The Food Allergy Foodie

Arugula with hearts of palm, grapefruit, and oil-cured olives

If you think you're bored of salad, try this!  It's bright, refreshing and easy to make.  Hearts of palm are a vegetable harvested from the soft core of certain palm trees.  They have the flavour of artichokes, without all the work.  On a not so delicious note, this salad won't fit into your 100 mile diet, or even an 1000 mile diet.  So enjoy, but enjoy sparingly.

This recipe, from Fine Cooking No.99 serves 4 as an appetizer

1 large Ruby Red grapefruit
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 1/2 tbsp chamgpagne vinegar ( I used white wine vinegar and it worked out fine)
1 tsp finely chopped fresh rosemary
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
Kosher slad and freshly ground black pepper
3 hearts of palm, rinsed, halved lenghwise, and cut on a diagonal into 3/4 inch pieces
1/4 cup pitted black oil-cured olives, halved lengthwise (It's not the end of the world if you skip the pitting)
7 oz arugula (about 5 cups, loosely packed)

Finely grate 1/2 tsp zest from the grapefruit, set aside.  Slice just enough off the top and bottom of the grapefruit to expose the fruit.  Stand the grapefruit on one cut end and slice away all the peel and white pith.  Working over a bowl, cut he segments away from the membranes, letting them fall into the bowl.  Then, over another bowl, squeeze the membranes to get any remaining juice.  Cut each segment into thirds.

In a small bowl, whisk 2 tbsp of the reserved grapfruit juice an the zest with the oil, vinegar, rosemary, red pepper flakes, 1/4 tsp, salt and a pinch of pepper.

In a small bowl, mix the grapefruit segments, hearts of palm, and olives with 2 tbsp of the dressing.

Toss the arugula and parsley in a large bowl with a generous pinch of salt and 3 tbsp of the dressing.  Divide the arugula amount 3 plates, top with the hearts of palm mixture, and drizzle with the remaining dressing, if desired.

Maple dry-roasted granola

My perfect breakfast is granola with plain yogurt and fresh fruit.  Growing up with nut allergies, there was never a granola that was safe for me to eat, so I learned to make it myself.  My standard recipe for a long time was 1 part honey, 1 part oil, 8 parts granola.  I'd bake it in the oven and then stir in toppings.  It takes about forty minutes and it's oily and heavy.

A few months ago while leafing through my hand-me-down Enchanted Broccoli Forest cook book, by Mollie Katzen (she wrote the quintessential Mousewood Cookbook), I found a recipe for dry roasted granola, and it has stolen my heart.  It's genius, it's quick and practically fat free!  Her recipe includes nuts, brown sugar, wheat germ, sesame seeds, sunflower seeds, coconut, brown sugar and salt.  Of course the beauty of granola is you can add anything you like.

I started with 1 cup of rolled oats (the slow cooking kind) in a frying pan over medium heat and stirred it constantly until the oats started to visibly toast.  You'll smell it happening, it's amazing!  My stove has a mind of it's own, and goes from high heat to low heat unannounced, so I had to watch carefully.  I then added 1/3 cup sunflower seeds and stirred some more.  Next, I threw in 1/3 cup wheat germ and 1/3 cup shredded coconut.  After about two minutes I sprinkled in 1/4 cup maple sugar (brown tastes great too) and a generous pinch of salt.  This is when the magic happens.  The heat of the pan melts the sugar and leaves a crunchy coating on the granola.  At this point you can add any dried fruit, I add a handful of raisins.

And that's it!  Perfect breakfast in about 15 minutes.  I ate mine hot (I couldn't wait) over plain Liberte yogurt and topped with Ontario peaches and wild blueberries.  I'm thinking life doesn't get much better than this...and that's a nice thought to start your day!

Cheers! (with spoons of course)

Where to Eat at Yonge-Dundas Square...Milo's Pita

I've always found it disheartening that at the centre of a city so full of culture, full of great restaurants and discerning tastes, that obnoxious chain restaurants like the Hard Rock Cafe and Jack Astor's dominate.

A few months ago I made a discovery that I'd like to share.  Inside the Toronto Life building at 10 Dundas St. E, on the 4th floor you'll find Milo's Pita, an oasis at Yonge-Dundas Square.  They serve up healthy fresh made 'fast food' for a good price.  I had the falafels a few months ago and they were the best falafels I've ever had.  When I got off the bus from out of town, hungry, tired and sick of eating out I knew just where to go. 

This time I had the vegetarian platter for $8.95.   It includes tabbouleh,  hummus, falafels, stuffed grape leaves, pickled turnip, salad, and tahini sauce.  It was the most refreshing and satisfying meal I'd had in a long time.  They have all the dishes you would expect to find, like shawarma and kebabs.  Everything is made fresh daily, said the man who proudly served me.  The atmosphere isn't he best, but if you can stand the din of the stadium sized cafeteria, you can sit down and enjoy a great meal in the heart of the city. 

Hospital 'food'

My mom has recently been in the hospital for a surgery.  During the week that she was there she complained about the usual things; grumpy nurses, noises at night, and of course the food.  My mom follows the blood type diet, not for weight loss but for improved health.  Since being on it she's felt so great.  She eats things like bulgar salad (recipe coming soon!), sprouted whole grain breads, organic beef and fish.  She doesn't eat refined sugar, wheat or dairy.  This is a lot for a hospital kitchen to take in.  She knew she'd have to bend the rules while she was in there, even though she feels best while eating for her blood type.

I remember my mom always stressing that eating healthy means eating a variety of colours within the food groups.  Dark greens, purples, reds, oranges, yellows...and greys?  Hospitals are supposed to make people better, but this meal (potatoes, cauliflower and beef (if you weren't sure)) made my mom sick.

yuck.

Sassafraz for Summerlicious

I was so excited last Wednesday morning that I didn't even hit snooze once.  I hopped right out of bed and got dressed quickly because I was meeting a friend for lunch at Sassafraz!  I had such a positive experience at Pagaea on the first day of Summerlicious for $20, so I was expecting the $30 Sassafraz lunch to blow it out of the water.

Sassafraz is a Yorkville celebrity hangout, a place to be seen, and supposedly a place with great food.  I would have had a more satisfying experience at Swiss Chalet (which I did the next day).

I started with the Boston lettuce salad with sweet and sour summer berries and citrus dressing, which was uninspiring and too acidic.  My friend Lisa had spicy black bean soup with crème fraiche and chives.  The soup was suspiciously similar to the Campbells version they served in my university cafeteria.

 

I had a glass of Niagra reisling with lunch, not as sweet as it's European counterparts, but it was nice light accompaniment.  Lisa and I both wanted to try the grilled adobe brushed chicken breast with corn salsa and buttermilk potato puree.  Eating out at good restaurants for me, is about tasting things I've never tasted, seeing things plated in ways I've never thought of, and being amazed at how simple ingredients can taste so amazing in the hands of the right chef.  Ours tasted exactly like my mom's usual barbecued chicken breasts brushed with Diana sauce, which I enjoy eating on her back deck on a summer evening...for free.  Lisa thought the potatoes tasted like they came from a box.  The corn salsa was good, but not interesting.  I don't think that Sassafraz is going for comfort food, and if they are this rang a little too true!

When our server took our order he first seem surprised that I wanted wine and then insisted we decide on all three courses at once.  I wasn't sure about dessert.  I asked if I had to decided on it right away, he said yes!  I said, well if I have to make a rushed decision I'll have the strawberry and rhubarb tart (with white chocolate sorbet).  The sorbet was rock hard and didn't taste like white chocolate at all.  The tart shell was good, like a shortbread cookie, but it was filled with soggy fruit.  Lisa had the tiramisu with Kahlua chocolate sauce and espresso bean croquant.  Here it is here.  It tasted fine, but no different than the President's Choice version you can pick up at Loblaws.  Since we had ordered our dessert at the begining, the food runners automatically brought it out after our main course and dropped them in front of us.  But we wanted tea, so we had to wait until our server noticed that we weren't eating.  Lisa told me to take a picture of the tea pots because, 'the tea was the best part'.  It was.  Loose leaf Sri lankan earl grey.

Although I was disappointed, I do have something positive to say.  They were really careful with my allergies (nuts and seafood).  As each course came out the person who brought it would specifically say that it was nut free before placing it down in front of me.  Then before we left, our server said he hopes we come back sometime, and he'll remember, no nuts.  Sorry Fred, we'll never be back.

Digital Gardening

I'm not sure what this says about us as a society.  Is it a good thing that kids learn that food comes from the ground and not just the grocery store?  Or, does this just mean that fat kids will be pretending to grow carrots while eating cheetos on the couch?  What do you think?

Pangaea Restaurant

Since living in Toronto I have somehow missed every Summerliscious and Winterliscious.  I now feel terrible regret over this!  This year I have a resolution to take in as much of this city wide culinary celebration as possible.  On the opening day of this two week event, an old friend and I headed to our lunch reservation at Yorkville's Pangaea.  We were the first people in the dining room, eager and hungry.  They are offering a $20 lunch menu and $35 dinner menu for Summerlicious, which is a huge steal, normally a dinner ranges from $150-200.

We both started with the soup of the day, cream of asparagus.  I ordered mine without the lobster oil that you see here.  The soup was very light and refreshing with a bit of a lemon zip.  The asparagus flavour was amazing, woodsy and fresh.  It was like biting into an asparagus spear only in liquid form. 

I liked the way that we were served bread.  Our server brought around a basket and gave us one of each, olive boule and crusty white, 'so we wouldn't have to choose'.  He left us with a small round ramekin of lemony white bean spread.  Later in the meal he returned with the basket saying, 'have one more, this time you choose' and with it came more delicious spread.

My friend is a vegetarian, she ordered the risotto which was packed with summer mushrooms, leeks, cherry tomato halves, and although the menu says olive oil, we were both sure we tasted truffle oil.  It was amazing and quite a large portion too.  K's now worried that the bar has been raised too high and she won't be able to enjoy risotto in the future and I'd agree that that's a totally rational fear.

I had the lamb saddle roulade which came herb crusted, on sherry macerated mixed bean salad with a 3 day lamb reduction.  The menu said something about horseradish, but I didn't realize until afterward that I didn't get any.  In any case there was nothing to complain about.  The lamb was done to a perfect medium rare and the bean salad was so springy it was inspiring.

Looking at the dessert photos is making my mouth water all over again.  This was the best dessert experience I've had in a while.  The white chocolate panna cotta, topped with whipped cream and poppy seed tuile came balanced on a cinnamon nest of kataifi (a middleastern shredded phyllo dough), which tasted like a fine dining version of shredded wheat.  It was surrounded by orange reduction and wild blueberry compote.  So many flavours and textures!  It was the kind of sensory overload that a good dessert should provide.

K had angel food cake with Niagra apricots, strawberries and cherries which came surrounded by creme anglais.  The restaurant had filled up by this point with the happy hum of business people and ladies who lunch.  Although we passed on wine, we felt giddy with satisfaction, laughing and talking over tea and the remainder of our desserts. 

Many Torontonians complain that Summerliscious results in restaurants dolling out small portions and bad service.  This was not our experience at all.  It was a great foray for us into the restaurants of Yorkville, which we usually would not be able to afford.  Since going I have told countless people about how good it was.  As far as I can tell Summerlicious is a clever promotion that works.

 

Lychee Fruit

Before last night I'd only had canned lychee fruit by way of my favourite martini.  When I saw them at the grocery store I thought I'd give them a try.  They remind me of sonic the hedge hog, when he's all balled up.  They're pink and prickly outside, inside they look like an eyeball without an iris. 

You open them by sticking your thumb nail in right below the stem and peeling away the skin.  Then tear in one spot and remove the pit.  Roll it back into shape to serve.

 

The flavour is floral and sweet, a little bit like honey.  The texture is different than anything I have experienced.  It is something like a grape but more dense and rubbery with a thin harder layer where the pit was.  Hmm, that doesn't sound very appetizing.  Trust me they're delicious and apparently full of vitamin C.  Although I will continue to eat them soaked in vodka, from now on I'll also be eating them fresh.

Epicurious has several lychee recipes, including one for martinis!

The Lakeview EST. 1932

This is The Lakeview Burger; 6oz naturally raised beef, peameal bacon, sauteed wild mushrooms, and cheddar cheese.  Top that with lettuce, onion, pickle and a sesame bun and you have a glorious meal.  You can get this baby with fresh cut fries or house salad and a side of Asian coleslaw for $12.

I've been to The Lakeview several times since it has re-opened under new ownership, for brunch and for late night snacks.  I always get good service and the food has never disappointed.  One of my favourites is the Freedom Toast; brie and peameal stuffed french toast that will blow your socks off. It's the kind of place where the milkshakes taste just as they should, if you know what I mean.  That's to say nothing of the space, an uber cool refurbished 1930's diner filled with Ossington hipsters, both dining and serving.

There was something different about this burger though.  I went with a party of 6 for brunch before heading to the pride parade.  (So maybe it was the great company?!)  I have never eaten non 'breakfast food' for my first meal of the day, and I rarely crave anything with ground meat, but with a stomach recuperating from a night out and knowing that we had another night ahead of us, I was needing something greasy.  When I read the description I just knew it would be the perfect thing.

First of all, if your thinking of trying this beaute be prepared to open your mouth wider than you ever have before.  Be prepared to get a little mustard on your chin.  Realize that you probably won't be able to finish the whole plate (I didn't even try the coleslaw, I figured it would just be like empty calories).  I was committed to this thick juicy tasty burger with it's rosemary essence and it's soft bun.  I was urged on by my brunch mates during weak moments, when I thought I couldn't finish it.  I soldiered on.  With a few bites to go I realized that my satisfaction had reached it's precipice and if I ate one more bite it would put me over the hump into discomfort.  I put her down, wiped my hands and ordered another $3 mimosa in her honour.

Michael Jackson Thriller Pops

We are the world, we are the children, and you taught us how to dance and shout, shake our bodies down to the ground.  Because you were a pop icon...  This off the wall frozen treat is an ode to you.

ABC, it's easy as...

1.  Put softened dark chocolate ice cream and pop rocks in a bowl and beat it, just beat it until combined.  Form into desired shape.  Insert popsicle stick and freeze.

2.  Repeat.  Don't stop 'til you get enough.

3.  Melt marshmallows with a bit of butter and spread out on parchment paper.  Wrap each thriller pop in marshmallow. Freeze again.

 

Here's to you Michael.  Cheers.