Lunch, Movie and Dinner with Friends in Toronto

“Just relax. Everyone around you is working too hard.”
 Bauvard, Some Inspiration for the Overenthusiastic

Before the hustle and bustle of the holiday season, I managed to enjoy some time with my friends in Toronto.

It was important to relax before embarking on a serious project. So, we had lunch, we watched a movie and had dinner. For me, the more friends the merrier, the more dishes I get to try.
I am not doing a review, I am merely sharing my experience.
 
LUNCH

Lunch at OB Canteen was casual and reasonably priced, reasonably good. The restaurant was full, we had to wait a few minutes before we got seated. I had a pain au chocolat with a cup of coffee while waiting for the main dishes.

Chopped Chicken Liver 12.
housemade pickles, O&B Artisan toast

Semolina Gnocchi16.
braised lamb, rosemary, Parmesan

Smoked Salmon Croissant 16.
poached eggs, Hollandaise

We had a great time. The restaurant has a nice setting and my friend Ken admired the Le Creuset pots and pans on display. I don't have a picture of the dessert because we did not eat it. The dessert came, we all tasted it, analyzed it, we all had our opinions why it was not good. The server came and I politely said that it was not good. No drama, the server immediately removed it from my sight. She offered us other desserts but we declined because we have to get ready for the movie.

MOVIE
 

The movie is entitled "Entre les Bras".

A documentary on French chef Michel Bras and his decision to hand over his restaurant to his son, Sebastien, who has been working with him for 15 years.
Directed by Paul Lacoste. Starring Michel Bras and Sebastian Bras

Paul Lacoste's new documentary, Entre les Bras (Step Up to the Plate), begins in 2009 when Michel Bras, the founder of an award-winning restaurant deep in the mountains of southern France, decides to gradually step down so his eldest son, Sébastien, can take up the chef's mantle.

I have admired Michel Bras for the longest time.

DINNER

We went to Cafe Boulud at the Four Seasons for dinner. This is my "kind of place"...The expectations were very high!

I love the way the menu is presented. It is featured in four sections: La Tradition ( Traditional French Cuisine), Le Saison ( Seasonal Dishes), Le Potager (The Vegetable Garden) and Le Voyage ( Flavors of World Cuisine).

 Appetizers

Rabbit Porchetta
Young Root Vegetables, Watercress
Mustard Crisp
15

Vitello Tonnato
Celery, Anchovy, Caperberries
15

Crispy Duck Egg
Fricassée of Wild Mushrooms
Duck confit, Salsify and Celery Root
16

 Main  Dishes

Mediterranean Daurade
Cherry Tomato, Slow Baked Red Onion
Romesco Sauce
28

Venison Loin with Red Fife Spaetzle $32

Roasted Ontario Veal Loin
Cheeks and Sweetbreads Casserole, Oyster Mushrooms
Carrot Confit, Garlic-Parmesan Grits
32

Steak au Poivre
Dry-Aged Cumbrae Strip Loin, Bone Marrow Confit
Shallot, Pommes Pont Neuf, Parsley Salad
39

Wine 

Yalumba, HP Lightpass, Barossa 

Australia, 2005

 $146

Desserts

Cassata
chocolate sacher
ricotta-cardamom mousse
candied fruits, coffee gelato
11

Hazelnut Gianduja Gâteau
milk chocolate, crystallized violet
limoncello sorbet
12

Warm Chocolate Coulant
liquid caramel, fleur de sel
caramelized milk ice cream
12

Grapefruit Givré
sesame halva, rose loukoum
grapefruit sorbet
12

Note: Of all the dishes that I tasted that day in Toronto, the Grapefruit Givré is the most memorable!



Dining out is not always about the food itself. Mostly, I enjoy the time I spend with my friends. I also enjoy the fact that someone else is cooking for me. Sometimes, I enjoy      " critiquing" not just the food but the service and ambiance. This is the best way to relax...just don't worry about the bill!

Make the Holidays Nice with Sugar and Spice!

Sweet Holidays

There are so many scrumptious things you can bake for the holidays but there is nothing more festive than the scent of gingerbread baking in the oven.The combination of ginger, cloves, cinnamon, nutmeg and molasses creates wonders. For me anyway, I was inspired!

I accepted a challenge to build a gingerbread house for the Salvation Army in Hamilton. I thought, I would build a gingerbread house with my own design. A big miscommunication, apparently, I agreed to make a replica of their building. I have not seen this building before but I love challenges, I had to finish the gingerbread house in two days!

 I have a feeling of accomplishment after completing the gingerbread house. I learned to listen better. I got to review my geometry. I worked with my attention to details. I learned what to improve on for next time. And my house is perfumed with the holiday spirit!

The most important wonder is meeting new people who work so hard for the community.

Even more wonderful is making people smile!

I will share two recipes. First is gingerbread dough to make gingerbread house and the second  is ginger spiced cookie dough which is just delicious!

Gingerbread
1 cup. shortening
1 cup white sugar
1 cup molasses
2 eggs, beaten
5 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. ground cloves
1 tsp. ground nutmeg
1 tbsp. ground cinnamon
1 tbsp. ground ginger

1. Heat the shortening in the microwave, just    until melted, not hot.

2. Combine the sugar, molasses, eggs and shortening in the mixer using a paddle. Mix well.
3. Add the dry ingredients, blend until well mixed. Finish by kneading the dough by hand.
4. Wrap with cling film and chill before using.
Note: this recipe is from The International School of Sugarcraft by Ford and Lodge

Tip:

•  Make sure the dough is chilled before rolling.
•  Roll the dough on parchment paper and bake it on parchment paper.
•  Chill the rolled and cut pieces before baking.
•  Bake in pre-heated oven at 350F, an average piece takes about 12 minutes. It is done when the edges starts to brown.

 
 
 Sugar and Spice Cookies
1/2 cup butter
1 cup packed brown sugar
1 egg
1/2 tsp. vanilla
1 3/4 cup all purpose flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1 1/2 tsp. ginger
1/2 tsp. ground cloves



1.Preheat oven to 350F.
2.Cream butter, add sugar and egg. Add the vanilla.
3.Sift all dry ingredients together and add to butter mixture. Combine well to form a dough. Roll and cut with cookie cutter.
4. Bake for about 10-12 minutes.

Note: As long as the dough is chilled, you can roll and shape it to anything you like.

Royal Icing is an important component in making gingerbread. To make it, mix

3 egg whites,4 cups icing sugar,1/2 tsp  cream of tartar in a mixer for about 7 minutes. 

Make sure that you keep it covered with clingfilm.

Christmas is doing a little something extra for someone.

 - Charles Schulz

A Römertopf: Cooking with a Clay Pot

Clay pot cooking is healthy and easy!

I bought a strange clay pot a few years ago. I didn't know what it was, I bought it as a container for random items. A friend told me that I have a Römertopf. Really, what is it?

A Römertopf is a clay roaster, the name is a German word meaning Roman pot. Although, my clay pot doesn't look like the commercial Römertopf being sold these days, it has been very useful to me. The German Römertopf was introduced in 1967 but clay pot cooking has been around for thousands of years and the technique has been used in different cuisines in Africa, Europe and Asia. We are most familiar with tagine and tangia from Morocco, osso de ballo from Spain and palayok from the Philippines.

I love clay pot cooking because it is simple. You put all your ingredients in the pot that has been soaked in water for 15-30 minutes. It cooks in the oven for 2 hours but the result is a surprisingly delicious meal. The water absorbed by the pot steams the food and keeps it moist while all the flavors and nutrients are not leached out.

Römertopf

To demonstrate this technique, I prepared 

a whole chicken with vegetables.

Römertopf Roasted Chicken with Vegetables

1 whole chicken

1 onion, chopped
6 pcs. red new potatoes
1 garlic bulb, cut in half, crosswise
2 green onions cut 3 inches long
2 medium carrots, cut about 3 inch sticks
1 lemongrass, crushed and chopped 
2 strips of lemon zest
juice of half lemon
Salt, Pepper, Paprika 
Olive oil (optional)

Season the chicken with lemon juice, salt, pepper and paprika, inside and outside.

 Season the vegetables with salt and pepper. I like the flavor of olive oil, so I use it to season the vegetables as well.

 

Fill the cavity of the chicken with lemon grass, lemon zest, garlic. Put the rest the vegetables on the  Römertopf, then put the chicken on top.

 Put the lid on and bake in the oven at 375 F.

After 2 hours, you have a juicy roasted chicken
with roasted vegetables.You also have a rich broth in the bottom ( natural jus ).



Note: To ensure that the chicken is cooked, use a thermometer. It should register 160 F inserted on the thick part of the thigh meat or the thick part of the breast. 


The chicken is ready to serve.

 For presentation, I carve the chicken. I cut the vegetables into smaller pieces and put them all back in the Römertopf. I heat it up for about 5 -10 minutes before serving.

The cooking time may be longer than a usual roasted chicken  but the wonderful   flavour and tenderness of the chicken are worth the wait. 

Simple bread loaf baked in a Romertopf

Ingredients: 

300 g. Bread Flour

150 g. Multigrain flour
30 g. Sugar
15 g. Salt
15 g. Yeast
250 ml. water

Make a regular bread dough. Proof for 2 hours. Knock back 2-3 times.
Shape then proof for 30 min.
Bake in a  preheated Romertopf at 450 F for 30 minutes then reduce
the heat to 375 F and bake for 30 minutes longer.

We can cook just about anything in a clay pot.

"Happy Banana"

Banana is a happy food!

When I was 12 years old back in the Philippines, I baked a banana tart with the skin on. I was not sure whether  my family thought that I was hopeless. But my uncle, bless his soul, loved it. Thinking about it now after so many years, he might have been very happy because he had a substantial dosage of tryptophan and tyrosine. Whatever it was, it encouraged me to improve my baking skills. Thank you my dear uncle for eating my banana tart!

At work, I maintain a happy kitchen. I believe that happy cooks make better food. I have proven this, time and time again. "Hells Kitchen" is never going to work for me. Apart from doing  my best to be a "great boss", there is an ample supply of bananas in my kitchen.

If you are looking for the best banana bread recipe, I may have the qualifications to have one. I have tested so many recipes and this is my best! This recipe is very easy to make. Even my friends, who do not own a mixer could make this.

Victor's Banana Bread with Toasted Pecans and Chocolate

If your ingredients are organized, this will take less than 5 minutes to prepare.

2 Large ripe bananas, mashed                 
1 cup of sugar
2 eggs
1/2 cup oil

1 1/4 cups of flour
1 tsp. baking soda
2 tsps. cinnamon

1/2 cup toasted pecans, chopped
1/2 cup of semi-sweet chocolate


1. Preheat the oven to 350 F.  Beat the eggs until foamy. Add the sugar slowly, then the oil in a steady stream to make an emulsion. Mix in the bananas.

2. Sift the dry ingredients in to the banana mixture. Mix until blended, do not over mix.

3. Add the pecans and the chocolate. Mix and pour into buttered loaf pan or a tube pan.

4. For a loaf pan, bake for 1 hour.

I chose an 8" tube pan to bake this banana bread. For 8" tube pan, bake for 50 minutes.

If you have a different size pan, remember, the wider the pan is, the thinner the bread will be and will bake faster. Bake until the loaf springs back when touched or insert a skewer. it's ready when the skewer comes out clean.

 

This banana bread may not be a complete breakfast but it is good to eat to start your day. Since, this blog is flirting with food, I have to find a way to make this recipe even more appealing.This bread can be use for french toast...happy toasts. I have made it as a dinner dessert as well. I transformed it into a torte with some vanilla buttercream, chocolate ganache and candied pecans.

  I finished this torte in front of my guests. So , I have to make it simple enough for them to want to make it. I know for sure that they were looking forward to eat the dessert.

I split the banana bread into three layers, then I brushed them with honey and rum syrup and filled each one with vanilla buttercream, chocolate ganache and I garnished it with chopped 

candied pecans.

Banana is a happy food because it is a good source of tryptophan and tyrosine which is synthesized in the brain to produce serotonin and dopamine. 

These are the happy molecules. Dopamine from the skin of the bananas is higher, which explains my uncle's experience years ago.

My friends watched me make the torte, and I watched them eat it! 

Happiness!

Note: Happy Banana means something else in some countries.

Cooking with Friends

Cooking with friends is not just preparing food... It is a social event.

I have been cooking for a living for a very long time. I want to cook, first thing, when I wake up in the morning. It is true but with a hectic schedule, often, I don't even have the time to finish my first cup of coffee. To be able to devote the time to cook and to dine is enough to celebrate!

It was Marti's birthday and I was the birthday gift. Denise Tobyn organized "the cooking lessons with Victor." Honestly, it was a big pressure for me. The gift should be exciting and memorable...without me jumping out of a giant birthday cake. How am I supposed to behave? Very professional, I showed up on time with  a serious plan and printed recipes.

Within the first minute of meeting Marti, I felt that I knew her for a long time.That was a very rare  special moment. Marti deserved better than my original plan. We decided to plan and write the menu together. I was surprised and happy to discover that her pantry is better stocked than most professional kitchens!

Then Jane showed up, another rare moment, more positive energy started flowing. We were ready to create a memorable experience! Who thought of all these? 
Denise Tobyn started the idea, she's a genius.

I summarized our sessions by writing the menu for each day.

First Session: "the chicken comes to me"

Menu

Green Curry Butternut Squash Soup

*

Poached Pear with Toasted Pecans

Micro Greens and Maple Vinaigrette

*

Whole Roasted Chicken

Creamy Polenta with Truffle Oil

This was the session where we became good friends. This was the day, they learned how to build flavors and create a special dish from simple but the best ingredients.

They asked me how to choose the best chicken, and yes, they learned it. 

Second Session: "What? You don't own a mixer?"

Menu

Taboulleh with Brunoise Peppers

 Baby Arugula and Lemon Vinaigrette

*

Roasted Rack of Lamb

Rogan Josh Curry Lentils, Fennel Pollen

*

Pavlova with Mixed Berries

Whipped Cream, Grand Marnier, 

Jane's Vanilla Bean Creme Anglaise

This was the session where they practiced their knife skills with the brunoise. This was a very ambitious menu and this day, they learned team work in the kitchen. 

Each rack of lamb was frenched. 

We made Pavlova by hand and that was a fun experience!

Third Session: " Where is the best part of the fish?"

Menu

Celeriac and Apple Soup

*

Miso Marinated Chilean Sea Bass

Warm Lentil Salad, Baby Gai Lan, Classic Beurre Blanc

*

Mango Crepes with Maple Syrup

Whipped Cream

In this session, Judith joined us and Amelia joined for the tasting.

Our original plan was black cod but the fish monger was selling 

the belly and the tail of the black cod. 

The best part of the fish was missing, for black cod, it is the loin. Then we decided that best fish for the session was the Chilean sea bass, sustainable and Ocean-wise. 

The lesson here really is to give your best for the people you care about.

Trust me, this is my happy face after three glasses of wine!

When Amelia tasted the finished dish, she disappeared, I thought she was in tears. When she came back, she said that she's never tasted anything like it.

I was the birthday gift but I received way much more.

Cooking with my new found friends was making moments into memories.

This is what I learned. Whenever I write a menu, I must create not just good food

 but a memorable experience!

The song is entitled "Salamat". It is a Filipino word meaning "thank you" 

and it is about thanking friends for being there!

Quisiera una Tortilla Espaῆola

SPANISH TORTILLA

"Quisiera" is the past subjunctive tense of "querer", which means "I would like". Quisiera una Tortilla Espaῆola is the sexier way of asking for a Spanish tortilla.

 I have been studying Spanish to  prepare for my trip to Spain. I am also writing a breakfast menu for spring while writing a blog. I thought, making a Spanish Tortilla is the best way to accomplish all three.

Spanish Tortilla is not just an omelet. It is so good that you can eat it anytime of the day. The basic ingredients are garlic, onions, potatoes, eggs and olive oil. Then additional ingredients such as " tocino, jamón, chorizo, pimientos y quezo " make it even more special. What makes this dish so delicious is the fried potatoes, which keeps the tortilla moist even when it is at room temperature. It is not surprising to see tortilla in tapas bars.

In my kitchen, I simplify everything. I cook what I already have: garlic, onions, sliced red new potatoes, bacon, chorizo, tomato and eggs.

Fry the potatoes in olive oil.

Add the bacon. Then the onions.

Add the chorizo and the tomatoes. Cook until the potatoes are soft and the onions, lightly brown.

I added the sauteed ingredients to the beaten eggs. I wiped the pan, then I added some olive oil. This way, all your ingredients are coated with the beaten eggs. This is also to prevent the tortilla from sticking to your pan. The starch from the potatoes could make the pan sticky.The egg will coagulate so quickly as soon as you put it in the pan. I make a thinner tortilla to lessen the cooking time. I quickly flip the tortilla and slide it on to a plate to cool down.

For presentation, I cut the tortilla into wedges and stacked them.

Spanish Tortilla with Bacon and Chorizo garnished with Green Onions and Tomatoes

¿Para el desayuno?   Sí.

¿Para el almuerzo?   Sí.

¿De tapas?  Sí.

¿Soy encantador? Claro.