All posts tagged: cheese

Apple and Bacon/Rasher Stuffed Mushrooms

Fat gives things flavor  – Julia Child Not long now! I can’t believe how close Christmas and my birthday are! I will keep this short this week as I know Christmas is coming and everyone (myself included) is busy finishing year-end projects and goals as well as trying to get everything ready for the festivities. This recipe came to me in a moment of inspiration the week of Thanksgiving. I was really sick, but trying to think of things I wanted to bring to our Thanksgiving dinner when this popped into my head. I ended up not having time to make it then, but I’ve been working on them since and I’m quite pleased with the result. These are easy to put together, and are based on the flavours and scents of this time of year—much like the Tomato, Orange and Lentil Soup from last week. I love the combination of rasher and apple mixed with nuts Every bite makes me reminisce of Christmas at my Mom’s with her mouthwatering stuffing. The apple, in it’s turn, evokes …

Creamy Tomato Chicken Pasta Bake

Pasta doesn’t make you fat. How much pasta you eat makes you fat. – Giada De Laurentiis Years ago, I was visiting my sister who lived in Galway at the time. From my memory it was either late Autumn or early Winter. We had gone out the night before and had spent our day recovering by watching TV, chatting, and I believe she introduced me to the magic that was “G’s to Gents”. When we finally decided to eat she introduced me to what has become one of my favourite meals to make when I’m having friends over. All the vegetables and chicken smelled divine by themselves but adding the Dolmio® Creamy Tomato Sauce gave it that extra edge. My sister is one of those people who always ups her game when it comes to cooking and this recipe had already been given to her by another friend in it’s basic form of the Dolmio jar, chicken and pasta. My sister not only added vegetables, but she also stirred in single cream and added hunks …

“Pizza” Baguettes and English Muffins – Cooking with Kids

  Cooking with kids is not just about ingredients, recipes, and cooking. It’s about harnessing imagination, empowerment, and creativity. – Guy Fieri One of my favourite little people, The Jam, loves cooking. Sometimes, when we Skype, he is in the middle of baking something delectable with his parents. This made picking an activity to do with him (besides reading stories) quite easy! In fact, when I was home in January I decided to get him, and his family, two cookbooks – The Usbourne Beginner’s Cookbook and Ella’s Kitchen: The Cookbook. When I returned in August, I picked a recipe from the former of these books to make with him. So, off we marched the local shop where we picked up some baguettes and where he conned me into buying ice-creams for his parents and a King Cornetto for himself (smart kid!). One reason why I feel this recipe is a great one to do with kids is because they can choose their own toppings based on their own likes and dislikes, and can help at a variety of levels depending …

Gorgonzola Salad Wraps

A meal without some cheese is like a beautiful woman with only one eye. – Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin When I came back from my holidays, I went shopping for food the second day that I was home.  Even though I was supposed to only be buying the ingredients to make last week’s recipe I was wandering around looking at all the food. Despite the fact that I know I have a bit of a cholesterol problem, my favourite part of Homeplus (a store similar to Tesco or No Frills) is the cheese section. Though it’s mostly really processed American or, as my family call it, plastic cheese, they fortunately have one shelf constantly stocked with Brie, Camembert, Mozzarella, real Philadelphia Cream Cheese, and Smoked Cheese. The main reason I peruse it so often is because sometimes you come across a rare gem – a couple of months ago for about 6 weeks they had Edam Cheese and, last week, I found Gorgonzola. I was over the moon. I’d just been thinking that I’d really like some blue …

Kale Baked Beans

Beans, beans, they’re good for your heart                                                              -Schoolyard chant So, I’ve mentioned before how I love baked beans on toast. Everytime I have them, whether they are jazzed up on some fantastic bread or just a tin of Batchelors on Brennans‘, they evoke memories of staying with my Granny during World Cup 1990 while my mom was away. At night when my dad got home, we’d drink really sweet, milky tea and feast on beans on toast. Maybe we didn’t have them everyday, but I was under 8 years old at the time, and that’s what my memory is telling me! While the bread is certainly important, for example, a nice Vienna Roll or Brennan’s Batch loaf would do the trick, getting such high quality bread in Korea sadly doesn’t equate to a quick and easy meal. I’d have to trek to Daejeon, which is 30 …