Most of the time I just order pizza. I got it into my head that I wanted to do something new, something different but with components of things I had already done. I was also feeling tired, stressed and maybe a little more tired. D and I go out together sometimes. We try once a week but often it's more like every two (or three). Work doesn't always agree with our date night and kicks up a fuss. This was also a night when D and I were about to go out. Most of the time I just order pizza.
I soldiered on. Slapped the dough together and stuck it in the fridge. Got the filling stuff together. The kids were getting hungry but that's ok. I'm really tired. Kid #1 gives up trying to talk to me because I'm distracted, grumpy and probably a little incoherent. Kid #1 leaves, escapes to room and closes the door. She hadn't stopped texting through the entire 'conversation' so I'm sure she is fine.
Kid #2 asks what's we are having for dinner. Daddy and I are going out. Can I come? No. Kid #2 groans and then sighs deeply when I tell him about the exciting thing he is about to eat for dinner. I might not have been coherent but I think that I was. Kid #2 stomps upstairs, goes to room, reads on my kindle... my kindle.

I have way more filling for this than dough. What else could I possibly do with all of that filling. I'm putting it all in. I don't care. It will taste better. Everybody is gonna love this and it's gonna be amazing. Both kids need to clean the lunch containers out of the backpacks incidentally.
Determined. All the filling goes on top of the rolled out dough. All the pepperoni. All the cheese. All the sauce. I start rolling up the dough. This is dumb because the filling is everywhere. I really want to go out. My head hurts. I think that Kid #1 just yelled down to me but I'm not sure. Probably talking on the phone... wait, nobody does that anymore.
I start to slice the bulbous, red blob that is waiting to become my masterpiece. I'm elbow deep in more filling than I can manage. I bet you didn't know this - because I didn't - pepperoni doesn't slice well. There are big slices of pepperoni falling out of everything everywhere. I'm really frustrated now. Kid #2 is practicing piano which means he races through his two beginner pieces at break neck speed despite about a thousand mistakes. 3 minutes later he is done and I am hacking the pepperoni slice dough log, slapping the 'pinwheels' onto a cookie sheet and stuffing filling into every crevice I can. I need a shower.
They bake, I clean up.
They are done. This is not as exciting as it should be.


Kid #1 eats one and says it tastes good. She doesn't have another.
Kid #2 stares at plate and sighs. He eats two bites under duress but I'm pretty sure that as soon as we close the door he's got cheetos and rice crispies on standby.
Usually I just order pizza.
Make this at your peril.


Pizza Margarita's adapted from Here
makes 9 - 10 medium sized buns

Dough
2 cups all purpose flour
2 tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
Dash basil, oregano
1/3 cup parmesan cheese, finely grated
1/3 cup shortening or lard
2 tbsp olive oil
3/4 cup milk (approx)

Filling
1 1/2 cups (approx) pepperoni, thinly sliced
1/4 cup zucchini, thinly sliced (or something like mushrooms would work well too)
1 cup greens (spinach, kale, chard), thinly sliced
1 1/2 cups (approx) tomato/pizza sauce
1 1/2 tsp basil
1 1/2 tsp sugar
1 tsp worcestershire
1 1/2 tsp salt and a dash of pepper
1 1/2 cups mozzarella, grated
1/4 cup (approx) parmesan, finely grated

Dough:
Combine the flour, baking powder, salt, basil and oregano together. Mix well.
Add in the parmesan and mix
Add the shortening or lard and cut it into the flour until it forms a loose crumbly mess (pebble sized balls)
Add the olive oil and about half of the milk. Mix until the liquid is incorporated. Add just enough more milk for the flour to form a cohesive dough ball.
Turn out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for about a minute or two - until the dough is fairly smooth and soft (not tacky), add a little more flour as you knead if necessary.
Wrap in plastic and set aside in the fridge (about 10 minutes is all that is needed)
Preheat oven to 400°F
Line a baking sheet with parchment or a silicon liner.

Filling:
Combine the pizza or tomato sauce, basil, sugar, worcestershire, salt and pepper together. Check the tastes and adjust if necessary.

Roll the dough out onto a lightly floured surface until you have formed a rectangle shape 20 - 25cm by 35 - 40 cm. Dough should be about 2 - 3 cm thick.
Spread the tomato sauce over the entire surface of the dough. Sprinkle with the greens and the zucchini slices. Place the pepperoni slices over that. Sprinkle with the grated mozzarella and finish with the parmesan.
Carefully roll the dough up long side to long side.
Carefully slice the roll into about 9 or 10 thick slices and place each on the prepared baking sheet leaving space for expansion.
Bake for about 20 - 25 minutes or until golden brown on the edges and bubbling like a crazy hot mess.
Remove from the oven and cool for about 10 minutes before attempting to eat.

I wrote in one of my recent posts about how difficult it was for me to talk about myself.  The immense trust that I need to feel in order to open up and how much easier it is to listen to other people and sympathize, offer advice or just simply listen.  I was struck again this week with it all when I received a request from a website called recipes.ca.
Recipes.ca is a site dedicated to canadians and their recipes.  You can join and add your own recipes, search for others and review the ones you've tried.  I add all of my recipes to the site and have thoroughly enjoyed being a part of it and even having my recipes featured.  Last week they contacted me about being a featured cook, a 'foodstar' in fact.  Being the diva that I am [not], I said 'yes' and 'thank you' and 'flattered' and got handed [read: sent] a list of questions that I had to fill out.  Frozen.  In my tracks.  I am completely and utterly paralyzed.
I read the questions and to be honest they are pretty standard.  But I might want to be funny here and there or think of something super cool or come up with something truly unique... like... what?  What's my favourite kitchen gadget?  What?  I don't know.  My perfect meal?  god, really?  I haven't ever thought about that.  Should the answer be Mother Theresa or something?  I feel like maybe there's a magic answer that I'm missing.
I haven't even started to type out my answers.  I have to send them a message and tell them I'm still working on it.  That I haven't forgotten about them.  Here's the kicker though - after I've typed out all my super awesome, insightful, witty, intelligent answers then I have to submit my favourite recipe.  Like I have a favourite recipe.  My favourite recipe is whatever one I'm making today.  Seriously.  I need to retool that in my brain as my 'go-to' recipe or something.  It's just not going to make sense for me otherwise and then I'll get totally stuck on that too.


This is segueing rather awkwardly to this stroganoff recipe.  In fact, the recipe has nothing to do with any of the recipes.ca stuff except I made it today.  You might know me well enough by now to know that I have a habit of loading veggies where they might not otherwise be.  Hence the addition of beets.  The beets should be golden or chiogga beets unless you want the stroganoff to be a deep red instead of a lovely dark orange colour.  I did not add tomato to this recipe because once I tasted it without the tomato paste I thought it was more than fine without it.  The lemon was essential for me and we all thought that having the stroganoff with crusty garlic bread was a novelty [read: kid #2 pretty much only ate the garlic bread].

The outdoor dinner: complete with towels for placemats (everything else is in the laundry) and stroganoff on the right.  p.s. radishes do, in fact, taste pretty good with cheese and bread

Beef and Beet Stroganoff adapted from Bon Appetit Magazine
serves 4 - 6

1 medium onion, thinly sliced
2 cups golden beets, ends cut off, peeled where necessary (where little roots are growing) and diced into 1 inch cubes
3 cloves garlic, crushed
1 lb Beef tips or stewing beef, sliced about 1/2 inch thick
4 cups mushrooms (I used button b/c that's what I had but cremini or wild would work well), thinly sliced
3 tbsp flour or corn starch
1 tsp salt
1 tbsp sugar
1 tbsp paprika
3/4 cup beef or vegetable broth (low sodium if possible)
1/4 cup sherry or white wine (optional: you can use extra broth instead)
1/4 cup cream
2 tbsp Worcestershire Sauce
squeeze of lemon juice

2 tbsp fresh dill, coarsely chopped
sour cream for dolloping
Crusty Bread

Heat a heavy bottomed dutch oven over medium heat.  Add about 2 - 3 tbsp of butter or oil.  Add the onion and beets and cook for about 5 minutes.  Turn the heat down to medium low and continue to cook for another 8 minutes or until the beets are just beginning to soften.
Add the garlic and continue to cook for another 3 - 4 minutes.  Add in the beef and mushrooms and continue to cook until the meet browns.
Add in the beef and mushrooms and continue to cook until the meat browns.
Add the flour or corn starch, salt, sugar and paprika and mix well.
Add in about a 1/4 cup broth to the pot to keep things from sticking.  Make sure the scrape the bottom of the pot so that everything that's sticking comes off and the flavour is retained.
Add the sherry, cream and Worcestershire. Stir well and check the taste.  Add the squeeze of lemon juice.  Simmer at very low heat for about 25 minutes or until the beets are completely soft.
Remove to a serving dish and sprinkle with fresh dill.
Dollop each serving with a little sour cream.
Serve with egg noodles or crusty garlic bread.

Things you learn when in Rome with 180 Boys:

1.  Food tastes amazing (no matter what it is) when all of those boys are in bed.


2.  You can see up to six sights in Rome and squeeze gelato into a 1hr 15 minute cab ride if that's all the time you've got.

3.  A uniform consisting of only 4 shirts for 12 days of travel makes for interesting odour combinations.

4.  Lines consisting of more than 6 people are impossible.  IMPOSSIBLE.

5.  Gelato does not universally taste good (see number 1).

6.  People who think it's fun to get out their decibel meter App during dinner are annoying.

7.  Sometimes yoga pants are necessary for survival.


8.  Even if you are at the Vatican Tourist shop, boys will find the only toy car in the place and fight over it.

9.  No matter what wonderful sights the boys get to see, their favourite will always be seeing the eagle killing a mouse at the side of the road.

10.  It is possible to need some distance from your best friend 'penne' once in a while.

11.  There are definitely moments when the only way to keep your sanity is to just start laughing.  It prevents crying, or sometimes facilitates it but it's always better to be laugh/crying than just crying.

12.  Sometimes, even though you ask everyday for boys to brush your teeth, they still don't tell you until Day 8 that they left their toothbrush at home.

13.  It's all fun and games until someone loses a passport.

14.  Even though they tell you it looks like cat food, if they're hungry enough boys will eat foie gras.

This is all of us.  Boys Gr's 5 - 12 and Chaperones.  Yikes.

There were many times that I indulged heavily in number 11 and number 7 - although I always had this twinge of 'I've-totally-given-up-now' - and the jury is out as to how long penne and I might be on the 'outs'.  I made this curry before I left because I knew that I wouldn't be eating any curry while I was away and because it's one of the easiest and most satisfying things I could think of doing.


Beef Curry adapted from Naparima Girls High School Cookbook
serves 6 - 8

2 lbs beef (stewing beef or leftover roast), cubed
1 med. onion, sliced
2 cups carrots, thickly sliced
1 cup turnip, cubed (optional - opt for more potato if you don't have the turnip)
2 - 3 cups potato, cubed (about 3 med/lg potatoes)
3 - 4 cloves garlic, crushed
3 1/2 tbsp mixed herbs (parsley, chive, oregano, mint, thyme, marjoram - stay away from tarragon or dill)
2 1/2 tsp salt
5 tbsp west indian curry powder (or curry powder of your choice)
2 - 3 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
2 tbsp soy sauce
2 tbsp honey
4 cups good quality beef stock
pepper sauce to taste


Use a large, heavy bottomed dutch oven and heat over medium heat.
Add about 3 - 4 tbsp of oil or grease to the dish.
Add in the onion, carrots, turnip and potato and let it cook in the oil for about 5 minutes.  Stir frequently to prevent sticking or burning.
Add in the meat and the garlic and continue to cook for another 5 minutes.
Meanwhile, in a bowl add the mixed herbs, salt, curry powder, worcestershire sauce and soy sauce together until it forms a paste (add a little water if needed)
Add the paste to the meat and veggies and mix well.  Turn the heat down to med/low and add in the beef stock and the honey.  Stir until well mixed.  Cover and simmer for about an hour over low heat.
Check the tastes and adjust (i.e. add pepper sauce) if necessary.

One of the best things I've done all week is make this stuff.  I've done other good things too don't get me wrong but this casserole is right up there with the best.  It certainly is the best thing I've done with cauliflower in a good long while.
Being on spring break this week and surrounded by my kids and sometimes other people's kids too, I've been thinking a lot about parenting lately.  I've been giving a lot of thought to the way parenting changes as kids get older.  I'm ninety three percent convinced that my twelve year old has decided that it's her goal in life to make us crazy but she's not going to win that one.  She doesn't know who she's dealing with.  Reality is that she needs me to be a completely different parent than my six year old does.  Neither role I feel totally equipped to do well and if most of the parent model's I'm seeing are the 'right way' then I'm in big trouble.  I believe that the real issue here is that I don't really care.  I know what it is I'm supposed to be and it's not realistic nor is it any kind of recipe for success.  I'm pretty happy with the way things are.  We have one night during the school week when both kids have an activity.  The activity for both of them falls on the same night.  Kid #1 is carpooled for part of her activity so we're off the hook once she's been dropped off.  Additionally, Kid #1 has dance and piano which, for the most part happens on Saturday mornings and if it doesn't happen on Saturday then we're probably not going to do it.  D and I both work in the evenings after 'work' and there are many occasions where I have to be in to work on one day over the weekend.  We can't fit any more activities in without some serious juggling around.
Then there is the park stuff which I endure in the summer only because it's warm outside and I can sit off by myself being most antisocial, reading and sipping something cold.  When it's not warm we don't go.  I despised Mom and Tot groups when my kids were babies because they felt like they weren't for the kids at all but the parents.  The parents seemed to feel like we all deserved a collective pat on the back for our efforts towards socializing six month old people.  Nope - didn't last long and I didn't once feel bad about it.
I don't freak out if my kids didn't get outside over the course of a day.  I don't freak out if they didn't eat as well as I would have liked.  I don't freak out if they haven't finished homework or practiced piano.  I freak out a little if they spend too much time in front of a computer screen but even then it depends on what they're doing in front of that screen.  D and I have flatly refused to ever take Kid #1 camping because we don't camp.  I've never once held a birthday party in one of those places where there are games and lights and noise and awful pizza because I can't deal with it - I want to curl up in a corner, close my eyes and fall asleep just thinking about it.  I miss the days where we could just let our kids hang out outside until it got dark and we could do it without needing to sit out there watching them in order to be 'good' parents.  I need time away from them although I feel a little guilty when it happens.  I try to make sure that I take it whenever I can though - even if just for a couple of hours.
Craziest part is that I don't think my kids are suffering at all.  In fact, they seem to be pretty well adjusted so far.  Sure I wish that they did a little more of this and a little less of that but mostly they're doing ok.  We're not pushing them to be at the top of their class but neither are they failing or even seriously struggling with anything.  They enjoy their friends and they aren't unhappy to be alone.  It's weird.


So this week, when D and I ended up being the only ones who dug into this cauliflower casserole, I didn't freak out 'cause they weren't trying it.  We told them that they were missing out but didn't force it down their throats.  They really did miss out but what it meant was that we got to eat it all.  I can live with that.


Cauliflower Casserole adapted from 'Give Recipe'
serves 6

1 head of cauliflower (about 4 cups) broken into medium sized pieces
slice of lemon
1 lb ground beef, pork or lamb
1 onion (1/2 cup), diced
3 cloves garlic, crushed
1/2 - 3/4 cup red pepper, diced (I used roasted red pepper from the freezer)
1 boullion cube (veggie or whatever)
1 1/2 tbsp mixed herbs
2 tbsp honey
1 1/2 tsp salt
2 tbsp Worcestershire Sauce
1 tsp pepper sauce (optional)
1/4 cup tomato paste
2 - 3 tbsp water
1 1/2 cups mozzarella cheese

Place the cauliflower pieces in a large pot of water.  Bring to a boil and add the lemon slice.  Boil for about 7 minutes or until the cauliflower is just beginning to soften.  Drain and set aside.
Preheat the oven to 350°F.
Heat a heavy bottomed pot over medium heat.  Add a little oil and then add in the onion and garlic.  Cook for about 1 minute and then add in the ground meat.  Turn the heat down a little and cook together for about 4 minutes or until the meat begins to brown.  Add in the red pepper and veggie bouillon.  Cook for another 4 - 5 minutes.  Add in the herbs, honey, salt, Worcestershire, pepper sauce tomato paste and water.  Mix well.  Continue to cook for another 5 minutes.  Check the tastes and adjust if necessary.
Place the cauliflower into a deep baking dish (I used an 8 inch round) and sprinkle about half of the mozzarella on top of the cauliflower.  Pour the meat mixture on top of that and sprinkle the remaining mozzarella over the top.
Bake covered for 20 minutes.  Remove the cover and bake for another 15 or until the cheese begins to bubble and brown.
Cool for a few minutes before serving.

As you know I've been away.
During my time away from home I've discovered some new things in life that are in fact favourite things (that just might have ruined me).
1.  Well Water.  I didn't even realise that treated water tasted different because honestly I can't tell the difference between Toronto tap water and bottled water.  However when we were here I freaked out when I tasted the water straight out of the tap.  Now that I'm back in T.O. I'm having trouble re-adjusting.
2.  Beef Jerky.  Apparently we're all sold.  I never ever thought that kid #2 would go near the stuff but he did and even he loves it.


3. Beer.  Thank you Vermont.  'Nuff said.


4. The awesome results of zucchini plant fertility treatments... with a paint brush.


5. Unexpectedly seeing a field being plowed by two horses and a rear plow... in upper New York State(!)  Wish I could have taken a picture but we were on the Highway and it was gone before I could've gotten the camera out and shutter bugging.

6.  The taste of real campfire S'mores really cannot be overstated.


7.  THE Best Lunch EVER.


7.  Needing to go back.  This is not a proper kind of favourite thing but now I discover that I've got to go back to Vermont in order to continue on my beer tasting journey and to discover the joys of raw milk cheese.
I'm going to get on the blogging recipe train just now but in the meantime just give me a little time to bask in the post vacation glow.  It's coming soon though because I have some mondo zucchini and tomatoes that need attending to.


Just an FYI, if you find yourself in Stowe, Vermont then PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE make a visit to 'Laughing Moon Chocolates'.  Some amazing chocolates, great local crafts, an amazing mission statement and if you are there when Amelia happens to be working tell her 'Wanda from Toronto' (with the cute kids) sent you.  She'll treat you right.

Full Disclosure:  I have a banana cake recipe that is sitting in my queue but I was too embarrassed to post yet another sweet recipe.  I just had to put this one in between.  So Reader, I give you Turnip and Beef Stew... bet you're wishing that I'd just gone ahead with the banana cake.
Now turnip is not the first thing I run to when I'm preparing awesome winter recipes.  To be honest, I'm not a fan.  Not a fan at all.  You know it's a bad sign when even the cookbooks will tell you to make sure that your turnips are young and small.  They're better apparently when they're young.  Yeah... whatever... it's now March.  I've learned that the ideal time to eat turnips is during the months of January and February.  Sigh.


This stew is a great way to use up some not so sweet turnips.  It's heavily spiced and the beef balances things out nicely.
On a completely unrelated note, last weekend the Toronto classical music world lost one of it's own.  My friends at work are really struggling with the loss.  Although I was not acquainted with the person, it's once again given me pause to think about the brevity of this life.  In the scheme of this planet's timeline a human life span is barely a speck.  However, that life span is the only one we've got.
I've often thought that doing what I do - biking, running, yoga, cooking, gardening, singing... all that kind of crap - was to help me live longer.  Over the last few years though I've started to realize that those things are not at all any guarantee of a longer life.  Sure they might buy me a little something here and there but let's face it, when you're number is up... well, it's up.  All those things that I do, they're part of what makes me a richer, deeper more spiritually connected person.  Now, I've spend the last few years of my life re-evalutating my religion from top to bottom and I'm not about to tell you that I have any clue what's happening after my days on this planet.  It could be nothing... it could be the whole enchilada.  I can tell you though that I'm not going to hedge my bets on a possibility of something  that no one can tell me about because they're all gone, ie. not with us anymore.  I'm going to lean heavily on what's here and now.  I'm figuring that any god worth his salt will understand and appreciate the fact that I've done the absolute best and most that I could with what I've been given.  I'm going to let myself be passionate and scared and exhilarated and conflicted and sometimes crazy.  I'm going to make sure that I hug my kids and say to them what I really mean underneath all the other crap that comes out of my mouth.  I'm going to appreciate that I have a D to share my life with and know that even though my life isn't perfect that's it's just effing amazing that I have a life to live.


So, although turnip is not my favourite thing to put in my mouth pretty much anything gets about 100% better when mixed with bacon and some stewing beef.  And look, life is way too short not to eat bacon.


Turnip and Beef Stew adapted from Williams Sonoma website
serves 6

1 1/2 lbs (although I did not weigh my meat) stewing beef, cut into approximately the same sized pieces
1/3 cup all purpose flour
pinch of basil, oregano, thyme, paprika, chipotle powder or chili powder, salt and pepper
3 tbsp oil or butter
4 cups turnip, diced (about 2/3 of a large turnip)
2 strips of bacon, diced
2 small onions, sliced thin
4 cloves of garlic, minced
2 cups greens (collard or chard), finely chopped
2 tbsp Worcestershire Sauce
2 tbsp Soy Sauce
2 heaping tbsp brown sugar
2 bay leaves
1 tbsp each oregano, thyme, basil
2 tsp salt
2 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp chipotle powder
2 cups beef or vegetable broth
1/4 cup ketchup
1/4 cup tomato paste

Combine the flour and pinches of seasonings together in a bowl.  Dredge the beef pieces so that each piece is completely coated with the flour mixture.  Save the unused flour just in case you need it to thicken the sauce later.
Heat a heavy bottomed dutch oven or pot over medium heat.
Add the oil or butter to the pot.  Brown the beef together with the bacon.  Once the meat is browned remove it to a plate and add the onion and turnip to the pot.  Turn the heat down a bit and brown the onion and turnip together for about 7 minutes.  Add in the garlic and cook together for another 5 minutes.
Add the meat back in with the vegetables.  Add in the Worcestershire, Soy Sauce, brown sugar, bay leaves, herbs, salt, paprika and chipotle powder.  Mix well together.  Add in the broth, ketchup and tomato paste.  Mix well.  Cover and turn the heat down to low.  Cook together for about 1 1/2 to 2 hours.  Check the tastes and adjust if necessary.  Add a little flour to thicken the mixture if necessary.
Serve with rice or mashed potato.

Every once in a while it happens that we have nothing to do.  Like absolutely nothing.  We don't have to leave the house for an entire day.  I say this like it's something wonderful, magical, special... and it kinda is.
Usually there is something to be done.  Someone to be dropped off and/or picked up.  Something to be gotten.  An appointment to get to.  Work.  School.  You know... stuff.  This day... nothing.  What's more, we got up kinda early and by the time 2pm rolled around it already felt like the day was an eternity.  Yoga, laundry, bathrooms cleaned, beds made... you know, it was all done.  Weird.
On a day like that what do you do?  You cook if you're me.
On a rainy, long dark of winter day what do you cook?  Beef stew with biscuits of course.


You need a day for that kind of food.  It has to sit for a long time over a low heat and just 'be'.  That will make the stew sing.  It's not a quick thing.  It's a very very slow thing or it won't be the same.  So you need to have the patience to make it at lunch in order to eat it for supper.  But it's so worth it.  So gratifying.
Well everything that you've just read was exactly my situation just a couple of days ago.
It was beautiful.  It felt like the longest day ever.
We watched a movie because... we had so much time to watch.
We had a complete lunch AND supper.
After my last rant post I'm going to sit back and let things settle a little bit, so there's no controversy this time.  No pressing opinions that I'm going nuts sitting on and have to blather about.  No crazy goings on that are dominating my thoughts.  Nothing.   Today.
Just a beautiful, quiet, LOOOOOONG day... and stew.


Beef Stew with Biscuits adapted from Canadian Living
serves4 - 6

1 lb stewing beef
1 leek sliced thin up to the darker green part
1 large celery stalk, diced
2 lg carrots, coarsely chopped
2 small turnips, coarsely cubed
1 1/2 cups mushrooms, halved
2 lg cloves of garlic, minced
3 tbsp Worcestershire
1 tbsp Soy Sauce
4 tbsp ketchup
2 beef bouillon cubes
3/4 cup water or red wine
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 lg tbsp brown sugar
1 lg tbsp each, chives, oregano, thyme, basil, parsley

Blue Cheese Biscuits

2 1/4 cups flour
4 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter, COLD and cubed
1/2 cup plain yogurt or sour cream
1/2 cup milk (or just enough to get the right consistency) or buttermilk
1/2 cup blue cheese
1/2 cup parmesan

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
Butter and 9 inch square baking pan.
Combine the flour, baking powder and salt together in a bowl.  Mix together.
Cut in the cubed butter into the flour mixture using a pastry cutter or two knives.  Cut together until it forms a crumbly texture.
Add in the yogurt or sour cream and mix.
Add just enough milk to form a dough ball.
Add in the cheeses and mix.
Place onto a lightly floured surface and knead just a couple of minutes - until it forms a smooth, silky dough ball.  Roll out to about 1 1/2 inches thick (thicker if you would like) and cut into about 12 biscuits (round or square or whatever shape you want).  Place each biscuit in the buttered pan.
Sprinkle the top with a little extra parmesan if you would like.
Bake for about 30 - 35 minutes or until the biscuits are nicely browned on the top and they're not gooey on the inside.
Serve with the beef stew.

It's November.
November.
I know what you're thinking.  It's the same thing that I'm thinking.  Where did this year go?  I've done stuff and talked about stuff and thought stuff that hadn't ever crossed my mind.  I don't think that I need to give you a year in review or anything but I feel kinda surprised and proud (just a little) all at the same time.
The sucky part though is that I'm still broke.  I've got a hell of a lot of debt paid off this year... but I'm still broke.  Broke's not always a bad thing though.  It can make you creative.  It can make you sympathetic.  It can make you realistic.  For example, I'm not about to say that the world owes me anything but I'm also not saying that I'm broke because I don't work hard enough and that if I just worked harder that the money gods would reward me with cash.  I'm also not under the impression that someone with more money than me works harder than I do and is therefor entitled to all the money that they earn.  It also bugs the hell outta me that all the money people earn seems to give them carte blanche to do whatever the hell they want with the planet.  (Hmmmm - I knew that a rant was in there somewhere.  Remember when I said in my last post that we walked through the Occupy Toronto Camp... Yup - I knew a rant was in there somewhere).
Let me be completely honest though.  I'm not flat broke.  I still have a job.  A good job.  It doesn't pay big bucks but it's kept us afloat.  D works many jobs - as many as he can get his hands on.  I work at home after my school job is done.  I've got benefits and all that crap at my job.  I'm lucky and I don't want to take it for granted.  There are many many many many people wayyyyyy less fortunate I am.



When it comes to food, even though we don't have a lot of money to throw around I want to make sure that we are putting our money in good places and stretching it as far as possible in those places.  So we don't have meat regularly.  We don't have a lot of sauces or store bought treats around.  I make whatever I can because it's cheaper (and just happens to be healthier and better for the world around me).  I take my lunch to work and my kids take fruit or homemade snacks to school... and they don't go out for lunch either.  We throw out as little food as possible.  We try to make sure that we use up what we make, freeze what we can't finish and use as much of a vegetable as possible.  That brings me to this dinner.  Think pastured ground beef, organic and local veggies, locally made (or homemade even better) yogurt... And you've got cheap and healthy dinner on the table.  It's a hearty meal and it's tasty... and even kid #2 will eat it if it contains noodles.  Win/Win.



Poor Man's Beef Stronganof adapted from Kitchen Simplicity
serves about 6 - 8

4 - 5 cups cooked pasta (al dente - I used penne noodles) reserve the pasta water
1 1/2 lbs ground beef
1 med onion, diced
1 clove garlic minced
1 green pepper diced
3 cups chard or kale chopped
3 cups mushrooms (I used button) sliced thin
1 cup plain yogurt
1 bouillion cube
1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp each: parsley, oregano, basil, marjoram
1 tbsp salt
1 tbsp sugar
1/2 cup cheese (I used medium cheddar because that's what was in my fridge - feel free to get fancy), shredded

In a large pot or dutch oven heat some oil over medium heat.
Add in the onion, garlic and pepper.  Cook for about 5 minutes.  Add in the mushrooms and greens (chard or kale - even spinach would be fine).  Cook for another 4 minutes.  Add in the ground meat and cook just until the meat begins to brown.
Add the bouillion cube, Worcestershire Sauce and soy sauce.  Cook for another 4 minutes.
Add the herbs, salt and sugar.
Check the taste and add something hot if you like (I like).
Add in the yogurt and the cheese.  Mix until the cheese is melted.
If you would like more liquid for the sauce add in a little cream.
Check the tastes again and adjust if necessary.
Toss in the mixed pasta.
Sprinkle a little more cheese on the top if you desire.
Serve.

If feel like I've been a real downer for you all lately.  I gotta lighten things up a bit because even though I feel like it's the end of the world most of the time, we still need to laugh and live our life... right?  So, I'm trying to think of subjects that are fun and good for a laugh.  Things that people like and that makes them feel warm and fuzzy inside... not like they want to contemplate their own demise.
I guess that I could talk about my kids.  Kids are always cute and funny.  Unless they're those annoying kids on airplanes or restaurants.  The ones that talk really loudly and tell the entire place that they want to go home NOW or that they don't want rice and they HATE mashed potatoes.  Most kids are fun though and mostly cute too... awwww.
I could talk about biking or running or yoga because I'm passionate about those things in my life.  I could tell you that I love getting up early every morning to bike or run to work.  I could tell you what a gas it is to run to work in the winter.  I would be lying though.  Most of the time it's hard and I just don't even ask myself if I want to do it because the answer would always be no.  But even when it blows hard it's still one of my favourite things to do... cool, so that paragraph ended on an 'up beat'.
I could talk about my friends because I love my friends.  They're the best... who else would buy me copious amounts of liver and gall bladder tea while in Germany.  Who else would make Sangria and invite me over to drink way too much of it with them.  Who else would take you to the King Edward for champagne AFTER you've been to the pub together.  It's the friends who are still friends with you after stupid-too-much-sangria-conversations.

I could write about summer and how awesome it is and how I would take 31 degrees C over winter any day.  I would much rather sweat than shiver.  I don't use air conditioning because I want to feel summer. I want to hear it... because my windows are open.  I want to feel the breeze or the lack of it.  I want to have the challenge of cooking outside or having cold food because it's just too damn hot to put on the stove or the oven.  I don't mind dealing with allergies because that means it's summer.  For me, it's part of fully embracing the seasons (running in the middle of winter being my way of 'embracing' that particular season as well)
See... I can do 'up'.  I can.



What I need to also tell you though is that this recipe makes a truck load.  I made it on a tuesday.  D left for Trinidad the next day.  For a whole week.  So that left 3 of us finishing the dish.  Two of us are under 10 years of age.  Now this dish is good.  It was really good but by Saturday we were so sick of eating the thing that we all groaned when I pulled it out again and I had to promise Kid #1 and #2 (and myself too 'cause... damn) that this was the last time and we would compost the rest (it wasn't much, really it wasn't).   So (to keep things on the 'happy side of life') I would recommend that if you want to make this and you don't have a family of say about 8 give or take then you might want to have a party.  Invite some of those friends to come over during the summer... maybe they could ride their bike or run to your place.... and bring their awesome, wayyyy cute and polite kids with them and they could all drink some sangria or champagne without any air conditioning.  It could be like a whole lotta 'happy'.


Creamy Meatball and Chard Pasta
serves 8 - 10

Seasoned Meat
1 1/2 lbs ground meat (I used a mixture of ground beef and pork)
1 egg
4 cloves garlic, crushed
2 tbsp Worcestershire Sauce
1 tbsp Dijon Mustard
2 tsp salt
1/2 cup (or more) chopped fresh herbs (I used oregano, basil, parsley, chive and mint)
3 tbsp brown sugar or honey
dash of cayenne or pepper sauce

5 cups large pasta (rotini, shells - something big), cooked al dente
1 medium onion, sliced
3 large cloves of garlic minced (or use garlic scapes if it's in season)
1 large bunch chard or spinach (about 5 cups - it cooks down a lot)
1/2 cup minced fresh herbs (I used basil, parsley and oregano)
1 vegetable bouillion cube (dissolve in a little bit of hot water)
2 tsp salt
dash of fresh lemon juice and zest (if you have - I didn't)
800 ml ricotta
3/4 cup parmesan cheese
1 cup milk or cream
1 1/2 cups mozzarella shredded

Meatballs:
Combine all the ingredients in a big bowl.  Form balls the size of large marbles.
Heat a large dutch oven over medium heat.  Add a little oil (just to cover the bottom of the pot) and then add in the meatballs.  Turn frequently and heat all the meatballs until they are just browned and cooked through.  Remove from the pot and set aside.

Assembly:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Using the same dutch oven (and save the grease so that you don't have to use any more) add in the onion and garlic.  Cook over medium heat until the onion is started to brown.  Turn the heat down to med/low and add in the spinach.  Cook until the spinach has wilted.
Add in the herbs, bouillion liquid, salt and lemon juice/zest.  Mix.
Add in the ricotta, parmesan and milk/cream.  Mix.
Turn off the heat and check the tastes.  Adjust if needed.

Mix the cooked pasta and meatballs together.  Pour into a large baking dish.
Add the vegetable mixture and mix everything together well.
Spread evenly in the baking dish.  Cover with the shredded mozzarella cheese.
Bake for about 30 minutes or until the mozzarella is just beginning to turn golden on the top (it will be bubbling)
Remove from the oven and cool for about 15 minutes.

What a mouthful!  OK that was a stupid bad pun...

Potato Celeriac Mash... sounds so pretentious too.  So unlike me... I think... well, there's some food for thought.
Lately, we've been doing our best to limit our meat intake and are doing well with it I think.  There are entire weeks that can go by without us downing some kinda meat for our main meal.  That makes me proud.  Truth be told I'm a veggie deep down but let's keep it a secret for now.  I don't think that D, kid #1 or kid #2 would be terribly happy if I announced that we were becoming a 100% veggie household.


So that will be my own little pipe dream for now.  However, I can seem to talk the carnivores in my house off the ledge when we have long stints without big hunks of anything red (or pink).  I will gladly acknowledge that they've done very well...
So, with some stewing beef from Cumbrae's needing to be saved from freezer death, I decided that it was time to make some beef stew.  It's hearty, stick to your bones kind of winter fare.  The only thing that would have made this meal better would have been fresh bread.  I would love to have obliged but for God's sake, it's a weeknight people!  I just haven't mastered enough space in my brain to execute bread making along with all the other crap that goes on during my work day.
Bread crisis averted though.  I got some celeriac in the food box this week.  I know... CELERIAC.  Trust me, a year ago I didn't know what it was either.  I ended up though, making some potato and celeriac mash (think cheesy mashed potato's)


and it was just as good as fresh bread and more nutritious at the end of the day.  It feels posh too.  I had visions of the restaurant order I would place using '... celeriac and heirloom potato mash'.  You know, it just sounds right, rolls off the tongue kinda.  Plus, it's super good for you and it's beautifully seasonal.  As a side bonus, I got through my food box veggies a little more quickly too.  I love that feeling.  The food box comes in and I'm already cooking through it 2 hrs later.  As little waste as possible.  Great!


Wanda's Beef Stew
serves 6 - 8

2 lb of stewing beef, cut into bite sized pieces
2 small or 1 med onion cut into chunks
2 lg or 3 med carrots cut into chunks
2 lg ribs of celery sliced thick
7 or 8 brussel sprouts cut in half (I had these on hand and they needed to be used)
2 med potatoes cut into chunks
15 (or so) button mushrooms halved
4 lg cloves garlic, crushed
1/2 - 3/4 cup red wine
2 beef bouillion cubes (low salt)
3 - 4 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
2 tsp soy sauce
1/2 cup water reserved
1/4 cup flour
1/3 cup ketchup
3 tsp salt
1 tbsp thyme
1 tbsp rosemary
1 tbsp marjoram
dash of cinnamon and cumin (just a dash)
4 tbsp muscovado sugar or honey
pepper sauce (to taste ;-)

In a large dutch oven heat some oil until over medium'ish' heat.  Add in the stewing beef and swish around until the pieces are looking well browned (let's say about 7 min).  Add in the onion, carrot, celery, brussel sprouts, potatoes and mushrooms.  Swish all this stuff around for another 7 - 10 min.  If the heat is too high then turn things down to med/low.
Add in the garlic and cook for another couple of minutes.


Add in the red wine, and Worcestershire and Soy sauce.  Swish everything around to get all the sticky bits off the bottom of the pan.  Add in the bouillion cubes and let them disintegrate in the liquid.  Add in the salt, thyme, rosemary, marjoram, cinnamon and cumin.  Let that simmer gently.
In a small bowl mix together the flour and the water until it forms a kind of paste and doesn't have any lumps in it.
Add the flour mixture and the ketchup to the stew.  Add in the sugar or honey and any pepper sauce.  Check the tastes and adjust as necessary.  Let the stew simmer on low heat for about 45 min.
Serve on a bed of potato and celeriac mash or with homemade bread (but I hate you if you do that)


Potato and Celeriac Mash
serves 6

6 med potatoes cut into large chunks
2 sm - med celeriac, peeled and cut into large chunks
1/4 - 1/3 cup of butter
1/4 - 1/2 cup milk or cream
3/4 cup shredded cheese
salt to taste

In a large pot, cover the potatoes and celeriac chunks with water and bring to a boil.  Boil for about 12 - 15 min. or until the celeriac seems soft and mashable.
Remove from heat and drain the water (you could use this water in the stew if you're super organised).  Add the butter and mash the whole mixture - you could use a potato masher or a ricer, either will work well.
Add in the milk until it gets to the consistency that you are looking for.  Add in the cheese and mix it in until it melts.  Add the salt to taste.