As many of us know, acid is a main component in cooking and a curious one indeed. One drop of lemon juice can transform a soup, vinegar balanced against olive oil makes a salad and in my new career as a mustard maker I use it in gallons. Acidity brings food alive.We are still so […]
Sous vide cooking with Anova Nano
Time to play I have had some fun playing with my new Anova Nano precision cooker lately. If you are at all culinary inclined you have probably heard of sous vide cooking, the method of vac packing or bagging a food product and then cooking it in a water bath. Precisely controlled The water can […]
Provisions – a book review
Dark and Dreary months During these dark and dreary months here in the Pacific North West it was like a ray of sunshine when I opened my copy of Provisions a cookbook with roots in Caribbean cooking. Written by sisters Michelle and Suzanne Rousseau, very successful restaurateurs in Kingston Jamaica with their groundbreaking restaurant Ciao Bella, fusing classic […]
Tales from the Table: Hostaria La Vecchia Fontanina
Reading menus I love reading menus. Whenever we travel and are staying in town to eat I make it a habit of reading as many menus as I can when walking passed restaurants. Just about every town has at least one dish that shows up on every menu. In Verona, it’s bigoli pasta, one of […]
Tales from the table: Smile Tree Cocktail Bar
Aperitivo The tradition of aperitivo in Italy is definitely one of our favourite rituals. Late dining, no earlier than 8, is the custom in Italy so to bridge the gap of never ending hunger, aperitivo before dinner in the early evening is exactly what’s needed. Usually, your preferred café will also have a well-stocked bar […]
Movember: men’s health month
A lifetime ago It seems like a lifetime ago since I have written something about what we are actually doing with ourselves. The truth is pretty simple and by normal standards quite boring. As we have said before, we travel on our own terms which usually means on our own dime and it takes a […]
Breakfast in Bedface
Vancouver blues It’s October and in Vancouver the weather has changed like a light switch from glorious sunny summer to low thick clouds and dark rainy mornings. It’s cold and wet and with the rain come the blues and the need to nest and be cosy seems as natural as the geese flying South for […]
Seasonal treat – Pappardelle with roasted corn and peppers
Seasonal treat One of my favourite times of the year is when I see those huge bins of freshly harvested ears of corn at the market. Corn on the cob, a great Canadian (and American) tradition that thankfully remains a seasonal treat that we can look forward to every year. It means fall is on […]