kitchen Archives - Page 18 of 29

Thanksgiving Menu | GF Pumpkin Spice Bundt Cake with Maple Butter Icing

PHOTO BY GABRIELA HANSEN

I love the simple joy of having so many friends gather together around our table for our annual Harvest Gathering. Each person represents a unique perspective, diverse creativity and offers amazing gifts to the world.

As it turns out, my circle of friends makes me feel somewhat more “normal” when it comes to having food allergies and sensitivities. I have a lot of them, but try not to let them take centre stage in my life or in entertaining. I truly believe that being and eating healthy shouldn’t have to be a neurotic chore. So this year – in favour of my new gluten-free adventure as well as others around the table who cannot eat gluten – I reached out to the lovely people at Cup 4 Cup to see if they would allow me to experiment with their amazing gluten-free flour in my little kitchen. They most graciously obliged, and today’s recipe is the result of that loveliness.

The flour is just as it sounds: a true cup-for-cup substitute for regular flour. All I can say is, we were amazed. Truly, gratefully amazed. This flour works and tastes just like regular flour, and the end result was very satisfying. I’ve already gone to Williams Sonoma to restock and am delighted to have such an amazing alternative now in my culinary arsenal.

Here’s my take on a Harvest dessert that will please any of the friends and family gathered around your table, even the non-gluten-free variety.

I CHOSE BABY FOOD FOR THE APRICOT PUR´EE – INEXPENSIVE + JUST THE RIGHT AMOUNT!

OK, it’s Tuesday Confession Time {TCT}. My maple butter icing was a bit of a fail. The flavours were bang on, and it was the perfect match for the Pumpkin Spice Bundt Cake. That wasn’t the fail. It’s just that it was my first time making Maple Butter, and as it turns out it’s a bit of a finicky little number. It’s so truly Canadian that I had to try it {not to mention that I felt giddy at the thought of large quantities of the gorgeous, creamy confection in my fridge}, but my first batch was not my best batch. The truth is I’m not terrible bothered, as these kinds of culinary mishaps simply invite the opportunity to try again!

The secret {as I learned from the sweet maple farmer who sells his maple butter at The St. Lawrence Market on Saturdays} is to freeze the maple syrup overnight after you’ve boiled it before you whip it into the final butter. I merely cooled mine, so it was lacking the structure I expected from it and as such totally absorbed into the cake. Make no mistake, it tasted amazing! But it was not the look I was after.

PHOTO BY GABRIELA HANSEN

Needless to say, I am not a maple-butter-making expert quite yet, but I plan to attempt another batch very soon and will offer you my perfected recipe as soon as I have one! In the meantime, I suggest buying a tub of maple butter from the lovely farmer who has it on offer Saturday mornings at The St. Lawrence Market, OR you can join me in my quest and use this recipe as your jumping off point in search of maple butter perfection! Be sure to share all your tips and tricks in the comments below so we can all enjoy the glorious goodness of this truly Canadian treat!

PHOTO BY GABRIELA HANSEN

My most sincere thanks once again to Gabriela Hansen for sharing her delightful photos with us today. Wishing you all a warm + happy Tuesday!
xo
s.

By Sarah Walker The Curated House|November 13th, 2012|0 Comments

The Perfect Thanksgiving Turkey

Just looking at this beautiful photo, taken by my friend Gabriela Hansen, I can smell the warm, sweet and rich comfort of roasted turkey filling my home. What a glorious scent! I think the all-day event of cooking the bird is a part of the comfort of it. The ritual of regularly basting as the aroma becomes increasingly intoxicating only serves to build up our anticipation of gathering together around the table in thanks. It’s a part of why Thanksgiving is one of my family’s favourite times of the year.

I’ve been cooking my turkey the same way for years, and learned the secret to tender meat and caramelized skin from good old Martha Stewart herself. Here’s my take on Martha’s method.

We have a tradition of talking a brief walk in the woods during the last 30 minutes of the turkey’s roasting. It’s always wonderful to get out into the fresh air and sunshine, drinking in the beauty of nature and stretching our legs a bit before sitting down to our Thanksgiving feast. This year we had a particularly glorious day, and my heart was filled with gratitude at being surrounded by my amazing family and friends in such a beautiful place as Canada.

After the walk, it’s back to the house to reveal the gorgeous, caramelized bird with bundles of fresh herbs and lots of love.

The rich and hearty mix of flavours on our plates can only be rivalled by the richness of the love and friendship that surround our table. For me, that is what we celebrate each year at our Harvest Gathering. Filling our home with laughter and collaboration and food and friendship is truly the best way I can think of to remind ourselves of all that we have to celebrate.

I know I promised you a dessert recipe, and in fact I’ll share two with you! But you’ll have to wait until next week. Right now, I’m still intoxicated by the memory of this day and am swimming in gravy boats full of gratitude for the love I have in my life.

I cannot begin to express the gratitude I feel for Gabriela Hansen, the incredibly talented photographer who captured our Thanksgiving celebration together. Thank you, Gaby, for sharing your heart and your view on the world with us all. So thankful to know you and to have the privilege of working with you.

Wishing you all a weekend filled with time with your loved ones, celebrating what really matters. Hold each other close and enjoy the adventure!

xo
s.

By Sarah Walker The Curated House|November 9th, 2012|1 Comment

Thanksgiving Menu | Stuffing + Our Favourite Sides

Today I thought I would share with you some of our favourite side dishes and homemade condiments that adorn our Harvest Gathering dinner table each year. Like these two beautiful heirloom carrots who became intertwined over time, these simple dishes have become synonymous with Thanksgiving dinner for our family.

There is something comforting about the side dishes we eat at Thanksgiving. As a cook, I love experimentation and exploration, but there are certain dishes that are “not to be messed with” according to my family, and Thanksgiving Stuffing is one of them. The truth is, I make this side dish without a recipe every year, so I have my fingers crossed that I have actually managed to write it all down for you correctly! Once I’m in the zone of cooking, I am often driven by intuition and my senses of smell and taste, so please use yours as well when making this and adjust the herbs and balance of ingredients according to your palette. That said, the recipe below should help you approximate what has become a bit of a cult favourite amongst our family and friends.

I have experimented with making this stuffing with gluten-free bread and the honest-to-goodness truth is it doesn’t work. It’s mushy and unrecognizable and could start a riot amongst my family and friends expecting “the real thing.” My suggestion for those of us who are gluten-free? Cook up all of the ingredients together, and before you add the bread, set aside some of the mix of onions, bacon, apricots and apples with the herbs. The flavours are amazing and a scoop of that on the side of your plate is almost as good as the bread-laced version! Everybody wins.

OK, my next favourite side dish to share with you is another of our annual Thanksgiving traditions. But first, I have a confession to make. I don’t like cranberry sauce. I know, I know, it makes my connection to the original Pilgrims questionable and my citizenship as a Canadian tenuous. But I find the tartness dominates the flavours of my Thanksgiving meal and thus gave up on trying to like it years ago. So in place of the traditional cranberry sauce, I’ve added two rich and flavourful “condiments” that add depth of flavour without taking over the party in your mouth. The first is our Caramelized Balsamic Onions.

I’m always secretly hoping there will be some of the Caramelized Balsamic Onions left over for making sandwiches or adding on top of salads. It makes a divine addition to a cheese board, too. Like, moan-worthy with a good old English sharp cheddar. Yum.

Last but not least, I always make Roasted Garlic Butter each year, and it tends to be a surprise favourite with new guests each Autumn. It’s not much to look at once it’s finished, but the sweet, roasted richness of the garlic makes up for what this condiment might lack in the good looks department.

I just love the way the garlic bulb “skeletons” look once the cloves have been removed. The light was particularly gorgeous that day, showing off their translucency in the loveliest way such that I had to stop and take this shot for you!

So there you have it! 3 of our family’s favourite side dishes for one of our favourite gatherings of the year! Tomorrow I’ll share my secrets to a gorgeous, mouth-watering turkey as well as the recipe for a delicious and seasonal dessert.

Many thanks to the lovely and oh-so-talented Gabriela Hansen for contributing her beautiful photographic skills to this day and this post! What a joy to work with such delightful people.

Wishing you a flavourful and fragrant Thursday!

By Sarah Walker The Curated House|November 8th, 2012|1 Comment