Long Time No Blog

Hmm, haven't blogged in a while and I see there is a new Blogger. I am not really liking it right now.


So maybe I will blog about my eating extravaganza at Cabane a Sucre Au Pied De Cochon (I'm not using the accents because for some reason it makes the layout all wonky on my posts but suffice to say, I DO KNOW my French). If you don't know, it is owned by Chef Martin Picard, who also owns Au Pied De Cochon (and which I have eaten at too). Anthony Bourdain and David Chang love Martin Picard and his food, and I wholeheartedly agree with their opinions.


Last year my cousin went to Cabane and I was upset he didn't ask me, and also *very jealous*. So this year he learned his lesson.


There were 12 of us under the reservation and we rented a mini-van to transport us all. I tried not to eat too much that day knowing I would be having 13 courses for Dinner.


The inside of Cabane is, well, a huge wooden cabin with wooden tables, picnic-style. Immediately the group ordered pitchers of beer but me, not loving beer, opted for Irish whiskey. Oh yeah. We also opted to include the 13th course in our meal, a Tourtiere, because what's one more course when you are already having 12?

Our first course was a Pate/Terrine (again, I know there is an accent circumflex and accent acute in Pate but I can't put them in) of duck, pork & I think, rabbit, served with small buckwheat pancakes (ployes) & a coleslaw. I liked it. But then again, I like anything Pate/Terrine.

Our second course was Pickled Herring (pickled with some maple syrup in the mixture, of course) with maple cream, pickled onions and served atop very thinly sliced potatoes. Really good. You will note the theme of maple syrup throughout.

Our third course was probably my favourite. It was Sturgeon Sushi. Atop nori, a rice/avocado/sturgeon mixture and then perfectly roasted pork skin (as you can see) and pork rinds that were flecked with gold leaf. Quite the work of art. This was so delicious. I had 3 pieces!

Our fourth course is the infamous Tourtiere. My Mom was funny when she saw my pictures. She was like, "You should have gotten a photo of the WHOLE Tourtiere" and as I said to her, "Well the other half of the table had already devoured it by the time it got to my end." Pretty traditional-tasting Tourtiere with duck & pork. I'm sure there was some maple syrup in there somewhere. I ate more of the inside than the crust because I had to pace myself.

Our fifth course was a pretty unbelievable Lobster & Smoked Meat Souffle. They served it piping hot and still puffy. Huge, no? This Souffle was for 6 people. I liked it.

Our sixth course was another favourite of mine, the Vol-au-Vent. Puff Pastry Shell filled with a layer of Foie Gras (yes, you read that right), Apple & Watercress Salad (we had to get our greens in somewhere) and Pork Rinds. So rich & decadent and so amazing. I also had puff pastry & foie gras the night before at Joe Beef. I like that combination.

Our seventh course was Feves au Lard or Maple Baked Beans. But there was also Duck Legs inside and it was topped with Cottage Cheese. I found the Cottage Cheese a strange addition but it actually worked. This was very heavy and I couldn't have much but what I did have I enjoyed very much.

Our eighth course was Roast Duck served atop Parsnip Puree with Blue Cheese (LOVED this!). And those are Onion Rings deep fried in DUCK FAT (uh, YES please!) around the duck's body. I didn't care if I had much duck meat, I just wanted those Onion Rings. Yummy!

By this time I was dying and our ninth course did not get enough love from me. It was a bunch of different parts of the pig, roasted, AND smoked meat. I had the smoked meat but no pork. There was also this amazing fried pasta which I had more of. Great accompaniment.

THANKFULLY, they gave us a little bit of break before they brought us the remaining FOUR Desserts. I loved our tenth course, a Maple Ice Cream Sundae with Tire D'erable (if you've ever done this during maple syrup season, it is so fun and brings back memories of being a child and going to a sugar bush) and then there were these little cones. One was just Meringue and the other (which I ate) had maple syrup, marshmallow & chocolate. Wow, wonderful! Oh, and the Sundae had Maple Praline too.

Our eleventh course & second Dessert was Pancakes fried in Duck Fat with Maple Syrup. This was another favourite because I mean, duck fat ANYTHING, tastes fantastic! The pancakes weren't overly greasy at all but had just the right amount of duck fat penetrating its carb-y deliciousness. I had two and that was enough.

How cute are these confections? Our twelfth course & third Dessert were Eclairs filled with Maple Cream & topped with Maple Cotton Candy. They are like little angels. I really dug the Maple Cotton Candy. You could buy some & bring it home but seriously, after all that food I couldn't even think about buying any other food, let alone eating it.

Last, but certainly not least, our thirteenth course & fourth Dessert, Maple Apple Cinnamon Rolls or what the Quebecois like to call Nuns' Farts. Why? I have no idea and am too tired to Google it. These were basically how you want your Cinnamon Rolls to smell & taste.


And that was it. We ate it! Of course there were tons of leftovers which some people took home. But all in all, I think we did a pretty good job. I TOTALLY want to go again next year. And the kicker? It cost $57 per person (plus an extra like $1.67 each for the Tourtiere). Is that not a deal or what? Crazy!


Thought I'd post tonight's meal. I was craving something Spanish and dug up my cookbook from the Basque region (the food there is incredible and in fact, there are the most Michelin starred restaurants in the Basque region, outside of France) to choose a dish.

The lighting kind of sucks (I tried with the flash but it made it bright white and washed out everything) but I ended up making Roast Tomatoes with Garlic & Thyme (and olive oil & salt) which I ate with some Spanish Rosemary Goat Cheese. I also made a Mushroom Soup which was very non-Spanish.