Easy Beef & Pork Meatloaf

In North America, meat loaf is often considered a comfort food- something that takes adults back to our childhoods and something most kids will eat without a fuss.

My own children will experience meatloaf for the first time tomorrow! I made it tonight because my husband has been craving it. My recipe went by memory from the dish my Mom made me as kid. It turned out wonderfully! It filled the apartment with a great aroma - onions, garlic, cumin wafted through each room...mmm. I had a little taste of it and it is delcious! I hope the kids like it tomorrow! And my husband is looking forward to it for lunch - although he hasn't decided if he wants it in the form of a sandwich or simply as is.

Ingredients
1 lb extra lean ground beef
1/2 lb lean ground pork
2 shallots, finely chopped
1/2 cup corn niblets
1/2 panko bread crumbs
1/4 cup ketchup
1/4 BBQ sauce - something smoky
1 egg, slightly beaten
2 tsp Old Bay seasoning or other seasoned salt
1 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp thyme
2 tsp smoked paprika
1 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp pepper
4 cloves garlic, chopped

Method
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Put everything in large bowl. With gloved (to keep your hands semi clean) hands, mix everything together with hands. Mix really well. Place in 9 x 5 loaf pan. Make sure there is at least an inch from top of meat to top of pan as the fat produced could easily splatter - be very careful!. If desired, place another squirt of ketchup or BBQ on top of loaf. Bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes or longer - until meat thermometer registers 170 degrees. Let sit 15 minutes before serving. Enjoy!

Easy Homemade Salsa

I had some roma tomatoes that had to be used quickly or they would spoil. I hate wasting food so when I suggested nachos for dinner and everyone agreed I was a happy girl. I quickly chopped up the tomatoes and a few other ingredients to make this tasty salsa.

Ingredients
4 Roma tomatoes, chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
1/2 chopped jalapenos, including sseds
1/2 red onion, fine chopped
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 lime, juiced
6-10 shakes of chipotle hot sauce
handful freah cilantro, chopped
Chili powder, salt, and pepper, to taste


Method
In a bowl, combine all ingredients. Place in refrigerator for up to 12 hours so flavors can come together. Also, good as soon as it is mixed!

Makes approximately 2 cups.


Serve with tortilla chips.


Note:
This is a very basic salsa recipe. It serves as a good platform to advanced your salsa making abilities. For instance, you could roast the garlic and jalapenos for greater depth of flavour. Add black beans or corn or red pepers...or anything else you think would taste great. Ole!

Fruity Sauteed Chicken

From whistler and chicken 2

3-year old:"Mom, I don't like this. What is it?"
Mom: "Chicken. You love chicken"
3-year old: "Then this isn't chicken, Mom."

Hmmm, hard to argue with logic like that. What my 3-year old doesn't like is any hard outer pieces on chicken - like BBQ charbroiled bits or pan fried hard outer parts. Normally, I just try to cut the outer part or cook it with skin on and then take it off when cooked. Tonight, I threw caution to the wind and tried something new. 

We went to Whistler for the Easter weekend and by the time we arrived back home there was a lot of fruit on the counter that needed to be used quickly or thrown away due to over ripeness. I suppose I could have made fruit salad but taking the easy route has never been my style!

Instead, I decided on a simple chicken dish that the kids would eat without worry of "hard bits". I diced up two apples, 1 pear and a handful of grapes. I threw these in a pan with six boneless skinless chicken thighs and a 1/2 cup of OJ .Voila 20 minutes later dinner was complete. I added some steamed rice and cauliflower and called it a meal.

The kids thought it was funny to have fruit on their chicken but then dug right in!

Quick, easy and kid approved!

Ingredients
2 apples, diced
1 pear, diced
handful of seedless grapes, quartered
1/2 cup orange juice
6 boneless, skinless chicken thighs
salt
pepper


Method
1. Season chicken with salt and pepper.
2. If desired, lightly oil non-stick pan.
3. Over medium high heat brown chicken on both sides.
4. Add juice and fruit to pan.
5. Reduced heat to medium, cover and cook for approximately 15 minutes.
6. Remove cover and cook another 5 minutes to thicken sauce and cook chicken through. (make sure there is no pink and internal chicken thigh temperature is 170 degrees)

Serve with rice and favorite veggies.
Enjoy!

Roasted Cauliflower

For the last couple of months, one of the things on my recipe "to do" list has been roasted cauliflower. The thought of roasting a vegetable heretofore known as either a mere raw must have on a veggie plate or something steamed sounds intriguing to me.  Could it really be made to taste as anything but a healthy, but rather less than sexy dish?? Today, was the day to find out. I mixed a bunch of my favorite spices together, added some oil and fresh garlic. Poured it over the chopped cauliflower, added some breadcrumbs and butter and called it a day. Actually, I called it delcious - deliciously sexy! I will defintely whip this up the next time we have company over. I'm sure it will get positive reviews!


Ingredients
1 head cauliflower
2 tbsp vegetable oil
1 tsp medium curry powder
1 tsp smoked paprika
1 tsp freshly grated ginger
1 tsp Old Bay or other seasoned salt
4 cloves garlic
1/4 c panko or regular bread crumbs
1 tbsp butter

Method:1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
2. Chop up head of cauliflower into large bite size pieces.
3. Place in medium size roasting pan or oven proof dish.
4. In a small bowl add all spices, garlic, ginger and oil. Mix well.
5. Sprinkle over cauliflower.
6. Sprinkle breadcrumbs over cauliflower.
7. Dot with butter.
8. If desired sprinkle with a dash more salt.
9. Place in oven and roast for approximately 25 minutes.


Serve. Enjoy!

Pie Pops are fanstaSTICK!

Above: The perfect 3-inch pie pop. From pops big

From pie pops

Gotta love a dessert that takes about 30 minutes from start to finish and has an off-the-chart cute factor!

Let’s face it –a stick adds FUN and POP to the mundane whether it’s frozen water (popsicles), sugar (lollipop), or processed meat (corndog – hmmm perhaps it should be cornpop).

When I saw Bakerella’s and Luxirare great pie pops I had to try it myself. I took Bakerella’s advice and went the easy route for my first foray into the world of stick pies. And although I usually prefer to make things from scratch, I must be honest and say that I think they tasted great with the pre-made help.

And talk about simple… cut out round dough pieces, place a stick on it, add some filling, complete with another layer of crust and egg wash. “Pop” in the oven for 15 minutes and they are ready!

I did a little experimenting – I added a little extra strip of crust over the stick to help keep the stick stuck and I tried one batch in mini muffin tins to maximize the filling. The first batch, I made a bit smaller than Bakerella's as I managed to get 15 pie pops out of one crust. But to be honest the pie to crust ratio was wrong - unless you really love crust! My kids, however, loved them. My husband much preferred the muffin tin version which was the perfect three bite pie. When I made the mini muffin tin versions I put the stick across so it touched both ends, in the hopes of keeping the stick in place. It seemed to work! They also took about 20 minutes to bake.

Try these – for co-workers, kid parties or even a rainy day… these pie pops are guaranteed to bring smile to everyone with whom you share them. Enjoy!

Update: I tried these with a three inch circle cutter and it was the perfect combo of filling and crust! I also added a sprinkle of coloured sugar to them. This gave the pie pops a great "crunch".
Notes:

• use paper lollipop sticks not plastic
• I baked the pie pops at 350 degrees
• any pie filling will do
• I used "cookie" 6 inch sticks by Wilton but if you are only making the smaller versions the smaller Wilton lollipop sticks will be fine 

From pie pops

From pie pops

From pie pops

From pie pops

From pie pops

From pie pops

From pie pops

From pie pops

From pops big

One and half inch and mini muffin tin pie pops. From pie pops

Buttercream Sandwiched Sugar Cookies

From sandwich cookies

Aren't these cookies cute - I can see them at a little girl's princess party, a baby shower or even on dessert plate after a casual or fancy dinner!

The recipe is my grandmother's sugar cookie recipe that I originally posted here.

The buttercream is my favorite Neoclassical Buttercream by Rose Levy Beranbaum - those who read this blog regularly know she is my baking idol). I colored the icing pink and sandwiched it between two rectangular shaped cookies. But your favorite frosting - white, chocolate, or mmm even lemon would be spectacular. My kids and I are planning another round of sugar cookies this week - in a Spring theme. I'll post when ready!

Note: if you use my sugar cookie recipe and are using smaller cookie cutters like these, 8 minutes in the oven seems about right.

From sandwich cookies

Chipotle BBQ Sauce

From bbq pork

I came across the original version of this sauce while searching for something to go with a pulled pork I was making. I added chipotle hot sauce, smoked paprika and Old Bay seasoning to bring out a great heat that lingers but is not overpowering. It's delicious.

Adapted from: Memphis Blues Barbecue House: Bringin’ Southern BBQ Home

By George Siu and Park Heffelfinger
 
Makes about 4 cups

Ingredients:
8 Tbsp tomato paste
4 Tbsp brown sugar
4 Tbsp molasses
4 Tbsp white vinegar
4 Tbsp soy sauce
4 Tbsp honey
1 Tbsp ketchup
4 tsp mustard
4 tsp Worcestershire sauce
4 tsp garlic powder
4 tsp  onion powder
2 tsp smoked paprika
2 tsp or more chipotle hot sauce
4 tsp Old Bay or other seasoned salt
2 cups water

Method:
Combine all the ingredients in a saucepan. Whisk thoroughly. Simmer over low heat, whisking frequently for  at least 1 hour - I usually do it for 90 minutes or longer. Store in airtight container for up to two weeks in the refrigerator.

This is great on pulled pork or with homemade chicken wings or chickstrips.