November 21, 2012

Granola - Breakfast of Champions

by Renee Lavallee in Everyday, Favorites, Recipes

Are there mornings where you find yourself on auto pilot? Wake up, roam around like a zombie, caffinate, and attempt to begin the day. Wait, did I miss something? Probably like most of you, I did. Breakfast.

If you are like me, this is a meal that I have skipped for ages. Just because I cook for a living, it does not mean that I eat properly. Sure, some of us consider that cup of Joe our breakfast, but that is by no means considered a meal.

I am not promoting skipping this most important meal of the day, and yes it is the most important. I take the time the make sure both of my kids eat a healthy breakfast, but as I sit there, beside them and encourage them to eat it all up, I am still skipping my morning nosh. So, what can I do to change my unhealthy behavior?

Maybe I need an incentive. Some food item that excites me and makes me want to take the time to nourish my poor sleep deprived body, and make sure that I fill it up with the fuel that is needed to make me function properly throughout my day.

The list of possibilities are endless; eggs, toast and smoothies. In a perfect world, my man servant would serve me up a European style breakfast of cured meats and cheese, but alas, my winning lottery ticket has yet to be bought.

My husband leaves the house every morning with a jar of milk, a piece of fruit and his incentive, my homemade granola. Yes, this fruit and nut mixture is what makes him run like a fine tuned sports car, and purr all day long.

Ah the granola. Making your own granola sounds like a lot of work but it isn't. Think of it as a fun project to make at night instead of watching the boob tube, or a rainy day activity with the kids. I switch mine up by adding whatever dried fruit and nuts I have on hand at the time. You can add honey, molasses or maple syrup to the mix, and if you want to be sassy, add some dried, crystallized ginger.

Want to turn it into a snack your kids will ask for? Throw in some chocolate chips and dried banana at the end once it is all cooled down. Granola in a fancy pants jar also makes a perfect gift for a hostess or birthday gal.

Try whipping up a batch of granola and make it your own. This mix goes great with yogurt, and I even sprinkle it on ice cream. Soak it in milk and plain yogurt for an hour an it turns into the ultimate muesli too.

Granola

450ml (5C) old fashioned rolled oats
375ml (3C) chopped almonds (or any nut that you prefer)
125ml (1C) sunflower seeds
125ml (1C) pumpkin seeds
125ml (1C) unsweetened shredded coconut
30ml (2tbsp) ground flax seeds

Mix all ingredients and add:

250ml (1C) honey
250ml (1C) maple syrup
150ml (1/2C) canola oil (or walnut oil works too)

Mix together and put on parchment lined baking sheets in thin layers and bake at 150c (300F) for about 45 minutes; making sure to stir every ten minutes.

Cook until golden brown, cool, and then add:

125g (1C) raisins
125g (1C) dried blueberries
125g (1C) dried cranberries

Store in a sealed jar. Keeps for about a month.

November 17, 2012

Fabulous Fall Food Finds

by Renee Lavallee in Favorites

I love this time of year. There is a nip in the air, the leaves are turning beautiful colors and the markets are full of wonderful fruits and vegetables. I find that this is the time of year that my culinary juices "start flowing" and I end up in my kitchen for hours on end experimenting. I realize that there are many people out there who think the fall is boring; squash and pumpkins, potatoes and turnips, but these hearty vegetables can be just as exciting as the first strawberry in the summer and the succulent asparagus in the spring. Here are a few of the fabulous fall finds that I can't wait to stick a knife in!

Rutabaga

Some call it "swede" but to me it will always be good 'ol yellow turnip. This root vegetable that was always a staple in my house growing up, seems to be every kid's nightmare, but its yellow flesh can be brought to life with a little butter, maple syrup and cream. Mashed, roasted or stewed, this root is among my staples come this time of year.

Kale

This leafy vegetable is a hearty green, purple or white and it does wonders in stews and soups. Taken off the stem, it marries perfectly with potatoes and bacon, or thrown into a beef stew to add a little roughage. I like to sweat off some chorizo sausage with garlic and sliced onions, then finely chop my kale and throw it in with a little olive oil and lots of chili flakes. Throw a top on your pot and cook for five minutes and you have a wonderful, spicy side dish that pairs perfectly with a roasted chicken.

Jerusalem artichokes

This tuber, that is often referred to as a "sunchoke", is the root of a type of daisy that grows extremely well. The taste is quite nutty, and when eaten raw, has a nice crunch. These can be cooked like a potato, with either the peel on (just give them a really good scrub) or peel off. I like to roast them whole in the oven with a sprinkling of sea salt and pepper, or thinly slice them raw and throw them in a salad of arugula, walnuts and dried cranberries.

Celeriac

People often shy away from this knobby looking root. Part of the celery family, it has a slightly milder and sweeter flavor than celery. Once peeled, it can also be mashed or roasted like many other root vegetables, or made into a velvety soup, but I prefer to pair it with potatoes and blue cheese to make an outstanding gratin. You can get even fancier by cooking it like most chefs do - cover with 35% cream and a few knobs of butter and bring to a boil. Simmer and cook until soft then strain (keeping the liquid) and process in a food processor adding a little liquid to help it become smooth. Season with salt, white pepper and a little grated Parmigiano-Reggiano. Now you have a perfect puree to place pan seared scallops on top of or a nice piece of roasted halibut.

Pears

What a "pair" they with cheese! With all the lovely cheeses now being produced in Nova Scotia, it would be hard not to want to make a marriage happen between a pear and some Old Growler or Fenugreek Havarti. Peeled, cored and poached in a red wine, the pear can be either paired with a sweet or savory. Slicing it makes for a nice addition to a salad. Keeping it whole and serving it with quark mixed with maple syrup or lemon zest is also a nice choice.

Any way you look at it, this time of the year has a bevy of wonderful fruits and vegetables that are grown right here in our backyard. Spend a Saturday morning at a farmers' market and pickup a few items that you would usually pass by and spend the day experimenting. Don' t be shy by asking the farmer what it is or how to use it; they usually have the best recipes!

November 3, 2012

Market Round-Up - Special Italian Edition

by Renee Lavallee in Video

This is a very special Feisty Chef market round-up. This edition featured my haul from the city market during my recent visit in Turin, Italy. I managed to visit this world-class market a couple of times. It was exploding with incredible local and seasonal products from Piedmont. I will follow-up in the next few days with a video recipe inspired by this market round-up. Please stay tuned.

October 18, 2012

November & December Cooking Classes

by Renee Lavallee in Events

With the holiday season coming upon us, and the popularity of my last Italian cooking class, I have decided to offer two more classes before the holidays.

Classes are Wednesday nights at Two If By Sea in Dartmouth. Classes start at 7pm and usually end around 9pm. It is $50 per person, per class. Hope to see you there.

Contact me to reserve your spot.

MOLTO ITALIANO

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 28TH, 2012

In this class, we will learn what it takes to make risotto from scratch. Then turn some of that risotto into rice croquettes with buffalo mozzarella and then finish it all off with gelato.

SOLD OUT

HOLIDAY FUN

WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 5TH, 2012

We all adore the holidays and eating during them, but what about cooking? I am going to make my famous tourtiere, a quick and easy cheesey appetizer and the millionaires fruit cake doused in rum.

book now

October 12, 2012

This One's for Jacob

by Renee Lavallee in Rants

It isn't very often that I feel the need to write a reaction to an article, but earlier this week, Jacob Richler, food editor for MacLean's Magazine, came up with a controversial list of the "Top 5o Restaurants" in Canada. Needless to say, he pissed off a lot of people with his opinion of who should be on the list and of course, those that he omitted. While I may not have agreed with the list, at the end of the day it's his opinion - period.

I am more riled up about the comments he made in a recent interview that was published in The Globe & Mail. Specifically, his comments about how he considered the Maritimes to be a "culinary sad sack". Oh, such unsavoury words. This interview was conducted to discuss the release of his new book "My Canada Includes Foie Gras". My Canada includes it too, but I certainly disagree with his comments about my new found home, the East Coast.

I once may have agreed with Mr. Richler; after having done my culinary training in Toronto and cooking in some of the better fine dining restaurants there, as well as Ottawa. Before I moved out east in 2004, to run the kitchen at the well known, Inn At Bay Fortune, I assumed that much the food out here was fried, processed and pathetic. uess what? I ate my words pretty quickly when I realized it was in fact a bounty of seafood, fruits, vegetables, cheeses and amazing meats. Here was an area of Canada that was still relatively undiscovered in the culinary sense.

I later moved to Halifax, where the culinary scene was very much up and coming. Chefs that had been born and bred here were returning home to open up their own places, with the wisdom they had picked up along the way. Chefs like Craig Flinn of Chives, Dennis Johnson of Fid Resto and Martin Ruiz Salvador of Fleur de Sel. These are but a handful of talented chefs that have set up shop in this province.

What amazes me is the passion for food in Nova Scotia. The number of people that get up at the crack of dawn every Saturday to go to the farmers' market to deal with the producers themselves. Everyone knows each other, and this blows my mind after living in large cities for over fifteen years. Everyone gets their lamb from Bill of Wood 'N Hart Farm. Ted Hutten has some of the best fruits and vegetables in the province. Sweet Williams, Roslane Farm, Boulangerie la Vendéenne, That Dutchman, Fox Hill Cheese House, and the list goes on and on. These are just some of the local producers that sell their products in the Halifax area, but there are many more doing great things throughout the province. Everything from lavender sugar to dried cranberries and blueberries, maple syrup, dulse, beer and of course amazing Nova Scotian wine. These are the products that we are proud of, and that a large number of chefs in the province use.

Nova Scotia is just one of the provinces on the East Coast. New Brunswick boasts chefs like Chris Aerni of The Rossmount Inn and Jesse Vergen of Saint John Ale House; both pioneers, both talented and both passionate.

How about Newfoundland? It's not all scrunchins and Screech. The best new restaurant in Canada is there (Raymonds), where the kitchen is run by the very talented Jeremy Charles. What about Atlantica with Steve Vardy? Here's a guy who made his name in Ottawa at Beckta, but decided to move back to his roots and cook stellar food in the middle of nowhere. Prince Edward Island has had Michael Smith as it's culinary ambassador for years and years, but the talent lies with guys like Gordon Bailey and Domenic Serio.

could write about the food scene on the East Coast for hours, but do I need to? I think Mr. Richler's ignorance, has only fueled us to discuss, reflect upon and appreciate the amazing assets that we have in our region.

And guess what? Thanks to his ridiculous comments, I'm more motivated than ever to let everyone in on our secret. We have the talent, the passion and the know how to produce, grow and cook the some of the most amazing food in this country.

Who needs to leave a utopia such as this? Not this Upper Canadian gal. A gal who is now proud to call herself a Maritimer.

October 10, 2012

Lamb Tagine - Toddler Approved.

by Renee Lavallee in Recipes, Video

I have a number of favorite dishes on rotation in my house. Lamb tagine is definitely one of them! How good is this dish you ask? Well, my two year old boy, Phil - who happens to be the pickiest eater on the planet, gives it two big thumbs up.

Aside from being toddler approved, this dish is very easy and quite healthy. I usually serve it over brown rice or couscous.

I recently made this dish at the Select Nova Scotia "Meet Your Farmer" event in Dartmouth. I was fortunate enough to show people how to make this recipe while standing alongside my favourite lamb farmer in the province, Bill Wood of Wood 'n Hart Farm. During this event I received tons of requests to re-post the recipe. I also had some folks ask me if I could put together a video recipe as well. So folks, here it is, lamb tagine...the video.

If you're looking for the full recipe, I actually wrote about this dish in a post from March of 2010. This post can be found here:

Lamb Tagine - complete Recipe and photos

October 7, 2012

My Love for Sweet Potato Pie

by Renee Lavallee in Recipes, Favorites

My love for sweet potatoes started at a young age. Every year, my family would head south to St. Augustine, Florida. We would always frequent a cafeteria called Morrison's for lunch and dinner. At Morrison's, I would indulge in sweet potatoes; boiled, baked, candied and in pie. As I got older, and started refusing to eat at Morrison's, the love was lost.

Recently, while perusing my Saveur Magazine, they had listed their top 150 Classic Recipe, and one of them was for sweet potato pie. Well, my interest was piqued and seeing as Thanksgiving was just around the corner, I decided to buck tradition and make sweet potato pie instead of the classic pumpkin.

I took their recipe and made a few minor changes. I baked my sweet potatoes instead of boiled, used brown sugar instead of white and of course used my crust recipe. Needless to say, this pie is a hit! With so much interest in this pie recipe, I am giving you my changed version. Give it a try and let me know what you think.

SWEET POTATO PIE

2C cooked sweet potato (mashed)
1C brown sugar
1/2C melted butter
2 eggs
1/2C evaporated milk
1tsp vanilla

Mix all the ingredients together and pour into an unbaked pie shell. Bake at 375 for 1 hour.

LAVALLEE CRUST

2C all purpose flour
1C lard
Salt
1/4C cold water

Cut the lard into the flour and salt and work with hands until it resembles pea sized pieces. Gradually add water and mix very gently until it forms a dough. Make sure never to over knead. Wrap in plastic wrap and chill for 1 hour. This makes 1 double crust.