A fixing of thoughts.

 roasted carrot soup and crostini

Reflection. The past few months have been filled with a lot of mediation and change. I've been gone for a while, and as the mornings become increasingly brisky and we are well into fall, I've felt inspired this past thanksgiving to get back into writing and sharing a recipe with you. 

My nephew is two and a half, and his palette is developing quickly for various flavours and dishes. He loves carrots, and for this past thanksgiving, I wanted to make a dish that would please all of our age groups. I'm known to have a love for nutmeg. It adds such softness and creaminess to dishes with root vegetables, especially squash. But in this case, fresh nutmeg gives this soup so much merit. Adapted from Donna Hay's recipe, here's a slightly different version. 

Recipe:

~ 5 large carrots, peeled and roughly chopped

~ 2 small yellow onions, roughly chopped

~ 2 tablespoons olive oil

~ sea salt and cracked black pepper

~ 2 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg

~ 1 teaspoon ground cumin

~ 4 cups vegetable stock

~ 250ml table cream

~ 250ml 2% milk

~ 3 tablespoons chopped flat-leaf parsley leaves 

~ 4 tablespoons chopped chives

~ creme fraiche

Crostini

~ day old baquette

~ sea salt and cracked black pepper

~ 2 tablespoons butter 

For the soup:

Preheat oven to 400ºF. Combine the carrot, onion, oil, salt, pepper, nutmeg and cumin in a baking dish. Roast for 45 minutes until carrots and onion start to brown and soften. Let cool and process in a blender with the vegetable stock until smooth. Place into a medium sized saucepan over medium heat. Add the cream and milk and bring to a boil. 

For the crostini: 

Cut baquette on a slight diagonal to create oval shaped slices. Add butter to a large pan, and once melted add the slices of bread. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Let toast and flip to repeat. Remove from pan and let cool. 

Pour soup into each bowl, serve with a spoonful of creme fraiche, sprinkle with parsley and chives. Place crostini into the soup, or on the side. 

Serves 4 to 6, depending on portion size. 

Enjoy!

The vigorous fig.

 Fig Tarts 

 *with puff pastry recipe.

Delicious figs. Delicate and rich, desserts made with figs are wonderful because their texture and taste is emphasized when baked. I enjoy making this recipe because it's very delicate and ephemeral, and requires a bit of dedication. When I truly feel like relaxing with some baking, I make this. Working with figs and puff pastry keeps me focused on what I'm doing, and the slow evolution of this recipe makes it somewhat meditative. 

So, lets start with the puff pastry as the figs are pretty straightforward.

Puff Pastry,

Note: I've tried many different versions, and while this one may not be the most elaborate or true to it's original derivative, it seems to be the most consistent and fair. Adapted from the Baking Essentials cookbook by William Sonoma, this puff pastry recipe works well with sweet and savoury dishes, as well as the tops on your chicken pot pies!

**Adapted from William Sonona 

 - 3 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

-Pinch of salt

-2 1/2 Tbs. unsalted butter, at room temperature

- plus 4 sticks cold unsalted butter

1 cup water

With your stand mixer fitted with the flat beater, combine the flour, salt and room-temperature butter. Beating slowly first and then increasing the speed to medium, beat the ingredients, slowly adding the water in a thin stream at the same time, until the ingredients are mixed together into a firm dough and form a ball. Do this quickly as you don't want to overbeat the dough. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes. 

Using a rolling pin, roll the cold butter between two sheets of parchment paper into a rectangle 3/4" thick. Remove the dough from the refrigerator. On a floured work surface, roll out the chilled dough into a round about 11 inches in diameter. Remove the paper from the rectangle of butter, place the butter in the center of the dough round, and fold the edges of the dough over the butter to enclose completely. 

Working quickly but carefully so as to now squeeze the butter from the dough, use the rolling pin to roll out the dough into a rectangle about 20" long by 8" wide. Keep the ends as square as possible. Fold the pastry into thirds by folding it toward you and then back over itself. Rotate the dough 90 degrees. 

Roll out the dough again into a rectangle of the same size and again fold it into thirds. You've now down two turns. 

Dust the dough with flour and cover with plastic wrap and a kitchen towel. Let rest in the refrigerator for 1 hour.

Remove the dough from the refrigerator and repeat the two turns again.. Again, wrap the dough and return to the refrigerator to rest for 1 hour.

Repeat the process one last. You should have completed 6 turns. It's ready for use. 

**The pastry may be frozen : To freeze the pastry, wrap airtight in plastic wrap and freeze for up to 2 weeks. Transfer to the refrigerator for 1 day to thaw, then remove and bring to room temperature before rolling. 

For the Figs, 

4-6 figs, cut into quarters.

For the cream, 

1 cup cream cheese

1 cup whipped cream

1 tsp. Vanilla extract, or 1 vanilla bean

1/4 cup caster sugar

Steps: 

Brush off any dirt or residue that may be on the figs. 

Take each fig and slice off the top, where the stem is. 

Quarter each fig, and sprinkle with brown sugar. Set aside.

Take your puff pastry onto a floured surface and roll out a sheet about 1/2" thick. Cut into rectangles about 3" wide by 4" long, or to any desired shape. Place each rectangle onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and lightly press the fig quarters into the pastry. Top with raw cane sugar crystals. Bake at 250C for half an hour or until golden brown. 

While baking, beat the whip cream with your stand mixer until stiff peaks form. Set aside. Beat the cream cheese with the sugar until fluffy, (medium-high speed for 3 minutes) and slowly fold into the whipped cream. Add the vanilla extract and/or vanilla beam. Serve on the side. 

Enjoy!

 

A pickle fit for a burger.

After dissecting the best burger I've ever tried, it became clear that the pickle is the deciding factor. This restaurant pickled their own, which then married perfectly with the rest of the sandwich. That was it for me. I had to find a way to recreate this wonderful proportion of flavours!

Being Polish, we're known to pickle a thing or two. So it wasn't hard to start somewhere. Taking the recipes my mom had gotten from her mom for crispy dill pickles, I started to adjust and tweak it to get a perfectly savory and sweet burger pickle. 

Here's the secret:

-1 cup pure white vinegar (Using pure white vinegar doesn't overpower the remaining ingredients, allowing the garlic and dill to stand out. If this isn't key for you, you can use champagne or white wine vinegar for a more distinct flavour. Both work).

-1 1/2 cup water

-1/4 cup granulated sugar

-3 tablespoons yellow dijon mustard (the more grain the better)

-10 tablespoon kosher salt

-1 tablespoon cracked black pepper

-6 to 8 cloves garlic, lightly smashed

-1 English cucumber or 6 miniature cucumbers, cut into 1/8-inch slices

-5 sprigs fresh dill, stems included.

-a pinch of celery seeds if you have them lying around

Add the vinegar, water, sugar, mustard, salt, garlic to a saucepan and bring to a simmer. Once the sugar has dissolved in the simmering liquid and some of the intensity of the vinegar has boiled out *about 5-6 minutes, add the cucumbers and dill to a heat-proof mason jar and pour the pickling liquid into the jar. 

Seal, and leave out until the jar cools *about 4 hours. Place into the fridge and let pickle for 48 hours before opening.

Now, to the other remaining burger ingredients.... 

Enjoy!

Savory&Sweet

Take one of each.

For the past year I've been working to create a unique collection of cupcake recipes that I then share at events for friends and clients alike. Cupcakes range in unique flavours; infused with herbs, spices, seeds and natural fruit extracts.

I've put together some pictures for you all the look through, in hopes to one day have you taste . 

Please enjoy, and consider contacting me for your next event!

Visit our website : http://www.wix.com/savorysweetcupcakes/main

Follow us on facebook - https://www.facebook.com/SavorySweetCupcakes

Comfort Food.

Browned Butter Cinnamon-Oatmeal Cookies.

Four. 

That's the number of times I've moved in the last three years. It can be exhausting, both phyiscally and mentally. I've always regarded myself as a comfortable mover - my sister and I were moved around often growing up, so instead of growing accustomed to one home, we would grow sick of any one place if we stayed too long. My childhood, I thought, would make me an eternal nomad but instead, I've come to yearn for a place that can absorb life. Someplace that could become filled with memories. 

A place in which the walls are heavy from weight of time. And while the place I've recently moved into - while I plan to stay a while - is probably not the place I speak of, it's certainly a perfect place to practice. 

And that's what I've been doing the last month. 

I've gone through all of what I've accumulated so far. Iv'e organized, compartmentalized and made somewhat of an inventory of what has (even to my suprise) become so much a part of me. I've even built spaces to keep all these memories. 

Adjusting to a new place always makes me a little uneasy. It takes a while to introduce yourself to a new home, and for the home to introduce itself to you. I've been learning each day, adjusting to sounds and the ins and outs of the everyday. Still, I think the best way to get acquainted and to feel at home is to fill the space with the smell of freshly baked cookies. Below is a really easy cookie recipe with some of my favourite flavours. I hope it will fill your home with as much delight as it does mine! 

Browned Butter Cinnamon Oatmeal Cookies

- 10 tablespoons unsalted butter

 - 2/3 cup light brown sugar, packed

- 1/3 sugar 

- 1 egg

- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

- 1 3/4 cup old-fashioned rolled oats

- 1 cup all-purpose flour

- 1 teaspoon cinnamon

- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder

- 1/2 teaspoon salt

- 1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375°F and line a baking tray with parchment paper.

2. Melt butter in small sauce pan over medium heat until butter browns, about 5 minutes. Let cool to room temperature.

3. Beat brown sugar, sugar and egg until smooth in a stand mixer. Slowly add the chilled butter. Stir in vanilla. In another bowl combine oats, flour, cinnamon, baking powder and salt.  With a wooden spoon, slowly add the mixture to butter mixture and stir to combine. Add walnuts and stir again to combine. Place spoonfuls onto a baking tray and bake in the center of oven for about 12 minutes. Sprinkle with cinammon sugar. 

Enjoy!

Sweetly aligned

As the warm weather becomes more and more frequent, I decided to claim my turn at the fever and cold before summer arrives. That was last week. This weekend, confident and ready to face the outdoors again, it was appropriate to pay my first visit to the Ontario wineries.

Living in Toronto, we are blessed with our proximity to the great vines of the Niagara Region. A bike, a basket and a full-belly are all one needs for the perfect afternoon through wine-county. 

One of my favourite wineries, Stratus Vineyards, never disappoints. The winery itself appeals to me because of it's stark presentation of the wine. Without compromising the product, the winery presents it's product beautifully. When you enter, you're greeted by a courtyard like space, framed by walls built of endless rows of bottles. It's quite stunning. In terms of the wine, Stratus always cultivates unique flavours with their selection of grapes. They still, in my opinion, produce the best red ice wine in the region. A wine so delicate, light and smooth it bring out the best in me. You can find more information here 

http://www.stratuswines.com/content/wines/#IceWines-c15/IcewineRed-p45/

Still inspired by my day trip, I decided to implement some of the flavours I had tasted into a dish.

Grilled Scallops with Maple-Balsamic Glaze and Double-smoked bacon Risotto.

Ingredients:

Scallops:

12-16 scallops, medium-sized.

Pure Maple Syrup (splurge on the good stuff, it makes a difference)

Real (caramel flavour and colour free) Balsamic Vinegar

200 g thinly sliced double-smoked bacon.

Risotto:

3 cups arborio rice

6 cups vegetable stock

1 cup white wine (of your choice)

1 cup parmesan cheese

1 onion, diced

2 garlic cloves, chopped

*On the side, wrap each scallop with one strip of bacon. Secure with a toothpick.

1. Heat a large caserole with 3 tablespoons of olive oil. Dice the remaining bacon and cook until cripsy. Remove from the caserole and set aside.

2. Into the same caserole, add chopped onion and garlic, and cook until soft.

3. Add arborio rice and stir to coat the rice with the oil.

4. Begin to add the liquids 1 cup at a time (stock first, wine last), allowing the rice to absorb the liquid each time. 

5. Continue to stir until the rice reaches just about its completed state, and add the parmesan cheese, and bacon. 

6. In a small saucepan, add 3/4 cup maple syrup with 3 tablespoons of balsamic vinegar. Allow to reach boiling point, and reduce heat to simmer. The syrup with begin to reduce, thickening to create a glaze. About 6-8 minutes. 

6. Heat a grill pan with a tablespoon of olive oil. Season the scallops with salt and pepper and place on the grill. Cook for 2-3 minutes per side, and remove from heat. 

Enjoy!

How it all comes from somewhere.

We've done this for as long as I can remember. The scent of smoked-fish re-awakening the accumulation of memories I have built from my childhood of trips to the Baltic Sea.

One memory in particular glows exceptionally brightly. Strolling down the warped boardwalk, staring in amazement at the world of fisherman, magically juggling numerous fish -  frying and smoking them along the bustling strip along the sea, alongside young men selling multi-coloured bandana's and scarves, infused with the smell of smoked fish. Already then, patterns were being formed. 

And what used to be very rustic has in many ways remained.

As some of you surely know, this past weekend was Easter. I always associate Easter weekend with these same bright colours, flowers and a multitude of patterns that arise in the food, and traditional Polish decorations.

Admittedly though, our Family's Easter is more in an attempt to cherish cultural traditions than it is religious for all of us, yet still, we all take this opportunity to be grateful, and to bless each other and our extended family members that live far away with health, happiness and love and the time to reflect back. And as our family continues to grow, it becomes more and more important to hold on to memories, and to find ways to track and reflect on them. 

 

Happy Easter Weekend!

 

A mousse for a memory. Apple-infused mousse with rosemary honey coated blackberries.

Apple-infused mousse with rosemary honey coated blackberries, (cherries if you can get some)

(Mus jabłkowy z rozmarynem i czarną jezyną)

There is something beautiful about sharing recipes with others that remind you of your heritage. Recently, it dawned on me that I haven't included any recipes that originate from Poland, and that's probably because I don't do a lot of traditional Polish cooking, and not by omission. I was born in Warsaw, but have spent most of my life in Canada, yet despite that, I still feel an overwhelming connection with where I am from, especially when it comes to the more culturally-related activities. A couple of years ago, I spent a number of months living in Warsaw, a trip that broke a long spell of being absent, and have grown accustomed to maintaining some of these idiosyncrasies in order to stay connected. My fondest memories were some the meals I shared in places I didn't know existed, and the journey we took to get to them.

While we're not particularly known for our cuisine, our desserts are superb. And though the one I'm sharing with you today isn't especially traditional, the ingredients remind me of visits to my grandmother's psuedo-farm, where I spent the mornings climbing the tallest of ladders to pick only the best cherries, and the afternoons wrapped in a hammock stripping each cherry seed dry and shooing away relentless bees.

This is from a polish recipe, modified slightly.

180ml milk

180ml heavy cream

1 sprig of vanilla, cut lenthwise in half.

250g of mutsu apples, peeled and roughly chopped

10g rosemary

160g raw sugar

50g water

7 egg whites

10g gelatine

150g blackberries *or cherries

2 tablespoons honey

2 tablespoons ground almonds

1. In a medium sized pot, bring to a light boil the milk and vanilla bean. I scrape the vanilla bean clean of its seeds, and then place the entire bean into the milk. You'll remove it later when you filter the liquid. To this mixture, add the chopped apples and let this simmer until the apples are tender. About halfway through, take a wooden spoon and break up some of the apples that are still a bit tough. 

2. Once tender, take the mixture and pour it through a sieve, filtering out the vanilla bean and any larger pieces of apple, or any milk residue. To the filtered liquid, add the cream and gelatine. Stir and set aside.

3. Beat the egg whites. Set aside.

4. In a small saucepan, heat the water and sugar until it reaches 121 C, a sugar syrup consistency. Pour this mixture into the egg whites, folding carefully. 

5. Slowly fold the egg whites into the milk. Don't overmix. 

6. Take a few fresh blackberries and pour them into the bottom of your serveware, pouring the apple mixture on top. 

7. In the same small saucepan, heat the honey and rosemary together just until the honey starts to bubble. Remove the rosemary  and add a handful of blackberries. Stir and place on either some wax paper or non-stick surface. Coat them in sugar and ground almonds. This will give them a little crunch. Top your filled bowls with the coated blackberries and let stand in the fridge for half an hour. 

Smacznego!

A pasta puttanesca fit for the body.

If you're like me, your cravings for a deliciously satisfying bowl of pasta come at you without warning, and are so loud, they tune out the voice of reason. The beautiful thing about this, without all the guilt, is that it's an easy fix. How can we turn our cravings into something a little more sustainable, and that won't leave us wanting more only an hour later? 

This recipe, handed down to me by my mom is truly a great solution. Not only is it filled with ingredients that are probably already in your fridge and/or pantry (and let's be honest, when these cravings hit, even the corner grocer is too far away), but it also is filled with ingredients that are good for your body, filled with nourishing antioxidants, and will keep you energized and full for many hours.

And, if you really are like me, this recipe will truly satisfy your savoury palette! 

Ingredients:

1 package spaghetti pasta

2 cans Italian tomatoes, drained and crushed

4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1 tsp dried hot red pepper flakes

2 tbsp capers

1/2 cup black olives, pitted and chopped

3 mashed garlic cloves 

2 tbsp fresh basil leaves, minced

1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, grated

1-2 cans of canned tuna, depending on how intense you want this flavour to stand out.

Directions:

Boil your pasta, 8-10 minutes in salted water. 

In the meatime, heat a large skillet with the olive oil and add all the ingredients, except for the grated cheese. Let all the ingredients heat up, and mingle. Once your pasta is done cooking, drain it and add it to your large skillet. Combine lightly, and serve. Garnish with the freshly grated cheese and basil leaves. 

After all of maybe 15 minutes of work, you're left with a really delicious pasta dish that could have been almost entirely composed of carbohydrates and is instead substituted with nourishing ingredients that will keep you happier for longer.

Fast. Fulfilling.

Enjoy!

Crab-filled ravioli with lemon garlic crisps and horseradish butter

I recently received a copy of the newest issue of Donna Hay's magazine, who I first discovered through a good friend of mine. Since then, I'm always inspired by her recipes and the way in which she presents food. And as we step into a fresh and pure year, I wanted to emulate Hay's very truthful and honest presentation of food. Let this be a resolution of sorts - to cook with our ingredients in mind, and to let their natural flavours and tastes shine through. I wish all my readers the absolute best for 2012, filled with new adventures and the love and passion to share them and build memories! 

Let this be the first adventure - Crab-filled ravioli with lemon garlic crisps and horseradish butter. 

In it's freshness and purity, this is the perfect recipe to start a new year. The original recipe can be found in the 58th issue of the magazine. The one below has been slightly modified. 

To make the pasta:

*2 3/4 cups (400g) of all-purpose flour

*4 eggs

Steps:

Place the flour in a large mixing bowl, add the eggs into the centre of the flour and stir with a fork until the dough comes together. Turn out into a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth. Place the dough in a bowl and cover for 30 minutes. Set aside. 

Divide the dough into quarters and with a pasta attachment or pasta machine, pass the quartered piece on the first position and repeat on each successive setting until you reach 7. Lay the sheets of pasta on a floured surface, and cut out circles about 5-7 cm in diameter.

To make the filling:

*1 cup Crab-meat, or imitation crab-meat will also do. Diced or shredded, whichever you prefer

*1/2 cup Brie-cheese, diced into small pieces.

To make the horseradish butter:

*80 g of butter

*2 garlic cloves, crushed

*2 tbsp of parsley, chopped

*20 g fresh horseradish, peeled and grated

*1 tablespoon grated lemon rind

*salt and pepper

Lemon-garlic Crisps:

*1 tablespoon olive oil

*1 cup fresh breadcrumbs

*1 clove garlic, crushed

*1 tablespoon finely grated lemon rind

Horseradish Butter: Combine butter, 2 cloves of garlic, parsley, horseradish, lemon rind, a pinch of salt and pepper in a small bowl. Mix together and set aside.

With the pasta rounds, on one place a tablepoon of the crab-meat, followed by 1/2 tablespoon of the brie. On the other round, place a dollop of the horseradish butter mix. On the round with the crab-meat, wet your fingers and trace the outside of the pasta, and carefully combine the two rounds, folding and pressing neatly to seal the two together. Repeat until all pairs are joined. Bring a large pot of water to boil.

Lemon Garlic Crisps: In the meantime, to make the garlic and lemon crisps, heat a tablespoon of the olive oil and add the breadcrumbs and cook for 3 minutes. Add the garlic, lemon rind, salt and pepper and cook for another minute. Set aside.

Cook the ravioli for 6-8 minutes. Melt the remaining butter and drizzle over the ravioli. Top with the crips and serve with some greens. 

Enjoy!

 

Sugar cookies; an assortment of sorts.

This is a very simple, simple task. Really, all the work is in the presentation. 

Here's my recipe for lovely sugar cookies -

~1 cup (2 sticks) of unsalted butter, brought to room temperature

~1 cup granulated sugar

~1 large egg

~2 1/4 tsp. vanilla extract

~1/2 tsp. ground cardamom

~1/2 tsp. salt

~2 1/2 cups, all-purpose flour, sifted.

And the steps...

1.Preheat oven to 375F

2.Combine the butter and granulated sugar in a mixing-bowl. Using a stand mixer, beat until light and fluffy on medium-high speed. 

3. Beat in the egg, vanill extract, cardamom and salt. Using a spoon, stir in the flour until well-mixed.

4. Roll out the dough on a well-floured surface, and pursue where your imagination leads you!

5. On a baking sheet, lined in parchment paper, bake the cookies until lightly golden, about 10-12 minutes. Transfer them to a cooling rack, and sprinkle with either vanilla sugar, powdered sugar, cinammon sugar or what your heart desires.

*You can store these cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 days.

**This recipe makes about 4 dozen cookies, depending on size and shape.

Combination Sweet and Salty, played by orange and green

 

I remember the reaction of my tastebuds so clearly…I also remember asking for seconds and thirds. It was the sweet, buttery taste of roasted carrots, infused with a subtle layer of rosemary and thyme mixed together into a delicious spread that I can only describe as being the perfect combination of sweet and salty flavours.

Since then, I’ve tried to recreate this memory into just about everything, forcing it
into meals and deserts, including a cupcake recipe that will come later. For now though, I’ve created my own version of this perfect little puree, adding some additional ingredients that I want to share with you.

No forcing required.

The Sweet:
3 large carrots, peeled and cored removed, chopped roughly.
1/2 sweet onion, also chopped roughly.
1 small/medium butternut squash, roughly chopped….or any squash you prefer. Only one rule here: make sure it’s of the winter squash variety. The summer squash is generally too soft.

Additional ingredients: butter, olive oil, salt and pepper, lemon and fresh rosemary, a baguette.

Combine all three into a pot filled with water and 2 tbsp’s of sugar and juice from half a lemon. Cook until soft on med-low, about 25 minutes.
Move the vegetables into a roasting pan, leaving the water in which they cooked in for later. Drizzle with olive oil, salt and pepper and fresh rosemary.
Place into the oven at 400F, and roast for about 25 minutes, until the vegetables soften and become brown.

Now this next part could be skipped, but I found it added a lot of flavour, and sweetness to the vegetables. In a large sauce pan, melt 3 tbsp’s of butter, let it brown and add 2 tbsp’s of honey, stir for a minute and follow with the vegetables. Give them a few minutes to mingle and place everything, including the juice from the pan, into the blender.

Before I add all the liquid from the first step into the blender, I like to see if I’ll need it all. So begin to blend, and if you need moisture to provoke the vegetables to purée add it one tablespoon at a time, until the mixture comes together. Add a fresh pinch of rosemary and/or time and a pinch of salt, as per your taste. This should be it, you should taste the natural sweetness of the vegetables, the richness of the honey, all emphasized by a little bit of salt.

Take your baguette, slice it on a diagonal, drizzle with a bit of olive oil, salt and pepper and toast lightly. Take the either warm, or chilled purée and spread it on just before you devour it!

The salty:
Parlsey oil (recipe below)
Mixed greens (mesclun, oak leaf or mizuna or a combination).
My Favourite Vinaigarette (1 tsp finely chopped garlic, 1 tsp finely chopped shallots, 1 tsp dijon mustard, 1 tsp honey, 1 tsp white wine vinegar, 1 tbsp lemon juice 1/4 cup olive oil, salt and pepper…whisked together)

Parsley Oil:
1 cup parlsey, torn from the stems. I used curly parsley, but it doesn’t really matter. You might get a slightly different intensity and colour from the different varieties.
1/2 cup of olive oil
pinch of salt.

Place all of this into a blender, and blend until the parsley has been obliterated into teeny tiny little parlsey molecules, releasing its colour onto the oil. Run this mixture through a sieve, and that is your oil. With the remaining parsley, so it doesn’t go to waste, you can place it into a air tight jar with some olive oil and chiles and in a few days have an infused olive oil.

**If you want to be really impressive, you can add a bit of organic gelatin (I buy it in small sheets), melted into 1/2 cup of boiling water, and add it to the parlsey oil. Let this chill and when it begins to gelify, whisk it together and you’ll get a parsley jelly.

Arrange all your ingredients onto a plate or otherwise socially acceptable serveware, and drizzle the parlsey oil alongside the salad. Dress the salad. Arrange your crostinis around the salad for a really colourful presentation.

French Macarons

French macarons, probably one of the cutest little desserts available (not to mention delicious) is generally associated with fear and hesitation. I too, was once in fear... but after trying multiple recipes, I've figured out a fairly simple way to make them. This recipe is consistent and hesitation-free. Bonne chance, mes amis! 

In terms of equipment, this is what you'll need:

~two baking trays

~Piping Bag with a 1/2 inch opening

~Parchment paper

~two mixing bowls

~Food Processor 

~Stand mixer, or hand mixer

~Sieve

Ingredients:

~3 egg whites

~210 g powdered sugar

~125 g almond meal

~30 g granulated sugar

Be really careful to measure all your ingredients carefully. I found that in order the get these macarons the way they're intended to be, measuring to the exact gram was crucial. 

1. Combine and grind your almond meal and powdered sugar in a food processor, or even a magic bullet. Make sure it's ground to a very fine grain. About 2-3 minutes. Stop and scrape the sides down, and process for anther minute.

2. Sieve the mixture using a spoon, transferring it to a glass bowl. Let the bigger rounds stay in the sieve.

3. Beat the egg whites at medium-high speed until bubbly. Add the granulated sugar and beat for 3-4 minutes. Your eggs need to be very stiff, without any bubbles. (If adding food colouring, do this now. Add a few drops into the egg white fixture. Also, any additional flavourings, such as cocoa, green tea, or poppy seed can be added here. I used about 1-2 tablespoons of the flavourings, but it depends on your preference. Try not to exceed 2 tablespoons, otherwise this will affect your macaron). Mix well.

4. Slowly add your almond/powdered sugar mixture, folding with a spatula. Work in portions. Fold until completely combined, and only until this point. Don't overmix or your macaron will look greasy once baked.

5. Using the other side of the piping tip (should be about an inch in diameter, trace around the tip onto your parchment paper, leaving a space of about 2 inches between each circle. Place this onto two baking trays (to prevent burning when baking). It's important to use two baking trays!

6. Place the tip back into the piping bag, and and pour the batter into the piping bag. Slowly twist and push the batter out of the bag, making them equal in size within the traced circles. Once done, bang the sheets against the counter, to let access air out. Let the macarons sit for 20 minutes on the counter. Preheat the oven to 300 F. After twently minutes on the counter, bake the macarons for 14 minutes.

A macaron must have the "pied', or foot. This is that circular bubbled bottom that forms during baking. Otherwise, it can not be called a macaron! 

Once they're baked, you need to fill them. To do this, you can use many different fillings. I've listed a few for you below, some of my favourites for you to try!

A Dinner worth Celebrating...Cedar-Planked Wild Salmon, with Sauteed Sweet Potato Pepperini Pasta and Rosemary Apple Butter Sauce

This past weekend, I was able to successfully complete a professionally-related certification for LEED. After studying insanely for the last few months, I passed the exam and the first thing that came to mind - as a personal reward - was to cook myself and loved ones a perfect meal!

Seemingly difficult, this recipe was actually really quite simple and quick. Admittedly though, I sort of created it on the fly, and as a result, some of the ingredients don't come accompanied with exact measurements. A little more here and there shouldn't drastically change this recipe anyways, so by all means try it, and modify it wherever you would like. 

Ingredients:

2 - 2.5 lb Wild Pacific Salmon, ready to grill. 

Seasoning ingredients for the salmon - smoked paprika, lemon juice, salt and pepper 2 tbsp of butter, 1 sprig of rosemary, 1/4 cup of finely chopped chives. 

4 tbsp. unsalted butter

Fresh herbs - rosemary, thyme, chives ( a few sprigs of each)

1 package of pepperini pasta (or orzo, but this is what I had in my pantry)

2 sweet potatoes

3 shallots

About a cup of apple cider

About a cup of vegetable stock

1 nutmeg

1 cedar plank, soaked in a bath of water for about 4 hours.

Steps:

For the fish,

1. Start heating your bbq, or grill to medium-high heat.

2. Season the salmon with all the seasoning ingredients, inserting slivers of butter throughout tiny slits in the salmon. 

3. Place it on the now water-absorbed cedar plank, and arrange the rosemary on top. During grilling, this will actually steam flavour into your fish once the cedar planks starts to sweat under the heat. It's phenomenal! 

Place your fish onto your hot grill, cover with the lid and allow to steam and for the flavours to marry. Your cedar plank will pretty much do all the work. For the specified amount of fish, I grilled it for about half an hour. 

For the pasta,

1. Fill a medium-sized pot with water, a dash of salt, and set of high heat to bring to boil. In the meantime:

2. Peel and chop the two sweet potatoes into 1/4" cubes, as neatly as you can. Finely dice the shallots.

3. Heat a pan to medium-high heat, placing 1 tbsp (half of what remains) into the pan to melt, and add the shallots and sweet potatoes. I found I needed to add a little bit more of oil once the potatoes started to absorb the liquid, so either olive oil or a bit more butter is fine. Place the rosemary, it its entirety into the pan to release its oils onto the potatoes.

4. Shave 1/2 nutmeg into the pan, adding salt and pepper to taste.

5. Once I found most of the oil in the pan was gone, my potatoes were done too, but if not, add a bit more liquid, and let them cook through. Obviously, the smaller and more consistent the potatoes were diced, the quicker and more precise this will be. Once done, remove the potatoes and onions to a bowl (but leave the rosemary) and into the same pan, do the following:

6. For the sauce, I added the stock and apple cider, stirred quickly, and then added the remaining butter and again, another sprinkle of the freshly shaved nutmeg.  Turn the heat to low, and the sauce will begin to thicken slightly, remove the rosemary and set aside... about a 5 minute process. Your sauce is ready

7. Place your pasta into the boiling water, and cook for about 8 minutes.

8. Once your pasta is ready, drain it and place it back into the pot, and add the potatoes and onions, giving a quick stir. The pasta is done. 

9. Once your fish is cooked, (shortly after the pasta and sauce), remove it from the grill and let is sit for a minute. 

10. Arrange your pasta on the plate, and place sections of the salmon on top, finishing with a spoon of the apple butter sauce. I added an apple slice and some fresh chives on top for some visual clues!

Truly Single Origin - A cheesemonger with a message.

Hey All:

I wanted to share with you another recent event I attended here in Toronto, hosted largely in part by the Food Network, which gave it a little star power, but more than that, gave opportunity to various local artisans - because in my mind, they are as much creating art with their hands as any other artist -to talk about the work they do, and the skill and passion required to go beyond the cheaper, more readily available supplies, and really focus on quality and supporting their producers. And by quality, I mean to have the ability to master one product and in one place, produce or harvest exactly and only what you might need, as a chef or cook, to create that one exceptional product. In other words, it is really the most pure definition of the termDenominación de Origen, which is a classification or status system that derives from Spain originally “stamping” wines from single origins. The system has diversified to include many products, including cheese, which was the topic of discussion at one demonstration at the Delicious Food Show.

One cheesemonger comes to mind.

His passion and determination to truly exemplify this process, that is, to learn, support and make cheese that is truly single origin was inspiring to me. From the herbs, truffles, dairy and any other ingredients needed to make a certain variety, everything needed to make their artisinal cheeses is produced on one farm. 

This can be expensive to do.

But because there are farms out there that are truly local, working entirely within the perimeter of their plot of land, and requires one man to be skilled in the various stages in making say, cheese or any other product, it makes you think how all the other cheeses are produced. Frozen, transported from one factory to another, mixed, frozen, transported again…and finally sold. But which process is cheaper? Go to any cheese shoppe, and the answer it clear…However, which process should be cheaper? Or does this even matter, knowing what we know? Maybe the better question would be which cheese would you prefer to eat?

And, which tastes better? 

Here are a few links to read more and get familiarized with this:

Quebec : Fromagerie Tournevent - For Chevre Noir fans

http://www.chevre-tournevent.qc.ca/ 

Spain : Cabrales cheese (or more affectionately known as blue cheese), which must come from herds from the region of Asturias.

http://www.quesocabrales.org/

Canadian Importer for Single-Origin fine foods: For a great link to a company who honours this process, and specializing in single-origin fine food products brought into Canada, check out my good friend, Pedro’s website for more information. He imports products stamped with the Denominación de Origenseal, and he’s a great dinner partner!

http://www.desirdeprovence.com/

Thanks for reading!