English Girl's Prawn/Crab/Egg Salad

Why English girl? Well I kind of have an idea about what the Brits enjoy considering my roots. This uber simple salad is just that....simple and yet one more cool no fuss salad for a hot summer day.

Pile some organic fancy green lettuce on a pretty luncheon plate. Mix up 2 cups of prawns or shrimp, chop up some 2 cups of fake crab, 4 hard boiled eggs, 2 green onion, 1/4 cup of chopped up fresh tarragon, juice of 2 lemons, and 1 cup of miracle whip. Obviously this amount will make several salads, but you can keep it in the fridge throughout the week to enjoy mid afternoon when you get a little hungry. Add a little Kosher salt - I used pink Hawaiian salt, pepper and lemon wedges. P.S. You could if you like add a little seafood sauce to the mix. Nice with a little glass of white. P.S.S. What tastes even more amazing is when you don't add the eggs right away, and refrigerate this salad over night to allow the flavours to mingle. Add a slice of lemon to the salad and put away until the next day. Then boil up your eggs and when still warm slice up and add to the cold salad and mix up and serve. The warm eggs and the cold salad are heavenly. XO

Pork Cilantro Lettuce Wraps with Chimichurri Sauce

Well well. What does one do with a little extra pork roast hanging about? I use up the cilantro I've got in the refrigerator, combine it with a few bits and pieces, together with some "Memories of Patagonia" Herb and Garlic Chimichurri Sauce and voila! Fresh, delish, and perfect for a hot summer night.

You'll need your favorite lettuce that's nice and bend-y so you can wrap it easily. I happen to use Romaine lettuce leaves tonight. Wash and dry each piece and set aside.

You can find Chimichurri Sauce Recipe on the Internet (because I've not made it from scratch yet) and it's really lovely when you're making an exotic flavoured wrap such as this. I used a bottled version from President's Choice which really carries lovely marinades, etc. Here's what you'll need.

1 cup of Chimichurri Sauce, 1 cup of sour cream, the juice of one lime, 1 cup of cilantro leaves (fresh), 1 sliced red onion, shredded fresh ginger, thinly cut up pork roast. Combine in a bowl the Chimichurri Sauce with sour cream and add the lime juice. Then lay out the lettuce leaf and begin layering with a tbsp. of Chimichurri Sauce/Sour Cream/Lime mixture, shredded or thinly sliced pork roast, red onion, dots of freshly shredded ginger, about 2 tbsp. of cilantro leaves, then top again with another tablespoon of sauce. You can, if you like secure the leaves with toothpicks. What's so "cool" is you can assemble all of this and have it later. There is no heating required and it's a terribly refreshing dinner on a hot summer night. Enjoy!

Summer Pork Leg Roast with a Fruity Twist

Tonight I've run out of propane for the BBQ, so instead I'll utilize my oven. I love pork leg (boneless)...goodness how did that guy get around come to think of it?

I love the layer of fat that surrounds the pork leg because it gets deliciously crisp and succulent as you cook it. Tonight I just pressed some fresh rosemary and garlic into the top of the leg and of course stuck a meat thermometer in it so it cooks to perfection. When I cook pork roast or tenderloin, I ALWAYS allow the meat the rest once I've taken it out of the oven. If you eat pork roast or tenderloin straight out of the oven it' seems watery and rubbery. When it rests for a moment (about 10-15 minutes) it settles.

I also made a little basting sauce comprised of 1/2 cup of apricot marmalade, 1/2 cup of olive oil, and 3 tbsp. of soy sauce. Easy and absolutely delicious. I wait to baste the pork until it is half way done for some reason then it won't slide off the raw meat but as it bakes it tends to stick. Mind you, I got to thinking that it might be nice to baste the roast for the day with this marinade so that the meat becomes more infused with it. Next time. After the roast was done, I simmered and reduced the juices down so it was thick and syrupy and poured it over the roast to serve. P.S. The fruity twist is the apricot marinade. The summer part is the bikini I made for our little piggy. Aww....he's so cute in this picture.

Time to start adding photos to this blog

I'm going to start adding photos of food and recipes I love. Wish me luck. I never really thought about adding photos before, but will start now! I'm not that computer savy, but what's the harm in trying. Hope you enjoy my blog and leave your comments too! XOXO Tara

Katie Lee Joel's Amazing Appetizers

OK - I made two of KLJ's appetizers from her awesome book, The Comfort Table and wow! These appies are sensational and delicious. I loved reading through her cookbook and have gotten some really great fresh ideas for food. What I like about her recipes are the simplicity of them. Real food, real home cooking updated.

I served her recipes the other night at a party we had and all were devoured. I was asked for the recipes and have told everyone to definitely buy her book.

Flat Pies are like an updated sausage roll. The next time I serve this, I will add some herbs and seasoning. Even mushrooms would be a nice addition or some caramelized onions to the sausage provolone flat pie. Purchase some puff pastry and let defrost. Buy your favorite Italian sausage links, I chose mild Italian sausage because that was all I could find, but would mix them up next time with spicy and sweet, yum. Remove from the casings and cook in a frying pan until done. Shred Provolone cheese, I did about 2 cups. Now roll out the puff pastry on a floured surface in a long rectangle, or as big as it will go and layer the sausage and the cheese within one inch of the edges. Put rectangle on a cookie sheet that's been covered in parchment paper. Then mix up and egg and brush egg around the edges. Roll out another puff pastry and put over top and seal the edges together. Put into the refrigerator for 20 minutes and up to 2 hours. Then trim the edges so that the flat pie is nice and even. Didn't really know what to do with the extra puff pastry, but next time I might use it up and make herbed sticks. Make three slits on the top part of the pastry so steam can get out and then put into a preheated 375 degree oven for 35-40 minutes or until brown and rotate so it won't get just brown on one side. Delicious!

KLJ's Guacamole: Mix the following in a food processor, or mash with a potato masher like I did. Add four garlic cloves, though I used 1 tsp. of jarred garlic, 1/2 to 1 Serrano pepper, stemmed, I only had Louisiana Hot Sauce and added a tbsp., 4 Haas avocados, halved, pitted, and peeled, Juice of 1 lime, 1 1/2 tsp. of kosher salt, 1 tsp. of freshly ground black pepper, 1/2 cup of chopped fresh cilantro and a tomato diced that you will stir into the guacamole after it's been mixed. I would taste this concoction periodically and add a little more of this or a little more of that. I also doubled the recipe and used 8 avocado for the party we were having. This is a very authentic tasting guacamole that really highlights the deliciousness of the avocado.