Sunday Lunch, TIA.

We set off from home around 10:45 a.m. yesterday to go to our friends for lunch. It takes us about an hour, or sometimes a little more. We had a very scenic drive with lots of fall colours along the way, I would have liked to take some pics, but it wasn't very easy as we were batting along the highway. There were some absolutely gorgeous looking trees with a lot of really bright reds and yellows. The foliage seems to be particularly colourful this year. Maybe we should head up north and check out the colours there. Arriving at our friends, she had the lamb in the oven, but as it turned out, the timing she was following was wrong and it ended up we had to wait quite a bit for the lamb to be ready. As I told her, from a book which was my very first cookbook, Cookery in Colour, I learned to use a hot oven for my roasts (no, not pot roasts) and to allow 15 mins a pound for rare beef, 20 mins for lamb, faintly pink, and 25 minutes for pork. In each case you give an extra time of the same amount of minutes over your allowance, i.e. 15 minutes a pound and 15 over. We ate our starters to contain our appetites for a while, a selection of vegetables with a few pieces of Bocconcini with some pickles and olives on the side and buns. Eventually the lamb arrived and was delicious - we dived in with gusto. I have lent my friend Glenda Larke's book, The Last Stormlord, and I am sure she will enjoy it as much as I did. We both read very much the same books. We eventually left there and got home around 6:15 or so. We had some turkey soup for supper and sat down to read or watch TV. I was in the computer room around 11 when Matt called me, he was having a TIA (transient ischemic attack or mini stroke) ended up calling an ambulance but by the time they arrived 20 minutes later, it was all over. They checked him out and agreed there wasn't much point in him going to the hospital, just to let the doc know in the morning which I have done. He has, after all, had every test known to man and is on medication etc. etc. We were hoping these wouldn't happen again, its been 16 months since the last one. He is scheduled to go for a stress test on Dec. 31 (of all days) so I don't think there is too much they can do for him. He is fine now. This afternoon bowling, will I get another 300 game, some hopes. After that we are going for our regular flu shot. Don't know about the swine flu ones yet. Our hostess yesterday made the most delicious dessert. She got the recipe from Canadian Living which showed the recipe for pumpkin but as an alternative, it can be made with apple butter. Luckily our friend chose the apple butter recipe and it turned out to be absolutely scrumptious. Although the recipe was originally from Canadian Living, she changed a few of the quantities so this is really her recipe. Apple Crème Brûlée 1/2 C apple butter 2 tsp vanilla 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon 1/2 tsp each nutmeg and ginger 2 1/2 C Whipping cream 8 egg yolks 1/3 C Granulated sugar 1/2 C packed brown sugar 1. Place eight 6 oz. custard cups or ramekins in a large pan, set aside 2. In a large bowl, combine apple butter, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger, set aside. 3. In saucepan, heat cream until steaming. In bowl, whisk egg yolks with granulated sugar; slowly whisk in cream. Whisk into apple mixture. Pour into prepared custard cups. Pour enough hot water into pan to come half way up sides of cups. 4. Bake in centre of 350°F oven until edge is set but centre still jiggles and knife inserted in centre comes out creamy, about 35 mins. Remove from water; let cool on racks. Cover and refrigerate until chilled and set, about 2 hours (Make ahead; refrigerate for up to 2 days. 5. Set fine sieve over bowl; press brown sugar through sieve to eliminate lumps. Pat custards dry; sprinkle evenly with brown sugar. 6. Holding small blowtorch so end of flame touches sugar, heat until sugar bubbles and turns dark amber. Chill uncovered for at least 30 mins before serving. (Make ahead; refrigerate for up to 2 hours). Servings: 8 Have a great day.

Drayton. Of Lunches and Robbers.

I wrote to the Artistic Director at the Drayton Entertainment Group to tell him how impressed both my friend and I were, and how much we enjoyed The Heiress. I had a very nice reply and apparently they are planning to do Twelve Angry Men next October. That is the one in which Henry Fonda played the leading role in the movie. Should, therefore, be good to see on the stage. I am so pleased they are going to continue to do some more serious plays as well as the comedies and musicals. Tomorrow we are doing something different, we are going to a friend's house for lunch a la British Sunday Lunch, she was talking roast lamb, so I hope that's what we will be having. We both love lamb as you know and my friends are both of European descent although she was born here to English parents. He is from Romania where they eat a lot of foods which are definitely not eaten here. I cooked steak and kidney pies for him and his mother when she was visiting. I just watched a clip on Good Morning America weekend of "all the news you missed" click here; things which actually don't make the headlines. One story was of a guy who robbed a bank and stuffed the money into his pants. The die pack exploded giving him serious burns; what an idiot. Talking of bank robberies there have been a few locally. They caught the robbers in a local town, but Kitchener, where we live, has, they think, two gangs committing robberies. I know they recently caught one guy somewhere who turned out to be a highly placed business official and earned quite a lot of money a year, but had a gambling problem. What fools people are. As you know I get lots of foodie emails, I also get a lot of diabetic emails and sometimes there are good recipes in them. This is one. Baby Beef Wellingtons Source dLife News Servings 4 2 tsp olive oil 1/2 lb Mushrooms, brown, fresh, finely chopped 3 Tbs red wine (dry) 2 fresh green onions, finely chopped (equal to 3 tablespoons) 1/4 tsp ground thyme, crushed 1/4 tsp salt 1/8 tsp black pepper 1 lb Beef, tenderloin, extra lean, raw, cut in to 4 pieces 6 phyllo pastry dough sheet, defrosted 1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Heat the olive oil in a large, nonstick skillet over medium heat until hot. Add the mushrooms and cook, stirring, for five minutes until tender. Add the wine and cook 2-3 minutes or until the liquid is evaporated. Stir in the green onion, thyme, salt, and pepper. Remove skillet from heat and cool completely. 2. Heat the same skillet over medium heat until hot. Place the steaks in the skillet and cook for 3 minutes, flipping once (steaks will be partially cooked). Season with salt and pepper as desired. 3. Stack the phyllo sheets on a flat surface. Thoroughly spray each sheet with cooking spray. Cut the stacked sheets lengthwise in half, then crosswise in half to make 4 equal stacks. Place approximately 2 tablespoons of the mushroom mixture in the center of each phyllo stack, spreading the mixture to the diameter of the steaks. Place the steaks on top of the mushroom mixture. Bring all 4 corners of each phyllo stack together and twist tightly to close. Lightly spray each bundle with cooking spray and place on a greased baking sheet. 4. Immediately bake 9-10 minutes until golden brown, at 425 degrees F. Let stand five minutes. Serve immediately. Have a great weekend.

The Heiress, Cookie Diet.

I thoroughly enjoyed the play yesterday. I had forgotten a lot of what happened, the details that is, however, in the elopement scene, the dialogue came back to me. Catherine, was played very well if not the same as I would have played it, that is not surprising of course. But it was very well done. I gather they had trouble selling tickets though and have been giving some away. People are too used to musicals and comedies from the Drayton Festival group. I hope they will be doing more of this kind of straight play. I just learned that the original book was published in 1880, I knew it was called The House on Washington Square, I did not know it was written by Henry James. This is a poster from the 1949 movie. My friend enjoyed the play too and from the comments coming from the audience and from the standing ovation, I think everyone else enjoyed it as well. On GMA this morning I heard about a diet called The Cookie Diet, apparently you eat six specially developed cookies at any time during the day when you feel hungry, then for dinner you eat a 500 calorie meal of protein and vegetables. People were praising it on the programme although some doctors were criticising it. If you would like to read the article click here, the inventor, Dr. Siegels, says in 30 years he has never had anyone suffer any problems with his diet. One young lady had been on the programme for 2 years without any adverse affects and was a size 0? I would have thought that was too thin. The cookies are available from a lot of US pharmacies and it costs something like $250 a month. I must admit, I would have a go at it if the cookies were available here. One thing Dr. Siegels said "if the weight loss isn't fast, people lose interest and go off it" that is very true. The last time I was on Weight Watchers it took me a year to lose 18 lbs and that just wasn't good enough. Bowling this afternoon, I will be able to boast about my 311 game to the group. One guy in particular with whom I have a friendly competition; we are always joking about our scores. I trust he will be suitably impressed *g*. Eating Well are doing a promotion on apples at the moment and this is the soup recipe they gave. I thought it sounded good. I like soups with cabbage and lots of other vegetables so I think this will be on our table before very long. Sweet & Sour Beef-Cabbage Soup From EatingWell: September/October 2009 This wholesome sweet-and-sour soup combines beef, caraway seeds, sweet paprika and cabbage—ingredients that star in a number of German dishes. It is particularly nice served with crusty rye bread. For an even heartier soup, add diced cooked potatoes along with the cabbage. 6 servings Ingredients * 1 tablespoon canola oil * 1 pound lean (90% or leaner) ground beef * 1 1/2 teaspoons caraway seeds * 1 teaspoon dried thyme * 2 1/2 cups frozen bell pepper and onion mix, thawed, chopped * 1 medium Golden Delicious or other sweet-tart cooking apple, unpeeled, diced * 6 cups reduced-sodium beef broth * 1 15-ounce can crushed or diced tomatoes * 1 1/2 tablespoons honey * 1 tablespoon paprika, preferably Hungarian sweet * 3 cups coarsely chopped Savoy, or green cabbage * 1-2 tablespoons cider vinegar * 1/4 teaspoon salt * Freshly ground pepper to taste Preparation 1. Heat oil in a Dutch oven over medium heat. Add beef, caraway seeds and thyme and cook, stirring and breaking up the beef with a spoon, until it is mostly browned, about 4 minutes. Stir in pepper-onion mix and apple; cook, stirring, for 2 to 3 minutes more. 2. Stir in broth, tomatoes, honey and paprika and adjust the heat so the mixture boils gently. Cook for 8 to 10 minutes to blend the flavors. Stir in cabbage and cook just until barely tender, 3 to 4 minutes more. Season with vinegar to taste, salt and pepper. Have a great day.

The Heiress, and Snow.

When I click on the Sitemeter it fascinates me to find out where some of my readers live. I often wonder who you are and do wish some of you would write a comment to let me know about yourselves. Some of you I already know of course, even if not many of you leave a comment. So, stop by and say hullo why don't you? Today I am going, with a friend, to St. Jacob's Schoolhouse Theatre (part of the Drayton group) to see The Heiress. This is a pretty ancient play, I took the lead in it (amateur of course) some 45 or so years ago, but I have never seen it performed. I believe it was originally a book (The House in Washington Square) and they made a movie, but I have never seen or read either. Oh yes, I have just Googled, it was a film in 1949 with Olivia de Havilland, Montgomery Clift and Ralph Richardson. Quite a prestigious cast. I feel like I am in good company LOL. This morning they actually had snow in Buffalo which is south west of us. I can't believe it already. Way too early. When we first came to Canada people told us November 15th was when the snow season started. Seems to be changing along with everything else on the weather front. There are other places which have reported snow already. Some in Canada and some in the States. Luckily we don't have mountains which seem to attract it more. Although for places like Buffalo its the lakes that do it. You can enlarge that map if you want to look. It doesn't show where we live, but its about 1 1/2 hours south west of Toronto, or roughly between the Toronto label and the 401 label. As you will see, Buffalo isn't that far from us as the crow flies, but luckily we don't get the snow they do. The actress, Valerie Berinelli, was on GMA the last two days talking about her great weight loss. This morning she came back to give a recipe for her soup which she says is wonderful when you feel hungry. I hadn't realised this was a Jenny Craig diet she had been following, but the soup looks pretty good. Valerie Bertinelli's Tuscan Style Soup The Actress Shares One of Her Favorite Low-Calorie Recipes From the kitchen of Valerie Bertinelli | Servings: 4 Tuscan Style Soup satisfies with 63 calories, 2 grams of fat and 300 milligrams of sodium. The recipe is courtesy of Jenny Craig, of which Valerie Bertinelli is a spokeswoman. For more of her favorite dishes visit www.jennycraig.com. Ingredients # 1 1/4 cup eggplant, peeled and cubed # 1 cup water # 1 can whole tomatoes, no salt added, undrained and chopped (14 1/2-ounce) # 1 can sliced mushrooms, drained (OR 1 cup fresh mushrooms, sliced) # 1 clove garlic, minced # 1 small summer (yellow) squash, coarsely chopped # 1/2 tsp Italian seasoning, dried # 1/4 tsp salt # 1/8 tsp pepper # 12 oz can chicken broth, reduced sodium # 8 tbsp Pecorino Romano cheese, freshly grated Cooking Directions Combine the first 10 ingredients in a large saucepan, stirring well. Bring to a boil; cover, reduce heat, and simmer 25 minutes or until vegetables are tender. To serve, ladle soup into individual bowls; sprinkle 2 tbsp of Pecorino Romano cheese. Have a great day.

Labels, Soup, da Vinci.

I don't know if you've noticed my blogs haven't been having labels lately? Apparently I have exceeded the limit of 2,000 labels, I have, after all, written 645 blogs and have scattered labels indiscriminately. I am now trying to delete all the old labels with the exception of references to recipes although I have deleted dozens already and it still won't let me use labels; I didn't give out many recipes originally although in some cases I gave several. I must admit Blogger has a lot of restrictions, not least of which is the Adsense which it took away from me for some unknown reason (they don't tell you) and have never since allowed me to use again. I am contemplating starting a new blog and leaving this one behind. More on this later. This morning I finally strained the turkey soup and got rid of all the gubbins. It is now sitting in the fridge to allow the fat to solidify so I can remove it - once upon a time I wouldn't have bothered, but that was once upon a time. I won't overload the soup either, I like to taste the broth, not stick so much in the soup it is like eating a stew. Not sure when I will do that as I am out for another theatre trip tomorrow, last one this year I think. We still have a pile of turkey meat left and had Leek and Tomato Soup with sandwiches again last night. But I think that will soon get old. We both love turkey sandwiches, but there is obviously a limit. A fascinating story this morning on GMA - the art world believes it has found a previously unknown painting by Leonardo da Vinci. The painting has been known for a while, but was not attributed to him, now the experts are beginning to believe it was created by the master. They have found a print which they believe is his and which therefore authenticates it. If you would like to read the article and see a video click here to pursue this mystery. The painting is called Profile of the Bella Principessa and if verified will be the first of da Vinci's paintings found in 100 years. I like foods with Chinese or similar Asian overtones like this following one from Eating Well. Hawaiian Ginger-Chicken Stew From EatingWell: March/April 2009 This chicken stew has a bold ginger-flavored broth and provides a whole serving of dark leafy greens in each bowl. We tried it with frozen chopped mustard greens (available in large supermarkets) and it was even quicker to prepare and just as delicious. Serve with brown rice. 4 servings, about 1 cup each Ingredients * 1 tablespoon sesame oil, or canola oil * 1 pound chicken tenders, cut into 1-inch pieces * 1 2-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and cut into matchsticks or minced * 4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced * 1/2 cup dry sherry, (see Tip) * 1 14-ounce can reduced-sodium chicken broth * 1 1/2 cups water * 2 tablespoons reduced-sodium soy sauce * 1 teaspoon Asian red chile sauce, such as sriracha, or to taste * 1 bunch mustard greens, or chard, stemmed and chopped (6-7 cups), or 2 cups frozen chopped mustard greens Preparation 1. Heat oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add chicken and cook, stirring occasionally, until just cooked through, about 6 minutes. Transfer to a plate with tongs. 2. Add ginger and garlic to the pot and cook until fragrant, about 10 seconds. Add sherry and cook until mostly evaporated, scraping up any browned bits, 1 1/2 to 3 minutes. Add broth and water, increase heat to high and bring to a boil. Boil for 5 minutes. Add soy sauce, chile sauce and mustard greens (or chard) and cook until the greens are tender, about 3 minutes. Return the chicken and any accumulated juices to the pot and cook until heated through, 1 to 2 minutes. Tips & Notes * Tip: “Cooking sherry” can be high in sodium. Instead, look for dry sherry with other fortified wines in your wine or liquor store. Have a great day.

Bowling, Supper, Bacon Wrapped Chicken.

I am very excited about my bowling yesterday. I have an average of 148 which is not very high. Yesterday I bowled 311. I couldn't believe it. I just couldn't go wrong, practically every ball I threw was a good one. It felt really good. That was the first game, the second I beat my average, the third one I didn't. But aaaah, that first game. Only in one frame of the ten did I miss getting either a strike or a spare. If you haven't a clue what I'm talking about, sorry, but I was over the moon about it. OK its not a perfect score or anything, but for me it might as well be. For supper last night we had Tim Barrie's mom's Asparagus soup followed by a turkey sandwich. Great. I enjoyed every mouthful. Matt stripped the bird and I had all the bones and gravy etc. stewing for an hour or two and now have to drain it. Of course the sandwich was English style, not as found over here most of the time. The bread was carefully buttered, right to the edges, then the turkey laid on it and salted properly, in my case I added a dollop of bread sauce, then the second piece of buttered bread laid on top and pressed down. It was excellent. For any newcomers, Tim Barrie is our local asparagus farmer and the recipe has been given before, but now is not the right time of year. Right now we seem to be having a problem with our hot water so not sure if I will get a shower this morning. There is plenty of cold water so I may have to heat some water and have a PTA wash. If you don't know, I'm not translating. This is a tasty sounding dish from Cooking.com - for my English readers, you have to recall that bacon here is similar to streaky bacon so that is what should be used.

Bacon-Wrapped Chicken Source: Quick Cooking magazine 6 Servings INGREDIENTS 6 boneless skinless chicken breast halves 1 carton (8 ounces) whipped cream cheese with onion and chives 1 tablespoon butter or margarine, cubed Salt to taste 6 bacon strips DIRECTIONS Flatten the chicken to 1/2-inch thickness. Spread 3 tablespoons cream cheese over each. Dot with the butter and sprinkle with salt; roll up. Wrap each with a bacon strip. Place, seam side down, in a greased 13-by-9-by-2-inch baking pan. Bake, uncovered, at 400 degrees F for 35-40 minutes or until juices run clear. Broil 6 inches from the heat for 5 minutes or until bacon is crisp. Have a great day.

Brigadoon, GMA, Bowling, Chicken & Spinach Soup.

First and foremost, let me tell you, I really, really enjoyed Brigadoon. It was very well done and made me cry in the sad scenes. I don't ever remember crying during the film. The tragedy portrayed on the face of the father who lost his son was absolutely heart wrenching. The whole performance was very much better than I expected and I have learnt to expect a lot from the Drayton Festival group. No Matt, it wasn't Gene Kelly et al, but it was still good. On Good Morning America today they interviewed Dr. Sanjay Gupta who has written a book about Cheating Death. Click here to read an excerpt on the web site. One thing which caught my notice, and I was only half listening, was the use of ice in a heart attack situation which, by lowering the temperature, helps the body decrease its requirement for oxygen. Apparently some response teams in the larger cities are now carrying ice. It makes sense I must say. Bowling today and we have some new shirts, guess I need to take a photo of Matt wearing his. They are for the Grand River 5 pin Bowling Association, Waterloo Lanes. We have some nice shirts from our previous bowling house, but as its no longer there, its a bit outdated wearing them although that hasn't stopped us, as I said, they are nice shirts to wear. I just snapped Matt sitting in a chair cleaning our bowling balls. Cooked a turkey yesterday, for Thanksgiving, and I am pleased to report it turned out beautifully. I always agonise over a turkey because I don't do it very often. My bread sauce came out very well even though I had to improvise. The way my mother used to do it was to sweat a small onion, stuck with cloves, in milk for several hours. Eventually, remove the onion and add the breadcrumbs, some butter and some cream. The only breadcrumbs I had were from wholewheat bread which is what we eat (its usually white bread) and I didn't have any cream to use, however, it was just as delicious as always. To me, turkey without bread sauce is as bad as without cranberry would be to most North Americans. A friend even made three kinds of cranberry sauce she said!! Of course, Oktoberfest is well under way this week in Kitchener. They "tap the keg" on Friday and beer flows constantly all week. A lot of people tell us its great fun, but we have also heard lots of adverse reports, so we have never attempted to join in the gemütlichkheit. You won't be able to get a hotel room for miles around this area and the price of a schnitzel has likely doubled in most places. A lot of locals wear dirndls and lederhosen too, to get into the spirit. I thought this looked an interesting soup and might be something I could do with my turkey soup when I have stewed up the bones for a while. Chicken & Spinach Soup with Fresh Pesto From EatingWell: September/October 2009 This fragrant, Italian-flavored soup takes advantage of quick-cooking ingredients—boneless, skinless chicken breast, bagged baby spinach and canned beans. It features a simple homemade basil pesto swirled in at the end to add a fresh herb flavor. If you are very pressed for time, you can substitute 3 to 4 tablespoons of a store-bought basil pesto. 5 servings Ingredients * 2 teaspoons plus 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, divided * 1/2 cup carrot or diced red bell pepper * 1 large boneless, skinless chicken breast (about 8 ounces), cut into quarters * 1 large clove garlic, minced * 5 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth * 1 1/2 teaspoons dried marjoram * 6 ounces baby spinach, coarsely chopped * 1 15-ounce can cannellini beans or great northern beans, rinsed * 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese * 1/3 cup lightly packed fresh basil leaves * Freshly ground pepper to taste * 3/4 cup plain or herbed multigrain croutons for garnish (optional) Preparation 1. Heat 2 teaspoons oil in a large saucepan or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add carrot (or bell pepper) and chicken; cook, turning the chicken and stirring frequently, until the chicken begins to brown, 3 to 4 minutes. Add garlic and cook, stirring, for 1 minute more. Stir in broth and marjoram; bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the chicken is cooked through, about 5 minutes. 2. With a slotted spoon, transfer the chicken pieces to a clean cutting board to cool. Add spinach and beans to the pot and bring to a gentle boil. Cook for 5 minutes to blend the flavors. 3. Combine the remaining 1 tablespoon oil, Parmesan and basil in a food processor (a mini processor works well). Process until a coarse paste forms, adding a little water and scraping down the sides as necessary. 4. Cut the chicken into bite-size pieces. Stir the chicken and pesto into the pot. Season with pepper. Heat until hot. Garnish with croutons, if desired. Have a great day.

Brigadoon, Thanksgiving, Mint Chocolate Filled Cupcakes.

Today I am off to the theatre in Drayton once again to see Brigadoon. It is one of my favourite films but I have never seen it on stage. I am looking forward to it. If you don't know it, its a magical story of a Scottish village which is so worried about the wickedness of the outside world that their minister prays to be protected from it. The minister is lost, but the village is hidden from the world for a hundred years at a time and comes back for one day. That is the background for a love story between a modern American and a Scottish girl from an obscure village. In the movie its Gene Kelly and Cyd Charisse with Van Johnson. This is a typical instance of Matt saying he has seen the best perform it why would he want to see anyone else. He doesn't understand the draw of live theatre at all. It being Thanksgiving our local store, Zehrs, has passed on tips for cooking a turkey. I thought I would pass them on to you in case you are cooking a bird this weekend. They can be found at this site. Although I bought two turkey breasts in the States, Zehrs was selling turkeys for 99¢ a lb. this week so we couldn't resist buying one. It was roughly 10 lbs which is really way too much for us. Now comes the question, to stuff or not to stuff? I am not a big fan of stuffing, other than chestnut, but Matt likes it. He says don't bother, but .... Mind you I haven't cooked a whole turkey for a year or two and it was never something one cooked very often. One thing I will probably make is bread sauce which is an old tradition with English roast turkeys and I really enjoy it. Won't be having cranberry, Matt isn't too keen and I am not overly fond of it either. I heard a delightful little story from one of my customers yesterday, apparently her husband, at the age of 17, decided to come from England to Canada on an adventure to tour the whole country and then return home. However, he met my customer and they fell in love. That was 49 years ago, they have just celebrated their anniverary. In this age of regular divorce, that is so nice to hear. A friend was asking for decadent cupcakes this week. I came across this one yesterday and had to share it with her and with you. Don't they look absolutely scrumptious? Mint Chocolate Filled Cupcakes Source: Eating Well The Batter: 3 cups flour 2 cups white sugar 1/2 cup Equal Exchange Organic Baking Cocoa 2 tsp salt 2 tsp baking soda 2 cups water 2/3 cup vegetable oil 2 Tablespoons vinegar 2 tsp vanilla Mix dry ingredients (flour, sugar, cocoa, salt, baking soda) and then add water, oil, vinegar and vanilla. Mix well. Put cupcake papers in a muffin tin and fill 1/2 full with the batter. Filling: 8 ounces cream cheese 1 egg 1/3 cup sugar pinch of salt 1 bar Equal Exchange Organic Mint Chocolate, chopped finely Cream together cream cheese, egg, sugar, and salt, and stir in chocolate. Put a spoonful of filling into center of each cup of batter. Bake at 350F / 180C for about 25 minutes. Frosting: 2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened 1/2 cup butter, softened 2 cups sifted confectioners' sugar 1 tsp vanilla extract While cupcakes are baking, whip up the frosting. In a medium bowl, cream together the cream cheese and butter until creamy. Mix in the vanilla, then gradually stir in the confectioners' sugar. Frost the cupcakes after they've had time to fully cool. Makes about 32 cupcakes. To my Canadian readers, Happy Thanksgiving, to everyone else, have a great weekend.

Cars and Travel, Japanese Chicken Rice Bowl.

What a lovely time we had yesterday, we did our weekly shop and then went to drive home and the power steering had suddenly gone, made the oddest noises. Called for a tow truck (don't have to pay luckily). Meanwhile I took our ice cream back to the store as I figured it wouldn't stay frozen very long. Then we spotted a friend and asked her to take me home (diabetes and lunch) leaving poor Matt with the stranded car. Luckily the garage fixed it and we got it back that evening, quite a bit poorer of course. Its a good car but its getting old, the picture shows a car similar to ours. Several people said to me that we were lucky we were OK on our recent trip. The thought blows my mind, it could have happened anywhere. Especially with our shrimp in the car, oy vey as a friend would say! As it was, we had a reasonable trip home on the 26th. We picked up the shrimp which were good and solid in the frozen cool box and got some ice put in the cooler with the turkey breasts. We chatted to Captain Sam, Sheri was off shopping somewhere. He was talking about getting pix done for his upcoming election bid. He was horrified because the photos looked just like his daddy, he didn't realise he was getting to look that old, LOL. Do we ever? First time we have really chatted to him. We then went and got the last fillup of cheap gas and headed out. Shortly after we left, we saw a large flat bed truck loaded with what looked like cardboard boxes although they must have been more than that, loaded with eels. There was a map on the boxes showing they went as far as Canada. I didn't know eels were a business in the Carolinas. Matt suggested they could be freshwater eels, obviously we don't know, it was going too fast for us anyway. I have to confess that I do not enjoy eating eels. My parents loved them but it is something that has never appealed to me. We stopped for lunch at a Subway and I had an excellent ham sub. I also got a double chocolate cookie which turned out to be delicious with gooey chocolate in the middle. I went back and got three more!!!!!! We ate the last two in the hotel that night. Boy were they ever good. I don't make cookies but I would if I had the recipe for those. Just as well I don't, I do not need them LOL. Once we were well into the hills of Virginia, I was commenting about how pretty it looked with the clouds hanging on the hilltops then as we got higher, we drove into the clouds and it wasn't so pretty plus it started to rain, and rain, and rain. Awful weather. I am also very upset, all my life I have understood that cows lay down before it rained, all these local cows were standing around eating. Maybe they didn't know the rule? We were glad to check into the hotel at 5:30 we had had enough of driving in the rain. The hotel had wifi, so guess what!!!!!! Went to supper and I had shrimp and asparagus pasta, Matt had Chicken Caesar. Not yer haute cuisine, but not bad. It was still chucking it down. Back in our room we played crib and I had Celtic Thunder on the laptop for a bit of music then we quit cards and watched it for a while. Could use some speakers. There was a wedding party staying in the hotel. Typically they were noisy late at night but luckily, not for long. The next day I have little to say about except it rained and rained and rained. Never seen such rain. It was coming down in torrents, sheets and buckets all at once. Much worse than Saturday. We drove through wonderful scenery and could hardly see most of it although looking out of the side windows we could see that the fall colours were well under way in the mountains. We stopped for lunch at another Subway, but they didn't have the same cookies, how sad. Finally when we got to New York, it stopped raining, thank goodness. We were totally sick of it by then. We were lucky at the border, no hold ups; found out later that people had waited up to 4 hours the previous weekend as the customs officers were on strike. Home around 6 ish and got hold of a cart from the super to move the coolers and cases into the apartment. Everything was still good and solid in the coolers. Down the road for supper, we were so tired, I have no idea what we ate. We weren't long out of bed I can assure you. The shrimp and turkey breasts were unloaded the next day, with difficulty. Have to break off all the ice. This is how it all looked in the freezer. That's two rows of shrimp by the way. Eating Well are promoting some dinners for less than 350 calories. This is one of them. Japanese Chicken-Scallion Rice Bowl From EatingWell: April/May 2005, The EatingWell Healthy in a Hurry Cookbook (2006) Here's the quintessence of Japanese home cooking: an aromatic, protein-rich broth served over rice. Admittedly, Japanese cooking leans heavily on sugar - for a less traditional taste, you could reduce or even omit the sugar. 4 servings Ingredients * 1 1/2 cups instant brown rice * 1 cup reduced-sodium chicken broth * 1 1/2 tablespoons sugar * 2 tablespoons reduced-sodium soy sauce * 1 tablespoon mirin, (see Ingredient note) * 2 large egg whites * 1 large egg * 8 ounces boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1/2-inch pieces * 6 scallions, trimmed and thinly sliced Preparation 1. Prepare instant brown rice according to package directions. 2. Pour broth into a heavy medium saucepan, along with sugar, soy sauce and mirin. Bring to a boil; reduce heat to medium-low. 3. Stir egg whites and whole egg in a small bowl until just mixed. Add chicken to the simmering broth. Gently pour in the egg mixture, without stirring. Sprinkle scallions on top. When the egg starts to firm up, after about 3 minutes, stir it with chopsticks or a knife. (The chicken will be cooked by now.) Divide the rice among 4 deep soup bowls and top with the chicken mixture. * Ingredient Note: Mirin is a low-alcohol rice wine essential to Japanese cooking. Look for it in your supermarket with the Asian or gourmet ingredients. An equal portion of sherry or white wine with a pinch of sugar may be substituted for mirin. Have a great day.

Of Mice, Birds and Vacations. Stuffed Turkey Breast.

Amazing, Matt came to me with a flyer from Staples yesterday showing they had a cordless mouse on special for less than $30. This is the man who is generally anti computers!!! So we hi-tailed it to Staples and got one. I didn't know how they worked and discover they come with a USB stick. This is for my laptop you understand. I was playing with it a lot once I had it installed. Great and easy to use. It is a Logitech Laser Cordless Mouse and was reduced considerably. Mind you, I am still not quite sure how the signal gets from the mouse to the laptop - there aren't any little lights that would pick up a signal. Well, back to our trip. We are getting to the end of it now. On the Thursday I phoned a friend we hadn't seen and this time got hold of him. I had tried before. We got there in the afternoon and had a beer with him. He is looking good which considering he broke his neck not so long ago, is quite surprising to me. I had always assumed paraplegia followed but apart from being a little stiff around the neck and shoulders, he moves well. Having retired he is running a catering business and selling a line of rubs and marinades under the name of Hawgs of Havelock, Smokey's Hawg Bar-B-Que. He has a pig cooker and I imagine that's part of his catering service to go round barbecuing pigs. He also takes part in Chilli cook offs all over the place. He studied at a culinary institute for two years and I know he took cooking courses when he was stationed in Japan. He showed us his chef's jacket of which he is very proud. He also has a toy poodle named Buster and another dog, Mandy. Cute dogs, but for a man who has always had pit bulls, quite a change. When we left, he gave us a couple of the dry rubs and a bottle of the marinade which is the hottest (spiciest) thing I have ever tasted. At that heat it will last us for years. Stopped off to return the umbrellas which we never did use. Could have used them today, but we are too busy. It is a very hot day though. That evening we had chicken for supper and used Smokey's dry rub. It was very good. Next day, September 25th marked our 37th wedding anniversary. We exchanged cards. Matt actually gave me my birthday card as he had given me the wrong card the other day. It occurred to me that I hadn't written anything about the birds round here, unlike sinlaw Mike. We have a Mockingbird who lives around the cottage somewhere and sings his heart out every day. Some of them can sing for an hour or more without ever repeating themselves (they copy the songs of other birds) and some have even been heard repeating human sounds. They are wonderful to listen to and we have been charmed by the one stationed in this area. Then, of course, we have the brown Pelicans. You see flocks of them every time you are near any water. They are pretty abundant and spend a lot of time fishing although you do see them perching on poles in the Sound for hours on end. I am not sure if they migrate, it doesn't get that cold here in the winter, but maybe they prefer Florida. I prefer Florida in the winter too, come to that LOL. There are also egrets and blue herons which I have seen in the last two weeks although not in abundance. If you go to certain areas round here you can see the egrets roosting and turning the island bushes into snow balls because there are so many of them. They are very pretty birds but became scarce once upon a time because ladies liked their feathers to decorate their hats. Carolina has always had lots of birds to watch, but we haven't seen that many on this trip. There is a bird bath in the back yard here and we have seen a blue jay making use of it, but we haven't seen some of the more spectacular birds like Painted or Indigo Buntings - the latter look blue but apparently aren't, something to do with light refraction. We used to see them a lot in our back yard when we lived here. I never saw a Painted Bunting but Matt did several times when he was on the water, he used to see flocks of Ibis too which I only saw once. Mustn't forget the Ospreys (Sea Eagles) which we have seen several of lately, wonderful to watch diving for fish or lazily riding the thermals. They are distinctive because of the white under their wings. We spent most of the morning doing laundry as we leave tomorrow, then later went and bought a few more items at the grocery store. We also went to the ABC to get a couple of small bottles for our trip (drink in the hotel). I lived here for 12 years and didn't know they don't have what we call Mickey's in Canada. 375 ml. Here you can buy half pints which are somewhat smaller. I couldn't get a small scotch for me so ended up buying airline sized bottles. Did a few goodbyes, one to our friend who works at KMart, had said goodbye to his wife yesterday. Then bought some flowers and took them with the DVD of Mama Mia back to our friends. Wanted to say thanks for all they had done for us. Be damned if she didn't give me Celtic Thunder for an Anniversary present. They are such a generous couple. Went back to the cottage and stuffed ourselves with leftovers for supper still going to leave a few things behind, I hope the cleaners will make use of them. Matt packed, he is better at that than I am. We loaded the car with everything except the last minute things. Left room for the shrimp too of course. Just the trip home to accomplish. This weekend is Thanksgiving in Canada when many people will be cooking turkey for dinner with all the trimmings including pumpkin pie (not for me, sorry) however, an email from Smuckers this morning detailed the following recipe for a different way of serving turkey. Orange, Goat Cheese and Wild Mushroom Stuffed Turkey Breast Makes: about 4 servings Freezing: not recommended Ingredients: 1 onion, thinly sliced 1 cup (250 mL) mushrooms (cremini, shiitake, portobello) , thinly sliced 1 tsp (5 mL) butter 1 1-1 1/2 lb (450 g-680 g) boneless turkey breast, pounded thin 2 tbsp (30 mL) goat cheese, softened 1 tbsp (15 mL) chopped fresh rosemary 2 tbsp (30 mL) Smucker’s® Pure Orange Marmalade Salt and pepper to taste Glaze: 1 tbsp (15 mL) chopped fresh rosemary 3 tbsp (45 mL) Smucker’s® Pure Orange Marmalade 1 tsp (5 mL) Dijon mustard Directions: 1. Preheat oven to 375°F (190°C). Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper and cover with thinly sliced onion. Set aside. Meanwhile, cook mushrooms in butter in medium sized skillet until wilted and liquid evaporates. Season with salt and pepper. Set aside to cool. 2. Place turkey breast skin side down on prepared baking sheet. Season with salt and pepper. Combine cooked mushrooms, goat cheese, rosemary and marmalade. Spread on turkey breast. Roll jelly roll and tie with kitchen twine or use metal skewers to secure filling. Turn so that it is seam side down. Combine glaze ingredients and brush over turkey breast. 3. Cook in preheated oven 60-65 minutes or until it reaches an internal temperature of 165°F (74°C). Remove from oven, cover with foil and let sit for 10 minutes before slicing. Tips: 1. Please show some slices, sliced on diagonal as well as remaining whole turkey breast. Have a great day.

Vacation, Coffee Braised Pot Roast.

Big surprise, Matt has already had the film developed from his camera, with a little nudging from me to take this or that picture. His picture of me next to the bed still doesn't really convey the height, primarily because I am wearing shoes; guess I should have taken them off before being photographed. It really doesn't look that high at all does it? But I can assure you when I had bare feet it was difficult to climb into. Another thing I was thinking about this morning, since we were there last time, a small dishwasher has been installed. For years I have been kidding with people who 'washed' their dishes before they washed their dishes (in the dishwasher) now I have found out why some people do that. This little sucker was not as efficient as the Whirlpool I had in our NC home. Once or twice we had to re-wash things which I never had to do before, so I guess that's why people do it. On the Wednesday which was Sept. 23, we went to our friend's house and then in one vehicle to the Ruddy Duck on the waterside in Morehead City. When we got there we were surprised to find it was the same place that had once been called Blue Peter's, another species of duck; we had gone there for our 25th anniversary some few years ago. It has changed hands a couple of times since and is not quite such haute cuisine as it was then, but the food is very good, nonetheless. The original idea had been to sail in our friend's boat and tie up alongside the restaurant but because of the anticipated bad weather we didn't. I had a spinach salad with egg and cheese which was very good, then there was a chicken salad served in a large tortilla made into a bowl shape. Looked huge. Matt had a crab cake sandwich, new one on us and I can't remember the fourth dish. Afterwards we went to the day docks and parked by the water sitting in the sun whilst our friend went to get his boat. In the picture you can see the fire and rescue boat and in the background Morehead docks. We boarded the Fast Forward and went for a short trip around the island. It was fun, beautiful day, bit of a breeze, nice way to spend an hour or two. Pity we couldn't have done some sailing. Hurricane Fred's remnants had totally passed by early in the morning. Following are some pictures taken from the boat as we were sailing around. One of the Ruddy Duck from the water side. Shows where we could have docked for lunch. We have a family joke, our last name being Wake, all over the waterways there are postings saying No Wake or No Wake Zone or something similar. (A wake being the rough water left behind by a passing boat and if the boat is travelling fast enough, it can cause a lot of damage). I have mentioned before, we had a boat which we called Wake's Own. So when we passed a sign, we both took pictures of it. You have to blow it up a bit to read it. I used this as my wallpaper for a while then I changed it to a picture of the Morehead Bridge over to the island at Atlantic Beach. There is a similar bridge the other end of the island but we like the view better, its full of little islands, unfortunately I have never been in a position to take a decent photo from that bridge and these days there is no way I could walk to the top to do so. Apart from the fact I think it would be somewhat dangerous. Having enjoyed our little trip around the island, we were dropped off at the day docks again and then waited for our friend to moor his boat and come ashore in his skiff when we would pick him up. I saw a street sign that amused me so we had to take a picture. We went back to their place and had a drink and a load of snacky things, really good for me. My blood sugars are running high at the moment anyway, trouble is I am on vacation. We borrowed Mama Mia from them and having watched Jeopardy, had a bit of supper (we weren't hungry) we watched the movie. I was disappointed after the raving people have been doing and Matt didn't think much of it at all. Coffee-Braised Pot Roast with Caramelized Onions From EatingWell: Fall 2004, October 1998, The Essential EatingWell Cookbook (2004) This recipe is reminiscent of a pot roast made with onion-soup mix, but the flavors are true and pure--and nobody misses the excess sodium. 10 servings Ingredients * 1 4-pound beef chuck roast, (see Ingredient note), trimmed of fat * 1/2 teaspoon salt, or to taste * Freshly ground pepper, to taste * 4 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided * 2 large onions, halved and thinly sliced (4 cups) * 4 cloves garlic, minced * 1 teaspoon dried thyme * 3/4 cup strong brewed coffee * 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar * 2 tablespoons cornstarch mixed with 2 tablespoons water Preparation 1. Preheat oven to 300°F. 2. Season beef with salt and pepper. Heat 2 teaspoons oil in a Dutch oven or soup pot over medium-high heat. Add beef and cook, turning from time to time, until well browned on all sides, 5 to 7 minutes. Transfer to a plate. 3. Add the remaining 2 teaspoons oil to the pot. Add onions, reduce heat to medium and cook, stirring often, until softened and golden, 5 to 7 minutes. Add garlic and thyme; cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Stir in coffee and vinegar; bring to a simmer. Return the beef to the pot and spoon some onions over it. Cover and transfer to the oven. 4. Braise the beef in the oven until fork-tender but not falling apart, 2 1/2 to 3 hours. Transfer beef to a cutting board, tent with foil and let rest for about 10 minutes. 5. Meanwhile, skim fat from the braising liquid; bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Add the cornstarch mixture and cook, whisking, until the gravy thickens slightly, about 1 minute. Season with pepper. Carve the beef and serve with gravy. Slow-Cooker Variation: In Step 2, transfer the browned beef to a slow cooker. In Step 3, use just 1/2 cup coffee. Add the onion mixture to the slow cooker. In Step 4, cover and cook until beef is tender, 4 1/2 to 5 hours on High or 7 to 8 hours on Low. In Step 5, pour the liquid into a medium saucepan and continue as directed. Tips & Notes * Make Ahead Tip: Cover and refrigerate for up to 2 days. * Ingredient Note: Although it is not the leanest cut of beef, chuck is still our choice for pot roast because it doesn't dry out during braising. You will find pockets of fat as you carve it, but they are easy to remove. Have a great day.