How I Met Your Dinner

Cinco de Mayo Beer Fest

0 Comments 07 May 2012

Cinco de Mayo Beer Fest

If you’ve been following Kingsland’s own Aimless Cook, you’ll have noticed that its Mexico’s Cinco de Mayo based on the many yummy suggestions that you can make this weekend.  But, it’s also BEERFEST in Calgary, where you can try a heck of a lot of interesting brews this weekend, especially some of the most robust new microbrews that have been bursting out all over Alberta.  It was with both in mind that I decided to try out a Mexican-style recipe, but with beer!

I’ve always been a fan of both Mexico and beer (of course).  When the opportunity came to explore both down the east coast of Mexico, I didn’t hesitate for a second (though I believe my partner would have liked me to proceed with a bit more moderation admittedly).  But, what I had found from those voyages were something a bit more interesting… a greater appreciation for Mexican cuisine. Continue Reading

Bachelor Chow, Kingsland Recipes

Bachelor Chow – A Beer A Day

0 Comments 05 May 2012

Bachelor Chow 10 – A Beer A Day…
by Gabriel Hall

Beer is often maligned as a drink for blue collars, poor students and bar flies. A stereotypical portrait of the average beer drinker will paint them at a dive bar in a mesh trucker hat and a stained wife beater with a can of cheap generic brew in-hand. Far from this truth, beer is one of the most diverse drinks in the world enjoyed worldwide by a wide range of people.

A number of years ago I had the pleasure of attending the Osaka International Beer Summit, which was at that time, the second largest beer summit in the world. Dozens of different countries were represented including all the big hitters: Belgium, Germany, Czech and Palestine… Why yes, Palentine! Even a country with a predominantly Muslim population has a single brewery; although I wouldn’t say it their beer was very good.

Canada ranks 21^st in the world with each person in the country drinking an average of 68 litres of beer each year while our friends to the south ranks 13^th with 82 liters per person. That’s not bad, although we’re relative lightweights when compared with the Czechs who pound back an average of 158 litres per person per year. Continue Reading

Hidden Gems, Kingsland Recipes

Hidden Gems: Beer Mustard

0 Comments 03 May 2012

The Calgary International Beerfest coming up this weekend at BMO Centre so I was inspired to create a tasty spread made using this magical ingredient.

I have a long standing love of great beer. I definitely enjoyed my fair share of Blue Star lager as a university student in St. John’s (it’s a Newfoundland thing!). My interest turned into full blown obsession after visiting the Alexander Keith’s Brewery in Halifax. And then, months after moving to Calgary, I attended my first Beerfest. At this event, you purchase tokens to be traded for samples of beer from all over the world. My mind was blown at the sheer number of varieties of beer in existence! It was so fun to taste all the brews of the beer world. I might even learned a little bit about the beverage while I was at it, including how it can be paired with food in a similar way as wine.

Nowadays, my interest in beer has transferred itself to an obsession with all things culinary. I find myself wanting to experience the difference flavours of food rather than ales but I still have a special fondness for an ice cold beer on a hot Spring or Summer day.

However, beer isn’t just for drinking. You can use it in as an ingredient in many dishes, like stews, chilis or soups, as a braising liquid, baked into bread, cakes or brownies or even as a flavour booster in mustard. Making your own condiments, like mustard, is easier than you think. It’s fun too… You can customize it to your own tastes and cut down on all those sugars and preservatives found in commercial brands. Give it a try… like I did! Continue Reading

How I Met Your Dinner, Kingsland Recipes

Frugal Fiddleheads

0 Comments 29 April 2012

Tax Time for Frugal Fiddleheads

You know it’s Spring in Calgary when the birds are singing and the Sun is shining brightly above. Our awesome Alberta farms are all about to explode with outstanding colours and tasty bounty that’ll soon be at the Kingsland market.  Garages are busy with the seasonal tire changes and all of the winter coats are packed away for another season.  It’s time to take out the baseball bats, the mountain bikes and the golf clubs.  And look!  Our Flames are already out there on the greens.  It’s getting warm and toasty, and oh wait; it’s panic time because Income Tax deadline is just around the corner!

Yes, it’s THAT time again, when the calculators, the boxes of receipts and the accountants come out in droves.  A time when households all over are screaming murder about their printers running out of ink as we print out form after form.  And it’s a time of Canadian unity when our voices are one, from the BC coasts to the rocky shores of the Maritimes, in quietly grumbling about paying the taxman. Continue Reading