Family Friendly Fiddleheads

One of my favourite things about spring is the gradual addition of fresh, local fruits and vegetables to our daily meal plan. One of the spring vegetables I particularly get excited about are fiddleheads.  If you have never eaten fiddleheads before or if you have seen them while strolling through the produce section at your local supermarket but hesitated to pick them up, you are in for a pleasant surprise!

Fiddleheads may look funny, but they taste good!

Despite this vegetable’s unusual curly appearance, fiddleheads are actually quite delicious. Their mild taste has been likened to that of asparagus or spinach, and cooked correctly their texture is crunchy, with a wee bit of leafy chewiness.  If your kids like their green vegetables then they should like fiddleheads.

Storing, preparing & cooking fiddleheads

Fiddleheads should be stored in the fridge and only stay fresh for a few days (I like to buy them the same day as I cook them). They are easy to prepare and cook.

Preparing fiddleheads:

1.      Fill your sink or a bowl with fresh, cold water

2.     Remove any brown outer scales with your hand or by using a cloth

3.     Trim or snap off the ends of the stems

4.     Rinse them again in cold water

Cooking fiddleheads:

Fiddleheads can be steamed, sautéed, stir-fried or (my favourite) barbecued.

How to BBQ fiddleheads

Simply put the washed and trimmed fiddleheads in a bowl and mix with a desired amount of olive oil (not too much, just a tbsp. or two depending how many fiddleheads you have), freshly squeezed lemon juice, minced garlic, and salt and pepper.

Stir until the fiddleheads are fully covered with the oily sauce then place them in tinfoil and fold until just a small portion of the fiddleheads can be seen (to let the steam out).  

Place on the BBQ at about 400 degrees for about 10 minutes or until the fiddleheads are bright green and soft in texture (a fork will easily pierce them). Be careful not to overcook them or they will become mushy.

Fiddleheads facts

Fiddleheads are high in omega 3 fatty acids, fibre, vitamins A and C as well as potassium, iron, manganese and Vitamin B Complex. They are also a great antioxidant food.

Fiddleheads are grown mainly in the east coast of Canada from ostrich ferns, so although there are several different varieties of ferns, including some grown in the woods or even in your garden they should not be consumed. Only expert harvesters can safely identify edible fiddleheads, so don’t just pick any old fern head and cook it up or you risk getting very ill! 

The fiddlehead season is very short – usually a month maximum (around April and May) and unlike some fruits and vegetables that gets imported you generally won’t see fiddleheads in stores if they are not in season. They grow quickly and must be picked the day they sprout – before they turn into full out ferns!

Fiddleheads are a delicious seasonal treat and I like to think of them as the kick off to local produce season! So, have are you a fiddlehead loving family like we are? I’d love to know your recipe! And if you haven't tried them yet - NOW is your chance!

Worth a Visit: Truffle Treasures

It's our weekly "Worth a Visit" series! Have an idea you'd like to submit? The only requirements are that it must be in the Ottawa region and kid-friendly! Email Misty at kidsinthecapital@gmail.com

I discovered Truffle Treasures when we first moved to Ottawa. In their old location along Richmond Road (still there, just a different building!) I was excited to find local chocolates handmade and oh-so-divine. Customers can choose from many different flavours of truffles, as well as bark, gelato and products made especially for the holidays (Valentine's Day is coming up!)

What I discovered a couple of years ago, and what keeps me going back there, is their AH-MA-ZING hot chocolate. This is hot chocolate like I've never tasted before - forget the chemical/watery stuff you can find at arenas all around town. This hot chocolate tastes like pure chocolate melted down, and then whipped with super creamy milk.

If you're looking for a special Valentine's dates with your little ones, consider a hot chocolate trip to Truffle Treasures. Just be careful, as this is HOT chocolate, and you will need to remove the lid and let it cool :) Just take a peek at all the various flavours of the drink you can choose from.

Have you been to Truffle Treasures with your kids? What did they like the best?

New Food Challenge

by Misty

A friend of mine recently snapped a picture of this book at the grocery store the other day and tagged me on Facebook. Two days later, a different friend sent me this handy chart.

Hmmm, could my friends be trying to tell me something? It’s no secret that my oldest daughter is Picky with a capital “P.” We tried baby-led weaning with my youngest and I suspected that’s why she turned out to be much more adventurous at dinner time. But I’ve been told by many other parents that personality often plays a big part in children’s fussiness at the dinner table.

My five year-old is certainly one determined little girl. Meltdowns occur daily over things like itchy tags, socks with a “bump,” pants that are too baggy, and hair that gets in her face. When it comes to food, she doesn’t like things mixing on her plate, food touching, weird textures, and specks or flakes (i.e. herbs and spices). But most of all, she doesn’t like anyone telling her what she should/should not eat. She definitely thrives with control.

So I’m excited to start a new food challenge with her this year. Using a combination of the chart above and the book, we’ll be trying as many new foods as we can manage. She’ll have a hand in designing a little chart, choosing new foods she would like to try (pomegranates and blood oranges are at the top of my list of new suggestions!), and helping to prepare them. I can’t wait to see how this goes!

Do you have a picky eater? How do you manage mealtimes with your family?

Barbecued Apples

OK, hear me out. I realize summer is over. The temperatures are dropping, and even though I'm clinging desperately to the last of my vegetables, the frost will soon win. But there's still time to barbeque before the snow falls! And what's better in October than freshly picked apples?

barbecued apple

What you need:

4-6 Ontario apples
2 tbsp butter
1 tbsp brown sugar (or maple syrup, or honey!)
1/2 tsp cinnamon
pinch of icing sugar

Core the top of the apples (you can leave the bottom intact so the sweet, gooey stuff doesn't drip out onto your barbecue). In a small bowl, mix the butter, brown sugar and cinnamon. Place a dab inside each apple. Put the apples on the bbq and cook until the skin is wrinkly - be careful they don't burn! Sprinkle with icing sugar and serve with vanilla ice cream.

Flashback: Apple Picking at Mountain Orchard

Apparently this is THE place to be for apple picking every year! Ali wrote this post several years ago....have you been to Mountain lately?

It's that time of year again. The air is getting crisper and the kids are settling into their school routine. For me, fall always means apple picking. Every fall for the past several years, my girls gather a bunch of friends and we go apple picking.

Mountain Orchard has always been our orchard of choice. It's a great place for families, it's close to Ottawa (only a short 40 minute drive on the 416 toward Kempville) and the majority of the trees there are actually the direct descendants of the original McIntosh tree, first discovered by John McIntosh in Dundela, Ontario, in 1829. I think that's pretty cool.

Mountain Orchard is about more then just apple picking. There are corn maizes, wagon rides, a hay jump and (best of all) the hot fresh apple cider donuts that are made right in front of you. They are the real reason we go back every year. Well, that and the fresh apple cider.

My girls love climbing into the apple trees to get the apples and there are trees for kids of all ages - with ladders for the older kids to climb and low hanging branches for the little ones.

No matter where you go apple picking, it's a great way to spend time with your family and friends and get outside to enjoy the fall weather. All the apple orchard near Ottawa are open now and many, like Mountain Orchard, are open every day until the apple picking season is done (usually by the end of September).

Have you been apple picking yet? We're going again this weekend!