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Polenta for breakfast

I made some polenta for dinner the other day and purposely made more than I needed so I could have some leftover for breakfast. By the next morning the polenta was nice and firm so I cut a think slice, fried it for about 3-4 mins per side on my cast iron pan, I then pan fried some green onions, moved it to the side, fried an over-easy egg and then piled it up: polenta, tomato relish from my farmers’ market, green onions, topped by a nice fried egg. It was SO good.

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Watching España vs Paraguay

Radish salsa, guacamole, olives, roasted beets

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Peppers

My peppers are growing well!! Check it out:

Cayenne pepper

Crazy long cayenne pepper

Jalapeños just started growing

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Risi e Bisi

I got some fresh shelling peas in my CSA share this past week and when I came a Venetian-style risotto in Mario Batali’s book Molto Italiano, I couldn’t resist. I adapted somewhat to the ingredients I had at hand – pancetta instead of prosciutto, onions instead of shallots, and a cup of cava in place of chicken stock. I also added garlic scapes, which were not in the original recipe. The result? A very yummy risotto.

Risi e Bisi served with Caprese salad

Continue reading Risi e Bisi

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KEG CSA Week 3

Starting today, I’ll post a picture of each week’s share, linking to anything I post about what I cooked with it.

This week my small share included:

  • rhubarb
  • green onions
  • radishes
  • strawberries
  • eggs
  • shelling peas

I added to that:

  • ground lamb
  • asian greens
  • garlic scapes
  • tomato salsa
  • raspberry jam

And they have become, so far:

  • Rhubarb & Strawberry custard pie
  • Lamb & bulgur patties (aka Kofta) served with tomato salsa
  • Braised radishes with goat’s milk butter, parsley, green onions, and sea salt
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Rhubarb season

It’s strawberry and rhubarb season and I simply cannot get enough. After trying stewed rhubarb in maple syrup, strawberry & rhubarb crumble, and a compote, Shannon from KEG recommended this simple but fabulous custard pie:

Not very photogenic but every bite elicited a very loud "OMG!" from Alan

Voort’s Classic Rhubarb Custard

3 eggs

1 1/4 cup sugar (i actually replace this with 1 to 1 1/4 cup maple syrup.  I actually replace everything with maple syrup…)

1 Tbsp butter

3 Tbsp flour

1/4 Orange juice (if using maple, just leave this out – or replace with any other juice you have!) [I used maple and didn't add orange juice]

beat eggs, then stir in remaining ingredients one at a time

fill pie shell with cut up rhubarb (2-4 cups, depending on the size of your pie plate), then pour custard mixture over top. (you can add any other fruits in here as well – try strawberries, sour cherries – basically any berries you still have in your freezer…amazing) [I added strawberries; about two cups of each]

(my favourite pastry is butter pastry – can you go wrong with butter? – 1 1/2 cups flour (I’ve used the red fife, all purpose, spelt and buckwheat here – all good!), 1/2 tsp salt, 1/4 lb cold butter, 3-5 tbsp ice water – mix flour & salt, cut in butter, add ice water until it’s a ball.  refrigerating for a few minutes really helps the roll-out.  makes 1 shell) [I used spelt; wasn't sure it was going to turn out but it was a very nice, flaky pie shell]

bake at 4oo degrees for 15-20 minutes, then reduce temp to 375 and bake 30-40 minutes more or until custard is set.

let it cool until you can put it in your mouth without burning yourself…

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Farmers’ Market in Toronto

Came across today this very cool map of the markets in the Toronto area:

View Toronto Farmers Markets 2010 in a larger map
But I can see it is missing the one I go to, which is at University College on Wednesday afternoons. It hasn’t officially re-started yet, but Kawartha Ecological Growers sets up besides Hart House on those days.

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Growing food

I’ve been wanting to grow food ever since reading Barbara Kingsolver’s Animal, Vegetable, Miracle last summer. I brushed the notion aside to the realm of “things I’d like to do if I lived in a place with a bit more space and if I had more time.” I was also discouraged by my past attempts at growing herbs on my balcony. The notion finally returned full force after I read Gayla Trail’s Grow Great Grub and Sarah Elton’s Locavore: from farmers’ Fields to Rooftop Gardens, How Canadians are Changing the Way we Eat. So today I joined the other 49% of Canadians who garden and got myself a few plants:

At the end we have a nice big bush of Thai basil that I couldn’t resist:

I’ve had that one for a couple of weeks now and emboldened by its survival, I got these little babies this weekend:

In the larger pot: Sweet red pepper, red lettuce, and flat leaf parsley. In the smaller pot: peppermint

On the left: kale and cayenne pepper; on the right: arugula and jalapeño pepper

Wish me luck!

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Portugal

Alan and I spent four days in Lisbon in December of 2006. We went back to Barcelona completely in love with Portugal and its people. Friends had told me that the light in Lisbon is something unique but we couldn’t imagine how right they were. It is hard to explain. But you get a sense from my pictures from that trip.

Lisbon chestnut vendor

I always meant to go back and travel and width and breadth of Portugal. Search for some of my roots, perhaps. Today I was able to do so through Tessa Kiros’s wonderful book Postcards from Portugal: Memories and Recipes* that I discovered through my friend Fernanda.The book is simply gorgeous, a journey through Portuguese cuisine, a product of a colonial past that brought Portuguese merchants to every corner of the world, bringing with them many spices and techniques from far away lands. This spirit is conveyed in the book’s opening page:

Continue reading Portugal

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Strawberry Rhubarb Crumble

I love a good crumble. Although Apple Crumble is a favourite in our household, I’m always looking for seasonal variations. So when I saw stalks or fresh rhubarb at the market this weekend I quickly snatched some. Rhubarb is one of the first plants available in the spring and mixed with strawberries it makes the ultimate spring crumble/pie/or cobbler base. The topping on this one comes from Mark Bittman, although I add more flour, sugar, and oats because my dish was large and I like a lot of crumble. It was so good I even forgot to take a picture so you’ll just have to trust me on this one.

Continue reading Strawberry Rhubarb Crumble

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