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!

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.

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!

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.

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.

The key to smoking is temperature.  You have to get the temperature of the egg down low enough that it doesn’t cook the food too quickly, but instead infuses it with a deep, smokey flavour.  I also knew that there was the additional step of brining or rubbing your meat or fish first.  The recipe I found called for a mixture of ginger, kosher salt, garlic, sugar and herbs.

So, armed with the required components, I embarked on my smoking journey.  I was spending the weekend at my Riverhouse, and  visited the Wakefield Farmer’s Market on Saturday morning to stock up on ingredients.  I had already procured some lake trout, but also picked up some local, organic pork chops from one of the local farmers.

I rubbed both the trout and the chops with my mixture of salt, sugar & aromatics.  As the trout was small and thin, I let them cure for a couple of hours.  The chops can cure for much longer (up to 24 hours according to the recipe).  I stoked my Egg with charcoal and ‘fired er up’.  Once the coals were burning nicely I closed down the dampers and waited for the temperature to come down to under 200 degrees.  This took quite a while as the egg is so efficient at retaining heat.

Once the temperature was achieved, I threw on my hickory chips as well as the fish.  30 minutes later and voila!  It was spectacular.  The flavour was smokey & sweet, the texture was light, not overcooked.  And the colour was spectacular.

So, armed with my newfound confidence, I was ready to tackle the chops.  The process was pretty much the same.  Because they were big, meaty chops I smoked them for a little over an hour.  Then when the chops were firm, I removed them from the Egg, and cranked up the heat so I could sear them on both sides to get some added colour and flavour.

Now, of course, I want to smoke everything!  Eggplant, duck breasts, mushrooms, shrimp, bacon, ham…..the possibilities are endless.

Around the corner (on Kent & Arlington) we have the Whalesbone warehouse, where on Thursdays, Fridays & Saturdays, you can grab a great fish sandwich, or stock up for some weekend entertaining.  And of course, down the street at Bank & Gladstone, there is the Whalesbone Oysterhouse, where you can get one of the best meals in town, prepared by one of Ottawa’s most talented young chefs.

We often see their chef, Charlotte, biking down Gladstone on her way to or from work, looking very Parisian, with her beret askew, and her large basket on the front of her bike.  Last week she stopped by ‘True Loaf’ to pick up the bread for their evening service and we just had to snap a photo.

Ain’t she sweet!

This year my family has purchased a sheep milk share from Canreg Station farm, which we pick up every Saturday at the Main Street Farmer’s market. This week I plan to make sheep milk ricotta, if I can stop my family from drinking it all! We have also enjoyed a number of lovely dinners featuring their tender rack of lamb.

Much of my weekend cooking is done at our Riverhouse, located on the Gatineau River near Wakefield.  The gourmet kitchen is much better equipped than my home kitchen.  When the Riverhouse is not rented out to fellow foodies, this is where we spend much of our spare time.  The meals we have prepared in this kitchen have been spectacular.  We have roasted a whole lamb & a suckling pig; we have hosted cocktail parties for up to 50 people; we have made cinnamon buns & homemade bread in the wood fired oven; and we have toasted our fair share of marshmallows.

In truth, most of the cooking is done on our ‘Big Green Egg’.  My good friend Mike (aka the Grateful Griller) sells these kamado style cookers.  Quite honestly, once you have tried it, it’s impossible to think of going back to the old gas BBQ.

My Big Green Egg!

The ‘Egg’ works more like an oven or smoker and the temperature is very easy to regulate.  The result is that you can slow cook at 250 degrees for hours, or you can sear a steak at 450 degrees for minutes.  The ability to use ‘flavour agents’ like hickory smoke, add to the experience.  This past weekend I was experimenting with a new batch of orange wood – fantastic!

This past weekend’s feast included a gluten free focaccia (baked on the ‘Egg’), accompanied by a medley of grilled vegetables, and a strip-loin steak, purchased from the ‘local meat’ section of the Wakefield General Store.

Who knows what treasures will be in store for next weekend!

There are a wide variety of activities to get involved in. There’s something for every member of the family to enjoy. Herbfest is held every year on the grounds of the popular Herb Garden. For easy directions click here.

The main highlight of Herbfest for many is the amazing range of vendors that participate every year. Many have been coming for ten years or more, but many talented new vendors are added each year. Last year there were some 90 vendors representing a vast array of products and services. Most vendors are from the Ottawa Valley, but some come from the far reaches of Ontario and Québec.

Every year there are also a wide variety of culinary treats to savour in the Herbfest food court. Come early and enjoy breakfast, with a cup of locally roasted fair-trade coffee. For lunch you can choose from a variety of wholesome choices including some ethnic favourites. Later in the day slow down the pace in the beer garden. There’s truly something for everyone!

Certainly the city has changed over the years, as do all cities.  However, as I got older and started to travel to some of these far off and reportedly more cultured locales, I started making my own comparisons.  A trip to New Orleans for the Food and Music Festival was hampered by horrible weather, terrible service, and a long bus ride to an open field to fight huge crowds to see some fine musicians.  The trip was expensive and they city did not impress me as much as I hoped.  Upon my return to Ottawa I saw some of the same musicians for free in Major’s Hill park, without having to suffer the nightly murders, the exhausting heat, and the obvious racial tensions.

After many wonderful trips to New York City, I had to reluctantly conclude that although there were a few memorable meals, generally the quality of food in Ottawa’s finer restaurants rivaled that of New York, at a fraction of the price.

Was it possible that I had been sold a bill of goods by my own countrymen?  Could it be that Ottawa was not as dull and drab as I had come to believe?

Finally, a recent trip to the West Coast, a hotbed of locovore activity, revealed to me that Ottawans are every bit as committed to supporting local, seasonal and organic agriculture as our West Coast brothers and sisters.  Although interesting things are happening in the west, where they enjoy a much longer growing season, equally interesting things are going on right here in our own backyard.

Now, the Washington Post confirms it.  Ottawa is cool!

Thanks to Janteen & Savour Ottawa for getting the word out.

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