My New True Love (Sorry, Tom!)

A few months ago, I discovered my new true love....

ZUCCHINI FRIES!

My God, why did no one ever tell me about these before? What a fantastic way of incorporating vegetables into a meal! You have a crispy and flavourful coating on tasty vegetable. They come together to produce pure deliciousness.

I found this recipe while perusing Pinterest (I died a little inside admitting that), and decided to give it a try. They've now become a regular in our weekday meal rotation.

Ingredients.

Baked Zucchini Fries

Serves 6

Ingredients
3 medium zucchini,  sliced into skinny sticks 
2 large eggs, beaten 
3 heaping Tbsp. flour
1/2 cup bread crumbs (I used panko) 
2 Tbsp. grated Parmesan cheese 
1/4 tsp. garlic powder 
Salt and pepper, to taste

Directions
Preheat oven to 425°. Spray a baking sheet with cooking spray. Set aside.

In a small bowl, beat egg with a fork until frothy. In another bowl, place flour, and in a third bowl, place your bread crumbs. Toss the breadcrumbs with garlic powder and Parmesan cheese, and set aside.

Dip the zucchini sticks into the flour, then egg, and then into the bread crumb mixture. Make sure all sides get coated well. Place the sticks on the prepared baking sheet.

Bake at 425° for about 20 minutes, or until golden brown and crispy. Serve warm with Ranch dressing, marinara sauce, or just as is.

Enjoy!

Sliced zucchini.

Panko breadcrumbs, parmesan, garlic salt and paprika.

Whisked egg, flour and breacrumb mix.

Floured zucchini dipped in egg.

Unbaked zucchini fries.

Finished product-- delicious!

Between prep time and baking, it'll probably take you about 30 minutes to make these. I flip the zucchini pieces halfway through the baking time so both sides turn golden delicious.

Give them a try! You won't regret it.

Vancouver Island Weekend

Late on Friday night, Tom and I boarded a flight for a few days in Victoria, BC. We arrived at around 10:30pm, and drove our rental car into the downtown where we checked in to the Fairmont Empress. I love the Fairmont Empress. This is the third time we have stayed at the hotel, and I always enjoy the service, the history and the beautiful facade of the building.

Vines growing up the side of the Fairmont Empress.

In the morning we woke up late, and walked to the Blue Fox Cafe. Tom had found the restaurant by googling for breakfast venues-- it is ranked the fourth most popular restaurant in Victoria on Trip Advisor.  

We waited about 45 minutes for a table at the Blue Fox. We chatted with two gentlemen in line behind us who were from Seattle, who told us they came to the Blue Fox every time they were in Victoria. They said the last time they had eaten both breakfast and lunch there on the same day, and it was definitely worth the wait.

Breakfast joint.

I ordered the Eggs Pico Benedict, with fresh avocado, salsa fresca, chipotle aioli and feta. Tom ordered the Eggs in Hell Benedict with fresh avocado, spicy chorizo, grilled tomato and chipotle.

My God... It was SO GOOD. There are no words to describe how delicious this breakfast was. Afterward, I felt like I was going to burst!

Eggs Pico Benedict.

After breakfast, Tom and I waddled (this is the only word to describe how we moved when so full of eggs benedict) to Beacon Hill Park, overlooking the Strait of Juan de Fuca. We walked along the shoreline and enjoyed the sunshine.

Shoreline at Beacon Hill Park.

Our next stop was back at the hotel so we could get ready for my cousin's wedding. 

I admit, my family has not been very good at keeping in touch with this side of the family. Although it has only been about two years since I saw Laura, the years between seeing some of my other relatives is a bit embarrassing!

Laura and her fiance, David, got married at Hatley Castle on the Royal Roads University Campus. Hatley Castle was built by Laura and James Dunsmuir, and was completed in 1908. The ballroom alone was over 1200 sq. ft-- larger than the condo that Tom and I have lived in for four years. Hatley Castle served us a home for the Dunsmuir family until 1937, when it was sold to the government at the rock bottom price of $75,000.

Hatley Castle.

 Laura and David had perfect weather for their ceremony, and they both looked radiant and happy. While the wedding party had photos taken, we ate appetizers on the veranda, and had a tour of the main floor of the castle. Hatley Castle has been used in several Hollywood movies, most recently as Xavier's School for Gifted Young People, in X-Men 2 and 3.

Laura and David pose for photos.

When I was younger, I always used to think of the two ladies below as my Auntie Jean (Laura's mom) and Auntie Donna, but the truth is that they're actually my cousins. Over the years, I had also forgotten how petite they are! I felt like some sort of giant standing next to them!

Jean, myself and Donna at the wedding reception.

Laura and David listening to their wedding guests sing.

On our final day in Victoria, Tom and I had Afternoon Tea at the Empress. We drank Empress blend tea (again.. SO DELICIOUS), and ate from a three-tiered platter containing delicate pastries, soft pillowy scones, finger sandwiches and other tea sweets. By the end we were both stuffed, and buzzing with a sugar overload.

Afternoon tea and the Empress.

Following tea, we went on another GPS-related wild goose chase before we found our way to the famed Butchart Gardens. We wandered through the gardens for just under two hours. It must have been a peak weekend for tourists, because there were people everywhere you looked!

Butchart Gardens.

The Sunken Garden.

A brilliant array of flowers.

 To wind up our trip, we headed to the wharf for a seafood dinner before we caught our flight home. Tom and I decided on Red Fish Blue Fish, an outdoor restaurant made of an up-cycled cargo container on the pier. Red Fish Blue Fish specializes in fish 'n' chips, with a focus on sustainable Ocean-Wise seafood.

Tom and I had high hopes for Red Fish Blue Fish-- we thought that it might rival the fish tacos we had consumed at Jaws Tacos on Maui. After all, Red Fish Blue Fish is ranked the number nine restaurant in Victoria! But unfortunately, our 'tacones' (tacos that are cone-shaped), did not live up to our expectations. Our dinner was tasty and enjoyable, but probably not worth the 35 minute wait in line.

And with that, we headed to the airport for an uneventful flight home.

And that concluded our Vancouver Island weekend.

Back to work!

Chocolate Zucchini Bread

This weekend, Tom and I are attending a family reunion for his mom's side of the family. I decided that I would try a new recipe for our contribution to the family food. Last week I saw a $12 loaf of chocolate zucchini bread at Sunterra, and I figured it couldn't be that difficult (or expensive) to make at home.

Recently, I have come to love the addition of zucchini in baking. Zucchini doesn't have a particularly strong taste, but it adds moisture and texture-- not to mention a serving of vegetables, to baking.

Grated zucchini.

My chocolate zucchini bread was from a much recommended recipe on Allreipes.com. It was a very basic, with simple instructions and common ingredients. The first step was to melt 2 ounces of unsweetened chocolate. Don't be tempted to sample the chocolate! It looks so delicious and melty... But the chocolate it is so very, very bitter. You will not be satisfied. Not that I know from experience or anything. Whatever.

Ooey gooey melted chocolate.

The next step was to measure the dry ingredients. Last week, Tom tried to "help" me make cupcakes, but it ended up stressing me out, because he was randomly throwing ingredients into the bowl without measuring them properly! WHY WOULD YOU DO THAT TO ME, TOM!? This week I measured on my own.

Dry ingredients.

Then I mixed everything together. And at this point, even the batter began to smell delicious.

Mixing the zucchini into the batter.

I didn't bother to half the recipe, and the original recipe resulted in two loaves.

Loaf pans loaded with batter.

Soon I was spying on the loaves rising while they baked for an hour in the oven.

Rising loaves.

If only you could smell our kitchen right now. It couldn't be more obvious that we've just taken fresh chocolate baking out of the oven.

Finished loaves cooling on the stove.

I am sad to report that I didn't grease the pans enough, and one of the loaves tore while I was taking it out of the pan. So disappointed! But Tom sampled some of the crumbs, and said that they were tasty. Hopefully both loaves end up making it to the reunion. 

They're just so... Tempting...

Truck-aholic: Street Eats!

 Food trucks have spread like wildfire through Calgary. I didn't jump on the bandwagon right away, because word was that lineups and wait times were insane. Now that the trucks have been around for a few months, I've had a chance to sample what a few of the trucks have to offer.

CHEEZY BIZNESS


Cheezy Bizness has been serving up gooey gourmet grilled cheese. They had four or five sandwiches to choose from, each with delightful names like, "Hot Mess," "Aloha Arkansas" and "Home on the Range." I went with the "Kimchikaze," which featured kimchi, gruyere, sriracha mayo and in-truck made pastrami.

Cheezy Bizness Menu.

Kimichikaza Grilled Cheese.

I really enjoyed my grilled cheese, and I think I would eat there again. My only complaint is that the sandwich was $9, was completely regular in size (the same I would make in my own kitchen), and did not come with any sides. After I finished eating, I was still hungry!

NAACO

I had seen a few people posting about Naaco on Facebook, so when we saw the truck parked on the Stampede grounds, I knew I wanted to try it out. Naaco serves neo-retro Indian style food-- think naan bread and taco format. Unfortunately (or fortunately?) Naaco had a specific Stampede-Eats menu while they were on the grounds, so I can't comment on their regular menu.

Naaco Stampede Menu.

I had no idea what to expect from their menu items, and I decided to try the "Bolly Chips," their neo-retro take on Naachos! It was comprised of shredded mogo (I'm still not sure what that is), salad of carrot and red cabbage with lime and cilantro dressing, chicken chorizo and smoked cheddar cheese.

Bolly Chips.

The Bolly Chips were delicious! The flavour was something I can't even describe-- utterly unique. The serving was more than generous! I was completely full, even sharing some with Ashley and Jeff. I'll be on the lookout for this truck downtown so I can try their regular menu. And if that isn't enough to love about Naaco, they also operate using local, organic or sustainable operations wherever possible. They also have an herb garden growing on the roof of their truck! Fantastic!

ALLEY BURGER

Alley burgers quickly became famous in Calgary. Every few weeks, a local restaurant, Charcut, would tweet that they would be selling x-number of burgers from their back alley, and hundreds of people would line up for hours to get their hands on a $5 burger. When the food truck craze started, Alley Burger was quickly spreading food joy all over the city.

Alley Burger Truck.

Alley Burger often sells out very quickly, so Andrew, Ashley, Tom and I were eyeing Facebook first thing in the morning to see where they would be parked for lunch, and when they would be there. To our benefit, they were not parked where they initially said they would be, and were hidden behind a truck giving out free ice cream. So... Shockingly, there was no line, and we were served immediately!

Alley Burger Menu.

I decided to try the original Alley Burger, and I was NOT disappointed. The Alley Burger is comprised of a Spragg Farm's pork and roasted garlic sausage patty, Quebec cheese curds and Piri Piri aioli. This was one of the most delicious burgers I've had in a while, and I'm pretty sure it was all due to the melting goodness of the cheese curds.

Alley Burger Poutine.

We also got a single order of poutine, which turned out to be more than enough for the four of us to share.  MORE CHEESE CURDS! Overall, the meal was delicious and reasonably priced. You will definitely see me at the Alley Burger truck again!

FIASCO GELATO

My final food truck experience was really an accident. Andrew, Ashley, Tom and I had walked with our Alley Burgers to the Central Memorial Park on 13th Ave so we could enjoy our lunch in the shade. We were reflecting on how hot it was, and how lucky we were to find shade-- when the Fiasco Gelato truck drove by. We finished our meal and headed over to the truck to get some much needed dessert.

Fiasco Gelato truck.

Blueberry basil gelato.

We all tried a different flavour. Tom had candied carmel bacon, Ashley tried coconut carmel, Andrew had strawberry, and I had a blueberry basil combination. The blueberry basil was very refreshing for a hot day, and I was very pleased with my choice.

NEXT UP

Next on my list, I'd like to give the Noodle Bus, and Perogy Boyz a try. So many options, I can't wait!

Have you had an outstanding food truck experience? If so, please comment and let me know!

Porkin' Out on Vietnamese

At the end of April, Tom and I took a Vietnamese cooking class through Cookbook Co. Cooks. Tom and I love Vietnamese. We eat Vietnamese so often that I am only one step away from being on a first-name-basis with the staff at our local Vietnamese joint. In fact, if I had provided the staff with my name, I'm sure they would be using it.

The cooking class was run by a half Chinese, half Vietnamese woman, and her Vietnamese mother. They offered a variety of recipes, including Vietnamese crepes, sweet potato shrimp fritters, deep fried bananas, and our personal favorite, grilled pork meatballs on vermicelli noodles.

On Sunday night we had friends over for dinner, and impressed them with our Vietnamese prowess.

I firmly believe that the key to our dish is all in the dipping sauce. The dipping sauce is a concoction of water, sugar, fish sauce, lime juice, rice vinegar, garlic and red chilies. Tom and I like to add matchstick carrots. The take on a delicious spicy pickled flavour! The longer you leave the dipping sauce, the more infused the flavours become. It is tangy, spicy and savoury, all wrapped into one tantalizing liquid.

Dipping sauce.

Next, we roll up some meatballs, which are formed in golf ball sized spheres. The meatballs are made of pork, onion, green onion, a liberal amount of lemongrass and some dark soy sauce. In the cooking class, grilled the meatballs on the stove top, but we prefer to grill them on the BBQ.

Uncooked meatballs.

Tom covertly sneaking a meatball sample.

Then we boil up a large serving of vermicelli noodles. We followed the course instructor's advice and bought the "Gold Swallow" brand from the Lucky Supermarket. The noodles hold up very well when cooking, and have a chewy texture.

Bowl full-o'-noodles.

I made this ever-so-pleasing arrangement of fresh veggies, including matchstick carrots, chopped iceberg lettuce, bean sprouts, cilantro and cucumber. On the side is a helping of dipping sauce.

Dinner veggies.

And finally, once you take the meatballs of the BBQ, you immerse them all in the bowl of dipping sauce. The flavours are absolutely out of this world!

Finished meatballs.

To eat as a meal, you pile noodles, veggies and meatballs into your bowl, and dollop on a little dipping sauce. I guarantee, it will be one of the most delicious homemade meals you've ever had!

This weekend, Tom insisted on using four pounds of pork in the meatballs. So.. We have quite a few leftovers for many delicious meals to come.

Yum!