Sweet Treat: Lemon Panna Cotta with Balsamic-Scented Strawberries

When it comes to dessert, I'm more of a cheese girl.  Give me a nibble or two of Comté , tempt my palate with Piave, let me get cosy with an award-winning Canadian clothbound cheddar.  Savoury over sweet has always held sway with me.

But even so, I do indulge in sweet treats, and more than occasionally.  When I do, it's the rich-creamy-whipped-cream variety that has the most appeal.  Simple is best; and if the dessert has lemon, it goes up a decided notch.  When I first had this gorgeous lemony panna cotta at a friend's house, I knew it would immediately become part of my repetoire.  Three steps, and a bit of planning, and I have a delicious treat that gives me pause before reaching for the cheese tray.

Lemon Panna Cotta
serves 8

This make ahead dessert is light, so it's perfect after a rich meal.  Served in pretty cups instead of ramekins, it becomes a beautiful centrepiece for a brunch gathering.  Top the panna cotta with fresh strawberries scented with balsamic vinegar.

1 envelope unflavoured gelatin
¼ c cold water
⅔ c sugar
2 c whipping cream, divided
⅓ c lemon juice
1 tbsp grated lemon peel
1 tbsp vanilla bean paste
1 c Greek style yogurt

1. Sprinkle gelatin over cold water in a small saucepan. Let sit five minutes. Warm gently until gelatin dissolves.

2. In another medium saucepan, gently heat sugar and half the cream. Cook just until sugar dissolves. Stir in lemon juice, peel and vanilla paste. Whisk in dissolved gelatin and cool 10 minutes. Whisk in remaining cream and yogurt.

Lots of lemony peel give the panna cotta a wonderful zing

Be sure to use thick Greek style yogurt - this is not the time to go for low fat

3. Divide mixture between 8 ramekins. Chill until set, at least two hours.

Our teacup collection is the perfect receptacle for the panna cotta

Balsamic-Scented Strawberries

While the panna cotta is chilling, prepare a fresh strawberry topping.

1½ c fresh strawberries, hulled and quartered
2 tsp balsamic vinegar
2 tsp sugar (more to taste)

Mix the berries, vinegar and sugar in a bowl. Set aside to macerate. When ready to serve the panna cotta, spoon some berries and their juices on top of each dish.

Pretty cups for a pretty dessert

Discovering Japan: Creamy Edamame Soup with Shichimi-Togarashi

Tokyo is a weird and wonderful place. On the surface, it shouldn't work as well as it does.  Millions of people crowded into a very tiny space.  Incomprehensive street addresses (every taxi driver struggles to find your destination, GPS working overtime, map scrutinized at every light).  A subway system that spiders all over the city in a confusing web of intersecting lines.  No English signs in sight, and barely more "English spoke here" places.  What pulls it all together is the Japanese themselves.  Unfailingly courteous and interested, the Japanese make strangers feel welcome and cared for.  Even if you're not 'xactly sure what you're eating. 

Barbecued eel for lunch, in a restaurant that served nothing but

There are so many things to love about Tokyo, but what I love most is the reverence with which food is held. The Japanese worship at the altar of seasonality, each piece of fruit, each specialty food item sacred. Food is not merely sustenance; it’s something to be savoured, appreciated, each meal a leisurely exploration of every taste.

Wasabi grating in action at Seamon

Nowhere is this reverence more apparent than in the hundreds of tiny food shops that dot the city. Many have been in business for decades, honing their expertise in either crafting or choosing the very best. Many sell just one thing – a certain type of pickled plum, say, or Japanese omelettes (come early – the shop closes when the omelettes are gone).  On a recent trip to Tokyo, and with Food Sake Tokyo* as our bible, we set out on the trail to find culinary treats to take home. Musk melons at $250.00 were out of the question (and, yes, that’s not an incorrect decimal point!), as was fresh wasabi, seen grated a la minute at sushi counters throughout the city.

About $250USD for two - and perfect in every way

Fresh wasabi - slightly more reasonable at about $16USD

Spices seemed like a good bet, and how could we not visit Yagenbori, in business since 1625, and the proud originators and purveyors of Shichimi-Togarashi? This wonderfully complex seven spice blend gives dishes deeply subtle nuances of flavour.  It's a medium-spicy blend of seven ingredients: black sesame seeds; the dried peel of the unshu mikan (Satsuma orange); Japanese sansho pepper; dried capsicum; roasted dry capsicum; hemp seeds and poppy seeds.

The delicious mixture for Shichimi-Togarashi

While your spices are being packaged you can choose a traditional wooden shaker

I knew exactly what I wanted to try it on when I got home – my attempt to recreate a cold and creamy edamame soup I had in Tokyo that was so so good. The soup turned out to be incredibly easy, and with fresh edamame still available at the farmers’ market (and frozen a grocery store away), edamame soup is as easy as one-two-three.

Creamy Edamame Soup
serves 4-6

Edamame beans, fresh or frozen, enough to yield two cups shelled
1 shallot, sliced
2 c chicken soup stock
½ tbsp vegetable oil
1½ c fresh buttermilk or skim milk
1 tbsp fresh butter
Salt and pepper to taste
Shichimi-togarashi for garnish (optional - you can order it here)

1. Boil edamame beans. Shell edamame and also remove the fine skin on the beans. While this may seems like an additional step, it will yield an ultra smooth soup.

2. Heat oil in a saucepan and sauté shallots. Add chicken soup stock and edamame, bring to a boil, and simmer for 30 minutes on low heat.

3. Puree the edamame beans, and put back into the saucepan. Add the buttermilk and butter. Simmer for 5 minutes on low heat. Add butter, salt, and pepper to season.

Fresh edamame beans - beautiful variations of colour

The buttermilk yield from homemade butter

Final step to soup...

This rich, delicious and nutritious soup is fabulous served either warm or cold. Serve it in small cups as a starter, or in shot glasses for a wonderfully different appetiser.

A taste of Japan

*If you visit Tokyo, you need a personal guide to help you navigate. The newly published Food Sake Tokyo is all you will need. A carefully edited and lovingly assembled collection of all things food, chef and former depachica sommelier Yukari Sakamoto turns even the shortest trip to Tokyo into a culinary adventure. Check out her blog for up to the minute tips and tastes.

Can-O-Rama: Italian Tomato Sauce

While September may signal back to school for most, for me it’s indelibly linked with something else – the smell of tomato sauce. September meant bushels of tomatoes in the backyard, the back porch spread with even more to further ripen in the sun; huge pots bubbling on the stoves in the kitchen and the basement; jar after gleaming jar filling the tiny kitchen table; and most of all, my parents, working as a tag team, up early and well into the night, conversation sparse, focused on the task at hand.

After trying plum jam with success, it seemed time to honour my parents’ memory by making my own tomato sauce.  And, like my parents, it was a team effort, me and Rich both chopping, stirring, and tasting the afternoon away.  For such a simple thing, there are seemingly a million ways to make the sauce, all sanctioned by legions of Italian nonnas.  I'm looking forward to perfecting our very own tried and tested technique in the years to come.

Italian Tomato Sauce
makes approx 6 litres

This excellent sauce will form the essential basis to any great tomato or meat sauce. It’s deliberately salt and seasoning free, the better to leave a blank canvas upon which you can create your own sauce masterpieces.

Tomato Sauce Ingredients:
1 bushel San Marzano or Roma tomatoes

Citric acid, ½ tsp for each 1 litre jar
1 large bunch fresh basil (optional)

We searched high and low for San Marzano tomatoes - the ultimate plum tomato

Equipment:
Before plunging into sauce making, prep your equipment. You may want to have a jar or two extra on hand in case your tomatoes yield more.  This website provides a great "Canning 101" and will give you lots more information if you're interested.

Here’s what you’ll need:

• 8 1 litre Mason jars
• 8 jar lids and screw bands
• Tongs
• Canning funnel
• A stockpot to cook the sauce. I used a 14 litre capacity pot, and had to make the tomatoes in two batches. Depending on your budget and ambition, you can scale up or down.
• A canner to seal the jars

Tongs, jars and a canning funnel: canning essentials

1. Prep your equipment. Clean and sterilise your jars by washing them in warm soapy water and rinsing thoroughly; putting the through a quick wash cycle in the dishwasher is even easier and ensures sterilization. Set aside on a clean tea towel.

2. Wash and sort tomatoes. Trim, core and cut into quarters.

3. Put two cups of tomato quarters into an oversized stockpot. Bring to a boil. Using a potato masher, crush the tomatoes to release the juices.

4. Add more tomato quarters, two cups at a time, bringing to boil and crushing as before. Continue adding tomatoes until your pot reaches capacity. You may need to cook the tomatoes in two batches. At this point, cook an additional ten minutes until the tomatoes are completely soft. Cool slightly.

5. Pass the tomatoes through a food mill to separate the seeds and the skin from the puree. Put the tomato puree back into the stockpot (be sure to rinse the pot of any stray seeds or skin). Bring to a boil, reduce heat slightly, and continue to cook at a rolling boil until the puree is reduced by a third (about one to one and half hours). For a thicker sauce, continue boiling until reduced by half.

6. While the puree is cooking, finish prepping your canning equipment. Wash the lids and the bands. Keep the lids hot in a small pot of simmering water. Fill your canner with water, add the clean Mason jars, and put on the stove over medium high heat to begin heating the water. The water will eventually need to be brought to a boil.

7. When the sauce is ready, you’re ready to can! Using the tongs, carefully lift a jar out of the canner, emptying the water back into the canner. Set the hot jar on a tea towel and place a sprig of basil in the jar. (Note: my mother always slipped a sprig of basil in each jar, but that strong oils will definitely change the flavour profile of your sauce.  For pure tomato goodness, eliminate the basil).

8. Place the funnel on top of the jar and put a ladleful of hot sauce into the jar. Add ½ tsp citric acid and continue filling the jar, stopping ½ inch from the top.

9. Run a small spatula or skewer around the inside of the jar to release any air bubbles. Wipe the top of the jar to remove any bits of sauce.

10. Carefully remove a hot lid from the pot and place firmly on the jar. Screw a band on until just fingertip tight. Place the jar back in the canner ran proceed with remaining jars.

11. Once the jars are all done, bring the water in the canner to a boil, ensuring the water is at least one inch above the tops of the jars. When the water boils, cover the canner and process the jars for 40 minutes.

12. Take the jars out carefully with tongs and place on a tea towel. Let rest for 24 hours and test to ensure the seal is firm.

Buon appetito!

Summer Cornucopia: Heirloom Tomato and Grilled Corn Salad with Marjoram

The dog days of summer are here, and as hot sultry August becomes September, the hot days are redeemed by the abundance of the season.  Although shrink-wrapped corn is available year round, it's only now that I want to buy the crunchy, milky ears.  And while it's dead simple to boil an ear or two and douse them with butter and salt, these beauties deserve a gourmet treatment.

Paired with über ripe heirloom tomatoes, dabs of lemony scented sheep's milk cheese and fresh marjoram, this salad is super easy and addictive.

Tomato and Grilled Corn Salad with Marjoram
serves four

4 large leaves butter lettuce
3 ears of corn, silk and husks removed
1 dozen heirloom cherry tomatoes
2-3 medium heirloom tomatoes; choose red, orange, yellow
¼ c olive oil
½ tbsp sherry vinegar
½ tsp fine sea salt, more to taste
Coarse black pepper to taste
⅛ c chopped fresh marjoram, plus a sprig or two for garnish
½ c soft sheep or goat milk cheese (I used Blossom from Monforte Dairy; if you can find a soft cheese with lemon zest, try it - it will give your salad a subtle zing)

1.  Line a platter with the lettuce leaves and set aside.

2.  Grill the ears of corn until they are lightly charred.  Cool, cut the kernels off and place in a medium bowl.

3.  Add the cherry tomatoes, cutting the larger ones in two, and add to the corn.  Add half the olive oil, sherry vinegar, salt and pepper and toss lightly to combine.  Spread the mixture over the platter.

4.  Slice the larger heirloom tomatoes and place them on top of the tomato-corn mixture.  Dab the cheese on top, drizzle the remaining olive oil over the platter, and sprinkle a bit more salt on top of the sliced tomatoes.  Garnish with marjoram sprigs and serve.

Summer never tasted so good

Plum Crazy: Rich and Delicious Plum Jam

My mother was the queen of preserving. It followed along with her inbred philosophy of using everything and wasting nothing, born from a childhood of barely modest means and hard work. We rarely bought canned anything: tomato sauce came from a Mason jar in the basement, pickles were at the ready, plum jam a year-round staple.

That plum jam seems to play in my memory the most. Rich, gooey and delicious, we used it for everything from thick buttered pieces of Italian bread to stuffing for dessert gnocchi. After a recent attempt at making pierogis, I was inspired to finally try my own version of plum jam, taking advantage of in-season Italian plums. The results were exactly right: as sticky sweet and satisfying as I remember.

Italian Plum Jam
yields 5-6 cups

Without a recipe to follow, I did a quick search online and found that most plum jams are nothing more than plums, sugar and pectin. While I had the jars, the plums and the sugar, I hadn't thought about buying pectin, so this version doesn't use any. This recipe from Taste Hungary provided the inspiration.

Approx 4 lb Italian plums*
8 oz sugar (by weight)
Juice of one lemon
1 cup water (optional)

* For the amount of effort it takes to make the jam, the next time around I'll be using lots more plums and adjusting the sugar accordingly. Stay tuned for details!

Equipment you'll need:

Large heavy non-reactive stockpot
Canning pot or oversized stockpot
Mason jars (4 oz or 8 oz size)
New lids and screwtops
Canning tongs
Canning funnel

Tools of the trade

1. Wash, half and pit the plums. Place in a large, heavy non-reactive stockpot (my Le Creuset was perfect), add the sugar, water if using and the lemon juice. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly to avoid sticking.

2. While the plums are cooking, prepare the Mason jars. Wash the jars and lids in warm soapy water and rinse thoroughly. In a large canning pot (or regular oversized stockpot), place the clean jars, submerge in water and bring to a simmering boil until ready to use.

3. The jam is ready when the plums are completely soft and the liquid has become very thick and syrupy. It took about 3 hours for my 4 lb of plums; probably less time would be required if I hadn't added the water.

Almost ready!

4. To test if the jam is ready to can, place a small saucer in the freezer. When the jam seems to be the right consistency, place a spoonful on the plate and put back in the freezer for one minute. Run your finger through the jam on the plate: if the jam runs together, it's not ready; if the funnel you've created with your finger remains separate, the jam is ready to can.

Yum...

5. To can, first prepare the jars. Using the tongs, carefully lift and empty each jar of water, pouring the water back in the stockpot (keep the water simmering, replenishing if needed to ensure that the jars will be completely covered by one inch when placed back in the pot). Place on a clean tea towel.

6. When all of the jars are ready, you're ready to can! Place the funnel in a jar and carefully ladle the hot jam in, being careful to leave a ½" at the top. Wipe any excess jam off the top of the jar, place a lid on the jar, and put a metal band (threaded lid) on, turning so that the band is on securely but not too snugly.

7. Using the tongs, carefully place the filled jars back in the water, and bring to a boil. Be sure that the water is a generous 1 inch above the jars. Boil gently for 10 minutes, remove the jars with the tongs and place on the tea towel. Let the jam cool for 12 hours before storing. Your jam jars will "pop" as they are cooling: this is a good thing! It means the jar is properly sealed. Once the jars are cooled, you can test the seals in the following ways (source: pickyourown.org - see link below):

"Option 1: Press the middle of the lid with a finger or thumb. If the lid springs up when you release your finger, the lid is unsealed.

Option 2: Tap the lid with the bottom of a teaspoon. A clear ringing sound means a good seal. If it makes a dull sound, the lid is not sealed. If food is in contact with the underside of the lid, it will also cause a dull sound (that is not a problem or a sign of spoilage). If the jar is sealed correctly, it will make a ringing, high-pitched sound.

Option 3: Hold the jar at eye level and look across the lid. The lid should be concave (curved down slightly in the center). If center of the lid is either flat or bulging, it may not be sealed."

For more great tips and a detailed FAQ on home canning, see the Pick Your Own web site.

Happy canning!