LUXOMME

This week also happens to be Spring Break for me, so basically this is when I stop hermitting and emerge to greet the world outside my room. 

Thankfully for me, my lovely friend was more than willing to accompany me for a delightful morning.

Or should I say, tea-lightful. 

;)

This gorgeous place is called Cafe Promenade, which is a brisk walk away from the Forks - a major attraction here in Winnipeg!

I usually come here for lunch (a must for those of you who adore moules frites), but their brunch menu is also absolutely divine. You've got the typical breakfast staples, and then a bit more.

Jade ordered a hot tea, 'my first one of the day!' she exclaims. 

It comes in the cutest little brewing contraption, which releases the steaming fragrant liquid upon placement on top of the cup. Very handy for you tea lovers out there. A similar one can be purchased from David's tea or Teavana.

Jade expertly handles her tea, and then proceeds to add the perfect amount of milk and sugar into her morning dose of caffeine. As I went snap happy, I may have caused her to add a few teaspoons extra. 

'Hold the sugar jar there! Perfect! Don't move!'

Thankfully, a few extra shots of sugar never hurt anyone.

Right?

After a while, our waitress slides over to our table, while perfectly balancing our food. 

Jade opted for the Croissant et Prosciutto, Poire et Brie - which is basically fancy talk for the most delicious croissant you've ever tasted. 

aka. Prosciutto Croissant with Pear and Brie. 

I on the other hand went for the Florentin Omelette, which is much less fancy, but just as delicious. 

Served with lightly seared potatoes, and the richest Saskatoon berry jam, the omelette which was the size of my head, was definitely the star of my morning. 

Sweet conversations, soft croissants and warm mornings.

The perfect way to start Spring break.

naomi

___

For more information on Promenade Cafe and Wine, please visit the following link

 

 SPRING LOVES

I can't believe it's already Spring.

Every year around this time, I take a weekend to realign myself by getting rid of the excess and the things I don't need or use anymore. In my younger days, I preferred quantify over quality - always chasing after the newest and shiniest things I could get my hands on. 

Three years ago I read this book which detailed the mistakes my generation often makes with money. I realized that the way I spent money didn't make sense. Why do I need ten different types of foundation when one already does what I need it to and works perfectly well? So, the older I get, the more I find myself running towards more simple things. Instead of filling my vanity with bottle and bottles of products, I prefer finding something that is well made, and sticking to one bottle instead of five.

Lately these products have been staples for me,  and they focus more on skincare and basics rather than the elaborate and extravagant.

For my hair, I've been really loving Lush's Jason and the Argan Oil shampoo bar and Pantene's Keratin Gloss. For the face, Prevage's Anti-Aging Serum and Ceramide Capsules, both by Elizabeth Arden which has done wonders in helping restore a Springtime glow to my dry Winter skin. DHC's Cleansing Oil has also been fantastic and the perfect alternative to the Bioderma toner, which is my usual favorite. Make-up wise, I've been obsessed with Clinique's Beyond Perfect Foundation and Concealer and Anastasia's Contour Kit. My last two favorites have been on my must-have list for a while; MAC's Velvet Teddy matte lipstick, and YSL's Parisienne perfume.

I've got around two more months of school left until Summer break, and definitely looking forward to the warmer weather so I can finally begin working on my vegetable garden!

Hoping your Spring is going just as well :)

naomi

 HAPPY ST. PATRICKS DAY!

Two years ago, for St. Patricks, I made the most delicious Lavender Matcha Cheesecake, but between the two of us, green food isn't really my thing.

So we're going to try something different; namely Red Wine Braised Short Ribs, which in my opinion sounds like a very good celebratory meal. 

This is one of my go-to recipes whenever I'm entertaining. 

It's presentable, but also easy to prepare and make ahead of time - giving me moments to socialize with my guests when they arrive. It's also a richer twist on the french beef stew (which is also absolutely divine) and you pretty much can't go wrong with anything french.

There's essentially three components to this dish; the braising liquid, the vegetables, and the meat.

Choosing a few of our favorite veggies, we coarsely chop everything up into smaller pieces to set aside for later use.

Once your vegetables are prepped and ready to go, it's time to flash sear the short ribs to impart some flavor to the meat through caramelization, and also to lock in moisture.

A quick sizzle on each side and they come out looking like this. 

It's quite tempting to grab a plate and forgo the braising time to eat it as it right then and there, but you must resist! 

Trust me, it's worth it.

The seared short ribs leave behind the juiciest oils which are perfect for sauteing the vegetables which we prepped earlier. 

We throw the ribs on top of the vegetables and mix in a few of my favorite spices; a dab of tomato paste, a sprinkle of rosemary, a light spray of thyme, and a spot of peppercorns.

Of course, salt and pepper is a must.

We give all the components a gentle stir and make sure everything is incorporated, then fill the pot halfway to the top with unsalted broth (beef, chicken or vegetable!). 

Lastly, we take the fruitiest red wine we can get our hands on, and generously douse everything in it. 

The more wine the better!

After you've tweaked the broth to perfection, we set the oven to 325 F and gently place our entire pot inside. 

This is when all the magic happens.

For dramatic purposes, we have a before and after pic - because everyone loves those. 

Above is the dish before it's been subjected to gentle heat for four hours, allowing the meat to slowly soften while soaking up the red and all the other flavors we've added. 

Below is the dish after it's been braised for four hours.

#transformationthursdays anyone?

After removing the pot from the oven, we proceed to set aside the fully cooked short ribs and strain out the vegetables and spices we've added to the braising liquid. 

This leaves behind the most concentrated and intense beef broth ever.

Basically liquid gold.

Because we're greedy and want more flavor, the broth is then reduced for 20 minutes under high heat until all the water evaporates and we are left with the thickest and most decadent gravy that is bound to render your guests speechless.

Taking the short ribs we removed earlier, we gently toss them in the reduced gravy, before serving it on top of a bed of mashed potatoes and vegetables.

Ingredients can be swapped in and out at your convenience. I generally throw out the vegetables that were used to braise the ribs and cook up a new batch to serve to my guests. A full bodied wine generally pairs fairly well, but a light fruity red also helps cut into the richness of the dish. Anything goes, just don't use anything expensive unless you're feeling particularly luxurious.

The potatoes are basically a vehicle for the sauce and a standard garlic paprika mash, but I've included my vegetable medley recipe, which I've tweaked to optimize the pairing with the ribs.

One hour of prep and three hours of braising time later, what you are serving to your guests is a rich 'fall of the bone' rib, smothered in a red wine based gravy. Pair it with fluffy mashed potatoes and a medley of fresh vegetables, and you've got yourself a quick and indulgent meal that's guaranteed to wow your guests, or at the very least put everyone into a food coma. 

naomi

____

On the Menu Tonight

Red Wine Braised Short Ribs

4-5 lbs of Short Ribs

2 Tbs Coconut Oil

3 Stalks of Celery

2 Medium Onions

4 Cloves of Garlic

6 Carrots

2 Cups Chicken Broth

1/2 Bottle of Red Wine

1 Tbs Rosemary

1 Tbs Thyme

2 Tbs Tomato Paste

1/2 Tbs Peppercorn

Pinch of Salt and Pepper

Vegetable Medley

2 Zucchinis

3 Carrots

2 Sweet Onions

1 Bunch of Kale

1 Cup of Braising Liquid (before reduction)

1 Tbs butter

I was trying to think of a clever name for this post, but there's nothing really. My creative juices have dried up. 

Thankfully, my love for food hasn't.

It's been a while since I've done a cooking post, although by the end of the post, you'll see that this is more fermenting than cooking. 

This dish isn't actually from Hong Kong (where I'm from), but Korea - so I don't vouch for the authenticity, but as someone who can eat a whole tub of this in a sitting, I promise you it's delicious. 

For those of you who have never tried this A) You're completely missing out, B) You'll never look at cabbage the same way again.

But what exactly is Kimchi?

Well.

According to trusty Wikipedia, it is a traditional fermented side dish made from vegetables and a variety of seasonings, with tons of different combinations. It is generally eaten with many meals and can also be incorporated in more complex dishes like stews and fried rice. In fact, it's such a large part of the meal, some families even have a designated kimchi fridge just for storing this deliciousness.  It's also a very tedious process, which is why families will generally make this in large batches. Because I don't have time to make a whole football field's worth of kimchi, we're doing a mini version with just one head!

I could go on forever, but I think you should read the wikipedia page instead so we can go ahead and actually make this!

The main star of today's recipe is napa cabbage, which can be purchased at most stores. 

We carefully clean and trim the leaves, then halve the vegetables so it's easier to handle and season. 

Because kimchi is a fermented and preserved dish, it's meant to keep for a long long time. Or rather, because we want to keep it for a long long time, we ferment it. Actually, scratch that. I'm not sure. That's confusing. 

Either way, we begin by salting the cabbage to draw water out of the leaves. I used one medium head of cabbage for this recipe and a quarter cup of salt. 

We make sure that the entire vegetable is submerged in the salt water and then leave it to sit for a few hours!

Once you're done with your coffee run, cleaning the house, or 3 episodes of Madame Secretary (which is my current favorite!), the cabbage is ready to be rinsed. 

At this point, the leaves should be wilted and look something like this.

I find that the sauce has difficulty adhering to the leaves, so I like to add a little something extra. Namely, shredded carrots and apples, just to give the kimchi a bit of sweetness. 

Some recipes will call for radish, green onions, or chives, but I don't have any of that lying around.

(mind you, this isn't the most authentic version)

This red paste is made of a smorgasbord of different umami ingredients; red pepper flakes, shrimp paste, anchovies, garlic, ginger, onion. 

More on that later. 

Before I season my leaves, I'll mix the paste with the carrots and apples first.

Then slowly, layer by layer, the mixture is generously applied delicately to each leaf. 

A few moments later, you are left with something bright red, healthy and absolutely delicious.

The last (and perhaps most important part) is the fermentation where the sugars in the vegetables will (in the absence of oxygen) turn into acid.  This is a process that will impart a tangy sweetness to the kimchi and is done by placing the kimchi in an airtight jar, traditionally an Onggi, which is a clay jar. I only have a glass one so that will have to do.

This is the part that requires the most patience as it is the most time consuming. Taking the prepared kimchi and sealing it in an airtight jar, you'll then let it sit out at room temperature until it reaches the desired fermented taste and then throw it in the fridge to store for a longer period of time. 

Each person will make kimchi in a slightly different way that changes the taste ever so slightly, but I encourage you to experiment and figure out what works best for you! More detailed instructions and the science behind perfect kimchi is detailed here.

All these colorful vegetables are getting me super pumped for Spring, excited for the warmer weather ahead and more delicious recipes to come!

naomi

____

Luxomme's Kimchi Recipe

Ingredients

1 Medium head of Napa Cabbage

1/4 Cup Kosher Salt

2.5 Cups Shredded Carrot

4 Shredded Autumn Glory Apples

Red Pepper Sauce 

3 Tbs Sweet Rice Flour

1.5 Cups Red Pepper Flakes

1/3 Cup Anchovy Sauce

1/3 Cup Shrimp Sauce

2 Tbs Sugar

1 Tbs Garlic

1 Tbs Ginger