Author Archives: saltandserenity

Winter Squash Salad with Waffled Halloumi Croutons and Pomegranate Vinaigrette

After my successful venture with Croffles (Croissant-Waffles), I started to look at other ingredients in my fridge with the same lens. Will it waffle, I wondered. It seems like such a shame to let my waffle iron sit in the cupboard gathering dust, only to pull it out twice a year to make waffles.

I had a package of halloumi cheese about to expire so I decided to experiment. I heated the waffle iron to medium and sprayed it lightly with cooking spray. I tried a range of thicknesses and settled on 1/2 inch slices. Because halloumi is so firm, it waffled beautifully. I achieved a burnished golden brown colour and crispy edges, with that tell-tale squeak in the centre. Resounding success.

I decided to build a winter salad around these “halloumi croutons”. Check out this video to see how it all came together.

I started with butternut squash. Seasoned with salt, smoked paprika and a good drizzle of olive oil I roasted it until tender and browned. I like to cut the squash into small pieces to maximize the crispy surface area. Pro tip: Use a grapefruit spoon to scoop out the seeds and stringy fibres in the squash. The serrated edge of the spoon is the perfect tool for this.

For greens I decided on a mix of baby kale, micro arugula, and shredded raw Brussels sprouts. Arugula, frisée lettuce, radicchio, and Tuscan kale would all be good choices. You need a fairly bitter, assertive lettuce/green to counterbalance the sweet squash and mild, salty cheese.

If you have a food processor with a slicing disc, it produces julienned Brussels sprouts in seconds. If not, with a sharp knife and some patience, and it can be done by hand.

Every salad needs crunch. This one comes from spiced walnuts. If you have never made your own spiced nuts before, it’s quite simple. A lightly beaten egg white acts as the glue to help the spices stick to the nuts. I used a mix of sugar, salt, sumac and a pinch of cayenne. They only take about 12 minutes to toast and they keep for weeks in an airtight container. You can play around with the nuts and spices.

For the dressing, I created a sweet and tangy pomegranate vinaigrette. Pomegranate seeds were the final garnish, twinkling like glittering jewels.

Click here to print recipe for Winter Squash Salad with Waffled Halloumi Croutons and Pomegranate Vinaigrette.

Green Goddess Salad (and meal prep for a reset)

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Happy New Year. Yes, I realize that we are already a week into the new year, but I practice slow January. (not to be confused with dry January 😉). I have difficulty with transitions. I do not rush into the new year filled with goals and resolutions. I like to ease my way, gently, into the new year.

Cookie month (or December, as the Muggles like to call it) was glorious. I was in my happy place baking over 12 different kinds of cookies. If you follow me on Instagram, you likely saw this video of how I packaged them up for giving away. I love packaging and designing labels almost as much as I love baking and gifting them.

By the beginning of January, I was convinced that my body was comprised of 100% cookie. I always need a reset at this time of year. To remind myself to practice mindful eating and set myself up for success, I like to do meal prep. I fill my fridge with prepared lean proteins (poached chicken breasts, jammy eggs), washed lettuce and other veggies, a jar of delicious homemade salad dressing and some spiced pita chips (we’re not monsters here, we still need crunch).

These ingredients are good in the fridge for 4-5 days, so I always have a quick and healthy lunch or dinner ready without having to think about it. In the recipe I provided, I presented it as a salad for 4-6 people, but it’s a great way to meal prep and fill your fridge for the week too.

If I’m roasting or grilling chicken, I prefer thighs, but chicken breasts are very delicious and moist if you poach them. It’s a method that most people don’t consider. Place skinless boneless breasts in a pot and cover with water. Bring to a boil and skim the foam off the top. Turn heat down to a simmer and add onions, carrots, celery, parsley, salt and pepper and simmer for 20-30 minutes, until they reach an internal temperature of 120°F. Then leave them in the poaching liquid in the fridge to chill. The chicken breasts absorb all that flavourful liquid and they are super moist.

For perfect “jammy” eggs bring a pot of water to a boil, gently lower eggs into water (I love this tool for that task). Boil for exactly 7 minutes and then remove and submerge in an ice water bath to stop the cooking and chill. If jammy eggs are not your jam, 11 minutes will give you hard boiled. Cooked eggs, keep well in their shell for about 5-6 days. The yolks in these eggs were not photoshopped! They are really this vibrant orange hue. I buy them at Farm Boy. I have been told that the colour comes from marigold and other plants that contain the pigment xanthophyll in the feed of the chickens.

The Green Goddess dressing recipe is from Mandy’s Gourmet Salads cookbook. Basil, parsley and tarragon contribute their verdant tones to create a gorgeous emerald green dressing. My regular house dressing is just a simple vinaigrette, but this is a nice change and feels special. It comes together in the blender in less than a minute.

All salads need some crunch element. I’m all about texture. Croutons or nuts are great, but why not make some spiced pita chips. They keep well for at least 2 weeks in an airtight container. I spiced mine with za’atar and sumac. You can find za’atar in many supermarkets or make your own with this recipe. I find sumac at Bulk Barn.

Click here to print recipe for Green Goddess Salad.

Cheddar Latkes

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Happy third night of Chanukah. I really did mean to get this posted last week, but time got away from me. But, luckily Chanukah lasts for 8 nights, so you still have 5 nights left to try these latkes.

When I mentioned to my family that I would be adding cheddar cheese to the latkes this year, it was met with less than enthusiasm. I get it. We really only get to eat latkes once a year, and folks don’t want you messing with tradition.

My husband, ever the diplomat, responded to my announcement with “I’m not really sure how I feel about that.” This coming from a guy that puts ketchup on his latkes (I think it’s an Ottawa thing). My daughter suggested that perhaps I “make two batches, one with cheddar and one without”. Spoken with the innocence of youth, who isn’t peeling and grating the potatoes, squeezing all the liquid out and getting the smell of fried oil in her house and hair for days, as well as trying to film a video!

This is not the first time I have messed with tradition. There was the Latkes with Fried Eggs and Roasted Tomatoes in 2011, the poorly maligned Sweet Potato and Brussels Sprouts Latke variation in 2016, and Apple-Potato Latkes last year.

But hear me out on this one. You know when you make a grilled cheese sandwich and those rogue bits of cheese escape and get all brown and crispy at the edges of the sandwich. That’s the best part, right? So imagine crispy fried potatoes and crispy cheese. Two kinds of crispy. How bad could that be? Pretty damn fantastic. They were met with rave reviews.

The inspiration came from Chef Michael Solmonov. I saw him add cheddar to his latkes on the Rachael Ray show last week, and I was sold. He added a full pound of cheddar to his latkes, but I scaled that back to 5 ounces in my version, which still let the potato flavour come through strong.

A few tips for success:

Do not skip the step in the recipe where you squeeze all the water out of the grated potatoes and onions. You will not achieve crispy latkes.
Save the liquid you squeeze from the potatoes and onions. Let it sit for a few minutes and then pour off the liquid. The gunk you see at the bottom of the bowl is potato starch. Mix it with the eggs and add it to your potato mixture. That potato starch is a magic ingredient in keeping your latkes from falling apart.
Reheat latkes on a wire rack, set over a baking sheet. The wire rack allows the air to circulate so the bottom of your latkes don’t get soggy.

Click here to print recipe for Cheddar Latkes.

Pistachio Swirl Biscotti

Honeynut Squash with Maple Agrodolce

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If you were at the Ottawa Whole Foods last week and were startled by a woman squealing, I apologize. That was just me, delighted to find the elusive Honeynut Squash. While not quite as rare as Pink Pearl Apples, which I’m convinced are the unicorn of apples, Honeynut Squash are challenging to find. On a side note, if you live in Ottawa and ever find Pink Pearl Apples, alert me immediately! I am obsessed with them.

Honeynut squash are sold most commonly at farmer’s markets, but they are starting to become more widely available as people discover how delicious they are.

Measuring a diminuative 4 inches in length, they look like baby Butternut squash. But Honeynuts have an inherent sweetness that is much more concentrated than Butternut. When roasted at high heat, they have caramel and malt-like notes. Big bonus, the skin is so thin that it’s edible, so no peeling required. The flesh is silky smooth, not at all stringy. Plus, they are just freaking adorable. Who wouldn’t love their own personal sized squash?

If you can’t find them, this recipe works perfectly with Butternut squash. An agrodolce is an Italian sauce-condiment hybrid. The name comes from “agro”, Italian for sour, and “dolce”, Italian for sweet. This maple version was created by Cook’s Illustrated. it’s also delicious on pan seared salmon, roast chicken or roasted Brussels sprouts.

Start by giving the squash a drizzle of olive oil and a good sprinkling of salt and pepper. Roast them, cut side up, in a hot oven for about 40 minutes. If you’re feeling fancy, you could score the skin with a paring knife, into a diamond pattern. No functional reason for doing this. I just did it for aesthetics. Pretty pictures are what I’m all about these days.

While the squash is roasting, make the maple agrodolce. Simmer balsamic vinegar, maple syrup, finely diced shallots, golden raisins, salt and red pepper flakes, until thick any syrupy. Spoon over the roasted squash. That’s it!

I garnished it with some chopped toasted hazelnuts, for crunch, chopped mint for a hit of freshness and a scattering of pickled shallots for extra bite.

Click here to print recipe for Honeynut Squash with Maple Agrodolce.

Brown Butter Chocolate Chunk Coffee Toffee Cookies

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When a cookie title contains the words brown butter, it better deliver that toasty, nutty flavour profile. If you’re curious about the science behind brown butter, here’s a quick primer. Butter is composed of butterfat, milk protein and water. When you brown butter, you are essentially toasting the milk protein. As you heat the butter, and it begins to bubble and sputter away, the water evaporates and the hot butterfat begins to cook the milk solids, turning them from creamy yellow to speckled brown and your whole kitchen smells like toasted hazelnuts. It’s these toasted milk solids (not the fat itself) that give brown butter its nutty taste

The issue I have with using browned butter in baked goods is that once it is mixed with the sugar, flour, and eggs, the brown butter flavour becomes quite subtle. So I’m always left wondering if it’s worth it to take the time to brown butter when baking. And then I came across this Bon Appétit article, “For the Best Brown Butter, You Need Milk Powder.”

Author Shilpa Uskovic explains, “If you want brown butter to be the mayor of Flavourtown, the main character of the story, you’ve got to maximize those milk solids. Enter from stage right: nonfat dry milk powder. Milk is mostly water with some fat and milk solids (same building blocks as butter, just different ratios). Remove the water and fat and you get nonfat milk powder—what is essentially pure milk solids. The very same milk solids that play a starring role in brown butter. Which means all you have to do is add a scoop of milk powder to melting butter, and you’ll go from brown butter to brownest butter.”

The brown butter flavour of these cookies is quite pronounced, and certainly worth the effort of taking the extra time to prepare the toasted milk powder. Most supermarkets carry milk powder. It is most commonly sold as skim milk powder. Here in Ontario I buy it at Bulk Barn. I include detailed instructions in the recipe for how to make your own toasted milk powder. The recipe makes more than you will need for one batch of cookies. Keep it in the fridge and use to boost the flavour of a buttercream or frosting.

The recipe incorporates a mix of all-purpose flour and bread flour. The higher protein content of bread flour will make the cookies a bit chewier. A heaping teaspoon of instant espresso powder will give the cookies a more adult flavour profile and help temper the sweetness. I also added some toffee chips. You could use Skor Bits or make your own toffee. I have included the recipe if you’re keen to try. If you have a candy thermometer you can make your own toffee.

What is really critical here is to avoid using regular chocolate chips from the supermarket. You want the very best quality chocolate here. My favourite are from Valrhona. I love their 64% Manjari bittersweet feves (discs).

Here are a few tips for cookie success:

Scoop your cookie dough with an ice cream scoop for consistent size. Scoop the cookies while the dough is still soft, before chilling.
Chill the cookie scoops for at least 3 hours or up to 72 hours, so that all the flour in the dough has a chance to hydrate. Make sure you wrap the cookie dough balls well with plastic wrap so that they do not dehydrate.
Double up your baking sheets when baking the cookies, so that the bottom of the cookies do not get too brown.
Don’t add all the chopped chocolate to the cookie dough. Hold back about 1/3 of the amount. After the cookies have been baking for about 5 minutes, remove from oven and stud each cookie with an additional few chunks and then continue baking. You will get Instagram worthy melting pools of chocolate on top of each cookie.
For perfectly round cookies, all you need is a round cookie cutter larger than the size of the baked cookies. As soon as the cookies come out of the oven, place the cookie cutter over each cookie and give the cookie inside a spin. This quick swirl will help smooth any uneven edges.
Use a good quality flaky sea salt to sprinkle sparingly on the just baked cookies.

Click here to print recipe for Brown Butter Chocolate Chunk Coffee Toffee Cookies.

Apple Maple Rose Tarts

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I would describe myself as having perseverant tendencies. Perseverance refers to the drive and determination to complete a project or task, regardless of how long it takes or how many setbacks you experience along the way. Perseverance is not giving up.

I had seen these apple rose tarts all over Instagram for a while now. They have been on my must-make list for several months. I finally got around to trying them a few weeks ago. There are many versions on this theme, but they all boil down to this basic process: thinly slice apples and cook them until slightly pliable, but not mushy. Cut strips of store bought puff pastry, spread with jam and roll the thinly sliced apples up in the pastry, to form a “rose”. Bake until done.

I believe the original recipe was created by Manuela Mazzocco. Check out her reel on Instagram to see how she makes them.

Armed with several pounds of all-butter frozen puff pastry, and about 20 pounds of apples I got to work. I ran into two main roadblocks. The first problem was that the pastry in the centre of the rose never got fully cooked. Raw puff pastry is ~~disgusting~~ not pleasant to eat. If I baked the roses longer, the outside of the pastry burned. The second issue I had was that the thinly sliced apples burned at the edges because puff pastry needs a hot oven and at least 30-40 minutes to bake.

I tried rolling the strips tighter, then looser, baked them in muffin tins and individual ceramic ramekins and even tried baking them upside down. While my husband happily ate all the mistakes, I continued to persevere. I had to figure this out.

Eventually I wondered if I could just form the apple rose without rolling it up in pastry. Once the rose was formed, I just wrapped the exterior in a circle of puff pastry. Success. Check out my video to see how I did it.

Here is what I discovered in my journey:

You can thinly slice the apples by hand with a very sharp knife and some good knife skills, but it is much easier and you will get much more consistent results with a mandoline.

Firm white fleshed apples, such as Cortland or Empire apples, produce the prettiest roses. Honeycrisp apples are also good, although their flesh is a bit more yellow than the snowy white interior of the Cortland or Empire. I added a few drops of pink gel food colouring to the cooking water. It gave the white fleshed apples a beautiful pale pink tint.

Defrost puff pastry overnight in the refrigerator. Chill your softened apples before forming the roses and wrapping them in the puff pastry. Hot or warm apples on cold puff pastry are a poor combination.

When rolling out the thawed puff pastry, flour your work surface and rolling pin and roll gently.

Try brushing the puff pastry with maple butter instead of jam. Maples and apple are a yummy combo.

Just as you would dot the top of an apple pie with butter, brush the tops of the roses with some melted butter and a good sprinkling of cinnamon-sugar before they hit the oven.

Pop the assembled tarts into the freezer for 10 minutes before baking. That will firm up the butter in the puff pastry and giving you extra flaky layers.

Start the tarts in a 425°F oven for 10 minutes, then reduce the heat to 375°F. The intense heat will jumpstart the baking.

Make little foil hats for all the apples. Those thinly sliced apples are delicate and you want to protect them.

A light dusting with icing sugar once they are cool, makes them extra pretty and sweet.

Leftovers keep for 1-2 days, on the counter, uncovered. If you wrap them, they will sweat and the pastry will get soggy.

A scoop of salted caramel ice cream is a welcome accompaniment.

Click here to print recipe for Maple Apple Rose Tarts.

wnload

Avocado Toast with Fried Egg

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There are quite a few new subscribers to my blog, so welcome. I very much appreciate your taking the time to sign up to receive email notification every time I publish a new post. I know how full inboxes can get! It means a lot to me that you take the time to read what I’m up to.

No recipe this week, just a fun video to watch what I make for lunch at least 3 times a week. I have been taking a new online food video course from the talented Eva Kosmas Flores, and I’m having so much fun creating little snippets of cinematic beauty.

This lunch is fast and I always have eggs in the fridge and bread in the freezer. Catching an avocado at the perfect stage of ripeness is a little bit trickier. I like to buy 4-5 avocados at a time. I leave one on the counter and put the unripe ones in the fridge. That slows down the ripening process and they will last about 2 weeks in the fridge. Just remove them 1-2 days before you want to use them.

Because we’re amongst friends here, I will be completely honest, and share a few truths. There is no chill jazz music playing while I make my lunch. I usually have a rerun of Masterchef Australia playing on TV. I’m obsessed with the Australian version of Masterchef. I dislike the US and Canadian versions, but can’t get enough of the Australian series. Haver you watched?

Second truth, I usually just pop my frozen slice of bread into the toaster while the egg is frying. But if you’re feeling a little extra, I highly recommend frying the bread in butter. It’s quite delicious. A little tip when frying the egg. If you like your yolk to be runny, (and I’m not sure we can be friends if you don’t), pop a lid on the fry pan. The steam created will cook the white fully, but leave the yolk soft.

While I might skip the fried bread, I never skip the sprinkling of Aleppo pepper. It has a fruity gentle heat, with a hint of sweetness, unlike red pepper flakes. I use it wherever you might use red pepper flakes. Do not skip a sprinkling of salt on both the egg and the mashed avocado,. When building a sandwich, every layer must be seasoned.

Final truth, I don’t plate my avocado toast on the pretty blue plate you see in the video. I eat my avocado toast with fried egg, standing up, over the sink, to catch any egg yolk drips. I also eat my salads in a stainless steel mixing bowl! And no, I wasn’t raised in a barn. When I was growing up, we were not allowed to have any condiment jars on the table. Everything had to be served in a pretty little bowl. I guess it’s my small rebellion.

Let me know in the comments what your go to lunch is and if you eat it standing up or sitting at a table like a human being. Inquiring minds want to know.

Apple Cider Donuts

Apple Challah Babka

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Watch what happens when challah and babka collide.

On Rosh Hashanah, it’s traditional to dip apples in honey, to symbolize our desire for a sweet year ahead. In my quest to be efficient and practical, I thought it would be clever to bake my honey and apples right into the challah.

Adding apples to challah dough is tricky. Raw apples would leach too much moisture into the dough and make the challah soggy. Sautéing them first, solved that problem. To further boost the apple flavour, I spread some apple butter onto the dough. Apple butter does not actually contain any butter. It is made by cooking down apples into a very concentrated state. it’s quite tart, as no sugar is added to it.

I sprinkled my dough with golden raisins, but I know how contoversial raisins are, so leave them out if you have a family of raisin haters.

While a babka is traditionally baked in a loaf pan, on Rosh Hashanah, challah is round, a circle without an end, to symbolize our wish for a year in which life and blessings continue without end. So once the dough is twisted, just coil it into a knot.

Wishing you all a sweet and healthy new year.

Click here to print recipe for Apple Challah Babka.

Salt and Serenity

Tales from my kitchen