MODERN SAMPLING
Fresh take on the harvest
Turn over a new leaf with this fall menu that features the flavours of the season. Imagine yourself sitting outside drinking wine as the sunshine warms your chilly cheeks. Then dig in to our spread of homemade crackers, crunchy green beans and a new take on fish.
COCKTAIL HOUR PEAR COCKTAIL
Prep 5 minutes | Total 5 minutes Makes 1 serving Perfectly elegant in a small coupe glass, this fall sipper was mixed up for us by Micah Jensen at RauDZ, in Kelowna, B.C. 1/4 cup pear nectar
1 tbsp vodka, preferably Okanagan Spirits Vodka 1 tbsp Cointreau orange liqueur
Sliced pear, for garnish
1. Combine pear nectar with vodka and Cointreau in a cocktail shaker with ice. Shake well, then strain into a coupe glass. Garnish with a pear slice.
Ingredient tip: Okanagan Spirits is a small craft distillery in Kelowna known for handcrafted spirits, made from 100 per cent British Columbia fruit. Find them at okanaganspirits.com.
Nutrition Calories 138 Carbohydrates 18 g Fibre 1g Sodium 4 mg
HOMEMADE CRISPY CRACKERS
Prep 10 minutes | Total 25 minutes plus 1 hour chilling time Makes 24 crackers Served on a cheese board with figs, goat cheese, warm olives and lavender honey, this appetizer is a delicious centrepiece. 1 1/2 cups whole-wheat flour 3 tbsp sesame seeds
1 tbsp poppy seeds
2 tsp granulated sugar 1/4 tsp salt 1/3 cup cold unsalted butter, cut into cubes
1/2 cup cold water
1 egg
1 tbsp water
1 tsp flaky or coarse salt
1. Whisk flour with 2 tbsp sesame seeds, poppy seeds, sugar and salt in a large bowl. Using your fingers, work butter into the flour mixture until it becomes crumbly. Gradually add water until it starts to form a ball. Add more water, 1 tbsp at a time, if needed. Divide dough into 4 portions and form into logs. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 1 hour.
2. Preheat oven to 425F. On a lightly floured counter, roll 1 log of dough into a long, thin rectangle, about 6 × 16 in. Cut into 6 rectangles or triangles. Arrange on a cookie sheet and prick all over with a fork. Beat egg lightly with water, then lightly brush over each cracker. Sprinkle with sesame seeds and coarse salt.
3. Bake in centre of oven, flipping crackers over halfway through, until crisp, 11 to 13 minutes. Repeat with remaining dough. Serve with goat cheese, fresh figs, warmed olives and lavender honey.
Make-ahead tip: Dough can be made up to 2 days ahead. Keep refrigerated.
Storage tip: Crackers keep well, in a covered container at room temperature, up to 1 week.
Nutrition Calories 77 Protein 2 g Carbohydrates 10 g Fat 4g
Fibre 2 g Sodium 92 mg
SIDE DISH NUTTY GREEN BEANS
Prep 15 minutes | Total 15 minutes Makes 6 servings Fresh and vibrant with an added crunch, it won’t be any trouble for people to eat all their beans tonight. 6 handfuls green beans, trimmed
1/4 cup panko bread crumbs 1/4 cup roughly chopped hazelnuts
1/4 cup butter
1/4 tsp salt
1. Boil beans in a large pot of water until tender-crisp,
4 to 5 minutes. Drain.
2. Heat a large frying pan over medium-high. Add panko and hazelnuts. Stir frequently until lightly toasted, 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in butter until melted and just starting to brown, 3 minutes. Add beans and salt. Cook until beans are heated through, about 3 minutes.
Nutrition
Calories 143 Protein 3g Carbohydrates 11 g Fat 11 g Fibre 3g Sodium 154 mg Good source of Folate
MAIN COURSE ROASTED TROUT WITH BRAEBURN APPLES & PEPITA PESTO
Prep 20 minutes | Total 40 minutes Makes 6 servings Surrounded by freshly chopped apples and squash, this roasted trout recipe captures the flavours of early fall perfectly. Drizzle with pepita pesto and set out to serve. 8 tsp olive oil, divided 4 Braeburn apples, cubed 2 cups chopped pumpkin, or butternut squash, chopped into 1/2-in. cubes 1/4 tsp herbes de Provence 6 skin-on rainbow trout fillets, about 125 g each
1/4 tsp salt
Pesto:
1 cup fresh parsley
1 small garlic clove 1/4 cup toasted pepitas 1/4 cup grated Parmesan 3 tbsp olive oil
1/2 tsp lemon zest
2 tbsp lemon juice
1/8 tsp salt 1. Position racks in upper and lower thirds of oven. Preheat to 450F. Coat a baking sheet with 1 tbsp oil. Toss apples and pumpkin with herbes de Provence and another 1 tbsp oil on prepared sheet. Bake in lower third of oven until forktender, 20 to 25 minutes.
2. Line a large rimmed baking sheet with parchment or foil. Arrange fish in one layer, skin-side down. Brush with 2 tsp oil and season with 1/4 tsp salt and fresh pepper. Roast fish in top third of oven until just cooked through, 7 to 8 minutes. Remove and tent with foil.
3. Whirl parsley with garlic, pepitas, Parmesan, 3 tbsp olive oil, lemon zest, lemon juice and 1/8 tsp salt with a hand blender until puréed.
4. Spoon a portion of apple mixture in the middle of each plate and lay a trout filet on top. Top with pesto.
Prep tip: Toast pepitas in a dry frying pan over medium heat until lightly golden, 10 to 12 minutes. Cool completely.
Nutrition
Calories 386 Protein 27 g Carbohydrates 18 g
Fat 24 g Fibre 3g Sodium 256 mg Excellent source of Vitamin B12
DESSERT CHERRY CRUMBLE COFFEE CAKE
Prep 30 minutes
| Total 1 hour 30 minutes Serves 8 Enjoy after-dinner coffee and tea with a slice of this crumbly, sweet treat. 2 cups all-purpose flour 2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp cardamom
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
2 eggs
1 tsp lemon zest
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup buttermilk
1 1/2 cups pitted and halved fresh cherries
Crumble
1/3 cup all-purpose flour 1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup chopped pecans 1/4 cup cold unsalted butter, cut into cubes
1/2 cup fresh cherries, pitted
1. Preheat oven to 350F. Lightly oil or spray an 8 × 8-in. baking pan.
2. Stir 2 cups flour with baking powder, cardamom and salt in a medium bowl.
3. Beat 3/4 cup brown sugar and 1/2 cup butter in a large bowl, with an electric mixer on medium, until fluffy. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating well and scraping sides of bowl. Beat in lemon zest and vanilla. Reduce speed and beat in one-third of flour mixture, then half of buttermilk. Repeat additions, ending with flour mixture. Stir in 1 1/2 cups cherries. Scrape batter into pan, smoothing top.
4. Combine 1/3 cup flour with 1/4 cup brown sugar and pecans in a bowl. Add 1/4 cup butter and work in, using your fingers, until crumbly. Sprinkle evenly over batter, then sprinkle with 1/2 cup cherries.
5. Bake in centre of oven until a tester comes out clean, 50 to 55 minutes. Cool in pan on rack for 10 minutes, then turn out onto rack to cool completely.
Nutrition Calories 478 Protein 8 g Carbohydrates 62 g Fat 23 g Fibre 2 g Sodium 271 mg Excellent source of Folate