fresh spring supper
This time of year is such a tease! All those green shoots poking through the earth can’t grow fast enough to match our desire for the first fresh produce. This early spring dinner straddles the seasons – a few staples and flavours leftover from the colder months (think beets, bacon and comfort food cookies) mixed with a few spring harbingers: fresh caught halibut and ruby red rhubarb. Welcome Spring!
main course
6 cups coarsely chopped rhubarb 1/2 cup homemade strawberry or seedless raspberry jam 1/2 cup Babe’s honey 3/4 cup water
Halibut with Bacon Dressing & Roasted Beets
What to drink?
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A full-bodied pinot gris from Alsace has the weight to stand up to the bacon. A red Graves, a lighter Bordeaux would also be an interesting match.
1. Place beets on a large piece of foil and drizzle with a little olive oil. Seal to form a package and place on a baking sheet. Roast in 375°F oven until tender, from 35 to 45 min., depending on size. You want them tender but not too soft. When cool enough to handle, slip off skins. Chop beets, then toss with horseradish and a drizzle of olive oil. Cover and keep in a warm spot. 2. Season fish with pinches of salt and pepper, if you wish. Melt butter in a frying pan over medium-high. When bubbly, add fish, skin-side up. Sear until golden, 2 to 3 min., then place, skin-side down, on a small baking sheet. Finish cooking in preheated 375°F oven until cooked through, 8 to 10 min. 3. Meanwhile, wipe out frying pan. Add bacon and fry until crispy. Remove bacon to a plate but leave 1 Tbsp fat in pan. Add shallot and reduce heat to medium. Cook until soft, 3 to 4 min, then add garlic and sauté until fragrant, about 1 min. Pour in vinegar and scrape up any bits from pan bottom. Stir in honey and oil until well mixed, then remove from heat and stir in parsley. 4. To serve, place beets on plates and top with fish. Spoon dressing overtop.
dessert
Jammy Rhubarb Compote This is the time of year I start to use up my strawberry jam from last summer. It adds a rich colour plus well needed sweetness to very tart rhubarb. Great over spiced yogurt, crème fraiche, cheesecake or ice cream. Serves 4
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EAT MAGAZINE MARCH | APRIL 2010
In a saucepan, combine rhubarb with jam and honey. Add water and bring to a boil. Simmer until rhubarb is as tender as you like, 8 to 10 minutes. Strain rhubarb and reserve liquid. Return liquid to pan and simmer, stirring often, until reduced to thick syrup. Pour over rhubarb. Spice It Up: Add a stick of cinnamon or a few pieces of star anise or pinches of fennel seeds.
Sweet ‘n Savoury Yogurt The almost mint-like tanginess of fresh thyme is a pleasant surprise here. Excellent with Jammy Rhubarb Compote. Serves 4 4 cups yogurt (full-fat) 3 Tbsp Babe’s honey 1 tsp chopped fresh thyme 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon 1. Place yogurt in a sieve and set over a bowl. Refrigerate overnight so most of the whey drains off and yogurt is quite thick. Stir in honey, thyme and cinnamon. Spoon into bowls and top with Jammy Rhubarb Compote.
Hazelnut Chews I love this cookie because it’s an easy stir-together dough – no need to haul out mixers and such. Plus it shows off the flecks of hazelnuts and I highly recommend popping in a few while they’re still slightly warm – that’s when they’re at their chewy best. Makes about 35-40 cookies. 3/4 cup ground hazelnuts 2/3 cup granulated sugar 1/4 tsp salt 1/2 cup butter, melted, cooled slightly 1 egg, lightly beaten 1/2 tsp vanilla 1 cup all-purpose flour Icing sugar
1. In a bowl, stir hazelnuts with sugar and salt. Stir in butter, egg and vanilla. Add flour and stir until well mixed. Dough will be very soft. Refrigerate until firm, 20 to 30 min. 2. Roll into small balls (about 1 heaping tsp each), then space out on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake in preheated 350F oven until bottoms are golden and tops are barely soft in centre, but cooked through, 18 to 20 minutes. Slightly under baked cookies stay chewier. 3. Cool completely, then dust with icing sugar. Layer in a baking tin and store in a cool dark place, up to 1 week or freeze up to 2 months. If freezing, dust with icing sugar just before serving.
Carol Ferguson
The sweet and salty flavours of the bacon dressing may seem a bit overpowering on it’s own, but when paired with meaty halibut, well, it’s divine! Especially if you use bacon from Choux Choux. A hint of horseradish with earthy beets adds a little kick too. 4 beets, trimmed and scrubbed Olive oil 1 tsp prepared horseradish 4 6-oz fillets fresh halibut (choose thick centre cuts) Knob of butter 3 thick strips bacon, chopped 1 shallot, minced 2 garlic cloves, minced 1/4 cup Spinnaker’s Apple Cider Vinegar 1Tbsp babe’s honey 1/4 cup good quality olive oil 2 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley or cilantro
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