the Eyeopener

Haggis Potstickers (Or Not)

Filling:

1 small haggis, removed from its casing – OR

1 lb. lean ground chicken, turkey or pork (or offal, coarsely ground in a food processor)
2 green onions, finely chopped
1 Tbsp. soy sauce
1-2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 tsp. grated fresh ginger
1/2 tsp. sugar
1 tsp. sesame oil

1 pkg. wonton wrappers
canola oil
chicken or veggie stock, or water

In a bowl, stir together the ground meat, green onions, soy sauce, garlic, ginger, sugar and sesame oil, mixing it all up with your hands.

To fill wontons, place a small spoonful of filling in the middle of each wrapper; moisten the edges with water (just use your finger) and fold over, pressing the edge tightly to seal. Place seam side up on a cookie sheet, pressing lightly to flatten the bottom. Cover with a tea towel to prevent them from drying out. (Dumplings can be prepared up to this point, covered with plastic wrap and refrigerated for up to 24 hours or frozen.)

When you’re ready to cook the potstickers, heat a drizzle of canola oil in a largeish skillet set over medium-high heat. Place half the dumplings at a time in the skillet and cook for a minute or two, until deep golden brown on the bottom, shaking the pan a few times to keep them from sticking. Don’t crowd the pan too much.

Pour about 1/4 cup stock or water into the pan. Cover, reduce heat to medium and cook for about 5 minutes – this will allow them to steam, cooking them through.

Makes 2 – 3 dozen potstickers.

Stir-fried “Neeps & Tatties”

Traditionally, neeps (turnips) and tatties (potatoes) are served mashed alongside haggis for Robbie Burns Day.

1-2 Yukon Gold potatoes
1-2 turnips or parsnips, peeled
canola or mild olive oil, for cooking
sesame oil, for cooking (optional)
1 tsp. freshly grated ginger
1-2 garlic cloves, sliced
pinch sugar
pinch red chile flakes
1 Tbsp. rice vinegar or Chinese black rice vinegar

Cut the potatoes and turnips into very thin matchsticks, keeping them relatively even in diameter. Place in a bowl, cover with cold water and let stand for an hour, or overnight. (This will draw out some excess starch.)

In a large, heavy skillet, heat a drizzle of oil (and a bit of sesame oil, if you like) over medium-high heat. Drain the potatoes and turnips well and add them to the pan. Cook, stirring often, for a few minutes, until they start to soften. Add the ginger, garlic, sugar and chile flakes and cook for a few more minutes, until the vegetables are turning golden. Add the vinegar and cook for a minute – the moisture should cook off – and serve immediately. Serves 4.

Bacon Shortbread

1/2 cup butter, at room temperature
1/4 cup bacon drippings, chilled
1/2 cup icing sugar
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
3-4 slices bacon, cooked until crisp and crumbled

Preheat oven to 325°F.

In a large bowl, beat the butter, bacon fat and icing sugar with an electric mixer until pale and fluffy. Add the flour, baking powder and salt and beat on low speed or stir until almost blended. Add the crumbled bacon and stir just until blended.

Divide the dough in half and press each into an 8″ or 9″ pan; score dough into 8 wedges and press around the outer edge with the tines of a fork.

Bake in middle of the oven for 20 to 25 minutes, until golden. Cool completely in the pans on a wire rack, and cut into wedges with a sharp knife. Makes 32 wedges.

Bacon Shortbread with Salted Ale (or Stout) Caramel

adapted from Ole & Shaina Olmanson

1 batch bacon shortbread (above)

Caramel:
about half a bottle of ale or stout, divided
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup corn syrup or Roger’s golden syrup
1/2 tsp. sea salt
1 cup chocolate chips or chopped dark or semisweet chocolate

Pat the bacon shortbread dough into an 8×8-inch pan and bake at 325F for 30 minutes, until very pale golden around the edges and set. Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, simmer 1/2 cup of the ale for about 20 minutes, until it’s reduced by more than half.

In a largish pot (it will bubble up) combine 1/4 cup more of the ale (from the bottle), sugars, butter, cream, syrup and salt over medium-high heat. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the mixture reaches 244F on a candy thermometer. Stir in the reduced ale and pour over the shortbread base. Let stand or chill until firm.

Melt the chocolate chips in a small bowl in the microwave, stirring until melted. Spread over the set caramel and let stand or refrigerate for 10 minutes, until set. Run a thin knife around the edge of the pan and invert the squares onto a cutting board, then cut into squares or bars with a sharp, heavy knife. Makes about 32 bars.

Michael Smith’s Cheddar & Ale Soup

adapted from Michael Smith!

1/2 cup butter (or half butter, half olive or canola oil)
1 large or 2 small onions, peeled and diced
2 celery stalks, diced
1 carrot, peeled and diced
1/4 cup flour
1 bottle dark beer
1 1/2 cups chicken stock
1 cup heavy 35% cream (or 18% coffee cream, or half & half)
2 cups grated old cheddar (or aged Gouda!)
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
a dash of Worcestershire sauce

In a medium pot, heat the butter over medium-high heat and sauté the onions until starting to turn golden. Add the celery and carrot and continue to sauté for a few minutes more. Shake the flour overtop and stir to coat the veggies. Add the beer, stock and cream and simmer until the soup has thickened, about five minutes more. Add the grated cheddar, salt and pepper and Worcestershire sauce and stir until smooth. Serves 4-6.

Julie Nesrallah’s Hummus

1 19 oz (540 mL) can chickpeas or garbanzo beans
1/4 cup liquid from can of chickpeas (set it aside)
3-5 tablespoons lemon juice (to taste)
1-2 swirls of tahini sauce
2 cloves garlic
salt to taste
1-2 swirls of olive oil
Prep: smash it all together in a food processor for/during preparation; then start the motor and let it rip until smooth.

If it gets clumpy, add a bit more lemon juice or chick pea juice from the can until you get a smooth consistency. Place in serving bowl, and create a shallow well in the center of the hummus to add a bit of olive oil. Garnish with a bit of paprika on top and there you go!

Eat it with pita, Melba toast, nachos chips, fresh veggies, use it as a spread for a nice veggie sammie – hummous is so delish and so multi-purpose and so good for you. And it lasts for a week in the fridge to boot.

Suggested additions:
Roasted Beet Hummus: add 1 roasted beet, peeled, and a pinch of cumin
Roasted Carrot Hummus: add 2-4 roasted carrots and a pinch of cumin
Pumpkin Hummus: add a heaping spoonful (or two) of pumpkin puree and a pinch of cumin; top with pumpkin seeds
Parsley Hummus: add a small bunch of parsley, chopped, and an extra squeeze of lemon
Green Pea Hummus: add 1/2 cup thawed frozen green peas, and an extra clove of garlic
Roasted Garlic Hummus: add a head of roasted garlic squeezed in, in place of the fresh clove
Toasted Walnut Hummus: whiz in 1/2 cup toasted walnuts, and top with chopped toasted walnuts
Roasted Red Pepper Hummus: add 1-2 roasted red peppers and a pinch of cumin, paprika and/or chili powder
Roasted Tomato Hummus: add a few roasted tomatoes, or sun-dried tomatoes along with a drizzle of the oil they’re packed in
Artichoke Hummus: add 1-3 canned artichoke hearts, and top with crumbled feta
Roasted Chickpea Hummus: rinse and drain the chickpeas well, then toast them in a heavy skillet set over medium-high heat in a generous drizzle of olive or canola oil. Once they spatter and pop and begin to turn golden, use them to make hummus

Sticky Cinnamon Buns

from Spilling the Beans!

There’s nothing like a warm, chewy, yeasty cinnamon but straight from the oven. Puréed white kidney beans add fiber, protein and nutrients while maintaining the flavour and texture of white bread; if you do want to boost graininess, use whole wheat flour in place of all or part of the all-purpose flour, or add a shake of ground flaxseed. Of course you could scatter chopped pecans or raisins over the dough before rolling it up. They’re your buns – do whatever you like.

Dough:
1 Tbsp (60 mL) active dry yeast
1 Tbsp (60 mL) sugar
1 19 oz (540 mL) can white kidney beans, rinsed and drained
1/2 cup (125 mL) milk, warmed
1/4 cup (60 mL) butter, softened
2 large eggs
4 1/2-5 cups (1.125-1.25 L) all-purpose flour, or any combination of all-purpose and whole wheat flour, plus extra if needed
1 tsp (5 mL) salt

Filling:
2 Tbsp (10 mL) butter, melted
1 packed cup (250 mL) brown sugar
1 Tbsp (15 mL) cinnamon

Goo (optional-double if you love goo):
1/2 cup (125 mL) brown sugar
1/4 cup (60 mL) butter, melted
1/4 cup (60 mL) honey, golden syrup or maple syrup
1/4 cup (60 mL) water

To make the dough, put 1 cup of warm water into a large bowl and add the yeast and a big pinch of sugar; let it sit for 5 minutes, until it gets foamy. (If it does nothing, the yeast is inactive; toss it out and buy some fresh yeast!)

Meanwhile, purée the beans with the milk, butter and eggs in a food processor, pulsing until well-blended and smooth. Add to the yeast mixture along with about 3 cups of flour and the salt; stir (or mix with the dough hook on your stand mixer) until well blended. Add the remaining flour a half cup at a time until you have a soft, sticky dough; turn out onto a floured surface and knead until it’s soft, smooth and elastic. Return it to the bowl, cover with a tea towel and let rest for about an hour, until doubled in size.

On a lightly floured countertop, divide the dough in half and roll each piece into a roughly 14-inch square. Brush each piece with butter and sprinkle each with 1/2 cup (125 mL) brown sugar and a shake of cinnamon (if you want the cinnamon very evenly distributed, stir it into the brown sugar first). Roll each piece of dough up jelly-roll style.

Using a sharp serrated knife or dental floss, cut it crosswise in half. Cut each half in half, and then each quarter in thirds. (Doing it this way is far easier than eyeballing 12 even slices, starting at one end.)

Get out two 9×13-inch pans or muffin tins, or one of each and spray them with nonstick spray. Stir together the goo ingredients and divide between the bottoms of your prepared pans, or put a small spoonful into the bottom of each muffin tin.

Divide the slices of cinnamon bun among your pans, placing four rows of three in a 9×13-inch pan, or dropping one into each muffin tin. Cover with a tea towel or plastic wrap and let rise for another half hour, while you preheat the oven to 350ºF. If you want to make them ahead to be ready in the morning, pop them into the fridge, which will slow the rise.

Bake for 20-30 minutes, until golden. If you like, drizzle with icing sugar thinned with a little water or milk to make a drizzling consistency. Makes 2 dozen cinnamon buns.