Originally, I was really excited about sharing my Thai Garlic Shrimp recipe, especially after weeks of blogging about things like pole-dancers, men in capes and other important issues like cauliflower shrinkage.  I figured my six followers, who thought this was a food blog, would be anxious to see an actual recipe.

But when I went to the grocery store to get the ingredients my focus faltered. I discovered that the “affordable” wine I like was on sale. I’m not talking about one or two dollars off here, I’m talking about “BUY ONE GET ONE FREE.” affordable had become cheap—no— virtually free.  In my frenzy of excitement loading my cart with Natura Unoaked Organic Chardonnay, (did I mention ORGANIC) I lost all sense of time and place.

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There are those who might call this dish “Chicken Satay & Spicy Coconut Peanut Sauce.” They might think that calling it “cat” is less than appetising and opt for a traditional name that’s less offensive, like “Chicken.” I can understand that.

But when you have a smart ass neighbour who calls the dish “Cat on a Stick” and then he won’t let the name go, you’re stuck with “cat on a stick” no matter how hard you try to change things. The name catches on, and soon people start dropping stray cats at your door (despite the animal rights activists who picket your home.) You wish you’d never made the dish, but it’s just so dang good!

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I’m obsessed with risotto, roasted vegetables, bacon and wine (not necessarily in that order.)  Oh, and also, fresh parsley. I’m obsessed with other things too, but for the purposes of this post, let’s limited it to these five ingredients (recognising that “roasted vegetables” implies an infinite selection.)

Risotto is the blank canvass of cooking. It absorbs any delicious flavour you throw its way and converts it into a masterpiece. Risotto is willing to slip into the background and let the add-ons take center stage. Pasta is more egotistical, less willing to work with others. Choose Risotto. Continue Reading…

There is nothing more dedicated, more determined, than the Canadian BBQ-er.  While those of us south of the border are often content to wait until the spring for that chargrilled goodness, the Canadian knows that the spring never really comes.  If you don’t Carpe Diem, you may never Carpe.

The Grill

My brother Roy knows how to tame a Canadian grill and generally subscribes to my father’s “Just warm ‘er up” rule of beef preparation.

But where my father settled for a slice of Sobey’s pre-packaged sirloin, Roy lassoes massive hunks of the finest cuts of beef, wrestles them down, and ties them up as tightly as a moustached villain chaining a hapless female to a train track.

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There are many different recipes for banana bread. Mine, of course, is the best because the recipe comes directly from the Bible, the original Canadian Living Cookbook—because, let’s face it, Canadians know how to live. Americans, who think we Canadians are unadventuresome, beer-drinking, beavertail eating bores, have clearly never sat down with the the Bible.

The Bible is the  only book of cooking you’ll ever need (Well, other than a good Thai Cookbook and all the recipes passed down on little scraps of paper from you mother and mother-in-law. Oh, and you could also buy a Tyler Florence  and an Ina Garten cookbook, but in all likelihood, they’ve put their nose in the Bible a few times too)

The Bible

Mashed up Bananas

The set up

If you don’t treat your Bible well,  the pages stick together and mold starts to grow in the crevices. This is blasphemous, but sometimes in your zeal of cooking and creating, ingredients splatter across the pages like bugs on a windshield. Soon your Bible is almost indecipherable, and when you go to buy another, you realise it’s been replaced, but another version. The King James version of cooking is gone! Continue Reading…