Mooshmouse

The Globe and Mail Friday, December 8 edition Dining out while staying home – Alexandra Gill shakes down Allô Provence, Tamarind Takeout and Quince as food options to go in this busiest of seasons. Side Dish: Lunch time – Alexandra Gill lists a few fine-dining restaurants that are offering midday meals in fine holiday spirit. NOTE: Articles in The Globe and Mail may be read online without a subscription for a period of five days from their publication date.

Abra, here's a link to the Media Digest for the Vancouver, British Columbia and Western Canada forum. In it, you'll find links to some of Jamie's monthly musings in Vancouver Magazine starting from May 2005.

The Vancouver Courier Wednesday, December 7 edition Baby's got Bacchus – Lee Parsons's culinary creations rank high on Tim Pawsey's holiday dining list. Tim Pawsey checks out the eclectic pan-Mediterranean menu at Ambrozia on Davie Street. Budget wine of the week – Bola Bianco 2004 The Georgia Straight Thursday, December 8 edition Best Eating: Retro nosh brings spirit of Christmas passé – "With retro food, you are not serving mere comestibles. You are igniting pockets of yearning, affection, and aversion all over the room; in short, new memories, which, in turn lubricate storytelling and vivid conversation. And that makes for a good time." (Jennifer Lyon) Best Eating: French connection arrives on a breeze – "Jean-Yves Benoît cooks authentic French food—not French-inspired, or French–influenced, but the real thing..." at Mistral (Angela Murrills) Uncorked: Meat, cheese, wine... a trio made in heaven – Jurgen Gothe rolls out the results of his forays into pairing wines with deli treats. Food of the Week: Banana Leaf – Angela Murrills taste drives the new West Broadway location. Drink of the Week: Vincent Van Gogh gin (Jurgen Gothe) Straight Goods: Brimming baskets – Your Local Farmer's Market Society holds its Winter Market on December 10 and 11 at Heritage Hall. (Judith Lane and Angela Murrills) Straight Goods: In-and-out burgers – Even in wintertime, Sugar Daddy's on Davie Street lets you partake of burgers and sports al fresco on its heated patio. (Judith Lane and Angela Murrills) Straight Goods: Just call him spice man – See the world's largest gingerbread man at the Hyatt Regency Vancouver until December 27 with all admission donations supporting the Canucks for Kids Fund. (Judith Lane and Angela Murrills) Straight Goods: Mix and match – Earthsave's sole seasonal mixer is being held this evening at Greens and Gourmet. The Westender Thursday, December 8 edition (Lifestyles section) Stop shopping, start eating – Andrew Morrison offers "eight dining recommendations in four retail-heavy neighbourhoods. Eat, drink, be merry, and jingle all the way home in one piece." Don't share my nocturnal Ben & Jerry's secret – Profile of Leigh Power, chef at Burgoo Bistro.

A blog from the illustrious Jamie Maw brings with it the promise of stellar writing, fantastic photography and some excellent vicarious meals ahead. I, for one, can't wait. Blog on, McDuff!

Zuke, there's East is East which is located at 3243 West Broadway. It serves Middle Eastern fare; though not exclusively vegetarian, it has lots of non-meat options. Your little one would love their smoothies. Just upstairs from East is East is its sister restaurant, Chai Gallery. Street address is 3239 West Broadway. Its menu features Ayurvedic cooking with Middle Eastern influences. Click here for a review of Chai Gallery on vancouveryoga.com. There's also Yogi's Vegetarian Indian Cuisine at 1408 Commercial Drive. Excellent pakoras. One of my favourite dishes is their Aubergine Chana, which is essentially a combination of chana masala and eggplant bhartha served atop naan.

Life has been clicking along at a frantic pace here at the Mouse house as of late, so I've been virtually AWOL from my computer for two weeks or so. The past couple of days have been especially long. Noah just caught his first cold of the season (I can't believe that he's been germ-free for this long), so I've spent some late nights and atrociously early mornings giving him tepid-water sponge baths to quell his fever. Fortunately, though, he's still eating fairly well and I haven't had too much difficulty getting enough food and fluids into him. A big ole pot of comfort food was in order this evening. I cooked up a Le Creuset full of southwestern chicken stew with mushrooms, onions, stewed tomatoes, sweet corn and chili seasonings served over a bed of rice. Lots of water and OJ all around to help keep the germs at bay. And, at the little convalescent's request, dessert was the strawberry-banana Jello that he had helped me make earlier this afternoon. No photos, however. Too darn tired. Tomorrow's another day...

The Vancouver Courier Monday, December 5 edition Uncorking this season's batch of books – "Looking for great gifts for the wine lover on your holiday list? Look no further than this bookish grab bag of good ideas." (Tim Pawsey) Thursday, December 1 edition Something to sing about – Tim Pawsey succumbs to his sweet tooth at Kerrisdale’s newest bakery, Sweet e’s Pastries & Desserts The folks at Abigail’s Party put on a suitable small-plates spread. “Former Mondavi exec Richard Carras (looking around since the Napa icon was swallowed by Constellation Brands) has joined his old cohort Darryl Weinbren at Winebren Wines.” The Georgia Straight Thursday, December 1 edition Best Eating: Growing awareness – In her documentary, “The Future of Food”, Deborah Koons Garcia “explores what the wildly unequal arranged marriage of science and nature has led to in the edible world.” (Angela Murrills) Uncorked: A case lot of corkers for dipsobibliomaniacs –Jurgen Gothe lists a selection of “booze books” for holiday gift-giving. Food of the Week: Bones: Recipes, History & Lore – Torontonian Jennifer McLagan’s compendium of tooth-sucking treats is now in bookstores. (Judith Lane) Drink of the Week: French Monument (Jurgen Gothe) Straight Goods: World-class hotties – “The Canadian Culinary Federation’s Culinary Team Canada scored top honours in the “hot” category, and overall second place, at the Culinary World Master Competition held November 19 to 23 in Basel, Switzerland.” (Judith Lane and Angela Murrills) Straight Goods: Sunday roasts – Reserve your seat now for Fiction’s $15 beef tenderloin dinners. (Judith Lane and Angela Murrills) Straight Goods: Talent spotting – “The Next Great Chef” pits young Canadian chefs against each other in a battle of culinary dexterity. (Judith Lane and Angela Murrills) Straight Goods: Table dhoti – Tamarind offers a weekly $24 prix fixe Trio. (Judith Lane and Angela Murrills) Straight Goods: Nice takeout – Provence Marinaside now features meals to go. (Judith Lane and Angela Murrills) Straight Goods: Bounced – Jay Chambers, general manager, says that the LDB is striving for consistency with its free publication offerings. (Judith Lane and Angela Murrills) The Westender Thursday, December 1 edition (Lifestyles section) Close but no Gauloise at Cassis Bistro – “Cassis is as sexy as a Parisienne coquette, but beyond the rouge and the artfully torn stockings were wrinkles brought on by what may well have been a mix of poor discipline, indifference and exhaustion.” (Andrew Morrison)

Jan and tsquare, the bread pudding idea sounds great. Once I get some feedback on all these ideas, I'll send you a PM for that recipe. Thanks! Cream biscuits?! Just when I thought buttermilk biscuits couldn't get any better! *drool* Nice call on the savoury danish, Zuke. A reconnaissance mission to Liberty might be in order... care to join me one day? Gracias, CanadianBakin'... I might have to add Secret Garden to that reconnaissance mission. Holy Mother of God, Rona! Now that's taking one for the team, girl! Much as I love me my meat, that camembert-stuffed petite boule is really speaking to me. Yelling at me, actually, to go and eat some cheese. Now. Tracey, I wonder... if I special-order some from Daniel, would he FedEx it to me?

Daniel, damn you a thousand times for putting those mouthwatering photos in front of my eyes before I've had breakfast! In all seriousness, what an amazing meal. Like mizducky before me, I have to give credit to that incredible looking terrine. That terrine and the bacon desserts have stolen my heart.

As I had expected, you guys are nothing short of fabulous. This is exactly what I love about eGullet... look at this plethora of ideas, all of them mouthwateringly tempting! One of the things that I appreciate most about your suggestions is that they're all practical from an ingredient cost standpoint, always a significant consideration in a business application. John and Rona... I, myself, am a huge fan of knishes. My husband has never quite understood my love for them -- the whole starch inside starch thing -- but, then again, he's not a perogy fanatic either. And biscuits, fresh out of the oven with a king-sized pat of butter, must be one of life's most divine pleasures. Honey butter, Badiane... I heart that idea! Rona, the Starbucks cinnamon straws I'm thinking of are, indeed, the crunchy ones. They're fairly flaky. If that's what you're talking about, they'd translate excellently into a savoury version. Katie... mini mascarpone cheesecakes... how luxurious! Carrot Top, I Googled for a recipe of lard bread: it sounds amazingly good. PamR, mochihead and CanadianBakin', focaccia rounds would also be rather practical in this application. I'm wondering: in the case of a savoury bread, would people be expected to eat something with it, like soup? I know I wouldn't and neither would most of you, but I'm thinking of the non-foodaholic masses. Swisskaese, the antipasti focaccia that you mentioned with aubergine, sweet potato and tomato slices: are those toppings for the bread, or are they accompaniments? If they're toppings, now that would be a bread to die for. Rehovot, good call on the savoury mini muffins... what an ingenious suggestion! And andiesenji, your savoury cream horns would be delicious, but I am sold hook, line and sinker on your mention of an onion/cheese variant of a cinnamon bun. Thank you once again, everyone, for all of your marvelous input. I'll be sending my friend the link to this thread and will report back on which of these ideas actually pan out at her coffee shop.

I like the biscuit ideas a lot! Rebecca, would a martini do? I love croissants, but I'm definitely with you on the mess factor at a coffee shop. Tarts are a distinct possibility too. Remember, though, no stovetop. That imposes limitations on fillings, especially ones that must be precooked, since I believe she tries to do everything in-house versus bringing in cooked components from home.

Great minds think alike on the cheese sticks/straws idea! I'd love to see a photo, Rona. But would that be too similar to the cinnamon straws that Starbucks serves? Oooooooh, cornbread. I loooooove me my cornbread! The whole savoury bread thing hadn't even dawned on me, so that's definitely worth consideration. Kolachy is a good thought too, Badiane, but I think ktbear has the corner on those at The Kolachy Shop.

Ham and pesto croissants is one idea that we had bandied about... chicken and smoked gouda was another thought. As a bit of background, I think she's trying to stay away from being too lunchy; she doesn't offer meal-ish food, per se, but I was hoping that she could offer savoury alternatives to her array of sweet goodies. There's a convection oven on premises, but no stovetop, so that limitation must be taken into account as well.

Thanks for the input, everyone... all most worthy of consideration. I seem to remember substituting butter for shortening in a toffee-flavoured version of the same cookies with no real ill effects other than a little extra spreading on the cookie sheet. But, if I have time, I'll do test batches of each and report back on my findings. Cheers!

The owner of my favourite neighbourhood coffee shop is quite a prolific baker and features quite a selection of house-baked sweet treats at her café. Her latest creations include individual coffee cakes, homemade vegan granola bars and bittersweet chocolate cupcakes. For the past couple of months, we've been trying to come up with some savoury baked goods that she could sell, something other than the ubiquitous coffee-shop scone, but have struck out so far. So, I thought I'd put this question to the collective eGullet Brain Trust and see what kind of creative ideas surface. Suggestions anyone?

People. Now this is a Lamb Burger. After all this talk of HSG's lamb burgers, Vancouver Lee and I succumbed to the temptation and tucked into a couple of these for lunch today. Incredibly moist, perfectly seasoned, nicely complimented by the feta cheese. And a wonderfully crusty Portuguese bun that doesn't disintegrate at first bite. Personally, I think Neil deserves to be canonized for serving these morsels of delight at his restaurant. If this isn't worthy of sainthood, then I don't know what is.

Melanie, you'll have the opportunity to sample the wares from some of these fine B.C. cheesemakers at tonight's Marley Wines dinner, courtesy of Les Amis du Fromage. Get your tastebuds ready!

Guess I'm the lone voice of dissent for this installment of Burger Club. My experience at Moderne was okay, better than meh but not by much. I can't fault the decor; they've done an excellent job of remodelling after the fire as the whole room seems quite a bit brighter. And the greatly improved HVAC system is a huge bonus... the cooking smells have been significantly reduced. Here's a shot of Lee's massive Steak Burger Platter with his orange cream soda in the background. I've gotta agree with Lee: that was one mighty fine soda. And a shot of my Lamb Burger with fried onions, mushrooms and Swiss cheese. My Creamsicle milkshake is in the background. It was lovely and thick and tasted just like a Creamsicle would taste in a glass. However, it was a bit on the sweet side, thus preventing Mooshmouse Jr. and me from finishing the whole thing... I think we got through about half of it before raising the white flag. Vancouver Lee noted above that Moderne's burger patties aren't salted or peppered. This is a real sticking point for me since, IMHO, the mark of a good burger is how well it's seasoned. That being said, Moderne's lamb burger was significantly lacking in flavour and pales in comparison to Neil's quintessential lamb burger at HSG, at least according to my tastebuds. To each his (or her) own. Ian ordered a Salmon Burger which he deemed okay if a little heavy on the sauce. But his Coffee Mocha milkshake disappeared in a heartbeat. No complaints in that department. The boys went back to take a peek at the goings-on in the kitchen. When they returned to the table, Junior Mouse had two of these in hand. A gummy burger. How perfect. Service was excellent. Friendly, attentive and perceptive. All things considered, though, I think I'd head to either Stormin' Norman's, Vera's or HSG for a burger experience before returning to Moderne. But don't let that stop you from paying them a visit. The ambiance alone is worth the trip.

The Vancouver Courier Monday, November 21 edition Matcha more to tea in ceremony – Deana Lancaster discovers that "[a] tea ceremony is a sacred event, a singular moment between people that can never take place in exactly the same way again."

Here are the responses that my nearly 4 1/2-year-old son gave me this afternoon. Breakfast: Toast with butter and blueberry jam, green apple slices (his favourite is Granny Smith), smoked gouda cheese and pineapple juice or V8 (yes, he really does love both V8 and tomato juice). Lunch: Japanese noodles with meat and vegetables (by this he means beef yakiudon), tobiko sushi (he eats it by the spoonful) and apple juice. Snacks, either mid-morning or mid-afternoon: Japanese rice crackers, dried mango, chocolate or a yogurt smoothie. Dinner: Chicken (I'm guessing either chicken adobo or barbecued chicken as these are his two favourites) with either rice or orzo and roasted cauliflower with ketchup. Water to drink. Dessert would be strawberry gelato.

As far as BC cheesemakers themselves go, I'm partial to four: Salt Spring Island Cheese Company: As a starting point, here's a link to a Gremolata article on David Wood's Salt Spring Island Cheese Odyssey. Their chevre is nothing short of outstanding. I'm especially fond of their black truffle and their garlic varieties. Though they don't have a website, their contact number is 250-653-2300. Moonstruck Organic Cheese (click to access website), also located on Salt Spring Island. Their Ash-ripened Camembert and their Baby Blue are two of my favourites. Poplar Grove Cheeses (click for website) located in Naramata. Because they only sell four varieties of cheeses, it's impossible for me to pick just one. Last, but certainly not least, is Gort's Gouda Cheese (click for website) located in Salmon Arm. Their spiced and smoked goudas are excellent. Happy cheesing!

Though still reeling somewhat from a stint at Cornucopia, Mark Taylor went spelunking into the depths of his wine cellar and pulled out some fantastic wines for Cru's "Autumn Reds" dinner that was held on Sunday, November 13. Joining us at our table with their tastebuds all a-tingle were Mr. and Mrs. Vancouver Lee, *Deborah* and Mr. and Mrs. BCinBC. We started off with a blind tasting of the first three wines, followed by some enlightening tidbits from Mark on food and wine pairings before we tasted the final four: Bodegas Castano 2003 Monastrell Hecula - Yecia, Spain Cru 2003 Restaurant Red - South Okanagan, BC Concannon 2003 Petite Sirah - Central Coast, CA St. Francis 1997 Merlot, Nunns Canyon Vineyard - Sonoma, CA Le Macchiole 1998 Paleo Rosso Toscana - Bolgheri, Italy Black Hills 2003 Nota Bene - South Okanagan, BC Mission Hill 2002 Oculus - Okanagan, BC Mark Taylor has been working with Township 7 to produce their house red, and the success of his efforts was certainly proven when nearly 100% of those attending the dinner chose it as their favourite of the first three wines, myself included. Perhaps my palate is more attuned to BC grapes, but I selected the Nota Bene as my favourite of the second four wines. And colour me ignorant, but I must be one of a handful of people in Vancouver who actually doesn’t enjoy the Oculus. Neither Ian nor I liked it when we tasted it at Mission Hill this past summer, and we’re still not big fans of it now. From that, we readied our stomachs for an outstanding dinner. With Chef Dana Reinhardt out of town, Chef Guy Leggett took the helm and certainly did not disappoint. Let me digress for a moment to say that Cru makes some of the best bread in town: perfect crust giving way to a soft, spongy interior. When plates of warm bread and butter were brought to our table, a minor feeding frenzy ensued, leaving nothing but crumbs in its wake. Warm buttered bread. That's gotta be one of life's divine simple pleasures. Smoked Albacore Tuna Carpaccio Served with beets, baby beet greens, crispy shallots, truffle vinaigrette Wine Pairing: Marchesi de Frescobaldi 2003 Chianti D.O.C.G. - Tuscany Chef Guy didn't waste any time by starting off with what our table deemed the evening's winning dish. Smoked tuna is one of my favourite things on the planet, but this dish far exceeded my expectations. The earthy sweetness of the beets was a perfect counterpoint for the tuna's delicate smoked flavour. And we were all pleasantly surprised with the Chianti pairing for this dish, an unexpectedly successful match. Chicken, Foie Gras and Mushroom Ravioli with caramelized onion broth Wine Pairing: Township 7 2002 Merlot - Okanagan, BC The broth, essentially a reduced french onion soup, was wonderfully sweet and offered a nice flavour balance to the subtle tastes in the ravioli. As for the Township 7 Merlot, let's just say that I'm rather partial to this wine. It's the first varietal from this winery that I'd ever tasted, and I immediately took a liking to its velvety softness. Braised Beef Brisket Served with butternut squash spätzle, savoy cabbage and lardons Darighe 2000 Cabernet-Merlot "Proprietor's Blend" - Washington State What a dish. After a 16-hour braise (yes, that's right, 16 hours), the beef was exquisitely tender. Mr. and Mrs. Vancouver Lee and I had been fortunate enough to sample the butternut spätzle a few weeks prior; it was still absolutely delicious if somewhat overpowered by the braising jus. The Darighe Proprietor's Blend was another wonderful wine. My rather sketchy tasting notes showed a bit of tobacco on my initial sniff with big blackberry/blackcurrant flavours. Bleu Benedictin - L'Abbaye St. Benoit, Quebec Served with Seville Orange marmalade and toasted pecans Wine Pairing: Taylor Fladgate 10-year-old Tawny Port This was a king-sized piece of blue cheese; I managed to work my way through about 2/3 of it. Never would have thought of orange marmalade as an effective compliment for blue cheese, but it's a great match. Steamed Date Pudding Served with red-wine caramel, apple compote and vanilla ice cream Wine Pairing: Smith Woodhouse 1994 Late-bottled Vintage Port Excellent. Beautifully moist, not too heavy, not cloyingly sweet. A lovely way to round out another phenomenal tasting dinner at Cru. Edited to rectify a minor bit of redundancy.

I'd suggest Dutch Girl Chocolates which is located at 1002 Commercial Drive (east side of the street). Apparently they sell over 75 different kinds of Dutch licorice. Here's a quick writeup on the store from a Seattle Times restaurant review covering The Drive:

Here's a link to the original thread that you posted with your initial inquiry about Asanti. Interestingly enough, the date of your thread was almost exactly one year ago... funny how time flies.

It's that time of year again and I'm getting ready to fire up the oven for the annual onslaught of Cookie Exchange baking. I found two great variants of sugar cookies, Coconut Lime and Chocolate Espresso. My question is twofold: is it feasible to substitute butter for shortening and, if so, can the substitution be made on a 1:1 ratio? Thanks in advance.