Eye for a Recipe

I usually steam mussels in a covered Dutch oven, so I was intrigued when I saw this recipe in the September-October 2013 issue of Cook’s Illustrated. It suggests steaming the mussels in a roasting pan in the oven. This prevents overcrowding, which can prevent some mussels from opening during cooking. I tried it, and it worked very well; nearly every mussel opened and they were tender and flavourful. This would be a great way to prepare mussels for a larger group of people.

Avoiding Additives and Preservatives

Looks for a white wine with a sulfite level below 10 parts per million and butter than contains only cream.

Wash and debeard mussels

Bay leaves, onion and thyme flavour the broth

Bring the bay leaves, onion, thyme and wine to a simmer on stovetop

Add the mussels to the roasting pan

Cover the pan tightly with foil

The mussels are ready in about 15 minutes

Whisk in some butter

Toss with parsley and serve

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon (15 ml) extra-virgin olive oil

3 garlic cloves, minced

Pinch red pepper flakes

1 cup (250 ml) dry white wine

3 sprigs fresh thyme

2 bay leaves

4 pounds (1.8 kg) mussels, scrubbed and debearded

¼ teaspoon (1 ml) salt

2 tablespoons (30 ml) unsalted butter, cut into 4 pieces

2 tablespoons (30 ml) minced fresh parsley

Preparation:

Prior to cooking, discard any mussel with an unpleasant odor or with a cracked or broken shell or a shell that won’t close.

Adjust oven rack to lowest position and heat oven to 500 degrees F (260 C). Heat oil, garlic, and pepper flakes in large roasting pan over medium heat; cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add wine, thyme sprigs, and bay leaves and bring to boil. Cook until wine is slightly reduced, about 1 minute. Add mussels and salt. Cover pan tightly with aluminum foil and transfer to oven. Cook until most mussels have opened, 15 to 18 minutes.

Remove pan from oven. Push mussels to sides of pan. Add butter to center and whisk until melted. Discard thyme sprigs, bay leaves and any mussels that did not open. Sprinkle parsley over mussels, and toss to combine. Serve immediately, with crusty bread to mop of the juices. Serves 2-4.

From the September-October 2013 issue of Cook’s Illustrated

When I saw this free-form berry pie on the cover of the August 2013 issue of Chatelaine, I knew I had to make it, even if pastry was involved. I am no baker, but this is very easy to make and received rave reviews. Fresh mixed berries are tossed with brown sugar, cornstarch and salt and then tumbled into rolled-out pastry. You just fold the edges up over the fruit and pop it in the oven. I’ve made this a few times, and each time some liquid from the filling escaped from the pastry, but it does not affect the flavour. Be sure to have some parchment paper on hand for this recipe. Special thanks to Eileen for taking the photos of the finished product!

Avoiding Additives and Preservatives

Make sure your butter contains only cream, with no colour or preservatives, and use fresh lemon juice.

Toss mixed berries with brown sugar, corn starch and lemon juice

Roll out the pastry on parchment paper

Tumble the fruit onto the pastry

Carefully fold edges up, leaving top open

Bake until pastry is golden

It's delicious with vanilla ice cream

Ingredients:

1 ¼ cups (312 ml) all-purpose flour

1 tbsp (15 ml) granulated sugar

¼ tsp (1 ml) salt

½ cup (125 ml) cold unsalted butter, cubed

4 tsp (20 ml) ice water

1 tbsp (15 ml) lemon juice

½ cup (125 ml) brown sugar

3 tbsp (45 ml) cornstarch

1/8 tsp (0.5 ml) salt

4 cups (1 L) mixed blueberries, blackberries, raspberries and strawberries (strawberries sliced if large)

1 tsp (5 ml) coarse sugar

Icing sugar (optional)

Preparation:

Whirl flour with granulated sugar and ¼ tsp (1 ml) salt in a food processor. Add butter. Pulse until crumbs form. With motor running, add ice water and lemon juice through spout. Continue whirling just until dough comes together. It should not be sticky.

Position rack in bottom of oven. Preheat to 375F (190C). Lay a large piece of parchment on counter. Sprinkle lightly with flour. Pat pastry dough into a ball. Dust rolling pin with flour. Roll pastry on parchment into a circle, about 12 inches (30.5 cm) wide. Pastry will be very thin and edges will be uneven. Transfer parchment and pastry to baking sheet.

Combine brown sugar and cornstarch and 1/8 tsp (0.5 ml) salt in a large bowl. Stir in berries until coated. Tumble fruit mixed onto centre of pastry, forming a 10-inch (25.4 cm) circle. Fold pastry over, just to cover edge of fruit. Centre of pie should not be covered with pastry, and edge will be uneven. Lightly brush pastry with water, then sprinkle with coarse sugar.

Bake until pastry is golden and mixture is bubbly, 35 to 40 min. Serve warm with vanilla ice cream, or cool and dust with icing sugar. Serves 6-8.

From the August 2013 issue of Chatelaine

For brunch, lunch or a light supper—this crustless quiche from the August 2013 issue of Canadian Living would be perfect, accompanied by a green salad. You don’t have to make pastry, and this recipe will also help use up the zucchini in your garden. Be sure to wring out the grated zucchini and wilted spinach very well, so the quiche is not watery.

Avoiding Additives and Preservatives

Check the whipping cream, goat cheese and Parmesan to make sure they do not contain artificial ingredients, such as colour or preservatives.

Grate a medium-sized zucchini

Saute 3 cups of spinach until just wilted

Wring out zucchini and spinach to remove excess liquid

Wrung-out zucchini and spinach

Mix zucchini and spinach with the remaining ingredients

Bake for 40-45 minutes, until golden brown

Goat cheese and zucchini crustless quiche

Ingredients:

1 tsp (5 ml) vegetable oil

2 cloves garlic, minced

3 cups (750 ml) baby spinach

1 zucchini, grated

5 eggs

1 cup (250 ml) whipping cream, (35%)

½ cup (125 ml) milk

1 pinch nutmeg

1 pinch salt

1 pinch pepper

½ cup (125 ml) crumbled soft goat cheese

1/3 cup (75 ml) grated Parmesan cheese

Preparation:

In skillet, heat oil over medium heat; cook garlic until fragrant, 1 minute. Add spinach; cook, stirring often, until wilted, 2 minutes. Let cool.

Wrap spinach and zucchini in clean tea towel; twist and squeeze to release excess liquid. Set aside.

In large bowl, whisk eggs just until blended. Whisk in cream, milk, nutmeg, salt and pepper just until combined. Stir in goat cheese, Parmesan cheese, zucchini and spinach. Pour into greased 9-inch (23 cm) pie plate. Bake in 425ºF (220ºC) oven until golden brown and centre is set, 35 to 40 minutes. Serves 6 to 8.

From the August 2013 issue of Canadian Living

I have been in charge of harvesting the garden the past few days, and I thought I was doing pretty well. Until today, that is. When, seemingly out of nowhere, three gigantic, one very large and one normal-sized zucchini appeared.

I can grill zucchini slices, sauté zucchini ribbons, make zucchini fritters – but I was still going to have lots of zucchini. So I decided to bake a cake. I found this easy recipe for zucchini cake on simplyrecipes.com. I had all the ingredients in my pantry and recipe comes together quickly. You can frost this cake or leave it plain, as I did, and serve it with ice cream or whipped cream.

Avoiding Additives and Preservatives

Be sure to use pure vanilla extract, not artificial, and check to make sure the nuts and raisins are preservative-free. Butter the pan with a brand of butter than contains only cream. If you make the frosting, look for an organic brand of cream cheese without artificial ingredients added.

Grate the zucchini and squeeze out the excess moisture

Combine the dry ingredients, except the sugar, and add to the beaten eggs and sugar

Pour the batter into a buttered pan

The cake bakes in about 40 minutes

Moist and delicious zucchini cake

Ingredients:

Cake

2 cups flour

2 teaspoons cinnamon (can substitute 1 teaspoon with other spices such as allspice and nutmeg)

2 teaspoons baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon baking powder

3 eggs

2 cups white, granulated sugar

1 cup vegetable oil

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 teaspoon grated lemon zest (optional, my addition)

2 cups (from about 3-4 regular sized zucchini) grated un-peeled zucchini (place grated zucchini in a sieve and press out some of the excess moisture before measuring)

1 cup chopped walnuts or pecans

1/2 cup golden raisins (optional)

Frosting

3 ounces cream cheese, softened to room temperature

¼ cup butter, room temperature

1 ½ to 2 cups of powdered sugar

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter a 9×12 or 9×13 baking pan.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cinnamon, baking soda, salt, and baking powder. Set aside.

In a mixer, beat the 3 eggs on high speed until frothy. Lower the speed and beat in the sugar, vegetable oil, vanilla, and lemon zest (if using). Stir in the flour mixture, a third at a time. Stir in the zucchini and chopped nuts and/or raisins.

Pour mixture into a 9×12 or 9×13 baking pan. Bake at 350°F for 40 to 45 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool completely before frosting.

To make the frosting, beat together the cream cheese and butter. Add the powdered sugar and beat until smooth.

Frost the cake and serve. Store covered with aluminum foil. Makes 20 pieces.

From simplyrecipes.com

This recipe from the July 2013 issue of Food and Wine doesn’t take long to make and is a great way to use up the season’s bountiful crop of cherry tomatoes. The recipe calls for chorizo, but I used cooked hot Italian sausage instead. Be sure to have crusty bread on the table to sop up the delicious juices!

Avoiding Additives and Preservatives

Chorizo may contain artificial ingredients, so if you can’t find an all-natural product, substitute cooked hot Italian sausage that contains no additives or preservatives. Look for cannellini or white kidney beans with only salt added, such as PC Blue Menu brand.

Cook chorizo with garlic

Add cherry tomatoes, followed by seasoning, beans and mussels

Mussels with white beans and chorizo

Ingredients:

¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

1 garlic clove, thinly sliced

2 ounces dried chorizo, diced

10 cherry tomatoes, halved

Pinch of crushed red pepper

Salt

Ground black pepper

One 15-ounce can cannellini beans, drained

2 pounds mussels, scrubbed and debearded

Chopped parsley and grilled bread, for serving

Preparation:

In a large, deep skillet, combine the olive oil with the garlic and chorizo and cook over high heat for 1 minute. Add the cherry tomatoes and crushed red pepper, season with salt and black pepper and cook for 1 minute. Add the cannellini beans, mussels and ½ cup of water, cover and cook over high heat until the mussel shells open, about 3 minutes; discard any mussels that don’t open. Transfer the mussels, beans, tomatoes and chorizo to deep bowls, sprinkle with parsley and serve with grilled bread. Serves 2-4.

From the July 2013 issue of Food and Wine

If you haven’t tried radicchio on the grill, you don’t know what you are missing. When raw, this red leaf chicory is bitter and spicy, making it a great addition to summer salads. When grilled, however, the bitterness mellows and the radicchio becomes tender and smoky. It’s an excellent side dish for most barbecued meats, including this grilled chicken recipe from the July 2013 issue of Canadian Living.

Avoiding Additives and Preservatives

Look for an all-natural grainy mustard, such as President’s Choice Old Fashioned Dijon and a balsamic vinegar with no sulfites added. Make sure the goat cheese does not contain preservatives, and use local honey.

Cut the radicchio into four wedges, keeping root end intact, and drizzle with dressing

Baste the chicken toward the end of its cooking time

Grill the radichio quickly, while the chicken is resting

Grilled chicken with balsamic radicchio

Ingredients:

2 tbsp (30 ml) liquid honey

1 tbsp (15 ml) grainy mustard

¼ tsp (1 ml) salt

¼ tsp (1 ml) pepper

1 lb (454 g) boneless skinless chicken breasts

2 heads radicchio lettuce

2 tbsp (30 ml) balsamic vinegar

2 tbsp (30 ml) extra-virgin olive oil

1/3 cup (75 ml) crumbled goat cheese

1 tbsp (15 ml) chopped fresh chives

Preparation:

Stir together honey, mustard and half each of the salt and pepper; set aside.

Place chicken on greased grill over medium heat; close lid and grill, turning once, until browned, about 8 minutes. Brush with half of the honey mixture. Grill, covered and turning and brushing frequently with honey mixture, until no longer pink inside, about 7 minutes. Transfer to cutting board and tent with foil; let stand for 5 minutes before slicing.

Meanwhile, keeping root end intact, cut each radicchio into 4 wedges. Whisk together vinegar, oil and remaining salt and pepper; drizzle over radicchio.

Add to grill; grill, covered and turning once, until lightly browned, 3 to 4 minutes. Transfer to platter; top with goat cheese and chives. Serve with sliced chicken. Serves 4.

From the July 2013 issue of Canadian Living

If you want to get dinner on the table in a hurry, you can’t go wrong with grilled shrimp. Marinate peeled and deveined shrimp while you preheat the barbecue, pop them on skewers and grill for about five minutes. This recipe from the Summer 2013 issue of the LCBO’s Food and Drink magazine uses a simple but flavourful marinade of fresh tarragon, lemon juice and olive oil. Serve with rice, greens, a bean salad or, as I did, the season’s first corn on the cob. If you are using wooden skewers, soak them in water for 30 minutes before you thread the shrimp onto them; otherwise they may burn up on the grill.

Avoiding Additives and Preservatives

I use frozen shrimp, because the ingredients are listed on the bag. Look for a brand with no preservatives except salt. Be sure to use fresh lemon juice.

Ingredients:

1 lb. (500 g) large (21/25 size) uncooked shrimp, peeled

3 tbsp (45 ml) lemon juice

2 tbsp (30 ml) chopped fresh tarragon leaves

1 tbsp (15 ml) olive oil

Salt and pepper

Marinate shrimp in lemon juice, tarragon and olive oil

If you use wooden skewers, be sure to soak them in water for a half hour first

Grill the shrimp for about five minutes, or until pink and cooked through

Lemon tarragon shrimp with corn on the cob

Preparation:

Grease grill and preheat to medium-high. While barbecue is preheating, place shrimp, lemon juice, tarragon and oil in a bowl and toss to coat.

Just before grilling, remove shrimp from marinade and thread onto skewers. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.

Place shrimp on grill and barbecue until pink, turning occasionally, about five minutes or until done. Serves 4.

From the Summer 2013 issue of Food and Drink

Chicken cutlets cook in no time at all, so this recipe from the Summer 2013 issue of the LCBO’s Food and Drink is a good choice for a quick weeknight supper. If you can’t find cutlets, slice a skinless, boneless chicken breast in half lengthwise and pound with the smooth side of a meat tenderizer to an even thickness. The cutlets are pan-seared with fresh sage and served with stir-fried green beans, fennel and red onion. I didn’t have fennel and the mélange was fine without it. Orzo or rice with chopped chives is a good accompaniment. It’s best to sear the chicken in two batches; if the pan is too crowded the chicken will steam and won’t develop a brown exterior.

Avoiding Additives and Preservatives

Use butter that contains one ingredient: cream. Use freshly squeezed lemon juice, as the concentrates contain sodium benzoate and are bitter.

Pound chicken to an even thickness

Sear chicken in batches, adding sage to second batch

The chicken should develop a nice brown exterior

Stir fry the vegetables in a separate pan

Pan-fried chicken with stir fried green beans and onion

Ingredients:

1 tbsp (15 ml) butter

2 tbsp (30 ml) olive oil

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 lb. (500 g) thin chicken cutlets or boneless skinless chicken breasts, split in half and pounded thinly

Salt and pepper

6 sage leaves

2 handfuls of green beans

1 small fennel bulb, cored and cut into thin strips

¼ small red onion, cut into thin strips

½ lemon, juiced

Preparation:

Heat butter and half the oil over medium-high heat in a large frying pan. Add garlic. Stir just until garlic is golden, remove and discard. Season chicken with salt and pepper. Working in two batches, so as to not crowd the pan, add half the cutlets; cook until a deep golden brown, 3 to 5 minutes in total. Add sage leaves while cooking the second batch.

Meanwhile, heat remaining oil in a large, separate frying pan over medium-high heat. Add green beans, fennel and red onion. Season with salt and pepper. Stir-fry until beans are tender, reducing heat as needed, 5 to 10 minutes.

Return first batch of cutlets to pan and reheat. Squeeze lemon juice over top and swish meat in any juices. Place vegetable mixture on plate. Evenly divide cutlets between plates, placing over vegetables. Serves 4.

From the Summer 2013 issue of Food and Drink

Unlike regular couscous—small grains of durum wheat—Israeli couscous is a toasted pasta shaped in tiny balls, about the size of small peas. The cooking method is different too; to make regular couscous, you usually boil liquid, add the couscous, turn off the heat and let the couscous steam and absorb the liquid. To cook Israeli couscous, which is called Ptitim in Israel, you add the pasta to boiling water, reduce the heat and simmer until the pasta absorbs the liquid. Israel couscous is firmer than the regular kind, so it is an excellent addition to summer salads, such as this one from the early summer issue of the LCBO’s Food and Drink, which also features cherry tomatoes, corn and fresh herbs. Be sure to toss most of the dressing with the cooked couscous while it is still hot, so it can absorb the flavours.

Avoiding Additives and Preservatives

This recipe uses all-natural ingredients. Be sure to use a real lemon, not lemon concentrate.

Israeli couscous is toasted pasta shaped like peas

Roast cherry or grape tomatoes

You can roast the corn or saute it

Tossing the dressing with hot couscous helps the pasta absorb the flavours

Roasted cherry tomato, corn & Israeli couscous salad

Ingredients:

12 oz (375 g) container multicoloured cherry tomatoes, cut in half, about 1½ cups (375 ml)
¼ cup (60 ml) corn, fresh or frozen
3 tbsp (45 ml) olive oil
½ tsp (2 ml) dried oregano leaves
1¼ cups (310 ml) water
½ tsp (2 ml) salt
¾ cup (175 ml) Israeli couscous
1 lemon
¼ tsp (1 ml) each salt and pepper
¼ cup (60 ml) each coarsely chopped mint and thinly snipped chives

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 425°F (220°C).

Place tomatoes and corn on baking sheet. Drizzle with 2 tsp (10 ml) olive oil then sprinkle with oregano. Roast just until tomatoes begin to soften, 3 to 5 minutes. Meanwhile bring water and salt to a boil in a medium saucepan. Add couscous, reduce heat and simmer covered until water is absorbed, 8 to 10 minutes.

Finely grate 1 tsp (5 ml) peel from lemon into a small bowl. Then squeeze out 3 tbsp (45 ml) juice. Whisk in remaining oil, salt and pepper.

Place cooked couscous in a bowl. Add most of the lemon dressing to couscous while it’s still hot. Stir couscous, letting it cool in dressing. Once cool, stir in tomato mixture and fresh herbs. Taste and add remaining lemon dressing if needed.

From the early summer issue of Food and Drink magazine

The salad in this recipe from Real Simple is made with farro, a type of grain in the wheat family. It is also known as emmer and often confused with spelt. But, by any name, it is a great summer salad ingredient because of its nutty taste and chewy texture. In this recipe, chicken thighs are seasoned with lemon zest, salt and pepper, then are quickly seared and placed in the oven to finish cooking. You could also grill them. Meanwhile, you can cook the farro and prepare the other salad ingredients, which include asparagus, radishes, Feta cheese and mint. This salad would be great for a picnic or potluck, because the farro doesn’t get soggy.

Avoiding Additives and Preservatives

Be sure to use fresh lemon juice and look for a brand of Feta cheese with no artificial ingredients.

Sprinkle chicken thighs with lemon zest, salt and pepper

The farro takes about 30 minutes to cook

Saute the asparagus in the same skillet you used to sear the chicken

Radishes add colour and crunch to the farro salad

Lemon-pepper chicken thighs with farro salad

Ingredients:

1 cup (250 ml) whole-grain farro

Kosher salt and black pepper

2 tablespoons (30 ml) olive oil

8 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs

1 tablespoon (15 ml) lemon zest, plus 2 tablespoons (30 ml) fresh lemon juice

1 bunch asparagus (about 1 pound or 454 g), trimmed and cut into 1½ -inch pieces (3.8 cm)

4 radishes, cut into wedges

3 ounces (85 g) Feta, crumbled

¼ cup (60 ml) torn mint leaves

Preparation:

Heat oven to 400° F. Cook the farro in a large pot of boiling salted water until tender, 20 to 30 minutes. Drain and transfer to a large bowl.

Meanwhile, heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Season the chicken with the lemon zest and ¼ teaspoon (1 ml) each salt and pepper. Brown the chicken in batches, 4 to 6 minutes per side. Transfer to a rimmed baking sheet; reserve the skillet. Roast the chicken until a thermometer inserted in the thickest part of a thigh registers 165° F, (75° C) 18 to 22 minutes.

Add the asparagus to the drippings in the skillet and cook over medium-high heat, tossing occasionally, until just tender, 3 to 5 minutes. Transfer the asparagus to the bowl with the farro, along with the radishes, Feta, lemon juice, mint leaves, the remaining tablespoon of oil, and ¼ teaspoon (1 ml) each salt and pepper; toss to combine. Serve the chicken with the farro salad. Serves 4.

From the May 2013 issue of Real Simple magazine