AN INTERACTIVE COOKING CLASS SERIES

WINTER, SPRING, SUMMER, FALL

Happy New Year Everyone!

We love to have sushi, so sushi it is! What a wonderful thing. It has all the food groups rolled up into one perfect bite!  Iron,zinc,copper,calcium,fiber,b1,protein,manganese,and lots more….

( Many cultures believe that anything in the shape of a ring is good luck, because it symbolizes “coming full circle,” completing a year’s cycle)

This month it’s all about SUSHI! 

Thursday January 19 at 6:30 p.m

Tasty whole foods supper club. Fun, interactive cooking classes.

After all the washing,sorting, chopping, slicing, sauteing, flipping and frying you get to sit down and enjoy our creations.

With humor and guidance we will collectively make the meal together.

We’ll make a party out of it!

THE THIRD THURSDAY EVENING  OF EVERY MONTH AT THE ST PAUL’S CHURCH COMMUNITY KITCHEN ON THE CORNER OF PRINCE AND RICHMOND ST CHARLOTTETOWN 6:30 P.M  $25.00 PER PERSON CALL 902-367-9491 FOR MORE INFO or e-mail me here.. 

Whole foods cooking class CBC interview

*NEWS! Kids Can Cook program will be held on Thursdays ONLY for the Fall Semester. Starting September 22 at 3 p.m  Hope to see you there! 

After School Program

Fun in the kitchen with macrobiotics and fresh local whole foods, sewing creations, crafts and dance!

I’m very excited to be spending time with your wonderful children. I hope they all enjoy the fall program with me. We will be dancing, making crafts and doing lots of cooking! All of our projects will be hands on, using local organic ingredients as much as possible and recycled goods for our craft projects.

September 16-December 14th 2010

All Elementary School kids -Tuesdays and Thursdays 3:00-5:30

All Junior High students- 3rd Tuesday of the month from 6:00-8:00 p.m

$15.00/a day

Please contact me for further information. Sign up today!

Location:Charlottetown Prince Edward Island

Telephone: 902-367-9491

Stuffed Portobellos With Green Beans

4 Large portobello  mushrooms, brushed free of dirt

Spring or filtered water

Sea salt

About 2 tablespoons of extra-virgin olive oil

2 to 3 Cloves fresh garlic, finely minced

2 Jalapeno chilies, seeded and diced

1 Red onion, diced

1 Red bell pepper, roasted over  an open flame, peeled, seeded and diced

3 to 4 Sprigs fresh flat leaf parsley, finely minced

3 to 4 Sprigs fresh basil, leaves removed and finely minced

1 Cup dried apricots

Grated zest and juice of 1 lemon

1 Cup whole wheat bread crumbs

3 Cups whole green beans, tips trimmed, left whole

2 to 3 Tablespoons sun-dried tomato paste

Preheat the oven to 400′F

Remove the stems from the mushrooms, dice the stems and set aside. Scoop the gills from the mushrooms and discard. Arrange the mushroom caps in a shallow baking dish, add enough water to cover the bottom and sprinkle with salt. Bake, uncovered, for 10to 15 minutes, just until tender. Leave oven on.

Place about 1 tablespoon of the oil, the garlic, chilies and onion in a deep skillet over medium heat. When the onions begin to sizzle, add a pinch of salt and saute for 1 to 2 minutes. Stir in the mushroom stems, bell pepper, basil and parsley. Season lightly with salt and saute for 3 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the apricots, zest and juice and bread crumbs. Mix well and divide stuffing among the mushroom caps. Return to the oven for 5 to 7 minutes to brown.

Bring a small pot of water to a boil and cook the beans for 3 to 4 minutes. Drain well. Place the remaining 1 tablespoon of the oil in a skillet and stir in the sun-dried tomato paste and a generous pinch of salt. Cook stirring, for 2 minutes. Stir in the beans until coated with tomato paste and just tender, 2 to 3 minutes.

To serve, divide the beans among four individual plates, spooning any tomato juices over the beans. Place a mushroom cap on each plate and serve immediately.

- I only used 1 jalapeno. I was worried about it being to spicy for my kids. Also I used 3 to 4 whole sun-dried tomatoes, minced instead of paste. This dish turned out great. Very filling.

NEXT WEEK – PASTA!

Day 16-Roasted Vegetable Pasta

Day 17-Soba With Endive And Radicchio

Day 18-Broccoli Rabe Pasta With Tempeh Sausage

Day 19-Gemelli With Cauliflower And Walnuts

Day 20-Penne With Beer Stewed Artichoke Hearts

Day 21-Fusilli Carbonara With Spring Vegetables

All recipes are  printed with permission from Christina Pirello

Sweet Corn And Basmati Salad

1 Cup brown basmati rice, rinsed well and soaked for 2 to 3 hours

11/2 Cups spring or filtered water

Sea salt

About 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

2 to 3 Cloves fresh garlic, finely minced

1 Yellow onion, finely diced

1 Cup fresh or frozen corn kernels

Mirin

5 to 6 Leaves fresh basil, shredded

Parsley sprigs, for garnish

Drain the rice, Place the rice and water in a heavy pot and bring to a boil over medium heat, loosely covered. Add a pinch of salt, reduce  heat to low and simmer , covered, until liquid has been absorbed into rice, about 45 minutes.

Place the oil, garlic and onion into a small skillet over medium heat. When the vegetables begin to sizzle, add a pinch of salt and saute until the onion is translucent, 3 to 4 minutes. Stir in the corn and add a generous splash of mirin. Saute for 1 to 2 minutes. Turn off heat and stir in the basil.

To serve, stir sauteed vegetables into the cooked rice. Garnish with parsley sprigs and serve hot.

-I had my Kids Can Cook group make this dish and we all loved it ! It was hard to reserve some for their take-home.

This recipe is printed with permission from Christina Pirello

Seitan With Broccoli Rabe

1 to 2 Tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

2 to 3 Cloves fresh garlic, finely minced

1 Red onion, cut into thin half moon  slices

Generous pinch of  red pepper flakes

Sea salt

1 Red bell pepper, roasted over an open flame, peeled, seeded and sliced into thin ribbons

1 Pound seitan, sliced into thin strips

Mirin or white wine

Grated zest on 1 lemon

1 large bunch broccoli rabe, rinsed well

Place the oil, garlic and onion into a deep skillet over medium heat. When the vegetables begin to sizzle, add the pinch of red pepper flakes and a pinch of salt and saute for 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in bell pepper and a pinch of salt and saute for 1 minute. Stir in the seitan and add a splash of mirin and the lemon zest. Cover and reduce the heat to low, simmering until the vegetables and seitan are tender, about 10 minutes. Season to taste with salt.

Just before adding the broccoli rabe to the skillet, slice into bite-sized pieces. Lay the greens on top of the ingredients in the skillet, cover and cook until the greens are bright green and just wilt, 3 to 4  minutes. Toss gently to combine and transfer to a serving platter. serve immediately.

- O.k again no fresh broccoli rabe in town all I could find were swiss chard greens. I served this dish up with brown rice and there was not a crumb left! So delish.

This recipe is printed with permission from Christina Pirello

“I made this dish more simple, no garlic, no pepper flakes. I used my marinated home made seitan and mixed with brown rice spaghetti. So good!” – Kati Schuszter

Lettuce Rolls With Plum Sauce

Rolls

1 to 2 Tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

5 to 6 slices fresh ginger, thinly sliced on the diagonal

Sea salt

2 Cups cooked brown basmati rice

6 to 8 leaves romaine lettuce, rinsed and towel dried

Plum sauce

2 Cloves fresh garlic, finely minced

1/4 Jalapeno chili, seeded and finely minced

2 Teaspoons of sesame tahini

2 Teaspoons finely minced ginger

1 Teaspoon soy sauce

1 Tablespoon brown rice syrup

Generous pinch of red pepper flakes

Grated zest and juice of 1 lemon

2 to 3 Dark fleshed plums, peeled, pitted, diced

To make the rolls: Place the oil, ginger and scallions, (reserving a few scallion slices for garnish) in a skillet over medium heat. When the vegetables begin to sizzle, add a pinch of salt and saute until the scallions are limp, but still bright green, about 3 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir the sauteed vegetables into the rice.

Lay the lettuce leaves on a dry surface. Spoon the filling generously onto each leaf and wrap the lettuce around the filling, sealing completely. Place each roll, seem side down, on a bamboo steamer. Place over a shallow pot of boiling water and steam the rolls, uncovered until lettuce just wilts, about 4 minutes. Remove from the heat and set aside to cool on the bamboo rack.

To make the plum sauce: Place the garlic, chili, tahini and ginger in a saucepan and simmer, stirring constantly, over low heat for about 2 minutes, to release the heat in the chili.  Add  the remaining ingredients to the pan and cook over low heat until the plums are quite soft, about 30 minutes. Transfer to a food processor and puree until smooth. Adjust the seasonings to your taste.

To serve, pool some plum sauce on individual salad plates. Using a sharp knife, slice each lettuce roll on the  diagonal. Arrange two to three diagonal pieces on each plate and serve, garnished with the reserved scallions. The unused plum sauce will keep refrigerated, for about 1 week.

-I had my Junior High cooking class make these! They had so much fun. We dipped them into the plum sauce as well as a shoyu dip . I had mixed reviews. Although my 9 year old DEVOURED them

This recipe is printed with permission from Christina Pirello

Saffron Polenta With Sauteed Vegetables

Saffron Polenta

5 Cups of spring or filtered water

1/2 Cup yellow cornmeal

21/2 Cups yellow corn grits

Pinch of sea salt

2 to 3 Teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil

1 Teaspoon saffron threads

Sauteed Vegetables

1 to 2 Tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

2 to 3 Cloves garlic, finely minced

1 Yellow onion, cut into thin half-moon slices

Sea salt

6 to 8 Cremini mushrooms, thinly sliced

1/2 Small fennel bulb, stalks trimmed flush to the bulb and bulb thinly sliced

1 Carrot, cut into fine matchstick pieces

1/2 Cup mirin or white wine

3 Fresh vine-ripened tomatoes, diced

1 Small bunch of broccoli rabe, finely  cut

1/2 cup loosely packed fresh basil leaves, shredded

To make the polenta: Whisk together the water, cornmeal, grits, salt,oil and saffron in a large saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium low heat, whisking constantly. Reduce the heat to low and cook, stirring frequently, until the center of the polenta bubbles and pops, about 35 minutes. Transfer the polenta to a lightly oiled, shallow dish and set aside until firm , about 1 hour.

To make the vegetables: Place the oil, garlic and onion in a wok or skillet over medium heat. When the vegetables begin to sizzle, add a pinch of salt and saute for 2 minutes. Stir in the mushrooms and a pinch of salt and saute until the mushrooms release their juices into the pan. Stir in the fennel, carrot and a pinch of salt and saute for 1 minute. Add the mirin and tomatoes, cover and cook over low heat until the vegetables are quite soft, about 25 minutes. Season to taste with salt and add broccoli rabe on top. Cover and cook until the  rabe is bright green. Remove the cover and simmer until any remaining cooking liquid has been absorbed into the vegetables. Remove from heat and stir in shredded basil.

To serve, either cut or scoop polenta onto individual plates and mound vegetables on top. Serve immediately.

- My kids found the saffron to be a little strong, so I made some polenta with out it for them. The vegetables in this dish were amazing! The fennel was extraordinaire . I could not find fresh broccoli rabe anywhere so I used regular broccoli instead. I also used cherry tomatoes because I had some kicking around.

This recipe is printed with permission from Christina Pirello

AN INTERACTIVE COOKING CLASS SERIES

WINTER, SPRING, SUMMER , FALL

This month is all about lebanese food! May 19th at 6:30 p.m

Tasty whole foods supper club. Fun, interactive cooking classes.

After all the washing,sorting, chopping, slicing, sauteing, flipping and frying you get to sit down and enjoy our creations.

With humor and guidance we will collectively make the meal together.

We’ll make a party out of it!

EVERY THIRD THURSDAY EVENING AT THE ST PAUL’S CHURCH COMMUNITY KITCHEN ON THE CORNER OF PRINCE AND RICHMOND ST CHARLOTTETOWN 6:30 P.M  $25.00 PER PERSON CALL 902-367-9491 FOR MORE INFO

Whole foods cooking class CBC interview

Endive Risotto With Walnuts

5 Cups of spring or filtered water

3 Tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

1 to 2 Cloves fresh garlic, finely minced

1/2 Yellow onion, finely diced

Sea salt

1/2 Cup white wine

1 Cup arborio rice, do not rinse

2 to 3 Medium Belgian endives, quartered

1/2 Cup pan-roasted walnuts, coarsely diced

1 Red bell pepper, roasted over an open flame, peeled, seeded and finely diced

Pour the water into a saucepan over low heat and keep warm throughout the cooking.

Place 2 tablespoons of the oil, the garlic and onion in a deep skillet over medium-high heat. When the onion begins to sizzle, add a pinch of sea salt and saute for 1 to 2 minutes. Stir in the wine and rice and saute until the rice absorbs the liquid. Turn the heat to medium-low and begin adding the warm water, by ladlefuls, and stirring it into the risotto, adding more liquid only as quickly as the rice absorbs it. When the dish is about 80 percent cooked, season to taste with salt. The total cooking time should be 25 to 30 minutes. The risotto will be creamy, but the rice will retain  some firmness.

While the risotto cooks, heat the remaining 1 tablespoon oil in a small saute pan and lay the endive, cut sides down, in the oil. Sprinkle lightly with salt and cook, uncovered, until the endive is tender and the edges are richly browned, about 7 minutes. Set aside.

To serve, spoon the risotto onto a platter and arrange the endive, cut sides up, around the rim. Stir in the walnuts and garnish with bell pepper.

Note: To pan-toast the walnuts, heat a dry skillet over medium heat. Toast the walnuts, stirring constantly, until fragrant and lightly browned, about 5 minutes.

-Okay well I burned the walnuts.. and so I picked out the 3 little pieces that were not burned and threw those in. Also I used a red onion. I brought this dish to a potluck!

This recipe is printed with permission from Christina Pirello

Cornbread With Green Bean Salad

Cornbread

2 Cups whole what pastry flour

1 Cup yellow cornmeal

21/2 Teaspoons baking powder

Generous pinch of sea salt

1/2 Teaspoon of ground cinnamon

1/2 Cup extra-virgin olive oil

2 Tablespoons brown rice syrup

2/3 to 1 Cup plain soy milk

1/2 Cup fresh or frozen corn kernels

Green Bean Salad

About 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

3 to 4 Shallots, cut into thin slices

2 Cloves fresh garlic, minced

Sea salt

1 Small carrot, cut into fine matchstick pieces

Grated zest of one lemon

2 to 3 Cups green beans, tips trimmed, left whole

Balsamic vinegar

To make the cornbread: Preheat oven to 350′F and lightly oil and flour a 9-inch-square glass baking dish. Combine the flour, cornmeal, baking powder, salt and cinnamon in a mixing bowl. Whisk to impart air into the mixture. Stir in the oil and rice syrup. Slowly add the soy milk, mixing to create a  smooth, spoonable batter. Fold in the corn. Spoon the batter evenly into the prepared dish and bake for 35 minutes, until the center springs back to the touch. Remove from oven and set aside to cool before slicing.

To make the salad: Combine the oil, shallots and garlic in a saute pan and place over medium heat. When the shallots begin to sizzle, add a pinch of salt and saute until shallots are just limp, about 1 minute. Add the carrot, lemon zest and a pinch of salt and saute for 1 minute. Stir in the green beans, cover and reduce the heat to low. Cook until beans are bright green and crisp-tender, about 4 minutes. Remove from the heat, sprinkle lightly with vinegar and stir gently to combine.

To serve, Cut the cornbread into 8 pieces. Reserve 4 for another use and place the remaining pieces on individual salad plates. Mound the green  bean salad over the top of the cornbread and serve hot.

-I used a 9 by 13 -inch pan for the cornbread and it turned out fine .

This recipe is printed with permission from Christina Pirello