Posted on: May 4th, 2013 by Carla Johnson No Comments
This week was the launch of the premiere The Great Canadian Wine Match. The fun slogan is “Red, White and Truth North Food.”
Please join in and vote. It is wine pairing in 6 different categories: chicken, beef, pizza. cheese, seafood, dessert. Click on each image below for each different category. I have nominated a wine in each of the categories.
If you tweet, use the hashtag #GCWM. Thanks!
Best Chicken Wine
Best Beef Wine
Best Pizza Wine
Best Cheese Wine
Best Seafood Wine
Best Dessert Wine
Thanks for your votes!
Note – There is a bit of confusion. The image for the Riverview is the same as the Ravine wine. That’s an oops I am trying to correct.
Posted on: March 31st, 2013 by Carla Johnson No Comments
My inner child took over last night and I made a batch of Easter nests with eggs. The recipe is an old classic and a goody.
Easter Egg Nests
Makes 12
1 cup chocolate chips
1 cup butterscotch chips
1 cup peanut butter
2 cups chow mein noodles
a splash of marshmallow vodka – optional for the “big kids”
Bag of chocolate mini eggs
1. Melt the chips and pb in the microwave on medium power for 1 minute. Stir and nuke for another minute.
2. Remove from the microwave and stir until all ingredients are blended. Add the vodka and stir well. Toss in the noodles and stir until all the noodles are coated.
3. Spray 12 muffin tins with oil. Scoop the noodles into the muffin tins, making them bowl shaped to hold the eggs.
4. Place the eggs in each nest while the chocolate is still soft. Store in fridge until they are firm.
Posted on: March 16th, 2013 by Carla Johnson No Comments
There’s a dear little plant that grows in our isle, ‘Twas St. Patrick himself, sure, that sets it; And the sun of his labor with pleasure did smile, And with dew from his eye often wet it. It grows through the bog, through the brake, through the mireland, And they call it the dear little Shamrock of Ireland. ~ Irish Blessing
Tomorrow is St. Patrick’s Day and all the buzz is about green beer, so I’m thinking about green wine instead. Now, the thought of colouring wine green is rubbing me rather abrasively, so went looking for green glasses instead.
It was fun! I hope you enjoy them. There is something for every budget and type of party. You can click on each pic to find out where to purchase them.
Green plastic glasses at Party City Green recycled glass from the UK
Luigi Bormioli at Target Artland Iris Goblet at Sears
Green Lustre – Bed Bath & Beyond Fun Plastic Glass at Party City
“Here’s to the land of the shamrock so green, Here’s to each lad and his darlin’ Colleen, Here’s to the ones we love dearest and most. May God bless old Ireland, that’s this Irishman’s toast!”
Posted on: March 5th, 2013 by Carla Johnson No Comments
“You can do almost anything with soup stock, it’s like a strong foundation. When you have the right foundation, everything tastes good.” ~ Martin Yan
At any given time, Anselma House & Haven Houses’ 75 beds are full. That’s 75 women and children who have had the courage to leave an abusive relationship. That’s 75 women & children who have experienced hatred and pain from someone who was supposed to love and cherish them. Many left in a hurry with nothing but the clothes on their backs. Many left fearing for their lives. They all need food, clothing, protection and time to rebuild and restructure their lives. Anselma House & Haven House, women’s crisis shelters, do their best to provide just that.
A week ago I was honoured to join a group of women from Leadership Waterloo who organized a cooking event with The Soup Sisters. We were divided into smaller groups to make great big batches soups for Anselma House and Haven House. There was chicken noodle soup, hamburger soup, lentil soup and a few others. The group I was in made a delicious batch of hearty chilli.
It was such a fun night! Each of us paid $50 to cover the cost of the groceries and wine with our meal. First we were given cutting and chopping instructions and safety tips. Then we donned our aprons and grabbed our knives. We chopped, peeled, cooked, stirred and laughed the evening away. I was given the especially fun job of crushing canned tomatoes by hand! I felt like I Love Lucy in the grape stomping episode. If there had been an award for the messiest apron, I would have proudly won it.
When it was all done and the big pots were full and simmering on the stoves, we sat down for a group meal. We were served a bowl of the lentil soup that one group had made, some bread and a glass of wine. After our meal we poured our big pots of soups and chilli into storage containers for the Soup Sisters to deliver to the shelters.
When we were done, we learned we had made enough soup for two weeks of meals for those 75 women and children. It was wonderful to be part of such a soul-full evening. Abuse is sadly rampant in our world and it truly was an honour to be part of the healing. Thank you to the Culinary Studio for being the host kitchen.
Click here for the photos from the February 26th event. You will notice we had one Broth Brother with us.
If you suspect you or someone you know is in an abuse relationship, read this list of “Characteristics of Abusers” put together by Anselma House. Please know that people are available who want to help you or your friend.
Posted on: February 17th, 2013 by Carla Johnson No Comments
“Cooking is at once child’s play and adult joy. And cooking done with care is an act of love.” - Craig Claiborne
What exactly is a “foodie?” The word gets used a lot and was even spoofed in a recent TV ad for Boston Pizza. So, I googled it and found this:
“Noun 1. foodie - a person devoted to refined sensuous enjoyment (especially good food and drink)”
That’s pretty much what Diane Smith Stewart said too. Recently I met Diane through mutual friends and when I asked her about food and cooking she said, “I love to bring joy to others using food!” She loves everything about food. She loves trying new pairings, new cooking techniques and presentations and she is always looking for a new food or recipe from a part of the world she hasn’t yet experienced.
I like Diane because she also really enjoys *sin.* She loves great wine and the finest of spirits. Her favourite drink is the Rusty Nail, a mix of Drambuie and Scotch. It’s possible the name Drambuie came from the Gaelic phrase dram buidheach which means “the drink that satisfies” and I think that suits Diane perfectly.
Diane & Dwayne - photo credit Diane Smith Stewart
Diane has been married to Dwayne for 20 years and they are not looking back. They are busy parents supporting all the activities of their two teenagers, 18 year old Sarah and 15 year old Cam. They do all that while running two Vancouver businesses, one of which provided the official snow removal services for the Vancouver Olympics in 2010. Yes, their lives and full and gratifying.
Diane and her daughter. Photo by photoart by Simpson
When she celebrated Robbie Burns Day with friends a couple weeks ago, she whipped up a Drambuie cream sauce for the haggis. Diane is an organic food person. She grows some of her own vegetables and supports local producers, so she made sure she served her sauce with the most delicious, savoury haggis she could find.
Diane also said her sauce is wonderful on ice cream and you might want to eat it straight from a spoon. “But,” she says, “try not to drink it all before supper!!”
“Bring Joy” Drambuie Cream Sauce
½ cup Drambuie
¾ cup heavy cream
1. Place Drambuie in saucepan, bring to boil and reduce by half (about 10 minutes).
2. Remove from heat and stir in cream. Heat to warm, do not boil. Serve.
Bag of chocolate mini eggs
