Chiffonade

Was recently at a cooking demonstration, where one of the guests asked what a chiffonade was. As soon as she asked, almost everyone else nodded and was also wondering as they had heard the term before. I quickly explained the cutting process for a chiffonade and many knew it once they saw it, or have done it often but just did not know the official term for it. So for any others out there curious here is the definition along with a pic depicting it

The French term "Chiffinade" means "made of rags". In cooking, it is a technique for slicing herbs and leafy vegetables into long thin strips.

To chiffonade something, stack and roll a small pile of leaves and then slice or snip them into thin ribbons.

See pic below.

Harissa

Sharik asked about harissa, how to make it and where to buy it in the Ottawa area.

After a bit of research I was able to find it at La Bottega in the Ottawa Market, and also the Whalesbone Oyster House on Kent Street, and Alladhin on St.Laurent Blvd.

Harissa is a North African hot sauce where the main ingredients are Piri piri style chili peppers, tomatoes and smoked paprika.

Now the following recipe for Harissa comes from the Professional Chef Series Volume 7,

Ingredients:


•10 dried red chili peppers
•4-5 cloves garlic, finely minced
•1 teaspoon salt
•2-3 tablespoons olive oil
•1 teaspoon coriander seeds
•1 teaspoon caraway seeds
•1/2 teaspoon cumin powder

Directions:
Soak the dried chilies in hot water for 30 minutes. Drain. Remove stems and seeds.
In a food processor combine chili peppers, garlic, salt and olive oil. Blend.
Using a mortar and pestle grind the coriander and caraway seeds to a fine powder.
Add remaining spices and blend to form a smooth paste.
Store in airtight container and top with a little olive oil. Can last up to one month in the fridge.
see below a picture of the finished product.

Hope this helps and would love to hear what you tried making with Harissa.

thinking about that garden

It's that time of year again, to start thinking about what to plant for the upcoming summer season. Last season the tomatoes almost took over the house and we were worried about being attacked, so this year green beans, peas, one tomato plant, and maybe some peppers are the way to go. Our yard while small in size has an area for planting that is really beautiful. Two years ago, watermelon was grown, and despite everyone laughing at an Ottawa boy attempting watermelon, 4 of the biggest juicies watermellons came out of my yard. One was ofcourse injected with vodka for a perfect refreshment, while one was used for a watermelon salad with olives and feta....if you haven't had the opportunity to mix your watemelon with a salty feta, make sure you experiment with that this summer. The flavours are amazing and with the right herbs like mint, or lemon parsely it just adds an freshing spring to the taste.

Watermelon Salad with olives and feta
1 small red onion
Juice of two limes
1.5 kg sweet, ripe watermelon (you can also use watermelon injected with kirtsh, or vermouth)
250g feta cheese
bunch fresh flat-leaf parsley
bunch fresh mint, chopped
6-7 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
100g pitted black olives that have been dried in an oven (about 45 minutes at 150 degrees)
black pepper

Peel  the red onion and cut into strips and put in a small bowl with the lime juice.
Remove the rind and pips from the watermelon, and cut into medium bite sized pieces, and the cut the feta into small pieces but not crumbled and put them both into a large, wide shallow bowl. Use spring of parsley , and add to the bowl along with the chopped mint.

Tip the onions, along with the lime juice over the salad in the bowl, add the oil and olives, then using your hands toss the salad very gently so that the feta and melon don’t lose their shape. Add plenty of freshly cracked black pepper to finish and serve.

Watermelon

Al from Chicago has a request to impress

Al from Chicago said...
Chef Bear,
Once a year, the men in my family prepare a gourmet dinner for our wives. We like to impress so we have several courses like appetizers, soup, salad, main dishes and then dessert. We even do a themed drink. The issue is we always have twice as much food as we need and since this tradition has been going on for several years, we are running out of ideas.
Any suggestions that can make our dinner a success to earn us the points we need for the rest of the year?
Please help!
Al from Chicago

Al and I have exchanged emails since his post and the following information is added to the above request: No allergies, 15 person guest list, 5 course dinner is ideal, no specific food aversions, everyone likes their meat and seafood, all the men share items to make and then bring it over, and wine pairings are not neccessary.

So with this information in mind, I have decided to suggest Al an "Around the World Surf and Turf". It will incorporate all the elements of land and sea from a variety of nationalities and incorporate many different flavors. When this was suggested to Al, him and his team seemed ready and willing to give it a shot. The first and most important thing to remember was that each course is not a main course sized meal. The amouse-bouche is meant to be a one to one and a half bite item, the soup will be served espresso style so it is only about 7-10 small spoonfuls.

Here is the menu set out for Al....Tune in tomorrow where the recipes will be included on the blog site.

Menu: Around the World Surf and Turf

Amouse Bouche –
Tequilla Infused Shrimp(along with dessert, the only non themed menu item)

Appetizer - Salmon and Rib Eye Crostini

Soup Course – Italian Mussel Wedding Soup

Mains – Cumin Crusted Tuna and Jerk Crusted Pork Loin

Dessert – Chocolate Espresso Pot De Creme

Remember tomorrow I will include the recipes for these items, and I will ask Al to post how it all went.

Gorgonzola suffed mushrooms....mmmmmmm......mmmmm.....mmmmm

Last night, my lovely wife had her cousin visiting from T-dot and we ended up going to Aroma Mezze for dinner on Nepean street. For anyone who has not been, it's a wonderful authentic Greek tapas style place in downtown Ottawa, that is perfect for vegetarian and carnivores alike. Their signature is the always enjoyable to watch, Saganaki. The cheese used in saganaki cheese is usually kefalograviera, kasseri, kefalotyri, or halloumi cheese from Cyprus is also widely used, and more easily accessable to those of us in North America. The cheese is melted in a small frying-pan until it is bubbling, and generally served with lemon juice and pepper and is eaten with bread. At Aroma Mezze as most places in North America that do Saganaki cheese is after being fried, the saganaki cheese is flambéed at the table and the flames then extinguished with a squeeze of fresh lemon juice to add a fresh taste to this gooey finger licking dish. After dinner, we decided to head across the street to Beckta Food and Wine for dessert. Our table ordered the apple crème brûlée, and their cocoa explosion which is a chocolate lovers heaven, and lastly the always popular cheese plate with a few dessert wines to compliment it all. Sampled 5 very distict cheeses, and enjoyed them with candied walnuts, thinly sliced baguettes, and for drinks had a very nice Mederia, and Sautern wines. As usual with Beckta Food and Wine, the service and food were absolutely perfect. This team of skilled staff know how to treat and feed their customers and it shows with their multiple awards. Most places after getting so many accolades cannot possible live up to hype, but Beckta some how always manages to excede all expectations. Anyways, I was talking about gorgonzola stuffed mushrooms in the title, and as usual gave way too much info leading up to it, oh well.... anyways, after dinner and dessert at around 1:30 in the am, someone remembered he had some gorgonzola cheese to use the next day and in the process of thinking what to do with it also remembered the extra mushrooms laying around....sure you can see where this is going....well far be it from me to wait to try to make something, got downstairs, and make those delicious mushrooms cause the craving was just too strong. So with that in mind below is the recipe I used. I also made it a few weeks ago, and took a pic of it at that time so I will include it as well. If you have any questions about this recipe or something else you want to know about or want me to try, please do not hesitate to contact me via email or most it in the comments section. Happy Eatings!
Gorgonzola Stuffed Mushrooms
Ingredients:
1/4 cup olive oil
1 small shallot finely chopped
3 cloves minced garlic
16 large button mushrooms, with stems removed (but retain stems)
1/2 cups fresh breadcrumbs
1/4 cup fresh parsley, finely chopped
1/3 cup cream
4 ounces gorgonzola, crumbled
salt and pepper
Directions
Cook shallot and garlic in olive oil in saucepan until soft.
Chop mushroom stems& add to saucepan, cooking until golden.
Add remaining ingredients, and finsh with salt and pepper to taste
Fill the mushroom caps and brush all over with olive oil.
To cook either bake at 350 F for about 15-20 minutes until moisture is evaporated.
Boil for another 5 minutes to lose remaining moisture from mushrooms and create a nice crisp topping.

Welcome to our new Blog

Kitchen Inspired is proud to announce the re-lauch of our newly designed website, Twitter page, and now our Food Rescuer Blog. The focus of the blog will be for you our readers. Giving you a place to ask any and all food related questions. A place where together, kitchen nightmares will turn into culinary adventures.

I want this blog to be all about food and the kitchen all the time. Tell me about your latest kitchen diaster and lets see how to fix it. Want me to try a new kitchen gadget out and give it a thumbs up or down before you buy, just ask. If you are going to the grocery store and want to know how to buy avocados, post the question and I will answer you asap.

Food is my passion, the kitchen is my heaven, and I want you to experience that feeling I get from feeding family and friends. Remember one important thing as we begin this journey together. Cooking is one of the only arts that appeals to all your senses and together we will enhance all of them.