Road and trail running, road and mountain biking, climbing, hiking, kayaking, and the list goes on. Activities in Canmore are endless and it is paradise for athletes and the outdoors folk. The snow is slowly creeping down the mountains signaling the beginning of winter, which lasts most of the year! Luckily I have been working hard to get the proper gear to have fun in the snow. Finding a balance to the cold is easily done in the kitchen, so part of the day is spent cooking up some savory and warm dishes.
I think of myself as a stay-at-home boyfriend right now. Cooking, cleaning, organizing, shopping, job searching, and did I mention cooking? I am fortunate to be surrounded by family that loves and savors gastronomic experiences. Of course I am no michelin starred chef, but creating and playing in the kitchen has a place in my heart; a labor of love. We recently had our Canadian Thanksgiving and I was in charge. Slow roasted turkey, candied yams and pecans, brussels sprouts with sage brown butter, spinach pear and goat cheese salad, port and orange cranberry sauce, mashed potatoes, gravy, and of course the pumpkin pies. Good food, good drink, good family and friends with a lot of laughter made for a wonderful night.
There is typically a pre-Thanksgiving meal, so the night before we gathered with some family and a few good friends. You can guess who was in charge of the meal! Luckily we had someone bring a salad and cheese plate. My menu consisted of organic truffle polenta, grilled vegetables with a balsamic reduction, oven-roasted dill and lemon chinook salmon, and a homemade apple crisp with ice cream. The previous week we bought two cases of apples at the market, so we had stewed apples, apple sauce and apple crisp coming out of our ears. Everything I make now is gluten-free due to Sabrina and her mother being celiacs. I have had great success in the past with gluten-free cooking, so I felt well prepared for when I moved in with Sabrina.
Last night we had a kale and swiss chard vegetable soup made with turkey stock, smokey paprika and dill frittata with zucchini and onions, caprese salad, and some more apple crisp with freshly whipped cream for dessert. Well, I think my travel blog just morphed into a food blog, with which I have no problem! Time to fuel up a bit more before tackling the day, but I will leave you with photographic evidence of a great European daily foundation! The photo was taken at the Hotel a la Ville de Lyon in Rouffach, France, which is a small town in the Alsace region. Enjoy and thanks for reading!
