Seasonal Ontario Food

I was surprised to do the math on these and see that they are really not too bad for carbs. They were hauntingly delicious, and honestly? At half a cup of maple syrup I thought they were a touch too sweet. I might try them again with 1/3 of a cup of maple syrup. Of course, I have gotten used to barely-sweet treats. The other thing I would change next time is the size of oat flake I use. This time I used large flake oats, and found them a little too prominent. I think quick-cook oats would be better. But large flakes did not keep them from being scarfed down with enthusiasm. Hauntingly delicious, did I say? 

Like other dropped unbaked (stove-top) cookies these are stupidly fast and easy to make. I found they stayed a little sticky (another reason to reduce the maple syrup slightly?) so they were best kept in the fridge, with plenty of parchment paper to keep them separate, but they were eaten quickly enough it wasn't a big deal. 

I am trying not to make sweets too often, so it may take me a while, but if I change the amount of maple syrup I will update this recipe.

 

Makes 24

20 minutes prep time

1/3 cup unsalted butter

1/2 cup maple syrup

1/4 teaspoon salt

3 tablespoons tahini

 

Measure out the oats and oat bran and set them aside mixed together. Set out a sheet of parchment.

 

Put the butter, maple syrup, and salt into a heavy-bottomed 1 litre/quart pot and bring to a boil. Boil gently but steadily for 5 minutes. Stir in the tahini and remove the pan from the heat. Stir in the oatmeal and bran. Cover and let rest for 5 minutes.

Scoop the mixture out onto the sheet of parchment with a small disher or tablespoon. Leave them until cool and set. Keep covered in a cool, dry spot.

 

 

 

 

Last year at this time I made Nem Nuong - Vietnamese Pork Loaf.

Frozen puff pastry (not to mention all the other ingredients) makes this dish rich and elegant, but it's very simple to make. A crisp green salad is all it needs to be a complete meal, and balances out the richness very well. It does well made ahead, so it would be good for entertaining, but it can't be made too far ahead, or the pastry will go soggy. It's not this recipe - that's a hazard of puff pastry generally. A couple of hours is good though.

You could also make small versions of this; it would make an excellent appetizer or hors d'oeuvre. In that case, though, I'd expect to use twice as much puff pastry as the total area covered with the filling would diminish every time you make the tarts smaller. Expect 18 (3 x 3 squares) or 32 (4 x 4 squares) little tarts. Baking time would be a few minutes less as well, so start checking them sooner. 

I dithered a bit about making this with blue cheese; if anyone ever tries that I'd love to know about it.

 

6 servings

1 hour 15 minutes - 45 minutes prep time 

plus allow some time to cool

 

 

4 medium (450 grams; 1 pound) Belgian endive

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 teaspoon sugar

salt & freshly ground black pepper to taste

 

Wash and trim the endives, and cut them in half lengthwise. 

 

Heat the butter in a skillet large enough to hold them in a single layer, and cook them over medium-high heat for 10 to 15 minutes, turning them over halfway through. Keep a lid on the skillet while they cook. As soon as they are turned over, sprinkle them with the sugar and season with salt and pepper.  

Once they are done, remove them from the heat and let them cool, at least enough to handle.

 

1 tablespoon unsalted butter

1 tablespoon wheat flour

1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

3/4 cup whole milk or light cream

125 grams (4 ounces) cheese such as

   Gruyere, Gouda, Friulano - something tangy but melty

salt & freshly ground black pepper to taste

a few good grates of nutmeg

1 large egg 

Heat the butter, flour, and mustard in a saucepan and mix until they form a smooth paste; let it cook for a minute or two then mix in the milk or cream, a little at a time, to form a smooth sauce. Add the cheese, grated or cut in dice. Stir to melt it, and add the salt, pepper, and nutmeg. The amount of salt to add is going to depend very much on how salty the cheese is, but in general this dish calls for shakes of the salt shaker and not any kind of spoonfuls. 

When the cheese is melted, remove the pan from the heat. Allow it to cool enough that you can beat in the egg without the egg being in danger of cooking.

 

225 grams (8 ounces) frozen puff pastry, thawed 

a handful of walnuts

1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese

 

Preheat the oven to 375°F. Roll out the pastry on a baking tray lined with parchment. Spread half of the cheese sauce over it, leaving an inch and a half to 2 inches all around. 

 

Slice the cooked pieces of endive, discarding the solid centres, and arrange them over the cheese sauce and pastry. Dot the remaining cheese sauce over them, and spread it out evenly.  Sprinkle with walnuts, and with the Parmesan cheese. Fold up the edges of the pastry to form low sides.

Bake for about 30 minutes, until set and nicely browned. Let cool to at least just warm, or to room temperature, before serving. 

Last year at this time I made Carrot, Halloumi, & Dill Fritters with Garlic Yogurt.

Late March oaty baking goodness, right on schedule. Actually, I've been making these somewhat regularly all winter because I'm kind of addicted to them. They are barely sweet enough to count as a cookie, and their high fibre count makes them really quite virtuous. Although we won't discuss the butter, sigh. I knew there was a reason I can't keep away from them.

 

My estimate of 1 hour baking time assumes they all go into the oven at once, and of course they will need time to cool. 

 

36 biscuits (cookies)

1 hour - 30 minutes prep time

 

1 cup quick cook rolled oats

1 cup whole spelt flour

1/2 cup oat bran

1/2 cup wheat bran

1/4 cup ground flaxseed

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup Sucanat OR coconut sugar

2/3 cup cold unsalted butter

6 tablespoons light cream Or whole milk 

Mix the dry ingredients in a mixing bowl. Grate in the butter, and work the mixture with your fingers until there is no powdery, floury material left; everything should be in buttery crumbs. Mix in the milk or cream to make a firm dough. 

Roll the dough into a cylinder in parchment paper, and refrigerate for 10 minutes.

 

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Slice the cylinder of dough into 36 even slices (I find a serrated bread knife the best for this) then lay them on a parchment-lined baking tray (or two, if needed). They don't expand much but should not be overcrowded. I find it best to pat and press them down to an even thickness and shape by hand. Alternatively, you could roll the dough out with a rolling pin and cut them that way. 

 

Bake the prepared biscuits for 20 to 25 minutes at 350°F, until dry and slightly browned. Store in a dry, air-tight container for up to 2 weeks. 

Last year at this time I made Hot Cross Naan.

Here's a last-minute treat for Valentine's day, which you can possibly make with things already around the house, at least if you are in the habit of keeping a can or 2 of evaporated milk at hand, as I do.

 

This traditional Indian sweet is somewhere between a thick pudding and soft fudge in texture. I could probably have improved mine by grating the carrots more finely or even putting them through the food processor, but, oh well. It was still delicious. As usual I cut the sugar way back and replaced some of it with sweetener. Or, don't add sugar at all and instead of condensed (unsweetened) milk, use evaporated (sweetened) milk; that's quite a common way to make it, actually. 

I made mine thick enough to mold, but cook it to a thickness that looks good to you, keeping in mind that it will set a little more as it cools.

 

8 servings

1 hour to 1 hour 30 minutes prep time

 

450 grams (1 pound) carrots

2 tablespoons unsalted butter 

354 ml (1 tin) condensed milk

12 pods (1/2 teaspoon) green cardamom

1/8 teaspoon salt 

1/4 cup ground almonds or other nuts

1 teaspoon chick pea flour

1/4 cup coconut sugar OR Sucanat

1/4 cup sugar OR erythritol-monkfruit sweetener

1/4 cup chopped nuts, raisins, dessicated coconut, 

   chopped dried apricots, preserved ginger, etc - OPTIONAL

Wash, peel, and grate the carrots finely. 

Heat the butter in a heavy-bottomed soup pot over medium heat and add the carrots. Cook gently, stirring regulary, until softened and reduced in volume, about 10 minutes. 

Add the evaporated milk and mix well. Let it simmer gently while you grind the cardamom pods with the salt. (Remove the green husks as they are broken.)

Add the cardamom and salt. Mix the nuts, chick pea flour, and sweeteners, and mix them in. Continue to cook gently, stirring regularly, for another 30 to 40 minutes until thickened.  Add any of the possible add-ins that appeal to you, appropriately chopped if they require it. Mix in well, and simmer for a few more minutes. 

You can serve this as a warm pudding, or press it into a mold and cut it (serve at room temperature) according to how you would like it and how thick you let it get. I am told it is very good with vanilla ice cream. I can  also picture some thin custard.

Last year at this time I made Kimmel Beef Stew.

Yes, it's a little sweet for a salad - but nothing like as sweet as actual carrot cake, about which I was dreaming when I decided to make this instead (or perhaps I should say, at all). As such, it won't go with everything, but plainish grilled chicken or tofu would be lovely, or certain kinds of sandwiches would go nicely alongside it.

My raisins are not rotating like they used to, and they used to sit long enough to get pretty dried out, so I soaked them in a little of the pineapple juice. I added the left over juice, but I don't think it's a good idea; the dressing came out a little thin. My pineapple came out of a tin, and that's perfectly cromulent, but if you happen to have a fresh one around, a slice could be chopped to mingle unobtrusively with the other ingredients, but even more deliciously. 

Salt and pepper absolutely required - I peppered enthusiastically - because this is a salad, and not a cake, after all.

 

4 to 8 servings

 

2 cups grated carrots

1/3 cup raisins

1/3 cup chopped walnuts

1/3 cup unsweetened pineapple tidbits 

1/2 cup unsweetened dessicated coconut

1/2 head greenhouse lettuce

 

Peel and grate the carrots, and mix them with the raisins, walnuts, pineapple, and coconut. Wash and dry the lettuce.

 

1/2 cup thick yogurt

1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/16 teaspoon ground cloves

1/16 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon salt

freshly ground black pepper to taste

the juice of 1/2 lemon

Mix the seasonings into the yogurt, then mix in the lemon juice. Toss the carrots, etc, with this dressing then arrange the salad over the dried lettuce leaves. 

 

 

 

 

Last year at this time I made Chocolate Cake with Roasted Strawberry Cream. 

I've gotten quite obsessed with a kind of Turkish helva (aka halvah), known as "flour helva". It exists at some sort of culinary intersection between fudge and bechamel sauce, and is a popular home-made sweet in Turkey. If you are interested in the real thing, there are a lot of recipes including You-Tube videos out there. However, I thought it had real possibilities for being adapted to be much lower in sugar and carbohydrates. My version, therefore, is not going to be much like it should be, but it is something I can eat (in moderation) and I have been enjoying it very much as a Christmas treat. 

It seemed quite complicated as I read the reference recipes; it didn't help that they were all read through the prism of Google translate. However, in the end, it turned out to be really very simple once I understood the procedures. I was a bit nervous that the sugar solution ought to be boiled to a syrup, but in recipe after recipe it was not, which I believe is the reason that it could be adapted to being much lower in sugar. 

 

After I made the version below I tried it again with maple syrup; in that case measure 1/3 cup of dark maple syrup into a half-cup measure and fill up the rest with the water or other liquid as described. (I used plain water but I can see it being really good with coffee.) Also delicious.

The end result is probably a bit more cookie-like in texture than the original fudge-like version as a consequence of the greatly reduced sugar, but I find it very tasty and really, quite a big thrill! Back to the straight and narrow after the holidays. On which note, it's time to take a break. Happy Holidays to everyone! And happy (post) Solstice - the days are getting longer!

 

12 to 24 pieces

20 minutes prep time 

 

1/4 cup cinnamon tea OR water, juice, etc.

1/4 cup honey

2 tablespoons sugar OR monkfruit-erythritol sweetener

a pinch of salt

1/4 teaspoon almond extract

Brew a sweet herbal tea (I used Celestial Seasonings Apple-Cinnamon) or use plain water. I would also be inclined to experiment with pure fruit juices and perhaps coffee. To use maple syrup as the sweetener, use 1/3 cup of it and enough other liquid to bring the total to 1/2 cup as it's less concentrated than honey.

Put 1/4 cup of the tea or water in a smallish pot with the honey, salt, and sweetener. Heat over low heat until melted. Let cool for a few minutes then stir in the almond extract.

1 cup barley flour

1 cup almond flour

1/2 cup unsalted butter

Meanwhile, put the barley flour in a heavy-bottomed 2-quart (litre) pot. Heat it over medium heat, stirring frequently to constantly, until the barley flour toasts to a very light brown. Add the almond flour and continue stirring and toasting until the mixture is a fairly medium brown - about as brown as a pale brown paper bag. Add the butter, and mix it in as it melts. Continue cooking and stirring until the mixture is evenly crumbly, and a good medium paper bag brown. 

Add the contents of Pan #1 to Pan #2, being very careful - it will boil up and want to spatter. Mix well as soon as it is all in, until it forms a doughy ball. Turn it out onto a plate and let it cool for 10 minutes. Press it into an oiled 9" x 9" pan, or into candy molds, etc. I used my Madeleine pans, and got 12 pieces. Let set for at least 1 hour before turning out, and cutting it into pieces if it's a single slab. 

They last well for up to 2 weeks in a well-sealed tin kept in a cool spot. 

Last year at this time I made Braised Oxtails with Apples & Sweet Potatoes.

Apparently, it's not just salads that I think are improved by fruit and nuts. (Look, ma! No cheese!) I realized last spring just how good turnips are with nuts, and the sweetness of a little fruit also balances out their zingy sharpness very well. At this time of year Mr. Ferdzy generally has a box of clementines on the go, so one of them went in too. I have to admit it got a little lost; if you don't have one put in 1/4 cup apple juice or water. 

 

4 to 6 servings

1 hour 30 minutes - 20 minutes prep time

6 to 8 small (500 grams; 1 pound)  turnips

3 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 large apple

1 large pear

1/3 cup chopped walnuts

the juice of 1 clementine

salt & freshly ground black pepper to taste

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Put the butter into a shallow 2-quart/litre baking pan, and put it in the oven to melt. Wash, trim, and peel the turnips, and cut them into wedges. Toss them into the melted butter and roast them for 30 minutes, until beginning to be easily pierced with a fork. (Give them a little longer if necessary.) Ideally, they will fit the pan snugly but in a single layer. (Yes, mine were a bit too crowded.)

 

Peel and core the apple and pear, and cut them into similar to slightly larger wedges than the turnips. Toss them in with the turnips with the chopped walnuts. Squeeze the juice from the clementine, and pour it over them. Season with salt and pepper. Give everything another toss to blend well, and return to the oven for another 20 to 30 minutes, until everything (well, not the walnuts) is soft and perhaps browning slightly at the edges. Serve at once.

 

 

 

 

Last year at this time I made Squash & Brussels Sprouts Parmigiano. 

As always, I like my salads with fruit and nuts in them! This one also has rich earthy beets and fragrant fennel to go with the zingy orange and crisp lettuce and nuts. You could use other nuts, but I think hazelnuts are perfect here. Otherwise, there isn't too much to say about this - it's a perfectly balanced and delicious salad.  

 

You do need to cook the beet in advance; either wrapped in foil and baked at 375° for 45 minutes to an hour, or covered in water and boiled for about 45 minutes - in both cases until tender. It will then need time to cool and doing it a day ahead makes a lot of sense. 

 

4 servings

30 minutes prep time

NOT including cooking the beet 

1/4 cup orange juice

1/4 cup hazelnut OR walnut oil

1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

1/4 teaspoon anise seeds, ground

salt & freshly ground black pepper to taste

 

Mix all the above ingredients in a small bowl or jam jar. Whisk or shake until blended. 

 

Make the Salad:

1 large beet, cooked

1/3 cup hazelnuts

1 large orange

 

Wash and trim the fennel, discarding the tough base and stems. You can save a few of the fronds for garnishing the salad, if you like. Wash and dry the lettuce, and tear into bite-sized pieces. Toss these 2 items together in a salad bowl. 

Peel and dice or slice the beet, and scatter it over the salad. Toast the hazelnuts gently in a dry skillet over medium heat, then turn them onto a plate at once. When they have cooled sprinkle them over the salad. Peel and segment the orange, and add it to the salad. Toss the salad gently with the dressing. 

Last year at this time I made Duck Red Cabbage Rolls.

I found this recipe in a cook book from 1904, where it was described as "Shteffun or Baked Apple Pudding". It turned out it came originally from an older, English kosher cook book from 1874, where it was described as Dutch Apple Pie.

The idea of meatless mincemeat is now standard, but even in the 1970s, when I first started to play around with mincemeat, it was pretty universal that it at least contained suet. I, and most of the modern mincemeat cooking world, quickly discarded it as excess to requirements. However, I believe this is one of the very first recipes intended to be mincemeat-like, but without added animal fats (or meat, even, although it was disappearing from it even then). Since suet was used in the crust, I'm not quite sure why this was an issue, but I suppose it did give cooks the option of putting it in a butter-based crust for a dairy meal even if the authors said nothing about it. I went with my favourite dairy-based crust but then I don't worry about keeping kosher.

After all that, when I first read the recipe I missed that it was supposed to be rich and mincemeat-like, and took it as an apple pie with a few enhancements. I decided I liked that idea better, and used more apples and less candied peel, raisins, and nuts than the original recipes called for. I was really happy with the results, although I also had to concede that no, I don't like cakes or pies to have chunky nuts in them, no matter how much I like cakes, pies, and nuts. Next time, I would leave them out but it's up to you; put them in if you do like them in your pastries. 

I also left out the sugar, feeling that the dried fruit and candied peel supply plenty, but taste your mixture and add a little if you like. I thought it was fine without. As always with apple pies, it's good to use a mix of varieties for some to be soft and juicy and some to stay chunky.

 

8 servings

2 hours - 1 hour prep time

7 or 8 large apples, several varieties

2 tablespoons lemon juice

1/4 cup light raisins

1/4 cup dark raisins or currants

1/4 cup mixed peel

1/3 cup finely chopped nuts (almonds, hazelnuts, or pistachios)

3/4 teaspoon cinnamon

1/8 teaspoon ground allspice

1/8 teaspoon ground cloves

Peel, core, and slice the apples. Put them in a pot with the remaining ingredients. Bring up to a simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, until the apples have softened and reduced in volume. Add a little water if they seem like sticking, but don't let them get too soupy (it will depend quite a bit on the varieties being used). When they are ready, remove them from the heat and keep them aside until ready to fill the crust and bake. This can be done up to a day in advance; keep refrigerated until needed.

2 1/2 cups whole spelt flour 

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

2/3 cup unsalted butter

1/4 cup buttermilk 

Preheat the oven to 350°F. 

Put the flour, baking powder, and salt into a mixing bowl and mix. Grate in the butter. Stir in the buttermilk until it forms a stiff dough. Cover and let rest for 10 minutes, then divide into 2 pieces of about 60% and 40%.

Roll out the larger piece of dough on a lightly floured sheet of parchment paper. Transfer it to a 10" pie plate. Roll out the remaining dough to fit the top. Put in the filling. Transfer the rolled out top to the pie, and pinch the edges sealed. Cut some holes in the top for steam to escape. 

Bake for 1 hour at 350°F until golden brown. Let cool before cutting. 

Last year at this time I made Slow Roasted Duck with Gravy.

I made this a couple of times, but the first time I didn't purée it. The result was that we enjoyed it, but it wasn't as exciting as spinach and pistachio soup should be. The next time I made it exactly the same way, but I did purée it, and suddenly everyone was so much more thrilled with it. 

I'm calling for almond butter, but if you could get or make pistachio butter, I think that would be ideal. As usual with spinach, about 20 minutes of the prep time is set aside just for washing and picking it over. If you used frozen spinach, you would cut off quite a lot of time. This is otherwise really a fast and simple soup to make. It's rich and not inexpensive, though, so ideal for entertaining - or maybe just treating yourself.

 

4 servings

1 hour prep time

 

 

10 ounces cooked spinach (about 8 cups fresh)

1 large shallot

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

1/2 cup finely chopped shelled pistachios

salt & freshly ground black pepper to taste

2 tablespoons almond butter

3 cups chicken stock

1/4 cup 10% cream

2 tablespoons coarsely chopped shelled pistachios

Wash and pick over the spinach, discarding any damaged leaves or tough stems. Wash and drain well again, then wilt them down in the soup pot, with a cover. Turn them into a strainer and rinse in cold water, then drain them, squeeze to remove as much water as possible, and chop finely. 

Peel and mince the shallot. 

Heat the butter in the bottom a large heavy-bottomed soup pot - there was one around here just a minute ago - and add the shallot. Cook gently over medium heat for about 5 minutes, sizzling gently. Add the chopped pistachios and continue for anther few minutes. Season with salt and pepper. 

 

While they cook, measure the almond butter out into a smallish bowl, and slowly mix in enough of the broth to make it quite loose and lump free. 

 

Add the prepared spinach to the pot, and cook for another few minutes. 

 

Add the almond butter mixture and the rest of the stock to the pan, and mix well. Puree the soup until very smooth, then return it to the pot and simmer for about 5 minutes. Mix in the cream, bring the soup back up to steaming hot, and serve at once, garnished with some coarsely chopped pistachios.

 

 

 

 

Last year at this time I made Mincemeat Pudding with Custard. 

What, apple and plum pudding again? Yes, there were leftovers, too many to just eat up in reasonable time. This take is closer to classic Apple Batter Pudding, with a Russian influence in the batter.  The yogurt and plums give it a rich, zesty tang that goes so well with the nutty cake. So good! I regret nothing, but I suppose I had better now behave myself until Christmas. 

I don't know about ice cream or whipped cream with this one; it seems a bit too much. Custard? Yes, for sure, or maybe coffee cream. But there's nothing wrong with just eating it slightly warm.

 

6 to 8 servings

1 hour 15 minutes - 30 minutes prep time

allow time to cool

 

1 cup ground almonds (almond flour)

1/2 cup barley flour

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking powder

3 tablespoons sugar

 

Measure the ingredients into a mixing bowl and mix well. 

 

1/2 cup thick yogurt 

2 large eggs

1/4 cup mild vegetable oil

1/2 teaspoon almond extract

a few good scrapes of nutmeg

Measure the yogurt into a smaller mixing bowl, and break in the eggs. Whisk them in well then mix in the oil, almond extract, and nutmeg. 

Preheat the oven to 375°F.

 

2 cups pitted, halved Italian or German purple plums

4 large apples

1/8 teaspoon finely grated nutmeg

2 to 3 tablespoons of sugar, OPTIONAL

Wash, cut, and pit the plums, and put them in an 8" x 10" shallow baking (lasagne) pan or similar. Wash and peel the apples. Slice then thinly and core them, and mix them with the plums. Scrape over the nutmeg. Sweeten them if you like. Scrape the batter over them as evenly as you can (it will be a bit skimpy). Spread it out to cover the fruit. 

Bake at 375°F for 45 minutes. Let cool to warm or room temperature before serving.

It's like all the ingredients for a favourite salad, in a hot vegetable dish. Well, no vinegar. It occurs to me a few drops, or some lemon juice, sprinkled over it would not go amiss.

 

As usual with spinach, most of the work is in cleaning and preparing it. Make sure you have everything ready to go before you start cooking because the cooking goes extremely fast - there's no time to be rummaging for raisins in the back of the cupboard. Everything else should be heading off to the table just after the spinach hits the pan.

 

4 servings

20 minutes to wash and sort the spinach

15 minutes to finish the dish

 

8 cups loosely packed spinach leaves

1 medium tart cooking apple

1 to 3 cloves of garlic

1/4 cup raisins

1/4 cup pine nuts, chopped almonds, OR pumpkin seeds

2 tablespoons olive oil

salt & freshly ground black pepper to taste

 

Wash and pick over the spinach. Drain and wash again. Drain very well. 

 

Peel (or not) and core the apple, and cut it into dice. Peel and mince the garlic. Measure out the raisins and nuts or seeds.

 

Heat the oil and the spinach to the pan, turning it to get it all wilted down. Add the apple and garlic and mix in well. Add the raisins and nuts or seeds, and mix in well. Season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring, until the spinach is done to your liking - not too long; it's spinach. Serve at once.Last year at this time I made Spinach & Feta Stuffed Leeks.

Ohhhh, look! It's another take on fruit crisp! Best family winter desserts ever? Or best family desserts, ever? So quick, so easy, so tasty, so adaptable to a moderate level of carbohydrates. I splashed out and used real sugar, in modest quantities. You can add more, or change it to at least partly monkfruit-erythritol blend, depending on your personal preferences.

Apples and plums are a seasonal combination that makes both of them better than they are by themselves. I first ran into them as a pair many years ago in a pie made by Michael Stadtlander and I was blown away by it, and I've been combining them in desserts ever since.

 

6 servings

1 hour 30 minutes - 30 minutes prep time

 

1 cup whole spelt flour 

1/2 cup oat bran

1/2 cup almond flour OR ground almonds

3 tablespoons Sucanat OR dark brown sugar

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 teaspoons ground ginger

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/8 teaspoon ground cloves

a few good grates of nutmeg

1/3 cup cold unsalted butter

 

Measure all the dry ingredients into a mixing bowl, and mix them. Grate in the butter, and rub it in with your fingers until there is no dry mix left, and it forms coarse crumbs. 

 

Preheat the oven to 350°F. 

2 cups halved Italian (German) plums

4 or 5 medium apples

2 tablespoons sugar

 

Wash the plums, cut them in half and discard the pits. Place them in an 8" x 10" shallow baking (lasagne) pan. Peel, core, and slice the apples and mix them in with the plums, spreading them out into an even layer. Sprinkle them with the sugar. 

 

Sprinkle the topping evenly over the fruit and bake for 1 hour at 350°F, until lightly browned and bubbling. Serve warm, or at room temperature. I wouldn't say no to ice cream, whipped cream or custard. 

Last year at this time I made a Brined Roast Turkey.

I am a late-comer to discovering the joys of frangipane, which is a traditional European tart filling that falls somewhere between marzipan and custard. That it is thickened and set with ground nuts rather than flour makes it ideal for people avoiding refined carbohydrates; it only needs to have the sweetener reduced and partially or totally changed to an artificial one. (I did live it up and use maple syrup; but it could be replaced with erythritol-monkfruit.) I've further reduced the chance of carbs by eliminating the crust, making this fall somewhere between a pudding and a soft cake. 

Almonds are the most traditional nut to use, but you could use all kinds of nuts to similar effect. I do think almonds are the best choice for matching with pears. I'm going to be looking for other fruit and nut pairings to be made the same way in the future; I am particularly looking forward to trying a pistachio-cherry combinations.

 

8 servings

1 hour - 20 minutes prep time

allow time to cool

 

 

1 1/2 cups ground almonds (almond flour)

2 tablespoons whole spelt flour

1/2 teaspoon almond extract

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/8 teaspoon salt

a good grate of nutmeg

a few good grinds of black pepper 

1/3 cup softened unsalted butter 

2 tablespoons to 1/4 cup maple syrup

3 large eggs

450 grams (3 large) Bartlett pears

Mix the almonds in a mixing bowl with the extracts and seasonings. Add the butter, and beat it in with an electric mixer. Add the maple syrup and beat it in as well. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. 

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Butter a 10" pie plate and dust it with a tablespoon of ground almonds. Scrape the batter into it, and spread it out evenly. 

 

Peel and quarter the pears. Cut out the cores and cut each quarter into 3 slices lengthwise. Arrange them over the batter in an attractive pattern and press them gently into it so that the batter and pears are level with each other. 

Bake for 40 minutes, until set and very lightly browned. Let cool completely before serving. 

Last year at this time I made Acelgas con Patatas - Swiss Chard with Potatoes.

Real falafels are not terribly difficult to make, but they do require the chick peas to be soaked in advance, and then they must be mixed in a food processor. All of which is very do-able! But sometimes you want something just a little simpler. Or maybe you are just out of chick peas, but have some quinoa, in which case you could make these instead. I don't think they are quite as good as the real thing, but somehow just cooking the quinoa in advance then mixing by hand makes them feel easier. They are still pretty darn good! Moreover, this is an excellent way to use up leftover cooked quinoa.

I do assume you have chick pea flour on hand; I use it for just about every kind of fritter and lots of other things too and could not get along without it. 

Unless and until you wrap these up in pita bread, they are gluten free. I haven't made these into a patty and eaten them in a bun yet, but I am very likely to. In that case I expect to get 6 patties.

 

The quinoa has some of the sandy texture of the soaked chick peas in the original falafel recipe but they are a little softer in texture. The flavour is really pretty close. 

 

I made these twice before posting; the first time they fell apart in the pan as I had not added enough chick pea flour. On my second go 'round, they were fine, but I found that, unlike the first time, I had to add a little water. This had less to do with the amount of chick pea flour, and more to do with differing moisture levels in the cooked quinoa. The second batch of quinoa sat a little longer, I think. In any case, you may or may not need to add some water at the end of mixing - it must be moist enough to form a ball when squeezed, but really no moister.

 

4 to 6 servings

45 minutes prep time - NOT including cooking the quinoa

 

2 cups cooked quinoa

1/4 cup finely diced white OR green onion

1/4 cup finely chopped cilantro

1/4 cup finely chopped parsley

3/4 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon cumin seed

1/4 to 1 teaspoon Aleppo pepper (to taste)

1 cup chick pea flour

none to 2 tablespoons water

oil to fry

 

To cook the quinoa: it is easiest to use leftover cooked quinoa, but to produce 2 cups cooked you will need approximately 3/4 cup of raw quinoa. To cook 3/4 cup quinoa, add 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1 1/4 cups water. Cook it in the rice cooker, or in a small pot on the stove over low heat (once boiling); it will take approximately 20 minutes and should be cooled to room temperature before you start the falafels. 

Peel or trim the onion and chop it finely. Wash and dry the cilantro and parsley and chop them finely. Put them in a mixing bowl with the prepared quinoa. Be sure the quinoa is broken down so each of the grains is separate, not stuck into large clumps. 

Grind the salt and cumin seed, and add them to the bowl with the Aleppo pepper and chick pea flour. Mix well. 

If the cooked quinoa is moist enough that the mixture can be squeezed together to form a ball, do not add any water, but mix by hand until you have stiff, not very crumbly dough. If it is too dry for this, add a little water, a spoonful at a time, until you are able to get it to hold together, but do not add enough to make it moist and soft - it should be quite stiff. 

Divide the dough into 16 equal portions and roll each portion into a ball. 

Heat the oil in a heavy skillet or aebleskiver (or appam) pan over medium heat. If you are using the latter, a teaspoon or so in each compartment will be sufficient; otherwise add enough to shallow-fry the falafels. Cook over medium heat until browned and crisp, turning to cook evenly all over. They will need 2 or 3 minutes per side; if they are browning too fast reduce the heat. Set them on paper towel as they are cooked. 

Serve warm or at room temperature, with salad or wrapped in pita (with some salad). If you like, serve with one or both of the following sauces. 

1/4 cup tahini

the juice of 1 small lemon

a little water

Mix the tahini with a little of the lemon juice until smooth; continue adding and mixing until all the juice is in. Slowly add a little water and continue mixing until the sauce is the texture of mayonnaise. 

chile-garlic sauce

mayonnaise

Put as much chile-garlic sauce as you think is likely to be eaten in a small bowl. Add about an equal amount of mayonnaise or a bit less, and mix. If you think it needs more mayonnaise add more to achieve the balance you like. 

Last year at this time I made Beet Salad with Red Onions & Parsley.

This is another thing spotted on Pinterest. I was a little perplexed to see so many versions of this recipe show up in Italian. It is, however, a traditional Italian cake - from the very north end of the country, the alps to the south of Austria. Austrian and German versions show up too. It interested me particularly because it is made with buckwheat flour and ground nuts - two things much better for me than the usual white wheat flour. 

Traditionally, this also has a great deal more sugar than I used, and you could put some of it back in - 1/3 of a cup each of sugar and sweetener, or 2/3 of a cup of sugar would not be ridiculous, in fact still less than most original versions. I continue to use an erythritol-monkfruit blend half and half with regular sugar and I am very happy with the results. 

 

I used about 2/3 of a cup of our own homemade blackberry jam (so also much less sweet than most jams) when again, 1 cup is almost always called for. We all thought it was plenty. It looks a bit dense and stodgy, but it was actually quite light. The nut flour made it just a trifle crumbly, but it was delightfully moist. Amazingly for a traditional recipe, this is gluten-free, provided you pay a little attention to the details. The lemon was quite prominent, and went really well with blackberry jam, but other berry jams would work well too. The traditional berry for this gets translated as cranberry, but I am not convinced that it's cranberries as we in North America know them. Not that I wouldn't use them; I think they could work quite well. 

 

I did not put in the cocoa powder - it struck me more as muddying the waters than gilding the lily, but most recipes list it as an option, so I do too. I thought it was quite perfect without any. 

8 to 12 servings

1 hour 10 minutes - 20 minutes prep time

1 cup buckwheat flour

1 cup finely ground almonds OR hazelnuts

2 tablespoons cocoa powder (optional)

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons baking powder

 

Measure and mix the dry ingredients into a small mixing bowl. Be sure to work out any lumps in the nut flour. 

 

1 cup unsalted butter

1/4 cup sugar OR sugar substitute

4 large egg yolks

1 medium apple

1 teaspoon vanilla, hazelnut, OR almond extract

the finely grated zest of 1 lemon

 

Cream the butter until soft and light, then work in the sugar then the egg yolks, transferring the whites to another mixing bowl. Peel the apple and grate it into the butter, then add the extract. Wash and dry the lemon, and grate in the zest. Mix well. 

 

4 large egg whites 

1/4 cup sugar OR sugar substitute

1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar

2/3 to 1 cup tart berry jam

2 to 3 teaspoons icing sugar

 

Use the butter to grease an 8" spring-form pan, lined on the bottom with parchment paper. Dust it with the buckwheat flour, shaking out any excess. Preheat the oven to 350°F.

 

Beat the egg whites with the sugar and cream of tartar for 3 to 5 minutes, until stiff enough to hold a peak.

 

Fold the dry ingredients and the egg whites into the butter mixture in 3 sections of each, using a spatula and folding carefully to keep the egg whites light. When evenly blended, scrape the batter into the prepared pan, leveling it out evenly. Bake at 350°F for 44 to 48 minutes, until it tests done when checked with a toothpick.

 

Allow the cake to cool completely, then slice it in half and spread the bottom half with the jam. Replace the top, and sift the icing sugar over it.

 

 

 

 

Last year at this time I made Hungarian Bean Soup. 

I served this with bread and salad, which I think is fairly traditional, but less than ideal for me. Next time I will keep it simpler and healthier, and skip the bread - there's plenty right in the chicken - and eat it wrapped in whole lettuce leaves. We all really liked this, and it's simple and delicious enough that I intend to make it quite often this summer. You could make this at any time of the year, but as a cold salad I think it is perfect summer food.

 

It's Turkish, of course, although we did not happen to encounter it while we were there. The use of breadcrumbs as a "sauce" is quite unusual, but it's a great way to use up stale bread. I've seen a few recipes with yogurt instead of the breadcrumbs, but I think that changes it to something more pedestrian. However, if it comes out a bit thick I would not hesitate to loosen it with a spoonful of yogurt if I was short on the chicken stock. 

You can add some vegetables to it if you like, but any recipe I saw with other vegetables in it was not written in Turkish by Turkish cooks; take that for what it is worth. The number of portions assumes bread and salad at the lower end, and that it is part of a mezze spread with multiple dishes available, at the upper end.

 

4 to 12 servings

45 minutes prep time 

BUT it should be made somewhat in advance to cool and rest

 

  

450 grams (1 pound) skinless, boneless chicken pieces

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 bay leaf

1 small carrot (optional)

1 small onion (optional)

1 small stalk celery (optional)

2 cups water

 

Put the chicken pieces into a pot with the salt and a bay leaf, and whichever of the seasoning vegetables you can round up. Cover with about 2 cups water and bring up to a simmer; simmer gently until cooked, about 20 to 30 minutes. Let cool. 

 

Strain the stock, discarding the solids - other than the chicken - and keep it and the chicken cool in the fridge until ready to proceed. 

2 or 3 cloves of garlic 

1/2 teaspoon cumin seed, ground

1/2 teaspoon coriander seed, ground

1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon Aleppo pepper

salt & freshly ground black pepper to taste

1 cup chicken broth, PLUS some more

1 cup fine dry bread crumbs

1 cup crushed walnuts

walnut pieces

parsley

 

Peel and grate the garlic; keep it in 2 piles, one a little larger than the other. 

 

Grind the cumin and coriander seeds, and put them in a little bowl with the remaining spices. 

 

Be sure the bread crumbs and walnuts are prepared before you start assembly; the bread should be in bits the size of a pea or smaller (you can grind them in a food processor if you like). The walnuts can likewise be almost milled fine, or left in little chunks depending on the texture you prefer. 

Shred the chicken into fine pieces.

 

Heat 1 cup of the chicken stock with about 2/3 of the garlic. When it comes to a boil, add the bread crumbs and the bowl of spices and mix well. When it is a solid mass, remove it from the heat. Stir in the crushed walnuts, and the remaining (raw) garlic. You should have a smooth, soft, and pliable but not liquid paste. If it is too thick, thin it with a little more chicken stock (or yogurt). It will thicken a bit with sitting so that's something to keep in mind. Mix in the shredded chicken.

Spread or mound the chicken in a serving dish, and garnish it with larger walnut pieces and chopped parsley to taste. Drizzle it with the Chile Oil. Serve at room temperature, but keep it refrigerated if you are not serving it right away - just take it out about 10 or 15 minutes before serving to take the chill off. Don't put on the Chile Oil until you are about to serve it.

3 tablespoons olive oil

1/2 teaspoon Aleppo pepper

1 teaspoon paprika

a pinch of salt

Put the oil into a very small pan and heat it until it shimmers and smells of olives, and generally is quite hot but not boiling. Turn off the heat and add the spices. Mix them in well - they will probably sizzle a bit - and let the oil sit for about 10 minutes before drizzling it over the chicken.

Last year at this time I made Smoked Trout, Asparagus & Chick Pea Salad.

Reduced carb crackers have been a very handy thing for me. I've been making these ones off and on all winter, and while they are really very good they gave me a lot of trouble to perfect. I started by putting cheese in them, but they have so many other flavours going on that it could hardly be tasted, and at the price of cheese, that's a waste. Eat your cheese on top of the crackers. Then, I modeled them on other crackers I make including the oven temperature, and they would go from not done to scorched in a couple of minutes - eventually I figured these need to be cooked longer at a lower temperature. It's all the dried vegetables in them. On that note, I think it helps to have the dough rest for 10 or 15 minutes to allow them to absorb a little of the water, so don't preheat the oven until the crackers have been rolled out.  

These are allowing me to use up the backlog of years of dried tomatoes and peppers, but if you don't dry your own and can't find dried peppers (dried tomatoes should be much easier) you could try the mixed dried vegetables sold by Bulk Barn. Because of the flax seed, flavours in general are a bit muted; it may seem like I'm putting in a lot of spice but it is required.

 

36 crackers

1 hour - 20 minutes prep time

 

1 cup chick pea flour

1 cup whole spelt flour

1/2 cup almond flour

1/2 cup flax meal

1 teaspoon fennel seed

2 teaspoons rubbed oregano

1 teaspoon sweet or smoked paprika

1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon hot chile flakes

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

2 tablespoons dried onion flakes

1/4 cup dried tomatoes, finely chopped

1/4 cup dried sweet peppers, finely chopped, optional

1/3 cup mild vegetable oil

1/2 cup water

a little spelt flour to roll out

Measure all the dry ingredients into a bowl. If you start with whole dried tomatoes or peppers, chop them very finely first; a food processor will not make them too fine - they should be in quite little bits, almost ground. 

Line a large baking tray with parchment. 

Mix the oil into the dry ingredients until it is evenly distributed. Mix in the water to form a smooth dough. It should be pliable, but neither soft nor sticky. Put it on the parchment  - it is best to move it back onto the counter from the baking tray - and roll it out thinly and evenly until it fits the dimensions of the tray. Score it with 5 lines in each direction with a pizza cutter to form 36 crackers. Poke holes in each cracker with a fork. 

Preheat the oven to 325°F.

Bake for 35 to 40 minutes until they look dry, and fairly crisp. Keep a close eye on them starting at the 25 minute mark. They will continue to crisp up a bit as they cool. Once cool, store in a cool, dark, and air-tight spot (cookie tin). 

Last year at this time I made Strawberry Crisp.

Chebureki are a simple and straightforward Russian meat hand-pie, similar to Jamaican patties or Cornish pasties, but even simpler than those because they are made with a very basic unraised dough. What I used was not the traditional wheat flour dough, but one based on the buckwheat wraps I've been making lately. Well, it is the buckwheat wraps, with a little oil added. Much better for me, and even tastier, in my opinion. 

Here is where I have to admit I actually used rye flour instead of buckwheat. Sadly, it was okay but not something I intend to repeat. Rye has a slightly sticky quality to it, and here it came across as downright gummy, possibly because the flax meal tends that way too. Next time, it will be back to the buckwheat. But otherwise, these were really delicious and much simpler and faster to make than I would have expected.

These are often described as being fried, and some people do seem to deep fry them. Shallow frying seems to be at least as common, though, and you don't need huge amounts of oil to cook them - just enough to make the dough crispy. If you have patted the filling thin enough they will easily cook through in quite a short period of time.

 

6 to 8 chebureki (3 to 6 servings)

40 minutes prep time

 

1/2 cup finely chopped parsley

1/2 cup finely chopped green onions

up to 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh dill, if available

1/4 to scant 1/2 teaspoon salt

freshly ground black pepper to taste

450 grams (1 pound) lean ground beef OR lamb

 

Wash, dry, and finely chop the herbs. Put them in a mixing bowl with the salt and pepper. Add the beef and mix everything very thoroughly - with your hands is best.

1 1/4 cups water

2 tablespoons mild vegetable oil

1 cup buckwheat flour

1 cup ground flax seeds

1/2 teaspoon salt

oil to fry

 

Put the water and oil in a mid-sized saucepan and bring them to a boil. Meanwhile, mix the flour, flax meal, and salt in a small bowl. 

When the water boils, turn off the heat and dump in the dry ingredients. Immediately mix well to form a dough. Transfer it to a plate or clean counter top to cool slightly. (Soak the pan.) 

Divide the dough into 6 or 8 equal portions. Dusting them with buckwheat flour to prevent sticking, roll them out into thin circles. Divide the meat filling into 6 or 8 portions to match the dough, and flatten one portion onto each circle of dough, covering half of it to within about 1/2" of the edges of the dough. You need enough dough to pinch sealed, but the meat will shrink away from the edges as it cooks, so get it as close as is reasonable. Fold the uncovered half of the dough over the meat and press it sealed with a fork. You may wish to trim the edges with a pizza cutter to make a neat half-circle. Set each aside as they are formed. 

Heat a shallow skillet or griddle over medium heat. Add enough oil to cover the bottom of the pan generously. Cook the chebureki for 3 to 4 minutes on each side. Reduce the heat if they are browning too fast. Serve at once, although you can keep them warm in a 200°F oven as they are done to allow for them all to be ready at once.

Last year at this time I made Chicken Thighs Stuffed with Sorrel & Mushrooms.

I'm always lured in by attractive photos of things, in this case bright green spinach wraps. Unfortunately, to achieve a bright green wrap, you need to use white flours and much less spinach, and not let them get browned at all, so mine came out a quite dark khaki colour. Still, very tasty! They are modeled on these Buckwheat & Flax Meal Tortilla Wraps I made a while back. I have to say, I'm happy to have tried these, and they were good, but I'm much more likely to make the plain ones in the future; in fact I have been making them regularly already. They are extremely useful and one of them has about 2/3 the net carbs of a slice of the best bread that I can get. (Not talking about super low-carb "breads", which are pretty much unspeakable.)

We had these for breakfast, wrapped around a cheesy omelette, which went very well with the spinach. You can make these all year round with frozen spinach, and in fact I would recommend it over fresh.

 

4 to 6 tortilla wraps

40 minutes prep time

1 cup finely re-ground flax seed meal

1/2 cup potato starch

2/3 cup buckwheat flour

3/4 teaspoon salt

120 grams (4 ounces) cooked chopped spinach

1 cup boiling water

about 1/4 cup buckwheat flour to roll

Regrind the flax seed meal in a blender until very fine. Put it in a mixing bowl with the potato starch, buckwheat flour, and salt. Mix well. 

Put the spinach in a blender and chop extremely finely. It will be necessary to stop and scrape down the sides several times. Add the flour mixture, about 1/3 at a time and process it in until you have a very fine, sandy mixture. Turn this back into the mixing bowl. 

Bring some water to a boil and immediately measure out 1 cup of it and stir it in quickly, until it forms a ball. Let the dough rest for a minute or two until you can handle it, then divide it into 4, 5, or 6 equal pieces. Set them on a plate. 

Heat a griddle over medium-low heat. Using a sheet of parchment paper or very clean countertop, roll each piece of dough into a very thin circle. It's easiest to flatten it into a hockey puck-shaped disc to start. Dust with plenty of buckwheat flour to prevent it from sticking. As you roll each wrap, stack them on another plate. When the griddle is warm and you have rolled about 3 of them, begin cooking them, for 2 minutes on the first side and about a minute on the second side. Stack them on another plate as you work... if you are speedy enough, you can transfer the last couple of balls of dough to the edge of the parchment and use that plate rather than dirty another. Continue until all the balls of dough are rolled and cooked. The dough gets harder to work with the longer it sits, so it needs to be rolled promptly. 

Last year at this time I made Barley & Spelt Scones, and updated Sweet Potato Waffles. Apparently this time of the year involves a few last kicks at the baking can...