Recipe: Cheater Shrimp n’ Grits

18 Jul

Shrimp n’ grits is one of a handful of dishes that make up classic southern cuisine. And like most ‘classic’ dishes, everyone’s got a riff that they say makes it ‘the ultimate’ version of that dish. I’m sure this one isn’t ‘the ultimate’ (I’ve tested some of the popular versions) it certainly is easy, takes about 10 minutes and packs a world of flavour. Plus it has bacon. How can you go wrong??

Some of you may be asking the question, “What is a grit? Whatever it is, it doesn’t sound tasty.” Well, let me assure you grits can be plenty tasty and that it’s basically the south’s version of Italian polenta – cornmeal , slowly turned into a fluffy cereal pudding by boiling with water or other liquids. In other words, the corn version of cream of wheat.

Southern grits are white corn vs. yellow. The ones I buy (in the US as they’re very difficult to find here) are the Quaker brand quick cook grits in the blue tube. If you can’t find these, substitute large stone ground cornmeal (like Bob’s Red Mill).

The other secret ingredient is something decidedly NOT traditional – Jalapeno Tex Mex Cheese Whiz . Don’t be afraid – I was not a  Cheese Whiz believer either until a friend (thanks April) turned me on to how good this newly minted flavour of the faux cheese was. It’s fantastic just melted down on top of tortilla chips (just like movie nachos!) and likely many other tasty combinations I’ve yet to discover.

The rest of the ingredients should already be in your house or at least the local grocery store.

Cheater Shrimp n’ Grits

For the grits
½ cup of Quaker quick cook grits
1 ½ cups water
dash of salt
2 heaping tablespoons of Cheese Whiz nacho flavour (or regular Cheese Whiz but add ¼ tsp or more of cayenne for flavour and spice)

For the shrimp
1 pound of shrimp, peeled and deveined
4 strips of bacon, diced
3 green onions, chopped
3 tablespoons of chopped parsley
½  lemon, squeezed
2-3 cloves of garlic, minced
dash of cayenne pepper
salt & pepper

This recipe will come together quickly so do your mise-en-place before starting. Place the grits into a microwave bowl and add the water and salt. Stir with a whisk and place in the microwave until later. Use some kitchen shears to snip the green onions, parsley and bacon vs. using a knife. It’ll go way faster. Cut the lemon in half. Prep your garlic and have your shrimp handy.

On a medium high heat, begin frying the bacon pieces. When they’re almost crisp, remove them from the pan and set aside to drain on paper towel. Now you can turn the grits in your microwave on for 4 minutes on high. While they’re cooking throw the shrimp in the pan with a dash of cayenne. Add in the squeeze of lemon, the green onions, the garlic and the salt & pepper. Stir.

Now go check on your grits. Give them a brisk stir with a whisk and pop them back in the microwave to finish.

Go back to the shrimp and add the parsley and stir a bit more. Cook the shrimp about 3-4 minutes or until thoroughly pink. Add the bacon back in at the end to reheat.

When the grits are done (they should be after 4 minutes), throw in the Cheese Whiz and stir briskly with the whisk until the cheese has been fully incorporated.

Place several spoonfuls into a bowl and top with some of the shrimp mixture. Enjoy the creamy spicyness!

 

 

 

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Oh SuzyQ, Baby I love you…

13 Jul

In the last few years with foodie culture getting more mainstream, a series of food ‘trends’ have erupted. There was cupcakes, and bacon, and salted caramel but more recently, the cool kid on the block has been doughnuts. So cool in fact, that the Globe and Mail wrote about the popularity of gourmet doughnut stores popping up across the country, including one in Ottawa. 🙂

SuzyQ doughnuts is on Wellington West in Hintonburg in the shack that used to house Hintonburger. Opened by a Canada Post mail carrier after her stall at a local famer’s market couldn’t keep up with demand, they’ve got a pretty good thing going.

With a yeast-based doughnut dough that manages to be substantial but light and fluffy at the same time, SuzyQ’s real magic is in the imaginative toppings that echo some of the other trends in food like the maple bacon and the salted caramel ones that I sampled today.

The maple bacon doughnut wasn’t as maple-ey as it could have been in my opinion, with the glaze just mostly sweet but the bacon was cooked and cut perfectly so that it became almost like crunchy bacon sprinkles. The salted caramel had a gooey and buttery caramel coating with a light touch of saltyness that really worked well.

I was a bit disappointed that they were out of the other flavour I had wanted to try, Blue Fruit Loop (yes, with the cereal). It’s just a good excuse to make a return trip! Check out SuzyQ’s website at suzyq.ca.

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Tools of the Trade: Cookie Scoops

10 Jul

I love my cookie scoops. If you don’t have at least one in your arsenal you should go buy one.

Courtesy of The Coastal Cupboard

Perhaps I should explain why.

Before the advent of cookie scoops in my world, dishing out a batch of cookies would take a while and would involve a lot of scraping and squishing of dough with two spoons. The cookies would never have a pretty ‘oh those must be from a bakery’ shape and some of them would cook faster than others because they were bigger or smaller.

Now my cookies are perfection and I can scoop out two whole trays in a couple minutes flat.

That being said, ‘cookie scoop’ is a bit of a misnomer. I also use mine to:

– Scoop muffin and cupcake batter – Not only do they come out more uniform due to portioning, but you wind up with more of the batter in the muffin liners instead of ON the muffin tray
– Scoop ice cream – You get perfect scoops every time!
– Making meatballs – Again, perfect size and way faster.

I will never go back to the two spoon method ever again.

Now when you go out to buy yourself one, do not make the mistake of cheaping out. Go whole hog and get the Oxo Good Grips versions. They come in three sizes – small (good for tiny applications like chocolate truffles), medium (good for most cookies, mini cupcakes and small meatballs) and large (good for regular sized cupcakes and muffins and large sized meatballs). I’ve never been disappointed with any Oxo product. They usually have superior design and mechanisms and are dishwasher safe. In Canada they’re available at Bed Bath and Beyond, Home Outfitters, Home Sense and at some local stores like @Home in Kanata Centrum.

I’ve tried other scoops from Norpro and Wilton. The Wilton one had terrible action on it – with stiff cookie batters the scraper would stick, negating the whole point of the scoop. I found it was too small as well. The Norpro was OK but the action was much stiffer and was really uncomfortable to use. It also had issues binding with stiff dough and I eventually stripped the gears on it trying to pry it apart in frustration.

 

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Recipe: Shawarma Salad

7 Jul

It’s been crazy hot here this week. So much so, that Mr. Bacon installed our air conditioner today. We don’t put it in every summer, but the last few have required artificial cooling in order to sleep in our bedroom. And when it’s this hot, you certainly don’t want to make anything that’s going to heat the kitchen up which is why tonight we had shawarma salad.

Sandwich and garlic potatoes from my favourite shawarma purveyor, Ali at Shawarma House on March Road. Ali is an artist.

For those of you who are unfamiliar with the shawarma, it’s one of the most popular street foods in the middle east and is incredibly prevalent in Ottawa and Montreal due to the high population of middle eastern immigrants. Shawarma usually consists of meat (either beef or chicken) with vegetables (lettuce, tomato, onion, cabbage) and pickles (turnip and Lebanese cucumber) slathered in sauce (garlic, hummus, tahini) and wrapped in a pita.

What I call shawarma salad though is a traditional Lebanese salad called fattoush with grilled chicken marinated in yogurt, lemon and middle eastern spices. It’s intensely fresh and flavourful and makes a great light summer meal.

Shawarma Salad

For the salad:
1 head romaine lettuce
1/2 tomato, diced
1/4 onion, sliced thinly
1/2 English cucumber, diced
1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped
4 radishes
pita bread
pickled turnips

For the dressing:
juice of 2 fresh lemons or 1 fresh and 3 tbsp of bottled lemon juice
1/2 cup olive oil
2 tbsp minced garlic
1 tsp salt
2 tsp dried mint
1 1/2 tbsp sumac

For the chicken:
2 boneless skinless breasts, or 1 pound of chicken tenderloins
1/2 cup plain or greek yogurt
3-6 tbsp of lemon juice (use more if you’re using greek yogurt to thin it)
2 tsp shawarma spice (comes in a packet labelled as such, but there are also recipes on the internet for the spice blend)
1 tsp salt

Marinate the chicken for at least an hour. It’s best if you prep it in the morning. When you’re ready for dinner, start the BBQ and grill the chicken over medium heat.

While it’s cooking, dice the vegetables for the salad and mix the ingredients for the dressing in a separate bowl. Don’t fudge on the fresh parsley and the fresh lemon – it makes a difference.

Take the pita and rip it into bite sized pieces. Place them on a disposable cookie sheet and spray lightly with Pam. Sprinkle with a little sumac and place the cookie sheet on the BBQ with the chicken until they’re crispy.

When the chicken is done let it rest for 5 minutes. Take this time to pour the dressing on to the salad (leaving the pita ‘croutons’ aside) and toss well. You can choose to dice the chicken and include it in the salad, or place it on top. Garnish with  the pita croutons and the pickled turnip pieces. Yes, the turnips are bright pink and look crazy, but they taste awesome really add a great dimension to the dish.

You should be able to find the pickled turnip, shawarma spice and sumac at your local middle eastern grocery store. Although I see that Bulk Barn (at least the location nearest me) is now carrying sumac as well.

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Tools of the Trade: Cooking Bibles

3 Jul

Before any Christians get their panties in a bunch, I’m not talking about chucking the New Testament into a stock pot. I’m talking about those cookbooks that you keep going back to because they contain basic but critical cooking knowledge. Yes, as much as I LOVE Pinterest for discovering new recipes, there are two specific cookbooks that I keep coming back to because they have tried and true recipes for the core comfort food that we all grew up on. That’s why they’ve been reprinted for decades and why there are fierce battles on eBay for reprints. 🙂

So, what are my two desert island cookbooks?

One is Betty Crocker’s Cookbook, specifically the ‘red pie’ edition first printed in 1969 – the hardcover, not the 5 ring binder. 

Courtesy of Vintage Victuals

What makes Betty so awesome over 40 years later? This book is filled with core recipes like scalloped potatoes, yorkshire pudding, 7 minute frosting and things that are making a comeback like chess pie.

It’s got great visual instructions on how do to things like cut a pineapple, make a lattice pie crust and what cuts of meat come from what part of the cow.

It actually contains the first recipe I ever made – chef’s salad – for a project in the third grade. Why I chose to make salad for third graders, I have no idea. The kids who made snowball cookies and French toast were a lot more popular.

Betty’s book is still being printed and I in fact have a more ‘modern’ version as well. It still has some good stuff, but it’s been heavily pared down and crammed full of modern classics like buffalo chicken wings, totally missing some of the stuff that made the original so awesome.

Now to get your hands on one of these, you can either pilfer it from your mom’s collection, or you can jump on eBay and hope not to get outbid (I’ve seen copies go for as much as $100 depending on the condition). The best way to find one is likely at your local used book store though. The prices are generally more fair and you don’t have to pay shipping!

Desert island cookbook #2 is the Purity Cookbook. 

The edition on the market now was carefully reproduced from the 1967 edition. It’s got great charts for roasting all kinds of meats and recipes for just about everything that your grandmother probably put on her table, unfortunately including ‘gelatin desserts’.

Given the fact it was published by a flour company, the breads section is especially great with instructions for lots of classic loaves, waffles, muffins, scones and biscuits. The page that is most marked in this book for me is the apple crisp though. The Purity version is nicely sweet and bakes up very crispy on the edges. MMM. Now I want apple crisp.

There’s really no excuse not to pick this book up. At under $20 and readily available on Amazon and Chapters it should be part of your collection if it isn’t already. Makes a great shower gift for upcoming weddings!

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Tips & Tricks: Saving Money at the Grocery Store

30 Jun

Groceries are probably one of the biggest items on a family budget and the cost of food just keeps increasing. There are however a few ways that you can save a few cents or in some cases up to ten dollars on a single item.

Here are just a few ways to save your pennies:

  • Check out sales south of the border – Lots of things can be significantly cheaper in the US. See my post on that here.
  • Consult the flyers– Yes, this involves checking out the flyers each week but this is one of the best ways to consistently save

    Courtesy of TechEh

    money each week. If you don’t get flyers delivered to your door, all of the grocery stores have their flyers posted to their website. For those of you in Ontario (especially Ottawa), the Ottawa Citizen’s food guru Ron Eade actually does most of the work for you, posting a list of the top grocery store deals on his blog.

  • Plan your menu – Have a basic idea of what meals you’ll make during the week so you don’t wind up buying things you don’t need or won’t get a chance to use. It’s even better if you plan meals based on what’s on sale.
  • Make a list – Keep tabs on what you’ve used up at home and what you’re missing to complete the meals you’re planning to make. Stick to the list and avoid picking up things you’ve already got in your pantry or stuff you pick up on a whim.
  • Pick up staples when they’re on sale – Why buy canned tomatoes at 1.69 a tin when you can buy a flat when they’re on sale for .99  cents? They’re not going to go bad! Same goes for any other non-perishables.
  • Know how much things cost at different stores – This seems like a no-brainer, but if you usually go to Walmart and a grocery store, it pays to know that Tostitos are around .40 cents cheaper per bag at Walmart.
  • Do the math – Compare the price per oz. or pound or unit on different sized packages. Just because it’s a bigger size doesn’t necessarily mean it’s cheaper. Some stores will actually have this information on the shelf label for you.
  • Buy in bulk – Club packs or large sizes from places like Costco or even regular grocery stores can mean significant savings. Example – I used to buy ready chopped garlic in the little sized jar for between $2.50 and $3.50 but we like our garlic and I’d go through it pretty quickly. I got wise and picked up the jumbo size which = at least 6 or 7 of the smaller packages for about $4.50.
  • Don’t buy spices at the grocery store – Bulk food stores are much cheaper for spices because you’re not paying for the fancy bottle. Plus, you can buy only as much as you need, especially if it’s not a spice you use commonly.

  • Courtesy of Sears.ca

    Invest in a deep freezer – Having open freezer space allows you to take advantage of sale prices to stock up on meats, butter and other things that freeze well. Split them up into meal sized portions before freezing, or make meals in big batches (like spaghetti sauce) when the items are fresh and freeze as ready made meals.

  • Don’t shop on auto pilot – Keep your eyes peeled for savings you aren’t expecting. For example, I almost missed that a certain brand of milk was on sale because I usually bought what was regularly the cheapest. Tonight, I almost missed a larger bottle of laundry detergent for cheaper than its smaller counterpart, just because it wasn’t in the same shelf area.
  • Look for coupons – Coupons aren’t as big of a deal here as they are in the states, but lots of stores (especially the Loblaws brand ones) have a coupon station at the front of the store. The savings can be huge, especially if those items are already on sale.

All of these tips will help cut your grocery bills on an every day regular basis but the secret to slashing your bill by as much as $10 on a single item is simply knowing about the scanning code of practice. The scanning code of practice is a voluntary code that most major Canadian retailers (grocery stores, Walmart, drug stores etc.) participate in.

The basics of it are pretty simple – if the item you buy scans in higher than the price listed on the shelf you are entitled to the item FOR FREE if it’s below $10, and if it’s above you get a $10 reduction in its price. This applies only to the first of multiple items. The remainder just get price adjusted.

Want an example? Remember that big bottle of laundry detergent that was cheaper than it’s smaller cousin I was telling you about? Well, it was even cheaper because the tag on the shelf said $12 but it scanned in at $18. I just told the cashier that the item scanned in wrong. She had someone verify the shelf tag and confirmed it was priced at $12. Most stores will just adjust the price at this point in order to save themselves the cash so be bold and tell them the code and what you should get. Many newer cashiers don’t even know this exists but their managers do.

And that’s how I got a $2 jug of name brand laundry soap.

I’ve also gotten free pork souvlaki and free nailpolish.

Courtesy of CBC

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Recipe: Greek Yogurt & Dill Dip

29 Jun

Unless you live under a rock, you’ve seen the commercial for Frank’s Red Hot where they have a sweet grandma say, “I put that shit on everything!” Well,  I put THIS shit on everything.

I’ve used this dip/sauce on all kinds of raw veggies, on chips, on grilled or panfried fish, on grilled meats (usually kofta or souvlaki but it’d be great on lamb or even chicken). The best part, is that there is ZERO fat. Yes, ZERO. And it’s got flavour for days. This makes a big batch, but since it’s really just throwing stuff into some yogurt, you can mix up as little or as much as you need.

Greek Yogurt & Dill Dip

1 tub 0% Greek yogurt (yes, it’s gotta be the Greek stuff)
3 tbsp fresh dill, chopped (I use the kind that comes in a tube)
3 tbsp chopped garlic (I get the pre- chopped jarred kind)
3 tbsp lemon juice
1 tsp salt

Mix. Enjoy.

That’s it. Seriously.

It is better if it gets to sit for a bit and meld flavours. Feel free to crank up (or tone down) the garlic factor or swap the dill for another herb that you like better (dried mint’s a good choice). Keeps nicely for days in the fridge.

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Recipe: Spanish Chorizo Fritatta

28 Jun

I think we all have those days where you get home from work and stare into the fridge blankly wondering what you can throw together for dinner. Sometimes when that happens, I give up and break out a freezer meal (either homemade or an old standby like chicken fingers) but sometimes, that just won’t cut it because you want something real.

This is a recipe for one of those days.

Spanish Chorizo Fritatta
(based on Martha’s Tortilla Espanola)

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
3 large potatoes, diced in 3/4 inch pieces
1/4 medium onion, diced
salt & pepper
1/2 PC Spanish style chorizo (hot or mild), diced into bite sized pieces
7 large eggs, beaten
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese, optional

On medium-low, heat the oil in the bottom of a high sided non-stick frying pan. Add the potatoes (up to you whether you take the time to peel them or not) and the onion, salt & pepper and cook, covered for approximately 20 minutes stirring often until tender. Throw in the chorizo and let that cook for 3-4 minutes or until it starts getting fragrant. Salt & pepper the eggs before pouring overtop of the potato and egg mixture. Let it cook until the edges are set and the middle is only slightly runny, about 6 – 8 minutes.

Here’s the hard part – slide the whole thing out of the pan and on to a large plate. Then invert the pan over top of the plate and flip quickly so that the top of the fritatta is now in the bottom of the pan. Don’t worry if it doesn’t come out perfect – it’ll still taste great! Cook for another 3-4 minutes until done.

I like cheese with my eggs and potatoes so I decided to add some to the top at the end. Probably not very Spanish, but still very tasty. If you want to speed this dish up a bit, try popping the potatoes in the microwave for 5 minutes before chopping.

This is becoming a favourite in our house (anything with chorizo is a winner). Hope you like it as well!

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Canada Day Countdown

27 Jun

In our household, Canada Day is an excuse to have our nearest and dearest friends over for a BBQ and a bonfire. Nothing seems to be a more ‘Canuck’ way of celebrating than communing with nature while eating grilled meat and drinking beer.

Preparations are still fluid but I thought I’d share some inspiration ‘pins’ from Pinterest that you might be able to use for your own Canada Day celebration!

  • Want a new twist on a burger? Why not try stuffing your burgers with cheese? Or mixing the beef itself with blue cheese. Or going for something more exotic like buffalo, or elk. In Ottawa, the Elk Ranch in Kanata sells the same burgers you can get at the famous local burger chain The Works among other tasty treats for humans and dogs.

    Southwestern Skirt Steak Courtesy of Plain Chicken

  • If you want to step it up a notch, this southwestern skirt steak would be a surefire winner with beef lovers. This version of Korean bulgogi would be a winner too.
  • Want to serve ribs but don’t want to have to cook them all day? Why not try these ‘boneless’ ribs made from a pork tenderloin?
  • This summer’s favourite grill meat has been kofta, a middle eastern spiced meat on a stick. Everything is better when it’s on a stick. I’ve actually been buying my kofta meat pre-mixed at Damas Supermarket on Carling (across from the movie theatre) – really tasty and it’s also a great stop for other middle-eastern grocery items. It goes great with a cool garlic/yogurt/mint/lemon sauce.
  • Chicken’s always a winner too. We often do legs marinated in tandoori sauce (Patak’s is the best we’ve tried) and grilled on one of these gizmos. Totally worth the $14.
  • For dessert, last year I did cupcakes with maple leaf quins (available at The Bulk Barn) but this year I’m thinking either strawberry trifle or this donut/ice cream/maple syrup and strawberry combo. So Canadian eh? 🙂

    Courtesy of A Beautiful Mess

Have a happy (and safe) Canada Day everyone!

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Spotted – Canadian Wild Cherry Pepsi!

26 Jun

UPDATE! – I’ve seen cases for sale at Loblaws chain stores and Costco! Woo hoo!

It’s a very exciting day boys and girls. Look at what I found for sale in the food court of my office building:

Yes, that’s real, 100% cherry Pepsi from Canada. You can almost see the french labeling ‘Cerise en Folie’ in this shot.

Now for the important part – does it taste like US Wild Cherry Pepsi? From what I recall (I don’t have a US can handy for a taste test comparison) it’s close but the Canadian cherry flavouring tastes more natural than it’s US counterpart. It’s actually fresher and lighter and less like a Cherry Jolly Rancher diluted into the pop. It’s not better, or worse – just different.

So Pepsi – what’s the plan? Can Canadian consumers expect cases of Wild Cherry Pepsi on grocery store shelves soon?

*** UPDATE *** I hear it’s available at Costco – will have to check this out!

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