Pickled Fiddlehead Salad

Home made pickled fiddleheads tossed in a fresh garden salad.

Cozy Cottage Rum Balls

Nancy's fine-tuned wheat-free rum ball recipe shared!

Ingredients: 

• 3 oz. (85 g.) melted bittersweet baking chocolate (approx. 15 squares) 
• 1 cup icing sugar
• 1 cup ground almonds (almond meal) 
• 1/3 cup dark rum 
• 1 tsp. vanilla

Directions: 

Melt chocolate slowly. Add the rest of the ingredients. Refrigerate. Once cooled (thus more solid) roll into balls. Roll balls in ground almonds, chocolate sprinkles, cocoa or icing sugar (optional: dip balls in rum then roll in toppings)

Balls become even more solid when left in the fridge for a period of days, or frozen. 

Suggest eating before 2 p.m. to avoid being awake at 12:30 a.m. (the caffeine in the chocolate far outweighs the soporific effect of the rum!)

Hot cheesy mushroom dip

Hot cheesy mushroom dip

Ingredients:

2-3 cups of chopped mushrooms

½ cup diced onion

1T chopped garlic

2 T chopped fresh parsley

Butter

1 cup cream cheese

¼ mayonnaise

¼ cup sour cream

1 cup grated parmesan/Asiago/grana padano

½ cup grated cheddar

Salt and pepper

Directions:

Sauté onions in butter until translucent (3-5 minutes, medium heat). Add mushrooms and garlic and continue to sauté until mushrooms start to cook (when you see mushroom juice in the pan… yum). In a large bowl, combine cream cheese, mayo, sour cream and grated cheeses. Add cooked mushroom mix to bowl, parsley and salt and pepper. Mix with a spatula until only small lumps of cream cheese remain (or none). Spread in a greased shallow dish and cook until bubbly and golden (20 min at 400 degrees or so).

Serves 6-8 people. Enjoy!

Natalie's famous chili recipe

Our neighbours, and good friends, the Duncansons, requested my chili recipe for an upcoming gathering they are hosting. I assumed, of course, that the recipe was already posted on Chez Plouffe but alas, after searching, it is not. 

No better time than the present!

Natalie’s famous chili recipe

Note: Measurements are not exact, adjust for preference and to taste. Also, this make a big batch so use a big pot.

Secrets:

• Cook everything in one pot, in the order below and don’t drain any meat juices.
• Add brown sugar to cut the acidity of the tomatoes, makes for a sweet and spicy chili.
• Liquid smoke is not necessary but gives a warm smoky flavour that is pretty yummy. (I have some Emily if you want to borrow it)

Ingredients:

2-3 small packs ground bison or lean ground beef (depending on how meaty you want your chili)

*optional* spicy Italian sausage (pre-cooked and chopped… Spolumbos are awesome)

1-2 cups onions, diced

3-4 cups diced mushrooms

2-3 cups chopped peppers

2-3 cans of red kidney beans (rinsed)

2-3 cans of black beans (rinsed)

*optional* 1 can chick peas (rinsed)

2 large cans (28 oz) of diced tomatoes (preferably no salt added)

2 large cans (28 oz) of crushed tomatoes (preferably no salt added)

1 small can (5 oz) of tomato paste

3-5 teaspoons of chili powder spice

2-3 teaspoons of cayenne powder spice

1-2  teaspoons chipotle powder spice

1-2 teaspoons cumin powder spice

2-4 tablespoons brown sugar

3-4 drops Liquid smoke

Olive oil

Directions:

1. Drizzle some olive oil in an extra-large pot and turn to medium heat. Add ground meat and sautéed until almost cooked.
2. Add chopped onion and continue cooking until onion becomes translucent.
3. Add some spices (to infuse the meat… just a little of each because you can add more later to spice it up). Continue cooking the meat and onions. Add the peppers and mushrooms and turn down the heat.
4. Add chopped cooked sausage (if applicable)
5. Add the diced tomatoes, crushed tomatoes and tomato pasted to the pot and stir.
6. Add the beans (remember to rinse them in a colander beforehand. You don’t want pasty bean juice in the chili). Add chick peas (if applicable)
7. Stir the pot until well combined and place on low-medium heat. Add brown sugar and liquid smoke.
8. Cover and simmer for 1-2 hours, stirring occasionally. The chili will get very liquidy as the vegetables cook and lose their water content (i.e. mushrooms)
9. Taste the chili after an hour and add more spices if you like. 
10. Remove the lid in the last half hour to boil off some liquid and thicken. 
11. Monitor the pot while it simmers so that the chili does not start to burn to the bottom (this will happen with some thinner pots.) If you do feel the chili starting to stick to the bottom/burn, turn down the heat and DO NOT SCRAPE up the burnt part as it will taint the flavour of the whole pot. You can still keep cooking and scrub the pot later on.

Serve with sour cream, grated cheddar cheese, tortilla chips, fresh bread, rice cakes or just a heaping bowl with a big spoon.

Enjoy!

Giant zucchini!

What to bake?!

Refried bean dip with bacon

This incredible Mexican summer dip is
pretty much one of the best I have ever made!

Serve cold or warm with a glass of lemon Perrier and enjoy!

 

Refried bean dip with bacon

Ingredients:

Refried beans (preferably home made)

Bacon bits (preferably home made)

Grated cheddar cheese

Salsa 

Diced sweet peppers

Sour cream

Chopped chives or green onion 

Finely diced jalapeno pepper (optional)

Tortilla chips

Directions:

Layer all ingredients in the order listed above. If beans and bacon bits are still warm then cheese will melt a bit on top. Glob sour cream on liberally and sprinkly chives and *optional* jalapeno pepper on top. Serve with your fave tortilla chips. YUM!

Maritime scallop challenge

Scallops four ways tonight at Longwood!

General submission: Regular scallops wrapped in bacon with lemon and pepper.

Whisky maple marinated bacon-wrapped scallops

 

Whisky maple marinated bacon-wrapped scallops

Ingredients:
bacon (4-5 ounces, long strips of bacon)
large sea scallops (about 1 1/2 pounds)

Marinade:
2 tablespoons Bourbon or whisky
2 tablespoons maple syrup
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1/4 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper or 1/4 teaspoon fresh ground tricolor pepper
3 tablespoons minced green onions

Rinse scallops and remove side muscle. Mix mariade ingredients together well. Place scallops and marinade in ziplock bag. Marinate in fridge for 1-2 hours.

Set oven to convection roast 300. Pre-cook bacon in a fry pan for 2-3 minutes if thick. Cut bacon slices in half and wrap half a slice around each scallop. Secure with toothpick. Place bacon wrapped scallops on a rack on a tray that is covered with tin foil. Cook scallops in oven until bacon is crispy, about 15-20 min.

Wine pairing note: Choose a Sauvignon Blanc for this dish... not Chardonnay. The Yalumba Viognier that we paired (in photo) did not mix well with the scallops :(

Decadent paleo chocolate cupcakes

Decadent paleo chocolate cupcakes
 
7 large eggs, cold
14 ounces (380g) bittersweet chocolate (72-85% works great)
14 Tbsp butter
1/4 cup (60ml) brewed espresso or coffee
1/4 cup coconut flour
1 tsp pure vanilla extract

*optional* 
Kick it up a notch with 2 tsp chipotle powder and 1 tsp cayenne pepper.

1. Preheat oven to 165 C (325 F).
2. Line cupcake pan with parchment paper muffin cups.
3. Using a mixer, beat eggs until almost doubled in size, about 5-7 minutes.
4. Melt the chocolate, butter and espresso together using a double boiler or slowly on the stove. If using microwave, heat in 30 sec intervals, stirring in between.
5.  Gently fold a few spoonfuls of the eggs into the chocolate mixture along with the coconut flour, until few streaks of egg remain. Add about half of the remaining eggs, folding again, then add the rest until combined. Mix in vanilla (and optional spices if you want).
6. Spoon batter into cups, 3/4 full.
7. Bake for 10-15 minutes or until instant read thermometre reads 60 C (140F). DO NOT OVER COOK THESE CUPCAKES!
8. Remove from oven and let cool until set (at least 15 min). Lift cupcakes out of pan and place on cooking rack.

Notes: Works better with regular butter, not clarified butter or coconut oil. 

Courtesy of Paleo Comfort Foods recipe book.