Sloppy Joes

During a recent move, I had neglected to remember my spices; the food I've been cooking has taken on a somewhat rudimentary flavouring scheme. That is, everything I'm eating is flavoured with salt, pepper, and some combination of ketchup and mustard. Still, I have to admit that these satisfy all of my deepest comfort food needs.
Start by sauteeing

2 tbsp butter
1 medium onion, finely chopped

at a very low temperature until the onion is translucent and sweet, about 10 minutes. Then add

1 pound lean ground beef

and fry until the meat is cooked through. Then add

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon prepared yellow mustard
3/4 cup ketchup
3 teaspoons brown sugar
salt to taste
ground black pepper to taste

Serve the whole mess on a white but or as a sandwich between a couple of slices of white bread.

Crispy Ginger Fried Pork

First, marinate

1 lb pork loin sliced into fine strips

in a mixture of

1 tbsp

orange juice

3 tbsp finely minced ginger root

2 tbsp soy sauce (any darkness you prefer)

1/2 tsp salt

in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes, and up to 12 hours. 20 minutes before the pork is finished marinating, prepare white rice. 10 minutes before the pork is finished marinating, begin to heat

3/4 C peanut oil

to a medium-high heat (as high as you can go without the oil smoking at all). Prepare the batter in a separate bowl:

1/2 C corn starch

1/4 C flour

2 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp salt

3-7 tbsp water (I failed to measure the water properly: start with a little, and thin it out one tbsp at a time until it is runny enough to coat the pork without clotting)

Grab your first pair of chopsticks and take individual strips of pork, run them through the batter, and carefully extrude them into the hot oil in the wok. Use a metal utensil (large metal spoon, for example) to loosen all of the pork strips from the bottom of the wok after a minute in the oil. After a short time, they should begin to float. If the strips stick together, increase the heat of the oil. If any smoke begins to appear, lower the heat of the oil. Cook the pork until the crust is a medium to dark golden brown colour.

Dad's Pancakes

These are not good for you, but they are delicious.

Mix together

2 C flour

1/2 C white sugar

2 tsp (10 ml) baking powder

1 tsp (5 ml) salt

in a big mixing bowl. Then beat

2 eggs

in a separate bowl and add

1 3/4 C milk

to the beaten eggs. Combine everything in the big mixing bowl. Heat an 8'' pan to medium heat with

3-5 tbsp vegetable oil

You want the pan hot enough to cook the pancakes but not so hot that the pancakes burn after a few minutes. Drop three 1/4 cup spoonfuls of the mixture into the pan. After a few minutes (when bubbles begin to form on the tops of the pancakes) flip the pancakes and cook for another minute. Serve immediately with lots of butter and syrup. I also love to put berries and vanilla yogurt on top :)

Sauce for Tacos or Enchiladas

2 tbsp vegetable oil
2 tbsp flour
2 tbsp chili powder
1/2 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper, or to taste
2 cups water
1 8 ounce can tomato paste
1 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp salt

Cook the oil, flour, and chili powder in a saucepan on medium heat for 2-5 minutes. Then add the rest of the ingredients and cook for 20 minutes more. Blend with taco beef if making tacos, seasoning to taste.

Iced Tea

This stuff is amazing, sweetened or not. A classic treat. Start by making

2 Litres of cold tea (~4 teabags)

Once the tea is sufficiently cool, squeeze in the unstrained juice of

1 lemon

And, if you've got teeth as sweet as mine, supplement with

1/2 c honey

Serve in tall glasses with ice. Yum.

Honey-Tomato Bruschetta with Mascarpone

Passed on from a friend. This recipe gains immensely from her substitution of mascarpone cheese for the ricotta.

2 pints cherry or grape tomatoes, halved lengthwise
1 1/2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons clover honey
2 teaspoons thyme leaves
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
12 baguette slices, cut 1/2 inch thick on the bias
1 cup fresh ricotta (8 ounces)
1 tablespoon buckwheat or chestnut honey
6 basil leaves, thinly sliced or torn

Preheat the oven to 300°. Line a large rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. In a large bowl, toss the tomatoes with the olive oil, honey, thyme leaves, salt and pepper. Scrape the tomatoes onto the prepared baking sheet and turn them cut side up. Bake the tomatoes for about 1 hour and 25 minutes, until they begin to shrivel and brown. Let cool.
Preheat the broiler. Spread out the baguette slices on a baking sheet. Broil for about 30 seconds on each side, until the edges are golden brown.
Spread the ricotta over the baguette slices and top with the slow-roasted tomatoes. Lightly drizzle the tomatoes with the buckwheat honey, sprinkle with the sliced basil and serve with additional buckwheat honey on the side.

Carrot and Sweet Potato Casserole

13'' x 9'' (8-10 servings)

5 large sweet potatoes (or 2 1/2 lbs)
12 carrots (2 lbs)
3/4 c orange juice
2 tbsp liquid honey
2 tbsp butter
2 tsp cinnamon
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp salt

Topping:
1 1/2 c fresh bread crumbs
1/2 c chopped pecans (or walnuts)
1/3 c butter, melted
1 tbsp chopped fresh parsley

Peel, cut potatoes and carrots into larg chunks, boil in large pot of water until very tender. Drain the vegetables, purree in a food processor. Add orange juice, honey, butter, cinnamon, garlic, salt and blend all ingredients. Pour into greased 13x9 pan.

Preheat oven to 350F. Combine topping ingredients and sprinkle over casserole. Cover with foil and bake at 350 for 20 minutes, then uncover and bake for 30 minutes or until heated through.