Jack Keaton's

I was never one of those girls to order a salad and to tip-toe around a burger. I like real food. I love barbequed food. I love ribs, and pulled pork. I do enjoy my fancy shmancy quinoa and kale salads, but there will always be room in my heart for a slow-roasted half rack of baby back ribs. Always.

I discovered a restaraunt in Regina and I've been there twice now, but will definitely be going again. Jack Keatons BBQ & Grill didn't sound like the kind of place I could eat, but it is. Their BBQ sauce is gluten-free, and although they don't have any gluten-free bread, the only non-sandwich main I couldn't eat was meatloaf. The sides were a little more difficult, out of the eight or so normal options, I only had three GF options.

 The first time I went, I was starving, so I ordered the sampler plate, and I still took home some leftovers. 

Quick Meals - Slow Cooker Dump-Pot Soup

Well, the new year is not everything I hoped it would be. I haven't done a lick of baking, I haven't blogged much so far, I still don't have much energy, and I'm still crazy busy. We're only ten days in, sure, but I just feel like I've failed the last ten days.

I have been cooking, though! Sort of... I've made two dinners in a slow cooker this week. One of them turned out fantastic, and the other was so-so. So what was so fantastic? My dump-pot soup, that's what. I basically took everything I had lying around and threw a bit of it in the slow cooker.

I started with a pound of ground beef, and added some water and cooked it on low for four hours. When I was home for my lunch break, I added some more. Two tomatoes, some spinach and half an onion went in the food processor before going in the slow cooker. I also minced two cloves of garlic, and added a bay leaf and some oregano for spice. I tossed in a tiny slice of dehydrated jalepeno, and a few baby potatoes sliced thinly.

In hindsight, I should have left out the potatoes. I was thinking that the soup needed something with consistency, but the potatoes left it feeling like a really thin stew.

It was really tasty though, and even tastier the next day after the soup sat in the fridge.

Jerry's Artisan Burgers & Gelato

I'm quick to say a place is my favourite, but this place is my favourite. First of all, gelato. I shouldn't have to say more, but this place is so amazing, I do.

I was pointed towards Jerry's the first time, because I expressed a need to have ice cream, and M's new flatmates said there was a gelato place not far from their house. They have two display cases filled with ice cream, gelato and sorbet, all made by them. I did have a hard time finding two gluten-free chocolate-free gelatos, for my friend (who has a chocolate allergy) and I, but that is a little bit specific, so I don't blame them.

On my second trip there, I noticed their billboard advertising a gluten-free friendly menu, and a sign saying breakfast was served until two pm. I'm a serious lover of breakfast at all times of the day.

EE Burritos in Saskatoon

This weekend, I finally got a chance to go back to EE Burritos. M & I went there in February, before I was diagnosed, and I haven't managed to get back since. I remember loving the food, but I had no idea how they were for gluten-free.

EE Burritos is this little restaurant on the corner of Ave P & 22nd St. It's not exactly a nice area, and as far as I understand, Ave P has quite the reputation. The restaurant is in a strip mall, and entering it is a little weird. They also host a small Latin American grocery store, so you enter into that, and the restaurant itself is to your left. The dining room is large, with several tables and a bar, and enough room to easily maneuver between the tables.

La Bamba Cafe in Saskatoon

On Sunday, my husband, best friend and I had dinner at La Bamba Cafe. It's another one of those hidden gems. It's just off of 8th St, which is a busy thoroughfare, but the restaraunt is in a strip mall that includes a dry cleaner, a pet groomer, a confectionery, a dentist, and a Christian Science bookstore. It looks a little sketchy, and I questioned that I was in the right place, and then I wondered what I was about to walk into.

Shepard's Pie

I made Shepard's pie last night! I worked off of this recipe. This is honestly the first Shepard's pie I've ever made. I've had some at other people's houses a couple times, but my mom never made it, and I've never made it. I was kind of afraid of it turning out terribly, but it was actually really delicious. My one drawback was that it took a full hour to make, and I had to go out after work and buy some things, so I didn't start making it until six, and I don't really like eating dinner at seven.

I scaled this down a little bit, not exactly, just based on what we had on hand, and knowing how much we tend to eat. We still did have leftovers, though.

1 lb of ground beef
1 small onion, chopped
1 1/2 cups mixed frozen vegetables
1 lb baby potatoes
1 stick of butter, divided
1/2 cup beef broth
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
Salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 400F. Chop the potatoes roughly, and boil until tender (15-20 min). I leave the skins on, because hubby and I like mashed potatoes with skins, and it's easier, and has more nutrients.

While the potatoes are cooking, melt half of the butter (4 tablespoons) in a large saucepan over medium heat. Here's where I kind of messed up. I put the whole stick of butter in, and it started browning before I could get the onions in, but I think that made it way more tasty. I love browned butter. Saute onions in butter, and then add beef. When beef is just cooked, or almost cooked, add in the frozen vegetables. Here is where I realized I added too much butter, and needed 4 tablespoons still. So I strained off about 4 tablespoons of grease and fat.

Add salt, pepper and Worcestershire. Add some beef broth, and simmer on low, uncovered, for ten minutes. Add more beef broth as necessary to keep it moist.

Mash potatoes with remaining butter, or in my case, beef drippings, which made them super tasty too.

Spread beef mixture in dish, and spread potatoes on top. Rough up the potatoes with a fork so they brown well. Cook in oven for 30 minutes or until potatoes brown. You can broil for the last few minutes if necessary.

And bam! Yummy, manly food hot and ready to eat.

(I made this again, a few nights later. The second time, I went from memory. I managed to get the butter in the potatoes, but I forgot about the Worcestershire sauce and beef broth, and I didn't bother to simmer the beef. Turned out yummy and tasty. Honestly not as tasty as the first time, but quicker, and still delicious. Photos are from round two.)

Arby's

Okay, so I caved... I bought a burger, no bun. My first. Well, sort of... I bought it at Arby's, and they don't really do burgers, they do sandwiches. So I got a pile of roast beef in a dish. And curly fries. And I know I shouldn't be eating the curly fries, I know they're not safe. So I was bad. Sue me. But I crossed another fence and that's a good thing.

So the verdict is... It's pathetic. So sad. But at least the guy at Arby's was really nice about it and didn't make me feel like a loser.

Obviously half of that tray is not for me, but the half that is is pretty sad, huh?

The real verdict is, that it tasted alright, and in a pinch, it would curb my fast food craving. I'll probably go again, and maybe ixnay on the fries, because I know that was a bad idea. Oh, and I should google their cheese sauce and see if I can eat that, because cheese sauced roast beef would be a wee bit less pathetic.