Recipe Try Out. Pelee Island. Books,

I posted a recipe on Friday for pork chops with couscous. I decided to try it out but without the couscous, I wasn't in the mood for it. However, I made it with the tomato, onion and caper sauce and because I ended up with too much liquid, I added some cornstarch to thicken it. It was delicious. We really enjoyed it. One of these days I will try it with couscous, but these days I don't eat a lot of starchy, high carb things so I have to plan when to eat them.I did cook up a few snow peas to go with it and Matt had a baked potato. It ended up looking somewhat like this picture. bright spark that I am I for got to take a photo of course. We drank a Pelee Island Baco Noir with it. Good. Pelee Island wines are made in Ontario although the winery itself is on Pelee Island. Went there a few years ago. Pelee Island is the southernmost tip of Ontario and was named because it is totally flat and looks like it's been peeled which is what Pelee means.We spent a weekend there and enjoyed ourselves although it only takes half an hour to get right round the island.

Also finished reading a book by Juliet Marillier, Dreamer's Pool. Excellent story and I have ordered the next one from the library. Juliet Marillier takes Irish legends and makes a different story of them. They always work and are always worth reading. This series is known as the Blackthorn and Grim series. Recommend them. Then, wondering what to read next, I received a very first draft of a story by Elizabeth Seckman. She wanted to know what I thought. What I thought was it would be a great book. I really enjoyed reading it. I do enjoy Liz's books and this is no exception. Her latest book Swept Away was a great story and this new one bodes fair to being another one.

I love Cornish Hens although I have rarely ever cooked them. I found this recipe which I didn't know I had in my cookbook programme and thought it sounded pretty good. Maybe I should pick some up this week.

Herb-Roasted Cornish Hens with Root Vegetables

2 1- to 1-1/2- pounds Cornish game hens

4 medium carrots, peeled and cut into 2-inch lengths
4 medium parsnips, peeled and cut into 2-inch lengths
2 small turnips, peeled and cut into wedges
1 medium onion, cut into wedges
3 Tbs olive oil or cooking oil
1 clove garlic, minced
2 tsp dried rosemary, crushed
2 tsp dried oregano, crushed
1/2 tsp salt

1. Skewer neck skin of hens to back; tie legs to tail. Twist wings under back. Place hens, breast up, on a rack in a large shallow roasting pan. Place carrots, parsnips, turnips, and onions around hens in pan. Combine oil, garlic, rosemary, oregano, and salt; brush onto hens and vegetables.

2. Roast, uncovered, in a 375°F oven for 1-1/4 to 1-1/2 hours or until hens are no longer pink and the drumsticks move easily in their sockets.(Internal temperature should be 180°F with an instant-read thermometer.) During roasting, turn vegetables occasionally. Transfer hens from roasting pan to serving platter. Cover and keep warm. Remove rack from roasting pan. Stir vegetables. Increase oven temperature to 450°F. Continue roasting vegetables for 15 to 20 minutes more or until tender and browned.

3. To serve, using a slotted spoon, spoon vegetables around hens on platter. Makes 4 servings.

Servings: 4

Source: Better Homes and Gardens®.

Have a great day
 

Air Show, Books.

We live close to a small airport, they cannot handle jumbo jets or anything, but they do fly small planes to the Caribbean and business people all round the continent. This weekend (it’s Canada Day on Tuesday) they have had an air show. We don’t go as a) we don’t do crowds and b) I can’t stand for any length of time. However, the Canadian Snowbirds were present and we got some of the benefit of their performance. Couple of times they came really, really close and the noise was tremendous and it amused me that when this happened I ducked. Totally automatic reflex. Couldn’t stop myself. I wondered if it was normal or shades of 9/11. Didn’t see much of their performance of course, but certainly saw them formation flying past our windows. The planes looked really pretty glinting in the sunlight.

Been doing a lot of reading lately I started with Juliet Marillier’s Sevenwaters books which took place in old Ireland and were loosely based on Irish legends. I then discovered that one of my favourite authors Mercedes Lackey had a series about the Elemental Masters which for some reason I had missed. I have now read two of those and have another on order. Of course some of these books I have been waiting for forever and they are all coming in at once. I am now reading Elizabeth Moon’s Crown of Renewal which is the last of her Paladin’s Legacy series but there have been several offshoots from these books so there may be more. My two favourite books of Elizabeth Moon’s are stand alones, Remnant Population and The Speed of Dark. Then I had an email from the library telling me that Brandon Sanderson’s Words of Radiance was ready for pick up. This is the second book in his Stormlight Archive series. The first book The Way of Kings was published in 2010 so been waiting a long time. Admittedly he finished the Wheel of Time series and did a wonderful job, but he has written other things in those 4 years too. I hope I can remember everything that happened in the first book.

I thought this salad which I found on Food and Wine sounded good but then realised it was using chicken instead of seafood. Obviously you can make it with seafood if you like and I probably would. Not sure if I would use rice or orzo, I have both and orzo cooks more quickly.

Paella Salad

Contributed by Quick From Scratch Soups and Salads

• SERVINGS: 4

We've based this salad very loosely on paella, the Spanish rice dish—and you can actually make it with rice if you like. Our choice, though, is orzo, the tiny rice-shaped pasta. The cooking instructions are the same whichever you choose.

1. 3 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
2. 1 onion, chopped
3. 1 green bell pepper, chopped
4. 1 1/4 teaspoons salt
5. 6 ounces dried chorizo or other firm spicy sausage such as pepperoni, quartered lengthwise and sliced thin crosswise
6. 1/4 teaspoon dried red-pepper flakes
7. 1 teaspoon paprika
8. 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 3), cut into 1/2-inch cubes
9. 1/4 teaspoon fresh-ground black pepper
10. 1/2 pound orzo (about 1 cup)
11. 2 tablespoons lemon juice
12. 1 tomato, diced
13. 1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley

1. In a large frying pan, heat 1 1/2 tablespoons of the oil over moderately low heat. Add the onion, bell pepper, and 1/4 teaspoon of the salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables start to soften, about 10 minutes.
2. Increase the heat to moderately high. Add the chorizo and cook, stirring occasionally, for 2 minutes. Stir in the red-pepper flakes, paprika, chicken, 1/2 teaspoon of the salt, and the black pepper and cook, stirring frequently, until the chicken is almost done, about 3 minutes. Cover the pan and remove from the heat. Steam the chicken for 2 minutes. Transfer the mixture to a large glass or stainless-steel bowl to cool.
3. Meanwhile, in a large pot of boiling, salted water, cook the orzo until done, about 12 minutes. Drain. Rinse with cold water and drain thoroughly.
4. Add the drained orzo to the chicken mixture. Toss with the lemon juice, the remaining 2 tablespoons oil and 1/2 teaspoon salt, the tomato, and the parsley.

Suggested Pairing

Paella's Iberian roots lead us to Spain for a red Ribera del Duero. The name, literally translated as the "slopes along the Duero River," describes an area that is now the source of some of Spain's greatest red wines. Ribera del Duero's wild-cherry, herb, and spice flavours will be superb with this salad.

Have a great day

Know Your Librarian.

My librarians know me and one in particular reads very much the same thing I read too. She recently recommended an author, Alex Bledsoe and I am thoroughly enjoying the books. Eddie LaCross is a sword jockey i.e. a P.I. in medieval times. A lot of the books are somewhat anachronistic, like people saying “you’re kidding” which I am damned sure they didn’t say in that time period, but then as it’s setting is not the medieval times in the worlds we know, I guess one cannot complain. The stories are a reminder of Drag Net and Raymond Chandler with a strong dash of humour thrown in as well as a touch of magic, not much, but some. Eddie has swords like modern sleuths have guns. I am on the third book and really liking them. The first book is called The Sword Edged Blonde. Do try them.

Then, I decided I wanted to read the Sevenwaters books by Juliet Marillier. She is an Australian author. My local library only had one which I read and then they initiated inter-library loans for me. The series started as a trilogy but there are more books than that. The first one is Daughter of the Forest and is based on an old Irish legend of young men turned into swans by sorcery and all the problems (in the book) their sister faced in order to break the spell. Great book, I am now awaiting the second one. The stories (I read The Heir of Sevenwaters too which is the 4th book) are set around the magical dwellers in the forest of Sevenwaters the Fair Folk who sometimes help and sometimes go their own way despite the consequences to the humans. Juliet Marillier is the third Australian author I have recommended lately although they are not alone. Australia seems to have some excellent fantasy writers.

I can’t believe that Tuesday I was talking about spring and how lovely everything was and on Wednesday it became extremely humid, we had sun and cloud most of the day and then thunderstorms in the evening and eventually, it was so sticky we had to turn on the A/C what a change. I wonder what we will get today. Which is, by the way, the first day of our bowling Summer League.

OK, sorry for you guys who don’t like asparagus, there are a few of you around, but here is yet another favourite asparagus recipe. This one from Paula Deen. This one is so easy, your kids could probably do it. You will find these very moreish. I certainly do.

Asparagus Phyllo Bundles
For one roll:

Phyllo - 1/2 sheet for 2 asparagus
2 stalks asparagus
Parmesan, grated

Brush phyllo with butter, sprinkle with Parmesan, place 2 asparagus in middle and roll. Place in baking dish, sprinkle more Parmesan and put in oven 375 F for 15 mins.

Yield: one roll:

Source: Paula Deen

Have a great day