Tomato and Peach Quinoa Salad

This is such a fresh and quick summer salad, full of sweet and salty flavour, pretty addictive!  The tomato and peach combo is a classic, and when paired with fresh herbs and a salty add in, it's just delicious.

Cook 1/2 cup quinoa in 1 cup chicken broth, bring to a boil and then a low simmer for about 15 min.
Once cooled add:

lots of halved cherry tomatoes
2 sweet ripe peaches cut in cubes (ripe nectarines work too)
1 small cucumber, cubed
several pitted and chopped kalamata olives

Add the zest of 1 lemon, a large amount of finely chopped basil and mint.  The mint is really essential in this salad, it just elevates all of the other flavours.

Make a sweet and tart vinaigrette.  I like to mix olive oil, alt and pepper with white wine and balsamic vinegar. With the lemon zest, this is a powerful burst of flavour and the quinoa just soaks it up.

If you like nuts, add some toasted almonds, pistachios or pine nuts.

This is a super BBQ side dish or a terrific lunch salad, another "taste of summer" dish to share...

Read More

Late Summer Roasted Tomato Soup

On a nice and hot late summer day, find some super ripe tomatoes to make this amazing comfort soup. Luckily, we have farmer's markets in our neck of the woods where we can find them aplenty.

Pre-heat your oven to 425 F degrees. In a dutch oven/creuset type pot, (stovetop to oven pot) combine the following:

• 6-8 super ripe tomatoes, quartered
• 1 small sweet onion or a couple of big shallots, or both, quartered
• a good swirl of olive oil
• a handful of fresh thyme leaves
• kosher salt and pepper
• 1 or 2 smashed cloves of garlic 
• 1 chopped Jalapeno pepper (optional)

Put your pot in the oven and let the tomatoes roast for at least 30 min, or until they seem roasted enough. Sometimes takes up to 45 or 50 minutes for the right appealing "smell".

Once cooked enough, pull the pot out and let the tomatoes cool down. Puree this concoction in a blender or with an immersion blender. I like to add tons of fresh parsley and basil when blending.  If you like a kick, add a fresh red chili pepper or two!

On the stovetop, warm soup if needed and add:

• 1 cup of milk, or the amount you like best to make a creamy soup consistency. You could also use Greek yogourt or cream

When serving, if you wish, add:

• 1/3 cup basil pesto or a big handful of fresh chopped basil, to swirl around
• shaved parmesan for serving, always yummy!!

This delicious soup just tastes of summer...and even better the next day!

Read More

Beast's Baked Mustard Crusted Cod

Inspired by my sister's delicious recipe, this is a 1-2-3 meal packed with flavour.  Cod is such a great fish, a clean palate for many interpretations.  This quick baked meal is moist and delicious, perfect with a side of basmati rice to go with the buttery "zumi".

Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees.

Prepare as many filets of fish as you would like, thicker filets are more moist

In a small bowl, combine:
1/2 pound of softened butter
a good dollop of dijon mustard, really to taste
fresh thyme
salt and pepper

To this, add breadcrumbs until you get a paste consistency. I like the panko crumbs best as they seem to get crispier in the oven.

Place the fish in a pyrex and smear the paste over each filet.  Cook the fish for about 15 minutes, and if needed, broil for just a minute or two to further brown the yummy mustard topping.

Serve right away so it doesn't get mushy!  Such a wonderful easy fish dish, will become a staple in your kitchen!

Read More