Mennonite Apple Dumplings

  Mennonite Apple Dumplings Being brought up close to a German Mennonite community in Waterloo County I was shown how the Mennonite farmers live off their land with meagre equipment and no power. They sure know how to grow a garden and orchards. I used to buy hundreds of bushels of apples from those area farms to make perfect apple pies for  commercial baking and dry storing a good Spy Apple was absolutely necessary to have a supply from season to season. The Spy Apple originating from The River Spey valley in Scotland is where this apple was first grown and was...

Home Comfort Chicken Pot Pie

Chicken Pot Pie. The local super market was advertising a in store whole roasted range fed chicken for $8.00 as a new feature loss leader. The birds came out of the slick new combi roaster at 11:15 am as the ticket read. A whole range fed bird in the cooler was 18 bucks, so I did the math and had 8 great meals to show for it. First I made 2 fresh cut of the roast chicken sandwiches for lunch and then I stripped all the meat from the bones. I put these roasted bones, cartridge and skin in a pot and made a most delicious chicken stock. I cut up a large carrot, 2 ribs of...

Zucchini Carrot Cake

Zucchini and Carrot Cake. Just about this time of year you come to realise you have an abundance of big beautiful zucchini and  carrots. Zucchini is and has become a very common ingredient. made into a sweet relish, stuffed and baked as well as being grilled and sautéed. In the summer the zucchini flower blossoms are most delicious dipped in a beer base tempura batter and quickly deep fried golden brown. Stuffed with sweet potato and ricotta cheese. Zucchini mixed with aubergines, tomatoes, onions and tossed with fresh herbs, olive oil and goat feta cheese makes a great...

Star Crab Cakes

Back in 1984 I was asked by some celebrities that I was cooking for if I ever have eaten at Stars Restaurant in San Francisco. My reply was not yet, but after hearing about the chef in charge and his new style fusion food menu I knew it would not be long before I would be there in the flesh.     Stars were noted as being the birthplace of New American Cuisine. The restaurant was an instant sensation and quickly became the top-grossing restaurant for years. Chef Jeremiah Tower and his posse of celebrity chefs like Wolfgang Puck became the pioneers of California...

Roasted Beets w/ Bartlett Pear and Pink ...

Roasted Beets w/ Bartlett Pear and Pink Lady Apple Fresh Mint w/a Raspberry Balsamic and Olive Oil Vinaigrette. I first roast off the pears apples and beets and then peeled the beets under cold water. This stops the cooking and makes the red colour a lot more easy to cleanup. The apples and pears are just roasted enough to wrinkle up the skin. Roast the beets till tender. 375 is a good oven temperature. Once peeled and diced add some fresh mint leaves, salt pepper and a splash of Raspberry Balsamic dressing 1 part to 3 parts of virgin olive oil and 1/2 teaspoon raw honey....