I’ve got New Orleans stuck in my head.  Likely for a number of reasons: 1)  I just finished reading a book that I loved called “The Crowning Glory of Calla Lily Calder” (written by Rebecca Wells of Ya Ya Sisterhood fame) which was partially set in New Orleans 2) we were rooting for The Saints in the Superbowl this past weekend and 3) because just this morning, a reader requested our jambalaya recipe.

My husband and I have always dreamed of seeing three US cities: New York, New Orleans and San Francisco.  Only the latter remains on our “to see” list.  We were blessed to travel to New Orleans the winter before Hurricane Katrina and saw the city in all of her beauty.  We only spent 24 hours there but it was jam-packed with eating and merriment. We stayed right in the French Quarter at the Hotel St. Marie where we started the evening when our group met up in their cozy lounge.  We soon spilled onto Bourbon Street where we just had to stop for “Huge Ass Beers To Go”.  We had dinner in the outside patio at Tujague’s on Decatur St. – a restaurant established in 1856, where we had a delicious feed of fried catfish.  Next stop was at another restaurant for Jack Daniels and just shucked Oysters.  We continued onto “The House of Blues” for amazing music and ended the evening at Pat O’Brien’s for a cocktail aptly named “The Hurricane”.

The next morning we shopped the Riverwalk Marketplace for Louisiana Hot Sauce and continued to the French Market to watch pralines being made and then to sample Po-Boy and Muffeletta sandwiches.  Just this weekend, we picked up De Luca’s Alba brand’s Muffeletta-Olive Salad Mix to bring back the taste of New Orleans.

We cooked a pre-trip dinner party to get us all in the New Orleans mood.  This was the first time that my husband made his now famous Jambalaya recipe.  It was so popular that a year or so after the trip the group reassembled for a Fat Tuesday party and we served it again.  Now it is a favourite “make ahead” dinner when the guys are heading out to the lake for a cross-country ski weekend.

The recipe was originally located on a New Orleans website but has been modified to include local kubasa sausage: Doug’s Jambalaya:  Heat a liberal amount of oil in a deep & heavy pan.  Sautee 1 diced onion and 1 minced garlic clove and then add 1 lb. peeled and diced kubasa sausages (or substitute an equal amount of diced ham).  Add 1 small can of tomato sauce, Worcestershire sauce to taste, Creole seasoning to taste (can substitute Tabasco to taste).  Add  ½ each, diced green, red and yellow peppers and 10 small banana peppers (with ends cut off).  Let simmer until the onions and peppers soften.  Add 2 cans of diced tomatoes and 1-2 cans of water.  Let it come to a slow boil and then add 2 cans of red beans, 1 can niblets corn and 1 T parsley flakes.  Boil again and adjust seasonings.  When sausages rise to the top, add 15-20 whole, peeled jumbo shrimp (approx. 1 lb.) and simmer for 20-30 minutes more. Serve over rice.  Note: diced chicken breast can substitute for the shrimp or we like it with shrimp, chicken AND ham and kubasa.

A Portable Cheese Store in Catalafimi, Sicily

Is it silly that I am dreaming of picnicking when the view out my window is of 3 feet of snow?  No it is not-it is is one of the coping skills of hardy Winnipeg folks.

On a bench in Prairiano

Olive Choices in Nice (France) Market

Let me begin at the beginning.  My husband and I met in the hospitality business and so it is no surprize that we’ve been self-professed foodies before the word was invented.  We became a couple when D was home for his summer break between University semesters.  He had an amazing summer placement, working alongside Chef Tony of the St. Charles Golf and Country Club.  He was attending Ryerson for his degree in Tourism and Hospitality and when I went to visit him for the first time, he was living the life of a poor out of town student-“borrowing”  toilet paper from the pub and filling his grocery shelves with yellow generic labelled food.   I on the other hand was already working as Marketing Director for a local restaurant so I had some cash.  But because we have always tried to do more with less, we even spent that money wisely.  So instead of dining out…we picnicked!

On a bench in Nice (France)

D lived in residence next door to the Eaton Centre and at one time Eaton’s was THE place for gourmet food offerings.  We prided ourselves in being very adventurous in those days, even though our selections are now purchased during our monthly shops.  We would buy little tastes of dolmades, cottage pate, spicy olives, pickled herring (now we always choose Elman’s), smoked mussels and oysters, creamy Havarti cheese and crisp red grapes.  Then we would go across the mall to the LCBO and select a Alsatian white wine.  Each bite was savoured and we dreamed that one day we would have a six babies (we settled on 3) and travel (we have) and cook together (we do) and grow old together in rocking chairs on the front porch.  So dreams do come true (except that we’re not quite at the rocking chair part)!

Over the years we have modified the picnics to take the kids when they were little to Assiniboine Park and roll and wrestle on the riverbank and then walk across the bridge to Sargent Sundae. We also love having love happy hour on the beach with cocktails and appetizers.  We also have an end of summer cook which is a much loved tradition.

When we were travelling in Europe this September some of our favourite meals were our picnics.

So even if you can’t spread a blanket on the lawn, shop for a picnic supper.  Take little bites, savour and dream.

A reader emailed me to see if I had a good Ginger Snap recipe.  So here is my favourite:  Cream together 3/4 c margarine with 1 c sugar.  Add 1/4 c molasses and one beaten egg and then beat together.  Combine 2 c flour, 1/4 t salt, 2 t baking soda and 1 t each cinnamon, cloves and ginger.  Add to creamed mixture,  Mix well.  Roll into balls, then sugar.  Press with a fork.  Now the flatter you press the more snap the cookie will have, I slightly press because we like our chewy.  Garnish with a piece of candied ginger.  Bake at 375 for 15 minutes (check after 10 minutes because of variable thickness).  

There are many health benefits linked to ginger.  I am not going to endorse anything that I have not personally tried, but I do know that ginger tea is lovely when you have a cold or the flu.  The recipe is simple.   Ginger Tea: grate  2 T  of ginger root into 2 c of boiling water.  Drink straight or add lemon and/or honey.

About this time of year my heart really starts yearning for a walk along the beach of Lake Winnipeg.  People that know me really well, can see that I am lying here.  I am yearning for a walk along the beach of the Is la Mujeres but this year that is not to be.  As I am a practicalist,  I just switch up a couple of details in my head-Lake Winnipeg it is.

ahh Isla

If you’ve never tasted Winnipeg Goldeye-you deserve to give yourself the treat.  It is a oilier and more solid fish than salmon and is fabulous in your favourite smoke salmon appetizer recipes.  We’ve also started enjoying White Bass from the lake.  It is easier to catch seems more plentiful these days.  Dusted in flour and fried in butter-we eat it by the basketful on the deck with ice cold beer.  There’s usually a horseshoe or boccie tournament going on.

But the prize catch of Lake Winnipeg is Pickerel. Just caught pickerel actually comes alive and dances in your mouth.  I kid you not-that is the most accurate way that I can describe it.  My family loves it very simply prepared but I’ve enjoyed many other versions over the years including fried in crumbled Old Dutch potato chips!

The Lobby's Pickerel and Chips

There are a number of Grand Beach area restaurants that do pickerel very well.  One of our favourites is the Idyl Thyme where we often celebrate our September wedding anniversary.  In Winnipeg, I’ve loved nut crusted pickerel at Restaurant Dubrovnik’s and panko crusted at The Lobby on York.

Fishing Lake Winnipeg at Sunset

The best place to buy just caught pickerel is from a local bootlegger but because I will try not to promote any illicit activities, I will not sketch any details here.  There are also multiple Gimli Fish locations in Winnipeg.  Our favourite is the heart of Winnipeg’s North End at Dufferin and McGregor which we always include when we a do a North End Shopping Spree.  I’ll include all of our stops in another entry.  The NE Gimli Fish shop is a corner store-literally.  When you walk in you are struck by the aroma of fish in a very pleasant way.  Perhaps it is made more pleasant by all of the helpful faces of the females behind the counter.  We buy our Panko flakes here as well as mixed seafood for “fruita de mare” recipes and everyone once in a while a treat of pickerel cheeks.  Also the only Winnipeg store that I know of that sells frog legs.  Neechi Foods is another great place to experience and pick up pickerel.

On this night ever cast produced a catch

The cheek is the little nugget of flesh that can be popped out when your are filletting a pickerel (demonstrated in this U tube link).  I have personally never had this honour but I understand it to be so.  We sautee them in lemon and butter and fresh dill.  They are the close to a small scallop in texture and the taste is totoally unique.  If you don’t live in Winnipeg-come visit us in the summer.  If you do-eat lots of pickerel…it is excellent for your health and the hard working fishermen of Lake Winnipeg will thank you.

The January Wedding of our son and his long time love took place in a winter wonderland.  Although the weather had been mild of late, there had been a fresh sticky snow that had clung to the trees.    To be prepared for pictures they had booked the Manitoba Museum of Man and Nature.

They had a cocktail reception at The Academy which in our opinion is the perfect venue.  It had comfortable booths close to a small stage for speeches and video presentations.  This area was the ideal place for some of the older guests to sit.  The bar is beautifully lit and very inviting so a number of family members congregated there.  The dance floor is at the far end and was set up for the live band.  The younger guests assembled here at high cocktail tables.

The appetizers were well prepared and came out before the wedding party arrived.  After speeches there was milk and cookies.  A tiny melt-away favourite of the bride’s made by her Mom (I promise to share her recipe here) and the groom’s pick of Winnipeg’s famous  Imperial Cookies.

Manager Brian Allison and the staff were very accommodating.  They even had an AV person available for all the technical aspects of the evening.  Special mention must be made to John the Bartender who was the epitome of what Winnipeg hospitality was all about.