we had an awesome brunch a few weeks back for valentine's day, and i think i may play around with some variations of the recipes i used for that....

i'd also love to try out some of the new recipes i learned from the kitchn this week, like the korean style steamed eggs.

i loved all the breakfast posts on the kitchn this week.. breakfast is my favorite meal of the day!

I spied several recipes for Indian-spiced scrambled eggs, and I'm hoping that can send me in a new direction with eggs, so I'll be experimenting:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/indianscrambledeggs_86454
http://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/spicy-indian-style-scrambled-eggs
http://saramoulton.com/2011/10/indian-scrambled-eggs-with-pappadams-2/

I can imagine it wrapped in a chapati, pappadum, pita or tortilla - quick breakfast then out the door.

I made a vegetarian version of Pate en croute, and it turned out really good! And really big! we'll probably be eating some leftovers this weekend. It would make a nice, special vegetarian dinner party meal, cause it serves quite a few. It's got roasted mushrooms and french lentils, ground almonds and hazelnuts. Delicious and not difficult!

I just pulled a loaf of beer bread (made with our homebrewed beer and spent grain) out of the oven for a movie night tonight; hopefully it'll go over well. I got a recipe for vegan Swedish meatballs from a friend and plan to attempt those tomorrow night. Other than that... I may try the simmered eggs recipe I saw here this morning for a lazy brunch idea this weekend.

Blueberry dutch baby pancake with fresh lemon curd tomorrow, and some sweet potato oatmeal on Sunday!

Just finished delicious quesadillas done on the Foreman: mushrooms, red onions, roasted red peppers, cheddar and mozzarella. Topped them off with sour cream and salsa. Quick and surprisingly satisfying.

We're having friends over for dinner tonight! I'm making chicken with a ginger/coriander/mustard rub, brown basmati rice, and a big green salad with sesame dressing. Chocolate chocolate chip cookies for dessert.

Stir-fried egg noodles with shrimp, bok choy and a fiery fresh chile sambal tonight, and in 15 minutes I'm pulling a batch of quinoa and oatmeal cookies out of the oven. Tomorrow I'm making short ribs bourguignon (it's supposed to be cold enough that a hearty dish sounds good!) with baked apples for dessert. I'm tempted to make some whole grain crepes and mushrooms for brunch on Sunday, too.

I'm currently in the process of making mozzarella cheese! I just put the rennet in and am waiting for coagulation. Everyone keeps talking about how easy it is, so I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

I'm canning for the first time ever! This is the year I conquer all my cooking fears. I've got a fridge full of local beets, so I'm making a batch of pickled beets and a batch of beet relish. Fun!

I just made some Thai inspired mussels (with chili, lime, and coconut) to kick off the weekend!
http://winnercelebrationparty.com/home/post/77414/steamed-mussels-in-chili-lime-and-coconut-milk/

I also have a serious craving for cinnamon buns, so that might happen. And after seeing the Kitchn post about gaeranjim, and remembering my gaeranjim bowl, I'll probably make that and eat it with some rice and kimchi, maybe some Korean bbq.

I have all day today and tomorrow to myself this weekend, so I'm going to make some treats for the evenings and during the week. I'm thinking a batch of whole wheat chocolate chip cookies (maybe with some crushed pretzels added) and some chickpea greek salad for during the week. I have major lamb cravings after a week of veggie food so I think dinner will be some kind of tasty grilled lamb dish - maybe kofta or skewers.

Confit duck legs, using the Balthazar Cookbook recipe. I'm going to halve the amount of salt in the recipe (1 tablespoon of sea salt per leg) as the last batch I made was a bit too salty for my taste. The texture of the meat was spot on - melt-in-the-mouth, and easily shredded, with crisp skin once pan-fried.

Friday: guests for dinner and a movie. We had herbed yogurt dip (well-drained yogurt mixed with this parsley oil and a handful of chives, layered with romesco sauce, served with crackers and crudites. Rum and blood orange punch. (We watched "The Shining," so of course I had to make REDRUM.)

Then a baked potato bar: cheddar, parmesan, caramelized onions, scallions, broccoli, saucy black beans, bacon, sour cream, and plenty of butter. This was a good excuse to put out a few kinds of salt: plain ol' kosher salt, smoked salt, and fleur de sel. For dessert, I put out a dish of store-bought cookies: stroopwafels and little chocolate biscuits.

Tonight: baked stuffed potatoes (to use up the leftover potatoes and toppings), maybe with a vegetable-heavy frittata on the side topped with a dollop of romesco.

To make this weekend: oatmeal bread, almond granola.

From the downsizing cook:

Peanut butter flavored veggie stir fry (a little PB goes a long way)
Miso-mustard-date syrup roasted chicken (it even got a thumbs up from the kids)
And this slaw, sans the almonds, is quickly becoming a favorite - really good and fresh!

Oh, and I hit the minus 20 kg mark :-)

I reconstructed the soup Remy makes in Ratatouille...you know, the one Linguini nearly ruins. It was a lot of fun, and completely delicious. A spicy but subtle taste experience!