Winner Winner, Turkey Dinner!

A few weeks ago, I was home and under the weather...and I managed to catch two amazing things on television: the 3 minutes of the Emergency Alert System Test(which I made fun of the day previous because of all the warning commercials...I had the audacity to ask who on earth was watching TV at 2pm...oh yeah, me.)
AND
The new show called: The Chew


I must say I do like the concept of the show. Its casual and fun. I have always loved Clinton Kelly from TLC's "What Not To Wear" days; and even though I am not as familiar with the rest of the cast, they are a lighthearted bunch.


As American Thanksgiving is right around the corner, a portion of the show was dedicated to a 5 minute Thanksgiving meal for when you get that craving. The concept sounded easy enough: Turkey breast cutlets, apple, cranberry, arugula and some pan sauce.


View the recipe and TV segment here:  http://beta.abc.go.com/shows/the-chew/recipes/Thanksgiving-Michael-Symon-Turkey-Cutlets-Apples-Cranberries


Here was my take:

The result was a little disappointing. With the tart flavours of the granny smith apples and cranberries, the whole meal had a sour taste. I actually omitted some finishing lemon juice that the recipe calls for, and I'm glad I did. 

This recipe however opened my imagination to how I could recreate a small version of Thanksgiving Dinner for two. So last night was part 2. I threw it all together in under 10 minutes, and this time, it was a winner! This meal is more about the timing than anything. You don't want anything sitting, getting cold OR overcooking.  I had some leftover mashed potatoes, which went perfectly with the meal. If you are making them from scratch, start this first and use your favorite recipe for creamy mashed potato. I always like to make extra to store in the fridge/freezer for a quick side to a meal when I'm in a pinch. 

The first thing I started to make was the Cranberry Sauce. I have recently been in love with using fresh cranberries (will post my new cranberry apple crisp dessert soon!) so I had some in the fridge. You can also use frozen cranberries as well. 

Ingredients for Cranberry Sauce:

2/3 cup water

1/2 cup sugar

1 cup cranberries

1 tsp maple syrup

In a saucepan, stir together the water, sugar and maple syrup over medium high heat and stir until sugar is dissolved. 

Bring the mixture to a rolling boil and let it boil for about 5 minutes.

Add the cranberries and reduce the heat.

Bring it back to a soft boil and let it boil for 10 minutes while you prepare the turkey breast. 

You will notice that the cranberries start to burst! Stir occasionally. Serve hot or remove from heat and serve chilled or at room temperature. 

Ingredients for Turkey:

2 Turkey Breast Cutlets

1/4 cup all purpose flower

1tbsp dry bread crumbs

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp garlic powder

1/4 tsp black pepper

1tbsp unsalted butter

In a shallow dish, combine the flour, bread crumbs, salt, garlic powder and pepper to create a breading mixture (add other seasonings as you wish). Melt the butter on a frying pan at medium high heat. Coat the Turkey Breast with the breading mixture on both sides. Once the butter is melted and hot, add the turkey breasts and let them cook for 3-4 minutes on each side until they are crisp and golden brown. 

Plate the Turkey with a drizzle of cranberries and the bright red sauce on top. Serve with a helping of mashed potatoes, or a starch of your choice. And last but not least, add a lightly dressed salad to complete the meal. 

Not to brag, but my hubby smacks the table when I make something new that he likes. I had him smacking the dinner table over and over with this meal. He loved the light crisp flavour of the breading for the turkey breast; and gobbled up the cranberry sauce (gobbled...hehe)! 

We ate it so fast that I forgot to grab my camera. Whoops! I guarantee this meal is fool-proof and is easy to recreate and reinvent any night of the week.

Happy Thanksgiving to my American Friends and Family! To celebrate, I guess I'll just have to eat more turkey and shop until I drop; can't wait!

Moving On Up!

If you follow me on Facebook and Twitter, you will know that we are moving! Onward and upward to bigger and better kitchens!


This is extremely exciting, as I have spent the last two years in a small kitchen. I do not want to complain, as these past two years were the ones where I learned to love my kitchen, and the magic that happens in it. But I have to admit that running out of room to roll dough, cool baked goods, plate meals and all that good stuff...was getting old.


I don't have a recipe to share or a restaurant review today, but maybe I can share with you the journey that my imagination and our marriage has taken, these past few weeks.


Remember how I said that I can be a little impulsive?


Well, mix that with my undying love for real estate, decor and change..and you have: 
the ongoing search for a new place
the sudden finding of a new place
the coercion of my husband to consider a new place and look at it
the intense moments of contacting the owner of said place before it was gone
the race to view the place
the luck of winning the owner's heart
the blessing of being able to leave our condo early
AND a month to pack, dream and MOVE! 


GO! GO! GO!


So far I have packed one box and clipped all good recipes from my magazines. We are halfway through the month, and two weeks away from moving day. OY


I have, however; mentally packed and unpacked our belongings...and imagined. I imagined where our furniture will go. I imagined the friends we will have over and the parties we will hold. I imagined my garden in the back yard. I imagined making loads of sugar cookies to decorate this Christmas-because I can! 


Our new house is very open concept. When you walk through the front door, the living area opens to a large eat-in kitchen with an L shaped counter-top. It has three bedrooms: One for us, an office for my husband and a ????? 


Here is the challenge: what in the world should we do with this third room? So far we do not have a child to put in it. We already have an office. We don't have any people who would stay there, and necessitate a guest room. We are perplexed! My husband wants a fooseball table room, and I want a vintage-chic sitting/reading/relaxation room. Any suggestions?


All in all, its been a busy month for us, and its about to get busier. Moving means packing and cleaning and sorting and calling people and...and...and...


And I can't wait. :)

Share a Meatball with your Sister

I have three sisters. 


Last year when we were married, my two sisters and my hubby's sister teamed up and we all decided to become sisters. And even though we are scattered a bit and busy most of the time...I am lucky to have them. 


Last year we decided to start a tradition called Sibling Christmas. We had all three sisters over to our place on Boxing Day (awesome Canadian holiday, if you don't know what it is, you should wish you did) and pretended that we all lived in the same home as siblings and recreated Christmas. At night we got in our jammies, I read a story (Are you my Mother?), we ate inordinate amounts of candy and sweets, opened stockings, had a sleep over, and opened presents the next morning. We each got to play Secret Santa to one of the other siblings,  and presented them with our gifts.


I told them that for Christmas Dinner they could pick whatever meal they wanted. What did they pick, you ask? 


MEATBALLS. Obviously.


I actually don't know why they love it so much. Its just a quick and easy meal that warms up your insides on a cold day. So in the spirit of the blowing chilly air and the email I just got to tell me which sibling I get to give a gift to this year...here it is folks: 


What you need: 
1 package of frozen meatballs (I like Angus beef, but anything works)
1 bottle of your favorite BBQ sauce
1 cup Basmati Rice (long grain rice, 1 cup is good for 2 people)
Vegetable oil
Salt


RICE:
The recipe for rice is one that has been passed down from my grandmother, or Bibi as we call her. Its not exactly precise, but once you understand the measurements, it makes sense. 


(Pictures go left to right, top to bottom in explanation)


For two people, I use one cup of dry rice. If you have a minute or two, always try to rinse the rice, and if you have more time, soak it for a bit. While the rice is soaking, put about a tablespoon of vegetable oil at the bottom of a saucepan with approximately 1/2 teaspoon of salt and heat at medium high. The oil should spread to cover the bottom of the pan (see picture). Do not wait too long to add the rice to the pan, do not let the oil start to smoke. Drain the rice and add it to the pan, its okay if it sizzles. Quickly follow up with some water. Start with a cup, and then do the spoon test (see picture 4). Take a spoon and place it up against the side of the pan, with the bottom touching the pan and slide it to the center pushing the rice with it. If the rice just barely pokes up through the surface of the water at the center, you have enough. Add or take away depending on the rice, if its still submerged, you might have too much and if its sticking up far above the water, you need more water.

Turn the heat up to high and let the water come to a rolling boil. Once it is boiling, cover the pot and lower the temperature to low. Let it simmer for approximately 15 minutes. Try not to peek and lift up the lid, but you will notice that when its ready, the surface of the rice will have little holes and it will look plump and not wet. Uncover the rice and toss with a spoon. Now its ready to serve!


MEATBALLS:
I cheat with the meatballs, you of course can make them yourself. One day I will share my homemade meatball recipe that I stuff with cheese and use with spaghetti. But for now, boxed frozen meatballs will do the trick, and are something you can stash in your freezer for a quick meal.  


(Pictures go left to right, top to bottom in explanation)


My cooking oil of choice is always Extra Virgin Olive Oil. I like to brown my meat as it adds to the flavour and makes the meatballs look rich in colour. To do this, I put a heaping tablespoon or two of olive oil at the bottom of a saucepan and heat it on medium high. Once the oil is hot, and has spread to cover the bottom of the pan, I add the meatballs and cover the pot. Toss them every so often until the surfaces have a golden brown colour (see picture).

While the meatballs are heating up, I make a mixture of BBQ sauce to coat the meatballs. We enjoy Bullseye BBQ sauce, but feel free to use whatever your favorite is. I add as much sauce as will coat the meatballs well. Often I add a bit of water to the sauce to make it more liquid and that allows for some evaporation of steam as the meatballs heat. If you want to give them a kick, add some garlic powder or pepper OR to make the sauce sweeter, add some maple syrup to the sauce. Have fun with it, and be sure to taste your sauce to see if it suits your liking. Once everything is heated through, its ready to serve!

ENJOY!

Restaurant Review: The City Grill

What seems like ages ago, it was warm outside. I was sitting in a new chic restaurant in Windsor's downtown, having lunch with my family. The large windows were open and a sweet breeze blew in. I had steak and frites...mmm those frites...bless them. 

borrowed from the website www.thecitygrillwindsor.com

The City Grill is one of the newer restaurants to grace our city centre. It used to be the home of Peppers Bar and Grill. Back in the hey day of our downtown, it was a Birks Jewelry store, and they even have the original door handles to prove it. Its a perfect place for a business lunch, a romantic date night or for a meal out with friends. 


The decor is something to speak of; its crisp, contemporary and refined. Service is quick and thoughtful, and you can tell that they care about the little details. There are fresh flowers on the table, crisp linens, flavored water, beautiful plating...all the things that I notice and love. 


LUNCH
A few weeks ago, the restaurant was running a promotion for their new business lunch menu: 50% off the menu with a reservation. My husband and I set it up; it was fun to meet during the busy work week for a little lunch date. This is what we had:

My husband chose the NY Strip Sandwich. See the fries? They are lightly seasoned and deliciously crispy! 

At the end of the summer, the restaurant was asking for suggestions for a fall menu. My husband suggested a Shepherd's Pie, and they did it. Here it is, this was my lunch, and it was served hot. I loved the presentation, and the flavors were good and hearty.

For dessert (come on, for 50% off, why not?) we had their freshly baked cookies. Since we had it last, in the summer, they updated it to include a milk chocolate chip cookie, peanut butter cookie and white chocolate cookie with vanilla bean ice cream. Need I say how amazing this was?


The business lunch was done in just under an hour, which is good for those looking to pop in for a nice meal on a work-day.


DINNER
Groupon had a deal for The City Grill a few months ago, and we purchased one with the intent to try their dinner menu. Only a few short days after our lunch, we were back for dinner with friends. 


Now since this was a review, I am going to be honest. In the summer, the water was flavored with berries, which was good. At lunch, the water was flavored with lemon, and that was good. For dinner, the water was flavored with cucumber. One person from our group of four liked it. The cucumber flavor was a bit strong, and with the meal, it didn't seem to compliment. 


This is what we ordered: 

Harvest Salad, as the restaurant describes it: arugula, grilled apple, squash, fennel, white balsamic and pear coulis. I was really excited to try this salad, and was a bit surprised. The idea of the different ingredients sounded intriguing, but they didn't blend in the way I hoped they would. Its a cold and refreshing salad, but the flavors are a bit muted.

 I may have expensive taste, but I can't help ordering a steak when its on the menu. This is the 12oz NY Striploin: Its served with a triple baked potato, a bourbon glaze, seasonal vegetables and baby onions. I ordered it medium-well, and it came cooked to order, still tender and hot- just how I like to have my steak! It was so much for me though, so I took half of the meal home!

My husband had the Seared Pork Medallions, in a puff pastry with julienne vegetables, roasted garlic whip potatoes, glazed pearl onions and drizzled with a calvados reduction. I didn't have any of it because my hubby ate it all and proclaimed it as delicious!


So overall, this restaurant makes me excited about the growing Windsor restaurant scene. We needed a new place for fine but modern dining, and The City Grill fits the bill. With its friendly staff, excellent service, attention to detail and classy atmosphere; its a place I will return to again and again, and recommend you do too. 


Follow them on Twitter (@TCGWindsor) and Facebook. Be sure check out their website www.thecitygrillwindsor.com for information on reservations, menu and special events!