EpiCurious Generations

This was one of those fabulous appetizers that you order and when you put it in your mouth, you have to close your eyes to get the full effect of the combination of tastes and textures!

When we first moved to  France, I decided to participate in a televised cooking competition.  I really didn't know what to expect but thought it might be a fun experience.  Nobody knew me there so if it didn't work out, if I failed miserably or embarrassed myself, how bad could it be?   I was very naive and I can honestly say now that it was one of the most challenging things I have ever done and completely life changing.

Inspiration:  Easy Halloween inspired dinner for entertaining (it's orange and delicious)! This is a great go-to meal around Halloween for us.  I love the orange colour and the flavours are delicious.

Inspiration:  Leftover Thanksgiving turkey I  am currently obsessed with curd cheese (yes! the one you use in poutine).  I can get it fresh every day in most grocery stores in Quebec and it is delicious.  It is best eaten at room temperature the day it is made because once it is refrigerated it will loose its squeaky texture.  These days, I love using any refrigerated leftovers in cheese based sauces.   If you are a cheese curd amateur (like me),  you will be able notice, albeit subtly, its distinctive flavour in this recipe. 

Inspiration:  Cottage food There was a recent wonderful article and recipe selection in the current issue of Fine Cooking  magazine (August - September 2016) on sweet and savoury galettes otherwise known as rustic pies.  The pictures were beautiful and I was inspired to create some of my own galettes with ingredients I love to combine together.  

Inspiration:  Homemade pasta I have made mac & cheese before but, I have to admit, making your own noodles is quite a chore - fun to do -  but a process nonetheless.   No more!!!  I have met and fell in love with the Phillips Pasta Maker .  This tool in incredible.  It took me 10 minutes to make 300g of fresh rigatoni pasta for this homemade mac and cheese.  Still can't get over it (my husband also stood there in awe, watching).  Oh yes, and it's so quiet!

Inspiration:  I love the beautiful paellas served in food markets in Europe and have always wanted to make my own.  The making of this paella was a group effort with the guys on the barbecue and the ladies prepping and cooking the seafood in the kitchen.  It turned out amazing and was a true labor of love!  Good friends + good food + love = best memories. In preparation for a class this weekend, I had to develop and test a recipe for paella.  Given a beautiful authentic cast iron 15 inch paella pan  by Williams Sonoma (Dix 30 in Brossard), I began to study and learn what I could about this wonderful Spanish dish.

Inspiration:  The ham with brown butter served at Vin et Papillon in St-Henri (Montreal) - right now my favourite restaurant with wonderfully inspired dishes (a lot of emphasis on vegetables and seasonal products). Delicious pulled ham served with potato, onion perogies , poached egg ,  maple brown butter and roasted cauliflower

Inspiration:  The wonderful falafel at Zyara  (Montreal). Julienne a Lebanese cucumber and raw beet as garnish as well as diced tomato. I have been wanting to make my own falafel for a while now but just didn't seem to have the courage to tackle it until things began to align over the last few days and some people generously shared their knowledge and experience with me.  The chef from Zyara - in my opinion the best Lebanese restaurant in Montreal (actually Brossard) - came out of the kitchen when I was there with a good friend recently, to explain in great detail how he makes his delicious falafel.  I left with his little hand written note indicating what I would need to recreate his recipe.  In true chef fashion, the basic ingredients were noted but none of the actual quantities. This would require that I use my own instincts, and a little research, to come up with a falafel recipe that I felt was as good as his.

Inspiration:   Helping out a friend for an upcoming St-Patrick's day celebration  🍀 and for my Irish husband (who really enjoyed this). The addition of some coffee and dark bittersweet chocolate helps to bring out the roasted flavours of the guinness beer in this recipe - otherwise its flavour is almost all lost in the cooking process.  The result is a rich, velvety and shiny gravy with so much flavour.  A little maple syrup is added at the very end for balance - we are Irish Canadian after all!  The veggies are cooked separately, glazed and added at the end in order to preserve their texture and flavour.  A few different cuts of beef were tried to test the texture of the meat and a boneless cross rib roast yielded a perfect, tender, flavourful bite.   You have never had stew this good!  Serve with some traditional soda bread or some Guinness bread .  I hope you enjoy!

Inspiration:  The pumpkin ravioli with sage brown butter sauce sprinkled with crushed amaretti cookies we had at Harry's Bar in Cernobbio , Italy (Lake Como).  

Inspiration:  Lunch at Harry's Bar , Cernobbio, Lake Como, Italy Make your own pasta (see below) or use wonton wrappers when pressed for time - both are great- create the shape you like! Served with an intensely rich mushroom broth and brown butter enoki mushrooms and pine nuts - so incredibly good! I have made fresh homemade pasta or used wonton wrappers, that you can find in the frozen section of your supermarket, to make these.  Both work well.  Don't be intimidated to make fresh pasta though.  Once you have done it once, you gain confidence and it becomes a great, creative way to spend a few hours.

Inspiration:  Best marinade recipe ever for  Beef or Chicken Brochettes   Be generous with the sauce and top with fried carrots (see how to make them below)

Inspiration :   Pizza Mia at the Atwater Market The crust and sauce of this pizza are completely vegan - what you choose to put on it is entirely up to you - enjoy! Half Vegan and half topped with some crumbled feta cheese! 

Inspiration:  Mussels at the  Dominion Square Tavern

Inspiration:  New twist on an old family meatball recipe Thai Green Curry Meatballs:   Makes 4 servings

Stack the disks of  sweet potato rosti, drizzle with the chipotle mayo and sprinkle with toasted pecans (torn basil and tarragon as garnish) Add some roasted mushrooms and vine tomatoes - fresh tarragon and basil- This was a really great dinner - and low carb! Brush with the same marinade as the meat before roasting When we were living in New York City (in the late 80's) we discovered a wonderful restaurant called Trixie's.  It was the first time we had sweet potato fries and we loved them.  The Trixie's fries were topped with mayonnaise and sprinkled with walnuts.  

These two ingredients make a wonderfully balanced tapenade This is an easy weekday meal that I make often - leftovers are great for lunch!  With the summer just around the corner, it is great to bring to a pot luck or for a barbecue.  I added grilled portobello mushrooms to make this a heartier meal but they are completely optional.  The salad is great on its own and completely low carb.

Tastes like Spring! It has been a while since I posted recipes and that is because I am in a bit of a transition process.  I am currently experimenting with a low carb diet.   I have had success in the past with eating low carb and with Spring just around the corner, thought it might be a good time to put it to the test once again.  So far so good! - I feel great!