Turkey Quinoa Meatloaf

We shared this meatloaf with friends last night and we all agreed that this simple recipe is a keeper.

Ingredients:

• 1 lb ground turkey
  
• 1 onion, chopped
  
• 2-3 garlic cloves, chopped
• 1/3 cup quinoa, cooked according to the package instructions
  
• 1 egg
  
• salt, pepper, italian seasoning
  
• 1 tbsp Worchestershire sauce
• 1 tbsp olive oil
  

Directions: Cook quinoa according to the package instructions. Let it cool off for a few minutes. Mix thoroughly the ground turkey with all the other ingredients. Place mixture in a baking dish and bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour (time depends on the dish you're using, probably best to check internal temperature to make sure the meat is cooked). Let is stand for a few minutes and serve. Share with friends and enjoy!

Cauliflower Soup

After cooking some breaded cauliflower yesterday I had some boiled cauliflower leftovers. So today I decided to make some soup out of it. I started with a recipe I had from my mother-in-law and I tweaked it with what I had in my fridge. Here is the result:

Ingredients:

• 1/3 cauliflower, slightly boiled florets
  
• 2 carrots, chopped
  
• 1/2 red bell pepper, chopped
• 2-3 tbsp tomato paste or marinara sauce
  
• salt, pepper, thyme and paprika
  
• water or vegetable stock or chicken stock (I used some homemade chicken stock)
• 2 eggs
• lemon juice
• fresh parsley
  

Directions: Drizzle some olive oil in a pot. Saute carrots and bell pepper until soften. You may want to add some onions to the carrots and peppers, I didn't because my homemade chicken stock was cooked with onions already. Add salt, pepper, thyme and paprika. Add water or stock. Boil for about 10 minutes, then add the cauliflower and boil for another 5-10 minutes (depends if your cauliflower is already boiled or not). In a bowl, beat eggs until thick. Whisk in lemon juice. Gradually add some of the hot soup, whisking constantly. Add the egg mixture to the soup whisking, until egg cooks and the soup slightly thickens. Ladle into bowls, sprinkle with fresh parsley and enjoy!

Vegetable Stew

Last night I cooked this vegetable stew and it turned out pretty good.

Ingredients:

• 1 onion, diced
• 3 cloves of garlic, minced
  
• 1 tsp of grated ginger
  
• 2 celery stalks, diced
  
• 1/2 red bell pepper, diced
  
• 3 small potatoes, diced
  
• 1 yam, diced
  
• 2 carrots, diced
  
• 1 can of chickpeas
• water or vegetable stock or chicken stock

Spices:

• 2 tsp ground cumin
• 2 tsp paprika
• 1/2 tsp fennel seeds
• 1/2 tsp dried thyme
• 1/4 tsp ground allspice
• 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
  
• salt and pepper

Directions:

Drizzle some olive oil in a pan or pot (large enough to cook the stew in). Saute onion until golden. Add garlic and cook until fragrant, then add the celery and bell pepper and cook until soften. Add the ginger, the spice blend and the rest of the vegetables. Add water or vegetable stock to cover the vegetables. Simmer covered for about 30 minutes or until the vegetables are cooked.

Delicious Sandwich

A few weeks ago I tried an amazing sandwich at the Cornerstone cafe in Guelph. Here is my own version of the sandwich.

Ingredients:

• good bread (I used a whole wheat ciabatta)
  
• Brie cheese (slices)
• roasted red peppers (slices)
• avocado (cut in big chunks)
• fresh garlic or garlic powder
  

Directions:

Layer the ingredients on the bread slices or buns.



Toast the sandwich in a hot pan or in a panini maker. This is how the yummy result looks like :)

Lamb Stew

Over the holidays we had some friends over that enjoy lamb meat as much as my hubby and I do. So, one of the dishes I cooked was lamb stew. The yummy recipe I have is from my dear friend Celia. I'll share it with you as I got it from her.

Ingredients

• lamb meat (I usually buy the one that it's already cut for stew)
• tomatoes, diced
• green peppers, diced
• onions, diced
• cilantro, chopped
• salt, pepper, paprika, cumin, garlic
• lime juice
  

Directions

Wash the lamb meat with lime juice and then water. Add salt, paprika, cumin, chopped garlic, little bit of vinegar to the meat and let it marinate for a while. Add tomatoes, green peppers, onions and cilantro - a very generous quantity. Now that all is assembled you can either cook it on the stove top as my friend does, or take the easy way out, like I do :), and cook it in a slow cooker. If cooked on the stove, make sure that you stir it often and keep an eye on it as it might need some extra water as the liquid evaporates. Cook until the meat is tender and the veggies are cooked. In the slow cooker I cook it overnight on slow. Serve over rice and enjoy!

Thanks Celia for a wonderful recipe!

Roasted Sweet Potatoes

Yesterday I decided to roast some sweet potatoes. I like roasting them because you can eat them hot or cold and you can use the leftovers for some salad the next day. So, here is the recipe:

Ingredients

• sweet potatoes
• salt,pepper,olive oil, dried thyme (optional)
  

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F, convection mode. I used convection because I had more baking sheets. Otherwise bake at 425 F.

Cut the sweet potatoes in small cubes and combine them with salt, pepper, olive oil and dried thyme.

Bake for 25-30 min or until tender and browned around the edges.

Enjoy!

My first post

I have no idea what I'm doing, but I've decided to give a try to blogging. Let's see how it goes ... I started thinking about blogging when I thought it would be nice to share some of my recipes with friends. Especially with Mady, since she's the one I'm talking the most to about recipes :)