Tuesday, May 31, 2016

Spicy Szechuan Smashed Cucumbers...


I adore pickles and refreshingly crunchy tart sides with just about everything. But when it comes to Asian cuisine, especially Szechuan, it`s a must! Beyond Szechuan cuisine`s spicy dishes, one thing you`ll notice is their love of cold, vinegary, crunchy veggies or peanuts in between bites of their heartier stuff. Spicy smashed cucumbers is a humble and fond example of these sides, and hands-down one of my absolute favourites! Smashing the cucumbers helps them rapidly absorb the flavour of the spicy vinaigrette and loads of garlic! With this hot weather upon us, this kind of cooling full-on-flavour side will be gracing my table many-a-nights! Oh yeaaaah!!!!


Smashed Spicy Szechuan Cucumbers 

1 long cucumber or 3 Lebanese cucumbers
1 Tbsp. peanut or sunflower oil
4 to 6 garlic cloves, chopped
1 tsp. Sichuan peppercorns (see Note)
3 dried red chillies 

2 Tbsp. rice wine vinegar 
2 tsp. soy sauce
2 tsp. sesame oil
1 tsp. chilli oil sauce (see Note)
2 tsp. white sugar
2 tsp. toasted white sesame seeds, for garnish (optional)

Note :
Sichuan peppercorns are the dried red-brown berries from an ash tree and are known to have a slight mouth-numbing effect and lemony undertone.
• Chilli oil sauce, from Asian food shops, consists of chilli flakes, chilli oil and spices. Substitute 2 tsp. chilli flakes in 1 Tbsp. chilli oil.



Place the washed cucumber on a firm, flat, clean surface. Whack it firmly but gently with the flat side of a heavy cleaver or the bottom an 8-inch skillet. Repeat all down its length until it is completely smashed. Chop the cucumber crosswise into 1-inch pieces and transfer to a colander or strainer set in a bowl. 


Toss with a big pinch of salt and a big pinch of sugar. Let drain 15 to 30 minutes on the counter, or in the refrigerator until ready to serve, up to 4 hours. Discard the extracted liquid and transfer the cucumbers to the bowl.


Heat oil in a saucepan over medium heat. Add half the garlic, peppercorns and chillies, and cook for one minute or until fragrant, making sure not to burn or garlic will taste bitter.

Whisk together vinegar, soy sauce, sesame oil, chilli oil sauce, sugar and remaining raw garlic in a bowl until sugar dissolves. Stir in warm garlic mixture, then add cucumbers and toss to combine. Cover and refrigerate for 20 minutes to allow flavours to develop and cucumbers to soften slightly.



Toss with both part toasted and raw garlic for a duo garlicky taste explosion for the garlic lover in you!


Spicy, Sour Sweet and Salty and a whole lotta crunch!! So refreshingly deeelish!


Spicy cucumbers served as a complementary palate cleanser in between bites of our family DIY Sushi roll dinner! More on this meal to come...




Sunday, May 29, 2016

Yogurt Dips From Around The World...


As a freelance writer & recipe developer, I landed myself an awesome gig with Huffington Post. Here are my Yogurt Dip Recipes From Around The World as a sponsored feature for iögo Yogurt.

SPONSORED FEATURE

Yogurt Dip Recipes From Around The World



Tired of your party food tasting a bit bland? Make your next get-together a global sensation with these yogurt dip recipes from around the world, presented in partnership with iögo yogurt. From a reimagining of the Italian favourite bruschetta to an Indian curry-infused dip perfect on naan bread, these recipes pack a serious punch.

bruschetta dip
Layered Bruschetta Yogurt Dip  
Everyone loves bruschetta so reimagine the flavours of this Italian dish as a layered dip. Serve this recipe in a glass bowl to ensure your guests are visually wowed.
2 cups iögo Greek plain 0% yogurt
1 tsp. balsamic vinegar
1 clove garlic, minced
2 ripe tomatoes, seeded and chopped
¼ cup finely chopped red onions
2 tbsp. chopped fresh basil leaves
Grated Parmesan cheese
Mix yogurt with vinegar and garlic in the bowl. Layer evenly with tomatoes, red onions, basil and finish with a sprinkling of Parmesan cheese. Serve with crostini, pita chips, lavash, bagel chips, flat breads or crackers.
herb sauce
Middle Eastern Herb Sauce  
This dill and coriander herb sauce for dipping lamb meatballs will transport you to the Middle East. Try it with baked pork chop for a quick weeknight dinner.
curry yogurt dip
Curry Cauliflower Indian Dip  
Reminiscent of Indian cauliflower curry, this splendid chunky dip will have your guests coming back for more.
1 small head cauliflower, broken into florets and halved
1-1/4 tsp. salt, divided
1 tbsp. olive oil
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 tbsp. curry powder
1 tsp. sugar
2 cups iögo Greek plain 0% yogurt
Salt and ground black pepper to taste
Pinch of cayenne pepper (optional)
Coriander leaves, finely chopped
Cook cauliflower in boiling water with ¼ tsp. salt about 10 minutes or until tender; drain and cool. Heat oil in a pan on medium-high and sauté onions until soft and translucent for about five minutes. Add curry powder, sugar and 1 tsp. salt. Stir until fragrant. Use a fork and mash the cauliflower into very small pieces. Add the onion mixture and stir to combine. Stir in yogurt along with salt and pepper, cayenne and coriander. Serve with pita chips, bagel chips, tortilla scoops, naan chips or endive leaves.
shrimp yogurt
Shanghai Sesame Shrimp Dip  
Send your tastebuds on a trip to China. Shrimp is infused with accents of ginger, garlic and green onion in this creamy dip.
1 pound of shrimp, peeled and deveined
1 tsp. salt
3 green onions, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tsp. finely minced ginger
2 cups iögo Greek plain 0% yogurt
1 tsp. sesame oil
1 tsp. lemon juice
Toasted sesame seeds for garnish
Cook shrimp in a pot of boiling water until pink and opaque about two minutes; remove with slotted spoon and let cool. Finely chop shrimp; mix with salt, green onions, garlic and ginger. Add yogurt, sesame oil and lemon juice; stir until well-combined. Sprinkle with toasted sesame seeds. Serve with wonton crisps, vegetable and root chips, shrimp chips or cucumber rounds.
orange yogurt dip
Whiskey Orange Dip  
Perk your guests’ palates with a boozy topping for fruit.
2 cups iögo Original vanilla yogurt
1 tbsp. whiskey
1 tsp. orange juice
Zest of one orange
Mix yogurt with whiskey, orange juice and zest. Serve with fruit, chocolate wafers or shortbread cookies.
For your cooking needs, pick up the new GOODNESS SEALED pouch! All the goodness of our iögo yogurts in a large, re-sealable pouch. 


Friday, May 27, 2016

Thank You From Jamie Oliver for Food Revolution Day!


Food Revolution Day 2016 reaches 115 million!


Food Revolution Day breaks record for longest-ever Facebook Live campaign and reaches 115 million.
This year, not only were there incredible events taking place on the ground all over the world to celebrate Food Revolution Day, but we also took to Facebook to broad the longest-ever Facebook Live campaign!
From London to Australia and Canada to Tanzania, Jamie was joined by the following well-known chefs and personalities from 10 different countries, all of whom carried out Facebook Live broadcasts from the around the world to help make history:
The marathon had 115,296,411 million people participate around the world! Click on the links below to catch up and see the events as they rolled out yesterday.
– Sydney, Australia: Chef Donna Hay
– Nairobi, Kenya: Chef Ali and Juliani
– Dar es Salaam, Tanzania: Cookery Personality Marion Elias and AliKiba
– Lagos, Nigeria: Chef Eros and Waje
– Toronto, Canada: Chef Lynn Crawford
Food Revolution Day was also supported on social media by Coldplay, James Corden, Kate Hudson, Nicole Scherzinger, Rio Ferdinand, Paloma Faith, Niall, Zoella, Jim, Tanya, Louis, Pixi Woos, Haste Kicthen, Olly Murs, Ronan Keating, , Marlon Roudette, Cascada, Cornelia Pletto, Palina Rojinski, Holger Stromberg, Chris Mears, Naomie Harris, Jake Paul, Emmanuelle Chriqui and Keltie Knight.
Offline and on the ground, the day also marked the two billionth meal being served to children in India by the Akshaya Patra Foundation (watch here and read more here), and Food Revolution ambassadors and supporters hosted thousands of events across the globe. Check out stories, videos and photos shared from around the world with #FoodRevolution.
“Food Revolution Day 2016 was incredible!  We’ve already reached over 50 million people on Facebook, we’ve got almost 700K revolutionaries signed up to the Food Revolution Hub and we’ve raised awareness of the child nutrition crisis that touches every corner of the globe.  I truly believe that change only happens when people come together and I am inspired today to keep the pressure on businesses and governments to put our kids first.” – Jamie Oliver
A massive thanks to everyone that got involved and helped raise awareness!
* Article updated with latest figures as of May 23rd

Sunday, May 22, 2016

My Happy Food Revolution Day Events in Toronto...


So much excitement this past Friday celebrating Food Revolution Day with Real Food for Real Kids (RFRK)-- see my post for more on their incredible company, Northview Heights Secondary High School- their culinary program is a poster child for everything Food Revolution stands for (they held my last year's massive event of 1500 participants with Jamie Oliver joining in via video-conf), and a visit to a hands-on kids tasting workshop with The Rainbow Plate. The CHERRY on top, is that I have been featured on Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution News-- Yay! see: http://www.jamiesfoodrevolution.org/news/susan-ng-food-revolution-ambassador-in-toronto-canada/.

The entire last week RFRK and I have collaborated in a "Cook for your Life" themed week for ‪#‎FoodRevolution‬ Day! Each day, mini-interviews were conducted with health industry influencers and advocates to build awareness about joining the ‪#‎RealFoodRevolution‬. Here are the complete interviews in this post.

Here championing ‪#‎foodrevolution‬ Day with Real Food For Kids (RFRK) in Toronto, Canada. "Together we can make a change. Change can mean getting your kids in the kitchen, supporting local food or inviting your loved ones around a table to enjoy good food, cooked from scratch." Here's to a happier and healthier tomorrow for all! 



HAPPY FOOD REVOLUTION DAY!!!


Lunch Club Coaches around the GTA, rally behind Food Rev Day!

Lunch Club Coaches George and Debbi at John Fisher Public School


At Northview Heights Secondary School, their 400 enrolled grades 10 to 12 students (up from 200 last year) along with teachers, program assistants and student volunteers cook everything from scratch every day to make the lunch meals served in the school cafeteria — up to 1500 students! And their culinary program is hands-down amazing with a frequently updated student food blog to showcase all the great work! They spent a few days cookin' up Jamie's recipes, watching his videos and creating their own recipe variations for a school cookbook-- this organized by passionate chef Dimitra K!  

With the most notable Chef Janet Harvey 



In house grown sprouts which this keen fellow takes care of every day.


With Chef Martha Arima and Chef Justin Myles (runner up Chopped Canada first season)

Culinary students preparing lunch for the school cafeteria.


A variation of Jamie's simple pan-fried salmon with pesto veg
beet juice and pesto-marinated salmon fillets.

Students' prepared empanadas and jerk chicken that staff could purchase 
with funds going back in to support the program!

Harvesting school-site grown rhubarb!! Look at the size of those leaves!


Cooking up rhubarb stalks for rhubarb pie!

Culinary students brainstorming recipe ideas in the computer lab with Jamie's top ten cook for your life recipes. Here they are working on their version of Jamie's simple cheese omelet and Chef Dimitra K's blog showing the steps of how to build on the recipes. 


I love this creative student omelet recipe with mashed potatoes.

A version with Brie, Mushroom and Spinach Omelet


I ended my day with a visit to Flemington Public School to check out The Rainbow Plate's founder Janet Nezon's amazing workshop. A fresh approach to food education, her innovative hands-on classes teaches kids to use their five senses to learn about and to eat all the colours of the rainbow. That is my kind of interactive food education and what we call the spirit of 365 days of ‪#‎FoodRevolution‬!


Janet gather the kids around to discuss fruits, veggies and the colours of the rainbow.





Kids see, smell, touch and taste at each colour coded station and stamp their Rainbow Plate each time they tried a new produce or fruit! Oh what fun!




Over at Jamie's Italian Yorkdale, Julia Clabassi, their Marketing & Communications Coordinator tells me they hosted 20 elementary school who learned how to make a healthy breakfast using Jamie’s DIY Oaty Fruity Cereal recipe, followed by a behind the scenes tour of Jamie’s Italian, where they learned about fresh pasta and how Jamie’s Italian makes it onsite every day along with a demonstration at their pasta station. The children then sat down for lunch where they enjoyed two more of Jamie’s Food Revolution Recipes, classic tomato spaghetti and simple green salad with lemon dressing made by the chefs. ‪#‎foodrevolution‬ For more see Jamie's Italian Facebook album covering the event .

Photo Credit: Jamie's Italian



Thursday, May 19, 2016

Real Food For Real Kids #CookForYourLife Interviews...


Food Revolution Day is tomorrow! YAY! This past week Real Food For Real Kids (RFRK) and I have collaborated in planning a "Cook for your Life" themed week for ‪#‎FoodRevolution‬ Day! Each day, mini-interviews were conducted with health industry influencers and advocates to build awareness about joining the #RealFoodRevolution, to find out what favourite go-to recipes and what Cook for your life means to each one?!

To kick things off, we're starting with Lulu Cohen Farnell! Born and raised in Paris, Lulu is a mom of two and the Founder of Real Food for Real Kids! Between recipe development at the Real Food Kitchen and campaigning for healthier school lunches at national summits, Lulu does everything for #RealFood



For Lulu, Cook for your Life means... "let's have fun in the kitchen and create delicious healthy dishes while instilling good eating habits for a lifetime! As an advocate for Real Food, I’m driven to inspire and educate my family, friends and followers to shop for local sustainable foods, cook from scratch everyday and savour the joy of eating in good company!” My go-to #RealFood recipe is... Crunchy Rainbow Salad with quinoa! My recipe was recently featured in Kids Cook by Ryan Storm, Ry's Ratings:goo.gl/q5sU1w



Day 1 of #CookForYourLife Week: Wayne Roberts. Wayne is one of Canada's most senior (he thinks certainly in terms of age!!!) food analysts and advocates. Wayne is the author of 12 books and a food advisor to city governments around the world. He Tweets and Facebooks as if the Food Revolution depended on all of us taking hundreds of footsure steps, before and after the Revolution!


For Wayne, Cook For Your Life means... “In the rushed-off-my-feet world I live in...there's only one urgent problem in the world: global warming. Slow down for the other problems! By taking the time to cook from scratch (two bads = excess packaging + waste) with friends who join you for the meal (three goods = fun + eco-friendly + healthy), I'm teaching myself that we can slow down for the rest and speed up for the only thing that's urgent.”

Wayne’s go-to #RealFood recipe is... “Oven-Baked Brown Rice with Mushrooms (adapted from the the all-new Joy of Cooking cookbook) This book is a stand-by for me because it's great for people who aren't self-confident in the kitchen. I like to feature local wild rice and wild mushrooms from Forbes Wild Foods.”


Day 2 of #CookForYourLife Week: Ryan Storm, Ry's Ratings. Ryan is a 15 years old food blogger who started his blog, www.rysratings.com, when he was 8! Ryan loves reviewing restaurants, food, markets and products as well as eating REAL food, and speaking about food issues to small and large groups. 


For Ryan, Cook For Your Life means... to literally cook for your life. Cooking is an essential skill to have - it makes life fun, and teaches you how to nourish yourself well! A quote that I came up with and use often is "Part of taste is feeling good about what you eat". I think that if we all cook our own meals, we would know what's in our food, and we would all feel so much better about what we are eating! My go-to #RealFood recipe is... Hummus! A simple dish that's easy and fast to make, but can be served for any meal, and goes really well with almost anything!


Day 4 of #CookForYourLife Week: Rachel Bies Nutrition. Rachel is the owner of RBNutrition! She is also a board member of #ROAMtoronto and partner at #NourishandGlow. Rachel is a local chef and nutritionist spreading the word about whole foods and cooking through meal delivery, lessons, seminars, writing and media!


For Rachel, Cook For Your Life means... "People and clients falling back in love with food ~ as a chef, brand ambassador and holistic nutritionist, teaching and spreading the word about ingredients, culinary adventures and recipes is a priority. To me there is nothing more enjoyable than cooking with friends, creating simple stunning dishes and the kitchen as your social hub. Bonus: getting your kids involved, in my experience kids that cook will eat, learn and be self sufficient later in life." Rachel’s go-to #RealFood recipe is... Smoked black bean and sweet potato burgers with avocado mayo!


Day 5
of ‪#‎CookForYourLife‬ Week: Susan's Savour-It. Susan is a mom to three young boys, a food blogger www.susanssavourit.blogspot.ca, culinary consultant and RFRK Lunch Club Coach. Even though she's a busy mum, Susan is also a ‪#‎FoodRevolution‬ Super Ambassador!


For Susan, Cook For Your Life means... "being able to look into your fridge and pantry, and quickly know what ingredients goes with what to come up with something decent to cook for you and your family, and not waste leftovers and food. People who lack the skills would throw out wilted produce and slightly bruised fruit. That is the POWER of food education and cooking, and it begins with learning the basics of food and cooking!"

Susan’s go-to ‪#‎RealFood‬ recipe is... "Spaghetti Bolognese (a hearty spin on Jamie's 10 Cook For Your Life recipe-- classic tomato spaghetti). It is so versatile, you can use a variety of meats, or in combination and/or a whole whack of veggies, that could be hidden in the delicious sauce and enjoyed by the pickiest of eaters. And I also love it as it's a great dish to use up the bits and ends of leftover veggies in your fridge." Check out Susan's recipe here: http://ow.ly/Eg7u300mIQE



Tuesday, May 17, 2016

Jamie's Food Revolution Recipes Series: Pan-Fried Salmon and Trout...


Eat more fish has been a mantra for me in the kitchen and the family table these days-- once a week is good, but getting another serving in is great! Lo' and behold, fish- salmon in particular, is in one of Jamie's ten Cook-For-Your-Life recipes with his Salmon and Pesto-Dressed Veg recipe. “Salmon is a great source of both omega 3s, which helps to keep our hearts healthy, and vitamin D that helps to make our bones and teeth strong. Pan-frying salmon is an easy way to get more oily fish in our diets." And we like crispy skin so skin-on it is... With Food Revolution Day three days away, and with my bestie Kaitlyn just coming back from vacay, what a great way to catch up with her by cooking together one of her favourites to serve the family dinner. Taking a trip to the grocery store to come up with her version, a glimpse of rainbow trout fillets inspired me to make a great salmon alternative for my family as well! Let the cooking begin!

Pan-Fried Trout Fillets with Dill, Garlic and Capers


Kaitlyn is a simple gal and her choice consist of sautéed garlic snow peas, oven-roasted new potatoes and pan-fried skin-on salmon fillets rubbed with olive oil, fresh dill salt and pepper and finished with a splash of lemon. Hearty and delicious I say!


Prepping and preparing the sides....


Slicing the salmon pieces in half, and massaging with olive oil, salt and pepper.


Adults like dill sprinkled on top, the kids not so much-- so make two variations!


On medium-high heat, just a little oil is needed in the pan since salmon skin and flesh is oily already. If using a non-stick pan, you don't have to worry about the skin sticking. If using a regular pan, when cooking skin-side down, do not move or wiggle the fillets too much, otherwise if the skin is not fully cooked and crisped it will stick to pan and skin will break. You know it is ready when fish easily slides in the pan with the help of a spatula.

Sear skin-side down, flip and sear other side, then turn down heat to low to fully cook fish.

My bestie sautéing snow peas in garlic while I man the pan :)


New potatoes drizzled with olive oil, salt and pepper hot out of the oven along with the rest of the salmon dinner! Bravo! Dinner is ready for Kaitlyn's kids when they come home from school! More time for homework and other things.... Yay!




Gorgeous and scrumptious! I was told her kids lapped it up :)


First time trying snow peas.. and they loved it! Yay! Let's see what they will try next...? :)



My turn at home... I cooked up both trout and salmon fillet in two different ways...

Pan-Fried Trout Fillets in Dill, Garlic and Capers Butter Sauce


2 trout fillets with skin-on
salt and pepper
2 Tbsp. butter
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1/4 cup dry white wine or cooking wine
1 Tbsp. Dijon mustard
1 to 2 Tbsp. capers, drained
1 bunch fresh dill, sprigs plucked and coarsely chopped
lemon wedges for splashing


Salmon with leftover shrivelled grape tomatoes and wilted spinach!

Salt and pepper both sides of fillets. On medium high heat, add a little oil in pan and cook fish skin-side down. Fish is ready when skin loosens easily from pan with a slight wiggle using a spatula. Flip to other side. Trout fillets tend to be thin, so cooking for two minutes or so should do it. Remove from pan, skin-side down to serving platter.

Oops, I manhandled one fillet before skin was crisp-ready to be flipped. It's ok, still tasty!!

Add butter to same pan, on medium-high heat. Add garlic and sauté ten seconds until fragrant. Pour in white wine, let simmer then add Dijon mustard. Stir to dissolve. Toss in capers and dill, let simmer for ten seconds, salt and pepper to taste and transfer sauce over top trout. Sauce is so aromatic heavenly and so harmonious with fish.


Delectable pan-fried trout served with sautéed green beans!


Salmon fillets simply rubbed with salt and pepper, and pan-fried with chopped garlic. A separate tossing of grape tomatoes and spinach in olive oil and a splash of lemon dressed the meal. Shrivelled tomatoes cook up plump and juicy!



If you like salmon, try Jamie's wife Jool's Crunchy Fish  and Jamie's other favourite salmon recipes. So delicious and nutritious, the dilemma for me is which one to make next...?