Gastronomy and Life's Other Pleasures

Week night dinner: slow cooker pulled pork sandwiches

This pulled pork kind of came about as a last minute idea; I had a pork loin that had been hanging around the freezer for a while (and taking up precious space) so I decided to finally do something with it!

I wanted to try a different slow cooker pulled pork recipe than what I had used last time. It didn’t turn out nearly as tender as the first time I made pulled pork. I’m not sure if it was the pork loin (vs the pork shoulder) or if I didn’t use enough liquid or what. I also found it quite acidic and not as sweet as I prefer.  It wasn’t perfect for me but it also definitely wasn’t inedible. The fiancé actually quite liked it!  

To add some sweetness, I shredded up a Gala apple to make a quick slaw to top the sandwich, which was great.  I’ll will definitely make slow cooker pulled pork again, but will take into considerations the lessons I learned when making this one.  

Easy Saturday morning frittata

I felt like something a little more hearty for breakfast one recent Saturday, so I decided to put together a little oven-baked frittata.

It came out fantastic! Super flavourful and fresh, and packed with healthy ingredients.  I will be making this more often now that I know how simple yet delicious it is.

Oven baked frittata (adapted from Chatelaine)

Ingredients

- 6 eggs

- 1 green onion, finely chopped

- 8 slices of bacon, cooked, drained, cooled, patted dry to get rid of excess grease and chopped into small pieces

- 1/2 cup shredded old cheddar cheese

- 1/2 red bell pepper, finely chopped

- a couple of small button mushrooms, finely chopped

- a handful of baby spinach and kale, chopped

- salt and pepper to taste

- 1 teaspoon Italian herbs

- sprinkle of smoked paprika

Directions

- Preheat oven to 350°.  Lightly grease a 9-inch pie place (using whatever you prefer - I used olive oil cooking spray).

- Crack eggs into a bowl and whisk briskly until combined.  Add salt, pepper, herbs and paprika (and any other seasonings you’d like!) and mix.  Add all of the veggies, bacon and cheese, and stir gently to combine.

- Pour into the greased pie plate and push the mixture around a little bit to make sure that all of the ingredients are fairly evenly distributed.

- Cook for approximately 25 minutes, or until the centre is just set.  Remove from oven and let sit for a minute or two.  Slice and serve with toast and fresh fruit on the side.

Weeknight #dinner: (store bought) spinach and ricotta manicotti with my simple tomato sauce recipe. #Art-is-in bread to share!

This photo encompasses everything I love about the weekend:  relaxed, quiet mornings, breakfast sandwiches, hot coffee and a huge pile of freshly sliced and diced fruit. 

While I long for Panera Bread’s delicious bagels, I’ll have to settle for Tim Hortons, which recently came out with new “specialty bagels,” including sundried tomato asiago parmesan, jalapeno asiago mozzarella, maple cinnamon french toast, and mixed berry.  Though not nearly as tasty as Panera’s, Tim’s new bagels aren’t actually too horrible.  It’s a start, anyway, down the road to creative and yummy flavoured bagels! 

This breakfast sandwich is made with baby spinach, turkey bacon, an egg, a slice of cheddar and a sundried tomato asiago parmesan bagel.  Ahhhh how I long for it to be Saturday morning………

Sunday night salad supper!

Occasionally, the boyfriend will pipe up to say that apparently we’ve been eating too much meat, and he needs to go meatless for a night or two.  Now, don’t get me wrong, the boyfriend loves meat, and to be truthful, we don’t eat that much meat (read: he can be a bit crazy), but I agree it’s nice to have a light, meat-free* supper once in a while.

Which brings me to salad nights.  Although we have very different tastes when it comes to food, we always eat together, even though it might not be the exact same meal.  The boyfriend will only eat caesar salad; my stomach has trouble handling caesar salad.  Hence, the salad you see here - my spinach salad - a big mix of veggies, fresh baby spinach, topped with stir-fried (frozen) shrimp, and served with a side of M&M Meat Shops chicken dumplings.  A hearty, healthy meal, meat free (*but not seafood free, haha) and delicious!

A little cooking club for two

One of my bffs and I decided to start a little cooking club for just the two of us.  The purpose of our little club is to a) hang out, of course and b) try new recipes! 

We had our first ‘meeting’ the other night, and our inaugural recipe was quinoa cakes with poached egg from Annie’s Eats (click on the photo for a link to the website and recipe).

I’ve never attempted to make any sort of savoury cake, so this was a new challenge for me.  The cakes didn’t come together as beautifully as I had hoped, but I think with more practice, they will turn out successfully. We served our supper with a spinach salad on the side, with my homemade maple balsamic dressing.

All in all, we enjoyed a lovely evening of cooking, and the meal turned out deliciously, although I’d add a little something more next time to the cakes…perhaps some fresh chopped cilantro?  Hmmm…we’ll see.  I also froze the leftover cakes, so I’m curious to see what they’re like after having been frozen.

I was very lucky to partake in this phenomenal brunch during a weekend away at a friend’s house.  This brunch bake took a lot of effort, a lot of cooking time, and a lot of careful watching to ensure that it solidified. 

But the result was both breathtaking and delicious!  A rich mix of egg, spinach, vegetables, ham and puff pastry, this breakfast pie was so tasty and filling, and served with a lovely fresh slice of cantaloupe.  Definitely among the brunches that I will never forget.  Unfortunately, I don’t have the recipe.

Here’s the whole pie before it was cut.  Don’t forget, this thing is thick!!

Dinner at poco pazzo:  rosemary bread served with balsamic vinegar and olive oil for dipping, and a baby spinach salad with thinly sliced fennel, drizzled with freshly squeezed orange and lemon juices, topped with sliced pear, gorgonzola and toasted walnuts.

Last week was my boss’ final at work before her retirement.  On Friday, we took her out for lunch to celebrate.  We chose Petit Bill’s Bistro at which to dine, and we were not disappointed. 

I had been to Petit Bill’s Bistro once before for dinner, and had thoroughly enjoyed the lobster mac and cheese. 

For lunch, I selected the sea scallops, which were pan-seared with Chelsea, Quebec maple syrup and double-smoked bacon, and served with a spinach salad.  All I can say is, oh my gosh, I think these are probably the best scallops I’ve ever eaten.  I think the fact that I’d never had scallops with a sweet glaze really had a huge impact.  The caramelization was incredible - bacon and maple are already a happy couple, and the scallops fit in perfectly.  The salad was lightly dressed and a fresh side to this rich dish.

Another excellent lunch in Westboro Village.

Making my lunch!  Yum.

Another sampling of dinner options at Play.  A wilted/warm spinach salad, steak frites and a pasta.

Always a fab evening at Play, especially since you can bring your own wine!  We shared a bottle of Trius Red, one of my favourite Ontario red blends.  Available in the Vintages section of the LCBO for $21.95.