Frenetically Fantastic Foodie Fight

Yeah.. I like alliteration.

Several months ago, I sat down with Mina to discuss what she wanted to do for her 8th birthday party. We've done a Splash Pad party, pool parties and, last year, was a Princess-themed sleepover. I tend to leave planning to the last minute and since Mina has a summer birthday our guest list is somewhat limited.

This year, I was determined to be proactive. Lori at work designed us some amazing invitations.
The invitations went out early. I had 12 RSVP's. And Mina's chosen theme? A FOOD FIGHT.

Everyone presumed us crazy. More than one person wasn't all that polite about our perceived insanity. But, in the end, 12 kids showed up and flung food at each other. And, I have to say, I am now the coolest Mom on the block.

Today's blog is dedicated to the Food Fight party. Mina had an amazing birthday party. The only thing I cooked was potatoes and spaghetti to fling at each other. We brought in the pizza and cake for the kids to eat, which made my life far less stressful. It turns out that I've discovered children don't really appreciate my "fancy" food. They just want the easy and good stuff thankyouverymuch.

Without further ado... the FOOD FIGHT:

Loot bags (inside: placemats, food-themed magnets, cookie cutters and a giant bag of GREAT candy - pop rocks, fun dip, tootsie pops...).














The ammunition (whole plum tomatoes, flour, coloured mashed potatoes, coloured spaghetti, Jell-O and whipped cream pies).

The Cake (was NOT thrown) - Cake was purchased at Sobey's in Woodstock. I have to admit - for a grocery store cake, it was delicious. The icing wasn't too sweet, the cake was moist and it tasted great. A very pleasant surprise. Plus, the Sobey's here has a far larger selection of character cakes. This means Mina won't be getting the same cake 2 years in a row (like last year).









Who is ready to fight?!










The fight ensues:









Part of Mina's birthday gift? A whipped cream pie and my face.

Overall, the party was a huge success. And it was incredibly easy to run. The weather cooperated wonderfully (rain just before and just after everyone left). I do think the adults had more fun chucking food at one another than the kids... they had "deer in the headlights" looks on their faces. I don't think they REALLY believed we were going to let them have at it with the food. I would totally recommend a Food Fight party for anyone looking to do something unique. Just prepare yourself for the inevitable claims on your sanity level. And for the clean up after. I'm still picking spaghetti out of the grass, despite heavy rainfall today that I was kind of hoping would wash things up for us. It's a good thing it's all brightly coloured - easy to spot the little bits I've missed.

No Foodie on the Hunt this week. I hunted down all the stuff for the loot bags and prepped all the food. I think I'm still good for raspberries or blueberries, so I think I know what we're getting next weekend.

Meal plan for the week:

Tonight: Moulton Meatloaf (look for the recipe tomorrow!), mashed potatoes and sweet glazed carrots.

Monday: Chicken and spinach three cheese pasta bake.

Tuesday: Mushroom pork chops, refried potatoes and peas.

Wednesday: Jim's "special ham" with broccoli.

Thursday: Chicken stir fry.

Friday: Grilled bangers with coleslaw.

A Foodie Family Feast!

Every summer, right after Mina's birthday, my Mom hosts a family BBQ. A potluck event, this is the time of year that everyone can get together, eat great food, have great drinks and have a lot of laughs. Of course, with 6+ kids running around, it's always truly frenetic.

Today was the day and, as expected, none of us were disappointed. I brought the caramelized onion tartlets with walnuts, thyme and feta and endive spears with herbed goat cheese. And some caviar. I couldn't resist. Recipes below.. of course.

I don't think there was anything that didn't taste fantastic. From meatballs with red pepper and pineapple to the Dijon potato salad and the little prosciutto sticks with herb olive oil... all was superb. Better than the food (shocked I said that, aren't you?!) was the family. I got to see my Great Aunts, who are always enjoyable and fun. I aspire to be JUST like them when I'm into my 80s. Well traveled, know their food and enjoy everything they do.

So.. a huge shout-out to my Mom - who pulled the whole thing together wonderfully. The BBQ was a success again this year and not only is my stomach full, so is my heart. Awww.

Enough with the cheese. Bring on the recipes:

CARAMELIZED ONION TARTLETS WITH FETA AND WALNUTS

You Need:

• 2-3 large sweet onions (or red onions)
• 1 tbsp cane sugar, or raw brown sugar
• 1 tbsp Olive Oil
• ¼ tsp Crushed Chillies, dried
• 1 tbsp Balsamic Vinegar
• 1 tbsp Thyme leaves, chopped
• 100g (3½ oz) Feta Cheese, crumbled
• 20g (¾ oz) Walnut Pieces
• 1 Egg, beaten
• Extra sugar and dried crushed Chillies and coarse salt of your choice (I used Himalayan) for sprinkling
• Freshly Ground Black Pepper
• 2-3 packages puff pastry - thawed, but cold

To Do:

Preheat oven to 350

1. Thinly chop the onions and sautee with salt and olive oil until caramelized. Add in balsamic and sautee on low for a few minutes. Cool.

2. Once onions are cooled, chop the walnuts, feta and thyme, gently fold into balsamic onions and season to taste.

3. Take thawed puff pastry (still cold) and cut into rounds (you pick what size).

4. Place rounds on baking sheet. Place small amount of onions in middle and gently fold up the sides around the filling. Sprinkle with chilies, sugar, salt and pepper (don't be too heavy handed).

5. Bake for 10-12 minutes, remove and serve warm.

ENDIVE SPEARS WITH HERBED GOAT CHEESE

You Need:

• 4 ounces fresh goat cheese, softened
• 3 tablespoons heavy cream
• 2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
• 1 teaspoon chopped fresh dill, plus sprigs for garnish
• 2 heads Belgian endive, leaves separated (about 24 leaves)
• Cracked black pepper

To Do:

Stir together goat cheese, cream, and oil in a small bowl until smooth. Stir in chopped dill. Spoon the cheese mixture onto stem ends of endive leaves, dividing evenly. Transfer to a serving platter. Season with pepper, and drizzle with oil. Garnish with dill sprigs. Serve immediately.

ORANGE SLICE JELLO SHOTS

You Need:

• 2 x oranges
• 1 pkg orange-flavored Jello
• 1/2 cup Vodka

To Do:

1. Slice oranges in half. Using a spoon, scoop out all the flesh and divider pith. Reserve.
2. In a medium bowl, add Jello and 1/2 cup boiling water. When Jello has dissolved, add vodka. Pour liquid Jello into orange halves. Refrigerate for approximately 4 hours, or until firm. To serve, slice each half into 3-4 wedges.

Meal planning was a quick affair this week - and keeping things easy since Jim is back on day shift and Mina's FOOD FIGHT party is this weekend.

Tonight: Leftovers from the party and quick nibbles. I'm still full.

Monday: Yogurt marinated chicken thighs, grilled and leftover potato salad.

Tuesday: Pizza, of course. It's soccer night!

Wednesday: Steak sandwiches and salad.

Thursday: Cheese tortellini with mushroom sauce and garlic bread.

Friday: Jim and I are going out. The girls will have something easy like grilled cheese and tomato soup. We'll eat out. Wheee!

... you don't have to wait for the main course

Today I'm thinking about appetizers. Antipasto, hors d'oeuvre, canape, amuse bouche... those little delicious tidbits that start what, you hope, is a delicious meal. It's like the promise of all the wonderful delicacies to come.

What has me chomping at the bit about finger foods? Our annual family BBQ. My time to shine. The entire family, congregated at my Mom's house for delicious food, good drinks and great company.

Usually held as a potluck, a few years back I "catered" the entire event with items like smoked pork roast, grilled ratatouille, BBQ gazpacho, ceviche with avocado crema....

Of course, that way a lot of work and pre-Lucy, so now we're back to potluck since I can barely find the time time tie my shoes, let alone plan/cook for the entire huge family. This year, I'm in charge of apps. So I'm digging up some old tried-and-true recipes (the antijitos never fail to get inhaled) and coming up with some new tasty morsels to try to *WOW* everyone with. Which brings up the question: Stick with what you know, or try something new.

This time, I've opted for "new to me". Tried and true from friends and recipes I've pulled over the years that I think look interesting with flavours I know work together. A bit of a risk, but how badly can I screw it up? (this is where Jim would bring up Lime Chicken...)

Here's my choices (top 13):

Endive spears with herbed goat cheese

Endive spears with grilled antipasto

Prosciutto wrapped figs stuffed with blue cheese

Twice baked potato bites (baby potatoes) topped with caviar

Caramelized onion tartlets

Pear and pecan toasts

Watermelon with feta and black olives

Watermelon with balsamic reduction and pistachio

Skewered bocconcini sandwiches (wth fresh mozza, capers and herbs)

Antipasto sausage skewers (with sundried tomato, artichokes, roasted red pepper, basil)

Red pepper triangles with Italian relish

Roasted red pepper, feta and basil bruschetta

Grilled shiitake mushrooms on rosemary skewers

So far, I'm leaning toward the figs (they're in season! but only if I can find them locally) and the pear and pecan toasts. I'm still wavering.. the caramelized onion tartlets would be mini-versions of my great onion tart... but it's more fitting for a cooler weather gathering. It doesn't scream SUMMER. And my basil looks fantastic right now, so using it would be fabulous.

Decisions, decisions. I'll be back with what I pick (and the recipe).

Dinner tonight? Grilled Korean ribs (shout out to the Memories of Korean BBQ sauce from President's Choice) with sauteed potatoes and sesame broccoli.

Found: Local Strawberries and Shortcake Cookies

Nothing tastes sweeter than ready-to-be-plucked fat, red strawberries. Except when you bust your butt to pick them yourself.

And that's what the foodie family did this morning. We headed out Hwy 2 to Blandford Road, hung a right and followed the signs to the Chesney farm (aka Thames River Berries) to pick our own.
Check out their website: http://www.thamesrivermelons.ca/index.html

After a confusing few minutes of trying to figure out if we just picked and paid on the honour system (we called them.. thank goodness for cellular service.. and yes, this late in the year they just let us roam into the field and drop $1.50/quart into the tin on the honour system - love small towns!!) we headed out to pick away.

It's late in the season, so I was a bit concerned on what we were going to find. Plus, I've heard from just about everyone that strawberries weren't stellar this year. A little small. But it's easy to spot those little red jewels of fruity goodness from the leaves and we quickly picked a couple of quarts - more than enough for us to munch on and cook with.

After an hour or so in the field, we were ready to head out. Truly, a fantastic way to kill an hour with the girls on a Sunday morning. Even Jim had a good time. Mina and I had a competition to see who could find the biggest berry - Mina won after spotting a beauty hidden beneath some leaves far up the field. We were joined by only one other picker, so no busy lines or huge amounts of people to contend with. And, even though late, we got a great haul.

As I'm generally pretty well prepared, I brought some water to wash off the berries so the girls could taste them right after picking. Of course, Lucy managed to get a few in her mouth before I could wash them off. Yum. Pesticides.

Once back home, Mina left with Grandma and Grandpa for a day at Bingeman's. Lucy had a nap and, after, we hung outside for a bit and ran some errands. Strawberries, of course, made it on to her plate after every meal. The kid loves them and these ones are particularly sweet. Testament that the sweetest things come in smaller packages, I suppose.

This afternoon, I attempted yet another Martha recipe - Strawberry Shortcake Cookies. As I often do, I start with the recipe verbatim and find things to tweak and make my own after a first try. Overall, the cookies turned out nicely. I think, next time, I'll add a smidge more salt and go for a different sanding sugar (maybe an unrefined brown sugar...). White chocolate (as a drizzle or in chip form) may be a nice addition as well.

The girls and Jim went nuts for the cookies and I've had to promise Marsha, from work, that I'd bring her in a few tomorrow. I've already had a few people asking for the recipe, so here it is in it's original version. Courtesy of Martha. Who makes a damn fine cookie.

Strawberry Shortcake Cookies

You Need:

• 12 ounces strawberries, hulled and cut into 1/4-inch dice (2 cups)
• 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
• 1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon coarse salt
• 3 ounces (6 tablespoons) cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
• 2/3 cup heavy cream
• Sanding sugar, for sprinkling

To Do:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Combine strawberries, lemon juice, and 2 tablespoons granulated sugar. Whisk together flour, baking powder, salt, and remaining 7 tablespoons granulated sugar in a large bowl. Cut in the butter with a pastry cutter, or rub in with your fingers, until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in cream until dough starts to come together, then stir in strawberry mixture.
2. Using a 1 1/2-inch ice cream scoop or a tablespoon, drop dough onto baking sheets lined with parchment, spacing evenly apart. Sprinkle with sanding sugar, and bake until golden brown, 24 to 25 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack, and let cool. Cookies are best served immediately, but can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 1 day.

Dinner tonight? Beer can chicken on the 'que with potatoes and corn on the cob. Corn wasn't bad, but I can't wait for fresh, local sweet corn to be ready!!

Foodie on the Hunt - Week 3

Better late than never, we're finally headed to pick our own strawberries. It happens every strawberry season where we head up north and by the time we get back blueberries and raspberries are ready and I get all excited for them and forget the good ol' strawberry. Not this year.

The nice thing about our local "pennysaver" type Friday night paper (that comes with all the lovely flyers) is that they have a pretty great listing of all the pick your own places. Normally, I'd head back to Red Barn - I know where it is, it's pretty close to home and convenient. But I've already been there this summer. Time to expand the horizons, right?

So I think we'll head to Thames River Melons - The Chesney farm. They're located within a 15 minute drive and, while I've seen their farm gate sales in parking lots throughout the city, I've yet to visit the farm.

Linky Link.

I'll have to call them to see how the strawberries are and if they're open tomorrow. Cross your fingers because there is no way we're headed out in thunderstorms and the like to get strawberries.

If they're not open, my plan is to hit them next week and go to this little Portuguese bakery that's in town and get some of their homemade pierogi. They even have "dessert" pierogi. Should be interesting.

I also meal planned for the week this week already this morning. Lucy was up early and I've had enough coffee to jolt a rhino. Jim's on afternoons next week, so it's just me and the girls. Here's the plan:

Tonight: The BBQ grilled cheese, tomato and basil sandwiches I didn't get to do last night (we ended up at the Cantebury Folk Festival, where we munched on overpriced food vendor fare).

Sunday: Beer Can Chicken, loaded baked potatoes and corn on the cob (if I can find decent corn).

Monday: Breaded pork bites, mashed potatoes and cherry tomato salad.

Tuesday: MINA'S 8TH BIRTHDAY!!! It's also soccer night, so you know we'll do homemade pizza and, of course, we'll have birthday cake.

Wednesday: Fettucini alfredo with mushrooms.

Thursday: Korean ribs on the grill, refried potatoes and steamed veggies (probably peas and carrots).

Friday: BBQ baked chicken wings with side salads.

Foodie on the Fly - Camping in Hell

Before we get to the adventures of the last week, let me define camping in hell. Camping in hell is when your vacation starts out relatively nice and, within a day, the weather turns cold, the rain starts to fall, your kids stop sleeping and start getting cabin fever (making an unbearable situation that much worse), then they inevitably get colds, which they share with you to enjoy on the one, single day of halfway decent weather.

Let's put it out there. I hate to camp. Even when my "roughing it" has no iota of "rough".

Needless to say, this was one vacation I was happy to return from.

Of course, not all of the past week or so was terrible. We actually left Mina at Jim's Mom's for a few days and left Cody at camp with Jim's Dad and headed back home and had some Foodie Fun on the way back. We saw some odd sights and had some laughs. We got to spend time with the Foodie Family, which makes up for all the rain, my inability to find really great local food up north (both from lack of availability in the region and my lack of motivation to dig deeper).

I missed my food though. I missed cooking. So I'm happy to be home and back at it.

But, let's focus on the good stuff. Our mini trip back home mid-vacation. We made great two stops: The Candy Shoppe (located on the 400 both southbound and northbound) and The Flashback Diner in Barrie.

First we stopped at: Candy Shoppe. Highway #11 North, Orillia, Ontario
(705) 327-8337

A true candy haven. Rows upon rows of hundreds (or thousands.. I didn't count) of kinds of candies and chocolates. I think the best part of the candy available is the selection from the UK (Cadbury items and, my favourite, Flake bars) and the selection from the US (Baby Ruth bars, Razzles, Wonka bars). Even those little Fizz candies I loved as a kid that made my tongue burn and bleed if I ate too many.

Check out their website - you can even order online. Hmm. Maybe not so great that I discovered that. I think the best part (other than the candy) was the little park out back. A good distraction for those travellers who get super antsy. I bet you thought I meant Lucy. No... me. The equipment may be a bit older than most, but it seemed fairly well maintained. Although Lucy was more enchanted with the flowers and the trees. The funny part of the Candy Shoppe is that I have passed it, going north, so many times and have always wanted to stop. I'm glad we did, even though my dentist may be less thrilled at my next checkup.

After our stop for candy, Lucy started letting us know that she was getting hungry. There is always one big problem I have with our 4-5 hour trips up north to see Jim's family. We inevitably fall prey to those oh-so-convenient-side-of-the-road service centres. And if there is one thing that I'm getting tired of it's fast food, scarfed down on the side of the road. It's always the same. I once had a friend ask me that if you weren't enjoying what was going into your stomach, why would you eat it? I think it's an extremely valid point that isn't asked often enough. I have nothing against burgers and fries. But there's a difference between a GOOD burger and fries and McDonald's version.

It was because of this philosophy I maintained to Jim that - unless absolutely necessary - when travelling, we would try to find local establishments to eat at and take the time to explore the places we were passing through.

As dinner time hit, we were closest to Barrie. So we got off the highway and hit:

Flashback Diner
309 Bayfield Street
Barrie, ON L4M 3C2
(705) 726-6555

The name pretty much sums it up. Diner atmosphere, diner food, diner shakes. The food is pretty good, the shakes and the cherry cokes are great. The decor is reminiscent of decades past with the old booth radios being replaced (cleverly enough) with small televisions that played (even more cleverly) a kid-friendly movie.

Comparitively speaking though, if I had my choice to go to this diner or McD's on the side of the road, the diner wins. Hands down.

Our order? Jim had the 10 ounce bacon cheeseburger, fries and a chocolate shake. I had the classic turkey club, coleslaw and a cherry coke. Lucy got a grilled cheese and white milk.

The highlights? Jim's burger. Well seasoned, well cooked. The toppings were pretty basic (hint for them: local lettuce is in season - use it instead of tasteless iceburg). The chocolate shake. When you use fresh, real ingredients and add in real whipped cream and a cherry it's hard to screw this one up. The turkey club. Made with real turkey and not deli meat. 'Nuff said. It wasn't stellar, but they win points for not using cheap meat.

The letdowns? The cherry coke. It would have helped to actually.. oh, I don't know.. put a cherry in there. Lucy's grilled cheese. Points given for using real cheese and not processed slices. But it was marble. And greasy. Which means she loved it, but I didn't love her having the same amount of grease she would have had eating a McDonald's quarter pounder.

Overall, a good experience. Not too pricey for decent food, which was a vast improvement over the fast food. I have to say though, I got the biggest kick out of the bathroom doors. Clever. Moreso for me, who has a kid named Lucy.
And that was our mini-trip back home during our vacation. Which, I have to say, was probably more exciting and food-filled than the rest of the vacation.

Of course, when we got home on Monday night, I had to do a quick meal plan for the week. Here it is:

Tuesday: Steak sandwiches (Jim's favourite, of course) with potato salad

Wednesday: Manchego burgers with smashed and fried potatoes

Thursday: Bangers and mash with mushy peas

Friday: Grilled cheese, tomato and basil sandwiches (on the BBQ) with corn on the cob

Tonight was the Manchego burgers. In a word: superb. Jim's secret burger recipe (I'm still bugging him to let me share it here) with my cheese choice and super fresh toppings made for a fabulous and easy meal. I had to out-do the burger he loved so much at the diner, you see.