Serves 4
Have some ripe bananas you don’t want to waste? Instead of simply freezing them, why not use them in a simple yet delicious ice cream for a sweet dessert without the guilt? Ripe bananas not only add healthy sweetness but also blend beautifully, adding the perfect creaminess we all look for in an ice cream.
Easily make this ice cream more kid friendly by replacing coffee with a tablespoon of your (or your kids’) favourite nut butter. This provides some added protein, as well as a kid-favourite flavour to this delicious summertime treat.
Per serving:
Place sliced bananas in freezer-safe container and freeze for a minimum of 3 hours, preferably overnight.
Once frozen, place banana pieces into food processor and add remaining ingredients. Wait a few minutes until bananas are slightly thawed, then purée until smooth and all ingredients are incorporated. Return to container and place back into freezer until ready to eat.
Enjoy this delicious icy sweet treat as is, or garnish with chopped nuts and chocolate shavings to add a little extra “wow.”
Tourtière is, for me, the dish that best represents Québec. It can be traced back to the 1600s, and there’s no master recipe; every family has their own twist. Originally, it was made with game birds or game meat, like rabbit, pheasant, or moose; that’s one of the reasons why I prefer it with venison instead of beef or pork. Variation: If you prefer to make single servings, follow our lead at the restaurant, where we make individual tourtières in the form of a dome (pithivier) and fill them with 5 ounces (160 g) of the ground venison mixture. Variation: You can also use a food processor to make the dough. Place the flour, salt, and butter in the food processor and pulse about ten times, until the butter is incorporated—don’t overmix. It should look like wet sand, and a few little pieces of butter here and there is okay. With the motor running, through the feed tube, slowly add ice water until the dough forms a ball—again don’t overmix. Wrap, chill, and roll out as directed above.
My love of artichokes continues with this classic recipe, one of the best ways to eat this interesting, underrated, and strange vegetable. Frozen artichoke hearts are a time-saving substitute, though the flavour and texture of fresh artichokes are, by far, much superior and definitely preferred.
Cervelle de canut is basically the Boursin of France, an herbed fresh farmer’s cheese spread that’s a speciality of Lyon. The name is kind of weird, as it literally means “silk worker’s brain,” named after nineteenth-century Lyonnaise silk workers, who were called canuts. Sadly, the name reflects the low opinion of the people towards these workers. Happily for us, though, it’s delicious—creamy, fragrant, and fresh at the same time. Cervelle de canut is one of my family’s favourite dishes. It’s a great make-ahead appetizer that you can pop out of the fridge once your guests arrive. Use a full-fat cream cheese for the dish, or it will be too runny and less delicious.