Cookie Monster

My mother often tells the story of my first cooking venture. When I was two, my mother had me propped up on a chair in our kitchen, so I could help her make oatmeal cookies. I was so enthusiastic about this, that when her back was turned I ate a whole cup of flour! Yep, down the hatch it went. Needless to say, it freaked my mother (and I am sure myself) out. As most of you know, flour and saliva basically turn into homemade "glue" - so I essentially glued my mouth shut. After some panic and cleaning my gooey mouth out, we proceeded to make the best oatmeal cookies ever.

I recently started my second maternity leave, and am now home with a 20 month old and a 5 week old. With that being said, I get cabin fever quite fairly regularly, especially on those typical Nova Scotian rainy days. On the past rainy day, I decided to continue the Lavallée tradition and make cookies with my lil' cookie monster. I must admit that it was a very messy venture, but Zoe clearly enjoyed herself and luckily enough, she did not follow in her Momma's footsteps by eating a cup of flour. The following recipe is the same one that I made with my mother many moons ago. 

Oatmeal Cookies

• 1 ¾ C flour
• 1 ¼ C sugar
• 1 tsp baking powder
• ½ tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 3 C rolled oats
• 1 C raisins (I mix raisins with dried cranberries!)
• 1 C oil (I use olive oil, but it calls for canola oil)
• ½ C milk
• 2 eggs
• 1 tsp salt

Mix all the dry ingredients and the raisins. Add in the wet ingredients and give a quick mix. Place in spoonfuls on a baking sheet and place in a 400°F oven for 12 minutes.

If you have small children, cooking with them in the kitchen is a great time and worth the clean up in the end. Now, will Zoe follow in my footsteps and continue on the culinary path? I will keep you posted!

Crunchy Salad

I recently had a request for a gluten and dairy free recipe. As most of you know by now, bread and cheese are two of my favourite things, but felt that I should expand my horizons and come up with a dish that would accommodate people that have allergies or aversions to these. So, with a few cookbooks in hand, I did some research and I came up with this fresh and simple dish that I haphazardly named "crunchy salad".  Once you make it and try it out, you'll understand why I've called it this. As always, this recipe is intended to be a guide for those of you at home. So take it and run with it! Who knows, yours may end up being a whole lot better than mine!

Crunchy Salad

• 1 english cucumber; diced
• 1 red pepper; julienned
• 4 carrots; julienne
• 1 pkg tofu; diced and fried
• ½ bunch cilantro; roughly chopped
• ½ C. basil; roughly chopped
• 1 C. cashews or peanuts; roughly chopped (optional)
• 4 scallions; julienne
• 2 Tbsp toasted sesame seeds
• ½ pineapple; large dice
• 12 x 16/20 shrimp, sauteed (optional)

Mix all the ingredients together with vinaigrette.

Vinaigrette

• ½ C. canola or grape seed oil
• ¼ C. sesame oil
• ½ C. tamari or soy sauce
• 1 Tbsp white sugar
• ½ inch ginger; peeled and minced
• 2 cloves garlic; minced
• ¼ C. chopped cilantro
• 2 Tbsp fish sauce
• 2 Tbsp rice wine vinegar
• 2 Tbsp mirin
• salt & pepper to taste
• 2 Tbsp sambal olek (optional)

Whisk together all the ingredients and pour over the salad.

The Grilled Pizza Epiphany

While scanning Twitter the other day, I came across a tweet by Smitten Kitchen about a "Shaved Asparagus Pizza". Having just purchased 2lbs of fresh asparagus at the market that morning, and wanting to try out my pizza stone on our Weber grill, I decided to take the Smitten Kitchen recipe and use it as guideline.

First, I made a quick and easy pizza dough in my mixer and let it rise (see recipe below). Next came the building of the fire. Using a charcoal grill always requires some planning ahead and some carefully honed fire making skills! FYI....my fire making skills are outstanding! As my grill started to heat up, I put my stone on the grill and allowed it come up to temperature. This gave me a chance to prep the rest of my ingredients. A little shaved parmigiano-reggiano, mozzarella, some beautiful local asparagus from Caribou Island, basil from Riverview Herbs and a few crumbled sausages from Sweet Williams (grilled in advance) rounded out our 'za toppings for the night.

After I rolled out my dough, I placed it on the white hot stone. I let it cook for 2 minutes then flipped it over and gave it another minute on the other side. Once this was done, I liberally drizzled my half cooked dough with extra virgin olive oil and then layered on the rest of the toppings. I returned the dressed pizza back to the stone, placed the cover on the grill and let 'er cook for another 4-5 minutes.

The result was nothing less than incredible. It was one of the best pizzas that I've ever had! No joke! The crust was tender and crunchy, the toppings were warmed through, yet retained their freshness and the whole pizza had a delightful smokiness from the charcoal.   I suggest that if you own a pizza stone, throw it on the grill this summer and experiment with some different toppings - both savory and sweet. I cannot wait to to try this again!

Basic Pizza Dough

• 3 ¼ C. AP flour
• 1 Tbsp salt
• 1Tbsp sugar
• 2 tsp instant yeast
• 1 ¼ C. warm water
• 2 Tbsp. olive oil

Place the dry ingredients in a stand up mixer with the hook attachment. Add wet ingredients and mix until the dough comes away from the sides and is elastic and smooth (about 5 minutes). Cover with plastic wrap and put in warm place to rise for 1 hour. Once the dough has had a chance to rise, roll it out to any size or shape that you desire.

It'll Make You "Crackers"

In case you haven't heard, I have a soft spot for cheese and crackers. Nothing major, but if you ask my better half, he'll attest to the fact that often enough, my meal of the day will consist only of cheddar cheese and some crackers. Now, I know that this sounds pretty pathetic, but the beauty part of it is that I make my own crackers. Yep, that's right, I make my own crackers to enjoy with my cheese. It might sound daunting to some, but this recipe couldn't be easier. I put all my ingredients in my food processor and then roll it out with my Grandmere's rolling pin (a very treasured Granger family heirloom that has been passed down through many generations). I hope that the next time you decide to indulge in some cheese eating, or even a bowl of tomato soup that deserves a trusty companion, you'll muster up the time to cook off a batch of these bad boys.

Easy Peasy Crackers

• 3C. all pupose flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 2 tsp salt
• 1/2 C. cold butter; cubbed
• 1C. sour cream
• 2 eggs

Pulse the flour, baking powder, salt and butter in food processor until it becomes a coarse meal. Add in wet ingredients and quickly pulse until the dough comes together. On a floured work surface, roll out the dough until desired thickness and cut into any shape (I like long, narrow triangles).Place on a parchment lined baking sheet and cook in a 350 oven for about 20 minutes.

The Random Rhubarb

Doug and I have lived in our little blue house on Lake Banook in Dartmouth for 3 years now, and it wasn't until this spring, while doing some major yard work, that I discovered a very random patch of rhubarb growing in our yard. How exciting, I thought. It reminded me of my childhood days, and how I would go over to Sheila's (she was our neighbor in Shawville), and secretly cut her rhubarb from the patch behind her garage, and hope that none of the neighbors saw me! I would stuff it under my shirt, and make a run for my yard and bolt through the side door completely out of breath. Of course, my rhubarb cutting never went unnoticed, as my mother would interrogate me on my "lucky" find, and would place a call to the McDowell residence to inform Sheila of my bad behaviour. To make it up to everyone, I would bake a rhubarb crisp, taken from a local Shawville Minor Hockey Cookbook, and eat it hot right out of the pan! Now that I have my own rhubarb patch, I can make this sweet and sour concoction anytime. Give this simple recipe a try!

The Shawville Rhubarb Crisp

• 1 C. all purpose flour
• 1C. packed brown sugar
• ¾ C. oatmeal
• ½ C. melted butter
• 5 C. chopped fresh rhubarb
• 1C. white sugar
• 1C. cold water
• 2 Tbsp cornstarch
• 1 Tsp vanilla

In a bowl, mix the flour and brown sugar with the butter and oatmeal. Press ¾ of the mixture into the bottom of a 9" pan; cover with the rhubarb. In a saucepan, mix all the remaining ingredients and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until it thickens. Pour over the rhubarb and sprinkle the remaining topping on top. Bake in a 350F oven for 45-60 minutes until it is oozy, bubbly and brown!

It was a meal fit for our new king!

By now most of you know that every Saturday morning, Doug & I round up Zoe, and now Philippe, before heading out to the Farmers' Market to grab our supplies for the week. On this particular Saturday, seeing as it was Philly Boy's first ever trip, we decided that we would splurge and grab more than usual, then go back to the Darkside and cook ourselves a feast to celebrate. Our supplies included mussels from Indian Point, Stutz hard apple cider, bacon from Sweet Williams, greens, radishes & rhubarb from Hutten Family Farm and of course, bread from La Vendeenne!

Into the kitchen we went; Philly in the Baby Bjorn & Zoe anxiously circling our legs. The mussels got a quick clean before they were added to my Creuset. The pot contained garlic, bacon and tomatoes that I had already cooked down slightly. A quick stir and in went a few bay leaves and two bottles of the Stutz cider. Cover on, and we let them steam while a simple salad was made. A gorgeous bag of greens from Ted Hutten got mixed with some sliced pear & candy cane beets, shaved extra old Growler from That Dutchman's Farm, and a sprinkling of toasted pine nuts. Honey, champagne vinegar and olive oil made up a simple vinaigrette, and we were off to the races! Out came our Parisian loaf from La Vendéenne, ready to sop up the juices from the mussels. The whole meal was topped off with a rhubarb crisp (recipe coming soon) and a scoop of Fox Hill gelato.  This was a feast fit for our new "king"! Too bad Philippe couldn't enjoy any of it, but the rest of us surely did!

My Cider Mussels

• 5 lbs mussels; cleaned
• 4 garlic cloves; sliced
• 2 whole tomatoes; roughly chopped
• 1/2 lbs bacon; roughly chopped
• Butter
• 3 bay leaves
• 2 bottles hard apple cider (I like Tideview or Stutz!)
• Salt & pepper

In a large pot, heat butter and add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds. Next, add the chopped bacon and cook for another 4 minutes. Add the tomatoes and cook down for 2 minutes. Add the mussels and bay leaves and give a good stir (or shake with lid tightly on). Pour in the cider, cover and cook until all the mussels open. Season to taste. Remember folks, if the mussel stays shut, do not eat it! Enjoy!

It Was Time To "Spice" Him Out!

As some of you may know, I am now at the nine month mark of my pregnancy. This past Saturday, I was slated to do my annual Mother's Day dinner at Sugar Moon Farm in Earltown, but  contractions started Thursday, and by Friday I was told by my doctor that I was pretty much in labor and that a dinner for 60 people, an hour and a half away, was probably not a good idea. So, with the fear of dealing with labor and a new baby and the stress of trying to figure out who or what was going to happen with Sugar Moon, I was at my wit's end. I made a quick phone call to Craig Flinn of Chives (a fellow chef in the city) hoping that he would be able to help me out. Thankfully he accepted the challenge of finishing what I started. Craig is a saint! So, with Sugar Moon taken care of, we packed our bag and headed to the hospital with hopes of a quick and painless delivery! Many hours later, with our hopes and dreams deflated, we headed back home with no baby. That's right, I may have been on my way to a speedy delivery, but apparently the little guy in my belly decided that he liked it too much in there and proceeded to climb back in! Aaargh! Two days of contractions, endless walks around the lake, hanky panky and even a twenty minute stint of running up and down stairs, this kid was having no part of making an appearance. By Sunday I felt frustrated and tired. It was Mother's Day and I there was no new kid to give me sloppy kisses! That was it, the battle was on. I declared war on my womb and decided to "spice" this baby out. I was no holds barred when it came to our dinner last night; jerk beef, rice and beans and an avocado, tomato and cilantro salad. The jerk had enough spice to make all three and a half of us cry, and the rice and beans used up a whole can of chipotle peppers! Smoke came out our ears, and my husband complained of "ring of fire", but to no avail. So now I sit here writing this post with a very busy baby still in my belly instead of one sleeping quietly in a bassinet beside me.

Should you ever feel the need for heat, here is my tried and true jerk marinade that should make most babies shoot right out of their Mommas!

The Lavallée Jerk

• 1 jar Grace's Jerk Spice (250ml)
• Juice and zest of 6 limes
• 1" ginger root; peeled and minced
• 1/2C. chopped fresh cilantro leaves and stems
• 1 C. molasses

Mix all the ingredients together and use sparingly. Unused portions can be kept in a jar in the refrigerator until the next time it's needed.

FYI...Baby Philippe was born a few hours after this dinner, so I really DID spice him out!