The Married Truth » Cooking

Youth in a Bottle?

Nadia Lawand — Tue, 06 Jul 2010 03:27:00 +0000

My hubby Jason is a huge fan of Olive Oil! He uses it in all of his cooking and now I use it in so many more things as well! I was trying to find out what other things Olive Oil was good for and came accross this Dr.Oz video. One of the most important points he makes is that by having olive oil you are reducing your mortality rate by 50%! Wow pretty impressive! Check out the video and start using olive oil in your cooking…hair..and maybe even to shave??

~Nadia

For the Guys – Just Cook!!

Kevin Peter — Wed, 19 May 2010 15:11:00 +0000

Hey guys, I was trying to think of a recipe to put on here and instead I wanted to tell my story on how I got into cooking, hopefully inspiring some of the men out there to get in the kitchen or on the BBQ and cook!

I had always been the guy on the grill, whenever we had a BBQ, it was my turn to cook but I was cooking the same old stuff…Finally it came to a point that I had to start preparing some of the dinners. Man, that’s when the fear kicked in! I started looking at cookbooks and searching for recipes online and I really wasn’t getting inspired at all. I needed to change my focus, I decided to turn on FoodNetwork Canada.

To my surprise I found a couple of shows that I started to watch each day. Because I was used to the BBQ I started to watch shows targeted to BBQ cooking. So slowly I expanded my BBQ knowledge and techniques. In the summer it’s easy to grill anything everyday. Ok, so i was safe for a couple of months….but then winter rolled around…what to do now? I had never really used the stove or the oven for anything else that heating up leftovers. I decided to try some traditional Greek, Italian and Lebanese dishes, thinking that they would be closer to my heart and that I would have more of an interest in making them. Well it worked. I became very comfortable with indoor cooking. Again always with some help from the FoodNetwork. The shows on there are fantastic and really help you feel comfortable cooking. Guys need to cook too! The kitchen is our friend and not just for getting another beer.

I hope you guys out there turn on the foodnetwork and try out a couple of simple dishes. Cooking now has become an important part of my life and what is exciting is when we do have poeple coming over for a meal, they are excited to see what we have planned. I hope this has helped a few and if you have any comments on how you got into cooking please let us know!

Kevin P.

Oregano! A cooking must!

Kevin Peter — Sun, 25 Apr 2010 20:54:00 +0000

Oregano is the one herb that I always have. This herb works so well in so many different situations. Oregano’s origin is from the Mediterranean and is used in many Greek, Italian and Spanish dishes. Oregano is a must in many Greek dishes, be it meat, fish or vegetables, oregano is perfect for a simple fast marinade.

The herb can be used either fresh or dried but beware the fresh herb, the taste is very strong! I have had my Greek Oregano plant for about 3 years. It’s a perennial herb which means it can survive our winters. Throughout history oregano has for the treatment of colds, influenza, fevers, fungal infections, indigestion, stomach upsets, enteric parasites, and painful menstruation.

A quick simple marinate for meat would be oregano, olive oil, salt, pepper…mix together in a small bowl and marinate…I suggest you pick some up, it’s cheap and adds a lot of flavor!

Weekly Dinner Planner

Kevin Peter — Tue, 20 Apr 2010 21:48:00 +0000

Planning your dinner for the week is one action that will save both time, stress and help eliminate that “What’s for dinner” question! There are many things to consider when planning your meals for the week.

Things to consider when planning your meals:

Nights where someone is working late
Going out to the parents, friends or restaurant for dinner
Wild Card Night (one night during the week you order out)
Nights when you have time to cook and those you don’t

What we do is each Sunday night we plan our meals for the week. We check what we have in the fridge and freezer and work with that. This way if there is a special meal you want to make you can see right away if you need to head to the grocery store. Most important is having your meal plan accessible. There are many tools you can use to record your meal plan, I find that Google Calendar is the best because you can access it from home or work.

Good luck and Happy Cookin!

When To Say NO…

Nadia Lawand — Fri, 09 Apr 2010 12:00:00 +0000

Do you have parents, friends, family that always gives you fabulous leftovers? My hubby and I are so lucky to have great family that are always making lots of food and sending us leftovers. We constantly have food, sometimes too much.

Jason and I love cooking and eating together but sometimes it feels like we shouldn’t cook because we would be wasting food since we have so much in the fridge already.

What do you do? Graciously take the yummy leftovers and be thankful or do you say no thank you and get cooking by yourself? Why is cooking for yourself even important? I mean, I realize that at some point we might not be so lucky to have all these great leftovers and delights in our fridge, so does it make us lazy to just accept them and enjoy them while we can?

Greek Ribs

Kevin Peter — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 20:30:00 +0000

Yasas! While in Florida this past January, I went to this Greek Restaurant called Greek Islands Taverna. I noticed something on the menu that I had never seen before, Greek Ribs. I asked my father if they were any good. He told me that they were the biggest thing down here. I observed how they prepared them and it seemed very easy. So when we came back I tried to make them and they were a big hit here at home. So here’s the simple recipe for Greek Ribs!

How to make “Greek Ribs” for 2:

One rack of Pork back ribs thawed

Oregano

Lemon or Lemon Juice

Salt

Olive Oil

Because the recipe requires some marinating time, this would be a good recipe for the weekend. Cut the ribs and place them in a baking dish, usually a Corningware dish if you have. With the ribs mix Olive oil, Oregano and some salt. Toss the ribs and place in the fridge for about 2-3 hrs to marinate. Set the oven to 350 and place the ribs in the oven. Cook for about 1 hour. Once the ribs are ready take them out, drizzle some olive oil and lemon juice on top and serve. I know this is a long process but the end result is amazing. Happy Cookin!

Kraft Dinner: A quick meal alternative? Part 2

Nadia Lawand — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 16:55:00 +0000

Last night I took the plunge and made Kraft Dinner for the very first time…. Check it out and tell me what you think of my Kraft dinner cooking skills.

Simple Fast Stir-Fry

Kevin Peter — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 12:47:00 +0000

We’ve all been there. Time to prepare supper, you open the fridge and you have very few ingredients to cook with….. Here is a simple, healthy, easy meal that looks as good as it tastes.

How to make “Simple Fast Stir-fry” for 2:

1 Red Pepper

1 Onion

1 Broccoli

Pre cooked and cut chicken – you can pick this up at Costco or any other grocery store. Great to have in the freezer!

Package of Asian noodles and Sauce – you can pick this up at any grocery store

Preparation: Cut the red pepper and onion into thin strips. Cut the broccoli into 2″ pieces. Pour some canola oil in the Wok or large frying pan and heat at Med Heat on the stove. Add the veggies to the Wok and cook until the veggies are somewhat tender, at this point add the pre-cooked chiken and continue cooking until the veggies are fully cooked. On the side prepare the noodles as per the instruction on the noddle package. Once the noodles are done, mix with veggies/chicken in a large bowl. Add the stir-fry sauce, stir everything together and enjoy. Happy Cookin!

What’s for dinner?

Kevin Peter — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 23:47:00 +0000

“What’s for dinner?”, a question we have all come face to face with and have tried to avoid or just can’t answer. The end result is ordering out, eating out or preparing frozen meals. In my experience, this question can cause stress especially for those who can’t cook. My name is Kevin and I am here to help you answer the “What’s for dinner?” question. I will be discussing cooking on a budget, simple meals, setting up a weekly meal plan, entertainment food menus and how to pick that perfect wine even if you know nothing about wine. So stay tuned and happy cookin!