When the children were growing up, during the time we lived in New Brunswick, we often drove across the border into Houlton Maine where we would go shopping.  This was really exciting for me because they had a Wal Mart there and Wal Mart hadn't yet made its way into Canada. I have always loved grocery shopping in the US.

 

We would leave our home early in the morning and not get back home until the evening.  This meant that we also used to go to the Elmwood Diner in Houlton for a hearty lunch.  This diner was exactly what you would expect for a small town diner.  The walls were covered with their dining specials handwritten out on paper place-mats.  The place was always super busy and the food was always super good.  I don't think it is in operation any longer, sadly.

 

I used to get either fish and chips, or a roast turkey dinner.  Those are my two favourite things when dining out, and nobody does them better than diners do.

 

I decided to recreate that dining experience today for Todd.  He has been working really hard in the garden and I thought he would enjoy the treat. 

 

I don't know many people who wouldn't enjoy a club sandwich . . .  its like a double decker sandwich on 3 slices of mayo spread toasted bread . . .

 

with layers of sliced cooked turkey, sliced ripe tomatoes, cheese  . . .

 

lettuce, crisp streaky bacon, sliced ham and more cheese  . . . 

 

I even made some coleslaw to go with it, only today I made a vinaigrette coleslaw.  That way the leftovers could be kept easily in the refrigerator, and I thought there was enough mayo in the meal with just the sandwich.

 

A coleslaw vinaigrette makes a nice change every now and again.  I will confess I am not fond of the coleslaw over here in the UK.  Its too gloopy and overloaded with mayo.  They don't do it well in my opinion.  There is such a thing as TOO much of a good thing, and they way over do the dressing.

 

Speaking of overdoing it  . . .  boy can you tell we are senior citizens now . . .  one sandwich would have fed the two of us amply  . . .

 

Neither of us could get through a whole thing.  The most we managed was half a sandwich each and we never touched the pan fries.  (Not to worry, I have an idea for those for tomorrow, watch this space.)

  

In any case this little taste of home put a smile on my face today and pleased Todd to no end!

 

Something happens to you when you get older.  You just can't eat like you used to.  I can remember when it was nothing to polish off one of these and a piece of pie to boot!  Not anymore, that's for sure.  I leave that kind of eating to the younger generation these days! 

 

If you are a Vegetarian or a Vegan, you might want to look away now.  

What follows isn't going to be pretty for you, however tasty it might seem to the rest of us. Sorry about that!

 

When I was a child I used to love it when my mom made us Egg in a Hat  (or Egg in a Hole) for breakfast.  It was a real treat.  

A lovely runny egg, cooked into a piece of golden brown buttery toast.  Oh boy was it ever yummy.

 

I've been thinking about that sandwich all week long and pondering how I could make it even better . .  . in a way that has never been done before.  

I think I might have cracked it! (No pun intended! Seriously!)

  

As you know at the weekend I like to pull out the stops a bit and give my husband a bit of a treat for breakfast on at least one of the mornings.  

When I first moved over here we would pop into town and go to one of the shops and have a fry up at their café.  We haven't done that in a long time now.

 

Grilled cheese sandwiches are something which we are quite fond of  . . .  we are also quite fond of bacon sandwiches . . .  a really rare treat . . .

 

Today I have combined our favourite grilled cheese . . .  using a really good strong cheddar, sliced (no plastic cheese here) . . .

 

with some grilled back bacon . . .  you could use streaky . . .  its up to you.  

I have been using the nitrate-free, free range bacon from the people at Naked Bacon.  So its not quite as bad for you as regular bacon.

 

Add to that a perfectly cooked large free range rspca approved egg with a runny yolk, cooked "in a hat" style  . . .  with that crisp buttery hat perched on top . . .

 

And I do believe you have a pretty darned near perfect breakfast sandwich! 

 

I did use a good whole wheat bread . . .  and I always use real butter . . . 

 

My husband  thought he had died and gone to heaven  . . .  he is a cheddar man all the way  . . .

 

 We like brown sauce with ours  . . .  some people like red sauce (ketchup)  . . . we are brown sauce people . . .

 

That egg was perfectly cooked  . . .  not too runny, but just enough of a gorgeous rich goo to sink your teeth into with pleasure  . . . 

 

Likewise the cheese  . . .  melted just perfectly  . . .  along with that salty bacon and that crisp buttery bread  . . .  which is kind of like fried bread when you really think about it.

  

It went down a real treat, let me tell you  . . .  a REAL treat!

 

I largely abstained from this myself  . . .  I don't need the extra calories in all truth.  I did have a tiny nibble from the edge.  My husband didn't mind.  He is used to eating food that has been sitting long enough to have photos taken of it, and nibbles missing.  LOL  Such is the life of the husband of a food writer!  Happy Mother's Day to all you North American ladies out there!  I hope you are treated really special today.  You deserve it.

 

I was wanting something fresh and crunchy to eat the other day, and then I remembered the Deli Kitchen Skinni Wraps I had in the freezer, so I took them out to thaw and started thinking about what I was going to do with them! 

 

We are always being told to eat a "Rainbow."  A mix of five or more servings of vegetables and fruits in a day.  I have heard as many as 8.  This can be a bit hard to do, but it isn't impossible, and your heart  and body will thank you for it! 

 

I love the Deli Kitchen Skinni Wraps!   The come in plain and multi grain. 

 

They truly are very thin and coming in at less than 100 calories per wrap, they are the wise choice for someone who is trying to low carb it and eat healthier! 

 

Plus they come in a handy packaging which boasts a peel and stick closure, which means they will stay fresh for longer.  They also freeze very well. 

 

They also boast a unique rectangular shape with a pointed end, which makes them perfect for filling and rolling up tightly, no matter what you choose to fill them with! 

 

As you can see I chose a variety of fresh veg to fill mine with . . .  courgettes (zucchini), carrots, red cabbage, mashed avocado, rocket, carrots and two colours of fresh peppers . . . . 

  

I spread a thin layer of hummus over each wrap before I added the vegetables and then I added the crisp and fresh veggies in rows . . .  a beautiful rainbow of colours and textures and flavours!  Because the mashed avocado is a bit wetter than the others, I chose to put it in the middle.

  

Mmmm  . . .  I love mashed avocado and this was lightly flavoured with tangy lime juice, which also helped to maintain it's bright green colour! 

 

I adore hummus also and this was perfect for the base on which to layer everything else.  You can make your own or use a good, well flavoured store brand.  I used a Lemon, pepper and coriander one.

 

Its just loaded with flavour and it is my favourite! 

 

I often eat hummus with crisp vegetables for dipping!  This was kind of like that in a tasty wrap! 

  

It looked really pretty when sliced . . . 

 

And those lovely wraps held everything in beautifully, making these easy to eat and enjoy! 

  

I love eating rainbows!

 

I love these Deli Kitchen Skinni Wraps, both the Multi Grain ones and the Plain ones.  Totally yummy!  You can buy them at Sainsbury's here in the UK.    Their delicious range also includes Sliced Focaccia, Plain Subwich, two kinds of folded flatbreads and three kinds of sandwich thins.  As a diabetic I do try to watch my carb intake most of the time and I have found these thinner, healthier options really helpful in doing that, plus they are also delicious.  I can have my sandwich and eat it too!  You can find their products in a variety of different shops, to find out which products are available where, do check out their website.