I like using the leftovers for one skillet breakfasts (recipe here).
Roasted Mini Potatoes Recipe
makes 4 side servings
1 1/2 pounds mini potatoes, scrubbed clean and dried
1/2 cup chicken broth (or vegetable broth or water)
juice of 1 lemon (optional)
4 cloves garlic, minced
optional: 1 to 2 tsp dried or fresh herbs (I like using dried parsley, rosemary or oregano, but you could use any herbs in any combination that you like)
3 to 4 tbsp olive oil
coarse sea salt
ground black pepper
I wanted to put something different onto my holiday baking list this year, so I made almond nougat. I love the chewy and crunchy texture and it’s surprisingly easy to make (if you have a stand mixer and a candy thermometer). Try making variations of this with strongly brewed coffee instead of water; or maple extract instead of almond extract; or switching the almonds for hazelnuts or pistachios, etc.
When I first heard the concept of bacon jam, I thought it might be an odd fusion of flavour and texture, but I was excited to try it nonetheless. I was not prepared for how delicious it would be and how often I would need to make it. This bacon jam is hearty with bits of bacon but spreadable like jam. It tastes deliciously smoky with an amazing undercurrent of sweetness. Even your home will smell like sweet bacon. 🙂 Although it takes 2 hours to make, it is incredibly easy to make. This would make the perfect hostess gift, holiday present, care package addition, or pot luck item.
Over the holidays, I served this to my family and Ed for breakfast with toasted english muffins, fried eggs, and tomato wedges. My dad, like I, was surprised at how much he liked it. Ed and my sister were fighting for the last of it and I received requests to make more very soon.
I eat this on baguette slices (ie. crostini) or right out of the jar with a spoon. Some more creative uses for bacon jam include: putting it on burgers, sandwiches, or grilled cheese; serving it on toast with a fried egg; using it as a base for vinaigrette or adding it to salads; adding it to baked brie or camembert; or using it in a brussel sprouts dish (ideas came from this website). Please post your ideas in a comment here!
Note that many bacon jam recipes have a bit of heat to them. I prefer to leave this out, but you could add hot peppers or any hot sauce that you like. Add this to the pot at the same time as the rest of the ingredients.
Singapore style fried rice noodles (rice vermicelli) is a mildly spicy dish that can be found in the types of Chinese restaurants that also serve congee, chow mein, and fried rice. (Check out those recipes under the Asian category!) There are many different versions of this dish. The way it is served in Malaysia is Very different from how it’s made in North America. But most people agree, that North America makes it best 🙂 This recipe is based on the way that all of my favourite restaurants do it.
I love meringues that are crispy on the outside and chewy on the inside. They remind me of my dehydrated marshmallows. Although they take a while to bake, they’re very easy to make. I took them into work and I was surprised at how many people associated them with fond memories of their mothers and grandmothers.
I made meringue cookies, but you could make meringue nests and top them with fresh fruits, sauce, custard, or whipped cream, etc. You could also add food colouring for themed occasions or add cocoa powder for chocolate meringues (try topping them with a chocolate chip). My co-worker told me that his mom hides a chocolate chip in the centre of her meringue cookies.
I had a lot of shredded coconut leftover from when I made Indian curry and coconut and mango rice pudding. So I experimented with making coconut macaroons. This recipe makes macaroons that are slightly sticky with a chewy centre and crispy edges. They are very easy to make and are great plain.
You could easily turn these simple treats into something decadent by dipping them in melted chocolate. You could dip just the bottoms or just the tops. Or you could cover half of a macaroon with chocolate by dipping it on the diagonal.
I love the freshness that you get from adding herbs to hummus. I usually add a little bit of parsley and/or dill to my plain hummus. But in this variation, the dominant flavour comes from one of my favourite herbs – cilantro. I made this for my birthday party and people really liked it. (See my sun dried tomato hummus recipe here.) More recently, I made this for John’s housewarming party and it was, again, a huge hit. This time, though, I didn’t allow the food processor to incorporate the cilantro leaves as homogeneously, and the hummus had a nicer look to it.
The first time I tried rice pudding, it was served cold, and I didn’t understand why anyone would enjoy bits of rice in their creamy custard. I didn’t try it again until years later, when a friend of mine served it warm after dinner. She completely changed my mind about rice pudding. Then I came up with this recipe and turned Ed and Krystal into rice pudding fans too. 🙂
Rice pudding is a simple dessert that you can serve all year round. For example, you can serve it cold in the summer or use it as a refreshing finish to a spicy Indian meal. I prefer to make rice pudding in the fall or winter, because a hot bowl of rice pudding makes for a very comforting dessert on a cold night. Here is my recipe for basic rice pudding. Note that the instructions differ depending on whether you’re planning on serving this cold or warm. Also, try replacing some of the milk with evaporated milk or coconut milk, or try using sweetened condensed milk instead of sugar, but keep in mind that this may alter the cooking times. (See my coconut and mango rice pudding recipe here.)
It’s easy to create different variations of hummus. For example, you could use carmelized onions, curry powder, roasted red peppers, edamame beans, beets, pumpkin, etc. Here is my recipe for sun dried tomato hummus. (See my cilantro lime hummus recipe here.)
I love introducing people to garlic shoots (also known as garlic scapes – note, that’s scapes, not scraps 😉 ). I make this dish often and people always love it. In North America, the green shoots that grow from garlic bulbs are usually discarded. But these garlic shoots, when harvested while young and tender, are actually very tasty and have a light, garlicky flavour when cooked. You can find it in Asian grocery stores and the younger the better, so you want to avoid the really darkly green coloured shoots.
Picture above from top moving clockwise: tomato eggs, stir fried garlic shoots with shrimp, hot and sour soup, mongolian beef. See the Asian category for the rest of the recipes.
Picture below: Stir fried garlic shoots with shrimp and pacific clams.
Caesar salads are very popular in my home. They’re Ed’s favourite and I enjoy them too even though I’m not a big fan of leafy salads. I like to make my own bacon bits and croutons (see my crouton recipe here). Here I share with you my favourite caesar dressing recipe.
Ginger and green onions go great together, especially when they’re paired with chicken. For example, many Chinese poached chicken recipes use ginger and green onions in the poaching liquid. I usually use them as a condiment for chicken when I make ginger scallion dip (recipe here). You could also make a simple stir fry with these healthy and fresh ingredients.
Cooking with Alison 