New Year's Eve Tourtière

Years ago, like in the 80's, I used to hang out with this French couple who introduced me to Tourtière on Christmas Eve one year.  They explained it was a tradition in their French Canadian homes in Quebec and I loved it!  I remember I liked it so much, I went back to their house for New Years Eve when they were having it again.

Ranch & Bacon Cheese Ball

I have never made a cheese ball in my life, but I do love them occasionally, like at Christmas time.  I decided I wanted to try, so one for me and one for a gift to a co-worker who was dropping by on the weekend.  I based my recipe on this one (there are a ton of cheese ball recipes out there!).  I chose one that I knew my co-worker would like.  Next time, I will use this recipe or this one.

Festive Pomegranate Guacamole

I was invited to a Christmas dinner party so wanted to contribute with an appetizer.  I wanted it to be related to "the season🎄🎅" and I wanted it to be something that the host liked.  I knew he loved avocados, so I stumbled across this recipe and thought it was perfect!  I bought all the serving dishes "holiday style🎍" at the 'Dollar store' so I wouldn't have to worry about bringing anything home or getting it back.  I found organic red tortilla chips which would go with the theme, and that made me really happy (I saw white & red everywhere, but when I found all red, I was delighted).

Manhattan Fish Chowder

I was craving soup and I thought I'd make a fish soup.  I decided to make a spin on Manhattan clam chowder.  I bought some fresh Pacific red snapper and some previously frozen sockeye salmon head (no eyes)/tail pieces that had lots of meat on them - scraps.  The fish cost me under $10 for all of it.  I figured that would do fine for the fish part of the soup.  Basically, after that, the ingredients all came from what was in the fridge/kitchen.  I used:

Unstuffed Cabbage Rolls

This is pretty good diet food though I had some sausages in the fridge that needed to be used up.  I added them to the turkey, making it a little less healthy, though they would certainly add more flavor.  This dish is known as "lazy cabbage rolls" and is really easy to make.  It works for me since on two previous tries, I did a lousy job of trying to separate the cabbage leaves successfully and then roll - definitely not an easy task!   Tonight I used:

Kale Chips

I had a healthy weekend of eating.  I awoke today and had an egg white omelette with fresh spinach and tomatoes, but found I was hungry again early afternoon.  I was watching "Cooking Channel" and someone was making kale chips.  It reminded me that I had this really curly, springy bunch of kale in my fridge so I decided to make it too.  I preheated my oven to 300°F.

Wylie's Turkey Goulash (Christine Style)

I got this recipe from "The Biggest Loser" t.v. show years ago.  It is a diet meal deal, and I always really liked it.  I decided to make it tonight, in trying to keep in better health before the holiday season hits us.  Well, I guess it already is holiday season since my "lunch/dinner eating out" calendar has filled up three times as much as normal... I altered this, a lot, so it is really my spin on this recipe tonight.  I made a double batch too by adding more turkey and vegetables.  I only used the one can of beans.

Instant Pot: Swiss Steak with Tomatoes and Cream

I got this Instant Pot for my birthday from my wonderful son.  I have always wanted a pressure cooker.  I remember using one in high school (old school, stovetop type) in Home Economics class and made Swiss Steak.  I remember thinking how delicious it was and that memory has always stayed with me for whatever reason.  It is something I have never made since then and I've never used a pressure pot since then either.  Now that I had the Instant Pot, I was a little intimidated and did a ton of reading about it.  I found online "community" posts confusing because everyone had their own opinions about how to do things but it did help me find helpful links though.  I also bought this cookbook (online version) to get started.  The recipe below is from this book.  I knew it was going to take some time to build my confidence using this unit, so I decided I needed to try trusted, tested recipes to start so I could get the hang of how the thing worked.  Before I started, I did the "water test".  I also perused this link for beginners.  I was finally ready to begin...

Southern Tomato Pie

I bastardized this recipe by using Pillsbury pie dough for the crust.  I have been wanting to make this for quite some time or rather, I've been wanting to eat this for quite some time.  Since I know there will be nowhere in my town to indulge on it and I won't be in North Carolina any time soon, I decided to try it.  I've enjoyed watching chef Vivian Howard on "A Chef's Life" on PBS and have become a fan.  One day I would really like to try one of her restaurants as my favorite food is Southern...

Pork and Napa Cabbage Soup

Hmm, for no reason at all, I seem to be on a pork soup kick.  I followed this recipe (loosely) for dinner tonight.  I had some leftover Korean spiced pork roast from dinner last night so used that up.  I just cut it up into small bite sized pieces.  I also used Johnsonville Brats in place of the ground pork since that's what I had in the freezer.  I took them out of the casings and broke them apart so it resembled ground meat.

Misua

My Filipino co-worker brought me in a taste of this and I thought it was fantastic.  Honestly, it's not much to look at but it was sure tasty.  I had to make it!  She even brought me a pack of the noodles, just so I would know what I was looking for.  She also told me of an Asian grocery store that we both shop at that had them, so I would stock up the next time I was there.  Like I said, she gave me my first pack and it's under $2.

Sole Rollatini

My dish tonight was inspired by this one.  Sole was on sale at IGA for $1.00 per 100 grams, so I got almost 600 grams.  I made my crumb filling first.  I used:

Baked Polenta with Sausage and Artichoke Hearts

I saw these logs of polenta while shopping and because I've never tried one, I decided it was time to.  I have this great bag of heirloom polenta grains in my freezer that I ordered from Anson Mills in South Carolina, but yet, I had to try this stuff that costed $3.  Go figure  ;)

Devils on Horseback

Looking around at my food inventory, I had a mishmash of stuff and lots of odds and ends.  I saw pitted dates and decided to make some Devils on Horseback.  I looked a bunch of recipes - they all varied by minute details, but it's basically just a date stuffed with something and wrapped with bacon.

Cream of Garlic Soup

I've always wanted to make a garlic soup.  Chef Susan Spicer of restaurant Bayona in New Orleans apparently makes a killer one.  I've dined there twice and haven't tried it, yet...  So, I decided to make hers this evening.  My only dilemma was whether I wanted to use real garlic or just buy it already peeled.  I bought it peeled at the Korean market and hoped it was fresh because I really didn't want to spend the time of doing it myself.

Stir-Fried Soba Noodles with Beef and Cabbage

I still had lots of leftover roast beef, even after making my son beef dips and sandwiches.  I decided to make myself a stir fry with it.  I used this recipe sort of... I didn't really need a recipe, but I get scattered sometimes so this focused me.  Well, it almost did.  I still added extra "stuff".  I chose this one because of the Napa cabbage.  That's what grabbed me.  I've only used soba noodles for a cold salad before so I wanted to try it this way.  I used all the ingredients except for the steak of course, but I did my own thing for the stir fry.  I chopped up my roast into bite size pieces and cut the snow peas in half on the bias.  I had a bag of "Power Blend" salad (284 grams) in the fridge which was Brussels sprouts, more Napa, carrots, kohlrabi, broccoli and kale so I threw that in with the Napa I cut up.

Prime Rib Oven Roast

I had to search my posts to see if I had already blogged this and no, I hadn't.  That was surprising and meant I haven't made it in almost a year (or was just too lazy to write it out).  Prime Rib is expensive to buy here.  It used to be that you could find it on sale regularly but now I can only find it at $7.99 a lb when on sale, which isn't really a good deal to me.  I was very surprised when I looked at the Safeway flyer this morning and saw it for $5.99 a lb.  I decided it was time for roast beast (as "the Grinch" would say)...My son picked it up after work.

Grilled Cheese and Tomato Soup Lasagna

OMG, when I saw this, I knew I would have to make it and I haven't stopped thinking about it since...  I mean, isn't every childhood reminiscent of comforting grilled cheese sandwiches and Campbell's tomato soup?  I know mine was and I know this was one of my son's favorites too.  I had to dunk,  I loved to dip the sandwich in the soup.  My son never did and still doesn't - unless I bug him about it - I'm always like, "dip it in your soup!", lol.  I remember when he returned from Europe after 32 days away, I made him an elevated grilled cheese and homemade tomato soup (with a side of bacon) to welcome him home.

Spanish Cod in One Pot

I saw IGA had fresh cod on sale this week so searched for a recipe.  I found this one and thought it looked great, it was really appealing to me.  It is from the UK so some of the words are different than what we use here.  Anyway, it was also a way to try out the Saffron I bought at Trader Joe's.

Christine's Mock Italian Wedding Soup

So this was a "Christine" original soup today inspired by "Italian Wedding Soup".  I've had this soup on my brain for quite some time now but wanted to use escarole or curly endive for it.  For that reason, I have never made it yet.  I finally discussed finding escarole with one of my grocers as I have never seen it anywhere.  He said IF it comes in, it usually only shows up in summer but he has not gotten any for a couple of years now.  He advised me to source out local farms as it is not an import usually.

Homemade Sloppy Joes

I was at work today, trying to think of something easy to make for "Monday night dinner" and it popped in my head that I wanted Sloppy Joes.  I based mine on this recipe which is my goto for this dish.  I omitted the beans but basically followed everything else.  Except the mustard.  I have dry mustard but it's old - I threw it out tonight as a matter of fact.  I mean, how often have I used it???  Not very much, that's for sure.  I have this huge Costco squeeze bottle of French's yellow mustard so I just used a good plop of that instead.  Oh, and I think I threw out my molasses a while ago too for the same reason as the mustard powder.  I just substituted real maple syrup instead though brown sugar would have done the trick too.

Spicy Ginger Beef Stir Fry

I thought this recipe was pretty good looking and kept with the healthier eating I'm trying to do lately, except for the sodium.  However, everything in moderation, right?  I liked the idea of the top sirloin steak and putting it in the freezer for 30 minutes.  I had to try it... I wouldn't eat "top sirloin" as steak but I think it's a great idea for a stir fry.  I had more steak than the recipe called for.  I had about a pound and a half which was more than is what is showing below.

Turkey Divan

This dish tonight ended all the turkey leftovers.  I have always wanted to make this but never did because my son didn't like broccoli when he was young.  He doesn't mind it now, so I thought this would be a good time.  Most importantly, this was an easy work night dish to prepare.

Turkey, Mushroom, Quinoa Soup with Chinese Sausage

So, my broth was made yesterday with the leftover turkey carcass and the house smelled wonderful all day (8 hours of simmering).  I used an onion, a carrot, a stick of celery and herbs:  rosemary, thyme, parsley and sage along with fresh cracked pepper and kosher salt.  Below is how it looked coming out of the fridge today.

Leftover Turkey & "Fixings" Shepherd's Pie (a.k.a. Deconstructed Turkey Dinner)

After Thanksgiving, getting creative with leftovers can be a problem sometimes.  It's hard to eat the same thing over and over for days and not get bored.  I spent today making my broth which is an all day eight hour job.  The soup gets made tomorrow, after the broth cools overnight in the fridge.  The fat gets skimmed off the top and then it's ready to go.

Thanksgiving: Croissant, Caramelized Onion, Sausage & Pecan Stuffing

For Thanksgiving this year I decided to try a new stuffing, like I usually do.  It is my favorite part of a turkey dinner.  I was attracted to this one because of  the caramelized onions.  My son is not a fan of stuffing.  He won't have it on his leftover turkey sandwiches (crazy!!!) and only eats a couple of bites with dinner.  When I mentioned this years would have "croissants" in it, he was intrigued.

Green Grape Cobbler

I'll start by saying that I'm a huge fan of Alton Brown.  I have a big crush on him and think his attractiveness comes from his intelligence and humor.  I saw his live show when he came to town and I even got to meet him by showing up at map coordinates he posted.  [Insert cheesy photo here (which I have)].  Most people liked his show "Good Eats" which I did, but I really fell for him over a show he did called "Feasting on Asphalt". It's hard to believe that is 10 years ago already!

Beef Stew with Kabocha Squash

This was Sunday dinner.  Outside Round roast beef was on sale at IGA, as well as squash so I decided to make a stew.  I chose to use Kabocha squash with it.

Butternut Squash Casserole with Leeks, Prosciutto and Thyme

I saw this recipe and wanted to try it.  I thought about making it for Thanksgiving this year but I like my stuffing in the bird so decided to make it as the side dish this evening.

Spiced Krispies Treats

I got this recipe from a cookbook by Graham Elliot called, "Cooking Like a Master Chef: 100 Recipes to Make the Everyday Extraordinary".  Since Fall/autumn just rolled in, this recipe seemed timely.

Coconut Curried Cauliflower Soup

Cauliflower was on sale at IGA this week, 2 heads for $3 so I decided to make some soup.  I usually like a creamy, fatty, cheesy cauliflower soup so was trying to think of a different way and thought curry might just do trick.  I was thinking more along the lines of Indian curry but found one with Thai curry and it looked good.  Plus, I had Thai red curry at home.  The recipe is here.  I made a couple of minor edits to it.

Apple, Kale and Feta Salad

I was making pan-fried fresh snapper fillets tonight and decided on this salad for my side...

Stir-Fried Chicken With Ketchup

Facebook reminded me that I've made this dish before, exactly one year ago today, and it was surprisingly very, very good!  I found the recipe here and decided to make it again tonight.  It is one of those "simple" dishes which yields amazing flavor.  It reminds me of Chinese sweet and sour chicken actually.

Swedish Meatballs

I think meatballs are great.  I rarely make them though, as they are a lot of work in my eyes and it's something that that never gets on my kitchen "to-do" list often.  However, my co-worker went to Sweden and I asked him to bring me some Lingonberry jam back, so this was the opportunity to make some balls!

Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole

So, I was going away for the weekend and being the nice mom I am, I always make a casserole for my son - to start him off for meals while I'm away.  I saw this on the past weekend and decided to make it and tailor it a little to make it a complete meal.  By doing so, I added some (1/3 of bag) "gnocchi sardi" pasta which looked like baby gnocchi noodles and some coarsely chopped broccoli crowns.

Cucumber Gazpacho Soup

This looked so good - I was excited when I saw it!  The recipe is here.  Seemed perfect for summer and easy.  Plus, long English cucumbers and grapes were on sale at IGA this week so I decided to go for it.  I was really hoping mine would turn out with that pretty green colour like is on the recipe website above.  I am a cucumber fanatic.  I love finger tea sandwiches with them, plain cucumber sandwiches with mayo & pepper, slices soaked in vinegar with pepper, cucumber boats with shrimp or chicken salad, every salad imaginable, in drinking water, and pretty much anywhere else I can put them in food!

Roasted Tomato Dip with Crab

Today was going to be appy day at our house.  I was making this dip and this.  I decided to add some crab to this recipe and got some blue crab claw meat from Costco, it's about $13 for a lb.  It's dark, so its best for using in dips, in my opinion.

Green Bean Bacon Bundles

I saw this recipe and decided I had to make it.  It looked delicious!  I had picked up my favourite green beans at Costco and we were having appy night.  I also made this.  These were nice because I could prepare them beforehand, and I did.

Spicy Asian-Chicken-Salad Lettuce Cups

This was not my "go-to" lettuce wrap recipe but it was certainly much easier.  The recipe is here.  Basically this was like a chicken salad in lettuce cups.  I would have liked to add cilantro, but forgot to buy it.  I added some cucumber on the side with the avocado.  I also served some crushed cashews with it.  I used my own measurements for the ingredients as well.

Roast Beef Hash with Mock Cauliflower "Potatoes"

I made a roast and had LOTS of leftovers.  My son already had beef dips the night after but it didn't even make a dent, nor did using it with lunches either (I even brought someone lunch too).  I decided to make a hash for both of us.  I remember making hash browns out of cauliflower when I was doing "Atkins" years back, so I used that in place of potatoes.  My son wasn't big on the "cauliflower" thingy but I was hoping to change his mind.  My ingredients:

Roasted Tomato, Chick Pea, Red Onion Salad

I had these beautiful mini San Marzano tomatoes in the fridge that looked like grape tomatoes.

Spicy Cilantro Chicken, Spam & Shrimp Tacos with Guacamole

I had made some homemade guacamole and saw that I had some great wild Argentinian red shrimp in the freezer (31 - 40 count) so decided to make tacos.  I saw a couple of frozen boneless, skinless chicken breasts beside the shrimp so decided to use those up too.  I thawed them the night before.  I had been craving SPAM, so had a couple of fried slices for breakfast.  I decided to cube it in small dice and throw it in with the rest of the ingredients tonight.  I based my recipe loosely on this one.  Easy and straightforward.  I added some fresh corn off the cob, chili powder and cumin too.

Watermelon & Feta salad

This is a very simple recipe with an elaborate pay off.   5 ingredients and I used S&P.

Nugget Potato Salad

I absolutely LOVE potato salad but it doesn't love me or my figure.  I rarely eat or make it these days.  However, when new baby nugget taters are in season, I will indulge in spuds more frequently.

Roast Chicken with Bread and Arugula Salad

I saw Ina Garten do this recipe on a "Chew" repeat show last week and I knew I had to make it.  I went out and bought a 3 & 1/2 lb chicken first chance I got.  I got mine at IGA for $9.  However, I wasn't thinking because the oven had to be so high and it was a really hot week outside!  My house would heat up like an inferno and I have no A/C.

Anchovy Tuna Spaghettini

My co-worker friend gave me this recipe quite some time ago and it's really delicious.  She said it was from her Italian friend's family and passed down, though her friend modified it to add the green onions and parsley.  I modified it too, to add crushed red chilies.

Pork Loin Roast with Marsala sauce

I got a great deal on this roast at "No Frills" supermarket.  Below is the roast cut in half and the whole thing cost me $10.00.  The other half went in the freezer for another time.

California Roll Salad

My son really only eats California rolls as his sushi.  I  have slowly been trying to expand his horizon in this food area - so now he eats deep fried California rolls too.  :)  However, unless pressed to try something different he likes this roll most and that is that.  Except he could do without the cucumber.  I decided to make a salad out of it, sans the cuke, of course...well, for his anyway, mine would have some.  I LOVE cucumber.  I thought of this on my own, but discovered I certainly wasn't the first, as there was lots of recipes out there for it on the Interweb.  I'm not the hugest fan of "deconstructed" food, but this did seem like an easy way to enjoy sushi without all the work of rolling it, which I've never done.  I don't have the sushi tools for rolling it either.

Pancit Shanghai

My Filipino co-worker has brought this noodle dish in for me a couple of times at work, and I thought it was soooo delicious and comforting.  She said she learned it from her mom and I asked her for the recipe and decided to give it a try.  This required a trip to T&T Supermarket for all things Asian.  I doubled the recipe too as she said this recipe was enough for her and her husband.  I wanted leftovers of it.  Here are her ingredients:

Deep Dish Pizza in a Cast Iron Pan

Yes, lately, I've been a little obsessed about my cast iron pan.  My dad swore by his and I grew up watching him cook everything in it except acidic foods.  I had one for 20 years that was so seasoned, like my dad's, you could fry eggs on it and they slid out like they were on teflon.  My son left mine on a burner he was heating when he was young(er) and forgot it for hours.  Thankfully, it never burnt the house down, but the bottom fell out!!!  I was so devastated, I had to buy a new one (Lodge) and it's taken me over 5 years to get it seasoned properly.  It might even be 10 years, I can't remember when that happened now...Cast irons take time to "perfect" - depending how much you use them, but when they get there, nothing is better...you could 'google' for days and read about the glorious meaning they have to cooks - if that interested you, of course.  ;)

Nicoise Salad

I adore Nicoise salads.  I think mostly because of the haricot vert (green beans).  I love tuna too.  It's impossible to find good tuna canned in olive oil these days, at least where I shop.  I miss that.  Ahi tuna was available at IGA so I bought a piece of it and decided to sear it tonight.  I looked at a lot of different recipes, and in the end, just used the usual ingredients and made a vinaigrette.   I made the hard boiled eggs, green beans and dressing the night before.  For the dressing I used:

Grillades & Grits

Sunday dinner seemed like a good night for cheesy stone-ground grits!  I looked around for recipes and found this one so I based what I did on hers, but did it 'my way' as hers seemed a little more complicated than necessary.  :)  I had "Triple-A Inside Round" steak in the fridge because I was going to make chicken-fried steak with it but since I made sausage gravy yesterday, I wasn't craving the milk gravy again.

Sausage with Biscuits & Gravy

Saturday morning breakfast.  I've never made this before.  This long weekend was going to be about comfort food and new recipes it seemed.  All the recipes I looked at were pretty similar - which is, you fry some sausage, add some flour and then some milk.  So, I decided to make mine spicy.  I bought some Johnsonville hot Italian ground sausage.  I really wanted the breakfast sausage but it was sold out, so I didn't have a choice.  For the biscuits, I cheated and used Pillsbury country biscuit dough.

Santorini Tomato Fritters

I'm talking about Greece again. When I was in Santorini I ordered their speciality  of "tomato balls or fritters" every restaurant I went to that had them.  I would always have leftovers and eat them for breakfast.  I took a cooking class and we made them there too.  I can't find fresh spearmint here (dried, I can) so I asked my friend who visits farmer's markets often to keep her eye out for me.  She actually bought an herb plant of it and grew me some.  She brought some into work for me, so I decided it was time to make these.  Below are four pictures from Santorini.  The first picture of the dip is the one I wanted to try to recreate this evening to go with my fritters.  I'll get to that later.

Pork Larb Lettuce Wraps

I've been cooking a lot this past week which means its been relieving my stress...I saw this Thai recipe and thought it looked easy and delicious, so that's what was for dinner tonight.  It was so hot out today, I couldn't think of eating heavy food.  I make lettuce wraps often.  I have a "goto" recipe that I pretty much always use and will post next time I make it. One thing I always use and insist is a MUST for the wraps is "butter lettuce".

Shrimp Saganaki

This was one of my favourite dishes when I visited Mykonos, Greece.  I enjoyed it so much at this one restaurant, I went back and ate it again.  It blew my mind, how simple and delicious it was.  It was heavenly.  This restaurant was family run, the mom cooked and both sons worked "front of house" and they were super easy on the eyes...Below are both dinners.

Bacon, Tomato, Green Onion & Cheddar Quiche

On Sundays I get up early, like 6am early to drive my son to work as transit (skytrain) doesn't operate at this time, on this day.  I got home, was looking at facebook and a memory popped up of mine showing me an "amuse-bouche quiche tart".  So, I decided to make some quiche.  I'm a cheater at this and I always use Pillsbury refrigerated pie dough.  I took it out and let it come to room temperature, about 20 minutes.  I preheated my oven to 375°F.  My ingredients were:

New York Strip Steak in a Cast Iron Fry Pan

I learned this recipe on PBS, probably 20 years ago now.  They were featuring a chef and he told how he liked to make his NY strip steaks.  I have been making it this way ever since, but only with strip loins.  No others worked as good (and I tried a few other steak types),  so I only use this one particular cut when using this cooking method.  This really is a foolproof technique and it is so simple but so wonderful and robust in flavor.  I highly recommend trying it.

Buttermilk Fried Chicken - Part TWO

So, after last night's disaster, I decided I had to do this again.  I brought the leftover chicken to work and let a couple of people try it.  They liked it so I guess this was a matter of "personal taste"...I love paprika (hot, sweet & smoked), so was surprised I disliked the "smoked" paprika sooo much!  My son said it was good too but he wasn't blown away by it either.

Buttermilk Fried Chicken

I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE fried chicken - I dream of fried chicken.  I ate it, ordered it everywhere I went in Nashville when I visited.  My dad's last wife made such good fried chicken, I wish I would have got ALL her recipe/tips before she passed on.  She wasn't southern - from Oakland, CA, but she made unreal "soul" food.  She was also the first one I ever saw eat all the "knuckles" off the chicken bones and she taught me about beans and rice with pork hocks - she loved pinto beans, and "collard greens" even though she never made them for me.  Those greens were impossible to find here back then and I still don't see them often...

Mexican Dreamboat Hot Dogs

I saw these made on "The Chew" last week with Pati Jinich, and I actually have her cookbook as I am going to try and make some of her Mexican dishes.  The recipe on "The Chew" site is like a short version of hers but it does cover it.  She told the story about them on the show which is what she tells in her cookbook "Mexican Today".  She said on the show that the one making the hot dogs was not a "hunk" though.  I've pasted the excerpt because I like the tale...

Greek Moussaka

Moussaka is like lasagna except better for you since it uses eggplant rather than pasta in the layers.  This is my "go-to" recipe.  I generally always make it for company or take it as an entree if I am going to someone's house.  I got this recipe back in the days when PBS was the only t.v. station with cooking shows on weekends and I taped them on my VHS machine. This was from chef Pierre Franey and I hand wrote it out after "taping" his show.  That was probably 25 years ago now.  I have edited this dish over the years (practice makes perfect), but his recipe is what it was based on.  I still use it as my guideline but only in the respect of using all the ingredients as listed.

Black Tiger Shrimp Cobb Salad

I saw these huge black tiger shrimp at Costco (8 - 12 count) and decided I needed to try them to see what they were like.  I decided to make Cobb salad with them, along with my favourite blue cheese dressing that I make for my Wedge salad.   I decided to serve it on the side.  I made the dressing first and put it in the fridge.  After an hour or two, I had my son taste it.  He said, like I always say, it was good enough to eat out the jar with a spoon and nothing else needed.  I couldn't find chives today so used 2 green onions and it worked fine as a replacement.  I used, besides the shrimp, which I sauteed in garlic, butter & lemon:

Tomato Tarte Tatin

I've made this a couple of times before.  This is a really tasty dish and looks like a lot of work, though it really isn't.  Below is a picture of the first time I made it with blue cheese.

Peaches & Cream Trifle

When it becomes peach season, I try and make something with them for my son.  He really likes peaches.  I made cobbler last year and it was terrible because I didn't peel the skin off.  I didn't know you had to!  I came across this recipe and it looked easy - right up my alley, so I decided to try and make a trifle.  I couldn't find a trifle bowl, but then as I was at Homesense, I noticed one that would do that was in the vase section, so I bought it for $7.  It was 6 inches in diameter so a little smaller than the one she used in her recipe which was 7 inches.

Taco Stuffed Zucchini Boats

I've been trying to eat "healthier" lately which to me means with less "carbs".  I saw this recipe and thought it looked good.  I based mine on it, but didn't follow it exactly.  I've made a few of her recipes and they've been very good, so I would have no hesitation in recommending it, even without trying it "her way".

Rhubarb Pie

I don't bake, so the pie crusts came out of the freezer.

Gazpacho Soup

I make this once a year, usually around this time when tomatoes are super ripe and cheap, and the weather is nice & warm.  Cold soup is always so good when its hot outside.  A co-worker says this dish is his favourite of all the things I make, so I make it for him - this will be the third or fourth year now.  I started, the first time I made it by following Ina Garten's recipe exactly.  Each year, I change the recipe a little and experiment. Last year was awful - for some reason it came out really BITTER.  This year I used:

Shrimp Stuffed Sole

They had fresh sole on sale at IGA and it looked fabulous.  I decided to recreate a dish I made years ago.  No recipe, couldn't even find anything online that was close.  Basically, it's stuffed sole with a shrimp mixture made in a muffin tin.  For my filling, I used:

Smoked Turkey Split Pea Soup

This has always been my favourite soup and I've made it since I started cooking.  My dad would always laugh at me because I hated peas (still do), but loved pea soup when he made it.  Of course, it doesn't taste anything like canned green peas does...I can eat fresh peas out of a pod, but I can't even eat frozen ones out of a bag...BLECH.

Toad in the Hole

I was thinking of what to make for Cinco de Mayo and I ended up with British "Toad in the Hole".   :) I've made this before and it didn't turn out so well, so I decided it was time to re-visit it.  I used packaged Yorkshire Pudding mix last time.  This time I decided to make it from scratch.  I've been craving sausages lately, so figured this would take care of that itch.  I bought Freden Fine Foods all natural casings and ingredients ( no additives) mild Italian sausage and decided to wrap each one in a thick slice of bacon.  (I read somewhere that bacon fat helps Yorkshires rise to the occasion).  On another day I might have searched for real British banger sausages, but I simply didn't have the time today...

Creamy Chicken, Mushroom & Wild Rice Soup

I made my chicken broth in the crockpot which I learned from Clinton Kelly on "The Chew".  I used two rotisserie chicken carcasses from Costco.  It was ready when I got home from work.  It is really easy and I highly recommend trying it sometime.  I strained it into a pot and started the wild rice in the broth immediately as it takes an hour to cook.  I drained it when done.

Creole Jambalaya

New Orleans is my favourite food town, ever.  If you like good eats, it's Paradise!  My best friend asked me if I'd make jambalaya for her and of course I obliged. Her family is unadventurous when it comes to food, so this isn't a dish she would ever make at home.  I have made this dish a few times before, sometimes with a pre-packaged mix, sometimes not.  Tonight I decided to use this recipe from "The Chew".  I've said it before, but I can't find the right andouille sausage here, so I used chorizo instead.  Boneless, skinless chicken breasts were on sale so I used those instead of thighs,  though I would have preferred the thighs.

Ziti with Asparagus & Prosciutto

I'm not sure where I got this recipe.  I've had it over 20 years now - handwritten.  I make this rarely as pasta doesn't make it into my rotation very often, but when I do, I always enjoy it.  It is fresh and is well suited for Spring.  I don't think I've ever seen ziti in regular big chain grocery stores, but I get it at Famous Foods.  Here are the ingredients from my notes:

Grilled Top Sirloin Steak with Chimichurri Sauce

Since I got my BBQ ready for the season, I have been craving "chimichurri" sauce.  I have never made it and decided it was time for Sunday dinner!  I went with this recipe, which seemed pretty basic and had cilantro.  I knew I wanted cilantro in it, but of course if you don't like it, leave it out.  I bought Top Sirloin steak as it was on sale at IGA.

Ahi Tuna Poké

I learned of this treasure called "Poké" in Hawaii.  I tried several different types while visiting over many trips, but liked the Ahi Tuna one the best.  I have been craving this like crazy lately and decided I wanted to make this at home.  At IGA, I see some pretty good looking Ahi at times, though, "previously frozen".  I was looking at it earlier this week and the Meat/Seafood dept. manager was beside me laying out the seafood.  I asked him if I could eat the Ahi raw?  He told me that "NO", not from the case (all of the seafood laying on ice) as there may be cross contamination, but if I wanted, he would thaw some for me and slice it for me so I could have sashimi, or tartar - a.k.a. POKE!  He told me to give him a days notice.  I told him I would request for Friday then and come back.  He told me no problem.  I went back on Friday and sure enough, he had put a piece aside for me and told his staff to expect me.  I think "he who serverd me" overcharged me?  It was $3.99 per 100 grams.  What I bought was 1.23 lbs.  I don't know how to figure it out....grrrr....  Everything in my mind is half pounds and ounces and kilograms and milligrams on the other side since we switched in Canada to metric - somewhere around ending elementary school and starting high school for me.  I never adapted to the metric system.  I have to google translate it all the time.  I still do the temperature in Fahrenheit.  I have no idea what it is in Celsius. I have no idea what kilograms are - I use pounds still.  Anyway, I think it should have cost about $22 with my google calculations.  :P

Hamburger Barley Soup

I've been making this soup since I first started to cook.  There were these cookbooks called "Best of Bridge" and I got the recipe from there.  Over the years I've edited it and stopped using all those canned soup products to reduce the salt.  Here's how I made the soup today:

Shrimp & Grits!

I was excited to cook today!  I had HIGH expectations too...  This is one of my all time favorite dishes.  I've had it all over the U.S. in my travels and the key thing I took away from this dish, was using "White Stone Ground" grits.  And that using grits from South Carolina is what I was after.  This would prove almost impossible to find locally.  Famous Foods does carry coarse white stone ground grits.  I used them once when making this dish and it took much longer than an hour  - like almost two if I remember correctly...  I don't want to stand, stirring constantly at the stove longer than that ever again...  The dish was delicious but the grits were not as creamy as I desired, after all that time!

Roasted Fennel and Artichoke Hearts

I am so NOT a fan of Martha Stewart, but after I opened a large jar of artichokes from Costco, I decided to look for something to do with them.  I knew I would never eat them straight out of the jar. Had I read the jar, and that it said: "once opened, use within 7 days", I wouldn't have even bought them.  I would only buy them now if I had to make a "dip" for company or a gathering.

Easter Dinner - Turkey, Taters, Stuffing, Green Bean Casserole & Homemade Cranberry Sauce

I wasn't feeling turkey for Easter this year.  I wanted to do lamb but my son asked for the bird, so of course I obliged (I saw at Costco they had these roasted lamb shanks with garlic sauce, already cooked and just needed to be heated, so thought I would do that another time for $19.95).  I was glad we didn't have turkey at Christmas so it was enough of a break since Thanksgiving.  I usually buy a fresh turkey, but for cost savings this year, I bought a frozen Butterball - 10 lbs. for $20.  That took four days to defrost in my fridge!

Beef Stroganoff

I was watching a Food Network episode of "Guy's Grocery Games" the other night, a repeat of moms on Mother's Day and one of them made beef stroganoff.  It made me want to make it, so I bought the ingredients.  Round steak was the only thing on sale, so I decided to make this in my enamel cast iron dutch oven.  I have never used or bought round steak before but I knew for sure that it was tough.  I followed this recipe here with a couple of edits.  I used some fresh thyme (4 sprigs tied together with twine), Dijon mustard (about a tablespoon), 2 bay leaves and flour (3 tablespoons) which were the major changes.  I used one cup of wine and two cups of broth reversing what the recipe says.  Because I used flour is why I reversed the liquids, I wanted to cook out the wine and then thicken the broth after.

Roasted Rapini (Broccoli Rabe)

I've never made this before, in fact, I've never seen it at the grocery store before this week.  It was cheap too, $1.78 for a bunch at "No Frills" which carries President's Choice products.

Pork Spare Rib Ragù & Linguine

Yoo-hoo, it's the first day of spring, so I decided on  a heavy spaghetti sauce.  :p  OK, well, it was raining and it was really about using up what was in the freezer for Sunday dinner.  I still had some "sweet & sour style" spare ribs in there so decided to make those.  I didn't want to make the obvious with them so considered what else I could do?  Then I thought I'd slow cook them in the crock pot, take the meat off the bones, leave all the fat there and make a fresh pasta sauce - kind of like a Bolognese.  I put them in the crock pot at 7am on low for 10 hours.

Kimchi Pancakes, Szechuan Green Beans and Pork Egg Rolls

I was already making green beans tonight which I've already posted about before.  A recipe for Kimchi pancakes came up on my internet surfing travels today and I decided to make that too.  I based it on this recipe here.  The egg rolls came right out of a bag (frozen) from Costco.  I really like these egg rolls - they are individually wrapped too - something like you'd get at 7/11.  ;)

Chicken Fricassee

This recipe has been on my "to do" list for a LONG time now...as in years.  Still feeling "under the weather" (but with all my taste/smell intact) and at home today with a whole chicken sitting in the fridge, I decided today was the day...

Kale, Sausage & Navy Bean Soup

For my soup tonight I used these ingredients:

Salmon Cakes

I made some Sockeye salmon steaks the night before and I really wasn't thrilled with them, so much so, that I didn't eat them past a couple of bites.  I ended up just taking all the salmon off the skin and bones and put it into a bowl for another use for another time. What I learned from this is not to ever buy "Previously Frozen" Sockeye salmon ever again...

Pad Grapow (Thai Basil Chicken)

I saw this recipe pop up on facebook and thought I'd like to make it, even if it was inspired by "Chrissy Teigen" who I am so NOT a fan of...I used a pound and a half of chicken tenders as they were on sale today at IGA.  At my Korean market, I had the option of buying Serrano chilli or Thai Bird's eye chilli but I chickened out on the bird's eye ones.

Clam Chowder

I don't need a recipe for this.  It's a pretty straight forward soup to make.  Sometimes I thicken it with just grated potatoes but today I used flour as I wanted it thick.  Here are the ingredients I used:

Meatloaf stuffed with Cheese, Mashed Taters & Roasted Brussels Sprouts

Meatloaf is one of my favorite comfort meals, period.  I always have to serve it with mashed potatoes too as it just goes hand in hand.  I generally make meatloaf without a recipe but this time decided to try something new.  This was more time consuming than my regular loaf, so it is best done when not in a rush.

Pulled Pork & Cornbread Casserole

Today was the 3rd and final day of pulled pork.  The first day we started with the usual BBQ pulled pork buns with coleslaw.  The next day I made quiche and then quesadillas for dinner.  Today would be this.  We can't get this cornbread mix here.

Pulled Pork Quiche

I made pulled pork in the crock pot yesterday and there was tons left over.  I was thinking about ways to use it up, when the idea of quiche came to mind.  It was a Saturday afternoon, so seemed suitable.  I'm still "under the weather" though my taste/smell seems to have returned today.  I had a Pillsbury pie dough in the fridge that was just expiring so I had to use it soon or toss it.  I scouted through other items in the fridge and ended up using:

Koto Kapama - Chicken Stewed in Garlic and Cinnamon

I was up late watching a repeat show on Food Network and saw chef Cat Cora making this dish.  While she was my least favorite Iron Chef (I always hoped she'd lose), I did like the sounds of this recipe.  It seemed simple enough and I like dishes that have few ingredients but lots of flavor so I gave it a whirl.

Zuppa Toscana – Sausage, Potato and Kale Soup

When I made my Caldo Verde soup a week or two ago, my co-worker told me about a similar soup and how much he loved it at Olive Garden.  I decided I would try it next time I made soup.  As I was feeling "under the weather", today was the day.  Soup seemed appropriate even though my taste/smell functions were semi-muted at this point...

Sopa de Fideo – Authentic Mexican Noodle Soup

As soon as I saw this recipe, I knew I had to make it.  I loved her story about her family and the soup too.  I have always wanted to try fideos.  I saw this place in Texas on "Triple D" make a fried noodle dish of it and I have wanted to try it ever since then.  I decided not to try and go on a hunt for Mexican fideos locally here and just followed the recipe using vermicelli pasta.  I found angel hair (a.k.a Capelli d'angelo) in nests (I could have just cut them) but didn't know that was the correct thingy until I got home and looked it up.  Anyway, I thought if I liked the soup, I would get that next time.  I compared the vermicelli to my spaghettini when I got home and was thinner...

Seafood Lasagna

I decided to use the rest of my ricotta cheese up by making a lasagna.  This was not a "healthy" lasagna by any meaning.  My son's favorite is seafood so I went with that.  I don't follow a recipe and make it different every time, pretty much.  I do get my fresh lasagna noodles from Choices market.  I really like them.

Beef Pot Roast (Stew is what it was...)

I didn't use a recipe for this.  I can't remember ever making pot roast though I've made lots of braised beef recipes, but usually with chuck steaks and not for a long time now.  I bought a cross rib roast on sale for $4.99 a lb.  This roast was just over two pounds so I knew it wouldn't be a long cook.  I had my fingers crossed, but I decided to try it at 325°F for 2 hours in the oven after browning.

Buttermilk Ricotta Pancakes

I'm a huge fan of buttermilk and like it for various purposes in the kitchen.  Looking in the fridge, I realized I bought a huge tub of Ricotta cheese from Costco that I totally forgot about.  I decided I better start using it so decided to make my son these pancakes that I found here.  I'm just cutting and pasting her ingredients here as the page is super long and has 2 other recipes on it.  So, for simplicity:

Tater Tot Casserole

OK, I got this recipe from a blog called "Mommy's Kitchen".  :)  I don't like ANY frozen hash browns...well...except tater tots! I made a breakfast casserole with them for Christmas and it was worthy, we decided it was a keeper.  So, when I stumbled across this online, I decided I would make it, or a very similar version of it, since I'm a big fan of hamburger and mushroom soup too.  One of my favorite comfort dishes as a kid was those two together over mashed potatoes.  Anyway, I made a couple of tweaks to this recipe...

Caldo Verde (Portuguese Green) Soup

I have always wanted to make this soup since I first saw Chef Emeril make it way back in the day...As I was out shopping at Famous Foods, I found some Portuguese Chourico sausage so knew it was time.

Thai Red Curry Chicken & Shrimp Soup with Quinoa

I was inspired by Clinton Kelly from "The Chew" when I saw him make this recipe.  However, I didn't use it and I decided to make soup instead.  I made this with a hodgepodge of what I had in my fridge and what was cheap at the grocery store today.  My recipe was:

BBQ Side Ribs

My son called me from work a day ago and said that his co-workers insisted he buy some ribs because it was a fantastic deal and they were all picking some up.  He asked me if I would like them, so I said sure.  It turned out they were $2 a lb. and he came home with 11 lbs. for $22.  I put half in the freezer.  These were cut "sweet & sour" style and were cleaned beautifully of most of the fat.  It was a very good deal.

Superbowl: Guacamole, Pimento Cheese, Old Bay Wings & Nachos...

I love to make appies for Super Bowl.  I've watched NFL football for 38 years and have probably never missed a Super Bowl in all that time.  I was debating whether this would be my last one if Denver (my team) won...I have a hard time getting past the thoughts of it being "fixed" now and don't find it enjoyable any more because of that.  But yes, I digress...

Hurricane Popcorn

So, I've spent about two months total in Hawaii and have never had or heard of "Hurricane Popcorn" but this recipe intrigued me.  I looked up others, and it seems they add soy sauce to the butter and add in Mochi Crunch (Japanese Rice Crackers).  I decided to use the soy (light sodium & 1 teaspoon) but not the Mochi.  I found the Furikake at my Korean market.  I'm sure T&T would have it too.

New Haven-Style White Clam Pizza

I've made this before and thought it was really tasty and my son loved it.  I used this recipe.  I wished to find fresh pizza dough, but it didn't pan out since I only decided to make this at lunch, so I used Pillsbury pizza dough.  I will need to find real dough the next time since I won't make it.  I got the clams from T&T Market.

Chicken with Forty Cloves of Garlic

I have always wanted to make this recipe.  The "Barefoot Contessa's" flashed up on facebook to me last week.  It looked good so I went with that one.  The reason I made it now, frankly, was that I saw whole peeled garlic cloves at the Korean market I was shopping at last week so decided it was time.  I really never wanted to peel that much garlic before.

Roasted Shishito Peppers

I looked at a bunch of different recipes for this quick, easy dish but I decided on this one for the simple fact that I thought I would cause the least smoke in my kitchen.

Slow Cooker Curry Beef Brisket

I told my friend I was going to make crock pot BBQ brisket and he mentioned that he loves curry beef brisket, so I decided I'd give that a try instead.  I looked for recipes but didn't find many, so I just sort of "ad-libbed it" after looking at the few I could find...  I went to T&T Supermarket at lunch time for curry ingredients.  I decided to use Yeo's Singapore Curry Gravy in a can (400 grams).  I looked at soooo many different curries - Japanese, Thai, Indian, etc., it was mind boggling.  I used that and:

Broccoli & Cheese Soup

I watched Chef Wolfgang Puck on "The Chew" last week and decided I'd try making his soup since it looked really good.  I got started as there was lots of Mise en place for me to do because of my "absent sous chef"... Today wasn't stressful at work, so I don't enjoy chopping veggies as much as I do as when I'm stressed out...

Irish Codfish Pie

I made this once before and my son loved it.  Fresh cod was on sale yesterday so I bought it to make for dinner tonight.  I did use a recipe the first time, but I didn't bookmark it so don't remember which one.  It really wasn't difficult to make so I didn't need to find it again as it's basically just fish, sauce, mashed potatoes and cheese...I could whip that all together without a recipe...

Banana Bread

I have a recipe on a piece of paper that I printed out, from years (20?) ago.  I have no idea where it came from but have always used it and never made anything else when it comes to banana bread.  My son will tell you that my banana bread is the best he's ever had.  I know it's because he's bias and it's because he's had it since he was a kid.  I never bake either so he was probably grateful to get "something" from me...That being said, everyone who has tried it seems to like it too.

Ribs & Sauerkraut

This is a ridiculously easy recipe and very comforting.  Years ago, a co-worker told me how to make it in conversation, and I have been making it ever since.  I prepped this last night before I went to bed.

Cauliflower & Sausage Casserole

Cauliflower is so expensive now!  Lucky I found a bag of florets at Costco for $4.99 for 2 lbs.

Salisbury Steak w/ Onion Gravy, Mashed Taters & Oven Roasted Grape Tomatoes

I bought hamburger for other plans but I was craving Salisbury Steak today.  It always reminds me of Swanson T.V. dinners we had as kids.  That's probably why I like the Pioneer Woman's recipe as a base line though I would never, ever serve it with peas as I hate them.  I seem to crave soups, stews, casseroles and comfort food in the winter months.

Homemade Cream of Chicken Soup & Buffalo Chicken Grilled Cheese Sandwich

I haven't ever made a cream of chicken soup before (that I can remember) and thought it was about time I tried.  I bought two Costco Rotisserie Chickens the day before.  That evening, I took the meat off and threw the carcasses into a crock pot.  I added an onion, celery, carrot, fresh parsley & thyme, 2 bay leaves, Gruyere cheese rind, S&P and filled water to about an inch from the top.  I started the crock pot after dinner and set it on low for twelve hours.  I reset it to twelve hours again when I went to bed.  My crock pot goes off when the timer is done and turns to "warm" so I knew the broth would be fine when I got home from work.

Oven Baked Chicken Tacos

I used this recipe as a base for our "Taco Thursday" dinner tonight.  For the filling I used:

Szechuan Green Beans with Ground Pork

This recipe is very yummy.  It's really easy too - little work for a great flavour pay off.  I use the green beans from Costco for this.  They are already trimmed and ready to use.  Very convenient.  A 1.5 lb bag is $4.99 and I use the whole bag in this dish.

Beef and Tomato Chow Mein

This used to be my favorite dish when going out for Chinese food as a teen and into my twenties.  I can't even find it on a menu these days though I always look when searching the "noodles".  When I stumbled across a recipe for it last night, I got all excited and decided I had to make it for dinner tonight.  I loved the woman's story of her special memory of her mother and that recipe.  I didn't even look for others to compare.  I decided I would try this one.  I have NEVER made chow mein at home, so this was a first...

Pan-Seared Scallops with Bacon and Kale

It was the night before my return to work and I wanted to have a special dinner to end my vacation.  I was craving scallops since I saw this recipe here a few days earlier.  For price we get these scallops from Costco. They aren't cheap, $35 but it is worth it to have a splurge meal at home once in a while (...and my son paid this time...).  I followed the recipe pretty much except I substituted Kale for Spinach.  I ended up throwing a dash of white wine in when the onions and garlic were cooking down, it needed it as they were starting to stick.

Irish Stew

Once upon a time, about 5 years ago, I had the most awesome recipe for Irish Stew.  Alas, I never bookmarked it and have never found it again.  Believe me, I've searched and searched for it.  The only two things I can remember was that it had bacon and chocolate stout beer in it.  Sigh.  Anyway, I wanted to make this in my new dutch oven, so I decided to make "my own version" of the recipe I longed for... I don't need a recipe for stew, I've made enough of them to just wing it.  I like to make lots when I go through a bit of hard work making a meal, and I like to share.  I used:

Braised Chicken Thighs with Spicy Kale

I bought myself a shiny new Cast Iron Enamel Dutch Oven for Christmas.  I was so excited to try it out.  I was putting away the Xmas decorations while "The Chew" was on the t.v., I saw Chef Michael Symon make a recipe that looked great (under 500 calories a serving) and decided I had to try it.  If you don't want it spicy then don't put the jalapeno in.  I like it spicy.  I don't know what 2 lbs. of Kale is, so I bought two organic bunches of it.  I bought some Organic Sourdough bread to serve with dinner for my son since he doesn't need to worry about carbs.

Wedge Salad with Homemade Blue Cheese Dressing

OK, this recipe is PERFECT.  It needs no altering at all except I do add more blue cheese than called for (double).  It doesn't need the extra cheese, I just really like it with more.  I also double this recipe every time I make it.  I could just eat the blue cheese dressing by itself with a spoon.  It is sooooo good.  I highly recommend this recipe from Aaron McCargo Jr. from Food Network.  For the cheese, I use Castello Extra Creamy Danish Blue which can be found in most grocery stores and is relatively cheap.  I buy it when on sale.  Make sure you don't omit the chives for the dressing - they really add something special, in my opinion...

Baked Korean Turkey Wings & Massaged Kale Salad

I didn't use a recipe for this dinner.  I've looked at similar recipes for both many times though.  This was a pretty easy dish to prepare and I will continue to make this. It was very good.

Turkey Soup

Soups are my thingy...I enjoy making them the most I think.  I put a lot of time and care into each one.  For Chicken/Turkey soup, I don't need a recipe, I've made enough of them to do it all from memory.  I always use the leftover cooked carcass for the broth.  Costco Rotisserie Chickens make good broth!  (I'm guessing because they're brined).  Turkey carcass always makes a good broth brined or not.

Farro Pilaf

I looked a lot of recipes and then just made my own recipe with what I had in the fridge at the time.  I used President's Choice Blue Menu Italian Farro.  I just followed the cooking directions on the box for it.

Braised Beef Short Ribs

I LOVE short ribs.  I think it would be my "last meal" given the choice.  I will order it whenever I see it on a menu.  To me, it is a most comforting dish.  I always use Chef John Besh's recipe as my base.  It makes me laugh because the site I found the recipe at has a picture of BBQ pork ribs with it.  They look great too, but wrong ribs.  Scroll down from the picture and you get a great recipe here.  You cannot go wrong with this recipe.

Easy Slow Cooker BBQ Beef Brisket

I made this a couple of years ago, but this one I remembered and want to make sure I keep it for my files.  I am not really a crockpot fan.  I find most stuff comes out really bland with an odd taste and maybe only have two or three things I will make in it.  This dish was a rare keeper and is one of those three things.

Beef & Polenta Bake

Tonight's recipe was based on this one from Canadian Living.  I followed the polenta instructions exactly from the above recipe, except I used a full cup of Parmesan cheese, freshly grated.  I get all my cheeses from Costco.  This one was Tre Casali Parmigiano Reggiano.  When it was done, I poured it into the casserole dish and set it aside.