May 12, 2013 by asimpleloveforfood

Bacon Fried Rice

The day Tracy from Shutterbean posted this recipe, I knew I had to make it.
That night I made myself a batch and when Ryan got home I told him I would be making it again soon so he could try it.
So, make it again I did and then again and again.
This has become a go-to weeknight recipe when I need something quick and filling.

I love this recipe because you can adjust it to whatever vegetables you have on hand, even switch up the rice to whatever you have. Add more heat if you like it spicy! It’s completely adaptable to your taste and with the mix of bacon and egg it feels like breakfast for dinner, what could be better!

Bacon Fried Rice - adapted with what I had on hand from Shutterbean

2 cups cooked rice (jasmine is great and I’ve used brown too with great results)
5 slices bacon, diced
1/2 cup red onion, diced
2 green onions thinly sliced, plus extra for topping
2 cloves minced garlic
2 tsp grated ginger
1 cup diced red pepper
1 cup chopped broccoli, bite sized pieces
2 eggs, beaten
1.5 tbsp soya sauce
1 tbsp vegetable oil
hot sauce (optional)
slices of lime for garnish (optional)
Cook your rice according to package directions. It’s best to use rice cooked the day before, it makes cooking this meal faster and well it doesn’t stick as much.

In a wok or large frying pan, cook your bacon on medium-high heat until slightly crispy. Add in the onion and cook until soften, transfer to a bowl, leaving some of the grease in the pan.
Add in broccoli and red pepper, stir and cook for 4-5 minutes, so it has some bite still and not totally soft. Add in your garlic, ginger and green onions, cook for 2-3 minutes. Transfer to the same bowl as the bacon.

Lower heat to medium and add egg and scramble for 2-3 minutes until cooked, transfer to same bowl.

Heat pan back up to medium-high heat. Coat the pan with the vegetable oil and add in the rice, cooking for 4-5 minutes until it is heated through and slightly crispy. Add everything in the bowl back to the pan and mix, add in the soya sauce and hot sauce if you desire. Mix until everything is coated and mixed in thoroughly.

Transfer to your serving bowls and sprinkle extra green onion on top and squeeze lime over top if desired.

Enjoy!

May 7, 2013 by asimpleloveforfood

Today

Spring has sprung – finally!

We have been waking up to sunshine and blue skies the last few days.

The warm weather means lunch outside on the porch while the cats explore the outdoors for the first time.

The windows have been open and when the breeze blows in all I can smell are the daffodils Ryan picked for me.

Today Ryan and I shared a cocktail and some Bacon Fried Rice for supper – recipe coming up soon!

Imagine life without flowers. How terrible that would be.

May 3, 2013 by asimpleloveforfood

April Favourites

I am here!

Life has been busy lately. Our wedding is approaching quickly so I have been caught up in planning lately that I haven’t made time to connect on here. I think about it often but haven’t found the spark of inspiration to share recipes I’ve been trying lately. I just needed to step back and take some time for me and focus my energy where it needs to be right now.

I thought doing a ‘favourites of the month’ post would help me get back into the swing of writing and putting posts together. It may also help that I’m not at home right now surrounded by a to-do list but who knows, maybe this is just the time away I need to get me back into it!

Here we go!

The Lumineers – Flowers In Your Hair - I have been listening to their album on repeat, this song especially.

Burt’s Bees 100% Natural Lip Gloss – I have it in Rosey Dawn. The formula is creamy without being sticky or heavy, and lots of colours to choose from.

This had me laughing!

Food Wishes video tutorial on how to make Pita Bread at home is inspiring! I am imagining some BBQ Greek style chicken with tzatziki, tomatoes and salad on the side would make a great summer meal! On the to-do list for sure!!

I did make Barefoot Contessa‘s Savory Palmiers for a party last weekend which are amazing! I will make sure that is the next recipe I post!

I love to watch videos from BlenditandMendit on YouTube, each day new videos are posted on different smoothie recipes, they are inspiring and make me want to drink my greens even more.

Also on the green smoothie topic… are you prone to making bad ones? Maybe this video will help! Her tips have helped me make well rounded, balanced smoothies.

I’ve been trying to go deeper into my yoga practice and have found inspiration from @yoga_girl on instagram. If you have Instagram and love yoga or are getting into it and want some daily inspiration, follow Rachel. Beautiful inside and out, her and her photos make my want to get on my mat each day and breath in deeper.

My new favourite natural mascara! Real Purity really knocks it out with this formula, it doesn’t flake, it’s build-able and long lasting.

A new blog I found that I absolutely love – The Curvy Carrot.

That’s it for now… I’ll be back soon to share the Savory Palmier’s recipe. I promise!

April 8, 2013 by asimpleloveforfood

This Weekend

I live close to the United States boarder now so I traveled across on Friday with my mother-in-law to be to look for a dress for the wedding, no luck but I did find some new clothes!

Daffodils are brightening up our house. As you can see we still have snow and I need any hint of spring I can get, fresh flowers help out a lot!!

Lazy Sunday with oatcakes in bed while watching season 4 of Breaking Bad

I made a late breakfast on Sunday of potatoes leeks and mushrooms with over-easy eggs

I also made a big batch of homemade cheese and spinach ravioli, I put it all in the freezer and it’ll be ready for us for quick weeknight meals.

Also:

-Saw Oz the Great and Powerful
-Went out to lunch on Saturday
-Finished putting up trim in the bathroom, the renos have been going slowly. We really need to start on the bedroom next.
-Went for supper at a friends house and had a heated game on Monopoly

It was a good weekend! Next weekend we are away so it was nice to be home and get some things done around the house.

April 6, 2013 by asimpleloveforfood

Meatless Chili

I said the words “meatless chili” to Ryan and got the ‘have you gone completely crazy?’ look.

I tried to reassure him that it would be delicious, he was skeptical.

I usually make chili with ground beef but I didn’t have any on hand and I’ve had bags of dried beans staring at me every time I open the cupboards. Tuesday night I decided to put the beans in a pot and let them soak overnight. Wednesday morning I put everything in the slow cooker to have ready for when we came home from work.

I haven’t cooked much with dried beans, I usually buy canned but I am trying to move away from that as much as I can. Had I worked with dried beans more, I would have known to boil the beans for awhile before adding them to the slow cooker. When we got home from work the beans still had some bite to them, I transferred everything to a pot and finished it on the stove top. Next time I will cook the beans until just tender then throw them into the slow cooker. (Note: I do have an older slow cooker so it may just be that mine doesn’t get hot enough to cook the beans, if you’ve put dried beans in and it’s gone over fine, that’s great!)

The end results?

I thought it was great, very hearty and lots of veggies (my favourite)! Ryan on the other hand… well he missed the meat but said it was delicious and very hearty. I won’t make it like this every time but I like knowing I have meatless options when I just don’t feel like it and I don’t have any in the house.

Meatless Chili

3 1/2 cups mixed dried beans ( I used Romano, red chili beans and chick peas)
2 carrots, peeled and chopped
1 cup mushrooms, chopped
1 red pepper, chopped
1 green pepper, chopped
1 cup corn
2 small onions, chopped
2 cloves garlic, sliced
1 can crushed tomatoes
2 tsp cumin
1 tbsp chili powder
2 tsp cayenne pepper powder
1/2 tsp red chili flakes
1/2 tsp all spice
1 tbsp black pepper
2 tsp sea salt
water

(the seasoning is just a guide line, please taste as you go and adjust to your tastes!)

Soak beans overnight in a large pot of water. In the morning, boil beans for 20-30 minutes or until they start to soften but are not fully cooked.

Add all ingredients to your slow cooker and set on low. Add water if it looks a little dry, I added approximately 1 cup of water to the slow cooker. Put a lid on it and let it sit for 6-8 hours. Taste and adjust seasonings accordingly. Once it tastes the way you like, whether extra spicy or nice and mild, serve it in bowls and add grated cheddar, sour cream or plain yogurt, avocado, green onions or nothing at all, however you like your chili! Eat it up!

Enjoy

March 19, 2013 by asimpleloveforfood

Homemade Pasta

At Christmas I was given the pasta roller attachments for my Kitchen Aid mixer – so exciting. I’ve been wanting to try making my own pasta for a long time and I know you don’t need the fancy rollers to make pasta but it did seem like it would make it less work than rolling and cutting it by hand.

My first attempt was awful. I got beyond frustrated with the booklet instructions that came with the rollers and there came a point where I actually threw the dough on the floor. Yah, that happened. It was embarrassing how frustrated I could let myself get over something so small, I had just been so excited about the thought of fresh pasta that when it kept breaking up as it came out the roller, I lost it.

Before my second attempt I went online. I did some research, watching videos of other people using it, they made it look so easy. Finally I came across The Italian Dish’s post on how to make fresh homemade pasta, it included a video and instructions on what to do and a simple recipe to follow. Elaine’s instructions gave me the confidence I needed to get back on the saddle.

My second attempt – flawless! It truly was very simple and stress free this time round. I gradually went from level 1 to 3 on the roller than attached my fettuccine cutter and rolled it through once to get beautiful cut pasta. Tossing the cut pasta in flour was a great tip to help it from sticking to each other.

I am not going to write out the process or the recipe because Elaine has already done it so beautifully, please head over the The Italian Dish to see how to do it properly.

I wanted to write this post to let you know that even if something doesn’t turn out the first time you cook or bake it, or if using a new kitchen gadget turns out to be extremely frustrating and not as simple as you thought it may be, don’t let that stop you from trying again. I have had so many failures in the kitchen since starting to cook but the accomplishments and delicious dishes I have made are what we remember.

The only way we get good at something is with practice and patience.