Alexandra’s lunch.  A chicken club sandwich with fries.   I used the America’s Test Kitchen method for fries which basically involves placing the soaked-and-drained pototoes in cold oil, then bringing it up to temperature to brown.  This produces a fry that is comparable to a...

For most of us in modern life, this happens several times a week. You’re hungry, haven’t prepared anything but want to eat right away. Sound familiar?  It’s why fast food and frozen food companies make zillions of dollars.   But since eating fast food or frozen food several...

Chinese noodles with spicy mixed vegetables.   This was actually what I did with leftovers from Chinese take-out.  The original dish was szechuan vegetables with shrimp so the next day, I just boiled some noodles and heated them through with the leftover vegetables.  Add a little extra oyster...

Recently I’ve started to rethink salad. What is it that makes a great salad?  The lettuce?  Other vegetables?  Nope.  For me, it’s the little things, the accents if you will.  A properly balanced dressing plus one or two key, strong flavours is what makes it for me.   Lettuce with...

My four year old daughter Alexandra has been saying for as long as she could put a sentence together that she doesn’t like “spicy”. And yet, that doesn’t stop her from burying a hot dog in mustard, loading up her toast with cinnamon sugar, asking for extra...

The February blahs. Everybody has them.  Some worse than others.  Some solve the February blahs with a trip to a sunny locale, while others go through five bottles of expensive 4 Copas tequila in February, 2009 *cough*. This year, the blahs are not so bad with the Olympics in Vancouver giving...