Friday, PSW. Pickling, Physiotherapy,

Of course, this morning, Friday, there were no memories of last night at all. Just as well really. Today he went for a shower with the PSW just like a lamb. The minute he left, I scooted out to the asparagus farm and was lucky enough to get red lights for the first half of the journey. They have finally instigated the drive through process which was great, in and out in no time with my asparagus in the car. I checked in with Matt to tell him I was on my way home. Nearly home and I went to our closest liquor store and, wonder of wonders, there wasn't a line up so I walked straight in. Only trouble was, I got caught in the line up waiting to pay, instead. Not as bad though.

My car had a nice little run which is a good thing as we aren't going anywhere much lately, along with everyone else. Of course, now I have to make some brine to can (bottle, pickle) more asparagus. The Physiotherapist is due at 2 today so won't be today probably. I haven't figured on supper yet. Thought I might do scallops and spaghetti but I had noodles for lunch and I am gaining enough weight as it is. Ended up doing Shrimp Creole. Yummy.

This afternoon the young man who is Matt's Physiotherapist, came to see him and show him exercises to stretch his ligaments and muscles. Fairly simple, but if practiced regularly, should help him. Finger crossed. He is quite a fun person to talk to and we happened to talk about sushi and how I first met Wasabi. Turns out that what I think of as wasabi is horseradish root coloured. However, Googling it, as he suggested, explains that wasabi is a kind of horseradish anyway but as he explained, it is rare and therefore astronomically expensive. I had told him the story of the first time I had eaten it and "colleagues" had persuaded me to eat a large amount and it nearly blew my head off.

Last year I had an "in" with a young woman who was growing lovage and so I was able to try this soup which was deliciou. I have to find a new source. If you have access to lovage, I urge you to try it, it was good. Great with peas too.

Asparagus and Lovage Soup

3 Tbs canola oil or extra light olive oil
½ cup diced onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups lovage leave, chopped plus 2 tablespoons for garnish
2 cups grilled or fresh asparagus, chopped
1 tsp sea salt
3 cups chicken broth or vegetable broth
½ tsp paprika

1. Heat a frying pan on medium heat and add canola oil when hot. Stir onion and garlic until fragrant and onion become translucent. Stir in lovage for 30 seconds before adding grilled asparagus and sea salt. Pour into a large pot and add chicken broth and bring to a boil. Let it cook on medium heat until asparagus is soft. About 15 minutes. Stir in paprika. Serve as is or blend in the blender. Garnish with chopped lovage.

Servings: 4

Tips
Vegetarian option: substitute chicken broth with vegetable or mushroom broth.

Source: Pranee Khruasanit Halvorsen

Have a great day, stay well, stay safe.
 

Computers, Pickling, Supper,

I started the day reconciling bank accounts. Wasn't sure I could be bothered, but it is actually something I enjoy doing. Maybe I should have become an accountant or something. Too late now I guess, apart from which, I have always been bad with numbers. Only one teacher ever managed to get through to me about math and unfortunately my dad went bust and I was taken away from that school. Pity. However, that was a long time ago. Computers really helped me which is maybe why I got so involved with them right from the beginning even if a friend, working in the company computer department, assured me I would never be able to use them. Admittedly that was in the days before modern computers came out. In those days they printed on cards and tapes etc. and everything meant you had to be able to code.

After lunch I finally got round to making some pickles. I bought extra vinegar thinking we had run out and then discovered a whole container full which meant I had three large containers. So, I made two large jars of fridge pickles and three smaller jars. By that time I had had it so will do another jar tomorrow as I have brine left. Won't have room in the fridge for anything else now anyway LOL.

For supper we finally ate the rest of the stuffed peppers  I did a while ago when the peppers mostly split because they weren't too fresh. They are good though and I will be making some more in the not too distant future.

I was reading an email about recipes and thought this was an Instant Pot recipe. It isn't but I thought it sounded good anyway, so I will be trying it. Actually, I think, with a little thought, it would certainly work in the Instant Pot.

Chicken in Red Wine Vinegar

For Paula Wolfert, this rustic Lyonnais dish is comfort food. Slow cooking transforms red wine

vinegar, tomato, shallots, garlic and a touch of honey into a perfectly balanced sauce for chicken.   

14 Tbs red wine vinegar
1/2 cup low-sodium chicken broth
1 Tbs honey
1 Tbs tomato paste
2 Tbs unsalted butter
8 large chicken thighs, trimmed
Salt and freshly ground pepper
4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
3 large shallots, thinly sliced
3/4 cup dry white wine
2 Tbs crème fraîche
3 Tbs chopped tarragon

1. In a medium saucepan, bring the vinegar, broth, honey and tomato paste to a boil, stirring well. Simmer the vinegar sauce until reduced to 1/2 cup, about 8 minutes.

2. Heat the butter in a large, heavy skillet. Season the chicken thighs with salt and pepper and add half of them to the skillet, skin side down. Cook over moderate heat, turning once, until browned. Transfer to a plate. Repeat with the remaining thighs.

3. Add the garlic and shallots to the skillet and cook over low heat for 5 minutes. Add the wine; boil until reduced to 1/4 cup. Add the vinegar sauce and bring to a simmer.

4. Return the chicken to the skillet, skin side up. Cover and simmer over low heat until cooked through, about 20 minutes. Transfer the chicken to plates.

5. Add the crème fraîche to the skillet and boil for 3 minutes. Add the tarragon and season with salt and pepper. Pour the sauce over the chicken and serve.

Servings: 4

Source: Food & Wine
Author: PAULA WOLFERT

Have a great day
 

Spring, Slow Cooking, Pickling,

Maybe spring really is here. Its sunny today but not very warm. We went to get Matt's ears lowered, and when we got back to our apartment building, I got out of the car and could hear a chickadee. Don't remember hearing one in years. Made my heart lift.

Put our dinner on to slow cook this morning and will be anxious to see what it turns out like. I let my cleaner taste the Barbecue Sauce I made and she loved it so wanted the recipe. I must say I think it is delicious and so very easy to make. Posting it below. I have a slow cooker of course, but it is so huge, I hardly ever used it. Could feed the 5,000 with it I think. The Instant Pot is just a nice size for the pair of us. Wednesday Evening: The Cowboy Stew wasn't cooked after 10 hrs at medium. I decided the cook I got it from was wrong and gave it another 5 hours (ate something else for supper) on high and just checked it. Almost done. Will be Thursday's supper I guess.

Not too happy, I made a batch of brine a few days ago. Had some left over so put it in an old coffee jar which was sold as a storage jar many years ago. Matt and I could not open it for love nor money. Not only have I lost the brine, but the jar as well. Tried all the usual tricks, banging it on a hard surface and running hot water on it. No luck. Grrrr. Managed to do a couple of jars of pickles though.

A tip from me - I put the vinegar into the sugar before I added the ketchup. The vinegar does a nice, quick job of dissolving the sugar.

Barbecue Sauce

1 1/2 cups brown sugar
1 1/2 cups ketchup
1/2 cup red wine vinegar
1/2 cup water
1 Tbs Worcestershire sauce
2 1/2 Tbs dry mustard (Colman's if you want a good bite)
2 tsp paprika
2 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp black pepper
2 dashes hot pepper sauce

1. In a blender, combine brown sugar, ketchup, vinegar, water and Worcestershire sauce. Season with mustard, paprika, salt, pepper, and hot pepper sauce. Blend until smooth.

Source: All Recipes

Author Notes
This will fill a 32 ounce ketchup bottle exactly. Cut back on the brown sugar to make it less sweet, or add more Worcestershire for more 'steak sauce' appeal.

Have a great day

Storm, Instant Pot, Pickling, Holiday,

Well Tuesday we certainly got the weather that was forecast. The snow was patchy on the ground, due to the wind I suppose. We didn't go out but were told that the roads got pretty icy around noon. The woman who is our cleaner said she went home at noon as it was pretty bad. I am not sure if she will make it to us tomorrow or not.

I was surprised that my Instant Pot arrived in the afternoon but, once we unpacked it, decided it was much to big and heavy for our tiny kitchen so have decided to return it and order a 3 quart instead of a 6 qt. Matt isn't too happy about the whole thing and says we don't need it anyway. Hopefully he will settle down eventually.

I spent a large part of the day pickling. I have found that using the brine I use for pickling asparagus works very well for lots of things. I don't go the whole hog with the water bath, but I pour boiling brine on various vegetables and then when they cool, put them in the fridge. In a couple of days I will have various pickled vegetables which I can munch on. They do have to be refrigerated as they are not being fully scalded etc. Funnily enough I know they last a long time because I had several jars in the fridge when I went into hospital and I didn't touch them for quite a while when I came out. I wasn't hungry and nothing tasted worth eating anyway. When eventually I went to the pickles, they were fine.

Tomorrow I hope to hear from Community Support that they have a ride for us on Friday. Matt has his ultra sound in the afternoon at one of the local hospitals. Then we have a holiday weekend, not really for us of course, but Feb. 18 is Family Day - it is one of the few holidays when the bowling alley closes too.

Well, this is a bit different. A take on Chocolate Lava Cakes which are favourites of mine. Mind you, I can't make Lava Cakes, only tried once and they were failures. Matt used to make them very successfully. Doesn't cook any more unfortunately. Luckily for me/us my grocery store sell them frozen. Pretty good. This Caramel version is recommended for Valentine's Day.

Molten Caramel Cakes

Everybody has heard of molten chocolate cake, so we thought we’d try to create a caramel version, with a toffee-ish tender cake encasing a runny dulce de leche center. Well, folks, it worked.

Filling
¼ cup store-bought dulce de leche
1 Tbs unsalted butter, room temperature

Cakes and Assembly
2/3 cup all-purpose flour
1 tsp kosher salt
¼ tsp baking powder
6 Tbs unsalted butter, plus more for ramekins, room temperature
1/3 cup sugar, plus more for ramekins
¼ cup store-bought dulce de leche
2 large eggs, room temperature
½ tsp vanilla extract

Special Equipment

Four 6–8-oz. ramekins

Filling

Stir dulce de leche and butter in a small bowl until well combined. Dollop in 4 equal-size blobs on a metal baking dish or baking sheet. Freeze at least 30 minutes or up to overnight until very firm (the sugar will keep it from freezing completely solid).

Cakes and Assembly

Preheat oven to 350°F. Whisk flour, salt, and baking powder in a small bowl; set aside.

Coat ramekins with butter in a thin, even layer, then coat with sugar, knocking out any excess.

Using an electric mixer on medium-high speed (use the paddle attachment if you’re using a stand mixer), beat 1/3 cup sugar and 6 Tbsp. butter in a medium bowl until light and fluffy, about 4 minutes. Add dulce de leche and continue to beat until incorporated, about 1 minute. Beat in eggs, one at a time, until combined, followed by vanilla. Beat mixture on medium-high speed 1 minute (it might look slightly grainy and separated, and that’s okay!). Reduce mixer speed to low and beat in reserved dry ingredients until smooth.

Divide batter among prepared ramekins. Make a small divot with a spoon in the top of each mound of batter. Place frozen filling onto divots, but do not press down into batter; you want the filling cradled by the batter but still on the surface, as it will sink to the center during baking. Place ramekins on a small rimmed baking sheet. Bake cakes until tops are browned, firm to the touch (be careful when checking as the filling may ooze out and it is very hot), and a tester inserted into the cakes, avoiding the liquid centers, comes out clean, 23–25 minutes.

Invert cakes onto plates to serve. (If you invert the first cake and see slightly underdone batter—it will be tan against the filling’s dark brown color—keep remaining cakes in ramekins a couple minutes longer before unmoulding. You can still eat the underdone one!)

Servings: 4

Source: Bon Appétit

Have a great day
 

Blogiversary, Older Recipes, Medical, Pickling,

Hilary Melton-Butcher mentioned her 10 yr. Blogiversary this weekend. Made me check on mine, I have made a note of it for future reference. I have already written over 3,000 blogs. Who knew I had so much to blether about. Maybe I should re-publish a few of my earlier blogs. I started reading some of the very first ones and see Matt was still hunting for recipes and cooking them. He no longer does that unfortunately. Luckily we have similar tastes so he always enjoys what I cook. Saturday I tried a simple recipe for pork loin with mushrooms and onions. It wasn't bad  but not that exciting. However, Sunday I did a favourite sautéed cabbage dish and added the remaining pork loin, cut in pieces, and it worked pretty well.

I should check my older blogs for recipes I thought were good then too, probably some I have forgotten that I would enjoy still. One recipe I did come across was one of my father's but unfortunately it calls for smoked haddock which is something I haven't seen in this part of the world. It used to be a favourite of mine too.

Decided to do grocery pick up today. The CAS bunch couldn't do me a shopping driver for Wednesday so I am going with just Matt and I this afternoon - decided he can push the shopping trolley upstairs, it kills me. Hard on him too, but not quite so bad. Then Tuesday, Matt has an appointment to see the urologist at the hospital so we are being picked up at 12:40 by, coincidentally, Joe, in a blue car. Got another appointment on Thursday for me this time, ultra sound. Right on noon too so I will be lunching at breakfast time I think.

Didn't mention, I bought some Lunch Herring last week. They are delicious. Matt doesn't seem to like them, he doesn't like pickles anyway. I think I will be buying some more. I must do some more of the pickles I was doing before my hospital visit. No cucumber though, it doesn't work. I do cucumber to eat that day with a little sugar, salt and vinegar. But if you actually put it in brine in a jar overnight the cucumber makes the brine too watery. Yes, I know they sell pickled cucumbers, but not with the same kind of brine I guess. I still have two jars of asparagus which I pickled properly with a water bath and everything.

I thought this might be a good way to cook some of the steak I have in the freezer.

Pan-Roasted Steak with Crispy Broccoli

4 servings plus leftovers
2 large heads of broccoli (about 2 ½ lb. total)
6 Tbs plus ¾ cup extra-virgin olive oil
½ tsp kosher salt, divided, plus more
Freshly ground black pepper
½ cup finely chopped shallot or red onion
¼ cup fresh lime juice
3 12-oz. sirloin, boneless rib-eye, or New York strip steaks (about 1 ¼" thick)
2 tsp vegetable oil
1 cup finely chopped cilantro
2 Tbs rinsed capers, coarsely chopped
½ jalapeño, finely chopped

1. Place racks in upper and lower thirds of oven; preheat to 425°. Cut broccoli into large florets with some stalk attached. Divide between 2 rimmed baking sheets lined with parchment or foil. Drizzle each with 3 Tbsp. olive oil; season generously with salt and some pepper. Toss to combine. Roast, tossing and rotating baking sheets halfway through, until crisp around the edges and charred in spots, 35–40 minutes. Season with more salt and pepper if desired.

2. Meanwhile, mix shallot, lime juice, and ½ tsp. salt in a small bowl. Set aside.

3. Season steaks generously all over with salt and pepper, pressing to adhere. Heat a dry large skillet, preferably cast iron, over medium-high. Swirl vegetable oil in pan to coat. Pat steaks dry; cook 2 steaks, undisturbed, until undersides are browned, about 5 minutes. Turn; cook until other sides are browned and an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part registers 130° for medium-rare, about 5 minutes. Turn steaks onto fat cap and cook until browned, about 3 minutes. Transfer to a cutting board and let rest 10 minutes. Wipe out skillet, leaving just enough fat to coat pan. Repeat with remaining steak.

4. Mix cilantro, capers, jalapeño, and remaining ¾ cup olive oil into reserved shallot mixture. Reserve 1 steak and ¼ cup cilantro salsa verde for making the Steak Sandwiches another night. Thinly slice remaining steaks against the grain. Top with salsa verde and serve with broccoli.

Servings: 4

Source: Bon Appétit

Have a great day
 

Tuesday, Shopping, Pickling,

Weird, didn't sleep too well, awake at 5 anyway, finally gave up and got out of bed around 6:30. So, felt headachy again so cancelled my bone density. By lunchtime I wasn't too bad, had a short nap afterwards and headed out to get my groceries. Now their computer system is playing me up and dropping some of the stuff I ordered. Anyway, I checked with the packer when I got there and we got it sorted out.

Got home and having especially bought an extra 5 lbs of asparagus yesterday and having purchased a couple of 1 litre Mason jars and some mustard seeds, I got cracking and pickled me some asparagus. Took a bit of time but I sterilized the jars in the microwave which cut it down somewhat. I am quite surprised 5 lbs went into two Mason jars. I shoved the ends in too. Had to cut the spears to fit them into the jars in the first place.  Using the recipe I posted yesterday, I added a few hot pepper flakes to the mix so will be interested to see how they turn out. They only had two 1 litre Mason jars, maybe they will have more next week. Got the bit between my teeth now. During all this shopping and stuff I scratched my arm somehow, no idea how, so had a blood streaked elbow area. Surprised nobody mentioned it. Mind you with the huge bruise I have on my right arm, maybe they didn't see it. These days I have only to brush against something and I look as though I have been beaten up. Partly age and partly blood thinners I believe.

Got a few deals today, two delicious salmon steaks which will make two  meals for us. Beef was on special today too.

Tomorrow is our bi-weekly coffee morning and then bowling league in the afternoon.

This sounded like an interesting, and unusual recipe. I would need to stock up a few things to make it though. I would not use calorie reduce mayonnaise though.

Asparagus Guacamole

Excellent, I actually thought it was nicer than standard guacamole. It was light and the wonderful sweet flavour of asparagus just shone through. It really is delicious!

1 1/2 lbs asparagus, trimmed
1 Tbs reduced-calorie mayonnaise
1 Tbs fresh lime juice
1/4 cup cilantro, coarsely chopped
3 medium scallions, thinly sliced
1/2 medium jalapeno pepper, minced
1 garlic clove, minced
1/8 tbs Worcestershire sauce
1/8 tsp hot pepper sauce
1/8 tsp table salt, to taste
1/8  tsp black pepper, to taste

1. Bring large pot of water to boil.

2. Add asparagus and cook until tender, about 10 minutes.

3. Drain.

4. Place asparagus into food processor and purée until smooth.

5. Stir in remaining ingredients and serve.

Servings: 10

Author: Nat Da Brat

Have a great day
 

Migraine, Barrie's, Pickling,

Monday morning I had a migraine, thought I wasn't getting many of those any more but... anyway, I didn't feel like handling a 6 pm visit to the hospital so I postponed it - til August would you believe? Soonest they could do it. Now, at 6:30 in the evening, I am thinking seriously of re-booking my bone density scan tomorrow. My head is still feeling achy. I didn't know, until recently, you can have migraines without actually getting a headache. In fact there is a lot more to migraines than I thought. We saw a documentary the other day.

I managed to get to the asparagus farm though. Friday I bought some at the store where the guy assured me they were really good. He also told me that he had bought from Barrie's farm before and they were delivered with white ends and he had to cut a large chunk off them. I am really not sure how many years I have been going to Barrie's but I have NEVER had asparagus from them with remotely tough ends. I think someone is telling me porkies. Not only t hat, the asparagus I did buy from him was not great. Didn't realise how tasteless until I had some of the fresh I bought today. What a difference.

I am planning to pickle some asparagus and have ordered some Mason jars with my online order - I only have little ones left - together with some mustard seeds. Think I have everything else. I can buy them pickled at the farm but they aren't cheap. You can also add hot peppers (sliced) or pepper flakes. Been doing a bit of Googling. The ones you can buy have slices of hot green peppers in them.

Mrs. Barrie's Pickled Asparagus Recipe

5 lbs of Ontario asparagus (cut to fit your Mason Jars)
For each jar
1/2 clove Garlic
1 tsp Dill seed
1 tsp Mustard Seed
6 Peppercorns

Brine
8 Cups water
2½ cups White vinegar
3 Tbs Pickling salt
½ cup sugar

Using 5 lbs of Ontario asparagus, wash well and soak in ice water while you are preparing the 6 pint jars. Place 1/2 clove of garlic, 1 tsp dill seed, 1 tsp mustard seed, and 6 peppercorns in the bottom of each jar. Place asparagus, tips up in jar. Bring 8 cups water, 2-1/2 cups white vinegar, 3 tbsp pickling salt, 1/2 cup white sugar to a boil and pour over asparagus. Process in hot bath for 5 to 6 minutes.

Source: Tim Barrie

Author Notes: Don't waste tender ends. Can them also for bite size treats

Have a great day