Daddy-A

Thanks everyone for the excellent advice! I finally got around to smoking peppers a couple weeks ago as part of a 24 hour smoke marathon. I started on Friday night with a 10 lb butt which I smoked for 14 hours. Next were 2 free-range chickens for 4 hours. The tomatoes for 1. Then finally the peppers. You'll understand if I tell you I was too tired to post everything right away The hot sunny weather we'd had for most of the summer disappeared just as the peppers were starting to ripen. Only a few of the jalapenos turned red, so I simply took the darkest peppers from the plant for this experiment. Most of the methods I found for making chipotle invloved 10-15 hours in the smoker. That was no way I was going to tend coals for another 15 hours! So I decided on a 4 hour smoke, and then dried them in the convection oven. Most of the 15 hours seemed to be about drying anyway. As an aside, the Virtual Bullet site also suggests a method using a hot plate and wood chips that would certainly make things simpler. Next time. The peppers after their smoking time. Taste test revealed a sweet smokey flavour (I used maple). Quite pleased with the result. After drying time in the oven. (The big red ones in the back are anchos.) Haven't cooked with these yet, but they sure smell good! The whole kitchen in fact smelled amazing that day. A.

[host] I've pruned a number of posts from this thread as they had nothing to do with Morton's or "steak deals" in town, or food for that matter. Keep it focused. Keep it real. A. [/host]

[host] Thanks for the link chocomoo. It gives me a good opportunity to remind everyone that this forum is for discussing where to find okonomiyaki in Vancouver & Western Canada. Discussion of okonomiyaki in general should take place in the thread noted above. Thanks! [/host]

[host] Let's keep the discussion in this thread to the Serious Foodie course. There's another thread HERE on culinary schools & classes, so any discussion of the other courses at NWCAV should take place there. [/host] Ling, we'll let you know how the baguettes go. salt & slash .... check! A.

Done ... good catch Sarah. Can I make a request for all members to please use the PM system when making administrative suggestions. You gotta admitt, posts like this are pretty dull A.

[host] I'm going to ask that we post anything we cook at home in the Dinner! thread in General Food Topics. Other than being cooked in Vancouver, they're not really regional discussion. Feel free however to post a link in this thread to your post in the dinner thread. [/host] Nice plates Wes! A.

Stovetop's typing skills can be a little suspect Definitely, it's Commercial Drive. A.

Pear Tree is in the middle of a major remodel right now ... drove by yesterday and it's a major construction site. Best leave that trip to the burbs for next time. Really excellent restaurant! A.

I'd take the course just for the opportunity to cook on the professional equipment alone! That's some bad-ass BTU's we're playing with there! Our group's stewed effort. I'm really glad we learned about gremolata last night. Damn! I'm gonna have to make a mess of that stuff ... so good! A.

Those were lemon twists??? Maybe Chef will cover those in week 4 For the benefit of those not in the class, the recipe in question was part of an exercise Chef had us do at the end of last night. We were given a main ingredient (lamb chanks in this case) and asked to create a dish, chosing the mirepoix, braising liquid, bouquet garni, etc etc etc. Our testosterone laden group went WAY outside the box, deciding to do a Canadian-style pulled lamb sandwich, served on bannock with an apple-fennel slaw. I'm going to play with the recipe in the weeks to come and will report on eGullet in the Cooking forum. Actual cooking results will likely make it to class. Does that man love his job or what?? He really makes things enjoyable. What has surprised me so far as been how much free-reign we've been given so far. I like having the freedom to make mistakes in the kitchen. I can't wait for the baguettes! My sister-in-law is the bread maker in the family. Time to give her a run her money! A.

[host] I've just added a sub-title to this thread to help keep it on-topic. As you were [/host] A.

Still trying to figure out the Roxy Music reference Nu's dining room is beyond anything I expected. Stunning, cool, sexy, chic ... all those words I feel uncomfortable saying out loud because I know my kids will tease me for using them, they all apply here. My only complaint would be levelled at the chairs. I'm a lean-back kind of diner, whereas these chairs promote a more intimate lean-forward posture. Translation: I found the chair backs too low. This won't be a problem during an intimate dinner with the lovely "J", but leaning in close to hear the sweet whispers of our own canucklehead was not in the cards. I agree on all accounts with canucklehead on the food. The lentils with the lemony dressing found beneath the croquettes almost outshown the main dish. The pork belly w/ pears was my personal favorite, displacing the pork belly at Paprika in this category. Not salty at all which has often been my experience with this cut of pig. At first I thought it underseasoned, but the reduction served with it balances out the dish nicely. Gruyere soup?? Is Nu so cruel as to put this addiction in front of me and have it so accessible? I look forward to enjoying this dish again on a cold rainy November afternoon. Leonard, could you arrange for a fireplace? Service was prompt and courteous. although I felt the pacing of our dishes could have been better. The table we were at was quite small and the dishes (really beautiful btw) quickly crowded the surface. I had hoped to spend a leisurley afternoon discussing our impressions with the professional-to-a-fault Leonard (that's a compliment ), unforunately this ugly thing called "work" got in my way and I had to make a hurried exit. So much to digest, and I felt it all as I ran back to the car. Next time, a relaxed dinner with "J", and more time to digest. A.

Time to bring this back on topic. The discussion at hand is Bubble Tea in Vancouver/Western Canada. General discussion on bubble tea belongs elsewhere. No comment as to where the discussion on bo ba belongs. A.

[host] Just a friendly reminder that this thread is to discuss Meal Replacement Takeout places in Vancouver, and not WHY they exist. Plenty of good threads on that in General. (PM me if you can't find them and I'll do my best to help.) [/host]

AWESOME! And I'm looking at this just beofre lunch ... not a good thing Does this place have an address, or is it a sort of "... turn right at the oak tree, turn left at the rusted tractor ..." kinda place? (Not that I'm planning on another road trip any time soon ) I love the BYOB aspect. Wish we could do that up here ... other than my back yard I mean. A.

Them's fightin' words Maw! Now if Memphis Mike would only hook a TV up to his smoker and park in in my driveway .... A.

To quote Vikram, "that's more than I wanted to know!" A pretty extensive list at the end of that article. Nice to see my local haunts La Salza & Red Square get mentions. La Salza still makes some of the best tamales I've ever had. Unfortunately the majority of these places are situated for folk who live in Vancouver proper, most notably the West Side. That's smart business, sure, but it doesn't put any of the in between my office & home. A.

I feel so used ... so cheap ... Maw's latest G&M contribution. But Wilsons? Are you frickin' serious? After the lambasting you gave them in Van Mag? Wow, I feel like Lafleur has gone to play for the Leafs. And Dix? Well, I suppose they do have TV's. Best line (already quoted elsewhere): "Chef's matinee-idol looks attracts a heavy puck-bunny contingent" (re: the studdly Chef Wyles) A.

Don't awnings also require permits? If so, you're dealing with City Hall, and that takes time ... to much time. A.

Ask and ye shall receive (complete with winery links): La Frenz Winery *Chardonnay '04 * Montage '03 Red Rooster Winery * Marechal Foch '04 * Cabernet "Frank" '04 Elephant Island Winery * Cassis '04 * Crab Apple Wine '04 * Apple Wine '04 Kettle Valley Winery * King Merlot '02 Hillside Estate Winery *Gammay Blush '04 Blasted Church Winery * Sauvignon Blanc '04 * Merlot-Cabernet '03 Stag's Hollow Winery * Simply Noir '03 * Renaissance Merlot '03 Silver Sage Winery * The Sage (Gewurtz w/ Sage) '03 * The Passions (Pinot Noir) '03 * The Flame (Gewurtz w/ Chile) '03 * Dessert Wine (Merlot/Raspberry) '02 Hester Creek Estate Winery * Ice Wine (Pinot Blanc) '99 * Late Harvest Trebbiano '01 * Pinot Gris '04 Tinhorn Creek Winery * Oldfield's Collection Merlot '01 Cedar Creek Winery * Platinum Resrve Meritage '02 * Platinum Reserve Chradonnay '03 * "M" Madeira Mission Hill Winery * S.L.C. Sauvignon Blanc - Semillon '03 * Estate Bottled Chardonnay '02 * S.L.C. Syrah '02 * Oculus '97 A.

I will post my list of purchases this evening. I'm in the process of re-organizing the "wine room" downstairs (i.e. assembling the IKEA wine shelves) so I'll have the list already put together. Hav you tried ordering on-line? I'm ordering some Burrowing Owl this week, and speaking to a lot of the smaller wineries, a large percentage of their sales are on-line. When I post the list of the wines we bought I'll include links ... but you can Google too A couple ... and they were more "fun" than serious wines. The two from Silver Sage - The Flame which was the Gewurtz with the hot pepper in it, and Sage Grand Reserve which is also a gewurtz, this time fermented with sage. The Cassis form Elephant Island is also really good. My favourite has to be the Burrowing Owl '03 Chard. I didn't purchase this on the trip, but already have a couple bottles in the cellar from a friend's recommendation. I did however get to taste it on the trip. SO GOOD! So much so I'm buying some of the '04 which just became available. A.

See? Those classes are paying off already! Looks delicious A.

They are a selection of ice wines, fruit wines, late harvest rieslings, and a special dessert type wine that is a Gewurtz that has a pepper in it. That one is called "The Flame" and is really spicey ... quite good with cheese. I'll post the entire list of what we bought if asked. I would have done so already, but it just seemed kinda showy. A.

Dave! We were talking about you in class. Glad to see you've popped in. Yes, Chef Tony is very animated ... obviously loves what he does. And we did in fact make extra for the assistants ... hopefully up to an acceptable standard. A.

Day 7 The last day of our wine & food excursion. The biggest challenge of the day was figuring out the best way to pack all the wine we purchased. Thank goodness for the Subaru Legacy! If Subaru were smart, they'd work out a sponsorship deal with Wine BC or the Naramata Bench: Subaru, roomy enough for you, your spouse, and enough wine to help things get cozy Winery Visits *Mission Hill (Excellent WEB SITE) Our hope was to visit both Mission Hill and Cedar Creek before we left for Vancouver. That proved to be a bit ambitious considering how tired we both felt. Wine tasting is tough work! Thanks to Ingo at Mission Hill for such a nice welcome! The winery recently underwent an extensive architectural transformation. The project, which started 6 years ago, was designed by Seattle architect Tom Kundig . Thses are the entry gates which feature a massive keystone carved from a single 5 tonne block of Indian limestone. The bell tower, the Loggia on the left and Chagall Room on the right. During the summer months, tours start from inside the Chagall Room ... when it's rainy and miserable they start from the Wine Shop . 12 storeys tall, The Bell Tower houses 4 custom cast bells, each named for a member of the von Mandl family which owns the winery. This bell was destined for the bell tower until they discovered it had been cast incorrectly. Fortunately, there were four others that were fine which now reside in the tower. The company that cast the bells (Paccard Bell Foundry - Annecy, France) is also responsible for making the copies of the Liberty Bell that reside in every state capitol. The new amphitheatre which hosts everything from music concerts to live theatre. In the background is The Terrace, one of the finest restaurants in the Okanagan. You will also notice it's outside, and subject to the elements which, saddly, forced The Terrace to close the day we visited. The cask cellars … very “Les Miserables” We tried to avoid the touristy things on this trip, but we made an exception for the tour at Mission Hill. We weren’t disappointed. Our “wine educator” (tour guide) was extremely knowledgeable not only on the winery, but on the wines made at Mission Hill and the wine making process as well. At the end of the basic tour (we would have taken the deluxe S.L.C. tour but time wouldn’t allow) there is also a brief wine tasting. If you do take the tour, be sure to return to the wine room and taste some of their other offerings (which are much better than what we had on the tour.) Our wine tasting done, it was time to drive home: The foggy Coquihala highway … which may be the fastest way up to the Okanagan, but it’s a pretty dull drive (by BC standards anyway). Our last meal stop for this trip was at the Home Restaurant in Merrit. This restaurant is so well thought of that even our own Mr. Maw has his ringing endorsement printed on the menu! “J”’s Club Sandwich. Notice the salad … I wish I had. The Home Bacon/Mushroom Burger. Nice burger with a toasted bun … nut nowhere near as good as the burger I enjoyed at the beginning of the trip in Naramata. The real kick in the teeth were the fries. I can honestly say these were the WORST FRIES EVER. Tasteless, lukewarm and dry. I suffered through half of them … I was hungry. I happily put my camera away after this. Some guys in Harley-Davidson hats were looking at me funny while I took those pictures. So that’s our wine excursion to the Okanagan. I am grateful to everyone who helped us out with information, directions and accommodations. There are also some excellent threads in the Vancouver/Western Canada forum with other excellent suggestions. PM me if you need help finding them. One last picture: The sum total of our wine purchases … 56 bottles. The next day I went to IKEA to buy more shelves for our wine rack! Those baskets to the right? That was the harvest from our garden while we were gone. Tomato sauce anyone?? A.