pics

Guiness birthday cake - created by The Cake Shop

Derek's birthday cake - The Cake Shop
http://www.thebestcakeshop.com

Chocolate Moulds

Pictures of some of my favorite dishes... recipes to follow

Stuffed Jumbo Shells - love this dish!

Spinach and lots of cheese, and pork.

Saturday night! Sidedoor Restaurant

Saturday night we headed out to downtown Ottawa, and since we are on a stay-cation we decided we should try something new, so we went to Sidedoor restaurant on York Street. We sat out on the patio, which was great! It was a lovely evening to be out on a patio. I must say we had an enjoyable evening everything was fantastic, from the wine to our dessert and the service was excellent.


Unfortunately I did not take any photos of the food we ordered as we were very much into the delicious items that were upon us. Plus, once those doughnuts hit our table we were in a different world!! 


What we ordered:
Green Papaya Salad to start, fresh and delightful!
Braised beef with Panaeng curry and roasted peanuts with a side of steamed rice
"Peking Style" Mariposa Farms Chicken with chili scallion sauce
side of bok choy tips
and for dessert we ordered the donut sharing platter, which included the chef's feature donut along with our espresso, wow!!! is all we can say for these donuts... sooo good!!!!!!


check out the Sidedoor next time your in the Byward Market

http://sidedoorrestaurant.com/

Vera's Burger Shack!

We tried Vera's Burger Shack, Monday afternoon after our visit to the Papanack Zoo. We went down to Bells Corners and checked it out. My husband and I both ordered the Vera's burger with bacon and cheese with a basket of fries to share. I must say, it was the best burger I've had, you basically order the burger, the lady behind the counter puts the fresh burgers on the grill which takes 8 minutes to cook, that is when you know the burger is going to be good!!!! we then mark down on our order sheet what we would like on our burgers, for example, I chose bbq sauce, dijon mustard and tomatoes! My husband added all his stuff which included Vera's sauce, he really enjoyed it. The basket of fries was really good we shared it as it was quite a good portion for the two of us! Its a great place, and you can pick up your fresh meat at the butchery in which they are located in! I have attached some pics below and recommend that everyone who is a burger lover try it out! 


We will definetly be going back!!

here are some photos from Vera's and their web site:

http://www.verasburgershack.com/

My husband, taking his first bite into the delicious burger!

My burger, with bacon and cheese, some dijon mustard and bbq sauce mmm.....

and of course, our basket of fries!

Banana Bread and Banana muffins!!

mmm... the loaf is out and smells great! now the muffins are baking!


For dinner:


Steak
wedge potatoes
green beans and salad


I have marinated the steaks, with olive oil, fresh basil from the herb garden; rosemary and fresh garlic and black pepper.


The potatoes are sliced into wedges in a bowl with olive oil, pepper, basil and tarragon


should be delicious!


have a great day everyone!


Teresa

Pasta Dinner with fresh homemade sauce

Hello!
It is Saturday morning, in July!
This morning we have already done plenty of chores and next up is gluten free banana bread! Just waiting for the bananas to defrost and then the baking begins. 


Now, I have some pictures of some pasta dishes, that are great to make during the week for quick dinners. 
If you have pasta sauce already made from the weekend, I like to freeze the extra that I have, and then take the portions out as I need them. 


If you do not have sauce on hand, then you can make a pasta dish without red pasta sauce, you can prepare a seafood pasta with vegetables, and use an olive oil base as your sauce and add fresh herbs if possible:
salt
black pepper
basil 
garlic
oregano

I like to use shrimp and scallops in my pasta dish, and then whatever vegetables you have on hand. 

Pasta with shrimp; scallops and vegetables!

I'm back, the bananas were ready and so I have a loaf baking and banana muffins ready to go next! I added some chocolate chips in the batch! 


Okay, so here are some photos of the two different pasta dishes I was mentioning:

Tortellini pasta with homemade pasta sauce and fresh sausages!

BBQ Season!

Hey Everyone! sorry it has been awhile since my last post. I hope all is well with everyone and that we all enjoyed the beautiful long weekend.

BBQ season is a great time, for us, we also bbq during the winter, but its more fun during the beautiful weather. I have some pictures to post from a bbq we hosted, the pics are the before it hit the bbq... I will try my best to add pics after the meat comes off the bbq. 

On the menu:

Sweet Potato Fries

Shrimp

Steak

side of Asparagus

Strawberry Short cake dessert

Sweet Potatoes

Washed and peeled, cut them into wedges, and put in the microwave for 6-8 minutes or until soft, then marinate with olive oil, pepper, oregano, basil. You can use any type of herb you wish, fresh rosemary works as well!  Then we grill them on the bbq!!! they are soo good for you and taste amazing. 

Shrimp

I purchased the large shrimp, they are already cooked, so it was just as simple to marinate them and put them onto the skewers so that they can be put on the grill. I let them thaw out and threw them in a bowl, lots of garlic, lots of lemon juice, and of course.. Olive Oil! some chopped up tarragon, basil and pepper. Shrimp is always a great side with a steak. 

Asparagus

We always steam our asparagus, then I drizzle some olive oil, oregano, salt and pepper!

Steaks

Marinating steaks is a great thing! you just get some of the flavors in there and no need for bbq sauce or anything else to have your steak with. I marinate mine, with a bunch of herbs, pepper, basil, olive oil, rosemary, thyme, minced garlic. The longer it stays in the fridge marinated the better!!!

Strawberry Shortcake 

Now this is a quick and easy dessert! 

Angel food cake mix batter, prepare as directed on the box, I bake in the round baking dish, so that I can have double layer cake. While it is baking, I slice my strawberries! Once the cake is ready, let cool. Then cut through horizontally, spread cool whip and add strawberries on top. Place the top portion of the cake back on, spread cool whip all over the cake, top, and all around and add more strawberries! and Voila! 

Game 5!!! that was intense! and fantastic!!!

Good Day Sens Fans!!!

I hope we all enjoyed last night's game 5 winner! We headed to James Street Pub last night for the game. Had dinner and some drinks and watched Spezza and the boys take the lead in the series. Now we await with anticipation as the team comes back home for Game 6. 


Sunday afternoon, and we did most of our chores yesterday, so today I have prepared my pasta sauce, this time I used homemade Italian sausages and ground beef. I will be preparing baked Rigatoni tonight! 


pics to follow tomorrow... 
I hope everyone enjoys their Sunday afternoon! 


GO SENS GO!!! We Believe!!!!


Teresa

Sens Game 4!

How is it going Sens Fans!? well, Game 3 in the Nation's Capital last night was wild! It was quite an amazing game, even though we did not win the game. The crowd was loud, cheering and supporting their team. It was so intense, we were at the edge of our seats all night. 


So, game 4 is Wednesday night, and we will be watching from our living room. The hockey night dinner will be a simple bbq. I will be preparing veal burgers, with a side garden salad! told ya it was simple. Looking forward to it!


GO SENS GO!!!!


Teresa

Menu: Wednesday March 21, 2012 at Restaurant International - Algonquin College

I couldn't pass up on the Inverted Poutine - come on!

Salad - simple and tasty!

My Husband had the Cream of Tomato Soup with a grilled cheese dumpling - that's right!!!

Sweet Pickled Beets as an App!

Cured |Duck breast! with a waffle!!!!

Shepard's Pie - braised lamb leg, it was amazing... so delicious...

My choice for dessert - so delicious! I didn't leave anything on the plate!

Cheddar Apple Pie

Chef - Our nephew Daniel Ranger
The Service at the International Algonquin Restaurant was fantastic, we enjoyed a cocktail, and a glass of wine to complement our meals! and of course to top it off with our desserts we had each had a double espresso. Congrats to the Algonquin Team, you did a spectacular job, from beginning to end!

Teresa

What a Game!!!!

Go Sens Go!!! 8-4! well done!!!


Wow! Now that was quite the game tonight! Much better play than Friday night's game against Montreal. 


Good job boys!!!


Sens Fan -


Teresa

Egg Rolls!

So, I thought I would share with you all, that we finally tried the famous Golden Palace Egg Rolls. Last Friday night, we decided to order take out and just have egg rolls, okay so we picked up some bacon fried rice with it too.. but that was it! and let me tell you, they were awesome! I love egg rolls, spring rolls from a Thai restaurant, Vietnamese restaurant, Chinese take out, you name it, and these are on top of the list. We can now join the rest of the people and say that we ate them and they are good! 


Golden Palace Egg Rolls



Enjoy -
Teresa

Friday!!!!

Happy Friday night! I hope everyone is doing well!? I have not posted in over a week, but I am back! Where to begin? well, I must start by saying how fabulous has this weather been? wow! We did BBQ during the winter, but with this weather you must BBQ!!! We enjoyed a nice bbq at my parents place last weekend, home made Italian sausages on the bbq, very good. Monday night we put some chicken breasts on the grill, and steamed some vegetables as a side dish, can't go wrong with chicken! The following night we had steaks on the bbq with baked potatoes, a garden salad on the side! Of course, you can't go without dessert... Lemon Meringue Pie.. no I did not bake it, store bought. I have attempted the lemon meringue in the past, however, I just can not seem to get the meringue right, I attempted more than a few times, and then gave up, maybe at some point I will give it another try. Teresa

desserts!!!

Desserts!!!! So, I had mentioned that Saturday I was baking the Gluten Free banana muffins and they turned out okay. they did not rise as much as I thought they would, so they were like little muffins. They taste great! I made a dozen and we are having them as a snack for our mornings at work. We were having guests over Saturday night around 7pm, so I thought I would prepare some finger foods and a dessert! got to have dessert. For the finger foods: a tray of cantelope wrapped with prosciutto a cheese tray (havarti cheese -tomato/basil flavour, apple wood cheese, cheddar and marble) olive oil/balsamic vinegar, with basil, oregano and fresh garlic, served with a baguette shrimp cocktail gluten free, cholesterol free tortilla chips with salsa Saturday afternoon I also made a Warm Chocolate Pudding Cake, now this is a recipe I have had for a long time, I think it came from the Kraft web site. It is easy and delicious. All you need is: the package of devils food cake (two layer) prepare as directed on the package 2 instant jello chocolate pudding milk cool whip so once the cake mix is blended thoroughly, you pour it into the greased baking dish, while in a separate bowl you are mixing the instant chocolate pudding and then you pour that mix right on top of the cake mix. bake at 350 degrees for about an hour. Serve warm with some Cool Whip! and there you have it! well, thats it for me tonight. Tomorrow, I will chat about the cupcakes we picked up at Thimble Cakes!!! a must try! Teresa

Stew!!!!

Well I haven't posted in the last few days, so I thought tonight I would do a bit of catching up! I hope everyone in the Ottawa area has been enjoying the Spring weather, its going to be a beautiful weekend. Let's talk food!! Monday night I made a homemade family stew, it was delicious and the good thing about it is there is always leftovers for lunch the next day.. gotta love that! Now, the stew is a favorite dish of my husband's, as his mom use to make this for them. Ingredients: beefing stew ( I use one package for the two of us) sausages (mild) remove casings potatoes carrots mushrooms (thought I would give it a try) garlic bay leaves onion salt/pepper oregano basil beef broth (one can) Bovril sauce heat up the oil, garlic and onion and allow meats to brown then you add the vegetables, beef broth, the bovril sauce and add water enough to cover the potatoes I let it cook over medium, and then simmer, for about an hour. It was delicious, and when you heat it up the next day, mmmm.. good!!! It is a great comfort food meal. enjoy!!! Teresa

the smell of banana muffins on a Saturday morning!

Good Morning!!! Happy Weekend!!! The sun is shining bright on this Saturday morning, the weekend chores have begun... and so has the baking!! Gluten Free Banana Muffins are in the oven and the kitchen smells good! First time making gluten free muffins, hope they taste good!? I picked up the gluten free mix at Bulk Barn, added egg, unsweetened yogurt and vanilla! (darn it, should have put chocolate chips in...) next batch! then its off to the grocery store, to make some finger food apps tonight. hope you all have a great day! Teresa -

"Honey, what do we want to make for dinner?": Monday!!!

"Honey, what do we want to make for dinner?": Monday!!!: Monday night, and here I am getting ready for bed, work in the morning. We were off for a four day weekend. Today, we stopped in to the Cake...

Monday!!!

Monday night, and here I am getting ready for bed, work in the morning. We were off for a four day weekend. Today, we stopped in to the Cake Shop on Wellington, they use to be on Greenbank. Wow, the shop is fantastic, it looks amazing and of course their cakes and cupcakes are phenomenal. We ordered my mom's birthday cake, can't wait to see it. On another note, my lasagna turned out great. It was delicious. Leftovers for lunch and dinner for the next few days. Lasagna: Whole Wheat Lasagna 6 eggs, grated marble cheddar grated bocconcini cheese provolone cheese and sliced tomatoes on top each layer I pour the pasta sauce over with the turkey meatballs; each layer also gets the grated eggs and cheese top layer I added the tomatoes and the provolone cheese. delicious!

Lasagna!!! mmm..

Hello!

As I mentioned yesterday, I am making the whole wheat lasagna tonight. Just finished cooking the turkey meatballs and now will be preparing the lasagna.. looking forward to taking a bite out of it!!!

Meatballs:

Ground Turkey
green onion
shredded mozzarella
1 egg
milk
bread crumbs
salt/pepper
basil
oregano
sage
and a pinch of chili powder

Teresa

Gluten Free Pancakes

Gluten Free??? how does that slice of bread taste without the gluten? what about the pizza?? well, a few years ago we purchased a loaf of gluten free bread and let me tell you after one bite into that, and we went back to our regular whole grain breads. But now we have decided to give gluten free another chance. I wanted to make gluten free pancakes for Shrove Tuesday, and we headed to Bulk Barn.. and I was amazed to see that they have an aisle with so many gluten free products, along with gluten free pancake mix! excellent!!! add milk, egg and vanilla!!! we also added bananas, and it was delicious. Of course we had maple syrup along with it! The taste of the pancakes was incredible, you didn't even realize that they were gluten free, in fact after three pancakes I did not even feel completely full. So we definetly are making those pancakes as part of our weekend breakfasts! Next, gluten free banana chocolate chip muffins... stay tuned! Teresa

Welcome!

Glad you stopped by! Sunday evening on March 4th and here I am writing my first blog!! I am no professional writer, I don't tweet.. but I love to talk, and google and check my facebook page who knows how many times a day! Why blog? well, I love reading magazines, checking out the latest recipes, healthy food ideas and baking... I love to bake for special occasions, get togethers and for just no reason! I love to host get togethers and trying new recipes! So I hope you stop by again, I will post dinner ideas, new recipes I have tried and ones I will attempt! and the ones that turn out fantastic, I will post pictures of! Today, I made my Italian Pasta Sauce, as an Italian young woman, I learnt to make this pasta sauce when I was a young girl, watching my mother making it each Sunday! Sunday was always a pasta dinner night... well, who's kidding who? in an Italian household pasta dinners were every second night! So, today I prepared the sauce as I am making a whole wheat lasagna on Monday (pasta not made by scratch) I haven't gotten to that step yet!!! Ingredients: Italian mild sausages (homemade when my father makes them) if not, Farm Boy 1 can of Unico Sauce onion garlic olive oil red wine salt pepper basil (I love the fresh basil) Oregano You can add carrots, mushrooms if you wish! I let it simmer for about 1.5 hours We went to my parents place for dinner tonight, bbq!!! sooo good.. and when we walked back into our home tonight, the smell of pasta sauce was amazing!!! stay tuned for details on how my lasagna turns out! have a good night! Teresa