8 minute read
The Sharing Table
With Chef Ben Kramer, Josie Duthoit, Jill Kwiatkoski, and Mike Muirhead
Photos by Ian McCausland
As we emerge from our homes after long periods away from family, friends, and even co-workers, we are once again gathering to share milestones and memories— and the obvious partner to those, food and wine. As we gather around our tables again, equal parts eager and trepidatious, the hallmark of gathering will be at the centre: shared meals.
Chef Ben Kramer seemed like an obvious choice for a feature on shared platters of food: he has been feeding gatherings of celebrating Manitobans for over 20 years. His approach to supporting the local community through sustainable ingredients kicked up a notch during the pandemic, when he spearheaded the local chapter of the Community Food Centres of Canada Made With Love program, converting over $150,000 in stranded food in shuttered Winnipeg restaurants into nutrient-dense meals for people who could not securely access food in the early days of the first lockdown. (Read more about how Winnipeggers have helped Ben sustain the Made With Love program for over 18 months—and how you can help reduce local food insecurity on page 54).
For our shared table, Ben came through with fresh, delicious flavours in his tomato leaf cavatelli with a simple tomato sauce and fresh ricotta and a coffeerubbed pork loin with garden herb salsa verde. Jones & Company’s own Josie contributed a Duthoit family original: warm yam and kale salad. Jill Kwiatkoski rounded out the meal with a Manitoba classic, rhubarb sour cream pie. Mike Muirhead brought it all together with a selection of versatile wines that pair with the diverse flavours in this feast of shared plates.
ROASTED SWEET POTATO AND CRISPY KALE SALAD
ROASTED SWEET POTATO AND CRISPY KALE SALAD
Serves 6
6 medium-sized yams, peeled
20 kale leaves
3 tbsp lemon-infused olive oil, split
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 cup dried cranberries
3/4 cup raw pumpkin seeds
1 cup walnuts
1 tsp cinnamon
3/4 cup unsalted sunflower seeds
Preheat oven to 400°F. Slice peeled yams to ½-cm-thin discs and then quarter them. Toss in extra virgin olive oil. Spread quartered yam pieces on a baking sheet in a single layer. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Roast yams for 35 minutes until slightly crispy.
Rip kale leaves off stems and break into large, bite-sized pieces. Toss kale in a mixing bowl with 2 tbsp lemoninfused olive oil. Show the kale a real good time: massage it, crunching the veins until it loses bitterness. Spread the kale pieces onto a baking sheet in a single layer. Roast kale for 30 minutes until crispy.
Note: Kale and yams can be roasted at the same time if your ovencan handle it. Cooking times may vary, depending on the oven.Check the yams and kale about 5 minutes before they should beready, and be prepared to leave them in for a few extra minutes.
Lightly toast pumpkin seeds and walnuts for 3 to 5 minutes and dust with cinnamon. Assemble the salad and drizzle with lemon-infused olive oil. Serve warm or cold—it’s delicious either way!
WHITE WINES FOR SHARING
Benazzoli 2019 Agata Pinot Grigio Veneto, Italy ($21.99) Paul Mas 2018 La Forge Estate Marsanne Languedoc-Roussillon, France ($18.99) Primosic 2018 Ribolla Gialla Friuli–Venezia Giulia, Italy ($26.99)
Winnipeg has incredible farmer’s markets from spring to fall. We took advantage of Jardins St-Léon Gardens for fresh yams, kale, and dried cranberries. We sourced Medium-Varietal and Lemon-Infused extra virgin olive oils from Frescolio Fine Oil + Vinegar, and we purchased our Chaeban Artisan Firm Feta from Mottola Grocery.
CAVATELLI WITH SIMPLE TOMATO SAUCE AND FRESH RICOTTA
CAVATELLI* WITH SIMPLE TOMATO SAUCE AND FRESH RICOTTA
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2 shallots, minced
2-4 garlic cloves, minced 5 lbs tomatoes, chopped sea salt fresh ricotta
Optional: for garnish, oven-dried Roma tomatoes and chili oil.
Heat oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add shallots and garlic, cook a couple of minutes until your kitchen smells great. Add some basil leaves, stir it up and marvel in the aroma. Add your tomatoes and a pinch of salt. Simmer for 8–10 minutes until it looks like sauce and is not too runny.
While your sauce is simmering, drop your pasta into salted, boiling water. Cook it until it is 90% done (you will finish cooking it in the sauce.) Add your pasta to the sauce and keep simmering. Add a splash of the starchy pasta water when you do this. Keep cooking until the noodles are fully cooked, and the sauce sticks to the noodles and is all magical. Plate your pasta and top with fresh ricotta and a drizzle of chili oil. We recommend Ben’s chili crisp: chili oil with crispy garlic and shallots—salty, spicy, and crispy!
*You can find Chef Ben Kramer’s recipe for Fresh Tomato LeafCavatelli at www.poisepublications.com/blog.
If the challenge of making pasta feels like too much, Ben recommends local pasta master, Renée Girard, whose fresh pasta can be ordered online at madebypaste.com. Chef Ben Kramer has a pantry on his website (chefbenkramer.com), where you can find his homemade chili crisp. Local cheesemaker extraordinaire Chaeban Artisan also sells fresh ricotta cheese, available at Mottola Grocery.
COFFEE-RUBBED PORK LOIN WITH GARDEN HERB SALSA VERDE
Coffee-Rubbed Pork Loin with Garden Herb Salsa Verde
1 pork loin or two pork tenderloins
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2 parts coffee, ground
2 parts garlic powder
2 parts cinnamon, ground
2 parts paprika
2 parts cane sugar
2 parts pumpkin seeds, toasted and ground
1 part chili powder
1 part black pepper, ground
1 part cumin, ground
1¼ part sea salt
*Note: As you have noticed, this recipe is in parts. That means thatwhatever you want to use to measure, use the same for all ingredients.Substitute the word “part” for whatever measuring utensil you like.You can use teaspoons, tablespoons, cups, a scoop, a wine glass,whatever! For one loin or two tenderloins, 1 part = 1 tsp was enough.
Coffee Rub
Combine all of the dry ingredients and mix well.
Pork Loin
You can use this method for either pork tenderloin or pork loin (try them both, and see which one you like better). Preheat your oven to 425°F. Clean the pork loin of most of the fat and all of the silver skin. Season the pork well with the coffee rub—get it all over the loin and rub it in. In an oven-proof skillet or cast iron pan, heat the olive oil on medium-high. Sear the loin until it is browned on all sides. Pop it in the oven and roast until the internal temperature reaches 135°F. Transfer the loin to a cutting board, cover it with foil, and let it rest 10 minutes. Slice and serve with salsa verde.
Garden Herb Salsa Verde
1 lbs tomatillos, husks removed
2 cloves of garlic, peeled
1 cup mixed chopped herbs*
2 shallots, diced
2 limes, zested and juiced
salt to taste
*Use whatever herbs you have in your herb garden that you like. I used cilantro, parsley, chives, and a bit of dill. Toss all of the ingredients into the food processor and pulse until it’s as chunky or smooth as you want. Want to get fancy? Roast your tomatillos and jalapeños first and season with salt to taste. Make it tasty!
RED WINES FOR SHARING
Evesham Wood 2018 Pinot Noir Willamette Valley, USA ($37.99), El Grillo e la Luna 2019 12 Lunas Garnacha Aragon, Spain ($26.99), Il Palazzo 2020 Sangiovese Tuscany, Italy ($14.99)
RHUBARB SOUR CREAM PIE
Pastry
2½ cups flour
1 cup butter (cold, cut into cubes)
8 tbsp cold water
2 tbsp lemon juice
Pinch of salt
Mix all ingredients with a pastry blender, so it all just comes together. Do not overmix. Shape into a disk, wrap tightly with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour. When ready to assemble the pie, take out dough and roll it into a shape to fit a buttered pie plate. Prick with a fork to make a few tiny holes in the bottom of the crust. Drape over the pie plate.
Sour Cream Rhubarb Pie Filling
1 egg
1 cup sour cream
1 cup sugar
3 tbsp cornstarch
½ tsp cinnamon
½ tsp nutmeg
3-4 cups rhubarb, chopped (fresh or frozen)
Mix egg and sour cream until smooth. Mix together dry ingredients—sugar, cornstarch, cinnamon, and nutmeg— and fold into sour cream and egg mixture. Stir in chopped rhubarb and mix to coat the rhubarb entirely. Pour the mixture into the prepared pie shell. Trim the pastry that is hanging over the edges of the pie plate.
Crumble Topping
½ cup rolled oats
½ cup brown sugar
½ cup flour
½ cup butter
Combine all ingredients until crumbly. Sprinkle over the rhubarb mixture in the pie shell. Don’t pack it on—it will sink into the pie as it bakes.
Bake pie at 400˚F for 15 minutes, then reduce the heat to 375˚F for 50–60 minutes. Watch the crust for doneness. Cool in the pie plate on a cooling rack, then refrigerate for at least 6 hours (it is even better overnight so the juices from the pie set). Serve with vanilla ice cream.
WINES FOR DESSERT
Domaine Loizeau le Clain 2016 Les Tuloires Coteaux de l’Aubance Loire Valley, France ($23.99), Arnaud Moreau nv Grand Cru Rosé Brut Champagne, France ($85.99)
