Delicious Meals - 3 course tapas style dinner

Do you ever have those nights when you crave many different flavours and textures but just can't decide on what to make? My advice - make them all!

Tapas style dinners allow you to enjoy several small plates with plenty of variety. The other benefit to these meals is that they take longer to serve and eat, thus ensuring that you have plenty of time to sit and enjoy the company of those you are dining with.

With a little planning and good preparation you can enjoy several courses without scrambling. While you are cooking or preparing the next course invite your dinner guest or partner into the kitchen. Take a break from the wine and enjoy a light soda spritzer flavoured with pomegranate juice and lemon.

First course here was seared scallops with picatta butter - scallops were seared in a mixture of olive oil and butter, then when removed from the pan a little white wine, fresh lemon juice, and capers were added with a pinch of salt, pepper and dried terragon. Stir slightly and drizzle over the scallops. So quick and easy - and delicious!

Second course - proscuitto wrapped shrimp - with the shrimp wrapped ahead of time, spinach cleaned, garlic minced, and tomatoes sliced this dish was a breeze to complete. I cooked the shrimp in the same pan as the scallops to save space but also to soak up a little bit of the flavour left behind. The shrimp literally takes minutes to cook, as does the spinach. I simply added a touch of olive oil and garlic to a small saucepan, warmed through until the garlic became softened then added the damp spinach - toss a few times and it's done! Arrange the plate and drizzle with good quality flavourful olive oil.

Final course - mushroom and spinach risotto and rare beef filet - I won't go into the risotto recipe, but you can find many great risotto recipes online. I got it all going ahead of time before the beginning of the meal and let it sit until I was ready. Just before serving, as the beef was cooking, I finished it off by adding more liquid until it was at a perfect texture. The beef was also quick and easy - I dusted a very large and thick filet mignon piece with a salt and pepper seasoning then seared in a cast iron pan until brown all around. I finished it off by baking in for about 15 minutes in the oven. You would of course need a bit more time if you prefer it done more than rare, but this is easily done. Remove the meat from the pan and cover loosely with foil. Deglaze the pan with a splash of red wine and some pepper and voila! a quick and delicious pan sauce to drizzle over.

Who said gourmet has to be complicated!?

Bon Appetit!

The little things... flying at sunrise

In keeping with the original context of this blog I thought I would add a simple "stop and smell the roses" entry.

Flying at Sunrise. I don't know if I've never done this before or if it is that I've never stopped to enjoy the pristine beauty of it before. This is a great example of how taking a moment of downtime to just enjoy the little things that make you smile can boost your spirits.

Here is one photo from last week's morning flight out of Toronto heading to Montreal.
It is a beautiful photo, however, it does no justice to how it appeared through my own eyes.

Enjoy the little things...

Slow Food Sunday

I have been quite obviously less than consistent with my blogging I know, but I have been inspired of late so I thought I'd add my bit.















Slow Food has been on my mind lately so to introduce the topic I thought I would add some information and a few interesting links on the subject. Later I hope to share my great experience at last weekend's Slow Food Brickworks Picnic, a celebration of the abundance of amazing local foods and culinary talent while I simmer up some home made chicken stock in the true spirit of the slow food concept.

Introduction to the Slow Food Movement
"The Slow movement is a cultural shift towards slowing down life's pace. The Slow movement proposes consciously seizing control of time rather than being dictated by it and finding a balance between using time-saving technology and taking the time to enjoy a walk or a meal with others. Proponents believe that while technology can speed up working, eating, dating, etc. the most important things in life should not be rushed."

The slow movement first began when a protest against the opening of a McDonald's restaurant in Piazza di Spagna, Rome sparked the creation of the Slow Food organization. The Slow Food movement was created to combat fast food and claims to preserve the cultural cuisine and the associated food plants and seeds, domestic animals, and farming within an ecoregion. Slow Food is good, clean and fair food with the belief that the food we eat should taste good; that it should be produced in a clean way that does not harm the environment, animal welfare, or our health; and that producers should receive fair compensation for their work."

"Slow Food, founded in 1986, is an international organization whose aim is to protect the pleasures of the table from the homogenization of modern fast food and life. Through a variety of initiatives, it promotes gastronomic culture, develops taste education, conserves agricultural biodiversity and protects traditional foods at risk of extinction."

Here are some suggestions from the slow movement on how to slow down your life...

• get a slow hobby, a leisurely pursuit like knitting, yoga, painting, beading or gardening
• spread out your chores; do one load each day instead of all at once, or dust one day and vacuum another
• stop watching the clock; on weekends try waking up to your body's natural rhythms rather than an alarm, and leave your watch at home
• shop at a farmer's market
• prepare a sit-down meal and savour it without watching TV, or reading. Enjoy the conversation if you're dining with others, or peaceful solitude if eating alone.
• on vacation slow down; don't try to cram every sight into your must-see list. Visit "slow cities" with local restaurants where you can eat slow
• prune your to do list; make time for the people and activites that you enjoy

For more information about the slow food movement check out these sites
www.slowfood.com
www.slowfood.ca

quotes here came from wikipedia and the slow food sites noted above

Watch for more Slow Food Sundays!

Moroccan Inspired Black Cod in Parchment

Well, here my next attempt at actually keeping my entries up to date and what better topic for me to focus on than food and cooking!?

With fresh from the garden tomatoes on hand and a craving for fish this was Friday's night's menu...

Black cod baked in parchment paper with a tomato saffron salsa served with preserved lemon cous cous pilaf and garlicy green beans















For the fish (serves 2)
two pieces - 4 oz or 120 grams of black cod or other thick and firm fish filet
2 small tomatoes diced, or about 1 1/2 cups in total
2 green onions sliced
2 tablespoons good quality olive oil
1 tablespoon melted butter or margarine
1 minced garlic cloves
2 tablespoons finely minced red onion
1 tsp dried thyme (or 2 tsp fresh thyme)
pinch of salt and freshly ground pepper
pinch of saffron

Preheat oven to 400F
Place each piece of fish on a large square of parchment paper just a bit off centre so that the paper can be folded in half over the fish filet.
Top the fish with half of the diced tomato and green onions.
In a small bowl combine remaining ingredients - spoon half of this mixture over each fish filet.
Fold the parchment in half over the fish. Roll up the edges of the parchment to seal the edges and create a pouch.
Place the pouches on a baking sheet and bake for about 25 minutes.

Voila! it's that easy! Restaurant quality food in minutes.
This dish had a devine flavour due to the buttery melt in your mouth texture of the black cod.
I served it with iranian cous cous, a larger shaped cous cous mixed with yellow lentils and red quinoa to make a pilaf flavoured with chicken broth, diced preserved lemons and saffron, and gently cooked up some fresh green beans with a little onion and garlic.

Click below for more information about...
Black Cod
Preserved Lemons or just google for more recipe ideas and info about this delicious item often used in moroccan cuisine

and for those of you interested or concerned about the safety of consuming fish, I could not seem to find Black Cod or Cablefish listed, but here is some other information about Fish Safety.

All Hail BBQ Season

This summer has had it's challenges due to seemingly constant intermittent rain.
It's been difficult planning for meals on the BBQ but fortunately there's been time to discover some great new recipes. This one for grilled new potato salad is AWESOME! I highly recommend it. We were so hungry I didn't even get a chance to take a picture of it to show you.

6 medium red skinned new potatoes - washed and sliced into 1/2" thick slices
1 large red onion - peeled and sliced into 1/2 " thick slices
2 Tablespoons olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
6 slices proscuitto or bacon

Preheat the BBQ then lower the heat to low.
In a large bowl toss the sliced potatoes in the olive oil, salt and pepper. Place on the grill. Wipe up the remaining olive oil from the bowl with the onions, coating them with oil on each side. Place them on the grill.
Fold up a sheet of foil at the edges and place the proscuitto slices on top - place the foil onto the upper warmer rack and allow the proscuitto or bacon to bake until crispy while the potatoes and onions cook.
Cover the BBQ and allow to cook for 5 minutes, turn potatoes and onions over then cook another 5 minutes. Poke with a fork to check if they are tender - repeat this step as many times as needed until they are tender and cooked through.
If they appear to be getting too dark, turn off one or two of the burners and place the potatoes and onion over the burners that are turned off (indirect heat) Close the BBQ lid and allow the potatoes and onions to bake until done.

For the dressing:
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup white wine vinegar
2 Tablespoons white balsamic vinegar
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 tsp granulated garlic
1 Tablespoon fresh thyme or 2 tsp dried thyme (or try it with rosemary)
3 green onions - sliced, include the green tops

Once the vegetables are cooked and bacon is crispy remove from heat and let sit for 15 minutes to cool slightly. Cut potatoes and onions into bite sized pieces and crumble the proscuitto or bacon. Add the dressing and green onions and toss. Serve at room temperature.

Enjoy!!

What Goes Around Comes Around

Happy New Year Everyone!

I had many ideas for this blog when I got started out, but alas... life's many twists and turns seem to keep getting in my way. Ultimately my goal has been to share with you some of the joys of the "little things in life" and hopefully inspire a little along the way.

My newest little joy in life is my recent interest in podcasts. Having purchased a brand new shiny ipod Nano I thought I would use it for all it's worth. I also gave one to my nephew in celebration of his 13th birthday. He kept asking me what podcasts where and not having really explored this medium it got me thinking that I should, so here I am.

When I thought of what a podcast is it made me think back to old radio programs. I don't mean old as in Q107 in the 80's, but waaaay back to the beginnings of radio. Back in my late night restaurant years I remember travelling home on the streetcar at 2am and listening to a cool radio program that was re-playing historic radio storytelling. I LOVED it! I looked forward to this late night trip home just to hear these great old stories with voices and sound effects to help set the mood.

Recently, in my inaugral explorations of podcasts I found myself delving into podcast novels which immediately reminded me of this old historic and long lost form of story telling so I thought I'd take a peek at the history of the broadcast - now coming of age as the podcast.

THE FIRST BROADCAST: In 1906 at Brant Rock MA, Fessenden plays his violin, sings a song, reads a bible verse or two into a wireless telephone of his own invention. This is the first broadcast and it happens Christmas Eve, 1906. It is a broadcast because it is designed for more than one listener (not 2-way) it is pre-announced.

TECHNOLOGY: The decade begins with people listening to home made crystal sets with headphones, progresses to large battery-operated sets with dozens of dials and a horn speaker to electric console radios designed as fine furniture, single knob tuning and loudspeakers.
(see - the ipod is not a new idea at all!)


If you are interested in more about this check out www.californiahistoricalradio.com/100years.html

So, as will all of my writings here the underlying message is to always remember to STOP and take some time daily to appreciate the good things in life, to do something fun, to set aside time for YOU to breathe and enjoy. Curling up in a big comfy chair with a tea and listening to a chapter of a podcast novel is one great way to take some down time!

Here's what I'm listening to...

Murder at Avedon Hill by P.G. Holyfield

Nocturnal by Scott Sigler

and awaiting the start of Sundered by Raphael Tehan

I also recommend exploring the numerous podcast offerings coming from CBC radio.

Do you have any recommendations of your own?

From the Test Kitchen - cooking with sushi grade tuna

I am a big fan of seared tuna, but was always a bit intimidated to try it at home. This was my second attempt at it and WOW it's so easy to handle - it really could not be easier. I can't imagine why I was intimidated by it before. I suppose that the greatest concern is getting good quality fish. I purchase mine at Pisces fish market on Yonge just south of the LCBO Summerhill store. I'm not sure what you have available around you but I recommend purchasing it from a reputable fish monger and always ask for "sushi grade" tuna when you buy this to ensure that it is the freshest and most flavourable and most of all safe for eating raw.

I am also an avid fan of the food photographer and cookbook author Donna Hay. This is what happens when you cross Donna Hay and seared tuna. I got this one from her cookbook "new food fast" This dinner took less than 1/2 hour to pull off! fast, easy and impressive!

Angel Hair Nicoise - serves two

A new twist on the classic nicoise salad which traditionally contains boiled potato, olives, green beans, tuna, hard boiled egg and dijon dressing.

200 grams fresh angel hair pasta, I used fettuccini - fresh pasta is a must for this dish for the best flavour and texture

1 Tablespoon chili oil - the Asian variety - readily available at grocery stores

about 200 grams sushi grade tuna steak

3 Tablespoons lime juice - fresh squeezed

2 Tablespoons olive oil

1 or 2 cloves garlic - sliced thinly

5 anchovy filets mixed into the olive oil to break them up - don't omit this unless you really really really hate anchovy, it adds an incredible amount of flavour - not overwhelmingly fishy

fresh green beans - two large handfuls

10 - 12 black olives - I used spiced kalamata olives, if you use the smaller nicoise olives you may want to use more

1/4 cup finely chopped flat leaf Italian parsley

• Steam the green beans until cooked but still crisp
• Cook the pasta
• While pasta is cooking heat frying pan over high heat
• Add the chili oil to the pan and sear the tuna steaks for about 1 minute on each side - don't over cook.
• Remove the tuna from the pan and set aside - reduce the heat to medium/low and add lime juice, olive oil with anchovies and garlic - cook for 1 minute
• Drain the pasta and toss into the sauce in the pan along with olives and green beans - toss to coat well
• Plate the pasta mixture and top with sliced tuna steak and garnish with the fresh parsley.
• Top with a light drizzle of the chili oil if you like a bit more spiciness

Wine pairing note:

Light seafood dishes that are not too spicy and not too citrus or lemony pair really well with a sparkling white wine. I'd share the notes on the one we had, but it's not available any longer at LCBO, but I do higly recommend this dish with a sparkling wine (aka champagne)

Rethink Restaurant Eating!

Check out CBC Marketplace for the latest show clip. If you are reading this after it has moved on search for calorie confidential, or How to stay healthy eating restaurant food.

This is a topic that makes me want to scream and shout from the rooftops.
I know this sounds overly dramatic, but seriously people, we are KILLING ourselves eating this way! Obviously it is each of our own personal choices as to how we live our life, how we eat, how we manage our health, but I seriously don't think we really understand how REAL the impact is of eating in restaurants as a habit. I am a dietitian working in a Diabetes Education clinic, trust me, this is very VERY REAL.

my comment that I added to this article on CBC Marketplace...


I am a dietitian.
I have been trying to get this message out to my patients for years.
The man interviewed from the CFRA is an ASS! I hope he watches himself on this clip. Him, the CFRA and Canadian Restaurants in general are seriously neglecting us as consumers. They are completely and utterly irresponsible on this issue!
What can we do?
I cannot express how angry it makes me to hear that man's blatantly ignorant and irresponsible comments and excuses. This information is NOT available to any useful extent. I know, I try to find it almost every day, for myself and for my patients.
How can we change this?
I feel frustratingly helpless!


If you are interested in this topic here is a great blog that I subscribe to and read daily.
Dr. Joni Freedhoff's Weighty Matters

The Weekend is Here - Time for a Beer

Anyone who knows me knows that not only do I love food, but I also have a love affair with quality and unique libations and what better drink for a Friday night after a long work week than a cool beer.

This week's new taste is Harvey's Porter. If you are a fan of porters or stouts you will love this. Deep dark brown like liquid chocolate! oh my god, can I tell you how great this is tasting right now! It's not as intimdating as it may look at a easy to handle 4.8% alcohol. The flavour is rich but not overbearing, and the bubble factor is low so it's going down nice and smooth. Give it a try. Available at LCBO stores near you :)

Cheers!

Post Race Banana Date Cake

Date and Banana Bundt cake made from bananas left over after the finish line was torn down at Angus Glen Half marathon today. It's still in the oven as I speak, so hopefully it's not bad luck to post a recipe before the end product is proven. Oh well, if it doesn't work out I'll just delete the post :)

Congratulations TEAM!

200g (about 12-14) medjool dates - pitted and coarsely chopped
1/3 cup brandy or dark rum
1 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup cake and pastry flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 cup unsalted margarine or butter, melted
1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
2 large eggs
2 tsp vanilla
4 medium sized ripe bananas, smashed
60g or about 1/2 cup chopped walnuts

• Combine dates and brandy - simmer in a small pot over medium heat for about 4 minutes or until brandy is absorbed.
• in a small bowl combine flours with baking powder and baking soda
• in another large bowl combine margarine, eggs, sugar and blend well. Add mashed bananas, vanilla, dates and walnuts.
• Add dry ingredients into the large bowl of wet ingredients a bit at a time. Stir until well blended but don't over mix.
• Bake in a greased and floured bundt pan at 325 F for about 60-90 minutes or until a bamboo skewer or knife comes out clean when poked gently into the middle of the cake.
• Cool then remove from pan to cool further. Dust with icing sugar.