The most delicious grilled salmon or steelhead trout

This recipe comes from https://heygrillhey.com/grilled-steelhead-trout/#wprm-recipe-container-46137 and it is amazing! And super easy.

Ingredients 

• 1 14-16 oz steelhead trout fillet (skin on)
• Lime or lemon for garnish

For the rub:

• 2 tbs brown sugar
• Up to 2 tsp ground black pepper (or just grind a bunch)
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• 1/2 tsp dried basil
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 1/2 tsp paprika (smoked, if you have it)
• Zest of 1 lime (substitute lemon if need be)

Method

1. Combine all the rub ingredients in a small bowl
2. Preheat the grill to about 375 F
3. Lay out the salmon fillet(s), skin side down, on a large tray or cutting board
4. Sprinkle the rub over the fish, pressing it in gently (avoid actually Rubbing)
5. Place the fish, skin side down, directly onto the grill grates (I don’t find that I need any oil) - avoid putting the fish directly over the flame if you can manage it on your grill (I usually can’t really avoid this and it turns out fine as long as you lower the heat a little when you add the fish)
6. Grill undisturbed for 20-25 mins, or until the fish reaches an internal temperature of 135-145 F at the thickest part
7. Carefully lift fillet from the grill and onto a platter with a couple of spatulas. Serve promptly and enjoy!

The only chocolate cake I ever make now

This is the only chocolate cake I ever make now, because it is so delicious! 

I never used to be a fan of cake with ice cream (despite a strong fondness for both cake and ice cream)… but this one is fantastic served plain with some vanilla ice cream and some sprinkles for crunch! Frosting not required.

Based on https://cakebycourtney.com/best-ever-chocolate-bundt-cake-recipe/

Ingredients

• 2 cups (240 g) all-purpose flour
• 1 3/4 cups (350 g) granulated sugar (or less according to your preference. I used 300g this time and you could definitely drop it to 250)
• 3/4 cups (88.5 g) dark cocoa powder
• 2 teaspoons (8 g)  baking soda
• 3/4 teaspoon (3 g) baking powder 
• 1 teaspoon (5.6 g) salt
• 1 cup (240 g)  buttermilk, ideally at room temperature (I just add 1tbs white vinegar to a cup of milk… it would also work to use half milk, half yogourt whey. And I rarely bother to do the room temperature thing)
• 1 cup (236.6 g) hot water (I boil it before doing everything else and then it is about right when I’m ready for it. Even if it is too hot and it seems like you cooked your eggs and milk with it, the cake will likely turn out just fine.. this happened to me and I thought it was going to be a disaster but it was delish)
• 1/2 cup (109 g)  vegetable oil
• 3 large eggs, lightly beaten, ideally at room temperature
• 1 teaspoon (4.2 g) pure vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup mini semi-sweet or dark chocolate chips dusted in cocoa powder or flour (I have always gone with the cocoa option. Also, regular sized ones work too.. it doesn’t really matter if they all sink to the bottom)

The original recipe includes instructions for a chocolate ganache topping so check it out if you want that.. I haven’t ever tried it.

Method

1. Prepare your pan(s). Until today, I have always cooked this in a Bundt pan and the hardest part of the whole process is evenly coating the Bundt pan in butter with a dusting of cocoa powder on all sides. Today I am trying layer cake pans instead, which I imagine will be much easier to prepare.
2. Preheat the oven to 325 F
3. Dry ingredients: Combine the flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder, and salt in the bowl of an electric mixer and whisk it together then put it in the mixer with the paddle attachment. You can sift the ingredients as you add them, especially if your cocoa is lumpy, but you could also just chuck it all in and it will still taste great.
4. Wet ingredients: In another bowl (or large Pyrex measuring cup), combine the buttermilk, eggs, oil, vanilla, and hot water. I would recommend whisking together everything except the hot water first then pouring in the hot water slowly as you mix in order to avoid cooking your eggs. Don’t worry if it still seems a bit lumpy - it can look awful and still taste great at the end.
5. With the mixer on low speed, slowly add the wet ingredients to the dry, scraping the bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula as needed.
6. Fold in the chocolate chips.
7. Pour the batter into your prepared pan(s). Bake for about 40 to 50 minutes (might be a little shorter if making cupcakes), or until a toothpick inserted in the centre is mostly clean (though if you happen to hit those chocolate chips it can be hard to tell).
8. Let the cake cool for a while in the pan before flipping it onto a cooling rack or serving platter

As mentioned above, this is great sliced and served with a scoop of ice cream .. and some sprinkles if you are so inclined. But today I have assembled it into a layer cake with raspberry buttercream frosting. 

Birthday cake complete

Cake making in progress…

Emilie-inspired salad

This is my take on the type of salad that our housemate Emilie used to whip up in about 5 minutes (a simple version with lettuce/kale, cucumber, red onion, and cashews).

I have come to almost exclusively make salad this way.. adding the salt and vinegar first then olive oil at the end instead of mixing a dressing together separately.. both because this is easier, faster, and because I find it tastier. It does work best with a balsamic you really like — I think if I only had more questionable vinegar, I would make my dressing separately, but maybe this would work well in that case too???

Ingredients 

• Lettuce, ideally romaine or medium-finely chopped kale but any lettuce or combination of lettuces will do (if you use only kale, you may want to salt and massage it lightly to soften it a little)
• A small amount of finely sliced red onion, to your liking (but at least a small amount is strongly recommended)

All remaining ingredients are optional, but avocado makes a huge difference if you have it, and a protein source like feta or roasted cashews or beans will make it a lot heartier). Include some combination of the following, depending on what you have on hand and what you like:

• Sliced cucumber (I half it lengthwise and slice so they don’t roll around)
• Diced apple or tomato or orange (probably not all together)
• Crumbled feta cheese
• Broken up or roughly chopped roasted nuts (eg cashews or pecans or…?)
• Sliced red pepper 
• Finely sliced fresh basil can be a nice addition
• Optionally some black beans or chickpeas?
• Some homemade croutons if you’re feeling really fancy 
• Etc

For the dressing you will need..

• Kosher salt
• Black pepper (optional)
• Good quality balsamic vinegar (I really like the Costco one and I like that it is a bit sweet - if yours is more sour, you may want to add a good pinch of white sugar at the same time as the salt. To me, this makes a big difference)
• Olive oil 

Method

1. Put all the main salad ingredients you are using (aside from the dressing) in a large bowl
2. Sprinkle with a couple of good pinches of kosher salt (and optionally sugar - see note in the dressing ingredients list) and toss lightly. Add some pepper at this stage too, if you like.
3. Pour over some balsamic vinegar (maybe start with around a tablespoon, possibly more? I just eyeball it)
4. Toss well, taste, and if needed, add more vinegar/salt/sugar to your taste (but err on the side of too little rather than too much)
5. Finally, add olive oil at the end (about as much as you did vinegar or a little less) and toss well to bring it all together (again, err on the side of too little not too much).

The key here is to coat everything with the salt and vinegar before you add the oil so they can penetrate really well. The oil is an important touch at the end but you don’t need much when you do it this way.

Childhood favourite cabbage noodle salad

This was a favourite in my house when I was a kid, and now that I have kids it has made a major comeback. Adults love it too!

Part of the point of this recipe is to throw in what you have, so feel free to add other stuff that you think might belong… (peas, cooked broccoli, ..)

Ingredients

Main salad

• 2 tbs toasted sesame seeds (or just a random amount)
• 2 tbs toasted chopped nuts (I typically do sliced almonds, if I have them)
• 1/2 head finely chopped cabbage (I just got my first mandoline, which makes really fine much easier - it doesn’t have to be that fine though, but quite fine is good. If your cabbage is small, do the whole thing!)
• 3-4 packages of ramen noodles (I have been using 4 if they are Mr. Noodles and 3 if they are Sapporo Ichiban .. usually I use chicken flavour but it doesn’t really matter)
• Cut up leftover chicken (or you have use fresh rotisserie chicken)… about 1/2 a chicken’s worth
• Chopped cilantro if you are a cilantro family

Dressing

These quantities are for 3 packs of noodles. If you use 4 packs you may want to bump everything up a little bit.

• 3 tbs white sugar
• 4 tbs vinegar (rice wine or apple cider)
• 3 tbs oil
• Pepper
• Flavour packets from the noodles

Directions

1. Toast the almonds and sesame seeds in a dry frying pan. Set aside in a small bowl.
2. Quarter the cabbage and cut out the core. Slice the quarters with a knife or mandoline into long thin strips, no more than about 2-3mm wide if possible, ideally closer to 1mm (you want them to kind of blend in with the noodles). Put the cabbage in the largest bowl you have. It will seem like A LOT of cabbage.
3. Bring a large pot of water to a boil (no salt needed). When it is at a rolling boil, add all the noodles (don’t forget to remove the flavour packets first). Set the timer for 1 minute and prepare a strainer at the sink. When the timer goes off, strain the water off and give the noodles a shake to get out excess water. Dump the steaming hot noodles on top of the cabbage so they soften the cabbage a little.
4. Add the diced chicken on top of the noodles.
5. Put all the dressing ingredients in a microwaveable container (such as a 2 cup Pyrex measuring cup) and microwave for a minute or 2 then give it a good stir to dissolve the sugar.
6. Pour the dressing over the salad.
7. Sprinkle the toasted nuts and sesame seeds and the cilantro over top. (I add these at the end so they stay a little more crunchy).
8. Now for the hardest part - toss everything together, trying not to fling too many noodles and too much cabbage out of the bowl. Consider using a bigger bowl next time. When everything is well mixed, it is ready to serve. 

Serve kids a healthy portion with plenty of cabbage and chicken for their first bowl so that when they ask for seconds and try to get only noodles, they have already had some good balance :)

Easy, tasty salsa at home

 I was trying to find a recipe for something similar to Gina’s salsa (a well-known restaurant in Nanaimo). This isn’t quite it, but it’s not far off.

You will need to find some cans of Ro-Tel. I usually get it from Country Grocer, though I know I saw them somewhere else too. Look in the Mexican foods section. If you use mild Ro-Tel, you’ll end up with a pleasantly mildly spicy salsa. Go for original Ro-Tel or half and half if you’re into want to kick it up a notch.

Ingredients 

• 1 28oz can tomatoes (diced or whole)
• 2 10oz (284ml) cans Ro-Tel (mild or original or 1 of each)
• 1/4c chopped onion 
• 1 jalapeño, quartered, seeded, and sliced thin
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1/4tsp salt
• Juice of 1/2 lime
• 1/4 to 1tsp sugar (more sugar = less spicy)
• 1/4tsp cumin
• 1/2c cilantro (or more!)

Method

1. Make sure you do your mincing, etc before adding onion, jalapeño, and garlic to the tomatoes
2. Throw all of the above into a food processor 
3. Pulse until it is the consistency you want (10-15X)
4. Put it in jars
5. Refrigerate at least an hour for best flavour 

This makes A LOT so you may need to give some to friends or neighbours. You can make a half batch instead. You Can freeze this, but it will get more watery, so I don’t recommend it.

Overnight bread without any kneading

 I can’t believe I never tried making no knead bread before… this is SOOO good!

See the original recipe for far more detailed instructions and variations. 

https://www.gimmesomeoven.com/no-knead-bread/

Here is what I do…

Ingredients

• About 100g whole wheat flour
• About 325g all purpose flour (vary the proportions of the flours as you like.. this is the mix I’ve tried so far. Total of 425g flour)
• 2 tsp fine sea salt
• 1/2 tsp traditional yeast
• 1.5 cups warm water

Method

Sometime between noon and 8pm…

1.  Measure the flours, salt, and yeast into a large mixing bowl. Whisk together until well combined.
2. Make a hole in the dry ingredients and pour in the warm water.
3. Mix with a wooden spoon until combined into a shaggy ball of dough with most of the flour incorporated (this should be pretty quick and easy)
4. Cover with plastic wrap and let sit on the counter

Carry on with your day, have a good sleep. The next morning (ideally 12-18 hours later, but 10 is enough)…

1. Generously sprinkle flour on the counter
2. Use a spatula to carefully nudge the dough out of the bowl and onto the floured counter, smoother side down
3. Go around the ball and fold the edges in to the middle until you’ve made a nicely shaped ball of dough
4. Flip the dough ball onto a piece of parchment paper, dust lightly with flour, and lay the dry side of your plastic wrap over it loosely
5. Set a timer for 20-30 minutes… meanwhile… Put a large cast iron Dutch oven with a lid into the oven and heat to 450F
6. When the timer goes off… remove the plastic wrap from the dough ball, take the Dutch oven out of the oven, close the door, and use oven mitts to grab the edges of the parchment paper with the dough ball on it to gently place it inside the Dutch oven. If my parchment paper seems too big, at this point I will cut the corners off with kitchen shears. Put the lid on and pop the Dutch oven back into the hot oven.
7. Bake 30 mins with the lid on then remove the lid and bake another 10 minutes for a not-overly-crispy crust
8. Let cool on a wire rack at least 30 minutes before slicing and eating.

Try not to devour the whole loaf!

This is easier than the bread maker and so delish!

Strep throat survival soup, AKA Cream of Broccoli

 I have been plagued by a recurring bout of strep throat ever since mid August. I’m on my 3rd round of antibiotics now! Thankfully, the subsequent bouts have not been as bad as the first one, when this soup really was one of the few things I could eat that also filled me up and satisfied cravings for green food and protein. I have turned to it again this time around, knowing that if things get worse, this is one meal I will still be able to enjoy.

I had never made cream of broccoli soup before strep throat and I don’t know if it would taste so good if I wasn’t sick, but if you ever find yourself unable to eat solid or acidic foods and want something filling and hearty, I recommend it!

Here’s the original: https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/13313/best-cream-of-broccoli-soup/. I haven’t really made any changes to speak of.

Ingredients

• 2 + 3 tablespoons butter
• 1 onion, diced finely
• 1 stalk celery, diced finely diced
• 3 cups homemade chicken broth
• 8 cups broccoli, cut into small florets
• 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 2 cups milk
• Pepper to taste (if your throat can handle it)
• Salt to taste

Method

1. Melt 2 tbs butter in a med-large soup pot. Sauté onion and celery until tender.
2. Add the broth and the broccoli, cover with a lid, and simmer 10 minutes
3. Purée with an immersion blender until smooth
4. In a small pot, melt the remaining 3 tbs butter. Add the flour and whisk together. Add the milk and stir regularly while you heat this mixture until it starts thickening and gets a little frothy/bubbly. I use a small whisk for this.
5. Add the milk mixture to the broccoli part and stir well.
6. Optionally add some pepper and/or salt to the pot, or just do this when it’s in your bowl.

Feel better soon!