Fresh Spot Prawn Salad

June 26, 2023 By alessandra Leave a Comment

My fearless hunter or should I say fisher did himself proud and brought home about 115 prawns on his first forage. Prawns are part of the lifestyle of being in Desolation and like most things are best enjoyed fresh from the trap. Prawn salad is one of my favs for fresh prawns. Often when harvesting prawns, I poach them immediately. Poached prawns are a great base for many recipes. If it’s cold, we make Thai curries and Tom Yum Goong soup. When it’s hot salad rolls and a variety of salads.

A favourite source for Thai recipes is Hot-Thai-kitchen.com. Pailin also has a YouTube channel where she takes you through detailed information and recipes for Thai cooking – Pailin’s Kitchen. I highly recommend checking her sites out if you like Thai food.

Having lots of spices on the boat allows me to play with the best fresh ingredients. That said, prawns also keep incredibly well if you head and freeze them immediately in a small amount of salt water. As we are only passing through Desolation on this trip, we ate some and froze some to eat as we head around the island.

We ended up spending several days prawning, hiking, planning our trip in the Broughtons, and reading at Mink Cove. We were delighted to see one of the most beautiful rainbows that I have seen in years. It made it hard to leave the next day as we had seen some amazing weather patterns here. We live in such a beautiful place.

In fact we made 2 types of prawn salad on the same day. One made similar to tuna salad and the other simply a lovely salad with fresh poached prawns.

If you choose to just poach your prawns, you could simply make a luscious salad. This one has pickled onions and cucumber added with a bit of preserved lemon. Delicious !

Babaganoush @ Mink Island

June 22, 2023 By alessandra Leave a Comment

We weighed anchor around 11:30 and headed toward Tenedos and Mink running slowly through Otter’s Pool listening to a cacophony of sweet birds. Not a boat in sight in Otter’s Pool and while it was tempting to stop, there was still that big hill with a cloud hanging there. We beelined for Mink Island. As we came around the corner into the bay we were thrilled to see that it was totally empty. After anchoring once and deciding that we didn’t have enough road out, we reassessed the rings in the rock on Goat island and chose the highest one. The oyster catchers were chattering nonstop at which point we noticed they had a nest just above us at high tide. Macduff couldn’t have cared less but between the local eagles, seagulls and Macduff, dad oyster catcher was making a lot of effort to draw attention away from the nest.

Once lunch was done, we took the dinghy in and went for a walk up to the water reservoir. So kind that the American owners are willing to let people hike around their lake. It is a stunning walk filled with foxgloves, grasses and other wildflowers.

On the way back to the boat, we met Matt the caretaker who encouraged us to enjoy the island. He and Gen his wife paddled out to the boat for happy hour later bearing the gift of fresh eggs! What a wonderful and generous surprise . We are having a prawn competition tomorrow. Let’s see who get the most prawns! Stay tuned for some tasty prawn recipes!

Laura Cove & Chickpea Salad

June 14, 2023 By alessandra Leave a Comment

After spending several days in the blustery wind and rain in our hurricane hole of Squirrel Cove, we ventured to Refuge Cove for much needed water and showers. Always a thing on small boats with only 200 liters of water and no shower other than the solar kind. Although the temperature reached 30 c on Monday and people were swimming in the ocean which was apparently 65 F, I was not to be convinced that a quick dip was conducive to my health. Reading 2 books was much more what I had in mind as well as exploring the cove which only had 2 other boats. For those of you who have been here in summer, you will recognize Prideaux Haven as the mass collection of anchored boats where you can practically walk from one deck to another. It was heavenly to be here in such quietude.

Round Van Isle Summer 2023

June 13, 2023 By alessandra Leave a Comment

Maybe this is the year that I should change the blog name to lemon, tomato and salt! We decided it was time to get to know the entirety of Vancouver Island so on June 2 we snuggly nestled Ruby in to the garden and left the house in the hands of friends and decamped to Nasty Habit, our J35 racer now full cruiser! Day one was a short sail to Annette Inlet on Prevost Island.

June 3 we had a very June St Patrick’s day party to attend which was an amazing feast hosted by friends at their beautiful home in Long Harbour on Saltspring Island. The food was beautifully created and served by “ Mensch Kitchen and Catering” out of Cowichan. This was a meal to remember and one to set the stage for cooking on the boat.

We spent several days finishing installing the solar system which definitely turned Nasty Habit from a racer to cruiser extraordinaire.

We headed to Newcastle island and spent the following two nights with a 10 km hike around the park and a visit from the thieving raccoons who broke in and stole my precious garlic naan bread. Apparently they were too stealthy for even Macduff to hear. Meanwhile Gerry got up and accosted them so they went scurrying away with only 4 pieces. Off to Henry Bay on the north end of Denman island we encouraged Macduff to try out his new “crib”, where he can be safely anchored in rough seas, by giving him a treat.

He was a trooper as we crossed Georgia Straits eventually sitting up as the winds calmed.

Anchoring in Henry bay is always a great relief after crossing Georgia Straits and a great place for our first happy hour cocktail.

Mango passionfruit gin fizz

1 1/2 oz gin such as Bombay Sapphire

1/2 cup Mango Passionfruit tea

Top with sparkling water such as mango flavour

Add squeeze of lime

Black Pepper, Basil & Strawberry Ice Cream

June 27, 2016 By alessandra Leave a Comment

You scream, I scream we all scream for black pepper, basil and strawberry ice cream. I am always completely shocked when I hear people say they don’t like ice cream. Ice cream has so many great qualities. It’s full of flavour, luscious on the tongue, available almost everywhere in the world and its relatively easy and inexpensive to make. People on Facebook keep talking about a wine or scotch truck making the rounds and even though I do love my wine, I really just want to see the ice cream truck come back. Generations are missing that experience of running in the house and begging to please, pretty please have an ice cream, promising to eat all your dinner and then of course not doing so. A true experience in the workings of Pavlov.

Strawberries are abundant on Vancouver Island and there are so many great places to either grab a basket or u-pick a bushel that it would be sacrilegious not to.Strawberries are abundant on Vancouver Island and there are so many great places to either grab a basket or u-pick a bushel that it would be sacrilegious not to.

Not really wanting to fuss with an ice cream maker, I remembered a recipe that I had seen in Laura Calder’s Paris Express cookbook for a coffee ice brick. Sure enough she suggested that it could also be made with strawberries so I followed her lead and learned a few things which I will share with you so that you don’t make some of the same mistakes that I did (My ice cream “loaf” looked like a 90 year old as the cling wrap created wrinkles!) So bad I just couldn’t show you what it looked like!

Black Pepper, Basil & Strawberry Ice Cream

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Author: Lemonandtomato

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Ingredients

Units Scale

2 cups heavy cream (whipping cream)
2/3 cup sweetened condensed milk
1 medium box of strawberries (about half of a regular food processor bowl or 1 lb)
1 tsp vanilla
1 tbsp coarsely ground fresh pepper
finely grated zest of 2 organic lemons
7–10 basil leaves

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Instructions

Line a loaf pan with plastic wrap or parchment paper. Place the whipping cream and condensed milk ingredients into the mixing bowl and whip until it has the consistency of thick whipped cream. Place the strawberries, basil in the food processor and puree. Add the vanilla to the whipped cream and then carefully add the strawberries folding them in gently. Grind the black pepper and fold in also.

When pouring the mixture into the loaf pan make sure that you smooth the sides and ensure that they are even. I suggest that when you are taking the ice cream out of the loaf pan first dip the sides and bottom of the pan in warm water to loosen it. Once you have flipped the loaf onto your serving dish, heat an offset spatula with warm water and run it over the top and sides to smooth any inadvertent aging caused by the plastic wrap. Next heat a knife and slice away.

If you have fussy eaters, you can just omit the last 3 ingredients and make a wicked regular strawberry ice cream!

This would pair very well with a Pernod, Sambuca, Ouzo or other licorice flavoured liquor. Yum, now you don’t need the ice cream truck and can just keep hoping for the wine or scotch truck!

Gazpacho

June 13, 2016 By alessandra Leave a Comment

Quick Gazpacho

Here on the west coast we are in full summer heat and enjoying the bounty from the garden: fresh herbs and luscious vegetables just screaming… eat me, eat me So today on opening the fridge to grab a quick lunch it was obvious that I needed to choose something in the veggie department as I had purged all the cheese in an effort to fit into summer clothing. I usually have a selection of peppers as well as cucumbers and tomatoes and I wanted something quick as per usual I had waited until I was starving and about to gobble anything at hand – summer clothes be damned. So what do you make with just veggies? Seemed pretty obvious to me: Gazpacho. I had some great harissa oil from Olive the Senses to add just the right kick so we were off to the races and eating gazpacho in almost minutes.

6 medium ripe tomatoes

1 sweet pepper (yellow, red or orange) seeds removed and chopped

1 English cucumber chopped

½ medium red onion chopped

2 stalks celery

1-2 cloves garlic or several garlic scapes for a milder flavour

1 ½ tbsp. (or to taste) red wine, sherry or apple cider vinegar

1 tsp Tabasco or other hot sauce or harissa or hot pepper olive oil

2 tbsp olive oil

1/2 tsp lemon pepper

Peel the English cucumber and if you don’t like the seeds, scoop them out with a spoon. I like the texture so tend to leave them in. Chop the other ingredients so that they will be small enough in the food processor. Add all the ingredients into the food processor and blend until the consistency is to your liking. I prefer to let individuals add their own salt but feel free to salt to taste. Refrigerate for several hours to let flavours meld or eat immediately.

Gazpacho is one of those summer dishes that is bright, refreshing and can be tarted up with just a few extra ingredients so that it meets whatever flavour craving you are having. I often switch between herbs such as tarragon, basil, chives and summer savory but you could also add cilantro or any other herb that you would normally use with tomatoes. Enjoy!

Tomato Tart with Goat Cheese, Prosciutto and Gremolata

March 22, 2016 By alessandra Leave a Comment

Since we are currently experiencing Victoria pink snow and the cherry trees have almost finished blooming, I, of course am on to dreams of summer. And summer means fresh tomatoes. When I used to live in a rather small townhouse facing North I was always able to grow tomatoes. However now that I’m in Victoria which is technically warmer than Vancouver, it would seem that the ocean air constantly toys with my ability in the vegetable garden. This past weekend I decided to try yet again to grow a vegetable garden. Now I have a lovely garden that is also full of morning glory which means that in order to grow vegetables I had to find a way to eradicate the morning glory. This is never easy or cheap.

Raised garden boxes seem to be the answer. Thankfully my trustworthy companion is extremely capable in responding to my “I would like requests” and immediately begins to design whatever it is that I’ve dreamt up.

So he built me two large garden boxes. Now it’s just the heavy stuff like getting the dirt to and in the garden box. And oh yes, researching how to grow vegetables and planting them would help too I guess.

Of course researching vegetable gardens takes time and it’s so easy to get sidetracked when you type in tomato and find tomato tart. Well maybe I typed tart too…

So while I’m procrastinating and dreaming of all those lovely ripe tomatoes, I decided to make a summer tart. What could be better than a goat cheese tart with stuffed cherry tomatoes wrapped in prosciutto to make you feel that summer really is just around the corner. This recipe was featured on Food 52 and cried out to be made immediately. Research can wait but tarts cannot. I opened my doors to the sun so that I could revel in the warmth and transport myself to summer. And of course I made the tart. Thank you Food 52 and Phyllis Grant for a great recipe that will be repeated. http://food52.com/recipes/37406-tomato-tart-with-goat-cheese-quark-prosciutto-and-gremolata.

Tomato Tart with Goat Cheese, Prosciutto and Gremolata

Ingredients

[b]Pastry[/b] from Michel Roux
2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 cup butter cut into small pieces and softened
1 egg
1 tsp berry sugar
1/2 tsp salt
2 1/2 tbsp cold water
[b]Tart[/b]
9 small tomatoes
4 to 6 anchovies packed in oil, finely chopped
1 tbsp drained capers, finely chopped
4 tbsp finely chopped parsley (or any combination of tarragon, parsley, basil, mint, sage, arugula, or cilantro)
3-4 cloves garlic, microplaned
1 tbsp lemon juice
zest from 1 lemon
4 tbsp very finely grated parmesan
1 tbsp olive oil or gremolata olive oil – just enough to bind
1 egg yolk, room temperature
3/4 cup fresh goat cheese, room temp
2 to 3 tbsp heavy cream or half and half, room temperature
1/4 tsp kosher salt, plus additional for tomatoes
1/2 cup quark cheese, room temperature
9 slices prosciutto (as thinly sliced as possible)

Instructions

[b]Pastry[/b]
Put the flour on the counter and make a well. Put the egg, sugar, butter and salt in the middle. Mix and cream the ingredients in the well with your fingers. Gradually draw the flour in bit by bit working the dough until it has a grainy texture. Add the cold water and mix until it holds together. knead the dough by pushing it away from you 5-6 times until it is smooth. Roll into a ball and wrap in plastic. Put it in the fridge until you are ready to use it.
[url href=”undefined”][img src=”https://lemonandtomato.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/pastry-8.jpg” width=”550″ height=”367″ class=”aligncenter size-full” title=”pastry-8″][/url]
[b]Tart[/b]
Heat oven to 375 degrees
Roll out your dough and press into the square tart pan – much easier to lay out than a round pan but you can use either. Keep the dough in the fridge until you are ready covered with plastic wrap.
Core the tomatoes. Use your fingers to scoop out as much of the liquid, pulp, and seeds as possible. Place tomatoes cored-side down to let excess liquid drip out.
Mix together the anchovies, capers, herbs, garlic, lemon juice, lemon zest, Parmesan, and olive oil.
Mix the egg yolk, goat cheese, cream, lemon zest, and salt until smooth & spreadable (almost pourable).
Spread goat cheese mixture all over the bottom of the tart. On top of this mixture add a thin layer of quark.
[url href=”undefined”][img src=”https://lemonandtomato.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/stuffed-tomatoes-8.jpg” width=”413″ height=”550″ class=”aligncenter size-full” title=”stuffed tomatoes-8″][/url]
Sprinkle a small pinch of salt into each tomato cavity, and then evenly distribute the caper anchovy mixture between the 9 tomatoes.
Wrap each tomato in a piece of prosciutto. You may need to tear the prosciutto in pieces to wrap.
Gently press the tomatoes down into the cheese bed.
[url href=”undefined”][img src=”https://lemonandtomato.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/tomato-quark-8.jpg” width=”420″ height=”550″ class=”aligncenter size-full” title=”tomato quark-8″][/url]
Bake for 40 to 50 minutes. About 25 minutes in, gently push the cooking tomatoes down a bit.
If the tart shell starts to brown too much, cover it with aluminum foil while the tomatoes cook. Remove the tart from the oven when the cheese is starting to brown and the tomatoes are starting to shrivel and darken.
Cool for 30 minutes. Carefully remove the outer ring of the tart pan. Slide the tart off of the metal bottom and onto a cutting board. Cut into squares.

Ratatouille – Confit Biyaldi

March 1, 2016 By alessandra Leave a Comment

One day back in February I opened my email to find divine inspiration. A good friend had sent over a video on making ratatouille (http://sploid.gizmodo.com/how-to-make-ratatouille-just-like-the-pixar-movie-1755888210) according to the “confit Biyaldi” styled ratatouille from the Pixar movie of the same name. Now, normally this would be a late summer, early fall dish with all the veggies picked at their perfect ripeness straight from your garden however it was just the prompt that I needed to get some extra veggies onto the menu in winter (for a whole week I might add, as I made a rather large version). In fact, the making of the ratatouille ended up also being the creation of a great veggie soup. I got mandolin snap happy and sliced up a storm .
Ratatouille is one of those dishes that I’ve made for years as a staple but for some reason it had fallen off my radar, so I really didn’t need much of a push to start making it again. (and it was fun to plug in the video yet again). As it was winter (last month and now its spring hooray) and I really didn’t feel like making more than one veggie dish, I decided to add thinly sliced potato as well for the carb loving people at my table. This does sometimes make it necessary to cook the dish a bit longer but everyone thought the potato was a good addition.

A twist on this ratatouille is the piperade on the bottom of the pan which helps keep the veggies from sticking and burning. One of the great things I liked about the video above was the comment to just throw in the leftover peelings and ends of the veggies into the piperade so that you really are not wasting anything and get an extra kick of flavour. They all whip up in the blender nicely. If you like a bit of a heat to your dishes, sprinkle a bit of hot chillies into the piperade.The stacked veggies should sit nicely against the side of the pan and sort of stick to the piperade. If not have a toothpick or two on hand to help

Putting it all together goes quite quickly so don’t be put off thinking it will be too much effort. The final dish is really worth it. Watch the video above and you will see just how easy it is.

Ratatouille – Confit Biyaldi

Cuisine: French

Author: adapted from Thomas Keller by Lemonandtomato

Prep time: 1 hour

Cook time: 2 hours 30 mins

Total time: 3 hours 30 mins

Ratatouille is a most basic vegetable dish with amazing bursts of fresh harvest flavours.

Ingredients

[b]PIPERADE:[/b]
1 orange and 1 yellow pepper cleaned from seeds and ribs
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 cloves garlic minced
1/2 cup finely diced yellow onion
3-4 medium tomatoes
1 sprig thyme
Kosher salt/ fresh ground pepper
splash of white wine when cooking the onions and garlic
[b]MAIN VEGETABLES:[/b]
2 green zucchini, sliced in 1/16-inch rounds (4 to 5 ounces)
2 small regular or Japanese eggplant, sliced into 1/16-inch rounds (4 to 5 ounces)
2 yellow zucchini , sliced into 1/16-inch rounds (4 to 5 ounces)
2 -3 medium potatoes (optional)
4 tomatoes, sliced into 1/16-inch rounds
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tbsp olive oil
1-2 tsp of herbs de provence
kosher salt & freshly ground black pepper
[b]FOR VINAIGRETTE[/b]
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oi
1 teaspoon red wine vinegar
1/2 tsp dijon
Assorted fresh herbs (thyme flowers, chives, chervil, thyme)
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper.

Instructions

[b]For the piperade[/b]
Heat oven to 450 degrees.
Place pepper halves on a baking sheet, cut side down. Roast until skin loosens, about 15 minutes. (this can also be done on the BBQ.) Remove from heat and let rest until cool enough to handle. Peel and chop.
While the peppers are cooking, combine oil, garlic, and onion in skillet over low heat until very soft but not browned, deglaze pan with a 1/4 cup of wine. Add tomatoes, their juices, and thyme. Simmer over low heat until very soft and very little liquid remains, about 10 minutes, do not brown; add peppers and simmer to soften them. Season to taste with salt, and discard herbs. Place mixture in food processor or blender and puree. Reserve tablespoon of mixture and spread the mixture in the bottom of an 9-inch baking pan or cast iron pan being careful not to spread the layer too thick. Reserve some of the puree to make a vinaigrette later.
[b]For the vegetables[/b]
heat oven to 275 degrees.
Begin by making small vegetable stacks of alternating slices of vegetables and place in a circular motion over piperade, overlapping so that only 1/4 inch of each slice is exposed. Around the center strip, overlap vegetables in a close spiral that lets slices mound slightly toward center. Repeat until pan is filled; all vegetables may not be needed. (and will make an awesome soup for lunch the next day)
Mix garlic, oil, and herbs de provence in bowl and season with salt and pepper to taste. Sprinkle over vegetables. Cover pan with foil and crimp edges to seal well. Bake until vegetables are tender when tested with a paring knife, about 2 hours. Uncover and bake for 30 minutes more. (Lightly cover with foil if it starts to brown.) If there is excess liquid in pan, place over medium heat on stove until reduced. (At this point it may be cooled, covered and refrigerated for up to 2 days. Serve cold or reheat in 350-degree oven until warm.).
[b]For vinaigrette, [/b]combine reserved piperade, oil, vinegar, herbs, and salt and pepper to taste in a bowl.
To serve slice and very carefully lift onto plate with offset spatula. Turn spatula 90 degrees, guiding byaldi into fan shape. Drizzle vinaigrette around plate. Serve hot.

Make sure that you test the potatoes as they will need the longest to cook. You can also use a lid instead of tinfoil and do your part in reducing the environmental impact of making this ratatouille. Bon apetit!

Should you have leftovers, sauté them with garlic, onion, and maybe a few more peppers. Puree and then add 2-3 cups chicken broth, a squeeze of lemon and you have lunch for the next day or two.

Asparagus Soup

February 15, 2016 By alessandra Leave a Comment

With this brilliant sunshine the theme of spring being just around the corner continues to light my life. After all the groundhog didn’t see his shadow and they never lie do they? Asparagus is a sure sign of spring and when I saw it sitting in Costco this week for only $5.98 for a kilo, I knew it was a sign. For most of us, asparagus comes from the store or if you are really lucky, you planted some and patiently waited the 2-3 years for it to germinate and become something edible. However, there is yet another way of securing fresh succulent asparagus. There are the most fortunate of us, those who grew up picking and eating wild asparagus – the only “real” asparagus. Picking asparagus in the desert is not for the faint of heart who have a phobia of snakes – especially rattle snakes. This photo below which appear to be growing only sagebrush, is in fact prime asparagus land in the interior of BC. The first spring that we were in Ashcroft a wonderful neighbour stopped by with big black garbage bags and invited my mom and I to gather asparagus. Personally I thought she was nuts, as I couldn’t see anything growing in that dry, barren land. Fortunately, I was wrong.

We headed into the dusty, cactus spotted hills with our garbage bags, hiking up and traversing the hill back and forth. Not long after we had filled the bags with nice fat pieces of asparagus. Contrary to the belief of many who prize the long skinny pieces of asparagus as tender, the fat short asparagus are the most tender and full of flavour. We would pick for hours until (usually my mom) would scream and run down the hill after discovering yet another snake. Of course that would finish me too and we would wait by the old VW bug until our much braver friend finished picking her patch. Much like truffle hunting, people are very secretive and protective about their asparagus patches. It has become much more difficult to harvest the wild asparagus unless you have a “friend” with a patch as many are now on private land, but I still taste the first asparagus of the season perfectly cooked and smothered in butter.

Being a little more conscious of my butter intake, and not having the “real” thing, I thought the next best thing would be a healthy green soup. Print

Asparagus Soup

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Author: Lemonandtomato
Yield: serves 4

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Description

Asparagus soup with orange and pistachios

Ingredients

Units Scale

1 1/2 lbs asparagus roasted
1tbsp extra virgin or blood orange olive oil (to roast the asparagus)
zest from 1/2 organic orange
2 cups chicken broth
1/4 tsp chili flakes, or more to taste
salt and pepper to taste
1/4 cup pistachios, toasted
Cream or creme fraiche optional

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Instructions

Clean the asparagus, breaking off the ends at their natural break point. Place on a cooking sheet and drizzle with olive oil. Place in 400 degree oven and roast until just starting to get tender but not too charred. [url href=”undefined”][/url]
Remove from oven and place in food processor or Vitamix with 1 cup broth. Puree until smooth.[url href=”undefined”][/url]
Add orange zest, salt, pepper, (i often add a bit of lemon pepper too), chilis, and the rest of the broth. Puree.[/url][url href=”undefined”][/url] [url:3]
Lightly toast the pistachios in a pan on the stove. Watch them carefully as they toast very quickly and likely to burn.
At this point you can determine whether you would prefer to serve hot or cold. I like both. If you want hot, place in pan and gently heat. Do not boil.
Pour the soup into bowls, garnish with a bit of cream or creme fraiche, the pistachios and any leftover orange rind.
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Pistachio Crusted Salmon

February 1, 2016 By alessandra Leave a Comment

pistachio paste

Wild Salmon Time

We are spoiled in BC as most of us have been lucky enough to enjoy fresh caught salmon, not to mention a wealth of other fresh seafood. I have memories as a child when people came door to door asking if anyone wanted to buy a fresh Fraser River turkey? This involved going to the trunk of the person’s car and choosing some very large turkeys which were wrapped in that day’s newspaper. Upon my grandma’s return to the house I would point out the obvious, that’s not a turkey it’s a fish. After telling me to keep it our secret, she would usher the “turkey” into the kitchen, make dinner and then can the remaining (you’ve never had good canned salmon unless you’ve had it homemade by granny). I can’t say that salmon has always been a favourite go to seafood in past. Though some family thought it was my fav( I never had the heart to say that I actually disliked it). My son and I used to joke when we went for family dinner – what do you think, could it be salmon again? and of course it was.

Pistachio paste on salmon

Sometime in the last year my taste buds changed and I now actually look forward to a great piece of local salmon. Maybe it’s the new recipes that I have been experimenting with? These new recipes all started when a friend said “Can I have a party at your house?” Of course I said yes, and then one of her cohosts showed up with salmon and pistachios – it was the beginning of a new love story (with salmon that is). Many of you will lust after a plain piece of nicely bbq’d salmon but for the rest of us we need a little more temptation.

So wandering hosts aside, I thank my travels in Europe which have definitely broadened my horizons in the many methods of fish preparation from poaching to stuffing to enveloping in incredible sauces. This year I plan to rediscover a few of the many delightful concoctions that I have been privileged to try over the past few years – especially if my neighbour keeps bringing home salmon to share. To begin, the recipe which created the first stirrings of love.

Pistachio salmon on bbq

Pistachio Crusted Salmon

Cuisine: West coast

Author: Lemonandtomato

BBQ salmon with a pistachio crust

Ingredients

1 salmon filleted 2 to 3 lbs or 4 pieces of salmon filet
1 cup shelled pistachios ground
2 tbsp Dijon mustard
1 tbsp Grainy mustard
1 clove garlic crushed
Pepper to taste
Lemon pepper (optional)
Salt to taste
Juice from 2 large lemons
Shake of chili pepper
1/2 cup Panko (you can buy gluten-free if that’s an issue)
4 tbsp Olive oil

Instructions

Grind the pistachios in a food processor or with a mortar and pestle being careful to still keep chunks you don’t want pistachio dust.
Mix together pistachios, mustard, garlic, salt, pepper, chili flakes, lemon juice and panko. Add oil just until it makes a nice paste.
Spread the paste over the salmon.
Preheat and then oil the grill, put skin side down and cook until inside flakes nicely.
Be careful not to overcook.
For those who like it better cooked you can always give it another minute or two after you have rescued pieces for everyone else.
When you take it off the bbq, let it rest for a few minutes before serving.
You can also cook this on a pan in the oven. I prefer to put it on parchment paper and cook around 350. It may take longer than the bbq.

BBQ salmon perfectly cooked

Stay tuned over the next few months for salmon in horseradish sauce, salmon en papillote and a few others.

Pistachio Salmon

BC Spot Prawns with Nectarines

January 19, 2016 By alessandra Leave a Comment

Spot Prawns on the BBQ

Boatfood: Fresh BC Spot Prawns

So many prawns and so many delicious ways to prepare them:

BC (British Columbia) spot prawns & rum soaked nectarine skewers
Prawns with thai curry
Prawns Provençal
Prawns with creamy pasta
Steak and citrus skewered prawns
Prawn mole
Seafood chowder
I think you get the idea…

Summer on the boat is always an escape of great food and wine and these days with daffodils blooming it really doesn’t seem far off (call me a dreamer). On the boat, we only cook with a small 2 burner propane stove and a bbq, but man do we cook. Provisioning can always be a bit of a challenge especially if you are up the coast away from the convenience of stores; however, with a bit of foresight, 2 basil plants and fishing equipment (oh and a good fisherman) you can eat better than at home and a far sight cheaper.
Crab, prawns, fish, oysters, mussels, clams you get the jist of it.
So in order to not just eat plain ol’ fish and prawns (not that there is anything wrong with that) a few pantry staples are in order. Onboard (and at home), I always have the following in my pantry:

Pantry Staples

thai curry paste
old bay seasoning
hot sauce
variety of hot chilies
basil plants
sea salt and good pepper
tarragon (fresh whenever possible)
The Catch
cinnamon
lemon pepper
heads of garlic
onions
capers
pasta (spaghetinni is my go to)
tomato paste
sun dried tomatos
canned olives
canned tomatoes
canned artichoke hearts

Prawns fresh off the grill

canned hearts of palm
coconut milk
mole
panko
shaker of flour
good olive oil
vinegars: balsamic, red, white & cider
jerk sauce
lemons and limes or (a bottle of concentrated juice if they are not available)
potato soup mix ( works well as a chowder base)
bouillon powder or cubes
jar of pesto
rice
seafood sauce or ketchup and horseradish
wasabi
vodka, brandy and vermouth
And of course good wine!

This list is also not a bad starting point for your home pantry.
This last trip was mainly one for prawns and fish sprinkled occasionally with some chicken or steak from our newest boat addition – a fridge/freezer. By keeping it on freezer, we can make our own ice and manage to even freeze some prawns and a bag of heads which will become prawn bisque. You have to pardon the garish plates but its a boat – think camping not 5 star hotel!

BC (British Columbia) spot prawns & rum soaked nectarine skewers

BC Spot prawns with nectarines

Recipe Type: Main

Author: Lemonandtomato

BC (British Columbia) spot prawns & rum soaked nectarine skewers

Ingredients

1/2 cup good spiced rum such as Kraken or Captain Morgan
12-20 BC spot prawns ( you could use others but this is the best BC has to offer)
2 large nectarines
flaked chilis
black pepper
1-2 limes juiced

Instructions

Split the backs of the prawns and then place them in bowl or bag with 1/4 cup rum – chill 4-6 hours. Wedge the nectarines throwing out the pit and then place them in the rest of the rum and let them chill for the same amount of time.
Once you feel that the prawns have marinated well, take metal skewers (if you use wood make sure to soak them well) and alternate placing nectarine wedges and prawns till you have filled your skewers. Place on a very hot BBQ and grill very quickly until the shells turn bright pink. Be careful not to overcook.

3.4.3174

These can be enjoyed on their own but I prefer to make a big salad with whatever I have at hand (lettuce does not keep well on the boat) and then serve the skewers on top – squeeze the lime over the cooked skewers. I love hearts of palm in a salad for the texture they bring but add in whatever makes your heart sing or empties your fridge or cooler. This pairs nicely with a good dry Rose. You might want to try the Joie Rose from BC or L’Orangerie from the Paus d”Oc in France.

Bon appétit and of course enjoy the sunset!

Laura Calder’s Picnic Chocolate Cake

June 22, 2015 By alessandra Leave a Comment

As you will see from most of the pages here, I am not a baker. It’s not that I don’t like to eat sweets but more that I really have minimal patience with having to do things “correctly” by which I mean reading the recipe and following directions. Sure we all know that you’re supposed to read the entire recipe through before deciding to launch into it. However, I seem to have snorted at this thought even way back in home ec. Do they still teach that? I love recipe books and my book shelf attests to that, however to me books are meant for reading, looking at the stunning photography and maybe just maybe getting some ideas. Knowing my propensity to ignore direction, I tend to ignore the “dessert” end of most books and instead rely on my great baker friends to provide the sweet something at the end of the meal.
So how did I come to be writing about this amazing dessert? I am very fortunate to belong to a group of women who decided it would be fun to get together with a lead cook, a meal plan and a new recipe book from which we would cook a meal together and then take the new cookbook home. Of course I dug right in when it came to chopping the onions, readying the duck and steaming the mussels but as usual left the cake to the bakers. We spent the afternoon cooking eating, and drinking wine as one should on a lovely Sunday afternoon. The menu was taken completely from Laura Calder’s newest book Paris Express.

We began with a lovely red onion tart to take the edge off. Next up were mussels in saffron cream sauce , we then moved on to asparagus soup with orange parsley toasted bread flakes. Feeling like we hardly needed more, the main course was next up pantry duck parmentier with roasted haricots verts garnished with garlic and mint. By this point, we really should have refrained from anything other than a good swift walk but sitting demurely on the sideboard was the picnic chocolate cake…..

To say that it was amazing would not really express how good it was. Suffice it to say, I decided my years of ignoring directions must come to an immediate end. I came home and made it the following Friday for my husband Gerry’s grad reunion party. Thank you Laura for sending me on a new venture and widening my horizons to dessert making, and also to Ann who was the catalyst for the French cooking group!

Laura Calder’s picnic chocolate cake

Recipe Type: Dessert

Author: Laura Calder

Prep time: 15 mins

Cook time: 30 mins

Total time: 45 mins

Amazing, rich portable chocolate cake from Laura Calder’s Paris Express

Ingredients

200 grams unsalted butter
200 grams dark chocolate (I used very good quality such as Callebaut)
4 eggs
200 grams sugar
30 grams flour
1 lime for garnish

Instructions

Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease, flour and use parchment paper in a 9 inch (23 cm) round cake pan.
In a double boiler, melt the butter and chocolate together until smooth( the water under the bowl should be barely simmering).
Remove the bowl from the heat and beat in the eggs, one at a time. Next add the sugar and then the flour.
Place in the cake pan and bake for about 30 minutes. the centre will be a bit jiggly, but will firm up and the cake cools and shrinks. Grate the lime and sprinkle on top. I also sprinkled some icing sugar on it for effect and juiced the lime and squeezed a bit of juice all over to give it a bit of a tart contrast. Thank Laura Calder

Porchetta da Mario

June 1, 2015 By alessandra Leave a Comment

For those of you who know Porchetta you need no further words of introduction; but for the likes of me, some description is necessary. I had heard the word Porchetta and knew it to be meat of some sort but I had no idea that is was meat of the sort that melts in your mouth leaving you with a lingering craving for just a wee bit more. Tender juicy pork on the inside and sinful, much maligned crackling on the outside. Unlike the masses in North America, Italians understand that just a bit will not kill you – it’s just that you keep wanting a wee bit more… and further to that the Italians have not worked for the past 20 odd years at making their pork leaner!

While in Fano, planning our cooking retreats we had the pleasure of visiting real live Porchetta makers Mario and his wife, Nazaria of Porchetta da Mario. They graciously welcomed us into their workshop in Cartoceto, near Fano and took us through the process of preparing the wee piggy ( hardly) for the oven.

They start with an 85 kilo pig which is then butchered, spiced and tightly wired around a rotisserie pole.

Once the pig has been butchered, a mixture of garlic, wild fennel (finocchio), olive oil, salt and pepper are mixed and slathered all over.A rotisserie pole is then placed in the middle of the pig and the process of wiring it to this pole commences. Really quite a feat of strength as the pictures below show. It takes two of them to hold the pig and then they use wire to fasten it tightly. I didn’t include the one which really shows Mario grimacing as he tries to tighten the wire (have to keep the cook looking good).

Once this has been achieved, (not the looking good) the legs are inverted slightly and the fat cut out so that it doesn’t burn.

Next, is probably the toughest part of the creating this amazing meal – lifting the 85kg piggy onto the roasting pit.

As you can see from the picture not all the fat stays in the Porchetta! Once the wee piggy is secured, she is smeared with some fat, the skin is knifed (punctured) to make sure it doesn’t burst and then the beast is put into an extremely hot computerized oven which monitors the rotations and the various temperatures while roasting for about 5 hours.

The Porchetta is then taken to market, as in this little piggy went to market the very next day! People line up ordering slices for lunch and dinner, or slices in crusty Italian rolls all with thick pieces of crackling which truly melts in your mouth. Mario was very generous in cutting us thick slices resplendent with big hunks of crackling the like of which I have never seen.

When in Fano make sure to visit the market and taste the Porchetta da Mario. If you visit Cartoceto, the home of Porchetta da Mario you can also feast on the view of olive groves. Should you not find Fano or Mario, look for the line ups in many of the markets throughout Italy and take a leap of faith and devour some Porchetta and crackling.

Should you want to make Porchetta at home, it may not have the same finocchio flavour but you can at least get yourself some crackling. Check out recipes at:

Jamie Oliver

Bon Appetit

Epicures or create your own.

If you are local and live in Victoria, Vancouver or Seattle then head on down to Meat and Bread as they serve a pretty mean Porchetta!

Arrival in Venice

May 5, 2015 By alessandra Leave a Comment

Arriving in Venice was effortless or so it seemed. Our luggage came off the ramp immediately and in one piece. Emily stood in line and bought bus tickets to the train station which was about a 10 minute ride from the airport. Riding the bus was what one might call interesting – I had a headache when we got off not from jet lag but rather the staccato burst of pidgin English and French from complaining and somewhat inebriated African restaurant workers. They really thought their boss was an idiot. Some of you may recognize that thought?

Off the bus we got, looking for hotel Piave (like the cheese). After dragging and carrying our luggage for several blocks we wondered if we were going the right direction as it had said only 200 metres. Now when you have packed for all seasons and occasions, 200 metres seems like miles. I saw a bike store and thought hmm good place to ask, but not wanting to look like a wimp (Emily was actually carry a back pack not pulling a suitcase) I said nothing. 1/2 block later, a nice young man (hah!) asked if he could help. Also somewhat under the influence he said he would show us, so after asking at the bar, rather than saying over there, he proceeded to lead us. Have I mentioned that he said something about having a neck brace and not being able to eat and needing a cigarette? What I did not understand in that conversation was that he thought we should buy him a pack for showing us a half block walk to the hotel not that he was going to take a smoke and walk us. We left him swearing and cursing (after refusing to give him 15 Euro for cigarettes) on the street as we ran inside. Lesson one fini.

Dinner hour was upon us so we decided to head into Venice proper and find a good meal. Back to the train station to buy tickets. Some couple graciously gave us free tickets that they had not used, but they were for the return trip rather than into Venice. To the machine we go, and as we are choosing our tickets in comes a hand that starts choosing the buttons for us before we can even read them. Lesson two – no one helps out of kindness. The hand also wanted a pack of cigarettes!

Arrival in Venice itself about 18:00 and really what a great event. Chaos, boats and people everywhere. We had time to quickly check out our car rental and then do some basic sightseeing. Remember the chef boyardee ravioli add which has the kid playing soccer in a piazza? Well we found just that and more including dance lessons.

The hour was getting on so experience told me to find dinner before we became crabby especially given that we had been on the go for more than 24 hours and frankly the airline food while better than many (KLM) was still not equal to a meal on the canal in Venice! Buon appetito.

Penne con smoked ricotta, pancetta and rosemary in a rose cream sauce at Il refolo. Just amazing! Will look for the recipe and post later.

Scallops and spinach salad

March 28, 2015 By alessandra Leave a Comment

Spring brings with it a craving for greens and fresh things and let’s face it sometimes you just don’t feel like cooking.

You’ve had one of those really, really long days and the thought of a restaurant sounds good but then again, you have to sit down and decide where you want to go and really its not so much the thought of cooking that is stopping you but rather the thought of deciding about what you want to eat. So actually having to make a decision on where to eat doesn’t really solve the problem.

We’re lucky with the fact that we have a very close shopping area that we can walk to in about 10 minutes so daily shopping euro style is very much a possibility. However, we are in North America so reality is of course that we have a freezer full of food (thanks Costco) so that we don’t have to do that daily shopping and can just pop something out of the freezer in the am. Great concept but freezers do entail some planning, if you want to eat the food out of it on the same day. And of course, planning is great if you’re an organized planner. Next life perhaps?

So on those days where I just don’t seem to get it together early in the morning, or even the evening, I resort to scallops. I tend to usually have a bag of frozen scallops just waiting to be defrosted. The beauty of scallops is that they defrost in cold water in less than half an hour, they cook literally in seconds and if you serve them with lots of veg you really don’t need that many and they become less of a luxury dinner!

Not to mention it makes a light healthy dinner which just echoes spring.

Scallop and spinach salad

Author: Lemonandtomato

Ingredients

[b]For Salad:[/b]
3-6 large scallops per person (I prefer Digby Bay scallops when I can get them)
Baby spinach -usually a couple handfuls per person but feel free to add more to your plate
2 peppers, julienned (red, yellow and/or orange)
small handful of cilantro, chopped
feel free to add other veggies such as tomatoes, toasted almonds or pine nuts take this to another level!
[b]Dressing:[/b]
juice from 1 lemon
juice from one orange
2 tbsp good olive oil
fresh ground black pepper and sea salt to taste

Instructions

Defrost scallops under cold running water – this should not take more than about 15 minutes but make sure that there are not too many in one container.
clean spinach and place desired amount on the plate. Distribute the peppers around the plate on top of the spinach.
Make the dressing before cooking the scallops. In a bowl whisk together the juices and the olive oil, adding salt and pepper to taste as well as the cilantro. Reserve and either put on the table so that people can help themselves or pour it over the entire plate once you have placed the scallops on the salad.
Place a non stick pan on the stove and heat it on medium high. Once the pan is hot, turn it down to medium and immediately place each scallop in the pan. Press down on each scallop to ensure maximum browning, then flip. Be careful not to overcook the scallops – they only take a minute or two each side depending on the size.

Ham & Black Bean Soup

March 14, 2015 By alessandra Leave a Comment

Spring is undoubtedly here in Victoria: we are in full bloom and winter seems to either be playing a wicked trick or its decided we’ve been good and it will head East to shower its blessings upon the other side of Canada. Fresh spring air makes my mouth start watering for all those dishes that traditionally mean spring, so with guests coming for dinner we roasted a big ham, with fresh green beans (obviously not local) and mashed potatoes. I never seem to realise just how big a ham really is and how much will remain after all the company has departed. This leaves more than one or two nights of leftovers and so after many versions of ham sandwiches, and ham salads we still had a fair portion left, with of course the humongous ham bone. Ham bones seem to instantly dictate ham and split pea soup especially when you know everyone in the house loves it. However, I wanted something just a bit different and not quite so “Quebec snowy” to celebrate this warm weather and plentitude of flowers, I decided that we just needed something lighter, fresher and maybe just a bit perkier.

At this time of year we are also blessed in our local “thrifty’s” grocery store with the best oranges that I have ever eaten. They are called Buckbrand organic oranges and they carry quite a story with them.

These are in no way the oranges of old that tend to be dry and yucky in the centre; but rather the opposite, oozing a sweet liquid gold that screams squeeze me, drink me! Blackbeans and orange are old friends and make a rather refreshing flavour profile together, add a bit of punch with chili pepper, and spices and you have the perfect hearty revitalizing soup that just so symbolizes all that I love about spring – besides my birthday!

Ingredients

2 cups dried black beans, rinsed and soaked for 10 minutes

75 grams hot pancetta – you can find this in a deli or Italian shops

4 cups (1 litre) chicken stock and additional water or stock as needed

1 ham bone (meat left on) or 2 ham hocks

bouquet garni ( I used thyme, rosemary and bay leaf)

1 cup orange juice

1 cup dry sherry

1 large onion, diced

4 cloves of garlic, chopped

salt & pepper and chili flakes to taste

olive oil

plain yoghurt or sour cream

tarragon as garnish

Directions

Rinse and soak the black beans for about 10 minutes. Drain the beans and put them in a large pot with the broth, ham bone and the bouquet garni. It will be easier to retrieve the bouquet garni if you tie it together. Cover the pot. Simmer these on low, stirring occasionally until the beans are soft but not mushy. This could take anywhere from 1 1/2 to 3 or 4 hours depending on the heat of your stove. Personally, I like to cook them longer and slower as this seems to impart more flavour from the bone. If the mixture becomes too thick, add water or more broth a little at a time.

Once you have the beans cooking, its time to prepare the rest of the sunny flavour. Dice the pancetta into small pieces and cook it over medium heat until it starts to crisp up. Remove from the pan and place on a piece of paper towel to drain.

Cook the onion, and garlic in the residual fat (adding olive oil if necessary) until they are soft and golden. Reserve with the pancetta.

When the beans are cooked take out the ham bones pulling the meat away from the bone and either shred or cut into small pieces leaving it with the beans.

Next add all the cooking liquids as well as orange juice and sherry and combine all remaining ingredients in pot. Bring the soup to a simmer cooking for 5-10 minutes before serving.

Personally, I like to serve it with scoop of plain yoghurt, a sprinkle of chilis and perhaps a sprig of tarragon.

*( If you don’t have pancetta or can’t find it, you could substitute bacon and just increase your chilies by using 3 thai red chilies – make sure to seed them and then finely chop avoiding putting your hands near your face )

Vegetarian Breakfast Hash – no potato

February 27, 2015 By alessandra Leave a Comment

Are you one of those people who loves potatoes any which way they come? I have had a love hate relationship with potatoes for many years. In high school, my dad insisted that dinner should always include potatoes – this meant boiled or mashed – sometimes we might have baked with sour cream but that was so infrequent that it may just be a memory from the Keg restaurant. By the time I left for university, I thought potatoes were foul and wicked white blobs that sat and congealed on your plate waiting for any excuse to be dropped quietly for the dog.

My hate for the white tuber is alas no longer there – this comes at a time when really I would be better off not eating them! I have discovered the ultimate scalloped potatoes, potatoes Anna, latkes, roasted potatoes with rosemary and olive oil, mashed potatoes with dill and creme fraiche and the list goes on. I notice that there are no “plain” potatoes on my list of favs. Gerry, my husband is particularly fond of potatoes at breakfast and will eat them with gusto in any shape or form.

However, after Christmas, like many, I noticed that the scale had tipped a bit too high (all those potatoes) and decided that they could no longer make their way onto my plate in quite so many forms. Opting for the potatoes with cream version made ridding myself of the breakfast potatoes easy, not quite so for my husband. Still, at breakfast there remained a need to fill the plate with something other than more carbs.

This led me to rediscovering that I love runny eggs mixed with everything on the plate whether it be toast soldiers or potatoes, but hey why not veggies in the quest for trimmer waistlines?

Quick Vegetarian Hash

1-2 eggs (depends on whether you are feeding 1 cholesterol conscious person or just one person who is hungry)
1 bell pepper medium size, cut in strips
6-8 cherry tomatoes cut in half or 2 medium tomatoes cut in slices
1/4 tsp olive oil
fresh tarragon 1-2 leaves or 1/4 tsp dried tarragon
Hot sauce (to taste)

For variety, I often add 1/2 an avocado which can be heated in the pan just before the egg is dropped in, or arranged sliced on the plate as a base layer. Really you could add any veggie you love.

This recipe may be doubled or tripled, just use a larger skillet.

Directions

Heat the skillet on the stove on medium to high heat and then add the olive oil.

Place the tomatoes cut side down in the pan, and reduce heat to medium. After about 1 minute, add the peppers. Simmer for a few minutes until tender. Once they have started to brown a bit, arrange a small hole in the centre and crack your egg(s) into this hole. Reduce heat to low and place lid on top to let steam. If you like a runny egg like I do, keep a close eye out so that the egg does not overcook. Once there is no longer any runny white, scoop your hash onto your plate and enjoy the rich flavours as they run together.

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Boatfood: Fresh BC Spot Prawns

Pantry Staples

BC (British Columbia) spot prawns & rum soaked nectarine skewers