Salted Almond Ice Cream September 19, 2008

Who said ice cream has to be sweet? This is something I came up with a few days ago as an accompaniment to various things like ginger snap cookies and almond thins which are very popular during the holiday season. It is delicious on its own too :)

What you need:

* 1 can unsweetened evaporated milk (370ml)

* 150gr almond butter (think peanut butter) – you can use smooth or chunky like I did

* 5 Tbsp honey

* 3 large pinches of salt (about 1 tsp, maybe a bit less – taste it after each pinch)

Mix and churn :) As simple as that!

Fall Apple Cake September 19, 2008

It is September already and the fall is starting to show its true and beautiful colors…accompanied by the cold breeze the apples begin to show up – I love it when you go into a store and you see this whole section in the produce department dedicated only to apples of all shapes, colors and sizes. I stumbled upon this recipe in a blog I read from time to time (La Tartine Gourmande), I made some alterations and voila…its pretty and tasty and homey.

Upside Down Apple Cake for Fall

1/2 cup walnuts

1-2 Tbsp butter

4-5 medium-sized apples, I used McIntosh

1/2 tsp cinnamon

2/3 cup sugar + 2 tablespoons (I use raw sugar)

1/2 cup plain yogurt

1 tsp pure vanilla extract

3 eggs

100ml olive oil

Pinch of salt

1 tsp baking soda

2 tsp baking powder

1 cup all purpose flour

1/3 cup tapioca starch (or cornstarch)

4 Tbsp almond meal (=ground almonds)

To make:

1) Preheat oven to 350F.

2) Toast the walnuts for 5-7 minutes in the preheated oven, coarsely chop.

3) Slice the apples into rounds, when you reach the core – keep slicing. The softer parts of the core will softer in the cooking process; the hardest parts wont so try and cut them out as carefully as possible so you do not ruin the shape.

4) Heat the butter in a saute pan on medium heat, add apples, 2 Tbsp of sugar and cinnamon. Saute until soft, but not mushy - 5 minutes or so.

5) Butter/oil your cake pan and arrange the apples on the bottom, putting the most beautiful slices first (it is an upside down cake…)

6) Mix yogurt and sugar and vanilla extract; add the eggs one by one, and then add the olive oil. Add all the rest of the ingredients, mix until combined. Pour on top of the apples.

7) Bake for 35-45 minutes or until a knife/toothpick comes out clean.

8) Cool slightly on a rack; carefully flip onto your serving platter.

I think this cake would go beautifully with honey flavoured Chantilly cream, Honey ice cream, Vanilla ice cream or just good quality honey drizzle which would make it a very appropriate dessert for the upcoming Jewish New Year which is celebrated on September 29th this year.

What to do with a Lotus root…? September 18, 2008

I saw it many times in the grocery store and it always made me curious but I had no idea what it tastes like or what do you do with it and when I discovered it did not require almost any work I bought it and now I have a new vegetable (root vegetable…?) in my repertoire. It has a pretty shape and looks nice when cut cross-wise; you can stuff it with something (rice…?), you can flash cook it and have it crunchy or cook it longer until tender in some sort of liquid. To me it tastes a bit like Kohlrabe.

 

 

Spicy Lotus Root Recipe w/Mango (still in season)

1 Lotus root – peeled and cut into 1/2cm slices (1/4inch)

1 hot green pepper cut into thin slices

2-3 cloves of garlic cut into thin slices

Salt to taste

1/2 Mango – diced

Heat some mild tasting vegetable oil (like canola) in a saute pan, saute the lotus root with the pepper slices, garlic and salt for about 5 minutes turning occasionally. Transfer into a serving platter and cover with the diced Mango.

The sweetness and temperature of the Mango will offset the heat of the pepper. If you are not into spicy dishes use either less pepper or cut it into a few chunks and let it infuse the oil and lotus root while cooking and then remove and discard.

 

*** It discolors like apples and avocados so if not using immediately submerge in cold water with a few drops of lemon.

I served it as part of a summer lunch with some Salmon I salted over night (sprinkle liberally with coarse salt, cover and refrigerate over night); black pepper and coriander seeds encrusted seared red tuna; avocado salad. 

BlueWater Cafe in Vancouver September 18, 2008

It was my birthday a couple of weeks ago and we opted to revisit the Bluewater Cafe which has a very nice atmosphere, is close to where I live and our previous visit during Vancouver’s Dine Out last winter was good.

It seemed to me that there was much more thought put into the first courses, whether those were from the raw small plates menu or the regular first plates menu, than there was into the second courses.

There was a selection of sushi and sashimi, wonderful fresh oysters with a few kinds to choose from (we had some Kusshi and Royal Miyagi) and various chilled seafood platters; interesting combinations of squid with crab and couscous which was delicious and refreshing as well as quail wrapped in pancetta, stuffed with fresh figs - it was tender and juicy and if hadn’t ordered my second course already I would have probably chosen it instead.

The seconds were much less imaginative and made selection difficult; quite a few fish dishes like Salmon and Halibut which I find boring in restaurants, especially higher end restaurants that pride themselves with being original and imaginative, same goes for the meat dishes. I opted for the fillet mignon with Chanterelle mushrooms, which were just coming into season, and a gratin of macaroni and green chard – the fillet was overcooked but was replaced by a perfect one minutes later; the sauce was too acidic in my opinion and the macaroni gratin had mainly green chard in it. 

Wines and desserts were good, mine had a candle on top :)

Overall a good experience though service was a bit slow; would go again and stick to the appetizers some of which are big enough to substitute for a main course.

Address: 1095 Hamilton street @ Helmken  Tel: 604-688 8078

WWW: http://www.bluewatercafe.net/

Busy Bee Mango Sorbet September 18, 2008

I have been so busy lately I have accumulated lots of material to post on the blog but could not find the time and even now I am writing this in an accidental 45 spare minutes (which I should have spent in the gym, which was too crowded) before I leave for university. Mangoes are (were a week ago really) in season, I saw them at 10 for $10 in Whole Foods, and I love Mangoes!!! Here is a simple recipe for a very refreshing amazingly bright yellow sorbet I made recently while discovering sorbets and  ice creams could be made out of any ingredient and anything you whip up can be churned and if the initial concoction was good so will be the frozen one.

What you need is:

2 large, ripe, mangoes pitted and skinned.

2 Tbsp Sugar

1/2 cup water

Zest from 1/2 a line + a squeeze of lime juice (from 1/4 lime or so)

Optional – a couple of tablespoons of Rum.

Blend all the above in your food processor/mini chopper and churn at high speed for a fluffy yummi sorbet.