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!

La Petite Gourmande

I once had a co-worker at Les Fougères, who had a four year old boy. He told me a story one day about his son that made me laugh. After hearing this story I hoped that if I ever had kids, mine would do the same. He explained that his family had been invited over to a friend's place for dinner and that when the main course of pasta came out, his son took one bite, pushed his plate away, turned to the host and said "Your pasta lacks seasoning. I refuse to eat this until the proper amount of salt and pepper is added." I laughed so hard, and poor Mario was embarrassed by this event, but nonetheless, he was proud that his boy was a "gourmand".

Along came a "petite gourmande" of my own. My daughter Zoé is all of 19 months, and has been eating solid food for more than a year. Her first foray was like every other baby; bananas, pears, prunes and sweet potatoes, but now and then I'd throw her a curve ball to see how should would react. An asparagus and fiddlehead soup was her first favorite, followed closely by pasta with Taleggio cheese, sundried tomatoes and basil. Yay, my babe was developing a palate more discerning than some adults!

Of course, this wasn't always true. I have seen a bowl flung against my pale yellow walls after some hard core head shaking. To this day she refuses to eat mango, yet plonk and avocado on her plate and it's gone within seconds. Cheese is already a major force in her young life; Taleggio is a winner, as is Manchego and Chèvre. I once gave her a dreaded processed cheese slice only to find it stuck suspiciously under her high chair. A few days ago, Zoé decided that the foie gras mousse, that Doug brought back from La Ferme Basque in Quebec, was best served with a sippy cup of local apple cider, and that Serrano ham worked wonders with some steamed asparagus and a side of pears. Saturday mornings are sacred for my family and a definite favourite for Zoé. This is when we make our weekly trip to the Halifax Farmers' Market. Zoé always opts for a croissant from La Vendéenne and a scoop of gelato from Fox Hill Cheese House. Believe me, this kid knows what she wants!

I had always hoped that my child would to try different things, and give "peas" a chance. Now I can only hope that her brand new baby brother, Philippe, chooses the same path!

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!

Cutting Edge Culinary Competition

Last year I participated in the first ever "Cutting Edge Culinary Competition" organized by Taste of Nova Scotia at the Saltscapes Expo. If you hadn't already heard, last year I was the winner of this competition. Thanks to my win I was able to walk away with a full set of Grohmann knives and a nice spread in the summer issue of Saltscapes Magazine. Despite being nine months pregnant and extremely crabby this year, I still felt the need to defend my title! I waited anxiously for the first weekend in May to roll around so that I could sharpen my knives, sharpen my skills and set out to kick some ass!

This year, I was paired against Chef Alan Crosby of White Point Beach Resort. I cannot even explain how much I looked forward to our "duel". I arrived to find Alan already comfortably ready on the stage and looking cool as a cucumber. "Well," I thought, "time to show him a thing or two!" We anxiously awaited to find out the contents of our "black box". Would we be given lobster, yogurt from Fox Hill, or maybe some Blueberry juice from Van Dyk's? Only two people knew the answer to these questions; Alain Bossé from Saltscapes Magazine and Christine White from Taste of Nova Scotia.

With pans on our burners, knives on our cutting boards and our volunteer sous chefs from the audience in place, the contents were unveiled: scallops, Farmer John's Summer Savoury, honey, Tideview Vintage Cider and a big 'ol green cabbage! With a look of awe on our faces, we set off to discuss our game plans with our sous chefs. I decided on making an Israeli couscous risotto with king mushrooms, fiddleheads, Tideview cider and summer savoury, pan searing my scallops and topping them off with a slaw of apple and cabbage in a honey-champagne vinegar vinaigrette. Forty five minutes on the clock and off we went! My sous chef started making the slaw and I tackled the risotto,  and took some time to entertain the crowd with my ridiculous kitchen stories. I was hoping that my cool demure would bother Alan and get him off track, but he is a true professional and came back at me with some jokes and jabs.

Our time was up, and we were ready to plate. Phil, my sous chef, had been a real trooper and helped me put the finishing touches on our plates. Alan plated up his dish; seared scallops on a double smoked bacon and cabbage hash with honey and savory roasted fingerling potatoes. His dishes looked fantastic and I suddenly felt a stab of worry as I looked on. The crowd cheered us on and with a friendly handshake, Alan and I left the stage to await the results.

Needless to say, the best man won the competition, Chef Alan Crosby! Despite hoping to land the sympathy vote due to by ginormous belly, Alan was the deserving winner! At the end of the day, we all had a blast. I look forward  next year and my next opponent.

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Not Your Average Loaf

I have had one Saturday staple for the past five years, and that is the Apricot-Honey loaf from Boulangerie La Vendéenne. Every Saturday we religiously line up at this stall (always a crazy long line!) and wait to purchase our loaf. It is chewy, sweet and studded with apricots and nothing makes a better snack than slathering it with some butter and a dusting of fleur de sel. My lil' Zoe has been known to beg for this bread; putting her chubby little hands into the brown paper bag and tearing off a piece even before we make it out of the line. For two days we are a happy household; using it for toast, sandwiches and finally turning it into crostini. We do not waste a single inch of it! La Vendéenne not only make this amazing bread, but their sourdough, fougasse and brioche are also out of this world! If you have been hesitant in the past to brave the line up at this stall on Saturday morning, I beg of you to take the time, grab a loaf, and enjoy a little bit of heaven!

Super Soba Sunday

This past Sunday I woke up with what I refer to as a "food hangover". Copious amounts of Serrano ham, "pan con tomate", Manchego cheese and many other culinary delights, still swirled in my enormous 8½ month pregnant belly. The last thing that I even wanted to think about was food, but a persistent  1½ year old and a famished husband, kept nipping at my heals and begged for good 'ol Momma to make them some food. The thought of anything rich brought me to tears, so I scrounged in the cupboards to uncover a package of Soba noodles. Aha, I thought, maybe a cold soba noodle salad would quench the hunger of these two demanding peeps and maybe a somewhat satisfying snack for myself. Deep into the fridge, I found some tofu, some pea shoots from the market, snow peas, avocado, peppers and to top it all off, buttery shiitake mushrooms. I banished the child and husband to the park for a half hour so that I could create.  Here is a recipe for a quick, simple and utterly scrumptious soba noodle salad that would satisfy any savage!

Cold Soba Noodle Salad

• 1 package Soba noodles; cooked off and rinsed in cold water
• 1 yellow pepper; julienned
• 3 scallions; julienned
• 1 avocado; roughly diced
• 1 C. sliced shiitake mushrooms; sauteed
• 1 good handful cilantro; chopped
• 1/2 pkg firm tofu; cubed and sauteed in sesame oil
• 1 C. snow peas; julienned
• 6 oz pea shoots

Dressing

• 1 2" piece of ginger; minced
• 1 C. Mirin
• 1 C. Tamari
• 2 Tbsp sesame oil
• Salt & pepper

Directions

Mix the cold soba noodles with all the chopped vegetables (except the avocado) and tofu. Add the cilantro and dressing. Mix and season to taste. Finish by mixing in the avocado and pea shoots.

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My Cure for the Sunday Blues

Nothing makes me happier than a freshly baked muffin, especially a blueberry one! I have the tendency to buy up tons of fresh, local blueberries during the summer so that I can freeze them and pull them out all winter long. On a recent sunny Sunday while feeling blue, I thought that the perfect pick me up would be to whip up a batch of my Momma's famous blueberry muffins. Needless to say that the only thing "blue" after eating one of these was my tongue! Enjoy.

momma's famous blueberry muffins

• 4 c flour
• 2tsp baking powder
• 1 1/2 c sugar
• 2c sour cream
• 4 eggs
• zest of 2 lemons
• 2/3 c canola oil
• 2 1/2 c blueberries

Pre-heat oven to 350°F. Mix dry ingredients and then add the wet. Fold in the blueberries at the very end as to not turn your batter blue. Fill half-way up muffin tins and bake for 12-15 minutes. This recipe makes 12 large muffins.

Once dry ingredients are mixed, start adding in your eggs, oil and sour cream.

The recipe calls for the zest of 2 lemons, but I always add extra! Experiment and add orange or lime zest as well.

In go my frozen blueberries that I pulled out from my secret summer stash!

Be careful not to over-mix once you've added your berries; you don't want blue batter!

Into the muffin tins and off to my 350°F oven for 12-15 minutes. I use silicone muffin tins as I find it easier to get my muffins out and also easier to clean.