The famous Salade Fougères.

I am no food reviewer, and its not often that I write about restaurants or the meals I’ve eaten in them, but when it comes to Les Fougerès, I gotta give them a shout out!

Charlie & Jennifer Part are the brains behind this operation that is found deep in the Gatineau Hills (Chelsea to be exact). Originally, they owned a little “boite” in Toronto called Loons, but after babies and the allure of a simpler life, they moved their brood to Chelsea where Jennifer’s parents and sister happen to live. As a result, Les Fougères was born in the remnants of an old gas station. To be perfectly honest, my opinion of these two is biased, as I was once their sous chef (yep,that is me on page 142 of their cookbook!), but in the past thirteen years I have never had a bad experience. Yes, it is true that I got married there, and the ten course meal that we ate will go down in history as the best wedding meal EVER, but I won’t let that sway my opinion.

After three years of staying away, Doug and I finally made the trek back to Les Fougères several weeks ago and enjoyed a most spectacular lunch! Chicken liver pate & Salade Fougères for me (my usual), and Dougie had the wild game terrine and the special of the day;  a salad of garden greens, local beef tenderloin, strawberries, pistachios and a plethora of other garden goodies. Of course no meal would be complete without cheese, and with over a dozen Quebec cheeses to choose from we had our work cut out for us! To finish off our lunch I ordered a little sweet somethin-somethin to help me endure the trek back to Shawville – Frangipane of raspberries with Fleur De Sel ice cream.

After filling ourselves with sumptuous food, a quick stop at the Les Fougères food store was a must. Despite the fact that I would have happily purchased every single item in the shop, I walked away with their own brand of extra virgin olive oil and a few jars of anchovy stuffed olives.

Les Fougères will always remain a favorite for me, hold a special place in my heart and continue to inspire me to cook with balls! (as Charlie always told me to do!)

The other dishes during our amazing lunch.

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A Bowl of Summer

With summer upon us, one of my favorite things to eat is strawberries. There are different types of these little gems that you can find, and now you can have them freshly picked all summer! Here are a few reasons why they hold a special place on my plate.

Memory number one; my dad taking me to a u-pick every Canada Day! We would wake up at the crack of dawn and venture to the nearest u-pick in the Pontiac. Baskets in hand, we would go row by row, grabbing the biggest and juiciest strawberries that we could find. Three quarters of these berries made it into my mouth before the basket, and I would shyly tell the attendant that I never ate any! Stains on the front of my shirt told a different story! Home we would go, many baskets in tow, and sit on our front lawn to watch the annual parade. Best way to eat these red berries; heavy cream poured on top with a sprinkling of sugar!

Memory number two; the wild strawberry jam my dad’s client used to make! Those “fraise de bois” had to be meticulously hand picked, and were tiny, and it took thousands to make a jar, but oh man, was it ever worth it! My mother would call this jar “gold”, and we were only allowed a taste on rare occasions. Unfortunately, the lovely lady that produced these golden jars of red goodness passed away, and with her went the recipe!

Memory number three; my Grandmere’s strawberry “mousse”. Actually, I don’t even know if that is what you would call it, but she would take the ripest, reddest of the bunch and macerate them with some white sugar. Next, she would whip the living daylights out of some egg whites, add more sugar to make a meringue and fold in the macerated berries! It was billowy bliss!

My last memory is of my sweet little monster eating handful upon handful of  strawberries from the farmers’ market. Her grubby little hands picking up each berry and placing it ever so gingerly into her mouth before producing a sigh of contentment.

I recently returned home to Shawville, Quebec, and was able to re-live some of these precious moments with my family! Hope you take the time to indulge in these “fraises fantastiques” this summer, and make some memories of your own.

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Zoe the Cookie Monster

My mother often tells the story of my first cooking venture. When I was two, my mother had me propped up on a chair in our kitchen, so I could help her make oatmeal cookies. I was so enthusiastic about this, that when her back was turned I ate a whole cup of flour! Yep, down the hatch it went. Needless to say, it freaked my mother (and I am sure myself) out. As most of you know, flour and saliva basically turn into homemade “glue” – so I essentially glued my mouth shut. After some panic and cleaning my gooey mouth out, we proceeded to make the best oatmeal cookies ever.

I recently started my second maternity leave, and am now home with a 20 month old and a 5 week old. With that being said, I get cabin fever quite fairly regularly, especially on those typical Nova Scotian rainy days. On the past rainy day, I decided to continue the Lavallée tradition and make cookies with my lil’ cookie monster. I must admit that it was a very messy venture, but Zoe clearly enjoyed herself and luckily enough, she did not follow in her Momma’s footsteps by eating a cup of flour. The following recipe is the same one that I made with my mother many moons ago. 

Oatmeal Cookies

• 1 ¾ C flour
• 1 ¼ C sugar
• 1 tsp baking powder
• ½ tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 3 C rolled oats
• 1 C raisins (I mix raisins with dried cranberries!)
• 1 C oil (I use olive oil, but it calls for canola oil)
• ½ C milk
• 2 eggs
• 1 tsp salt

Mix all the dry ingredients and the raisins. Add in the wet ingredients and give a quick mix. Place in spoonfuls on a baking sheet and place in a 400°F oven for 12 minutes.

If you have small children, cooking with them in the kitchen is a great time and worth the clean up in the end. Now, will Zoe follow in my footsteps and continue on the culinary path? I will keep you posted!

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In case you haven’t heard, I have a soft spot for cheese and crackers. Nothing major, but if you ask my better half, he’ll attest to the fact that often enough, my meal of the day will consist only of cheddar cheese and some crackers. Now, I know that this sounds pretty pathetic, but the beauty part of it is that I make my own crackers. Yep, that’s right, I make my own crackers to enjoy with my cheese. It might sound daunting to some, but this recipe couldn’t be easier. I put all my ingredients in my food processor and then roll it out with my Grandmere’s rolling pin (a very treasured Granger family heirloom that has been passed down through many generations). I hope that the next time you decide to indulge in some cheese eating, or even a bowl of tomato soup that deserves a trusty companion, you’ll muster up the time to cook off a batch of these bad boys.

Easy Peasy Crackers

• 3C. all pupose flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 2 tsp salt
• 1/2 C. cold butter; cubbed
• 1C. sour cream
• 2 eggs
• 2 tbsp sugar

Pulse the flour, baking powder, salt and butter in food processor until it becomes a coarse meal. Add in wet ingredients and quickly pulse until the dough comes together. On a floured work surface, roll out the dough until desired thickness and cut into any shape (I like long, narrow triangles).Place on a parchment lined baking sheet and cook in a 350 oven for about 20 minutes.

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Sweet & sour at its best.

Doug and I have lived in our little blue house on Lake Banook in Dartmouth for 3 years now, and it wasn’t until this spring, while doing some major yard work, that I discovered a very random patch of rhubarb growing in our yard. How exciting, I thought. It reminded me of my childhood days, and how I would go over to Sheila’s (she was our neighbor in Shawville), and secretly cut her rhubarb from the patch behind her garage, and hope that none of the neighbors saw me! I would stuff it under my shirt, and make a run for my yard and bolt through the side door completely out of breath. Of course, my rhubarb cutting never went unnoticed, as my mother would interrogate me on my “lucky” find, and would place a call to the McDowell residence to inform Sheila of my bad behaviour. To make it up to everyone, I would bake a rhubarb crisp, taken from a local Shawville Minor Hockey Cookbook, and eat it hot right out of the pan! Now that I have my own rhubarb patch, I can make this sweet and sour concoction anytime. Give this simple recipe a try!

The Shawville Rhubarb Crisp

• 1 C. all purpose flour
• 1C. packed brown sugar
• ¾ C. oatmeal
• ½ C. melted butter
• 5 C. chopped fresh rhubarb
• 1C. white sugar
• 1C. cold water
• 2 Tbsp cornstarch
• 1 Tsp vanilla

In a bowl, mix the flour and brown sugar with the butter and oatmeal. Press ¾ of the mixture into the bottom of a 9″ pan; cover with the rhubarb. In a saucepan, mix all the remaining ingredients and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until it thickens. Pour over the rhubarb and sprinkle the remaining topping on top. Bake in a 350F oven for 45-60 minutes until it is oozy, bubbly and brown!

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As some of you may know, I am now at the nine month mark of my pregnancy. This past Saturday, I was slated to do my annual Mother’s Day dinner at Sugar Moon Farm in Earltown, but  contractions started Thursday, and by Friday I was told by my doctor that I was pretty much in labor and that a dinner for 60 people, an hour and a half away, was probably not a good idea. So, with the fear of dealing with labor and a new baby and the stress of trying to figure out who or what was going to happen with Sugar Moon, I was at my wit’s end. I made a quick phone call to Craig Flinn of Chives (a fellow chef in the city) hoping that he would be able to help me out. Thankfully he accepted the challenge of finishing what I started. Craig is a saint! So, with Sugar Moon taken care of, we packed our bag and headed to the hospital with hopes of a quick and painless delivery!

Many hours later, with our hopes and dreams deflated, we headed back home with no baby. That’s right, I may have been on my way to a speedy delivery, but apparently the little guy in my belly decided that he liked it too much in there and proceeded to climb back in! Aaargh! Two days of contractions, endless walks around the lake, hanky panky and even a twenty minute stint of running up and down stairs, this kid was having no part of making an appearance. By Sunday I felt frustrated and tired. It was Mother’s Day and I there was no new kid to give me sloppy kisses! That was it, the battle was on. I declared war on my womb and decided to “spice” this baby out. I was no holds barred when it came to our dinner last night; jerk beef, rice and beans and an avocado, tomato and cilantro salad. The jerk had enough spice to make all three and a half of us cry, and the rice and beans used up a whole can of chipotle peppers! Smoke came out our ears, and my husband complained of “ring of fire”, but to no avail. So now I sit here writing this post with a very busy baby still in my belly instead of one sleeping quietly in a bassinet beside me.

Should you ever feel the need for heat, here is my tried and true jerk marinade that should make most babies shoot right out of their Mommas!

The Lavallée Jerk

• 1 jar Grace’s Jerk Spice (250ml)
• Juice and zest of 6 limes
• 1″ ginger root; peeled and minced
• 1/2C. chopped fresh cilantro leaves and stems
• 1 C. molasses

Mix all the ingredients together and use sparingly. Unused portions can be kept in a jar in the refrigerator until the next time it’s needed.

FYI…Baby Philippe was born a few hours after this dinner, so I really DID spice him out!

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My favourite snack. Bread, butter, fleur de sel.

I have had one Saturday staple for the past five years, and that is the Apricot-Honey loaf from Boulangerie La Vendéenne. Every Saturday we religiously line up at this stall (always a crazy long line!) and wait to purchase our loaf. It is chewy, sweet and studded with apricots and nothing makes a better snack than slathering it with some butter and a dusting of fleur de sel. My lil’ Zoe has been known to beg for this bread; putting her chubby little hands into the brown paper bag and tearing off a piece even before we make it out of the line. For two days we are a happy household; using it for toast, sandwiches and finally turning it into crostini. We do not waste a single inch of it! La Vendéenne not only make this amazing bread, but their sourdough, fougasse and brioche are also out of this world! If you have been hesitant in the past to brave the line up at this stall on Saturday morning, I beg of you to take the time, grab a loaf, and enjoy a little bit of heaven!

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Soba Noodle Salad

This past Sunday I woke up with what I refer to as a “food hangover”. Copious amounts of Serrano ham, “pan con tomate“, Manchego cheese and many other culinary delights, still swirled in my enormous 8½ month pregnant belly. The last thing that I even wanted to think about was food, but a persistent  1½ year old and a famished husband, kept nipping at my heals and begged for good ‘ol Momma to make them some food. The thought of anything rich brought me to tears, so I scrounged in the cupboards to uncover a package of Soba noodles. Aha, I thought, maybe a cold soba noodle salad would quench the hunger of these two demanding peeps and maybe a somewhat satisfying snack for myself. Deep into the fridge, I found some tofu, some pea shoots from the market, snow peas, avocado, peppers and to top it all off, buttery shiitake mushrooms. I banished the child and husband to the park for a half hour so that I could create.  Here is a recipe for a quick, simple and utterly scrumptious soba noodle salad that would satisfy any savage!

Cold Soba Noodle Salad

• 1 package Soba noodles; cooked off and rinsed in cold water
• 1 yellow pepper; julienned
• 3 scallions; julienned
• 1 avocado; roughly diced
• 1 C. sliced shiitake mushrooms; sauteed
• 1 good handful cilantro; chopped
• 1/2 pkg firm tofu; cubed and sauteed in sesame oil
• 1 C. snow peas; julienned
• 6 oz pea shoots

Dressing

• 1 2″ piece of ginger; minced
• 1 C. Mirin
• 1 C. Tamari
• 2 Tbsp sesame oil
• Salt & pepper

Directions

1. Mix the cold soba noodles with all the chopped vegetables (except the avocado) and tofu. Add the cilantro and dressing. Mix and season to taste. Finish by mixing in the avocado and pea shoots.

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Blueberry muffin fresh out of the oven.

Nothing makes me happier than a freshly baked muffin, especially a blueberry one! I have the tendency to buy up tons of fresh, local blueberries during the summer so that I can freeze them and pull them out all winter long. On a recent sunny Sunday while feeling blue, I thought that the perfect pick me up would be to whip up a batch of my Momma’s famous blueberry muffins. Needless to say that the only thing “blue” after eating one of these was my tongue! Enjoy.

Ingredients

• 4 c flour
• 2tsp baking powder
• 1 1/2 c sugar
• 2c sour cream
• 4 eggs
• zest of 2 lemons
• 2/3 c canola oil
• 2 1/2 c blueberries

Pre-heat oven to 350°F. Mix dry ingredients and then add the wet. Fold in the blueberries at the very end as to not turn your batter blue. Fill half-way up muffin tins and bake for 12-15 minutes. This recipe makes 12 large muffins.

Once dry ingredients are mixed, start adding in your eggs, oil and sour cream.

The recipe calls for the zest of 2 lemons, but I always add extra! Experiment and add orange or lime zest as well.

In go my frozen blueberries that I pulled out from my secret summer stash!

Be careful not to over-mix once you’ve added your berries; you don’t want blue batter!

Into the muffin tins and off to my 350°F oven for 12-15 minutes. I use silicone muffin tins as I find it easier to get my muffins out and also easier to clean.

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A little taste of vacation.

I recently returned form a trip down to southern Florida and decided that after watching many episodes of “Dexter“, that I too, needed to find the perfect Key Lime Pie! After many tastings and many disappointments, I decided to take the task into my own hands and attempt to make my own. Here is the recipe for the Key Lime Pie that worked best for me and that I ended up falling madly in love with.

The Perfect Key Lime Pie

Crust

• 1 1/4 C graham cracker crumbs
• 2 tbsp sugar
• 5 tbsp melted butter

Filling

• 4 egg yolks
• 1 can sweetened condensed milk (300ml can)
• 3/4 C Key Lime Juice (about 20 limes)

A trick to getting the most juice out of these little guys is to either roll them for a few seconds until they soften or pop them into the microwave for a few seconds.

In a pre-heated 350 oven, press the crust mixture into a pie pan and bake for 10 minutes. Let cool before adding the filling.

Whisk the eggs and condensed milk together. Add the lime juice and mix until incorporated. Pour into prepared pie shell. I leave you the option to bake or to not bake…difference is that if you choose not to bake it, I find the lime flavour comes out a lot more (you just need to chill for 3-4 hours). Baking it at 350F for 15 minutes cooks off the egg and mellows out the flavour. Your choice!

I chose to bake mine this time around (due to my pregnancy); they came out looking mighty fine.

I like to cool any baked goods on a wire rack; the air circulation helps the items cool down at an even and faster rate. Some people garnish their pie with either meringue or whipped cream and a slice of lime. I, as a purist, prefer plain ‘ol pie.

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