Every spring, David and I look forward to starting our Herb Garden. As a foody, I can’t imagine not having my fresh herbs 🍃 so readily available outside on the patio. Throughout the summer until fall 🍂, we enjoy using them in many recipes. When the season is over, I either dry them, transfer them to resealable plastic freezer bags, or make some dishes with them. When we mention herbs, most people might not think of using them in anything other than savory dishes 🍲. Well, here’s a delicious twist on a popular sweet treat… A few years ago, we grew a lot of rosemary, which I didn’t mind because we cook with it often. One morning, as I was about to bake a cake, a light went off 💡, and that is how I created this recipe… Lemon Rosemary Madeleines! This classic French treat just had a makeover!!! From the freshness of the lemon 🍋 to the nicely balanced amount of rosemary, these small sponge cakes are magnificent! The added ingredients give these Lemon Rosemary Madeleines a unique and delicious flavor. With this delightful twist, these little guys pair perfectly with tea or coffee ☕ for a mid-afternoon snack or as a light after dinner dessert. They’re always great in lunch boxes. I love 💖 madeleines, but after making these, I’m happy to say I won’t be going back to the traditional sponge cakes. Who knew that this herb could add so much extra taste to them? I’m telling you… these Lemon Rosemary Madeleines are much better than the plain ones. You’ll understand why they are so fabulous after trying the recipe… Bon Appétit! 🍽 Check out these other fabulous snack recipes…😀 – Lamington Cake – Peanut Butter Banana Bread – Energy Berry Bites – Yogurt Bars with Fruit & Nuts – Cranberry Cream Cheese Crisp – Ooey•Gooey Cinnamon Buns – Pirate Peanut Butter Cookies Copycat – Sesame Snaps – Chocolate Mint Nanaimo Bars and for even more snack recipes 🍭🍫, click on this link… Recipe Category • Snacks
I love 💖 salads and it shows. When you’re on the website and go to the sidebar menu on the right, scroll down to Salads & Dressings, and you’ll see how many there are. Yes, I realize that there are dressings and vinaigrettes in that section, but for the most part, there are tons of salad recipes. There are some with a pasta base, while there are others that are vegetable-based 🥔, but for the majority, there are lettuce or leafy greens in them. I recently posted How to Keep Salad Greens Longer, and now, here’s this one… Spinach vs. Romaine vs. Iceberg! With nutritional values given to each of them, this article is informative and helpful. It provides good insight into vitamins and properties. I picked the most popular ones that people generally prefer to use for their salads 🥗. As the title refers, Spinach vs. Romaine vs. Iceberg, we’ll go in this order… Spinach is undeniably the best 💚 among the three. Besides being packed with vitamins and minerals, it’s the most versatile. – Vitamins & Minerals: It’s loaded with vitamins A, C, and K, delivering about three times more than lettuce. It’s also highly rich in beta-carotene and folate, plus essential minerals like calcium, iron, and magnesium. In addition, it provides powerful antioxidants and fiber. Additionally, spinach has the highest concentration of micronutrients, making it an excellent choice for a healthy diet. – Use: Besides being a delicious ingredient for salads, it can be used in soups, and other recipes like Veal Florentine, Creamy Tuscan Chicken, Oysters Rockefeller 🦪, etc. It’s great as a side dish such as Creamed Spinach, or even in mashed potatoes like in the Kenyan Irio recipe. Romaine is a lettuce I love, but it’s not as versatile as spinach, though it is very popular for many different recipes. – Vitamins & Minerals: Like spinach, it has great vitamins A, C, and K, plus fiber and antioxidants. It’s also low in calories as well. As much as its nutritional value looks the same as spinach, its counterpart has much more iron and vitamins than Romaine. On the other hand, it has nearly ten times more beta-carotene and lutein, which support eye health 👀, than iceberg lettuce. – Use: The most obvious is in Caesar Salad or Fattoush Salad, but Romaine is a great ingredient for making wraps, adding to tacos, sandwiches, and burgers. It can also be grilled on the barbecue or sautéed in stir-fries. Iceberg is often considered low in nutrients. On the other hand, this lettuce still has some vitamins and essential minerals, but in very small amounts compared with the other two. – Vitamins & Minerals: It contains a small amount of vitamin A and folate, as well as trace amounts of potassium, calcium, iron, and magnesium. The greatest benefit of Iceberg is the fact that it has a high-water 💦 content therefore, it’s extremely hydrating and very low in calories. Another plus is that Iceberg has the longest shelf life of them all. This is the perfect choice when making a Seven Layer Salad. – Use: The fact that Iceberg is super crunchy makes it a great addition to burgers and sandwiches, plus ideal for salads such as Bacon Wedge or Classic Cobb. I like topping my Sombrero Pizza with it as well… it’s awesome! As I mentioned, Iceberg has the longest shelf life of them all. Stored properly, it can last up to 3 weeks, while Spinach and Romaine might last 7 days 📅. If you want to keep them longer, I highly suggest looking at How to Keep Salad Greens Longer. It’s interesting to compare their differences in this Spinach vs. Romaine vs. Iceberg episode. Each brings its own pluses either in nutrition or usage. All of them are a regular rotation on my menu 📜 as salads or in recipes. Bon Appétit! 🍽 Check out these other great kitchen tips and tricks… 😀 – How to Store Celery for Weeks – How to Roast and Peel Peppers – How to Prepare an Avocado – Tomato Ripening Trick – How to Peel Butternut Squash • 2 Easy Ways – Asparagus • How to Blanch – Beets ~ Prep & 4 Ways to Cook – How to Cut Cauliflower – Bean Sprouts • How to Extend Their Shelf Life and for more handy kitchen tips and tricks 💡, click on this link… Recipe Category • Tips & Tricks Don’t forget to subscribe to our YouTube channel 📽 by clicking on this link… Club Foody YouTube
When I was a child, I loved listening to elderly 👵👨🦳 people talk about their lives and experiences, comparing their past with the actual present. To me, it was a lively talking book – perhaps this is how audiobooks started. I never got bored listening because I was learning from them through their stories. They provided me with an opportunity to see the world from another time and another perspective. That was better than any library in the world! Things never changed as I grew up and became an adult. Meeting new people with different backgrounds was always interesting. Through the places I lived, I’ve met so many captivating individuals from all around the world 🌏 who shared a part of themselves. By talking about their lifestyles, customs, and so on, one common thing they all had was the desire to make sure I tasted their food. I haven’t met anyone who wasn’t eager to share with me the dishes they grew up with. That is when I realized that food was one of the most important factors in anyone’s life. While living in Toronto, I met a man who was originally from Lebanon. We became good friends, and like the other great people I’ve met throughout my life, he shared some of the foods 🧆 he grew up with me. This is how I discovered Levantine cuisine. These flavorful Middle Eastern dishes were deliciously different from any other cuisine. Richard, my Lebanese friend, showed me how to cook and prepare 👩🍳👨🍳 many of his favorite recipes, such as Falafel, Tabbouleh, Baba Ghanoush, Kofta, Labneh, Ma’amoul Cookies, Tahini Paste that I use for making my Creamy Tahini Sauce, Hummus, and many more! He eventually met a lady, and we drifted apart… that’s life! Since then, I’ve been making many flavorful Levantine dishes. As I never really wrote 📝 any recipes down before Club Foody, I realized that I should have. After a few mistakes here and there, I was finally able to make a few of the dishes I learned from Richard. I’m sure there was a slight change to them. My version of Tabbouleh might be different from Richard’s, but nonetheless, it’s very tasty! This incredible Tabbouleh recipe is perfect for vegetarians and vegans because the dish consists of parsley, bulgur, mint, tomatoes, onions 🧅, and is seasoned with lemon juice 🍋 and oil. Not only flavorful but also healthy 💚, this dish is perfect to serve as a side dish alongside any protein. I like to treat it like a salad, although I’m not too sure if it is in the culinary world. Salad or not, this is an amazing recipe you will want to keep around… Bon Appétit!🍽 Here are more vegetarian and vegan recipes for you to try…😀 – Saag Aloo – West African Peanut Stew • Maafe – Sambal Green Beans – Caponata – Energy Berry Bites – Romesco Sauce – Homemade Apple Sauce – Red Velvet Boost – Beet Hummus and for even more salad and dressing recipes 🥗, click on this link… Recipe Category • Salads & Dressings
Our wedding reception was in Puerto Vallarta. We rented a gorgeous private villa by the bay with a private beach, where the ceremony took place. The tables were placed outside around the palm trees, and the dance floor by the pool. That night, we had fireworks 🎇 by the beach. When it came to hors d’oeuvres 🍣, appetizers, main course, desserts, and later on, more food, everything was analyzed to a T – of course, what do you expect from a foody! All our guests couldn’t believe how delightful the food was. One thing that surprised everyone was the wedding cake… As most of us unfortunately experienced more than once in our lives, wedding cakes are generally awful! While they mostly prioritize visual design, they certainly lack in taste, especially with that overly sugary fondant that no one can stand 😣! Well, well, well, our cake was the opposite! In the corner of my eye 👀, I watched our guests taking their first bite. It didn’t take too long before the plates were cleaned off. The comments I received that night about this dessert were beyond positive. According to them, it was the BEST EVER wedding cake! I agree! It was the ultimate wedding cake! What we served to our guests was a two-tier Tres Leches Cake with different flavors for each one: vanilla, and mocha. This dessert was so moist and incredibly scrumptious! Although there wasn’t any fondant on it, the cake was elegantly 🥰 decorated with buttercream frosting. After making each flavor a few times since then, I decided to make one with a hint of cocoa powder 🍫 and cinnamon. The results were delicious! These two added ingredients help cut through the richness and sweetness from the three milks. If I want to stick to the classic vanilla flavor, I just omit them. Besides this little twist, the rest is the traditional Tres Leches Cake… This is a dessert that has a few steps. It’s not complicated but slightly involved. There are also some passive times. The cake has to cool off after being baked; then there’s some downtime to absorb the milks. Plus, it has to be chilled overnight 🌛. One of the steps is to make a meringue with the egg whites 🥚. When adding to the rest of the batter, it’s important to gently fold it until just combined. The reason is to preserve the trapped air bubbles, not to deflate them, so the cake stays light and fluffy. After being baked, the cake has to cool until barely warm to the touch. This helps the crumbs to fully set, preventing the cake from becoming mushy or dense when pouring on the milk mixture 🥛. By being just warm, it will absorb the liquid smoothly without breaking apart. The top of the cake has to be poked all over the surface with a fork in order to absorb the liquid. It should take about 30 minutes ⏰, give or take. From here, it’s covered and chilled overnight, which gives the cake time to firm up with the dairy so it can hold its shape when we slice it. The next day, just before serving, the whipped cream is made 👩🍳👨🍳, evenly spread over the chilled cake, and served immediately. The leftovers must be stored right away in the fridge due to the high dairy content and whipped cream. If they’re left on the counter too long, harmful bacteria will start growing rapidly. I had the perfect wedding with the most amazing man I’ve ever met! Our day was perfect too! The menu 📜 was impeccable, and so was our Tres Leches Cake! If we had to redo everything again, as we both agreed, we wouldn’t change a thing… Bon Appétit! 🍽 Here are more scrumptious cake recipes for you to try… 😀 – Strawberry Shortcake – Pecan Caramel Cheesecake – German Plum Cake • Pflaumenkuchen – Black Forest Cake – Tropical Pineapple Upside Down Cake – Pumpkin Cheesecake with Biscoff Crust – Cranberry Orange Bundt Cake – Red Velvet Cake – Mango Cake and for even more dessert recipes 🍨🥧, click on this link… Recipe Category • Dessert
It doesn’t happen often here in Vancouver, but during the summertime, we do have the odd rainy day ☔. As David and I love barbecuing during this time of year, when it rains, we don’t use the grill as our patio is not covered. A few years ago, I found a delicious alternative that, even when it’s hot outside 🥵, allows us to keep the house cool. Besides using our indoor grill as an option, I came up with an amazing recipe that is quick to make. It’s my Asian Ginger Pork Noodles! This bowl is loaded with yumminess! With a vibrant flavor profile, this recipe requires very little cooking time, delivering a satisfying meal to enjoy during the hot summer months. It has fresh ingredients 🥒 along with cold noodles and an incredible meat mixture… a dish that pleases everyone! The first step is to take care of the noodles… As you know, vermicelli noodles are extremely thin and delicate. Most of the time, they don’t need to be boiled in a pot, especially when using them for salads 🥗 or, like today’s recipe, in bowls. Although the directions on the package say to boil, I learned from a few Asian friends that it’s not the way to do it. Often when boiled in a pot, they’ll turn mushy or sticky. Placing them in a large bowl and soaking them in hot water 💦 for 3 minutes gives you perfect results. You can pour on boiling water from the kettle or use the tap. A plate can be placed over to trap the heat, but I don’t think it’s necessary. After a few minutes, use a fork or chopstick 🥢 to separate the noodles by gently moving them around. Next, drain and rinse them under cold water, which is very important to do. Not only does it wash away any leftover starch and stop them from cooking further, but it also prevents them from sticking together. The noodles are left in the colander to cool while we look after the pork 🐖, which is the main component of this recipe. The meat is cooked with other ingredients, the sauce is poured over, and the mixture simmers until it thickens, about 3 minutes. It’s set aside to cool to room temperature… Once, a follower asked me why 🤔 most of the time sesame oil is added near the end. The particular flavor of this oil is delicate, and if added too soon, it will lose its lovely, nutty aroma and more likely turn bitter. Adding it later during cooking preserves its fragrance. Often, this oil acts as a rich finishing touch. As I mentioned above, making these Asian Ginger Pork Noodles can be quick. If you plan everything and your mise en place is ready, you can enjoy it within 30 minutes ⏰. Here’s how I do it when making this recipe… While the vermicelli noodles sit in the boiling water for 3 minutes, I make the sauce. Then I return to my noodles, and when they’re all separated, drained, and rinsed, I leave them there while I cook 👩🍳 the meat. When it’s done and set aside to cool, I julienne my veggies… 27 minutes, voilà! My choice of veggies is carrots 🥕, cucumbers, and green onions, but you can customize them to your liking. It’s also a great recipe to use up whatever leftover vegetables you have in your crisper. The other ingredient that I like to use is dry roasted peanuts, but feel free to use your favorites. This flavorful Asian Ginger Pork Noodles recipe is a fabulous dish to serve during the summer! It’s quick and easy to make, plus a delightful meal everyone will love! With fresh ingredients and a tasty meat mixture over cold noodles, this is a bowl 🍜 loaded with deliciousness! Bon Appétit! 🍽 Check out these other delicious pork recipes… 😀 – Easy Egg Rolls in a Bowl – Coffee Cocoa Pork Tenderloin – Smoked Oyster & Bacon Pizza – Instant Pot Pork Carnitas – Singapore Noodles – Polynesian Pork Ribs – Italian Meatball Sub – Glazed Pork Meatloaf – Spicy Sausage Penne all’Arrabbiata – Pork Chops with Spicy Peach Sauce and for even more Asian recipes 🥡, click on this link… Recipe Category • Asian Cuisine
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