Last week Paul and I went to a cooking class put on by the LCBO. I used to write a lot about these but haven't recently - the truth was that we were getting a tad bored as the same chefs (to use the word was a stretch for some) were doing the same stuff all of the time and we got bored. We stopped going. When the winter catalogue came out it was full of interesting classes so we registered for 4! All of them feature unusual food or coking techniques that we are interested in (tonight we go to a Korean BBQ class).
Last week's class was by a couple who have started a food 'cart' business in Niagara - often theya re based at one of our favourite wineries - Flat Rock Cellars.
Tamara Jensen and Adam Hynam-Smith, are the owners of Peapod Cuisine. "We've been watching the increasing popularity in mobile street food in L.A. and across the States. We think the Canadian diner is ready for high-end fare served from the window of a kitchen on wheels, and we wanted to be the first to bring it to them" says Hynam-Smith, an Australian ex-pat and the Chef of El Gastró. “We use bold flavours and we’re inspired by food that people don’t normally expect to eat at a winery. ”Once people get past the shock of eating five spice pork belly or Moroccan lamb tagine, and they try it with it’s intended pairing, Flat Rock's 2008 Gravity Pinot Noir, I think they realize the pairing is a match made in heaven.”
Essentially this is what the class did - take us through some of their favourite menu items and pair each with wine. Yes, as advertised, it WAS a match made in heaven!
Here is what we ate:
shrimp dumplings
Son-in-law Eggs with a simple Thai Salad
Red Curry Chicken Taco
(they even showed us how to make our own curry paste from scratch - WOW)
Roasted Pork Belly with 5 Spice Powder and Chili Marmalade
Churros with Chile Hot Chocolate
Brilliant foods + great wine pairings = a great night out for Jerry and Paul!
I seek out cooking classes in my area and try and attend as often as I can Jerry. Thai would be a lot of fun since it is a cuisine that is pretty foreign to me as far as cooking goes.
Posted by: bellini | January 25, 2011 at 06:47 PM
Wow, great menu, wonderful presentation. Looks like a winner of a class.
Posted by: Barb Cabot | January 25, 2011 at 08:55 PM
Bellini - Thai food is relatively simple to cook so long as you can get the ingredients that you need. We took a class with an excellent instructor years ago when we were in Sonoma. Once you have the technique of balancing the flavours and know a few simple ingredients you're set.
It really was Barb!
Posted by: JDeQ | February 01, 2011 at 06:39 AM