Our favourite family Dishes
This July 1st, our team is celebrating all the beautiful cultures that make up Canada! Our melting-pot nation is always evolving, but one thing that never changes is all the incredible food. Whether you are snacking on a classic Canadian poutine, sharing a plate of Italian pasta or BBQing Greek souvlaki, we’ve got it all! To us food is more than just a meal - it’s a form of storytelling, a tradition shared with family, friends and neighbours, a way to learn about someone’s culture.
Today, our team is sharing our favourite recipes from our own heritage! We invite you to try these, and share them with your community. Make them with lots of love, and we promise you can’t go wrong!
Markie’s Traditional Bannock
Ingredients:
· 1 cup flour (all purpose)
· 1 tablespoon sugar (white sugar)
· 1 teaspoon baking powder
· 1⁄4 teaspoon salt
· 1⁄2 cup cold water
· oil, for deep-frying (I use vegetable oil)
Instructions:
1. Start by mixing all your dry ingredients together and combine well.
2. After all of the dry ingredients are prepped, start adding in your cold water and stirring with a wood spoon until you can no longer stir and then you want to start working it till just combined with your hands.
3. Let it sit covered for about 1 hour because like a good pancake recipe, it just gets fluffier with time.
4. After resting I get out a frying pan and add some oil into it. Typically, I add about 1 inch of oil in the bottom of the pan. Heat oil to about 375 degrees Fahrenheit – you can test this by dropping a small piece of the Bannock in the pan and if it bubbles and browns after a few minutes, your oil is ready!
5. Oil your countertop slightly and your hands as this will help with the dough sticking to things and divide your dough into 3-4 even sized balls.
6. Once divided, pat your dough down a bit so it’s a bit flatter like a disc (a disc just larger than the size of your hand, thicknesses can vary slightly but keep it consistent, so everything is evenly cooked).
7. Lightly place your Bannock disc into the hot oil (be careful) and fry each side until nice and golden brown – I usually say about 3-5 minutes a side.
8. When both sides are golden brown, it should be done. Remove the Bannock from the pan and rest on paper towel to remove any remaining oil from the outsides.
9. You will want to eat this relatively warm because it tastes best when fresh. So, you can either make it sweet with suggested add-on ingredients above or you can brush with butter and serve with soup or chilli.
Add-ons:
You can make a sweet version of this by tossing it in cinnamon and sugar, honey or smothering it with jam or Nutella. I also like to dip in maple syrup as a nice “Canadian treat”. I have also heard of people adding cinnamon and/or raisins into their mixture, or making a more savory version by adding simple herbs before cooking! Otherwise it goes great with soups or chilli.
Stores for about 2-3 days - Enjoy!
Madeline’s Must-Try Pierogi’s
For the Dough
2cups all-purpose flour, plus more as needed
1teaspoon kosher salt
3tablespoons unsalted butter
1 large egg, beaten
For the Filling
½ pound potatoes
Salt and pepper
3tablespoons unsalted butter
3medium yellow onions, finely chopped
½cup sharp cheddar cheese
Instructions
Prepare the dough: Add the flour and salt to a large bowl; whisk to combine. In a small saucepan, heat ½ cup water and the butter over medium-high until butter is melted, about 3 minutes. Pour the buttery liquid into the flour gradually, stirring it in as you add it. (The dough will be quite crumbly and flaky at this point, like a biscuit dough.) Stir in the egg until combined then move the dough to a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth, 5 to 7 minutes. Cover the dough with a dampened towel or plastic wrap and let rest at room temperature for 30 minutes.
Prepare the filling: Peel the potatoes and cut into 1-inch cubes. Add them to a large pot, sprinkle with 1 tablespoon salt and cover with cold water by about 2 inches. Bring to a boil over high and continue to cook at a simmer until potatoes are tender, about 25 minutes.
While the potatoes cook, prepare the onions: In a large skillet, melt the butter over medium-high. Add the onions, season generously with salt and pepper, and cook, stirring occasionally, until golden-brown and softened, about 12 minutes. Set aside about 1 cup of onions for garnish and add the rest to a medium bowl.
Transfer the cooked potatoes to a colander to drain, then transfer to the medium bowl with the onions. Add the cheese, stir to combine, season generously with salt and pepper, then let cool.
Bring a large pot of heavily salted water to a boil over high.
Prepare the wrappers: Cut the dough into two even pieces. (You’ll want to leave one piece under the towel to stay moist while you work with the other piece.) You’ll also want a small bowl of flour, a small bowl of water and a towel handy for keeping your hands clean. Dust some flour onto a baking sheet (for holding the pierogi) and your work surface, then roll out one portion of dough until ⅛-inch thick. Using a 3-inch cookie cutter or inverted glass, punch 12 to 15 disks of dough. (Save and refrigerate the scraps to boil as a rustic pasta, in soup or another use.)
Assemble the pierogi: Working with one disk at time, spoon a scant tablespoon of filling onto the middle of it. Fold the dough in half to enclose the filling, bringing the edges together to form a crescent shape. Pinch the two sides together at the top, then work your way down on both sides, pinching the dough over the filling and pushing in the filling as needed, making sure the potato mixture does not break the seal. If needed, you can dip your fingertip into water and moisten the dough in spots as needed to help the two sides adhere together.
To form a rustic pattern on the curved seal, pinch the rounded rim underneath using your pointer finger and middle finger and press an indentation on top with your thumb, working your way along the rounded rim. Transfer to the prepared baking sheet. (If you’ve gotten some filling on your fingers, dip your fingertips into the bowl of water then dry them off on the towel.)
Repeat with remaining disks, then repeat the entire process with the remaining portion of dough. You’ll want to work fairly quickly, as the pierogi can be harder to seal if they start to dry out. (If cooking the pierogi at a later point, transfer them on the baking sheet to the freezer until frozen solid, then transfer the pierogi to a resealable bag and freeze.)
To cook the pierogi, add a single layer of pierogi to the pot of boiling water. Let them cook until they rise to the surface, about 2 minutes, then cook another 2 to 3 minutes until puffy. (With frozen dumplings, you will need to increase the cooking time by a couple of minutes.) Use a slotted spoon to transfer cooked dumplings to a colander to drain, then boil remaining dumplings.
If you want to pan-fry your pierogi, working in batches, melt 1 to 2 tablespoons of butter in a large skillet over medium-high until crackling. Add a few boiled pierogi in a single layer to avoid overcrowding, and cook until crisp and golden, 1 to 2 minutes per side. Repeat with remaining pierogi, adding butter as needed.
Serve hot. Top with any browned butter from the pan, warmed reserved onions, sour cream and fresh dill! Best shared with family & friends with a good glass of red wine.
Cheers!
Markie & Madeline
