Hoisin pork lettuce wraps with wasabi mayo

Well, hi there! As is often the case, it's been MONTHS since I posted a recipe. I'm never totally sure how this happens but I figure that it has something to do with this.  Life is far busier than I ever imagined it could be (with two little kids, a business, and a mostly full-time job) but it is so wonderful to be running my own business and connecting people with great local food options. 

This recipe was born from items that I have been sourcing and selling via Locavore Foods. There are a few products in here that need to be purchased from your grocery store but much of this dish comes from farms in Alberta. It is a recipe that can be prepared equally well in the summer as it can in the winter because most of the items are available year-round. It takes about 20 minutes to prepare and is a favourite of my whole family.  

Ingredients:

3 tbsp mayonnaise

1-2 tsp wasabi paste (found in the Asian food section at the grocery store)

1 tsp rice vinegar

1 small shallot, diced

3/4 cup grated carrots (about 2 small carrots)

3/4 cup grated cabbage

1 clove garlic, minced

1 lb ground pork or chicken

1 tbsp coconut oil

2 tbsp rice vinegar

2 tbsp soy sauce

1/4 tsp ground ginger

4 tbsp hoisin sauce

1/4 cup diced cashews (optional)

Directions:

1. In a small bowl, mix mayo, 1 tsp wasabi paste, and 1 tsp rice vinegar. Stir until well combined and set aside. If desired, add more wasabi paste for increased flavour & spiciness.  

2. Heat oil in a medium-sized frying pan. Add onions + garlic and saute for 2 minutes. 

3. Add grated carrots + cabbage and cook for 5 minutes, stirring frequently. 

4. Add ground pork and sprinkle with ground ginger. Cook thoroughly (about 5 minutes).

5. While meat is cooking, mix 2 tbsp rice vinegar, soy sauce, and hoisin sauce in a small bowl. Once the meat is cooked, pour sauce over meat/veggie mixture and stir until mixed. Cook for another 1-2 minutes before adding diced cashews (optional). 

6. Place meat/veggie mixture into butter lettuce leaves and top with rice & wasabi mayo. 

Enjoy!

Farro salad with roasted butternut squash, spinach and feta

Fall brings cooler temperatures, darker nights and cooking inspiration. While summer is my favourite time of year, I usually stick to simple meals of BBQ'd meat and salad. Once October arrives, I'm keen to move on from these quick suppers to heartier meals that satisfy my need for warmth and comfort.

With my new business, I have access to many wonderful new foods - locally sourced products that I have never cooked with before. Farro is one of those foods. It is an ancient grain that is both nutty-tasting and slightly sweet. It works well in winter salads and can replace quinoa or pasta in any number of dishes. This recipe originally called for orzo but I think that farro is an even better option. Butternut squash and farro from Locavore Foods.

Ingredients:
1 small butternut squash, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch cubes
2 + 2 tbsp olive oil
1 cup dried farro
2 cups spinach, chopped into pieces
1 small clove garlic, minced
1/3 cup crumbled feta
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
1. Rinse farro in a sieve and place in medium-sized pot. Cover with 2 cups water and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and cook (covered) for 40-50 minutes. Fluff with a fork and set aside.
2. Pre-heat oven to 425F. Toss cubed squash in 2 tbsp olive oil and spread onto a cookie sheet. Bake until squash is just tender (about 30 minutes).
3. In a small skillet, heat 2 tbsp olive oil until just warm. Stir in garlic and remove from heat. Allow to sit until ready to use.
4. Once squash and farro is cooked, add them to a large bowl with the chopped spinach. Toss with garlic oil and crumbled feta. Add more olive oil if necessary before adjusting taste with salt and pepper. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Baked salmon with lemon caper mayo

Hey there! Long time, no see...life is super full on these days and I've clearly been neglecting my duties on this page.  The reason I've been so busy? I started up a local food distribution business earlier this year. And while I love connecting folks with great tasting local foods, my spare time has become more and more limited. Regardless, starting Locavore Foods is one of the best thing that I've done in a long time!

As part of my food business, I was recently able to offer a great deal on cases of fresh Sockeye Salmon. The fish was very well received and many folks enjoyed their salmon last night. Each case of salmon was pretty large and will make many suppers over the fall & winter. In my humble opinion, one of those suppers should be this salmon dish!

I've been making this dish for years and have evolved it from a friend's simpler recipe. But, even he would admit that this version is much improved. This dish only takes 5 minutes to prep and roughly 15-20 minutes to cook. It's quick enough to make for a weeknight supper but tasty enough to serve for friends at a potluck. My ingredients are only a guide - feel free to add more or less of anything, based on your own tastes.

Ingredients:
1 large salmon fillet
3 tbsp mayo
2 tsp capers + 1/2 tsp caper juice
1/8 tsp red pepper flakes
1 tsp grated lemon zest + 1 tsp lemon juice
1/4 tsp dried dill
1 garlic bulb, crushed
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Place your salmon fillet on a parchment lined cookie sheet (skin side down).
3. Mix all ingredients together in a bowl. If sauce looks too runny, add a bit more mayo and stir again.
4. Cover salmon with lemon caper sauce.
5. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until your fish flakes easily with a fork. Be sure to check your salmon early as you don't want to over cook it!

Chickpea, yam, and rice salad

Spring is in the air in the Rockies which makes me want to run outside and enjoy the sunshine! It also makes me want to grill meat and serve it with a yummy grainy salad. I'm sure that the recipe below is just a variation on others that I've posted but it was super good so I don't want to forget how to make this version.

Ingredients:

1 can chickpeas, rinsed
1 cup Tru-roots quiona/rice blend 
1/2 large yam, diced into 1 inch cubes
1/3 cup chopped pecans
1/3 cup dried cranberries
1/3 cup crumbled feta

1/3 cup olive oil
1 1/2 tbsp lemon juice
1 tbsp dijon mustard
1 tsp sugar (optional)
1/8 tsp red pepper flakes
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
1. Cook the quiona/rice blend according to directions on package. Once the blend is cooked, turn off heat and add cranberries to the rice pot. Cover with lid and set aside for 10 mins.
2. While rice is cooking, boil a pot of water to cook the yams. Cook uncovered for approximately 10-15 mins or until fork tender.
3. In a large bowl, place chickpeas, rice/quiona blend, and cooked yams. Mix gently and set aside.
4. In a glass jar or bowl, whisk olive oil, lemon juice, mustard, sugar, and spices together. Pour over the salad and toss to coat.
5. Add chopped pecans and crumbled feta to the salad - stir to combine.
6. Enjoy with some BBQ chicken and a cold mug of your favourite warm weather beverage!

Pork Souvlaki

I'm a little bit obsessed with pork tenderloin lately. Truth be told, I've actually been a huge fan for years but have been on a bit of a tenderloin buying spree these days as it's frequently on sale for $2.99/lb (or sometimes even as low as $2.49/lb!). When it gets to this price, I highly recommend buying as many as you can afford and have room for in your freezer.

I came up with this recipe after I made the pork burgers. The flavours are similar but the meat and meal construction are slightly different (but in a good way!). I would recommend marinating the meat for between 4-8 hours but I'm sure that the flavour would be decent enough if you only had 30 minutes to do the marinade. This is a weeknight supper for sure - it's on the table within 15 minutes of starting it.  Serve with cucumber slices and carrot sticks to round a quick and easy meal.

Ingredients:
1 pork tenderloin
1/2 lemon
2 tbsp olive oil
1 clove garlic, crushed
1/2 tsp each dried oregano and basil
1/8 tsp red pepper flakes
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
1. After cutting your tenderloin into thin strips, place the meat into a ceramic or glass bowl.
2. Squeeze the juice from the 1/2 lemon over the meat. Add the olive oil and all other spices before tossing to coat.
3. Let meat marinate for 4-8 hours (or whatever amount of time you have).
4. Pre-heat the broiler to high and place the meat on a grill pan or in a cast-iron frying pan.
5. Cook under broiler for 3-4 minutes per side or until internal temperature of the meat has reached 150F.
6. Serve your soulvaki with toppings of your choice. I like pitas with hummus and tzatziki as well as sliced red onion, tomatoes, feta, and avocados. If you are gluten or grain free, you can use lettuce wraps instead of pita shells. Enjoy!

Larabars

I just realized that it's been a very long time since I have posted a shopping tip. I feel bad about this because I've been holding out on you about the amazing deal that you can get when you buy Larabars at Superstore - a box of sixteen costs only $16.00! I'm not all that good at math but even I know that this works out to $1/bar.

There are recipes abound on the internet about making your own Larabars but to be very honest, they all seem like too much effort to me. Plus, given the price of dates, almonds, cashews and coconut, I don't think that you can make your own for less than a $1/bar.

The selection is sometimes limited to just a few flavours and each box of sixteen is its own flavour (rather than the mixed packs that I understand you can buy at Costco). If you haven't tried Larabars yet, they are an awesome snack when you are doing the Whole30 and according to my hubby, they don't freeze when you take them out skiing in the backcountry. And therefore, this makes them very appealing to both of us!

Paleo pancakes

For reasons that aren't entirely clear to me, I'm back doing the Whole30 again. I have a love/hate relationship with this way of eating but at least I have two friends who are joining me this time and they can share in the pain! I started last Saturday and after experiencing some intense 'hanger' for the first few days, I have mostly settled into life without sugar, gluten, dairy, and legumes.

While this way of eating isn't easy, it is a great opportunity to try some new recipes. Lisa, Carrie and I have been busy swapping ideas and sharing recipe reviews. This is my version of the Paleo Pancake that the three of us have been eating most days. There are tons of variations on this (see below) but this is the incarnation that I like best. This recipe was adapted from the Lululemon blog post on Paleo Pancakes.

Ingredients:
1 Banana
1 egg
1 tbsp ground almonds
1/4 tsp vanilla
coconut oil for cooking

Directions:
1. Using a fork, mash the banana in a small bowl. Add vanilla and ground almonds to the banana.
2. Crack an egg into the bowl and stir with a fork until well combined. Set aside for 5 mins.
3. Heat coconut oil in frying fan for 3 minutes (you want the pan to be decently hot).
4. Pour pancake mixture into frying pan and turn heat down slightly. Top pancake with fresh or frozen blueberries and cook for 5-7 mins on one side.
5. Carefully flip pancake and cook for another 3-5 mins.
6. Enjoy with a topping of your choice (butter and maple syrup would be fabulous!) - I'm currently eating these pancakes without any toppings and they are darn good this way.

Makes 1 pancake.

Tips:
1. It takes awhile to cook these pancakes so don't rush them.
2. Carrie and Lisa are making these with one banana, two eggs, and no ground almonds. I personally find this to be too eggy but play around with the recipe until you get to your personal preference.
3. The blueberries are optional but I think they make these pancakes extra yummy!
4. The original recipe calls for shredded coconut but I've yet to try that version. Please try them at home and let me know what you think.