Budget Bistro

Sunrise Noodles

2018-03-14T18:02:00.002-07:00

Adapted from Wan, Gok (2013). Sunrise Noodles. From Gok's Wok: Fast, Fresh, Healthy Asian Recipes.

This recipe is similar to the ramen I posted a few weeks ago, but instead of a rich, garlicky broth, this noodle bowl features a light, miso broth. Add some wilted bok choy, a few crushed peanuts, and a soft-boiled egg, and you've got a delicious meal waiting for you.

Sunrise Noodles

What you'll need

- 1 bunch ramen noodles*

- 2 soft boiled eggs

- 1 tbsp minced garlic (roughly 3 cloves)

- 1 tbsp minced ginger

- 2-3 heads of baby bok choy, roughly chopped

- 1 hot pepper, finely chopped (I used a serrano pepper, but jalapenos are good too)
- 1/2 tbsp fish sauce
- 1 tbsp soy sauce
- 2 tbsp miso (soybean) paste (more or less depending on how strong you like it)
- 700 mL water
- chopped peanuts (for garnish)

*I find that one bunch of ramen noodles is enough for two servings, so these ingredients reflect what you'll need for two bowls of sunrise noodles. If you're looking for ramen noodles, you can usually find them in the international aisle of the grocery store. The package that mine came, as well as a picture of the miso paste I used, are both pictured below.

Sunrise Noodle Ingredients

Ramen Noodles

Miso (soybean) Paste

How to make it

1. Chop and mince all of your veggies. This recipe cooks fairly quickly, so you want to be ready.

2. Boil noodles until tender (according to package directions) and set aside.

3. Soft boil your eggs and set aside. I like the yolk to be runny, but you can cook them for longer if you prefer a hard yolk.

4. Make miso stock by dissolving miso paste in the boiling water. Add the garlic, ginger, and hot pepper and let simmer for a few minutes.

5. Add the boy choy, fish sauce, and soy sauce to the miso mixture and simmer for a few more minutes until the boy choy wilts and becomes tender.

6. Divide the cooked noodles between two bowls. Set eggs in the bowl as well and cover with hot broth. Top with chopped peanuts and enjoy!

Guacamole

2018-02-19T16:48:00.001-08:00

This is the easiest dip/spread you could possibly make, and takes less than 5 minutes!

For this and any avocado-related recipe, I highly recommend buying the bags of avocados a few days in advance. Although they usually take 2-3 days to ripen up (they're ripe when they are slightly squishy), they are quite a bit cheaper than buying single, already-ripe avocados.

Guacamole

What you'll need

- 2 avocados, cut into chunks (as shown below)
- 2 slices of tomato, chopped (about 1-2 tbs)
- 1/4 lime, juiced
- 1 tbs cilantro paste*

*You can use fresh cilantro instead, but whenever I buy a fresh bunch of cilantro, I can never use it all before it starts to go bad. So, I've started using cilantro paste (from Wal Mart). The paste lasts for a long time in the fridge, and I can use smaller amounts here are there. Feel free to use whatever works best!

Guacamole Ingredients

How to make it

1. Mix the avocado, tomatoes, cilantro, and fresh-squeezed lime juice together in a bowl. I like mine a bit chunky, but any consistency is delicious.

2. Enjoy with chips, in a burrito, on a sandwich, with a spoon...

Mac & Cheese

2018-02-12T14:48:00.000-08:00

Is there any better comfort food than mac & cheese? Not only does it take the same amount of time to make as KD, but the dijon mustard makes this one gourmet bowl of cheesy noodles. And yes, you're just going to have to trust me on the dijon mustard. It's amazing.

Mac & Cheese

Ingredients

- 3 cups noodles (any type of noodle is fine, but I like to use penne or elbow noodles because they have the highest cheese-sauce-per-noodle ratio)
- 2 tbs butter
- 2 tbs flour (whole wheat or white)
- 1+ tbs dijon mustard (I prefer grainy dijon)
- 1 1/2 cups milk*
- 1 1/2 cups cheese*
- salt and pepper to taste

* Both the milk and cheese amounts are approximate, and can be modified. More cheese gives a cheesier sauce, and more or less milk can either thicken or thin the cheese mixture.

Mac & Cheese Ingredients

How to make it

1. Cook your noodles in salted water per package directions. Set aside.

2. In a small bowl, whisk the flour with small amounts of milk until it is all dissolved. It's important to do this so you don't end up with lumps of flour in your cheese sauce.

3. Melt your butter in a medium-sized sauce pan, then add the flour and milk mixture. Whisk together, then gradually add the rest of the milk. Then, whisk in the dijon mustard.

4. Increase the mixture to medium-high heat for a few minutes, whisking constantly. Once the mixture has thickened, reduce the heat. Stir in the cheese.

5. Mix the noodles and the cheese sauce together. I usually let this stand for a few minutes before serving to allow it to thicken and cool before eating.

6. Serve topped with fresh cracked pepper. Add more dijon as you see fit!

Ramen

2018-02-04T13:18:00.001-08:00

When it's both seasonably cold and cold season, ramen makes everything all better. This particular ramen recipe, although not very authentic, is hot and full of ginger, garlic, leafy greens, and onion - all those things you need to stay warm and comfortable throughout February.

Ramen

What you'll need

Vegetables

- 1 onion, diced
- 1 bunch green onion, diced, and divided into green and white parts
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tbs grated ginger
- 2 heads of baby bok choy, cut into large pieces

Noodles

- 2 bunches of ramen noodles (any type). You can buy ramen noodles at grocery stores, or from Asian specialty stores. The package I use (pictured below) is from the Himalayan Grocers in downtown Guelph. Alternatively, you can use instant noodles by cooking them as you normally would, but without using the seasoning.

Broth

- 4 cups of broth: you can use vegetable broth, chicken broth, or a mix of either with some water. (I used 2 cups of vegetable broth and 2 cups of water for this, but it all depends on what you have on hand.)
- 3 tbs soy sauce
- 1 tbs fish sauce (optional: I used fish sauce in mine to all fullness to the flavour. However, if you use chicken broth, you might not need to use fish sauce).

Toppings (optional)

- hard boiled egg
- sesame seeds
- red pepper flakes

Ingredients for Ramen

Ramen Noodles

How to make it

1. Prepare all of your vegetables. Although this recipe takes about 20 minutes to make, you need to be watching the pot for most of it and there won't be much time to chop veggies as you go. You will also need to watch three pots at once: one for the broth and veggies, one for the noodles, and one for the eggs.

2. In a large pot, saute the onion in olive oil until translucent. Then, add the white parts of the green onions, the garlic, and the ginger. Stir often and add oil as needed, so the ginger and the garlic don't burn and stick to the pot.

3. Add the broth, soy sauce, and fish sauce (if using) to the broth. Bring to a boil, and let simmer for 10-15 minutes.

4. While the broth is cooking, boil enough eggs for 1 egg per person.

5. While the broth and the eggs are cooking, prepare the ramen noodles per package directions. They cook in a matter of minutes, so when they're done, drain them and set them aside.

6. Add the bok choy and the noodles* to the ramen broth. Top with a halved boiled egg, sesame seeds, and red pepper flakes.

Makes 4 servings.

* Alternatively, you can divide the noodles between the bowls, then add the soup, then add the toppings. I've tried it both ways, and both give you an amazing bowl of ramen.

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Adapted from The Forked Spoon's recipe for Ginger Garlic Noodle Soup with Bok Coy

Pizza Rolls

2018-01-27T18:49:00.000-08:00

Like a cinnamon roll... only instead of cinnamon and sugar, it's filled with pizza!

These little delicacies are inspired by the New Glasgow Farmer's Market.

Pizza Rolls

What you'll need

Pizza dough

- 1 cup lukewarm water

- 1 Tbsp dry yeast

- 2 Tbsp olive oil

- 1/2 tsp salt

- 2 1/2 cups flour

Pizza filling

- Pizza sauce

- 1/2 cup finely diced onion

- 1/2 cup finely diced green pepper

- 1/2 cup finely diced mushroom

- 1/2 cup grated cheese

Garnish

- Pizza sauce
- Grated cheese

Pizza Roll Ingredients

How to make them

Make the dough:

1. Combine all pizza dough ingredients. Kneed for a few minutes.

2. Allow the dough to rise for 1 hour in a greased bowl. For this step, I let my oven preheat to 200, then turn it off. I then let the dough rise in the oven. This ensures the dough stays warm, but doesn't start to cook. Also, do make sure the bowl is greased - it makes it much easier to clean.

3. Once the dough has risen, punch it down and kneed it on a floured surface.

4. Roll out the dough into a rectangle. Try to get the dough fairly thin so that it will hold lots of toppings and roll several times. Alternatively, you can just buy some pizza dough and roll that out instead.

Add the pizza toppings:

5. Spread a thin layer of pizza sauce onto the dough.

6. Add your pizza toppings, spreading them out evenly.

Make the pizza rolls:

7. Starting from the long side of the rectangle, start rolling the dough away from you. Roll it tight to keep the toppings in place. Once you finish, press the end of the dough into the roll to seal it.

8. Cut the roll into ~1 inch pieces. I prefer to cut using a length of thread, as shown in this video.

9. Place all the pizza rolls onto a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. On top of each pizza roll, add an extra spoonful of pizza sauce, followed by a little more grated cheese.

10. Bake in a 450 degree oven for 15-20 minutes.

Slow Cooker Burritos

2018-01-14T08:10:00.000-08:00

This burrito recipe makes about 6 hearty meals. You can use black beans or kidney beans, white rice or brown rice, and use whatever burrito-friendly vegetables and toppings you have on hand. It's also amazing with a canned pepper in adobe sauce in it for an extra kick!

Slow Cooker Burritos

What you'll need

Burritos

- 2-3 chopped tomatoes

- 1 chopped bell pepper

- 1 chopped onion

- 1 chopped jalapeno pepper

- 1 can black beans

- 1 tsp oregano

- 1 tsp basil

- 1 tsp chili powder

- 1 1/4 cups vegetable broth

- 1/2 cup rice

- Tortillas

Toppings

- Green onion

- Grated cheese

- Salsa

- Sour cream

- Guacamole

- Lime juice

- Chipotle sauce

Ingredients for Slow Cooker Burritos

How to make it

1. Combine chopped vegetables, beans, spices, and vegetable broth in the slow cooker. Cook on low for 7-8 hours or on high for 3-4 hours.

2. Add the rice to the slow cooker and cook on high for 45 minutes.

3. Ladle burrito filling onto a tortilla and add desired toppings. Wrap up burrito and enjoy!

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Adapted from Pare, Jean. Company's Coming: Slow Cooker Dinners. Alberta, ON: Company's Coming Publishing Ltd.

Scalloped Potatoes

2018-01-07T18:19:00.000-08:00

Or, as we call it in my family, "Potato Scallop". Whatever you call it, this is one comforting potato dish. And, trust me on the wonders that pinch of cinnamon does - these potatoes smell and taste amazing.

Scalloped Potatoes

What you'll need

- 2 tbs butter
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 6 cups thinly sliced potatoes (if they're waxy potatoes like Yukon golds you can leave the peel on, otherwise, peel the potatoes first)
- 2 cups half-and-half
- 1 tsp cinnamon

Ingredients for Scalloped Potatoes

How to make it

1. Preheat the over to 400 degrees.

2. Melt the butter in a large saucepan and add the garlic. Once the garlic becomes fragrant, add the potatoes, half-and-half, and cinnamon. Keep stirring over medium heat for 5-10 minutes until the mixture has thickened (the starch from the potatoes is the thickener in this recipe).

3. Transfer to a large baking dish and cook for 45 min - 1 hour. The scalloped potatoes are ready when they are brown and bubbly.

4. Let cool for a few minutes and serve.

Savoury Waffles

2017-11-26T16:16:00.002-08:00

Who says waffles can only be eaten with maple syrup? And, who says you can't eat this well this close to exams? This waffle recipe was inspired by one of my favourite restaurants back home in Nova Scotia: The Waffle Bus Stop in Antigonish, NS.

Savoury Waffles

What you'll need:

Waffles

- 1 1/2 cups flour
- 2 tbsp white sugar
- 3 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 2 beaten eggs
- 1 1/2 cup milk
- 1/4 cup melted butter

Waffle toppings

- Arugula
- Tomato slices
- Fried egg
- Chipotle mayo (I just mixed chipotle sauce into my mayo)
- Fresh cracked black pepper

Savoury Waffle Ingredients

How to make it:

1. Make your waffles: Mix the dry and wet ingredients separately, then add them together. Mix just until blended (the batter will be lumpy). Make your waffles using a waffle iron.

2. Fry your eggs: Heat oil in a small frying pan, then add your eggs. After about 1 minute, the eggs will turn white around the edges. At that point, add a lid (preferably glass) to the frying pan and let the eggs cook in their steam. For runny eggs as pictured above, let the eggs fry for 4 minutes. For more solid yolks, let them fry for 6 minutes.

3. Layer up: Add your veggies and egg to the top of 1/4 of a waffle. Top with chipotle mayo and fresh cracked pepper.

Bean and Barley Chili

2017-10-24T15:47:00.000-07:00

What a delicious bowl of chili. It's hardy and spicy, and the barley makes it thick and creamy. The best part? The dry and canned ingredients have long shelf lives and can be bought for a very low price. The other best part? The vegetables are all from the Guelph Farmers Market.

Bean and Barley Chili

What you'll need:

Vegetables

- 1 diced red pepper

- 1 diced onion

- 1 stalk celery

- 4 cloves of garlic, minced or finely chopped
- 650 ml vegetable broth* or water

Dry goods

- 1 can (540 ml) of black beans

- 1 can (540 ml) of molasses-style baked beans

- 1 can (540 ml) of kidney beans

- 1 can (796 ml) of diced tomatoes

- 1 can (540 ml) of diced tomatoes with chili spices

- 1 cup of barley

Spices

- Chipotle sauce

- Cumin

- Chili powder

- Paprika

- Cayenne pepper

- Salt & pepper

Garnishes (optional)

- Grated cheese

- Green onion

- Sour cream

Ingredients for Bean and Barley Chili

How to make it

1. Saute the vegetables in a large pot for a few minutes, until onions are translucent.

2. Add the canned goods and let simmer on low.

3. In a separate pot, prepare the barley according to package directions. We made it using vegetable broth for a bit of extra flavour, but making it with water would work just fine!

4. Add the barley to the bean, tomato, and vegetable mix and let the whole thing simmer until the vegetables and barley are cooked, and your apartment smells amazing.

5. Add the spices to taste.

6. Garnish with whatever you have at hand! Our chili turned out pretty spicy, so the sour cream helped to tone it down and make it creamy.

*I make my vegetable broth by boiling vegetable scraps, following this Tasty video.

Udon Noodle Stir Fry

2017-10-24T15:42:00.002-07:00

Adapted from Season & Supper's blog 15 minute Spicy Udon Stirfry.

A noodle bowl that's spicy, sweet, crunchy, and colourful. What more needs to be said?

If you've never cooked with udon noodles before, this is a great recipe to start with. Udons are long, thick noodles that hold flavour from any sauce very well. This noodle bowl is similar to takeout, only it's faster, cheaper, and (dare I say it?) tastes better.

Udon Noodle Stir Fry

What you'll need

Stir fry

- 1 tbsp vegetable oil

- 1 carrot, cut into matchsticks

- 1 onion, diced

- 2 cloves of garlic, minced
- 3 stalks of green onion, diced

- 2 packages udon noodles

- A few handfuls of spinach or bok choy

Ingredients for Udon Noodle Stir Fry

Sauce

- 1 tbsp fish sauce
- 2 tsp Sambal Oelek
- 2 tsp rice vinegar
- 1/4 cup dark soy sauce

- 1 tsp sesame oil
- 2 tbsp brown sugar
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tbsp ginger, minced

Ingredients for Udon Noodle Stir Fry Sauce

How to make it

1. Chop all of your vegetables and make the sauce before you heat up your wok. Seriously. Once you get started it takes almost no time to cook, so it's really important to have all of your ingredients ready to go.

2. Turn your wok on high and let the vegetable oil heat up.

3. Add the carrot, onion, garlic, and green onion and saute for 2 minutes.

4. Add your udon noodles, then add your sauce and stir until everything is coated.

5. Add your spinach last. Once the spinach has wilted, your noodle bowl is ready.

6. Garnish with peanuts and extra green onions.

Sweet Potato and Baked Bean Soup

2017-10-24T06:03:00.005-07:00

I love love love this soup featuring sweet potatoes (from the market!) and maple baked beans. It's a lovely thick soup that's perfect in the fall. And, this recipe makes a huge batch of soup, so you can get several freebie meals out of it. Not even midterms can stop us from eating well!

Sweet Potato and Baked Bean Soup

What you'll need

- 1 diced onion

- 2 cloves of garlic, minced

- 5 cups diced sweet potatoes (or about 4 medium-sized sweet potatoes)

- 2 cans (540 ml each) of maple-style baked beans

- 5 cups of vegetable broth*

- Fresh-cracked black pepper

Ingredients for Sweet Potato and Baked Bean Soup

How to make it

1. In a large pot, saute the onion and garlic until softened.

2. Add the rest of the ingredients and simmer until the sweet potatoes have softened (about 20 minutes).

3. Puree until smooth.

4. Garnish with fresh cracked black pepper.

*Note: I make my vegetable broth by boiling vegetable scraps, following this Tasty video.

Spinach, Broccoli, and Cheese Quiche

2017-10-24T05:57:00.000-07:00

It is fabled that quiche is one of the ultimate "clean-out-the-fridge" meals, but mine almost exclusively features spinach and onion. When I don't have enough spinach, I add broccoli. Turns out, the spinach-broccoli-cheese combo is an absolute godsend. Put it in a flaky pie crust, and you can see why I love breakfast food so much!

Spinach, Broccoli, and Cheese Quiche

What you'll need

- 1/2 diced onion

- A few handfuls of spinach

- 1/4 cup of diced broccoli

- 1/2 cup of grated cheddar cheese

- 3 eggs

- 1 cup of milk

- 1 pie crust (9")

Ingredients for quiche

How to make it

1. Preheat the oven to 375.

2. Saute your vegetables just until the onion is translucent, the spinach has wilted, and the broccoli is tender.

3. Spread the vegetable mixture in the pie crust to even it out. Spread the grated cheese over the top of the vegetable mixture.

4. In a separate bowl, mix the eggs and the milk together. Then, pour the egg mixture over top of the vegetables and cheese.

5. Bake for 40-50 minutes, until the eggs are solid and the quiche has browned on the top.

Serves 3-4.

Note: Frozen pie crusts tend to come in packages of 2, and pie crust recipes are usually designed to make two crusts. This recipe is for one pie crust only, but I always double my quiche recipe so I can have leftovers. It keeps in the fridge for a few days and is still delicious the second day!

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Quiche recipe adapted from Raab, E. The Clueless Vegetarian: A Cookbook for the Aspiring Vegetarian. Richmond Hill, ON: Firefly Books Ltd.

Pie crust recipe can be found in Diver, Elizabeth (Ed.). (2001). The all new Purity Cook Book: A Complete Book of Canadian Cooking. Vancouver, BC: Whitecap Books.

Hummus

2017-10-24T05:50:00.001-07:00

This is a good recipe if you're looking for a tangy hummus. As always, it's great for dipping carrot sticks, celery sticks, and pita bread. It also adds a great flavour to sandwiches!

Hummus

What you'll need

- 1 can (540 ml) of chickpeas (drained and rinsed - but keep the liquid!)

- 1/2 of the liquid from the chickpeas

- 3 tablespoons tahini

- 2 tablespoons lemon juice

- 2 tablespoons olive oil

- 1 tablespoon honey

- 2 tablespoons of finely chopped onion

- 2 cloves of minced garlic

- 1 teaspoon of garam masala

- 1/2 teaspoon tumeric

- 1/2 teaspoon cumin

- 1/2 teaspoon fresh grated ginger

- 1/2 teaspoon salt

Ingredients for hummus

How to make it

Add all the ingredients together and blend! I have a hand blender so I mix the ingredients together in a large bowl and pulse them until it's a smooth, even consistency.