Selling the Good Stuff!

We passed the big hump! The days are slowly getting longer and I am planning to soak up Summer 2012 - every sun-kissed, delicious moment of it! I make no apologies for my love of summer - it is what it is!

Christmas has been grand - lush, elaborate meals with family and friends, but now it's time to ease out of the flowing holiday clothes and whittle off the extra padding before the warm weather returns.

Inspired by memories of summer, here is my Sunshine Salad - hope you will turn up the heat, put on a pretty sarong and enjoy this summery goodness - even though it's frosty outside... after all, why waste time longing for summer when you can create a bit of that vibe right now?

PAM'S SUNSHINE SALAD

SALAD INGREDIENTS
8 cups salad greens (l prefer romaine or spinach, but Mesclan mix is also nice!)
1 small banana, sliced
1 cup sliced strawberries (or 2 kiwis!)
1/2 cup toasted almonds
I diced avocado
3 ounces crumbled goat cheese

DRESSING INGREDIENTS
1/8 cup balsamic vinegar
1/8 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/2 cup strawberry flavour Greek yogurt (the real stuff, not low fat with gelatin!)
dash salt
fresh ground black pepper, to taste
lime zest or orange zest, to taste

METHOD
At serving time, toss the greens, fruit and avocado with the prepared dressing. Garnish with cheese and almonds - serve immediately. Nice side with grilled chicken or steak - mmm...

Serves 4: Enjoy! xox

The Chocolate Solution!

Today I was so excited to go to the salon and get a cut and colour - I have been growing my locks since July and it was time for some personal pampering! The end result was a disaster - too dark, too short with odd jaggedy bangs that make me look like some crazy cat lady and nowhere like the hip Mom I aspire to be!

My solution - time to try this one dish brownie recipe I got from my friend, Christine. They are easy to make and taste amazing. You don't need to be having the ultimate bad hair day to enjoy xo!

Christine's One Dish Brownies

INGREDIENTS: Batter
1/2 cup butter, melted
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 large eggs
1/2 cup flour
1/3 cup Dutch cocoa
1 cup granulated white sugar
1/4 tsp. baking powder

INGREDIENTS: Icing
1/3 cup butter, softened
2 Tbsp. corn syrup
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/3 cup Dutch cocoa
1 cup icing sugar
3-4 tsp. hot water

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and prepare a 8" square baking dish. Add batter ingredients to the buttered baking dish, stirring to form a smooth batter. Bake 20 - 25 minutes and set aside to cool.

Meanwhile, prepare the frosting by stirring together butter, corn syrup and vanilla, and then adding cocoa and icing sugar; thinning with hot water to form a creamy consistency. Once the brownies are cool, frost and serve - amazingly delicious!

Marvelous MIM!!!

If you are eating low carb and also interested in getting your Omega3s and keeping a healthy degree of fibre in your diet, the Atkin's Muffin in a Minute (MIM) may be just what you're looking for!

Easy to make from scratch (literally 1-2 minutes of prep and 1 minute in the microwave!), the MIM is large, light in texture and tastes great. The photo at left shows 2/3 of the muffin I made today - I had already gobbled the rounded top of it before I thought to share my joy!

By the way, I grind my own flax seed a couple of cups at a time and store it in the freezer - I not only find this to be much more economical, but I find that it also has a far better flavour than the pre-milled flax.

As our mornings get cooler, it's nice to have a quick, hot breakfast alternative - I enjoyed the piping hot MIM today with a bit of my homemade, sugar-free strawberry jam, and I felt very satisfied and spoiled before, during and after :)

NOTE: flax breads are higher in fat, but this is healthy fat that, over time, will improve the texture of your hair, skin and nails. For women of all ages, flax as part of daiy diet can also help with menstrual cramps, and for those age 35+, flax in your daily diet can alleviate "hot flashes" common in perimenopause and menopause. Isn't it nice to have that benefit come to us from healthy, tasty food and not from a hormone pill or injections? Here is the recipe - ENJOY!

Atkins Muffin in a Minute (MIM)

1 large egg
1 tsp. melted butter or canola oil
Few grains salt (optional)
1 pkg. artificial sweetner
1/2 tsp. cinnamon (optional)
1/4 cup ground flax
1/2 tsp. baking powder

Place flax, salt, cinnamon, sweetner and baking powder in a coffee mug, stirring to combine. Add in the egg and butter. Stir well to combine. Microwave one minute on high (adjust more or less, depending on the wattage of your appliance). Remove mug from microwave. Run a butter knife around the edges of the mug to loosen the muffin, and invert it onto a serving dish. Slice, butter and enjoy!

Makes one large muffin. Contains 3.2 grams of carbohydrate, 9.4 grams of fibre, 12.2 grams of protein and 17.3 grams of fat - 235 calories.

Beet it ;)

I had the very good fortune to receive a bundle of wonderful summer veg today from Stonelane Orchard - they sell their pesticide-free produce at local market gardens; including the St. Norbert Market.

Among the lush kale, chard, tomatoes, peas and so on, was a spectacular, large bunch of red beets with perfect leaves. I said to Stonelane co-owner, Rick, "OMG, these are the most beautiful beets I have ever seen!" and he remarked, simply "Our beets always look like this." Too cute - nice to know that vegetable heaven can be enjoyed here on Earth - at least through the short summer growing season! Needless to say, I was inspired and I couldn't wait to get home and start cooking. I surfed the net for a short while, wondering if I could find something new and exciting, but my tastebuds were yearning for some traditional Russian favourites: borscht and beet leaf rolls (holuptsi)

As things got underway in the kitchen, my daughters began swarming - wondering when the soup would be ready. Nice to be popular- if only for sustainance LOL.

I make my borscht using chicken or vegetable broth, preferring this to the pork-based version my German mother makes (sorry, Mom - just not a pork fan...). Here are the recipes for Beet Rolls and Borcht - I hope you will try the recipes and enjoy some local beets in season.

Pam's Russian Borcht

INGREDIENTS:
Large bunch beets with greens, 6-8 medium-size beets
1 medium onion, chopped finely
3 Tbsp. olive oil
2 cups chopped kale or cabbage
1.5 tsp. salt
Pepper, to taste
1/2 cup chopped fresh dill
3 tsp. sour salt, or to taste
8 bay leaves, or to taste
2 cups diced carrot
1 large tomato, diced
2 cups diced new potatoes
1 can baked beans in tomato sauce
8 cups chicken or vegetable broth

METHOD:
Heat olive oil over medium-high heat in a soup pot, stirring in the onions. Cook onions until clear, but don't brown. Stir in salt, pepper, tomatoes, carrot and potatoes, along with 1/3 of the broth. Cook 15 - 20 minutes. Meanwhile grate the beets and chop the leaves and stems finely - add these to the soup, along with the remaining broth, beans, dill and sour salt. Simmer for 45 minutes and serve hot with a dollop of sour cream or natural yogurt.

Beet Leaf Rolls

INGREDIENTS:
36 large beet leaves, washed and trimmed
1 tsp. salt
Pepper, to taste
1/2 cup fresh dill, minced
1 medium onion, chopped finely
1/3 cup butter (approximate), divided use
1/2 cup 18% cream

Melt 3 Tbsp. of butter in a medium pot over medium-high heat. Add in salt, rice and 2 cups of water - cook rice, covered for 40-45 minutes. Meanwhile, saute the onion in another 3Tbsp. of the butter. Stir softened onion into the cooked rice along with pepper and dill, to form the beet roll filling. Rice the leaves and cut off any tough ribs. Place leaves in a colander and blanche by pouring 1.5 litres of boiling water over them - leaves should be softened but not mushy. Spoon 2-3 teaspoons of filling on each leaf and roll tightly, pushing in each end with fingertips to seal. Butter a small baking dish with 2 tsp. of the butter. Place rolls with seam down in the casserole dish. Pour cream over all. Preheat oven to 300 degrees Fahrenheit, and bake for 30 minutes, loosely covered with foil. Serve warm with or without sour cream or natural yogurt.

NOTE: if the leaves are too small or tattered, or if you are pressed for time, try making a lasagne-style casserole, beginning with a layer of the softened beet leaves and then a thin layer of filling; repeat. End with a leaf layer and pour cream over all. Bake for same amount of time.

Strawberry Heaven

My Mom loves to go strawberry picking - usually it is a weekend outing, involving a 45 minute drive to her favourite U-Pick farm. There are many farms that are closer, but she prefers two of the province's largest farms (which happen to be the furthest from our homes!), and although we always enjoy the outing - let's just say that it's not exactly a cost-effective undertaking!

When my girls were small I remember them "helping" and coming home with strawberry fun covering all of their clothes. One year, my daughter, Dior actually fell asleep in the strawberry patch - she had picked a 4 litre pail, filled her tummy with fruit and expired, exhausted by the experience - dear little girl!

This year, we went on a Monday in the late afternoon - it turned out that the weekend was too busy for us both! The result was great and I think a new tradition has been born - the farm was not crowded, berries were just as plentiful, and it was much cooler in the evening.
The only thing I missed was popping a sun-heated plump berry into my mouth - something about the warm berries in the sunshine; they just burst into your taste buds! However, I did plenty of "quality control" tasting in the field :)

A few years ago I started making freezer jam for my kids - they always liked Grandma's so much and I thought it was time that I learned to make it. This evolved into making the low sugar recipe, and then to the sugar-free recipe. The first time I made the sugar-free version I was concerned that the kids would hate it and it would be wasted! Boy was I wrong - it has been a huge hit! Here is the recipe - the consistency is like a thick syrup. You may wish to stir some into plain yogurt or use it as a waffle or ice cream topping - tart and fresh tasting and good for the waistline. Hope you will try it and enjoy it - very easy to make too :)

Sugar-Free Strawberry Freezer Jam

Ingredients:
4 cups fresh strawberries, hulled and mashed
4 tsp. Splenda
1 Tbsp. lemon juice
I box Certo brand powdered pectin

Method:
Combine all ingredients in a medium pot and heat over medium-high heat, stirring constantly. Bring to a boiling point and boil for one minute; then remove from heat and stir for two minutes. Ladle jam into clean plastic or glass containers, cover tightly with lids and allow to cool to room temperature. Place cooled containers in freezer. Freezes well for 9 - 10 months in deep freeze or for 3 months in a refrigerator freezer. I quadruple the recipe and make two batches - 32 cups of berries yield twelve of the 2-1/2 cup sized plastic containers of jam.

New Summer Classic!

We've been enjoying some sultry summer temps - you hear a few muffled complaints about the heat and humidity, but most of us are pretty careful not to gripe too much... a few weeks and our glorious summer will be on its way out the door and we'll be hunkering down for one of our famous, drawn out prairie winters!

My latest fav summer dessert is so easy you will not believe it - GRILLED PEACHES! I have enjoyed grilled pineapple, but never had tasted grilled peaches until very recently when one of my dearest friends served them at her daughter's post-convocation party. I always feel simplicity is best in life and in food - you want to enjoy the honest flavours of fresh, quality ingredients versus overly-fussy concoctions -- that's just a given:)

Here's how it was done at my friends' BBQ ... hope you will try and enjoy. After sampling the grilled peaches, I am thinking that kabobs with teriyaki-marinated pork or chicken; along with peaches, pineapple, mushrooms and sweet bell peppers would make a killer combo (do you sense a culinary sequel???)!

Gail's Yummy Grilled Peaches

Ingredients
6 large peaches, halved and pitted
2 litre brick of vanilla ice cream
Smucker's caramel sundae sauce (or Starbucks caramel sauce)

Place peaches cut side down on a hot grill for 3-5 minutes, turn and grill the back side for an additional 3-5 minutes - watch carefully, as the finished product should have light grill marks, but should not be charred. Consistency is tender to the fork, but with firmness - not mushy!

Set grilled peaches aside to cool slightly while you slice the brick ice cream into squares. Place one or two peach halves cut side up on the ice cream, drizzle with caramel sauce and serve. YUM! Like pie without the heaviness - just a little piece of heaven for your taste buds xo!

Shaponica? Fern Tarts? Retro Romance Me, Baby!

Every city has its iconic businesses - sometimes with niche products or services that make you go "hmmmm... I wonder how they make a go of it?", because it seems like it would not draw a ton of traffic -- but they somehow stand the test of time.

In Winnipeg, a lot of the places that stand out relate to FOOD! For a small city (less than 700,000) there are hundreds of amazing places to find great tucker - many ethnicities and their respective specialities are represented!

If you were a kid growing up in Winnipeg, THE place for birthday cakes was Jeanne's Bakery on Notre Dame. I did not grow up in the city and always wondered what the hoopla was about - I remember one girl at my rural Manitoba school whose family would "import" the Holy Grail of cakes for her birthday and she would come to school in some kind of fan-girl frenzy.

When I finally did try a Jeanne's cake in my mid-twenties, I found it to be dry and tasteless - what's the big deal, I wondered? Well, it turns out I had never had a fresh Jeanne's cake - the one I sampled was stale. The trick is to go right to Jeanne's, versus buying a cake at one of the local grocery chains that carry the bakery's famous goodies: Sobey's, Food Fare etc. nyet, buyer beware!

Yesterday I had the pleasure of sampling Jeanne's red velvet cake... All I can say is... OMG! I am not the biggest cake fan, but these cakes are like a cake cloud in your mouth - the icing is light, non-lardy, and with just the right level of sweetness; it hovers on your tongue almost like whipped cream, but less cloying. The kicker that sets a Jeanne's cake apart is the shortbread crust - I am told by my aficionado girlfriend that this is a Belgian recipe, as the original owners of the shop came from Belgium :)

Other cool stuff I spied but did not sample at Jeanne's... Shaponica (some kind of huge cookie sandwich rolled in graham crumbs). Gotta admit, I was a little freaked out by La Shaponica's sheer size and the clerk's description of its sugary composition, but I was, nonetheless, completely transfixed LOL! (Shapona whaaa????) Like a hefty gal that has the confidence to wear spandex - that would be Shaponica!

Also on my radar... baby biscotti and wee shortbread squares in sweet cardboard envelope packets (for future consideration). My girlfriend is one of those North End Winnipeg kids who knew all the pleasures of Jeanne's - inside out and upside down. While I ogled the merchandise, she gabbed coolly with the clerk about the glory days of Eccles Cakes and Fern Tarts (no longer on the bakery roster, btw). Wonder if these delicacies will resurface? To be continued at some point you can be sure, as I have scoped recipes online...

Not a Winnipegger? If you visit our city you may wish to come hungry and bring your bicycle/workout DVDs to burn off all of the extra calories - but make sure you visit the following for their unique specialties, guaranteed to please:

Kelekis on Main Street - foot long hot dogs (don't be intimidated by the stern, senior citizen servers...somehow, by some miracle, you can taste love in the food!)

Morden's Chocolates - in-house roasted nuts and hand-made chocolates (Ellice Ave.)

Mrs. Mike's - seasonal stand on Tache Ave: King Burgers and Chili 'n Chips (bring wet naps and share one order with an equally hungry friend) - King Kong size portions!

Bridge Drive-In - seasonal ice cream stand on Jubilee, near Kingston Row; try the Goog (upside down blue berry milkshake with a whole lotta other stuff factored in; including about 2500 calories I am guessing ... not my cuppa tea, but my kids rave about it, and it's a first rite of spring!)

Rae & Jerry's - Portage Avenue steakhouse, home of red leather and wood panelled sexiness... eat in the lounge and try the gin martini with a Reuben; well maybe two martinis and share the sandwich...mmm... 1960s flashback a la Mad Men. Chicken fingers and fries also fit the bill...

Bistro Dansk - on Sherbrook for homemade chicken soup, sour dough bread and if your diet allows, the luscious hazelnut torte with freshly brewed coffee.

Retro romancing... get out there and ENJOY!