A Menu for November
Butter Lettuce with Fuyu Persimmon, Pomegranate, Crisp Garlic and Blue Cheese Dressing
Seared Sockeye Salmon on Roasted Purple Potatoes with Aioli, Pickled Red Onion, Dill and Brussels Sprout Leaves
Pear and Dried Cherry Strudel with Ginger Cream
A quick post today to share this menu from November as our next one for December is right around the corner!
I am really in love with the combinations of flavours, colours and textures in this month’s menu and full credit for it’s creation goes to my cooking partner and sweet friend Diane over at Nourishing Vancouver. There are times when my creativity in the kitchen wanes and the simple question of “What’s for Dinner” seems daunting. This is where my collaboration with Diane is such a gift. We have a very similar sensibility when it comes to food and cooking, yet we come from very different culinary backgrounds. Diane will often have ideas about what should be on a seasonal menu that are brand new to me. Things I have never cooked, never even thought of cooking. As a cook and a teacher I think working outside my comfort zone is a very good thing for me.
When Diane and I met to discuss the November menu I didn’t have any one dish or even one mid-fall ingredient that was inspiring to me. I think that because of all the cooking and travelling I had been doing of late I was feeling a bit tapped out. Luckily for me (and for you) Diane was full of ideas and had spent time thinking and researching and checking out what was going on in our local markets.
There are a few standout components of this menu for me. First off, the pairing of the persimmon (which I LOVE) with blue cheese and hearts of butter lettuce. This first course looks elegant and is a great combination of flavours. My second “wow” moment of this menu was how creamy and delicious the purple potatoes featured in the main course are. I always think of purple potatoes as a bit of a gimmick somehow but the steaming and then pan frying method of cooking these yields a delicious and beautiful base for the seared fish with it’s dollop or mayonnaise and pickled red onions. This is a main course that I will go back to again and again.
As always Diane and I added our own personal twists on the menu we chose. I used salmon instead of lingcod and added in a few Brussels sprout leaves for some colour on the main course plate. For dessert I used dried cherries in place of the cranberries and walnuts instead of almonds but the measurements and methods are the same. For this reason I will send you over to Diane’s site at Nourishing Vancouver for the recipes…
Back soon with a festive menu for December. Until then stay warm and dry and sane during this holiday season!
xo J