Cheese, Rillettes and Terrine

Our friends Zoya and Marc are here for the weekend. It's always a pretty big food fest when they come or when we go there. They enjoy food as much as we do so it makes revolving the weekend around eating so worth it. I didn't want my husband (or I) to be stuck in the kitchen last night though. I actually thought going to Murray Street and nibbling off their charcuterie menu would be nice. But we're all trying to cut down on eating out, so I decided to do the same thing but at home.

I went to the Chelsea Smokehouse to get the majority of our feast. They have such a marvelous selection of local foods. Check out what I brought home.

- Aux trois p'tits cochons verts – Mousse Foie de Volaille au Porto (terrine of chicken liver, duck fat, creme, egg and port)
- Aux trois p'tits cochons verts – Sanglier Canneberge (rillettes of pork, boar, liver, cranberries, egg, red wine)
- Gibiers Canabec – Terrine de lapin aux bleuets (rabbit terrine with duck, pork, chicken liver, blueberries, veal)
- La fromagerie le ptit train du nord – La Petite Folie soft sheep cheese
- Chelsea Smokehouse – Smoked salmon mousse with goat and sheep's milk cheese with horseradish
- La maison Alexis de Portneuf – La Sauvagine soft surface ripened cheese
- Olivia chocolate – 76% cocoa with a touch of maple – this is actually made in Wakefield!
- Gorgonzola (this was just from the grocery store)

I also picked up a few things that were recommended in the current issue of Ottawa Magazine. I'm not sure if it's because I've now been in Ottawa for 10 years, or if the writers have changed, or if I was just blindsighted before, but I've really enjoyed getting this magazine regularly for the past couple of years. They have wonderful restaurant reviews and fantastic information about lots of local food shops in every issue. This one was especially good with their “101 Tastes to Try Before You Die”. Quite a few things were purchased because of that article. Like bison spring rolls (they actually talked about the egg rolls), which I got for last night but never ended up cooking them.


Mmmm, lemon and salt pistachios. This was tasty treat number 49. As explained in the article, they're ordered from Iran and then sent to Montreal for roasting before they arrive at Shiraz. I especially love the chunks of salt.


The bread I picked up at two spots, the Red Apron and True Loaf Bread Company right next door. I picked up some Art-is-in garlic and rosemary bread, currently one of my absolute favourites, from the Red Apron, and a rye and walnut and French white baguette from True Loaf. It's really nice to have a selection of breads – it's almost just as fun as trying all the cheeses.


Fresh figues really complete a cheese plate.


And to pull it all together, some sweet pickled gherkins, St Ambroise beer mustard, L'Herborerie onion jam and date, crab apple and roasted cumin spread.