We take dining recommendations from everywhere now a day, don’t we?  Newspapers, magazines and on line have all become trusted resources.  But I believe that the best endorsement is still made by a family member.  After all, they understand our likes, dislikes and the importance of food in your daily lives.  So when my nephew recommended “all-you-can-eat” sushi at Magic Sushi 2 (562 Keenleyside) recently, we responded immediately.

Daughter #2 and the Frenchman, who know sushi better than I, cautioned me en route that this place could not possibly serve the exotic maki sushi that we have come to enjoy, at the $10.95 “all-you-can-eat” price.  We were all delighted to be proven wrong.

Won ton soup started us off and even though the dumpling looked mighty lonely in the bowl, the clear broth was surprizingly rich, likely from the inclusion of a shirred egg.  Edaname beans were tossed in a glistening sea salt and Shrimp & Vegetable Tempura came from the appetizer section of the menu.  The latter included sweet potato, onion ring, and thick white potato slices.  Potatoes done any style are my weakness and these were delicious.  The tempura was obviously, carefully watched when plunged into the fryer because the cooking was perfectly timed with not a hint of greasiness.

We initially ordered three rolls:   Dynamite (with shrimp and avocado), Philadelphia (smoked salmon and cream cheese) and Crunch Sake (salmon and tempura vegetable on the inside and additional tempura crunch on the outside).  The ingredients all tasted sparkling fresh and each portion is rolled to order.

We might have stopped here but the “all-you-can-eat” challenge was too thrilling to ignore.  So, we chose another three:  Totally Crazy (deep fried with cheese and assorted fish), Tuna (our only selection from the “Regular” Maki Sushi section) and the Spider (soft shell crab tempura & veggies).

By this time we were more than satiated.  The restaurant interior is calm and clean with lovely, homey touches.  The charm is matched by the smiling, courteous servers who take obvious pride in the restaurants’ offerings.

As with all “all-you-can-eat” establishments there are guidelines that are clearly stated to keep the family in business and ensure that food is not being needlessly ordered and not consumed.  Therefore, a left over charge of $1. per piece is assessed along with the declaration “love food, hate waste”.

Kath’s quote:   “Cookery, or the art of preparing good and wholesome food, and of preserving all sorts of alimentary substances in a state fit for human sustenance, or rendering that agreeable to the taste which is essential to the support of life, and of pleasing the palate without injury to the system, is, strictly speaking, a branch of chemistry; but, important as it is both to our enjoyments and our health, it is also one of the latest cultivated branches of the science.”-Frederick Accum

Love-that is all.

In my humble opinion, the quality of a soup, determines the skill of the cook.  This is one reason why a vichyssoise or a bouillabaisse do not often find their way into many households. This is also true of my favourite Mexican soup-Soupe de Lima (Yucatan Lime Soup).  The balance of the broth, vegetables and chicken must be exactly right along with the trickier ratio of chicken stock and lime juice.  I have posted my version on this site previously.  Believe me, it does not hold a candle to this version.

Laura had everything simmering on the stove as we arrived along with the strips of fried tortillas.  I often cheat on this step and serve it with thin La Cocina tortilla chips on top-passable in a time crunch but going to the extra trouble, like Laura did, is well worth the effort.

She spooned out little bowls so that we wouldn’t fill up.  This made every sip, particularly precious.  I could eat it by the vat…..

Ahh, refreshing and warmly satisfying at the same time.  The only version that I have enjoyed as much as this was concocted by Lynn and Tom McGrath when they owned the beautiful Casa O Restaurant on Isla Mujeres.

I had forgotten that I was a redhead in those days….

I first dined there on my very first trip to Isla Mujeres in 2005,  when the three sisters celebrated Sister #2’s birthday.   Casa O’s added a hint of cinnamon  and fresh mint.  Let me know if you want me to publish this version.  Supposedly it was a favourite of Paul Newman’s!

Kath’s quote: “When love and skill work together, expect a masterpiece.”-John Ruskin

Love-that is all.

You are truly blessed if you have someone in your life that will virtually guarantee a fabulous time if you are invited to their home.  My friend Laura and her husband Allan are such people.  And knowing that they love hosting as much as their friends benefit from their hospitality, is like a double blessing.  Their comfortable home is perfect for entertaining, especially when the guest of honour, whose upcoming nuptials we were celebrating, requests a Bikinis and Margaritas evening.

Allan had the blender and freshly cut strawberries set up when we arrived.  He was offering Pink Bikini Margaritas or traditional lime versions.  Seeing as though a cocktail is the closest way I am going to be a associated with a pink bikini, I opted for the former-a delicious way to start the evening.

Laura’s Shrimp Cocktail

We were an assembly of old friends and were comfortable to perch on the stools in front of their cooking island.  I don’t know whether we started with the Sopa de Lima or Mexican Shrimp Cocktail and my photos do not give me any hints as to the order.  (Good thing I stopped with a single margarita).  Let’s say it was the shrimp.

Shrimp Ceviche at the Fisherman’s Cop-op on Isla Mujeres

Laura’s version is the closest thing that I have tasted to the ones that we dream about from the little seafood restaurants lined up on the sandy beach of Isla Mujeres.

Picus Shrimp Cocktail on Isla Mujeres

I am rambling on about Isla because only Laura knows how to make the Yucatan dishes that I long for.  Someone in Winnipeg should seriously hire this talented woman to fashion their Mexican menu for them…..but I digress.

Here is Laura’s Mexican Shrimp Cocktail recipe:

Everything about this recipe was so delicious that I poured the nectar onto taco chips, so as not to miss a single taste.

Kath’s quote: “To make people who have no appetite eat, to make the wit of those who have it sparkle, to enable those who want these qualities to find them — this is the supreme science of a gastronome-host.”-Lucien Tendret

Love-that is all.

D is working from the cottage today and I am a little bit jealous.  I have no reason to be,  as he was underneath the cottage early this morning, disconnecting our current plumbing, while I was sound asleep in our cozy bed.  But I am envious about the idea of working from the cottage in September.  So I have done the next best thing and set up on our little back deck in the city and if this drizzle of rain continues, I will move to the gazebo.

But I digress.  I first became acquainted with Pit Pat squash when I found it at the St. Norbert market last autumn. The way I prepared it then did not leave a positive impression upon me but when I received it again as part of my Blue Lagoon Garden share, I simply roasted it in canola oil to have with Gourmet Mac and Cheese.  I LOVED the taste-more flavourful than zucchini, with a nuttiness and slight acidity not found in other squash.  Now of course, I can’t get enough (like roasted beets this summer).

Kath’s quote: “Square meals, not adventurous ones, are what you should seek.”-Bryan Miller

Love-that is all.

Fall is not officially here but is certainly in the air.  I know this from a number of events: we stayed in the city this weekend instead of venturing out to our beloved Beach House, J1 and J2 arrived right after church for the first Sunday of NFL, Daughter #2 and the Frenchman unboxed the Settlers game for post supper entertainment, I had a yearning for Gourmet Mac and Cheese for dinner instead of our summer barbeque fare AND I have more zucchini in my house than you can shake a stick at (I wonder where this silly saying comes from).

Recently I have tossed zucchini with onion, garlic, tomatoes, fresh herbs and feta and mixed with pasta, served it grilled with most meals, made pencil sticks out of it and fresh carrots to present to a gang of toddlers, whipped up zucchini brownies and dreamed up zucchini and pesto omelets for yesterday’s brunch.

This recipe seems to be the winner (and good thing because my supply is not yet depleted):

I had some left over beer/cream cheese icing in the fridge, so I used I smeared them with this last evening and served them for dessert.  If you eliminated the chocolate chips and added some grated cheese, they could accompany a soup or stew.

Kath’s quote: “The first zucchini I ever saw I killed it with a hoe.”-John Gould

Love-that is all.