Wild Serendipity Writings

Scotch Eggs - Kicked up!

2012-01-08T16:49:00.005-06:00

I've been wanting to try baked Scotch eggs for some time. If you're not familiar with these little delights, a Scotch egg is a hard-boiled egg, encased in sausage meat. Usually they are deep-fried, which I never do. A couple years ago I googled baked Scotch eggs, and sure enough, there were baked versions.

At the Farmer's Market in Saskatoon, the annual WinterShines festival, a celebration/embracing of winter is coming up and the Market vendors are being encouraged to remain open a little longer. People coming to WinterShines will presumably be looking for items to buy that can be carried about and eaten while mulling about. The Scotch eggs came to mind, and the chance to finally try them out was here!

I opted to use a mild Italian sausage (hence, the 'kicked up' Scotch eggs) and seasoned breadcrumbs to coat, thinking the flavour would be excellent. Be daring & use hot Italian, if you prefer! I was right - they are like the regular Scotch eggs, only better. If you tend to get grey rings around your hard-boiled eggs, follow my recipe, you'll always get perfectly-done eggs with no rings.

Here's the recipe:

8 eggs
1 pkg (454 g) mild Italian sausage
1 egg, beaten with 1 TBSP milk
seasoned breadcrumbs, to coat (~ 1 cup)

Place the eggs in a pot large enough to hold them in a single layer. Fill with cold water, up to an inch above the eggs. Bring to a boil over high heat; once they come to a boil, removed from heat immediately, cover, and allow to sit for 12 to 17 minutes (12 for smaller eggs, up to 17 for extra-large eggs). Drain pot and rinse eggs with cold water until they remain cool. Note: to make an egg white congeal should an egg crack while cooking, add a tablespoon of vinegar to the water prior to boiling.

Divide the sausage into 6 portions - I was lucky, the package of sausage I used came with 4 sausages, so I just halved them, squeezing the meat out of the casing. In either the palm of your hand or a cutting board, press out the meat into a small patty, making it as flat as you can. Place an egg in the center and carefully wrap/press the meat around the egg, making sure no egg white is peaking through. Roll in the egg wash, then roll in breadcrumbs. Repeat with remaining eggs, then place in the refrigerator for 45 minutes to allow the meat to set up and the crumb mixture to dry a bit.

Preheat oven to 400F. Baking on a parchment-lined sheet for 30 minutes, making sure meat is cooked through. Allow to cool, then serve. These are often served cold, making a great snack or a small lunch. Scotch eggs are eaten alone, or with a variety of sauces, often mustard-based.

If you'd like to try them with a sauce: mix together 1/2 cup mayonnaise, 3 TBSP of a fine-grained mustard, 2 TSP honey and 2 TSP lemon juice (or to taste). Or, just plain mustard will do the trick, as well.

As for a candidate for WinterShines, I've decided against it. I will make them for my family, but they are a bit too labour-intensive for what I would be able to charge for them. I am glad I finally tried them - they'll be making frequent appearances in our kitchen :)

2011 Gifts from the Kitchen, as seen on SHAW TV

2011-12-11T09:18:00.005-06:00

2011 Gifts from the Kitchen, as seen on SHAW TV

PUMPKIN PIE BISCOTTI

Perfect for gift-giving in a cellophane bag tied with ribbon!

3 1/2 cups flour
1 1/2 cups brown sugar, packed
2 TSP baking powder
1/2 TSP salt
2 TSP dried ginger
2 TSP cinnamon
1/2 TSP cloves
1/4 TSP allspice

1/2 cup canned pumpkin puree
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 TBSP vanilla extract
1/2 cup raw pumpkin seeds, dry-toasted in frying pan till puffed
1/2 cup chopped cranraisins

chopped white (or dark) chocolate for garnish - ~1/3 cup if just doing a drizzle, about 2/3 cup or more if dipping

Preheat oven to 350F.

In a large bowl, mix together the dry ingredients, stirring with a whisk to completely combine. In a large glass measure, mix together the pumpkin and vanilla, whisking to combine. Slowly add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients, stirring to combine. Add the pumpkin seeds and cranraisins, mix to combine.

Divide the dough into four portions. Shape each portion (flour your hands, if necessary) into 15 inch long log, approx. 1 inch in height. Place the logs at least 3 inches apart on parchment-lined baking sheets. Bake for 25 minutes. Cool logs for 15 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 300F. Then, using a serrated knife, cut each log diagonally into 1/2 to 3/4 inch slices. Place the slices back on the baking sheets (they can be close to each other now) and bake for 15 minutes (20 minutes if they are a little thicker than 1/2 inch) Cool completely on a wire rack.

White Chocolate Garnish:Fill a small pot 1/3 way with water; find a glass bowl that will sit nicely on top without the bottom actually touching the water (adjust water level as needed). Bring the water to a boil, then reduce to a bare simmer. Add the white chocoate, stirring until completely melted. Dip one end, or one side, of each biscotti into the chocolate, then place on parchment to set.
Alternatively, you can drizzle chocolate over the biscotti sitting on top of a cooling rack, with a cookie sheet or parchment beneath to catch the excess.

BAKED MAPLE POPCORN

This makes a ton, as it's designed for gift-giving. It stores perfectly in the freezer, or scale recipe accordingly. Pack in holiday tins, or cellophane bags, for a gift that's sure to be loved!

1/2 cup maple syrup
1 cup butter
2 cups brown sugar, packed
1 TSP salt
1/2 TSP baking soda
2 TSP vanilla extract
Optional: few drops of pure Maple extract (Boyajian brand - contact me for info if you love maple flavour and would like to purchase some)
1 cup unpopped popcorn (if kernels are kept in freezer, they will pop bigger & fluffier)

Heat oven to 250F. Cook the popcorn using method of your choice. Place the popped corn in lightly greased bowl(s).

In a small pot, melt together the butter, maple syrup, brown sugar and salt. Bring to a boil, then allow to boil for 5 minutes without stirring. Remove from mheat & stir in the baking soda, vanilla extract and maple extract (if using). Pour the mixture over the popcorn, mixing well to combine. Turn into a large roasting pan(s).

Bake for one hour, stirring every 15 minutes. Remove from oven and cool, stirring every so often to keep popcorn from clumping.

Spring 2011 Recipes as Seen on Shaw TV

2011-04-08T13:45:00.005-06:00

Caakiri - a West African Dessert

Typically made with couscous (a durum semolina product), this rice-pudding-like dessert would have originally been made with a grain similar to millet. If you love rice pudding, but the idea of standing at the stove for half an hour is unappealing, this recipe is for you. Light versions of one or both of the yoghurt and sour cream can easily be used in this recipe, as they do not get cooked. I don't add any additional sugar to the mixture, as I find the caakiri sweet enough with the condensed milk and the sweetened vanilla.

2 cups uncooked couscous
4 cups water
1 TBSP sugar
1/2 TSP salt
1 TBSP butter
1 can sweetened condensed milk
1 TSP vanilla
2 cups yoghurt (vanilla-flavoured, preferably)
3/4 cup sour cream
1 TSP cinnamon
1/4 TSP freshly grated nutmeg
sugar, to taste
cinnamon (for garnish)
any combination of fruit/seeds/chopped nuts for garnish

Bring the water, sugar & salt to a boil. Place the uncooked couscous in a large bowl. Pour the boiling water mixture over the couscous, stirring briefly to make sure there are no lumps. Cover with saran wrap and allow to sit for 10 minutes.

Remove the plastic wrap and fluff with a fork. The couscous will be wetter than normal couscous recipes, where the ratio is closer to 1:1. If the couscous is too dry at this stage, the pudding will eventually solidify. Add the butter, fluffing with fork until melted. Set aside.

In another bowl, mix together the condensed milk, vanilla, yoghurt, cinnamon, nutmeg and sour cream. Pour over the couscous, mixing to combine. At this point, taste for sweetness. Add additional sugar, if desired. Pour the mixture, or part of the mixture, into a serving platter.

Garnish elaborately (think strips, swirls, etc). Leave some space(s) for sprinkled cinnamon (or sprinkle cinnamon over the entire dish before garnishing so it can be seen through the garnish) Serve warm, or chilled. Store in the refrigerator.

Final Paris Moments - it was Frigorifique

2010-12-15T23:31:00.010-06:00

Just a few pics and description from our last evening in Paris.

Our last meal was the 'one' meal we wanted to have while we were in Paris - traditional, (somewhat) formal, but not requiring a small loan.

I did a fair bit of research on picking a place, and then picking a place that had seats available. I settled on Le Reminet (rooster). Successfully making a reservation over the phone in french was my single biggest accomplishment, language-wise. When we arrived, they were expecting us.......all was good! Open up the link, you'll have soft jazz in the background (the restaurant is located in St. Germain des Pres - home of nu jazz). It completely lived up to the reviews - very quaint, old-style traditional, exceptional service, and most importantly, really wonderful food.

Here was my meal:

Carpaccio de betteraves rouges et jaunes en marinade exotique, beignet de langoustine 16e (right)

Filet de boeuf au poivre (didn't i say it was traditional?), pulpe de pommes rattes monte au beurre frais 28e (left)

And for dessert: Tube au chocolat a la mousse malibu (!)-coco fressinettes (baby bananas) flambees au rhum 9e

Heading back to the metro, we walked by this alley/lane, called, as depicted: rue du chat qui peche.

And, to sum up the entire Paris experience, my new favourite word:

Le Cordon Bleu Experience (finally)

2010-11-29T20:51:00.013-06:00

Well, thank god for journals!! I can't believe it's been nearly two months since I took the class at Cordon Bleu, and I'm just now beginning to blog about it!

For the original Paris trip in the Spring (postponed due to the Iceland volcano) I was booked in the French Pastry class. For this trip, a Sweet & Savoury Macaron class was offered. I've been rather intrigued by these little beauties - they really are quite adorable. I thought this might be the 'new' product I've been looking to add to my Market repertoire. So, sign myself up I did.

Taking a class at Le Cordon Bleu started out being a surprise 'add on' to the Paris trip. In the months leading up to the trip, it somehow (not surprisingly, in hindsight) became the pinnacle of the entire purpose in going! The thought of walking those halls, where so many of great culinary significance have also walked, made me heart flutter.

The evening before the class I quadruple-checked my alarm setting. Having barely slept through the night due to the constant checking of the alarm clock (damn these OCD tendencies!!! ), I was a little worse for wear the morning of the class. We'd mapped out the subway trip the night before, so we knew (roughly) where we were headed. Once we found the street, I was surprised at what a quiet little area the school was located in. I'm not sure what I expected, but it really is a little gem, hidden on a tiny residential street. I arrived just past 8:30. The class was set to start at 9, with a light breakfast available before that. Once I checked in, I was presented with a package containing a Cordon Blue-emblazed apron and dishtowel, and a class package. Very excited about the apron!! The dining area was already buzzing with students for the Saturday classes, as wells as some of the full-time culinary students. When 9:00 approached, we were led up the stairs to the pastry kitchen on the 4eme floor (ie. 5th floor), we walked by a display of Julia Child memorabilia, which also included a photo of Meryl Streep taken at the school during the filming of Julie & Julia. This really was it - walking in the footsteps of culinary giants.

Once upstairs, we sorted ourselves out around the huge granite worktable (it housed 18 of us, plus the instructor and translator); a rough estimate of its size would be 20 ft x 5 ft. We were introduced to our instructor, Chef Daniel Walter. Immediately you felt at ease with this man, he has such a warm, pleasant way about him. Reading through his bio, he has been a consultant chef with Le Cordon Bleu since 2005. Prior to that, one of his significant career highlights was having his business awarded "Best Pastry Shop in Paris" in 1999 (in Paris!). Talk about learning from the best! How humbling.... He did not speak English - everything he said was translated directly by a lovely woman who stood at his side throughout the class. I was surprised at how much I understood, given my less than stellar accomplishments in Paris thus far (how silly I had been to think that 'it would all come back'!) Likely my comprehension was aided by the fact that he was talking about what I do/know/care about.........cooking! ;)

We were to do three Macaron recipes - chocolate, raspberry and a savoury one - olive tapenade (blechh!). He demonstrated the basic macaron recipe, comprised of just five ingredients: egg whites, almond flour, icing sugar, white sugar and creme of tartar. The basic recipe looked simple enough - it is all in the technique. If you are unfamiliar with macarons, you probably won't be for long, they've been sweeping our nation of late. Macarons, which look a little like a pastel hamburger, consist of two cookies, sandwiched together with buttercream/ganache/curd/jam. The cookie is an almond meringue, with a crisp, thin top layer, and airy middle, and a soft, chewy base. The base has a 'foot', a frilly edge, that should not extend past the edge of the round part of the cookie.

As with an Artisan bread class I took at Dubrulle in Vancouver, everything was already mise en place for us, so all we had to do was the actual making of the recipe. The recipe starts off with whisking egg whites until they're frothy, then adding the white sugar and creme of tartar in three additions. The whites are then beaten until thick & glossy. Did I mention we were whisking by hand? I laughed to myself at this, since I get the participants in my class to whisk whites or cream by hand, and now here I was! I was able to get my whites done first, thanks to my popeye forearms (kneading out all those thousands of batches of scones has finally paid off!!!). Chef Walter came by during the process to add some brown colouring. He took this moment to talk about the relatively recent increase in the intensity of the macaron colours. Although food colouring is not the most "traditional" of ingredients, macarons in all colours under the rainbow have become fashionable, and anything pale would be, well....pale. Apparently chocolate macarons with cocoa powder are the trickiest to prepare.

Once the whites were beaten to stiff peaks, the almond flour/icing sugar mixture was added, also in three additions. After mixing in the dry ingredients, the most important step, the 'macaronage' is done - this is the mixing/folding motion done until the batter is of the correct "flowing like lava" consistency. The batter is then piped out onto parchment-lined baking sheets. Being the mecca of macarons, the parchment paper they had was marked with a grid, just for making them! We made very tiny macarons, piping out maybe a teaspoon and a half of batter each. Once piped out, the batter settled out into a relatively flat pool. We finished the tops with a few flakes of Fleurs de Sel. At this point, the batter is left to rest to allow a crust to form on top. This, apparently, aids in forming the 'foot', the cute little frill you see on the bottom of the cookie.

While the chocolate batter was setting up, we started on the second recipe, raspberry. The basic recipe was the same. The forearms were a little fatigued the second time around. For this recipe, we were also doing a couple large macarons, along with the tiny ones. During this time, our first batch of macarons were out of the oven. I was both thrilled and relieved to see that mine looked pretty darned perfect - relieved because I have to say, I put a lot of pressure on myself for this class, since part of my living is made teaching people cooking classes! After peeling them off the parchment and placing them on a cooling rack, they were ready to be assembled with the chocolate ganache that Chef Walter had prepared for us. Looking at my completed macarons, I was so happy with how they turned out, looking just as they should. I was, however, about to discover the meaning of the term "don't rest on your laurels".

At this point, we took a break for lunch. There was an assortment of breads, shrimp salad, pates and crudites. Along with wine, of course - which I did not partake in, as this class is serious business! After chatting amongst ourselves once we were done with lunch, we were led back to the pastry kitchen. Our raspberry macarons had already been pulled from the oven. I took one look at my sheet and knew something had gone amiss - my large macarons had definitely not cooked long enough (they were cooking all the trays at once, so most were going to be either over- or under-baked). I'd have preferred over-baked, because under-baked, they're quite the disaster. The large ones were a write-off - there was simply no saving them. Again, my small ones looked perfect, just as they should. And thus began my macaron mystery obsession.......much more on that later.

As we started the third, savoury batch, I was trying to go over in my head what I did differently between the first and second batch. I just carried on, hoping that I'd figure it out somewhere along the way. The forearms were definitely feeling it at this point, I don't think I could have whipped them as stiff as the first time without the assistance of my old friend, Sir Kitchen Aid. For the savoury macaron, Chef Walter was quick to point out that the only reason we were doing this recipe was that it was listed on the class description; he didn't like the recent trend in making macarons savoury. When he prepared the olive tapenade, he made the most sour of faces, and then gave a half-smile and proclaimed, 'ah, c'est bon!'. He explained that he's a pastry chef, and savoury (esp tart, vinegary) is just not his thing. I mentioned that I had done a fig and olive tapenade in my classes and everyone seemed quite intrigued by that - sweetening the mixture does make it more palatable to some (like me).

We then began the assembly of the raspberry macarons. It turns out that the macaron we were preparing was inspired by the one made famous by Pierre Herme, the Rose Lychee Raspberry Macaron. Chef Walter made a white chocolate raspberry (chambord) ganache, and then a rose-flavoured french buttercream. We used both to fill the raspberry macarons, along with a canned lychee and fresh raspberries. Because my large macarons were a complete washout, I made a couple of the smaller ones into a lychee-free version (there was not enough room for one). They were still pretty cute.

Chef Walter then prepared a second filling for the savoury macaron - he decided to do a foie gras mousse. Foie gras is also not one of my favourite things. I have issues with organ meats in general, whether or not they are coveted in the culinary world (I've studied biology - given the processes that these things are designed to do......they're not particularly appetizing to me..........plus, I don't care for the organ-meat taste). By this time our savoury macarons were out of the oven - these were definitely the best batch yet. Not really caring to use either of the two savoury fillings, I used both. Of course, these macarons turned out the best out of the three, and I knew they were pretty much going to go to waste!

And that concluded my Cordon Bleu culinary experience! We were all presented with certificates of completion (which they had pre-printed with our names on them - nice touch!) and Chef Walter was available for photo ops. We were provided with Cordon Bleu cake boxes to pack up our little beauties. I purchased an insulated bag (with the Cordon Bleu logo, of course) to carry the boxes in - figured that would make for easier transport on the subway. As much as I was thrilled to take this one class, talking to those around me during the day, found out that most of the people there had/were taking several classes. The classes were basically the reason they came to Paris. The next time I take classes at Le Cordon Bleu Paris, it will be for a one month intensive course. I'd always struggled with choosing between cuisine and patisserie. After the Macaron class, and the obsession that ensued, my decision has been made.

La Grande Epicerie (oh how grande it was............)

2010-11-16T19:56:00.015-06:00

After the Eiffel Tower visit, we were off to the next destination, La Grande Epicerie, located on the ground level of the Bon Marche.

I had heard tales of wonder and amazement.............and oh, the rumours were true! Truly, I was nearly rendered speechless as I walked into the store. I was expecting something smaller, I guess - the space was massive, the size of a good-sized grocery store. Wall to wall shelves of beautiful, high-end, eye candy..........in the form of food and food items. It was difficult to know where to start. We made our way towards the back of the store, the dairy section. The selection, the interesting products and packaging............amazing. Grabbed a container of banoffee pie, for starters. Saw egg cartons in easter colours, a section of baby vegetables, edible flowers, and stir fry veg kits that looked like works of art. And, Jones soda!!

The clientele of La Grande Epicerie are clearly foodies - this is no run-of-the-mill corner grocery store. Picture an olive display the size of entire deli section in one of our grocery stores - just olives! The ready-to-heat deli display was huge, with an amazing assortment of tantalizing dishes ready to take home and eat. Food from all over the world was represented - Asian potstickers, tandoori chicken, Turkish eggplant, honey-drenched Kataifi pastries.......it just never ended. We picked a container of eggplant caviar, a red pepper feta dip and a cous cous salad with yoghurt and chicken (so good!). We were given a sample of proscuitto that melted in your mouth......of course, we bought some.

There was a fabulous spice section, with many spices offered in bulk. One, of note, was mustard seeds for $25/kg. This is a crazy high price, for those not from the prairies where the seed is grown. For that price, the mustard wasn't even cleaned, as there were visible bits of debris.

The candy section was, not surprisingly, displayed elaborately. The cheese section contained so many treats for the eye, not just for the cheeses themselves, but for the packaging and decoration (I chose two goat cheeses). The produce displays looked like they came to life from a food photography shoot. A mushroom section to die for - with a massive section of beautiful chanterelles. We picked up some fresh figs and strawberries to go with the rest of our 'picnic' supper. I also snagged a container of marzipan cherries - complete with stems :)

For gifts, I picked up a couple jars of two-toned jam, raspberry on the bottom and peach on top. There were several items created just for picnics - a condiment set (which I bought) that had a tiny olive oil, balsamic, ketchup, mustard, salt & pepper. I also picked up a couple dozen tiny vinaigrettes, also for picnics. Too cute to pass up. Bought some crazy bowtie pasta, all from natural dyes (squid ink, tomato, turmeric, spinach), one that looked like licorice all sorts and one with pastel stripes. Knowing, full well, they were going to be a nightmare to transport back home. But, I could not resist.

I stopped by the patisserie section - the cakes (in small portion sizes) were works of art, everything looked absolutely perfect, many adorned with elaborate garnishes. I chose a mini Opera cake, a fruit/mousse cake that had a baby persimmon on top, and a chocolate cake for Dana. Macarons (lots, of course) and cupcakes were also there. Nearby the patisserie is the bakery - a myriad of artisan breads, baguettes, croissants.........

I picked up (had to, of course) yet another reusable shopping bag - it was only 15euros, I had to! In total we spent 142 euros..............my memories of La Grande Epicerie........priceless. This was my favourite experience of the trip (pre Le Cordon Bleu).

Mango Buffalo Chicken Wings as seen on SHAW

2010-11-16T19:06:00.002-06:00

Mango Buffalo Chicken Wings with Mango Lime Dipping Sauce

The drummettes could be replaced with boneless, skinless chicken thighs, or chicken breast strips; cooking time will be approximately half.

If the eastern spices don't appeal to you, leave them out - the wings will still be amazing!

1 large package chicken drummettes (~30)
1 cup flour
1/2 TSP garlic powder
1/2 TSP garam masala
1/4 TSP ground cardamom
1/4 TSP cumin
1/2 cup plus 2 TBSP mango puree (comes in 32oz can, middle eastern section of grocery)
1/2 cup plus 2 TBSP hot sauce (I use Frank's)
1/4 cup melted butter

In a large Ziploc bag, combine the flour and dry spices. Add the chicken, a few pieces at a time, tossing to coat with flour. Shake off excess flour from each piece. Place the pieces on a baking sheet and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 400F.

In a small pot (or microwave) melt the butter, mango puree and hot sauce.

Dip each chicken piece in the sauce, turning to coat, tapping off excess sauce. Place on a parchment or foil-line baking sheet(s). Bake for ~40 minutes, turning halfway. If you would like a crisper coating, broil for a few minutes at the end of the cooking time. If possible, allow to cool on a cooling rack to keep the chicken crispy. Serve hot with the mango lime dipping sauce.

Mango Lime Dipping Sauce:

1/4 cup mango puree
1 cup sour cream (can subst. yoghurt)
zest of one lime
juice of half a lime
2 TSP honey
1/4 TSP ground cardamom
Mix the sauce ingredients together until combined.

Paris' Most Identifiable Landmark

2010-11-11T07:35:00.019-06:00

This was supposed to be just part of a blog post, but it turned out to be a big 'aside' post. I really do love the thing, as cliche as many think of it. Of course, I'm referring to the Eiffel Tower.

Our Batobus tickets were going to expire that day, so we took one last trip on it to the Eiffel Tower. The sky was clear blue and quite warm (~24 deg C), so a little smoggy, as well. The entrance line was quite small, actually. Once inside, however, the line to take the elevator up was LONG. Eventually, we landed on the 2nd level (128 metres) and there seemed to be confusion as to where to go the wait for the 2nd level elevator. Then, sirens went off and red lights were flashing, accompanied by an announcement saying (one the English translation could be heard) "we are evacuating the tower, we apologize for the inconvenience" (inconvenience!!??)

Anyone reading this around the time we went would know that, over the month leading up to our trip there had been several evacuations of the tower due to terror threats. Several arrests were made the week we were there during the raid of a suspected terror cell (with evidence of planned attacks) so the threat really was, real. The 'chatter' that security dept's were hearing is that a bombing was not being planned, but a shooting massacre (comforting, no?). Hence, the high security at all the tourist spots. I didn't mention it previously, but everywhere you went there were soldiers with machine guns mulling about.

Anyway, back to the story at hand, we waited with all the other people (by this time, a line had formed) while the people from the upper level were evacuated, probably 15 min or so. Then, the red lights and siren shut off - apparently the threat had been cleared, so we were able to go up. The line was LONG at it was hot, standing in the direct sun. But, eventually, we made it up to the summit and took in all the amazing views of Paris at 276 metres.

After descending the tower, we took a stroll through the Champs de Mars, one of the larger greenspaces in Paris, adjacent to the Eiffel Tower. While sitting on a bench, we noticed something that looked like a bright green ball, but then realized they were all over the place. They were some sort of tree fruit, but neither of us had a clue what they were. They were about the size of a grapefruit and smelled faintly of an orange/frankincence sort of odour. Upon returning home, I found out that they were osage oranges (but not for eating) - you can reat more about them on wiki.

The Sights (well, two), at Night

2010-11-09T22:49:00.008-06:00

Post-Fauchon, we had a quick dinner at the apartment, scavenging from our previous purchases (plus a cured sausage and a goat milk brie filled with chevre and figs from a cheese shop near Le Marche des Enfants Rouge). Dana bought a bottle of Riesling from the little confectionary across the stree for 4 euro - no wonder they drink so much wine here!!

After dinner we took a stroll up the Champs d'Elysees to the Arc de Triomphe. It was a warm, clear evening and the Arc truly was a sight to behold. All the postcard pics that you see of it at night are exactly what it looks like - just like this photo we took, it's not a postcard :) We sat and watched the traffic manoeuvering around it, including two pedestrians, a couple (not young!) who suddenly darted out across the circle to go right up to it. Crazy tourists.

We kept walking south towards the Seine, not really with a destination in mind, but as we neared the river, the Eiffel tower, lit up in all its glory, appeared. Again, truly a sight to see. There is a blue beacon light and the tower, itself, is lit up. This was imressive enough, until the entire tower suddenly became a shimmering jewel. Unbeknownst to us, every hour the tower shimmers like this for ten minutes, some 20,000 bulbs creating the show. I found a video on youtube that gives you a good idea of what it was like.

That evening in Paris was the kind I think many people envision when they imagine what it would be like there - truly memorable.

Fauchon!!

2010-11-02T22:30:00.010-06:00

At 24-26 Place de la Madeleine lies Fauchon, a culinary merchant of historical significance in Paris, known for upscale fine food items. How to describe it as you walk through the doors..........this is a food store with bling!, a sumptuous feast for the eyes, causing an immediate increase in heart rate (really). Everything, from the packaging to the store decor and displays was pure eye candy. I calmed myself down and began exploring.

I did a prelimary 'sweep' of the store to get the lay of the land, so to speak.

At the front of the store lies a sweeter portion of the epicerie section (exotic jams, honeys); further towads the back of the store is the tea and coffee section. It should be noted that Fauchon opened Paris' first Salon de The in 1898 (!). Tea is the obvious star in this section. We were taken in by the Fall seasonal tea (one new one for each season), an amazing spiced rooibis, with a strong scent of orange. We scooped up several tins for our tea lovers back home.

The other part of the back portion contained a myriad of spices, salts, peppercorns, a HUGE selection of foie gras, pasta, oils, cheese,..................it goes on & on. Returning to the front of the store, you find the patisserie section, with a large glass display of fine chocolates, plus numerous assortments of packaged chocolates.

We came away with this lovely assortment of chocolates (the middle row has Fauchon emblazened in gold), the many tins of tea and a sampler set of exotic honeys. Oh, and a black & white vinyl Fauchon shopping bag!

Downstairs houses the wine store, with a huge bar table with seating for wine tasting classes. How fun would that be?!

Upstairs houses their Salon de The - sadly, I have to report that I did not venture upstairs (this, of course, means that I must return immediately!).

Oldest Covered Market and the La Boutique Maille

2010-10-21T22:32:00.009-06:00

There were specific food destinations that I had mapped out prior to our trip: namely the Maille store, Fauchon and La Grande Epicerie. These are their stories :)

The day started with an excursion to the oldest covered market in Paris - Marche des Enfants Rouges, dating back to 1612 (1612!!!!!). It was named for an orphange nearby the original market where the children wore red uniforms. Similar to our Saskatoon Farmer's Market, the weekdays are typically slower than the more bustling weekend markets, and fewer vendors - we were there on a Thursday. The entrance to the market (39 Rue de Bretagne, 3eme) was inconspicuous, we walked right by it the first time - just a narrow space between two buildings. You are greeted with fresh produce stands, all of excellent quality. There were several ethnic food vendors (mainly Middle Eastern), who were likely tenants, as they had commercial kitchen setups in their space. Ready-to-eat foods were available for purchase, in addition to packaged food and grocery items. It was early in the day and nowhere near lunch, so we decided to keep moving, but not without buying a perfectly-ripened mango.

Destination two, the Maille store (6 Place de Madeleine, 8eme), founded by Antoine Maille in 1747. The notably cute storefront was inviting, with interesting window displays. Upon entering the store, it was a feast for the eyes. The walls were completely lined with perfectly-arranged jars and bottles. Doing a preliminary scan, there were MANY more varieties than we will ever see on this continent.

I bought a wooden crate that contained 9 small jars (108g); I chose the crate because it would almost guarantee a safe journey home without having to pack each jar individually. The varieties in the crate were: bleu cheese, hazelnut and nutmeg, coconut with Columbian spices, Chablis with Morels, Pesto with Rocket, Red Berry, Cognac, Sundried Tomatoes with Espelette Pepper (a French pepper variety) and Parmesan Basil. Crazy!!! They look so adorable in their little crate that I cringe at the thought of opening them. I'll let the visual honeymoon fade and then I'll start sampling :)

On the front desk, there were three ceramic 'taps' (at first glance, you might think they were beer taps) that contained mustard that could be poured into customer's containers - mustard on tap, who would have thought?! While making my purchase, I attempted to explain that I make mustard for our Farmer's Market. Eventually, I got that across. He asked if I start using the seed, and I said yes. I was about to try to explain that the seeds that they use for their mustard come from Saskatchewan, but quickly realized that might take the rest of the afternoon. So, I just asked where Fauchon was.

The Adventures Begin

2010-10-17T16:49:00.008-06:00

The next morning we started off the day with a traditional breakfast of croissants from the Boulangerie across the street with a lovely cherry jam that we had picked up at Monoprix the night before. Amazing - oh how I've dreamt of being back in Paris having these most amazing crispy clouds of buttery goodness!

After spending spending the morning at Notre Dame and wandering around St.Germain, we ventured on over to Ile St. Louis, the tiny little island just east of Ile de la Cite (where Notre Dame is located). I had heard that there were a lot of interesting shops there, and had I heard right! It was such a cute neighbourhood (I decided I would live there if I ever HAD to live in Paris - when/if I eventually take the one month intensive course at Le Cordon Bleu, I shall!) with tiny streets lined with really interesting stores.

La Cure Gourmand was this little gem of sunshine, filled with brightly coloured tins and hand-crafted candies, including chocolated-covered olives that looked liked black and green olives, but were actually almonds - so cute!

The patisserie, Calixte, shown here, had a beautiful display of pastries, cakes and, of course, macarons. They had seven flavours, so sadly, I had to buy seven macarons.

After that satisfying purchase, we found THE gelato shop in Ile St. Louis - Amorino . I ordered a dish of coconut (amazing), and my husband got this flowery creation, created from two flavours of gelato - mango and lemon. Could anyone have a more look of pure glee? They formed the petals from some little special scoop - really cool.

After doing a drop & dash of our treasures at the apartment, we headed out for dinner. I had chosen a little restaurant called Chez Leon (5 Rue Isly, 8eme), having researched decent restaurants in Paris for a good price. It was crazy inside - loud, bustling, very tiny, but we spotted an empty table & grabbed it. This would be the equivalent of a diner kind of place with simple food cooked well, visited by locals. I'm pretty sure we were the only tourists there, ergo, English was not spoken. We waited about 20 - 30 minutes to be spoken to at all - the place was being entirely run by one woman, presumably the owner. Eventually we ordered - I chose the rosbif with frites, my husband chosen veal, and after about another 20 or so minutes, we were told they were out :) Roast chicken it was - at this point, it appeared there was not a lot left in the kitchen to serve. When the food finally came it was presented very simply - no fancy garnishes here. The food itself was great - good quality ingredients (the potatoes really do taste different there........all in the soil, so they say) with excellent flavours.

My Adventures in Paris

2010-10-14T05:47:00.010-06:00

Before the memories fade.....................where to start? I'll do a trip summary in a series of posts - there's just too much to talk about in one super lengthy one :)

To begin at the beginning, the entire flight to Paris, my intrepidation at speaking French was increasing exponentially. It was 25 years ago that I was last there. At that time I was hinging on being completely bilingual. Just from what I've helping my sons out with their homework, etc (they're in French Immersion), I knew I had lost a LOT, if not most, of my comprehension. Can you say "Babelfish"?!

Once we landed, we took a shuttle bus from CDG to the Opera area. From there, in the middle of the beyond-traffic-congested area, we were left to fend for ourselves and begin the journey. Somehow we had to get a taxi - did I mention it was rush hour, and this area in Paris is likely the most congested in the city? When I say congested, picture several angled streets, merging together into an open circle. There is no concept of lanes and barely any direction provided by traffic lights, or lack thereof. Envision hundreds of cars, all of which have converged into the circle, driving in every direction possible, all clustered together and literally,bumper to bumper. Like, literally. It was the most insane cluster**** I have witnessed - somehow, our taxi driver got us out of there and to our apartment, located in the 8th arrondissement about 2 blocks southeast of the Arc de Triomphe and a block and a half north of the Champs d'Elysees. Upon arriving there, we waited for the rep from the apartment rental company to let us in.

The apartment was situated on the 4eme level, which, if you know how things go in France, is actually the 5th floor. After hauling up our luggage up the 5 flights of stairs, up a teeny, narrow wooden spiral staircase (being coached by our rep who said "you only have to do this once") and pleading with my heart not to go into full arrest before our trip had even begun, we were in. There were no surprises, everything was just as it had been depicted in the website photos. High end kitchen (complete with a Nespresso machine) and crazy funky design with blood red walls. Once we settled in we immediately headed out to the nearest grocery store, Monoprix, to get some basic supplies.

After a lovely stroll down the Champs d'Elysees, we found the store. The package left for us by the apartment people contained all sorts of useful information about the area, including this store location. The store was busy - at this time is was about 9pm; like any big city I've seen, dinner is eaten later than around these parts. I beelined for the yoghurt aisle, knowing that I would find lots to choose from. The selection was awe-inspiring. Grocery stores there have relatively little selection of everything, compared to what we see here (for example, the sugar section consisted of about 8 tiny items), but the yoghurt, well, that's entirely another story. The French LOVE their yoghurt, and it shows. So many brands, so many flavours, and the section blended into the next section, puddings/desserts, and not like the Jello brand things you find here. I chose two yoghurts, coconut and black currant. My husband chose a pkg of 4 pots de creme, which came in actual glass jars rimmed with gold foil; you'd think they'd be $$, but the set was something like 1.4euros, so just under $2. This section blended intot eh cheese section, also an enormous selection - I had to buy thes fun little 'aperitif" cheese tray, comes complete with the serving tray and little party picks :) Spent about 1/2 hours just perusing the aisles, taking it all in. This is one of my favourite parts about visiting other countries........it's a job hazard :) Chose a lovely jar of cherry confiture to go with our breakfast croissants, which I was eagerly anticipating. There's also interesting 'takes' on things we see here, like these smoked ham chips - not so far off from smoky bacon, but they definitely taste like ham. We discovered, at the till, unfortunately, that produce is weighed out and labelled by the customer, not punched in with codes at the till. So, with the long line behind us, we abandoned the fresh figs (lovely, supple and plump..........) and apples we had bagged up for that day.

Sauntered back to the apartment, packed our purchases away, and started drafting a plan of action for the following day.

The Countdown has Begun!

2010-09-27T16:36:00.002-06:00

The countdown to Paris has begun- it seems like forever since the trip was originally cancelled because of the Iceland volcanic eruption (yes, I still hate Iceland).

Our apartment is about 3 blocks east and 1 block north of the Champs d'Elysees. I didn't know, until recently, that you can actually go up inside the Arc de Triomphe - didn't do that in 1985, but will this time! I've mapped out several day trips, most of which are centered around food in some way :)

Penny McKinlay, a local writer, wrote an article about me and the story of Wild Serendipity. If you'd care to peruse, it's on her blog.

2010-09-16T22:09:00.002-06:00

I've just placed my first order with The Better Bread Box, run by Carmen Dyck and Keith Jorgenson (who are also vendors at the Saskatoon Farmer's Market - business name "Fruition").

This week's selection features peach and blueberry baking (fruity muffins, granola, granola bars or fruit crisp), and hearty sandwich or artisan bread.

There are several pick-up locations in the, or the orders can be delivered for a nominal fee.

Check it out - fresh, local baking for $20 without messin' up your own kithen! :)

Call for frost tonight (-3 deg C) - Fall is definitely around the corner......

Happy Birthday to MEEEEE! and a New Product

2010-09-05T12:51:00.008-06:00

This week marked my 43rd birthday, and I spent most of it making scones. I truly do apparently love what I do, because my personal tradition is to never work on my birthday. And I didn't even feel bad about it. I did, however, ensure that I frequented eating establishments that we do not normally go to with our boys. It was E.E. Burritos for lunch - Horchata (I love saying that word), which is kind of like cinnamon rice pudding in beverage form, if you've never had it, and a chicken enchilada - love their enchilada sauce! I had the song "Horchata" by Vampire Weekend running through my head the whole time - check it out on YouTube

For dinner it was Amigo's - chicken chimichanga (yep, it was a mexican-themed kind of day).

The highpoint was the cake, shown above, created by my lovely friend and kitchen-mate, Sherry Sawatzky of Sliced Decadence. For the base she made my favourite, maple pecan (with extra maple) and for the topper, my second favourite, chai. The mehndi design was inspired by a wedding cake she recently did - also, I was supposed to have received a permanent mehndi tattoo on my left hand/arm. Long story as to why that never happened. It goes without saying - the cake was fabulous.

This week I also introduced a new product to my Farmer's Market booth. Cathy Langdon, from In Our Handz, sold focaccia and cheesecakes at her booth at the Saskatoon Farmer's Market. She is launching her new business as a private practice dietician - the Food Mentor Knowing she would not have time to do both, she kindly asked me if I would be interested in taking on her focaccia product. I was happy to take it on, as it complemented my current product line, which also included European flatbread pizzas. It is sold by the pan (baked, ready to warm up) and slices, ready-to-eat, at the Market. It is made using a traditional Ciabatta dough - it is a fairly labour-intensive process, beginning the night before and much of the following day. The result is a dense and chewy texture - the flavous will be varied, and as always, ever-changing.

Fall - My Renewal Time of Year

2010-08-30T21:16:00.003-06:00

September is (nearly) here, already. It seems like the the previous school year just ended, and now here we are gearing up for another year. Fall has always felt like a time of renewal for me. I always looked forward to the beginning of a new school year - a time to see old friends, and how much they'd changed over the summer, new classroom, new teacher, new clothes and brand new school supplies. It really felt like the beginning of a new year, more so than the calendar New Year.

I had to sneak in this pic of my oldest son when he was one, taken at Kitsilano Beach (where we lived at the time............sigh).

Now, Fall marks the beginning of the new set of cooking classes after taking a reprieve over the summer. If you haven't seen the new schedule , you will see a few changes. There is less of me in the schedule, and the addition of classes taught by two Red Seal Chefs, Chef Brent Lloyd and Chef Simon Reynolds. My personal life (ie. my children's lives) has become busier and it has become increasingly difficult to 'meet the demand'. Both Simon and Brent bring their own style, both personal and cooking, to the mix. On my homepage, you will see a Class Description page. You will find the overview of all the classes being offered this term - of course, if you have any questions, just ask! There are a few dates left for custom (private groups) cooking classes - if you are interested in booking something, I recommend you do so soon!

So I hope you all have had a wonderful summer, and I look forward to seeing you in an upcoming class or at the Market! :)

Saltspring, At Last!

2010-08-11T21:01:00.008-06:00

Part Deux of my vacation post - our excursion to Saltspring Island, to take in the Farmer's Market.

Galiano Island (where we were staying) does have its own Farmer's Market, albeit smaller. The Saltspring Farmer's Market is, I believe, amongst the biggest/best known in British Columbia. To not go there, whilst in such close proximity, would be just pure silliness.

There is only one possible water taxi to take to the Market, and only one to get you back, so tardiness is not an option. We arrived about 20 minutes early, as advised by the owners. There was already a good handful of other people waiting around. I had no idea how many seats the 'taxi' would have - I knew it is used as the school taxi during the school year, so I was thinking 15, maybe 20? When it arrived, I was relieved to see that it sat ~50. It first stopped at Mayne Island, and then it was off to Saltspring. The trip there took a little over one hour. It seemed like a long time to spend getting to school, but then I realized that thousands of kids all over Saskatchewan spent that muc time (or more) on a bus each day. As we were approaching Ganges Harbour, we all couldn't help but gawk at a yacht that begged to be gawked at. I don't know enough about boats to talk specifics - but this is what you would envision when you think of the ultra-rich. It had a helicopter - a HELICOPTER!! crazy

Once we docked, we scrambled up to the Market - we were all hungry, so we stopped at the first place that looked good. It turned out to be a little wagon run by two elderly ladies - their fare consisted of all things fried - we got a potato on a stick (the potato was sliced into spirals using an attachment on an electric drill - ingenius! The slices were then put on a skewer) They had the equivalent of what we call elephant ears. And then there was the Dog on a Stick. I was thinking something along the lines of corndog, but that was naive. It was a wiener, wrapped in dough (like elephant ear dough), and then deep fried. Bad, bad...........but oh, so good!

Assured that our hearts were still pumping, we ventured on. We took a quick walkabout. Lots of artisans, not surprisingly - everything from children with craft-art, hand-crafted soaps, professional artists to all the fine (fine!) foods. Fresh produce was noticeably absent - we saw one vendor who had organic microgreens, but really, that was about it. The attendees were a little more reminiscent of the 60's (some of which lived through them, most of which would not have yet been a twinkle in their daddy's eye ;)

The Saltspring Island Cheese Company was a beehive of activity - so many varieties! We chose chevre topped with truffles.

I had to check out the Mustard vendor (of course), Joy and Alan Coupland - she had about a dozen or more varieties - I selected Herbed, and Lemon. Aside: We had a wonderful time trying to get through security with the two jars (they were taken from me - mustard does not equal mustard gas....................don't get me started) - just as I was beginning to create an 'incident', my husband unhappily volunteered to go back through security & check the two little terrorist threats. About 20 minutes later, he reappeared, and they did end up coming home with us.

I bought a lovely sunflower print, painted by Sherren MacLeod. Turns out she also runs a B&B on Saltspring (the running of which is where I'm heading, in about a decade, give or take a few years, and most likely on Galiano).

My boys were entranced with a guy performing with 'devil sticks'. I ended up buying them each a set to play with (there's good margins in tape-covered sticks). As I was walking through the park area to find my family, I heard music coming from the bandshell, it was 'oh mister sun, sun, mister golden sun, please shine down on me'. I thought, isn't that nice, someone is singing Raffi. As I made through the crowd, I could see the stage, & it WAS Raffi!! How cool is that?!

We had the opportunity to sample the food from a new vendor at the Market - a Japanese rice ball vendor. If you are unfamiliar with rice balls, they are a pizza-pocket style version of sushi (different fillings), packaged in the most clever way to keep the nori from getty soggy.

It truly was a great Market experience. We saw it all - the people, the products, the music and the wonderful foods made for wondeful memories. I'm so glad we took the time to get there - I was worried my boys would not feel the same, but they really had a blast.

With those happy memories in my head, while on our way back to the Harbour to take the water taxi back to Galiano, I took an unfortunate tumble down a couple of split-stone steps and sprained my ankle (which is still swollen to this day!) I'm just glad it happened at the end of the day, and at the end of our trip. Now I need to get it better before heading off to Paris in October!

My Summer, So Far

2010-07-20T19:04:00.010-06:00

Summer got off to a great start - we left for the West Coast right after the Saturday June 26th Farmer's Market. Specifically, Galiano Island was our destination. If you're not familiar with the Southern Gulf Coast Islands, they are located in the Juan de Fuca Strait, between the Lower Mainland and Vancouver Island:

Galiano is the long, thin island, the second-largest of the southern gulf coast islands, Saltspring being the largest. It is also the second largest by population, which is sitting at around 1,200 right now.

This was a trip a couple of years in the making. My father rented a fully-equipped cabin right on the water for a week, and we all stayed together. The cabin was located on Whaler Bay, just a few minutes' walk from the Sturdies Bay Ferry Dock. "Downtown" Galiano is in between the two.

You instantly knew you had been transported to "Island Time" when, at 3pm (if you're lucky) everything except the little gas station/grocery has closed down for the day. On one day, we were looking for somewhere to eat lunch, and we were pointed to a painted camper trailer (The Flying Black Dog) across the street - we were advised that they had great food, if they were still open (this was about 1:45) . There were people there, so we thought we were in the clear. As we placed our order, I noticed a sign that said "sorry, closed at 2 today - going golfing". Our order was the last one put through. It was excellent food - I had a curried chickpea roti on rice, really fresh flavours.

The food stores were stocked a wee bit better than most cabin-type grocery stores - you could find pretty much anything you'd expect in a high end food store. You could literally cook any type of cuisine while staying there. The prices were surprisingly not sky high. In town there is the Sturdies Bay Bakery & Cafe - lovely little spot, great coffee and artisan breads.

The highlight of the week was unexpected - it was the Canada Day Jamboree. We missed the parade since we assumed the community hall where it was being held was nearby. Turns out Galiano Island is so long that they have two community halls. After about a 25 minute ride to the north end of the island, we joined in the celebration already underway.

The whole thing was so well-organized, even the food venue. There were salmon burgers (my choice), meat & veggie burgers, smokies/hot dogs. Coffee was served in real ceramic cups (did I mention there is no landfill on Galiano Island? We had to take all our our garbage from the cabin back with us on the ferry), as recycling is huge on the island (any island). There was a huge selection of from-scratch pies, ice cream.

After lunch, there were several carnival type games set up for the kids, including some of the old fashioned ones like 3 legged and potato sack race. One of the kids activities was purchasing a cake for $2 and decorating it. Live music was played throughout the festivities - at one point, Hallelujah could be heard. Where else, but a remote(ish) island, kind of stuck in the 60's, would you hear that at a Canada Day Celebration? :)

At the end of the day, people were allowed to take flowers from the big cart (shown above) that was part of the parade.

Apparently there are occasionally fireworks in the evening, but a fireban was currently in effect.

This was my favourite Canada Day to date. It was such a wholesome, not-cheezy, fun event. There was such a good spirit that could be felt. We've already booked the same cabin for 2011, & will continue to do so, all planned around Canada Day. So there will be many more Galiano Jamboree Canada Day celebrations in our future!

Next up - Saltspring Island Farmer's Market!!

Summer Cooking Classes!

2010-06-03T21:22:00.002-06:00

There is an exciting lineup of classes being offered at the kitchen of Wild Serendipity Foods over the summer months!
Two chefs, Brent Lloyd and Simon Reynolds are running a series of classes over July and into August.

Click here for Simon's schedule
and
here for Brent Lloyd's schedule

Please direct any inquiries and/or registration for the classes to each chef directly - contact information is provided on the schedule sheet.

Have a great summer!

Exciting Things at the Farmer's Market!!

2010-05-12T07:25:00.002-06:00

There are some exciting things happening at the Farmer's Market these days............

First, an update on our first Dinner at the Market - it was a resounding success! We received nothing but great reviews from the guests, some hoping that we would continue to hold them.......weekly!! (not a chance) It was a great experience all around, & we looking forward to holding more in the future.

That was a great segway for the next bit of news:
Chef Moe Mathieu, Head Chef Instructor at SIAST's culinary program, is going to be creating a "pop up restaurant" at the Farmer's Market, set to run 4 nights per week, starting towards the end of June. Moe will be setting up a restaurant within the Market, to be run out of Riverbend's kitchen. Come & check out this first-of-its-kind in Saskatoon. Enjoy a wonderful meal, then take a stroll along the River Landing promenade!

Then, starting on Thursday, July 1st, there will be a Thursday evening market, running from 5pm to 9pm. This market is set to run until mid-September. Stop by to eat/pick up your supper, shop from the vendors & tenants, enjoy some entertainment on the Square. Just one of the exciting things beginning to happen at River Landing!

Volcanoes

2010-04-18T17:53:00.002-06:00

I

HATE

VOLCANOES

!!!!!!

(au revoir, until sometime in the future, Tour Eiffel, Cordon Bleu class, cool apartment off the Champs Elysees...............and most importantly, the food)

Sunday Dinner at the Market

2010-04-15T14:57:00.005-06:00

On Sunday, May 2nd, the Saskatoon Farmer's Market is hosting its first "Sunday Dinner at the Market". Each course of the menu is being prepared by a Market Vendor (Click on the link for a full description). Yours truly is preparing the Thai Carrot Coconut Soup.

Tickets are only $25 per person; a wine & beer cash bar, put on by Cava Secreta, will be available.

Buy your tickets in advance - only a limited number will be sold!! Tickets can be purchased at the Market office, or at either the Fruition or Wild Serendipity Foods stall.

Shaw TV Tortoni Recipe

2010-03-27T21:33:00.003-06:00

Here's the recipe for the Italian frozen dessert, Tortoni:

Tortoni

~1/2 cup almonds (skin on, or blanched)
5 oz amaretti cookies (or other crisp cookie)
3 TBSP dark rum (I use spiced rum)
3/4 cup chopped/shaved chocolate
1 cup whipping cream
3 TBSP brandy (or another complementary alcohol, such as Amaretto, Frangelico)
1 pint good quality vanilla ice cream, softened

Preheat oven to 350F. Toast the almonds for ~10 - 15 minutes. Allow to cool, then coarsely chop.

Crumble the cookies into ~1/2 inch pieces, using a ziploc bag if possible. Place the cookies in a large bowl. Sprinkle the 3 TBSP rum over top, tossing to combine. Place the cooled, chopped almonds and chocolate on top of the cookies; toss lightly to combine.

Whip the cream until moderately stiff. Add the 3 TBSP brandy (or other liqueur). Spoon the whipped cream on top of the cookie mixture.

Using a spatula, lightly mix the ice cream until it is uniform consistency; softened, but not melted. Add to the bowl. Using the spatula, fold the entire mixture together until just combined.

Pour the mixture into a plastic-lined loaf pan (or a springform pan). Freeze for several hours, or until firm. To serve, cut with a sharp knife.

Tip: to make this dessert even easier, use chocolate-covered almonds, coarsely chopped. Play with the all the component flavours - cookie (gingersnaps, for example), alcohol, nuts and ice cream. You can also add dried/candied fruit.

Fascinating Figs

2010-03-21T12:19:00.006-06:00

I've been running a series of French K.I.S.S. classes, where one of the dishes is Fig & Walnut Tapenade with Chevre. Using the Calimyrna figs, I recalled a chef on Victoria Island telling me that the flower of the fig is actually on the inside of the flesh. I thought this was interesting - wasn't really sure how that worked, but filed it away in my memory files, nonetheless.

I was mentioning this fascinating fact to participants of the class, and was met most with puzzled looks. Because I wasn't entirely sure about the whole story, I thought I should research it a bit more.

It turns out that not only is the flower on the inside, what we consider the fruit is actually a part of the flower, with the blossom opening just inside the stem. I thought this seemed peculiar enough, until I read about the pollination process. There are female & male fig trees, which, of course, have to be cross-pollinated (only the female trees produce the edible fruit/flower. This is achieved by only one specific creature, the fig wasp! What an amazingly particular set of players, all to produce a fruit, which isn't even a fruit.

Nature truly is a thing of wonder.

Here's the recipe:

Fig & Walnut Tapenade with Chevre

1 cup finely chopped Calimyrna figs (stems removed)

1/3 (or more) cup water

1/3 cup finely chopped Kalamata olives

2 TBSP olive oil

1 TBSP chopped capers

1 TBSP red wine or balsamic vinegar

2 TBSP finely chopped fresh thyme

1/2 cup chopped, toasted walnuts

salt & freshly ground pepper, to taste

1 baguette, sliced on the diagonal, lightly toasted

chevre (as much as you like)

Cook the chopped figs with the water until soft; you could also microwave them. Transfer to a bowl. Add the remaining ingredients, except the chevre & baguette. Season, to taste. Serve at room temperature. Spread a liberal amount of chevre on each baguette slice & top with tapenade.

It's mid-February, already!?

2010-02-14T11:44:00.005-06:00

Bad blogger, bad blogger......................

Is it me, or is January the most glum month of the year? There is so much preparation and hype leading up to Christmas and New Year's, and then January feels like the crash after the big build-up. The weather here is generally the crappiest in January, it's light so late in the morning and dark so early, people are now getting their credit card bills for their likely-budget-exceeding Christmas purchases (I managed to escape that quandry this year - yippee!). Most people don't want to look at the scale (and some, of course, make promises and resolutions that seem to fade to nothingness come February), present party included.

The high point of my January is that a trip to Paris for April has been booked, including an ultra-cool apartment in the 8th arondissemnt, about 2 blocks from Champs-Elysees and about 5 blocks from the Arc de Triomphe.

And, just to sweeten the already sweet trip, I checked out the Cordon Bleu website and enroled in a one day pastry class. Complete with a certificate of completion, which will, of course, be framed & blatantly displayed.

Valentine's Day was yesterday. I had purchased a dinner & play package from La Troupe du Jour, which included a 5 course dinner at Calories, followed by the play, Encore (with English surtitles). The dinner was so wonderful, where to begin...............the special menu cannot be posted, but you can check it out on their website, which speaks for itself. Truly, I fell in love the the "Come Back Home", the beef tenderloin wellington, with a mushroom duxelle and cream sauce. Heavenly.

The premise of the play consisted of snapshots of a couple's wedding anniversaries over the span of 50 years. The coolest thing about the play was that the audience was actually in the lounge. We were seated at tables for two, and were able to order drinks from the waitress (also French), prepared in the bar, which was also part of the set. The wife had decided, prior to their first anniver sary, that they should re-enact their meeting, in a hotel-lounge, every year to keep their romance alive, and fall in love all over alive. Their relationship changes when once they have a child, and eventually collapses. They do end up getting back together, but it is bittersweet. As you watch their 50th anniversary acted out, the husband has been senile, and momentarily loses where he is, doesn't recognize his wife, and is, at times, vacant. The wife, originally very stubborn and overbearing, has grown to become sympathetic and sympathetic - their love evolved into a gentle and mature bond.

All in all, a delightful, and very sweet, way to spend Valentine's Day

Holiday Recipes for ShawTV

2009-12-14T11:48:00.007-06:00

This is a great holiday appetizer that takes no time at all to prepare! I've written it with a Southwest flavour, but I have included Greek & Thai variations below. Happy Holidays!

Baked Garlic Lime Shrimp with Chipotle Dipping Sauce

1 pound shrimp, peeled & deveined, thawed
1/3 cup olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
3/4 TSP smoked bittersweet paprika (available at Sous Chef)
juice and zest of one lime
salt, pepper to taste
chopped fresh parsely, for garnish, if desired

Preheat oven to 425F.

Place the shrimp on layers of paper towel to absorb as much water as possible; if there is excess water, the shrimp will poach, rather than bake. In a large bowl, combine all ingredients except the shrimp, stirring well to combine. Add the shrimp, tossing to coat. Set aside while preparing the dipping sauce. Do not allow the shrimp to marinate more than 30 minutes or they will begin to toughen.

Chipotle Dipping Sauce:

equal parts mayonnaise & sour cream, roughly 1/3 to 1/2 cup each
1 TBSP honey
juice of half a lime
2 TSP pureed chipotles in adobo sauce (chipotles are ripened jalapenos that have been smoked & dried; adobo sauce is a spicy tomato sauce. These are found in small cans in the Mexican section of stores including Safeway & Walmart)
salt, pepper to taste

Mix ingredients together & set aside.

Place the shrimp on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Bake for approximately 8 to 10 minutes, or until the tails have turned pink & the shrimp are slightly pink and just beginning to brown.

Garnish with parsley & serve immediately.

Variations:
Greek - substitute lemons for limes in the recipe; omit paprika and subst. with oregano. For the dip, omit chipotles in adobo and add one clove minced garlic, the juice and zest of one lemon.

Thai - omit the smoked paprika and add a tablespoon of minced fresh ginger to the marinade. Serve with a spicy peanut dipping sauce. I've included a recipe, but you could always use a commercially prepared sauce:

3/4 cruncy peanut butter
1/2 cup coconut milk (unsweetened)
2 to 4 TBSP hot water
~ 1/4 cup fresh lime juice
1 to 2 TSP Asian Chili sauce (Sambal Oelek)
2 TBSP soy sauce
2 TBSP dark brown sugar
1 to 2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 TSP chili flakes
1 TSP fresh grated ginger
1 TSP fish sauce (optional)
optional: fresh Thai basil, for garnish (avail. at the Eastern market on Ave B south)

Mix together & set aside.

Sushi Demo at the Farmer's Market!

2009-11-27T20:21:00.005-06:00

Come on by the Saskatoon Farmer's Market on Wednesday, December 2nd at 1pm for a free Sushi Demonstration done by yours truly!

We've recently started incorporating a demo of some sort during the Wednesday market, & this week, I'm up.

I'll be demo'ing california rolls & vegetarian sushi. Everyone there will be eating what I make, as well :)

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas - NOT!!

2009-11-24T07:44:00.007-06:00

Over the years I spent living on the West Coast, we treasured these 'Fall-ish" weeks leading up to Christmas. We loved it - thought we were the luckiest people in Canada not having to endure the scraping, shivering and layers of clothing just to leave the house. I recall one Christmas in Victoria, walking along Oak Bay and observing a youth string ensemble playing Christmas carols on the sidewalk, store-fronts and streetlights decorated elaborately with live greenery. (think Charles Dickens played out in real life) I thought to myself, 'this is how Christmas should be!'.

Now, about to experience yet another Fall-ish day here in Saskatoon, on the 24th of November.......well, the feeling is shifting from enjoyment and 'lucky', to downright bizarre. No one here is in Christmas mode yet. Yes, there are a growing number of houses lit up in decoration, but it almost collectively feels forced. As if we're all looking at the calendar & thinking, "Whoa, it's the XX day of November - we should have our lights/wreath/tree/anything-to-do-with-Christmas up!!!"

I was at Costco yesterday, where a typical Monday morning at opening, a month before Christmas, could only be described as hell on earth. But wait, there were parking spots, many of them, in fact. I was able to leisurely make my way through the aisles, which were strangely less busy than just a few weeks ago. Unsettling, it was.

In my Holiday Cheer appetizer classes, I normally have Christmas carols playing in the background. I have still been making my mulled cider, so it at smells a lot like Christmas, but I haven't been able to make myself put the carols on. It just doesn't feel right. So, nu-jazz is what is on - reasonably fitting, but more for New Years than Christmas.

Snow. It's what we need, & secretly want (even those of you who claim you don't). Not a blizzard - we're not that greedy for it. Just a sprinkle, a light dusting, if you will. Something that gently announces "It IS beginning to look a lot like Christmas!"

Well, being that it's now the 24th of November, when that moment comes, and come it will.........we will have that joyful feeling for a few minutes, before widespread panic sets in. There will be ladders and lights, full parking lots with people, stores bursting at their seams......people, people everywhere, in lineups, ATMs, on sidewalks and ladders. First happy, then irritated, then just plain old irate.

With that, I'm now going to head out - in my warm car, light clothing and winterboot-less. Blissfully enjoying this unexpected, and inevitably doomed, extended Fall.

The Yoghurt Guy

2009-11-16T23:16:00.003-06:00

This is not a happy post.

We learned today Bernie Hounjet, a.k.a. the Yoghurt Guy at the Saskatoon Farmer's Market (and also the president of the Board of Directors), has passed.

My heart goes out to his family, especially Celine, whom I have watched grow up at the Market.

Rest in Peace, Bernie. You will be missed.

Oh What Fools These Mortals Be..............

2009-11-01T09:55:00.003-06:00

Spoken from yours truly, the Autumn Fairy (for the day). The costume was a few months in the planning (in my head, anyway), and a wee bit of work last week. Despite the snow, it was a fun market. You can see on my stand a little sign that says "bits of glitter are free! (today only)". I opted to post that once I noticed little clouds of glitter falling from me whenever I moved, as my arms were also covered in it. Going towards the costume cost recovery fund, I took in 1st prize at the market for best costume - dinner for the family at Boston Pizza :)

French-Inspired Fall Flavours

2009-10-25T20:17:00.005-06:00

Tonight's dinner was one of those meals that somehow came together with things I already had in the pantry (a rare occurence in my house). I still had some ultra-thick boneless pork chops from Costco in the freezer - the only protein other than eggs, in the house - so I started out by thawing them.

Peaking through the refrigerator, I saw that I still had a couple of local apples, and a few local baby cabbages (so cute!). I remembered I had a couple of cans of Gaymers apple cider, and there it was.......dinner. This dish is representative of the Northern (Normandy) region of France.

Apple Cider Braised Pork Loin with Cabbage

~ 6 boneless pork loin chops (I sliced my ultra-thick ones in half)
2 TBSP butter
salt, pepper
~ 12 ounces hard apple cider (such as Gaymers, Strongbow), or about 1 1/4 cups apple juice plus 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar (drink the remaining cider while you continue with the recipe)
4 to 6 cups of finely shredded cabbage (young, if possible), without cores
2 apples, cored & sliced - I leave the peel on
2 TSP cornstarch
1/2 cup light or heavy cream

In a large, heavy-bottomed pot, heat the butter over medium-high heat. Season the pork with salt & pepper; brown, both sides, in pan. Remove the browned meat and set aside. Deglaze the pan with roughly 1/2 cup of the apple cider, scraping up bits from the bottom.

Add the cabbage and apples, tossing to coat. Season generously with salt & pepper. Saute for about 5 minutes, then return pork to pot. I placed the pork on top of the cabbage, and then heaped some of the cabbage on top, so that the pork was in the middle. Add the remaining apple cider.

Bring to a boil, then cover & simmer for ~25 minutes. The meat will be cooked through and the cabbage should be completely tender. Cook a bit longer if the cabbage is not tender enough. Check for seasoning; adjust if necessary. Remove the pork and set aside. Sprinkle the cornstarch over; stir to combine. I like the sauce to be a bit thickish - if you'd rather not add the cornstarch, skip this step.

Add the cream. Return to a boil and cook until the cabbage mixture has thickened. Place the cabbage apple mixture on a platter & top with the pork. Drizzle some of the sauce over top of the pork to serve.

Adding MAJOR Flavour

2009-10-18T11:17:00.004-06:00

I always mention these products in my cooking classes, so I thought I'd talk about them here. These oils/extract are produced my a company called Boyajian. I started off with the lime oil, which I use in many of my southeast-asian soups, my ginger lime wasabi mustar, and now my ginger lime coconut scones. Just a drop or two adds a HUGE amount of pure, powerful lime flavour. I have since bought the orange oil, and most recently, the pure maple extract. The maple extract adds a big boost of flavour to my maple oatmeal scones. Even though they have a good amount of maple syrup, this greatly heightens the flavour - since, you can never have too much maple flavour. I highly recommend trying out these products!

I have smelled the other products, which are all available at Sous Chef in Erindale. If you have never checked out the store, and you're into interesting & exotic food items, you simply must go. You'll find an vast array of gourmet salts, vinegars, mustards, peppercorns........too much to describe, really. ie. go there, soon.........

The Birthplace of Scones (and Bannock)

2009-09-08T05:47:00.007-06:00

During this past Saturday's market, as I was talking to a customer about the scones I tried in Scotland, I realized I had neglected to mention them in my blog.

Scotland is the birthplace of scones, and yes, the "correct" pronunciation is 'skon', not 'scone'. The original Gaelic word sounds more like "schkon". I, however, have been saying 'scone' forever, & I don't think I could change it now. (btw, the Queen of England says 'scone'..........)

The scone pictured above was from a lovely little cafe in Elie. They had several varieties to choose from, & I chose this one - a cherry scone. Of course, I was envisioning something along the lines of the sour cherry toffee scones that I make...........and was sadly disappointed. The cherries were, in fact, chopped up candied cherries. Eeww. Dismissing my unhappiness with the cherry flavour, I focused on the scone, itself. Now, anyone that knows me, knows that I am extremely humble when it comes to my own culinary creations. My scones, as popular as they are, don't strike me as anything particularly noteworthy. I am now thinking my faithfull & enthusiastic customers may, in fact, be drawn to more than my sunny disposition (and may actually be buying my scones in spite of it :) . The scone in question............pretty much sucked. The texture was somewhat dry & cakey, the flavour was lacking, well, flavour. Echos of 'these really are the best scones I ever had' from my happy customers came to mind.

I did have an opportunity to try another scone in Pittinweem, at the Cocoa Tree, which I previously talked about. There, I had what I know to be a cream scone, flavoured with chocolate chips. This scone was actually really good, albeit messy, as the scone was served warm........hence, I looked like a 3yr old with my fingers covered in melted chocolate. It was comparable to mine, definitely, although slightly more cakey in texture.

After doing a bit of research when I came home, it turns out that in North America, the base of our scones evolved into containing siginificantly more sugar and butter than the original version. Are we surprised?? Of course ours (well, mine in particular ;) taste better........how could they not?

So there you have it. In the end, I was comparing apples to oranges.........well, maybe apples to crabapples. Similar, but essentially a different beast altogether.

Now, about bannock. I noticed on the menus something called 'bannock'. As it turns out, it is exactly was we associate with the Indigenous food. I had never before heard of a link between the two, and had always assumed that the origins were in North Amercia. After researching the topic, it turns out the opposite is true. Bannock, or bread, has its origins in Scotland, first reference in the year 1000. It is leavened with baking powder & typically cooked in a greased pan, What I found even more interesting was that when the bannock is cut into wedges, the wedges were called 'scones'. The circle is complete.

Things I Learned in Scotland

2009-08-26T08:56:00.004-06:00

To sum up:
The Scottish really do say 'aye', for yes.

Pretty much everyone does eat Haggis, either on occasion, or frequently. And, it's not as gross as its infamy would suggest.

"Pub grub" is, by far, the best bargain for eating out. The food is not just all fried fare - great from-scratch fare at good prices.

Get the breakfast sausages whenever possible, they are wonderful!

Do not look at the direction cars are parked in to determine which way to look when trying to cross the street (they are parked every which way). If possible, look every which way, & then again, quickly, before venturing off the curb...........then utter a prayer & run.

I think there are more varities of scotch in Scotland than wine.......I'd wager on it.

Fruit ciders (apple or pear) from the UK kick ass; I will be looking for them back home.

Bagpipes can be more cool than you can imagine.

The Scots really do look for a bargain. (but then again, who doesn't?)

You don't have to search very far to hear Gaelic spoken.

If you don't like the weather, you only have to wait about 2 or 3 minutes (never mind the usual 15). You can actually get an aerobic workout doing the following: 1: put jacket on 2:Take jacket off: 3:Put sunglasses on. 4:Take sunglasses off. 5:Open umbrella. 6: Close & shake off umbrella. Repeat, in no particuar order, as necessary.

I observed children (from all over the UK), in public, to be much whinier than I expected. I thought North American kids were bad - holy Moses!

Finding traditional celtic music in a pub was not so common as I thought it would be. In fact, I never heard any, other than in the dining room of our B&B in Edinburgh. I did, however, hear live blues & bluegrass.

I was disappointed to see that, like our grocery stores, local produce is generally extinct. I was happy to have found The Farm Shop, outside Elie.

Hospitality/service staff are infinitely more professional & friendly than back home. Your presence doesn't actually seem to be a source of aggravation to them - go figure!

Showers can be tricky, tricky things. That's all I'll say.

Unlike our toilet stalls that have spaces below & above, theirs go all the way to the floor/ceiling. Privacy is nice!

Further to the toilets, the public (including portable ones at the Gathering, and ones out in the middle of nowhere) are identical, and often cleaner/better, than private washrooms. Truly a pleasant surprise. No need to test the resilience of your bladder for fear of what you might find!

The Fife Coast

2009-08-26T08:09:00.005-06:00

We left Edinburgh on the Monday following the Gathering, and headed northeast towards the Fife Coast. My father had rented a vehicle to be picked up at the airport. He has driven in the UK before, and although it took a bit for him to become re-accustomed, I immediately knew there was NO way I would ever be able to drive on the left (without killing someone, anyway). I've always had troubles with spatial ability, & wonder now if this is somehow related?

Anyway, on we went. After a few wrong turns at roundabouts, which are everywhere, and inconsistently signed, we finally made it to Elie, on the Fife Coast. The body of water in this area is called the Firth of Forth, or was it Fourth of Fifth, Fifth of Sixth......? Firth, as I found out, means 'bay'. Elie is a lovely coastal town, very cute & picturesque. We had a self-contained townhouse there, with lots of room & a fully-equipped kitchen (yeah!).

The morning after we arrived in Elie, we set out to get groceries. I had seen an ad for The Farm Shop. This place was about 5 minutes outside Elie, also along the coast. It was a small building, housing a farm-to-market produce shop and high-end food items. It was immediately inviting, with the metal ducks leading to the front door. As you entered, this was the display - those are real veggies, not fake display models. The way the product was displayed there was how you bought it, out of the display baskets & into a shopping (woven) basket. I loved this store!

When I went to pay, I noticed that there were huge pots of fresh herbs outside, & asked how I might purchase them. The girl said I just had to say what I wanted & she would cut them. So, I asked for some rosemary, chives & parsley. She cut a few stems of each & charged me accordingly; I know she would likely not be happy with this picture, but here she is, cutting the herbs for me.

After spending a few relaxing days in & around Elie, hiking along the coast, hanging around cafes, eating crab & lobster hauled from the ocean just moments before, my last weekend was quickly approaching.

This last photo was taken in Pittenweem, during the Arts Festival. This was a really unique festival, where local artists open up their homes, converting a portion of it into an art gallery, displaying their wares. Visiting artists were also housed in many locations around the town; there were around 89 artists in total. I bought a few prints, and some jewellery - it was great fun talking to the artists in person. An amazing fireworks display was held on the Saturday evening - it was quite the display, one the the best I've ever seen (and we lived in Vancouver & saw a few of the fireworks competitions), for such a small town.

One of the more interesting artists was Derek Collins (Flaming Art), who actually ignites the paintings, yielding a lacquered effect. The art itself was really interesting, & then I saw an article he had on disply. He actually uses loved one's ashes & incorporates them into paintings - a permanent, tangible memory. I really was drawn to this idea.

Sunday, the Gathering, day 2

2009-08-25T08:12:00.005-06:00

We had set aside Sunday as the day to check out the musical acts. The first band we saw was the Red Hot Chilli Pipers . I was expecting a somewhat comical, more or less traditional celtic band. Wrong. The show was introduced with the music by Strauss from 2001: The Space Odyssey, which quickly drew everyone to the stage. The show immediately went into their first song; the guitarist had a flourescent pink mohawk, the group (about 5 main musicians, plus brass) leader played pipes; the music was fast & full of energy. They have defined their invention of this type of music as "Bag Rock" . Check out this video on youtube for a sampling.

Later, we saw another great act, Capercaille, a unique blend of traditional celtic music (mostly in Gaelic) with a contemporary beat, with vocals sung by Karen Matheson . Really lovely - picked up their new CD entitled Roses & Tears. Check out this video on youtube for a sampling.

The rest of our day was spent catching the events at the Highland Games, wandering, eating............a great day all around.

That evening we had our formal clan dinner at the University of Edinburgh. Lord Strathnaver gave a small speech, which included a story that my father told him about our family's history. My great grandfather settled in Canada, ahead of his wife. Once settled, he sent her a ticket to come over.........on the Titanic. She had to make quite the journey to get to the port, apparently, & was furious when she found out she had been bumped by someone from higher class. Anger would have quickly turned to relief, obviously, with the demise of the unsinkable ship. Our immediate family history almost immediately snuffed out.

Clan Parade up the Royal Mile

2009-08-25T07:49:00.005-06:00

OK - back to blogging about the trip, before all the details completely fad from memory.......... (naughty, naughty me)

Saturday evening, refreshed from our nap and another fabulous meal (beef & guinness pie for me) at the Reverie pub, we took a taxi to the bottom of the palace gates to await the parade. At first we couldn't find our clan, & they were supposed to alphabetical, yet, there were A's mixed with T's, pretty much a big clan snafu. Eventually we all found our Sutherland sign sitting up against a trailer - no one had bothered to take it out yet. So, our little group became the beacon. Lord Strathnaver, the Earl of Sutherland (our clan still has a castle, Dunrobin), was there. I didn't know until that weekend that we still had a castle, which is uncommon for existing clans. Most have clan chiefs, who were marked by wearing 3 tall feathers in their caps. The parade finally began, but of course, we were S, followed only by Taits & Unruhs, so we had a bit of a wait.

When we were finally passed the gates & began our jaunt up the Royal Mile, I was shocked to see so many spectators watching the parade & cheering the clans on. Apparently, this was THE thing to do in Edinburgh that evening. As people saw the clan names, they would yell out the name & cheer.......it was pretty cool. I even had the opportunity to carry the sign for a while!

At the top of the Royal Mile, we all entered the stadium set up in front of Edinburgh Castle to watch the pageant, which was the finale of the parade. It must have been an amazing spectacle to see from the city - there were spotlights waving up into the sky from the castle, and the castle itself was lit up with both lights & torches. The pageant consisted of a theatrical history of Scotland, and ended, of course, with a huge pipe band. Always goosebump raising........

The Gathering

2009-08-16T10:41:00.006-06:00

We headed out for the Gathering Saturday morning. We were there well before the big crowds began to arrive, so we beelined for our clan (Sutherland tent).

I then suggested that we check out the merchandise tent, since things tend to start selling out later in the day. I thought we were standing in a LONG line for the merchandise, which did not seem to be moving. Suddenly, there was a lot of movement, and people turning to our right. There appeared Prince Charcles & Camila Parker Bowles (!!). I had no idea he was there to open the games. This was the best shot I got.

I was also able to record the audio of his opening speech for the Games.

The beginning of the Games was marked by a LARGE pipe band that was marched in. Hearing & seeing Pipe bands became de rigeur throughout the Gathering, but I never tired of them. I was fascinated by the unfettered displays of strength that comprised the game events. I had a thought that the cost of sports in our own country could be greatly reduced by integrating these type of events. Whoever can lift/throw/pull the item of choice, usually logs, people or rocks, the farthest/longest wins. As simple as that!

At the Taste of Scotland venue I purchased some lovely wildflower honey to bring home and huge bag of Walker's various shortbread cookies for gift-giving. I then enjoyed the cutest little tub (picture a tub of Haagen-Dasz about 4 inches tall) of honey ice cream. Yum!!!!!

We then headed back to the B&B to take in a nap before the big event, the Clan Parade up the Royal Mile, later that evening.

Scotland - the Orientation Phase

2009-08-16T09:06:00.013-06:00

I had wanted to write this immediately upon my return, but, as with all holidays, 5 minutes after your return.............the realities of everyday life come crashing down around you :)

Two weeks later, I'm finally sitting down to write about my trip!

My father & I arrived in Edinburgh in the early afternoon - thanks to being able to sleep on the overnight/over water portion of the flight, neither of us felt any jetlag. Immediately you are struck with being surrounded by the charming Scottish accents, which quickly become 'normal', but how I miss them now that I am home :) When we told our cab driver (a woman, surprisingly enough) that we were there for the Gathering, she replied "Oh, that's right...........I forgot that was on." Since that was the entire reason for us going, we were both surprised. My memories of the Spirit of the West Song "The Old Sod" popped into my head......"There's none more Scots than the Scots abroad..........." I get the meaning now. We experienced this quite a bit, but at the same time, there were plenty of locals that knew all about it & were also participating.

Our first meal was had at what became our favourite pub, The Reverie . Excellent food (we did end up going traditional & ordered the recommended fish & chips), great price, quaint & lively atmosphere. They were setting up for a band & was all ready to hear some form of celtic music. The band, good as they were, was blues (!). Thought it a bit odd, but enjoyed them nonetheless.

The breakfast routine at our B&B was good - you chose your hot items from a list the night before. You came down to the dining room, table number the same as your room number. A continental breakfast was set up, with cereals, yoghurt, fruit, milk, juice & coffee. I had gone with traditional breakfast items (excellent sausages........I ended up having them nearly everyday we were in Edinburgh), while my father had chosen Haggis. I squeamishly gave it a try, quivering only slightly while raising a tiny forkful to my mouth. Surprisingly, my immediate reaction was that it tasted just like crumbled up, good quality pate. Strong in flavour, but not horrible.......at all.

Coffee, however, was somewhat unbearable for me...........panic started to set in. The coffee itself was fine, but I unfortunately have never been able to take it black, despite many attempts to do so. I tend to make a meal of my coffee...........lots of cream & lots of demerara sugar. They are tea drinkers in Scotland.............the dairy brought to me was skim milk. Skim.........I would actually prefer no coffee, however desperately I needed it. The sugar packets contained white sugar, something which I no longer prefer. I drank a scant cup & feared about the impending caffeine withdrawl.

We spent Friday strolling up the Royal Mile, the location for the big Clan Parade the following evening. Bought lots of trinkets (including the new love of my life, one I'll have for the rest of my days........the alpaca cardigan in my visions). One of my favourite momentos is a silver pocketwatch with a celtic pattern on the front - I haven't worn a watch in years & always rely on my cellphone for the time. To my surprise, I had no cell coverage there.......thanks SaskTel Mobility! In the end it was quicker to just ask my father for the time than fishing it out of my pocket & popping it open. I continue to wear it now that I'm at home, & back with my cellphone ways, just for show :)

Still suffering from caffeine withdrawl, & the fear of when it might end.......there it was, a Starbucks. I know, I know........it's like going to McDonalds in Paris (which I also did, but I was 17......forgive me), but the siren was beckoning (ok, screaming). Outside the Starbucks I witnessed an unlikely couple of buskers - 2 pipers!

Once sufficiently replenished with caffeine upon consuming my Caramel Macchiatto, we continued on. Spending lots, eating & drinking lots. Over a lunch of bangers & mash, I enjoyed a lovely Bulmers Pear cider. The fruit (mostly apple) ciders immediately became my beverage of choice. Just a little bit bubbly, sweet, but not overly so, & light. You don't end up with that full belly feeling after drinking mugfuls of Guinness.

Haggis?!

2009-07-21T07:27:00.003-06:00

Well, after nearly a year of looking forward to it, tomorrow I leave for Scotland, for the The Gathering 2009 in Edinburgh. This is the international gathering of the clans (I will be a representative of clan Sutherland) & all its festivities, including the Highland Games, which you've likely heard of. I will be going with my father, who has generously given me the opportunity to accompany him on this ancestral voyage.

We will be participating in a parade, in groups of clans, up the Royal Mile to Edinburgh Castle. The photo I've posted is now making me very afraid. Each clan (there are roughly 125 in total that will be represented) will have a tent set up during the weekend. People have been asking me if I have relatives still in Scotland. I have replied "Yes, & apparently I will be meeting all of them!" :)

After the Gathering weekend, we will be travelling for a week around towns where my father has been before, including some of ancestral significance.

Looking forward to posting details of the trip! I'll let you know how the Haggis was.........

Special Happy Birthday Greeting for my Son

2009-06-25T07:46:00.003-06:00

Last night we had a special event at the Farmer's Market. Members & delegates of the Agricultural Producer's Association of Saskatchewan (APAS) were there, sampling our fare and enjoying an evening on the square, along with music & entertainment.

In attendance was Dwain Lingenfelter, the newly elected leader of the NDP party for Saskatchewan. Towards the end of the evening, he and 3 others were sitting outside the Market, near my stall. I watched as my youngest son, who turned 5 today, went up to them & must have told him about his upcoming special day. I know this because we could hear Dwain and his group singing "Happy Birthday" to him :)

Something to jot down for him to remember.

Happy 5th Birthday, Joshua!!!

Upcoming Fall Cooking Classes

2009-06-16T08:08:00.002-06:00

I have set up an email group for the upcoming fall cooking classes. I will send out notification of the new class schedule to this group. If you are on the list, you will have an opportunity to register for the classes you would like prior to me posting the new schedule on my website.

If you would like to be added to the list, please send me an email :)

info@wildserendipity.com

It's nice to see that we finally have some seasonal weather! It's too hot for me, personally. I know, I know, one shouldn't complain (but hey, one can ALWAYS complain! ;)

Michelle Zimmer
Owner
Wild Serendipity Foods

Ravi Shankar (& Anoushka), Caffe Artigiano & Chicken Shwarma

2009-05-19T10:27:00.017-06:00

These were the 3 highlights of this past weekend's Vancouver trip. The purpose of the trip was the Ravi & Anoushka Shankar concert on May 16th at the Orpheum. More about that later.....

Chicken shwarma (I got the plate, this time, not the sandwich) is always a mandatory meal whenever we go back to Vancouver (which was home for about 9 years). The restaurant is called the Falafel King - there's one on Davie (@ Thurlow) & one on Denman. The portions are generous, to say the least - the plate pictured here, which included about 2/3 lb of grilled chicken with sauce, hummus, parsley salad & bread, was less than $7. Beyond highly recommended, if you're ever in the neighbourhood.

Caffe Artigiano is a relatively new, Vancouver coffee chain that has probably the best coffee in the world. I discovered it a couple years ago, while walking up Hornby one morning to the nearest Starbucks from the Hotel Vancouver. I walked by this coffee shop that was lined up out the door - I wondered, "what the...?" and kept walking. When i got to Starbucks, it was virtually empty. I realized that something was amiss - what was with this new coffee shop? So, of course, I set out to investigate.

When I walked in to the store, it actually looked like some little cafe you'd stumble upon in Italy, complete with arches & ornate finishes. As I made my way up in line, it was obvious that the bustle was de rigueur here. I ordered a cappuccino & grabbed an available seat. The first thing you notice is the latte art atop the foam - this was one of the first cafes to do this on regular basis. There are beautifully framed pictures on the wall of all the designs they have created. At last, I took a sip. Now, for those of you that know me, I have been a dedicated Starbucks advocate for some fifteen odd years - the location of my condo in Vancouver was not so coincidentally located 1/2 a block from a Starbucks.

I digress - back to the sip.........it was pure heaven. Rich, smooth, with a lovely caramel-like finish. Honestly, it put Starbucks to shame (I'm sorry Howard Schultz - I still love you & all you've done, but I must speak the truth).......to shame!! I was instantly in love, quickly dismissing the initial guilt I felt about even walking into a non-Starbucks establishment.

If you talk to people in Vancouver, Caffe Artigiano is now seen as the 'mecca' for coffee. Their little local chain is quickly growing, even across provinces now. With Starbucks cancelling their lease for the location on Stonebridge Blvd (a few blocks from where I live), I am hoping, praying........even considering bribing them to come to Saskatoon. It's not out of the realm of possibility - this is 'Saska-Boom' after all! We will see.

Onto the true purpose of the trip, the concert (and yes, George, we came to Vancouver to see Ravi, not Raffi :). The evening began with a lovely meal at the Sitar restaurant (I know, how fitting........I think everyone in there was also going to the concert afterwards). Once we entered the Orpheum (one of the last ornate theatres of its kind, by the way - you are in awe of it) a frenzy of anxious concert-goers were everywhere, many (both white & brown) sporting traditional Indian attire. When you walked into the concert hall, the aroma of incense filled the air.

The first half of the concert (the first 1/3rd, actually) was Anoushka, the tabla player (the famous Tanmoy Bose) and flutist Ravichandra Kular. You were immediately drawn in by Anoushka's skill on the sitar & her beauty. At one point, she admitted that she 'loves to play fast', which drew laughter from the crowd. After about 30 minutes, there was an intermission.

When we went back in, they were setting up the center podium for 'the old guy', I heard someone from behind jokingly say. When Ravi came out, he was greeted with a huge round of applause & a standing ovation. He comes across as so humble, he quickly beckoned the crowd to be seated. He is definitely old - he is 89, in fact. I wonder how many 89 year olds could sit down & perform like that for about an hour & a half (!), let alone stand up without assistance, no less. At this point, there was only Ravi, Anoushka & Tanmoy, the tabla player. As good as the first 3rd of the concert was, it immediately rose to a whole new level. Ravi & Anoushka playing together was absolutely captivating, & tabla was like nothing I've ever heard. Ravi completely controlled, in conductor-like fashion, the performance, and the audience. At one point, the tabla player went off on a solo that rose to a furious tempo. The audience couldn't help but burst into applause, but was quickly quieted by Ravi, who motioned for them to listen, not applaud.

After about 40 minutes or so, the awareness that you were in a concert hall, attending a performance, slipped away into a dreamlike state. I will never forget that feeling - a calm euphoria, that you knew would eventually come to an end, but a moment you wished go on forever.......... But, of course, it did, and after a couple of standing ovations & seeing Anoushka cry (I can only imagine over the reality that this would be one of their last performances together), we left the theatre with a sense that we had witnessed something of immense importance. I feel so blessed to have experienced it.

All in all, it was a memorable trip. Vancouver is still the city that makes my heart ache for it whenever I return. I'll make it back out that way eventually............

michelle
Owner
Wild Serendipity Foods

Another Season of Cooking Classes Comes to an End

2009-05-15T07:36:00.003-06:00

This week marked the end of my scheduled classes for the season, although I'm still booked up for a couple months for custom cooking classes. This past week I ran the African class, where we prepared a dish from North, East, South & West Africa. We also attempted a 'replica' injera, the sour-ish, crepelike thin pancake bread used as the eating vessel for the wonderful curries. It is a replica recipe because true injera is made from 'teff' flour.

Teff is a tiny, millet-like (or maybe just a tiny millet grain?) grain, not grown in North Amercia. It is mixed into a batter & allowed to ferment, thus, giving it its characteristic sour flavour. It is cooked up like a crepe, yielding a soft, spongy thin pancake. The replica, although similar in appearance, tasted nothing like the true injera (surprised?); we used whole wheat/rye flour mixed with unbleached flour, with baking soda as the leavening. I had previously made a Nalysnyky recipe where the texture of the crepe was very similar to injera, & it had used baking powder as the leavening. So, for the 2nd class, I thought it would better to use b. powder, & use a little buttermilk in place of the liquid (club soda). Baking is truly chemistry - it turns out the presence of eggs was critical in the Nalysnyky recipe, which I did not use for the Injera. Let's just say...........culinary disaster. I quickly whipped up the original version & we finally had some injera to eat!

Anyway, the injera moment, & the 1st occurence of a married couple each cutting themselves (& bleeding) within about 10 minutes of each other, marked the highlights of the last class.

I've already got the Fall's class listings sketched out (sorry, no hints!). Because the classes have been filling up so rapidly, I will be offering less types of classes, but with more sessions of each class to sign up for.

The other difference you will see is that the classes will be prepaid electronically upon registration. If people are unable to attend a class that they've registered for, an alternate person could be sent in their place, or they could place their name on another class list.

So, with that, thank you to everyone who attended my classes this past year - I truly enjoy doing them, & your feedback and many repeated attendances always reassure me that I have chosen the right path in my life! :) I look forward to seeing you all again in the Fall. Come by my stall & say 'hi' if you're at the Market over the summer!

Michelle Zimmer
Owner
Wild SerendipityFoods

Leonard Cohen

2009-04-29T06:46:00.005-06:00

Sultry.

Etherial.

Potent.

That is how I would sum up the Leonard Cohen performance last night at TCU Centre. I have never heard an audience so silent (except for the thunderous applause after each song), taking in every word of his heady, honey-dripped poetry. The piercing wisdom in his lyrics is so halting, that it's almost impossible to comprehend anyone could pen these thoughts.

I feel honoured, and humbled, to have taken in his performance.

"Everything has a crack.............that's how the light gets in". Leonard Cohen

Watch Me on ShawTV

2009-04-07T07:46:00.004-06:00

The segment I recently did for Shaw TV, making Baked Apple Oatmeal, is now available online.

For your viewing pleasure, click here and then select the "In the Kitchen" link, & you'll find me in there :)

Michelle
Owner
Wild Serendipity Foods

The Little Seed That Could

2009-04-01T16:11:00.002-06:00

Yesterday I had the opportunity to give a presenation on mustard & mustard making at SIAST, for the 3rd year culinary students. I gave both a verbal presentation and a demonstration on how to make mustard (we made a Spicy German Mustard).

I thought I would share some of the more interesting facts about mustard :)

Saskatchewan produces the most mustard seed in Canada, & Canada is the world's largest exporter of mustard in the world.
There is evidence which shows that humans chewed mustard seeds 10's of 1,000's of years ago.
Mustard was used medicinally in Chine 5,000 yrs before the birth of Christ.
Mustard is mentioned 5 times in the Bible (as well as in other sacred writings of different faiths). It is described as 'the least of all seeds'. Because mustard seeds are so tiny, it is almost a miracle that they can become a tree. What can be learned from the mustard seeds is that from something tiny & almost insignificant, the outcome can be staggering.
In North American, mustard is the 2nd most used spice, behind only black pepper.
The mustard plant is from the Brassica family, and is a cruciferous plant. The term cruciferous comes from the flowers having 4 petals, two long & two short, thereby resembling a cross.
The word mustard comes from 2 words: 'mouste (or 'must'), derived from the Early Middle English word 'moutard', and 'ardens', meaning 'burning'.
There are 3 basic seed varieties: yellow (or white), which is used for what we call 'ballpark mustard'; brown, which is most associated with Dijon-style mustard; and black (actually a reddish-brown), which is smaller than the yellow or brown seeds, but pack the most pungency. Black mustard seeds are used in East Indian cooking and for medicinal purposes.
The heat of mustard is produced by a chemical reaction which occurs when the cracked mustard seed is exposed to cold water; the reaction occurs between an enzyme & a substance called glycoside. The peak heat produced occurs around 15 minutes after the reaction begins. To halt, or retard, the heat, the mixture can be left at room temperature, where it will start to lose it's heat; placing it in the fridge will hold it at whatever heat level it is at; adding hot water will inhibit the reaction; adding salt or an acidic liquid will also inhibit the reaction. These methods are all used, sometimes in combination, to control the heat produced in the resulting mustard.
The controls surrounding the making of French mustard are as strict as controls over wine production.
The recipe for Dijon mustard has been kept secret for more than 200 years.
The mustard seed used to produce Dijon mustard comes almost exclusively from Saskatchewan.
In Mt. Horeb, Wisconsin, a man by the name of Barry Levenson founded The Mustard Museum, which contains more than 4,400 varieties of mustard. It is his aim to have a sample of every mustard created in the world. Some people REALLY love mustard!
There is truth to the 'old wive's tale' of using a mustard plaster (where the mustard is not in direct contact with the skin, but applied to a cloth, which then sits on the skin). The reason that mustard, applied externally, relieves chest congestion and joint pain, is that the area becomes irritated by the the mustard's heat, thereby increasing circulation to the area. Mustard applied directly to the skin can produce burns & blisters.

So there you go - some fun facts about mustard, one of Saskatchewan's greatest products!

Michelle Zimmer

Owner,

Wild Serendipity Foods

www.wildserendipity.com

Asparagus with Orange Sauce - Because it's Spring...........

2009-03-25T07:14:00.004-06:00

Aaahhh, asparagus. Always a welcome sight in Spring. Although available, imported of course, in the grocery stores nearly all winter long, the sudden drop in price signals that Spring is here. Well, officially here........just don't look out your window.

I recently did this recipe for a Spanish Cocina class. Thought I would share :) I thought the orange made for a nice change from the usual lemon that usually accompanies asparagus, at least in our house. Of course, this would also be lovely with lemon substituted for the orange.

Asparagus with Orange Sauce

1 pound (give or take) asparagus, tough ends trimmed

1 TSP butter

1 TBSP water

Sauce:

1 TBSP butter

1 TBSP brown sugar

juice of 1 orange

1 TSP finely shredded orange zest

pinch salt

In a small pot, heat the 1 TBSP butter over med/low heat. Add the brown sugar, stirring to dissolve. Add the orange juice, zest & salt. Cook, stirring frequently, until the mixture has turned slightly syrupy. Set aside while the asparagus is cooking.

Using a large frying pan, that has a lid (or use tinfoil if you have no lid), heat the butter over medium heat until bubbly. Add the asparagus & 1 TBSP water. Cover & allow to cook for a few minutes. The amount of time will depend on how thick your asparagus is. Check it after a couple of minutes, & keep checking until it's almost at the tenderness you prefer. Uncover, & allow the remaining water to pretty much boil off.

Drizzle the prepared orange sauce over top, tossing to combine (with tongs, or by flipping mid-air in the pan, if you are feeling especially daring). Serve immediately.

Michelle

Owner

Wild Serendipity Foods

www.wildserendipity.com

Disregard the Post Below :(

2009-03-16T10:15:00.003-06:00

If it makes us feel any better (& it is a small comfort), it snowed in Vancouver on Friday..............

it will come eventually........won't it??!!

Well, I do declare.............

2009-03-15T06:41:00.003-06:00

.............that Spring is finally here!!

It just feels like it, doesn't it? After the rather brutal weather we've had over the past 4 months, hopefully this really is it!

Yesterday was our "It's Your Lucky Day" at the Saskatoon Farmer's Market, in honour of St. Patrick's day on the 17th. As I started doing for last year's St. Patrick's Day, I made my Matcha Green Tea White Chocolate scones. If you haven't seen them, they are a pale green - I always feel like I should mark on the label "don't be afraid" because they look so......well, odd. But for those that love green tea, they are always a hit.

Since I am adamant that Spring has arrived, I did a couple of seasonal things - my flatbread pizza with asparagus (& feta, pesto.......) and Greek Avgolemono soup. There's something about Greek food, in general, that seems to shout out "Spring".

We moved into a new house a little over a year ago, & the sod was laid quite late in the summer. Now that there are flower beds & a bit of shrubbery, surrounded by a fence, no less, I am looking forward to planning out a bit of landscaping. It's kind of exciting starting with a blank slate. The general theme will be low maintenance; evergreen trees/shrubs, some perennials. We'll see if my blue hydrangea survived this winter. And of course, lots & lots of sunflowers :) Now that most people around us also have sod & fencing, the dustbowl (& subsequent constantly dirty children) that we endured last summer will have passed, thankfully.

So, Happy Spring (may it truly be)!!!

Michelle Zimmer

Owner

Wild Serendipity Foods

New Recipes, as seen on ShawTV

2009-03-01T21:24:00.002-06:00

I recently filmed two more episodes with ShawTV - they'll be airing in a week or two. Here they are:

Strawberry Salad with Chocolate Balsamic Dressing:
I did this dish for my "Chocolate Lovers" class just before Valentine's Day - it's really refreshing, a great salad for Spring or especially Summer, when you can get local, vine-ripened strawberries.

4 to 6 cups mixed baby greens
2 cups strawberries, halved
1/2 English cucumber, sliced into half moons
1/2 cup crumbled cheese (chevre, blue cheese, pear, or other fruited blue cheese, Boursin with pepper)
1/4 cup sliced almonds, toasted
freshly cracked black pepper
Dressing:
1/2 cup balsamic dressing
1/2 cup sugar
25 grams dark chocolate, chopped (1 square, if using Baker's chocolate)

To make dressing, heat the balsamic vinegar & the sugar in a small pot, stirring frequently. Continue to cook until the sugar has completely dissolved. Remove from heat & add the chocolate. The residual heat will melt the chocolate. Set aside to cool.

Rinse & dry the greens. Arrange on plates. Top each salad plate with sliced cucumber & strawberries. Garnish with the sliced almonds & crumbled cheese.

Whisk the cooled chocolate balsamic dressing until smooth; drizzle over the salad just before serving. Top with freshly cracked black pepper.

Baked Apple Oatmeal
I love this dish - it's great on its own, or served along with other brunch dishes. Any leftovers can be eaten cold, or reheated.

1 1/4 cups oats (quick cooking or minute - do not use quick oats)
1/2 cup raisins or cranraisins (omit if you have picky cooked fruit eaters in your household)
2 cups milk - homogenized, preferably, but use any kind you like
1/3 cup light brown sugar
1/2 TSP (or more) cinnamon
1/2 TSP vanilla
pinch salt
1 TBSP melted butter
2 cooking apples (Granny Smith), peeled, cored & chopped
sliced almonds, for garnish

Preheat oven to 350F.

In a large bowl, mix together the oats, raisins, brown sugar, cinnamon & salt. Add the milk, vanilla & melted butter. Stir to combine. Allow to stand for 10 minutes. (prepare the apples while waiting).

Lightly oil or grease a 2 quart baking dish. Mix the apples into the oat mixture & pour into the baking dish. Top with sliced almonds. Bake for approximately 35 minutes, or until most of the liquid has been absorbed. Allow to stand 5 minutes before serving. Serve with additional milk, if desired.

You Really Do Learn Something Every Day

2009-02-02T11:58:00.003-06:00

Maybe everyone already knew this, but today I just discovered that linseed oil is actually flaxseed oil. I recall in art class in high school, we used linseed oil as a carrier oil for oil-based paint. I just always assumed this was some specialty thing only used by artists.

Today I noticed the French translation for 'flax' on the bag of bread I have in my pantry - 'lin' . Somehow I managed to keep this in my curious (little) mind until I had time to look it up later, & sure enough, linseed oil is just plain old flaxseed oil :) Something we grow right here in Saskatchewan, no less!

Kerala Mist

2009-01-31T21:35:00.004-06:00

At least that's what I've named my newest favourite beverage from Starbucks :) They have finally started calling their tea lattes, London Fogs, like everyone else. I never could remember what they called them - I just asked for 'whatever you call your London Fog' when I ordered.

London Fogs on their own are lovely - Earl Grey tea & vanilla syrup latte. If you know me, you'll know I love using spices in, well, everything. So, to take the London Fog up a notch, I ask for (& I recommend you do the same, if you love the seductive flavours of Chai) the Tazo Chai Tea bags instead of the Earl Grey. It gets spicier the longer you take to drink it......so take your time! This is much better than the usual Chai Tea Latte offered by Starbucks, in my opinion - I find the premade mix a bit icky - too sweet, not enough spice. Try ordering it as a 'Kerala Mist' - maybe we'll start something :)

Today was a bustling day at the Market - the busiest since before Christmas. The Spring-like weather factored into it, I am sure. If you didn't make it to Market this weekend, try to make it next Saturday for our Snowflake Festival - there will be snowflake-making & face painting for the little ones, assisted by the Saskatoon Blades, busking..........all part of the Winter Shines festivities. Hope to see you there!

michelle

Starstruck in Saskatoon

2009-01-23T22:16:00.003-06:00

We went to the Fiddle & the Drum ballet tonight, performed by the Alberta Ballet Company. I have been a huge (HUGE) Joni Mitchell fan since around the age of 7, so I was really looking forward to this performance.

Just before the ballet began, an elderly gentleman was seated next to me. A younger man who accompanied him was talking about 'when joni arrives, she can sit here........' It didn't occur to me that he could be referring to 'The' Joni.........and he was. It turns out that was Joni Mitchell's father sitting next to me, & Joni sat on his other side throughout the performance! What a thrill................

I helped her father up from his seat for the 2 standing ovations at the end of the show, as she left briefly to go backstage (ie. to stand with the dancers for the standing ovation).

The performance itself, never mind my brush with greatness, was absolutely visually stunning - I have never seen a dance performance this captivating, and I'm not normally attracted to modern ballet. If you get a chance to see this ballet, please do!

michelle

Winter Fest, coming our way!

2009-01-20T20:41:00.005-06:00

This Saturday, January 24th marks the beginning of the 16th day Winter Festival in Saskatoon, with its headquarters at the Farmer's Market for the 1st time.

Reported By Gerald BaumanPosted January 20, 2009 - 11:41am
It's easy to let winter get you down, but a new event announced Tuesday promises to add some fun to the cold. The Winter Shines festival begins January 24. The event will feature 16 days of winter activities, artwork and wine tasting, headquartered at the farmer's market.. 16 days may seem like a long time, but organizers say it's an insurance policy for potentially bitter winter weather.

There will be several market vendors & tenants present Saturday evening, showcasing their wares (including me, & my warm Rosemary Spiced Nuts).

Hope you'll come & check it out! :)

michelle

Owner

Wild Serendipity Foods

New Look for my Website

2009-01-16T21:10:00.003-06:00

I recently & quite suddenly felt compelled to update the look of my website - Shannon, from Whole Wheat Web Design was patient with me, as I kept changing my mind on the background colour (which you will notice looks rather similar to the background on this page) :)

Hope you like it!

I will be absent from the Market this weekend, however, several of my products are available at the Little Market Store, located between Park Cafe & Petal Pushers, in the southeast corner of the Market. This will be my last planned Saturday off for quite some time - I'm taking in the Symphony, something I don't normally get to do after my usual scone-baking frenzied Saturday mornings. I shall savour every moment - & it's even warmed up outside as an added bonus.

Next Saturday marks the day before the Chinese New Year, & the day of Robert Burn's birthday - look for festive items celebrating both events!

Michelle

Owner,
Wild Serendipity Foods

Try "Spicy Bite" to Warm You Up Through This Cold Spell

2009-01-04T08:48:00.003-06:00

Last night we finally tried the dinner buffet at Spicy Bite, located at #4-340 8th Street East (in the little strip mall at the northeast corner of 8th & Acadia). We had ordered takeout several times in the past, & were really happy with the quality of the food - it is more like home cooking than mass-produced restaurant fare.

This was definitely the best Indian buffet we've had since living in Vancouver - we'll be back again, for sure. Afzai Rana, the owner, was sweet enough to give us a dish of heavily-sauced butter chicken for our two young boys, who have, regretfully, not yet acquired a taste/tolerance for spicy food. My favourite item in the buffet was the Channa Masala - although I both cook & teach Indian cuisine, I have yet to figure out how to get such tender Channa (chickpeas). They make Naan to order once you've settled on the buffet, so it's lovely & soft. The price for the dinner buffet (which is Halal, incidentally) was $14.99, I believe. They also have a lunch buffet, which was a couple of dollars less.

They are open 6 days a week (closed Mondays) - I hope you'll try them out!!

The Little Market Store

2009-01-03T10:28:00.008-06:00

Happy New Year!!

Just thought I'd pass on information about "The Little Market Store", at the Saskatoon Farmer's Market. It is located across from the office (between the Park Cafe & the Flower Shop), & is open Wednesdays through Fridays, 11 am until 7pm, and then during regular market Saturday hours (8 am until 2 pm).

The purpose of the Little Market Store is to provide a sampling of Market products during non-Market days. Also, it provides selling space for newer vendors who do not yet have a permanent stall.

I now have a variety of my products available at the store, including:

Frozen Scone Dough Trays - trays of 6, with mixed varieties - enjoy them fresh, from your oven!! :)

Granola, made with Saskatchewan-produced honey

my European-style pizzas

Soups

Hummus

my Gourmet mustards (currently Honey Lime Chipotle, Maple Brown Sugar Plum & the newest variety (a hot one), Spiced German)

Flavoured Salts, made with Saskatchewan-mined ancient sea salt (currently Lemon Rosemary, Chili Lime, Cranberry Orange, & Szechwan Peppercorn)

So I hope you will check out my products, as well as the many other fabulous products that are now always available at The Little Market Store!!

Michelle

Owner

Wild Serendipity Foods

Music to live (or die) by..........

2008-12-30T21:39:00.008-06:00

Just sitting around being a holiday slug & listening to some of my favourite music..........thought I'd share :)

La Vie en Rose - Louis B. Armstrong

Crazy - Patsy Cline

The Flower Duet (from the opera Lakme)

Aria, from the opera La Wally

Joni Mitchell - I could drink a case of you........

K.D. Lang, singing Leonard Cohen's Hallellujah

J.S. Bach, Played by Glen Gould, The Goldberg Variations

The Call by Regina Spektor

I Am Aglow by Sarah Harmer

michelle

Wild Serendipity website is up & running again!

2008-12-30T19:01:00.000-06:00

The Wild Serendipity website is up & running again - yeah!!!

If you have sent me an email or online registration in the last few days, please resend it, as it would be floating around somewhere, desperately lost & looking for its owner :)

michelle

Wild Serendipity Foods website is down!

2008-12-29T21:18:00.001-06:00

If you've been trying to access my website, and/or email me, the Wild Serendipity Foods website is currently down. (it's www.wildserendipity.com) The server, which is located in New York, was apparently being migrated over the weekend (I'm not sure what that means exactly.......migrating south, to warmer weather, perhaps?;) In the process, my website was one of the ones that did not migrate properly. It will hopefully be up by the 30th or 31st.

My apologies for any inconvenience this may have caused, especially if you have given out gift certificates for Christmas, & the recipients are trying to access the website & wondering what the ?

michelle

owner
Wild Serendipity Foods

Happy Holidays!!!!

2008-12-17T11:48:00.000-06:00

Well, as expected, I just can't seem to keep updating my blog on a regular basis!!

Here are a few highlights of the past several months:

This summer at the Farmer's Market was bustling as ever - the demand for the fresh-baked scones continues to grow...........I will be installing yet another oven in the New Year to attempt to keep up with the resumed demand in the Spring!

My business will be profiled in an upcoming Saskatchewan science textbook (Gr. 7 &8) - I will be immortalized :) I'm sure my boys will get a kick out of seeing their mother in a school book!

My classes filled up faster than ever this Fall - I feel bad that I can't add many more classes for the time being, so my apologies if you've been trying to get into some of them, but can't. My Tuesdays in the New Year will now be dedicated to rehearsals for the Saskatoon Fiddle Orchestra........my newest passionate pursuit has become the violin. I played classical guitar for a little over a decade growing up, but left it behind in my early 20's. My son started taking violin about a year ago, & then this past Fall, my own passion for playing music was rediscovered. It has become a bit of an obsession...............there are weeks when more scones should have been made, but I simply could not put the violin down (sorry, if you were left sconeless because of my indulgement). My son & I are both taking lessons with Philip Kashap - & Philip & I are co-hosting a couple of Indian cooking classes in the New Year. Sorry - they're already full - I'll see if I can coax him into scheduling another one!

I'm doing more & more team-building / corporate social events for the cooking classes - most recently, I had the opportunity to host classes for:

zu.com
Red Bull
Cravings Maternity & Baby Boutique
the legal group at SGI

The personal experience of preparing food & then sharing a meal together is such a wonderful way to bond with people, whether it be friends, family or co-workers - I truly enjoy hosting these events :)

Lastly - Best Wishes for the Holidays, & for a Healthy & Happy New Year!!!!

michelle
Wild Serendipity Foods

Honey Lavender Bunches Take a Trip to Bali

2008-06-16T07:28:00.000-06:00

I've had several jars of my mustards travel overseas, but this was the first time fresh-baked goods made their way across the world! One of my customers (Deanna Litz, who is also the photographer - lovely shot!) requested her husband's favourite - Honey Lavender Bunches - as she wanted to take them to her hubby (who is currently completing a tour of duty in Afghanistan) for their rendezvous in Bali. Yes, even uber-rugged soldiers are unable to resist the subtle floral undertones combined with heady sweetness of honey in these chewy delights.

Thanks again, Deanna, for taking the time to send me photos of the well-travelled goodies, and of Rick enjoying them :)

David Adjey at the Saskatoon Farmer's Market

2008-05-24T20:16:00.000-06:00

We had a celebrity chef in our midst at the Farmer's Market this morning......of course I had to make sure I got a picure in! He was in Saskatoon for the Top of the hops

I gave him a jar of my new Raspberry Honey Mustard and a bottle of my Sweet Agony Mango Coconut Hot Sauce.........hope he gets a chance to try it out :) He was being toured around the market by Chef Dan Walker of Weczeria and Chef Rusty Penno of Boffin's.

The Saturday market has been increasingly booming............my scones keep disappearing fast & furious. May have to add yet another oven to my collection!

If you weren't aware, there is now a new Sunday market (same location), hours are 11 to 3. Not all vendors are present, but the Market is still open, & a little more relaxed than Saturday. I have staffed my booth for this market, so that means I actually get to be a customer on Sundays!

Michelle Zimmer

Owner

Wild Serendipity Foods

www.wildserendipity.com

Recipes as Seen on Shaw TV

2008-04-20T10:43:00.001-06:00

Here are the two recipes that you will soon see on Shaw TV:

Spiced Indian Chai Tea

There are a million recipes for chai..........this is mine. If you end up with any leftover chai, try it chilled with ice!

4 or 5 peppercorns
4 or 5 cardamom pods
1 or 2 cinnamon sticks
6 to 8 whole cloves
2 star anise pods
peeled skin of half an orange
2 or 3 slices fresh ginger
3 orange pekoe tea bags
3 cups milk (traditionally homogenized is used, but choose whatever milk you like, including soy or almond milk)
1/3 cup sugar (more or less, even none, depending on your taste)

Place approx. 4 cups of water in a large pot. Add all the spices, orange peel & ginger. Bring to a boil, then turn heat off & allow to steep for approx. 30 minutes. If you do not have time, just continue to simmer for 5 or 10 minutes.

Bring back to a boil (if you turned the heat off in the previous step) & add the tea bags; allow to steep for approximately 2 minutes. Add the milk & sugar, & bring back to a boil. Once the tea has come to a boil & begins to rise up in the pot, it is finished. Be sure to watch it closely when it's close to boiling, because inevitably the phone will ring or some such interruption will occur at that last moment, & you'll end up with a stovetop full of milk to clean up!

Watermelon Feta Salad

This may sound a bit odd, but try it, especially on a hot summer evening.......you will love it!

one 'personal' watermelon, seedless
2/3 cup feta
zest & juice of one lime
1/2 red onion, thinly sliced
freshly ground black pepper, to taste
sea salt, to taste
1 TBSP freshly chopped parsley
Optional: drizzle of olive oil, black olives

Place the onion slices in a small bowl with the lime juice, tossing to coat. This step will mellow the raw onion flavour.

Cut one end of the watermelon off, about halfway between the equator & the end. Scoop out the flesh, trying to leave most of the flesh in large chunks. Cut the watermelon flesh into large-ish bite-size pieces & place in a bowl. Just before serving, toss with the lime zest, juice, pepper, salt & parsely. If desired, add a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil & a few chopped black olives. Enjoy!

Why I Never Kept a Diary...........

2008-04-13T06:20:00.001-06:00

Here's a lovely pic of the very first green pepper available for sale by Grandora Gardens at yesterday's Market - Spring really IS here!

Well, it's been nearly 9 months to the day since I've posted (no, I'm not pregnant), and childhood memories of my attempts at keeping an updated diary come flooding back. I don't know why it's so difficult to keep up updating, it's not that there's been no news to tell! ;)

A brief synopsis:

The overwhelming success of the new home of the Saskatoon Farmer's Market has allowed me to take a reprieve from catering, and focus only on the market and my cooking classes. Even the winter market was good this year, & for the past month, it has already started to feel as bustling as last summer did. I am so thrilled to be a part of our Market - so thrilled, that I put my name in for consideration to be elected to the Board of Directors (which I was.......no applause, please). So I now have a 3 year term on the Board, and my position for this year will be Vice President.

Last summer I was invited to participate in the 1st annual Saskatchewan Mustard Festival, spearheaded by Exec Chef Moe Matthieu (of Willows on the Wascana). If you've never heard of the Napa Valley Mustard Festival, it's a 2 month long festival showcasing agriculture and the fine arts. The festival is held when mustard is in bloom, and mustard plays a key role throughout the 2 month event. Chef Mattieu has had the opportunity to work in the region and participate in the festival, and was keen to start a grassroots festival in Saskatchewan. Perfect place, since we are such a major player in world mustard production.

Last fall I was asked by Harden & Huyse Chocolates in Saskatoon to provide baked goods for their newly-installed coffee bar, featuring Eurpope's Illy coffee. My quick-to-disappear scones can now by enjoyed there, in addition to several other delectables. If you're craving one on a non-Market day, be sure to check them out!

This year I started scheduling Oyako cooking classes (Oyako means parent & child in Japanese); I do them on Sunday afternoons (about one a month). I thought it was a great way for a parent & child (or children) to connect, and maybe spark/kindle an interest in cooking. They've been a lot of fun. In my adult classes, we eat what we have made at the end of the class, but for the Oyako classes, I put together dishes that are taken home, so that the rest of the family can sample their creations.

I also ran a few 100 Mile Diet classes this year - over the past year, interest in this movement has really piqued in Saskatchewan. The menus were great fun to put togeher - generally I came up with them in my head while attending the Saturday's Market just before the class. The dishes were chosen based on what was available that day at the Market. In introduced several people to flat iron steaks, which have now become hard-to-find at Benlock Farms (even I'm having trouble getting them now!) I was clever enough to stock up on a few herb blends by Fran's House of Herbs before they left the Market for the winter - that made easy to add lots of flavour, produced locally. As a substitute for pepper, I had stocked up on chipotle peppers from Grandora (chipotle peppers are ripened, smoked & dried Jalapeno peppers), which I then ground up in a coffee grinder. Salt used was from Sifto in Unity. Pea shoots from Wally's Urban Market Garden added a burst of colour to salads. That's just handful of the the local products we used - really, it's amazing how bountiful Saskatchewan is, even in the darkest parts of winter!

This past January, I was invited to speak by the Mustard Development Commission at Crop Production Week. I shared a bit about myself and the mustards I make for the Farmer's Market, some fascinating facts about mustard properties & its history, and the Saskatchewan Mustard Festival. I was really honoured to be asked to speak........and I think I gave the audience a bit of a light-hearted break in the midst of all the more 'serious' crop stats, forecasts, etc. :)

Leading to.......I was recently able to double my scone production capacity by purchasing a 2nd double oven. I'm quickly building up my arm muscles trying to keep you all in scones ;)

We're off to see the pelicans today - they returned a week ago, which is the earliest return ever recorded, from what I understand. If you're not from Saskatoon, you can read all about the pelicans.

Ratatouille - a must see!

2007-07-02T06:51:00.000-06:00

We decided to take our boys to Ratatouille over the weekend - although I knew the main premise was about a rat living in Paris, I did not realize that this was a foodie movie. Really, even if you don't have small children, take in this film (maybe not a matinee, then!). Almost the entire movie is about cooking, the dynamics of the French professional kitchen, the mystique of the Michelin stars given to French restaurants..........and of course, it's another Pixar masterpiece.

I'm really excited about first-ever Taste of Broadway, being held on July 12th at the Broadway Theatre(http://www.broadwaytheatre.ca/index.html) Here's the description:

"Taste delectable appetizers and desserts from the Bulk Cheese Warehouse, Calories, The Living Room, Ninos, Pesto's, Sushiro, Starbucks, Weczeria and the Yard and Flagon, while indulging in wine-tasting from Cory Distilleries, PMA Ltd., E & J Gallo Vinery, PMT Distributors and Foster's Wine Estates. Followed by one of the great "foodie" movies. What a wonderful way to spend an evening!"

can't wait :)

Happy Canada Day!

michelle zimmer

Owner
Wild Serendipity Foods
www.wildserendipity.com

long time, no post......

2007-06-25T18:44:00.000-06:00

How time flies!! We're halfway to Christmas already (my son's birthday is today, which is why that halfway mark come to mind so quickly)!!!

A few updates on my business ventures:

* I did not win the SABEX new product category - I did, however, attend the gala (& had a minor stroke when the winner was about to be announced......even though I was quite sure I wouldn't win) & had a lovely evening. For that category, the winner was Tiny Eye Technologies, a company that has created an online speech therapy service.

* My ice cream business is humming along..........hard to believe the season is halfway over now! I really am enjoying being able to offer such a wonderul, locally-made product from Homestead Ice Cream. The response to the ice cream has been extremely positive :)

* The Saturday Farmer's Market continues to be overwhelmingly successful. The first Saturday, I, along with most other vendors, were basically sold out of product within about an hour and a half. Each subsequent Saturday has been equally bustling.......it's a wonderful atmosphere. If you have not yet had a chance to take it in for yourself, do so! :) If you're wanting freshly-baked scones from yours truly, best to show up before 9! I am trying to meet the demand more by selling trays of frozen scone dough - all ready to be popped in to your oven at home!

* I am now attending the Thursday Farmer's Market, as well. The hours for the weekday markets are 10 am to 5 pm.

* An article about my business is in the current issue of Enterprise Magazine (formerly Small Business Magazine), a national publication out of Ontario - written by Felechia Brodie, a local freelance writer. Very exciting! I will hopefully post an electronic copy shortly.

That's about all the major updates for now :) (minor update, my youngest, who turned 3 today, is officially potty-trained, which means we are officially done with diapers - yippee!)

Michelle Zimmer
Owner
Wild Serendipity Foods
http://www.wildserendipity.com/

We all scream.............

2007-05-14T06:13:00.000-06:00

for Ice Cream! :)

Because, in a brief moment of rest, I thought I just wasn't busy enough, I decided to purchase the ice cream shack in the Avalon Shopping Centre (the same mall where I have my commercial kitchen). It was up & running this past Friday - my sons (age 2 & 4) think this is the coolest thing ever!

I am proud to offer exclusively Homestead ice cream. For those that don't know, Homestead is a local ice cream business that has increasingly grown over the years & now produces ice cream for roughly 40 business, including McNally Robinson & Fuddrucker's. I was happily surprised to find out that when I place my order, the ice cream is made just for that order, it's not pulled from a freezer.......so it's as fresh as possible! With 180 flavours to choose from...........choosing was difficult! I've started with 12, & will slowly increase to about 24 flavours as the season gears up. No, I am not working the shack - I now have my first 2 official staff :)

Farmer's Market news - last Saturday, Cinqo de Mayo, was our first market day in the new building, located at Ave B & 19th. It was absolutely bustling!!! This past Saturday was another repeat. I need to re-prioritize my week to be able to make enough product to last past 10 am.........

The SABEX gala is tomorrow night - outfit has not been finalized/completed; thought I could pull something together from my engineering days, but no. I don't plan on spending a whole lot of time on my acceptance speech (the one I'm quite sure I will not be giving). It will be a fun night, nonetheless :)

Michelle Zimmer
Owner
Wild Serendipity Foods

SABEX Finalist!

2007-04-10T16:51:00.000-06:00

Well, surprise of all surprises, I was named a Finalist in the New Product category for the SABEX awards!!

The big gala is on May 15th - of course, I'm most definitely not expecting to win - I'm thrilled with having come this far :)

My Glossy Debut!

2007-03-28T19:59:00.000-06:00

The Flavours Magazine, Spring 2007 issue is out, & there I am, in fully glossiness :) I have an electronic copy posted on my website, if you'd like to take a gander.

First off, I was really happy with how the article came out, both the article itself and the photos. I am not, however, a chef............and have never referred to myself as one. I guess I can be called a professional cook, since I now make my living cooking for money. I just wanted to clear that up, in case there were any raised eyebrows over the article.

Things have been busier than ever, to the point where I have had to cut, at least temporarily, my corporate lunch delivery service and weekend cooking classes/birthday parties. I have come to accept that you really can't work 7 days a week forever. I am trying to strike a balance between corporate catering, cooking classes & the Farmer's Market. I've come to learn that I cannot do more than two, or maybe the odd 3, classes per week - I start rolling quickly into the burnout zone otherwise.

It's been an interesting year (March 11th marked my 1 year anniversary with the Market, which I guess technically is when I officially began my business) to say the least. Part of me, when I have a moment to take it all in, is still in shock over the response to my services. The rest of me is just too busy trying to keep all the balls in the air to think of anything else.

My sad news is that my grandmother passed away last Saturday at the age of 93. She is the one whom I credit with teaching/inspiring me how to cook. She & I spent many days together cooking up a storm. She would let me pick recipes I wanted to try, gather up all the ingredients, then we would cook for hours on end. Of course, she taught me (& gave the recipes) many of her dishes that I loved. This was all around the ages of 6 to 9. I remember one time I asked her to help me prepare Petit Fours - the photos in a cookbook were so intriguing to me. I could tell she was a little daunted by the recipe & the photos, but we carried on anyway, & there were wonderful :)

I don't think she ever really understood (she had memory issues in the end) that I gave up my career as an engineer to pursue my passion for cooking, which she def. played an important role in cultivating. I am grateful to her for so many things, but most especially, of course, for those memories of us cooking together, in her tiny little kitchen, complete with avocado green appliances. I will cherish those forever.

continued blatant self-promotion

2007-01-28T07:10:00.000-06:00

I was pleasantly informed this week that I have been nominated for not one, but two, SABEX awards (Saskatoon Awards for Business Excellence) - for Best New Product (my mustards) & Best New Business Venture.

How cool is that?!

Blatant Self-Promotion

2007-01-20T20:27:00.000-06:00

still somewhat recovering from the Christmas mayhem............haven't quite managed to find my mojo again, but it's getting there :)

Just thought I'd write a few of the 'happenings' in my life, as of late.

Just before Christmas, Noelle Chorney, a freelance writer with Flavours magazine (for those who don't know about it, or live anywhere in western Canada where you can find it, it's a lovely, glossy magazine published quarterly & made avail. in liquor stores..........full of glorious food porn & interesting articles about fine food & drink, local chefs..........) contacted me about doing an interview for the Spring 2007 issue regarding my cooking classes. Of course I agreed. After the interview, a couple dishes I selected to be in the article were photographed, & moi aussi. It was pretty cool seeing how photo shoots are done!

Then, at the last Market before Christmas, a person from ShawCable (our local community information/news station) was looking at my products, & asked if I'd be interested in doing a segment for their "In the Kitchen" series. Of course, I said yes :) They came to my kitchen on Jan 8th to film the segment - I chose my mustard straws, & it aired the next day, & throughout that same week. I was more ok being filmed that I thought - running my cooking classes was definitely good preparation - but I was pretty much beside myself just before the first airing. It didn't help that I had told everyone I knew when it would be on, & I hadn't even seen it myself. In the end, I was greatly relieved, & surprisingly happy with how it turned out.

One particular Farmer's Market vendor asked that I 'remember the little people' when I'm rich & famous................I guess I will ;)

Other than that, things are slowly swinging back to normal (other than THE GREAT BLIZZARD OF 2007 that occured a little over a week ago - why did I move back here again?!). I had a momentary panic attack when I hadn't had any calls for catering during the 1st week of the New Year, & then, to my relief, the calls all came on one day, & now we're all back to the usual.

I also had my inaugural meal assembly night at my store last week. For those who have not heard of this concept, it's become quite the trend south of the border, & as is the usual way, is taking it's time catching on here. As far as I know, I'm the first one in the province to be doing it. The idea is, I do all the shopping/chopping/browning/mixing............the customer comes in (after pre-selecting their dishes & quantities), & does the final 'assembly', usually into a reheatable foil tray, complete with reheating instructions. The dishes are all freezer-friendly. That particular night was arranged for a woman who was due the following week with her second child - I wish something like that has been around when I had my babies! Stocking up a mom-to-be's freezer with prepared entrees is a GREAT idea.

signing off for now

m.

My First Christmas Catering Season

2006-12-17T07:52:00.000-06:00

Now that I finally have a moment to breathe/eat/write.............I appear to have survived my first season of Christmas catering. In the summer/fall, people kept saying "you're going to be so busy at Christmas, just wait." I assumed things would pick up a little, but given the fact that my catering business really only launched in the Fall, I thought, how busy could I possibly get? Well, numerous 16, 17, 18 & a few 19 hour-days later (mostly back to back), I am shocked at the response to my catering services. This past Friday marked my 'banner' day in terms of who I catered for: Cameco, PotashCorp, followed by the Court of Queen's Bench. I still have some catering this week, but I have made it over the 'hump'.

I was happy to have been able to attend yesterday's Farmer's Market, as I was forced to miss last week's (& it was a special Christmas Market, no less) because of the catering. Despite another snowy/blizzardy day, the Market was still bustling. The live cedar & pine wreathes by Gail from Wally's Market Garden (http://www.marketgardening.com/wallysmarketgarden/) are amazing - I bought a couple of seed wreaths from her 2 weeds ago. It appears that I will be doing my Christmas shopping at the Dec 21st or 23rd Market - if you're not done your shopping either, check out the Market for some wonderful, locally-created gifts.

My cooking classes have wound down for the year, with the exception of a couple of custom private classes. I'll be setting the schedule for the first few months of 2007 during the last week of December. I can't wait to attend some of the classes myself, as I will be bringing in a few local chefs, food writers and a sommelier to guest-host/co-host some classes! watch for the schedule ;)

michelle

owner/manager
wild serendipity foods
www.wildserendipity.com

Finding Nirvana in Navan

2006-11-14T19:06:00.000-06:00

It would appear that, in a single sip, I have found 'my drink'. I finally purchased Navan, a vanilla-infused cognac (a Grand Marnier product). I had yet to try it, but I knew that I wanted to do truffles with it for the upcoming holiday season..........and of course, I love vanilla, so it was beckoning me. Forgetting, at first, that you are to warm the cognac slightly before sipping, I inhaled the vapours & nearly choked. I thought I was in for a huge disappointment...........memories of sipping straight whiskey from parent's liquor cabinets at a ridicuously young age came flooding back. I took a sip anyway, after all, I had already poured it.........you are instantly hit with an intense vanilla flavour. Truly amazing. The taste on your lips afterwards is sweet, and totally vanilla. I am in love ;)

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
michelle
owner
wild serendipity foods
www.wildserendipity.com

More Reasons to Spice Up Your Life

2006-11-06T07:50:00.000-06:00

There was a fascinating article today from CBC - "The Healing Power of Spices". I'm sure the link won't last forever, but here it is http://www.cbc.ca/news/background/health/spices.html

The timing of the article, I'm sure, is based on the recent publication regarding the proven benefits of turmeric for arthritis.

For those that know me, I'm all about spices..........mainly by the way of East Indian cuisine. I've recently been implementing a few of Mexican/Southwest dishes into the Market, which also use a lot of spice (ie. cumin, coriander, cinnamon, cayenne, chili powder, oregano)

Some of the interesting facts includes:

Cayenne: increased metabolism & the body's fat-burning ability, by up to 25%!!!

Cinnamon - a 2003 study apparently showed that ~1/2 tsp. lowered blood glucose, cholesterol and triglyceride levels

Mustard (of course I would mention this one, although I already knew this from my research on the subject) - remember those 'mustard plasters?' These have been used for hundreds of years to relieve respiratory problems. I recall that the mustard itself acts as an irritant to the skin, because of it's heat factor, which brings about an increase in circulation to the area of contact.

Rosemary - apparently both a stimulant and analgesic (you smell it & you know it must be powerful!), it's been used to treat headaches and poor circulation.

Saffron - a 2005 study found that it may (?) help cases of mild to moderate depression. However, the dent in you wallet, if you choose to use it regularly, may increase the depression (that part was not in the article)

Wasabi - now this is interesting. Remember when, before we knew that uclers were caused by bacteria, and people with them avoided spicy foods? Well, apparently wasabi may help prevent ulcers by killing some of bacteria that causes them.

So bring on the spices!! And please don't store your spices above your stove - to maximize their shelf life, keep them sealed in a dark, relatively cool place, and buy them in small quantities, unless you use them a lot. I tell people in my cooking classes to buy the bagged spice in the East Indian aisle, then divy them up with friends. :)

michelle zimmer
owner, wild serendipity foods
www.wildserendipity.com

Life is Short

2006-10-30T12:32:00.000-06:00

It is with a heavy heart & hollow feeling that I'm writing this today. I was just informed that a cousin, only 2 years older than me, married to an amazing woman who struggles with MS, with a very young daughter, has suddenly died.

Life can & will be snatched away with no notice..............you cannot plan for death, especially the untimely one.

Do what you love. Life is too short to spend it any other way.

Michelle Zimmer
Owner, Wild Serendipity Foods
www.wildserendipity.com

Inaugural Post

2006-10-28T17:48:00.000-06:00

Today was the last Saskatoon Farmer's Market before Halloween - many of the vendors (& children) were decked out in costume, lots of themed items were available. For my booth, I added some mango puree to the Dal Makhani I made to give it the appropriate orange-hue, and I also had some black & orange spiral cream cheese cookies (this is the cookie recipe we made this week in my after-school cooking series) and put my pita crisps in Halloween cello bags.

I have a Cinderalla pumpkin in my store now, which I purchased from the Market. These go from a pale orange to a deep red, at which point, they are apparently ready to eat (yes, raw, drizzled with honey I'm told.....eaten as you would eat a watermelon). I'll let you know how it is!

Michelle Zimmer
Owner - Wild Serendipty Foods
www.wildserendipity.com