Family Meal Plan: Nova Scotia Blueberry Grunt+Kid-Shaken Whipped Butter+Lemon Sugar Sprinkle+Lemon Crush

Nova Scotia Blueberry Grunt

Happy & Healthy Cooking,

Fun-Da-Mentals Kitchen Skills

• bake :

  to cook food with dry heat, as in an oven.

• chop :

  to cut something into small, rough pieces using a blade.

• crush :

  to put pressure on a food, like a garlic clove, to break the skin and release its flavor; or to pulverize or grind a food, like a cracker, into small particles with your hands, blender, or food processor.

• garnish :

  to decorate a dish or plate of food to enhance its flavor or appearance, using things like parsley, fruit slices, or edible flowers.

• knife skills :

  Bear Claw (growl), Pinch, Plank, and Bridge (look out for trolls). 

• measure :

  to calculate the specific amount of an ingredient required using a measuring tool (like measuring cups or spoons).

• mix :

  to thoroughly combine two or more ingredients until uniform in texture.

• pour :

  to cause liquid, granules, or powder to stream from one container into another.

• shake :

  to rapidly and vigorously move a covered container filled with food up and down and side to side to combine ingredients and create a different consistency, such as shaking whipped cream to make butter.

• sift :

  to pass a dry ingredient like flour or sugar through a sieve to make it lighter and more even in texture.

• stir :

  to mix together two or more ingredients with a spoon or spatula, usually in a circle pattern, or figure eight, or in whatever direction you like!

• whisk :

  to beat or stir ingredients vigorously with a fork or whisk to mix, blend, or incorporate air.

• zest :

  to scrape off the outer colored part of a citrus fruit's rind (skin or peel) using a metal tool with small sharp blades, such as a zester, microplane, or the small holes of a grater (avoid the "pith," the white, spongy lining of the rind that can be bitter).

History of Cobbler!

• Cobblers are an American deep-dish fruit dessert with a thick crust and a fruit filling. Seasonal fruits are generally used for the filling.
• Early European settlers to North America brought recipes with them from their homelands. When they couldn't find the ingredients they needed, they improvised, and cobblers were born. 
• Cobblers were often served as the main course, especially as a breakfast food, but later became common as a dessert. 
• While cobblers are baked, grunts and slumps are varieties typically cooked by steaming in a skillet or pan on top of the stove. They have a biscuit-like dough plopped on top of the fruit, like dumplings. Grunts probably got their name from the sound of the steam under the dough. Blueberry grunt is a popular dessert in Nova Scotia, Canada.

Let's Learn About Nova Scotia!

• Nova Scotia (NOH-vuh SKOH-shuh) is a Canadian province on the eastern Atlantic coast of Canada and is one of three Maritime Provinces. The other two are New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island. These three, plus the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, make up the four Atlantic Provinces. 
• The name "Nova Scotia" is Latin for "New Scotland." In 1629, King James VI of Scotland granted Sir William Alexander, a Scottish courtier and poet, the right to colonize what is now Nova Scotia.
• The indigenous Mi'kmaq people, who live in areas of the Atlantic Provinces, inhabited Nova Scotia long before European settlers arrived. 
• The province's total area is 21,345 square miles. That is a little smaller than the US state of West Virginia. Nova Scotia's population is just over one million. 
• Halifax is the capital and largest city. It is a historic maritime city with a working harbor and fresh seafood in abundance. 
• English is the official language, and the province's first language is Mi'kmawi'simk. 
• Nova Scotia is surrounded by four bodies of water: the Gulf of Saint Lawrence, the Gulf of Maine, the Bay of Fundy, and the Atlantic Ocean. Cape Breton Island is a large Nova Scotian island off the province's northeast coast. 
• Nova Scotia's geography includes several ancient fossil-bearing rock formations. In addition, a few low mountains of the Appalachian Mountain Range extend into Nova Scotia. The climate is more continental than maritime, with warm summers and cold winters. 
• One of the certified UNESCO Starlight Reserves and a starlight tourist destination is in Nova Scotia, the Acadian Skies & Mi'kmaq Lands in the southwest of the province. Stargazing is much easier here due to protection from the pollution of artificial lights, especially city lights.
• The cuisine of Nova Scotia is heavy on local seafood, especially lobster, but a few non-seafood dishes are also popular in the province.  
• One of these dishes, introduced in the 1970s by a Greek immigrant, is "Halifax donair." It is a variation of the Turkish "doner kebab," using spiced ground beef instead of lamb. The donair, also similar to Greek "gyros," is served in flatbread and covered with its unique sweet sauce made of evaporated or condensed milk, vinegar, sugar, and garlic. 
• Hodge Podge (or Hotch Potch) is a soup or stew that is eaten in Nova Scotia and Scotland. It consists of mutton, beef, or other meat cooked with mixed green and root vegetables. Rappie Pie is an Acadian casserole made of grated potatoes, chicken, broth, and onions and then baked.  

What Is It Like to Be a Kid in Nova Scotia?

• Children in Nova Scotia start school at five or four if they go to preschool and are required to attend until they are 16 years old. However, they usually go through grade 12, and many continue to university. Parents sometimes homeschool their kids. 
• English is the primary language used in class, but students may also go to a French language immersion school. 
• Some of the sports kids participate in are ice hockey, basketball, soccer, baseball, and volleyball. The weather can be more moderate than in other Canadian provinces, and kids enjoy playing outside. 
• Fun activities with families can include hiking, biking, or going to the beach. They may visit the Hope for Wildlife rehabilitation center for injured and orphaned wildlife or the Deep Sky Eye Observatory, and they have several different choices of museums.
• A favorite treat for Nova Scotian kids may be a blueberry grunt, a dessert similar to a cobbler but cooked on the stove with biscuit dough on top.