Hummingbird Hill Farm at Brigade Bay, Gambier Island

Apple Pie

This recipe is from my Grandmother Teasdale, who always seemed to have an apple pie on hand for when the 'Grandkids' when we came to visit!  First - here is her recipe for a flakey pie crust.  The key is to keep all of the ingredients as cold as possible, use a cold bowl and cold water.  Mix and handle as little as possible and use a light touch when rolling out the pastry...good luck!

Pastry Ingredients:

2 cups flour

1 tsp. salt

2/3 cup Crisco shortening

about 2 tbsp. cold water

Sift flour and salt - cut in shortening with sharp knife or pastry cutter - sprinkle water, 1 tbsp. at a time, into flour mixture - mix with a fork - press all dough together lightly with the fingers.  This will make 2 - 9" pastry shells when dough is divided in half.

Pie Filling:

4 -5 cups peeled, cored and sliced apples

3/4 c. sugar

1 - 2 tbsp. flour

1/2 - 1 tsp. cinnamon

1 tbsp. lemon juice

2 tbsp. butter

Combine the sugar, flour, cinnamon - spread half of this mixture over pastry lined pie plate - add apples and sprinkle remainder of mixture over the apples.  Sprinkle with elmon juice and dot with butter.  Place top crust on top.

Brush crust with beaten egg to which a little milk has been added - this will give the crust a nice glaze - cover with foil the edges so they will not brown too much and bake on lower shelf in hot oven 425F, 30 - 40 minutes.

Asparagus with Sweet Sake & Ginger

This dish goes great with sear grilled Ahi Tuna and steamed rice.

Ingredients:

2 tsp. olive oil

2 tbsp. shredded ginger

4 shallots, chopped

1/2 c. sweet sake or mirin

2 tbsp. light soy sauce

1 tbsp. oyster sauce

1 lb. fresh asparagus

1 tbsp. black sesame seeds

pickled ginger to serve

Heat oil in a wok or frypan over medium heat.  Add ginger and shallots and stir fry for 2 min. Add sake, soy sauce and oyster sauce to pan and cook for 2 min.  Add asparagus to pan and stir fry for 3-4 min. or until asparagus is bright in colour.  Stir through sesame seeds.  Serve in deep bowls with pickled ginger over rice.  

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Basil Pesto Sauce

Ingredients:

2 c. freshly washed, firmly packed basil leaves

4 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed

1/2 c. extra virgin olive oil

1/4 c. pine nuts

1 c. freshly grated pecorino or parmesan cheese

Place basil leaves in a blender or food processor.  Pour in oil and process until smooth.  Add pine nuts and process for several seconds.  Stir in grated cheese.  Add more oil if the sauce is too thick.  If storing pesto sauce, place in fridge with a skim of oil to cover - this will keep fresh for several weeks.  To freeze pesto sauce for the winter (what a treat!), process basil, garlic and oil only, then place in plastic cartons - thaw slowly at room temperature, then add pine nuts and grated cheese just before serving.  Hint - do not put basil leaves in a salad spinner to dry, as this will bruise the leaves and turn them black.  Also, do not heat pesto, as it will turn black - if serving on pasta, simply toss pesto with the hot, drained pasta in a bowl.  Sprinkle with extra cheese to serve.

Blueberry Pie

My Grandmother Teasdale was an had an amazing skill for making pies.  They were the flakiest, most beautiful pies, chock full of good fruit ingredients.  Here is my favourite one....

Ingredients:

3 1/2 c. blueberries

1 tbsp. lemon juice

1 c. packed light brown sugar

pastry for 2 crust 9" pie

2 tbsp. butter

Directions:  Mix first 4 ingredients and in pastry lined pie pan (I use glass). Dot with butter and adjust top crust.  Bake in hot oven at 400F about 35 minutes.  Serve slightly warm or cool - with whipped cream if you dare!

Curried Potatoes

I like to make a large pot full of veggies, so that I have enough for dinner, plus leftovers for several days worth of vegetables for lunch that I can quickly heat in the microwave - add cubed tofu or leftover chicken to this for a complete meal!

The following Curry ingredients are approximate - adjust the seasonings according to your own taste.  Quantities are based on making a large pot of vegetables. 

Curry Seasoning Ingredients:

salt & Pepper to taste

1 tbsp. Garam Masala

1 tbsp. black mustard seeds

1 tbsp. fresh ginger finely chopped

10 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1 1/2 tsp. Tumeric

Optional: 1 tbsp. cumin, 1 tbsp. coriander, generours dash nutmeg, 1/4 tsp. cinnamon

For Vegetable Curry (cube and/or slice all veg):

Potatoes - cubed; leave skin on

Carrots - peeled and sliced

Green Beans - cut into 1" lengths

Zucchinis - cut in half lengthwise, then slice into 1/2 moons

Tomatoes - cut into large cubed chunks

Celery - sliced on the diagonal

Cauliflower - cut into bite size pieces

Heat olive oil in large pot.  When hot, add black mustard seeds and cook until they start to pop (keep lid on pot for this).  Add onion and all spices, stirring constantly over med. heat until onions are golden.  Add all of the vegetables to the pot and allow to steam over mod-low heat, stirring occassionaly until cooked.  You won't need to add any water, as the vegetables will provide moisture as they cook (add only 1-2 spoonfuls of water if absolutely necessary).

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Dolmades - with Fresh Grape Leaves

Fall is a somewhat melancholy time of year for a gardener like myself.  One of the things that does make me happy however, is that some things that are still clinging to life in the garden...such as the leaves on the grapevine....come in very handy!  I like to make a big batch of these in the Fall, so that Craig and I can snack on them at the cabin on the week-ends when it's getting cold outside again.  Add a little tzatziki sauce on them...yum!

Dolmades Filling:

2 lb. ground lamb

1 1/2 c. finely chopped onion

15 oz. tin tomato sauce

1/4 c. lemon juice

1/4 c. chopped fresh parsley

1/4 c. currents

1/2 c. pinenuts

1/2 tsp. cinnamon

1 tsp. paprika

1/2 tsp. allspice

1 - recipe for risotto: 1 c. long grain rice or arborio, plus 2 c. beef stock > cook in pot: start with half the stock - bring to a boil, then reduce heat to simmer - slowly add the rest of the stock in small quantities and stir frequently until all stock has been absorbed.

Directions: Heat 1/3 c. olive oil in large pan, then add lamb and cook.  Add onions and cook until browned, then add all other ingredients, except the risotto.  Reduce heat, and simmer 15 - 20 min., until all moisture is evaporated.  Stir in the risotto and cool mixture.

Grape Leaves / Preparation:

Carefully wash fresh grape leaves and remove stem.  Place approx. 6 leaves at a time over a steaming pot of water in a basket steamer (I use the bamboo dim sum style steamer) for 2-5 minutes.  The leaves should be cooked but not soggy - they will turn a dark green-grey colour.

Assemble the Dolmades:

Place 2 tsp. (or more, depending on how big the grape leaves are) in center of 1 cooled leaf.  Roll mixture and wrap leaf like making a cabbage roll.  Grease a large casserol dish with filled leaves - can stack these in 2-3 layers. 

Bake in a 350F oven for 45 min.  Serve hot or cooled with tsatziki sauce.

Homemade Yogurt

Ingredients:

1 1/2 litres Homogenized Milk

6 oz. plain Yogurt - no gelatine added

6 oz. non-instant powdered milk

Heat oven to 200F.  Blend milk and powder.  Heat until just about boiling.  Add a little amount of milk to yogurt, then full amount.  Turn oven off immediately, then place milk mixture in glass bowl.  Place in oven on middle rack and leave overnight.  Just like magic, the next morning, you will have thick and deliciously fresh yogurt to enjoy!  Keep refrigerated.

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Lavender Fruit Salad

1 c. thinly sliced strawberries

1 c. cubed mango

3 kiwi fruits, peeled and sliced in rounds

1 tsp. fresh lavender flowers

1-2 tbsp. fresh orange juice

In a small bowl, combine all fruits and lavender blossoms and serve immediately.  Top with yogurt and a little sprinkle of granola for a fancy summer time breakfast treat!

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Lavender Lemonade

1-frozen container of Pink Lemonade

3 Tbsp. fresh Lavender flowers, steeped in 4 c. hot, boiled water - as you would tea.  Allow to infuse for 15 minutes, then strain off Lavender.

Use the Lavender tea instead of plain water to mix with the Pink Lemonade.  Serve chilled.

Or - try this Lavender Lemonade - with a Kick!

Add 1-2 oz. of your favourite vodka to the Lavender Lemonade to create your own Martini - or enjoy on the rocks.

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Peppermint-Lavender Tea

Depending on the quantity you wish to make, amounts may vary -

Ingredients: 

1 tsp. fresh English or French Lavender buds

1 tbsp. chopped or torn Mint leaves (the chopping action releases the oils and thus the flavour of the peppermint leaf)

optional: 1 tsp. fresh Lemon Balm

Pour approx. 4 cups of boiling water over all ingredients and allow to steep for 15 min. (or less, if you prefer less pungent tea), then strain off ingredients.  Serve this piping hot with honey or serve slightly chilled with a mint leaf and lemon slice garnish for a refreshing Summer-time treat!

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Pumpkin Cookies

This is a spicey cookie - similar to Pumpkin Pie - that has a bit of a mealy, cake-like texture, but tastes really great and is super-moist!

Pre-heat oven to 375F :  

Cream together:

1 c. butter

1 c. sugar

Add and mix well:

1 c. cooked pumpkin

1 egg

1 tsp. vanilla

Sift together and add to above mixture:

2 c. sifted all-purpose flour

1 tsp. double acting baking powder

1/2 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

1 tsp. cinnamon

1/2 tsp. allspice

Stir in:

1 c. chopped nuts (pecans or walnuts)

1 c. raisins

Drop cookies onto a teflon or well-greased cookie sheet and bake about 15 min.  Watch them, as they can turn brown around the edges quickly.

Pumpkin Pie

My Mother and my Grandmother started making this pie recipe every Thanksgiving since 1963....when I was old enough to eat pies...I guess!  Now that they are both sadly gone, I have carried on the tradition of making this pie now too!  What makes this pie great?  It's the molasses!

Ingredients:

plain pastry for 2 - 9" pies

1 1/2 c. brown sugar

1 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. nutmeg

1 1/2 tsp. ginger (powder)

1 tsp. cinnamon

dash each - cloves, allspice

3 1/2 c. pumpkin, mashed (or 28 oz. tin)

4 eggs

2 c. hot milk (whole)

1 c. 'fancy' molasses (not black strap!)

Line pie plates with pastry - flute edges - chill while preparing filling.

In large mixing bowl combine sugar, salt, spices.

Add pumpkin and eggs - beat well.

Stir in molasses, then hot milk - pour into chilled unbaked pie shells.

Bake in hot oven 450F for 10 minutes - reduce heat to 350F - continue baking until filling is set 35 - 45 minutes, until a knife comes out clean. 

Note: before putting in oven, place aluminum foil on edge of pastry to keep from browning too much.  Brush a beaten egg onto pastry edge before cooking to create a nice glaze to the crust.  Cool before serving.  Serve with whipped cream.

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Rhubarb & Apple Crumble

I was pleasantly surprised to have enough Rhubarb to make this for the first time after just planting it earlier this year.  I served this when we were on the island one week-end, and managed to keep a pint of ice cream frozen enough in the cooler to enjoy it topped with some vanilla Hagen Daaz!

Ingredients

10 - 15 stalks of rhubarb

4 cooking apples

1/2 c. sugar

Crumble Topping

1/4 c. melted butter

1/3 c. brown sugar

2/3 c. oats (not instant)

2/3 c. plain flour

Directions

String rhubarb and cut into pieces 1" long.

Peel, core and slice apples.

Place fruit in saucepan and bring to boil; turn heat down and simmer for approx. 10 min. until almost soft (or use microwave on high for 10 min.)

Spoon fruit into a 2 L baking dish.

Crumble topping:  Place all ingredients into a bowl and mix well.

Sprinkle topping over fruit and pat down firmly.

Bake in a moderate oven for 25 minutes or until golden on top and fruit is bubbling.

Serve with vanilla ice cream.

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Roasted Garlic & Sage Hummus Dip

Super-easy to make, this is chock full of flavour and best of all....fiber and protein!  Be sure to bake extra roasting garlic to spread on some crostini later too!

Ingredients:

4 c. (2 tins) cooked white beans (white kidney or romano)

3/4 c. fresh lemon juice

1/2 c. olive oil

1 tbsp. minced fresh sage

2 - 4 roasted garlic buds (depending on how garlicky you want to be!)

Roast the garlic:  slice top off garlic bud to expose the cloves - this will make squeezing the cooked garlic out of the but easy!  Next, place in baking dish and drizzle with a little olive oil, then sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Roast - covered with foil - in a 325F oven for approx. 30 - 40 minutes.  You want the garlic to be very soft and slightly browned.  When done, cool off.

Process all ingredients in a food processor or use a hand blender.  You could also hand mash with a potato masher.  I generally like to start with using just half the amount of lemon juice and olive oil.  I add, according to taste and desired consistency.

Serve at room temperature with crudite vegetables and fresh bread.

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Tomato-Apple Chutney

Although not true French Canadians, my family celebrated Christmas every year in Quebec with a traditional meat Tortiere Pie with some of this Chutney served on the side - a perfect pairing of rich savoury flavours of meat are offset by a savoury-sweet tartness of the Chutney.  My dear friend Lawrence Leer used to make this for the dinner guests at the Butchart Gardens in Victoria while he was chef there for many years!  Enjoy!

Prep time: 1 hour / Cooking time: 2 hours 

Ingredients:

5 lb. ripe red tomatoes, coursely chopped, with skin removed / approx. 8 very large tomatoes

- to remove skin, place in boiling water for a minute or two - the skin will split and come off easily, once submerged into a cold water bath

5 c. sliced tart (ie. granny smith) apples

1 1/2 c. finely chopped onion

1 c. slivered dried apricots

1 c. golden raisins

1 1/2 c. currents

1/3 c. candied slivered ginger

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 1/2 c. granulated sugar

1 1/2 c. cider vinegar

2 tsp. salt

1 tsp. cinnamon

1 tsp. curry powder

pinch cayenne

In large stock pot combine all ingredients.  Bring to boil, stirring frequently.  Reduce heat to simmer > cook, stirring often until chutney is thick, rich and red.  Pack into hot, sterilized jars.

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Zucchini-Apple Loaf

This recipe comes in handy with the arrival of the seasonal surplus of zucchinis!!!  It freezes well and makes a great breakfast bread when you are in a rush to get the day started and gardening!!!

Ingredients

1/2 c. pecans or walnuts, coarsely chopped

1 1/4c. shredded raw zucchini (1 large)

1/2 c. peeled and grated raw apple (1 large) - a tart/sweet apple is best like MacIntosh or Granny Smith

1 1/2 c. all-purpose flour

1 tsp. baking soda

1/4 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg

1/2 c. safflower or canola oil

1 c. white sugar

2 large eggs

1 tsp. vanilla extract

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and place rack in center of oven.  Grease or line with parchment paper a 9x5x3 inch loaf pan.  Set aside.

Grate the zucchini, using a medium grater, then peel and grate the apple.  Set aside.

In a large bowl whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, ground cinnamon and nutmeg.  Set aside.

In the bowl, beat the oil, sugar, eggs and vanilla extract until well blended.  Beat in the grated zucchini and apple.  Add the flour mixture, beating until just combined, then fold in the nuts.  Scrape the batter into the preared pan and bake until the bread has risen and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 50 - 60 minutes.  Place on a wire rack to cool and then remove the bread from the pan.

Makes 1- 9x5x3 inch loaf.  I always double the recipe with good results.  

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Mmmmm!  This "ZUCCHINI-APPLE LOAF" and coffee make a great lazy breakfast for a busy gardening week-end! (See recipe at left for details.)

A cup of fresh blueberries perched on some "HOMEMADE YOGURT" is the perfect summer treat!  (See recipe at left for details.)

Tart Apples such as the 'Cox Orange Pippin' that I grow at Hummingbird Hill are perfect for "TOMATO-APPLE CHUTNEY".  (See recipe at left for details.)

Lavender is fun and easy to grow on the island!  Try adding Lavender Flower buds to a Sugar Cookie recipe, LAVENDER LEMONADE, MINT-LAVENDER TEA, or LAVENDER FRUIT SALADS!  (See recipes at left for details.)

Pumpkins and Summer Squash thrive in the hot and sunny conditions at Hummingbird Hill.