LCBO Food and Drink Holiday 2016

CHOPS & SAUCE 4 pasture-raised veal chops, each 12 oz (375 g), bones cleaned, about 1½ inches (4 cm) thick 3 tbsp (45 mL) olive oil Salt to taste 2 tbsp (30 mL) chopped shallots 6 oz (175 g) mix of morels, chanterelles, porcini or other premium mushrooms, coarsely chopped ¼ cup (60 mL) red wine 1 cup (250 mL) veal or chicken stock ¼ cup (60 mL) whipping cream 1 tsp (5 mL) cornstarch mixed with 1 tbsp (15 mL) water, optional 1 tbsp (15 mL) chopped cilantro

top vegetables and chicken. Bake another 5 to 8 minutes or until kale leaves are crisp. 5 Place chicken and vegetables in a tagine or on a serving platter, leaving juices in the pan and reserving kale leaves separately. Place pan over high heat on stovetop and pour in stock. Bring to boil, stirring to scrape up brown bits. Boil until sauce is thickened and flavourful, about 3 minutes, then pour over chicken and vegetables. Break kale leaves overtop for garnish. Serves 4 to 6

CHICKEN AND SQUASH TAGINE

Use kabocha or another drier squash like but- tercup for this recipe. Make it in an ovenproof frying or sauté pan but transfer it to a tagine, if you have one, for an authentic look. SPICE MIXTURE 1 tbsp (15 mL) ground ginger 1 tbsp (15 mL) ground cumin 1 tbsp (15 mL) Spanish paprika ½ tsp (2 mL) crushed red pepper flakes (or to taste) ½ tsp (2 mL) cinnamon Salt and freshly ground pepper 8 chicken thighs, on the bone with skin, about 2 lbs (1 kg) total ¼ cup (60 mL) olive oil, plus more for brushing 1 small kabocha squash, about 1½ lbs (750 g), peeled and diced 1 fennel bulb, cut into ½ inch (1 cm) wedges with core intact 2 small red onions, cut into ½ inch (1 cm) wedges with core intact 1 lemon, thinly sliced 6 small cloves garlic, peeled 4 black kale leaves, thick stem removed 2 cups (500 mL) chicken stock 1 Preheat oven to 425°F (220°C). 2 Combine spice mixture in a small bowl. Toss chicken thighs with 1 tbsp (15 mL) oil and sprinkle with 1 tbsp (15 mL) spice mixture. Reserve. 3 Toss squash, fennel, onion, lemon and gar- lic with remaining oil and remaining spice mixture. Place in an ovenproof pan. Bake for 15 minutes. 4 Place chicken thighs on top and bake for 30 minutes or until thighs are golden and juices run clear. Brush kale leaves lightly with oil. Stir vegetables and lay kale leaves over-

WHAT TO SERVE Mission Hill Five Vineyards Pinot Noir LCBO 145128

$17.95

1 Preheat oven to 450°F (230°C). 2 Toast peppercorns and coriander seeds in a skillet over medium-low heat until you can just smell them, about 1 minute. 3 Place dried porcini mushrooms, pepper- corns and coriander seeds in a blender or spice grinder, and process until a powder. 4 Brush veal chops with 1 tbsp (15 mL) olive oil then sprinkle each chop with 2 tsp (10 mL) mushroom powder. Season with salt. 5 Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat and add 1 tbsp (15 mL) olive oil. Brown chops on both sides until golden, about 2 minutes per side. Place on a baking sheet and bake for 9 to 12 minutes or until still slightly pink, about 130°F (56°C) on a meat thermometer. Remove to a platter. 6 Heat remaining 1 tbsp (15 mL) olive oil in a medium skillet over medium heat while chops are baking. Add shallots and sauté for 1 minute, or until just beginning to soften. Add mushrooms and sauté until limp, about 3 more minutes. Add wine and stock and bring to a boil. Simmer for 8 minutes or until liquid is reduced to about ¼ cup (60 mL). Add cream and remaining mushroom powder to sauce and bring to a boil. If sauce is not thick enough, stir in cornstarch mixture a little at a time to thicken. Stir in cilantro. Remove from heat. 7 Serve veal chops drizzled with mushroom sauce. Serves 4

Remy Pannier Rose d’Anjou LCBO 12641

$15.20

Premium pairings from page 126

VEAL CHOPS WITH MUSHROOM POWDER & MUSHROOM SAUCE The mushroom powder has a strong mush- room flavour and gives another layer of fla- vour to the veal chop. Oven timing is always based on the thickness of the chops. An in- stant-read meat thermometer is helpful with this. If you can’t find the special mushrooms in the recipe, use a mixture of shiitake, oyster and cremini mushrooms. Serve with sweet po- tato fries and rapini. MUSHROOM POWDER ½ tsp (2 mL) peppercorns ½ tsp (2 mL) coriander seeds ½ cup (125 mL) dried porcini mushrooms

246  FOOD & DRI NK HOLIDAY 2016