irish bread for saint paddy’s day
Kaelin Whittaker of the Ruby Apron Cooking School www.therubyapron.ca shares her recipe for Irish brown bread. It’s delicious, with an amazing crust, toothsome texture, hearty flavours, not too sweet. Lovely with cheese—bet it goes with green beer too, if you are so inclined. Brown Yeast Bread
a spicy touch
Calgarians Karen Anderson and Noorbanu Nimji’s delicious cookbook A Spicy Touch is filled with flavours of Noorbanu’s childhood, translated to Alberta. Culina Muttart’s chef Larissa Nessler recreates some of their delicious recipes for a buffet dinner, Thursday, March 21 at Culina Muttart (9626 – 96a Street). Karen will be there selling the cookbook so you can take the flavours home to your own kitchen. Tix: $55/p+ https://www.culinafamily.com/events/
like whisky? love craft beer?
Hops and Whisky returns to the Royal Glenora Club (11160 River Valley Road) Friday, March 22, 6:30pm. Sample craft beers and high- quality whisky along with live music and good food. There are also two master classes (separately ticketed). Proceeds to Nina Haggerty Centre for the Arts. Tix, $89/++, https://www.eventbrite.ca/. Or, contact Rona Fraser at 780-886-6640 for group sales (10 or more).
get to know mead at aligra
Art and Cherie Andrews started keeping bees in 1995. From that came the Chinook Honey Company, which is now a thriving southern Alberta agri-tourism business. Along the way they started making mead, opening Chinook Arch Meadery in 2007. Their meads are home grown and delicious, a true artisan product. Experience them first hand at Aligra (8882 170 Street, 780-483-1083, aligrawineandspirits.com). Saturday, March 23, from 2-5pm. The event is free, but you need to register: https://aligrawineandspirits.com/.
in the weeds
Mental health is important. In The Weeds is a new organization set up to “promote mental health in the restaurant industry in Edmonton, through educating employers, managers and employees about mental health, to recognize the mental health needs of other workers, and the importance of a health and positive working environment,” says Sylvia Cheverie, owner of Chartier restaurant. The inaugural event is a panel discussion on Monday, March 25 at the Mosaic Centre (2003 91 Street SW). The evening is free, but you do need to register: https://www.eventbrite.com/
swine & dine at london local
If you need a reason to visit London Local (2307 Ellwood Drive, 780-752-2244, https://www.london-local.ca) for chef Lindsay Porter’s cooking here it is: Swine & Dine, Wednesday, March 27. Four courses featuring delicious Alberta pork and yes, their amazing Scotch egg is on the menu! Tix: $50/+ call 780-752-2244, or book on Open table.
we love collab dinners!
And this one sounds amazing. Farm Fresh: A Local Surf & Turf Dinner at XIX (5940 Mullen Way, 780-395-1119, http://dinenineteen.com) Chef Andrew Fung is collaborating with Jeff Nonay of Lakeside Dairy and Rob Tyron from Effing Seafood for a four-course dinner featuring Wagyu beef meatballs and fresh oysters, 7pm, Monday, April 1. Tix: $125/p all in. Call 780-395-1119 to book.
click here for real bread
The Real Bread website is up now: https://realbreadalberta.com. What will you find? Resources for people interested in making and eating good bread. First up is a chat with Steven Snider, an organic grain producer based near New Norway. Steven will talk about why his family moved to organic production back in 1986 and the formation of Little Red Hen Mills. Enjoy Italian Centre snacks and bread from Real Bread members. Tix: $15/p, https://www.eventbrite.ca/
In related bread news, Brio Bakery is now open in the Oliver Exchange Building, 12021 102 Avenue. Check it out! https://www.briobakery.com/
wine of the week: hugel gentil
This wine from Hugel used to be found on every wine list. But, as we got excited about other wines from other places, it fell off the radar. Well, at least it did for me. So, call this a reintroduction to a delicious wine just in time for spring. The blend of noble grapes (by French wine law Gentil must be 50 per cent Riesling, Muscat, Pinot Gris or Gewurztraminer, known as noble white grapes) with Pinot Blanc or Sylvaner making up the balance. Consider it a taste of the Alsace —charming aromas, crisp and balanced, with spot-on acidity, it’s ideal for a glass while you are cooking dinner or perusing the restaurant menu. The four grams per litre sugar and 12.5 per cent alcohol contribute to the easy-going drinkability, and, it’s around $20 in most wine shops.
