A New Baby!
The arrival of a new baby is always an exciting time. There is the build up, the hopes and expectation, and then the big day comes and everyone is overjoyed. Well, today we celebrated the arrival of our newest baby, a bouncing 30 pound bundle of metal and moving parts!
As much as we enjoy doing everything by hand, when it comes to rolling out home made tortilla wraps for 130 people (2 per person), the task can seem a little daunting. But with ‘Baby’ in the house, this task becomes far more bearable, maybe even fun! Our new sheeter transforms balls of dough into perfectly flat pancakes in mere seconds.
Our new toy will also be used for rolling out our pie-dough which is always made from scratch. Apparently, we can make pasta, flat bread, and who knows what else.
Today’s whole wheat flour tortillas were then grilled on the flat top and will form part of tomorrow’s taco themed dinner. Olé!
Filed Under: Uncategorized
8 Little Piggies went to Au Pied du Cochon
Au Pied du Cochon has been a longtime favourite restaurant of Jo-Ann’s. She has visited there many times and has been working her way through the entire menu over the last few years. So, when we were looking for a place to bring our team for a unique dining experience, Au Pied du Cochon was at the top of the list.
Opened in 2001 by chef Martin Picard, this restaurant celebrates ’snout to tail’ eating. If you think I’m joking, the current menu features bison tongue, boudin noir (blood sausage), head cheese, stuffed pig trotters, and many more delicacies that have evolved over time out of the necessity of making use of every part of the animal.
So, armed with a healthy appetite, and a late reservation, we arrived at our destination. You know you are in for an experience when the restaurant doesn’t even need to have their name on the front of their building! Their reputation alone fills up the space every night of the week.
After waiting an extra 20 minutes for our 9pm reservation, we sat down to a complimentary plate of house made charcuterie and piping hot cod fritters. The fritters were too salty for my taste (and I like salt) but the sampling of tongue, head cheese, boudin and aspic was lovely.
Between the 8 of us, we made every effort to sample the whole menu. When the Bison Ribs arrived at the table, I felt like I was dining with the Flintstones. They were juicy, meaty and were almost 18 inches long!
Another highlight of the evening was the ‘Duck in a Can’. Containing braised cabbage, duck breast, and fois gras, then heated in a can, this meal was opened table-side, and the contents poured onto a slice of crusty bread smeared with mashed potatoes. The presentation was unique and the meal was tasty.
The Seafood Platter for Two was beautiful to look at and full of vegetables including some lovely deep fried zucchini blossom, but quite honestly did not contain a lot of seafood. There was a one crab claw and some whelks (sea snail).
We finished the meal off with a sampling of the dessert menu. The wine flowed freely, and it was a beautiful evening. Sometime after midnight we spilled out into the streets, happy and full.
Filed Under: Travel, Uncategorized
Montreal Atwater Market
This past weekend the Red Apron team embarked on a trip to Montreal. Our primary reason for the visit was to eat at ‘Au Pied de Cochon’, but that’s another blog post! A group of us drove down on Saturday morning to spend a few hours shopping at the Atwater Market.
Flower Shop at Atwater
The Atwater Market opened in 1933. The interior of the market is permanent home to many butchers and a bakery. The outside market has farmer stalls where they sell both local and imported produce. There are two cheese stores and a wine store that specializes in locally produced spirits. You can also buy fish, flowers and seasonal items like Christmas trees in November & December
The Art Deco building is located on Atwater Street near the Lachine Canal and the Lionel-Groulx Metro Station. It’s central location makes it popular with cyclists. The market is easily accessed from Old Montreal by bike, metro, car or taxi.
Atwater is really the place to go if you want to buy meat. There are many fine butchers on site, each with their own specialty. If you are looking for sausage, you can choose from hundreds of flavours. If you need charcuterie, there are a number of places that make this their specialty. If you are looking for Boudin Blanc or Boudin Noir, it’s there too!
My favourite charcuterie stall is run by a group of women
(they claim they have male employees too, but I have never seen one). Their terrines are rustic and flavourful, their presentation is lovely. They offer a number of items dressed & oven ready, including rabbit. They make a selection of their own sausages, and will sell you a package of assorted flavours. They confit their own duck legs and much, much more! While we were there the proprietress was rolling pastry and making samosas, which we got to sample hot out of the oven. They were divine!
We stopped by one of the fromageries and sampled cheeses. Most of the shops are willing to give you a taste of any cheese you would like to try before you buy. We were able to pick up a number of unique Quebec cheeses from our samplings to bring home.
Since we are at the peak of our growing season, fresh local produce was in abundance. Local strawberries, Ontario peaches, wild blueberries and every kind of vegetable you could imagine, was on display and at it’s peak. It was hard not to buy too much!
But one of the highlights of our trip was the warm, fresh from the oven, garlic bread stick from the Bakery. I think this picture speaks for itself!
Filed Under: Travel, Uncategorized
Feast of Fields
Tickets are available at the Red Apron, or online by visiting the COG website.
On September 12, 2010 Canadian Organic Growers – Ottawa Chapter will once again bring together farmers and top chefs from Ottawa and the region to celebrate the local organic harvest. Area farmers, who produce according to nationally recognized organic standards, team up with chefs from some of the finest restaurants in the area.
Feast of Fields Ottawa celebrates the annual harvesting of premium local, organic and healthy foods from the Ottawa-Gatineau region. By purchasing a ticket to Feast of Fields Ottawa you will be able to sample and enjoy tasty concoctions especially created from the areas local abundance for the Feast.
In addition to superb food, Feast of Fields Ottawa features a silent auction, entertainment and children’s activities.
Due to renovations at Vincent Massey Park, Feast of Fields 2010 will be held at LeBreton Flats.
Filed Under: Around Town, Uncategorized
Oktoberfest at Beau’s
Located in Vankleek Hill, Beau’s use local spring water , organic malts (no extracts) and organic hops which are grown locally. Their beer is available at the LCBO, and in many restaurants throughout the city. Each October Beau’s hosts one heck of an Octoberfest in Vankleek Hill. The proceeds of this fundraising event support the United Way, VKH Agricultural Society & Canadian Organic Week. They roll out the barrels in the fields of the Vankleek Hill fairgrounds. Get out your lederhosen, dirndls, green alpine hats and steins and take part in the festivities. What started as a small affair a few years ago, this annual event has become a real Octoberfest. Local restaurants turn out to supply great food. There will be live music, competitions like arm wrestling and sausage eating, and lots of musical entertainment.
Filed Under: Around Town, Entertaining, Uncategorized
Latest Posts
- A New Baby!
- 8 Little Piggies went to Au Pied du Cochon
- Montreal Atwater Market
- Feast of Fields
- Oktoberfest at Beau's
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Who are we?
We are Mothers, residents of our community, entrepreneurs as well as active participants in our local economy. We individually have a history of owning and operating successful local businesses.
Our commitment to getting people “back to the table” starts at home and extends to our community through a number of philanthropic endeavours.