Mango Coconut Bread

This bread was so good that the only good photos I have of it are of this little half-slice.
Recently I participated in my friend Kristina's 100 Women Project. Kristina is always baking treats for everybody else, so I decided I would bring some to share with her and the other ladies at the event. Mama T had just bought a couple cases of Ataulfo mangoes that surprisingly were not disappearing nearly quickly enough, so I decided to try my own version of this fresh mango bread from Montcarte, which she adapted from Dorie Greenspan's book, Baking: From My Home to Yours

I know when it comes to quickbreads, many people like them light and sweet, like a cake, but I prefer to play up the word "bread" and make them dense and substantial. I've had success with cutting half the sugar out of one of Dorie's recipes before, so I did the same here, and obviously swapped in whole wheat flour for white. Generally I sub in a mix of ground flaxseed and oat bran for part of the flour (here it was that last ½ cup) just for some extra fibre and nutrition – you can do the same with whatever ground nut, seed or bran you have on hand; those are just what I usually have in my home.


The original recipe calls for raisins, but I thought coconut would be a better addition to the mango and lime zest. Next time I would definitely try the fresh ginger as well, and maybe tinkering with the spices a bit more.


This bread is so great. Overall, it has just a hint of sweetness. The coconut adds to the bread's dense, chewy texture, while the diced mango adds pockets of fresh, bright, sweet and tart flavour. I know the saturated fat content might be a little scary, but most of that comes from the coconut - while I don't buy into the marketing that it is some miracle, fat-burning fruit, the main saturated fat in coconut is lauric acid, which is made up of shorter chains than palmitic acid (the most common type in foods like beef and butter), and is processed differently in our bodies. (For example, patients who have malabsorption in hospitals are sometimes given these medium-chain fats so that they are easier to absorb.) Like palmitic acid, lauric acid does increase our LDL "bad/lousy" cholesterol, but it also increases our HDL "good/healthy" cholesterol. Of course, all fats (healthy or not), contribute 9 calories per gram, so enjoy in moderation!

Mango Coconut Bread
Adapted from Montcarte/Baking: From My Home to Yours
Makes 1 loaf

• 3 large eggs
  
• ¾ cup (185 mL) canola oil
  
• 2½ cups (625 mL) whole wheat flour
  
• ½ cup (125 mL) sugar
  
• 1 tsp (5 mL) baking powder
  
• 1 tsp (5 mL) baking soda
  
• 1½ tsp (7 mL) ground or fresh grated ginger
  
• 1 tsp (5 mL) cinnamon
  
• ¼ cup (60 mL) light brown sugar
  
• 2 cups (500 mL) diced mango (about 2-3 mangoes)
  
• ¾ cup (185 mL) sweetened shredded coconut
  
• Zest from ½ lime

1. Centre a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 350˚F (175˚C). Grease and flour a 8½" × 4½" loaf pan. Put the pan on an insulated baking sheet or on two regular baking sheets stacked one on top of the other.
   
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together eggs and oil. Set aside.
   
3. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, flaxseed, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, spices and salt. Rub the brown sugar between your palms into the bowl, breaking up any lumps, then stir it in.
   
4. Pour the wet ingredients over the dry, and use a sturdy rubber spatula or wooden spoon to mix until blended. The batter will be very thick and doughy, but persevere, it will soon come together.
   
5. Stir in the mango, coconut and lime zest. Scrape the batter into the pan and smooth the top with a rubber spatula.

Nutrition Info (per ¾" slice): 349 calories, 19 g fat (4 g saturated), 50 mg cholesterol, 42 g carbohydrate (4 g fibre, 21 g sugar), 6 g protein, 196 mg sodium. An excellent source of vitamin E, manganese and selenium. A good source of vitamin K and magnesium.

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Without Papers

Cross-posted from Calgary is Awesome.

You may be surprised to learn that my friend Tiffany and I eat meals other than brunch together. A few weeks ago, we went for supper at Without Papers, a new pizzeria in Inglewood run by the owners of Sugo just next door.

The name "Without Papers" is actually a tongue-in-cheek reference to the fact that although the restaurant specializes in thin-crust, Neapolitan-style pizza, they are not registered with the Associazone Verace Pizza Napoletana, the international group that ensures that its members adhere to strict specifications (including ingredients and method) that make a Neapolitan pizza.

The restaurant takes over the space that was previously occupied by Nectar Desserts, the former venture of ousted Top Chef Canada competitor, Rebekah Pearse. The new owners have made the space appear larger by knocking down a few walls to create a semi-open kitchen. They've also gotten rid of the clunky (but comfy!) furniture that was in Nectar, and replaced it with seating that lines the perimeter of the restaurant and the stairs in the middle that blends in nicely with the existing creaky wooden floors and exposed brick walls. The only downside to the renos is that there isn't a lot of space for people waiting for a table - when it's busy, potential patrons are either blocking the narrow stairway or hovering awkwardly close to people seated at the bar.


Tiffany had been to Without Papers once before, and recommended the Hogwild ($18), a white pizza with spicy wild boar sausage, prosciutto, braised rapini and friulano cheese. She did warn that some people found the combination of sausage and prosciutto too salty. Coincidentally, shortly before we ordered, we ran into Julie, who, without asking what we were planning to have, said that she found the Hogwild too salty.

We ordered it anyway.


Perhaps the trick to enjoying Hogwild is the expectation that it would be salty. I liked the contrast in texture between the crisp prosciutto and the bits of spicy, ground boar, and I thought that the bittersweet rapini did a great job cutting through all the saltiness. The crust was nicely charred and full of air pockets, though those who like Neapolitan pizza may find the crust a little too crisp, without much chew. (I didn't mind.)

Interestingly, it was our other pizza, the Baby Doll ($18), that I found too salty, with its large chunks of canned artichoke. I felt that it took away from the rest of the toppings, which included eggplant (don't remember this being on the pizza at all), roasted free-range chicken, cherry tomatoes and goats' cheese.


As per fellow Calgary is Awesome editor Irene's advice, we paid the extra $3 to get the bolognese dipping sauce. The sauce was warm, tomatoey and meaty, but there's so little crust on the pizzas at Without Papers (which is a good thing, in my opinion) that next time I would probably skip it.


Tiffany and I each ate four slices of pizza (aka 2/3 of a pizza each), so we couldn't enjoy all the other delicious treats that are available at Without Papers - their menu boasts a list of shared appetizers, an eclectic selection of wines and beers (including Mill Street Lemon Tea ale) and house-made ice creams that can be enjoyed by themselves, or in a Grizzly Paw soda float (mmm...)

Without Papers doesn't take reservations, so be prepared to show up early (and wait!)

Without Papers
Upstairs, 1216 9 Ave SE
Calgary AB T2G 0T1
(403) 457-1154
Open Tues-Sat 11 AM-11 PM; Sun 3 PM-11 PM. Closed Mondays. No reservations.

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2011 Goals Check-Up: April

A picture may be worth 1,000 words, but I blog much faster without photos
Here is my monthly checkup for the goals I (should be) working on:

7.5 hours of sleep per night - I slept so much in Cuba! Usually I am always up before B. on weekends, but during the trip I slept as long - and some nights longer - than he did. On top of that, I'm pretty sure I napped on the beach or by the pool every single day. Upon my return to Calgary, unfortunately, I think I managed to get to bed on time for only one night :(

Drink at least 1 L (one water bottle) of water per day - I think I lied in March. I've been drinking as much, if not more, water as I did last month and, well, I'm not going to finish that sentence. I came down with a cold for a couple weeks and *definitely* met this goal. Now that I'm not sick anymore I have to force myself, but I probably finish at least 750 mL/day... which I know isn't really that much in the grand scheme of things...

Continue increasing number of blog posts per year - I only wrote five posts in April 2011 vs. eight in 2010. It's not that I have nothing to write - in addition to the new recipes and new restaurants I've been trying, I should also write about the food in China and in Cuba. You'll notice that my posts sort of come in spurts, and I think it'll be like that for the rest of the year. Now if only I could get a solid chunk of time off just to blog... (and still somehow get paid.)

Read at least 12 books this year - I still haven't bought book number... 2... yet. My friend's dad is the author of Bitter Medicine, which is up for the Alberta Readers' Choice Award. I'm voting *almost* every day, and seriously thinking of picking it up.

Win a kickboxing/Muay Thai fight - I'm entering an exhibition fight during May long weekend! I've been putting in my hours, but not getting as much sparring practice as I'd like. We'll see how it goes.

Cook at least one recipe from every cookbook I own - Mama T is away right now, so I think I will tackle a few recipes this month. Unfortunately I only cooked from blogs in April.

Put my savings/RRSP somewhere where I can make more money - I need to book an appointment with a financial advisor.

Create more/Participate in another creative/reflective project this year - I find that every time I think of journaling, I end up picking up the phone and talking to B. about it, which allows me to put it into words and get some form of feedback. I'm slightly disappointed that the May #reverb11 is very similar to the February one, but I am still enjoying their "resources" (when I have time to look) and there's an interesting article from the Harvard Business Review called Four Reasons to Keep a Work Diary. Huh. Maybe I should start journalling again.

Set aside one weekend every month with no commitments - Cuba was *fantastic*. I'd never been to an all-inclusive resort before, and wasn't sure if I'd like vacationing that way because usually when I travel, it's all about doing stuff and seeing stuff. It was a truly relaxing trip, and we still did a couple of excursions, so we weren't just laying around *all* the time. My only regret was that the weather wasn't very cooperative (it was sunny, but windy) so we couldn't try any of the water sports. Other than that, the week away is perfect.

Now a dilemma - B. feels that since we've spent seven days away in Cuba, plus 25 days away in China (though it is arguable whether or not we had commitments on the days we were in Hong Kong), that we've used up all our "commitment-free-weekend days" (i.e. 24), so we shouldn't allot anymore time. I think that it's not about the number of days, but about giving ourselves an opportunity to take a breather every month. What do you think?

Rewards
Aside from the days where I was sick and drank copious amounts of water, I don't think I achieved any of my goals in April. So no rewards. Hopefully May will be better.

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Pimento's (is back!)

Cross-posted from Calgary is Awesome.

Chef Mario waving at me as he runs out to deliver some gelato to a customer eating in their car
A few weeks ago I started noticing the sign tacked onto the little white, brick building on 1 Ave NE as I drove to and from B.'s house. "Chef Mario - Opening Spring 2011"

Chef Mario... Isn't that the guy who drives the pizza van? B. and I had tried calling him once last summer, but he was unfortunately tied up at a catering gig. Last Friday, Pimento's finally opened, and as I drove my usual route, I could see through the windows that the building was *packed*, with people spilling onto the streets.

As I drove by the restaurant a few more times, I became more perplexed. Did that sign really say "Pizzeria Cones"? Was Pimento's now in the pizza and gelato business? Finally, B. and I headed down for supper yesterday to see what the new Pimento's was all about.

As we entered the *tiny* space (it's standing room/takeout only), Chef Mario was manning the counter by himself while another customer who had eaten there nearly every day since the restaurant opened (he turned out to be a high school friend of Mario's) helped us navigate the menu. While B. and I had intended to share a pizza, we learned that Mario's classic combinations (plus a new one called "Una" with apricots and brie) now came in the form of "flowers" and "cones", thanks to fancy machinery imported from Italy that shaped the dough into a trumpet-flower-shaped single serving, or a longer, narrower cone, respectively. The flowers and cones are placed on custom racks and baked in a state-of-the-art oven, also from Italy. Currently, only the "flowers" are available, but Mario hopes to perfect and roll out the cones by next week. Non-pizza fillings are also available.

    
B. ordered the Capricciosa ("cabbage patch") while I went for the classic Pimento's. Both flowers were topped with a green olive and a cheese-filled pepper.


B.'s Capricciosa was topped with bocconcini, prosciutto cotto, mushrooms, artichoke and black olives on a simple tomato sauce. B. enjoyed his flower, but said the flavours didn't quite excite him.


The same tomato sauce serves as the base for the Pimento's, which is loaded with provolone, bocconcini, prosciutto cotto, peppers, onions and Italian sausage. I loved the stringy provolone and mild, tender sausage.

We both agreed that the flower shape made eating the pizza quite convenient. The thin crust has a nice balance between chewiness and crispiness, but lacks the char that some may have become familiar with, now that there are so many Neapolitan-style pizzerias popping up around town. You'll have to eat these fast as the crust does become a little soggy in the middle with all the toppings. But the best part comes after you've eaten around the round part of the "flower" and get to the cone in the middle - the crust is a little thicker here so it doesn't get soggy, and some of the warm filling has slipped into the centre. Yum.


B. and I can't wait till the cones come out, because we are imagining that the entire "pizza" is just going to be this good, warm cone part.

While we waited for our pizzas to cook, Mario talked us into trying one of his "dolce" flowers, which are the same shape as the pizza flowers, but with a flavour and texture reminiscent of a sugar cone. They come filled with housemade gelato (right now it's lemon) or Nutella. Since I had a brick of a camera with me (my "tiny" GF1 is currently cruising the Mediterranean with B.'s family), Mario invited me behind the counter to watch him make the whole shebang - first he spreads around some soft, lemon gelato, nestles in a piece of Lindt milk chocolate, then dabs on some whipped cream, before finishing it off with a sprinkling of pistachio.

    

    
This was so yummy - both the gelato and cream were light and airy, with a touch of bright lemon flavour, going well with the crunchy cone and pistachios.

Pimento's has been a Bridgeland/Renfrew establishment for many years, first in its former location on General Ave, then in its roving pizza van, and now its current incarnation. For those who loved the van, Mario still uses it for catering. I'm hoping for warm summer nights so we can walk down to Pimento's, then sit outside on the stoop or across the street on the benches, downing our pizza cones.


Pimento's
814 1 Ave NE
Calgary AB T2E 0C1
(403) 515-0065
Cash only. No orders by phone.

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