Restaurant Review: It' Dog

It' Dog - Gourmet Hot Dogs and Fried Chicken

My hubby loves hot dogs.  So, when he heard of this new restaurant that serves gourmet dogs and fried chicken - well, we just had to go.  Plus, in all honestly - a hot dog just hits the spot sometimes.

It' Dog  8621 - 109 Street Edmonton 

Located in the old Bad Ass Jack's establishment on 109 Street, right next to Remedy Cafe. The place has been only open for only a few months, and we've been there twice already and will continue to return.  It's really good, reasonable and quick.

When you walk in, you'll hear Korean pop music and see music videos on big screens. The place is clean and I can't complain about the service.  The folks who work there have been friendly the two times we were there.

The restaurant doesn't have a website (yet), but you can follow them on Facebook.  I can't find a twitter account yet either.  No matter, I have the details at the end of this post.

You will order and pay at the counter from the menu above - just like any fast food.  They will give you a receipt with an order number, when you're food's ready - they'll call out the number and you come to the counter for the tray.  There is no food under hot lamps here. The food is freshly made when ordered.

Here are their menu boards: 

You might think - What? $10 for a hot dog?  It's big and it's stuffed with good ingredients you'll never see on a burger.  You pretty much have a meal.

The hot dogs are served in a pretzel bun.  I love pretzel buns - finally a form of bread that doesn't break apart or get soggy when placed around meat and condiments.

Speaking of condiments, they have a condiment station you can add to your hot dog (if there was room to add more items).  With the toppings, I don't think you need ketchup or mustard.

This was my hot dog on the first outing in January.  The Truffle Mac and cheese. That's fresh jalapenos.  Oh, and bacon!  How did I forget about the bacon?  It was yummy...though our next trip there I had what I think a better dog.

Just last Friday, I got the Crispy Chicken Dog.  This so far is my FAVOURITE!!  It's like having popcorn chicken and a hot dog all in one..well, actually it is. Who ever thought of this idea is genius. It also has a little spicy mayo - yummy. Just a hint of a kick, not mouth burning.  

Aaron ordered a three piece Sweet & Spicy Fried Chicken and the It' Hot Dog.  The hot dog had tempura shrimp and Bulgogi (grilled Korean beef). Tasty!  He really enjoyed the hot dog. The chicken (which I took a few bites) was AMAZING! Crispy and light, the sauce was sticky, sweet and a hint of spice.  

Last Friday, Aaron ordered the regular fried chicken with a turnip side salad.  

As you can see, I forgot to take the picture sooner - and a few pieces were already eaten. The chicken is really good here.  Close to a tempura batter, it's really light (not greasy at all) and super crunchy.  

The only thing we didn't care for was the pre-packaged salad.  It was meh. Aaron wanted to order a vegetable, just to counter act evilness of fried chicken. The turnip was in a light vinegar/sugar dressing.  Next time, Aaron said he'll try the potato salad instead.

We also shared a poutine. (It's almost a vegetable)

The poutine was like Costco's - good enough to eat. It was freshly made to order. The guy in the kitchen did hand deliver it to us rather than call out our table number. That was nice of him.  It was steaming hot when we got it and the cheesy was stringy. 

This picture below is from their Facebook page and it shows the other hot dogs they have. I'll have a hard time ordering another hot dog when I really enjoyed the Crispy Chicken one. 

In summary, do you like hot dogs? Yes? Then go here.

It' Dog
8621 - 109 Street, Edmonton
Phone: 780-438-4083
No reservations, (it's a fast food place)
Carry your own tray or take out.
Parking:  Some in the back (tight though) or meter parking across the street
Bus: #9 Southgate
Dress: Casual

Spinach and Strawberry Salad

Spinach and Strawberry Salad with Almonds and Goat Cheese

Ah, spinach and strawberries!  This salad says summer, even though it's still February.  


It's easy and pretty tasty (in my opinion).  If you are packing this for lunch the next day, I recommend not adding the dressing until you serve.  

This recipe has red onion. If you hate onion, you can leave it out - but, I like red onion, it gives a contrast to the sweet strawberries. The trick to not let the onion overpower the salad, is to let the red onion soak in some lime juice.  I heard this somewhere that the lime juice changes the sharpness. I've tried this method a few times and it works.  You can use the lime juice afterward in the dressing. The onion flavour doesn't transfer over in the liquid.  

4-5 cups of Spinach, washed and spun dry
1 cup of sliced Strawberries
4 tbs of sliced Almonds
1/8 of small Red onion, thinly sliced in rings
3-4 tbs of Goat Cheese, crumbled (or your favourite mild cheese)

Dressing:
4 tbs of Extra Virgin Olive Oil (good quality)
Juice of 1/2 a Lime
Dash of Salt and some fresh ground pepper
1 tea of honey

Tools: Large salad bowl, small bowl, salad spinner, knife, cut board, juicer, salad tongs, whisk or fork.

Step 1:
In a small bowl, put the sliced onion with the lime juice.  Let it sit and marinate in the juice for a few a few minutes.  The juice will turn a slight pink color.  Remove the onions, but don't throw out the juice - you'll need it for the dressing.

Step 2:
In a large bowl add the spinach, top with strawberries, almonds, onions (post marinated in lime juice) and  crumble the cheese.  

Step 3:
In the small bowl with the lime juice, add the rest of the dressing ingredients and whisk well. Taste and adjust the seasoning if you like.

Add the dressing right before you are going to serve.  You can drizzle and mix together, or plate the salad and let people spoon the desired dressing they want to have.

Enjoy.

Valentine's Dessert - Chocolate and PB heaven

Peanut Butter and Chocolate Tart

Do you like peanut butter and rich chocolate together?
Then this tart is for you.

This recipe is actually two recipes that I merged together.  The peanut butter crust comes from Kraft Canada – from their Peanut Butter Cookie recipe located here.  Instead of making cookies, I used the dough and made the crust for my tart.

The chocolate decadence comes from Rachel Ray, she made Pots de Creme recipe on the Oprah Show years back, but you can find it here.  Instead of pouring the chocolate into small cups, I pour it into the cooked peanut butter crust.

Here's my merge of the two recipes:

Ingredients:

Crust:
1 cup Peanut Butter, smooth is best
1/2 cup Sugar
1 tea of Vanilla
1 large Egg (room temp, lightly beaten)

Filling:
2/3 cup of Homo Milk (don’t use 2% or nonfat)
1 large Egg (room temp) lightly beaten
2 Tbs Sugar
Pinch of salt
1 cup of Good quality Semi Sweet Chocolate chips
2 Tbs of either Frangelico or any chocolate Liqueur (optional)

Topping: (optional)
2 cups of Whipped Cream or cool whip (optional)

Tools:  Mixing bowl, small bowl, measure cups and spoons, stir spoon, 9” spring form pan or pie plate, blender or food processor, sauce pan/pot.

Step 1:

Preheat oven to 325.  In a mixing bowl, mix all the crust ingredients together with a spoon.  

Take the dough and press on the bottom of the pan to make the crust.  Make sure the dough is pressed evenly throughout the pan and up the sides about ½   ¾” to hold in the filling.  Take a fork and pierce the bottom only a 2-3 times to release steam.

Bake, for about 10-15 minutes until it’s golden brown.  Remove and let it cool completely before going to step 2.

Step 2:

Heat the milk in the sauce pan until it almost comes to a boil.  Must be hot, too hot to drink but not boiling.  Don't let the milk separate.

Put the rest of the filling items in a blender or processor.  
Add the hot milk slowing as you slowing whip together.  Go in stages. The hot milk will cook the egg and melt the chocolate.

Once all the milk has been used and the chocolate is melted, take the liquid and pour over the cool crust.  Make sure the liquid is spread over the crust equally.

Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 – 2 hours to set.

Step 3:
Remove the sides of the spring form (gently) and place onto a serving dish.  If you can remove from the bottom, try but don't force.  You can cut into the tart using a dull edge.

Serve with whip cream on the side, or on top if you wish (optional).

This is the chocolate I used.  It's delicious!

Enjoy!

Cookbook: Flavours of Edmonton (for our Valentine's entree dish)

 Culina's Grilled Sirloin with Blue Cheese and Red Wine Chocolate Sauce

I am cooking dinner this Valentines and wanted to incorporate an ingredient that is pretty popular on this day: chocolate. In keeping with the chocolate theme, I found this recipe in a cookbook I bought a few years ago for the main entree.  

Flavours of Edmonton is a cookbook that was compiled by CBC Edmonton and Lovoni Walker.  It's a collection of recipes from local restaurants and citizens of Edmonton.  A potluck sort of collection.  CBC Edmonton radio made a call out for any recipe people would want to share.  (I wished I could have sent one if I known sooner)  The proceeds of each cookbook went Edmonton's Food Bank.

Did you know that the Edmonton Food bank was the first in Canada?  It started in 1981, and feeds +15,000 people - 40% of whom are children.  Sad, if you think of it. 

I highly recommend getting this book (if it's still available)  I bought my cookbook at Audrey's Bookstore on Jasper avenue and 107 street.   I just love that bookstore.  The cookbook is a great collection of recipes, including this amazing dish from Culina's restaurant.

I've been to Culina (so YUMMY) a few times, but seem to miss this entree.  It's their grilled sirloin steak with blue cheese and red wine/chocolate sauce.  I guess it's a popular dish, and even made it onto this month's Avenue magazine.   It includes blue cheese, which some people don't like - but luckily my hubby and I love the cheese on steak. To have them share their recipe is awesome.  Maybe, the next time I go to Culina I'll order this dish.  Until then, I'll try the recipe and show you below.

That's medium, I think the red accents are making it look more rare.

The recipe is made for four people, but I sized it down to two, but kept the sauce amount the same.  I just didn't want to mess much with measurements, and I always love sauce.  Oh, and this recipe asks for two wines: red and white.

Ingredients:

4 x 9 oz Beef Sirloin Steaks (I used 2 steaks instead)

Potatoes, cooked and mashed to serve (make your favourite recipe)

Blue Cheese Cream Sauce:

3 Tbsp butter

2 Tbsp finely chopped onion

1 tsp minced garlic

1/4 cup dry white wine

1 cup whipping cream

1/2 cup creamy blue cheese

salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Chocolate Sauce:

1 cup demi glaze* (see note below)

1/4 cup red wine

pinch of salt

1/4 tsp freshly ground pepper

3 Tbsp grated dark chocolate (I used only 2 Tbsp)

Tools:  Around four sauce pan/pots, a grill pan, potato masher, spoons, measure cups and spoons, grater, knife, cutting board and a wine opener.

Step 1:
Grill steaks over medium-high until cooked to your likeness.  Cover and set aside.

Step 2: Blue Cheese Sauce
To make blue cheese cream, heat the butter in medium frying pan over medium.  Add onion and garlic.  Cook for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until softened.  Add wine and simmer until wine is reduced by about half.  Add cream and cook until thickened (about 5 - 10 minutes).  Stir in blue cheese, salt and pepper.  Simmer for 5 minutes.  Keep warm.

Step 3: Chocolate Sauce
To make chocolate sauce, combine demi glaze*, wine, salt and pepper in a medium fry pan over medium heat.  Simmer for 5 minutes to cook alcohol off wine.  Remove from heat, add chocolate and stir to combine.

To serve, place steaks on mashed potatoes.  Drizzle with blue cheese cream and chocolate sauce.

I went a little crazy with the sauce, but this dish is pretty tasty.

All in all, I really liked the recipe, and I think I will do it again (maybe be a bit lighter on the sauce). 

If this recipe doesn't appeal to you, don't give up on the book. There's lots of other recipes you can try.

Note: Demi -Glace (Glaze)
When I first saw this recipe, I honestly had to look up demi-glaze.  I had a feeling it was a gravy - but wasn't sure.  Demi Glace is generally made with beef stock, beef/veal bone broth, butter and flour.  I guess you can make your own, or you can do what I did and buy the packaged style.  I found Knorr package next to the spices and it's really easy, just add water.  

Where did we buy our sirloin steaks?  

Acme Meat Market

Phone: (780) 433-1812

Email: acme.meatmarket@gmail.com
Address: 9531 76 Ave NW, Edmonton
They know their meats and know how to cut/butcher meat.  My hubby and I like shopping here and recommend anyone looking for a special cut of meat.  Give them a call. They are very accommodating.

Thai Salad Rolls with Peanut Dipping Sauce

Book Club potluck, Zombies and Thai Salad Rolls

I'm in a book club with a wonderful group of women.  Our book club reads books that were turned into movies.  Every few months, we pick a book to read - then we gather together to watch the movie and see how far off the movie was from the book.  Our books can range to deep and thought provoking to easy and fun.  We also (the best part), do a potluck usually on the book's theme.  

Our last book was: Warm Bodies by Isaac Marion.  It's a zombie teen romance novel. Since we really didn't want to do a potluck based on brains; we were lucky the main character ate some Thai food.  Our next book is "The Hundred-Foot Journey" - can't wait for that potluck.

I love Thai Food.  The mixture of salty, sweet, sour, heat and freshness is amazing.  

I saw a few recipes for Thai Salads, and I came up with this one recipe below.  My idea was to roll the salad into a finger food.  Thought it would be fun.

This recipe is vegetarian and can easily be turned into vegan if you change the honey to agave nectar.  

Cook time: 5-10 minutes for the dipping sauce

Prep time: 1 hour (rolling takes time)

Ingredients:

Filling:

2-3 Carrots, shredded

1 English cucumber, remove seeds and chopped finely

1 Red pepper, chopped finely

2-3 Green onions, chopped finely

1/4 -1/2 Savoy cabbage, finely shredded

1/2 cup Basil, minced

1/4 cup Cilantro, minced

1/4 cup Mint, minced

1 cup  Peanuts, dry roasted, unsalted (this add more crunch)

2-3 tbs Fresh lime juice

a pinch or two of salt

a pinch or two of sugar

1 pkg Rice paper (sold either in the deli or Asian section)

Warm water from the tap

Sauce:

1-2" piece of Ginger, grated or chopped very fine

2-3 Garlic cloves, grated or minced very fine

1 tbs of oil (use peanut or canola)

1 cup of Peanut Butter (natural, creamy is the best)

1 tbs of Soy Sauce*

1 tbs of Sriracha sauce*

Juice of half a Lime (fresh is best)*

1 tbs of Honey (or Agave for vegan)*

a few drops of Sesame Oil*

1-2 cups of water* (use only in small batches, to reach your desired consistency)

1 tbs of cilantro stems (use the leaves for the filling)

     *use to your taste buds, you can add more or less

Tools: Box grater, knife, cutting board, paper towels, spoons, large bowl, rimed platter, sauce pan, citrus juicer, serving dish and bowl.

Step 1:  Chop, shred and minced all the ingredients for the filling and add into a bowl.  Add peanuts and mix the ingredients well. Sprinkle a little of the sugar and salt and some lime juice - mix and add more salt/sugar/juice.  Taste to your liking.  Set aside for 5 - 10 minutes to let the flavors mingle.

Step 2: I just followed the instructions on the rice paper packaging.  It's simple, but you need some gentle hands - these sheets can tear easily.  Plus, watch for over soaking, the sheets can turn it into goo.

In a shallow rimmed platter add warm water from the tap.  Warm water works best and throughout the rolling process. I recommend changing the water when it cools down.  You'll notice the paper not soften easily when the water gets to room temperature.

Put one of the sheets into the warm water for five seconds. Submerge it in the water.

Then, carefully remove from the water and lie it down onto a clean chopping board. Let it sit for 30 seconds before you roll.

Take about 2-3 tablespoons of filling and add just south of center of the sheet.  Fold the bottom over the filling.  Next fold over the ends (see above) and roll to the end.  Just like making a wrap.

Continue these steps until you have used up all your filling.  This recipe make about 12-16 rolls, depending on how much you put in each roll.  Left over rice paper can be refrigerated.

To store the rolls: I use a rectangular baking pan and I put a damp (not wet) paper towel or tea towel on the bottom.  Then I line the rolls on top of the damp cloth, then add another damp towel on top of the rolls.  These rolls can dry up very fast in our Edmonton climate.

Peanut Dipping Sauce:

On medium heat, warm the oil, add the garlic and ginger.  Stir and cook for about 1-2 minutes.  (Smells divine)

Add the peanut butter and add some water to loosen and break up the butter.  Mix well, this sauce needs constant attention. 

When the peanut butter has liquefied, add Sriracha, soy sauce, lime juice, honey and some sesame oil.  

Reduce heat to low and keep adding water to the sauce (little at a time) to get the consistency you would like. 

Taste as you stir, if you want more heat - add more Sriracha or it's too sour add a bit more honey.  Thai food is a mix of flavors, but it's all up to what you to taste.

Add the cilantro stems (optional) to the sauce at the end of cooking.  

The time it takes to cook the sauce can be from 5 - 10 minutes. Remove from heat and let it cool down.  You can serve this sauce warm or cold.   

This sauce tastes really good with grilled chicken  or on top of coconut rice.  My husband loves this sauce.

Serve the salad rolls with the sauce and enjoy the flavors.

Local Product:

The basil I used in the filling was grown locally in Morinville, by West Country Herbs.  

I purchased my basil at Andy's Valleyview IGA (9106 - 142 Street, Edmonton).  I've also have seen this basil at the Italian Centre too.  

The local basil sold in the larger 28 gram package was cheaper than the smaller (not local) package.  

A dip for Super Bowl Sunday

Six Layer Bean Dip

It's Super Bowl! What better way to suit the occasion than making a dip?  I normally don't watch football, but it's the Super Bowl - the one time I will watch.  More so, I want to see the Budweiser puppy commercial.

I used to make this dip every year for our Halloween party.  It was a crowd favorite and finished way before the evening ended.  I came up with this recipe by trying the layer dips you can by the the grocery store deli. I experimented one time with flavors I thought paired well and it worked out.  I had friends asking for the recipe.

This dip is really easy to make - just mix, spread and sprinkle.  It's vegetarian friendly and can be adjusted to your taste.  

Time: about 30 mins
Serves:around 6-8 people.  You can double the recipe if you're having a big crowd.
Tools:  Shallow serving dish, about 8"-9" round or square (glass ware looks nice), about five spoons, a spatula, a knife, cutting board, three bowls, paper towels. measuring tools
See notes below each steps for more ideas or best results

Ingredients:

Layer 1 (bottom)
1 Cream Cheese, 8 oz brick (softened)
2 Tbs of Mayo or Miracle whip
3 Tbs of Sour Cream
2 Tsp of Taco Seasoning mix (envelope package mix sold by the taco kits)

Layer 2
1 can Re-fried Beans, 14 oz
1 can Green Chillies, 114 ml
dashes of your favorite hot sauce

Layer 3 and 4
1 jar of your favorite Salsa
1/4 cup of sour cream

Layer 5 
3-4 Green Onions, finely chopped
1-2 Tomatoes, seeds removed and finely chopped
1/4 of Red or Green Bell peppers (or both), finely chopped
4 Tbs of sliced black olives (drained well)

Layer 6
1 cup (heaping) Shredded Mexican cheese blend
          or you can grate Cheddar cheese with a little Jack cheese.

Accompany with
1 large bag of Tortilla chips

Step 1

Take the cream cheese and stir until it's soft and creamy.  Add the sour cream, the mayo and the seasoning.  Mix until well blended and spread evenly on the bottom of the serving dish.  Try to spread to the edges with either the back of the stir spoon or a spatula.

Note:  

If the cream cheese is still cold, I'll put the cream cheese in a microwave safe bowl (removed from it's packaging of course), and nuke it for about 30 seconds. Then stir. 

You can use lower fat cream cheese (I do), but never use the fat free stuff. Especially, for the sour cream - don't use the fat free sour cream.  It's just wrong.  Actually, even the fat free mayo is nasty too. If you really do like the taste of fat free, be my guest and try it...but the dip might taste sweeter and watery.  

  

For the taco seasoning - it can be high in salt.  If you are trying to limit sodium - you can omit it (it will still be good, I've done it) or make your own seasoning.  Use pinches of: Cumin, Cayenne pepper, chili powder, garlic and onion powder.

Step 2

After the first layer of cheesy creaminess, it's the bean layer.  Open the cans of re-fried beans and green chillies and mix well in a bowl.  Season with your favorite hot sauce.

Spread the bean mixture over the cream cheese layer.  I normally leave about an 1" around the boarder to see the cream cheese.  

Note:  

You don't have to use hot sauce.

Mild or medium heat green chillies are sold next to the re-fried beans in the taco kit section of the store.  They are not really hot, they give a tangy taste.

Step 3

Open your jar of salsa and spoon/spread it over the bean mixture. Try getting more salsa than liquid, the less liquid you put on this dip the better.  Leaving again, a 1" around the rim to see the beans.

Step 4

Top the middle of the salsa spread with some sour cream.  Just dollop on top.

Step 5

Add the chopped veggies.  Chop them small enough that they can be scooped up on a chip.

One trick I do with the tomatoes (shown above) is removing the seeds and juices before finely chopping.  

If the dip sit for a bit, it can accumulate water from the salsa and vegetables around the bowl edges. I just find removing the tomato seeds helps a lot.

Sprinkle all the chopped vegetable around the whole dip. Let them land where they may, as long it's on the dip and not on your counter. 

Note:  

This is your dip, if you don't like olives - don't put them in.  If you can't find red peppers, only green - fine.  Use the veggies you like and are easy to get to.  

For the black olives, you can buy them at deli's whole then slice them if you like.  The green and kalamata olives are good, but they can over power the dip.  Though, if you like the best - got for it.

If you want to ADD more veggies you can.  I have experimented and added:

- chopped cilantro  

- chopped avocado (sprinkle with lime juice to reduce browning)

- Jalapenos

- Bacon,  Cooked and chopped.  Yes, I know it's not a veggie, but you can add it if you like - the dip of course now won't be vegetarian anymore.

Step 6

Sprinkle the shredded cheese all over.  Don't hold back.  oh...glorious cheese...

Step 7

You can serve this right away or refrigerate until you're planning to serve it.  It actually tastes really good when the ingredients have a change to mingle for 1 - 2 hours.

Serve with good quality Tortilla Chips.  Use a sturdy tortilla chip that can handle the weight of all this goodness.

Locally made product: 

The chips I like to use are from El Mercado.  

It's an Edmonton tortilla factory.   

I bought my bag of chips at Acme Meat Market, but the chips/tortillas are sold throughout Edmonton.  You can find them at Save on Foods, Tienda Latina market, the Italian Centre and other independent places.  

El Mercado's info and where to buy is on their website: www.tortillaselmercado.com

The chips are freshly made, crispy, lightly salted and hearty.  I eat them plan lots of times without any dips/salsa. 

As mentioned on my profile - I support locally made products.  I don't get paid for promoting anything.  If I truly like something that's made here locally - I let people know about it. Sharing info is a good thing. 

If you can't find these tortillas and/or choose to use another brand that's OK.  The dip will still be tasty.

Let me know what you think of this dip.

I hope which ever team your cheering for (or have money on) wins the Super Bowl.  

Go your team go!  I'm neutral.  I'm just watching the commercials.

Cheers!