What are we eating ? | Cook blueberries for Saint-Jean

Just before the weekend, all readers who cook ask themselves this eternal question: what are we going to eat? In order to inspire you, The Press suggests some suggestions for seasonal recipes that will make your mouth water.

Indulgence: Bleu Matin jam

When Camilla Wynne still had her Preservation Society business, this coffee bean flavored blueberry jam was one of her top sellers. She agreed to give us this recipe which appears in her book Jam Bake.

Yield: 4 jars of 250 ml

Ingredients

• 1.5 kg (12 cups) blueberries, washed and hulled
• 700 g (3 1/2 cups) sugar
• 75 ml (5 tbsp.) lemon juice
• 1 1/2 tsp. coffee beans

Preparation

1. In a large bowl, combine the blueberries, sugar and lemon juice, then let macerate for at least 15 minutes and up to 1 week, covered, in the refrigerator.
2. Preheat the oven to 250°F. On a baking sheet covered with parchment paper, place the jars upside down and bake for at least 20 minutes before being ready to pot.
3. Transfer the mixture to a cauldron. Put the coffee beans in a tea ball or tied in a cheesecloth and add to the mixture.
4. Heat over medium heat, stirring often, until blueberries begin to lose juice and sugar begins to dissolve. Pour about a third of the mixture into a blender and purée (careful, hot!), then return to the cauldron.
5. Increase to medium-high heat and bring to a boil, stirring often. When the jam seems ready, remove from the heat and discard the coffee beans.
6. Pour into the jars, leaving about 1/4 to 1/8 inch of space between the jam and the rim. Remove air bubbles and clean edges, if necessary, then seal tightly and turn upside down for 1-2 minutes. Turn over and let the jam rest, without touching it, for 24 hours.

Source: recipe taken from Jam Blake by Camilla Wynne.

Published on lapresse.ca on June 25, 2022.

Quickly Done Well Done: Blueberry and Cream Cheese Pancakes

My children are always very enthusiastic when we eat pancakes, because they can use their little cooking skills. This recipe charmed everyone at our last family brunch; as much for its taste as for its simplicity.

Ingredients for the pancakes (for 4 people)

• 2 cups of milk
• 1 egg
• 1 C. vanilla
• 2/3 cup all-purpose flour
• 2/3 cup wheat flour
• A pinch of salt
• Vegetable oil, for cooking

Ingredients for blueberries and coulis

• 4 cups frozen blueberries
• 3 tbsp. maple syrup
• 1/2 cup blueberry cooking juices
• 2/3 cup cream cheese

Preparation

1. Preheat the oven to 250°F.
2. In a large bowl, combine the milk, egg and vanilla. Add the flour and salt and mix with a whisk until completely smooth.
3. Cook the pancakes with a drizzle of oil in a medium-sized skillet. Store them in an aluminum plate in the oven to keep them warm.
4. Meanwhile, in a saucepan, cook the blueberries with the maple syrup over medium heat until the blueberries are slightly stewed. Pour the compote into a bowl and reserve 1/2 cup of the cooking juices in the pan. Add the cream cheese and cook over low heat, stirring regularly, until the cheese is completely melted and well mixed with the blueberry juice.
5. Serve the pancakes with the compote and coulis.

Source: recipe by Sophie Ducharme.

Posted in The Press + on April 13, 2017.

Call me boss! : lamb steak on eggplant caviar, blueberry and herb oil

For this recipe, Fisun Ercan was freely inspired by lamb kebab, normally served in Turkey with mashed eggplant, replacing the usual pomegranate seeds with Quebec blueberries. Although this preparation appears in the chapter devoted to summer, the chef, true to her philosophy, cooked it for The Press with what she had on hand: eggplant caviar, fermented blueberries and savory in oil, all potted last fall.

Ingredients

• 4 round or regular eggplants
• 30 ml (2 tbsp.) lemon juice
• Sea salt, to taste
• 30 ml (2 tbsp.) organic plain yogurt
• 1 slice 450 g (1 lb) leg of lamb or saddle of lamb, boneless
• 15 ml (1 tbsp.) Quebec sunflower oil, or extra virgin olive oil
• 15 ml (1 tbsp) meat spice mix (see recipe below)

Ingredients for Blueberry Herb Oil

• 125 ml (1/2 cup) Quebec sunflower oil
• 1 handful of blueberries
• 15 ml (1 tbsp.) pistachios, coarsely chopped
• 5 ml (1 tsp.) sumac
• A few fresh savory, mint and dill leaves, coarsely chopped

Ingredients for the spice mix

• 7.5 ml (1/2 tbsp.) whole cumin seeds
• 5 ml (1 tsp) whole coriander seeds
• 2 whole allspice
• 2 whole peppercorns
• 2.5 ml (1/2 tsp) sumac
• 2.5 ml (1/2 tsp) red pepper flakes

Preparing the spice mix for meat

1. Using a spice grinder, grind the spices, except the sumac and the chili flakes. Transfer the ground spices to a small mason jar. Add the sumac and chili flakes, and mix well. Close the jar and set aside. The mixture will keep for up to two weeks without losing its freshness.

Preparation of the recipe

1. Preheat barbecue to high or preheat oven to 200°C (400°F).
2. Prepare the eggplant caviar. Prick the aubergines with a fork or a skewer in a few places. Cook the eggplants on the barbecue grill or in the oven until they are very soft when touched with tongs. Place the eggplants on a baking sheet and let cool enough to handle.
3. Pour the lemon juice into a bowl and salt. Peel the aubergines or cut them in half and scrape out the flesh with a large spoon. Quickly place the eggplant flesh in the bowl and return it to the pure lemon juice to prevent it from oxidizing. (Try to keep it pale, but don’t worry if the color darkens a bit.) Mash the eggplant flesh with a fork to obtain a coarse purée. Add the yogurt and stir to incorporate well. Cover and refrigerate while the meat cooks. (Eggplant caviar will keep overnight in the refrigerator.)
4. Prepare the blueberry and herb oil. Put all the ingredients in a bowl. Crush 2 or 3 blueberries with the back of a spoon to release the juice into the oil, mix and set aside.
5. Remove the meat from the refrigerator. Oil it on each side, salt and sprinkle with spices. Leave to stand at room temperature for 30 minutes.
6. Heat a cast iron skillet over high heat until steaming (do not oil). Cook the meat for 2 to 3 minutes on each side, depending on the thickness. Remove the meat from the pan, place it on a baking sheet, then continue cooking in the oven for about 5 minutes or until a thermometer inserted in the center of the piece of meat reads 55°C (130°F). Remove skillet from oven and let stand 5 minutes. Or, grill the meat on the barbecue for 2 to 3 minutes on each side.
7. Divide the eggplant caviar between plates or spread it on a serving platter. Slice the meat and place the slices on the eggplant caviar. Drizzle with blueberry and herb oil.

Source: recipe taken from Roots by Fisun Ercan, KO Editions.

Published on lapresse.ca on April 2, 2022.

Guilty Pleasure: Steamed Blueberry Pudding

Blueberry pudding is a classic dessert from the Quebec countryside. Almost every family has its own recipe, with its own set of particularities. In general, it was prepared in a round dish, explains the memoirist Rose-Hélène Coulombe, who is now vice-president of the Saint-Romuald Historical Society, in Lévis. The recipe we offer is inspired by that of the maternal grandmother of Monique Parent, treasurer of the organization.

Until the last century, cooking was often done from memory, with approximate measurements. The version below, with more precise quantities, was cooked in a bain-marie, but uncovered, which gives it an air of kinship with cobblers, American desserts also popular in Quebec. Baking under cover will result in a paler, fluffier cake.

Ingredients

• 2 cups flour
• 2 tbsp. baking powder (baking powder)
• 1 pinch of salt
• 1/2 lb cold butter cut into cubes
• 1/2 cup of milk
• 2 cups blueberries
• 1/4 cup sugar or brown sugar

Preparation

1. Preheat the oven to 200°C (400°F). Place a clean cloth at the bottom of a large ovenproof dish, which will serve as a bain-marie. Butter a metal loaf pan of about 25 cm by 12 cm. A round cake tin 20 cm in diameter will also do the trick.
2. Combine flour, baking powder, salt, butter and milk in a bowl to form a dough. Do not overmix, so that you still have pea-sized pieces of butter in the batter.
3. Roll the dough out until it’s about twice the size of the loaf pan. Place in the mold.
4. Pour half of the blueberries over the batter, then the sugar, then the other half of the fruit. Fold the dough over the fruit.
5. Place the mold in the center of the dish in which there is a cloth and pour boiling water into the dish (around the mold) until the water reaches halfway up the mould.
6. Bake for about 2 hrs 30 mins. Cooking uncovered will give a crispier texture. If the mold is covered, with aluminum foil for example, the texture will be softer. Add a little water as needed during cooking to maintain its level in the bain-marie.
7. Let cool for 30 minutes. Enjoy plain, with cream or ice cream.

Published on lapresse.ca on July 30, 2022.

Health: “Come on, blues! »

For its cocktail “Allez, les bleus!” Claudia prepared a haskap shrub and added a few dashes of her floral bitters.

Recommended Glass: Old Fashioned

Method: In a shaker

Preparation time: 2 minutes

Serving: 1

Ingredients

• 1.5 oz SÈV Acte 1 acerum (or other white acerum)
• 1.5 oz haskap (or blueberry) shrub* – see recipe below
• 2 dashes of Bitter Kebek Flowers (or other floral bitter)
• 1 large ice cube

Preparation

1. Pour all the ingredients into a shaker. Add ice.
2. Shake vigorously for about 10 seconds.
3. Strain into the glass using a colander and a sieve, over a large ice cube.

* Shrub is a vinegary fruit syrup.

Haskap or blueberry quick shrub recipe

Ingredients

• 2/3 cup frozen haskaps (or blueberries*)
• 1/3 cup apple cider vinegar (adjust the amount of vinegar to taste)
• 1/3 cup maple syrup
• 1/4 cup of water

Preparation

1. Put all the ingredients in a pot and bring to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer for about 8 minutes.
2. Remove from the heat and leave to macerate in the refrigerator overnight.
3. Squeeze the fruit using a pestle. Filter the shrub using a sieve to set aside the fruits and keep only the liquid. You can reuse the fruit for another cooking recipe or dehydrate it.

* You will have less acidity with blueberries and your shrub will be a little sweeter.

Source: recipe by Claudia Doyon.

Published on lapresse.ca on March 18, 2023.