SALSA!!!!!

Yo Quiero SALSA!!!! Salsa is the most popular condiment in North America and I do believe it is because it is so versatile and really effing good. So, I decided to pop my canning cherry with a bit of salsa making. My dad gave me the bernardin instruction/recipe book last year and after looking at all the recipes I decide that salsa was a good thing to try first time around.

As you should all know I'm not the best a fully reading instructions thru when it comes to recipes. But you'll then also know that I do usually somehow find a way to make things work even if it is a bit questionable at times. This was no different.

The first thing you have to do even before you start your recipe is sterilize your jars. I didn't do that first. I made my recipe first. All this really meant though was that I had to keep my salsa warm while I did sterilize my jars. And just an FYI that does take some time. Figure on 20 minutes. If you are doing things properly and get your jars going before your recipe you should save yourself some time. To make salsa you have to blanch your tomatoes, peel and seed them which is a bit of a chore but worth it at the end of the day. From here it's just chop, chop,chop. Boil, boil, boil. And the hardest part is remembering to remove your air from the jars before you put on the lids. Just be sure to read all the details/steps you need to do for your seals to take and voila you have some fantastic homemade salsa that you can give friends/family. Give as hostess presents or just keep for yourself!! You don't have to have a canning pot to make this, just a deep pot that will fit your jars with water covering them. I would suggest though that you do need at least a really good pair of long tongs if not specific canning tongs. I borrowed a pair from a friend at work, maybe you know someone you can borrow from too?

Be adventurous and give it a try!!

http://www.bernardin.ca/pages/recipe_page/51.php?pid=550

Summer Vegetable Lasagne

This is again a Jamie Oliver recipe and I have to say, previously I thought this guy was basically just another Celebrity Chef who rubbed elbows with Hollywood bigwigs and didn't necessarily have a lot of substance to him. But I feel like now I'm seeing the man behind the myth and I have to say he is winning his way to my heart thru my stomach no less. True he did really impress me with his trying to change the world from fast food junkies back to home cooked meal addicts. (A philosphy I completely support.) He really seems to put his money where his mouth is for that kind of thing - at least on the surface. But I felt like I was sick of this guy as he seemed to be everywhere I looked for so long that I really didn't give him a fair shot. But this lasagne his so delicious, hearty, easy to make and has quality ingredients that I think I'm a believer now. To tell you the truth, I've even downloaded his app on my iphone. That's how much drastic change there has been in the MrsK/Jamie Oliver relationship. (Don't worry Nigella you're still in my heart too!)

So this lasagne is not made the way you're used to making lasagne. This one is made on your stove top and only finished in the oven to get the golden brown we all love on the top of our lasagne. I think this is a great way to get your families to eat more greens but in a way they maybe won't complain about it. What you do is saute your veg with the appropriate herbs then bring them to a boil in chicken stock (or veggie stock) and a little bit of cream (I used 5% to keep the fat content down), and cottage cheese. Then once everything is humming along nicely you start to layering your concoction with FRESH lasagne noodles in your ovenware. Layer, layer, layer with a little parmesan cheese in there (which if that's too rich for your blood you could always use something a little less pricey - say an aged cheddar or something with strong flavour, no mild cheeses here). Then top it off with the tops of your asparagus spears and more cheese, pop it in the oven for a few on broil and bon appetite!

If you wanted to you could add chicken to this lasagne and it would go really nicely. I would say use fully cooked chicken breast cut up into slices and then just toss it on maybe the middle layer of the lasagne when you're layering. And for my fellow vegetarians you could also add some silken tofu to this to beef up the protein. But keep in mind there are beans in this lasagne which are giving you some protein already.

Another great thing about this lasagne is it freezes really well. Personally I made this on a Sunday night then cut it up into portions, froze them in tupperware and there I had my lunches for the week. I think this recipe is fantastic and I will definitely be making this again.

http://hotcooking.co.uk/recipes/28/jamie-oliver-30-minute-meals-summer-veg-lasagne

Italian Tomato and Bread Salad

I haven't watched the Food Network in quite sometime. For a while I felt like I had seen just about every show on there at least twice. So I took a lengthy break - maybe a year or so. Then today out of nowhere I just decided to put on the food network. I am so glad that I did. Jamie Oliver's 30 minute meals was on and he made this salad. It looked so good that I decided to make it. This recipe is so easy to make and D-effing-licious. Husband loved it and I loved it. It takes about 10 minutes prepare and can be served as either a side or in my opinion can also be the main dish. It's hearty and flavourful. The kind of flavour where you have a perfect combination of ingredients and everything just works. AMAZING is all I have to say. I highly recommend this dish, it doesn't gest much better than this is my books.

http://www.jamieoliver.com/recipes/vegetarian-recipes/italian-tomato-bread-salad

German Eis Cafes

I cannot sleep. I keep thinking about my vacation and how I wish I was still on it! Sometimes I have a hard time shutting down my train of thought long enough for me to fall asleep. Tonight is one of those nights and I'm thinking about my recent return to a little town in Germany called Hattingen. When I was in high school I did a student exchange to Hattingen and lived with a host family there for 3 months. Just 2 weeks ago I returned and met again with the girl who was my exchange partner. It was a little surreal to see her again and spend an evening with her and her husband. All in all it was a great reunion but I was reminded of so many things about her that I had forgotten in the last 15 years. And tonight that is what I am thinking of.

While we were in Hattingen Husband and I spent our first night with my exchange partner and her husband. They took us to a nice Italian restaurant in the Alt Stadt or Old Town. It was really a very nice meal with plenty to drink and in true German style we capped the night off with some schnapps. The next day Husband and I went on a fantastic walk along the river Rhur and hiked up to the Isenburg ruins just outside the main city. It was a very hot day and once we got back to the city I insisted that we go for an ice cream . If you haven't had ice cream in Germany put it on your bucket list. These people know how to do ice cream. It is one of the things that sticks out in my mind about the food in Germany from when I was there on exchange. I went with a group of other Canadian high school students who were all sent to different families then halfway thru the exchange we all met up for a trip to Trier organized by our exchange foundation. One of the first things we all said to each other was "Can you believe the ice cream here?!" . We were all in love with it. So I was pretty excited about indulging in this once again. Deciding what to order what really difficult but I decided on a chocolate, strawberry, banana masterpiece that looked amazing. Husband didn't order an ice cream despite my attempts at persuading him, and He was sorry when my ice cream came. He definitely was a little jealous of my treat while he sat there with a smoothie.

The ice cream in Germany is so creamy and so smooth and soooooo tasty. Keep in mind that the Eis Cafe we went to was not even a top notch one. When I was living there my exchange mother would drive us into Essen to go to a REAL eis cafe as she described it. The ice cream there was in-frigging-credible and would blow my icey treat I was trying to re-live the glory thru out of the water. But still, this was enough for me to get my fix, as you can tell by the look on my face in the photo.

If you are lucky enough to visit a German Eis Cafe, I'm going to recommend at least one person in your party order some strawberry ice cream (erdbeer = strawberry). It's unbelievable. You'll never want to eat shitty North American strawberry ice cream again that's for sure. Let's just say that in 3 months in Germany I gained 5 kilos that I have to this day not lost. Erdbeer Eis is responsible for at least one of those kilos.

La Chouffe!

I'm back from Europe and better for it! I wish I was still there but I'm also enjoying the coziness that only "home" can give a person. I had so many amazing foods while in Europe but I fell in love with a beer called "La Chouffe".

I'm not going to lie I am easily swayed by packaging and let's be honest the initial part of falling in love is a physical attraction. It was kind of love at first sight for me and La Chouffe when I saw the super cute little gnome on the glass and I knew I had to have it. Then the taste just confirmed it for me.


La Chouffe is a Belgian beer and there are 2 commercial products. "La Chouffe" a blonde beer, and "Mc Chouffe" a dark beer. Both are delicious!!!! This beer was available in most places in Amsterdam and Brussels. I drank it every chance I got. I was lucky enough to discover it on the first day of vacation and asked for it everywhere I went pretty much. Of course I had other beers too, but I tried to have at least one La Chouffe per day if possible. I'm told that if you watch for it you can get La Chouffe at the LCBO particularly at Christmas time. So keep your eyes peeled beer lovers this one is a must try!

http://www.achouffe.be/en