Homemade Big Mac with Special Sauce

While not a huge fan of McDonald's, I do like their Big Macs.  I thought I would try to make a homemade version of the popular hamburger and was pleased with the results.  It tasted exactly like the real thing. 

Ingredients

• 1.5 lbs lean hamburger
• 6 sesame seed buns + 6 extra bottoms
• 6 slices cheddar cheese
• 1/4 head of iceberg lettuce
• 1/2 white onion
• 2-3 dill pickles

Special Sauce

• 1/2 cup real mayo
• 1/2 cup Miracle Whip
• 1/3 cup sweet relish
• 1/4 cup french dressing
• 1 tsp sugar
• 1 tsp pepper
• 2 tbsp diced onions

Directions

You are going to want to make your sauce first and allow it to rest in the fridge for at least an hour.   Simply combine all of the sauce ingredients together.

Next, prepare your toppings as these hamburgers patty's are so small, they cool very quickly so quick assembly is key.

Dice the onion into very small cubes.

Next, chop your lettuce very fine

Slice your pickles & cheddar cheese and set aside.

As you know, the Big Mac has an extra bun in the middle.  To achieve this at home, thinly slice the bottom layer of a bottom portion of bun.

To achieve the fast food hamburger patty, weigh the meat into 2 oz balls.  Form into a very thin patty.  The patty's will shrink quite a bit, so the thinner, the better (I stack my patty's on a plate using wax paper to seperate them so they don't stick).

Cook the hamburgers in a frying pan over medium heat for 1 minute per side, or until juices bubble to the top like the picture below:

Now doesn't that look just like a fast food patty?  :)

Next, assemble your Big Mac.

 The Assembly of a Big Mac:

- bottom bun

- 1-2 tbsp special sauce

- 1 tbsp onions

- sprinkle of lettuce

- slice of cheddar cheese

- one burger patty

- middle bun

- 1-2 tbsp special sauce

- 1 tbsp onions

- 2-3 slices of pickles

- sprinkle of lettuce

- one burger patty

- top bun

Enjoy! 

Nutritional Info

Big Mac (no sauce)

Calories - 500   Fat - 19    Carbs - 44     Protein - 34     Iron - 29    Fibre - 2

Sauce only (per tbsp)

Calories - 49   Fat - 5    Carbs - 2    Protein - 0     Iron - 0    Fibre - 0

My Aunt Cathy's Alfredo Sauced Chicken

My dad's family lives in British Columbia and some of my favourite childhood memories are from times that we would travel there to visit them.  On one trip, my dad's sister (my Aunt Cathy) made us this dish for dinner.  I absolutely loved it, and being that I was the a very picky child back then, it surely was a huge compliment when I asked for seconds. The combination of peas, wine, and honey make for a unique flavour that really brings the dish together.  You will not be disappointed if you decide to make this.

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp cooking oil
• 6 small boneless chicken breasts

• 1 lb fettuccine
• 4 qts boiling water
• 1 tbsp cooking oil

• 1/2 cup butter or hard margarine
• 1 cup whipping cream
• 1/4 cup honey
• 1/4 cup white wine
• 1/4 tsp garlic powder
• 1 cup frozen peas
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

• 1 tsp parsley flakes
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp pepper

Directions

Heat cooking oil in frying pan.  Add chicken.  Saute for about 5 minutes until no pink remains.

Cook fettuccine in boiling water, cooking oil and salt in large uncovered pot for 5 to 7 minutes until tender but firm.  Drain.  Return noodles to pot.

Add next 6 ingredients to chicken.  Heat and stir until it simmers.  Stir into pasta in pot.

Add remaining ingredients to pasta.  Toss to mix well.  Makes generous 12 cups to serve 6.

Calories -    Fat -     Carbs -      Protein -      Iron -     Fibre -

English Scones (or Biscuits)

In honor of the Royal wedding, I decided to make some traditional English scones with clotted cream and jam.  Yum! 

Ingredients

• 2 cups white flour
• 4 tsp baking powder
• 1.5 tbsp brown sugar
• 5 tbsp butter
• 2 eggs
• 3/4 cup heavy cream (whipping cream)

Directions

Preheat oven to 425ºF.

Sift the dry ingredients together and cut in the butter with a butter knife (or pastry cutter if you have one).

Beat eggs until frothy, then mix them with the whipping cream. Add this liquid mixture to the dry ingredients, stirring as little as possible.  

For scones:

Pat the dough into a pie shaped piece (again handling the dough as little as possible) and put in a greased and floured circular cake pan. Once in place, cut the dough like you would a pie (into 8 separate pieces) so they can be pulled apart when baked.

For biscuits:

Separate the dough into 9-10 pieces and place on a greased baking pan.

Bake for preheated oven for approx. 15 minutes, or until golden brown.

If you want to get fancy, you could also cut the dough with a biscuit cutter (a mason jar works great).

Top with your favorite jam and some clotted cream.  Clotted cream isn't very common here, but I was able to find it in my grocery store in the dairy isle next to the old fashioned whipping cream.



If clotted cream isn't your thing, they are also delicous served with butter and jam.

Enjoy! 

Nutritional Info (1/9 recipe)

Calories - 228    Fat - 15     Carbs -  21    Protein -  5    Iron - 10    Fibre - 1

Homemade Granola

I love granola, but it's so expensive to purchase pre-made. I thought I would try a homemade version and am I ever glad I did!  This recipe is very versatile, as long as you have a base of oats you can mix pretty much any other dry ingredient to make it to your liking.  If you like dried fruit in your granola, be sure to add it to the mixture only after the granola is finished baking. 

Ingredients

• 2 cups oats (rolled, wild, etc.)
• 1 cup sliced almonds (or any other nut)
• 3/4 cup dehydrated coconut chips (or shredded coconut)
• 50 g shelled hemp seeds (or any other seed)
• 50 g wheat germ
• 1/3 cup organic maple syrup 
• 5 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tsp vanilla

Directions 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. 

Combine the dry ingredients a medium sized bowl.  Next, combine maple syrup, olive oil, and vanilla.  Pour over dry mixture.  Combine with hands (trust me, hands is the best way to go here).

Spread mixture evenly onto cookie sheet.

Bake in pre-heated oven for 30 minutes or until golden brown.  Be sure to stir every 10 minutes to prevent clumps and so the granola cooks evenly throughout.

Store in airtight container or zipper baggies for up to 2 weeks.

Nutritional Info [1/12 recipe (50 g)] 

Calories - 217   Fat - 16    Carbs - 15     Protein - 6     Iron - 11    Fibre - 3

Almond Crusted Halibut

I am a big fan of halibut.  I saw my grocery store had some nice fresh pieces for sale, so I bought a package and this is the recipe I came up with.  Enjoy!  :)

Ingredients

• 1/2 lb peice of fresh halibut
• 1 cups panko breadcrumbs
• 2/3 cup slivered almonds
• 1/2 cup flour
• 1 egg
• Corse sea salt, to taste

If Baking

• 1 tbsp olive oil

If Frying

• 1/2 cup olive oil

Directions 

Combine breadcrumbs and almonds and crush together with your fingers.

Remove skin from halibut if there is any.  Cut halibut lengthwise into 4 equal sized pieces. Whisk the egg and dip each piece of halibut into the egg mixture, then coat with flour (I like to flatten my fish out a bit when coating with the flour mixture).  When all the pieces of halibut have been coated, dip in egg mixture again before dipping into almond breadcrumb mixture. 

If Baking:

Place fish on a cookie sheet greased with olive oil.  Bake in pre-heated 425 degree oven for 20-30 minutes, or until fish is crispy.  Be sure to turn it once halfway through cooking.

If Frying:

Pre-heat your oil over medium heat. Fry each piece for about 3 minutes per side, or until the fish turns a deep golden brown color.

Place on a serving tray lined with lettuce.  Salt immediatly. 

Nutritional Info (1 piece baked) 

Calories - 324    Fat - 17     Carbs - 25     Protein - 21     Iron - 10    Fibre - 4

Nutritional Info (1 piece fried) 

Calories - 444   Fat - 31     Carbs - 25     Protein - 21     Iron - 10    Fibre - 4

Scalloped Potatoes

My friend came over last night for supper, and she brought a slow cooked ham with her.   Scalloped potatoes always go well with ham, but I have never made them before.  I thought I would try it out and they turned out really well so I thought I would share.  This recipe makes 6 side dishes.  Enjoy!

Ingredients

• 1.5 Lbs (approx 4 medium) russet potatoes, peeled and sliced paper thin (I use a potato peeler)
• 2 cups milk
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 3 tablespoons butter, softened
• 3 ounces Gruyere cheese, grated (if you don't have any, use another white cheese like mozza)
• 2 green onions
• Coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees with a rack set in the lower third of oven. Combine sliced potatoes and milk in a large saucepan over high heat. Bring to a boil, and immediately reduce heat to low; cover and simmer until potatoes are just tender, about 3 minutes.  Mix in chopped green onions.
2. Rub a baking dish with butter. Arrange potatoes mixture in the baking dish; season with salt and pepper. Dot with remaining butter and pour over reserved cream.  Sprinkle cheese over top.
3. Transfer baking dish to oven and bake until cheese becomes deep golden brown and milk has reduced and thickened, 60-90 minutes. Remove from oven and serve immediately.

Nutritional Info (1/6 recipe)

Calories - 285    Fat - 17     Carbs - 24     Protein - 9     Iron - 5    Fibre - 2

Breakfast Baby Potatoes

I made this recipe by chance one day trying to come up with a good side for breakfast with what I had on hand.  It has potatoes, bacon and yogurt... all excellent breakfast foods.  You could easily serve this for a side at dinner as well in place of a baked potato; it goes great with steak!  :)

Ingredients:

Approx 30 small baby potatoes (400 grams)
6 Slices of Lilydale Daystarters Turkey Bacon (or your favourite bacon or ham)
2 whole green onions
1 tbsp butter
1/4 cup (8 tbsp) Greek Yogurt

Directions:

You're going to want to start by boiling the baby potatoes whole.  Baby potatoes require very little cooking time, about 10-15 minutes in boiling water should do.  Be sure to drain well before moving them to your frying pan. 

I love Lilydale Daystarters.  They are NOTHING like other types of turkey bacon, at at only 25 calories per slice, whats not to love?

Coarsley chop your bacon. 

Slice green onions and set aside.

Preheat frying pan on medium heat.  Melt the butter (this will help your potatoes and bacon turn a nice golden brown and really enhances the flavour of the dish).  Add the boiled potatoes and bacon and fry for about 10 minutes, or until bacon and potatoes have a golden brown hue. Add the chopped green onions in the last two minutes of cooking.

Top each serving with 2 tbsp greek yogurt (greek yogurt is a thick yogurt that is a great sour cream substitute). 

 Enjoy!

Nutritional Info without yogurt (1/4 recipe)

Calories - 135    Fat - 5     Carbs - 16     Protein - 9     Iron - 4    Fibre - 2

Nutritional Info with yogurt (1/4 recipe)

Calories - 160    Fat - 7     Carbs - 17     Protein - 10     Iron - 4    Fibre - 2