Laurie Salvador was born and raised in Creston BC nestled in the fertile valley between the Purcell and Selkirk mountain ranges. As a young teenager she moved with her family from the land of apple blossoms and grains to the beautiful Sidney-By-The -Sea which became her seaside home. After retiring from her Notary practise, Laurie channelled her energy into a collection of her prized recipes. Gleaning from her grandmother, friends, travels around the globe, and sheer imagination, she has created an heirloom; an international award-winning* book that will become first choice on your bookshelf. Olive Me is a bouquet garni of recipes, stories, and photographs that will awaken memories and inspire the reader to explore new spices and flavours. As your culinary coach, Laurie will teach you some new techniques, some secrets, and centuries-old methods. Laurie shares home time in Sidney and in Penticton BC with her husband, Wayne Braid who is her chief taster and promoter. Wayne and Laurie have been fortunate to travel extensively and learn about regional foods and wines; now Laurie is delighted to share some of the fruits of those experiences.
Gourmand World Cookbook 2022 Awards Italian Cuisine *2nd Place First Cookbook *3rd Place
Text and photography copyright ©2021 by Laurie Salvador All rights reserved. ISBN 978-1-7774671-0-4 Author: Laurie Salvador Photography: Laurie Salvador (except where noted) Design & Layout: Nicola Fossett Editor: Catherine Luke Published in Canada Special thanks to Ambur Braid, Rod Laurie, Susan Mercer, Morgan Shaw, Lucy Lacet Stevens, and Lucia White who have provided their recipes and photographs. Wayne Braid, Catherine Luke, Susan Sharun, Jan Salvador, Nancy Yildez, and Maria Harstone provided artistic direction and valuable feedback.
Website: https://olivemecookbook.com/ Email: info@olivemecookbook.com
TABLE OF CONTENTS
1 2
3
INTRODUCTION 6 7 9 15 16 18
My Roots Kudos Tips & Tricks Explanation of Abbreviations Kitchen Staples Places I like to shop
4
CHRISTMAS
5
CONDIMENTS
APPETIZERS Arancini Basil Ice Cream and Watermelon Braised Cipollini Onions Caponata Fondue with Tuscan Toasts Grapefruit Slaw on Shiso Holy Poke Mushroom Wraps Prawn and Avocado Stacks Roasted Beets with Ricotta and Bacon Roasted Olives Scallops on Sweet Potato Purée Bruschetta Pomodoro Toulouse Kebabs with Roasted Tomato and Watermelon Purée 40 Toulouse Sausage with Harissa Sauce 21 22 24 25 26 29 30 31 33 34 35 37 38 39
BREADS 43 45 47 49 51 53
Basic Pizza Dough Breakfast Bread Chocolate Chip Banana Bread Italian Bread Rolls Lucia’s Grissini Mistaken Identity Sweet Bread
55 57 59 61 62 64 65 66 67 68
71 72 73 75 76 77 79 81 82 83 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 94
Braised Brussels Sprouts Candied Orange Slices Italian Meringue Cookies Nürnberger Elisenlebkuchen Panforte Poppycock Roasted Chestnuts Gramma D’s Scottish Skirlie Sticky Toffee Pudding Tom & Jerry's
Besciamella Sauce Homemade Ricotta Cheese Mom’s Blackberry Jelly Mango Jam Peach Chutney Soffritto Canned Tomato Sauce Fresh Tomato Sauce Catalina Style Dressing Chermoula Sauce Pesto Preserved Lemons Romesco Sauce Smoked Paprika Aioli Some-Like-It-Hot Salsa Rub-Me-Tender Spice Mix Advieh Spice Mix Colombo Spice aka Magic Spice Ginger Juice
6 7 8
CROWDS 97 99 101 103 105 106 107 108 111
Frittata Harley’s Tribute Chili Kathie’s Bean Salad Marinated Mushroom Salad Panzanella Senza Pane Rod’s Curried Chickpeas Rod’s Drunken Salmon Wayne’s Sangria Ambur’s Ice Cream Parade
9
SOUPS 114 115 116 117 118 119 120 121 123
Beef Pho Soup Chicken Pho Soup Broccoli and Cheddar Cheese Soup Carrot Soup Old Fashioned Chicken Soup Fish Broth Minestrone Pasta e Ceci Zuppa Summer Borscht
PASTA, RICE & GRAINS 126 127 129 131 132 135 137 139 141 142 145 147
Fresh Pasta Pasta Carbonara Citrus Peel Pasta Gnocchi Notes on Paella Traditional Valencian Paella Seafood Paella Polenta Gnocchi Alla Romana Hangover Heaven Risotto Milanese Timballo
10
MEAT & POULTRY 149 151 153 154 155 157 159 160 161 162 163 164 167 169
Barbequed Chicken Bites Braised Short Ribs Cabbage Rolls Margaret’s Lemon Chicken Meatballs and Meatloaf Osso Bucco Pizzaiola Rub Eye Steaks Red Cabbage and Sausage Saltimbocca Turkey Meatballs Jubilee Veal Rolls Veal Scaloppine al Limone Vitello Tonnato
SALADS 171 172 173 174 176 177 178 179 180 181 183 185 186 187 188
Beets Me! Caesar Salad with Prawns Crunchy Pea Salad Nonni’s Vinaigrette Dandelion Salad Hawaiian Slack Key Slaw Lyonnaise Salad Mushroom Salad Niçoise Salad Orange and Fennel Salad Roasted Beet and Glass Noodle Salad Tater Salad Valentine’s Day Salad Watermelon and Tomato Salad Lotus Blossom Salad
11
12
SEAFOOD 191 193 195 196 197 198 199 200 201 202 203 205 207 208
13
Big Shrimp Curry Deep Dish Fish Pie Miso Halibut Mussels in Tomato Sauce Tuna Casserole Sweet Potato Crab Cakes Spring Orzo Seafood Dungeness Crab Cannelloni Pesce All’acqua Pazza (Crazy Fish) Curried Spot Prawns Faux Crab Curry Halibut Cheeks Marinated Artic Char with Grilled Peaches Salmon Cakes
DESSERTS 213 215 217 219 221 222 225 226 229 231 232 235 237 239 241 243 245 247 249
Morgan’s Carrot Cake Austin’s Lemon Meringue Pie Basic Ice Cream Hay Ice Cream Basic Meringue Meringue Cookies Pavlova Meringue Shells Cocoa Chiffon Cake Italian Plum Cake Bravo Brownies Lu’s Celebration Cake Saffron Almond Cake Lucy’s Flan Lu’s Olive Oil Cake Orange and Cardamom Madeleines Poached Pears in Chestnut Cream Lucy’s Manjo Branco with Guava Syrup Zabaglione
VEGETARIAN 253 255 256 257 259 261 262 263 265 267 269 270
Around the World Lentil Stew Baked Onions Cauliflower Steaks Celeriac and Parsnip Sauté Eggplant Parmigiana Potato Leek and Cauliflower Tortilla Potatoes Swimming in the Bay Pumpkin Soufflé Roasted Pineapple & Eggplant Salad Rod’s Portobello Mushrooms Smoked Squash Pizza Sweet Potato Mushroom Caps
BASIL ICE CREAM ON WATERMELON Serves 20, makes 1 quart/litre 20 minutes, plus freezing time
$
GF
V
1 qt./1 L. Basic Ice Cream Recipe (see Dessert section) 1 large seedless watermelon, chilled 4 c./1 L. basil leaves
This is a light and refreshing appetizer or dessert for mid-summer. Use the freshest basil you can find and deep chill the watermelon before cutting. Prepare the ice cream according to the basic recipe in the Dessert section. In a small blender, combine 1 cup of clean basil leaves for each cup of the milk required in the basic ice cream recipe. Purée with a few spoons of the custard mixture and add to the custard just as it is finished cooking. Proceed to freeze in your ice cream maker according to its directions. Put the watermelon in the freezer for 15 minutes before cutting. When the ice cream is frozen and just before serving, cut the watermelon into cubes all the same size, about 2 inches square. With a small melon baller, scoop out a hole in the top of each cube. Fill the hole with the same size scoop of ice cream. Add basil leaf for garnish. Can also be served as an amuse-bouche: a palate refresher, between courses. Special equipment: ice cream maker, melon baller
Palermo, Sicily
HOLY POKE! Serves 4 - 6
$$$
Poke (po-kay) in Hawaiian means to dice or cut up. To make this go further, add a stalk of diced celery and a can of diced water chestnuts. Serve with rice crackers in one hand and a Mai Tai in the other!
1 hour
GF DF
7 oz./200 g. sashimi grade ahi tuna, diced 2 cute little Japanese cucumbers, diced 1 ripe avocado, pitted and diced 2 green onions, diced 1 tsp./5 ml. red pepper flakes (or whatever you choose for heat) 2 tbsp./30 ml. toasted sesame seeds juice of 1 small lime 1 tsp./5 ml. sesame seed oil ⅓ c./75 ml. soya sauce (gluten free if an issue) 1 tsp./5 ml. grated ginger few drops of fish sauce (optional) 1 stalk celery, diced (optional) 1 small tin diced water chestnuts (optional) 1 handful cilantro, diced
Refrigerate a medium-sized ceramic bowl while dicing the ingredients. Combine and gently mix all the ingredients in the chilled bowl. Cover and refrigerate for a further 15 minutes to half hour but not longer. This dish doesn’t store well so enjoy while fresh.
MUSHROOM WRAPS Serves 8
$
1 hour
GF DF
1 400 g. package 8-inch round rice paper galettes (find in Asian market) 1 lb./450 g. fresh mushrooms, cleaned and chopped 2 tbsp./30 ml. good olive oil (substitute grapeseed or canola) 2 tbsp./30 ml. soya sauce (gf if necessary) 1 tsp./5 ml. fish sauce 1 tsp./5 ml. ginger juice (substitute a pinch of grated ginger) 2 tsp./10 ml. Pernod (substitute gin or Grand Marnier) 2 tbsp./30 ml. good quality balsamic vinegar 1 bag fresh bean sprouts (substitute water chestnuts diced) 2 spring onions, thinly sliced about 4 inches/10 cm. long ½ c./125 ml. fresh cilantro, minced (substitute basil) ½ c./125 ml. sweet chili sauce
I made these for a potluck dinner, and they flew off the plate! They are best with a variety of fresh mushrooms. Sauté the mushrooms in olive oil in a large skillet for about 10 minutes until soft. Add the soya sauce, fish sauce, ginger, Pernod, and balsamic vinegar. Cook down until the sauce is thick. Remove from heat. Warm 2 inches of water in a 9- or 10-inch skillet. One at a time, dip the rice paper rounds into the water and let them sit for no more than 5 seconds. Remove with a large flat flipper onto a clean tea towel. Place a spoonful of the mushroom mix, a few bean sprouts, cilantro, and green onions in the middle of the rice paper in a horizontal position so you have a little log about 4 x 1 inches/10 cm x 2.5 cm. Fold the bottom half of the circle up, the right side over towards the left and the left towards the right. Tucking as you go, roll it from the bottom to the top so you have a nice tight, neat little package. Repeat until you have no material left. Put some sweet chilli sauce beside each bundle for dipping.
31
Pesto
PESTO
There is nothing like fresh pesto as a pasta dressing or in the centre of a grilled peach. Make up a batch and freeze it so you can enjoy this summertime sensation in the dead of winter. The key to a lovely pesto is in the grating of the cheese. Use a very fine micro-plane grater so your cheese is light and fluffy.
Makes about 3 small jars 1 hour
$$
GF
V
6 c./1 ½ l. loosely packed, small to medium-sized basil leaves (remove the stems and floret in the center) 1/3 c./45 g. pine nuts 1 clove of garlic ½ c./125 ml. best quality olive oil 1 tsp./5 ml. sea salt 1/3 c./80 ml. finely grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese (substitute: grana padano or Valgrana) 1/3 c./80 ml. grated pecorino
Put your blender jar in the freezer for 20 minutes to get it good and cold. Soak the basil leaves in very cold water in the fridge for 5-10 mins. Toast the pine nuts on medium heat, stirring carefully as they burn easily. Set aside to cool. Gently lift the leaves out of the water, drain, replace the water, and soak them again to make sure they are soil and contaminant free. Grate the cheese with a very fine grater. Set aside. Remove the leaves from the water and shake them gently and roll in a towel to remove most of the water or put them through a salad spinner. Put ¼ of the leaves in the blender jar and add the rest of the ingredients except the cheese. Pureé. Add the rest of the leaves, ¼ at a time until it is all incorporated and a beautiful green colour. Lastly, add the cheese and pulse once or twice to combine but do not over mix it. Pour into small airtight containers. Cover with a thin layer of olive oil to prevent it from turning brown if not using immediately. It will keep in an airtight container in the fridge for 1-2 weeks. You can freeze it in small amounts but be sure to remove all air to prevent freezer burn by covering the surface well with plastic wrap before freezing. Special equipment: blender, micro-plane grater Other versions to try: walnuts and parsley mint and almonds
85
Frittata Harley’s Tribute Chili Kathie’s Bean Salad Marinated Mushroom Salad Panzanella Senza Pane Rod’s Curried Chickpeas Rod’s Drunken Salmon Wayne’s Sangria Ambur’s Ice Cream Parade
93
FRITTATA 1 hour
$
GF
V
The thing I love about frittata is that you can use almost anything in it. When we got married there was a lot of food left over from the evening’s festivities. I piled it all into a greased roasting pan (salmon, scallops, halibut, mushrooms, onions, leeks, potatoes, roasted peppers, you name it) and whipped up 2 dozen eggs with some cream and baked it. It was a great breakfast for a dozen people with heavy heads and it used up all that gorgeous food. This recipe gives the instructions for a single serving and can be infinitely expanded depending on how many people you are serving. Use a skillet appropriate to the number of servings. Preheat oven to 350 degrees f.
For each serving: 2 strips bacon 1 tbsp./15 ml. olive oil 2 eggs fresh mushrooms, thinly sliced onions, sliced half a red or yellow pepper, thinly sliced 2 garlic cloves or shallots, minced 2 tbsp./30 ml. heavy cream ¼ c. shredded cheese(s) such as parmesan or fontina salt & pepper, q.b. fresh parsley, minced
Grease a large oven proof skillet or baking dish with a bacon strip or vegetable oil. Cook bacon in microwave wrapped in paper towel for 2 minutes. Cool and repeat in microwave until crispy. Break into small pieces. Sauté the vegetables in olive oil (in the skillet) for several minutes until soft. Whisk eggs and cream in a bowl. Pour egg mixture over vegetables, add the cheese, bacon, salt and pepper. Bake for about 45 minutes or until it rises and turns golden on top. If you are making a small one the time will be about 30 minutes. Garnish with parsley. Serve as soon as it is out of oven; cut into wedges. Romesco sauce is a nice accompaniment to this dish.
97
Beef Pho Soup Chicken Pho Soup Broccoli and Cheddar Cheese Soup Carrot Soup Old Fashioned Chicken Soup Fish Broth Minestrone Pasta and Chickpea Soup Summer Borscht
109
Beef Pho Soup
Fresh Pasta Pasta Carbonara Citrus Peel Pasta Gnocchi Notes on Paella Traditional Valencian Paella Seafood Paella Polenta Gnocchi Alla Romana Hangover Heaven Risotto Milanese Timballo
124
Fresh Pasta
125