THE PLATE OUTDOORS
What better way to celebrate Canada Day than to dine al fresco? This buffet of local, seasonal ingredients makes for picnic-perfect salads and sandwiches
NICE CANADIAN SALAD
This Canadian riff on salad Niçoise reflects our ingredients and personality. Serve as is or add the extras — grilled steak, smoked salmon platter and/or a cheese board. Take this salad to go, either in a jar or in vegetarian salad sandwiches. Feel free to add goat cheese, feta or ricotta, cherry tomatoes, cucumbers or salad ingredients you like best to any of these recipes. (Most of the fresh ingredients were from Cookstown Greens and Marvellous edibles in Toronto.) 6 eggs 1 lb red or yellow beets or a combination
2 lbs baby Yukon Gold potatoes, larger ones halved
4 tbsp cold pressed canola oil (Pristine), divided 1 tsp kosher salt, divided 2 lbs heirloom carrots 1/2 lb green beans 1 lb asparagus 6 cups mixed greens
Dressing:
3 tbsp Niagara Empire apple cider vinegar
1 tsp Kozlik’s Dijon-style mustard 1 clove garlic, minced 1/2 tsp kosher salt or more to taste (Windsor Salt)
1 tbsp maple syrup (Forbes Wild Foods #3)
1/2 cup cold pressed canola oil (Pristine)
1 tbsp chopped fresh tarragon
1. Bring a 3 qt saucepan of water to a boil. Add 1 tbsp kosher salt. Gently lower eggs into the water, bring to a boil again, cover and remove pot from heat. Let stand 12 minutes. drain eggs. Cover with cold water. Gently crack eggs against the sides of the pot and let cool in cold water. remove shells. (If the eggs are really fresh it will be harder to remove shells.) Cut in halves or quarters.
2. Wrap beets in aluminum foil and bake in a preheated 400F oven for 1 to 1 1/2 hours until tender when pierced with a knife. Cool. rub off skins. Break into chunks.
3. Meanwhile, toss potatoes in 2 tbsp oil and 1/2 tsp salt. Spread, cut sides down, on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and roast in a preheated 400F oven until browned and tender about 25 to 35 minutes. Cut carrots in half lengthwise. Toss with another 2 tbsp oil and 1/2 tsp salt, spread on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, cut sides down, 20 to 30 minutes until lightly browned.
4. Bring a deep skillet of water to the boil. Add green beans and cook about 2 minutes until bright green and tender. Lift out of water and transfer to a bowl of ice water. When cold, lift from ice water and pat dry. Add asparagus to boiling water and cook 2 to 3 minutes until bright green and just tender. Transfer to ice water and then drain and pat dry.
5. For dressing whisk vinegar with mustard, garlic, salt and maple syrup. Whisk in oil.
6. To serve, line a large platter with lettuce. Scatter all salad ingredients over top. Sprinkle with tarragon and drizzle with as much dressing as you like. Any remaining dressing will keep 5 days in the refrigerator.
SUMMER CAKES
These individual crumble cakes are sweet in 250mL/ 1 cup Mason jars* — just screw on the tops for easy transporting. At picnics serve plain or topped with maple syrup or ricotta flavoured with a little syrup or honey. At home, serve with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream. use different fruits as they come into season. The topping below makes more than you will need for this recipe but it’s handy to have in the freezer to top cooked fruit, ice cream, pies, muffins and cakes. (To bake Canadian, I used Hewitt buttermilk, Organic Meadow butter and yogurt and Forbes Wild Foods maple products.)
Crumb topping:
1 cup all-purpose flour or whole wheat 1/2 cup sugar 1/2 cup brown sugar or maple sugar
1/2 cup cold butter, cut into small cubes
Cake: 1/2 cup butter 3/4 cup sugar 2 eggs 1 tsp pure vanilla extract 1 1/2 cups all-purpose or whole wheat flour 1 1/2 tsp baking powder 1/2 tsp baking soda 1/4 tsp kosher salt 3/4 cup buttermilk, sour cream or yogurt
6 cups fruit (halved strawberries, halved, pitted cherries, diced rhubarb, thinly sliced peaches, blueberries, raspberries, cranberries)
3/4 cup brown sugar or maple sugar
1/4 tsp cinnamon, optional
1. For crumb topping combine flour with sugars and blend well. Cut in butter until it is in tiny bits. This can be done by hand or in a food processor. Spread mixture on a baking sheet and bake 15 to 20 minutes in a preheated 350F oven or until lightly browned, stirring once or twice. Cool. This can be made ahead and kept in the refrigerator a few days or for months in the freezer.
2. Cream butter and sugar together until light. Beat in eggs one at a time and then vanilla. In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt about 30 seconds. Stir flour mixture into butter mixture alternately with buttermilk, just until combined. Place 1/4 cup mixture into the bottom of 12 - 250mL/1 cup Mason jars that have been buttered or sprayed with non-stick cooking spray. (Or use ovenproof ramekins or muffin pans.) Toss fruit with brown sugar and cinnamon and gently press 1/2 cup fruit into the top of each cake. Place jars on a baking sheet lined with a wet tea towel (folded to fit into the baking sheet) and fill to lip with hot water. (No need to do this with ramekins/muffin pans.) Bake 30 to 35 minutes in a preheated 350F oven or until cake springs back when lightly touched or an instantread meat thermometer registers 195F. Cool on wire racks. Sprinkle with 1 to 2 tablespoons baked crumb mixture. makes 12 individual cakes * Warning: After baking three batches of these cakes in the Mason jars (in a water bath as directed above) without a problem, I learned that although chefs do this regularly, technically, these jars should not go into the oven. You can bake the cake in a 9-inch square pan, cut it into squares and fit them into the jars after cake cools if you want the look but are reluctant to bake in the jars.
Smoked Salmon Platter
Arrange 1 lb thinly sliced smoked salmon (Wolfhead Smoked Salmon, New Brunswick) on a platter and top with any of these garnishes: chives, thinly sliced red onion, pickled shallots, sprigs of dill, parsley leaves or lemon slices and drizzle with 1/2 cup mayonnaise whisked into 2 tbsp Honeycup mustard and 1 tbsp plain yogurt.
Grilled Steak Platter
Grill a 2 lb sirloin steak (Cumbrae’s) medium rare, cool and thinly slice (or use rare roast beef ). Garnish with chopped fresh herbs, pickles and drizzle with 1/2 cup mayonnaise whisked into 1 tbsp kozlik’s dijon-style mustard with 1 tbsp red wine vinegar, 1 tbsp grated horseradish and 1 tbsp chopped fresh parsley.
Cheese Tray
We used four amazing Canadian Cheese Grand Prix winners for our cheese platter: Le Noble from Fromagerie domaine Feodal Inc. in quebec (soft cheese category); Gunn’s Hill Five Brothers from Gunn’s Hill Artisan Cheese, in Ontario (firm cheese category), Bleu d’elizabeth from Fromagerie du Presbytere in quebec (blue cheese category) and the Grand Champion ricotta from quality Cheese Inc. in Ontario (fresh cheese category). Spoon the ricotta into a bowl, drizzle with 2 tbsp Pristine cold pressed canola oil and sprinkle with 1/2 tsp salt and 2 tbsp fresh basil. Serve with locally made bread (Ace Bakery) and/or evelyn’s Crackers (red Fife wheat with Honey) and garnish tray with seasonal fruits, dried fruit, toasted walnuts or hazelnuts and herbs.
Picnic in a Sandwich
Cut two baguettes into 6-inch lengths, slice lengthwise and tear out some of the bread to make room for filling. Toss roasted carrots, cooked green beans and asparagus with some of the dressing. Arrange lengthwise on bottom half of baguette. Add slices of hard cooked egg and or/ cheese. Top with a leaf of sturdy lettuce (e.g. romaine, escarole or curly endive). Spread top of bread with tarragon mayo made with 1/2 cup mayonnaise, 1 tsp kozlik’s dijon style mustard and 1 tbsp chopped fresh tarragon. Wrap sandwiches with colourful napkins and secure with ribbon, string or tape.
Picnic in a Jar
Place 2 tbsp dressing in the bottom of four 500mL (2 cup) preserving jars. Add a layer of chopped roasted beets, another layer of chopped cooked asparagus, a layer of diced hard cooked eggs, another layer of diced roasted carrots. Top with shredded sturdy lettuce. Close lids tightly for travelling. About 5 minutes before serving turn the jars upside down so that the dressing flows to the top and then serve right side up. makes 6 to 8 servings for a buffet and 4 sandwiches or salads in a jar