The Garden

It's taking a long time for us to see some warm weather here on the prairies. A couple of days ago we had a storm with a prolonged onslaught of hail and we all thought maybe we would have a tornado.

Anyway, enough whining about the weather, which I can't do anything about anyway!

Where I live, even though it is a small town, they will not allow any garden space to be dug up. So, I plant things in containers. There are definitely pros and cons to this style of gardening.
First, I am definitely restricted to the amount of produce I can grow. This has been additionally hampered by the new apartment rule that we can only put pots on a small cemented area. Also, my landlords are a little chemical-happy, wanting to spray Round-up before they lay the cement tiles. I know a lot of people are happy to use chemicals, but I am not.

So, I have moved all my already planted pots about a hundred yards away from the area until they complete their chemical onslaught.

I planted a little earlier than usual this year as the weather seemed warm at the time. One can only hope it returns to that soon.

So far, I have planted: green, yellow and purple beans, swiss chard, tomatoes, potatoes. This year I added squash and cucumbers to the mix. Not sure how they will do in pots but we will see. I also will be adding some herbs and peppers, just waiting for warmer weather.

So You Want To Own A Restaurant

Earlier this evening I watched online and episode of "Kitchen Nightmares" with Chef Gordon Ramsey. As a former restaurant worker, I enjoy the show. He kind of reminds me of a chef I used to work for in the catering business. I have noticed a common theme in the shows, people start or buy a restaurant who know absolutely nothing about the business. Correct me if I'm wrong, please, but I don't think people usually buy any other kind of  business that they know nothing about....do they?

It is, however, a common theme among restaurant owners. The line goes something like this:
1. I was spending a lot eating out so I thought I may as well buy a restaurant of my own
2. I was walking past this cute place one day and I just had to have it
3. I thought it would be a great way to hang out with my friends

PLEASE DON'T BUY A RESTAURANT FOR THESE REASONS

Seriously, if you're thinking of buying or starting a restaurant of your own go work in one for a minimum of six months. If you are still thinking about it after that time do another six months. Work in the front end (where the customers are) and the back end (kitchen). Find out if you really like:
a) working weekends and holidays when everyone else is generally off
b) working early mornings and late evenings
c) standing long hours on your feet
d) smelling like food and possibly booze when you go home
e) eating on the run because you don't have time to sit down and relax to eat

However, if after all this you love it, really love it, then do it!

Savoury Pancakes

This recipe is a quick and easy meal for lunch or supper.
Ingredients:
pancake batter
4 chopped green onions (or any other kind of onion)
12 - 15 smallish chopped cooked shrimp or use the canned ones if you don't have anything else
1/2 chopped pepper (doesn't really matter which colour) use hot ones if you like them
Italian seasoning to taste
Sour Cream

Method:
Make pancake batter your own or store bought, about 3/4 cup batter per serving
Add chopped ingredients and seasoning

I like to use a large cast iron pan. Heat for a few minutes low to med heat. Add a bit of oil to prevent sticking
Pour one portion of the mixture and cook as you would any other pancake. Flip once when the first side has browned.

Serve immediately with a dollop of sour cream on top
Yield: 3 - 4 pancakes

Note: You could probably substitute chopped, cooked chicken in place of the shrimp or use crab meat, lobster etc.
 Prep time about 5 - 10 minutes
Cook time - less than 5 minutes per serving

Slowcooker Pork Stew/Soup

This is a quick and easy meal to prep. Once assembled it cooks on its own while you are away at work or overnite while you're sleeping. The recipe makes 2 large or 4 smaller portions.

Ingredients:
2 pork chops cubed
1 onion chopped or sliced
2 celery stalks chopped 
2 potatoes cut into medium chunks
2 - garlic cloves, peeled, and crushed or finely chopped
1 bay leaf
Water to cover
Depending on your slowcooker, choose low, med or high. Mine has only 2 settings so I cooked mine on high over nite.
Add some cabbage roughly chopped near the end of cooking time (I actually put mine in at the beginning and it was ok, but soggy.
When everything was cooked I found the taste to be too bland so I added a can of tomato soup and a tablespoon of beef boullion.

Winter Comes to Manitoba

It happens every year. Winter arrives in Manitoba. Sometimes she comes gusting full force leaving us gasping with the severity of the onslaught. Sometimes she slips in quietly with just a whisper of soft, white snow to announce her presence.

This year was somewhere in between, lots of snow and wind for a couple of days with mid-temperatures ranging from about ten above to thirty below. It doesn't really matter if it's celcius or fahrenheit when it gets that cold.

Christmas rapidly approaches; shopping is almost finished, food is planned. Only eight sleeps until the big day.

It seemed an appropriate time to sample those brandied cherries I bottled back in July. Well, I have to say that next year I will be brandy-bottling every kind of fruit I can get my hands on. The cherries are very good, but even better is what the cherries did to the brandy. It became a soft, not sweet version of i'm not sure what...but very, very good! I suspect that different kinds of alcohol with different fruit might be the answer and I look forward to experimenting with different flavour combinations.

The Brandied Cherries

Back in mid-July when it was so hot that sweat ran off your brow to just think about turning on the oven...I put some cherries, sugar and brandy in a few jars.

Now, at the end of November, I have opened a jar for a taste. My only regret is that I did not do more jars of cherries and a few jars of any other kind of fruit I could think of .

The cherries are fine, quite nice to nibble on. But...the brandy that has been flavoured with cherries for

White Bread

My plan over the cold Manitoba winter is to learn more about making bread. In the past I have managed to do a decent job of turning out sweet rolls and "St. Nicholas" bread for Christmas dinner. Now, I would like to expand my capabilities to include grain and dark breads. This recipe is for a simple white bread that may be a good place to start if you have not made bread often. The newer instant yeasts that are available make the process a lot faster and more fool proof than before. I still "start" my yeast with just the liquid and sugar to check that it is still good, then immediately add the other ingredients and knead the dough. With the instant yeasts you shape the dough as soon as you finish kneading it. There is no second rising process.

Ingredients (for 2 loaves)

2 pkg or 2 Tablespoons yeast

3/4 cup warm water (105 to 115 degrees)

2 cups lukewarm milk (scalded then cooled)

3Tablespoons sugar

3 Tablespoons shortening

1 Tablespoon salt

7-8 cups all purpose flour (start with half the amount)

Method:

Dissolve yeast in water with sugar. I wait a 4-5 minutes then add other ingredients including half the flour.

Beat the dough until smooth then incorporate more flour about 1 cup at a time.

Turn dough out on a lightly floured board and knead, adding dustings of flour as you knead. When the dough becomes smooth and not sticky it is probably ready. Also, poke it gently with your finger; the indentation should disappear.

Form into 2 loaves and put into lightly greased bread pans. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and sit in a warmish place away from draughts until double in size. Again, with the newer yeasts this does not take that long, perhaps 45 minutes to an hour.

Bake at 400 to 425 degrees depending on your oven for 25 to 30 minutes. When it is done, it should sound hollow when you tap the top of the loaf with your knuckle.

I brush the tops of the loaves with a bit of butter to achieve a softer finish. If you like it crusty then omit this. Wait until loaves are fully cooled before slicing.

Pumpkin Square - in time for Thanksgiving

 We served this square at a golf course where I used to work. My boss at the time had the recipe but I'm not sure where she got it. It is a very simple and yummy alternative to traditional pumpkin pie. Please follow the method precisely.

 Mix together:

3 eggs

1 can evaporated milk

1 cup white sugar (I think you could use brown or splenda without problems but I haven't tried it)

1 t (teaspoon) cinammon

1 736 ml can of pumpkin puree

Put in greased 9x13" pan

Sprinkle golden cake mix on top (DO NOT MIX IN) I generally double the recipe and use a bigger pan so will use the whole package of cake mix, otherwise you will probably only need half.

Pour 3/4 cup melted butter or margarine over top (DO NOT MIX IN)

Sprinkle chopped pecans or walnuts over top.

Bake 35 - 40 minutes at 350 degrees or until knife inserted in center comes out clean.

Serve either warm or chilled with whipcream

One recipe will give you about 18 smallish servings or 12 huge pieces

It really is an awesome, simple dessert!

MukTuk and The Toronto Symphony (in Inuvik)

Inuvik, North West Territories must have seemed the last bastion of wilderness remaining in Canada. Anyone who was anyone wanted to visit; royalty, prime ministers past and present, artists, writers and musicians all came to Inuvik, "Land of the Midnight Sun".

One year the Toronto Symphony came to town. They performed at local schools and auditoriums, did their best to experience the authentic north and a lucky few even managed to try the "blanket toss".

Before they climbed on board their plane to return to Toronto, the local people wanted to show their hospitality by sharing the bounty of the north with a somewhat traditional feast.

The menu featured such delicacies as arctic char, muscox, reindeer, caribou, moose meat and bannock. However, it was two other dishes from the menu that stand out in my mind. A friend of mine was a young head chef of the hotel where the dinner was to be held. He enlisted my help as I had been in the north longer and was perhaps a bit more familiar with local fare.

No traditional meal from the coastal region would be complete without muktuk or whale meat. Muktuk in its raw form has a thick blanket of white, rubbery fat covering the rather thin layer of meat. Traditionally the fat would have been eaten to help the human body fend off the cold. In these more modern times, some are reluctant to indulge in this aspect of the delicacy. So, we trimmed off most of the fat and proceeded to boil the muktuk untill it was tender. I cannot begin to describe the smell of cooking muktuk. No offense intended to the Inuit, but it is very nasty-smelling stuff. Served in chilled, thin slices it appeared quite innocuous looking.

To go along with the caribou, muscox and other wild meats I went to the bush and gathered wild cranberries. I had intended them as a garnish, cooked only slightly with sugar to give them a high sheen. They were actually extremely bitter.

The feast was laid out buffet-style with small signs indicating the contents of each dish. The wise locals barely touched the cranberries or muktuk but our brave Toronto Symphony were undaunted by bitterness or strong smell. They ate with gusto and relish and expressed their delight with everything.

I can only imagine what it must have been like on the long flight to Toronto with limited bathroom facilities.

Note: The Symphony continued their relationship with the people of Inuvik supporting the youth with musical instruments and teaching.