Tourtière

Christmas is a time for enjoying family traditions, whether it be a Christmas party, dressing up for church, or a special dish. My dad's family is Swedish so we always have pickled herring and cil salad (fish salad with beets and eggs). But for those of you who aren't overly fond of fish dishes I'm posting a recipe from my mom's family, the French side, the decadent Tourtière.

The picture here shows a slice of Tourtière, this is a picture I got from the web, maybe my mom or grandma will send me a picture of theirs so I can post that (hint! hint!)

All reference I've found to this dish indicate that this is a French-Canadian dish. I have no Quebeçois ties (that I know of), but somehow this dish made its way to our family dinner table a long time ago. Here is my great-great grandmother's recipe:

French Meat Pie (or, Tourtière):

Mix crust as usual (my family uses the Tenderflake recipe). Instead of using water for moisture use sour milk and soda: to one level cup sour milk use 1 level tsp soda and mix well. This will do for a lot of pie crust, about 4 pork pies.

Filling:

• 3 lbs leg of pork, lean and ground
• 2 cups water
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 2 large onions, diced

Bring to a boil then add:

• 2 cups mashed potatoes, mix well and add
• ½ tsp ground allspice

If too thick add more water. Do not cook much as ingredients will bake in pie. Seal pie well so it won't run over. Roll out dough and put in pie pan, fill with meat filling. Add top crust with small hole in centre. Brush with milk and bake in 400º oven. Bake until brown. Put out to freeze. When warmed put in oven to heat well.

This is my grandma's recipe, basically word for word - it looks like she used to put the pies outside to freeze. My mom told me of this one time that she was at our family cabin making fruit pies. She used to cook over a hot wood stove at the height of summer. In the kitchen of the cabin was a screened in window with ledges where she would put pies to cool. One day the pies smelled so good a bear decided to come down and try to get one! Well, she wouldn't stand for that! She grabbed her mop and started yelling at the bear and pushing the mop into its face! That's one gutsy French lady! I can't remember, but I think she saved her pies. (Mom and grandma, if you have anything to add or correct here, please do!)

Enjoy! And think of my grandma while you do.....she would be happy.

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
XO

Garlic Pasta

What stinky breath? Well, that' s exactly what this dish will give you! But, what does that matter when your stomach and tastebuds will be happily soaking up the garlicky goodness of this recipe? Besides, it keeps the vampires away!

Garlic Pasta

Ingredients:

• One whole head of garlic, or more


• About ¼ cup olive oil, maybe a bit more depending on how much pasta you are making. (You want to have enough oil in your pan so the garlic can brown, it does not have to be submerged.)


• Pasta (I like vermicelli or angel hair with this one)


• Freshly grated parmigiano reggiano


• Freshly ground black pepper


• Optional ingredients include: olives, capers, sun dried tomatoes, roasted peppers

Put a pot of water on to boil for the pasta.
Break up your head of garlic and smash each clove with a heavy knife to easily and quickly remove the skin. If the garlic cloves are huge cut them in half (the point is, you want more or less uniform sized pieces of garlic).
Pour your olive oil into a small or medium sized saucepan and add the garlic or any other optional ingredient(s). Cook this on low, and stir every once and a while.
Once you make this a few times everything should be done at the same time. Once the garlic is brown, turn it off! It will taste bitter if overcooked.
Drain the pasta and dump all the olive oil and garlic in and toss (you can do this through a strainer if you think there might be too much oil).
Grate some fresh parmigiano reggiano on top and sprinkle with pepper (fresh if you have it).

This recipe is so simple, but it’s great.

Stink away and Enjoy!

What's in Season?

Well, for this first time this season I bought tomatoes and, well, they didn't taste so good. I guess it's time to buy canned! However, just because yummy tomatoes are moving out until next year it doesn't mean that there isn't a nice variety of fruit and vegetables that are at their peak! Next time you're at your local grocer or market look for these fantastic fall offerings (and some that are available year-round):



Fruit

Mandarins (November to January)

Pears (August to late November)

Bananas (Year-round)

Grapefruit (Year-round; peak in winter)

Kiwifruit (Year-round; peak in fall and winter)

Lemons (Year-round; peak in winter)

Limes (Year-round; peak in fall)



Veggies

Brussels Sprouts (September to November)

Cabbage (July to November)

Leeks (August to November)

Mushrooms, button (Year-round)

Parsnips (September to November)

Rutabaga (October to December)

Squash, butternut (September to November)



Personally, my favourite is the mandarin orange!! I generally go through couple boxes. And they're a great addition to salads.



Enjoy!

Pumpkin Soup - Happy Halloween!

Pumkins are not just for carving.

The only kind of pumkin I ever ate, until recently, was pumpkin pie and it was most likely always made with pumpkin purée from a can. Little did I know that there are a myriad of ways to prepare pumpkin! And, you can even invest in one or two ahead of time as they last weeks if they are not cut. But before you rush out and grab a pumpkin from one of the many bins from which you buy to make Jack-o-Lanterns, read on, and even better, check the link posted at the bottom of this post.

I have looked around and gauged the scene regarding pumpkins. It is really easy to find the type appropriate for Jack-o-Laterns, but less so to find the ones that taste best: sugar pumpkins or as they are sometimes labeled, pie pumpkins. This variety is sweeter and less stringy. I had no luck at Safeway or Coop, but did find them at Sobey's and at farmers markets. My mom told me they carry them at The Place, for anybody living in Fort Frances!

Here is a fabulous and healthy autumn meal that takes the best of the season and transforms it into something delicious! Now, doesn't that make you just a little bit excited about embracing autumn?

Pumpkin Soup

• 450g or 1 lb pumpkin, chopped into 1 inch cubes


• ¼ cup butter


• 1 medium onion, finely chopped


• 750 ml or 3½ cups chicken broth


• 2 cups milk


• Pinch of ground or grated nutmeg


• Salt and pepper


• 6 tbsp freshly grated parmesan cheese

Heat the butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion and cook for 6-8 minutes, or until onion softens. Stir in the pumpkin and cook 2-3 minutes.

Add the broth and cook for another 15 minutes, or until pumpkin is soft. Remove from heat.

Pour into a blender or food processor and purée. Return liquid to the saucepan. Stir in milk, nutmeg and season with salt and pepper. Let simmer for 10 minutes. Stir in parmesan cheese and serve.

For a great resource on pumpkins check out:

http://www.lesliebeck.com/ingredient_index.php?featured_food=27

Enjoy!

Squash and Sweet Potato Casserole

Sweet Squash.

Instead of pining over the loss of summer veggies and fruits for another year, welcome autumn by embracing (and eating of course!) what's in season.
It's a wonderful time of the year to have your pick of a variety of squashes. I always love picking one out - so many different shapes, colours and uses. Here's one use that you're sure to enjoy:



















Squash and Sweet Potato Bake:

• 1 large butternut squash
• 2 medium to large sized sweet potatoes (so, if you use a smaller squash, just reduce the amount of sweet potato - you're aiming for more or less equal quantities of each. Also, if you make a smaller quantity you may want to reduce the amount of onion.)
• 1 large onion, diced
• 1 tbsp butter or extra virgin olive oil
• salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 350°- 375°

Cut the butternut squash in half, lengthwise. Scoop out the seeds and lay the halves on a baking pan. Cut the sweet potatoes in half, lengthwise, lay on baking pan.

Bake squash and sweet potato for a half an hour to 45 minutes, or until tender when pierced with a fork. Remove from oven, let cool until you can handle.

Meanwhile, briefly sauté the diced onion in a pan with butter or olive oil over medium-high heat until translucent.

Scoop out flesh of both squash and sweet potato and mash up with fork or potato masher. Stir in sautéed onions. Spread into a casserole dish and heat at 350° for about half and hour, or until heated through.

Enjoy!

Perfect Roast Turkey

First, don't listen to this guy?! LOL

How many times have you invested your time and money into preparing a turkey only to have it turn out dry as a bone and lacking in flavour?

No more will you be plagued by dry white meat! Follow this recipe and be prepared to impress!

The lemons used in this recipe add a nice, subtle lemon flavour to the breast meat, while the herbs add a nice savoury earthiness. This dish is all about aroma and taste, all inside a magnificently crispy skin. If you like to stuff your bird with dressing, omit the lemons and stuff away! If you like the lemons you can always make your dressing on the side.


Perfect Roast Turkey

• 1 turkey
• 2 lemons, cut into quarters
• 2-3 Tbsp freshly chopped or dried herbs (adjust depending on size of bird), such as thyme or rosemary
• 1½-2 cups chicken broth and/or white wine (pick a wine you enjoy as the flavour of the wine will influence the taste of your bird, and more so the gravy you make from the pan drippings)
• Sea salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 425°F

Rinse your bird in cold water, taking care to remove any giblets and such from the cavity. Place in roaster pan and pat dry with paper towels.
Stuff cavity with lemons quarters and truss the turkey.
Carefully separate the skin from the breast meat by working your fingers and hands gently(!) underneath the skin.
Rub the herbs, mixed with some sea salt and pepper into the breast meat (this will look and taste so beautiful!)

With a brush (or hands), coat the entire turkey with olive oil.
Place on middle rack of the oven for 20 mins.

Reduce oven to 325°F.

Roast chicken 20 mins. per pound or until the internal temperature reaches at least 165°F and no more than 180°F in the thickest part of the thigh.

3-4 times, depending on length of cooking time, remove turkey from oven, brush again (not with hands this time!) with olive oil and baste with a third or a quarter (depending on length of cooking time) of the wine or chicken stock (I like to use both, the more flavour the better!).
Let turkey rest for 15 mins. before carving.

To make a fabulous sauce simply place roasting pan on the stovetop, on low heat, and deglaze* the pan by scraping up the turkey bits from the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon. If necessary, add a little cornstarch (dilute this first with a little water or stock to prevent lumping) to thicken it up and more stock to make more gravy. Drizzle over carved and plated turkey.

Now, Enjoy!

*Definition of Deglaze: To remove the remaining buts of sautéed or roasted food from a skillet or pot by adding a liquid and heating. This mixture often becomes the base for a gravy or sauce. http://foodgeeks.com/encyclopedia/44/deglaze/

p.s. Next post I will give you my grandma Noreen's recipe for sweet potato and squash bake. It's very good for you and for your taste buds! And is a perfect side dish for your upcoming Thanksgiving dinner.

Sweet and Sour Meatballs

Well, I don't know what the weather is like where you are, but here in Calgary it has been getting chilly! Know what that means? Time to use the oven again! But whether you're hot or cold, who couldn't use a ball o' meat?!

Sweet and Sour Meatballs
You can use this sauce on other meats, such as pork or chicken. Alternatively, you can make the meatballs with a regular beef gravy and serve with mashed potatoes.

Meatball Ingredients:

• 1 ½ lbs ground beef
• 1 med onion, finely diced
• ¼ cup milk
• ½ cup bread crumbs
• Salt and pepper
  

**if you are making these meatballs to go with beef gravy, try adding a tsp of allspice - my dad calls these “Swedish” meatballs, and they’re really good.**

Sauce Ingredients:

• 1 large can crushed pineapple
• 2 cans mandarins (or two fresh mandarins), chopped small
• ⅓ cup packed brown sugar
• ⅓ cup ketchup
• ⅓ cup white vinegar
• 2 tsp yellow mustard
• 1 tsp salt
• ¼ cup cornstarch, with a little water

Preheat oven to 375º.
Combine all meatball ingredients in large bowl, take off your rings, and squish it all together.
Roll out meatballs and place on parchment paper lined baking sheet with sides. Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until browned.

In large saucepan on stovetop over medium-high heat, add all sauce ingredients, except for the cornstarch and water. Let bubble away for a few minutes to let everything melt and meld.
Put the cornstarch into a jar or glass and dissolve it in a little water (to prevent lumps). Add this to the sauce, stir, and watch it thicken. Remove from heat.

Pour meatballs and sauce into a lidded casserole dish (use a cake pan if you don't have one) and replace in oven set at 350º.

Bake, covered (use foil if you have to) for a half an hour. Remove lid and stir gently (don’t bust up those meatballs!) and bake uncovered for another half an hour. Check periodically to make sure it doesn’t need to be stirred again.

Enjoy!