DEeeeelicous Oven Baked BBQ Ribs

Hi everyone!

This is my first time making ribs. I always thought that they needed to be grilled over a BBQ, but I was ohhh so very wrong. Ribs slowed baked in the oven was tender, moist and absolutely delicious! Here is how I made them.

2 racks of pork baby back ribs
156 ml Can tomato paste
1 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup Dijon mustard
1/2 cup cider vinegar, i just used regular white vinegar
1 cup orange juice, I substituted with apple juice
1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup chili powder
Salt to taste

1. Preheat your oven to 300 degrees.
2. Put ribs into a large roasting pan.
   
3. Whisk together the tomato paste, juice, brown sugar, Dijon, vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, soy sauce, chili powder and salt. Pour over the ribs.
   
4. Cover with foil and bake for about 2 hours
5. At the end of the 2 hours, remove foil and brush sauce that is left in the pan over the ribs, and bake the ribs uncovered for another 30 minutes, or until the meat is fork tender.
   
6. Remove from heat and let it sit for about 5 minutes before serving.
   
7. ENJOY!!
   

Hugs,
Annie

Recipe adopted from Michael Smith, The Food Network

Blueberry Grumble

Hi Everyone,

Blueberries have always been one of my favorite fruits of life. Just the other day, the little grocery store outside my apartment had blueberries on sale and I jumped on it like nobody's business!! Normally, I would just sit and devour 5 lbs of blueberries without thinking, but that day, I felt extra kind (a very rare occasion), and decided that I should probably save some for Derek...So to pass time, I decided to make this grumble while waiting for Derek to get home.

What you will need:

3/4 cup butter
1 cup brown sugar
1 1/2 cups ground almonds
1 cup rolled oats, toasted **
4 cups blueberries
1/4 cup sugar
2 tbsp flour

1. Heat the oven to 400°F/200°C. Butter an 8” by 8” baking dish.
2. Make the grumble topping: Cream together the butter and brown sugar. Cut in the ground almonds and the oats. (You could add some cinnamon and ginger if you like)
   
3. Toss the fruit with the sugar and flour and tumble into the baking dish Sprinkle the crumble mixture evenly over the fruit and press to pack it down a bit.
   
4. Bake until the fruit is soft and the top is crisp, about 40 minutes. Let sit about a quarter hour before serving.
   

** To toast the oats: I placed a thin layer of oats in a frying pan and turned the heat to med. high. Flipping the oats frequently until toasted, about 5 minutes.

Recipe adopted from Laura Calder, The Food Network

Porcini Mushroom Risotto

Hi everyone!!

I have always wanted to try and cook risotto but have always been a bit intimidated by the thought of it. I was sick at home one day and watched Giada on the Food Network make this risotto and I was inspired to give it a try (must of been because of all the medication). Suprisingly enough, it turned out to be very delicious! We used store bought grated Parmesan cheese, so if you use those fancy Parmesans, I am sure the dish will be even better!

Here is what you will need:

8 cups low-salt chicken broth ( I used the chicken stock I made on my own); use veg broth if making vegetarian dish
1/2 ounce dried porcini mushrooms
1/4 cup unsalted butter or margarine
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 cups finely chopped onions
10 ounces white mushrooms, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 1/2 cups Arborio rice or short-grain white rice
2/3 cup dry white wine
2/3 cup grated Parmesan
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, optional

1. Bring the chicken broth to a simmer in a heavy medium saucepan. Add the porcini mushrooms. Set aside until the mushrooms are tender, about 5 minutes. Keep the broth warm over very low heat.
2. Melt the butter in a heavy large saucepan over medium heat. Add olive oil. Add the onions and saute until tender, about 8 minutes.
3. Add the white mushrooms and garlic.
   
4. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the porcini mushrooms from broth to a cutting board. Finely chop the mushrooms and add to the saucepan.
   
5. Saute until the mushrooms are tender and the juices evaporate, about 5 minutes.
   
6. Stir in the rice and let it toast for a few minutes. Add the wine; cook until the liquid is absorbed, stirring often, about 2 minutes.
   
7. Add 1 cup of hot broth; simmer over medium-low heat until the liquid is absorbed, stirring often, about 3 minutes.
   
8. Continue to cook until the rice is just tender and the mixture is creamy, adding more broth by cupfuls and stirring often, about 28 minutes (the rice will absorb 6 to 8 cups of broth).
   
9. Mix in the Parmesan. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.

Recipe adopted from Giada De Laurentiis, The Food Network

Chicken Noodle Soup

Hello!

After brunch with some of my best friends, I felt a bit bad that Derek was at home all alone with no food in his belly... So I went and bought 2 chickens and decided to make some chicken noodle soup from scratch for the poor boy.

It was my first time making chicken soup and it actually turned out great! Derek loved the soup and said that it was the best chicken noodle soup he has ever had!

Here is what you will need:

1 chicken, about 3 lbs, deconstructed
2 cup of carrots, diced and divided
2 cup of celery, diced and divided
1 cup of mushrooms, diced
1 yellow onion, diced
1 apple, diced
3 slices of ginger
2 cloves of garlic
1 tsp thyme
1tsp parsley flake
salt and fresh ground pepper to taste
A few sprigs of cilantro

1. Place mushrooms, onion, ginger, garlic, apple, 1 cup of carrots and 1 cup of celery into a large, bottom heavy pot.
   
2. Place deconstructed chicken pieces into pot and fill the pot with water until everything is covered
3. On high heat, bring the mixture to a boil. Lower heat, and skim the top if necessary. Add in thyme, parsley and cilantro
   
4. Cover and simmer for 2-3 hours
5. Remove chicken pieces from the soup, and let it cool. Remove meat from bones and set aside
6. Strain the soup to remove and discard all solids
7. At this point, I packed up most of the chicken stock in separate containers, and put them in the freezer, leaving only about 4 cups of stock in the pot
8. Pour in 4 cups of water to lighten up the stock
   
9. Slowly bring the broth up to a boil, add in the rest of the carrots and celery, as well as 2 cups of whole wheat pasta (we used bowties)
10. After pasta is almost cooked cooked and the veggies have softened, stir in some chicken pieces and season soup with salt and pepper
11. Once the pasta is completely cooked, remove soup from heat and serve!
    

Slow cooked beef stew with red wine

Hi all!

So for my birthday, my amazing friend Jared got me a fabulous slow cooker. This was the first dish that I cooked with this fantastic machine, it was super easy! Just put it in and turn it on. Beautiful!

Here is what you will need:

2 lbs stewing beef cubes,
OR, if you are stingy like me, I bought a cheap roast and cut it into cubes myself
1 tbsp olive oil
2 medium potatoes, peeled and cubed
2 medium carrots, peeled and chopped
2 celery stalks, chopped
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
3 cloves of garlic, peeled and halved
1 tbsp flour
3/4 cup red wine
1.5 cup chicken broth
1 cup of tomatoes, diced
few sprigs of fresh thyme
salt and pepper

1. Place the potatoes, celery and carrots in the slow cooker. Set aside.
2. In a large skillet over medium-high heat, brown the meat in olive oil. Season with salt and pepper. Place in the slow cooker. Leave oil in pan.
3. In the same skillet over medium heat, brown the onions and garlic. Dust with flour and cook for 1 more minute. Add the wine and bring to a boil while stirring. Transfer the mixture to the slow cooker.
4. Add the broth, tomatoes. Cover and cook until the meat is easily cut with a fork, about 6 hours with the cooker set to high or 8 hours with the cooker set to low.
5. With about 2 hours left of cooking time, add thyme into stew.
6. Remove the thyme when serving. Adjust the seasoning and enjoy!!

Happy cooking!
Annie

Lime-licious Chicken Nuggets

Hi everyone!

Happy New year! My apologies for not blogging for so long! It's been a hectic (but wonderful) 2 month for Derek and I. I have now 4 more posts that will go up in the next week, so I hope that will make up for the lack of postings last month.

First up, chicken nuggets with a twist! This dish was simple but delicious, and pretty quick to whip up. Enjoy!

What you will need:

1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts or thighs
1 cup cornflake crumbs
1.5 tbsp grated lime zest
1 tsp sugar
1.5 tsp salt
0.5 tsp fresh ground pepper
1/3 cup lime juice
Cooking spray

1. Preheat over to 425F. Cut chicken into nugget sizes
2. Combine cornflake crumbs, lime zest, sugar, salt and pepper in a shallow bowl or plate
3. Measure lime juice into another shallow bowl
4. Dip chicken pieces into lime juice, then roll in crumb mixture, place on a greased baking sheet
5. spray rolled chicken with small amounts of cooking spray
   
6. Bake for 12-15 minutes, until chicken is fully cooked and no longer pink inside
7. Cool nuggets on paper towel and enjoy!
   

White Wine Clam Fettuccini

Hi all,

A family friend of mine owns a very popular Italian restaurant in Calgary and he used to make this dish all the time for me. It was one of the first dishes that I have ever tried to make, and it is still one of my "go to dishes" when VERY important guests arrive for a visit.

Last week, Derek's dad came for a lovely visit, and this was the dish that I whipped up for dinner.

awful picture....this was the day after I made it

What you will need:

4 servings of Fettuccini
plenty of water
1.5 tsp salt
1 tbsp olive oil

3 bacon Slices, diced
1/2 medium onion, diced
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 can of whole baby clams, with juice (142g)
1/2 cup Dry white wine, or alcohol free white wine
1/2 tsp fresh ground pepper
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
1 tbsp chopped fresh basil
Grated Parmesan cheese

1. Bring a large pot of water to boil, add salt and pasta. Once Pasta is cooked, drain and toss pasta with olive oil
2. Meanwhile, cook bacon in a large frying pan on medium heat until crisp.
3. Add gaelic and onions. Cook until onions appear translucent and soft, about 2 minutes.
4. Add in the can of clams, white wine and peper. Stir and bring the mixture to a boil on medium heat.
   
5. Add in 2 tsp of the chopped parsley, Cook for another 2 minutes for the flavors to blend, then remove from heat.
   
6. Add in pasta and toss.
7. Sprinkle with the rest of the parsley, basil and Parmesan cheese.
8. Serve with some dark greens or Greek salad. Delicious!