Daily Unadventures in Cooking

I would be lying if I tried to pass this recipe off as authentically Chinese, however this orange chicken will definitely taste like your local take out.

The sauce that this pork recipe produces is truly unique—in flavour and in texture. In fact it basically curdles and turns brown, but it’s a good thing.

This Asian noodle salad is a healthy meal in itself which is perfect for a potluck or a packed lunch. The crunchy fresh vegetables bring the vibrant colour and the chicken adds a dash of protein to these tangy peanut noodles.

A braised chicken recipe to help use my abundance of sage. The key is to fry up the chicken first so it stays nice and crispy.

This beef stew recipe is why I love to cook. Simple, rustic and easy preparations lead to an amazing gravy full or lush flavour. Oh, how I love braised, stewy comfort food.

A simple broiled salmon recipe with spinach and feta which takes less that fifteen minutes. The salty feta and spinach is balanced well with the strong flavours of the salmon and the freshness of the lemon.

A delicious healthy roasted mustard chicken recipe inspired by an old roommate. In this one pot meal the tangy chicken roasts on top of sweet sauteed cabbage.

This time of year no one wants to fire up the grill, instead try this steak recipe.  The steaks cook in simmering red wine which turns into a delicious sauce for them.  The recipe recommends using beef tenderloin but sometimes at the cabin our selection is limited and we can’t be too picky. If you [...]

After reading several rave reviews of Thomas Keller’s new book Ad Hoc at Home, I was trying to resists until Christmas but when I saw it for sale at Costco, I snatched it up.

Shrimp sauteed in garlic butter is really easy to make and guaranteed to please a crowd. When my local fisherman showed up again I knew I wanted to do another simple shrimp preparation to enhance the delicate sweet flavour of the fresh seafood.

Since it is the day after thanksgiving, I should mention that though I haven’t tested it I bet you could use this recipe to make some wicked turkey, barley and thyme soup…  if I had leftover chicken or turkey I think I would first make a simple stock with the carcass.  Before straining I would [...]

Since American Thanksgiving is next week I thought I would post a recipe that I made last month with my turkey leftovers. Up in Canada we celebrate thanksgiving in October, I guess the holiday migrates south?

Fresh, simple, and delicious, this cassoulet recipe tastes very real. The fresh vegetables retain their colour and flavour and the dried beans cook up deliciously as they are simmered with the meat.

Fall is lovely but it can bring on really heavy stewy dishes. If you need a break try this light salmon dish using the currently in season leeks. Leeks are lovely and underrated. They turn really sweet when sauteed and are a nice contrast in texture to the crispy salmon.

I love anything and everything that is braised. To me braising means two things: comfort food and low effort. The timing for stews and braises is very forgiving if you are entertaining or having a laid back afternoon, plus it always makes the house smell heavenly.

A strong beer such as a stout has such a creamy, nutty, almost coffee like flavour that it is just beautiful with short ribs in this recipe.

Fennel and orange is a classic combination, which until now, I never had the opportunity to try. When I saw more beautiful fresh fennel at the farmers market I knew it was time. Frequently, the combination is raw fennel and raw oranges in a salad. However, because I much prefer fennel cooked [...]

This sesame chicken is crunchy and juicy and tossed with the salad it is a lovely fresh recipe.

This recipe was inspired by an old crockpot cookbook. Those old cookbooks can be so funny. Like, seriously, who could possibly go through that much cream of mushroom soup? I have changed pretty much every ingredient to a more natural form, kept the ketchup, and added mushrooms. This is most definitely North American [...]

Shrimp with white wine and garlic is always a popular combination, but when you add in the local tomatoes and baby leeks it brings a beautiful sweetness to this classic dish.