Bulgur, Quinoa, Kale Salad with Lemon-Tarragon Dressing

It's funny, I love salads, I could eat them every single day - if someone else made them for me.  For some reason, I just get soooo lazy about making them myself.  I've made a good winter bulgur salad, and now this is my summer version.  I say it's summer because there was a zucchini in there.  😊 This was a mishmash of fridge/pantry contents and a notion from my brain...

Coq Au Vin Blanc

It's summer so it calls for a lighter version of the red wine classic.  This was recipe I watched on "The Chew", a t.v. show now long gone - I never made it, but tailored it to me, and now it's time to give it a try...

Instant Pot: Dal Makhani

I found this recipe and as soon as I did, I knew I would make it.  I've been on "Dal" kick these days.  My co-worker makes it and occasionally brings me some.  It's very good at times.  I've also been ordering it every time I go out for Indian food lately.

Blueberry Crisp

I decided to stay away from flour, so the planned pie I was going to make changed to a crisp.  I don't know what the difference is between crisp, cobbler, crumble and whatever else they're called.  Frankly I don't even care enough to google it either.  I just know it's a lot easier to make than a pie.  😊  The heatwave cooled today, so I could use the oven.  I followed this recipe by the Neelys as my guideline.

Pork Fest with Braised Cabbage, Carrots, Onion and New Potatoes

I wasn't even going to blog this because I've done this here with sauerkraut and here with braised cabbage.  However, this was a spin on both so I decided to post it, though I didn't take too many pictures as I wasn't in the mood today.

Roasted Tomato Basil Sauce with Bucatini

I've never eaten bucatini, but I had a box in my cupboard.  I was watching "Cooking Channel" last night and saw this on Guy's show...we all know who Guy is, right?  I decided this would be how I would try it.  I'm preparing for heat wave weather next week, so was going to take advantage of using my oven...

Butter Chicken

I got this recipe from a co-worker from India.  She's from south India - Chennai, but said this wasn't a family recipe, just one she got from a friend and has been making for a very long time.  Anyway, she had invited me for dinner last year and I couldn't make it, but another co-worker said I missed out and that her butter chicken was delicious, so I was anxious to give it a try!  She gave me two recipes, one with more ingredient/steps and one easy.  Below is the more involved recipe though still easy.  She said she uses fresh tomatoes.  I did not as they are not quite ready at the farmer's market yet, meaning "the tomato man" has not made his appearance there yet:

Homemade Cherry Pie

It's cherry season, so this would be the summer dish I would use to make my son his annual homemade local "fresh fruit" dessert with.  I'd lie if I didn't say I'm thinking about this song as I write this.  I actually love cherry pie and can't even remember the last time I've had a slice -  maybe when I was a kid?  This will be rare dessert that I taste test myself.  I was going to make my own pie dough too...🤞

Grilled Panzanella Salad

I've always wanted to make this salad, but never have.  Grilling everything seemed what I wanted to do this evening, though by the time I got home from work I was less enthusiastic with my idea...  I found a good Rustic Ciabatta by Terra Breads which I love.  Everything else came from what looked fresh and tasty in the produce aisles today.

Soy Sauce Braised Chicken

OMG, this looked so good!  I absolutely had to give it a try.  The pictures of it sold me. I found the soy sauces and anise at the Asian market.  This sort of reminded me of when I first started cooking as a teen.  I'd make these whole chicken wings and I baked them in casserole dish with honey, garlic and soy sauce.  They were so ugly (wrinkly poached beige color) looking when they came out, but were delicious nonetheless (at least back then)...In hindsight, I think broiling them at the end would have made them appealing.  I had higher hopes for this!

Asian Soba Noodle Salad with Chicken

I was sure I had blogged this before, but nope, never have, even though I've made it a few times now.  This was supposed to be dinner last night, but I ended up cutting up a bunch of fruit for sangria, and lost interest in the vegetable chopping...

Brined BBQ Pork Chops, Grilled Cherry Tomatoes and Nugget Potatoes

Happy 152nd  Birthday 🍁 Canada!  My son and I were both home today so enjoyed a nice day off with each other.  I found these beautiful one inch thick centre cut chops.  They were cheap too, 2 for under $6.  So, I did a brine and let them sit in the fridge for a couple of hours.