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Ever wondered what to do with those delicious bacon pan drippings? If you use good quality bacon (i.e. from a butcher, European deli, or organic farm) save the fat for bacon mayonnaise!

1 egg yolk
3/4 tsp Dijon mustard
1 tsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup liquid bacon fat

Combine the egg yolk, mustard, and lemon juice  in a food processor or blender. Season with salt and pepper, mix well. Have the bacon fat liquid, but not hot. With the machine running,  gradually add the bacon fat until the mixture starts to stiffen and emulsify, about 2 minutes.  One it starts to emulsify, you can add the fat more quickly. If the mayonnaise is too thick, just blend in 1 tsp boiling water to thin it.
Taste and adjust seasonings.

Ideas:
As a salad dressing: Mash in a chunk of blue cheese to dress chicken for a spinach salad!
As a tuna or egg salad base: Add fresh veggies or salsa.
As a sauce: fresh, steamed, or grilled veggies; chicken or fish.
Anyplace you would use mayo!

This recipe is from Jennifer McLagan's Fat: An Appreciation of a Misunderstood Ingredient. Her book pays delicious homage to traditional food preparation using quality animal fats, with stories and notes on the cultural traditions and science behind their use. Her passion for Real Food is palpable in every recipe, from the modern and convenient (Butter-Poached Scallops) to the old-fashioned classics (Steak and Kidney Pie).

Check it out! Week 3 of my CSA brought more potatoes, kale, kohlrabi, radishes, beet greens, baby turnips (get bigger each week!), bok choy, dill, green onions, garlic greens, black beans, and salad mix.

I did still stop by the Farmer's Market at Sherway Gardens for strawberries, asparagus, cheese, and steak. Buy strawberries in bulk and freeze the mushier ones on a cookie sheet lined with wax paper. Once frozen, ziploc-bag them for use in smoothies until the next batch comes in the fall!

Here's my latest asparagus salad recipe:

1 bunch asparagus, roasted or grilled (2-3 min in olive oil)
1/4 cup feta cheese 
1 tbsp red wine vinegar
Your favourite seasoning - Italian, sea salt & pepper... 

Chop the cooked, warm asparagus into bite-sized chunks.
Mash feta cheese with a fork into vinegar and seasonings.
Toss the asparagus in the dressing.

1 ½ pounds boned and skinned chicken breast, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 teaspoons peeled and finely chopped ginger
2 cloves garlic, crushed and chopped
½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
½ cup plain yogurt
½ teaspoon garam masala
2 tablespoons cooking oil

Put the chicken in a bowl. 
Add the salt and lemon juice and rub them in. Refrigerate for 20 minutes.

Once the chicken has marinated in the lemon and salt mixture for 20 minutes, add the ginger, garlic, cayenne pepper, yogurt and garam masala.  
Mix well and cover. 
Refrigerate for 6-8 hours or overnight. 

Just before serving, put the meat onto skewers.  
Brush with the oil and balance the skewers on the rim of a shallow baking tray. 
Broil on the barbeque, about 6 minutes per side.

Peanut Sauce:

4 tablespoons natural peanut butter
4 tablespoons tomato ketchup
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Combine all ingredients, and thin by adding about 8 teaspoons water. 
Refrigerate. Serve cold with chicken.

Thanks to Glen Sinclair for this delicious recipe!

I received several different types of leafy greens in my CSA this week - kale, rapini, kohlrabi, baby bok choy, baby turnips... stuff I'd previously skimmed over in the grocery store simply because I'd never had them before and had no idea what to do with them!

Turns out I was missing out on a world of tastiness! Cooking greens also shrinks them a lot, so a bunch of spinach goes down quicker (and buttery-er) than a giant salad. 

Leafy greens are in season in Ontario, and they're super simple to cook up with endless flavour options. Here are a few that I tried this week:

  This delicious steak dish goes great with stir-fry veggies or Grilled Asparagus!

 1 Flank steak
1/2 cup naturally brewed soy sauce
2 tbsp toasted sesame oil
1 bunch green onions, finely chopped
6 cloves garlic, peeled and mashed
2 tbsp sesame seeds
1/4 tsp cayenne powder

Using a very sharp and heavy knife, slice the flank steak as thinly as possible across the grain and on the diagonal.  Mix other ingredients and marinate beef in the mixture, refrigerated, for several hours or overnight. Fold or "ribbon" the strips and stick them on skewers. Cook on barbeque or grill, about 5 - 7 minutes per side.
Meat should still be rare or medium-rare inside.

This recipe is from the  Nourishing Traditions cookbook.