Ten on Tuesday

1)  The nice people from Popcorn Indiana recently sent me some Chocolate Peanut Butter popcorn to try (full disclosure: this product was provided to me free of charge). 

I love trying new, healthier snack options, and especially love that the product is made with Non-GMO corn.

2)  We picked up some Halloween candy for the trick-or-treaters!  We're giving them mini chocolate bars and some Cheezies!  Do you get trick-or-treaters?  What are you handing out? 

3)  I absolutely hate to replace household items, furniture, etc..  Christopher and I are both of the same mindset; we believe in buying high quality items that will last, and then we prefer to repair them instead of replacing them if possible.  We save a lot of money by never buying things like new furniture, new appliances, a new TV, etc., unless we absolutely have to.  The couch cushions, which are over 10 years old, are starting to get holes in them, and the filling is coming out.  I was so happy when I came home today and Christopher had told me he sewed them up!  There is no need to replace beautiful cushions when they are still good!

4)  When we got home from Winnipeg on Sunday, we were quite happy to see that we had all the ingredients for bee bimp bop in the fridge.

5)  The leftovers made a great lunch on Monday.

6)  There was still leftover rice, so Christopher used that to make kimchi fried rice for Monday's dinner. 

We've been taking turns cooking a lot lately, just due to a busy month ... but we are excited to get back into the kitchen together in November.

7)  Tonight the boys are jamming, so I'm whipping up an easy dinner while blogging and doing homework.  It is about to go into the oven.  We're having ribs, potatoes and peas.

8)  I threw a little fit when I read that the class I am taking next semester will be on Friday nights.  A day later I found out it was a glitch, and they will in fact not be ruining my life ;-)

9)  Those who've been reading my blog for a long, long time, know that I used to eat a lot of oatmeal for breakfast, usually with really fun toppings.  This week I've been back on the oatmeal.

Yogurt with toppings is making a comeback too ...

10)  I just threw a quiche in the oven for breakfasts for the rest of the week.  I love having a hearty, warm breakfast in the morning, and prepping a quiche ahead of time is perfect!  It warms up so nicely.  I used mushrooms, spinach, tomato, onion, zucchini, and three kinds of cheese. 

You can find my basic quiche recipe here.  It's smelling good already!

What are your Tuesday things?  How's your week going so far?

Ten on Tuesday

1)  Fireworks are going off like mad outside right now.  Ummmm.  No one told me there were going to be fireworks tonight!!?

2)  Soooooo, I'm pretty much a southern belle now.  I know this because I had grits for breakfast yesterday.  Cheeeeeeesy grits.

Okay, here's what you do if you want to be a southern belle too.  Bring 1 cup of water and 1/2 cup milk to a boil.  Add a pinch of paprika, and a grind or two of pepper.  Add 6 T of coarse cornmeal.  Reduce heat to very, very low, cover and simmer for a couple minutes until desired thickness.  Stir in 1/3 cup grated sharp cheddar, and if you're feeling sassy (like me), stir in 1 T of Cheese Whiz.

This makes A LOT of grits.  You might want to make this much for two people.  Or pig out.  I won't judge.

3)  I don't like not liking foods.  I was never really a fan of smoked oysters, but every time I got the opportunity, I tried one.  I think I have finally acquired a taste for them! 

Grind a little salt on the top, and they're even better.

4)  I love corn on the cob, but I hate having to dress it up at the dinner table.  My solution to this is to butter and season the corn before cooking it.  Just spread softened butter all over the cob ...

Then season liberally with fresh ground salt and pepper ...

Wrap it up in tin foil ...

Tightly.

Then, go ahead and BBQ it.  The butter gets all melty and it's just perfect.

5)  I don't care if it's +30 C outside, I still make chicken stock.

I loaded a chicken carcass,carrots, celery, onion, bay leaf, peppercorns, 3 star anise, and 5-6 cloves into this pot with just enough water to cover.  I brought it to a boil, and then simmered with a lid for about 4 hours.  The smell was intoxicating, and it made for a pretty fantastic soup yesterday for lunch.

6)  Sometimes for dinner we just share a giant plate of homemade perogies.  If you haven't tried sriracha on your perogies, you must.  Cover 'em in sour cream and then load on that sriracha.  And, you're welcome.

7)  I like to have Christopher's lunch ready for him when he gets home.  Today it was a giant spinach salad, with a toasted kale and tomato sandwich.  We are sandwich addicts.  Kale and tuna was on the menu the other day ...

8)  I've been researching for our trip to Montreal.  I think we are in trouble.  Poutine trouble.

9)  We rarely eat Greek salad, but we had it yesterday and were reminded of how good it is.  We had Greek ribs with it.

10)  This evening we BBQd sweet potatoes, corn, and Indian spiced drumsticks.

Brine them, then season and cook 'em low and slow for perfect, moist chicken.

What are your Tuesday things?  

Have you been to Montreal?  Recommendations?

10 on Tuesday

1)  I got about 10 hours of sleep last night, and I still had a really hard time getting up this morning.  This hasn't happened to me in a long time, but the last two weeks or so, I've needed so much sleep.  Someone is ready for holidays!

2)  Lunch the other day was hot and sour soup from Thai Basil.  This restaurant is insanely good.  Their crispy, salted chicken is one of the best things I've ever eaten.



3)  I'm looking forward to attending two weddings this summer!  Daaaaaaaancing!

4)  For dinner on Friday we went to The Artful Dodger for pizza.  I had the bacon mushroom pizza, and it was really good.  Christopher had the anchovie pizza, and it was terrible :-(



5)  My sister's new cat Finn is pretty much the cutest thing ever.  I just. can't. take. it. anymore.



6)  A lovely lady that Christopher delivers to gives him Epicure products every year at Christmas, as a thank you.  We recently tried some of the BLT dip seasoning, and it was great!  We had some other random snacks while having a rainy, movie day inside.




7)  Family brunch for fathers' day on Sunday at Thomas the Cook:



It was really good!  I loved that the potatoes were not fried.

8)  Last night we BBQd rack of lamb for dinner.  We had it with veggies and potatoes:




9)  Spring time means Froyo!  Gotta love those bobba balls!



10)  We had hotdogs twice on the weekend.  Ummm, is it bad that I am not sick of hotdogs? 



Dear Christopher, 

For future reference, please don't read the nutritional information on the Costco hotdog label aloud to me.  

When it comes to hotdogs, ignorance is bliss.

Love,

Jolene

(His reply would probably include something about how I probably shouldn't be buying hotdogs with 3456 grams of fat.  Yeah, yeah).

What are your Tuesday things?  

Do you have any weddings to attend this summer?

Hotdogs are healthy, riiiiight?

Ten on Tuesday

1)  We've been enjoying the goose fat we got a while back.  On the weekend we used it to make waffle- iron hashbrowns (just grate potatoes, squeeze out all the liquid, grease up the waffle grill and you're set).

2)  Serve the waffle-iron hashbrowns with an omelet and bacon to make everyone happy.

3)  I used to get made fun of occasionally for still buying CDs.  I was told that people don't do that anymore.  But then I found a boy who I think is "a people" (the jury is still out), and he totally buys CDs too.  We put a little Amazon order in recently, each making two choices for new discs.  One of my choices came yesterday, and we've really been enjoying it.

I absolutely love Cocorosie.  If you don't know of 'em, you should.

4)  We've started watching Archer on Netflix.  It's a cartoon, but definitely not one for children.  It's good when we want a quick show, as the episodes are only about 22 minutes.

5)  Dinner tonight is spaghetti with turkey meatballs. 

6)  I love Taco del Mar.  We had the fish burritos for lunch on Saturday and I could not stop mmmmm mmmmming.  Mondo fish burrito: sour cream, guacamole, a bit of re-fried beans, cabbage, cilantro, pico de gallo, and white sauce ... get it.  Take it home and douse it in jalapeno Tabasco and thank me later.

7)  I don't know how I've lived this long without this burger in my life.  I mean, I know I only came across this post tonight, but ... but ... I neeeeeeeed.  Honey?  Are you reading this?  Take note.

8)  We booked a summer vacation - we're headed to Montreal for a week!

9)  We thought that booking this trip called for a Montreal-themed dinner.  We made a Montreal-style hotdog called a "steamie", loaded with mustard, chopped onion, and sauerkraut.

 

One the side, poutine.

 
10)  We slowly made our way through the McCain cake in the freezer.  I'm not much for desserts, but I took bites here and there:

How's your week going so far?  What are your Tuesday things?

Ten on Tuesday

1)  We're still eating that giant zucchini!  Dinner the other day was a tofu, veggie mixture with mushroom risotto on the side.

2)  When there are snacks like this in the staff room at work, I. Can't. Stop.  Won't. Stop.

I have a weakness for salty deliciousness.

3)  My sister started her blog back up!!  I'm pretty excited, because I love it.  Check it out here.

4)  Tomorrow is national kale day!  I'll be sharing an awesome recipe with y'all, so check back. 

5)  On Saturday we ate some simple, store-bought sushi, but Christopher was pretty excited about it:

6)  Speaking of sushi, I had lunch the other day at I Love Sushi, and they have terrible sushi ... but their buffet is pretty good!

7)  Confession:  I can easily polish off a shrimp ring on my own, and have done this on more than one occasion.  I did share this one though:

8)  Is anyone else sad that this is over?

What incredible character development in this series!  Now to start House of Cards.

9)  We've been loving omelets for weekend breakfasts ...

10)  On Saturday evening we went out for supper to Bushwakker, and then headed to The German Club for Oktoberfest!  It was a really fun evening.  We were out on the town all weekend!

What are your Tuesday things?  Did you, or will you celebrate Oktoberfest?  Do you like kale?