Author: Marni MacLeod

No Fuss Chocolate Pie
May 21, 2018

No Fuss Chocolate Pie

Chocolate pie is easy, rich and delicious. Kind of like chocolate pudding in a crust. You can use store bought pie crust or make your own. No judgment here. Pie Crust Makes 4 crusts – wrap and freeze what you don’t use. 5 C flour …

Pie
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by Marni MacLeod
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Deconstructed Salade Niçoise with Seared Ahi Tuna – Mother’s Day Dinner
May 13, 2018

Deconstructed Salade Niçoise with Seared Ahi Tuna – Mother’s Day Dinner

My Mother’s Day dinner of choice was a Salade Niçoise with seared Ahi tuna. We are a family who cooks and a dinner out is the exception not the norm so my son, who is home from Uni for the summer (yay!) helped me prepare …

Salad
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by Marni MacLeod
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Leek, Onion, and Rainbow Chard “Spanokopita”
May 12, 2018

Leek, Onion, and Rainbow Chard “Spanokopita”

I love Spanokopita and this leek, onion, and rainbow chard pie is my take on a Greek dish that borrows a bit from this recipe for Greek Leek Pie from Nancy Gaifyllia of The Spruce Eats (thank-you Nancy!). It is not entirely coincidental that it also relies on my latest delivery from Organivores which has contained the most lovely leeks the last couple of times.

Ingredients

  • 4 leeks (white to light green parts only) cleaned and chopped in half moons. Leeks are super dirty but delicious so worth the effort of cleaning them. Don’t know how? Watch the video below:

  • 1 medium sized onion, chopped in half and thinly sliced
  • 1 shallot, finely diced
  • I bunch of green onions (about 5), chopped (white and green parts)
  • 1/4 C white wine (optional)
  • 1 bunch rainbow chard, sliced in 1″ ribbons
  • 1/4 C butter (could use olive oil)
  • 4 eggs
  • 1 C yogurt
  • 1 C grated old cheddar (or feta, I had cheddar so that’s what I used)
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • 1 package Phyllo dough (I used President’s Choice)
  • 1/3 C melted butter for the Phyllo (you may need more)

Method

  1. Preheat oven to 350F.
  2. Melt the 1/4 C butter in a large (and I mean LARGE) sauté pan, I used my massive cast iron pan.
  3. Add the leeks, onions and shallots and sauté on low heat for about 20 minutes until the onions are starting to soften. Give them a stir now and then.
  4. Add the white wine and that ribboned chard and continue cooking until it’s all nice and soft. Remove from heat and allow to cool.
  5. Grate the cheese.
  6. Beat the eggs and yogurt together, season and add the cheese.
  7. Fold in the cooled leek, onion and chard mixture and set aside while you get the Phyllo dough ready. Phyllo can be fiddly but once you get used to it, it’s not that bad. Watch the video below for tips – basically all you need is a large work space and a damp (clean) tea towel.
  8. Brush a 9 x 12 baking dish with melted butter.
  9. Place layer of Phyllo in to cover the bottom (leave sides hanging over). Brush with butter and repeat until you have a layer of at least 6 sheets.
  10. Pile the filling into the pan and spread flat.
  11. Cover with Phyllo, brush with butter and repeat until you’ve used up the remaining sheets. I stopped too soon so just buttered and layered the remainder and folded it to fit the top to the pan. Make sure your top sheet is buttered.
  12. Score the pie into how many pieces you want with a sharp knife.
  13. Bake for 30-35 minute or until lovely, golden brown.
  14. Serve warm or cold with a salad. Serves 8 decent sized pieces.

 

Dinner, Vegetarian
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by Marni MacLeod
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Leek and Mushroom Pie
April 15, 2018

Leek and Mushroom Pie

I love the delicate flavour of leek and mushroom pie, it is satisfying on it’s own or when paired with bacon or chicken. Serve it with a salad and some roasted veg and you have a balanced, nutritious meal. A note about leeks: because they …

Pie, Vegetables
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by Marni MacLeod
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Sour Cream Apple Pie
April 15, 2018

Sour Cream Apple Pie

Sour cream apple pie is easy and delicious. Crust: You can make your own pie crust using your favourite recipe (the one off the Crisco box works perfectly well) or use store bought. If you want a quick and easy recipe use this Pastry Dough …

Dessert, Pie
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by Marni MacLeod
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Turnips, Collard Greens and Cabbage Shoots with Applewood Smoked Bacon
April 13, 2018

Turnips, Collard Greens and Cabbage Shoots with Applewood Smoked Bacon

I hate turnips. Or at least I’m thought I did. Bad experience in my youth. Also true, I absolutely love collard greens. When collard greens are cooked right there is nothing better. So, when I got collard greens, cabbage shoots, and turnips in my Organivores bin this week it was a sign. Off I went for a surf to see what I could find. What I found was the lovely Rosie’s recipe for Southern Mixed Greens and Turnips at IHeartRecipes. Thank you Rosie!
If you have mustard greens and kale as well as collards and turnips, try Rosie’s recipe. If you don’t, then try mine. I didn’t want to be eating this for a week (collards or not) so I reduced some of the ingredients amounts. Even the bacon – I know, I know sacrilege, especially when it’s Applewood smoked bacon.

Ingredients

  • 6 rashers smoked bacon (I used Applewood smoked bacon, drool…sorry)
  • 1 large vidalia onion diced (or yellow onion will do)
  • 1 large yellow bell pepper diced
  • 3 cloves of fresh garlic minced
  • 1 tsp seasoning salt (I used Old Bay)
  • 1 tsp ground black pepper
  • 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
  • 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
  • 1 big bunch collard greens washed & cut
  • 1 big bunch of cabbage sprouts
  • 1 C chicken broth
  • 3 – medium sized turnips peeled & chopped into chunks

Instructions

  1. Clean the greens well. I double soaked them. Trim the ends off the ends to get rid of any super tough stalks and Chop into bite sized pieces. You are going to cook the bejesus out of these suckers so some stalk is okay.
  2. Chop the bacon into bite sized pieces and place in a deep sided saute pan.
  3. Cook bacon over medium heat and when it starts to brown add the onions, yellow pepper, and minced garlic.
  4. Stir the ingredients, then start adding the  greens. You may need to let them cook down a bit as you go to make room. Be patient, they will wilt.
  5. Once all the greens are in the pot, pour in the chicken broth.
  6. Add the red pepper flakes, seasoning salt, and black pepper. Give it a good stir.
  7. Stir in the apple cider vinegar.
  8. Reduce the heat from medium to low, put a lid on the pan, and let the greens simmer for 1 hour.
  9. Add in the turnips, stir, cover and let the works cook for another 30 minutes.

Serves 4-6 people.

Side Dish, Vegetables
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by Marni MacLeod
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Stripetti Squash with Sundried Tomatoes
April 8, 2018

Stripetti Squash with Sundried Tomatoes

I finally got around to roasting up the stripetti squash that came with my first bin from Organivores. A stripetti squash is a cross between a spaghetti squash and a delicata squash (apparently). In my opinion, the taste and texture are pretty much the same …

Vegetables
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by Marni MacLeod
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Dandelion Greens with Red Pepper
April 8, 2018

Dandelion Greens with Red Pepper

My Organivores bin had a myriad of greens this week including a big bunch of dandelion greens. Yup, weed leaves. And, I have to say, they are delicious. First up, I had a look around on the web to see how exactly one prepares and …

Vegetables
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by Marni MacLeod
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Rutabaga and Carrot Mash
March 28, 2018

Rutabaga and Carrot Mash

This past week my Organivores box contained some lovely carrots and a couple of rutabagas. Rutabaga (also know as swede) is not to be confused with turnips that are much stronger in taste. Although, there is no reason you couldn’t use turnip in this recipe if that’s what you had on hand. Anyway, while looking for recipes I came across a Ricardo Magazine’s recipe for Mashed Rutabaga and Carrots. I used it as a base for cooking the rutabaga and used up the 2 cups of carrots I had left over from my Roasted Carrots with Sumac and Yogurt Sauce. I think roasting the carrots adds a bit of depth but it’s not strictly necessary.

Ingredients

  • 2 medium rutabaga peeled and cubed
  • 1 small onion, diced
  • 2 cloves garlic finely chopped (optional)
  • 2 Tbsp olive oil
  • 2 Tbsp butter
  • 1 Cup chicken or vegetable stock
  • 1 tsp honey
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • 2 Cups roasted carrots

Note: If you don’t have roasted carrots increase the butter to 4 Tbsp and the stock to 2 Cups and chop up 2 Cups worth of carrots and saute them with the rutabaga.

Method

  1. In a large frying pan with deep sides (or a pot), saute the onion in the oil and butter about 3 minutes until translucent.
  2. Add the rutabaga and saute until lightly browned.
  3. Add the garlic and season with salt and pepper. I don’t like adding the garlic too soon because if it browns it gets bitter.
  4. Add the stock and bring to a boil. Cover and simmer until the rutabaga is tender (about 20 minutes). Check it with a fork (it needs to be mashable).
  5. Drain, keeping the broth aside (you are going to add it back as needed).
  6. In a food processor, purée the vegetables with the honey until smooth, adding broth, if needed.
  7. Adjust the seasoning.

This can be made the day before and reheated with whatever you are making. In this case I was making the roasted purple sprouted broccoli, sunchokes, and Citrus Spiced Chicken pictured.

Makes enough to feed 6.

 

Casserole, Vegetables
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by Marni MacLeod
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One Bowl Banana Bread
March 10, 2018

One Bowl Banana Bread

This one bowl banana bread is delicious and can be made with or without the cranberry sauce (I just happened to have some). If you like walnuts or blueberries in your banana bread go ahead and add 1/2 C. If you want to replace the …

Baked treats
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by Marni MacLeod
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