Thursday, March 8, 2012

Day 2 in Holland

A wonderful day filled with walking, talking, eating, shopping and laughing.

We awoke to see the sun shining and a forecast that thankfully promised no rain.

Our first stop was the outdoor market located just down the street where we found amazing seafood (such as the anchovies pictured above), vibrantly hued vegetables and a dizzying array or cheeses, olives, dried fruits and nuts and grains. This was one of today’s highlights for me and I ran about taking photographs and talking with the vendors and wishing I was here long enough to buy food for all the dishes that were swimming in my head. We gathered some provisions for dinner tonight and the small cocktail party we are having on Saturday, dropped our loaded shopping bags back at the flat and headed off to explore the city on foot.

We stopped in at WORM which is an alternative cultural centre where my sister and her boyfriend are working. We were there to watch some Super 8 film that was shot by the students that are taking part in the youth film workshop that Lisa and Paolo are teaching. It was great to see the work and this space and meet a few of their colleagues.  My sister is writing her own blog talking about her experiences teaching and living in Rotterdam. If you would like to, you can check it out here.

Afterwards, we walked along the Nieuwe Maas River to enjoy a leisurely lunch at In Den Rustwat before heading back out into the crisp, late afternoon air to walk alongside the lake in the Kralings Park, take more photographs, locate some of the galleries that I want to check out tomorrow, visit some lovely food shops and even pick up a new pair of shoes. Finally, it was time to wend our way through the streets towards the flat for a simple dinner at home.

Tomorrow Lisa and Paolo are working so I will have a day to explore the city on my own. I will be armed with my map and a general sense of the city, my camera and a willingness to follow wherever my feet may lead me…

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Wednesday, March 7, 2012

Day 1 in Holland

I arrived safe and sound and right on time at the Schiphol airport. The flight was mercifully devoid of any serious turbulence. I read and slept a bit and I even made friends with my seat mate, a lovely older German woman who has promised to invite me to her apartment in Burnaby for kaffee and kuchen as soon as she returns from her vacation to visit her family in Cologne.

My sister met me at the airport and brought me back to her lovely flat before speeding off to work. The apartment is filled with beautiful light and and Lisa and her boyfriend, Paolo, had left me a small feast of bread, cheese, olives, wine and cookies. I spent the afternoon eating, reading and taking some photos and then napping and exploring my sister’s neighbourhood in the rain. I found a market that was filled with inspiring ingredients which will come in handy for the cocktail party that we are hosting for some friends on Saturday.

It is now time for bed but tomorrow promises to be a day filled with some sunshine, time to photograph and explore the city and a special lunch with Lisa and Paolo. And I am sure a surprise or two.

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Tuesday, March 6, 2012

Celery and Fennel Salad with Medjool Dates and Parmesan Cheese

I am leaving today for Holland. At 4 pm actually and, as usual, I still have to pack my bag and get myself organized for the trip. Some things never change.

I will be back in just over a week but wanted to post a quick recipe and say goodbye. I am really excited for this journey. I will be visiting my sister, Lisa, who is teaching youth film classes in Rotterdam for half a year. She and her boyfriend Paolo, who usually teach in Los Angeles, have been in Holland for about six weeks. They have an apartment and have fallen in love with their neighbourhood and are enjoying the thriving cultural scene.

I am excited to see them and explore both Rotterdam and Amsterdam in the short time that I will have there.

I can’t think of a better way to be introduced to a new country, city, neighbourhood. Lisa and Paolo have been in Rotterdam long enough to know where to find the best bread and cheese, some lovely restaurants to eat in, art galleries and theatres and they even have a couple of bikes at their disposal.  I just can’t wait…

But, now, before I go I want to leave you with a wonderful winter salad. I actually have a bit of a thing for winter salads. This one in particular.

Unlike their summer counterparts that are almost always dominated by ripe, red tomatoes the winter salad is a more low key affair. Shades of pale green and white, accented by some jewel-like citrus fruit, dried fruits or toasted nuts, the winter salad is a thing of understated beauty.

Humble celery is the star of this salad. A vegetable that I feel is highly, highly underrated. In soup or braised in a bit of cream or simply sliced and tossed into a salad, I am a huge fan.  It is fed to children smeared with peanut butter or is arranged on a vegetable platter next to the Ranch dressing but is very rarely given a starring roll.

Here it is paired with some crisp fennel and tossed in a pomegranate vinaigrette. Yes, this is the same vinaigrette from the recent quinoa and pear salad but I am pretty smitten with this dressing these days and I think it truly works beautifully here.  Add in some lush Medjool dates, a hit of salty, nutty Parmesan cheese and some toasted pistachios and you have a salad that has character, crunch and can be enjoyed on it’s own for lunch or works beautifully alongside a grilled steak.

I will hopefully be posting some photos during my time away. I will absolutely be back in just over a week with some new Dutch inspired dishes!

Wish me luck with the plane ride, I am petrified to fly…

xo J

Celery and Fennel Salad with Medjool Dates and Parmesan Cheese

Recipe inspired by Melissa Rubel Jacobson’s version for Food and Wine

For the vinaigrette:
1 tablespoon of grainy mustard
1 tablespoon pomegranate molasses
2 tablespoons sherry vinegar
Fine grain sea salt and freshly ground pepper
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup grapeseed oil
1 large shallot, peeled and finely chopped

For the salad:
1 bunch of celery, thinly sliced on the bias with a few celery leaves as well
1 large bulb of fennel, very thinly sliced on a mandolin or with a sharp knife
16 – 20 Medjool dates, pitted and sliced into thin strips
3 oz (85 g) Parmesan cheese, shaved with a vegetable peeler
3/4 cup of toasted pistachios, coarsely chopped

To make the vinaigrette:
In a small bowl whisk together the mustard, molasses, vinegar and salt and pepper. Whisk in the olive oil and the grapeseed oil and then stir in the chopped shallot. Set aside.

In a large bowl combine the celery, the sliced fennel (a few fronds if you like) and Medjool dates. Add in half of the cheese and toasted nuts. Season with salt and pepper and add in some of the vinaigrette. Toss to coat and continue to add in the vinaigrette until the salad is well dressed but not dripping in vinaigrette. Taste and adjust seasoning.

Top with the remaining cheese and pistachios.

Serve.

Serves 6.

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Monday, February 27, 2012

Lunch for One – Harissa Chickpeas with Sautéed Bitter Greens and a Fried Egg

Harissa chickpeas with sautéed bitter greens and a fried egg.

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Wednesday, February 22, 2012

Cranberry Lemon Cake

Today has been a very good day.

A day filled with sunshine and temperatures warm enough to prop open the back door and allow the air in to permeate the musty corners of the house.

A day filled with the luxury of time. To have a mellow breakfast with my happy, chatty son before school. Time for a walk with a friend and a visit with my Baba. Time to catch up on some emails and work on some writing revisions. Time to spend a leisurely couple of hours in the kitchen.

I made a big pot of cauliflower soup for tomorrow’s lunch and a salad of celery, fennel, Medjool dates, Parmesan and toasted pistachio for today’s. There was even time to bake the cranberry lemon cake that you see above and photograph it too. All before 3 pm when I walked the few blocks to pick up Max after school.

A portion of this cake will be making its way with us tonight when we go over to have dinner with my mother-in-law across the city.

Another generous slab with be carefully wrapped in parchment paper and secured with a piece of string to be presented tomorrow to my Mom as a gesture of apology for the argument that we had on Monday night.

The final slice is being enjoyed right now alongside a cup of tea as I sit and type and look out the window where the sunshine has given way to grey skies and some impressive rain showers. Still, there is a glimmer of light in the sky and the clouds are moving fast. Max just called from upstairs that he spotted a rainbow! We went out to the front porch together to see a massive arc going right over our neighbourhood.

I’m taking it as a sign that more good things will come tomorrow.

Cranberry Lemon Cake

Recipe adapted from Vanilla Garlic

The original recipe called for a full two cups of sugar which I found to be a bit sweet. I have cut it down to 1 3/4 cups of sugar. However, if you have a sweet tooth you may want to re-adjust and go with the full 2 cups. Feel free to use fresh or frozen whole cranberries in this recipe.

3 eggs
1 3/4 cups (350 g) of sugar
3/4 cup (170 g) unsalted butter, slightly softened and cut into chunks
1 teaspoon of vanilla
1 tablespoon of lemon juice
1 tablespoon lemon zest
1 teaspoon of fine grain sea salt
2 tablespoons of plain yogurt
2 cups all purpose flour
2 1/2 cups of fresh or frozen cranberries – 1 10 oz (300 g) bag

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 ºC).

Lightly grease a 10 x 2 1/2 inch (25 x 6 cm) springform pan and line the bottom with parchment paper.

In a stand mixer beat together the eggs and the sugar for 5 to 7 minutes until the sugar has dissolved and the colour is a pale yellow.

Add the butter in chunks and beat well for 2 minutes. Add the vanilla, lemon juice and lemon zest and beat until combined. Add in the yogurt and the salt and beat for another minute or so.

Add the flour and beat on low speed until the flour is just combined. Fold in the cranberries.

Pour into the greased pan and use an offset spatula to work the batter into the pan and smooth the top.

Bake in the preheated oven for about an hour or until a toothpick comes out clean. Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely before serving.

Makes 8 to 10 servings.

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Thursday, February 16, 2012

Quinoa, Chickpea, Pear and Arugula Salad with a Pomegranate Vinaigrette


Well that was a bit more of a hiatus than I had been planning on.

Lots has been going on and, to be honest, I have been struggling to keep up. There was Christmas and all of the holiday stuff that was somehow a bit overwhelming this year. Usually I am very happy to embrace the crazy madness of the holiday season; the parties and baking, the hosting of dinners, the together time with family and friends. This year, however, there seemed to be a few more bumps in the road, and somehow my holiday agility was just a wee bit off. It all sent me for a bit of a loop well past New Years’s and I feel like I have been playing catch up ever since.

By mid January I knew that I needed to make a few changes to help me get back on track. Nothing earth shattering, just the little things we know we should be doing everyday but somehow don’t. Things like getting out for some daily exercise, drinking lots of water, getting enough sleep and spending some quiet, contemplative, alone time. And maybe most important of all, eating some healthy, soul satisfying food. Here is where this salad comes in…

I first spotted this salad over on the Food52 site and I made it a lot over the holiday season. In its original form it had arugula and romaine, pears and goat cheese. I dropped the romaine added some feta cheese and decided to add some quinoa and chickpeas to take this from a first course salad to a main course meal.

Add in some pomegranate seeds alongside the whole grains, legumes and leafy greens and you end up with a salad that packs a pretty decent nutritional punch and is fresh and delicious to boot. The perfect salad to give you some energy for when the chips are down and the stakes are running high. It’s great for lunch and could easily be paired with some grilled chicken for a satisfying and healthy dinner.

I’m not sure if I can give sole credit to the amazing healing powers of this salad but thankfully, since the beginning of February I have been feeling the winds of change. My body feels fit, my mood is bright and I’m excited to get back to my food centric ramblings around here. Not only have I been spending lots of time in the kitchen and have a bunch of new recipes to share but I’m also working on a few improvements for this site.

I am hoping to streamline the look, change up the logo and add a menus section that will highlight some of my favourite meals from the cooking classes and dinner parties that we host around here. While I may have lots of ideas I am basically computer illiterate. Lucky for me I have a very smart, very sweet, very patient friend named Miles who is handling all the technical programming changes for me. He has a job that is unrelated to web design/programming and a brand new baby and he still finds the time to work with me with good grace and humour. Thanks Miles, I couldn’t do it without you!

We will be rolling things out slowly over the next month or so. Let me know what you think…

xo J

Quinoa, Chickpea, Pear and Arugula Salad with a Pomegranate Vinaigrette

Recipe is adapted from Brigidc on the Food52 website.

For the vinaigrette:
1 tablespoon of grainy mustard
1 tablespoon pomegranate molasses
2 tablespoons sherry vinegar
Fine grain sea salt and freshly ground pepper
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup grapeseed oil
1 large shallot, peeled and finely chopped

For the salad:
2 cups of cooked quinoa, cooled
1 1/2 cups of cooked chickpeas (14 oz/398 ml can)
4 big handfuls of arugula
3 ripe Bosc pears, cored and thinly sliced
1/3 cup pomegranate seeds
4 oz (113 g) feta cheese, crumbled
1/4 cup pistachio, toasted and coarsely chopped

To make the vinaigrette:
In a small bowl whisk together the mustard, molasses, vinegar and salt and pepper. Whisk in the olive oil and the grapeseed oil and then stir in the chopped shallot. Set aside.

In a large bowl combine the cooked quinoa and the chickpeas, the arugula and the pears. Season with some salt and pepper. Add in half of the pomegranate seeds and half of the feta cheese.

Drizzle some of the vinaigrette over the salad and using your hands or a pair of tongs gently toss until the greens are well coated but not dripping with the vinaigrette. Continue to add in the vinaigrette until the salad is well dressed. You will most likely have some vinaigrette left over. Store any leftovers refrigerated for up to 1 week.

Crumble the remaining cheese over the salad and top with the remaining pomegranate seeds and the chopped pistachios.

Serve.

Serves 4 to 6.

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Tuesday, February 14, 2012

Happy Valentine’s Day

Spiced chocolate truffles with toasted pistachios for my dear ones.

I know two weeks ago I said I would be back soon with a recipe. Tomorrow, I promise. Until then, Happy Valentine’s Day!

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Saturday, January 28, 2012

Lunch for One – Risotto Bianco

Risotto bianco with Parmesan and parsley

I will be back in a day or two with a new recipe but until then here is a simple and comforting bowl of risotto to tide us over.

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