5-Fruit Martini
Beverages are Levi’s speciality. He loves to experiment. He’ll try a drink in a restaurant and want to improve on it or try it at home. He is a hardcore mixologist. You should see our liquor cabinet.
He decided to name this one 5-Fruit Martini. Saying there’s 5 fruits in here may be a stretch since they aren’t fresh fruits that are pureed – so don’t think you’re getting some sort of smoothie or something. But humour him and enjoy at the same time!
This recipe makes 3 martinis:
- 1/2 oz. Triple Sec
- 3 oz. Vodka
- 3 oz. Peach Schnapps
- 7.5 oz. Sun Rype Apple, Orange, Peach juice
- 1 frozen whole strawberry
- grenadine
Shake liquor and juice with ice in a cocktail shaker. Pour into martini glass. Drizzle in grenadine for slight red color at the bottom. Gently drop in frozen strawberry. Let sit for a few minutes to allow strawberry to cool drink and thaw slightly.
Here’s a gorgeous picture for you:
5 Fruit Martini
You may ask how is it possible that there are 5 fruits? Well, apple, orange, peach (from the juice), pomegranate (grenadine), and the frozen strawberry. If you want to get real technical then I am sure there is extra citrus notes in the Triple Sec…but let’s not.
And another angle:
5 Fruit Martini
Spicy Curry & Tandoori
Okay so I made an awesome dinner tonight. I don’t want to brag but … yeah it was awesome.
I made Tandoori Tikka Chicken and Cauliflower Curry. I took pictures and want to share the recipes with you now. These recipes come from a cookbook that was given to my mother from a friend. It’s called ‘Calorie Kitchen: Simply Saffron A Taste of India’.
Tandoori-Tikka Chicken
- 3 chicken breasts, boneless skinless, cut in half
- 1 cup yogurt
- 1 small can tomato paste
- 1 cup chopped fresh coriander
- 1 Tbsp lemon juice
- 1/2 tsp. garam masala
- 1 tsp. salt
- 1 tsp. coriander-cumin powder
- 1/4 tsp. turmeric
- 1 tsp. red chili powder
- 1 tsp. garlic paste
- 1 tsp. ginger paste
Cominbe all ingredients except chicken and mix well. Pierce the surface of the chicken and dip in the mixture, coating well. Marinate overnight in the fridge. Remove chicken from fridge 1 hour prior to cooking.
Preheat the oven to 360F. Arrange chicken pieces on a flat oven tray and broil, uncovered, for 60 minutes or until chicken is cooked and turning crispy. Discard marinade.
My variation: I just poured the marinade over the chicken and stirred it all around, rather than dipping each piece. Time saver. Also, I preheated the oven to 360F as indicated, then cranked it up to ‘Broil’ setting on my oven. I broiled the chicken for maybe 20 minutes per side, till cooked through and browning.
Tandoori-Tikka Chicken and Cauliflower Curry
Cauliflower Curry
- 6 cups cut-up cauliflower
- 2 medium tomatoes, diced finely
- 1 green chili, sliced lengthwise into 2
- 2 Tbsp. fresh chopped coriander
- 1/4 tsp. red chili powder
- 1 tsp. salt
- 1/2 tsp. black mustard seeds
- 1/4 tsp. fenugreek seeds
- 1/2 tsp. coriander-cumin powder
- 1/8 tsp. turmeric
- 1 tsp. canola oil
- 1 tsp. garlic paste
Heat oil in medium saucepan and add mustard seeds, fenugreek seeds, and sliced chili. Cover and cook on high for 1 minute until seeds start to pop. Do not burn.
Remove from heat to reduce splattering and add tomatoes, cumin, red chili, and garlic. Reduce heat to medium and return pan to heat. Cover and cook masal for 7-10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Add cauliflower, 1/4 cup water, and chopped coriander. Cover and cook, stirring occasionally, for 15 minutes until cauliflower is tender yet firm. Adjust water to desired consistency.
Video Hosts
I think I’ve found the video host I am going to use for my upcoming video blogging entries. I’ve already run a test on the webcam – and promptly deleted it (bad hair day, thankyouverymuch) – and I am so far very impressed with Viddler.com.
I am looking forward to starting out with some simple video posts shortly.
Root Beer
A&W Root Beer
A&W Root Beer
Mug Root Beer
Mug Root Beer
Barq’s Root Beer
Barq's Root Beer
Dad’s Root Beer
Dad's Root Beer
Let me know…
New Countertops
One of the cool aspects of renting is that any time improvements need to be made, we don’t have to pay for them. Not so cool aspect of course is getting the building managers to actually do the improvements. Luckily for us, we only have to beg for about a year and then out of the blue they may or may not get taken care of.
For example, last summer in the heat of the summer my patio screen door broke. It didn’t just come off the track, but it simply would not fit on the track anymore because of the way the building had shifted. I sent a note to our building manager who said she’d send someone up to fix it right away. It was fixed the following February. I am not exaggerating.
Two years ago my husband, the plumber, noticed something was up with the faucets in the kitchen and bathroom. Since he is not the contracted plumber for this building he is not allowed to fix stuff in our suite. That’s fine. Let someone else do the dirty work, right? Well, the plumber came and replaced our faucets in the kitchen and bathroom sink, and tightened up the tub faucet. It only took him like 3 months to make it to our suite to do the repairs. Of course, the kitchen faucet is still loose and every time I turn the hot water on or off the entire faucet shifts a good two inches. So, the contractor came by and decided that it was time to replace the counter tops, since they were rotting away underneath the sink where the faucets attach, causing them to move so much.
One year later a carpenter came by to measure for counter tops. Two months later, today, they are here installing them. It caught me off guard, I didn’t expect them today. I had to clear out all my cupboards and countertops in 5 minutes. I haven’t even gotten a close look at the countertops yet. I am sure they will be neutral and boring. That’s fine by me. I didn’t pay for them so I don’t really get a say now do I.
When the guy is all done and I have put everything back where it belongs, I’ll take a picture and add it to the post.
Yay to the new countertops…for my humble little kitchen.
Raina’s Bistro in Vernon, BC
OK I must eat out far too often. All it ever seems like I post here are restaurant reviews lately. Sometimes it’s a pain to think of what to make for lunch right? Anyways, don’t judge me.
Today I was going to reheat some leftover tasty ribby goodness but instead decided to get out of the house for a bit. Not sure what I wanted I thought of a new place in town … where one of my old favorites used to live – Bagel Lane. This new place is called Raina’s Bistro.
But, this isn’t meant to be a reminiscent journey of delicious bagels and good memories. My brother was one of the bakers at Bagel Lane, back when it was opened by the Lane’s. Ahh the good old days. Bagels and scones.
I went to Raina’s Bistro to see what was new, to see if they kept some of the old stuff, and just to give it a good old-fashioned try.
I was happy to see the place had been spruced up, including the addition of brighter mood lights and a fresher color on the walls. They also sported a new counter top and display case set up. New professionally printed menus hung on the walls. First impressions walking in – Raina’s Bistro is a fresh clean and healthy cafe.
I have to be honest though I wasn’t too impressed with the selection of food available. The sign indicates it’s a bistro – and also a coffee and tea house. But there were far more tea and coffee selections on the menu rather than any food items.
More disappointingly, it was evident that most of the baked goodies that were in the display case were not fresh-baked at Raina’s Bistro, but were of the M&M Meat Shop variety. Not that those types of squares and desserts aren’t tasty…they just aren’t really home made, which is what you’d expect in a bistro. (I do realize that Bagel Lane also sold these goodies but … somehow I didn’t expect Bagel Lane to bake fresh bagels PLUS a whole host of sweets.)
The selection for lunch items was truly so limited I almost contemplated walking out. The girl behind the counter told me that if I was looking for lunch they had a tuna panini or a turkey panini on special for $4.75. Sure, why not?
I never got a look at the panini before it went in the panini press, but had I seen it I would probably have passed up on it and went with one of the pre-made wraps instead. It wasn’t until I arrived home with my food that I realized that the only thing that my turkey panini contained was bread, turkey, mushy tomato, cheese, and overkill on mayo. No real veggies, no real flavor. One bonus to my panini? The ciabatta bread was nice and crunchy and tasty. Would have made an awesome garlic bread type panini base.
I don’t want to write Raina’s Bistro off completely yet. I see that they have a few bagels that resemble the Bagel Lane bagels (assume they got those recipes when they bought the business), and they do have the raspberry white chocolate scones. I also noticed that ‘by popular demand’ they brought back the Eggers (bagel sandwich with egg – like an omelet inside a bagel).
It’s not fair for me (and likely countless other loyal patrons of Bagel Lane) to compare Raina’s Bistro to the old standard. It’s probably also not really fair to Raina or whoever the owners are to feel pressured to measure up and keep the old Bagel Lane traditions and specials alive. I really hope that they are able to set themselves apart and create their own identity. I imagine it can be hard when you have such big shoes to fill and the business you bought had such a loyal following before.
I will go back to Raina’s Bistro. I will try other things there. I am especially interested in their wide variety of loose leaf teas. I guess what myself and others need to get through our heads is that Raina’s Bistro is more of a coffee/tea shop, not a sandwich/lunch shop. It’s hard to do that with ‘Bistro’ in the name, but eventually people will catch on and maybe won’t expect quality food so much as a quality beverage.
I wish Raina’s Bistro success in their first year of business in Vernon.
107 – 5301 25th Ave., Vernon, BC V1T 9R1
(couldn’t find a phone number, sorry)
Kelly O’Bryan’s – After 9 Good, Before 9 Bad
Their slogan is ‘Eat, Drink, and Be Irish’. If being Irish means that you either don’t get what you ordered – 3 times – or what they bring you tastes sour, and that your drinks take 30 minutes to arrive, then you can totally ‘Be Irish’ at Kelly O’Bryans in Vernon.
I have been to Kelly O’Bryans many times throughout my youth and into adulthood. I have never once in my entire life eaten a meal at Kelly O’Bryans, however. We have only ever been to Kelly O’s after 9 pm, when their ‘Blarney Time’ starts. Blarney Time used to be 2 for 1 Appies after 9pm every day. Then recently they changed it to 2 for $10 Appies at 9pm. Their appies are the standard pub food variety, with the addition of their famous Pachos – lattice cut fries topped with melted cheese and green onions, then served with their own special Emerald Isle dipping sauce.
Yesterday was a beautiful spring day. We had plans to attend a local hockey playoff game and have dinner first. I was going to cook dinner and have our friends over, and in fact did most of the prep work for my dinner when I realized this spring day could not be wasted sitting in our apartment. I wanted to sit on a patio. We tried to think of a patio nearby the hockey game so that if it was busy and ran late we wouldn’t be too late for the game. Kelly O’Bryans was a natural choice being only 2 blocks from the arena and the right angle of sunlight on their patio. Considering we had always enjoyed Blarney Time at Kelly O’s in the past, we were sure we would enjoy a meal there too.
Because we knew it was the first real ‘hot’ day of spring the patio was likely going to be full, we reserved a table for four. When we arrived, there was no table reserved for us. Only a large table for 10 for a birthday party. Luckily they had just finished clearing another table for us so we could still sit on the patio.
Our waitress delivered menus and when we requested it, brought their allergen book listing off what dishes had what allergens, including gluten, in it. Very handy. We made our orders, she repeated them back to us, and we ordered our drinks.
I don’t want to solely blame our waitress for our poor experience at Kelly O’s last night. She had quite a few tables of four or six, plus that large table for 10. I know, from being a waitress in the past, that you try to ‘work’ the big tables because you are more likely to get a larger tip. If that’s the case and she isn’t able to handle all of her smaller tables and the big one, she should have given up some of her smaller tables – like ours.
She was more concerned about taking drink orders and meal orders for that table than bringing us our beverages. I mean all we ordered was pop. Two of us received our drinks almost right away but for Levi and I, we didn’t get our drinks until our food arrived, 40 minutes later.
Our friend ordered one of the simplest meals on the menu – chicken fingers and fries. If you can believe it, they still got the order wrong – three times! First, they brought her the chicken fingers coated in hot sauce or “tossed in hell”, and no fries at all, just a plate of drenched-in-hot-sauce chicken fingers. Then another waitress brought out her fries, but they were made into Pachos, so smothered in cheese and onions, which is not what she ordered. So at this time, our friend said to the waitress ‘This isn’t what I ordered’ and she says ‘Well that’s what was written on your ticket’.
Excuse me?
Are you implying we are lying to you about what we KNOW we ordered?
I don’t care what is written on the ticket, clearly it’s written wrong if we are telling you it’s NOT what we ordered. Her attitude was really rank – and judging by her outfit I suspect she may have been a shift manager or supervisor too.
So, the waitress took back all of our friend’s food and said she’d put a rush on it. About 5 minutes later another waitress walks towards us with plain fries and chicken fingers … the same chicken fingers that were coated in hot sauce – again. The supervisor waitress stopped her before she reached our table, grabbed the chicken fingers and took them back to the kitchen. They delivered our friend’s fries without any chicken fingers. Another 10 minutes goes by, and she’s eaten just fries at this point, and her chicken fingers arrive – dry, no hot sauce, yay, but without the correct side dipping sauce. So the waitress goes back to get her the correct flavor of dipping sauce and it takes literally another 5 or 10 minutes to even get that.
Meanwhile, amidst that whole fiasco, the rest of us had already received our food and started eating. I started on my side Caesar – which is like many restaurants – wilty and bland. Fine, whatever. The garlic toast was awesome – it was a huge slab of bread with this Irish Whisky garlic butter on it. Then I sampled my pasta dish. The pasta was fine – cooked just right. The sauce was unique – not my favorite but definitely tasty. Then I sampled the chunks of chicken nestled in the pasta. It was the most rank flavor I have ever had on chicken. It tasted … for lack of a better word … sour. I thought maybe it was just a piece that had been over-seasoned so I tried another piece. Still sour. In total I had about 4 tiny bites (I mean 1 penne noodle at a time, and 1 piece of chicken at a time) and knew there was something completely off with my food.
Because of the whole chicken finger fiasco other tables around us were staring. I was totally mortified to have to flag down our waitress and tell her to come closer so I could discreetly tell her that something was off with my food. I am not a complainer, but I refuse to pay $18 for a pasta dish that tasted so terrible. She was very understanding and said she’d take it off our bill right away, and would I like something else instead. I was so done with Kelly O’s plus, we had to get to our game, so I said no.
After our friend finally was able to eat – a whole 20-30 minutes after the rest of us either had our food taken away or had cleaned our plates – we were ready to go.
Our waitress did discount our friend’s meal for the mistake she admitted she clearly made on her own. She also expressed that she felt bad for our experience and would love to make it up to us by a dessert on her. We all said no. It was a nice gesture and it was appreciated, but we simply had no time now that our meal took close to 2 hours to just eat.
So here’s my impressions…if you want to go for some tasty snacky appetizers somewhere in Vernon, after 9 pm that is inexpensive, then go to Kelly O’Bryans. If you want really good food, a meal, for a decent price ($14 for chicken fingers and fries is not a good price IMHO)…and great service, don’t go before 9 pm.
Kelly O’Bryan’s – Vernon location
Address: 4215 32nd St
Phone: (250) 549-2112
On a slightly more funny/lame note, I found this on their website…hope your ears don’t bleed too much.
Enchiladas Verdes
I love salsa verde. I love it hot, I love it cold. I love tomatillos. It’s amazing that up until now I’ve never taken the opportunity to actually work with tomatillos in recipes. Well, that all changed. I decided to make enchiladas verdes from a recipe I found online at AllRecipes.com.
Mine turned out different than the pictures from the website. I think it’s because I chose to wrap mine in a baking dish, spoon the remaining salsa verde, add the remaining onions and cheese then broil to melt. Then I sprinkled with cilantro.
Overall, the result was amazazing. Except, the bottoms of the enchiladas did get a tad bit soggy. So…I tried again a week or so later. Same problem, even after crisping up the tortillas even longer. I guess that’s why the recipe suggested making 3 per person right on their plates… I still liked having them in a baking dish, and I don’t mind them being a bit soggy, they are kind of messy to begin with.
Here’s my Enchiladas Verdes:
slightly spicy, tangy from the tomatillos, and so tasty
The Tasty Food Blog 