Pita Bread Factory

Every so often you come across a great deal you must simply share with everyone you know. This was the case when a co-worker and friend told me of the Pita Bread Factory. Hidden away on the New Westminster/Burnaby border is this bread factory outlet store. How good are the deals?? Well have you ever seen a bag of approximately 12 pitas for $1 or two packages of the large flavoured tortillas for $1.50? I hadn't until one afternoon when on my lunch break a friend and I went to find out if it was worth the trek. I was happy to discover that it most definitely was and will make the trek again. Bagels, pita, tortilla's, naan bread and more for prices that fit a family budget! If you want to check it out 7070 14th Ave in Burnaby is where you will find these outrageous deals!

Salsa the way it was intented to be!

For the past 5 years I have suffered silently and loudly from an intolerance to tomatoes. Without going into details I can say it was not a pleasant experience if I accidentally ate something with tomatoes in it. This was a devastating blow to a salsa lover such as myself, and even worse I no longer made it for my friends and family. After many years of not trying to eat tomatoes I thought maybe things change??? There went nothing and my first bite of real pizza was devoured. I waited patiently and was pleasantly surprised to find that nothing happened. This could have been a fluke so I tried again. Before I knew it I was eating everything from lasagna to fresh salsa and loving it. So this is for all you tomato lovers out there, enjoy!

Tomatoe Salsa:

12 ripe Roma Tomatoes

1/2 Red Onion

3 fresh Jalapeno Peppers

2 Limes

1 Lemon

1 TBSP Olive Oil

1 Bunch of Cilantro

Sea Salt & Pepper

Chop tomatoes, onion, peppers, and cilantro. Add juice from limes and lemons. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

For Huevos Rancheros: put 1/2 cup salsa in a small frying pan and heat over med high heat. Once hot add 2 eggs and cover with a lid. Lower heat and let simmer until eggs are to desired consistency. Serve with warm corn tortillas.

For Avocado Salsa: Replace tomatoes with 4 large ripe avocados cubed finely and add 1/2 red bell pepper chopped finely. Combine gently and enjoy! (this one's for you coz)

Dinner with Friends

Gone are the days of partying until the sun comes up. Having children kind that wake up earlier than your alarm clock put a bit of a damper on those types of activities. This does not mean that we can't still have fun. Friday night was dinner out at a friends house for a lovely home cooked meal! What was on the menu? Roasted potatoes and carrots with panko crumbs and Parmesan cheese, spinach salad and chicken scallopini! Had I been able to resist the enticing aroma I may have taken a picture first then dug into my meal. Alas I have little willpower and was starving so a few bites were missing as you can see. Add a glass of Pinot Noir and it's a great way to spend the evening. For dessert, my contribution was a "homemade" ice cream cake that because I had worked all day was picked up at the local DQ. My friend however had the patience to make fresh snickerdoodles and white chocolate ginger biscotti. I even received a take home bag. Sorry no snickerdoodles left and just polishing off the last of the biscotti. Delish!

Breakie

During my latest trip to Costco with a shopping list of 2 items.... I left with about 12 extra items. One of them was the most fabulous granola! My new favorite breakfast for my work week is yogurt, fresh fruit or frozen berries topped with this very "meaty" granola. It's located in the bakery section and is full of almonds, walnuts, cranberries, and more. What a way to start the day! Let a large cup of coffee join in and you have a morning boost. Try it out, it gets my two thumbs up!

Smores

If you can believe this I had never tasted a smore until a weekend trip last year. What a shame, they are delicious! So how do you take something as yummy as a smore and make it even better? Easy, add cream cheese! My idea was for a Smore's cheesecake and a friendly gathering was the perfect opportunity to try it out. I started with a basic graham crust and topped it with a decadent chocolate cheesecake made with single origin Tanzanie 70% dark chocolate. What makes it a smore, that was my challenge. I went on a trip to my friendly and chaotic Walmart in search of a blow torch. To my surprise I found a pen shaped torch for only $10. To put the finishing touches I dusted the top of the cheesecake with cocoa powder and broke a Hershey's bar into individual pieces around the edge. Upon each piece of chocolate I placed an individual large marshmallow. The crown jewel, for this I brought out my handy little torch and torched the tops of each marshmallow to a golden brown. I will admit it was extremely rich but perfect for those days where nothing but pure indulgence will do!

Mmmmmm Steak!

For many years I was a vegetarian (sort of). I would not eat any meat or by-products however I would eat seafood, eggs and cheese. From that to commenting on last night's steak dinner has been a big change. I'm always a little unsure of cooking meat and am interested in new techniques and ideas. I purchased large rib eye grilling steaks from Costco and remembered that a friend mentioned doing steaks with a salt crust marinade. Why not try this out? I took the clean steaks and rubbed them with a great deal of rock salt and put them in my fridge for about 2 hours. I took the break to pick fresh thyme and oregano and clean and chop the fresh herbs. I cleaned the steaks of the excess salt and set them aside. I brushed the steaks with a bit of oil and then sprinkled the authentic Montreal steak spice from Schwartz's on both sides. I then took the steaks and pressed them into the fresh chopped herbs to coat them generously on both sides. The steaks were then passed to the grill for their final step. Depending on the size about 3-4 mins per side on high heat. Watch out for the flare ups and prepare to enjoy some very tender meat. The steaks were accompanied by baked potatoes with melted cheese, sour cream and chives, BBQ corn on the cob and beer and wine! What a dinner, anyone have room for dessert?

More than you bargain for!

Have you ever ordered take out and gotten a little extra something in your order. On Friday night I was not in the mood to cook and we decided to order take out from a local Chinese restaurant named Pelican. We ordered our seafood hot and sour soup, fried rice with dried scallop and prawn and mixed veggies. The soup was delightful and I am glad we got through that first. I was tasting the rice and veggies when I looked down at my plate. I am grateful that it was a bug I was normally fond of rather than completely disgusted by but a bug none the less. Needless to say this lady bug stopped my dinner right then and there. I'm sorry to anyone this could offend but ewwwww gross! I don't remember seeing sprinkled with ladybugs on the menu? I can say I will not be eating there again! Can you imagine what I may have already eaten????