Coconut and Chicken Soup

I was very surprised by this soup. I love the way the flavours balance one another, and it's suprisingly hearty. I'm not one for "soup for dinner". It always leaves me wanting more.

The recipe I based this off of comes from a 2 year old issue of Chatelaine magazine, and it was labelled "Hot and Sour Chicken Soup". I didn't get the "hot and sour" vibe...but they did give a nod to the Thai flavours.

This could easily be made vegetarian by swapping the chicken stock for veggie, and the fish sauce for a titch of salt. The chicken could easily (and tastily) be replaced with firm tofu!

Sambal Oelek is a chili sauce that you may find at your grocery store, or in your local Asian or Dutch market. We love it and use it quite often. If it's not available to you, use any hot chili sauce you have on hand. In a pinch, you could use a dash or two of tabasco.

Coconut and Chicken Soup



4 cups chicken stock
1 can coconut milk (not the light stuff)
Handful of button or crimini mushrooms, sliced
Two handfuls of shiitake mushrooms, sliced
Small can bamboo shoots, drained
1 tablespoon fish sauce (or less, to your taste)
1 tablespoon Sambal Oelek (more or less, to your taste)
2 limes
2 skinless, boneless chicken breasts
Fresh cilantro, chopped

Pour broth and coconut milk into a soup pot and stir to blend. Add mushrooms, bamboo shoots (mine came in strips and I cut them into matchstick sized pieces to add interest and make them easier to eat), fish sauce, and the sambal. Add zest and juice of both limes. Bring to a boil.

While waiting for the soup to heat, cut chicken into bite sized strips. Once soup is boiling, add chicken. Give it a stir and reduce heat to simmer. Cook about 10 minutes, until chicken is fully cooked. Taste and adjust salt and chili sauce balance if necessary.

Serve with a sprinkle of cilantro.


This soup was a hit with all three of us, and Quinn loved the spicy broth. He is still not really a fan of the mushrooms but neither was I when I was younger. He ate the chicken and drank the broth.

"Smells Like Comfort Food"

That's what Don said when he walked in the door.

Meatloaf



This is not the sexiest food photo ever, but man, does it taste good!

You can make the meat part however you like. Some like combinations of meat. I prefer lean ground beef. Seasoning can vary...you can use onion soup mix, or your own combination of spices and veggies.

This meatloaf had some Montreal steak spice, soya sauce, worcestershire sauce and chopped onion. I also usually put milk moistened bread crumbs in the mix because Don likes a tender, crumbly meat loaf. If you like yours a little more solid, add an egg. It's important to note that you shouldn't overwork your meat because it might make it tough. I usually mix all my stuff in the bottom of the bowl first, then squish the meat in until everything is just mixed.

I have started making, essentially, a giant burger on a sheet pan so that there's more surface area to caramelize, rather than a loaf pan...though the loaf pan makes for a nicer looking slice on the plate.

The "money" of my meatloaf is the topping. It's a combination of ketchup, brown sugar and dry mustard. I mix it up, adjusting until I am happy with the flavours, and smear it on before cooking.

How do you do your meatloaf?

Potato and Cheddar Soup



This is another one of those "throw what you have in a pot" type recipes, but I'll do my best to approximate what I use.

Chop an onion and a couple of cloves of garlic and sweat in a soup pot. Meanwhile, peel and chop 5 potatoes. Toss them into the pot to warm a bit, then add 2 cups stock. Add some thyme if you have it, and let simmer (covered) for about 20 minutes, or until the potatoes are very soft. This will be dependent upon how small and evenly you cut the potatoes in the first place.

Add 2 cups milk, and bring up to simmer (do not boil!). Continue to simmer about 10 minutes, remove from heat, and hit with an immersion blender (also called a stick blender...if you don't have one, whir it up in the blender or food processor and then put it back in the pot). Pureeing the potatoes is what is going to thicken this soup, but some people like some chunky texture. You control the degree of smoothness!

Add about a cup of shredded sharp cheddar (or whatever blend of cheese you have). Honestly, it's rarely only a cup that goes into the soup. I start with about that, and taste, adding more as I go until it tastes the way I like it. Season with salt and pepper and serve immediately.

This time, we had some proscuitto in the fridge, so I chopped it and fried it until crisp. This plus some raw chopped green onion served as our topping, but you could add anything you like on a loaded baked potato...even more cheese (I love cheese!)

Mexican Pizza & Cold Avocado and Leek Soup

The pizza is something I've made for a while, but the soup was adapted from Fast, Healthy Food from Readers Digest. I'll admit that I've never had cold soup. Really. I'm not kidding. The thought of a cold avocado soup made me a little twitchy, but I do love avocado, and adore the creaminess of it...and I had a few leeks in the fridge that needed to be used up, so I gave it a go.

It was a win!

I would recommend starting the leek part of the soup a few hours earlier, to allow it to cool.

Cold Avocado and Leek Soup



1 tablespoon olive oil
1 leek, whites thinly sliced
1 garlic clove, minced (I grate mine right into the pot)
3 cups vegetable stock
1 ripe avocado
1 small container plain yogurt (like, the single sized serving)
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
Salt and pepper

In a saucepan, heat oil and soften sliced and cleaned leeks (remember, slicing the leeks and floating them in a bowl of cold water allows the dirt and grit to fall to the bottom and the clean leeks remain at the top) for a few minutes. Pour in veggie stock, bring to a boil, and reduce to a simmer for 10 minutes or until leeks are very soft.

Put aside to cool.

Once cooled, pop leeks and broth in a blender and puree.

You don't want to open the avocado too soon because it will turn brown and the flavour will lessen. I'd serve this soup within an hour of mixing it up.

Cut avocado and remove pit, and scoop flesh into blender. Add yogurt, lime juice, and cilantro and whirr it up until smooth. Pop back into fridge to cool completely.

Serve with a little fresh cilantro on top.

The cookbook mentions that you can also serve this soup hot, but would replace the yogurt with sour cream.

Mexican Pizza



1 pizza crust (I use a PC Thin pizza crust, but you can make your own...just bake it off first)
1 cup refried beans (canned or homemade, or you can use black bean dip - see below)
Shredded cheddar
Any toppings you wish to add (or not)
Chopped fresh cilantro

Preheat your oven to 400 or so, pop in pizza stone (or you can use the underside of a cookie sheet, or other pizza pan...whatever you have). Remove stone or pan from oven, oil as necessary, and place pizza crust.

Smother beans on top - sometimes I'll use canned refried beans and add half a packet of low sodium taco seasoning. This time I used the canned beans and added some chipotle salsa I had in the fridge for seasoning. Sometimes I use a bean dip (recipe below) instead of the refried beans.

Top with shredded cheddar and anything else you'd like to add (that you want to heat up) and pop into the oven until pizza is hot and cheese is melted.

Pull out of the oven, and top with chopped cilantro and anything else you might want to put on there...I like raw green onions and I had some kicking around, so I put them on at this point.

Black Bean Dip (alternative to refried beans)

1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 onion, diced
1 clove garlic, grated in
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
2 tablespoons lime juice
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tablespoon (or so) fresh cilantro, to taste

Heat oil in saucepan and soften onions and garlic. Place in food processor and add rest of ingredients (aside from salt and pepper). Process until smooth, taste, and season with salt and pepper as needed. Sometimes I like to add a couple dashes of hot sauce.

Tuna Noodle Casserole

I don't know anyone whose Mom or Grandma didn't make tuna noodle casserole. It's the ultimate in "dollar stretching meals"...I am pretty sure that this dish, creamed peas on toast, bucketloads of spaghetti, chili, stew, hamburger hash (which we're making tonight) and "garbage soup", completely made up my childhood dinner menu...

..and I swore I would never eat this stuff once I left home, nor would I ever use frozen peas in anything ever again. Aside from the creamed peas on toast, I've changed my mind.

This is a super versatile meal that can include most anything you have on hand, and is quite satisfying.



Tuna Noodle Casserole

1/3 bag eggless whole wheat egg noodles
1 can cream of whatever soup (I think this one is cream of chicken, but cream of mushroom is really good too)
1 can tuna (chunk light packed in water this time...sometimes I'll add 2 cans)
1 yellow pepper, diced
Handful frozen peas
Salt and pepper

Cook noodles according to package directions.

In large microwaveable bowl, mix soup (undiluted), peas and tuna. Pop in microwave until peas are defrosted and mixture is hot. Taste and season accordingly.

Once noodles are done to the desired texture, drain well and mix into soup mixture, adding yellow peppers.

I add the yellow peppers last because I like them crispy in this dish. Do what you want.

You can also (more traditionally), throw the whole mess into a casserole, top with breadcrumbs and cheese or whatever and put it in the oven...but it's summer, and the thought of putting the oven on for 30 minutes is not a welcome one. This is one of those times where I like using the microwave.

If you DO throw the lot in the oven, make sure the noodles are just underdone, so that they finish cooking in the casserole rather than overcooking.

What do you like in your tuna noodle casserole?

Cream of Mushroom Soup and Grilled Cheese

Based on Chef Michael Smith's Cream of Mushroom Soup recipe.

1 stick butter
2 pounds mushrooms, cleaned and sliced (I like crimini mushrooms)
2 onions, peeled and chopped
2 cups(ish) red wine
4 cups stock or broth (chicken or vegetable)
1 cup heavy cream
Couple sprigs of fresh thyme
2 tblsp corn starch mixed in 1/4 cup water
Salt and pepper

Melt butter in large saucepot (or soup pot). Add mushrooms and onions and saute until softened and lightly browned. It might take a bit as mushrooms release a lot of water, but once that evaporates, they will brown and you'll be in business!

Season with salt and pepper. Add red wine, scraping the bottom of the pan to deglaze, and simmer until the wine reduces to about half. Add broth and cream, and bring back to a summer. Toss in thyme and simmer a few more minutes.

Add cornstarch and water mixture slowly and stir until the soup thickens to your liking. Taste and season as necessary.

When I plate (bowl?) my soup, I like to throw some chives on top and drizzle a bit of truffle oil or sweet chili oil.


To make the cheese sandwich, I just used some panini rolls I got at the grocery store. I heated up our panini grill, lightly buttered the outside of the bun, slapped some whole grain mustard on the inside of the bun, and laid on some old cheddar (or American cheese slices because they melt awesomely) on the mustard...put the "lid" on the sandwich, and put it in the panini grill for a few minutes until the crust is crispy and golden.