*This post is a continuation of Cheese Making Pt. 1 and Pt. 2.


The last step is to wax the cheese and wait!  Waxing the cheese ensures that it does not dry out while it ages and prevents it from moulding. 



If you've ever wondered what to do with stale left over bread, here's a recipe that is easy to make and will satisfy your carb craving!


This is how we make the perfect juicy and tender steak on a Friday night.







A cozy dish perfect for those in between winter and spring blues, this cottage pie is full of flavour and will satisfy any appetite.



**This post is a continuation of Cheese Making Pt. 1.



Overal Rating:  7/10
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Food:   7/10
Service:  8/10
Ambience:  6/10

Location:  10816 Macleod Trail South
Ginger Beef Peking House on Urbanspoon


 
This is our third attempt at making cheese at home.  The last two times, we made a soft cheese using lemon as the coagulant.  We used yoghurt in our second attempt to ferment the cheese and mixed in chopped chives hoping to improve the flavour.  The flavour was improved slightly and had better depth.  However, we knew that in order to develop that cheesey flavour, we were going to have to age our cheese properly.  The difficulty in our previous attempts to age our cheese were the deep cracks that would form as it aged in our fridge.  We suspect that this was due to the curds not being pressed properly to remove most of the whey.  This time around, we are using microbial rennet (available locally at the Springbank Cheese Co.) as the coagulant and this website as our guide.


 Here is what we used to prepare the cheese for aging:

Overall Rating: 9/10
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Food: 8.5/10
Service: 9/10
Ambience: 9/10

Location: 420 1851 Sirocco Drive SW

Misato Sushi & Grill on Urbanspoon

Dynamite Roll (left), Spicy Tuna Roll (right)

When I first saw The Delicious Miss Dahl on Food Network, I was immediately suspicious they were trying to replace Nigella Lawson (what with the English accent and careless, almost haphazard cooking methods) while riding the Jamie Oliver wave of success.  However, after watching 30 minutes of Sophie Dahl, my jealousy of her Anthropologie-meets-vintage interior design and kitchenwares, grew into one serious girl crush.




The first time we had rillette was at Aux Lyonnais in Paris two summers ago.  Darrin calls it "spreadable bacon" and it's as good as it sounds.  This is something you can make and keep in the fridge until it's time for a snack, appetizer or even to impress your friends at your next dinner party.  The texture is not quite as firm as a terrine but not as soft as a pate.  It can be spread over warm crusty bread or crostini.  It reminds me of a very unctuous pulled pork.  It's also super easy to make, not to mention affordable, compared to what it would cost at a restaurant.   

This hearty dish is perfect for the -25oC weather we've been experiencing in Calgary for the last two weeks.  It is delicious over a bed of steamed rice or in a noodle soup.  You can find many of the following ingredients in the oriental section of your grocery store.


It was our second time in France last summer that I tried a macaroon, or as they are referred to by the French, macaronNot to be confused by the American coconut macaroons, the macaron in comparison is a light, melt in your mouth, not too sweet confectionary.  I instantly fell in love with the many colours and flavours offered at the pâtisseries, but I was worried they might be overly sweet.  So I held off until one afternoon in Lyon, after a lazy day of shopping and people watching, we walked to a patisserie near the Place Bellecour, called Pignol.



Afternoon snack from Pignol near Place Bellecour

The pistachio and raspberry macaroon.  Place Bellecour in the background.


No one is counting calories here.  Note the chocolate macaron.