We kept with a local theme for July as this is the time when gorgeous fresh food is growing in abundance — some of it in our own backyards. The venue for our meal was the deck of the clubhouse at our sailing club at the beautiful Scarborough Bluffs. On a hot and sticky summer day, there isn’t a better place to be than by the water. Our feast began with homemade pasta made by Caroline and served with garlic scape pesto harvested from her garden.
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| You got to lo-o-ove that green! |
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| Pesto and Pasta |
Kaarina had just returned from sailing the North Channel of Lake Huron and brought me pickerel from the professional fishers at Herbert Fisheries. They operate the freshest fish and chips joint in northern Ontario, literally serving the catch of the day every day. Delicate and mild pickerel needs little adornment. The best way to cook it is to dust it with a mixture of flour, salt and pepper and quickly pan-fry it in butter.
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| Delicate and Mild Pickerel |
I belong to a wonderful CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) at Joyfully Organic Farm who provided me with the fennel, which I used for a fennel confit and a frothed sherry sauce. The local green beans and new potatoes came from Reesor Farm Market near my home.
Fennel confit
1 fennel bulb
1-1/4 cups olive oil
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 bay leaf
sea salt and freshly cracked black pepper
Cut the fennel in half lengthways and then slice into 1/4-inch thick pieces. Place the fennel, olive oil, garlic, bay leaf and salt and pepper in a small saucepan. Place a circle of parchment paper on the surface and cook over a low heat. Once the oil reaches 120°F, remove from the heat and place the pan in a warm place for about 30 minutes until the fennel is softened but not puréed. Drain the fennel, reserving the fennel and discarding the oil and bay leaf. Keep the fennel warm until you are ready to serve.
Sherry sauce
1 tbsp unsalted butter
1 fennel bulb, chopped
1 clove garlic, crushed
1/4 cup celery, chopped
1 shallot, chopped
1 cup dry sherry
2 cups fish stock
1 cup whipping cream
Melt the butter in a saucepan over a medium heat, add the fennel, garlic, celery, shallot and salt and pepper and sauté for 7 – 8 minutes or until golden brown, stirring continuously to prevent any catching. Once the vegetables are golden brown and softened, add the sherry and let it bubble over a high heat for about 2 minutes, stirring and scraping the base of the pan with a wooden spoon to deglaze it. Add the stock and reduce the heat to a gentle simmer for 10 minutes, then add the cream and bring the sauce back to the boil for 1 minute. Remove the pan from the heat and blend the sauce until smooth, then pass it through a fine sieve into the rinsed-out pan. If it is too thick, add a little extra fish stock, then taste and adjust the seasoning. Reheat gently until hot, and then keep warm. Just before serving, froth the sherry sauce with a hand-held frother.
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| Sherry Sauce |
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| Fresh and Local Feast |
For dessert, Kaarina chose to make two different ice creams. It is a well-known fact that our Kaarina is not fond of kitchen gadgets, so she was determined to make her ice cream without a fancy ice cream maker. She found this recipe, which worked very well although it took more than twice as long as stated in the instructions: How to make ice cream without an ice cream maker. The showstopper, however, was the tarragon and olive oil ice cream. The tarragon came from Kaarina’s garden. She made a blueberry sauce with Ontario blueberries, and added a few sweet Ontario raspberries to the plate for extra colour.
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| Handmade Ice Cream and Berries |
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| Kaarina's Lovely Touch |
