Anyway, the recipe says to use lean ground beef but I had left over ground turkey from turkey shepherd’s pie I made before. Here is how I made the sauce:

Recipe for approx 2-3 servings

200g Lean ground turkey

1/3 of a large white onion, chopped

1 garlic clove, minced

2 pickled jalapeño peppers, chopped

1/4 tsp cumin

1/8 tsp cinnamon

1 cup of canned tomatoes, chopped

1 tbsp tomato paste

2 tsp fresh cilantro, chopped

1 avocado, mashed

In a pot cook turkey meat and break it up and cook until it’s brown. Add the onions, jalapeño, and garlic, cook until soft. Next add the cumin and cinnamon, stirring constantly for about 30 seconds. Mix in the tomatoes and paste, bring to a boil and then lower heat and let it simmer for about 15 minutes. You can add salt and pepper but I didn’t add any. Remove from heat and throw in the cilantro and avocado until it’s all mixed in. Serve over cooked noodles.

The book says each serving is worth 5 points but I’m wondering if my version is worth less points because I used turkey instead of beef. But, because I used an avocado I probably brought up the points to 6 haha. No matter, it was very tasty.

The original plan for the family was to go to Shakespeare in the Park at High Park to see The Tempest and to have a picnic (this did not happen due to the rain). We began by disagreeing on what to make for dinner and it took us nearly two hours to agree on making vegetarian croissant sandwiches while we glanced out the window hoping the rain would stop. Even as we were leaving my apartment to go buy the required ingredients we were still struggling over our decision for dinner. Thankfully we were able to come to an agreement to make the sandwiches and a veggie dip.

For the croissant sandwiches, we caramelized two onions, about a cup and half of sliced mushrooms and one sliced zucchini. Once the caramelized veggies were done we began to arrange the sandwiches; swiss cheese, avocado and tomato slices and the caramelized veggies. We made a very simple veggie dip of yogurt and cucumber. It’s almost like tzatziki sauce except we only used strained yogurt and grated cucumber and did not add anything else to it. It was so simple and delicious.

All throughout the cooking and prepping, my sister and I got in each other’s way and we bickered about who would stir the vegetables and whether or not my way of using a Kitchenaid mixer was better than her way of mixing by hand.

“It takes me two hours to make the cake batter because I am very thorough and there are never any lumps in my batter,” she said with a smirk after I learned it would take us three hours to make a cake I could make in half the time.

“It takes you two hours to make a cake if you are not experienced in the art of cooking,” I retorted.

But it was all in good fun and the end result was a fantastic, moist, rich cake.

Cake without the hazelnut sauce.

Finished cake with hazelnut sauce and peach slices.

Delightful veggie sandwich.

This deliciously aromatic, fresh and comforting soup is a variation of a recipe from my Mexican cookbook. The original recipe only contains shredded chicken, avocado, chili pepper strips, scallions and broth. I wanted something a little heartier. Here’s what I did:

Chicken, Avocado, Potato and Mushroom Soup

Alternately, you can omit the ingredients or see the note with a * beside them to obtain the original version from The Mexican Cookbook.

Makes about 3 servings

4 chicken thighs, cooked and shredded * (Chicken breast, cooked and shredded)

1 avocado, cubed and tossed in lime juice to prevent discolouration

4 oz white mushrooms, coarsely chopped *

6 mini potatoes, cooked and sliced *

1/2 an onion, thinly sliced * (3-5 scallions, sliced)

3 cloves of garlic, finely chopped

1 pickled jalapeño pepper * (chipotle pepper, cut into thin strips)

2 tbsp fresh cilantro, chopped

4 cups water * (4 cups chicken stock)

Directions:

Place water and chicken thighs in a pot and cook over medium heat until chicken is done. Remove the chicken onto a plate and continue heating the water. This is the broth. Add the garlic, potatoes, mushrooms, onion and jalapeño pepper to the broth and cook until mushrooms have been reduced slightly but don’t let the onions get too soft (unless, of course you prefer soft onions). While that is cooking, shred the chicken.  Once the broth is ready, arrange the chicken and avocado and cilantro in the base of  soup bowls and pour the broth and vegetables over. Squeeze some lime juice for more flavour and wonderful aroma.

While that was cooking I skewered mushrooms and cubes of tofu I had marinated very briefly in Frank’s Redhot sauce and I broiled them for about ten minutes. I know now for future reference that I should marinate tofu overnight if I want the flavours to be fully absorbed.

Once the noodles were ready I mixed in the avocados and sautéed veggies along with more lime juice until all the noodles were well coated.

Result? It was SO good! As the book says, the buttery texture of the avocado complimented the pasta and the sautéed vegetables brought everything together nicely. Everyone really liked it and now my sister in Ottawa is excited to try this quick and easy dish.