Photo: Contributed Pay It Forward Day is April 28. Do you remember the book and movie from a while ago about the young boy who came up with the plan that people could accomplish amazing things if they helped people “just because”? The only caveat was the person they helped also had to “pay it forward” and help someone else. It’s the old-fashioned “golden rule,” guaranteed as part of the process. This is a great idea, don’t you think? It’s something we could put to use every day if we set our minds to it. We can start next Monday, April 28. That is global Pay It Forward Day. One way the pay it forward concept works easily is with food. You can improve someone’s day with food in many ways and sharing food is fairly easy—you just make more of something than you can eat. I think it’s even more meaningful (not to mention easier) if you share something you are involved in, so I am going to help you along with a few ideas. Let’s make it easy to start, gently warming you up to the idea. How about the next time you’re at Tim Hortons, or your favourite haunt, you buy someone’s coffee, donut or whatever. If you aren’t there with a friend, try buying one for the person behind you in line or for the regular staff member who serves you. You will be surprised how good it makes you feel to see the surprised smile on their face. That was mostly painless, right? Most of us can spare a buck or two. (If you are more focused on charity, you can put your efforts into the Food Bank box at your local grocery store.) Now let’s try something with a bit more oomph—bring in a plate of cookies or Rice Krispie squares—or even veggies and dip if you want to be healthy—to your office. Let people know you are sharing “just because.” You can even make up a silly reason, like celebrating “High Five Day” (I used to do that at my office and it was always fun). Hopefully others will follow suit and you can have a “treat day” or a ‘recipe swap” every month, or even every week. Again, this idea can be focused on a charity if you want. You could decide to donate a meal to the Food Bank once a month or donate something out of your grocery cart. My chef hubbie donates a package of pasta and a jar of sauce with every dinner he cooks. It is a small amount to add to the bill and feeds a family of four. It is a real feel-good thing and generally we want that feeling to continue so we will find ways of keeping it going. Now we “kick it up a notch,” as chef Martin likes to say. How about you pay it forward with your kids? If you don’t have kids, borrow someone’s kids. I’m serious, get nieces or nephews, neighbours’ kids or friends’ kids to come over and teach them how to cook something. You know the old Chinese proverb, “Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.” Engaging people at any age in the fun of cooking is a valuable experience and one that no one will regret spending time doing. I am including a recipe for a tart I made last weekend for guests we had at Easter dinner. An old friend of mine called to say she was in town and would love to see me. She made time on a busy weekend with other commitments, so my gesture was to invite her and her man for dinner. I used the first of the rhubarb out of our garden for a filling but this recipe works with any fruit that is not too juicy. It’s fun to impress anyone with and it’s easy to make. Here’s hoping you can share smiles with lots of people, whatever way you choose to pay it forward. Spring Fruit Galette (makes a tart big enough for six people) Pastry 450 g/7/8 cup all purpose pastry (you can use whole wheat if you want to be healthy. It creates a more nutty flavour to the pastry) 30 g/1 tbsp sugar Pinch of salt 200 g butter 60 mL/ 2 tbsp lukewarm water Filling 1-1/4 lb fruit, chopped 1/2 cup sugar Grated peel of 1/2 lemon ¼ tsp cinnamon Optional: Four pieces of candied ginger, chopped fine Wash and chop the fruit into bite-size pieces. Toss it in a bowl with the sugar and let sit for 30 minutes to an hour. Mix the dry ingredients together for the pastry. Cut in the butter using a food processor or pastry blender or a fork. Work until you have the consistency of coarse oatmeal. Add water gradually and stir gently, till dough clumps up and holds together. Gather all crumbs together and create a ball. (Dough can be chilled for 30 minutes or kept refrigerated for up to three days). Preheat oven to 180 C (375 F) Roll out the dough to a large circle (40-45 cm (16-18-inch) diameter.) Add the lemon peel and cinnamon to the fruit filling and stir to blend. Place dough on baking tray (Using a silicone mat is a good idea, so it doesn’t stick if the filling juices leak). Pour filling into centre of the dough circle and gently fold outside edges in, leaving a peek-a-boo centre of filling and folding over the dough so it holds together. Bake on the bottom rack (so the bottom isn’t soggy) in preheated oven for approximately one hour. Filling should bubble and pastry should be golden. Serve with whipped cream or ice cream if you really want to go over the top. This article is written by or on behalf of an outsourced columnist and does not necessarily reflect the views of Castanet.