Cheeses of Germany. An Assiniboine Park Conservatory event

I haven't made a lot of German food lately but the theme for this event for the Assiniboine Park Conservatory was the Cheeses of Germany. It is worth the hunt for these specialty cheeses. Camobozola cheese is readily available in most local markets but Tilsit, Quark, Esrom, etc. are available at the Ellice Meat Market on Ellice Ave. Lovely German cheesecake made with Quark is available next door at Lang's Bakery.

Each recipe has a delicious pairing prepared by Gary Dawyduk, Product Ambassador from the MLCC.

To Start:
Wasmas cocktail
½ glass beer (Erdinger Dunkelweiβbier, #574236, 500ml, $3.59)
¼ part Cognac (Rémy Martin VS, #20412, $17.57)
¼ part Cola
(traditionally served in a 36 oz. Stein)



1. Fried Cambozola

Paired with Tokaji 5 Puttonyos 2005 – Royal Tokaji Co. (#1054, 250 ml) $22.09

4 oz mixed greens
6 oz Cambozola, cut into 1/2 inch slices
1.5 oz pecan halves, roughly chopped
1 oz dried cranberries
1 egg
Breadcrumbs
Butter
Balsamic vinegar reduction

Set up salad with balsamic vinegar and add salt and fresh grounded pepper to taste. In a small bowl beat egg. Dip Cambozola slices into beaten egg and coat with breadcrumbs. Mix salad and vinaigrette. Sprinkle with cranberries and pecan nuts. Melt butter in a small frying pan at medium heat. Fry Cambozola shortly from both sides until golden brown.
Arrange Cambozola on top of salad and crown with balsamic vinegar reduction.

2. Tilsit Soup

Paired with Baron Dark Lager (#712835, 500ml) $2.78

2 ¾ cups skim milk
1 ¾ cup whole wheat bread crumbs, fresh
2 tsp Dijon mustard
1 cup Tilsit cheese, shredded
Nutmeg
Paprika
Chopped parsley

Place 1 ½ cups of the milk in a blender with fresh breadcrumbs and mustard and process on low until smooth. Place mixture in a saucepan with remaining milk and the cheese. Cook over low heat, stirring until the cheese melts and the soup is heated through. Do not boil. Pour into bowls and garnish with nutmeg, paprika and parsley.

3. Quark Kartoffeln

Paired with Prosecco di Valdobbiadene – Mionetto (#432369) $20.04

Boil potatoes in salt water.
Mix quark (whole milk quark) with about 1/3 vol whole milk
add to taste: salt, paprika, pepper
Stir in any of the following yummy fresh things:
dill, cilantro, finely chopped tomato, yellow or red pepper, sweet onion. (I tend to put in about 1/4 volume or so of veggies)

Serve fresh quark mixture over hot potatoes.

4. Käsekuchen (German Cheesecake) With Cherry topping


Paired with Beerenauslese 2006 – Schmitt Söhne (#4936, 500 ml) $14.35

The filling is made with low-fat quark instead of cream cheese and egg foam is folded into the filling to give it a slightly fluffy consistency. Lemon and vanilla give the filling a fresh flavour.

The crust is essentially a sweetened pie crust (pâte sucrée).
Ingredients
Crust

* 9 oz / 250g all-purpose flour
* 4½ oz / 125g butter
* pinch of salt
* 1 oz / 30g sugar
* 2 egg yolks
* 2-3 tbsp water

Filling

* 1 lb 10oz / 750g quark (regular, not non-fat), see note for a substitution
* 2 oz / 60g melted unsalted butter
* 4½ oz / 125g sugar
* 4 egg yolks
* 4 egg whites
* 1 tbsp vanilla extract
* zest and juice of 1 lemon
* pinch of salt

Preparation

* In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar and salt, then cut in the cold butter.
* Add egg yolks and water. Then knead with your hands just until the dough is smooth.
* Wrap in plastic foil and place in the refrigerator for at least an hour.
* Preheat oven to 350°F / 180°C.
* Grease a 10 in / 25cm spring form with butter.
* Roll out the dough, then press it into the bottom and the sides of the spring form.
* In a mixing bowl (or large food processor) combine quark, sugar, egg yolks, lemon zest, lemon juice and salt. Beat until well blended then mix in the melted butter.
* Beat the egg whites to stiff peaks.
* Carefully fold the egg foam into the quark mixture.
* Pour mixture into the spring form.
* Bake in the preheated oven for 50-60 minutes (or until done). The top should be lightly browned and the filling should be set.
* Turn off oven, open door and let cool for another 15-20 minutes.
* Remove form from oven, run a knife around the edge and open the spring form.
* Transfer cake to a plate or platter. Let cool well before serving.

Notes

* We are lucky enough to have quark available in one of our local little markets. A good substitution for the quark is low fat cottage cheese, just place it in a food processor, add a bit of milk and process until very smooth. Others recommend using only sour cream.
* During baking, the filling will rise quite a bit and fall when cooling down. This is normal and no reason to worry.

Yields 1 10 in / 25cm diameter cake

Preparation time: ca. 2 hours plus the time the cake needs to cool.

Enjoy!

Grilled Esrom Cheese Sandwiches were paired with Vino Noire – Dr. Zenzen (#887976)and $15.42
Iced Strawberry Wine – DD Leobard (#620799) $19.95

To Finish:
Reservoir Dog
1part Jagermeister Herbal Liqueur (#117101, $25.85)
1 part Irish Cream (Bailey’s, #5959, $29.99)

Lamb on CBC - A yummy repost for a yummy repast

I had the pleasure this morning of presenting this tender Moroccan lamb recipe on CBC Weekend morning with Kerän Sanders. Give this a try for your Easter dinner for a change. It can be prepared in advance and heated up for a stress-free dinner.

Enjoy!

Moroccan Lamb with Prunes

1 leg of lamb, boned out (shortens cooking time)(Fresh Manitoba Lamb at DeLuca' at 950 Portage Ave.)
1/2 cup butter
1/4 cup olive oil
a good pinch of saffron*
Salt, to taste
2 tbs ras el hanout*
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 large onion, grated
1 bunch green coriander, tied together (optional)
1 lb pitted prunes
2 cups finely sliced onion
1/2 cup honey
4 tart apples
1-2 tbs toasted sesame seeds

Trim meat of excess fat. Cut meat into chunks or leave whole. Melt butter and mix with the oil, saffron, salt, ras el hanout, cinnamon, grated onion and coriander. Dip each chunk of meat into the mixture or coat meat entirely and place in a medium heated casserole dish. Turn meat being careful not to burn the meat but allowing the aromas of the spices to be released. Add water to almost cover the meat. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat, cover and simmer gently for 1 hour. If the bone is in, roast in the oven at 350º until coming off of the bone.

After the meat has cooked for 1 hour, add the sliced onion to the casserole and cook 30 minutes longer.

Add prunes and stir in 1/4 tsp cinnamon and 1/2 of the honey. Simmer, uncovered until the prunes swell and the sauce has reduced.

Quarter and core the apples. Sauté in a skillet, flesh side down with a tbs of butter until soft and glazed.

To serve, arrange the lamb on the serving dish, pour the onion-prune sauce over, decorate with the apples and sprinkle with the sesame seeds.

Serve at once.

* Products available at Halal Meats and Specialty Foods at 206 Maryland, Dino’s Grocery Mart at 460 Notre Dame and DeLuca’s Specialty Foods at 950 Portage Ave.

Today on CBC Weekend Morning - Korean BBQ Beef - Bulgogi

This morning I had the pleasure of presenting a popular Korean dish, Bulgogi on CBC Weekend morning with Kerän Sanders. This is made with ingredients that are very easy to stock in your kitchen and makes for a wonderful celebration meal.

There are some wonderful Korean food stores in Winnipeg. Try one on Wellington Ave. near Beverley for some Korean specialty items.


Bulgogi – Korean BBQ Beef
Ingredients:
• Bulgogi marinade for 1 lb of meat (approx 1 cup)
• 1 pound sliced beef *
Preparation:
1. Prepare Bulgogi marinade (see below)
2. If beef is not sliced, slice into thin, finger-length strips (if you freeze the beef for 15 minutes, it will be easier to slice).
3. If you can, ask the butcher at the meat counter to slice for you in very thin strips. Korean and/or Asian grocery stores will often have meat for Bulgogi pre-sliced for sale.
4. Mix marinade into meat with hands or chopsticks, making sure all the meat is covered.
5. Refrigerate for at least 3 hours or overnight. For tougher cuts, the more hours, the better. You can also freeze the uncooked marinated beef in small amounts for later use.
6. Grill, broil, or stir fry the beef until well-done and caramelized on the outside. You can skewer the slices for the BBQ so that you won't lose any through the grill.
7. Serve with rice, lettuce leaves, and side dishes.

(Serves 4)
I have used thinly sliced eye of round roast, sirloin and ribeye or tenderloin in this recipe.

Marinade Ingredients:
• 3 Tbsp chopped garlic (about 2 cloves)
• 3 Tbsp soy sauce
• 2 Tbsp sugar
• 1 Tbsp honey
• 2 Tbsp fresh squeezed juice from an Asian pear (some have substituted 7Up!)
• 1 Tbsp Japanese rice wine (mirin)*
• 1 Tbsp sesame oil
• 3 green onions, finely chopped (including white part)
• 1 tsp pepper