Healthy, French, Home-cooking, always fresh, (almost) no cream required!
This is about simple cooking for my kids away from home, family and friends and friends of friends. Not quite recipes, just inspiration.Often, no exact quantities, certainly no scientific potions, but a bit of magic and lots of love! and you could always ask for more details.
Share my love of cooking, enjoy the Pacific West Coast bounty and help me pass along the French Heritage from my Grand-mothers and my Dad who taught me.Salt and Pepper
Even when I don't say so, use Baleine sea-salt and fresh ground pepper from your Peugeot pepper mill, goes without saying!
Author Archives: thecookingfrog
Crown Roast of Pork with Lemon and Herb Paste.
This recipe makes for a very festive roast with original flavours without taking too much time to prepare. I seem to find this cut of pork easily around Christmas and Easter locally but any good butcher should be able to … Continue reading
Posted in Main Course, Uncategorized
Tagged Crown roast, moist and tender pork, pork roast
2 Comments
Katherine Jones’ King Apple Chutney
This recipe was written down by Katherine Jones of Victoria at my request after I served her Chutney at a dinner and all the guests wanted to know about the ingredients, not believing me that it was apple chutney. She … Continue reading
Posted in Little help from my friends, Side, Vegetarian
Tagged apple chutney, food, king apple, recipe, recipes, verygoodrecipe
2 Comments
Tender but Crunchy Asparagus on Sunday Brunch to fight the hang-over!
Asparagus is in season at last in the Pacific North-West. I have been wanting to replicate the fine local fresh asparagus I ate in Provence at my brother’s about a month ago but my experiment with Mexico grown spears was … Continue reading
Posted in Appetizer, Vegetables, Vegetarian
Tagged Asparagus, food, recipes, verygoodrecipe
3 Comments
Red Lentil Tandoori Dahl with Eggplant to serve with Easter Lamb
It all started about a month ago, Valentine’s day to be exact. I was serving dinner for three couples and the theme was red. So, there I was looking at a bag of split red lentils and wondering how to … Continue reading
Key Lime pie, Key lime is the key! Postcard from Key West
I thought nothing of driving 6856 km from Victoria, BC to Key West, Fl. in order to find an authentic Key lime pie, and the key, I discovered talking to the local experts, is the lime. You must use authentic … Continue reading
Posted in Dessert, Vegetarian
Tagged dessert, food, key lime pie, recipes, verygoodrecipes
11 Comments
Downton Abbey’s Dark Chocolate Bread Pudding with Salted Caramel Sauce
Last night, I was invited to dinner and showing of Episode 1 Season 3 of Downton Abbey, a casual Sunday night with friends. They roasted the Rosemary lemon chicken, a free range tender and tasty bird from Metchosin, raised with … Continue reading
Posted in Dessert, Events
Tagged bread pudding, caramel sauce, downton abbey recipe, food, recipes, verygoodrecipe
5 Comments
Orange Recipes for Halloween Dinner
https://thecookingfrogblog.com/2011/10/30/halloween-squash-or-pumpkin-au-gratin/ https://thecookingfrogblog.com/2010/05/06/carrot-salad-summer-crudite-may6-2010/ https://thecookingfrogblog.com/2011/01/31/roasted-yams-a-la-canadienne/ https://thecookingfrogblog.com/2010/11/02/soupe-a-la-courge-at-aux-chataignes-served-in-a-pumpkin/ https://thecookingfrogblog.com/2010/06/12/stuffed-orange-peppers/ https://thecookingfrogblog.com/2010/06/16/roasted-butternut-squash/ https://thecookingfrogblog.com/2011/03/31/blood-orange-tart-with-pistachios/
Posted in Appetizer, Dessert, Lunch, Main Course, Side, Soup, Starter, Vegetables, Vegetarian
Tagged food, halloween recipe, orange, recipes, squash, verygoodrecipes
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Thanksgiving Dinner with all the trimmings, Caramelized Parsnip and Carrot fries
For some curious reason, which I did not figure out, my Canadian family’s Thanksgiving dinner was hosted today, Saturday, in prime Haliburton cottage country in a solid wood chalet by chilly Lake Kushog (believe me, I actually had a short … Continue reading
Posted in Little help from my friends
Tagged food, parsnip, parsnip fries, recipes, thanksgiving dinner, trimmings, turkey, verygoodrecipe
4 Comments
Antipasto Pickle Preserves, a taste of summer to last through winter!
Although I have been eating this delicious antipasto since I moved to Victoria nine years ago, I never knew how to make it. Then last month, I was given the original list of ingredients from Grandma O’Brien by her grand-daughter … Continue reading
Posted in Appetizer, Little help from my friends
Tagged antipasto, antipasto preserve, cast iron pot, cookingfrog, food, foods, Le Creuset, recipe, recipes, verygoodrecipe
1 Comment
Quick Rock Crab Cakes
It had been a long day sailing from Ucluelet through Clayoquot Sound on the way to Hot Springs Cove. 48,7 nautical miles, most of those on the big Pacific open Ocean on the West Coast of Vancouver Island, in swells … Continue reading
Posted in Appetizer, Starter
Tagged Clayoquot Sound, crab, crab cakes, food, recipe, recipes, Rock Crab, Sea otter, seafood, verygoodrecipe
4 Comments
2012 Fawn growing fast, eating all my flowers and bushes
The doe must have heard that Jules the Jack Russell terrier was no longer on duty here in Victoria BC, since he got a transfer and huge promotion in March as guardian of the orchard in the Garden of Eden. … Continue reading
La Bouillabaisse de l’Oncle Jean-Louis
Bouillabaisse used to be the soup of the poor in the port of Marseille. You simmered the bony rock fish abundant in the Calanques in a vegetable broth and added better fish according to your budget. It means boiling on … Continue reading
Posted in Main Course, Soup
Tagged bouillabaisse, bouillabaisse provencale, fish soup, food, marseille, recipe, recipes, rock fish, soupe depoisson, verygoodrecipe
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BC Spot Prawns on Local Greens
The spot prawns were so tasty! They were a gift from the Forbes family, owners of Critters Cove Marina in Nootka Sound on the West Coast of Vancouver Island. I think that I must particularly thank the boys, Bryce and … Continue reading
Posted in Appetizer
Tagged Critters cove marina, food, Nootka sound, Prawns, recipe, recipes, spot prawns, verygoodrecipe
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Salsify in garlic butter to satisfy the most delicate palate
I was very surprised today when I saw a familiar vegetable from my youth in France, something I had not seen ever again since emigrating to Canada almost 30 years ago. This root vegetable is slightly larger than a carrot, … Continue reading
Posted in Vegetables, Vegetarian
Tagged food, French cooking, recipe, recipes, root cellar, root vegetable, salsifies, salsify, very good recipe
1 Comment
Roasted Pork Tenderloin, wrapped in bacon, more tender and moist
Sometimes you need a nice dinner that does not require a lot of work, maybe after a long day of skiing or a long day period. Most of the time spent on this recipe is roasting time, during which you … Continue reading
Refreshing Arugula Salad
This salad was prepared for a potluck and served after a multitude of delicious dishes. We thought that people would eat very little after the gourmet meal but, surprisingly, the digestive benefit of this salad was evident as soon as … Continue reading
Posted in Little help from my friends, Starter
Tagged aragula, arugula, arugula nutrition, arugula salad, vegetarian, very good recipes
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Black bean salad to replenish your magnesium!
Black beans are very rich in magnesium, a very beneficial mineral and they make a delicious warm salad in about five minutes. It is a wonderful menu item on a day when you are home-bound by a snow blizzard as … Continue reading
Posted in Lunch, Side, Vegetarian
Tagged black bean magnesium, black bean salad, black beans, canned beans, cider vinegar, very good recipe, warm salad
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Cream or not Cream of Wild Mushroom Soup
Saturday, I picked wild white chanterelles in the pouring rain and tonight the forecast is warning against frost. The Indian Fall is not that hot this year and I am making mushroom soup to warm up. The best way to … Continue reading
Posted in Soup
Tagged chanterelles, chanterelles soup, food, mushroom, mushroom soup, recipes, soup, verygoodrecipe
4 Comments
Lapin à la Moutarde de Dijon
This recipe is a family staple that I have wanted to feature for a long time. The delay was caused by the extreme difficulty that faced me trying to assemble the ingredients. A little bit of cream is no problem, … Continue reading
Stuff the pork loin to take on a picnic!
I don’t know what got into me when I offered to give a pound of chanterelles to all the friends who would help me with a pledge for The Run For The Cure, coming up October 2nd. But It is … Continue reading
Posted in Lunch
Tagged chanterelles, food, pork loin roast, recipe, recipes, run for the cure, stuffed pork loin, stuffing pork, verygoodrecipe
2 Comments
At the Lavender Farm
A visit at the Lavender farm in Sanichton on Vancouver Island is a rejuvenating experience. The field is incredibly beautiful with the blooming lavender plants ( of a rich, dark, lavender colour of course) and the fragrance goes right to … Continue reading
Voodoo doughnuts earns Guinness record for biggest box
Good things come in pink boxes and the larger the box the better. The largest box of doughnut ever just earned Voodoo the Guinness record last Saturday. Of course, the box was pink! I happened to be there a few … Continue reading
Posted in Events
Tagged doughnut, doughnuts, food, guinness record, news, portland, Voodoo doughnuts
1 Comment
Sour Cherry Jam
Sour cherries (or griottes in French) make the best jam of all fruit, and that has got to be true because no one would bother with the small sour cherries at all thinking of the work of removing the stems and pitting … Continue reading
Posted in Stuff
Tagged cherry jam, food, griottes, jam, recipes, sour cherry, sour cherry jam
4 Comments
Peppers of all colours
The Bell peppers are really sweet right now. They are sweetest in July/August when they can fully ripen before harvest. The local red, orange and yellow peppers are the sweetest of all and they also contain the most vitamin C, … Continue reading
Posted in Lunch, Main Course, Vegetables
Tagged bacon, bell pepper, cooking, food, green pepper, orange pepper, recipes, red pepper
2 Comments
Rare bright red lobster looks cooked but it still lives…
By Greg Burchell (from the National Post July 06, 2011) When a Quebec grocery store opened a shipment of lobsters, one of the crustaceans looked like it had already been boiled and was ready to eat — until it started … Continue reading
Heirloom Tomato Salad
It used to be that there were no really good tomatoes until the middle of summer, the kind that ripened on the plant in dry heat under the hot sun. They were firm, really red, sweet but with still a … Continue reading
Posted in Starter, Vegetables, Vegetarian
Tagged basil, food, French tomato salad, heirloom tomato, recipes, shallot, verygoodrecipe
2 Comments
Wild fiddlehead and fresh Fava bean salad
Tis the season to get in the woods and pick edible greens. Fiddleheads (or crosses de fougères in French) are a delicious vegetables full of vitamins. They must be picked while they are still completely rolled up, and only the … Continue reading
Posted in Starter, Uncategorized, Vegetables, Vegetarian
Tagged crosses de fougeres, fava beans, fiddleheads, food, goat cheese, recipes, salad, verygoodrecipe
2 Comments
French Crêpes are always fun to make!
February 2nd is Chandeleur day in Europe, it is a day of purification after winter when all candles are lit in celebration. It marks the end of winter and was officially the first day of the sowing season. Hence, the … Continue reading
Posted in Baking, Dessert
Tagged candelmas, chandeleur, crêpe, crepes, dessert, food, french crepe, verygoodrecipe
6 Comments
Oysters not quite Rockefeller, a nice treat for Mother’s day
Not that we are necessarily poorer up North in Canada, it is just that our local Pacific Fanny Bay oysters are usually sold shucked and not in the shell. So no way to bake them on the half shell. It … Continue reading
Posted in Appetizer, Main Course
Tagged fanny bay oysters, food, oysters, oysters rockefeller, recipes, verygoodrecipe
2 Comments
Iles Flottantes, the floating islands
Floating Islands is the name you would see on a restaurant menu. Most kids would actually request “oeufs à la neige” (eggs à la snow or beaten egg whites), the more popular term. Both names come from nature, neither are … Continue reading
Posted in Dessert
Tagged dessert, floating islands, food, iles flottantes, oeufs a la neige, recipes, verygoodrecipes
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South-Western Cuisine Class by Andy Food
I travelled all the way to Phoenix for this cooking class (not quite…), and considering the unexpectedly cool temperature and heavy rain, standing behind the furnace was actually the place to be. First, we got a lesson on different peppers’ … Continue reading
Leg of lamb roast with goat cheese & grainy mustard stuffing
Supermarkets in North America are having giant turkey sales for Easter. They could give it to me for free and I would not want it. I cannot celebrate Easter without a spring lamb roast. We used to have the full … Continue reading
Posted in Main Course
Tagged food, lamb roast, leg of lamb, recipes, stuffed leg of lamb, verygoodrecipe
4 Comments
Blood orange tart with pistachios from the Globe & Mail
End your meal with blood orange and pistachio tart LUCY WAVERMAN Globe and Mail Published Tuesday, Mar. 22, 2011 Ingredients 2 cups water, 1 cup sugar, 2 blood oranges, thinly sliced, 1 cup shelled pistachios, ½ cup unsalted butter cut into pieces, ½ cup sugar, 1 teaspoon grated … Continue reading
Posted in Baking, Dessert
Tagged blood orange, blood orange tart, food, pistachio, recipes
3 Comments
Poulet Chasseur
The morels are not out on Vancouver Island and this is a good time of year for recipes with white mushroom. I found some baby white mushroom the other day at the grocer and that put me in the mood … Continue reading
Posted in Main Course
Tagged chicken hunter, food, poulet champignon, poulet chasseur, poulet saute chasseur, recipes, verygoodrecipe
2 Comments
Soupe de moules aux légumes (mussels in vegetable soup)
Months including an “R” is the best time to eat shell fish, the saying goes. This is not only a safety recommendation, the hot months have no “R”, but also a matter of taste. The colder the water, the better … Continue reading
Posted in Appetizer, Lunch, Main Course, Soup
Tagged food, French mussels recipe, mussel soup, mussels in sauce, recipe, recipes, soupe de moules
4 Comments
Topinambour, the Jerusalem artichoke now called sunroot.
The French is topinambour, in English it used to be the Jerusalem artichoke but stores are now calling it sunchoke or sunroot, maybe because it is neither from Jerusalem nor a member of the artichoke family. It is a tuber … Continue reading
Posted in Vegetables, Vegetarian
Tagged food, jerusalem artichoke, recipes, root cellar, root vegetables, sunchoke, sunroot, topinambour, verygoodrecipe
6 Comments
Steelhead trout
Winter is not the best time for fresh fish selection and this week the only choice was Steelhead trout. That was the reason I bought it, that it was fresh. I had not expected it to be so good. In … Continue reading
The Caviar of the poor, it’s eggplant!
I have been thinking about old family recipes, traditions I could pass on. This one came from my Aunt Marie-Paule, born in the Savoie region and a pharmacist in Paris for most of life. She bought her own small community … Continue reading
Posted in Appetizer, Vegetarian
Tagged caviar, Caviar d'aubergine, eggplant, eggplant caviar, food, French cooking, french cuisine, recipe, recipes
4 Comments
Slow cooked beef shank with tastes from Provence
Doesn’t “Slow cooked beef shanks” sound a lot more complicated and fancy than “beef stew” or “boeuf bourguignon”? Well it does, but it is not! This is a very easy to cook dinner with incredible flavours. The meat is tender … Continue reading
Posted in Main Course
Tagged Beef shanks, beef stew, boeuf bourguignon, fennel, food, french beef stew, Julia Child, provence stew, recipe, recipes, slow-cooked beef, verygoodrecipe
6 Comments
Edamame, Avocado, Beet salad : satisfy your winter craving for greens
If you scroll down all the way to the bottom of this page, you will notice a new “calorie counter” in the bottom right corner. It is very neat as it will tell you not only calories, but also all … Continue reading
Posted in Starter, Vegetables, Vegetarian
Tagged avocado, beets, calorie counter, Edamame, food, high fiber salad, recipe, recipes, vegetarian salad
4 Comments
Sable fish and Scallops on hazelnut pesto with sepia ink rotini and fresh hedgehogs
It is not heart shaped nor red but I think that plate could make a very successful Valentine’s day dinner if you are lucky enough to celebrate. Fresh sable fish, sometimes called black cod, has just arrived to Vancouver Island … Continue reading
Posted in Main Course
Tagged black cod, food, hazelnut pesto, pesto, recipe, recipes, sable fish, scallops, valentine's dinner, verygoodrecipe
4 Comments
Quiche with spinach
There is a good idea for a quickly prepared impromptu lunch. Pretty much your regular “quiche lorraine” recipe with added spinach. We had that today with a fresh beet salad on the side. It was a perfect winter lunch. For … Continue reading
Roasted Yams à la Canadienne
You might think that yams are sweet enough, but… if you are Canadian or leave in Canada and have to go through the Canadian winter, you might think that you can’t get enough calories from vegetables alone to keep you … Continue reading
Posted in Vegetables
Tagged food, maple syrup, recipes, roasted yam, Vegetables, vegetarian, verygoodrecipe, yams
3 Comments
Green Bell Peppers stuffed with Fava bean Tahini
It all started at For Good Measure, my local bulk store and a great place. I bought two cups of dried fava bean, because of a sudden craving for bean salad. I was very careful with the fava beans as … Continue reading
Posted in Vegetables, Vegetarian
Tagged bell pepper, Fava bean, food, for good measure, recipe, recipes, stuffed peppers, tahini, vegetarian, vegetarian peppers
1 Comment
The best home-made comfort food is Lasagna!
Home-made lasagna is just enough work that you feel rewarded for serving a healthy home-made dish without incurring too much trouble, especially with the ready to bake pasta now available at all grocery stores. This is the point of this … Continue reading
Posted in Main Course
Tagged comfort food, food, home-made lasagna, lasagna, oven ready lasagna, ready to bake lasagna, recipes
2 Comments
Red Swiss chard, a Vitamin K trove.
This is a really nutritious green vegetable and unlike kale, rapini and collard green, it is tender, exquisite and quick to prepare. The green is not really Swiss, it was just called that originally to distinguish it from French Spinach. … Continue reading
Posted in Vegetables, Vegetarian
Tagged chards, food, recipe, recipes, swiss chard, verygoodrecipe, vitamin K
4 Comments
Quick chicken thighs en cocotte
I just don’t feel much like eating these days, don’t feel like cooking. There has just been too many good meals, too many “French” (5 courses) menus, way too many cookies, chocolates and other treats. It felt somehow expected and … Continue reading
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