Not a drop left!

First thing I need to say is: LOOK! My beautiful friend, Andrea, has started two new blogs! I couldn't be more happy to share in both of them. She's an amazing stay-at-home, vegan mama to the most gorgeous and sweet children. I feel lucky that I got to meet her in this little city of ours.

I took the kids out to pre-bowl them tonight. We won't be able to attend their league on Saturday because we're heading into the County to do some exploring! Besides the pre-bowling, Avery & Kyle had haircuts, we had to stop in at the grocery store and then we took a trip downtown to go to Stephen License which had just closed when we got there. It was a bit of a busy evening, so I made an old stand-by meal for dinner - portobello mushroom pasta, a simple salad with a creamy garlic dressing (from Moosewood Cooks at Home.. the first Moosewood Cookbook I got from my friend Dylan) and a slice of whole grain toast. This dinner is my son Avery's absolute favourite! This is the dinner he requests on his birthday. Both boys had second helpings again, and the whole family happily gobbled up every last drop. Not even one serving left for Kyle to take to work.

Portobello Mushroom Pasta

pasta, of your choice

2 tbsp olive oil

3 cloves garlic, minced

a couple pinches of red pepper flakes

4 portobello mushroom tops, thinly sliced

coarse sea salt, to taste

1 28oz can crushed tomatoes

3-4 tbsp Italian seasoning

parmesan cheese, for garnish

Start the water boiling to cook the pasta.

Heat the biggest skillet you have over med-high heat. Add the oil, garlic and red pepper flakes. When the garlic starts to sizzle, add the mushrooms. Stir to coat in oil. Cover the pan with a lid & reduce heat to med-low. Cook for 5 minutes, and add the coarse salt (doesn't need much). Cook until deep brown and soft. Add the tomatoes and seasoning and heat through.

Serve over cooked pasta, and top with parmesan cheese.

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Creamy Garlic Dressing

3 cloves garlic

3/4 cup vegetable oil

1/4 cup red wine vinegar

1-2 tbsp chopped fresh basil

1 tsp salt

1 tbsp grated parmesan cheese

1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper

1/2 cup milk

Place all of the ingredients, except for the milk, into a food processor. Whirl it until it's nicely mixed. Add the milk and continue mixing until it's smooth and creamy.

This will keep covered and refrigerated for up to a week.