Our Cooking Light Virtual Supper Club is meeting again, this month we are featuring Regional Cooking.
I was born and raised in Quebec. It is a tradition for Quebecers to go to the sugar shack in the Spring and eat a good meal. The meal, also called “Sugar time feast” is compose of the pea soup, ham, omelette, pork beans, the “oreilles de crisse” (salted back bacon), fruit ketchup, and potatoes. For desert, the pancakes & donuts are served with maple syrup. It is served family style, they bring big plates on the table and we served ourselves as we wish.
My parents had friends that had a sugar shack and helped during the Spring to make maple syrup. We always had real maple syrup on our table all year long. Now that I have left home it is a tradition, in the Spring, for my parents to send me a big box of maple syrup. When I open the box it reminds me of so many childhood memories.
I wanted to share my tradition with my 'Virtual Cooking Friends' and decided to bring a dish that would feature a product from the region that I was born.
I made a delicious Spinach Salad with Maple-Dijon Vinaigrette. I substituted the spinach for local grown lettuce and apples with yellow plums. All the flavors of the vinaigrette are going so well together. You can add candied walnuts for added crunch.
Below is the type of dishes we made along with a link to each virtual supper club member's blog. Make sure you click on their names to visit their blog and see what they brought to the table.
Appetizer - Val: Herbed Goat Cheese
Salad - Helene: Spinach Salad with Maple-Dijon Vinaigrette
Entrée - Jamie: Pan-seared Shrimp Po-boys
Dessert - Aggie: Key Lime Pie
Dessert - Shelby: Double Maple Cupcakes
SPINACH SALAD WITH MAPLE DIJON VINAIGRETTE
Ingredients:
1/4 cup maple syrup
3 tbsps minced shallots (about 1 medium)
2 tbsps red wine vinegar
1 tbsp canola oil
1 tbsp Dijon mustard
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1 garlic clove, minced
1 cup sliced mushrooms
1/2 cup sliced red onion
1/2 cup chopped Braeburn apple
4 bacon slices, cooked and crumbled
1 (10-ounce) package fresh spinach
Recipe:
Here's the link to the recipe: Spinach Salad with Maple-Dijon Vinaigrette
