42 Back-to-it bites Bag lunches, quick dinners and make-ahead meals are the


order of the day as many families return to the routine of fall from the delightful pandemonium of summer eating. Fresh, home-made bread can be a bit of a pain to make if


you’re short on time but there are lots of very tasty recipes for quick breads, which are leavened with baking powder or baking soda instead of yeast, which requires time to grow and make its magic. They have a different texture and flavour than yeast breads, but they’re just as delicious, toast up well and can provide a nutritious and flavourful bite of something new for the lunch box.


Jude’s Kitchen JUDIE STEEVES


When time is an issue, it’s always a relief to have something


in the freezer you can pull out to make a quick dinner for the family, especially if it means you’ve provided some variety without a lot of expensive ingredients. With all those tomatoes you either canned or froze whole this summer, you’ve got the ideal base ingredient for tomato sauce, which is a vital ingredient in so many main meals, from meatloaf to spaghetti, Lasagne to sloppy Joes, pizza to chili, and even chicken Parmesan or Spanish chicken and rice. If you’ve still got zucchini getting bigger in your garden, toss them into whatever tomato-based dish you make. They’re a great combination, along with some onions and garlic from yours or the nearest farmer’s field. In fact, you could even forget the meat with lots of fresh vegetables cooked together in the same pot or pan. Fall is the perfect time to pig out on fresh fruits and


vegetables from the fields of local farms because so many are ripe for harvesting at this time of year. Not only are many of our summer fruits and vegetables still


available but those fall ones are coming in from the orchard and field now too. Think BC apples and pears, berries and those distinctive blue Coronation grapes; onions and garlic, carrots, turnips and beets, celery and cabbage, winter and summer squashes, and of course, mushrooms and potatoes ... BC has the most diverse agricultural sector of anywhere in


Canada, and we can celebrate that every day by nourishing our family with the proceeds. Not only our produce, but our meats, poultry, cheeses, honey and seafoods are second to none. I’ve travelled around this province this summer, from Tofino


to Revelstoke, and I’m pretty impressed with the variety of local agricultural products that are available wherever I go. Not only am I a proud Canadian celebrating my country’s


150th year, I’m especially proud to be part of this province. In fact, I’ll raise a glass of BC wine to that! Maybe even join in some of the hundreds of events pairing our wine and food during this month’s annual Fall Okanagan Wine Festival. Maybe I’ll see you there?


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COUNTRY LIFE IN BC • SEPTEMBER 2017


Back-to-school snack that’s easy to make: buttermilk oak quick bread. JUDIE STEEVES PHOTO BUTTERMILK OAT QUICK BREAD with CHEESE


This is tasty, fresh breakfast fare or with a bowl of soup for lunch; or reheated or toasted the next day with fresh tomatoes or cheese. You could add a minced green onion or a teaspoon or two of chopped fresh rosemary to this for a different flavour. It’s great for bag lunches or picnics, too.


1/2 c. (125 ml) oats 1 1/2 c. (375 ml) flour


1 tbsp. (15 ml) brown sugar 1/2 tsp. (2 ml) baking soda 1 egg


3/4 c. (175 ml) grated cheddar


• Lightly grease a 4x8-inch loaf pan. I have a couple of half-loaf-sized pans which I sometimes use to make two smaller loaves in place of one larger one.


• Pre-heat the oven to 350° F. • Soak the whole oats in buttermilk for a half hour or so, while you measure out the other ingredients.


• Combine the dry ingredients in a large bowl. • Beat the egg in a smaller bowl and add in the olive oil and grated well-aged cheddar cheese. You may wish to reserve a little cheese to sprinkle on the top of the loaf.


• Add the oats and buttermilk mixture and the egg and oil mixture to the dry ingredients and combine quickly, with a minimum of mixing. • Scrape out into the prepared loaf pan and bake for about 45 minutes in a 350° F oven, or until brown.


• Let sit for just a few minutes before slicing and serving warm. • Makes one regular-sized loaf. Serves 4.


EM’S BURGER BALLS


These are great fun for both little kids and big kids, with a surprise molten centre in each, and they can be prepared ahead easily, then frozen for another day to reheat quickly in the sauce for a complete dinner, with a slice of cheese bread and a salad on the side.


Burger Balls: 1 small onion


1 lb. (454 g) lean ground beef 1 egg


1 garlic clove


1/4 c. (60 ml) fine bread crumbs (or oat bran) 1 tsp. (5 ml) Sriracha hot sauce


1 tsp. (5 ml) Worcestershire Sauce salt and pepper, to taste cubes of mature cheddar cheese to stuff each meatball


• Chop onion into fine dice and mince garlic. • Into a large bowl mix the lean ground beef with bread crumbs, beaten egg and seasonings, onion and garlic. Use your hands to finish mixing, for a nice fluffy meatball.


• Then form large meatballs with the mixture, about an inch or 1 1/5-inches in diameter. Push a cube of cheese into the centre of each, re-covering the entry hole with meat mixture and rounding out the meatball again.


Sauce: 1 onion


fresh oregano


small tin of tomato paste salt and pepper, to taste


2 garlic cloves


1 large can or jar of prepared tomato sauce or tomatoes fresh oregano


Mince onion and garlic and soften in a drizzle of oil in a frypan on medium heat. Add remaining ingredients and cook together until the flavours have come together. Fry or bake the meatballs in a hot oven for a half-hour or so. Add the cooked meatballs to the sauce for a few minutes and serve over pasta or rice.


1 c. (250 ml) buttermilk


1/2 c. (125 ml) whole wheat flour 1 1/2 tsp. (7 ml) baking powder 1 tsp. (5 ml) salt


1/4 c. (60 ml) olive oil


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