Kung Pao Chicken Chow

One of Brian's favorite meals to order at Earls is the Chicken Hunan Kung Pao. I've only had a few nibbles off his plate, but quickly concluded it's silly to be paying $17.75 for one serving of Asian food made in a non-Asian restaurant, so I set out to make my own version! The greasiness of the restaurant dish is what disturbed me most. Nobody likes to go home feeling like there's slimy cooking oil sloshing around in your belly. My recipe uses barely any oil at all - in fact, the only oil used is for cooking the ginger, garlic and chili peppers. The vegetables are steam-fried, a method I learned from watching my mom (no wonder she's such a skinny mini!), and the chow mein noodles are not fried in oil, but heated up in an oil-free sauce. Hope you enjoy the non-greasy version as much as I do! 


At the restaurant, they allow you to customize spice by adding 1-6 hunan peppers. My first attempt at this dish was so spicy, Brian raised the white flag after about 4 mouthfuls. Despite having a solid laugh over his spice-induced sweaty looks of panic, I felt terrible he went hungry that night, and it took some time before we were ready for me to give it another go. A few trials later, I've settled on 3.5 to be our magic number - 3.5 dried red chili peppers is what goes into this recipe, but feel free to adjust up or down to your taste! 

Serves 4 
You will need two frying pans - one with a lid, and one without. 

• 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• Chicken Marinade: 
• 2 tbsp soy sauce
• 2 tsp vinegar
• 1 tsp dried red chili flakes
• 1/2 tsp ground pepper
• 1/2 tsp ground coriander
• 1 pkg (450gr) of soft chow mein egg noodles (you can use fresh noodles, or dried noodles - if dried, use 7-8 bundles)
• 1 carrot
• 1 small red bell pepper
• 1 small zucchini
• 1 large handful of snow peas (approx 25-30)
• 4 green onions
• 6 cloves garlic 
• 2 inch section fresh ginger
• 3.5 small dried chili peppers (more or less to taste)
• 1/2 cup roasted unsalted peanuts
• Sauce (make 2 sets - one for noodles, one for chicken & veg - of the following): 
• 2 tsp corn starch
• 1 tbsp white sugar
• 1/2 tsp cayenne
• 1/4 tsp ground pepper
• 2 tbsp soy sauce
• 1/2 tsp sriracha
• 1 tbsp vinegar
• 2 tsp hoisin sauce
• 1/4 cup water
• garnish: fresh cilantro or sesame seeds

Trim any fat off chicken breasts and slice into bite-size strips. Add marinade ingredients to chicken, mix and set aside in fridge. Can be marinated hours or a day in advance. 

Bring water to a boil in a large pot (enough to cook noodles). Start on the vegetables while the water is heating up. 


Wash and prepare all vegetables (carrot, red pepper, zucchini, zucchini, snow peas & green onion), peeling, trimming ends, removing stems and seeds where necessary. We want the vegetables to be julienned or sliced matchstick-style. Start by slicing the whole vegetable into quarters, so you have four approx 2-inch sections to work with, then slice into even strips, resembling matchsticks.  Set aside. 


Once pot of water has reached boiling, cook noodles according to package instructions. Strain and set aside. 


Keep a large bowl or plate near the stove as you will be cooking ingredients separately, then setting them aside in this bowl until everything is ready to be combined.


Mince together the garlic, ginger and dried chili peppers. Heat a small amount of oil in a large frying pan over high heat. Add minced garlic, ginger and chilis. Cook for a few minutes, stirring, til fragrant and edges of garlic turn golden brown. Remove from pan and set aside in the bowl as mentioned. 


Using the same large frying pan, toast peanuts for a few minutes over medium heat. Do not add oil to pan when toasting. Once toasted, remove from pan and set aside in bowl. 

Again, using the same frying pan, and without adding oil, add marinated chicken over high heat. The moisture from the marinade will keep the chicken from sticking to the pan. Stir for a few minutes until cooked through. Remove from pan and set aside in bowl. 

In separate bowls or containers, make 2 sets of the sauce by combining all sauce ingredients and mixing well. Set both sets of sauce aside. 

Now it's time to cook the matchstick veggies. Heat the frying pan with a lid over med-high heat (do not add oil). Starting with the carrots as they take the longest to cook, add them to the pan along with half a cup of water, cover with lid and let steam-fry for 1min. Add all remaining matchstick veggies, add more water if the pan is dry, and cover with lid and let steam-fry for another minute. Remove from heat and using the lid to hold veggies in place, strain any excess water. 

Stir up one set of sauce to mix pour into pan with cooked veggies. Add the garlic, ginger, peanuts, and chicken reserved and set aside in bowl to the veggies. Cook over medium heat for a 3-4min, stirring so that all ingredients are coated in sauce. Remove from heat, cover with lid and set aside until noodles are ready. 

Stir up the second set of sauce, then heat up in a second pan over med-high. Add noodles and stir until coated (I find it is easiest to separate the noodles and coat evenly by using wooden chopsticks at this point). Add more water and/or soy sauce if the noodles look dry. Keep noodles over heat for 4-5 min or until hot. 

Serve Kung Pao chicken and veg over noodles. 

Option: garnish with fresh chopped cilantro or sesame seeds. And keep a bottle of sriracha handy for those who don't find this hot enough! 

Strawberry Spinach Salad, Balsamic Vinaigrette

Summertime!! The BBQ's hot and the meat's a-sizzlin.. Beat the heat and pair your grilled goods with this sweet and refreshing salad! 


This salad isn't just pretty to look at... These ingredients combined form quite the nutritional powerhouse. Strawberries are full of vitamin C and manganese, spinach is full of vitamins K and A, almonds are rich in vitamin E, magnesium and manganese, while avocado acts as a nutrient booster, helping your body to better absorb the goodness in all of these ingredients! 

Yield: 2 servings - Double up the recipe for 2 big bowl salads!

• Dressing: 

• 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 1/2 tsp white sugar
• 1/2 tsp tarragon 
• 15 unsalted almonds
• 3 cups spinach, packed
• cucumber
• 4 large strawberries
• 1 small avocado

Stir all dressing ingredients together in a jar or glass. Cover and refrigerate. 

Slice almonds, each one roughly into 3 pieces. Set aside. 

Measure out 3 cups of spinach, packed, and distribute evenly onto 2 salad plates. 

Very thinly slice as much cucumber as you want in your salad. The more cuke, the more crunch! I slice paper thin, then halve them into semi-circles. Toss cucumber with spinach to mix. 

Wash ripe strawberries and pat dry. Remove stems and hull. Slice, then arrange over spinach and cucumber. 

Slice avocado in half and remove the seed. Slice each half in half, then carefully remove the skin from the flesh. Place avocado flesh in a bowl of cold water for a minute (the cold water bath will ensure the avocado doesn't turn brown). Remove from water, and slice each quarter into 4, then arrange over salad.

Sprinkle sliced almonds over salad.

Remove dressing from fridge - it will have thickened somewhat - and give it a stir or a shake. Drizzle as much or as little as you'd like over the salad and serve!  Optional: garnish with a few leaves of fresh mint if you have some. 

Dad's Apple Pie

Ok, this recipe's not so much my dad's as it is for my dad since he loves apple pie more than anyone. For as long as I can remember, he's always been on the hunt for the best apple pie - not too sweet, not all jammy and gooey, tons of apples, and delicious crust of course. It's been rough times as it seems the world is full of mediocre pies that don't meet dad's standards. Last summer, one of my best friends had a few convenient slices of apple pie left over as B & I were passing through Kelowna. We jumped on sampling, and since it was a hit with B, I snagged the recipe, cranked out a couple of test pies, and dad's been fully on board ever since!

This is definitely not a low-fat, healthy recipe. After various miserably failed attempts, I still have yet to find any substitutes for the fatty ingredients, like shortening and butter, and still achieve a perfect flaky pie crust, so this pie remains a bit of a treat, to be made only on special occasions, like Father's Day (and birthdays and Chinese new year, in my case)! Get creative and decorate the pie according to the occasion or just how you're feeling! 

Yield: 1 pie

• Crust: 
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tbsp sugar
• 6 tbsp butter
• 6 tbsp shortening
• 6-8 tbsp ice water
• Filling:

• 1 tbsp fresh lemon juice  
• 5 granny smith apples (or any tart apple of your choice)
• 3/4 cup sugar (reduced from 1 cup)
• 2 tbsp flour
• 1 tsp cinnamon (increased from 1/2 tsp because cinnamon is the best!)
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar

Start with the crust. Warm butter in the microwave until it is soft, but not melted.

In a large bowl, mix together flour, salt and sugar. 

Add butter, shortening and ice water to the mix, and cut in using a dough blender. 

Use your hands to push the dough roughly into a ball. Do not knead, just push together to form ball. 

Transfer dough to a sheet of plastic cling wrap and wrap dough completely. Place in fridge for at least 20min or more while you move on to preparing the filling. 

Filling time! 

Fill a large bowl with cold water and 1 tbsp of lemon juice

Peel, core, and very thinly slice apples. Be sure to slice the apples uniformly as thin as you can (I try for as close to paper-thin as I can manage), and they will bake evenly and wonderfully! 

Soak the sliced apples in the lemon juiced water to prevent browning. Soak as you slice - Place sliced pieces immediately in the water, and once you've finished slicing your last apple and soaking those pieces briefly, strain apples in colander. 

Using the now emptied bowl, mix together remaining filling ingredients from sugar to apple cider vinegar. 

Add drained apples to the mix and toss well to coat. Using your hands at this point will help to evenly coat the apples. 

Back to the crust! Remove from plastic and divide in two, wrapping up the 2nd half and placing back in the fridge for later use. 

Using a rolling pin, roll the 1st half out to about 1/8th of an inch thick, on a clean, floured surface. To peel the dough off your surface and transfer to a pie plate, slowly wrap the dough around your rolling pin, using a knife to assist in peeling off the surface as you go. 

Unroll crust onto pie plate and shape to fit to inside of pan. Use a knife to trim any excess dough off the side of pie plate. 

Using a fork, poke holes into the bottom of the crust to let steam and juices out as the pie bakes. 

Pile all apple slices into pie. Spread evenly. If you are a cinnamon fiend like me, sprinkle top of apple pile with more cinnamon :)

Take the 2nd half of the dough from the fridge and roll out, peel and wrap dough onto rolling pin, as before. Unroll over apple pie. Using a fork, press the prongs down on the edges of the pie to seal the edges, and create a simple pattern. Again, trim any excess dough off the side of pie plate. 

Preheat oven at 400°C. 

Roll out any extra dough and cut shapes and designs out to decorate the top of your pie! 

Bake for 55min. 

Tip: Place a aluminum foil lined shallow pan or baking sheet on the oven rack below the pie (not on same rack as pie) to catch any juice that bubbles out and avoid making a mess in the oven! 

Cool on a rack after baking. Enjoy on its own, or with a scoop of ice cream. 

flower design

dad's nickname for father's day pie

chinese character for "luck" - chinese new year pie

a peach, symbolizing longevity - chinese new year pie

stickman couple - anniversary pie

Bombay Quinoa with Peas & Kale

My hero! B was in Seattle a couple weekends ago, paid a visit to one of our favorite finds, Market Spice, and brought back a good amount of our favorite Bombay curry powder, along with a few other spicy treats! Curry spices have so much depth and are so versatile, limiting them to curry dishes would be a shame! Try incorporating curry spices in meat marinades, homemade salad dressings, pizza seasoning, the list goes on...!


When dreaming up a quinoa side-dish, I wanted to add a savory dimension and my Bombay curry pow did not disappoint (any of your favorite curry powders should work just as well)! Since quinoa is protein-packed, this dish is filling enough to serve as vegetarian main. 

Yield: 2-4 servings

• 1 1/4 cup quinoa (2 1/2 cups water)
• Quinoa spices: 

• 1 tsp bombay curry powder
• 1 tsp turmeric
• 1 tsp ground coriander
• 1/2 tsp cumin
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 cups frozen peas 
• 3 cloves garlic
• 1 small onion
• 1 bunch kale
• 1 1/2 tbsp margarine or butter
• 1 tbsp bombay curry powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp ground pepper
• Sauce: 
• 3/4 cup skim milk
• 1 tbsp bombay curry powder
• 1/2 tsp ground pepper

Measure quinoa out in a pot, along with all quinoa spices, then add water. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce to low-med, cover, and set timer for 15min. After 15min, remove from heat and let stand for 5min. 

Meanwhile, measure out 2 cups of frozen peas to set aside and let thaw slightly. 


Mince garlic. Thinly slice and dice onion. 


Wash kale, remove leaves from stems, and rip leaves into bite-size pieces. 

Heat margarine in a frying pan with a lid over med-high heat. Add garlic and onion, stirring for 3min. Add kale, curry powder, salt and pepper and stir for another minute. Reduce to medium heat, add peas, cover and let cook for 4min. 


Meanwhile, stir all sauce ingredients together in a small bowl. 


Fluff cooked quinoa, and add to kale mix in frying pan. Reduce to low-med, add sauce, stir to combine everything, cover and let simmer for 5-10min. 


Can be served immediately or cooled to warm. Salt and pep to taste.

Chipotle Chicken, Black Bean & Corn Wraps

Mmm I love the smoky heat of chipotle peppers.. so uniquely different from the taste of raw jalapenos! I like to bring out the smokiness even more by adding a smoky BBQ sauce to the mix. And since the mix is quite juicy, I pair this with a Spanish rice to help absorb the sauce and make your meal a little less messy! If you don't like Spanish rice, plain rice or quinoa works well too. 

These healthy wraps are quite filling - I'm good with one for dinner, B has two. This recipe yields 4-6 wraps depending on how much you stuff them! 

Yield 4-6 wraps

• 1 boneless, skinless chicken breast
• Chicken marinade: 

• 4 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce
• 2 tbsp BBQ sauce (I like smoky chipotle or Bull's Eye Guiness)
• 1 tsp apple cider vinegar
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• 1/4 tsp cayenne 
• leaves from 3-4 stems of kale (spinach works too, the point is just to get some greens!)
• 1 onion, divided
• 1 cup long grain white rice (2 cups water)
• 1 tsp cajun seasoning
• 1 tsp chili powder 
• 1/2 tsp ground pepper
• 1 6oz can tomato paste
• 1 15oz can black beans
• 3 green onions
• 1 1/2 cups frozen corn
• 2 tbsp BBQ sauce
• grated cheese for topping (I used colby-jack, but cheddar or mozza will do)
• 4-6 tortilla wraps (I like La Tortilla Factory's Smart & Delicious, Low Carb, HighFibre)

Trim any fat off chicken breast and cut into small chunks. 

Mince chipotle peppers, keeping some adobo sauce to use for the marinade. Add marinade ingredients to chicken, mix and set aside. Marinade and refrigerate well in advance if time allows so the flavor really sets in. 

Wash kale and rip leaves from stems/ribs. Set aside to let dry. 

Dice the onion, sectioning off 1/4 for the Spanish rice, and 3/4 for the chipotle chicken, black bean & corn mix. 

Heat a small amount of olive oil in frying pan with lid over med-high. Add 1/4 diced onion and stir for 2min. Add 1 cup long grain white rice and let toast for 2min. Add cajun, chili powder and ground pepper, and stir to mix for another 3min. 

Add tomato paste and 2 cups of water to the rice mixture. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low-med and cover with lid for 20min or until all liquid is absorbed. Once the rice is ready, remove from heat, and let stand 5min before fluffing. 

Drain and rinse black beans. 

Wash and dice green onions. 

In a separate frying pan with lid, heat a small amount of olive oil over med-high. Add remaining 3/4 of diced onion and stir for 3min. Then add marinated chicken and fry together for another 4min, stirring often. 

Add black beans, corn, green onion, and BBQ sauce to the chicken and onion. Stir to combine, reduce heat to low, cover, and let simmer for 15min. 

If you like warm wraps, heat them in the oven for 5min, wrapped in foil. 

Grate as much cheese as you'd like. 

Once everything is ready, it's time to assemble the wraps! I like to start with kale as the base of the wrap so the heat from the rest of the ingredients wilts the greens. Next, I do a layer of Spanish rice, then the chipotle chicken mix. Top with cheese, then wrap it up and enjoy!