Bit 'o Bocconcini

Eggs are a quick and easy way to get a great helping of protein in the morning and kick-start your metabolism for the day.

I LOVE eggs, not just 'cuz they're healthy, but also because they serve as an egg-cellent backdrop for a flavour bonanza.

Take Tuesday morning for example:

I had been away for the weekend and didn't have much in the fridge. What I did have: Eggs, mini bocconcini cheese, milk and about 5 mins for breakfast!

I scrambled up the eggs in a bowl, adding a dash of milk (you can also use a touch of cold water...either way, this helps your eggs become light and fluffy) and my secret ingredient: a pinch of Montreal Steak Spice - a lightening fast way to add a zing to just about everything!

I cut the mini bocconcini in half and threw them into the egg mixture and dumped the whole lot in a pan heated to medium. As I stirred and flipped the eggs around with my spatula, those lovely little nuggets of cheesy goodness started melting and pooling their creaminess throughout the eggs and almost caramelizing the cheese's natural sugars.

Now, don't get me wrong...any cheese cubed or grated and added to your sunshiny scramble. Heck don't even stop there! You can add leftover ham in roast or sandwich meat form, a bit of diced pepper, some tomato, mushrooms, go nuts! But these little luscious lumps of lactic love did the trick.

Bocconcini is an unripened buffalo or cow's milk cheese originating in Naples (Napoli). Some call it Baby Mozzarella as it's produced in a similar fashion. It is mild and spongy and takes on the flavour of the ingredients it accompanies. It typically comes in 3 sizes: regular (golf ball sized), mini (grape sized) and pearl (take a guess!).

Try it tossed through fresh, warm pasta, plunked into a bowl of tomato soup or baked into a quiche!

Feta-Melon Bites!

Looking for a quick and easy summer appetizer? Look no further than:

Feta Cheese and Watermelon Bites!

Simply cut up a block of briny Feta cheese into tiny bite-sized cubes, scoop out perfect little rounds of watermelon with a melon baller (or cut into bigger bite-sized cubes), stick a toothpick through the two morsels and presto! You've got yourself a salty, sweet summer treat!

Because Feta is a salty, zinger of a cheese and the watermelon is subtly sweet, I'd suggest a 2:1 watermelon to Feta ratio to ensure perfect harmony!

To be extra fancy, try a small mint or basil leaf between the two!

Bake-A-Steak

I worked for the Keg Steakhouse and Bar for about 8 years. 2 of those glorious years in management, where I enjoyed a meal on the house every night I worked. Needless to say, I ate a LOT of steak!

When I first left the Keg I didn't care to see another piece of beef again...unless, of course, it was shirtless, throwing around a football in the park across the street from my condo! Now that my hankering for hangar steak is back (and my 40% discount is gone), I tend to cook a lot of steak at home. Sadly my condo doesn't have a balcony nor a communal BBQ and I don't watch enough late-night TV to have bought a George Foreman Grill so I'm relegated to what I've got in my kitchen...stove-top and oven!

On the upside, I live just down the street from Toronto's celebrated St. Lawrence Market... a gastrophile's (google it!) shangrila where every cut of beef imaginable is just waiting to be taken home and shown a good time.

The other night, I got ahold of this sweet piece of sirloin and invited it back to my place for a glass of wine and an otherwise sizzling evening... Ok, enough with the meat market jokes! Let me tell you how I made this morsel of meat into a masterpiece in 20 mins flat... Maple, Gorgonzola Cheese and Walnut Sirloin. (Guess what's in it?)

The Method to My Meaty Madness...

Firstly, start with a piece of steak that is at least an inch thick and preferably has been aged (approx. 30 days). In the grocery store, look for the beef that's on sale because it's approaching its expiration date...it's a bargain AND is even more tender and flavourful than the new stuff on the shelf.

To prepare the meat, I always like to lightly pat it down with a paper towel to absorb the excess juice. This will prevent burning. Next I'll season lightly with salt and pepper on both sides. You can use Montreal Steak Spice, too, for added flavour.

Use a cast iron or stainless steel/aluminum pan, heated to just above medium heat. Crank your oven to 400F.

Once the pan is hot, add a few tablespoons of olive oil and place the steak into the pan. Use a fork or tongs, placing the tip of the meat down in the pan closest to you and gently laying it away from you. This prevents the oil from splashing up and burning you. The heat of the pan and oil is sealing all of the juice and flavour into the meat. Sear the beef on one side for about a minute and then flip it over using the same technique.

Quick tip, if the meat is sticking to the pan, it's not ready to flip yet. Sit tight, it should virtually lift right off.

Once it's flipped, spoon a good chunk of Gorgonzola cheese on top of the steak. Alternately you can use Cambazola or another blue cheese of your liking. And if you don't like blue cheeses, try goat cheese instead.

Next, place a few pecans into the cheese (careful of those fingers!) and scatter more throughout the pan. If you can't get your hands on pecans, try walnuts or cashews!

Add a good glug of maple syrup on top of the steak and cheese, just enough to have it pooling in the pan around your pecans. Clearly always one for a good substitute when possible, I recommend only using 100% pure maple syrup with this one.

Place your plan in a pan in the oven and sit back...or make a salad, whatevs!

For rare to medium rare, your steak needs about 7 mins. 15 mins or so for well done, depending on the size of your meat. (No judgement, I'm just saying!) Use a meat thermometer for precise results. For the love of all good things, DON'T cut into the steak to see for yourself how it looks on the inside. With one good-intentioned slice, you've allowed all those precious juices you've worked so hard to preserve escape.

Remove your pan from the oven and set it aside. Let the meat "rest" for a moment, it will firm up a tad and not bleed all over the plate when first cut into. Wash your tongs and get ready to serve!

Now at this point, PLEASE don't do what I do...I see that handle (fresh out of the oven) and 9 times out of 10 I just grab it! Sheer habit... I guess I have a habit of being downright stupid! No one needs a handle-shaped brand on their hand. Not what the cool kids are doing these days, I assure you. Might I suggest sliding the oven mitt onto the handle when you first take it out of the oven, thereby negating the likelihood of this tragedy altogether.

Now, to be très fancy set your steak aside on another plate and drizzle the maple syrup and pecans from the pan onto the plate you're serving. Place the steak smothered in that creamy, melty Gorgonzola on top of the maple syrup reduction (ya, you made a reduction! C'mon, do the happy dance!!!) and voilà! Bake-a-Steak beats Shake-and-Bake any day of the week and twice on Sundays!

Have any steak topper recipes to share? Feel free to add your comments!

For more info on cuts of beef, check out http://culinaryarts.about.com/od/beefporkothermeats/ss/cutsofbeef.htm

Viva Cuba!

We've all heard it a million times... Thumper lending advice to Bambi or our Mother's voice echoing in our ears: "If you can't say anything nice, don't say anything at all."

In my time as an online wine show host for Grape Potential, I had one rule: If I didn't like a wine, we wouldn't talk about it. I found it disrespectful and counter-productive. The philosophy of the show was to make wine approachable, accessible and inclusive. Certainly that wasn't going to be accomplished by slagging what my viewers might have been enjoying right at that very moment!

That philosophy will be furthered here in the People's Republic of Yum. On our journey together I refuse to drag restauranteurs and wineries through the mud and prefer to focus on the positive experiences I have with food and drink.

That being said, let me tell you a little story...

I was planning dinner out with 7 friends (half out-of-towners) a few weeks ago. I was effervescent with my choice on where to eat...the most charming little Cuban restaurant, tucked oddly into the middle of a well-established residential area. Julie's Cuban, or Julie's Snack Bar as the sign out front says.

To give my guests a little insight into where we're going, I decide to google the place and then send them the link to their website to peruse the menu in advance. Well, talk about a shock! As the google results are loading, up come reader reviews sooo toxic I could never have prefaced our dinner with this link.

I was appalled to see a 1 out of 10 reader rating and a list of angry and downright mean comments soiling the page and the reputation of one of my Toronto standards. I have taken some serious foodies to Julie's and they've been deliciously delighted each and every time.

So, I didn't forward the google link, or the restaurant's website to my guests and opted towards the element of surprise. And wouldn't you know it, EVERY person at our table was punch-drunk on the mojitos, stuffed silly from the fabulous feast, enchanted by the playful atmosphere and uber-appreciative to the entire staff for their hospitality.

Thank you, Julie's Cuban. You are an island of untold riches in a sea of bad press.

http://www.juliescuban.com/

Ness-ipes and Mess-ipes

I have about a million cookbooks.

I am drawn to them in bookstores; taunted by a cover good enough to eat and the promise of all of the delectable discoveries inside its pages. I'm obsessed with the vividly luscious photography and inspired to make my dishes as marvelous to the eye as I hope they are to the mouth.

But, I have never once, not ONCE followed a recipe in any one of my books. Seriously.

It's not that I dismiss Jamie, Giada and Mario's expertise. In fact, they're geniuses and I thank them silently everyday for bringing good food into my life. I just prefer a melting pot approach to cooking. I'm a rebel without a cup (measuring, that is)! I see a recipe I like. I cross-reference it with a similar recipe by another chef. I brainstorm on how I can make it more to my taste. And I cross my fingers and pray to the Good Gods of Gorging it'll turn out.

This flexibility allows you to adapt recipes to the seasons (if you're dying for mango salsa in December, replace those mangoes with canned peaches) and frankly, with what's in your fridge or pantry, or spice rack! I'll often trade rosemary for thyme, capers for green olives. No need to fret... it's just food!

When I surprise myself in the kitchen, swapping stuff out successfully, I document my success in a scrapbook-like cookbook of my own. I call them my Ness-ipes. And when the fruits of my labour turn out more gross than gorgeous, I call them my Mess-ipes...and vow to do better next time.

Now, I'm certainly no chef and I fully admit to never measuring ANYthing out, however, if you're willing to play along I'll be posting some of my Ness-ipes (and maybe a few Mess-ipes) for your enjoyment.

A fun take on a quesadilla I whipped up in celebration of the series finale of LOST...let's call them

MANGODILLAS!

What You Need:

- tortillas (any size, any flavour!)

- cheese (I recommend Mozzarella or Monterey Jack, but you could use Provolone, Friluano, Gouda or plain ol' Philadelphia cream cheese!)

- mango (or canned peaches ;o) )

- fresh cilantro (or fresh mint)

- hot pepper (I used Cubanelle, but you can substitute with Jalapeno, Hungarian Hot Pepper or Habanero. For a mild substitute, try a red or yellow sweet pepper.)

What You Do:

- fire up the bbq! or, set the oven to broil.

- grate the cheese

- chop the cilantro coarsely

- chop the hot pepper finely (so no one gets a hit of hot they weren't expecting)

- slice the mango

(for tips on how to cut a mango, check out this link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lvLdPjpELyU)

Lay out one tortilla. Sprinkle a light layer of cheese over the entire surface. Lay out your fine slices of mango in a random fashion, so that every bite gets a little hint. Sprinkle the cilantro and hot peppers to taste and add a bit more cheese on top of it all. Throw a second tortilla on top. To cook, you can either throw it on the bbq for 3-4 mins on medium heat (or until crisp with light grill marks) on each side OR broil in the oven on a cookie sheet for 2-4 mins on each side. Slice into wedges with a pizza cutter and enjoy!

Have any suggestions on how to improve or change up this Ness-ipe? Feel free to leave your comments!

If It Smells Good, Do It!

For as long as I can remember I have been a student of the philosophy of Yum.

My earliest memories were baking bread with my Mum; standing on a stool at the massive island in our kitchen, kneading my own little gooey bit of dough, smelling the sweet, yeasty fumes as it rose and eating more raw than I cared to bake in my tiniest of bread pans. I still can't smell one of those yeasty black permanent markers without being transported back to that oven-lovin' time in my childhood!

Once I was old enough not to have to stand on a stool, you could find me toiling over a pot on the stove. My Dad would have gone out to do errands and left me to add herbs and spices to his current culinary concoction. I would salt and season soups and sauces as I saw fit - sometimes sewering supper completely and other times sussing it out. I discovered early on that if I put one jar from the spice rack up to one nostril and a second jar up to the other and inhaled, I could tell how they would taste when combined and whether or not they were complimentary. This is a trick I employ to this day, whenever I try a new flavour combination.

Our sense of smell is our most primal sense. One honed over millenia of evolution. So the next time you find yourself slaving over that stove...take a chance! Shove that semi-sweet chocolate up your nose while making chili and smell what happens! Trust it...your nose knows!

Welcome Citizens!

Welcome, Citizens, to the People's Republic of Yum!

I began this blog to start a revolution! To take a stand against those stuffy old guys that seem to lord over all things lip-smacking and bring the mmmm! movement back to the people! To make all importantly, to not take the tasty things so damn seriously!

Food and drink are fundamental to our very being. Given the choice, I say let's make it deliriously delicious everyday. We don't need to be chefs and sommeliers, we don't need to be billionaires. We, the people, can rest full-tummied and tipsy under PRY's tablecloth of democracy, sharing our shortbreads and shortcomings.

Join me on my journey to explore the far reaches of the People's Republic of Yum. I'll be blogging regularly (at least weekly, but more often if my tastebuds have been tantilized OR traumatized!) about booze and food pairings, catastrophes in my kitchen and epicurean explorations of all kinds.

I hope you'll find this site a hungerless haven to share your recipes, your reviews and recommendations.

PRY your mouths open and vote YUM!