Pork burgers with feta and tzatziki

Remember when I posted that recipe for Paleo pork balls? Ever since that time, I've thought about making pork burgers with feta and topped with tzatziki. But, for whatever reason, I never got around to making them. And while I do love the pork balls, I've been getting a little bored of them lately as they are in frequent rotation on my 'busy working momma' menu plan. Boredom is the mother of invention in my kitchen and so, enter pork burgers with feta and tzatziki!

I had some idea about how I wanted the burgers to taste and a quick internet search gave me the rest of  the tips that I needed to make my recipe come to life. These burgers would be great if they were cooked on a BBQ but since mine is currently buried in snow, I fried them on the stove and finished them in the oven when they didn't seem to be cooked through in the middle.

I ate my burgers topped with tzatziki plus sliced tomato and cucumber. I've really cut back on the amount of wheat products that I eat and a big bun didn't seem like it would go well with this meal. However, I think that these burgers would be yummy inside pita pockets, thin burger buns, or even butter lettuce. They would also be good with some thinly sliced red onion but I was fresh out. C'est la vie!

Pork burgers with feta and tzatziki (Adapted from TasteofBBQ.com)

Ingredients:
1 lb ground pork

10 shakes Worchestershire sauce (approx. 2 tsp)

1 tbsp lemon juice

1 tbsp chopped fresh parsley

1 tsp ground garlic

1/8 tsp red pepper flakes

2 tsp dried oregano

Salt and pepper to taste

1/4 cup crumbled feta

Instructions:

1. Place ground pork in a medium-sized bowl. Add all ingredients and mix together with pork. Only combined until just mixed. 

2. Use your hands to form pork mixture first into balls and then into patties. 

3. Make small indentation in the middle of the burger. 

4. If cooking on the stove top, heat pan over medium high heat. Cook patties until golden brown on each side but take care to not flip burgers too frequently. Burgers are cooked when they reach an internal temperature of 160 degrees. 

5. If using the BBQ, heat it to 400 degrees. Cook patties for approximately 5 mins per side or until cooked to 160 degrees.

6. Topped with tzatziki and serve with tomatoes, red onions, and/or cucumber slices. Enjoy!

Makes 4-5 patties

Baked halibut with pesto sauce

Hey there! Wow, it's been a LONG time since I've done a post...I guess that you could say that life's been a tad busy over these past five months...

We enjoyed the summer of 2013 as a family - Scott and I were both off on parental leave and we spent much of it on holidays. We were away from Canmore for weeks at a time. We visited family in Grande Prairie and on Vancouver Island plus enjoyed lots of camping, climbing, hiking, and mountain biking.

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Sadly, we had to return to real life by mid-September as both of us needed to get back to work. Being a working momma with two kids has been both challenging and overwhelming at times but we are finally starting to settle into a routine. Scott's new business venture (Windtower Construction) has added a whole new level of busyness to our lives but we're managing. I look forward to a time when things settle down a little but I suspect that this is our new reality.

And since this blog is supposed to be more about food than my family life, I'm finally going to post a new recipe! Our fish order arrived at the end of October and again, I'm thrilled with both the quality and quantity of fish that we received for our $250. I only opted for one piece of halibut which we enjoyed this past Sunday. I searched the internet for a new halibut recipe and came up with the one posted below. It's been modified slightly from the Barefoot in the Kitchen website.

Baked halibut with Pesto Sauce

Ingredients: 

1 large pieces of Halibut (or 2 smaller pieces)
2 tablespoons flaked almonds
2 tablespoons Parmesan cheese, finely grated
1 tbsp pesto
2 tbsp mayo
Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions:
1. Heat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Grind or chop almonds into medium-sized pieces using coffee mill or large knife.
3. Mix almonds, pesto, mayo, parmesan cheese plus salt and pepper in a small bowl.
4. Place halibut on baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Spread pesto mixture evenly on top of halibut.
4. Bake in oven for 15-20 mins. Fish is done when it flakes easily with a fork. Enjoy!

Sugar vs Agave Nectar

I recently made a batch of Paleo brownies (recipe to be posted once I fine-tune it a bit). The recipe did not have any flour in it and it called for agave nectar instead of sugar. I've been pondering the difference between sugar, honey, and agave nectar for awhile now but hadn't found any information that nicely summarized the differences for me. This article from the Globe and Mail does a reasonably good job of comparing agave syrup and Stevia to sugar. As I suspected, they really aren't all that different from one another. I'll keep researching but this info is certainly something to keep in mind when considering whether sugar is a 'less healthy' option than the other alternatives.

All about steak

We are eating quite a bit of steak this summer. This makes sense considering that we ordered half a grass-fed cow last fall but unfortunately, I'm not as good at cooking steak as I'd like to be. Enter this handy tip sheet from Hoven Farms.

While we don't order our beef from Hoven, I have had it in the past and can't say enough good things about its quality. Hoven Farms has an excellent reputation with sound farming practices. I appreciate their recent social media efforts and I was thrilled when they answered my question about free-range eggs! So, thanks to Hoven Farms for the great info sheet on steak.

And in case you were wondering about the difference between grass-fed and grain-fed (or conventional) beef, check out this other handy little tip sheet:

An update on tuna

In May, I had posted a link to information about buying sustainable tuna. At the time, I mentioned that I had never seen the Safeway brand of tuna at my local grocery store. Well, lo and behold, I did recently notice that they carry it here in Canmore. And as you can see from the photo, it is reasonably priced compared to other conventional tuna. I'm not sure if it is sold at other Safeway locations but I imagine that it should be. Best of luck in your search!

Blueberry Vol-au-Vent

Wow! It's been quite awhile since I've posted. So much has happened in our little mountain town since my last blog post. Thankfully, our house was fine but the homes of friends and colleagues suffered significant damage. Canmore and Exshaw are both on the road to recovery but it will be a long time before things get back to normal.  Personally, we have had a lot on the go as well. Scott started parental leave in June and we've been camping, biking, and visiting family over the past month. We have high hopes for this summer's holiday plans but given the recent circumstances, time will tell if those plans come to fruition.

This recipe has been in my blog 'to post' pile for quite awhile. It is one of my go-to dessert recipes when we have friends for dinner. It's lovely to make during the summer when blueberries are fresh but it's equally delicious in the winter when you use need to frozen berries. This recipe is originally from the Pepperidge Farms website but I've adapted it by significantly reducing the sugar and enhancing the flavour with additional lemon zest, butter, and vanilla. A word of advice - watch your pot carefully when you are making the pastry cream as it burns quite easily. Stir it frequently and keep a close eye on it for dessert success!

Ingredients:
1 package Tenderflake frozen puff pastry
1 1/2 cups frozen blueberries or 1 cup fresh blueberries
1/4 cup sugar
1 tbsp + 1 tsp cornstarch
1 tbsp water
2 tsp grated lemon zest

1/4 cup sugar
2 tbsp all-purpose flour
3/4 cup milk
1 egg, beaten
1 tbsp butter
1 1/2 tsp vanilla

Directions:
1. Bake pastry shells according to package directions.
2. To make blueberry sauce, mix berries, 1/4 cup sugar, cornstarch, water, and lemon zest in a saucepan. Cook and stir over medium heat until mixture boils and thickens. Cover and refrigerate.
3. To make the pastry cream, mix 1/4 cup sugar and flour in a saucepan. Whisk in the milk. Cook and stir (using a whisk or wooden spoon) over medium heat until mixture boils and thickens. Remove from heat and gradually stir half of the hot mixture into beaten egg. Return egg mixture to saucepan. Cook and stir over medium heat for 2 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in butter and vanilla. Place plastic wrap directly onto surface of pastry cream and refrigerate for an hour.
4. To assemble - spoon 1 tbsp blueberry sauce into each pastry shell and top with 1 tbsp pastry cream. Alternate until pastry shell is full. If desired, top with fresh whipping cream (yummy but not necessary).

Summer's here! Go forth and enjoy the outdoors. 

Free-range vs Free-run Eggs

One of my goals while on maternity leave is to source out a good supply of farm eggs. I've tried a few different options over the past few years but haven't been totally happy with them. I'm still in the process of researching and will create a post soon that outlines all the options for buying local eggs in the Bow Valley. In the meantime, check out this video that Hoven Farms created about the difference between free-range and free-run eggs.