Happy Thanksgiving

I hope you have/had a wonderful Thanksgiving full of laughter, family, friends, football and great food!

Birthday Dinners

I am extremely lucky that I have such incredible friends. My two long-time best friends, the Blonde and the Redhead took me to dinner at The Milton Inn, which was spectacular. My two neighbourhood best friends Cat & Dog, made dinner for me last night. They're both chefs, so I knew this would be a real treat.

Here's the menu:

Aged Cheddar and Onion Marmalade Crostini

Gonzo Boneless Short Ribs (Made with Gonzo Imperial Porter by Flying Dog Brewery) with Roasted Onions and Red Peppers

Goat Cheese Herbed Polenta

Braised Brussel Sprouts and Baby Carrots

Poached Pears, Cardamom Spiced Cake, Zinfandel Consumme and Caramel Creme

To say it was fantastic would be an understatement. It was just such fun to watch Dog put together the first part of the meal and then to watch Cat assemble the second part. They were gracious enough to let me take step-by-step photographs of them working.

• Whipping the cream Painting the plates with the caramel and the wine reduction
  Plating the cake
  Poached Pears
  Quenelles of Caramel Creme The End.
  
  

Thanks Cat and John, and Blonde and Redhead! You all are the very best!

Market Report - November 9

It was a beautiful morning at the market, a little chill in the air, and the sky was just as clear as a bell. There's a definite decline in the level of the produce at the market, with root vegetables and apples and pears predominating. Kitchenography and I were joined by our friend Strawberries in Paris, whose blog you should check out.

One of the things we all noticed was the size of the cauliflower and the kholrabi, which were all as big as your head! There were also fresh brussels sprouts, still on the stem. They're not my favourites, but they sure are interesteing looking.

See you next week!

Market Report from London

Fulham, the neighbourhood where I stayed in London, had its own daily street market filled with fresh fruits and vegetables, as well as some house-hold goods. All of the produce was in bowls and you just pointed to the bowl you wanted and they bagged it and weighed it for you.I loved the fact that the old barrows that they used to carry the goods looked like they could have been around for more than 100 years.

Some of the produce was similar to what we have here, but there were things that I couldn't identify. Because of the Afro-Carib mix in the neighbourhood, there were plantains and coconuts, as well as habanero peppers and local apples and pomagranates. Next to the coconuts, there was something that I couldn't identify at all. Although they look like they might be sea-based, I think that they're plant-based. Any hints?