eat drink Summertime eatdrink

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eatdrink
Serving London, Stratford & Area
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RESTAURANTS • RECIPES • WINE • TRAVEL
Summertime
And the livin’ is easy ...
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Premiere Issue • August 2007
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what’s
cooking in your community
cooking school • information sessions • community room
Think you know us?
We may surprise you.
We’ve got some of London’s most talented chefs teaching some
of the most interesting classes offered anywhere. Whether you’re
looking for fresh ideas for your family or knock-out recipes for
entertaining friends, we’re offering dozens of choices this fall.
Cooking classes include tasting portions and don’t require you
to bring special tools. A rich variety of classes are designed for both
novice and experienced cooks. There’s plenty for kids too. Book early
as classes are filled on a first come, first served basis.
Private classes for groups of 12 or more can also be arranged.
Register by phone 9am-5pm Mon-Sat
at (Loblaws) 1-800-296-2332 Ext. 3
or (Superstore) 1-866-596-7277 Ext. 3
o!
ids Classes To
K
Little Hands • Kitchen Kids • Teen Classes
www.loblaws.ca
FANSHAWE
WONDERLAND
1740 Richmond St N 3040 Wonderland Rd S
For further information check the websites
or call the co-ordinator for your location:
FANSHAWE Rebecca McIntosh at 519-673-5326
WONDERLAND Maya Clarke at 519-668-7440
OXFORD Mies Bervoets at 519-424-2070
OAKRIDGE Christine Scheer at 519-641-0932
STRATHROY Barbara Toomer at 519-245-4198
upstairs
at superstore
www.superstore.ca
OXFORD
825 Oxford Street East
OAKRIDGE
1201 Oxford Street
STRATHROY
626 Victoria Street
eatdrink
™
RESTAURANTS • RECIPES • WINE • TRAVEL
eatdrinkmag.net
A Food & Drink Magazine Serving London, Stratford & Area
™
» Register for the free online edition
— more photos, stories and links to all things culinary.
» Find local restaurants, read reviews and much more.
Publisher & Advertising Manager
Chris McDonell
[email protected]
Telephone & Fax
519 434 8349
Copy Editor
Melanie North
Mailing Address
525 Huron Street,
London on n5y 4j6
Graphic Design
Hawkline Graphics
[email protected]
News & Feedback
[email protected]
Website
Milan Kovar/KOVNET
Contributors
Bryan Lavery
Frances Latham
Christine Scheer
Shari Darling
Melanie North
D.R. Hammond
Jennifer Gagel
David Chapman
Pam Landsdowne
Printing
Impressions Printing
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Copyright © 2007 eatdrink™, Hawkline Graphics and the writers. All rights reserved.
Reproduction or duplication of any material published in
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Publisher. The Publisher welcomes submissions but accepts no
responsibility for unsolicited material.
august 2007 • premiere issue
always more online @ eatdrinkmag.net
5
CONTENTS
!
Welcome
NOTE FROM THE PUBLISHER
6
Welcome and Bon Appetit
By Chris McDonell
RESTAURANT PROFILE
7
Keystone’s Key to Success
Keystone Alley Café remains one of Stratford’s top restaurants year after year.
By Frances Latham
WINE
10
Cat Pee and Gasoline
Sometimes an otherwise suspect aroma can be a good thing.
By Shari Darling
CHEFS
16
Two Fresh Faces with One Goal
Chefs Jason Schubert and Paul Harding are spreading their wings in London.
By Melanie North
RECIPES
20
It’s Tomato Time
Grilled Garden Pizza takes full advantage of the season’s rich harvest.
By Christine Scheer
EATDRINK BUZZ
24
New & Notable
We’ve got our finger on the pulse of London, Stratford and area, and there’s a lot going on.
By Bryan Lavery
BEER
32
Explore Wheat Beer This Summer
An old style even by German standards, wheat beer is enjoying a renaissance.
By D.R. Hammond
TRAVEL
36
The Heart of Italy
A trip into the rarely explored Abruzzo region of Italy is a gastronomic adventure.
By Bryan Lavery
MIXOLOGY
40
The Pomegranate Martini
Who says the martini is passé? Not by a long shot, and it may even be good for you.
From The Tasting Room
BOOKS
42
Healthy Food in a Hurry
A review of Ultimate Foods for Ultimate Health ... And Don’t Forget the Chocolate.
By Jennifer Gagel
Yes
Chef.
THE LIGHTER SIDE
46
Yes Chef
What to say, and what not to say, to the chef of a great restaurant.
By David Chapman
6
premiere issue • august 2007
NOTE FROM THE PUBLISHER
Welcome and Bon Appetit!
By Chris McDonell
t is with genuine enthusiasm that I
welcome you to the premiere edition
of eatdrink. Our mission is to serve our
readers by providing news, ideas and
inspiration—always related to food and
drink. While it is self-evident to say that
everyone eats and drinks, this is not necessarily a magazine for everyone. We are
writing for those who are looking beyond
“fast food” and a low price at the cost of
quality. We are writing for those who
appreciate creativity, presentation and
culinary talent. We are writing for those
who respect extravagant food artistry as
well as simple and healthy food well
made. We are certainly not writing for
snobs, but this is a magazine for an elite
group. What is exciting to us—and you’ll
notice that we have advertisers who agree
with this idea—is this elite group is growing by leaps and bounds every day.
I was pleasantly surprised by this summer’s best-reviewed movie Ratatouille.
Created by Disney/Pixar, with undoubtedly copious market research to support
spending millions of
investors’ dollars, this
is a slick cartoon about
embracing a passion
for good food. Better restaurateurs rejoice:
Walt Disney is educating young people
about what you do. (The story is cute too.)
And they know—that’s what the market
research is for—that people are going to
like this message. Disney makes movies
that appeal to the masses and that, dear
reader, is now us.
We will cover more than restaurants, but
there are amazing places to dine in our
neck of the woods and we are committed
to keeping you abreast of the latest and
greatest. We also will provide enticing
recipes for home entertaining and expert
suggestions for wine, beer and cocktail
enthusiasts. I am extremely pleased with
the writers that we have attracted. They
I
know their subjects and can tell a story
well. I believe you’ll grow to trust them as I
do. We’ll stay on our toes, though, so if
you’ve got a good story idea or you think
we’ve missed the mark, let us know.
What we don’t have yet is reader participation, but we are confident that that will
come. To this end, we have a companion
website for the magazine. The goal is for
this site to serve as a virtual magnet for all
kinds of food and drink information,
hence the eatdrinkmag.net name. A strong
magnet attracts all kinds of objects and,
likewise, we will attract viewers to eatdrinkmag.net for many different reasons.
First, we’ll post the magazine for you to
read online (indeed, some of you are a
step ahead of me and reading this in the
digital version). We will make the new edition available online even before the magazine hits the street. After a simple log-in,
you will find everything you see in the
print edition as well as extra content that
is only available online. Just click the links
for more recipes, more recommendations
and more stories.
You’ll also find an excellent restaurant
search engine and you can read—and
write—customer’s restaurant reviews.
Check out our MARKETPLACE for all the
other businesses that deal with food and
drink, from Caterers and Kitchen Designers to Chocalateries and dozens more. Got
a passion for discussing food and wine or
sharing recipes? We’ve got FORUMS. But
enough about the website! I invite you first
to explore the rest of the magazine. There’s
plenty of “food for thought” and we can’t
wait to hear what you think. I wish you
bon appetit. Please enjoy.
7
RESTAURANTS
Keystone’s Key to Success
By Frances Latham
gainst the background of a constantly ringing phone, something
restaurateurs consider music since
it heralds reservation requests, I recently
had the real pleasure of speaking with
Sheldon Russell and his wife Patricia
Hawkins-Russell. Sheldon is chef/owner
of the Keystone Alley Café, a lovely 65-seat
restaurant in Stratford. Now entering its
25th year in business, the restaurant
has gently evolved to become a well
run establishment where the quality
of the food and service are assured.
Housed in a building where the
iconic Nut Club, a long time Stratford favourite coffee shop was established, the restaurant is comfortably
and elegantly decorated with
touches of whimsy to reflect its personality. An open kitchen at the
back—a true open kitchen, noise,
action and dishwashers—allows
Russell to interact with customers
and to understand what is going on
in the dining room. 30 seats in a
flower bedecked patio behind forged
iron gates and two rooms upstairs The unassuming street frontage (above) is a few short steps
(known as The Key’d Inn) complete across the street from the stage entrance to the Stratford
the building.
Festival’s Avon Theatre. (Below) Proprietors Patricia HawkinsRussell is a private person and Russell and Sheldon Russell.
readily admits that he has a reputation for being “a little bit difficult.”
His standards are high and he
expects them to be met the old fashioned way, with hard work and discipline. His employees are like family,
with “tough love and nursing
through the hard times” and the
belief that the dishwashers are as
important to the smooth operation
of the kitchen as anyone else.
Classically trained in England, first
at cooking school, then as an apprentice in London, Russell came to Stratford, Ontario in 1975 to work at a
newly opened restaurant. In 1983, he
A
8
had the opportunity to purchase the Nut
Club with a business partner. While that
partnership soon dissolved, he persevered,
partnering again with another restaurateur
in 1988. Since 1998, he has been on his own
with his wife Patty, who helps in many
areas, especially in the kitchen.
Russell firmly believes that a successful
restaurant must be run by a “hands-on”
owner. Attention to detail and the bottom
line are critical to survival in a highly competitive environment; Stratford has more
than 100 restaurants. He has worked hard
to gain loyalty from local residents and it
shows. Unlike many of the top restaurants
in Stratford, Keystone Alley Café stays
open throughout the year. Summer
months are busy; the tourist trade remains
stable here.
Finally, what is it that attracts me to
write about this chef/owner and his
restaurant? The moment I walk in, I relax.
I know I will be welcomed and looked after
intelligently. No fuss, no intimidation, no
being ignored by the cool crowd. I look at
the menu, I recognize the ingredients and
am intrigued by many of the combinations. For example, the Lamb en Croute
with Madeira Jus, sounds traditional
French, until I see it is served with sweet
pea and mint pancakes, and exotic mushrooms. A modern lift to the dish is inviting
and no longer boring to read about.
Russell reads prodigiously and draws
inspirations from everywhere. He thinks
carefully about his ingredients and textures and pairs them to highlight their
purity. Restrained in mixing backgrounds
The alley of the restaurant’s name offers a
fresh and inviting patio space that fills up
quickly during the warmer months of the year.
9
of various ethnicities, Russell prefers to in all, this is a well run established restaukeep simple clear flavours that delight. rant where I achieve Russell’s objective: I
The portions respect my health and my leave feeling like I got better than I
wallet; the service respects my time.
expected.
I am comfortable sitting alone; I have
been here with people I know well and FRANCES LATHAM is a former banker with a passion for
with people I don’t know well. I would food. A graduate of the Stratford Chefs School, where she
bring my elderly mother and aunt here now uses her flair for numbers as a teacher of food costing,
quite happily yet there is plenty here to Frances is co-owner of Smith & Latham Café & Catering
appeal to the young and adventurous. All in St. Marys, Ontario.
Keystone Alley Café
34 Brunswick Street,
Stratford, ON
519.271.5645
www.keystonealley.com
Lunch:
Appetizers $4.95 to $7.95
Mains $7.95 to $10.95
Dinner:
Appetizers $6.95 to $10.75
Mains $21 to $31.50
Wine $29-$80
The restaurant serves more casual
café-style fare for lunch and then
offers true fine dining in the
evening. The restaurant is comfortably and elegantly decorated
(right, and below) with touches of
whimsy that reflect its charming
personality.
10
WINE
Cat Pee and Gasoline
By Shari Darling
ne of the many joys of wine is in gnon blanc is often blended with the
being able to articulate into words grapes of semillon and muscadelle to
what you smell in the aromas of eliminate the smell of pyrazine altogether.
the wine.
So, if you find the cat pee nose offensive,
Fruit wines are supposed to smell like then drink California sauvignon blanc. If
the fruit from which they are made. But you enjoy Marlborough sauvignon blanc,
wine made from grapes is not supposed to but dislike the term, then simply describe
smell like grapes. A grape-like aroma is a the wine in another way. If you say the
bad thing. Wines are supposed to develop wine’s aroma smells of pyrazine, your guests
a wide array of aromas and bouquets
will no doubt roll their eyes and
that range from fruits and flowers to
think you snobby. You could say
earth and spice.
that the sauvignon blanc has an
Cat pee is an aroma and certainly
aroma reminiscent of the southern
end of a northbound cat.
one of the most confusing terms used
Another delightful aroma is gasoto describe wine. The aroma of cat pee
in a sauvignon blanc grown in the
line. The great rieslings of GerMarlborough region of New Zealand is
many have a nose swirling with
a good thing. If it smells like cat pee
gasoline or diesel. Other yummy
and gooseberries, you are no doubt
terms are manure, mineral-like,
sipping a wine that exemplifies its
barnyard, tobacco, cigar, cedar,
true varietal character when
bacon, mushroom and
grown in this beautiful country.
sweat. Yes, sweat! Our lovely
In fact, so desirable is cat pee
sauvignon blanc can also
and gooseberry as aromas in
possess the aromas of arm
sauvignon blanc, that New
pits. A good thing.
Zealand’s Cooper’s Creek winery
While cat pee and sweat
makes a quaffer called Cat’s Pee
are good, ‘wet dog’ is not.
on a Gooseberry Bush, (lcbo
Canada originally earned is
606384, $14.00).
unworthy reputation for
Where does the aroma of cat
producing inferior wine
from our indigenous Vitis
pee derive from? Pyrazines are
Labrusca grapes. The conthe cat pee culprit. Pyrazines
cord grape variety is one of
are compounds found in many
fruits and vegetables. They are
them. The concord makes
found in ripened sauvignon
for delicious juice and jelly,
blanc grapes grown in Marlborbut gives wine the smell of
ough. The aroma of pyrazine in
a wet dog. Wet dog is a bad
thing.
a New Zealand sauvignon blanc
Bad aromas are almost
is wonderful, while the identical
tolerable, when compared
smell in an Ontario version is
to wine faults. Some arohorrible. In an Ontario wine,
mas are downright nasty, a
this smell is caused by a ladybug infestation in the vineyard.
The cat pee aroma of the Monkey Bay
A very bad thing. California
Sauvignon Blanc (lcbo 620062,
sauvignon blanc has low pyra$13.70) is a good thing.
zine levels. In Bordeaux, sauvi-
O
result of poor winemaking practices. If a
winemaker uses an excessive amount of
sulfur dioxide, the resulting wine can have
aromas of mothballs and
burnt rubber. If a wine possesses too much ethyl
acetate, it will smell like
nail polish remover. Vinegar is a lovely smell in food,
but not in wine. The aroma
of vinegar in wine means it
has turned to acetic acid
and is therefore over the
hill. An unfortunate thing.
Maybe a New Zealand
sauvignon blanc is for cat
lovers only.
Recommended Bottles
Monkey Bay Sauvignon Blanc (lcbo
620062, $13.70), from New Zealand is a
crisp, dry white wine ideal for sipping by
the lakeside or poolside and pairing with
hors d’oeuvres featuring dips using goat
cheese, cream cheese or sour cream. An
11
artichoke and parmesan dip with raw vegetables would be a perfect match. The
wine has classic and forward aromas of cat
pee and gooseberry. The
palate is quite juicy, with
tangerine flavours and balanced sourness and bitterness.
J. Lohr Riverstone
Chardonnay (lcbo 258699,
$20.10), is a fabulous, big,
fat white wine. Lots of ripe
pear, vanilla and honey
come through on the nose
and palate. The wine is
full-bodied and creamy
and ideal for salmon, tuna
and chicken on the barbecue. I would pair
this wine with hors d’oeuvres highlighting
bacon or heavy cheese. It’s also weighty
enough to sip with your entrée.
Calliga Agiorgitiko (lcbo 619262, $12.95)
is a tasty wine for barbecue dining. I’m not
usually a fan of Greek red wines, but this is
certainly one with lots of ripe blackberry
Elegance & Simplicity
• Cabinetry
• Vanities
• Countertops
• Millwork
It’s a feeling. When
craftsmanship of
cabinetry meets the
detailing of hardware,
it creates a symmetry
of elegance and
simplicity that just
feels right.
From Roy omson
Hall and the John
Labatt Centre to
many fine homes in
London, integrity of
design has been the
hallmark of our work
for over 45 years.
Call or visit our
showroom for a
consultation.
CONTINENTAL
CABINET
COMPANY INC.
519.455.3830
547 Clarke Road (Between Oxford & Dundas)
Showroom Hours: Mon-Fri 8am-5pm; Sat 8am-Noon
www.continentalcabinet.com
12
fruit and earthiness on the nose. The
palate is medium bodied and smooth with
solid bitterness (tannin), forward cherry
fruit and notes of
vanilla. Simple and
easy drinking. Pair
this wine with barbecued Greek lamb souvlaki served with a
Greek salad.
I’m in love with Torres
2004 Coronas Tempranillo (lcbo 29728, $12.80).
What a wine for the LCBO’s
general list! This is a delicious Spanish red worth
stocking up on for special
evenings at the cottage. I
also happen to be a fan of
the tempranillo grape. This
baby swirls with aromas of
coffee, leather, dark chocolate and truffles. The palate is
meaty with rich, dark berry
fruit, a velvety texture and soft
bitterness. This is a great partner
for steak, ribs or thick burgers. In
fact, I would sip this wine
throughout the evening and even
pair it with a chunk of dark chocolate and toasted walnuts after dinner.
Da Luca Primitivo Merlot Tarantino IGT (lcbo 588970, $10.15), is no
doubt the wine buy of the summer. It is
definitely one you should consider
stocking up on for everyday wine consumption at the cottage. What a treat! This
is an Italian red, at 14% alcohol, and has
aromas reminiscent of coffee, chocolate
and raisins. On the mouth you’ll find
flavours of chocolate and spice with full
body and silky texture. I get excited when I
find wines with this much goodness at this
reasonable price. Sip this quaffer by the
lakeside or poolside, before dinner, during
dinner and afterwards. I certainly will!
Other wines to try this summer include
Napa Valley Vineyard Merlot (lcbo 29983,
$17.95), and Napa Valley Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon (lcbo 29975, $17.95). Both
are worth their weight in grapes.
SHARI DARLING is a member of the Wine Writers’ Circle of Canada, author of numerous books
such as Harmony on the Palate : Matching
Simple Recipes to Everyday Wine Styles
and co-author of The Wine Manual, a
manual for sommelier and wine training
in colleges and universities. She can be
reached through her website:
www.sophisticatedwino.com.
Katafnéa
Ka
Do you have a favourite summer
wine? Are you looking for more
recommendations? Check out
the eatdrink FORuM
online for discussion on
wine and numerous other
topics of interest.
“A little out of
the way,
A lot out of
the ordinary!”
519-455-9005
Lunch 11 to 3 (7 days a week)
Dinner 5 to 10 (Wed to Sun)
Breakfast 9 to 12 (Sat & Sun)
2530 Blair Rd, London
Diamond Flight Centre
When entertaining friends
and family at the table, use
our imported table linens
and nature-inspired bee and
dragonfly glassware,
pitchers, trays and bowls.
Let us help you create the
right atmosphere and
lifestyle at your home in the
city or cottage by the lake.
www.blackdogdecor.com
(Free Shipping in London)
.COKPCVGF %CPCFKCP 9KPG 9JGGN
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'5JQR QT ECNN
STRATFORD
IS MORE
THAN
GREAT
THEATRE
“Stratford has a culinary obsession ...
I savour every delectable moment.”
— Marion Kane, Toronto Star Food Columnist
The Schnitzel House
Fresh Homemade (Pounded Daily)
Variety of Schnitzels
Rouladen • Vegetarian • Seafood
(Next door to the Avon Theatre)
519-275-3266
Photo: Dave Rees
107 Downie Street • Stratford
SHELDON RUSSELL
CHEF/PROPRIETOR
“Modern, ever-evolving,
flavour-packed cuisine.
You will enjoy it.”
Covered outdoor patio
34 Brunswick behind the Avon Theatre
Reservations 519 271 5645
www.keystonealley.com
Appetizing suites
Upstairs at the Cafe
Reservations 519 271 5645
16
CHEFS
Two Fresh Faces with One Goal
By Melanie North
ince the late 19th century, when it was Melanie North: Where do you fit into the
adopted by Frèdèric, chef of the celelocal restaurant scene?
brated Tour D’Argent restaurant in Jason Schubert: We felt the need for someParis, the Duck Press has been a symbol of
thing different in London. In many
haute cuisine. It is a showpiece that is used
ways you could call London a “Fast
to extract the rich juices within a
roast duck in order to make a tableside sauce. At The Only on King, a
1970 Christofle Silver Duck Press sits
housed in a glass showcase, a symbol, as well as a practical chef’s tool.
It references the duck in the restaurant’s logo (a former pet named
Bruce) and represents a standard of
excellence and attention to detail.
The goal here is to extract the
essence of local foods and flavours
and present them in exciting combinations. Among the choices on
tonight’s menu: Cold Octopus with
citrus and parsley, Rabbit and Mustard Stew with noodles, the Chef’s
Choice four-course tasting menu (a
mainstay), and among the desserts,
Chocolate mousse with sour cherries and pistachio praline.
Recently, I got the chance to represent eatdrink™ and meet up with
the owners and chefs of The Only on
King—Jason Schubert and Paul
Harding—two of the newest players
in downtown London’s restaurant
scene. In addition to sharing the
same philosophy on food and cooking, they also share a friendship that
began at Medway High School just
north of London.
After gutting the building that last
housed The Green Tomato (on King
Street just east of Richmond Street),
Schubert and Harding put in a
kitchen that can handle their creative energy and made a warm and
inviting space. While their restaurant
is not huge, their enthusiasm for
High school friends Jason Schubert (left) and Paul
homegrown food knows no bounds.
Harding have joined forces at The Only on King.
S
Food Nation” and we thought the
timing was right for a restaurant
that served local and organic ingredients. We are trying to be as much
“slow food movement” as possible.
Our menu changes every day
according to what is in season. We
offer a healthy choice, no sauces,
and properly cooked food.
MN: Did the politics of food have anything to do with your choices?
JS: No, there are no politcal statements
being made by us. We
make our own rules
and we’re cooking for
ourselves. We know
what should be done:
let the food do the
talking, and then we
add salt.
MN: Your roots grow deep
here. Both of you
attended Medway
High School and
many of your friends
became farmers. How
does that affect your
philosophy on food and cooking?
JS: There’s only a very small percentage
of family farms left in Canada and
we support our buddies.
Paul Harding: One of our best friends is
Mike Matthews who owns Arva
Flour Mills and we get all of our
flour, beans, lentils, and grains from
him.
JS: Then we go to Stan Campbell’s for
our lamb at Blue Moon Farms, in
fact we were just there, and personally picked out our own lamb for the
restaurant. Antony John provides us
with Soiled Reputation gourmet
greens, and we get Berkshire
organic pork from Field Gate
Organics in Covent Garden Market.
PH: It’s fun to go out every day and have
a personal interaction with the people who provide the food.
JS: You won’t see any big rig pulling up
out front of our restaurant filled
with everything we need. That’s not
our style.
17
MN: What is the early response?
JS: We run a lot of the plates ourselves,
so we get to see the reaction and
hear conversations. There’s lots of
compliments, and sharing of food.
It’s great.
PH: There is a lot of satisfaction on people’s faces, knowing where the food
grows.
MN: How and where did you get your
culinary education?
A new bar and a state-of-the-art
espresso machine are important elements
of the newly renovated space.
PH: We learned through the school of
hard knocks, by working under
other chefs. I trained under chefs in
England and Toronto. But we don’t
even call ourselves chefs. We think of
ourselves as cooks.
JS: I began cooking with my Mom. I first
got excited by cooking during a high
school co-op experience in London,
Ontario at the Grosvenor Club. I
worked in England at Mirabelle
owned by chef Marco Pierre White.
He’s like a “god” and the youngest to
ever win three Michelin stars. In
Vancouver, I trained under a chef
who was cooking “slow food” and I
liked that it was honest and straightforward. Last summer, I worked for
Joie Wines and Farm Cooking
School, in Naramata in the Okanagan Valley of British Columbia. We
sell their book Menus from an
Orchard Table here at the restaurant.
MN: What are your favourite meals?
18
MN: What is the best restaurant you
ever ate in?
JS: L’Etoile in Vancouver, 30 seats,
chef Andrey Durbach. Beautiful
French food, attention to
detail, wine, port.
PH: Amuse-Bouche in Toronto,
tasting menus, intimate, they
send out whatever they cook
and with warm bread at the
perfect temperature and warm
butter.
The historic building and the vintage photographs on
display serve as an effective counterpoint to a more
modern and restrained interior.
JS:
Fresh pasta with tomato and basil.
It’s the most beautiful thing in the
world and it’s more difficult to
achieve than you think.
PH: I’m a big fan of pork—both cooking
and eating. It’s so versatile.
MN: If you had to use only three ingredients, what would they be?
JS: Salt, pepper and pork belly—the
best thing in the world to keep
things moist.
PH: Salt, pepper and a tomato.
JS: Good choice.
MN: What is always in your fridge at
home?
JS: Two Heineken, Campari and a
schawarma.
PH: Nothing.
MN: Is attention to detail one of the
goals for your restaurant?
JS: Absolutely. For example, our
house drinks are shaken over
homemade sorbet instead of
ice, and Bloody Caesars are
mixed with homemade tomato consommé. We have invested in an
espresso machine that makes the
best coffee in London! This place is
for friends and family; my parents
eat here every night.
PH: And future friends and family.
MN: In your view, what are the elements
of an ideal meal?
JS: Begin with an apèritif: Negroni
(campari with gin);
Then something cold and refreshing: salad or tureen;
A small pasta course;
A fish or some type of seafood
course;
Meat or poultry, but I would prefer a
red meat;
A selection of three cheeses, with
the appropriate red wine;
Dessert with port;
The perfect espresso followed by
cognac.
MN: If you hadn’t become cooks, what
would you be?
JS: A stonemason or an astronaut.
PH: A firefighter. Because you get to
cook at work.
MN: How would you describe this stage in
your careers?
PH: We love to cook in a place we created.
JS: It’s our life, this is our art, it’s what
we do.
The dining room at The Only on King seats
41 at comfortable tables. The walls are decorated with historical London photographs as well as newer works by local
photographers Ron Benner and Jason’s
father Paul Schubert.
The Only on King
172 King Street, London
519-936-2064
www.theonlyonking.ca
MELANIE NORTH is a seasoned communications professional with experience in broadcast TV, corporate video,
website development, communications strategy, writing and
editing. She can't cook, but loves to eat!
Field Gate Organics is an organic farming
community made up of 30 family farms working
together to market and distribute certified
organic foods for better health and a cleaner
environment, at competitive prices.
Enjoy the lifestyle you deserve.
Look for the Field Gate Organics label.
19
Recipe courtesy of Jason Schubert of The Only on King
Vitello Tonnato: Cold Roasted
Veal and Tuna Mayo
Veal
1 lb. veal top round, cut from the leg
1
Stud the veal with cut cloves of garlic,
and brush on olive oil, add salt and
pepper.
2
Roast the veal for 10 minutes at 425˚F
then turn the oven down to 300˚ and
continue roasting until the internal
temperature of the veal reaches 125˚.
3
Take the veal out of the oven and let
sit until cool. It will continue cooking.
Refrigerate when cool. This is best
served cold, the next day.
4 Slice the veal super thin and arrange
on a plate.
Tuna Mayo
1 egg
1 Tbsp (15 mL) Dijon mustard
1 Tbsp (15 mL) lemon juice
1 tsp (5 mL) tomato paste
2 Tbsp (30 mL) white wine vinegar
½ large can or 1 small can of Italian tuna
in olive oil
pinch of salt and pepper
1
Place all the ingredients into a food
processor and emulsify with a light
canola oil until it is the desired thickness.
To serve: Top the veal slices with the tuna
mayo and add capers and arugula.
Serves 2-4
Field Gate Organics
Covent Garden Market, 130 King St., London
Mon to Sat: 8am-6pm • Sun: 11am-4pm
519-679-9998
www.fieldgateorganics.ca
20
SEASONAL RECIPES
It’s Tomato Time
By Christine Scheer
ugust is the month for tomatoes on
our farm. I love the variety of shape,
colour and flavour that are available
to brighten up just about any dish. As the
tomatoes ripen on the vine, the
basil is growing as big as a bush, and
the garlic is ready to be dug out and
release its fresh juicy flavour.
These three garden greats—tomatoes, basil, and garlic—combine
beautifully to make many a dish
sing. We get so used to our produce
being well-traveled and out of season, that when they are in-season,
the flavour comes almost as a shock.
Who knew that garlic can actually be
juicy? We’ve almost forgotten that
tomatoes can be so sweet that you
can just bite into them and enjoy
them “as is.” Basil, with its vivid
green leaves straight from the garden, has that fresh hint of licorice that
accents tomatoes perfectly.
There are some days that it is just too
hot to turn on the oven or stove, and that
is when I use my barbecue to make the
entire meal. We all enjoy a good pizza, and
grilling a pizza gives it that extra zing that
I’m looking for when entertaining.
The pizza dough can be made in a stand
mixer with a dough hook, or by hand. You
can probably work in the full amount of
flour when you use a mixer, a bit less when
you do it by hand. While the dough is rising, the garlic can roast, the tomatoes can
be grilled and the remainder of the preparation can be done.
I used C’est Bon Fresh Chevre to top my
pizzas because its creaminess is unsurpassed, and the fact that it comes from
just around the corner in St. Mary’s is a
bonus (www.cestboncheese.com). You are
certainly welcome to use your own
favourite brand of goat cheese.
A
Grilled Garden Pizza
Makes two 12-inch pizzas
Dough
1 tsp (5 mL) granulated sugar
1 cup (250 mL) very warm water
1 Tbsp (15 mL) active dry yeast (NOT instant)
2 Tbsp (30 mL) olive oil
3 cups (750 mL) all purpose flour
1 tsp (5 mL) salt
Topping
1 bulb garlic
1 tsp (5 mL) olive oil
3-4 red tomatoes
3-4 yellow tomatoes
1 container (190g) C’est Bon Cheese Fresh
chevre
1 bunch of basil, washed and sliced into a
chiffonade*
1-2 cups (500 mL) baby arugula
Sea salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
1
2
3
4
5
First, make the dough. In a large bowl,
dissolve the sugar in the warm water.
Sprinkle in the yeast; let stand 10 minutes or until foamy. Stir in oil.
In a smaller bowl, combine the flour with
the salt. Stir about one half of the flour
mixture into the yeast mixture. Mix in the
remaining flour gradually, until the
dough can be gathered into a sticky ball.
Pour some of the remaining flour onto
your counter, and knead for about 5
minutes, working more flour into the
dough as you go, until the dough is
smooth and elastic. You might not use all
the flour. Place dough in an oiled bowl,
cover with plastic wrap and let rest 45–60
minutes, or until doubled in bulk.
Heat barbecue to medium high.
Meanwhile, cut the top quarter off of the
bulb of garlic. Place it on a doubled over
sheet of aluminum foil. Drizzle one teaspoon of olive oil over the top of the garlic. Wrap the bulb firmly in the foil,
folding in the edges so no olive oil drizzles out, and place off to the side in the
hot barbecue. Close the lid. It will take
approximately 45 minutes for it to roast
and be nice and soft.
Wash the tomatoes and cut out the stem
section. Halve the tomatoes horizontally.
If the grills on your barbecue are fairly far
apart, you might want to use a ‘grill
buddy’ or even just a piece of foil for the
9
21
next step. Brush oil onto your grill (or foil
or grill buddy). Place tomatoes cut side
down on the hot surface. Close lid, and
let them cook and brown for about 10
minutes. Then, using tongs turn tomatoes over so they are skin side down.
Cook, letting the skin get nice and
brown, for another 10-15 minutes. The
tomatoes will be very soft, and the outside should be slightly charred. Remove
from heat into a non-metallic bowl. Set
aside until cool enough
to handle, and then chop
them coarsely.
6 Slice your basil into a
chiffonade, and/or wash
your baby arugula and
spin it dry.
7 When the garlic is thoroughly roasted, it will be
soft enough to squish out
of its skin into a small
bowl. Mash the garlic
with the two tablespoons
of olive oil. Set aside.
8 By now the dough should
be doubled in bulk.
Punch it down and divide
into two pieces. Using a
small amount of olive oil,
roll out the dough into
two circles, approximately 12-14 inches in
diameter. Remember, they have to fit on
your barbecue grill. Let the dough rest
for 5-10 minutes.
Brush your barbecue grill with vegetable
oil. Turn the heat down to medium low.
Place the prepared pizza crusts onto the
grill, turn down the heat to low and
close the lid. After about 10 minutes,
take a peek. The bottom of the crust
should be getting golden brown. Turn
the crust if necessary to brown a bit
more evenly. Flip the crust over. Close
the lid and let the pizza cook for 5 minutes. Then, lift the lid, spread the
mashed, roasted garlic and olive oil over
the cooked side of the crust. Top with
the chopped grilled tomatoes; sprinkle
with sea salt and freshly ground pepper
and then dollop the goat cheese here
and there over the pizzas, making sure
not to skimp. Close the barbecue lid and
22
When shopping for tomatoes, buy the
ripest ones available if you are going to use
them immediately. Choose those that give
slightly to pressure, and are free of blemishes. Keep in mind a little imperfection is
not the end of the world. If you aren’t
going to use the tomatoes for a few days,
make sure they are not overly ripe. Store
your tomatoes at room temperature,
*Chiffonade: A French culinary term that
because storing them in the fridge kills
denotes herbs or greens cut into fine,
their flavour and makes the flesh pulpy.
thin strips.
The flavour of a vine-ripened field
tomato cannot be beat, and is a welcome
More about Tomatoes
Tomatoes love the heat, but because they addition to any meal. If you can find
take quite a long time to ripen, we start “Brandywine” tomatoes at your local
them in the greenhouse, and then plant farmers market to make the salsa, you’ll be
them out in the field when all danger of in for a real treat.
frost has passed. They like warm moist soil
More about Basil
and full sun.
As you know, to get the full flavour of Start your basil from seed in a sunny winvine-ripened tomatoes, you need to grow dow, and then transfer to the garden when
your own or shop at a local farmers mar- all danger of frost has passed. You will
ket. Although grocery stores do offer have a steady supply throughout the sumtomatoes, the selection is generally lim- mer months if you cut it regularly, and in
ited to tomatoes that offer shelf life over the late summer you will have an abundant supply.
flavour.
let the pizzas cook another 10 minutes or
so. Take a look—is the crust brown on
the bottom and the cheese melted and
irresistible looking on top? If it is, remove
the pizzas from the grill onto serving
platters, top with basil or arugula and
serve immediately.
Fresh Tomato Salsa
2 large tomatoes, seeded and chopped
2 jalapeno peppers, seeded and minced
1-2 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tbsp (15 mL) fresh basil, minced
1 Tbsp (15 mL) red wine vinegar
Salt and pepper, to taste
1
Combine all ingredients in a small
bowl. Serve at room temperature.
Makes approximately 2 cups.
When buying basil, look for evenly
coloured leaves with no sign of wilt. The
most often asked question about basil is,
“How do I store it?” Because basil is sensitive to cold temperatures, do not store it in
the refrigerator, as it will turn black. It also
goes black if it sits in water for more than
five minutes, and it will wilt in the heat.
What to do? The first and best option is to
use it as promptly as possible. If you
absolutely have to store it for a couple of
days, I recommend washing it, spinning it
completely dry, patting with paper towels
if necessary, and then sealing it in a plastic
bag and storing at room temperature.
The fresh, rich taste of pesto is so
incredibly versatile with meat or vegetables. It tastes good hot or cold, and best of
all, it reminds me of summer. Pesto will
zip up many a winter pasta, risotto,
chicken, beef, or vegetable dish. It makes
a good sauce for pizza as well.
After you make your pesto, pack it into
jars or plastic containers. Keep it refrigerated for up to two weeks; for longer storage keep it in the freezer for up to eight
23
months. It is normal for your pesto to get
darker once the air touches it. To minimize the darkening, I like to drizzle a bit of
olive oil over the top of the pesto once I
have taken out a scoop. I have left the pine
nuts out of this pesto, but you can certainly add half of a cup of pine nuts, or
almonds or walnuts to the recipe if you
would like.
CHRISTINE SCHEER is a chef who lives on an organic farm
with her husband and two daughters. She has cooked for
London and area restaurants, owned a catering business,
written a cookbook for the Covent Garden Market and
taught cooking classes for many years. She currently runs
the cooking school at the Oakridge Superstore. Her passions include using seasonal, local ingredients to create delicious fare, and teaching children how to cook. You can reach
Christine at: [email protected]
Christine Scheer reflects
on garlic and, of course,
has another great recipe to share. Just a click away!restaurant se
a lways m ore online
Basil Pesto
4 cups (1 L) packed basil leaves
6 cloves garlic
1½ cups (375 mL) olive oil
1 tsp (5 mL) sea salt (optional)
2 cup (500 mL) Parmesan cheese
1
In the bowl of a food processor, combine the basil leaves with the garlic
and process until smooth. Add the
salt and continue to process.
2
With the motor running, pour in the
olive oil, and then finally add the
cheese. Scoop into clean jars.
Refrigerate up to two weeks, or freeze.
restaurant se
24
EATDRINKBUZZ
New and Noteworthy
By Bryan Lavery
Buzz [buhz], noun: 1. A feeling of calm,
usually happy intoxication. 2. a particularly strong kind of word of mouth.
elcome to eatdrinkBUZZ. The purpose of this column is to offer an
insider’s (hopefully useful) insight, and to contribute to enthusiasm
and discussion about culinary culture in
the London and Stratford area. Part of my
mandate will be to introduce you to local
chefs, restaurants, restaurant personalities and rising culinary stars. And, just as
important, to encourage dining out.
Insights and opinions expressed in this
column are meant to be helpful and educational; they are my own. As a long time
veteran of the London and Stratford dining scene (restaurateur, chef, food writer
and culinary instructor), I am lending my
voice to the current culinary discourse. I
hope to pass on to readers a new and more
practical perspective.
W
There certainly is a lot of buzz in the London restaurant world this summer: the
opening of The Only on King, after extensive renovations that signal much more
than just a long term commitment; the
resurrected Auberge du Petit Prince with
its gracious marquee, covered patio and
beautifully appointed rooms; the pioneer-
ing seasonal menus at On the Fork at
Museum London by Chef Kent Van Dyk;
and former Home Restaurant Chef/
Owner Alessandro Malnati taking over
the kitchen at the one-year-old Mint
RestoBar run by Frank Guorcio (who
many of you will remember from his days
as maitre d’ extraordinaire at La Casa).
Incidentally, Mint recently was one of the
locations used in the filming of M.V.P., a
new CBC production about the profoundly public life of a hockey player’s
career.
Speaking of anniversaries, this spring
Doyenne Marika Hayek, who has been
adding a little spice to Londoners’ dining
out, celebrated 50 years in business at the
Budapest on Dundas Street. To celebrate
the golden anniversary, the communityminded Hayek had a three-day fundraiser
for the London Regional Cancer Centre.
Now there is someone with stick-to-itiveness and a heart of gold.
Restaurateur Felipe Gomes also recently
celebrated Aroma’s first anniversary.
Aroma is Gomes’ homage to Mediterranean food and is located downstairs on
Piccadilly Street (at Richmond) in the
premises where Chef Mark Kitching operated Waldo’s. Kitching relocated to Covent
“An oasis for
food lovers ...”
LUNCH
Wed to Fri
11:30-2:30
DINNER
from 5pm daily
432 Richmond Street at Carling • London
519 667 0535
www.davidsbistro.ca
FREE PARKING AFTER 6 PM
OFF QuEENS AVENuE
25
Garden Market several years ago and investigations, as any former restaurateur
opened Waldo’s on King Bistro and Wine can attest to.
Bar. Waldo’s continues to be a popular
favourite and in my humble opinion As of this writing, the new owners of the
serves the best calamari in the city. Bar- former Murano premises are undergoing
tender Greg Simpson and restaurant a total transformation to house their new
manager Joe Dube add a little bit of je ne establishment. Si Senor will feature
authentic Mexican food, something that
sais quoi to the mix.
this city is lacking. This writer can attest it
Chef Malnalti left Black Trumpet earlier will be a very hot spot due to the creative
this summer after a brief tenure and genius and culinary wizardry of partners
replaced previous Mint Chef Adam Susan Anderson and Frankie Orozco
Vaughn, who has joined the culinary team Patino, aided by a variety of interesting
of Jason Schubert and Paul Harding at members of the Capsicum family. Given
the extensive restaurant experience of
The Only on King.
Frankie’s family in Puerto Vallarta, diners
But the most scandalous London news is can expect both authentic food and warm
that Chef/Owner Bryan Lavery of Murano Latin hospitality.
and founding member of Slow Food London, Ontario had the nerve to sell the The opening of The Only on King was a
restaurant after 10 years on Waterloo Street much anticipated event that I had the
without alerting the media. I have to gratification of attending. Being a propoadmit that I have no stick-to-itiveness. nent of the Slow Food Movement, I was
Reactions to the closing invited a range of pleased to find that the four-course Chef’s
reactions from idle curiosity to CSI-style Tasting Menu ingredients embodied the
“ We are indeed
much more than
what we eat, but
what we eat can
nevertheless help
us to be much
more than what
we are.
trü restaurant
”
Free Parking Every Day
45 King St.
London, Ontario
519-672-4333
www.trurestaurant.ca
26
best of locally sourced and seasonal products, with unadorned, unsauced, perfected dishes singing their own praises.
Chefs Schubert and Harding have unparalleled passion and are at the top of their
game with an innovative and clever menu
created daily from the best ingredients
available to them. No doubt The Only on
King is destined for great success. Schubert is featured in the recently published
Menus for an Orchard Table by Chef Heidi
Noble. Heidi Noble is a professionally
trained chef and sommelier, food educator and winemaker. A proponent of seasonal, local food, she and her husband
Michael Dinn own the renowned Joie
Wines and Farm Cooking School in Naramata, British Columbia.
Thames. It is without a doubt one of the
best spots in downtown London. Kent Van
Dyk’s menu is a complete departure from
the previous chef. The menu is eclectic and
combines classic and contemporary fare
executed with skill and flourish. The result
is a distinctive experience that exemplifies
the best of classic and contemporary culinary arts. Van Dyk’s menus are causing
some controversy with the old guard at
Museum London, who I hear prefer not to
be challenged by inspired, creative interpretations of local, seasonal ingredients.
Assisting Chef Van Dyk in the kitchen are
Stefanie Bishop and Brad Perkins.
trü restaurant and lounge, opened on
King Street’s “Restaurant Row” in November 2004, boasts a kitchen positioned at
But there is more room at the top and the the top of London’s dining scene. Execuculinary revolution downtown doesn’t stop tive Chef Daniel Irvine's passion for qualthere. On the Fork Restaurant & Lounge is ity and freshness and his hands-on
an intimate, stylish restaurant inside approach is the foundation of trü’s thinkMuseum London, which boasts a spectac- ing. Dealing exclusively with independent
ular riverside view at the fork of the wine agents and importers, trü’s wine list
A
t the top of the most recommended restaurants in London,
Michael’s on the Thames (established 1983) has remained a
popular success for its cuisine, unmatch ed superb service and
fine dining at an affordable price.
London’s renowned Maitre d’Extraordinaire Jack DiCarlo and
the staff make your dining experience a memorable one.
Whether for business or private functions, the menu will please
every palate. A welcoming atmosphere is enhanced with music
from the grand piano six nights a week.
Take the time to enjoy superb cuisine, tableside cooking, fine
wine and the company of friends.
Monday to Friday 11am-11pm
Saturday and Sunday 5pm-11pm
Gift Certificates Available
Free Parking
Dine with us before events at the John Labatt Centre
Reservations are suggested. Call 519-672-0111 • www.michaelsonthethames.com
offers a carefully chosen selection, with a
focus on smaller vineyards. Offering wines
made with heart and soul compliments
the integrity of trü’s culinary philosophy.
The signature Beef Tenderloin Foie Gras
Burger is a revelation.
David Chapman of David’s Bistro is still
drawing admirers far and wide. On a
recent out-of-town trip, I heard superlative reports about the restaurant from a
well respected gastronome. David’s signature “trust me” dinners continue to receive
much deserved praise. Chapman is also a
partner in one of London’s best dining
secrets, the Katana Kafe at the airport
with Christian Dries, chairperson and
chief executive of Diamond Aircraft and
owner of the Pelee Island Winery.
Chef Dani Gruden, who brought the
kitchen at The Braywick Bistro into the
spotlight and showed his tremendous talents briefly at Murano, has now undertaken the job of Chef at The Red Goat at 99
King Street. Gruden worked in this same
location years ago when it was the then
ground-breaking 99 King under Tania
Auger’s tenure. Auger is still wowing
crowds in downtown Sarnia with Lola’s
Lounge on Christina Street. Other notables in Sarnia are: On the Front located at
201 Front St. N., at the top of a fourteenstory office tower overlooking the St. Clair
river and Maison St-Aubin located at 1202
Lakeshore Road in a strip mall.
Chef Nicole Arroyas is continuing to pack
the recently licensed outdoor patio at the
newly refurbished Auberge du Petit
Prince at 458 King Street (acclaimed London Chef Chris Squire ran a restaurant of
the same name for two decades before
closing in 1996). Arroyas concentrates her
efforts on authentic country French cuisine. She also serves an authentic afternoon tea daily from 12 pm until 4:30 pm.
As far as tea goes, afternoon tea at the
Auberge is the only game in town. Believe
me, the elegant presentation is not just for
teetotallers and the glamorous ladies who
lunch and serve up our local charities.
Also mastering the art of French cooking
28
is another new kid on the block, Café de
Paris, located at 724 Richmond Street,
with its outdoor patio at the corner of Piccadilly Streets—but more about the resurgence of French food in a future column.
The Village Café was recently sold for the
second time (we miss Mary Havaris) in
the last few years and in its place Dragonfly Bistro is opening. Under the watchful
eye of Nora Yuriaan, renovations are well
underway at the 715 Richmond Street location. Offering “Gordon Ramsay-style”
recipes and a straightforward menu, this
little bistro will be open for lunch, tea and
dinner Tuesday to Saturday. As well, a
“Traditional Sunday Lunch” will be offered
from 11am-3pm.
Ozone Organics is opening its doors this
month at the corner of Hyde Park Road
and Fanshawe Park Road West. A new concept in a sleek and sophisticated space,
Ozone bears little similarity to the original
organic restaurants that catered to the
hippie culture and is designed to appeal to
those with a taste and desire for traditional “to go” food who also have an
appreciation of organic fare. But the food
is only the beginning of this planetfriendly philosophy—even the disposable
cutlery is biodegradable.
On the leading edge of environmental
consciousness and social responsibility,
respected restaurateur and caterer Ian
Kennard of Willie’s Cafe at 731 Wellington
Street deserves continued praise for more
than delicious food and warm hospitality.
Yes, your ad could be here.
Let’s talk.
If you are fortunate, the talented kitchen
may be serving the delicious mango and
jalapeno soup with a hint of coconut milk.
The kitchen at Willie’s never takes a wrong
step and Kennard continues to make
every effort to reduce his own ecological
footprint. In his quest for environmental
sustainability, he has sourced stylish and
biodegradable cutlery and takeout containers, paid for recycling, streamed the
organic kitchen waste to a composting site
and even ensured the restaurant’s cleaning products are considerate to the environment. This is quite a stretch for even
the most progressive restaurateur; kudos
to Kennard for continuing his quest for
environmentally sound alternatives.
Chocolate ambassador Marc Forrat, from
La Chocolaterie Forrat Inc. can be found
be back in London’s Covent Garden Market after his much-watched trip to CBC
television’s The Dragon’s Den. Viewers saw
Forrat get a deal done with the show’s
aggressive investors but a contract that
made sense to one of London’s more gregarious chocolatiers never materialized.
The silver lining? A new shop selling Forrat’s products is apparently opening in Yellowknife and enquiries continue to come
from across the country. According to the
Inside the Dragon’s Den website, six more
potential distributors are in the works.
Forrat has also signed a starter deal with a
chain of gourmet coffee shops as a trial
test market and has caught the attention
of the largest European manufacturer of
gourmet high-end chocolate in Europe.
eatdrink
Chris McDonell
[email protected]
519-434-8349
Judite Holder is moving Bernard Callebaut Chocolaterie from its longstanding
Richmond Street location a few blocks
north to 745 Waterloo Street. The Chocolaterie, in a newly renovated building, will
be a perfect neighbour to Holder’s equally
fragrant Gammage Flowers on the southwest corner of Waterloo and Oxford. This
Calgary-based empire is always adding
new or seasonal flavours to its core collection of 48 truffles and filled chocolates.
Speaking of chocolate, there are more gourmet chocolate shops, per capita, in Stratford than anywhere else in Ontario.
Connoisseurs of chocolate have a new
vocabulary and want to know the cocoa
content, where it originates from, whether
it is fair trade and the idea of terrior to
chocolate, a French term to denote the special geographical characteristics usually
reserved for describing wine and coffee.
29
local gourmets, foodies and Stratford Festival goers. Chris and Mary Woolf, veterans of the Stratford dining scene, continue
to wow customers every day of the week
except for Mondays. The Westover Inn in
St. Mary’s at 300 Thomas Street is also
always worth the drive.
Stratford dining is among the local
gourmet’s top dining objectives and Rundles, The Old Prune and The Church
restaurants remain landmarks and stellar
arguments for Stratford being touted as
one of Canada’s top gastronomic destinations. Eleanor Kane, co-proprietor of The
Old Prune has recently stated, “Stratford
has become something of a culinary capital in Canada with its wonderful array of
restaurants. From haute cuisine to haute
sandwiches, the dining experience enriches the cultural offerings of this unique
community.’’
Black Fly Beverage Company is Ontario’s
first Micro-Distillery, founded by husband
and wife Rob Kelly and Cathy SiskindKelly in May 2005. The downtown London-based company reports it is building
market share with a growing line of vodka
coolers and freezies. New flavours and
some infiltration into BC and Alberta
stores are driving sales.
For haute sandwiches, the York Street
Kitchen is the spot. The 30-seat eatery has
been serving patrons since 1996. The
kitchen also serves forth delicious breakfast, lunch and dinner dishes and is open
year round. Susie Palach and business
partner Tracy Day bring wide-ranging
experience and a firm knowledge of
south-western cooking to the Kitchen’s
creative, seasonal menus. A take-out winMinutes outside the town of St. Mary’s, the dow is just to the side of the restaurant
thirteen-year-old Woolfy’s at Wildwood is and features the same delectable signasituated at the corner of Highway 7 and ture sandwiches and yummy side salads.
Perth Road 118, just fifteen minutes southwest of Stratford. Woolfy’s continues to be The Old Prune in Stratford continues to
a much-loved culinary destination for be a culinary tour de force with Chef de
“Exquisite Artistic Elegant Catering”
A personalized
approach to
Weddings,
Dinner Parties,
Corporate Events, etc.
30
Cuisine Bryan Steele at the helm since
1989. Situated in a restored Edwardian
house on a quiet street, it has four beautifully appointed rooms and a stunning outdoor garden. Eleanor Kane (dare I call her
Canada’s Alice Waters?) was the culinary
motivation during the initial years of the
Old Prune. The renowned Stratford Chefs
School was started in 1983 by Kane and
James Morris, owner of Rundles restaurant. Operated as a private, non-profit
educational organization, the school
remains the only culinary institute in
Canada operated by working restaurant
professionals and is the only one of them
outside the community college system
that is sanctioned to train and educate
chefs. In 2001, Kane was honored with the
Ontario Hostelry Institute Gold Award for
her exceptional contribution to Hospitality education.
flavour and global sophistication. It is
more than apparent that Lamarche puts
considerable thought into his menus.
They are true reflections of his culinary
expertise and revolve with the seasons,
using different products and ingredients
every five to six weeks. As one component
of this environmentally sound approach,
Chef Lamarche introduces the techniques
of Molecular Gastronomy on his tasting
menus: a food philosophy which combines “the know how” of cooks with “the
know why” of scientists.
Other notables of distinction in Stratford
include: Bijou with its chalkboard menu,
located at 105 Erie Street. It is tucked discreetly between two buildings and the end
of a parking lot. Susan Dunfield’s funky
fourteen-year-old Down the Street, with
its open kitchen and busy bar, remains a
favourite of the local hoi polloi and theatre
At The Church Restaurant, Chef Amédé people alike. Pazzo at 70 Ontario Street
Lamarche prepares innovative French- continues to delight.
inspired cuisine that celebrates local
Jambalaya isJump-upWorld Cuisine
— From MILD
to WILD
Vegan Selections available
646 Richmond Street, London
Fresh Cuisine
519-858-2000
www.jambalayarestaurant.com
LUNCH: Monday to Saturday
11:30 AM TO 3:00 PM
DINNER: Last Friday of the month.
6 PM to 11 PM. Reservations required.
For menus, visit:
www.williescafe.on.ca
Willie’s
CAfé
731 Wellington Street
(Just South of Oxford)
London ON
519-433-9027
Advertisement
The crème de la crème, Rundles at 9
Cobourg Street, is open six nights a week.
Food is painstakingly prepared according
to the techniques and standards of French
haute cuisine, which is characterized by
elaborate preparations and presentations,
and then given a more contemporary
interpretation in the hands of critically
acclaimed Chef Neil Baxter. Rundles
offers a table d’hôte menu of approximately six appetizers, six entrees and six
desserts. In addition, Rundles usually
offers two or three three-course gastronomical menus featuring specialty ingredients. Reservations are needed well in
advance.
A bit of sad news in the Stratford restaurant scene came recently with the closing
of Chef Max Holbrook’s Globe Restaurant.
Chef/Owner Kim Morrow has moved the
three-year-old restaurant Asie from New
Hamburg to Stratford. Asie is pronounced
ah-SEE, meaning Asia en François. Morrow is known for fusing Far Eastern
flavours and techniques onto a classical
French base. The restaurant is now located
at 38 Erie Street.
Watch for my next column in which you
will hear the buzz on a new group of chefs
and restaurants and an update on any late
breaking developments about the group
you read about today. Be part of creating
the buzz; e-mail me with any interesting
culinary news at:
[email protected]
See you next month.
Sangria in the Summer
Sangria is quick and easy to make
and is a perfect drink to mix up for a
summer party. It’s also adaptable, so
take advantage of what is in season
or what you have on hand. Add your
favourite fresh fruits: apples, plums,
grapes, oranges, cherries, pineapple,
peaches, bananas, lemons, limes,
mangoes — any and all work well.
Use a decent red wine (we use
Amarone from Italy) as it does make
a difference. It’s a good idea to chill
the wine and juices ahead of time.
Here’s a great recipe that we use at
our restaurant. It’s easy to make but
oh so good. (For a large crowd, you
may even want to double this.)
Mix together in a large pitcher or
punch bowl:
1½ cups (375 mL) lemonade
1½ cups (375 mL) orange juice
3 cups (750 mL) good heavy country
wine
a jigger of cherry juice
Add fruit slices and
wedges and pour
over ice.
Enjoy!
BRYAN LAVERY is a writer, a founding member of Slow
Food London and a veteran of the London restaurant scene.
As chef/owner of the 10-year-old Murano restaurant, he
recently decided to take a break and sold the building. Yet he
remains busy with a variety of food-related activities,
including penning this column.
Recipe courtesy of
Dagmar Wendt of London’s
UNDER thE VOLCANO
restaurant, where this
favourite is available by
the glass, half litre or litre.
32
BEER
Explore Wheat Beer This Summer
By D.R. Hammond
t’s the first day of summer as I pen this
first column for the first eatdrink magazine. I’m sitting on the back patio and
Nat King Cole croons from my small table
radio, “Roll out those lazy, hazy, crazy days
of summer … Those days of soda and pretzels and beer.” Whoa, stop right there!
Summers in Canada are too short and precious to spend with stale pretzels and
ordinary beer. As a priest of the yeast, I
humbly declare: Forbid the thought!
My summer would not be
complete without delicious
cuisine and great beer.
Traditionally brewed for
summer quaffing, wheat
beer is an important part of
my sacrament of celebration, specifically German
Hefeweizens and Belgian
Witbiers. These styles are
well suited to slake a tall summer thirst—refreshing, flavorful, delicate, light in body,
tart-spicy-fruity. In character,
they have a dry finish and a
Champagne-like natural carbonation.
Although brewers have created beer from all manner of
grains for millennia, we
trace the origins of wheat
beer, as we know it, back to Bavaria Germany some 500 years ago. It is a very old
fashioned style even by German standards. Today’s wheat beers retain the same
traditional cloudy, quirky, spritzy and topfermented traits.
In the German language, weisse means
white, weizen means wheat and hefe
means yeast, so we can see that various
local names translate to “white beer,”
“yeast-white,” “yeast-wheat” and “wheat
beer.” These are not truly beers but “ales”
brewed with a unique top fermenting
yeast that produces the signature fruity-
I
bubblegum esters and spice (clove) phenols as it works on the sugars in malted
wheat and barley.
Served unfiltered and clouded with suspended wheat proteins and yeast, wheat
beer gives a massive frothy white head (or
cap) which stacks out of the glass and
lasts, lacing the sides of the glass as you
drain it. Weissebier should be served in a
proper weizen glass which holds a 500 ml
draught and resembles a tall pilsner glass
with a big bell opening to contain the massive cap.
Belgian Witbier, also called
“biere blanche” or “Belgian
white,” is also an ale brewed
with top fermenting yeast. This
Belgian version of wheat beer
traditionally uses only 40%
malted wheat, 54% pale barley malt and 6% unmalted
wheat and oats to give it a
milky-straw color. Suspended proteins give this
beer a wonderful dry character which compliments the
tart flavors introduced by the
addition of Curacao orange
peels and coriander and
other spices. This ale also
produces a massive fluffy
white cap when poured in
the traditional witbier tumbler.
Recommendations
Availability Key: LCBO = Liquor Control Board
of Ontario; TBS = The Beer Store; TAP = On
tap at better establishments.
Although no large Canadian national
brewer is making authentic unfiltered
wheat beer, craft brewers and imports give
us many good choices. I recommend
Schneider Weisse (lcbo 366070), the original and enduring weisse of the wheat beer
revival from the 1960s. This is a classic old
style wheat beer, with a deep amber color,
33
naturally cloudy with wheat protein and
yeast, a giant fluffy cap, fruity aroma esters
and toasty malts. It’s substantial in body
but goes to a dry, clean, crisp character in
the finish. LCBO
Hacker-Pschorr Hefe Weisse (lcbo
899187) is a premium German
hefeweizen imported from
one of Munich’s oldest breweries. It is a tad darker than
the other southern Bavarian
weissebiers but the proprietary yeast they use gives this
beer big banana and cloves
aromas. The amber malts give
this a more bready-sweet
body with a lightly drying finish and it produces the massive fluffy meringue head that
is the signature of a good German wheat beer. LCBO / TBS / TAP
Paulaner Hefe Weissbier
(lcbo 577296) is a solid commercial German Hefeweizen
from one of Munich’s oldest
brewers. Hazy yellow with a nice big frothy
cap, it has all the elements of the style
(spicy, fruity) but is less assertive than
Hacker-Pschorr. A wonderful creamy malt
body dries up in the finish and leaves a
banana-bread aftertaste. LCBO / TBS / TAP
A large and well established
Bavarian wheat beer brewery
offers Erdinger Weissbier
(lcbo 402230) and Erdinger
Dunkel Weissbier, dark and
golden hefeweisses respectively. These beers are quenching but very subtle in their
delivery of the fruit and spice
phenols we drink hefeweizens
for. This makes both a good
entry level wheat beer to
introduce the style to those
not familiar with it. Both are
seasonally on hand at the
LCBO but only kegs are available from The Beer Store.
LCBO / TBS / TAP
Hoegaarden Witbier (lcbo
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support a
student chef
Shape the future of Canada’s
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to the Stratford Chefs School
Scholarship Fund.
Your generosity gives you
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QRSDUNLQJIHHV7U\WKHDUHD·VRQO\FDVN
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34
554089) is the original Belgian witbier resurrected by Pierre Celis in his small craft
brewery in Hoegaarden, Belgium. His
brewery was bought by Inbev (who own
Labatt), so we see this great witbier
imported here. This is the
standard by which all wits
are judged. A hazy straw
color,
orange-coriander
tones, spritzy and dry in the
finish. If you get it on tap, be
sure they serve it in the traditional witbier tumbler.
LCBO / TBS / TAP
Edelweiss
Weissbier
Hefetruebe (lcbo 912535) is
a seasonal summer import
at the LCBO. This is from an
old established Salzburg
brewer who makes a
hefeweizen in the Austrian
style. Lighter in color, this is
a cloudy straw hue with a rich creamy cap.
The aroma and taste are rich with bananapineapple-bubblegum esters and the
clove phenols we want in a hefeweizen,
with a silky smooth mouth feel and a light
sweetness from the malts.
When fresh, this is one of the
better Hefeweizens available
at the LCBO. LCBO
On the domestic side, I
can also recommend Unibroue Blanche de Chamblay
(lcbo 927392). Sleeman
bought this small Quebec
craft brewer of Belgian ales
and made this excellent
Canadian version of a Belgian wit available to us in
Ontario. It’s cloudy pale
amber, spicy and fruity
with wheat and malt complexities, refreshing and
full flavored with a very dry
crisp finish. This is a “living” beer (bottle conditioned) with sparkling champagne-like
effervescence. LCBO / TBS
True North Wunder Weiss (lcbo 67654)
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is one of the triumphs of the craft brewing
facility Magnotta has been running in
Vaughn, Ontario for some time now. This
weissbier is a decent interpretation of the
Berliner weissbier style, with a clouded
gold color and a decently long lasting cap.
Some fruit esters and spice phenols are
detected in the aroma and taste. Overall, it
is a soothing dry ale. TBS
Nickel Brook Brewing Organic White
comes from a new Burlington microbrewer
that has been turning out a string of excellent seasonal beers. This summer, they’re
offering a hybrid wheat beer by merging
the hefeweisse and Belgian wit styles.
Brewer Ken will start with a 50/50 mix of
certified organic malted wheat and barley,
and organic German hops. Authentic
Hefeweizen yeast produces the fruity bubblegum esters but not the clove phenols,
but Ken will spice the beer with a dose of
coriander and Curacao orange peel. This
elixir should be out of the fermenters and
on tap at better establishments the first
week in August. TAP
PC Blanche Wheat Beer is a milder version of a Belgian witbier brewed by Brick
craft brewing of Waterloo. It has some of
the character of Belgian wits, some light
spiciness and citrus but a mild malty
palate for those more accustomed to
domestic lagers. TBS
Denison’s Weissbier comes from a
Cambridge microbrewer favored by beer
geeks and this hefeweizen has won many
awards on this side of the Atlantic. The
problem is it is only available in kegs and
in such demand that when a keg shows at
your local watering hole, it is drained by
Dining Room
35
thirsty beer geeks in a matter of hours.
Word gets out when this is on tap. Keep
asking your local publican when he will
get the next keg in and make sure you are
there to sample. TAP
Food Pairings
Personally, I have found the dry fruity
quenching qualities of wheat beers compliment hot spicy foods like Tex-Mex.
However, the fruitier, sweeter Hefeweisse
beers like Paulaner or Edelweiss compliment a variety of summer salads and
deserts. The more substantial amber
wheats like the Schneider and HackerPschorr are perfect with cold cuts and
cheeses.
My personal favorite is matching a tall
chilled glass of weissebier with a juicy
Angus burger fresh off the grill. As for the
Belgian whites like Hoegaarden and
Blanche de Chambly, these white beers
were just made to drink with shellfish. Last
summer in Halifax, one of the great pleasures we enjoyed with our hosts was washing down buckets of steamed mussels
with Hoegaarden and other fresh, locally
crafted wheat ales. As a rule, Belgianstyled witbiers do pretty well paired with
any seafood.
D.R. HAMMOND, aka “The Malt Monk,” is an engineer by
trade and a long-time beer enthusiast with a passion for dark
German lagers.
For more information
from The Malt Monk
about the history and making of wheat beer, click
this link online.
Lounge
restaurant se
36
TRAVEL
The Heart of Italy
By Bryan Lavery
was returning to Abruzzo, a sparsely river. And it was in Emilia-Romagna that I
populated mountainous region of Italy was first introduced to the Slow Food
that is known for its vast landscapes, movement.
historic hilltop towns and culinary reputaAfter my gastronomic tour of Emiliation. Abruzzo remains often overlooked by Romagna, I took a fast train from Rimmini
travelers. Until highways were tunnelled to Pescara along the undulating Adriatic
through the mountains, Abruzzo was con- coast. From Pescara, the train wound
sidered virtually inaccessible. The Abruz- through spectacularly steep mountaintop
zese Apennines curtained most of this scenery before descending dramatically
region from mainstream Italy, creating a series of unique regional
cuisines that reflect the unspoiled “Each morning, I brewed and finished a pot of strong
espresso while eating a variety of handmade traditional
and isolated pastoral environment.
Like the rest of Italy, Abruzzo is pastries.”
made of many districts, each with
distinctive traditional specialities.
The food may be quite different in
villages mere miles down the road
from each other. Highways now link
Abruzzo’s main cities to Rome and
Pescara and the regions of Marche
and Umbria. Far from the madding
crowds of Rome, Florence and
Venice, Abruzzo offers the perfect
escape and the pleasures at hand are
eminently culinary.
On a previous trip to Italy, I had trav- into the Peligna Valley, where the famed
elled to Abruzzo in mid-May while return- city of Sulmona boasts an interesting
ing from an intensive two-week cooking blend of Baroque, Renaissance and Gothic
excursion in Emilia-Romagna. Emilia- architecture.
When I was organizing this trip, I was
Romagna is arguably the culinary capital
of Italy, where I dined in a series of exqui- pleasantly surprised when I realized that
site restaurants and drank local wine on Sulmona neighbours the town of Pratolasunburnt piazzas, with each experience Peligna, where we planned to stay.
somehow eclipsing the last. It was there
Our accommodation was spacious, with
that I tasted the sweet elixir balsamico in rooms situated on the top two floors of a
Modena and watched the exquisite Parmi- magnificent four-storey casa that dated
giano-Reggiano cheese wheels being back to the 1860s. On the top floor was a
crafted in the very early morning. High- dining room with louvered French doors
lights included eating cheese made from opening onto Juliette balconies. These
the lining of a goat’s stomach in a 300- tiny balustrades of open metalwork overyear-old trattoria, dining at a chic restau- look the narrow street below. The internal
rant built at the top of an ancient cistern staircase above this floor leads to a flat
and watching culotello, the king of pork rooftop terrace with a stunning view of the
meat, being stored and cured in the attics Appenine Mountains and the patchwork
of former fishers’ homes beside the Po of medieval rooftops, church steeples and
I
37
bell towers that remain unblemished by modern architecture.
Seen from the terrace as morning
dawns, the sun appears above the
horizon between La Maiella and the
elliptical dome of Mont Morrone.
Looking across the valley, I could
make out the twinkling lights and
medieval village of Roccacasale rising from the cliffs of the mountainside. As it became lighter, the mist
rolled down the mountain and as
the sun changed its position I was
able to make out the ruins of city
walls and a 12th-century castle Every Friday, eager shoppers scan the offerings at the Pratolawending its way up the mountain. In Peligna Market (above). The portable stalls (below) offer an
the distance, the tallest and most abundance of locally grown fresh produce.
majestic mountains in the Appenine
range, the solitary Gran Sasso and
the peaks of the Maiella mountain
range were clearly visible. I watched
the morning light slowly saturate the
valley and its sentinel peaks.
I was drawn to the terrace by the
peaceful calm and breath-taking
view that encouraged me to be an
uncharacteristically early riser. Each
morning, I brewed and finished a
pot of strong espresso while eating a
variety of handmade traditional pastries procured from the local bakery
at the foot of the street. Enraptured,
I sat for hours watching the conspicuous dragged into the street to form a closed
flight of blue-backed swallows swooping circle. There they peeled fresh vegetables
and recounted the daily goings-on, with
in and around the rippled clay roofs.
Leaning over the fenced-in grey slate- the conversation almost a dress rehearsal
tiled rooftop, I called down to the neigh- for the nightly debates that bounced off
bour women who sat in a variety of the houses very late into the evenings.
mismatched kitchen chairs that they
Fridays are market days in Pratola-
38
Peligna. I awoke early to the rumble of the
sellers’ trucks arriving early on the quiet,
narrow hill streets. They drive quickly
along the worn, arched cobblestones, past
our balconies, to set up their culinary specialities of smoked, air-cured and salted
charcuterie, fresh fish, local cheese, wild
funghi, olives and abundant fruits and
vegetables in portable stalls on the neighbouring streets. At the midnight market in
Sulmona, I purchased the pungent white
truffles for which Abruzzo is well known.
Their earthy aroma and intoxicating
flavours infused many of our meals, elevating them to gastronomic splendour.
One of my favourite memories is of
watching coat-shorn truffle-hunting dogs
ply their trade before I retreated to a
mountainside terraced garden full of spiralled fruit trees so I could sample the first
crop of fresh green almonds. From where I
stood, the rich culinary life in Italy could
not have been clearer.
BRYAN LAVERY is a writer, a founding member of Slow
Food London and a veteran of the London restaurant scene.
As chef/owner of the 10-year-old Murano restaurant, he
recently decided to take a break and sold the building. Bryan
is now the compiler of the eatdrink buzz column (see
page 24).
For an outstanding recipe Bryan Lavery gathered on
his trip, read eatdrink online and click this link.
Have a gastronomic travel story to
tell about a recent trip? Whether it’s a daytripping
discovery of a local gem or a transcontinental
adventure, your story needs to focus on food and
drink. Professionals and amateurs, we want to see
you in print. Send your story (400-1000 words) to:
[email protected]. Winning entries will
receive a $50 gift certificate from a great restaurant!
Lunch: Friday 12-2 or by apt.
for groups of 10 or more.
Dinner: Mon-Sat 5:30-12pm
Reservations recommended.
Private parties accepted.
519.936.2064
172 King St. just E of Richmond
www.theonlyonking.ca
www.festaitaliana.ca
August 10-12, 2007
Covent Garden Market Square
Festa Italiana is a gathering
of authentic tastes, sights and sounds
straight from Italy
... an annual event guaranteed
to delight your whole family!
Set in the heart of the Forest City,
Festa Italiana celebrates our Italian
cultural roots through the arts,
family fun and, of course,
the world’s most delicious food!
London,Ontario
www.slowfoodlondonontario.ca
Slow Food London is pleased to
participate in Festa Italiana! Slow Food
originated in Bra, Italy in 1989 and now
has 80,000 members around the world.
Festa Italiana benefits the Italian Seniors’
Project which is dedicated to providing
Italian seniors with culturally sensitive care
through social activities, language, food
and ambiance in long-term care settings,
retirement home and programs.
40
MIXOLOGY
The Pomegranate Martini
From The Tasting Room
hat’s hot these days? Some say
that, despite its recent renaissance, the martini is once again
passé but to the over-thirty crowd at London’s The Tasting Room restaurant, it’s
anything but. The venerable martini
remains one of this establishment’s most
popular drinks, and as has been the current fashion, it’s available in a variety of
flavours. According to co-owner Pam
W
Recipe courtesy of The Tasting Room
Pomegranate Martini
1½ oz (45 mL) Vodka or Lemon Vodka
1 oz (30 mL) Cointreau
1-2 oz (30-60 mL) Pomegranate juice
Served on the rocks or strained over ice.
Garnish with pomegranate seeds.
For a lighter cocktail, adjust quantity of
pomegranate juice to taste.
Landsdowne, one of their best sellers is
the Pomegranate Martini.
First made popular by the likes of Oprah
Winfrey and Rachael Ray, this martini has
wide appeal. Not for ladies only, it’s especially refreshing in the summer and can be
“watered down” to please any palate. By
simply adding extra pomegranate juice,
you can go from a more classic martini
potency to a lighter (by volume) cocktail.
Long popular in the
Middle East, pomegranates
and pomegranate juice are
now available at most grocery chains. If you hate digging out pomegranate
seeds, they are sold seperately in small containers at
most fresh markets. This
tasty fruit also offers some
surprising health benefits.
Pomegranate juice is a
source of vitamins A, C and
E, potassium and niacin.
The pomegranate is also
extremely high in antioxidants, with some studies
showing the juice can contain up to three times the
antioxidants found in red
wine. Clinical research
shows that drinking pomegranate juice may keep prostate cancer
from recurring after treatment, prevent
clogging of the arteries and reduce the
onset of heart disease.
That means: drink up! Two martinis a
day may keep the doctor at bay.
THE TASTING ROOM offers a bar and a restaurant and is
located at 483 Richmond Street, London, two doors from The
Grand Theatre (www.thetastingroom.ca).
Thinking of
remodelling
your kitchen?
Why not remodel
your mortgage?
Have you dreamed about renovating your kitchen
or bath, or constructing a major addition? At some
point, the question "What about the money?"
enters your thoughts, and you pause. Borrowing
for these projects can be expensive – higher
interest rates and extra monthly payments deter
many plans.
At The Mortgage Store, we have helped
thousands realize their dream of improving their
home for more than 15 years.
We tailor make our solutions to each of our
customers, taking the time required to explore the
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assessing your individual circumstances, we look at
how your project can be completed in the most
affordable way.
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problem. They wanted to put in a new kitchen that
they estimated would cost about $35,000. Their
bank told them they couldn't afford another loan.
Their home is worth $280,000 and they were
paying about $1500 per month on their first
mortgage of $250,000.
We found a way to refinance their mortgage,
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flooring, a built-in oven and granite counter tops,
Tim and Julie put the finishing touches on a home
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Mississauga
519-642-0428
519-323-4332
905-282-9009
www.themortgagestore.ca
42
BOOKS
Healthy Food in a Hurry
Review by Jennifer Gagel
ooking to embark on healthy eating,
or to flesh out your collection of
fresh food ideas? Ultimate Foods for
Ultimate Health ... and Don’t Forget the
Chocolate (Whitecap Books Ltd. $29.95)
will be a welcome addition to your shelf. It
has many updated basics, such as Terrific
Salmon Teriyaki and Marvellous Minestrone. The recipes come
with witty tips and
explanations in the
sidebar, such as the
optional balsamic vinegar in the Minestrone,
explaining “how that little zip adds something
wonderful to the soup.” I
completely agree, and
promptly scratched out
the “optional” in my copy.
There are also fresh ideas
for those slightly more
adventurous, such as the
fusion of flavours found in
the Chicken with Lime, Garlic, and Cashews. The sweetness of the cashews contrasted
nicely with the salty, savoury soy sauce
and garlic. The chili garlic sauce gives
body, and lime adds a tangy element.
Other recipes, such as the Spicy Salmon
Cakes or Japanese-Style Edamame and
Corn Salad will appeal to those of us looking for some new healthy ideas.
The average everyday lifestyle is hectic,
and healthy eating is harder to adopt if it
encroaches too deeply into our precious
time. The recipes here reflect this, and are
high on convenience factor, low on time or
complicated prep work. The pantry suggestions will ensure that you can pull
together something nutritious in under 20
minutes. I am also quite happy with their
recommendation to stock Ribena, a concentrated blackberry syrup, and find it
quite versatile. For Londoners, I found a
L
more economical version at Sikorski
Sausage on Trafalgar Street.
There is something here for everyone,
including children, thanks to the kidfriendly tips. The recipes are fast and, in
the main, free from chemicals, though I’ll
still risk butter over margarine any day, even if it is
non-hydrogenated. The first
third of the book is devoted
to current information on
nutrition, with a section for
each super food, explaining its benefits and current
research. Included in the
berries section was some
information on pomegranate juice. “From
heart disease, to cancer,
to brain health, pomegranate juice is a truly
exciting food.”
This book does not
subscribe to fad diets,
but provides solid
nutritional information. For those so
inclined, they supply menu plans and
checklists to ensure you get your recommended servings. The lack of pictures is a
disappointment, but overall it is well laid
out, complete with both nutritional and
recipe indexes. The humourous interjections ensure it’s a pleasant read. For those
needing some encouragement to make
healthy choices, this would make an excellent gift.
JENNIFER GAGEL began her love affair with food at age
eight, cooking for a family of food lovers and fickle eaters
under the tutelage of her two European grandmothers. She
works for the London Public Library, where she scours the
cookbook selection to plan her next culinary experiment.
See the following page for sample recipes from this
book. You will find more recipes by clicking this link
online at eatdrinkmag.net .
43
Recipes courtesy of Liz Pearson & Mairlyn Smith, Ultimate Foods for Ultimate Health, Whitecap Books, 2007.
Chicken with Lime, Garlic & Cashews
1 7-oz (200 g) skinless, boneless chicken breast
Marinade
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 Tbsp (30 mL) low-sodium soy sauce
2 Tbsp (30 mL) garlic chili sauce
2 tsp (10 mL) canola oil
2 tsp (10 mL) fresh lime juice
Stir-Fry
2 large red peppers, thinly sliced
1 cup (250 mL) snap or snow peas
6 green onions, chopped into 4-inch (10-cm)
pieces
¼ cup (60 mL) unsalted cashews, chopped
coarsely
1
Slice chicken into ¼-inch (5-mm) slices. If
this is hard to do, place chicken in the
freezer for 20 minutes for easier slicing.
2
In a resealable plastic bag, mix together
the garlic, soy sauce, chili sauce, 1 tsp (5
mL) of the canola oil, and lime juice. Add
the sliced chicken. Marinate in the fridge
from 20 minutes to 12 hours.
3
When the chicken is marinated, heat a
medium-sized frying pan over medium
heat. Add 1 tsp (5 mL) canola oil and the
red peppers. Sauté for 1 minute. Remove
peppers from the pan and set aside .
4
Remove the chicken from the marinade
and add to the frying pan. Discard marinade. Stir-fry the chicken for 4 minutes.
Return the red peppers to the pan and
continue cooking for 1 minute. Add the
green onion and cook for 2 minutes.
Sprinkle with cashews and stir-fry for 1
minute. Serve.
Serves 4.
(Continued on Page 44)
519-667-4930
A taste of what’s on the menu in September ...
eatdrink
This month, Jennifer Gagel has
been cooking up a “Silver Palate”
storm. Read all about it in
44
Marvellous Minestrone
1 Tbsp + 1 tsp (20 mL) extra virgin olive oil
1 large onion, diced
2 large carrots, chopped
one 28-oz (796 mL) can diced tomatoes
one 19-oz (540 mL) can kidney beans
2 cups (500 mL) lower-sodium chicken broth
1½ cups (375 mL) water
4 cups (1 L) chopped kale leaves, stems
removed, or spinach
¼ cup (60 mL) whole wheat rotini
½ tsp (2 mL) red pepper flakes
¼ tsp (1 mL) pepper
2 Tbsp (30 mL) chopped fresh basil
2 Tbsp (30 mL) balsamic vinegar (optional)
1
2
Heat a large pot over medium heat. Add
the oil and the onion. Sauté for 5 minutes, stirring often, or until the onion is a
golden colour.
3
Add the tomatoes, beans (drained and
rinsed), chicken broth, and water.
4
Bring to a boil. Add the kale, rotini, red
pepper flakes, and pepper. Bring back to
a boil and cover. Reduce the heat and
simmer for 10-12 minutes, or until the
pasta is cooked.
5
Add the basil and vinegar, if using. Stir
and serve. If desired, sprinkle with
freshly grated Parmesan cheese.
Makes 10 cups (2.5 L) or six 1½-cup (375-mL)
servings.
Read eatdrink online
for two more great
restaurant search
recipes from this month’s featured cookbook. It’s just
a click away!
Add the carrots and the garlic. Sauté for
3 minutes, stirring often.
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Come look inside! Waldorf classrooms are
alive with the spirit of learning, using the
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through the arts, through social encounter,
and through the spirit of inquiry.
Book your appointment today to come
and experience this education for yourself.
7 Beaufort Street,
London ON N6G 1A5
519-858-8862
www.londonwaldorf.ca
The Best Product
You’ll Never See
Acrylic: Clear to Your Needs
Acrylic display products give
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promotional flyers and
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Keeping menus and other literature in neat and easily accessible
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We Make What We Sell
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Tel: 519 520 1270
Fax: 519 850 0521
www.grantonplastics.com
[email protected]
45
46
THE LIGHTER SIDE
Yes Chef
By David Chapman
n the 1980s, there was a wonderful
British television show called Chef,
starring comedian Lenny Henry in the
title role. Although it was a comedy, this
behind-the-scenes look at a high quality
restaurant kitchen was as realistic a portrayal as I’ve ever seen. There was irony,
humour, silliness and fun mixed with passion, hard work, terror and stress, just like
in a real kitchen.
One of the catchphrases in the show was
“Yes Chef.” This is one of the first things
one learns in the kitchen, soon after “the
chef is always right.” One never calls the
chef by his or her name; one always says,
“Yes Chef.”
“Yes Chef, I will work late tonight
because it is busy,” and “Yes Chef, I will
work my day off,” and “Yes Chef, I overcooked that steak.” (And will forever have
to live with the disgrace ...)
One might glean from these responses
that the kitchen is a dictatorship. One
would be correct.
In a great kitchen (one where cooks are
willing almost to work for free, in order to
learn from a master), there is a need for
discipline. It is a discipline of quality.
When a customer eats at this restaurant,
they want to—they need to—taste perfection. To attain that perfection, there must
be an almost religious devotion to quality.
That food must taste the same, day in, day
out, and it all starts with total respect for
“Chef.”
Years ago, I was working as a sous chef in
a Toronto hotel, and every night Chef
would go through the kitchen and say
good night to his brigade. As he went
down the line, it was always the same:
“Good night David.”
“Good night Chef.” The formal exchange
was repeated with every employee.
Except one night, Richard, an apprentice with a misguided idea of when to work
and when to play, said, “Good night Fred.”
I
The silence in the kitchen was audible.
All eyes were on Chef, the entire room
ready to witness whatever horror would
befall Richard.
Chef calmly walked over to the steamtable, took a fingerful of mashed potatoes,
and deposited it in Richard’s ear. He didn’t
say another word. When Chef left, we
exploded in relief and laughter.
A sense of humour is an inherent trait in
every great chef I have ever worked with.
Just don’t call him Fred.
DAVID CHAPMAN has been a respected and creative fixture
in the London restaurant scene for over 20 years. He is the
proprietor of David’s Bistro and manages The Katana Kafe.
Have a funny story to tell about your time
in the kitchen? Or have you watched (or were you
responsible for) a comedy of errors that you’re willing to share? Whether you’re a professional chef or
an amateur who rarely cooks, we want to see you in
print. Send your story (400-600 words) to: [email protected]. Winning entries will
receive a $50 gift certificate from a great restaurant!
eatdrinkmag.net
ALWAYS MORE ONLINE
eatdrink
Register for your free subscription
Online Edition
More photos, stories and links
to all things culinary.
GAMMAGE
GAMMAGE fLOWERS
fLOWERS
ChOCOLAtES
ChOCOLAtES by
by BERNARD
BERNARD CALLEBAUt
CALLEBAUt
Words of encouragement, a cup of
tea, a hug. Just some of the things we
give our friends when they need a
little lift. But if you can’t be at their
side, Gammage Flowers can be.
Imagine the smile as they receive a
hand-tied bouquet of exotic blooms
and a box of delightful Belgian
chocolates. The colours, the aroma
and your caring heart will embrace
them at the door. Gammage Flowers
and Chocolates by Bernard Callebaut.
Put Them Together
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519-434-5149
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[email protected]
Perfect for Weddings,
Inside & Out
WEB1
SEASONAL RECIPES
More About Garlic
By Christine Scheer
arlic has been grown for more than
5,000 years, and has a long history
of health benefits, safety benefits
(it was thought to repel vampires), and
spiritual (the Egyptians offered it to their
Gods). It is one of the easiest vegetables to
plant and grow, and makes a great companion crop as it tends to repel many garden bugs.
If you would like to grow your own garlic, plant it in October because it requires
a cold period to form cloves, and then in
the spring it will take off.
G
Roasted Garlic and Brie Soup
3 large heads of garlic (unpeeled, tops cut)
1 Tbsp (15 mL) dried thyme
1 Tbsp (15 mL) dried basil
¼ cup (60 mL) butter
1 medium onion, finely diced
2 celery stalks, finely diced
1 carrot, peeled, finely diced
¼ cup (60 mL) flour
6 cups (1.5L) chicken stock
1 tsp (5 mL) fresh oregano, chopped
1 tsp (5 mL) fresh thyme, chopped
7 oz Brie cheese, rind removed, cut into
small pieces
Salt, freshly ground pepper
There are three types of garlic:
Hardneck: This tends to bolt during the
growing season, forming scapes that need
to be cut off.
Softneck: doesn’t bolt and produces more 1
but smaller cloves. It is often used in garlic
braids.
Elephant garlic: a member of the leek
family. It has very large bulbs and cloves
with a mild flavour. It requires a longer 2
growing season.
Celebrate garlic at a local garlic festival!
Perth County has theirs on Saturday and
Sunday, August 11 and 12th. For more
information:
www.perthgarlicfestival.com
Stratford has their annual garlic festival
on Saturday, September 15th. For more
information:
www.stratfordgarlicfestival.com
Preheat oven to 350° F (180° C). Place
garlic in foil, drizzle with the olive oil and
the dried herbs. Close foil and roast garlic for 45 minutes.
Heat butter in heavy saucepan over
medium heat. Sauté onion until transparent. Add celery and carrot, sautéing
until tender.
3
Add flour to make roux. Gradually stir in
chicken stock, and bring to a boil. Simmer for a few minutes or so.
4
Remove garlic from oven, and squish out
the cloves into a small bowl. Mash the
garlic a bit, and add it to the soup along
with the fresh herbs. Simmer ½ hour.
5
Gradually add the Brie, and stir until
melted. Season and serve immediately.
Makes 6 servings.
WEB2
BEER
More AboutWheat Beer
By D.R. Hammond
oday’s Weizen Brau retains the same
cloudy, quirky, spritzy and top-fermented traits as its ancestors had.
Ripe with very unique, identifiable flavors
and aromas not usually associated with
German lager beer, wheat beers are riding
a new wave of popularity and now enjoy a
significant market share in Germany and
around the globe.
out in the 1950s until a brewer named
Pierre Celis resurrected the style in the
mid 1960s at his small craft brewery in
Hoegaarden Belgium. Again, as in the case
of German wheat beers, were it not for the
passion of a single brewer, this ancient
and noble spiced white beer of Belgium
would be dead to us.
The History
German weissebier, or German wheat
beer, has many names like weizen, weisse
bier, hefeweizen, hefe weisse and weizen
bier. With weisse meaning white, weizen
meaning wheat and hefe meaning yeast in
German, we can see that the various local
names translate to “white beer,” “yeastwhite,” “yeast-wheat” and “wheat beer.”
There are subtle differences in process,
color and ingredients between all these
local names for German wheat beer but by
and large all adhere to some conventional
similarities.
All are not beer but “ales,” brewed with a
unique top fermenting yeast that produces the signature fruity-bubblegum
esters and spice (clove) phenols as it
works on the sugars in the malted wheat
and barley. All use approximately 50%
malted wheat, the balance a mixture of
pale and amber malted barley. All are
served unfiltered and look clouded with
suspended wheat proteins and yeast. All
have subdued noble hopping. Because of
the amount of suspended proteins in the
beer, all will give a massive frothy white
head (or cap) that stacks out of the glass
and lasts, lacing the sides of the glass as
you drain it. Weissebier should be served
in a proper weizen glass which holds a 500
mL draught and resembles a tall pilsner
glass, with a big bell opening to contain
the massive cap on this beer.
Belgian Witbier is also called biere
blanche or “Belgian white”. This is also an
ale brewed with top fermenting yeast. This
T
Wheat beer was brewed for the first time
at the end of the 1400s by breweries owned
by the royal Bavarian families. By 1516,
Bavaria passed a purity law, which forbade
commoners to brew beer from any grain
other than barley. This made the Bavarian
royal brewers the sole makers of wheat
beer and the Bavarian princes the sole
consumers of wheat beer. It was thought
of as a royal delicacy in the early years of
German brewing, where all beer was dark
and rather heavy bodied. As the royal
breweries expanded, the public demand
for their royal wheat beers became impossible to suppress and, eventually, other
brewers were given royal authority to brew
wheat beer.
By mid 19th century, wheat beer popularity waned as new brewing and malting
techniques produced the wonderful new
pale and amber lager beers from Vienna
and Munich. Wheat beer would be a forgotten extinct style today if not for the
efforts of a single brewer named George
Schneider. Schneider steadfastly kept this
traditional style alive through some lean
times and was responsible in the resurgence of wheat beer popularity that it
enjoys today. Schneider is today one of
Germany’s premium wheat beer brewers
and we are lucky to have this wonderful
brew available to us in the Ontario market.
The history of Belgian witbier is similar.
A 400-year-old unfiltered Belgian wheat
ale style, indigenous to East Brabant, died
The Style
Belgian version of wheat beers traditionally uses only 40% malted wheat to 54%
pale barley malt. The addition of 6%
unmalted wheat and oats gives it a milkystraw color with the suspended protein.
That suspended protein also gives this
beer a wonderfully dry character that
compliments the tart flavors introduced
by the addition of Curacao orange peels,
coriander and other spices. Characteristically, these ingredients give the beer a
pleasant sweetness (often with a honey
and/or vanilla character) and a zesty,
orange-citrusy fruitiness. Refreshingly
crisp, it has a dry, often tart, finish. Herbalspicy flavors are common but not overpowering. All the suspended protiens also
produce an ale that producs a fluffy white
massive cap when poured in the traditional witbier tumbler. A refreshing,
elegant, tasty, moderate-strength wheatbased ale.
It is important to realize that although
witbier and hefeweizen both have fruityspicey characters. these aromas and flavors are achieved through yeast action in
the German wheat beers. In the Belgian
wheat beer, these tastes are the result of
adding spices and citrus peel to the brew.
WEB3
WEB4
TRAVEL
More From The Heart of Italy
By Bryan Lavery
picked up this recipe on my travels in
the Abruzzo region. While it’s fairly
involved, the results are worth it. Of
course, you may need to substitute
another meat for the Wild Boar, but this is
the traditional ingredient.
4
I
Wild Boar Ragu with Strozzapreti
6 Tbsp (90 mL) extra virgin olive oil
¼ pound (115g) pancetta, cut into small dice
2 pounds (900g) wild boar roast cut into ½inch cubes (or ground)
1 cup (250 mL)finely chopped onions
½ cup (125 mL) finely chopped celery
½ cup (125 mL)finely chopped carrots
1 pound (450g) wild mushrooms, chopped
2 Tbsp (30 mL) fresh chopped garlic
1 cup (250 mL) dry white wine
1 28-oz (800g) can D.O.P San Marzano tomatoes, diced, and their juices
2 Tbsp (30 mL) concentrated tomato paste
1 cup (250 mL) strong vegetable stock
1 tsp (5 mL) sea salt
½ tsp (3 mL) freshly cracked juniper berries
1 Tbsp (15 mL) chopped fresh sage leaves
1 Tbsp (15 mL) chopped fresh thyme leaves
½ cup (125 mL) heavy cream (optional)
1 pound (450g) fresh strozzapreti
freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano
1
In a large heavy pot, heat the oil over
medium-high heat. Add the pancetta
and sauté, stirring often, until the fat is
rendered and the pancetta is crisp.
2
Season the chopped or ground wild
boar and add to the pan. Cook, stirring,
until browned on all sides. Add the battuto (onions, celery, carrots,) and mushrooms. Sauté until soft and starting to
caramelize. Add the garlic and cook, stirring, for 1 minute.
Deglaze the pan with dry white wine
and reduce until not quite evaporated.
Reduce the heat to medium-low, cover,
and simmer, stirring intermittently, until
the meat is tender and the ragu thickens
and is aromatic, approximately 1½ hours.
Remove from the heat and stir in the
cream (if desired). Adjust the seasoning
to taste. Q.B.
5
Bring a large pot of abundant salted
water to a rolling boil. Add the strozzapreti and cook until al dente (when pasta
floats to the surface). Drain in a colander
and place in a large serving bowl.
6
Pour the ragu over top of the pasta and
mix so the ragu clings to the pasta.
Bryan Lavery's Fresh Pasta
for Strozzapreti
Fresh pasta is made with 1 lb 2 oz. of flour
and 5 whole eggs. In many regions of Italy,
only 4 eggs and a little water are used; in
others, 2 eggs and more water. In some
regions, only the egg yolks and a little oil
are employed. Regardless of these regional
variations, the dough must be well
kneaded—that is, until little bubbles are
visible in the dough—before being
stretched with the rolling pin.
1 lb. 2 oz. (500g) flour
5 whole eggs
semolina for sprinkling on strozzapreti
(optional)
1
3
Add the diced tomatoes, tomato paste,
vegetable stock, sea salt, juniper berries,
fresh sage and thyme and bring to a
rolling boil.
Pour the flour on a pastry board in a
cone-shaped mound. Break the eggs
into the center of the cone and blend
the yolks with the whites, using a fork or
fingers, then begin gradually mixing the
egg with the flour.
2
When the dough has a thick texture, so
that it is no longer possible to use a fork,
the egg will no longer be liquid and
about half of the flour will be incorporated. Continue to work with your hands,
pushing the dough up from all sides,
taking in as much flour as possible. Keep
kneading the dough for about 15 minutes.
3
The dough must be thick and rather stiff,
or it will be difficult to roll out. Wrap the
dough with a dry cloth and keep it
under a weight for half an hour. This
allows the dough (particularly the gluten
in the dough) to relax. It will be less elastic and much easier to roll out after a
short rest.
4
When the dough is ready, cut into thirds
or quarters. Work with one piece at a
time but remember to keep the remaining pieces covered. Roll pasta dough out
on lightly floured surface, beginning
from the center, to a thickness of 1/8 inch
(0.3 cm ). You have to use a long pasta
rolling pin for this. Sprinkle flour on the
surface of the dough before rolling out.
5
Roll up the rolled dough and cut diagonally into noodles (tagliatelle) of ¼-inch
(0.5 cm) width. Unroll the noodles and
spread on the work surface. Take an end
of every noodle and rub between the
palms of your hands. Cut the noodles
into 2-inch (5 cm ) pieces and put individual noodles on a clean towel. Sprinkle
noodles with a little flour or semolina.
6
It is important to prevent the noodles
from sticking together while drying. It is
best to use a large surface for the drying
process. Let dry for 2-3 hours before
cooking. You can make pasta the day
before and freeze.
WEB5
WEB6
BOOKS
More From Ultimate Foods for
Ultimate Health
Recipes Selected by Jennifer Gagel
his book contains a wealth of great Spicy Salmon Cakes
recipes. Here are two more that are
typical of the book: easy to prepare 1½ cups (375 mL) Spoon Size Shredded Wheat
+ Bran
and delicious.
T
Recipes courtesy of
Liz Pearson & Mairlyn Smith
Ultimate Foods for Ultimate Health
Whitecap Books, 2007
Japanese-Style Edamame and
Corn Salad
Combine the following with one of the
dressings below:
2 cups (500 mL) frozen, shelled edamame
beans
1 cup (250 mL) fresh cooked or frozen corn,
thawed
1 red pepper, diced
4 green onions, thinly sliced
Japanese Dressing
1 Tbsp (15 mL) fresh lime juice
1 Tbsp (15 mL) low-sodium soy sauce
1 Tbsp (15 mL) rice vinegar
2 tsp (10 mL) miso paste
1 tsp (5 mL) canola oil
1 Tbsp (15 mL) minced fresh ginger
Citrus Dressing
1 Tbsp (15 mL) frozen orange juice concentrate,
thawed
1 Tbsp (15 mL) canola oil
1 Tbsp (15 mL) rice vinegar
1 Tbsp (15 mL) honey
1 tsp (5 mL) Dijon mustard
Two 7.5-oz (213g) cans sockeye salmon, well
drained
2 Tbsp (30 mL) low-fat mayonnaise
2 Tbsp (30 mL) low-fat plain probiotic yogurt
1 Tbsp (15 mL) Dijon mustard
½ tsp (2 mL) Worcestershire sauce
2 tsp (10 mL) garlic chili sauce
½ medium onion, minced
½ red pepper, minced
¼ cup (50 mL) finely chopped fresh cilantro
1
Preheat the oven to 425°F (220°C)
2
In a food processor, pulse the cereal until
fine. Measure out ½ cup (125mL) and set
aside to use for the coating.
3
Put the salmon (bones and all) into the
food processor and pulse several times.
4
Add the mayonnaise, yogurt, Worcestershire, garlic chili sauce, onion, and red pepper. Pulse until well combined.
5
Add the cilantro and lime juice and pulse
until combined.
6
Using a ¼ cup (60mL) ice cream scoop with
a release button, scoop out 8 salmon
scoops and place into the reserved crumbs.
7
Press the salmon gently into the crumbs
and make sure both sides are well coated.
Flatten to ¾ inch (2 cm) thickness.
8.
Place them on a cookie sheet lined with
parchment paper. Bake for 20 minutes.
Serve.
Makes eight 3-inch (8-cm) cakes or four 2-cake
servings.

eat drink Summertime eatdrink

Transcription

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