In My kitchen!

Reflections on how comfort foods hop borders and make themselves at home in our kitchens.

Sometimes it's time for fast food.  

Other times you have time for a lovely, pillowy yeasted dough and the joy that is Cinnamon Buns!

Jambalaya AND a nice Sauerkraut Soup!

Along with a rant about transported vegetables!

What is better than a tender, perfectly cooked Prime Rib?  Use your Sous-Vide guarantee perfect results every time!

Make perfect gravy every time!

Mashed potatoes are divinely creamy prepared in the Instant Pot!

Kale got to be a bit overdone there for awhile, but let's not throw it out as "yesterday's trend".  Try incorporating it into just about any pasta dish for a splash of colour and a dash of nutrition!

Lasagna is wonderful.  The classic.  It takes time.  We tend to take so many shortcuts that we lose sight of the glory of the true recipe.  Sometimes it's best to take the time!  It's worth it!

The world is changing and we have to change with it or be left on the shelf.  To try cricket powder, you only have to be brave once.  High diving board!

Sous Vide sounds fancy, but actually, it is a wonderful secret for busy folks on the go.  This is primarily because it is so forgiving.  If you are an hour late, your roast beef will just be a bit more tender, and still at just your preferred degree of doneness!

How to assemble the essential components of:

.Base

.Veggie/fruit

.Protein

.Topping 

.Bonus

To create a nutritious, delicious, dinner salad!

Whatever your family techniques and traditions, the main thing is that you eat corn until it’s coming out of your ears, because, as we well know, corn season won’t last! Fall is just around the corner! Seize these lovely days!

This recipe - or collection of suggestions - hopefully will open your eyes to the many useful variations of the types of food we think of cooking in the Instant Pot.

Serve these pickles as part of an appetizer spread with fresh tomatoes, olives, flatbread, and hummus or baba ghanoush. They’re also tasty alongside grilled meats. finecooking.com

In Vietnam, pho is eaten morning, noon, and night. The flavorful broth is traditionally cooked for hours to achieve a full-bodied flavor, but with a pressure cooker, you can enjoy this rich and complex soup in a fraction of the time. epicurious.com

This delicious bread is a combination of the master recipe of Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day and a focaccia idea from Martha Stewart!  So good!

At some point we all get tired of the same old starches and grains.  Potatoes, rice, pasta.  Let's get a little experimental and find out some of the secrets that other cultures have known for centuries!

Option A:
Discard and resolve to do better nest week.

Option B:
Soup!

Option C:
Dog food!

Bearnaise is just a tarted up Hollandaise really.  But it can elevate meats and fish to an astonishing new level!

Spring is a time for asparagus.  Wizened winter asparagus is better than no asparagus, but spring asparagus - oh my!

Thoughts about Late Onset Attention Deficit Disorder and the need to slow it down!  Read Proust!  Make Madeleines!

A lovely memory of my childhood was of Mother's Pot Roast done with her terrifying, death defying pressure cooker!  These days, however, we can recreate the deliciousness without the anxiety!

Although I made this recipe in the Instant Pot, it would, of course, be easily adapted to a slow cooker or oven.

A recipe can be a gift, but it can also be a trap

A rather negative take on Christmas perhaps - too much Pumpkin Pie Spice and too many goodies!

The national dish of Poland, this dish, or variations thereof, are the comfort food of many slavic folk - or so I'm told.

This is a very official version.  I use whatever rub is handy, and Sweet Baby Ray's BBQ sauce.  Personally.  And these ribs are great!

Rumour is afoot that Nutella is changing their time-honoured recipe!

Canadian comfort food - either KD or real Mac & Cheese, stovetop or baked

If you are a Halloween person, you may already have a favourite fake blood recipe....

When it comes to breakfast, there's no place like home!

A reflection on the changing world and the part Julia Child played in all our lives.  And now the Instant Pot!

A trip down memory lane and a reflection of the evolution of "gassy vegetables".

Chimichurri Sauce and a reflection on the glories of green sauces in general!

This is a recipe for Peach Basil ice cream which will probably not be a favourite with the kids.  Pistachio is delicious. Maybe chocolate to start.... Just saying.  

Reflections on living life by the rules and daring to, occasionally, colour outside the lines!

Burgers with traditional Canadian ingredients to celebrate Canada's 150th birthday!

When you're out of ideas and don't have a hunk of meat handy...

Canadian life beyond Green Gables

Children have a complex and conflicted relationship with vegetables.  Take kohlrabi, for example...

Pickled grapes add a nice addition to "the usual suspects!"

Baking eggs for a crowd! This is a nifty idea for serving a lot of fried eggs without having to stand by the stove while your guests enjoy breakfast!

A reflection on taking time out of a busy day of irritations and stresses to enjoy the simple task of preparing dinner.

Stuffed Pork Tenderloin wrapped in bacon brightens up a dull late winter day!  Oh and Pimento Cheese for a touch of the South.

Out for dinner and suddenly you need another gadget!

Changing the way we do things, from plastic bags to shopping baskets

Let's resolve to deal with the chaos that is the freezer - to preserve peace of mind!

The story that began with going to camp and ended with a passion for Belgian endives!

"Learning is fun!"  

Not true.  Learning is frustrating, exasperating and painful!  Knowing!  That's the fun part!

Olive cheese balls - or what to bring to a pot luck!

A good resolution to start the new year, is to inspect the ingredients in your kitchen for freshness!

Food magazines struggle to fine their target audience.  This is an even greater problem as they try to reinvent the classic turkey dinner!

This is a bit of a trick because it takes a lot of whisking and maneuvering, but it is really worth the fussing!  I like to add raspberries to the whipped cream filling and for garnish.  

Thoughts about the many uses of parchment paper and a nice recipe for gougeres (small bites of cheesy creampuff)

At our house, we refer to this dish as "Victoire"  because it was the great favourite of my husband, Victor.  It has been tweaked over the years to suit his taste.

Bolognese Sauce, Canadian style.  If every Italian can have their own version of Bolognese sauce, why can't we?

The best laid plans for a smooth dinner party can run amok when last minute requests have to be accommodated!

A stroll down memory land when Father always knew best, and Mother made casseroles...