Tasty Cucumber Salad

October 31, 2015February 21, 201612 Comments

This Dill~Cucumber Salad recipe is so easy and simple to make with just a few ingredients. It is very refreshing and delicious in summer and equally as good during the winter months.

Chilly Dilly Cucumber

An excellent salad to accompany those tasty Finnish meatballs, meatloaf, smoked salmon and as a side dish for any meal. I brought the cucumber salad to my neighbour’s place. We had this salad with smoked salmon, capers, lemon, cream cheese and rye crackers. The cool cucumber salad cuts the richness of the smoked salmon in a most pleasant way. Since we are all of different nationalities, we discussed and critiqued other country’s versions of cucumber salad. The election was over after we counted the votes. My Dill~Cucumber Salad won!
Chilly Dilly cucumber will not be making any speeches. However, his winning secret is in the dill ~ a subtle, delicious flavour that really enhances the cucumber.

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INGREDIENTS
1 medium cucumber thinly sliced
2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
1/2 cup water
3 tablespoons sugar substitute
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons avocado or salad oil

INSTRUCTIONS
1. Mix the vinegar, water, sugar substitute, salt and oil together and stir to dissolve the salt and sugar substitute
2. Add the dill and cucumber slices.
3. Refrigerate for several hours to let the flavours meld.
TOP SEVEN ALKALINE FOODS: The cucumber is one of the most alkaline foods (#3) that you can eat. Combined with the effect of the apple cider vinegar, it will help to make you body alkaline or at least closer to a neutral pH when you are eating acidic proteins. Both meat and even fish and chicken are acidic. Your body wants to stay alkaline or at least closer to a neutral pH to stay healthy along with fighting off and prevent disease. Eat your veggies!

BONUS: This is a very tasty cucumber salad recipe! Until you make this cucumber recipe perhaps for the first time, you will know what you have been missing! My taste testers (friends) tell me all the time. You will make this salad again and again!
HEALTHY OIL
This salad contains 2 tablespoons of healthy oil, which is my variation to the traditional Finnish cucumber salad. Not only does it prevents the cucumber slices from sticking together it is so good and healthy for you. If you recall the true story about Lorenzo’s oil. (actually containing two specific long chain fatty acids, isolated from rapeseed oil and olive oil) will know the miracle of oils. We don’t know everything about food/medicine. Some people have a shot of oil in the morning to start their day!

CUCUMBER TIPS and benefits!

Sweet Potato Salad – Simple Version

August 21, 2015February 21, 20163 Comments

This is a wonderful and healthy side dish to accompany those grilled ribs, chicken, pork and even salmon. This is an alternative to those usual potato and pasta salads. It’s a great take along for those summer barbecues! It’s a crowd pleaser!
print_recipe
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INGREDIENTS
2 large or up to 4 small (2 1/2 pounds) sweet potatoes
4 teaspoons white wine or champagne vinegar
1 tablespoon Dijon style mustard
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
1/2 cup olive oil
1/2 cup thinly sliced scallions
1/4 cup capers or chopped pickles(optional)

DIRECTIONS
1) Preheat oven to 400F.
2) Cut the sweet potatoes into bite-sized pieces and toss in 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Place on a baking sheet, sprinkle with salt and pepper and roast about 30 minutes turning occasionally.

Alternatively the potatoes can be steamed for 10 minutes and let them air dry to remove access liquid. It is easy for them to soften too much so do not overcook.
3) While the potatoes are roasting, make the dressing. Place in a blender or whisk in a bowl, the mustard, vinegar and salt. Slowly add the remaining tablespoons of olive oil in a slow stream.
4) If you have been oven roasting the potatoes remove the sweet potatoes from the oven and let rest and cool slightly about 10 minutes.
5) Toss the still warm potatoes with the dressing.
They absorb the dressing better when slightly warm.
6) Add scallions and toss gently.

Your finished salad

VARIATIONS: You can also add to this 1/2 bottle of capers, 2 sliced celery sticks or fennel, a couple of boiled eggs chopped, etc…. Look in your fridge. It’s fresh. Use it up!
Serves 4-6 persons
This is actually better the next day.

Massimo Bottura

March 5, 2015August 31, 20192 Comments

OH WHAT A NIGHT …IT WAS SUCH A NIGHT!
The stars were out tonight, as we waited in anticipation to meet Massimo Bottura at George Brown College. All the chefs-in-training, clad in their best whites were waiting with joy on this cold, crisp February night.

Massimo Bottura told interesting stories. Many of which are described in his book “Never Trust A Skinny Italian Chef”. He dropped out of law school to follow his passion as a chef and his father would not speak to him for some time. Massimo was awarded his third Michelin Star just weeks before his father passed. His restaurant has been named as the best restaurant in the world twice now. The San Pellegrino site states: Massimo Bottura’s three-starred Michelin restaurant, Osteria Francescana was voted #1, 2018.

“So, how do each of these initiatives blend together to address the future of food? “One only needs to look at it with the right eyes,” Bottura said,

” One of those passions is reconsidering society’s changing relationship with food and the surrounding landscape. Alongside his wife and business partner, Lara Gilmore, Bottura is about to unveil Casa Maria Luigia, an 18th-Century villa-turned-bed-and-breakfast nestled in the hills of Emilia-Romagna that, as Gilmore puts it, “offers a 3D image of how we see Italy” published by bbc.com

Me and Chef Massimo – Book Signing

Massimo Bottura spent a summer at Ferran Adria’s El Bulli (awarded best restaurant in the world for several years before closure) in Spain and a year at Alaine Ducasse’s restaurant in Monte Carlo. He was invited to be their head chef. An honour in itself. Massimo’s book “Never Trust An Italian Skinny Chef” is an interesting read. I was up until 4:00 am reading his life’s journey. In his talk and in his book, Massimo speaks about the difficulty in making a “simple” dish spectacular. The stages of parmigiano reggiano was particularly interesting.

Parmigiano Reggiano SALAD
As an homage to Massimo, I am making a favourite salad of mine, which incorporates reggiano. I took this pictures right before leaving to meet Massimo Bottura for a second time. He is speaking again tonight at George Brown along with Canadian celebrity chef’s including Claudio Aprile, our own molecular gastronomy chef.

RECIPE
Mushroom, Reggiano Salad

* 2 portobello mushrooms
* arugula lettuce
* balsamic syrup (home made)
* parmigiano reggiano, shaved slices
* thin slices of prosciutto or seranno ham

Sauté slices of portobello mushrooms in some olive oil. Sprinkle with a little salt. Not much since the prosciutto will be salty enough. No pepper. The arugula is peppery enough. Set mushrooms aside. Fry until crispy like bacon (who doesn’t love bacon?), slices of Serrano or prosciutto, adding more olive oil if required. Place arugula on a platter. Layer on top the sautéed mushrooms, fried prosciutto, shavings of regianno, and drizzle with the syrup.

FOOD TIPS: There are no quantities in this recipe as you will use as much as you need for the amount of servings. It would be best served on a flat platter with a serving spoon and people can help themselves. As there are only a few ingredients, the quality of the ingredients are paramount. I buy the serrano fresh from the local St. Lawrence market (in Toronto, CAN). I have the butcher slice it for me. I buy the reggiano from the same location. I have them cut it from the wheel instead of buying the pre-cut sections. I tell them that I need a larger slice, even if I don’t. It gives me an excuse to have them cut it. If you can, it would be best to buy the day the wheel is cut. Reggiano is a living ingredient which deteriorates in quality the same way that a wine does after it’s open. You can only appreciate this when you have tasted it. I notice there are stores today that will announce that they are cutting wheels of cheese. When they do, run…… It will be worth it!

Healthy Snacks and Appetizer

February 28, 2015March 5, 2015Leave a comment

Craving a snack? Need an appetizer to serve? Why bother with a cracker? Use nature’s vessel. Have you been putting your sandwich fixings in a piece of lettuce to avoid carbs and gluten? Well, now you can substitute a piece of endive for the proverbial cracker. You can use this for tuna salad, egg salad, salmon salad, Caesar salad, beet pomegranate orange salad, beet pomegranate feta salad, the list goes on….. It adds just a little bite to your snack. As much as I am an anchovy hater, I will even add some anchovy paste to my egg salad to give it a bite. When you bite into your food, you want it to just slightly bite you back. Yum! Yum!