April 1st Workshop - Learn to Grow Food in a Container Garden

How to make a great Chicken Paillard

The other day I put up an Instagram story about our dinner and got so many requests for the recipe.  So here you go!  Your wish is my command!  Well, it's sort of my command, because I'm not actually going to write out a recipe... because I'm too lazy.  Sorry not sorry.  However, I will be as descriptive as possible on just how I make this salad that has become a weekly staple in our house!

It's all about the chicken.  I like to buy boneless, skinless, thinly sliced breast cutlets, but breasts or tenders would work as well.  Whatever chicken you have, the key is to pound it so that it's as thin as can be.  I place my breasts between two sheets of plastic wrap and I pound it with a meat tenderizer, however you can use just about anything: wine bottle, soup can, your fist (this is particularly fun if you have anger issues).      

Next, you need to set up a breading station (of course, you can skip this step if you'd like to just grill your chicken as is, but I like a little crunch to mine).  I use flour, whole wheat breadcrumbs combined with Parmesan, and two egg whites.  IMPORTANT: salt and pepper each bowl.  This will help with developing flavor.  The order for dredging is: flour, egg whites, breadcrumbs.  Get your skillet ready by covering it with olive oil, about 1/4 inch deep, over medium-high heat.  Cook chicken for no more than 3 minutes a side, less if you're using cutlets or tenders.  You'll know when to flip because the bottom of your chicken will become nice and golden.    

As for your salad, anything goes!  Last night I used arugula, cherry tomatoes, sweet yellow peppers, toasted pine nuts, leftover corn, avocado and grated Parmesan.  I make the same dressing almost every time: 1 tablespoon of dijon mustard, 2 tablespoons of white wine vinegar, about 1/4 cup of good olive oil and salt and pepper, all whisked together.  Chicken on the bottom, salad on top, voila!

Spring Fling on CBC's Weekend Morning Show

Tomorrow morning on CBC's Weekend Morning Show with interim host Nadia Kidwai, I will be presenting the following recipes.  I love pea shoot pesto!  It tastes like Spring!  These recipes are very easy to prepare and are made with local ingredients.  Microgreens from Fresh Forage, Quinoa from Tamarack Farms are both available on Saturday at St. Norbert's Farmer's Market.

Happy Spring!

Turkish Pizza Dough
1 tbs dried yeast (instant yeast)
1 tsp sugar
2 tbs (+) warm water
2/3 + cup Greek style yoghurt (I usually use Astro's Balkan Yoghurt)
1/4 cup olive oil
10 ounces bread flour (I use Prairie Flour and it works out to be a heaping 2 cup measurement, with potentially adding more, depending on the climate of the day)
1/2 tsp sea salt
olive oil

Dissolve the yeast and sugar in the warm water and set aside in a warm place for about 10 minutes until frothy. In another small bowl, whisk the yoghurt and olive oil.

Sift the flour and salt into a large bowl. Make a well in the centre and add the yeast and yoghurt mixtures. Use your fingers to work in the flour and form a smooth ball. Transfer to mixer and knead with a dough hook on low speed for 10 - 15 minutes until very smooth and shiny. Transfer to a lightly oiled bowl and cover with a damp tea towel and let rise for 2 hours or doubled in size.

I use this pizza dough all of the time because it is both easy to prepare and has a great result.  I can always have it in a container in the fridge for making personal sized pizzas when needed.  This is actually something that I need almost daily for my 6 year old�s meals.

Pea Shoot Pesto (using snap pea microgreens from Fresh Forage Microgreens, available at St. Norbert�s Farmer�s Market on Saturday)
Ingredients:
1/4 lb fresh, young pea microgreens
1 bunch chives, chopped (or spring onion)
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
1/3 cup Parmesan cheese
1/3 cup olive oil
1/4 cup toasted pine nuts or almonds (for nut allergies, try toasted pumpkin seeds)
salt
pepper

Directions:
Place the pea shoots, chives, garlic, cheese, olive oil, nuts salt and pepper in a food processor or blender, pulse until a thick paste forms.

Use on pizza, pasta, grilled fish or shrimp, toast, etc.

Enjoy!

Quinoa Salad with Microgreens and Lemon vinaigrette

2 cups cooked quinoa (I used Tamarack Farms quinoa, available on Saturday at the St. Norbert�s Farmer�s Market) Cooking ratio is 2:1 water to quinoa and you can cook in broth or with spices

1-2 tbs pesto of your choice

Olive oil, to tastes

Spring Mix Microgreens (available from Fresh Forage Microgreens on Saturday at St. Norbert�s Farmer�s Market)

Lemon vinaigrette (1 part lemon, 2 parts olive oil, herbs such as oregano, salt and pepper, 1 crushed garlic clove optional)

Toss the cooked quinoa with pesto and a drizzle of olive oil.  When serving top with a generous amount of Spring Mix Microgreens and drizzle with lemon vinaigrette just before serving. 

Enjoy and Happy Spring!

Benefits of Microgreens:  http://markitonutrition.com/sprouts-microgreens/

Benefits of Quinoa: https://authoritynutrition.com/11-proven-benefits-of-quinoa/

March 27 - Free Workshop: Soup, Frittata, Salad & Muffins

Come join Red Seal Chef Ilan Wright to learn, cook & eat a healthy meal. 

Location: Gilmore Community School, Burnaby. 

Registration required: information below.

White Bean Dip with Salsa Macha Swirl

Thanks to Good Health Snacks for providing chips and inspiration for this post! 

I�ve tried two new things this March!

The first is March Madness. I had never filled out a bracket before because I care approximately negative zero percent about watching college and/or professional basketball. I should like it, but I�m just not that into it. Here�s my history with basketball: when I was in 5th or 6th grade, all I wanted in life was a Space Jam basketball, and I got one for Christmas (along with a black bomber style jacket with Looney Toons characters on the back, and fake brown leather sleeves. Around the same time, I had my first sort-of French kiss outside the gym during a high school basketball game�that my silly parents somehow let me go to unsupervised. But clearly that jacket was the hot fire, amiright!?). My Space Jam basketball was black and had the logo and characters painted on it. What I didn�t have was a basketball hoop. My dad installed one, nailed to a wooden post on the top, flat part of a sloping dirt and poky weed-covered hill on our country property. And every time I missed the backboard, I had to run down the little hill into a thorny thicket and hope the ball didn�t go into or under the barbed wire fence. I played basketball in school, from 5th-ish to 8th grade, and scored exactly once. When I was in high school, I was a basketball cheerleader for two years, and I became weirdly good at making three point shots. One time, at a basketball tournament in the middle of nowhere in Oregon, I won a 3-point contest at half time. In my cheerleading uniform. My prize was a two liter of soda. I�d like that to be my claim to fame, but literally no one has ever talked about it since basically the moment it happened. All of this is to say, I know about basketball. I don�t hate it? I don�t know.

So this year, for the first time, I�m participating in March Madness at work. And while I haven�t watched one game, my competitive spirit has taken over, and I�m checking the leaderboard constantly. If my team makes it to the end, I might even tune in to a game. We�ll see.

The second new-to-me thing of the month is salsa macha! I had it for the first time at a restaurant a couple weeks ago, and fell in love. If you�re not familiar: it�s an oily paste of ground dried chilis, nuts, garlic, and sesame seeds� things I never would have thought to combine. It has a unique nutty-smoky (but not spicy!) flavor.

When I saw that Good Health�s Organic Black Bean and Rice Tortilla chips pair well with salsas and the like, I knew I had to try my hand at salsa macha. But then I read that their Sea Salt Eat Your Vegetables chips pair best with hummus-type dips, I decided to kill two birds with one stone, and make a creamy white bean dip swirled with oily salsa macha. The bean dip has lemon for acidic tang, and garlic for a slight bit of bite, but I kept it pretty mild, compared to other white bean dips out there, since we�re topping it with salsa macha and I wanted the flavors to jive. The combo is really, really good. Even if my team loses the sports thing, I�ll consider myself a winner (I�d like my coworkers to consider me a winner as well, since we put money on this).

March Madness. Good Health chips. Creamy white bean dip with salsa macha swirls. This is essentially the chip and dip version of winning a 3-point contest in a cheerleading uniform with a Space Jam basketball.

White bean dip with salsa macha swirl

Salsa Macha slightly adapted from this recipe
This makes extra salsa macha, but not to worry, it�s fabulous on roasted vegetables, eggs, chips, tacos, a spoon� 

White Bean Dip 2 cans of white beans (I like Great  Northern), drained and rinsed 2 cloves garlic, diced � cup fresh lemon juice � cup olive oil 1/8th teaspoon salt (plus more for  taste, as desired) Salsa Macha 1 cup olive oil � cup peanuts (or almonds, if you�re  allergic) + 1 tablespoon chopped for garnish 5-6 cloves garlic, chopped 5 mild dried Mexican chili peppers (I  used 4 guajillo peppers and 1 ancho,  but feel free to add a spicy pepper into  the mix), stems and seeds removed, torn or  cut into smaller pieces 2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar 1 teaspoon salt 1 heaping tablespoon sesame seeds

For the White Bean Dip In food processor or high power blender, pulse together dip ingredients until smooth and creamy. Taste, and add more salt as needed.  For the Salsa Macha Heat a large, high-sided skillet over medium heat, and add olive oil.  Add 1/2 cup of peanuts and the garlic, and cook a couple of minutes, until lightly golden and fragrant. Add peppers, and cook another minute or two. Make sure garlic and nuts don�t burn.  Remove from heat, let cool about 10 minutes.  Add vinegar and salt, and add to blender or food processor. Pulse until you have a well incorporated but slightly gritty paste.  Stir in sesame seeds.  To serve, scoop dip into bowl, and top with a swirl of salsa macha. Add extra peanuts for garnish. Serve with Good Health chips!

Wait, there's more! #EnjoyDippingGood with these other tasty dips + Good Health chips! And thanks to Chicano Eats for hosting such a delish link party! 

Salvadoran Chimol by Sour Then Sweet
3 Dips en menos de 5 minutos by The Blog By Taina
Mango & Pineapple Salsa by BearsnUnicornsLA
Roasted Red Pepper, Thyme, and Goat Cheese Dip by Appeasing a Food Geek
Poza Rica-Style Peanut and Chipotle Salsa by Flan & Apple Pie
Sambal Tahini Carrot Dip by Wit & Vinegar
Charred Carrot and Avocado Dip by Sun Diego Eats
Chunky Guacamole by Chicano Eats

Leprechaun Bait

Top 'o the morning to ya, lads and lassies!  I read that in my mind with a really lame Irish accent as I wrote it.  I also had a weird daydream this morning about a leprechaun running in the room and pinching my butt as I brushed my teeth.  Probably didn't need to tell you that, huh?  I've obviously eaten too much of this sweet and savory Leprechaun Bait that I saw on Pinterest.  Basically you throw a bunch of stuff you probably already have in your house - popcorn, rice cereal, pretzels - and add Lucky Charms (I found the St. Patrick's day limited edition box), green M&M's (I used a bag of mint ones), and drizzle green candy melts over the whole thing!  Kind of gross?  Yes.  Fun for the kids to make?  Yes.  Will it really trap leprechauns?  DUH!  Happy St. Patrick's Day!  

Similar recipes here and here.    

Also... more St. Patrick's Day dishes and treats HERE!

Baked Spaghetti Squash Carbonara

What would be your last meal on earth?  I hate that question, so I apologize for asking you.  But now you have to answer, so do it.  The question stresses me out, because I love too much food!  Would it be an indulgent short rib dish?  Something Mexican?  An entire chocolate cake??  I can't decide!!  Pasta is definitely high on the list, and specifically Spaghetti Carbonara.  Pasta in a creamy egg sauce with bacon, I mean, come ON!  It's always my go-to order at a nice Italian restaurant.  However, since I can't eat like there will be no tomorrow EVERY night, I like to modify my favorites to make them slightly healthier.  Like this carbonara dish made with spaghetti squash!  

I followed this recipe and modified it by using whole milk instead of ricotta (because it's what I had on hand).  It was so tasty, and a fun variation of the classic dish.  Of course if it really WAS my last night alive, I would throw the squash straight out the window and go for the real stuff.