On the Menu: January

Hello, hello. One of the things I've really been enjoying about life since coming up here is finally having the time to cook my own meals and also having a kitchen that can support that goal. While sometimes I don't have all the time that I'd like to prepare (especially during the weekdays), having a gas stove, a tidy kitchen and the will-to-cook has really helped. So, I'd like to share with you all what's been cooked up in my kitchen this month. We'll see if I can present to you folks some different, exciting dishes each month. Here we go:

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On the left, we have a Cherry Tomato & White Wine Pasta along with some green beans & red capsicums (bell peppers). The pasta was inspired by a recipe that I saw online for a simple sauce with crushed cherry tomatoes and capers. Instead of the capers, I threw in some onions and a splash of wine. I also used fresh tomatoes rather than the ones from the jar that the recipe suggested. Turned out pretty well I think with a very light, palatable flavour. On the right, there's a bowl of corn chowder that I made from a recipe on epicurious.com. I had done this a couple years back (you may or may not remember this Darren) but it came out a bit too watery. This time around, I added a good amount of corn starch to thicken it up to be more chowder-like in consistency without changing the yummy taste. I made a huge pot that, thankfully, has lasted for a very long time. Yum.

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So there you have it. That's one of the meals that I've prepared for myself during this first month of the New Year. Tune in (sometime) next month when I bring you another wonderful dish from my kitchen! Cheers!