Mushroom Barley Risotto

On the weekend my family made chili for dinner. I am not a fan of beans, so I decided to make myself something different. I looked through the cupboards and the fridge to see what there was that I could have when I stumbled upon some barley and some mushrooms. They first thing that came to mind was to make a mushroom risotto. I was almost disappointed when I found out we had less than half a cup of left over chicken stock. I looked in the pantry and we had bullion cubes. These are dried soup stock cubes. We had cubes for both vegetable stock and mushroom stock. Again I though perfect combination. So here's the recipe for this wonderful dish I created for my dinner.

Ingredients:

- 1/2 a cup of barley
-  cups of water
- 1/4 of a vegetable bullion cube
- 1/4 of a mushroom bullion cube
- 5 white cremini mushrooms
- 1 oyster mushroom
- 4 dried shitake mushrooms
- warm water
-  shallot
- garlic
- white wine
- olive oil
- butter
- parmesean cheese
- salt and pepper

Directions:

1. In a small pot, bring 4 cups of water to a boil, add the bullion cubes to the water and stir until completely dissolved. Bring down to a simmer.
2. While waiting for the water to boil, place your dried mushrooms into a bowl and cover completely with warm tap water to soak and rehydrate the mushrooms. Let them sit for 5-10 minutes.
3. Slice all mushroom to be about the same size. Pour half of the remaining mushroom water into your stock pot.
4. In a small frying pan, heat up 2 tbsp of olive oil and fry your mushrooms. Add some salt and pepper. When finished, put to the side.
5. Finely dice a shallot and crush your garlic through a garlic press. 
6. In a non stick large frying pan, heat up 3 tbsp of olive and add your shallots. When they start to brown, add your garlic and make sure to stir right away. When you can smell the garlic, add your barley and start to fry. 
7. When the barley has a translucent glow, add enough white wine to cover and stir.
8. When the wine is almost all incorporated, start adding the vegetable/mushroom stock. You want to add about 3/4 cup each time. (just enough so you can see the liquid above the barley). Stirring until liquid is all gone. Repeat this step until the barley has a nice rice texture.
9. When you have finished incorporating your liquid, add 1/2 a tbsp of butter to add creamyness. 
10. Pour some parmesean cheese on top and stir in to thicken the consistency.
11. Add in your mushrooms.
12. Serve and Enjoy

Serves 2 as a main meal
Serves 4 as a side dish

You will see that I did not add any extra salt and pepper at the end and that was because the stock had enough seasoning in it and the parmesean cheese is also salty and a seasoning.

Happy cooking!

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Gluten Free Taco Bowl

I was reading Clean Eating Magazine the other day and saw this interesting looking recipe. Now I don't normally follow recipes exactly, but this one was interesting and it inspired me to make my own version. It was delicious, and I wish I had taken a picture of it.

Ingredients
- 1 lb extra lean group beef
- 1 cup of rice (brown, white, choice is yours)
- Mexican spices (cumin, garlic powder, onion powder, chili powder ground oregano)
- salt and pepper
- chicken/vegetable stock
- 2 medium sized yellow onion
- 2 red peppers
- 3 vine ripe tomatoes
- 1 ripened avocado
- lettuce
- monteray jack cheese (grated)
- jalepeno peppers
- 2 limes
- salsa
- cooking spray (pam)

Directions

1. cook your rice as you would normally, but switching out the water for vegetable/chicken stock. this will add a nice flavour, also add in your mexican spices to taste.
2. spray your frying pans with cooking spray and put them over the heat to start heating up.
3. in the first pan, start cooking your ground beef. you want to cook it all the way through, breaking up the ground beef.
4. when your beef is almost all cooked and all the fat has cooked out, you want to add all your mexican spices, and your salt and pepper to taste. mix it around so all the pieces of meat are coated.
5. pour the ground beef into a sieve or strainer over a bowl to remove the fat, put to the side
6. slice one of your onions and fry them in the second pan, you want to carmelize them, so they will be golden brown. put to the side
7. slice up your peppers, tomatoes and lettuce
8. dice the other onion and finely chop the jalepeno.
9. once your rice is cooked you want to start assembling your bowl. put your rice in the bowl first and layer the ground beef over the top. next you want to add your friend onions and fresh vegetables
10. if you don't have pre-grated monterary jack your want to grate your cheese next.
11. sprinkly the cheese over the bowl
12. flavour and dress with a low-cal salsa and the juice of half a lime

Hope this was helpful! Good eating!

Home Made Roasted Red Pepper and Tomato Soup

Lately, since it has gotten colder, I've been craving soup a lot. It also helps that my parents got me an awesome new Thermos to bring to school, so I can actually bring soups with me. Anyways last night I decided to make a soup I've always seen as a comfort food; tomato soup. I thought of buying some for myself, but then realised how much healthier and how much less sodium and nastiness would be in my soup if I made it myself. So I decided to share my recipe with you.

Ingredients:

• 900 ml- 1L of stock (I normally make my own chicken stock, but I didn't have any on hand so I bought the Campbell's Chicken broth with no salt added, I used the whole tetra pack)
• 5 large tomatoes
• 4 large red peppers
• 1 medium sweet onion
• 3 cloves of garlic
• 1 1/2 tsp of thyme
• 3/4 tsp of cayenne pepper (optional if you want spice)
• 1 1/2 tsp of paprika
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 tbsp olive oil

Directions

1. Set a pot of water to boil, when the water is boiling, put your tomatoes in the water, let them sit in there for about 2 minutes and carefully take them out and put them in your sink and run over them with cool water.
2. next peel the skin (which should come off easily) from the tomatoes, and cut them into quarters and remove all the seeds. put them to the side
3. next cut your peppers into quarters, remove the seeds and pith and place them on a baking sheet lined with tin foil. place this baking sheet in the oven under the broiler, and let them broil for around 15 minutes, or until the skin starts to turn black
4.  when the skin looks blackened enough, take the peppers out of the oven, and place them into a paper bag and place the paper bag into a plastic container with a lid. let sit for around 5-10 minutes
5. once cooled down remove the skin from the peppers and chop the peppers into rough pieces
6. chop your garlic and onion roughly. 
7. in your cooking pot, heat up your olive oil and start cooking your garlic and onion. you want to see the onion start turning translucent
8. add in your thyme and start cooking that, don't let it burn, stir it around for 10-20 seconds. 
9. pour in all your stock and start warming the soup up. 
10. once the liquid is warm, add the tomatoes and chopped roasted pepper into the pot. 
11. let your soup cook for 5 minutes, then add your cayenne (optional) and paprika. 
12. let this cook and combine for 3-5 minutes
13. using a regular or emersion blender, blend up your soup. you want it to be nice and smooth. 
14. after this your soup is ready, you can serve it right away, or package it up and eat it later

ENJOY!!!!!

Tasty Twice Baked Avocados

I've been craving avocados a lot lately. I also got to thinking if there were any benefits to eating this wonderful fruit. To my wonder there were

Here are ten reasons to do just like I do and eat an avocado a day:
Prostate Cancer Prevention
Avocados have been shown to inhibit the growth of prostate cancer.
Oral Cancer Defense
Research has shown that certain compounds in avocados are able to seek out pre-cancerous and cancerous oral cancer cells and destroy them without harming healthy cells.
Breast Cancer Protection
Avocado, like olive oil, is high in oleic acid, which has been shown to prevent breast cancer in numerous studies.
Eye Health
Avocados have more of the carotenoid lutein than any other commonly consumed fruit. Lutein protects against macular degeneration and cataracts, two disabling age-related eye diseases.

Lower Cholesterol Avocados are high in beta-sitosterol, a compound that has been shown to lower cholesterol levels. In one study, 45 volunteers experienced an average drop in cholesterol of 17% after eating avocados for only one week.

Heart Health
One cup of avocado has 23% of the recommended daily value of folate. Studies show that people who eat diets rich in folate have a much lower incidence of heart disease than those who don't. The vitamin E, monounsaturated fats, and glutathione in avocado are also great for your heart.
Stroke Prevention
The high levels of folate in avocado are also protective against strokes. People who eat diets rich in folate have a much lower risk of stroke than those who don't.
Better Nutrient Absorption
Research has found that certain nutrients are absorbed better when eaten with avocado. In one study, when participants ate a salad containing avocados, they absorbed five times the amount of carotenoids (a group of nutrients that includes lycopene and beta carotene) than those who didn't include avocados.
Glutathione Source
Avocados are an excellent source of glutathione, an important antioxidant that researchers say is important in preventing aging, cancer, and heart disease.
Vitamin E Powerhouse
Avocados are the best fruit source of vitamin E, an essential vitamin that protects against many diseases and helps maintains overall health.


Now onto the recipe that I came up with last week it was a baked avocado
Feeds 2 people
Ingredients:
2 Avocados
1 small onion
1 tomato
2 cloves of garlic
1/2 tsp capers
salt
pepper
lime
jalapeno (optional)
cheese

Items needed:
knife
cutting board
spoon
juicer
food processor

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2. Peel onion and garlic and cut them into large chunks and place them into the food processor. Cut the tomato into large chunks and place that into the food processor and run it until all ingredients are chopped up and look like a salsa
3. Add the salt, pepper, jalapeno (optional) and lime juice into the food processor and set that to run, just so everything is incorporated.
4. Slice your avocados in half and carefully remove the pits
5. With a spoon, remove the flesh of your avocados carefully, making sure not to rip the skin. Put the skins to the side they will be used later.
6. Put the flesh into the food processor and set it to run so it turns into a guacamole consistency.
7. Take your capers and put them into the mixture and pulse the food processor 4-5 times (quick pulses) just so they get a rough chop.
8. Fill the avocado skins with your guacamole, split it evenly between the skins.
9. Sprinkle a little bit of cheese over the tops.
10. Place them on a baking sheet and put them in the oven for 10-15 minutes or until the cheese is a nice golden colour.

Enjoy!!!

Pho, A great and filling soup

I love Asian foods of all kinds. When I go for Vietnamese, I often choose Pho (pronounced fa). It is a soup stock that has been cooked and aromatized with lemongrass, onion or shallot, ginger, cinnamon sticks, star anise and salt and pepper. You cook all of these ingredients together in the soup stock, and it creates this beautiful clear broth. That is one of the biggest things about pho. The stock is clear, and this is because the noodles are cooked separately from the stock, so the powdered starch does not enter the broth.

The noodles are thick rice noodles. They do not take long to cook and are often soaked for about an hour or so in warm water before cooking. This releases a lot of the extra starches before the cooking process begins. Then the noodles are put in a pot of boiling water for at most 3 minutes depending on how thick your noodles are. Once that is done, the noodles are strained and a good portion is put in the bottom of your soup bowl.

The meats are typically sliced very thin and tend to be cooked when the broth is poured over top. I normally take a lean beef cut, and slice it thinly, or I go to the local butcher shop and buy Chinese Beef Fondue, which is beef that has been frozen and sliced on a deli meat slicer. I put this on top of my noodles and then start ladling the broth over top of the noodles and the beef.

Once that is set up then come the garnishes, they can range from all sorts of vegetables. My favourites are green onions, Thai basil, bean sprout, hoisin sauce, and siracha chili sauce, also know as Chinese/Thai/Vietnamese etc Ketchup. You can also chop up other veggies, such as peppers, celery, etc for more garnish. The last thing you will most likely want is some lime wedges. This will help to add an extra flavour.

Here is the recipe I normally use when I'm making myself pho

Ingredients

Broth

• 8 cups chicken broth
• 2 thin slices peeled ginger
• 2 whole pieces star anise
• 1 small (1/2-inch) section cinnamon stick
• 1/4 shallot, thinly sliced
• 2 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce, plus extra for serving
• 1/8 teaspoon pepper

Garnish

• 12 ounces dried rice noodles
• 1 pound boneless beef sirloin, or London broil, trimmed of any fat, frozen
• 1 small head romaine lettuce, shredded, or 2 cups shredded Savoy cabbage
• 1 rounded cup bean sprouts
• 1 red or green bell pepper, seeded, stemmed, and thinly sliced
• 3 scallions, minced
• 1/2 cup thinly sliced radish
• 1 cup fresh cilantro sprigs (pluck off the top leaves with slender stem attached)
• 1/2 jalapeno pepper, seeded, stemmed, and minced
• 1/2 cup fresh basil leaves
• 1/4 cup fresh mint leaves
• Salt
• 2 tablespoons peanuts, chopped
• Lime wedges, for garnish
• Toasted sesame oil, for serving
• Hoisin sauce, for serving

Directions

Assembly

1. For the cooking liquid, in a large saucepan, bring the broth, ginger, star anise, cinnamon, and shallot to a boil. Reduce heat to very low, partially cover, and simmer 15 minutes; remove spices with a slotted spoon. Add soy sauce and pepper, set aside.
2. Meanwhile, in a large bowl, soak noodles in cold water to cover until softened and pliable, 30 minutes. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.
3. With a very sharp knife, cut beef across the grain into very thin slices; arrange on a serving plate and refrigerate until ready to serve. Arrange all of the other vegetables, herbs, chopped peanuts, and lime wedges on a second, large platter.
4. Drain noodles in a colander. Add to boiling water and cook, stirring, 45 seconds. Drain noodles in a colander.
5. To serve, bring broth to a boil. Divide steak slices between 4 large serving bowls. Ladle broth over noodles. Add noodles, vegetables and herbs to each bowl. Everyone seasons with lime wedges, salt, soy sauce, sesame oil, and/or hoisin sauce, as they like.

Notes

1. Steak can be poached in the broth in advance, over heat, if lightly cooked meat is an issue: Bring saucepan of broth to a simmer, add meat, and cook 30 seconds. Divide broth and steak between serving bowls, and add remaining ingredients. (similarily with chicken, pork, or other meat products)
2. Beef sirloin can be reduced to 3/4 pound to save calories.

Breadless Turkey Burgers

For those of you who think a burger is a bun, and a ground beef patty, you're wrong. There are so many different combinations that you wouldn't believe how many different flavours I have created. I am going to share with you one of my favourite burgers that I've made in a long time

Ingredients:

• 1 lb of ground (minced) turkey
• 1 medium white onion
• 2 small or 1 large clove of garlic
• salt and pepper OR montreal steak spice
• 1 egg (you can use egg whites if you don't want to use the yolk)
• hot pepper (optional)

How to make

1. put the ground turkey into a large bowl
2. finely dice the onion and put in into the bowl
3. crush the garlic and add it to the bowl
4. add in salt and pepper to taste, remember a little goes a long way
5. crack your egg into the mixture
6. (optional) finely chop your hot pepper and add it into the mixture
7. using your hands, mix everything together making sure everything is evenly throughout the meat
8. split the meat into 3 balls and compress them making sure to get the air out of the meat
9. start to flatten the balls and shape them into burger shapes. 
10. using wax paper and a plate, put the meat between two sheets of wax paper. press the plate on top of the top sheet of wax paper to flatten the burger further.
11. when done shaping put them in the fridge for at least 30 minutes, (if you want to have them the next day, put them in the freezer overnight, and then put them in the fridge for the next day), to let them set
12. you can either cook the burgers on a grill on in a pan on the stove depending on the time of the year, put the burgers on your cooking device and cook the burgers until the juices run clear. you don't want to press on the burgers as they cook because you will push out what juices there are and since turkey is already a lean meat, you could end up with an excessively dry meat.
13. take the burgers off the grill and they are ready to serve.

 The next step is to decide whether or not you want a traditional bun (bread) or if you want to go gluten free, and just use a thick chunk of iceberg lettuce. I'm personally using iceberg lettuce and making my burger like that. next I am going to add in my condiments which are mustard, ketchup, green pickle relish, 1 pickle sliced, and 2 slices of tomato.
Calories: per serving with lettuce bun before condiments  236
              per serving with lettuce bun adfter condiments 236+3+10+14+8+7
                                                                                  = 278

sides can include baked sweet potato fries, tomoato salad, quinoa etc. hope you guys enjoyed this recipe as much as I did. next time I'll add photos of the foods I'm cooking!

Good eating!

Welcome to my blog.

This is my blog all about food. I love eating, but I also like finding and creating new recipes. I will also make demonstration videos about how to cook some different things. When  I go to restaurants, I will take pictures of my plates and explain what it was I had, if I had something extraordinary and I found to look interesting. I will also try to recreate different meals I've tried at restaurants and tell you about how they turned out.