FauxPas

We had Easter dinner on Friday due to the work schedule of one of our guests, but it worked out well and allowed us to relax and have leftovers for the remainder of the weekend. 🙂 We had a simple salad with mixed greens, tomatoes and Persian cukes (all from local farms or greenhouses) topped with a Spring fave - dressing made with some green garlic I picked up at a nearby farm stand, yum. Turkey breast roast with a stovetop-style dressing with lots of celery, onion and mushrooms, gravy and mashed potatoes. A cranberry sauce I made from frozen cranberries with orange zest/juice and a touch of Grand Marnier. I also made some Saumon en Papillote for stepdaughter who doesn't eat turkey and for anyone who wanted something different. Other veggies were a corn, red pepper and edamame blend, baked sweet potatoes/yams and a lovely batch of honey garlic and brown butter roasted carrots. We had a few bottles of La Frenz Viognier, a really lovely wine from the BC Okanagan (Naramata). I bought a carrot cake for dessert though my first plan was to make a rhubarb pie. I rather wish I'd gone with the pie, but the cake was still very good. I was the only cook so I didn't have much of a chance to take any photos! Happy Easter! ☺️🐰

I have never watched the two shows you mentioned being 'over', except for maybe 2 mins of that Grocery Store horror. 🙂 (I think the Canadian Wall of Chefs is not a bad show, though. ) Do you ever watch Top Chef or Top Chef Canada? I would never put them in the same category as those other shows. There is absolutely no comparison. There's a reason that Top Chef has stuck around for 20 years, it's hardly a novelty show. And Top Chef Canada is usually almost as good, occasionally better. It's been around for 11 seasons. I can appreciate a detailed recipe and cooking instructions at times, but I love seeing how up-and-coming chefs are working with food and all their creativity and how quickly they can pivot.

I think this article in GQ summed up some of my feelings about the first few episodes. Definitely felt disappointed in how little of the country they were showing. And although the more recent episodes have been a bit better, they only touched on the incredible diversity of Toronto. And by the way, why are we calling this season Destination: Canada when it's really Destination: Tiny Bits of Toronto? 😆 I am confused. Top Chef Canada knows how to do this so well. Still hoping for more improvement in this season! Still really enjoying Last Chance Kitchen and Dish with Kish though.

I just "discovered" xanthan gum fairly recently. I used it to emulsify my hot pepper sauces so they were more attractive as gifts and then realized there was no reason to fear it! It's pretty amazing, but you really need a light hand with it, yes? 🙂

I should try adding gin next time I make jam, I have more berries in the freezer. Thanks for mentioning this! 🙂

My dental hygienist was telling me that her husband planted at least 65 tomato plants last year and she was freezing, canning and dehydrating them up until November. She said she BEGGED him to plant less this year, she took a peek and he's started about 60. So I guess that is less, but still.... 🙂

I was curious and looked it up. I found a few different possibilities, here is the Wiki attempt at explanation. The name tuna may come from French roi de Thunes,[1] [king of Tunis], a title used by leaders of vagabonds. But there is also a legend of a real King of Tunis, known for his love to music and party that usually liked to walk around the streets at night playing and singing. That explains why the term roi de Thunes was applied.

Fajitas? (Or maybe help out a poor starving doggie with a few bites?) I think PJ learned how to type. 🙂

I do! There are other variations but this is the one I started from. I don't bother with the onions, I just use a chunky commercial salsa like Pace and I usually up the salsa amount a tiny bit. Sometimes I make a batch and freeze it so that I have it on hand when a craving hits. 🙂 https://www.pressurecookingtoday.com/quick-and-easy-spanish-rice/

Our neighbour dropped off some fresh-caught salmon and we enjoyed it for a couple of dinners and also a couple of lunches as salmon salad sandwiches. A dinner we have quite often, but we still enjoy it. Simple teriyaki-type marinade, with steamed broccoli and carrots and Instant Pot Spanish rice. Crappy photo, but tasty food! I love our generous fisher friends and neighbours!

No, it's the online store! 🙂

I am not a very sophisticated coffee drinker at all. But I do like a latté every now and then and decided to finally get a heated milk frother. I like quite a bit of milk in my coffee and this saves me from having to reheat in the microwave, ha. Also, it's fun. It's the Keurig frother, as I had a store credit there.

It was fun to check out his singing: https://stevesando.bandcamp.com/

Here you go. 🙂 https://www.splendidtable.org/story/2022/11/18/little-green-dress

... and you're sure you don't have any sugar in the "belly of the beast"? 😄😄😄

Just made a small batch of blackberry jam from local wild berries which were picked and frozen last summer. Another low sugar version, added a splash of Campari to this one. I was thinking of some ruby port or gin but had neither on hand.

@Smithy, I'm with @Shelby, I think the almond (oops 😁) pecan crust sounds lovely. 🙂 I love a bit of nutty flavour in crusts, I think it would be nice with the lemon bars.

I used to order from Sandia Seeds when I was living in US as they have a good selection of hot peppers. The Lemon Drop peppers are there for $3.99 USD for 10 seeds or $3.39 if you buy them in an assortment that includes Orange Scotch Bonnets and Chile de Arbol seeds. 🙂 I hope they do germinate well and that you let us know how they grow! 🌱

I've read this over a couple of times but I am at a loss - why would you care about the former if you don't care about the latter two items?

Hahahahaha! This made me laugh! 🙂

With that kind of mix, I'd be inclined to make a veggie lasagne which could utilize most, if not all, of them. But I can understand that oven baking isn't too appealing when it's that hot!!! 🙂 Edited to add: And then you'd have too much lasagne for one person and would have to freeze it or eat it for days, ha.

I rarely think to take photos anymore! But recently, I made Marcella Hazan's Bolognese sauce. On a pasta kick, I also made lasagne. This is a piece about to be reheated. Ate a late lunch/early dinner in a town north of us at a little Filipino-owned café, tried the chicken adobo. Quite good, but I think mine is just as good, ha. Also had a lovely dinner at a local Italian restaurant which sadly is closing, as owner is retiring. So many items are from the local Valley farms. We did the chef's 5-course tasting menu with wine pairings. Amuse-bouche was a small arancini and had that with a Negroni Bianco. Followed by a wonderful salad featuring gorgeous pink radicchio, beets, other greens, water buffalo cream cheese, balsamico and the most amazing proscuitto (?) or some kind of ham. The button on the top left says "Last night a Negroni saved my life." 🙂 Then Anolini in Brodo. Filled with bison meat sourced from a herd just north of us. Gnocchi Vongole came next. Followed by a slow-cooked chuck roast. So tender, with a gravy and leek oil. A potato croquette, roasted kalettes with a crunchy garlic topping, can't remember the purée details, but it was good. Finally, a flourless chocolate cake, which I sampled before taking a photo. 🙂 Part of the outdoor patio/deck area, too cool to be open that night. Sorry this place is closing, it had a lot going for it. 😞 And finally, thought I would share one of my worst room-service dinner experiences. I had a very long and slightly stressful day over in Vancouver and was dog-tired when I got to the hotel. I was pleased with my room as I was able to upgrade to a suite using some of my Marriott points. It's a nice hotel, fairly upscale, right downtown near the waterfront and I was looking forward to a nice relaxing evening. I was given access to the Concierge Lounge and had a much-appreciated vodka+soda from the honour bar. There were some nice charcuterie offerings along with some kind of hot appy and some turkey sliders, but I decided to pass as I was looking forward to a quiet dinner in my room. But the concierge put out some choux pastries and I couldn't resist trying one. Turns out I should have stayed in that pleasant Lounge and made a complete dinner from their little buffet. Off to my room but the room service menu was disappointing. I should have used Uber Food or Skip the Dishes (I kept thinking about Thai) but for some inexplicable reason, I ordered a cheese burger from room service. Rather a boring choice and it turned up packed in a flimsy cardboard and plastic tub, dropped off in a paper bag sans china or cutlery. No cart, no cloth napkin. I'm embarrassed to admit how much it cost! (And of course the lounge offerings were complimentary, should have stayed, ha.) I have to go back in a few months, will definitely do something different for dinner and/or pick different hotel.

Risotto, hahahahahahaha! 😄 Whew, ok the Canadian clichés were definitely there. Glad they didn't push that theme any further. The foods assigned to each of the regions (even the number and arrangement of the regions) was limited. Oh well, I guess there's only so much they can introduce in the first show. They certainly didn't show much of Toronto. And I guess that's just the first stop in this season? My problem is that we already have Top Chef Canada and I think it's a pretty well done show and seems much more sophisticated and nuanced when it comes to Canadian food and regions. So unless they step up their game, I'm going to be a bit disappointed. But I've only seen one episode so I hope they surprise me! I also watched the first episodes of Last Chance Kitchen and The Dish with Kish, both of which I enjoy as much as the Top Chef episodes themselves. I'd like to know how they pick the seemingly random surprise additions on LCK. I got a little tired of hearing what good friends Kristen and Brooke are, but it was still nice to see Brooke and I liked the dish she picked to make! Overall, I'm really happy to watch another season and I just hope they show off Canada's diverse culinary and regional delights!

Good bit of detective work there, it certainly would take me a while to figure it out! PJ looks to be digging a very big hole. How deep does he go? 🙂

Wow, thank you for sharing! Looks pretty impressive for cooking on the fly! The Crown Royal whisky made me smile. 🙂