Warm up to Winter

Get back to your roots

Winter is here. Although the weather is not reflecting that in most areas, it is definitely winter. It is the season some of us are brought low from the winter blues and some of us overindulge in heavy, fattening foods; the cold as licence to stuff your face to keep warm. While our carb needs are greater in the cold weather, the calories needed and the calories ingested should be about on par...However, the distance between those two numbers can sometimes make the Grand Canyon look teeny.

Cooking in cold weather can be a challenge as well as food costs are higher, spirits are lower so convenience foods are turned to more often and local foods can be hard to find. While practicing the lifetstyle of a localvore is extremely important, being a practical localvore should be a goal for most of us. We can't all live in a lovely rural area that respects the rights of individuals to grow and consume our own foods. Most of us these days live in suburban hell or urban jungles where the grocery store is the only lifeline--and the greatest stranglehold on your health and finances, aside from the government. 

Let's take a quick look at the basics:

Family of Four, 2 adults and 2 children:
These are the current rounded off prices at my local NoFrills:

Butter    $5       lasts about 4-6 days depending on the amount you use daily
Bread     $4      lasts about 3 days making sandwiches only -- less if you eat toast every day.
Milk        $5      lasts about 2 days
Eggs      $4       for a carton of eighteen, lasts approx. a week
Cheese $7       for a 500g block of cheese lasts 3 days, unless rationed
Yoghurt $5       for a 900g tub lasts 4 days
Meat      $10     4 times per week, most packages are weighed to a consistent amount at  
                          stores and average $8 to $10 each. For smaller or personal cuts, try the   
                          butcher counter rather than the meat aisle.

Now that is just the basics (assuming you put up some fruits and vegetables in your freezer and pantry). Multiply that by a winter season of vegetable/fruit purchases of 3 to 4 months and the costs enter the realm of the ridiculous. If you didn't use the harvests wisely through circumstance or disinterest, your food costs triple from here. Vegetables are imported and will cost you. Fruits are exotic imports which means irradiation, picked unripe, shipped enormous distances ensuring a larger carbon footprint and will cost an arm...maybe even a leg if you must have strawberries from a store in February.

If you were diligent or fortunate enough to be able to grow and save some of your own vegetables, you can raid your cold stores for great tasting and nutritious food to save money and your waistline. Remember, you don't have to have a farm to freeze and can delicious foods--you just need a freezer, a few inexpensive supplies and a great local market. Oh and a little bit of effort from you.

So what can we eat in winter and still follow a localvore lifestyle? Whether you put up veg in cold storage or are relying upon the local BigMart, there are foods we naturally turn to in winter and fortunately a lot come from Canada--greenhouse grown but let's fight one battle at a time-- and some come from the US. While it is better to eat from your local area, an immediate neighbour's imports can be an acceptable compromise. We get cucumbers from Ontario, sometimes the US and other times Mexico; buy the Ontario first and the Mexico cukes last. If there is no choice, and for me sometimes there isn't as that is one of Lucy's diabetic snacks, then I will buy only one and keep on the lookout for some from a closer location. Remember, the closer your food grows to you, the better off we all are now and in the future.

Yummy Winter Choices
While it can be almost impossible to limit our choices to local only, a balance between local and imported is an ideal compromise. Yes, it would be lovely to be able to be 100% a localvore, but it is more important to do what you can than to do nothing at all. We have to live in the 'real' world of commerce, industry and debt load but by thinking ahead and giving a bit of effort, that living can be done in a way that keeps you happy, healthy and away from the cheap crap foods we are all enticed to buy.

Here are some staples that is it good to have on hand for winter meal-making inspiration and supplies.

From the cold storage:

Squash (winter), potatoes, onions, sweet potatoes, mushrooms, parsnips, turnips, rutabaga, beets, carrots, leeks, apples, raisins, other dried fruits(local, not imported) garlic

Things you put up for the winter, cold storage:

whole tomatoes, stewed tomatoes, pickled vegetables, pressure-canned soups and stews, fruits in syrup, jams and jellies

Things you put up for the winter, freezer:

-vegetables you froze from the summer harvest such as corn, carrots, peppers, peas and beans.
-homemade chicken and meat stock in mason jars or zippered plastic bags.
-frozen fruits from the summer harvest, in own syrup or loose.

From the pantry:

-dried beans and peas, rice, noodles (you can find a lot made locally, if you search for it) 
-if you don't make your own stock then keep a few bouillon cubes or boxes of broth (local and better yet, organic) 
-purchased cans of tomatoes and beans (more expensive than dried), 
-cans of condensed and evaporated milk
-grains such as barley, oats, amaranth, quinoa
-local wines and beers
-sugars
-nut, bean and grain flours

From the spice cupboard:

-any herbs you dried such as savoury, dill, thyme, oregano
-sea salt and other store bought spices and herbs--learn your herbs and spices to be able to check the quality you are buying--some stores will carry really cheap brands that are a waste of money. Try to keep these purchases at a minimum.

(You can also grow some basil and thyme in pots in a sunny window over the winter. Some locations can do this quite successfully.) 


If you can, shop meat sales or place an order with a butcher for a half or whole side of meat and utilize a deep freeze. I will do this with the more expensive cuts I use a lot--like whole chickens and pork cuts. Beef, well, I don't use as much of as I used to do so I only buy that at the local store if I'm in the mood for homemade jumbo burgers.

Not a bad list for the winter blahs...and most could be put up by you using local goods. Not only would you be saving money, you'll be helping yourself and your family eat better. Growing and harvesting your own food, while a demanding enterprise, enriches your life beyond eating chemical free, GMO free foods; the knowledge you gather and pass on to the next generation is priceless. Think about starting a little garden of your own this spring--even if all you grow is herbs, that is a fine place to start.

This issue is an all recipe one and we take a look at Quick and Easy: Weekday meals where you can get a few ideas, I release my extra special recipe for stuffed pheasants I serve at Christmas every year, and there are a few special dishes you can make once in a while to indulge your need for some comfort, aka fattening, foods. My favourite :D

Be happy, be safe, be well

Say Cheese...one more time
Quick and easy: Weekday Suppers
Three Cheers for the Pig
The not-so Fowl Alternative

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Quick and Easy: Weekday Suppers

Pork 'n' Bean Slow-cooker Chili Casserole

1 lb ground pork, broken up gently by hand, browned and drained
1 large sweet onion, chopped small
1 pepper red, green or yellow, diced
1 stalk of celery, diced
2 cloves of garlic, minced
2 jalapeños, minced (with or without seeds and membranes)
liquid smoke optional
2 cans or 32 oz frozen crushed tomatoes
1 can each of romano, black and garbanzo beans(chickpeas)
1 1/2 tsp dried thyme
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp crushed cumin seeds 
Your favourite chili seasoning -- watch for chemical additives, better to make your own.
1 tbsp dried chipotle peppers or 3 whole peppers in adobo, chopped
Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp dry mustard

Add everything into a medium or large crockpot. Give it a stir, cover and set to low for eight hours ideally or high for 4-6 hours if necessary.

Optional: sometimes I like to add elbow macaroni to this dish, especially when you have to make a little go a long way. I add extra liquid to the crockpot in the form of 2/3 of a good ale, like Smithwicks. I cook the macaroni half way through in a pot, drain and add to the slow-cooker at the last bit of cooking time, about twenty minutes. The macaroni should soak up the extra liquid as it finishes cooking.

Pantry Chicken and Rice Casserole

This is a dish that can be made with leftover chicken, vegetables and rice or adapted to be made from scratch--I've done both but sometimes the quick way is needed. 

To make this dish for the article (and our supper) I picked up a rotisserie chicken, which is a great buy as it is the same price as a raw chicken and I don't have to cook it! I also prepared all the veg and the rice fresh as I did not have these among my leftovers. The point of this recipe is it's quickness and it's practicality not so much it's homemade qualities. Sometimes raiding the pantry is necessary so having a recipe like this already in your repertoire is a handy thing.

2 1/2 cups cooked chicken, chopped
2 cups cooked brown rice
1 large sweet onion, roughly chopped
1 celery stalk, chopped small
1 large yellow potato, chopped small
1/2 lb mushrooms, chopped
1/4 tsp basil
1/2 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp thyme
1 cup frozen corn or canned corn, lightly rinsed to lower sodium
1 can ready to serve chicken corn chowder
1 can cream of chicken soup, condensed
pepper to taste


If using leftovers, gather them and make any big pieces smaller. Remove meat from the bones or carcass and cut up. If not using leftover rice, cook it now, then set aside. 

In a large saucepan melt some chicken or bacon fat or some butter; add onions and potatoes. When onions are wilted and soft, add the celery and mushrooms. Add the herbs and a bit of pepper. Stir and cook until potatoes are halfway done.

Add both soups along with water measuring half of the can of cream of chicken soup and the frozen corn. Stir thoroughly. Add chicken and rice. Mix well.

Heat through to bubbling, lower heat. Cook until potatoes are done.

Serve with some bread (not really necessary but a good excuse to indulge in some good quality bread) and a green salad for a lovely balanced and easy to prepare meal.

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Three Cheers for the Pig

Pork and Pear Stew with potatoes and peas

This is a two stage preparation involving marinating time of one to three hours. Other than that this is a simple recipe that delivers a gently flavoured, filling and nourishing stew. The marinade in this recipe can also be used to make your own ham 'lunch meat'. Use a pork loin, remove as much fat as possible and add it to a large pot. Double both the vinegars in this recipe along with half that amount in water and braise the meat over very low heat for several hours. Let cool and slice thinly.

Marinade
1/2 c cider vinegar
2 tbsp wine vinegar
1/4 cup chicken stock
4 allspice berries, crushed
4 cloves, crushed
1/2 tbsp dried thyme or 5 or 6 sprigs fresh thyme
2 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper

2 pork tenderloins, membrane removed
2 c cider
1/2 tsp fresh ginger, minced
4 large Yukon gold potatoes, chopped into 1/2" cubes
5 pears, peeled cored and quartered
1 red onion, thinly sliced
2 c frozen peas
salt and pepper to taste

Remove the membrane from both tenderloins. Cut into bite-sized pieces and marinate at least 1 hour and 3 hours max.

Remove pork from the marinade. Drop some butter and oil or bacon fat into a large ovenproof pot and heat to med-high. 

Put about a cup of flour onto a pie plate and dredge the meat in it. Cook until browned, 8 to 10 minutes. If you are using a dish that won't fit onto a stove element, then cook the pork in a sauté pan. Add a tablespoon of the apple cider to deglaze the pan, scraping up browned bits and add it to the ovenproof pot.

Layer pears over the meat, then add in the ginger, spread out evenly. Cover with the potatoes and pour in the cider. Season. Cover and cook at 325 for 1 1/4 hours.

Add peas and cook 10 minutes more. Serve with loaf of sourdough bread and a simple no lettuce, all goodie salad such as a tomato, pepper and onion salad with a homemade vinaigrette. 

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The not-so fowl alternative

Pheasant stuffed with Leeks, Mushrooms and Herbes

                       with truffles under the skin

3 medium pheasants

1 lb mushrooms, chopped

1 leek, chopped

3 oz truffles and the oil

1 tbsp butter

1 lb thick-cut bacon, chopped  

      saving nine slices to cover  

      the birds

1 tbsp Herbes du Provence

salt and pepper 

granny smith apple, cored,  

      peeled and cubed

2 tbsp flour

1 1/4 c stock or wine/water mix

 

Take a quarter of the amount of leek and mushrooms and set aside. Mix the rest together in a bowl for stuffing the pheasants.

Clean the birds out and pat dry. Stuff the birds with the leek, mushrooms, herbs and apple pieces. Truss and place into roasting pan. Gently separate the skin from the flesh with your fingers and insert some soft butter and a bit of truffles. Spread the butter out and smooth the skin out.

Cover with foil and cook at 400 degrees for 20 minutes. Cover the birds with the bacon slices. Lower heat to 375 and roast for about 1 hour. Test for doneness with a thermometer or checking if the juices run clear. About a half an hour before done remove bacon slices and let breasts brown for crispy skin or leave bacon on, if that is what you prefer. I think you can guess which way I like to do it. :) 

Add bacon to a hot cast iron fry pan or other suitable pan you have. Cook until browned then add the reserved leeks and mushrooms. Once cooked, add 2 tbsp flour and cook for 2 minutes. Add 1 1/4 cups of stock or wine/water mix to pan. Stir well until thickened. Strain. 

(After straining the gravy, keep the goodies to add to the water when making the pheasant stock.)

Remove the string from the pheasants. Use shears or large sharp carving knife to halve the birds--one half per person. Scoop out the stuffing and serve alongside.

Keep all the bones to make a lovely pheasant soup.

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