Category Streetsville

Streetsville United Church Fall Craft Show: Chili Con Carne

I often think of the women of my church as the Divas Who Dish Divinely. After countless bake sales, church luncheons, and casseroles for friends in need, years of practice have perfected their “from-scratch” recipes and turned them into best-in-show treasures.

The Divas Who Dish Divinely (AKA Streetsville United Church Women) will be dishing up some delicious food again at the 46th annual Streetsville United Church Harvest of Crafts Sale, this Saturday October 26, 2013 from 9:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., at Streetsville United Church.

Olive the Streetsville United Church Harvest of Crafts Sale because it invites the surrounding community to come together under one roof. Our fundraising efforts help support various local outreach programs. And of course, the food is delicious.

Our all-day café offers you a spot to sit, chat, and replenish your shopping-weary soul. Several women make their own batches of chili con carne and chicken soup, then combine them all into one heavenly pot of chili and one ethereal pot of chicken soup. Sandwiches, salads, and homemade desserts are made with care.

Make the baking table your first stop: delectable pies, cakes, cookies, and squares are all made from scratch and sell out quickly. Our local harvest is preserved in pretty jars to enjoy throughout winter. The sale is brimming with creative and witty, inexpensive crafts made by the talented Streetsville United Church Women. Local artisans offer a variety of unique, handcrafted gifts. There is always a special find in the Attic Treasures collection of gently-used modern and vintage finds. Come and get your Christmas shopping done early.

After working all day at the craft show, while the aroma of simmering chili wafts from the kitchen, I come home tired and craving chili. Here is my recipe.

chili_con_carne

Chili Con Carne

Serves 8

This classic chili simmers for five hours but it is much more flavourful cooked slowly and lovingly on the stovetop than abandoned in a slow cooker. Start it early in the day, refrigerate overnight, and reheat gently the next day to further deepen the flavour. If you have two large pots, you can double the recipe and stock your freezer with chili to warm up the chilly months that lie ahead.

I learned this old Southern tip from my friend, Bill, (who learned it from his friend from Kansas City): gently stir in a tablespoon of peanut butter near the end of cooking to smooth out the acidity and round out the flavour of the chili. For years I made this recipe without the peanut butter and still loved it, so if there is a peanut-allergy concern, leave it out.

Ingredients:

4 tablespoons olive oil

About 2 pounds (1kg) extra lean ground sirloin

2 yellow cooking onions, chopped

6 garlic cloves, finely minced

2 yellow or orange sweet bell peppers, cored, seeded, and chopped

4 celery stalks, chopped

1 28 fl oz/796 mL can diced tomatoes

1 19 oz / 540 mL can red kidney beans, drained, rinsed, drained again

1 28 fl oz/796 mL can crushed tomatoes

1 teaspoon coarse salt

1 teaspoon white sugar

2 tablespoons ground chili powder, to taste

½ teaspoon ground cumin

¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon

2 bay leaves

Finish:

1 tablespoon smooth peanut butter

Freshly ground black pepper and coarse salt, to taste

Few dashes of hot sauce (such as Tabasco or Piri Piri), to taste

Optional Garnishes: shredded cheddar cheese, sour cream, lime wedges, hot sauce, chopped avocado, fresh cilantro leaves, tortilla chips, or garlic bread.

Directions:

  1. Heat a large heavy pot over medium heat; add onions and ground sirloin and brown, breaking up with a wooden spoon and stirring frequently, just until meat is no longer pink inside, about 10 minutes.
  2. Add garlic; sauté for 1 minute, stirring constantly.
  3. Add remaining ingredients, except peanut butter; stir. Partially cover with a lid; simmer for 4 3/4 hours, stirring occasionally.
  4. To finish, stir in peanut butter and simmer, stirring occasionally, 15 more minutes. Remove and discard bay leaves. Season to taste with salt, pepper, and hot sauce.
  5. Let cool and then refrigerate overnight to allow flavours to mellow further. When ready to serve, reheat gently. Serve hot with your choice of optional garnishes.
Streetsville United Church
274 Queen St. South
Mississauga, Ontario
L5M 1L8

Harvest of Crafts Sale Hours: Saturday October 26 from 9:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.

Free Admission. Appreciate your support.

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Hot Off The Olive Press: September 27, 2013

Weekly news tidbits too tasty not to share.

Restaurant News/Food Events:

The veal parmesan at Andiamo Pasta Plus is incredibly tender. Olive it! It’s on the special menu for Taste of Streetsville, which ends October 6th, 2013.

Sweet Notes:

While the Danish Pastry House is preparing to move to their new location in the Shops of Oakville South, they will need to have a few closings at their current Port Credit location to facilitate the move.  They will be closed October 2, 3, 5, 8, and 9th 2013.  Read more here: www.danishpastryhouse.ca.

Grocery Store Finds:

Did you spot the Rustichella d’Abruzzo pasta shown in the Pantry Essentials article of the Food & Drink Autumn 2013 issue (page 26)? Extrusion through bronze molds gives this pasta a coarser texture that allows it to absorb any sauce better. I served the pappardelle the other night – my tomato sauce clung to every strand.

Rustichella

I found a wide range of Rustichella d’Abruzzo pasta at this gorgeous, tiny grocery store in downtown Oakville.

Jubilee

Oh, to be riding my bike to this little gem of a store! It’s filled with gourmet goodies, fresh fruits, and vegetables.

Jubilee Fruit Market
104 Allan Street
Oakville, ON
L6J 3N1
 
Telephone: (905) 842-0378
 
Open:
Monday to Wednesday from 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.
Thursday & Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.
Saturday from 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.
Sunday from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

 
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Hot Off The Olive Press: September 20, 2013

Weekly news tidbits too tasty not to share.

Food Events:

The Toronto Garlic Festival is this Sunday, Sept 22, 2013 from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. at Evergreen Brick Works, Toronto.  If you can’t make it, why not visit Carl Laidlaw Orchards to pick up some locally grown garlic or Healthy Choice Farm for organic garlic.

Restaurant News:

If you are passing by Goodfellas Wood Oven Pizza Streetsville and the door is open, pop your head in and say hello. If co-owner Rocco Giovannelli is there, he may invite you in to show you around. I did just that yesterday and was thoroughly impressed by the beautiful interior taking shape – it looks like it should be splashed across the pages of an interior design magazine. Mr. Giovannelli has lots of wonderful surprises in store for Streetsville and is hoping to open by mid October, possibly earlier.

Grocery Store Finds:

Looking for an easy and impressive finale for your dinner party that may just make you the talk of the neighborhood? Check out the large variety of exotic ice creams available at Highland Farms’ Mississauga location. Red Diamond’s Pistachio & Saffron ice cream sounds enticing. Avocado, watermelon, cantaloupe, ginger, green tea, red bean, and mango ice cream from various suppliers all sound delicious too!

Sweet Notes:

If you need a sweet idea for a birthday party but have food sensitivities or allergies to consider, check out the cupcake decorating parties at Bakersville, in Streetsville.

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Latin Love Affair: Olive’s Shrimp Tacos

Move over beef tacos, there’s a new dish in town. My Shrimp Tacos are easy, healthy, and packed with refreshing flavour. Succulent pre-cooked shrimp are briefly marinated in cilantro, mint, lime, garlic, aji amarillo paste, sugar, and salt – a mouthwatering melody of sweet, sour, spicy, and salty. Served in a soft tortilla spread with avocado purée and a lick of lime juice, they are everything I want in a shrimp taco. My son named them his new favourite food. Olive to make my son happy!

shrimp_tacos

Aji amarillo paste is a simple blend of orange-fleshed, medium-hot Peruvian chili peppers, which are prized for their unique fruitiness. Aji means chili pepper and amarillo means yellow. Although very common in Peruvian cooking, aji amarillo peppers can be hard to find here. I was thrilled to find aji amarillo paste (sold in jars)

aji_amarillo_paste

and the much sought-after, frozen, whole aji amarillo peppers (imported from Peru) in Latin Super Chicken Rotisserie – a little Latin American grocery store that also sells Peruvian-style rotisserie chicken, located at the corner of Queen and Britannia, in Streetsville. I confirmed by phone that the stores Rincon de Espana in Port Credit and El Tropical in Oakville also carry aji amarillo paste.

shrimp_tacos

Olive’s Shrimp Tacos

Serves 3 to 4

If you can’t find aji amarillo paste, Tabasco sauce is an adequate substitute for this recipe.

Marinade Ingredients:

1 lime

1 tablespoon roughly chopped fresh mint leaves

1/3 cup roughly chopped fresh cilantro leaves

1 large clove of garlic

1 teaspoon aji amarillo paste (Peruvian yellow hot pepper paste)

½ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon white sugar

1 tablespoon olive oil

Taco Ingredients:

454 g (1 lb.) frozen cooked, peeled shrimp 61/70

1 avocado

2 green onions, finely sliced

8 medium soft flour tortillas

1 lime, quartered

Optional garnish:

Extra coriander sprigs

Directions:

  1. Defrost shrimp according to package directions; drain. Remove tail shells and discard. Place shrimp in a paper-towel-lined bowl, cover and chill in the fridge for at least 1 hour to drain well.
  2. Meanwhile, grate the lime zest into the bowl of a small food processor. Juice the lime and add to the zest; add remaining marinade ingredients and then process until well-blended.
  3. Pour out 1 tablespoon of marinade and set aside in fridge for later use with the avocado. Pour remaining marinade in a large, re-sealable Ziploc bag and seal. Refrigerate until 1 hour before eating.
  4. One hour before eating, place shrimp in marinade bag. Squeeze out the air and seal tightly. Massage the marinade into the shrimp until evenly coated. Place in the fridge and marinade for 1 hour.
  5. Just before serving, warm tortillas in the oven as per package instructions.
  6. Meanwhile, cut the avocado in half and remove the pit. Scoop the flesh into a medium bowl. Using a fork, mash the avocado into a purée. Add the remaining 1 tablespoon reserved marinade and stir thoroughly. Spread ⅛th of the avocado puree on one half of each tortilla.
  7. Dump marinated shrimp into a colander set in the sink and drain briefly. Place about ⅛th of the shrimp on top of the avocado puree. Sprinkle with green onions and fresh coriander sprig, if desired. Fold other half of tortilla over.
  8. Serve with immediately with lime wedges.

You can find aji amarillo paste at:

Latin Super Chicken Rotisserie
17 Queen Street North A5,
Mississauga, ON
L5N 6A1
Telephone: 905-369-0420
Open Tuesdays to Saturdays from  11:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. & Sundays from 12:30 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.

 

El Tropical
391 Kerr Street,
Oakville, ON
L6K 3B9
Telephone: 905-845-9262

Rincon De Espana Inc.
550 Lakeshore Road East
Mississauga, ON
L5G 1J3
Telephone: 905-274-2109

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Hot Off The Olive Press: September 2, 2013

Welcome to my newsletter that I will publish on Mondays, whenever I have enough news tidbits to share with you.

Headline News:

Unfortunately, I am starting off my first newsletter with very sad news. The main building at St. Jacob Farmers’ Market was destroyed by fire early this morning. Read the story here: www.cbc.ca.

Food Events:

There’s one day left to head over to Spencer Smith Park in Burlington, Ontario for the 18th annual Canada’s Largest Ribfest, organized by the Rotary Club of Burlington Lakeshore. This year’s Ribfest will include a kids’ zone, live bands, crafters’ artisan fair and of course, 18 ribber teams from across North America competing for your vote for the best finger-lickin’-good ribs. August 30th to September 2nd, 2013  11 am to 11 pm Friday, Saturday and Sunday, 11am to 8 pm Monday. All the info you need to know is here: www.canadaslargestribfest.com

Restaurant News:

Cagney’s Restaurant & Wine Bar in Streetsville (home of the legendary Cagney’s caesar salad) is temporarily closed for renovations and is planning on reopening – with a fresh new look – around the last week of September/first week of October and will also be open on Sundays for brunch and dinner. Wonderful!

Tandoori Flame Grand Indian Buffet & Thekka ‘d Indian Bar plans to open this fall in the former location of Mother Tucker’s Market Place at Britannia Rd. and Mavis Rd. in Heartland Centre. Can’t wait to try it because olive Indian!

Grocery Store Finds:

Looking for Latin American grocery stores? Check out my post publishing this Thursday – Latin Love Affair: Olive’s Shrimp Tacos.

Sweet Notes:

End the summer holidays on a sweet note with Kawartha Dairy ice cream.

Pictured below: Raspberry Lemon-Lime Sherbet, Mint Chip, Blue Bubblegum, Creamy Orange, Chocolate and my favourites: Moose Tracks (vanilla ice cream with chocolate peanut butter cups swirled with Moose Tracks® fudge) and Crème Brulée (caramelized brown sugar sauce and Crème Brulée crunchy candy swirled in rich custard ice cream).

Click here to find Kawartha Dairy Ice Cream in your neighborhood. I counted 18 flavours at the Apple Factory.

Kawartha Dairy Ice Cream

Photo contributed by Charlotte Brehl.

 

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