Grill & Smoke
Making a Classic Ham Dinner with all the fixings
It's early on a Sunday morning. The oven has just finished preheating, and in goes a large smoked ham. Within an hour, your house is filled with the smell of hickory smoke and roasting meat. Before long, the windows are steamed from the sides, boiling away on the...
Making a Homemade Curry Dinner
Curry is not something that I grew up eating. In fact, I didn't try Indian food or have a curry dinner until I was in my mid-twenties. I always had this stigma about it because I'd never had it, and it didn't look or smell like any food I'd eaten. I may have actually...
How To Make General Tso Chicken at Home
Last week I asked you to tell me if there was a Chinese Take-Out recipe that you would like me to include in my Homemade Chinese Take-Out series. Well, I asked, and you answered. The most requested recipe has been for General Tso Chicken, and that is exactly what we...
How To Make Restaurant-Style Mushroom Risotto
Hello, and happy Monday! Today on Chef's Notes, we will look at how to make a favourite dish among restaurant-goers the world over. Today, you are going to learn how to make Restaurant-Style Mushroom Risotto. One of the best things about learning to make Mushroom...
How To Make The Best Homemade Beef Stew – (Hint) It’s Made In The Oven
Hello everyone, and happy Friday! I don't know if you've noticed or not, but summer is all but a distant memory. There has been frost on the car windows, the winds are biting, and it won't be long before we see our first snowfall of the season. Of course, that can...
Gluten-Free Sweet and Sour Chicken Balls Recipe
This gluten-free sweet and sour chicken balls recipe with classic red sauce will make you forget that you're eating gluten-free. It tastes just like what you'd find in an American-style Chinese Food Restaurant. More importantly, you don't need a culinary degree to...
7 Turkey Cooking Tips For This Thanksgiving
It's only a few days away. Can you believe it? Before you know it, you and your family (or maybe just you) will be gorging yourselves on mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, stuffing, gravy, and of course, turkey. Last Thanksgiving, I shared four different and unique...
The Cuban Sandwich- You won’t believe how good this simple sandwich tastes
I first became aware of the Cuban Sandwich while watching the movie "Chef." The film is based around the main character's love and passion for this Sandwich. He quits (or gets fired depending on how you look at it), a fancy restaurant job, and on the advice of his...
How To Make Gnocchi and Everything You Ever Wanted To Know About It
Gnocchi, you've probably had it at your favourite Italian restaurant, or maybe you're lucky enough to come from an Italian family or at least are friends with one. Either way, if you've eaten gnocchi, you've likely wondered how to make it. Well, wonder no more. Today,...
5 Tips For Perfect Fried Rice At Home
Fried Rice. It is one of my favourite things to cook and to eat. Not only is it delicious, but it is a great way to use up leftovers. It is cheap to make, and it is quick. I don't know about you, but that ticks all of my boxes. Because I love fried rice so much,...
What is a Croque Madame and Why Should You Make One Right Now?
Last week in the Chef's Notes Gourmet Sandwich Series, I showed you how to make the Ultimate Grilled Cheese. This week we are going to make another kind of grilled cheese, the French kind. We will make a Croque Madame, which, if you don't know, is just a Croque...
Peppered Beef For $2.20 per person
I have made no secret about the fact that my grocery budgeting project has gone entirely off the rails. But I am still working on bringing our spending down. However, that doesn't mean I can't share meals that are budget-friendly and still taste delicious. This...
How To Make Clam Chowder With Bacon
What could be better on a chilled late summer day than a big bowl of Clam and Bacon Chowder? Nothing! The answer is, there is nothing better than a big bowl of Clam and Bacon Chowder on a chilled late summer day. "But, Mr. Chef's Notes Guy," you say. "I don't know how...
How To Make The Ultimate Grilled Cheese
Is there such a thing as too much cheese? I say no. Once you eat this Ultimate Grilled Cheese, you will probably agree with me. We've all had grilled cheese before, but today we are going way beyond a Kraft Single melted on white bread. Of course, there is nothing...
7 Easy To Make Flavoured Mayonnaise Recipes To Jazz Up Any Sandwich
First of all, I hope everyone had a great long weekend. I know I did. Now, over the past few weeks, I have been writing a "Gourmet Sandwich" series, which has included Chicken Parmesan Sandwiches, Roasted Vegetable Paninis and Reubens. Today, we are going to continue...
7 Soup Recipes To Master This Fall
Have you noticed that there is a bit of a chill in the air in the early morning? Do you know what that means? No, it is not pumpkin spiced latte time. It means that the season of soup is rapidly approaching. Yes, of course, you can eat soup at any time of year, but...
How To Make A Reuben Sandwich At Home
The cold autumn air bites at your summer softened cheeks as the noon bells ring at the church down the street. Your belly rumbles as you open the door to your neighbourhood deli. You step up to the counter, the clerk who has been standing behind that counter for forty...
My Grocery Budgeting Successes and Failures of the Week
Today is supposed to be about cooking and eating on a budget, but things didn't go so well this week. The week started pretty good but then went off the rails because we had guests this weekend, and once again, our snack cravings got the best of us. Let's take a look...
An Authentic Italian Meal Twenty Years In The Making
Twenty years ago, I sat down at a table in suburban Toronto and ate a meal that would forever change my perspective on Italian food. Up until that point, all I knew of Italian cuisine was the heavy meat sauce and garlic bread my mother would make once every couple of...
Homemade Roasted Vegetable Panini – Without A Panini Press
Do you dream of eating a delicious panini whenever you want but don't own a panini press? Get ready to have your dreams come true. Today, I am going to show you how to make a homemade roasted vegetable panini without a panini press. How are we going to do it? You'll...
