Here's a little something you may want to add to your Thanksgiving dinner this weekend. But it not, that's okay, because this is a good addition to any meal anytime, so it can wait for a less formal occasion if you choose. I took a cue from one of my favourite Canadian chefs, MIchael Smith, and made a recipe without using a "recipe". So I have no quantities here, just a list of ingredients and you can use them in the way that works best for you.
Growing up I was never very fond of cooked carrots. Boiled until mushy, they just weren't appealing to me. My boys feel the same way, so I've started roasted them, and oh, what a difference. The natural sweetness comes out when they're roasted and the edges crisp slightly and they're quite tasty. Once sliced and coated with the remaining ingredients, they take little effort to make, as the oven works it's magic. These are great for entertaining and large family dinners where you don't want to spend all of your time working in the kitchen. Alternatively, I tend to make these when the homework pile is sky high and my attention is needed somewhere other than the kitchen.
So, in honor of Canada and a Canadian chef, I hope you enjoys these carrots. Several of my friends who visit here from other countries have asked why Canadians celebrate Thanksgiving. I did some research in order to come up with an exact reason, beyond what I knew, and below is a little history lesson for you. Have a lovely weekend friends and I'll be back on Tuesday.
PS - I've just realized that the last three posts all showcased orange food. I'll try to introduce a new colour next week!
Canada celebrated the first Thanksgiving 43 years before the United States did (1578 vs. 1621). Long before the first European settlers arrived in North American, the farmers of Europe held celebrations at harvest time to give thanks for their good fortunes and abundance of food. When they immigrated to Canada they brought that tradition with them and so we celebrate, with thanks, for a successful harvest. The date of the Canadian Thanksgiving has changed over the years. It used to be acknowledged on the last Monday of October, but now it is the second Monday of the month, which is closer to the start of the harvest season. While the true holiday lies on the Monday of the long weekend, most Canadian families eat their dinner on the Sunday.
~ Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
~ Peel the carrots and slice on a bias. Spread evenly over a half-sheet baking pan.
~ Combine olive oil, honey, mustard and salt (using the quantities that work for you) in a glass measuring cup and stir well. Pour over the carrots and toss lightly with your fingers.
~ Ground pepper over the carrots and place in the oven. Bake for approx. 40 minutes or until the carrots are fork tender with a slight crisp.
We're celebrating Canadian Thanksgiving this coming Sunday. I love this holiday more and more each year, and I'm so grateful that most of our family is in close enough proximity to spend the day with us. This year, upon the suggestion of a friend, we're having a pumpkin carving contest and I thought it would be great fun for the kids to also do a little bobbing-for-apples and doughnut-on-a-string eating.
The festivities are being held at our home this year and I've been experimenting with ideas and recipes for what to serve. I like to keep things fairly traditional, but also want to put my own spin on some of the dishes. I made the above squash yesterday and while incredibly yummy (really good actually) I'm not certain it'll make the cut for dinner on Sunday. There are just so many things I want to serve, and sadly it can't be everything I try. But if this doesn't grace our table this weekend, that's okay, for I'm sure we'll eat it often throughout the Fall months.
This recipe is most appealing to me, for not just it's great taste, but also it's simple preparation.It doesn't require a lot of time or work and your kiddies can get involved quite easily. Let them scrape out the membranes of the squash and you'll see some real excitement. My boys enjoy any kind of job that involves a mess, and this will be no exception.
Once the squash has been cleaned out, all you need to do it drizzle it with olive oil and a sprinkle of salt and pepper, another kid-friendly job. Place the inside down on a greased baking sheet and roast. When tender to the touch, or piercing of a fork, remove from the oven and allow to cool. Combine with the remaining ingredients and you'll have a puree so yummy every family member will be able to enjoy this, even the young toothless ones.
Whether this dish will be served on Sunday still remains to be seen. I don't think anyone will mind either way though, as we're going to have a yummy feast regardless of what we serve. Being together makes the day more delicious that any food we serve, and if anyone is hungry, or not completely satisfied with the meal, we'll have lots of apples and doughnuts lying around to fill them up.
~ Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Slice the squash in half, lengthwise, and scrape out the membranes. Drizzle with olive oil and a sprinkle of salt and pepper and place skin side up on a greased baking sheet.
~ Roast for approx. 45 minutes or until the squash is fork tender.
~ Combine the butter, maple syrup and curry powder in a small saucepan over medium heat and cook until the butter has melted. Stir the ingredients well and set aside, removing from the heat.
~ Remove the squash from the oven and allow to cool for a few minutes. Turn the squash over and remove the insides from the skin. Place in a large mixing bowl and pour the butter mixture over top. Using an immersion blender, puree the mixture and place in a medium sized serving bowl.
Truly one of life's most comforting foods, soup is the quintessential Fall meal.
Whether used to cure the common cold, provide warmth for small, chilled hands or solace a weakened soul, this practically perfect food is wonderful for family gatherings, weeknight dinners and school lunches.
We eat all sorts of soups, both vegetarian and meat based, and have consumed three different types in the past six days. Little kitchen helpers can easily assist you with your soup making, which makes it even more enjoyable to eat, knowing the preparation has been a family affair. It's a wonderful activity on a cool Sunday afternoon, and whether they chop the vegetables or add their own secret spice blend (see note below) to the pot, they will be eager to lap it up when their hands have assisted with the creation of your soupy goodness.
What soups are your family enjoying right now? Please do share and if you have any recipes worth sharing send them my way as well. Happy First Day of Fall!
(Note: Give your children the spices you have that will complement the soup you are making. Allow them to create their own "secret spice blend", using their own quantities of the spices you've provided. They will love this, I promise you).
I've been patiently waiting for the letter "L" to come upon us so I could make something with lemons. I know I've shared my lemon love with you before (here and here) but not in the form of a cookie, which seemed like a timely and relevant recipe option with almost all of the kiddies back to school now.
Perfect for the lunchbox, both yours and that of your little people, these are incredibly easy to make and even tastier to eat. Inspired by the lemon-zucchini cookies in the September issue of Everyday Food, I adapted this recipe to make these. My youngest was quite skeptical about the idea of veggies in his cookies, and while not the sugary, super sweet cookie that many of us are used to, I'm happy to report he was pleasantly surprised and is hoping to help me make more this weekend. That's always a sign of culinary success in my mind.
An oh so easy recipe for little hands, I think your children, regardless of age, will be able to assist with these ones. I might suggest grating the zucchini first, as this can be a challenge even for my nine year old, but otherwise, these simple sweets are easy enough for the youngest chef in the kitchen to work on, even those who are toddler sized.
Do you all love lemon as much as I do? How do you use your lemons - in sweet or savoury cooking? I look forward to hearing all of your suggestions.
~ In a mixing bowl, mix together the melted butter and brown sugar with a wooden spoon or spatula.
~ Add in the egg, lemon juice and zucchini and mix until well combined.
~ In a separate bowl combine flour, cornmeal, lemon zest, baking powder and nutmeg.
~ Add wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and blend well.
~ Drop cookies onto baking sheet (approx, 1 inch balls of dough). Flatten with a fork.
Iceberg lettuce is mostly known as the lettuce that is stuffed into hamburgers, sandwiches and tacos. It's also a main salad green, and although used less frequently that the more popular romaine or baby spinach, it's the perfect vehicle for this little food creation you see pictured above.
A fun salad for the school lunch-box, iceberg lettuce boats can be made with an assortment of veggies. Be creative and more importantly let your kiddies be creative. If they're making fun things like this to take to school, you can be guaranteed they'll be far more likely to eat them - and considering these are fork-less and can be eaten easily, I think kiddies are that much more like to munch on them.
It's a quick post today...we're jamming a lot of summer fun into the next few days and I'm off to plan and pack for all of our adventures. Have a great day and don't forget to leave your alphabetical food suggestions in the comments section. All comments will be entered into a draw for a fun foodie prize pack. Winners will be announced after the letter "Z". Have a great day!
~ Remove the core of the lettuce (you can do this by smashing the bottom of the lettuce where the core is on the counter and pulling out of the lettuce) and discard.
~ Remove the outer leaves and slice the head into four. Remove any pieces of the core from the centre of the boats.
~ Dice the cucumber and carrot, half the cherry tomatoes and place the veggies inside the boats.
~ Drizzle with dressing, wrap and place in the lunchbox.
We love corn! Now that it's available from my farmer's market, fresh picked from the fields not too far from me, we have stocked up on several ears to be eaten for dinner this week. The only trouble with this is that one of my children is currently missing most of his front teeth, which is a slight disadvantage when trying to gobble up the kernels from the cob. I knew we had to come up with a creative way for him to eat the corn - a way for him to use his side teeth instead of his front ones - and "corn coins" seemed to work well.
So simple to make, husked ears of corn are cut into one-inch thick slices, thus taking on the shape of a large coin (or Canadian toonie ). These can be boiled on the stove or placed in an aluminum foil packet, which is our preferred method of cooking. Traditionally seasoned with a pat of butter and some salt and/or fresh ground pepper (which is how I most enjoy this) you can also add cajun seasoning or flavoured butters to spruce up this summer staple. And the best thing about this much loved side- dish is that all of my family members love to eat it - even the toothless ones.
~ Husk the corn (I love to give this job to my boys).
~ Using a sharp knife, slice the corn into one-inch thick coins.
~ Place in the centre of a sheet of aluminum foil.
~ Divide the butter into four to six squares and scatter over the corn. Season with salt and pepper.
~ Fold up the sides of the foil and seal shut.
~ Place on BBQ and grill for 10-15 minutes.