Cooking
I hosted Easter dinner on Saturday - it was so exciting to get to cook a big meal for friends again. It was my first time hosting at my apartment that I moved into in Feb 2020. It was a really lovely day. Here’s the menu and some rough notes!
Glazed Ham: I made a glaze with ketchup, yellow mustard, Worcestershire sauce, cherry juice, pineapple juice, maple syrup and ground clove. I just eyeballed it and tasted as I went!
Roasted Lamb Rack: I seasoned the lamb racks well, rubbed them with grainy mustard, and made a crust on top with fresh parsley and lots of grated parmesan. Simple and delicious! Roasted at 425F until to temperature (145F).
Scalloped Potatoes: I made a white sauce with flour, butter, milk, some chicken stock, cream and seasoned it with ground nutmeg, dijon mustard, and a good amount of salt. Poured that over thinly sliced onion and potato, and baked covered with tinfoil at 325F until tender (about an hour), then baked again at a higher heat for some colour on top.
Sausage and Apple Dressing: I also just eyeballed this recipe, but browned two pork and rosemary sausages out of the cases, removed from the pan, and then cooked down leeks and celery in the sausage fat. Added in chopped apple, summer savoury seasoning, a handful of currents and some chicken stock, then 1 potato grated. Covered and cooked until the potato was cooked through. Mixed that with cubed bread, the sausage and a few pats of butter, then baked, covered at 325F for about an hour, uncovered at a higher heat for about 20 mins.
Ottolenghi’s Roasted Beet Salad: I love this salad - so easy to prep ahead of time. I didn’t have preserved lemon so omitted that, but was still delicious.
Ottolenghi’s Harissa Roasted Carrots: I love this method - a little spicy but not too overpowering. I did a mixture of carrots and parsnips.
Roasted Squash with Tahini Sour Cream, Za’atar and Mint: this was inspired by a dish I had at Field Guide restaurant in Halifax last summer. I roasted wedges of butternut squash tossed in oil and salt and pepper. Served those at room temperature (roasted them the day before and stored in the fridge until about an hour before serving), on top of a mixture of sour cream, tahini, lime juice, a touch of maple syrup and salt and pepper (seasoned to taste). Topped with a sprinkling of za’atar and fresh mint leaves!
Julia Turshen’s Mushroom and Kale Pie: this puff pastry topped pie is sooooo yummy. I made the mixture the day before and then baked it right before serving.
Rolls with Honey Pepper Butter: I did store-bought rolls with my fav, easy homemade flavoured butter on the table.
And then all of my desserts I made were Alison Roman recipes - I find her desserts so easy to make, not too fussy, but high-impact flavour:
Eating
I spent most of the last week in Calgary for work. My favourite eats were at Lulu Bar, an Asian-fusion restaurant. I loved the warm beet salad, miso roasted cauliflower, and the curry coconut linguini.
Listening
As It Was by Harry Styles on repeat.
Thinking
About how grateful I am for my friends in Toronto. I always miss my family on holiday weekends (/every day) but I’m glad to have found a group of people here that feel like family.
Laughing
Have a great week,
Kaleigh