The Ultimate Canadian Food

A few weeks ago, I was fortunate enough to be asked to be a part of a short summer- entertaining video for the Food Network website.  The theme was Canada Day and I was to come up to with two appetizers fit for the occasion.  The question, “What is Canadian food?” had been presented to me many times before when I travelled abroad and as the case before, I have no definite answer. 

The challenge in identifying Canadian food is that it is regional and evolutionary.  Although everyone knows about maple syrup and peameal bacon (or Canadian bacon as they say in the U.S.), some may have never seen fiddleheads or heard of dulse .  When was the last time you cooked venison or had poutine other than from a fast-food joint?  Ask a new Canadian if he likes tourtière and they might think why anyone would want to undergo pain and suffering. Ask an old Canadian if she wants a shawarma and you might get a slap in the face.

To me, the ultimate Canadian food would be one that any Canadian – new, old, white, black, French, English – knows and has tasted, with a name that no other nation is familiar with.  That amidst a crowd in a foreign land, yelling out this food will attract the attention of fellow Canadians. The Japanese have sushi.  And folks, we have this too.  It’s called the Timbit.  Oooh yeah, dutchie, honey-dip, chocolate.  No matter what the flavour, no other food can put a smile on any Canadian’s face in an instant than this 2-inch ball of sweet, warm pastry (never mind the 70 calories each one packs).  I propose the Timbit as Canada’s national food!

Of course, I didn’t use timbits (which, by the way, turns 35 this year) for the video.  I opted for a bit more gourmet using the colours of Canada and a few Canadian ingredients: Tomato-Bocconcini Canape (with Maple-Citrus Drizzle) and Watermelon Cubes (with Niagara Ice Wine, Benedictine Blue Cheese and Walnuts).    

Visit the link below to watch me make these appetizers.  Happy Canada Day!

    

http://community.foodnetwork.ca/blogs/askanexpert/archive/2011/06/28/video-easy-canada-day-appetizers-and-tablescape.aspx

Pride and Strawberries

I recently joined Eat Local Burlington, a group that promotes local, sustainable eating.   Before leaving the house for my first ‘meet up’ (strawberry picking at a local farm), I received an email from my niece reminding me of the birthday dinner that I had promised her, which I know was her way of saying “I miss you uncle and I want to spend time with you.”  True, it’s been months since I saw her.  But aside from the reminder, she told me that she was proud to call me her uncle.  Brought tears to my eyes.

Now, had she said ‘I love you’, I  would’ve just said ‘I love you back’, but for her to say she’s proud of me as an uncle triggers a different set of emotions.  It’s got to do with acceptance, and more.  It’s a feeling that goes back to your childhood.  Playmates saying ‘you’re alright’ you can join us.  Or your father saying, ‘you did good’.  From early on in life to adulthood, we constantly seek this feeling, even more than love, from our peers, teachers, partners, bosses and human kind in general.  But there is one person who can’t seem to give it to us.  Our own self.  What does it feel like to have self pride that you never feel the opposite – shame, insecurity, inferiority.  To never question whether you’re alright because you have different skin colour, religion, ability, sexual orientation and other circumstances that make you different.  To be proud, not inspite of being different, but because of it.  Is pride intrinsic?  It’s hard to say when there are so many outside factors contributing to our lack of it.

In terms of food, why are some cultures made to feel ashamed of what they eat?  The reaction some people from Asian countries get from others, for example, when they say they eat chicken feet or pig’s lungs.  But escargot, frog’s legs and foi gras are considered gourmet.  Every culture has their own peculiarities that they are not proud of when it comes to food and eating.  Every now and then, when there’s no one around, I eat using my hands, without cutlery.  It’s part of my Filipino culture.  And some food tastes better this way.  Does the fact that I would never do this in a restaurant mean that I am not proud of it? 

Now back to the strawberries.  I’m proud to say that I picked a basket of sweet strawberries myself.  I gave a bowl to my next door neighbour.  She was happy.  I will freeze a bunch for smoothies.  But fresh picked summer berries are best eaten as is, or incorporated in salads like Quinoa and Strawberry Salad (recipe below).  Stay tuned for more strawberry recipes.

Quinoa and Strawberry Salad

1 cup     quinoa
2 cups    fresh local strawberries
3 Tbsp   raisins (roughly   chopped)
¼ cup     cashew (coarsely chopped)



Dressing

1 ½ Tbsp              red wine vinegar

1 Tbsp                  lemon juice (about ¼ lemon)
3 Tbsp                  grapeseed oil (or olive oil)
1 Tbsp                  thyme (roughly chopped)
Pinch                    sea salt
Pinch                    fresh ground pepper

1.  Bring about 3 liters of water to boil.
2. Wash quinoa in cold water and strain. 
3. Add quinoa to boiling water and cook for about 20-25 min.
4. Strain the quinoa and wash it with cold water to stop the cooking process.  Drain excess liquid.
5. Meanwhile, wash and hull strawberries.  Cut each in half and slice each half.  Set aside
6. In a medium bowl, combine quinoa, strawberries, raisins and cashew.
7. In a separate bowl, combine vinegar, lemon juice, grape seed oil and thyme.  Whisk until mixed thoroughly.  Season with salt and pepper.
8. Add dressing to the salad and mix well.  Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper.

Note:  Quinoa (“kee-nwah”) is grain originally from South America.  It is available in most supermarkets or specialty stores.  If not available, use other grains such as couscous or bulgur.

www.springridgefarm.com

my strawberry harvest

nakedbrunch catering relaunched

I started this blog two years ago and I have to admit that I haven't been very diligent in writing entries. Recently, I've relaunched "nakedbrunch catering" (on hiatus for several years) and in the last few months, I've been testing recipes and creating new dishes. So keep checking this blog regularly as I promise to share recipes, food stories, entertaining ideas and pics of our catering events.

www.nakedbrunch.com

(thanks to my friend Charmain Foon for the logo design: http://ca.linkedin.com/in/charmainefoondesign)

The nakedbrunch catering team

getus@nakedbrunch.com

Caprese Canapes

Here's a simple appetizer perfect for the summer using tomatoes, which is now in season. You can use a wide variety of tomatoes available locally. I was inspired by the classic Italian salad Insalata Caprese, a first course dish of tomatoes, mozzarella di buffala (Canadian buffalo mozzarella or boconcinni cheese is good alternative), fresh basil and extra virgin olive oil. Seasonings such as balsamic vinegar, sea salt and fresh ground pepper complete the dish.

We served this appetizer at our friends Dave and Rey's Hurry Up Spring Party back in late April and it was a crowd favourite. The secret is the quality and freshness of the ingredients. One tip when preparing food: the simpler the dish, the more it demands high quality, fresh ingredients. (Think raw oysters or sashimi!).

For our catering event, we used puff pastry crostini and reduced balsamic vinegar, but here's a simpler recipe, requiring less preparation.

Ingredients:

1             French baguette (sliced)

3             tomatoes (sliced)

2             buffalo mozzarella or 4 large bocconcini cheese (sliced)

12           large basil leaves

3Tbsp     extra-virgin olive oil

3 Tbsp    balsamic vinegar

pinch      sea salt (or coarse/Kosher salt)

pinch      fresh ground pepper

1. Slice baguette on a bias 1/2 inch thick.

2. On each baguette slice, put a slice of tomato and buffalo mozarella.

3. Top each with a basil leaf.

4. Drizzle with extra virgin olive oil and balsamic vinegar.

5. Sprinkle sea salt and fresh ground pepper.

Yield: 12

Note:

Baguette slices can be toasted in the oven, brushed with olive oil for 10-12 minutes at 350 F.

Drizzle olive oil and balsamic vinegar at the very last minute.