The Tragically Hip...its been a pleasure

 

Almost a week has past since the Tragically Hip concert in Kingston, and i’m still feeling the weight of sadness every time I think of the situation.  

 

     Some, if not many of us know someone who has been fighting the fight with cancer.  It's a shitty, tough thing to deal with on so many levels.  When the announcement was made that Gord Downie was diagnosed, my heart sank….another person whom I admire, dealt a shitty card.
 

     As a teen, The Hip poked a hole through my heavy metal cloud, and opened up a whole new way of celebrating what it means to be Canadian.  Camping with the gang would no longer be the same without The Hip.

 

    During college summer break, my good friend Mike says to me “hey, my family bought a house out west, and I have to get my car there….wanna go for a road trip?  We'll camp across Canada!”    “I’m in!”  (they’ve all gone….we’ll go too).  And so with a cooler full of Gatorade, eat more bars, and beer…a Canadian adventure began.  To this day, probably the best trip i’ve been on, setting up a Neuro-association with the album Fully Completely….every time it is played, it brings me back to the road trip and this awesome country.  I can say that I have listened to 100th Meridian while crossing the 100th Meridian, where the great plains begin.

 

  The Tragically Hip may not be for everybody, we all have different tastes in music.  But to me, the music is great, and Gord’s poetic touch on Canadian themed stories paints a picture in my mind like no other singer songwriter has.
 

“...driving down a corduroy road, weeds standing  shoulder high...ferris wheel is rusting...off in the distance...at the 100th Meridian…”

(100th Meridian)
 

“...clearly entranced...you're heading back now...de-fanged destroyer limps into the bay...down at the beach, its attracting quite a crowd...while kids wade through the blood out to it to play…

(Scared)
 

     A true word-smith if ever heard, backed by an incredibly talented band, Johnny Faye, Gord Sinclair, Rob Baker and Paul Langlois.
 

     These days sitting in my backyard with my guitar, I continually
try to perfect the Hip songs I know to play….Ahead by a Century, Scared...Fiddlers Green to name a few.  I dare not sing too loud, the neighbours might complain, so I strum along and hear the poetic words in my head.  It makes me happy.
 

     Saturday night's CBC broadcast of The Tragically Hip’s final stop of their tour in Kingston where it all began, was bitter sweet. A huge thank you to the CBC for this commercial free show that helped bring a large part of this nation together to celebrate an incredible band.  As much as being at the final concert in person would have been a night to remember, this broadcast felt up close and personal.  I could see the band, high definition….Gord’s expressions and crowd reactions.  Better than being stuck in the nosebleeds (if I could even afford those), beside some college kids screaming the lyrics to the songs in a drunken mess. I've seen them live a few times and it was great, and those memories will last a lifetime.
 

So as Saturday evening faded to darkness, I became aware of the impending final curtain for the band I grew up loving and admiring.   While the band played on, my eyes welled up during a few songs and some tears were shed as I watched Gord belt it out (grace too), and leave it all on the stage.  I looked around and realized how fortunate I was, surrounded by my wife and friends whom I love, in a backyard ...beer in hand….concert projected on a big white sheet...smiles and tears, doing that Canadian thing.
 

Thank you, Tragically Hip for an incredible journey.  Always in our hearts, forever in our playlists, never forgotten.

 

 

Pulled Chicken on a Bun!!

Winter blues, and we tend to get into a cooking rut as we hibernate and wait for nicer weather.  I don't bbq in the winter...I find the propane flame low and without good pressure, I don't like trekking through snow to cook, and my house freezes opening and closing the sliding door.  Bah!  
Just because I don't bbq in the snow, doesn't mean I can't enjoy the same style  cuisine in the kitchen.

Here's my pulled chicken on a bun recipe that's simple easy and tastes great!

Ingredients:
5 boneless skinless chicken breasts (or 10 boneless skinless thighs if you like dark meat and save on cost)
1 bottle of your favorite bbq sauce (I used bullseye original for this)
1-2 oz water
6-8 buns or biscuits

Directions:
1.  Pour half the bbq sauce into a roaster, pot with a lid, or a Dutch oven....anything that has a lid that can go in your oven.

2.  Add 1-2 oz water and stir to thin out bbq sauce

3.  Add chicken and mix around to fully coat

4.  Cover with lid and pop it in the oven at 300°F for 2 hours

5.  After 2 hours, pull out of the oven, and shred the cooked chicken with a couple of forks.  Add the rest of the bbq sauce and stir into shredded chicken.

6.  Toast your buns! 

7.  Pile the shredded chicken onto your toasty buns and enjoy!

For a real treat, I also put some pulled chicken on some biscuits and it was frigging  delicious!I Popeye's biscuits are amazing for this!   Pulled chicken biscuit sliders! 

Easter Dinner BBQ!!!!! Herb roasted leg of lamb on the rotisserie!!! With Blackberry Red Wine Reduction!!

Been a while since my last post....I think the grey skies of February got me down.    Thankfully, it is spring.....the snow is gone, the sun is making an appearance (be it brief at times), and the robins are screaming at 4 am.    Yay.   
One of my Favorite parts of spring......cleaning and prepping my BBQ for the season!!!     I don't BBQ in the winter for a couple of reasons:

1. The BBQ takes too long to come up to temperature, and everytime you open the lid, you lose it heat....which makes for longer cooking times while I freeze my ass off.
2. When it is cold out, the pressure of the propane decreases, you get a crappy flame, and it takes longer for everything to cook .....while I freeze my ass off
3. I know someone who BBQ'd in the winter, and the heat from the BBQ shattered the sliding patio door (of course, the BBQ was close to the door, because he didn't want to freeze his ass off)
4. I hate dragging snow through the house moving to and from the BBQ area, and I don't like freezing everone's ass off.
5. I don't like to freeze my ass off while cooking, especially when I look inside and see everone all warm and stuff.
6. and FINALLY......taking a break for the winter, helps me to really look forward to BBQ in the spring!!!!!!

Last year, I kept saying that I wanted to cook a boneless leg of lamb on the BBQ, but i kept chickening out....not that I cooked a chicken instead....I mean that I was in fear of ruining a nice piece of meat.   Sometimes I get intimidated, but as Danielle my awesome wife says...."Try it, and if it doesn't work.....pizza is just around the corner, and you've learned what not to do for next time."     PERFECT!!!!!

This Easter, Danielle suggested that I finally try the lamb, and that I have nothing to worry about.    So we went out and bought a nice bone in leg of lamb.....Ontario Lamb!!    Longos had a pretty good selection, although at easter time, lamb goes fast, and there were no boneless legs.    Guess I had to learn a bit of butchery too!!!   (I needed the bone removed so I could get it on the rotisserie)......Guess I could save the bone for a stock at a later date....just pop it in the freezer for now!!!

Here's what I did:

Rotisserie Boneless Leg of Lamb

1 leg of lamb, deboned. 
fresh chopped mint
fresh chopped parsley
fresh rosemary sprigs
1 clove garlic chopped up fine
salt and pepper
butcher twine (cotton)

First thing I did, was trim as much unnecessary fat from the roast.     Lamb can be very fatty, but remember that fat does add flavour.
Put all the chopped herbs and garlic in the cavity where the bone was, along with some salt and pepper.     Roll the roast up and tie with butcher twine.    Make sure you tie it nice and tight, so the herbs don't all fall out.     (if your not sure how to twine a roast.....just type it in on youtube!!)
Skewer your roast with the rotisserie, and put it on the BBQ!      Let it cook to desired tenderness.    I cooked mine to Medium Rare (145 degreesF), about 1.5 hours.      I strongly suggest using a digital probe type thermometer that gives you actual temperature....of course....stop the rotisserie before sticking the probe in!!!!

(My BBQ has the infrared (porcelan) rotisserie feature, so I had to remove the grills to make room, and put a drip pan under the roast to catch the drippings so as not to make a greasy mess in the bottom of the bbq.   I generally put a few cups of water in the bottom of the drip pan.)

NOTE** If you don't have the infrared rotisserie feature, don't worry.    Put the roast on the spit, take the grills off the BBQ, place a drip pan below the roast, and light the burners off to the side of the roast .... not directly underneath.    This indirect heating method will still give you a great roast.

While the meat cooked, I started the Blackberry Red Wine Reduction:

1 little plastic box of blackberries
2/3 cup red wine
1.5 cups chicken stock
1/2 cup fine diced carrot
1/2 cup fine dice celery
1 large shallot fine dice
1 tbsp honey
3 mint leaves
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar

Sweat the celery, shallot and carrot in 2 tbsp olive oil 2-3 minutes, don't let it burn or colour...you want to draw out the flavours.     Add red wine and balsamic vinegar, and reduce 2/3 untill it starts to look almost syrupy.    Add chicken stock, black berries, honey and mint.     Let cook on medium heat and reduce to a nice consistency.     (to coat the back of a spoon without running off is perfect)
Strain sauce into a bowl.   

Let the lamb rest for about 10 minutes, then slice it up on a serving tray, along with some reserved uncooked blackberries and mint leaves for decoration.     Pour the sauce into a serving dish with a small ladle and add sauce as desired ................ be prepared to cry like a baby.

Appetizers part 2 - the holidaze.....

Well, that was fast!   Christmas snuck up on us and disappeared just like that.    Not only did it leave us with good memories of family, friends, celebrating etc.....    It also left us with overstuffed bellies.     The Christmas holidays are my favorite eating holidays.    Everyone you visit, puts out all kinds of food.    Trays of cheeses, meats, pickles, egg rolls, spring rolls, pate, SHRIMP, smoked oysters, cookies.....the list goes on and on.    Of course, after we have gorged ourselves into a sleepy state of wintry holiday stuff-ed-ness, and plop ourselves onto the couch .....out comes the turkey.    Are we full?   Yes, but Christmas turkey trumps all and we shovel that in too, washed down with a nice warm mug of gravy.    zzzzzzzzzzz.....zzzzz....zzzzzz.....

This year, my cool awesome sister Kirsten came home for Christmas from Sweden, and brought me some goodies that I have to share with you all.    Kirsten thought I might have fun with a little foreign food.......although the ingredients aren't really foreign, the delivery system is.

As I unwrapped my present, like a giddy little kid......I was in complete awe at what lied before me.
Tube Food!!    Yup.....that's right , Tube food.    Like how when you were a kid and someone said "astronauts eat food from a tube", and you thought they were full of shit.

4 Tubes in all
 First one.....Shrimp in a tube.    Holy crap!   I love shrimp!   Now I love tube shrimp!
 Second.......Lobster and Crab....in a tube!    WTF !   I'm now in heaven, about to eat seafood out of a tube!                
Third.....Blue Cheese...in a tube!!!!   MUAHAHAHA!!!!!!    QUICK GET ME A CRACKA!!!!!
and finally, some sort of burger dressing......IN A TUBE!!!!

Now, you're either licking your lips, or gagging at the thought of eating seafood out of a tube in the form of a pink pasty substance.    I like to think of it as "pre-chewed" seafood.   Takes the hassle of removing the pesky shells from the meat, away.

So, what do you do with seafood in a tube?    Of course, you can put it on a cracker....that's nice.   Something a little more fancier than a saltine.    I experimented for a bit, and although I didn't have alot to work with or waste....I found something that isn't really that bad.

1 piece of toast still warm, spread on some crab/lobster paste.   Next, finely grate some marble cheddar over top, followed by a sprinkling of Parmesan cheese, a little chopped parsley, and a thin layer of breadcrumbs.   Stick it under the broiler until the breadcrumb top starts to brown.   Pull it out, and cut into 1" strips.    Voila!!   Snack time!!!!

Thanks Sis!!   I can't wait to see what you bring next visit.    Hot dog in a tube perhaps?    (<<< uh...hot dogs are already tubes....)  ,   lasagna in a tube?     Oh, wait......apple pie in a tube...   no...no......chicken wings in a tube!    ............................................

Appetizers......I could just eat them alone, skip the main!

The Holiday season is upon us as the cold weather sets in.    Thanksgiving starts us off with a belly full of turkey, potatoes, stuffing and graaaaaavy....and it almost feels like training.    Training the stomach to get ready for Christmas and the Holidays, where we drag our loved ones around town to visit families and friends and eat like it's going out of style.     If you're like me, you find it hard to keep your hands away from appetizer plates, snacky platters, and bite size tummy teasers.    You keep going at them hard, almost marathon style, and forget that a dinner is just around the corner.    Now you're stuffed to the gunnels, as your Christmas dinner is laid out infront of you.    Can't be rude......bring me a shovel....i'll pack it in.

Here's a nice and easy one......that you can put together, and they will go suuuper fast!!!

Ham, Cheese and Onion Puffs                                     
36 puffs

What you need:
6 1/2 tbsp butter
3/4 cup all purpose flour
pinch of salt
1/3 cup minced ham (I use deli ham....it's easier)
1/3 cup green onion finely chopped
1/3 cup finely shredded marble cheddar cheese
3 eggs beaten

Whatcha gotta do:
Preheat your oven to 400 degrees F
put 1 cup of water into a pot, with butter, and heat on medium untill butter is melted.   Once melted, crank up the heat untill you get a boil.    Remove from heat as soon as boiling, and add (sifted) flour and salt.     Stir vigorously with a wooden spoon untill a paste forms and pulls away from the edges of the pot.   

If you have a standing mixer, toss the paste ball in and start mixing at medium speed.    If not, you can leave the paste ball in the pot and use an electric hand beater on medium speed.

Once mixing has started, add beaten eggs slowly (you don't want the eggs to cook in the warm paste), untill paste is soft, smooth, shiny and goopy.    Add onions, ham and cheese untill they are fully incorporated.

Throw the mixture into a piping bag with a 1/2" tip.    (I don't have a piping bag, so I use a large ziplock freezer bag.    Once I fill it with the mixture, zip it shut, and cut one corner of the bottom of the bag....squeeze bag untill paste comes out the hole....voila!   Piping bag!)

Pipe the mixture onto a greased (butter) cookie sheet into 1 1/2 " circles, leaving about 2" space between each.   This recipe makes about 36 puffs.
Bake at 400 degrees for 20-25 minutes or untill puffs are well risen and golden brown.  

Serve these suckers warm.....or not.....I like them warm!!

Enjoy!!

Nice addition to a Good ol' Roast Beef Dinner.....Celeriac Mashed Potatoes and Parsnip puree?

Got home from work today, and saw that Danielle had a nice big roast waiting to get thrown in the oven.    Immediately, I began to salivate.    What a great way to end the week, with a nice roast beef dinner.     Who says roasts have to be done on weekends?    Isn't that the general rule?    Big roast dinners on a Sunday night?    Fooey!    Weekends can be too busy to plan and prepare a big roast dinner.....unless of course, you buy a pre-cooked roast, bag of mashed potato, and frozen Yorkshire pudding.....full of salt, preservatives and crap......all cooked in huge batches.    Goop.    Shit.    Yuk.

Once Danielle put the roast in the oven, and the smell started to permeate the air....I was getting excited to see what else was on the menu.     Mashed potato and ....what's this?    Celery root!!!    Awesome!!!     Cook and mash the two together, with some butter.....heaven.

Celery Root ( or celeriac) kind of looks like a shribbled up head.
But it tastes really good!!
First thing you have to do is slice off the rough surface.    Once cleaned up, chop enough celery root to add to your chopped up potatoes.     We used 1/3 celery root, 2/3 potatoes.   
Make sure the celery root is chopped about the same size as your potatoes, so they all cook at the same rate.
Put your celery root, and potatoes in a pot of salted boiling water, untill a fork slides through the potatoe with no resistance.
Drain potatoes/root , and mash all together in a bowl.    Add 1-2 tbsp of butter, and a little milk to reach desired consistancy.
Mashed potatoes, with a very subtle hint of celery.     Salt...pepper....awesome.
Seriously.....it is real easy to do, cheap, and a nice kick to the sometimes boring potato.


Once I wiped the drool off my chin....and Danielle took my tasting spoon away from me, I decided that I would experiment with something that i've been DYING to try for a looooong time.     Parsnip Puree.
I've been watching alot of food network shows, and noticed recently, that alot of chefs are using a parsnip puree to go with their food creations.    It almost seems like a trend....so I thought i'd give it a whirl.

Parsnips resemble carrots, only they are white and have a stronger flavour.    I love them roasted.....droool.
This was my first experiment making a parsnip puree, and I would deem it a success.....Danielle loved it, and I almost finished the serving bowl.
Here's what I did....

5 parsnips peeled, and cut up into chunks.
1/4 sweet vidalia onion cut into chunks
low fat sour creme 1%
butter - 1-2tbsps
freshly ground nutmeg.

Boil the parsnip chunks, and onion for about 15 minutes, untill a fork passes through the parsnip with a little resistance.
drain the pot (reserving some of the cooking water), and put the parsnip and onions into a food processor or blender.
add some of the drained cooking water, and a large tablespoon of sour creme.
blend it all up untill you get a nice smooth consistancy......not too runny.   If it's too thick....add a little more cooking water, 1 tbsp at a time.
If you can turn a spoon of puree upside down without it running off.....I say it's good to go.
empty into a serving bowl, and stir in 1 tbsp of butter (or omit the butter if you want the low fat option)
grate some nutmeg over the top and mix in
Done!!!!

The puree was an excellent side to the roast beef.    Even a fork full of mashed celery root potatoes with a dab of the parsnip puree was delicious.    Yorkshire pudding, green beans and an ocean of gravy to add to the plate........I think a tear ran down my face while I ate....it was euphoric.

Kicking burgers up to a whole new level !!! Taco Style!!

Who isn't a burger fan?    Really?   There is nothing like a big gorpy burger , barbecued to perfection, with all the fixin's piled high, on a toasted sesame bun.    You can hardly get your mouth around it, and  as you bite in, your face is splattered with hamburger heaven.    If it ain't messy, it ain't a burger.

The mom and pop burger joints have all but vanished, and we are left with some pretty poor substitutes....mainly due to the squeeze of the famous chained fast food joints.     Hey, I admit.....I do enjoy the occasional quarter pounder with cheese...(must be something in the freeze dried onions or the soggy pickle parts).     I can tell you....it ain't no Jessie's Burgers (People of Streetsville and Meadowvale hold their heads in sorrow, those of you who remember the best burger joint in Mississauga North)

It is very hard to venture away from the traditional burger, but this favorite of mine, kicks ass and will leave you wanting more.     I've given the recipe out to friends, and they come back with uber positive feedback.   Even their kids go nuts for them.    If you like taco's, you'll love these burgers!!!

Foley's Taco Burgers   

What you need:
for the burgers.....

1lb ground beef
cheese...cheddar or marble cut into pieces about half the size but same thickness of a saltine cracker.
OR
pre-packaged shredded nacho / Tex-Mex cheese
hamburger buns
1 packet of taco seasoning

the fixins......
anything you usually put on your taco!!
sour creme
salsa
onions
tomato
black olives
taco sauce
Franks Red Hot (if you like heat)
shredded iceberg lettuce

1. put ground beef into a bowl, and mix in the packet of taco seasoning.   Yes, your hands will get messy......it will be worth it!!   Work in the seasoning.

2. take your mixed up ground beef, and roll out balls ....about the size of tennis balls.    You should get about 4-5 per lb of ground beef.

3. poke your thumb into the meat ball, and leave a cavity.....fill that cavity with your cheese, and pinch that cavity shut.    Proceed to flatten that ball of meat to make a patty.     The cheese should not be visible, as it needs to stay inside the patty, eventually turning into molten cheesy goodness.

4. put patties on BBQ grill and cook medium/high heat for about 5 minutes / side.    Internal temp for ground beef is 160 degrees F.

(note: the taco seasoning in the patty, will thicken the meat when grilled.    If the patty is starting to resemble a cooked ball of meat, resist the urge to squish the patty down....this may eject all the hot molten cheese in the middle.)

5. remove from the grill when done, and let the burgers rest a few minutes.    This will let the molten lava like cheese in the middle cool down enough to eat it.

6. Serve burger on a toasted sesame bun , with all you favorite taco toppings!!


Resist the urge to put ketchup, mustard relish on a taco burger....it is a sin......i know it will be hard, but trust me.    This is a Taco Burger.....You will understand after your first bite.

Enjoy!!!!

Please let me know if you give it a try, and what you think!!

hmmm.....blogging?..grilled blue cheese and turkey sandwich!

Well, i always have alot on my mind, and sometimes need to share it....so , i'll try a blog. Will probably contain something about food, since it is my secret passion. Gordon Ramsay is my hero....i'll admit...and would love to meet him one day. Even if he tells me to fuck off....i'll be happy. My television is always on the food network, and I love creating food stuff, despite the mess I make in the kitchen.

I will probably throw up my fav recipes, and food experiences......wait, throw up....doesn't sound right...i will post my fav recipes and food experiences.

speaking of recipes......

Today I made lunch for my girls, which was the ol' favorite grilled cheese sandwich with ketchup for dipping. Of course, there were only 2 pieces of cheese (processed), and i was developing a craving for one myself, once i put the sandwich in the frying pan.

Well, time to get creative....

I'm a blue cheese lover, but can't sit and eat a whole block of the stuff.....so there's usually a little chunk sitting in the fridge, lonely and waiting to be eaten!! AH HA!!!

So I went to work and created...a Grilled Creamy Danish Blue Cheese sandwich with oven roasted turkey and fresh Basil.

Made just like a traditional grilled cheese.....

all you'll need...

butter

2 slices of bread (white is fine in a pinch, try 9 grain of flax!)

oven roasted turkey breast deli meat

fresh basil

Blue Cheese (I used Rosenberg Danish Blue)

Deli Mustard for dipping



Butter 2 slices of bread, and put one slice butter side down in a hot pan

layer 3-4 slices of oven roasted turkey breast deli meat

crumble blue cheese, on top of the turkey meat

trim fresh basil leaves into ribbons, and sprinkle over top of meat and cheese

Put last piece of bread butter side up, on top of layered heaven.

flip your sandwich after 2-3 minutes, or the bread has turned a nice golden brown

continue to cook another 2-3 minutes untill done and golden brown on the other side

Don't burn it, or Satan will whip you with the guts of the undead!!!!



Now, since this is fancy shmancy, You are not allowed to just dip this sucker in ketchup...that is wrong on every level, and will ruin it.

Cut the sandwich in triangles, and dip it in deli mustard!!!! The sharpness of the blue cheese and the tang of the deli mustard come together in your mouth and make you cry while you eat it...tears of joy.

that's it....heavenly fancy grilled blue cheese and turkey !!!!!


Enjoy!!!!