organics...

Ok, so I think I've been slightly ambitious thinking that I'd be able to post more than once per week! However, it's the holidays and I promise I'm doing my darndest!

As any followers would know, I received a new delivery last week - this time with an organic twist!  For the first time, I received something other than what was listed on the content list I get with the box - but as promised, is was replaced with 'something of equal value'.  I got a couple bags of green beans instead of a head of broccoli.  Below is what I received, and again, on visual inspection all the produce looked terrific.  A couple of interesting items...a light green/grey teardtrop shaped squash, which I've determined to be a grey hubbard squash, and some live lettuces! neat! that little package of lettuce standing up on the left side of the photo was shipped along with it's soil!  It's a varitey of 4 young lettuces (pleural of course being - letti ) that stayed fresh and crispy in the fridge - in the soil - (in a hole in the bottom of the sea... there's a HOLE, there's a hole... there's a hole in the bottom of the sea! 'member that one?)..anywho it stayed fresh and crispy for a whole week!

Uninterestingly - I got another bloody bag of potatoes.

 This past week has had me wrapped up in a flurry of social functions with no time to cook, but I've managed to used a few items along the way...sadly, I ended up having to toss the avocado - waited too long to use it...to think, I could've brought burrito night to the next level of deliciousness.

Dish numero uno (speaking of spanish numbers, who's heard about that football player - Cincinatti Bengals I think - who officially changed his last name to "ochocinco" because his number is 85...his jersey says ochocinco with 85 underneath!...yikes man.)

ok ok...sorry, I'm making a lot of weird side notes - on to the good stuff!

I call these...

I-kinda-feel-Italian-making-these Mussels

Mussels are truly one of the easiest proteins to make - and for some reason, they impress people.  Also, they are cheap as chips (as R.Goodall would say).  Regular price is $5 fo 2 lbs at my loblaws - normally, when ordering at a resto, you'd get a pound.

Ingredients

• 
  
  2 lbs mussels
  
  
  
• 
  
  1/2 box spaghetti - I use my fave PC omega 3 spaghetti - it's a whole wheat/lentil mix dough. yum!
  
  
  
• 
  
  1/2 a large can of diced tomatoes (I use PC no added salt), you can use the whole can too - I only had 1/2 left.
  
  
  
• 
  
  1 onion (organic GFB) chopped
  
  
  
• 
  
  2 cloves garlice (GFB) chopped
  
  
  
• 
  
  1 bunch spinach (organic GFB)
  
  
  
• 
  
  EVOO
  
  
  
• 
  
  s&p
  
  
  

Instructions:

1. To prep your mussels, you'll need to wash them, and de-beard them.  First thing to look for when you transfer your mussels into a colander for rincing is any mussels that are open.  If you find an open one, lightly tap the shell on a hard surface...if the mussel is alive (and it should be), the shell will slowly close.  If the mussel remains open, it's dead - toss 'er.  You'll notice when you're rincing the mussels there are some hair-like fibres protruding from the side of the shell.  These are the beards (they attach the mussels to one another in a colony) - tear these off - you may have to grab them with a dish towel, cause they can get a little slick.  Here's a good link to prepping mussels (http://allrecipes.com/HowTo/Cleaning-Mussels/Detail.aspx).  I don't soak my mussels and never find them sandy, I think mine are cultured - maybe they're sand free?  I do give mine a good scrub with the bristly side of my sponge though.
2. Bring a large pot of salted water (use a couple tsp of table salt) to a boil and cook your pasta as directed.  When it's al dente, strain, but reserve a 1/4 cup of the starchy pasta water.
3. meanwhile, heat EVOO over med heat in a large pot - sautee onions and garlic until translucent
4. add tomatoes until heated through
5. Add the mussels, cover the pot, and let steam for 3 minutes.  The mussels are ready when they open up!
6. Combine the mussel mixture, the pasta, and the raw spinach into one of the warm pots, add the pasta water, toss everything together, and replace the lid for another minute or two to allow the spinach to wilt.  (if you come across any mussels that haven't opened - toss em! it means they were dead before you cooked them) 

This was deliciously salty, simple and healthy.  Rory loved this dish too.  The whole meal takes about 25 minutes from very start to finish too.  I do make mussels now and again, and it's a great ingredient to be creative with - I've made mine steamed in wine, in coconut milk, in chicken stock, with a variety of veggies...serving them with a rich and spicy tomato sauce is really yummy, with a nice rustic loaf of bread to soak up all the amazing juices.  Give them a try if you haven't before! you'll be so surprised how easy they are!

My next dish is a take on a side that I made for Thansgiving....

Maple roasted sweet pototoes and caramelized onions with a parmesan crust

Ingredients:

• 
  
  a number of sweet potatoes - I'd say 4-5 medium sized ones.  (3 GFB, 1 super huge organic GFB)
  
  
  
• 4 cups of slices onions (organic GFB)
• 4 Tbsp oil - divided (I used canola)
• 2 Tbsp maple syrup
• 1/2 c grated parmesan cheese (only the real deal please!)
• 1/2 cup chicken stock (or veg)
• 1/4 cup light cream (I used 5%, but richer would obviously be deelish too)
• S&P
  

Instructions:

1. preheat oven to 400F
2. peel and roughly chop sweet potatoes
3. drizzle 2 Tbsp oil and maple syrup over potatoes in oven proof dish, sprinkle with s&p - throw 'em in the oven and roast for 40 mins or until easily peirced with a fork.
4. meanwhile, heat 2 Tbsp of oil over low heat - add onions, cooking slowly for 20 - 30 minutes, until onions are a deep sweet brown.
5. Combine the potatoes and onions in a dish/pot where they can be blended with a hand blender, or put them in a regular blender. 
6. Add cream and stock slowly, blending in between additions - blend until you reach a consistency that suits you - mine were very smooth and moist. (you may need more or less stock/cream)
7. Transfer mixture into an oven safe dish, sprinkle with parmesan - bake until the top starts to brown into a lovely crisp looking crust.

I brought these potatoes to a pot-luck at work, and they were a hit - when I went to get my dish back, it had practically been licked clean!  I did get a chance to try them, and damn they were good!  Please try these!

 On to the afformentioned burrito night (FYI - afformention is one of Rory's favorite words).

My intention was to use the avocado for burrito night, but when I found out it was past it's prime, I decided to go on with the show!   I'm not going to give these burritos a name, because it's not really a recipe...just a bunch of yummy things in a soft warm (whole wheat!) shell. 

 My burrito contents:

• brown basmati rice - cooked stovetop with salt and a little oil
• my homemade refried bean mash - mince a 1/2 jalepeno, a clove or two of garlic, and sautee them with a can of rinsed black beans for a few minutes.  Then mash em up, add a tbsp of sour cream, the juice of 1/2 a lime and spread  over burritos and other mexican style foodstuffs to your heart's content!
• chicken thighs, sauteed with a 1/2 a chopped tomato, some chili power (1 tsp), lime juice (1/2 lime), and s&p
• chopped tomato
• recently dead live leaf lettuce (GFB organic)
• sour cream
  

yum yum! This was really good and healthy!  Other things that would be yummy in this - peppers, onions, cheese, mashed sweet potato (Kensington market Yam Burritos - to die for!), guacamole of course...the list could really go on...another opportunity for creative cooking :)

I have a couple more things planned for the next couple of days involving beans, zucchini and carrots, so keep following!

I'm leaving you with this beautiful photo of Choereg, an Armenian holiday bread - this photo was taken before I dove in for a piece - it's a slightly sweet, dense, doughy textured bread, that really reminds of a cinnamon bun ...I sliced a piece and ate it warm with a little margarine...and it was devine!  Thanks so much to Christine for this thoughtful and delectable gift :)

Resto review - Amaya Bread Bar

Although this isn't GFB related, I thought the foodies in the crowd would enjoy a restaurent review!

I've been really riled up to talk about my dinner out last week at Amaya Bread Bar - www.amayasbreadbar.com

There have been lot's of wonderful reviews about this place, and I love indian food! On top of that I was going with a couple of fellow foodies...a night of good food while talking about food is pretty much heaven in my books!

Unfortunately I forgot my camera, and missed out on the photo op, but I will give a brief review!

Service - pretty much terrible.  Had to ask for water refills three times, and spent almost 2 and a half hours at the table - I would say well over half of that time was waiting.  We watched people come and go around us.

The food - I didn't write everything down unfortunately, but I think I remember most of it.  The three of us opted for the $45 tasting menu, which would allow us to share 3 apps and 3 mains, and we thought, 3 desserts.  Being the brave foodie souls that we were, we decided to go with 'chef's choice' - even though we had the option of choosing which menu items we wanted, we thought it would be best if the chef presented us with what he thought was the best of the best....don't do this.

First, we received an amuse bouche - a round slice of eggplant, stuff with cream cheese, and deep fried, served with a mint sauce, and a tomato chutney.  this was pretty good - i mean, deep fried cream cheese, common..of course it was good.

Apps

lamb kabobs - pretty good flavour, not too lamb-y (i'm not a fan of that musky lamb flavour), but dry, needed some sort of indian ketchup equivalent!  The mint sauce did appear again on this plate - very underwhelming.

samosas - one stuffed with potato and peas, one stuff with chicken tikka...good flavours - again with the deep fried, which gets automatic bonus points

Chicken tikka - chunks of moist, extra salty (too salty for both my campanions) tandoori chicken with a really light sauce.  really nothing spectacular, and we just had the same thing in our samosas...with so many options, you'd think the chef would send out something different

We received a small bowl of extra tart lemon sorbet between apps and mains - this was yummy...and palate cleansing of course.

Mains

Butter chicken - definitely not the best butter chicken I've ever had - it was so sweet - I feel like someone back in the kitchen dumped some sugar in the pot by accident.  2.5 out of 5 stars

Lamb Roganjosh - a spicy lamb curry - this lamb had a musky flavour, but it was very tender...the sauce was nice, but carried that lamb flavour a little too much...if you're a lamb lover, you'd like this.

Channa Masala - chick pea curry - VERY good.  The best main in my opinion

Shrimp/Coconut curry - I forget the name of this, but another sweet and savoury sauce - the shrimp were huge, and well cooked, the sauce was seasoned well but there was an herb or a spice in it that I didn't quite love.  It was a fave of the other gals.

Now, the piece de resistance, and I really think this was their saving grace:  the naan.  It was delicious. We received a variety, rosemary, plain, and garlic...tender, chewy warm and perfect...and lots of it, perfect for sopping up the extra curry sauces!

Dessert - a very disgusting looking bowl of white-ness.  it was a round molded chunk of cottage cheese, swimming in a pool of extra sweet milk - infused with an indian spice (don't know what).  It was cold (as intended), way too sweet, and the texture of the cheese was not appetizing.  I gave it my best shot, and the spice infusion was quite nice, but overall, this dessert was a failure...none of us liked it.  And it was our only option...unlike the apps and main, we received only one dessert.  In the end, I think we'd had enough, and wanted to leave anyway - it had been 2.5 hours!

So overall - don't think I would be back - although, I wouldn't complain if someone wanted to give it a go.  I would just order off the menu - after all, the reviews can't all be wrong right? maybe it was just a bad night!

potatoless!

It's been a week, so lot's to share!

First, I had to come up with a game plan to get rid of the potatoes!  SUCCESS! I cooked a couple big ol' batches of shepherd's pie and beef stew.

The stew was a Michael Smith recipe, from the Best of Chef at Home cookbook.  The shepherd's pie was my own recipe.

My mise en place for the stew

Michael Smith's Beef stew

Ingredients (this is a slight variation from Michael's recipe):

• 2 lb stewing beef
• 1 can whole tomatoes (don't bother chopping - they'll breakdown in the cooking process)
• 1 900 ml tetrapak of Beef Stock (I used PC organic)
• 1/2 bottle of red wine (I used Jackson Trigg's Cabernet-Franc)
• 2-3 carrots
• 2 celery stalks
• 2-3 medium sized potatoes
• 1-2 parsnips
• 1/2 turnip slash rutabaga 
• 1 onion
• 2 cloves garlic minced
• a couple sprigs of fresh rosemary  
• a couple dried bay leaves
• 2-3 Tsbp of canola oil
• S&P

Instructions

1. Heat canola oil in a nice big pot over med-high heat (it cannot be non-stick)
2. In batches, sear the stewing beef until nice and brown.  Make sure you only have one layer of beef in the pot at a time - the beef will steam rather than brown if the pot is too crowded.
3. When the beef is done, get rid of most of the oil, leaving a tsp or two in the pot.  Do NOT wash that pot!  All those delectable little brown bits stuck to the pot are exactly what you want to keep for a richly flavoured stew.
4. Turn down heat to med-low, add onions and garlic and sautee until translucent.
5. Add the red wine to deglaze - meaning the wine will lift all of those yummy brown bits off the bottom of the pot - scrape 'em all off to incorporate them in the stew.
6. Add EVERYTHING else.
7. Simmer over low heat for as long as it takes to make that beef tender.  It took me 3-4 hours...i wasn't really paying attention to the time.  
8. Remove the rosemary twig and bay leaves, add any salt and pepper as needed.

This would make a great slow cooker recipe.  You could do steps 1-6, and then add it all to a slow cooker for the day.

The stew was a big hit.  Rich and full of great flavour.  I would probably add something green at the end next time - some peas or spinach I think, I just didn't have any at the time.  Michael's recipe actually called for double the amount of veggies that I used.  He suggested adding half at the beginning of the cooking and half near the end of cooking - to keep them more firm.  I thought there were already a prefect amount of veggies in the stew after it was done cooking, and they weren't mushy at all, just soft, like you'd expect in a stew.  I froze the rest of my prepped veggies for another stew or soup this winter.

Now, the shepherd's pie

Mirepoix 

Da Pie

Ingredients:

• 1 lb extra lean ground beef
• 1 Tbsp canola oil
• 1 carrot diced
• 1 celery stalk diced
• 1 onion diced
• 1/2 can tomato paste
• 1 cup beef stock
• 3-4 medium potatoes - peeled and roughly chopped
• 1 cup(ish) frozen corn kernels
• milk
• 2ish Tbsp margarine or butter
• S&P

Instructions:

1. Over medium heat, brown ground beef in a large skillet - once browned, drain the fat and set aside
2. In the same pot, add canola oil - once heated , add carrots, celery, and onion and sautee until they start to soften
3. Add beef, tomato paste, beef stock, cover, and simmer on low heat for 20 minutes.  Remove lid, and simmer for another 10 minutes until mixture has thickened.
4. In the meantime, boil or steam potatoes until soft.
5. Mash with margarine or butter, and milk (add a Tbsp or two at a time), until smooth and fluffy.
6. Add S&P to taste to meet mixture, and potato mixture.
7. In an oven proof dish, layer ground beef - corn - and mashed potato mixture.
8. If you baked it immediately, it should take about 20 minutes at 350 F.  If you refrigerate before cooking, I did 45 mins at 350F.

This was pretty good - I didn't season it quite enough and had to add S&P at the table.  Also, I think I would make the ground beef a little saucier, needed a touch more moisture...extra beef stock and tomato paste would've done it!  Good flavours though!

I served this shepherd's pie when my sister Shannon came to visit this week. Alongside, we had....

Dilled Potato Beet Soup

and...

Sauteed Savoy Cabbage with bacon

Both of these sides were deelish!

The dilled potato beet soup was the recipe from the GFB included in my last delivery.  The savoy cabbage was on-the-fly.

Dilled Potato Beet Soup (I varied the recipe slightly - the original called for double the stock...I knew it would be WAY too much and the soup would be too thin)

Ingredients:

• 3-4 medium sized beets, peeled and roughly chopped
• 3-4 medium sized potatoes, peeled and roughly chopped.
• 1 onion chopped
• 2 Tbsp butter
• 1 900 ml tetrapak of veggie stock.
• 1/4 c chopped fresh dill
• S&P to taste
• sour cream and additional chopped dill for garnish

Instructions:

• Over med heat, melt butter, and sautee onions and dill for 2-3 minutes
• Add potatoes, beets and stock
• Simmer over med-low heat for 30-40 minutes (until beets are soft enough to puree)
• Puree with a hand blender right in the pot (or in batches, use a regular blender).
• Add S&P to taste, and garnish as you see fit!

This was so simple, and had such an interesting flavour...and good gracious, beets make food beautiful don't they?  It was rich and earthy, with a fresh dill flair!  Instead of sour cream, adding whipping cream to the soup itself would also be delicious.  I would make this again for sure!

Sauteed brussel sprouts with bacon

Ingredients:

• 1/2-3/4 head savoy cabbage
• 4-5 slices of bacon sliced
• 1 Tsbp EVOO
• S&P to taste

Instructions:

1. Slice cabbage into manageable sized strips
2. Use a steamer basket or a couple inches of water in the bottom of a large pot, and steam cabbage for 3-4 minutes.
3. In the meantime, sautee bacon until crisp and remove with a slotted spoon (do not use a non stick pan).  Discard all but 1 tsp of of the bacon fat.
4. Over med-low heat, add evoo and steamed cabbage to the bacon pan, stirring to remove all the brown bacon bit from the pan, sautee for 2-3 minutes until heated through
5. add S&P to taste, transfer to a serving dish and sprinkle with bacon.

The savoy cabbage was surprisingly tender, and so sweet, especially the inner yellow leaves.  There was only a very mild bitter flavour on the darkest green leaves, which really added to the overall flavour of the dish.  Buy savoy cabbage!! it's SO good! I will definitely buy it again...and use it in a stir fry or something, a really great option for adding different greens to your diet.

Of course the bacon made this dish sing, but I would even do sauteed savoy with garlic in the future for a healthier option!

This was the end of GFB #2...overall I feel I made great use of what I got.  I was left with one head of garlic and 4 grapefruit, which are still looking good - I will try to use this week!  In terms of waste, there was really none - only about 1/4 of the savoy cabbage head got tossed.

Moving on! I'm really looking forward to using my new organic GFB!  I wonder what the feature of the week will be?!

Happy Eating!

a little somthin'

I've been a little negligent in my cooking this week! Since my last post, there's not too much to add...somehow, I have managed to use a lot of my GFB though!

 

Those pesky potatoes are causing me a little stress (to a girl that likes variety, using 10 lbs of potatoes in a month can be tricky business!) I'm not sure what to do with them! Of course spuds are perfect cooked simply, but I'm looking for something fun and creative to work on. My friend Joanne and I were talking about making perogies from scratch, so maybe I'll aim for that...Jo, can we make a date?

 

I will be getting my final GFB delivery next week - I've contacted my pick-up location and have requested a change in my order. I'm going for the large organic box for my last delivery. This box costs $34 (as oppposed to the $17 for the one I'm receiving now). Does anyone want to wager on whether I think organic will be worth it or not?

 

O.k. back to business...the produce report.
 
The fruit... 
4 grapefruit - still kicking around. I have a few ideas for them - 1) sprinkled with sugar for breakfast 2) in a salad 3) in grapefruit champagne sorbet (this month's Style at Home magazine has a great looking recipe by Donna Hay - and I have been looking for an excuse to use my Kitchen Aid ice cream maker!)

 

The bananas, plums, and pears (local) from this delivery have been great. I was worried about the plums which were exceptionally firm. I braced myself for a sour bite, but was pleasantly surprised by their sweetness...and they tasted very, hmm... plummy? they were good, and now gone!

 

The Bosc pears are excellent examples of Bosc pears! Crisp and sweet, with that fuzzy little feeling you get on your tongue that is undeniably Bosc :)

 

I used the avocados (yes, a fruit) over the weekend in a simple guacamole (sorry no photo!!! picture this...green mushy stuff...appetizing green mushy stuff :) )

Included in my guacamole:
2 small Hass avocados (very ripe)
1/4 small onion, minced
1/2 clove garlic, minced
Juice from a lime
1 roma tomato seeded and finely chopped
S&P to taste

(normally I would add a 1/2 jalepeno, but we were serving a spice sensitive crowd)

 

I didn't the think the avocados were the typical grocery store Hass variety, so I searched 'avocado varieties' and came up with this http://www.tropicalfruitnursery.com/avocado-viewer/index.htmWho knew??? It turns out that the GFB avocados were likely Hass, but they were really good hass! Much paler than I've seen before, and VERY smooth and creamy, like butter (man's greatest invention)

 

I used a good chunk of my veggies in a really great curry recipe a couple of nights ago. It wasn't indian, it wasn't thai - a fusion of sorts. I made this one up, but it's inspired by a soup recipe from Eat, Shrink and Be Merry (authors of Looneyspoons).

 

We'll call it...

 

Wicked-good Fusion Veggie Curry

(this receipe is vegan, and gluten free btw!)

 

 

 

Ingredients (seems like a lots, but there really isn't much prep work, trust me!)

• 2 tsp canola oil
• 2 tsp GFB garlic (2 small cloves)
• 1 Tbsp grated ginger (I always have a chunk of frozen ginger ready for grating - freezing makes the job a cinch)
• 3/4 tsp of curry powder (I used Club House), cumin, and garam masala (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Garam_masala. Got mine from the Spice House in Kensington Market - coriander will work here to, or nothing if you have neither)
• 1/2 - 1 tsp salt (please taste before adding more)
• 1 small GFB onion (local), chopped
• 2 small GFB sweet potatoes (local), chopped in 1"ish pieces
• 1/2 large can of diced tomatoes, about 400ml (I buy no-added salt, so I can salt myself...such a good dietitian)
• 4 small GFB zucchini (2 large, 3 medium...really whatever!) chopped to the same size as your sweet potatoes
• 1 can of chick peas (or lentils would be yummy) - rinsed.
• 1 can of coconut milk (go light for a lower fat version)
• 2 Tbsp peanut butter (Kraft-smooth)
• 1 Tsbp brown sugar
• Juice from 1/2 lime (a Tbsp or so)
• 1 tsp Sriracha (hot asian chili sauce - optional)

Instructions:

1. Heat canola oil over medium heat
2.  Add onions and sautee for 2-3 minutes
3.  Add garlic and ginger and sautee for about a minute
4. Add curry powder, cumin, and garam masala, sautee for another 30 seconds
5. Add coconut milk, sugar, tomatoes, and sweet potatoes - turn heat to medium-low and simmer for 10-12 minutes, until potatoes are almost soft enough to eat.
6. Add zucchini and chickpeas, and simmer for another 5-8 minutes, until zucchini are cooked through
7. Add peanut butter, lime juice, sugar, and sriracha and simmer until heated through (p.b. is melted)

 Serve over basmati rice.

 

This made enough for Rory and I for dinner, lunch the next day for both of us, and one more lunch, so 5 servings-ish depending on personal gluttony :)

 

This recipe is a keeper for sure, I brought a couple of samples in to some foodies at work, and they also agreed. A great vegetarian dinner option (I try to do at least a couple per week), or a great dinner party option for your vegan, celiac, kosher friends! ENJOY!

 

Still left on the agenda to tackle is the giant head of Savoy cabbage - not sure what I'll do with this, and recipe searches have been pretty fruitless. Sauteeing with bacon comes to mind...stay tuned!

 

Also remaining are: 3/4 bag of beets, a FULL 5 lb bag of potatoes, a few onions, a couple of sweet potatoes, and some garlic. Suggestions always welcome :)

 

Happy Eating!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

New booty!

Welcome to the new arrivals!!! I realize I may sound a titch crazy making it sound like I'm bringing home a baby for the first time...however, it is really exciting....and bonus, I get to cook and eat this bundle of joy!!!

Feast your eyes on that!!!

Again, the content list that I received with the box was 100% accurate.  The produce looked great, minus one smooshy onion in the 2 lb bag.  I was pleasantly surprised...other than the potatoes and bananas, the remainder of the content was different from the previous box.  Pears were a repeat, but these were bosc, a different variety.

This week's feature was beets! I love the satisfying earthiness of a beet, and was excited to see it was the feature. The recipes included this week were: dilled beet and potato soup and roasted garlic and beet salad. I think I'll give the soup a go!

Although it's only post-arrival day 2... I had to share my dinner with you! It was PERFECT! (and once I reveal last night's atrocity...you will be relieved for me).

Thank you to Dara, a fellow dietoodie (foodie-dietitan..this word is too funny not to use)...who went to work in a brilliant way when I told her I was interested in making barley risotto (my new dish/ ingredient for the week!) along with something from the new box...This is what she found:
 http://www.lcbo.com/lcbo-ear/RecipeController?language=EN&recipeType=1&action=recipe&recipeID=3960

She will be proud, as I followed the recipe to the letter :)

Barley risotto recipe ingredients

On the stove top...

Proscuitto wrapped chicken breasts

Beet and Barley Risotto

Simple side salad: Leaf lettuce with a creamy balsamic dressing

This whole meal was de-flippin'-licious....

The recipe for the risotto can be found at the link I posted - I strayed from the recipe only very slighty...the risotto needed about 50 minutes of cooking time rather than the 40, and I used my own leftover thanksgiving frozen turkey stock. Oh, and a shout-out to the beets, which were a local GFB product.

I can't express how much I enjoyed this, but I'll try!...it was rich and starchy (a fave combo of mine), and the barley gave it such a wonderful chewy texture that isn't quite as pronouced with a rice-based risotto. And the color...photos don't lie...that colour is accurate, this dish was simply stunning. The flavours were so well balanced...sweet earthy beets, tang and acidity from the wine and last-minute addition of lemon juice (brillian), and a salty feta accent...I'm salivating again despite my extremely overfilled tummy! I can't wait to make another barley risotto!

The Proscuitto wrapped chicken breasts were simply - chicken breasts...wrapped...in proscuitto. Baked at 400F for 20 mins...I drizzled a little EVOO over the chicken when they were wrapped too. The chicken was salty, moist, and satisfying...mmmm, protein wrapped in protein...

The salad, if you can even call it that, was just perfect green leaf lettuce, topped with an on-the-fly creamy balsamic dressing.

• 1 Tbsp mayo - the full-fat real mccoy...half fat is o.k. too. Don't you dare go fat-free on me.
• 1 Tbsp canola oil
• 2-3 tsp balsamic vinegar
• 1-2 tsp white sugar
• dash of S, and a couple grinds of fresh P.

shake 'er up in a container or whisk it...be gentle on your salad, don't drown it, especially if you've got perfect lettuce... you want to taste it!

I really do appreciate a good food day!

but...they can't all be great!
I feel it's important to be honest..i'm not a pro-chef, and I don't have an ego...so I will share my failures too!

I will give you a quick run down of the disaster of a meal that went straight to the garbage last night...fresh sole fillets, seasoned with salt and pepper, and pan fried in a touch of butter...sounds simple and yummy eh? DEEsgusting...I swear those fillets were previously frozen...the texture was mushy after a quick pan fry, I couldn't even lift them out of the pan with a spatula without them falling apart. That, and they tasted like water..yuck! unfortunately, as much as I hate waste, these were truly inedible...and they went to the big green bin in the sky (slash the little one under my sink).

The side: The morning of (to be efficient) I shredded a beautiful pile of potatoes (leftover from last GFB), combined them with an egg and seasoning in a bowl, and left them in the fridge for the day, with dreams of baked potato fritters (aka latkes)...when I arrived home to make them, the potatoes on the top-most layer had oxidized quite a bit (they were brown!), but I thought, no matter, it shouldn't change the taste...well, they were AWFUL! I'm not sure if it was leaving them in the fridge for the day, or using the older potatoes, but they were thoroughly unappetizing and just, gross...tossed them too.

I slammed around the kitchen for a while after this disaster...and settled on egg nog for dinner...it was late, I was tired, and definitely ornary...in hindsight, I should've added rum.

Needless to say, there are no photos of last night's meal...deal with it.

Happy Eating All!!!!

Foraging for foodies - thestar.com

This is what I'm talkin' bout!  The local food movement is becoming sooo mainstream!  I'm the type of girl that likes top 40 pop music...mainstream is HOT.

Foraging for foodies - thestar.com

one more sleep 'til next box pickup!!!

I have yumminess to report sports fans!  (I actually wrote this update a couple of days ago, but was having computer problems and couldn't post..sorry!)

I've been stretching to fit something from my GFB in to all my blog-worthy meals, and I have to say with one day left until next delivery, it's been a challenge!

Alrighty, since my last post....

I used the leftovers from my slighty undercooked squash last week (nuked it for a couple of minutes to obtain optimal squash-icity), and made a quick salad:

Baby arugula and spinach, red onion, squash and a red wine vinaigrette:

VERY deelish (and the recipe is self explanatory I believe!)

Served with:

Sweet and Savoury Asian Haddock

This was really very good..sweet and savoury with a nice little kick...Haddock is a mild and meaty white fish that carried these flavours beautifully.  The cooking time was also perfect, falling apart in big moist flakes at the touch of a fork...and bonus, Canadian Wild Haddock is a sustainable seafood choice.

Now a word on seafood sustainability...I try, and I'm learning.  My choices have recently been guided by a wonderful Sustainable seafood guide published by SeaChoice - A program developed by 5 Canadian conservation organizations, aimed to help Canadians support sustainable fisheries and aquaculture (http://www.seachoice.org/)

Here is the direct link to the SeaChoice Canada's Seafood Guide so you can start to make your own responsible choices: http://seachoice.org./files/asset/file/37/SeaChoice_Alertcard.pdf 

The recipe you ask?

Ingredients:

• 2 fillets Canadian Wild Haddock
• juice from 1/2 a juicy lime
• 2 tsp oyster sauce
• 2 tsp brown sugar
• 1 Tbsp canola oil
• 1/2 tsp of Sriracha hot chili sauce
• 2 finely sliced green onions

Instructions:

1. Pre-heat over to 400 F
2. Whisk all sauce ingredients together until brown sugar is dissolved, and spoon over and brush onto Haddock fillets.
3. Bake for 10 minutes.

     Over the weekend I also used up the remaining apples from the GFB - now, these were not great apples I have to admit.  They were fresh and crispy and crunchy as all fall apples should be, but they lacked flavour, they were unlike any apple I've tasted before.  Unfortunately, the apple bag wasn't labelled with the variety, so I've included some photos of the cored apples I used to make a very simple and healthy-ish crisp, which I just finished for breakfast this morning, with a side of raspberry yogurt!

Couldn't-be-simpler Apple Crisp

Ingredients:

• 5 apples of any variety (despite the disappointing flavour in their raw form, these apple were very good baked with sugar..shocking i know) cored, peeled and chopped
• 1 Tbsp flour
• 2 Tbsp brown sugar
• dash of salt
• 1/4 tsp cinnamon (if you want, but not required)

For the topping:

• 3/4 cup of quick cooking oats
• 1/4 c brown sugar
• 1/4 c non-hydrogenated margarine ( i love butter, and it would work well here, but I was going for a low saturated fat option)

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350F
2. Combine all of the filling ingredients in an oven safe dish
3. Heat margarine over low heat, add brown sugar until dissolved
4. Remove margarine and sugar from heat, add oats and stir until they are well coated
5. Spread oat mixture over apples
6. Bake for 1 hr

Again, struggling to use the remainder of GFB bounty, I incorporated my remaining carrot (yes...a  singular carrot) into the following...

Split Pea and Bacon Soup

Ingredients:

• 3/4 c of yellow split peas
• 1 tetra pack (900 ml) vegetable stock (or chicken if you like)
• 1 cup water
• 1 carrot chopped(GFB - local)
• 1 celery stick chopped 
• 1/2 large onion chopped
• 5 slices regular old bacon (sliced into 1/4" slices)
• 1 Tbsp EVOO
• S&P

Instructions:

1. Over med heat, add bacon to a large pot with a splash of water (1 Tbsp) - this will help it cook and crisp up evenly.  When crispy, remove bacon with slotted spoon.
2. Discard all but 2 tsp of bacon fat from pot, and add EVOO (if there are crispy brown bits stuck to your pan from cooking the bacon, all the better!)
3. Add carrots, celery, onion and cook until slightly softened - 5 minutes or so 
4. Add stock, water, and split peas, and simmer over low heat (lid on! no more soup burning for me) for 40 minutes
5. Taste test your peas to ensure they're tender...if they are, use an immersion blender (or regular blender) to puree soup
6. add S&P to taste, and use the most delicious garnish ever imaginable (crispy bacon no doubt) to top your bowl.

The verdict...great!  A wee bit over-salted, but really really deep wonderful smoky flavour...a perfect hearty compliment to a sandwich or a salad.  It was even better warmed up for lunch!

Finally, I will include one last dish that is actually free of all GFB ingredients...what? i was out!  But it was so good I had to share...

Lemon and Garlic Scallops over Whole Wheat Spaghetti with Arugula

I picked up these scallops from Loblaws a month or so ago while they were on sale...Since learning about how unsustainable the shrimp I had been buying was, I wanted an alternative seafood choice that I could easily add to things like pastas and risottos.  These will be regularly included in my meals...they cook easily, and they are REALLY good.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 box of whole wheat spaghetti
• 1 bag of Blue Menu Argentinian sea scallops (about a pound if you buy them fresh)
• 1 bunch of Arugula chopped (this arugula was mature - mature arugula, as opposed to the baby arugula, has a much stronger bitter flavour - so beware if you are adverse to strong bitter flavours - spinach would also work here)
• zest and juice of 1 lemon
• 2 cloves garlic, minced.
• 1/4 c EVOO (divided)
• 3/4 grated parmesan cheese (ONLY the real stuff please)
• S&P to taste

Instructions:

1. rinse and pat scallops dry, toss with S&P
2. heat 1 Tbsp of the EVOO in a large saute pan over med heat
3. Sautee scallops in 1 layer for 2 minutes, stir, and continue cooking for 1 more minute, then remove with a slotted spoon
4. lower heat and sautee garlic until soft (2 mins - and for the love of god, don't burn it!)
5. Add lemon zest and juice, remaining olive oil and S&P and whisk in pan
6. Meanwhile, cook spaghetti until al dente, strain, but reserve 1/3 c of the starchy pasta water
7. transfer cooked pasta, lemon/garlic sauce, pasta water and arugula to the large pasta pot and toss to coat - let sit for 1 minute until arugula has wilted.
8. Add scallops and parmesan cheese and toss to coat

This is so very very good, and I just had to share!! I've made a version of the recipe many times, and usually serve the pasta with a fillet of salmon - my very good foodie friend Erin made this once for Rory and I when we went for dinner, and I haven't been able to get enough since!  The inspiration is a Giada De Laurentiis recipe I think :)

So, that's it for now... I will say that I got my new GFB last night and it did not disappoint!!!  New post coming VERY soon!

Happy Eating :)

Squash and such...

Hello fellow foodies :)  Thanks to those who have started reading - and for all your advice and encouragement!  I realize now the 'comment' function was out of order - it has now been repaired!  If you have questions/ advice etc. please post for all to see :)

On to the good stuff!  It has been a moderately slow cooking week for me, but I continue to work through my supply of produce.  I've also made a resolution to cook at least one new food item or recipe per week, which may or may not come from my produce box supply...just to keep things interesting!

First, Monday's dinner menu:

Seared pork chops served with rosemary apple sauce, garlic sauteed collard greens, and baked orange Kabocha squash.

The pork, apples, collard greens, and squash were all products of Ontario.

Apple Sauce Ingredients:

Pork and Collards

Squash vinaigrette ingredients

The piece de resistance

The pork and apple sauce recipe is courtesy of Michael Smith's new cookbook The Best of Chef at Home (www.chefmichaelsmith.ca) - I had the opportunity to see him and Anita Stewart (www.anitastewart.blogspot.com) do a talk recently at George Brown college, where he emphasized his passion for eating locally and encouraging others to do so..."Be the Change!" he told us (a group of budding young foodies and chefs).  This is partially what inspired me to start writing this blog.  I will really try to give an unbiased opinion on all of the produce boxes that I trial - but for me, the local content of a box will weigh heavily on my decision of which is the best of the best.

Recipes!  Unfortunately, this pork recipe is not available anywhere but chef Smith's cookbook, but you can find a variety of alternative apple/pork recipes on his website.  I varied his recipe slightly, this is my version:

Apple Rosemary Sauce:

• 2 yummy apples, peeled, cored, chopped (GFB - local)
• 1 large or 2 small onions, sliced thinly
• 1 Tbsp fresh chopped roasemary
• 2 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
• 1 Tbsp canola or olive oil
• S&P to taste
• 1/4 c. water

1. Heat oil in a small saucepan over med-low heat - add onions and sautee until golden brown (caramelized) - 15-20 mins.
2. Add remaining ingredients and simmer until apples are very soft (about 15 mins).
3. Serve over pork hot or cold (mine was warm)

Seared Ontario Pork:

• 2 thick centre cut pork chops, bone in.
• 1 Tbsp butter
• 2 Tbsp canola oil
• S&P 

1. Pat pork dry and season both sides with S&P
2. Meanwhile, heat butter and oil over med high heat in a sautee pan that can be covered (the addition of oil will help keep the butter from burning), add pork, and sear for 2 minutes per side.
3. Turn down heat to low - cover pan, and continue to cook for 10 minutes.

Kabocha squash (this recipe for "baked squash" was taken from the newsletter that I received with my Good Food Box)

• 1 squash (lots of options!), halved and seeded. (GFB - local)
• 2 Tbsp EVOO
• 1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 1 Tbsp maple syrup (we use a delish medium-flavoured variety that I picked up from a one-eyed Mennonite named Elam on the side of a country road who thought my BF Rory was my dad! ha!)
• 1 tsp thyme
• 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes 

1. Pre-heat oven to 350F.  
2. Whisk all sauce ingredients, pour equal amounts into each squash half.
3. Bake for 45 mins.

Collard Greens sauteed with garlic:

• 1 bunch Ontario collard greens
• 2 tsp EVOO
• 1 clove garlic, minced.

1. Bring large pot of water with 1 Tbsp salt to boil.
2. Add greens for 2 mins, then strain.
3. Heat EVOO in sauce pan, add garlic and sautee for 1-2 mins on med-low
4. Add strained greens and sautee for 2-3 minutes.

The verdict:

All around very good.  ***/*****

The pork was overcooked - my gas stove I'm learning, runs high...it was by no means bad, and it wasn't dry, but I like a nice juicy, tender pork, just barely pink.  Next time I will cut down on cooking time, simple as that.

The apple sauce was phenomenal...a sweet and savory burst of flavour, and the rosemary really gives it a nice earthy flavour.  I will absolutely make this again!

The collard greens - great. simple green garlicy freshness, with a pleasant hint of bitterness that balanced the plate very well.

The squash - um, not great, wasn't cooked through, and had to throw it in the microwave to finish it off to have it ready with the rest of the meal.  I thought 350F seemed like a low roasting temperature (and the suggested cooking time was only 30 mins!), but I followed the recipe anyway - should've listened to my instincts!  I'm sure cooking time varies with different squash varieties.  The vinaigrette was good on it's own (for a salad maybe), but didn't complement the squash that well.  I would've preferred something simpler - maybe just the maple syrup and and oil.

The moral: don't overcook your pork, eat apple sauce infused with caramelized onions and rosemary whenever the opportunity arises, and acquaint winter greens and garlic often.

Last night's meal - if you could call it a meal, was a quick take on scalloped potatoes.  It was volleyball night, and with a double header, there was very little prep time.  The result:

Cheddar and broccoli scalloped taters:

• 4 medium sized potatoes (GFB - local)
• 1 bunch broccoli (GFB - local), chopped into small pieces (see above)
• 3/4 c. skim milk
• 2 Tbsp flour
• 1.5 c shredded medium cheddar
• S&P
• butter/oil/PAM for greasing

1. Bring large pot of salted water to a boil
2. Peel and slice potatoes thinly (peeling can be skipped here too - added fibre!), and add to boiling water, cooking for 8 minutes - then strain
3. Heat milk and 1/4 tsp salt in microwave for 1 minute
4. Grease inside of appropriately sized microwave safe dish (sorry, that's probably not helpful!)
5. Add 1/3 of potatoes to bottom of dish, cover with 1/3 of flour, broccoli, and cheddar.  Repeat this step two more times.
6. Pour heated milk over potatoes
7. Microwave dish for 7-10 minutes

This was yummy, and was supposed to be served with fish, but I was too tired to do the fish after vball, so potato-dinner it was!

It needed a little more seasoning - I added  pepper and a dollop of sour cream to my serving.
Rory, in a moment of genius - added a small 4oz can of tuna to his serving - a take on  tuna casserole - wheat free! (minus the flour of course).

A successful week so far!

The remaining contents of the box include, potatoes, apples, pears, carrots, garlic, and oranges...suggestions are welcome :)

Let's talk food soon o.k.?!

New News!

Alrighty... it's been a couple of days since the first delivery, and there's food to report on people!

Today I participated in a lovely office pot luck with some of my fellow foodie-dietitians (there needs to be a word for that...fooditian? dietoodie?). Anywho, I offered to provide the soup course for this vegetarian luncheon - an NO, dietitians are not all vegetarians, in fact one of my very best friends is extra thick bacon.  I decided to rely on the bounty of my good food box and went to work on a simple potato leek soup (the potatoes were part of my delivery, the leeks were a special purchase)... i got started a little late, and had the pot of goodies on the stovetop at about 9pm...Wednesday... 9pm...hello, Glee was on!!! I got myself wrapped up in the Quinn/Finn/Puck pregnancy scandal, and by the time I checked on the soup, I realized I was using my old pots with ill fitting lids, and being somewhat new to gas stoves, had the heat on too high...fact is... i managed to burn soup. horribly.  Thankfully, my neighbourhood 24 hr Sobeys provided me with some cranberry/cinnamon goat cheese, Balderson old cheddar, and some creamy dill harvarti for the pot luck...with a side of ontario Good Food Box pear slices... no one missed my charred soup :)  and my apologies but I failed to take a photo of the soup...on purpose.

On to this evening's meal :)

Here we have the raw ingredients:

Blue menu whole wheat spagooch (that's a Jim Mills word)
1 hot house tomato a la good food box
1 bunch of spinach a la good food box
1/2 vadalia onion
veggie broth (3/4 c. ish)
herb and garlic cream cheese (2 Tbsp ish)
leftover steelhead trout
and of course extra virgin olive oil (EVOO from now on) and salt and pepper to taste (s&p)

And the finshed product....

Quickly - Sauteed the onions in EVOO...added the broth and tomatoes...tomatoes broke down really fast, and it wasn't looking pretty, so I zipped the onions broth and tomatoes with my hand blander to make it smooth, added the cream cheese and heated until melted, then added fish just to heat through.  Meanwhile, the spaghetti is cooking in salted water.  When it's done I transfer it into a large bowl (still dripping wet with it's great starchy liqud), along with the fresh spinach, and the heated sauce/fish, and toss...the spinach cooks through just enough after a minute or so...voila.

The verdict:  eh...so so...won't replicate it...here's what I would change.

• cherry/grape tomatoes to keep their shape.
• white wine instead of broth - it was missing acidity...lemon juice would have also worked.
• marscapone or regular cream cheese... with REAL garlic and herbs
• x-nay on the out-tray. as in, no trout mixed in..maybe a fillet rested on top, or shrimp/ scallops instead, trout is just a little too strong tasting (think slightly milder salmon) to be mixing in.

So the stock of produce continues to dwindle - As far as fruit goes I've tried the oranges (a bit too tart, and impossible to peel), and the pears (a little under ripe, but perfectly tasty - check out how they arrived..look closely at the bag)

...stay tuned, the rest of the veggies are up to bat! 

Happy Cooking Y'All!!!

Delivery numero UNO!

So it begins!  I picked up my first Good Food Box delivery yesterday, and boy-o-boy, a dietitian and her produce box is like a kid in a candy store!

First thing's first - i'll give you a very brief low down on Foodshare's Good Food Box program.  To find out more about FoodShare (an incredible non-profit whose vision is "Good Healthy Food for All"), please check out http://www.foodshare.net.

Foodshare's Good Food Box program is a pick-up service.  To find a pickup location in your area, email gfbox@foodshare.net with the closest intersection to your home - I received an email back within 48 hrs with 3 possible choices.  The pick up locations are the homes of customers who have volunteered to be pick-up spots.  I chose the closest one to me, called on a Friday to set up a new delivery, and had my first box on Tuesday!  The delivery days depend on where you live in the city, and there are weekly and biweekly options available.

There are a variety of box content options too (I've copy this from their website):


Good Food Box - $17
Family-sized selection of affordable fresh fruit and vegetables, with an emphasis on seasonal produce and one or two "interesting" items each delivery.

Small Good Food Box - $12
A smaller version of the Good Food Box for singles, seniors or small families.

Fruit Box - $12
Just fruit, with an emphasis on what's at its best and in season at the moment.

Large Organic Box - $32
Certified organic produce, mostly local. Very seasonal, lots of root vegetables in the winter. The higher price of this box reflects the higher production costs that come from producing food organically.

Small Organic Box - $22
Smaller version with the same certified organic produce, mostly local, very seasonal.

Wellness Box - $12
A week's worth of servings of fruits and vegetables cut-up and measured for you with love and care. Suitable for seniors and students.



I went for the standard Good Food Box for $17 - the pick up location that I chose only offers biweekly delivery, so I hoped the large box would carry us through.   Payment can be made by cash or cheque at pick-up time.

There was a small mix-up when I went to pick up my box - one of the existing customers took my box in error and left her organic produce box.  No one was expecting a new customer, and although the boxes were labelled, this was a classic case mindless-produce-pick-up (?).  The pick-up coordinator promptly called the suspect, and arranged for a switcheroo.  Since all the customers live in the same neighbourhood, I offered to go do the switch myself.  No harm, no foul.... off to the kitchen with a bounty of who-knows-what waiting for me!

 YUMMERS!!!!
As of yet, I have nothing to compare this to... stay tuned in the coming months...but I was impressed with the variety and the amount of local produce - and the content card was bang-on!  There was also a one page newsletter in the box, which provided me with a nifty little story about the history of squash, and a couple of recipes (baked squash, and butternut squash soup).

what to make, what to make? I was in a rush - Tuesday night volleyball - and needed a serious 30 minute meal....I had a gorgeous fillet of steelhead trout ready to be baked, and needed some compatible sides... I have never in my life cooked swiss chard before, but had a very successful run-in with rapini just last week, and decided to do something similar...and something starchy for my carb-craving palette...had potatoes the night before, so decided on their less starchy root relative, carrots!

Final menu:
Baked steelhead trout, ginger braised swiss chard, and brown sugar glazed carrot rounds.

Success you ask?  mostly yes!

The trout was seasoned with course salt and freshly ground black pepper, and baked for 11 minutes at 400 degrees.  It was simple and delicious - 10 minutes would've been even perfect-er!

The Chard:  Boiled heavily salted water (1 Tbsp regular old salt), chopped my chard into 1.5" pieces, and threw them in  for 2 minutes - strained, ran under cold water (to stop cooking), and threw it in the salad spinner to get rid of excess moisture.
Next, heated 1 tsp of canola oil (but whatever would work), added 1 tsp of grated fresh ginger sauteed for a minute, then added 2 tsp of oyster sauce, and a splash or two of water (2-3 Tbsp-ish)...add the chard, and cook through, another 2-3 minutes, most of the moisture should evaporate.

the verdict:  the cooking time was perfect...still slightly firm.  the ginger was a lovely touch, and the oyster sauce would have been nice if I used less - just too salty...next time I would add 1/2 tsp at the most... the chard already has some seasoning being boiled in salt water.

The carrots:  peeled and chopped in to 1/4" rounds, threw them in the steamer for I'd say 15 minutes(ish)..i'm terrible at writing recipes I just realized!.  In a small saucepan, added 1 Tbsp of dark brown sugar and 1 tsp of butter, and melted over low heat...added the carrots (soft but firm), and a pinch of salt.

the verdict: will make this again for sure (as i'm sure carrots will continue to pop up in produce boxes throughout the winter months)..simple, fast, and brown sugar and butter were included - which gives this dish an automatic advantage!

So there we have it! Day 1 was a success!  I look forward to hearing from my thousands of followers! :o
Let me know what types of things you would like to see and hear about.  I hope to post a couple of times per week, and add photos whenever possible.  man...this is SO much fun.

My love affair with perfect produce...

Welcome!!!

I am embarking on a journey that will have me trialing as many of the local produce box services in Toronto as possible over the next several months - all in hopes of finding the best fit for me and my small (me and the BF) family. This will also give anyone interested in the blog (anyone... anyone...) the down and dirty of the produce box biz!

I'll be eyeing up:

• the % of local produce (will keep seasonal bias in mind)

• the organic-ocity (new word!) of boxes, and if/how organics makes a difference in my life (and is it worth it?).

• whatchya get for whatchya pay (i'm not made of $$ here folks)

• other stuff (if/how much waste, weekly vs biweely, pick-up vs delivery, recipes, and mayyybe some nutrition info - as a dietitian i may divulge some insider scoop!)

I've done a little research so far, and this is the list I've compiled:

• The Good Food Box (Foodshare) http://www.foodshare.net/goodfoodbox01.htm
• Front Door Organics http://www.frontdoororganics.com/
• Mama Earth Organics http://www.mamaearth.ca/
• Wanigan Fruits and Vegetables http://www.wanigan.com/
• Green Earth Organics http://www.greenearthorganics.com/
• Plan B Organic Farms http://www.planborganicfarms.ca/

First on the agenda, the Good Food Box!