One can also make their own egg nog but most households just buy the stuff from the supermarket, as I have done. I found some extra egg nog in the fridge and I was craving ice cream. This recipe is really easy, your only prerequisite being to own an ice cream maker. Perhaps you received one for Christmas? If you’re thinking of splurging on an ice cream maker, I recommend this Cuisinart model.

Ice cream usually has dairy, eggs and flavouring – egg nog already has all those components in the carton so all I’m doing here is accentuating what I like in egg nog: creamyness, nutmeg, sweetness and the booze! I’ve add some cream, grated nutmeg, honey and some rum-soaked raisins (borrowing from rum & raisin ice cream). This recipe is easy, pragmatic as you can adjust the ingredients to your tastes but i insist you make the salted caramel rum sauce as I’ve laid-out for you below. I add the coarse sea salt to the warm caramel sauce at the end so that I get that crunch and burst of salt that goes so well with caramel.

Egg Nog Ice Cream With Salted Caramel Rum Sauce

3 1/2 cups of good egg nog

1 cup heavy cream

1/3 cup honey

1/2 tsp ground nutmeg

1/2 cup raisins

rum

Salted Caramel Rum Sauce

1 1/2 cups plain white sugar

1/2 cup water

1/2 cup heavy cream

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1 tsp. ground cinnamon

2 Tbsp. unsalted butter

2 Tbsp. light corn syrup

coarse sea salt

1. Place your raisins in a cup and fill with enough water to just cover them and allow to steep for 5 minutes. Strain the water and place back in a mug and pour a just enough rum to cover the raisins. Allow to steep in the rum for at least 1 hour, reserve.  In a bowl, add the egg nog, cream, honey and nutmeg and stir. Adjust flavours with  nutmeg and honey. Pour into your ice cream maker and churn for 25 minutes then add the rum-soaked raisins (plus rum) into the mixture and churn for an extra 5 minutes.
2. Empty your ice cream into a tub a freeze overnight. To make the caramel rum sauce, place the sugar in a medium pot with some water and melt the sugar over medium heat. Continue to simmer the sugar until a copper-toned colour has been achieved then take away from the heat and pour in the cream and stir, followed by the vanilla, cinnamon, butter and corn syrup. Allow to cool to warm before serving or reserve and gently reheat for future use.
3. The next day, serve with a drizzle of slightly warmed caramel sauce and sprinkle some coarse sea salt on top.

* I don’t use corn syrup that much and its presence in this recipe is to keep the sauce from hardening. You may omit but I’m keeping it in to keep the smooth texture of the sauce. It’s only 2 Tbsp. for a whole tub of ice cream!

Post Footer automatically generated by Add Post Footer Plugin for wordpress.

© 2011, Peter Minakis. All rights reserved. If you are not reading this post in a feed reader or at http://kalofagas.ca then the site you are reading is illegally publishing copyrighted material. Contact me at truenorth67 AT gmail DOT COM. All recipes, text and photographs in this post are the original creations & property of the author.

I came up with ‘Nacho’ macaroni & cheese and discovering that making your own cheese sauce for macaroni tasted and looked similar to the cheese sauce that one gets in a jar or served with nachos at Tex/Mex eateries. I used elbow macaroni as they are hollow and I would recommend using a similar hollow pasta so that cheezy sauce can get in the pasta too!

Macaroni & cheese is an easy dish that starts out with making a roux with butter and flour then whisking in some warm milk until it thickens then the grated cheeses are added.  I used two cheeses here: grated Parmesan and an aged white cheddar cheese. The better the cheese, the more flavour you’ll get without having to use excessive amounts of cheese.

There’s some sweet paprika, a pinch of chilli powder and dried oregano to give the dish that “nacho” flavour. Once the grated cheese melts into the béchamel stage of the sauce, your mac n’ cheese is ready. Just toss the cooked pasta, add some oregano and a pinch of chilli flakes and Nacho Macaroni & Cheese is done. For that extra Tex/Mex flavour and texture, I crush some nacho corn chips on top!

This weekend I’ll be at Harbourfront cooking on both Saturday and Sunday at 2:30 & 3:30 pm at the Lakeside Eats Cafe. There’s a skating rink out front, skate rentals and a fantastic view of Toronto’s lakefront. Drop by and see what I’ll cook next!

Nacho Macaroni & Cheese

(serves 4)

2 1/2 cups of elbow macaroni

3 Tbsp. of unsalted butter

2 heaping Tbsp. of flour

1 small onion, finely diced

2 cloves of garlic, minced

2 tsp. sweet paprika

pinch of chilli powder

2 cups of whole milk (warm)

1 cup of heavy cream

1 cup grated white cheddar cheese

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

fresh ground pepper and sea salt to taste

pinch of chilli flakes

½  tsp. dried Greek oregano

1/2 cup crushed nacho chips

1. Place a large pot of water on your stove-top and bring to a boil. Add a good amount of salt and add pasta and cool for 8 minutes. In the meantime, add your butter to a large pot over medium heat. Once the butter had melted, add the onions, garlic, chilli powder and paprika and stir. Sweat for 5 minutes or until softened. Now add the flour and stir for a minute. Now add your milk in increments while stirring and turn the heat up to medium-high. Add the cream while stirring and continue to stir until the sauce has thickened enough to just coat a wooden spoon. Add your grated cheeses and stir in until melted. Adjust seasoning with fresh ground pepper, chilli flakes and some oregano (salt if needed).
2. Once your pasta is cooked, strain and add into your sauce along with oregano,  and chilli flakes. Gently toss with a slotted spoon or spatula and divide and plate with a topping of crushed nacho chips.

Post Footer automatically generated by Add Post Footer Plugin for wordpress.

© 2011, Peter Minakis. All rights reserved. If you are not reading this post in a feed reader or at http://kalofagas.ca then the site you are reading is illegally publishing copyrighted material. Contact me at truenorth67 AT gmail DOT COM. All recipes, text and photographs in this post are the original creations & property of the author.

I still like a good deal when I dine – looking for value, good quality food with wholesome and seasonal ingredients and it’s always fun to try new and may an ethnic dish here in multicultural Toronto. There’s a great new web site called DiningDateNight where you can 30% off your bill from Toronto’s top restaurants and eateries. Click here to see how it works.

One of my favourite dishes was the Pan-fried Cajun Rainbow Trout. Canada boasts of having lots of rainbow trout. I love trout for its flaky texture, it has a pink, almost salmon colour and it’s a versatile fish as it’s great grilled, broiled or in this case, pan-fried. Below is my Cajun spice blend good for chicken or fish. Mix the ingredients in a jar and shake well. I’ve omitted the salt so that you may control seasoning and the batch is good for a few recipes before you have to mix another batch.

The pan-fried trout is easy to make and I love it paired with this simple mushroom pasta-ideal with linguine or you could used fettucine. Here, you can easily multi-task and start on the pasta sauce then finish the meal off with pan-frying the trout. This makes for a satisfying weeknight meal giving you that restaurant feel right in your own kitchen.

Pan-Fried Cajun Rainbow Trout

(serves 4)

4 boned rainbow trout fillets, skin on

olive oil

fine sea salt

all-purpose flour for dredging

oil for frying

Cajun seasoning

2 Tbsp. of garlic powder

2 Tbsp. of onion powder

1 tsp. ground white pepper

2 Tbsp. ground black pepper

2 tsp. cayenne pepper

4 tsp. of dried thyme

1 tsp. dried oregano

1/4 cup all purpose flour

1 Tbsp. cornmeal

Mushroom Linguine

(serves 4)

500 gr. package of linguine

1/4 cup olive oil

1 medium onion, diced

3 cloves garlic, minced

2 cups of sliced Cremini mushrooms

1 shot of dry white wine

1 cup heavy cream

salt and pepper to taste

2 tsp. of thyme leaves

1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley

lots of freshly grated Romano cheese

1. Place a large pot of water on your stovetop and once aboil, add good amount of salt and the pasta and cook according to package instructions. In the meantime, add your olive oil and mushrooms in a skillet with some salt and pepper and cook the mushrooms until just browned. Now add the onions, garlic, thyme and stir in and allow to sweat for five minutes. Add the wine and reduce for a couple of minutes and then add the cream. Simmer for another 5-6 minutes or until thick. Add some grated cheese and salt and pepper to taste. Divide and serve with your pan-fried Cajun trout.
2. In a jar, add your Cajun seasoning ingredients, seal and shake in a jar. Brush your fillets with olive oil and season with fine sea salt then sprinkle a good amount of Cajun seasoning on both sides of the fish then dredge them in all-purpose flour.
3. In a large cast iron pan or non-stick skillet add a couple of turns of olive oil over medium-high heat. Place your fillets in the pan skin-side down for about 4 minutes or until you see the flesh of fish turn opaque halfway up the side view of the fillets. Carefully flip the fish and fry on the other side for another 2-3 minutes or until a deep golden colour and crisp (add more oil while frying if needed)
4. Serve with a squeeze of lime juice and a side of rice or try a linguine with a mushroom-cream sauce…just like at the Whistling Oyster used to!

Post Footer automatically generated by Add Post Footer Plugin for wordpress.

© 2011, Peter Minakis. All rights reserved. If you are not reading this post in a feed reader or at http://kalofagas.ca then the site you are reading is illegally publishing copyrighted material. Contact me at truenorth67 AT gmail DOT COM. All recipes, text and photographs in this post are the original creations & property of the author.

My favourite Pierogies are filled with potato and cheese , boiled then fried with onions and bacon and served with dollops of sour cream.  Today’s pizza is inspired by Pierogies and the ingredients: dough, potatoes, cheese, onions, bacon, more cheese, more onions, sour cream ( I used Greek yogurt). I’m using my go-to pizza dough recipe and layering the flavours with a Bechamel sauce followed by a layer of thinly sliced potatoes. It’s important to thinly slice the potatoes so that they cook in the time it takes to bake the pizza.

The remaining toppings are sliced onions, bacon and when the pizza comes piping hot out of the oven the scallions and sour cream/yogurt complete this extravaganza pizza. Pierogi pizzaa won’t win any lean-cuisine awards but it tastes great! A worthy splurge.

Pierogi Pizza

(makes 1 large pizza)

1/2 of one pizza recipe

Bechamel

1 Tbsp. unsalted butter (or olive oil)

1 tsp. of all-purpose flour

1/2 cup warm milk

salt and pepper to taste

fresh grated nutmeg to taste

1/2 cup grated sharp white cheese

4 medium Russet or Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced with a mandoline

2 Tbsp. olive oil

2-3 cloves of garlic, minced

1 tsp. fresh thyme leaves

1 small onion, thinly sliced

1 cup grated aged cheddar cheese

4 strips of bacon, chopped

chopped chives/scallions for garnish

sour cream or Greek yogurt for garnish

Pre-heated 500F oven, rack set to middle position

1. In a small pot, add the butter over medium heat and once melted add the flour and stir for a minute. Slowly add the warm milk while stirring and continue until the Bechamel has thickened. Add some grated nutmeg, the grated cheese and some fresh ground pepper and salt to taste. Take off the heat and reserve.
2. Pre-heat your oven with the pizza stone placed inside to pre-heat. Peel your potatoes and thinly slice with a mandoline and place in a bowl with the olive oil, minced garlic, , thyme, salt and pepper to taste.
3. Roll (or stretch your pizza dough and place on a cornmeal dusted pizza peel or pizza pan and evenly spread the cooled Bechamel on the pizza dough. Now lay the potato slices on the dough in a slightly overlapping circular scheme followed by sprinkling the sliced onions, grated cheddar and finally the bacon.
4. Slide the pizza into your pre-heated oven and reduce to 450F and bake for 10-12 minutes or when the bacon is crisp and pizza crust just browning. In the meantime chop your chives (or scallions) and place your yogurt or sour cream in a squeeze bottle with some vegetable stock to slightly dilute it (make it squeezeable). When your pizza is ready, remove from the oven and squirt the yogurt/sour cream on it and garnish with fresh chives or scallions.

Post Footer automatically generated by Add Post Footer Plugin for wordpress.

© 2011, Peter Minakis. All rights reserved. If you are not reading this post in a feed reader or at http://kalofagas.ca then the site you are reading is illegally publishing copyrighted material. Contact me at truenorth67 AT gmail DOT COM. All recipes, text and photographs in this post are the original creations & property of the author.

Native Indians used to harvest wild rice by hand then roast it over open fires. Today, the harvest is conducted with air-propeller boats then dry roasted before reaching market. Beyond wild rice’s nutty (and mildly smoky) flavour, it’s high in fibre, easy to digest and if it matters to you – it’s gluten-free.

My calendar is getting colder day by day and that means more soups in my diet. I love salads and soups truly make Winters bearable for me here in Canada. They are a great way for incorporating vegetables in your diet and one of those vegetables are mushrooms.

I love mushrooms, have always loved mushrooms and they are available here winter or summer with the help of indoor cultivation and dried mushrooms. Drying fruits and vegetables is an old method used to preserve ingredients at their height/prime. Dried mushrooms figure prominently in this dish, mushroom soup.

This is a riff on my stand-by mushroom soup but with the addition of wild rice and dried mushrooms – funghi lovers will adore this soup. There are many varieties of dried mushrooms available out there but I wouldn’t use the more exotic (and expensive) ones. I used dried Shitakis with were re-hydrated in boiling water which also transforms into an earthy, rich mushroom stock.

The mushroom stock, the fresh mushrooms, onions, bay and thyme along with some vegetable or chicken stock make this soup a rich in flavour and by far one of my fave soups. The soup is creamy not to the point of being like a chowder in consistency. I used evaporated milk instead of cream – you choice here and you may add as much as you desire – depending on how thick (or thin) you like your soup.

Sometimes mushroom have some dirt on them – wipe them with a wet towel or quickly scrub under running cold water. Either way, dirt and grit with your mushrooms is not included in this recipe and I don’t think you want it in yours.  I’m using regular white or button mushrooms for the base of the as I don’t want it to be too dark and then some sautéed sliced Cremini mushrooms are added for more depth and to stand out when the soup is served. Soup is on!

Mushroom & Wild Rice Soup

(inspired by Canadian Living recipe)

(serves 6)

1/2 cup of wild rice (cooked)

1/3 cup of dried mushrooms

2 cups hot water

1 1/2 cup of sliced Cremini mushrooms (rinsed)

1/4 cup of unsalted butter or olive oil

1 large onion, diced

1 stalk of celery, diced

1 lb. of white or button mushrooms, rinsed and sliced

1 bay leaf

6-8 sprigs of thyme leaves

1 shot of Metaxa brandy

4-5 cups of chicken or vegetable stock

1/2 cup heavy cream or evaporated milk

salt and pepper to taste

1. Place your wild rice in a small pot with about 1 1/2 cups of water and bring to a boil. Add some salt and simmer for approx. 30 minutes or until the rice splits (should be able to bite into it). Remove from the heat and strain, reserve.
   

   cooked wild rice

2. In the meantime, Boil about 2 cups of water and then place in a bowl with your dried mushrooms and tightly cover for 30 minutes. The mushrooms should be re-hydrated and soft and the water will have turned into a mushroom stock. Strain the stock (remove any grit) and sliced the mushrooms and reserve.
3. In a large pot, add the butter or olive oil over medium heat and add the onions, celery, bay leaf, thyme and sliced white mushrooms and a pinch of salt and some ground pepper. Stir and cover and allow to sweat for 5-7 minutes. Add the brandy and reduce for 2 minutes then add the reserved mushroom stock and vegetable stock and bring to a boil. Simmer for 30 minutes uncovered and check and adjust seasoning with salt and pepper.
4. In the meantime, add some olive oil to a small pan and add your sliced Cremini mushrooms along with some salt and pepper and saute until just browned. Remove from the heat and reserve.
5. Back to the soup, remove from the heat and take out the bay leaf and any sprigs of thyme floating around and discard. Puree your soup in with a hand blender then place back on your stovetop along with the reserved cooked wild rice and browned sliced Cremini mushrooms and bring simmer over medium-low heat. Add up to 1/2 cup of cream, adjust seasoning with salt and pepper and simmer for  minutes and take off the heat. Serve as part of your lunch with your favourite sandwich or as part of a dinner course.

Post Footer automatically generated by Add Post Footer Plugin for wordpress.

© 2011, Peter Minakis. All rights reserved. If you are not reading this post in a feed reader or at http://kalofagas.ca then the site you are reading is illegally publishing copyrighted material. Contact me at truenorth67 AT gmail DOT COM. All recipes, text and photographs in this post are the original creations & property of the author.