Kathleen, Vicki, Lorene, Kim – Food Revolution Day 2012

Dishing in the Kitchen has teamed up with the Golden Ears FEAST, Haney Farmers Market, and Big Feast Bistro and Catering in Maple Ridge B.C. to bring Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution Day to our local town. If you love real food and want to help celebrate, check out the Food Revolution Day site here.

Local? Drop by our booth at the Haney Farmers Market on May 18-2013 and meet the Kitchenettes or reserve a Farm to Fork Dinner at the Big Feast Bistro on May 17 or 18th. A portion of proceeds go to Jamie Oliver’s Foundation and to our local environmental school.

Got Kids?

Youth ages 4 to 17 are invited to submit display projects that illustrate or demonstrate what real food means to them. Examples include posters or paintings depicting the food cycle, recipes or poems celebrating the use of whole food in cooking or eating, and dioramas or other visual projects that show an understanding of where food comes from and the importance of healthy, local, fresh food. Sound like foodie offspring fun?

Projects will be displayed at the Haney Farmers Market on Saturday, May 18 -2013. Market attendees will be invited to vote on their favorite projects and People’s Choice awards will be given out in three age categories. Prizes will include food-themed goody bags and gift certificates. Winning visual displays that can be mounted on the wall will be prominently displayed at the Big Feast Bistro for the remainder of the month of May.

Photos of all other winning projects will be featured right here on the Dishing in the Kitchen blog, and submitted to the team at Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution Day. Winners will have their photos taken with local dignitaries. To find out more about the

The Fine Print:

• Age categories: 4-7, 8-12, 13-17
• Projects must be portable and easily displayed on a tabletop or on a wall.
• One project entry per youth.
• Youth’s name must be clearly marked on the project
• Contact information will be required and collected by a volunteer
• Projects must be delivered to the Food Revolution Day Booth at Haney Farmers Market between 9:00 am and 10:00 am on May 18^th and picked up promptly at 2:00pm.
• Winning entries will be announced at 1:30 pm on May 18^th

Years ago, I battled a substance abuse problem and I would very often follow a ‘party’ night with a junk food binge. I used to joke, while chowing down, that once I started abusing myself, I just couldn’t stop. (Oh, it hurts my heart to write that now!) Nearly a quarter of  a century has passed since then and I think the same principle applies, except it would be ‘Once I start cherishing myself, I just can’t stop’. (Oh, happy heart!)

The path to eating healthy, whole foods has me considering the way I use other products. It is fair to say that I have spent a small fortune on skin care products and colour cosmetics. Kind of an addiction of its own, I have drawers full of tubes and creams, gloss and shine. They’re small drawers, but still. I’m convinced that the right combination of products in pretty little packages will give me flawless, glowing skin.

Truth is, I actually wear very little make-up. I just buy it. It is like the quest for the holy grail of youth and vitality. The right moisturizer will make it so, and I keep buying it, tossing it in a drawer, and returning to the quest. In particular, I’ve been seeking a remedy for facial eczema. And believe me, I have tried just about everything. To date, what has worked best?

Photoshop.

At yoga class a few weeks ago, I overheard one of the instructors talking about her journey with eczema. My flaky little ears perked up and I found out she exclusively uses coconut oil. Did I mention she has flawless, glowing skin?

Well, I just happened to have a goodly quantity of coconut oil on hand. It is a minor miracle in the kitchen and highly recommended as a ‘good’ fat.

As I write this I am in the Arizona dessert. I’ve been using the coconut oil for three weeks on my face and somehow it has migrated to the rest of me. My skin feels and looks great. It turns out the oil is a great hair treatment in the skirmish with sun and chlorine, too.

Can I replace those drawers full of cosmetic candy with one sturdy jar of coconut oil?

Slowly.

One tube at a time.

To read more about the benefits of coconut oil in the kitchen, check out Val MacDonald’s blog post.

Note: I am not being paid to endorse the pictured brand or any brand of coconut oil.

It’s definitely spring in our part of the world, and along with daffodils, primulas and signals that the mythical Bunny made its annual appearance, the big giveaway is the number of lingering head colds plaguing friends and neighbours. It’s that cold. Starts out as a small sniffle or tickle in your throat and two weeks later you are still huffing into kleenex and moaning wide-awake staring resentfully at the midnight moon.

Thanks to those always seasonally serendiptitous folks at Bon Appetit magazine, I came across a home remedy for colds that I swear has kept the bugs at bay and a spring in my still winter-soggy step while those around me are swaddled in sweaters and weakly croaking into hankies.

The recipe originated with Portland, Oregon’s Moxie RX, sadly no more. When I looked it up, it so much sounded like my kind of place, that I might have to buy myself a little vintage Airstream trailer and recreate it here. It was one of those places that you miss without ever having been there.

Moxie’s Cold Cure-All

• 1 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
• 2 tsp honey or light agave syrup (nectar)
• 1 tsp finely chopped peeled ginger
• 1/4 tsp echinacea extract
• Pinch of cayenne pepper

Combine all ingredients in a mug with 1 cup boiling water, stirring until honey is dissolved. Let sit for one minute before drinking. This drink is spicy, warm, and soothing. Perfect for those almost-but-not-quite-Spring days.

Note: I add a sprig of fresh oregano. Oregano oil is also very good for cold prevention – plus it makes a perky little garnish

I set a goal in 2012 to come up with  a handful of killer desserts that would qualify as ‘clean’ by my definition. Meaning gluten and dairy -free, without cane sugar, and mouthwateringly delicious. They also had to appeal to those poor souls with ‘regular’ diets (you know who you are!) so I could serve them as company desserts.

I did OK in 2012, coming up with two I really like, an adaptation of my yogurt panna cotta (not dairy-free, but I’m not religious about that!) and a really great fruit crisp. I also pretty much mastered gluten-free pie – using a GF mix. So…I carried over my goal into 2013.

One thing I lamented in my dessert quest (and really missed) was cake. Especially spice cake. Or ginger cake. Or any kind of cake.

In March, I joined forces with Patty Bojczuk and Val MacDonald in the Piece of Cake program (speaking of cake). It’s an amazing nutrition education and self-awareness program that combines healthy eating with mindfulness and includes coaching strategies to sustain success.

For homework, we ask participants to come up with healthy snack alternatives and share recipes. At our final session in the current series, Nancy, one of our awesome participants, arrived bearing this beautiful cake and the recipe. Like magic, my quest for an alternative to traditional spice cake was fulfilled. And I have another killer dessert to add to my repertoire.

Almond Butter Pumpkin Cake

Ingredients:

• 1 cup almond butter
• 3/4 cup mashed cooked pumpkin
• 1 egg
• 1/3 cup honey
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

Combine all ingredients in a bowl. Mix well. Pour into a greased 8 x 8″ pan. Bake at 350° for 25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Serves 8 (depending on the size of the pieces!) Note: optional additions are nuts, coconut, or dried fruit such as cranberries or cherries. I’ll be trying variations and I’ll keep you posted.

I kicked it up a notch by making a topping combining Greek yogurt, maple syrup and a drop of almond extract. Yummers.

Each day, I added an additional challenge or suggestion to amplify and expand the love dialogue. The secret agenda? Just to get people to focus on love – on being loved and being loving. A beautiful batch of people showed up to take the challenge. Calling themselves #teamlove, they enthusiastically spread the love across their online and offline communities.

Heartfelt thanks to Drucilla Desabrais, Alexandra Tudose, Vicky Jo Varner, Joseph Robinsmith, Kathy Irwin, Sylvia Taylor, Heather Fletcher, Daryl Stephenson, Christine Trischuk, Faye Luxemburg-Hyam, and Suzanne Laurie who agreed to play in.

What do I know for sure? Their hearts are bigger, healthier and pumping more sweet life as a result of joining #teamlove. Love is strange that way. The more you give, the more you have.

I promised them prizes. In their names, I’m making a donation to the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada. They are also going to get a little something from me. Along with a great, big *SMOOCH*. Their challenge: pass it on.

The Challenges:

Friday, Day 1 – Let the Love Challenge Begin!

Saturday, Day 2 – Love of Food

Sunday, Day 3 – Lovebirds

Monday, Day 4 – Love for Strangers

Tuesday, Day 5 – Love of Services

Wednesday, Day 6 – The Language of Love

Thursday, Day 7 – Unexpected Love

Friday, Day 8 – Noticing Love

Saturday, Day 9 – Love of Friends

Sunday, Day 10 – Inner Love

Monday, Day 11 – Love of Family

Tuesday, Day 12 – Love of Self

Wednesday, Day 13 – Love Song Jamboree

Thursday, Day 14-CELEBRATE

Turkey Meat Loaf: Zen Beautifulness

What’s a little meat loaf among  friends? For me, it turned out to be part of a new style of collaborating, planning and dreaming. I declare 2013 as The Year of Living a Happy Life From the Heart. I know, right? Sounds sappy, but admit it – the idea makes your great big heart race just a little.

This week I met with two colleagues to integrate a coaching dimension into an amazing program they’ve designed called “A Piece of Cake  - Finally a Diet that Isn’t”. The focus is on a holistic approach to understanding our bodies, our cravings and our inner blueprint for health.  The program combines nutrition education, self discovery and meditation, and personal coaching. It is all about real food, authentic connection and achieving health goals with grace and ease.

So, how did our meeting go? (And what about the MEAT LOAF? you cry. I’m getting there.) First, we met and took a morning yoga class together, followed by a lunch meeting at Val’s beautiful home where she served up this delicious, nutritious turkey meat loaf. So yummy. So simple.

• 1 pound ground turkey (or ground chicken)
• 1 egg yolk
• 3 Tbsp chopped parsley
• ½ medium onion, chopped
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• 1 tsp sea salt
• 1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 1 cup chicken broth

Preheat oven to 350˚F.

Mix all ingredients except broth. Form into a loaf and place in a lightly greased loaf pan. Pour broth over top and bake for 1 hour. When finished, cut into slices and pour the juices over the meatloaf.

For an extra flourish, Val served this with a drizzle of balsamic reduction.

I’m thinking of ways to include it in all my meetings!

Namaste.

If you are in the Lower Mainland area  of B.C., there is a Piece of Cake Introductory Session tomorrow! Program starts February 19-2013

To find out more or register visit: valmacdonald.com

The amazing Patty Bojczuk: rethinkingyourlife.ca

More about my work: mainstreetcommunications.ca

It’s an ABSOLUTE FAVE bolognese recipe. A jillion thanks to Steffani for posting it where we can all get our greedy bolognese-loving hands on it!

It’s a perfect comfort food, especially in the middle of a long, cold, wet winter. Did I mention cold? And wet? So slurp it up folks. Pile this on your favourite pasta and send your tummy to sunnier climes.

Enter Steff:

“This is based upon the Food TV Network’s Best of cookbook’s recipe for Bolognese.

All ingredients are an approximation, based on my best recollection.

Don’t follow recipes to the T anyhow, not when it’s “cooking”. Baking is different, that’s science. Cooking, however, is art, because every ingredient from every seller tastes different, and YOU, the COOK, you need to compensate for that change of state at your station.

Cook, dammit! Improvise! Taste, change, put your stamp on it! Recipes are either geared for the writer of the recipe (like mine), or they’re written for the “lowest common denominator”, the average person, the person for whom restaurants offer “MILD” seasoning.

NAY, DON’T GO THERE. No one need be mild, man!

So, my bolognese? As I recollect, and since I’ve perfectly matched an easy-drinking Nero with this pasta tonight, let’s hope I recollect well.

___________________________

Bolognese, Man – The Good Stuff

This is slow-cooked for six hours. It’s perfect to make after you’ve relaxed after your mid-morning Saturday or Sunday breakfast. Takes about 30 minutes to get going, then you just stir it every hour or so, look hungrily at it and think “Yes, I’m saving room for seconds” as you mix it and inhale.

1 to 1.25 pounds meat (can be lean beef, seasoned sausage meat, ground pork, whatever you prefer)
1 tbsp hot pepper flakes
1 tbsp dried thyme
2 slices thick bacon (you can go for pancetta, if you feel splurgey)
1 large sweet onion*
1 shallot*
1 medium red onion*
1 JUMBO carrot, or 2.5 cups (3 or so regular? excess won’t hurt)*
2 cans 28-oz tomatoes (crush them yourself in a big bowl, use everything)
1 small can tomato paste
2.5 cups DARK chicken, or beef stock
2 bay leaves
2 tsp oregano
1 tbsp dried thyme
1 tbsp Worcestshire sauce
1 tbsp Vietnamese fish sauce
1 tbsp cracked black pepper
salt to taste

* The veg, they can be chopped 1/4 to 1/3” cubes, or you can pulse them in a food processor until a fine chop is reached (it’s all good, as long as you’re not gonna let ‘em burn when sauteeing)

1. You’ll need a 5-quart dutch oven or similar pot for this. Get it heated to medium. You can use 1 tablespoon of olive oil if your meat is lean, or even if it’s fatty. You can strain it off at the end, so it doesn’t matter.

2. Add the meat to the warm pan with/without oil. Add the red pepper flakes and the first half of the thyme. Brown your meat. This will take 5-10 minutes.

3. Once cooked, remove the meat and reserve it. Strain the fat if you want to — it’ll certainly add awesome flavour if you keep it, and 3 tablespoons for 4 quarts isn’t the end of the world!

4. In the same pot, take your bacon (chopped into “lardoons” or little chunks about 1/3” thick) and cook the bits until getting crispy. Take them out, leaving the fat in the pan, and reserve the bacon with your browned meat.

5. Cook the veggies until the onions are turning golden — not caramelized, just a little beyond translucent. This might take 10 minutes, it really depends on your stove and your cookware. Watch and be decisive. Add the thyme and oregano at some point during this step. A 1/2 tablespoon of salt won’t hurt.

6. Add the tomato paste to the veggies, stir to coat them, cook for 2-3 more minutes.

7. Add 2 cans of diced or whole tomatoes than you’ve crushed with your own hands in a bowl before adding them. Add the meat. Add the bay leaves.

8. Stir well. Heat until it starts to bubble, then turn to medium low, partially cover, and cook for 4-6 hours, stirring every 45 minutes or so.

9. When there’s 20 minutes between you and eating, get the pasta water boiling.

10. Once you get the pasta in to cook, then add your fish sauce and Worcestshire. Mix well. TASTE IT. Does it need salt or pepper? Add some. Once you add it to the pasta, the pasta will automatically absorb SOME salt, so SOME can’t hurt, likely. If the pasta is NOT whole wheat/gluten free, take it off a minute or so early. Otherwise, keep cooking.

11. Sauce happy? Strain the pasta, don’t rinse it. Return it to the cooking pot. Add some sauce, stir to see if it’s a decent amount. Keep adding until you’re pleased, keeping in mind that you’ll be ladling a spoonful on top of the pasta anyhow. Let saute for 2-3 minutes.

12. SERVE!

TIPS:

• Like cheese? Save your parmesan cheese rinds, freeze them, and simmer it in your bolognese. Throw it out at the end, and you have all the cheese flavour without all the fat.
• It’s a huge batch because it takes so long to make perfectly but it also freezes really, really well. Freeze it as a sauce, not mixed with cooked pasta. Do it properly.
• FISH SAUCE? Actually, fish sauce is one of those mysteries, like the Caramilk secret. Somehow it binds the flavour of meat and onions together and gives this beautiful umami taste sensation to the sauce. Trust me. Actually, trust all the people who call it their “secret” ingredient.

ENJOY!”

So good. So photogenic!

Is it possible to be in love with a pie? This one was so good, and so gorgeous to look it, I couldn’t stop taking pictures of it.  Never mind eating it. That made us swoon.

This year for Christmas dinner, hubby and I shared a lovely 14-lb turkey. Yes, just us. Why? Because we’re piggies. And,  it is all about the leftovers. Aren’t you just crazy for turkey leftovers?

From turkey sammies slathered with mayo and mustard, to bone-warming turkey soup simmering on the stovetop, to this – the glorious pie.

We served it as a welcome dinner for my mom, visiting us in sunny Scottsdale for the New Year.

What a great week for cooking and eating – and for serving up a healthy portion of gratitude for such abundant food and loved ones to share it with.

Just a *small* portion for me.

This recipe is an adaptation of one of Food & Family’s. You can find the original here. I omitted potatoes  and increased veggie and turkey quantities. I added parsley (just love parsley, don’t you?) and decreased the gravy-making ingredients.

This is not a gluten-free recipe. By making your own GF pastry and using a mixture of rice flour and arrowroot flour for the gravy it could be easily converted. I used a store-bought puff pastry as I was feeling incredibly lazy. Could it be all that turkey?

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 cups chicken stock
• 1 tsp. chopped fresh thyme (or 1/2 tsp. dried)
• 1/4 c chopped parsley
• 1 bay leaf
• 2/3 cup chopped yellow onions
• 2/3 cup chopped celery
• 2/3 cup peeled and thinly chopped or diced carrots
• 2/3 cup sliced white button mushrooms
• 1- 1 1/2 cup chopped cooked turkey (or chicken)
• 2/3 cup cooked fresh or frozen peas (for frozen, simply place peas in heat-resistant measuring cup, cover with boiling water and let stand. Drain and use.)
• Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
• 1 pkg. frozen puff pastry
• 1 egg, beaten with 1 tsp. water

Number of servings (yield): 4

This is truly blissful holiday eating. Of course, you could make it anytime. And why not?

And why not?

Here’s what I think makes a great recipe for finishing with the old and getting ready for a bright, shiny new beginning.

1. Take one part thoughtful consideration, introspection, reflection, prayer or meditation (to taste).

2. Sift through thoughts, actions, behaviours, attitudes of the past 12 months. Discard those that have become stale and no longer serve you.

3. Measure your successes in the past year. Include every win, large or small. They all add sweetness to the mix.

4. Examine your failures. Be gentle, but honest. Squeeze out the lessons learned and discard the rest.

5. Add a generous portion of gratitude. It is recommended to double or triple this ingredient.

This recipe requires rigour. Ensure that you are 100% prepared to leave the old behind or burn it off in a very hot oven (fiery apocalypse, anyone?). You’re now ready to begin anew. Happy transcendence!

For a very interesting read on The Mayan Calendar and the End as We Know It, click here.

If you are in the Vancouver BC area and interested in a workshop to focus on your new beginning for 2013, check out Cooking Up 2013.

Nevertheless: The day of the family feed fell on Grey Cup Sunday. This also inconveniently coincided with my recovery from one massive migraine headache. Have you ever had a migraine? It makes your head feel like a football, stomped on at the bottom of the scrum. Or is that the huddle? Either way, it’s nasty.

I needed a simple, easy, football-friendly menu and I needed one that wouldn’t require excessive rattling of pots and pans. Also one that could be managed while pleasantly stoned on the aftermath of prescription medication.

I settled on ribs, mashed potatoes, cole slaw and baked beans.

Enter hubby with a potato masher. (Not pictured).

The ribs were easily done up the day before – cut them into manageable racks, place in a roasting pan, pour 2-3 bottles of beer over them (depends on amount o’ ribs), add peppercorns, some bay leaves, some cloves of garlic. Cover and bake at 350 degrees for an hour to an hour and a half. The ribs will be nicely cooked and can be refrigerated.

To prep for serving day, cover in your favourite *BBQ sauce and bake uncovered at 350 for a half-hour or until ribs are heated through and sauce is glazed.  So easy-peasy that even a spaced-out migraine-sufferer can handle it.

The star on the field though, was the baked beans. I made these as a vegetarian main, for my very sweet sister-in-law. Of course, others got to eat them too, because – basically – everybody loves them! This recipe is from Squawkfox – a site for all things frugal and fun.

Ingredients:

• 1.5 lbs (3 cups) dried small white beans, or navy beans
• 2.5 cups vegetable broth
• 1/2 tablespoon salt
• 1 (6 ounce) can tomato paste
• 1/2 cup molasses
• 2 tablespoons dried mustard
• Optional: 2 garlic cloves, minced
• Optional: sautéed chopped onion
• Optional: (Dishing In the Kitchen variation) Half a package of smoked tofu, cut into small cubes.

Note: I did use the garlic, onions and tofu. I sautéed the tofu in a little butter and olive oil, then sautéed the garlic in with the onions. I also added about 2T of honey to the ingredients. Not sure I really needed the honey. The beans were sweet and rich with a nice slight smokiness.

Directions:

Soak navy beans overnight or longer — up to 12 hours — for even softer baked beans. Drain beans and rinse off. Put beans into slow cooker. Add all the other ingredients and stir them together.

Cover slow cooker and cook 6-7 hours on high, or 10-12 hours on low. These cooking times are approximate, so cook until the beans are soft and the sauce is rich. Add water or more veggie broth to the slow cooker, if needed.

I love this warning from Squawkfox:

“Eyeball Warning: If you like your eyeballs, then do yourself a solid and refrain from opening the lid during the early hours of cooking. Dried mustard is volatile stuff, and the fumes will burn your pupils if you dare peep into the pot.”

This makes a generous supply of beans. It fed ten of us, with leftovers. By the way, my other sweet sister-in-law brought the dessert. Lemon Cake. Mmm.

*I have not included my barbecue sauce recipe here. It is very unhealthy. So unhealthy in fact, that I actually I didn’t eat it. For me, I  covered some of the cooked ribs in sauerkraut and baked them in a small Pyrex dish alongside the big pan of ribs in the oven. The sauce has lots of sugar – which I really try to avoid. I did however serve it to my family. No wonder they are so sweet.

**I might be persuaded to share the recipe with you. Convince me.

***Come to think of it, the beans were pretty sugary, too. Anybody have a baked beans recipe that doesn’t include molasses?