Category: International meals

As some of our followers already know this blog is dedicated to the memory of Bruce Kirkpatrick Hill, whose passing away over two years ago, became the unlikely catalyst of Monday Night Dining and now this blog. As Bruce was a major influence in my musical pedagogy and  development,  I had another influence in my culinary and gastronomic journey. Over twenty years ago I worked in a family run Greek restaurant, which was the genesis of my fascination with food and its preparation. I witnessed first hand the importance of quality ingredients and the respectful ritual of turning them into a simple and delicious meal. read more

As you may know this blog is dedicated to the memory of Bruce Kirkpatrick Hill, who inspired so many people and mentored many more. One such is our guest this week, Kathy H, so it is only fitting that this Monday Night dinner, the theme was Italian, in honour of Bruce who loved Italian food, music, wine, and its culture and made several trips to Italy with his wife, Stephanie.We were dining at Steph’s and it looks like the weather will not cooperate again this Monday, but Dave is undeterred and the main meal will be cooked on the BBQ while Shawn cooks the side dishes indoors. read more

So after a brief sabbatical, while Steph was off out west, plotting with the Elgar Society, we are all back together for Monday Night Dining….  But it’s Tuesday???  Like the dates in the paschal cycle, Monday night dining is a moveable feast.  So let’s get moving.

We were up north, while planning dinner and what do we find in the freezer? A beautiful filet of grouper that we purchased a few weeks ago. I do love my Foodsaver vacuum sealer.  One of our favorite ways to cook grouper is mexican style, so we had a theme. As it turns out our friend Tina was going to be in town, so we also had the guest list.  The day was one of those on again off again days, weather-wise.  I did get a message from Steph saying that things had cleared up and we would be dining outside. By the time our prep was done, it was a whole different story.  Low green sky and huge wind gusts.  As I got the barbecue lit, the sky opened up.  What’s a little rain compared with Monday Night Dining though?  We’ve cooked in worse (one day I will regale you with the tale of the turkey). We found out later that the town of Angus was hit with a tornado that night. So maybe this is the worst weather we have cooked in…. read more

Deciding what to serve for Monday Night Dining this week gave us some qualms.  We talked over a few options and then out of the blue I blurt out “let’s do something they won’t expect…..  Like pizzas!”  Let’s just say the response did not have the enthusiasm that I was hoping for. We went back and forth on ideas, but were not getting a cohesive plan.  Then Shawn said “let’s do french.”  Now I love french food, but I had pizza on the brain….  Then Shawn found an Alsatian pizza recipe.  Suddenly we had a plan. read more

Monday May 26, 2014 After a brief break from Monday Night Dining, for vacation, we decided on a Spanish theme this week. Guests include our regular trio, John (an old friend of Steph’s), Trish and Merry-Anne.  When we arrived to prep, we are greeted by a rather large and appealing jug of Sangria, with lots of boozy fruit!!  The weather is gorgeous, so we are eating al fresco. I suggested that we not overdo the tapas course, otherwise nobody would have interest in the rest of the meal, so we managed to whittle it down to: Spanish Tomato Bread with Jamon Serrano read more

I seem to be blogging backwards here….  I started with the most recent Monday night dinner, but wanted to review a few from the past.

April 28th, 2014:

After having just performed 2 shows of Passion and Peace with Pax Christi Chorale, featuring True North Brass, our season is over and MondayNightDining can be a more relaxed affair for a few months.  No time constraints, except bedtime and a larger choice of venues.  This week it’s off to Steph’s house, for an Indian Dinner.  Shawn and I prepped on Sunday and I did not realize how out of control we were getting until I attempted to lift the cooler.  Instead of going to the gym, I should just lift that thing in the mornings.  Guests tonight are Jake and Mathew, two recent graduates, one of whom sang beside me for my big debut! While we got the food ready for the table, the two young men discussed business ideas. I think they really have something there. read more

My first real food post represents a few new starts for me. Cinco de Mayo is a rather misunderstood day, and in Mexico is not a very important day, but north of the border we have embraced it, especially me. I have told the story many times of being in Larado Texas one Cinco de Mayo, quite a few years ago. Things looked rather festive and I was in the mood for some good eats. I asked some of the people I was working with and they told me about a popular spot. It had neon flamingos on the sign, so instead I asked “where do you eat, when you want a good mexican meal?” I ended up driving a bit out-of-town and turned down the lane of little farmhouse. No sign, so I knocked tentatively. A lovely little round woman opened the door and welcomed me in with a smile that lit up the room. The living and dining rooms were setup with tables. There were no menus. When it was clear that I had no idea what to ask for, she just said “OK. I will bring you some things to try.” I have no idea of the names of most of the dishes that I had, but it was one of the most memorable meals of my life. As the place filled up, the atmosphere was almost familial. Being the outsider, almost everyone spoke to me. I was on the road for a couple of months on that trip and overall people were friendly, but this was the only time I felt at home. This however is only one piece of why I like Cinco de Mayo…. The rest I will save for another time. read more