Food

Fat City Franks – #yycisopen

August 8, 2013 by danawyyc 1 Comment

Location: Mission – #3 2015 4 Street SW, Calgary, AB http://www.fatcityfranks.com/

Fat City Franks is one of our favorite restaurants in Calgary. It’s also one of the few restaurants that my special needs brother likes going to. So we end up going to Fat City Franks fairly frequently. One of the things we love is that it is owner operated. Jane and Bob really take pride in what they’ve built and always seem happy to be there. Fat City Franks did not receive flood damage, but had to close for days due to power outages in Mission. This was costly both in terms of food that had to be thrown out, and lost revenue. They are finding that business is still down as people are still moving back into the neighborhood.

The restaurant is small, casual, bright and clean. I love coming here with our kids because it’s quick too. Over the last few years, I’ve tried every hot dog on their menu and many of their monthly specials. They are all good, but my favorites are the Chicago Dog and the San Antonio Black Bean Chili Dog. I also really like switching the hot dog for a farmer’s sausage.

Our favorite seat

Pic of Gordie from 2 years ago

Although they have great menu options, they will also prepare a custom hotdog for you. Gordie’s favorite used to be ketchup, then ketchup with tomatoes and mustard. And now plain.

Coney Island Dog

Chicago Dog

If you like hotdogs, I would highly suggest giving Fat City Franks a try. Their malted milkshakes, potato salad and coleslaw are great too. (They’ve been profiled on “You Gotta Eat Here!” too)

Super short Clip of Fat City Franks including the Chicago Dog with a Farmer’s Sausage and a Ukranian Dog:

Have you been to Fat City Franks? What did you think?

Salad #25 – Chopped Garden Salad with Herb Dressing

July 20, 2013 by danawyyc 1 Comment

This year we’re getting a Summer CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) from Eagle Creek Farms. In a CSA local producers sell shares of their produce with their community at the beginning of the season. This makes it easier for small farmers to continue to farm because the risk of bad crops is shared. Alberta can be a difficult climate to grow crops in so it’s particularly helpful where we live. In our first delivery, we received spinach, pea shoots, arugula, garlic scapes, radishes and a potted herb.

I’m also trying my hand at my own vegetable garden again this year. My results so far are a bit mixed but the herbs are growing really well so I decided to use them in a dressing. You could also put some of the herbs straight into the salad itself if you wanted to.

Chopped Garden Salad with Herb Dressing

(adapted from Katie’s Cucina’s Lemon Herb Dressing)

Salad #25 - Chopped Garden Salad with Herb Dressing

Ingredients

Salad Ingredients
6 cups fresh greens (I used pea shoots and spinach)
2-3 radishes
Herb Dressing Ingredients
Juice of 1 lemon (if you put it in the microwave for a few seconds it will release more juice)
lemon zest from 1 lemon
2 tsp honey
squirt of hot sauce like sriracha
⅓ cup olive oil
6 TBSP chopped fresh herbs (I used parsley, basil, oregano and thyme)
1-2 garlic scapes chopped (or 1 garlic clove or 1-2 green onions)
salt and pepper

Instructions

Wash and dry your greens and radishes. Chop all the greens and the radishes into small pieces. Mix together well.
Blend the dressing ingredients together in a food processor or blender. Alternatively you can chop everything finely and shake or whisk until blended.
Drizzle dressing over the vegetables and mix well. The dressing is bold so you probably won't need a ton - add a little at a time.

Did They Eat It?

Gordie (4 years old): Refused to try it.

Stephen: It was good.

Anne: Strong taste but in a good way. The salad really had bite.

Deb: Tastes like spring.

Bronwen: Liked it.

Dana: This would make a great side for dinner but I really enjoyed it as a snack.

Salad #24 – Fresh and Easy Pasta Salad

July 18, 2013 by danawyyc 1 Comment

Typical store bought pasta salads are loaded with mayonnaise or some other kind of creamy dressing and not much else. This one, on the other hand, is loaded with vegetables. Perfect for for a pot luck salad or as a main dish, you’ll feel great feeding this to your family.

My cousin made a salad similar to this one when I was at her house one day and I’ve been making it with a few variations ever since. Salsa is a perfect dressing for pasta salad and it couldn’t be easier. If you want it more gourmet, you can always make your own salsa but I prefer the ease of using pre-made salsa.

Fresh and Easy Pasta Salad

Salad #24 - Fresh and Easy Pasta Salad

Ingredients

1 box whole wheat pasta (macaroni, corkscrew or penne all work well)
1 cup frozen peas
1 red pepper chopped
1 orange pepper chopped
1 yellow pepper chopped
½ cucumber chopped
1 jar prepared salsa (I like Tostitos Medium)
package of Canadian bacon, chopped

Instructions

Cook pasta according to package instructions. Run under cold water to cool.
Transfer pasta to a large bowl and add chopped veggies (peas can go in frozen) and the Canadian bacon.
Pour salsa over the pasta mixture and mix well.
I find leftovers benefit from some extra salsa before serving.

Variations

swap out the vegetables for whatever you have on hand
swap out the Canadian bacon for another kind of protein – ham, imitation crab, chicken feta cheese or monterey jack cheese are all good options

Did They Eat It?

Gordie (4 years old): Loved everything about it. (this is one of the only salads Gordie has liked)

Nicky (15 months): Devoured the pasta and peas but left the peppers.

Stephen: Good.

Dana: This is one of my favorite easy supper meals. It makes quite a lot and so we usually even have leftovers for the next day.

Salad #23 – Zucchini Ribbon Salad with Prosciutto and Almonds

July 16, 2013 by danawyyc 1 Comment

Since I started the 52 salad challenge. I have tried a number of vegetables prepared in ways I’m not used to – primarily raw vegetables that I have always had cooked before. This list includes beets, kale, and Brussels sprouts. So far, not one has been a disappointment. This salad is another example of that. Recommended by my friend Misty from Life Where We Are – this salad features raw zucchini.

Zucchini Ribbon Salad with Prosciutto and Almonds

(adapted from Williams Sonoma’s Shaved Zucchini Salad with Almonds & Asiago)

Salad #23 - Zucchini Ribbon Salad with Prosciutto and Almonds

Ingredients

Ingredients
1-2 small zucchinis
3 cups spinach
2-4 slices of prosciutto chopped or sliced
handful of almonds, chopped
few sprigs of parsley chopped
Dressing Ingredients
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
Juice of half a lemon
1 clove garlic minced
salt and pepper

Instructions

Whisk salad ingredients together in a medium sized bowl until well combined.
Peel the zucchini with a vegetable peeler. Start on one side an then switch to the other. You can discard the middle portion if it becomes to difficult to peel.
Add zucchini and parsley to the dressing and mix well.
Put spinach on salad plates and layer with zucchini mixture. Top with almonds and prosciutto.

Did They Eat It?

Gordie (4 years old): Refused to try it.

Nicky (15 months): Liked the zucchini.

Stephen: It was good.

Dana: I really liked this salad. It was nice and fresh. It would be a good light lunch or a dinner starter.

Spolumbo’s Fine Foods and Deli Review #yycisopen

July 13, 2013 by danawyyc 1 Comment

Location: Inglewood – 1308 – 9th Avenue SE. Calgary, Alberta http://www.spolumbos.com/ItalianDeli/

We stopped in at Spolumbo’s for lunch after playing at the nearby Nellie Breen Playground. I had heard that they had just reopened after repairing the damage from the Calgary flood this year.

I love buying Spolumbo’s sausages at the grocery store but don’t often get a chance to go and eat at their deli. My mom and I both ordered the hot sausage on a bun. I’ve had it before but it never disappoints. The spiciness is not overpowering and the marinara sauce complements it perfectly. I found it to be just the right amount of food for me, but if you’re a big eater, you may want to get a side or one of the biggest sandwiches.

I wasn’t sure at first what I was going to get for the kids. The sandwiches are pretty big (although you can get mini-versions). In the end I bought the fruit salad and a plain sun-dried tomato chicken sausage for the kids to share.

It was perfect! The fruit salad was huge (especially for $6) with lots of variety and the kids thought the sausage was pretty darn good too.

I also picked up a Spolumbo’s Special to take home for my husband. It was big enough for him to use half for lunch and the other half for dinner.

I found Spolumbo’s to be pretty kid friendly too. The atmosphere is pretty casual and they have a couple booster seats and high chairs. There are no kids menu’s but they have salads, mini-subs and sandwiches, and mild sausages.

Have you been to Spolumbo’s what did you think?

Summertime Alberta Barbecue Beef on a Bun – The Canadian Food Experience Project

July 13, 2013 by danawyyc 6 Comments

It’s Stampede in Calgary this week so for this month’s The Canadian Food Experience Project challenge I decided to do BBQ Beef on a Bun. The Canadian Food Experience Project started last month on June 7, 2013, it aims to gain global clarity to what Canadian food really is through the participants‘ collective stories and experiences.

This month, the challenge was a regional Canadian food. In Alberta, beef is a natural choice – if there is one thing Alberta is known for, it’s beef. Barbecue beef on a bun is a Stampede staple – you can get all kinds of wild food at the Stampede from deep fried butter to deep fried oreos to deep fried… Well, basically if there is anything you have ever thought about deep frying, you can probably find it at the Stampede and a few more you hadn’t even considered. There are a lot non-deep fried options too but none of them feel like Alberta for me more than beef on a bun. (My friend Merry has also written up her take on Stampede food with her baked mini-donut muffins)

Despite the devastating flood in Calgary this year, only two weeks before, the Stampede went on as planned with a lot of hard work and a few modifications. This is especially remarkable because the Stampede grounds had been covered in water during the flood. I took this kids down one morning and there were only a few places where you could see evidence that there had been a flood at all. There is still a lot of work to be done to rebuild Calgary and the Saddledome is not currently operational, but it was great to see how well the City had pulled together.

Heading home after a fun morning at the Calgary Stampede

We didn’t have beef on a bun while we were there, (we might have had a corn dog), but I picked up a roast when we got home and started cooking. Cooking a roast might seem insufferable in the summer, but you can actually cook a roast on most barbecues even if you don’t have a rotisserie or smoker (although those are great too!)

Summertime Barbecue Beef on a Bun

(adapted from Best BBQ Beef Oven Roast in the I Love Alberta Beef Cookbook)

Summertime Alberta Barbecue Beef on a Bun - The Canadian Food Experience Project

Ingredients

Ingredients
4-13 lb oven or rotisserie style roast (inside round, eye of round or sirloin tip) The max size will depend on your barbecue size - you'll want it to easily fit on one side of your grill).
1-2 cups of salad vinaigrette - you can use bottled or home made. I used a home made sun-dried tomato dressing.
Buns
Barbecue sauce
Sun-dried tomato vinaigrette
¼ cup oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes
2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 garlic clove chopped
2 sprigs oregano
1 tsp honey
⅓ cup canola oil
½ cup water
salt and pepper

Instructions

Add vinaigrette ingredients to a blender or food processor until well mixed.
Pierce the roast all over with a fork. Stick in a large zip lock bag and cover with dressing. If your roast is too big for a large zip lock bag, you can use any kind of dish, but you'll need more dressing and may want to turn the roast a few times as it marinates. Let it sit in the fridge for around 12-24 hours.
Take out your roast and discard the marinade.
Place a drip pan underneath one side of the barbecue and turn the heat on the other side of the barbecue.
When the grill is hot, place the roast over the drip tray and close the lid.
Cook at 400 F or about medium high heat until a meat thermometer reaches 135-145F. Rotate roast occasionally for more even cooking.
Allow about 20 minutes per pound - check with a meat thermometer.
Remove roast to a cutting board and cover with aluminum foil. Let sit for 10-15 minutes.
Slice roast thinly.
Add roast slices to cut buns and top with barbecue sauce (we used Bull's-Eye which is the official BBQ sauce of the Calgary Stampede).

Salad #22 – Grilled Vegetable Salad

June 20, 2013 by danawyyc 2 Comments

Barbecue season is upon us, or at least there is no longer snow on the ground. On of the few days it hasn’t been raining, I threw together this roasted vegetable salad. Getting the timing right on the roasting can be a little tricky – I started out with a lot more asparagus than I ended up with. Aside from that, the salad is quite simple and very delicious. You can use any number of good roasting vegetables in addition or instead of the ones I used including carrots, eggplant, fennel or squash.

Grilled Vegetable Salad

(adapted from Grill This Not That’s – Grilled Vegetable Salad)

Salad #22 - Grilled Vegetable Salad

Ingredients

Salad Ingredients
3 peppers (different colors are pretty)
1 zucchini
1 yellow onion
handful of asparagus (more if you are prone to burning things)
olive oil
Dressing Ingredients
extra virgin olive oil
garlic (I used garlic powder but if you like more of a bite a couple grated garlic cloves would work too)
red wine vinegar (or sherry vinegar)
coarse salt

Instructions

Snap the woody ends of the asparagus. Cut the onion in half across the middle. Cut the zucchini in half. Cover all the vegetables lightly in olive oil.
Turn your grill on to medium heat and lay the vegetables on it.
Your vegetables will be done in 5-20 minutes. My reference says that asparagus should be done in 10 minutes on high heat but most of it was burnt beyond saving after 5 so check to see if anything might need turning after a couple of minutes. After that check and turn your vegetables every 5 minutes. You want your vegetables to be tender but retain a little bite. Your peppers (or eggplant if you're using that) should be covered in char when they are done.
Stick the peppers (and eggplant) in a plastic bag for 5 minutes and then peel off the skin.
Slice all the vegetables into bite sized strips or chunks.
Drizzle with extra virgin olive oil, red wine vinegar, garlic and salt.

Did They Eat It?

Gordie (4 year old): refused to try it.

Richard: Quite enjoyed that even though I had just finished a big bowl of ice cream.

Bronwen: Great. Well grilled – the vegetables retained their texture and flavor but were still very soft.

Anne: Delicious. Really really good. I like the flavor of barbecue vegetables. I even ate the onions even though I usually don’t.

Stephen: Really tasty.

Dana: I can’t wait to experiment with different kinds of vegetables. I will definitely be making this again.

What’s your favorite thing to grill on the barbecue? Do you like grill vegetables?

Salad #21 – Strawberry Avocado Salad with Maple Dressing

June 18, 2013 by danawyyc Leave a Comment

This salad marks the halfway point of my 52 Salads Challenge. I’ve found inspiration for the salads from pinterest, cookbooks, food blogs and increasingly I’m getting suggestions from friends for salads they love. This salad was recommended to me by my friend Catherine (who writes a funny blog at http://www.catherinedabels.com/). Her nutritionist recommended it to her and it’s easy to see why. It contains healthy fats from the avocado, protein from the almonds and a flavorful dressing that isn’t high in fat or sugar. This salad would be perfect for a light lunch or dinner.

Strawberry Avocado Salad with a Maple Dressing

Salad #21 - Strawberry Avocado Salad with Maple Dressing

Ingredients

Salad Ingredients
1 avocado
10 strawberries
½ cup sliced almonds
1 romaine heart
Dressing Ingredients
1 TBSP maple syrup
2 TBSP olive oil
1 TBSP cider vinegar
1 tsp lemon juice

Instructions

Chop or rip the lettuce into bite sized chunks. If you are chopping, using a non-metalic knife will prevent it from browning.
Cut the strawberries into quarters.
Cut the avocado in half lengthwise. Pop out the pit and score the flesh of the avocado into squares. Use a spoon to scoop them out.
Mix the dressing ingredients together by either shaking well in a small container with a lid or whisking them in a small bowl until well combined.
Layer the salad with the lettuce on the bottom, then the avocado and strawberries and top with the almonds. Drizzle some dressing over the salad.

Did They Eat It?

Gordie (4 years): Acted like I was trying to feed him live grasshoppers. He refused to try it.

Nicky (15 months): enjoyed the strawberries and avocado

Stephen: It was good.

Dana: I really loved this salad. It was refreshing and sweet. Stephen didn’t finish his half, so I finished it for him.

Salad #20 – Watermelon Salad with a Sesame Ginger Dressing

June 16, 2013 by danawyyc 1 Comment

My husband has been suggesting that I make a watermelon salad for a couple months. I don’t recall ever having one before but I thought I would give it a try now that watermelons are in season. It turned out even better than I expected. This would make a nice fresh salad for a BBQ. If you doubled the recipe, it would be great for a crowd too.

Watermelon Salad with Sesame Ginger Dressing

(Adapted from Hola Jalapeno’s Watermelon and Apricot Salad)

Salad #20 - Watermelon Salad with a Sesame Ginger Dressing

Ingredients

Salad Ingredients
2 lbs seedless watermelon cut into bite sized chunks (about ½ a small watermelon)
10 or so large strawberries sliced
2 medium sized red peppers chopped into chunks
leaves from a few sprigs of basil and cilantro, chopped
Dressing Ingredients
2 TBSP honey
3 TBSP white wine vinegar
2 tsp grated fresh ginger
½ tsp salt
¼ tsp cayenne pepper
6 TBSP extra virgin olive oil
2-3 tsp toasted sesame seeds
½ tsp toasted sesame oil

Instructions

Add together dressing ingredients and shake well in a small container with a lid or a whisk in a small bowl until well mixed. If you are worried about the sharpness of the ginger you can saute it in a bit of oil before adding it to the dressing.
In a large bowl mix the salad ingredients together and toss with the dressing.

Variations

try mint instead of cilantro
swap the red pepper for cucumber or tomatoes
swap the strawberries for apricots or other juicy fruit.

Did They Eat It?

Gordie (4 years old): Tried a couple pieces with dressing and proclaimed it terrible. (But he did try it….)

Nicky (15 months) : Thought it was great.

Anne: Delicious! Totally great.

Bronwen: I’d never put these ingredients together. What a perfect salad.

Stephen: Good. tasty.

Rob: Really good. Random things but it really works together. You don’t think of fruit and vegetables together.

Dana: This has been one of my favorite salads. I would absolutely make it again.

What’s your favorite salad that mixes fruits and vegetables?

The Canadian Food Experience Project – Slumgullion

June 13, 2013 by danawyyc 13 Comments

My First Authentic Canadian Food Experience

When I first heard about The Canadian Food Experience Project I thought it was a really cool idea and I signed up to be a part of it. And then I immediately had regrets. It is really hard to identify Canadian foods, and it is even harder to find Canadian foods that I identify with. Beaver Tails may be a great example of Canadian food, but I’ve never had one. That’s one of the things that this project hopes to accomplish – a greater clarity of what Canadian food is.

The topic of the first challenge was our first Authentic Canadian Food Experience. I have definitely had some unquestionably Canadian foods – ginger beef, tourtiere, butter tarts, nanaimo bars, maple syrup. I also had quite a bit of game meat growing up, which is pretty Canadian too. But I was at a loss for what my first experience would have been.I didn’t grow up immersed in what I would call Authentic Canadian food. My Dad is from Denmark, so there was a definite Danish influence, and we also relied on a fair bit of simple meals and convenience food. My Mom had 3 kids under 3, one of which had special needs – she did not have time for daily gourmet meals.

I thought back to some of those simple meals I had growing up, and one of them stood out. It’s so simple it’s barely a recipe, and there wasn’t a time it wasn’t part of my food experience. My Mom called it Slumgullion and it was a recipe her Mom made when she was a kid too. Slumgullion basically means a cheap stew. The origins of the term are a little vague, but appear to originate in the United States. My mother’s family has a long history in Alberta, but my grandmother’s father was from Iowa so I thought maybe that’s where the term came from. When I asked her though, she said she thought the kids made it up. So who knows.

Like any dish that is basically cheap ingredients thrown together, (stews, hash, chilli) the recipe is going to vary regionally based on what’s readily available and economical. In Alberta, wheat, inexpensive cuts of beef and canned vegetables are a pretty good bet.

My mom made Slumgullion frequently when I was growing up, and now it is a comfort food for me. I make it when I am low on groceries, time or give a damn but want to serve something I can still feel good about. My mom used elbow macaroni, whole canned tomatoes and ground beef. My grandmother also used ground beef, but my mom remembers she used a lot less to keep the costs down. She also sautéed some onion along with it. Mine has evolved a bit to include whole wheat macaroni and diced tomatoes. I’ve experimented with other kinds of noodles, but nothing is as good as the macaroni, you need the hollow space in the macaroni for the tomato juice to slip into.

Prairie Slumgullion

4.0 from 1 reviews

The Canadian Food Experience Project - Slumgullion

Ingredients

.5-1 lb ground beef
1 package whole wheat macaroni
1 large can diced tomatoes
salt and pepper

Instructions

Cook macaroni according to package instructions.
Meanwhile cook and drain the ground beef. (I usually have some that I have previously cooked and frozen so I can just throw it into this dish or pasta sauce.)
Mix together the ground beef, macaroni, canned tomatoes (undrained) and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
Best served fresh at room temperature.

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Food

Chopped Garden Salad with Herb Dressing

Did They Eat It?

Fresh and Easy Pasta Salad

Variations

Did They Eat It?

Zucchini Ribbon Salad with Prosciutto and Almonds

Did They Eat It?

Summertime Barbecue Beef on a Bun

Grilled Vegetable Salad

Did They Eat It?

Strawberry Avocado Salad with a Maple Dressing

Did They Eat It?

Watermelon Salad with Sesame Ginger Dressing

Variations

Did They Eat It?

My First Authentic Canadian Food Experience

Prairie Slumgullion

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