Baked Brie with Figs & Honey

Don't you love it when you walk into the grocery store for 1 thing and come out with 1 cartload? Yeah me neither, well at least my bank account doesn't like it, I'm usually pretty smitten with all my new goodies. In any case, that happened to me a couple of weeks back as I popped into Sobey's for a few last minute ingredients for supper, when all of a sudden I spied FRESH FIGS!! You don't even understand how excited I was... well actually in my mind I was freaking out, while on the exterior I was playing it cool, as to not draw attention to the rare and limited find!

Needless to say, my few items turned into my few items plus 6 precious little figs, crusty bread, double-creme brie and pure happiness. So again, I must reiterate, if you are a fig fan like me, please run, not walk to your nearest grocery store and scour those refrigerated produce racks, they won't be in season forever!

Makeshift Lebanese Cheese Pie

Alrighty! Soooo way, way back in March I was sent away to Ottawa for training. It was a 5 day trip (with one day missed courtesy of Newfoundland and it's pea soup fog that week), with training during the day and group outings during the night. We toured Parliament, the War Museum, and even hopped over to Quebec to visit the Sugar Shack (*drool*)!!

All-in-all, it was a great trip! I even got to visit with one of my close friend's Aunt's, who not only picked me up on arrival, but dropped me off at the airport too! And if that wasn't enough, on my last day there, she brought me to a Lebanese bakery to introduce me to my first Cheese Pie!!!

Now, if you've never had Cheese pie, it's DE-LICIOUS!! It's basically bread and cheese warmed in an oven - so in other words, heaven! The only problem I have with Cheese Pie, is the lack of it here in Newfoundland. And despite my friend's aunt bringing me cheese pie on her last 2 trips home (♥♥ God love ya ♥♥), I wanted more!! Sooo, like any good husband would, Nick made it happen by concocting this makeshift version. I was very doubtful at first, but when I tried it, I was impressed - not exact, but so close! So if you are dying for a bit of Cheese Pie, or you're a fan of cheesy bread concoctions, you should give this a try!

Roasted Brussel Sprouts & Bacon!

Oh so tasty!

Who doesn't love brussel sprouts?!?! Okay.... most people! I was actually one of the those people until I tried this recipe and realized how good they taste roasted!! Maybe the bacon has something to do with it? Either way, they're delicious! You have to trust me on this, I really 'hated' them until I tossed them in the oven, now I can't stop eating them!

Baked Mini Cadbury Creme Eggs!!!

I'm SO excited to share my latest food epiphany with you! Not near as excited as I was to eat it, but excited nonetheless! ;)

In a serendipitous moment late last week, while daydreaming about Easter treats and deep-fried Mars bars (like ya would), a magical thought process entered my brain and produced the concept for 'deep-fried' creme eggs. So last night in a delicious, and at times, dangerous test kitchen, I tried out a couple of different ways to prepare the bundles of deliciousness. I had already determined the basics of wrapping and securing the eggs within the phyllo pastry, but whether they would be deep-fried or baked was still to be determined... that was until I basically smoked out the house and nearly caught the kitchen on fire while frying the bundles in fat on the stove (be safe friends, do not try this at home unless you really know what you're doing!). Needless to say, the baked version won out. With that said, even if I did own a deep-frier, I would still recommend the baking method, just because the phyllo pastry is so fragile and so delicate that in the few tests I did in the hot fat, it took less than a minute to brown and start to burn.

Anywho, with all that excitement/embarrassing info divulged (I like to keep it real in my food diaries), let's get to instructing you on how to make these delicious treats at home!

WARNING: YES! It tastes as good as it sounds! And YES! you will experience multiple foodgasms as you consume them. These are wicked-awesome-good!

Stewed Chicken with Dumplings

Today, I bring to you another golden recipe from my mom's cookbook, Stewed Chicken with Dumplings! I love this recipe for a lot of reasons... okay, mainly for the dumplings and gravy - I am a dumpling fiend - but aside from that, it's actually pretty simple to make. Everything is cooked in the one pot which means minimal dishes to wash when you're done. That's a selling point if I've ever heard one! Last week alone, I cooked Eggs Benedict (for the 2nd time ever) and in the process dirt 2 pots, a frying pan, several ramekins, a whisk, a bowl, measuring spoons, multiple other utensils and then the plates we ate it on. Maybe this isn't as big a selling point to those of you with dishwashers, but that stuff counts to us dishwasherless folk. But I digress.

This recipe is truly yummy and about the hardest part of making it is peeling and chopping all those veggies. Methinks I'll be making this again very soon!

Fun Fact: When I was younger, I would eat around the vegetables and essentially consume dumplings and chicken! Mmmm... dumplings!

Pistachio-Crusted Salmon

Pistachio-Crusted Salmon with Scalloped Potatoes

I LOVE salmon. There. I said it. I order it in restaurants, I make it at home in the oven, I grill it on the bbq in the summer, and I love it pan fried! So, when I found this recipe for pistachio-crusted salmon (in my trusty Looneyspoons Collection), a new and potentially delicious twist on my fav little fishy, I knew I had to try it. Good call, I've had it several times now, and it never disappoints! I've got one word... yum!

Honey Boo Boo's Sketti!

You know how it goes, one minute you're watching Adele's acceptance speech at the Golden Globes and the next you're enthralled by your very first episode of Here Comes Honey Boo Boo! The only explanation - YouTube and the bizarre little road it leads you down each and every time you watch one simple video!

Having heard so much about the show (both good and bad), and having only seen brief clips on TV, I was intrigued, and wanted to see what all the fuss was about. Well... you have to watch it for yourself! There is absolutely nothing to prepare you for this family! I don't think I've laughed/been in shock so much in my life! Despite the pure crass nature of the show, and complete lack of manners, the whole family is nothing but a good time. I'm fascinated. They are loving life and you can tell they all love each other. I have burned through the first season in a couple of days (not sure I'm proud of that), and I have to say, aside from what she feeds her kids (ie: bizarre 'multi-meals'), and how much they're allowed to eat in general (I'm looking at you honey boo boo and that ridiculous amount of food you ordered at that restaurant), June is a great mom! Those kids are having the time of their lives!

Now, you may be wondering what this has to do with a food blog? Well, in one of the very first episodes I watched, June prepared some 'Sketti' for supper. That may sound normal and all, but if you've watched the episode you know what I'm talking about! Sketti, to the Honey Boo Boo clan, means spaghetti coated in a butter & ketchup sauce. Yeap. You read that right, and I can see you screwing up your face - just like I did! Check out the video to see for yourself:

Fish 'n' Brewis

It doesn't look like much, ladies and gentlemen, but don't let this picture fool you, behold the deliciousness that is Fish 'n' Brewis. 'What is this masterpiece?' you ask? Well my friends, it's a very simple, very delicious, combination of 3 ingredients: Codfish, Hard Bread, and Scrunchions a.k.a. tiny fried pieces of pork fat. Next to Jigs Dinner, this is the quintessential Newfoundland food.

Now, I will admit, like most Newfoundland dishes, there are a few varieties. Some people like to mash potato into the mix, or substitute the scrunchions with fried onions (a much healthier alternative). There's also some discrepancies in the naming, I like to call the above fish 'n' brewis, while my husband and his family refer to it as Fisherman's Brewis and call Fish 'n' brewis a decomposed version of the dish served with potatoes. Either way, this is what comes to mind when I hear the words fish 'n' brewis, it is the best, and my favourite way to eat it... not that I'd turn down the other stuff ;)

Fall Squash Salad

I've never been big on salads. Sure, I enjoy the odd Caesar, and I do love Wendy's apple chicken pecan salad too, but I've never been the type to crave salads (unless we're talking cold plates here, but that's a whole different ballgame altogether!)

Either way, my opinion on salads changed yesterday when I cooked up a warm squash salad, something I literally dreamed up a few nights before. If you're anything like me and you don't enjoy cold salads on a cold day, this is the perfect salad for those cooler Autumn days. It actually felt like comfort food - a salad?! Yeah, I know right?! Weird! Needless to say, I will be making this over and over this Fall.