EnviroCentre is hosting its annual climate action fundraiser as a virtual event this year. As we won’t be able to tantalize your tastebuds with our catering, we’re providing you with a menu you can make from home!
What? You don’t have tickets to the ball? Get them here!
Fancy fun food for all skill levels with a focus on low-carbon ingredients.
Local and seasonal plant-based ingredients help keep the carbon footprint of these dishes low. Pull out your nicest dishes to make everything feel fancier at home!
Recipes
Appetizers
Crudité Platter with Green and Red Veggie Dips
Ingredients
Any assortment of your favourite local in-season vegetables for dipping.
Green Dip
- 1 bunch green onion
- 1 lemon, juiced
- 1 avocado, pitted and cubed
- 1 bunch basil
- 1 bunch chives
- 1 bunch mint
Simply toss all ingredients into a food processor or blender and blend until smooth! Season with salt and pepper.
Red Dip
- 4 roasted red peppers (from a jar)
- 1 garlic clove
- ½ cup toasted walnuts
- 2 tbsp harissa paste or ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 lemon, juiced
Simply toss all ingredients into a food processor or blender and blend until smooth! Season with salt and pepper.
Inspired by this recipe.
Asparagus Toasts
Tasty toasts are always a hit, and fresh, local asparagus is in season now! If you’ve gotten into making your own bread during quarantine, definitely put it to use in this recipe. Sub in any store-bought bread of your choice, or skip the bread all together to highlight peak produce.
Ingredients
- Bread
- Olive oil
- 1-2 bunches Asparagus
- 2 cups Green peas (fresh or frozen)
- 1 Lemon
- 1 clove garlic
- 1 bunch Mint
- Red pepper flakes (optional)
Directions
Step 1.
Preheat oven to 425. Wash and trim asparagus, slice into 1 inch pieces, set aside. Mince garlic. Slice bread into desired size and thickness.
Step 2.
Toss asparagus and minced garlic with 2 tbsp olive oil, salt and pepper. Drizzle sliced bread with olive oil and season with salt and pepper, and then arrange the veg and bread in one even layer on a baking sheet. Cook for 7-9 minutes, or until asparagus is crisp-tender and bread is toasted and browned.
Step 3.
Bring a kettle of water to a boil. Pour over peas in a bowl until thawed and warmed through (about 5 minutes). Drain and return to bowl. Add ¾ of the zest and juice of 1 lemon (reserve the rest for topping) and mash with a potato masher or fork until creamy with some small pieces remaining. Season with salt and pepper.
Step 4.
Spread the pea mixture over each slice of toast, and top with roasted asparagus. Drizzle with olive oil, reserved lemon zest and juice, torn mint leaves, and red pepper flakes (if using).
Inspired by this recipe.
Dessert
Chocolate almond fudge bars
Ingredients
For the base:
- ¾ cup hazelnuts (Did you know that hazelnuts can be grown in Canada?)
- 1 cup rolled oats
- ½ cup oat flour (make your own by whizzing up your rolled oats into a finer flour)
- ¼ cup virgin coconut oil
- 3 tablespoons pure maple syrup
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
For the middle layer:
- 1 cup almond or peanut butter
- Avoid plastic packaging and look for glass jars that can be recycled.
- ½ cup virgin coconut oil
- ¼ cup pure maple syrup
- ½ tablespoon pure vanilla extract
- Avoid plastic packaging and look for glass jars that can be recycled.
For the topping:
- ½ cup chocolate chips
- Look for organic, fair-trade, and rainforest alliance certifications to support more sustainable and ethically produced cocoa
- ½ tablespoon virgin coconut oil
Directions
Preheat oven to 350 and line an 8-inch square pan with two pieces of parchment paper, one going each way, to make it easy to remove. Make sure to compost your parchment paper after using!
For the crust:
Add the hazelnuts into a food processor or blender and blend until it has a sandy texture. Add the oat flour, oil, maple syrup, and salt and process until combined and sticky. Add the cup of rolled oats and process until a dough comes together. Press the dough evenly into the prepared pan. Poke a few holes with a fork to let air escape. Bake, uncovered, for around 10-13 minutes. Place pan on cooling rack for at least 10 minutes.
For the middle layer:
In a medium saucepan, stir the almond butter, oil, maple syrup, vanilla, and salt and heat over medium until the coconut oil is melted and the mixture is smooth. Whisk if necessary. Remove from heat. When the crust has cooled, pour this mixture into the pan. Place in the freezer for 40-45 minutes, until solid.
For the chocolate topping:
In a saucepan, melt the chocolate and coconut oil over low-medium heat. Once it is mostly melted, remove from heat and stir until completely smooth. Remove pan from the freezer and spoon chocolate over top. Return the bars to the freezer until the chocolate is set. Slice into pieces and enjoy!
Store leftovers in the fridge or freezer (they will melt if kept at room temperature for too long).
Inspired by this recipe.
Drinks
Cocktail (Alcoholic OR Non-alcoholic): Rhubarb Collins
Rhubarb is an early seasonal fruit in Ontario, and you are likely to start seeing it at stores or markets in April and May. If you can’t find fresh rhubarb, frozen rhubarb also works, or you can make the simple syrup with any other in season fruit that looks good! Try to avoid things that come wrapped in extra packaging or have travelled very far to get to you to reduce the footprint of your food.
Ingredients:
- 1 stalk of fresh rhubarb, washed, trimmed and cut into ½ inch pieces (compost the leaves)
- ½ cup sugar
- 2 ounces gin (skip this for a non-alcoholic version)
- 1 ounce lemon juice
- 2 to 4 ounces sparkling wine OR soda water (for a non-alcoholic version)
Directions:
Step 1.
Prepare the rhubarb simple syrup: In a small pot, combine the rhubarb and sugar with ¾ cup water and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and simmer until slightly thickened and color brightens, about 20 minutes.
Step 2.
Let the syrup cool then pour through a fine-mesh sieve set over a bowl or jar. Press down gently to get out all the liquid, and the compost the solids.
Step 3.
In a cocktail shaker (if you’re fancy) or in a mason jar, combine 1 ounce of the rhubarb simple syrup with the gin and lemon juice. Fill the shaker (or jar) with ice and shake until well mixed.
Step 4.
Pour into a tall glass and top with sparkling wine or sparkling water (for a non-alcoholic version).
Tips for Low-Carbon Drinks
- Buy local!
- For non-alcoholic beverages, look for local preserves to fancy up your drinks!
- Fruits and syrups add flavour to sparkling waters
- Pickled veggies are a great addition to savoury drinks like tomato juice
- Check out Top Shelf Preserves, Michael’s Dolce, and more in Ottawa!
- For non-alcoholic beverages, look for local preserves to fancy up your drinks!
- Look for recyclable containers with the least amount of packaging
- Try to avoid buying beverages that come in plastic containers.
- Look for glass or aluminum which are easily recycled.
- Buying one larger container usually means less packaging waste than multiple small ones.
- Return and recycle (for refunds!)
- LCBO and Ontario winery and distillery packaging can also be returned to The Beer Store.