Cowboy Pot Roast

This is a very tasty dish and what makes it a little bit different from your average beef pot roast is the addition of a jalapeno ketchup. The jalapeno ketchup is a combination of jalapeno peppers, onion, garlic, brown sugar, tomato paste and cumin.  This pot roast is not spicy hot at all so do not be afraid of the peppers. It adds such a great and unique flavour to the roast. Sweet potatoes, carrots and chunks of onions are add during the last 30 minutes of cooking. The meat and vegetables are removed and a gravy is made from the reserved liquid. I like to serve sauteed mushrooms on the serving platter as well. The meat is so tender and juicy, it just falls apart. This pot roast is absolutely delicious. My family loves it.  Serve with mashed potatoes and biscuits.

Quinoa Salad

I haven't always been a fan of quinoa but I have slowly started to appreciate it more recently. I often make it for my kids to take for lunches. It keeps well and does not need to be heated. Quinoa contains more protein than any other grain and is considered complete protein. This salad also has mung beans which are part of the legume family. You can get them dried either whole or split. I used whole in this recipe. Interestingly they are also the sprouts you see in sandwiches or on salads. I found them in the bulk section of the grocery store. Bulgar wheat is added to the quinoa as well. It is a whole wheat grain that has been cracked and partially pre-cooked, most commonly used in tabbouleh salad. There is cucumber, parsley, red pepper and tomatoes in this salad. The salad is spiced with cumin, salt and pepper and dressed lightly with a vinaigrette. My favourite vinaigrette is "Three Diamond Dressing'. I find this dressing at Safeway in the produce section but any vinaigrette will work. This recipe makes a good size salad but it also keeps for several days in the fridge. I make it on Sunday and keep it in the fridge all week. It is great for lunches, snacks and as a side salad.  I hope you enjoy this salad as much as my family does.

Roasted Root Vegetable Salad

This is a tasty and hearty salad to make in the winter when there are plenty of root vegetables available. Roasting them caramelizes the natural sugars, creating deep, rich flavours that makes them absolutely delicious. I am not a fan of turnips so I omitted them. Sometimes I use a store bought vinaigrette but do try the homemade version. The beets are cooked separately so they do not bleed all over the other vegetables. The  butternut squash does not take as long to cook compared to the carrots and parsnips so they are cooked separately as well. Line your pans with tin foil for easy clean up.
My family loves this salad and it is another way to get them to eat more vegetables.

Red River Cereal Bread

This bread contains Red River Cereal, which contains cracked wheat, rye and flax. In addition to the cereal there is also pumpkin and sunflower seeds. The Red River Cereal is first cooked and then added to the other ingredients. This recipe makes three loaves. This bread freezes well.\

Quiche

This is my favourite quiche recipe. I have been making it for years. I usually make it after I bake a ham and have leftovers. You can use ham or cooked bacon, either way is good. I use cheddar cheese usually but you can use Swiss as well. The top picture is a quiche made with ham and sauteed red onions. The lower picture I used bacon and green onions. Use whatever you have on hand is the beauty of this recipe. This recipe makes two quiche. Quiche freeze well.

Turkey Pot Pie

I have been wanting to post this recipe for quite a few years now but I never seem to remember to take a picture of the final product out of the oven. Trust me a picture cannot convey how delicious this pie really is. To me, nothing says "comfort food" more than a turkey pot pie. It is the perfect meal all wrapped in delicious pastry. These little pies are truly a labour of love, but so worth it. They are great make-ahead meals for days when you do not have time to cook. Just reach into the freezer and bake, it is that easy. Unlike store bought pies, your family will love these. The taste, texture and aroma is so inviting, you will never buy a store bought pie again. I typically make these pies when I have leftover turkey but I don't wait for Christmas or Thanksgiving. I will pick up a turkey when they are on sale and store it away in my freezer until I know I have time to make the pies. I love to bring these pies camping as they are so easy to bake and serve. I always make individual pies in little round or aluminum pie tins but you can make larger sized pies as well. I like to break this project up. The day before I make the turkey mixture and the following day I make the pastry and then the pies. Sometimes I don't have the exact amount of turkey and so I will add more vegetables, if that is the case, the important point to remember is the consistency of the sauce, not too watery or too thick. So use your judgement and add a little more broth to thin the sauce if it seems too thick. More often that not, I don't have any gravy leftover but if I do it is usually less than a cup. In that case I still add the 2 cans of cream of chicken soup plus the gravy. What I am trying to say,  is concern yourself more with the consistency of the sauce rather than exact quantities.