Ewwwwww....Brussel Sprouts...

It looks like it has taken me 30 years to acquire a taste for brussel sprouts. This is the first time that I can say I actually like them now. Maybe it's the cuteness factor that got me? Really, who can resist these cute tiny little cabbage-like little round balls? Hmmm....they weren't so cute to me before though... Is it because I'm older now so I'm supposed to like them? Nah... Or, is it because they are what's available right now I've had to learn to like them? This may be the reason....

Brussel Sprouts are typically in season during the mid-to-late Fall months (September to November). As vegetables like broccoli and beans are no longer available other root vegetables like carrots and parsnips become more and more available, as do brussel sprouts and cabbage (they're from the same family, you know!).

Brussel Sprouts grow in bunches of 20 - 40 on the stem of a plant that grows from two to three feet tall. They are also an excellent source of Vitamin K and Vitamin C. Only one cup of this miniature cabbage will give you 273% of the RDA for Vitamin K and 161% for Vitamin C. There is also a growing body of evidence stating that Brussel Sprouts are a powerful cancer prevention food. The plant phytonutrients enhance the body's natural defence systems to protect against diseases like cancer.

My favorite brussel sprout recipe right now is a sausage & cheesy pasta dish that I came up with one day.. The dish includes:

• Broad Egg Noodles
• Mild Italian Sausage (3 or so)
• Brussel Sprouts (Peeled and Halved)
• 3 Tomatoes (diced) -- or canned diced tomatoes
• 1/2 onion (diced)
• 1/8 cup of vegetable or onion/garlic cream cheese
• handful shredded cheese

Cook the sausage until almost cooked through. Slice the sausages into bite-sized pieces. Add the sprouts, tomatoes and onion. Saute until cooked through. The tomatoes will cook into a sauce. (note: I realize my pictures don't include the tomatoes...oops...forgot about them that day!)

Make sure that you leave the brussel sprouts enough time to cook through in the sauce or they won't soften enough. Add the cheeses and the pasta to combine.

And the Winter Sadness Begins....

Sigh.....

So Southwestern Ontario had its first frost last week.... This means the end to a lot of crops in the area. I spoke to one farmer at the market last week and she said that the frost killed everything they had left on their fields. They still had some broccoli to sell that day but it was pretty well the remains of what they had stored beforehand. It's the same sad story for the peppers as well.

I knew this day would come....but I'm still sad about it. Luckily, I did manage to blanch and freeze a few bags of broccoli, green beans, corn, and peas. I also have some bags of strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, and peaches. I did can a few things but hope to do more of that next year--this year is simply an experiment to see what works and what doesn't.

Although I am sad I am also excited about the local foods that can be found around here even in the dead of winter. We'll be eating a ton of carrots, onions, potatoes, sweet potatoes, squash, cabbage, greenhouse cucumbers/tomatoes/peppers, and lots of apples. Oh...and mushrooms!
wow...that's actually a lot of food! And, although the outdoor Covent Garden Market and the Masonville market are closed as of October 31st, the Trails End Market remains open year round!

Here's a link to Foodland Ontario's seasonal eating guide--I was surprised to see how many foods were available between November and April!: http://www.foodland.gov.on.ca/english/availability.html

It'll be a challenge I'm sure but I think I can do it. The only produce that I still buy at the grocery store are bananas, oranges, and sometimes a pineapple. I will continue with this trend over the winter but I will add celery to that list. Soup just isn't soup without celery!

Here is a video that really hits home with the reasons why eating locally is so important. I've had it forwarded to me a few times actually because everyone who knows me knew that I would love this one. Let me know what you think!

Hellmann’s - It’s Time for Real from CRUSH on Vimeo.

Stay tuned! I'm sure I'll have some creative recipes coming for the next few months! I also plan on visiting a dairy farm and making an effort to find local meats as well.

Wonder Invisible Bread....sigh...

It would seem that Wonder Bread has come out with yet another new "healthy" product--Wonder+ Invisibles. Their ads/commercials boast that you can..."get the best of both worlds--So your family prefers white bread? But you want to offer them the nutritional value of whole grains? Wonder+ Invisibles has a delicious new solution for you: a soft and tasty white bread with the nutritional benefits of 14 whole grains.

Here we go again....let's create another convenience product that people will think is healthy but really,...it's still nothing but crap...

Whenever I hear about a new product the first thing I do is check their website for the ingredients in the product. Here are the ingredients listed for the supposed healthy white bread: Enriched wheat flour, water, whole grain mix (whole grain whole wheat flour including the germ, whole grain triticale, whole grain khorasan wheat, whole grain brown rice, whole grain oat, whole grin spelt, whole grain rye, whole grain barley, ground golden flax, whole grain millet, whole grain sorghum, whole grain soy, whole grain quinoa, whole grain cornmeal), oat fibre, sugar/glucose-fructose, yeast, wheat gluten, defatted soya flour, soybean and/or canola oil, salt, diacetyl artaric acid esters of mono and diglycerides, calcium propionate, vegetable monoglycerides, sodium stearoyl-2-lactylate, potassium chloride, sorbic acid, calcium carbonate, calcium sulphate, monocalcium phosphate, calcium pantothenate, pyridoxine hydrochloride.

Last I checked bread only really needs yeast, flour, sugar, salt, oil and water.

Once again, a processed food product is nothing but a food filled with additives and preservatives and couldn't be further removed from its natural state.

Another issue that I have with this product is that it is directed towards children. The assumption is that children do not like to eat whole wheat breads so food producers are always looking for new ways to make white bread (or other products) healthier. Although these breads are healthier than the alternative, it doesn't solve the real issue. How will this affect their eating habits in the future? Chances are they won't be eating whole wheat or grain breads as adults because they've become so accustomed to eating white bread. My belief is that these kids are going to grow up thinking that it's okay to eat these foods when it really isn't.

My daughter has no problem eating whole grain breads because she's always been exposed to them. Even if she didn't like them I wouldn't go out and buy enriched white bread to satisfy her preference for unhealthy alternatives that have been altered to 'seem' healthy.

SouthWestern Ontario Foodie was a Northern Ontario Foodie for a few Days

Phew....I'm finally home! I was away for Thanksgiving weekend visiting family. My parents and in-laws are in Sudbury, Ontario which is 6 hours or so away from here. We did a lot of eating and had some turkey. I'm so glad to be home though. Unfortunately, because I was away, this is the second weekend that I have not been able to go to the Saturday markets. Luckily I was able to find a couple of markets in Sudbury that still had some produce available.


I visited The Market Place on Notre Dame (next to a Mcdonald's no less...LOL) that helped me fill my bag with $15 worth of food--enough produce to last until Saturday when I can finally do my regular haul. There was another market downtown but when I did go I found the produce a lot more expensive. One vendor was selling peppers at $1 each. Normally I can buy a basket of 5-6 peppers for $2.00 here in London. Wow!! What a difference! It makes me appreciate the bounty that we have here so much more.

Actually, here's a great recipe that takes advantage of our bounty of pears (or apples) in Ontario this month. It includes: spinach (or lettuce if you prefer), toasted pecans, dried cranberries, sliced pears (or apples), and shredded cheese. Top it with your favorite dressing. The last time I visited Birtch Farms I came across a great salad dressing called "AppleFarm's Olde Fashioned Salad Dressing" (ingredients: canola oil, cider vinegar, sugar, onions, mustard powder, celery seed, and salt). It's wonderful with this salad.

Can't let those Pumpkin Seeds go to Waste!

The day after I made the pumpkin puree I, of course, had to roast the pumpkin seeds. I found a great sweet/salty pumpkin seed recipe on allrecipes.com. Here it is:

• 1 cup raw pumpkin seeds (dried overnight)
• 3-4 tbsp sugar (recipe asked for 6--that would be way too much. I used cane sugar)
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
• 1 tbsp oil (I used canola)

Preheat oven to 250F. Spread the pumpkin seeds on a cookie sheet. Toast for 45 minutes stirring occasionally. In a bowl, stir together 1 tbsp sugar, the salt, and the spice. Set aside. Heat oil in a small pan and add toasted pumpkin seeds. Sprinkle remaining sugar and heat until melted. Pour seeds into the spice mixture and stir until coated.

These are soooo yummy! I'm going to have to make some more foresure!

A Huge Head of Broccoli, a Pumpkin, and some Apples...

When I got up this morning I was sad because I hadn't been able to make it out to the market on Saturday. The sadness didn't last long though because I made my way out to Adelaide Farms once again to purchase what I needed. And, once again, I was not disappointed! I was able to get a bag of brussel sprounts, a bag of spinach, some pears, some onions, peppers, lean ground beef, sausages, a pumpkin and a HUGE head of broccoli.


There is no way we could possibly eat this much broccoli in the next few days, especially since we'll be away for Thanksgiving. So, I cut it up and blanched the whole thing to freeze it. I love my broccoli and I think I now have enough to last me through the mid-winter broccoli cravings. One head of broccoli like this gave me two large freezer bags full!

My afternoon didn't end there though. I also cut up my pumpkin and some apples to make some pumpkin puree and applesauce. These jars are going to be kept in the freezer for now. The applesauce will likely be used as an oil substitute in my baking and I have plans on making my yummy pumpkin brownies with the puree later this month.

After all of the cooking/freezing/preserving I did all afternoon I was in no mood for a complicated meal for our dinner. I settled on some taco bowl salads. These are soooo easy to make and take no time at all.

Preheat the oven to 350F. Form small whole wheat tortilla wraps in a muffin tray (I made 5). Bake for 10 minutes.

Meanwhile brown some ground beef or ground turkey. Add an onion, some mushrooms, chopped hot pepper, and cut-up tomatoes. Season with Chili Powder and a little bit of BBQ sauce.

That's it....put the meat mixture into the taco bowls and garnish with tomatoes, lettuce, shredded cheese and some plain yogurt (instead of sour cream). This literally only took me 15-20 minutes to prepare!!