Must-have seasonal dishes/meals?

[SylviaLovegren]

Darienne and LizD - I'm sure you mean "tortures" and not "tortieres"? Perhaps is just that my family made such awful ones - right up there with the Cornish Pasty (rhymes with "nasty" in our family....)

I'd never heard of nor had tortiere until we moved to Toronto but my son's friends kept talking about how good they were. Found a recipe and made one and thought this meat pie one of the best (and richest!) things I'd ever eaten. But definitely a cold weather, need lotsa calories to stay alive, dish. Sorry your experience was different!

[Panaderia Canadiense]

Panaderia, according to Wikipedia, it is spelled tourtière (ooh, even got autocorrect on that one!) or tortiere. Maybe there are regional variations though? My mom's entire family is from an area just south of Quebec City.

Darienne and LizD - I'm sure you mean "tortures" and not "tortieres"? Perhaps is just that my family made such awful ones - right up there with the Cornish Pasty (rhymes with "nasty" in our family....)

I'd never heard of nor had tortiere until we moved to Toronto but my son's friends kept talking about how good they were. Found a recipe and made one and thought this meat pie one of the best (and richest!) things I'd ever eaten. But definitely a cold weather, need lotsa calories to stay alive, dish. Sorry your experience was different!

It has to do with a family joke, but yes, Gran's tortiéres were truly awful things - Mom's family is from up near the Québec border, on the Ontario side. I make much better pies, but they're still called "tortures" in my family because of Gran.

[Jaymes]

Chili. Got to make a few tubs of chili and freeze it. Can't be without chili when brisk winter winds blow.

[Martin Fisher]

I have lots of seasonal favorites but there's one in particular that I must be sure to have at least once a year, this time of year, for nostalgic reasons.

Stewed Tomatoes and Dumplings was one of my Grandmother Brown's favorites and it brings back lots of good memories.

[lindag]

Today is Meatloaf. I like Cooks Illustrated glazed meatloaf recipe.

Next weekend it's gonna be Upper Peninsula Pasties!!!

[Lindsey]

Purple sprouting broccoli is just showing its pretty face in the shops here along with 'dirty' carrots and new season swede so Haggis is on the menu soon, I like to serve mine with a whisky based Cumberland type sauce, clootie dumplings are another firm favourite with friends and customers alike - personally I can take or leave it! My most favourite memory of early winter food from London was my Nanna's ambrosial Bacon and Onion pudding made in a cloth, I can taste it now.

[Jaymes]

Purple sprouting broccoli is just showing its pretty face in the shops here along with 'dirty' carrots and new season swede so Haggis is on the menu soon, I like to serve mine with a whisky based Cumberland type sauce, clootie dumplings are another firm favourite with friends and customers alike - personally I can take or leave it! My most favourite memory of early winter food from London was my Nanna's ambrosial Bacon and Onion pudding made in a cloth, I can taste it now.

"Haggis with a whiskey based Cumberland type sauce"?

I'll take just a bowl of the sauce, please.

As for your Nanna's "ambrosial Bacon and Onion pudding made in a cloth".... Do you have that recipe? Gawd that sounds good.

[Smithy]

Purple sprouting broccoli is just showing its pretty face in the shops here along with 'dirty' carrots and new season swede so Haggis is on the menu soon, I like to serve mine with a whisky based Cumberland type sauce, clootie dumplings are another firm favourite with friends and customers alike - personally I can take or leave it! My most favourite memory of early winter food from London was my Nanna's ambrosial Bacon and Onion pudding made in a cloth, I can taste it now.

"Haggis with a whiskey based Cumberland type sauce"?

I'll take just a bowl of the sauce, please.

As for your Nanna's "ambrosial Bacon and Onion pudding made in a cloth".... Do you have that recipe? Gawd that sounds good.

Amen! Also, what are clootie dumplings?

[Lindsey]

Jaymes I do indeed have the recipe and will look it out for you tonight and post tomorrow.

Smithy Clootie Dumpling is a large dumpling mix made with suet about 4 pounds in weight so as to keep the family fed for a good few days, full of dried fruit and, of course, some booze either rum or whisky that is dumped into the middle of a floured linen cloth (this is the clootie and families treasure their cloths and pass them on to children) the whole is then steamed for hours and served with custard when hot, sliced like cake when cold and often fried with bacon etc for breakfast. It tastes similar to a lighter version of a Christmas Pud, but not so unctuous somehow.

Edited October 15, 2013 by Lindsey (log)

[Panaderia Canadiense]

Lindsey - are you making Hogamany buns this year too? Those are one of my all-time faves, but there are no currants here (sadness!) so they're just not the same.

[basquecook]

This recipe appealed to me when I came across it the other day. Just the photo of those potatoes had me

http://www.saveur.com/article/Recipes/Szekelyalmas-Pork-with-Apples-and-Cider-Cream-Sauce

Székelyalmás

[Lindsey]

Lindsey - are you making Hogamany buns this year too? Those are one of my all-time faves, but there are no currants here (sadness!) so they're just not the same.

You know I have never seen these hereabouts, there does seem to be quite specific local baked delicacies up here and they don't travel well! Our area is more butteries and some very weird looking things made mostly with marshmallow and icing - not for the squeemish!

I will ask my Baker chum about the buns.

[quiet1]

Lindsey - are you making Hogamany buns this year too? Those are one of my all-time faves, but there are no currants here (sadness!) so they're just not the same.

You know I have never seen these hereabouts, there does seem to be quite specific local baked delicacies up here and they don't travel well! Our area is more butteries and some very weird looking things made mostly with marshmallow and icing - not for the squeemish!

I will ask my Baker chum about the buns.

Oh, perhaps you'll know - my late husband's family was from Aberdeen and they used to get these bread/pastry roll things that were supposedly a local thing to Aberdeen. (Certainly I never saw them in shops in England near London, where we lived.) I cannot for the life of me remember what they called them, though. I do remember thinking they were a bit similar to a croissant - similar layered flake-y interior, though perhaps denser than your typical croissant.

(I even made the things once and I still can't remember what they were called, and it was long enough ago that I don't remember enough of the process to hunt for a recipe that way. I just remember there seemed to be a lot of folding and rolling out involved - as you do with other baked goods that have that many-layers texture.)

[Anna N]

Lindsey - are you making Hogamany buns this year too? Those are one of my all-time faves, but there are no currants here (sadness!) so they're just not the same.

You know I have never seen these hereabouts, there does seem to be quite specific local baked delicacies up here and they don't travel well! Our area is more butteries and some very weird looking things made mostly with marshmallow and icing - not for the squeemish!

I will ask my Baker chum about the buns.

Oh, perhaps you'll know - my late husband's family was from Aberdeen and they used to get these bread/pastry roll things that were supposedly a local thing to Aberdeen. (Certainly I never saw them in shops in England near London, where we lived.) I cannot for the life of me remember what they called them, though. I do remember thinking they were a bit similar to a croissant - similar layered flake-y interior, though perhaps denser than your typical croissant.

(I even made the things once and I still can't remember what they were called, and it was long enough ago that I don't remember enough of the process to hunt for a recipe that way. I just remember there seemed to be a lot of folding and rolling out involved - as you do with other baked goods that have that many-layers texture.)

This http://eatscotland.visitscotland.com/food-drink/traditional/aberdeen-rowie/ perhaps?

[Panaderia Canadiense]

Lindsey - are you making Hogamany buns this year too? Those are one of my all-time faves, but there are no currants here (sadness!) so they're just not the same.

You know I have never seen these hereabouts, there does seem to be quite specific local baked delicacies up here and they don't travel well! Our area is more butteries and some very weird looking things made mostly with marshmallow and icing - not for the squeemish!

I will ask my Baker chum about the buns.

Right - Gran did mention the extreme local nature of baked goods once. I have, therefore, no explanation as to how she knew about Ecclefechan tarts (the butteriest of the butteries) without ever having visited the area!

I'll be making Hogamany bun this year, currants or note - I'll post back with pictures.

[Lindsey]

Lindsey - are you making Hogamany buns this year too? Those are one of my all-time faves, but there are no currants here (sadness!) so they're just not the same.

You know I have never seen these hereabouts, there does seem to be quite specific local baked delicacies up here and they don't travel well! Our area is more butteries and some very weird looking things made mostly with marshmallow and icing - not for the squeemish!

I will ask my Baker chum about the buns.

Oh, perhaps you'll know - my late husband's family was from Aberdeen and they used to get these bread/pastry roll things that were supposedly a local thing to Aberdeen. (Certainly I never saw them in shops in England near London, where we lived.) I cannot for the life of me remember what they called them, though. I do remember thinking they were a bit similar to a croissant - similar layered flake-y interior, though perhaps denser than your typical croissant.

(I even made the things once and I still can't remember what they were called, and it was long enough ago that I don't remember enough of the process to hunt for a recipe that way. I just remember there seemed to be a lot of folding and rolling out involved - as you do with other baked goods that have that many-layers texture.)

This http://eatscotland.visitscotland.com/food-drink/traditional/aberdeen-rowie/ perhaps?

That is it or as it is called here a Buttery, Rowie is quite specific to Aberdeen (the name). It is indeed like a squashed croissant but made with lard and salt so a much more savoury flavour - sounds horrid but is quite yummy. I serve them warm with salted butter and blackcurrant jam and tourists just love them.

Edited October 18, 2013 by heidih
Fix quote tags (log)

[Lindsey]

Lindsey - are you making Hogamany buns this year too? Those are one of my all-time faves, but there are no currants here (sadness!) so they're just not the same.

You know I have never seen these hereabouts, there does seem to be quite specific local baked delicacies up here and they don't travel well! Our area is more butteries and some very weird looking things made mostly with marshmallow and icing - not for the squeemish!

I will ask my Baker chum about the buns.

Right - Gran did mention the extreme local nature of baked goods once. I have, therefore, no explanation as to how she knew about Ecclefechan tarts (the butteriest of the butteries) without ever having visited the area!

I'll be making Hogamany bun this year, currants or note - I'll post back with pictures.

You know Walkers now make Ecclefechan tarts and Oh Boy are they sweet, I wouldn't say they were anything like a Buttery though, the ones I had were very short pastry tart cases filled with a very rich mince meat (our mince meat i.e. dried fruit, suet or butter and lots of sugar) and, I think, some kind of condensed milk glaze, tooth falling out stuff!!!

[Lindsey]

Bacon and Onion Pudding Recipe for Jaymes.

300g/10 oz Self-Raising Flour
½ a teaspoon Salt
150g/5 oz fresh Suet, chopped to coarse crumbs or packet suet

Filling:
250g- 300g (8-10 oz) Back Bacon, chopped
2 big Onions, peeled and finely-chopped
4 Leeks, trimmed, cut into matchstick ‘julienne’ strips
1 teaspoon Dried Sage
Salt and freshly-ground Black Pepper

Method

1. Mix the flour, salt and suet with your hands, and bind it into a soft but not tacky dough – with a little iced-water.
2. Chill the dough for 30 minutes to an hour, and roll it out into a big rectangle 1cm/½ in thick.
3. Dot it evenly with the filling items, leaving a small rim of dough free, season with a little salt (depending on the bacon used) and plenty of pepper..
4. Roll it up from a short or long side – depending on your steaming facilities.
5. Brush the rolled ends with water and press the dough together to keep the filling in place.
6. Wrap the roll very loosely in foil, leaving plenty of room for the dough to swell.
7. Steam the package for 2 hours, then remove to a dish.
8. Open the foil, and carefully pour off any juices – you can use these or not, personal choice.

I have re-jigged the instructions for ease but the puddings I remember were cooked always in a linen cloth, but no foil was available in those days. I tend to add some chopped parsley both to the dough and to the mix and, again personal choice, I like to use a few rashers of smoked bacon for extra flavour, I fry these off before adding to the mix. You can put the pudding into a hot oven for 20 mins to crisp up if this is your preference, lovely but not a 'pudding' in my eyes LOL!!!! This was always served with plain boiled potatoes and carrots I seem to remember. Made with a light hand this is a thing of ultimate comfort on a very cold and dreich night. My Nanna would always have a bottle of local ale with this, the ale had to be poured into a glass in front of a light or window, it would still be fermenting in the bottle, I think it was called a Worthington White Shield.

[Panaderia Canadiense]

Lindsey - are you making Hogamany buns this year too? Those are one of my all-time faves, but there are no currants here (sadness!) so they're just not the same.

You know I have never seen these hereabouts, there does seem to be quite specific local baked delicacies up here and they don't travel well! Our area is more butteries and some very weird looking things made mostly with marshmallow and icing - not for the squeemish!

I will ask my Baker chum about the buns.

Right - Gran did mention the extreme local nature of baked goods once. I have, therefore, no explanation as to how she knew about Ecclefechan tarts (the butteriest of the butteries) without ever having visited the area!

I'll be making Hogamany bun this year, currants or note - I'll post back with pictures.

You know Walkers now make Ecclefechan tarts and Oh Boy are they sweet, I wouldn't say they were anything like a Buttery though, the ones I had were very short pastry tart cases filled with a very rich mince meat (our mince meat i.e. dried fruit, suet or butter and lots of sugar) and, I think, some kind of condensed milk glaze, tooth falling out stuff!!!

The ones Gran called Ecclefechan tarts are treacle based mincemeat, heavy on the raisins, with butter and pecans. Interesting to think that even within something so specific there are variations!

[Lindsey]

Isn't that a joy? I am so beguiled by the local differences but can totally understand why. Even today with all its trappings we can reach a wee hamlet, maybe only 2 hours drive away, that is so cut off, so self reliant, just fills me with excitement. However, I am sure it never did fill its inhabitants with the same glee for foraging! Life must have been so hard.

[Jaymes]

Today is Meatloaf. I like Cooks Illustrated glazed meatloaf recipe.

We also like that Cook's Illustrated meatloaf recipe.

But for the glaze, we like this recipe much much better:

forums.egullet.org/topic/126538-meatloaf-glaze/?hl=meatloaf+glaze

[lindag]

Thanks, Jaymes, the glaze sounds really good. I'll be sure to try it next time.

[Hassouni]

Joining the party late, but here are my must have cold-weather foods:

1. SOUPS OF ALL KINDS! I'm sure this goes without saying for everyone, but a really good soup with homemade stock can't be topped. Come wintertime, this could be a daily thing for me and I wouldn't complain. Favorites: basic chicken and veg, red lentil, and a hearty Iraqi soup with kubba, turnips, and swiss chard, thickened with pounded rice.

2. Chili, specifically a combination on Alton Brown and Kenji Alt's recipes, using larger chunks of beef, soaked and pureed dried chiles, and beer as the cooking liquid. Beans optional. Also green chili w/ hatch peppers and either pork or turkey.

3. Wintery Iraqi stews, like white bean and lamb stew, or stews with winter squash.

4. Nabemono - whatever can be thrown in (if I had to pick one, I'd say Ishikari nabe, with salmon and miso and butter)

5. Tonkotsu ramen. This is fine year round, but it's really good in colder weather.

6. Roasted (mostly root) vegetables - parsnips, turnips, sweet potatoes, regular potatoes, carrots, leeks, squash....

I could go on and on, but if a winter passes by and I don't have those foods, something's missing

[Jaymes]

Bacon and Onion Pudding Recipe for Jaymes.

300g/10 oz Self-Raising Flour

½ a teaspoon Salt

150g/5 oz fresh Suet, chopped to coarse crumbs or packet suet

Filling:

250g- 300g (8-10 oz) Back Bacon, chopped

2 big Onions, peeled and finely-chopped

4 Leeks, trimmed, cut into matchstick ‘julienne’ strips

1 teaspoon Dried Sage

Salt and freshly-ground Black Pepper

Method

1. Mix the flour, salt and suet with your hands, and bind it into a soft but not tacky dough – with a little iced-water.

2. Chill the dough for 30 minutes to an hour, and roll it out into a big rectangle 1cm/½ in thick.

3. Dot it evenly with the filling items, leaving a small rim of dough free, season with a little salt (depending on the bacon used) and plenty of pepper..

4. Roll it up from a short or long side – depending on your steaming facilities.

5. Brush the rolled ends with water and press the dough together to keep the filling in place.

6. Wrap the roll very loosely in foil, leaving plenty of room for the dough to swell.

7. Steam the package for 2 hours, then remove to a dish.

8. Open the foil, and carefully pour off any juices – you can use these or not, personal choice.

I have re-jigged the instructions for ease but the puddings I remember were cooked always in a linen cloth, but no foil was available in those days. I tend to add some chopped parsley both to the dough and to the mix and, again personal choice, I like to use a few rashers of smoked bacon for extra flavour, I fry these off before adding to the mix. You can put the pudding into a hot oven for 20 mins to crisp up if this is your preference, lovely but not a 'pudding' in my eyes LOL!!!! This was always served with plain boiled potatoes and carrots I seem to remember. Made with a light hand this is a thing of ultimate comfort on a very cold and dreich night. My Nanna would always have a bottle of local ale with this, the ale had to be poured into a glass in front of a light or window, it would still be fermenting in the bottle, I think it was called a Worthington White Shield.

Thanks!

Re the suet. Do you buy it ready-to-use, or do you render it yourself?

[annabelle]

I'm going to roast a chicken with root vegetables later this week and serve it with mashed potatoes and pan gravy. It should be cold enough for a fire and that will be just the ticket.

I think I'll bake a gingerbread, too.