Viola da gamba
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Posts posted by Viola da gamba
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The fact that, almost without fail (lobster and asparagus being the notable exeptions), the thing that I liked the best was always (unbeknownst to me) the thing that was most expensive.
Yup - that's why my parents stopped taking me out to dinner until I reached an age (12) that they could explain why I couldn't have something without having to share details of family finances with the whole restaurant.
My first clue (apart from a liking for stinky cheese dating from birth, and the period from about 6 mos until about 9 mos when, according to my parents, I would only drink Tio Pepe and only eat 70% dark chocolate) was when, for a Consumer Ed. course where the assignment was to start a business, I chose to start baking bread - country loaves involving bran, wheat germ, etc., etc. - and insisted on grinding the wheat germ & flour by hand. Time consuming indeed.
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Most of the days this week - homemade brioche-style bread toasted with fireweed honey & unsalted butter and COFFEE. Sunday (I'm out of sync again) was mango pancakes - we had one that needed eating. It worked surprisingly well with a quarter teaspoon of nutmeg added to the batter BUT something unexpected happened - after adding the nutmeg & diced mango, the batter thickened and went really fluffy - looked a bit like a souffle, but with more airholes, and I had to add much more liquid than usual to send it back to pouring consistency. They were great - very fluffy - but I was wondering if anyone can tell me why? Was it something to do with the mangoes? The nutmeg? The combination of the 2? I usually make some sort of fruit pancakes on the weekend (pear and brie a current favourite) and have never had this happen - and I'm curious as to which part of the chemical reaction triggered it. Thanks for the help!
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Andiesenji - that's awful - again - my heartfelt sympathy. A pox on all their houses.
Goldie - keep us posted on what you think of that black fabric stuff - please? The people who owned the house before us had it down EVERYWHERE and we found it a pain - home for slugs & bugs - and didn't notice much in the way of weed-stopping, it just meant that it was more difficult to bring a garden that had been neglected for 2 years back into line. But, we're thinking the 2 years of neglect may have been the problem, not the black fabric - so - let us know?
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My parents are English , and we all love toast - but whether it's to be hot or cold depends on what you're putting on it. I've eulogized about my love for hot toast with butter & honey melted into it somewhere else, but the point of cold toast is, as has been previously pointed out, as a vehicle for butter - and runny home-made marmalade. Or if I'm feeling too lazy to make melba toast.
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I'm a bit late jumping onto this thread - andiesenji - I hope things are working out with your garden - I'd be sooooo angry - you have my sympathy.
Anyway - since we're in the north, the growing season's a little shorter - thank God for greenhouses - and I don't know of any community gardens in the area. My SO is responsible for food gardening (it's the only way he'll weed), so the food being planted tends to get limited to what he enjoys eating - peas, tomatoes, peppers (hot & bell), strawberries, raspberries, basil, mint, cilantro & beans. The basil is doing excellently well - we're on our 4th batch of pesto - and the tomatoes and peas are flowering like mad. We're not too sure about the fruit beds this year - we had a major cleanout of old plants & canes last year, so are thinking we might not have the same bounty. But oh man it's nice to have fresh pesto again.
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I don't know if Salmon Arm is too far north for you (probably - but worth a shot) - I highly recommend stopping in at Gort's Gouda - greate cheese - and Larch Hills Winery isn't too far away - Canada's highest (or most northern - mind's a blank) winery - the view's great, and the Pinot Noir is going down a treat.
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For those travelling (or cycling) between Nanaimo & Victoria & taking the back roads - the pub in Saltaire (which I think is imaginatively named the Saltaire Pub - but I may be wrong) does (or did) really good burgers - juicy, moist, not overcooked - and great fries - nary a Sysco truck in sight. They also do barbecued meat on weekends - and, like the Crow & Gate - they have a really nice patio/garden. Good little out of the way spot (again - or it used to be - it's been a couple of years) - particularly on a nice day. If you've got a designated driver, and can do the syncopated trip (syncopation being an uneven movement from bar to bar) of Vancouver Island, I'd recommend a stop here for lunch (the food's better than the Crow & Gate, and then stop at the Crow & Gate for a quick pint - or a slow one - to refresh yourself after the gruelling 20 minute drive between Saltaire & Cedar.
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I'll PM you before my next trip. I'm allowed to fly cheese within the province right? No municipal bylaw banning that?
A.
Oh man - that would rock - and anyway - the airport is outside the town of smithers - so municipal bylaws don't apply!! Hurry back, ya hear?!
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However, when I lived in Smithers (coming up on 13 years ago), you could get a good bowl of soup and slice of triple berry or chocolate pecan pie from Java's, you could get some delicious Chinese from the North Star, yummy pizza from Vera's, and wonderful pepper chicken from 4th St Deli in Telkwa. I know that the last in that list is now gone, but are the others still around...Viola?
All in all, probably the best way to go in Smithers is to dust off the barbeque, and create your own culinary gems as you enjoy some of the most beautiful scenery in the world. I love Smithers in the summer. (avec le bugspray, of course)
Bugspray - ah yes - my new favourite scent - bought the year's first 2 containers of Deep Woods Off this weekend - fortunately the worst of bug season ends in a month (really - it's only about 6 weeks of hell and then it's safe to go outside again - after the next month, although there are lots of mosquitos, they are REALLY BIG and fly REALLY SLOWLY - even the dogs can catch them easily).
Sadly, the North Star is closed - the ginger beef at the Green House in Telkwa isn't bad, though - Vera's also closed, but as Arne says, Chatters ain't bad (but I'd rather go for homemade bbq pizza) and the 4th St Deli has been closed for a while - Bridges (the new restaurant on the corner) is still feeling its way and, at least for now, is more expensive than the Alpenhorn for food that isn't quite as good. And, as I said above - Java's is still great, but is only open during the week - at which time, I havec to exercise serious self-restraint in relation to their double chocolate espresso bars. And the only good patio is at the Golf Club, which is a wonderful view but has distinctly less-than-interesting food (although not quite curly fries standard of bleh). The one thing that everyone seems to do well is soup.
I proudly adopt the moniker "Smithereen".
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Sigh - 'tis true - next time, however, you may want to try the Logpile Lodge? You have to book in advance, though - and part of the process for booking in advance is letting them know your choices for dinner - so it may not help.
Also - the Iron Horse Cafe is supposedly starting dinner service Thurs - Sunday soon, and I've been told it's something to write home about. The Chef is from the now-defunct "Crocodile Cafe" in Telkwa - first place I ever saw "Grasshopper Bars" (Nanaimo bars with a bright green mint filling in place of the custard. I didn't try it).
The farmer's market started last weekend - but compared to the markets on the Island and in Vancouver - again - nothing to write home about. Some of the veggies are good though.
Sorry you didn't enjoy the food that much - I wish I could say I'm surprised! However, at least the basil is coming up now - so, as with Badiane, the best place to eat is probably at home - homemade pesto is about to become a staple.
Edited to add - Coffee is one of my big beefs up here - there's only one decent coffee place - Java's - and they're only open during the week (blame the locale - right next door to the courthouse). As to cheese - all of the local dairy production is focussed on Dairyland, so artisanal cheese is something that gets restricted to holidays when my folks come up.
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Best fish tacos - a little roadside place beside the golf course (and stealing water & electricity from the hookup for the lawnmowers!!) just south of Kihei in Maui. Amazing. Worst fish tacos - my mum's attempt to recreate that taste 3 months later in Nanaimo. Blech.
Another vote for Penny's in Nanaimo as a pretty good second to Maui ...
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I've only had the texture go wrong when I didn't have a scale handy. We've always made the bechamel version - so the proportions are pretty basic - for a dinner for 2 - equal amounts pasta & cheese (8 or 9 oz), and a sauce made with 1 tbsp flour, 1 pint milk - increase as required.
Sorry about this, but the type & quality of cheese are hugely important. We usually make a cheese sauce using a combination of 3 or 4, but if you're just using cheddar (which I've never had a problem with in terms of sauce separation, provided the proportions are right) - get the best you can afford - it really does make a difference.
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Sparked by touaregsand's description of "Eating Jello straight out of the box" and "Dipping my finger into kool aid powder", I suddenly remembered my childhood love for drinking cream straight out of the little plastic containers, dipping my finger into a dish of CoffeeMate and squirting ketchup out of the little packets. Sucking on sugar cubes, of course.
Ha ha - sucking on sugar cubes - I swear - the horses never got half as many sugar cubes as we said we were giving them. As to sticking fingers in packets - wasn't that the whole reason for the existence of pre-packaged cake mix & those little packages of stuff you got for the Easy-Bake Ovens? I know we never actually cooked them ...
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I have fond memories of Piper's in Nanaimo (Departure Bay Rd.) - fabulous soups. Now we're in Smithers, the options are the Alpenhorn (the calamari isn't in "rings" - it's actual pieces of squid VERY lightly battered & done with a chili & lime glaze. Damn - now I'm hungry) or the Fireside (good burgers, but appetizers somewhat on a par with Jamie's descriptions - but the fries aren't curly, thank God). The appetizers at the Alpenhorn are excellent - particularly on Fridays, when they do the closest thing to tapas we can get.
Fond memories of the Crow & Gate here, too - particularly meeting my parents there after a loooong bike ride - drinking too much Merridale cider & having to sling the bikes in the back for a ride home. Good times.
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Last time my Dad & I went we took ice wine & maple sugar "leaves" from the maple cafe place just down (Howe? Hornby?) - on the same block as the Hotel Vancouver, facing the Art Gallery (sorry - mind's a blank). They have a great selection of those sort of treats, and they are light, cheap and were VERY popular - more so than the ice wine, I think (my relatives are weird).
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Sablefish, which as you identify is the same fish as Alaska black cod, was (chauvinistically) rebranded for the Canadian market a few years ago. That worked--it's also seemingly better managed to wholesale, without the kippering effect of ABC.
I've been finding this thread really interesting - thank you everyone! Small query, though - as to the "rebranding" of Alaskan black cod as sablefish - I understood that it had to be sold as "sablefish" in BC because the Americans had trademarked the name "Alaskan black cod" - much like the whole "champagne/sparkling wine" issue?
No? I apologise if I'm wrong.It's good to hear these things discussed - I too haven't had Birkenstocks for years - but surely environmental sustainability is an issue that no longer deserves the rubric of "fringe" or "fundamentalist" - not with the first global warming refugees having to leave Alaska. True, I miss eating certain things - but it's worth the challenge of eating new & different fish - and finding the recipes to deal with them.
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If you go, combine it with the Crow and Gate pub (also in Cedar) for a charming lunch (a little stodgy, but it's nice to go to a pub that resolutely does NOT have fries, Caesar salad, or pizza on the menu. Think steak and kidney pie, oysters and Guinness and very good bread pudding).
Yet another reason to go - they have Merridale cider on tap!
If anyone's coming up (or lurking around) the Smithers area - Narnia Famrs has a wonderful selection of fresh herbs (seeds can be a bit iffy up here unless you have a greenhouse) - and hot peppers. They have an outlet in Victoria now, but I don't think they'll be shipping plants down any time soon ...
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Home made crusty bread *just* out of the oven (and thank God I didn't let J cut it - he'd have hopelessly squished it - he just doesn't get how to cut fresh, hotoutoftheoven bread), cream cheese, sundried tomato & prosciutto. Open-face, over the sink, heaven.
And coffee.
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My wife trims every spec of fat off the edge of pork chops too. Only a perfectly lean cut will make it in her mouth. A pile of trimmings are left on the plate.
I feel like Jack Sprat... in reverse.
I feel your pain - I adore the fat on properly barbecued pork chops - particularly if marinated first in olive oil, soy & maple syrup - mmmmm
I'm fortunate - part Chinese J will eat anything - except for pizza crusts, which he feeds to the dogs. And I'd walk over broken glass to have decent pork crackling. I have to admit, though - I'm not that keen on animal fat cold. Ham, roast beef, lamb, bacon, etc., etc. - love the fat hot, really not that keen on it cold - and I've never been a fan of aspic.
I always thought it was, in part, at least, the fat that gives the flavour.
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Potato farls
I need more coffee - I saw that as potato "farts"
- sorry.When we make mashed potatoes, we always make waaaay too much so that we have leftovers & then I can do my favourite second-day mashed potato food - melt goose fat (1/2 olive oil, 1/2 butter will do, but goose fat is best) in a frying pan - put all mashed potatoes (or as many as will fit - remember, they'll reduce by at least 1/3 over the process) in pan with salt, pepper & garlic (if you didn't use garlic in the original mash) - flatten (gently to avoid splatter) - fry gently until browned on one side, then turn & fry on other side. Even better if you turn unevenly & then push the crunchy bits into the unfried bits for an all-over fried fatty goodness - add more goose fat (or other fat) as needed - serve. Yum.
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Making individual ones in muffin tines may be easier than one big one. In all cases make sure the fat (and plenty of it) is smoking hot when you pour in the batter,
This is how Mum taught me to make them - made it very easy to divvy up (3 each) - and that's how I learned simple addition, multiplication, etc.! Interesting about the mustard powder - never heard that one. Mum always said the key was letting the batter sit - and hers were always light & fluffy.
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Blessed:
Scones, roast meats, cakes, cookies (except meringue), baked veggie dishes, anything that seems to require a lot of prep, crepes & pancakes, pasta, hollandaise & similar sauces.
Cursed:
Combining chocolate & liquids other than cream - it always binds; pastry (unless it's about the 4th batch in a row where I suddenly seem to remember the knack); barbecue; gravy for roast chicken (beef, lamb, etc. - no problem - chicken is a disaster every time); anything requiring flambe-ing (eyebrows? we don't need no stinking eyebrows); souffles.
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On the skate/ray debate: the fish that I call skate my (British) grandmother calls ray. Not sure if this is a peculiarly British usage, but it does suggest that ray and skate may be synonymous.
I've got a little Irish fish recipe book that, in the recipe for ray, says that skate may be used as an alternative - suggests a difference, but I wouldn't bet the farm on it.
I love skate. Always have - but then when I was introduced to it as a kid mum said that this was "something very special and if I didn't like it that was fine as there would be all the more for her". It worked.
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Okay... have you two seriously read Foucault's Pendulum six or more times? Seriously?????
As to the Golden Plate Awards, I'm with Ducky. The Georgia Straight is not pretending to be the be-all and end-all in culinary commentary and so be it. Not everyone can be enjoying their coffee at Artigiano, lunching at Go Fish and having dinner at West, all the time.
Yes, but only because I'm too cheap to buy any more books!
Can I volunteer for the daily schedule you've laid out & have someone else pay? Please? That sounds wonderful ...
Foods you inexplicably hate
in Food Traditions & Culture
Posted · Edited by Viola da gamba (log)
Hooray - I thought it was just me. Also, soft- or hard-boiled egg whites and the egg whites from poached or fried eggs. Don't mind scrambled or omelettes, hate them otherwise. Sweet cooked milk custardy things (while they're runny - I have no problem once they're set - as in tarts or similar - but hate creme brulee & the like). Rice pudding and tapioca. Pudding (vanilla or chocolate - don't care). Bbq potato chips (also ketchup potato chips, but some people may find that perfectly understandable!). Miracle whip and pickles. Oh - and while I love coffee (and drink far too much of it) - I cannot stand milk in my coffee - it will make me gag - I can't even drink it to be polite (I've tried). I feel the same way about milk in tea, although it won't actually make me retch uncontrollably.
I like the drier, baked cheesecakes, but hate the refrigerator kind - so tend to just avoid them unless I'm making them myself.
Edited to add - potato salad. Really. Blech. You can all be shocked now.