Welcome to the World: Lazy Perogie Casserole and Links

It's official! Vegetables: A Love Story has officially launched out into the Universe! And while there hasn't been as much drama as William Shatner shooting off into space, things here have been very busy and I'm overjoyed to say that this second book baby has been received with glowing reviews. It's even number two on the McNally Robinson Best Seller list! Woo hoo! My online book launch party is happening tomorrow October 21st at 7 pm. Here is the link to register. While we can't do in-person events due to covid, this is the next best thing. I hope to see you there! Dixon is going to make a cameo, and the chat with Jenn is sure to be entertaining. I'll read some stories and answer your questions. Please join us! 

First Look: Springtime Risotto with Asparagus and Peas

It's a beautiful June day here in Saskatoon. We've had a decent amount of rain, which means my yard is green and lush, and while the grass is getting too tall, I kind of love it because the cats can scoot around in it and hide like it's their own jungle playground. This totally cracks me up. I love those little critters. The peonies have formed small heads and in about 2 weeks time they'll become the bombshells of the backyard, and honestly, there's no time like peony time! I also love the moisture because it means Dixon's huge vegetable plot is coming along nicely, and for the last month or so I've been enjoying the best springtime asparagus. If you follow me on Instagram you know how bonkers I get about it. I love it so much that it graces the cover of my new cookbook! Isn't it gorgeous? The inside is just as pretty, and I can't wait to share more with you. So much hard work and love and eating went into this collection of recipes. Plus the dishes. So many dishes. One day I will have a dishwasher! 

Buttery Pappardelle in Caramelized Onion Sauce

This is a sponsored post. While I was compensated financially, all opinions are my own. 

I don’t know about you, but I’m in full-on hibernation mode. Every day I thank my lucky stars that I’m writing my second cookbook (!!!) and don’t have to venture out of my house too much. This is especially welcome when the *Feels Like temperature is -40C in Saskatoon. Oh my stars, let me tell you, that is COLD. And when it’s this cold I want to fill my belly with delicious comfort food that is simple, budget friendly (it is January after all) and delicious. This recipe for buttery noodles swaddled in the most delicious caramelized onion sauce checked all those boxes. I just finished the last bit for lunch today and I already can’t wait to make it again!

Sweet and Spicy: Pepperoni Pizza with Basil and Honey

This is a sponsored post. All opinions are mine. And, as usual, I will only write about products that I really love! 

You guys. I just made the best pizza. I know, I know, we all think we make the best pizza, but this really is the tops. I mean, just look at it! The golden, chewy, whole wheat crust, saucy sauce, basil pesto, loads of mozzarella - fresh and shredded, thinly sliced jalapeno pepper, heaps of pepperoni, fresh basil leaves that I grew myself, and a good drizzle of honey. If you like your pizza with a bit of heat and sweet, then this recipe is for you. It's the second installment for my partnership with Grimm's Fine Foods this summer, and I'm so pleased I get to bring you the very best ideas on how to use their excellent products. They are always gluten, lactose and soy free, with no MSG added and contain no fillers or sketchy bi-products. And, they are made in Canada!

Get Seasonal: One Pot Pumpkin Macaroni and Cheese

This is a sponsored post. I was compensated financially by Barilla Canada, but all the opinions are my own.  

Everyone loves macaroni and cheese. It’s classic comfort food at its best, and because World Pasta Day is October 25th, I thought I would switch it up my favourite mac and cheese with seasonal pumpkin and sustainable split red lentils. Don’t worry - the end result is still bowls of delicious mac and cheese goodness with the bonus points for added nutrition. Another pasta event happening in October is the Barilla Pasta World Championships in Milan, Italy from October 23rd -25th. This year’s edition is the seventh annual competition, and it’s exciting because for the second time ever, a Canadian chef is competing. Chef Angela Villalta from Toronto is representing Canada, and I’m sending her all sorts of winning vibes.

Summer Fresh: Linguine with Shrimp, Tomatoes and Basil

This is a sponsored post. I was compensated financially by Barilla to write it. All thoughts, 
feelings and opinions about their pasta are my own. 


Happy Summer everyone! Oh, it feels glorious to be kicking off my favourite season. We've had gorgeous weather in Saskatoon, and already there have been several days of It's Too Damn Hot There's No Way In Hell I'm Going To Turn My Oven On. I think it's been a week now, and I'm beginning to miss my baked goods! My house is so old and just loves to retain the heat of the day. It's a beast, I tell you. Alas, one shall not complain of the heat, as those -30C temps are only 6 months away. Instead, I shall embrace the back sweat, and just change more often into my pretty summer clothes. When it's too hot to sleep, I'll step outside and admire the solar lights my mom has plunked all over the garden. If the house feels like it's on fire, I'll turn on the hose and douse myself with the cold, cold water. It's basically the 45 year old woman's version of running through the sprinkler. Afterwards, there will be ice cream in the shade, and the trees will sway in the summer breeze and I'll be glad that I live where I do, back sweat and all.

Skillet Mushroom Lasagna with Greens and Mozzarella

This is a sponsored post. I was compensated financially by Mushrooms Canada to develop this recipe. All opinions about mushrooms are my own. 

Hey all!  I'm hanging out with the fine folks at Mushrooms Canada again. I love it when they ask me to be a guest over on their blog, as mushrooms are pretty much a staple in my kitchen and I look forward to developing delicious recipes featuring this beloved fungi! 

Everyone loves a good lasagna, and this one cooks up in a cast iron skillet in no time. While the noodles are par-cooking, simply make a basic cream sauce, and stir in a little Dijon, cayenne and nutmeg. Mushrooms love those flavours! Sliced cremini mushrooms are cooked in a bit of butter with another good friend – garlic. Stir in your favourite baby greens and cook just until they are wilted. Wipe out the skillet and lightly grease it with some canola oil. Layer in the sauce, noodles, mushroom mixture and top with more cheese. It cooks quickly in a hot oven and has a short stint under the broiler to get that ooey gooey cheesy crust. Served with a side salad, it’s fancy enough for company, and simple enough for a weeknight family meal. Find the recipe over on the Mushrooms Canada Blog. 

Get Ready: Penne with Tomatoes, Basil and Bacon

This is a sponsored post. I was compensated financially by Barilla Pasta to write this blog post, and they sent me product to try. All opinions are my own.

Long before the kind folks at Barilla Pasta wanted to work with me, their pasta was what I reached for when I was in the grocery store. This partnership is a natural fit for me and I’m so pleased to be working with them and creating all kinds of fun recipes with their pasta. First out of the gate is Ready Pasta, and it’s just in time for a busy summer season when you want to be outdoors pretty much all the time, right? The cool thing about this pouch of pasta is that it’s already cooked, making it an ultra-convenient pasta option to anyone who needs a quick meal solution or snack. You can microwave it for one minute, then stir in  your favourite ingredients. And, don’t fret if you don’t have a microwave. I don’t either, and the pasta is fabulous just warmed up in a skillet with a little olive oil. Heating up the pasta allows you to enjoy the al dente texture without sacrificing taste. And no, there are no wonky ingredients in the Ready Pasta. It’s crafted with high quality semolina (wheat), durum wheat flour, extra virgin olive oil and sea salt. There are no preservatives. You could eat it straight out of the bag, but heating it up for just a minute or two allows for that perfect al dente texture and delicious flavor you’ve come to expect from Barilla.

Honey Chipotle Roasted Fish Tacos with Peach Salsa

This is a sponsored post. I was compensated financially to write about California Cling 

Peaches. All opinions, thoughts, feelings about canned peaches are my very own.

My Instagram feed is currently flooded with folks frolicking on tropical beaches, 

and I have to admit I’m a little jealous. Clad in slippers and wool, I stare out onto a 

snow-covered front yard, and the only things frolicking are the brave birds, happily 

eating up the food I put out for them. How I wish I could trade in my boots for sandals, 

my shower for a swim-up bar, and the snow for some sand. And, everyone seems to 

be eating tacos on their tropical vacations, which makes me crave the sun and the 

beach even more. Seeing as I can’t transport myself to a place where the cold doesn’t 

hurt my face, I made my own fish tacos with a delicious peach salsa and pretend 

there isn’t another month of winter left.

Greek Stuffed Zucchini with Rice and Lentils

This is a sponsored post.  I was compensated financially by USA Rice.  All thoughts and feelings and opinions about rice are entirely my own.  As always, I wouldn't tell you about a product  unless I loved it.   


I didn't grow any zucchini this year.  In fact, I didn't grow much of anything except pots of herbs and 3 tomatoes.  No, not tomato plants.  Tomatoes, singular.  I'm not sure why the heck my tomatoes did not flourish, but I have an inkling it's because my yard has become tremendously shady over the past couple of years.  Veg hate shade, that's a known fact.  Good thing I'm dating a vegetable farmer so there has been no shortage of tomatoes, or zucchini or anything else that grows in the ground around here.  If I were an emoji right now, I'd be the one with hearts for eyes.

Back-to-School With Pulses: Carrot Lentil Muffins & Spaghetti with Chickpea Tomato Sauce

Backpacks are bursting with pencils and notebooks as the kids head back to school this week.  The excitement of a fresh start is in the air, and with this fresh start comes a shift in focus on how we eat.  Meals need to be simple and quick, yet nutritious and tasty.  We want snacks to be healthy, and yet we don't want to find them lingering in the bottom of the lunch bag at the end of the day.  That's where pulses come in handy.  2016 in International Year of Pulses (lentils, chickpeas, dried peas and beans), and if you have yet to take the Pulse Pledge, I urge you to do so and peruse the website for all kinds of fantastic ways to incorporate pulses into your back-to-school menu plans.  You basically sign up to eat 1/2 cup of pulses a week, which is so easy to do.  Bursting with protein, fibre, vitamins and minerals, pulses are essentially superfoods.  They are good for the heart, manage blood sugar levels and help in weight management.  Gluten free and vegetarian, pulses are tremendously versatile.  I love adding them to just about everything: main dishes, breakfast, as a side dish and even dessert.  One of their many positive attributes is they take on the flavour of whatever you cook them with.  Plus, they are a super affordable source of protein.  One pound of lentils is a fraction of what 1 pound of ground beef costs.  These things matter when it comes to feeding a family.  Pulses are also super good for the environment.  They fix their own nitrogen in the soil, making them a sustainable crop.  Highly water-efficient, they enrich the soil where they grow.  Canada is the world's largest producer and exporter of pulses, and if you took a road trip across Saskatchewan this summer, I bet you drove by a lentil field and didn't even know it. 

Black Bean Tostadas

Time is flying by, isn’t it?  We’re already well into March, and spring is definitely in the air given the amount of melting going on around here.  My cookbook manuscript and photographs are due on April 1st, so you can well imagine what I’ve been up to.  I’m almost done the recipes - just 10 left to shoot - and my testers are hard at work making sure everything is turning out the way it’s supposed to.  Let me tell you, having all these sweets in the house sounds pretty dreamy, and for the most part it is, but holy smokes, I’m having to run across the street with a dozen cream puffs for my neighbours, or calling up friends asking them to take away a cake.  I figure I’ll need a month of green smoothies to detox from the sugar and butter I’ve accumulated in my system over the past 7 months, but oh my, the treats coming out of my little green kitchen are impressive.  I made French honey crullers the other day, and oh lord, I swooned.  Needless to say, meals around here have to be relatively easy and healthy - I don’t have much energy to feed myself after a long day of baking, photographing and writing.  That’s where pulses come in - they are quick, tasty, economical and good for me.  Now if only someone could wash the dishes and give me back rubs…

Braised Chicken Thighs in a Mushroom Lemon Cream Sauce

It's a cold day across most parts of Canada - I know I had to throw an extra blanket on the bed last night and I don't dare go anywhere in my house without slippers on my feet.  It's a day for staying in and being cozy with your favourite people.  And, two words:  comfort food.  There's nothing better than curling up with a steaming bowl of something gorgeous and I've got just the right recipe for you.  The kind folks at Mushrooms Canada asked me to be a guest in their kitchen again, and I knew right away I wanted to use chicken thighs because 1) They're super economical right now.  2) Bone-in and skin-on thighs have loads of flavour, perfect for braising.  And 3) Chicken + Mushrooms = Together 4 Eva.  It's a great combo, especially when you throw cream and lemon juice into the mix. The meat just falls off the bone after 40 minutes of braising and the sauce, oh man, the sauce is delicious, great served over pasta or mashed potatoes.  If you are staying in and cooking for your love bug this Valentine's weekend, you'll find the recipe here.  Light some candles, pour the wine, and let love rule.     

 

Braised Lentils and Chickpeas with Kale & White Wine

I love me a good challenge.  It seems like every so often I take a deep breath and do something tremendously brave that both excites and terrifies me, and no doubt keeps my mother awake at night.  Sorry mom!  I've gone and done it again, and fingers crossed I'll land on my feet like I always seem to do.  More on this little shake up in a future blog post when I'm ready to spill the beans, but until then you'll just have to hold your horses.  Speaking of challenges, I've entered a recipe into another Canadian Lentils Recipe Revelations Challenge and I'm super excited for you to try it.  White wine, paprika, kale, it's a one pot little wonder that will have you licking the pot.  Or wait?  Is that just me?

Bison & Bean Stew with Wilted Swiss Chard

I love to eat bison.  Like, a lot.  If it's on a menu, my eyes light up and I get really excited.  I've always enjoyed its rich, slightly sweet, robust flavour, that's not at all wild or gamy.  But, I've never really cooked it much at work, or at home.  So when the offer came to review Jeniffer Bain's new cookbook Buffalo Girl Cooks Bison, I jumped at the chance.  Jennifer is the food editor and columnist for the Toronto Star, who happens to also be married to a bison rancher in Alberta.  She divides her time between the big city and the ranch, and over the past several years has come to love the majestic herbivore.  She's on a mission to convince everyone to love bison meat as much as she does.  This cookbook is a grand beginning.

Just Like That: Ratatouille

 

Gosh September, you're (almost) already gone.  Just like that.  I don't know about you guys, but it's been a busy one, especially if you grow your own food.  Recent road trips saw me crisscrossing the prairies, with combines out in full force, trying to get crops off before it's gets too cold or too wet.  My projects run on a much smaller scale, mainly putting the garden to bed and making tomato sauce with the generous offering of tomatoes from my sister.  She had a bumper crop this year, and I'm happy to use what she can't.  Sister love!  And, recent offerings of zucchini (okay, they kind of pleaded with me to take some) and peppers saw me bring out my giant stock pot and whip of a batch of ratatouille.  You know the stuff.  Peppers, eggplant, tomatoes, and yes, zucchini, simmered for a couple of hours into a silky stew that is so fantastic this time of year.  You can read more about here, in the latest issue of Culinaire Magazine.  It's super simple, you just need good knife skills and a good soundtrack to chop away to.  I listen to this about at least once a day. Happy autumn, y'all.

Sweet & Smoky Turkey Sloppy Joes

Mid September means most of us are back to school, back to work, back to reality, as it were.  I don't know about you, but every once in a while I close my eyes thinking it's still a lazy summer afternoon and all is just so right in the world.  This is a month of transition, in so many ways.  Work, weather, relationships.  There's lots on the go here, as I'm sure there is where you are, too.  Meals need to be thrown together faster than you can say "New episode of The Mindy Project! Hooray!".  And that's where these sloppy joes come to the rescue.  They are full of flavour and the sauce comes together while you whip up a quick coleslaw on the side.  Be sure to grab some fresh rolls, and there you are.  Dinner under thirty minutes, leaving you time to chauffeur the little ones to their activities, or get back into that yoga class (hey there yoga mat, nice to see you again) or just settle in for the night, because all of your favourite shows are back.  Can I just say thank goodness they finally adapted the wonderfully smutty Outlander series for TV.  Thank you Showtime for making my Sunday evenings that much better. 

For full recipe, please head on over to the Turkey Farmers of Canada website.  

Checking In: Caramelized Corn & Buttermilk Pancakes

Hey guys!  Happy September.  I'm just checking in to see how y'all are doing.  I've missed you (and this space) and it feels good to be back.  I'm still bonkers busy, but it's been good to catch my breath a little bit.   Today's post is still kinda short (and I hope sweet!) but I've wanted to catch you up on some stuff that's been happening 'round here.  Hopefully I'll be back shortly with something about peaches.  I've been cramming them in my mouth like they are the last thing to eat on earth.  It's good times!  But today let's talk about these corn pancakes. I had a couple ears of corn and an almost-expired carton of buttermilk, thus these were born, with the help of Deb.  I added in some pesto, chopped bacon, chives and even a few squash blossom flowers and they were simply marvelous.  Served with a fresh tomato/cucumber salad one night, then on a bed of sauteed kale the next, they were a hit, and re-heat quite nicely.  I bought more corn today, with the purpose of making them again.  Caramelizing the fresh kernels in butter is freaking fantastic.  Such flavour!  I love me a good savoury pancake, and this is the jackpot recipe.  Hope you think so too!

Roasted Mushroom Tart with Goat Cheese & Onion Jam

Wow.  Feels like I've been gone forever - okay a week - but I missed you!  My trip to Ontario was brilliant.  There's more to share about that later this week, once I unpack and do about 20 loads of laundry and settle back into life and all of the accumulation that tends to happen when one is on holiday and having fun.  But for now I have a real treat for you.  Mushrooms Canada asked me to create another recipe for their blog and I'm really, really excited to tell you about this savoury tart, using two varieties of mushrooms, goat cheese and a fabulous onion jam. 

Just Waking Up: Breakfast Tacos with Avocado Salsa

 

"Springtime is the land awakening.  The March winds are the morning yawn."  Lewis Grizzard


Give it up for being officially into Spring!  While there are still bits and pieces of snow scattered here and there, and the night-time temps are well into freezing, the big melt is on.  I even dug out my blue rubber boots, and almost teared up from the sheer joy of pulling them on, once again.  Yep, total weirdo.  I've seen life, in my flowerbeds - glimpses of green beneath the mulch of dead leaves.  It's subtle, but it's there.  Earth is beginning to turn over, and shed Winter's dead weight.  I'm crazy in love with this time of year.  I felt the warmth of the sun on my back today and thought of this song.  Always a sucker for fresh starts and a general rebirth of well being, Spring is my time and I dig it.  Hardcore.