quattroporte

Halve some red bell peppers and remove seeds - lay them on their sides. Add roughly-chopped ripe tomatoes, thinly-sliced garlic and a couple of anchovies in each. Drizzle with olive oil, salt and pepper. Bake about 45 minutes until lucious and soft. Don't let the anochovies scare you - there is barely a hint of the sea left after cooking. Devour, preferrably with some good bread.

I gotta tell you, I actually like this show. Americans know how to do down and dirty diner food real good, y'all! Too bad we can't get more stuff like that in Canada (can't believe I'm saying that..) I loathe Restaurant Makeover, which always seems to be on as I settle into bed....

I love the wild sockey salmon....no bones, no skin, no cutting.... Our Costco (in Vancouver) stocks indivdually cryovac portions of tuna...albacore, I believe- about 8 pieces per bag. I threw it on the grill after a quick marinade and it was very good. It was about twice the size of the salmon fillets, and cost about $5.00 less.

I thought Figmint was closed?

If they are cerignola's, then yes, they are dyed. Even the green ones. The red and green combination usually comes out at Christmas, and lately I've spotted purple ones. Like, grape purple. Weird.

I scored Parkside on a Saturday night.......I kinda feel like I won the lottery!

Hey - I had lunch at Chow yesterday.....1 pm, two gals sitting by the front window. The meal was great - shared the pulled pork croquettes with vegetable ketchup, marinated olives, for my main I had the mushroom soup with truffle oil. First rate all the way. The waitress mentioned their Sunday December special.....3 courses, $38, and wine at cost.....yes, you read right......cost. Just call first to confirm (in case my ears weren't working after the two glasses of Meyer Family Chardonnay...)

To my horror, I opened my Wolf 36" gas oven the other day to discover what looks like large burn marks on the bottom of the oven. It looks like someone took hydrochloric acid and a metal scub brush and scratched through the enamel coating right down to the metal, in a perfect square, over what must be the heating element. I've only had the range for 5 months, and have never cleaned the oven - it just isn't dirty enough to warrant a cleaning. I did put foil on the bottom for Thanksgiving, but from what I understand, the problem with using foil (which you should never do, I discovered) is that it can melt on to the porcelain and can't be removed. Can anyone enlighten me? I'm having a technician come in to evaluate it, and would feel much better if someone else out there could comment on the problem. I would hate to know that I ruined my dream oven Thanks!!

I understood the same about Milan.....but for those of you still yearning for those vine-ripened tomatoes, go to Riley Park Farmers Market and look for the Klipper Farm stand- last week they had a great selection - perhaps 20 different varieties, all vine-ripened. I dropped $41 just on tomatoes......they were fantastic! I've almost had my fill of tomato/bocconcini....almost.

Freshly-steamed dungeoness crab

I may get blasted for this, but my choice for a girl's night out would be Cactus Club on Dunsmuir and Burrard, not so much for the food (although I think there's something on the menu to please everyone) but for the "fun" aspect - from what I hear, it's packed most nights and it would be a great place to have some fun and people watch. It also has a great patio.

I suspect the blackberry bushes at Home Depot were the thornless variety. We have one, and it's quite different than the wild ones - our berries are larger, firmer and sweeter. And if you've got little kids, the thornless ones are a blessing.

I'm not an expert, but I am Italian, and Gnudi means "naked" - I take that to mean without a sauce, and Gnocchi, I assume, are usually sauced. Either way, I love 'em!

In Vancouver (Oakridge) - would Granville Island have it? By the way, I must have cooked it properly last night - tender as can be!

Does anyone know where I can find skirtsteak? I picked up a flank steak instead, but don't really know the difference between the two. Thanks.

I saw mention of both endives - and a few others I've never heard of.

Today is the two month anniversary of our reno. It started innocently enough, just the kitchen and flooring, then we started knocking down walls, re-routing plumbing and electrical, new lighting, new powder room, and on and on. I don't know about any one else, but I will never take on a renovation of this size again. We are living in our noisy, dusty, cramped basement in the meantime, and the novelty has worn off. Frequent arguments with my husband and contractor make some days unbearable. I dream of my new kitchen......stained cherry cabinets, the Wolf and Sub-zero, and plenty of room. We really splurged. Gotta keep my eye on the prize......

I make an appetizer that everyone seems to rave about, and it's so simple. Trim belgian endive and spread the leaves, facing-up, on a large dish. Sprinkle tiny bits of beets, toasted walnuts and blue cheese on top, and top with a simple white wine vinegrette and some chives. Sooooo good! And everyone loves finger food, right?

Yet another rave review for Parkside... I went with high-hopes and wasn't disappointed. After two horrible Dine-out experiences last year (Cin Cin and Figmint) I was really looking forward to a stellar meal. We all know what it's like to have high expectations and then be sorely disappointed. Not last night. WOW - such a great meal. I started with a Blood Orange Negroni - delicious, as blood oranges are in season - sweet, tart and bitter - the Campari really sang through. We both had the endive salad to start - a tangle of greens on a bed of roasted mushrooms and radicchio with a fantasticly-tangy dressing. No one has mentioned the bread that is served with dinner - so good.....we had two orders of it - the best bread I've had in recent memory. Note to all restauranteurs: Please don't serve cold hard butter with delicately warm bread!!! I ordered the cod, my husband had the veal scallopine. Once our dishes arrived, I immediately knew he'd enjoy my dish more - it had those bold flavors of olives and tomatoes that he loves, so half-way through we switched. I enjoyed his veal, (buttery tender) the osso buco ravioli, and my favorite, a single crispy sweetbread on a bed of mushroom duxelle. We both had the ice cream for dessert. I swooned over the white chocolate ice cream....oh man...I don't even want to think about the calories in that....but so worth it. Somehow they work their magic to create a consistency that is infinitely more pleasing than regular ice cream...it's thicker, creamier and richer than most. We really enjoyed the premium wine pairing - $59 with dinner. Service was seamless. What an unbelievable bargain.

Had lunch in Richmond, just outside of Vancouver, BC where we just couldn't decide if we wanted to try the sea blubber, stinky tofu, or my favorite, vegetarian goose. I kid you not.

I had a friend go to the soft opening Wednesday night. Trust me, they're in Vancouver now.

I heard that Splitz Grill (the original is in Whistler) has just opened up on Main Street, just south of King Edward and a 5 minute drive from my home. Goodbye New Year's Resolution....

Tomato Cafe (when it used to be on Cambie) used to do the best, just-like-home turkey sandwich (no gravy). They had it on the menu year-round because of its popularity. If your craving still persists today, give them a call at their Kits location.

I thought I saw some sort of teaser ad in this week's Courier....are they coming to Kerrisdale?

Also saw some at Granville Island. Wasn't but a couple of years ago we could only dream about find them at a retail outlet. For those really adventurous mushroom hunters, this has been the best year in recent memory for shaggy manes. True, you look like a dork bent down in a grassy field (and you get a few honks and 'wink wink's') but the reward is awesome. Think intense mushroom flavor crossed with truffle. After I ate my fill, I still had enough to freeze for several heavenly batches of risotto.