A MONTH OF SALADS - Day 7

Today was meant to be a lunch salad day, but ended up being a dinner salad. I was fortunate enough to lead a workshop with 11 fabulous women this morning; discussions were had; ideas were planted; we certainly laughed a lot. As I was counting my lucky stars after the clean up, then driving off to do some errands (prepping for the KIMCHI CLASS I'll be hosting next Tuesday morning! Still spots left!), I started to think about what I would make with those lentils I set up to soak and hopefully sprout yesterday evening. See, at this house, I soak in order to improve the availability of nutrients in them there lentils (and nuts and seeds), and to make them easier to digest. I personally have compromised digestion, not sure to what extent, but just in the hopes of easing up on the digestive work this body o' mine has to do, I soak and sprout most all nuts and seeds and lentils and beans. 

These be soaking puy lentils. In filtered water with kefir whey I keep on hand. The book from where I garnered such insights: Sally Fallon's Nourishing Traditions.

So following my class this morning, and errands this afternoon, I had a meeting to attend to around the supper hour. With a small window of time at home, I cooked up those pre-soaked lentils, roasted a sweet potato, and assembled a simple yet delicious salad for a supper that was going to be out of house. I also made an extra serving for my bestie, who was also attending said meeting. The simplicity of this dressing just makes this salad sing. In my opinion, that's the sign of a good salad. And a beautiful chorus it was.

This dressing is from one of my most-visited cookbooks: the Rebar Modern Food Cookbook from 2001, from Audrey Alsterberg & Wanda Urbanowicz, the two ladies behind the vegetarian restaurant in Victoria by the same name, Rebar. They have graciously sent the green light for me to post their recipe online. I promise to do the salad this dressing is usually paired with (Romaine & Gala Apple Salad) before the month of salads is through.

My salad fixings: greens. Today's version included arugula from the garden and spinach. Threw in a half roasted sweet potato per person, and about a half cup or more of the cooked puy lentils, and chopped about 2 tbsp worth for each serving of a purple cabbage/beet/radish/turmeric/ginger sauerkraut I had made at home a few months back. Ah, but that dressing:

CREAMY HONEY LEMON DRESSING

3 tbsp lemon juice

zest of 1 lemon, minced

3/4 cup creme fraiche (I offer classes on making your own creme fraiche!)

2 tbsp honey

1/2 tsp salt

Mix all in a little glass jar. Pour liberally on salads.

Dressing. Made with creme fraiche (de maison) with honey gifted by a good friend

Thanks to Audrey & Wanda at Rebar for giving the nod. Link to their online presence below. And to my fawsome friend Eva for the gift of her father's honey. Bon appetit, les ami(e)s!

A MONTH OF SALADS - Day 5

Ok change of plans. I knew this would happen at least once this month. This morning, I posted on my Facebook page that tonight was movie night and pizza night at our house, as it usually is on Fridays. A long-standing tradition in fact, going on 7 years very soon. Well pizza and movie night got moved to Saturday night this week, as my little got an invitation to go out for dinner with her cousins and grandparents. Well who wouldn't pass that up! Lucky kid.

So instead of making that calabrese salad today, I will be making it tomorrow, and plan to post about it on Monday. Tonight's plans became insta-date-night. When it comes to meals, in a pinch, I go with what I have on my mind.  On my mind was this afternoon's lovely time spent with just a few of the regular gaggle on Friday afternoons, as I have been leading the Cooking Elective for the Junior High students at the local Waldorf school for the last three months. We have made quite a few tasty treats, from ferments (yea we did) to power snacks and electrolyte drinks to eggs and more. Today, seeing as we were down to just 3 of our regular gang, I decided instead we would make a meal for someone in our community who would benefit from a from-scratch kinda dinner. The recipient was found; I asked her if she had any requests, went through a few different kinds of cuisine, and her ears perked up at Greek food. Greek food it is!

We got down to work right after lunch. We made scrumptious Greek Meatballs with ground pork from locals Prairie Roots, and a zinger of a batch of tzatziki. Tucked them into their little foil package for our delivery, planned at 3 o'clock. To go along with this, the students prepared a greek salad with quinoa featuring fresh cukes and peppers from Broxburn in Lethbridge, goat feta from Springbank Cheese here in town, and leftover tomatoes from our last class. The quinoa we used for today's recipe was a sprouted quinoa; I chose sprouted as it is so much easier to digest and we can get to the nutrients in quinoa and all other grains more readily if they're soaked or sprouted. They're much kinder to your digestive tract, and less likely to cause tummy upset. Handy, I recently discovered sprouted quinoa at Amaranth Whole Foods, in their bulk section. Woot woot!

At these classes, we usually get to eat what it is we made that day. But today, seeing as we were down quite a few students due to scheduled field trips, I thought it a perfect opportunity to make a meal for someone in our community who could use the support. Which meant we only got to taste the items we made, and package the rest for our friend and her family. So when I got home, I rummaged around and found most of the ingredients in my cupboard and made the Greek Salad with Quinoa and a side of tzatziki. It was scrumptious, and perfect for a warm supper on the patio.

Thanks to Lisa at Wine and Glue for this delicious clean whole foods recipe.  And to our friend and her family, bon appetit! Link to the recipe is below.

A MONTH OF SALADS - Day 4

Day 4. Thursdays. Always a tight timelines kinda day. True for most families most days. Glad for it. At this house, it means a quick and easy full-meal salad is on my radar: this makes it an easy decision.

From my couple of years working with Chef Stephen at Festival of Food preparing the hot lunches for kids at the local Waldorf School, I learned some cool tricks: how to portion and think of ingredients for big crowds, how to maximize all ingredients and reduce waste, how feeding people is really truly a privilege and something that requires you bring in the earth and sky into meals. I had many an interesting and thought-provoking discussion take place in that kitchen; I felt supported as I could explore what food means, how we prepare it and how it affects or alters the nutrition. I remember realizing that if you think about those for whom you are preparing the meal while you are making it, something in the food changes. As a food maker, I think of this often. And it is the best way I know how to fill my cup, and that of those around me. Stephen really played a big part in that discovery.  

One of my favourite and most-oft revisited meals that I learned in that kitchen is the subject of today's salad. A nutrient-dense homemade caesar dressing. HENCE, I declare today a CHICKEN CAESAR SALAD DAY! This salad is perfect for every day of the week, hot or cold; I love the smooshy leftovers the next day; it is such a satisfying salad, you won't need much else on the table.

This recipe is an approximation. It's always a taste-and-tweak kind of thing. I'll be forever grateful to Stephen for teaching me the power of the tweak; perhaps the biggest and best thing I learned while hanging in that kitchen. So when I say GO PLAY WITH YOUR FOOD, I mean go tweak! Adjust! Add new things! Swap out others! Really, go play with your food! Make it your own!

In the beginning, there were yolks. Orangy yolks.

First and foremost, let's talk eggs. You will get other stuff ready in a moment. But for now, take out 2 eggs for your caesar dressing, and let them rest at room temperature for about 30 minutes. Room temp yolks will emulsify much better than cold yolks.

In the meantime, you will want to prepare your croutons. These are optional; if grain-free is your speed these days, swap these out for crumpled kale chips. 

Croutons are more an idea than a recipe. We were three for supper tonight, so I cut into cubes 3 slices of true sourdough bread (yay traditionally made breads!) I had in the freezer from local lovelies Watermill Bakery. I drizzled them with olive oil, sprinkled with sea salt and ground pepper, and popped in a preheated oven at 325F for 10 minutes, took it out, flipped the croutons, and popped it in for another 5 minutes. This way, they were crusty on the outside and chewy on the inside. Yum. I let those cool on the counter until time to assemble the salad.

Now comes the caesar dressing. This is a tricky beast, one that requires complete connection to the ground in order for it to emulsify. So make sure your feet are planted firmly first, that you have a rolled towel around your bowl to cradle that dressing, and nary a thought on your mind. Everyone's talking about mindfulness these days; this is my kind of mindfulness.

CAESAR DRESSING    Adapted from Chef Stephen Gilmour

2 egg yolks, at room temperature (from pastured eggs only; conventionally-raised eggs have a higher possibility of food poisoning from salmonella. Virtually non-existent with pastured birds.)

1/2 tsp crushed garlic

1 tbsp Worcestershire Sauce 

few splashes of hot sauce (I used my homemade fermented hot sauce (YEA!))

few pinches of sea salt

1 tbsp lemon juice

1/2 tsp mustard (oh yes, this was also a fermented mustard I made at a class a while back) -- this helps ensure emulsification

Add all of your ingredients in a big enough bowl. In a separate measuring cup, measure out 1 cup of a good quality olive oil. Roll up a tea towel and nestle the mixing bowl on this towel roll. With a steady hand, and a clear mind (I'm being serious), use your wire whisk to slowly start incorporating the ingredients together. Think of it as if you are introducing the ingredients to one another. Once you feel like the groove is set, and you're ready to bring it to the next level, start with a very slow drizzle of olive oil, all while still continuing to gently whisk. This is not something you want to rush; trust that it will work. Drizzle that olive oil very slowly for about 10 seconds, and then stop the drizzle but continue to whisk. Once the oil has emulsified (that sheen off the top now becomes a dull colour), start the olive oil drizzle again, continuing on with the whisking.  When you are about halfway through the olive oil drizzle, take a bit of time to make sure it is emulsifying properly, meaning there will not be an oil slick on top. The dressing will start pulling at the sides in the bowl. It's really quite a beautiful alchemy kind of thing happening. If the oil appears to be separating and that sheen is still there on the top, this means it isn't emulsifying and you will want to start over with a new yolk in a new bowl, adding another 1/2 tsp of mustard. The stuff you just whisked together (unsuccessfully) can now be introduced EVEN SLOWER this time into the new yolk/mustard mix.

Once all of your olive oil is emulsified into golden-y goodness, taste it and tweak it. Need deeper taste? Add worcester. Needs more zing? Add lemon. Want a bigger kick? Add hot sauce. You are in the driver's seat. Make that dressing sing, baby. 

Now, you could be done this dressing. But if you were me, you'd figure out a way to ferment it. IF THIS STEP IS DONE A FEW HOURS BEFORE YOUR MEAL, you're in luck! You can add some whey to the mixture! (Whey is the clear-ish liquid that is strained off of a plain yogurt.) Powdered whey will not work here. If you have whey, go ahead and add 2 tbsp of whey to the mix, whisking it in. This will help preserve it, and add probiotics in the meantime. Let it sit max on the counter for 6 hours; after that, make sure to tuck it in the fridge. If fermenting ain't your thing, don't sweat it; it is still delicious and nutrient-dense.

CHICKEN (or any other protein you want to add, really.) - for 3 people

3 chicken breasts or 5 chicken thighs, cubed into bite-size pieces

2 tbsp of solid cooking fat (I use leftover fat from cooking bacon from happy pigs)

1 tsp chili powder

1 tsp coriander seed, ground

1 1/2 tsp dried oregano

sea salt & pepper

Heat your pan. Melt the fat. Cook the meat or protein until it's golden. Add your spices. Cook until cooked through. (See, I just don't wax nostalgic about the chicken like I do that dressing. Oh but that dressing!)

ASSEMBLING YOUR SALAD

Think 1/2 romaine lettuce heart per person, chopped into bite size pieces and washed, spun dry

Throw the lettuce, along with your croutons, cooked chicken and shaved parmesan or asiago cheese (or forego the cheese if you're breaking up with dairy these days) in a bowl. Add your dressing until every morsel is bathed. Did I mention the dressing is the best part? *You may not need the whole batch of dressing; save the remainders in the fridge, where it should keep for up to 4 days. Now eat up, will ya? 

Dang that's good.

Thanks to Chef Stephen Gilmour for graciously saying 'SURE!' when I asked if I could share his recipe, along with my tweaks. Link to his website below. Check him out, he serves delicious lunches from scratch, is a fabulous caterer, and also prepares ready-to-go fully cooked meals for busy families. And thanks to the fine folks at Blue Mountain Biodynamic Farms for providing me and my family with fresh eggs for the last few years. Those yolks! And thanks to my photographer Eliza. 

Pastured Pork

I would not be lying if I said I am a huge fan of pastured meats. I love Nourishing Traditions and all things Weston Price Foundation. I love the idea of eating food grown close to home. I often think that if a plant or an animal has learned to thrive in the conditions in this current spot on earth, given the things we can scientifically measure and those things we don't yet know to measure, well if that animal or plant can flourish in these here parts, then it must be that when I consume these foods, I must then in turn take on some of those characteristics. Which would then mean that I may be better able to handle the local elements, those things we CAN measure as well as those we don't yet know to look for. Maybe far-fetched? Maybe dreaming? Maybe not. 

In any case, once a year, our family purchases a side of beef and a whole hog from a local small-scale farmer that we split with good friends of ours. It makes it more affordable, and also allows our farmer Iain to know that he has a customer waiting at the end of the season for the food he has been working hard to produce. It's a win/win/win. We are forever grateful to Iain for the wonderful meats and BACON we have been blessed with over the years, and for the updates we get and the thought and intentions he brings to his work every day. Every time we crack open a package of ground beef or a package of chops, we thank Iain at our table and I think of his family, and wonder how he is going to get along with his move to Manitoba. See, they (the ubiquitous 'they') will be fracking the land immediately next door to his this year; he knew it was coming for a few years. After much thought to the animals, and to his customers and his family too, he just didn't feel right continuing to farm on the land he has called home for a while. Concerns for the environment, the resulting impact on groundwater and fear of contamination really helped him and his family to make the decision to move away, to greener pastures as it were. And so we bid adieu to Iain and his family, and thank him for the many years we have been lucky to be on the receiving end of such quality meats. We wish you well in Manitoba, Iain. Sayonara.

APPLE SAGE BALSAMIC PORK CHOPS

This is one of my recipes. Dreamt it up one late fall day, when we got our first chops from Iain.

Serves 4

Good quality olive oil (I used the Lemon Fused Olive Oil from Blue Door in Calgary.)

1-2 apples, cored, sliced in rounds

Good quality balsamic vinegar (I used the Red Apple Balsamic Vinegar from Blue Door in Calgary.)

Fresh sage leaves

4 Pork Chops, bone-in

Bacon grease (leftover from the most delicious pastured pork bacon EVER)

Sea salt & Freshly Ground Pepper

In the bottom of your pan, drizzle some good quality olive oil. (Good quality means it can take the heat and won't go rancid; make sure yours isn't cut with another vegetable oil. Olive oil = you get what you pay for.) Layer the apple slices to make a base. Lay your pork chops over top the apple slices. Slather each pork chop with leftover bacon grease. (THAT STUFF IS RICH IN VITAMIN D3 MY FRIENDS! Say yes to good fats.) Put 3 leaves of sage per chop. Drizzle the whole thing with more good quality olive oil, and the balsamic vinegar. Add your sea salt and ground pepper. Pop in a 350F oven for 35-40 minutes, until the chops are done. If you have quite a bit of juice in the bottom of your pan, put it on the stovetop at medium high heat to reduce, until it is good and thick and syrupy. Serve the chops, along with apple slices and pour some of the pan drippings on each plate. 

I guess we'll be shopping around for a new small-scale farmer. Any recommendations out there?

-Luka