Ontario Apple and Local Jam Puff Pastry Tart

"The friendly cow, all red and white, I love with all my heart; She gives me cream with all her might, to eat with apple-tart." Robert Louis Stevenson

Hmm, I guess cows were red and white a couple hundred years ago...? I don't get it!
Anyhoo, hello followers! Today I am back to say that I have gotten all of my work done and I am currently patting myself on the back. I got my 'Sideroads' article and photos in a day before my deadline! And you know, working on spring inspired recipes has got me longing for the next season. It also gave me an idea about my next blogging adventure, but you'll just have to wait til next week to find out more about that! I also sent in my bio to the MOCCA board with hopes that knowing a little bit more about my credentials will suade them to hire me for the 300 ppl catering coming up in April! Lastly, the baby shower for my nephew Evan James Visheau was a lovely afternoon and the snacks were delish! Along with my contributions, my Aunt Deb brought her crowd pleasing spinach dip, Aunt Julie brought her classic devilled eggs and my Aunt Barb brought a yummy orzo salad! My Mum made cupcakes with blue icing, decorated with mini rubber duckies and tiny baby bottles. She then displayed them in her tiered cupcake stand and it was so, so cute! Just perfect for a shower! Among the food I made were the apple tarts that I had done for the MOCCA catering a couple of weeks ago. Locally grown apples can be found at any grocery store and jam made with last year's summer fruit, go perfectly together. The tarts are so easy to make and are so perfect for this time of year, that I just had to share the recipe. For both parties, I served the tarts with creme friache, so I thought I 'd throw in that recipe as well! Wow, two recipes for the price of one! Crazy!

Simple and Tasty Recipe:

Ontario Apple and Local Jam Puff Pastry Tart
(serves 6)

1 piece puff pastry
2 apples
1/4 cup jam, any flavour
1 tbsp butter, melted
1/2 tsp sugar

.preheat the oven to 375 degrees
.core the apples and thinly slice, place in a bowl of water with a squeezed half lemon to prevent browning
.roll out the puffy pastry on a floured surface into a large square, 1/4 cm thick, cut in half and place the pieces on parchment lined trays
. fold the edges in by about a centimetre and with a fork dipped in flour, push down the edge to create a boarder
.spread the jam in the centre of the pastry
.drain the apple slices and arrange, overlapping, down the centre of the pastry, brush the apples with the melted butter and sprinkle with the sugar
.place in the oven and bake for 25 to 30 mins (if left too long, the overflowing juices will burn)
.serve warm or at room temperature with creme fraiche...

Creme Fraiche:

sour cream
35% cream

.whisk together EQUAL PARTS of the creams, cover and leave on the counter overnight to thicken
.refrigerate until needed

There you go! Easy or what?! Now, I prefer to use the 'President's Choice' puff pastry because it is made with butter and already rolled out. Two pieces come in each package and for your convenience, they are rolled in parchment paper which can be use to bake with. How handy! For the MOCCA catering, I used fig jam. For today's tart, I used gooseberry jam made from last summer's harvest. Any jam would do. I prefer to use McIntosh apples, but you can use whatever apples you like. I think I will make this recipe again in the fall with locally grown pears. Wouldn't that be nice? Well my followers, have a great weekend and I'll be back next week with a whole new adventure... Ha ha! How exciting!

Photos courtesy of Emily Andrus

"...busy as a bee, and cheerful as a cricket..." Martha Washington

G'day to you all!
Alas my followers, there is no recipe today... Sorry! I've had a busy week and not a lot of time for cooking. Quite a few projects are in the works and this week has been all about the research (and I love the research!). So, if you don't mind, I was thinking I would give you all an update on my current culinary adventures! Where to start...? First up, remember the catering I did for MOCCA last week? Well, some people were quite impressed with my food (so, so nice!), that now I have been informed there is a catering for 300 people coming up. A couple of people think I should do it. It is a cold hors d'oeuvres party and I really think I could pull it off, especially with my trusty Sous Chef Cathy by my side! After a lot of brainstorming, my menu is designed and today I am sending off a bit of a bio to the MOCCA board to try to win them over. Next up, I am catering my nephew's baby shower on Sunday. Yippy! My Brother Adam and his wife Michelle had little Evan James on Feb. 5th. He was a month early and weighed the same as a bag of sugar (5 lbs), but he is doing extremely well and was sent home 4 days later. We are expecting 20 guests and again, I have spent time this week designing my menu. I hope all the ladies like my food and I am ready to get started on the prep tomorrow. Speaking of Adam and Michelle, I am also going to make some food for them to put into the freezer, for quick and easy meals! Adam has been doing most of the cooking, but he will be going back to work next week. We are happy to help out in any way we can! Now, my last culinary adventure involves the 'Sideroads of Halton Hills' magazine I submit an article for. My deadline for the spring issue is coming up on Feb. 25th. As of last night, I finalized my recipe selections, thank goodness! I am planning to get started on that project on Monday. I really, really hope everything turns out (fingers crossed!), and of course I will keep you all updated. I love researching recipes and designing menus, but man, this week has been a bit much! Don't fret my followers, I promise I will be taking pictures at the shower and will have a recipe for you next week! Have a great long weekend, bye for now!

Mini Meringue Sandwiches, Gluten Free

"A good time was had by all." Stevie Smith

Howdy my fun loving followers, looking forward to the weekend? Yee ha!
So, as mentioned last week, I did a catering on Wednesday. It was for 70 people at MOCCA (the Museum of Contemporary Canadian Art), in Toronto. I am extremely pleased to say that the food was an absolute hit! I decided to go with a bit of an Italian theme, since pasta was requested as the main. Three appetizers were put out in the bar area for the guests to munch on, they were: mini muffaletta sandwiches, chard and leek phyllo bundles and my layered cheese terrine with rosemary crostini (both of those can be found on my 'Recipes' page). To give the terrine an Italian flair, I decided to change up the recipe and used pine nuts, asiago and mozzarella cheeses. Also, olives marinated two ways (lemon, garlic and rosemary, and spicy chili), and roasted almonds with sea salt were set on the bar. Delicious! Next, the main course was served buffet style in the gallery, alongside the artist's work who was speaking that night. The main course: penne in an Italian sausage and tomato sauce with peppers, fusili with a sun dried tomato, spinach and pesto sauce, mixed greens with two vinaigrettes and 4 different varieties of bread, served with whipped butter and extra virgin olive oil and balsamic for dippin'. Last but not least, dessert. We served three desserts on the same table as the main course: individual chocolate cakes with walnuts, apple and fig tarts with creme fraiche and meringue sandwiches filled with lemon marmalade and dulce de leche (in honour of our South American artist!). What dessert people seemed to like the most was the meringues, so I've decided to make that today's recipe! Yum!

 

Simple and Tasty Recipe:

 

Mini Meringue Sandwiches
(makes about 30)

2 egg whites
pinch of cream of tartar
1/2 cup white granulated sugar
2 to 3 tablespoons of filling (your fave jam, icing of any flavour, honey, etc.)

.preheat oven to 200 degrees
.in a bowl, whisk eggs whites until frothy with an electric mixer (by hand can be done, but it takes a while!!!), add in the cream of tartar
.continue to mix until the egg whites make soft peaks, slowly start to add in the sugar
.continue to mix until the egg whites are glossy, the sugar has dissolved and they hold stiff peaks
.line two baking sheet pans with parchment paper or lightly grease them
.using a teaspoon, place 3 cm diameter dollops of meringue on the trays, leaving space between each meringue or spoon the egg whites into a piping bag (with or without a tip), and pipe the 3 cm diameter meringues onto the trays
.place the trays in the oven for 1 1/2 hours, turn off oven and allow to sit for 30 minutes more, remove from oven and cool completely
.using a butter knife, place about 1/4 tsp of filling on the bottom of a meringue, sandwich with another, enjoy!

These little sandwiches are so pretty and taste so good! Meringues are affected by moisture in the air, so it is best to make them on a dry day or they will get soggy. The fillings are limitless, so have fun and experiment! Lastly, I need to give out some shout outs to the people who made this successful catering possible! I'd like to thank Lara for getting me the gig, my Mum for good advice, Kevin who helped out SO much and a big THANK YOU to my friend Cathy, who is my all-time favourite Sous Chef  and without her, I could not have done it! Finally, I'd like to thank the journalist from 'Latidos Magazine' who thought my meringues were 'Orgasmic!' This recipe is for you and I'm looking forward to seeing our photo in the next issue! Muchas gracias, Senor!! See yah next week, my fave followers!

Ontario Vegetable Borscht, Vegetarian and Gluten Free

"Soup is the song of the hearth... and the home." Louis P. De Guoy

Hello followers, dug yourselves out yet?! Ha!
This blog marks the end of 'Soup Month' and today's recipe is for one of my family's favourites, borscht. My Grandma has a Ukrainian background, so we have always enjoyed such traditional foods as cabbage rolls, perogies and today's soup, borscht. Always homemade, of course, with the family recipes being passed down from my Great Grandmother Myslitsky. Well, today's soup recipe comes to us from my Uncle Jeff, who decided to break with tradition this past Christmas Eve. You see, every year we are invited out to my Aunt Deb and Uncle Jeff's house for a pre Christmas dinner buffet. They go all out and what better way for me to spend my birthday, then to be gathered with the Visheau clan out in Dundas! Who needs a restaurant when one is treated to Prime Rib, delicious soups, seasonal veggies, fresh winter salads and a lovely selection of cheeses. Yum! My Uncle Jeff has always loved to cook and not a lot of people know this, but he used to have a cooking show! That's right, it was called 'Cookin' with Jeff' and was shot exclusively for our family audience, up at the cottage in Muskoka. Almost every morning the show would start while making breakfast and I was always so excited to be my Uncle's Executive Sous Chef! Hmm, looking back, those moments could have been one of the reasons why I got into cooking in the first place... Anyhoo, this soup was so good that I decided to send out a request and my Cousin Robyn graciously emailed me the recipe. Thanks, again!

Simple and Tasty Recipe:

Ontario Vegetable Borscht, Uncle Jeff's
(serves 6 to 8)

1 tbsp olive oil
1 onion, rough chop
1 leek, white part only, rough chop
1 clove garlic, rough chop
3 medium beets, peeled and rough chop
1 potato, peeled and rough chop
1 carrot, peeled and rough chop
1 cup cabbage, rough chop
1750 ml vegetable stock
2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
2 tbsp fresh dill, rough chop (plus extra for garnish)
sour cream (for garnish)

.in a large pot, heat the oil on medium low heat, add in the onion, garlic and leek, stir occasionally and cook for 10 mins
.add in the remainder of the ingredients (except for the garnishes) and bring to a boil, skim off foam
.reduce heat to low and simmer, partially covered, until the veggies are el dente
.adjust seasoning, ladle into bowls and garnish with a dollop of sour cream and dill, smachnoho!

Uber delicious and the colour is amazing! What a fantastic way to end a month of easy to make, seasonal soups! Now, you all might be wondering what culinary adventures are on the horizon. Well, next Wednesday I am catering an event at the 'Museum of Canadian Contemporary Art' (or 'MOCCA' for short), in Toronto. I have planned a menu of three hors d'oeuvres, two pasta dishes for the main along with greens and bread, and three desserts to finish. My friend Cathy is my Sous Chef for the evening and with her by my side, I know we can pull it off without a hitch (knock on wood, fingers crossed, etc.!)! I will blog about the event next week and along with photos, I might even post a recipe or two! So, my followers have a fantastic weekend and make some soup, for goodness sake! Bye for now!

Ontario Leek and Potato Soup with Old Cheddar and Bacon Garnish

"...potato water is unhealthy: and therefore do not boil potatoes in soup, but boil elsewhere, and add them when nearly cooked." Catherine E. Beecher (1846)

Come on, Cathy! Potato water is fine and as a matter of fact, is filled with tonnes of minerals and vitamins! Geesh! Anyhoo, hello my wintry followers! Enjoying the snow?!
Well, isn't today the perfect day for leek and potato soup? I think so! This recipe is a request from my Dad. When asked to make it, I really wasn't that excited. I thought that leek and potato soup might be a bit too boring, but then my Dad gave me a challenge. "Make it sassy!" he said (now you know where I get my strange sense of humour...). "No problem!" I replied. Of course, my first thought was to garnish this simple soup with chopped, crispy bacon and grated old Cheddar cheese. Well, that was 'sassy' enough for my Dad and here we are. Leek and potato soup is yet another example in which a French country recipe has ended up being popular world round. So simple and delicious, I can understand why! Let's do this!

Simple and Tasty Recipe:

Ontario Leek and Potato Soup
(serves 4)

2 tbsp butter
1 leek (the whole thing, right up to the separating leaves), rinsed very well and rough chop
potatoes, 3 medium or 4 large, peeled and rough chop
750 ml chicken, vegetable stock (found on my 'Recipe' page), or water
sea salt
fresh ground pepper
1/4 cup cream (5, 10 or 35%)
*2 pieces bacon, cooked and chopped
*1/2 cup old Cheddar cheese, grated
*1 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped
(*optional)

.in a pot on medium low heat, add the butter, leeks and potatoes with a generous pinch of salt and some pepper, cover with a lid and occasionally stir until the leeks are soft (about 10 mins)
.pour in the stock or water, bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, partially cover and simmer for 45 mins
.either puree the soup fully, puree half for some chunks or simply crush the potatoes into smaller pieces with a fork to the consistency you desire
.stir in the cream, adjust seasoning portion the soup into bowls, garnish with the chopped bacon, grated old Cheddar cheese and chopped parsley, enjoy!

Easy or what?! My Dad wanted his soup chunky so I pureed half, but your can certainly puree the entire batch to a smooth consistency. Of course, the garnish can be omitted and the soup would be just as delicious. Hmm, I wonder if garnishing this soup with a dollop of sour cream would make it 'sassy?' I'll have to ask my Dad! Now, I hope you're not sick of 'Soup Month' yet, because I have one more planned for Friday. It's one of my favourites and takes me back to my roots. Till then, my frosty followers!