Veggie & Cream Cheese Bagel

This one is hardly a recipe, but it's oh so yummy!  I had this sandwich at a tea house with my mom when I was a teenager, and I have frequently made it ever since:

Ingredients

- 1 whole grain bagel

- 2 tbsp cream cheese

- 4-8 slices english cucumber

- 2-3 slices of tomato

- 1 leaf of lettuce

- 1/4 cup alfalfa sprouts

Directions

Toast your bagel and spread 1 tbsp of cream cheese per side.  Add cucumbers, tomatoes, and lettuce; top with alfalfa sprouts

Enjoy!

- Nutritional Info (entire recipe - i.e one sandwich) -

Calories - 358    Fat - 13     Carbs - 48     Protein - 11     Iron - 22    Fibre - 5

Pina Colada Popsicles

Pina Colada's are one of my favourite alcoholic beverages.  This recipe can be used for the beverage as well, just add a few shots of white rum and you'll be good to go!  :)

Ingredients:

1 cup fresh pineapple

1/2 cup coconut milk (fresh is best, but you can used canned)

2 tbsp sugar (I use evaporated organic cane juice)

1/2 cup almond milk

Blend ingredients (a magic bullet works awesome for this).   Pour into 4 of your favourite popsicle molds, freeze until set (a few hours) and enjoy! 

- Nutritional Info (per popsicle) -

Calories - 93    Fat - 4     Carbs - 15     Protein - 1     Iron - 2    Fibre - 1

Cheddar Bacon Breakfast Sandwich

I love making homemade breakfast sandwiches.  Not only are they delicious, but they are really easy to make!  I discovered Lilydale Daystarters a few years ago and haven't gone back to regular bacon since.  Not only are they delicious, but they are only a mere 25 calories and 1 gram of fat per slice (beating out Oscar Myers turkey bacon by 10 calories and 2 grams of fat, and regular bacon by a whopping 70 calories 8 grams of fat).

Ingredients

- 2 large eggs

- 2 whole wheat english muffins

- 1 tbsp butter

- 4 slices of Lilydale Daystarters (turkey bacon)

- 30 g medium or old cheddar cheese

Directions

- Slice or grate cheese and set aside.

I like to use medium to old cheddar as it gives a much deeper flavour.   You can get nice thin slices of cheese using a potato peeler (as pictured below):

Prehead a medium sized pan on medium heat.  Once the pan is preheated melt 1/4 tsp of butter and add the turkey bacon and cook as usual. 

The addition of butter will give the turkey bacon a nice golden color and a bit of crispness (as pictured below). 

Melt 1/4 tsp butter in a medium saucepan preheated on high heat. Fry eggs making sure the yolk cooks through (makes for a less messy sandwich).   I like to make sure my eggs get nice and bubbly before flipping.

If re-using the same pan, be sure to wipe out all of the old oil with a papertowel first. 

Toast your english muffins and butter each side with the remaining butter.   Assemble sandwich and enjoy!

- Nutritional Info (per sandwich) w/ butter -

Calories - 363    Fat - 20     Carbs - 24     Protein - 25     Iron - 18    Fibre - 2

- Nutritional Info (per sandwich) w/o butter -

Calories - 310    Fat - 14     Carbs - 24     Protein - 25     Iron - 18    Fibre - 2

London Fog

London Fogs are one of my all time favourite drinks.  They are made with Earl Grey tea (hence the name) and very easy to make with basic kitchen utensils.  No need to pay $5+ at a coffee shop anymore!

Ingredients
- 2-3 Earl Grey tea bags or 3-4 tbsp loose (depending on how strong you like it)
- 2 cups milk
- 2 cups water
- 3-4 tbsp vanilla syrup

Directions

Combine milk and water and bring to a boil in a medium saucepan, stirring constantly (you want to be careful as to not burn the milk).  Add tea and reduce heat to medium, steeping for about 2 minutes. 

Remove tea bags/strain tea and mix in vanilla syrup.  Pour into your favourite mug and enjoy!

Vanilla Syrup

Vanilla syrup is the key ingredient in one of my favourite drinks, the London Fog.  I will be posting the London Fog recipe next week.

Ingredients:

1 Cup water
1 Cup sugar
1 Vanilla bean (you can also use vanilla extract, but the bean will give a deeper vanilla flavour)

Directions:

Combine all ingredients in a medium saucepan and bring to boil on high heat, stirring constantly.  The sugar will dissolve and the mixture will become clear. Once mixture has come to a boil, continue to boil for about 5 minutes. 

If you used vanilla beans, remove the large pieces left behind.  There will still be smaller bits that look like coffee grounds (unless you strain first through a coffee filter), those will add to the flavour of the syrup.

Once cool, bottle and refrigerate.  Goes well with coffee or tea.

Heineken Sweet Potato Stew

This is one of my husband's original recipes.  While not a cheap recipe to make, you will not be disappointed!  This stew is rich in flavour and high in vitamins.  It will warm you up on a cold day from the inside out.  This recipe makes about 12 cups and freezes really well.  Since the alcohol boils off during the cooking process, this stew is safe for all ages.  :) 

Ingredients
- 1 lb of your favourite beef (we usually use tenderloin or other cuts of steak)
- 4 - 900 ml containers of beef broth
- 1 bottle of Heineken Beer
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 large sweet potato
- 3-4 medium potatoes
- 1/2 medium turnip
- 1 large carrot
- 1 large parsnip
- 2 medium onion
- 2 bay leafs

Optional

- You can also add any other 'root' vegetable you like

Flour mixture to coat beef
- 1/2 cup flour
- 1 tsp each granulated garlic, pepper
- 1/2 tsp each basil, oregano, rosemary

Directions

Prep

Chop the sweet potato into small cubes and set aside. 

 Chop the rest of the vegetables (potatoes, turnip, carrot, parsnips, onions) into bite sized cubes and combine in large bowl and set aside.

Chop meat into bite sized cubes and set aside in a separate bowl.

Flour Mixture

Combine flour and spices (granulated garlic, pepper, basil, oregano, rosemary).  Set aside.

Soup

Combine 3 of the broths and bring to a boil over high heat. 

Add the sweet potatoes and bring back to a boil stirring often.   Once it’s at a boil, reduce heat to medium high and cook for 15-25 minutes, continuing to stir often.

  

Once the sweet potatoes become soft, start breaking down the pieces with a whisk.  As the sweet potatoes break down, they will begin to melt and become part of the broth.

Add the beer and the last container of broth to the pot and bring back to a boil.

Coat the meat in the flour mixture and shake off the excess.   Coating the beef in flour will help to thicken the stew.

Fry the meat in a preheated, olive oiled pan until lightly brown.  I use about 1 tbsp of olive oil per batch (I usually cook the meat in two batches).

Once browned, add the beef to the pot and cook for 20 minutes on medium high heat, stirring occasionally.


Add the vegetables and bay leafs to the pot and bring back to a boil.  Once at a boil, reduce heat to medium.

Simmer and cook an additional 45 minutes, or until vegetables are tender and all of the flavours have blended.

  

Enjoy!

- Nutritional Info (per cup) -

Calories - 202     Fat - 7     Carbs - 11     Protein - 14     Iron - 10     Fibre - 1

French Onion Soup

This recipe comes from my husband's Uncle Frank, who has enabled me to make amazing French Onion Soup that you could make too.

Ingredients
- 3 sweet onions (or regular onions)
- 1 L of beef stock
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tbsp butter
- 1/4 tsp worcheshire sauce
- Salt & Pepper to taste
- Bread (French bread is the best for this recipe).
- ½-1 cup white cheese (Gruyere cheese is the best for this recipe, but if I don’t have any I use Mozzarella)

Optional: splash of red wine (I freeze leftover red wine in ice cube trays for recipes such as these)

Directions

Slice onions as thin as possible and set aside. 

Preheat 4 L pot on medium heat.  Once preheated, melt butter into pan and mix in the olive oil.

Add the sliced onions and sauté until tender.  Pour beef stock, worcheshire sauce, and wine into pot and turn the element to high, stirring frequently until soup comes to a boil. 

Crouton Method # 1 (Stovetop soup with one big crouton):

Once boiling, reduce to medium-low heat and cook for an additional 8-10 minutes.

Slice French bread on an angle and lightly butter.  Top with cheese.  Bake in preheated 350 degree oven until cheese is melted and slightly golden.   Top each bowl of soup with a slice of cheese toast and enjoy!

Crouton Method # 2 (Baked French Onion Soup):

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Pour soup into a large casserole dish, (or 4 small oven safe dishes) and sprinkle in half of the cheese.  Tear 4 slices of bread into crouton sized pieces and spread evenly over top of soup.  Sprinkle the remaining cheese on top.  Bake for 15 minutes, or until cheese is golden.

This recipe makes 4 - 1 cup servings.

- Nutritional Information (per cup) -

339 Calories    19 Fat    28 Carbs    16 Protein    6 Iron    3 Fibre