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Tuesday 28th September 2021.

September 28, 2021

Ingrid is back with todays report, schools are getting back to normal she says. and Yazmin finds Ben E King when he was with the drifters also Nick Nicholas from Steppenwolf who were born on this day… Save the last dance for me and Born to be wild to two tracks we play,

It is a big welcome back to Sara after she was feeling a bit under the weather last week. So we are starting off with something simple a couple of salads…  “We’re talking SALADS!!  One of my favourite things to eat, but it’s hard to win people over with a salad.  We’ll discuss 3 different salads some tips to win friends with salad…(insert Simpson’s song that my kids chant every time I offer up salad or order one at a restaurant).

One of my favourite salads since I was in my early 20’s is the Warm Parisian Goat Cheese Salad (Salade de Chêvre Chaude).  I used to order it every time I went to this French bistro in Toronto years ago.  I love salads that combine warm and cold components, plus this one has creaminess, smokiness, crunchiness and nuttiness…what an amazing combination!  I even like to add some caramelized onions or crispy shallots as an extra topping sometimes!

Another one of my favourites is a Warm Potato Salad (German inspired).  This salad reminds me of my cousin Gayle and the potato salad she always brought to family functions (minus the bacon) lol.  You can do it with or without mayo, which makes it really versatile.  I’ve also included some great tips for making sure the textures are perfect!

One of my favourite quick easy go-to entrée salads is my Egg Salad with Herbs and Pickles.  This is one of those recipes that is easy to make at home, but when you have it somewhere else it always tastes better! LOL Well…now you can make it at home and have it taste just as good!

Today’s cocktail is a Frozen Gin Fizz…since I know you are a gin guy and I’m still into frozen cocktails!  lol

Warm Parisian Goat Cheese Salad (Salade de Chêvre Chaud)

(serves 2 as a meal for 4 appetizers)

 GOAT CHEESE MEDALLIONS:

  • 2 x 2oz ripened goat’s cheese , each round 5-6cm (2-2.2″) wide
  • 1 egg, beaten
  • 2 tbsp flour, plain / all-purpose
  • 1/3 cup breadcrumbs regular, else sub panko
  • 2 tbsp butter, unsalted

 SALAD:

  • 2 tsp pine nuts, toasted
  • 1/4 cup walnuts, toasted
  • 2 eggs, 8 minute boiled and peeled
  • 3.5oz bacon; cut into 0.5 x 1.25cm (1/5 x 1/2″) lardons (plus 2 tbsp on bacon fat for the dressing)
  • 1/2 head of red oak or bibb lettuce (large) , washed, dried and leaves torn into 2 or 3 large piece
  • 1/2 tsp chives, finely chopped (garnish)

 VINAIGRETTE:

  • 1/4 tsp garlic, very finely minced
  • 1 tbsp shallot, finely diced
  • 1/4 tsp Dijon mustard
  • 2 ½ tbsp balsamic vinegar (the best quality you can afford)
  • 4  ½ tbsp extra virgin olive oil (the best quality you can afford)
  • 2 tbsp reserved bacon fat
  • 1/8 tsp salt
  • Black pepper to taste

 Instructions

CRUMB GOAT CHEESE (set up a little breading station)

Slice cheese: Cut goat’s cheese if necessary to create ~ 1.25cm (1/2″) thick rounds.

Place flour, whisked egg and breadcrumbs in 3 separate, small bowls.

Crumb cheese: Coat cheese in flour, shake off excess. Dip in egg, allow excess to drip. Coat with breadcrumbs, pressing to adhere. Place on plate and set aside.

 PREPARE SALAD:

Toast nuts: Spread nuts in a layer on a tray. Toast in a 180C / 375F oven for around 5 minutes until they are lightly browned and smell toasty. Immediately transfer to a small bowl to cool. Alternatively, toast in a skillet over medium heat (walnuts will take longer than pine nuts, so best to do in separate batches).

 Cook bacon: Place bacon in a cold non-stick pan. Turn the stove to medium and let the pan warm up. Once the fat starts to melt, turn the heat to high. Stir and cook bacon until golden. Drain excess fat on paper towels.  Reserve 2 tbsp on bacon fat for the dressing.

Boil eggs:  8-9 minutes.  Run under cold water, peel and cut in half longwise

 Dressing: Shake dressing ingredients in a jar.  Season with salt and pepper, if required

 Begin assembling salad: Place lettuce in a bowl, then sprinkle with nuts and bacon.  Arrange warmed egg halves on each side.

 PAN-FRY CHEESE:

Melt butter in a small non-stick pan over medium-high heat.

Pan-fry cheese: Once butter is foaming, cook crumbed cheeses for 1 – 1 1/2 minutes on one side until golden. Carefully turn, cook other side for 1 minute until golden. Remove and drain on paper towels.

 FINISH SALAD:

Drizzle each salad with 2 tbsp of dressing. Arrange 2 crispy and warm cheese disks on top of each salad. Sprinkle with chives.

Serve immediately, while cheese is hot and melty inside!

Warm Potato Salad

INGREDIENTS

  • 2 pounds red potatoes
  • 1 teaspoon salt, for boiling the potatoes
  • 12 ounces bacon
  • ⅓ cup apple cider vinegar
  • 3 tablespoons sugar
  • 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • Freshly ground black pepper
  • 2 cloves fresh garlic, finely minced
  • ½ cup chopped fresh parsley

INSTRUCTIONS

  1. Scrub the potatoes and cut any large potatoes in half so that all of the potatoes are approximately equally sized. Place the potatoes in a large pot and cover with cold water. Bring to a boil and stir in 1 teaspoon of salt. Reduce heat and simmer the potatoes for 15 to 20 minutes or until tender when stabbed with a fork. Drain the water. Leaving the potatoes in the pot, return the pot to the still-hot (but turned off) burner. Leave the lid off of the pot and allow the potatoes to steam dry for a couple minutes.
  2. Set another large pot over medium heat and, using kitchen shears, cut the bacon strips into approximately 1-inch pieces directly into the pot. Cook the bacon, stirring occasionally, until crispy. While the bacon is cooking, cut the potatoes into ½-inch thick slices, cutting any extremely large slices in half. Set aside. Once the bacon is done, remove the pot from the stove and use a slotted spoon to remove the bacon pieces to a plate or bowl while leaving the bacon grease in the pot (I had about ¼ cup).
  3. Slowly and carefully add vinegar, sugar, Dijon, salt, and pepper to the pot of bacon grease. Place the pot back on the burner, bring the mixture to a simmer, and stir for a couple of minutes. Stir the minced garlic into the mixture and cook for 30 seconds to 1 minute, until the garlic starts to turn a light golden. Remove the pot from the heat and toss in the sliced potatoes, gently mixing until potatoes have absorbed all of the liquid. Carefully fold in the cooked bacon pieces and chopped parsley. Transfer the potato salad to a serving dish and serve hot or warm. Potato salad should not sit at room temperature for more than two hours before refrigerating any leftovers.

 Note:  Make sure that the pot is off of the burner and the bacon grease has slightly cooled before slowly and carefully adding the vinegar (in order to prevent the mixture from potentially bubbling up).

Optional: Add in 2 tbsp of mayonnaise and mix it in gently before adding the garnish

TIPS FOR MAKING GERMAN POTATO SALAD

  • Scrub those potatoes before you boil them. And then be sure to cut the big ones into equally sized chunks to ensure even cooking.
  • Always start your potatoes off in cold water before bringing them to a boil. If you put potatoes directly into boiling water, the outsides will cook immediately and the insides may take longer, resulting in potato salad that could have some hard and soft pieces.
  • Don’t forget to salt the water after adding the potatoes, which will flavor them from the inside out.
  • After the potatoes are cooked and drained, let them steam (or “dry”) a bit in their still-hot (but drained) pot. This will allow them to absorb the bacon grease-vinegar dressing more easily.

Be very gentle when stirring the potatoes into the dressing. Otherwise, your dish may end up looking more like mashed potatoes.

Egg Salad with Herbs and Pickles

Ingredients:

  • 8 large eggs, boiled and chopped
  • ½ cup Greek yogurt
  • ¼ cup capers, chopped
  • ¼ cup pickles, chopped
  • ¼ cup fresh parsley, chopped
  • ¼ cup fresh tarragon, chopped
  • ¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
  • ½ tsp Dijon mustard
  • Salt
  • Pepper

Instructions:

In a large saucepan, cover the eggs with 1 inch of water. Bring to a full boil, then cover and remove the pan from the heat. Let stand for 10 minutes. Drain and cool the eggs under cold running water. Peel and chop the eggs.

In a large bowl, combine the eggs with all of the remaining ingredients, mashing with a fork, and season with salt and pepper.

Serve over toasted pupernickle on top of lettuce and sliced tomato

Frozen Gin Fizz

 Ingredients

12 oz traditional lemonade

3.5 oz gin

2 tsp. caster sugar (or granulated sugar if you can’t find it)

Juice 1/2 lemon, plus slices to garnish

Directions

  1. Pour lemonade into a medium baking tray or tupperware and freeze for at least 6hr, or overnight.
  2. Break frozen lemonade into clumps, place in a blender with gin and sugar and whizz to a slushy consistency.
  3. Divide between 2 highball glasses and garnish each with a lemon slice.

Optional: Add 8-10 fresh mint leaves

 

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