Holiday Recipes

Food & Beverage Holiday Recipes

As we head into the festive season, Chef Serge L’Ecuyer, is inspired by the province of Quebec and East Coast traditions. Join Serge in creating your own delicious, homemade holiday meal to enjoy with your loved ones. Recipes serve 8 people.

by chef serge l’ecuyer

Bring rural Quebec Christmas home this year with a freshly baked Tourtière. This French-Canada meat pie dish is the perfect savoury treat for a holiday lunch or dinner. Typically, made with minced pork, veal, beef, wild game, or potatoes, this scrumptious snack is sure to evoke a feeling of hearty tradition. Regional varities of the dish are abound in Francophone areas of Canada. In Nova Scotia, Acadian pork tourtière often adds hare or chicken, while rural French Manitobans create a distinctive flavour by adding nutmeg, cloves, cinnamon, and dry mustard. There is no one correct filling; the meat depends on what is regionally available.

Ingredients

• 1 oz vegetable oïl • 10 oz lean ground pork • 10 oz lean ground beef

• 6 oz minced yellow onion • 1-1/2 Tbsp minced garlic

• 14 oz water • 1-1/2 Tbsp allspice • 1 tsp kosher salt

• 1 cup panko crumbs • 1 - 8” raw pie crust* • 1 – 9” raw pie crust for top*

Instructions

In a pan, on medium heat, heat the first three ingredients until the meat has browned – approx. 5 min, while stirring. Then add the onion and garlic, while continuing to cook for another 5 min. Add the water, allspice, and kosher salt, while switching the heat to low until the liquid is almost reduced. Finally, add the panko crumbs and cook for another 3 min. Increase heat to medium and continue stirring. Let the mixture rest for 30 min and then pour contents into the 8" pie crust bottom. Cover with crust top and then brush crust with an egg wash. Bake at 350°F until golden. Serve with tomato chutney recipe on the following page (can also substitute panko crumbs with mash potato).

Holiday Recipes

If you're serving a tourtière at a holiday brunch, the perfect pairing is a tomato chutney ketchup. This tangy and sweet mix of tomatoes, maple syrup, vinegar, and spices will add complex flavour on the side of your traditional meat pie. With simple instructions and a swift cooking time, the recipe is easy to complete while your tourtière is baking in the oven. Chef Serge's ketchup is so tasty you'll have to remind family & friends that it's a condiment and not a side dish!

INgredients

• 10 medium tomatoes cut in wedges • 1 Tbsp – minced garlic • ¼ cup – white balsamic vinegar • ½ cup - maple syrup • 1 tsp kosher salt • ¼ tsp ground cloves • 2 Tbsp tomato paste

Instructions

Add all ingredients in a medium sized pot. Bring to a boil and reduce heat to a simmer in order to thicken the mixture (approx. 15 min). Cool and serve with tourtière.

Deliciously rich, this popular staple of Quebecois cuisine is simply parfaite. End your meal on a sweet note with an easy to make and flavorsome tarte au sucre, otherwise known as a sugar pie. Its fabulous blend of brown sugar, maple syrup, and eggs is reminiscent of the texture of pumpkin pie. Best served with whipped cream or ice cream.

Ingredients

• 1 can condensed milk (13 oz) • 3 eggs • ½ cup brown sugar • ¼ cup maple syrup

Instructions

Mix the milk and egg in a bowl, then add remaining ingredients. Pour the mixture into a 8” pie crust bottom. Bake at 320°F for 40 to 50 min until slightly firm. Let your pie cool and then serve with whipped cream or ice cream. ♦