I moved to the North Burnaby area about 6 months ago and went to the local Safeway to do all of my grocery shopping. After getting into a car accident which totalled my car, I spent some time sans wheels and found some great shops just outside my front door. In the space between the 4000 and 4500 blocks you can find 2 seafood shops, about 4 Italian delis, 2 bakeries, and the best and cheapest produce store around.
I love doing my shopping for dinner by cruising a few blocks and picking up what is fresh in the shops - it has a very European feel and you save A LOT by skipping the big markets. Another bonus is that is not as tedious as trudging up and down big supermarket aisles. There are some great finds in these specialty stores: entire racks of pasta, including black and pink fettuccine, sourdough rye and fibre bread, exotic fruits, and deliciously fresh mussels and clams. It's fun to discover little gems and experiment with them at home.
I came across an article on these shops in Vancouver Magazine as well http://www.vanmag.com/Restaurants/North_Burnaby_s_Best_Food_Shops
It's nice to see that North Burnaby is getting recognition for some of the things that make it a great place to live.
Thursday, February 25, 2010
Monday, February 22, 2010
Homemade Pizza Date Night
One thing I love doing on Friday night is making pizza and enjoying some red wine. You can get as creative as you like and it is just fun to toss pizza dough in the air - I have even earned the nickname, Luigi. Oh - and it tastes way better than take out.
In North Vancouver, Bunking Bakery at 126 East 14th just off Lonsdale, sells balls of pizza dough for $2.50. If you like thin crust that will make you 2 pizzas. Just put some flour on a counter and roll out the dough until it is as thick or thin as you like it. If you're feeling bold toss the dough in the air on your knuckles - it really works! I usually make my own pizza sauce by sauteing a clove of garlic and a shallot, adding a can of crushed tomatoes, a couple tablespoons of balsamic vinegar, and seasoning with basil, paprika, chili flakes, oregano, and salt.
My favourite go-to pizza is cherry tomatoes, banana peppers, bocconcini cheese and basil, but this past Friday I made my pizza with prosciutto, pineapple, tomatoes, banana peppers, and mozzarella, which was delicious. Paired with a nice red, this is the perfect date night at home!
In North Vancouver, Bunking Bakery at 126 East 14th just off Lonsdale, sells balls of pizza dough for $2.50. If you like thin crust that will make you 2 pizzas. Just put some flour on a counter and roll out the dough until it is as thick or thin as you like it. If you're feeling bold toss the dough in the air on your knuckles - it really works! I usually make my own pizza sauce by sauteing a clove of garlic and a shallot, adding a can of crushed tomatoes, a couple tablespoons of balsamic vinegar, and seasoning with basil, paprika, chili flakes, oregano, and salt.
My favourite go-to pizza is cherry tomatoes, banana peppers, bocconcini cheese and basil, but this past Friday I made my pizza with prosciutto, pineapple, tomatoes, banana peppers, and mozzarella, which was delicious. Paired with a nice red, this is the perfect date night at home!
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
Asian Beef Salad
I made this last night with some curried roasted potatoes. It is super fast and easy and tastes very yummy. Ginger is great when you don't have a lot of time to marinade as it softens the meat and the flavour is easily picked up.
Asian Beef Salad
Serves 3 - 4
Ingredients:
- 500 grams sirloin beef THIN cut (this allows the meat to soak up the marinade quickly and cooks fast when you don't have a lot of time, plus it is cheaper!)
- 1 head of iceberg lettuce
- 1 red pepper chopped
- 1/2 cucumber sliced
- Handful chopped green onion
- 1/2 cup bean sprouts
- 1/2 cup grated carrot
Marinade:
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 clove garlic thinly sliced
3 tbsp grated ginger
3 tbsp rice vinegar
1 tbsp sesame oil
1 tbsp olive oil
Dressing:
1 tbsp toasted sesame seeds
2 tbsp sesame oil
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp wasabi powder
1 tbsp soy sauce
4 tbsp rice vinegar
Method:
- Combine all ingredients for marinade and coat the meat in it. Cover and set aside
- Combine all ingredients for dressing and puree with a hand mixer or in a blender
- Chop all ingredients for salad, except lettuce, and put in a large bowl
- Pour dressing over chopped ingredients in the bowl and put in the fridge
- Heat a frying pan on High heat and fry meat 1 minute a side (note: this is for thinly sliced meat. If you are cooking a thicker cut allow for an extra minute per side)
- Remove from pan and put on a plate to cool slightly
- Add the lettuce to the salad bowl, toss, and serve to plates
- Slice beef into strips and place on top of the salad and serve
Voila! A quick tasty and healthy dinner.
Asian Beef Salad
Serves 3 - 4
Ingredients:
- 500 grams sirloin beef THIN cut (this allows the meat to soak up the marinade quickly and cooks fast when you don't have a lot of time, plus it is cheaper!)
- 1 head of iceberg lettuce
- 1 red pepper chopped
- 1/2 cucumber sliced
- Handful chopped green onion
- 1/2 cup bean sprouts
- 1/2 cup grated carrot
Marinade:
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 clove garlic thinly sliced
3 tbsp grated ginger
3 tbsp rice vinegar
1 tbsp sesame oil
1 tbsp olive oil
Dressing:
1 tbsp toasted sesame seeds
2 tbsp sesame oil
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp wasabi powder
1 tbsp soy sauce
4 tbsp rice vinegar
Method:
- Combine all ingredients for marinade and coat the meat in it. Cover and set aside
- Combine all ingredients for dressing and puree with a hand mixer or in a blender
- Chop all ingredients for salad, except lettuce, and put in a large bowl
- Pour dressing over chopped ingredients in the bowl and put in the fridge
- Heat a frying pan on High heat and fry meat 1 minute a side (note: this is for thinly sliced meat. If you are cooking a thicker cut allow for an extra minute per side)
- Remove from pan and put on a plate to cool slightly
- Add the lettuce to the salad bowl, toss, and serve to plates
- Slice beef into strips and place on top of the salad and serve
Voila! A quick tasty and healthy dinner.
The Public of Private
I came home 2 nights ago to my back sliding door wide open, drawers riffled through, and my possessions tossed about. I was confused at first and then concerned that the assailant might still be lurking in the shadows behind my filing cabinet. After a thorough search of the one bedroom apartment (bat in hand) I determined that he (or she) had left and so had all of my jewelery.
It is never the loss of actual possessions that are mourned the most, it is the memories they hold (or in the case of the missing laptop, the data they carry). I started thinking about all of the pieces of jewelery that I had acquired since I was a young girl: the Birks bangles from my father that made me feel so grown up and special at 7, beaded and silver hoop earrings that I bought when I traveled alone in the South of France, a pearl ring that I fell in love with on a trip to Greece, and gifts that held so much love and always made me feel like I was secretly wearing a feeling or a happy memory instead of a piece of metal or a stone.
I scoured seedy pawn shops for a couple of days but to no avail.
The other disturbing thing about the incident was the feeling that my home was public space and not the cozy, private cocoon that I had invisioned it to be. It occured to me that living space is not private and that at some point everyone will have their home split open for a bit of an inspection. If you live in an apartment there is the landlord who might barge in at any point, there are home invasions, fires and floods that require emergency crews to plow through your home, nosey house-sitters, and ultimately death where every item you own will be picked through by (hopefully) a family member.
Note to anyone hoarding any creepy stuff - get rid of it!
I know this is really not in the spirit of Painted Table, but I thought this would serve as a good reminder to everyone to LOCK YOUR DOORS.
I did make a delicious and quick salad last night that I will share with you in my next post in case anyone was completely uninterested in this rant and stopped reading at the first sentence.
It is never the loss of actual possessions that are mourned the most, it is the memories they hold (or in the case of the missing laptop, the data they carry). I started thinking about all of the pieces of jewelery that I had acquired since I was a young girl: the Birks bangles from my father that made me feel so grown up and special at 7, beaded and silver hoop earrings that I bought when I traveled alone in the South of France, a pearl ring that I fell in love with on a trip to Greece, and gifts that held so much love and always made me feel like I was secretly wearing a feeling or a happy memory instead of a piece of metal or a stone.
I scoured seedy pawn shops for a couple of days but to no avail.
The other disturbing thing about the incident was the feeling that my home was public space and not the cozy, private cocoon that I had invisioned it to be. It occured to me that living space is not private and that at some point everyone will have their home split open for a bit of an inspection. If you live in an apartment there is the landlord who might barge in at any point, there are home invasions, fires and floods that require emergency crews to plow through your home, nosey house-sitters, and ultimately death where every item you own will be picked through by (hopefully) a family member.
Note to anyone hoarding any creepy stuff - get rid of it!
I know this is really not in the spirit of Painted Table, but I thought this would serve as a good reminder to everyone to LOCK YOUR DOORS.
I did make a delicious and quick salad last night that I will share with you in my next post in case anyone was completely uninterested in this rant and stopped reading at the first sentence.
Saturday, February 13, 2010
Welcome!
This is my inaugural post to Painted Table which is very exciting, but to avoid stepping on any Olympians' toes I am keeping the fan fare to a minimum. I am merely having a celebratory glass of wine at my computer.
Painted Table was designed to share ideas and discoveries that make life more enjoyable. The basics are covered here: wine, recipes & restaurants, entertainment, and interior design on a budget. So if you are out of dinner ideas, have nothing to do on a Saturday, or want to re-energize your living space, check out what we are bringing to the Table over the next few weeks.
See you soon!
Painted Table was designed to share ideas and discoveries that make life more enjoyable. The basics are covered here: wine, recipes & restaurants, entertainment, and interior design on a budget. So if you are out of dinner ideas, have nothing to do on a Saturday, or want to re-energize your living space, check out what we are bringing to the Table over the next few weeks.
See you soon!
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