Grilled Rabbit

I joined my other half on a hunt one morning. He caught a rabbit, which we ate for supper. While he cleaned it, I made some croutons out of some stale bread and made some home made rolls. It was the first time eating rabbit for both of us, and I'd definitely try it again. For those of you wondering, rabbit is a red meat. I wouldn't BBQ it again - the legs were too tough. We took the leftovers and made pulled teriyaki rabbit the next day, which was much better!

White Chocolate Raspberry Cake

In August, we celebrated my husband's, brother's and mother's birthdays. A white chocolate raspberry cake had been requested from a local bakery, but I didn't realize they needed over a week's notice to make it. Instead, I found a recipe for white chocolate cake and made it myself. It was sandwich layer included the icing as well as some raspberry sauce which was also served with the finished cake. I topped it with raspberries and melted dark chocolate that I used to write out "Happy Birthday" and create scroll work designs.

This cake was time consuming, calorie-laden, and more expensive in terms of ingredients than I normally would go for, but it got a unanimous thumbs up!

Fish Fry!

No recipe, just instructions:

1. Catch some fish (or send husband to do so). Pike is pictured.
2. Fillet said fish
3. Rinse clean.
4. Chop into pieces, and deep fry (I dipped pieces into milk then Fish Crisp original batter to coat before frying).
5. Serve and enjoy - eat as soon as it cools enough to bite into for the crispiest serving!

Fresh Spring Rolls

I watched a demonstration in the store and was inspired to try to make these Vietnamese fresh veggie spring rolls. They weren't as good as his, but it was a fun experience!

Just another burger and a salad

Salad: baby romaine, cucumber, tomato, feta cheese, pecans, and avocado topped with a raspberry walnut vinaigrette.

Burger: BBQ sauce, onion, ketchup, tomato and avocado on a home made beef patty.

A Very Berry Tart

I had never made a tart before, and maybe never even eaten one, but I stumbled across this recipe from the blog Cooking with my Kid, and was inspired to make it for a book club brunch I was hosting.

It was quite easy. I used fresh raspberries and frozen blueberries, and have decided that frozen works perfectly - just use frozen (don't thaw the berries first). I don't keep self-rising flour on hand, but here's a simple recipe to make it.

As I said, I'd never had a tart before, so I'll let you know it tasted like a cross between a cookie and a cake in terms of texture and density. Not overly sweet, with nice tart berry bursts.

Avocado-Tomato Salad and a Burger

A simple salad of diced fresh avocado and tomato (from my garden) with fresh-squeeze lemon juice and a sprinkle of salt.

The burger is topped with BBQ sauce, onion, a cheese blend including asiago, and ketchup on a home made patty.

When I make hamburgers patties, I usually use the following ingredient (but I don't measure - sorry!):

• ground beef (lean)
• Worcestershire sauce
• onion powder or puréed onion
• garlic powder or crushed garlic
• an egg, to bind them

For every pound of beef, I make three burgers, on average.

Roasted Chicken

First crack at roasting a whole chicken, and I wanted crispy crackling skin. I followed this recipe for Perfect Roast Chicken, which was FANTASTIC. I used butter instead of margarine, and my only complaint is that it needed far less butter than it called for, so I will half the quantity next time. It also cooked faster than expected, so make sure to take periodic temperature readings as you baste it.

Janice's Indian-Inspired Soup

5 large potatoes
5 large carrots
6 small stalks of celery
1 medium-large onion
1 cloves of garlic


Chop it all up. 
Boil in about 8 cups of beef broth (I think I used just slightly less). 
When veggies are very soft, stop boiling, blend it all until reasonably smooth. 
Pour back into pot and mix in 2 teaspoons each of cumin and curry, 1 teaspoon of turmeric, and 1 teaspoon of thyme.

Great when you're craving a low-cal version of Indian cuisine.

Serves 6. Each serving:

Calories: 86
Potassium: 415
Fat: 0
Carbs: 14
Fibre:2
Protein: 4

Baked Kale Chips

Three simple ingredients: kale, oil, salt.

I had never tried kale, except maybe mixed into a salad at a bistro, but recently, my colleague brought in some highly addictive tortilla chips purchased at Costco that include kale in the mix of "healthy" ingredients. Since I found them quite tasty, I got up the nerve to try a "crunchy granola" recipe: baked kale chips.

The verdict? Surprisingly edible - that mystery flavour I enjoyed in the tortilla chips has been identified, and am willing to try again some time. Admittedly, my spouse wasn't pleased with the smell of freshly baked kale, and refused to try any.

Kibbee (a Lebanese dish)

From Wikipedia: Kibbeh or kibbe (also kubbeh, kebbah or kubbi) (Arabic: كبة‎) is an Arab dish made of bulghur, minced onions and ground red meat, usually beef, lamb, goat or camel. The best-known variety is a torpedo-shaped fried croquette stuffed with minced beef or lamb. Other types of kibbeh may be shaped into balls or patties, and baked or cooked in broth.

This particular recipe is a pan-fried version of burger-shaped patties that has passed down through the generations. Kibbee is also eaten raw, drizzled with oil (I wouldn't recommend that unless you hand grind your meat, as ground beef is notorious for food safety issues unless fully cooked), and can also be baked in a pan as a single piece and cut into pieces (but I find it less flavourful), or in a muffin tin at 350F for about 20 minutes. I have tried to be thorough in my instructions. If there are any questions, just ask!

Note: the real recipe involves purchasing steak, trimming all the fat, and grinding the meat by hand, but I cheat by using very lean, high quality ground beef.

Ingredients:
This recipe is based on the pounds of meat used. Quantities here are for 1 pound of meat, which should make about 7-8 pieces of kibbee, depending on the size.

• 1 lb extra lean ground beef (I use extra lean sirloin or extra lean from my local butcher - must be at least 90% lean)
• 1 c. dry bulgar
• 1 medium onion (puréed)
• 1-2/3 tsp. salt
• 3/4 tsp. pepper
• 3/4 tsp. cinnamon
• 3/4 tsp. allspice
• 3/4 tsp. cumin
• Arabic spice/7 spice (if this cannot be found, add extra 1/4 tsp allspice, and about 1/3-1/2 extra tsp of cumin/lb)

Instructions:

1. Measure out bulgar. Pour into a very large bowl, and add water until the bowl is full. Leave it to soak at least 30 minutes. Drain & rinse it well - pour it out trough a sieve, rice with water, and push down on the bulgar to squeeze out excess water.
2. Puree onions.
3. Add beef, bulgar, onions and spices together in a large bowl.
4. Mix by hand until evenly blended.
5. On the stove, place a large pan (cast-iron or non-stick with high sides work best). Add oil until the pan bottom is covered - if making more than one pound, use about 1/2cm/1/4" of oil in the bottom. You can always add more if required. Turn heat onto medium.
6. Form patties - make a think oval-shaped burger, and press an indent into the centre.
7. Put a small amount of butter (about the size of a pea) into the dent. Note: butter should be placed on a side plate and not cut directly from the block so you don't contaminate the rest.
8. Add more of the meat mixture to form a complete patty. Try to pack is so it's smooth - no cracks or the patties may break apart when turning over while cooking.
9. Place patties into hot oil.
10. You'll notice the sides start to change colour. Turn over patties when bottom is well-browned.
11. When both sides are well-browned, remove from pan and place on paper towel to absorb excess oil. Repeat until all patties are cooked.
12. Eat - plain, or in a piece of pita.

Kibbee freezes well, and can be eaten hot or cold.


Photo tutorial (click to enlarge):

Nutrition Information (based on 8 pieces per pound, pan- fried):
Calories: 221
Potassium: 0
Fat: 10
Carbs: 10
Fibre: 2
Protein: 15

Enjoy!

Banana Bread

Based on THIS recipe, but with an adjustment recommended by one of the reviewer - replacing some of the white sugar with brown sugar.

Did you know adding peanut butter makes it even more delicious?!

"Greek Goddess" Burger

A knockoff of my favourite burger from The Works.

Chicken breast topped with dived tomatoes, feta cheese, garlic, and oregano.

Weight Watchers: 9 points plus values (plus 7 for the salad).

Buffalo Chicken Won Ton Bowls

Inspired by this recipe from Joyously Domestic. My won tons are filled with: shredded chicken, cottage cheese, diced tomatoes, and buffalo sauce.

After baking:
1 Weight Watchers Points Plus Values each.

After topping with cheese, ranch dressing, carrots and celery:
2 Weight Watchers Points Plus Values each.

Baked Sweet Potato

To accompany the fish and mushroom risotto I made for supper tonight, I decided to use up a sweet potato I had laying around. I just tossed it in at 350F until I remember it was still in there. The skin of the potato had come away from the flesh, so I peeled it off, made some gentle indents in the potato and sprinkled it with sea salt.

Sweet, salty, and oh-so-filling, this is something I will definitely make again!

Homemade Chicken Avocado Ranch Rolls

These are what I made with my improvised rolls! Approx. 10 points per, and worth every one!

"Improvised rolls"
+ chicken breast
+ cheddar cheese (broiled for melty goodness)
+ sliced tomato
+ sliced avocado
_____________
= YUM!

I'm sure crispy bacon and caramelized onions would punch the flavour up even more.

Improvised Rolls

All the recipes I find online are for larger batches of rolls. I wanted enough to make a sandwich for supper with leftovers for tomorrow's lunch, so I improvised and tried my hand at creating a simple recipe (below photos). Tune in tomorrow to find out what I used the rolls for!

Before/after/after cooking:

Ingredients:

• 1 tsp dry active yeast
• 3/4c warm water
• pinch of brown sugar (about 1/2 tsp)
• A couple of dashes (about 1/4tsp) table salt
• 1c + 1/2c flour
• herbs/cheese to garnish (optional)

Instructions:

1. Stir these first three ingredients together in a medium-sized bowl and let sit about 10 minutes.
2. Add salt to mixture and stir.
3. Add 1 cup flour to the mixture and stir with a fork. Add more flour until it forms a ball, and sticky sides are coated with flour. Let rise about an hour in a room temp (or warm) spot.
4. Punch dough down. Add more flour so you don't stick to it.
5. Divide dough (I took 5 pieces), and knead each into a roll.
6. Place rolls on baking sheet lined with parchment paper and cover with damp tea towel for 20 minutes.
7. Uncover, sprinkle rolls with a couple drops of water and sprinkle any toppings on. I used oregano and parmesan cheese.
8. gently squish rolls flat (ish).
9. Bake at 350F until bottoms are browned and top is stiff when knocked on (about 12-16 minutes).

Nutrition info per roll (from batch of 5):
Calories: 111
Fat: 0
Carbs: 24
Fibre: 0
Protein: 4

Pork Tenderloin in a Slow Cooker? Never Again!

I decided to make a recipe I found for "Amazing Pork Tenderloin in the Slow Cooker". I followed all the directions provided to a T, but realized too late you shouldn't put a tenderloin in a slow cooker! While the taste was nice, the tenderloin cut was wasted, and cooked to falling apart, rather than sliceable texture. I think it would be excellent and hold shape far better with a loin. May try again.

NOTE: This should be made with PORK LOIN, NOT PORK TENDERLOIN!

Homemade Pop-Tarts

On Pie Day/Pi Day, I was looking for an option for single-serve pies to make for dessert, after a quick Google search, I found Brown Eyed Baker's recipe for homemade Pop-Tarts.

I made some with brown sugar & cinnamon filling (pictured), others with blueberry filling, and improvised an apple crumble with some of the scraps and other ingredients.

While definitely NOT low-calorie, these were fun to make, but I don't think I'd do this specific recipe again.

The Spaghetti Squash Experiment

I've made spaghetti squash in the past, but am always willing to try to get it to taste more like pasta. I didn't succeed this time, but gave it a valiant attempt with the topping. While the squash was in the microwave, I sautéed diced onion, minced garlic and diced tomato. To that, I added 1/2c pasta sauce,  1/4c 2% cottage cheese, and a few small home made meatballs (just extra lean ground beef with egg to bind it that I had premade, cooked, and frozen). Top it with a sprinkle of parmesan, and voilà! Supper!

Knockoff of Wendy's Baja Salad

I really quite enjoy Wendy's Baja salad. Lettuce, fresh salsa, guacamole, grated cheddar cheese smothered in piping hot chili. I was house-bound one day, and had some leftover chili on hand, so tried my hand at this.

It was also the first time I made guacamole, but certainly not the last! The guacamole was a bit of a mash up of a few recipes I found online. I basically mixed together mashed avocado, garlic salt, lime juice, diced onion and diced tomato.

Beef Sirloin Tip Roast with Mushrooms

Check out the recipe here.

It's easy and delicious. I recommend serving it with a potato side dish. For the meal shown in these photos, I tried my hand at hasselback potatoes.

Lemon Meringues

I've never made a meringue before. I've only eaten one or two. But did that stop me from trying a recipe that looked so easy and so low calorie? No, it did not! I saw the recipe on Jen's Favorite Cookies. The only thing I found to be a little confusing was that she didn't say how big you should make them - I'd compare it to a Hershey's Kiss or chocolate rosette. I also found mine started to lose the rosette look after a while... further investigation found the culprit: a lemon zest clog.

Admittedly, these did not photograph well... but hers looked great!

WARNING: the "dough" for these is incredibly sticky.

Nutrition information: serving of 6 pieces (from a batch of 300)
Calories: 14

Potassium: 5
Fat: 0
Carbohydrates: 3
Fibre: 0
Protein: 0
Weight Watchers Points Plus: 0

My rating: tasty and lemony, it was hard to stop after just a couple. I would only repeat this recipe if I was sharing it out with some friends. I ended up throwing quite a few away to prevent me from eating them.

Pepper Stuffed with Chili and Rice and Everything was Nice!

Mixed a 6-point serving of chilli with 1/2c. basmati rice (3 points) and spooned it into three pepper halves. Topped each with a sprinkle of parmesan cheese, and baked until glorious.