Massaged Kale Salad with Toasted Pine Nuts

Kale can be a tricky green to digest for some with it's tough green leaves and even tougher stems.  Massaging is a great technique to not only make this nutrient dense vegetable easier to digest, but it also allows it to soak up all the flavours and become a truly delicious meal.

Ingredients
1 bunch of green kale ( I've also used black kale for this recipe and it turned out great! )
2 tbsp lemon juice
2 tbsp red wine vinegar
1 tsp honey
2 tbsp olive oil
3 tbsp parmesan cheese
1/3 cup pine nuts
pepper to taste

Directions
1. Wash and dry your kale then chop into bite sized pieces leaving out the bottom tough stems.

2. Toast your pine nuts lightly in a dry pan by tossing over medium heat, watching so they don't burn.  They should turn a golden brown colour when perfect.

3. Combine lemon juice, vinegar, honey and olive oil in a bowl and whisk until emulsified.

4. Pour dressing over kale in a large bowl and gently massage it into the leaves until they begin to soften and absorb the flavours, around 2 minutes.

5. Toss in parmesan, pine nuts and fresh ground black pepper to serve!

Hot Pot at Home

The correlation between cooking your own food at the table and how good it tastes, amazes me. In this case I think the work you put into this dish is well worth the outcome.  As we sat down for our version of Thanksgiving dinner, for the better part of the evening we cooked, ate and talked about the wonderful experience that is hot pot. The list below is just a guide for hot pot at home. That's the charm of this dish, it's completely customizable. You like it? Throw it in! Happy hot potting.

Ingredients

Equipment needed for hot pot:
hot plate/single burner
pot with a separator to accommodate 2 broths
individual slotted spoons or wire baskets
chopsticks
bowls for serving

For the broths:
Szechuan Spicy
1 package of spicy hot pot soup base
6 cups of water
3 green onions chopped into 2 inch pieces
6 whole cloves of garlic

Ginger Goji 
1 package of plain hot pot soup base
6 cups of water
3 green onions chopped into 2 inch pieces
6 whole cloves of garlic
5 slices of ginger
3 tsps goji berries
6-8 dried red dates

For cooking, dipping and eating (you can buy everything below at any Asian grocery store):
thinly shaved beef or pork
prawns
assorted meat balls (I used fish and beef)
slices of firm tofu
fried tofu puffs
enoki mushrooms
white mushrooms
soba noodles
udon noodles

rice cakes
frozen dumplings or wontons

daikon radish

lotus root
choy sum or bok choy
napa cabbage

spinach

Dipping Sauce
2 tsps sacha sauce (chinese bbq sauce)
2 tsps sesame paste or tahini
1 tsp hoisin sauce
1 tsp chili oil
1 tsp chopped green onion
1 tsp chopped cilantro
1/2 tsp chopped garlic

Directions
1. To assemble the broths, bring all ingredients for each broth to a boil on the stove then transfer to your hot plate. Keep on low until you're ready to begin adding your cooking ingredients, then raise to a simmer. The broth will reduce as you cook on a steady simmer, add boiling water to keep it topped up. Don't worry about losing any flavour by adding water, as it reduces and you add the ingredients, the broth evolves into something amazing.

2. Chop all your vegetables as you like, I left my greens in 3"x 3" pieces since they wilt as they cook. Lay out the rest of your cooking ingredients so they are easy to grab and add to your broths.

3. Construct your dipping sauce by adding all ingredients together, the amounts given are just a gauge, adjust as you see fit.

4. Cook, dip and get ready for some serious flavour.

Caponata

I had two beautiful eggplants staring at me in my fridge over the last weekend and I wanted to pay them the respect they deserved.  My version of this Sicilian dish omitted the olives since I thought the capers added enough salt. It is a sweet, rich and tangy vegetable spread that is a great starter to any fish dish or a lighter pasta like aglio e olio.

Ingredients
olive oil for frying
2 medium eggplants cut into small cubes
1 large sweet onion, diced
2 ribs of celery, thinly sliced
1 cup crushed canned tomatoes
3 tbsp tomato paste
2 tbsp capers, rinsed and chopped
1 tbsp honey
1/2 cup whole unsalted almonds, coarsely ground
1/3 cup water
1/2 cup red wine vinegar
1 handful of basil leaves, thinly chopped
salt & pepper to taste

Directions
1. In a large frying pan heat oil over medium-high heat and add eggplant in small batches.  Fry until golden brown then transfer to a paper towel-lined plate and salt each batch. Repeat with remaining eggplant then transfer to a bowl to cool.

2. Use the leftover oil in the pan and add onions and celery with a bit of salt and pepper. Cook over medium-high heat for about 10 minutes until onions become translucent and brown.

3. Reduce heat to medium and add tomato paste and water.  Cook until water is evaporated then add crushed tomatoes and cook for another 7-10 minutes stirring every so often.

4. Stir in vinegar, capers and honey until everything comes together and thickens up.  Set aside and let cool for about 30 minutes.

5. Combine cooled pan mixture into the bowl with the eggplant and add basil, almonds and salt and pepper to taste.  I put the almonds in a small blender and blended until they were in pieces the size of flax seeds, this gave a great bit of texture to each bite. Mix everything until basil and almonds are integrated.

6. Serve with a fresh baguette and enjoy!

Sushi Salad Bowl and Cold Pepper Tofu

Sometimes you just want something that screams AYCE but isn't quite sushi. These dishes hit the spot especially on a hot, humid day where the last thing you want to do is stand over the stove. No heat required.

Ingredients

iceburg lettuce

dried wakame ( seaweed )

radishes

cucumber

carrot

nori ( dried seaweed ) 

green onion for garnish

togarashi ( japanese chili pepper spice ) for garnish

wasabi for garnish

pickled ginger for garnish

Dressing

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1/2 cup rice vinegar

2 tbsp soy sauce

1 tbsp sugar

2 tsp finely grated ginger

2 medium carrots peeled and roughly chopped

1/2 medium onion roughly chopped

salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Directions

1. To make the dressing add all ingredients in a food processor except the salt and pepper and pulse until everything is combined and carrots are completely broken down.  Add salt and pepper to taste. This will keep in your fridge for up to 2 weeks.

2. Rehydrate your dried wakame by soaking in water and draining 2-3 times.  Chop all vegetables as you like, I peeled the carrots into ribbons to add a bit of a different texture.

3. Combine all salad bowl ingredients in a bowl as you desire and serve dressing on the side. Garnish with a nori sheet, wasabi, pickled ginger, togarashi and green onions.

Ingredients

1 package of soft or medium tofu, whichever texture you prefer

2 tbsp Gochujang ( Korean red pepper paste )

2 tbsp light soy sauce 

1 tsp sesame oil

1 tbsp sugar

black and white sesame seeds for garnish

chopped green onions for garnish

Directions

1. When using tofu I normally wrap it in paper towel as soon as I take it out of the package so the extra moisture can be absorbed and not dilute the dish.  Then cut into half inch strips and lay onto a serving plate.

2. To prepare the sauces take the Gochujang and thin it out with a bit of the light soy sauce and set aside ( it's quite thick to begin with ), then combine in a separate bowl the sesame oil, sugar and light soy until sugar is dissolved.

3. Pour both sauces over the tofu and garnish with sesame seeds and green onion.

Green Papaya Salad

It's summer, it's hot and sometimes you just want something light without sacrificing flavour. This is yet another dish I've made over and over again trying to perfect the balance of salty, sweet and herbaceous that every great Vietnamese restaurant seem to do with ease. Every time I make this salad it turns out slightly different but always crunchy, fresh and satisfying. 

Ingredients

1 green papaya

2 carrots

2 green onions

1 cucumber

1 red pepper

1 cup of bean sprouts

1 cup of peeled shrimp

cilantro and thai basil to garnish

Dressing

1 large clove of garlic

1 thai red chile chopped

5 tsp sugar

1 1/2 tbsp fish sauce

2 tbsp lime juice

2 tbsp water

Directions

1. For the dressing, combine the garlic ( I used a microplane to grate the garlic ), chili, sugar, fish sauce, lime juice and water in a small bowl and set aside.

2. Bring a medium sized saucepan of water to boil and add the peeled shrimp.  Once the shrimp have turned bright pink, drain and run them under cold water to prevent over cooking them. 

3. Now for the papaya. Peel the outside thick skin with a regular peeler until you see the light green flesh of the papaya.  Cut in half and scoop out the seeds and any fibrous pieces leftover.  Then you can either julienne the rest or using a papaya peeler, shred into thin strips as seen below. I also use the peeler for the carrots so you have consistent textures for the base of your salad.

4. Julienne your red pepper and dice up your green onions. For the cucumber, I cut it in half and scoop out the seeds.  Then I cut into crescents to have another shape added to the salad and to prevent extra moisture from diluting the dressing.

5. Combine everything into a mixing bowl and toss, transfer to a serving dish and garnish with cilantro and thai basil.

Roasted Tomato Pesto Ragu with Zucchini Noodles

This dish is a lighter play on the traditional pork ragu's out there, except it won't leave you feeling like you need to take a nap afterwards.  The roasted tomatoes are hearty and sweet, and although there is no meat in this dish, you still get your protein from the almonds in the pesto!

Ingredients

zucchini ( I usually use one per person for the noodles )
tomatoes
mushrooms
peppers
chives for garnish
parmesan for garnish

Pesto
2 bunches of basil
1 garlic clove
3 tbsp parmesan
1/4 cup almonds
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1/4 cup olive Oil

Directions

1. Spiralize your zucchini and set aside.

2. Set your oven to 425. Cut your tomatoes into quarters and lay on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.  Season with olive oil, salt and pepper and let bake for about 25 minutes or until the skins begin to char.

3. In a food processor blend almonds, garlic, parmesan, salt and pepper. Once the almonds are ground up to however you like (  I like mine to be a bit bigger than a quinoa grain so you get a bit of texture in each bite ), gradually add the olive oil and set aside.

4. Add a bit of olive oil to a medium sized pan and saute mushrooms until golden brown.  Add peppers, roasted tomatoes and pesto to the pan and let the flavours combine for about 3-4 mins.

5. Place zucchini noodles in a serving bowl and top with ragu.  Serve with fresh chopped chives and parmesan.

Roasted Quails with Red Wine Risotto

There's just something about roasted poultry. It always leaves me with a warm, satisfied feeling, unlike any of the other scorched meats.  You can always pick up a roasted chicken from your local market and guarantee yourself a great time, but why not give the smaller, more delicate versions a go?

Ingredients

Quails

8 whole quail, washed, dried with paper towel

1 lemon, cut into eighths

2 tbsp butter

8 garlic cloves

2 sprigs fresh thyme, leaves picked

1 sprig fresh rosemary, leaves picked

1/2 cup chicken stock

1/4 cup dry white wine

Salt & ground black pepper, to taste

Herb Butter

3 tbsp butter, at room temperature

      2 tablespoons fresh thyme leaves, finely chopped

      1 tablespoon fresh rosemary leaves, finely chopped

      2 large garlic cloves, crushed

      Salt & ground black pepper, to taste·                                                                                                                             

      Risotto

      2 cups chicken or vegetable stock

      1 tbsp butter

      1 medium onion, chopped

      2 cloves of garlic, chopped

      1 cup risotto rice, arborio or carnaroli

      1 cup red wine

      grated parmesan, to serve

Directions

Quail

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

2. To make the herb butter, place the softened butter, thyme, rosemary, garlic, salt and pepper in a small bowl and mix well to combine.

3. Use your fingers to carefully loosen the skin over the quail breasts. Spread herb butter over the breasts and then re-cover with the skin. Rub remaining herb butter over the rest of the quail.

4. Divide the lemon, butter, garlic, thyme and rosemary among the cavities of the quail. Tie the legs together with string.

5. Place the quail in a roasting pan. Roast in preheated oven for 30 minutes or until the juices are pale pink. Remove the quail from the roasting pan and place on a large plate. Cover loosely with foil and let stand for 10 minutes to rest.

6. Meanwhile, place roasting pan over medium heat. Add the stock and white wine and cook for 1 minute, scraping with a wooden spoon to dislodge any fond left on the base of the pan. Bring to the boil and simmer, uncovered, for 2-3 minutes or until reduced by 1/2. Taste and season with salt and pepper.

7. Serve the quail with the sauce.

 Risotto

1. Heat the stock in a medium saucepan and keep it warm at the side of the stove. Melt half the butter in a shallow saucepan or casserole, add the onion with salt and pepper and sauté for 5-7 minutes until soft, but not browned. Add garlic and saute for another 2 minutes. Stir in the rice stirring constantly until it absorbs the butter, about 2 minutes.

2. Stir in about half the wine with a little salt and pepper and simmer, stirring until the rice starts to dry, 5-7 minutes. Add a couple of ladlefuls of hot stock and continue simmering, stirring gently. When the rice dries again and needs more liquid, add the remaining wine.

3. Continue cooking, stirring and adding more stock in batches. At the end of cooking, the rice should be tender, still slightly al dente and creamy. This will take 25 to 35 minutes and don’t hesitate to use plenty of stock.

4. Take the risotto from the heat, add the remaining butter in pieces, and stir it into the rice as it melts. Taste and adjust the seasoning. Finish with fresh parmesan and serve with quail and roasted beets.