I love food. As long as I can remember I have been drawn to the flavour, aroma, smiles created and beauty that a simple plate of food can bring. This blog will celebrate the culinary delights that surround me, showcase local talent and highlight fun to try recipes. Come join me on my culinary adventure! Cheers, mangiare tutto, bonne santé!
Everyday when I wake up and am in my kitchen I turn on a tune, get into the groove and start cooking. This is how I set the tone for my days spent creating food. A good song can have me cooking, dancing, and enjoying all the heat and stress that a busy kitchen can bring. I had no idea how much music truly played into my cooking until the last two weeks where I was chefing at the Nova Scotia Choral Federation, Junior, youth and adult camp. Here I met AMAZING people, with beautiful voices, kind open hearts, and was introduced to a whole new world.
It's hard to fully explain what these two weeks consisted of. I have cooked for 200 people for weddings, hors d'oeuvres parties, special events but never a choir camp of kids, youth, and adults. I was also given the new opportunity to be surrounded by talented people joined for one reason, music. This was something special. To share and to invite you into a small bit of the world that I lived in for the last two weeks here are some pictures.
Before Sunrise:
5 am... headed to the kitchen to start breakfast. Beautiful to wake up to this view every morning.
The Kitchen and dining room in all it's glory. In a kitchen of this caliber and size I learned it's very important to be ready to run run run.. And to continuously hand out to popsicles to anyone looking dazed, confused or tired.
I must recognize my daring, hardworking and fun-loving kitchen help (7 Dwarfs, Simba and Marie) who kept me sane, smiling, and dancing. They peeled and chopped all the onions, carrots and potatoes in the world. (I fed them many popsicles, and taught them the lovely calming effect of a walk in fridge) Our menu consisted of Homemade Pizza (adventure and a half), Curried Chicken Pot Pie, Fresh made Soups, Cinnamon Buns, Fresh Corn Biscuits, Macaronie and Cheese (with pureed cauliflower so our lovley young campers had no idea they were eating veggies) That recipe is great and I promise to post it soon) Homemade canneloni and mannicotti che bella!) and much more tasty breakfast, lunch and dinners.
Good Monday afternoon. I hope your breakfast, lunch and dinners last week were filled with fresh flavours and tummy pleasing desserts.
Today I'm celebrating a slow but everlasting change that is happening here in Nova Scotia. Farm to table cuisine. What does this mean? Knowing our farmers, understanding their seasons, cooking from local ingredients, and appreciating the fact that we can be on a first name basis with our food and drink producers. In simple terms that is what Farm to table means to me, and here in N.S. we are lucky to have Nova Scotia Select to help relationship build between cooks and farmers.
This August Nova Scotia Select has been putting on IncrEDIBLE Picnics all around Nova Scotia. It’s a simple idea: Nova Scotians get together with family and friends to eat fresh, local food. When I was invited to participate in the IncrEdDIBLE Picnic hosted by Muir Murray Estate Winery my response was: YESSSS!!!! Food, family, friends, farmers, (wine) what more could a girl ask for. So I called up my great friend Chef Thomas and said "Hey you make amazing cured meat... I love baking Bread... and pickling is cool so let's work together and make a tasty picnic sandwich"
From that conversation came this result.
Pastrami Sandwich - Garrison Brew Beer Bread with Nova Scotia Pickled Beet Relish, Fresh Radish
-Let me break down the locality of this sandwich-
Meat - The pastrami was made from Beef Brisket from Oultons Farm, Homecured and smoked with a whole lot of love and other spices.
Bun - We used Garrison Brewery Hops that are bought local in N.S, sugar, and leftover yeast that was used to produce their beer to leaven and flavour the bread.
Relish - Fresh Nova Scotia beet relish home pickled!! (Check out previous blog for how it was made)
Radish - Pick up from a local farmers market in the valley on our way to Muir Murray. Sliced fresh and added to the sandwich for crunch.
The day was WONDERFUL! We left the winery with treats from local farmers and chefs, new friends and a satisfying feeling that the culinary/eating world is heading in a new direction.
I'm headed to the woods and river today. Off to cook and adventure in the wild wilderness. (Well not so much...) I will be "chefing" at a Choir camp for the next two weeks in the beautiful Valley. I'm not to sure whether or not I have internet so I wanted to make sure just incase I don't that you readers were left with a song and a few fun recipes.
Chocolate Chip Cookies - Good for picnics, walks on the beach, afternoon treats or evening desserts.
1/2 Cup Butter
1/2 Cup White Sugar
1/4 Cup Brown Sugar
1 Egg
1 tsp Vanilla
1 Cup Flour
1/2 tsp Baking Soda
1/2 tsp Salt
3/4 Cup Chocolate Chips
Directions:
Cream together 1/2 cup butter, and both sugars. This means you want the two mixed well together. The sugar and butter will become soft and the texture should remind you of Playdo or toothpaste. Add the egg and vanilla to the creamed butter and sugar. Mix well so that they are all fully combined. In a separate bowl mix together the 1 Cup flour, 1/2 tsp baking soda and 1/2 tsp salt and chocolate chips. Combine the two, always dry to wet. So you will add the flour mixture in with the butter mixture. Combine until smooth.
Bake at 375F for 8-12 minutes depending on how hot your oven is. Every oven is a bit different.
You can bake all the dough right away.(Should make 12 medium sized cookies) Or what I like to do is roll it into a log and freeze it in saran wrap. This way you always have cookie dough on hand for fresh baked cookies.
I hope that this recipe brings a smile to your face, and a bit of sweetness into your weekend. I'll be writing again soon. Fingers crossed for internet in the woods.
I love everything about the word and the task of preserving. I have to say though it's always nice to have a partner in crime when embarking on a preserving mission. This week my mission (which I chose to accept) was beet relish and tons of it.
Step one: Buy a butt load of beets (15lbs) and have the person at the farmers market counter laugh at you.
Step two: Take them home, boil until soft and then peel them. (Make sure you are listening to chipper music or your beet relishing may take on a very somber tone)
Step Three: Find a friend and have them grate all your beets back into a pot.
It is very important to continuously give this friend moral support while they are grating your 12 pounds of beets. I promised mine fresh baked beer bread and work on baking that as he grated.
( bribing works)
Step 4: Put 2 cups sugar in a large pot and begin to caramelize on low-medium heat. Once the sugar has turned light brown and is bubbling add 2/3 cup molasses and 1.5 cups Apple cider vinegar.
At this point do not stick your head in the pot and take a big whiff... You will probably keel over doing so.
Add the grated beets back into the pot, with 4 cloves of garlic for good luck.
Cook this down on the stove for around an hour on low heat stirring every 15min or so.
At this point it may be polite to offer your helper a cup of tea, coffee or another beverage of sorts for their trouble.
Step 5: Once the beets have cooked down and there is very little liquid left in the pot it is time to Jar. Make sure your jars have all been sterilized and boiled in water for at least 8-10 minutes to get rid of any bacteria.
Step 6: Reboil your jars for another 8-10 minutes once the beets have been added and you have tightly sealed the tops.
Step 7: Dearly thank your friend, give him beer bread to take home, maybe write a blog about it and spread the word on just how wonderful preserving can be.
Summertime. Hot, Humid, Beautiful rays of sunshine, scorching heat waves, and lemonade. This time of year speaks to crops coming to term, farmers hard at work, markets, fresh blueberries, nectarines, raspberries, tomatoes, cucumbers, corn. all lovely summertime fruits and vegetables.
Now the words i've used above are probably a fair description of most of your summertime weather.Unless you are living in Nova Scotia where we are having torrential downpours between days of gentle heat.
Please do not read my tone wrong in this blog. I am actually laughing as I type and hear the pitter patter of yet another downfall outside. The rain is not making me bitter, it is just giving me an excuse to buy colourful rain gear. With summer we take the good with the bad, as similar to recipe creation. Sometimes our recipes turn out great! Sometimes they fall a little short. But everyday is new.. and that is all part of the adventure.
Tonight to celebrate the summer that we've been missing, I want to share with you an old favorite. This salad I love to eat on a very hot afternoon, when the sun is so strong you sweat in the shade and eating anything seems like a chore. I promise when you taste the flavors in this salad eating will become fun.
Summertime Salad
- 3 Cobs Corn, Par Boiled. Boil the corn for 2 min with their husks on and then remove. If you boil the corn with their husks on you wont have a huge mess in your kitchen when you try to remove them. You also only want to parboil these because you will cook them the rest of the way on the BBQ
-
-2 Nectarines cut in half and pitted
- 3 Green onions
- 1 Yellow Zucchini cut lengthwise
Olive Oil
Salt/Pepper
To garnish before serving:
Fresh Basil, Lemon Juice, Olive Oil, Pepper
Place nectarines, green onions, cut zucchini and parboiled corn in a bowl. Drizzle with Olive oil, salt and pepper so that all ingredients are lightly coated. Fire up the Barbeque. *Please be kind to yourself... if you are in a heat wave do not barbeque them during the day you will hate me and be ferociously hot standing in front of the bbq. Wait!! Grill the evening before you want to serve the salad, enjoy the evening air and hopefully do this while drinking something enjoyable and cold*
Your barbeque should be on medium heat, make sure to give your barbeque a few minutes after you light it to come to this temperature. Do not just throw the fruit and vegetables on right away.
Grill the Nectarine, Corn, zucchini and Green onion lightly on each side turning every 2-3 minutes (The zucchini will be more like 1-2 minutes because it is thinner than the rest). You don't want to char them, you just want to have their natural juices release, light coloring and a hint of yummy bbq flavour.
Once the nectarines, green onion, zucchini and corn is nicely grilled take of the heat and place on a cutting board. Cut the corn off the husks and place back in the bowl. Next finely chop the green onion and mix with the corn. let the zucchini stay as is and place it in the bowl. No need to chop the the nectarine either. Now cover and let sit in the fridge overnight. The natural juice from the nectarine will combine with the more savory green onion, the sweet corn will play of the char of the zucchini. All flavours will play together nicely as it sits in your fridge overnight.
To serve: Place 3 slices of the zucchini in the center of a plate, place the nectarine skin side down on top and then scope the corn and green onion over the nectarine. Garnish wish fresh basil. either cut or ripped. Add a small drizzle of olive oil, lemon juice and fresh ground pepper . If you are feeling cheesy =)..... you can sprinkle some goats cheese, feta or even shaved Parmigiano Reggiano on top. If you are craving more of a lettuce based salad, use these ingredients to top your lettuce of choice. Last but not least if you are all about texture and want some crunch throw in some lightly toasted walnuts.
Alas, no salad for me this evening. I'd be washed out with the rain. Here's hoping that a sunflower and spot of tea inspire simple heat and good cooking for tomorrow.
Brunch brunch brunch brunch brunch. Just saying the word has a smile creeping onto my face. I love brunch. A time to be with friends, catch up on gossip from the previous evening, talk through weekly news, debate, enjoy the hair of the dog and eat yummy egg based foods.
This morning I had the company of 2 girl friends for brunch. We met and trekked downtown Halifax to Estia. This restaurant brings the flavours of Greece to life in their high ceiling, darkwood inspired dining room. The space is comfortable, not pretentious and each table offers clientele enough space to enjoy their meal while not feeling on top of the people next to them. (I also have a thing for high ceilings and dark wood bars)
The menu, above is the perfect size. Something for everyone. We started off with a Mimosa and Bellini. Sure to bring a hop, skip and jump into our mornings. The Bellini was lovely and definitely alcoholic. Made with fresh peaches, peach schnapps, Jost Prost, and cranberry juice. The mimosa straight up sparkling Jost Prost and orange juice (can't go wrong with an ol' fav) I also appreciate that they are using Nova Scotian wines =) High five to supporting local producers.
While the server gave us time to catch up and slowly pick our choice meals he answered questions, offered idea's of his favorite indulgences and was overall pleasant. After overhearing us talk about a few different restaurants he even offered tips on where else to eat in Halifax. Supper nice and cross-promoting which I always like to see in the industry. (Why can't we all be friends?)
As far as traditional breakfast go I was very pleased... Love the fried cheese and grilled tomatoes. Yum yum yum.
Then there was the Grecian Eggs Florentine with Feta Cheese Sauce. Sooo good and the eggs were perfectly cooked.
This came with Home Fries, and Fruit Salad. I would definitely go back for this. I was eating off my friends plate the entire time. I am lucky that she likes to share.
Last but not least at all the Loukaniko Omelette
Greek Sausage (mild with a bit of heat)
Feta Cheese
Grilled Tomatoes
Fruit Salad
The server was very patient and let us substitute homefries for fruit and toast. Understanding that some people were staying away from gluten at the table. He also checked up on us more than once just to make sure we were smiling and enjoying the many flavours on the table.
A wonderful way to head into a sunny afternoon. I'll be back to Estia to try their lunch and dinner. This has left a taste in my mouth craving more Grecian delights.
Tonight I taught a cooking lesson and it was fun!! I am sitting drinking lemon ginger tea and smiling having been reminded today of why I love food and teaching cooking lessons.
I was wrecked with nerves all day about this cooking lesson. Anxiously going over recipes in my head and double checking that I had all ingredients ready go to. The lesson was with a wonderful mother and her two lovely daughters (good friends of mine). For some reason cooking or spending an evening teaching a cooking lesson to good friends is always a little more stress provoking then for strangers. The ladies wanted to learn how to cook something flavourful, different from their eating norms, and that would bring them together as a family.
From this we decided on a Thai inspired dinner:
Culinary Lesson 1 Menu
Thai Shrimp Vermicelli Rice Rolls
Spicy Red Chili Mango Salad
Chicken Basil Coconut Red Curry
Jasmine Rice with Cinnamon
Lemon Grass Crème Brulée
The Ladies were absolute champions in the kitchen. Asking questions, taking turns, interested in every smell, sizzle, cut, and taste. It is so cool to be a part of someone else's adventure into food discovery.
After the ladies were done cooking a miraculous meal they invited me to stay and eat with them. A very generous offer. Usually after a cooking lesson I just pack up, leave and let the 'students' tend to their feast. This was something different. This was the best reminder of how food can bring people together. We sat with wine, chuckling, telling old stories (Back
when we were that age.....)
My favourit part of the meal was watching everyone crack into their creme brulee's. There is a magical pleasure that one gets while breaking through the caramel sugar crust and diving into the luscious smooth sweet custard. A treasure chest indeed. In the picture the creme brulee has yet to be caramelized.... They didn't last long once it happened.
So to go back to my original message of my blog this evening. Tonight I saw how food brought together people of different generations for one common interest, formed smiles, allowed indulgences, opened up new conversations, brought back old ones and built the foundation for a memorable evening. Thank you friends for allowing me to adventure with you in the kitchen and then follow through into the dinning room.
Waking up on a rainy Saturday morning can sometimes inspire blues instead of aspirations to get in the kitchen and cook. On Saturday I was picked up by friends and ventured to the Saturday morning market. I was in a bit of a funk at first but as soon as I ran through the rain and entered the doors of the Halifax Seaport Farmers Market my cooking adventure began.
First stop was Charcuterie Ratinaud Where we picked up: Duck Fat, Duck Proscuitto(specially ordered), Toulouse Sausage (Sweet/savory sausage) and Rabbit Rillette .
This set the tone for my brunch idea. Frederic the sole proprietor of Charcuterie Ratinaud talked through the flavour of his Toulous Sausage filling my tastebuds with inspiration. He described it as savory with hints of cinnamon, nutmeg, sage, wine... a softer sausage flavour without heat and he hinted that there may be a sweetness to it. I don't know why but as soon as he described this taste a vision of buttermilk, green tomatoes, skillets with hot oil,homemade country gravy, and Strawberry scones came to mind.
And that was that I was off to the races. This morning for breakfast that is exactly what we made. I hope this inspires you to try out your own Fried Green Tomatoes the next morning you wake up with a bit of rainy day blues.
Fried Green Tomatoes serving for 3-4 people. You will need:
3 Large Green Tomatoes, 2 cups butter milk, 1 cup semolina (cornmeal), salt/pepper and 2 cups canola or vegetable oil (Or enough to shallow fry, which means they will be half covered by oil in the pan. We added some duck fat to our oil fun, flavour and good health hahah.
Take your tomatoes and cut them 1/2 inch thick. Then put them in a bowl and pour the buttermilk covering them. Let them sit for a few minutes. Pour out the cornmeal onto a plate. You are going to then take the buttermilk soaked green tomato and place it in the cornmeal. Make sure that the whole egg is covered. Then place it in your pan, fry on medium until the outside is nicely browned.
I then used the fried green tomato as a base for our poached eggs, kale and toulouse sausage gravy.
You can eat them like this, by themselves, served instead of a starch like potato, sub in as vegetables... The world is your oyster when you have yummy green fried green tomatoes coming out hot of a skillet.
Oh and for all of you who haven't seen Fried Green Tomatoes the movie you should make yourself up a batch of these,curl up on the next rainy day and watch it!
The Kitchen and dining room in all it's glory. In a kitchen of this caliber and size I learned it's very important to be ready to run run run.. And to continuously hand out to popsicles to anyone looking dazed, confused or tired.
