Steak

I recently finished reading a book about steak. It’s written by Globe and Mail columnist Mark Schatzker. I don’t usually write about what I have read unless I really, really enjoy it. Okay I really enjoy steak, but I found Schatzker’s book interesting, but not fulfilling. He travelled the world… from Toronto, to Texas to Argentina to Scotland to Japan, all in search of the perfect ribeye or strip loin. He was searching for the perfect beef flavour. In one sense I might have agreed with him. But it wasn’t until the very final pages of the book that he wrote about cooking the perfect steak. That’s what I wanted to read about. For all that I read, I am not changing my ways. I like my strip loin. I like it pan fried, cast iron, with a touch of olive oil for about eleven minutes. Then I let it rest for ten minutes. Sometimes I marinade, sometimes I don’t. Sometimes I will really treat myself and get a ribeye. But the book has inspired me in the sense that I will try different cuts of steak, such as flank and maybe a T-bone (which I think are wayyyy overrated). I have had three steaks since I finished the book and each time I just added salt and pepper, nothing else, not even A1 Sauce or HP Sauce. All have been nice. Anyway, the book is okay. I wouldn’t buy my own copy, but the library should be helpful.

Such a nice visit...

Just noticed that I have a fridge full of healthy foods; things like fresh lettuce, broccoli, celery, carrots. I deliberately purchased this stuff because I know that Jennifer enjoys good fresh veggies and she likes to ensure the boys have them too. Unfortunately, or maybe fortunately, when Jenn and the boys came to visit Timmins this week our only nod toward really serious meal-taking involved some fabulous New York strip loin steaks we had Wednesday. Jennifer also made a salad that was so good we all had seconds on the salad. But after that, I enjoyed going off the garden path and into the land of chocolate-cake-breakfast, chips & poutine at Gillies Lake, and BBQ ribs at Auntie Sue’s place. We also went through three packages of Reese’s cups, Oh Henry’s and Hershey bars, not to mention the amazing cheese & onion potato chips. There was also the choco-banana milkshakes where we threw chocolate cookies into the blender with the swirling ice cream, just for fun. Those were so good. Well, I just checked the fridge and noticed that all I have to eat for the next week is good wholesome food. All the good junk is gone. I sure miss those boys!

Amazing Westree weekend ...

It was nice to enjoy another long weekend in Westree with the Alexander family. The big difference this weekend was getting to enjoy the time with just about everyone else in the community. It was the official celebration of Westree’s 100th anniversary as a community. I really enjoyed it. Aside from the amazingly clean fresh air, and the incredible peace and quiet, it was nice to chat with people at the Texas Horseshoes tournament. Another nice part was the release of the 100 anniversary book put together by Roger Latour and Denise Alexander. Unfortunately Roger died several weeks back and could not enjoy the event. Everyone seemed to agree though that Roger was there in spirit. The other good part of course was spending time with the Alexander household and enjoying Don and Denise’s hospitality. It was like Christmas all over again. I liked getting up early in the morning and enjoying the coffee and Bailey’s for breakfast… and then within a couple of hours, Denise would cook up and huge country breakfast. Another nice part was the fact that Demetrios brought his family to Westree. It was so nice meeting Nick and Helena, who were on their first ever visit to Northern Ontario. They’ll be spending a couple of weeks in the bush camping and fishing and I know they will sure have something new to talk about with all their friends in downtown Toronto.