Bruno’s Truffle Omelette

 

Vinny loves all things “eggs,” but a morning omelet is one of his favorites. So when he found a recipe for a truffle omelet from Bruno, Chief of Police of the fictional village of St. Denis in the heart of the Dordogne in France, Vinny couldn’t resist. He ran out and splurged on a VERY expensive truffle, and had some fun.

Bruno is a character invented by the world-reknown author, journalist and expert on International affairs Martin Walker. Walker splits his time between Washington D.C. and a village in the heart of the Dordogne, where he bases his mysteries featuring Bruno. His books are filled with the culinary delicacies of the area, as Bruno is a first-class chef as well as a fine detective. If you like Bruno, there are 15 crime novels you can choose from, and more on the way. You can sample some of Bruno’s favorite recipes on line, but try as I might, I could find no copies of “Bruno’s cookbook”, penned with his wife Julia Watson. I borrowed Bruno’s recipe here from Diane Rehm’s blog.

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Bruno’s recipe for omelette aux truffles
Serves 2

• 4 large eggs
• 2 teaspoons cold water
• 1 clove garlic
• pinch of salt and pepper
• 1 truffle
• 1 tablespoon truffle-flavored olive oil

1. Put four eggs and a truffle in a sealed container and leave it on the counter overnight.
2. The next day, using a fork, whip the eggs together with a teaspoon of cold water.
3. Crush a clove of garlic. Then chop it finely and whip it into the eggs with pinch of salt and pepper.
4. Pour a tablespoon of truffle oil into a hot frying pan and keep on a high heat. When a drop of water sizzles in the oil, add the egg mixture. Every time the base looks like setting, use a wooden or plastic spatula to keep the liquid mixture flowing to the bottom of the pan, under the setting egg..
5. Once the liquid no longer flows easily, shake the pan to ensure the base is not sticking and then add three slices of truffle. Fold the omelette and then add three more slices on top.
6. Sprinkle some chopped chives or green onion slices on top and serve immediately.

Bruno’s notes

1. Because egg shells are porous, leaving whole eggs overnight on the counter, sealed in a container with a truffle, allows the flavor and the aroma of  this exotic mushroom  to seep into the eggs.
2. Use a cooking oil flavored with truffles for frying the omelette.
3. Heat the pan to sizzling hot before pouring the egg mixture into it.
4. Don’t bother adding any of your expensive truffles to the egg mixture. The heat destroys the wonderful flavor and aroma of these specialty mushrooms. Instead, add some sliced truffles once the omelet is set.

Truffles store a slew of nutrients for you to mine

I’m talking here about the mushrooms that are considered a delicacy world-wide for their powerful flavor and aroma, not the chocolate-covered candies that go by the same name.

The best truffles grow wild, under the ground near the roots of deciduous trees like oak and cherry. They are rooted out by trained dogs or pigs, using their keen sense of smell.

All mushrooms are packed with good nutrition, but truffles are at the top of the heap for their powerful health effects.  Their proteins are complete, making them useful for vegetarians. Truffles are also rich in many minerals, including phosphorus, calcium, magnesium, potassium, sodium, iron, sulfur, chlorine, and silicone. Their antioxidants may possess antibacterial, anticancer and anti-inflammatory properties. Still, current research is mostly limited to test-tube studies using concentrated truffle extracts, so it’s unclear how these beneficial properties may impact your health. Work is on-going.

That being said, truffles are usually eaten in small quantities because of their cost and strong flavor. Using them to boost the appeal of other healthy ingredients maximizes their potential benefits.

 

 

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Smoked-salmon chowder for Robbie Burns Day

Robbie Burns Day is an annual tradition in our house. Fallng on the Scottish bard’s birthday, January 25th, the day is usually marked by a savory steamed pudding called haggis, which at one time came wrapped inside a sheep’s stomach. Bagpipes, Scotch whiskey, kilts, and an “address to a Haggis” are all part of the celebrations.

If you’ve read this far and are still scratching your head as to who Robbie Burns was anyway,  he’s the guy who penned the words to the New Years Eve song Auld Lang Syne, among many other old Scottish poems. Burns is now a Scottish icon.

To honor Mr. Burns, I thought I would post a new recipe we tried this year to great success… a thick, rich salmon chowder. Salmon runs wild in Scottish rivers and, these days, salmon is also a premium farmed fish that is sustainably raised off the coast of Scotland.

Salmon dishes like this one make a wonderful addition to a Burns supper. But people who want to stay sharp and maybe even stave off alzheimers disease eat salmon a lot more often than once a year. They  put oily fish on their menues at least once a week!

 

Smoked salmon chowder
Serves 6 to 8

• 1 or 2 tablespoons coconut oil
• 1 ounce (50 grams) smoked bacon
• 1/4 large onion (100 grams)
• 1 1/2 cups water
• 1 pound (450 grams) Yukon gold potatoes, peeled and diced
• 1/2 pound (200 grams) smoked salmon, flaked
• 1 cup milk ( or cream if you must)
• 1/4 teaspoon sea salt or to taste
• a small pinch of cayenne or to taste
• Garnish: 2 tablespoons freshly chopped chives, leek greens, green onion,  parsely, or celery tops

1. In a 4-quart sauce pan over medium heat, fry the bacon in the oil until it begins to crisp, 3-5 minutes
2. Add the onion and saute 2-3 minutes to soften
3. Add water and potatoes. Raise heat to high. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 15-20 minutes, until potatoes are tender
4. Add salmon and herbs and simmer for 10 minutes or until it heats through. Remove and keep warm
5. About 10 minutes before serving, add milk, cayenne, and salt. Bring back to hot but do not boil or milk will curdle

I like to serve this soup as a starter in my mother’s fancy teacups. But if it’s the star attraction for lunch, you will want larger servings and a nice warm bagette.

Next time I make this, I am using sweet potatoes in place of the white ones. The orange tubers are better for our health and might add a pleasant sweet note to the mix.

Salmon nutrition

This fish, along with other oily swimmers, is your best bet for the essential omega-3 fats. Oily fish are the only foods that provide this fat in the form your brain nreeds to operate smoothly. You can also get omega-3 from walnuts, flaxseed, and chia seeds… but some studies suggest this form of the fat is not efficiently converted into the kind the brain needs. People who want to boost their brain power and perhaps even stave off alzheimers disease eat salmon and other oily fish at least once a week, in addition to plant sources of this compound.

Salmon is an excellent source of protein. But it also provides other micronutrients that are harder to get. Vitamin D, selenium and B vitamins, for example, are amply present. These all spell good news for your heart, joints, and mood, your ability to think clearly, and your eyes. They also help in preventing cancer.

Catch the moments as they fly,
And use them as ye ought, man.
Believe me, happiness is shy,
And comes not aye when sought, man.—Robbie Burns

 

Easy tourtière, a traditional meat pie

Family traditions are especially important at Christmas. Tourtière is one of them. Vinny just wouldn’t feel right without this savory meat pie for the holidays.

Fat-burning bedtime soother

What if we could lose weight while we sleep…

That idea sounds almost miraculous. But it might just be possible. Here’s the theory.

At night, our body burns the fat we have accumulated during the day. We can speed up that process while we sleep by stimulating the digestive system and increasing our metabolism. Drinking in some of nature’s stronger metabolism boosters can prod our digestion system to be more efficient.

Annie’s improbable fruit crumble

This delicious dessert owes its existence to Hannah Rothchild’s comic novel The Improbability of Love, a satire of the art world served up as a sensory experience fit for royalty. I was presenting this novel to our neighborhood book club.

Gramma’s easy dry-brined roast turkey

Steaming turkey fresh from the oven

Vinny has invited the whole family for Chrisrmas. They all said YES!

That’s when his sleepless nights and bad dreams began. He had never in his life before tackled a humungous roast turkey. Vinny’s nightmares starred dry stringy white meat and rubbery drumsticks as a centerpiece for his big night.

What to do! Then he remembered Gramma

Making butter – a food experiment

 

 

 

You’d butter believe it!

Where does butter come from? Milk, of course. People discovered butter thousands of years ago. Methods for making butter all involve some kind of whipping or churning to separate the fat from the liquids in milk. We can make butter easily for ourselves at home. Seeing is believing!

Mini cheesecakes with stevia

Try our homemade liquid stevia solution to make these sweet little cheesecakes and you might become hooked on stevia forever. The cakes are moist, creamy, and flavorful. But most of all, without adding any sugar at all to the cheese filling, they taste sweet and tangy.

A Kid’s Favorite Crab Spread

Alaskan king crab – a true giant

Crab is a mild-tasting shellfish that most people like, even the kids. It is low in fat, containing only  82 calories in a 3-ounce serving, while supplying a third of your daily protein needs. Crab is a brain food,

Wedding scones for Harry and Meghan

With much fanfare this morning, Prince Harry married an American woman whom he met in Toronto, Canada… the beautiful Meghan Markle. In honor of this marriage, a blending of two cultures, Vinny presents the traditional British scone with a twist. We’ve added a little color and lots of spirit to create a delicious breakfast treat that represents the best of both worlds. Easy to make, I whipped this up between hymns, while taking in the Royal wedding. Best wishes to the bride and groom!

Sweet potato scones for Meghan and Harry
makes 12 biscuits or a large round divisible by 8 or 10

• ¾ cup sweet potato ( 1 medium potato boiled till soft, skinned, mashed and measured)

• 1 ¼ cup all-purpose flour
• ½ cup whole-wheat flour
• 2 tablespoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• ¼  teaspoon salt
• ¼ teaspoon cinnamon

• ¾ cup unsweetened low-fat Greek yogurt
• 2 tablespoons maple syrup
• 3 tablespoons coconut oil… or melted butter, if you must

 

1. Boil, peel and mash one medium sweet potato, and set it aside to cool.
2. Preheat oven to 425°F and spray baking sheet with cooking oil. Or use a silpat pan-liner, like I did.
3. Mix dry ingredients in a large bowl and sift them together or give them a whiz in your food processor. This adds air to the mix for fluffier biscuits.
4. Mix wet ingredients with the mashed potato in a medium bowl, until the batter is smooth.
5. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ones in the large bowl and stir, then knead, just until the dough forms a soft ball. The less you handle the dough, the flakier the biscuits.
6. Turn dough out onto floured parchment paper (to protect the counter).
7. Roll or pat gently into a round circle, ¾-inches thick.
8. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until the biscuits are a light golden brown and a toothpick comes out clean.
9. Serve immediately with butter or clotted cream, jam, and honey.

To the bride and groom!

Chocolate oatmeal and nut cookies for stuffing hollow Easter egg-shells

Vinny wanted to make an Easter treat he could use to fill the pretty hollow Easter egg-shells he found at the dollar store. “I’d like something without any chemical additives, but sweet and chocolatey, and filled with fiber and nutrients that make eating them as good for a kid’s health as they are sweet on the tongue,” he said.

Hurricanes Kick Off Mardi Gras Party

 

Vinny seems to have abandoned his post in the past months. This has meant a noticeable dearth on this site of healthy but delicious recipes for growing families. In his wake, there is only… me.

Mardi Gras

Mardi Gras recipes were featured in my most recent cooking class in the run-up to Lent. I served some of what we learned at our annual gourmet evening, celebrating Mardi Gras style. I think Vinny would approve, though. Cajun cooking in New Orleans is rife with fresh seafood, hot spices, garlic, and a wild array of fresh veggies. Chicken is also an option.

Hochepot de Queue de Boeuf, otherwise known as Oxtail Stew

They say third-time lucky. I admit I’ve posted this recipe twice before. But this time, I’ve deviated from the simple instructions found in an old French cook book intended for experienced chefs. Here, I’ve set out all the ingredients off the top. Then I’ve broken down the steps in a sensible order.

You can find my reworked recipe in my post of November 11, 2013, sadly, a few weeks late for Remembrance Day 2017. Better late than never.

All-flavors bread

Vinny’s come up with a yummy way to use left-over Halloween candy that helps keep sugar spikes at bay. We’re borrowing from Harry Potter, Bertie Botts in particular, to create a treat that offers a surprise in every bite.

Pumpkin pie punch

Try this delicious glassful of nutrition with your little tricksters on Halloween this year. It’s a treat that can’t be beat!

Instead of adding sugar, I use stevia in the whipped cream topping, a natural no-calorie sweetener that won’t add a single gram to your little one’s sugar load this Halloween season.

Maple glazed sweet potato dish

Sadly, I haven’t had much time of late to devote to my blog. But as Vinny loves sweet potatoes for their healthy goodness, I thought I’d share this simple recipe that I’m serving tonight in honor of our Canadian Thanksgiving…

Chocolate raspberry birthday cake

Our traditional family birthday cake is chalk-full of chocolate. But thrown in are other flavors like raspberry and coffee that make it a hit with young and old alike. I use healthy ingredients besides chocolate, like coconut palm sugar, coconut oil and eggs.

Your key to using Stevia

Why stevia?

This natural, no-cal sweetener from the leaf of the stevia plant is incredibly good for you. Unlike sugar, it doesn’t create an insulin response. Whereas sugar damages your pancreas, the organ that regulates blood sugar, stevia’s sterols and antioxidants actually nourish this essential organ.

Banana ice cream desserts two ways

A nutritional bonanza from our friendly banana

This dessert is so good, people call it Nice Cream. The riper the banana, the sweeter the dessert.

Ripe bananas also have higher levels of antioxidants, which as any frequent reader of Vinny’s blog will know, fight chronic disease and inflammation.

One interesting thing about fully ripened bananas is that they also produce a substance called tumor necrosis factor (TNF).  TNF combats abnormal cells to help shrink cancer tumors.  The more dark patches a banana has,

Cleaning silver, easily, once and for all

Setting a nice table

I like to set a pretty table, especially for family celebrations. It adds to the festivities and sets off all the hard work in the kitchen. I have some silverware I inherited from my mother, which I love but rarely use. That’s because whenever I go to use it, I discover it has tarnished. Black silver tends to spoil the presentation.

French toast sandwiches

March madness!!!

March in Ontario has us all looking forward to spring. And along with that comes a welcome school break – a whole week of free time!

Let’s help Mom and Dad survive March madness by getting creative. We’ll make them lunch!

Start with a loaf of fresh whole-grain bread. Add eggs, low-fat milk and some nice seasonings. Then fill with fruit or low-sugar jams,  and cheese or nut butter.

Oregano tea is good for what ails you

 

Oregano grows like crazy in my garden. I use it as an ornamental ground cover. Then I discovered you can make a tea from it that is useful in curing sore, bothersome throats. Since that is what I have, I’ve given this drink a shot. I love herbal teas and this is a pleasant one. Only time will tell as to whether it heals my sore throat.

New recipe for a delicious miso soup

Readers will know how much I’ve been struggling with miso. It’s been a challenge finding flavor combinations that compliment a miso soup base and are both healthy and delicious. But I think I’ve now got something that works for me. The health benefits of miso are worth the effort. Maybe you should give this a try?

Apple Brown Betty Cake

Vinny suspected something was amiss when he began to smell a decidedly strong odor of apples, wafting from the cupboard whenever he opened the door. He pulled out his brand new bag of apples for inspection. Alas, three of the apples were  already beginning to, well, rot. Out they went into the compost. But what to do with all the rest?

Making miso soup tastier

Another attempt at creating a delicious miso soup

Vinny and I have a lot in common. I’ve heard that kids often need to taste a food 10 times before they learn to like it. That’s me to a T with miso.

Easy miso soup

Miso’s Christmas toy

“Here, Miso,” called Vinny, holding out his hand to his fluffy caramel kitten, who gladly came over for a gentle rub behind the ears.

“Why did you call him Miso,” Isla asked as she threw a small toy mouse for the kitten to chase.

“I suppose it was because I like Asian food,” said Vinny, “and this little guy is the exact same color as miso, a food used in Asian cooking.

Cook Up A Story for the Holidays

I enjoyed participating in a few holiday craft sales this year, showing off my book Cook Up A Story. I met many wonderful people who bought up most of my stock and all of my aprons and chef hats.

I only have a few copies left. In Canadian dollars I can offer a better price than that at the Blurb Book store, which quotes American dollars. Because of the current exchange rate,  Canadian prices are lower than those quoted on Blurb Bookstore on-line. And conversely prices are 33% lower yet if you are paying in US dollars. As of Dec 17, I’m down to my last three copies:

Easy peanut butter cookies

Recipes from labels

Vinny and I had the greatest time at the cottage this summer. One of the things we did was experiment with recipes on the labels of foods we brought with us.

“Let’s try peanut butter cookies,” said Will, studying the label on the jar of one of his favorite foods. “There’s only three ingredients. And we have them all!”

Holiday Open House, Sun Nov 27, 1-4pm

‘Tis the season, whether we like it or not. I personally love it! So much fun getting together with old friends, sharing some sparkly, sampling baking made at special times of the year, remembering happy days from years past… and meeting new neighbors! I even love the whole shopping thing, searching out little baubles to put under the tree and surprising the people I love.

That’s why I happily agreed to help my daughter Kristina host an open house at her place this year to launch the holiday season.

Five foods to cure a sore throat

Despite what the Internet says, forget about tequila as a cure for a sore throat. Snopes says it’s wishful thinking.

If you want to boost your immune system and speed recovery from a sore throat, cough, or sinus congestion, think instead about honey, vinegar, green tea, sea salt  and fiery spices.

Copper penny cooked carrot salad

Turn carrots into a delicious, make-ahead party salad.

Pot luck party time

“What are you bringing to the pot luck picnic tomorrow, Vinny?”

Vinny looked at his super slim and very athletic friend. “Think I’ll bring a crunchy curried cauliflower salad, Val. It’s easy. I took it to a party on the weekend and it was a hit. I just added curly lettuce leaves and my own cabbage slaw to Farm Boy’s offering and I was done.”

“Crunchy?” asked Val. “Does that mean uncooked?”

“Why, yes,” said Vinny.

“Guess I won’t be eating any, then.” Val smiled.

“Oops, I forgot! You can’t eat uncooked fiber! Sorry!” said Vinny.

“No problem,” said Val. “There will be plenty of other things there I can eat.”

But Vinny loves a challenge and began to think how he could turn his salad into something his friend Val could eat too. Easy, he thought. Cooked carrots. Just peel, slice, and add a  dressing.

Back in a bit

Malware is the high fructose corn syrup of our computer family.

Vinny took a breather over the summer to do some travelling. He’s been as far away as Slovenia and Italy, visiting with family in England en route. And back home he’s roamed as far as Saskatchewan in Western Canada and as near as White Lake in Ontario.

When he got home, he was in for a bit of a surprise. Vinny couldn’t load photos into Cook Up A Story any more. Even worse, he couldn’t load photos into his Facebook page.

Dorothy’s amazing tomato salad

Vinny pays homage to the tomato

Vinny has been remiss! That means he’s made a big mistake, has been careless, or both. For although he has featured tomatoes in many posts, especially those where he is extolling the virtues of a bunch of super foods, he’s never devoted a post solely to these delicious vegetables… er, fruits, actually.

Bled cream cake makes dreams come true

We just got home from a wonderful visit to Europe. One of our pleasures this trip was a leisurely tour of the small country of Slovenia. It’s a land where fairy tales come true. And to prove it, I’m posting a recipe for the heavenly Bled Cream Cake.

Moroccan chicken stew

Vinny’s summer vacation

Summer is in the air and Vinny and I are heading for the great outdoors. That means you won’t likely be hearing from us here again till September rolls around.

We leave you with a one-pot dinner idea that you can make for a crowd over the summer.

Yoda soda summer punch bowl

May the fourth be with you!

Enjoy a replay of a recipe we posted a few years back for a summertime drink that’s as good for you as it tastes. Fresh lime juice gives this cooler its Yoda color, and sparkling water adds the bubbles. For a gourmet touch, add some lime sorbet.

Click here for the recipe.

Vinny’s on Yum Goggle

Vinny’s been updating older posts recently and putting them up on Yum Goggle. Yum Goggle features food photography from contributors around the world. The photos whet your appetite for the recipes you can get simply by clicking on the pictures or the words GET THE RECIPE. It’s a great site and we’re proud to be a part of the team.

Healthier Happy Birthday cake-pie

It’s Sharon’s birthday today, so Vinny brings you a rich, chocolatey tart with no  flour in the filling, that you can stick candles in and sing happy birthday around, merrily. With this dessert, you can enjoy a slice and know that along with your birthday calories, you are also getting a decent helping of nutrition.

Rhubarb and Ginger Fool for April 1st

What is an April Fool?

The only surprise I was treated to on April Fool’s Day was Alex Trebek, walking onto his game show set without his pants! I did, however, write this post for you on April 1st, which should entitle me to name my fruit pudding recipe April Fool. It’s a tasty British fruit “Fool,” in the traditional sense.

Shrimp gumbo rocks the year of the pulse

Year of the pulse…

In honor of this versatile food group, we present a dish starring beans, lentils and dried peas. We served our spicy shrimp gumbo as the opening course for our Spanish tapas gourmet dinner this year. But it works well in larger amounts as a main course, too.

Vinegar, a great recipe for daily life

Carafe of white vinegar

My favorite use for vinegar is to make my own vinaigrette. No surprise! I’ve posted several versions over the years, as salad is now one of my favorite lunches.

But vinegar is good for so many things other than preserving or flavoring food. Here are five of my favorite nonfood uses for vinegar.

Drink Agua de Valencia for some Spanish sparkle

Spanish tapas dinner party

It’s that wonderful time of year when we host our annual gourmet dinner, which has been going on for a very long time now. We never get tired of trying out new recipes for our friends.

This year we chose a Spanish tapas theme, with the hope that we could prepare many of the dishes ahead of time and just enjoy ourselves on the evening.

To welcome our guests, we served a cocktail originating from Valencia, where oranges reign supreme.

Live it up with spicy ancho shrimp salad

Spice up your good health

I like to post on Tuesdays but this Tuesday I had nothing… nothing except a wonderful spice rub I put together on the weekend. It smokes! But I promise you, it doesn’t burn.

Celebrate Pi day with this easy chocolate cake — only 3.14-ingredients

A cake suitable for Pi day, photo by Tip Junkie

The story behind Pi day

Normally, I’d choose a pie to celebrate the math constant π (Pi = 3.14159…) on its special day, which is coming upon us soon. Scientists the world over will likely be tucking into a delicious slice of one, perhaps a banana cream or pecan pie,

Watermelon cheers us up with coolers and salads

Watermelon is a mood food

As most of my friends fly south for the winter, I thought I’d inject a little sun into my own life with watermelon. Deep into February as we are, a food to lift our spirits seems in order.

I’ve covered some of this before, but for newer readers, are you surprised to learn that watermelon is a good source of  the mood vitamins B₁ (thiamine) and B₆ (pyridoxine)? I was. Turns out thiamine is important for maintaining electrolytes and transmitting nervous-system signals throughout the body. Pyridoxine works with enzymes that convert food into cellular energy.

Who needs warm weather… Let’s party!

Watermelon pepo

Watermelon is a berry

Another surprising fact about watermelon… its fruit is a pepo, a special kind of berry with a thick rind and fleshy center.

Watermelon pepos offer the most nutrition per calorie of any common food.

Red is the give-away. Bright colors signal a big pay-off in  lycopene, an antioxidant repeatedly studied in humans and found to protect  against a whole slew of cancers…  prostate, breast, endometrial, lung, and colorectal, for starters.

Watermelon offers lots of  beta-carotene and another antioxidant, vitamin C. Besides helping lycopene to ward off cancer, these vitamins also battle heart disease, arthritis, and asthma.

Then there is the mineral potassium, guardian of our cardiovascular system, brain, and kidneys.

Finally, watermelon provides lots of the master mineral magnesium. Magnesium  is the big boss for over 300 cellular metabolic functions. Poor soils make magnesium scarce in today’s foods. Lack of magnesium is related to irritability, tension, sleep disorders, and muscular cramping, including the heart muscle (attack!).

How to enjoy watermelon

Watermelons retain most of their nutrition even after being cut and stored in the fridge. But watermelon is best eaten at room temperature when the flavor, plus the phytonutrient capacity, is at its best.

Eat plain

Just quarter a large watermelon berry and slice off slabs. Eat the flesh right off the rind and spit out the seeds.

 

Watermelon salad
Serves one

• one cup watermelon cubes
• 2 teaspoons lemon juice
• one cup kale, ribs removed and finely chopped
• 1 teaspoon avocado oil
• 1 ounce goat cheese
• salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste

1. Chop the flesh into bite-sized chunks.
2. Drizzle them with lemon juice, apple cider vinegar, or vodka. Let them soak it up for a few minutes.
3. Use them to top a plateful of greens, kale in my photo, which I drizzled with  avocado oil and massaged well.
4. Top with crumbled feta cheese or, my favorite, goat cheese.

 

Vinny’s pink watermelon cooler
Serves four

• 2  cups watermelon cubes, frozen
• 4 ice cubes
• Juice of one fresh lemon (1/4 cup)
• Juice of one fresh lime (2 tablespoons)
• 2-4 tablespoons of any sugar syrup you have. I used home-made red-current couli, But any fruit syrup, even grenadine (from pomegranates) or maple syrup, will do. I use an equivalent amount of stevia unless it’s a special occasion.
• 2 pinches of salt
• 2 pinches of black pepper
• 3-4 ounces raspberry vodka (optional)
• ¼ to 1/3 cup club soda, depending on whether you add alcohol or not and the size of your glass

1. Blend the whole works except for the club soda for a few seconds.
2. If you want to serve some of the cocktails without alcohol, leave the vodka out and add it back to the glasses of  the folks who want it.
3. Fill each glass about halfway with the watermelon fizz. Add 1 ounce alcohol to each glass if you didn’t include it in the mix. Top up with club soda. Adjust flavor with more lemon juice if needed.
4. Spoon some of the pink foam into each glass and top with a raspberry or a mint leaf to garnish.

Watermelon

When the winter blahs get you down, break out some watermelon and smile :).

 

 

 

Heart-smart sweet potato pancakes for your valentine

Luv U… B mine?

Here’s a terrific treat for the family on a day that celebrates all things close to the heart. It’s terrific because this valentine doesn’t involve candy, but it tastes wonderful, anyway.

My mystery delight involves sweet potatoes. They release their sugar gently, taking their time, so you don’t suffer from sugar spikes associated with refined white sugar that is added to most sweets.

I published this 4 years ago with all the good news about sweet potatoes. But I’ve since updated the photos and made the recipe even easier (there as well as here).

Light and fluffy!

Heart-y sweet potato pancakes
Serves 2 or 3

• 3/4 cup mashed sweet potatoes (1 medium potato boiled until fork tender, then peeled, mashed, and measured)
• 1/4 cup flour (whole grain if possible)
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• pinch of salt
• 3 eggs (omega-3 if possible)
• 1/2 cup buttermilk
• 2 teaspoons liquid oil (coconut, if possible)

1. Boil your sweet potato until fork tender. Then peel, mash, and measure. Use 1/4 cup mashed potato per egg, for each person. My recipe serves 3 people from 1 potato.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, cinnamon and salt.
3. In a separate bowl, whisk the eggs, buttermilk and canola oil. Of course you can use any kind of eggs, milk or oil…. but on a day we are celebrating love, I think we should be as kind to our hearts as we can be with these healthy ingredients.
4. Whisk the sweet potato puree into the liquid ingredients. Then stir the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients until they are just blended.

Cooking and Presentation

1. To follow through with hearts on Valentine’s Day, spray a large nonstick or cast-iron frying pan with oil and add a dab of butter for flavor. Heat the pan on medium heat until oil sizzles a bit.
2. Fill the pan with 1/4-cup scoops of batter. I had room for 3 or 4 at a time. When bubbles rise to the surface of the pancakes, lift a corner and check the underside. When golden brown, flip the cake over, using a spatula. After a minute or three, once the second side is golden as well, flip the cake onto a wooden cutting board.
3.  Using a heart-shaped cookie cutter, turn each pancake into a love-note for your sweetie. I presented these golden treats with a splash of maple syrup and some berries on the side.

 

Hey, sweet patootie, I yam keen on you! B mine?

 “You are berry cute,” I said. “I think we’re cut out for each other!”

Whipped goat cream, a tart cheese treat

Whipped goat cream

Once upon a time I came across a recipe that called for whipped goat cheese. So I took my basket and headed to the grocery store, where I eventually found a small tub of the stuff at three times the cost of regular, ordinary, every-day goat cheese.

When I finally had a minute to spare I sat down and examined the label. The ingredients were goat cheese and water… and a few chemicals. It seemed I’d bought a processed food fortified with who knows what. And I thought: why can’t I make that myself – and leave out the chemicals?

Why indeed. It’s so simple, I didn’t even need a food processor. I got great results with nothing but a spoon and a bowl.

Goat cheese and lemon – so easy to whip up

Whipped goat cream
Makes approx 1 1/4 cups or 20 tablespoons

• 1 cup (150 grams) goat cheese, at room temperature (mine comes in a tube)
• 2 tablespoons yogurt from 2% goat’s milk (I make my own… You don’t? OK, use natural Greek-style yogurt instead)
• freshly squeezed juice and finely grated zest from half a lemon (about 2 tablespoons)
• Stevia* to taste (0 calories) or 1 teaspoon honey
• sea salt, to taste
• 1-2 tablespoons hot water, or as needed to achieve desired consistency

1. Combine goat cheese, yogurt, sweetener,  lemon juice and zest into a bowl.
2. Cream them together with a wide spoon until smooth, adding 1-2 tablespoons of hot water, as needed, to get a light creamy consistency. Add more if you like it runnier, as for a dip perhaps.
3. Season to taste with a little sea salt.

*This is a great recipe in which to experiment with Stevia, because it sweetens while enhancing the lemon flavor. It works better than sugar.

Pear taquitos with whipped goat cream

How to serve goat cream

This works great in the recipe I mentioned off the top, for pear taquitos. I make it often for special occasions, and it is always a success.

Whipped goat cream goes well with fruit and today I enjoyed it with sliced apple.

Use it as a low-sugar icing on cupcakes or tarts. Whipped goat cream adds moistness and tang to any chocolate, lemon, or banana treat.

Thin it out a bit more and use it as a veggie dip for carrots or turnip sticks.

Whipped goat cream works as a spread on crackers. I like it with Triscuits (20 calories each) but if you like bagels or toast, I’m sure it would be delicious there as a spread.

Nutrition

One tablespoon of whipped goat cream has 21 calories. It has equal amounts of fat and protein, about 1.5 grams each.

Whipped goat cream is a low-carb food, only 0.3 grams (if you use stevia to sweeten).

This food is a good source of vitamin A, niacin, riboflavin and iron.

By the way, you can reduce the amount of fat per tablespoon by adding more water. This is how manufacturers make low-fat butter and mayo. Now, you can make them too and save some money. They charge more for products with less fat because of the processing cost.

 

Butternut Squash dressed in Ricotta

This sad butternut squash needs a make-over. Dress her up in Ricotta.

“Who wants to eat an ugly thing like that?” asked Will, staring down a decidedly unpleasant-looking butternut squash.

Pear and leek bake

A crustless quiche with a difference

Vinny’s blogged about pears,  leeks, and goat cheese before. But here they team up to give you something a bit different. Sweet and savory meld to make an unusual main course for lunch or a spectacular beginning to a fancy dinner. And except for the chopping, it’s easy!

Gollum’s easy baked fish and green “seaweed” chili

Gollum’s oven-baked haddock with bacon

Gollum

This small, slimy hobbit lived on an island in the centre of an underground lake, in the story The Lord of the Rings. He was endowed with magic that extended his life well past the time when he should have left the building.

Gollum thought his staying power was due to a ring that he called My Precious. But I think  his regular meals of cave fish and seaweed was the most likely reason for his amazing, long life.