Travel to Argentina with FOODalogue and Celebrate Gnocchi Day

Joan of FOODalogue has started the year off with another armchair travel adventure with her Culinary Tour 2010 - South of the Border . I hope you have been travelling with us since Joan is an excellent travel companion. If you haven't heard of this very popular event check out her site for all the round-ups of delicious recipes and stories by all the participants. This year she has featured the cuisine of 10 of our south-of-the-border neighbours. So far we have travelled to Mexico where we sipped on tequila and margaritas and enjoyed each others company virtually. Then we travelled to El Salvador and the "Ruta de las Flores" (Route of Flowers) where we enjoyed the fiesta atmosphere at the feria gastronómica (food festival) in a small mountain village. We just left Nicaragua where we volunteered on local projects, brushed up on our Spanish and stayed with the locals.  Each one of these destinations in her culinary tour so far has challenged us to create a dish outside of our comfort zone and experience new taste and food sensations. We have also been able to do a little armchair travelling and daydreaming. Our next stop in our armchair travel is:

Argentina

Argentinian cuisine is hearty fare, the roots of which can be traced to Spain, Italy, France and Germany, as well as the original inhabitants. Argentinians are famous for their meat consumption, especially beef grilled or roasted and served with piquant chimichurri sauce. Milanesas (veal cutlets), empanadas and pasta show European influence, while potatoes, corn, pumpkin and locro soup are popular traditional foods. Alfajores, cookies filled with dulce de leche, are favorites, as is a bracing cup of hot yerba maté .

At the start of the 20th century, Argentina, like the States and Canada, was experiencing an industrial boom, bringing waves of European immigrants to its shores. In Argentina, over 50% of those immigrants came from Italy, and they brought their traditions and cuisine along with them. Since we will be travelling extensively in Argentina with Joans' virtual  tour I wanted to experience authentic Argentinean foods.

I happened to arrive a few days early on January 29th when the restaurants were overflowing . One of the traditions I love in this beautiful country is that the 29th of every month is Gnocchi Day, (or as the Argentineans call it “ñoquis del 29″), and the restaurants prepare for the crowds that spill through the doors. Any country that would have a holiday that centers around food is all right in my books!!!!!!And they celebrate ñoquis 12 days of the year!!!!!

On the 29th day of each and every month it is a tradition in Argentina to get together and eat gnocchi or ñoquis. Some say the tradition is in honour of Saint Pantaleon, the patron saint of Venice, whose feast day is on the 29th. Pantaleon was a doctor in the 8th century who, upon converting to Christianity, made a pilgrimage across Northern Italy.  The saint is said to have eaten a simple meal with farmers on one of his pilgrimages. The farmers had a record crop the next year and the miracle was credited to the saint. Each month, all of Argentina honours those with humble beginnings. The 29th was selected because it was typically the day when people were the poorest, the day before payday. I think I can relate to that!!! Gnocchi was an inexpensive, yet filling meal that they enjoyed with hopes of attracting prosperity. To do so they placed a  peso coin under their plates while eating. The money is kept by the diner as a good luck charm, is left for the hostess to pay for the gnocchi for the following month, or can be given to a member of the party who is in need.

The small doughy balls are typically made of potato but at this restaurant they were also offered in spinach, sweet potato, and pumpkin flavours. The name gnocchi translates literally to "a stupid person" but the reason for the reference is unclear. Gnocchi, an Italian specialty, is served with a variety of sauces including a simple butter and parmesan, pesto, gorgonzola cream or a light marinara. Gnocchi is frequently served as a side dish to meats or poultry but may also serve as an appetizer or main course as well. Sauces of all types were available at the restaurant as well as some of the specialties of El Boliche and there were even stuffed gnocchi to add a little spin on the traditional dish. There was no better way to celebrate my first Gnocchi Day than with a little bit of everything, so, between my new found friends and I we filled our table with different varieties of both the pasta and the sauces. Superstitious or not it was worth a try for the fun and tradition so we each dug into our pockets to find a peso and stuck it under our dishes as well. Whether it’s divine intervention from San Pantaleon you desire, or as a talisman of good luck the intention is the same....prosperity and abundance in the month to come.

Spending time with new found friends and sharing dishes was an excellent initiation into the culture. Now I am off to meet Joan and the rest of the crew at Estancia Ranquilo. It is a remote family-owned 100,000 acre horse and cattle ranch nestled in the foothills of the Andes Mountains. It is a vast expanse of land in Patagonia, stretching across leagues of high steppes, river valleys, grazing meadows, and jagged cliffs, into the very heart of the Argentine cordillera. Ranquilco’s western boundary is the border with Chile... the high country...graced with lakes, waterfalls, condors, hot springs and weeks of wandering. Of course being the foodie that I am  we had to join Cooking in Patagonia which is a 10 day course in Argentine cooking, focusing on traditional Patagonian foods offered by the ranch. This is not just any culinary vacation, it is a journey into the world’s last frontier, Patagonia, the land of the gauchos which began in Buenos Aires and ended in the Andean cordillera (mountains). Our food tour included cultural excursions, cooking demonstrations, tastings, fly fishing, hands on instruction, and best of all, great food and fine wine.

We arrived in Buenos Aires and spent the day touring the city and met up with Georgie and the other course participants at a restaurant for a traditional parillada mixta, or mixed grill with wine from the Mendoza province. The Argentine parilla typically includes steak, beef ribs, chorizo (pork sausage), morcilla (blood sausage), chinchulines (chitterlings), and mollejas (sweetbreads). We also walked through the colorful outdoor food market where locals gather to talk and buy what local farmers bring fresh that morning.

From there we travelled by truck to Buta Mallin a large grazing meadow and gaucho camp on Estancia Ranquilco. We had a lunch of asado with one of their gauchos and then had our first matè session. The infusion called maté is prepared by steeping dry leaves and twigs of the yerba plant in hot water. Drinking maté with friends from a shared hollow gourd with a metal straw (a bombilla) is a common social practice in Argentina and one which we enjoyed throughout our trip.

Our luggage was loaded onto sturdy pack mules and we were introduced to our horse for the 3 hour ride to the lodge at Ranquilco. Over a period of days we had several cooking lessons with Georgie from empanadas with a variety of fillings, traditional bread making (pan casero), cheesemaking, scrumptious alfajores (two butter cookies with rich dulce de leche from the milk of their own cows sandwiched in between),  homemade pasta ravioli with a cream and butter sauce with pine mushrooms from the area (hongos de pino) and many other regional dishes. We enjoyed ranch life with some dancing, fine wines, delicious foods and a little fly fishing thrown in. My virtual experience here was one I would love to repeat in "real time".

When I was in San Francisco for BlogHer Food in October I was lucky enough to meet up with Rebecca T. Caro who has traveled to Argentina numerous times with her husband, who is from Mendoza. She hosts a blog dedicated to the cuisine and culture of Argentina, From Argentina With Love and can be contacted there. Her blog is a gastronomic delight of authentic and delicious foods. Her photos alone will have you wanting more. Rebecca's blog is filled with so many delicious choices, but, ever since I learned we were travelling to Argentina virtually I was enamoured by Gnocchi Day. This made it an easy decision for me on what to prepare. According to Rebecca Argentinos are fond of the expression "a full belly, a happy heart," and on the 29th of each month they prepare Ñoquis (as they spell it) at home and invite friends over to share the meal. It's also quite common to find ñoquis on the menu in restaurants on this day. Either way, diners end up both full and happy.

The goal, and the challenge, of good gnocchi is that it should be light and fluffy while also dense enough to have flavour, but not so dense that they are chewy or gummy. It takes a little practice and I had never made gnocchi previously. I commandeered my good friend Emelia here at home (since we are only travelling to Argentina virtually and I have to get back to reality) who kindly walked me through all the steps of gnocchi making. By the end of the morning I was rolling gnocchi like an Italian or Argentinian grandmother!!!! This recipe comes from Rebecca's site and makes a tender gnocchi with that perfect mouth feel. For the sauce use your own delicious tomato sauce and add a few tablespoons of pesto.

**Receta de Ñoquis del 29 (Recipe for 29th-of-the-month Gnocchi)**
Print Me.....

2 lbs. baking potatoes (about 6)
Coarse salt
2 eggs
1 cup fresh, good quality ricotta cheese
½ cup grated Parmesan cheese (plus more for topping)
2-3 cups flour, plus more for dusting

**************
Peel and quarter the potatoes, putting them in a medium stock pot with enough water to cover the potatoes with one inch of water. Add a handful of coarse salt. Put the potatoes to boil until they are tender when pierced with a fork, but not mushy. Drain the potatoes.
Put the potatoes through a food mill or potato ricer. (Or mash very finely with a fork.) In a large bowl, combine the potatoes, eggs, parmesan and ricotta, and mix well using your hands or a fork until consistent dough is formed. Be careful not to over mix.

Add the flour a half cup at a time, mixing each time by hand until there is a soft, pliable dough. The dough should not be sticky, and it should not be hard. If it’s too sticky or soft, the gnocchi will be mushy, but if there’s too much flour, the gnocchi will be chewy and tough. (This is the only challenging part!)

Knead the dough a few times until uniform, adding some more flour if needed, and divide the dough in half.

Flour a work area, and roll the dough out into a long thin roll about 3/4 inch thick. Cut these tubes of dough into sections about 1 inch long. Meanwhile, bring a stock pot of water to a boil.

There are a variety of ways to ‘mark’ the gnocchi-all just a style choice, since at this point, they are more or less done. Here are some suggestions: Mark an indentation in the center of each gnocchi with your index finger; or roll over the side of a cheese grater to make patterned indentations; or roll over the backside of a fork, or roll over the center of a wooden gnocchi tool.

Note: for more dense gnocchi, roll lightly, just enough to mark the dough. For light fluffy gnocchi, roll on a gnocchi tool (available in any Argentinean grocery) and press firmly so that the gnocchi rolls around the tip of your thumb and resembles a little ear. Tip: If using the gnocchi tool, flour the ridges periodically so that the dough doesn’t stick as it’s being pushed into the grooves.

At this point, the gnocchi can be frozen laid out on a baking sheet lined with wax paper. After they are frozen, they can be stored in a freezer bag. Frozen gnocchi are just put into the boiling water like the unfrozen ones.

To make the gnocchi, either fresh or frozen, throw the gnocchi one at a time into the boiling water. (If you throw them in by the handful, you will get one big glob of gnocchi.)They are cooked when they rise to the top. (Less than 5 minutes) Collect with a slotted spoon and transfer to a plate. Serve with the sauce of your choice. (Some nice choices are walnut Gorgonzola, tomato or alfredo/cuatro quesos.)

NOTE: I divided the gnocchi dough in half and added pesto to one half and parsley to the other.

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A Recipe for Salsa di Tonno e Crema

 

A Recipe for Salsa di Tonna e Crema

I have been planning a trip to Italy for years now and although this dream vacation is still only in the planning stages nothing says Italy like its food, and nothing says Italian food like pasta!!! The Italian cuisine is rich and varied in all its aspects, but pasta has been its pride and glory through much of its history. When Italians emigrated, settling throughout the New World, they brought their pasta with them and it has found its way into everyone's life style, a worldwide comfort food that today we take for granted. The origins of pasta are as tangled, however, as spaghetti tossed in a bowl.

No matter what it's history and who claims it as their own there is little doubt that pasta has become an every day staple. Under Italian law, dry pasta (pasta secca) can only be made from durum wheat flour or durum wheat semolina. Durum flour and durum semolina have a yellow tinge in color and connoisseurs agree that Italian dry pasta manufactures’ products are superior in taste. Did you know that some use hard durum flour from Canada? Once you taste quality dried pasta, it will be very hard for you to return to the industrially produced alternatives. It’s not just for flavour, but the firm, rough texture puts it way out in front and actually helps you to achieve that al dente ‘firm to the teeth’ texture that is the mark of well-cooked pasta. Poor quality often ends up sticky and soggy.

Pasta is high in nutrients so I have stopped neglecting pasta and try and join in on the fun whenever possible over at Presto Pasta Nights. This is the brainstorm of Ruth over at Once Upon a Feast who celebrates pasta every week. The event is being hosted this week by Chaya of Sweet and Savory . Head over to Chaya's site on Friday for the round-up of delicious pasta dishes.

I became an Italian food goddess when I realized the following. Fresh vegetables of the season + pasta = one fabulous taste of Italy. Here in Canada during the winter months fresh garden vegetables are not available but canned ingredients are canned at the peak of freshness. This is a tasty pasta dish that whips ups in minutes. It is based on a dish from Canadian Chef David Rocco. As David says, "The next time someone in your household wants to order pizza make a bet with them. They order a pizza and you make this pasta. See which one is ready first....and which tastes better".

**Salsa di Tonno e Crema (Tomato Cream with Tuna)**


4 tablespoons (60 mL) extra virgin olive oil, plus extra for drizzling
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
8 large sun dried tomatoes, chopped
12 black olives, pitted
200g (7 oz) canned tuna
2 cups (470 mL) tomato sauce 
1/2 cup (120 mL) 35% whipping cream
Bunch of Italian parsley, finely chopped
****************
Cook your pasta until al dente. While it is cooking make the sauce. Heat olive oil in a saucepan. Add garlic, sun dried tomatoes and black olives. Cook until garlic turns golden in colour.

Pour in tomato sauce and cook for a few minutes. Drain the canned tuna and add it to the sauce. Cook for an additional minute.

Add the whipping cream and cook all together on high heat until just before the sauce begins to boil.

Drain your pasta, reserving 1/2 cup (125 mL) or so of the cooking water. Add cooked penne (just before the al dente stage) and a little bit of the reserved cooking water to help bind everything together.  Cooking directly in the sauce for an additional minute. At this point you may want to add another 1/2 cup (125 mL) of cream. Just make sure you cook the pasta long enough to let the cream reduce and thicken up the sauce.

Sprinkle parsley and drizzle with the best extra virgin olive oil available. Serve immediately.

Per 4 persone

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Joining the Nation Together with the Olympic Flame we Serve Up a Classic Greek Meal

 

Souvlakia with Avocado Tzadziki

The sacred Olympic Flame was lit in an ancient ritual in Olympia, Greece, site of the first Olympic Games. After a short run through Greece, the Olympic Flame arrived in Athens, where it was handed over to a representative from Canada. From there, the Olympic Flame made a trans-Atlantic flight and arrived in Canada, signaling the start of the longest Olympic Torch Relay to take place in a single country. The 2010 Olympic Torch Relay began in Canada on October 30, 2009 and will conclude at the Opening Ceremony signaling the start of the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games on February 12, 2010.

Like many Canadians I have followed the Olympic Flame on its path as it has travelled more than 45,000 kilometres across Canada visiting key cities in all 10 provinces and 3 territories. During its journey towards Vancouver, the Olympic Flame will continue to pass by some of the most pristine and stunning landscapes in the world until it reaches its destination in a few short weeks. And at each turn and twist in the path to the Olympic Games, excited Canadians and visitors have gathered to share in the experience. Today the Olympic Flame passed through my city and I was there with the rest with a group of friends with my Red Mittens, Canadian Scarf  and waving the Canadian flag. A crowd, estimated at well over 10,000 packed into City Park to welcome the Olympic flame to Kelowna. The crowd was loud and boisterous all evening, but held the largest cheer for local Olympian Scott Frandsen who won a gold medal at the 2008 games in Beijing and  lit our city's community cauldron. The Olympic torch shines brilliantly as a beacon of hope, a symbol of the triumphant human spirit.  It is here, at the heart of another Canadian community, that our nation celebrates the 2010 Olympic Winter Games with glowing hearts.

The 2010 Olympic Torch designed by Bombardier takes its inspiration from the cool, crisp and modern lines that are left behind in the snow and ice from winter sports. The fluid, dynamic shape of the torch conveys a sense of youthful optimism and the size of the 2010 Olympic Torch shows not only that Canada is a country of bountiful size, but also has enormous potential and heart.

Small touches on the finished 2010 Olympic Torch design make it truly Canadian. A maple leaf on the back of the torch is not only a symbolic element, but has an important functional role as an air intake hole to ensure the Olympic Flame burns brightly. The 2010 Winter Games Motto “With Glowing Hearts/Des plus brillants exploits” is engraved on the torch opposite where the flame will burn.

Some Interesting Facts:

■Over 100 days in length.

■Over 1,000 communities and places of interest where torchbearers will carry the Olympic Flame.

■Nearly 200 celebrations hosted by communities in every province and territory.

■Approximately 90 per cent of Canada’s population will be within a one-hour drive of experiencing the Olympic Flame.

■Over 45,000 kilometres will be travelled.

■Extensive tour of the North including a planned visit to Alert, Nunavut, the northernmost permanently inhabited community in the world.

■12,000 people will have the honour of being an Olympic Torchbearer and will help carry the flame to Vancouver, a majority of who were selected through public programs.

■Each torch bearer runs 300 m.

■12,000 torches were manufactured by Bombardier, a company known worldwide for leading innovations in transportation and aerospace

■Each torch is signed by a Bombardier team member.

■The 300 m must be completed in 3 minutes or less.

■There is 5 minutes of gas stored in the flame.

■The flame is activated by a key which unlocks the gas cylinder.

To celebrate the torch arriving in our city I decided to invite a few friends over for some delicious Greek food with an early dinner before we headed down to the festivities. What better way to celebrate than to get back to the root of the Olympic Games where they all began in ancient Greece and serve up some delicious Greek foods. It was a quick and simple menu and a standard and familiar meal reminiscent of what you find in Greek restaurants in our area. Of course when in Greece the people have way much more to offer in the way of exciting dishes and ingredients but this menu mirrors what my friends would find familiar...with a few twists of my own. To begin our foray into Greek cuisine I was tempted by photos on Facebook from fellow Canadian Peter Minaki for "Kolokithokeftedes” or pumpkin fritters. I twisted one of his original recipes to make use of some grated pumpkin which I served alongside the dolmades for a tasty starter. I was hoping for leftovers but there were none. To my guests I offered homemade Vefa's Pita Bread  which I made the previous day with another delicious recipe I found on Peter's site Kalofagas -Greek Foods and Beyond .  I served the pita wrapped around  Souvlakia. Instead of preparing the traditional tzatkiki I ressurected a recipe for Avocado Tzatziki that I love for an extra boost by renowned Iron Chef Cat Cora. The acidity of the lemon juice and of the Greek yogurt seems to stabilize the avocado and it lasts several days without turning that characteristic off-putting colour.  To top off the meal I served all with a side of Aglaia's Greek Lemon and Oregano Potatoes which are always a favourite and a homey Greek Spinach Horiatiki Salad. 

See you at the Olympics on February 12th!!!Celebrate the Olympics in your own home with a classic Greek menu. Yammas!!

A Culinary Journey to Nicaragua with Joan of FOODalogue

 

Tres Leche Cake

Joan of FOODalogue has started the year off with another armchair travel adventure with her Culinary Tour 2010 - South of the Border . I really enjoyed travelling with Joan last year and you will too!!!! If you haven't heard of this very popular event check out her site for all the round-ups of delicious recipes and stories by all the participants. This year she has featured the cuisine of 10 of our south-of-the-border neighbours. So far we have travelled to Mexico where we sipped on tequila and margaritas and enjoyed each others company virtually. Then we travelled to El Salvador and the "Ruta de las Flores" (Route of Flowers) where we enjoyed the fiesta atmosphere at the feria gastronómica (food festival) in a small mountain village. Each one of these destinations in her culinary tour challenges you to create a dish outside of your comfort zone and experience new taste and food sensations. You can also do a little armchair travelling and daydreaming through your tastebuds. Our next stop in our armchair travel is:

Nicaragua

According to Wikipedia "Nicaragua is the largest nation in Central America, but also the least densely populated with a demographic similar in size to its smaller neighbors. It is located about midway between Mexico and Colombia, bordered by Honduras to the north and Costa Rica to the south. Nicaragua ranges from the Atlantic Ocean on the nation's east coast, and the Pacific Ocean bordering the west. Nicaragua also possesses a series of islands and cays located in the Atlantic Ocean."

 Nicaragua is a lush and tropical place. It is also the safest country in Central America with some of the friendliest people in the world.

"La comida Nica," as Nicaraguans call their cuisine, is a Latin/Creole mix of indigenous and Spanish dishes and ingredients. As with the other countries we have visited so far corn, beans, plantains, yuca and pork are popular ingredients here. Corn is a used frequently and you can always find it roasted and served throughout the countries by street vendors. Seafood is also common along the Caribbean coast. Although the food in Nicaragua is similar to the cuisine of it's neighbours it certainly has its own flair!!!! Typical dishes include nacatamales (smashed corn and potatoes wrapped in a banana leaf with pork and tomato), vigorón, indio viejo and  gallo pinto (which is fried rice and pinto beans). Other special dishes include Mondongo (tripe soup), Rosquillas (a type of cheese and cornmeal biscuit), Picadillo (shredded beef) and Ajiaco (pork and tortilla dish) to name a few. Tortillas are a normal addition as well, and often used to scoop up the food instead of using utensils. Nicaraguans make extensive use of a wide variety of tropical fruits which grow in their temperate climate. Plantain is also often used in many dishes with fried plantain being a staple in many dishes.

If white sand beaches, surfing, and Salsa dancing all appeal to you, couple it up with some volunteer work as a ‘VolunTourist’ for Comunidad Connect on your trip to Nicaragua. The non-profit’s mission is promoting sustainable development in Nicaragua’s Pacific Southwest including local community projects.

Unique to this volunteer vacation however, is the fact that we were able to lodge with a Nicaraguan family as part of a homestay where you have the unique opportunity to experience local life...virtually of course. This was an incredible opportunity to taste the local culture and food and brush up on Spanish! We were able to choose from a variety of volunteer opportunities from planting trees, beach cleanups, agricultural projects or working with rural kids.

As volunteers we were able to enjoy the white sand beaches, go surfing, fishing, horseback riding, or just relax in town and watch an unforgettable sunset. Other activities included visits to museums and colonial sites, volcano hikes, Spanish classes, Salsa dancing, and even authentic cooking classes. Because Nicaragua is not as “discovered” as other Central American countries, VolunTourists can enjoy these incredible sites and activities in peace and tranquility.

“What I liked best was the breathtaking natural scenery that surrounded me everyday, as well as the details particular to San Juan del Sur, from the packaging of candies, soda in plastic bags in the little pulperias to the people watching, the open doors to people’s homes, the music coming from the giant stereo systems in the living rooms, the hammocks and the smells of earth, ocean, fried food and flowers.”

So what would I bring to the table on Joan's Virtual Culinary Tour??????Dessert of course!!!!!I can't wait to see what the others have brought to the table this time around on our virtual tour. I know it sounds as though I have already visited this beautiful country with this post, but perhaps that is just wishful thinking. For now I will be content to travel with Joan in my armchair...for now.

"Pastel de Tres Leches" or "Tres Leches Cake" is named for the three milks in the soaking liquid (Leche means milk in Spanish). The three milks in the soaking sauce for Tres Leches are sweetened condensed milk, evaporated milk and heavy cream. In this case I added a little rum and vanilla to make it shine. The heavy cream is also whipped up to use as the topping.  Due to the rich ingredients and the fact that it is soaked in a creamy syrup, Tres Leches Cake is extremely dense and moist, almost like a custard. This is an amazing recipe which I adapted from one I found on The Pioneer Woman Cooks. The three milks, when combined, create just the right sweetness, density and "mouth feel" for a rich cake, making it moist but not mushy. It is definitely at it's best when allowed to sit overnight to allow the liquids to be soaked in completely.

The famous cake of three milks is believed to have originated in Nicaragua. With the cuisines so closely knit with it's neighbours there is dispute over where it was first created. It is thought to have come  from Nicaragua by most historians. This cake is very popular in Nicaragua, Mexico, Cuba, Puerto Rico, and Guatemala. Evaporated milk and condensed milk were sold throughout Central and South America and even the Caribbean because it does not need refrigeration.

Although the cake can be served right away it is even better the next day. Just be careful to cover it well and not add the whipped cream topping until the day you are going to eat this. The cake will absorb any odours in your refrigerator.

**Tres Leches Cake**
Print me....

1 cup all-purpose flour
1-½ teaspoon baking powder
¼ teaspoons salt
5 whole eggs
1 cup sugar, divided
1 teaspoon vanilla
⅓ cups milk

For Syrup

1 can evaporated milk
1 can sweetened, condensed milk
¼ cups heavy cream
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 teaspoon rum

For the Topping:

1 pint heavy cream, for whipping
3 tablespoons sugar ( I used icing sugar)

*****************
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9 x 13 inch pan liberally until coated.

Combine flour, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. Separate eggs.

Beat egg yolks with 3/4 cup sugar on high speed until yolks are pale yellow. Stir in milk and vanilla. Pour egg yolk mixture over the flour mixture and stir very gently until combined.

Beat egg whites on high speed until soft peaks form. With the mixer on, pour in remaining 1/4 cup sugar and beat until egg whites are stiff but not dry.

Fold egg white mixture into the batter very gently until just combined. Pour into prepared pan and spread to even out the surface.

Bake for 35 to 45 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Turn cake out onto a rimmed platter and allow to cool.

Combine condensed milk, evaporated milk, heavy cream, rum and vanilla in a small pitcher. When cake is cool, pierce the surface with a fork several times. Slowly drizzle all but about 1 cup of the milk mixture—try to get as much around the edges of the cake as you can.

Allow the cake to absorb the milk mixture for a minimum of 30 minutes. To ice the cake, whip 1 pint heavy cream with 3 tablespoons of sugar until thick and spreadable.

Spread over the surface of the cake. Decorate cake with whole or chopped maraschino cherries, or as in this case drizzle with dulce de leche. Cut into squares and serve.

You are reading this post on More Than Burnt Toast at http://morethanburnttoast.blogspot.com. Content must be credited to this author.

A Recipe for British Columbia Applesauce Apple Muffins

 

British Columbia Applesauce Apple Muffins

If I were to have any New Year resolutions one would be to clear out my draft posts here on More Than Burnt Toast. It is safe to say I have hundreds if not thousands of recipes waiting in the wings for me to either post or create in my own kitchen. The problem there is I am always coming across new recipes to try, new ingredients, and more ideas to add to the evergrowing lists. I am sure you can all relate. More Than Burnt Toast is full of ideas and is bursting at the seams!!!! In a few short weeks it will celebrate it's 3rd year blogiversary and it is highly unlikely that I will have my drafts cleared and "swept" out by Chinese New Year to start afresh and bring me good luck!!!!

Bringing you this one recipe will be a good start. This recipe for muffins has been waiting for it's moment to shine since October when the trees were laden with crisp, ripe apples. British Columbia has some of the best weather in Canada which means we also have a lengthy growing season.

Across British Columbia fresh fruit and berries flourish in the summer months. The Okanagan Valley where I live is best known for peaches, pears and apples where the Saanich Peninsula on Vancouver Island and the Fraser Valley are known for their tasty berries; strawberries, blueberries, tayberries, wild blackberries, cranberries and more.

About 98% of BC apples are produced in the Okanagan-Similkameen valleys. The warm, dry summers and cooler falls here are perfect for nature to create apples with an attractive finish and crisp, juicy, flavourful flesh.  The low rainfall level also reduces the impact of disease. Most orchards are on slopes near lakes which creates a micro-climate which moderates the temperatures and reduces the risk of winter injury and spring frost. BC produces about 30% of the apples grown in Canada. I remember as a child being able to purchase BC apples from the Sears catalogue to send to your family overseas or on the other side of the country, or to purchase for yourself.

With names like Ambrosia, Sunrise, Jonagold, Aurora, Fuji and Golden Gala, British Columbia’s apples sound as sumptuous as they taste. Commercial growers produce an estimated 20 to 25 varieties of this popular tree fruit, but hundreds of other types ripen on hobby farms and backyard branches. Saltspring Islanders in the Gulf Islands claim to grow 350 different kinds of organic apples, including heritage apples, on their southern island off the coast. Heritage apples refer to any apple variety that was growing before 1900. These apple varieties were all chance seedlings and as such grew without any human intervention. They are the gifts of mother nature. I have even seen heirloom apples with red flesh. Wouldn't that make a prize-winning pie!!!!

Aerlie Red Flesh, Apricot Apple, Arkansas Black Starkspur, Arlet, Ashmead's Kernel, Baldwin, Baldwin Red Flesh, Belle de Boskoop, Blenheim Orange, Blushing Golden, Braeburn, Brownlee's Russett, Burgundy, Chenango Strawberry, Cortland, Cox Orange Pippin, Discovery, Duchess of Oldenburg, Emerald Spire, Empire, Esopus Spitzenburg, Freyburg, Fuji, Gala, Golden Delicious, Golden Nugget, Granny Smith, Hall's Pink, Hawaii, Jefferis, Johnathon, Jonagold, Jonalicious, Kandil Sinap, Kensei, Kestrel, Kidd's Orange, King, Lady, Liberty, MacFree, Macoun, Mantet, Melrose, Merton Beauty, Mollies Delicious, Mott's Pink, Muscadet de Dieppe, Mutsu, Newton, Northern Spy, Orenco, Pink Pearl, Pink Pearmain, Pitmaston's Pineapple, Prima, Red Belle de Boskoop, Red Gravenstein, Rubinette, Sandow, Spartan, Summerred, Sunrise, Suntan, Thornberry, Tolman Sweet, Tsugaru, Tumanga, Tydeman Red, Vander Pool Red, Wadhurst Pippin, Wealthy, Webster's Pink Meat, William's Pride, Winter Banana, Wolf River, York Imperial


These muffins did not last long here in the MTBT household. They were moist, healthy and delicious. Warm from the oven they were even delicious with a little gelato and caramel sauce. This is an easy bake recipe, ideal for kids interested in helping make school lunches or for you to make-ahead for breakfast and freeze.

**Applesauce Apple Muffins**

2 cups (500 mL) all-purpose flour
3/4 cup (175 mL) granulated sugar
2 teaspoon (10 mL) baking powder
1/2 teaspoon (2 mL) baking soda
1/2 teaspoon (2 mL) ground cinnamon, optional
1/4 teaspoon (1 mL) salt
1 large egg
1 cup (250 mL) applesauce, unsweetened preferred
1/3 cup (75 mL) canola oil
1/2 cup (125 mL) diced peeled and cored apple
1/2 cup (125 mL) chopped walnut halves

Cinnamon Crunch Topping:

4 teaspoon (20 mL) granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon (2 mL) ground cinnamon

***********************************
Line 12 muffin cups with paper liners or grease; set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda , cinnamon, if using, and salt.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the egg, applesauce and oil. Pour over the dry ingredients. Sprinkle the diced apple and walnuts over the wet ingredients and with a wooden spoon, swiftly and neatly stir the ingredients until just blended.

Scoop into the prepared muffin tins.

Cinnamon Crunch Topping: Stir together the sugar and cinnamon. Spoon a generous 1/4 tsp (1 mL) over each scoop of muffin batter.

Bake in the centre of a 375°F (190°C) oven until domed, firm to the touch and fragrant, about 20 minutes.

Let cool in pans on rack for about 5 minutes; remove from pans to cool on a rack. (Make-ahead: Let cool; store in airtight container for up to 3 days. Or wrap in quality plastic wrap, then enclose in a freezer container. Freeze for up to 2 weeks.)

 Makes 12 muffins.

Next in Our Canadian Chef Series Lynn Crawford Cooks up Lemon Honey Pistachio Chicken with Turkish Apricot Rice Pilaf

Lemon Honey Pistachio Chicken with Turkish Apricot Rice Pilaf

If you have been following More Than Burnt Toast you will know I started a bi-weekly feature to highlight Canadian Chefs in 2009. This year I will continue on this journey full force to bring you all that Canada has to offer!!! 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 continue to feature one of our Canadian chefs when time allows. There will be some chefs you have heard of and adore and some lesser known who are "up and coming". Some are not even chefs at all, but just Canadians who are passionate about what they do!! As the thirteenth installment in my Canadian Chef series I introduce you to:

Lynn Crawford

Lynn was born into a Scottish family in Willowdale, Ontario and later moved during her high school years to nearby Richmond Hill. Her father was a butcher, and while they grew up on simple comfort foods he exposed his two children early to all the world has to offer in food and wine. While studying fine art at Ontario's University of Guelph, she realized she had missed her true calling and decided on changing paths to become a professional chef.  While cooking for friends in her apartment after class, she was always looking to create challenging and complicated dishes. She loved to go to the farmer's markets and would  buy secondhand cookbooks and back issues of Gourmet magazine from the fifties and sixties. I think she sounds like a lot of food bloggers!!!!
 
Therefore she quit university and moved to Toronto to enroll in George Brown College’s acclaimed culinary program.  During her studies, she explored Toronto’s finest restaurants, honing her skills and receiving classical training from the city’s premier chefs. When she graduated she went to California to apprentice in restaurants with two of our best known icons... Alice Waters and the late Barbara Troop.

If you’re a fan of Food Network Canada, then Lynn Crawford is a familiar face to you. Lynn is best known  from Restaurant Makeover. Pegged as Canada’s Top Female Chef, she has worked for the Four Seasons for 19 years in several of the hotel chain's prestigious properties, including Nevis, Montreal, Vancouver and Toronto. Lynn received tremendous media attention as the executive chef of Four Seasons Hotel in New York City, where she was the only female executive chef for a Four Seasons property in the world. She appeared on the Food Network's Iron Chef America (the third chef from Canada to do so), in a battle with Iron Chef Bobby Flay. Lynn is a tremendous culinary presence here in the North.

Lynn has very simple beliefs and philosophies on food. “I have always thought of food as an expression of art,” she says. “I feel so lucky to have the opportunity to fuel my passion every day. I express myself best by using beautiful products. I want to leave an impression, create a memory, and nothing matters more to me than a beautiful dish. I adore food!” The creation of a delicious meal does require passion and quality ingredients. To have one without the other would seem unnatural and would go against everything that Lynn Crawford stands for. Maintaining a philosophy that food needs to be celebrated and shared with family and friends, Lynn believes that food is not something that should be kept to oneself but shared with many as a means of providing a sense of enjoyment. I am sure this resonates with many of us as well.

So what is Lynn up to these days?   After a 24 year career as a five-star, high profile chef, she is leaving her post as Executive Chef at the Four Seasons Hotel Manhattan for the ultimate gastronomic adventure!!!  Her own show Pitchin’ In  premiered January 4 on Food Network Canada . Here she's travels all over the map to try to reconnect with food and to meet the farmers, fishermen and others who produce the foods she makes into extraordinary meals each day. This is a drastic change from the fancy kitchens and expensive, luxurious ingredients she has been working with for so many years at the Four Seasons.  

In each episode of Pitchin In Lynn Crawford makes a deal with her local hosts. They let her work hard with them for a few days to learn the ropes and in return she cooks them a spectacular dinner featuring their own products. Lynn takes on any challenge that comes her way, relying on local hunters, fishermen or farmers to show her how it’s done. From fighting off bugs in the muddy Louisiana crawfish ponds to cleaning up after pigs in Georgia and wrestling lobsters in Nova Scotia, there isn’t anything she won’t try in the name of fresh food. With each show we learn with Lunn to gain an understanding and appreciation for food that is not taught in culinary school. Lynn Crawford’s passion for food gets her through each new situation and her sense of humour and adventure make this series a sheer joy to watch.

When Lynn isn’t travelling to new fisheries and farms on Pitchin’ In she’s working on opening her first restaurant in Toronto, Ontario, currently set to open in March 2010.  Understandably the restaurant will be about sharing the table and supporting local producers.

Lynn is an accomplished chef which made it more than difficult to decide on what to make for this months chefs series. With choices like:

 Oven Braised Lamb Stew and Winter Squash Cobbler,
 Pomegranate Sugar-Dusted White Chocolate Doughnuts,
Truffle Macaroni and Cheese,
Pan Seared Salmon with Pink Shrimp Hollandaise,
Honey Butter Roasted Scallops with Gingered Carrot Puree and Vegetable Bhaji Fritters  ,

Zucchini Olive Oil Cake with Mandarin Orange Glaze and Walnut Olive Brittle

I ultimately decided upon this chicken dish. Quite often cooking for me is about what I have on hand as well as flavour even if I would have loved to prepare any of the dishes above. This chicken dish was moist and flavourful.

**Lemon Honey Pistachio Chicken with Turkish Apricot Rice Pilaf**
recipe by Lynn Crawford

 4 Chicken breast, boneless, skinless
2 Whole Lemons, juiced
1 cup Pistachios, coarsely chopped
4 tablespoons honey
2 tablespoons butter
1 Small onion, finely diced
1 cup orzo
900 mL chicken stock or water

2 cups long grain rice

4 strips orange zest

1 pinch saffron

1/2 cup dried apricots, finely diced

1/2 cup golden raisins

1 bunch dill chopped

1/4 cup scallion, finely chopped

Salt and Pepper

************

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a small mixing bowl combine the lemon juice, pistachios and honey and mix together.

Season the chicken breast with salt and pepper. Sear the chicken in a sauté pan over the medium heat until golden brown on both sides.

Add the lemon honey pistachio mixture onto the tops of the chicken. Place in the oven and cook for 15 minutes.

In a heavy bottom pot with a lid, melt the butter over medium low heat. Add the onions and orzo and cook until golden brown, or until the orzo smells nutty.

Add the rice and stir to coat with onions and orzo. Add the stock, orange zest, saffron, dried apricots, raisins and season with salt.

Bring the rice mixture to a boil. Stir once and cover with the lid. Bake in the oven for 15 minutes.

Remove from the oven and rest on the stovetop for 10 minutes with the lid on. Add the chopped dill and scallions and fluff into the rice pilaf using a fork.

To serve, spoon the apricot rice pilaf onto a plate and top with the lemon honey pistachio chicken.

“If you don’t have passion then it’s just a job,” says Crawford. “That’s the difference between a cook and a chef.  A chef never stops thinking about food.”

A Recipe for Jamie's Spinach Salad

 

A Recipe for Jamie's Spinach Salad

What an exceptional weekend it has been spending time with friends, walking along the lake on a warm spring-like day, breakfast with L'il Burnt Toast at a local hangout...I'm not sure I could be more contented. Of course in keeping with my healthier attiitude goals for the next decade I had to have a delicious salad to round out my next meal. This is a recipe from Jamie Oliver which I tried over the holidays which was very well received. The dressing is very light and the salad open to anything your little heart desires limited only by your imagination. Several choices I have made in the past are to add cooked salty bacon, blue cheese or feta. I happened to have some marinated feta this time around so added that. This recipe had over 1,000 positive reviews so how can you argue with that?

**Jamie's Spinach Salad**
Printable Recipe....

1 tablespoon butter
3/4 cup almonds, blanched and slivered

1 pound spinach, rinsed and torn into bite-size pieces
1 cup dried cranberries
2 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds
1 tablespoon poppy seeds
1/2 cup white sugar
2 teaspoons minced onion
1/4 teaspoon paprika
1/4 cup white wine vinegar
1/4 cup cider vinegar (I used tarragon vinegar which I had on hand)
1/2 cup olive oil (the recipe called for vegetable oil but I used a light olive oil)

***********

In a medium saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Cook and stir almonds in butter until lightly toasted. Remove from heat, and let cool.

In a large bowl, combine the spinach with the toasted almonds and cranberries.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the sesame seeds, poppy seeds, sugar, onion, paprika, white wine vinegar, cider vinegar, and vegetable oil. Toss with spinach just before serving.

You may also enjoy....

Spinach & Red Cabbage Salad with Balsamic Vinaigrette
A Very Good Spinach Salad
Greek Spinach Salad
Spinach Salad with Strawberries
Spinach Cranberry Salad


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Next Stop on the FOODalogue Tour...El Salvador with Pupusas and Curtido

Joan of FOODalogue has started the year off with another armchair travel adventure with her Culinary Tour 2010 - South of the Border . I really enjoyed travelling with Joan last year and you will too!!!! This year she will feature the cuisines of 10 of our south-of-the-border neighbors. So far we have travelled to Mexico where we sipped on tequila and margaritas and enjoyed each others company virtually.  Each one of these destinations in her culinary tour challenges you to create a dish outside of your comfort zone and experience new taste and food sensations. You can also do a little armchair travelling and daydreaming through your tastebuds. Our next stop in our armchair travel is:

El Salvador

Nestled in Central America between Guatemala, Honduras and the Pacific Ocean is the small country of El Salvador... a country of diverse natural beauty. El Salvador, once known as Cuscatlán (the land of beautiful jewels), is on the west coast of Central America. Since it does not border the Caribbean Sea, there are no cruise ships, no crowds, and no commercialized tourist stops. My kind of place for a vacation and culinary stop to immerse myself in the culture!!!! The country has a troubled history but residents are finally offering the tourist a glimpse into all the beauty the country has to offer. What El Salvador offers are tremendous opportunities to explore and experience a variety of unique adventures. A tropical climate prevails in the coastal lowlands, while the highlands and plateaus of the interior enjoy cooler, drier weather. The landscape is dotted with volcanos, and many rivers cut their way from the highlands to the Pacific shore.What's not to love!!

This tiny country on the Pacific coast has made a rich contribution to Central American cooking. The cuisine of El Salvador is similar to that of its neighbors, with a strong reliance on indigenous foods like corn, beans, squash and tomatoes. El Salvadorian food can be as familiar as chicken soup, or as exotic as fried palm flowers. The influence of Mayan culture is quite strong, mixed in with contributions from the Spanish kitchen. Pupusas and curtido may be the most well known Salvadoran dishes, but other tasty dishes include pavo salvadoreño, atol de elote, quesadilla and semita. El Salvador has many roadside stands that sell fresh local fruit, vegetables, as well as regionally-made cheeses. In every village, town, and city, there are open air markets that sell locally grown herbs, vegetables, fruits, cooked foods and refrescos. There's not a better way to explore this country than to meet the locals.

With Maria of the Tamarindo Touring Company I explored the cobbled-stoned streets lined with galleries, restaurants, historical sites, and specialty shops awaiting me in the quaint colonial town of Suchitoto as well as other quaint little villages with their tour Maria's Artisan Tours. The Tamarindo Touring Company has been created to develop jobs for young adults that have grown up in this community and benefited from the mentoring programs. Suchitoto, which means, 'Place of Birds and Flowers' is a lovely colonial village. Long ago Suchitoto was an indigo producing town. This town was filled with friendly people, architectural beauty and rich cultural heritage... not to mention the great food! What better way to explore the area virtually than to have a local introduce you to the people of the small villages and hamlets.

 Another gem was Shicalli . This is a very special hamlet where a group of individuals with physical disabilities work together to create unique pieces of pottery. The workshop offers artistic training and employment involving the art of ceramics featuring these artists who would otherwise have little access to formal education but have now developed skilled pottery techniques.

There are many other sites to see in the Apaneca region as part of the tour. The area is part of what is referred to as the "Ruta de las Flores" (Route of Flowers). The smell of freshly roasted coffee beans wafted through the air as we made our way to El Salvador's famous Sunday food festival which takes place in the small town of Juayúa. Besides attractive colonial architecture, a pleasant central plaza, and a historic church Juayúa also hosts a wildly successful weekend feria gastronómica (food festival), where local and invited restaurateurs serve fabulous food at dozens of tables set up around the parque central. The whole town gathers in the town square for the event and food is served and eaten at plastic tables and chairs under the shade of multi-colored canopies and trees. I think the entire population of the town was there!!! The event every Sunday draws tons of local and international tourists, and has been copied by towns throughout El Salvador... though none quite equal it. The dining tent is the largest, and live music is as common place as the pupusas! Vendors wander the square selling desserts, toys, CDs… you name it, somebody’s got it! The aroma of all the delicious food and coffee is amazing! We had such a fantastic time. We tried the Riguas de Coco… a cornmeal and coconut mixture cooked in the leaf, then fried on the grill and finally topped with a perfectly sweet coconut sauce. I stayed away from the grilled frogs… but that might just be my personal preference. The elote loco is a little crazy… hence the name… but it was worth a try... boiled corn, smeared with mustard, sprinkled with Parmesan cheese and topped off with some other sauces… you might just like it. We appeared to be the only foreigners on the scene, and we did our best to hold our own with the Salvadorans when it came to tasting as many of the local treats around the square as possible.

 Around Juayúa are excellent hiking and other eco-outdoorsy activities, from rappelling down waterfalls to mountain biking in private fincas (coffee plantations). For something less like excercise, you can take a tour of a coffee processing plant. If you come midweek, simply soak in Juayúa's small-town charm. The food festival in itself is worth the trip, but if you have a chance to look around a bit, the town is actually a real find. During the week when the crowds go home, you can enjoy strolling the peaceful, cobbled streets while soaking up the colonial architecture.   If you only have the day, you might think of taking a horse and carriage ride around the city after you have sampled all the foods you can. It is a nice setting to digest and enjoy the scenery in. 

For my foray into El Salvadoran cuisine I opted for the obvious and decided to try pupusas served with curtido and salsa roja...a very traditional meal.

Traditional pupusas originated here in Central America's smallest country, El Salvador, but have made a big impact on the cuisine of other Latin American countries as well. The pupusa is so fundamental to the cuisine of El Salvador that the country has even declared November 13th "National Pupusa Day." Pupusas are traditionally made by slapping the dough from palm to palm to flatten it out. I find the tortilla press would be quicker and easier for beginners like me.

Pupusas are fairly easy to prepare and anyone who has made homemade tortillas will not have any difficulty making the Salvadoran staple. You may use well-crumbled Mexican cheese queso fresco for this version, if you can get it, or else use coarsely grated quesillo, farmer's cheese, mozzarella, Monterey Jack, Swiss or a combination. Add some minced green chile if you like as well.

Pupusas are typically served with curtido, a sour cabbage relish. This is the deliciously spicy and sour salad that is served with papoosa, the stuffed corn breads of El Salvador.  Large jars of curtido are kept at restaurants and sides of the slaw are served with most meals. Curtido is usually allowed to ferment slightly at room temperature before serving, becoming a kind of Salvadoran sauerkraut.  It is so good that it could almost replace coleslaw in the MTBT household. I would make it at least an hour ahead of time as suggested because it needs to sit and "pickle" in its own juices. You can even make it a day in advance; just keep it covered and refrigerated.

This recipe is for basic pupusas de queso with a few other variations thrown in for good measure. Thanks for taking us on this journey Joan...see you in Nicaragua!!!!

 **Pupusas de Queso**

2 cups masa harina
1 cup water
1 cup queso fresco, crumbled
********************

Stir the masa harina and water together in a mixing bowl until smooth; knead well. Cover bowl, and let the dough rest 5 to 10 minutes. Shape the dough into eight, 2-inch diameter balls. On a lightly floured surface, roll out each ball into 6-inch diameter round. Sprinkle 1/4 cup queso fresco over each round. Place a second tortilla over the cheese, and pinch the edges together to seal in the cheese. Heat an ungreased skillet over medium-high heat. Place one tortilla into the skillet at a time and cook until cheese melts and tortillas are lightly browned, about 2 minutes on each side.

Variations


Pupusas de Chicharrones: With a filling of fried chopped pork and a little tomato sauce. A reasonable facsimile can be made by pulsing 1 cup of cooked bacon with a little bit of tomato sauce in a food processor.

Pupusas de Frijoles Refritos: With a refried bean filling.

Pupusas Revueltas: Use a mixture of chicharrones, cheese and refried beans.

Pupusas de Queso y Loroco: With a cheese and tropical vine flower filling. Loroco can be found in jars at many Latin markets.

Pupusas de Arroz: A variety of pupusa that uses rice flour instead of corn masa.

Cooked potatoes or finely minced, sautéed jalapeño peppers are also tasty fillings. Try a mixture of different fillings.

NOTE: The above recipe uses masa harina, a special dried cornmeal flour used in making tortillas, tamales, etc. If you are able to get fresh masa, definitely use it instead. The flavor will be much fresher. Just substitute the masa harina and water with fresh masa. One pound will make about 4-6 pupusas depending on their size.

**Curtido (Cabbage Salad with Oregano)**
Serves 6

Here I used half of a 2-pound green cabbage, cored, with the coarse outer leaves removed.

6 well-packed cups shredded green cabbage
1 cup shredded crisp lettuce, such as iceberg
1 medium carrot, peeled and coarsely grated
1/2 teaspoons salt
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1/4 teaspoon cayenne
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 tablespoon olive oil

**************************
Combine all the ingredients in a large bowl and toss well to mix. Set aside for 1 hour or longer, refrigerating if necessary.

**Salsa Roja(Salvadoran Tomato Sauce)**

Salsa roja, a simple yet flavourful Salvadoran cooked tomato sauce, is often served alongside pupusas and curtido.

3 tablespoons olive oil
1/4 cup onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, chopped
1 Serrano or jalapeño chile pepper, chopped
2 cups tomatoes, peeled, seeded and chopped
2 teaspoons dried oregano
Salt and pepper -- to taste
1/4 cup cilantro (optional), chopped

*****************
Heat the oil in a saucepan over medium flame. Add the onion, garlic and chile and sauté for 2-3 minutes, or until the onion is translucent.

Stir in the tomatoes and oregano and simmer for about 10 minutes. Remove from heat and cool a bit.

Puree the tomato sauce in a blender until smooth, adding a little water if needed. Add salt and pepper to taste, stir in cilantro if using and serve.

Variations

Substitute chopped parsley for the cilantro if you like.

Makes about 2 cups

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Join in and Represent Your Country in the Culinary Olympics

After years of anticipation Canada will be hosting the 2010 Winter Olympic Games in Vancouver, British Columbia from February 12th – 28th. The Olympic flame will reach our city the last week of this month.  Canadians across the country are not only sharing in the pride of being the host country but looking forward to seeing all of your countries around the world participating in winter sports. We'll all be cheering on our athletes who have trained so vigorously and are set to represent their respective countries.

In many ways BloggerAid-Changing the Face of Famine (BACFF) members are also athletes even if we’re not putting on skiis or hockey skates. Our sport is FOOD!!! Now that's my kind of sport...and jumps ahead of  hockey, cross country skiing and skating. We represent over 60 international countries who have created and developed a communication and friendship that has brought our world a little closer together with a mission to raise awareness. What better way to come together than to create a Culinary Olympics where we can share our pride for our nations cuisine.

BACFF is hosting an event to promote both our sport (food) and our mission (to be actively promoting the allevation of world hunger). We invite you to participate and represent your country. Here’s how:

1. Beginning today and ending on February 28th at midnite, please submit a recipe that represents your country to blogs4famine(at)gmail(dot)com. Let's show some national pride in our countries cuisine.

2. Include the name of your blog (if you have one), your URL and a photo of your submission.

3. Feel free to use the event logo/avatar and include a photo of your country flag (the flag is optional but we’re encouraging national pride)

4. Post your submission on your blog with a link back to BACFF at http://www.bloggeraidmarketing.ning.com/ and also a short piece encouraging readers to buy The BloggerAid Cookbook available at Create Space https://www.createspace.com/3405882. Include stories of your countries athletes, cuisine or anything else you would like to include. It is only limited by your imagination!!!!

Here are some general guidelines:

1. If you’re an expat, you can choose to either create something that represents your country of birth or the country you are currently in.

2. You must be a member of BACFF to participate

3. All entries will be posted on BACFF on March 5th.

 Represent your country with pride. During this event we will share some Olympic fun and sporting events with you on the BACFF site and will welcome you to our country. Something you may not know is that both Giz and are are from Canada. We look forward to sharing all of your international dishes with you so get on your aprons, fire up that oven and share your national dishes with the world!!! I have my oven mitts on and am at the starting gate!!!!!

NOTE: If you're not already a member and would like to join click HERE. We are working on ways to raise awareness for the people of Haiti behind the scenes after the release of a call for help from the World Food Programme.

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A Recipe for Spicy Chicken Stew for our Cooking Light Virtual Supper Club

Spicy Chicken Stew

We are so glad that you have decided to join us once again for our Cooking Light Virtual Supper Club. This is a monthly event where 5 ladies in two countries get together to create a delicious meal with a theme in mind. We all share a love for Cooking Light magazine which has an emphasis on healthy eating and living. Each issue covers light cuisine and includes more than 70 delicious and flavourful recipes. It also explores food and nutrition news as well as fitness, health and beauty. Here is this months write-up on the Cooking Light blog Test Kitchen Secrets.

For the month of January we are going back to our roots and starting the New Year off with food that is simply prepared and associated with a sense of home and contentment...SOUPS AND STEWS. After the head-spinning social gatherings of the holiday season January is the time to step back and reflect on all the possibilities of the new year. It’s about talking and communicating and sharing a meal that’s special and realizing what’s important in life. This Spicy Chicken Stew dish exudes comfort and is very bit worth trying from the pages of Cooking Light magazine. The month of December has been a feeding frenzy so now it is time to make the simple dishes that require only one pot!!!!

So what is comfort food? Generally it's the food we have good memories about. Comfort foods like soup and stew are foods that nourish the soul as well as our bodies. They tend to be foods that remind us of simpler times. They are familiar, simple foods. When sick, or tired, or far from home, everyone seems to yearn for the gastronomic equivalent of a warm sweater, a kiss on the forehead, a favourite blanket. While homemade meatloaf with mashed potatoes, macaroni and cheese and apple pie have been staples for many of us, for some of us comfort food may include a delicious gooey lasagna, a curry, borscht or udon noodles. 

An ideal comfort food should "stick to the ribs", meaning it supplies a sense of fullness and satisfaction long after it has been consumed. Soups and stews fall under the category of sheer comfort!!! Many people choose a personal comfort food for that very reason. A quart of premium ice cream or an extra large slab of ribs can be very emotionally satisfying, which is ultimately the point of eating comfort food. The pages of Cooking Light magazine are filled with all our favourite comfort foods like soups and stews while making healthier choices but loosing none of the flavour or that sense of emotional satisfaction!!!

 For this months virtual supper we shared a few bottles of wine virtually as well as created a delicious potluck menu from the pages of Cooking Light. We love to share these ideas with you each month by putting together a delicious meal for each other through our Virtual Supper Club. The idea is simple because we all share a common interest in cooking and all things "foodie". This is a team effort where we get together virtually once a month and combine what Cooking Light readers like best...good food with great company!!! For our potluck I brought a succulent Spicy Chicken Stew dish.  Tender pieces of chicken stewed with spicy salsa, tender sweet corn and corn tortillas make this a classic dish to bring to the table. I pulled out my crock pot for the second time this week...simply unheard of!!! I would suggest using hot salsa if you like it really hot to make it sing, but I liked it just the way it was!!!! Helene of La Cuisine d'Helene offered a delectable Spicy Tomato and White Bean Soup for our virtual potluck, Shelby of The Life and Loves of Grumpy's Honeybunch wowed us with Shrimp and Butternut Squash in Coconut Milk Broth, Jamie of Mom's Cooking Club offers a comforting and classic twist with Spicy Sausage Chili and Aggie of Aggie's Kitchen brought a colourful and delicious Orange-Saffron Shrimp and Snapper Stew for us to savour. Check out these links for photos and write-ups.

January and it's cooler weather here in the Northern Hemisphere require comfort foods and snuggling up sitting by the fire with a delicious and comforting soup or stew that was simple and uncomplicated. I’m comforted by making these food memories for L'il Burnt Toast. I prepare food for other people to like.... that’s what gives me pleasure. A comfort food is also about sharing food with others since we tend to love the foods we remember our own mothers making. As foodies we love trying new food sensations and taking food to the next gastronomic level but we always return to simple, hearty fare when we crave comfort.

 Although distance prevents us from gathering as a group in each others homes we have enjoyed getting to know one another and have developed a menu from Cooking Light magazine that is sure to bring smiles when your family and friends share your table this season. What would you bring to the table? Link to the Cooking Light blog Test Kitchen Secrets or to one of our blogs here and make something delicious from the pages of the magazine to add to our SOUPS AND STEWS potluck...the more the merrier!!!!  An avatar is in the works as we speak so that we can all join in and be creative in the kitchen from the pages of Cooking Light!!!!

A Recipe for Gnudi or "Naked Ravioli" for Presto Pasta Nights

A Recipe for Gnudi or "Naked Ravioli"

Pasta is simply the Italian word for dough. Originally, pasta in Italy began with growing the highest-quality hard wheat, and the name given to this specific type of wheat was "durum" which in Latin means hard. Italian pasta has been enjoyed for centuries, with old and new recipes being prepared and created. Sailors packed pasta as a staple for long voyages due to its incredibly long shelf life. Today Italian restaurants and home cooks world wide make millions of pasta dishes each year.If you want to enjoy cooking and eating pasta at its best, one way is to buy good-quality dried pasta made with durum or semolina . Once you taste quality dried pasta, it will be very hard for you to return to the industrially produced alternatives. It’s not just for flavour, but the firm, rough texture puts it way out in front and actually helps you to achieve that al dente ‘firm to the teeth’ texture that is the mark of well-cooked pasta. Poor quality often ends up sticky and soggy.  If you would like you can read this very interesting article about the history of pasta.

The most common misconception is that pasta is a very fattening food. Fortunately, in the last decade or so, the misconception that pasta is fattening  has been corrected by many nutrition experts, through their interest and research into the health benefits of the Mediterranean diet. In most parts of Italy, obesity is relatively rare, though a "low-carb diet" is unheard of. Italians do eat a lot of carbs, but they are happy, healthy individuals. And it is also worth mentioning that they consume carbs balanced with proteins and fats. In Italy, pasta is usually eaten as primo piatto (first course), meaning the main course, which is usually a healthy fish dish or a lean meat, has yet to come.

 It is the sauce that you put on the pasta that adds the calories to the meal. If you want to eat pasta but keep your calorie count low, you could eat whole-wheat pasta topped with a low calorie sauce. Reasonable portions of pasta dishes made with lean meat, fresh vegetables or fish sauces are not fattening at all. Eating huge portions of pasta with rich sauces every day is not recommended, of course  but even those must be enjoyed once in a while! Never has my philosphy of "everything in moderation" rung more true when it comes to pasta!!!! Following that dictum, you could eat pasta every day of the week!!!!!!

Whole-wheat pasta is not only higher in natural nutrients but it also contains more fiber. In addition, whole-wheat pastas tend to have a lower glycemic index. What this means is that it will not raise your insulin level. This is very important if you are a diabetic or attempting to lose weight. Though people have grown accustomed to the mellow taste and texture of refined pasta, whole-wheat pasta is higher in protein, and tends to be more filling, so you do eat less. It becomes lighter as it cooks and can be quite delicious when served with flavorful sauces.
 
Sauces are meant to coat the pasta and not to drown them. The sophistication found in Italian cuisine lies in the simplicity of the method using a couple of cleverly combined ingredients and herbs that compliment the pasta and not over power them.  So be light on the sauce, use whole wheat pasta when possible and eat a balanced diet and all will be well with the world.

I am sending this dish over to Presto Pasta Nights which is the invention of the lovely, talented and fellow Canadian Ruth over at Once Upon a Feast - Every Kitchen Tells It's Stories. I can hardly believe that this is week #145 of PPN!!! What an excellent way to start the new decade.

My dish this week is not really pasta at all (although it can be served on top of pasta as I did here) but it has a pasta name.... "Naked Ravioli" . Therefore I thought it would still work within the parameters of Ruth's event. Malfatti or Gnudi is a traditional Tuscan dish. It’s basically ravioli without dough called “gnudi” which in Tuscany means “naked” or also “malfatti” meaning “not well made". This dish gets its name from the fact that it is really the filling of the ravioli without the pasta.  Often, gnudi are served without any pasta at all, as a starter but they can also be served on pasta, either with a light tomato sauce or with butter, sage and Parmesan.

 This recipe comes from Canadian chef  David Rocco from his cookbook "David Rocco's Dolce Vita". I really enjoy this method because he bakes his gnudi in the oven. This is a godsend since in the past I have not had much success where recipes call for boiling the gnudi. This is one of the easiest recipes you will ever make and these will literally melt in your mouth!!!!

"Malfatti or Gnudi (Naked Ravioli)"
a recipe by David Rocco

1 lb (500 g) fresh ricotta cheese, preferably sheep's milk, drained
1 large bunch raw spinach, chopped
5 tablespoons (75 mL) extra-virgin olive oil, plus extra for smearing hands
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
salt to taste
4 tablespoons (60 mL) freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, plus extra for sprinkling
all-purpose flour
20 cherry tomatoes, halved
4 - 8 fresh basil leaves, chopped

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Place your drained ricotta in a mixing bowl. Chop your spinach and saute it with some olive oil and garlic. Let it cool down, then add it to the ricotta. ( I used frozen spinach so squeezed it dry first. I am not sure if this is necessary for the outcome of the dish but I always prefer it). Add 2 pinches of salt, a good handful of Parmigiano, or more spinach. (Make it your own and what is right for you!!!) David says, " if the texture seems a bit liquid to you, add a pinch of flour, but not too much. You just want to bind the mixture. The texture should be fliffy and delicate, not heavy".

Pour a bit of olive oil on your hands and rub them together. (As David says this will prevent the gnudi mixture from sticking to your hands, and the bonus is that your hands get a nice spa tretament at the same time!!!) Now take a bit of the mixture and roll it in your hands to make little balls about the size of golf balls. Use all of the filling.

For the tomato sauce cut up the cherry tomatoes. Heat some olive oil and garlic in a pan, throw in the tomatoes along with some salt and cook for a few minutes until they get soft.

Spread a layer of tomato sauce in a baking dish. Lay the gnudi on top, then spoon some more of the sauce on top. Sprinkle some Parmigiano on top of each gnudi ball. Toss the basil on top. Bake in a 350 - 400F (180 - 200C) oven for 10 - 15 minutes or until golden.

Serves 4 Persone

*You can also serve this with pasta for a different treat!!!

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