Category Lunch

For the past three years, Streetsville United Church Sunday School has served a cup of kindness to our treasured seniors at our annual Seniors’ Tea. With the help of the children and their wonderfully supportive parents and teachers, we pull together a free lunch of tea sandwiches, dainty desserts, hot tea, and lemonade.  Here is how we do it:

Make cups of kindness cards (download paper teacup pattern here) using pretty patterned paper (cardstock purchased at Walmart), an x-acto knife, and glue. Fill each cup with a couple of paper hearts decorated by the children and one tea bag. Make one cup for each place setting.

Gather up the children. Have fun creating beautiful tissue paper flowers (instructions here – no need to snip the ends to make a petal shape). Don’t they look like they belong in Monet’s garden?

Put out a plea to the congregation for donations of unwanted, pretty, fine china teacups. If you like, glue the bottom of the cup to the saucer using a hot glue gun.

Place a cheap but cheerful dollar store flower blossom in each cup (Dollarama is a good source). Offer them to the seniors as take-away gifts; take out the flower and use the cup as a jewelry holder or candy dish.

Set tables in cream-coloured tablecloths, plates, napkins, and tea cups (tablecloth, plates, and  napkins found at Party City). Place one cup of kindness card at each place setting. Evenly space flower-filled china teacups down the centre of the tables. Add bursts of colour with tissue paper flowers. Leave enough space for serving platters and tea pots. Don’t forget teaspoons, milk, and sugar.

Ask the Sunday School parents to contribute homemade tea sandwiches, cookies, and squares. Scroll to the bottom for instructions on making and cutting tea sandwiches. Cookies and squares should be delivered already cut in small sizes; make enough for each person to have a total of three or four pieces. Arrange assortments of sandwiches and an assortment of desserts on large platters to pass around during the tea. Make sure your platters are light enough for children to carry and line them with paper doilies (Party City is a good source for both). Ask someone to bring raw veggies (cut in small pieces) and someone else to bring tea, milk, sugar, and lemonade for the kids. Round up some parents to help cut the sandwiches and arrange the platters just before the tea begins (you may need them to bring cutting boards and knives). Ask the kids and parents to help serve at the tea and help clean up after too.

Make an announcement several weeks in advance, inviting the seniors of your congregation to join you for tea; ask them to sign-up in advance so you can get a good idea of the numbers. On the day of the event, greet them with smiles. Pour them a cup of kindness. Sit and enjoy the luncheon together. Your friendships will blossom and I bet that it will turn out to be just as heartwarming an experience for you as it is for the seniors.

Simple Tea Sandwich Instructions

The Streetsville UCW taught me how to keep the sandwich making simple and fuss-free while keeping the sandwiches as fresh as possible (they have lots of experience serving luncheons to large groups at funerals). Be sure to scroll to the bottom for important How to Make the Sandwiches and How to Cut the Sandwiches instructions, as well as useful Sandwich Calculations.

Keep the fillings traditional and not too adventurous so that both old and young will enjoy. We make egg salad, ham salad, tuna salad, cream cheese and cucumber. Lettuce will wilt and get mushy and other toppings will make the sandwiches gloppy and soggy, so don’t add them. I’ve included my Mom’s super easy recipe for Ham Salad Sandwiches.

Ham Salad Sandwiches

I loved opening up my school lunch bag to find one of my Mom’s ham salad sandwiches. This recipe makes enough filling for one loaf of sandwiches.

Ingredients:

2 tins (156 g each) Maple Leaf Flakes of Ham

1/3 cup (scant) real mayonnaise

1/3 cup (scant) sweet green relish

1/4 cup butter, softened to room temperature

1 loaf of thinly sliced sandwich bread

Instructions:

1. Open, drain, and discard liquid from cans of ham. Add ham to a medium bowl; mash with a fork to break into flakes.
2. Add mayonnaise and relish; mix thoroughly.

How to Make the Sandwiches:

1. Save the plastic bread bag and tie. Do not cut the crusts off the bread; leave the crusts on. Remove and discard outer ends of loaf.
2. Spread butter lightly and evenly over one side of each remaining slice (spread to edge of the crust). Spread sandwich filling evenly over half of the slices. Top with 2nd half of buttered slices. Press down lightly.
3. Do not cut the crusts off the bread. Do not cut the sandwiches. Assemble the whole sandwiches back into a loaf and place the whole loaf back in the plastic bread bag and seal it tightly closed. Refrigerate for at least one hour, until ready to serve. Can be made the night before.

How to Cut the Sandwiches Just Before Serving:

1. Just before serving, cut each whole sandwich into 4 triangle-shaped sandwiches. We leave the crusts on to avoid wastage.
2. Arrange an assortment of sandwiches on platters with pointed ends visible.
3. As each platter is filled, cover it completely with lightly dampened, clean J-Cloths and then seal with a covering of plastic wrap to prevent the sandwiches from drying out.
4. Once all of your platters are ready, remove the J-Cloths and plastic wrap and serve immediately.

Sandwich Calculations:

We allow 6 small tea sandwiches per person (which equates to 1½ full-sized sandwiches cut into 6 tea sandwich triangles, using 3 whole slices of bread). We always have some leftover but like to have extra in case any seniors, who haven’t signed up in advance, decide to come at the last-minute; people are more than happy to take home any leftovers. The average loaf has 16 slices of bread (crusts excluded) which will make 8 sandwiches.

# of guests (seniors, children, and adult helpers) × 1.5 tea sandwiches = total # sandwiches

total # sandwiches ÷ 8 sandwiches per loaf = total # loaves required

UPDATE: Crawford’s Village Bakery is closing November 30, 2014.

Grab your Easter bonnets, ladies and gents, and follow me along the virtual bunny trail as I gather up some of my favourite local treats. This week, I focus on what you need to order ahead: hams, quiches, pies, and handcrafted Easter chocolate. I share a great tip on exceptional wines and my favourite fruit salad recipe (scroll down to the bottom for Mary Katherine’s Cinnamon-Scented Fruit Salad). Next week: potatoes, homemade desserts, and decorations. Make your Easter feast special for the loved ones gathered around your table. Hippety hoppety!

If you are looking for premium local estate wines and boutique imports (many of which are not available through the LCBO) at direct-from-winery pricing, contact Oakville’s Laurie Blaha. A broker for Sideroad Twenty Cellars, Laurie will suggest wines to pair with your Easter dinner and give you a $10 off your first purchase coupon. Order on-line. Delivery can be made to your home, office, or cottage. Ontario residents only. But hurry – orders should be in by Monday April 14th for delivery by Thursday April 17th in time for Easter.

Our sizable clan is planning an easy Easter lunch. I’ve pre-ordered freshly baked quiches from Crawford’s Village Bakery & Distinctive Foods; they also sell frozen, unbaked quiches. Crawford’s is brimming with a wonderful assortment of quality gourmet pantry products and freshly baked goodies. Easter suggestions include lemon meringue or Easter Egg pies (chocolate mousse  pie garnished with whipped cream and an Easter egg, available from April 18th through April 21st only), squares (including rhubarb or lemon on a shortbread base), and cookies (including Cottontail cookies). Crawford’s handcrafted Easter chocolate, made on-site using fine Belgian chocolate, has been a long-enjoyed tradition for our family. Look at the fine detail on Charlotte and Edward and the beautifully decorated large egg, ready to be filled with Crawford’s truffles, hazelnut crisps, and caramels.

Quiches in the oven, next stop: ham. My nephew-in-law, Jean-Yves, served a succulent slower-cooker ham at Christmas, so I am giving this recipe a try for the first time: Cook’s Illustrated Slow-Cooker Glazed Ham. Cook’s Illustrated recipes are from America’s Test Kitchen and are exhaustively tested and re-tested, so I am confident the recipe will work. I bought the magazine (Cook’s Illustrated Make-Ahead Dinners 2014) at Target a few weeks ago but you can access the recipe on-line here by signing up for a 14-day free trial membership: http://www.cookscountry.com (it costs a few dollars a month to continue with the membership).

You can’t use a spiral-cut ham for this recipe because it will dry out in the slow cooker. I’ve ordered a Country Ham (uncut, bone-in, skin-on, cured/smoked) from Heatherlea Farm Market in Caledon, ON. Heatherlea’s Country Hams are sourced from Stemmler’s in Heidelberg, Ontario and are excellent quality hams from local farms. Heatherlea Farm Market raises pasture-fed, free-run, drug-free Black Angus beef and sells local free-run, naturally-raised chicken, pork, lamb, and bison. Wild boar, Berkshire pork, and emu are available on occasion.

Especially lovely at Easter, this colourful fruit salad is enrobed with a cinnamon and citrus-infused syrup. I use a different combination of fruit every time: this time strawberries, kiwi, pineapple, mango, and oranges. Thanks to my bff’s sister-in-law, Mary Katherine, for the recipe.

Mary Katherine’s Cinnamon-Scented Fruit Salad

Makes about 6 servings (easily doubled)

This keeps well for a couple of days in the refrigerator.  Delicious served alone or over ice cream or lemon gelato. It makes a good breakfast topped with vanilla yogurt and granola.

Ingredients:

1 orange
1 large lemon
About 5 to 6 cups total of assorted, ripe but still firm fruits, peeled and cut into bite-sized pieces (combos of citrus, berries and tree fruit work well)
1 cup of water
1/4 cup of sugar
1 cinnamon stick

Directions:

1. With a sharp knife or vegetable peeler, remove only the peel (leaving the bitter white pith behind) of the orange and the lemon; slice peel into thick strips and set aside. Segment the orange, cut into bite-sized pieces and add to a large 8-cup capacity bowl; set aside. Juice the lemon; add about 3/4 of lemon juice to large bowl (reserve remaining 1/4 to adjust acidity level to your taste at the end).
2. Add assorted fruit to large bowl; stir gently to coat with lemon juice to prevent browning.  Chill in refrigerator.
3. Meanwhile, heat water to boiling in a small saucepan. Add sugar; stir until dissolved. Add cinnamon and reserved peel; immediately reduce to medium heat. Simmer gently until slightly reduced, 10 to 15 minutes. Remove from heat; cool to lukewarm.
4. Strain syrup; pour over prepared fruit and fold in gently so as not to bruise fruit. Discard peel but keep cinnamon sticks for garnish. Taste salad and if desired, add remaining 1/4 of reserved lemon juice; fold gently. Cover and store in airtight container in the refrigerator until ready to serve. Garnish with cinnamon sticks, if desired.

Put on some perky Edith Piaf tunes, quick up your heels, and throw open the windows while you clear out the cobwebs and welcome spring, even if it doesn’t quite feel like spring yet.

Celebrate spring with an easy and healthy purée of sweet green peas, tangy lime, and fresh mint. A quick swipe on grilled baguette makes a fast lunch when you are busy with spring chores. A dollop on crisp cucumber makes a pretty spring hors d’oeuvre. Oh, Spring how we’ve longed for you. Happy, happy spring everyone!

Lime Mint Pea Purée

Makes about 1½ cups

Make this delicious purée in advance and serve it chilled. The flavours will be brightest the day you make it but it will keep nicely in the refrigerator longer. Don’t defrost the peas before you sauté them; take them straight from the freezer to the sauté pan.

Ingredients:

3 tablespoons olive oil (divided into 1 and 2)
2 shallots, minced
1 garlic clove, minced
1 package 340g / 12 oz. (3 scant cups) frozen green peas
1 teaspoon salt
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
10 fresh mint leaves, chopped
1 lime (finely grated zest and juice)

Accompaniment:

1 English cucumber, thickly sliced
or
1 baguette, sliced and toasted

Garnish:

8 fresh mint leaves, julienned

Directions:

1. Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large non-stick skillet over medium heat. Add shallots; sauté until tender, stirring frequently, about 3 minutes. Add garlic; sauté for 15 seconds, stirring constantly. Add the frozen peas; sauté until peas are very tender, stirring frequently, about 6 minutes. Remove from heat.
2. Transfer mixture to a food processor. Add salt, pepper, chopped mint leaves, lime juice, lime zest, and 2 tablespoons of olive oil; purée until smooth.
3. Transfer to a covered, airtight container. Chill until ready to serve. Serve chilled, spread on toasted baguette or cucumber slices. Garnish with julienned mint leaves.

My BFF washed away my winter blues recently when she treated me to an afternoon at Hockley Valley Resort, a hidden gem tucked in the scenic Hills of Headwaters near Orangeville, Ontario. The kids skied to their hearts’ delight while she taught me how to knit. The best part of the afternoon was the unexpected pleasures we enjoyed while lunching in Babbo – the wine and cheese tasting lounge in this elegant resort’s lobby.

Babbo’s décor is chic modern: an under-lit white stone bar draws your eye to the floor-to-ceiling glass doors of the impressive wine cellar, pretty lighting accents like jewelry, and an atrium of windows facing the hill brings in natural light. Come off the hill into a relaxed atmosphere, thanks to the friendly staff.

The wine list features wines from around the world, focussing on Niagara and Prince Edward County. It won the 2010 VQA Restaurant Award of Excellence. Babbo’s wine list is about to become even more local: Executive Chef John Paul Adamo (president and owner of Hockley Valley Resort) has planted a vineyard on top of the hill and expects to add first wines to the list soon.

The resort boasts a two-acre fruit and vegetable garden, which supplies ninety percent of the seasonal produce served at Hockley. Preserves and quality ingredients from the best local farmers and suppliers contribute to a farm-to-table experience.

Chef Renato Ciani treated us to tastings from the resort’s open concept restaurant, cabin, which serves a full farm-to-table lunch and dinner menu (changing weekly) and is named after the first building built on the property in 1865. House-made focaccia is flavourful and chewy, strewn with caramelized onions, and served with a luxurious mascarpone butter seasoned with sea salt and chives.

The handmade tortellini is stuffed with ricotta, parmesan and a mascarpone, cauliflower purée that oozes out into the butter sauce; salty house-cured speck and peppery arugula contrast beautifully in this memorable, #lickyourplate dish.

Babbo offers a small lunch menu, including cheese and house-made charcuterie. A medley of Cerignola, Barese, Kalamata, and Colossal Green olives are marinated overnight with bay leaves, chili, and garlic and rewarmed with rosemary and citrus zest. White bean hummus is dusted with smoked paprika. Crostini is handcrafted by local 100-Acre Bakery.

The dough for the house-made Catalan flatbread – coca, Spanish-style pizza – is faintly sweetened with honey and milk, rolled out thin and crisp, and topped with a peperonata of roasted peppers and onions, house-made chorizo sausage, fresh arugula, sweet Saba balsamic reduction, and grated Manchego Reserva cheese. A lovely balance of flavours and textures.

The cabin burger is pure beef flavour of 100% pure house-ground Ontario artisan chuck, salt, and pepper (no fillers, antibiotics, or hormones). It’s topped with smoked and braised short ribs, cured tomato marmellata, oven-roasted tomato, coleslaw, house-made pickles, on a 100-Acre brioche bun. Served with Chef Renato’s house-made ketchup (containing at least nineteen ingredients) and house-cut fries. If you’ve been staving off a burger craving, give into this one.

Even the ski cafeteria is inspired by Executive Chef John Paul Adamo’s vision. The Dirty Turco is two house-made artisan burgers topped with house-smoked pulled pork, vintage cheddar, caramelized onion, Walnut Hill bacon, guacamole, and house-made barbeque sauce. Poutine offerings include house-cut Yukon Gold fries with vintage cheddar, Walnut Hill bacon, and house-made gravy or with house-smoked pulled pork, scallions, sour cream, and house-made barbeque sauce. That’s a long way from the ski cafeterias of my youth.

Hockley Valley Resort is a year-round full-service hotel, ski, golf, and special event destination. It’s close enough to the GTA West to scoot up for a special meal but once there you’ll want to stay longer and enjoy all that the resort and the region have to offer, in any season. I haven’t stayed overnight but am dreaming of a romantic get-away with my husband. Honey, are you listening? Honey?

Even if you are not a fan of cider, don’t miss an opportunity to enjoy a scenic drive to Spirit Tree Estate Cidery, an artisan cider mill gracing the Niagara Escarpment, in the picturesque hills of Caledon. While farm-fresh apples and carefully crafted cider are at the root of the Spirit Tree experience, there is much more to this story.

Of course, there are delicious sweet and hard ciders to sample in Spirit Tree’s tasting room or purchase in their farm store, as well as apples already-picked from the estate’s orchards.

I look forward to a glass of sweet apple cider in the fall, but I am a novice when it comes to hard ciders. To learn more about Spirit Tree Estate Cidery’s award-winning, artisanal ciders, click the Our Ciders tab and the Press tab on their website link at the end of this post.

What I find exceptional about Spirit Tree Estate Cidery is the attention to detail and high-quality standards that owners and founders Thomas Wilson and Nicole Judge have poured into their business, starting with their cider but apparent throughout their operations.

Nestled in the heart of their award-winning straw bale building is a specially designed wood-fired oven with thick stone masonry that retains heat for hours, even after the fire burns down and is cleaned out of the oven. From that oven, come some wonderful things.

Artisanal bread is handcrafted using old European techniques and preservative-free, natural ingredients, then baked fresh daily, directly on the clean oven hearth. There are several beautiful varieties of bread to choose from, including Caledon Sourdough, Red Fife Whole Wheat, Boston Mills Multigrain, and Epi (gorgeous French-inspired baguettes styled after wheat stalks).

I brought home a Tartine loaf – a Spirit Tree favourite, with a chewy crust and delicious interior.

Spirit Tree’s Maple Walnut Granola is roasted in the wood-fired oven. It has a crisp texture with a pleasing maple flavour that is not too rich or too sweet. It’s made from rolled oats, brown sugar, maple, walnuts, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, flax seeds, almonds, pecans, vegetable oil, and vanilla. Healthy never tasted so good!

Whole pies and quiches (filled with a variety of delicious ingredients) are baked fresh on the premises and available ready-to-eat or frozen. I picked up a frozen Quiche Lorraine filled with bacon, potato, thyme and swiss cheese. I have it stored in my freezer, ready for an easy brunch. For Thanksgiving, consider pumpkin pie or gluten-free Applicious pumpkin pie, but be sure to call in advance to pre-order. Cheese buns, cinnamon buns, tarts, cookies, and scones (which are delicious, according to my sister) are offered daily.

Spirit Tree Estate Cidery even makes a couple of enticing gourmet pâtés. I picked up Pâté with Ice Cider & Shallots – the ingredients sound delectable: chicken livers, clarified butter, shallots, port, brandy, ice cider, Calvados, apple syrup, eggs, spices. It’s frozen in adorable little 165g ceramic pots – I am storing it in my freezer for Christmas entertaining.

The owners’ insistence on quality, natural ingredients is evident again in the gourmet food they bring in from local artisans. Spirit Tree’s farm store is filled with fine quality, artisanal gourmet food – a gourmet gal’s dream.

Meredith’s Ginger Syrup is a fusion of fresh ginger root extracts and natural honey raised on Meredith’s organic farm in Meaford, Ontario. My favourite way to add this healthy elixir to my diet it is to add the juice of half a lemon and a dash of cayenne powder to 1 cup of hot or cold water, then stir in two tablespoons of Meredith’s Ginger Syrup for a rejuvenating morning habit that my friend Angela has got me started on. Of course, you can omit the cayenne and the lemon and enjoy a lovely, soothing drink of spicy ginger that will warm you from the inside out.

Handcrafted in small batches at the Deerhurst resort in Muskoka by chef Shelley Westgarth, Belly Ice Cream is served in some of the finest restaurants (such as the Ritz Carlton’s TOCA) and sold in several of the finest gourmet food stores throughout Ontario (including Spirit Tree Estate Cidery). Shelley uses locally-sourced, all natural, preservative-free ingredients and dreams up a variety of creative, gourmet flavours like these.

I bought Dulce de Leche with Spiced Chocolate ice cream – did they know I was coming? This flavour was made for me: dulce de leche caramel ice cream, toffee bits and thin wafers of Belgian dark chocolate that melt on your tongue and leave you with a little kick of heat. A variety of amazing flavours, sold in 500 mL containers or individual serving sizes, are available at Spirit Tree Estate Cidery.

You will also find Sheldon Creek Dairy products (such as traditional unhomogenized milk with cream on the top), Wicked Shortbread, Roothman’s Gourmet Preserves, and a bounty of other gourmet goodies.

My sister and I enjoyed a light lunch in the tasting room. The high ceilings, rustic decor, and touches of elegant black or white calligraphy scrolled on the walls and blackboards made us feel like we were eating in a charming French mas (farmhouse). You can also eat on the outdoor porch or the picnic tables scattered on the lawn, if the weather permits. Brunch and lunch are served from 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. daily. Daily sandwiches and a farmhouse charcuterie platter are also on the menu.

The atmosphere is casual but the quality of the food is superb. The daily quiche was filled with wood-oven-dried tomatoes, sautéed spinach, thyme and chèvre, all suspended in a lovely egg custard. It came with a healthy side salad of barley, red quinoa, baby arugula, and diced vegetables.

Our gracious and knowledgeable server, Alyssa, informed us that the daily soup (mushroom) was made with homemade vegetable stock, fresh rosemary from the garden, and a just a hint of cream. It was chock-full of mushrooms and had a full mushroom flavour – the best mushroom soup I have had in a long time.  Soup is served with slices of Spirit Tree’s delicious Country French bread.

I couldn’t resist and ordered both a well-prepared café latté and a freshly-pressed sweet cider that tasted like apple in a glass – so much fresher tasting than mass-produced, grocery store apple juice that has been processed, filtered, treated, sweetened, and watered down.

Friday night is pizza night. Though I haven’t had the opportunity to try Spirit Tree’s hand-tossed, wood-fired oven pizza yet, I am told that it is a real treat. Pizza toppings range from traditional to creative, quality ingredients. To an adventurous eater like me, the Cider House Blues pizza sounds heavenly: caramelized onions, wood-oven roasted potatoes, sliced apples, mozzarella, blue cheese, rosemary, and walnuts drizzled with honey. Oh my! Pizzas are served from 4:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. and are baked to order, so call ahead. You can either take your pizza to go or enjoy it on Spirit Tree’s picnic tables, when weather permits.

Visit Spirit Tree Estate Cidery on Saturdays or Sundays at 2:00 p.m. for a drop-in, guided tour ($5 includes free-tasting) or check the website for details on pre-booked group tours. Sparkling sweet apple cider will be available in October, when Mother Nature dictates.

Fall is the perfect time of year to take a scenic drive through Caledon to Spirit Tree Estate Cidery. When I went with my sister last week, the leaves were just beginning to be tinged with colour. I’ll be back at Thanksgiving for more cider and again closer to Christmas to stock up on gourmet goodies for easy entertaining. I’d love to make it to the wassailing ceremony on Family Day in February, to sing to the apple trees. Stay tuned to my blog for more information, closer to the date. Whenever you go, bring a cooler to safely transport any frozen goodies home.

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Belly Ice Cream Company: www.bellyicecreamcompany.ca

Meredith’s Ginger Syrup: www.meredithsginger.ca

Roothmans Gourmet Preserves: www.roothamsgourmet.com

Sheldon Creek Dairy: www.sheldoncreekdairy.ca

Wicked Shortbread: https://www.facebook.com/wickedshortbread