Pre-made vs. Homemade - Hot Wings

Everyone loves chicken wings. What's funny is how we are willing to pay so much for such a small amount of meat. Originally they were scraps - only thrown in soups or stocks. Until a creative restaurant in - you can probably guess - Buffalo! Hense, the name Buffalo Wings. Nowadays in restaurants, we are willing to pay over ten dollars a pound! This comes out to more than one dollar per wing, which is absolutely outrageous for the amount of meat you get. Now in the grocery store they're more reasonable - instead of 12 dollars for 8 wings, its about 12 dollars for 24 wings. Don't get me wrong, even though their bang for buck is not the best, I still love them way more than a normal human being should. The other issue is that restaurants usually deep fry chicken wings and throw a big heavy breading on them (not the most healthy). So, here is an easy recipe with a few ingredients and no deep fryer or heavy batter that is so good you wont need to waste all your money at wing night ever again!

Simple Easy Hot Wings

24 pack of uncooked split wings
oil for frying
2 tbsp butter
1 clove garlic, crushed
1/4 cup hot sauce (I use Franks Red Hot)
1/2 a lemon

Start by getting a nice big frying pan that will fit all your wings and cover the pan with a generous amount of oil and set on about medium high heat. Add the wings in and fry one side until crisp and golden brown, then flip and fry the other side. The whole process takes about a half hour. Once the wings are nice and crisp, take the wings out, drain the oil and then throw the butter in the pan. After the butter has melted add the crushed garlic and let it sizzle for a bit. Then add the hot sauce and give it a stir. Now throw in the wings and toss them with the sauce. Lastly drizzle them with the lemon juice and toss them one more time. Once they are well covered and sizzling, throw them on a plate and serve...or in my case, go caveman style and dig in!

Pre-made vs. Homemade - Lasagna

Frozen lasagna is one of many memories from my childhood dinners, usually when my mom was away and dad had to cook. Although frozen lasagna is easy and just needs to be thrown in the oven for about an hour, it is not all that difficult to make yourself and it is definitely worth it! If we are to look at Stouffer's frozen vegetable lasagna we can see that it is full of chemicals as well as 28% sodium and 29% fat.

                            VS.

Vegetable Lasagna

Tomato sauce - see below for recipe (if you want to cut corners use a jarred sauce)

9 lasagna noodles

1 Pack of dry pressed cottage cheese

1 (size) brick of mozzarella

portabella mushrooms, sliced

about 2 tbsp sherry

italian eggplant, sliced

baby spinach

Once you have your sauce ready, start off by sauteeing your mushrooms - first heat the pan, add a little oil and garlic and let it simmer for just a short amount of time. Then add the mushrooms and some sherry and stir. once the mushrooms are basically fully cooked take them off the heat and set aside. Then cook your noodles until al dente, strain and run cold water over them. Lastly shred your brick of mozzarella and set aside.

Now you are ready to start building your lasagna, start by spreading a little tomato sauce over the bottom of the pan. While you are building your lasagna, start preheating the oven to 350 degrees. Now add your layers accordingly:

noodles

sauce

eggplant

mushrooms

spinach

cottage cheese

mozzarella

Do this three times, and make sure to save some extra mozzarella for the top layer so you have a nice thick layer of cheese on top! Now throw your lasagna in the oven and let it bake for about 45 minutes or until the top is golden and melty! 

Take the lasagna out of the oven and let it sit for about 5 minutes, then cut it into big hearty pieces and serve either on its own or with a nice little salad. Enjoy!

Now, if you are feeling ambitious and want to take this lasagna to the next level try making this homemade sauce:

Badass Tomato Sauce

This sauce is an absolute favourite of my family and friends and although it may take some time it is so very worth the wait!

olive oil

2 cloves garlic, chopped

1 small-medium onion, diced

1 beef short rib

1 can tomato paste

1 can diced tomatoes

1 can crushed tomatoes

1 bay leaf (if you have it)

1 tsp oregano

2 tsp basil

big splash of red wine

Start by putting a big pot on medium heat with a good coating of olive oil on the bottom. Once the pan is hot add the garlic and onions and let them cook for a minute or two - before they brown. Now add the short rib and brown it on all sides, then add the tomato paste and stir it around for 1 minute. Now add both the crushed and diced tomatoes and give it a stir. Lastly add your herbs and wine and give it another good stir. Once the sauce starts bubbling turn the heat down to low and let simmer for about 1 1/2 - 2 hours, stirring occasionally. Once the sauce is done, feel free to eat the beef short rib as a pre-dinner snack. Now your sauce is ready for lasagna or even just some plain old spaghetti and meatballs!

Pre-made vs. Homemade - Caesar Salad

Nowadays you can buy all types of frozen or pre-made dinners. What some people don't seem to realize is how easy and rewarding it is to make these meals for themselves. You can get almost anything you want frozen, canned or pre-made. For example you can get bottled dressings, frozen dinners, pre-made salads, frozen appetizers and much much more. This week I am going to give you five different frozen foods - one for each workday - and show how to make it yourself. Monday's dish is Caesar Salad:

Day 1 - Caesar Salad

 

Now normally restaurants and bottled dressings usually use a creamy Caesar however this recipe is more of a Caesar vinaigrette, making the salad less rich and a bit healthier. I think the reason this dressing is not as common is because it has a raw egg yolk which is more finicky in that it can spoil easily. However this recipe is really lovely and worth the small amount of effort.

Dressing:
salt and pepper
1-2 Cloves of garlic
1/2 tbsp of Dijon mustard
1 egg yolk
juice of half a lemon
3 tbsp of olive oil
2 tbsp red wine vinegar
splash of balsamic vinegar

Salad:
1 head or 2-3 hearts of romaine lettuce
a big handful of spinach (optional)
2 strips bacon
small handful grated parmesean cheese
PC lightly buttered croutons


To start slice the bacon into small strips and throw them into a pan to make bacon bits. Then wash the lettuce and set it to dry. Now for the salad dressing, make it in the bottom of the bowl, so to start throw in some salt and pepper, next peel and crush the garlic into the bowl - if you're a huge garlic person like me then use two cloves but if you don't like a strong garlic flavour just crush one clove into the bowl. Next add the dijon mustard, egg yolk, lemon juice, oil and vinegar.

Now mix the dressing together and give it a taste, if it needs something feel free to add it and if not then tear up your romaine lettuce and throw it in the bowl. Add your croutons, parmesean cheese and bacon bits on top. If you really want to take it to the next level garnish your salad with some bright colourful lemon zest and serve.

Enjoy this delicious fresh salad!

Fish, Get Into It!

As most of you probably know, fish is a very healthy meat, we all hear that it is full of omega 3 fatty acids blah blah blah. What does that even mean? According to the Washington State Department of Health, it is good for your heart, it is an anti-inflammatory, aids healthy brain function and can decrease the risk of some mental health disorders. It is also a high protein, low fat meat full of vitamins and minerals. Lastly, it can be super quick and easy! One of my favourite ways to eat fish is just pan fried in a little butter and salt with a squeeze of lemon like my dad always did. However, if you want something with a little more decoration and a more pleasant presentation, this recipe for rainbow trout is ridiculously easy and quick!

Quick and Simple Rainbow Trout

1 filet of rainbow trout

1 lemon

a few sprigs of dill

First, set your oven on broil at 450 then line a pan with tinfoil and set your filet on the pan.  Rub about a teaspoon of dill on the fish and salt and pepper to taste. Then slice the lemon horizontally and lay about three pieces across the fish. 

 squeeze a little more lemon juice on top then toss the fish in the oven on the middle rack for about 10 minutes or until the flesh of the trout is no longer translucent. Lastly use a spatula to pick up the fish and plate it (if you can, slide the spatula between the flesh and the skin - it should separate quite easily.) 

Lastly cut a couple lemon wedges, serve with whatever sides you desire and enjoy!

Finnish Buttermilk Crepes

This weekend it was my roommate's birthday so we decided to have a nice brunch after a night out. I made everyone an old family favourite, Finnish buttermilk crepes. I recall Sunday mornings at my house growing up, always the sound of my dads favourite classic rock blasting through the speakers and the smell of butter frying in the kitchen. Feeling nostalgic, I decided to bring this tradition to my new house. This recipe is simple (no extravagant, rare ingredients or methods), delicious, and definitely impressive. It can also be versatile, served with the traditional butter and maple syrup or you can throw some fruit and whipped cream on there for extra flavour!

Finnish Buttermilk Crepes

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 eggs, beaten

4 tablespoons sugar

2 tablespoons melted butter

2 cups milk

1 cup (aprox.) flour

Directions:

1. Combine and whisk the vanilla, salt, eggs, sugar and melted butter, then add the milk and flour and beat until smooth (but not too much)

2. Let the batter rest for at least 10 minutes (longer is better - or sit in fridge overnight).

3. Heat pan (cast iron if you have it) to medium hot (butter should smoke after about 5 seconds)

4. Test the batter in the pan first, if it is not thick enough, slowly whisk some more flour in until it is at the desired thickness

4. Place a little butter in pan, pour in a thin layer of the batter just so it covers the bottom.

5. Once it is golden brown on one side, flip and cook the other - this shouldn't take long so keep an eye on it.

Set on the table with your favourite pancake dressings - such as butter, maple syrup, fruit, nutella, whipped cream and/or icing sugar 

and, of course, enjoy!

It Doesn't 'Gotta Be KD'

My name is Anna and I am a 20 year old university student with an interest in food, and therefore an interest in cooking! Apparently today no one has time to actually make their dinner, everyone just buys something pre-made and throws it in the oven (like my brother). Everyone thinks students live off of frozen pizzas and Kraft Dinner.. while some do, they don't have to! I do the cooking for myself and two of my other room mates and we always joke that we're probably the best fed university students. Unfortunately, I don't think we were too far off in saying that. All of these pre-made dinners are now so readily available no one needs to be able to cook but what a lot of people don't know or realize is how easy it is to make these dinners themselves - without all the added salt and chemicals! For example I looooooove pasta and I make it all the time, but I refuse to use a bottled or jarred sauce because it's too easy to make my own and it's simple but delicious! So having said that, today's recipe is linguine with tomato olives and spinach


Linguine with Tomato, Olives, and Spinach

This is one of my favourite pastas which is why I chose to make it for lunch today. Its a nice light pasta and the spinach makes you feel healthy!

olive oil
a handful of linguine
1 clove of garlic, chopped
4 basil leaves, chopped
1 large tomato (or two small tomatoes). diced
4 capers, finely chopped
a handful of olives, pitted and sliced
red wine

 Start by putting some water to boil to make the linguine. While you are waiting for the water to boil prep everything for the sauce. Pour about 2-3 tbsp of olive oil into a medium hot pan. First add the garlic, once it is slightly darker add the basil, olives, and capers.

Give it a quick toss then add the tomatoes. Add a splash of red wine then leave it to simmer for about 10 minutes or until the tomatoes soften to a sauce-like consistency. Once the water is boiling add some salt and a little olive oil to keep the noodles from sticking together then throw the linguine in. Once the noodles are basically cooked, throw a big ass handful of spinach into the tomatoes. When the pasta is cooked drain it and throw it into the pan with the tomato.

Mix everything together and serve! You can opt to grate a little parmesan cheese on top or serve it with a garlic crostini but I often just eat a nice big heaping plate of pasta for lunch! Hope you like it!