A Pair Of Gourmands

I miss my Mom! - by The Chef in Stead

He says:

In 1976, the year of the Summer Olympics in Montreal, I was ten years old, super blond air and full of energy. My mom and I were living alone in this small apartment in downtown Montreal and life was great. I was the center of her universe, as she was trying to raise me to become the perfect man. In August of that year, we both got hit by a car while waiting to cross a street, and she died on impact, leaving me alone in this big world.

Every year around Mother’s Day, everyone takes a few minutes of their busy life to make something special for their Mother. I always feel a bit left out, as I have not had many chances to do that for my mother. Being ten and all, I never got time to get our family recipes from her. I have spent the last 29 years experimenting with a pancake recipe that she use to make for me on Sundays. They were half an inch thick and crispy like fritters. She would use half an inch of Crisco in a small cast iron pan and drop enough of her batter to fill the entire bottom. Every time she flipped it up, it would break and create even more crispy pieces.

This coming Sunday on Mother’s Day, I will make another attempt at my Mom’s recipe. In 1976, cholesterol was not our main focus, vegetable oil was not so evil, saturated fat was not our biggest problem in life. Today, everyone watches their health so much closer than in those days. This recipe has to be done with Crisco, and yes lots of it, so I am already planning go to the gym one extra day this coming week knowing that I will be ingesting a bit too much fat in honour of my Mom’s memory.

For all those missing moms and the people who miss them, Happy Mother’s Day!

Sincerely,

Chef Martin

She says:

I am one of those people who is completely on the other side of the coin. I not only still have my mother, but one of the things we still love to do together is cook. When I moved away from home, my most prized possession was a little black book of her recipes, hand-copied just like her originals were. I still have it.

If you read our column a couple of weeks ago, you read my story of making Chocolate Mousse on Mother’s Day. My Mom loved it, even though it was not perfect. That is what being a Mom is all about.

So, this year on Mother’s Day, when I help my local Brownie unit as Snowy Owl for their Mom’s Day Tea, I shall be telling them how important it is to treasure every moment with someone so important in their life. And since I am lucky enough to have my Mom visit this weekend, I will be thanking her for all the recipes and tips she gave me. Raise your juice glass, and say, “Here’s to Mom!”

Chef Martin’s Tip 10:

Unwanted Creatures - every chef’s nightmare!

If you ever notice that you have many small looking flies in your kitchen, you probably have something contaminated. Small flies (Fruit Fly) often live in your fruit baskets or plants. They will not multiply in the cold fridge, just at room temperature. Search the infected area, clean well, and look in surrounding area also!

Another bug that is really annoying, is a tiny little creature that feeds mostly on sweets or wheat products. Please remember this: there is no such thing as a bug that is single, most are still living with their parents, sisters, brothers, uncle etc… so search and kill! Throw everything away, and then in another two days, go back to the same area to make sure that none of the relatives moved in somewhere else.

The last one, you’ve guessed it, is the field mouse looking for warm and dry shelter for the winter. They move in mostly in the fall, but you should start noticing major damage around January… You can trap them in a Green Peace kind of way, and if you cannot do it, call for help.

The Chef in Stead - Website For Previous Chef Tips For comments or questions, you can reach Martin at 250-712-4440 or Email.

This article is written by or on behalf of an outsourced columnist and does not necessarily reflect the views of Castanet.