Food With A Point

I leave you with this recipe at the start of the long weekend, hoping that you will take full advantage of the time and the bounty of the market. As the Quebec strawberry season has just begun, I found this twist on a classic (strawberries and black pepper are very French) more than appropriate. Having made a few batches this week, I can attest to their delicious nature as well as addictive potential...

There are no measures, because it depends on the quantity you want to make. The idea is that the other ingredients highlight the beauty of the strawberry, so go easy and then adjust halfway through the maceration if required.

• Ripe Quebec strawberry, preferably organic, washed, leaves removed and sliced
• Really, really good quality balsamic vinegar
• Freshly ground black pepper
• A wee bit of sugar

Place your sliced strawberries in a bowl. Add about 1 tablespoon of balsamic and a couple good grinds of black pepper and maybe a teaspoon of sugar per handful of berries. Stir the lot together and leave on the counter for 30 minutes. The strawberries will release some juice and this amazing alchemy of smoky, sweet, spicy, almost fizzy from fermented fruit will occur. I serve these over plain or vanilla yogurt, vanilla ice cream, plain frozen yogurt (click here) atop shortcake, alone...

It is highly recommended you make copious amounts of this. It's chic and delicious and different - what more could you want from a simple and seasonal dessert?

I love asparagus and right now, I think that's all I'm eating. I'm also eating every variety in sight as last week, Mr. Birri’s organic, locally grown stalks of perfection were a treat and this weekend I consumed the first wild versions I spotted at Nino’s. Steamed, grilled, roasted, sautéed are all the ways I love to eat them and couldn’t possibility commit to one preparation or style of presentation. Anyway goes. In order to help you fully grasp the wonderful flavour potential of this vegetable, here are some affinities it has with other food items:

• Butter, cheese, olive oil
• Miso, sesame
• Chervil, lemon, tarragon, parsley
• Eggs, chicken
• Pasta, rice or risotto,
• Seafood, white fish
• Tomato, fresh peas, onions, zucchini

In this series, I seek to share wonderful food and wine pairings I’ve experienced. That’s not to say that you: won’t propose something different, haven't had better, or will want to disagree completely. What it means is that in the circumstance that I was in, with the company who shared the feast and considering the sentiment I wanted to evoke, I experienced a magical moment that I’d like to make known.

Someone flipped me a bottle of Pinot Gris from Oregon, a 2005. Normally, this is not the type of wine I would gravitate to because it tends to be too fruity for my palate,  but I was more than willing to be open-minded and try this new world gift.

There is a lovely mineral nose on the wine with an undertone of melon – but without all that sweetness. Its got some body and a long warm finish, making it quite interesting considering it’s a white wine. It's refreshing and sturdy at the same time.

Spicier, but not necessarily spicy foods, are considered a good pairing for Pinot Gris, as is seafood and light meats. I decided to be a bit adventurous and take those base elements and put my twist on it.

I had some Caciotta cheese from the Fromagerie Atwater. This is a hard sheep’s milk cheese that is crusted with black peppercorns and olive oil. This ingredient has a smoky spiciness and there is a bit of richness but not in a creamy way. Interestingly, the wine loses some of the melon flavours and the minerality is enhanced whereas the cheese seems to lose the sheep’s milk flavour but the olive nuances come out a bit more. It’s lovely, really.

In light of this attempt, I officially decree that being adventurous can yield intriguing results. I would summarize this risk as a conversation pairing, thus perfect for your next dinner party al fresco.

Next time you buy Oregon Pinot Gris, consider a Caciotta cheese– I found it delightful.

This is a snack, a light lunch component or a pick-me up whenever.

• A slice of quinoa bread (Premiere Moisson)
• Some Delice de Vougeot cheese (Burgundian cream cheese available at Fromagerie Atwater)
• Sun-dried cherry tomatoes cured in oil, preferably Italian
• Black pepper
• Basil, parsley, dill, whatever green herb you have on hand, chopped
• A fresh red tomato sliced (See Mr. Birri at the Jean-Talon Market)
• Balsamic vinegar - the serious stuff, the one that costs $10+ at least

Toast bread. Spread with Delice de Vougeot. Place a few (these are pungent, you only need 2-3) sun-dried tomatoes on  top. Grind some pepper on top. Sprinkle tartine with chopped herb(s). Cover the top with overlapping slices of fresh tomatoes. A drizzle of balsamic vinegar. Eat, ideally alone so you can really enjoy the moment. Vraiment, c'est super.

As per my post on grass fed bison this week (click here), I guess the next logical step is to share the bison burger recipe I helped make at Laura’s house. Perhaps it seems that there are but a few ingredients yet remember that when everything is impeccable, there is no need for much for your meal to be spectacular.

• A little more than a pound of ground bison
• 1 egg
• 8 sprigs of thyme, leaves only
• 1 large shallot ,finely minced
• A couple healthy pinches of salt
• A nice handful of Panko (Japanese breadcrumbs, but you can use regular) 
• Ground black pepper to taste
• 5 good dashes of Wochestir… whatever that sauce is called

Optional:

• Hamburger buns of your choice
• Cheese of your choice

Place all ingredients in a mixing bowl. Roll up your sleeves. Combine ingredients with your hands until they come together and not more, otherwise you’ll have tough burgers. Form your burgers, about five patties, and place on a plate. As your barbecue heats up, keep the burgers in the fridge so they can set up.

While Laura expertly cooked the burgers (I’d venture to say this is the secret ingredient), we set the table and made the accoutrements. We toasted some whole grain buns, the kind you get from a bakery and not from a bag, in the oven. Then we sliced some smoked Gouda. A bottle of ketchup and some grain mustard got placed on the table and we were ready. Assembly of the final product was dependent on personal preference but the general consensus was very much a “wow”. Tender, juicy, seasoned and yet so healthy. I envision numerous evenings of the sort in the future. Hopefully I am invited again to do so at Laura's house.

And because we were so reasonable with our mains, even if it didn’t feel like it, we compensated by indulging hazelnut ice cream and cassis sorbet for dessert… We are so on the cusp of summer...

Now that Passover has begun, many people everywhere are dipping their Matzo (unleavened bread) into haroseth. Passover is when Jews around the world commemorate their exodus from Egypt – a time when they had to flee so quickly, they didn’t even have time to let their daily bread rise. Haroseth is a typical food eaten during this holiday and is meant to represent the mortar that the Jewish slaves used to build the Pharaoh’s pyramids. There are numerous recipes for haroseth, it all depends on where in the world the person who is making it originates from. I learned to make haroseth from Frida, a very fiery albeit diminutive Egyptian woman, making this a Sephardic version. What’s nice about this recipe is that it can be made at all times during the year and used as a jam on nut breads or even as a base for pork glazes.

• 500 grams of boxed dates, pitted 
• 500 grams raisins
• 1 cup water
• 300 grams sugar
• 2 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1 to 2 tbsp vanilla
• Chopped walnuts

Chop the dates and place them in a saucepan with the raisins and the water. Mix together, set on a burner over medium heat and cover. Cook the mixture until the dates have virtually dissolved and the raisins are plump and also cooked and really soft. Add more water if necessary to ensure the dates and raisins don’t burn. Once cooked through, remove from the heat and when cool enough, pass the mixture through a food mill (above is Frida in action with the mill she brought with her from Egypt over 50 years ago). Return the mixture to the saucepan, add the sugar and turn on the burner to medium heat. Once the sugar has dissolved, cook a good 15-20 minutes until it becomes a homogenous jam. Remove from the heat and add the lemon juice. Taste to ensure it has a balanced flavour – not too sweet. Add more lemon juice to taste. Finish by adding vanilla to taste.

At the Passover table, the haroseth is placed it bowls and topped with chopped nuts.

As a marketing student, I know that there is nothing worse than having a brand that people don’t know about. Awareness is the first step to recall and then hopefully purchase. Unfortunately, there are numerous vegetables that suffer such a fate and I feel that I should be using this space to rectify the situation and to encourage you to add them to your consideration set. One such vegetable is the turnip.

The turnip is a small to medium sized root vegetable that is available year round and has it’s peak between October and March. However, during the Spring is when you can procure baby turnips and those are worth the extra pennies for the short season we have them around. Contrary to the rutabaga which is bigger and have a yellow-tinged flesh, the turnip is generally white with a touch of purple near the stem. Because it’s part of the cabbage family, it has a mild mustard bite but the small Spring turnips also have a sweetness to them. The smaller they are, the easier they are to prepare because they don’t need to be peeled. You can eat them raw, sauté them or toss them in stews and soups. I like to braise them and towards the end, throw in fresh peas, asparagus, green onions, parsley and a touch of mint for a side dish that screams Spring!

Here are some other flavour affinities for turnips to consider:

• Curry, marjoram, thyme, ginger, paprika
• Duck, lamb, pork, bacon
• Lemon, vinegar, cream
• Onions, potatoes, garlic, parsnips, tomatoes

I’m obsessed with fresh cod and for that I blame Alonso at Pintxo (see my April 2008 newsletter). That was the first restaurant where I had it prepared the right way. But once, I made the mistake of making cod at home… it was a mistake only because the odour of fish post preparation permeated my small abode for a good two weeks and drove me absolutely insane. From that point on, I vowed that cod was to be eaten everywhere else but at home. Since then, every time I would go to the fish market and see fresh cod behind the glass, I would have to fight off that feeling of longing, knowing what the consequences of acquiescing would be. Then I discovered the “papillote” technique.

“En papillote” means to cook in paper – you seal the food in a parchment paper envelope. In my case, I use foil. It works the same way as long as the same rule is applied in both situations – ensure that the package is completely sealed. Once your package is filled with whatever you want to cook, you fold the edges over each other to close it off and make it hermetic. Another principle is to add some liquid to the package in order for the steam to help cook the items. Everything else is fair game, whatever you like gets shoved in, sealed, cooked, eaten and the bonus – very, very few dishes. And, it can be really healthy depending on what you put in.

So here is who it went for me and the infamous cod, for one person. If you want to make more, just make more pouches of the same.

• Preheat the over to 425°F.

I took foil because it’s easier to contain the ingredients as it holds it’s shape during the assembly and the liquid won’t seep out from flat edges.

• 5 very small red skinned potatoes washed and very finely sliced.
• 1 small French shallot, sliced into thin rings
• 2-3 tbsp of white wine (or water or fish broth)
• 4 oil-cured Kalamata olives, coarsely chopped
• A couple capers
• 1 3-4 oz fresh cod filet
• 3 cherry tomatoes sliced in half
• Olive oil
• Salt and pepper
• Lemon

Take your foil and shape it into a bowl type vessel. Place the sliced potatoes in an even layer on the bottom. Top with the onion rings. Add wine, olives, caper and then layer the cod filet on top. Add the tomatoes, letting them fall where ever they may. Drizzle with a little bit of olive oil, salt and pepper to taste and then seal the beast. Make sure that the package is closed off and there are no holes or openings (check the corners especially).

Place your package on a baking sheet and then in the oven. 10-12 minutes later, you’ve got dinner. Open carefully because the steam can burn. A bit of lemon on the side is all it needs. I served this with roasted green peppers but any veggie will work. If you are extra lazy, you could just add green beans to the same package.

Not only was my dinner stupendous but I was not reminded of it for the next two weeks – other than when I recalled how tasty it was!

More often than not, simpler is better. With this in mind, I present my new favourite snack, made with my new favourite cheese and my new favourite honey. Three ingredients = perfection.

Take a piece of nut bread, I am particular to the walnut-rye baguette from Le Fromentier, which is made on Tuesdays and Fridays, and slice into medium pieces. Layer a piece of Lincolnshire Poacher Cheddar (see my April 2008 newsletter - click here) and drizzle some mint honey* atop. Consume.

This post need not be longer – once you make it, you’ll understand the wonders of simplicity.

* Available from d’Anicet which makes organic and unpasteurized honeys, available in most good stores

It's very rare that I bake anything well. So when I do, and it passes the test of the numerous people I submit to my samples, I think it's important to pass on these recipes. Essentially, if I made it and it's good that means it's more than foolproof...

Here is a great loaf recipe that it super healthy, not time consuming and easy to make. It's from another recipe that I tweaked to reduce the sweetness and make a bit more interesting in terms of depth of flavour. Eat for breakfast or an afternoon snack. It's also great as a weekday dessert with plain yogurt. It seems to be at its best a few days after I bake it - almost as if it cures.

3/4 cup boiling water
1 cup roughly chopped dates (approx 16 Iranian boxed)
1/2 cup dried figs roughly chopped
1 tablespoon butter
1/4 cup molasses or orange marmalade
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 large eggs
1 cup quinoa flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup hand crumbled, toasted walnuts

Heat oven to 350°F.

In a medium bowl, pour hot water over dates, figs and butter. Stir and let the mix sit until lukewarm.

In another bowl, whisk molasses, vanilla, and eggs until combined. Add this mixture to the date mixture only once the date mixture is cooled (otherwise you’ll get scrambled eggs…).

In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Make a well in the center and pour in the date mixture. Add walnuts. Mix until just combined. Pour the batter into an 8” butter-greased loaf pan. Tap the pan once or twice on the counter to let the air pockets out.

Bake for 50 minutes or so; loaf is done when the top has risen and is nice and deep brown. Remove the bread from the oven and cool it on a rack for at least 30 minutes before serving. Slice and devour.

* I like to remove the loaf from the pan after 30 minutes to cool. Once I am ready to slice it, I return it to the loaf pan and start cutting into it – I find it easier to cut evenly and the slices don’t end up breaking in half.