Fire in the sky

I woke up this morning to a beautiful sunrise.  It looked as if the sky was on fire.  My picture doesn’t do the actual sighting any justice, but you get the idea. It was actually a little redder. 

Other than that, nothing too interesting today in my world.  I found my head wandering and thinking a lot about Xena today.  And this morning as I was eating my breakfast I heard a disturbing newscast about a Tour Company in Whistler, B.C. which is being accused and investigated for brutally culling 100 sled dogs after the 2010 Olympics.  The allegations are disturbing and just about made me lose my breakfast.  Lets hope the allegations are false.

Lunch was this….

leftover red cabbage and Roesti from last night, minus steak since we ate it all. 

For dinner I decided to make some personal pizzas. 

I found some gluten-free Pizza crusts in the freezer section of the grocery store and was tempted to try it.  I was pleasantly surprised and such a quick dinner option.

As for my toppings, I layered my pizzas with pesto sauce, onion, red pepper, mushrooms and garlic.  Then I added a couple slices of salami, garlic and herb goat cheese and topped it off with some grated Dill Havarti.

I stuck them in a 400F oven on a cookie sheet for about 10 minutes, as per directions on package. 

VOILA….

The crust was crispy yet soft in the middle.  I will definitely be buying these again. 

Since I made two..will be taking one to work for lunch tomorrow. 

WHAT IS YOUR FAVOURITE PIZZA TOPPINGS? ANY OTHER GLUTEN-FREE CRUSTS OUT THERE?

Time for a treadmill workout and then a nice hot bath..ahh.

Much love,

Bea

xoxo

Check out this link for the ATX Gluten-free pizza challenge.

Hockey High

So Saturday night I played my first hockey game after being off for 10 days due to tonsillitis and a cold.  And I came back with a fire lit under my butt.  I had my best game of the season and since starting to play 3 years ago.  I scored two goals and had an assist.  I came close to getting my very first hat trick and the ladies tried so hard to help me reach it, but oh well.  I’ll try again next week. 

And now for some sad news…  I got a phone call last night from my dad.  They had to put down my family dog.    Xena was my little warrior princess.  She was a black miniature Schnauzer.  I still remember the day we brought her home.  She was such a tiny little bundle of never-ending energy and joy.  RIP Xena… I will miss you.  She was 14 yrs old.

 

 

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Good Old Steak and Potatoes

Sunday Night’s meal was some good old meat and potatoes.  It wasn’t raining and Trevor requested a tasty steak for dinner.  Lucky for him, I have an abundant supply of meat in my freezer.  So it was time to take out a package of Bison Rib Steaks.

I marinated these babies in some olive oil and jerk rub and set them aside until they would meet their fate on the BBQ. 

In the meantime, I prepared a big pot full of red cabbage.

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Braised Red Cabbage

To prepare the red cabbage, cut into quarters and trim the stems.  Slice thinly and set in bowl.

Prepare the other ingredients: 

• 2 medium onions, sliced thinly
• 2 apples, cored and sliced thinly

 

 

 

 

 

In a large pot, heat oil over medium-high heat and add onions and cook for 7 to 10 minutes or until somewhat translucent.  Next add the apples and cook for another 2 to 3 minutes. 

Now add your red cabbage and these ingredients:

• 4 Tbsp red wine vinegar or Champagne vinegar
• 2 – 3 Tbsp maple syrup
• 2 tsp ground cloves
• 1/2 cup red wine

Stir everything together and boil over medium-high heat.  Now cover and cook on medium-low heat for about 35 – 40 minutes or until cabbage is tender.  You may have to add some more red wine if you cabbage needs to cook a bit longer.  Never let the pot go dry.  

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Swiss Potato Pancake “Roesti”

My mom used to make this all the time growing up and it’s a perfect way to use up day-old baked or boiled potatoes.  “Roesti” is generally eaten as a side dish, but can be varied by adding ingredients and seasonings of your choice.  And it’s a great alternative to the all-American or Canadian Hash browns.

To make this, start off by grating about a pound of cooked potatoes like this and set aside.

Chop up one medium onion.  In a non-stick frying pan, heat about 3 Tbsp. of butter or olive oil over medium-high heat.  Then add your onions to the pan and cook until they turn translucent. 

Add some salt and pepper to taste and add your potatoes to the pan as well.  Mix the potatoes and the onions together and flatten with a spatula into the shape of a pancake…it should fit the entire width of your frying pan. 

Make sure element is medium-low heat and allow to fry until brown from bottom.  Now you will need to get yourself a plate a little bigger than your pancake.  Place the plate on top of your potatoes and FLIP!  Slide the potatoes back into your frying pan and continue to cook until brown on this side too.  (sorry for not taking pictures of this process..I only have two hands).  Regardless, it should look like this.

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And of course we couldn’t leave out the dessert either.  When I was at the grocery store this afternoon, I came across this product.  I’ve heard lots about it, so I splurged.

It was creamy, delicious, flavourful, chocolaty goodness. And since Trevor is lactose intolerent, it was a perfect finishing touch to our Sunday night meal. 

I even drizzled the last of my Chocolate Merlot Sauce for a special touch. 

Has anyone else tried this Ice Cream?  What is your favourite flavour?

Hope everyone had a great weekend.  With a fully belly and my lunch made for the morning, I”m ready to relax on the couch. 

Happy Monday everyone.

Much love,

Bea

xoxox

Apple Cinnamon Pancakes

Hey guys,

Hope your weekends have started off well.  Have I got a treat for you today.  Since I had to attend a Strata meeting for my complex this morning, I spent the night at my place instead of Trevor’s because the meeting was here.  And since I am President of my Strata Council, I better attend.  So when I woke up this morning I took the opportunity to make my world famous Gluten-Free Pancakes…it’s been so long.  Enjoy… I sure did

INGREDIENTS

• 1 cup  Sorghum Flour
• 1 cup  Buckwheat Flour (or Millet flour – or 1/2 cup of each)
• 2 Tbsp  Cinnamon
• 2 Tbsp  GF and Aluminum-Free Baking Powder
• 2 Tbsp  Navita’s Naturals Twister Power (Maca, Hemp, Cocoa Blend)
• 2 Tbsp  Sprouted Flax/Chia Seeds
• 1 medium apple, grated with peel
• 1 egg, beaten (can use my egg substitute – see recipes tab)
• 1 Tbsp pure organic Vanilla extract
• 2 Tbsp  pure organic maple syrup
• 1 1/2 cup almond milk

First sift together the dry ingredients in a medium sized bowl like this.  Then set aside.

Next mix together the wet ingredients in a small bowl (apple, egg or egg substitute, vanilla and maple syrup).  DO NOT yet add the milk. 

Now you can add the apple mixture to the flour mixture and mix well.  Add the milk about 1/2 cup at a time and stir together with a wooden spoon.  Keep adding the milk until you get a thicker batter, but it can’t be runny or lumpy.  I had to add another splash of milk to the batter so that it was thin enough to spread around in pan. 

Heat up a shallow frying pan to a medium-low heat and use some non-stick spray in pan each time you are going to make the pancake.  Remove pan from heat and using a ladle, add a scoop full in center of pan.  Tilt so that it can spread out evenly and return on element. 

The pancake is ready to be flipped when you notice that the sides of the pancake start getting brown or batter starts bubbling a little bit. 

Should be nice and brown but not burned when ready to be flipped.  I’ve noticed that you have to sometimes turn down your element to prevent burning.

Place pancakes in a preheated oven (200F) to be kept warm until ready to serve. 

If desired, serve with some organic non-fat yogurt and pure maple syrup. 

I love how it makes enough pancakes for leftovers the next morning.  I’ll sometimes even have pancakes for lunch.  I’ve even made pancakes the night before during the school week and then pop them in the microwave for a quick weekend breakfast on a weekday.  I just don’t have the time during the week to make pancakes.  And one of the great things about my pancakes is that they are really filling and very satisfying. 

What is your favourite weekend breakfast meal?  How about a weekend breakfast during the week?

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On another note, I’ve been trying to upload a video to the blog and it seems to be taking forever.  It just keeps saying “Uploading Video”.  Anybody in the blogging world have any tips?  I use a program called:  Windows Live Writer 2011.

 

Take care everyone,

 

Bea

xoxo

TGIF Leftovers

Did anybody else notice that today seemed to fly by?  I’m always happy when Friday rolls around because that means the weekend is just that much closer.  And it’s been a long week too, so it will be nice to somewhat sleep in tomorrow morning.  I decided to have a quiet evening once again.  There is lots to do around my house, so I will stab at my chores tonight.  That way I can do more fun things this weekend and cook up more good eats.  And as far as food is concerned…lots of leftovers to finish up. 

Lunch was this:

And dinner was the last of my leftover gnocchi and more of this:

Not sure yet what tomorrow’s dinner will be.  Something basic and kid friendly most likely since the kids are pretty finicky.  I usually leave Saturday’s dinner plans up to Trevor.  Sunday night will be much more interesting and blog worthy, so stay tuned.  I foresee something with pesto so that I can use up my sauce.  Probably a pizza of some sort, but any other suggestions?

Take care,

Bea

xoxo

Knock Knock…. Who’s there?

Hehe…made you look

Why “Knock Knock”?  Gnocchi is the name of the game tonight.  (Gnocchi, get it? hehe)

Well I guess I shouldn’t really be complaining of all the rain we are getting lately.  After watching the news tonight, I should be glad that I do not live on the East coast.  Our eastern friends got between 6 and 19 inches of snow overnight.  I remember when I used to live up north, it would take me hours to shovel the driveway.  Just when I thought I was finished, I’d have to start all over again.  And you knew it was bad when you couldn’t find your car the next day.  Hope all my Eastern US readers are keeping warm and surviving the snowfall.  Chin up… spring is only a couple of months away.   

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Buckwheat Squash Gnocchi with Pesto

I love cooking with Squash and am always finding ways to incorporate it into my meals….stews, risotto, roasted, soups, etc.  Squash is a surprisingly versatile and delicious vegetable.  Even if you have no imagination or time, you can’t really screw up squash.  Be creative..enjoy

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• 1 Quart low-sodium Free-Range Organic Chicken Broth
• 1 smallish Butternut Squash peeled, seeded and cubed
• 1 medium yukon gold potato, peeled and cubed
• 1 cup Sorghum Flour
• 1 cup Buckwheat Flour
• 1/2 cup Potato Starch
• 1/2 cup Sweet Rice Flour
• 2 Tbsp  Guar Gum
• 1 egg
• some extra flour for rolling

The combined amount of squash and potato should be about 3 cups, so if you need more than ingredients listed, go ahead and add some. 

In a large pot just cover with broth.  Cook for approximately 12 minutes or until fork tender.  Strain well , transfer to a bowl and mash until not lumpy and reserve liquid for later.

Add the flours and guar gum and mix with wooden spoon until mixed.  Turn the dough out onto a floured surface. 

Make a well in center and add your egg.  Knead gently for 2 – 3 minutes until still sticky but forms a ball.  Heads up:  the flour really stuck to my hands, so have a paper towel handy. 

Divide dough into 4 pieces.

With hands dusted with flour, form each piece into a long rope about an inch thick.  I had fun with this step…hehe

See what I mean?  No need to roll into spiral…actually kind of looks like sausages. 

With a knife dusted with flour cut into small pieces.  (you may have to keep dusting it with flour repeatedly).  Place onto a cookie sheet not touching one another.  You will probably need 4 cookie sheets.  This way any extra gnocchi are ready to be frozen. 

Boil reserved broth and one cup of water in a large pot.  When at a rolling boil add gnocchi – when they float to the top they are done

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While the gnocchi was cooking, I cooked up some Veal Scaloppini.  They only take a minute or so on each side and they are done, so it’s important to cook them right before you are going to eat.  Don’t forget to season with some salt and pepper. 

Once the gnocchi were cooked, I drained the broth and returned to pot.  Then I added some of this goodness. 

And I added some fresh parmesan. 

I tossed it together and I was ready to chow down. 

And once again…lots of leftovers for lunch tomorrow.

This was the first time I tried making gnocchi and I was pleasantly surprised. It didn’t take me all that long and I wasn’t sure how it would turn out as a gluten-free version.  I experimented with the combination of flours and it worked. I was very happy

 

TGIF tomorrow.  Happy Friday everyone.

Bea

xoxo