Southwest Quinoa Wrap

One upside to the high heat of summer is this is the time where our veg gardens start really giving up their bounty. This year our 8 tomato plants are acting like we planted 30 plants. On the other hand, our leeks have decided this year is not their year. Thankfully, our local co-op has all the seasonal fresh produce. Plenty to make a Southwest Quinoa Wrap.

This is a vegetarian dish that has loads of protein but it is very easy to add meat or seafood to this dish. This is also low FODMAP if you stick with the portions allowed for the ingredients. For example, I have corn and black beans in this dish. Corn if kept under 38g is good and black beans need to be under 40g. This dish has enough ingredients that this isn’t an issue.

I’m also trying to find meals that are healthy but filling enough for a teenage boy. The way he eats, he should be at least 7 foot tall by now!

Technique for Southwest Quinoa Wrap

Prep all the ingredients while the quinoa is cooking. The quinoa takes about 20 minutes to cook but the rest cooks quickly.

In a skillet, heat up the olive oil and begin to cook the scallions, leeks, corn and black beans.

Add the chili powder, cumin, lime juice and cilantro/coriander leaves. Season with sea salt and freshly ground pepper to taste. Mix in the cooked quinoa.

Start layering the fresh ingredients on the quinoa wrap. I included some mung beans that we needed to use up. That’s the great thing about this dish, there isn’t any wrong veg to use.

Add the cooked mixture and top with shredded cheese and sour cream. Salsa would be a nice addition but it’s not always low FODMAP.

This was a delicious and filling meal. Though to be honest my son had more before he went to bed. At least he’s not eating junk!

Southwest Quinoa Wrap

A delicious vegetarian dish that fits with the low FODMAP diet

Course Main Course
Cuisine Southwest
Keyword Southwest Quinoa Wrap
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Servings 4

Ingredients

  • 8 Quinoa Wraps
  • 1 cup cooked quinoa 185g
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 cup chopped leeks 89g
  • 1/2 cup chopped scallions/spring onions (the green part) 50g
  • 1 cup frozen corn 164g
  • 1 cup black beans, drained 260g
  • 1-2 tbsp chili powder
  • 2 tsp ground cumin
  • 1 tbsp lime juice
  • 2 tbsp fresh cilantro/coriander leaves
  • sea salt to taste
  • freshly ground pepper to taste
  • lettuce
  • cucumber, sliced
  • tomato, sliced
  • carrot, sliced
  • mung beans
  • dollop of sour cream
  • shredded cheese

Instructions

  1. Cook the quinoa according to the package's instructions. Takes about 20 minutes.

  2. Heat the olive oil in a skillet. Cook the scallions, leeks, corn and black beans for a few minutes on medium heat. Add the chili powder, cumin, sea salt, pepper, lime juice and cilantro/coriander leaves. Cook for a few more minutes.

  3. Add the lettuce, tomato, cucumber and carrot to the centre of the quinoa wrap.

  4. Add in the cooked quinoa to the skillet and mix well.

  5. Spoon the heated veg mixture over the centre of the wrap. Add the sour cream and shredded cheese. You can also top with salsa. Fold the wrap and cut into two. Serve the dish.

Scallops with Sun-dried Tomatoes

We’re in the thick of summer with high heat and soup like humidity, my least favourite weather. I feel like we hibernate more in the summer than we do in the winter but the heat just saps all energy out of the body. This calls for quick and light meals such as Scallops with Sun-dried Tomatoes.

We should be getting a break in the weather this weekend. I really hope for once the weather people are correct. So often we are disappointed given how erroneous the forecast often is. Very rarely we are pleasantly surprised!

Technique for Scallops with Sun-dried Tomatoes

This recipe is low FODMAP as I use garlic scapes instead of garlic. Obviously if you don’t have to worry about garlic, use that instead as it gives more of that lovely garlic flavour.

Garlic scapes are in season at the moment and they do lend a fresh flavour to this dish.

Heat the oil to medium in a skillet. Start slowing sautéing the tomatoes to release their flavour and to soften them a bit. Keep frequently to keep it from catching. I made the error of getting distracted with something else and burnt the first batch of tomatoes.

Add the scapes and sauté for a couple of minutes before adding the lemon juice and season with sea salt and freshly ground pepper.

Meanwhile prep the scallops by dabbing them with paper towels/kitchen roll to dry them a bit. Season with sea salt and freshly ground pepper. Place into a skillet with the hot oil. Allow to cook for a few minutes until they freely come away from the skillet.

Turn over and cook the other side.

I roasted potatoes in duck fat, such a guilty pleasure! Place the scallops over a bed of greens and top with the sun-dried tomato mixture. As my husband and son don’t like seafood I marinated steak with balsamic vinegar, grilled it and served it with the sun-dried tomatoes.

Scallops with Sun-dried Tomatoes

A flavourful Italian summer meal with garlic scapes and sun-dried tomatoes

Course Main Course
Cuisine Italian
Keyword Scallops with Sun-dried Tomatoes
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 10 minutes
Servings 2

Ingredients

  • 8 Sea Scallops
  • 2 tbsp olive oil for scallops
  • 2 tbsp olive oil for sun-dried tomatoes
  • 1/2 cup sliced sun-dried tomatoes 1oz
  • 1/3 cup chopped garlic scapes 2oz
  • 1 tbsp lemon juice
  • sea salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Instructions

Scallops

  1. Dab scallops with paper towel/kitchen roll to remove excess moisture. Season with sea salt and freshly ground pepper.

  2. Heat up the olive oil in a skillet. Place the scallops into the skillet. Cook on one side until the scallops freely move from the skillet. Turn and cook the other side.

Sun-dried Tomato mixture

  1. Heat the olive oil in a skillet to medium heat. Start cooking the sun-dried tomatoes. Stir frequently to keep the tomatoes from catching.

  2. After a few minutes add the garlic scapes. Sauté for a couple of minutes then add the lemon juice. Season with sea salt and freshly ground pepper to taste.

Putting it all together

  1. On a bed of greens, place the scallops. Top with the sun-dried tomato mixture and serve.

Chicken Saagwala

I have had to start a low FODMAP diet for health reasons. I was really worried that would mean a narrow range of foods (which isn’t good if you blog about food!) and bland flavours. Thankfully, as this Chicken Saagwala will show, that is not the case. There are plenty of ingredients to choose from, I just needed to change my habits and learn new dishes. I do have to be careful as just because the word low is in the diet name, it doesn’t necessarily mean low fat or calorie!

How are all the parents doing out there with first days of school coming up quickly? Our district is still trying to sort out what to do. They have seemed to settle on dividing the schools in half and one group will go two days and the other two days. They are trying to encourage parents drop off students as they need to reduce those taking the bus. The tricky bit round here is there are several hill towns, up to 45 minutes away, that bus into our district. They state bus windows must be open. That can be a problem as we can have winter start in October. I know there aren’t any easy solutions to this surreal year. Universities are starting to reverse their decision to accept students on campus. Our daughter’s school is one of them so we get to have her home for this semester. I feel for her but am also glad she’ll be safer.

Technique for Chicken Saagwala

I found this recipe from A Little Bit Yummy. Of course I changed it but mainly I was trying to use what I had available. It still follows the low FODMAP guidelines. The only ingredient that I couldn’t fine definitive guidance on was the poblano but it didn’t cause me any problems. But just do your research.

We have lost the plot with the mustard greens we are growing so it was great to be able to use this in a recipe. The greens went like gangbusters but the rest of the lettuce we grew decided to be very indifferent to growing. I love gardening but at times there doesn’t seem to be any rhyme or reason.

In a skillet, heat up the olive oil and begin to cook the cubed chicken breast. Add the garlic chives. Cook for a few minutes.

Add the leek, mustard greens and minced ginger. Cook until the greens begin to wilt down. I really like ginger which is why I put in 2 tbsp. If that is too much for you, just reduce the amount.

Add the poblano, diced tomatoes, cumin, turmeric, ground cloves and lemon juice. Bring to a simmer and cook for several minutes so the liquid can reduce a bit. Season with sea salt and pepper.

While I was cooking this, I roasted a sweet potato to accompany this dish. I really enjoyed this dish with the flavours of the fire roasted tomatoes and the bitterness of the mustard greens. I don’t pretend this is full on traditional as if you look at other recipes, there are a few more steps and it looks a lot greener. They also have dairy in it. But I hope you enjoy my version.

Chicken Saagwala

A low FODMAP dish with loads of flavour and easy to make.

Course Main Course
Cuisine Asian
Keyword Chicken Saagwala
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Servings 4

Ingredients

  • 1 chicken breast, skinless and boneless, cubed
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 1/2 tbsp chopped fresh garlic chives
  • 1 cup chopped leeks, the green part only 80g
  • 1 cup chopped mustard greens 120g
  • 2 tbsp minced ginger
  • 1 poblano, chopped and seeded
  • 14 oz fire roasted diced tomatoes
  • splash of lemon juice
  • 2 tsp ground cumin
  • 1/2 tsp ground turmeric
  • 1/4 tsp ground clove
  • sea salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Instructions

  1. Heat the olive oil in a skillet and begin cooking the cubed chicken. After a couple of minutes add the chives.

  2. Add the mustard greens, leek and ginger. Sautè for a few minutes

  3. Add the rest of the ingredients and simmer for several minutes to reduce the liquid a bit.

  4. To keep this low FODMAP, serve this with something like a roasted sweet potato. If you aren't worried about low FODMAP then naan would be perfect.

Fish en Papillote

My daughter’s school is planning on bringing back students to their campus in a few weeks. Before she heads back to university, I wanted to make sure she gets meals she won’t get there. When there she mostly eats vegetarian as, well, dining hall meat and seafood doesn’t always set a high bar. As she loves seafood I thought I’d make this incredibly easy but delicious Fish en Papillote for her. I do wish I could cook her dishes and mail them to her safely but well, that’s not possible.

I am curious how long open campuses will last. These issues are the same closer to home. Our school system is looking to have in-classroom learning. Not quite sure how they will pull this off when, in the high school, there will be 1400 students walking through the hallways every 84 minutes. Who will be cleaning the classrooms between classes? Not an easy problem.

Technique for Fish en Papillote

I bought a nice piece of fresh cod for this dish and the fresh thyme from the garden was a lovely compliment. This fish was a reminder to pay attention to what the fishmonger is handing you. I pointed to a thicker filet and without me paying attention, I got this thin piece. I didn’t notice until I was back home. Slightly small for two people, especially when one is a teenager.

Place the fish in the parchment paper and twist the ends to make a boat shape. Add the ingredients into the boat.

Seal the package so the liquid is contained.

Bake at 350F/175C for 10-15 minutes depending on the thickness of the fish. You want the cod to be nice and flaky.

Serve immediately.

It was a lovely pairing with salad and roasted sweet potato. This is also a great dish to whip up for a quick lunch.

Fish en Papillote

Fish cooked in parchment paper

Course Main Course
Cuisine Mediterranean
Keyword Fish en Papillote
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Servings 2

Ingredients

  • 6 oz fresh cod
  • 2 tsp lemon juice
  • 2 tsp fresh thyme
  • 2 tsp capers
  • 1 tsp butter
  • sea salt to taste
  • freshly ground pepper to taste

Instructions

  1. Preheat the oven to 350F/175C.

  2. Place the cod onto a piece of parchment paper. Make a boat shape with the parchment paper and add the rest of the ingredients to the fish.

  3. Seal the parchment paper into a packet to hold the liquid in. Bake 10-15 minutes until the fish is cooked and flaky.

  4. Serve with sides of your choice. For example, a salad and roasted sweet potato.

Seared Duck with Cherry Sauce

A big component to my joy of traveling is being able to try new food and get inspiration for new dishes at home. My husband and I aren’t big shoppers, we’d rather budget for experiences. I prefer having a memory of a lovely meal in some far off locale than fill the house with stuff. Though stuff seems to multiply anyway, not sure what happens there! A couple of decades ago I was in Scotland on the west coast. I had a meal that I remember til this day because not only was it delicious but the simple flavours just came together to be amazing. It was Seared Duck with Cherry Sauce.

Prior to this I’d never had duck. I don’t think it was something, at the time, readily available in the States. I was also not a fan of cherries as it was difficult to get really fresh cherries and the flavour that gets stuck in your mind is the awful chemical cherry flavour of ice creams or medicine. Seriously, who taste tests those? But this was a revelation.

Technique for Seared Duck with Cherry Sauce

The key to this, as is for most dishes, is fresh ingredients. I love being able to pop into my garden for the fresh herbs and veg.

Coarsely chop the cherries and finely chop the garlic. I really wish I had a cherry depitter but it’s not big deal to cut away the cherry from the pit, just slows it down a bit. Start cooking the cherry in a small pan with a bit of water.

Prep the duck by scoring the duck fat without cutting into the meat. Season with sea salt and freshly ground pepper.

Place into a skillet face down to start with. Keep the heat just under medium so the fat renders down as much as possible while giving you that really nice sear. Every few minutes flip the duck so it cooks evenly without burning either side.

Add the garlic, thyme and lemon juice to the cherries. Let that simmer for a couple of minutes. Add the butter, sea salt and pepper. Stir well.

I do like a crispy duck. Cook the duck to at least medium. Allow to rest for several minutes before slicing.

Slice the duck and place over a bed of greens. Spoon over the sauce. We also roasted potatoes in duck fat. That is next level good.

Seared Duck with Cherry Sauce

Seared Duck with cherries, garlic and thyme

Course Main Course
Keyword Seared Duck with Cherry Sauce
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Servings 4

Ingredients

  • 1 duck breast
  • 1 1/2 cups cherries, coarsely chopped
  • 1/3 cup water 2-3oz
  • 2-3 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
  • 2 tsp fresh thyme
  • 1 tbsp lemon juice
  • 1 tbsp butter
  • sea salt to taste
  • freshly ground pepper to taste

Instructions

Cooking the Seared Duck

  1. Score the duck fat without cutting into the meat. Season with sea salt and freshly ground pepper.

  2. In a skillet, put the duck face down. Keep the heat just below medium so the fat renders out without burning the duck. Flip the duck every few minutes so it cooks evenly. Cook until it is at least medium in the centre. Let it rest for several minutes before slicing.

Cooking the Cherry Sauce

  1. Sautè the cherries in the water for a few minutes.

  2. Add the garlic, thyme and lemon juice. Simmer for a few minutes to cook the garlic.

  3. Add the butter and stir well. Reduce the liquid by about a third.

Serving the dish

  1. Slice the duck and arrange it over a bed of greens.

  2. Spoon the sauce over the duck.

  3. Serve with potatoes roasted in duck fat.

Poached Eggs and Tofu

I mentioned in my last post of my Tofu Burrito I was struggling with a dish so I had put it aside. It called for hot spring eggs, which are made by covering with boiling water. The recipe is from Harumi’s Japanese Cooking and said it’s very easy to make. Not so! I tried it different ways and all I ended up with was the yoke. I gave up as making poach eggs is faster and I knew what I was getting. So this is my Poached Eggs with Tofu, loosely based on the Hot Spring Eggs.

I love the subtle flavours of this dish and the ingredients are relatively easy to find. With a bit of prep you’ll have an easy lunch to enjoy.

Technique for Poached Eggs and Tofu

About an hour or so before the dish is made a stock has to be made and the tofu needs to be wrapped in paper towel/kitchen roll. Slice two rectangles of tofu per serving and wrap it. Set aside. This helps remove excess water for when you pan fry the tofu. In a cup add equal parts bonito flakes and kelp and cover with boiling water.

Set this aside and let steep for about an hour.

When it’s time to make the dish bring water and a 1/4 cup (2oz) of white vinegar to a boil. Poach the eggs for 3 minutes.

Mix the ingredients for the sauce in a small serving bowl.

Meanwhile, heat up the sesame oil in a skillet. Fry the tofu until both sides are golden and crispy.

Drain the tofu of excess oil and place the eggs over the tofu. Drizzle some sauce over the eggs and top with fresh scallions/green onion.

I enjoyed this with smoked mackerel. I’m glad I switched to the poached eggs as I love the flavours of the dish so it was nice to finally get it together!

Poached Eggs and Tofu

Asian flavours with pan fried tofu.

Course Main Course
Cuisine Asian
Keyword Poached Eggs and Tofu
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Author Our Growing Paynes

Ingredients

  • 2 slices tofu (per serving)
  • 2 eggs (per serving)
  • 2 tbsp sesame oil
  • equal parts bonito flakes and kelp
  • 2 tsp mirin
  • 1 tsp amino acids or soy sauce
  • 1 tsp minced ginger
  • 2 tbsp stock made with bonito flakes and kelp
  • 1/4 cup sliced scallion/green onion

Instructions

  1. Boil water and cover the bonito flakes and kelp in a cup. Steep for at least an hour.

  2. Slice the tofu and wrap with paper towels/kitchen roll to remove excess water. Set aside.

  3. Boil water with 1/4 cup/2oz of white vinegar. Poach the eggs for 3 minutes.

  4. Mix the stock from steeping the bonito flakes and kelp with the aminio acid, mirin and minced ginger. Stir well.

  5. Heat the sesame oil in a skillet and pan fry the tofu until golden and crispy. Drain the excess oil from the tofu.

  6. Place the poached eggs over the tofu. Drizzle the sauce over the eggs and top with the scallion/green onions.

Chicken Flautas

I find it interesting the so called shortcuts people like to take when cooking. How so much processed food seems to be the go to when they don’t really save time or money. In fact, it’s more expensive for the most part. When I was doing my pinning on Pinterest I came across a recipe for Chicken Flautas that called for canned chicken that came already seasoned. I wouldn’t want to even guess what preservatives and junk would also be in that can. No way, thank you.

I mean, how hard is it to mix a few ingredients together and slow cook chicken? Not very hard! While I cooked the chicken in the oven, you can use a slow cooker and walk away.

Our garden is doing so much better than last year so this is dish was a great way to use what is just outside our door. I was able to use tomatoes, hot peppers and sweet peppers for this meal.

Technique for Chicken Flautas

Pre heat the oven to 300F/150C.

Mix the marinade ingredients and make sure the chicken is coated. I cooked twice as much chicken so I could use some for salads and lunches.

Slow cook for 3-4 hours, until the chicken is tender and shreds easily. Using two forks, tear the chicken apart.

Set aside. Heat up the olive oil in a skillet. Sauté the onions, mushrooms and garlic until the onions begin to soften. Add the peppers and cook for a couple of minutes. Add the chicken, seasonings, lime juice and chicken stock. Stir well and simmer. You want to reduce the liquid so the mixtures stays moist but isn’t overly liquid.

Heat up the vegetable oil in a saucepan to about 335F/170C.

Place the filling on flour tortillas. I accidentally bought quinoa flour gluten free tortillas. I was a bit worried that this would end up a failure. Thankfully they fried up well. Roll the tortillas tightly and spear with a toothpick. Fry until they are golden brown and crispy. Drain and place on a piece of kitchen roll to absorb the extra oil.

In an attempt to keep this somewhat healthy, I served it over a bed of lettuce. I chopped up a fresh tomato, a spring onion and cilantro to top along with queso fresco. You can also serve with dollops of sour cream or guacamole.

Chicken Flautas

Slow cooked chicken, seasoned with hot peppers, then wrapped in deep fried goodness.

Course Main Course
Cuisine Mexican
Keyword Chicken Flautas
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 3 hours 30 minutes
Servings 4
Author Our Growing Paynes

Ingredients

Shredded Chicken

  • 1 lb boneless chicken breast
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 2 tbsp lime juice
  • 2 tsp chili powder
  • 1 tsp ground cumin
  • 1/2 tsp sea salt
  • 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
  • 1/2 cup chicken stock

Chicken Flautas filling

  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 cup finely chopped onion
  • 1 mushroom, finely chopped
  • 2-3 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
  • 1 hot pepper, chopped
  • 1 cup sweet pepper, finely chopped
  • 2 cups shredded chicken
  • 1 tbsp chili powder
  • 1 tsp ground cumin
  • 2 tsp fresh cilantro (coriander leaf)
  • 2 tbsp lime juice
  • 1/2 cup chicken stock

Tomato and Spring Onion

  • 1 tomato, coarsly chopped
  • 1 small spring onion, chopped
  • dash lime juice
  • sea salt to taste

Completing Chicken Flautas

  • 1/2 deep sauce pan of vegetable oil
  • 12 half 8" flour tortillas
  • 1 cup crumbled queso fresco

Instructions

Shredded chicken

  1. Preheat the oven to 300F/150C.

  2. Mix the ingredients together in a baking dish and add the chicken. Make sure the chicken is nearly covered and coated. Bake for 3-4 hours until the chicken is fork tender. Use two forks to shred the chicken. Set aside.

Chicken Flautas filling

  1. Heat the olive oil in a skillet. Sautè the onions, garlic and mushrooms until the onions start becoming soft. Add the peppers and the chicken. Mix in the seasonings, lime juice and chicken stock. Simmer until the liquid is nearly reduced to zero. You want the mixture moist but not overly wet.

Tomato and Spring Onion

  1. Add the ingredients together in a small bowl and set aside.

Completing the Chicken Flautas

  1. Spoon a couple of tablespoons of filling onto each half tortilla. Roll tightly and secure with a toothpick. Heat the vegetable oil to 335F/ 170C. Deep fry the flautas until golden and crispy. Drain and place on kitchen roll to absorb excess oil.

  2. Place the flautas on a bed of lettuce, top with the tomato and spring onion along with the cheese. Serve immediately.

Pork Wellington

Pork Wellington has been on my list of things to blog for awhile now, waiting for a special time to make it. My husband just had a business trip that was crazy busy and when he comes back from these trips I like to treat him to a special meal. Understandably he gets tired of restaurant food and eating on the run.

The meal had to wait a day as we had tickets to go see Heart. Those two ladies at 65 and 69 years of age can seriously rock. Leaping about and belting out the songs, it was amazing. I would love to have that energy!

This is a time consuming but not difficult meal to make. You can save time by buying puff pastry but making the rough puff pastry is relatively simple and tastes a lot better than store bought pastry.

Technique for Rough Puff Pastry

The main key for a good rough puff pastry is keeping everything cold. Some people will grate frozen butter for this but you can get away with butter from the fridge.

Add the ingredients to a mixing bowl. Work the butter into the flour until you have a coarse mixture.

Add a bit of water at a time until the clumps come together in a rough ball. Cover and chill for at least 20 minutes. If you find that you add too much water, don’t panic you can fix it when you knead the dough.

Turn out the dough onto a floured surface. If you made the dough too wet add extra flour while you are kneading the dough. You don’t want to overwork the dough but you want a smooth ball where you see marbling of the butter. Roll out thinly into something close to a rectangle.

Fold into thirds like an envelope.

Rotate 90 degrees and roll out into a thin rectangle.

Fold into thirds again.

Cover and chill for at least 20 minutes and until you are ready to use it.

Technique for Pork Wellington

Melt butter in the skillet. Season the pork with sea salt and pepper. Sear all sides and cook it to about two thirds done. This is probably the trickiest part as you need the pork to be cooked through by the end of baking but you don’t want it dried out. It’s not like the beef wellington where you want it medium rare.

Remove from the skillet and set aside while you cook up the apple mixture.

Finely chop up the apple, mushrooms, garlic and sage. Add additional butter to the skillet and sauté the ingredients for several minutes until the mushrooms start to brown.

Deglaze with the calvados and cook until the liquid reduces to nearly zero. Remove from the heat.

On cling film lay out the prosciutto and spoon the mushroom mixture onto the prosciutto and spread it out. Coat the pork with the mustard and place the pork in the centre.

Tightly wrap the pork and chill for half an hour. After the half hour roll out the dough, remove the cling film and place the pork in the centre of the dough.

Trim the ends and wrap the pork like a burrito. Place seam down on a baking sheet and brush with a beaten egg.

Bake in an oven set at 425F/220C until the pastry is golden and flaky. About 30-35 minutes.

Let rest for about 10 minutes before slicing. Though if it is really flaky, the darn thing will fall apart as you slice.

I roasted up a bit of parsnip and made up a side salad to keep the meal light.

This Pork Wellington was well worth the effort and the flavours were even better the next day.

Pork Wellington

A twist on the traditional beef wellington.

Course Main Course
Cuisine English, French
Keyword Pork Wellington
Prep Time 1 hour
Cook Time 35 minutes
Servings 4

Ingredients

Rough Puff Pastry

  • 150 grams strong flour
  • 150 grams cold butter
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 60 ml cold water (up to 60 ml)

Pork and Apple Mushroom mixture

  • 1 lb pork loin
  • 1 cup finely chopped shiitake mushrooms
  • 1 cup finely chopped apple
  • 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
  • 3-4 leaves sage, finely chopped
  • 1/4 cup calvados 2oz
  • 4-5 tbsp butter
  • sea salt and pepper to taste
  • 6-8 slices thin prosciutto
  • 1 tbsp stone ground mustard

Instructions

Rough Puff Pastry

  1. Sift the flour and salt in a bowl. Cut up the cold butter and add it to the flour. Using your fingers, incorporate the butter into the flour until you have a coarse mixture. Add a bit of water at a time until the dough comes together in a ball. It will be coarse and sticky. But you don't want it overly wet. Cover and chill for 20 minutes.

  2. On a floured surface, knead the dough until it is a smooth dough where you can see a marbling of the butter. Don't overwork the dough.

  3. Roll out thinly into a rough rectangle. Fold into thirds in an envelope. Rotate 90 degrees and roll out again into rectangle. Fold again into thirds. Cover and chill for at least 20 minutes or until you need it to wrap the pork later.

Pork Wellington

  1. Heat half the butter in a skillet. Season the pork with sea salt and pepper. Sear all sides of the pork. Cook it about 2/3 thirds of the way. When it's done baking at the end you want the pork to be cooked thoroughly but not dry. Remove from the heat and set aside.

  2. Add more butter to the skillet. Add the mushrooms, apples, sage and garlic. Sauté for several minutes until the mushrooms begin to brown. Pour in the calvados to deglaze the pan. Cook until the liquid is reduced to nearly zero.

  3. On a piece of cling film lay out the prosciutto. Spoon the mushroom and apple mixture onto the prosciutto and spread it out. Coat the pork with the mustard and place the pork in the centre of the apple and mushroom mixture. Tightly wrap the pork in the prosciutto and seal with the cling film. Chill for 30 minutes.

  4. Roll out the pastry thinly. Place the pork into the centre. Trim the sides and wrap the pork like a burrito. Place on a baking sheet and chill for 30 minutes.

  5. Preheat the oven to 425F/220C.

  6. Brush the pastry with a beaten egg. Bake for 30-35 minutes until the pastry is golden and flaky. Let rest for at least 10 minutes before slicing.

Lemon Rosemary Grilled Pork

While I don’t like the heat and humidity we get this time of year, I do love that we are starting to be able to benefit from our veg garden. Miraculously, thanks to my lovely husband, we still have a rosemary plant going strong. It’s an annual where we live and he’s managed to get it to grow to a decent size. I would have killed it by now.

To keep it a manageable size, I’ve been using it a lot in various dishes, including my Lemon Rosemary Pork. For a side dish I sautéed some swiss chard we’re growing. The swiss chard is going gang busters this year, it’s rivaling the rhubarb!

Technique for Lemon Rosemary Pork

I love the pink of the Himalayan salt

Get the dry ingredients of the marinade together before adding the olive oil and lemon juice.

Add the pork and marinate for at least a couple of hours in the fridge. When it’s time, start prepping the sauce ingredients while the grill warms up. Heat up the butter in a skillet and add the mushrooms.

Cook for a couple of minutes before adding more garlic and rosemary. Once you add the pork to the grill, add the remaining marinade to the skillet. Bring up to a simmer.

Add the chicken stock and lemon juice. Simmer for a few minutes. Remove about a 1/4 cup of the sauce and set aside.

Once the pork is cooked and resting, sautè the swiss chard in the remaining sauce. Cook the stalk pieces first then add the leafy bits. I like them slightly wilted but not mushy.

Spoon the chard onto the plate, top with the pork and drizzle the reserve sauce over the dish.

I need to come up with more swiss chard dishes as well because they aren’t showing any sign of letting up.

Lemon Rosemary Pork

A flavourful dish for grilling season

Course Main Course
Cuisine Italian
Keyword Lemon Rosemary Pork
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Servings 2

Ingredients

Marinade

  • 2 tbsp fresh rosemary, finely chopped
  • 2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
  • 1/2 tsp fresh ground pepper
  • 1 tsp sea salt
  • 3 tbsp olive oil
  • 2 tbsp lemon juice
  • 2 pork chops

Sauce

  • 3 tbsp butter
  • 1/2 cup chopped mushrooms
  • 1 tbsp fresh rosemary, finely chopped
  • 2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
  • remaining marinade
  • 1/2 cup chicken stock
  • 2 tbsp lemon juice
  • sea salt and fresh ground pepper to taste
  • 2 cups swiss chard

Instructions

Marinade

  1. Mix all the ingredients for the marinade. Add the pork and chill for at least a couple of hours.

Grilling the Pork

  1. Heat the grill to medium high. Grill the pork until the internal temperature is 145F/63C. Allow to rest about 10 minutes.

Sauce

  1. Heat up the butter in a skillet. Sautè the mushrooms for a few minutes. Add the rosemary and garlic. After cooking for a few minutes, add the chicken stock and lemon juice. Bring to a simmer.

  2. Reserve a 1/4 cup of the sauce for the pork.

  3. In the remaining sauce, cook the swiss chard stalk pieces for a minute or two, then add the leafy part of the chard to slightly wilt.

Assembling the Dish

  1. Spoon the swiss chard onto the centre of the dish. Place the pork onto the swiss chard and spoon the reserve sauce over the pork.

Oven Baked Brisket

Doing oven baked brisket was just one of the family events from the past several weeks. It’s been an emotional roller coaster what with our daughter’s graduation high school, our son’s birthday and my husband’s parents staying with us for a few weeks. I managed not to embarrass myself with too much crying as our daughter received her diploma but watching her drive off for her summer job of a camp councillor was tough. She is completely ready, us? Not so much. But we’ll adjust.

For our son’s birthday, I thought it would be fun to have a BBQ of grilled corn on the cob, mashed potato and a brisket. My in-laws don’t have much BBQ back home so I wanted to treat them as well. The thing is, it’s hard to keep the grill at a set temperature for 20 minutes, never mind the 10 hours needed to do a brisket on the grill. Plus, I didn’t think the propane would last. So the oven it was.

While it may not be traditional, you can get a very tender and flavourful brisket in the oven. You also don’t have to stand by the grill all day.

Technique for Oven Baked Brisket

As this isn’t Texas, I wasn’t able to find the Texas size brisket but that’s ok as we’re fans of portion control.

The only downsize to a smaller piece of meat is you don’t have a lot of fat on it. Make up the dry rub. Spread stone mustard all over the cut of meat, then rub the dry rub so the meat is well covered. This will help the brisket keep moist.

Cover and keep in the fridge overnight. An hour before you put it into the oven remove it from the fridge to bring it to room temperature. Preheat the oven to 300F/150C.

Wrap the brisket well in tin foil, you don’t want any moisture escaping into the oven. Bake until the brisket is fork tender. For the 1 1/2lb of meat I used, it was about 2 1/2 hours.

Spread with BBQ sauce of your choice. I used my Fresh Peach BBQ Sauce for this. Broil on high for a couple of minutes to heat the sauce and crisp up the outside of the brisket.

Allow it to rest for at least 10 minutes before slicing.

Slice and serve with your favourite sides.

I got a thumbs up from my son who enjoyed his birthday dinner very much. Success!

Oven Baked Brisket

Oven Baked Brisket is a tender and flavourful addition to a summer BBQ.

Course Main Course
Cuisine American
Keyword Oven Baked Brisket
Prep Time 1 day
Cook Time 3 hours
Author Our Growing Paynes

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 lb brisket
  • 1/4 cup stone ground mustard
  • 1/2 cup BBQ sauce

Dry Rub

  • 2 tbsp brown sugar
  • 1 tbsp chili powder
  • 2 tsp ground cumin
  • 1/2 tbsp onion powder
  • 1/2 tbsp garlic powder
  • 1/2 tsp sea salt
  • 1/2 tsp ground pepper

Instructions

The night before

  1. Mix the dry rub ingredients together. Spread the mustard on all sides of the brisket. Cover the mustard with the dry rub. Cover and place in the fridge overnight.

The day of cooking

  1. Remove the brisket from the fridge and preheat the oven to 300F/150C.

  2. Cover the brisket completely with tin foil. Bake until the meat is fork tender, for meat this size, about 2 1/2 hours.

  3. Uncover the brisket and spread the BBQ over the top. Broil for a few minutes to heat up the sauce and crisp the outside of the brisket.

  4. Rest for at least 10 minutes before slicing against the grain.

  5. Serve with your favourite BBQ sides.