Published Friday, Mar. 25, 2011 12:53PM EDTLast updated Friday, Mar. 25, 2011 1:20PM EDTTuesday, June 7, 2011
Top pick Omar Salgado cleared to join Whitecaps
Published Friday, Mar. 25, 2011 12:53PM EDTLast updated Friday, Mar. 25, 2011 1:20PM EDT
Thursday, March 24, 2011
More News on a Farmers Market in the City's Southwest
A committee of farmers market advocates, community members and producers has been working on the development of the Southwest Edmonton Farmers Market for quite some time. Now, it looks as though the new market will be held on Wednesdays from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. in the parking lot of the Lillian Osborne High School at 2019 Leger Road. The tentative start date is May 19th.
This is excellent news, as people in the southwest have had to drive a long ways to get to fresh, farmers market produce.
Keep it clean, and stay on the subject or we might delete your comment.You must have a javascript enabled browser to submit a comment.Reports on the Raw Milk Movement around Edmonton
Michael Schmidt, an Ontario dairy farmer and advocate of raw milk, was in town this week, speaking to a group of Slow Food Edmonton members at the Edmonton Public Library. Valerie Rodgers Lugonja, a local blogger who also runs cooking courses, was at the event. Here is her report.
Also, here is a link to a Global Television report on the same issue. Another source for this story is Michael Schmidt's own blog, The Bovine.
Keep it clean, and stay on the subject or we might delete your comment.You must have a javascript enabled browser to submit a comment.Time to Clog the Blogosphere!
Just home from holidays, and right into the frey. Yesterday, I observed and interviewed the warm and wise likes of celebrity Chef Susur Lee (check out Brian Gavriloff's photo gallery of the event) and today I wrote a couple of stories about his visit to NAIT. Now I'm ready to bash back into the blog. Lots of things are happening and I'm going to tell you about them, but remember, sometimes I cleverly plant mistakes in my blog, just to tease the readers who are incensed by this, and feel the need to blast off blustery missives. I love you too!!
So, without further ado:
* Local home economist and cookbook author, Deb Anzinger, is hosting a free session on cooking with fresh herbs at the southside Planet Organic on Tuesday, March 22 from 10:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.* There will be an indoor farmers market underneath the pyramids at City Hall, running Saturdays until the 104th street outdoor City market opens in May. I love this idea, having attended the Christmas season market at city hall in December. It's warm and cosy and fun down there, and there are lots of great vendors. Here is a Journal story about this new market, which runs until May 14th.Keep it clean, and stay on the subject or we might delete your comment.You must have a javascript enabled browser to submit a comment.
Downtown Dining Week Goes On, even though I'm on holidays...
Downtown Dining Week, sponsored by the Downtown Business Association, starts March 4 and runs through to the 13th. More than 30 restaurants are taking part in the event, which sees reduced prices on lunch and/or dinner menus. This is a great time to check out restaurants you've always wanted to see, or just to give yourself a winter treat.
The DBA has donated four certificates to four downtown restaurants - Niche, Khazana, Tzin and brunch for two at the Sutton Place Hotel. The gift certificates run from $25 to $60 in value.
If you'd like to enter a draw to win one of the certificates, please send an e-mail to livingwell@edmontonjournal.com. Put Downtown Dining Week in the subject line. Include your name and day time phone number in the body of the e-mail. The names of the winners will be published on the Downtown Dining Week website, and winners must claim their prize at the downtown office of the Edmonton Journal. The deadline for the draw is February 28th. Winners will be drawn on March 1.
I'm off today - YAY - for a two-week period. See when I return!
Keep it clean, and stay on the subject or we might delete your comment.You must have a javascript enabled browser to submit a comment.Wednesday, March 23, 2011
Chef Susur Lee is in E-town from March 14th to 18th!
There is high excitement in the culinary community as Chef Lee, one of the most acclaimed chefs in North America, begins a five-day intensive teaching program at NAIT, where the master chef and restaurateur will be teaching students in the culinary arts program.
The program is part of the Hokanson Chef In Residence program, which kicked off in 2009 with Vancouver chef Rob Feenie, and then again in 2010 with Toronto chef David Adjey.
Chef Lee's resume is exhaustive, beginning at the age of 16 when he was an apprentice at Hong Kong's renowned Peninsula Hotel. He later moved to Toronto, opening his first restaurant, Lotus, in 1987. Since then, Chef Lee has been an international culinary consultant, and is at the helm of several restaurants in Toronto, Washington, New York and Singapore.
The restaurant and travel guide, Zagat, has dubbed Lee a "culinary genius." Food and Wine magazine, which calls Lee one of the Ten Chefs of the Millennium, alongside other food artists such as Ferran Adira of Spain's Bulli restaurant.
I have the great good fortune to be observing Chef Lee this afternoon as he instructs students at NAIT. Then I get to interview him! If you've got questions for him, tell me right now and I'll try to slip them into the conversation. Check the Journal website Tuesday for my story, along with a photo gallery from this afternoon's demo.
The picture at right is from the cover of Lee's cookbook, co-written with Jacob Richler.
Keep it clean, and stay on the subject or we might delete your comment.You must have a javascript enabled browser to submit a comment.Here's a classic Susur Lee Recipe - watch for more!
This recipe is found in Lee's cookbook, Susur: A Culinary Life (10 Speed Press, 2005). It has been adapted by StarChefs and yields four servings. In Wednesday's Journal, we'll have something a little less ambitious for those among us who quiver at the thought of making our own squid ink dough.
Lee is in Edmonton at NAIT until Friday, teaching students in the culinary arts department. Wednesday, the school hosts a lunch with Lee, and, yes, I'm going. Yay! I'll be tweeting about it, and posting some photos with those tweets. Can't wait.
Lobster-Filled Squid Ink Ravioli in Lobster Consomme
Ingredients:
Lobster Ravioli Filling:
2 sheets gelatin
1 cup (250 mL) lobster consommé
4 shiitake mushrooms, finely diced
1 (1 ½ pound) boiled lobster, tail meat diced
Pinch of sea salt
1/4 teaspoon (2 mL) cayenne pepper
Freshly ground black pepper
Squid Ink Dough:
1 cup (250 mL) all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons (50 mL) hot water
3 tablespoons (50 mL) squid ink
3 large eggs
Additional:
1 egg white
1 cup (250 mL) lobster consommé
2 tablespoons (30 mL) shao hsing wine
Pinch sea salt
Pinch ground white pepper
Onion oil
4 ounces lobster claw meat, for garnish
4 lobster tentacles, for garnish
4 chives, for garnish
1/4 cup (50 mL) cooked lobster roe, for garnish
Spirulina powder
Method:
For Lobster Ravioli Filling:
Soak gelatin leaves in water. Remove leaves and squeeze out excess water. Place in stainless-steel bowl over pot of simmering water and melt. Add cold lobster consommé and mix well. Transfer bowl to refrigerator and chill for 1 hour to set. When set, remove and dice. Toss with mushrooms and lobster tail meat. Season with salt and peppers and return to refrigerator until ready to use.
For Squid Ink Dough:
Using a stand mixer with dough hook, combine the flour and water and mix until dough forms. Continue mixing while adding squid ink. Add eggs, one at a time, until dough is smooth and almost black. Transfer dough to a work surface dusted with flour and knead for 8 to 10 minutes. Divide dough into 2 balls and roll out each to make a rope. Flatten each rope into a strip and, using a pasta machine, run each strip through decreasing settings until setting 4 is reached. Let noodle sheets dry for at least 45 minutes before cutting (if sheets are sticky, dust with flour).
Once dried, lay each sheet out on flour-dusted countertop. With a 4-inch (2.4 centimetre) cookie cutter, cut out 4 ravioli tops. With 3 ½-inch (2 centimetre) cookie cutter, cut out 4 ravioli bottoms. Dust with flour to prevent sticking. On baking sheet, arrange bottom ravioli rounds. Spoon 1/4 cup (50 mL) of ravioli filling in center of each. Brush egg white around edges of ravioli and place each top over filling. Enclose filling in ravioli circles, making sure there are no air pockets, and pinch to seal.
In medium pot, bring lobster consommé to a boil with wine. Season with salt and pepper. Place each lobster ravioli in soup bowl oiled very lightly with onion oil. Pout hot consommé, about ¼ cup each, over ravioli. Transfer bowls to steamer and steam ravioli in consommé for 15 minutes, or until cooked through.
To Serve:
Slice lobster claws into 4 portions. Use lobster tentacles to skewer lobster claw slices. Insert ends of tentacles into chives. Garnish each bowl of ravioli and consommé with lobster roe, skewered claw slice, and sprinkling of spirulina.
Bored to death of chicken? Brine it.
Chicken, chicken, chicken. In the winter, when I'm not using the barbecue, I despair of what to do with chicken or pork. Here's an article from the Chicago Sun Times that suggests brine as an easy fix.
Keep it clean, and stay on the subject or we might delete your comment.You must have a javascript enabled browser to submit a comment.Just Food Edmonton and Slow Food Edmonton Co-Host March Food Event
If you have a bulk food club, a wild food club, are involved in community supported agriculture, or are in some way linked to food production and sales outside of the traditional supermarket, there is an upcoming event you might be interested in.
It's on March 20 from 2 to 5 p.m. at the Nina Haggarty Centre for the Arts (located at 9702-111th Avenue). The event, called Beyond the Supermarket, aims to create connections among organizations and individuals who produce food and are interested in expanding their reach to consumers beyond grocery stores, and even beyond farmers markets. The event is being held to coincide with Seedy Sunday, a seed-swapping event for gardeners.
For further information, go to http://www.slowfoodedmonton.ca/?p=172.You can apply to have a free booth at beyondthesupermarket@gmail.com.Keep it clean, and stay on the subject or we might delete your comment.You must have a javascript enabled browser to submit a comment.Friday I'll be talking about Pho on Radio Active
I've visited three different Pho places recently, and I'll be talking on CBC radio's drive home show about those places on Friday at roughly 4:40 p.m.
Pho, in case you don't know, is Vietnamese noodle soup. There are Pho places all over the city, and even one chain (Pho Hoa, with four locations in Edmonton). The soup itself is fairly simply, generally made with a flavourful charred onion and beef-based broth, and thin slices of various beef cuts - from ordinary sirloin, to cuts most people don't each much, such as tendon, flank and even tripe (stomach). Pho is seasoned with distinctive spices such as star anise, fennel, and cardamom.
The fun thing about Pho, though, is the condiments. It's served with hot sauce, Thai basil, bean sprouts and lemon or lime wedges. Some say that Pho is influenced not only by French cuisine (remember that France once occupied Vietnam) in terms of its use of beef, but also by Chinese food culture. The latter theory is rooted in the fact that Chinese cuisine is big on balance of flavours (bitter, salty, sweet, sour and spicy) and that the Pho condiments give an opportunity for people to please, and balance, their own palates to their own taste.
I tried three places for Pho in my wanderings. One was Phobulous (8701-109th Street) in the Garneau area. This is a popular spot for students and is a bit more upscale than the other Pho places I tried. It also had a broad-based, Vietnamese food menu with lots of options for things to eat if you don't want Pho. I enjoyed the Pho beef broth, which was strongly flavoured with star anise (I love star anise).
The second place was Pho Tau Bay at 10660-98th Street. It was casual in the extreme, a good place to grab something quick. It closes from Monday to Thursday at 6:30 p.m., so make sure and leave yourself time. The menu here was almost entirely Pho based, and the service was speedy and efficient. The hot sauce was...hot, and delicious.
The third spot was Ninh Kieu, located just down the street from Pho Tau Bay at 10708-98th Street. Again, the menu featured lots of other Asian foods and (Pho aside), I loved their green onion cakes. By the time I went to Ninh Kieu, I had the condiments down pat, and really enjoyed mixing my soup with lots of sprouts and lemon for extra crunch and tang.
Pho is filling, and inexpensive, with all the places I tried offering big bowls for less than $10.
Keep it clean, and stay on the subject or we might delete your comment.You must have a javascript enabled browser to submit a comment.Five Guys Burgers and Fries Opens in Sherwood Park
Local blogger and CBC 740 radio "food explorer" Twyla Campbell recently visited this American-based chain to check out their burger fare. Here is a link to her review, on her blog at http://weirdwildandwonderful.blogspot.com/
Keep it clean, and stay on the subject or we might delete your comment.You must have a javascript enabled browser to submit a comment.Tuesday, March 22, 2011
The Final Soup Story in our Saga
I want to thank readers so very much for all their contributions to our Soup Stories series, which wrapped up on Wednesday in the Journal. This last one comes from Louisa Bruinsma. While it's seasonal, reflecting one of Louisa's annual Christmas traditions, it is a heart-warming tale, just the kind of idea to tuck away for next year. Here is Louisa's story, and her recipe for Ginger Yam Soup.
"I am a self-professed Christmas Grinch: I don’t do gifts, though my husband makes the annual trek to Ikea on the first Saturday of December for the tree. Beginning in mid-November, we avoid stores and malls.
But -- not the carols! My Christmas is our annual Soup ‘n Sing party. Friends who love to sing are greeted by candles in the snow, the candles creating perfect columns of glowing light. Once inside the door, smells of cinnamon in mulled wine entice them further into our home. They toss coats onto our bed (not enough room in the closet), grab a mug of wine, and head to the basement. Then for an hour we sing around the piano.
It really is who you know that counts. What a gift to have accomplished musicians like Dr. Joachim Segger (piano professor from The Kings University College) and Dr. Marnie Giesbrecht (his wife, organ professor at University of Alberta) willing to accompany the singing. I book them as early as I dare, since Christmas is the busiest time of the year for musicians.
At our first Soup ‘n Sing, we sang the old traditional carols, and made a feeble attempt at the Hallelujah Chorus. Over the years we became bold enough to attempt more Messiah pieces. And last year Joachim and Marnie brought choral sheet music which we sight read. One year a jazz musician performed some wonderful renditions of carols, and, each year, Joachim and Marnie (also known as Duo Majoya) treat us to Mozart for four hands.
It used to be the custom in old city missions for residents to listen to the preacher before they could eat in the soup kitchen. But we make people sing before they can eat their soup. Soup is the menu, self-serve: pea soup, borscht, ginger yam, and a favourite from my good friend, Donna --spicy peanut soup.
Other treats miraculously appear on the buffet table (think parable of the loaves and fishes): a tray of veggies, my friend Evelyn’s signature cinnamon buns, Maria’s amazing pie. It’s great to have friends who hail from the “what-can-I-bring” school. It makes entertaining easy. (You only need to put those candles in the snow and clean the bathroom! And – be sure to check with the neighbours about where your guests can park, particularly when the windrows block the street.)
For what is Christmas without carols? My husband and I grew up in Dutch immigrant families, and the lump that develops in our throat when we sing the Dutch carol “Ere Zij God” (Glory to God) does make it seem like there is some hope for peace in the world.
Soup ‘n Sing Ingredients
Dozen tea light candles in the snow
Plonk for mulled wine
“What-can-I-bring” friends who love to sing
Gifted friends who play piano
Sheet music for singing
Copies of Messiah
Hearty appetite for soup
Tolerant neighbours who will share parking in front of their house
Louisa’s Ginger Yam Soup
Melt app 2 TBSP butter in a large soup kettle.
Add ½ tsp red pepper flakes (omit if you don’t like spicy food), app 3 TBSP chopped ginger, 3 cloves minced garlic and stir together until translucent.
After mixed, add 1 Litre of chicken stock.
While this is cooking, peel 2 medium size yams. Cut into chunks and add to soup mixture
Cook until soft, then puree everything in blender or food processor.
Just before serving, add 1 can of coconut milk and a ½ lime. Cook just until boiling point.
Garnish with either fresh chives or parsley. (If you enjoy a spicier and more colourful addition, add one green jalapeno pepper cut very fine, just before serving.) Add a half lime to the pot for some extra zing.
Keep it clean, and stay on the subject or we might delete your comment.You must have a javascript enabled browser to submit a comment.Foodie and TV host Nicola Crosbie Sells Delux Burgers for Charity
Every month, Delux Burger Bar has a Celebrity Chef who designs a signature burger for that month. 
Monday, February 28, 2011
The Organic Box Burgeoning
Even as we spoke, Danny Turner, who started the organic food delivery system with his wife Miranda back in April, had to run because a shipment of beets, shallots and onions from two family farms near Coaldale (near Lethbridge) had just arrived, and his unloading guy had gone home for the day. 
With some 500 regular customers (people ordering shipments to their home at least every two weeks), the business is very nearly to the point where the owners can give themselves a salary. Danny expects to hit 400 weekly deliveries this month. Last April, when first we spoke, the business had 120 customers.
"Momentum is starting to carry us," says Danny of the unexpected growth. "It's word of mouth."
Danny and Miranda Turner are thirtysomething parents of two small boys who wanted to build a business that would both support their family and an organic food delivery system. For roughly $50 a week (including a charge for a sustainability fund to purchase emission offsets), customers of the Organic Box can pick from among a number of organic items to be delivered year-round.
Where possible, those products are local (they have a dozen local producers), but the Turners also carry things like organic oranges and bananas, and try to find those nearest to home. For instance, the oranges come from California, not Florida. The Turners strive to have all products certified organic, but also have some producers who use organic practices, but aren't certified.
The Turners were inspired in their effort by their time living in San Francisco, where the local food movement has been big for years. Plus, Danny's thesis for his master's degree at Oxford University in England examined a business model that is now the backbone of the Organic Box.
For more information, go to theorganicbox.ca,or phone 780-469-1900.
Keep it clean, and stay on the subject or we might delete your comment.You must have a javascript enabled browser to submit a comment.Sunday, February 27, 2011
Crunch the numbers: Crime rates are going down
Greenspan and DoobPublished Tuesday, Feb. 22, 2011 5:00AM ESTLast updated Tuesday, Feb. 22, 2011 7:13AM EST66 comments Everyone wants to reduce crime and use resources effectively. But the Conservative government’s “tough on crime” agenda would have you believe that crime is increasing and can only be reduced by using tougher penalties. This assertion is wrong, as is a study by an Ottawa-based think tank that reviewed the 2009 Statistics Canada report on crime.
Baking Bread...Still
Learning to bake bread reminds me of having a baby. For one thing, there is small, soft, beautiful smelling bundle to fuss over. But also, there is a fairly rigorous schedule to be maintained, and my bread can't be left alone for very long. Indeed, I feel guilty that I went out for supper, and didn't get to proofing my bread until a bit too late. Now, it's 9 p.m. (my bread is yawning and rubbing its eyes) and I've just divided my dough (which has been rising for four or five hours) into two loaves. It's proofing in my slightly-warm oven, a.k.a. the nursery.
Thanks to the readers who offered me malt - I ended up finding some at Bosch Kitchen Centre.
Keep it clean, and stay on the subject or we might delete your comment.You must have a javascript enabled browser to submit a comment.Hmmmm. Not sure about my bread...
Well, I just took my bun out of the oven. It looks less like a loaf of bread than a skull, something hunched in a kidney pan after an autopsy. Clearly bread, like a baby, has a life of its own.
Here's hoping it tastes better than it looks, but it certainly didn't puff out like the Rustic Sourdough I made during my NAIT class did. Hmmm. Hard to imagine which of the many steps involved in this process was not quite right. Was the proofing not long enough? Kitchen too cold? Oh no, did I forget to burp after nursing?
Keep it clean, and stay on the subject or we might delete your comment.You must have a javascript enabled browser to submit a comment.Province to table bill on making TTC an essential service
Published Tuesday, Feb. 22, 2011 10:23AM ESTLast updated Tuesday, Feb. 22, 2011 10:36AM EST20 comments Transit workers in Canada’s largest city face losing the right to strike as the province moves decisively toward declaring their work an essential service.
The McGuinty government will introduce legislation on Tuesday, banning Toronto Transit Commission workers from walking off the job.
The proposed bill, which will receive first reading in the legislature on Tuesday afternoon, follows a request by Toronto Mayor Rob Ford to ban transit workers from striking. In December, city council voted 28-17 in favour of making future strike action by transit union members illegal.
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
Brygette of Bamboche World Cuisine at Northside Italian Centre
Those of you familiar with Brygette McNamara's line of dips, seen at the City market throughout the season, will be pleased to learn that Brygette's products are now available at the Italian Centre on the north side. (That's at 10878-95th Street 780-424-4869.) The dips for sale are Fetaterranean (a feta cheese based dip), the Shiraz with Portabello (my personal fav) and Parmigiana Reggiano. You might have seen Brygette demonstrating the products in the store over the last few months.
Keep it clean, and stay on the subject or we might delete your comment.You must have a javascript enabled browser to submit a comment.Monday, February 21, 2011
Environmental standoff threatens traffic on St. Lawrence Seaway
Next year, commercial shipping could disappear from the St. Lawrence Seaway, devastating the Great Lakes economies and throwing thousands of people out of work, thanks to an obscure regulation passed by the State of New York.
“As it stands right now, they have a regulation that comes into play in Jan. 1, 2012 that ships won’t be able to comply with,” Tim Meisner, director-general of marine policy at Transport Canada, said in an interview.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)