Lemon and Rosemary Asparagus

Ingredients 

• 1 pound asparagus
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 1/2 teaspoon lemon zest
• 1 teaspoon rosemary
• salt and pepper
• 2 teaspoons cold butter, cut into pieces

Directions

1. Snap off the coarse ends of the asparagus. Place asparagus in a bowl of cold water and soak for 30 minutes.
2. Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees F. Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Add asparagus and cook for 2-3 minutes, until tender but firm. Drain, rinse under cold water, and pat dry.
3. In a bowl, whisk together all of the ingredients except butter. Add asparagus.
4. Transfer mixture to a baking sheet, spacing out asparagus evenly. Top with pieces of butter and bake for 5-7 minutes, until roasted and tender. 
5. Serve as a side dish.

Recipe taken from Cuisinez Avec Maria Loggia

Coq Au VIn

After watching Julie and Julia over the Christmas holidays (I was disappointed with the movie) I felt the urge to make Boeuf Bourguignon. When I finally had found a recipe for it on-line, I got discouraged by the amount of time it takes to cook. With the school semester just starting, I had to find something faster to make. Then I remembered seeing a recipe of Coq au Vin in a Coup de Pouce magazine I had at home.  I know it is not Boeuf Bourguignon, but wow, this tastes really good, and it is so easy to make. And plus, this recipe has chicken, which is my favourite meat.

Prep and cook time: 1h20
Serves 4 hungry bellies


Ingredients 

• 2 tablespoons butter (or olive oil)
  
• 9 chicken thighs, cut in half
• 2 carrots, thinly sliced
• 150g white pearl onions
• 1 cup mushrooms, sliced
• 1/2 cup chopped red onions
• 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
• salt and pepper
  
• 3/4 cup red wine
• 1 1/2 cup chicken broth
• 2 bay leaves
• 3-4 tablespoons tomato paste
• 2 tablespoons parsley, chopped
  

Directions

1. In a large enamelled cast-iron pot (or a regular pot), melt 1 tbsp butter on medium-high heat. Add chicken to pot and cook until browned, about 10 minutes.
2. Remove chicken from pot and set aside.
   
3. Melt remaining butter in pot and reduce heat to medium. Add carrots, pearl onions, chopped onions, mushrooms, thyme, salt and pepper. Cook for 5 minutes or until vegetables are lightly browned.
4. Put chicken back into pot. Pour in red wine, chicken broth, bay leaves, tomato paste and parsley.
5. Bring sauce to a boil, then reduce heat and let simmer for 50-60 minutes, always leaving the lid on.
6. Once ready, the chicken should be tender and the sauce will have thickened. 
7. Serve with basmati rice or potatoes.

Butternut squash and Arugula Bulgur Salad

I bought some nice butternut squash over the week-end and thought it would be a great opportunity to try this recipe, since I had all of the ingredients in my fridge. I roasted the squash as directed, whisked my vinaigrette as told, and cooked my brown rice according to the instructions on the bag... until I realized that my rice was some cheap brown rice that had been hibernating for too long in my cupboard and it now had this cardboard taste to it. Oh no, what was I going to do! Luckily I had some bulgur as a back-up, which tastes very much like brown rice. I accompanied this salad with zucchini patties and oven-roasted potatoes.

Cook and prep time: 30 minutes

Serves 6 hungry bellies

Ingredients 

• 1 medium butternut squash, peeled, deseeded, cut into 2 cm cubes pieces
  
• 1 1/2 cup uncooked bulgur
• 3 cups water
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 2/3 cup of roasted green pumpkin seeds
• 1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 garlic clove, pressed
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
  
• 1 bag (about 5 ounces) baby arugula, coarsely chopped

Directions

1. Place rack in center of oven and heat the oven to 400 degrees F. 
2. Peel, deseed and cut squash into cubes. In a bowl, toss the butternut squash with olive oil to coat. Season with salt and pepper. 
3. Transfer squash on a baking sheet, making sure they are evenly spaced. Roast squash for 15-20 minutes, until browned. Flip and roast another 5 minutes.
4. Meanwhile, bring water to a boil and add bulgur. Reduce heat to low, cover and cook for about 30 minutes, or until all water is absorbed.
5. In a large bowl, whisk the lemon juice, soy sauce, olive oil, garlic and brown sugar. Add about 3/4 of the cooked bulgur and toss to coat. Add the squash, pumpkin seeds, and arugula to bulgur and gently mix.
6. If you find that the lemon and garlic taste too much, add more bulgur.

The original recipe can be found here

Oven-roasted potatoes

Oven-roasted potatoes can never go wrong, except if you don't roast them! Make sure that you space out  the potatoes on the baking sheet, or else they will cook instead of roasting. They will become mushy instead of crispy!

Ingredients 

• 4 medium Russet potatoes, peeled, cut in half, and then cut in four
  
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• About 1/2 teaspoon of chilli powder (or put as much as you like)
• Salt and pepper to taste

Directions

1. Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees F. Place rack in the centre of the oven.
2. Peel potatoes and put in a bowl of cold water. Soak for 30 minutes.
3. Pat dry potatoes with a cloth and cut as directed above.
4. In a large bowl, toss potatoes with olive oil, oregano, chilli powder, salt and pepper to coat evenly. 
5. Place potatoes on a baking sheet and bake for 30-40 minutes or until crisp but tender, flipping them halfway.
6. Season again if necessary. Enjoy!

Cranberry Almond Zucchini Bread

I had some extra zucchini left in the fridge and had to use them fast. So I had the idea to make this delicious and healthy zucchini bread. This bread is hearty enough to eat for breakfast or as an afternoon snack. For my recipe, I have only added 1/2 cup of brown sugar, since I have used vanilla yogurt, which already contains sugar. If you want to use plain yogurt instead, then increase the brown sugar to 3/4 cup. Be creative with this bread and add whatever nuts and dried fruit you have in the house. I like the combination of cranberries and almonds, but you could use raisins and walnuts. This loaf stays fresh for one day on the counter, but then don't forget to refrigerate it!

Ingredients

• 2 cups shredded zucchini (about 3 medium zucchinis)
• 2 and 1/2 cups whole wheat flour 
• 1/2-3/4 cup packed  brown sugar 
• 1 tablespoon baking powder 
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon 
• 3/4 teaspoon salt 
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg 
• 1 cup vanilla yogurt 
• 2 large eggs 
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup chopped roasted almonds   
• 1/2 cup dried cranberries 

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Spray loaf pan with oil.
2. Grate zucchini and place onto paper towels or cloth. Cover with more paper towel and press down on zucchini to remove excess liquid.
3. In a large bowl, mix together flour, brown sugar, flax, baking powder, cinnamon, salt, and nutmeg.
4. In another bowl, whisk together yogurt, eggs, oil, vanilla. Then stir in grated zucchini.
5. Add zucchini mixture, roasted almonds, and cranberries to dry ingredients. Mix well.
6. Pour batter into pan and bake for 55-60 minutes. Cool on counter before serving.

Recipe inspired from Enlightened Cooking

Spaghettini with Fresh Basil, Bocconcini and Cherry Tomatoes

This pasta is so simple to make but oh so good! It is important to use good quality, fresh ingredients. If you do not have bocconcini, you can always use mozzarella di bufala, but do not use the commercial mozzarella, which is way too dry. This is a typical Italian summer pasta, which is good to eat warm or cold, and is even better the next day.

Ingredients 

• 2 pints cherry tomatoes, halved (2 plastic containers)
• 2 garlic cloves, chopped
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 1 cup fresh basil leaves, slightly chopped
• 1 cup bocconcini, cubed
• Pinch of hot pepper flakes
• Salt and pepper
• 350g spaghettini
• 1/4 cup reserved cooking water

Directions

1. Place cut cherry tomatoes with salt in a colander and drain for 10 minutes. Do not skip this step, since it is important to remove excess liquid.
2. In a large bowl, combine drained tomatoes, garlic, olive oil, cheese, basil, hot pepper, salt and pepper. Let marinate for at least 30 minutes. 
3. Cook spaghettini until al dente. Drain, keeping 1/4 cup of cooking water.
4. Combine hot spaghettini to tomatoes. Add reserved water if pasta is too dry. Season with salt and pepper if necessary.
5. Serve immediately!

Recipe Taken from Cuisinez Avec Maria Loggia, 2009

No-Meat Burrito

These burritos will certainly fool the meal eaters out there. The Yves Veggie Original Ground Round looks  like ground beef. With the spices and salsa added to the fake meat, you will be fooled to think that it is beef (well, anyways, I do think so)

Ingredients 

• 8 flour tortilla
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 package (343g) Yves Veggie Original Ground Round
• 1 red onion, chopped
• 3 garlic cloves, chopped
• 1 bell pepper, cubed
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 1 cup spicy thick and chunky salsa
• 1 can (8 ounces) red kidney beans or black beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 bunch fresh cilantro (also known as coriander
• Grated cheese

Directions

1. Wrap tortilla in foil; place on center rack in oven. Heat oven to 350°F; heat tortillas 15 minutes. 
2. While tortillas are warming up, prepare burrito filling. In a large skillet on medium heat, heat olive oil. Add onion, garlic, and bell pepper. Cook for 5 minutes. 
3. Add veggie meat and break it apart with a wooden spoon. Continue to cook for another 2 minutes.
4. Stir in salsa, cumin and beans into veggie meat mixture; reduce heat to low. Cover and simmer for about 5 minutes, siring once. 
5. While filling is simmering, chop about 1/4 cup of cilantro. Stir into filling.
6. Spoon filling onto the warm tortilla and top with cheese.
7. Roll up and serve immediately.

 Original recipe found in Favorite Brand Name, Mexican, 2003, p.130

Italian Sausage Linguine

Ingredients 

• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 7 garlic cloves, diced
  
• 1 red onion, chopped
• 1 orange bell pepper, sliced
• 2 Italian spicy sausages, casings removed
  
• 1/2 cup red wine (or more)
  
• About 5 tablespoons sundried tomato pesto
• 1 bag spinach, slightly chopped
• 1/2 cup basil, chopped
• salt and pepper
• 1/4 cup cooking water

Directions

1. Cook pasta according to manufacter's directions.
   
2. Meanwhile, on med-low heat, heat olive oil in a large pan. Saute garlic and onion until tender. 
3. Increase heat to medium and add bell pepper and sausage to pan, making sure to break the meat apart with a wooden spoon. Add salt and pepper. Cook for 5 minutes.
4. Add wine and tomato pesto and simmer for another 8 minutes.
5. Stir in chopped spinach and basil to sauce and mix well.
6. Mix pasta to sauce and add some reserved cooking water is pasta is too sticky.
7. Serve with freshly grated parmesan cheese and a glass of wine!