Gifts for Foodies

Time is running out and, as you may be realizing in a panic, this is your last weekend to gather up any -- or all -- Christmas gifts. At the risk of promoting stereotypes, I would venture a guess that perhaps some of the men reading this column may find themselves in this very predicament. But then some of us females are relatively last-minute, too. I'm (slowly) learning not to be. In either case -- whether you're done or you're scrambling, if you've got some time to be in the kitchen, homemade treats are always a lovely gesture.

Gifts from your own kitchen are perfect to give to co-workers, hosts, teachers -- all those people you'd like to give just a little something to. Cookies are always lovely but even better is to give something with more lasting power. People are usually overwhelmed by treats at this time of year. I think we have all watched someone joke, "Please don't tell me this is something sweet," while unwrapping a gift of homemade baking or a box of Turtles. Meanwhile, I'm not sure they're really joking. A treat that can be tucked away and enjoyed later is a good compromise.

In preparation for this piece, I polled several foodies in the region: what do they like to make and give away at this time of year?

Dana Shortt, of Dana Shortt Gourmet in Waterloo, said she likes to give away homemade hot chocolate mix and chocolate-dipped marshmallows. Easy enough -- there are lots of variations on hot chocolate mix, most of which are some combination of cocoa powder, powdered milk and sugar (sometimes chopped chocolate, too) but you can experiment by adding spices to make it more interesting. You could dip store-bought marshmallows in melted chocolate, or, if you're feeling really ambitious, make your own marshmallows relatively easily. A quick Google search will give you tons of recipes to choose from.

Granola came up as a gift idea from Nina Bailey-Dick, a resident of Waterloo and a champion of local eating. She recommends using locally grown grains (look for Oak Manor Farms brand from Listowel or ask for what's local at the farmer's market or health food store). Granola can be eaten now or popped into the freezer for the new year. It's great with yogurt or milk and it's healthy. The Moosewood Restaurant New Classics recipe for Maple Nut Granola is one of my favourites, passed onto me by a friend who always has a supply of it in her kitchen. But there are gazillions of recipes out there worth trying.

In years past, I've given away little jars of homemade chai tea -- also really easy to do. This year, my big project was salted caramels. I came across the recipe in A Year at Les Fougeres, a beautiful cookbook from the restaurant of the same name in Chelsea, Quebec. (If ever you are in the Ottawa area, do make the trip across the river to eat there).

The recipe below is halved from the original and I made a couple other minor adjustments, too. I always find making caramel somewhat terrifying on account of all that beyond-boiling sugar. (I also have the scars to back up the fear). Be sure to use a deep pot so there is no risk of boiling over, and if things start to get scary, turn the heat down and take your time bringing the mixture up to the right temperature. Finally, when adding the cool ingredients (like the cream) into the boiling caramel, pour slowly and carefully.

Fleur de Del Caramels

One 9x13 inch pan

2 cups sugar


1/2 cup water


1-1/2 cups glucose or white corn syrup


1 tsp salt


1/2 cup butter, cut into pieces


2 cups cream


1 cup sweetened condensed milk


1/2 tbsp vanilla extract


1 to 2 tbsp fleur de sel for sprinkling

Combine sugar, water, corn syrup and 1 tsp salt in a heavy-bottomed pot. Stir to combine then bring to a boil over medium to medium-high heat, washing down the sides of the pot with a wet pastry brush. Place a candy thermometer in the mixture and let it cook without stirring until the thermometer reads 250F. Wash down the sides of the pot again.

Add butter, stirring gently to help it melt. Gradually stir in half of cream. Bring to a boil and let it cook to reduce to almost half. During this time, the mixture will begin caramelizing and changing to its distinct colour. Stir in the remaining cream. Continue to boil, stirring in a figure eight motion, until the temperature reaches 250F again. Remove from heat.

Stir in the condensed milk. Return to heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture reaches 244F. Remove from heat and continue to stir for two minutes; it will start to thicken. Stir in the vanilla. Pour into parchment-lined pan. When cooler but still tacky, sprinkle with fleur de sel. Leave uncovered at room temperature over night. Unmould and cut into squares with a cold knife.

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The Perfect Cheese Tray

I am not the first person to write about a cheese tray this season, and I won’t be the last. It’s a no-brainer as an appetizer when you’re harried and busy. Unwrap a few items and plunk them on a platter and there you are. It never goes out of style and people gobble it up happily.

At this time of year, cheese and some yummy accompaniments are perfect by the fire as a Christmas Eve starter, or an ideal way to kick off (or wrap up?) your New Year’s Eve festivities. And, on a quiet, cosy Saturday night when you’re not in the mood to cook, who says it can’t replace dinner?

While the idea of a cheese tray itself may be nothing new, I do have a few ideas on how you can make one that’s uniquely local. Should you find yourself in Kitchener this weekend -- or on any other Saturday, for that matter -- a trip to the downtown market will have you in very good shape for putting together a gorgeous cheese course.

This is one of my favourite things to feed people whether I’m hosting or whether I’m headed elsewhere. It’s lovely to serve (or take) to out-of-towners because it allows you to impress with (and be an ambassador for) some of Waterloo region’s best eats. But it also introduces locals to things they might not have known existed in their own backyard.

Cheese, naturally, is the place to start. Designers love things in odd numbers, and plating food is design, isn’t it? Three to five cheeses is about right, depending on how many people you’re feeding. There’s no shortage of wonderful cheese at the market but I like to head to Knechtel’s to pick up a few types by Millbank’s Monforte. Knechtel’s carries a handful of the 25 types made by Monforte cheesemaker Ruth Klahsen. Three to try: Belle, a smooth, lemony chevre; a hunk of smoked cheddar (regular or chipotle); and a wedge of Piacere, an oozy, buttery, French-inspired, herb-encrusted thing of beauty.

Now the fun begins. What else to buy? To start, I head to Doug’s Honey for a piece of honeycomb. Honey is a fabulous partner to cheese. It creates some opportunity for salty-sweet contrast and it tempers the flavour of particularly strong cheeses. There are also all manner of pickles, sauces and relishes available from a couple spots, including those from Kountry Kitchen Cupboard, made in Winterbourne.

With some almonds and a little jug of Mennonite country’s finest maple syrup, you can make a quick batch of roasted nuts at home. Just toss a pound of skin-on almonds with 1/3 cup of syrup and a tablespoon of vegetable oil, spread on a parchment-lined baking sheet, bake at 325 about 20 minutes, then sprinkle with coarse salt.

And a bag of Oak Manor Farms flour, which you’ll see displayed and sold on the main level, will serve you well if you’re up for making your own crackers, which is much easier than you’d think. See the recipe below, if you’re game.

As for some deliciously salty meat, I hit up Unfactory Farm, one of my favourite booths (they also sell the flour), for organic beef pepperettes, which come in spicy and not-so-spicy. They’re perfect sliced up on the diagonal. But the market is certainly your oyster as far as cured meats go.

Lastly, a trip across King Street to Golden Hearth bakery for a couple of loaves of just about anything. Especially beautiful when left whole on a tray is their Epi, a leafy-looking version of the baguette.

Once home with your spoils, all that’s left to do is assemble. A big wooden board is the perfect canvas, if you’ve got one. A few cheese knives, some cocktail napkins and some vino, et voila. Beautiful.

For those who actually want to turn the oven on and tinker around a little further, here’s that cracker recipe, adapted slightly from Lucy’s Kitchen, by Lucy Waverman. Happy feasting.

Walnut Cracker Bread

3 cups all-purpose flour (feel free to try subbing in whole wheat or other kinds)


2 tbsp granulated sugar


1 tsp kosher salt


1 cup cold butter, cubed


1 tsp fennel seeds


1 cup chopped walnuts


3/4 cup water

Topping:


1 egg, beaten


1 tsp kosher salt or Maldon salt

Combine flour, sugar, salt, butter, fennel and walnuts in food processor and process until butter is size of peas. Blend in enough water to bring dough together (you may need slightly more or less than 3/4 cup). Transfer dough to a bowl and knead lightly until it forms a ball. Flatten dough into a disk and wrap in plastic. Chill for 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 350F. Divide dough into four pieces. Roll each piece as thinly as possible on a floured surface (shape can be irregular). Transfer to ungreased baking sheets and prick with a fork. Brush with beaten egg and sprinkle with salt. Bake in centre of oven (you may have to bake these one at a time) for 18 minutes or until golden and crisp. Cool on a rack. Break up crackers into smaller pieces.

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Persimmons

On a recent weekend with girlfriends in snowy Quebec, much of which was spent cosying up inside either eating or thinking about doing so via the browsing of food magazines and cookbooks, my friend Amy asked me, ‘What do you know about persimmons?’ The answer was not a lot.

Like my friend, I’d seen the fruit in the aisles of the grocery store and been struck by its taut, shiny skin and brilliant orange hue. Really, I’d thought more about persimmons as something that would look beautiful on a holiday mantle than I had about what I could do with them in the kitchen.

The conversation, however, led to some surfing over a glass or two of wine -- both online and in cookbooks -- in search of inspiration of what could be done with persimmons. Much oohing and aahing ensued. And since, I’ve done some experimenting.

Now that we are officially immersed in winter, the fresh produce choices have narrowed. Diehard locavores must commit themselves to several long, dark months of cabbage and potatoes or look toward eating at least a few imports.

For those in need of at least a taste of fruit, there are still, at this time of year, some local apples and pears. There’s citrus coming up from the States and little mandarin oranges coming from much further. There is also the mighty pomegranate, which, at this time of year, clearly has some kind of insane powerhouse marketing firm behind it -- when I hit up the supermarket near my house last weekend, I encountered a virtual house made of pomegranates.

Then there is the oft-overlooked persimmon -- two varieties to be exact -- which come up from California in fall and winter. The Fuyu is short, shaped more like a squat, firm tomato, and best eaten out of hand like an apple. The Hachiya, taller, acorn-shaped and more jelly-like when cut open, is typically used in baking -- puddings, often. Both are the same perfect, glossy shade of orange, and taste sugary sweet like a mango.

Some grocery stores have a fresher looking supply of persimmons than others, so do check around. They make a lovely, bright addition to a salad at this time of year -- think of arugula, prosciutto, some toasted hazelnuts, perhaps a bit of blue cheese, and maybe a few pomegranate seeds to further brighten things up.

Here is a recipe from Bon Appetit magazine for persimmons and arugula wrapped in bresaola, a thinly-sliced cured beef that’s a nice alternative to prosciutto. These would make a great, pretty holiday appie to serve with cocktails. Quick and easy, too -- no cooking required!

Bresaola-Wrapped Persimmons with Arugula

1 tbsp balsamic vinegar


1/2 tsp coarse salt


1/4 tsp freshly ground pepper


2 ripe Fuyu persimmons (though Hachiyas would be fine, too) peeled and cut into wedges


slices of paper-thin bresaola (approximately 8 oz.)


3 cups baby arugula leaves

Toss first four ingredients together in medium bowl. Place 2 bresaola slices side by side lengthwise and slightly overlapping on work surface. Place 1 persimmon wedge and 4 arugula leaves across short end of bresaola, allowing fruit and arugula to extend past short end of bresaola. Roll up with fruit and arugula visible at ends. Repeat with remaining ingredients.

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