Sauces

All-Canadian Poutine Gravy

There are many Poutine Gravy recipes out there, however, everyone needs to be cognizant of the depth of flavour and complexity of many of these recipes. Bearing that in mind, you will find the following All-Canadian Poutine Gravy recipe simple, easy to follow and very tasty.

Poutine gravy has a unique golden brown colour that is the result of a combination of beef broth and chicken broth. The beef broth alone is too dark, and the chicken broth is too light, but a blend of both produces the characteristic colour of poutine gravy. The flavourful gravy that you will create from my recipe can be used on almost anything and is particularly good on my All-Canadian Poutine with a Blenditarian Twist.

All-Canadian Poutine with a Blenditarian Twist

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Power Sauce – Hidden Greens for Kids of Every Age

By Denise Pare-Watson

Kid of a Chef Series

Kid of a Chef gave me this recipe concept for Power Sauce on a recent visit. Her reasons for making this sauce are simple: as she laughingly says, she has three kids (one adult and two wee ones) who are not enthusiastic about eating their greens. Hence, this brilliant method of hiding greens in a delicious pizza sauce.

This is what she wrote about her Power Sauce: “I made it to hide greens from the boys in the house. They are all carb-hungry and are more likely to eat the pizza crust than anything else. Even if they pick the pizza apart, they still get the veggies. I also put the ground power greens in shakes, or use the sauce as a dressing for sandwiches or a panini instead of mayonnaise.”

Power Pizza ready to eat

Power Sauce has excellent flavour – it is the best pizza sauce that I have ever tasted. While I find most pizza sauces too sharp, this sauce is perfectly balanced. Kid of a Chef freezes the ground greens and uses the frozen greens to make delicious smoothies and shakes. She made a strawberry shake while we were there and the little ones were asking for ‘more shake please, Mommy, more shake.’ Her version of the Power Shake had banana; frozen strawberries; some of the frozen ground power greens; yogurt; protein powder, vanilla, and milk to thin out the shake consistency, and a little maple syrup if needed for sweetening. When she covertly adds a little more ground greens to the shake ingredients, the boys call it Leprechaun shake.

The Power Shake: strawberry, banana, ground power greens, protein powder, vanilla, a little maple syrup, yogurt and milk.

POWER SAUCE

CHEF TALK: The key to making Power Sauce is the use of organic greens, which are available at most grocery stores. The greens that I used were a blend of baby spinach, baby kale and baby red and green Swiss chard. You can also use arugula or any other of your favourite greens. Both my daughter and I pre-roast garlic cloves and freeze them for use in everything, including the Power Sauce recipe that follows. The sauce is gluten free, dairy free, grain free, refined sugar-free, egg free and nut free. My herb garden is currently flourishing, so fresh basil, oregano, rosemary and other fragrant herbs make their way into the Power Sauce.

For the purpose of this post, I made a gluten-free thin crust pizza shell (I will post the recipe for Super Thin Pizza Crust soon). You can use any of your favourite thin crust pizza shell or flatbread. The recipe makes over 2 cups (500 ml) of sauce.

INGREDIENTS:

For the Power Greens:

Yield: 1 lb. of organic power greens = 3 cups of ground power greens

1 lb. assorted power greens (spinach, arugula; kale, chard, etc.)

For the Power Sauce:

Yield: 2 1/3 cups sauce/ 575 ml

1 cup ground power greens
2 – 156 g (6 oz) cans of tomato paste
1 clove garlic, minced (or 2 pre-roasted garlic cloves)
1 teaspoon Kosher salt or sea salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 teaspoon dried oregano or Italian Seasoning
1/4 cup water
1 Tablespoon olive oil

For the Power Pizza:

Yield: 1 – 14″ large pizza (10 -12 pieces or 4 – 6 servings)

1 pre-baked large thin crust or gluten-free thin crust pizza crust
1/2 cup – 1 cup Power Sauce
Toppings of your choice: I used pre-cooked, diced bacon and thinly sliced mini portobello mushrooms
Shredded pizza mozzarella, as needed (about 2 cups)
Salt and pepper to taste

METHOD:

For the Power Greens:

Place the greens in the bowl of a food processor and grind finely. There should be approximately 3 cups of ground greens when you are done. Utilize immediately or place the ground greens in a sealed bags in 1 cup portions and freeze.

For the Power Sauce:

Place all of the ingredients for the Power Sauce into the bowl of a food processor and blend to a smooth consistency. You should have approximately 2 1/3 cups (575 ml) of sauce. Taste for seasoning and adjust to your preference. Use immediately or store in the refrigerator for up to one week. For longer storage, freeze in 1/2 cup to 1 cup portions.

For the Power Pizza:

Spread 1/2 cup to 1 cup of Power Sauce to cover the large pre-baked pizza crust. Sprinkle with your favourite toppings and bake at 425°F/220°F for 10 to 15 minutes or until hot and bubbly. Enjoy!

Here is the visual shown in step-by-step photographs:

Power Greens: a blend of chard, kale, spinach | urbnspice.com

Power greens are a blend of greens: arugula, spinach, kale, chard, etc.

The Greens are stuffed into a food processor and ground finely | urbnspice.com

Power greens are stuffed into a food processor and ground finely to use in smoothies or made into Power Sauce

1 lb. of power greens make 3 cups of ground greens | urbnspice.com

1 lb. of power greens equals 3 cups of ground power greens

Use the greens immediately or freeze the ground greens in one-cup sealed container

Power Sauce, rich and healthy with power greens galore

The Power Sauce is spread onto a pre-baked pizza crust and topped with your favourite toppings

Power Pizza is almost ready for the final baking | urbnspice.com

Power Pizza is almost ready for the final baking sprinkled with favourite toppings

Power Pizza baked, melted and ready to eat

Enjoy a slice of Power Pizza

More Ideas using Power Sauce:

Gluten Free Flatbread served in small wedges as a small plates offering

Gluten Free Flatbread using Power Sauce and a few select topping ingredients

Panini spread inside and served with Power Sauce | urbnspice.com

Power Sauce is spread inside a panini as well as served alongside as a condiment

Power Shake is another way to use the Ground Power Greens | urbnspice.com

A Power Shake is another great way to use the healthy Ground Power Greens

There is really no limit how you can use Power Sauce (and power greens). Just to mention a few uses: use it on hamburgers; as a topping on meatloaf; serve with charcuterie plates; serve alongside toast and scrambled eggs; and any place that you would use mayonnaise.

You Might Also Enjoy these ‘Hidden Vegetables’ Posts by UrbnSpice:

Gluten Free Rock Star Veggie Burgers

Australian Meat Pies

Make it your Own Burger

LEARNING TIPS:

Please CLICK the link above to access my UrbnSpice LEARNING TIPS, which are listed alphabetically on the Learning Tips blog post under the following subheadings:

Oven Temperature Accuracy
The Simple Spatula
Blooming
Parchment Paper
__________

If you try this recipe using Power Greens to make Power Sauce or Power Pizza or Power Shakes, please come back and leave me a comment below with your feedback.

You can find me on social media (see links below) – just be sure to tag @urbnspice and #urbnspice so I am sure to see it. Enjoy!

Denise Paré-Watson

The Urbnspice Chef

Follow me on Social Media:

Urbnspice Facebook Page – If you like what you see here, please LIKE my page. I would love that – thank you!

Urbnspice is on Twitter

You will find lots of fun boards on Pinterest

I am also on Instagram

Blackberry Lime Curd

By Denise Pare-Watson

Did you know that you can make curd out of virtually any juice or purée? In this post, I will explain how to do just that by explaining how to make a Blackberry Lime Curd. A curd is essentially a stirred custard, similar to crème anglaise or pastry cream. Most folks have heard about lemon curd. I do love a well-prepared lemon curd. It is the perfect balance of sweet, sour and tangy. You can use it in so many ways: as a cake filling; in a crème brûlée recipe; in lemon curd ice cream; on top of plain Greek yogurt for a refreshing dessert – the list goes on.

Blackberry Lime Curd in Crispy Meringue Nests

That said, I want to encourage you to try to make a curd using a fruit juice or fruit puree. In the past, I have made crimson coloured raspberry curd, fresh looking orange curd, and even a coral coloured rhubarb curd. Try making a new variation, too, thinking outside of the realm of luscious lemon curd for a change. I think you will be pleasantly surprised!

White Chocolate Lemon Curd Tart

In this post, I am going to explain how to make blackberry puree, and then, using the prepared puree, I will illustrate through my recipe how to make a luscious blackberry lime curd. It is a gorgeous sauce, not only in its rich burgundy colour but also its flavour.

I lived for many years on Vancouver Island, British Columbia where blackberries were plentiful, so it was wonderful to make good use of this bounty from our berry picking adventures. We always had a lovely feast of the freshly picked berries in our usual style of serving them simply with a light sprinkle of sugar, lime zest and vanilla bean paste. I typically use the remainder of the berry pickings for puree, jams and compotes.

Blackberry Lime Curd served with Langues de Chat cookies

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Halibut Heaven

By Denise Pare-Watson

The Confident Kitchen Series

It’s Halibut season – one of my favourite times of the year – we call it Halibut Heaven.

There’s nothing better than fresh halibut prepared simply by pan frying in brown butter (also known as Beurre Noisette), salt and pepper and a squeeze of lemon. Making your own version of Tartar Sauce (recipe below) is a perfect accompaniment to this delectable, dense white fish.

Halibut Beurre Noisette and Spinach Saute

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A Bevy of Blackberry Ideas

By Denise Pare-Watson

It is blackberry season. This year, on our annual berry picking day, we saw lots of interesting pickers and eaters. We saw some ingenious ideas for picking the most elusive berries that always tempt those who would challenge the thorny vines. Others were content to pluck a few ripe berries as they walked by the berry patch.

We headed to a popular berry picking spot armed with a secret weapon – our reach extenders that are frequently used in our home for high shelves. They were perfect to overcome the lack of stature and most importantly, the thorns. They worked like a charm! The highest branches laden with the best berries were within easy reach. It didn’t take long to fill our small buckets with large juicy berries. Our prized bucket of berries came dangerously close to being gobbled down by an eager young Labrador puppy who could hardly resist the luscious blackberries. It certainly was an entertaining wind-up to our annual blackberry picking adventure.

In order to feature the fresh berries, you can use them in a variety of ways. After thoroughly washing the berries, our usual process is to enjoy them with a light sprinkle of sugar, lime zest and vanilla bean paste.

Blackberry Merlot Sauce

The remaining berries are generally made into the puree, which can be used in many ways. This is the method I use:

Blackberry Purée Method:

In a medium saucepan, add one cup of sugar for every four cups of berries (adjust to taste), two tablespoons of lemon juice and a vanilla pod, if available.
Simmer until the berries soften and become juicy – about 10 minutes.
Lightly crush and strain the mixture to remove the seeds, pressing with a rubber spatula to extract the puree. Discard the seeds.
The puree can be used in a number of ways, for example, Blackberry Merlot sauce recipe, which follows.

BLACKBERRY MERLOT SAUCE

Blackberry Merlot Sauce with Pork Tenderloin

CHEF TALK: This sauce is very nice with ribs, pork or chicken. It is a red-hued sauce, transforming into a rich burgundy coloured sauce after baking.

Yield: approximately 3 cups of sauce

INGREDIENTS:

1 1/2 teaspoons salt (or to taste)
1/4 cup brown sugar
3 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon dry mustard
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
2 – 3 Tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 Tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 cup Merlot (or water)
1 1/2 cups blackberry puree (see puree method above)

METHOD:

In a saucepan, combine the salt, sugar, flour, mustard and cloves.
Add the vinegar, lemon juice, Merlot and blackberry puree, whisking to incorporate the ingredients together.
Cook and stir over low to medium heat until slightly thickened.
Set aside to cool. Use the sauce as you would any barbeque sauce (ribs, chops,etc.)
If you are using the sauce on ribs, precook the 3 lbs. of pork ribs by either pre-boiling or broiling or grilling to brown. (serves 4 – 6 people)
Return meat to the pan that you will finish baking the dish. Pour the sauce over the top of the meat. Cover the dish with foil. The dish can be prepared ahead to this point.
Bake at 350°F for one hour, turning the meat occasionally to coat, uncovering the dish during the last half hour.
If you are using pork tenderloin, sauté or grill lightly. Set aside. You may use the same skillet. Pour some of the sauce over the tenderloin and turn to coat. Finish in the oven until the pork is done. As an alternative, you can bake the tenderloin. Using a baking dish, add some of the sauce, turning to coat. Bake as above, turning occasionally until the desired doneness is reached.

NOTES:

If blackberry puree is not available for the Blackberry Merlot Sauce, you can also use cranberry sauce, which is especially tasty with pork.
If you want to save a few of the fresh berries for the freezer, place washed, dry berries on a parchment lined baking sheet in a single layer. Freeze the berries uncovered, until they are frozen solid. Then place the berries (now individually quick frozen – IQF) in zipper storage bags or containers. Voila! Ready for smoothies, for making fruit crisps or wherever your blackberry creativity may take you.
Keep some blackberry puree in reserve for Blackberry Lime Curd (the puree can be frozen). Any fruit puree can be made into a curd, similar to lemon curd. This gorgeous blackberry curd is burgundy-pink in colour.
As a light summertime dessert, Blackberry Lime Curd looks lovely piped into a meringue nest or tart shell with a garnish of mint. There is a step-by-step recipe for Meringue Nests here.

Happy blackberry picking, everyone! Enjoy the season.

LEARNING TIPS:

Please CLICK the link above to access my UrbnSpice LEARNING TIPS, which are listed alphabetically on the Learning Tips blog post under the following subheadings:

Reductions
Straining
Vanilla Extract
__________

If you make my recipe for Blackberry Merlot Sauce, please leave me a comment below with your feedback.

You can find me on social media (see links below) – just be sure to tag @urbnspice and #urbnspice so I am sure to see it. Enjoy!

Denise Paré-Watson

The Urbnspice Chef

Follow me on Social Media:

Urbnspice Facebook Page – If you like what you see here, please LIKE my page. I would love that – thank you!

Urbnspice is on Twitter

You will find lots of fun boards on Pinterest

I am also on Instagram

Blackberry Lime Curd in Meringue Nests | urbnspice.com

Blackberry Lime Curd in Crispy Meringue Nests

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License Type:	Commercial

License Abstract:	You may read the original content in the context in which it is published (at this web address). You may make other uses of the content only with the written permission of the author on payment of a fee.

Original content here is published under these license terms:		X

License Type:	Commercial

License Abstract:	You may read the original content in the context in which it is published (at this web address). You may make other uses of the content only with the written permission of the author on payment of a fee.