My Dehydrator is Here

I finally got my dehydrator earlier this month. My parents were over for a visit and brought it down with them. It took a few more days, but I finally got my chance to use it yesterday.

Would you believe that despite waiting so long to receive it (it was acquired from my aunt) I hadn't given much thought to what I would dehydrate first?? I have so many ideas and have loads of recipes to try but really wanted attempt something extremely simple for my first dehydrating experiment. I ended up asking one of my contacts on Twitter for some advice - @WellPreserved.

After going back and forth for a bit he ended up doing a blog post based on my request. Here's the link: http://wellpreserved.ca/2011/02/26/some-starting-points-for-a-new-dehydrator/

Great advice, as always!

In the end I decided to do dehydrated apples and pineapple. The apples because I had some in abundance and the pineapple because so many people suggested it.

To prepare the fruit I used a mandolin slicer for the apples and for the pineapple I just chopped them into small chunks. The apples dehydrated the quickest and the pineapples were done soon afterwards. Timing was about 6 hours for the apples and 8 hours for the pineapple. Unfortunately, my dehydrator doesn't have a heat setting so I'm not really sure what the temperature setting was set at. Sorry!

The result? Very tasty dried fruit! I especially loved the apples. Crisp and full of flavour! What a great snack for my daughters school lunch. The pineapples were good too; great if you're craving something super sweet!

There are so many other recipes that I'd like to try. I have lots of raw cookie/cracker recipes that I'm hoping to do soon as well as some fruit leathers and dried banana slices. I'm also looking forward to dehydrating many other goodies this summer like apricots, strawberries and tomatoes. I also hope to make different powders by dehydrating beets, mushrooms, celery and peppers. Maybe dry my own herbs? Make my own homemade raisins? Oh...so many, many possibilities!!!

Donkers Goat Farm

On Monday (Family Day) the family and I headed out to Southwold (between London and St. Thomas) to visit Donkers' Goat Farm.

Ed Donkers is the cousin of Rick Cornellisen from Eco-Logic Nursery (see my previous post here). He recently started selling his cousin's goat cheese and I was told that he offered farm tours so I had to go and check out his farm.

Here's a picture of my daughter and her friend checking out some of the goats in the barn when we had first arrived. Many of the goats seen here were pregnant or had just delivered their babies (kids).

The farm was pretty incredible. With 1200 goats on site it was definitely a site to see. Goats, goats and more goats. The first thing I noticed, however, (after all of the goats) was how clean everything seemed to be. There was no foul stench and no manure to be seen anywhere. The goats themselves were extremely well taken care of too. I was really impressed. Actually, speaking about manure... In addition to milking, Ed farms his 265 acres of land and uses the manure to fertilize it. That's being self-sufficient!

The second thing I noticed -- these weren't typical petting zoo goats. These goats were super friendly and loved getting some attention. When any of us were in the pen they just surrounded us and wanted to be petted, cuddled and played with. It was like being surrounded by a bunch of playful dogs. In fact, one goat named 'Princess' was jumping and running around just like a dog would. My daughter and her friend thought it was so fun to be in there with them; it gave them lots of giggles for the afternoon. February and March are 'kidding' season at the farm. He wasn't 'kidding' either (pardon the pun). In the days previous they had delivered 90 baby goats (kids). Here's my husband holding one of the newest kids.And then there's a picture of me with the babies too. These ones were a bit older. Note one of them chewing on my coat's hood. Yup, they loved taking nibbles on our pants and coats.

Last but not least we had a chance to see the goats get milked. Ed's farm is primarily a milking farm. As a result, the male goats are sold/given to another farmer who raises them for meat while Ed keeps the female goats who are raised for their milk.

The milking process was interesting. The goats just knew what they are supposed to do. They went down the line, turned around and positioned themselves for the milking. A couple of minutes later it was done and they moved off for the next round of goats. Ed had 750 milking goats right now and is able to milk about 375 of them in an hour. Come Spring the pen space will be doubled and he hopes to be milking about 1100 to 1200 goats by this time next year

And where does the milk go?

As a member of the Ontario Dairy Goat Cooperative his milk is supplied to Woolwich Cheese (see: www.woolwichdairy.com) to be used in their soft goat cheeses. They've also recently bought out Mornington Cheese so there will be more products containing their milk soon! Hard cheeses like marble and aged cheddar are also available and can be purchased through Rick and his Eco-Logic Nursery. I've had both and they're delicious.

Also in the works is some ice cream and a drinkable yogurt called 'Kix'. Similar to 'Yop' the drinkable yogurt will contain actual goats milk and real fruit; as opposed to milk ingredients, artificial flavors and other sweeteners. Nice!

Being able to visit the farm and to see the milking process made me appreciate where my food comes from even more than before. How much money do you think was spent for these machines? For the bales of hay? For the employees? For the upkeep of the farm? There's a lot of effort, time, and money being put out by the farmers who's job it is to feed the rest of us. Even more reason why we should ensure that our dollars are going straight to the farmer and not to the billion-dollar corporation.

Does the CEO of a company wake up at 4:30 in the morning to milk his goats? No, the farmer does!

And what does a farmer like Ed do in his spare time? He's a single father of 1 daughter and 2 sons. They love 4-wheeling and snowmobiling and believe it or not, Ed's also a ballroom dance instructor in St. Thomas!! Where does he find the time?

If you're interested in visiting the farm send Ed an email at eddfl@live.com.

Rick Cornelissen - Eco-Logic Nursery

In relation to my previous post I thought I'd profile one of the vendors from which I source out my food over the Winter months. It's hard to stay local when most farmers' markets are closed from November to April. This is one reason why it's so important to talk to your farmer and find out how you can reach him/her during the off-season. Many farmers have e-mail, are on Facebook, and several are also on Twitter. By keeping in contact you are able to know where they'll be and what they have to offer.

Rick Cornelissen from Eco-Logic Nursery in Aylmer is one such farmer. During the market season he can be found outside at the Covent Garden Market and during the Winter months, he can be contacted via email for orders and delivers those orders on Saturdays from 10 - 11:30. He is my main source for food from November to April; mainly because he has so much variety to offer.

This week's availability, for instance, includes: beef and pork in various cuts (i.e., ground, steaks, roasts, tenderloin, sausage, bacon, and even liver, heart and tongue), chicken, eggs, many different potatoes, turnip, onions, shallots, cabbage (white, red, savoy), leeks, sweet potatoes, apples, apple cider, mushrooms, dried beans (pinto, red kidney, white kidney), parsnips, beets, Jerusalem artichokes, parsley root, frozen veggies (asparagus, red cabbage, sweet pepper), preserves (pickles, pears, fruit cocktail, relish), tortillas, noodles, chips, and new on the list, goat cheese.

These last couple of weeks he has also had cauliflower on the list. Yes, cauliflower (??) Yay! Something different! I assume that these have been kept in storage; I didn't have a chance to ask how it is that there is cauliflower available in February but I got some anyways. There was a recipe that I wanted to try from one of the cookbooks I was perusing the other day. Here it is:

Earthbound Farms Cauliflower 'Couscous'
(Earth-Bound Cook, Myra Goodman 2010)

• 1 small head of cauliflower, cut into florets (about 4 cups)
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 cup finely sliced leeks (white and light green parts), rinsed well
• 3 cloves garlic
• 2 cups chicken broth
• 1 large carrot, peeled and diced
• 3/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
• 2 tbsp minced fres flat-leaf parsley
• salt and freshly ground pepper

**The recipe also called for 2 small zucchini (diced) but obviously zucchini isn't available right now so I left it out.

Place half of the cauliflower florets in a food processor and pulse until they are chopped into small 'grains'. Transfer the cauliflower to a bowl and repeat with the remaining florets.

Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. When the oil is hot, add the leeks and cook, stirring frequently, until they soften, about 4 minutes. Add the garlic and cook, stirring frequently for 1 minute. Add the cauliflower and cook, stirring frequently, until the mixture is warm to the touch, about 2 minutes. Add 1 cup of the chicken broth and cook, stirring frequently, until the broth is absorbed, about 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, bring a small pan of water, covered, to a boil over high heat. Add the diced carrot and cook for 3 minutes. Drain, and set the carrot aside.

Add the remaining 1 cup broth, the zucchini (if using), and the blanched carrots to the cauliflower, cover the skillet, and cook until the vegetables are crisp-tender, about 5 minutes. Remove the cover and cook until almost all of the broth has been absorbed, 3-5 minutes. Stir in the Parmesan and parsley. Season with salt and pepper to taste, and serve hot. --**I also added a small pat of butter.

I'll definitely make this dish again. It was delicious. I never would have thought of chopping the cauliflower and cooking it this way. It's creative, that's foresure!

I you want to know more about the Eco-Logic Nursery check out their website at http://www.ecologicnursery.com/ or contact Rick via email at ecologic2001@gmail.com to be added to the mailing list.

Beef & Mushroom Stroganoff

I have been so excited to see some small signs of Spring these last couple of days. It's been warmer and a lot of the snow has started to melt. As a result, I am having visions of asparagus, rhubarb, peas and strawberries. I just can't wait to start a new season. Apples and root vegetables really start to take a toll after a while.

Nonetheless, I am still surprised by how many seasonal dishes that can be created with such a small selection of produce. I think that the wide variety of 'other' foods really help over the Winter months. For instance, there's meat (beef, chicken, pork, etc..), dairy (cream, butter, milk, yogurt, cheese, etc..), eggs, greenhouse tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, nuts, popping corn, frozen peas/corn/berries, bread, etc.. There is just so much out there.

I think that there are many more people buying local foods over the Summer/Fall months than there are in the Winter/Spring. I think there is an assumption that because we live in Canada there won't be anything available. What these people don't realize is that there are greenhouses, there are veggies and apples in cold storage, and most of all, so many other types of foods are available year-round (like those I mentioned above).

Noodles are one of those foods. I have found a few local suppliers. There's Glenda's at the Covent Garden market - she has fresh pasta, dried pasta, and wraps. There's also a mennonite family in Vienna that produces egg noodles, wraps, and tortilla chips. I regularly buy from all of these sources.

This week I had some egg noodles on hand and some leftover beef so I figured that a beef stroganoff would make the perfect meal.

My beef and mushroom stroganoff consists of:

• One Ontario onion, diced
• 10 or so sliced Ontario cremini mushrooms
• Ontario beef (anything could work - I used leftover round steak roast)
• Ontario butter
• Beef broth
• Ontario cream
• Fresh thyme
• Ontario egg noodles
• For seasoning I used Epicure Selections Herb and Garlic dip mix, salt, pepper and some parmesan cheese.

Saute the onions and mushrooms in some butter (I used about 1 tbsp) and add in the beef. Add in about 1 cup of beef broth and 1/3 cup of cream. Simmer. Add cooked egg noodles and season. Top with parmesan cheese.

Anyways, the possibilities are endless! Think outside the box and eating locally starts getting easier and easier.

That being said, I'm am getting increasingly excited for Spring and can't wait to eat some asparagus!! Hmmm...I think asparagus would be a great addition to a stroganoff. Yum!

Homemade Chocolate Pudding - Revisited

Remember this post: Back-to-School Snacks(Part 2) ?

This post was from September 2010. I was getting some back-to-school snacks ready for my daughter. One of the recipes that I had tried was homemade chocolate pudding. Unfortunately, the recipe I used didn't work for me and the whole thing ended up in the trash.

Fast-forward to now. Thanks to Jodi from Simply Fresh Ottawa (http://simplyfreshottawa.com/) I have finally had success with the pudding. A couple of weeks ago she posted a homemade chocolate pudding recipe from the Joy of Cooking cookbook (see: http://simplyfreshottawa.com/2011/02/08/chocolate-pudding/)

Here is the recipe:

• 1 3/4 cups milk (I used 1%)
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 oz unsweetened chocolate
• 1/8 tsp salt
• 3 tbsp corn starch
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1 tsp vanilla

Heat first portion of milk, sugar, chocolate and salt over medium heat until chocolate is melted. In a separate glass, mix corn starch and second portion of milk together until smooth. Add slowly to the chocolate mixture. Let pudding come to a simmer, reduce heat to low, stirring continuously. Cook for one minute. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla.

Put into bowls and cover directly with saran wrap to prevent a film from developing on the surface. Refrigerate for a few hours.

The pudding was perfect. I will never buy a boxed version ever again -- the ingredients in the boxed version include: skim milk, water, sugar, partially hydrogenated cottonseed oil, cocoa processed with alkali, natural and artificial flavours, salt, sodium stearoyl, lactylate, vitamin A palmitate, and vitamin D.

Now...how would I make a vanilla pudding or a butterscotch pudding?

Homemade Condiments Part 1 - Mayonnaise

In my quest to remove processed foods from my home and to eat healthy, local foods I thought it was finally time to remove the bottles of condiments from my fridge; that is, ketchup, BBQ sauce, mustard, relish, etc.. All of these products are easy to make at home and probably taste 100 times better than the store-bought version.

As I attempt to replicate these items I'll blog about my successes/failures and post the recipes that I use. The first one in my multi-part homemade condiment series today is mayonnaise.

Mayonnaise is something that I've always wanted to make. Who doesn't love mayonnaise? Mmmm....toasted tomato sandwich with mayo and cheese. Yum! I was a little fearful to attempt it though. When I was doing some research online I found so many different recipes and all of them were different. Many of the authors also had a lot of cautionary words about mayonnaise failures; eggy globs floating in oil and making several attempts before ending up with something edible. Yikes!

Here is the recipe that I ended up using:

• 1 egg (white and yolk)
• 1 tsp dijon mustard
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp ground pepper
• juice of 1/2 lemon
• 1 cup mild-flavoured oil (I used 1/2 cup canola and 1/2 cup olive oil)

In a food processor, place all the ingredients but only half the oil. Process until the mixture thickens. While the machine is running, pour the remaining oil slowly in a thin stream (using the feed tube of the food processor works well because it takes a while for the oil to run through the tiny holes). Adjust the seasoning and refrigerate in a closed container. Use within a week.

It worked! On my first try! And it only took 5 minutes to make (I swear!). Awesome!

Next time, however, I'd reduce the amount of salt. I thought it was a bit too salty.

The recipe I used was the only one I found that used the whole egg rather than just the egg yolk. The authors said that using the egg white would result in a lighter (whiter) mayonnaise.

Here are some other tips that I found in my research:

-use only fresh eggs - the fresher the egg, the better it will emulsify
-use a mild-flavored oil like peanut or safflower oil. Canola oil works well too. If using olive oil, don't use extra virgin
- for better results ensure that ingredients are at room temperature prior to processing
-apparently using a whisk will result in a lighter mayo, while food processors and stick blenders will make a stiffer mayo.
-some recipes suggest leaving the lemon and seasonings for last to prevent the egg and oil from separating

I'm glad I did my research before attempting this recipe; especially since it has raw egg in it. However, I was surprised by how easy this was to make. No more Hellman's here!

Regular Mayonnaise ingredients: canola oil, water, liquid whole egg, vinegar, salt, liquid yolk, sugar, spices, concentrated lemon juice and calcium disodium EDTA

Low-Fat Mayonnaise ingredients: water, canola oil, modified corn starch, liquid yolk, vinegar, sugar, salt, spices, xanthan gum, sorbic acid, phosphoric acid, colour, concentrated lemon juice, calcium disodium EDTA, citric acid and sulphites.

Notice how the low-fat version is full of crap? Yup..not surprised.

Stay tuned for my next homemade condiment!

A Couple of Local Food Events in London

London City Farm Network - Heritage Seed to Vegetable Day

The London City Farm Network is a not-for-profit organization that grows unusual and hard-to-find vegetables (many heirlooms). The plants are started from seeds at Ruth's greenhouses in Thorndale and then in a field behind the Fanshawe Pioneer Village at the Fanshawe Conservation Area in London.

On Saturday, February 12th from 11:30 to 2:00 they will be hosting a "Heritage Seed to Vegetable Day". The event will include a talk by Kim Delaney called "Save Our Heirloom Veggies" on the Mezzanine of the Covent Garden Market at 1pm. Hawthorn Farms will be there selling seeds as well (see: http://www.hawthornfarm.ca/).

Are you interested in volunteering for the organization? They're always looking for help with planting, pruning, picking and selling. You can sign up at the event or contact Sarah at sarahabroo@aol.com for more information. I'll be volunteering foresure!

Southwest Ontario Local Food Connection

On Tuesday, March 29th 2011 there will be a Farmer/Food Buyer Networking Event and Taste It! Gala at the London Farmers' and Artisans' Market in the Confederation Building at the Western Fair.

The networking event will run from 11:30am to 3:00pm - this event is open only to cooks, chefs, food retailers, institutional food providers, food processors and food distributors to allow them to meet and develop relationshiops with local farmers/producers. Following the business to business event there will be a Gala Taste of Southwest Ontario Foods Reception from 5:00pm to 9:00pm. This one is open to the public.

The networking event is free and the Evening tasting is $20.00 (adult admission + 5 sampling tickets). To reserve tickets call Karen Eatwell at 519-232-9638 or 1-888-832-9638. Deadline to register is March 22, 2011.

http://www.southwestontariolocalfoodconnection.ca/

Foodland Ontario Calendar - February (Parsnip, Apple & Brie Soup)

It's February now. This means that it's time to try out another recipe from the Foodland Ontario 2011 calendar. Last month I made veggie chips and now this month's featured recipe is a Parsnip, Apple & Brie Soup.

Here is the recipe:

• 1 tbsp Ontario butter
• 1 Ontario onion, chopped
• 4 cups peeled and chopped Ontario parsnips
• 2 Ontario apples, peeled and quartered
• 4 cups chicken or vegetable broth
• 4 oz cubed Ontario Brie Cheese
• Salt & Pepper

In a large saucepan, melt butter over medium-high heat. Stir in onion; cook, stirring for 2 minutes or until starting to soften. Add parsnips, apples and broth; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 15 minutes or until tender. In a blender or food processor puree soup until smooth; return to saucepan. Stir in cheese; heat over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, just until cheese melts. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve garnished with diced apple, if desired.

The soup was very good. Even my daughter, the soup-hater liked it!

Next month's recipe (March) will be Breakfast Ham 'n' Cheese Egg Wraps

For an electronic version of the Foodland Ontario calendar see: http://www.foodland.gov.on.ca/english/calendar/2011/index.html