A bite of: Grilled Kale

Tapas Bar is one of my favourite restaurants in Victoria, and one of the more unique items on the menu is grilled kale. I recently tried to recreate the recipe at home, and the results were surprisingly good!  I took a large bunch of kale and sliced it into thin strips, I then drizzled two tablespoons of olive oil and two tablespoons of balsamic vinegar and put the mixture in a 8×8 square inch baking. I broiled the kale for approximately five minutes until it was crispy and then sprinkled the mixture with sea salt. It was fresh and crunchy. The perfect summer side dish.

Tags: Kale

A bite of: Red Curry with Pineapple

This past weekend I was lucky enough to take a surf trip up to the quaint island town, Tofino. After a full day of surfing, I was starving, so along with some friends I went to The Schooner Restaurant. I had their Red Curry with Seafood and I was immediately inspired to go home and create my own version! Here is the recipe I made up (it’s quick and delicious ): 1 can of full-fat coconut milk, 2 tbsp red curry paste, 3 chopped mushrooms, 1/2 can pineapple tidbits, and 1/2 green pepper chopped, and 1/2 cup fresh shrimp. I brought the coconut milk to a simmer, stirred in the curry paste, and then the veggies. I let the mixture simmer until the veggies were cooked (approx. 7 minutes) and then I stirred in the shrimp and simmered for 3-4 more minutes.  It was full of flavour, and the pineapple adds the perfect amount of sweetness.

Tags: Pineapple, Red Curry, Shrimp, Thai

Worldly Bites Presents: A Potluck

One of my favourite culinary events is a potluck. They’re affordable, fun, and require far less preparation than one preparing a feast for 15 people. I recently hosted one in my humble abode and I’m glad to say it was a delicious success. Three different people brought curry dishes, so I was in gastronomic heaven!  I told everyone to bring their favourite dishes from around the world, and we had butter chicken, an asian sesame salad, a rice noodle stir fry, and Indian kabobs, to name a few!  I’ve attached some mouth-watering pictures from the evening.  I can guarantee the next potluck is not far off!

Michael Pollan gives us something to think about

My friend Jackie recently sent me this video of author Michal Pollan discussing how to navigate the food isles at your local grocery store. His concept is simple: never purchase anything that you’ve seen advertised. It’s a bold statement but it works. I would take that statement even a step further and say: never purchase anything with a nutrition label. This may seem counterintuitive because of late we’ve all been taught to diligently study nutrition labels. But think about it. Here are some foods that don’t have nutrition labels: fruits, vegetables, fresh whole grains, bulk foods such as nuts and legumes, and even meat. These foods don’t need nutrition labels because they are in their natural state.

Tags: Food Labels, fruit, Labelling, Michael Pollan, Nutrition, Vegetables

A bite of… Cornbread

I was at a brunch a few weekends ago (yes, the same brunch I brought the Mediterranean Potatoes to) and while I would like to think my potatoes were the hit of the party, they were definitely runner-up to a surprise favourite that was debuted late into the brunch. What was this culinary masterpiece? Cornbread. Simple, delicious, and widely overlooked as the perfect side dish, breakfast, snack, or even dessert (if you add a little extra sugar). I was so inspired immediately after leaving the brunch I went out and bought cornmeal, corn and a few other ingredients I didn’t have on hand. That day I had cornbread for breakfast AND dinner. It was perfect.

Now you may be asking yourself, “Is cornbread really worldly?”. My answer would be of course!

Here’s a bite of cornbread history. First Nations were using ground corn for cooking long before European explorers arrived in the North America. Cornbread was discovered by Europeans during the European exploration of the New World when the Europeans had to survive using only local ingredients and thus came up with cornbread, using cornmeal as a base. Cornbread was also popular during the American Civil War because it was very cheap and could be made in many different sizes and forms. Today, cornbread is a common in the southern United States.

Here is the recipe I used for my cornbread: http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Grandmothers-Buttermilk-Cornbread/Detail.aspx. I also added in about half a can of niblet corn to add texture. And cornbread is best eaten with copious amounts of butter.

Tags: Bread, Corn, Cornbread

A bite of… Naan Bread

As promised in my last post, here is the recipe for Naan bread. I figured it would be easiest to include a ‘how-to’ video because it is a bit tricky to explain if you haven’t attempted it before. Thanks to the Indian Vegetarian Gourmet for this video!

A bite of… Aloo Gobi

As you know, Indian cuisine is one of my favourites and after returning from my trip to India, I couldn’t get enough Aloo Gobi. Aloo Gobi is a dry Indian and Pakistani dish made with potatoes (aloo), cauliflower (gobi) and a variety of unique Indian spices. It has a bright yellow colour from the Tumeric and it is fantastic!

I used a variation of this recipe: http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Alicias-Aloo-Gobi/Detail.aspx.

*Note, the Naan Bread shown in the picture will be featured in my next post.

Tags: Aloo Gobi, Califlower, Potatoes, Tomatoes, Tumeric

A bite of… Sushi Salad

When I was growing up, my mom often made sushi salad. It’s great because unlike the labour intensive rolled variety, sushi salad has all of the flavour without any of the tricky rolling business. I recently made my own version and cut out yet another step by using Mitsukan Sushi Seasoning, that I picked up at Superstore. It’s a blend of rice vinegar, sugar, and some additional seasonings. The salad turned out wonderfully – the perfect blend of flavours and it kept well in the fridge for lunch the next day. Here’s the recipe:

Cook 1 cup of sushi rice according to the package directions. Cool for 5 minutes. Stir in 2 tbsp Sushi Seasoning, 1/2 chopped red pepper, 1/2 chopped cucumber, 3 sheets of nori (dried seaweed) that has been torn into small squares. Toss all ingredients together and enjoy.

Tags: Japanese, Mitsukan Sushi Seasoning, Salad, Sushi

Grandma Gwen’s Fruit Pizza

To celebrate my cousin Levi’s birthday, I decided to opt for the non-cake route. I figured she’d had 21 birthdays with cake, why not try one without? Instead I made a family favourite in the Gogolinski household, fruit pizza.

If you’re ever responsible for bringing a dessert to event, or you want to make life-long friends, bring this dessert. It only takes about 20 minutes to prepare and it is the perfect blend of light, fresh fruit and with a creamy center.

Here’s the recipe:

Preheat oven to 350F.

For the crust, mix 1/2 cup butter, 1/4 cup icing sugar, 1 cup flour together, and press into a pizza pan. Bake for 8 minutes and allow to cool.

For the filling, cream togeter 1 – 8oz package of cream cheese, 1/3 cup sugar, and 2 tsp of vanilla. Spread this mixture over the cooled crust.

For the topping, chop up a selection of mixed fruits. I used kiwis, strawberries and blueberries but pinapple and blackberries work well too.

For the glaze, in a saucepan combine 2 tbsp cornstarch, 1 cup pineapple juice and 1/2 cup sugar, cook until thick and smooth. Cool and pour over the fruit.

Tags: blueberries, cream cheese, dessert, fruit, kiwi, strawberries

Something to think about…Food Security

On Tuesday night I went to a community gathering on healthy food, healthy bodies, and a healthy planet. A large part of the discussion was surrounding the “zero-mile diet” and buy local/eat local. This video does an excellent job of visually explainging the trouble with buying from afar.  And surprisingly, it was produced by Hellman’s Mayonnaise.

Tags: food security, inspiration, video