Off to a good start

 Continuing on the positive sides of 2020. 

I tried a lot of recipes in 2020.

Some my family did not like at all...like Hawaiian chicken, the breakfast crescent bake all of Youtube is raving about...not here I tell you! Hahahahaha

Yes that is the one! Ew !!!

Others were winners...like the breakfast burritos...super easy and you can freeze them. And the cowboy lasagna. Of course I had to tweak it...remove the corn add green and red peppers....and a lot less cheese. 

Today I bought a 13 pound brisket at the grocery store, portioned it wrapped and froze it. I plan to make a cola brisket and a corned brisket....I have no idea what that will end up as...because this is a super rare occurrence in Quebec super markets! I am thinking that since so many restaurants are closed, bulk distributors need to get rid of some specialty items. 

Cowboy Lasagna, 

Hoppin’ John to bring luck to 2021! 

Okay sweet folks, have a great evening, say warm and stay safe! 

Wear your mask! 

New Food Network CRUSH

Funny how I thought I was the only one to get crushes on food celebrities...

I loooovvvveeeddd Jamie Oliver but never tried one of his recipes....

I loooovvvveeeddd Nigella Lawson but only make the cupcake recipe, I'm afraid the mixing everything with the hands kinds of puts me off and her kids seem selfish, uninterested and weird.
Is your mother on a TV show? Well get with the program because she is your meal ticket!

I even had a cook crush on Paula Deen, I wanted to get adopted and dipped in butter but the Y'ALL and the way she says oil (OLE) kind of turned me off.

But for about six weeks I've had a sunday morning crush....and 3 weeks ago Dan told me: Are we going to watch the Jamie guy? Because I like him and he's so soothing and calming.

We both have a food crush on Jamie Deen! Every week I want to make his super easy recipes....And I did try the Pimento Cheese!

Boy was it ever delicious!

Here's the recipe:

Pimento Cheese Dip

Ingredients

• 1 cup grated Cheddar
• 1 cup grated pepper jack (there is NO Pepper Jack cheese in Quebec, so I used some Jalapeno Havarti)
• 4 ounces cream cheese
• 3 tablespoons pimentos (roasted red peppers)
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 cup mayonnaise
• I added a dash of Tabasco sauce for some kick

Directions

Add the Cheddar and pepper jack to a bowl with the cream cheese. Add in the pimentos and salt and pepper to taste. Using a hand mixer, begin to blend together. Add in the mayonnaise and continue mixing until creamy.

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I dn't know how long it keeps in the fridge but I made it last Sunday and it is still good

It used light cheeses so it is about 60 calories for a tablespoon.

 

it is delicious on crackers, on a tasted bagel and in a grilled cheese!

 

This was my Sunday breakfast!

 

Totally yummy and goey.

 

Today he made a butterflied chicken which looked so good!

 

I might need to try it next week :)

 

Here it is!

Comfort food is so very important in our lives especially when life goes awry or the weather is freezing. We all need food that makes us feel warm and secure. And I don't mean food to numb us....

So here is the long awaited recipe...

Mexican Lasagna


1 1/2 pounds ground chicken (we used lean ground beef)

1 cup each diced red onions and diced green bell pepper

2 teaspoons minced garlic

1 cup canned black beans, drained and rinsed (I use a 19oz can)

1 cup diced tomatoes ( I use a 26 oz can)

1/2 cup fresh or frozen corn (I use 1 cup)

1 1/2 teaspoon chili powder

1 teaspoon ground cumin

2 cups pasta sauce ( I use 1 can of condensed tomato soup)

1 cup medium salsa ( optional)

1/4 teaspoon ground pepper

2 tablespoons minced fresh cilantro

4 large or 8 small whole wheat flour tortillas

1 1/2 cups shredded light sharp cheddar cheese

1/4 cup green onions

sour cream, optional

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Spray a 13 x 9-inch casserole dish with cooking spray and set aside. In a large nonstick skillet, cook the ground chicken, onions, green pepper and garlic over medium-high heat until the chicken is no longer pink. Break up any large pieces of chicken as it is cooking.

Add black beans, tomatoes, corn, chili powder and cumin. Cook and stir for 2 more minutes. Add pasta sauce, salsa and black pepper. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low. Cover and simmer for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in cilantro and remove from heat.

To assemble casserole, spread a third of the sauce mixture over bottom of casserole dish. Top with half of the tortillas, overlapping and cutting them as necessary to fit. Top with a third of the sauce mixture, followed by half of the cheese. Cover cheese with remaining tortillas, followed by remaining sauce. Sprinkle remaining cheese over sauce and top with green onions. Cover with foil and bake for 35 minutes.

Uncover and bake 10 more minutes. Let lasagna stand for at least 10 minutes before slicing for easier serving. Top each piece with a dollop of sour cream.

This is a delicious recipe. Sometimes I do substitutions, sometimes not. I do a freezer inventory before and this time I used frozen green pepper and leftover frozen cheese. I usually use the leftover sauce to make a small lasagna that I freeze for later use. You can do this on the weekend and freeze it for another day.
 
I make mine in Pyrex! Are you surprised? You can substitute ingredients to make it more figure friendly....
 

And of course it tastes even better the next day!  
                                                                       I serve it with a nice green salad and a smile!
 
Tomorrow I visit a church basement and I'm having super with the girls! PARTY!

Meat Pies, YUM!

I cook everyday, I could not live if I didn’t cook, I would probably wither and die dried up like an old raisin….
These recipes would be good, if you’re from French Canadian descent (lord knows the thousands that went to the U.S for some work in the 30s, stayed, married and procreated. You can still hear and see signs of the French Canadian immigrants all over New England), or if you’re a transplant and suffer from nostalgia or if you want to try something different. I warn you this is not diet food, its stick to your ribs, go plow a field, give birth in it and shovel 3 feet of snow comfort food!

Ok this is THE BEST pie crust ever! I’ve only used it for meat pies and salmon pies, not for sweet stuff.

Savoury pie crust

3 cups flour
1 cup grease (I use Crisco)
1 egg
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 tablespoon white vinegar (works with cider vinegar)
1 teaspoon salt
¾ cup cold water

Throw everything in your Kitchenaid or a big ol’ Pyrex bowl and mix until smooth. Separate the dough in 3 or 4 parts, wrap in plastic film and refrigerate over night.

I swear this dough will literally roll itself!

It’s one of the few recipes I use because it’s so easy to work with! My mom used to tell me: Sorry dear I can’t make pie crust, I’m awful at it, ask you’re grandma. Of course being a teenager back then I couldn’t careless about asking my grandma for lessons and then she passed. I used boxed mixes, ready to roll dough but always found them not up to par….Then I tried the recipe on the Tenderflake (lard) package, it was good but this one id a trillion times better!

Tourtières des Fêtes (Holiday Meat Pie)

This recipe is for 1 large meat pie. It can easily be doubled, tripled or in my case sextupled (did I just make up a word?)

1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 onion chopped
2 garlic cloves finely chopped
1 bacon rasher chopped (for 1 pie I add 3 instead of one)
½ pound lean ground pork
½ pound lean ground veal (you can use the meats you like; I use beef and pork, or if you can find packs with beef,veal,pork that is good too)
1 pinch each of: ground cloves, dried thyme and dried savoury
( I find that one pinch of each is not enough, you be the judge)
Salt and Pepper to taste
1/3 beef stock
2 pie crusts
1 egg yolk

Meaty Goodness!

Preheat oven @ 350F

In a skillet, heat oil and add the bacon ,onion and garlic, Cook until onion is transparent. Add the pork and veal and cook 5 min. Add seasonings ,cover and let simmer 15 min. Adjust the seasonings and if you have too much liquid leftover you can drain the mixture.

Ready for the oven!

Put a crust in a pie plate (aluminum or Pyrex) add the meat and cover with the second crust. Cut slits in top to let steam escape and seal edges with a fork, or some fancy thing you do….Brush the egg wash on the top and shove in the hot oven for 30 min or until the crusts are golden.

Now for my last note, when the meat is done I always add some shredded potato (raw) and let it cook. It binds the whole mix and it is more traditional. Serve with fruit ketchup of plain Heinz (ew!)

                                 All golden and delicious! Too bad I can't blog in smell-O-vision!