Toasted Pumpkin Seeds

Currently I am overdosing on yummy, salty toasted pumpkin seeds. I'm making an assumption that they are a 'superfood'. They were incredibly easy to make. For this recipe, you need to start carving a jack o'lantern.

Ingredients:

• one pumpkin
• olive oil
• garlic salt

Methods: 

Preheat your oven to 325 degrees F. 

Remove the pulp and seeds from the interior of the pumpkin, and try to separate the seeds from the stringy bits they're attached to. Wash the seeds in a colander, then spread them out on a sheet pan covered in parchment paper to dry. You can dab them with paper towel to dry them faster. 

Drizzle the seeds with some olive oil (it doesn't take much), then spread them evenly over the surface of the sheet pan. Sprinkle the seeds with about a teaspoon of garlic salt, depending on your mood and taste. Bake the seeds in the oven until they are crispy and golden brown. I think that it took mine about an hour. to reach doneness. It's certainly one way to get your daily fibre intake.

Brined Pork Chops from the New York Times Cooking Column

These brined chops were moist and flavourful,  although slightly too salty for my taste. The NYT recipe called for fennel as an accompaniment, which I think would be delicious. I only had onions so that's all I used. It also called for allspice berries. I'm not exactly sure where one finds allspice berries. Perhaps in New York city.

Ingredients for the Brine:

• 1/4 cup kosher salt
• 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 2 bay leaves
• 6 black peppercorns, lightly crushed
• 6 allspice berries, crushed
• 1 teaspoon fennel seed
•  2 bone -in pork chops, about 12 ounces each

Ingredients for the Pork Chops:

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 large onion, sliced 1/4 inch think
• 3 or 4 trimmed fennel bulbs, sliced 1/4 inch thick (that's a lot of fennel )
• salt and papper
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1/2 teaspoon crushed fennel seeds
• 2 tablespoons chopped parsley
• a few fennel fronds

Methods: 

Make the brine by mixing 4 cups of water into the brine ingredients. Put the pork chops in a glass or plastic container and submerge the chops in the brine. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours or overnight.

Remove the chops and pat them dry. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees F. 

Place a skillet on high heat and add the olive oil. Brown the chops for 3 minutes per side, then remove the chops from the pan. Reduce the heat to medium high and add the onion and fennel. Season with salt and pepper and cook while stirring for about 5 minutes. Stir in the fennel seed and garlic and turn off the heat. 

Lay the chops on top of the fennel mixture and place the pan in the oven for 25-30 minutes.

When you serve the fennel-onion mixture and chops, sprinkle them with parsley and garnish with fennel fronds.  

Braised Beef with Feta Gremolata

If you like very well done beef, this recipe is for you. This comes to you from the Dairy Farmers of Canada. These are the individuals who produce the feta cheese portion of this recipe. Interestingly, the feta gremolata gives the rather stodgy flavour of the beef a substantial lift, elevating it to a fairly interesting cold weather dish. 

 Ingredients:

• 1 tbsp butter
• 2 pounds boneless beef blade roast ( I used a 3-pounder instead)
• salt and pepper
• 2-3 leeks (slice up the white parts only into 1/2 cm. discs)
• 1 blonde beer
• 1 bay leaf

For the gremolata:

• 1 cup of feta cheese crumbled
• 1/3 cup chopped parsley
• 1-2 tsp lemon zest ( I also added a tablespoon or 2 of lemon juice)
•  2 tsp pink peppercorns, crushed (or not, if you don't have these on hand)
• 1 chopped clove of garlic

Methods:

Preheat your oven to 325 degrees F. In a Dutch oven, (or other heavy pot with a tight fitting lid), melt the butter  on high heat and brown the meat on all sides. Season generously with salt and pepper, then pour the beer over the beef and top the roast with the leeks Cover the pot and roast in the oven for 2.5 hours.

Prior to serving, mix the ingredients for the feta gremolata in a bowl. 

To serve, place a serving of leeks on a plate, top with a slice of meat and garnish generously with the gremolata.

Autumn Quiche from the Dairy Farmers of Canada

This recipe was sent to me by my sister who found it on a Dairy Farmers of Canada website. You can use pretty much any type of cheese you like and any type of orange squash....Butternut, Acorn, Hubbard or pumpkin. It smelled great while baking. Tasted like quiche.

I'm not sure I've ever made a quiche by baking the piecrust prior to filling it. But it worked. If you decide not to pre-bake the crust, simply bake the whole thing for a longer period, about 40 minutes.

Ingredients:

• 1 pre-baked 9 inch pie shell
• 1/4 cup cooked bacon, sliced\1/2 cup squash, diced and blanched
• 1/4 cup white part only leek, thinly sliced and blanched
• 1/2 cup pear, diced
• 1 cup Brie cheese, diced
• 3 eggs
• 3/4 cup milk or 10% cream
• pinch of nutmeg
• pinch of cayenne pepper
• salt and pepper to taste

Methods:

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees F.

Fill the pieshell with the bacon, pear, vegetables and Brie. In a bowl whisk the eggs and milk/cream. Stir in the spices and salt and pepper. Pour the egg mixture into the pie shell and bake the quiche in the centre of the oven for 25-30 minutes. 

Dukes Cosmopolitan from Ina Garten's Foolproof cookbook

Several weeks ago I hosted Thanksgiving. I decided I wanted to make a festive drink for the occasion. That's where Ina Garten comes in handy. I highly recommend her Foolproof cookbook for surefire dishes,  and beverages that pack a punch. I made her version of Sidecars one Christmas Eve (highly successful). This time it was a Cosmopolitan that toasted the turkey.

Ingredients:

• 4 ounces freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 4 ounces Cointreau
• 7 ounces cranberry cocktail
• 7 ounces good vodka
• dash of raw egg white (optional)
• ice

Methods: In a pitcher, stir together the lemon juice, Cointreau, cranberry juice  and vodka. I didn't use the egg white. Fill a cocktail shaker half full with ice and pour enough of the mixture into the shaker to almost fill it. Then shake for a full 30 seconds before straining in to martini glasses. 

Fennel and Apple Slaw

If you like the distinctive flavour of fennel, you'll like this fresh-tasting salad. This slightly altered recipe is based on one found in the Autumn 2018 edition of Food and Drink magazine. I didn't have several of the ingredients that the authors suggested, so had to wing it. Where does one find juniper berries anyway?

Ingredients:

• 1 onion, thinly sliced
• 3 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• a teaspoon of Dijon mustard
• one large fennel bulb
• 1 - 2 apples sliced (depending on their size)
• 1/4 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley
• salt and pepper to taste

Methods:

In a small bowl, whisk the mustard, lemon juice and olive oil together. Wash the fennel bulb, cut it in half and remove the core and fronds. Thinly slice the fennel with a mandoline or sharp knife. Place it in a large bowl along with the thinly sliced onion, and parsley. Cut the apples in half and remove the cores. Thinly slice the apples, then add them to the bowl. Add the dressing and mix the ingredients well. Add salt and pepper to taste. 

Chicken Francese from the NYT Cooking Column

This yummy chicken dish is from Julia Moskin of the New York Times Cooking column. Over the years, I have figured out that lemon and chicken pair well, and this recipe seconds that emotion. The recipe serves four, but I halved it for my husband and myself, and I still had leftovers. I guess we're delicate eaters. The other change I made was from necessity. Unbelievably, I had no white wine in the house, so substituted a small splash of white vermouth.

Ingredients:

• 2 eggs
• 2 tablespoons milk
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground pepper
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/3 cup olive oil
• 1/3 cup vegetable oil
• 4-6 large boneless skinless chicken cutlets
• 6 tablespoons butter
• 1 lemon sliced thinly with seeds removed
• 1/2 cup dry white wine
• juice of one lemon
• 2 cups chicken stock
• 3-4 tablespoons minced parsley

Methods:

Whisk the eggs, milk, salt and pepper in a shallow bowl. Place the flour in a separate shallow bowl.

In a large skillet, heat the oils over medium heat until shimmering. Lightly dredge each cutlet in flour, then dip them in the egg batter, allowing the excess to drip off. Fry, turning once, for 4 minutes per side. Do not crowd the pan. Transfer the cutlets to a paper towel lined pan as they finish browning and repeat the process with the remaining the cutlets.

When all the cutlets are done, remove the oil from the pan, wipe it out and return the pan to low heat. Add 3 tablespoons of butter to the pan, add the lemon slices and saute until brown around the edges. 

Remove the lemon slices, then add the additional butter, wine and lemon juice. Boil for 3-4 minutes until syrupy, then add the stock and cook for another 5 minutes. Reduce the heat and return the cutlets to the skillet. Heat through, turning the cutlets in the sauce. Place the lemon slices on top and sprinkle with chopped parsley.

Fruit Squares

I was thumbing through my mother's recipe cards for inspiration when I came upon a recipe in her hand writing, which I remembered fondly. I know that is a confusing sentence but both the fruit squares and her handwriting are, in fact, remembered fondly. The special ingredient is the biscuit mix I think, which gives the squares a certain 'seventies' vibe. Now, if only I could find her recipe for jam buns.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup of granulated sugar
• 1/4 cup butter or margarine
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup of Tea Bisk/Bisquick
• 3 cups total of chopped dates, maraschino cherries, mixed fruit, raisins, walnuts or coconut (use whatever mixture of these fruit and nuts that you prefer)
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• about a cup of butter icing flavoured with vanilla or almond extract

Methods: Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Mix the sugar, butter and eggs well. Then add the Tea Bisk/Bisquick, the 3 cups of fruit and nuts, salt and vanilla.  Stir until well mixed, then place in a greased 9 x 9 inch pan. Bake for 30-35 minutes. Cool and ice with a simple butter icing flavoured with vanilla or almond extract. 

It's Thanksgiving Day in Canada

Happy Thanksgiving

Cranberry Sauce

Bubble, bubble, no toil, no trouble.....

Cranberry sauce is a traditional accompaniment to turkey and looks very nice on the table in a clear glass bowl. You can buy the sauce in a tin at the grocery store but it's very easy to make your own sauce with either fresh or frozen cranberries. These ruby fruits come in a bag, and the recipe is frequently right on the package. If not, use the following:

Ingredients:

• 3 cups of fresh or frozen cranberries
• 1 cup of white granulated sugar
• 1 cup of water

Methods: Place all of the ingredients in a saucepan on the stove over a medium heat, mix together and boil for 5 minutes or until the berry skins begin to pop. Remove from the heat and refrigerate. 
Makes about 2 1/2 cups. 

Such a great Canadian history lesson.... The birthplace of the original McIntosh Apple was Dundela, Ontario

The McIntosh apple, possibly the most ubiquitous apple in the world, had its roots in a chance discovery on small farm in Dundela, Ontario in 1811. As the story goes, while clearing his land near Prescott, John McIntosh stumbled across several apple seedlings, which he transplanted. One flourished and produced what we know today as the McIntosh Red Apple – or the simply, the ‘Mac’ John’s son Allen reproduced the tree through grafting and spread it throughout the region. Although damaged by a fire, the original tree produced fruit until 1906. The more than 300,000 McIntosh apple trees now growing in North America, and all the others in the world, are descendants of this single tree. (This info was drawn from the following link http://www.canadacool.com/location/dundela-mcintosh-apple/)

Two monuments commemorating John McIntosh and his apple now stand in Dundela. At the nearby Smyth’s Apple Orchard, which has 30,000 trees, visitors can taste a ‘Mac’ grown in its birthplace. I was at Smyth's apple orchard today and am somewhat embarrassed to say that I did not buy any Macs. However I did buy some Spy and Cortland apples, which in my view are better for pie-making, cheddar cheese, cider, and a great big ol' tub of cinnamon honey butter. 

E.D. Smith Pure Pumpkin Pie

Why mess with something as tried and true as the E.D. Smith recipe for pumpkin pie? After all, this company has been canning pure pumpkin since 1882. Pumpkin is what they do.

Canadian Thanksgiving is early this year, so I've been getting a head start on the big dinner by making a few staples ahead of time. And pumpkin pie is clearly a staple. I doubled the recipe on the back of the E.D. Smith label to make two pies. Importantly, not all tins of pumpkin that you might find in your grocery store will be pure pumpkin, but will contain some form of sweetener and spices. So, beware.

Ingredients (for one pie):

• sufficient pastry dough for a single pie crust
• 2 eggs
• 398 ml (1/2 can of 798 ml) of E.D. Smith pure pumpkin
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup evaporated milk

Methods:

Preheat your oven to 425 degrees F. Beat the eggs lightly in a medium-sized bowl. Then add the pumpkin, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger and salt. Stir until well combined, then stir in the milk. Pour the filling into a prepared pie shell (as in, the dough has been rolled out and placed in a pie plate, edges crimped). Bake at 425 degrees for 15 minutes before turning the heat down to 350 degrees. Bake for another 30- 35 minutes longer until the crust is golden brown and the pumpkin filling doesn't wobble 

Lamb Steak with Lebanese Spices from NYT Cooking

I made two new recipes for dinner guests this week; this lamb steak recipe is one of them. This was a bit of a risk, especially because I had never used Lebanese baharat, a seven-spice powder and key ingredient in this dish. However, my anxiety about this meal was all for nought. The lamb was a hit. Yahoo!

Ingredients:

• 1 butterflied lamb leg, about 1&1/2 pounds , or 4 lamb steaks or chops, 6 ounces each
• salt
• 2 teaspoons Lebanese baharat 
• 4 thinly sliced garlic cloves, plus 1/2 teaspoon grated garlic
• extra virgin olive oil
• 1 & 1/2 cups of plain yogurt
• about a cup of chopped cucumber 
• 3 tablespoons chopped mint
• pinch of red pepper flakes
• 1 large bunch of rainbow chard, cut in 2 inch wide ribbons

Methods:

Trim the fat and gristle from the lamb and cut it into 4 equal pieces. Season the lamb on both sides with salt and the seven-spice powder. Drizzle the meat with olive oil and massage the spices into the lamb. Sprinkle the sliced garlic on to the meat, then cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least an hour, or overnight.

To make the 'yogurt sauce', place the yogurt in a mixing bowl and season it with salt. Stir in the cucumbers, mint, grated garlic and red pepper flakes.

Now, to the lamb. Heat a splash of olive oil in a cast iron skillet on medium high and add the lamb steaks when the pan is hot. Cook for several minutes until nicely browned then turn and cook for another few minutes. Remove the skillet from the stove-top and place it in a 400 degree F oven to finish cooking. The length of time you leave the meat in the oven will depend on the thickness of your steaks. Mine, which ultimately were cooked to medium rare, were in the oven for close to 10 minutes. Alternatively, you can cook the meat under the broiler. After cooking, let the lamb rest for 10 minutes beneath a foil tent before cutting.

While the lamb is resting, put 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a skillet over medium high heat. When the oil is hot, add the chard and 1/4 cup of water. Cook for 1-2 minutes until just wilted.

Carve the lamb in 1/8 inch slices against the grain. Serve with the chard and yogurt sauce. I also served mashed turnip, as a second strongly flavoured vegetable accompaniment to the lamb.

Re: The Seven Spice Powder

Shortly after reading this New York Times recipe, I just happened upon a store that sold baharat. I'm not sure that it is available in most North American grocery stores. However, you can make your own by combining the following: 1 tablespoon ground black pepper, 1 tablespoon ground allspice, 1 tablespoon ground coriander,1 tablespoon ground cumin, 1 teaspoon ground cloves, 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon and 1 teaspoon nutmeg.