The joy of cooking with fall garden vegetables

The joy of cooking with fall vegetables allows everyone to enjoy healthy fresh foods. The key is to fill your kitchen with ingredients that are in season. Choose items like butternut squash, corn or peaches - these are the garden August crops for this area of Canada. For example, Butternut squash is so simple to prepare and filled with wonderful nutrients. And its tasty - so try something new today! Just cut in half, drizzle with olive oil and bake for hour. MMM delicious.

Cooking is one to way to relieve the stress of the day. Take your mind off the day's work and immerse yourself for an hour or two in the kitchen. It will make you feel better and your family will be eating a healthy delicious meal tonite!

Planning ahead is another way to avoid stress. Plan for meals that can be made ahead of time. Always use a a menu planner for the week. Keep a list for shopping and food preparation. Make life easier for yourself by following a few simple tips - some are old and some are new but always remember to enjoy the foods in season!

Recipe #49 Aunt Renee's High Fibre Bean Salad

Dressing:

1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 tbsp fresh lemon or lime juice
1 clove fresh garlic minced
fresh black pepper
a little salt to taste

Ingredients:

1 cup diced fresh tomatoes
1 cup diced cucumber
1 cup chopped peppers (I used our garden variety)
2 cups blanched fresh garden beans cut into 2" pieces
1 19 oz can of Primo mixed beans
1 15 oz can white beans
1 tbsp fressh dill and/or parsley


Thoroughly rinse and drain beans and toss with remaining ingredients. Add the dressing and chill about 1 hour before serving. Can be made a day ahead too.


Calories for 1 cup is only 160 cal and fibre is 11.2 g
Thank you Aunt Renee for sharing this healthy choice. It was a great addition to our buffet.

Matthew's Baptism Day - Sunday, August 15th, 2010

Today was a beautiful day for the baptism of Matthew Edward Pallant. The ceremony took place at St. Peter's Basilica in London, Ontario. His Aunt Andrea was honoured to be his godmother as was Uncle Phillip to be his godfather. It was a time to celebrate with family and friends.

The heat and humidity were unbelievable on this day but the beauty of the cathedral kept everyone in awe. After the church ceremony, we all went back to Kristel & Andrew's home - which thank goodness has air conditioning. All the babies stripped down to diapers and cooled down. Within the hour, everyone was cooled off and then we enjoyed a wonderful extravaganza of food. The buffet supper included pulled pork, potato salad, coleslaw, bean salad to name a few and to sweeten the day we enjoyed mouth watering chocolate cupcakes decorated with blue crosses for the special occasion.

Our little Matthew slept through most of the day - a prince for the day!

Recipe #48 Lasagna - loved by most!

Ingredients:
12 lasagna noodles, cooked and cooled
4 cups of shredded cheese, mozzarella and monterray jack
1/2 cup finely grated parmaesan cheese
4 cups of your favourite sauce

Meat Sauce

Saute chopped onions and garlic in olive oil. Add some finely chopped fresh parsley, 1/2 cup chopped celery and/or green peppers and cook over medium heat until the mixture turns golden brown. Then add about 1 pound of lean ground beef or chicken and cook over medium heat until meat is browned. Season to taste adding salt, pepper, basil, oregano and little crushed chilies.

Slowly add 4 cups of tomato juice and 1/2 cup tomato paste. Let simmer for about 2 hours on low heat, stiring occasionally.

Assembly:
Cover the bottom of a 9 x 12 baking dish with sauce. Then a layer of noodles, more sauce - about a cup and a cover with a cup of the cheese mixture.

Continue in the same order - making 4 layers ending with cheese on top.

Bake in a 375 degree oven for about 35 minutes. Let rest about 5 minutes.

Serve with your favourite crusty bread and a fresh salad.

Other variations:
For the veggie lovers, omit the meat and add layers of zucchini or eggplant. Use your imagination and add the ingredients that your family likes too! There are many combinations that make wonderful variations to this simple but good food choice.
For cheese lovers, use variations of cheese, like old cheddar, provolone, brick or white cheddar.

The importance of passing down traditions......

The passing down of traditions is important for everyone but especially children. Children learn by example from their loved ones - parents, siblings, relatives. At a very early age, children mimic the behaviour of society and begin learning. For example, the very simple tradition of sharing time at family dinners demonstrates how the sharing of food has been passed on for generations.


We celebrate birthdays, anniversaries, achievements, milestones and many other special times in our lives. These are traditions of celebration are passed onto our children. Children learn how to behave during these times when families and friends join together to celebrate. Cake is often the highlight of the event. But all the food we choose to serve becomes traditional, the sharing of our favourite foods, the comfort foods that we all love. I hope you have shared special occasions with family and friends, especially if you have children in your circle.

Recipe # 47 Zucchini Bread

Ingredients:

3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 cup white sugar
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground cloves
1/2 tsp ground allspice
2 large eggs
l large egg white
1/3 cup canola oil
2/3 cup unsweetened applesauce
1 1/2 cups grated zucchini
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup chopped walnuts, toasted (optional)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Coat 2 standard size (9 x5 in) load pans with nonstick cooking spray and set aside.

In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, cloves, allspice and mix well.

In a medium size bowl, lightly beat the eggs and egg white with a fork. Add the oil, applesauce, zucchini and vanilla. Stir together, then add to the flour mixture, and stir until blended. Do not overmix. (If using walnuts, they should be folded in just before putting mixture into baking pans.

Pour the mixture into prepared pans. Bake for 50 to 60 minutes or until a sharp knife inserted in the centre comes out clean. Cool in the plan on a rack for 10 minutes. Remove the loaves from the pan and cool completely before slicing.

Recipe makes 32 slices. Each slice contains approx 96 calories, 3 grams fat, 130 milligrams cholesterol, 130 milligrams sodium, 16 grams carbohydrate, 2 grams protein and 1 gram fibre.

Thank you Kristel for providing Mom with this excellent recipe and for helping me use my zucchini's from the garden.

Meet the Chord Spinners from St. Jacobs!

Today I would like to introduce you to the Chord Spinners, a harmony chorus from St. Jacobs. I joined this chorus in January 2010 (I am the short one in the front row). "Music is food for the soul" and this chorus has plenty to offer - I love being a part of the group and look forward to our weekly practices and performances.

Each year at the annual meeting, the chorus shares many wonderful foods at a pot luck dinner. Our supper consists of scrumptious home-cooked and delicious appetizers, salads, entres and the yummy desserts are to die for. What a treat that night is - not a good night for counting calories but it sure is fun.

This chorus sings for nursing homes, retirement parties, Christmas concerts and performs twice yearly in competition.