April 23, 2017
I recently bought “Persiana: Recipes from the middle east and beyond“, a book by Sabrina Ghayour, and so far I love what I tried. Persian cuisine is known for its rice dishes and one of the recipes that intrigued me was her Persian Bejeweled Rice (Morassa Polow), cooked differently than what I have seen before. Ghaour boils the rice in plenty of water for 8 minutes, then drains and rinses it. She then returns it... View Article
November 23, 2016
Rice pilaf is an easy and flavourful dish to make for a side course or, for us, a main. Classic pilaf is made by sauteeing the aromatics (onion, garlic and vegetables) in butter or oil, adding the spices then adding the rice and toasting it in the skillet until it’s coated with the oil before adding the cooking liquid and finishing the cooking. I have a shortcut for you to make with an already cooked... View Article
November 1, 2016
I wonder who was the cook who first came up with the idea of cauliflower “rice”. Since they “invented” it, the concept has spread like wildfire in kitchens around the world and for good reasons. It’s a simple and delicious way to serve cauliflower and can easily replace rice if you are a no-carb person, which, let me clarify, I AM NOT. I love carbs. I prefer to chop the cauli in a food processor... View Article
August 10, 2016
Corn in Kelowna is wonderful. We get it directly from the growers, freshly picked that morning and still cool from early morning breeze. The season for corn is fairly short so we try to take advantage of it and include corn in much of our summer cooking. Corn should be cooked soon after you buy it as it tends to convert its sugars into starch and loses the crisp texture and sweet flavour quickly. I... View Article
April 15, 2016
I have been making an effort to use up all of the grains and legumes in my pantry. I am a bit of a shopping addict when it comes to foods, wanting to buy everything in sight. Just think of what I could do with this or that. So inevitably I have jars filled or half filled with barley, wheat berries, various rice grains, lentils and more. I haven’t cooked with barley in a while... View Article
May 30, 2015
Two pancake recipes in one week seems like a lot but that’s how sometime things go. I cooked red quinoa the other day and wanted to try it in a couple of different dishes. Pairing it with vegetgables is the predictable choice (and I did make red quinoa with shaved carrots and asparagus) but I thought I’d try it with pancakes and loved the results. The pancakes had nutty flavour with good texture and the... View Article
April 26, 2015
Grains and legumes form a large part of our every day food at home. They show up at breakfast, in soups, salads, main course and even desserts. This easy version of rice and beans is good with the addition of caramelized onion. The onion, slowly caramelize until it is golden and crisp in spots, is reminiscent of the classic middle east dish of rice and lentils called mujadara. I fold the caramelized onion into the... View Article
January 13, 2015
I am learning a little about Mexican cooking while we are vacationing here. The more I learn, the more there is to learn. I have been experimenting with different rice dishes lately and this red rice turned out to be one of my favourites. I used achiote paste that I heard about at a cooking class with Claudia of Can Cook in Cancun and after discussion (mostly with hand gestures) with staff at our place... View Article
October 18, 2014
I am not very good at using the freezer but my fridge always has some cooked items ready to be incorporated into my daily adventure in the kitchen. Any time you’d look in my fridge you are likely to find a container with cooked grain or legumes, homemade dressings and sauces in little jars, store bought sauces that I like, creme fraiche etc. These items make it easy to quickly assemble a lunch or dinner... View Article
April 5, 2014
Do you cook mostly with recipes? I tend to make things up as I go and often improvise with whatever I have on hand that day. I usually start with one ingredient and then build the dish around it. I have had quinoa on my mind for a few days now and finally it got its turn in the kitchen. Quinoa cooks quickly and easily into a nice and fluffy pile of little grains that... View Article
November 6, 2013
I hope you are cooking with squashes this fall. Don’t miss the season to use these beautiful and versatile fall vegetables when they are at their best. This season I have been cooking especially with Sweet Dumpling squash. Unlike other varieties, this one is easy to cut: its skin is not as hard as some of the other varieties and your knife will not be permanently jammed into it’s flesh. Sweet dumpling is a lovely... View Article
September 25, 2013
Couscous is a useful grain, lending itself as a base to many vegetables and legumes or good on its own with tomatoes, herbs and lemony-garlicy dressing. Couscous has mediterranean origin, made from semolina, a product of cracked durum wheat. The type available here is mostly the instant couscous, grains that have been previously steamed and dried. You add the couscous to boiling water to which a little oil and salt have been added, then remove... View Article
