Seared Calf Liver with Caramelized Onions
Up until about a few years ago, I hated liver – couldn’t stomach it. It smelled nice whenever my parents would fry it up with onions. I would try it on occasion – one bite and with half a chew, I would place a napkin toward my mouth and expel it. Won’t go down. Fast-forward […]
Feta Brined Turkey Breast, Chestnut Stuffing and Make Ahead Gravy
American Thanksgiving is coming up this Thursday and Christmas is just over a month away. Both dinners center around a roast turkey plus whatever fixins’ and sides you may prepare plus some ethnic dishes that your family likes to serve on special occasions. Our holidays will be different this year – smaller gathering and that […]
Jerk Pork
About 10 years ago, here in Scarborough (east Toronto), there was a Jamaican take- place that served Jerk chicken and many of the other usual offerings. What set this eatery apart from the others was that the guy served Jerk Pork….not all Jamaican eateries offer this. This joint was owned/operated by a Chinese-Jamaican gent and […]
Sea Urchin Pasta
This first time I saw sea urchins was in Halkidiki (where our family’s summer home is), clinging to rocks under the sea. Another sea urchin memory was eating them on the half-shell with a squeeze of lemon juice in Mykonos (summer ’92). Fast forward to 2009, first visit to Crete and I have a big […]
Creamy Scalloped Potatoes
You know a side dish is a winner when you can eat it like a main courser. Such is the case with Scalloped Potatoes – I love them! My earliest memory of scalloped potatoes was when my relatives in Hamilton, Ontario purchased a Banquet Hall/restaurant complex. There was a restaurant, many banquet halls and even […]
Fried Chicken Sandwiches With Ranch Dressing
I love fried chicken (a few recipes already on this site) and currently, fried chicken sandwiches are a “thing”. Many opinions on which fast food chain serves up the best chicken sandwich. Some are really good, many are okay and some are just “meh” and don’t live up to the hype. While I may not […]
Pan-Roasted Chicken
This past year has be odd, plenty of time to reflect, catch up on interests. I’ve had more time to cook for myself and it has been a joy to see so many others try their hand at cooking at home. This past summer I saw Chef Jim Botsacos (known for his time at New […]
Poor Man’s Truffle Pasta
One of the “in fashion” ingredients (the past few years) are truffles. There are white and black truffles, foraged by truffle hunters who take along their trained dogs to sniffed out these culinary treasures, buried in the ground. In cooking, truffles are shaved on dishes and if you go to a fancy restaurant, it is […]
Scalloped Roast Lemon Potatoes
Sundays are for gatherings of family and friends. Some more time can be taken in the kitchen to make something a little extra-extra but it doesn’t have to be super-technical either. A couple of summers ago, I came up with the idea of cutting potatoes in slices (like for scalloped potatoes) and roasting them like […]
Porchetta
Put your hand up if you think “time” should be treated as an ingredient. For this recipe, time (patience) is important for this dish to be a success. I love pork belly and Italians do a great job of it in a Porchetta (pronounced “porketta”). Basically it’s a rolled and pork belly, tied up and […]
