Potatoes for National Hunger Awareness Day

The Ultimate Scalloped Potatoes

June 2, 2009

In a country as wealthy as Canada it is hard to imagine there are people who do not have enough to eat. But hunger is a serious issue in Canada and not just in third world countries. In fact, individuals and families in almost every community across Canada are living with hunger. In this challenging economic climate, more Canadian families are struggling to meet basic needs as the "working poor" and food bank demand is increasing.

DB Outrageous Brownies

Outrageous Brownies

As a member of the Barefoot Bloggers I sometimes make sacrifices like making these "outrageous" brownies in the line of duty. These brownies are not for the faint of heart or for the heart conscious either since they use over a pound of chocolate as well as a pound of butter and coffee. But they sure are good!!!! Eva of I’m Boring had chosen Outrageous Brownies for this months Barefoot Blogger challenge. The recipe can be found in The Barefoot Contessa Cookbook.

Updated Cobb Salad with a Twist

This familiar salad gets a fresh update with a tangy vinaigrette dressing, grilled chicken, fresh herbs and some Canadian cheese.

I used Allegretto which is a lamb’s milk cheese from the province of Quebec as a substitute for the more common bleu cheeses. Selected as Québec’s Best Sheep Milk Cheese in 2004, Allegretto is from the province’s northerly Abitibi region. The Nordic climate of this region with its warm days and cold nights frees more sugar into the feed, resulting in milk that is typical to the Abitibi region. From this milk, the Quebec cheese makers have created a firm-textured, tangy and slightly fruity, subtle tasting cheese that is becoming as familiar as the Quebec landscape. I am lucky enough to be able to procure this cheese at one of our local artisan shops. Allegretto is milder than many sheep milk cheeses, and broadly appealing. It can be used in sandwiches, salads and pasta dishes, or as one of several cheeses on a cheese board.

The combination of the allegretto in this version of Cobb salad was subtle with a particular flavour unique to Quebec cheeses. Of course if it is not available in your area use the more traditional bleu cheeses that are common for a Cobb salad. To learn more about Quebec cheeses visit this site.

**Cobb Salad with Fresh Herbs**

Vinaigrette:

3/4 cup plus 2 T. extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 cup sherry vinegar (I used Champagne vinegar because it is what I had available)
2 tsp lemon zest (1 large lemon)
1 tsp granulated sugar
1 tsp minced fresh garlic
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper

Salad:

2 T mayonnaise
1 tsp Dijon mustard
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
3 large boneless, skinless chicken breast halves (7 - 8 oz each)
2 heads Boston lettuce, trimmed and torn into bite-size pieces, washed and dried
1-1/2 cups lightly packed fresh parsley leaves
1/4 - 3/4 cup lightly packed mint leaves (depending on your preference)
3 large avocados
1-1/2 cups (1 lb) halved grape tomatoes
1 heaping cup (6 oz) crumbled Roquefort cheese (I used allegreto)
2/3 cups toasted pine nuts
12 slices bacon, cooked, and crumbled
1/2 cup chives, chopped

***********************
For Vinaigrette: Put all of the vinaigrette ingredients in a glass measuring cup or a jar with a tight- fitting lid and whisk or vigorously shake to combine. You can store the vinaigrette in the refrigerator for up to 5 days; let come to room temperature and shake or whisk before using.

Salad:

Heat a gas grill to medium high. In a mixing bowl, combine the mayonnaise, mustard, 1/2 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp pepper. Add the chicken and toss to coat. Grill until well marked and cooked through, 4 - 6 minutes per side for the breasts. Let cool and cut into small dice if preferred.

Combine the lettuce, parsley, and mint in a large bowl. Toss with just enough of the vinaigrette to coat lightly, 4 - 5 tablespoons. Season with a little salt and pepper and toss again. Divide among 6 large dinner plates, arranging the lettuce in a circle with a small hole in the center.

Peel, pit, and cut the avocados into medium dice and toss them in a medium bowl with 2 tablespoons of the vinaigrette. Combine with avocados, tomatoes, Roquefort (allegreto), pine nuts, and chicken in a mixing bowl. Season with a little salt ands pepper and toss with some of the vinaigrette. (you will have some dressing left over). Mound the mixture in the centre of a serving plate. Sprinkle with the bacon and chives. Serve.

Serves 6

Dinner & A Movie Goes to Greece with Halloumi

Halloumi

This months choice for Dinner and a Movie hosted by Susan of Sticky, Gooey, Creamy, Chewy and Marc of No Recipes is one of my all time favourite theatre productions... Shirley Valentine. Up until now I have never had the opportunity to watch the movie, but have always enjoyed the play in different cities and with different theatre companies. Shirley Valentine originated as a one-character play by Willy Russell. It is a monologue by a middle-aged, working class housewife from Liverpool, England which focuses on her life before and after a holiday to Greece that changed her life.

Moosewood Feta Garlic Salad Dressing

It seems to be a habit to wake up early on a Saturday morning and head to the local farmers market where Spring is around every corner with asparagus, fiddleheads, spring onions and mesclun. All of these found their way into my "environmentally safe" cloth bag... along with a dozen perogies:D Besides the local farmers and producers the market is a plethora of artisans and bakers. I have my eye on some bar stools make from local wine barrels, or the watercolour artist with scenes of the Okanagan. I can get a quick fix of hummus too from the Bean Boy, or local cheeses and grass fed beef.

Life at Quail's Hollow Really is the Life with Lemony Chicken

For those of you who frequent my blog you know that I try never to miss the Taste & Create event which gets bigger and bigger each and every month. The event is the brainchild of Nicole over at For the Love of Food . I love to visit her site for all the delicious recipes and tidbits of very helpful information. She even has an on-line store with wonderful kitchen gadgets and gourmet foods. Each and every month we are paired with another foodie and prepare a dish from their site for the event. I love this idea so I can showcase someone else's talents and have the pleasure of creating something delicious as well.

This month for T & C I was paired with Susan at Life at Quail's Hollow. Quail's Hollow sounds like somewhere I would just love to live. I do love condo living for the advantages I see there but I sometimes long for my gardens and a few goats on a few acres in the country, preferably in a country where it stays warm all year round:D

Susan says, "I will always be a Georgia girl. My grandmothers and mother taught me the "Life" and I am living it at Quail Hollow, my little taste of heaven. My "Life" is centered around gardening, cooking, and sharing Quail Hollow with family and friends." I am so happy that she has also decided to share the "Life" with all of us as well.

It was a very hard to choose only one dish from her site. Would I make Alessadras Meatballs from her cooking classes in Italy or Spring Panzanella, or, hows about Sopa de Lima with Farmer's Market Salsa Verde ?

I finally decided upon a chicken dish from Quail's Hollow which she served up with Lemon Braised Artichokes Over Pasta from Michael Chiarello.

For those of you who know me you will know that I was in heaven with this dish!!!! This recipe uses 3 of my favourite things...lemon, chicken and potatoes with a little rosemary thrown in for good measure. I am often asked how to keep fresh herbs...well fresh!!! This comes from Anthony Sedlak who will be my next installment in my Canadian Chef series. "When you get home with your beautiful, fresh and vibrant herbs... don’t wash them—the wetter they are, the quicker they’re going to turn to mush. Take a sheet (or two) of paper towel and wet it under room temperature water. Ring the heck out of it so that it's just barely damp (try not to rip it either). Lay it out and place your bouquet of herbs into the middle. Now, wrap the whole thing up like a big cigar.

Next, take a plastic bag and poke a couple of holes in it, then place your herb bundle right inside. Into the fridge it goes, and you’re good for at least a week."

Keep in mind that some herbs turn "to mush" quicker than others. For example, basil, dill and chives, are not going to be hanging about as long as heartier herbs like rosemary or thyme. I did have a ziplocked bag of fresh basil stay fresh for 2 weeks just sitting on the kitchen counter. I haven't has the same success since , so maybe it depends on exactly how fresh is fresh?

Now on to Susan's recipe...............

**Chicken with Roasted Lemon and Rosemary Sauce**

5 large lemons
Gray salt
6 boneless chicken breast halves, skin on
Freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 1/2 pounds small new potatoes, such as red bliss, halved
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon finely chopped fresh rosemary leaves
2 cups double-strength chicken stock, or 4 cups canned low-salt chicken broth boiled until reduced by half
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves
1 tablespoon unsalted butter, optional
Rosemary sprigs, for garnish

*********************
Preheat the broiler.

Cut a small slice off both ends of each lemon, and then cut in half crosswise. Arrange the lemons, flesh side up, in a flameproof nonreactive baking dish, and season with salt. Broil 6 inches or more from the heat until browned and soft, about 10 minutes. Cool slightly. Squeeze the lemon halves over a sieve suspended over a bowl. Push and stir the pulp through the sieve with a rubber spatula or wooden spoon to get as much juice out as possible. Discard the lemon peels.

Reduce oven temperature to 425 degrees F.

Season chicken with salt and pepper. Heat the olive oil in a large ovenproof skillet over medium-high heat until hot. Add the chicken, lower the heat to medium, and cook, turning once, until brown on both sides, about 5 minutes. Remove chicken to a plate or baking sheet.

Return the pan to medium-high heat, add the potatoes, season with salt and pepper, and cook, stirring and tossing, until brown all over, about 10 minutes. Drain off the excess oil. Arrange the chicken breasts on top of the potatoes and place in the oven until potatoes and chicken are cooked through, about 10 to 15 minutes. Remove the chicken to a platter and put the pan with the potatoes over medium-high heat. Toss well so the pan juices are absorbed into the potatoes. Scrape the potatoes out of the pan onto the platter around the chicken.

Return the pan to medium-high heat, add the garlic and rosemary, and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add 1 cup of chicken broth and reserved lemon juice. Stir and scrape up all the browned bits that cling to the bottom and sides of the pan, and then add the remaining 1 cup broth. Bring to a simmer stir in parsley and season to taste with salt and pepper. If the sauce tastes too lemony, stir in the optional butter. Pour the sauce over the chicken and potatoes and serve immediately, garnished with rosemary sprigs.

Strawberries and Cream Cheese Tart

Strawberries and Cream Cheese Tart

May 22 is the Blogiversary of I'll Eat You. This site, which is the creation of Lauren along with her husband Paul, is turning one!!! For her Blogiversary she has chosen to host a virtual Bake Sale. Let's share our favorite desserts and hopefully raise some money for charity along the way.

Lauren has chosen The World Food Program, which runs international anti-hunger campaigns as her charity of choice. There is still a day to submit your favourite bake sale item. You don't have to worry about the practicalities of transporting it and making the portions small because it is a virtual bake sale. Post about your recipe and this event on your blog. All of the monies raised will be collected by Firstgiving for her at this link. Next ask all of your readers (or family, friends, co-workers, dogwalker) to donate, and mention your blog or recipe. Vote by May 22!!!!

The Last Hurrah!!!!Classic macaroni and Cheese

Classic Macaroni and Cheese

Yesterday was a little cooler and so I felt I was in need of some serious comfort food. Who wouldn't be after fighting with the computer all morning as well burning CD's and downloading Office Suite 2007.

There is absolutely nothing that speaks volumes for comfort like macaroni and cheese in my books. This is one of the very few dishes my mom allowed me to cook as a child at her elbow so the mere mention brings back so many fond memories.

Eat Shrink & Be Merry with Dilly Whoppers and Potato Salad

If you have been following More Than Burnt Toast you will know I have started a weekly feature to highlight Canadian Chefs. Through your TV networks, or perhaps on other blogs, or even just right here on More Than Burnt Toast you may have heard of some of our Canadian chefs. For those of you who haven't, I hope you will find it interesting to see what our chefs are up to, a little about their history and how they came to love what they do. For the next few months I will be featuring one of our Canadian chefs each week. As the seventh installment in my Canadian Chef series I introduce you to:

Janet and Greta Podleski

The television series Eat, Shrink and be Merry comes to our airwaves courtesy of Janet and Greta Podleski, the wacky, pun-loving creators of the extremely successful recipe books Looneyspoons, Crazy Plates and Now Eat, Shrink and be Merry. In each episode of the television show Eat, Shrink and Be Merry, the sisters visit a chef famous for their classic dish and attempt to recreate a healthier version. The two sisters energy and friendliness come across to make this a popular television show with foodies.

Janet lives in Ottawa, Ontario and Greta in Waterloo. Janet is older, by 11 months, and the nutritionist of the two. Greta is the cook. Theoretically they are not in the category of Canadian chefs but they are certainly in the category of Canadian success stories!!

A decade ago Janet and Greta Podleski gave up their successful "day jobs" and dreamed up a project based on a line of healthy and hilarious cookbooks. According to their web site, "Greta, having just moved into her sister's basement, had been treating Janet to a daily dose of her culinary skills, spoiling her sis with hearty suppers that were gobbled right up. And to Janet's surprise, the meals, which were anything but rabbit food, were not only filling and delicious, but also healthy, nutritious and capable of shrinking the waistline. These recipes, thought Janet, needed to be shared with hungry mouths beyond just their own."

Looneyspoons: Low-Fat Food Made Fun, the pair's first cookbook, was not easy to convince publishers of it's marketabilty. After 14-months of cooking, researching and writing the cookbook was rejected time and time again and their manuscript returned.

"It was kind of like the Kevin Costner Field of Dreams movie when he hears that voice, 'If you build it, they will come,'" says Greta. "We just knew we had to keep going no matter what obstacles we faced."

The sisters teamed up with David Chilton to form their own publishing company and get Looneyspoons on the shelves. The rest, which includes selling roughly 850,000 copies of the book to date in Canada, as well as the publication of Crazy Plates: Low-Fat Food So Good, You'll Swear It's Bad For You! and the newer Eat, Shrink & Be Merry, is healthy-eating history.

In 2002, Janet studied at the Canadian School of Natural Nutrition to become a registered nutritionist, and with her brain bursting with all the latest on nutrition, came to realize a lot had changed since Looneyspoons was first introduced to the public. A focus on low-fat had since been replaced with an awareness of good and bad fats and carbs, and such areas as weight loss, metabolism, cholesterol and heart disease had experienced drastic advancements.

Shocklate Cheesecake with Brownie Crust, Smackaroni and Cheese, and The Better Butter Chicken and many, many more .....

To highlight their recipes I chose their version of a salmon burger. We chose to serve it naked and "bun-less but it would be equally delicious served in the bun with the homemade, light tartar sauce. On the site I also found a recipe for a potato salad that suited our needs yesterday as well. They added bacon and made this into a hot potato salad, which I am sure is delicious. L'il Burnt Toast and I opted to add fresh garden peas at the end of the steaming cycle of the potatoes, omit the bacon and add finely diced red onion in the end with the carrots to serve a room temperature potato salad rather than a warm one. Both versions are exceptional.

It is so much fun to cook with L'il Burnt Toast and we needed to keep our menu light considering what we had for dessert....but that is another post for another day!!!

**Dilly Whoppers**

1-1/2 lbs (680 g) boneless, skinless salmon fillet, cut into chunks
1 cup fresh whole wheat bread crumbs (see tip below)
1/2 cup crumbled light feta cheese (2 oz)
1/4 cup finely minced shallots or red onions
1 T honey mustard
1 T freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 egg
1 T minced fresh dill
1 tsp grated lemon zest
1/4 tsp each salt and freshly ground black pepper

Place salmon chunks in a food processor. Pulse on and off until salmon is chopped into very small pieces. (If you don’t have a food processor, use a very sharp knife and mince the salmon by hand.) Transfer salmon to a large bowl. Add remaining ingredients. Mix well using your hands.

Form mixture into 6 patties, about 3/4 inch thick. Place patties on a large plate, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for 1 hour. (Chilling will help the patties hold their shape while cooking.)

Spray a large, non-stick skillet with cooking spray and heat over medium-high heat. Add patties and cook for about 4 minutes per side, until salmon is cooked through. Be careful not to overcook the patties, and be gentle when flipping them so they don’t fall apart. If you don’t have a high-quality (unscratched!) non-stick pan, you might want to cook the patties in a tablespoon or two of olive oil.

If desired, serve patties on small, whole wheat hamburger buns with sliced tomatoes, lettuce, and honey mustard, or top them with a spoon of low-fat tartar sauce (see recipe below) and serve with a salad.

Makes 6 servings

Note: Fresh bread crumbs are simple to make. Just break up a slice of bread (preferably whole wheat) into several smaller pieces and place in a food processor or mini chopper. Pulse on and off a few times to create fluffy soft crumbs. An average slice of bread will make about 1/2 cup fresh bread crumbs. Dry, store-bought bread crumbs are more compact (and drier, of course!), so if a recipe calls for fresh crumbs and you’d rather use dry, cut the amount in half.

To make low-fat tartar sauce for this and other yummy fish dishes, mix together 1/2 cup low-fat mayonnaise, 1 T minced fresh dill, 1 T sweet pickle relish, and 2 tsp each prepared horseradish and freshly squeezed lemon juice. Refrigerate until ready to use.

**The Greater Tater Salad**

3 lbs (1.36 kg) mini thin-skinned white potatoes
4 slices reduced-salt bacon, chopped small (omit if you like)
1 cup diced yellow onions
1 tsp minced garlic
2/3 cup finely diced carrots
2/3 cup finely diced celery

Dressing

1/2 cup chicken broth
3 tbsp grainy Dijon mustard
2 tbsp white balsamic vinegar
1 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 tbsp granulated sugar
1 tbsp olive oil
1/2 tsp celery seed
1/2 tsp salt

Add last:
1 tbsp minced fresh dill (or parsley)
2 green onions, finely chopped (with white parts)
Freshly ground black pepper to taste

Wash potatoes (don’t peel) and slice into 1/4-inch-thick slices. Arrange in steamer basket and steam for about 15 minutes or until tender. Let cool to room temperature.

While potatoes are steaming, whisk together dressing ingredients and set aside until ready to use.

Cook chopped bacon slowly in a non-stick skillet over medium-high heat until it just begins to crisp. Add onions and garlic and cook until onions are tender. Add carrots and celery. Cook until vegetables are tender, about 3 more minutes. Pour warm bacon and vegetables over potatoes in a large bowl. Pour dressing over potatoes and toss gently to coat. Add dill, green onions and black pepper and mix again.

May be served immediately but tastes best when left to stand for an hour or two for potatoes to absorb dressing.

Makes about 10 cups salad.

You are reading this post on More Than Burnt Toast at http://morethanburnttoast.blogspot.com. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to the author/owner of More Than Burnt Toast. All rights reserved by Valerie Harrison.

Spaghetti with Garlic and Spinach

Ruth over at Once Upon a Feast has been faithfully spearheading Presto Pasta Nights for a few years now. This week PPN is being hosted by Kitchenetta of Got No Milk . I have been eating pasta a little more often lately so have taken a keen interest in what is submitted by all of you talented bloggers. This week I opted for something simple, quick and tasty. Naturally I had to take a walk down memory lane with Ruth and check out the years of history over at Presto Pasta Nights.

This dish was simple to prepare. I just added some fresh ricotta to the final product for that extra creaminess I love without using cream or butter sauces. Cooking the garlic over low heat draws out some of its pungency, leaving behind lots of garlicky taste without the bite.


**Spaghetti with Garlic and Spinach**
based on a recipe from Fine Cooking Magazine

Kosher salt
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
6 - 8 ( I used only 4)large cloves garlic, halved lengthwise and thinly sliced
10 oz baby spinach (10 loosely packed cups)
Freshly ground black pepper
1 lb dried spaghetti
1 cup (about 2 oz) freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
1/2 cup fresh mozzarella cheese

*******************
Bring a large pot of well-salted water to boil.

Combine the oil and garlic in a 12-inch skillet over medium-low heat. Cook, stirring often, until the garlic becomes fragrant and is just beginning to turn golden, 4 - 6 minutes. Add the spinach, 1/2 tsp salt, and 1/4 tsp pepper and cook, tossing gently with tongs, until the spinach begins to wilt, 2 - 3 minutes more. Remove from the heat.

Meanwhile, cook the spaghetti according to package directions until al dente. Reserve 1 cup of the cooking water and drain the pasta.

Return the skillet to medium heat. Add the drained pasta and 1/2 cup of the reserved cooking water. Cook for 1 - 2 minutes, tossing and stirring to combine and blend the flavours. If the pasta isn't tender or seems dry, add the remainder of the cooking water and continue to cook and stir until done. Toss with the ricotta and Parmigiano-Reggiano cheeses. Season to taste with salt and pepper and serve immediately.


Serves 4

Seattle Bites Again

As you know from my previous posts here I was lucky enough to join Jan Marie Johnson on her Seattle Bites Food Tours of Pike Place Market. Like myself when travelling Jan wants the opportunity to meet locals and experience the culture and food sensations of a country first hand. Jan Marie took us on a 3 hour tour of "discovery" of the market that gives out-of-towners as well as locals a taste of market cuisine and a glimpse into Seattle’s storied past. With customary pluck, the founders of Pike Market try to stay true to it's agricultural roots and maintain its integrity. The result is a jubilant, open-air celebration of fresh regional fruits and vegetables, seasonal flowers, herbs, seafood, spices, cheeses, hand-crafted work by artisans, eclectic shops, and fine restaurants and eateries (many with views of ferry and freighter traffic on Elliott Bay). Here in this revered nine-acre community with its cracked walkways and uneven but original cobblestone streets, the scent of tulips mingle with Dungeness crabs and spicy teas and the street musicians or "buskers" compete with "the vendors. The Market is a nine-acre National Historic District, and home to more than 100 farmers, 200 artists and craftspeople, 600 small businesses, 500 residents and 306 street performers (who may perform anywhere there is a musical note painted on the sidewalk). From Jan Marie we learned the history of the market and walked away with not only enhanced knowledge, but also full tummies. The tour makes about about 10 tasting stops, where merchants share their own stories, as well as generous samples of their menus.

In my last post I took you to Taste at the Seattle Museum, Crepes de France, and one of the many produce stands. Let's continue on our journey........

Next Jan Marie directed us to Pike Place Chowder which is the home of Americas Best Chowder. They were eventually banned from competition and put in the Chowder Hall of Fame being unbeatable. Their clam chowder has won first-place awards everywhere in the country and may be the only chowder to have accomplished this fete on both coasts. This place does chowder, pure and simple. And while their great New England-style clam chowder has national awards, they also do Manhattan clam chowder, smoked salmon chowder, mixed seafood chowder, and even a Southwestern-style chowder with chicken and corn. We were lucky to sample 3 of their chowders including a Charred Scallop which was my personal favourite woth a "nutty" flavour. This tiny place is tucked away in Pike Place Market's Post Alley.

Next on the stop was Roses Chocolate Treasures. At Roses chocolate is a passion where they believe chocolate nourishes the body as well as the soul. The shelves are stocked with lots of chocolaty treats, including containers of cocoa and chocolate tea (who knew there was such a thing...right up there with chocolate beer for me). Rose's is great for something different. I was able to try the sea salt chocolate (which was to die for!!) but how's about rose, earl grey, nori, wasabi or cardamon truffles? Everyone really enjoyed trying such different flavor combinations and they really opened our eyes to what chocolate can be.

One of the interesting attractions we saw at Pike Market is the gum wall at the Market Theater in Post Alley. This Gum Wall, also known as the Wall of Gum, is one of the least known (attractions of the historic Pike Place Market which is usually known internationally for its fish throwers and as the location of the original Starbucks logo. This gum wall began with theater patrons waiting outside, placing a blob of chewing gum on the wall and sticking a penny or other coin in it. The coins would be picked off by other people, and the wall was cleaned of gum two or three times before the powers that be gave up and the wall became an interactive work of art. Now people chew wads of gum and shape letters and figures from it, as well as adding the conventional blobs. Yes that is gum all over the wall below. You can see other photos here and here....

Jon Jacobs, owner of I Love New York Deli, passed around sandwiches and Jan Marie described what makes his pastrami so moist. The sandwiches are the "real deal" with corned beef or pastrami sliced to order and piled high on homemade rye or wheat bread. I am told that native New Yorkers get choked up at the sight of the classic sandwiches turned out here. Must be because this deli is "richtiker chaifetz", which, according to the menu, is Yiddish for "the real McCoy." Much on this meaty menu is sourced from purveyors in Jon's old New York neighborhood, from the brisket and pastrami to the kosher salami and corned beef. He also has stocked his teeny space with Wise chips and Drake's cakes along with a selection of homemade knishes for some hand-held comfort food. This is a New Yorker's dream!!!

Of course it isn't a trip to Pike Market without some fish slinging at "World Famous" Pure Food Fish Market. There is a lot of hype about the fish market. In fact there are only 3 fish shops here which are like the varsity of the Market. These loud and proud varsity boys are always surrounded by tourists waiting to click on their camera. Wew didn't see a fish toss only because we didn't purchase. I would have loved to take home one of the beautiful salmon or some of those humungous scallops or crab legs. They toss the fish because the shops displays their best seafood at the store front for customers to choose. Once you make your pick, they toss it back to the store for cleaning, packing, and shipping if required.

We also stopped and tried some authentic gourmet sausages and beer from a German sausage master and I bought some Greek yogurt from another stand which is just not available here at home.

Lastly we stopped at La Buona Tavola or the Truffle Cafe. According to their website La Buona Tavola is a phrase used to pay tribute to hosts who joyfully serve their guests the absolute best they have to offer. Whether it’s simple fare prepared with gusto, or more intricately composed menus featuring regional delicacies, when you have a Buona Tavola, your guests will sense that you cherish THEIR enjoyment—and that you haven’t forgotten to join in the pleasure, as well. Their shop carries Truffle products, aged Balsamicos, and carefully selected Italian Wines made from hand-picked grapes by Italian artisan wineries. They will hook you up with one of the small Italian wineries and agritourism venues in Italy to enjoy a one on one unique vacation. Another option is to join one of their groups at Borgo La Torre Agriturism which is a beautifully-restored 14th Century country Inn nestled into the Umbrian hills, overlooking the scenic valley to go truffle hunting.

We tasted several wines and paired them with chocolate, truffle butter adorned popcorn. A perfect ending to our tour.

I hope you have enjoyed taking this series of posts journalling my visit with Jan Marie Johnson on her Seattle Bites Food Tours of Pike Place Market. We all enjoyed a unique perspective of the market!! I hope you did too!!!

Canadian Chef Rob Rainford Serves up Grilled Pesto Peppers & Grilled Stuffed Chicken Breasts

If you have been following More Than Burnt Toast you will know I have started a weekly feature to highlight Canadian Chefs. Through your TV networks, or perhaps on other blogs, or even just right here on More Than Burnt Toast you may have heard of some of our Canadian chefs. For those of you who haven't, I hope you will find it interesting to see what our chefs are up to, a little about their history and how they came to love what they do. For the next few months I will be featuring one of our Canadian chefs each week. As the sixth installment in my Canadian Chef series I introduce you to:

Rob Rainford

Robert Rainford is a Canadian chef and host of Licence to Grill on Food Network Canada, Discovery Home in the U.S. and Asian Food Channel across Asia. The format of the show involves Rainford hosting a get-together at his home for one reason or another, and preparing meals on his grills for the occasion. The different "occasions" provide the impetus for the food choices, and allow Rainford the opportunity to demonstrate different grilling techniques.

He was born in Jamaica and came to Canada at the tender of age of 3, the youngest of 5 children with a twin brother who is a few minutes older. He says, "His interest in food began with my mother and grandmother. They were both amazing cooks. My mom had 5 children and loved to cook. She taught me no only the importance of good food, but also that the kitchen was the heart of the home. Dinner time was family time." and there's a whole amazing barbecue tradition there. As for Canada, I guess after being buried under snow for six months we all just want to get outdoors and party."

According to his website throughout high school, Robert concentrated on playing basketball with dreams of becoming a pro player. In 1994 Robert enrolled in culinary school at George Brown College and after completing his formal training, began his professional career at the Kensington Kitchen, then onto Accolade/Crown Plaza. In 1999 he left Accolade and went to Senses to work with Chef Ned Bell. Together they made magic and Robert honed his talent at turning fresh seasonal ingredients into mouthwatering dishes. Today Robert is a teacher and chef instructor at the renowned George Brown College Continuing Education Program and continues to entertain his frequent guest with delicious and creative barbecued meals.

He has combined his love for food and talent as a chef with the casual nature of cooking at home for three children. Grilling has become his favourite way to prepare quick, flavourful, healthy meals. Rob has a philosophy when it comes to the barbecue: "It’s pretty simple. Just start with the freshest ingredients you can find and then you’ve got two choices: long slow cooking over low indirect heat or red hot and smokin’ for fast grilling. If you cook low and slow then you can use all sorts of rubs and smoking agents to infuse the food with a depth of flavour you just can't get out of an oven. As for high heat grilling, your barbecue puts out way more heat than your stove top so you can get that wonderful charring and searing, just like in a restaurant."

Check out his new web site the Rainford Method here to learn how to make "those beautiful char marks". Even though he’s seen on television around the world on “Licence To Grill” and has cooked in some of the finest establishments, he feels that as a chef he’s “always on a perpetual learning curve”, and is humbled by the talent around him. An instructor at George Brown College, a motivational speaker and a world class Chef, Chef Robert L Rainford is beginning to hit his stride and is very thankful for the opportunity to continually uncover the mystery that is food.

He takes the barbecue to new levels with recipes on his show such as Rotisserie Prime Rib with Roast Mashed Sweet Potatoes, Grilled Brie with Port Soaked Cranberries, Caribbean Style Chicken with Peanut Brown Sugar Spice Rub or Chicago Pizza Burgers.

This time around I tried these recipes below starting with a delicious grilled pepper with pesto and boccocini and a stuffed grilled chicken breast. These were the perfect way to end Mother's Day. L'il Burnt Toast invited me for a breakfast of homemade waffles, then we were invited for a personal tour of a local winery, then back to my place for a barbecue. All in all it was a perfect day:D

**Grilled Stuffed Chicken Breasts**

4 large, whole, boneless, skin on chicken breasts (each 10oz) (each 280g)
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil (60ml)
1/4 cup chopped fresh oregano (60ml)
1 cup goat cheese crumbled (250ml)
1 tsp chopped lemon zest (5ml)
1 T pure maple syrup (15ml)
2 T toasted pine nuts (30ml)
1 whole head roasted garlic (see note*)
Coarse salt and pepper to taste

Roasted Garlic

1 head of garlic
1 sprig of fresh thyme
1/2 tsp cracked black pepper (2.5ml)
1 teaspoon olive oil (5ml)

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In a bowl add crumbled goat cheese, basil, smashed roasted garlic, oregano, zest, syrup, pine nuts and pepper. Mix together until evenly combined.

Wash and pat the chicken breasts dry and then cut a pocket lengthwise in each. Stuff the mixture into the pocket. Not too much. Secure the opening with toothpicks. Coat the chicken with oil.

Oil the grill well. Place chicken skin side down and allow to cook for approximately 7 minutes or until the skin is golden brown and crispy. Flip chicken and continue to cook the other side for 7 minutes. Remove from grill. Cover with foil and allow to rest for 5 minutes.

Serve with onion marmalade

Roasted Garlic

Preheat barbecue for 300ºF/150ºC keeping one side off to prepare for indirect cooking.
Cut the top of a head of garlic. Poke holes on the exposed flesh of the garlic using the tines of a fork. Place the garlic onto a sheet of foil, drizzle with oil and cracked pepper and top with a sprig of thyme. Fold in sides of the foil and make a package ready for the grill.

Place the garlic on the side of the grill with no heat under it. Close lid and allow to cook for 30 minutes or until soft. Remove from grill allow to cool.

**Grilled Pesto Peppers**

4 red peppers
2 large garlic cloves cut into thin slivers
4 T olive oil (60ml)
3 T pesto (45ml)
Salt and freshly ground pepper
8 balls of Boccocini cheese, sliced
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Cut peppers in half lengthways. Scrape out and discard the cores and seeds. Drizzle olive oil, season with salt and pepper and add a few slivers of garlic into the cavity of each pepper.

Preheat the grill to 375°F/200°C or medium high heat.

Place the peppers on the grill, cavity side up, until charred (approximately 3 minutes). Add a spoonful of pesto into each of the peppers and slices of Boccocini cheese. Continue to cook peppers until cheese is melted (approximately 3 minutes).

Seattle Bites Food Tours

Pike Place Market is a public market overlooking the Elliott Bay waterfront in Seattle, Washington. It is just a hop skip and a jump from the border to this amazing experience from my home town. The Market opened 101 years ago in August 17, 1907, and is one of the oldest continually operated public farmers' markets in the United States. In 2007 the market celebrated it's 100 year anniversary and is intenationally recognized as America's best farmers' market and the epicenter of Seattle's lively food culture. It is a place of business for many small farmers, artisans, antique dealers, theatres, small family-owned restaurants, fish mongers, fresh produce stands and merchants and remains one of Seattle's most popular tourist destinations.

The Market is built on the edge of a steep hill where they have made good use of every inch of space. Local farmers and craftspeople sell year-round in the arcades from tables they rent from the Market on a daily basis.

Pike Place Market is also home to nearly 500 low income residents who live in 8 different buildings throughout the Market. The Market sees 10 million visitors annually along with these local residents.

As you know from my previous post I was lucky enough to join Jan Marie Johnson on her Seattle Bites Food Tours food tours of Pike Place Market. Like myself when travelling Jan wants the opportunity to meet locals and experience the culture and food sensations of a country first hand. While on vacation in Italy she searched for fellow foodies to give her tours of the bustling markets of Venice, Florence and Rome but cookng schools were more the norm. Once she arrived back home, she thought about Seattle’s Pike Place Market, where she had often shopped while attending culinary school at South Seattle Community College, and realized there could be a niche for food-oriented tours of the iconic nine-acre marketplace. She did some research, and was moved by Pike Place’s rich and colorful 101-year history. Jan says, “There’s more to the market than just food, fish and flowers,” she said. “It’s not only the culinary heartbeat, but it’s really the soul of what makes Seattle a great city.”

Combining her experience in sales and marketing for the Disney Company and directing special events for Universal Studios Hollywood with her culinary background, Johnson decided to venture into personal group tours and created Seattle Bites Food Tours.” Jan Marie took us on a 3 hour tour of "discovery" of the market that gives out-of-towners and as well as locals a taste of market cuisine and a glimpse into Seattle’s storied past. It is interesting to hear snippets of history about the market and the buildings you are surrounded by as well as about the vendors and mom-and-pop operations contained within this diverse area. We learned the history of the market, including its populist founding, the internment of Japanese vendors following Pearl Harbor, and its hard-won achievement as a historical landmark in the 1970s after some city officials proposed its demolition. We walked away with not only enhanced knowledge, but also full tummies. The tour makes about about 10 tasting stops, where merchants share their own stories, as well as generous samples of their menus.

We started our tour at the Seattle Art Museum where we were given a tour of TASTE which features simple yet upscale, reasonably priced foods created with “fresh from the market” ingredients. We sampled "Artworthy" Smoked Salmon Flatbread with Creme Fraiche. The salmon was even caught by one of the chefs for a true taste experience. The artwork above in the foyer of the museum is Inopportune: Stage One by Cai Guo-Qiangfrom which is a large-scale installation work consisting of a meticulous arrangement of life-size cars and multichannel tubes that seem to blow up in sequence, symbolizing a series of car explosions.

Before the creation of the Pike Place Market in 1907, local Seattle area farmers sold their goods to the public in a three-square block area area called The Lots. Most farmers, due to the amount of time required to work their farms, were forced to sell their produce on consignment through the wholesalers . The farmers typically received a percentage of the final sale price for their goods. They would sell to the middleman on commission, as most farmers would often have no time to sell directly to the public, and their earnings would be on marked up prices and expected sales. We were able to sample produce from one of the local vendors Corner Produce. This is Adam and Jan Marie. It is early May so most of the produce is not local this time of year, but we were able to sample Grapples which are a Washington State apple with the sweet distinctive flavor of Concord grapes combined with the crispness of a fresh, juicy Washington Gala apple, Taylor Gold Pears, ripe juicy strawberries and grapes.

We sampled Paris inspired crepes from a small mom-and pop restaurant Crepes de France. In 1991, Nany Price knew the Pike Place Market would be the perfect place to open a specialty shop that would reflect her passion for cooking. It started as a small stall with four stools and a stand-up counter. Today, Crêpe de France is enjoying a much larger space in the south end of the Market. Originally from Indonesia, Nany's love of travel has taken her to many places. It was in Paris that she learned to make crêpes. The café features 15 different types of crêpes that are filled with only the freshest Market ingredients such as mozzarella or ricotta cheese, ham, egg, and fresh fruits and vegetables. The most popular crêpe on the menu is filled with salmon, cream cheese, onion and dill with Bechamel sauce. Nany's sone Rony served us her personal favorite which is a sweet crêpe filled with fresh strawberries (in season), Nutella and whipped cream. Operating the café is a family affair, and the new location is a labor of love for the entire family.

Throughout the tour we tried sodas from the Dry Soda Co. such as lemongrass, rhubarb, juniper berry, and vanilla to name a few. The lavender with its floral tones paired nicely with the chocolate of the crepes. The Seattle-based DRY Soda Co. offers today’s consumer a modern alternative in refreshment... a line of all-natural, lightly sweet sodas, flavored with fruit, flower or herb extracts, and sweetened with a small amount of pure cane sugar.

Stay tuned for more on Pike Market in the next post.

Highly Recommended............Seattle Bites

It has certainly been an enjoyable long weekend. I was lucky enough to be included as an organizer on a shopping trip with 31 women over the weekend to Seattle. The ladies "shopped till they dropped", but being the foodie that I am I just had to sneak in a trip to Pike's Market.

I was excited to join Jan Marie Johnson and her Seattle Bites tours of the market. With the help of Jan Marie we were able to meet the unique and charming merchants that give the market it's personality from the mom and pop eateries, to the one of a kind food shops. Seattle Bites pairs memorable stories of the history of the market and it's merchants with delicious gourmet and unique food and beverage tastings. We had the good fortune of trying "America's Best Chowder" which has been put in the hall of fame in the competition because it was unbeatable, to authentic pastrami flown in from New York, to sea salt or wasabi chocolates from an experienced chocolatiere, to artisanal family owned Italian wines.

Over the next few weeks I will be sharing my experiences with you about the history of the market as well as the tour with Jan Marie. In the meantime please enjoy a few snapshots of this memorable experience.