50% Decrease in Wildlife in 40 Years.

I had a very frightening email from the World Wildlife Fund yesterday:

50% of wildlife lost in 40 years

Are you a child of the 70s? If you are, global wildlife populations have declined by more than half in your lifetime.
Our 10th Living Planet Report shows that our wildlife is in a sorry state, but we continue to use more natural resources than our one planet can replenish. It's time for a wake-up call. You can download the 10th edition of their Living Planet Report. We have to do something if nothing else by supporting organisations like World Wildlife Fund otherwise soon there won’t be any wildlife at all. It is important because of the interaction of all species which is part of our biodiversity. Don’t just read this and say “terrible” then go on to something else. Do Something.

Wildlife in our rivers, lakes and wetlands has suffered a 76 per cent decline – an average loss almost double that seen in land and marine species populations.
Land-based species populations declined by 39 per cent, a trend that shows no sign of slowing down.
Marine species populations declined by 39 percent. Species in decline include marine turtles, many sharks, and large migratory seabirds like the wandering albatross.
Wildlife populations are declining in tropical and temperate climates, but the biggest decline – 63 per cent since 1970 – has been seen in the tropics. Central and South America shows the most dramatic regional decline – a fall of 83 per cent.



On the website there are examples of many endangered species, the African forest elephant above being one. There are dolphins and tigers on the list amongst others.

I am presently cooking up our turkey carcass for some soup and thought this recipe would be a good one to share.

Ravioli and Vegetable Soup

From EatingWell: 

Fresh or frozen ravioli cook in minutes and turn this light vegetable soup into a main course. Look for whole-wheat or whole-grain ravioli in the refrigerated or frozen section of the supermarket. Tortellini can be used instead of ravioli as well.

Makes: 4 servings, about 2 cups each

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 cups frozen bell pepper and onion mix, thawed and diced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper, or to taste (optional)
• 1 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes, preferably fire-roasted
• 1 15-ounce can vegetable broth or reduced-sodium chicken broth
• 1 1/2 cups hot water
• 1 teaspoon dried basil or marjoram
• 1 6- to 9-ounce package fresh or frozen cheese (or meat) ravioli, preferably whole-wheat
• 2 cups diced zucchini, (about 2 medium)
• Freshly ground pepper to taste

Preparation

1. Heat oil in a large saucepan or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add pepper-onion mix, garlic and crushed red pepper (if using) and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Add tomatoes, broth, water and basil (or marjoram); bring to a rolling boil over high heat. Add ravioli and cook for 3 minutes less than the package directions. Add zucchini; return to a boil. Cook until the zucchini is crisp-tender, about 3 minutes. Season with pepper.

Make Ahead Tip: Cover and refrigerate for up to 3 days. Thin with broth before reheating, if desired.

Have a great day and don't forget the World

Bowling, Ebola, Norwegian Money.

We went bowling on Monday but as it was Thanksgiving we didn’t have a full complement of members. In fact all of our team were there. I am pleased to say I bowled pretty well again, last game was a bit pathetic but… My average has gone up another point. Matt had a bad day I’m afraid.

After writing about ebola yesterday, it seems there are now patients in Canada, one was tested and cleared, another is awaiting blood test results. Enough to frighten one to death except they say it is only through body fluids that the disease can be passed. However, they haven’t solved the mystery of how the Texas nurse contracted the disease yet. One minute they say she followed protocol, the next they say she can’t have. One item of good news, Canada is beginning human tests of an ebola vaccine.

Norwegian banknotes are stimulating lots of admiration for their pixel artwork. There are a lot of different pictures shown in the article featuring different designs. The banknotes won’t be released until 2017 though but they are attractive. These are a couple of the designs which appealed to me particularly. Beats the usual humdrum style of most banknotes.  I like our new Canadian money but I gather a lot of people don’t.

This is a Cooking Light recipe which turned up on My Recipes. I happen to like tofu so would cook this as is but it says you can use chicken in you prefer. I see the ingredients talk about bottle ginger. We buy fresh ginger and keep it in the freezer until wanted. It keeps really well.

Szechuan-Style Tofu with Peanuts

Spice up your supper with this Asian-flavoured vegetarian dish. For meat-lovers, feel free to substitute chicken for tofu.

Yield: 4 servings (serving size: 3/4 cup rice, about 3/4 cup tofu mixture, and 1 tablespoon peanuts)

Ingredients

• 2 (3 1/2-ounce) bags boil-in-bag jasmine rice
• 1 (14-ounce) package water-packed firm tofu, drained and cut into 1-inch pieces
• Cooking spray
• 1/2 cup fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
• 1 tablespoon sambal oelek (ground fresh chile paste)
• 1 tablespoon less-sodium soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon cornstarch
• 2 teaspoons black bean garlic sauce
• 1 tablespoon canola oil
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 (8-ounce) package presliced mushrooms
• 1/2 cup matchstick-cut carrots
• 1 tablespoon bottled ground fresh ginger (such as Spice World)
• 1/2 cup chopped green onions
• 1/4 cup unsalted dry-roasted peanuts, chopped

Preparation

1. 1. Preheat broiler.
2. 2. Cook rice according to package directions, omitting salt and fat.
3. 3. Arrange tofu in a single layer on a foil-lined jelly-roll pan coated with cooking spray; broil 14 minutes or until golden.
4. 4. While tofu cooks, combine broth and next 4 ingredients (through black bean sauce), stirring with a whisk; set aside.
5. 5. Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add salt and mushrooms; sauté 4 minutes or until mushrooms begin to release liquid, stirring occasionally. Stir in carrots and ginger; cook 1 minute. Add broth mixture; cook 30 seconds or until sauce begins to thicken. Remove from heat; stir in tofu and onions. Serve over rice; sprinkle with peanuts.

Have a great day

Email Ads, Turkey Meal, Ebola.

This morning (Sunday) I received an email with specials including a deal on Vapor Pens. I had no idea what a vapor pen was so I googled, they are for dispensing  marijuana. I cannot believe such things are being offered to the general public. I read they are for getting high secretly!!!! I am absolutely staggered to receive such an offer in my inbox. Since I first wrote this I have had this offer at least half a dozen times.

Although we ate our turkey meal on Saturday, Thanksgiving in Canada is actually today, Monday 13th October. This morning there will be a parade down King Street – main street in town – and then I understand a hockey game this afternoon. We drive past the arena on our way to bowling but hopefully the crowds will not affect us at the times we go and return. This picture shows my plate for dinner. We had roasted carrots, Mediterranean Snow Peas, roast potatoes, turkey with mushroom gravy and bread sauce. I was a bit disappointed in the carrots, they tasted OK, but the recipe was not much good especially as far as the time given, I had to cook them a heck of a lot longer and ended up giving them time in the microwave. They tasted OK in the end but were not the prettiest item by any manner of means. I wasn’t planning on desert, but in the end I took out some chocolate cups, crumbled chocolate chip cookies into them, poured a little coffee and a little brandy on them and topped it off with a dollop of cream. It was good. No pix of course, didn’t think of it. Sunday night we had cold turkey and probably have enough for a couple more meals.

I did a questionnaire about ebola on Sunday and have found lots of information about the disease. I feel a little less scared of it now. It can only be passed through body fluids (same as AIDS) – it’s not airborne or anything like that. Hearing that one of the medical staff in a Texas hospital had caught it made me somewhat nervous of the possibility of a widespread problem, but reading this article or answering the questions, assuaged my fears somewhat. Now I have just read an article about the Texas event and it turns out that she was properly covered the whole time and that they have another suspected patient in the same hospital. A Spanish nurse in Madrid has caught Ebola after treating a priest who returned with the disease.

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone in Canada.

It seems like everybody likes cupcakes so I thought these would be a good recipe to share.

Apple Cupcakes With Cinnamon-Marshmallow Frosting

WebMD Recipe from EatingWell.com
Shredded apple replaces some of the oil and keeps the cake moist in these cinnamon-spiked cupcakes. There is a generous amount of fluffy marshmallow frosting to mound or pipe on top for a festive look. Be sure to frost them right after you make the frosting—it stiffens as it stands and becomes more difficult to spread.

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups apples, shredded peeled
1/2 cup dried apples, diced
3 tablespoons brown sugar, packed light, plus 3/4 cup, divided
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon, divided
1/3 cup canola oil
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 cup whole-wheat pastry flour
3/4 cup cake flour
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup nonfat buttermilk
1 cup light brown sugar
1/4 cup water
4 teaspoons dried egg whites, reconstituted according to package directions; equivalent to 2 egg whites
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
pinch salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon, plus more for garnish

Instructions

1. To prepare cupcakes: Preheat oven to 350°F. Line 12 (1/2-cup) muffin cups with cupcake liners or coat with cooking spray.
2. Combine shredded and dried apples in a bowl with 3 tablespoons brown sugar and 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon. Set aside. Beat oil and the remaining 3/4 cup brown sugar in a large mixing bowl with an electric mixer on medium speed until well combined. Beat in eggs one at a time until combined. Add vanilla, increase speed to high and beat for 1 minute.
3. Whisk whole-wheat flour, cake flour, baking soda, salt and the remaining 3/4 teaspoon cinnamon in a medium bowl.
4. With the mixer on low speed, alternately add the dry ingredients and buttermilk to the batter, starting and ending with dry ingredients and scraping the sides of the bowl as needed, until just combined. Stir in the reserved apple mixture until just combined. Divide the batter among the prepared muffin cups. (The cups will be full.)
5. Bake the cupcakes until a toothpick inserted into the center of a cake comes out clean, 20 to 22 minutes. Let cool on a wire rack for at least 1 hour before frosting.
6. To prepare frosting: Bring 2 inches of water to a simmer in the bottom of a double boiler. Combine 1 cup brown sugar and 1/4 cup water in the top of the double boiler. Heat over the simmering water, stirring, until the sugar has dissolved, 2 to 3 minutes. Add reconstituted egg whites, cream of tartar and pinch of salt. Beat with an electric mixer on high speed until the mixture is glossy and thick, 5 to 7 minutes. Remove the top pan from the heat and continue beating for 1 minute more to cool. Add vanilla and 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon and beat on low just to combine. Spread or pipe the frosting onto the cooled cupcakes and sprinkle cinnamon on top, if desired.

Have a great day

Saturday Recipe

When I was looking into a name change, I was requested to provide more chocolate so herewith, something good and chocolatey from the LCBO Food and Drink. Not that difficult to make either.



Chocolate Almond Silk Pie

By: Marilyn Bentz-Crowley
 


American Southerners adore rich desserts—and this decadent silk pie is certainly that. Do buy premium semi-sweet or bittersweet chocolate as it makes a huge difference and large grocery store bars are a terrific buy. If you prefer not to use raw eggs in this unbaked treat, purchase the egg mixture of yolks and whites sold in small milk-style cartons as the contents are pasteurized.

Crust

½ cup (125 mL) toasted almond slices or slivers
1½ cups (375 mL) chocolate baking crumbs
¼ cup (50 mL) melted unsalted butter


Filling

1 cup (250 mL) whipping cream
8 oz (250 g) semisweet or bittersweet chocolate
⅓ cup (75 mL) unsalted butter
¼ to ⅓ cup (50 to 75 mL) granulated sugar
2 eggs or ⅓ cup (75 mL) pasteurized eggs
1 tsp (5 mL) pure vanilla extract
½ cup (125 mL) toasted sliced or slivered almonds
½ pint (275 mL) fresh raspberries (optional)

1. Make crust. Coarsely chop almonds, stir in crumbs and butter until moistened. Line bottom of a 9-inch (23-cm) removable-bottom tart pan with a round of parchment or waxed paper. Press crumbs into bottom and up sides fully to very top. Chill, uncovered, while making filling.
2. Make filling. Heat cream in a heavy small pan over medium-low heat for 8 minutes, or until very hot, but not boiling. Cut chocolate into small chunks; there will be about 1½ cups (375 mL). Remove cream from heat; stir in chocolate until melted and mixture is smooth and glossy.
3. Meanwhile, using a mixer, briefly beat butter with sugar (use greater amount with bittersweet chocolate) until just combined. Quickly beat in eggs; mixture is lumpy. Slowly beat in warm chocolate mixture; then vanilla. Do not whip.
4. When mixture is smooth, pour into chilled shell. Leaving uncovered, refrigerate 3 hours. Decoratively place almonds around outer 2 inches (5 cm) of pie; lightly cover with waxed paper or plastic until needed. Refrigerated pie keeps well for 2 days. Serve cold, garnished with fresh raspberries or offer a small glass of raspberry wine.

Serves 8

Have a great weekend and if you are a Canadian, Happy Thanksgiving.

Time Capsule, Battling Moose,

A time capsule from 1901 has been found inside the head of a lion statue which was on Old State House in Boston. At the moment they know there is no sign of mildew and that the copper box contains a hardcover red book. However, more exploration will be done in more suitable conditions as the contents are considered to be fragile. It seems to me they must have known the box was there otherwise why would they have removed the crown. 113 years really isn’t very long. I have always envisaged time capsules being hidden for a great deal longer than that. After all, as time capsules go, it isn’t a whole lot longer than I have lived. If they did know it was there, I think they should have left it another 100 years.

This is an interesting piece of video captured by a couple of hikers in Peter Lougheed Provincial Park, Alberta. Not a sight one sees very often, Battling Bull Moose.



This recipe is originally from Cooking Light. In view of the fact that many Canadians will be eating turkey this weekend, I thought it might be quite useful.

Asian Turkey Cabbage Cups

Cool, crisp cabbage leaves cradle a hot and spicy herbed filling in this quick dish.

Yield: 4 servings (serving size: 3 filled cabbage cups)

Ingredients

• 1 teaspoon grated peeled fresh ginger
• 1 1/4 pounds ground turkey
• 1/2 cup thinly sliced green onions
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh mint
• 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
• 1 1/2 tablespoons fish sauce
• 2 teaspoons olive oil
• 1 teaspoon dark sesame oil
• 1 jalapeño pepper, finely chopped
• 12 large napa (Chinese) cabbage leaves (about 8 ounces)
• 1/4 cup chopped unsalted, dry-roasted peanuts

Preparation

1. 1. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add ginger and turkey to pan; cook 7 minutes or until turkey is done, stirring frequently. Drain turkey mixture; place in a large bowl. Add green onions and next 8 ingredients (through jalapeño); toss well. Spoon 1/3 cup turkey mixture into each cabbage leaf. Top with peanuts.

Have a great day

Egg cups, Funny.

This morning I got an email with a picture of a boiled egg. As you can see, it’s sitting in a cup. I started thinking about this and wondering why very few places “on this side of the pond” seem to have egg cups which is an item found in every household in Britain. I wondered why they didn’t cross the ocean with the original settlers.
I am sure there are some households which have them of course, but they are not common. I always remember a cousin who had spent time in the States coming home and cracking her boiled egg into a glass and eating it that way. Mind you I was ticked off because she left it for me to clean up. Both pictures at least appear to have buttered toast soldiers for dipping into the egg yolks. An essential item for this meal. I haven’t had a boiled egg and soldiers for years so now I want one. Could have one for breakfast but I just bought some scones at a local Scottish store so I'm eating those for breakfast at the moment.

Had to share this, it’s so silly it’s funny.


This sounds pretty tasty to me.

One-pot pork with orange, olives and bay

BBC Good  - Jane Hornby

Servings

Serves 6

A Provençal-style pork casserole with vibrant citrus flavours, sweet shallots, new potatoes and sundried tomatoes

Ingredients

• 85g sundried tomatoes in oil, roughly chopped, plus 2-3 tbsp oil from the jar
• 1kg pork shoulders, cut into chunky cubes
• 2 tbsp plain flour, seasoned
• 400g shallots (see tip, below)
• 1 onion, thinly sliced
• 3 bay leaves
• few thyme sprigs
• 5 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
• 400ml red wine
• strip of zest and juice from 1 orange
• 350ml chicken stock
• 400g can chopped plum tomatoes
• 800g large new potatoes, peeled and halved or cut into fat slices, depending on size
• 70g pack dry black olives

• Tip

  Soaking your shallots

  Soaking your shallots in just-boiled water for 5 minutes before peeling makes the job a lot easier. Once soaked, trim away the root end and peel from the bottom.

• Tip

  Making ahead

  This one-pot is great for cooking a day ahead. The excess fat will be easy to lift away once cold, and the flavours will be even more intense once warmed very gently to a simmer. You may need to add a splash of water to loosen it a little.

• Method

1. Heat 1 tbsp of the sundried tomato oil in a large, flameproof casserole dish. Toss the pork in the flour, tap off any excess, then brown it in 2 batches, transferring to a large bowl once golden and crusted. Use a splash more oil for the second batch if needed.
2. Tip 1 tbsp oil, shallots, onion, bay leaves and thyme into the pan and fry for 5 mins until golden here and there. Stir in the garlic and sundried tomatoes, cook for 1 min more, then tip onto the pork.
3. Splash the wine and orange juice into the dish, add the orange zest and boil hard for 5 mins. Add the meat and onions back in.
4. When ready to cook, heat oven to 160C/140C fan/gas 3. Stir the stock, canned tomatoes, potatoes and olives into the casserole, then bring to a simmer. Prod the potatoes as far under the surface of the liquid as you can. Cover, leaving a slight gap to one side, then cook in the oven for 2½ hrs, or until the meat is tender enough to cut with a spoon. Spoon away any excess fat and let the stew rest for a few mins before ladling into shallow bowls.

Have a great day

Gilt, Movie.

Gilt Restaurant and Bar – we went with our friend for lunch on Tuesday. I tried to take pictures – joke. First of all two of us had Duck Confit on Chinese Steam Buns and I totally forgot to take a picture of  those. Then I had the soup shown below which was absolutely delicious. Thick and luscious. I didn’t think they would give me the recipe so didn’t ask.

Red Cabbage Soup with Friend Cabbage garnish

Kimchi Quesadillas with Parmesan, Brie, Rice and Thai Basil

Absolutely scrumptious

BLT Burger with Caesar Salad

I had the Kimchi Quesadillas.Matt had the BLT Burger which was not yer plain ol’ BLT, I know it had a fried egg on it amongst other things. My friend having had the soup too also had their version of a grilled cheese sandwich which looked delicious. I was quite surprised, for a new restaurant, just how full they were for a Tuesday lunchtime. Not the cheapest place to eat, but the food is well worth it. We met the two owners, my friend’s niece Trella and her friend/chef Steph. I would very much recommend this restaurant and would like to go back some day soon.

I just watched the movie The Last Legion with Colin Firth and Ben Kingsley, two of my favourites. It was on TV the other night with lots of ads and I switched it off but decided I would like to see it so rented it from iTunes. I really enjoyed it. It ends up in Britannia and shows how Excalibur came to be in the rock from which Arthur later withdrew it.

This recipe was on Food.com and looks very simple and easy to make for a quick meal.

Pork Cutlet Parmigiana

By Dawnab

This was an inexpensive meal that my mom always made when we were growing up. I do not care for the taste of veal so this is how I make it.

2 lbs pork tenderloin, sliced into medallions
1 egg
1 cup breadcrumbs
1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
4 cups spaghetti sauce
2 cups mozzarella cheese
1/2 cup parmesan cheese
oil, to fry

Directions:

• With a meat mallet, pound pork into thin patties.
• In a shallow dish beat egg, in another shallow dish, combine breadcrumbs and seasoning.
• Dip each pork medallion into beaten egg and then into bread crumbs.
• Fry over med hi heat till browned- it does not need to be fully cooked.
• In a 9 X 13 baking dish, put in 1 cup sauce and half the pork, top with half of the cheese. Top with half the remaining sauce. Repeat again for balance of ingredients.
• Bake covered at 350 for 1/2 hour, remove top and bake 10 more minutes.
• Serve over pasta.

Have a great day

Bowling, Specials, Doctor’s, Gilt, Name Change.

I am feeling very please with myself this evening (Monday) as I bowled so well for a complete change. My average went up by 10 points and Matt`s by 2. We are both hoping we continue to improve this way. I have had one or two questions about 5 pin bowling lately. This is my ball. It weights about 3.5 lbs unlike the balls used for 10 pin bowling. There are five pins which are different values, the middle one is 5 points. The two either side are 3 and the two corner pins are 2 points. A total of 15 all together. Unless we get a strike (all pins down with one ball) or a spare (all pins down with 2 balls) we bowl three balls every time. The game was invented by a Canadian just over 100 years ago and was, I am told, even more difficult then than it is today. It is considered to be more challenging than 10 pin. Matt and I have played both games and much prefer 5 pin. However, if you want to play 10 pin round here, you certainly can.

After bowling we went to check on the rib roast specials at our local supermarket. They were selling at $4.88 per lb which is very reasonable here and we bought two nice roasts which are now heavily wrapped in the freezer.

Today, Tuesday, we go for our quarterly diabetes check at the doctor’s. Matt has what they call pre-diabetes which doesn’t seem to mean much at all as far as I can see. My own readings are heaps better since I lost 43 lbs. When we return we are going to lunch at the new restaurant I told you about, Gilt, which is owned by a couple of young women one of whom is the niece of a good friend. She is picking us up to take us there.

I have been discussing with friends about changing the title of this blog. I use the word Travels which is a bit misleading these days as we really don’t do too much travelling any more. My very dear friend the Dragon, Al Diaz, suggested Life instead of travels so that is what I am going to use.

This sounds like a tasty and easy way of serving cauliflower which really does tend to be bland. This recipe was sent to me by Food and Wine.

Cauliflower Casserole with Cheddar

Contributed by Phoebe Lapine
SERVINGS: 4

This dump-and-stir casserole recipe could not be easier. Fresh thyme and smoked paprika give the cauliflower great flavor, without having to add loads of heavy cream and butter.


Ingredients

1. 4 cups cauliflower florets (from 1 medium head cauliflower)
2. 8 ounces sour cream
3. 1 cup coarsely grated mild white cheddar cheese
4. 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
5. 1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
6. 1 teaspoon salt
7. 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes

1. Preheat the oven to 350° and butter a shallow 9-by-13-inch ceramic baking dish.
2. Bring a large pot of salted water to boil. Blanch the cauliflower until just tender, 4 minutes. Drain in a colander.
3. In a large bowl, combine the cauliflower, sour cream, half the cheese, paprika, thyme, salt and red pepper. Transfer the mixture to the prepared dish and sprinkle the remaining cheese over the top. Bake for 30 minutes, until the cheese is melted and the top is lightly browned. Serve immediately.

Have a great day

Oktoberfest, Movie,

I saw a headline which said that Oktoberfest was over, I assumed in Munich. Ours hasn’t even started yet. It starts on Friday with the “tapping of the keg” and goes on for a full week. It is, I am told, the second biggest Oktoberfest and during the week you will see men in their lederhosen and women in their dirndles. Both very expensive items to purchase I understand. I used to have a dirndl skirt when I was a teenager in the UK. I loved it, but I didn’t realise at the time it was part of a costume. I didn’t have any more of the traditional garb than the skirt. In the middle of this we have our Thanksgiving as well. I believe finding accommodation in the area is very difficult too, maybe I should rent out a room – I don’t think. Having someone returning late at night drunk out of their gourd would not be pleasant.  I think we will just stay clear of it all as we usually do.

Over the weekend they showed The African Queen on TV, with no ads. I wasn’t going to watch it having seen it several times, however, my attention was attracted because Alex Trebek of Jeopardy fame was doing the introduction and telling us how the director made sure to film it in Africa and how he picked a small river with little traffic to use for the setting. Alex certainly peaked my interest so I watched it after all. Considering it was made in the early 50’s it really wasn’t bad as far as the effects went. The acting of Bogey and Hepburn was brilliant of course and I really enjoyed seeing it once again. Something I didn’t realise, Bogey’s part was supposed to be an Englishman but he couldn’t do the accent so they changed it to a Canadian.

I made this recently and finished it last night. I decided it would be good to share with you as, at least in this part of the world, it is getting to the time where we need warming foods to eat.

White Chilli

1 Tbs Butter
2 med onions, chopped
2 4 oz cans green chopped green chillies (mild)
4   15 oz cans any kind of white beans (Navy, Pinto, Great Northern, etc.), un-drained
6 tsp chicken bouillon granules (or
6 chicken bouillon cubes)
2 bean cans water
2 tsp ground cumin
3 tsp chopped cilantro
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper or more to taste
3 cooked chicken breasts, torn into bite sized pieces
Shredded Monterey Jack cheese

1. In a 4 1/2 quart (or larger) saucepan, cook onion in butter until soft, add bouillon, beans, water and chillies.  Simmer till heated through (and bouillon cubes are dissolved if using cubes) - about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Then stir in cayenne pepper, cilantro, cumin and chicken and simmer again to let flavours mingle and everything is heated through.  Serve with shredded Monterey Jack cheese on top.

Servings: 4

Source Source: WW Recipes
Author Notes
Serves 4 (hungry) or 6 (mildly hungry) people.  OK to freeze leftovers to serve later.

Have a great day

Saturday Recipe

I am not a big fan of meatballs but these looked as if they would make a good starter or cocktail bite. Being pork and turkey they should be very flavourful.

Sweet and Sour Meatballs

WebMD Recipe from EatingWell.com



These bite-size sweet-and-sour meatballs, drizzled with a pineapple- and soy-based sauce, make a great appetizer. Shredded carrot and finely diced pineapple keep the meatballs moist, while fresh ginger and Chinese five-spice powder amp up the flavour.

Ingredients

• 1   20-ounce can pineapple chunks
• 3   tablespoons rice vinegar
• 2   tablespoons ketchup
• 2   tablespoons reduced-sodium soy sauce
• 1   tablespoon brown sugar
• 2   teaspoons cornstarch
• 1/4   teaspoon crushed red pepper
• 1    large egg
• 1   medium carrot, shredded
• 1/4   cup finely chopped scallion whites
• 2   tablespoons minced fresh ginger
• 1 1/2   teaspoons Chinese five-spice powder
• 3/4   teaspoon salt
• 8   ounces ground turkey breast
• 8   ounces ground pork
• 2   teaspoons canola oil
• 1    large red bell pepper, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 1/2   cup sliced scallion greens

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 450°F. Line a baking sheet with foil and coat with cooking spray.
2. Drain pineapple juice into a small bowl. Whisk in vinegar, ketchup, soy sauce, brown sugar, cornstarch and crushed red pepper. Set aside.
3. Finely chop enough pineapple to yield 1/2 cup. Press out excess moisture with paper towels. Reserve the remaining pineapple chunks for the sauce.
4. Lightly beat egg in a large bowl. Stir in carrot, scallion whites, ginger, five-spice powder, salt and the finely chopped pineapple. Add turkey and pork; gently mix to combine (do not overmix). Using a scant 1 tablespoon each, make 36 small meatballs. Bake on the prepared baking sheet until just cooked through, about 15 minutes.
5. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add bell pepper and cook for 1 minute. Whisk the reserved juice mixture and add to the pan. Bring to a boil and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Stir in the remaining pineapple and the cooked meatballs.
6. To serve, thread a meatball and a piece of pineapple and/or pepper onto a small skewer or toothpick. Transfer to a platter, drizzle with sauce and sprinkle with scallion greens.

Have a great weekend

Deals, Bowling.

Bowling Thursday afternoon, one of the owners told me there was a special on rib roasts at the supermarket. We called in on our way home but it doesn’t start til Friday. We will be back. It then occurred to me I used to get their flyers by email every week. I have tried my damnedest to get on to their site but apparently something is wrong and I cannot get there. I will have to try and remember. We always buy a couple of their rib roasts when they have them on special as they are usually a good deal. I love the taste of roast beef once in a while. Roasted the English way of course.

For some reason, bowling wore me out yesterday then we had to do some running around to deliver Avon and by the time I had cooked supper I was totally knackered. We didn’t have too bad a bowling day though as far as scores were concerned. I checked also, we will be bowing on Thanksgiving Monday. That’s fine for us, not sure how many people will be there though. We usually have our turkey on the Saturday anyway, and have little to do on the Monday.

I devour artichokes in large numbers when I get the chance so this recipe is right up my street. Sadly Matt isn`t even vaguely interested in them so maybe I could just serve him the beef. By the way, a pet peeve of mine, in the English speaking world it`s Parmesan NOT parmigiano. Saying parmigiano is, in my opinion, being pretentious

Beef Involtini with Artichokes

Contributed by Ylenia Sambati

SERVINGS: 6

Artichokes are a major crop in Puglia, and in this dish from Ylenia Sambati. They’re wine-braised with simple rolled slices of beef stuffed with fresh mozzarella, Parmesan and parsley.

1. 12 thin slices of beef round (about 1 1/2 pounds total), pounded 1/8-inch thick
2. 6 cherry tomatoes, halved
3. 4 ounces fresh mozzarella, cut into 1/2-inch dice
4. 1/4 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
5. 24 parsley leaves, plus minced parsley for garnish
6. Kosher salt
7. Pepper
8. 1 lemon, halved
9. 6 medium artichokes
10. 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
11. 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
12. 2 garlic cloves, minced
13. 1 1/2 cups dry white wine
14. 1/2 cup water
15. 6 sun-dried tomatoes in oil, cut into thin strips
16. 1 tablespoon pine nuts, toasted

1. Spread out the slices of beef on a work surface and place a cherry tomato half, 4 pieces of mozzarella, 1 teaspoon of Parmigiano and 2 parsley leaves in the center of each. Fold in the sides, roll into a packet and secure with toothpicks. Season with salt and black pepper.
2. Squeeze the juice from 1 lemon half into a bowl of water. Working with 1 artichoke at a time, discard the dark green outer leaves. Cut off the top inch of the artichoke, then peel and trim the bottom and stem. Halve the artichoke lengthwise and scoop out the furry choke. Cut each half in half again, then rub the quarters with the remaining lemon half and add them to the lemon water.
3. In a large skillet, heat the olive oil. Cook the involtini over moderately high heat, turning, until browned on both sides, 9 minutes. Transfer to a plate.
4. Add the crushed red pepper and garlic to the skillet and cook until fragrant. Stir in the wine, water and sun-dried tomatoes. Add the artichokes and bring to a boil. Cover and cook until almost tender, 20 minutes. Return the involtini to the skillet, reduce the heat and simmer until the artichokes are tender, 10 minutes. Transfer the involtini and artichokes to plates. Season the sauce and pour it on top. Sprinkle with the pine nuts and minced parsley and serve.

Have a great day

How Wolves Change Rivers, Lunch, Leopards.

This is a great piece of video which Natasha posted on her blog Of Shoes and Ships and Sealing Wax and Cabbages and Kings and which I have decided to steal and post here as well.



As most of you know I am very strongly pro conservation and although I have been a fan of wolves for many years and support everything that is being done to reintroduce them to their habitats, I had never understood, until I saw this film, what a great benefit they can be to the eco system. People have been frightened of wolves for a very long time but they do not attack humans. They do, of course, kill animals for food and occasionally domesticated animals such as cows or sheep which upsets the farmers of course. Actually that is why the German Shepherd was “invented” to run the ditches round the sheep paddocks and fight off wolves. Maybe we should recommend them to sheep and cattle farmers instead of just shooting the wolves.

We thoroughly enjoyed our Chinese meal at 50% off. It cost us $14 for the meal, can`t complain about that. What I can complain about though, after lunch we went to the grocery where I had located turkey breasts. First of all the woman I spoke to had only put me a half breast aside. The guy who found it for me realised and said he had heard me talking about it and knew I wanted a whole breast. He found me one. Great, between 4 and 5 lbs. I would have paid $11 for that in North Carolina. I got sticker shock, $24. I was going to buy two, one for Christmas, but Matt wouldn`t hear of it. I will still be buying another one later in the year.

I received an appeal from World Wildlife Fund to help the Amur Leopard. I confess I had never heard of them before. Wiki says The Amur leopard (Panthera pardus orientalis) is a leopard subspecies native to the Primorye region of southeastern Russia and Jilin Province of northeast China, and is classified as Critically Endangered since 1996 by IUCN. Only 14–20 adults and 5–6 cubs were counted in a census in 2007, with a total of 19–26 Amur leopards extant in the wild. They are being trapped and killed for their fur as well as losing their habitat. I beg of you, if you can, to donate to WWF to help these animals.

It’s a while since I have posted a recipe from Mushrooms Canada, this one appealed to me. I have always enjoyed pot stickers. The only photo is covered with writing though.

Beef and Shiitake Pot Stickers

by Food Well Said

Ingredients

4 oz shiitake mushrooms, stems removed, coarsely chopped
8 oz organic, grass fed lean ground beef
1 cup finely grated cabbage
3 gloves of garlic, grated
1 "thumb" of fresh ginger, grated
2 scallions, chopped (reserve about 3 inches of 2 stems for garnish)
2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil
1 tablespoon tamari
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 teaspoon ground pepper
36 2-inch wonton wrappers 
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
sesame seeds (for garnish)

Method

Add the first ten ingredients in a bowl (mushrooms through pepper) and mix thoroughly using your hands until everything is well combined.
Lay out the wrappers on counter top and fill a small finger bowl with lukewarm water. Scoop out 1 teaspoon (maybe 1 1/2 teaspoons but no more) and place just off centre of each wonton. With your fingers or the back of a spoon, flatten the mixture slightly. Using your finger, moisten the edges of half of a wrapper and fold the dough over to create a triangle. Press the edges down firmly to ensure they are sealed.
Add the vegetable oil to a large skillet and heat to med-high. In single layer batches, fry the wontons until golden brown and crisp (about 3-4 minutes per side)
Serve immediately with side of soy or favourite Asian sauce.

Have a great day

Discounts, Murder, Charity, Trapple and Turkey.

Today we are going for our 50% off lunch at the Mandarin Chinese restaurant. Only available for people over 65 which we have to prove. They always give seniors a discount but this is particularly good. Maybe I’m wising up, Tuesday’s, seniors get 20% discount at the local pharmacy so yesterday we went to get some goodies. For some unknown reason, unknown to me anyway, the government pays for my glucometer (to read my blood sugar) it also pays for the strips (well some of them, insurance pays for the rest) but it will not pay anything for the lancets  (the things you prick yourself with) so I finally figured if I have got to pay for them, I will get a discount, which I did. I actually saved $7 on stuff from the  pharmacy yesterday. I am suitably pleased and will most certainly remember to do such shopping again. Our supermarket has a pharmacy dept. and we often just pick up toothpaste, etc. etc. when shopping, they don’t give us a discount so I won’t be doing that again.

I bet all the female realtors will be thinking twice and taking precautions after the murder of one of their number this week.  They are saying ensure someone knows where you are, the husband in this case did know where she was but it didn’t help.

Just seen a news report on Bill Gates. Apparently he gives the equivalent of $4 million a day to charity. He and his wife have just given a huge sum to help with the current ebola crisis. He and his wife have given away so much to charity. I think he is still the richest man in the world. I wouldn’t mind if he let me have some chump change!! Our rent just went up $20 a month, oy vey!!

I finally managed to get hold of the missing piece from our fruit fly trap (Trapple) so hopefully it will now start working. If it doesn’t I have things to fall back on. I also found a source for turkey breasts which I much prefer for the two of us. We really don’t need a whole bird. Will know what I can get later today.

I often put apple in salads, but this is a different way of doing it. From WebMD.

Roasted Apple and Cheddar Salad

EatingWell.com

Roasted apples and Cheddar cheese turn an ordinary mixed green salad into something extra-special. You can use pears for this recipe as well.

Ingredients

• 3 tablespoons red-wine vinegar
• 2 tablespoons apple juice
• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 2  apples, preferably Fuji, peeled and cut into wedges
• 2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus 1 tablespoon
• 4 sprigs fresh thyme, or 1/4 teaspoon dried
• 1/4 cup walnuts, chopped
• 3 cups baby spinach, or torn spinach leaves
• 3 cups Boston lettuce, torn
• 3 cups curly endive, torn
• 2/3 cup sharp cheddar cheese, grated
• freshly ground pepper, to taste
  

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 400°F.
2. To prepare dressing: Whisk vinegar, apple juice, 1 tablespoon oil, honey, mustard, salt and pepper in a small bowl.
3. To roast apples & prepare salad: Toss apples with 2 teaspoons oil and thyme in a medium bowl; spread evenly on a baking sheet. Roast, turning once or twice, until the apples are soft and golden, 25 to 30 minutes. Discard fresh thyme, if using. Let cool.
4. While the apples are roasting, toast walnuts in a small baking pan until fragrant, about 5 minutes. Let cool.
5. Just before serving, combine spinach, lettuce and endive in a large bowl; toss gently to mix. Divide the greens among 6 plates, drizzle with dressing and top with cheese, roasted apples and walnuts. Serve immediately.

Have a great day