How do you select a place to eat?
I've been doing some research on a site called Restaurantica. The idea behind it is simple, yet very useful when trying to decide where to go out to eat when your hungry. Thousands of restaurants, sorted by type and location and here is the best part.
Tons of reviews by real people. Its nice to know that adding a little variety to my dining experience does not have to be a culinary journey of chance. So next time you go out to eat check out Restaurantica.com first and of course, don't forget to add to the collective afterward and post your review of "your dining experience." Great way to start a meal,
"I'll be reviewing your restaurant this evening on Restaurantica.com What's your name?" 

Last week my room mate Paul came home with 50 pounds of Venison meat. Yes that’s right 50 pounds! What do you do with that much meat? I started asking friends if they liked Venison. Lots said no, Some said yes, but my friend Steve the musician had the best answer. “Yes! I had some Venison Sausage years ago and it was the best dam sausage I have ever eaten!” Considering Steve is about as close to being a vegetarian without actually being one as you could get I had to give this comment the credit it deserved.

The seed had been planted; it was time to make some sausage!

I started my sausage research online and looked at over 20 deer sausage recipes to get an idea of what exactly to put into the mix. Paul and I then proceeded to look for meat grinders and decided upon the Waring Pro Electric 300 watt Meat grinder with sausage attachments. The Cadillac of meat grinders.

  Now that we had our equipment and an idea of what goes into a sausage I though it a good idea to speak to a butcher or 2 or 3…..Most of the big department store butchers were not very helpful. I did however meet a great 9 fingered butcher at a place called Fantasy Fruit Market in Oakville. 9 fingered Frank was a fantastic help. He has over 25 years of experience and comes from South Africa. “We use to eat Spring Bok back home all the time! I love game.” he provided me with his secret sausage spice, instructions on processing, 10 lbs of hi grade beef fat (Deer is very lean and you need to add some fat to your sausage mix for moisture), a cook book and even his secret sausage recipe (he reluctantly told me about the vinegar as I was leaving).  To boot he gave me a couple of pounds of his own product to sample and ALL FOR FREE!!!

After a great deal of debate Paul and I decided to make 3 separate recipes, partly because we had no clue and partly because “boys will be boys” and it was fun throwing the spices into the pot. A couple of tips for any wanna be sausage makers out there:

Making sausages is long hard work.

Freeze the meat before grinding, frozen chunks work best.

Only grind 2 times otherwise you end up with sausage pate.(use the coarse grinding attachment)

Grind all the meat and fat first then mix them together with the spices and freeze it.

Be Clean. Raw meat can be a breeding ground for bad things!

Get a friend to help you, a tough job to do alone.

Clean your equipment often, a clean grinder works best.

Don’t lick your fingers or the bowl.

 

The recipes below are more a guideline and have no specific measurements. A hand full of that a couple of shakes of this. Remember better too little than too much. 300 grams of spices for every 10 kilos of sausage meat is about right. (Thanks for the tip Frank)

 Check out the photos click here.

 Garlic Pepper and Herb Venison Sausage
(very tasty)

10 pounds Fresh Venison cleaned and cut into cubes
2.5 pounds of Bacon (look for fatty bacon)
1 large onion
Big handful of Corn Meal
Generous pinch of salt
50 gram bag of Garlic Pepper and Herb spice mix.
25 grams of Franks Secret Spice.

 
Chili Mustard Seed Venison Links.
(These turned out awesome!!)

10 pounds Fresh Venison cleaned and cut into cubes
2 lbs of salt pork back
.5 lbs of beef fat
1 large onion
Handful of dried red chilies (the more the hotter)
2 tablespoons of Chili garlic sauce
Big handful of quick oats
¼ cup of garlic chopped
Generous sprinkle of Mustard seed
3 second Squirt of white vinegar   

 
Venison Sausage with Garlic and Tarragon
(Smells delicious tastes better)

10 pounds Fresh Venison cleaned and cut into cubes
4.5 lbs of Beef Fat
.5 lbs of salt pork back
1 large onion
Tarragon leaves (lots)
Parsley
Vinegar
Salt
Worcestershire sauce
1 egg
2 cups of cracker crumbs (we used whole wheat Triscuts)
Garlic powder

Each recipe makes about 8 feet of sausage coil.  Bon Appetite!

What to do, What to do? It would seem that Toronto's best party is once again upon us from Nov 17th to 20th.

 I am hoping to enjoy the show again this year. It's been a good time in the past. Now if  I could just find someone to go to it with? Anyone up for it?

The purpose of life, after all is to live it, to taste experience to the utmost, to reach out eagerly and without fear

~Eleanor Roosevelt ~

I have had the pleasure of using public transit quite a bit over the last month and I must say that when its good its great but when its bad it sucks. To get from my pillow to my desk I would have to take 4 buses. And 4 buses back home again. I do think it's cool that for two and a quarter you can travel easily over a hundred KM. I was surprised to see so many people listening to tunes. Kinda sad to see that tunes beat books by at least a 3:1 ratio. I always get a kick to see someone else tapping to the beat of my tune even though they are listening to something else.

My best trip time to the office was 1:38 my worst ride was a trip home 3:45 with a 30 minute stand in the rain waiting at a stop. Would have been longer but a friend gave me a ride.

I now have a car and will no longer be taking transit to work and that is another post in itself. I must say I will not miss it but I am glad its there and I had the opportunity to experience it.

Yes, believe it or not I have quit smoking again and am back at the Y. It would seem the cooler weather sends me into fitness mode for some reason. This is not a bad thing.  Went tonight for an hour. Got to get in shape for Jujitsu and Judo.

Found a very cool website, its a world sunlight map. check it out.

later.

The best piece of spam I have received in a long long time. Great stuff for anyone starting their own business. Now if I could just find someone to tatoo this onto my forehead.....

Millionaire's Mind - Notes.... 

• What you focus on expands
• Make your own plan or you will be a part of someone elses
• Stay as far away from complainers as possible
• The Law of Attraction = Like Attracts Like
• What do people get out of being a victim? Attention
• There's no such thing as a rich victim
• The #1 reason why most people don't get what they want is that they don't know what they want
  If you want to be rich you have to be adding value to other people's lives
• The happiest people are those who use their natural talents to the utmost
• Entrepreneur: person who solves problems for people at a profit - a problem solver
• The more people you help, the richer you become
• It's time to start sharing your gifts instead of hoarding them or pretending they don't exist
• Poor people make choices based on fear
• Rich people believe that if worst comes to worst they can always make their money back
• Rich people take educated risks
• Poor people claim to be preparing for an opportunity - instead they are stalling. Meanwhile the rich guy got in
• Rich people expect to succeed
• Rich people focus on what they want
• If you want to get rich: focus on making, keeping and investing your money
• If you want to be poor, focus on spending your money
• Get in the game with whatever you've got
• Focus on what you have, NOT what you don't have
• The fastest and easiest ways to create wea'lth is to learn exactly how rich people, who are masters of mon'ey, play the game
• Find as many financial mentors as possible
• Most people earn within 20% of the average income of their closest friends
• Make it a point to only associate with successful, positive people (and remember, use your definition of success)
• Rich people hang around winners
• If you don't toot your own horn, it's possible nobody else will
• Rich people are excellent promoters
• Rich people are skilled at packaging their value in a way that's extremely attractive
• To be a leader, you must inherently have followers and supporters, which means that you have to be adept at selling, inspiring and motivating people to buy into your vision
• Leaders earn more money than followers
• If you really believe in your value then how could it be appropriate to hide it from others?
• Grow yourself so that you are bigger than any problem
• If you become a master at handling problems and overcoming any obstacle, nothing can stop you from success
• If you are not willing to receive, then you are 'ripping off' those who want to give to you
• Money will only make you more of what you already are
• Get rich by helping others
• Get rich and then you can help MORE PEOPLE

Where did the summer go? It seems like just yesterday I was putting away the snow blower and taking out the lawn mower. I know I haven't posted in a while and there are a bunch of reasons for it which I am not going to go into. The month of August saw the kids finish their soccer seasons and instilled in me a strong desire to coach them next year. Soccer was a lot of fun! The gardens have produced an abundance of Tomato's and peppers. as well as carrots, cucumbers, beets and onions. All yummy and yummy. I find that without a conscious effort to eat the stuff it goes bad. That brings me to the title of this post. I have always liked this dish and this particular recipe really steps to the front of the line as far as chicken Cacciatore recipes go. This one came complements of Tyler Florence's Real Kitchen and is really, really good. I made a couple of modifications so I would not be completely plagiarizing it but the base of it is His. His cook book is packed with lots of tasty dishes and is worth the 25 bucks if you like to cook.

Chicken Cacciatore - Time 2 hours

Serves 6

6 red bell peppers (I used Sheppard's)

Extra-Virgin olive oil 

Sea Salt and Freshly ground black pepper

1 1/2 cups of all-purpose flour

2 tablespoons garlic powder (I used 2 cloves of garlic and chopped it fine and dried it out and chopped it some more)

1 tablespoon dried oregano (used fresh and dried it out)

1 egg

2 cups of milk

1 whole chicken cut into pieces (or a bunch of pieces works too)

6 cloves of garlic

1 onion (sliced thin)

2 ripe tomato's ( I used about 10 ripe tomato's cause I have tons from the garden and I like tomato's)

1/2 lemon, sliced in paper thin circles (use the middle half)

3 anchovy fillets (I used a couple of squirts of fish sauce instead)

1 tablespoon of capers

1 teaspoon of red pepper flakes

1/2 bunch of fresh basil, hand torn (1/4 for flavor of the base, 1/4 to finish the dish, use lots its yummy)

1 cup of dry white wine ( makes the dish rock, don't use more than a cup though)

Start by preparing the peppers- Preheat the broiler. Pull out the cores of the red peppers; then halve them lengthwise and remove the ribs and seeds. Toss them with some olive oil and salt and pepper and then put them on a cookie sheet, skin side up and broil them until the skin turns black and charred, about 10-15 minutes. Put the peppers in a bowl and cover with plastic wrap and let them steam for about 10 minutes. uncover and remove the skin and give them a coarse chop.

Season the flour with salt pepper, oregano and garlic powder, in another dish mix egg and milk together. drench chicken pieces in flour, then in egg wash and then back in the flour. Place a large pot on stove and put about 1/4 inch of oil in and heat to med. fry chicken in oil for about 8 minutes a side until golden brown and crispy. remove chicken to a plate and set aside. toss the oil out and clean the pot.

Put the pot back on the stove and add 1/4 cup of oil. Add the garlic, onion, tomatoes, lemon, anchovies, capers, red pepper flakes, half the roasted peppers and half the basil. season with salt and pepper. Simmer about 20-25 minutes stirring often, until everything breaks down. taste it to see if it needs more salt.

Add the remaining roasted peppers and basil. Tuck the chicken into the sauce and pour in the wine. Turn the heat down to low, cover and simmer for about 20-30 minutes more. Serve with Polenta or pasta.  enjoy!!!!

A couple of years ago I got a wicked cold/flu that laid me up for over a week. The head cold portion of my illness had prevented me from tasting anything in several days and I had a craving for flavor. During one of my marathon stints on the couch in front of the TV I surfed across That Famous home maker now X-con, Martha Stewart. Martha was making a dish that looked loaded with flavor, so much in fact that it had the potential of flavor delivery despite my head cold. She called her concoction "Mussels Sambal" and it looked so tasty I had to try it. So I scribbled down the recipe and set out to collect the necessary ingredients and in a few hours I was dipping some warm Italian bread into the hot spicy broth of "Mussels Sambal" Very spicy, very delicious. My wife and I have since gone on to make this little number many, many times and have even served it at dinner parties. There is always left over sauce and as my good friend Ken pointed out "this would be great on rice" Which it is! So if your looking to sweat a bit and want a meal with some intense flavor look no further. No guarantee it will cure the common cold but it sure can come close!!

---

Mussels Sambal

2 tbsp. chili garlic sauce

5 Medium cloves garlic peeled and coarsely chopped

1 inch of fresh ginger root - peeled and chopped

2 tsp. dried hot red pepper flakes

1 tsp. cumin

1/2 tsp. coarse salt

1/2 tsp. turmeric

2 Lbs. fresh mussels scrubbed

2 tbsp. canola oil

3 tbsp. fresh squeezed lime juice (1 big lime)

2 med. red onions sliced thin

14 ounce can coconut milk (don't forget to shake it before you open it)

2 tbsp. brown sugar, packed.

1. Make Sambal paste - in food processor (or blender) combine chili sauce, garlic, ginger, hot pepper flakes, cumin & turmeric and process until smooth.

2. In large pot heat oil over medium heat, add sambal paste and cook, stir occasionally, until fragrant, (about 2 or 3 minutes) Add onions and cook until soft (3-5 min) Stir in coconut milk, brown sugar and salt. Add mussels, cover and cook until mussels are open and cooked through (5-7 minutes) Remove from heat, transfer to serving dish, sprinkle with lime juice and serve immediately with a loaf of fresh crusty bread and a cold cold beer or a tall glass of ice water. (leftover sauce is fantastic on rice, throw in a few shrimp too, yum!!)

It's funny how easy it is to start a tradition. All it takes is an idea, some motivation, participation, and some kind of scheduled action. Last year on father’s day our family went strawberry picking. It's not the first time we have ever gone strawberry picking together but it was the first time we did it on father’s day. This great family activity was followed up by a good 6 hours of strawberry jam making. I scoured the internet for strawberry jam recipes and came up with several different ones to try out. The Jam lasted for months and was a real treat in November.

This year we all headed out to Springridge Farms again for the Fathers Day Berry Picking. The season just opened and it was a little overcast so it was not to crowded. I have to admit I was a little disappointed with the berry crop this year. The berries were small, really small.

 And they did not taste as sweet as the crop last year. We were told they were "Jewel Berries" and all the big ones were picked yesterday. Needless to say I was disappointed. It's not that the farms berries were all small and sour. My son and I snuck on to a different berry patch by the hay maze and found the big, sweet, juicy berries we were expecting. I'm not sure why we were not allowed to pick there but I guess that they reserve the produce in that section for our local supermarkets. None the less it was a great way to spend father’s day.

This year my wife did the bulk of the Jam production as I went for a 57KM bike ride along the Waterfront Trail with my friend Ross. The weather was perfect and the section of trail that runs from Oakville to Hamilton is fantastic, Big, safe and very Scenic. The trail runs from Ajax in the East to Niagara on the lake in the west and is over 200km in length.

I am looking forward to our next ride and can only hope I'm in better shape.  Ross has become somewhat of a fitness role model for me as he was once a fat smoker too.  Now he is a lean, mean bike riding machine. And his bike has all the gizmos to prove it. He even has disc brakes and an odometer. It was a great Fathers day and I am all ready looking forward to the next one.

Check out the pictures here

I am very reluctant to say anything about quiting smoking again. I have stopped and started more times than I care to remember. My ability to go several days without a smoke seems to have created a false sense of power over this evil addiction. My newest attempt is attributed to my cronic coughing that is no longer effective at clearing my airway. Almost feels like the early stages of Emphasima.  Does this mean I have learned from my falures? I think one of the hardest parts of quitting is telling people that you quit. Because when you f#$k up It feels like you let everyone down, you become a closet smoker at first and then you have to admit your falure to the world.  I hate that feeling. It also diminishes the support you get from others when you try again. People start to expect you to fail and view your attempts as a fad, kick or a craze. Eh, who needs them anyways!

I started exercising a bit again too. Today I went for a 5km walk and a bike ride. Ross is suppose to come over for a ride tomorrow too. I found a bunch of quotes that seemed to...fit into this most recent attempt.

No time for your health today, will result in no health for your time tomorrow.

Irish Proverb

Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall.

Confucius

I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work.

Thomas A. Edison

Failure is only the opportunity to begin again more intelligently.

Henry Ford

When defeat comes, accept it as a signal that your plans are not sound, rebuild those plans, and set sail once more toward your coveted goal.

Napoleon Hill

People in their handlings of affairs often fail when they are about to succeed. If one remains as careful at the end as he was at the beginning, there will be no failure.

Lao-Tzu

Success is sweet and sweeter if long delayed and gotten through many struggles and defeats.

Amos Bronson Alcott

If an addict who has been completely cured starts smoking again he no longer experiences the discomfort of his first addiction. There exists, therefore, outside alkaloids and habit, a sense for opium, an intangible habit which lives on, despite the recasting of the organism. The dead drug leaves a ghost behind. At certain hours it haunts the house.

Jean Cocteau

My Brothers and I planted a huge Vegetable garden (Huge to me anyways) this Victoria Day Weekend at Scott's house in Peterpatch. Complete with a Chickenwire fence (rows 1 through 9) and a Bean/cucumber trellis (row #6). We got to meet Scott's neighbor who has 50 head of beef cows. He gave us a huge load of cow poop for free. Scott and Lisa rented a roto-tiller and we added some ash, peatmoss and a bag concentrated 7-14-7 as well. The first row of peppers has a black weed barrier as a test. Below is a layout and a legend of how we set it up. Row Number 8 is all herbs Should be lots of stuff to freeze and can in the fall. Good Family Fun was had by all. And a special thanks to Lisa for the yummy dinners and for Keeping an eye on the kids.

1. Garlic

2. Dill

3. Rosemary

4. Sweet Basil

5. Parsley

6. Sage

7. Summer Savory

8. Garlic Chives

Thyme - Row #11

Oregano - Row #11

I must confess I have not read this cook book from cover to cover, yet. Primarly a recipe book about baking, the authors have traversed the globe in search of the tastiest things made from flour.  We have tried 2 recipes so far and from what I see their will be many more to come. The authors approach to baking is 'simplicity and fun'

"In the city, we have floors that are level and walls that meet at right angles, but at the farm everything is less than percise, including, sometimes, what we bake. We had never used a woodfired cast-iron cookstove before. When we'd try to stabilize our oven temperature, we couldn't always do it. And if we were an ingredient short, we'd think twice about going five miles into town. Perhaps we could do without. And, of course, sometimes things didin't turn out perfectly, but then they still tasted good.  The farm has been a reminder of how skills and expectations are relative....There are times to be precise, and times to deliberately work against the impulse to be precise. Flavor and taste are relative."

If your thinking of doing some baking this is a great place to start.

My kids love banana's as long as they are unblemeshed. This translates to an abundance of extra/over ripe banana's in our freezer. I was tempted to throw a lot of them out as they seem to be copulating and multiplying in the icebox to the point of severe annoyance. Luckly I found this banana bread recipe in our new baking cookbook. Very easy to make and uses 8 banana's at a time. It's also super delicious as my kids will attest to. The first loaf was consumed within hours of removal from the oven. The brownsugar on top and the coconut add a texture that sets this B-bread apart from all the others.

8 medium-to-large frozen bananas, defrosted or very overripe bananas

4 cups all-purpose flour

1 ½  teaspoons baking soda

1 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

½ pound unsalted butter, softened

2 cups of sugar

¼ teaspoon white or rice vinegar

3 tablespoons dark rum

1 cup dried shredded unsweetened coconut

about 2 tablespoons demerara or dark brown sugar for topping

 

Preheat oven to 350 F, butter two 9-by-5 inch bread pans.

Puree the bananas in a blender set aside.

In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking soda, and nutmeg, set aside

Using a mixer, beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the vinegar and rum and beat briefly.

Add the banana puree and the flour mixture alternately, about a cup at a time, starting with the bananas. Beat until smooth after each addition.

Stir in coconut.

Spoon the batter into the buttered pans. Sprinkle the top of each loaf with about 1 tablespoon of brown sugar or demerara.  Bake for 50 to 60 minutes until golden brown.

Cool 20 minutes in pan. Then remove to wire rack and cool for another 20 minutes until loaves firm up. Enjoy…

I remember seeing the trailers for this film last year. My wife and I wanted to go then but it was a very limited release, only one theater (downtown Toronto) Although it looked like a fun film we decided to take a pass and wait for the DVD. A couple of weeks ago we were thinking a night out for mom and dad would be a good idea and we went to take in a movie. This gave us a second chance to view the film. Getting to AMC 20 minutes early was almost not enough time to get a ticket as the film sold out and we had to sit in the 4th row.

As a wine lover to start with, I was pretty sure that I would enjoy the flick even if the masses panned it. I am also a big fan of Paul Giamatti (Miles) ever since I saw him as "Pig Vomit" in Howard Sterns "Private Parts" .

The movie was very entertaining, and had some great laughs in it. The character "Miles" is quite pathetic but as the film goes on you warm up to him. Thomas Hayden Church "Jack" probably best known as "Lowell Mather" from the T.V. series "Wings" was hilarious in his role as Miles buddy. Soon to be wed "Jack" wants to get as much Sex as he can in the pre wedding, week long romp through wine country  with his best man "Miles"

The film has some great moments and one of  my favorites is when "Miles and Maya" (Virginia Madsen) are discussing why they like wine. The two do a fantastic job on this exchange of dialogue and make you want to buy a bottle of pinot.  

A great deal of the film is dedicated to character development and I found myself forgetting I was watching 'actors' on several occasions.

If your looking for a fun romantic comedy I think you will find just that in "Sideways". I will be adding it to my DVD collection when it is released.  9 out of 10

My constant battle with my weight re-kindles itself with a vengeance periodically. The triggers are predictable things like, pants that barley fit but use to fit, the scale, a good look in the mirror after a shower and photographs, Last weekend I got a quadruple whammy. On Monday I found myself full of the drive to change, that seems to rear its head three or four times a year. In regards to my overall health, when I’m good I’m great but when I’m bad I’m atrocious and that may be an understatement.

In the past I have exercised like a maniac for long enough of a stretch, on a regular basis, to warrant some kind of result. And I suppose there was a result, I lost about an inch off of my waist and I did feel better but the effort expended for the result achieved was a big disappointment. I was convinced that the more I exercised, the more I could eat and still loose unwanted weight. I exercised so much that I was always hounded by a ravenous hunger and believe me it was unrelenting. I was somewhat conscious about what I ate but never how much. Recently, I began to think about the little things I consumed in a day like coffee. I share a passion with a lot of my fellow Canadians, I love a large double, double in the morning and often find myself back for another later in the day. In fact I love coffee. When I was working for a past employer I would go the whole day without eating but consume 6 to 10 cups of coffee while in the office, all of them double, double or even triple, triple. I was oblivious as to the calories this represented in my diet. I mean it’s just coffee, right? Today I dug a bit deeper and found this out:

Sugar - In one level teaspoon, 16 calories and 4 grams of carbohydrate. One rounded is 1 1/2 tsp and 24 calories with 6 grams of carbohydrate. Depends on how you measure one teaspoon i.e. measuring spoon or silverware spoon

One tablespoon of half-and-half cream has 20 calories.

Using the information above and assuming that a double, double coffee contains 2 rounded teaspoons of sugar and 2 tablespoons of half-and-half cream, I consume about 90 calories with every cup of Joe I scarf down. I have watched them make my coffee at Tim’s and I know that the above figures are conservative. It’s probably a safe bet to say 100 calories per cup. At 2 cups per day that would total 1400 calories per week on coffee alone. Geesh, who would have guessed, and to think that coffee was never on my radar when I was "watching" what I was eating.

So next time your getting your Tim’s in the morning, remember that the coffee your drinking may be doing more that just helping you wake up.

Now that I have 16 cups of Turkey Stock, what do I do with it? Think, think, think, brain blast....turkey soup :) Should be ready by 7:30, will post the tasting results when done

Turkey Wild Rice Soup

Enjoy this soup for its heartiness, for its many textures and its herby, oniony broth, for the nutty taste of the wild rice...you get the picture. It's obviously a good way to use leftover holiday bird, but substitute chicken and it becomes that much more flexible.

Estimated Times: Preparation Time:   30 mins Cook Time:   45 mins Servings:   12

Ingredients

1/4 cup butter or margarine  4 stalks celery trimmed and chopped 2 carrots peeled and diced 1 onion peeled and sliced 1 red onion peeled and sliced 1/2 cup chopped green onion  1/2 cup slivered almonds  2 teaspoons ground black pepper  2 teaspoons garlic salt  2 whole bay leaves  1 teaspoon crushed dried dill weed  1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric  4 (16 cups) quarts chicken broth  1 1/2 cups wild rice mix  1/2 cup rice  1/2 teaspoon salt  4 egg yolks beaten 4 cups diced cooked turkey  3 cups sliced cleaned mushrooms

Directions

Melt butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat; add celery and sauté until tender, about 5 minutes. Add carrots, onion, red onion, green onions and almonds; sauté until onions are fragrant and translucent, 5 to 7 minutes. Stir in pepper, garlic salt, bay leaves, dill weed and turmeric. Heat thoroughly; set aside. In a large stockpot, bring chicken broth to a boil; adding wild rice mix, white rice and salt. Reduce heat, add onion mixture, cover and simmer 30 minutes. Stir 1 cup of the hot soup into egg yolks; return to the soup. Add turkey and mushrooms. Heat thoroughly, but do not boil. Discard bay leaves before serving.

After taking the meat off the bone I am left with about 6 pounds of Turkey Carcus. What to do, What to do.......

3 pounds turkey  parts.   Turkey neck and giblets (liver reserved, if desired) 2 tablespoons vegetable oil 1 medium onion, chopped 1 medium carrot, chopped 1 medium celery rib with leaves, chopped 6 parsley sprigs 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme 1/4 teaspoon black peppercorns 1 bay leaf Using a heavy cleaver, chop the wings and neck into 2-inch pieces. (Or ask the butcher to do this for you.) Using a sharp knife, trim away any membranes from the giblets. In a large pot, heat the oil over medium-high heat. In batches, add the turkey wings, neck, and giblets and cook, turning occasionally, until browned on all sides, about 8 to 10 minutes. Transfer to a plate. Add the onion, carrot, and celery to the pot and cook, stirring often, until softened, about 6 minutes. Return the turkey to the pot. Add enough cold water to cover the turkey by 2 inches. Bring to a boil, skimming off the foam that rises to the surface. Add the parsley, thyme, peppercorns, and bay leaf. Reduce the heat to low. Cook uncovered at a bare simmer for at least 2 hours. The longer a stock simmers, the better, up to 12 hours. As needed, add more water to the pot to keep the bones covered. Never let stock come to a rolling boil, or it will become cloudy and have a less refined flavor. A great alternative to the stove is to make the stock in a 5 1/2-quart slow cooker. Transfer the browned turkey and vegetable mixture to the cooker, add the herbs, and pour in enough cold water to cover generously. Cook on Low, and the stock will barely simmer all night long, to make a clear delicious stock. Do not add salt to your stock. The stock is often used in recipes where it must be reduced, and the final dish could end up too salty. To check the stock's flavor, ladle some into a cup and season lightly with salt before tasting. Without the salt, it may taste deceptively weak. Strain the stock through a colander into a large bowl. Let stand for 5 minutes, then skim off the clear yellow fat that rises to the surface. If desired, remove the giblets, cool, finely chop, and refrigerate for use in gravy. The neck meat can be removed in strips, chopped, and reserved as well. Cool the stock completely before refrigerating or freezing. (Turkey stock can be prepared up to 3 days ahead, cooled, covered, and refrigerated. It can also be frozen in airtight containers for up to 3 months.) Reprinted by permission of Broadway Books. All rights reserved.

The Toronto Food and Wine Expo is over. This year my wife and I were joined by another couple which gave us the opportunity to sample a lot more wine as we shared the taste of the grape many times with each other. Each wine sample has a ticket price (tasting tickets are .50 cents and the cost of a sample ranges from 2 tickets up to 25 tickets for some of the premium vintages) and by the end of the evening my friend Ford would describe the wine sample by the # of tickets the sample cost.

me: "what's this one called"

Ford: "9 tickets"

Because this was my second time at the show I was able to avoid a lot of the faux pas that I had made the previous year. Like parking at the back of the convention center as oppose to the front as to avoid the 10 mile walk to the exhibit. Getting their early before the masses came which made it easier to sample more stuff. I was able to try a cheese flight from the "Cheese Boutique" which was very cool as the cheese guy selects your samples based on the wine your going to drink with it. Not cheesy at all :) I also got to speak with Derek Barnett again.

 I met Derek at the Wigamog Inn during our summer vacation. The Inn had a food and wine pairing and Lailey Vineyard's (Derek is the wine maker for Lailey) supplied the wine. This was very cool as he remembered me. I asked him if he had any of the award winning Cab Franc 2001 left but unfortunately it was sold out. He did however have a private stash that was not on the menu and he was gracious enough to give me a sample (very nice) I will be making a point to visit Lailey next year.

Their was also an exhibitor (a builder) who was looking for an Innkeeper for the refurbished Keefer Mansion in Niagara. Now there is a lifestyle change if your looking for one. No Vineyard though. Only 7 G's a month lease and your inn.

My wife and I are having our second annual wine tasting party at our house in December. Last year's party was a great time and very educational, not only from a wine tasting experience but also from a planning perspective. (only sample 1 kind of wine or your guests will be too impaired to care about the other one) Our testing wine this year is Cabernet Franc, not the most popular grape variety but a very old one with lots of global coverage. Last year we had invited about 10 couples but because it was so close to Christmas less than 1/2 were able to attend. This year I fired out/am in the process of sending out 12 invites and it looks like we will set a new attendance record!! 

On another related note The Gourmet Food and Wine Expo 2004 at the metro convention centre is only 2 weeks away. I just went to the website and you can now buy your tickets and more importantly you can print off your $3 off coupon. It runs from Nov 25 through to the 28th and if you like food and wine you will really enjoy this show. We are planning on attending Saturday Night so let me know if you going and I might stagger into you. If you want to get a better idea of what to expect at the show check out my post from last years show.

When I first set eyes on this book at the public library I thought about the wine I had made the previous year at my local brew your own swill joint. I thought about how excited I was to make my own vino (all 60 bottles of it) and about how disappointing the end product eventually turned out to be. I decided it was time I understood why my Syrah tasted like a stinky wet dog and my Chardonnay tasted more like lemon-aid than the buttery oakey flavor description on the box of juice I bought. 

This book was a very long read. Not because it was difficult or uninteresting. Quite the contrary, it was informative and engaging, often encouraging the reader (in a suggestive kinda way) to whip out to the liquor store and grab a bottle of Cabernet Franc or Baco Noir. Not for the pleasure of the drink but strictly for study purposes. I mean how one can expect to fully comprehend the information with out correlating it to the product you're studying is behond me.

This constant necessity to acquire study material, as you can imagine, caused numerous distractions when trying to read. And lets not forget the effects of the beverage and the way it makes you want to impart your newly acquired knowledge on anyone who will listen.

Upon completion of the book, I can now say with confidence that I know far more about wine than I did pre read. I can also say with great conviction  that by learning how much information exists on the subject, 'I still know very little about wine.' I did however aquire enough information to advise my younger brother on future 'can't go wrong' wine purchases in one word. Inniskillin.

This book inspired me to:

check out the cost of vineyards in southwestern Ontario, find a place to buy fresh grapes and fresh juice for this years batch of home brew, find a place to buy grape vines and

 a place to plant them. (thanks Scott)

In closing here is an excerpt about Ordering Wine in a dining establishment:

"Your server should place the cork on the table beside you so that you can examine it. The end that has been in the bottle (referred to as the business end) Should be swollen and wet. This tells you the wine has been stored on its side. A wet and swollen cork seals off the bottle more completely, leaving little room for air to get in and oxidize the wine. You should also sniff the cork to check for moldy smells that indicate a bad bottle."

 

Gourmet Food and Wine Expo 2004 -

Torontos Best Party!!

November 25 - 28th 2004 At the metro Toronto Convention Centre. California is this years theme region. - See you there!

A tasty, full bodied, little French table wine I found in the Vintage section of the LCBO. Under $10 a bottle while supplies last. (going to get some for my wine cellar me thinks)

Here is the LCBO blurb on it.

719286  DOMAINE DE L'AMEILLAUD  2002   $  9.95
	Vin de Pays de Vaucluse  (D)  750 mL (S.C.E.A. de l'Ameillaud)
Usually a blend of 60% Grenache, 20% Syrah, and 20% Carignan, this is a consistent summertime favourite with Vintages customers. Robert Parker Jr. recognizes this as "a high quality estate located in the village of Cairanne".
Food match: grilled vegetables, grilled veal chops.

And more data...

2002 Vin de Pays de VaucluseThe fruit is from 40-60 year old vines, vinification is done in massive concrete tanks & there's not an oak barrel to be found on the estate.

And....

Along the banks of the Aygues and the

Ouvèze the soils are richer,the water table

higher,and the vines,as a consequence,

more vigorous.Wines from those areas,

though they ’re mostly made from the same

varieties and grown in the same climate,are

classified as Vin de Pays de Vaucluse.The

ones from the best growers represent great

value.

After watching several episodes of "A cooks tour" on the food network I felt like I was missing somthing. You could tell that in some cases we were not hearing everything that was going on in Tony's head. This inspired me to read this book. Tony is a but smoking, booze chugging, gruff, mealy, tell it like it is, no BS kind of chef/writer who will put almost anything in his mouth. The story as per the title is about his quest to find the perfect meal. His travels take him to some very interesting places (Ho Chi Minh City, Phnom Penh, San Sebastian, Pailin and Fez just to name a few) where he dines on some delicious sounding and sometimes very bizarre cuisine. I very much enjoyed his writing style and his Macavellian sense of humour. Here is a sample from the beginning of the book where he is deciding to attend a pig slaughter in Portugal.

"Understand this about me - and about most chefs, I'm guessing: For my entire professional career, I've been like Michael Corleone in The Godfather, Part II, ordering up death over the phone, or with a nod or a glance. When I want meat, I make a call, or I give my Sous-chef, my butcher, or my charcutier a look and they make the call. On the other end of the line, my version of Rocco, Al Neary, or Lucca Brazzi either does the job himself or calls somebody else who gets the thing done. Sooner or later, on a farm in rural Pennsylvania, or as far away as Scotland - something dies. Every time I have picked up the phone or ticked off an item on my order sheet, I have basically caused a living thing to die. What arrives in my kitchen, however is not the bleeding, still-warm body of my victim, eyes open, giving me an accusatory look that says, 'Why me, Tony? Why me?' I don't have to see that part... I had never, until I arrived on a farm in northern Portugal, had to look my victim in the face - much less watched at close range - as he was slaughtered, disemboweled, and broken down into constituent parts. It was only fair, I figured, that I should have to watch as the blade went in. I'd been vocal, to say the least, in my advocacy of meat, animal fat, and offal. I'd said some very unkind things about vegetarians. Let me find out what we're all talking about, I thought. I would learn - really learn - where food actually comes from." - Tony Bourdain

If you like cooking and you like to travel then you should like this book. A fun read that can make you a little peckish at times.

 

 

 

Another Father's day has come and gone but for me this one will always be remembered as the berry best Fathers day ever. After doing the breakfast thing we decided to see if Strawberry season had started yet. As it turned out the answer was a resounding yes! It just started yesterday.  I quickly took stock of my canning jar supply and researched several strawberry jam recipes, then we loaded up the truck and headed out to SpringRidge farm for some fresh berries. 35 pounds of fresh berries as it turned out. It seemed my jam recipe calculations were a bit off. The picking was fantastic as the season had just started and we were picking virgin bushes. I remember last time we went it took over an hour to fill a basket as oppose to this years 15 minutes. The enormity of our berry purchase hit home hard as I began to wash and hull the fruit which took several hours. I felt like a prep chef in a pastry shop after the first hour and had to break for dinner in the middle of the job. I had chosen 3 different canning recipes to try out:

Strawberry Banana Jam - 7 cups prepared strawberries, 2 cups prepared bananas, 1 medium seedless orange, 3 cups granulated sugar, 1/4 cup lemon juice. (These recipies are for canning so you will need to sterilize the jars and process. makes about 5 half pint jars 250 ml) Hull and halve strawberries; measure 7 cups. Mash bananas: mesure 2 cups. Quarter unpeeled orange: chop finely in food processor or by hand. In a large saucepan, combine strawberries, orange and banana. Bring to a boil, stirring occasionally. Boil gently for 10 minutes. Maintaining fruit mixturre at a boil and stirring constantly, slowly add sugar and lemon juuice. Boil hard, stirring constantly to prevent scorching, until mixture reaches gel stage. (about 15 minutes). Remover from heat and skim off foam. Ladle jam into a hot sterilixed jar to within 1/4 inch of top rim (head space) and process.

Plantation Strawberry Banana Jam - Prepare recipe as for strawberry banana jam, but decrease bananas to 1 cup and add 1 can (14oz/398 ml) of crushed pineapple, well drained, to orange strawberry and banana mixture.

Old-fashioned Strawberry Jam - 6 cups prepared strawberries, 4 tart apples (macs or grannies) peeled, cored and quartered, 1/4 cup lemon juice, 4 cups granulated sugar. Hull and halve strawberries. Measure 6 cups. Combine strawberries, apples and lemon juice in a large saucepan. Bring mixture to a full boil, stirring constantly to prevent scorching. Add sugar to boiling fruit, stirring constantly until sugar is dissolved,, Boil gently, stirring frequently to avoid scorching or until mixture reaches gel stage (about 45 minutes) Remove from heat. Can jam in hot sterilized jars and process.

. I was so comfortable with the jam recipe procedure by the end of the night I also invented my own recipe which I will call

Father Rick’s (because of fathers day) Strawberry Jam. - 8 cups hulled and halved strawberries, 1/4 cup pinapple, 1/4 cup grapefruit segments, 1/4 cup lemon juice, 4 cups of sugar, 1 package of Certo crystals. in a large saucepan. Bring fruit mixture to a full boil, stirring constantly to prevent scorching. Add sugar and certo to boiling fruit, stirring constantly until sugar is dissolved,, Boil gently, stirring frequently to avoid scorching or until mixture reaches gel stage (about 45 minutes) Remove from heat. Can jam in hot sterilized jars and process.

 After the 5^th batch of spread it became really apparent that we were going to have left over berries, lots of left over berries, so I pulled out the Tupperware containers and proceeded to bestow some little red devils upon my many neighbors. By 11pm I had had enough and placed the 20 or so pounds left in the fridge for the night. You would think I’d learn after my carrot fiasco. I now have a Two Four of Strawberry Jam, an early start on my Christmas shopping and some serious berry freezing ahead of me. Check out the pics.

It's been 10 days now since I went cold turkey. for the www.quitsmokingontario.ca contest. I've also started going back to the gym on a daily basis, jumped on the protein diet and I'm growing a mustache/beard combo.

Exercise

bike 20 Km, Weights, Swim 500 Meters

Diet

Breakfast - coffee, cottage cheese

Lunch - steak with mushrooms and onions

Dinner omelet with cheese mushrooms and onions

Snack - peanuts, apple

Dull Day. Really tired, Been sleeping like crap the last week, Its finally starting to catch up with me I think. Yawn, Night.

Exercise

2.5Mile walk/run. 600 Meter Swim

Diet

Breakfast Coffee, cottage cheese

Lunch Coffee

Dinner Pork stir Fry Cheese Coffee

Snack hard boiled egg

I think Jim is on to somthing here

The 10 Things in Life that You Control

By Jim M Allen

There are just a few aspects of life that we can truly control, and it's useful to know just what those areas are. If you don't know, you'll spend a lot of time blaming others for your own failings. Try and exert too much control in areas you shouldn't and the universe will create some interesting ways to remind of your place.

So be prepared an learn the 10 things in life that you DO control:

1. What you do

   Your actions are yours alone. You choose to make them or not make them and you are responsible for the effects of those actions.

2. What you say

   Likewise, the words you speak (or write) are also consciously chosen. Like actions, they have an impact on your life and the lives of those you contact.

3. What you think

   Yes, there are some subconscious thoughts that you can't control. But the things that you really think about, your beliefs, your ideals, etc. are concepts you have chosen to accept and believe in.

4. Your work

   Many people like to overlook this one, it being much easier to say "Oh, I'm trapped in my job because I don't have a degree, experience, etc." Hogwash! That's simple a way of denying one's responsibility in having chosen the job in the first place.

   It's your job and you chose it. If you stay (or go), that's a choice as well.

5. Who you associate with

   There's a famous t-shirt that states: "It's hard to soar like an eagle when you're surrounded by turkeys."

   Your friends can either lift you up or bring you down. You make the decision which type of friends you wish to have.

6. Your health

   Much of our health is a factor of genetics, environment, and exposure. Much more of our health is simply a matter of the things we choose: diet, excercise, drugs, sleep, routine physicals, check-ups, etc.

7. The environment you live in

   Your house, the condition of your home, the town you live in, the amenities available to you are all things you can control, although some to a lesser degree (i.e., you decide to tolerate them or move someplace else).

8. Your finances

   Having or not having enough money is a factor of what you make versus what you spend.

9. Your time

   You choose how to "spend" your time and how much of your time to give to various activities. You'll never get more time than the 24 hours your given each day.

10. Your legacy

    All your actions, words, and knowledge that you share while you are living become the gift that you leave when you are gone.

Jim Allen is a professional life coach, speaker, and writer. Get more great ideas in you email every week by subscribing to Jim's weekly newsletter, THE BIG IDEA, by sending a blank email to: mailto:Subscribe@CoachJim.com (�2001 Jim Allen & CoachJim.com ALL RIGHTS RESERVED)

 

Exercise

Bike 20 Km, Weights, Swim 500 Meters

Diet

Breakfast - Coffee & sweetner

Lunch - Steak and salad

Snack - 2 hard boiled eggs

Dinner - onion and mushroom and cheese omlete with bacon and coffee with sweetner.

Today I received an email from an old friend. You know the kind, Almost everyone has at least one. Where your memories together span decades and as you journey through life you cross paths again and again. The kind of friend you can sit with for hours and say "remember when" all night long knowing that the next time you meet, this rendezvous will be another "remember when". As young boys we got in so much trouble together our parents forbade us from hanging out together, but that never stopped us. I mean what was one more thing to get into shit for. Just add it to the list was our mentality. I'm not sure if seeing my old friend again will make me feel young or old but I'm sure it will make me feel happy.

 It takes a long time to grow an old friend.

~ John Leonard

   

Last nights poker game was a bust. Given the opportunity to get out and socialise with the boys while chugging a few beers and trying to win some cash is appealing to me. Unfortunately this does not seem as appealing to the 25 or so guys I have sent the invite out too. I have never heard so many excuses in all my life. Guys making excuses why they cant get out of the house for 5 hours on a Friday night to play cards and drink beer? What is the world coming to? I should mention that there were 2 other boys who managed to free up the time to pay play but 3 ppl. is just not a good game of cards. Oh well Maybe next week.

In truth, people can generally make time for what they choose to do; it is not really the time but the will that is lacking.

~ Sir John Lubbock ~

 

Friday Exercise

Bike - 20Km, Weights, Swim 500 meters

Saturday Exercise

Swim 1Km

Diet

I Stayed with the protein thing all week except for the 4 slices of pizza last night. I am so weak.

Brian Leetch is a Leaf. Nice game on the guy tonight, 3 assists...on the power play no less. Sweet pass to McCabe on the last one. If I dare say so the buds have not looked better coming into the spring since....well since before I was born. Should be some great June hockey in the big smoke this year!

Guess who�s in the news again.

Abdul Rahman Khadr - Turns out everything that he said to the press last November, was just a bunch of bull shit. Now he says he is telling the truth about being a CIA agent planted to route out Terrorists. The whole thing makes me want to take a dump on the steps of humanity. Can we not just get along children? I wish God/Allah would tell our sheltered leaders that God/Allah does not have a score card, does not pick sides, does not care who wins and is millions of years old. If I were millions of years old I can't see me giving a crap about this petty human conflict stuff. Think about it, what if god had something in his/her eye during the Second World War and missed the whole thing. Millions of years old, why would God/Allah give a crap about the year 2004?

Exercise

2.5 Mile Walk/Run, 1Km Swim

Diet

Breakfast- Hard-boiled egg, cold cuts, coffee with sweetener.

Lunch - Pork chop, salad

Dinner - Roast Chicken, Chef's salad

Snack - nectarine, coffee

I find even with the week in Mexico I still have the Winter Blah's I'm glad February is over (well almost) It's ironic that cold weather in the fall is warm weather in the spring yet it's the same weather.

 

I was watching a show on TVO Called Studio2 last Tuesday night, It was about Ontario's energy woes.  They came to the conclusion that the biggest problem we have now regarding energy is the rate we pay for power (4.2cents/KW hour) which is not even close to the real rate of electricity. They They said "Because of the artificial price, people won't be as concerned with conservation". or as it was put on the show:

"Electricity is cheaper as a commodity during off peak hours, like after 8 PM and before 7am. This is due to decreased demand. Who is going to run the dishwasher in the middle of the night if it costs the same to the consumer as it would cost to run it after dinner?"

and I would add "why would anyone in their right mind buy energy saving light bulbs when the true savings cant be realized with a fake, subsidized electricity rates." (uhh Me).

Got to the gym yesterday. I've actually been a bunch of times but not done my workout as I've been doing the Y-TRY organizing thing. Between that and trying to develop a blog product to sell ....Got to the gym yesterday :)

Exercise- 20 Km’s on the bike, weights

I cant wait to start riding outside! Come on spring!