EAT Magazine Dec 2020|Jan 2021 Issue

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Smart. Local. Delicious.

Winter

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INDEPENDENT & ISLAND OWNED

DECEMBER 2020 | JANUARY 2021 ISSUE 24-06

21 years at the forefront of local food and drink

GET A TASTE OF THE ISLAND.

Welcome Season’s greetings!

Ask my friends; they’ll tell you this is my favourite time of year. From the aroma of a fir tree to the smell of the homemade bits n’ bites in the oven, from gathering with friends and family to walks downtown in the frosty air, sipping hot chocolate and looking at the lights.

This year, the holiday season will be different. But I can still bake the tourtière pie and shortbread cookies, get my favourite treats from my favourite food shops, and sip a brandy by the fire. Our holiday food traditions can remain as tasty as in past years.

In this packed issue, we talk hot sauces to give you a kick, give some ideas for the smaller gatherings we’ll be having for the next few months, dive into olive oil, and discuss outdoor wood ovens (on my wish list, if anyone’s asking). You’ll find more to read in our regular columns and in a new column, Enthusiastic Eats, which we hope you’ll enjoy.

We want to thank our advertisers for their support in 2020. We’d like to thank our readers for their loyalty to EAT magazine and for stepping up to support our advertisers as well as supporting the food and beverage industry as a whole, during these unprecedented times.

From all of us at EAT, wishing you the best of the holidays, and a very Happy New Year!

See you in 2021!

Cynthia Annett -Hynes

CYNTHIA ANNETT-HYNES EDITOR

CITY EATS

REBECCA BAUGNIET

A new bakery has opened in the Leland building at 2506 Douglas St. Working Culture Bread is serving up naturally leavened sourdough breads, as well as a rotating selection of sweet and savoury pastries. They are open WednesdaySunday. Keep an eye on their Instagram feed for updates. workingculturebread.com Also in Rock Bay is a new neighbourhood market: Rock Bay Market is located at 2725 Rock Bay Ave and carries a selection of locally sourced, wild and seasonal provisions, such as their own fermented preserves, local seafood, and kombucha. rockbaymarket.ca One of the businesses that closed permanently due to Covid was downtown’s Chocolat – Chocolatiere de Victoria. We will miss their friendly service and unique selection of handcrafted truffles. Chocolat & Co. is now in that location (703 Fort St.), brought to us by a collective of three local chocolate businesses: Terrible Truffles, Uncouth Chocolate, and The Chocolate Project. chocolatandco.com Très Gourmet Bakery has opened at 1280 Broad Street, offering a tempting array of baked goods, including scones, croissants, bread puddings, madeleines, savoury buns and a vegan selection as well. i​nstagram.com/tresgourmetcafe ILLUSTRATIONS: ISTOCK.COM/COSMAA

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DECEMBER 2020 / JANUARY 2021

Signs are up announcing the upcoming arrival of the Singing Swan in the beautiful heritage space previously occupied by The Guild. Stay tuned for updates.

The Red Cedar Café has relocated to 3020 Blanshard St. The Red Cedar Café is a not-for-profit community meal program to provide healthy, affordable meals to seniors, people in self-isolation and other people in need in Lekwungen and W̱SÁNEĆ territory (Victoria, BC).

The social enterprise was founded in April 2020 to meet community needs arising from the Covid-19 pandemic. redcedarcafe.ca The Empress Hotel has announced that they will be taking advantage of the slower season ahead to complete necessary renovations to their heating system.

The temporary closure is planned from early January to April 1 2021. ​ fairmont.com/empress-victoria Olo, the beloved restaurant on Fisgard Street that promoted sustainable farming practices, seasonality, and knowing the stories of the growers, has closed their doors permanently. We thank chef Brad Holmes and his team for ten years of exceptional, memorable food and wish them well in their future endeavours! olorestaurant.com The Fickle Fig Farm Market has just opened a new bakery and

bistro at Victoria international airport (Pre-Security). Open daily from 5am – 6pm. theficklefig.ca For Good Measure is Victoria's original bulk food store. Started in 1983, what was originally the Cadboro Bay Bulk Food Store became For Good Measure Premium Bulk Food in 1994.

In September, they opened their second location at 579 Niagara Street in James Bay. The James Bay store also includes a café. forgoodmeasure.ca The Oak Bay Beach Hotel has recently introduced FARO Lane, an extension of FARO Handcrafted Pizza and Tasting Room’s outdoor patio brought indoors by transforming the Conservatory into FARO Lane, a “pop-up” indoor patio. ​ oakbaybeachhotel.com/faropizza Bubby Rose’s Bakery is opening a new location on Government St at the corner of Johnson St (formerly David’s Tea). bubbyrosesbakery.com Citrus and Cane is a new tropical cocktail bar opening soon at 1900 Douglas Street (formerly The Copper Owl).

Follow developments on Instagram. ​ instagram.com/citrusandcane ​The 12th Annual Gingerbread Showcase may look a little different this year. With ten host locations around the community, the organizers

On the cover:

Salmon En Croute with Spinach and Cream Styling + Photography:

Rebecca Wellman

Recipe on page 43

hope you will come to view and vote for your favourite creation. Bakers are working on their version of this year’s theme, "Coastal Living". The annual fundraiser brings together professional and amateur bakers from around the region in support of the work of Habitat Victoria. Running from Nov 21 2020 – Jan 3 2021. h ​ abitatvictoria.com/​ gingerbread2020 The Belfry’s Crush Fine Wine Auction is going online from November 30 to December 6. Staff, volunteers, and board members from Victoria ’s Belfry Theatre have been raiding some of Victoria’s best private wine cellars to find rare and unusual wines to auction online for Crush 2020. Monday Magazine columnist Robert Moyes is again preparing educational vignettes for the curated Collector’s auction. His notes will be online in advance of the event. belfry.bc.ca/crush The Moss Street Market’s 26th annual Holiday Market will be on Saturday and Sunday, December 12 & 13, 2020 from 10am to 4pm each day. Featuring over 80 vendors offering locally-made crafts, cards, art, clothing, jewellery, household items, PLUS meat, fish, winter vegetables, coffee, apple cider and much more! mossstreetmarket.com The Victoria Whisky Festival 2021 is scheduled to run from January 14th through January 17th, 2021 at the Hotel Grand Pacific. Due to the Covid-19 pandemic and the restrictions that have evolved over the last number of months, the 2021 Festival has been reconfigured significantly. The Festival will hold a limited number of Masterclasses & Grand Tastings per day and where presenters will conduct their events remotely. The VIP and Consumer Tastings will not be held at the 2021 Festival. victoriaw ​ hiskyf​ estival.com

Visit eatmagazine.ca for more articles, recipes, news and events.

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DECEMBER 2020/JANUARY 2021

FOUNDER

Gary Hynes PUBLISHER

Pacific Island Gourmet EDITOR

Cynthia Annett-Hynes CONTRIBUTING EDITOR/COPY EDITOR

Carolyn Bateman VANCOUVER CONTRIBUTING EDITOR

Julie Pegg SENIOR WINE WRITER

Larry Arnold LAYOUT AND DESIGN

Cynthia Annett-Hynes PRODUCTION AND DESIGN

Amanda Batchelor REGIONAL REPORTERS

Victoria, Rebecca Baugniet CONTRIBUTORS

Isabelle Bulota Nate Caudle Cinda Chavich Jennifer Danter Jacqueline Downey Gillie Easdon Deb Garlick Kyle Guilfoyle Lillie Louise Major Denise Marchessault Elizabeth Monk Daniel Murphy Elizabeth Nyland Daisy Orser Adrian Paradis Emma Rossum Adrien Sala Shelora Sheldan Johann Vincent Rebecca Wellman REGIONAL/NATIONAL ACCOUNT MANAGER

Susan Worrall ADVERTISING ACCOUNT MANAGERS

Ron Metella Lorraine Browne CONTRIBUTING AGENCIES

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Wanderlust

JULIE PEGG

NO MATTER HOW YOU SLICE IT

For food writer and traveller Julie Pegg, the humble sausage is both a paean to place and the perfect outdoor nosh in chilly weather.

ON MY TRAVELS, it’s not long before arms overflow with wine, local cheeses, bread—and sausage. When I’m looking for a taste of a place, these items nail it. These days, though, I’m doing quite nicely wandering through cookbooks and larder and trekking to local farmers’ markets, cheese mongers, and meat shops.

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When it comes to the sausage, no matter how you slice it, it isn’t pretty or sophisticated.

But that lack of refinement is exactly what I find inherently comforting about the sausage. A top-notch farmer, good butcher, and deft sausage maker can turn lean and fat, pepped up with various herbs and spices, into a cylinder of down-to-earth damn deliciousness. Sausages can be wedged into a bun, chucked into soup, tossed into pasta, sliced onto polenta, or over a bed of legumes. And more than once I’ve plucked a leftover sausage straight from the fridge for a snack. All that said, I’m no fan of the all-American hot dog. As a kid I’d load a bun with mustard, relish, and onions and pitch the frank.

Chances are this winter you are socializing within your bubble and outside as much as possible—clad in a woolly toque, scarf, and those funny gloves with no finger tips. The dining room may the beach, the park, or a

space by the patio heater or firepit. For such chilly-day eating, the versatile sausage is ideal.

Northern Europeans don’t think twice about eating outdoors on frosty days. The Germans chow down on bratwurst and a squiggle of mustard on a bun for a snack on the run. I’ve discovered Bavarian weisswurst (with its snap of lemon and parsley), a dollop of sweet mustard, a big soft salty pretzel—and a wheat beer, an even better snack. On a cool fall day in Berlin I lined up at a food cart for the incredibly popular currywurst—a wiener doused in curry ketchup. I tasted it once—then relegated it to hot dog status.

Far more agreeable is a bulette served with warm potato salad in a café by the Spree River, which runs through the city. Often referred to as the Berlin hamburger, the flattened and fried beef and pork meatball, plumped with torn bits of soft bread and seasoned with parsley, mustard, marjoram, and sometimes caraway, tastes more like sausage to me. The savoury patty is the ideal set up for a brisk walk along the waterfront. On another trip, I strolled Budapest’s food square on a damp grey day clutching a sausage in a bun packed so tightly with crisp salad and hot peppers, I could barely make out the PHOTO: ISTOCK.COM/LENA_ZAJCHIKOVA

sausage. In Reykjavík, my sister and I, after an early morning flea market adventure, did as the locals do. It may have been -10ºC but we plunked ourselves on a bench and tucked into iconic lamb and beef hotdogs, topped with “the works,” barely aware of the cold.

Back indoors, it’s sausages once more to the rescue. I can quickly pull together sausages and fixings for an alfresco get-together and, at the same time, soothe a travel restlessness. Although I seldom go wrong serving up a plate of plump bangers and mash or tomato-sauced pasta with spicy Italian sausage, I explore a few cookbooks for inspiration. I’ll give James Villas’ braised pheasant with garlic sausage a miss, thank you very much. As for Alice Waters’ recipe for marinated quail and Toulouse sausage skewers with bay leaves, I’ll just skip the quail. I’m all for Marcella Hazan’s recipe for cotechino, a delicate, creamy, chubby sausage punctuated with cloves, nutmeg, and garlic, slowly boiled for a couple of hours then sliced atop a plate of lentils. The dish truly is, as Hazan states, “especially heartening on a cold winter day.”

Han dmade Eth i cal I could spend the better part of a month concocting Elizabeth David’s no fewer than 25 sausage preparations from French Provincial Cooking. But my eye hones in on a paragraph describing Alsace poached sausage (David doesn’t specify what kind) with creamy horseradish sauce. “(Bottled horseradish will not do).” This with a glass of Pinot Gris or simple Pinot Noir, a cheese course, and crusty bread is a perfect winter luncheon.

The recent buzz around John Birdsall’s biography of James Beard, The Man Who Ate Too Much, prompts me to fish out my 1999 copy of The Armchair James Beard.

There, on page 30, is a dead-easy recipe for making herb sausage—ground pork and cubed fat seasoned with cloves, basil, garlic, salt, pepper, shaped into patties, and fried—and an equally simple recipe for buttermilk pancakes. I may add to the sausages and pancakes Madame Benoit’s Maple Syrup Rum Baked Beans from her 1970 Canadiana cookbook (subbing in beer for the rum,) and a mug of dark roast.

I’ll hunker down, a blanket over my lap in front of the fireplace or firepit. And I’ll be a happy camper, literally—right here at home.

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The Hallway 8

DECEMBER 2020/JANUARY 2021

J.R. Slims THE FLYING PIG on Wharf Street underwent a rebrand in late September and has reopened as J.R. Slims. The Victoria location opened in 2018 as the fourth restaurant in the Vancouver-based chain, but Andrew Ralph, J.R. Slim’s partner and general manager, says the Flying Pig Restaurant Group felt they missed the mark with their Victoria location.

The menu is in keeping with the Flying Pig’s style of comfort food done well. The Wharf Street burger towers over the plate with a double patty,

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JRSLIMS.CA

an onion ring, and poblano Cheddar cheese. In addition to a selection of fresh tacos, spicy noodle bowls and share plates, there is also an eye-poppingly huge rack of baby back ribs that nearly careens off the plate. The dessert menu also has a nod to the noble Victoria tradition of shafts with a shaft crème brûlée shooter.

The cocktail menu is small but charmingly quirky with classic cocktails often boasting a unique twist. As a not-so-subtle tribute to the artist Prince, When Doves Cry is a classic gin fizz but made purple with Empress Gin. J.R.’s prosecco cocktail made with Stoli Blueberry, elderflower liqueur, and lemon is lovingly named Kashmir after the Led Zeppelin song. simple As the night goes on at J.R. Slims, the music creeps up in volume and the atmosphere gets lovingly boisterous. “I didn’t want this to be a stuffy cocktail room,” says Ralph. “We’re not a fine dining restaurant. We do simple stuff that still has those great flavours and unique touches to it. This is a place where we want people to enjoy coming in, even if it’s just for drinks.” ADRIAN PARADIS

JOHANN VINCENT

Compared to its former iteration, J.R. Slims has moved away from the steakhouse atmosphere, leaning into the casual cocktail lounge aesthetic.

Keeping the plush seats and high top tables, the dining room is adorned with dark wood stains and window bar seating facing the street. Culture references abound in both the restaurant’s decor and in hidden treasures on the menu. The name itself is a reference to Jack Rabbit Slims—the diner where Uma Thurman and John Travolta order the “five-dollar milkshake” in Quentin Tarantino's iconic Pulp Fiction.

1245 WHARF ST., VICTORIA 250 -483-3814

The Wharf St Burger-double patty, onion ring, poblano cheddar, iceberg lettuce, tomato, potato bun

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The Hallway 778-265-8988

|

1724 DOUGLAS ST., VICTORIA

T H E H A L LWAY V I C T O R I A . C O M

OPENING A RESTAURANT is a challenging undertaking at the best of times.

Doing so during a global pandemic presents a whole host of new problems. This hasn’t stopped two young and ambitious restaurateurs from opening up The Hallway at 1724 Douglas St. Moving into the former location of Northern Quarter, Jeremy Fischer and Gareth Bray-Bancroft are striving to offer fine-dining-style food at an accessible price tag.

The stage from the restaurant's former life has been removed and the dining room has been updated in keeping with the new aesthetic. Decorative wood slates adorn the walls leading to a purple backlit bar at the end of the long narrow space. While the menu is somewhat eccentric, not conforming to any one cooking style, the food is as stunning to look at as it is delicious. Considerable time and attention is taken to balance colour and arrangement on each plate. The seared scallops entrée, for instance, arrives as a well-arranged pallet of green (fresh peas and shaved asparagus) and bright orange (smoked carrot emulsion) surrounding the pillowy gnocchi and tender pork hock terrine. The roasted pork belly with soft poached egg comes encircled in plum preserve and topped with buttery manchego cheese.

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After running a small café in Vancouver together, the two have been looking to expand their experience for some time now. The Hallway’s kitchen aims to make everything from scratch from ingredients that are as local as possible. “Virtually everything on your plate was made in-house,” says Fischer, “When things go out of season, we will try to change it up to get more seasonal replacements before we get something from further away.”

Seared Scallops with wild prawn terrine, charred squash emulsion, milk gnocchi, asparagus In keeping with their accessible ideology, burgers with a house-made brioche and pint are offered on special on Thursdays. Brunch on the weekends includes bowls of breakfast ramen — what has been called the absolute best hangover cure.

“There was a lot of a learning curve. This experience has been crazy, but also so rewarding,” says Fischer. “The reception we’ve been getting and the support from the community has been amazing. People coming out together and supporting us as a new business, especially during a pandemic, has been amazing.” ADRIAN PARADIS

Eating Well for Less

ELIZABETH MONK

HAPPY HOUR, MEET FINE DINING

Zambri’s and The Courtney Room offer choice menu items at happy hour

Zambri’s

820 YATES ST NEAR BLANSHARD, 250-360-1171

Elegant but affordable sums up the menu. There’s something refreshing in the presence of vegetables on a happy hour menu. Crispy Broccoli is a flavour explosion, three huge spears with the crispiness of popcorn thanks to a clever transformation involving cornstarch and powdered cheese. This playful finger food comes on a cloud of chili mayo for swirling. The side Caesar salad has baby gem lettuce, drizzled dressing, and a cheeky bit of crumbled anchovy and egg on top.

But sometimes you just do want some protein and potatoes at happy hour time.

Yes, there are wings, and they are special. The large, meaty wings, offered individually, are available in a salt and pepper parmigiana flavour and a spicy La Bomba, coated in the restaurant’s house-made chili sauce. And replacing the crispiness of

ELIZABETH NYLAND

THESE MAY NOT ALWAYS BE the happiest of times, here in the midst of a pandemic, but at least happy hours are around to cheer us up. Friday and Saturday evenings from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. are very happy indeed at Zambri’s, with menu items ranging from $2.50 to $7.00, and tons of space between tables thanks to an indoor patio in the spacious lobby of the Atrium Building.

HAPPY HOUR OPTIONS AT ZAMBRI'S: CRISPY BROCCOLI WITH CHILI MAYO, CHICKEN WING (SPICY LA BOMBA) AND DRUM (SALT & PEPPER PARMIGIANO), SUPPLI (FRIED RICE BALL WITH CHEESE) French fries in your cravings is “Suppli,” crispy fried puffs of arborio rice wrapped around stretchy mozzarella. Or for potatoes, upgrade to the Gnocchi with Gorgonzola Sauce and Peas for a creamy treat.

Shafts for $5, glasses of wine for $6 and cocktails like Negronis for $7 top off the party atmosphere during happy hour at Zambri’s.

11

The Courtney Room 619 COURTNEY ST AT GORDON ST, 250-940-4090

ELIZABETH NYLAND

I AM JUST AS HAPPY to be at the happy hour at the Courtney Room, offered from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. every day. Here you can enjoy the grandeur of the space with Covid mandated table spacing in place and the complex cocktail menu while eating interesting and affordable food.

I’m going to go straight to the pièce de rÊsistance: the Duck Corn Dog—gluten-free no less! Local business Haus Sausage Co makes them, and the chef enhances them with house-made mustard and plum ketchup. This is more of a small meal than a snack, for $15.

Duck fat also gets put to good use in their signature Potatoes Courtney for $7.

Here, grated potatoes are molded into a square and fried in duck fat until they are golden and crispy on the outside, and soft in the inside. These are delectable on their own, and sublime when dipped in the accompanying pickled shallot ranch dip.

Vegetarians and vegans are well taken care of with the Littlest Acre Squash Dip for $12. Squash is blended with tahini, creating a hummus-like texture, and Bellegarde cheese from Duncan is sprinkled on top if desired. The accompanying vegetables are graceful and elegant, with my favourite being a tiny halved turnip complete with its greens. The potato flatbread on the side shows how every small element of this dish is noteworthy.

A HAPPY HOUR FAVOURITE AT THE COURTNEY ROOM: DUCK CORN DOGS WITH PLUM KETCHUP AND BALLPARK MUSTARD Nightly features outside the happy hour menu offer even more accessible menu items. For instance, on Sundays and Mondays, the burger is on for $15. Since the Courtney Room has a steak program, the trim that goes in to the burgers is from striploin and 70-day-aged ribeye, adding lots of aroma and flavour.

Classic cocktails are on for $10 during happy hour, but for a winter treat, the Mist Sipper (coffee, Kina Lillet, Islay whisky, bourbon) actually smokes in its carafe and evokes the feeling of sitting by a fireplace on a cold day.

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12 DECEMBER 2020/JANUARY 2021

Enthusiastic Eats

DAISY ORSER

I’M HUMAN. YOU’RE HUMAN. I EAT. YOU EAT. Daisy Orser is passionate about food, and shares her enthusiasm with EAT about shopping for it, growing it, preparing it, and eating it. In a new column, she’ll take us along for the ride. fuelled by the smell of wet moss and crushed pine needles. If you gift me homemade canning, I might tear up a bit.

EMMA ROSSUM PHOTO

I WAS VOTED MOST ENTHUSIASTIC when I graduated high school.

When I see a whale or an eagle, I clap my hands and bounce up on my toes. Sometimes when I’m hiking in the woods, I am so captivated by the smell that I have to sit down for a minute and breathe it in with eyes closed, like I’m filling a tank that can only be

rhubarb too 810 catherine. vic west rhubarb too

So when I enthusiastically suggested to EAT that instead of writing about veggies in my Get Fresh column, I write about my enthusiasms, particularly the ones around the values of meal time, the communities we build around food, the relationships that bring beautiful food to our tables, about sustainable local food systems, and about eradicating food insecurity, I was so sold I couldn’t imagine the magazine not being sold too. Luckily, they also liked the idea, believing my enthusiasm would be contagious. That perhaps at least one of you would get hot under the collar about these things that make me itch. I’m not talking activism; I’m talking about increasing our connection to the simple act of eating that every single person on the face of this earth participates in.

And why would you want to listen to me chatter about all this? I don’t know! But I’m hoping you might see yourself in me. I’m a person, you’re a person. I eat, you eat. My husband and I own The Root Cellar Village Green Grocer, a small but mighty market with a strong local focus, a passion for sustainability, a hunger for reducing food insecurity,

and a great enthusiasm for the values of food. This is my wheelhouse; I don’t just sell groceries.

My very favourite “Root Cellar experience” is when I overhear a customer touring an out-of-town guest or relative around “their market” with a shared pride and enthusiasm for “all the local things” and “how they tell you who grew it!” This is all my dreams come true, seeing our community taking pride in where they shop and who grew or made their food—whether it’s at our store or your own favourite. We have seen an acceleration of this phenomenon during Covid-19 and believe it to be evidence of a positive shift in food values. I also believe the best is yet to come.

We all need to eat to survive; it is a shared human fluency. Many of us are privileged to be able to eat multiple times a day without a second thought; many others do not have this privilege but are consumed by thoughts of it. What if we could create a butterfly effect for food sustainability by gently increasing mindfulness as we put that fork in our mouths, or by elevating the value we give to the time we spend shopping, cooking, and eating food, or simply by participating enthusiastically. I’m in.

I hope you are too.

Daisy Orser is co-owner of The Root Cellar Village Green Grocer

Parry Bay Sheep Farm Metchosin, BC

810 catherine. vic west

@rhubarbdesigns

UNCOMMON GOODS

@rhubarbdesigns

UNCOMMON GOODS

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Parry Bay Sheep Farm along with Stillmeadow Farm sells lamb, pork and roasting chicken to restaurants and butcher shops in Victoria and through our on-farm market in Metchosin. We truly appreciate those who “walk the talk” and support local producers. From picturesque pastures to backyard barbecues Parry Bay lambs make people smile.

John & Lorraine Buchanan 250.478.9628 contact@parrybaysheepfarm.com www.parrybaysheepfarm.com

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13

Kitchen Notebook

DANIEL MURPHY

The 4,000-Year-Old (Extra) Virgin Can olive oil’s purity survive its exploitation?

Daniel Murphy takes a deep dive into the world of a kitchen staple.

T

he history of olive oil is as long as it is strange: Ritualized in religious and sporting ceremonies, recommended as a topical contraceptive (by Aristotle, no less), and counterfeited by the same criminal organizations that run hard drugs and guns. While salt is generally regarded as the most important food ingredient in the history of humanity, olive oil might be the most interesting.

polyphenols, free fatty acids, oleic acids, and (naturally occurring) peroxide—with a sensory imperative that it’s also “fresh” and devoid of obvious taste and aroma defects. But, according to Cherilee, North American labelling requirements make this distinction almost irrelevant: “Ten percent of that bottle

Today, fine quality, cold-pressed extra virgin olive oil (EVOO) is regarded as a staple of haute cuisine—a belief so pervasive that there’s very likely a bottle of mass-produced, supermarket-bought EVOO in your pantry. After all, it’s still “extra virgin,” right? Once widely accepted as a signifier of the highest quality oil, this common assumption is now under increasing scrutiny.

We all believe that EVOO is the pinnacle of olive oil production, but … why?

As Cherilee Dick, owner of Victoria Olive Oil Co., points out: “Olive oil should always be the unfiltered first press of the olive.” This may sound obvious, but industrialization has complicated the process—stone presses have given way to stainless steel crushers, centrifuges and hammer mills. In the quest for efficiency, new technologies, like chemical solvents and heat applications, evolved to increase yields. Oil that showed poorly after first pressing could now be refined to bring it in line with the technical requirements that define high quality olive oil.

needs to be actual EVOO, and it can still say ‘extra virgin’ on the label. If it doesn’t have a crush date, a harvest date, and an expiry date on the bottle, it’s not 100% extra virgin olive oil.”

The classification “extra virgin” is only achieved after passing laboratory testing for specific levels of

As recently as 2019, The American Olive Oil Producers Association filed a citizen petition urging

14 DECEMBER 2020/JANUARY 2021

the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to “promulgate regulations for the standards of identity for olive oil and olive-pomace oil,” a heavily refined byproduct. The petition claims that lack of proper identification has led to “widespread mislabeling of grades, adulteration, consumer mistrust, and unfair and unethical industry business practices,” and that the “continued absence of an enforceable standard is harming consumers, leaving them unable to differentiate between high quality extra virgin olive oil and low-quality, old or rancid oils, as well as cheap by-products.”

Many times it’s not just the “extra virgin” designation that’s questionable—but rather, is it olive oil at all?

Pressing olives is a relatively expensive process, far more costly than mixing in seed oils like sunflower, canola, or rapeseed—which can then be chemically deodorized and flavoured to create a passable EVOO imitation.

These underhanded techniques aren’t just a devaluation of flavour—they severely undermine any health benefits associated with pure EVOO, and leave consumers who suffer from allergies or sensitivities vulnerable to unknowing exposure.

And it’s not as simple as assuming that only cheaper oils are fraudulent.

Sadly, there’s no reason to believe that expensive, or “organic” oils are pure. According to reporting in Forbes magazine, “There are enough studies by olive oil associations and food authorities that document instances when a more expensive olive oil is simply a more elaborate fraud.”

ILLUSTRATIONS: ISTOCK.COM/VISUALTHINGS, ISTOCK.COM/PRIMO-PIANO

Although authentic, 100-percent EVOO subscribes to a baseline purity—without being refined, blended, or tampered with using adulterating technology— this isn’t to say that technology can’t play a positive role: most high-volume processors of quality EVOO have turned to centrifuges to separate their oil from the olive “must” (the freshly crushed juice of the olive) in a gentle, low-impact environment that maximizes yield while maintaining quality.

When selecting your olive oil, there are some simple rules of thumb to follow: “If you ever see an EVOO in clear glass, don’t buy it,” says Cherilee. In a perfect world, the olive oil wouldn’t even leave its “fusti”— a traditional closed-top, steel keg with a pouring spigot that eliminates light penetration, oxidization, and temperature fluctuations—until the oil had been selected by a customer, and then poured off fresh into a dark glass bottle. But a dark amber, or at least green, bottle from a store shelf is a good first step.

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Is all this attention and protection just theatrics? Well, consider this: Olive oil is a fruit juice. What’s the best fruit juice you’ve ever had? Did it sit for six months after extraction, on a warm shelf ? Was it chemically extracted from the fruit skins after first pressing? Olive oil contains a number of naturally occurring preservatives (peroxide being the strongest) that your daily OJ may not, but the principle remains the same.

Stepping into a dedicated olive oil store presents you with a range of complexities you might never have associated with the ubiquitous, stout bottle that’s been on hand in your kitchen since—forever. Tasting notes reference stone fruits, artichoke, cut grass, nuts, green bananas, sweet tomato, melon, and dandelion greens. Different varietals of olive present vastly different flavour profiles—from the clean, bright, mild Hojiblanca, to the pungent, peppery, intense Coratina—and many in between.

We associate olive oil production with the world’s major players: Spain, Italy, Greece—but just like wine, there are two olive harvests each year— one in the more popular northern hemisphere regions listed above, and also a major southern hemisphere harvest—so right now the freshest (and therefore, best) products on the market are from Chile, Australia, and South Africa.

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So how do we tell the good from the bad?

Formal tasting procedures for olive oil also mimic that of wine: bring the oil to room temperature (from its recommended storage temperature of 12-15ºC) by cupping its container and covering the opening with one palm, then inhaling the aromatics, and finally tasting while “bubbling” air in through your pursed lips, to oxygenate and release the oil’s flavour potential.

Yes, it sounds like overkill. But it’s hard to explain just how much of a leap there is between average, supermarket-shelf olive oil and the Real Deal.

There’s serious care and attention that goes into authentic olive oil production that goes well beyond merely sourcing olives and pressing or centrifuging, packaging, labelling, and shipping.

Traditional olive farmers wait until the first heavy rain of the season, then begin the harvest. Then, as Cherilee recounts, “the farmers will follow that harvest to wherever it’s pressed and crushed, stay all night to wait until it’s all bottled, then take it all home with them”—knowing that their oil is pure and hasn’t been adulterated or skimmed to help create a different, fraudulent EVOO. There’s a good reason for this apparent paranoia. The latest incident in a longstanding battle between olive oil producers and organized crime syndicates (not kidding) occurred in 2017—when the Italian Carabinieri arrested 33 suspects linked to the Calabrian mafia for allegedly exporting adulterated EVOO. Testing revealed that the product was actually inexpensive olive pomace oil. A 60 Minutes exposé referred to a ring of “agro mafia”—and estimated their illegal olive oil revenue at $16 billion a year.

Fake fruit juice may seem an unlikely object for trafficking, but it turns out the profit margin on faux olive oil is more than that of cocaine.

Despite these attacks on the integrity of the olive oil trade, there’s a historic endurance that reassures us its authenticity will prevail. This fruity, peppery nectar has survived for millennia and remains as richly intertwined with our daily routines as ever. Symbolically, an olive tree will never naturally die. It will never stop producing fruit. Even if it burns to the ground, a shoot will reemerge and continue to grow.

That resilience will ensure that it remains a trusted accoutrement in all of our kitchens, well into the future. And by taking the time to get to know this often taken-for-granted, complex ingredient, it’ll only pay dividends for your culinary adventures.

16 DECEMBER 2020/JANUARY 2021

Winter-Busting Soup Get proactive about the coming season’s colds and flus with this healthy soup.

R ECIPE + S T Y L ING + PHO T OGR A PH Y

Isabelle Bulota

Super Green Immune Boosting Soup

4 servings

This restorative, nourishing soup is packed with the nutrients your body needs to fight off the colds and flus that arrive throughout the winter season.

Warm up by the fire and sip it directly from your favourite mug, or take advantage of a larger bowl and top the soup with nutritious garnishes.

1 Tbsp avocado oil 2 leeks, washed and sliced in chunks 2 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed 1 Tbsp fresh ginger, peeled and chopped ½ tsp cayenne pepper ½ tsp ground turmeric 3 cups bone broth of your choice 1 cup coconut milk 454 g baby spinach, kale or a greens blend Juice from half a fresh lemon Pinch Himalayan pink salt

Options for Garnishes Chia seeds Hemp seeds Pumpkin seeds Coconut milk Microgreens from Perks Microgreens Heat oil in a large saucepan on medium heat.

Add the leeks and cook for 5 minutes stirring often.

Add the garlic, ginger, cayenne and turmeric, stir and cook for 1 minute.

Pour in the bone broth and coconut milk, stir to combine, and bring back to a gentle simmer.

Add the spinach, kale, or greens blend; stir to let the greens wilt down into the soup. Add the lemon juice and salt and turn off the heat. Use a hand blender (or a counter-top blender if you have time to let the soup cool a little) to purée the soup until smooth. Serve the soup warm, topped with your choice of garnish.

Bowl created by Ilana Fonariov – If Ceramics 17

Liquid Assets

ECONOMY (AND) CLASS

LARRY ARNOLD

Larry Arnold searches the globe for inexpensive yet praiseworthy wines perfect for a feast or a feet-up sip by the fire.

Bottega Il Vino dei Poeti Prosecco Brut NV Italy $17.99 Prices on what used to be cheap tipple have soared in recent years, but when only a glass of fizz will do, what’s a person to do? Even though prices have headed north, Prosecco is still the darling of the bubble biz. Il Vino dei Poeti is made from glera grapes sourced from vineyards in the province of Treviso in northeast Italy. Light, soft, and beautifully effervescent with apple, peach, and delicate floral notes on the nose. Off-dry, with barely a hint of sweetness, subtle fruit flavours, lovely balance, and a clean, fresh finish.

Sacchetto Chardonnay Veneto “La Fiera” 2018 Italy $19.90 An acceptable Mâcon Blanc knockoff, but if you are in the market for a big buttery chardonnay with gobs of fat ripe fruit and toasty oak to pair with your “timbale de macaroni aux ris de veau,” best move on. This wine is more restrained and delicate with pear and green apple scents, soft acidity, and an interesting minerality that meanders through the palate.

Bordertown Pinot Gris Okanagan Valley VQA 2017 BC $20.00 Sourced from three separate vineyard parcels on the family estate just outside of Osoyoos, on the highway to the Kootenays, and points beyond, Bordertown pinot gris is very fruity with white honey, pear, and mineral aromas. Sweet fruit flavours and just enough acidity keep it interesting.

Domaine de Grachies Côtes de Gascogne Blanc 2019 France $14.95 This was an easy wine to like 10 years ago and it still is today, and why not, considering the price. This punchy little white from the Côtes de Gascogne region of southwest France is a blend of columbard, ugni blanc and gros manseng. Fresh and lively with vibrant citrus and floral aromas, not a stitch of oak, and plenty of zip and character through the palate.

Spier Signature Collection Stellenbosch Chenin Blanc 2020 South Africa $14.00 Established in 1712 in the heart of Stellenbosch, Spier is one of the oldest wineries in South Africa. Organic, biodynamic and sustainable, if Spier’s CV was any better I would have to sit down! Chenin blanc is the Rodney Dangerfield of fine wine. Outside of a few wine cognoscenti and somms, it just does not get the respect it deserves. Too bad, but good for us! This textbook chenin blanc from the cape is simply delicious with exotic fruit flavours and a core of zingy acidity.

Lorgeril Château De Pennautier Viognier Pays d’Oc 2019 France $21.99 Located close to the walled medieval city of Carcassonne in the Cabardes region of the Languedoc, the Lorgeril family farms 300 hectares of vineyards. The vines for this wine are planted on north-facing slopes to protect them from the ravages of the intense Languedoc summer. Viognier is the darling of wine aficionados throughout the Dominion. This fruit-packed white from the 18 DECEMBER 2020/JANUARY 2021

Pays d’Oc is oozing with vibrant apricot, peach, and floral aromas, lush concentrated fruit flavours, and a slightly viscous texture. At under 13 percent alcohol, it just goes to show you can still get that Viognier texture without the big alcohol.

Domaine de Cristia Grenache Vin de Pays de Méditerranée 2018 France $21.00 Before Covid, the vineyards of the south of France had become a source of good quality wines priced to sell. Nothing to contemplate here, just juicy fruit bursting with ripe cherry and raspberry flavours nicely balanced with a blush of soft ripe tannin to hold it all together.

Cellier de Monterail Costières de Nîmes 2017 France $18.99 I had forgotten just how good this delicious red from the south of France could be. Would make a great bistro wine for washing down just about everything! Easy to like with simple fruit flavours, soft tannins, and no hard edges.

Argento Classic Malbec Mendoza 2017 Argentina $18.95 Very rich and succulent with fresh berry and floral scents. Round and full-bodied with sweet blackberry, plum, and spice flavours nicely balanced with soft tannins and good length.

Cono Sur Bicicleta Cabernet Sauvignon Reserva 2019 Chile $10.99 Cono Sur is a leader in sustainable wine production, and this inexpensive little cabernet from the western slopes of the Andes has to be one of the best buys on the market. Always a dependable choice for a well-made wine at an affordable price. Bicicleta is medium-bodied and silky smooth with simple fruit aromas and flavours. Tough to beat at this price for a good, everyday glug.

Ferraton Père & Fils La Tournée Rouge Vin de France 2017 France $19.50 A blend of syrah and grenache, this sumptuous red, sourced from the sun-drenched vineyards of the Languedoc, is lip-smacking good with generous blackberry fruit, pepper, and spice flavours, a round supple texture, and a soft fruit-filled finish.

Spier Seaward Cabernet Sauvignon 2018 South Africa $20.00 Fruit, fruit, and what some might consider more fruit with a blush of expensive oak. Medium to full-bodied with blackcurrant, cassis, cedar, and spice aromas and flavours, with good balance and lovely finesse. Made to drink as soon as you can jerk the cork out, it delivers almost everything a rationale person could legally hope for without arousing the suspicion of their bean counter or significant other. Amen to that!

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1.800.333.4604 or visit www.thepointerestaurant.ca 19

BAR 101

Deconstructing the Drink Six Classic Cocktails that Rule All Others The DNA, the templates, and the lessons to be learned from making the six ruling classic cocktails.

T

his whole cocktail thing was actually one big accident. You can scour every library, dusty tome, or Internet article in the world and you’ll still find the same thing: no one knows the real history of cocktails.

I’ve often heard a speaker or bartender lay claim to the definitive source of a cocktail, only to find that when I fact-check, what I’ve heard is anecdotal, at best. Many times I’ve gone on to find that there’s no evidence at all to what I’ve heard.

Some historians have done a wonderful job of documenting what they’ve found, but even they’re limited to what was in print at the time. It turns out the most accurate accounts of cocktail origins are anytime someone says that they’re “storied” or “checkered.” It’s no wonder there’s so much variance in how “classics” are made from one bartender to another!

This article is about perfecting the templates we use for cocktails so that we can make more consistently delicious drinks, and even better custom creations.

Using the six classic cocktails that rule all others, here is how bartenders do it.

Cocktail DNA: The Building Blocks To the untrained eye and palate, it looks as if cocktails from the most imaginative bars and bartenders come from an endless reserve of creativity. But when you break it down into basic building blocks, it’s actually pretty easy.

Jazz musicians don’t start by improvising and playing crazy solos. They start with the basics: scales. Once scales and chord progressions are ingrained in their muscle memory, they can start making things up (and even break the rules).

Cocktails are the exact same!

20 DECEMBER 2020/JANUARY 2021

W OR D S + PHO T OGR A PH Y

Kyle Guilfoyle

Here are the nine building blocks of cocktails:

• Spirit → This is the “protein” of your drink.

Examples: gin, rum, whiskey, akvavit, brandy, tequila, etc.

• Lengthener → These add volume to the drink and play a supporting role to dominant flavours.

Examples: fortified wines such as vermouth, sherry, port, etc.

• Sweetener → Adds sweetness, body, complementary flavour, and balance against acid.

Examples: honey, agave nectar, maple syrup, demerara, etc.

• Liqueur Modifier → Essentially alcoholic sweetener. Examples: Cointreau, St-Germain elderflower Liqueur, Grapefruit liqueur, etc.

• Amaro Modifier → Same function as Liqueur Modifier, but with the addition of bitter and herbaceous notes. Examples: Campari, Amaro Montenegro, Cynar, Fernet Branca, etc.

• Acid → Balances against sweet; makes a drink refreshing and sour. Examples: lemon, lime, citric acid • Modifying Acid → This is different from Acid.

Modifying Acids give more flavour and sweetness.

Examples: orange, grapefruit • Soda → Gives effervescence, length, and cuts a drink that’s very concentrated. Examples: sparkling water, ginger beer, tonic, etc.

• Bitters → Very concentrated flavours. Cocktail “seasoning.” Examples: Angostura bitters, orange bitters, cardamom bitters, etc.

Now that we know what the DNA building blocks are, it’s time to put them together using “templates.”

Old Fashioned → 2 oz Spirit, ⅓ oz Sweetener, 4 dashes of Bitters

Negroni → 1 oz Spirit, 1 oz Lengthener, 1 oz Amaro Modifier Sidecar → 1½ oz Spirit, ¾ oz Acid, ¾ oz Liqueur Modifier, ¼ oz Sweetener Tom Collins → 2 oz Spirit, 1 oz Acid, ¾ oz Sweetener, top with Soda Sour → 2 oz Spirit, 1 oz Acid, ¾ oz Sweetener, plus egg white Dry Martini → 2 oz Spirit, ½ oz Lengthener, complementary garnish, (optional: Bitters) Now we’ll take the bones of these classic cocktails and bring them to life with a bit more understanding and real ingredients.

The Old Fashioned The Discipline: How to take a spirit and season it.

Most cocktails have their origins somewhere in the land of pharmacopoeia.

Druggists would prescribe alcohol as medicine (usually for a hangover), but since most palates were accustomed to lower-ABV beverages, such as wine and beer, 40%+ was very strong.

The fix? Add some bitters, sugar, and water. In one form or another, this is how the Old Fashioned came to be.

2 oz Knob Creek 9 year bourbon ⅓ oz demerara 1:1 simple syrup 2 dashes of angostura aromatic bitters 2 dashes of angostura orange bitters Add ingredients to a mixing vessel, add ice, stir until you’ve reached the desired level of dilution, and strain over a king-sized ice cube or built-in ice cube*. Garnish with an orange twist—be sure to express the oils over the cocktail as you make the twist.

Dry Martini The Discipline: How to lengthen and soften a spirit.

The Martini is a corollary of people wanting more bang for their buck. In the late 1800s, Italian sweet vermouth was a popular aperitif—a drink to stimulate appetite. Since cocktails were well-established at the time, this led the way for the Vermouth Cocktail (vermouth, sugar, water, bitters, and a twist).

Over time, people figured that if they were going to go to the trouble of mixing a cocktail, there must be a more efficient way to get, well, drunk. And there was: add spirit to it.

And so the Martini and Manhattan cocktails were born. Fun fact: It seems the earliest versions of the Martini were made with sweet vermouth.

But as sophisticated palates matured, sweet flavours began falling out of favour.

The Martini we know today is the art of using the subtle spice of dry vermouth to blend with, and lengthen, the dominating flavours of the gin.

2 oz London Dry Gin or your favourite local BC gin ½ oz dry vermouth (Martini or try Esquimalt Dry Vermouth)

Mare or Stump Coastal Forest Gin, with olives.

Negroni The Discipline: How to blend using bitter Similar to the Martini, the Negroni came to be when Count Camillo Negroni requested a stronger version of the Americano (Campari, Italian vermouth, and soda)—he apparently asked for his drink to be made with gin instead of soda.

We’re hard-wired to taste bitter as poisonous, so undeveloped palates usually don’t like the Negroni.

That said, those who give the Negroni a few tries usually come to love the bitterness imparted by the Campari.

1 oz London Dry Gin or your favourite local BC gin 1 oz sweet vermouth (Cinzano or try Esquimalt Sweet Vermouth) 1 oz Campari Add ingredients to your mixing vessel, stir until desired dilution is achieved, strain onto fresh rocks. Garnish with an orange slice placed along the side of the glass.

The Sidecar The Discipline: Balance sweet and sour with the golden ratio of 1.5 + 0.75 + 0.75.

The Sidecar features a bullet-proof ratio of 1.5 oz Spirit + 0.75 oz Modifying Liqueur + 0.75 oz Acid.

You take that ratio and add a bit of a sweetener and you will have a delicious drink every time. This is the template I find myself using most often anytime someone wants a refreshing cocktail.

1½ oz Cognac ¾ oz Cointreau ¾ oz fresh lemon ¼ oz 1:1 simple syrup Add ingredients to mixing tin, add a piece of orange cheek (orange flesh, no peel or pith) to the tin (this will give a lovely stone-fruit quality to the drink), shake, and fine-strain into a chilled cocktail coupe. No need to sugar the rim (unless your guest asks for it, of course) as we’ve added the perfect amount of sugar to the drink.

Tom Collins The Discipline: Add the perfect amount of effervescence.

Add ingredients to your mixing vessel, stir until you reach the desired level of dilution, and strain into a chilled cocktail coupe. Garnish with either a lemon twist or a skewer of olives.

The Tom Collins teaches you to make a tall, refreshing, and effervescent drink where the spirit can still shine. What often happens with drinks that call for soda is flavours will get drowned by too much of it, resulting in an over-diluted cocktail.

Note that either garnish adds subtle flavour to the drink and should complement your gin. For example, a bright citrusy gin like Tanqueray Rangpur or Ampersand with a twist, or a savoury gin, such as Gin

2 oz London Dry Gin or your favourite local BC gin ½ oz fresh lemon juice ½ oz fresh lime juice ¾ oz 1:1 simple syrup

We call this a “built-in” ice cube: add water a bit less than halfway up the glass and put the whole thing in the freezer.

No fuss, no muss with ice cubes when we’re working fast.

It achieves the same result as an ice cube, but with even slower rate of dilution, and a cleaner sipping experience.

Add ingredients to mixing tin, shake, and strain over fresh rocks in a tall Collins glass.

Top with 1-2 oz of soda (depends on how punchy you want the drink—I go with about 1 oz). Garnish with a lime wheel and cherry.

Whiskey Sour The Discipline: Balance sweet, sour, and egg white for texture.

With the sour we introduce one of the more ad­vanced tech­niques—using egg whites. Egg whites soften fla­vours, add silky texture, and give an iconic “head” to the drink.

2 oz Bourbon whiskey 1 oz fresh lemon juice ¾ oz 1:1 simple syrup 1 egg white (if using pasteurized egg whites, use about 1 oz) 2 dashes of angostura bitters Add ingredients to your tin, dry shake (no ice), then wet shake (with ice), and fine-strain into a chilled rocks glass. Garnish with aromatic bitters and/or cherries.

There you have it! If you’re looking for six drinks to master, these are the ones I’d recommend you begin with. Don’t forget to use the templates to come up with your own custom creations.

Kyle Guilfoyle is co-owner of the Nimble Bar Co. 21

Gourmet preserves & hot sauces from SaltSpring Kitchen are perfect for all your holiday gifting and entertaining needs. Available in individual jars or beautifully designed gift sets, they are sure to be well-received by all. Makes a wonderful stocking stuffer, hostess or teacher gift. And a must for your holiday cheeseboards.

SaltSpring Kitchen

SALTSPRINGKITCHEN.COM

Give the gift of local farm-crafted cider this holiday season! Nestled on the Saanich Peninsula, you will discover Sea Cider Farm & Ciderhouse. Overlooking the strait of Georgia, you will find a beautiful orchard and retail shop filled with local goodies for everyone on your list. Indulge in one of their smallbatched fortified ciders. A special treat and the perfect gift! These sweet elixirs pair well with cheese plates, desserts or drizzled over vanilla ice cream. Plus they are the perfect stocking stuffers - trust us, we’ve tried!

A toast to the Christmas Pineapple!

These fetching brass pineapple shot glasses are available in two colours, copper or gold, $44.95 for the set of two. Perfect for a stocking stuffer (the boxed set is small enough to fit in a large stocking). Speaking of stocking stuffers, Whisk Victoria has many gadgets in a broad price range for the cook or baker on your list. Come see us inside the Victoria Public Market. Cheers!

Whisk

6 - 1701 DOUGLAS STREET (VICTORIA PUBLIC MARKET) 778-433-9184 WHISKVICTORIA.COM

Sea Cider Farm & Ciderhouse 2487 MT ST MICHAEL ROAD 250-544-4824 WWW.SEACIDER.CA

Give the gift of experience!

Lumette’s non-alcohol spirits are perfect for creating any holiday cocktail, no matter if you are celebrating at home or at a friend’s, as a replacement for a gin spirit. Both London Dry and Bright Light flavours contain 0% alcohol and are meant to be mixed into a cocktail as simple as a GnT, French 75 or sour. Visit enjoylumette.com for many recipe suggestions! Available at private liquor stores and gourmet food shops.

Lumette

250-880-1818 ENJOYLUMETTE.COM

22

EAT SPONSORED PROMOTION

EAT’s Gift G

From views of the magnificent Salish Sea, to treatments at The Boathouse Spa and delicious cuisine at our new restaurant, FARO Handcrafted Pizza and Tasting Room, an Oak Bay Beach Hotel eGift Card provides the ultimate luxurious escape for all those near and dear to you this holiday season.

Oak Bay Beach Hotel 1175 BEACH DRIVE 250-598-4556 OAKBAYBEACHHOTEL.COM

2020 Guide

There is something special about the gift of a great experience.

With our internationally renowned cocktail bar and stylishly renovated restaurant overlooking the city, both Clive’s Classic Lounge and Vista 18 Restaurant + Lounge make the perfect gift for any season.

Authentic | Local | Elevated. Make plans to visit us or send a gift card to show you care.

Clive’s Classic Lounge Vista 18 Restaurant + Lounge

LOCATED AT THE CHATEAU VICTORIA HOTEL 740 BURDETT AVE. 250-382-4221 CLIVESCLASSICLOUNGE.COM VISTA18.COM

Just in time for the Holiday Season, Goldstream Distillery introduces our limited run Rye Whisky. Blended with pure spring water and 3-year-old Canadian Rye, its finish is with a charred cherry wood for a robust colour and mild flavour. Like our other products, the smooth taste lingers just long enough to leave you wanting more.

This limited run can be bought on-line at GOLDSTREAMDISTILLERY.COM and at select retailers.

Goldstream Distillery

UNIT 4A 4715 TRANSCANADA HWY DUNCAN BC 250-213-8476 GOLDSTREAMDISTILLERY.COM INFO@GOLDSTREAMDISTILLERY.COM

Bolen Books is your destination for gift buying!

1. Flavor by Yotam Ottolenghi ($45.00) 2. Cat’s Meow Trivet ($6.95) 3. Book Seat ($49.95) 4. Purr Party Apron ($24.95) 5. Oh She Glows For Dinner by Angela Liddon ($40.00) 6. 275 Piece Merry Christmas to All Puzzle ($19.99) 7. Nutcracker Mug ($14.95)

Pizza. People. Passion.

It’s what we’re all about at Prima Strada. For over 10+ years, we’ve focused on wood-fired pizza, great wine and craft beer and more! Join us in Victoria or Cobble Hill for a delicious, casual meal or bring home our house made specialties: pepperoni, meatballs, sausage, tiramisu, gelato and our chili oil (trust us, you’ll use it on everything - it’s that tasty!).

Pizzeria Prima Strada

PIZZERIAPRIMASTRADA.COM

Bolen Books

111-1644 HILLSIDE AVENUE, VICTORIA, BC 250-595-4232 BOLENBOOKS.CA

EAT SPONSORED PROMOTION

23

R ECIPE + S T Y L ING

Generously drizzle with oil and grind salt and pepper over the top. Roast for 50-60 minutes or until tender.

Jennifer Danter PHO T OGR A PH Y

Jacqueline Downey

OMG Cabbage Gratin Rethink your cabbage game and push it beyond slaw.

Slow-cooked in a rich, creamy sauce and finished with a crispy cheese crust, this dish transforms the humble cabbage into greatness. Add it to your holiday table. In fact, skip the turkey!

24 DECEMBER 2020/JANUARY 2021

1 head cabbage, green or red Olive oil Sea salt and black pepper, to taste 1 Tbsp butter 4 large garlic cloves, smashed 2 bay leaves 1 small leek (white part only), thinly sliced 2 cups 35% whipping cream 1½ cups grated Cheddar (try smoked) ½ cup Parmesan ⅓ cup panko crumbs Preheat the oven to 350°F. Cut cabbage into 8 wedges; trim off some, but not all, of the tough core and discard (you want to still keep wedges intact). Place wedges on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.

Melt butter in a small saucepan set over medium-low heat. Add garlic, bay leaves and leeks; sauté until softened (don’t brown), 8-10 minutes. Pour in cream; increase heat and bring just to a boil. Reduce heat; gently simmer, often stirring, until garlic is meltingly tender, about 5 minutes. Discard bay leaves.

Using an immersion or bullet blender, puree until smooth.

Arrange cabbage wedges in a buttered casserole dish (shallow is best). Pour cream over the top. Place the dish on a baking sheet; bake for 35-40 minutes or until sauce is thick and bubbly and tops of the cabbage start to blister.

Combine cheeses with panko, season with pepper, and sprinkle over cabbage. Broil until the cheese is bubbly and turns golden, about 3-4 minutes.

cityoflangford #Iamlangford

l a y Lo

Langford businesses are so thankful for your continued support.

Every time you shop in a local business, you show your Langford pride.

We are loyal. We are strong. We are proud. We are resilient.

tasteoflangford.com Get an up-to-date business directory, read the behind-the-scenes stories and learn about special promotions.

Books for Four luscious cookbooks that offer both inspirational and approachable recipes for the home cook.

Bisous & Brioche Laura Bradbury and Rebecca Wellman (TouchWood Editions) In Bisous & Brioche: Classic French Recipes and Family Favorites from a Life in France, Laura Bradbury (author of the novel A Vineyard for Two and the best-selling Grape Series memoirs) has compiled recipes handed down to her through her family—as well as many friends and neighbours in France—to create an extensive and interesting cookbook. In all of her work, Bradbury (who splits her time between Victoria, BC, and Beaune, France) is story-driven and Bisous & Brioche is no exception.

It is ripe with anecdotes and incredible sun-soaked photos of market visits, meal prep, and lazy lunches in the vineyard.

Beautifully photographed by EAT contributor Rebecca Wellman (First, We Brunch and the Outlander Kitchen series) in Bradbury’s French kitchen, the recipes—vinaigrettes, madeleines, crêpes, crème fraîche, tarts, cassoulet, coq au vin—make traditional home-style cooking approachable and fun, not unlike the cookbooks of Julia Child.

Bradbury writes in solidarity with home cooks because, as she says, “I am perfectly positioned to relate to other intimidated cooks—and to share some of my secrets for feeling more confident in the kitchen. Over time, I slowly collected a quiverful of French recipes that I could consistently knock out of the park…” Bisous & Brioche delivers on that promise, with well over 200 pages of techniques, instruction, and fun. Reading this book brings you into her kitchen and the beauty of Burgundian living and helps you better understand the French passion for food, the experience of dining together, and slowing down to enjoy the finer things.

Flavor Yotam Ottolenghi and Ixta Belfrage, photography by Jonathan Lovekin ($45 Penguin Random House)

Flavor is a vegetarian cookbook with deeply rich recipes crafted by Yotam Ottolenghi (bestselling author of Plenty and Plenty More) and co-authored with Ixta Belfrage. Some fans of Ottolenghi will already know Belfrage, but for those for whom the name is new, she is a pre-eminent member of the Ottolenghi test kitchen team and has been working in the London culinary scene for years. Her influence can be felt throughout Ottolenghi’s recipes, and it is refreshing to see a famous chef give space to a rising star through his own platform.

This latest offering from Ottolenghi, which he has described as “Plenty Three,” highlights the three Ps (process, pairing, and produce) as key concepts and continues his passion for developing vegetable dishes that are splendidly flavoured, compelling, and approachable for home cooks. Flavor has all the hallmarks of his previous books. Beautifully photographed with more than 300 pages of recipes, the dishes here are wide ranging. What Ottolenghi and Belfrage were able to do is create a magical body of work that’s not limited to any single region or style of cooking and doesn’t feel as if you need to make an effort to forgo meat.

Ottolenghi writes, “Much as vegetables have this supernatural ability to be turned into an endless smörgåsbord of delicious food, it takes a focused, creative effort to unravel this potential.” Together with Belfrage, they have found that alchemy and have delivered a book perfect for a gift or for bogarting at home.

26 DECEMBER 2020/JANUARY 2021

the Cooks W OR D S

Adrien Sala

Milk, Spice & Curry Leaves Ruwanmali “Ruwan” Samarakoon-Amunugama, food photography by DL Acken ($35 TouchWood Editions) A beautifully designed cookbook, Milk, Spice & Curry Leaves explores the essence of Sri Lankan cuisine. Propelled by Ruwan’s memories of visits to her parents’ homeland, she shares the rustic, tropical flavours of this island country in the Indian Ocean. Featuring sweet pineapple and mango, bitter gourd, cashews, chili, tart lime—and a rich bouquet of South Asian spices throughout—the recipes in this book are bright, approachable and designed for home cooks. The images are fascinating, tropical and historical, helping to create a full, vivid picture of Sri Lankan cuisine.

The smartly assembled book sets us up with the foundational elements of Sri Lankan cooking. In “The Pillars” chapter, Ruwan digs into the essential Sri Lankan ingredients, using storytelling to drive their importance and meaning. “The image of lofty coconut trees waving to and fro in the wind almost is synonymous with Sri Lanka,” she writes. “As idyllic as the image is, their main role on the island is a functional one. Coconut is usually featured in every meal of the day…”

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The recipes range from vegetarian and grains to meat and poultry, as well as small bites, salads, and beverages. Yellow Dal with (or without) Spinach is a great introduction to her recipes, with only a handful of spices required to create this healthy, flavourful, and wholesome dish. Add some coconut roti on the side and you have a simple and delicious winner for winter nights, perfect for sharing or enjoying the following day.

Pies for Everyone Petra Paredez, photography by Victor Garzon ($38 Abrams) There may not be a more aptly named cookbook this year.

In Pies for Everyone: Recipes and Stories from Petee’s Pie Shop, there are so many different recipes, it’s hard to imagine not being able to find one that fits your fancy. In this, her first book, Petee shares her deep inventory of pie baking techniques, which has contributed to making her shops in NYC, Petee’s Pie Company and Petee’s Café, uber popular among the pie-loving population.

Pies for Everyone sets us up well, with many of the foundational tricks of pie-baking revealed in easy-to-understand ways—even for those of us who aren’t seasoned pie makers.

In the “Pie Standards” section, Petee writes, “My standards are heavily influenced by my father and were developed through various investigations—in the pie factory where I spent my formative years, at countless bakeries and restaurants, and in my own kitchens.” She holds true to that understanding, revealing important insights around ingredients and their sources, as well as the most important tools a pie maker can have.

In the more than 80 pie recipes in her book, Petee takes us from savoury to sweet, meat pie to vegan. With each recipe comes a new insight. For example, we learn that Persimmon Pudding Pie originated in the colonial era, derived from English favourites like figgy pudding and quince pudding—both of which were influenced by access to the local wild fruit of the region. Pies for Everyone is the quintessential pie book for pastry lovers, experimenters, and home cooks with an interest in baking.

27

SMALL GATHERINGS BIG IMPACT

Entertaining in the Bubble Holiday entertaining has a pared-down look this year. Smaller gatherings, be they with your bubble of friends or close family, are the order of the day. All the more reason to make them extra-special.

W OR D S

Shelora Sheldan

M

aybe we’ll be taking turns having each other over this season, or Zooming cocktail-and-nosh gatherings with those far away. But one thing remains the same, what to serve?

From traditional holiday snacks to tasty appetizers and hearty mains, here’s a wealth of sure-fire, makeahead foods to kickstart your hosting inspiration and holiday fun. I’ve included some savvy tips to make it both easy and creative. And to make a gathering really special, I suggest making it a formal affair. Dressed to the nines, break out your best silverware, dishes, stemware and cloth napkins because this year, we all need a reason to celebrate.

Festive Carbs Almost everyone took to baking bread this year and maybe you’re still up to your elbows in sourdough. If that’s the case, put your freezer to good use by making treats such as pre-formed mini or meal-sized pizzas, rolled out and ready to add ingredients and bake.

Instead of flat, go for the roll with a stromboli, basically a pizza rolled up, baked, and sliced. Or stuff the dough with Gruyère and caramelized onion. Dough 28 DECEMBER 2020/JANUARY 2021

can also be used for making empanadas, or any kind of crescent-shaped pastries. Fill them with savoury ingredients, from curried chicken and Cheddar to spiced ground beef, full-on cheese, or bean fillings.

Make them ahead and keep them in the freezer, ready to bake whenever it’s your turn to host.

Brie or smaller Camembert and baked until golden brown. It makes a lovely, luscious centrepiece served with fresh grapes and slices of baguette. A wonderful make-ahead dish using these premade sheets is cheese straws. Use grated Parmesan or Gruyère and roll the cheese into the pastry before cutting into strips and twisting. Bake at 400ºF until golden. Viola!

Baguettes rule at party time. Small round slices make a great vehicle for dips, charcuterie, or cheeses. And That same versatility can be said of filo (or phyllo) lightly toasted, you’ve got bruschetta or crostini. Top pastry. Use it to make the same impressive wrap for them with anything from thinly sliced cured meats to a round of cheese or appetizer-sized triangles. Three a topping of chopped ripe tomatoes, fragrant olive oil, to four sheets, stacked on top of one another with a and basil. Get fancy by brushing of melted butter using cookie cutters to on each sheet keeps it sturdy shape the bread before Don’t forget the tried and true. and holds the ingredients lightly toasting. without oozing out the sides. Just make sure your Pre-made puff pastry ingredient mixture is on the dry side. For fillings, try is a host’s lifesaver. Available in pre-rolled sheets in classic spinach and feta, sautéed wild mushrooms the frozen aisle at the grocery store, it moves from and herbs, or chunked Camembert and chutney for savoury to sweet with ease. Think pears and blue a one-bite wonder. These tidbits can all be made cheese, or a French pissaladiere of caramelized ahead and frozen. You can also form them into what’s onions, anchovies, and olives. Or for a dessert course, called in the catering realm a beggar’s purse—a larger try a rustic galette with some of that frozen stone fruit square of stacked filo gathered around ingredients you squirrelled away this past summer. A sheet can and twisted at the top. It stays together with a healthy be rolled out and wrapped around a large round of

brushing of melted butter before baking. Beggar’s purses can also be made using leftover crêpes.

Alternatively, crêpes can be spread with cream cheese and herbs, rolled and sliced before serving. The same filling and rolling can be done with a thin omelette, or with a flour tortilla.

Pâté à choux or choux paste creates lovely, French, one-bite wonders called cheese puffs or gougères—and they always impress. All you need is a good mixer and a piping bag. Pipe out and freeze on sheet pans before bagging them in dozens.

Bake them frozen just before your guests arrive. The smell is tremendous, the flavour exquisite, and your guests will swoon. Alternatively, forgo the cheese and bake the puffs ahead of time and freeze. They can be sliced horizontally and filled with a savoury mushroom duxelles, or with sweetened whipped cream for a simple one-bite dessert. Dipping in chocolate is optional.

The Global Larder Take cues from the meze, tapas, and snack traditions of the world for flavourful party fare. Dips such as eggplant puree, tapenade, hummus or roasted walnut and red pepper are popular. And the Spanish tortilla—who doesn’t love potatoes?—can be used as an addition to other grazing fare or as a starting off point for a thematic main course: think rice pilaf, redolent of smoked paprika, or a stewy tagine with apricots. For further inspiration, I look to any cookbook by Yotam Ottolenghi, or the classic Silver Palate Cookbook. There’s also no shame in store-bought food, especially if you’re experiencing cooking burnout. If there’s a better-tasting, ready-made hummus on the market, by all means serve it up. And Frozen dim sum, don’t forget about your favourite caterer— they would love to participate in making pot stickers, or your soiree more delicious.

Frozen dim sum, pot stickers, or dumplings also make for delicious appetizers and go from frozen to cooked in no time. Hon’s (available in the frozen food aisle), or the wonderful dumplings from Victoria’s Dumpling Drop, are big on flavour, steamed or pan-fried. Serve them in lovely bamboo steamers along with a soy-based or sweet chili dipping sauce.

dumplings also

make for delicious appetizers and

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go from frozen to cooked in no time.

Beyond the grazing board, consider individual portions of something hot to keep people sated. And it can be the best strategy if you and your guests prefer not to share. Think truffled mac ‘n’ cheese with a buttery crumb topping, baked and served in porcelain custard cups (the recipe can also be made ahead of time and frozen). A hearty stew or a big pot of soup, such as mulligatawny or Moroccan harira, kept warm on the stove for people to help themselves, works wonders in keeping guests convivial and comforted. One of my go-tos for a sitdown dish is duck confit, served over stewed beluga lentils. I’ve use the recipe from David Lebovitz’s cookbook, My Paris Kitchen with great success. Called Counterfeit Duck Confit, the duck legs require only an overnight cure in salt, gin, bay leaves and garlic before being roasted for three hours. That leftover duck fat can be used for making roast or fried potatoes.

The Classics Don’t forget the tried and true. Devilled eggs, one of the most popular and easy appetizers to make, never go out of style, whatever the occasion. Create creamy yolks with quality mayonnaise and a hit of anything from spicy pickle juice or

qattheempress.com 29

curry to fresh chopped herbs. Quail eggs make for a fancier but more finicky alternative, topped with a flourish of caviar.

Crudités are always a winner. A collection of fresh crunchy vegetables gathered around a tray with a creamy dip, or simple bowl of fragrant olive oil with salt and pepper, makes for a healthy repast during the cocktail hour.

Tiny porcupine meatballs, a 1970s throwback, are still popular today, but alternative versions with ginger, sesame, and a spicy peanut sauce, or Italian herbs and a homemade tomato sauce, are equally enticing.

Continuing with a retro feel, consider the snack of Nuts and Bolts. It’s time to bring out that family recipe. And never underestimate the power of a bag of potato chips to bring people together. You’ll wish you had bought extra.

Instead of a tray

of crudites, make it individual by arranging the vegetables upright in a glass or mug for each guest.

Sticks and Skewers Teriyaki salmon, pork satay, chicken yakitori, any marinated firm white fish, cumin-scented kofte, mint-marinated lamb, coconut prawns, fruit kebabs, baconwrapped oysters, cubes of marinated feta or mozzarella, these are but a few of my favourite things transported on a skewer. Let your palate be your guide.

Pick Your Poisson Tuna poke, prawn cocktails, or ceviche involve some skill and preparation for a seafood course, but you can’t beat oysters on the half shell for ease. Winter is the best time for oysters, and many varieties are available through your local fishmonger—and they may even shuck them for you. All you need is some lemon, horseradish, a bottle of hot sauce, or a classic mignonette. Smoked fish, especially salmon, is another party fave. Pre-sliced and pre-packaged, it can be laid out decoratively on a platter, with little pots of cream cheese, dill, and capers for guests, or added as a topping to appetizers or mixed into cream cheese for a salmon mousse, served as a dip or piped onto endive leaves. I like to add a flourish of smoked salmon on top of a cream cheese-smeared slice of English cucumber, topped with a bit of dill or parsley—nothing could be easier. A whole filet of salmon, poached or baked, can be served warm or cold. Prawns can be poached ahead of time, marinated, refrigerated, and served over a bowl of ice for guests.

Or host a sit-down session with bouillabaisse, served with a garlicky aioli. And for an unforgettable hors d’oeuvre, serve This is the perfect up on-trend caviar on bite-sized blini, or time to use your with traditional accompaniments such as minced onion, chopped hard-cooked eggs, collection of thrift and crème fraiche. Cue the bubbly.

store vintage and

retro serving trays

Contain It!

They say we eat with our eyes first, so the vessel upon which your edible masterand glassware. piece is presented makes an appealing first impression. For example, martini glasses or vintage cocktail glassware make elegant vessels for shrimp cocktail or ceviche—or dessert. Instead of a tray of crudites, make it individual by arranging the vegetables upright in a glass or mug for each guest. This is the perfect time to use your 30 DECEMBER 2020/JANUARY 2021

collection of thrift store vintage and retro serving trays. I especially love ornate vintage silverplate and mid-mod stainless or teak trays. Classic Chinese takeout boxes are fun too, for serving cold noodle salads along with individual chopsticks.

Use paper muffin cups to make individual mini frittatas or crustless quiches, or line muffin tins with house-made pastry to make a myriad of individual savoury or sweet delectables.

And, of course, celebrate in accordance with Dr. Henry’s and the BC Centre for Disease Control’s Covid-19 guidelines and restrictions. Please follow their rules when it comes to social gatherings.

The Cheeseboard We are a nation of cheese lovers. Mild to pungent, fresh to aged, local to imported, consumed as a grazing starter, a first or last course, cheese is always welcome.

Victoria’s celebrated cheesemongers know a thing or two about putting together a diverse and delicious cheeseboard, so here’s a compilation of their best tips on celebrating the curd.

General manager Genevieve Laplante of Ottavio suggests considering local cheeses first. “They often cost a little bit more,” she notes, “but they offer much more unique or nuanced flavours than mass-produced European cheeses.” She also advises choosing a variety—the type of cheese (firm, bloomy, semi-firm, blue and washed rind) and type of milk (cow, sheep, goat and buffalo)—before getting creative. “Go for different shapes and textures,” she says. That means leaving some pieces whole, some cut into chunks and slicing the firm cheeses. “And label your cheeses,” she suggests, “so guests know which cheese is made from what milk, and if the cheese is unpasteurized or pasteurized.” Her Preservation Plus advice is to always serve cheese at Mason jars were in short room temperature by taking your supply this year as we cheese board out of the fridge a took to creating pickles, full hour before you serve it. “The softer cheeses will be gooier, the preserves, jams, chutneys firm cheeses will be more supple, and condiments like and there will be an all over pioneer homesteaders. greater range of flavour.”

If you became a pickle queen or king, you’ve now got a stockpile of bottled-up pleasures that make tasty gifties for your posse and a world of flavour enhancers and accompaniments for any grazing board, cocktail, or main dish. They add refreshing acidity to cut through rich cheeses and charcuterie, and the saltiness piques the appetite.

Laplante also likes to keep things simple. “Most people look at Parmigiano-Reggiano as something you serve on pasta,” she says.

“But a cheese course can be as easy as a piece of whole Parmesan, chunked up and sprinkled with whole walnuts and drizzled with local honey – heaven!”

Dillon Crawford, cheesemonger at Fantastico Bar-Deli, has a loose rule of 30 to 50 grams of cheese per person, and for a good variety, three to four cheeses on a board to feed six or less guests.

“This allows for a nice variance in cheese,” he says, “but will have enough of each cheese that all guests get to try everything.” His

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standard recommendation is a Brie, a blue, either a Cheddar or nice hard cheese, and something unique. (Over the course of the pandemic, Fantastico drastically changed their cheese case to feature more local cheese, and half of their current cheese selection is local, sourced from Vancouver Island to the Okanagan.) For Brie, he suggests a single cream variety for a more traditional flavour, or a triple cream Brie, “if a customer really loves creamy cheese.” For single cream, Crawford suggests the Comox Brie from Natural Pastures in Courtenay, and for something more interesting, the Goaty Cow from Terroir in Kelowna, a 50/50 mixture of goat and cow cheese—”a really cool Brie.” For blues, Blue Capri from Mt. Lehman in Abbotsford, similar to a traditional Roquefort cheese, and on the milder side, the Continental Blue from Terroir in Kelowna, similar to English Stilton. “This is the cheese I recommend most when making any kind of blue cheese sauce,” he says, “or for a nice salad.”

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For Cheddars, his picks are the Matsqui Goat Cheddar from Mt. Lehman in Abbotsford, the Farm House Clothbound Cheddar from Agassiz, or the Tadwick from Vancouver Island’s Haltwhistle, which has a “divine sweet and salty flavour.”

For something unique, Crawford recommends the goat Tomme de Vallée from Haltwhistle, or their Parsonby washed in local Spinnakers ale. The piece de resistance would be the Frisky Heart from Mt. Lehman Cheese, which comes in 50-gram heart-shaped pieces finished Don’t forget the with rose petals. “It looks really nice on a charcuterie board,” he says, “and plant-based options. tastes fantastic!”

Carmen Lassooij of Charelli’s Cheese Shop always suggests a selection of hard, soft, blue, goat and/or sheep cheeses for a successfully put- together cheese board. Served as a first course, she proposes an accompanying selection of savouries such as olives and pickled vegetables, spreads, sliced meats, pâtés, specialty jams and seasonal produce to complement the selection. And as a last course, she recommends serving seasonal fruit such as fall apples and pears that can be sliced as needed, “to use as a vehicle for the cheese,” along with fruit pâté and nuts complementing the beverage of choice.

The Okanagan’s

Pulse Kitchen, widely available in Victoria, along with Victoria’s The Cultured Nut, create diverse and punchy selections that complement any cheeseboard.

Jessica Sommers, co-owner of The Farmer’s Daughter in Sidney, views creating a cheese board as akin to painting a picture. “You want to add different colours, shapes, sizes, and textures,” she says. That translates into including cheeses that are interesting in appearance, such as those with herbs on the rind, cranberries throughout the centre, truffle in the middle, or a cheese that’s pink from the addition of port. She emphasizes how cheeses cut in different shapes and sizes add depth, and using odd numbers makes it more visually pleasing overall. For the holiday season, the most exciting cheese arriving at their shop will be Vacherin Mont d’Or from Switzerland. “This cheese is extremely rare,” she notes, “and one of the most sought after.” (The thermalized cow’s milk cheese is wrapped in spruce and containing a woodsy liquor interior with a complex flavour profile that’s at once buttery, sharp, funky, rich, and woodsy.) Pickled vegetables, olives, cornichons and chutneys all add needed complementary acidity, and The Farmer’s Daughter changes their selection of compotes to suit the season. Candied nuts, fresh herbs, and edible flowers all add finishing touches to her curdy creations.

32 DECEMBER 2020/JANUARY 2021

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33

Fire & Smoke:

Wood Oven Envy Wood-fired ovens are the hottest new appliance for outdoor dining.

W OR D S

PHO T OGR A PH Y

Cinda Chavich

Lillie Louise Major

he cosy space behind Mara Jernigan’s historic home in Fernwood is a food-lover’s haven, her tiered garden beds bristling with winter kale, and russet red hens clucking in their coop.

imported Italian model, but it’s not the first time she’s played with fire in the backyard.

T

But the new star of this chef ’s farm-to-table setup is an Italian import, a sleek steel oven with the bright flames of a wood fire dancing inside its gaping maw.

“For me, a wood oven is about community,” says Jernigan, a local Slow Food founder and culinary Italophile, who loves bringing friends together for pizza parties around her new outdoor oven. “It’s a chef ’s toy.”

Today the wood is burning hot and the gauge on the outside of the oven is at its maximum 500˚C (a searing 950˚F). As Jernigan quickly fires pans of eggplant and stuffed zucchini blossoms into the ovoid opening, her chef son Julian Obererlacher prepares pizzas on their outdoor granite island, and we sip cider while the oven works its Maillard magic.

A tuna loin that Julian sets on a grate next to the fire is perfectly seared, with a rare pink interior, in not much more than a minute. He swabs the ash from the firebrick with a long spatula, wrapped in a wet cloth, and slides a pizza onto the deck, shifting it for the minute or two it takes to cook to smoky perfection, the cheese melting into tasty pools with the crust rising in charred bubbles around it.

Jernigan has a long history when it comes to cooking in wood ovens. This is her first 34 DECEMBER 2020/JANUARY 2021

Twenty years ago, Jernigan enlisted the help of local artisan baker Cliff Leir (now owner of Fol Epi) in a Slow Food project to revive Canada’s historic Red Fife Wheat. Leir honed his early baking skills in a portable wood oven he built himself, and when he moved into his first bricks-and-mortar bakery, Jernigan bought that outdoor oven for her home in the Cowichan Valley. In 2005, while running the guesthouse at Fairburn Farm, (and helping to develop Canada’s first buffalo milk mozzarella), Jernigan invited the late Alan Scott, California’s wood oven guru, to host an oven-building workshop on the farm. That workshop begat other wood oven aficionados on the island, and the rest, as they say, is history.

It’s why Vancouver Island University became the first Canadian school with an operating wood oven for its culinary and professional baking programs, and likely why there are so many other wood-fired ovens in bakeries, restaurants and backyards here today, turning out traditional artisan breads and crisp Neapolitan-style pizzas at Wild Fire Bakery, Fry’s Bakery, Fol Epi, Pizzeria Prima Strada, Standard Pizza, 900º Pizzeria, Stoked Wood Fired Pizzeria in Shirley and Woodshed Pizza in Sidney.

Cooking With Wood It’s only in recent years that we’ve seen a range of modern wood ovens emerge for the home, but cooking in wood ovens literally reaches back millennia.

both ancient Greece and pre-Colombian indigenous civilizations. Baking in a communal wood oven was also part of medieval village life in France and Italy, a place to gather while awaiting the family’s daily bread to emerge. Our grandmothers and great grandmothers cooked with wood, too, on cook stoves with offset fireboxes that heated their ovens and cast iron cook tops, as well as warmed water It’s only in in adjacent reservoirs.

But it’s the domed shape of traditional brick or ceramic ovens that produce the radiant heat and natural convection to bake crusty breads and pizzas to perfection.

Bringing the Art Home If you want to own an outdoor (or indoor) wood oven, you’ll need to spend some time perfecting your cooking skills, and do a little research.

Mara Jernigan prepping wild mushrooms for Funghi Porcini Al Cartoccio while her Fontana Forno wood oven heats.

Jernigan recalls the bread ovens of Pompeii—33 of the domes survived the devastating volcanic eruption of Vesuvius in 79 AD—some of the earliest Italian ovens ever uncovered by archaeologists.

“You could literally light a fire in them and use them today,” she says.

These brick and clay “beehive” ovens were popular in

Funghi Porcini Al Cartoccio ready to serve.

years that

$200-300), a 13-inch pizza oven that’s heated on top of a three-burner gas barbecue.

And while there is a wide range of prices for a woodfired, outdoor oven, ranging from a low of about $1,500 to a high of $12,000+, as the sales staff at Capital Iron explains, price differences relate to size, materials, and engineering. Brands from Italy, the home of the wood oven, are generally more expensive recent than those made in China, and we’ve have better availability for parts and service, they say.

seen a range of

modern wood ovens emerge for the home, but cooking in wood ovens literally reaches back millennia.

If money is no object, you can invest in a residential version of a restaurant oven from maker Wood Stone for a mere $10,000 to $20,000 (US). But there are other, more affordable, options.

The experts at Capital Iron sell a few versions, from the American-made Fontana Forno that Jernigan purchased (prices start around $3,000) to portable tabletop pizza ovens made by Ooni, essentially miniature versions of the larger models, fired by hardwood pellets or propane ($400-$800). You can even buy a stone-lined metal box from BakerStone online (about

The price is reflected in the type and degree of insulation, too, important to retain heat and reduce fuel consumption. All ovens have a stone, firebrick or cordierite hearth for baking, but some are otherwise lined with metal. Better ovens are entirely lined in firebrick, promising higher and steadier cooking temperatures, achieved faster.

The ovens can be built into a permanent outdoor kitchen, or purchased as freestanding appliances with metal stands.

A spring-loaded door fits into the oven opening, and a tall stove-pipe vents the oven, which should not be smoky while in use. Most manufacturers say their ovens can reach temperatures of 800-1000˚F so exterior insulation is important for safety.

It also depends how you want to cook. Some of these ovens are strictly designed to cook one small pizza (with a 12-inch opening). Others accommodate larger or multiple pizzas, allow for more manipulations

Grape Focaccia (Schiacciata all'uva) comes out of the Fontana for a doneness check.

35

while cooking, and are large enough to roast meats and vegetables, too. Some ovens are wood-fired only, some use gas, some offer both fuel options.

While making pizza and flatbread is relatively easy to master, baking bread in a wood oven has a much steeper learning curve and requires lots of trial and error.

If You Build It IT’S TIME TO FEEL GOOD ABOUT THE MEAT THAT YOU EAT.

The rise of portable wood ovens means you no longer need to build one from scratch, but DIY remains popular. There are plenty of videos to watch online for inspiration, but consult your local municipal office or fire department first—in parts of the CRD, open fires are restricted and this can affect your plans for an outdoor oven.

A good book is another place to start. The Bread Builders: Hearth Loaves and Masonry Ovens by Alan Scott and Daniel Wing (1999) inspired many artisan bakers to bake with wood. The latest tome on the topic is From the Wood-Fired Oven: New and Traditional Techniques for Cooking and Baking with Fire by Richard Miscovich (2013), with oven design ideas and plenty of technical The rise of information about using a wood oven.

Or you can hire a local stone mason to create an outdoor kitchen, complete with an oven built on site.

TWORIVERSMEATS.COM

Gordon Doucette of Serious Masonry (seriousmasonry.com) has built a variety of unique and functional brick ovens for local customers.

portable wood

ovens means you no longer need to build one from scratch, but DIY

“I’ve done five ovens so far, starting with one remains popular.

I built at my own house,” says Doucette. Most were built from scratch, barrel-shaped or domed ovens made with refractory firebrick and cement, set on stone pedestals and enclosed in stone and brick structures. But the last oven he built for a local client started with a modular pizza oven kit from Forno Bravo in California.

“Instead of a week to build, it took us two hours to put together,” Doucette says of the manufactured oven interior that arrives in three pieces. “It was quite a revelation. I would never go back to doing an oven with brick again.”

Still, labour is the big cost for a custom wood oven.

“It’s about $2,000 for the kit, and then $8,000 to $9,000 for my end,” he adds, noting his ovens are designed to fit the site. “And you can get very creative with the exterior, with all different kinds of stone, tile or brick.”

Outdoor Dining The wood oven is just one component of the popular outdoor kitchen, made even more popular as an entertaining space during the time of Covid-19.

Like outdoor heaters, gas fire pits and other gadgets to make gathering in the garden more cosy, wood-fired ovens are in high demand.

With the pandemic keeping her close to Victoria this year, Jernigan says she couldn’t resist the chance to bring this hands-on, communal kitchen experience home again.

If gathering friends in the garden for wine, conversation and a little culinary theatre is your thing, there’s nothing like the warmth of a crackling wood fire in your own cool, communal oven.

Cooking with fire is hot—in more ways than one!

For more information, recipes, and tips, go to eatmagazine.ca/wood-oven-envy 36 DECEMBER 2020/JANUARY 2021

R ECIPE + S T Y L ING

Jennifer Danter PHO T OGR A PH Y

Jacqueline Downey

Peppermint Tuxedo Cookies These chewy, icy chocolate mint cookies are easy to make, and the frosty white sprinkles do all the heavy lifting of decorating.

Great for cookie swaps—these freeze like a charm.

Makes 16-18 cookies.

2 cups all-purpose flour ½ cup cocoa, preferably Dutch process ¾ tsp baking soda 1 tsp salt 1 cup unsalted butter, softened 1¼ cups granulated sugar 1 large egg ½ tsp each vanilla and peppermint extract White nonpareil sprinkles Line two baking sheets with parchment; preheat oven to 350°F. Sift flour, cocoa and baking soda into a bowl. Stir in salt.

In the bowl of a standing mixer, beat butter with sugar until light and fluffy, occasionally scraping

down sides, 1-2 minutes. Add egg and extracts; beat just until mixed.

Add flour mixture; beat on low, just until mixed.

Pour about 1 cup sprinkles into a bowl. Roll dough into balls (about 2 heaping Tbsp per ball).

Working one at a time, roll balls in sprinkles, pressing to stick. Add more sprinkles, as needed.

Arrange balls on sheet pans. Bake, one sheet at a time, until puffy, tops start to crack, and edges are set, about 12-14 minutes. Let cool on tray 15 minutes. Repeat with remaining balls. Cookies will keep well refrigerated up to 5 days, or freeze for up to 1 month.

Tip: to make a rainbow tuxedo use multi-coloured sprinkles

37

Masterclass R ECIPE + T E X T

Denise Marchessault S T Y L ING + PHO T OGR A PH Y

Deb Garlick

French Quiche Holiday celebrations may be a little different this year (like everything else in our lives). Whether you’re “zooming” with family or dining with your close-knit “bubble,” this elegant French quiche makes any occasion a little more special. Served for brunch or a light dinner, quiche offers a welcome change when you’ve had your fill of turkey.

A

French quiche is all about the custard. With a texture as delicate as crème caramel, you can’t help but be seduced by its luxurious mouth-feel. This is a quiche that compels you to slow down and savour each bite. Not to be confused with the dense catch-all quiche; while tasty and quick to prepare, the two are not the same.

“It’s almost sexual, a great quiche,” swoons legendary chef Thomas Keller in his cookbook Bouchon. The Michelin-starred chef refers to quiche as a “seductive pie.” If you’re wondering how “sexual” and “quiche” can be strung together in same sentence, follow the baking secrets below and you, too, will be smitten.

• The custard needs to be baked gently at a low

temperature. Because the pastry requires high heat, it’s necessary to pre-cook it before adding the custard. The twice-baked pastry inexplicably turns out perfect, defying all baking logic.

38 DECEMBER 2020/JANUARY 2021

• Use a cake pan. Those lovely fluted quiche pans,

with the removable bottoms, make beautiful tarts, but they don’t have enough depth for a decadent custard. Bakers sometimes use a metal ring mold or a springform pan, but a regular cake pan, 1½ inches deep, does the trick nicely. A deep pie plate works too, but I prefer the tidy symmetry of a cake pan.

• Don’t over-bake your quiche. It should come from the oven slightly jiggly in the centre; the residual heat will continue to cook it.

• Go easy on the fillings. Less is more when it comes

to a light delicate custard. And layering the ingredients (filling, custard, filling, etc.), rather than tossing them in all at once, will prevent them from sinking to the bottom of the pie. Quiche can be adapted to nearly any filling, just be sure to use the ratios provided.

• A luscious custard merits a decent pastry, so for

the love of your Cooking Goddess, make it from scratch. I’ve included my favourite pastry recipe, but feel free to use your own. The key to a good pastry dough is minimal handling—and it’s easy to achieve when pastry is rolled between lightly floured parchment paper and plastic wrap (on top). A freezer bag, cut open, even works better than standard plastic wrap—pastry simply doesn’t stick to it.

• You need patience. It takes hours for a delicate

quiche to set. And, like most custards, it should be refrigerated overnight before serving.

My celebration quiche recipe combines sweet crab with smoky Black Forest ham in a custard flecked with sweet peppers. And, because every quiche deserves a partner, serve with a light garden salad. Enjoy with a crisp sparkling BC wine for a memorable, and not too heavy, holiday meal.

Crab and Tarragon Quiche

Makes one 9½-inch quiche (about 6-8 servings)

This beautiful French-style quiche is straightforward to prepare but takes a bit of planning because the pastry is pre-baked and the custard is best firmed in the fridge, preferably overnight.

In my kitchen, anything that can be cooked in advance is company-worthy. This quiche doesn’t disappoint.

1 recipe Flaky Pastry (see below) 6 Tbsp freshly grated Parmesan cheese, divided 1 Tbsp vegetable oil ½ cup onion, finely diced, about half an onion ½ cup red bell pepper, finely diced, about half a pepper Kosher salt 1 large clove garlic, finely chopped ¼ tsp dried chili flakes 1 tsp white wine vinegar or freshly squeezed lemon juice 2 oz Black Forest ham, finely chopped, about 2 slices deli ham 4 ounces cooked crab, shelled and picked over 1 Tbsp plus 1 tsp freshly chopped tarragon, plus more for garnish 1¾ cups whipping cream, room temperature 1 cup whole milk, room temperature 5 whole eggs, room temperature, lightly beaten ½ cup grated Gruyère cheese You’ll need a 9½-inch cake pan lined with parchment paper with a few inches of overhang (to easily remove the quiche from the pan). Note: if your cake pan is smaller or larger than specified, you’ll need to adjust the custard and baking time accordingly.

TIP: To quickly bring cold cream and milk to room temperature, combine them in a microwaveable bowl or glass jug and microwave briefly. To bring cold eggs to room temperature quickly, place them (in their shell) in a bowl of warm water for a few minutes.

Preheat oven to 425°F.

Pastry Prepare the pastry dough according the instructions.

Make sure the cake pan is lined with enough excess parchment: you’ll need to lift the quiche from the pan by grabbing hold of the parchment.

Roll the dough ⅛ inch thick and transfer it to the parchment-lined cake pan with enough excess pastry to spill over the pan, as pictured (this prevents the pastry from shrinking). The excess pastry will be trimmed after it’s baked. Use your fingers to gently press the dough along the pan’s base and sides to maintain its shape. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 60 minutes.

Replace the plastic wrap with parchment paper, then fill the pan to the top with rice, beans, or pie weights.

Add the remaining vegetable/crab mixture, followed by the cream/egg mixture and remaining Gruyère. Garnish with additional tarragon leaves, if desired.

Bake in a preheated 325°F oven until the centre is softly set and still slightly jiggly in the centre, about 60–70 minutes. Turn the pan once during baking and cover with foil when the top is well browned.

Cool on a wire rack and refrigerate (still in its parchment-lined cake pan) for several hours, preferably overnight.

When completely cooled, lift the quiche from the cake pan by grabbing hold of the parchment edges. Bring to room temperature (quiche is traditionally served room temperature) or rewarm in a 275°F oven.

Bake in a preheated 425°F oven for 20 minutes, reduce the temperature to 375°F and cook for another 5 minutes. Remove the foil and pie weights and sprinkle the base with about half the Parmesan cheese.

Bake until the pastry is golden and cooked through, about 10 minutes longer, covering the edges with foil if necessary, to prevent burning. Cool completely in the pan. Using a serrated knife, trim the excess dough from the cooled pastry shell.

Filling Heat the oil in a large skillet and add the onion, bell pepper, and ½ tsp kosher (or table) salt. Cook over medium heat until the vegetables have softened, about 5 minutes, stirring the mixture occasionally to prevent burning. Add the garlic and stir until aromatic, about 30 seconds. Transfer the mixture to a medium bowl and add the chili flakes, white wine vinegar (or lemon juice), ham, crab, and tarragon. Mix to combine and set aside to cool completely.

In a medium bowl or large measuring cup, combine the eggs, milk, and whipping cream with 1¼ tsp of kosher salt (or 1 tsp table salt). Mix until well combined.

Assembly Preheat oven to 325°F. Place the cooled, pre-baked pastry shell (still in its parchment-lined cake pan) on a baking sheet lined with foil or parchment paper for easy cleanup.

To ensure the ingredients are evenly dispersed throughout the custard, the filling is layered as follows: Spread half the cooled vegetable/ crab mixture along the base of the tart. Sprinkle with half the Gruyère cheese and the balance of Parmesan cheese. Pour half the cream/egg mixture on top.

Flaky Pastry

2¾ cups all-purpose flour 1 tsp table salt ½ lb lard or vegetable shortening, cut into 1-inch pieces 1 whole egg 1 Tbsp white vinegar Ice cold water Place the flour and salt in a large bowl and mix to combine. Add the lard or shortening and cut the fat into the flour with a pastry blender or two knives until the mixture is crumbly with some larger pieces along with the (mostly) finer particles.

In a spouted measuring jug, combine the egg, vinegar, and enough ice water to equal 1 cup; mix with a fork.

Gradually pour about half the liquid into the flour and mix with a fork, adding only enough additional water to make the dough cling together in an untidy mass. You likely won’t use all the water.

When the dough becomes too difficult to mix with a fork, transfer it to a lightly floured work surface and shape into a disk about 1 inch thick. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least an hour.

Roll out the pastry as directed in the Crab and Tarragon Quiche recipe.

39

A Hot Sauce Tasting Party Gillie Easdon gathered 13 local, house-made hot sauces and four brave souls to taste-test them.

W OR D S

PHO T OGR A PH Y

Gillie Easdon

Jacqueline Downey

I

t was a mid-October, late Sunday morning in the Buckerfield’s Room at Swans. Jax, the photographer, was setting up the lights while I arranged bowls of toothpicks, lemon wedges, Carr’s Water Crackers, and a thermos of cold milk. The wings were in the fryer, and there was a cold brew beer and a spicy Caesar on the way. My two 10-year-old helpers poured sauces of different shades and consistencies (sort of ) carefully into small glass carafes for the shoot, mindful not to rub their eyes.

The tasting panel (clockwise from left): Andrea Duncan, Bob Hendle, Stuart Brown, Heron Hanuman, Gillie Easdon

The rain “produce-misted” outside, and there was a distinct chill in the October air. But things were about to heat up as five of us launched into the House-made Hot Sauce Sunday Session. Several local eateries make their own hot sauces, and we were primed to explore, compare, and consume them. First on a toothpick, next a simple cracker, and lastly on a plain fried chicken wing.

On the panel? Andrea Duncan, former CinCin Ristorante + Bar, Blue Water, Foo, and Heron Rock cook, now at the helm of food at Broadmead’s latest gem Niche; executive chef Bob Hendle from Swans; former TV journalist, now communications expert Heron Hanuman; Stuart Brown, sommelier/sommelier instructor and Swans Hotel and liquor store manager—and me. My credential? I love hot sauce.

Each sample was poured into a small numbered carafe, and participants had tasting sheets that included sections to judge appearance, smell, heat, taste, and overall experience. There was also a diagram to establish more detailed tasting notes on flavours such as chocolate, citrus, vinegar, salty, and smoky, as well as the sauce’s “linger.” It was a blind tasting, but for this article, we’ll describe each housemade sauce with a round-up of those that

40 DECEMBER 2020/JANUARY 2021

stood out. Mind that most are only available in-house or with a takeout/delivery meal. But if you’re looking for a new place to try or a new hot sauce-making hobby, look no further.

1. Part and Parcel’s Carrot Hot Sauce Everyone was struck by the sweet, citrus quality of this sauce and the bright honey-mustard colour. Tangy and tasty with habanero, carrots, and citrus, it seemed a superb fit for oysters, eggs, and shrimp. It did not do so well with the chicken wing.

Only available in-house, take-out/delivery.

2. 5th Street Bar & Woodfire Grill Five-pepper Sauce This brick-red sauce was full of onion, garlic, and chilis. It was savoury, salty, and delicious on the wing but did not work on the cracker. This one would be great on pizza, burgers, and classic pub fare.

Only available in-house, take-out/delivery.

3. The Ruby’s Warm Sauce This sauce had smoky aromas of tomato and herb and was low in vinegar. The flavour was fairly mild and unobtrusive.

The smoke was its top character, and it could work on a burger and nicely with other sauces.

Only available in-house, take-out/delivery.

4. The Ruby’s Green Sriracha This sauce looks like a classic salsa verde and tastes of green tomato and jalapeño with a good balance of vinegar, fruit, and herb. With its appealing consistency and tasty heat, the sauce was one all the judges wanted to try on eggs or Mexican.

It was great on the wing.

Only available in-house, take-out/delivery.

5. Made by Swans Sous-Chef Anna Brown This last-minute entry tasted of passionfruit, with a manageable heat and a silky consistency. The green/brown colour was not super-appealing, but the flavour and

The Contenders (L to R): The Village Drop 3, Wheelies, The Ruby’s Green Sriracha, Bilston Creek Farm’s Heat from 1000 Peppers Hot Sauce , Nohra Thai’s Nam Prik, Fuego, Swans Sous-Chef Anna Brown's entry, 5th Street Bar & Woodfire Grill Five-pepper Sauce, Part and Parcel’s Carrot Hot Sauce, Heron Rock Chokeslam Hot Sauce, The New Hotness 7 Pepper Okanagan Peach Burnt Garlic, The Ruby’s Warm Sauce heat were excellent with a long even finish. It was great on the wings.

Only available in-house, take-out/delivery.

6. The Village Drop 3 The name refers to a popular breakfast dish at the Village Restaurant. This sauce presented muted aromas of smoky tomato and celery. It started with a blast then dropped off quickly. It was a mellow and enjoyable sauce with light sweetness. It did not work on the wing but was nonetheless a versatile sauce.

Available for sale at the restaurant.

7. Wheelies Everyone had seconds of this bright orange sauce.

It was fresh, tangy, and in the same family as the famous Frank’s RedHot but was house-made and local and could have been called “hipster Cholula.”

Super-vinegary, salty, and “moreish,” it had a pleasing consistency and moderate heat.

Available for sale at the restaurant.

8. Fuego This was the first one that inspired milk-drinking. It had a creeper heat. The balanced habanero packed a delicious punch, and there were some mango notes.

This one inspired the first sniffle from the team. Yum. Available for sale at the restaurant.

9. Nick Maharaj’s The New Hotness 7 Pepper Okanagan Peach Burnt Garlic This sauce smelled fantastic, with, well, burnt garlic, peach and heat. Balanced, hot, smoky, and

spicy, it had a strong vinegar and pepper heat with a warm, tangy finish. Great depth and flavour makes this a versatile, yummy hot sauce. Chilis include Wartryx, 7 Pot UFO, 7-Pot Bubblegum Naga, Devil’s Tongue, Sugar Rush Peach, Peacha-Dew, and Ghost from Farmer Rob Dunic. This is one of Nick’s own “small-batch hot sauce experiments” that is available at Part and Parcel (where he is Chef de Cuisine) and on this Instagram: ​ www.instagram.com/thenewhotness

10. Heron Rock Chokeslam Hot Sauce This sauce has smoky vegetable and barbecue-sauce-styled aromas. It started mild then built evenly with a lovely balanced finish—sweet and smoky with a great mix of different chilis. This would be amazing on grilled chicken or pork.

Available for sale at the restaurant.

11. Nohra Thai’s Nam Prik This sauce was deliciously redolent of chopped limes, chilis, and Thai fish sauce. It was more like a salsa— each bite a unique jolt of flavour. It would be perfect on white fish, seafood, beef, and noodles. One taster announced it was “exciting to eat.”

Only available in-house, take-out/delivery.

12. Bilston Creek Farm’s Heat from 1000 Peppers Hot Sauce This sauce was a stunning orange. It had perfect consistency and smelled as if it might pack a serious punch. The taste was slightly fermented and not

super-hot—as it turned out. The peppers were also sourced from Farmer Rob, and the honey came from the farm. This is Bilston’s first hot sauce, a smallbatch, lacto-fermented gem.

Hot sauce in the works to be available for sale.

13. Joan’s Hot Sauce made by Heron Hanuman’s mom Joan This green and runny sauce was packed with Spanish thyme, herbs, mustard, and vinegar. It was an incredible blend of bright fruit and acid with substantial heat. The thyme was a welcome surprise for three of us, and a warm familiar pleasure for Heron and Stuart, who both have Trinidadian roots.

Not available for sale—make friends with Heron.

By the end of the event, a few tissues, waters, and wings later, our taste buds were tapped. The range of styles and flavours made the event both satisfying and challenging to select favourites. Loosely, Wheelies and Fuego tied for first, with the New Hotness, Ruby’s Green Sriracha and Part and Parcel’s Carrot Hot Sauce a close three-way tie for second.

Every sauce had its own merits and it was exciting to explore the scope of local sauces. Felix and Milo, the two 10-year-old hot sauce lovers and helpers, did a tasting of the first five and their clear winner was Swans for its tropical notes and healthy heat. There are many sauces on the grocer’s shelves, but hands down, for freshness and some tasty heat, try to keep it local. Because you can, and it’s hot.

41

Salmon En Croute

42 DECEMBER 2020/JANUARY 2021

R ECIPE + S T Y L ING + PHO T OGR A PH Y

Rebecca Wellman

N

eedless to say, 2020 has been full of surprises and changes unlike any we’ve ever known in our lifetime. One of the most challenging adjustments has been not being able to see our loved ones as much as we’d like (at least close up), forgoing our traditional large gatherings for small get togethers, and remaining within our “bubble.” This doesn’t mean things can’t be special, though, but you know that. We’ve seen endless displays of adapting to this strange world all over the Internet. Epic kitchen dance routines, online celebrations, innovative ways of social distancing, learning how to Zoom.

We are going into our ninth month of this madness, but I think I can say with confidence that this isn’t going to last forever. Right? One day, we can excitedly gather once again.

In the meantime, let’s celebrate! For what we do have. For those few we can gather around us. For 2020 nearing its end. I feel incredibly fortunate to be living in this part of the world, where we haven’t been hit nearly as hard as many others. My heart goes out to those who have suffered. The world can be heartbreaking sometimes, that is for sure. However, we are here, and there are many things to be grateful for. So, let’s raise a glass and ring in the season. Let’s eat!

Salmon En Croute with Spinach and Cream

Serves 4.

Salmon en Croute will not take you all day to make.

It is a decadent, and comforting, celebratory meal that doesn’t leave you dealing with a messy carcass or washing endless greasy dishes. You can make this bigger, or smaller, depending on the capacity of your bubble. If you are on the Covid-baking-train, feel free to rough together your own homemade puff pastry. If that is not in your arsenal, try to find frozen puff pastry that is made with all butter. (If you live in Victoria, Market on Yates has a wonderful all-butter pastry in their freezer section.)

The Parmesan in this recipe is not to add cheesiness really, but more to impart umami and depth to the brightness of the lemon juice and herbs.

Drain all the liquid from the grated onion and add to the bowl with the spinach. Add garlic, lemon zest, lemon juice, cream, dill and Parmesan. Season with salt and freshly ground pepper. Whisk the whole egg and add to the mixture, incorporating well.

Season both sides of the salmon with salt and pepper.

On a lightly floured surface, roll the puff pastry out to about 10 inches x 15-inches. Spoon the spinach mixture into the centre of the pastry, about the width and length of the salmon. There should be enough of a pastry border on all four edges to wrap the spinach and salmon, while overlapping as little as possible.

Place the salmon, top-side-down, on top of the spinach. Wrap the pastry up and over on all sides, pinching to seal, creating a nicely sealed package.

Carefully flip the package over, and place on the prepared sheet pan.

With a sharp knife, score a very shallow crosshatch pattern in the top of the pastry. Try not to go completely through the pastry.

Whisk the remaining egg yolk with 1 tsp of water and brush over the entire surface of the pastry.

Bake until crust is browned and puffy, 45-55 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through.

Let sit for 10 minutes before slicing and serving. All you need is a lemon-dressed green salad and steamed carrots for a celebratory meal.

1 lb fresh spinach, roughly chopped (1 large plastic box of fresh spinach = 1 lb) ½ small white onion, grated 1 garlic clove, finely minced Zest of one lemon, minced 1 Tbsp lemon juice 2 Tbsp whipping cream 2 tsp minced fresh dill 1 Tbsp finely grated Parmesan 1 egg 1¾ lb boneless, skinless salmon fillet 1 puff pastry crust 1 egg yolk Heat oven to 400°F and place the oven rack in the centre. Line a rimmed sheet pan with parchment paper.

In a large pot over medium-low heat, bring 2 Tbsp of water to a simmer. Add the spinach and with tongs, stir and flip constantly, until the spinach is wilted but hasn’t lost its brilliant green, 4-6 minutes. With the tongs, transfer all of the spinach to a colander, let cool, then squeeze out all of the liquid. Chop the spinach a bit more, so the pieces are small and don’t clump and fold together too much. Place in a medium-sized bowl.

43

ntalize a t e m o C “ ur taste buds. yo Here.

Now.”

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