Category Archives: General

The chef profession is changing and evolving, probably faster than ever before in history. No longer are chefs hidden away in their kitchens. Today, many are taking the profession and their career to unheard-of heights. TV cooking shows, culinary events like PEI’s Fall Flavors, the popularity of cookbooks written by accomplished chefs, and chefs who engage and interact with fans via social media have all contributed to giving many chefs celebrity status. One of those is Chef Ilona Daniel. If you are a foodie on Prince Edward Island, chances are that you are familiar with Chef Ilona. This is a chef who has had a multi-faceted career to date and is not afraid to think (and step) outside the box – in fact, I’d go so far as to say Chef Ilona doesn’t even know there is a box!

Following her educational experience at McMaster University, Ilona thought she was heading to law school when suddenly her life took a turn in another direction. If it hadn’t been for her taking the leap of faith to follow her passion and calling, chances are Ilona might not have become a chef.

Ilona grew up in Hamilton, Ontario, and learned the pleasure of fine cooking by standing at the kitchen counter by the stove as she watched her mom prepare meals. Cooking was an integral part of her entire being in her formative years and she attributes her mom as having a big influence on her love of cooking.

A chef now for 12 years, Ilona’s first job as a teenager was working in a burger joint at the age of 16. Even then, whether she knew it or not, her life’s path was already being charted in the food industry. After making the decision that law school was not her destiny, Ilona studied at the Canadian Food and Wine Institute in Niagara, Ontario. After completing her studies in Niagara, she was awarded a full scholarship for the Applied Degree in Culinary Operations at the Culinary Institute of Canada in Charlottetown, PEI, and was in the first graduating class from the two-year program. Like many others who have found their way to PEI, Ilona fell in love with the Island and decided to make it her home.

Since graduating from culinary school, Chef Ilona has had an incredibly varied career. She has been the Head Chef at the Stanhope Beach Resort, Interim Chef at Sims and Off Broadway Restaurants, Founding Chef at the Brickhouse, Executive Chef to the Lieutenant-Governor of PEI at Fanningbank, Executive Chef of Holland College’s Culinary Boot Camps, Resident Food Scene Writer for G Magazine, and Culinary Instructor at the PC Cooking School at the local Superstore. And, that’s not all. This fall, she was the Culinary Expert for the PEI2014 Roadshow that travelled across Canada to promote the planned events in PEI in 2014 to celebrate the 150^th anniversary of the Charlottetown Conference that led to the creation of Canada. Perhaps you may have seen Chef Ilona on one of several morning TV shows. Most recently, Chef Ilona has started her own Catering and Consulting Business — Tribe Fresh Cookery. This is a gal who likes to be busy!

Shucking lobsters live on Global BC Morning Show

Out of this impressive resume, I asked Chef Ilona which job was the most interesting. Her response was starting her own business because she is building it from the ground up. Her most challenging job was working at the Stanhope Beach Resort because it was a seasonal operation so it meant every year was starting all over again with new staff to be trained quickly. The job that surprised her the most was being Executive Chef to PEI’s Lieutenant-Governor. In this role, she prepared food for many events and functions that included a number of award ceremonies to honour Islanders who were making a difference to their communities. This allowed her to see what a generous and giving community PEI really is. While in this role, Ilona became the first chef at Fanningbank to use social media to tell the story of what food was being prepared for their Honours and for events. Chef Ilona says her most fulfilling job has been her role as Executive Chef of the Culinary Boot Camps. Chef Ilona particularly enjoys the Kids Camps where they are shown how to grow vegetables and make their own food. It’s an opportunity to influence the next generation to eat well.

Teaching at the Kids Culinary Camp at the Culinary Institute of Canada in Charlottetown, PEI

Chef Ilona’s philosophy in cooking is to “cook with love and don’t be afraid to be different”. She says “there are Chefs whose food can be executed but not necessarily made with passion”. She does not follow trends but rather follows her heart and takes the road less traveled. Her belief is that food should be natural and real. As she says, “good food inspires conversation and doesn’t have to be complicated; use the best local ingredients executed with flawless technique and care about what you are doing”.

I asked Chef Ilona what inspires the recipes and menus she creates. First, she says she needs to know who her audience is. She makes a point of respecting any dietary concerns they may have and is excited to be creative to cook interesting and tasty foods that meet their dietary requirements.

Gluten-free Boston Cream Pies Prepared for a Function at Fanningbank, home of the Lieutenant-Governor of PEI

Second, she likes to play on nostalgia, conjuring up memories like the tantalizing scent of apple pie, for example, that will lead to good conversation which goes hand-in-hand with dining. Third, she respects the cultural roots of the region and is creative when cooking with the foods local to the region.

Telling the Truth About Male and Female Lobsters

With so many prepared, frozen, and ready-to-go meals on the market today, I asked Chef Ilona why there seems to have been a resurgence in home cooking in the past few years. She believes it is attributable to a number of health issues, including highly publicized food-born illnesses that were caused by contaminated food. This has caused consumers to be more concerned about buying modified foods that are full of preservatives and, instead, they are becoming more health-conscious and so are turning to making their own meals.

What’s next for Chef Ilona? She tells me she is working on a cookbook and exploring the possibility of filming some TV cooking shows. In the short-term, she is busy getting her Catering and Consulting business up and running. Ever thinking outside the box, Chef Ilona is offering what she calls “Kitchen Party Cooking Classes”. This is where she will come to your home and teach you and a small group of friends how to interactively cook a particular dish – e.g., sushi, gourmet pizza, pies, etc. This is way to engage foodies and get them participating in food preparation, all in the comfort of their own home. What a great idea for a girls night out, a bachelorette party, or just a get-together for no other reason other than good conversation and food. If you are interested in having Chef Ilona cater to your event or customize a Kitchen Party Cooking Class, contact her at 902-316-0993 or by email at chef.ilona.daniel@gmail.com

Before we ended our chat, I asked Chef Ilona to answer some short snapper questions:

1. What is the one kitchen tool/gadget you can’t live without?

Can’t pick just one – have the “fast five” – Chef’s knife, small serrated paring knife, a Swiss peeler, a microplane, and a good quality cutting board.

2. What is your all time favorite food?

Pizza – any kind!

3. What is the one non-culinary factoid about Chef Ilona that people might not know about?

I’m a hippie at heart – I like nature and will actually, “stop and smell the roses.”

4. What do you do when you are not cooking?

I like reading, nature hikes, listening to music, and going to concerts.

5. What is your favorite recipe featuring an Island product? Care to share it?

Swedish Potato Casserole. It uses PEI potatoes and PEI-produced Cows Creamery cheese. (Recipe follows)

Swedish Potato Casserole

3 tbsp fresh thyme
2 tsp mace (or nutmeg)
6 eggs, beaten
3 cups Whipping Cream
½ cup flour
1 tbsp kosher salt
2 lb grated Yukon Gold Potatoes
2 cups Cows Aged Cheddar, grated

As you preheat your oven to 375 (use convection baking if you have that option), preheat your 4-6 quart baking dish with 4-6 tbsp butter in the oven.

Whisk thoroughly, the first 6 ingredients together(approximately 3 minutes). Stir in the potatoes. Pour mixture into the hot casserole dish. QUICKLY top with cheese, and place back into oven immediately.

Bake for 45 minutes.

Waiting for Lobsters to Cook in the Sandpit

Keep an eye on this rising celebrity chef as she progresses in her career. Chef Ilona is very creative, brimming with ideas and personality, and she’s going places in her chosen career!

Thank you for visiting “the Bistro” today.

Be sure to visit my Facebook page at My Island Bistro Kitchen. You may also wish to follow me on twitter @PEIBistro, on Pinterest at “Island Bistro Kitchen”, and on Instagram at PEIBistro.

Entrées/Main Dishes, Field Trips, General, Out and About, Recipes, Vegetables

From Field to Table: Potato Growing and Harvesting in Prince Edward Island

November 7, 2013 Barbara99 1 Comment

[UPDATE TO THIS STORY: Since this story was published in 2013, Lori Robinson has switched from growing potatoes to grains on her farm and, as such, is no longer growing potatoes. The story, however, remains a good depiction of what goes in to getting potato seed in the ground and how the potato ends up on your dinner table.]

Part of my objective with this food blog is to showcase food products produced on PEI and the producers and farmers behind them. In this story, I will introduce you to Lori Robinson, a fifth generation PEI potato farmer. Lori is Farm Manager at Eric C. Robinson Inc. in Albany, PEI.

I hope that this feature story will shed a little light on just where the bags of potatoes that you pick up at the supermarket come from or where the potatoes that go into making potato chips originate.

For the land mass size of our Province, PEI produces a lot of potatoes. According to the Prince Edward Island Potato Board, there were 89,000 acres of potatoes grown on PEI in 2013. The Board tells me there were approximately 45 varieties grown in commercial quantities and more than double that amount when those that are being grown in test plots or market gardens or for limited specialty markets are included. An economic impact study completed a little over a year ago determined that the potato industry is worth just over a billion dollars annually to the PEI economy directly and in spin-off effects.[1]

Individual potato farms on PEI range in size. The Robinson farm grows around 500 acres of potatoes annually in rotation with soybeans, barley, and forages. For the past five months, I have been following Lori from the time she planted the spuds in the ground back in May to their harvesting in October and ending with the washing and packaging process that is now, at the time of writing, underway at the farm.

Let’s begin by finding out what led Lori in her career choice to become a potato farmer. I think it would be fair to say that Lori grew up with potato farming in her bloodline. Her great, great grandfather began growing potatoes in Augustine Cove, PEI, in the early 1800s and successive generations have continued the tradition. She says her decision “to become a potato farmer was part tradition, part general interest in all things science based, and part desire to work with other members of her family in a family-owned and operated business in PEI”. By the time Lori was in her mid to late teens, she knew what her career path would be – she would study agriculture at university and become a farmer.

Lori holds a Bachelor of Science in Agriculture from the University of Guelph where she majored in Agriculture Business. While Lori will be the first to tell you her university degree did not specifically teach her much about growing potatoes (she learned that by doing), her education did teach her how to think critically, solve problems, and manage human and financial resources. These are all skills useful to today’s commercial farmers. Farming is much more than planting seed in the ground and waiting for the produce to grow.

In 2013, Lori grew 15 different varieties of potatoes. This year, 35% of their crop will be used to make potato chips at Frito Lay, 20% will be used for seed, and 45% will be for table stock – the ones that will make it on to our dinner tables. The seed potatoes will be used to plant the farm’s crop next year and also to sell to other potato growers. The potatoes in the large storage bin behind Lori in the photo below are next year’s Norland seed.

Today’s commercial potato farming is very scientific and controlled. Lori points out that “seed potatoes must be inspected in the field by Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) agents and then tested in an accredited laboratory to ensure that disease levels (viruses) are below a certain percentage before the seed receives certification to be replanted the following year”. It is interesting to note that seed potatoes can be used as table stock but table stock potatoes cannot be used as seed.

The Island spuds will travel. Lori’s farm sells both the seed potatoes and table stock in Canada and the United States while the “chipstock” (those used to make potato chips) will be sold in Canada and the United States as well as in Indonesia, Thailand, and Guatemala. You just never know where you might be eating an Island potato!

All professions have their challenges as well as their sources of satisfaction. Lori says her biggest challenge is finding an adequate number of staff to work on the farm and in their packing house. She currently employs 14 year-round, full time staff and 4-5 seasonal employees from late September to late June. In terms of job satisfaction as a potato farmer, Lori has this to say: “Harvesting a good crop of high-quality potatoes that I eventually see in our local Superstores provides me with a great sense of satisfaction. No two years in potato farming are ever alike. Many new challenges come up every year, every growing season. There is always something new to learn about farming. The need to overcome these challenges to remain successful and the desire to learn new things are what motivate me and make me passionate about my job as a potato farmer.”

Lori has been potato farming for 20 years, continuing on in a long line of successful potato farmers in her family. I asked her what she attributes the success of her potato farm to. She says her predecessors “recognized the importance of good land stewardship in order to achieve the balance between economic viability and environmental sustainability”. Lori has carried on these traditions and philosophy while adding a few of her own ideas along the way to maintain the success of their potato farming operation and carry it into the future.

Lori is very much a hands-on farmer. She actually gets on a tractor and works in the fields herself in the spring doing land preparation work that occurs prior to planting. On May 29, 2013, when I arrived at a huge long field waiting to be planted in North Carleton, PEI, I found Lori and her crew planting Dakota Pearl potatoes. That’s Lori up on the planter on the right-hand side checking to make sure things are working as intended.

The farm operates with 7 John Deere tractors, 1 planter, 2 sprayers, 7 tandem trucks, 2 windrowers, 1 harvester, and 3 telescopic pilers.

Farm sizes and farming methods and machinery have changed over the years for sure. I asked Lori what she sees as the biggest changes in potato farming over the years. For her, one change really stands out – input costs for potato farming continually increase while the price farmers receive for the potatoes is relatively unchanged from the days when her grandfather sold potatoes. She also says that a big change has been in the advancement of technology, mainly in the use of GPS for field operations. Lori also notes that, while the Robinson farm has remained relatively the same size since she started farming 20 years ago, most well-established farms on PEI have grown larger at the expense of a number of smaller farms going out of business due to financial strain or lack of a succession plan.

So, let’s look at the timeline of the potato season at the Robinson farm on PEI.

May 29, 2013 – Planting

Potato Seed (aka potato sets) — Potato Seed

It all begins with the potato seed for this field of Dakota Pearl variety.

Loading the Setter with Seed — Loading the Planter with Seed

And, well-tilled fertile soil.

And a planter full of potato seed along with some fertilizer.

A good John Deere tractor helps, too!

And, the seed is in the ground!

June 20, 2013 – Fertilizing and Hilling

Field work continues through the growing season to ensure a good crop of potatoes (yes, that’s the Confederation Bridge in the background and, yes, PEI soil really is that red!).

July 2, 2013 – Potato Plants Growing

By early July, there is evidence that the potato plants are growing well – look at that gorgeous emerald green color against the rich red soil of PEI!

July 20, 2013 – Potato Blossoms

A drive by the field in mid-July reveals that the Dakota Pearls are out in blossom!

The field is abloom with white blossoms that have tiny bright yellow centers.

This is a super long field!

September 30, 2013 – Harvesting

By September 30th, harvesting was underway on the Robinson farm. On this day, I found the crew harvesting the Norland variety (deep red-skinned potatoes) in Albany, not far from the Confederation Bridge.

Two windrowers (one two-row and one four-row) were working the field in advance of the harvester, and moving the freshly-dug potatoes over into the drills where the harvester would pick them up while digging two more rows of potatoes itself at the same time.

This means that the harvester is picking up a total of eight rows of potatoes as it moves down the field.

The harvest days are long and dependent upon good weather and, of course, no mechanical breakdowns.

Once the truck is full of spuds, it heads to the warehouse and an empty truck comes alongside the harvester to be filled as they move in tandem down the long drills of potatoes.

At the warehouse, the spuds are offloaded from the truck on to the conveyer belt that takes them into a small grading house just outside the warehouse where three employees remove any stones, plant particles, or damaged or spoiled potatoes.

From there, via conveyer belt to a bin piler, the potatoes make their way into a huge warehouse that is divided off into separate bins for the different varieties of potatoes.

In the photo below, the man is standing on top of 1/2 million pounds of potatoes in order to insert a temperature probe down into the pile of potatoes to monitor any significant rises in temperature in the middle of the pile which would signal attention needed.

The warehouse is temperature-controlled to maintain the freshness and quality of the potatoes.

By the end of the first day of harvest, 3/4 million pounds of potatoes will have been dug and stored in the warehouse.

Three different sizes of the red potatoes dug on this day will be destined for different uses. The smallest on the lower left of the photo below are mainly sold for restaurant trade where they would be roasted or baked. The next size up are sold in 2 lb or 3 lb bags to grocery stores. Consumers would typically purchase these potatoes to use for roasting or baking at home. The largest of the three sizes are sold in 5 lb poly and 10 lb paper bags to grocery store chains in Canada and the United States for sale mostly as baking potatoes.

In the photo below you can see some of the freshly dug Norlands I brought home with me after my field visit. You’ll find the recipe I used them in at the end of this posting.

Early November, 2013

Before the potatoes make their way to market, they are graded, washed, and packaged on the farm.

Once the potatoes are packaged, they are ready for shipping to markets.

Pallet of Potatoes Graded, Washed, and Packed Ready for Shipping

Small Bags of Potatoes Ready for Grocery Stores

Working with potatoes day in and day out, I was curious as to Lori’s favourite potato dishes. She tells me her favourite way to serve potatoes is to simply toss some small red potatoes with olive oil and herbs and roast them in the oven. She also likes the potato lasagne recipe found on the Prince Edward Island Potatoes Website.

There is nothing like fresh produce straight from the rich red soil of PEI. The day I visited the Robinson farm during harvesting season in early October, I brought some of the Norlands home with me. These beautiful red-skinned variety potato with white flesh are a multi-use potato (they are good boiled, roasted, baked, in salads, and scalloped). I am presenting them here in my favourite old-fashioned scalloped potatoes recipe.

[1] Source: Prince Edward Island Potato Board, 30 October 2013

My Island Bistro Kitchen’s Old-fashioned Scalloped Potatoes

1¾ lbs. potatoes (about 3 medium-sized), peeled and sliced about 1/8” thick

1 medium onion, sliced in rings

1½ cups milk

1 tsp liquid chicken bouillon

½ tsp Dijon mustard

2 tbsp flour or cornstarch

Pinch nutmeg

Salt and pepper, to taste

3 tbsp melted butter

½ cup grated cheddar cheese

Paprika

Method:

Preheat oven to 350F.

Assemble ingredients.

Spray or grease a 1½-quart casserole.

Place a layer of sliced potatoes in casserole.

Add a layer of sliced onions.

Repeat potato and onion layers to fill casserole.

In microwaveable bowl, whisk together the milk, chicken bouillon, Dijon mustard, flour or cornstarch, nutmeg, salt, and pepper. Microwave for about a minute, then stir and add the melted butter and 2½ – 3 tbsp. grated cheese. Microwave 1-2 minutes, just until mixture is heated and starts to thicken slightly, stirring once or twice.

Pour warm sauce over the potatoes and onions in the casserole.

Sprinkle with remaining grated cheese and paprika.

Bake, covered, for about 1 hour. Remove cover and continue to bake until potatoes are fork tender, about 20 minutes, or so. Remove from oven and let sit 10-15 minutes before serving. Serves 4-6.

Serve with ham and your favorite side vegetable.

Tips:

Using whole milk or a blend of whole milk and cream will make creamier scalloped potatoes.

Removing the cover during the latter part of the baking process will give the scalloped potatoes a nice crust on top.

Scalloped potatoes have a tendency to boil out of the casserole. To avoid a messy oven clean-up job, place a piece of tin foil on a large baking pan and set the casserole on it. Lightly spraying the tin foil will also make it easier to remove the casserole from the baking pan should the contents bubble out.

My thanks to Lori Robinson for allowing me to follow her potato operation over the past season and for answering my multitude of questions.

Thank you for visiting “the Bistro” today.

Be sure to visit my new Facebook page at My Island Bistro Kitchen. You may also wish to follow me on twitter @PEIBistro and on Pinterest at “Island Bistro Kitchen”.

General, Jams, Recipes

Zucchini Jam

November 2, 2013 Barbara99

Zucchini is one vegetable that seems to grow prolifically. Come fall and many gardeners have an abundance of zucchini they don’t know what to do with. Zucchini, because it doesn’t have a particularly strong flavor, is actually a very versatile veggie that can be used in cakes, cookies, muffins, and jams as it lends itself to pairing well with other flavors like chocolate and citrus flavors, for example.

Another recipe I like to use fresh zucchini in is this one for Zucchini Jam. It is a great spread on toast, biscuits, muffins and scones, or as a dollop on vanilla custard for an easy dessert. Its bright orange color makes it a showy jam. Continue reading Zucchini Jam →

Cookie of the Month, Cookies, General, Recipes

Plum Puff Cookies

October 22, 2013 Barbara99

Plum Puff Cookies

Plum Puff Cookies are hearty cookies because each one is actually two cookies sandwiched together with a tasty raisin filling. These cookies can also be filled with your favorite jam, date , or even lemon, filling.

Cookie Ingredients:

¼ cup butter
½ tbsp lard
½ cup sugar
1 egg, beaten
2 tbsp milk
½ tsp vanilla
1¼ cups flour
1/8 tsp salt
¼ tsp soda
1/8 tsp cardamon

Method:

Assemble ingredients.

Preheat oven to 350F.

Beat butter and lard together. Add sugar. Beat until light and fluffy. Add egg, milk, and vanilla.

Sift flour, salt, soda, and cardamom together. Stir into wet ingredients and mix just until incorporated.

Knead dough into ball. If dough is soft, place in refrigerator for 30-40 minutes.

On a lightly floured surface, roll dough to about 1/8” thickness. Divide dough in half. Using a 2 – 2½” linzer round crinkle cookie cutter, cut out one half of the dough into solid circles. Cut remaining dough into the same size circles but fit the linzer cookie cutter with desired cut-out for cookie centers. (Note: If you don’t have a linzer cookie cutter, simply use any cookie cutter shape you have and then use a smaller cookie cutter to cut out the centers of half of the cookies.)

Place cookies, about 1½” – 2” apart, on parchment-lined baking sheet. Bake on center rack in oven for 10-12 minutes. Let cool on rack for 2-3 minutes then transfer to cooling rack.

When cookies have cooled completely, spread cooled raisin filling (recipe follows) on flat side of each solid cookie, then top with the flat side of a cookie that has center cut out.

Yield: 2-dozen sandwich cookies

Filling Ingredients:

1 cup raisins
1 tbsp flour
½ cup sugar
½ cup water
½ tsp vanilla
Pinch of cinnamon
Smidgeon of salt
Combine all ingredients in saucepan. Over medium-low heat, cook raisin mixture until thickened.

An old-fashioned wholesome cookie.

Thank you for visiting “the Bistro” today.

General

My Favorite Lobster Roll on Prince Edward Island – 2013

October 2, 2013 Barbara99

Each of the past three summers, I have set myself a challenge. In 2011, it was to find the best fish and chips on PEI. In 2012, I was hunting down the best seafood chowder on the Island. And, for my summer 2013 challenge, I set out to find my favorite lobster roll/burger on PEI. I am happy to report that I found it! To find out the process/rating criteria I used to declare my favorite, and find out which one I chose, read on.

What I Was Looking For

Lobster! I wanted to see identifiable good-sized chunks of lobster, not some meat that was shredded or minced beyond recognition.

For a traditional lobster roll, that means pieces large enough that you can detect , as soon as the roll is placed in front of you, that it is lobster meat (like that shown in the photograph above, for example). You’d think this would be a given but….you’d be surprised. In my view, the only time lobster meat should be cut very small is if you are using it in small dainty afternoon tea sandwiches or hors d’oeuvres. The other factor for ultimate taste and texture is that the lobster must be fresh out of the shell, not canned or previously frozen.

Tasty Mayonnaise

This is what holds the lobster filling together and enhances the taste. For a traditional lobster roll, I was not looking for anything spicy or that would dominate or overpower the lobster taste. I also wanted to see enough mayo that it held the filling together.

I also had an expectation that the mayo would have been mixed with the lobster meat, not lightly spread on the roll itself and hidden under a large lettuce leaf. While, for presentation purposes, it may look attractive for the roll to be presented with clean, clear chunks of lobster (with no mayo on them) sitting on top of a bright green lettuce leaf, I expect a lobster roll to arrive at the table, ready to eat, not for me to have to play hide and seek to locate the mayo and then attempt to mix it in with the lobster meat. In sum, I did not expect to have to make and assemble the roll filling myself. At one restaurant, I had to ask for extra mayo as, otherwise, the lobster filling once I mixed it up (as best I could on the plate with no bowl), would have been too dry.

Other Ingredients

A good lobster roll is just that – lobster. In my view, any other ingredients added to it needed to complement, not mask or overpower, the lobster. I wasn’t looking for creativity with odd, non-traditional ingredients paired with the lobster. I was looking for a traditional Atlantic Canada lobster roll with that pure, fresh lobster taste. Generally speaking, celery is often used in PEI lobster rolls and sometimes (but not always) a splash of lemon juice is added but very little else.

Bread/Roll

Just as good pie pastry will determine a good pie, the choice of a quality roll will make or break a lobster roll. The filling can be really good but, if the roll is soggy, flat, and/or tasteless, the lobster roll is doomed. I looked for a good, soft bread texture in the roll and one that would hold together as I picked it up to eat. I had no strong preference as to whether or not the roll was toasted/grilled. As hard as it might be to imagine, I had one lobster roll presented to me without the roll having even been buttered – it was pretty dry going with about 1 tablespoon of minced/shredded lobster sitting in the middle of a flat, soggy commercial bakery hamburger bun.

Presentation

We eat with our eyes first. I wanted to see a roll set in front of me that I just couldn’t wait to chow down on it. Some passed the mark on this; others did not. As far as lettuce is concerned, the greenery can provide a nice visual backdrop for the red and white lobster meat but it is not an absolute necessity – in fact, it could be argued that a lobster roll is often better without the lettuce. However, if used, the lettuce must be super fresh, high quality, and sized appropriately (and it should not be used to take up space in the roll leaving little room for the lobster, meaning there is little lobster in the roll). One lobster roll I sampled had about a 7″-8” leaf from romaine lettuce that was beyond tough and I had to remove the “palm leaf-sized” lettuce from the roll. Diners should not have to reconfigure the roll. Mixing and presentation are the responsibility of the chef or cook. The roll needs to be attractively accented and placed on the plate or in a basket, ready to eat.

Lobster conjures up the notion of a delicacy because, notwithstanding that fishers may not be getting high prices for their catches, lobster when served at restaurants, is pricey even in areas of the country near the sea like we are on PEI. Therefore, extra effort should be taken to present the lobster in a way commensurate with its reputation as a luxury food and in keeping with the style of the restaurant. That doesn’t mean it has to be white linen and fine china but the roll itself needs to be presented in a way that it clearly features the lobster and is befitting the restaurant environment in which it is served – i.e., at a take-out, it is perfectly acceptable and quaint to have the lobster rolls served in baskets lined with red and white checked liner paper.

Sides

Most commonly on PEI, a lobster roll is served with French fries although many restaurants will usually offer a choice of sides that may include green salads, potato salad, or coleslaw, for example. While I wasn’t rating a lobster roll on what side came with it or its quality, I did take note of those that were presented with appropriate sides that were fresh and added to the lobster roll experience (i.e., no French fries that came out of the freezer or that were soggy or no wilted salads).

Price Point

I tried to select a variety of restaurants from which to sample the lobster rolls – i.e., from take-outs to diners to high-end restaurants. Prices ranged from $7.95 to $16.00. for a lobster roll. A couple of other restaurants I considered had lobster rolls priced at $17.00+. I chose not to try them because, in my opinion, a lobster roll should not exceed the $15.00 – $16.00 price point.

My Choice

Just as happened two years ago when I was on the hunt for the best fish and chips on PEI and last year when I was searching for the best seafood chowder on the Island, there was one that hit the mark with me and quickly then became the benchmark against which all others were measured – i.e., the question became “is this one as good as, or better than, X’s?” Sometimes there will be two or three that will be neck and neck, making it hard to choose just one favorite. In this case, the one I chose was clearly out ahead.

I am not a professionally-trained chef or food critic but, as a true foodie, my palate knows what it likes. The other thing I have to point out is that I didn’t sample lobster rolls from every restaurant on PEI that has them on their menu – that would have been impossible and the waistline just could not have handled it! I also have to point out that I rated each based on one visit in summer 2013 per restaurant only. Therefore, there is no guarantee that if someone visited an establishment on another day with a different cook/chef on duty, they might come to the same conclusion as I did. Likewise, individual palates differ in terms of what tastes good to each individual person. What one person likes, another may not and vice versa.

So, how did I choose which restaurants from which to sample lobster rolls? Some were referred to me by other foodies; some, based on my own past experience, I suspected would serve good lobster rolls because other menu items they have are good; and others were purely happenstance – i.e., it was meal time and I happened to be in the proximity of a restaurant serving lobster rolls. Nothing any more scientific or orchestrated than that.

Therefore, my selection of my favorite lobster roll in PEI for 2013 is based on the nine (9) I sampled over the summer. It doesn’t mean that there might not have been excellent lobster rolls at other restaurants I did not make it to. What it does mean is that I found my personal favorite lobster roll at Richard’s Seafood Eatery right on the wharf at Covehead Harbour. This is probably one of the most non-descript eating establishments on the Island yet I have found their food to be consistently good, time-over-time (they were also my choice in 2011 for my favorite fish and chips on the Island) and I have had their lobster rolls in previous years.

Lobster Roll at Richard's Seafood Eatery at Covehead Harbour, PEI — Lobster Roll at Richard’s Seafood Eatery at Covehead Harbour, PEI

Richard’s (as the locals refer to it) is not, by any stretch of the imagination, fine dining. It is essentially a take-out right alongside the fishing sheds on a wharf. It is well-known with local Islanders and, you know the old saying that, when traveling, try to find restaurants that the locals patronize as you know it’s likely to be good fare.

Richard's Seafood Eatery Menu - 2013 — Richard’s Seafood Eatery Menu – 2013

The amount of food that Richard’s produces out of what has to be one of the tiniest kitchens around is amazing. Don’t look for white linen and fine china here. There is a small inside ‘picnic shelter’ area with just a few tables or, on a beautiful summer day, venture upstairs to the outside deck where you can watch the fishing boats coming and going. Richard’s is a seasonal establishment, open basically during the summer tourist season and it is always busy. I have never been there when there hasn’t been a line-up and people will wait without complaining. I have waited up to an hour before the buzzer would summon me to the take-out window to pick up my food. Where else would people wait this long for a lunch without complaining? That tells me that people know it’s great food and well worth the wait. On the day I visited Richard’s this summer, I went shortly before noon to get ahead of the lunch crowd line-up but, as you can see in the photo below, other people had the same idea, too 🙂 It wasn’t long before the line-up got much, much longer.

So, what makes Richard’s lobster roll my favorite? Take a look for yourself – see the large chunks of fresh PEI lobster, easily identifiable with tasty mayo holding it together. I swear there had to have been meat from a 1-pound lobster in that lobster roll!

With some celery and chives added to it, that’s just about it for the filling which is served on a basic hotdog roll that has been lightly grilled. I liked how there was an abundance of lobster in the roll and nothing in the filling that would compete with or detract from the star lobster. It was served with Richard’s homemade fries and coleslaw. For $14.00+ tax (CDN$), this tasty roll delivered on flavour and content and is great value for the buck!

So, there you have it, folks, my favorite lobster roll on PEI in 2013 comes from Richard’s Seafood Eatery at Covehead Harbour. Now, how many months is it before they open next summer……

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General, Local Culinary and Beverage Events, Out and About

Toes, Taps & Taters: A Barn Dance and Kitchen Party in O’Leary, PEI

September 29, 2013 Barbara99

Ever been to a huge PEI barn dance/kitchen party? That was the theme for the Toes, Taps & Taters Fall Flavours culinary event in O’Leary, PEI, on September 27, 2013.

This was the first year for this signature Fall Flavours event. The location was a logical and fitting one at the Canadian Potato Museum in O’Leary, in the center of one of the largest potato-growing regions on PEI. Attached to this museum is a large new machine shed which made an ideal venue for a spud party. And, what a perfect location it turned out to be for an event that was all about showcasing the versatility of Island spuds. It was a toe-tapping good time with lots of music, dancing and, of course, great food featuring – you guessed it — PEI potatoes.

While the Museum proved to be an ideal location, it also meant a huge amount of work for organizers as they had to move all the big, heavy historical potato equipment to make room for tables, stage, bar, and transform it into a party atmosphere.

Out of all of the Fall Flavours events, this one sold out of its 250 tickets very early. I asked Kendra Mills, Marketing Director of the PEI Potato Board that was behind the event why she thought this first-time event had been so popular to sell out a month before it was being held. She believes several factors were at play. The price point ($49.99/pp – CDN$) made it affordable, the location inside a potato museum also incited interest and, of course, the celebrity guest chef, Lynn Crawford, was also a huge draw.

Because this was a signature class Fall Flavours event, that meant a celebrity chef was host for the evening. Distinguished international chef, cookbook author, and Food Network (FN) star, Chef Lynn Crawford proved to be an excellent choice as the event’s celebrity host. You may know Lynn from the FN series, “Pitchin’ In” or you may have seen her on the popular series “Iron Chef America. Indigo bookstore was also on hand during the evening selling Chef Lynn’s books and she was very obliging to autograph copies.

The evening started out with time for photo opps with Chef Lynn who greeted guests just outside the door to the Museum. This was followed by a meet and greet cocktail party with delicious hors d’oeuvres, wine from PEI’s Newman Estate Winery, and local entertainment.

Each guest was presented with one of these aprons as a souvenir of the event (and, no, the potato harvester wasn’t posing for the photograph – the farmer just happened along to dig the field of potatoes beside us as I was preparing to photograph the apron the morning after the event).

Here was the mouth-watering menu attendees enjoyed throughout the evening:

Historical Favourites:
Lobster salad potato roll
Potato fishcakes with chow chow and scrunchions
Crisp potato gaufrette with mussel and tomato salad
PEI Potato pasty
Chef Lynn’s Crispy PEI potato flatbread, Avonlea cheddar and herb pesto

Out with the old and in with the new:
Braised PEI certified short rib and Cows cheddar perogies
PEI Potato blinis with smoked salmon and green onion crème fraiche
PEI Potato chowder complimented by the finest local seafood 21st century
French Rapure

Roast:
Pig roast on a spit with fall apple chutney, aligot and mixed seasonal vegetables

Late night:
French fries with tomato/fennel ketchup, truffle aioli, cheese curds and gravy.

Chocolate PEI potato bar that included: chocolate covered PEI potato chips, chocolate cake and mousse, PEI potato after eight mints, and PEI potato truffles

Is your mouth watering yet?

Chef John Pritchard from the Terre Rouge Bistro in Charlottetown, was in charge of the meal preparation and was assisted by staff from his Bistro as well as restaurant and wait staff from the nearby Rodd’s Mill River Resort.

The tables were effectively set with burlap runners on white linen, mason jar glasses, and centerpieces of miniature colored potatoes and seasonal sunflowers in mason jars wrapped with, yes, more burlap.

The MC for the event was Rob Barry from Morell, PEI, who kept the evening alive with his humour and potato trivia. Music was supplied by the Ellis Family Band from Summerside, PEI, and Dance Virtuoso was on hand to teach folks how to do the two-step.

What would a party featuring potatoes be without a potato peeling contest! This proved to be a fun event as two teams of four competed in a relay race – Chef Lynn’s team and Chef Rob’s team (or as he referred to them as “Team Awesome”) — to see who would be the fastest potato peelers on the Island. MC Rob declared his “Team Awesome” the winner (even after Chef Lynn kept trying to distract his team)!

When asked what having this event as part of the Fall Flavours Festival means to the PEI potato industry, Kendra Mills had this to say: “If agriculture is the fabric of the Island, then potatoes are the threads.” She also said the PEI Potato Board was looking forward to having the opportunity to have guests learn more about the potato industry and the farmers who grow the spuds that eventually make it to consumers’ tables.

During the evening, everyone repeated a Potato Farmer’s Oath and was sworn in as honorary potato farmers.

Of course, this swearing-in ceremony included libation in the form of potato vodka distilled in Hermanville, PEI, by Prince Edward Distillery (see my previous story on the Distillery here). A rousing chorus of “Bud the Spud” was sung with great gusto to complete the ceremony. Each attendee was presented with a certificate certifying them as an Honourary PEI Potato Farmer.

As a finale to the evening, out came the French fries along with the PEI potato chocolate bar.

This event was well done and offered attendees a glimpse into what a downhome PEI barn or kitchen party entails….and there were many people from off Island in attendance; in fact, I think they might just have outnumbered the Islanders present. It also provided the opportunity to try potato in ways people might never have had them before. This included Chef Lynn’s Crispy PEI potato flatbread with Avonlea clothbound cheddar and herb pesto.

And then, of course, came the pièce de résistance of the evening — huge bowls of “Cow Chips”, milk chocolate-covered potato chips produced right here on the Island by Anne of Green Gables Chocolates.

As the evening wound to a close, each attendee was presented with a 5 lb. bag of “Bud the Spud” potatoes as well as a sample of potato fudge.

This was my fourth and last Fall Flavours event for 2013 and it certainly was a big party as the month’s culinary events on the Island draw to a close this weekend. If you are an Islander, I highly encourage you to consider taking in Fall Flavours events in 2014. If you live off-Island and are wondering what the best time of the year would be to visit PEI, I recommend you consider September if you are a foodie because the month is jam-packed with many food and culinary events and visiting celebrity chefs. Some events are repeated year-to-year because of their popularity and organizers will often add some new variety events as well. Be sure to check out the Fall Flavours website throughout the year for news on upcoming Fall Flavours events.

Thank you for visiting “the Bistro” today.

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General, Local Culinary and Beverage Events, Out and About

Can You Say Cheese? You Could if You Were at The Great Island Grilled Cheese Challenge in PEI

September 25, 2013 Barbara99

On a beautiful, warm and sunny Sunday afternoon in September, I went to the 2^nd Annual Great Island Grilled Cheese Challenge event on the grounds of the COWS CREAMERY in North River, PEI. This was a signature event of the annual Fall Flavours Festival that has been happening across PEI this entire month.

A large white tent was erected and this gigantic Holstein kept guard outside the sold-out event (350 tickets available) which was held to celebrate great Canadian cheeses.

Chefs from some of the Island’s restaurants competed to see who would take home the top prize of $2000 and bragging rights for having created the best grilled cheese sandwich on PEI. The three judges for the event were: Phil Belanger from Dairy Farmers of Canada, Celebrity Chef Massimo Capra, and Myles MacKinnon from Hot105.5.

Once the judging was completed, ticket holders entered the tent and the sampling began.

Each of the competitors had to prepare 400-500 samples of his/her grilled cheese sandwich for ticket holders to sample. Trust me, these were not your average ‘cheese slice between two slices of bread’ kind of grilled cheese sandwiches! These were gourmet fare. Some included lobster, others had smoked oysters while others had pears in the sandwich.

Preparing Chef Massimo's Grilled Cheese and Oyster Sandwich — Preparing Chef Massimo’s Grilled Cheese and Oyster Sandwich

Many kinds of different breads were used including potato bread, rosemary focaccia, and raisin bread.

And the cheeses! Well, of course, that’s what makes a great grilled cheese sandwich!

The Maritime Provinces have some mighty fine cheese makers and several were on hand with samples as well – COWS CREAMERY, ADL, Cheeselady’s Gouda, and Jolly Farmers.

There were many different methods used to grill the sandwiches as each chef brought his or her own unique style to the challenge.

Different Ways to Grill a Cheese Sandwich

Our three PEI wineries — Rossignol, Matos, and Newman — had booths set up with samples of their fine wines and the PEI Brewing Co. provided beer samples.

This being a signature event of Fall Flavours, a celebrity chef was part of the event. Chef Massimo Capra joined the Sunday afternoon festivities. Chef Massimo is currently one of the chef-hosts on Food Network Canada’s “Restaurant Takeover”. The “3 chefs – The Kitchen Men” cookbook he authored with Michael Bonacini and Jason Parsons was also for sale at the Indigo booth inside the event tent and Chef Massimo autographed numerous copies of the popular book throughout the afternoon.

Chef Massimo then demonstrated how he makes his grilled cheese sandwich using smoked oysters, shredded COWS CREAMERY extra old cheddar, green tomato relish, potato chips, all between sour-dough bread slices and topped with grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese.

Throughout the afternoon, the Dairy Farmers of Canada presented 30-minute “All You Need is Cheese” seminars showcasing award-winning cheeses from the Canadian Cheese Grand Prix. Ticket holders could also take a free tour of the COWS CREAMERY where their delectable ice cream and cheeses are made. Ticket holders received 50% off COWS ice cream and 50% off admission to “That Fun Place” for the afternoon. The kids enjoyed this because it included a bouncy house and crafts, lots to keep them entertained after they sampled yummy grilled cheese sandwiches.

Lively, toe-tapping musical entertainment for the afternoon was provided by the Avonlea Showband (Mike Pendergast on accordion and vocals; Leon Gallant on guitar, fiddle, and vocals; Remi Arsenault, stand-up bass, acoustic guitar, and background vocals; and Brendon Peters on percussion and spoons).

This was a wonderful afternoon event. It was great fun watching the chefs prepare the grilled cheese sandwiches onsite. Jennifer Caseley, event manager, says “The event is owned by the PEI Association of Chefs and Cooks and was created to promote regional/Canadian cheese makers, Island Dairy Products, to educate about the dairy industry, highlight the Canadian cheese processors through the Grilled Cheese Challenge, increase public awareness of regional cheeses, and support cheese makers in their search for excellence and in the development of new products.”

Tickets for the event were $18. + tax (CDN$) for adults and $5. for children.

So, whose grilled cheese sandwich took top prize this year? That went to Chef Dwayne MacLeod from the Gahan House.

Winning Entry from Chef Dwayne MacLeod, Gahan House

Chef Andrew Smith from Red Shores placed second (yes, this was the entry that had Island lobster in the sandwich).

Second Place Entry from Andrew Smith from Red Shores — Second Place Entry from Chef Andrew Smith from Red Shores

And, Chef Jane Crawford from the Redwater Rustic Grill was the third place winner as well as the People’s Choice winner.

Third Place Entry from Chef Jane Crawford of Redwater Rustic Grille

Now, here is a close-up look at this year’s entries:

Is your mouth watering yet?

Each entry was unique in its own way as chefs brought their creativity to the sandwich filling and bread used.

Look how the red and green dress this club sandwich!

Pickled cucumbers garnish this rustic grilled cheese sandwich.

I love the PEI red rock used for presentation of this entry!

So many different breads used to create these yummy sandwiches.

An artist’s palate is what this visually-attractive entry reminds me of!

Thank you for visiting “the Bistro” today.

Be sure to visit my new Facebook page at My Island Bistro Kitchen. You may also wish to follow me on twitter @PEIBistro and on Pinterest at “Island Bistro Kitchen”.

General, Local Culinary and Beverage Events

Applelicious — Dining in an Apple Orchard in Arlington, PEI

September 15, 2013 Barbara99

On Saturday, September 14^th, I headed to Arlington, west of the City of Summerside, for another PEI Fall Flavors signature event – “Applelicious – Meal in the Field”. This is my second Fall Flavors event this year.

What better place to erect a huge white tent as the venue for a sumptuous dinner than in the middle of fragrant Arlington Orchard with trees laden with bright red apples.

Fall Flavors is a month-long food extravaganza on PEI, with culinary events occurring at various venues across the Island. Each signature event features a local Island food product on the menu.

This is the fourth year that Applelicious has been held and always in the Arlington Orchard location. Mitchell Rennie of the North Cape Coastal Drive Region says a number of factors were considered in selecting the facility for the event: “We needed a facility that was open to the idea of having large-scale events in their orchard and we wanted an area where we could get into the middle of an orchard for the atmosphere. These factors led us to Barry Balsom’s facility“.

As its name suggests, this event focused heavily on PEI apples. This being a signature event for the Fall Flavors Festival, it was hosted by a celebrity chef – in this case, Anna Olson. If you are a fan of Food Network Canada, you will likely have seen some or all of Anna’s shows that include “Sugar”, “Kitchen Equipped”, “Fresh with Anna Olson”, and “Bake with Anna Olson”. Author and co-author of several cookbooks, Anna is also a freelance writer for several publications as well. For this event, Anna also brought her husband, Michael, to the Applelicious event and the pair made fine hosts for the evening.

I have often picked apples at Arlington Orchards … yes bushels of them! However, I had never eaten a meal in the middle of an apple orchard so this event intrigued me. How could they produce a four-course meal in an orchard with no buildings, electricity, or running water! No worries as it is amazing what our Island culinary teams can do when put to the test.

The evening started off with an oyster, apple cider, and cheese reception along with a meet and greet with Anna and Michael Olson. Of course, as many of you will know, our Island oysters are world renowned and are always popular. In keeping with the theme of local foods, the oysters came from the bays around Arlington. Anytime you see an oyster shucker in action, foodies are generally not far away, ready to sample these sea-fresh tasty morsels. To enhance the oysters, Anna created five different apple-themed toppings especially for the reception.

There were several kinds of apple cider to sample along with a selection of PEI Amalgamated Dairies Limited (ADL) cheeses.

Anna was very obliging to pose for endless photos throughout the evening and to sign the menu cards that were at each place setting as well as her cookbooks that were for sale during the evening.

I never cease to be amazed at the elegance that can be created inside a tent.

At one time, a meal in a tent meant paper plates, plastic cutlery and glasses, and picnic tables. However, take a look at the white linens and fabulous tablesettings that greeted guests to Applelicious!

Look at the simplistic baskets of apples that were each table’s centerpiece. These were so appropriate for an event that featured apples. Nothing more was needed to adorn the table and, of course, the contents of the centerpieces were all edible, too.

Here was the menu for the evening:

Part of culinary tourism, and a feature part of the signature events of Fall Flavors, is the educational component. Not only are culinary tourists seeking out great food and dining experiences, but they want to learn something about that food, where it came from, and how it can be prepared. For this event, Anna and Michael started their first demonstration of the evening with how to prepare potato crepes (using fine PEI potatoes, of course) and pickled melba apple slaw (with apples from Arlington Orchard) which was very delicious.

For the second demonstration, Anna showed how to make pastry and gave tips on how to make the perfect apple pie – did you know that the best apple pies are made with a combination of different varieties of apples? That sprinkling some rolled oats over the bottom pie crust before adding the apple filling will help to keep the lower crust from becoming soggy with the juices from the apples as the pie bakes?

Part of Anna’s role in the evening was to plan the menu and provide the recipes. As you can imagine, dinner for 185 guests (many of them tourists) – particularly in the middle of an apple orchard – takes a team effort. For this, the culinary team of Shaws Hotel and Restaurant in Brackley Beach, PEI, provided the culinary/catering services for the evening, taking Anna’s recipes and preparing them for guests all, of course, under the guidance of Anna. Anna indicated during the evening that PEI grows varieties of apples that weren’t familiar to her so she had consulted, in advance, with orchard owner, Barry Balsom, and researched the Island varieties when preparing the recipes so that Island apples would be featured in the menu items. During the evening, both Anna and Michael circulated amongst the tables, stopping to chat with guests and sign menu cards.

While much of the prep work for the meal with done off-site, one mobile kitchen was brought onsite and all plating and final cooking occurred in the catering section of the tent or just outside. Generators, of course, were needed to supply the electricity.

Two musical groups provided the entertainment during the evening – the Gallant Family Band (seen in the photo below) and the quartet “Milk and Honey”.

So, now, let’s look at the menu items and dinner presentation a little more closely:

Beverages: Bottles of Maritime-produced Sparkling Apple Juice were placed on each table.

First Course: Smoked Salmon on PEI Potato Crepes with Apple Crème Fraiche and Pickled Melba Apple Slaw

Second Course: Chowder Crab Cake on Autumn Greens with Dolgo Crabapple Vinaigrette

Main: Pork Loin with Bacon Oyster Stuffing with Caramelized Onion & Paula Red Apple Glaze, Potato & ADL Old Cheddar Gratin, and Harvest Vegetables

Dessert: Gingerbread Cake with Jersey Mac Applies “Foster”

And, the finale: Classic Apple Pie

Tickets for this event were $69.95 + tax (CDN$).

I am often asked what is the best month to visit PEI. Admittedly, I am biased since, being a native Islander, I think anytime is good to visit our fine province. However, if you are a foodie then, hands-down, my recommendation would be to visit us in September when the whole month is filled with fabulous culinary events across the province. Whether you are an Islander, or planning a trip to PEI in September, I highly recommend you check the Fall Flavors website for event and ticket information to any of a number of great culinary events. Be sure to book your tickets early as the signature events usually sell out.

Thank you for visiting “the Bistro” today.

Be sure to visit my new Facebook page at My Island Bistro Kitchen. You may also wish to follow me on twitter @PEIBistro and on Pinterest at “Island Bistro Kitchen”.

Appetizers, General

Lobster-stuffed Cherry Tomatoes

September 14, 2013 Barbara99

Our garden produced hundreds of tiny cherry tomatoes this summer. It’s always a challenge as to what to do with them and it seems everyone I know also has an abundance of them, too. Cherry tomatoes make great bases for appetizers or hors d’oeurves. They are particularly tasty when filled with lobster salad! This weekend, there is a huge shellfish festival in Charlottetown, PEI, so I thought this was an appropriate time to post a recipe using one of my favorite shellfish, lobster.

I used the same lobster salad recipe as I used for the filling in the lobster croissants that were featured for my labour day picnic. The only thing I did differently was to chop the lobster into smaller pieces so the salad would fit into the cherry tomatoes.

To assemble, slice off the stem end of the tomato. With a small coffee spoon, carefully hollow out and discard the seeds and juicy pulp of the tomatoes. Fill with lobster salad. Garnish with fresh herbs such as chives, thyme, and/or dill.

Thank you for visiting “the Bistro” today.

Be sure to visit my new Facebook page at My Island Bistro Kitchen. You may also wish to follow me on twitter @PEIBistro and on Pinterest at “Island Bistro Kitchen”.

General, Local Culinary and Beverage Events, Out and About

A PEI Lobster Party on the Beach at West Point!

September 11, 2013 Barbara99 2 Comments

What do you get when you put together a PEI beach, a large tent on that beach, lots of lobster, chowder, salads, and delectable lobster savouries, 200 people, a team of talented chefs, and great PEI musicians? Why, you get a PEI Lobster Party on the Beach, of course!

This past Sunday (September 8, 2013), I attended this signature Fall Flavors event in West Point, PEI, where it was hosted by Celebrity Chef Corbin Tomaszeski of Food Network (FN) fame.

Chef Corbin serving up the best lobster chowder ever!

You may recognize Chef Corbin as the co-host of FN’s Dinner Party Wars and as one of the chef-hosts on FN’s Restaurant Takeover. This was the second time that Chef Corbin was the celebrity chef at the PEI Lobster Party on the Beach. In addition to assisting with event logistics, Chef Corbin was very involved with the menu planning and in leading the lobster team relay event which turned out to be a fun activity….at least for the spectators!

September has become known as “Fall Flavors” month on the Island and PEI is becoming known as a culinary tourism destination, particularly with all the fabulous Fall Flavors events.

Lobster season is still open in parts of the province and the produce from our land has matured and is ready for harvesting. What better time and way to celebrate the great foods of the Island than to have a series of culinary events and food festivals.

Now in its third year, the Lobster on the Beach Party is held right on the beach at West Point, near O’Leary, in the Western part of the province. Fall Flavors organizers aim to locate the signature events in communities across the Island so that there is equitable distribution to the extent possible. The lobster fishing season is currently in full swing in the West Point area of PEI and the event was held just up the beach from an active wharf. When asked where the idea for a lobster party on the beach came from, Ian MacPherson, Executive Director of the PEI Fishermen’s Association Ltd., says Tourism PEI has indicated that “a lobster dinner on the beach is one of the most requested activities that tourists request when coming to PEI”.

On Sunday, around mid-day, the skies opened and literally drenched the Island with rain. Winds were blowing at a good clip – 50-60kpm. As I was leaving on my 1½ hour drive to West Point, the weather conditions were less than ideal (an understatement) for a beach party. However, the event was going ahead rain or shine so off I went donned in my rain suit and duckies. I arrived in West Point around 4:00pm just as the event was getting underway. By this time, the rain had eased off to a steady, more gentle rain.

A short jaunt through a “muddy” walking path brought me to the beach where I could see the top of a huge white tent, a mobile kitchen, and another trailer and truck.

Down on to the beach, I could see chefs, barefoot, working around some portable cookers and a couple of tarp-covered cooking pits in the sand. The first person I met was Chef Corbin who was busy steaming mussels in white wine. Oh, yes, our Island mussels are some good!

So, to set the stage – the large tent actually was right on the beach, anchored in the sand, just a very few meters from the water.

There was no nearby building, no running water right on site, and no electricity. Can you imagine having 200 people over for dinner under those conditions? The logistics of producing a sold-out event for 200 people in such a location are many (and these were all in addition to contending with strong winds and heavy, pelting rain all day). Here are some of them:

– the tent was no ordinary tent – it was a special hexagon-shaped tent that is specifically designed for use and anchoring in the sand

– the event was held in an environmentally-sensitive area so many permits were required

– one mobile kitchen was brought on to the site right beside the beach

– water for the mobile kitchen had to be sourced and transported from the nearby Cedar Dunes Provincial Park

– several generators were in place to operate the mobile kitchen and the sound system

– over 200 lobsters were cooked in the sandpit

– an additional 50 pounds of lobster meat was used in a multitude of side dishes including lobster chowder, lobster bacon fritters, lobster potato salad, etc.

– the Culinary Institute of Canada was the primary culinary provider for the event providing 12 chefs and 13 serving staff

– several directors (all fishers) from the PEI Fishermen’s Association were on hand to show (if required) people how to crack and eat their lobster and to answer any questions

– a nurse was onsite for any potential medical emergencies

Carrying out an event like this means attention to detail and careful meticulous planning has to happen – it’s not like an event in a large banquet hall or hotel where the chefs and service staff have everything they need at their fingertips. For this, everything (food, water, equipment, generators, etc.) has to be transported to the beach.

One of the most fascinating activities proved to be the cooking of the lobster and corn in a sandpit on the beach. From the number of times I heard him explain it, I am sure Chef Andrew Nicholson from the Culinary Institute of Canada could recite, in his sleep, the process he used for cooking the lobster as well as the corn in the husks!

Preparing the Cooking Pit in the Sand for the Lobster and Corn

Two pits, each about 5-6” deep, were dug in the sand and lined with river rock. Firewood was added and a fire in the pit burned for 4-5 hours until it burned itself out. This heated the rocks which were then used as the heat source to cook the lobster and corn. A layer of seaweed was added to the top of the rocks and charred wood remains. A layer of lobsters was laid out in the pit followed by a layer of corn. Several eggs were placed on top of the corn. Yes, the eggs were used to determine when the lobster was cooked! This gives a whole new meaning to the concept of “egg timer”. As Chef Andrew says, “the eggs never lie”! Using this method, the chef can periodically remove an egg from just under the tarp without disturbing the lobster cooking below. Once an egg tests hard-cooked, the lobster is done.

Testing the Egg to Determine if the Lobster is Cooked -- Not Quite Yet But Getting There! — Testing the Egg to Determine if the Lobster is Cooked — Not Quite Yet But Getting There!

The entire pit was covered with a tarp and sand piled over the tarp edges to seal in all the heat and make it quite sauna-like inside for the lobster and corn to slowly cook in the steam.

It takes about 45-60 minutes for the lobster to cook under ideal conditions.

Says Chef Andrew, the products cooked this way have some “wicked good flavour” happening. This was, arguably, the best tasting lobster I have ever had!

Chef Andrew Nicholson removes the cooked lobster and corn from the cooking pit

Chef Andrew is right – there are subtle hints of the smoked firewood and the taste of the sea from the seaweed bed but not so strong that it detracts from the pure lobster flavour.

No PEI party would be complete without local music. Harpist Jill Harris provided dinner music.

And, Island fiddler and fisherman JJ Chiasson closed out the last hour of the event.

Anyone wanting to experience Island hospitality, fabulous PEI lobster prepared in many different ways, and a lobster party on the beach with great music, then this was the event to attend. The rain stopped in time for the party and, despite the soggy sand and muddy trek through the woods to the beach, no one seemed to mind the damp, dreary day. Many (including the chefs) who weren’t sporting “high fashion” duckies or rubber boots, simply got into the party mood by abandoning their footwear and going barefoot. After all, this was a party right on the beach!

Chef Corbin and Chef Andrew even ventured into the water to set the lobster trap for the lobster relay. This must fall under the category of “other related duties”, chefs!

Chef Corbin and Chef Andrew preparing for the lobster relay

When asked what this event means to the lobster industry on PEI, Ian MacPherson says, “ It is a great opportunity for people to connect with the fishers and understand the hard work and skill it takes to catch lobster. Financial returns have been very low to the harvesters over the past few years so it is a good way for people to understand how the supply chain works as consumer costs still tend to be high. We get a lot of questions on sustainability and conservation so, again, this is a great way to respond to these questions. As you know , most people like to know where their food comes from and who supplies it. Being directly involved with promotion is new for the harvesters but most agree it is an area we need to be more involved in.”

Tickets for this event were $75. per person. Those traveling from the direction of Charlottetown and Summerside could board a bus for a nominal fee in lieu of driving themselves to West Point. Individuals needing a drive between the parking area and the beach could hop onboard one of the golf carts. Organizers thought of everything!

Whether you are an Islander, or planning a trip to PEI in September, I highly recommend you check the Fall Flavors website for event and ticket information to any of a number of great culinary events. Be sure to book your tickets early as the signature events, such as the popular Lobster on the Beach Party, sell out – that’s a testament to their popularity and quality.

Photo Gallery of the Sights of Lobster Party on the Beach at West Point, PEI:

Hors d’oeuvres, lobster chowder, lobster in the shell and fresh PEI peaches and cream corn steamed in the husk.

Is your mouth watering yet?

Even lobster potato salad was on the menu!

PEI Oysters are always a hit with foodies!

These lobster vol-en-vent were tasty little savouries!

Desserts, anyone?

Dinner with a water view:

Chef Corbin at work.

General, Pies and Tarts

Butter Tarts – A Quintessential Canadian Dessert

September 7, 2013 Barbara99 1 Comment

Butter Tarts that melt in your mouth. Is there anything better? There are as many recipes for Butter Tarts as there are bakers and pastry chefs making them. Essentially, these are the basic, core ingredients that will normally be common to all Butter Tart recipes: Brown sugar, eggs, butter (absolutely no substitutes), and usually some kind of syrup (e.g., maple, corn, or both). The ingredients may vary in different amounts from recipe to recipe and this will impact the flavor and texture of the filling. Continue reading Butter Tarts – A Quintessential Canadian Dessert →

Afternoon Teas, General, Summer

Pretty Pink Petal Afternoon Tea

September 2, 2013 Barbara99 6 Comments

Where or where does summer go and why does it pass so quickly? On this Labour Day Monday, I thought I should have one more summer outside afternoon tea before the weather turns here on PEI to much cooler temperatures and I start to think of fall menus as opposed to summer foods. Funny when the calendar changes to the months that end in “ber” (aka “brrrrrrrrr”), we stop thinking so much of the pretty, soft summer colors and more of deep hues of golds, oranges, rusts, greens, purples, and so forth.

For this afternoon tea, I decided it would be a dessert tea that would feature hydrangea cupcakes and monogrammed cookies.

The inspiration for this delicate tea came from the hydrangea bush we have at the backdoor.

Pink was the primary color scheme…. Flowers for a tea table do not always have to be in a vase. Rose petals can be scattered on the table itself and a single tea rose can be placed at each place setting. The guests then get to each take their rose home with them as a souvenir of their afternoon tea event.

I selected a couple of my favorite teacups and saucers. The first is quite plain in shape but it is a lovely, decorative teacup.

The second teacup is a much more stately and elegant shape.

The napkin fold I am using today is the rose. It is a simple design, easy to fold, and is well suited to being placed inside a teacup. It is particularly convenient if the tea table is small and there are a number of items to be placed on it. In those situations, sometimes there is insufficient room to display the napkin properly so the rose napkin fold inside the teacup takes care of that.

I don’t always try to have matching dishes on the tea table. Sometimes, it is much more interesting with eclectic pieces. So long as they all blend and compliment each other in color, it works.

Sparkling pink lemonade is always a refreshing drink on a warm summer’s day. It’s even more fun when the ice cubes sport edible flowers!

Monogrammed cookies are always fun, particularly if you inscribe guests’ initials on them as I have done in the photo above.

Cupcakes make tasty little cake treats. My hydrangea cupcakes are vanilla flavour and are iced in hydrangea design in shades of pink and mauve.

I hope you have enjoyed coming along on my afternoon dessert tea today. I will be joining Sandi at Rose Chintz Cottage for her Tea Time Tuesday this week. See you there.

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General, Recipes, Vegetables

Cheese and Basil Pesto Stuffed Cherry Tomatoes

September 1, 2013 Barbara99 4 Comments

We have a bumper crop of cherry tomatoes in our garden this year. It’s always a challenge as to what to do with them because, let’s face it, there are only so many salads and cherry tomatoes one can eat. I have taken some to work colleagues, given some to neighbours, and still the tomato plants keep multiplying these Tiny Tim tomatoes. Here is one of my favorite ways to stuff cherry tomatoes for hors d’oeuvres or appetizers.

To be frank, I don’t really use a precise recipe for these tasty little morsels. Mix up some soft cheese such as boursin garlic herb – probably a couple of tablespoonfuls for the four tomatoes you see below. To that, add about 1/2 tsp of basil pesto and mix it together. Cut top of each tomato and scoop out tomato pulp leaving just the tomato shell. Using a small spoon or pastry bag with decorator tip, fill each tomato with cheese-basil mixture. Garnish with fresh herbs such as thyme, parsley, dill, and/or chives.

I like to serve these on a bed of parsley in small tasting spoons. It dresses them up.

They are as colorful in presentation as they are tasty.

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General, Picnics, Recipes, Sandwiches, Wraps, and Panini, Seafood

Labour Day Picnic by the PEI Seaside with Lobster Croissants on the Menu

August 31, 2013 Barbara99 2 Comments

I’ve had a great summer of picnics this year! Haven’t gone on this many picnics in many years. I had forgotten how much fun and relaxed al fresco dining can be. This posting will feature my Labour Day Weekend Picnic but, first, a little trip down memory lane.

One of my favorite summertime memories involves a picnic. I was visiting a neighbour playmate and we were probably about 8 or 9 years old. We took a notion one hot summer day that we would have a picnic by the little stream across the road from my friend’s place. The two of us stood by the friend’s mother at the kitchen counter as she whipped up some gourmet peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, placed them in an old tin school lunchbox, filled a thermos with Kool-aid (anybody remember Kool-aid?), and sent us off on our big adventure to the picnic by the stream. Off we went across the little country road, down through the cow pasture to a little stream which, at its deepest point was probably all of 4″ or 5″ deep. We situated ourselves, had our picnic, and probably returned to the house all in the span of about 15 minutes, no doubt ready for another activity! Yet, we had been on a picnic adventure and made a memory. That was back in the days when kids played outside all day and found numerous ways to amuse themselves and none of them involved cell phones or computers.

I will admit my picnic adventures have progressed and become a bit more sophisticated. There are so many options for picnic foods, particularly when it comes to sandwiches – there are traditional sandwiches with any number of different kinds of breads as options, wraps, baguettes, different kinds of rolls, bagels, etc. For my picnic by the sea today, I have chosen croissants. They are tasty and have a nice, soft texture. Because I live near the water and close to a small fishing village that has a fresh seafood market open daily in the summer, lobster was a logical choice for a croissant filling. The late summer fishing season has opened in Victoria-by-the-Sea on the south shore of PEI so buying lobster at the seafood market means the lobster is really, really fresh. Take a look at this 1 1/2+ pound lobster that I took home with me to make the filling for the croissants!

I don’t really have a defined recipe for lobster filling for sandwiches or croissants. I chop the lobster meat into fairly large chunks as I like to see good-sized pieces of lobster in a lobster roll or croissant — no mashed-up or shredded pieces of lobster meat will do for me!

I add a bit of celery, some pepper, some fresh chopped chives, a splash of fresh lemon juice, and some homemade mayonnaise – just enough to hold the meat together and give it flavour. That’s it, nothing more as I don’t like anything that detracts from that rich lobster flavour.

I buttered the croissants, added a bed of fresh lettuce from our garden and then heaped on the lobster filling. Yes, it was very yummy!

A little closer look….

And, this is what I mean about wanting to see nice big pieces of lobster in the sandwich. Isn’t it mouthwatering and colorful!

Add some potato chips and picnic fare doesn’t get much better than this, particularly when the picnic location is beside the water. With something as special as lobster, the menu does not have to be extensive. Let the lobster star all on its own!

Croissants are so easy to handle and eat…particularly when filled with lobster 🙂

My August Cookie of the Month was the chocolate drop cookie. They were dessert.

I added some fresh fruit – this time, some green grapes – and the picnic basket was ready to go.

I always like to take along some props to dress up the picnic spread, regardless whether it is at a picnic table or on the ground as is the case here by the beach. It doesn’t matter whether I am in my dining room setting a formal table or outside, I like to think of setting the stage for a feast for the eye as well as for the stomach. A few props really can make an ordinary picnic a bit more special.

For my seaside picnic, all it took was a blue-checked cloth, a stylish matching wicker picnic basket, a lantern with a blue candle, and some seashells and starfish, to dress up the dining experience.

I love the patterns in the pink-red sandbars on PEI. Our Island beaches are extraordinary – on the south side, they tend to be more the pink-red color you see in the photo below while, on the north side, the sand is more of a soft pink color. This is definitely a dining room with a water view!

However, the sky began to look somewhat ominous so we thought we had better hurry up and eat in case a rain shower came along and spoiled the picnic.

I hope you have enjoyed some of the scenes from our seaside picnic that featured PEI lobster. Enjoy your Labour Day weekend.

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Breakfast, Field Trips, General, Recipes

A Visit to Burns Poultry Farm in Freetown, PEI

August 27, 2013 Barbara99 1 Comment

The Burns Family (Photo: Lynda MacSwain. Submitted by Wendy Burns with permission.) — The Burns Family – 7th Generation PEI Egg Farmers
(Photo: Lynda MacSwain. Submitted by Wendy Burns with permission.)

I have a keen interest in where the food I eat is produced. Recently, I visited Burns Poultry Farm in Freetown, PEI, to find out about egg production. There are five active registered egg-producing poultry farms on PEI, one of which is the Burns farm.

Before seeing the egg grading process in action, I sat down with Wendy Burns to find out about their poultry farm. Wendy’s husband, Nathan, is a 7^th generation egg farmer on PEI so the Burns family knows a thing or two about egg production! Wendy and Nathan bought the poultry farm from Nathan’s parents in 2001. Wendy remarks that, from the time he was very young, Nathan had a keen interest in poultry farming and knew what his future vocation was going to be! Wendy manages the office, the accounting, and payroll while Nathan tends to the feed formulations, egg production, and egg grading.

The couple met while attending Nova Scotia Agricultural College, from which they both graduated – Nathan from the Agricultural Engineering Program and Wendy with a Bachelor of Science in Agriculture. In addition to being parents to four active growing children, this couple has transformed their egg farm into a very efficient family business. They have expanded existing barns; built a new barn for the laying hens; added a bigger generator with an automatic switch that kicks in if the farm is without power for 5 seconds; expanded their cooler capacity; invested in a new egg packer that packs eggs each day from their laying barns; upgraded their water systems to provide ozonated water for the hens which aids in their digestion; purchased a Pulsefog machine to disinfect the barns faster and more efficiently; and installed a state-of-the-art grading machine into their newly-renovated, federally-inspected egg grading station.

The Burns family holds quota for about 32,000 laying hens and they have three equally-sized barns that house the flock. With over 90% of the hens laying one egg per day, it is a lot of eggs to gather. Every time an egg is handled or moved, it increases the potential for damage or cracks. Wendy explains that, with their efficient collection system, it is possible for a hen to lay an egg and the egg not be touched by a human hand until the consumer takes it out of the carton or the restaurant chef cracks the egg on the grill. This is because the Burns’ have an “in-line” system that transfers the eggs from the barns via a conveyer belt to the grading station.

Conveyer belt connects all barns on Burns farm and transports the eggs to the grading station

The system the Burns have installed is all computerized so it allows the eggs to come from the barns, be counted, washed, candled, graded, packed, and in their cooler in approximately 15 minutes. Now, that’s what I call farm-fresh eggs!

I wasn’t able to go inside the barns where the hens are housed so I did not see any of the laying hens. This is because of their on-farm food safety program and biosecurity protocol. Wendy says “the goal is to maintain a consistent, undisturbed environment for the birds because deviations from their normal habitat could affect their well-being and, consequently, egg production”. On a daily basis, only Nathan and two workers are permitted inside the barns. A walk-through of each barn is done twice per day and each row of hens is checked to ensure the birds have enough water and feed and that their environment is comfortable. Nathan also checks the barns each evening after all the feedings are finished to ensure all is well before lights out. Wendy explains that the only other person permitted to enter the barns is the inspector from the Egg Farmers of Canada. “The inspector makes several site visits each year where the birds are counted and swabs are taken for testing to ensure there are no diseases present”, explains Wendy. The inspector also audits their Start-Clean/Stay-Clean records to ensure all protocols follow the guidelines of their On Farm Food Safety Program.

Wendy was able to tell me about their flock. At the time of my visit, the hens were all one breed – Lohmanns. They all lay white eggs but Wendy says that the farm placed some brown egg layers in the grow barn last cycle and those hens will begin to lay brown eggs in September. The highest expense in the operation is the feed. The Burns monitor feed consumption to ensure the hens are getting adequate nutrition. The hens need different levels of nutrients, such as calcium and protein, at different ages. This ensures bird health is maintained and the hens produce the best quality of eggs possible.

It takes 18-19 weeks for a chick to become a laying hen. The chicks arrive in batches of about 12,000, two or three times a year. Wendy says that it is always an exciting day on the farm, as you can imagine, with four young children seeing 12,000 baby chicks arriving all at once! The Burns have three production barns that house the hens, each containing a flock of hens of a certain age – i.e., 20 weeks apart in age. This means their farm can ensure a steady supply of high-quality fresh eggs for customers year round.

I asked Wendy what determines the different sizes of eggs. She tells me that it is the weight of the egg that will determine if it is a small, medium, large, or extra large egg. Younger hens typically lay smaller eggs and the average egg size increases as the hens age. Generally, medium, large, and extra large eggs are packed for the fresh shell egg market while the other sizes are sent off for industrial use – for example, dried for cake mixes, frozen, liquid whole egg, or whites only. No eggs, regardless of size, are wasted.

Weight of an egg determines if it is a small, medium, large, or extra-large egg

Eggs are a supply-managed commodity. The egg industry is heavily regulated and the Burns must comply with the regulations of the Egg Farmers of Canada and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, in terms of housing the hens, cage density, sanitation programs, welfare of the birds, and pest control. There is a lot of record-keeping involved in the operation of an egg farm and egg-grading station. All food safety-based programs are in place to ensure the safest possible supply of eggs for consumers.

Wendy tells me that the “Best Before” date of graded eggs is six (6) weeks from the date they are graded. She also explains that washing the eggs, which is an obvious necessity, reduces the shelf life of eggs as it removes the natural sealant that the hens leave on the eggs when they are laid.

I asked Wendy what their biggest challenge is as egg farmers. She says she has concerns over the possibility that, at some point, supply management of the egg industry could be disbanded. This is the Canadian system that regulates quota and, consequently, egg production. If that was to happen, anybody could build a barn and start large-scale egg production, with no food safety procedures, no testing protocol, or no rules. As Wendy explains, “currently, registered egg producers pay levies that pay for their food safety protocols, testing, and ensure there is no surplus of eggs on the market which could impact negatively on their chance of a fair return for their investments and hard work.” As Wendy says, “being a regulated producer is a big investment but it provides stability without relying on government dollars as it is producer-funded”.

As for their greatest source of satisfaction as egg farmers, Wendy says she and Nathan work well together and the couple enjoy being their own boss. They like the challenge that comes with no two days being the same on the farm. Wendy tells me she really enjoys the lifestyle of living and working on the farm as it allows her to be home with her children before they catch the school bus and greet them when they return home in the afternoon.

The day I visited the Burns farm, they were busy with their egg grading which takes place once a week. By the end of the day, they would have graded approximately 55,000 eggs for market!

Some of the activities in the egg grading process

The number of eggs graded is determined by what the farm can sell as graded product. On days when no grading is taking place, the eggs are packed on to plastic trays by a farm packer machine, loaded on to pallets, and refrigerated. Eggs that are surplus to fresh markets are sold as industrial product.

Large Cartons of Eggs Ready for Shipping

The farm employs three individuals full-time on a year-round basis and six individuals on a part-time basis.

So, some interesting egg trivia I learned:

– egg shells are made up mostly of calcium – the better the quality of egg shell, the less likelihood there will be of cracked eggs.

– the color of the egg shell (white or brown) is determined by the genetics of the hen, not by diet.

– the color of the egg yolk is determined by what grains the hens are fed (yes, there really is a difference in the color of egg yolks — paler yolks result when paler grains are fed, such as barley or wheat, and a richer yolk color results when corn is in the feed)

– according to the Egg Farmers of PEI Website, Island egg farmers produced 3,304,300 dozen eggs in 2012 and about 50% of those were consumed by Islanders! That’s a lot of eggs!

Nathan and Wendy are marketing their eggs through ADL Foods. The public may purchase the eggs on-site at the ADL Foods Retail Outlet in Reads Corner on Highway 1A in Summerside. ADL Foods also sells Burns Poultry Farm’s eggs by the box to many Island restaurants so, chances are, if you have eaten an egg at an Island restaurant that gets its eggs from ADL Foods, you may have eaten an egg produced by this 7^th generation PEI family farm.

I used Burns’ eggs in the following recipe for Baked Eggs with Basil Pesto and Cheese.

Baked Eggs with Basil Pesto and Cheese

Ingredients:

2 large eggs

3 tsp basil pesto

4 tsp grated Parmesan cheese

2 tbsp milk or cream

1 green onion, sliced

Fresh chives, chopped

Salt and pepper, to taste

2-3 tsp Boursin Garlic and Fine Herbs cheese, or your favorite feta cheese

Method:

Assemble ingredients.

Preheat oven to 325C.

Spray two ramekins dishes with cooking spray. Place 1 ½ tsp pesto in bottom of each dish and swirl it around so bottom of ramekin are covered with pesto. Sprinkle 1 – 2 tsp parmesan cheese on top of pesto. Crack one egg into each ramekin without breaking the yolk. Add 1 tbsp milk or cream to each dish. Sprinkle each with sliced green onions and fresh chives. Add salt and pepper to taste. Top with 1 to 1 ½ tsp soft cheese.

Place ramekins in oven-proof baking pan. Fill up pan with boiling water until it reaches the half-way point on the sides of the ramekins.

Bake eggs for 10-20 minutes, depending on whether you like eggs runny, medium, or well done.

Serves: 2

This egg dish is perfect for a special weekend morning breakfast or brunch or even for a light supper.

My thanks to Nathan and Wendy Burns for taking time out of a busy day to meet with me and explain the egg production process at their farm.

Baked Eggs with Basil Pesto and Cheese

This egg dish is perfect for a special weekend morning breakfast or brunch or even for a light supper.

Course Breakfast

Cuisine Canadian

Keyword baked eggs, eggs

Servings 2

My Island Bistro Kitchen Barbara99

Ingredients

2 large eggs
3 tsp basil pesto
4 tsp grated Parmesan cheese
2 tbsp milk or cream
1 green onion, sliced
Fresh chives, chopped
Salt and pepper, to taste
2-3 tsp Boursin Garlic and Fine Herbs cheese, or your favorite feta cheese

Instructions

Assemble ingredients.
Preheat oven to 325C.
Spray two ramekins dishes with cooking spray. Place 1½ tsp pesto in bottom of each dish and swirl it around so bottom of ramekin are covered with pesto. Sprinkle 2 tsp parmesan cheese on top of pesto in each ramekin. Crack one egg into each ramekin without breaking the yolk. Add 1 tbsp milk or cream to each dish. Sprinkle each with sliced green onions and fresh chives. Add salt and pepper to taste. Top with 1 to 1½ tsp soft cheese.
Place ramekins in oven-proof baking pan. Fill up pan with boiling water until it reaches the half-way point on the sides of the ramekins.
Bake eggs for 10-20 minutes, depending on whether you like eggs runny, medium, or well done.

Recipe Notes

Serves: 2

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General, Picnics

A Pretty Pink Picnic

August 25, 2013 Barbara99

Our summers here in Prince Edward Island are always far too short; however, we do try to make the most of them and that, for us, means lots of picnics in the great outdoors. Today, I am hosting a catch-up and chat picnic/tea for some friends. Read on to find out what is on my menu for the Pretty Pink Picnic. Continue reading A Pretty Pink Picnic →

Cookie of the Month, Cookies, General, Recipes

Chocolate Drop Cookies

August 21, 2013 Barbara99 2 Comments

I have always been a chocolate lover. These chocolate cookies were ones my Mother often made when I was a child. I like the rich chocolate flavour and somewhat chewy center they have. These cookies don’t take any uncommon ingredients or ones most serious bakers wouldn’t have in their cupboards. Of course, using the best cocoa you can find will make for a richer, more flavourful cookie.

This cookie recipe calls for shortening (as opposed to butter). While some think that butter is the only fat to use in baking, I would disagree. There are times when the flavorless shortening can actually produce a better quality baked good with sought-after attributes.

For these cookies, I wanted puffy cookies with a soft, tender texture so shortening was my fat ingredient of choice. This is because shortening has no water content so, unlike butter with its water content, there is no water to create steam. Less steam means less gluten is likely to be formed thus giving the cookies their soft, tender texture.

In addition, shortening has a higher melting point that does butter. This gives the cookie dough a longer chance to set and establish its shape before the fat melts and spreads the cookies out flat. The result? Cookies with a higher rise and a softer, more tender texture. You can read more about the choice of using butter and/or shortening in cookie baking by clicking here.

These cookies are very easy to make and, being drop cookies, there is no rolling the dough and cutting out shapes and no need for any icing. Simply scoop up some dough with a teaspoon and use another to slide the dough off the spoon and on to the cookie sheet. These cookies can be dressed up with 1/2 cup of either chopped nuts, dates, raisins, or even chocolate chips. However, I don’t add any extras to them as I like the smooth texture and flavour they have on their own without any further additions.

[Printable recipe follows at end of posting]

Chocolate Drop Cookies

Ingredients:
1/2 cup shortening, softened
1 cup white sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup milk
1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 cup cocoa
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt

Method:

Preheat oven to 375F.

With electric mixer, beat shortening and sugar together until light and fluffy (1-2 minutes). Beat in egg, vanilla, and milk.

Into separate bowl, sift together the flour, cocoa, baking powder, and salt. Add to wet ingredients and stir just until dry ingredients are incorporated.

Drop by teaspoonfuls onto parchment-lined baking sheet.

Bake 10-11 minutes. Do not overbake or cookies will be dry.

Yield: Apx. 3 dozen

These cookies are good any time and make good lunch box treats as well as picnic basket fare. They are especially good with a dish of vanilla ice cream!

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