Mexican Flavours

Charlie had one last spin on the waking board before heading back to the UK

 

Summer is a great time for all kinds of reunions with friends and family.  Samantha organized a fun weekend with 3 pals from her high school days while Charlie and Teddy were also visiting.  We celebrated by asking SummerWater Sports to come for a day to teach wakeboarding and waterskiing to an eager group on our dock.  SWS is renowned in Muskoka for waterski shows at Cleveland’s House and Bala, and they also give clinics throughout the area.  The instructors, Nikki and Craig, were excellent, and we were all impressed when Sam’s friend Lexi got up on her very first try!

Sarah, Lexi, Sam and Sophie

The sunny weather we’ve been having brought Mexican food to mind, and we put together a spicy menu inspired by Chicago’s Rick Bayless.  All the recipes are simple and flavourful, and between the advanced preparation of a few sauces and the hands-off method of rotisserie chicken,  our day was freed up for lots of fun. 

And of course Charlie kicked off cocktail hour by mixing up a batch of his famous Pimm’s. 

 

Smoked Sweet Potatoes

  

For the marinade:

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

2 garlic cloves, peeled and minced

1 teaspoon chipotle chili powder

3 tablespoons mild smoked paprika

1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar

½ teaspoon dried oregano leaves

pinch sugar

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1/3 cup water

3 sweet potatoes, scrubbed and cut into wedges

In a small saucepan, heat the oil on a MEDIUM setting.  Add the garlic and stir until fragrant, about 60 seconds, then add the remaining marinade ingredients.  Whisk to combine, then simmer on MEDIUM-LOW for about 10 minutes to blend the flavours.  Cool.

Meanwhile, light the coals of the smoker.  Soak 1 cup apple wood chips in warm water.  When the coals are glowing, drain the wood chips and scatter them over the coals.  Do not use a drip pan as you want a dry heat to cook these sweet potatoes. 

Brush the sweet potato wedges with the marinade, and lay them on the smoker.  Cook, turning occasionally, for about 45 minutes, or until tender.  Serve with the Avocado Dip to cool the spices.

Avocado Dip

This dip can also be thinned to the consistency of a salad dressing by adding 3 tablespoons of cold water while whirring in the blender.

½ cup vegetable oil

3 tablespoons fresh lime juice

1 garlic clove, peeled and halved

½ cup mayonnaise

1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

½ ripe avocado, pitted and flesh scooped from the skin

½ cup roughly chopped cilantro

Salt

Combine the oil, lime juice, garlic, mayonnaise, Worcestershire sauce, avocado, cilantro and ¾ teaspoon salt in a blender jar.  Process until smooth.  Taste and season with more salt if needed. 

Rotisserie Chicken with Mexican Flavours

For the marinade:

1 teaspoon chipotle chili powder

1 tablespoon mild smoked paprika

1 teaspoon dried oregano leaves

pinch ground cloves

¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon

2 cloves garlic, peeled and minced

3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar

¼ cup orange juice

1 5-pound chicken

Place the chicken in a shallow glass dish.  Combine all marinade ingredients and pour it over and inside the chicken. Allow to marinate at least 2 hours or as long as overnight, turning it occasionally. 

Light the rear rotisserie burner on your barbecue, and place a drip pan on the grids.  Meanwhile, truss the chicken by first twisting the wings behind the bird, and then tying it securely with butcher twine to prevent movement while turning.

Thread the chicken onto the spit rod, securing it at both ends with the spit forks.  Adjust the spit balance so that the chicken can turn evenly when the rotisserie motor is turning.  Place the chicken on the barbecue, set the temperature to about 350° and find something fun to do while your dinner is self basting and cooking to perfection.  Aim for about 30 minutes of cooking per pound, but always use a meat thermometer to check for doneness.  Allow to rest 20 minutes before carving.

Serve with Tomatillo Salsa

Tomatillo Salsa

4 medium tomatillos, husked, rinsed and halved

2 poblano peppers, halved and seeded

2 large garlic cloves, peeled

1 jalapeno pepper, stemmed and roughly chopped

1/3 cup loosely packed cilantro

¼ cup water

1 shallot, minced

½ teaspoon kosher salt

Set a large nonstick skillet over MEDIUM-HIGH.  Lay the garlic, poblano peppers and tomatillos, cut side down, in the heated skillet.  When browned, turn everything to the other side and cook until tender.  Scrape the tomatillos, poblanos and garlic into a blender and cool for about 3 minutes.  Add the jalapeno pepper, cilantro and water.  Blend, adding more water if necessary for the desired consistency.  Season with salt, to taste.

Grilled Steak with Peach, Lime and Chili Marinade

Days spent on the water are magical! When we found out that old family friends were coming to visit for a few days, we knew that a tour of the Thousand Islands would be the perfect entertainment for all ages. We quickly organized an afternoon cruise on an antique wooden boat, “The Zipper”. Our host was  our good friend, Michael Corrigan, the Watercraft Conservator at the Antique Boat Museum in Clayton, NewYork.

 

 With this is the works, we knew that our meal planning had to be focussed on advance planning and quick grilling when we got back from the tour.

What to prepare?? What can be simpler than steak, peaches and corn on the cob  (20 minutes on MEDIUM)?  With a basket of peaches on the counter, calling out to be used, we came up with a peach-based marinade for the steak. If you have never tried grilled peaches, here is your chance. Grilling brings out their summery, sweet flavour, which is a terrific compliment to beef.

   The night before the cruise, we took out our blender and whirred together the ingredients for the marinade and poured it over the steaks in a resealable plastic bag.  We then placed them in the refrigerator and they were ready for grilling the next day.

Next, we decided to cook up some quinoa and assemble the dressing for a quinoa salad. Again, we placed the ingredients for the dressing in the blender, but did not process them- we would do that the next day just before assembling the salad, so that everything would be fresh. I knew that we could pick some blueberries on the way home from the cruise- they would be fantastic in the quinoa salad!

All we had to do when we returned was, assemble the salad, soak the corn and peel the rest of the peaches for grilling- no seasoning required-grilled peaches  are perfect on their own- just be sure that the barbeque grids are well oiled!

 

Grilled Steak with Peach, Lime and Chili Marinade

1 ½ lb sirloin steak

Marinade:

2 peaches, peeled

2 cloves garlic, peeled

2 tbsp fresh coriander

2 tbsp canola oil

1 tbsp freshly squeezed lime juice

1 tbsp honey

1 tbsp chili powder

1 tsp salt

1 tsp freshly ground black pepper

8 peaches, peeled and halved

Combine the marinade ingredients in a blender and process until finely chopped, about 20 seconds. Transfer to a large resealable plastic bag, add steak and seal. Marinate in the refrigerator for 6 hours or overnight.

Preheat the barbecue on HIGH, and brush the grids with oil to prevent sticking. Place the steak and peaches on the hot grids, and reduce heat to MEDIUM.  Grill as directed by our Perfect Steak Grill Guide . Allow steak to rest 3-5 minutes before serving. The peaches will grill up nicely in about 4-5 minutes along side the steaks. Turn once during grilling.

Quinoa Salad with Blueberries and Sun-dried Tomato Dressing

1 cup quinoa

2 cups water

¼ tsp salt

1 cup wild blueberries

1/2 cup almonds, chopped and toasted

2 green onions, chopped

Dressing:

2/3 cup olive oil

1/3 cup freshly squeezed lime juice

1/3 cup sun-dried tomatoes, packed in oil

2 tbsp each fresh basil and oregano

½ tsp salt

¼  tsp freshly ground black pepper

To prepare quinoa, place water, salt and quinoa in a large saucepan. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, cover and allow to simmer for 15 minutes. Let cool for 5 minutes and fluff with a fork. Meanwhile, to prepare dressing, process lime juice, sun-dried tomatoes, basil and oregano, salt & pepper in a blender until finely chopped, about 15 seconds. With blender running, slowly add olive oil and continue to process until dressing is smooth, around 15 seconds.

Combine cooked quinoa and dressing in a large salad bowl. Add blueberries and nuts and toss carefully. Garnish with chopped green onions.

Cruising with the Watercraft Conservator

Visitors from Norway!

3 generations enjoying the water!

Grilled Tuna Nicoise Salad

Our dear friends, Barb and Ellie, made the long journey from Montreal to Muskoka for a weekend of relaxation and reconnection.  We had a few delicious cocktails, some highly addictive popcorn, some fresh, healthy meals and a lot of laughs.  

 

 

Ellie’s Paloma Cocktails

1 ounce tequila

½ ounce Cointreau

splash simple syrup

Juice of ½ lime

Grapefruit juice

Lime wedges and mint sprigs for garnish

In an old fashioned glass filled with ice, pour the tequila, Cointreau, simple syrup and limejuice.  Top up with grapefruit juice and garnish with lime wedges and mint.  Yum!

  

Grilled Tuna Nicoise Salad

 
8  3-ounce tuna steaks

1 ½ tablespoons olive oil

3 teaspoons lemon juice

salt and freshly ground pepper

24 new potatoes, boiled and cooled

8 hard boiled eggs, halved

2 tomatoes, cut into 8 sections each

large handful green beans, trimmed and blanched

2/3 cup Nicoise olives

for the vinaigrette:

3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

1 ½ tablespoons lemon juice

½ cup olive oil

salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste

2 teaspoons honey

2 teaspoons Dijon mustard

red leaf lettuce

Marinate the tuna steaks in olive oil and lemon juice for 1 hour.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper.

Prepare the vinaigrette by whisking together all of the ingredients in a small bowl.

Meanwhile, preheat the grill on MEDIUM for 10 minutes and brush the grids with vegetable oil.  Place the tuna steaks on the barbecue and sear quickly, about 2 minutes per side for rare tuna. 

Arrange the vegetables, eggs, potatoes and tuna on each plate and drizzle with the vinaigrette. 

Serve with Tomato Soup garnished with Pesto.

In case anyone should get the impression that we were so virtuous all weekend, we should disclose that our last dinner together was a decadent calorie laden plateful of Pulled Pork and the most over-the-top Macaroni and Cheese ever conceived.  The recipe for the pasta dish came from an awesome British cookbook courtesy of Charlie called Pitt Cue Co, and it called for a ton of 3 different kinds of cheese.  We’re all moving a little more slowly today….

Smoked Turkey

Waiting for everyone to arrive

The first weekend of August on Wolfe Island is epic – This is when kids, grandchildren, cousins, sisters, fathers, grandmothers, brothers, mothers come home for the weekend to play in the Family Baseball Tournament.  We usually have 4 generations carrying the team through the weekend –playing,  score-keeping, cheering ,heckling, filming,  supplying water and feeding the masses.  This year, it was all about the younger generation, thank goodness.  Maddy finally turned 16 and was able to play -  we had high expectations of her, and she didn't disappoint us.

Maddy hits a home run!

Food seems to seamlessly flow in and out of the refrigerator all weekend long – it is truly amazing. We rely on some old favorites to pull this off, you know, the usual burgers, corn on the cob, pulled pork, big garden salads!  We always like to do something a little special as well, so this year we decided to do a turkey on the smoker. Once we had raided the garden at both the cottage and the Smith/Horne house, we ended up with a fantastic feast.

We set aside some of the meat from the smoked turkey and prepared  Vietnamese Style Smoked Turkey Vermicelli Salads the next day. The rice noodles made it the perfect supper when serving people who are on gluten free diets. It was fantastic.

  

Andy came down from Montreal

Rachel and Ubayda both get home

After 4 games, everyone is anxious to get home for a swim and dinner.

 

Turkey on the Smoker

20 lb turkey – rinse and pat dry with paper towels

Mop:

1 can beer

1/4 cup vegetable oil

Combine in a spray bottle and shake.

 

Paste:

Flesh of 1 orange

5 cloves garlic

2 tbsp chipotle peppers in adobo

4 tbsp canola oil

3 tbsp black pepper

3 tbsp salt

Combine all of the above in a blender. Puree into a smooth paste.

Rub turkey all over with paste and let rest in refrigerator overnight.

 Set up the Broil King Keg for smoking.

Rinse the turkey inside and out and pat it dry with paper towels. 

Light the smoker and set it to 225-250°F.  Scatter soaked apple wood chips over the coals, and fill the diffuser pan with warm water. 

Place the turkey on the smoker and close lid. Begin spraying with mop every 30 minutes after 3 hours of being on the smoker. Check that the diffuser pan is always full of water, beer or fruit juice.

Waiting for the turkey to rest

Smoke for about 6 hours, or until the internal temperature reaches 165°F. Increase internal temperature of the smoker to 325°F and cook for another 45 minutes.  Let rest ½ hour before carving. 

Leslie and Julia entertain the team!

 

 

Vietnamese Style Smoked Turkey Vermicelli Salad

Salad:

1 package rice  vermicelli noodles, prepared as directed on package

5 cups smoked turkey, shredded

3 medium carrots, shredded

2 cobs of roasted corn, cut the niblets off the cob

1 red pepper, julienned

1 english cucumber, julienned

5 green onions, chopped

¼ cup cilantro, chopped

¼ cup thai basil, chopped

¼ cup fresh mint, chopped

Cool and refreshing salad

1 head romaine lettuce

1 cup chopped peanuts

2 limes, sliced into wedges

Dressing:

1/3 cup canola oil

1/3 cup rice vinegar

¼ cup fish sauce

3 tbsp honey

1 tbsp soy sauce

1 tbsp sirachi sauce

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tbsp sesame oil

Combine dressing ingredients in a glass jar and shake to blend.

Combine cooled vermicelli noodles in a large bowl. Add smoked turkey, carrots, cucumber, red pepper, corn, green onions, mint, cilantro and  thai basil. Toss with dressing. Serve on top of shredded romaine lettuce  and garnish with chopped peanuts and lime wedges.

Leslie added some Portobello  mushrooms to the Keg for some more smokey goodness

Charu and Abby made the salads

So patient.