The Yum Yum Factor

I was craving chinese green beans with ground pork but I didn't have any ground pork, which was a problem. I also didn't have any dried shrimp or the chinese preserved vegetables that I would need to make them properly and they wouldn't turn out as yummy as the ones we get at Perfect Restaurant anyway so I gave up before I started. What I did have was a big bag of green beans, some deep fried tofu and a big handful of brown mushrooms so it was time to improvise. I wasn't even going to share this one since it was just a quick weeknight dinner born of desperation and  the absolute lack of desire to go outside but it was so delicious that I changed my mind. We ate this over some brown sushi rice with a side of left over chinese bbq pork - clearly we have reached our sodium limit for the week. I guess we can eat greek yogurt with berries and drink pints of green tea until the weekend to try to even things out but, man, it was some tasty business.

This is not rocket science but it is one of our favourite ways to eat cauliflower and I am always surprised when people tell me they have never roasted cauliflower. Even people who think they hate the stuff will eat it if it's roasted. We do it all sorts of ways, with different herbs and spices but my favourite is most simple - olive oil, curry powder and garlic. I always make a huge batch because I snack on it cold the next day and if you puree it you can add it to some mashed potatoes or turn it into soup or mix some of it with quinoa for a salad. Roasted Curried Cauliflower 1 head cauliflower Olive oil 1/2 tbls curry powder kosher salt a handful of garlic cloves Preheat the oven to 400F Wash your cauliflower and chop it into florets - if you are in a hurry, chop them up small but they cook better if you leave them a bit larger and roast it for a longer period of time. Put it in a big bowl and drizzle with some olive oil, sprinkle with kosher salt and the curry...

Summer like weather is here, even it it's not supposed to be this hot yet and that means we have already started to eat like it's July. Last summer, I was knee deep in my no reEATS  challenge so The Kid and I were pulling our hair out, trying to come up with things we felt like eating in the hot weather. Generally speaking, I keep all sorts of dips and salads and condiments in the fridge and then we will grill some fish or sausages or a bit of meat and that will be dinner night after night. Some nights we might have some greek pita, other nights a bit of pasta salad, a little chunk of cheese and olives to round out the platter but we are all pretty happy eating basically the same meal night after night.  You know, I was fine with the no repeating a recipe during the cold winter months, but the summer almost killed me. I won't tell you how many nights I broke down and cried in my kitchen because all I wanted was some dip, bread and a bit of grilled salmon but I had t...