February 29th: Vermont Pork Chops

Why Vermont? No idea. Maybe the maple syrup. Mine's from Quebec though. Maybe I should re-title Quebec Pork Chops. I pulled this recipe out of the Ottawa Citizen a few weeks back. To quote the article, "The sauce is great with pork, ham, turkey or chicken. Warm it on its own and serve with any of these cooked meats or use it as a dipping sauce. It can be served hot or at room temperature."


I've never seen Olivia eat so much pork, let alone ask for seconds and thirds. Amazing what a whole lot of sugar will do:


Vermont Pork Chops


2 tablespoons maple syrup
2 tablespoons brown sugar
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
vegetable oil
2 pork chops
salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste


Mix together maple syrup, brown sugar and mustard, and set aside. Heat oil in a skillet over medium heat. Brown pork chops 2 minutes, turn, and salt and pepper the cooked side. Brown second side 2 minutes. Cover with a lid and cook 2 minutes or until pork is cooked through.


Remove to a plate. Add sauce to skillet and heat several seconds, scraping up any browned bits. Serve pork with sauce spooned over top.


Makes 2 servings.

Served with boiled potatoes and Dijon Brussels Sprouts.

February 28th: Chicken Strips & Peanut Sauce, Baked Eggrolls

A couple more tries from Mom's cookbook, some good, some not so good:


Chicken Fingers & Peanut-Apricot Sauce


My family swooned. To quote Olivia: "Mom, I think I'm going to eat all this chicken, because I love it." Anything that gets my child to eat more than a couple bites of meat wins in my book. Yay, peanut sauce.

Baked Egg Rolls


I served this with the suggested accompaniment of plum sauce, but we three did not like the plum sauce, so I ended up throwing out the entire (big) pot. That was disappointing. The egg rolls were good, but even better the next day when I made some tweaks to the recipe. I'm going to suggest even more, which I intend to try out in future: 


(1) double the sauce mixture
(2) use 1/3 cup filling per egg roll
(3) fold as per egg roll shape, rather than rolling as per spring roll shape
(4) cook in a pan with plenty of oil in the bottom and turn halfway through

Assembly line

In well-oiled pan, and turned so coated in oil

The finished result; not too shabby, hey?

February 27th: corn chowder

I've had this recipe kicking around for years. It is the perfect post-swimming lessons, cold Monday night supper.


Corn Chowder


6 cups cubed potatoes
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp marjoram or thyme
3 cups water


 1 tbsp each olive oil and unsalted butter.
1 onion, chopped
4 slices bacon, diced, optional


1 can whole kernel corn
1 can creamed corn
1 can evaporated milk


Salt, freshly ground black pepper, curry powder and sour cream, for serving


Combine potatoes, salt, marjoram and water in a large pot. Bring to a boil, cover and simmer until potatoes are just tender.


Meanwhile, in a skillet, heat oil and butter over medium. When bubbling, add onion and bacon and cook until is just softened and bacon is cooked, about 5 minutes.


Add onion mixture to potatoes, along with both cans of corn and evaporated milk. Heat through and serve, topped with salt, pepper, curry powder and sour cream, if desired.


Makes 4-6 servings.

February 26th: strawberry milkshake

Let's review all my reasons for a lack of posting this month:


(a) I have been busy cooking food for the freezer, for consumption post-baby. I have several draft posts related to these items, but will not publish until the food has actually been tasted and vouched for.
(b) I have been repeating recipes, as per usu.
(c) MY STOVE AND OVEN WERE OUT OF COMMISSION for 5 days. Such catastrophe set me back on the freezer food front and the blogging front.


Order has since been restored to my kitchen.


I am trying to gain weight, likely in vain, for baby's sake. As such, Olivia and I have been enjoying a weekly strawberry milkshake. Weekly, rather than daily, because I can only afford so much Haagen-Dazs. Why not cheaper ice cream, you ask? Read the ingredients on any other tub of ice cream and there is your answer.


I make milkshakes out of my head, but here's a recipe* for a delicious strawberry milkshake:


1 tub Haagen-Dazs vanilla ice cream
1/2 cup yogurt (vanilla, sweetened plain, strawberry)
1/2 cup milk


1 cup strawberries, fresh or frozen


If you have time, put your glasses in the freezer first to frost them up. Blend first three ingredients in blender and pour 1/3-1/2 mixture into glasses. Add strawberries to remaining ice cream mixture and blend again. Pour over top of vanilla mixture in glasses for a pretty layered look. Add a straw and drink up!


Makes 2 large or 3 small servings.


*Inspired by Chatelaine.

February 7th: sweet potato fries with curry mayo

The cookbook finally lives up to its name: from Best Recipes Ever, these sweet potato fries with curry mayo are the best sweet potato fries I have ever made. I am no novice in the sweet-potato-fry-making category either. This is my new favourite recipe and the one I will be turning to in future. One note about the curry mayo: I realized when I went to make it that I didn't have any limes, so I subbed in lemon juice. I doubt the difference is that significant, and the mayo was delicious. We ate the full mayo recipe with half the fry recipe. Yum yum.

Served with mushrooms, spinach and haddock

February 3rd: Lemon Herb Roast Chicken

I already have two roast chicken recipes in the keeper book, so I'm not usually looking for more, but I came across this one in Mom's cookbook and wanted to try it, because (a) it has lemon in the title and (b) it tells you how to make gravy. I'm no savvy chef; I have no idea how to make basic things like gravy. This recipe also let me put to use a recent spontaneous grocery store purchase: kitchen string! I know, am I wild and crazy OR WHAT?


Well, a couple comments: first of all, kitchen string actually makes a big difference when cooking a chicken. I had no idea. The flavour items stuffed inside stayed inside. The chicken stayed plump and upright rather than flattened out. The meat was moister and the skin was crispier. I tell you, it was all because of that kitchen string keeping the whole bird cinched up tight. Who knew?


Secondly, I wouldn't recommend this recipe if you don't like lemon. Not a problem for me. Although it's called lemon & herb chicken, we couldn't taste anything other than lemon. No hints of rosemary or parsley anywhere. The gravy was very lemony. I think it's partly to blame (or give credit to) my awesome citrus juicer I received for Christmas. Check it out:

Check out awesome yellow lemon juicer to right of other awesome Christmas presents.

I can squeeze so much juice out of my lemons with this baby. Perhaps, in the case of tonight's chicken, too much juice! I might make this chicken again. Or I might just stick with my go-to Perfect Roast Chicken, with tonight's suggestions for gravy making. From Best Recipes Ever: Lemon Herb Roast Chicken.

Served with boiled new potatoes and roasted sweet potatoes.

[Post-supper note: the next day, needing to get some food into me fast between gymnastics and BODYFLOW, I tossed 7 leftover mini potatoes and a good 1/2 cup or more of leftover gravy in a pot and left them to simmer on the stovetop - under Greg's eye - while I squeezed into Lululemon for my class. (Have I mentioned we don't have a microwave? It died awhile back; we haven't replaced it and mostly haven't missed it.) (Have I mentioned I'm pregnant? Lululemon becomes more of a squeeze with each passing week.) In a flash of brilliance, I loaded my warmed up potatoes and lemon gravy in mozzarella cheese - all we had - and pepper and ate it, poutine style. Awesome. And enough potatoes and gravy to do it again the following day.]