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Posts tagged mint
Baked Zucchini Sticks
2I have been making a lot of salads lately and they’re just not doing the trick. Ive been craving French fries or something like it. I was going to attempt at making some at home and then I changed my mind. Instead I would make oven baked zucchini sticks. I actually can’t even remember the last time I’ve had those so I made it my mission.
My mom used to put some oil in a cast iron pan and fry some up for the family with some fresh creamy dill dip on the side. I was curious if you could bake them so I tried it out. The answer is yes, and they’re so good baked! I little healthier and still get nice and crispy!
Ingredients
- 1-2 zucchinis, cut into sticks
- ½ cup of pankco bread crumbs
- ½ cup regular bread crumbs
- ¼ cup grated fresh Parmesan
- ¾ cup flour for dredging
- 1 large egg
- 2 tbsp water
- Salt and pepper
Cut up zucchini and set aside. Arrange 3 bowls for dredging or plastic bags. In one bowl or bag put flour in. In a second bowl put egg and water in and beat (don’t use bag for this step). In a third bowl or bag put in bread crumbs, Parmesan, salt and pepper.
Take you zucchini and dip them in flour, shake off lose flour. You could do this all at once in the bowl or bag.
Then one or two at a time, dip floured zucchini into egg mixture.
Put egged zucchini sticks into bread crumb mixture. Either doing them all and shaking in a plastic bag, or dipping them in a bowl. Assemble zucchini sticks on parchment lined baking sheet. Cook on 400 degrees for 20-30 min, or until soft and browned.
I quickly made up a sauce with Greek yogurt, fresh chopped mint, dill, a dash of hot sauce, garlic, salt and pepper to dip them into. I love zucchini sticks and probably could eat them several times per week. J really isn’t a fan of zucchini at all but said he really liked these and ate them with a smile.
Mojito
010 months ago
in Recipes
When the sun comes out I get thirsty.
When the sun comes out, mint grows like mad.
When the sun comes out, I make Mojitos.
Mojitos are a beverage that everyone needs to master and make with their eyes closed! They’re so refreshing and are synonymous with summer! You can also add fresh berries to the mix as well for something new! I decided to make a classic mojito and I couldn’t have been happier!
Grilled Avacado with Roasted Sweet Pepper Salad
0No, I haven’t lost my mind, you can indeed grill avocado! No, it doesn’t just warm it up, but it adds an extra level that will make any guacamole, salad or sandwich taste that much better. There is a hidden nuttiness to the avocado that really comes out when grilled and the added smokiness also is something that is welcome in most foods.
I have to admit I was also a little leery with this new concept and chickened out when my imagination ran wild, thinking the avocado would just stick or melt down into my bbq creating a huge mess, so I started with a frying pan. The results were amazing!!
Ingredients
- 1 large ripe avocado
- 4-5 small sweet peppers or one large bell pepper
- 1 head of garlic for roasting
- 2-3 tbsp olive oil
- 1-2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
- Small bunch of fresh parsley chopped
- Salt and pepper
Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees and place peppers and head of garlic on a sheet pan drizzled with olive oil. Make sure to chop the top of the garlic off so the cloves are barely showing. Season with salt and pepper. Cook for approx 25 min or until all peppers and garlic is soft. Remove from oven, set aside to cool.
Heat a non-stick pan or bbq on med-high. Pour 1 tbsp olive oil in pan so avocado doesn’t stick. Place sliced avocado onto pan and cook for 2-3 min or until brown. If you’re using the bbq you might want to use thicker slices or just half the avocado. Flip and brown the other side.
Chop cooled peppers into long strips, throw into a large bowl. Squeeze garlic out of its casing and loosely chop, add to bowl with peppers. Add avocado, balsamic vinegar, salt and pepper to the bowl and toss to make sure everything is well coated. You might want to add more olive oil at this point but my peppers were nicely coated so it was fine.
This was such a nice and fresh salad that I think could go well with any bbq’d meat. All the flavours go really well together, the smoky avocado batting the sweet roasted peppers are amazing. You could add mint if you’re making lamb, or add cilantro for more of a Mexican flavour. I might add some toasted pine nuts next time for some more texture but all in all this was wonderful!
Baby Bell Peppers with mint and feta
0I got my first ever sunburn of the season last Friday and I couldn’t be happier. Not happy that I was burnt, because skin cancer isn’t something I aim for but happy that the sun was out long enough and was hot enough for my nose to actually burn. The sun just makes me so happy and appreciative of life so much more. When the sun decides to make an appearance I love is sitting on a patio with an ice cold ale or bright red Caesar with the hot rays of the sun warming my bones – and guess what? I was able to do that May long weekend which made me the happiest girl in the world.
Now that I got my vitamin d for the weekend my mind is constantly thinking of things to grill. I picked up the food network magazine on the ferry ride to Mayne and I kept flipping back to a page that had such a simple summer recipe that I thought would be a perfect side for any BBQ, gathering, or a quick easy dinner. It’s also a side that isn’t your typical cream based macaroni or potato salad. That’s also a bonus for people who want to try something different or be a little healthier.
I picked up these cute little sweet peppers at the market on Mayne for a salad I threw together on our last night there and co-incidentally these peppers are also the main feature to this recipe.
Ingredients
- 1 pound of baby bell peppers
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 1/2 lemon, juiced
- 1/4 cup fresh mint chopped
- 1/4 crumbled feta
- dash of red pepper flakes
- salt and pepper
Pre-heat grill to high. Toss baby bell peppers or quartered peppers with 2 tables spoons of olive oil and season with salt, pepper and red pepper flakes. Grill, turning until blistered, about 10 minutes. Transfer to bowl and toss with 1 table spoon olive oil, some chopped mint, lemon juice and top with crumbled feta.
I decided not to leave them whole even though they’re so small because I didn’t want to have the steams and seeds in the way while I was chowing down. I would definitely recommend doing that as well if you make this.
I might have grilled these peppers a little long but you couldn’t tell by the way they tasted, only by the look. The already sweet peppers gained an extra kick of sweetness by grilling them and then smothering them in a minty feta dressing just made it so fresh tasting. I think I will have to bring this recipe out for our next bbq, they’re so tasty!
Kangaroo, Ostrich, and Beef……Oh My!
41 year ago
in Misc
The other night my friend Ty, the one I told you about being a Mr. Martha Stewart, had some family over for an interesting dinner and I was lucky enough to be invited. He kept me in suspense for a few days with no hints, only instruction to bring goat feta, and buckwheat soba noodles. His only hint was an evening of amuse-bouche. Amuse-bouche is small bite sized hors d’oeurves and usually found in fine dining restaurants.
We all sat on the patio while Ty called us one by one to be his sous chef before serving us his creations. Up first was a mint melon gazpacho served in hollowed out cucumber cups. A gazpacho is a cold or chilled raw soup. Traditionally a tomato based but over the years the trend is basically anything and everything as long as it’s cold. Ty’s soup was pureed, not brothy and very refreshing. The added squeeze of lemon added some tang to the sweet melon and the mint was an addition of fresh. The added feature of eating the serving cups made this also fun and got us excited to see what was next on the menu.
This time I was called into the kitchen to assist and we were assembling sliders, 3 per person, each slider with a different theme. One was a traditional bacon cheeseburger slider made with mini beef patties, sliced grape tomato, lettuce and bacon. This was the most traditional of the three and very juicy and delish. The second was a Mediterranean slider with slices of feta, cucumber, tzatziki, and picked red onion and beef patties. The Mediterranean was supposed to be lamb but the grocery store sold out 2 days in a row before Ty had a chance to buy it. His mother liked this one the best and even though it wasn’t lamb it was still really good. The tzatziki was mild and didn’t overpower the slider and the cucumber added the right amount of crunch. The third slider was ostrich, served with alfalfa sprouts, and another type of sauce that I forgot to ask about. Perhaps Ty will comment on this. Ostrich is technically a red meat, and has some beef flavour to it, but also a little like turkey as well. I really enjoyed this one. Ty added some orange to the meat and also some oatmeal to make sure that they stayed juicy as ostrich is a very lean meat. The alfalfa complimented the mild citrus meat perfectly. The sliders were a hit!
The third dish was spicy peanut soba noodles with a side of grilled beef steak and grilled kangaroo steak. Yup, he served us kangaroo. He found Kangaroo at Heritage Meats in Langley (19689 Willowbrook Drive). I was really excited about this one the second I found out he was cooking kangaroo for us. I expected Kangaroo to be more like deer or bison and gamey but surprisingly it was pretty much the same as beef and not gamey at all. It was very tender and super lean. I saw the steaks prior to grilling and they weren’t marbled at all with any fat, Ty still managed to keep the steaks from being overcooked and tough. I was very impressed and enjoyed it a lot.
Lastly was dessert. Ty served grilled banana from the bbq on ice cream with chocolate sauce, caramel sauce, and his own homemade strawberry sauce with a dollop of whipped cream. The grilling of the bananas sweetened them up in a good way, not overly sweet and warm bananas are great with ice cold ice cream. His strawberry sauce was also perfect, still with chucks of strawberry. What a perfect ending to a perfect night of amuse-bouches.
My Lazy greek dinner
01 year ago
in Recipes
This weekend one of my best friends got married (an amazing wedding by the way) so for the majority of the weekend I was thinking about her, and her perfect day and not on food so last night I wanted to make sure I stayed home and cook something good for J and I.
We went to Cultas Lake for a couple hours this morning and by the time we got home the fact that we were tired from the wedding the night before and from sitting in the sun I wanted to make something fairly easy. We got more propane for the bbq, so I definitely wanted grill something delicious. I decided on loosely basing dinner on Greek food.
The first I made was Tzatziki Dip so that it could sit in the fridge for a couple of hours and infuse flavours into the yoghurt. It’s a lot easier then you think it might be and I also think it’s worth making over buying a premade package.
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups Plain Greek yoghurt
- One lemon juiced
- One medium sized cucumber seeded and grated
- One garlic clove minced
- 1 tbsp dill
- ½ tbsp mint (optional)
- ½ tsp salt
Grate the cucumber into a collinear and squeeze out some of the liquid. Put cucumber, minced garlic, lemon, dill, mint, and garlic into Yoghurt and mix well. Let sit for a bit for the flavours to blend together.
**If you don’t have Greek yoghurt the buy regular plain yoghurt and strain with 2 coffee filters for about an hour to remove liquid. It’s best that you have thick yoghurt. You might also want to add a small amount of sour cream to make it a bit tarter.
I also marinade chicken cubes in a Greek style marinade. I just mixed together olive oil, lemon, oregano, basil and garlic together and let that sit in the fridge as well for about an hour. Then I just put on wooden skewers that I had soaked in water for about an hour. Soaking them will help prevent them from going up in flames on grill.
The easiest part of the meal was the salad. There is nothing easier then chopping up veggies of your choice in large chunks and adding goat feta. You can add any kind of feta you like but I personally think the goat is the best. It just has a bit more flavour and it slightly creamier. The dressing is very similar to the chicken marinade, Olive oil, lemon, oregano, basil, garlic, salt, pepper, and honey.
I wanted to make Greek style rice but by this time my laziness has taken over so I cheated. Instead of adding water to the rice cooker, I added chicken broth, lemon, and parsley to give it a mild fresh flavour. Next time I might try and make real pilaf but not today. I think the final product was great and for an easy dinner it was great!
C & U Vietnamese and Cambodian Restaurant
01 year ago
So today I decided to make it my mission to find a place I have never eaten before. This wasn’t too hard since I don’t eat out too often but to make it more challenging I also wanted to find a Vietnamese place in Langley. I googled for a few minutes and found C & U Vietnamese and Cambodian Restaurant and gave them a quick call to put in an order for pick up. It’s located at 110-19665 Willowbrook dr, Langley BC, right behind the mall in the same plaza as Pasta Polo.
Since I didn’t have a menu on me, and couldn’t find one online I made the assumption that I could simply order a “vermicelli noodle bowl with spring rolls”. Well, apparently it’s not that easy and the phone call turned into a big confusing mess. By the end I had NO idea what I had actually ordered except that it had chicken and maybe noodles, I also said no to spring rolls simply because I just wanted to get off the phone.
I drove up to the restaurant and walked in to find a half full restaurant that was very clean and welcoming. I wouldn’t call it fancy by any means and perhaps a little dark but overall a good atmosphere. The girl was really friendly and let me know there was sauce included and I needed to add it to my food and mix well. I picked up a take-out menu, my food and brought it back to work.
The container of food was filled to the brim and so far looked very promising. It pretty much resembled a vermicelli noodle bowl so clearly she understood the naïve girl talk over the phone. The sauce was just a type of fish sauce which disappointed me a little because I really like to add hoison and hot sauce to my food but I added the fish sauce anyway and started mixing. Co-workers were commenting on how good it looked and how much food it was. One person challenged me to eat the entire thing and I gladly accepted!
The first bite I took was a bunch of noodles, chicken, and lettuce and it was actually really good. The chicken was well done, had a good flavour and there was a slight peanut taste. The lettuce unfortunately was already starting to wilt and get soggy. I mixed it up a little more and noticed that there was an awful lot of lettuce, no cucumber and as far as I could tell no mint or cilantro. I also don’t remember ever having green and red pepper either but that actually wasn’t bad at all.
On top of the take out container there was a 25 written so I took a look at the menu and saw that what I ordered was Vietnamese Salad with sliced grilled chicken. So I did get what I ordered but what I really meant was 25*, the star indicates a Vietnamese salad with cucumber, mint and spring rolls. Well, now I know for next time and that is also why I confused the poor girl on the phone. She kept mentioning a star and I had no idea what she was talking about.
Overall I am very happy with the food, but I would definitely pay the extra to get the added ingredients as it just wasn’t the same without the cucumber and mint. I also wished they had a Bahn Mi sandwich as well but unfortunately they don’t have any sandwiches at all. The restaurant is also supposed to be Cambodian. Now I am no expert on Cambodian food at all but as far as I can see, based on the menu it has one 3 Cambodian dishes and is mainly Vietnamese. Regardless, I will probably go back and try the star version! By the way, I did end up finishing the entire meal!
Vietnamese in Abbotsford
02 years ago
in Locations
There has always been something fascinating about Vietnamese food. Its colourful array of flavourful vegetables and fresh use of herbs that could awaken any taste bud. Its simple to make but tastes so much better when ordered in a true Vietnamese restaurant.
Recently Ive been working in the Abbotsford area and discovered a small establishment that is always busy, always delicious andserves some of the best Vietnamese food in town. Its so good that I’ve walked over to New Saigon Vietnamese Cuisine, located at Suite 108-31935 South Fraser Way every week that Ive been out there. Today I had the Chicken Vermicelli noodle bowl with spring rolls. The portions are huge, as with most of these types of establishments and sooooo yummy. You get a rather large heap of vermicelli noodles piled with chicken, peanuts, shredded carrots, mouth watering cucumbers, and sprigs of fresh mint. The spring rolls are probably the best I have ever had. I cant even explain their goodness well enough for you to understand. Theyre crispy on the outside, with a sweet and savory inside.
The tableshave an array of many types of sauces, from the typical hoisin to the fiery hot chili sauce and they even send you off with fish sauce when ordering take out. I prefer not to use the fish sauce but I am sure that to those of you who like it will appreciate that as well. I have yet to try anything else to be honest but I have seen other peoples orders, yes I stare at otherpeoples food,curious to know what steaming hot disharrived and it all looks so good. I hear that Henrys special is to die for so I will be sure to order that next and to include photos!
This brings me to tell you a story about my first experience with Vietnamese food. For some reason I never had Vietnamese food up until 2 years ago. I love trying new things so I don’t know what took so long.Anyway I oncehad a slightly overwhelming experience at Pho Tam in Surrey that unfortunately made me put Vietnamese on the back burner for a little while. Pho Tam is located at 10302 135 Street in Surrey, BC right across from the Central City Sky Train station. It has some of the best Pho around but be warned, the establishment is in a slummy area and the restaurant itself fits right in. Dont let the less then spectacular dcor put you off though, you will not regret it.
Now, you ask why I put Vietnamese on the back burner if this place is so great? Well, let me tell you. Being new to the area and new to this type of food, I made the mistake of venturing off by myself to find this so called hidden treasure. I knew the area was bad but I honestly I have to say when I pulled up I was less then impressed. I had to squash my snobby girl attitude though and march right in. I walked into a very very packed restaurant and took a menu to order some Pho to take out. The menu was a million items long so I stood in disbeliefhow could soup possibly be this complicated? I was expecting to find pho as one dish in the appetizer section of the menu. Boy was I wrong. After about 5 seconds I was greeted by a little Vietnamese lady who spoke very broken English, demanding my order. There were about 30 different types of soup combinations I could have chosen. How could I have been so unprepared? I dont like being out of my comfort zone, or having people know that I am out of my comfort zone so I immediately ordered the first thing on the menu that I recognized with some fake confidence. The meatball pho with vermicelli noodles. It only took about 10 min or less to make and was given a giant bag with many items. I thought, this cant be mine, I ordered soup?!?! She confirmed my order and away I went. I got home to find all sorts of things. A huge bowl of broth, a large container of noodles, meatballs, a bunch of cilantro, a bunch of mint, bean spouts, carrots, cucumber, hoisin sauce, hot sauce, and fish sauce. This was pho???? Apparently it was. I could see why it was all separated now; there couldnt possibly be a take out soup bowl that large. At first taste I was in love. How could I have possibly waited this long to enjoy something so delicious? There was sweet, spicy, and savory in every bite. As heavenly and enjoyable as this was, I didnt go back for a long time. I couldnt face the intimidating menu and ordering pressure again for a while so I sacrificed the pho goodness for selfishness. I am now over my fear of ordering and often go to enjoy the giant bowls of Pho. If you try this place out, be prepared, cash only and very limited parking.