Weekend Re-Cap… And We Ate.

What a weekend of blissful living. A long weekend of gorging out on amazing food, visiting with fabulous friends and relishing the last of these long, hot summer nights. Life is good people, life is good…sans the pesky mosquitoes who are eating me alive. I’m talking mosquito stabbings that are leading to some serious bruising… or maybe it’s my persistent scratching. None-the-less, the mosquitoes can go…most other insects are welcomed.

Here’s a little “caught in action” shot. Gasp, our little angel dumpster diving? No.

 This weekend was all about breaking bread and wine with our dear friends (I’m keeping them anonymous because they prefer to remain off the grid, they’re even Facebook-less).

We kicked the weekend off with steamed mussels in white wine, freshly baked bread, steak, fresh green salad, etc, etc.

 Followed by this tasty number…By 10 am, Saturday morning,  it was scorching, at least for Erik and I who happen to be Scandinavian heat wimps. But we rallied and ventured over to the 104th Street Farmers Market.

While shopping about for our regular weekly fare, a recent article in Bon Appetit Magazine came to mind. “Each visit, buy one ingredient you’re unfamiliar with.  It’ll make you a better cook.”  I was hit with my ah-ha moment, so I rose to the challenge and bought garlic scape.

I had a wonderful conversation with the farmer about scape and all it’s wonderful garlic-y glory.  Much milder than an actual garlic clove and prepared like a green onion, it’s the perfect complement for stir fry, pizza, seafood. A culinary adventure.

 In between all the walking and visiting was a ton of reading and cat-napping.For the past year Erik and I have been hearing about the Heritage Festival at Hawrelak Park.  This beautiful, enormous park in the middle of Edmonton is packed to the brim with cultural richness…music, dancing, fashion, and the main feature…food.

So we hopped on our bikes and cruised to the park to check it out.

 This is what we saw at the entry.  There was something marvelous about thousands and thousands of people all there to experience each others’ heritage and to learn and enjoy the diversity. With all the horrendous shootings and tragic events peppering the news lately on a level which seems to only escalate with hate and violence, it was a refreshing experience. Seeing all the people with open minds and hearts is living proof that peaceful coexistence can truly outweigh the pain and suffering. It was a really wonderful place to be on a beautiful Saturday afternoon. Even if it was friggin’ a million degrees.

  Erik and I were seriously obsessing over these mango slushies. OBSESSING!Let’s talk Heritage Festival logistics. Yes, it’s true… there’s really no place to park your car nearby. Pump up the bike tires or throw on some sneakers and incorporate some activity into your plans. Otherwise the local transit system is pretty swell. Yes, there were beyond thousands of people at this park and yes, there were some line-ups…buy your tickets at Save-On ahead of time.

Regarding the food, Erik and I really didn’t have to wait longer than 5 minutes at the busiest places. Did I mention it was hot? Pack water, sunscreen, bug repellent and a picnic blanket. There were plenty of lovely shady spots to set up home-base with a blanket and then venture out for all the tasty finds.  Pardon the helmet head o’ hair.

Monday started like this…

  And believe it or not, between all the eating we did this weekend, we did find some solid time for exercise! How could we not, watching all those hard bodies rock the Olympics!