georgia straight - Homer St. Cafe and Bar

gift guide
Bring joy to every kitchen
E
ver notice how everything
in cooking stores is so
shiny and full of promise?
Here are gifts for people
who love to cook…or at least watch
people cook on TV.
Le Creuset Stockpot Winter
calls for hearty, nourishing soups, and
the more you make the better. (That’s
what freezers are for.) Available in Le
Creuset’s signature cheery colours,
like Caribbean Blue, this enamel-onsteel stockpot is light yet large at 11.4
litres. ($150, Gourmet Warehouse
[1340 East Hastings Street])
In the Dog Kitchen: Great
Snack Recipes for Your Dog
This is the perfect gift for avid bakers
who are also dog enthusiasts, or
for dog owners who pay attention
to what goes into the pet food they
buy. Julie Van Rosendaal’s book
is practical rather than precious,
detailing which
ingredients dogs
can and cannot
eat and providCarolyn
ing simple recipes
for treats like beef and buckwheat
bones, sardine and flaxseed bites,
and yes, gingerbread mailmen.
($19.95, Touchwood)
AFGHAN HORSEMEN
Bestow a beloved cook with the same heavy-duty apron used at restaurants
around town like the Homer St. Cafe (left, Shayd photo) or a Staub cast-iron kettle.
and serve from, and the cast iron
retains heat. Yes, it’s pricey, but it
makes a great gift because it’s a daily
pleasure both to use and to behold
on the stove. ($160
through December, on sale from
$190; Cookworks
Ali
[1548 West Broadway and 377 Howe Street])
Best Eats
Orazio’s Olive Oil Slow Food
Vancouver director Orazio Scaldaferri works with a brother living in
Italy to import cold-pressed, extravirgin olive oil from the family olive
grove in Calabria. With his Adopt an
Olive Tree program, you receive the
annual yield of one tree (the amount
depends on whether you choose
a young, mature, or very old tree)
along with an adoption certificate.
(Starting at $179 for 12 500-millilitre
bottles through oraziosoliveoil.com/
or single bottles for $17.99 each at the
Modern Pantry pop-up shop inside
XOXOLAT [1271 Homer Street].)
Staub enamelled cast-iron
kettle
This 1.1-litre stovetop
beauty is both a kettle and a teapot:
you can use it to boil water, brew tea,
Trudeau Graviti Plus pepper mill This sleek, novel product
is certainly a conversation piece at
the table: its LED light illuminates
your plate and the battery buzz adds
some fun. You simply tilt it to grind,
and while other products may offer
a more even grind, its one-handed
operation makes this particularly
useful during food prep. It’s also a
good choice for those who have difficulty gripping regular pepper mills.
($49.99, the Market Kitchen [2–1666
Johnston Street, Granville Island])
Stainless-steel storage containers Homesteader’s Emporium
carries a wide range of food containers—including sandwich boxes and
tiffins—for those intent on avoiding plastic. This is a good place to
browse for gifts for the DIY folks in
your life, since the store carries everything from yogurt makers to pickling
Food of the week
> By Carolyn Ali
Canned fish or beans, natural peanut butter, canned fruit or veggies, and
whole-wheat pasta and rice: these are a few of the most-needed items at
the Greater Vancouver Food Bank Society (1150 Raymur Avenue). The agency
assists over 28,000 people per week, and it’s easy to pitch in. In between
ticking off gift items on your list and shopping for your own feast, you can
drop off nonperishable, not-expired food items at many grocery stores
throughout Vancouver, Burnaby, and the North Shore. (See foodbank.bc.ca/
for locations.) Or, you can donate cash online; for every dollar the organization receives, it can purchase $3 worth of nutritious food. -
crocks. (A two-tier tiffin costs $22;
Homesteader’s Emporium [649 East
Hastings Street])
Union Wood and
Supply Company sells its heavy-duty
aprons to restaurant kitchens around
town, and in addition to being practical, they’re quite stylish. Made from
materials including canvas from
salvaged military tents, they have
hand-cut leather straps (removable
for washing), vintage brass hardware,
and handy pockets, including one
inside for a phone. They’re sized for
both men and women and come in
four types, including a waxed, heavycotton duck. ($90 and $110, Union
Wood and Supply Company [503
Railway Street])
RESTAURANT SINCE 1974
AWARD
WINNING
AFGHAN
CUISINE
12T H A N N U A L
17
2014
shop apron
1833 Anderson St. (2nd Floor) Vancouver
BEFORE THE ENTRANCE TO GRANVILLE ISLAND, RIGHT BEHIND THE STARBUCKS
(604)873-5923 Open 7 Days A Week
www.afghanhorsemen.com
Flavor Flours: A New Way to
Bake with Teff, Buckwheat,
Sorghum, Other Whole &
Ancient Grains, Nuts & NonWheat Flours Berkeley baker
extraordinaire Alice Medrich devotes
her latest book to working with wheat
alternatives—not because many of
them are gluten-free but because they
bring a unique flavour to the pan. Organizing the book by the type of flour,
she explains how to work with each
and gives recipes such as rice flour
brownies and ricotta cheesecake with
a chestnut flour crust. ($45, Artisan)
Breville Juice Fountain Elite
For the person who loves a good juice
cleanse or simply wants to drink
healthier every day, this appliance
makes getting your veggies easier.
A 1,000-watt motor powers through
all that fibre and a three-inch-wide
feed tube makes quick work of whole
fruits, reducing prep time spent cutting up ingredients. ($349.99 while
quantities last, on sale from $399.98;
Ming Wo [various locations]) -
BOOK YOUR PARTY TODAY
 FREE
$
27
ON
PER PERS
WINE TASTING
SET MENU FOR 10 PEOPLE
SATURDAY
DECEMBER 20, 2014
50

%
APPETIZER SAMPLER
PAPAYA AND MANGO SALAD
TOFU GORENG
CURRY CHICKEN
SOFT SHELL CRAB
SAMBAL GREEN BEANS
OTAK SOLE FILLET
MEE GORENG
TRIO DESSERT SAMPLER
EARLY DINNER SPECIAL
Sunday - Thursday Only • Between 5 - 6 pm
CALAMARI, SPRING ROLLS, SAMOSAS
OFF
expires December 18, 2012
Cannot be combined with other special offers. Maximum 2 orders per table.
Valid for up to 8 people party maximum.
1063 W. Broadway Between Oak & Spruce 604.730.9963 www.kayamalay.com
Become a Big Sister.
Become a Study Buddy
Become a friend.
604.873.4525 • www.bigsisters.bc.ca
december 4 – 11 / 2014 the georgia straight 29