Dinner by Six

Boneless skinless thighs and breasts are $10.52/kg at Loblaws on McArthur right now

That’s $4 less than Cistco’s regular price - a real deal!

Which, if any, cooking technique would you most like to see in a short video (e.g. less than 1 minute)?
🎥 🍞or🍲or🐔?

1. simple bread making
2. advanced Instant Pot use
3. perfectly cooking and storing an entire Costco package of chicken breasts for the easiest future meals

Let me know in the comments or by DM and I will make it happen!

*Grocery sale alert

Costco Biz Centre (on Cyrville- any member can shop there) had great discounts on boneless, skinless breasts ($6 off per package) and boneless pork shoulder ($5 off per package) yesterday. Presumably still going on today...

I picked up some of both because chicken breasts and pork shoulder are easy to cook to perfection and then freeze. Now that I'm not cooking for others, a Costco-sized package is enough extra cooked meat to stock my freezer with RTE protein for many future meals for the family.

Slow-roasted pork shoulder is so easy!! Generously sprinkle both sides of the roast with salt, pepper, garlic powder and onion powder and put a cup of water in the bottom of the pan to keep the meat well hydrated. Cover with pan tightly with foil and roast at 325 until you can pull the meat apart with a fork. It will probably take almost an hour per pound to get to that point. Let the roast sit in its juices to rest and cool before you pull it apart, removing extra fat and blood vessels. Leave larger chunks to freeze and pull into smaller pieces for BBQ pork sandwiches or to add to burritos, stir fry, chili, etc.
Pour the cooking liquid into a tall vessel and refrigerate until the fat solidifies and can be removed completely. Use the fat-free juices for gravy and to put into the freezer bags with the pork to keep it hydrated.

I'm going to cook the chicken now... instructions and photos to come

It was a gorgeous day for the Open Water Challenge on the Ottawa River yesterday.

Congrats to for this well-run and attended event 😀

My swim club was very well represented in this event. We have a deep bench spanning 50 decades including several 80+ female and male team members who are very competitive 🤩

Note the “Cathy Brooks’ Swim Angels” at the end of the line in white caps. These swimmers generously donate their time in order accompany the last of the pack ❤️

I had a great time in Gravenhurst, Ontario this weekend. I had never been to the Muskoka area before and it was so green and lovely.

If you get to Gravenhurst, and you like tea, I recommend the Blue Willow Tea Shop (Room?) near the steamship pier. There’s a dollhouse-like tearoom with lots of house tea blends, new and vintage tea sets for sale, a corner dedicated to Queen Elizabeth tea sets, tins and photos, AND yummy scones. They serve high tea too but I was there in the morning.

Hey everybody!

I just had the BEST weekend at the National Masters Swimming Championships in Windsor, Ontario with 30+ ultra-dedicated members and coaches from my masters swim club, Technosport.

I made a couple of batches of GF, high-fibre granola bars for the team snack on deck, and they were very well received. In fact, so many people asked for the recipe I have just posted it on my website for everyone.
www.dinnerbysix.ca/news

More about the swim meet:

Once again, our club came out with the most team points of all Canadian clubs - even clubs that brought more swimmers to the meet! There was also a large contingent of US swimmers, bringing a lot of exciting competition in all age groups to the sprint events.

There were some veritable swimming stars in the crowd, including Canadian Kurt Schubert and an American swim coach, who offers free online technique videos that I find really helpful (MySwimPro). Was a pleasure to meet you in the warm-up lanes Fares! 🤩

Swimming Canada and all of the dedicated volunteers made this really fun and exciting meet happen 👏 I particularly enjoyed chatting with Meet Referee Dave, from Hamilton. See you in Saskatoon Dave!

Hi everybody!

Can you believe it's April already? Sadly, it's time for me to put Dinner by Six "on the back burner" for the foreseeable future and pause the weekly Fresh Menu.

As many of you know, I have been looking for a new cook/location for Dinner by Six since last fall. Unfortunately, I was not successful and I have to turn my attention to other things at this point.

I’ll truly miss my long-time customers, who I got to know over the years. Thank you for trusting me to feed your families and for your patience when I tried new ways of doing things.

I’m also sorry to disappoint those who just discovered Dinner by Six and became "regulars" over the past couple of months. Thank you for taking the initial leap of faith to give the meal service a try!

Keep following Dinner by Six to receive any service updates or other information I share so you can cook and eat better!

I served the cranberry beef stew and dumplings tonight. I hoped the kids would like it; they like beef stew usually. 😋
I heated each bowl in the microwave - with 2 tsp of water and a plate on top - for 2.5 mins to get the dumplings light and steamy.

Verdict: one really liked it, the other didn’t, but she still ate it all!

It’s Saturday night!
Have you placed your order for next week yet? Sunday noon is the cut off.

Home - Order A weekly home-style fresh meal service in central Ottawa. Nutritious and delicious! Lots of plant-based protein options, container return...

Happy Thursday everyone!

Order now (or before noon on Sunday) from next week's Fresh Menu.

There will be extra vegan options next week as well as cranberry beef stew for the first time in a very long time 😋

www.dinnerbysix.ca

Happy Wednesday everyone!
March Break is coming up for lots of families and there is a problem with my oven, so it seems like a good idea to give Dinner by Six a break next week.
Sorry for the late notice, but the problem with my oven is going to take some time to figure out.

Happy Saturday everyone!
Have a wonderful weekend and make sure to order online before noon tomorrow if you'd like something from the Fresh Menu next week.

Home - Order A weekly home-style fresh meal service in central Ottawa. Nutritious and delicious! Lots of plant-based protein options, container return...

Happy Thursday everyone!
Here is the link to the Fresh Menu for March 5/6.
www.dinnerbysix.ca
Please order before noon on Sunday.

Have a great weekend!

Happy Thursday everyone!

I just posted the Fresh Menu for next week and am accepting advance orders until noon on Sunday.

www.dinnerbysix.ca

Thanks and have a great weekend!

I have a question for those who had the chicken and dumplings meal recently. The dumplings came out of the steamer perfectly moist but I wonder if they might be best served fresh, like a biscuit or scone....

How were the dumplings when you reheated them at home?

Your feedback is appreciated - thank you!

How does everyone feel about all-day breakfast? Is there any interest in a free-range egg meal option on the Fresh Menu every week?
Please let me know by email : [email protected]

Personally, I can really enjoy eggs as a comforting and healthy meal at any time of day.

My favourite egg dishes, which show up occasionally on the weekly Fresh Menu, are Greek-style Frittata and North African Shakshouka. They are both made with free-range eggs and are served with spinach salad and roasted potatoes (GF), or fresh bread, to make a satisfying and complete meal.

Happy Wednesday everybody!
I have a few meals left for purchase at this time. Pick-up only.
Please DM me if you are interested in any or all of the following:

2 servings of Tandoori-style chicken legs and thighs with brown rice pilaf and cucumber raita (GF) $25

2 servings of tilapia with tomato-caper sauce and brown rice pilaf (GF) $30

2 servings of the roasted pepper, chevre and herb frittata with roasted potatoes (GF) $20

2 servings of the vegan lentil Shepherd's Pie (GF) or with bread $20

2 servings of the vegan lasagna with bread $20

I should post pictures too but I'm in a rush...

Reminder: I'm taking next week off from the kitchen but I will post the link to the Fresh Menu for Feb 27/28 for advance orders.

Happy Saturday everybody!
Don't forget to place your order online before noon on Sunday, if you would like to order for next week.
Also, please remember that there will be no Fresh Menu the following week (Family Day Week/Reading Week).
www.dinnerbysix.ca

Happy Friday everybody!

Here's a link to next week's Fresh Menu.

Please order by noon on Sunday.

www.dinnerbysix.ca

That's it for advance orders this week :)

If I have any extra meals available for purchase, I will post them here on Wednesday.

I've included a photo of the menu for the week, for your reference.

Enjoy your Sunday!

Happy Saturday eve everyone!
I hope you are well on your way to either a fun evening or a relaxing one!
I'm going for the latter in order to make swim practice in the morning :)
Here is your gentle reminder to order by noon tomorrow for next week, if you intend to order.
I have to cut off advance orders at that time in order to plan, organize, shop etc.
Thanks and enjoy the rest of your weekend!

Happy Thursday everyone!

* Please note: I'm taking week of Family Day (Feb 19) off so there will be no Fresh Menu that week*

You can order now from next week's Fresh Menu. If you would like to order, please do so before noon on Sunday.

www.dinnerbysix.ca

FYI, the chicken and dumplings was a request from my daughter for her birthday dinner next week. Kids love this dish!

Update: I'm sold out of meals now
I will post a link to next week's Fresh Menu tomorrow (Thursday)

============================

Happy Wednesday everybody!
I had a very productive session in the kitchen this week and I have extra meals available.
Email me ASAP at [email protected] to reserve your servings because the webstore isn't ready yet.

Available for pick-up now until Friday:

Flavourful meatloaf with garlicky mashed potatoes and roasted Brussels Sprouts and carrots
- 6 generous servings left @ $17 each

Crispy tofu with veggie "fried" brown rice and side peanut sauce
- 3 generous servings left @ $15 each

Vegetarian mushroom and pumpkin lasagna (chunky mushroom sauce and pumpkin+cottage cheese layers topped with bechamel and Italian cheeses)
- 6 generous servings left served with fresh bread (today) and spinach salad @ $15 each