Sunday, December 27, 2009

Pomegranate Chicken Soup



So many of us have a freezer full of turkey or chicken stock after the holidays...I use it in stirfrys, risottos and soups! Especially in the cold days of winter there is nothing better than a bowl of heartwarming soup. Rather than make a big pot of one soup, I freeze my stock in smaller containers so I can make a new soup every night or two.

My last soup was chicken with bok choy and pomegranate seeds! It was fantastic. The few ingredients means I can whip it up in no time at all. I just added left over chicken and freshly chopped bok choy to the stock and heated it up. When I dished it, I added a handful of pomegrante seeds. The bok choy is tender crisp and the seeds add a great bit of freshness and sweetness which plays well off my stock which is generally a bit spicy.

The green and red colours also make a great presentation. Try it. I bet you'll like it!


Newfoundland Dip

The Christmas party season means dips, dips and more dips. Here's one that might look a bit strange on paper but in your mouth it works perfectly! I don't have a picture because it was devoured before I had a chance!


Newfoundland Dip


Mix all of the ingredients below in medium bowl.


1/2 cup mayonaise or miracle whip

2 tbsp ketchup

2 tbsp honey

2 tbsp onion flakes

1/2 tsp curry

7 drops of tabasco sauce

Salt to taste.


Great with veggies especially celery, carrots and peppers.

Wednesday, December 23, 2009

Pine nut and Cranberry Granola

This is a great recipe that can be changed up to suit your mood - substitute different nuts, spices, or dried fruit depending on what's in your pantry!
From granola
Ingredients3.5 cups large flake oats
1/2 cup slivered almonds
1 cup cashews
1 cup pine nuts
3/4 sweetened shredded coconut
1 tbsp cinnamon
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup maple syrup
3/4 teaspoon salt
1.5 tsp vanilla
1 cup craisins or other dried fruit

Directions
Preheat oven to 275 degrees.

Mix oats, all nuts, coconut, cinnamon and brown sugar in a large bowl.
In another bowl stir together oil, honey, maple syrup, salt and vanilla.

Add oil mixture into dry ingedient bowl and mix until combined.
Spread mixture evenly over two large cookie sheets lined with parchment or silpats.

Put in oven and bake for about 65 - 75 minutes. Stir every 15 minutes to ensure even browning. Keep an eye on them during the last 15 minutes as they can go from brown to burnt quite quickly. Take out of oven and cool for ten minutes. Put granola in large bowl and add craisins. Mix. Once cooled place in air tight container. Enjoy on its own or with yogourt.
From granola