Tag: Foodie

Simple Brine Recipe

A roast chicken is a perfect Sunday meal. This popped up in my Facebook memories and reminded me of how a brine can bring amazing end results. I must try again.

Simple Brine Recipe

This brine designed for turkey but works perfectly well for a roast chicken. The ingredients below are for a turkey brine. For the chicken picture above, I used 2 oranges and 1/2 of a lemon.

1 cup Kosher Salt

1 cup brown Sugar

5 Oranges – sliced

3 Lemon – sliced

Fresh herbs – Sage, Rosemary and Thyme – chopped

Submerge your fresh bird in water for 24 hours in the refrigerator with your brine ingredients. Drain water, rinse your bird, pat dry and air dry in the refrigerator on a cookie seat with a rack for another four hours to help achieve a crispy bird.

I cover my chicken with a mixture of olive oil, butter and herbs. No real measurements involved. I am especially fond of thyme. Make sure to keep the weight from the package to determine cooking time. I often cook at 350F but sometimes higher for a crispier skin. I always consult a cooking guide before. Make sure to check the internal temperature of your chicken and/or turkey to make sure it is cooked. Let your chicken sit for 15-20 minutes once out of the oven to let the juices flow through. Serve with your favourite roasted vegetables and potatoes – which you could put into your pan during cooking – or anything you else you may fancy.

Enjoy!

Don’t pass the salt

Sodium is hard to control when you eat on the go. Even many healthy options are filled with large sodium values. Many recipes I follow I just choose to add less salt than what is called for and like to add fresh herbs, spices and chilli flakes to add flavour. I am also a big fan of Longo’s Markets no salt added products as I try to be very mindful to reduce my own sodium intake as I create homemade meals. Every little small change over time can make a big difference.

Homemade Tempura 

I love the Gusto TV network and one of my favourite shows is Urban Vegetarian with Desiree Nielsen. I love tempura so I finally tackled Desiree’s homemade version this evening with wasabi mayo. Loved it. I highly recommend for any tempura lovers. 

Recipe: http://www.gustotv.com/recipe/tempura-veggies/

Breakfast Simplified  

Me and weekday mornings are challenging especially in the chilly winter months. The comforts of my bed and sleep often wins over a healthy homemade breakfast. 

To simplify and speed up my morning routine, I spent ten minutes packing my smoothie ingredients to simplify for the week ahead. This week’s creations included one banana, blueberries, spinach, hemp hearts, coconut oil, cashew butter and vanilla extract. Just grab a smoothie ziploc package from the freezer, add almond milk, blend, enjoy and GO! 

Strawberry Spinach Smoothie

Today’s smoothie creation – one banana, a handful of frozen strawberries and baby spinach, approximately 1 tablespoon almond butter as well as hemp hearts, a teaspoon of coconut oil and unsweetened almond milk. I added a wee bit of cinnamon too. Blend and enjoy! 

Asparagus with Gremolata 

Gremolata is an amazing way to add flavour. Often made with lemon, I made a gremolata mixture with orange zest, juice, garlic and parsley for this asparagus dish. 

Very simple to pull together. Zest the orange peel into a bowl, cut and add the juice of the orange, mince a 1/4 cup of parsley and add a garlic clove or two (or three) and mix. Sprinkle over asparagus. 

Fresh flavours to dress up your vegetable side dishes. 

Peach, Mozzarella and Basil Caprese Salad with Balsamic Reduction 

It is peach season. A tomato and mozzarella caprese salad is one of my favourites so I decided to put a summertime spin on it by using peaches instead. 

All you need is basil leaves, mozzarella and peaches. To make the balsamic reduction – bring balsamic to a boil and simmer for ten minutes till it takes on a thicker consistency. I used 1/4 cup since I only needed a small amount. If you have not tried a balsamic reduction before, you will love the more intense flavour it brings to a salad. 

Enjoy this simplistic fresh summer salad!