I would consider myself a Poutine Afficiando.  Not only do I take on month-long quests to find the perfect french fry, I tasted my first cheese curd 28 years ago (almost to the day) at the Minnesota State Fair.  I regard carnival food as a special treat and was astounded when we walked into the ARENA full of food vendors to grab a bit of supper before an evening concert.  The cheese curds were slippery and made a squeaky sound when you bit into it.  And since that time, every cheese curd that I’ve sampled, must pass the same rigid guidelines.  Of course the gravy too, must be just right-savoury but not too salty.  I like turkey gravy best but will settle for a good beef gravy in a pinch.

I once worked almost kiddie corner to Smoke’s location in Old Market Square.  Thank heaven that is no longer the case as the temptatin for weekly visits would be too overwhelming!  We ventured to the Cube in Old Market Square during the Fringe Festival to watch my daughter-in-law, niece and Goddaughter dance.  The day was sweltering so we found a place in the beer garden and cooled off with a shady seat and a cool one.

We tucked in to their traditional fare and declared that it was absolutely the perfect poutine.  Then went back and ordered the “Canadian” to deliver to Daughter #1 who was a Fringe Volunteer and wanting to grab supper in between working and watching a performance.  The one dish contained every food group!  We hope to find many more excuses to be in the area so that we can sample the rest of their extensive menu.

Kath’s quote: “The potato, like man, was not meant to dwell alone.”-Shila Hibben

In case you did not already know-I buy media for a living.  That means that I decide on the optimum timing and placement of radio & TV commercials, out of home & on line spots and magazine & newspaper advertisements.  The media world has drastically changed of late with the onset of hand held mobile devices and social media.  As you have witnessed in the news this summer, it has been a tough go for newspapers around the world. 

We are very fortunate to live in a city with such a prestigious and forward-thinking daily newspaper in the Winnipeg Free Press.  The publisher and editors are committed to the delivery of local news and they continue to employ talented writers and photographers to deliver that news in an insightful and thought-provoking manner.   As if that were not already enough-they have totally embraced the digital and on line world as well with a bevy of innovative products for restailers and service providers alike.  The icing on the cake is the News Cafe.  A place which promotes social interaction in a world that is increasingly avoiding face to face contact.  The location in Old Market Square and the concept is brilliant but they could not pull it off, if the cafe did not hold its own with ambience and food quality and….it does! 

 The News Cafe was the perfect place for my good friend Lori, who is also my social media and blog consultant, to have a business lunch.  When we arrived, the place was humming with a variety of solo persons working away and small groups of people from the offices of the area having coffee and deciding on lunch.  It was HOT outside but the room was cool and still sun-filled. 

Lori chose the Grilled Portobello Mushroom and havarti on panini and I the Muffaletta Sandwich. 

I have had a hankering for this delicious sandwich since I first tasted one in New Orleans.  The key ingredient to this offering is the olive tapenade which is called Muffuletta in the French Quarter of New Orleans.  I would have enjoyed an extra spread of this, but respect that this delicious version uses saltier Italian meats than the authentic one and the sodium contact was already running high.  The provolone cheese is a good choice to counter the tangyness of the olives and meats and the grilled ciabatta bun added some crunch.

Support the Cafe and the Free Press; we are so fortunate to have this fabulous media option, as part of our rich Winnipeg lives.

Kath’s quote:“News is like food: it is the cooking and serving that makes it acceptable, not the material itself.”-Rose McCaulay

Today I leave for China to visit Priscilla, and international student who lives with me during the school year.  I have been preparing myself for this trip for months, yet I really don’t have any idea what to expect.  Sure I have looked at the websites and talked with others who have made the trip, but I think that China is going to be a totally mind opening experience for me. 

Of course I am looking forward to experiencing the food.  People from Asia tell me the food is very different from what we Canadians think of as “Chinese” food. When Priscilla and I go out to eat we love to go for dim sum which she says is similar to what she would eat at home, although she had never heard the expression “dim sum”.  I am thrilled to hear that lovely steamed dumplings and noodle soups are what I have to look forward to. I doubt that there will be a deep fried shrimp in sweet and sour sauce in sight and to that I say hallelujah, bring it on. A few friends that visited Beijing told me about street vendors serving live scorpions and beetles on a stick, something I will be sure to avoid. I am an adventurous eater, but there are limits.  I am most looking forward to trying Beijing “Peking” Duck. 

On the day I picked up my Chinese visa I stopped at my favourite Chinese place, The New Hong Kong Snack House. Owner, Robert likes to give me a hard time about not visiting as often as I used to. I once worked with a woman who ate there twice a week so needless to say I was a regular.  I treated myself to his wonderful hot pork noodle soup and beginner plate which includes steamed shrimp dumplings, sweet pork bun, Peking perogies and yummy meatballs.  A great way to get my taste buds ready for the culinary adventure I am about to undertake.

Kath’s quote:  “(In Canton) the Chinese fondness for snacks and small eats reaches a kind of apotheosis.”E.N. Anderson

 There was a day last week when I did something very unusual.  Because I had spent the day in the cottage, working remotely for my clients, I decided to go to the beach for the evening.  I heated up my dinner of left overs and packed it, my book and a glass of red wine into the basket of my bicycle.  I spent hours that evening, savouring my dinner of Fruite De Mare linquine, sipping my wine and reading my book. 

When I have made an investment of an evening to watch the sun set, it is rare that you can pull me off the beach before it touches the horizon.  But on this particular evening, something else was drawing me home.

When I got to the edge of the beach path, a sensation came over me that suggested to me that my brother was leaving this world.  I continued on my way and then got caught up with other details.  I spoke to Daughter #1 on the phone and while doing so there was a beeping on my line.  I thought that it was my husband as we too have nightly telephone chats when I am alone at the cottage.  I called him next and while I was speaking to him, a neighbour came to the door and told me that I was to contact the city as soon as possible.  When I made the call, the news was devastating.  My brother had just passed away.  The range of emotions that I went through was vast but not one of them was shock as I had already been aware of the news, which had been delivered to me at the end of the beach path.

I realize now that I cannot write about my happy fascination with food when I am unhappy.  Now the good news is that I have not missed posting 2-3 times per week in the last year and a half, and so that is an indication that I am a pretty content person.

But it is now the end of the week of my bother’s memorial, a day that in itself was a gathering of food and laughter and memories.  I have a back log of restaurant reviews, guest blogger post and dinner events to share with you and I am able to write again.  I believe that Tom is in heaven, enjoying a banquet table laden with the imagination’s most delicious food.

Even when the mosquitoes are at bay in the city, we are not so fortunate at the beach house.  Our little cottage was purchased in six hours and was definitely a love investment and not one of rational assessment.  We are in a little birch grove, surrounded by pine and poplar, which we love.  But we are also the lowest lot in the area and this wet spring we had a “waterfront” lot.  Frogs in the front yard were a constant and one day ducks came to check out the pond.  Even when other lots had spring run off dry up, we were in the muck.  As a result, our mosquito seaason lasted longer than most.

But this long weekend has been glorious-no rain and no mosquitoes!  We have taken full advantage: huddled over crosswords, Mastermind, Scrabble and cribbage on the deck, playing a game called red neck golf (?) on the lawn, swinging in a hammock chair newly acquired in the DR and listening to Beatles music around the firepit until late into the evening.

It has also meant al fresco dining.  Almost every meal has been served on the deck which means the screen door gets a workout when the table is being set but perfectly efficient in every other sense.  And if we have not had too many pre-dinner cocktails, we remember to light the citronella candles to keep any scragglers away.

Last night we expanded the table surface with a gorgeous red retro kitchen table.  It will find its ultimate home in our son and daughter-in-law’s tree top apartment.  But for the weekend it means we can sit eight quite comfortably.

The menu last night was Sister #2’s chicken pita’s with black bean and corn salsa and orzo, wild rice & lentil salad.   For dessert she made the ridiculously simple but of so decadent Fruit Cocktail cake with a brown sugar/milk sauce and ice cream.  Let me know if you don’t have this recipe-it is a keeper.

Somehow everything tastes better out in the fresh air!

Kath’s quote:  “The smell of good bread baking, like the sound of lightly flowing water, is indescribable in its evocation of innocence and delight…”-M. F. K. Fisher