4 of my Top Hearty Meals

Ham and Split Pea Soup

We started with the ham bone leftover from Christmas dinner at my mom's house.

Boiled for a few hours with spices (oregano, thyme, bay leaf, s n p)
and vegetables (onions, celery, carrots).

Removed the bone and added the remaining contents to a blender,
then returned to pot.

Added chopped leftover ham and simmered a few minutes more.

*******************

Turkey and Dumplings

Saved leftover turkey from Thanksgiving and froze it.

Thawed the meat in the fridge and placed it in a casserole dish.

Added frozen veggies from the garden (peas and beans)

Prepare a can of cream of whatever soup (I used cream of broccoli).

I also used a whole can of milk and a 1/3 of a can of water...

evaporation almost destroyed my first attempt at this dish.

(sauce was waaaay too thick)

Added veggies thawed or frozen...doesn't really matter.

Pour soup over all of that mess!

Cook covered in oven at 350 for approx 30 mins...or until bubbly.

NOW...mix up the dumplings and roll into 8 or so 2" balls.

Uncover casserole dish and place dumplings evenly over the top of the soup mixture.

Cook uncovered for another 15 or so minutes until the dumplings are firm.

Topped with 7 pepper spice...for a kick!

****************

Pumpkin Soup

Roasted a pumpkin stored from the garden 

(a cheyenne bush pumpkin from Wendy Moreton of Hamilton!)

Scooped out the flesh and ran it through the food processor.

Simmered onions in a pot.

Added pumpkin mash, 6 cups of water, s n p and a hint of thyme.

In the last few minutes, add cream or milk (we added milk)

Topped with the last of the roasted pumpkin seeds 

(for added fibre...ok who am I kidding...it was for the crunch!)

***************

Giant Hashbrown with Chipotle Mayo

This is my NEW FAVORITE BREAKFAST!

Shred a whole potato into a bowl.
Squeeze out any moisture you can.
Add 1/2 a chopped onion and 1 egg.
Heat up a frying pan and grease it with oil or spray.
Once hot, spread the shredded potato mixture evenly around the pan.
Use a cutting board to help flip evenly.

Top with Chipotle mayo for a spicy way to start your day!

Cookbook Testing: Slow Cooker: 100 Tried and True Recipes

Following up on the post I did about slow cooker recipes.

A feature on one cookbook in particular.

Let me take you through a few of the recipes I've made so far...

Sausage and Bean Casserole pg 110

Substituted chick peas for white beans.

Hearty and savory.  A perfect weeknight meal.

************

Spicy Chicken and Cheese Dip pg 44

Omitted the chicken.

I had to take something to a potluck dinner for the local Scout troop.

Add a bag of tostitos chips and you've got a party.

(Note:  this did not reheat well.)

************

Beef Ragu with Tagliatelle pg 81

Omitted the red wine (it was Valentine's day. we drank it instead)

Substituted creamy tomato soup for the tomato paste.

A totally drool worthy meal for a couple or a crowd.

The leftovers reheat beautifully.

***********

Spicy Pulled Pork pg 73

Made the rolls myself.

Not so spicy...as the title claimed.

Add red pepper flakes when we reheated the meat and it was perfect!

I can see me making a ton of pulled pork this summer time.

The slow cooker plugged in on the deck.

***********

REVIEW:

A perfect addition to your shelf.

If you want slow cooker meals (both budget-friendly and easy to make),

this is the book for you.

If you want to expand your knowledge of what you think a slow cooker can do, 

this is the book for you.

If you just want some fun recipes for entertaining,

this is so the book for you.

Definitely a keeper!

PS.  Thanks to my awesome step mom Mary Elaine for gifting this cookbook!

Slow Cooker Recipe Roundup

Slow cooker means convenient, set-it-and-forget-it meals.

Hot comfort food for the dead of winter.

Stick to your ribs...and coat your stomach.
Easy on the wallet when it comes to the ingredients.

But the slow cooker can be so much more...
so let me share with you some of my most recent slow cooker meals.

MEAT

A bunch of fridge and pantry staples can come together with meat in a slow cooker.

What comes out is an amazing meal!

The best part of slow cooking with meat is that the cuts that really benefit low and slow style cooking are generally on sale or are very resonablly priced.

Chicken thighs or legs.

Pork shoulders or ribs.

I have really broaded my tastes this year with slow cooked meat.

Check it out!

Honey Garlic Chicken and Rice

Sweetened with local wildflower honey, this dish was a hit with everyone...even Owen!

Super simple...like 4 ingredients...everybody wins.

Plus, you'll be immune to colds...and vampires.

Cashew Chicken and Rice

This dish rocks...with or without the cashews (you add them in at the end anyway).

We made this dish once and were so hungry, we forgot to add them!

Totally tasty both ways.

Hawaiian Chicken

Not just for thick winter meals!

Try plugging your slow cooker outside (not in direct sun).

I cooked this delicious meal on our deck!

It was a bright, tropical flavoured chicken dish...perfect!

Not only that, but it didn't heat up our kitchen.

BONUS!

Sticky Ribs  (from The Joy Of Cooking Cookbook)

Wash and pat down the ribs. 

Cut them up into manageable pieces. 

Toss into the slow cooker along with the following ingredients: 

10 oz beef broth, 

1/2 cup water, 

2 tbsp maple syrup (we used out own), 

2 tbsp local honey, 

3 tbsp soy sauce, 

2 tbsp bbq sauce or ketchup, 

1/2 tsp dry mustard. 

Cook on high for 6-8 hrs. 

I'm not even joking...the meat will fall off the bones!!! 

Served with yellow potato wedges, baked and a green salad with cubed Wilton Mozzarella cheese.

Pulled Pork Sliders

Made from the Slow Cooker cookbook I got at Christmas!

Wait for my post all about the other recipes I've made from this book.

Truly a keeper for the cookbook shelf!

Spicy Pork Carnitas

Not a real flavourful meat dish...but adding sweet chili sauce and avocados helped.

We also didn't have any flatbread...so I just whipped some up in the breadmaker.

Just as tasty!

*********************

SOUPS

The slow cooker is still my go-to for soups...
So here are this years soup concoctions!

Green Lentil Bacon Soup

As seen in Shape Magazine's slow cooker roundup.

I used regular bacon from a local butcher rather than Canadian (peameal) bacon.

Harvest Veggie Chili with Quinoa

I made the veggie chili before and froze it.

Quick Veggie Chili

2 cans diced tomatoes

1 onion from the garden, chopped

2-3 cloves garlic, pressed

1 green pepper, diced

1 cup corn from the garden

1 can red kidney beans, rinsed

cayenne pepper and chili powder to taste.

add ingredients to slow cooker and cook on low or 6-8 hrs.

When I reheated the chili, I added buttercup squash, cumin and turmeric.

Adding leftover pre-cooked quinoa added a hint of smokey or nutty flavour.

It also upped the protein of this vegetarian delight.

The spices are so warming...the veggies are totally fall.

Red Lentil and Veggie Soup

Another great vegetarian soup.

I made this soup so much that I memorized it.

It originated from a cookbook of recipes from developing countries.

From this cookbook, I got a hilarious story about "zom".

(if you ever get the chance, ask my mom or sister about it)

The other thing I got from the cookbook was this amazingly simple soup.

Red Lentil and Veggie Soup

1 cup red lentils, rinsed

4 cups vegetable broth

1 carrot, peeled and diced

1 celery stalk, diced

1 onion from the garden, diced

1-2 cloves garlic, pressed

1 tsp lemon juice

1/2 tsp ground coriander

1/4 tsp cumin

I adapted this recipe from pot to slow cooker.

Add ingredients to slow cooker.  Cover and cook on low for 4-6 hrs.

Great on a cold winter night!

Chicken Tomato Soup

A slow cooker marvel! 

Adapted from this recipe here.

2 cans of diced tomatoes (or we used our frozen ones from the garden)

1 tsp Italian seasoning (homemade mixture)

1/2 tsp dried basil

1 cup home made chicken stock

2 chicken breasts

 Set on low for 6-8 hrs

Just before serving, take 2 forks and shred the chicken breasts. 

AMAZINGLY EASY! 

Served with mozzarella grilled cheese sammies

I just couldn't resist...

What are your favorite slow cooker recipes?

Picking and Storing Your Recipes

My husband is guilty.

He brings home recipes torn from everywhere.

And I know he is like all of you out there...

But, you see, he is a cook...so he has access to loads of recipes.

"This looks fun!"

"This one will taste awesome!"

"Wow looks tasty!"

The funny part is he has no intention of making these recipes.

He just hoards them.

Like I know we are all guilty of from time to time.

I don't know about you...but couldn't take it anymore.

So I have come up with a system!

A SYSTEM FOR CHOOSING TO KEEP A RECIPE

First, you have to be honest.

Pick a recipe you will ACTUALLY make.

If you don't normally make meals like the one in the recipe...chances are you won't start now.

If you have never tried Indian food...don't grab a recipe first...try it in a nice safe restaurant.

THEN you know what you're shooting for 

BEFORE you shell out a ton of money on weird ingredients you may never use again.

I'm not saying you shouldn't be brave and try new things.

I'm only suggesting you bring it back to reality.

Second, price out any ingredients that you don't already have.

If you need to spend $20 on saffron and it only calls for 2 threads...pass.

If you don't already have the staples to build your recipe...

you need to ask yourself if the price of buying new ingredients is worth it.

Third, if you already have a wad of recipes flying around your house...

gather them up and try sorting through them using the above method.

You will be thinning down your mess.

You will be brutally honest about your cooking intentions.

You will get the recipe paper beast under control.

You'll feel like a superhero.

(okay...maybe not...but getting rid of piles and waste always make me feel good)

For me, I had to reel in our obsessive need to keep every recipe that ever crossed our path.

(The same method was applied to our cookbooks too.)

When I grab a recipe I like, it usually has to meet a few prerequisite standards:

1 - at least 2 foods that I grow

2 - involves pantry and fridge staples I already purchase in bulk.

3 - no more than 1 ingredient has to be newly purchased (preferably none)

***************

MY 2-FOLD SYSTEM FOR STORING RECIPES

PRE TESTING

So now you have some recipes.

There are probably a billion storage solutions on Pinterest right now.

Here is what I do:

I label my folders based on the main ingredient.

 I have folders like "Tomatoes", "Fish and Game", "Zucchini", "Foraging" etc.

You can use any labelling system that works for you.

For example:

• Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner, Snacks.
• Slowcooker, Oven, Microwave
• Pork, Beef, Fish, Veggies
• Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, etc
• Raw, Vegetarian, Paleo, Dairy free
• Entertaining, Home meals, Work meals

POST TESTING

Once I make a recipe, and decide it is a hit...I move it to the BINDER.

I have a binder full of plastic page protectors.

There are magazine recipes, handwritten ones, forwarded emails from friends.

All of our beloved family favorite recipes are in the BINDER.

Now, with this system, Handsome Husband can still find the recipe for 

Gramma BJ's Johnny cake...even when I'm not at home.

I have yet to organize the BINDER itself...that will be another post for sure.

How do you store your recipes?

Home Made Granola Recipe (plus a skinny secret)

Winter is great for getting the baking bug.

As opposed to the other bugs you can catch in the winter.

Of course there are only so many loaves and muffins you can make.

So I present to you:

GRANOLA!

Here is the yummy recipe that I made basically using up all of the

items I bought to make a baked brie with dried fruit and nuts over the holidays.

Recipe

I found this recipe on Yummly.com

You do have to register...it is free.

Then you have to click on a link to the original poster's blog.

Its kinda troublesome...all those extra steps...but trust me, its worth it.

This granola features dates, sweetened coconut, dried cranberries, pecans, walnuts and honey.

FYI.  I omitted the wheat germ and the sunflower seeds.

I didn't have any wheat germ on hand and the sunflower seeds I had were not shelled.

************************

Now here is my trick!

I've always been told that granola is "too high in fats".

So I start with a cubed apple...then sprinkle granola on top.

Add milk and you have a delicious and satisfying skinny treat.

You're welcome.

PS.  By the time you are drinking the milk from the bottom of the bowl...it's sweet cinnamon milk!!!!

BONUS:  Your house smells wonderful when its baking!

What is your favorite winter smell?

SPECIAL NOTE TO MY READERS:

This post is my 200th blog post since starting this blog in 2010.

I wanted to thank each and every one of you who reads it.

I appreciate you every day.

You drive me to create interesting content and 

life in the woods stories that leave an impression.

Stay with me folks...the ride is about to get a lot more fun!

The Little Potato Company Product Review

Surprise, my first product review!!!

On a very unsuspecting day, Handsome Husband declared I had a package.

I had a momentary panic attack...

Was this something I had ordered online that he wasn't supposed to know about?!?

Wait...no...just remembered I don't shop online...

So I opened the box...

Potatoes!

No way!!!

The Little Potato Company sent me two kinds of potatoes to review 

and come up with some cool recipes.

I have never used this product before...so this was all new for me.

I have friends that swear by these potatoes.  They won't buy any other kind.

So needless to say, my interest was piqued...

Type 1 - BABY BOOMERS

Although the cooking instructions did not mention clay bakers...I thought I would give it a try!

Usually I throw everything in a soaked Romertopf clay baker and bake for 90 mins.

This time, I put the dressed chicken in the baker...and in the last 20 mins I threw in

The Little Potato Company's Baby Boomer potatoes.

The result was amazing!

Even though adding the Baby Boomers mid way through the cooking process

made for an extra step...it was well worth it.

The chicken was given to us by a friend who grows meat chickens, the onions and spices from our garden.

These little cuties were soft, tender and full of flavour.

The absorbed a great amount of flavours from both the chicken and 

the spices on the dressed chicken.

The ability to reheat or recreate leftovers is a deal-breaker for me.

Luckily, these potatoes kept on winning me over.

I give you...spicy taters and eggs!

Breakfast of champions...

soft boiled eggs from our girls served up with local goat cheese and fresh tomatoes.

The potatoes were leftover from the clay baker dinner.

These Baby Boomers re-fried up like a dream!

I added cayenne and chili powder.

DELISH!

Another way I served these Baby Boomers was a trip to the East.

Curried Chicken and Veggies

Leftover chicken from the roast, baby boomer potatoes, onions and paddypan squash leftover from the garden.

I fried up the onions and the potatoes for 10 mins, then added the squash.

Simmer for another 10 mins.  Then I added curry, parsley and cilantro.

I used dried cilantro but really wished I had fresh herbs on this one.

Top with plain Greek yoghurt and enjoy warm.

**********************

Type 2 - FINGERLINGS

This was actually my first dish made with the fingerlings potatoes.

I wasn't sure what to expect...so I went with simple to start.

In this case, I made maple flavoured bacon wrapped pork tenderloin.

Served with a spinach side salad and oven roasted potatoes and carrots.

I roasted the veggies on a stone tossed in olive oil, S & P and roasted for 30 mins at 400 degrees.

The carrots were from our garden and while they were small, they were tasty.

The fingerling potatoes tasted amazing.

Tender and tasty yellow flesh...I almost forgot that I grew potatoes this year!

(All of this cooking...I needed a cool beverage too...lol)

The piece de resistence...Potato, Caramelized Onions and Rosemary pizza!

Original recipe was found in the Inspired magazine.

Heat 4 tsp olive oil over medium heat in a pan.

Add 1 cup sliced onions and cook until soft and golden brown.

This is where I deviated from the original recipe.

I roasted The Little Potato Company Fingerlings in a small dish at 400 degrees for 20 mins.

I made some homemade pizza dough in the bread maker.

After the potatoes cooled, I sliced the potatoes thinly and arranged them on the rolled out dough.

Then I even spread the caramelized onions and remaining oil on the dough.

Next I sprinkled dried rosemary from the garden and Parmesan cheese.

Bake at 425 degrees for 16 mins.

Enjoy as a side dish, fun appetizer or a savoury main meal.

Trust me...this dish WILL impress!

*************************

RESULTS:  I really enjoyed this product!

Although I advocate growing your own food and being food self sufficient...

if you can't grow your own veggies (whether you lack the space or you physically can't manage a garden) ...this is a great product for you.

The potatoes come already scrubbed so they couldn't make it any easier to use this product.

Thank you to The Little Potato Company!

I really appreciate this opportunity to test these wee potatoes.

Wonderous White Corn...

We have grown corn for many years.

You might think that makes us experts on corn.

That our corn grows better somehow.

I smile when I hear stuff like that...

Largely because I know that we fail most years at the corn thing.

Doesn't matter where we plant or what we plant...

We suck at corn.

Each year I mainly grow it because I like looking at it.

I also like having free fall decorations...once I've given up and dried the stalks...

Plus, I'm generally an optimist.

I 'think' every year will be different.

Perhaps the 'right' season will come.

The truth is I don't really research how to grow what we grow all that much, 

but I'm sure there is missing something.

The point of all of this, is that this is what our ears normally look like...

Teeny, tiny, wee, little ears...

In my small hand...you can count a handful of kernels...

but you wouldn't ask me to serve you up an ear or two.

Now when faced with a load of wee little corn ears, you might ask...what is a girl to do?

Well, I'm not one for wasting anything!

So while I was happy to have all of these wee corn husks in my compost,

I was actually happier thinking about treasure hunting for actual kernels to save.

It wasn't a bad haul...just labour-intensive.

In the end, I had enough for large freezer bag of white corn kernels for the freezer...

as well as enough to make these jalapeno corn fritters!

While I normally don't subscribe to deep frying as a regular cooking method...

I couldn't resist these puppies!!!!

Here is the original recipe found in the Walmart Live Better magazine:

Whirl one 341 ml can of corn (I used fresh here...obviously), drained,

with /2 onion and 1 jalapeno (both from our garden), seeded, in a food processor.

Add 1 egg (from our girls), 1/4 cup cornmeal, 2 tbsp flour and 1/4 tsp salt.

Whirl until mixed.

Let stand for 20 mins.

Heat enough oil to reach 1 in in a medium frying pan over med-high heat.

Scoop 1/4 cup portions into oil.

Fry until golden, about 2 mins each side.

Transfer to a paper towel lined plate.

Serve warm.

I served these delicious fritters along with another homemade burger patty.

This time the burger was garnished with homemade relish, bacon and a slice of lemon boy tomato.

The fritters are topped with a bit of mayo and parsley.

While cooking these fritters...I couldn't escape the smell.

The aroma was like a carnival...or a savory donut shop.

THEY WERE GREAT!

Again, not being a fan of deep frying...this will be a special occasion dish.

How do you keep your harvest?

The Mighty Potato...

The mighty potato!

Saviour of the Irish...

Scourge of Atkins-diet followers everywhere...

We absolutely love to grow potatoes!

Each year we attempt to grow a huge amount of potatoes.

The funny thing is...you never know how many potatoes you are growing...until you dig them up!

Each year we come up with some brilliant idea of how to grow MORE potatoes.

This year, we tried to grow the plants inside buckets with the bottoms cut out.

The first few plants I unearthed...I wasn't convinced it was a good method.

For some reason, the other half of the potato bed proved this method an unusual success!

We planted a dozen potato plants...and the above picture shows our white fleshed potato yield.

The ones in the bucket are for storing.

The ones on the straw are tubers that I scratched or nicked with my fingers or the trowel.

I was told that any disturbed flesh on the potato will rot very quickly.

I had no idea how quickly.

That is, until some of our red skinned potatoes went bad in 2 days where I had been careless.

Careless?  Maybe.  Excited to dig up super sized tubers?  Definitely!

There were more than a few that were the size of my head!!!

So what do you do when you scratch a freshly dug potato?

Make a loaded baked potato for dinner!

Gently scrub the skins of the potato (fresh taters have very delicate and papery skin)

Clean, soak and chop a handful freshly picked cooked broccoli.

Chop a few pieces of cooked bacon.

Shred marble cheddar cheese from Wilton Cheese.

Pierce potato all over and wrap in foil.

Bake for 1 hr approx.

Open foil and pinch sides of potato to open.

Add Stirling butter and top with broccoli, bacon, cheddar and s & p to taste.

Over the past few years of blogging, I have discussed potatoes before.

If you would like more potato-ey goodness:

Here I discuss cooking potatoes 

(features recipes for Potato and Wild Leek Soup, Leftover Mashed Potato Pancakes, Hashbrowns)

Here I illustrate the recipe for Shepard's Pie


Here is our recipe for Venison Steak and Veggie Pie with Pastry topping


Here is my original potato post complete with recipe for roasted red potatoes as a side dish.

Open faced sammies

Looking to save money AND cut down on your carb intake?

You don't want to cut carbs out altogether...

Carbs turn into the sugars that feed your brain!

Maybe you want to try an open faced sandwich?

I collected a few of my recent sammie recipes! 

Here is a warm and spicy idea:

Ground venison patties with sweet chili salsa on a slice of cornbread.

How about creamy tuna salad on home made bread with spinach and fresh tomato slices?

A sloppy joe is also a great option.

Ground beef in a tangy sauce with tomatoes served on 

home made fresh bread!

Left over chicken breast chopped up with chopped celery, chopped spinach

red pepper flakes and a teaspoon of mayo served on 

a piece of toasted caroway rye bread and melted swiss cheese on top!

PS.  Rye is also good for you if you are a diabetic.

Rye bread takes longer to break down and doesn't

turn into as much sugar as regular wheat bread.

All of these options are a great way to curb your carb intake

while still allowing yourself those carbs in a smaller amount.

What is your favorite open faced sammie?