Overall - 7.5/10
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Food - 7.5/10
Service - 8/10
Ambiance - 7/10
After a slow start to the growing season, the first of our heirloom tomatoes finally ripened this week. We decided to celebrate with a recipe that is simple, requires no cooking and features the fresh flavours of the tomatoes. Insalata caprese or "Salad of Capri" makes an excellent appetizer and can be personalized with your own additions. Traditionally made of sliced buffalo mozzarella, tomatoes, basil and olive oil, we like to add balsamic vinegar and top it off with thin slices of Serrano ham or prosciutto.
Recently we had a big carrot harvest from our garden. After having our fill of carrot sticks and roasted carrots, we decided to make soup with the remainder. The following is essentially a cream of carrot soup that is flavoured with indian spices and coconut milk instead of heavy cream. The result is a hearty dish that really highlights the earthiness of carrots with the aromatic flavours of garam masala (an indian spice mix), coriander, mustard seed and fennel seed. Served along side some garlic croutons and sausage this is a complete fall meal.
Overall - 7.5/10
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Food - 9/10
Service - 7/10
Ambiance - 7/10
The last few days or so Calgary has been suffering through a bit of a cold snap with temperatures feeling more like fall than summer. With the cooler temperatures I can't help but crave something hearty and filling. This braised cabbage with apple, bacon and sausage is a great fall weather dish that is also easy to make. What really makes this cabbage dish so delicious is the meaty flavour of the bacon, the almost licoricey flavour of the fennel seed and the sage. Topped with sausage and a side of mashed garlic potatoes, you cannot go wrong!
Recently we had the pleasure of having some good friends over for dinner during the Labour Day long weekend. As the forecast was for hot weather and lots of sun BBQ was the only option. Normally when it comes to BBQ we're like everyone else and are happy to just quickly grill some burgers and hot dogs under the sun, however on this weekend low, slow and smoke was the way to go.
Here is our recipe for a slow cooked pulled pork rubbed with a delicious dry rub and flavoured with apple wood smoke. If you think its too much work, once you bite into the tender chunks of pork infused with the aroma of fruit wood you'll never be satisfied with 'regular' BBQ ever again.
Overall - 9/10
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Food - 8/10
Service - 9/10
Ambiance- 9/10
Every so often you end up eating meat for so many days on end that you actually crave something lighter and vegetarian. Here is a recipe that takes advantage of the nice weather we've been having with grilled vegetables combined with a hearty black olive and sun dried tomato tapenade. This is a healthy vegetarian recipe that can be enjoyed alone or as a side dish. Feel free to experiment with whatever vegetables or herbs look good at the market that day including eggplant, corn, basil or even sage.
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