Category: Recipes

>Oatmeal Muffins with Drunken Apple Chips


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When visiting the Halifax Seaport Farmer’s Market I was looking through the product at Noggins Corner and was shown their new dried apple and pear chips.  We were discussing the uses for them and I decided that they had to be put into a muffin.  So into the kitchen I went to try to produce a creative tasty muffin using the dried apples and I am thrilled with the results.
I love cooking with high quality dried fruit.  I am not talking about the rubber textured chemical laden crap that is out there posing as heath food (beat down coming on foodthug.com), I mean fruit dried without chemicals and at the lowest temperatures possible.  In all fairness I have to mention that Superstore has a great selection of dried fruit in their organic section and though it can be pricey it is worth the money.  I have my problems with Superstore but their organic section is worth a long look.  Using dried fruit can help you get your daily dose of fruit while still maintaining a high level of nutrition and is a much better choice than fruit juice for those of us battling weight.
Proper dried fruit has all the flavor and most of the nutrition of the fresh item but can be fortified with more flavor but rehydrating it in flavored liquid.  This make is an amazing taste treat.  For this recipe I have rehydrated dried apples with a combination of calvados (apple brandy) and apple cider along with half a stick of cinnamon.  This really kicks up the flavor of the dried apples.
I added this to a basic oatmeal muffin base that uses yogurt to reduce the amount of oil required added in a little more calvados and kicked up the level of cinnamon.  I am very pleased with the results and hope you will be as well.
Ingredients
1 bag of Noggins dried apples (about 1/4 cup)
1/3 cup
1/3 cup apple cider
1/2 a cinnamon stick
Dry Muffing Ingredients:
1 cup of oatmeal
2 Cups Whole White Flour (Speerville Mills)
(If you cant get a whole white flour use 1.5 cups unbleached white and 1/2 whole wheat)
1 tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
2/3 cup brown sugar
1 Tbsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
Wet Muffin Ingredients:

2 eggs
1/2 cup canola oil
2 Tbsp Calvados
1 1/2 cups plain yogurt
2 tsp vanilla 
To prepare the dried apple:
Place the apples, cinnamon stick, cider and calvados into a small pot and warm on low heat.  If you have a warming element place it on there and allow to sit until the liquid is absorbed.  This can be done ahead of time and then stored in a covered container until needed.  Be sure to remove the cinnamon stick when this step is done.
To prepare the muffins:
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
Place the oatmeal in a large bowl.  Sift in flour, baking soda and baking powder (this help aerate the flower and prevents lumps of baking soda or baking powder which can ruin a muffin experience.)  Stir these together well to combine flavors. 
Note: You will want to mix your dry ingredients well to distribute the spices.  Once we add the wet ingredients will will only mix to combine.  Stirring flour in liquid builds gluten which is great for bread but makes tough chewy muffins.
Place the wet ingredients into a bowl and whisk together until well combined and frothy.   
Add the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients, and stir until combined.  Make sure you get right down to the bottom of the bowl.  The batter will be lumpy don’t over stir or you will end up with bouncy muffins and we are not cooking for McDonalds ;).  Fold in the prepared apples and then spoon into a oiled muffin tin.  This will make a dozen regular muffins.
Bake in the oven for 25 to 30 minutes.  The muffins should be golden and a tooth pick inserted in the middle should come out clean.  
Thanks to My Local Suppliers:
Apple Cider: Suprima Farms
Oatmeal / Flour: Speerville Mills
Yogurt:                       Fox Hill Cheese House

>Simply Delicious Homemade Granola


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I am developing a serious case of oatmeal dependency.  I have started increasing the amount of oatmeal in my diet and have discovered that on days I eat oatmeal I have more energy and don’t feel the desire for those mid day nibbles that can be so detrimental.  
Granola is a simple and easy way to get my oatmeal fix.  I make granola about once a week now and it is a household staple.  It is easy to make, and you can play with the mix of spices to create a product that meets your personal needs.  I have designed a simple base for my granola that includes oats, nuts, maple sugar & syrup, and spices that I enjoy.  I do not add dried fruit to the granola I make it I add it when I make my bowl so I can have a variety of flavors through the week.
Ingredients 
2 pounds large rolled oats
2 cup fine chopped walnuts
1/2 cup sunflower seeds
1 cup slivered almonds
1.5 tbsp cinnamon
1/2 cup maple syrup
1/2 cup canola oil
1 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp nutmeg 
2 tsp maple sugar
Preheat your oven to 325 degrees
Line 2 large cookie sheets with parchment paper or if at all possible silicon mats (they are a beautiful kitchen tool).  I prefer the heavy cookie sheets that you can get at Costco.
In a large bowl add  the rolled oats, walnuts, sunflower seeds and almonds in a large bowl and toss with your hands to combine.  Sprinkle in the spices, salt and maple sugar and again toss well with your hands.  In a small bowl combine the maple syrup and canola oil and whisk then add half to the dry ingredients, mix well with your hand.  Then add the rest and mix again.  Be sure to get down to the bottom and toss the spices in.  Rub together with your hands and make sure the oats get coated with flavor.  Yes you will get your hands dirty but we all love that when we were kids right! 🙂
Spread the mixture evenly over your cookie sheets and place in the oven.  After 10 minutes take them out of the oven stir making sure you move the granola on the edges to the middle, this is what will burn or overcook.  Rotate the pans top to bottom and put back in the oven for 10 minutes more.  Again remove from the oven and stir.  It is done when lightly golden.  If it needs more time do it 5 minutes at a time as when the moisture level goes down it cooks a lot faster.  Keep an eye on it at the end.  It should not take longer than 25 minutes.
Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely then store in a large zip top bag.
You can serve with milk, yogurt, different fresh and dried fruits, it is a great base to an amazing breakfast.
Thanks to my local suppliers:

Oats :                                  Speerville Mills 
Organic Maple Sugar:     Coulis Divin         
Maple Syrup:                    Acadian Maple Products
Fair Trade Cinnamon and Ginger from:     
Also Pictured in this recipe:
Dried Cranberries: Terra Beata Cranberry Farm
Dried Blueberries:  Noggins Corner Farm Market
Vanilla Yogurt:        Fox Hill Cheese House
Fruit of the above purchases from Noggins Corner Farm Market at the Halifax Seaport Farm Market

Dill Lemon Creamed Eggs with Foxhill Cheese Milk


Foxhill Cheese’s new milk has inspired me to go back to update a classic breakfast that I first cooked when I was in grade 9.  I love breakfast, always have and always will.  I was looking for something different and went through my mom’s cookbook and found creamed eggs.  A basic recipe with hard boiled eggs and a white sauce served over toast.  I made it and everyone loved it.  Over the years I have made a lot of variations of this recipe using various herbs, spices, cheese and presenting the eggs different ways.  Since I am using amazing milk I decided to come up with a variation to honor this, something clean that added flavor without covering up the taste of farm fresh whole milk.  I hope you enjoy, I know I did.

Ingredients:
8 Free Range Eggs
1/4 cup Butter
1/4 cup Flour
1/2 small onion (minced)
1 clove garlic (minced)
2 Cups Whole Milk 
1/2 tsp dried mustard
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp white pepper
1/4 tsp fresh nutmeg (cream sauces love nutmeg)
3 whole sprigs of Fresh Dill
1 Tbsp Fresh Lemon Juice
1 Tbsp Fresh Parmesan Cheese 
4 Pieced of Toast
Paprika 
Place the Eggs in a large pot and cover with cold water.  Bring to a boil then simmer for 6 minutes.  I prefer this recipe with slightly runny yolks, I have an aversion for dry egg yolk however if you want to cook it longer feel free.  
As soon as the eggs are started melt the butter in another pot over medium heat and add the onion and garlic, cook for about 3 minutes till they soften and then add in the flour.  Stir with a whisk and allow to cook until it turns a light carmel colour.  You want to toast the flour a bit or your white sauce will have a raw flour taste and it will dull the flavor of the herbs and spices added later.  Next add about half the milk, and whisk until smooth then add the remaining milk and the dill.  Heat until the mixture thickens, then lower the heat.  Add in the mustard, salt, white pepper and lemon juice and stir in.  Then add in the cheese and stir until smooth.  Heat for about 10 min over low heat to blend the flavors, taste and add salt and pepper as needed.  
When the eggs are done drain and place in cold water, when you can handle them peel the eggs carefully.  Take half the eggs and chop into the sauce, the yokes will be soft but will pop out of the whites just stir those in. 
To plate put the toast on your plate add some of the sauce egg mixture, take a whole pealed egg and place it in the toast, cut in half, top with a little more sauce, some fresh snipped dill and paprika.   Enjoy.
Thanks again to my local suppliers:
Garlic:         Active Life Farm
Onion:         Noggins Corner Farm Market
Dill: Riverview Herbs
And as always thanks to the Halifax Seaport Farmer’s Market for giving me a place to meet all these great suppliers.

>Fresh Ricotta Cheese Cakes – With Fox Hill Milk


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One of the things I love about classic Italian food is how simple it is and how it really highlights ingredients.  Therefore I decided to honor the high quality milk from Fox Hill by making little ricotta cheese cakes.  These are lighter that cheese cake made from sour cream and cream cheese but are just as tasty.  This is very simple to make and it has nice clean flavors that you are sure to enjoy.  
Ingredients:
1/2 pound fresh ricotta cheese (recipe)
2.5 Tbsp White Sugar
2 T Flour
2 Eggs
1/4 Tsp Cinnamon
1 tsp Orange zest
1 tsp Vanilla
1/8 tsp sea salt
20 dark chocolate disks
Preheat your oven to 300 degrees.
Prepare 4 ramekins by greasing the insides with butter then flour.  Tap out the excess flour. Ensure the entire surface is covered with butter and flour or the cakes will stick.
In a mixing bowl add sugar to ricotta, and stir with a whisk until somewhat smooth, then whisk in flour and eggs (one at a time).  When you have a smooth batter add in cinnamon, orange zest, vanilla and salt and beat again.  
Fill each ramekin about half way, then put 5 chocolate disks in each one then top each with the remaining batter.  ramekins should be about 3/4 full.  Do not fill to the top.
Bake in the middle of the oven for 40 minutes to an hour.  They will get golden on the top.  They are going to puff up but will fall when cooling, that is expected dont be alarmed.
When the are done remove to a wire cooling rack and refrigerate.   Top them with a cool strawberry sauce and a little powdered sugar.  
As always thanks to my local suppliers:
Milk for Ricotta : Fox Hill Cheese House
These suppliers are located at the Halifax Seaport Farmers Market
A note about the Cinnamon I used:
While at the international day which is held every Friday at the Halifax Market I ran into a vendor who was selling spices and teas from Ceylon.  As with most of the vendors at the market he was passionate about his product.  His company imports spices directly from Ceylon from a fair trade cooperative of farmers.  He stressed the freshness of the product as well as the quality.  He was proud that the farmers could make a good living providing a high quality product, this is what we want for all of our farmers .  I ground up 2 cinnamon sticks to test and it was amazing.  The scent had an amazing citrus note to it and the cinnamon taste was great.   I will be doing a blog of them soon after I have sampled a few more products but had to give them props for the cinnamon.  They can be found at the market on international day and their website.


>Ricotta Cheese with Fox Hill Milk


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I love italian food.  Can’t get enough of it.  I have already given you a recipe for a great tomato sauce, and now I will show you how to make ricotta cheese.  Ricotta is used as a filling for ravioli or other stuffed pasta, it is used in lasagna and is also fantastic for making all kinds of desserts.  You can get ricotta in the stores but trust me this is much better.  It is so soft, smooth, and creamy.  It has a clean rich flavor that can’t be matched by the cheese you get at your local factory food outlet.
This recipe uses 2 L of Fox Hill milk and will yield about half a pound of ricotta.  It is very simple to do and it will be worth the effort.  If you do not use Fox Hill Milk then you will need to as about 3/4 cup of cream into the mixture to get a nice rich ricotta.  I have made this a number of times and I can tell you honestly tell you using Fox Hill’s milk results in the best ricotta that I have had.  It only makes sense as the more natural the product the better the results will be.
I will be using this cheese in several recipes I will blog later but this will go great in any recipe you have that uses ricotta cheese.  
Ingredients
2 L Unhomogenized Milk or 2 L Whole Milk and 3/4 cup cream
1/4 cup fresh squeezed lemon juice
1 tsp salt
Cheese Cloth (this will be required to drain the cheese)
Add the milk and salt to a heavy bottom pot or dutch oven and heat the milk to 180 degrees.  Be careful to not let the milk boil.  Make sure you put the thermometer into the milk deep enough to get an accurate reading.  When the milk is to temperature add in the lemon juice and gently stir it in one or two stirs, do not aggressively stir because you do not want the curds to be broken up.  
Turn the heat to low and allow to cook for 15 minutes longer.  Again do not let it come to a boil.  After 15 minutes turn off the pot and cover.  Allow to sit for about 30 minutes to an hour or until you see the curds formed and the liquid separating.  You will see the milk curdle when you add the lemon juice this is not what you are looking for.  You want the milk solids to really form up or the liquid will not strain off.

When this is completed line a colander with several layers of cheese cloth.  Slowly pour the mixture into the cheese cloth and allow to drain until all of the liquid has passed through.  (About 30 min to an hour).  You can then take the cheese and put it in a storage container and refrigerate or use it right away.  It will stay fresh 2 to 3 days.
Special thanks to Fox Hill Cheese House for making such a wonderful product.

>Poached Eggs on Roasted Root Vegetable Hash


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As those who follow my blog may know I am a bit of a breakfast lover.  I enjoy a hearty breakfast and love a properly cooked egg.  This morning I got up and saw the wonderful selection of root vegetables I purchased at the Halifax Seaport Farmer’s Market and decided poached eggs on hash would be ideal.  
To make my roasted vegetable hash I first needed roasted vegetables.  Since it is winter and I am trying to eat locally then the roasted veggies are root vegetables.   I picked up some great red onions, sweet potatoes, multicolored carrots and fingerling potatoes from Noggins Corner Farm those served as the base for my breakfast.  Who said winter eating is boring in Nova Scotia.
Roasted Root Vegetables
12 Fingerling Potatoes 1 inch slices
3 Carrots Sliced
3 Small to Medium Sweet Potatoes 1 inch dice
1 Red Onion Chopped
2 cloves of Garlic Sliced
1 tsp of salt
1/2 tsp fresh ground black pepper
1 Tbsp Olive Oil
6 sprigs of Oregano
3 sprigs of Rosemary
Preheat the oven to 375.  Chop up the vegetables and put them in a roasting pan.  sprinkle with salt and pepper, add in the herbs and toss to coat all of the root veggies.   Roast in the oven for 30 to 40 minutes.  Allow them to brown slightly but take care not to burn the onions or garlic.  Stir occasionally to allow for even roasting.
Remove from the oven.  These can be served as part of a main course or as I did this morning be used in a hash.
Roasted Vegetable Hash with Poached Eggs
1 Recipe of Roasted Root Vegetables
6 strips of bacon
1 tsp Paprika
8 fresh eggs
1 Tbsp Salt
2 tsp vinegar (rice wine I prefer)
Fry off 6 strips of bacon until crispy.  If you are using good smoked bacon render the fat off on medium low heat and then drain off the fat and crisp up.  It takes a little more time but you end up with better bacon.  
Prepare water for poaching the eggs but filling up a large frying pan with water, add in the salt and vinegar, bring to a simmer. 
Roughly mash up the hash and add to the pan (preheated) you used to cook the bacon and add the paprika.  Fry until potatoes turn a nice shade of golden.  Between the oil in the roasted vegetables and the residual bacon fat you will be able to brown up the potatoes.
To poach the eggs crack each egg into a small bowl and slide into the simmering water.  Cook them until the whites are firm but the yokes are still runny.  The yoke makes a beautiful sauce for the hash.
Plate the eggs on top of the hash.  I find this hash sweet enough to support a little spice so I topped it with sriracha hot sauce and some fresh cilantro.  
Thanks to my local suppliers:
Root Vegetables: Noggins Corner Farm
Garlic, Eggs and Bacon : Active Life Farm
Fresh Herbs : Riverview Herbs
And as always the Halifax Seaport Farm Market for providing a place for me to purchase great local product.  (Especially in the Winter)