October 2019 - West Coast Food

Sweets October 30, 2019

Be a Kid Again with these Nostalgic Treats in Metro Vancouver

Bu Sonu Purhar You might have passed your trick-or-treating prime, but that doesn’t mean your sweet tooth should be neglected! Amid the stresses of adulting, nothing catapults us back to simpler times than tasty treats that evoke fond memories of our youth. So, next time you’re faced with a hard day, head to one of these seven candy emporiums and treat yourself to your favourite childhood delight. Happy Halloween! Charlie’s Chocolate Factory 3746 Canada Way, Burnaby Owned and operated by the infamous Charlie and his family, this chocolate emporium’s flagship is located in Burnaby, with a satellite store in Port Coquitlam. The main store boasts a magical chocolate river that would make Willy Wonka proud, as well as chocolate fountain rentals, seasonal goodies and legacy candies like twist suckers, caramel apples, conversation hearts and more. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Charlies Chocolate Factory (@charlieschocolates)…

Recipes October 29, 2019

Recipe: Stout Braised Beef Pot Roast with Creamy Mushroom Sauce

By Trading Post Brewery The stout braised beef recipe is perfect for the cold weather. Trading Post’s Three Bears Stout adds boldness and depth to the dish. At the restaurant, the chef uses 63 Acres Beef, but you can find a high-quality blade roast from your local butcher. The blade roast has a good amount of marbling and connective tissue so it also adds richness and flavour to the sauce but can also be substituted for a leaner cut like a chuck tender roast. Serves 4-6 people INGREDIENTS Blade Roast (1.5kg) Kosher Salt Cracked Black Pepper All-Purpose Flour (60g) Canola Oil Garlic (5 cloves) Onion (1 medium-sized) Carrots (2) Leek (1) Bay leaf, preferably fresh (1) Rosemary sprigs (2) Tomato paste (2 tbsp) Trading Post Three Bears Stout (150 ml) Beef stock (1 L) Butter (100 g) Shitake mushrooms, sliced (200 g) Button mushrooms, sliced (200 g) Whipping cream (200…

Wineries October 25, 2019

Fall and Winter Wines from Vancouver that will Warm You from the Inside

By Gail Johnson It’s easy to find a reason to sip any kind of wine at any time of year, but fall and winter call for varieties that invite you in, to gather with kin and get cozy. Metro Vancouver wineries have several selections that would do quite nicely when the weather outside is frightful. Here are a few to consider the next time you’re pouring a glass in the great indoors. Cavallo Winery 150 – 19288 22nd Avenue, Surrey Cavallo’s wines are produced from select vineyards in California, including some Napa Valley standouts. When the weather starts to cool down but isn’t quite yet bracingly cold, Chardonnay and Pinot Noir are ideal, says tasting room manager Luke Barker. Cavallo Chardonnay: Made from premium Chardonnay grapes sourced from Napa’s Beckstoffer Carneros Lake Vineyard, the wine is full-bodied, rich, and complex with hints of pineapple, citrus, and mango alongside vanilla, baking…

Promoted Feature October 22, 2019

Fresh Summer Fruits Baked into Fall Indulgences with Chef Shaun Maclean of H Tasting Lounge

By Jenni Sheppard It’s been a delicious summer in Vancouver, full of hearty beach barbecues, thirst-quenching patio cocktails, and tasty farmer’s markets bursting with fresh fruit and vegetables. Now, as glorious summer sunshine fades into refreshing fall rain, we’re looking for ways to keep those seasonal flavours lingering on our taste buds a little longer. For inspiration, we spoke to Chef Shaun Maclean at H Tasting Lounge about his love of desserts, summer in the city, and how his new galette could make summer last all year. What was the first dessert you ever created and why? My mother has always had a love for a good cheesecake, so that was the first thing I made sure I knew how to do well. What do you love most about creating desserts? It’s the final dish to hit the table. Like the encore of a concert, it has to be a…

Recipes October 22, 2019

Recipe: Cherry Galette

By Chef Shaun Maclean of H Tasting Lounge H Tasting Lounge plans to stretch out the summer by serving this mouthwatering dessert that features cherries (a summertime staple) and a heaping scoop of your Uno Gelato flavour of choice. Read more here. INGREDIENTS Filling Cherries (400g, pitted) Lemon juice (1 tbsp) Sugar (100g) Salt (½ tsp) Tapioca starch (20g) Dough Cold butter (1lb, cut into small cubes) Sugar (½ cup) Vanilla (¼ tsp) Salt (¼ tsp) Flour (4 cups) White wine (½ cup, cold) Frangipane Butter (¼ lb, room temp Sugar (¼ lb) Almond flour (¼ lb) Salt (¼ tsp) Vanilla (¼ tsp) Eggs (2) Flour (¼ cup) INSTRUCTIONS Filling Combine all ingredients in a pot, bring to a simmer for 15 minutes, cool, and set aside. Dough 1. Add all ingredients (except the wine) into a mixer bowl, turn paddle on low until the butter is broken up into…

Farms October 21, 2019

Picking the Perfect Pumpkin

Heading out to the pumpkin patch to pick the perfect future Jack O’ Lantern is one of those special traditions that kids of all ages look forward to. From getting your hands dirty on the field, with pumpkin muck, and finally with salt from roasted seeds, it feels thoroughly of autumn. When taking a trip out to a local farm to pick out your family’s pumpkins here are some helpful tips: Don’t pick your pumpkins too early in the season. If you pick them too soon they will be piles of mush long before you can take a knife to them or they will just be too soft to carve. Try to head to the pumpkin patch during “non-peak” times like mid-afternoon during the week to avoid crowds if you can. Don’t always go for the perfectly round. Sometimes the flawed, lopsided or puckered pumpkins make for carved faces with the…

Recipes October 16, 2019

Recipe: Butternut Squash Risotto

By Amaranthus Executive Chef, Sam Fabbro This recipe is great for fall or winter with rich comforting flavours. It is a vegetarian dish and can be made vegan with by replacing the butter with olive oil and omitting the cheese. INGREDIENTS Butternut squash (1 small) Butter (3 tbsp) White onion (¼, or half of a small onion) Garlic (2 cloves) Dry white wine (65 ml) Vegetable stock (375 ml) Arborio rice (2/3 cup) Salt & pepper Grana Padano to garnish INSTRUCTIONS Cut squash in half, remove seeds, drizzle with olive oil, season with salt and pepper, place skin up on a sheet tray with parchment. Roast for 20 minutes at 400 degrees. (You will only need one half for this recipe, so you can roast both halves and use the other half for another recipe or just roast one.) Cool slightly, scrape out the flesh of the squash and puree until…

Craft Beer October 14, 2019

Autumn Beer on Vancouver’s North Shore

By Kristi Alexandra Exciting things are brewing on the North Shore, which is soon-to-be Metro Vancouver’s second largest hub for craft beer. Earlier this year, the City of North Vancouver agreed to explore zoning bylaw changes that would make room for more breweries to open up in the area, and it’s giving beer enthusiasts something to look forward to this fall. We spoke to some of the breweries to find out what’s on tap this autumn. Beere Brewing Co. 312 Esplanade E, North Vancouver The star of Beere’s autumn season is their Cold Brew, a full-bodied, coffee-forward stout. At 5.4 per cent ABV, Cold Brew is full of flaked oats, barley, and tasty dark malts. It boasts notes of rich chocolate, smooth cold brew coffee (aptly so), roasted barley, and a hint of citrus. This treat for the tastebuds pays homage to its North Shore roots by using beans from…

Farms October 13, 2019

Mini Road Trip: Langley’s Pumpkin Patches & Corn Mazes

By Catherine Dunwoody Hop in your vehicles for a lazy, autumn drive through Langley in BC’s Fraser Valley to discover the prettiest pumpkin patches and most amazing mazes – of corn that is. The fall season in all its colourful glory makes for a lovely road trip, so load up the car with the family and make a day of it. Your first stop, near the Canadian border, is the city of Langley, where you’ll want to pull over to visit Eagle Acres. For the past 20 years this family-owned farm has grown to a whopping 20 acres of pumpkin patches growing 15 varieties, and 5 acres of animal displays in the barns and outside in pens – ideal for inquisitive city kids. The Pumpkin Patch is open daily from October 1 – 31, with covered hayrides out to the pumpkin patch to find that perfect Halloween jack-o-lantern, and included…

Where to Eat October 10, 2019

Where to Dine on Local Harvest Pumpkin in Metro Vancouver

By Gail Johnson With pumpkin season upon us, you’ll find the bright-orange orbs everywhere these days—from patches to farmers markets to front steps. Most often, they’re used for harvest and Halloween décor, placed beside hay bales and dried corn husks or carved with all sorts of grimaces. For chefs, however, the fruit are a flavourful ingredient and seasonal favourite. Here are a few spots serving up delectable pumpkin dishes this fall. Amaranthus 112 – 810 Quayside Drive, New Westminster The plant-forward eatery in the River Market has cooked up a pumpkin risotto made with butternut squash, a cool-weather comfort dish. Garnished with fried sage for an earthy, herbal tone it comes topped with shaved Grana Padano or can be made vegan with a house-infused charred onion oil. The Pear Tree 4120 Hastings Street, Burnaby Headed by husband-and-wife duo Scott and Stephanie Jaeger, the Pear Tree is a B.C. gem, having…

Craft Beer October 9, 2019

Autumn Beers in Vancouver

By Brittany Tiplady You know the drill around here, Autumn in Vancouver (or anywhere really) means ditching your summer gear for all the cozy stuff: scarves, thick socks, peacoats, and delicious, rich beer. But because Vancouver is overflowing with beer and brewery options, we’ve rounded up a bevvy of seasonal suggestions whether it’s for your fridge, or your next brewery crawl. Parallel 49 Brewing Company 1950 Triumph Street Lost Souls Chocolate Pumpkin Porter 6.5% “All treat, no trick: this rich, robust chocolate pumpkin porter is so good, even the living dead will indulge.” We warned you: there’s not escaping pumpkin flavoured beer during the autumn season. But pumpkin and chocolate? That’s sure to please even the pumpkin skeptics. The base of the Lost Souls Chocolate Pumpkin Porter is a hearty porter, enhanced with a generous addition of chocolate malts. Stanley Park Brewing 8901 Stanley Park Drive Layer Up Winter Wheat…

Craft Beer October 7, 2019

Autumn Beers from Surrey and White Rock

By Kristi Alexandra South of the Fraser, you’ll find local tasting rooms brewing up some serious flavours and suds over autumn. The season, of course, marks the return of pumpkin-spiced everything, but it also inspires creativity and a break from the norm. Find a few drinks below that’ll have you howling at the moon in Surrey and White Rock this fall. White Rock Beach Beer 15181 Russell Ave, White Rock While the near-beachside brewery may conjure up thoughts of eternal summer, you’ll find a brisk, if not refreshing, return to fall near the seashore. Drink up the spot’s Border beer, a Baltic-style porter that’s malty, clear, and has notes of chocolate. As they put it, this beer is “sure to warm you up on the coldest of days – or nights”. 3 Dogs Brewing 15222 North Bluff Road, White Rock At 3 Dogs Brewing, there are staples and there are…

Cocktails, Wines & Spirits October 3, 2019

Mixers and Elixirs Give Vancouver Fruit a New Life

By Kristi Alexandra Lauded for their great taste and health benefits, shrubs are having a day in the sun of late. Derived from the Arabic word sharâb, meaning “to drink,” shrubs are a drinking concentrate made with fruit and vinegar that complement alcoholic and booze-free beverages alike. So, if that sounds familiar, you may have spotted Heidi Kuhn of Mixers and Elixirs around Vancouver–perhaps at Olympic Village’s Fermentation Fest in previous years. Or, more recently, at local farmer’s markets (where you can find Mixers and Elixirs nearly every weekend). Kuhn, who owns and operates Mixers and Elixirs, produces small-batch shrubs made in Vancouver, harvesting local produce. “Shrubs work for people who drink alcohol…and people who don’t drink alcohol,” Kuhn explains to WestCoastFood, noting that you can mix it into a cocktail or drink it with a simple glass of soda water. “The magic of vinegar is that it preserves everything.…

Recipes October 1, 2019

Recipe: Beer Cheese Soup

By Trading Post Brewing Trading Post’s Beer Cheese Soup – a beer lover’s soup and a customer favourite. Not for the faint of heart, this is a bold soup, rich & creamy, perfect for the fall and pairs perfectly with Trading Post’s Amber Ale. Since they focus on local producers the ingredients include Birchwood Dairy’s cheddar cheese & cream, Johnston’s bacon and of course their own beer. Serves 4-6 people INGREDIENTS Butter (100 g) Onion, diced (1 medium) Carrot, peeled & diced (1) Leek, diced (1) Garlic, minced (4 cloves) Tabasco (2 dashes) Bay leaf (1) Thyme (1 sprig) Flour (120 g) Trading Post Amber Ale (400 ml) Chicken Stock (1L) Dry Mustard (1 tsp) Whipping cream (400 ml) Cheddar cheese, grated (400 g) S&P to taste – depending on the cheese & the stock used you may not have to add additional seasoning, so you should always season last.…