancake!).  Fry on both sides until golden brown and crisp.  Keep warm until ready to serve.  Serve with sour cream or apple sauce. 

What are you cooking for dinner?

I think it is becoming increasingly common for people to be vegetarians these days.  Not only is it a "trend" but it is people who are becoming aware of what is healthy, the need to stay away from chemicals in meat, and of course the age-old reason of the inhumane treatment of animals.  I fully respect all reasons (except for the trend one…if you’re only a vegetarian because it’s "cool", get over it.). 

As such, I’ve met quite a few families who have the struggle of making meals for both the herbivores and carnivores in the family!  Life is busy, and it can be a challenge to make special meals for one or the other each night.  So how can you strike a balance?

We don’t have this particular issue in our home, but we do have friends who come over for dinner and we do our best to prepare meals that everyone can enjoy.  I thought that I would share some of those options to you as you consider how to feed everyone!

Option #1: Middle Eastern Food

Middle Eastern food has a ton of different dishes that incorporate both meat and vegetables.  Middle Eastern food makes for a great meal for vegetarians and non-vegetarians.  I made a meal a couple of weeks ago that consisted of channa masala (a chickpea based dish), masoor daal (a lentil based dish), beef keftas (meat), naan bread, couscous, and fresh veggies.  This satisfied the need for starch, protein and vegetables, and gave both vegetarians and non-vegetarians food they could enjoy.

Here’s a pic of my channa masala:

Option #2: Mexican Food

Mexican food is also a great option for vegetarians and non-vegetarians.  One of the simplest meals to incorporate this is burritos.  In separate bowls lay out shredded cheese, lettuce, diced tomatoes, chopped onions, salsa and sour cream.  And then do up a bowl of rice, a bowl of Mexican-flavoured ground beef, and Mexican-flavoured black beans.  I did up both the beef and black beans with the same spice mix and some onions and garlic.  Everyone got tortillas and could pile on what they wanted!  It was easy and it pleased everyone’s dietary needs.  You could also do the same thing with taco shells.

Option #3: Pasta

Everyone loves spaghetti or other types of pasta.  It’s a pretty safe option when you have company coming and you’re rushed, or when you need to whip something up for your family at night.  However, it can be an issue if you’re used to ground-beef based spaghetti sauce!  An easy solution for this is to cook your pasta like regular, and then cook two pots of the same sauce.  In one pot, add ground beef like usual, and in the other pot add a cup of lentils (or more, depending on the amount of people).  Lentils add protein and will give vegetarians the same nourishment as those eating the sauce with the ground beef.  Serve the pasta on the table and the two separate sauces so people can choose.  Add a side of salad, and garlic bread, and everyone can enjoy this meal!

Option #4: Pizza

Pizza is always a classic for parties, gatherings, and busy nights!  I make up a batch of pizza dough every so often and since there’s only the two of us I divide it in half and freeze one.  You could easily either split one pizza to have half vegetarian, and half with meat.  Or, if there’s more than two of you, you could have one vegetarian pizza and one meat pizza.  Of course the toppings can be endless, and it can suit your tastes!  Easy solution, and always a hit! 

Do you have any tips?

I was half-tempted to title this blog "Totally Junky and Fattening Granola Bars" because I thought it might attract more of you!  But, it’s true, these granola bars are HEALTHY!  And not only are they healthy, they’re DELICIOUS!  

I was scanning Passionate Homemaking’s blog, and Lindsay posted this recipe for granola bars.  Boy are they amazing!  I made mine with pumpkin seeds, peanut butter, raisins and maple syrup (there are a few variations for some ingredients).  I also added about less than a 1/4 cup of granola as well.  They are so good!  You should check out the link and make them!  Both my husband and I love them.  And the best part is that we know that we’re not eating any crazy chemicals or other preservatives that most granola bars have! (That’s my granola bar featured above!)

Not only are they great for snacks, but they’re great for company.  They could even be used as a treat at a holiday dinner!  If you cut them into squares instead of rectangles you can put them out on a plate and enjoy them at a potluck this party season!  

Happy healthy treat eating!   

Posts coming up this week include:

-how to make meals for vegetarians and non-vegetarians living in the same house

-a delicious granola bar recipe that can be used as a Christmas treat

Monday: Strawberry Chicken, Rice, Veggies

Tuesday: Steak, Fries, Veggies

Wednesday: Homemade Potato Soup, Homemade bread

Thursday: Pasta with tomato meat sauce and tomato lentil sauce (vegetarians and non-vegetarians for dinner!), garlic bread, and salad.

Friday: Sausages, Mashed Potatoes, Veggies

Saturday: Christmas Party - out for dinner

Sunday: It’s St. Nikolaus Day!  Roast, Yorkshires, Carrots, Potatoes, Peas 

What are you cooking for dinner this week? 

Since we’ve been married, we have been striving to make the holiday season more Christ-centred rather than commerically-centred.

It’s hard.

We live in a culture that teaches us that the more gifts, the merrier, and if we don’t "obey" that we’re bad people!

But I refuse to give in!  Well, at least completely.  So we have been doing some creative work over the last 3 and a half years to bring Christmas back to Christ in our home.  Here are some of the ways we’ve changed things…

1.) We don’t give gifts on Christmas Day.  I know, I know, this is a hard one to change.  But hear me out!  We realized that we were over-giving.  We were spending too much, and sometimes buying things that we didn’t really need all in a effort to make someone else feel appreciated.  All of this was taking away our focus from Christ’s birth.  Which, just so happens to be the point of Christmas!  Instead, we decided to focus our gift-giving on good ol’ Saint Nick.  So we exchange gifts on St. Nikolaus Day which is December 6th.  My husband is of European roots and also grew up partially in Europe.  As such he was used to getting his shoe filled on the eve of St. Nikolaus Day.  So we have combined this tradition with our North American one.  Instead of shoes, we put out our stockings.  Our stockings get filled up with our presents, and we open them up on December 6th!  If it doesn’t fit in the stocking, we don’t buy it!  Simple as that.  This has worked REALLY well in reminding us that Christmas is about CHRIST, thus leaving the 25th for that celebration.

2.) We have a Nativity Set.  This might seem basic, but we own a really nice Nativity Set that we love and cherish, and we place it directly under the Christmas tree where everyone can see it!

3.) We don’t buy gifts for anyone else.  At first I think our family members were a little bit surprised.  But instead of mailing gifts far away (most of our family is spread out across the world), we chose to purchase "Gifts of Hope" in their honour.  We designate an amount for what we personally want to spend as a whole, and we split that amongst our family and close friends and send them a "postcard"-type picture that describes what we bought in their honour, and how it is helping someone in need.  My husband is handy with photoshop and so he makes the postcards himself and then we print them through Walmart as 4x6 pictures. 

4.) We celebrate Advent at home.  There are two ways that we do this, so I’ll outline the first one.  Normally at Church you’ll have your typical advent wreath and each Sunday leading up to Christmas a candle is lit, and some Scripture is read.  This is a special tradition that we love.  We decided that we wanted to include that in our home.  So I purchased a simple wreath, and some ribbon and some candles (we went with "Christmas-colours" but you can buy the real advent colours) and made it a centrepiece on our dining room table.  As we share in our Sunday meal, we read our advent material and light the appropriate candles.  This is what our advent display looks like:

5.) The Jesse Tree: For the second part of our advent celebration, we use our Christmas tree as a reminder of Jesus’ heritage by considering the Jesse Tree.  It takes place throughout the entire month of advent.  This is a new concept for us, but one that we love.  Of course we have all kinds of sentimental and beautiful ornaments on our Christmas tree, but we also use some of those ornaments to tell the lineage of Jesus and how God’s love and faithfulness has transpired over time leading us to the birth of Christ.  It really connects us with our Old Testament roots.  It is inspired from Isaiah 11:1-2 "A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse; from his roots a Branch will bear fruit.  The Spirit of the LORD will rest on him - the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding, the Spirit of counsel and of power, the Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD." 

Some people only use small trees and just add ornaments as they go throughout advent.  However, we place all of our ornaments on the tree as soon as we put it up, and then we remove the specific ornament for that day and add it symoblically after the reading.  You can do it however you like!

Here are some specific links so you can understand more about the Jesse Tree, and what that could look like in your home:

*Summary of one family’s experience with a Jesse Tree, and their ornaments.

*A free summary of Scripture and daily readings and ideas for symbolic ornaments.

*A detailed description of the Jesse Tree and an easy-to-read chart with Scripture, themes & ornament ideas.

*You can purchase an e-book quite reasonably with 40 pages of material and information on the Jesse Tree.

So, now that some of you are inspired and others of you think I’m absolutely crazy…what are some ways that you promote CHRIST in Christmas?

This is part 3 of a series on my love for tea!  You can check out part 1 and part 2 if you’re interested in some household tips for using tea, as well as some ways of brewing your tea and some of my favourite helpers in the kitchen for making tea!

This week I want to talk about keeping your tea available as a means of hospitality.  As we all know, tea is a wonderful beverage to serve after dinner and any other time of entertaining.  It’s a social thing, and it’s one that we enjoy sharing with our guests.  

In our home, we don’t just have guests over for dinner though…they’re over at all times of the day, invited and uninvited, and for days at a time!  Our house is always busy and some people refer to it as a "hostel"!  As such, it’s good for us to have our tea out and available for people to use so they can help themselves.  We’ve turned our kitchen table in a beverage station permanently, and this is what it looks like:

  <– Full table display   <– Up close of one box, sugar, honey and cups.

It was especially useful this past weekend when we had 14 people coming through our doors!  In one box I have Twinings tea (my favourite brand) and in another I have Stash tea (another one of my favourites).  In the basket is an assortment of green teas someone gave me, and I also keep the sugar, some honey and a couple of mugs ready and available.  The fruit is a nice touch too, but has nothing to do with tea.  :)

If I know people are coming over, I usually boil the water just ahead of time and put it in my carafe and leave it on the table as well so people don’t even have to worry about boiling their water! 

It’s just a nice way to let people know they’re welcome in our home, and that they can make themselves at home.  

"Tea pot is on, the cups are waiting, favourite chairs anticipating, no matter what I have to do, my friend there’s always time for you." (Unknown)

Monday: Vegetarian Stir-fry

Tuesday: Perogy Casserole

Wednesday: German-style Chicken Sandwich (see below for recipe)

Thursday: Bean Burritos & Ground Beef Burritos with all the toppings: cheese, lettuce, tomatoes, salsa…

Friday: Potluck @ My House with some ladies!  

Saturday: Leftover Chili from the freezer

Sunday: Leftovers

Perogy Casserole: 

16-20 perogies, 1 onion chopped, 1/4 cup milk (or water), 1/2 cup cooked ham/bacon/pepperoni or sausage diced, 1 tbsp. butter, 1 green pepper diced, 10 oz. can condensed mushroom soup, paprika to sprinkle, shredded cheese to sprinkle.

In a small skillet, melt butter; saute onion and green pepper for 5 minutes.  In a medium casserole dish, lay out perogies in a single layer.  In a medium bowl mix together onion, green pepper, meat, mil, and mushroom soup.  Pour over perogies.  Top with a layer of shredded cheese.  Sprinkle with paprika.  Bake for 35 minutes at 375F.  

German-style Chicken Sandwich:

1/4 cup oil, 1 onion sliced, 2 chicken breasts, 4 thick slices of bread lightly toasted, 2 eggs, 2 tbsp. bbq. sauce, 1 tomato sliced.

I thought I’d give you a heads up on what is coming up on my blog in the next week or so!

*Some ways that I celebrate Christmas, including links and resources!

*For the love of tea part 3.

*Monday Menu Planner: dinner recipes!

Check back!  Leave comments! 

Last Wednesday I shared some household tips on ways to use tea beyond drinking it!  Today I want to share with you the differences between preparing different types of tea, as well as a couple of gadgets that we like to use at our house.

Black Tea: The boiling point for black tea needs to be at 99C or else the active substances in the black tea will not develop.  The most common problem when making black tea is using water that is not hot enough!  Black teas are best when steeped for no more than 5 minutes, but definitely not less than 30 seconds.  A popular black tea that my husband loves is Darjeeling tea.  He also loves vanilla plantation tea, which is another yummy black tea.  My personal favourite black tea is Lady Grey.  

Green or White Tea: Water for green tea should be around 80-85C.  Hotter water will burn green tea which will produce a bitter taste.  If you are drinking a high quality green or white tea you can add more water to the tea 4 or 5 times.  Bring the water to just before the boil and steep green tea for 1-3 minutes, and white tea for 3-5 minutes.  I like normal plain green tea.  It’s great for digesting food.

Herbal Tea: After bringing water to a full boil, steep your herbal tea for 7-10 minutes.  My favourite herbal tea is Peppermint.  It’s so aromatic and relaxing when needing unwind.

The Tea Tube: I have struggled with various tea balls, and other tea gadgets, but I have now discovered the most amazing tea gadget!  We own a tea tube, and it is wonderful.  It doesn’t let the little tea bits float all throughout our tea, and it is easily cleaned in warm soapy water.  This is used daily at our house!

French Coffee Press: I know, I know…this post is about tea…so what’s with the French coffee press, right?  Well, as much as I love the tea tube, sometimes you need to make a full pot of loose tea, not just one cup.  This is where the French coffee press comes in handy!  You sprinkle your loose tea in the bottom of the press, and pour your water on top.  Put the lid on, but DON’T PRESS THE PRESS DOWN yet…let it steep as per the instructions above, and the slide the press to the bottom.  You’ll be amazed at how clear your cup of tea is!  

Stay tuned next week for more info on the love of tea! 

Over at Passionate Homemaking they’re hosting a Nourishing Crockpot Carnival!  Go there to join in, or leave a comment here with your own Crockpot recipes!

Life can be busy, and schedules are rushed and sometimes you need to use your crockpot in order to make sure you eat a healthy dinner, but in a timely manner!  I have two amazing soup recipes that I want to share that are perfect for quick assembly and delicious when you come home at night.  Don’t forget to make some homemade bread to enjoy with them!  

 This will help solve your problems for what to eat on a night where you know you’ll be rushed.

Corn Chowder:

10 slices of bacon (fry until crisp and chop), 1 medium chopped onion, 1 red pepper chopped, 1 cup diced potatoes and/or carrots, black pepper and salt to taste, 1 can of cream of corn, 1 can of mushroom soup (or any creamed soup), 1 cup of milk.

Fry the onions and then add the potatoes (only if fresh), red pepper, salt and pepper.  Cook all until tender.  Add cream corn, soup and milk.  Simmer for 1/2 hour or put in crock pot on low.  Can be left for several hours.  Serves 4. 

Squash Soup: 

2 tbsp. butter or coconut oil, 1 cup chopped onion, 2 cups chicken stock, 2 cups yellow squash mashed, 4.5 oz. apple sauce, 1/2 tsp. salt, 1/8 tsp. pepper, sour cream or plain yogurt for garnish.

Put butter or oil into saucepan.  Saute onion until soft and clear.  Add remaining ingredients.  Run through blender and put into crockpot.  Simmer on low for several hours.  Garnish with a dab of sour cream or yogurt to serve.

Curried Squash Soup: Add 1 tsp. curry powder.  Simmer gently before serving. 

Monday: Quebecois Chicken, Mashed Potatoes, Veggies

Tuesday: Sausage Pasta

Wednesday: Baked Fish Florentine (see below), Rice, Veggies

Thursday: Couscous, Masoor Daal, Naan Bread, Oregano Beef Keftas, Fresh Cucumber & Tomatoes, Chickpea Curry

Friday: Out @ our "Go For Souls" Conference!

Saturday: Out @ at a Concert

Sunday: Beef Pot Pie (using chicken pot pie recipe and substituting beef chunks and beef flavour instead of chicken flavour), Salad

Baked Fish Florentine Recipe:

2 fish fillets, 3/4 tsp. salt, 1/4 tsp. pepper, 1/4 cup mayonnaise, 2 tbsp. sour cream (or plain yogurt), 2 tbsp. parmesan cheese, 2 tsp. all-purpose flour, 1/2 cup finely diced onion, 1/4 tsp. paprika.

Coat the bottom of a 9x13 baking pan with oil.  Arrange fish in a single layer in dish and sprinkle with 1/4 tsp. of salt and pepper.  In a small bowl, whisk together mayonnaise, sour cream, parmesan cheese, flour, and onion until smooth.  Spread over fish.  Bake fish, uncovered at 450F about 10-15 mins. or until cooked through.  Sprinkle with paprika.

What are you cooking this week?

Beauty is something so subjective.  Or is it?

People get caught up with the desire to dress a certain way, wear their hair a certain style, or put on just the right amount of make-up to be viewed as beautiful.  But why?  Why do we become so obsessed with what we are on the outside so that we completely forget who we are on the inside? 

I’m not exempt.  In junior high I felt somewhat awkward.  Let’s be real: I think most people felt awkward in junior high.  I felt like some of the other girls were transforming into beautiful butterflies, and I was just this sad little caterpillar that would eventually take flight…but yet, I was still waiting. 

High school came, and I didn’t feel much different.  Other girls had piles of guys following them around, and I was the one who was more of a "good friend" than anything else.  I didn’t necessarily mind that though.  In some sense, it made me feel much more relaxed because I didn’t have anything to live up to.  But then society’s belief system would creep in and I’d get caught up in those "what-ifs" again. 

It never made any difference.

And then near the end of high school and during University I started to really understand that I didn’t want to be one of those people consumed by beauty and the patheticness that it created in women (is patheticness even a word??).  I wanted to be myself.  Sure, it meant I didn’t want to be a slob, but it meant that I didn’t need to look a certain way for anyone else. 

Looks fade.

Even though we are perhaps initially attracted to a person for their looks or style, it’s their unique character that keeps us entertained.  Think of the people that you love the most dearly.  I’m sure that some of them are truly beautiful in the most physical sense.  But think about their personality too.  Without it, their appearance would be a hollow shell. 

There are so many truly beautiful people that I know.  And I don’t mean the beauty that is outward only.  I mean the kind of beauty that soaks deeply into their innermost being, that transforms their smile to be something that is overwhelming, and allows their embrace to be something that is filled with warmth.

For those truly beautiful people I am thankful.  They are the ones who light up my life, and cause me to think of the beauty in this world.  I am thankful for each one who comes into my life because despite what the world thinks of them, every single person has beauty.  Every single person has shared some sort of beautiful moment with me.  Even the most negative person provides me with love and warmth because I know that despite what they put out into this world, they’re just a regular hurting person who needs to be loved.   

We all need to be loved don’t we?

We have a whole day set aside for it in February (which happens to be my husband’s birthday!).

Regardless of a commercial day designed to promote love, consider the people around you.  Your elderly neighbour who waters her garden constantly.  Your dad who calls to check that you are okay.  The kid from your church that needs some extra attention.  The woman from the grocery store that locks eyes with you each time you buy groceries, but never says a word.   

These are the people who make up our world.  These are beautiful people.  These are the people we need to love.

Are you loving them?

"If man has no tea in him, he is incapable of understanding truth and beauty." (Japanese Proverb)

While I type this blog I am sitting sipping some cherry tea.  I have an incredible love for tea, even though for years I avoided it.  My cup of tea has inspired me to write a blog (or two or three!) about my love of tea.  For the next couple of Wednesdays look forward to some blogs about types of teas, tea products, and perhaps more! 

For today I plan on sharing some tips I have discovered about the uses of tea.  To read more than I’ve written here, you can check out this website.

1.) A tea bag works well as a compress on swollen, puffy eyes.  Especially chamomile tea.

2.) Chamomile tea is a natural sleep aid.

3.) Tea bags that have cooled can be applied to sunburned areas of skin.

4.) Tea "sachets" made with plain old black tea make a perfect addition to your refrigerator.  They help to keep odours to a minimum!

5.) Chamomile or peppermint tea makes a very soothing footbath.

6.) Tea is excellent to feed your plants!  Give them an occasional drink of tea instead of water, or add wet tea leaves into the soil.

7.) Try marinatng your meat in tea. 

8.) Sprinkle damp tea leaves over the ashes in your fireplace before cleaning it out.  The tea will help to keep the ashes from rising and getting all over the place while you lift them out.

9.) A wet tea bag can soothe shaving cuts.

10.) Apply a cool wet green teabag to the area where a shot was had.  It will help to soothe the pain.

11.) Use warm teabags on your eyes to soothe pinkeye infections.

12.) Place warm teabags on canker sores or blisters to draw out infections.

13.) Wash your face with tea to cure acne.

14.) Cold, wet teabags will soothe beestings and insect bites.

Do you have any tips or tricks for household uses of tea?

This week is a bit unusual as we are not eating at home a couple of times, and then from Thursday-Sunday we have company!  So here it goes…

Monday: Out for dinner

Tuesday: Chicken Bombay, Rice, Veggies

Wednesday: Ribs, Mashed potatoes, Veggies

Thursday: Chili, Homemade bread

Friday: Homemade mac ‘n’ cheese

Saturday: Spaghetti

Sunday: Leftovers

The fall inspires me to cook warm and hearty and delicious meals!  I’m sure we all have our favourites.  I asked friends of mine to give me input on different types of recipes they’d like to see, and so in honour of them I’m going to share some of my favourite fall recipes in the categories they requested!

Vegetarian:

Mac ‘n’ Cheese - This recipe is one of my absolute favourites!  My friend Tammy passed it along and we really enjoy it.  Especially on a day like today where it’s rainy and chilly and you just feel like something comforting!  To make it more vegetarian you can substitute soy milk for regular milk like I do. 

Sloppy Lentils - If you enjoy sloppy joes, then you’ll enjoy this vegetarian substitute!  It’s so yummy and filling and it’s another delicious comfort food.

Salads:

Alsace Salad - This one is a childhood favourite of Peter’s.  It’s so tasty and the dressing is light and always a nice change!