Swedish-ish Meatballs So I compared my recipe (this one) with my mother's (who is Swedish) and while I captured the spirit of the Swedish meatball I did make 3 technical errors. First, traditional Swedish meatballs use half ground beef and half ground pork (I only used ground beef). Second, I added garlic but really; I’m half Italian and I ...
Mussels Steamed in a Dijon Mustard Cream Sauce (Mussels Dijonnaise)
Mussels Steamed in a Dijon Mustard Cream Sauce (Mussels Dijonnaise) I was watching French Food at home by Laura Calder and became inspired to make steamed mussels which is weird because she was making lentil soup but I digress. This dish comes together in under 10 minutes but would easily impress at any dinner ...
Classic Pasta Salad
Classic Pasta Salad Just in time for a snow storm a long weekend BBQ (we have a long weekend this weekend in Canada!). So I think we can all safely pack away our parkas until next winter (knock on wood). Anyway so in honour of the long weekend where we plant our flowers and fresh herbs and take out the lawn furniture, here is a healthy take on ...
Beef Sliders with au Jus
Beef Sliders with au Jus I'm obsessed, obsessed I say with those Hawaiian sweet rolls that you see all over social media, and you know what??? I found them! I love them! They're delicious and so much fun! So the bad part is they're not the healthiest but when you focus on portion, lean protein and sodium levels, it makes it less of a guilty ...
Creamy Southwest Pasta with Spicy Chicken
Creamy Southwest Pasta with Spicy Chicken A recipe for a creamy pasta with the addition of your favourite spicy barbecue sauce, cajun chicken breasts and crunchy vegetables. This dish looks restaurant-quality and comes together in under an hour, using modest ingredients. ...
Shrimp Scampi
Shrimp Scampi This is my rendition of the classic Italian dish. This comes together in minutes and easily impresses. Don’t skip the butter at the end in the interest in saving calories because at 40 calories (or 10 calories per person) you can’t beat the richness and flavour it adds. ...
Green Goddess Dressing
Green Goddess Dressing This is a recipe I shared years ago; perfect for this time of year :) The first time I saw this dressing was on Food Network, it was a mayonnaise based salad dressing with fresh herbs, not the healthiest! According to the Food Network this was a popular dressing in the 70’s but my parents had never heard of it. Oh well, ...
Traditional Mashed Potato Salad
Traditional Mashed Potato Salad I'm really inspired by all things salad and BBQ lately since our summer is actually starting to feel like summer. It's not just that though. I love learning traditional North American foods that my friends grew up with all around me. I say this because my parents were born and raised in Europe so my food ...
Jalapeño Marinated Grilled Chicken
Jalapeño Marinated Grilled Chicken It's officially summer!!!! That means BBQ! I had the most beautiful bone-in chicken breasts and a couple of fresh jalapeño peppers too. Yup... You guessed it; marinade!!! The key is to not over-marinate the chicken (an hour to 4 hours max, otherwise the meat will break down too much). Now this ...
Spicy Caesar Salad with Shrimp and Eggs
Spicy Caesar Salad with Shrimp and Eggs This salad is inspired by one of my favourite Swedish dishes. If you've ever been to Ikea then you already know which one! I absolutely adore the open-faced shrimp sandwich with eggs. To switch it up I went with my spicy Caesar salad dressing and oh man was this good. I mean you have the cold ...
Marinated Flank Steak
Marinated Flank Steak This winter sucked and now we have snow on Easter weekend? What is going on? We had a brief reprieve of the cold last week and my family capitalized on it and barbequed, without a parka! I’m not one to advocate writing off red meat, there are tons of vitamins and huge protein; I just advocate portion control which is key to a ...
Carbonara Pasta Salad
Carbonara Pasta Salad I had the most bizarre realization the other day, you could even call it an epiphany; I've never considered a use for lettuce beyond a salad. I fully acknowledge this is a recipe for a salad but it's a PASTA salad, not a salad salad. Here the lettuce gives a fresh crunch, meant to compliment the creaminess of the dressing ...