Hello October! If you need me you can find me at the bottom of  the never-ending pots of delicious homemade soup that have taken over my kitchen! I know these pictures are a bit blurry but trust me this soup looks and tastes crazy good. Give it a try. You won’t be sorry. This particular soup has now been added to my list of favourites. Serves 6-8

• Safflower oil, for frying
• 5 pieces of naturally smoked bacon, cut into bite sized pieces
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 4 cloves of garlic, minced
• 3 cups green cabbage, chopped
• 2 tsp smoked paprika
• pinch or two of chipotle chili powder ( more or less depending on how much heat you want in your soup )
• 3 carrots, chopped
• 1 stalk of celery, chopped
• 1 red skinned potato, chopped into bite sized pieces
• 1 can diced tomato
• 1 can white kidney beans
• 4 cups veg broth
• 1/3 cup mixture of parmesan and asiago
• salt and pepper to taste
• additional bacon and cheese to top ( optional )

Heat about 1 tbsp of oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the bacon and cook for a few minutes, letting it brown. Add a couple more tbsp of oil along with the onion and garlic. Cook, stirring occasionally until softened. Add the cabbage and cook for 5 minutes, continuing to stir occasionally. Add the spices, carrots, celery and potato. Cook for another 5 minutes. Add the tomato, beans and broth. Feel free to add a little salt and pepper if you like. Bring the soup to a boil then reduce heat to a simmer for 30-40 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in the parmesan/asiago. Using an immersion blender, pulse until desired consistency. Spoon into bowls and top with a bacon bits and a sprinkle of parmesan. Enjoy!

I know this isn’t technically a taco buuut it is a taco bowl! It’s a fresh and  yummy way to get your taco fix without binging out on tacos.

serves 4

FISH

• 2 pounds of white fish –  halibut, haddock, sole, flounder or tilapia
• 1 cup flour
• 1 tbsp smoked paprika
• 2 tsp cumin
• 1/4 tsp chipotle chili powder
• 1 lime, zest and juice
• salt and pepper to taste
• safflower oil, for frying

To make the fish: Preheat a large cast iron skillet ( or any heavy pan ) over medium-high heat. In a shallow bowl mix together the flour, spices and zest. Dredge the fish in the flour mixture until evenly coated. Pour enough oil in the skillet to evenly coat the bottom. Cook fish in two batches adding more oil if needed. Make sure the pan is still sizzling; if not, turn the heat up a little. Cook for a few minutes or until the bottom of the fish is golden brown. Carefully flip. Cook for a few more minutes then add 1/2 the lime juice. Remove from skillet and set aside. Repeat.

CREAMY CHIPOTLE DRESSING

• 1 cup plain greek yogurt
• 1/4 cup vegenaise or mayonnaise
• 1-2 tbsp fresh lime juice
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1/4 tsp smoked paprika
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1 1/2 tbsp honey
• 1 tsp apple cider vinegar
• 1 tbsp minced chipotle pepper in adobo sauce, if you can’t handle the heat make sure to remove the seeds. If you like heat feel free to add a little more!
• pinch of salt

To make the dressing: toss all ingredients in a food processor and pulse until fully mixed. Set aside.

SALAD

• 1/2 cup fresh corn kernels
• 2 ripe avocado
• 3/4 cup black beans, strained and rinsed
• 2 tomato, chopped
• 1/2 cup red cabbage, shredded
• 1 red pepper, chopped
• 1 white onion, chopped
• 1 handful of lettuce per bowl
• cilantro for topping

To serve: Fill four bowls with corn, avocado, black beans, tomato, cabbage, red pepper, onion and lettuce. Top with fish and a generous drizzle of creamy chipotle dressing . Sprinkle with cilantro. Enjoy!

Want to mix it up a bit? Try adding any of the following to your taco bowl -

• Mexican rice
• shredded cheese
• chopped pineapple or mango
• chicken instead of fish
• fresh or picked jalapeno
• crispy tortilla strips like in this recipe

 Recipe makes about 12 small/medium pancakes

5 cups of shredded vegetable, I used a mixture of red and green cabbage, carrot and brussel sprouts

3 scallions, thinly sliced

1 cup chicken, cooked and shredded 

1 cup all purpose flour

1/4 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp sugar

1 tsp salt

4 eggs, lightly beaten

1 tbsp worcester sauce

1/2 cup cold water

safflower oil or canola, for frying

In a small bowl sift together the flour, baking powder, sugar and salt. In a large bowl add the shredded vegetable, scallions and chicken. Now add the flour mixture and toss with your fingers until evenly distributed. In a medium bowl whisk together the eggs, water and worcester. Pour the wet ingredients into the cabbage mixture. Gently mix together ( do not over mix ). Coat the bottom of a large frying pan with oil and warm over medium heat. Make about 3-4 pancakes evenly spread apart, each one should be about 2 tbsp of batter. Slightly flatten with a spatula. Cook for 5-7 minutes per side or until they are cooked through and have a nice crispy brown outer layer.

Okonomiyaki Sauce:

1/4 ketchup

1 1/2 tbsp worcester sauce

1/4 tsp dijon mustard

1 bsp rice wine ( for cooking )

1 tsp soy sauce

1 tbsp honey

1/8 tsp ground ginger

Combine all of the sauce ingredients in a small saucepan and simmer for 3-5 minutes until smooth and thick. Sauce recipe courtesy from Smitten Kitchen

Sriracha mayo:

1/4 cup mayo

1 1/2 tsp sriracha

Other toppings:

toasted sesame seeds

scallions, thinly sliced 

To serve:

Spread a bit of the okonomiyaki sauce on the pancakes and top with mayo and some toasted sesame seeds and sliced green onions.

*Want to mix it up a bit? try adding any of the following to your pancakes

Kale, shredded

zucchini, shredded

baby prawns

bacon

fish

This was my first year decorating eggs with Poppy. I decided to try my hand at making our own natural dyes from vegetables and spices etc. Other than it taking a bit of time it was super fun and easy. I can’t wait for next year to see what new colours I can come up with.

I used:

purple cabbage

beets

blueberries

turmeric

hibiscus tea ( this didn’t turn out as well as I had hoped )

TO DYE:

Use 1 cup of vegetable or fruit per cup of water or 2 tbsp of spices/herbs per cup of water. Pour water into pots and add whatever you are using for colouring. Bring the water to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cover for 30 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool to room temperature. Once cooled pour through a strainer into jars. Add 1 tbsp of vinegar per cup of strained liquid. Transfer your room temp hard boiled eggs into the dye. Refrigerate until you are happy with the shade.

Tip*

If you want to add some patterns to your eggs try wrapping them with rubber bands or tape cutouts before emerging into the dye. Remove the rubber bands and tape after the eggs have been dyed and dryed.

There is nothing like a big bowl of comfort. Quick easy and delicious. This will fill you up and make your tastebuds happy all at the same time!

1-2 tbsp olive oil

2 medium onions, chopped

3 cloves of garlic, minced

1 tsp thyme

1/8 tsp savory

2 cups crimini mushrooms, chopped

3 cups green cabbage, chopped

1/2 cup chicken or vegetable stock

1 19 ounce can of white kidney beans, drained and rinsed

1 28 ounce can of diced tomatoes, with juice

1/2 cup parsley, chopped

1/2 cup cilantro, chopped

salt and pepper to taste

fresh parmesan cheese, for serving

*additional ingredients: quinoa or brown rice, cook according to package

In a large pot heat the oil over med-high heat. Add the onion, garlic, thyme and savory. cook for about 5 minutes, stiring frequently until the onion has softened. Stir in the mushroom and cabbage and cook stirring frequently for another 5 minutes. Add the stock and simmer, covered, for 6 minutes. Add the beans, tomatoes, parsley and cilantro. Cover and simmer over med to med-low leat for 12 minutes or until thickened. Season with salt and pepper.

To serve: Enjoy served over quinoa and topped with a generous grating of fresh parmesan. Enjoy.

Recipe adapted from BEARD & BONNET

• 1 package GF rice noodles
• 8 cups sodium free vegetable broth
• 1/4 cup Tamari GF soy sauce
• 2  Tbsp grated or minced ginger
• 4 1/2 cups assorted veg, I used shredded carrot, cabbage, sugar snap peas, crimini mushrooms, thin strips of red pepper, broccoli flouretts, bean sprouts and baby bok choi
• 1/2 cup left over water from cooking the noodles

Garnish:

• fresh chopped cilantro
• sesame oil
• sesame seeds
• hard boiled egg
• sriracha hot sauce

In a med sized pot add the veg broth, soy sauce and ginger. Stir. Over med/high heat let the flavours come together. In a separate pot cook the noodles according to package ( do not over cook ). While the pasta is cooking add the veg to the broth, allow to cook for about 2 min. Once the pasta is finished cooking reserve 1/2 cup of the starchy water then drain the noodles and rinse with cold water. Set aside. Add the starchy water to the veg and broth let cook for another min then remove from heat.

To serve. Divide the noodles into bowls. Drizzle with a little sesame oil now ladle on the broth and veg. Top with a sliced hardboiled egg some sesame seeds, fresh cilantro and a couple dashes of hot sauce. Enjoy!!

Yesterday was cold and rainy. It’s the end of May and I figured that this weather was not going to last much longer. I decided to make the most of it and cook up my last batch of soup before saying goodbye until the fall.

• 1 med butternut squash, cubed
• 1/2 cabbage, chopped
• 1 can diced tomato (if you want less tomato flavour strain the tomato before adding to the soup)
• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• 2 med onion, diced
• 2 cups of black eyed peas ( I used the canned ones)
• 4 cloves of garlic, minced
• 3 bay leaves
• 5 cups of veg broth (or any liquid, water, beef broth…etc)
• 1 1/2  tsp cumin
• 1/2 tsp chipotle chilli powder
• 1 tso dried oregano

In a large pot, warm the oil over medium heat. Add the onion and saute until it begins to brown. Now add the garlic, cabbage, squash, tomatoes and broth. Reduce heat to simmer, cover and cook for about 30 minutes or so (until the squash is cooked). Now add the spices and the beans; stir until combined. Cook another ten minutes allowing the flavors to blend. Remove from heat. If you like it a bit thicker and smoother (I do) give the soup a quick pulse with your immersion blender…not a ton but just enough to thicken the broth. Salt and pepper to taste then top with some avocado and goat cheese. Enjoy!