Goulash Soup

2 tbsp. All-purpose flour
1 tsp. Paprika
1/2 tsp. Pepper
1 pound Stewing beef, trimmed of fat, cut into 1 inch cubes
1 tbsp. Cooking Oil
1 cup Chopped Onion
1/4 cup Water
1 Garlic clove, minced
4 cups Beef stock
1 tsp. Caraway seed
14 oz. Can of diced tomatoes (avec jus)
1 cup Diced carrot
1 cup Diced yellow turnip
1 cup Diced peeled potato

serve with a dollop of sour cream

***

Well, I think I mentioned before that I obtained a few soup recipes from one of my co-workers. Well I think it was a week or two before I obtained the recipes, that I had eaten a Goulash Eggs Benedict (No - I didn't do a write up on it. Next time. I promise). I just love that stuff. Anyway, I have had a hankerin' for some good goulash.

It didn't happen.

This soup just did not meet my expectations. I even had it AGAIN a few days after the flavours had time to stew, but it was for naught. Don't get me wrong, the soup wasn't terrible, it just wasn't good at all.

The good: the soup was filling, and had copious amount of vegetables. It should be healthy enough.

The bad: it just didn't have "it". Roughly comparable to a store-bought can of soup.

The ugly: the goulash just wasn't goulash. The meat wasn't as stringy and tender like that of my aforementioned Goulash Eggs Benedict. And it just seemed a bit to thin. That meat has to cook for a few more hours, I'd say. Maybe another cut of beef, too. I think I used round steak.

Meh. It was about as exciting as this.

Regardless, here is the photographic evidence.

Overall, I'd give it a grade of 5.5 out of 10. This definitely does not cut the "keep-the-recipe-and-try-again" grade. Don't bother. Don't even bother reading this post.

Gingered Carrot Soup

1 tbsp butter
2 cups carrot
1 cup onion
1/2 cup celery
2 tbsp ginger
3 cups chicken stock
1/4 cup long grain brown rice (I used mixed rice)
1 tbsp liquid honey
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper

***
After you mix the reagents together, you say "An Nox" and BAM! you are cured of what ails you! Just kidding...

I obtained this piece palate-pleasing soup from one of my current co-workers. She had the recipe book in front of her during lunch hour, and I asked if I could quickly peruse through it. With my good looks and charm, she couldn't resist. Quickly I had found two recipes that tickled my fancy (and it would appear my co-worker's as well) - this ginger carrot soup and a goulash soup.

What are you going to do on a Saturday night after studying for your CASB final evaluation on the upcoming Friday? Well, what I did was cook some soup. I really wish I could have recorded the smell. When I added that ginger root to the onions, celery, carrots and butter, it was like ginger heaven - all that was missing was beer, a decent hockey game on tv and scantily-clad women. I would have added that smell to the website for all my little sous-chefs to enjoy.... ahhh technology, why have you forsaken us? Sure, you give us 3-D tvs, but when will smells come out?

Speaking of ginger, when I was younger one of my brother's friends was snooping through our refrigerator. He pulled out a ginger root and said, "What's this?". Either my brother or I helped the culturally-challenged individual and told him it was ginger. "Really?", he replied, and proceeded to bite it. He didn't take a bite out of it, he just bit it. Then he put it back in the fridge. Needless to say, this individual is depraved.

Back to the soup.

It has the usual vegetable-triad of carrots, onions and celery. After the cooking and the pureeing is done, it ends up being pretty thick. And tasty.  I actually added more ginger than the recipe asked for, and was worried that it would be too strong. But it wasn't at all. To my palate the ginger wasn't strong enough. Next time I'll have to up the ante.

Also, I didn't make enough to taste the soup the following day. Because, as everyone knows, soup is always better the second day. Well, I've made a mental note to double up the recipe for next time.

Final score: 7.0 out of 10.

Here is the photographic evidence:

Got ginger?

Drunkard's Noodles

4 oz. dried rice noodles
2 tablespoons oil
1 onion
1 clove garlic (Chef's note: I didn't have any garlic, so omitted this... :(   )
4 small red chilies
1 small red bell pepper
1 small green bell pepper
1 tomato
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon dark soy sauce
2 tablespoons light soy sauce
6 basil leaves (Chef's note: I used Hot Thai Basil - that's what the package read from Lucky 97)
4 kaffir lime leaves (Chef's note: I used 6 leaves)

***

Well, I hadn't made this dish since May or June of this year. Not because I don't like the dish, but because it's hard to get lime leaves. At least I haven't been able to locate any at any of the grocery stores here in Leduc. I doubt they'll have any in Camrose either... <hurrrrrrrrrrr>

So, after finally remembering to get to an Asian food market while in E-town yesterday, I picked up some groceries and made sure to get the lime leaves. They smell so good. I think I might bring some into work to freshen things up.

Back to the task at hand - The dish really doesn't take very long (cooking time is less than 5 minutes), most of the time is spent cutting up the vegetables. And waiting for the rice noodles to soak. I let them soak for 10 minutes in cool water. They were still a little hard when I threw them into the wok, but you just keep adding water tablespoons at a time until they are done. In hindsight, I may have let them soak for about 2 - 3 minutes longer.

The other problem with the noodles is that they didn't separate very well, so it was difficult to dish out.

As you can see below, the dish is quite colourful:

As for taste, I had forgotten how hot it was. I wasn't crying, but it was darn well near burning my lips. I wish I had one of these to cool my palate.

Overall a 7.5 out of 10. I suppose if you like hot food you'll be more inclined to rate it higher.

Elm Café

Early Sandwich $8 (CAD)
Americano $2.5 (CAD)

***

Well, my friend's ex-coworker suggested we go to Elm Café for breakfast. I'm just guessing their ex-coworker's, but I'm not too sure. 

Anyway, this little place is just off of Jasper in the Oliver area. It's probably only 80 square feet, with about 20 square feet designated as eating space. This place is small, with a correspondingly small menu.

I haven't had an Americano for quite some time, so I ordered one. I was just a little displeased. I can't quite put my finger on it. Was it too bitter?

The sandwich was okay - it had eggs, spinach, ham and cheese in it. But for $8 (CAD)? Really? I mean it was okay. Not too filling, and, but not value for your hard-earned sestertii. Nothing that really wows you at all. Not a lot of flavour.

Overall, I'd give it a 6 out of 10. Mildly disappointing, but perhaps our hearts were misguided - as it wasn't really a breakfast spot. It was more of a "I've-got-to-walk-the-dog-this-morning-and-I-need-a-coffee-and-I'm-in-the-neighbourhood" kinda place.

It is what it is.

Regardless, you can feast your eyeballs on this:

Chocolate Banana Coconut Cake with Mango Lime Sauce

2 ripe mangos, peeled and seeded
2 tablesoons lime juice
1 cup mango juice

See previous post for cake recipe.

***

At my new place of employment, we don't take coffee breaks all week. Until Friday afternoon. On that day we take 1 hour of the afternoon off to chit chat, and someone has to bring in a cake or dessert to nipple, er, I mean nibble on. (Speaking of which, one of my friends <cough>Dylan<cough> complained that I didn't have nearly enough boobies on my blog. So this is for him). So I signed up for this Friday and I brought a double whammy of the Maple Apple Blueberry Crisp and Chocolate Banana Coconut Cake with Mango Sauce.

Well, it was okay with the sauce. It wasn't as yummy as I was anticipating, but it still played of the rich moist chocolate cake pretty well. It was basically like thick mango juice. Oh well, better I make it than have Booster Juice charge me $5 (CAD) for it. Regardless, a respectable 7 out of 10.

Good news, everyone! It looks like we'll be heading out for NFL picks and brunch tomorrow. Hopefully we'll have a restaurant review for all my little sous-chefs to read.

Chocolate Banana Coconut Cake

1 cup flour
1/4 cup cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1 cup white sugar
1/2 cup oil
2 eggs
2 bananas, mashed
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup dried, unsweetened shredded coconut
Chef's decision: 1/2 cup chocolate chips

***

I tell you, nothing is better than warm chocolate cake. Except maybe warm pie. Hmmm...

This was from my farang-Thai cookbook I had mentioned previously. It's basically a yummy chocolate cake:

Not much to it. I didn't make any icing for it or anything. The author recommends that you serve it with a mango-lime sauce, so I think I'll bake the cake again later this week when I have to bring in some dessert into my workplace on Friday. I'll provide a new blog update with comments on the sauce. I think a chocolate icing would have worked just as well.

Regardless of the no-icing, no-sauce status of the cake, it was warm and moist and delicious. You can't smell the nutmeg at all, so it doesn't remind you of Christmas, or your best friend getting sick from rum and eggnog. All-in-all, a very good 8.3 out of 10.

Here's an individual piece for you to feast your eyes upon...

Maple Apple and Blueberry Crisp

Filling:
6 cups sliced peeled apples (I used Granny Smith)
1 pkg (300g) frozen blueberries
1/4 cup granulated sugar
2 tbsp all-purpose flour
1 tbsp lemon juice
1/4 tsp cinnamon

Topping:
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup rolled oats
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/3 cup maple syrup
2 tbsp butter, melted

***

Well... I met up with ANOTHER ex-coworker just recently. What's with me hangin' out with ex-coworkers? Don't I have any co-workers worthy of my precious time?

Anyway, I went to her house for dinner on Saturday. She wasn't too keen on me providing a write-up of her hostessing and cooking talent, so I just focused my criticism on the dessert I prepared - The Maple Apple and Blueberry Crisp.

I've actually brought this dish in to work several times when I was employed with FCC and AIMCo, and so it's has usually cooled down when served. But Saturday night it was hot! A good change.

As always, the dish was quite sweet. I honestly could have eaten the whole pyrex dish by myself. You know, because it's so darn healthy, those blueberries being such good antioxidants.....

Here's the goods. On my plate.

Rating: A solid 8.0 out of 10.

Grilled 5-spice Octopus Salad with Spicy Tangerine Vinaigrette & Rendang Beef Asian Po'Boy - The Wild Tangerine

Grilled 5-spice Octopus Salad with Spicy Tangerine Vinaigrette  $9.00 CAD
Rendang Beef Asian Po'Boy                                                      $14.00 CAD

***

Three people who contributed a lot to society to come from Saskatchewan: Gordie Howe, Leslie Nielsen, and Felix. No, not this Felix but my ex-coworker. He (on a moment's notice) decided that we were to meet at "The Wild Tangerine" for lunch today (10383 112Street NW, Edmonton). It's on the South side of 104th Ave., right beside the Starbucks. I didn't even know this place existed, but well Felix opened my eyes to some pretty good food...

I ordered the Octopus salad and the beef Po'Boy. I've never had a Po'Boy before, so I was licking my chops in anticipation of that. And well, I order the Octopus salad because it had 5-spices and octopus.

The salad came first:

You really can't see the tentacles or the suckers very well. In fact, the Octopus plays a very minor part of the salad. The best way I can describe this salad is like a Thai mango/papaya salad. It was simply scrumptious. Crunchy vegetables and fruit combined with a slightly spicy and sweet dressing, it was very superb. The octopus wasn't really required - it was really 3rd wheelin' it like nobody's business.

The Po'Boy didn't disappoint:

Yeah, you only see half of the sandwich here. One of my ex-coworker's, "Kim" with her voracious appetite stole half my sandwich before it even got placed in front of me. It kinda went down like this. (Is that Captain Picard's voice?). Anyway, the sandwich was quite good - a slight curry taste to the beef. Hmm. Maybe that's what "Rendang Beef" is? The bread was soft, and the roasted red peppers and onions added some nice flavour.

Overall, a very good lunch surprise. The dinner menu looks great too, and the potato and lavender soup they served to the other table smelled divine. A little pricey, but a score of 8 out of 10.

Banana Ginger Squares

1 1/4 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 cup white sugar
2 eggs
2 bananas, mashed
1 teaspoon lime juice
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup chopped candied ginger
3/4 cup unsweetened shredded coconut

***

Well, I busted out Mr. Hyam's ol' Thai cookbook this afternoon, after I had finished my revisions to my week 3, Module 1 CASB assignment....

Regardless, I was thinking I should use up some of those bananas we had. Yes, banana bread would be a great idea, but how else can you combine bananas, ginger and coconut?

Mummy and I had some warm Banana Ginger Squares while we watched some episodes of season 4 of Homicide. Good stuff. Really, I should have added a little pad of butter to it, so it could melt and find it's way into all the nooks and crannies of the bread....  Indeed, another option I was considering was adding chocolate chips to the batter before it goes into the oven.

Here's the whole pan, at a 3/4 view:

...and now a side view. You can see the banana see clearly mixed in. Tough to see the ginger, but believe me, it's in there:

Overall, a quick and easy bread to make. My tastebuds give it a 7 out of 10.

Grande EggNog Latte - Starbucks

1 Grande Eggnog Latte $4.75 CAD

***

Well, it was with great excitement that I was finally able to order my favourite hot beverage - the Eggnog Latte... I had seen some eggnog at the local Wal~Mart a few weeks ago, so I've been just itchin' to get to a Starbucks.

I think the barista went a little heavy with the nutmeg, as you can all plainly see above. It was close to hot, and it's eggnogginess filled me with happiness. Although I find their lattes get cool a little more quickly than their coffees. That's something I'd like to see changed.

Rating: 7.5/10

St. Patrick's Bison Burgers

4 slices French bread, crusts removed
1 cup (250 mL) Guinness Draught, room temperature
2 cloves garlic, finely minced
2 tablespoons (30 mL) Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons (30 mL) ketchup
1 teaspoon (5 mL) salt
Freshly ground pepper
2 lb (1 kg) ground bison (I used extra-lean ground beef)
1 red onion, finely diced
1 teaspoon (5 mL) dried thyme
1 large egg
1/2 cup (125 mL) freshly chopped parsley (I used a handful of dried parsley)
kaiser buns
Cheddar cheese
bread crumbs (This is not part of the recipe but I added some in)

***

Let's be honest, shall we? We're in Alberta. We eat meat. We eat beef. This burger has got beef, and it's got beer. Nothing spells "l-o-v-e" like homemade hamburgers. And this is good stuff. It's very, very moist. I was pretty impressed with the results today. I usually use a little less than 1 kg of beef, so it's a little too 'wet' and it will fall apart in the bar-b-q. Solution: a little bid of bread crumbs to stick it all together a little better. It's a sound investment.

Again, I obtained the recipe from the Edmonton Journal's bistro/food section - it was a St. Patrick's Day writeup. I'm guessing it's from about 5 years ago, because I have a note on it from October 17, 2007: "Made at Jeff's - more bread??". I think that day it was too wet or soggy that day, so I've been trying to up the bread quotient up or at least add some bread crumbs to keep things together a little better.

You can see the burger below. It's a little small, but I think they cook a little better. And I added some cheddar on top, of course. The burger is accompanied by one lovely yam (or is it a sweet potato? whatever, it's the same thing I used in the soup from a few days ago). Speaking of yams/sweet potato, I was watching foodtv before preparing the patties and there was this show "Spice Goddess" with an attractive Indian lady who was cooking - and she had some tasty, simple dishes that I need to try. One of them being a kidney bean stew (yes, it contains sweet potato).

Net result was a tasty meal. I'd give the burger an 8.5 out of 10.


Actually, I think this is the second best use of a Guinness. Hopefully I will be able to write about the best use of a Guinness relatively soon...

Earl's - One Pound Wings

One pound of chicken wings - hot, with parmesan dip and celery sticks.

***

Here you can see my lunch today:

Yes - your eyes don't lie - that character to the right of my plate is a cow. It's "Kimberly the AIMCo Cow". Yes, she dresses like a dude, but she's a good friend of mine from my days with AIMCo.

But no, I didn't meet her for lunch today, but another ex-coworker. It was at Earl's on campus.

The wings were just as tasty as I remember, from my days as an undergraduate at the U of A. Just hot enough to warrant a second beverage. And the wings meaty enough to fill my belly. I must say Earl's has kept their wings tradition intact. In fact, it was also Wings Wednesdays today, but that doesn't take effect until after 3 pm. The only thing I think I would like would be a blue cheese dip. That could be a nice sharp offset to the hotness of the wings.

Yes, you probably do pay a little too much at Earl's, but you also pay for the environment and ambiance... Not that I was paying. My ex-coworker did that. :)

Overall, I'd rate the wings an 8 out of 10. Very good.

The Free Press Bistro - The Kubla Khan with Russian Potato Salad

Lean strips of beef, marinated in Mongolian spice and pressed with chiles, shredded carrot, Hoisin sauce and mozza. $12.95

***

I ventured downtown into the big city today for lunch. The Free Press Bistro was my friend's choice, but I was still eager to go. Once I looked at the menu, I realized that the focus was on sandwiches - not what I was expecting at all. I didn't know what to expect, but I just wasn't expected so much focus on the Earl's invention.

I was originally tempted by the Cuban, as I could compare it to my own work (click here). And then the Kubla Khan caught my eye. And then the Shrimp Po' Boy caught my eye (I've never had a Po' Boy). What was Chef Jeremiah to do? In the end, after some discussion as to what "Russian Potato Salad" is and the exciting night the Oil had on Friday, I decided on the Kubla Khan.

It was pretty good. I chose it because it reminded me of the subs I got at the Saigon Givral. I miss that place. Anyway, the sandwich was pretty good, although the bread was just a tad dry for my liking, and the price just a bit too much for what you get (I opted up for $1.50 to get the Russian Potato Salad). The meat was tender and flavourful - in fact it reminded me of a pulled pork sandwich. And the carrots and Hoisin sauce added enough zest and moisture to it. I would have it again, no questions asked.


Here is the proof:

Now, that is only half the sandwich as well - I had forgotten to take to photo until partway done.

I wish I could have quizzed the waitress again about what makes up a Russian Potato Salad, but she was just too busy after we had received our meals. There just isn't enough time at lunch during the week to allow Chef Jeremiah to get his questions answered.

Overall I'd give the experience about a 6.5 out of 10. It would have been better had we accompanied our sandwiches with some beer.

Hot and Honeyed Sweet Potato Soup with Lime

4 cups (2 L) water (Hey - I know that doesn't quite add up, but that's what the recipe says). I used 6 cups/1.5L water
2 lbs. (1 kg) sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed. I used Yams.
1 jalapeño pepper
juice and grated zest of 1 lime. I used 4 key limes.
1/4 cup (75ml) honey
1 teaspoon (5ml) curry powder
salt and pepper top taste (I know, it should be "to" not top - but that's what the recipe said. Poor editing on the Journal's part, that's for sure...). Actually, I forgot to add these!
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
sour cream, salsa, extra cilantro and lime wedges


***


Do you want to turn this:

into this?

I bet you do. That's what I did tonight.

This recipe was obtained from the Edmonton Journal food/bistro section about 7.5 years ago. It was on page 2, and on page 1, there's an article on Emeril, Jamie Oliver and Nigella Lawson with their photos. Have you ever watched Nigella's shows? The camera guy always, always pans in to her chest. No, no, I'm not complaining, as she has a very nice chest. She's very chesty. In fact, I quite like it. What's not to like? But you have to know your audience, don't you? How many guys actually watch her show? Besides me?

Hmm. What was I writing about? Chesty soup? Is there such a thing? Don't tell him...

Coconut Ginger Chocolate Brownies

1/2 cup butter, melted
1/2 cup cocoa powder, sifted
2 eggs
1 cup white sugar
3/4 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 chocolate chips
2 tablespoon diced crystallized ginger
1/2 cup dried, unsweetened shredded coconut

***

Wow. Have you ever been kicked in the mouth with pure delicious flavour before? Well, it tastes like these brownies. If you like chocolate and ginger, then this is right up your alley.

I cooked this up on Saturday afternoon, and had them warm and fresh from the oven. It indeed was chocolatey-ginger goodness. Unf*cking believable is what these were...

I bought a Thai cookbook about 6 or 7 years ago (Honestly, who doesn't love Thai??? Actually, I do know someone - I think my cousin's wife doesn't like Thai food). It's from an American chef - Nathan Hyam, and this recipe was contained therein. He tends to westernize some of the Thai recipes, but it's still a great resource. I have to admit, this cookbook is my favorite, and I've made a handful of desserts and a few main courses. All but two have worked out. I'll see if I can throw together something else from his book soon.

Even before I took my first bite, I think that maybe a suitable substitute for the ginger might be dried cranberries. (Seriously? Yes, Niki, SERIOUSLY). All my little sous-chefs know that I like cranberries, and you can see that I've cooked with them before. I do think the chocolate flavours would go along swimmingly with the cranberries. When I try it I'll let you know.

Lumberjack Superior Lager - Hudson's

Lumberjack Superior Lager - 1 pint for $5.95 CAD

***

"It's our golden yellow, medium-bodied lager with a mild, sweet malty flavour and just a hint of hop."

I met up with an ex-coworker a couple of nights ago to pick up some Intermediate Financial Accounting texts (yawn!) I had lent to him a few months ago. Hopefully they'll help me out with all that CASB...

Anyway, the beer was pretty good. Not just because it was free, but it was flavourful. Cool, with just a little bit of sweetness. I'd recommend it to anyone....

French Lentil Soup

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 cups chopped onions
1 cup chopped celery stalks plus chopped celery leaves for garnish
1 cup chopped carrots
2 garlic cloves, chopped
4 cups (or more) vegetable broth
1 1/4 cups lentils, rinsed and drained
l 14.5 ounce can diced tomatoes in juice
Balsamic vinegar

***

Like I've mentioned before, I wasn't really a soup kinda guy. Still not. But my friend's wife (yes, she's a redheaded vegetarian) made some lentil soup for us one evening a few years ago. I have to admit, it did tickle my fancy.

The recipe above calls for some blender/food processor action. Makes it smooth like Camel cigarettes...

It looks like split pea soup. I really hated that stuff when I was a young lad... It's probably split pea soup that turned me off soup for 20 years. Disgusting.

Insalate - Giuggiolosa

Mixed Greens
Cambozola
Roasted Red Peppers
Black Olives
Pinenuts
Honey
Extra-virgin Olive Oil
Balsamic Vinegar

***

Well, I obtained this recipe from a restaurant in (mid-town?) Toronto a few years ago. I had located their menu online, printed it off and added it to my recipe/menu collection.

Unfortunately, menus don't always (actually, rarely) explain how they prepare their dishes in terms of proportions/measurements of their ingredients, so I just played around with it. You guys (my little 'sous chefs') will just have to experiment and find the right mix for yourselves.

Here's the photo:

The cambozola, pinenuts, olives all end up on the bottom, and the red peppers stuck together a little too much. Also, the olives were WAY too strong (Unico brand) - in fact, their taste was just too overpowering. I had to pull them out after my first serving of salad. I don't know if I picked the wrong olives or what - but it just didn't compare to the restaurant's dish. On the positive side of the ledger, I did manage to get my proportion of the dressing correct - honey, balsamic vinegar and olive oil - this left me pleased.

No need to worry - I didn't let the salad sit in the dressing while I prepared the other dish (risotto - see below). I added the dressing just before dinner. No soggy salad for my team. Without a doubt, this was the TSN turning point of the meal...


Final Score:
Chef Jeremiah 1
Soggy Salad 0

Risotto with Mozzarella and Sun-Dried Tomatoes

5 1/2 cups vegetable stock
1/3 cup oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes
1 yellow onion, chopped
2 cups Arborio rice
1 cup shredded fresh mozzarella cheese
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh basil, plus whole leaves for garnish
Salt and freshly ground pepper

***

I found this recipe in one of my mom's cookbooks that I was looking through yesterday, trying to figure out how to cook the acorn squash. I haven't had risotto for quite some time - probably over a year, so it was about time to give it another chance.

This dish was pretty good, although I should have chopped the basil a little more than I had. It was fairly tasty with the sun-dried tomatoes and all that cheese.

Here it is in the pan:

It certainly doesn't look very beautiful, does it? Maybe I should work a little more on the food's presentation?

Acorn Squash & Apple Soup

2 medium acorn squash, seeded & halved
3 cups degreased chicken stock or canned
2 tart green apples, cored, seeded & chopped (I used Granny Smith)
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 cup unsweetened apple juice
2 teaspoon fresh ginger root, peeled & grated
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
pepper

***

I have Chef Martin from Regina to thank for this recipe, bless his little french heart. Now, his recipes weren't always the best - often the directions would omit how to cook a certain ingredient, or even leaving out when to add a certain ingredient (both problems arose here), but he did have some pretty good ideas.

Now, I'm not much of a soup guy either. I've met tons of people who just love soups, but it's never been my thing. A few close friends just rave and rave about soups, so I decided to see what I've been missing out on....

Now this soup is nothing special. in fact, it was probably ready in about 1.5 hours total (YES, YES - I know the soup will be better tomorrow). Pretty simple and quick - with Mum's food processor that is. I'd hate to use a blender to get all this pureed. Taste was pretty tame (I added in some sour cream after a few spoonfuls), nothing fancy. The texture was, ummm... interesting. It was indeed like apple sauce. Not that I have a problem with apple sauce, but that's strictly reserved for pork chop night, at least in my world...

Net result? A little too thick for my liking. I'd rate it below the sweet potato soup that I sometimes make (another pureed soup).

***

Chef Jeremiah must send his props to both his Momma and MJC for their helpful guidance today.

(Chef's Update: I had the soup for lunch on Saturday, just about 24 hours after I had originally cooked the soup. Wow. Much, much more flavourful than I had expected. I think that ginger and lemon juice finally made an appearance. Very tasty, but still pretty thick.)

Instant Espresso - Nescafé

"American Style Espresso"
1.5 teaspoon of Instant Espresso
175 ml hot water

***

Some people may think that instant coffee certainly isn't worth writing (or blogging) about, but I disagree. I have to admit, though, that this stuff should be left in the cupboard for one of those cold, windy days where you just don't want to venture outside to obtain your caffeine fix.

My espresso wasn't bad.... would have been better if there was any biscotti left over!

Cranberry Pistachio Biscotti

1 1/3 cup dried cranberries
2 1/2 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
1 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup shelled salted natural pistachios (not dyed red)
1 large egg beaten with 1 teaspoon water, for egg wash

***

Well, this isn't the first time I've baked biscotti. No, it doesn't mean "San Diego" in Italian, it means "to cook twice". (If I figured out how to write commentary for photos, I would have before, after 1st bake, and final photos of the biscotti). I've baked biscotti about 3 or 4 times previous to this attempt (the other sample being "Double Chocolate-Walnut Biscotti").

But I have to admit, that this time was a bit different. The dough was much more wet than it had been in the past. This is most like cause by the cranberries, as you soak them in boiling water and dry them off before adding them to the dough. Unfortunately, I had soaked the cranberries for longer than recommended, and did not dry them off as required. Thus I had some pretty sticky dough. I took some motherly advice and added some more flour, but it still didn't have the same "feel" to it. Darn it!

I kneaded the dough and made the two loaves as required. Added egg wash and baked, cut and baked them again. Here you can see the results:

Tasty! It turns out my worry for the wet dough was unfounded. The biscotti was a success!!

Cuban Sandwich

8 teaspoons mayonnaise
4 Portuguese rolls ( I think I used Italian rolls - tough to find Portuguese rolls)
4 teaspoons yellow ballpark mustard
1/4 pound Black Forest ham
1/2 pound cold Roast Pork Loin (I used Cuban Roast Pork Tenderloin, cooked earlier)
12 thin lengthwise slices dill pickles
6 oz thinly sliced Swiss cheese
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

Well, that's for the sandwiches themselves. I had cooked the pork tenderloin earlier (rubbed with garlic, salt and oregano and marinated in orange juice, lime juice and olive oil for 2 hours).

Here is some photographic evidence: