it ain't pretty, it just tastes that way: rhubarb-ginger chutney

Last night, in preparation for a little wine and cheese party that we were hosting, I decided that I should try my hand at making a cheese-friendly chutney. I had some sad looking stalks of rhubarb in the fridge so I gathered those, along with an apple and some other things I had around and whipped one up. A chutney is really quite simple to make. Just chop, boil and stir and you're done in about 20 minutes or so. Instead of brown or white sugar, I used fruit sugar (aka fructose). I could have said that I chose the fruit sugar because it has a quick jelling point (it said so on the bag) making it perfect for jams and chutneys, but I used it because I'm suffering from tendonitis and I didn't want to heave the huge sugar cannister down from the top shelf. However, if you don't have fructose handy, regular sugar will do.

As for the party, there were lots of bottles of wine, an array of fine stinky cheeses, an assortment of crackers, fresh grapes and slices of apples. Somehow, I forgot to bring out the rhubarb chutney until well into the evening. Oops! No matter, while the chutney ain't pretty, it sure is a flavour workhorse. It was delicious with the wines and cheeses. Plus, it means that I have leftovers ready for Thanksgiving dinner this Monday! I'm sure it will go well with turkey and the rest of our harvest meal.

And completely off topic, I have a new post over at the Food Network Canada blog, Eating Well. It's my review of the Taste of Health (a vegan & vegetarian event). Take a looksie!

rhubarb-ginger chutney
2 stalks of rhubarb, chopped
1 large apple, diced
1/2 onion, diced
1 T fresh ginger, diced
juice & zest of 1 orange
juice & zest of 1 lemon
1/2 - 3/4 c fruit sugar (aka fructose or just use plain ol' regular white or brown or raw sugar)
1/2 t cinnamon
1/2 t red pepper flakes
pinch of nutmeg
1/4 t salt
1/4 c dried cranberries

In a small saucepan, heat up the first 7 ingredients and bring to a boil, stirring occasionally. Turn down heat to medium, adding in seasonings and cranberries. Stir and taste, adding more sugar if necessary. Once it has thickened, remove from heat and let cool. Refrigerate and then serve. Keep in a tightly lidded jar in the fridge...it should keep for 3 weeks or so.

thanksgiving is pretty much all about food.

I love three day weekends...especially the sunny kinds in October that are also known as Thanksgiving. It's definitely true that a three day weekend is much more meaningful when you actually work away from home. For that 3-day break, I'm so thankful! It was a wonderful weekend filled with bike rides, boardgames, and food. For once, I didn't host the Thanksgiving dinner at our little 400 sq. ft. apartment. Instead, we stuffed our panniers with sauteed brussels sprouts topped with pecans*, spicy cranberry chutney**, green salad with apple dressing***, and of course, pumpkin pie**** topped with maple whipped cream all the way to our friend's lovely home. All of this plus our host's amazing coca-cola ham, roasted roots with bocconcini, and lots and lots of delicious mulled wine. Definitely a meal to be thankful for.

* I love brussles sprouts and I see no reason to gussy them up with extras, but this recipe from Elise was simple and lovely. If you're not a fan of the humble sprout, try this recipe and become a true believer! As for my own interpretation of the recipe, I substituted lime juice for the lemon and added pecans instead of almonds. Delicious!

** Every wintery holiday, I make this chutney. It's a time-honoured favorite that I've tweaked and twiddled with until it reached perfection. This time around, I was all out of oranges so I couldn't add the juice. I could have subbed in some plain ol' water, but oh lucky me, I found a half bottle of reisling in the fridge! Saved the day and the chutney. Yum!

*** I love green salad and I love apples in salads. This was a winner. Of course I didn't have the walnut oil the recipe called for, so instead I added olive oil with a couple drops of sesame oil for added flavour. Again, I added some toasted pecans for crunch. And who eats Red Delicious apples? Not me! Granny Smith all the way. I'll definitely be making this salad again.

**** I've made this recipe for a few years now and it's never failed me. In fact, dare I say it, it's the best damn pumpkin pie I've ever eaten. Did I mention it's way too easy to make?

thanksgiving pt. 2

It seems that good food and good boardgames go hand in hand at my house. I'm sure my downstairs neighbours never want to hear "Corner on wheat!!!" at 2am ever again, but a good, roaring (and perhaps drunken) game of Pit rounded out a great Thanksgiving meal.

I love this recipe! It's the perfect compliment to any meal and I get rave reviews everytime I make this. This Thanksgiving meal was meatless, but this chutney tasted great alongside the richness of the baked macaroni & cheese and a couple of people used the chutney to top their greens instead of salad dressing. Oh yum.

cranberry chutney
1 12oz bag of fresh or frozen cranberries
1 granny smith apple, chopped
1 red onion, finely chopped
1 celery stalk, finely chopped
1/3 c cider or red wine vinegar
2/3 c packed brown sugar
juice of 1 orange
grated orange rind from 1 orange
½ t salt
½ t cinnamon
½ t nutmeg
1/8 t cloves

1. Combine vinegar, sugar, salt, spices, orange rind, celery, onion, apple, and orange juice in a medium saucepan. Set over medium-high heat and bring to a boil.

2. Reduce heat to a simmer, and stir in the cranberries. Cook until the skin begins to pop, 10 to 15 minutes. Remove from heat.

3. Store in an airtight container, refrigerated, up to 4 weeks.

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Seeing that I was busy on one side of the kitchen making the chutney and preparing the brussel sprouts, I had Cornelius make this delicious recipe. I have no idea where I found it (it definitely was online somewhere), but I'm making this again. Too delicious for words! I also planned on taking a photograph of this beauty (Cornelius baked it in a pretty bundt pan), but it went really fast. You'll just have to use your imagination.

Pumpkin Chocolate chip cake

1 ¾ c flour
1 t baking soda
2 t pumpkin pie spice*
½ t salt
½ c margarine
1 c granulated sugar
2 large eggs
¾ c pumpkin purée
¾ c semisweet chocolate chips
¾ c walnuts, finely chopped

* If pumpkin pie spice is not available, use 1 teaspoon cinnamon, ½ teaspoon nutmeg and ¼ teaspoon each of ginger and cloves.

Grease bottom and sides of 9 x 5-inch loaf pan*. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Combine flour with baking soda, salt and pumpkin pie spice. Cream margarine in large mixing bowl. Gradually add sugar and cream at high speed of mixer until light and fluffy. Blend in eggs; beat well. Turn mixer to low speed and add dry ingredients, alternating with pumpkin. Begin and end with dry ingredients; blend well after each addition. Stir in chocolate morsels and chopped walnuts and pour into prepared pan. Bake for 45 - 55 minutes or until cake springs back when lightly touched in center. Cool, then glaze with Spicy Glaze.

Spicy Glaze
½ c confectioners' sugar
⅛ teaspoon ground cinnamon
⅛ teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 to 2 tablespoons light cream

Combine confectioners' sugar, nutmeg and cinnamon. Blend in cream until the consistency desired (should be thin).

* We greased and floured a bundt pan.