Baked Potato Fries

Slice three to four large white or sweet potatoes into sticks. I leave the scrubbed skins on. Place in a large bowl and add 2 tablespoons of good oil. (I use extra virgin olive oil) Stir with a spoon to allow oil to coat the potatoes. Place on a baking sheet. This number of potatoes is enough for a 9x13 inch pan. Bake at 400F for about 30 minutes until potatoes are tender and starting to brown. I turn the potatoes with a spatula half way through cooking.
Sprinkle with salt and desired seasonings and serve hot.

Cottage Cheese and Spinach Gratin

This recipe is copied directly from a site called Seasonal Chef.
I adjusted it a little and the changes are in italics. It was delicious.

Cottage Cheese and Spinach Gratin

Vegetable oil for the baking dish
1 pound spinach (about 2 bunches)
5 eggs, beaten
1/2 cup chopped parsley
1/2 teaspoon dill seeds (omit)
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander (omit)
2 cups small-curd cottage cheese (nonfat or low-fat is fine)
1/2 teaspoon salt (omit)
Freshly ground black pepper

Added 1 chopped scallion

1. Warm marinara sauce or grated Parmesan cheese (optional)

2. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Generously oil an 8-by-10-inch gratin dish or a 9-inch square baking pan.

3. In a large skillet over medium-high heat, cook the spinach with the water clinging to its leaves, tossing frequently, until the spinach is barely wilted. (Not all the spinach will fit into the skillet at first. Add some first, then as it cooks down, add the rest.) Press out the liquid from the wilted spinach and reserve it in a measuring cup. Finely chop the spinach.

4. In a bowl, whisk the eggs, parsley, dill, coriander, cottage cheese, salt and a little pepper. Stir in the chopped spinach and 1/4 cup of the reserved cooking liquid and mix well. Pour into the prepared dish and bake until set, about 45 minutes. Let cool for 5 to 10 minutes. To serve, cut into diamonds or squares. Top with warm marinara sauce and/or grated cheese.

Vegetable Biryani

This recipe is in the October 2007 issue of Canadian Living. October is Vegetarian Awareness Month so they have featured a number of meatless dishes. This one was delicious!...even better the next day.

3/4 cup dried green lentils
2 tbsp olive oil
1 onion, diced
2 carrots, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tbsp curry paste (Biryani if you have it)
2 cups small cauliflower florets
1 cup basmati rice
1/4 cup raisins
2-1/4 cups vegetable stock
1 cup green peas
1/4 cup toasted, sliced almonds

Cook lentils for 15 minutes in a saucepan of boiling water. Drain and set aside.
In a wok or dutch oven, heat oil and saute onions until golden. Add carrots, garlic, curry paste and saute 3 minutes. Stir in cauliflower, rice, raisins and lentils.
Add stock and bring to boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer until rice and vegetables are tender, about 20 minutes. Stir in peas and warm through. Sprinkle with almonds.

Variation: Add 2 cubed chicken breasts with the onions.

Peach Raisin Chutney

I found this recipe in a Canadian Living magazine a few years ago and have made it a couple of times. Becka asked me to make it again as it is a favourite of hers. Thank goodness Canadian Living has an excellent recipe collection on the web. If I had only one magazine subscription, it would be for this one. The recipes are not too fancy, but are trendy and tasty. I have copied and pasted from the site.

Chutneys add the spice of life to cold meats, and their sweet and sour edges are rounded off nicely with cheese, especially a cream cheese or a buttery Jarlsberg.

Ingredients

• 8 cups (2 L) Sliced peeled peaches (3-1/2 lb/1.75 kg) • 2 cups (500 mL) Packed brown sugar • 2 cups (500 mL) Chopped onions • 2 cups (500 mL) Raisins • 2 cups (500 mL) Cider vinegar • 1/2 cup (125 mL) Diced sweet red pepper • 2 tsp (10 mL) Mustard seeds • 1 tsp (5 mL) Salt • 1/2 tsp (2 mL) Each turmeric, cinnamon, curry powder, ground cumin and coriander • Pinch cayenne pepper

Preparation

In large heavy nonaluminum pot, combine peaches, sugar, onions, raisins, vinegar, red pepper, mustard seeds, salt, turmeric, cinnamon, curry powder, cumin, coriander and cayenne; bring to boil. Reduce heat to medium; simmer, stirring often, for 1 hour or until thickened and toffee-brown in colour. Remove from heat. Pour into eight 1-cup (250 mL) canning jars, leaving 1/2-inch (1 cm) headspace. Seal with prepared discs and bands. Process in boiling water bath for 10 minutes. Let cool.

Nutritional information

Per tbsp (15 mL): about 30 calories; trace protein; 0 g fat; 7 g carbohydrate.

Wild Grape Jelly

Wild grapes grow abundantly along the Grand River's trails and the fruit is ripe now. RuthieJ posted a link to a recipe from Canadian Living magazine for wild grape jelly. I did not have liquid pectin, so had to modify the recipe a little. Powdered pectin is added to the mixture earlier in the process than liquid pectin. Here is the method I used.

3 pounds wild grapes

I did not take the grapes off the stems, but I trimmed the stems as much as possible.
Put in a large pot with

3 cups water

Bring to a boil and boil for 10 minutes until grapes are soft. I mashed them with a potato masher at this point.
Place cooked grapes in a colander lined with a double thickness of cheesecloth and drain overnight. I got 3-1/2 cups of grape juice and added 1/2 cup water to make 4 cups liquid.

Put 4 cups juice in a sauce pan and add 1 package of Certo powder. Bring to a boil and add 5 cups sugar. Bring to a boil again and boil hard for 1 minute. Skim off foam and place in sterilized jars with 2 piece lids. Process in a canner for 5 minutes if using 1 cup jars.

Makes 8 cups grape jelly that is really, really good!

Grandma's Chili Sauce

6 cups chopped, peeled tomatoes
2 cups finely chopped onions
2 cups each chopped apples, pears, peaches
1 cup diced celery
2 sweet green peppers, diced
1 red pepper, sweet or hot seeded and diced
1-1/2 cup white or cider vinegar
1 tbsp pickling spice placed in a tea ball, or tied in a cheesecloth bag
2 tsp pickling salt
2 cups granulated sugar

Combine all ingredients except sugar. Bring to a boil and simmer for 2 hours. Add sugar and simmer for another 1/2 hour until desired thickness is obtained. Stir occasionally. Watch that the sauce does not stick, especially toward the end of cooking.

Place in hot canning jars. Process for 20 minutes in canner.

Makes 8 cups. ( I got just under 12 cups of sauce today after 2 hours and 15 minutes of cooking. I could have simmered it more with the lid off to make it thicker, but last year I scorched the pan and had to throw out some of the batch. Today's sauce is really good and is thick enough for me)

From the book Small Batch Preserving by Ellie Topp and Margaret Howard (a great book!)

Goulash Soup with Vegetarian Option

I had goulash soup at our local Christkindl Market and analyzed the ingredients closely. This is my adaptation of this spicy dish. I serve it with fresh spaetzle.

Cube 2 pounds of beef round into 2 cm dice
Dredge in flour and brown in oil in a large soup pot.

Add
1-2 onions, diced finely
1- 28 oz tin of diced tomatoes
4 cups of beef broth
3-5 cloves of finely diced garlic
1-2 tbsp of paprika
bay leaf, marjoram, thyme, oregano, hot pepper flakes to taste

Simmer for 1½ to 2 hours until meat is tender

Add
4 diced potatoes
4 average carrots, diced
1 large green pepper, diced

Simmer until vegetables are cooked

Vegetarian Option:
Sept 1/07

I modified this recipe and am very pleased with the vegetarian option:

Cook 1 diced onion and 2 cloves of garlic in a tbsp of oil until softened. Add 1 tbsp flour to onion mixture and 2 cups of vegetable broth. I added 1 tsp Marmite for a richer flavour.

Add tomatoes, green peppers, potato, carrot and seasonings as above. Add salt to taste.
Simmer until vegetables are done.

I added one drained tin of kidney beans. Tofu, soy crumbles or other beans could be added instead, but it is very tasty and thick even without the beans.

Serve over noodles or rice.

Shredded Beef

My daughter called and asked for this recipe. It is a family creation, with no specific measures.

Beef roast and/or pork roast approx 2-3 pounds
We use pork tenderloin or beef round rather than fattier cuts. If you don't like hot peppers, use more tomato or sweet chili sauce.

Put in crockpot with

1- 28 oz tin diced tomatoes
1 cup canned salsa or chili sauce
pickled or canned hot peppers if desired

Cook in crockpot until meat shreds. Add more liquid or salsa during cooking to keep meat moist.
If you slice or dice the meat before cooking, it will finish faster. I usually cook this overnight for 8-10 hours.

Serve on buns, in tacos or over rice or noodles.

Whole Grain Tabouleh

This recipe is from the cookbook Simply in Season. You can be creative with this dish.

Prepare 1 cup uncooked bulgar, quinoa, or couscous according to package directions. Fluff with a fork and allow to cool. You should have at least 2 cups or more of the cooked grain.

Add
1/4 c green onions, chopped
2 tomatoes, seeded and chopped
1/2 cup fresh cilantro, mint or parsley
1 cup chopped vegetables: cucumbers, sweet peppers, diced summer squash
1 cup chickpeas (optional)

2 tbsp lemon or lime juice (preferably fresh)
2 tbsp olive oil
salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Mix and pour over salad.
Yields 6 cups

Blanc Mange

This is Blancmange playing tennis in a Monty Python movie.
(Monty Python is too bizarre for me, but I will never forget this very random scene...but then, the entire movie is random!)

My daughter asked me for this recipe so it is posted for her. She ate a lot of this when growing up. I seldom bought boxed puddings and made this instead with a number of variations.

Blanc Mange is a traditional European dish that started as a bland, milky meal with chicken that was served to invalids. It then evolved onto a dessert like flan, made with milk and egg that was set in a molded dish. It now refers to a pudding made with cornstarch or flour. It could be made stiff enough to be molded, but we like ours to be creamier. Here is the basic idea for a modern version using a microwave oven.

In a microwave proof dish combine

3 tbsp cornstarch (or flour)
1/4 cup to 1/2 cup sugar or sweetener

Add 2-1/2 cups milk (regular or soy)
It is easier to blend if the milk has been warmed, but I don't do this.
You can thin the pudding with extra milk after it has cooked to reach the desired consistency

Cook in microwave. I set it at 50% power for about 3-5 minutes.
Stir the pudding every minute. Remove after it thickens.
Add 1 tbsp butter (optional) and 1/2 tsp vanilla to the thickened pudding.

Variations:

Chocolate: Add 2-3 tbsp cocoa to sugar and cornstarch mixture. Use the greater amount of sugar.

Maple: Add 1/2 cup maple syrup instead of the sugar

Rice pudding: Add 1-2 cups cooked rice to thickened pudding. Add raisins and cinnamon if desired.

For a richer pudding with a custardy flavour, add one well beaten egg to the hot mixture. Stir a little of the hot pudding into the egg before adding the egg to the dish. You may have to return the pudding to the microwave for 15-30 seconds to set the egg.

"Mexican" Cheesecake

This is Mom's recipe which she learned in Mexico. I love cheesecakes, preferably plain, and flans served with fresh fruit or fruit sauce. A rich New York cheesecake, with lots of cream cheese, eggs and sour cream, is only an occasional indulgence. This cake is flavourful and low fat as well. Mom bakes it in a graham cracker crust, but I just put it in a cheesecake pan with no crust.

1 1/2 cups dry curd cottage cheese (I buy this in a 500 gram package in the dairy section, so I really use 2 cups)
4 eggs
1 tin sweetened condensed milk
3 tbsp lemon juice

Mix all ingredients until smooth in a blender or with beaters.
Pour into a 8"-9" cheesecake pan or deep pie dish.

Bake at 350 F until set, about 40 -50 minutes.
Chill before serving.

Chocolate Chip Cookies

These are a family favourite and are just as quick to make as a trip to the store to buy cookies.

1 cup butter
3/4 to 1 cup brown sugar
1/4 to 1/2 cup white sugar

Cream butter and sugar together. Beat in until smooth

2 eggs

In another bowl mix together

2 cups flour
1 cup rolled oats
1/4 tsp salt (these may need no salt if using salted butter)
1 tsp baking soda

Stir into butter mixture. Add

1-2 cups pure chocolate chips, nuts, raisins, or whatever.

Place on a cookie sheet by spoonfuls and bake in preheated oven (375F) for about 10 minutes or until lightly browned and set.