Last Monday, Ron Eade (Food Editor for the Ottawa Citizen) blogged, "Anyone can make ricotta cheese." He's right. It is relatively straight forward to fashion your own ricotta for such applications as lasagna, pizza, and cheese cake.

Here is our interpretation of a citrus ricotta cheese cake, one of Master Chef Gordon Ramsay's recipes. When we made it, we decided to make the filling from first principles. Next time, we may even bake up the graham crackers for the crust.

For the ricotta, we used a mixture of 8:1 (by volume (cups)) 2% milk: 10% cream.

8 cups of milk and 1 cup of cream
And yes, we in Ontario regularly purchase large volumes of milk in plastic bags. We have milk pitchers to dispense the milk that conform to the bags. I had not thought it odd until a certain YouTube video about bagged milk went viral.

To curdle the dairy, we slowly brought the milk and cream to a rolling boil in a pot over medium heat, stirring to keep it from scorching. Then we took the pot off the heat and added 3 tbsp of freshly squeezed and strained lemon juice with a 1/2 tsp of salt.

Boiled milk and lemon juice

Reducing the heat to low, we placed the pot back on to heat and simmered it until the mixture curdled. This took approximately 5 minutes.

Curdled Milk

We then carefully poured the mixture through a cheese cloth lined wire strainer, catching the curds and discarding the whey. The resultant ricotta was very milky and delicate.

Straining the Curds
To cool and drain, we left the ricotta in the cheese cloth lined strainer above a bowl for an hour in the fridge.

While the ricotta continued to drain and cool, we made a crumb crust, borrowed from an America's Test Kitchen "Light New York Cheese Cake" recipe. First, we preheated an oven to 325F. Then, we blitzed 5 oz of graham crackers in a food processor with a 1/2 stick of melted butter and 1 tbsp of sugar. This mixture was pressed into a parchment lined round baking tin and baked for 12 minutes. When coloured, we let it sit for 5 minutes and placed it in the fridge.

Crumb Crust, baked and cooling

While the crust cooled, we lowered the oven temperature to 300F. We measured out a lb of freshly made ricotta and placed it in the bowl of a food processor. To this, we added 8 oz of marscapone, 1/2 cup of sugar, 1 tbsp of corn starch, 3 eggs, the zest of one orange, and 1/2 tsp of Cinnamon. The mixture was then homogenized in pulses.

Mixture, homogenized

Finally, it was carefully poured into the pan with the blind-baked crumb crust and baked until the sides set and the center and the middle was still wobbly. This took approximately 35 minutes.

Mixture

Cheesecake Ready for Baking
In hindsight, I think we should have used a water bath to protect against cracking. Thankfully, we were lucky. We left the pizza stone, pictured above, in the oven to ensure even baking, but pulled it when the cheese cake began to set.

At this point, we left the cheese cake to cool in the oven, but turned off the heat. The residual heat continued to set the cheesecake without over cooking it.

Then, we covered cheesecake with plastic wrap and refrigerated it overnight.

To serve, I made a raspberry coulis by cooking and straining a pint of raspberries with a 1/2 cup of water, 1/2 cup of sugar, and lemon juice to taste. While I recommend using freshly picked black raspberries like the following, any will do.

Freshly picked black raspberries

Raspberries gently washed
In fact, the raspberry coulis I served with the cheese cake was made with farmers' market raspberries.

Cheesecake with Raspberry Coulis

To serve, we inverted the cheese cake onto one plate.

Cheese Cake Inverted
Then, we removed the parchment liner and righted the cake on the serving dish

Righted on the Serving Dish


Slice

Serve

The cheese cake was rich and dense. I made the coulis extra tart by decreasing the sugar normally required to cook the raspberries and adding a little more lemon juice. It provided a fruity counter point to cut the richness.

The original recipe called for grand marnier, but, while I am wary to contradict Chef Ramsay, I dislike using raw alcohol in a cheese cake because, in my limited experience, there isn't enough bake time to cook out the raw alcohol flavour. If you want to use grand marnier, either flame it or simmer gently for several minutes and cool first.

To my friend Falk (@isfalk), the original recipe also called for quark as opposed to marscapone. Next time, I will use quark!

On March 11, 2010, local entrepreneur Dr. David Nadeau launched InfoGlutton to meet the growing need of managing a restaurant's online reputation.

InfoGlutton

InfoGlutton on Ottawa's Atelier Restaurant
According to its press release, its website (and blog), and an abstract of a key note Dr. Nadeau delivered at the NRC (National Research Council), InfoGlutton is an online service (monthly subscriptions) that lowers the complexity of determining what people are saying about a restaurant, be it positive, neutral, or negative. It provides a point in time determination of what is expressed by people on restaurant review websites and various forums. This determination can be used to adjust a restaurant's online presence to be more effective and contain malicious comments.

According to an interview by Ottawa Start, which provided the inspiration for the following five question interview, InfoGlutton leverages reviews and comments from 10best.com, chow.com, dine.com, dinehere.ca, dingdining.com, fodors.com, foodpages.ca,happycow.com, hihenry.com, hungrytable.com, lonelyplanet.com, menuism.com, opentable.com, ottawafoodies.com, praized.com, restaurantica.com, restaurantsource.ca, restaurantthing.com, reviewblue.com, specialstoday.ca, townrenowned.com, tripadvisor.com, trustedopinion.com, urbanspoon.com, yahoo.com, and yelp.ca for its Ottawa restaurant offering.

Graciously, Dr. Nadeau answered some of our questions by e-mail:
1. In 5 seconds or less, how was InfoGlutton conceived?

InfoGlutton was conceived keeping in mind our goal is to help restaurateurs keep up with democratization of food critiquing.

2. What sources of information does InfoGlutton use? I notice the majority of quoted comments seem to be taken from forums. Does InfoGlutton look through food blogs as well? FaceBook?

We started with the monitoring of restaurant directories/forums because the volume of reviews is high and these sources systematically top Google results (very high visibility). We monitor awards through our site dingdining.com, we are testing Twitter/Facebook integration with some restaurants right now, and we'll add food blogs soon!

3. How do you feel social media has changed the restaurant industry?

Social media makes our influence network larger and very talkative. People are more and more likely to choose a restaurant based on their personal network word-of-mouth rather than a TV ad, newspaper column or Yellow Pages directory.

4. It seems more difficult now to determine how people perceive a restaurant. How does InfoGlutton provide a solution? How can restaurants use InfoGlutton to manage online sentiment?

InfoGlutton allows listening, recording and classifying guest feedback. Some actions can then be performed: from removing malicious negative comments to improving visibility of positive messages on search engines.

5. Tell us a little about yourself. What is your favourite food? Where do you like to eat?

A classic at home: buy pizza dough at local pizzeria or fresh market, use tomato paste + water + basil & oregano for sauce, use best cheese money can buy and top with something different each time.

Our friend, entrepreneur (founder of BeTidings), runner, lunch enthusiast, and brunch club member, Treena Grevatt, sent along a little something sweet for Easter.

According to her blog, Treena is also a recovering physicist. You can find her tweeting under the twitter handle @tgrevatt, a highly recommended follow!

And, without further ado:

Thank you to the foodiePrints team for giving me the opportunity to share an Easter treat from my childhood.

I'm a British ex-pat and just this week celebrated ten years as a resident of Canada. In fact, I cannot imagine returning to the UK but there are many things, mostly food related that I occasionally hanker after. My mum does a lovely job of keeping me going with food parcels (special edition Marmite and orange flavour Kit Kats being regulars that make the journey across the Atlantic). Luckily there are a few places in town where I can also get UK supplies including the fabulous Scottish and Irish Store. I'm a terrible foodie snob when it comes to visiting British style pubs and my quest for real chips (not fries) is often fruitless, ah well, usually I find I can seek consolation in a nice pint of real ale.

Another area where I notice differences is in baked goods and seasonal cakes/candies. It's rare to find traditional UK- style Victoria Sandwich cakes, Bakewell tarts and jam doughnuts - although I finally found them at the Richmond Bakery, hurrah! I've had to learn that what I call flapjacks are totally different to Canadian ones, and that UK pudding is also different to what it is over here. And don't even get me started on the learning curve that was buying milk and cream products!

I'd like to share a super simple recipe that's fits with the season, and is perfect to let kids help in the preparation of. There are many variations available on the web and I started from a recipe in the utterly adorable Nigella Lawson's "How to be a Domestic Goddess" cookbook (yes, I have a girl crush on her, who doesn't?). Here's my version of Easter Nests.

1 box (225g) of semi-sweet cooking chocolate
1 bar (140g) of Cadbury's Dairy Milk (UK version, sent by my Mum! I suppose in a pinch that non-UK chocolate will do ;-) try a blind taste test of UK vs Canadian Dairy Milk if you don't believe there is a difference)
2/3 stick of butter
6 biscuits of Muffets (shredded wheat)
Small bag of Cadbury Mini Eggs (these are the perfect size, the leftovers aren't bad either!)
Cup cake cases
(Makes 12 small cupcake sized nests)

Break the chocolate into pieces, add the butter and melt in a bowl above simmering water (or microwave to melt). Stir regularly and if the melted chocolate mixture seems to stiffen too much add a little more butter as required.

Chocolate and Butter in a Double Boiler
Meanwhile, in a separate bowl, crumble the shredded wheat biscuits - this a fun job for children.

Once the chocolate is melted, stir in the crumbled shredded wheat and stir thoroughly so that all of the pieces are chocolate covered. This is the time consuming part, it seems like it'll never be possible to coat all the pieces, but bear with it.

Then spoon the chocolate mixture into cupcake cases, making a small depression in the middle of each. Allow to cool, or refrigerate for an hour or two. Once cool, garnish each nest with three, or so, of the mini eggs. Enjoy!

Done!
ps. apparently shredded wheat is awesomely healthy, no added salt or suger, good thing really as the nests are a super-chocolately indulgence.

Particulars:
Scottish and Irish Store
194 Robertson Rd., Ottawa
(613)829-2251
or
1713 St. Laurent Blvd. (at Innes Rd.), Ottawa
(613)739-3393

Richmond Bakery
6127 Perth Street, Richmond
(613) 838-2234

Earlier this March, we posted a writup on Ottawa Tonite on the subject of Montreal-style bagels from two Ottawa bagelries. While, we have visited the Continental Bagel Company in the Byward Market (55 Byward Market Square), this post involved bagels from the Ottawa Bagel Shop (1321 Wellington Street) and one of the Kettleman's (2177 Carling Avenue)

Clash of Ottawa's Montreal-Style Bagel Titans

The last time I asked Ottawa tweeps where they source their favourite bagels, there was some contention between former Montreal residents. While they agreed Ottawa-baked bagels don't compare to authentic Montreal-baked bagels, they fiercely defended their favourites of the two venerable Montreal Bagelries: St-Viateur and Fairmount. I half expected the Ottawa Tonite site to be inundated with debate.

As luck would have it, I asked an office colleague named Claire, a Montrealer, what bagelry she prefers. Without hesitation, she said Fairmount and neither St-Viateur nor anything Ottawa produces compares. The next day, she dropped by my cubicle and gave me her last Fairmount bagel, freshly defrosted and less than a week old. I had to try it!

With gratitude, I brought it home and followed her careful instructions to toast it before eating.

An Authentic Fairmount Poppy Seed Bagel

Split to Show Texture

Gently Toasted in a Toaster

Cut Up for Sampling
Hot from the toaster, we sampled our first authentic Montreal-style bagel; me, with a little full fat cream cheese; she, with a little jam. Toasting the bagel made the honey-soaked crust crisp again and re-toasted the poppy seeds, giving every bite a slight sweetness and nuttiness. It was great.

I have a feeling I will catch some flack for this, but I think the Fairmount bagel we sampled showcased the best of the textural aspects that separate Ottawa Bagel Shop's bagels from Kettleman's. Fairmount's was chewy (with substance), but yielding to each bite.

Now, I really want to try St-Viateur's bagels, given 1) the Ottawa Bagel Shop is affiliated with them and 2) Fairmount was originally founded by the son of a former owner of St-Viateur.

Speaking of other city's bagels, the same day Jenn and I tasted our first authentic bagel, we had on-hand sesame and poppy seed bagel boards from Toronto's The Bagel House (1722 Avenue Road or 1548 Bayview Avenue)

Box of Bagel Boards

Sesame and Poppy Seed Bagel Boards

Closeup of the Sesame Bagel Board
They were provided by Vicky (@momwhoruns), blogger for the Urban Mom's blog, foodie, and friend.

The bagel boards epitomize crunchiness. One side is loaded with seeds. The other is seasoned generously with salt. They seem the product of rolling bagel dough out thin and baking it crisp. I found them addictive.

Many thanks to Vicki for the boards and the recommendation to try the lemon roasted pistachios from the Shiraz Grocery Store (607 Somerset Street West) in Ottawa's Chinatown.

Aside:
At Shiraz, we found intensely sweet and complex flavoured "premium dates" (the box below was gifted to us by Paola (@cestboncooking)) and a new taste in pistachios.

Dates and Lemon Roasted Pistachios

Just the Pistachios
The pistachios didn't last long in my hands. I am very fond of shell roasted nuts. According to the cashier at Shiraz, the nuts are roasted in-house.

Particulars:
Fairmount Bagel Bakery Inc
74 avenue Fairmount Ouest, Montreal
(514)272-0667

The Bagel House
1722 Avenue Road, North York
(416)781-0032
or
1548 Bayview Avenue, Toronto
(416)481-8184

Shiraz Grocery Store
607 Somerset Street West, Ottawa
(613)563-1207

Wow, foodiePrints received an award and from an esteemed fellow food blogger Bonita (@boneats) of Bon Eats. We are big fans of Bonita's blog posts and tweets over here. An accomplished baker (with a growing reputation amongst Toronto food enthusiasts) she makes even a simple salad a wonder for a foodie's imagination. She is a force to be reckoned with and yet the sweetest person to chat with over lunch.

Like many bloggers' awards, this one comes with rules and encourages bloggers to get to know one another.

1. You must thank the person who has given you the award.
2. Copy the award logo and place it on your blog.
3. Link the person who has nominated you for the award.
4. Name 7 things about yourself that people might find interesting.
5. Nominate 7 other Kreativ Bloggers.
6. Post links to the 7 blogs you nominate.
7. Leave a comment on each of the blogs to let them know they have been nominated.

Since foodiePrints has two people behind it, me and my editor, Jenn, let's make this interesting. I will list 3 thinks I think people may find interesting about Jenn. Jenn will list 3 things she thinks people may find interesting about me. And, we will include something people may find interesting about us.

Don (Jenn, please fill this out and please be kind!)
1. Don misses the original He-Man and Transformers. In fact, he loves just about any cartoon from the 80s.
2. The first dish Don learned to cook was a baked custard.
3. Don secretly enjoys our home with Hello Kitty in every corner. It went from a bachelor pad to being really pink, flowery, and Hello Kitty. [I do NOT!]

Jenn
1. While Jenn is a teacher, you will be surprised by what she teaches. Her intermediate/senior (grades 7 to 12) teachables are history and geography. She has certifications in special education (Spec.Ed.) and to teach junior grades (grades 4 to 6). Yet, she teaches advanced math concepts and problem solving to first and second graders at the Ottawa branch of Spirit of Math Schools. Her students, some only 6 years old, learn to reason their way through word problems without the use of algebra.

2. Like Bonita, Jenn plays the piano. She made her way through the Royal Conservatory of Music, stopping after sitting for her Grade 8 piano exam.

3. Jenn and her youngest sister are big fans of Sanrio's Hello Kitty. When guests sit in our dining room, they have but to turn their heads to see 4 occurrences of Hello Kitty from mugs to key chain plushes, a toaster, and a back rest.

Us

• Jenn and I fight over the kitchen. She, a talented cook. Me, wanting to play with the pots and pans.

Here are 7 bloggers we nominate for the Kreativ Blogger award (listed alphabetically)
1. Best Tools for Schools Blog
Best Tools for Schools is an enterprise created by two moms, Candace Derickx (@seemummyjuggle) and Laurie St-Julien (@lauriestj). Theirs is a service for parents to source all their children's school supplies for a given year without having to set foot in a store. They have partnered with schools across Ontario to ensure the packages they put together match the lists set out for each grade.

Recently Candace and Laurie expanded their parenting blog on the Best Tools for Schools' website to include posts by several other Ottawa moms. Our favourite, Chef Tracey Black's (@brownbagmom) Lunchtime Solutions blog posts. Even for a seasoned chef, who happens to own and operate a local catering and fine food shop (Epicuria), she has had to learn to be innovative in getting her two young sons to develop an appetite for healthy eating.

2. Cooking School Confidential
Despite the blogger behind Cooking School Confidential remaining anonymous, she has developed quite the following both on Twitter (@cookingstudent) and the blogosphere. Hers is one of few food blogs without images. It chronicles a culinary student's journey as she works her way through culinary school, learning what it means to work the line. While picture-less, her blog posts are rich in imagery from well worked prose, probably owing to the culinary student having had a previous career as a professional writer and journalist. Cooking School Confidential is always an inspiring read.

3. Fried Wontons For You
Fried Wontons For You is one of those food blogs I strongly advise you not check on an empty stomach. Even full, I find wandering the blog incites appetite. Between its in-depth blog posts and magazine quality photos, blogger Shao will have you checking back for updates daily. She was one of the first food bloggers we befriended on Twitter. Fried Wontons For You was one of the first blogs I added to Google Reader.

4. Rachelle Eats Food
Rachelle's food blog is one of three Ottawa food blogs I listed when I was asked my favourites this past Christmas. When I look at food blogs, I look for enthusiasm and tenacity, an eye for food (great photos), time spent playing in the kitchen (cooking), and ethics. Rachelle meets all of these. Best yet, she keeps her blog fresh by consistently turning out timely and fun to read content, many covering Ottawa's ever evolving restaurant scene.

5. She Eats Bears (also: Le piège à ours)
She Eats Bears is a new blog to me, but not to Ottawa's food blog scene with posts dating back to 2008. Its blogger, Marysol, works for the Urban Element. She is one of our local culinary professionals who puts word to blog. Hers contains a myriad of creative recipes. Each is well written up, well photographed, and fun to read. What stuns us is that Marysol maintains a sister mirror-image blog in French, translating her posts.

6. She Simmers
Leela (@shesimmers) is a spectacular food blogger, whose culinary skills betray raw talent. She has no professional training. Yet, she turns out beautiful dishes with residential cooking equipment, each photographed with a wonderful eye for composition. A trained philologist, she is well spoken and fun to chat with. She and Melody (@gourmetfury) of the Gourmet Fury blog operate Beet and Squash, a recipe competition that celebrates a new vegetable ingredient every month. If you want creative, I suggest you take a gander at Leela's calvados fennel confiture and spiced apple mac 'n cheese.

7. Whisk: A Food Blog
Whisk is also one of the three Ottawa food blogs I listed when I was asked my favourites this past Christmas. Like Rachelle's blog above, Shari's (@whisk_food_blog) has all the hallmarks of a great food blog. Her blog posts are also insightful and well researched. They show a passion for cooking that can only come from a true food enthusiast. Best of all, a trained photographer, Shari's photos tend to be breathtaking.

This past Friday, Communications Officer Elylse Ferland posted an interview of foodiePrints' team on Chicken Feeds, "the blog for the Chicken Farmers of Canada."

Food Blogger Profile: foodiePrints
We last met the Chicken Farmers and Ryan Anderson (who invited us to do the interview) at an Ottawa food blogger event at the Urban Element (424 Parkdale Avenue). It featured Ottawa Citizen food editor, Ron Eade.

Ours is Chicken Feeds' third food blogger profile, a seemingly monthly occurrence. The first, blogger (unsweetened.ca and CEOT blog) and author of Cheap Eats Ottawa/Toronto, Alexa Clark (@alexaclark), in January. The second, fellow Ottawa food blogger, Wing King (@lordofthewings) of the Lord of the Wings blog in February.

That said, we are very honoured to be profiled with such great food bloggers. We frequent the Lord of the Wings blog and I carry the most recent edition of Cheap Eats Ottawa with me in my knapsack.

Thanks to Anderson and Ferland for choosing to include us.

Our transcript of the interview follows after the jump.

Particulars:
Urban Element
424 Parkdale Avenue
(613 722-0885

More after the jump...

Several weeks ago, Eleanor Hoh (@wokstar) started sending good #ff tweets to a number of her followers she feels are fanatic about pho. A #ff is a weekly ritual whereby you highlight, via a hashtag, tweeps you recommend others follow. foodiePrints' twitter account (@foodieprints) was one of the tweeps she included.

As the Apartment 613 blog recently confirmed, we at foodiePrints are rather pho obsessed. Practical, low cost, and satisfying, Ottawa is blessed with a large number of Pho houses. We have eaten so many fine bowls of pho we have actually developed a list of characteristics to look for.

So, it was with great pleasure I accepted Eleanor's challenge to join a number of food bloggers, make a bowl of pho, and mass post an entry into the food community of the blogosphere by March 20, 2010. Do check Eleanor's blog, Be a Work Star, for a list of blog posts.

For our contribution, we decided to attempt a lamb pho. However, we borrowed aspects from French cookery to make it: salting (curing) and searing the meat before simmering. What resulted, while borrowing aspects of the traditional pho flavour profile, was not pho. Why? The broth did not taste as clean as a pho broth should. The broth was not clear. And, the broth was overly rich, carrying too much lamb flavour.

A Bowl of Lamb Faux Pho

Overly Rich Broth
However, it was a good bowl of noodle soup.

Here's how we made it.

Broth:
We took approximately 1.5 kg (3 lb) of lamb bones with a good deal of meat on them.

Lamb Bones
We seasoned them with kosher salt and placed them on a rack set in a plastic tray. Then, we placed the tray in the fridge, covering it with plastic wrap, for 2 hours.

Lamb Curing
The idea was to draw out liquid and concentrate flavour.

To flavour the broth, we took two small onions, halved them, and impaled each half with 5-6 whole cloves. We placed each half into a slow cooker and added a tbsp of black peppercorns, a dash of kosher salt, an inch of ginger (sliced), and the peeled and separated cloves of one head of garlic.

Gathering Flavourants

After 2 hours curing, we dried the lamb pieces and seared them in a well oiled metal bottomed pan, set to medium heat on a stovetop (2 minutes/side).

Lamb Searing

Lamb Seared
With so many pieces of lamb, we worked in batches. Every time we finished with a batch, we de-glazed the pan with a splash or two of water, scraping the fond, and added the liquid to the slow cooker.

Most Asian soups (broths or stock) are characteristically flavourful, but clean in taste and visually clear. This is usually accomplished by pre-simmering soup bones and/or meat for thirty minutes to an hour, dumping out the cooking liquid, and rising everything. I have always been told this "cooked out impurities." Impurities or no, the process largely eliminates the scum (protein foam, blood, and marrow) that floats to the top of a simmering broth or stock. Left in, the scum tends to cloud a soup. This is why culinary students are taught how to "clarify" broths or stocks with an egg whites. Post-simmering, a broth or stock can also be clarified with agar agar and a centrifuge, but I digress.

For this batch of broth, we filled the slow cooker pot to just above the bones and brought everything to a boil on high, boiling it for 5 minutes.

To be Broth being Brought up to a Boil
Afterward, we let the mixture cool to barely simmering and simmered the mixture on low for 3 hours. During the first hour, I checked the broth every 20 minutes to skim off the scum.

We then placed the entire pot into the fridge so the fat can setup on top and be lifted off. After straining and re-heating, we produced a rich broth that tasted very strongly of lamb. In the background were the typical pho broth flavours.

Done
To finish it, we diluted the broth with water and seasoned it with fish sauce to taste.

Faux Pho:
To serve, we plated bowls with fresh pho rice noodles, "as fresh as we could find" bean sprouts, cilantro leaves, lime juice, and soup beef balls (from frozen).

Clockwise from Left: bean sprouts, noodles, cilantro

Fresh as we Could find Bean Sprouts
If you have ever ordered beef balls with your pho in a decent pho noodle house, you were most likely served heavily processed beef, shaped into balls, that had a strangely chewy texture. These beef balls are sold in many Asian markets in the frozen section.

Soup Beef Balls
While we went with the frozen option, I have made soup beef balls from scratch before with very finely food processor processed beef, chestnut powder, rice starch, and a little baking soda.

If you come across comments condemning pho noodle houses for serving "artificial beef" with their pho. The soup beef balls are likely what they felt was off-putting.

Here is our accompaniment plate:

Accompaniment Plate

More after the jump...

With spring just a day away, Ottawa has seen some beautiful and unusual weather the past few days. Can you recall a March in which there was hardly any snow left on the ground? Or, how about days of endless sunshine? Nope, I didn't think so!

With the majority of elementary and high school students enjoying their March Break, I have seen many of them walking around Hintonburg and Wellington West Village in their spring/summery clothing. Many of them were just coming out of the bakeries with cookies and sweets in their hands while others had ice cream and popsicles. I myself have been walking around Wellington West Village in my bright red shorts and my Canada Olympic t-shirt during the afternoons (started running again) and dreaming of a delicious cold bubble tea. With such warm and gorgeous weather, I am eager for spring to come.

I love a good cold snowy Canadian winter, but there is just something about spring that makes me very excited. The days are longer and warmer and waiting at the bus stop for a bus seems less of a chore. Or perhaps it is the knowledge that spring means that the public will soon be able to purchase and taste locally grown fruits and vegetables.

Growing up in the suburbs, spring meant it was time for my parents to buy bags of top soil and for them to decide what crops and plants they wanted in their garden. My favourite childhood memory of spring were trips my family and I made to the ByWard Market on Saturday afternoons. There, my parents would take us from vendor to vendor, examining lots of beefsteak tomato and zucchini plants. Over the years, my parents added chives, strawberries, green onions, green beans, winter melon, fuzzy squash, bitter melon, potatoes, and more to our backyard garden. With so many varieties of vegetables, both Asian and non-Asian, I had my own farmer's market at my disposal.

I understand now that years of watching crops and plants grow from little seedlings to luscious foods have contributed to my love of cooking. Watching my parents nurture their garden has made me appreciate all the hard work that goes into growing one's own food. Although Don and I live in a building, I will be celebrating spring by planting my own garden of herbs and tomatoes on our balcony. And, I will be one of the first people in line at the farmers' markets once asparagus is available! I can't wait for the full arrival of spring!

And so foodiePrints readers, that is my spring story. Now it is your turn. What are your favourite childhood memories of spring? How do you celebrate the new season? And, what are your favourite spring foods?

Right now, I should be working on a draft for a lamb pho recipe to submit to Eleanor Hoh (@wokstar) of the Be a Wok Star blog to participate in a "#Pho buddies" food blog event this Sunday. However, I came across a Globe and Mail opinion editorial (op-ed) piece by journalist Margaret Wente that seems rather poorly informed, "Why are bloggers male?"

Why are bloggers male?
Source: Globe and Mail

Shortly after the Globe and Mail twitter account (@globeandmail) tweeted it, it enraged many on Twitter. Several, thanks to Ottawa's Joe Boughner (@joeboughner), have responded by listing favourite female bloggers and their corresponding blogs under the #xxbloggers hash tag.

In her op-ed piece, Wente made the following generalizations, among others,

1. blogging is "more of a guy thing"
2. the blogoshpere is male dominant
3. women are not interested in "spitting out an opinion on current events every 20 minutes"
4. girls don't have "male answer syndrome" so in school (particularly math class), they don't "shoot up their hands first"
5. women are not interested in "mental jousting"

I am not sure what to think about her piece or its intention.

Please note I have played devil's advocate before with some more than likely intentionally inflammatory words blogged by author and chef, Michael Ruhlman. Be it his "don't write if you can help it" or "foodies don't cook", I believe he is goading people to write better and to learn how to cook, respectively. Both benefit him (his latest book is about breaking free of recipes) and the food community.

Conversely, Wente does not seem to be intentionally inflammatory. What benefit would a member of traditional media have to encourage more women into the blososphere where there are already many established and respected female bloggers; encourage bloggers to blog less frequently or with more breadth when blogging is already seen as a less "immediate" vehicle for expression; or encourage women to develop aggressive or impulsive behaviour in online communities where it is already difficult to cultivate trust? So, why highlight a gender inequality issue where there may not be one?

Let us define what a blog is. According to the online Merriam-Webster dictionary

a blog is a website that contains an online personal journal with reflections, comments, and often hyperlinks provided by the writer.

Source: Merriam-Webster Online

Accordingly, the word was added in 1999. Today, blogging has arguably expanded to include other media besides text (still the predominant form). There are video blogs (vlogs). There are photo blogs (photoblogs). There are audio blogs (podcasting). With the advent of Twitter and Facebook, there is also micro-blogging. Though, I feel it somewhat violates the definition as micro-blogging is conversational in nature, more transient, very lacking in context, and rather difficult to reference.

That said, Wente claims there are few to no women operating websites that contain commentary, reflections, or the like. I beg to differ. In Ottawa alone, we have 60 food blogs at last count. Of these, I know of only 5 male food bloggers and two couple bloggers. Need I even point to mommy bloggers, some of whom double as food bloggers? Actually, there are enough dedicated mommy bloggers Mashable even has a Top 10 list of misconceptions about them. And, as fellow Ottawa food blogger Leslie (@defnotmartha) of the Definitely Not Martha blog pointed out, there is an online community for female bloggers called BlogHer. It holds an enormous annual convention.

At this juncture, I cannot come up with a way to positively interpret Wente's piece. Then again, foodiePrints is just a food blog. I am just a guy. I must suffer from "male answer syndrome." So, I must be responding impulsively to encourage discord.

In light of these deficiencies, I may have to tell my better half the posts she writes for foodiePrints isn't blogging.

Perhaps Wente would prefer we invent a new term. If b-logging is for boys, would she prefer g-logging for girls?

Update: As per Kelly Rusk's (@krusk) recommendation, I just pulled the Globe and Mail links, including the one to their twitter account. Rusk, a great blogger in her own right, explains why I could find neither rhyme nor reason to Wente's piece. The Globe and Mail is link baiting. They are purposely trying to outrage people, inciting them to blog, tweet, and include links to their site.

Imagine my surprise when I came across a tweet by fellow Ottawa food blogger Jodi (@simplyfresh) of the Simply Fresh blog that read something like this:

@SimplyFresh (Mar 17, 03:19 PM)
@FoodiePrints @RonEade - great article on @apartment613 about you!

Honestly, my response was to retype the Twitter url. I thought the web UI had somehow corrupted itself, adding foodiePrints' handle to the tweet.

@apartment613 is the twitter handle for Apartment 613, a popular multi-faceted community blog that aims to showcase the more creative side of Canada's capital, Ottawa. It gives some much needed attention to our thriving music, art, theater, and food scenes. I follow the blog via their RSS-feed and Google reader, enjoying their coverage of local events, especially their photos of live indie bands. Many photos are taken by in-house photographer Ming Wu (@ming_wu).

Sometime this afternoon, Apartment 613 blogger/editor Ryan Saxby Hill (@saxby) posted an entry, listing a handful of local food bloggers. After all, somewhat restaurant-rich and with multiple culinary schools nearby, Ottawa should be a food obsessed city.

foodiePrints on the Apartment613 blog
Source: Apartment 613 Blog

Besides us, Saxby's piece includes Ron Eade (@roneade and Ottawa Citizen Food Editor), Shari Goodman (@whisk_food_blog) (one of my favourite food bloggers), and Dominic Maggiolo (a freelancer who writes for Apartment 613). Also mentioned is the Ottawa Foodies forum, which is operated by Mark Warburton (@warby).

Suffice it to say, the post made my St. Patrick's Day. We are honoured to be listed with the likes of Eade's Omnivore's Ottawa and Goodman's Whisk: A Food Blog.

And yes, my team (Jenn) and I are pho obsessed. Another pho piece will be forthcoming shortly. This one is a recipe.

At the end of February, Carol Paschal organized another outing for the Hintonburg Supper Club, this time at the Viva Loca Cafe (1233 Wellington Street W.), located inside the Great Canadian Theatre Company (GCTC). In the months since Viva Loca opened its second location, Don and I have only eaten there once, ordering their delicious oat and whole-wheat pancakes from their weekend brunch menu for takeout. Made to order, they were light and fluffy. When we received the email for February's event, we became excited to try their dinner menu.

In addition to their regular lunch and dinner menu of panini grilled sandwiches, gluten-free wraps, savory crepes, chili, soup, and salads, Viva Loca offered supper club members a table d'hote menu ($17.95). For starters, they offered the soup of the day or a mixed green salad. For the entree, there were three options.

1. Hearty chunky chicken stew loaded with fresh vegetables and served with artisan bread.
2. Roasted vegetable lasagna layered with fresh pasta and cheese and served with artisan bread.
3. Ham and fresh asparagus buckwheat crepe with cheese sauce.

Dessert was a selection of home made treats, date squares, apple & plum crisp, cookies (including a gluten-free option) and carrot cake, along with coffee or tea. Don and I decided to order from the table d'hote for that evening's dinner.

Due to the number of people attending that night's dinner, GCTC closed its doors with a sign to the public, saying it was closed for a private function.


Viva Loca Signage

In the daytime, Viva Loca is a wonderfully bright eatery. The sun streams through its floor to ceiling windows that surround it. Despite the concrete stairs and walls, the dining area is comfortable and the staff, warm and inviting.


Inside Viva Loca

Displays of dessert greeting patrons

Starter – Soup of the Day or Mixed Green Salad

Potato and Leek Soup with Artisan Bread

That chilly evening, Don and I chose the soup of the day to start: a cream of potato and leek soup. Made with a vegetable-based broth, the soup contained thinly sliced leek with large chunks of red potatoes. While I enjoyed eating the large chunks of potato, I was surprised at how the soup was made. I had expected a soup with more body. What we were served that evening was a very thin soup, whose cream finish seemed slightly curdled. The leeks were also slightly overcooked. Despite its loose texture, the soup had great flavour. The accompanying slice of multi-grain artisan bread was delicious. It was nicely toasted, giving off a wonderful scent of toasted caraway seeds in its crust.

Entree – Roasted Vegetable Lasagna layered with fresh pasta and cheese and artisan bread

Roasted Vegetable Lasagna

For his entree, Don chose the roasted vegetable lasagna. It was layered with a generous serving of cheese, fresh vegetables, and marinara sauce. In fact the serving was enormous. Overall, Don told me the vegetarian lasagna met his expectations. He would have preferred the pasta cooked more al dente and the sauce, slightly thicker. Again, the slice of multi-grain artisan bread made a nice accompaniment to the lasagna, perfect to sop up the marinara sauce. The salad was fresh and crisp.

Entree – Hearty Chunky Chicken Stew loaded with Fresh Vegetables and artisan bread

Chunky Chicken Stew

For my entree, I chose the hearty chunky chicken stew. Coming in from the cold and watching people walk by bundled in their winter gear, the stew seemed like the perfect choice to me. When the bowls of chicken stew were served, I heard other supper club members express worry the servings were rather small. However, the serving was just right. It was filling. The stew, chunky and satisfying. Each bowl contained a generous helping of fresh vegetables (carrots, mushrooms, potatoes, onion, and celery) and large chunks of chicken breast. The stew was nicely thick and well-seasoned.

Dessert
For dessert, many supper club members chose either the date square or apple and plum crisp. Few chose the carrot cake.

Don chose the date square.

Date Square

Again, as with everything else served that evening, the serving portion of the square was large. According to him, the square was more square than date. The pastry, crisp but thick. The date filling was sweet, but not cloyingly so.

Never one to turn down an apple crisp, I was excited to try Viva Loca's apple & plum ginger crisp.

Apple & Plum Ginger Crisp

It was my first time tasting apple paired with plum in a dessert. When my plate came, the crisp looked delicious. The fruit filling was quite tasty. Not overly sweet, the plums and apples were thinly sliced, skin on. The streussel topping was very thick, crisp, and sweet. After a few bites, it became obvious there was too much streussel and not enough fruit. The distribution of the ginger was somewhat uneven. With every bite, I could taste ginger, but some bites had large pieces of ginger, while others did not.

In general, the meal was rustic and filling. Don and I were impressed with the sheer variety of dishes, flavours, and textures that were made with seasonal and local ingredients. We plan on returning to try their brunch menu.

Total: $40.57 (after taxes, before tip)

Particulars:
Viva Loca
1233 Wellington Street W.
(613)728-8482

More after the jump...

Originally, the "Elite" Brunch Club was supposed to visit the legendary Von's Bistro (819 Bank Street) in the Glebe, our November event.

Von's
Unfortunately, as we would discover that Sunday (November 29, 2009), many of the more popular eateries that serve Sunday brunch do not take reservations. It is first come, first serve. Besides Von's, this includes Jak's Kitchen (479 Bronson Ave), Benny's Bistro (119 Murray St.), and Stoneface Dolly's (416 Preston Street).

When I discovered Von's did not take reservations, I asked the restaurant over the phone if they could even accommodate our numbers (8 minimum, 10 maximum). A male voice said they could, so long as someone comes early to reserve seats. Brunch club member Izzy (@spoonsie) volunteered. She arrived an hour early to warn the restaurant of our impending arrival. During that hour, Von's owner and a waiter took turns coming up with tentative offers to accommodate us and then seated new arrivals in what would have been our seats. At first, Izzy was told the restaurant could accommodate us. A pair of tables would be made available. Then, two tables in opposite ends of the restaurant could be made available. Then, only one table could be made available. Then, Izzy was told we could sit around the bar. Finally, the restaurant could not accommodate us at all.

As brunch club members began arriving en masse (and on time), we gave up. The waiter actually came out to apologize to us when 8 of us gathered together in front of Von's window to decide what to do. She said we could wait another 15-20 minutes for the original tables we were promised (but could not guarantee) or we could go elsewhere. She pointed out the Arrow and the Loon (99 Fifth Avenue) usually has lots of available seating. They did, so we chose to gather remaining members there.

Now, I understand higher end brunch is only profitable for eateries if turnover is high. Even then, margins are small. Brunch is a way of generating buzz for a restaurant, introducing it to new patrons so they may return for dinner. I understand the kitchen and much of the front of house staff more than likely worked the dinner service the previous Saturday evening. After last call, the remaining patrons leaving, and clean up, it is often early morning Sunday (1:00 to 2:00 am). This leaves a scant handful of hours to sleep before returning to the restaurant to prep for Sunday brunch. As food writer and former chef, Ivy Knight, once described, "Brunch is Hell."

My question, if you notice your dining room is turning over quickly and you prefer to seat smaller groups of patrons, why entertain accommodating a larger party? This is what Jak's would tell us during the following brunch event. That waitress even did her best to get us a pair of tables, letting us reserve one table first. When she realized the brunch rush had started, she told us it was impossible. We paid for our coffee, tipped (enough for one cover), thanked her, and left.

That said, the brunch club still met for November and we had quite a bit of fun. The brunch at the Arrow and the Loon was average, but the company made up for it. This event would be the first Andrew and Biff (@biff_da_bear) joined us!

Biff
Biff is a very busy bear. When he's not working search and rescue on a ski hill, he bakes. He blogs. He tweets. He travels. He takes pictures. And, he writes restaurant reviews. Andrew is his handler.

Regarding the Arrow and the Loon's brunch menu, it serves the usual suspects: pancakes, eggs, ham, sausage, bacon, home fries, french toast, fruit, and combinations thereof.

I ordered a "Tony's Own" Eggs Benedict ($11.99), a restaurant special:

Tony's Own Eggs Benedict - Home Fries View

Tony's Own Eggs Benedict - Eggs View
As per the menu description, my "Tony's Own" came with smoked salmon, spinach, portabello mushroom, and goat cheese. Strangely, after the waiter saw me take pictures of my dish, he insisted on pointing the mushroom (the dark strip across the hollandaise) was mushroom and not bacon. I thanked him and dug in.

The poached eggs were cooked runny. The spinach was not quite wilted. The hollandaise had not split. Everything was served on a slightly soggy piece of toast. While not badly executed, the dish was served lukewarm. The eggs and smoked salmon had just about come to room temperature.

Jenn ordered "The Works" Omelet ($10.99):

The Works Omelet
This particular omelet is called "the works" because it is made with mushroom, onions, peppers, bacon, sausage, and ham.

Jenn found the omelet rather overcooked on the outside and dry throughout. It seemed, to accommodate so many fillings, the omelet was cooked for some time on each side to ensure the center was done. She also found her toast somewhat stale and cold.

My thoughts: the restaurant does not normally accommodate such a large group for brunch. When we arrived we found the pub largely empty. In order for us to be served at the same time, some dishes may have cooled.

Total: $28.22 (after taxes, before tip, and including one coffee)

When it comes to pub-style brunches, Sunday brunch at the Arrow and the Loon would more than likely be better in smaller groups.

We had better at the Lieutenant's Pump (361 Elgin Street), our recommend for middle-of-the-road brunch.

Particulars:
The Arrow and the Loon
99 Fifth Avenue
(613)237-0448

More after the jump...

Over the weekend Julie (@TheMagicFridge) of Ottawa's Magic Fridge personal chef service tweeted a link to a piece by Andrea Aku of the StyleCaster website. Entitled "6 Classic Dishes Everyone Should Know How to Make", the write-up garnered 100235 views and 18 tweets when I last read it.

While I am not entirely happy with her generalization that Chinese food is "greasy", I was interested in what Aku considered basic recipes "a beginner chef should have under their [his or her] belt."

1. Chicken Noodle Soup
2. Meat Lasagna
3. Beef Stew
4. Roast Chicken
5. Chili
6. Chocolate Cake

Aku considers these "classic childhood comfort dishes" everyone should learn how to make.

The list and sentiment is rather timely with British TV Chef Jamie Oliver recently making his TED Prize Wish to educate children about food.

I wish for your help to create a strong, sustainable movement to educate every child about food, inspire families to cook again and empower people everywhere to fight obesity.

Source: Jamie Oliver, TED

If you haven't seen Oliver's impassioned TED presentation, I suggest you do. The video is embedded after the jump.

In his presentation, Oliver recounts several stories from his televised anti-obesity project in Huntington, West Virginia, called Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution. They include setting up a community kitchen "food center" and teaching children "10 meals" that equip them with basic skills to eat healthier.

With Oliver's words reverberating well with me, I decided to scour foodiePrints to see if we had Aku's 6 dishes written up on our food blog. I believe good food blogs are written by food enthusiasts who "play" in the kitchen. These food bloggers develop the physical memory from learning culinary basics. It permits them to better appreciate food, especially more complex dishes. Practicing what I preach, foodiePrints is a both sounding board for our thoughts on food and a cook's journal.

Chicken Noodle Soup

Chicken Pho Broth
While we haven't a post on chicken noodle soup per se, we have one for chicken pho. In it are instructions and a link to a recipe for how to make a chicken pho broth. The technique can easily be extrapolated and flavours modified to make other soups. Click here for that post.

Meat Lasagna

Bolognese Lasagna
Bolognese lasagna is one of the dishes I lavish my attention upon and make for family and friends on special occasions, usually from nearly first principles. Click here for my latest attempt. Click here for a quick and easy version.

Beef Stew

Lamb and Barley Stew
Slow cooking is a necessary skill that opens the door to lesser cuts of meat, new textures, and incredible flavour. In lieu of a beef stew, click here for a Lamb and Barley stew, I made for Guinness' 250th anniversary.

Also, in Asian cuisine, braising lesser cuts of beef produces component proteins for dishes like my better half's crispy chow mein.

Crispy Chow Mein with Yu Choy
Chinese food doesn't have to be greasy. In fact, authentic Chinese food typically isn't.

Roast Chicken

Spatchcocked Chicken
Roasting poultry is a really easy way to serve large numbers of people. There are several ways to roast chicken. I prefer spatch-cocked because the bird lies flat. It cooks more evenly and it cooks much faster. Click here for one of our attempts at spatch-cocked chicken on a grill.

We also oven roast chicken "a la can." Original recipes involved beer cans and grills. Click here for an attempt at "exploding" ginger-ale can chicken.

Chili
While we have several curries on foodiePrints, we never wrote-up a chili. Happily, Rebecca (@bitofmomsense), the mommy blogger behind the "A Little Bit of Momsense" blog, shared her recipe for Crock Pot Chili on the weekend.

bitofmomsense (Mar 07, 10:11 AM)
@foodiePrints @Smart_Spaces a simple but yummy chili http://bit.ly/5JQZsf will be hosting 9 adults, 5 kids. it's a crowd pleaser

She was hosting guests for an Oscar party.

Chocolate Cake

Beetroot Brownies
Because my better half is allergic to chocolate, you will find few chocolate dishes on foodiePrints. You will find several sponge cakes like Japanese Kastella and chiffon cupcakes. Recently, however, I made beetroot chocolate brownies for a recipe competition. Click here for the entry.

I guess I need to get cracking on preparing a traditional chocolate cake and a good bowl of chili for posting...

More after the jump...

Towards the end of February, I attended a Thursday session of Case Study Jam at German restaurant, the Lindenhof, on Preston Street (268) in Ottawa's Little Italy. It would be the second time creator Joe Boughner convened the event. Dubbed "Case Study Jam 2: Jamming Harder", Case Study Jam gathers together "do-ers", people who work in public relations, communications, or information technology, essentially "anyone who gets their hands dirty." According to the event's primer, while there is no featured speaker, several quick oral presentations start the event, leading to break off discussions on "Wins" (success case studies), "Fails" (less-than-successful case studies), and "Works in Progress" (ongoing case studies). The goal is to encourage people to share ideas and allow attendees to leverage lessons learned, all in an informal environment.

That evening's presenters follow:

• Ian Capstick (@iancapstick) of MediaStyle: His presentation on a "fail", involving a bloggers' resource for blog ideas
• Kelly Rusk (@krusk) of MediaMiser: Her presentation on a "fail", involving organizing a Social Media book club
• Bob LeDrew (@bobledrew) of Translucid: His presentation on a significant "win", involving rallying Ottawa via social media to help the Cornerstone women's shelter

Because the event was held at the Lindenhof, Boughner encouraged attendees to come early to enjoy "a schnitzel or a bratwurst" before the presenters spoke.

Having read several past tweets from local tweeps about their enjoying great dinners at the restaurant, both when it was previously on Carling and at its new location on Preston, I arrived early to sample some German fare. I however polled some trustworthy sources beforehand. One of the project managers I work with is of German decent. He told me the Lindenhof can be a little unpredictable, he having been served both great and forgettable plates. Never regrettable, he warned me to expect large servings. A friend told me there are better German restaurants in Ottawa.

The event was held in the second floor dining room of the restaurant. The Lindenhof, itself, looked like a converted two story house. With hardwood floors, yellow painted walls, and dark wood accents, the atmosphere matched the generous home-style dishes we were served.

Second Floor Bar
Even the bar looked warm and welcoming.

Off the menu, I ordered the sauerbraten in lieu of either schnitzel or bratwurst. A former colleague of mine once asked me if I had come across the vinegar marinated beef dish in my local restaurant adventures.

Lindenhof Menu

Entrees
Described as "cured and marinated roast beef, served with a tender potato dumpling and sauteed vegetables", I wasn't about to pass up the opportunity. I did take note of the schnitzel though...

Schnitzel
Boughner recommended the combined bratwurst and schnitzel plate. His German beer recommend: Warsteiner Dunkel.

Warsteiner Dunkel

Every entree is accompanied with either salad or soup.

That evening's Salad

That evening's Soup
Ian ordered the salad and graciously let me take a picture of it. I ordered the soup. Thin brothed, peppery, and slightly over seasoned, the vegetable soup tasted of tomato and was forgettable.

My sauerbraten plate was indeed generous.

Sauerbraten
The sliced beef bordered on tough, but was manageable with the savory jus-based gravy. The potato dumpling is the largest I have ever come across. When it arrived, I thought it was a scoop of mashed potato. Expecting something yielding, my fork cut into a tender dumpling that paired well with the sliced beef. The vegetables tasted steamed and finished in butter. They were fork tender. The entire plate was rustic and filling.

Arriving at the restaurant ravenous, my dinner quickly filled the gap, allowing me to enjoy the following presentations.

Total: $25.43 (including a Coke ($2.50), a coffee, and taxes).

I would later speak with Bob LeDrew about encouraging members of Ottawa's foodie and food blog community (over 50 blogs strong) to come together and help him hold another dinner for the Cornerstone women's shelter. His idea: a chili or stew dinner. My thoughts: Ottawa has a vibrant foodie community with food enthusiasts who defy author Michael Ruhlman's thoughts that foodies don't cook. Jenn later suggested to include a canned food drive for the Food Bank as well. More on this later.

Many thanks to the Lindenhof for hosting Case Study Jam. Many thanks to Joe Boughner, the presenters, and the attendees for some insightful discussion. I am excited to attend the next one.

More after the jump...

A sure sign you're Canadian is the uplifting feeling you get when the snowbanks melt away to reveal bare sidewalks again. You then throw off your heavy winter-wear. You don thick hoodies and vests and exclaim spring has arrived. The temperature, only 4C.

Greeted by sunlight this morning, Jenn and I wandered downtown to enjoy the newly warm weather; me, thick hoodied and she, vested. There, we decided try our luck at breakfast at the original SconeWitch (388 Albert Street). It is one of those eateries, we hear volumes about, but never found the time to try. Friends recently told us, the original was such a success another opened in the Beechwood area.

Unfortunately, it was not to be. When we arrived, we found the restaurant's 25 or so seats were already taken. The scent of butter pastry filled the air. And, it was uncomfortably humid inside. In fact, condensation clouded the front window, giving patrons a little privacy and a complementary moisture treatment. We ended up picking up an Eggwitch ($5.50), a B.L.T. (bacon, lettuce, and tomato) with pesto SconeWitch ($5.50), and an Orange Cranberry sweet scone ($1.90) to go.

Jenn's Eggwitch consisted of a savoury herb and onion scone that was hollowed out to hold eggs scrambled with cooked ham. Recommended by the line cooks at the back of the restaurant, my SconeWitch sandwiched baby mesculin with crisped and microwave re-heated bacon between the halves of feta scone. One half was brushed with a store-bought basil pesto. The other, spread with mayonnaise.

The Scone Witch is a canteen style restaurant. The dining room, decorated in a bistro style greets you when you walk in from the street. Against the wall is a graduation-style painting of chefs. In the middle is a witch with a tray of scones.

There is an open kitchen at the back. The separation is marked with a counter, where your order your food. We discovered lines formed at both the counter and at the door. The latter, for tables.

There are no servers. While the restaurant is professionally equipped, there is no traditional line. The three cooks who take orders and assemble scone dishes are also bakers and servers. When you eat in, they will bring your plates to you. After you eat, you head over to the cash and till to pay. When you eat out, they bag everything and point you to the cashier. Dishes are made to order. The cashier doubles as a dish washer, there being two dish washing stations in the restaurant. Given the turnover, I can imagine the restaurant going through a lot of dishes.

As we waited for our order, Jenn and I gave opening tables away and took our scones to a park bench on Kent Street, across from the Crown Plaza Hotel. There, we devoured our late breakfast. I found my sandwich quite the realization. Rich and decadent, well-made scones work in sandwiches. Mine was freshly baked, light and airy. Buttery, it tasted passingly of feta. With the peppery greens, nutty pesto, and salty bacon, I exclaimed with delight biscuit sandwiches did not even compare.

Jenn likewise enjoyed her breakfast, giving me her blackberry. The crumb of scone I stole from her when she wasn't looking was likewise light and buttery with just the right amount of dill.

Total cost: $15.57 (after taxes)

Next time, we're coming in when the place opens at 8:00 am on weekends for brunch. At $10.50, you get scrambled eggs, fresh fruit, a scone, and greens. The scone is accompanied with Moss Berry Farm jam or lemon curd. Everything is topped either with mustard-baked ham, a dollop of mushroom ragu, or Mediterranean vegetables and goat cheese.

Update: I looked into the comment from Pearl of the Eaten Up food blog that there was originally another Scone Witch in New Edinburgh neighbourhood. Indeed, the Scone Witch at 35 Beechwood Avenue was originally located on 42 Crichton Street. According to an older "The Materialist" blog by Kirstin Endemann of the Ottawa Citizen, the 42 Crichton Street location was takeout only. In September 2009, the former location was re-opened by Chef Susan Jessup as 42 Crichton Street Fine Foods.

Particulars:
The Scone Witch
388 Albert Street
(613)232-2173

More after the jump...

Well, I'm not about to advocate communicating with dinner forks (or pitch forks for that matter), but a link to a Utah university student's Etsy shop, "ForkedUpArt", has been going around the blogoshpere. Attached to the link is a picture of cutlery that has been welded together to form an Iphone holder.

ForkedUpArt Iphone Holder
Source: Etsy shop

According to "Jennings Metal", the handle of the artist who operates "ForkedUpArt", the holder recently caught the attentions of TUAW: The Unofficial Apple Weblog, Macenstein, and even CNet, sparking a flurry of activity. In fact, the shop now sports an announcement about bulk purchases. Jennings Metal will even fashion custom holders.

After visiting the Etsy site, I discovered there are two models, one with a "fork head" and one with a "spoon head." The cost: $30.00 USD ($19.99 USD shipping to Canada).

Me, I like the one with a spoon head, given the feet are likewise spoons. It is a bit of symmetry that goes well with me.

But, since I haven't an Iphone to put in the holder, I'm going to pass.

Kudos to Jennings Metal on your creative product!

Yesterday, I had a somewhat awkward conversation with a relatively old-school project manager who disparaged the new online presence features of Microsoft's recently unveiled mobile operation system for smart-phones and other smart-devices, called Windows Mobile 7. He felt the social media-oriented aspect was a distraction for business users who are more task-oriented. So, Microsoft is essentially alienating its traditional user-base. Incredulous, I pointed out the upcoming millennial workforce is more conscious of work-life balance and values the new contact and event-driven features. Besides, modern business has realized using such tools as Facebook and Twitter thoughtfully can help them establish their brands (lends to good will) and cultivate familiarities with prospective clients, customers, or patrons. Savvy businesses, that realize benefits should not be measured $/click (or $/follower), also learn about their market at the micro-social level.

To me, Microsoft, having "out-Appled" Apple with respect to their mobile operating system's dynamic interface, made the platform attractive again. In a ubiquitous computing environment, devices need to be multi-functional. While I am not a member of the millennial workforce, I participate in several vibrant online communities using social media tools. It has grown my personal and professional networks, connecting me with people I would never have imagined speaking to. Many connections have materialized in the real-world and developed into friendships.

What does this have to do with sweet potatoes or gnocchi? I am blessed to have so many different people in my life. Through my participation in the food blogging community, I met Leela (@shesimmers), the blogger behind SheSimmers. Later I would meet Melody (@gourmetfury), the blogger behind Gourmet Fury. Together, they run Beet 'n Squash You. This month, it is battle sweet potato. For my entry, I asked a handful of people in my networks how they take their sweet potatoes. That is when I discovered how versatile the traditionally winter root vegetable actually is. I know people who only eat sweet potatoes as shoe string fries. I know people who like their sweet potato as pie filling. I know people who swear by "candied yams", topped with marshmallows. I know people who roast them, jacketed in aluminum foil. I decided to try my hand at sweet potato gnocchi, pairing it with a wilted green and some pulled pork. It is not my Beet 'n Squash entry.

Well, the pulled pork worked...
Pernil-Inspired Pulled Pork

One Pork Shoulder Roast

Second Pork Shoulder Roast

Spice Rub

Hawaiian Salt

Pork Shoulder Roasts Dried

Pork Shoulder Roasted Oiled and Coated

Pulled Pork after 90 minutes of Covered Roasting

Pulled Pork after 3 hours of Covered Roasting

Pulled Pork Mid-Shred

Pulled Pork Texture

Here's what you need:

• Pork Shoulder
• Enough Rub to Coat the Pork shoulder Above
• A Little Canola Oil

Yes it's that simple. For this batch, I used the following ratio of flavourings 6:6:1:2:1:1 onion flake, dried oregano, Hawaiian salt (seriously cool gift from seriously cool friend), Hungarian paprika, ground cumin, and red pepper flake by volume. My choice for measuring this time, a teaspoon.

Prep:

1. Pre-heat oven to 350F
2. Dry the pork shoulder roasts of moisture.
3. Very lightly coat them in oil
4. Coat the roasts in rub

Method:

1. Bake covered for 3 hours or until the meat falls from the bone.
2. Shred
3. De-fat the drippings and reduce to taste.
4. Sauce the meat with the drippings. It should be slightly moist, not wet

Plan A: Gnocchi (failed)
Because the gnocchi failed, I am not going to write up the recipe. I am only going to record notes, so I can re-attempt it.

Pair of Sweet Potatoes, Pricked All Over
The potatoes were lightly coated in canola oil and roasted at 350F, until softened. This took 1 hour.

4.2 oz of Old Cheddar Cheese
The cheese was grated finely.

One Hot Green Chili, Finely Chopped
When the sweet potato had been roasted soft, it was left to cool for 5 minutes.
Then, it was forced through a ricer in batches.
To the riced sweet potato, 1 tsp of nutmeg, 2 pinches of kosher salt, 3 grinds of black pepper, and the shredded cheese was added. The remnant heat melted the cheese.
When the mixture cooled completely, one egg was added.

Sweet Potato Mixture Pre-Flour
2 cups of flour were sifted in with minimum stirring.

Sweet Potato Mixture Post-Flour

Here is where things went awry. After looking up several sweet potato gnocchi recipes on YouTube, I figured the texture of the gnocchi dough should resemble ones that contained 50% by mass ricotta. Thus, I added more flour, thinking my dough too wet and overworked it. I then overworked them further, shaping and re-shaping them.

Shaped Gnocchi
The gnocchi was boiled in simmering salted water until they floated.

Gnocchi Post-Boil
Then, the gnocchi was fried in brown butter.

One Batch Browned

Another Batch Browned

Here are three platings with gently wilted young spinach

Wilted Spinach

Plating 1

Plating 2

Plating 3
While they looked and smelled delicious, the gnocchi were neither tender nor light.

More after the jump...

For those of you shaking off effects of yesterday nights celebrations, you more than likely have a vague recollection Canada demonstrated its prowess in hockey, our Olympians fighting their way to the finals and winning gold medals in both the Women's and Men's events.

Having watched a number of the events during the Vancouver Olympic Games, including both final hockey games, I have to highlight history was made. 2010 saw Canada break two records: most gold medals earned by a hosting nation and most gold medals earned by any country in a Winter Olympics. It brought a smile to my face to hear our national anthem played so often. It brought a tear to my eye when an entire stadium of people sang along with Sidney Crosby, who scored the gold medal-winning goal during sudden death overtime.

Please note, I am not a hockey fan. I am more interested in how concession food is made than hockey itself, but Sunday afternoon, like much of North America, I stopped to watch the Canada vs. US game. I watched the last major event of the games live, streamed though the Internet by CTV and Bell, while reading tweets on twitter. I even bet on the game.

Like our Prime Minister's spokesman, Dimitry Soudas, who mad a bet with White House press secretary, Robert Gibbs, I accepted a blog challenge by the blogger (@kalofagus) behind Kalofagus.ca: Greek Food & Beyond. Soudas and Gibbs bet briefings, wearing opposing team's jerseys. It would later be reported President Barack Obama bet Prime Minister Harper beer. I bet a front page blog post.

Kalofagas (Feb 28, 03:15 PM)
who's up for the hockey challenge? Canada wins, you wear/blog Canada apparel, US wins....Cdns. wear /blog US apparel if we lose?

foodiePrint (Feb 28, 03:20 PM)
@kalofagas I'm in! Go Canada Go!!!!!!!

Several food bloggers likewise accepted.

Both men's hockey teams played spectacularly well, tying the game at the close of the 3rd period and forcing an overtime one. It was epic. In the end, Canada won.

Even though I am not required to blog, here is something for my fellow American bloggers who accepted @kalofagus' challenge. Jenn and I are not sure how available Canadian Olympic-wear is across the border, so we took this picture.

Save for the beaver toque, Hudson's Bay-issued (HBC) Official Olympic-Wear
Feel free to post the image on your blogs to make good on the bet. Click here for a link to Flickr.

By the way, Jenn (dressed as she was in the picture), some neighbours, and I ventured out as Canada erupted in celebration. As we walked through our neighbourhood, we heard cheering and honking well into the start of the closing ceremonies.

foodiePrints (Feb 28, 07:50 PM) Re: cheering on Wellington Street (#Ottawa), this may have had something to do with it http://flic.kr/p/7Gx65q cc @robvogt @kalofagas

Still, foodiePrints is a food blog, so this entry requires a food component. Here is the celebratory meal, Jenn and I ate as we watched the closing ceremonies:

Stewed Beef Rice Noodles in Broth with Yu Choy

My Bowl After Adding some Sriracha
Not poutine, but made by proud Canadians!

Update: Here is a picture of front page headlines from two newspapers, one from Friday (after the Women's Hockey Final) and one from today (after the Men's Hockey Final)

Frontpage News: Men's and Women's Hockey Gold Medals

And here are some thoughts during the closing ceremonies:

• New winter Olympic sport: Freestyle Human Hamster Ball Jumping :P [referring to the "Zorbs"]
• Ok...need to point out that moose don't fly in Canada. When fed maple syrup, they do leap great distances though.
• Wonder if the giant beavers can be trained to chase Nickelback off the stage...
• Re female Mountie outfits, they don't exist...Poor gals would freeze!
• Umm...A lot of athletes on the "dance floor" look confused...Canadian ones too!
• They should have prorogued the closing ceremonies after the parade float musical with the hot mounties...

It was however a real pleasure to see Michael J. Fox take to the stage during the ceremonies and the crowd rise to its feet shortly after he introduced himself as Canadian. While many columnists wrote William Shatner warmed our hearts with his "I am Canadian" speech, I firmly believe Fox stole them.