If you want juicier, tender, falling off the bone pork back ribs, the slow cooker is the way to go.  Such a simple recipe to put together in the slow cooker, add some lovely side dishes and you have an easy, tasty dinner.

1 rack of pork back ribs, remove underside membrane

1/2 cup water

2 tblsp. extra virgin olive oil

1 bay leaf

12 peppercorns

paprika, Montreal steak spice

BBQ sauce of your choice

Once the membrane is removed from the underside of the ribs, cut ribs into 4 sections.  Liberally sprinkle paprika and Montreal steak spice through out the ribs, rubbing into the meat.  Refrigerate 2 hours.

To the crock pot, spread evenly the EVOO.  Add 1/2 cup of water, bay leaf, and peppercorns.  Add the ribs, and slather on your favourite BBQ sauce.

Lid on and cook on low 7-8 hours, serve with extra BBQ sauce and any side dishes.

 

If you love the flavor of chipotle this dish is for you.  We love the flavor, and while it definitely had a good bite to it, the flavors were wonderful.

We used an air fryer for the chicken but keep in mind a regular oven will need extra cooking time.

Spice blend:

1 tsp. chipotle chili powder

1 tsp. ground cumin

1 1/2 tsp. dry rubbed oregano

1/2 tsp. smoked paprika

1/2 tsp. salt

Combine the seasonings in a small dish.  Measure 1 1/4 tsp. to put aside for the rice dish.

4 skin on bone in chicken thighs

2 tblsp. Extra virgin olive oil

1 cup basmati rice, well rinsed

2 cups chicken stock

1 tomato, diced

1/4 cup diced red/green pepper

1/4 cup diced red onion

2 garlic cloves, minced

3/4 cup canned black beans, well rinsed

big handful of chopped cilantro

sliced limes

Remove the chicken from the fridge, 40 minutes prior to cooking.  Pat the chicken dry with paper towel, and cut a few slices into the chicken thighs - not too deep.

Sprinkle on the seasoning blend and rub into the chicken well.

Preheat the air fryer for 5 minutes at 375.  Bake the chicken for 25-30 minutes or until a temperature of 165 degrees is reached.

While the chicken is cooking, heat up a pan on low medium heat with the EVOO.  Add in the tomato, peppers, onion, and garlic, sauteing about 5 minutes.  Sprinkle in the 1 1/4 tsp. spice blend and add the rice - sauteing another 3 minutes.  Pour in the chicken stock, stirring, turn to minimum heat once it has reached a boil.  Lid on and cook 20 minutes.  At the 15 minute mark, add in the black beans, stirring to combine, lid on to finish cooking.  Once done add in a handful of chopped cilantro throughout the dish.

Serve with the roasted chicken, squeezing lime juice throughout the rice and on the chicken.

 

This is lovely comfort food for a mid week dinner.  You can't go wrong with pork chops in the air fryer and the breaded seasoning would work nicely with chicken as well.

A note about the gluten free bread crumbs.  I make my own, saving up crusts and smaller pieces of gluten free bread in the freezer.  When I have a bag full, I thaw, and blitz them in the food processor to use for various dishes.  These bread crumbs are then put back into the freezer - it does not affect the flavor or texture what so ever.

With this dish, I wanted a finer bread crumb coating.  So I took out the required amount, thawed the crumbs and blitzed them in a small blender with the herbs/spices to create a finer crumb.

The amounts here will easily cover 4 pork chops. (we use bone in loin chops)

2/3 cup gluten free bread crumbs

1 tsp. fresh lemon thyme

1 1/2 tsp. dried oregano

1/2 tsp. paprika

1/2 tsp. garlic powder

salt and fresh cracked pepper to taste

1/4 cup Parmesan cheese - add after the bread crumbs and seasoning have been blitzed to a finer crumb.

Blitz up the bread crumbs and seasonings in a blender to create a fine crumb.  Pour onto a plate and add 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, mixing with a fork.

Preheat the air fry for 5 minutes at 400 degrees.  Pat dry the pork chops and add to the plate of seasoned crumbs, pressing the chops firmly to coat both sides evenly.

Depending on the size of the pork chops they will need 15-18 minutes to cook - until they reach 145 degrees using an instant read thermometer.

Serve with any side dishes.

 

With the summer bounty at our farmers market, plus a rainy grey day, soup was on the table for lunch today!

2 pints of mixed heritage cherry tomatoes, sliced and quartered if on the bigger side

a good splash of Extra Virgin Olive Oil

a good splash of White Balsamic vinegar

1/4 cup sliced red/green pepper

1/4 of a red onion, sliced

season with salt and pepper

Add to a pan and roast at 400 degrees in an air roaster oven for 30 minutes.

While roasting prep the other vegetables:

1 cup mixed green and yellow beans, cut to 1 inch pieces

3/4 cup chopped yellow zucchini squash - 1/4 inch thick pieces

3 small/medium sized swiss chard, stems chopped, and slice the greens into ribbons

big handful of chopped basil

4 cups chicken stock - homemade or store bought

Add the vegetables to a pot and lightly steam until tender.

When the roasted tomatoes and peppers are done, add 2 cups of the chicken stock to a food processor then the roasted veggies and blend until smooth. OR Add in the 2 cups of chicken stock to a dutch oven then the roasted veggies and blend with a stick blender until smooth. Pour in blended veggies and remaining 2 cups of chicken stock to the pot and add in the drained, lightly steamed vegetables, a big handful of chopped basil, season with salt and pepper, and turn on low to heat bringing to a light simmer.

Serve with fresh bread of choice or grilled cheese.

This is an easy, flavorful compound butter that works beautifully with any fresh fish.  If you can not get Lemon Thyme, regular Thyme is lovely too.  Here we used a fresh Sockeye Salmon Filet.

Finely chop:  Lemon Thyme, Parsley, Chives to equal 2 Tablespoons

 

2 Tblsp. fresh chopped herbs: lemon thyme, chives, parsley

Add the zest of 1/2 a fresh lemon

3 Tblsp. butter - room temperature

salt and fresh cracked pepper

fresh squeezed lemon juice

salmon filet - ours was a fresh sockeye about 3/4 lb.

Mix all the herbs, butter, lemon zest together with a fork, then place a piece of aluminum foil onto the baking tray.  Rinse the salmon filet in cold water and pat dry with a paper towel, laying on the aluminum foil lined baking tray.  Evenly spread the compound butter on the salmon, then add a squeeze of fresh lemon juice from a lemon wedge quarter, season the salmon with salt and pepper.

Here we used the Ninja Foodie XL Pro Air Oven which is an Air Fryer, Roaster, Toaster, Reheat and Dehydrator Oven.

We set the temperature to 400 degrees on Air roast - if using your oven set the temperature to the same temperature to preheat.  With the Ninja this size of salmon took 13 minutes to cook on a baking tray set in the 2nd level - middle of the oven.

Depending on the size of your salmon, double check and use a thermometer to reach 140 degrees internal cook time.  Let rest 5 minutes once removed from the oven.

Serve along any side dish and enjoy.

Wow, this recipe totally exceeded my expectations.  That said let me give a huge shout out to Cathy, of Noble Pig.  While I did follow some of her methods, recommendations, I did make some changes, but for her lovely recipe please check here.  Such a delicious recipe, especially when you have hot weather, and do not want to add extra heat to your kitchen/home!  This is a recipe I will make time and time again, and given that it is made in a slow cooker - even better.  The recipe here is based on the ingredients I had on hand, plus so easy to make gluten free - but, be sure to use only Gluten Free Minute Rice - they do have flavoured mixes that may not be gluten free.

A note about heat - we are total wimps when it comes to heat lol.  That said there was a bit of a bite to this recipe - but we loved it - perfect heat for us.  You could definitely add chopped jalapeno chilies if you wanted more heat.

Also, I love cilantro and use it heavy handedly, if cilantro is not your friend, omit or add sparingly.

1 lb. skinless, boneless chicken breasts

2 Tblsp. Extra virgin olive oil

3/4 cup roughly chopped red onion

1 cup mild salsa

398 ml. can of rinsed black bean

248 ml. can of Mild Rotel Tomatoes and Chili's

2 cups vegetable broth

1/2 cup frozen corn

1/2 of a small red pepper sliced into strips

1/2 of a small green pepper sliced into strips

1/2 tsp. chili powder, 1 tsp: smoked paprika, oregano, garlic powder, cumin, salt

1 cup Whole grain Gluten Free Minute rice - rinse well

handful of fresh chopped cilantro

grated sharp cheddar cheese

Now, before getting into the recipe - I think? this is a 4-5 quart slow cooker? - So sorry I do not know for sure.

Turn the slow cooker to low and add in the Evoo - spreading with plastic wrap to ensure sides and bottom are covered well.  In a bowl combine:  Spices, onion, salsa, rotel, black beans, corn, vegetable broth, mix until well combined.  Pat the chicken breasts dry and add them to the slow cooker, then pour in the bowl of mixed ingredients over top, lid on, cook on low for 4.5 hrs.

Remove the chicken breast to a plate, keeping a lid on the slow cooker.  Shred apart the chicken breasts, (I used 2 forks) return to the slow cooker, then add in the rinsed minute whole grain rice and sliced peppers stirring well.

Lid on and continue to slow cook for another 1 hr.  Add in a huge handful of chopped cilantro, stir well and serve with grated cheddar cheese and more cilantro for garnish.  Enjoy everyone - we loved it, thank you Cathy such a lovely recipe!

 

 

 

With the number of chili recipes on this blog, I realized I never seem to make chili the same way each time.  Guess I love playing with flavors, textures of food, lol, and chili offers a perfect opportunity to do just that.  This chili was simple to put together, yet there is definite complex flavors going on.  In this recipe you can certainly play around with different peppers depending on the heat you like.  We always do mild, but this chili offers a nice "smokey" flavor with the extra cilantro added.

1 Tblsp. Extra Virgin Olive Oil

1 lb. ground beef (I like to mix my ground beef - 1/2 lb. lean, 1/2 lbs. extra lean)

1 medium onion chopped

2 large garlic cloves, minced

1 celery stalk with leaves, chopped

1/4 of a red pepper, diced

1/2 of a green pepper, diced

1 small can, 5.5 oz. of tomato paste, plus 1 can of water

1 can tomatoes and green chilis like Rotel

salt to taste, 1 Tblsp. chili powder, 1/2 tsp. smoked paprika, 1 tsp. garlic powder, 1 1/2 tsp. cumin, 1 tsp. dried rubbed oregano

one 14 oz. can of black beans, drained and rinsed

huge handful of chopped fresh cilantro

grated cheddar cheese

tortilla chips, on the side

Heat up a dutch oven on low medium heat with the EVOO.  Add in the onion, garlic, peppers, celery saute for 5 minutes.  Then add in the ground beef, breaking up with a spoon to brown well - about another 5-6 minutes.  Sprinkle in the seasonings, then pour in the can of tomatoes with green chili, tomato paste with water, stirring well to combine.

Add the drained/rinsed black beans, and fresh cilantro.  Lid on, turn down to a low simmer, cooking for for 1 hour, stirring occasionally.  Check for seasons and adjust if necessary, serve topped with cheddar cheese, and tortilla chips on the side.

This stew was full of flavor, marrying chicken, smoked sausage and spices, served over a bed of rice - great comfort food that will be even better the next day.

4 skin on bone in chicken thighs

4 smoked chicken sausages - any smoked sausage will work nicely

2 Tblsp. EVOO

1/4 green pepper, 1/4 red pepper, chopped

1 large shallot sliced

1 celery stalk with leaves diced

1 large minced garlic clove

1 big tsp. thyme, 1 large bay leaf, 1 tsp. dried parsley, 1 tsp. garlic powder, salt and pepper to taste

1 Tblsp. potato starch

28 oz. can whole tomatoes (chop tomatoes in a bowl into small pieces) and add in the Worcestershire sauce stirring to combine

2 cups chicken stock

1 Tblsp. Gluten Free Worcestershire sauce

1/2 cup fresh green beans, cut into 1 inch pieces

Heat up a dutch oven on medium heat with the EVOO.  Season the chicken thighs with salt, pepper, and a sprinkling of garlic powder.  Add to the dutch oven, and cook skin side down for 8-9 min, then turn over and cook another 4 minutes.  Remove chicken to a bowl, and drain off some of the oil leaving a little bit.  Add in the sliced smoke sausage, sauteing about 4-5 minutes. Then add the sausage to a bowl and set aside.

Turn the heat to medium low and add in the red and green pepper, shallot, celery, garlic and saute for 5 min.  Sprinkle in the potato starch and stir frequently for 5 minutes.  Pour in the chopped tomatoes with Worcestershire sauce scraping up any brown bits.  Season with Thyme, parsley, garlic powder, salt and pepper and add in the Bay leaf. Return the chicken and the sausage to the pan and continue to cook for 1 hour.

At the 45 minute mark, add in the green beans to cook through and remove the lid, simmering for the last 15 minutes - should be on low but still simmering. At this stage you can remove the chicken to a plate, and remove/discard the skin, and leave whole, or shred the chicken returning to the pot when the beans are cooked through.  Serve over Basmati or other long grain rice.