Hello? Is anybody out there?

Been a while, huh? There is a string of excuses as to why I didn't update this blog - the holiday season, two new jobs, trying to find a good balance in this new life... just instead of elaborating, I'll just say, "I'm back!".

Over the past few months I've been pretty bad at taking food photos. I did, however, manage to take a few. I'm going to add a couple of posts with a few new recipes on them, and then hopefully I can get back into the swing of things blog-wise.

This is a recipe I found in Eat, Drink & Be Vegan. I altered it only very slightly, and it was pretty good. The kids loved it, but they love anything with tofu in it.

Broccoli, Cashew Teriyaki Tofu Stir Fry

Tofu:

1 block extra firm tofu, cut into bite sized pieces

1 tbsp soy sauce

1.5 tbsp rice wine vinegar

Teriyaki Sauce:

1/3 cup soy sauce

1/4 cup water

3.5 tbsp agave nectar

juice of 1/2 a lemon

1 tbsp toasted sesame oil

1 tsp blackstrap molasses

6 cloves garlic, minced

1 inch fresh ginger root, grated

1 tbsp arrowroot powder

Stir-Fry:

2 tbsp olive oil

4.5 cups broccoli pieces

sea salt, to taste

2 tsp water

1 large bell pepper (I used red pepper), chopped

1/2 cup raw cashews

In a shallow dish, add tofu. Pour soy sauce and vinegar over the tofu for at least 10 minutes. Stir it once.

In a large bowl whisk all the ingredients for for teriyaki sauce until the arrowroot powder has dissolved.

In a large wok on high, heat 1 tbsp oil. Add the tofu and cook for 4-5 minutes, then turn over and cook the other side another 3 minutes. Remove the tofu from the wok and set aside. Turn the heat to medium, add another tbsp of oil and add the broccoli, salt and water. Toss, cover, and cook for 4-5 minutes until broccoli is bright green. Add bell peppers and saute another 1-2 minutes. Add the teriyaki sauce and increase to high heat. Toss well, and let the sauce come to a slow boil. Once it's at a slow boil and has thickened, add the tofu and cashews. Toss to combine. Remove from heat and serve over some rice noodles.

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I know this isn't much to look at, but this recipe was fantastic! It was deeeeeelicious. YUM. I found it in a cookbook called 'Casseroles' while I was working at the book store (that is no longer.. so sad). I upped the garlic, omitted the cornstarch & water, but left the rest the same.

Harvest Vegetable and Lentil Casserole

1 tbsp olive oil

2 leeks, sliced

3 cloves garlic, minced

4 stalks celery, chopped

2 carrots, sliced

2 parsnips, sliced

1 sweet potato, diced

8oz rutabaga, diced

3/4 cup dried brown, lentils

1 lb tomatoes, seeded and chopped

1 tbsp fresh thyme, chopped

1 tbsp fresh marjoram, chopped

3 3/4 cup vegetable stock

salt and pepper, to taste

Preheat oven to 350.

Heat the oil. Add leeks, garlic and celery. Cook 3 minutes. Add carrots, parsnips, sweet potato, lentils, tomatoes, thyme, marjoram and vegetable stock. Season with salt and pepper. Bring it to a boil and transfer to a casserole dish (we had to use two dishes). Bake for 50 minutes.

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I threw this dish together one afternoon when I was stumped about what to make for dinner. It turned out quite well!

Slow Cooked Spinach & Cheese Pasta

2 tbsp butter

1/3 cup all purpose flour

2 1/2 cups milk

1 tsp white pepper

1 tsp salt

1/2 nutmeg, grated

4 cloves garlic, minced

2 tbsp Dijon mustard

2 cups ricotta cheese

2 cups whipping cream

5 cups baby spinach

1 red pepper, chopped

1 bag medium shell noodles (uncooked)

1 cup parmesan cheese

In a medium-large sized pot, melt the butter. Add the flour and cook for 1 minute. Add the milk and whisk until smooth. Add the pepper, salt, nutmeg, garlic, Dijon, ricotta cheese, spinach and whipping cream. Mix until smooth and the spinach has wilted. Place the noodles in a slow cooker, and add the mixture from the pot. Add the red pepper and stir to combine. Add the grated parmesan cheese to the top, cover and cook on high for about 3 hours. Test your pasta to see if it's cooked through since cooking times vary with different slow cookers.

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I've been making these cookies for about 4 years now. I found them in 'Vegan with a Vengeance'! These are Rhianna's favourite cookie!

Ginger Molasses Cookies

4 tbsp raw sugar

2 cups all purpose flour

1 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

2 1/2 tsp ground ginger

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp ground cloves

1/2 cup canola oil

1/4 cup molasses

1/4 cup soy milk

1 cup sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350. Lightly grease a cookie sheet. Place the raw sugar in a bowl.

In a medium bowl, mix together the flour, baking soda, salt and spices. In a large bowl mix together the canola oil, molasses, soy milk, sugar and vanilla. Pour the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and mix well.

Roll into 1 inch balls, flatten and roll in the sugar.

Bake for about 10 minutes.

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Peanut Butter Blossoms - definitely a favourite holiday cookie in this house!

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These cookies are my Mum's specialty. My siblings and I all love Mum's whipped shortbread, and quite frankly, it isn't the holiday season until you take your first bite of these melt-in-your-mouth cookies.

Whipped Shortbread

1 cup butter, softened

1/2 cup cornstarch

1/2 cup icing sugar

1 cup all purpose flour

1/4 tsp salt

Preheat oven to 350.

In a large bowl add the butter, cornstarch, icing sugar and salt. Using an electric mixer, mix until the dry ingredients have been absorbed into the butter. Add the flour and continue to mix until the dough's texture is like whipped cream.

Drop by small teaspoons onto a cookie tray. Top with some sprinkles or half of a maraschino cherry and bake until very light brown at the edges, 8-10 minutes.

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Our New Year's Eve was delightful. We had a quiet night at home and let the kids stay up to ring in the new year for the first time. I made these special virgin drinks for midnight and they were enjoyed by all.

Sunset Sippers

3 cups orange juice

1 1/2 cups apple juice

3/4 cup lemonade

12 oz ginger ale

grenadine syrup

In a large pitcher, combine the orange juice, apple juice, lemonade and ginger ale. Pour 1-2 tbsp of grenadine in each glass and top with the mixed juice.

52 Meals, 52 Countries, 52 Weeks - Laos

My wee girl picked Laos for our newest "trip around the world"! I can't tell you how happy I was with that because it means she truly is a girl after my own heart. I have loved Laos for ... well, decades. I've had this infatuation with the beautiful little country, and my dream is to go on The Gibbon Experience in Northern Laos. Recently a good friend of mine went to live there (as well as Thailand) for a few months. To say I was jealous would be an understatement. Green with envy just doesn't cut it. I lived for the emails I would get about her adventures. I would drink in every single word she wrote as if I was lucky enough to experience it myself. I will go there some day, that much I know. I am positive of it. Perhaps after a trip to Europe we might take a trip to Asia? Oh yes, just maybe.

Now, having said that about that lovely, beautiful little country... this was by far the most difficult week to find vegetarian food! Not only did it have to be vegetarian, but it also had to be ingredients I could find. Do you think I could find fresh lemongrass or banana leaves? Um, that would be a big fat no! I'd love to revisit Laos again after visiting a bigger city to get ingredients. Oh well, at least what we did have we enjoyed. The kids had second helpings and there really wasn't much left over, so that is a good sign. I couldn't find much about dinner etiquette either and what I did find was contradictory, so I think we failed on that front.

For dinner I made a cold green bean salad called Akha Beans, some marinated tofu, some sticky rice (Kao Niao) (done in a rice cooker like this... I need a steamer basket now cause the kids loved the rice!) and some dipping sauce for the rice (which is the same as the marinade I used for the tofu). I loved the tofu and the marinade for the rice. LOVED. It was an interesting train of tastes. First sweet, then salty and finally spicy. Delicious!

Akha Beans

1 lb green beans, trimmed and cut into smaller pieces

1 head of garlic, with the top cut off

2 inch piece of ginger root, peeled

4 tbsp soy sauce

1 tsp salt

2 tbsp mint leaves, chopped

2 tbsp cilantro, chopped

2 green onions, chopped

Wrap the garlic and ginger in foil and roast them in the oven for about 30 minutes at 350.

Steam the green beans in some water for a few minutes. Drain, rinse and place in a bowl.

When the garlic and ginger are ready and have cooled enough that you can handle them, remove the garlic cloves from the peel and place them, along with the ginger and salt into a mortar and pestle and grind until it becomes uniform.

Add the mixture to the beans and mix well. Add the soy sauce, mint leaves, cilantro and green onions and toss well.

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Lao Tofu Marinade and Dipping Sauce

(you would need to make this recipe twice if you wanted both)

2 cloves garlic, minced

3 tbsp soy sauce

1 tbsp garlic chili sauce

2 tbsp sugar

1 tbsp vinegar

pinch of star anise

Mix together. Use immediately for a dipping sauce, or marinate some dry fried tofu in it for the day. Reheat the tofu by dry-frying it for a bit on the stove.

Check it out! Our map is looking better week by week.

Officially back to my normal updating. :)

I've got a few very simple recipes to share from the last couple of weeks, including a slow cooker recipe from today. Whacky Wednesdays are our crazy nights. Last Autumn/Winter/Spring it was Hella Busy Thursdays... and as much as I tried to keep our running around to a minimum this year ... Wednesdays have become.. well, whacky! It's the day that I find practically no time to sit down and rest with my feet up. It's shopping and banking and sorting and shuffling of children to a million and one activities. You know how it goes - everyone has one crazy night of the week! It goes without saying that Wednesdays are our mandatory slow cooker night, and typically so are Tuesdays. They aren't quite as nuts as Whacky Wednesdays, but we are at the dance studio from 5-8:30. Last night, for instance, I made some comforting chili in the slow cooker to bring with us. Mmmmm! Oh, how I love my slow cooker.

Onwards!

Super Crazy Simple Slow Cooked Artichoke Pasta

2 cans Italian seasoned tomatoes, undrained

2 jars artichoke hearts, drained

6 cloves garlic, minced

3/4 cup whipping cream

pasta of your choice

Add the tomatoes, artichoke hearts and garlic to your slow cooker. Cook on low for 5-7 hours. Puree with an immersion blender. Add the cream, stir and keep warm. Cook the pasta according to package directions. Add pasta to the pot, stir well and enjoy!

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Spaghetti Sesame

(from One Bite Won't Kill You.. altered very slightly)

12 oz spaghetti

1/4 cup peanut butter

2 tbsp hot water

8 tbsp soy sauce

2 tbsp sugar

2 tbsp sesame oil

1 tsp vinegar

1 shake cayenne pepper

3 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 cup shredded carrots

1/2 cup shredded cucumber

Cook pasta according to package directions. Whisk peanut butter and hot water in a large bowl. Whisk in soy sauce, sugar, sesame oil, vinegar, cayenne and garlic. Toss together with pasta and shredded vegetables.

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Delicious Tofu Marinade

1/3 cup soy sauce

2 tsp mustard

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/3 cup oil

2 tbsp peanut butter

2 tbsp ketchup

Whisk everything together and pour over some dry-fried tofu. Marinate for the day and dry fry once more to heat through.

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Italian Tortellini Salad

(trying to replicate the one I get at the Cafe E near the dance studio)

1/4 cup red wine vinegar

1/4 cup cold water

1 tsp salt

2 tsp sugar

1/2 tsp dried oregano

1 tsp dried basil

freshly ground black pepper

1 package cheese tortellini

3 bell peppers, diced

1/2 long english cucumber, diced

feta cheese, to taste

Mix together the red wine vinegar, cold water, salt, sugar and spices. Toss together with the bell peppers and cucumber.

Cook tortellini to al dente according to package directions. Drain and rinse under cold water to stop them from over cooking.

Toss the tortellini with the vegetables, sauce and feta cheese and serve!

The best tofu wraps, ever!

I think today just may have been the longest day, ever! Not that it was a bad day or anything. It was just very, very long. Maybe it felt so long because dinner was so simple and not at all time consuming?

I made some simple, but oh-so-delicious tofu wraps. I found a recipe for some Cashew-Ginger Tofu in my Eat, Drink, Be Vegan cookbook, and then de-veganized it (haha!) by putting them in a tortilla wrap with some old cheddar cheese, grated carrots, sliced baby cucumbers and baby spinach. This was SO GOOD. It was so good, I had two of them! Yum!

Cashew-Ginger Tofu

1/3 cup cashew butter

3 1/2 tbsp soy sauce

3 tbsp apple cider vinegar

2-3 cloves garlic, minced

1 inch chunk of fresh ginger, minced

2 tbsp agave nectar

3/4 cup water

1 block firm tofu, cut into small squares

Mix the cashew butter, soy sauce, apple cider vinegar, garlic, ginger, and agave nectar in a bowl with an immersion blender (or in a food processor/blender) until smooth. Add the water and continue to blend until well mixed.

Pour half of the sauce into an 8x12 baking dish. Add the tofu, and top with remaining marinade. Cover and chill for a couple of hours.

Preheat oven to 350.

Cover the baking dish in aluminum foil, and bake for 15 minutes. Remove the foil and cook another 7 minutes until the sauce thickens.

Making the wrap:

Put some cheddar down the middle of a tortilla wrap, and add the tofu. Heat for 20 seconds in the microwave. Add the carrots, cucumbers and spinach (or whatever veggies you have on hand), wrap it up and enjoy!

A light feast for a(nother!) very hot day.

What a very long day! The kids and I spent the entire morning running errands. First it was a stop to drop something off with someone, followed by a trip to the gas station (grrrr... 1.319/ litre!), then the library to drop some books and DVDs off & get some new ones (yay for discs 5, 6 and 7 of Lost season 1!), followed by a stop at the theatre to pick up our Harry Potter tickets for tomorrow (what a pain THAT was) and lastly picking up some bread at the grocery store. After a quick lunch of sandwiches, we all headed out to deliver flyers. No, not a few flyers. Nope! We had to deliver a good 150 flyers, plus the regular papers. Not only did we have to deliver 150 flyers, but we had to deliver them in three different areas. AND it was at least mid-thirties (celcius) with the humidex. Can you say hot, sweaty, tired kids? They held up pretty well considering, but there were definitely a few moments. Ironically enough they were closer to the beginning. Strange kids! At one point in our travels we were approached by an elderly man who reamed me out telling me I shouldn't be forcing the kids to work and I'd better be paying them, yadda yadda. Wasn't expecting that. Why is it that people judge so freely when they know absolutely nothing about the situation? It's so sad.

Needless to say, there wasn't a lot of time to breathe, never mind to make dinner by the time we got home and had showers. I had dry fried some tofu and marinated it in our very favourite marinade (!!!!) in the morning, so I threw together some mango summer rolls and Thai dipping sauce (from Vegan with a Vengeance) to go with it. We enjoyed our light feast while playing a family game of the Game of Life (haha.. again...) and now we're sitting down for some SYTYCD. All in all, a good day. The best part of the day? It's Kyle's Friday! He has tomorrow and Monday off! Yahhoooo!

Mango Summer Rolls

1 mango, peeled and sliced into matchsticks

1 cup bean sprouts

1/2 cup fresh cilantro leaves

4 oz very thin rice noodles

1/4 cup roasted peanuts, very finely chopped

20 rice paper wrappers

Thai dipping sauce (recipe to follow)

Boil a medium pot of water. Once it started to boil, turn the heat off and put the noodles in. Let them soak for 10 minutes before taking them out and rinsing thoroughly in cold water.

Have a small pot of hot water ready on the counter along with a cutting board. Place a rice paper wrapper into the pot for 30 seconds to a minute until it's soft. Take it out, place it on the cutting board and start filling it. Add some rice noodles, some peanuts, cilantro leaves, a few bean sprouts and mango. Roll it up, making sure to fold the edges in. Keep chilled until ready to eat.

Thai Dipping Sauce

1/4 cup rice vinegar

1/4 cup water

1 tsp Asian chile oil

1 clove garlic, minced

3 tbsp chopped roasted peanuts

1 1/2 tsp sugar

Mix together in a small bowl and chill until ready to eat.

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If you have never tried this dipping sauce from The Ginger People, run out to your local grocery store and get some! Seriously! I'm addicted to this stuff. Kyle and I used to be able to get it in Winnipeg, and then they stopped making for some reason. Can you say SAD? When I was at our local store last week I almost squealed out loud when I saw this sauce sitting on the shelf! It's so freaking good! I love all of The Ginger People sauces, but this is BY FAR my favourite! Mmmm. I opted for this sauce with my summer rolls. ;)

So much food and laughter and pride.

Hopefully you all had a weekend as fabulous as mine! I'm really sad to see it end.

I started the weekend out right with my first Fishbowl Friday! I headed over to Boston Pizza with a bunch of my lovely AMS ladies for a Killer Koolaid fishbowl (the red one is mine!). The night was completely filled with laughter... so much so that my cheeks were in pain for hours after I left. There was much chatting about life - often ending up with our topic of the week - boobies, haha. No, I'm not kidding. :) I'm waiting and ready for the next Fishbowl Friday.

Saturday morning started with a Ballet dance exam for Rhianna - her first one! She was feeling pretty nervous that morning saying she had a sick tummy and a headache. My poor girl. She practiced a few times at home, and then felt much more confident and ready. Coming out of the exam she seemed confident and proud of herself, and that was really all I could ask for. Later that afternoon she also had her first Jazz exam, and felt much less nervous going in. We have since found out her marks, and she got the highest mark she could get for her Ballet exam... I am, once again, so proud of my girl!!! She did very well in her Jazz exam, too, but that one isn't graded at this age. It's a pass or fail, and she passed. You go, my Starshine! I can't wait to read all of the comments the examiner left for Rhianna!

This weekend was also full of playdates for the kids. Between exams, all three kids headed over to the house of their friends'. Kyle and I took Tibbs for a walk around the marina, and down the North Shore Trails. It was really nice to have some time to chat about life and our future without little voices interrupting every few minutes with a new conversation. We were even surprised to see that Tibbs jumped into the Bay! He hated the water last year, so we have hope that this year he's going to come swimming with us at Bon Echo. *fingers crossed* After we got home I headed straight to bed with a terrible pressure headache that wasn't relieved until it started thunder storming. No wonder I love the rain so much!

Today Tiernan headed over to another friend's house, while Avery passed a playdate up because he wanted to be with his family. Awww. ♥ We took another walk by Quinte Bay to show the kids all the houseboats that we drool over, and once again, Tibbs went into the water! Shocking. It was such a gorgeous walk - breezy (but not cold), warm (but not hot) and the sky was blue with beautiful puffy white clouds. When we got home the four of us played some Settlers of Catan to pass time until Tiernan got home (at which point Tibbs ran around in circles with excitement that his whole family was together again - he is such a family dog!). That was the second time Kyle and I played Catan this weekend. We also played last night for Date Night In, and followed it up with a couple of episodes of Being Erica. We've been hooked since the show first came out, but we often don't have the time to watch it when it's on.

And onto the other important stuff - food! We ate lots of good food the past two days that I can share with you. Saturday I made an easy dinner from the Moosewood Simple Suppers cookbook - Vegetarian Reuben sandwiches with the roasted garlic potatoes I wrote about in this entry. Date Night's snack was a five layer dip that I got from The Garden of Vegan and de-veganized. Haha. Tonight's dinner was Kung Pao noodles from Rebar and some dry fry tofu marinaded in barbeque sauce from The Garden of Vegan.

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Vegetarian Reuben

1/4 cup mayonnaise

1 tbsp ketchup

2 tsp white vinegar

pinch of salt

black pepper to taste

pinch of sugar

8oz package of coleslaw mix

8 thin slices of pumpernickel or rye bread, toasted

4 tomatoes, thinly sliced

8 oz thinly sliced swiss cheese

Mix together the mayo, ketchup, vinegar, salt, pepper and sugar in a medium sized bowl. Add the coleslaw mix and mix well.

Place some of the coleslaw on eat slice of toasted bread. Top with the sliced tomatoes and the slices swiss cheese.

Broil in the oven for a few minutes until the cheese is nicely melted. Serve open faced.

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Five Layer Dip

1 small onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tbsp olive oil

1 small red bell pepper, chopped

1 1/2 cups refried beans (I made my own since most canned refried beans include lard)

3/4 cup salsa

3/4 cup sour cream

1/2 cup cheddar cheese, grated

Saute the onion and garlic in oil, in a saucepan over medium heat. Cook until the onions are translucent. Add the red pepper, and saute another minute. Add the beans and mix well. Cook for 5 minutes.

In a medium bowl, spread half of the bean mixture on the bottom. Layer it with the salsa, sour cream, remaining bean mixture, and cheese.

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BBQ Sauce

1/4 cup apple cider vinegar

3 tbsp tomato paste

3 tbsp maple syrup

2 tbsp molasses

1 tbsp Braggs

1 tbsp Dijon mustard

1/2 tsp garlic powder

1/2 tsp liquid smoke

1/2 tsp vegetarian worchestershire sauce

In a small saucepan, combine all of the ingredients, and bring to a boil while continuously whisking. Reduce heat to medium low and simmer until desired thickness.

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Kung Pao Noodle Sauce

2 tbsp fresh ginger, minced

4 cloves garlic, minced

1/4 cup soy sauce

1/4 cup hoisin sauce

1 tbsp brown sugar

2 tbsp dry sherry

2 tsp sesame oil

1 pod star anise

2 tsp sambal oelek

1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper

1/2 cup vegetable stock

1 tbsp cornstarch

Combine all of the ingredients, except for the cornstarch, in a pot and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat, cover partially and cook for 15 minutes. In a small bowl, stir together the cornstarch and 1 tbsp water. Add to the sauce and stir to combine. Cook for 5-10 minutes longer until the sauce thickens. Remove the star anise and use the sauce for any of your favourite vegetable in a stir fry.

I love extra long weekends.

I just love that the Ontario school system honours Easter Monday as a holiday. That made all of us off since Kyle didn't have to go in to work either. This four day long weekend was much needed for all of us. We all slept in pretty late, and basically did the hermit thing for the rest of the day. We played a big game of Catan as a family, and had some time to listen to the rain fall down through the open windows. Tiernan seems to be feeling a bit better, but his energy levels are still on the low side and he's still coughing a lot in the morning and evening. At least he didn't throw up today. Look on the bright side, yes? Haha.

I made dinner, we ate dinner, and Kyle and the kids cleaned up after dinner... all by 5:30pm. So nice to sit under some blankets with Tibbs and Solange on the couch while two kids play Lego, one kid plays Guitar Hero and my husband works on some contract work. My plans for the rest of the evening include menu planning (I've fallen really behind!), grocery list writing, chatting online and watching Dr Who with Kyle. And maybe? Maybe I'll even have a Sarsparilla cooler. Oh yes, I think I just may do that.

So, back to dinner! Seeing as it's Soup Monday, I made an Asian Noodle soup that I found in the Moosewood Low Fat cookbook. I'd never made it before, but had been craving a simple soup and this one seemed perfect. It was very easy to make, and it was a big hit! My daughter isn't the biggest soup fan, and even she liked it. Both of the boys gobbled it up faster than I imagined they would.

Asian Noodle Soup

1 large head garlic

1/4 cup miso

3 cups water

3 cups vegetable broth

1 medium carrot, thinly sliced

1 block tofu, extra firm, cut into small cubes

4 cups shredded bok choy

1/4 lb soba/buckwheat noodles

Preheat oven to 400.

Peel each clove from the garlic head, and place into an un-oiled pie plate. Roast in the oven for 15-20 minutes.

Place the garlic, miso and water into a blender and whir until well mixed.

Add the miso mix and vegetable broth into a large pot. Heat until it's a low boil. Add the carrots and cook for 3 minutes. Add the tofu and bok choy. Bring it back to a simmer. Add the noodles and cook for another 6-8 minutes until the noodles are al dente.

I love the nights that require chop sticks.

After all the heavy food that we ate over the weekend, I was happy that my menu called for a simple stir fry with marinated tofu for tonight's dinner. I served it over a bed of long grain brown rice, so I made some extra sauce to go with it. I don't know about you, but I like sauce on my rice. If you like your rice drier OR if you aren't going to be making enough to feed 5 people and have some for leftover lunches (like I do), then cut back the measurements.

To give you an idea of how many vegetables I fry up, here is the list of veggies I used tonight (but I change it up every time):

1 onion, chopped

15 mushrooms, sliced

1 green pepper, sliced

1 red pepper, sliced

1 yellow pepper, sliced

1 head bok choy, sliced

1 head broccoli, cut up

2 carrots, sliced

1 zucchini, sliced

a cup of sugar snap peas

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Stir Fry Sauce

4 1/2 tbsp hoisin sauce

1 1/2 tbsp toasted sesame oil

3 tbsp Braggs (or soy sauce)

1 1/2 tbsp rice vinegar

3 tbsp cane sugar

1/2 tsp red chilies

1 1/3 cup vegetable broth

5 cloves garlic, minced

2 tbsp fresh ginger, minced

2 tbsp corn starch

Mix all of the ingredients in a saucepan, and cook for 10 minutes until sauce has thickened. Add to the vegetables once they have been cooked.

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Tofu Marinade

I sort of just threw the marinade together, but this is roughly what I added to it.

1 block extra firm tofu, cut into cubes, dry fried in a cast iron pan on each side

3 tbsp hoisin sauce

1/4 cup soy sauce

2 tbsp rice vinegar

1 tbsp sugar

1 tsp ground ginger

Dance nights are my favourite!

My evenings spent at the dance studio are my absolute favourite. I laugh so hard while I'm there, and it keeps me laughing well into the night after I'm home. Kyle thinks I'm a teenage boy with the things I find funny, and that is a-ok by me. ;) They truly are the best nights spent with the best ladies! I have such love for these women! Good thing since I've been spending more and more time there ... and it promises to become more as time goes on.

One of my favourite parts was coming home to a clean kitchen (I am VERY messy when I cook!) and the vacuuming done! Oh yes, I really did win the lottery. :)

I spent my entire morning searching this small (!!) city for certain ingredients. I was met with a whole lot of blank expressions, and quite frankly, a lot of rudeness. Then I remembered Global Foods! It's a tiny little store north of the 401 that has the best little treasures out there. When you are looking for something ethnic and can't find it anywhere in Belleville, chances are they have it... or can get it! At any rate, I had the best time slowly walking up and down the aisles and browsing their goods. I found quite a few items that I was looking for, and even a few I hadn't planned on. One of those items was a chili garlic sauce which I came straight home and played around with in the kitchen making a marinade for my dry fried tofu. This marinade is very different from the teriyaki one I posted about the last time. This one was super bold and spicy and powerful! I was worried that it would be too spicy for my kids so I let them dip it in plum sauce, but Tiernan ate a second helping, Rhianna said it wasn't spicy and gobbled hers up, and Avery even ate his without much complaining (although he won't do plum sauce... not a sauce type kid). Don't be fooled, though... it is spicy! If you've eaten sriracha before, you get an idea of the heat in it. If you try it, be prepared for a bite!

With the tofu we had a peanut/coconut/ginger/miso stir fry over udon noodles. I originally got the stir fry combo from my friend Mary Jo, and our family loves it. It was a good contrast from the spicy tofu.

Spicy Tofu Marinade

1/4 cup of Chili Garlic paste

2 tbsp honey

4 tbsp Braggs

2 tbsp rice vinegar

Mix it up until the honey dissolves, add tofu and chill until ready to reheat.

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Peanut Coconut Ginger Miso Stir Fry

2 medium zucchinis, chopped

15 cremini mushrooms, sliced

2 large carrots, sliced

1 red bell pepper, sliced

1 orange bell pepper, sliced

3 cups baby spinach

1 chunk ginger, grated

2 tbsp toasted sesame oil

2-3 tbsp Braggs

1-2 tbsp balsamic vinegar

1/2 can coconut milk

1 lb udon noodles

Sauce:

1/4 cup natural peanut butter

1 tsp ginger, grated

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 tbsp Braggs

1 small lemon, juiced

3 tbsp miso

water, to desired consistency

Heat sesame oil in a wok over medium high heat. Fry the mushrooms for 2 minutes, and then add the rest of the vegetables, except for the spinach. Fry for a minute, and then add the Braggs, balsamic vinegar and ginger. When the vegetables are slightly tender, add the coconut milk and simmer without a lid to reduce the liquid. Once the vegetables are cooked, add the spinach and cook until it's wilted.

While the vegetables are simmering, boil the water and cook the udon noodles for 3 minutes.

Meanwhile, combine all of the ingredients for the sauce, but not the water. Once all the ingredients are well combined, slowly add some water, thinning it out until desired consistency is reached.

Throw it all together and enjoy.

Sundays are for love.

Sundays are wonderful! We stayed in bed this morning until 10am (okay, 9am before the time change, but who's counting?) and then lounged around for the next hour or two. Okay, so that was mostly me. Ha ha! Actually, lazing included grocery list writing, general tidying and frying and marinating tofu. Still... I was relaxed and happy that we had no real demands being asked of us today. My son Avery got a call from a good friend of his who he doesn't get to see very often because he switched schools, and ended up heading over to his place for the afternoon. After I dropped him off, I braved the crazy weekend crowds of shoppers to get my two weeks worth of groceries (minus veggies and fruits which I pick up almost daily). Never, ever, ever again. I despise going on the weekends! I typically go on Wednesdays, but because the kids are home this week for Spring Break and I really don't feel like dragging all three kids with me for such a big grocery trip (um, can you say painful?!), I did it while my husband was at home. It was relatively smooth sailing, but that doesn't mean I had to enjoy it.

Our dog, Tibbs, got out today. He does this every now and again. He needs a big run, so he runs to the woods at the end of our dead end street and run, run, runs. And then he runs some more. And usually? Even more! The dog can really go when he gets the urge. We all headed out to get him and eventually after a ton of running, he came back whimpering and panting and ready to go home. Brat. That was our excitement for the day.

Tonight's dinner was easy, quick and delicious. My middle child, Tiernan, could not get enough of the tofu. I think he would have eaten it all if I let him.

For the tofu, I dry fried it which is honestly, the best way to ensure perfect tofu! I didn't use any of those marinades, and instead used my own teriyaki recipe that I used to use on my chicken back when I ate meat. It marinated all day, and I just reheated it by frying it a bit on a dry skillet just before we ate it.

Teriyaki Marinade

3/4 cup soy sauce

1/3 cup packed brown sugar

2 tsp ground ginger

2 cloves garlic, minced

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Stir Fry Sauce & Method

(for vegetables)

1/3 cup vegetable broth

1 1/2 tbsp hoisin sauce

2 1/2 tsp cornstarch

1 tbsp honey

1 1/2 tsp soy sauce

1 tsp white wine vinegar

1/4 tsp salt

2 tbsp vegetable broth

1 tbsp toasted sesame oil

Combine broth, hoisin sauce, cornstarch, honey, soy sauce, vinegar, and salt. Whisk to blend and set aside.

Heat oil in a large wok over medium heat. Add vegetables and stir fry for 1 minute. Add 2 tbsp of vegetable broth and continue to stir fry for another 4 minutes. Add mixture and continue to cook until the sauce thickens (a couple of minutes).

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I also made rice paper cold spring rolls with a peanut satay sauce. I usually just add whatever I have on hand to the spring rolls. This time I added baby spinach, carrots, cabbage and bean sprouts, but feel free to add anything and everything.

Peanut Satay Sauce

1 can coconut milk

1/2 cup crunchy peanut butter

1/2 small onion, grated

1 tbsp soy sauce

2 tsp brown sugar

1/2 tsp red pepper flakes

In a pan over medium heat, combine all the ingredients. Bring to a boil, stirring frequently. Remove from heat and keep warm.

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And now it's almost time for Amazing Race with the family!