2010 November : Tiny Bites

Ratatouille goodness plus a cinema to savour

10 Comments Karen HamiltonNovember 18, 2010

My little family’s been hit with no less than 4 attacks by the flu season in the past month, so we’ve been eating a lot of comfort food lately. My favourite comfort foods lie within the realm of soup: a bowlful of shio from Ramen Santouka; chicken congee from Congee Noodle House; wonton soup from Yopo Cafe; and homemade tinolang manok.

This therapy would not be complete without plopping in front of the TV, tissue box in hand, in front of a feel-good movie – and more often than not, my selection is animated. In the weeks of my convalescence, How to Train a Dragon, Finding Nemo, and Ratatouille have gotten me through some of the worst of the spells. By this Monday, hopefully in a state of full recovery, I will be watching Ratatouille again – with ratatouille and not soup in hand – at Vancity Theatre’s Cinema to Savour screening. All proceeds benefit the Chefs’ Table Society of British Columbia.

Cinema to Savour presents Ratatouille
Monday, November 22, 6-8pm
Vancity Theatre & Film Centre
1181 Seymour Street | Vancouver
Tickets: $55 general, $15 children
More info on chefstablesociety.com

I’ve been working directly and indirectly with the Chefs’ Table Society for the past few years. They’re the guys that run the awesome Spot Prawn Festival each May and the ones that produced the Vancouver Cooks 2 cookbook (which recently won Gold in its category at the Canadian Cookbook awards). On Monday, board member Chef Scott Jaeger of Pear Tree Restaurant and friends will be serving up yummy French-inspired finger food while the film of the same name is shown on the big screen. I thought it’d therefore be fun to share a ratatouille recipe and offer a Ratatouille prize pack in advance of this event.

Our Meatless Wednesdays ratatouille recipe

When I took up David Suzuki’s Nature Challenge a few years ago, we picked one day per week where we ate no meat. The photo above shows our first attempt cooking the ratatouille that we often ate on our Meatless Wednesdays, based on this recipe from our favourite Cook’s Illustrated cookbook. We adjusted the scale of the recipe to serve two, eaten alongside hunks of French bread and a bottle of pinot.

Ingredients

1-2 eggplants, cut into large cubes (we used 2 because I’m an eggplant fiend!)
1 large zucchini, cut into large cubes
1 small-medium onion , chopped
2 cloves garlic , minced
1 lb of your choice of very ripe tomatoes, peeled and sized like the eggplant and zucchini
1 tablespoon parsley, chopped
1 tablespoon basil, chopped
1/2 tablespoon thyme, minced
Olive oil, salt and pepper

Directions

Salt eggplant pieces generously in a colander situated in your sink or over something to catch liquid. Leave for up to 3 hours, then rinse away the salt. Dry eggplant extremely thoroughly…you can’t overdo this step. They might shrink or shrivel some…that’s okay. We used clean dishcloths to extract the moisture instead of wasting paper towels. [Skip this salting process at your peril - you might need to if you're rushed, but the trade-off is a ton more mush in your dish.]
Preheat oven to 500F. Line 2 baking sheets with foil.
Toss eggplant and zucchini thoroughly in olive oil, then spread the pieces in a single layer across your baking sheets. Sprinkle with salt. Roast in oven for 30-40 minutes or until well-browned and tender. Every 10 minutes, open the oven and stir the veggies on the rack. Halfway through the roast, switch and rotate the position of your baking sheets. Turn off oven and leave them in there or set aside.
Heat a couple of tablespoons of olive oil in a heavy-bottomed roasting pan or Dutch oven.
Cook and stir onion in pan over low heat until golden brown, 15 to 20 minutes.
Add garlic and cook for 30 seconds or till the pot exudes garlicky goodness.
Add tomatoes and cook for 5 minutes or until they start breaking apart.
Add eggplant and zucchini and combine until just heated through, about 5 minutes.
Stir in herbs and add salt and pepper to taste.

Share your “Ratatouille moment” and win some Ratatouille

I had a Ratatouille moment 2 years ago when I tucked into the crab fritter at Atlanta’s Bacchanalia Restaurant. It was such a transcendent experience for me – triggering a flood of fond childhood memories – that the taste of this dish will never be forgotten. If I could dine every night at Bacchanalia, I would.

Comment on this post describing your own Ratatouille moment and you could win:

A copy of Disney PIXAR’s Ratatouille (your choice of DVD or Blu-Ray format)
2 passes for the Cinema to Savour screening of Ratatouille on Monday, November 22nd

This Ratatouille prize pack is worth $150. The winner will be randomly selected (Congratulations, Brad!).

That gives you 2 days to submit your Ratatouille moment. Looking forward to reading about the dishes that spoke to you!

Categories: Dinner, Events, Food, Recipes, Savoury

Our tips for eating your fill at the Ocean Wise Seafood Chowder ChowDown

1 Comment Karen HamiltonNovember 16, 2010

Last December, my husband and I found ourselves wandering through the maze of tanks at the Vancouver Aquarium. We marvelled at the jellies, peered at the bioluminescent marine life, and a touch disturbingly, downed a whole lot of seafood chowder in front of the Aquarium’s residents.

We’ll be there again this year for the 3rd annual Ocean Wise Seafood Chowder Chowdown, featuring the chowder wares of 2010′s Ocean Wise member finalists.

This event is one of my favourite food outings of the season for many reasons:

I am a sucker for a well-made chowder
Craft beer + chowder = love love love
Can’t miss an opportunity to sneak in an Aquarium visit
All this fun while supporting the sustainable seafood movement and the Ocean Wise program!

One of the things we discussed as we headed home last year was how to improve our sampling experience. Whether it’s your first time out or your third, I’d like to share our 2009 post-mortem findings as tips for you this year.

Tiny Bites Tip Sheet to Optimize Chowder Happiness

Map out your game plan

Chowder and beer stations will be scattered throughout the vast upper floor of the Aquarium, which has two branches: the Treasures of the BC Coast (where the jellyfish live) and the Tropic Zone on the right. Last year, the BC wing was a traffic jam as the event kicked off, leaving the stations in the Tropic Zone relatively unencumbered till people tried all the BC ones. Take a few minutes at the start of your evening to identify the congested areas and consider visiting those spots at the end of your tour. Unless you get there 30 minutes before close, I doubt you run the risk of missing out on any chowder under this plan of attack.

You’ll likely see us starting with the stations in the back and working against the flow of traffic, ’cause this lady doesn’t like to wait.

Make your line-ups do double duty

If your date doesn’t mind, split up the task of queuing for your supper: one gets the chowder while the other gets the beer. You could halve your total wait time and might even experience a beer visitation on your way to pick up chowder (or vice versa).

Finish your faves; sample the rest

It was our experience that the individual chowder samplings measured a half-cup per person each last year. If you were to eat every last drop of your samples this year, that could mean 6 cups of chowder to digest – and we still haven’t factored in how many pints of craft beer you’ll accumulate!

If that sounds like a welcome challenge to you, disregard this tip. If, like me, the math is already giving you heartburn, go for the divide-and-conquer method: share the sample with a friend. If you really love a particular chowder, you can always go back for seconds!

Keep an eye out for the servers

Another way to reduce your waiting game is to scope out the servers that mingle amongst you. Some carry trays for dirty dishes; some carry trays of samples for the guest judges (Rebecca Bollwitt of Miss 604 is one this year); and the best kind carry trays of samples for general distribution. Mark these people. Befriend them. If you ask nicely, perhaps they’ll seek you out when their next tray goes out.

Know where the water is

Not everyone is into beer, and even those that are craft beer aficionados might still appreciate a palate cleanser. When you scope out the grounds at the beginning of your evening, make sure you find that watering hole, and fill up as is necessary to avoid an unintended drought in your glass.

…Or just load up on beer.

Sit with the fishies

I go to a lot of events where you eat your weight in food and drink. The nosh may be spectacular, but I tend not to notice my surroundings. It’s a rare night when the venue itself adds to the magic of the evening. So, don’t forget that you are at the Aquarium. Wander around while your belly begs you to pace yourself. Ponder the life aquatic as you stare into the depths of your favourite galleries. Get entranced by jellyfish. Make friends with the sea turtle.

Buy your tickets

This event sold out last year and no tickets are sold at the door. Get your tickets early!

The 3rd annual Ocean Wise Seafood Chowder ChowDown
At the Vancouver Aquarium
7 – 10pm
Tickets are $40 for non-members and $32 for members and their date

12 of BC’s top Ocean Wise chefs reveal their newest chowder competing for the Best Sustainable Seafood Chowder on the West Coast. 12 top BC craft brewers provide delicious pairings.

Celebrity Judges: Popular food reviewer Jamie Maw, celeb chef David Hawksworth and Robert Clark, famous blogger Miss604 join industry heavyweights to choose the winner on site!

2009 Ocean Wise Seafood Chowder Chowdown Photo Gallery

Categories: Events, Food, Restaurants

Eat chocolate this weekend and win a $1000 trip for two

2 Comments Karen HamiltonNovember 5, 2010

I interrupted my maternity leave by volunteering behind the scenes for the 2010 West Coast Chocolate Festival for the last few months. I helped out a little last year and was invited to participate as a mentor this time around. They’ve been having chocolate-tastic events since October 15th, and the fun doesn’t stop till November 10th. If you love chocolate and haven’t been out to a festival event yet this year, you should.

And to sweeten the pot (har har), if you buy your tickets using the promo code TINYBITES, you might win a Weekend of Chocolate Romance to Rowena’s Inn on the River in Harrison Mills, valued at over $1000.

I don’t think I need to convince you that winning this holiday is worth eating your fill of chocolate and supporting the Festival’s mission of mentoring youth, but just in case, take a look at the contest details and the photos from my scouting trip in September. Personally, I cannot wait to go back for a post-dinner soak in their poolside hot tub!