Creating new recipes

Last week, I talked about healthy cooking and even though I liked the Bonnie Stern cook book because there were so many healthy choices, my Canadian cook says I was stretching it a bit to say "we loved it".

So this week, I will tell you how a recipe actually evolves in our kitchen. We usually begin with a standard simple recipe, such as Linguine and Clams that can be found on any catelli box. The recipe is followed with a few tweeks here and there, a little more butter in the form of a beurre manie for instance - just to make sure the sauce coats the linguine. Then we taste it and it gets a "B" rating as an option for dinner.

The next phase involves stepping up the sauce with some white wine - hmm - sounding pretty good. Add some fresh parsley and we have a really nice meal - moving up to a "B+".

Finally, we need to add more flavour to this dish - so we added oven roasted yellow cherry tomatoes - using that wonderful olive oil I am always talking about.

At last, we have a recipe that gets an "A-" in our house and the recipe gets added to our repitoire. This is my feature recipe for this week.

But you must be wondering how a recipe gets to be rated "A+". Well in order for this recipe to reach that level, it requires more time and preparation of the pasta -homemade pasta. We learned how to make pasta from scratch in Italy - they even use white wine in the pasta dough. It takes time to prepare and its all about kneading of the pasta dough - we might do this for a special occasion.

HeartSmart cooking and more!

We were given "Simply HeartSmart Cooking" by Bonnie Stern as a gift and love the cookbook. We have made many of her recipes but recently visited her website and discovered more wonderful news about her cooking school.

Bonnie is an award winning author of twelve best-selling cookbooks and writes weekly in the National Post and monthly in Readers Digest. As well as offering cooking classes, she has a unique book club where authors actually attend and dinner is included. She is the recipient of the 2007 Premier’s Award.

In her book "Simply HeartSmart Cooking" Bonnie Stern shares over 200 healthful and delicious recipes approved by the Heart & Stoke Foundation.

Visit her website: BonnieStern.com for more details

Recipe #33 BBQ "The Whole Chicken"

This week I would like to share a fun way to BBQ the "whole chicken". It is called by some chefs the "Flattened Chicken".

http://network.nationalpost.com/NP/blogs/theappetizer/archive/2009/05/30/bonnie-stern-this-time-of-year-tastes-like-rhubarb.aspx

Bonnie Stern and Mark McEwan are 2 notable chefs who prepare chicken using this method. It is not a new method but a re-visited way to prepare a tasty meal using the whole chicken. The chicken just cooks more evenly.

Step 1 is to find the plumpest chicken you can.

Step 2 - Cut the backbone out of the chicken with chicken shears or a sharp large knife

Step 3 - Push down on the breast bone to flatten the chicken

Step 4 - Skewer the chicken with 3 metal skewers

Step 5 - Rub with olive oil, ground sea salt, ground pepper, 1 tsp "Pride of Szeged" chicken rub

Step 6 - Start your BBQ at medium heat

Place chicken in upper rack of BBQ - breast side down

Reduce heat to low - cook 20 minutes

Flip the chicken and BBQ for another 20 minutes

Flip again and cook for 10 minutes and then baste with your favourite BBQ sauce.

Flip again and baste the other side - cook for 10 minutes

Your chicken is ready to carve and serve. Just add your favourite salad and your healthy dinner is ready!

Recipe #32 Bruschetta from Italy

Toscany Bread - sliced, then cut in half and toasted in upper third of oven

- 220 degrees C

The toppings include: Tomato, Olive Oil, Sausage & Eggplant

To prepare olive oil and garlic:

In a small bowl, add grated garlic to 1/2 cup of oil oil and set aside.

To prepare eggplant:

Skin the eggplant, then slice about 1/4 inch thick

In a large skillet, add sea salt and olive oil, then add the eggplant slices. Turning only once, cook until tender. Set aside to cool, then cut into bit size pieces. Add a little of your favourite cheese just before putting in the oven.

To prepare tomatoes:

Remove seeds and dice into small cubes. You can use cherry tomatoes.

Chop fresh basil leaves and add to tomatoes.

Slice garlic with a paring knife & chop finely, then add to tomatoes & basil mixture. Add 3 tbsp olive oil and salt & pepper to taste - set aside until ready for the oven - then add a little pecorino cheese.

To prepare sausage mixture:

Mix 1/2 lb of ground pork with 200 gm of Certosino or Stragino cheese. You can fry the sausage mixture in a pan if you like - it will also cook in the oven.

After toasting the bread, rub the toasts with garlic and then add a little of each mixture on the bread, cover with a little grated pecorino cheese and return to the oven - just to melt the cheese.

Serve and enjoy - the pictures above were taken at the cooking school in Florence Italy - November 2005.

Remember - use a good olive oil - it will make all the difference in your cooking. Here is the website link where we get our olive oil:

http://www.myolivetrees.com/main.shtml

The origin of appetizers......

Have you ever wondered about the origin of appetizers? Sometimes a few appetizers can make a great meal. Over the past few decades, the transition from eating at home to eating out is changing our eating habits. Sports bars offer many snack foods or appetizers. But making a special before dinner appetizer can enhance a meal at home. Dinners with themes can make a fun and special evening at home too! Mothers Day is the next major celebration, so how about serving Mom a special appetizer to make that day special.

Here is the history on Appetizers & hors d'oeuvres that I liked.

Appetizers, hors d'oeuvres, starters, antipasto, gustus, tapas, maza, mezze, zakuski, dim sum, smorgasbord...small foods served before meals to whet the appetite play integral roles in many cultures and cuisines. Offerings and traditions developed according to regional taste. It is important to note that appetizers were not part of all menus through time. In many cuisines this is a relatively recent practice. This explains why there is no such thing as "authentic" colonial American appetizers; only creative adaptations based on period recipes.

"...many of the great cuisines of the world -- Chinese, Japanese, Middle Eastern, Spanish, French and Italian, just for starters -- have long recognized that dawdling over small servings of many different dishes, sharing tidbits and discoveries, not only stretches out a pleasant social evening but bonds friends together in a very emotional way. In fact, the very word "companion" comes from the Latin com panis, or "with bread," meaning the person you share meals with -- friendship defined by dining...The most familiar versions are Middle Eastern mezze and their Spanish derivatives tapas; Chinese dim sum (meaning, sweetly, "touch the heart"); French canapes and hors d'oeuvres (themselves derived from the Russian zakuski); and Italian antipasti. In Vietnam, such drinking dishes are called "do nhau" -- literally, "little bites," and sounding not unlike "doughnut." The Thai, who might be the world's masters of outdoor gourmet dining, call them "kanto." Indians refer to samosas and other such little fried finger foods, cheerfully enough, as "chat."
---"Bite-Size Cusine," Eve Zibart, Washington Post, Sept. 4, 1998 (p. N26)

The above information is taken from:
http://www.foodtimeline.org/foodfaq7.html

What to bring to the next potluck supper?

Spring is in the air and Summer is just around the corner! That means Backyard BBQ's, Pot Luck Suppers, Family Re-unions - everyone loves getting together to share great food!


This week I have a recipe that will wow everyone. It can be made with chicken or shrimp depending on your taste and budget - both are equally great choices.


We started making this recipe about 10 years ago and it continues to be a suprise each year because we keep changing up the veggies. Adding new vegetables and making new combinations keeps this recipe fresh. Have you tried baby bok chow - its a fabulous change and adds that vibrant green colour. We like to steam the bok chow at the same time as our shrimp in dim sum style. Another favourite is roasted tomatoes! Let your imagination run wild! You can stir fry the veggies or if you have a basket, try them on the BBQ. Your choice of of fresh vegetables will only add to the presentation of a healthy choice for dinner.


One year we made this recipe was for Kern's sister's 40th birthday party (Colette from New Liskeard is pictured above). It was enjoyed by all the BBQ lovers at the party and from what we hear, it has become a household favourite in many homes.

Recipe #31 Fuscilli Pasta w Shrimp & Vegetables

Step 1

1 cup Chicken Broth & I cup water

Garlic & celery chopped

Simmer and reduce to about 1/2

Thicken with a beurre marnier (butter & flour mixture)

Add cooked shrimp (1/2 lb) and set aside


Step 2

Stir fry vegetables in a wok

8 to 10 Button Mushrooms

Vivaldi onions

Peppers (red, yellow, orange)

Sun dried tomatoes

Add vegetables to shrimp and sauce

Then add snow peas, tomatoes, black olives, fresh parsley

Toss with cooked fuscilli pasta

Recipe #30 Grilled Salmon Steaks

Choose salmon steaks that are all cut about the same thickness - this will allow more even cooking on the BBQ.

Ingredients for the marinate:
1/2 cup extra Virgin olive oil
3 large fresh minced garlic cloves
1/2 cup LTK brand sweet soya sauce
1/4 cup fresh squeezed orange juice
1 tsp toasted sesame oil
4 tbsp balsamic vinegar
3 tbsp golden honey
3 tbsp dark brown sugar
2 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1/2 tsp sea salt
2 fresh scallions
1/4 tsp ground cayenne pepper

Preparation instructions:
Mix all ingredients in a large bowl and whisk together until creamy. Place the steaks in a deep glass plan and cover with the marinate. Marinate your steaks for about one hour only. Remove steaks from marinate and gently towel off the excess. Then using a grilling basket that can be flipped, carefully place the steaks in the basket and grill on a hot BBQ - 8 minutes each side.

Remove and serve with your choice of side dishes. We choose scalloped potatoes, corn & broccoli. It was a smashing success for Good Friday!

It's Springtime, its BBQ time........

Spring is in the air and its time to look for some fresh BBQ ideas for the season.

The idea of BBQ has been transformed over the past few years and welcomed by many. It lets the Dad's in on the kitchen fun.

When I goggled BBQ it was quite surprising to learn about the history of the BBQ. Here is one idea that I liked.....hope you like it too.....

So where do you start with a History of Barbecue? Let’s start with this somewhat controversial premise. Everything that is typically called Barbecue has a couple of things in common. Barbecue requires meat. You grill vegetables. For those of us living in the twentieth century, meat, regardless of what kind is far more prevalent than it was to our ancestors. Industrialized ranching, refrigeration and mass trucking of goods have made meat a not only a staple of diet but practically an every meal entree. In the evolution of Barbecue, wherever that evolution took place one this has always been a constant. Barbecue is more than a meal. It is an event. People gather for good barbecue, whether invited or not. Barbecue is an event that gathers people around a fire to watch, smell and eat. Like the fires of prehistory this is the place to eat, drink and tell stories.

http://bbq.about.com/od/barbecuehelp/a/aa110197.htm