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This week on the podcast, we're cooking with fiddleheads. These are the furled fronds of a young fern plant, harvested for use as a vegetable. You may have seen them in the spring growing in the wild or packaged in your grocery store. We'd never tried them so this whole episode is an experiment and we learned quite a lot about fiddleheads.

First of all, whether you forage or buy your fiddleheads, they're not safe to eat raw. You'll need to wash and then boil or blanche the fiddleheads to remove toxins. Then they're safe to eat and are wonderful in salads or simply sautéed. We decided the flavour is something like a mild asparagus, but with better texture (nothing stringy here!). 

Heather took it a step further with inspiration from a favourite cook book (Bisous & Brioche by Rebecca Wellman and Laura Bradbury) to make a fiddlehead and leek cheese tart. It's a par baked pie crust (puff pastry would also be fantastic, and easy), with sautéed leaks and fiddleheads. Egg holds it together and then a pile of shredded emmental and Gruyère cheese finishes it off. The fiddleheads hold their shape, look beautiful and just taste so fresh on this tart.

After recording, Erin made a fiddlehead quiche that got rave reviews from her family. Fiddleheads would also be fantastic on flatbread or baked into focaccia. If they're new to you, give them a try next time they're in season where you live! 

Episode Links
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~ Fiddlehead and Leek Tart Recipe
~ Fiddlehead & Bacon Quiche Recipe
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Three Kitchens Podcast - a home cooking show
Check out our website  where you can listen to all of our episodes and find recipes on our blog:  www.threekitchenspodcast.com

You can support the show with a small donation at Buy Me A Coffee.

Want to be a guest? We want to hear from you!

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This week, Erin and Heather welcome Jessica Formicola to the podcast.  Jessica  discovered a passion for helping people around her learn to be better home cooks when her friends kept asking for her recipes after dinner parties at her house. Fast forward a few years and Jessica is the owner of the food blog at SavouryExperiments.com and author of a new cook book, Beef it Up!
 
Along the way, Jessica developed an approach to home cooking she calls the 5S philosophy:
Salt - knowing which salt to use in your dish and how to balance it is key
Seasoning - learn how to be a whiz with the spice cabinet
Swaps (or substitutions) - being able to pivot and make substitutions will help you gain confidence in the kitchen 
Sauces - use easy sauces to elevate your plate
Senses -  sight, smell, sound, feel and taste are important elements to the success of any good cook

Join us as we chat with Jessica about her philosophy, how she made a career switch from psychotherapy to food media, and as she shares her new cook book called Beef it Up!, full of recipes that feature - you guessed it - beef!

In this episode, we also get to chatting about our own experience with these five S words, so stay tuned after the interview to get some ideas and tips from your hosts. We refer to quite a few past episodes you might have missed or will enjoy revisiting - links below!

Happy cooking!

Episode Links
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~ Savory Experiments Website
~ Jessica Formicola's Cookbook Beef It Up!
~ Jessica Formicola on Instagram
~ Salt Preserved Lemons Recipe
~ Coconut Whip Cream Recipe
~ Oatmeal Breaded Chicken Fingers Recipe
~ Amba Sauce Recipe
~ Bacon Jam Recipe
~ Chimmichurri Recipe
~ Salsa Verde Recipe
~ Alabama White Sauce
~ Nuoc Cham Recipe
~ Bánh Xèo (Vietnamese Crêpe) Recipe
~ Herb Paste for Meat Recipe
~~~~

 

Three Kitchens Podcast - a home cooking show
Check out our website  where you can listen to all of our episodes and find recipes on our blog:  www.threekitchenspodcast.com

You can support the show with a small donation at Buy Me A Coffee.

Want to be a guest? We want to hear from you!

Join us on our socials!
Instagram @three_kitchens_podcast
Facebook @threekitchenspodcast
YouTube @threekitchenspodcast
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Chinese Spring Rolls and Vietnamese Spring Rolls -- what are the key differences? Erin really earns her pay this week by making both styles of spring roll for us, with no small amount of effort and frustration. The rolls themselves can be difficult to master so that they hold together, and the frying can be messy and stressful. But never fear -  Erin survived to tell the tale and has some suggestions for baking instead of frying. And man, they are all delicious! 

Chinese spring rolls are made with a filling of marinated pork, mushroom, carrot, bamboo shoots and other ingredients. They're wrapped in a spring roll wrapper and deep friend or baked.

Vietnamese spring rolls have a rice paper wrapper and a filling of ground pork, mung bean noodle, carrot, mushrooms and other ingredients. They're deep fried for a crispy-chewy bite we love.

We loved both of these spring rolls. It's really difficult to choose a favourite. They're quite different, from the approach with the filling, to the texture of the different wrappers.

Now, just because we happen to find deep frying a pain in the you-know-what, don't let that stop you from trying these spring rolls! Erin does recommend frying outdoors if you can, though, to keep the mess out of your kitchen. Or go with the baked Chinese rolls - find all the recipes below.   

   

Episode Links
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~ Chinese Spring Roll Recipe (Baked)
~ Vietnamese Spring Rolls Recipe (Fried)
~ How to Roll a Spring Roll
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Three Kitchens Podcast - a home cooking show
Check out our website  where you can listen to all of our episodes and find recipes on our blog:  www.threekitchenspodcast.com

You can support the show with a small donation at Buy Me A Coffee.

Want to be a guest? We want to hear from you!

Join us on our socials!
Instagram @three_kitchens_podcast
Facebook @threekitchenspodcast
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This week, Erin and Heather welcome Karen Pottruff to the podcast to share her experience with and tips for what snacks and meals to pack for your next hike or back country camping adventure. 

Karen is an avid outdoors person who has completed numerous remote and long distance treks, like British Columbia's Sunshine Coast Trail, the Great Divide Trail in Alberta Canada and Spain's el Camino (although Karen calls this last one luxury hiking). She's also an Ironman-level triathlete who likes to combine this hobby with a love for travel by competing in races all over the world. Karen has lots of insight to share based on her own trial and error with preparing for multiple days in the back country.   

Karen shares with us a few energy bar recipes as well, made with high-protein ingredients like nuts, quinoa, and chia. Heather and Erin have tested them and given their reviews. Find links below to those recipes.




Episode Links
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~ Chocolate & Chia Snack Bar recipe
~ Beetroot Energy Bar recipe
~~~~

 

Three Kitchens Podcast - a home cooking show
Check out our website  where you can listen to all of our episodes and find recipes on our blog:  www.threekitchenspodcast.com

You can support the show with a small donation at Buy Me A Coffee.

Want to be a guest? We want to hear from you!

Join us on our socials!
Instagram @three_kitchens_podcast
Facebook @threekitchenspodcast
YouTube @threekitchenspodcast
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Rate, review, follow, subscribe and tell your friends! 

Send us Fan Mail

We're wrapping up this season of Speakeasy cocktails with a strong and interesting one that Erin dug up from a recent read. She was a guest on the Best Book Ever Podcast with Julie Strauss and they read Endurance by Alfred Lansing. It's a book about the famous Ernest Shackleton's journey to Antarctica in the early 1900s.

While trapped in the frozen South, one of the men began talking about his favourite cocktail: The Bosom Caresser. Of course, this got Erin curious as to what this silly-named cocktail was, so she had to find out and share it with us. And now we're sharing it with you! We're not sure this is one that should come back to life but it was fun nonetheless, to discuss and have a few laughs over. Will you try it?

Go check out the Best Book Ever Podcast and let us know if you've read this one!

We're going to take a summer hiatus from recording our happy hours, but don't worry, we'll still be shaking up some fun over the summer and sharing what we drink.

Cheers, friends!

Episode Links
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~ Bosom Caresser Cocktail
~ Best Book Ever Podcast
~ Endurance by Alfred Lansing
~~~~

 

Three Kitchens Podcast - a home cooking show
Check out our website  where you can listen to all of our episodes and find recipes on our blog:  www.threekitchenspodcast.com

You can support the show with a small donation at Buy Me A Coffee.

Want to be a guest? We want to hear from you!

Join us on our socials!
Instagram @three_kitchens_podcast
Facebook @threekitchenspodcast
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This week on Three Kitchens Podcast, Heather makes vanilla extract at home. All you need is vodka, vanilla beans and patience while you wait for it to be ready.

If you're like us, and tend to be generous with vanilla in your recipes, you might like to make your own vanilla too. As you use your extract, add a little more vodka to keep it going for a few months. You'll save money on this expensive ingredient by making it yourself.

Heather also tried a quick Instant Pot method for making vanilla in under and hour. It's not her preferred method and she'll tell you why. But if you need vanilla today, it just might work out for you. 

We also get a little history lesson on vanilla courtesy of Heather's son, who sums up a Food Theory episode all about vanilla. Find the link to that below. 
 
Heather then uses her homemade vanilla extract to bake mini vanilla scones with a vanilla bean glaze. They're a delicious, sweet treat and a great way to showcase your homemade vanilla. Include them on a dessert spread or brunch table, or maybe for afternoon tea. They're easy to make and this is a great basic scone recipe - flavour them however you like (white chocolate raspberry are favourites around here). 

Episode links
~Vanilla extract
~Mini Glazed Vanilla Scones
~Food Theory: vanilla episode

 

Three Kitchens Podcast - a home cooking show
Check out our website  where you can listen to all of our episodes and find recipes on our blog:  www.threekitchenspodcast.com

You can support the show with a small donation at Buy Me A Coffee.

Want to be a guest? We want to hear from you!

Join us on our socials!
Instagram @three_kitchens_podcast
Facebook @threekitchenspodcast
YouTube @threekitchenspodcast
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This week on Three Kitchens Podcast Speakeasy we're experimenting with fermentation. 

Heather discovered a drinking vinegar - also known as a shrub. It can be mixed in cocktails or mocktails in almost any combination. But what is a shrub? 

A shrub is a method of fermenting, and therefore preserving, fruit. You combine fruit, vinegar and sugar and let it sit for 3-5 days in your fridge. You can also add herbs (think mint or basil). Heather made a blackberry and lemon shrub with apple cider vinegar and white sugar. The result is a zingy refreshing syrup that simply knocked our socks off and we've been experimenting with it ever since.   

We mixed up a cocktail with equal parts shrub, bourbon and tonic water. Erin made hers a mocktail by simply adding bubbly water to her shrub. Play around with your own version of a shrub and let us know how it turns out. We'll be making these all summer long! 

Blackberry Lemon Shrub Cocktail

Shake with ice equal parts:  

• blackberry lemon shrub
• bourbon

Top with (again, equal part)

• tonic/soda   

Pour over ice. Cheers!


Episode Links
~~~~
~ Shrub Cocktail Recipe
~~~~

 

Three Kitchens Podcast - a home cooking show
Check out our website  where you can listen to all of our episodes and find recipes on our blog:  www.threekitchenspodcast.com

You can support the show with a small donation at Buy Me A Coffee.

Want to be a guest? We want to hear from you!

Join us on our socials!
Instagram @three_kitchens_podcast
Facebook @threekitchenspodcast
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This week, Three Kitchens Podcast chats with Canadian chef, Carl Heinrich about the importance of knowing where your food comes from and how it is produced.  As we all know, when you cook with good quality ingredients, your food is just going to taste better. 

He talks about restaurant menu planning using the whole animal, and local seasonal produce. And Carl has tips for us to keep in mind when shopping at our local farmer's markets, and how parents can teach their kids from a young age to be mindful about the food we eat. 

Carl is co-owner of Richmond Station restaurant in Toronto, Canada. He was also the winner of the Food Network's Top Chef Canada, Season 2 (and yes, we ask Carl about performing on the high-pressure environment of a reality cooking show).

We also ask Carl what a professional chef eats at home when they're tired of cooking at work. One of his go-to snacks is a fried egg sandwich, so Erin has created a fried egg sandwich recipe for you on the blog, inspired by an Israeli Sabich sandwich (featured on a past Three Kitchens episode - link below). 

We hope all our Toronto listeners will head down to Richmond Station for a meal!
A great big thank you to Carl, for joining us on the podcast. 

Episode Links
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~ Fried Egg Sandwich Recipe
~ A Pita Sandwich called Sabich (Three Kitchens Podcast episode 2.38)
~ Richmond Station Restaurant
~ Top Chef Canada
~ Stratford Culinary School
~ Wychwood Barn Farmers Market
~ Ryan Donovan
~~~~

 

Three Kitchens Podcast - a home cooking show
Check out our website  where you can listen to all of our episodes and find recipes on our blog:  www.threekitchenspodcast.com

You can support the show with a small donation at Buy Me A Coffee.

Want to be a guest? We want to hear from you!

Join us on our socials!
Instagram @three_kitchens_podcast
Facebook @threekitchenspodcast
YouTube @threekitchenspodcast
TikTok @threekitchenspodcast

Rate, review, follow, subscribe and tell your friends! 

Send us Fan Mail

Summer is approaching and we're excited to do some good 'ol entertaining again! This week we've got a boozy, sparkling white sangria for you to add to your entertaining spread. 

Find yourself a classic punch bowl to stir it up in and set the scene for a memorable time. And what's better than a beautiful big punch bowl full of this sangria? Nothing. Grab a glass and a ladle and get ready to serve this up to your guests. Happy summertime from all of us. Cheers!

 

Three Kitchens Podcast - a home cooking show
Check out our website  where you can listen to all of our episodes and find recipes on our blog:  www.threekitchenspodcast.com

You can support the show with a small donation at Buy Me A Coffee.

Want to be a guest? We want to hear from you!

Join us on our socials!
Instagram @three_kitchens_podcast
Facebook @threekitchenspodcast
YouTube @threekitchenspodcast
TikTok @threekitchenspodcast

Rate, review, follow, subscribe and tell your friends! 

Send us Fan Mail

This week on Three Kitchens Podcast, we're celebrating Mother's Day with a Persian Love Cake recipe.  This moist, delicious cake is flavoured with cardamom, orange, rose and saffron. This combination of delightful flavours is sure to impress for Mother's Day or any day!

This cake is made with three flours - all-purpose, semolina and almond flour. The semolina helps give this cake a warm yellow colour. A saffron scented syrup is poured over while the cake is warm and then your patience will be tested while you leave it over night before serving. 

Heather guarantees this is an easy recipe that you can whip up - literally, all you need is a bowl and a whisk - quickly the day before you plan to serve it. The next time she bakes it, she'll find some dried rose petals to decorate the cake - that's your hot tip to really put this beautiful cake over the top! 
 
It's safe to say we're in love with Persian Love Cake.

Episode Links
~~~~
~ Persian Love Cake Recipe
~ Mother's Day Trivia
~ Jimmy's A & A Restaurant
~ Turca Cafe
~~~~

 

Three Kitchens Podcast - a home cooking show
Check out our website  where you can listen to all of our episodes and find recipes on our blog:  www.threekitchenspodcast.com

You can support the show with a small donation at Buy Me A Coffee.

Want to be a guest? We want to hear from you!

Join us on our socials!
Instagram @three_kitchens_podcast
Facebook @threekitchenspodcast
YouTube @threekitchenspodcast
TikTok @threekitchenspodcast

Rate, review, follow, subscribe and tell your friends!