When the kids come home from school and raid your pantry to give at school for the local food bank. When the boxes stand at the end of the check out at the grocery store, asking to be filled with non perishable items. When, depending where you live, there will be volunteers who come knocking on your door asking for food or monetary donations in support of the Christmas boxes given to those in need.
From experience, I can say that the families that receive your donations are grateful. It puts food on the table, and the children do not go to bed hungry tonight. If I may, I'd like to make some recommendations for donations.
Canned tomatoes and tomato juice rather than tomato soup. Much more versatile and more nutritionally sound, they are generally kept for those who are sickly, or who may have special dietary requirements. If you ever step into a food bank, you may well find a wall full of tomato soup, yet only a shelf or two of tomato juice and canned tomatoes.
Salt and pepper, herbs and spices. Can you imagine eating pasta cooked in unsalted water? Can you imagine the only seasoning you have on hand are the extra flavourings from Ramen noodles? Can you imagine meal after meal, unseasoned and bland?
Think of the families who have infants and could need diapers - of all sizes. Think of those families who canot go to the dentist, and may need a tooth brush. Imagine yourself, all of a sudden in need of one of these boxes from the food bank. What would you need in one of these boxes?
I know some of my readers occasionally use uncommon ingredients such as capers, or extravagant ingredients such as truffles. These are not what I am asking for. I am asking for those items that are staples in your pantry and in your home. I am asking for those items that would be missed if they were no longer available to you. I am asking for a little bit of creativity in your donations.
Please know that whatever you decide to give, your donations will be greatly appreciated by the family who will receive it. So do not be shy. The food drives have started. Give freely, joyfully and creatively. You never know who could be receiving your donation.
Tuesday, December 4, 2007
Don't know what to have for supper?
My mom has this fast and firm rule that works everytime...
Start peeling potatoes! :D
It's uncanny, but whenever I'm stumped about what to fix for supper, I follow this rule and start peeling potatoes. Within a few minutes I remember the frozen italian sausage in the freezer, and then the recipe just kind of floats out of the air and into my brain... Some caramelized onions, sliced up sausage, a bit of wine... hmmm. Some mashed potatoes with that. hmmm... Some shaved carrots? Yeah. Carrots with a bit of maple syrup (the real stuff please)...
And there you go. Before you're finished peeling potatoes, you have the entire meal planned out, where 5 minutes earlier you had no clue what could find it's way to the table for supper.
Start peeling potatoes! :D
It's uncanny, but whenever I'm stumped about what to fix for supper, I follow this rule and start peeling potatoes. Within a few minutes I remember the frozen italian sausage in the freezer, and then the recipe just kind of floats out of the air and into my brain... Some caramelized onions, sliced up sausage, a bit of wine... hmmm. Some mashed potatoes with that. hmmm... Some shaved carrots? Yeah. Carrots with a bit of maple syrup (the real stuff please)...
And there you go. Before you're finished peeling potatoes, you have the entire meal planned out, where 5 minutes earlier you had no clue what could find it's way to the table for supper.
Monday, December 3, 2007
Fresh homemade bread
There is nothing that beats fresh homemade bread. I have a recipe that is so versatile, you can make just about any dough based recipe. Foccacia? Yup. Baguette? Uh-hu. Pizza crust? Sure thing. Cinnamon buns? Most definately. Oh, and let's not forgette the regular loaves or rolls...
This recipe is so easy to make that it is almost a shame not to have fresh bread daily. So much so, that the recipe is named "Daily Bread". It is not my own recipe. Years ago it was posted on a free subscription based e-mail list named foodwine. I've searched the archives for the original post and I couldn't find it. To the original author - Thank you. My family has much enjoyed your recipe over these past many years.
Daily Bread
Yields 1 loaf/1 pizza
1 tsp yeast
1 tsp sugar
1 cup warm water (112F)
2.5-3 cups of all purpose flour (depending on the humidity you may need more or less)
1.5 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp vegetable oil (optional, though necessary for pizza dough)
In a bowl, mix the yeast, sugar, water and 1 cup of flour until you get a runny gloppy mess. Keep covered in a draft free place for a minimum for 15 minutes, or even better - overnight.
Once the yeast mixture has proofed, add the remaining amount of flour, the salt and the oil (if desired). Mix thouroughly, the dough should not be particularly sticky, it should be soft and have just a bit of give when pressed with a finger . If you are using a machine of some sort, kneed the dough for a few minutes. If making by hand, kneed the dough for about 5-10 minutes - it depends if you have the time to give a full kneed or not, as long as the dough has been worked a bit, then you'll be ok. Like I said it's a very forgiving dough. Place in a bowl, cover and let rise in a warm and draft free place in your kitchen. You can leave it all day while you're at work, or overnight while you're sleeping for a fresh loaf first thing in the morning. Or again, you can make it as a traditional bread recipe and let the dough rise until it has doubled in size.
Once you and the dough are ready, shape in the form that you want... Pizza? Roll it out. Loaf? Roll it up into a log. Baguette? Snake it out. If making bread, let it rise another 30 minutes. Preheat your oven to 400F, and then bake your bread for 30 minutes.
Can you see why I so like this recipe? It works with me. I don't have to worry about having to watch the clock to make bread anymore. Is there anything better than a fresh slice of warm bread with a bit of butter with supper? Not in my books. :D
This recipe is so easy to make that it is almost a shame not to have fresh bread daily. So much so, that the recipe is named "Daily Bread". It is not my own recipe. Years ago it was posted on a free subscription based e-mail list named foodwine. I've searched the archives for the original post and I couldn't find it. To the original author - Thank you. My family has much enjoyed your recipe over these past many years.
Daily Bread
Yields 1 loaf/1 pizza
1 tsp yeast
1 tsp sugar
1 cup warm water (112F)
2.5-3 cups of all purpose flour (depending on the humidity you may need more or less)
1.5 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp vegetable oil (optional, though necessary for pizza dough)
In a bowl, mix the yeast, sugar, water and 1 cup of flour until you get a runny gloppy mess. Keep covered in a draft free place for a minimum for 15 minutes, or even better - overnight.
Once the yeast mixture has proofed, add the remaining amount of flour, the salt and the oil (if desired). Mix thouroughly, the dough should not be particularly sticky, it should be soft and have just a bit of give when pressed with a finger . If you are using a machine of some sort, kneed the dough for a few minutes. If making by hand, kneed the dough for about 5-10 minutes - it depends if you have the time to give a full kneed or not, as long as the dough has been worked a bit, then you'll be ok. Like I said it's a very forgiving dough. Place in a bowl, cover and let rise in a warm and draft free place in your kitchen. You can leave it all day while you're at work, or overnight while you're sleeping for a fresh loaf first thing in the morning. Or again, you can make it as a traditional bread recipe and let the dough rise until it has doubled in size.
Once you and the dough are ready, shape in the form that you want... Pizza? Roll it out. Loaf? Roll it up into a log. Baguette? Snake it out. If making bread, let it rise another 30 minutes. Preheat your oven to 400F, and then bake your bread for 30 minutes.
Can you see why I so like this recipe? It works with me. I don't have to worry about having to watch the clock to make bread anymore. Is there anything better than a fresh slice of warm bread with a bit of butter with supper? Not in my books. :D
Wednesday, November 28, 2007
What do you call....
Roasted squash, potatoes, and an onion & garlic stuffed roasted chicken?
In my books, we call it an easy supper tonight.
PS... Scooping the squash into a bowl, adding the roasted garlic and blending together? YUMMY!!!! :D
In my books, we call it an easy supper tonight.
PS... Scooping the squash into a bowl, adding the roasted garlic and blending together? YUMMY!!!! :D
Tuesday, November 27, 2007
Well, I'm going into business...
With my home responsibilities, it is really difficult to juggle in a full-time job (or even a part-time one) into our crazy hectic schedules. My bosses can't fire me because I do a good job. At the same time they can't give me the hours I need because there is just not enough business during the hours I'm available to work. So I'll put up my own shingle.
I know. I know. Owning your own business is even more work than working for someone else. All the paperwork. Taxes. Employees - should I ever get big enough to need more than myself as an employee... At the same time, I can have the kids with me while I work once school is out - something that any other employer would seriously frown upon. I'd work more, but I'd be working on my schedule rather than someone else.
Plus, I've always had too much salesman in me to just stay behind the wall and hide as a cook. I am after all a chef. Ok, I haven't done my apprenticeship yet but it's all a matter of heart I say.
So here goes. If anyone is interested, I have cookies for sale. Fresh "homemade" cookies. I'm working on some recipes still, however I have nailed:
- Decorated Sugar Cookies
- Chocolaty Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Oatmeal Cookies
I also make cookie lollipops for cookie bouquets.
Please contact me for a price list and to place an order.
Now this is a puzzler....
A friend of mine has recently posted a lovely caramel sauce recipe on her blog. We use this kind of caramel on toast or as a cake filling or as a sauce for pouding chomeur... or... or... Thing is, where I live I can buy this product at my local grocery store. We even have a chocolate fudge version. When I mentioned this to Suzanne, she requested the recipe. Oops! My recipe consists of getting in the car and driving 10km to the store to pick some up... lol
Anybody have any ideas where I could start tweeking her recipe to make a chocolate version? My first thought is adding a rich cocoa to the brown sugar, but then I have to add more liquid to have the right consistancy. I have a feeling that melted chocolate would make it too dense also. hmmmm.... :s
I smell sweet treats coming up. Good thing the Holidays are just around the corner! ;)
Anybody have any ideas where I could start tweeking her recipe to make a chocolate version? My first thought is adding a rich cocoa to the brown sugar, but then I have to add more liquid to have the right consistancy. I have a feeling that melted chocolate would make it too dense also. hmmmm.... :s
I smell sweet treats coming up. Good thing the Holidays are just around the corner! ;)
Monday, November 26, 2007
When you're down three sous-chefs...
You get to make a nice key-lime ginger pie with your 5 year old sous-chef and learn things like "If you still wore size 6 you'd pop your underwear!"
Saturday, November 24, 2007
The holiday plans begin...
Well, the American Thanksgiving is over now, and Advent is just around the corner. That means that Christmas and New Years will soon be upon us. It's time to start planning for the feasts that we'll share with friends and family. This week is the time to decide on a theme, how many side dishes, what kind of pies, which recipe to use for the main dish...
Personally, I've been researching the main dish recipe that I may well use. For years now, I've read about and heard about Turducken. I've not yet confirmed that massive dish as my main service. It looks interesting though. Just the idea of having a turkey stuffed with a duck stuffed with a stuffed chicken. I must say that the idea is very intreguing to me. This cajun dish that has its roots in Louisianna is heavily influenced by the traditional dish "Ballotine de Dinde". Yet at the same time, it is completely different.
While both the Ballotine de Dinde and the Turducken start off with a serious deboning job, their assembly is somewhat different. Where a Turducken will have a variety of dressing and meat, a Ballotine de Dinde will be mostly seasoned whole turkey meat, ground chicken meat, and some slices of duck foie gras. Where a Turducken will often preserve the basic shape of a Turkey, a Ballotine will be rolled into a log shape by using a towel or some plastic wrap. Where a Turducken will be roasted, a Ballotine will often be boiled in some stock. Where a Turducken will be served hot, a Ballotine will often be served cold.
The principle idea though is the same. Debone the turkey then stuff it with a very savoury filling to end up with a very savoury dish. Considering that I do enjoy galantine (a derivative of a ballotine) I think that I may well consider making this dish. I'll tweek it to my liking, I'll play with the recipe and create what I hope will be a closer tie between the traditional french dish and the cajun dish that many know and enjoy.
Personally, I've been researching the main dish recipe that I may well use. For years now, I've read about and heard about Turducken. I've not yet confirmed that massive dish as my main service. It looks interesting though. Just the idea of having a turkey stuffed with a duck stuffed with a stuffed chicken. I must say that the idea is very intreguing to me. This cajun dish that has its roots in Louisianna is heavily influenced by the traditional dish "Ballotine de Dinde". Yet at the same time, it is completely different.
While both the Ballotine de Dinde and the Turducken start off with a serious deboning job, their assembly is somewhat different. Where a Turducken will have a variety of dressing and meat, a Ballotine de Dinde will be mostly seasoned whole turkey meat, ground chicken meat, and some slices of duck foie gras. Where a Turducken will often preserve the basic shape of a Turkey, a Ballotine will be rolled into a log shape by using a towel or some plastic wrap. Where a Turducken will be roasted, a Ballotine will often be boiled in some stock. Where a Turducken will be served hot, a Ballotine will often be served cold.
The principle idea though is the same. Debone the turkey then stuff it with a very savoury filling to end up with a very savoury dish. Considering that I do enjoy galantine (a derivative of a ballotine) I think that I may well consider making this dish. I'll tweek it to my liking, I'll play with the recipe and create what I hope will be a closer tie between the traditional french dish and the cajun dish that many know and enjoy.
Friday, November 23, 2007
Thursday, November 15, 2007
Gastronomy on the wild side...
We went to the pet shop yesterday morning. Turns out we were in time for the animals breakfast. We saw the fish get their flakes, the rodents and birds get their seeds, the kittens and puppies their kibble... And the lizzards enjoying their live grasshoppers. You haven't lived until you've seen a Leopard Gecko lick his lips after swallowing a kicking grasshopper.... yick!
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