Silver Dollar Pancakes (Grain-free)

These edibles are very cute and offer a comforting meal on Sunday morning (with leftovers).  

Tip - they need to be made this small because they will fall apart when you try to flip them.  And they brown quickly so don't walk away.  

Serve them with a strong flavoured jam such as blackcurrant (my mom's is best but you probably don't have any), or try a nut butter or poached egg on top.  

Nick and I agree they are delicious.  

Silver Dollar Pancakes (Grain-free)
from Wheat Belly 30 Minutes or Less, William Davis

Dry ingredients:
1/4 cup almond meal/flour
1/4 cup coconut flour
1 tsp baking soda
Sweetener equivalent to 1 Tbsp of sugar
1/4 cup finely chopped walnuts
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

Wet ingredients:
3 eggs
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
5 Tbsp water
2 Tbsp butter or coconut oil, melted

Whisk together the dry ingredients.  In a separate bowl whisk together the wet ingredients. Add to the dry mixture until combined.  

Turn the oven up to 200 and place a platter inside for the pancakes to stay warm.  Using a greased pan over medium-low heat, pour 1 tablespoon of batter to make each pancake. Cook for about two minutes first side and then another couple of minutes second side.  

Hello, Goodbye Toronto

 

I tried to fit it all in. I built a "menu" of places to go, starting with Kensington Market Monday for Cafe Pamenar and back on Augusta Avenue Saturday morning for wood-fired bagels.  For my last week in Toronto I wanted to indulge in snacks, drinks and of course bike rides on streets that I love in my neighbourhood:  Queen, College, Crawford, Ossington, Dundas...

I also built a list of goodbyes, discovering my Toronto friends and family really know their food:

- five o'clock hugs with Janey accompanied by oysters and white wine at 416 Snack Bar

- artisanal drinks in vintage glasses at the Northwood with Leah

- French pastries at Nadege with Helena

- homemade lobster rolls followed by Leah's dessert with local strawberries

- quinoa and seared scallops and an unbaked local cherry cheesecake by Bojan and Angela  

- "Pie Thursday" at House of Cool with a champagne toast

- sampling the new pastry known as a "cronut" at a cupcake cafe on Dundas (I didn't like it) 

- Friday night steak and asparagus BBQ at Jacob and Jessica's 

- a rustic brunch with our beloved supper club group at Zocalo Restaurant 

- a second brunch at The Saint with the Toronto crew of Sheriden grads mixed with wives, new boyfriends and beautiful children (Maggie and Chloe)

The build up to our leaving Toronto was intense and the drive to the airport a bit stressful with two freaked out felines singing all the way to Pearson.  Then just like that (cue finger snap) we are back in Halifax, driving on a smooth highway flanked by thousands of trees and summer ocean air.

At the airport I was told my luggage was 20 pounds overweight. 

Must have been all the good food I ate. 

CBC's Spinach & Grilled Cheese Sandwich

 

There it is.  You know it, and you and I both love it.  I learned a couple new tricks to make a simple melted fist of comfort worth sharing.

I was driving an Autoshare to get groceries at 7pm on a recent Thursday.  Listening to CBC to keep me company, they had a short (and fluffy) piece about national grilled cheese day.  There was audio of the host observing as her producer cooked in the CBC "kitchen" (is this true?) making a traditional grilled cheese.  On the line was one of the creators/judges of the grilled cheese championship out there in California.  (Emphasis on 'out there').  But, what is worth sharing is that they were grilling both sides of the bread in butter before adding the filling and grating the cheese for an even melt.  I didn't make the fists of comfort that night for dinner but I did buy cheese at the store, and they did comfort us the next day.  

My choice was to add chopped spinach to the sandwich and serve with roasted broccoli on the side.   

Oatmeal Blueberry Pancakes

This reasonable recipe for oatmeal buttermilk blueberry pancakes was lifted from the venerable New York Times archive and properly executed on a good friday morning, with a couple tiny ingredient switches to accommodate what I had on hand.  I made a batch (one dozen) and stuck the remainder in the freezer in packets of three.  I will thaw for a quick breakfast another day, when I officially miss the weekend.  

Many fruits could be substituted for blueberry - banana, raspberry, blackberry.  I'd even try pear.

Cook's note: the batter has to sit for an hour (or overnight) so plan ahead ... they're worth the wait.

Oatmeal Buttermilk Blueberry Pancakes
From The New York Times / Martha Rose Shulman

1/2 cup rolled oats
1/2 cup milk
1 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 tablespoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
1 1 /2 cups buttermilk (I never buy "real" buttermilk, instead I add fresh lemon juice to ordinary milk)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract (I prefer to use maple extract)
3 tablespoons canola oil (I used grapeseed oil)
1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries (or other berries/banana)

Mix the oats with the 1/2 cup of milk and set aside.

Sift together the flours, baking powder, baking soda, sugar and salt.

In another bowl, whisk the eggs, then add the buttermilk (or milk and lemon juice) and whisk together.  Now whisk in the vanilla (or maple) extract and the oil.

Add the flour mixture to the egg mixture and whisk tougher, but do not over beat.  Fold in the oat mixture.  Let sit for one hour, or refrigerate overnight.

Get a nonstick pan hot and add a bit of oil (if necessary).  Drop 1/4 cup spoonfuls onto the hot pan.  Decorate each pancake with 5-7 blueberries (depending on their size).  Cook until bubbles begin to break through, and the edges are light brown, about 2-3 minutes.  Flip and cook the other side for about 30 seconds or until nicely browned.  Continue making pancakes until the batter is used up.

Leftovers
Keep well wrapped in the refrigerator for a few days, or freeze them for up to a few months.

All Day Breakfast: Eggs and Greens

The delight of the first meal of a weekend day keeps me coming back to a dish like this.  Crispy, tender greens weighed down only by the glory of a perfectly cooked egg.  I don't always enjoy the feeling of the end of a good day.  Afternoons lead to evenings, and to night.  Mornings have alway invigorated me and I savour the (memories) of the days I woke up (alert) before 8am.  This childlike morning time has always been my master, my teacher of joy.  There is so much hope and potential.  So much I could do with this day.  I don't want it to end.  And yet.  Afternoons lead to evenings, and to night.  One solution could be eggs and greens cooked together as if they were always meant to be this way. So comforting and easy to prepare, even at night.

(recipe follows)

We'll have waffles!

It just happens.  I wake up on Saturday morning and want to make either pancakes, french toast or waffles.  I'm not complaining really, but offering indulgent, comforting, gorgeous food!

(recipe follows)

Winter brunch; sweet potato hash and fluffy eggs

Yes, that was me (sort of) dancing on the snowy beach this morning.  Did you see that tree covered in ice?  Startling.  Walking back to the neighbourhood, I was tossing around ideas for lunch and came up with a classic combination that used some fresh herbs and leftover ingredients from the fridge.

An indulgent brunch at JK's Gilead Cafe

It was the small details I fell for: tiny slices of green onion, fresh orange juice, perfectly cooked eggs, delightfully thin porcelain plates, and nicely designed flatware were the surprise touches.  And who can fault a chef when he packs those preserves away so nicely...