Wednesday 25 February 2015

Hearty Tomato Soup

How to make soup

With these super cold winter days up here in the Northeast part of the continent, there is nothing quite like a warm and delicious hearty soup. I have enjoyed various types of soups growing up as a child and I have carried on that tradition as I have gotten older over the years and what's better then a warm filling meal when the temperatures outside drop below zero at this time of year. I don't have the time to be making my own broth so Campbell's broth work quite well but for those that enjoy homemade broth, go for it. I like to make sure that any vegetarian soup is loaded with vegetables. Potatoes are always a must for hearty soup and so is a form of pasta. I used fusilli but penne and rigatoni also can work. Then it is good time to load up the soup with a tonne of vegetables, add your favourite types to the pot for even more enjoyment. The key ingredient in this recipe is the condensed can of tomato soup. This gives you the thickness you want without have to blend or puree any of the vegetables. When your done you might just not want to share this soup with just anyone.

Inspired by Cook with Campbells

MORE SOUP RECIPES
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PORTUGUESE CALDO VERDER SOUP
SWEET POTATO, CARROT AND CORIANDER SOUP
EUROPEAN EGG DROP SOUP
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Hearty Tomato Soup Recipe
Prep Time: 10 minutes  Cook Time: 30 minutes  Servings: 6

Ingredients

Saturday 24 January 2015

Game Day Nachos

Super Bowl Nachos


Nachos a meal that you can share with family and friends while watching some of the best sporting events that bring out a large gathering, whether its at a local bar, a family or friends house, who doesn't get excited when a massive plate of good old fashion nachos drenched in cheese and meat makes it's appearance. Nachos are a great appetizer or even for some a main entree and with the Super Bowl on deck, this will get that party started right for those hosting events. I chose to substitute ground beef with a healthier choice of lean ground turkey, loaded two kinds of cheese but hey for cheese lovers out there, you can go with three or four kinds. Use a pizza pan or large oven proof platter. The important thing is that you can make this nacho recipe all about you with the ingredients you want to use. Lets just remember load the nachos up, no one likes nachos with barely any toppings, we want that stuffed drenched. This will not be a meal those watching calories will enjoy but its ok to indulge every now and then.

Inspired by Super Bowl Recipes

MORE SPORT EVENT RECIPES
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OVEN BAKED SEASONED CHICKEN WINGS 
PARMESAN CHICKEN BITES
SLOPPY BACHELOR BURGER 
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 Game Day Nacho Recipe
Prep Time: 10 minutes  Cook Time: 50 minutes  Servings: 6 to 8

Ingredients

Saturday 10 January 2015

Northern Omelette with Cheese and Spinach

How to make and omelette

This classic omelette breakfast is something that I love to eat quite a few times a week, its so quick and easy to make and can pack a tonne of nutrients to get your day off to a good start. I like to accompany the omelette with a variety of sides from natural select bacon, to toast, to home fries to just plain old fruit. The best part is you can add anything inside your omelettes from meats, cheeses or vegetables or just have them plain, its really your choice. This recipe is of course for one but easy to replicate into larger portions. I like to add milk to the egg mixture as this makes the eggs just a little more fluffy. Omelettes can have almost anything added to them, you can try types of cold cuts, other vegetables like kale, arugula, mushrooms etc., remember it is important to cook the eggs well and use a flat/straight wooden spoon to move around the egg inside a non stick skillet. This will make rolling the omelette out once complete onto the plate very simple. I love spinach and made sure to chop up enough, added a little green onion and cheese and viola your done. For those that are not sure how an omelette should be cooked, you can always refer to a video online.  


Inspired by Eggs.ca

MORE BREAKFAST RECIPES
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MINI BLUEBERRY AND GRAPE PANCAKES
CLASSIC BACON AND EGG SANDWICH
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Cheese Spinach Northern Omlette Recipe
Prep Time: 10 minutes  Cook Time: 6 minutes  Servings: 1

Ingredients

Tuesday 23 December 2014

Broiled Squid with Montreal Steak Spice

Cooking Squid

The holiday season is upon us and nothing beats getting together with the family and enjoying a hearty dose of seafood. I always feel the need to contribute and though I would try something a little new with squid or as some of you call it calamari.Squid for many is an acquired taste and if you slightly over cook it, it will be tough and rubbery, so you have to make sure that you get it right and when you do your taste buds will thank you for it. I used squid tubes that already were all cleaned for me, you can purchase this at local super markets (saves a tonne of prep time), I cut the tubes as if I were making calamari rings but I made sure to use a knife inserted inside the tubes to stop me from cutting all the way through (see pic below). Broiling on high cooks the squid quickly but make sure you don't over cook, the squid should easily come apart when you bite into them. You should use a baking sheet for best results and serve with your favourite side, I decided a bed of rice would be a great addition to the meal.

Inspired by Family

MORE FISH RECIPES
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BAKED TILAPIA WITH GARLIC BUTTER MIX
BROILED SALMON WITH MARMALADE GLAZE
SEASONED SEA SCALLOPS
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Broiled Squid with Montreal Steak Spice Recipe 
Prep Time: 10 minutes  Cook Time: 10 minutes  Servings: 2

Ingredients

Sunday 30 November 2014

Lunch Time Chili Tacos

Tacos Recipes

Who doesn't like tacos, a tasty meal that you can place inside a soft shell or a hard shell. You can choose to buy a taco kit with the shells, seasoning and salsa or like me you can choose to use a homemade chili recipe, that's full of beans, ground beef or ground turkey, salsa and of course chili seasoning, this option takes a bit more time but its well worth the time. The taste you get from your own chili is hard for a package to beat.
There are a variety of shredded cheeses that you can place inside the taco, it all comes down to your taste buds, cheddar is my favourite but you can also try monterey jack or mozzarella. I also enjoy cutting up some avocado to give myself some carotenoids which help in absorbing nutrients into our bodies.
The type of lettuce you can use also is based on your preference, I used romaine lettuce but green leaf or boston lettuce does the trick also.

Inspired by WikiHow

MORE GROUND BEEF OR TURKEY RECIPES
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YUMMY HOMEMADE MEATBALLS
FUSILI TURKEY SKILLET MEAL
SLOPPY BACHELOR BURGER
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Lunch Time Chili Tacos Recipe
Prep Time: 15 minutes  Cook Time: 70 minutes  Servings: 2

Ingredients

Monday 10 November 2014

Turkey Vegetable Medley

Ground Turkey Recipe




















When looking for a healthy meal that involves a form of meat I always turn to turkey, ground turkey is cost efficient and you can substitute it in place of any ground meat to get it into a lower fat category. I learned to appreciate turkey and all its benefits as I got older, adding an abundant amount of your favourite vegetables just adds to this already healthy dish and makes sure you get all the vitamins you need for the day.
I used a wok to cook this dish as it was easier to get all the vegetables that I wanted to add, don't be shy to add as many as you like. The aroma while you cook just gets your mouth watering, you will need to make sure you position the wok properly when your ready to add the ground turkey to the pan. I also made sure to add a little hot sauce to my plate but that is optional for those the like a tad more spice.

Inspired by Simply Recipes

MORE TURKEY AND VEGETABLE RECIPES
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FUSILI TURKEY SKILLET MEAL
STEAM TO SKILLET VEGETABLES
MUSHROOMS SAUTEED WITH GARLIC
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Turkey Vegetable Medley Recipe
Prep Time: 15 minutes  Cook Time: 14 minutes  Servings: 2

Ingredients

Monday 20 October 2014

Hearty Kale and Kidney Bean Soup

As the fall kicks in, I go back to my love of soups during the season, just like the leaves that change color during the season. Many of the soups are mixed with a variety of colorful and nutritious vegetables that make just about any soup a hearty meal. Growing up I was always excited to get home and see what delicious soup my family had on hand especially as the days got colder.

This soup is great for lunch or dinner and is all vegetables with no meat, so for all you vegetarians out there, this is the pot of soup you want to make. The soup is packed with Vitamin A and protein and is flavourful, your taste buds will thank you for the treat. Feel free to add any other vegetables you might want to have in your soup.

Inspired by Spark Recipes

MORE SOUP RECIPES
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MACARONI VEGETABLE SOUP 
SWEET POTATO, CARROT AND CORIANDER SOUP 
PORTUGUESE CALDO VERDE SOUP 
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Hearty Kale and Kidney Bean Soup Recipe
Prep Time: 15 minutes  Cook Time: 60 minutes  Servings: 10

Soup Recipes
Ingredients

Monday 6 October 2014

Triple Cheese Hamburger

The summer season may be over but that does not mean that burger season has to end just yet. One of the worlds favourite meals or some would say snack the Hamburger is being made in so many different ways that I could not help but to try my hand at one and the results where terrific for this palate. I have been eating burgers for as long as I can remember, as a kid my great grandma would make one for us at lunch time and we would woof them down in a heartbeat hoping that we could have another made on the grill.

People like a variety of sized burgers, I feel that the 1/4 pound burger is sufficient and lets you enjoy the condiments and ingredients better, too much burger takes away from the flavours that we want to enjoy with our burger. You can top your burger anyway you like once its done, but what everyone needs to remember is that when making a burger just let it cook once per side and don't press the burger hoping to cook it faster or you will dry it out as this lets the juice escape. You can pan grill the burgers indoors or even use a skillet with a little butter. I decided to load the cheese, triple cheese burger, why have one type only?

Inspired by 21 Favourite Burger Recipes

MORE SANDWICH RECIPES
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EASY STEAK SANDWICH
CLASSIC BACON AND EGG SANDWICH
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Triple Cheese Hamburger Recipe
Prep Time: 10 minutes  Cook Time: 12 minutes  Servings: 2

Gourmet Style Hamburgers

Ingredients

Tuesday 23 September 2014

Broiled Salmon with Marmalade Glaze

Salmon is one of my favourite fish, it wasn't always that way but as I got older, I acquired a taste for the fish, much to my mothers delight. In a family that is big on fish, it was better late then never for me. Salmon is loaded in Vitamins B-12, B-6 and protein and something that we all need Omega 3 with it's healthy benefits. Wild salmon should always be the choice over farmed salmon as there is less contamination and fish goes pretty much with any side of your choosing, go vegetables if you can.

Broiling the fish makes this a super quick recipe, which works well for a weeknight meal when time is not your friend. A shallow baking dish is what I used and you can marinade the salmon right inside the dish. This is a dish that will impress anyone that might be over and the marination adds a super great taste that will make your taste buds jump to attention.

Inspired by AllRecipes

MORE FISH RECIPES
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BAKED TILAPIA WITH GARLIC BUTTER MIX
GARLIC BAKED BASA FISH
SAVOURY SHRIMP FRIED RICE
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Broiled Salmon with Marmalade Glaze Recipe
Prep Time: 10 minutes  Cook Time: 8 minutes  Servings: 4

Salmon Recipes

Ingredients