Eat Write Retreat 2012 was my very first (but not my last) Food Bloggers Conference.  I have only been home for 12 hours, but want to share my thoughts while they are fresh.

The Top 20 Things that I Loved about Eat Write Retreat 2012:

#20.  Washington, DC.  D visited there many years ago and so the destination has not been on our mutual bucket list.  I am so glad that I got to experience it.  I absolutely loved the trees, flowers, galleries, architecture and dining.

#19.  The Madison Hotel.  A lovely, central location, within walking of all of our events AND the White House.  Affordable elegance and cheerful, helpful staff.

#18.  The people of Washington, DC.  I met with kindness over and over again but most significantly when I misplaced my netbook and the Delta agent look all over the airport to reunite us.

#17.  Washington’s Restaurants.  From Elizabeth’s Gone Raw, AGAINN and Old Ebbitt Grill, there was good eating around every corner.

#16.  Dogfish Head Beer.  I got to taste my first strawberry beer-a cross between an ale and a cider.  J1 would be proud of his momma.

#15.  Goo Goo Clusters.  D doesn’t mind when I travel, IF I bring him home yummy treats-and these were yummy!

#14. Jarlsberg Cheese.  Meeting Ronnie of the Burrell Group was like finding a long lost friend.  We only chatted for 15 minutes but she feels like a soul sista.

#13. The Blog Critiques.  The organizers had gentle and kind experts provide specific and helpful tips to improve our blogs.

#12.  Our Closer Look at Food Styling and Photography.  I will never afford the camera and equipment that Renee had at her disposal but Lisa, the stylist’s tools are every day things that I can slowly collect and will have an immediate impact on my photos.  Wow, was she a hard worker.

#11. Inspired Speakers.  I am newly refreshed with an “if they can do it, I can do it” attitude.  Thanks especially to Monica who spoke with passion and authenticity.

#10.  Pitching to the Pros.  I intend to take full advantage of the face to face relationships that were created with this opportunity.

#9.  Being in the presence of Blogger Royalty.  CopyKat, WickedNoodle, 52 Kitchen Adventures, the long list was so impressive!

#8. The OXO Kitchen Challenge.  I learned how to use all kinds of new gadgets.  Our team didn’t come first, but I think I won because I got to work side by side with new friends.

#7.  Who knew watermelon was so versatile?  We made an amazing watermelon/kiwi salsa and I also got to taste watermelon jam-oh my!

#6.  Earthy Mushrooms.  We stuffed lightly sauteed mushrooms into our quesadillas for the OXO challenge.  They offset the fresh, crisp tastes of the salsa with their meaty flavour.

5. The Volunteers.  They were all insightful bloggers in their own right and so hospitable.  Our every whim, was their desire.

4.  The Schwag!  I split the sides of my suitcase with OXO gadgets, three gorgeous new cookbooks AND a multi-attachment Calphalon hand-held blender.

#3.  My roommie Lynn, the creator of whatsheshaving.com.  I was old enough to be her Mom, but we got along famously.

#2.  The other scholarship winners from Canada Beef.  I had the pleasure of visiting with Jenn from marvelsmommiemeals.com when we shared a cab to the airport.  Lovely ladies-both of them.

And the #1 reason. Casey & Robyn.  The founders of Eat Write Retreat are total class in every single way.

Kath’s quote: “One can never know too much; the more one learns, the more one sees the need to learn more and that study as well as broadening the mind of the craftsman provides an easy way of perfecting yourself in the practice of your art.”  –Auguste Escoffier

Breakfast at Grapes Restaurant was included in my hotel stay at the Burntwood Hotel and so I got to know the cheerful morning staff well in addition to many of the regulars.  The Breakfast choices included in the room cost were:

French Toast

The Breakfast Wrap: scrambled eggs, with bacon, green onion and cheese and a lovely touch when the wrap was put back on the grill after the fixins were added.

The Breakfast Croissant: Ham, Egg and Cheese on a croissant

and the Classic: 2 eggs, hash browns, toast and your choice of ham, sausages or bacon. The latter produced many variations depending upon the style of eggs you ordered and the accompanying meat that was chosen.  My traveling partner like their poached eggs on dry toast.

I enjoyed a variety of other Grapes’ surprizes too.  I say suprizes because when the Grapes’ Winnipeg location sliped into oblivion, there were very few food lovers, sad to see it go.  But this Grapes location is one of Thompson’s hot spots and the food is very good.

One night I got a unexpected visit from my cousin who was on business too.  Her acquaintances had potato skins and chimichangas and both were declared (and looked to be) delicious.

I often enjoyed the buffet lunch: 4 kinds of soup, a little salad bar and a changing hot dish with a variety of sweets for dessert.  In addition, one night, I treated myself to Chicken Fingers and on another to Poutine where hand cut, never frozen fries are smothered in a beefy gravy with real cheese curds.  On my Chicken Finger night, my traveling partner ordered a steak and was quite impressed with the tenderness and flavour.

She was also hooked on the freshly made cilantro salsa that came with nachos chips and one evening we had their apple crisp with ice cream.  It was a veritable loaf of apple crisp with a oatmeal layer on both the bottom and the top.  I had half for breakfast the next morning and it was equally yummy.

I can’t say that I would rather dine at Grapes than be at home, but knowing that there were always people to visit with and good food to consume, certainly made my extended stay in Thompson, more enjoyable.

Kath’s quote: “A man who was fond of wine was offered some grapes at dessert after dinner. ‘Much obliged’, said he, pushing the plate aside; ‘I am not accustomed to take my wine in pills.'” –Jean-Anthelme Brillat-Savarin

As you may know Daughter #3 is not really my daughter-she is married to our son and I love her as if she was my daughter.  Last night she was over for mandatory Sunday dinner and we were discussing what might be a good moniker when she is mentioned here-suggestions?

She is an inventive cook and this is no surprize as she comes from a family of artists.  Her Mom and Dad (who we are happy to say are our best friends) are amazing singers and her Mom V is also a dancer.  If you count tennis as art (which we do in our family) her Dad DJ is also gifted on the court.  Their eldest son is a talented song-writer and musician.  The younger son is a former dancer with the RWB and is now study to be a Physician.  The youngest daughter (our God-daughter) is also an exquisite dancer (think Evelyn Hart’s arms), artist, crafter and singer.  Suffice it to say, Daughter #3 comes by her many talents by birthright.

One recent Saturday, we had a “house” meeting as we are partners in the communal house where they live.  She whipped this lunch together.

Lunch started with her her exquisite Asparagus soup.  The rainbow of colours that appear in the bowl are from the prismed windows in their dining room.  The soup itself tastes like “summer” to quote the Frenchman of the family.  She has sent me the recipe which I can’t put my hands on at the moment.  I can post it in the future, if you drop me a line.

She served the soup with a baquette stuffed with smoked turkey, cheese, tomato and sundried tomato.  Yumo.

Kath’s quote:  “Pray how does your asparagus perform?”-John Adams, in a letter to his wife Abigail

In preparation for our “Anticipating Ireland” evening, I spent a wonderful, snowy afternoon in the kitchen.  When we entertain, I really appreciate recipes that can be prepared and held.  Beef in Stout fits that bill perfectly. The beef cubes are tossed in flour and sauteed in small quantities so as not to be crowded in the pan.  Once the veggies are added and the stout is poured in, you put on a lid, put it into the oven and simply remove it from the oven to serve.  Brother #1 said  that he could have just sat and lapped up the savoury gravy with the potato buns that I was lucky enough to find at Harvest Bakery the moment they came out of the oven.

Parsnips were peeled and quartered lengthwise and simply required a toss with some oil and honey and they too only required to be baked off.

Apples needed to be peeled and sliced for the traditional apple cake.  This too was baked in the afternoon and at serving time, I just had to add vanilla ice cream to a slice.

Even though the soup course could not be cooked ahead of time, the recipe is such a breeze.  Shallots, leeks and garlic are sauteed with olive oil and thyme.  Beer and clam nectar are brought to a boil and the mussels are tossed in and securely covered.  Once the mussels are all open, the cream is added and then fresh parsley and the soup is ready to serve.

I boiled the potatoes and shredded cabbage separately in the afternoon.  At serving time I brought both back up to temperature in the microwave while I heated cream in a saucepan.  Once everything was piping hot, I mashed everything together with sliced green onions.

The star of the evening-Beef in Stout.

In our conversations we strategized about all of the things we wanted to see and experience when we travel to Ireland together.  Of course, much of our chatter was about where and what we hoped to taste and eat while we are there including the Galway Food Festival which we are very much looking forward to.

Kath’s quote: “Talk of joy: there may be things better than beef stew and baked potatoes and home-made bread — there may be.”-David Grayson, ‘Adventures in Contentment’

I’ve been aware of the term slider for the past ten years or so but was interested in knowing where the term came from.  According to the earliest citations, the name originated aboard U.S. Navy ships, due of the way greasy burgers slid across the galley grill while the ship pitched and rolled.  Other versions claim the term “slider” originated from the hamburgers served by flight line galleys at military airfields, which were so greasy they slid right through you; or because their small size allows them to “slide” right down your throat in one or two bites.

The “Frenchman” as he is affectionately called around our house is an excellent cook.  He was taught by his Momma as I believe all exceptional male cooks were.  When the Superbowl cry went out “please bring something to share” he too was ready for the task. Sliders were the answer.

When I asked him to share his recipe, he did so in a fashion familiar to me:  Mix ground beef with some eggs, breadcrumbs and sauteed onion and then add garlic, chili, paprika and curry to taste!

He pre-broiled the sliders before he left for the game and took some sharp cheddar to melt on top once he reheated them.  I was told that they were a big hit.  And they were not “so greasy that they slid right through you”.

I coupled mine with the Teriyaki Beef Skewer that D left me for supper and enjoyed both in front of the TV with a glass of Merlot with which to toast Madonna’s half time show.  Pretty amazing for a woman in the over 50 club! 

For more slider inspiration see www.beefinfo.org.  I am still dreaming of a food bloggers scholarship to Eat, Write, Retreat www.eatwriteretreat.com as I write this…

Kath’s quote:  “I would gladly pay you Tuesday, for a hamburger today”.-Wimpy