Lisa’s Letters Home: Discovering Samphire
They will diligently, with surgical precision, extract anything green from their food. Basil in pasta sauce is eyed with suspicion, with wrinkled noses and a chorus of “What’s THAT?”
“It’s basil.”
“I don’t like bashmill.”
“You haven’t even tried it.”
“I don’t like it. I hate it. I hate bashmill.” [flings basil across the table in disgust]
Needless to say, I haven’t tried pesto on them yet. Read more
GIving Up Gluten: Greek Yogurt Brûlée … Yeah, you heard me.
As you may or may not know, I’m against ugly baking. Shall we just extend the ban on ugliness to all desserts (“barf” cookies notwithstanding)?
This dessert is a real beauty. Strawberry Yogurt Brûlée takes three of my absolute favorite things: crème brûlée, Greek yogurt and strawberries and makes for a lovely sweet. You’ll have kids and adults alike thinking you are a real wiz in the kitchen. The reality? You had 5 minutes and a blowtorch. If you don’t have a blowtorch already, go get one! If you aren’t convinced at how easily you can throw this together and how amazing you will appear, you can borrow mine to test it out. Read more
Spring Greens Week: Crunchy Asparagus Fries
I’m really not a fan of kid’s menus. Have you ever noticed how they always have the same five things on them? It’s a rare restaurant that doesn’t feature some kind of combination that includes chicken fingers, mac and cheese, pizza, hot dog and hamburger. Oh, wait, I forgot grilled cheese and that godforsaken endless side of French fries. Those are all there too. I know kids are creatures of habit but, honestly, do we not want to have something a little adventurous? I mean, at least for the sake of the moms. I swear I’d be 5 to 10 lbs lighter if I didn’t have to finish the fries on Scarlett’s plate or make that other half of grilled cheese go away when we dine out. I think it has a lot to do with how I was raised. I grew up in a household that preached finishing everything on your plate. Plus, as an adult who witnesses the ongoing wastefulness of children (ever have to throw out a whole roll of toilet paper because it was unwound and waterlogged?), I just can’t, in good conscience, let gobs of food go to waste. So I eat it–One fry at a time finding home on the pillowy cushion of skin above my bra strap. Damn back fat! And damn those crappy kid’s menus! Most restaurants are now just French fry pushers to me.
Chef Notes: Homemade Mayonnaise
Mayonnaise has practically become profanity these days. It has come to serve two basic purposes; provide moisture to a sandwich and as an ingredient in homemade salad dressings/dips. I know very few people who really “like” mayo. This is partly due to a desire to eat light and healthy but it’s also because what passes for mayonnaise should be a crime. The gloopy, salty, gelatinous crap you scoop out of the jar from the grocery store doesn’t do much to tantalize the taste buds. Luckily, I was recently reminded of how truly magical and transforming real, honest-to-goodness homemade mayonnaise can be–Not only easy to prepare but also versatile and delicious. This recipe and technique might just make a convert out of you yet. I’ve included some optional ingredients at the bottom in case you want to get creative. Read more
Greens Week: Green Goddess Salad
After battening down the hatches to anything new on their dinner plates for the past few months, I’m sensing the kids might be about to open a window. Well, maybe not opening exactly. Maybe more like cracking. The problem is that they egg each other on at the table. Julian will have a fork almost to his mouth and if Esme says she doesn’t like the pasta sauce he will put it down. Working in our favour is Julian’s new favourite book, Little Pea by Amy Krouse Rosenthal, about a little pea who prefers spinach to the candy he’s expected to eat for dinner. Thank you Amy Krouse Rosenthal for getting my two year old to chime, “Me love spinach!” Thank you so much. And Esme seems to be coming around again to trying new things.
So I’m acting fast and bringing back some of my own favourites. Like salad. How I’ve missed salads… Traditionalists among you will scan this recipe and feel like it cannot be a Green Goddess without tarragon. I hear you. But I just find tarragon so bossy. And looking at the way the Green Goddess has changed over the years I felt okay with tweaking it to my own liking. This salad also mimics one I have a couple of times a week from a cafe around the corner from the SPC office, Cafe Bernate. They call it a Verde and it’s hardy enough to get me through my typical 3 pm carb cravings. My version is really easy to make. Once you’ve steamed the asparagus all you have to do is some chopping and you’re done. For now we’re strictly a sauce on the side kind of house when it comes to the kids but I love the creamy, richness of this dressing. So worth the bit of effort to get beyond my usual balsamic and olive oil combo. Read more
