Maple Bourbon Glazed Scallops with Squash and Sage Orzo

I felt like I was dining at a fancy restaurant tonight. Ok, I feel like that every night. But tonight was even more so with these lovely, fresh scallops I picked up at the Whalesbone Oyster and Fish Supply shop on Kent. When I was paying for them a gentleman waiting for his sandwich asked me how I planned to cook them. I will be giving them to my husband, I said. And hopefully he'll do something with maple. Ever since I had the maple scallop appetizer at Petit Bill's a while back, I can't seem to picture them without it.

The visually striking presentation of this dish alone had my mouth watering. My husband mixed together equal parts of maple syrup and brandy (he would have used bourbon but we didn't have any so he added a bit of vanilla to the brandy to make up for it), a little bit of molasses, and some beef bouillon and boiled the mixture until half of it disappeared. Zig zags of this lovely, syrupy sauce was drizzled over the scallops and then dotted with cubes of pancetta. Simple orzo was mixed with pepper squash, making it one of the best sides I've had in a long time. A golden squash triangle gave it a radiant backdrop.


Can't rave enough about this dish. I'll be dreaming of scallops tonight and all the fantastic ways my husband can cook them.

Mushroom and Sauerkraut Pierogies from the Warsaw Polish Deli

Best pierogies ever!

Thanks so much Brittany for recommending this place. I tried to get the meat and sauerkraut but they only had mushroom and sauerkraut. If the meat ones are any better I may overdose on these tasty treats.

Anytime you buy pierogies in the supermarket they're filled with stuff that's so ground up it's hard to really know what you're eating. You could see, and taste, every single strand of sauerkraut in these, and even separate the mushroom flavour. I've seriously never had a better pierogie. Thanks so much for the recommendation!

My husband fried these up with some onions and spinach and served with a side of broccoli. YUM!

Warsaw Polish Deli

The Urban Element Anniversary Celebration

This afternoon we stopped by the Urban Element to celebrate their fourth year in business. What a wonderful thing to do on a Sunday afternoon. I brought a few friends with me for the experience in the hopes that they too would fall in love with the space and join me at one of their events (I think it worked!). I even got to meet some other foodies who blog about their adventures – foodiePrints and After the Harvest.

As I expected, the finger foods were outstanding. I tried to snap some quick photos of everything. I think I just missed the candied nuts and spread of cheeses. Oh, and the mint chocolate squares that melted in your mouth. But I did get these as souvenirs!


Minced meat and blue cheese tartlets.


My favourite of all – savory spice chicken pot pies.


Cute pattypan squash topped with pureed butternut squash and garlic.


Shots of curried butternut squash soup – now THIS is how you get rid of a cold!


Mini pulled pork sandwiches.


Beau's brewery was even there! I had the Oktoberfest beer – yum!

We even got to have a sneak peak at the new calendar for the new year, which I'm sure will be posted online soon. Artisan Sausage Making with Dave Neil from the Piggy Market, an evening with chef René Rodriguez, More Oodles of Noodles (I love noodles!) with chef Tanya Skeates from Soupcon, an evening with Michael Moffat of Beckta and Play, ongoing classes with their resident chef Candice Butler or chef Jenna Durling from the Whalesbone. Oh the choices!

http://www.theurbanelement.ca/#/home

Maple Bison Sausage Bread with Eggs and Fried Garlic Mash

When I saw “Bison Sausage Bread” in the title of a post on my google reader I couldn't help but follow the link to tastespotting.com. That link then brought me to the Tangled Noodle blog post with the recipe. This looked absolutely amazing. Often I will skim a recipe and decide either A. I can do that, or B. I have to get my husband to do that. I felt I could pull this one off.

The recipe originated from the Damn Good Food, Hell's Kitchen recipe book. It combines both savory and sweet flavours which I have learned is not for everyone. For example, whenever my husband makes bird's nests (an egg cooked in the center of a piece of bread), I insist on eating it with maple syrup. My husband thinks that's gross. This bread combines a bison sausage made with herbs, onion and maple with currants, walnuts, sugar and flour. In my mind, the perfect breakfast food when paired with an egg. We also added fried garlic mashed potatoes. Seriously, I was in heaven. Although my husband enjoyed it, I doubt he'd rush to eat it again.


I mixed all the ingredients together last night and then woke up early to pop it in the oven. Went back to bed and woke up to the yummiest smelling house!


I even whipped together some cookies (I called them breakfast cookies), to snack on before the big meal. I used my original spelt cookie recipe but replaced the oil with a can of pumpkin. So much healthier!

Beef Roast

Inspired by Marysol's blog, my husband decided to make a beef roast tonight. He cut up some parsnip, carrots, turnip, onion and potatoes and set them in a pool of beef stock and port. A garlic and rosemary covered piece of meat sat neatly in the center for a long 2 hours in the oven.


The smell that filled the house during this time had my stomach in gnawing hunger pangs. So it's no surprise that I filled my plate way more than I needed to when it was finally time to eat. Along with this tender, juicy piece of meat and tasty veggies was some kale that my husband sauteed with green onion and garlic. He also sprinkled some red wine vinegar over it. I swear this is the best way to eat greens – delicious. It was literally the perfect fall dinner, so comforting.


My friend Dino also brought a yummy wine that went beautifully with this dish – 2001 Barolo.

Ribollita

Ribollita is a Tuscan soup that can come in many variations. The main ingredients however, always include leftover bread, cannellini beans and vegetables. The name means reboiled and was originally made be reheating the leftovers from the previous day. When my husband lived in Paris, his Italian roommate used to make this all the time. He'd leave it in a pot on the stove for a week and just turn it on when he felt like having some.

When you look at it, it's a bit deceiving, it doesn't look even close to how amazing it tastes. I would have eaten the entire pot. So healthy, the tomatoes, kale and carrots are sure to fend off any lingering cold. And instead of using regular pancetta, my husband picked an Italian spiced variation which added a flavourful kick to the dish.

What you’ll need
Pancetta – cubed
1 carrot – chopped
1 onion – chopped
1 celery stalk – chopped
3 cloves garlic – chopped
2 cups of chicken broth
1 can peeled tomatoes
2 cans of white beans
Rosemary
1/2 cup toasted bread crumbs
Big bunch of kale

What to do
Start by frying the first 5 ingredients for 5 minutes. Add the chicken broth, tomatoes, rosemary and beans. Cook for 1 hour. Dump in the bread crumbs and kale and cook for another 5 minutes. Serve in a bowl sprinkled with red wine vinegar, olive oil, parm and more day old toasted bread crumbs.

Navarra

$$$$
A group of business friends from out of town treated us to dinner last night. You know you're bound for a fun evening when in the company wonderful people. Spend that time at your favourite restaurant and the evening quickly jumps from great to exceptional.


As usual, I had a terrible time deciding what to order. In the end I believe my choices couldn't have been any better. I started off with the Confit of Octopus – Spanish Chorizo, smooth parsnip silk, organic mushrooms, chimichurri sauce, smoked paprika and chili oil, yummm.

My main, the Crispy Pig Cheeks and Garlic Prawn was rich and satisfying. Parsnip silk piled with layers of heaven – crisp, buttery pig cheeks that melted in your mouth, baby fennel, fried artichoke and a firm garlic prawn topped with delicious aioli. Piquillo emulsion and dried olives decorated the plate. Even today, I still can't get the rich moistness of the pig cheeks out of my mind!

We shared a heavy 2007 Spanish wine – Petalos, the perfect accompaniment. And ended the evening with a 10 year tawny port and espresso.

I love everything about this place. The soft atmosphere, the mouthwatering food, and the amazing service that is some of the best in Ottawa. Last night was particularly special. A year and a half ago I started this blog because of the experience I had there. I was in love with the food and in awe by our server – Deanna. When I heard her name last night I couldn't believe it. She had just returned from maternity leave. It was great to have her back there again.

Thanks so much to everyone who made this evening so great!

www.navarrarestaurant.com