Happy Cinco de Mayo!

This holiday, although it is not officially celebrated in Canada, has a special place in our hearts.
Two years ago on this date, we found ourselves sitting in a little Mexican restaurant on a quiet, tree lined side street of Palo Alto enjoying a big plate of La Morenita nachos (the famous blooming rose which we have demonstrated many times at the Village Grocer) with a side of guacamole.
Karen first discovered this little treasure of a restaurant over 10 years ago when Ron, her husband, was on a 2 year contract working in Silicon Valley.  It has never failed to delight us with its authentic Mexican flavours upon our many subsequent visits.  Fast forward to now......
The Cooking Studio gives us the opportunity to showcase the culinary talents of many guest chefs one of whom is Paula Zavalas.  Paula was born in Mexico and she specializes in Mexican and Spanish cuisine.  Last summer, she wowed our palates with a taste of Spain with her amazing Paella.
Last week, in anticipation of Cinco de Mayo,  she returned to introduce us to "authentic" Mexican flavours, not the "TexMex"version to which we are accustomed.  Paula's menu did not disappoint.  She dazzled us with Chipotle Picadillo, Cilantro Rice with Crispy Plantain, a luscious Corn Bread Dessert (yes, it was dessert) and  one of the best Guacamoles that we have ever tasted on this side of the border.  Paula served her version as an appetizer in a martini glass with a cilantro lime marinated shrimp and garnished with pomegrante seeds.  It was beautiful but it was the taste of the guacamole in all its tingling freshness that danced on our tongues. The memory lingered on and in celebration of Cinco de Mayo, I came home today to make:

          Paula's "authentic" Mexican Guacamole. 
Ingredients:
(Serves 6 people)
1/4 cup red onion finely diced
1 lime
1 Roma tomato, diced
2 Tbsp. cilantro, chopped
salt & pepper to taste 

Cut avocados in half and remove the pit.  Scoop and place in a bowl.  Smash with a fork.  Add the rest of the ingredients.  Season to taste with salt and pepper.  You're done!

Yes that's it.  Avocados, plum tomato, red onion, juice from a fresh lime and chopped cilantro which I had never used before in guacamole but I believe is the ingredient which makes the recipe so authentic and which gives it the extra fresh zing.

Ready, set, go!

Paula insisted that the avocado be smashed with a fork.  Never use a food processor as "authentic" guacamole should have a somewhat chunky texture. Add the rest of ingredients.

Just for fun, I spooned the guacamole back into the avocado shells as I didn't have any martini glasses.  Continuing with authenticity, I ate my guacamole as Paula served it, with round Corn Tostadas (made in Mexico by Charras) broken into pieces.  Ole!

Linda

Our New Hive!

Has it really been a year since our last post?  Where has the time gone?  Well, we have been extraordinarily busy bees.  Our building on the 19th Avenue finally sold on January 9th and we handed over the keys to the new owners, Fieldstone Window and Doors. 

We have set up our new hive at The Village Grocer and we are thrilled to be associated with Evan and Cathy Macdonald and their amazing team.  We feel that we have come full circle in our 33 years of retailing in the Markham/Unionville area and that we have come home again.

We first opened our doors in the fall of 1981in the old Queen's Hotel on Main Street, Unionville selling bulk food, cheese and some gourmet condiments. The Village Grocer had yet to appear.
As food was our focus, it seemed natural for us to name our store the Queen's Pantry.  Within a year, we expanded by adding a tearoom and some kitchenware.  Within 4 years, we had taken the entire bottom floor of the Hotel.  The Unionville area was starting to explode with new housing developments so it naturally followed for us to expand into home furnishings and decor.  By now, the tearoom and food aspect of our store had disappeared and we were now happily shopping at the Village Grocer.

In 1998, we purchased the building on the historic site of the old Almira Mill and we christened it, The Queensbridge Mill. By that time, we had a team of interior designers doing home consultations.  We also started to host seminars on design, entertaining and cooking.  Much to our surprise, it was the cooking classes that sold out immediately.  We always took an "artful" approach to our cooking classes.  Our classes centered around themes.  We prided ourselves on being good home cooks but we wanted to impart the playfulness and creativeness in gathering around the table with family and friends be it an inspired "Tuscan Harvest Feast","An Evening in Paris" or "Picnique en Provence". Our classes were informative but they were also very fun.

Evan soon became a guest chef at our cooking classes at Thanksgiving, Christmas and Easter when the main event centered around the turkey, ham or beef.  He never failed to dazzle everyone with his impressive carving skills as he entertained us with his stories.  It became a natural evolution with the inclusion of a cooking studio when he opened his new location on the 16th Avenue in August 2011.

With the rise of the big box stores and on-line retailers over the past 5 years,  it became obvious to us that we no longer needed the brick and mortar location to operate our design business.  The new Village Grocer location has also allowed us to return to our roots and our love of kitchenware and tabletop accessories.  Life is truly a circle.

We invite you to visit the Village Grocer website:  www.thevillagegrocer.com to find out what is happening in the Village.  You can alway reach us there by calling:  (905)940-0655.

Karen & Linda

P.S.  We look forward to once again sharing recipes, entertaining ideas and tips on decorating.
         Bee inspired!