Easy Buttery Garlic Bread Spread (Garlic Butter), Vegan or Not

My kiddies adore garlic bread!  I had to write this recipe down for them, as I know that they will want to make it just "like mom's".  

Garlic toast hot dog buns 

At my local Canadian grocery store, a loaf of garlic bread (French bread spread with garlic buttery spread) costs $4.  Their garlic spread has a very long (and unnatural) ingredient list.    

A loaf of plain French bread costs $2.  I make my own garlic bread at a fraction of the cost.  No French bread?  I toasted hot dog and hamburger buns (leftover from Baby's birthday party) with this garlic spread and my family loved it!

My kiddies loved this so much, they even had it spread on their morning toast!  

With only 3 simple ingredients, we were able to enjoy "restaurant-style" garlic bread at a fraction of the cost.  I always have dried parsley and garlic powder in my collection of spices.  

With soft non-hydrogenated margarine (I used Becel vegan) or softened butter, this mixes up super fast!  The dried parsley makes the garlic spread look like the ones in the restaurants.  

A great way to use up leftover hot dog buns!  Ready to be toasted in the oven.  

Easy Buttery Garlic Bread Spread (Garlic Butter), Vegan or Not

makes 1/2 cup garlic butter

1/2 cup softened butter or vegan non-hydrogenated margarine (I used Becel vegan)
1 1/2 Tbsp garlic powder* (I tone it down to 1 Tbsp)
1 Tbsp dried parsley
optional:  your favourite shredded cheese

Mix softened butter or margarine, garlic powder and dried parsley together in a bowl.

Spread on your favourite bread (and add shredded cheese, if desired) and bake in hot 375F oven for about 3 minutes or broil until golden brown.  

*I think grated or finely minced fresh garlic would be great.  Just add to taste.  

- Adapted from Allrecipes.com: Great Garlic Bread

Leftover hamburger buns?  Make garlic toast hamburger buns!

Enjoy!

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Curried Quinoa with Spinach and Goji Berries - Gluten-free and Vegan

Curried quinoa with spinach and goji berries were a great side dish for lunch yesterday.  I cooked up some fluffy quinoa and flavoured it with grated fresh ginger (I grated a slice of frozen ginger and it turned out great), turmeric powder, coconut oil, curry powder, cumin, coriander and no-salt seasoning (e.g. Mrs. Dash).  The dish needed a bit of colour, so I added some thawed frozen chopped spinach and soaked goji berries. I was inspired by a simple red lentil dahl recipe from the book Digestive Wellness.  Instead of lentils, I used quinoa.  

I threw this together at lunchtime.  I like my flavours mild, but if you like spicier or more stronger flavours, please feel free to double or triple the amounts of spices and seasonings.  I am watching my sodium, so I used no-salt seasoning (e.g. Mrs. Dash) instead of salt.   

If the quinoa mixture is too dry, you can add a little extra water or liquid from the soaked goji berries.  I think a little vegetable broth, orange or apple juice would be nice too.  

Curried Quinoa with Spinach and Goji Berries - Gluten-free and Vegan
2 servings

1/2 cup rinsed quinoa + 1 cup water (or 2 cups cooked quinoa)

2 tsp coconut oil

1/4 tsp turmeric powder

1/2 tsp grated fresh ginger (I grated frozen ginger)

1/4 tsp ground cumin

1/4 tsp ground coriander

1/8 tsp curry powder

1/8 tsp no-salt seasoning (or salt and pepper to taste)

1/4 cup thawed frozen chopped spinach, drained
2 Tbsp soaked goji berries*
optional:  1-2 Tbsp water or liquid from soaked goji berries, if quinoa mixture is too dry

*More ideas for add-ins:

- raisins, chopped apples, chopped mango, diced bell pepper, green onions, fresh spinach, parsley, cilantro, etc.  

Cook quinoa according to the package (In a medium pot, bring 1/2 cup rinsed quinoa + 1 cup water to  a boil and simmer for 15 min, turn off heat and let stand for 5 min).  

When the quinoa is cooked, mix in the rest of the ingredients.  Enjoy!

- Adapted from Digestive Wellness Book:  Melody's Dahl

What I ate for lunch:  3 oz chicken breast topped with tomato/spinach/coconut milk sauce, curried quinoa, a large green salad and sauteed sugar snap peas.  

Enjoy!

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BBQ Pork Fried Rice

I have not had a full night's sleep in the last three weeks!  With three kids, there's always someone waking us up for a myriad of reasons... middle child had a nosebleed at 2am the night before, Baby had a nosebleed last night at 2am... Baby realized that she was able to open her bedroom door at 2am and come to our bedroom 3-4 nights in a row last week... 

Today, it finally caught up with me...  When McDreamy came home from work, I told him that undead zombies have more energy than me!  Looking at the fridge, I only had enough energy to whip something out of leftovers *in zombie mode*:  BBQ Pork Fried Rice.

  
My father taught me this recipe and it is genius how a recipe that uses good, basic ingredients can make something so incredibly delicious.  Thank goodness he taught me this recipe or else it would be forever lost.  

Lately, I have been having an atrocious time trying to find recipes for certain honest, home-cooked Cantonese dishes.  Instead, I have found 5 completely different versions of the same recipe.  Asking friends and family members was also entertaining:  I got very vague amounts for ingredients and equally perplexing instructions!  OR the classic response "Go buy it from T&T!".  Ummm.... I live 6.5 hours away from the nearest T&T Asian Supermarket and I really do want to make these classic dishes from scratch.

Because of this frustrating experience, I vow to document my family recipes and hand it down to further generations. Now the irony:  I normally *guestimate* this recipe in true Chinese cooking fashion because this dish is so forgiving.

I am not usually so organized but this recipe is pretty easy to get the stuff together in no time:  leftover rice, beaten eggs, frozen veggies, diced cooked meat. 

  
Preheat wok or large 6L/6qt pot to medium-high heat and add canola oil.  Add just enough oil to cover the bottom of the pan. The bottom of my wok is 7-inches, so I used about 1 Tbsp oil.  For my 6L/6qt pot, about 1-2 Tbsp.  This is a rough estimate, as you need just enough to cover the bottom so the beaten eggs don't stick to the pan.

Boy, I am so lucky to get lovely farm fresh eggs!  These eggs were from a friend that lives just 5 minutes away. 

Add the beaten eggs to the pan and cook 1-2 minutes.  It will spread out and look like you are making an omelette.  

When the eggs are half-cooked, dump the cold (and hardened) day-old rice into the undercooked eggs.  I used about 8 cups of cooked rice.  With a spoon or spatula, mix the rice and eggs up occasionally.  The eggs will break up and distribute into the rice evenly.  The rice will soften as well.    

My tip:  use cold, day-old rice.  If the rice is too freshly cooked, then the fried rice will get mushy and break up.  A lot of Asian food is based on texture, so unless you like mushy fried rice, day-old rice straight from the fridge is best.  

I have used leftover white rice, brown rice and a mixture of both.  It's all good... use what you like.

Let the rice and egg mixture cook for another 2-3 minutes.  Notice how the cooked egg is nice and golden and already in little pieces?  Beautiful!  

Now you can add the thawed and precooked (microwaved) peas and stirfry for another 2-3 minutes.  I noticed that my father and authentic Chinese restaurants used only green peas.  Our local Chinese/Western restaurant used mixed frozen vegetables and I thought it was a great way to get those extra veggies into the kids. The beauty is that I don't have to wash, peel and cut any veggies! 

Since most of the ingredients are already cooked, it is just a matter of warming them up in the wok.  Next goes 2 cups of BBQ pork into the mixture.  My father was so creative in his fried rice. His ability to adapt it to different kinds of meat shaped how I change other recipes to my needs.  He has made different versions with deli black forest ham, diced hot dogs, grocery store rotisserie chicken, BBQ pork, spam...well, whatever we had in the house. 

The dish is almost finished.  Now it's time to season it.  I grew up using Lee Kum Kee's Premium Oyster Sauce Brand.  I'm sure there are other brands but my family has always stuck to this one and I know that my dishes are going to taste like "Dad's".  There is also a vegetarian stir-fry sauce and I think Lee Kum Kee had originally labelled it as vegetarian mushroom oyster sauce many years back. 

What I normally do is add 1 Tbsp oyster sauce at a time.  2 Tbsp max. as there is a strong oyster flavour nuance.  With the right amount, it gives the dish umami, or that "je ne sais quoi" pleasant savory flavour that one can't exactly pinpoint.  Then add salt in 1/4 tsp increments until it tastes just right. I usually add about 1/2 tsp kosher salt and it is flavourful and salty enough.  Some people are watching their salt intake, so seasoning is very subjective.  Some may need more or less. *Disclaimer - so that people won't say this dish is too salty or too bland!*

Garnish with finely chopped green onions (toss it about) and serve.   I usually omit this for the children, but the green onions add a bit of freshness to the dish. 

Mmmmm... Almost like Dad's!  

 OK, here's another shot since it looks yummy...   

Woody's BBQ Pork Fried Rice

1-2 Tbsp canola oil (I use 1 Tbsp oil for my 7-inch bottomed wok)
8-10 cups cold, cooked rice (white, brown or both, preferably from the night before)
2 large eggs, beaten
2 cups frozen peas, thawed, cooked (I used mixed frozen vegetables, thawed in microwave)
2 cups diced BBQ pork or char siu, or any kinds of cooked meat or extra-firm tofu. 
2 Tbsp oyster sauce
1/2 tsp kosher salt, or to taste
1 stalk green onion, finely chopped (optional garnish)

Heat oil in wok or large 6L/6qt pot under medium-high heat.  Use barely enough oil (1-2 Tbsp) to cover the bottom of the pan so the eggs will not stick.  

Add the beaten eggs to the hot oil and cook 1-2 minutes. When the eggs are half cooked, dump the cold rice into the eggs and mix well with spatula or large spoon for 2-3 minutes.  During this time, the eggs will quickly cook and distribute evenly.  

Then add the precooked vegetables and cook for 2-3 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Mix the diced cooked meat or tofu into the rice and cook for another 2-3 minutes.  Season with oyster sauce and salt, accordingly to your taste.  Garnish with finely diced green onion, if desired and serve.  

Dinner is served!  Some kiddies (like mine) don't like their food touching, so I bought these divided Corelle dishes.  I got them at our local hardware store, but I've seen them at Walmart.  It's a huge dinner sized plate. Instead of fighting their quirks, I work around it. At least the kids know that their main food groups are covered.  

My children's dinner:  sliced BBQ pork tenderloin, Greek salad and BBQ pork fried rice. My 7 year-old had 2 helpings of Greek salad and 3 helpings of rice! 

Enjoy!

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