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On the Menu So what's on the menu? Well, that's depends on your personal preferences and dietary requirements. It's not so much about menus as it is what you can do with foods. A very few common ones are listed below. But don't feel you need to stop here. If you feel more adventurous we can include goose, duck, ostrich, bison (farm-raised) and so much more. If you need something simpler, or kid-friendly, we can do that too! And if meat isn't on your menu, we have a wide variety of vegetarian entrées to suit! By the way, if you have any secret family recipe favourites you want me to make, send me the recipe and we can make it happen for you. (We'll even keep it a secret!) Pasta is wonderful as either an entrée or side dish. Its flexible nature makes it perfect for cream sauces, tomato sauces, meat, seafood or vegetarian meals. Here are just a few examples of what The Homestead Chef can prepare for you: Cannelloni stuffed with meat and cheeses, smothered with home-made marinara sauce and mozzarella. Lasagna from fresh pasta, with alternating layers of sauce (meatless or with sausage) and artichoke aioli with parmesan cheese and topped with real mozzarella. Fettuccini Alfredo - the classic creamy sauce for pasta Linguini with clam sauce - the other classic creamy sauce for pasta... Alberta beef is internationally recognized as premium quality meat because of its tenderness, excellent marbling and flavour. For steaks, roasts and the like, The Homestead Chef uses only 14-day (minimum - more available by special request) dry-aged beef. Here are a few favourites. Braised tenderloin - seared and braised slowly on a bed of carrots, celery and onions, served with pan gravy. Steak - fillet mignon, T-bone, ribeye... pick your cut and size. Either prepared with a dry rub for you to barbeque, or already grilled and ready to finish, these steaks are excellent with a dab of compound butter that includes garlic, shallots, orange and parsley. Dino Ribs - Remember the Flintstones cartoon? When the waitress set down the ribs on the side of the car? Why settle for shorty ribs when you can enjoy big, meaty ribs covered in a thick, satisfying, home-made barbeque sauce! Not for the faint of heart or delicate of nature! Chicken is always good, and really quite versatile. Alberta's chicken is top-notch, and tastes superb in the following examples. Satay - Thai. Highly flavoured thin strips of chicken on bamboo skewers, served with home-made peanut sauce. Breast - Chicken breast is the perfect cut to be stuffed (perhaps with orzo and spinach) or stuffed into something else (cheesy chicken ravioli, for example). Grilled, it can be the topping on a Thai chicken salad or served with a creamy garlic sauce, lemon sauce or in a rich tomato sauce. The possibilities are nearly endless. Roast Chicken - We start by brining your chicken in a blend of stock, onions, rosemary and other herbs. The chicken is then roasted to the peak of perfection. Masala - Classic Indian Butter Chicken, with a rich, buttery tomato-based sauce seasoned with Masala Spices and curry to your tastes (warning: this is not a heart-smart meal). Tastes great, is versatile in meals, and smokes up beautifully. See if this makes your mouth water... Chops - With bone or boneless, regular cut or butterfly, thick or thin, pork chops can be marinated in an Asian-style marinade, grilled with a fresh herb rub and served with home-made apple sauce, or perhaps served with a creamier sauce made from a vegetable stock reduction with portabella, button and porcini mushrooms. So many choices! Schnitzel - Thin cuts of pork, pounded even thinner and lightly coated in herbed breading. A favourite of the kids. Tenderloin - Pork tenderloin roasted with a coating of rosemary and other herbs and served as medallions with gravy. Ham - An all-time favourite, the ham used by The Homestead Chef is sourced from a local butcher who carefully hand cuts each one then cures and smokes them using a classic Mennonite recipe. The pervasive, smoky flavour blends beautifully with the meat and provides the basis for a truly amazing country gravy. Just because Alberta's not on the coast doesn't mean we can't get seafood... Crabcakes - The recipe for these crabcakes comes courtesy of fellow Personal Chef Mike Sodaro from Chicago and has yet to receive anything but rave reviews, even from those who don't normally enjoy seafood. These crabcakes offer subtle and complex flavourings and are served with a mild honey-jalapeno sauce. Shrimp - Whether you prefer them smaller and simply sauteed in butter with fresh garlic and herbs, giant-sized with a rich crabmeat stuffing, as a stuffing in ravioli, or in a jambalaya, The Homestead Chef will ensure that shrimp lovers will have the opportunity to sample a diverse selection of shrimp dishes. My wife especially loves shrimp cooked in herbed water and served with an avocado salsa. Her opinion: Delicious X 2! Fresh fish, lobster, and more - Although land-locked, swift transportation systems gives Albertans access to a wide variety of fresh fish and seafood. This allows The Homestead Chef to produce dishes that approach the fresh-off-the-docks meals often enjoyed in coastal cities. Because of the delicate nature of many of these, they are not all suitable for freezing and should be consumed fresh.
Copyright © 2006 The Homestead Chef – All rights reserved
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