My Best Hot Dog Ever

I have never thought that I would rave about a hot dog, but I just had the best hot dog in my life the other week at the Alembic Bar.

Alembic Bar does not look like the kind of place one goes for food.  Its exterior looks like a neighborhood dive bar.  Past its front door is a long bar with stools.  Beyond the bar are seven small tables that accommodate at most fourteen diners.  Further back is storage and the facilities, with the kitchen in the very back.  The bar, the floor and the furniture are of worn wood.  Decoration is sparse, but it has plenty of filtered sunlight and the place is clean.  Alembic has an impressive cocktail and whiskey list.  The small menu contains much more than the usual bar food.  There are snacks like shishito peppers and spiced duck hearts, and larger plates such as bone marrow and suckling pig.  There is also a daily $35 3-course prix fixe dinner special.  It is pretty easy to get in at day time, but the wait for the coveted tables and bar stools is notorious in the evening.  

On a recent day, we kicked off our lunch there with two cocktails.  I had a “Just Like Honey” made with Scotch whiskey, sloe gin, a little honey and bitter lemon soda.  Mrs. Akujiki ordered a “Southern Exposure” of Junipero gin, fresh mint, lime juice and a shot of fresh celery juice.  The very healthy celery juice gave Mrs. Akujiki’s drink a lovely colour as well as a refreshing flavor.  Nice!

 

              

 

We munched on fried Japanese shishito peppers seasoned with smoked coarse salt.  The peppers had an aroma of heat, but they were very mild in reality.  They made a great snack to go with our drinks.

   

Mrs. Akujiki enjoyed her beer battered rock fish sandwich, an upscale version of McDonald’s Filet-O-Fish.  It came with malt vinegar remoulade, savoy cabbage, and potato chips with crab seasoning.  

Hot dog usually meant ground up mystery meat with lots of fat and salt.  But I took a chance on the hot dog from “4505”, a local company selling pastured pork, lamb, chicken and grass fed beef.  Besides, it said “bacon studded” hot dog on the menu!!  I was glad that I ordered it.  The sausage was plump and juicy.  Not only that it tasted good, it was also hormone and antibiotic free.  The hot dog was topped with some pickled fennel “kraut” and peppadew relish.  It was simple, delicious and much better than those famous dogs of Pink’s in Los Angeles and Japa Dog in Vancouver, B.C., which were over cluttered with lots of toppings.  Also on the plate were curly pieces of gently seasoned crunchy chicharrones (deep fried pork rind) that were practically free of grease.  It was simply my best hot dog ever.  I could eat it every week. 

 

                                                                                                                                                      

Steamed Clams and Mussels

Cooking steamed clams and mussels at home is easy.  I made some last week.  We ate the mussels as starter, and the clams with cirioline all’uovo (an egg pasta) as the main course.  The wine was a Navarro Sauvignon Blanc from California.

The most important thing is to get fresh live mollusks.  I avoid shops that keep their clams and mussels in tanks of water because I cannot be certain about the quality of the recirculating water.  I prefer shops that keep their products on ice in refrigerated display cases.

Once home, I put the mollusks in a bowl, fill it with cold water and leave it in the fridge for them to spit out the sand from inside their shells.  A Japanese old lady once told me that putting a rusty nail in the water would make the clams clear out all their grits.  I never had a rusty nail handy when I cook clams so I cannot vouch for the claim.  Before I cook them, I scrub the outside surface of each mollusk to get rid of grits and rinse them a few times.  I throw away cracked ones.

Mussels have beards.  I just trim off the exposed portion.  If you want to pull them off completely, do it right before cooking because de-bearding kills the mussels.

I heat up some olive oil and butter (or shrimp butter if I have some on hand) in a large heavy pot and fry some sliced shallots, crushed garlic and one or two small red chili peppers.  Sometimes I also add sliced salt pork, or pancetta, or chunks of spicy hot sausages.  Once everything is nicely browned, I pour in some dry white wine and reduced shrimp stock (optional) and bring it to a boil.  I leave the heat at high, dump the mollusks in, and put the lid on for a few minutes.  I then uncover the pot and continue cooking.  I remove them as soon as their shells open to avoid overcooking.  I discard any that does not open (I do not force open them, especially not in the pot or the soup bowl, because in the best case they are bad and in the worst case their inside is filled with mucky grit and slime).

Eating Local in the City

More and more people are bringing the trend to eat local right into their backyards.  There is obvious satisfaction in being able to pick your veggies for your salad just before the meal.  You can't get more local or fresher than that but it's also a lot of work!   

I partook of some of those joys when I spent a week in San Jose and my hosts had strawberries and tomato planters on their back patio and orange trees on the side.  I picked strawberries every morning to go with my breakfast cereal and picked cherry tomatoes and oranges when I felt like having a snack.   I visited friends in Toronto on the weekend who turned their back garden into a vegetable garden, practically. You can see pictures below.  My hardworking friends were watering and working in the patch even as we visited.  You can't let up as your crops are at stake.  And what happens if you decide to take a summer vacation?  

I also can't help but wonder if my generous friends get more than their share of visitors.  We came back with fresh-picked beans and cherry tomatoes - and best of all, a precious jar of yummy pesto!!  I couldn't wait to dig into the pesto and you can see my "local" dinner below.  

Patio vegetable planters in San Jose

Vegetable garden in Scarborough (Toronto)

Looking good!

Tasting good!

Bountiful beans!

 Lonesome fuzzy squash on the garden arbor - there is something growing in ever corner of the yard!

Sweet harvest

My "local" food dinner:  the beans; basil and garlic from the garden was the base for the delicious pesto on the pasta.  No, I don't know where the trout came from but fresh frozen tasted good too!

Learning to cook in farm country

What better place to teach the production and preparation of food than in farm country!  The Niagara  College Canadian Food and Wine Institute is doing precisely that.  In addition to learning how to cook, students also learn how to grow food and grapes for wine.  The Institute is at Niagara-on-the-Lake, right in the middle of fruit and wine country.  There is a full service restaurant Benchmark right on campus, providing practical experience as well as paid jobs for the students and high quality local food at very reasonable prices for the public.  

We drove up to the quiet campus and enjoyed a quiet lunch in the spacious glass enclosed dining room.  It was a bonus not to have to fight the crowds at Niagara-on-the-Lake on a long weekend!  You can check out the menus and the amazing prices and maybe find another culinary institute closer to home that offers you similar value.   I look forward to hearing about other experiences with culinary institute restaurants. 

I had the prix fixe menu called "Trust Us" and had never been such a happy guinea pig.  It started with the crunchy chopped green salad with smoked trout, followed by a pan-fried pickerel with rice and summer squash paired with an oaked chardonnay produced at the school.  One  might question why fish in both appetizer and entree but they tasted so different I didn't mind.  My luncheon companion ordered a la carte starting with a delicious pepper bisque the recipe for which they promised to email us.  The smoked pork ribs were smothered in a little too much sauce but scored a pass nevertheless.  Dessert of creme brule provided a smooth finish.  Too much food for lunch but we promised ourselves (alas not too convincingly) that we'll skip dinner...

Chopped salad with smoked trout

Pan-fried pickerel with summer squash and rice

Creme brulee

Pepper bisque

Smoked ribs with sweet potato frites and cabbage slaw

The dining room
and patio

Eating in Ontario farm country

We spent a day in Ontario's farm country this week, starting with a visit to the St. Jacob's farmers' market - an annual ritual for us.   We arrived just in time for an early lunch at one of the best fish places in the area - Vandijk's Fish truck offering Alaskan pollock in a light crunchy batter at the fantastic price of $6 served on your choice of multigrain or white bun.  This is topped off with the yummiest apple fritter ever - this comment from someone who wouldn't go near a donut.  There is usually a lineup out the door for this treat on weekends.   A weekday visit makes this a more pleasurable experience - you head straight to the cashier, pay your dollar and a freshly made fritter is in your hands!

Fried fish from Vandijk's

Vandijk's truck

Apple fritter!

On the way out, as the market neared closing time, we got great deals on cantaloupes (look at the size!), big juicy peaches, and leeks, cherry tomatoes and potatoes.  

We next headed to Stratford for the afternoon performance of 42nd Street followed by a leisurely dinner at a new restaurant at the Mercer Hall Inn in the old location of the former Tango restaurant.  It was a complete makeover - all tastefully done, in more ways than one - and best of all, the focus is local.

Reminded of the California ban on foie gras, we decided to "indulge" as the menu suggested on the foie gras appetizer.  You can see how puny each of the 2oz servings were - they looked like sides with the ample serving of crustini.  My rating - serving too small to provide meaningful "indulging" - although it was uniquely good, as only foie gras can be!  What was actually a better deal were the seared scallops - done to perfection.  The seared duck on pulled duck and rice was excellent.  The schnitzel, a bow to Mennonite farm country, was an unexpected delight - two pieces of thin moist pork in light batter served with a warm potato and bacon salad with fennel and green apple slaw.  It was one of the best schnitzel we've had, certainly comparable or even better than the ones we tried in Berlin, if only because it was a more delicate serving size and likely local.  It was a wholly satisfying day for the palate!

Diinner?!

Foie Gras (on the side!)

Seared scallops

Seared duck and pulled duck confit with wild and red rice

Local pork schnitzel

Can't go wrong with chocolate ganache finish

Table Service at home

How hard is it to do table service for twelve guests at home?!  No mean task!  I was one of the lucky guests at a recent dinner and couldn't not talk about this fabulous treat.  And may be you can get some ideas for a simple but elegant menu that is easy to serve, timing of preparation suitably staggered to allow you time to enjoy the dinner yourself.

It was a special dinner celebrating the 45th anniversary of a group of people's arrival in Canada - certainly significant, definitely worth the effort, but still a lot of work for the hosts.  But through careful planning, smart organization and detailed preparation, our hosts achieved a seamless service without imprisoning themselves in the kitchen.  They were actually able to sit down and eat with us!

The guests all felt pampered.  Buffet style had been the norm for the last 45 years as families grew - and shrank.   Empty nests provided an opportunity for a more civilized way of eating.  Civilized, that is, for the guests...

Perfectly grilled scallops and jumbo tiger shrimp on a bed of chives

The popular tomato, avocado, basil, hearts of palm salad from an earlier post on this blog - can be made hours ahead

Our hostess spent two hours making the pasta sauce, sieving basil and garlic so it came out smooth and flavourful for our palates.  If you don't have two hours, maybe you can use ready-made pesto.

meanwhile the rack of lamb and quail sizzled on the BBQ - smashing when matched with an oaky cabernet sauvignon from Elderton

finishing with a melt in your mouth lemon panna cotta (made ahead and refrigerated) perfectly paired with a smooth Amarone 

and more desserts as we relax with Oolong tea:  contributions from the guests - 
rich tiramasu beside dark chocolate dipped strawberry

Finally,  this huge fruit contribution was passed around - we regressed back to helping ourselves - the only way to go when you've had too much...