Bannock: The quickest of quick breads

Bannock

Bannock is kind of the perfect cross between a biscuit, a pancake, and an English muffin.  It’s amazing plain fresh out of the frying pan, smeared with lots of butter and jam, served alongside a saucy dinner used to swipe up every last tasty morsel, or even as a sandwich or burger bun.

It takes about as much work as pancakes so you’ll be able to impress your family and friends with pretty much zero effort on your part!

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Bannock

Makes 12

3 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for shaping bannock
2 teaspoons salt
2 ½ tablespoons baking powder
¼ cup melted butter or lard
1 teaspoon honey
1 ½ cups warm water

In a large bowl, combine the flour, salt, and baking powder; make a well in the centre.  In a separate bowl, mix the melted butter with the honey and pour into the dry ingredients.  Add the water and stir just until a loose dough forms. 

Dust a clean work surface with flour, dump the dough out, and knead 7 or 8 times or until the dough is no longer sticky on the outside, adding a scattering of flour as needed.

Divide the dough into 12 equal portions and flatten into 1”-thick rounds.  This should leave you with rounds that are around 3-4” across.

Heat a cast iron skillet or frying pan over medium heat and add enough canola oil to coat the bottom of the pan.  When hot, fry the bannock a few at a time for about 3-4 minutes per side or until deep golden brown.  If your pan starts to look a little dry, add a bit more oil and allow it to heat up before frying more bannock. 

Allow the bannock to cool slightly and enjoy with anything your heart can imagine – or, if you’re feeling extra snazzy, split the bannock down the middle and use it as a bun for Bison Burgers!

Bison Burgers: A burger from far and wide

Bison Burgers on Bannock

With Canada Day over and the nights of ragamuffins setting off surplus fireworks slowly petering out, it’s tempting to put away those ultra-Canadian recipes until next year.  Now, I would tend agree with this when it comes to recipes for Canadian flag cakes and things of that kitschy sort but recipes highlighting the wonders of Canada’s bounty should never be shelved!

Here is perhaps the most Canadian recipe I’ve yet to develop.  I’ve jammed as many provinces as possible into these wee burgers and it just so happens that they are perhaps the best burger recipe I’ve ever whipped up.

We have the Prairies through the use of tasty and healthy bison (though I would never scoff at the use of good old Albertan beef), Quebec and Canada in general with maple syrup, mustard to showcase the fact that Canada is the world’s largest supplier of mustard seed, and summer savoury to give them a real East Coast flavour.  Top these little numbers off with some good old fashioned Canadian cheddar (my favourite is Avonlea Cloth Bound Cheddar from PEI for it’s potato-y rind) and you’ve got a perfect ode to Canada!

The hubs who is a true burger aficionado was left in silent glee after digging in and I hope you will be too!

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Bison Burgers

Makes 6 burger

1 large or 2 small red onions, finely diced
1 tablespoon butter
1 teaspoon salt, divided
½ teaspoon pepper, divided
¼ cup pure maple syrup
550g ground bison
1 egg
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
¼ cup breadcrumbs
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh parsley
1 ½ teaspoons dried summer savoury
¾ cup good quality aged Canadian cheddar (my favourite is Avonlea Clothbound Cheddar from PEI)
6 burger buns or Bannock Buns

Place a medium frying pan over medium-low heat and add the onions, butter, ½ teaspoon of salt, and ¼ teaspoon of pepper.  Stir to combine and allow the onions to cook until they become lightly caramelized.  Add the maple syrup, stir, and continue cooking until the onions are jammy and well caramelized.  Remove from the heat and set aside to cool.

Meanwhile, in a large bowl, combine the bison, 3 tablespoons of the cooled maple caramelized onions, the egg, Dijon mustard, breadcrumbs, parsley, summer savoury, and remaining ½ teaspoon of salt and ¼ teaspoon of pepper.  Using your hands, mix just until combined.  Divide the bison into 6 equal burgers and press into rounds about ¾” thick.

Preheat your grill or a skillet to medium/medium-high heat and lightly drizzle the burgers with canola or vegetable oil and season with a pinch of salt and pepper.  When hot, cook the burgers to your desired doneness, topping with cheese for the last minute or two of cooking.  I typically do 4 minutes on the first side, 2 ½ minutes on the second, then I top the burgers with cheese and cook for an additional minute or two. 

Rest the burgers for about 5 minutes and serve on split bannock or burger buns with Dijon mustard, arugula, and some of the leftover maple caramelized onions.

D'ough Canada 150!

Canoe Paddles (aka those flat doughnuts that you know and love but they have a trademarked name so here's my take!)

Is there anything more Canadian than eating a Beavertail during Winterlude on the slick icy surface of the Rideau Canal?  Now, if you’re pretty much any other Canadian out there, you’d probably also have a pair of skates on as your turn triple axles on the frozen river but I am a rather blasphemous countryman as I never learned how to skate.

So, for me, Beavertails still call to mind our nation’s capital but instead of slipping around on the Canal, you’ll find me nibbling away on this wonderful confection as I meander through the Byward Market or dancing terribly at one of Ottawa’s many music festivals.

Here’s my take on the classic.  I've dubbed mine Canoe Paddles, a name drawn up by my husband after he had scarfed down about seven. 

If you’re like me, nothing beats fried dough with cinnamon sugar and a squidge of lemon but feel free to slather on chocolate hazelnut spread, ice cream, strawberry jam, or whatever else you can think of!

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Canoe Paddles

Makes 16

¼ cup warm water
1 tablespoon instant yeast
½ teaspoon + ¼ cup sugar, divided
2 ¼ - 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
½ cup buttermilk
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 egg
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
Vegetable oil, for deep-frying

Topping Options:
Cinnamon Sugar (1 cup sugar + 1 tablespoon cinnamon)
Lemon juice
Chocolate hazelnut spread

In a small bowl, whisk together the water, yeast, and ½ teaspoon of sugar and set aside to bloom.

Meanwhile, in a large bowl or the bowl of your stand mixer, combine the 2 1/4 cups flour, salt, and remaining ¼ cup of sugar.  Make a well in the centre and set aside.

In another small bowl, beat the buttermilk with the egg and vanilla.

Pour the yeast and buttermilk mixtures into the well of the dry ingredients and stir until a shaggy dough forms.  If using your hands, turn the dough out onto a floured work surface and knead, adding additional 1/4 cup of flour if needed, for about 8 minutes or until the dough is soft and no longer sticky.  If using a stand mixer, attach the dough hook and knead for around 6 minutes.  Place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl, cover, and allow it to rise for 40 minutes.

Punch the dough down and divide into 16 golf ball sized portions.  Flatten each into an oval that is around ½” thick and place on a baking sheet while you preheat 4” of oil to 385F in the bottom of a large heavy bottomed pot.

When your oil is up to temperature, stretch an oval into a thin canoe paddle shape (the edges will be a bit thicker than the middle) and carefully place into the oil.  If you're looking for a little extra info on shaping these tasty treats, check out my segment on Your Morning for Canada 150!

Stretch and fry about 3 pieces of dough at a time and fry, flipping halfway through, until both sides are golden.  Remove the canoe paddles from the oil onto paper towel then, while still warm, toss in cinnamon sugar if desired.  For my favourite, I add a squidge of lemon to the cinnamon sugar coated canoe paddles just prior to eating.

If you want to top your canoe paddle with chocolate hazelnut spread, feel free to leave them plain and top just before serving.

The Sauce Fiend Chronicles: kinda classic Pesto

Basil, Parsley, & Arugula Pesto

Pesto is one of those things I make when I’m feeling rather Bilbo Baggins-esque.  You know that scene, in the book and the movie, where Bilbo is running about trying to find snacks for Gandalf?  A zillion things on his mind, from birthday parties to food to, you know, Isildur’s Bane aka the One Ring?

 …I feel all thin, sort of stretched, if you know what I mean:
like butter that has been scraped over too much bread.

 Ok, ok, maybe not everyone has pretty much all of LOTR memorized but you get it, right?!  When you’re so busy that your brain is pretty much constantly out to lunch and your to-do list seems insurmountable?  It’s those days that I reach for the food processor and whip up a batch of pesto.

The wonderful thing about this sauce is that it takes about 5 minutes to throw together and every bite is as fresh as summer giving you an extra pep in your step that is so needed in those oh-so busy times.

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Basil, Parsley & Arugula Pesto

Serves 4, with some leftover for lunch

2 cups loosely packed basil
1 cup loosely packed parsley
2 cups loosely packed arugula
½ cup grated pecorino cheese
3 tablespoons walnuts
1 - 2 cloves garlic, finely minced
1 ½ teaspoons lemon zest
3 tablespoons lemon juice
½ cup extra virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon pepper
500g dry pasta

Place all of the ingredients other than the dry pasta in the bowl of a food processor or in a blender and pulse until well combined.  Set this aside and cook the pasta in heavily salted boiling water until al dente.

When the pasta is cooked, scoop about a cup of the starchy water from the pot and drain the rest.  Transfer the pasta back into the pot and pour on the pesto.  Stir until everything is evenly coated, adding about ½ cup or more of the reserved cooking liquid to thin the pesto out as needed.

Serve topped with a few shavings of pecorino, a sprinkling of salt and pepper, and a squidge of lemon juice to brighten everything up.