Last week, we my sister, Soli and I finally made it to Gordon Ramsay’s Laurier BBQ. I have never tried the resto when it was just Laurier BBQ, sans Gordon Ramsay, so I can’t say if it’s improved or not…I can say, however, that’s it’s excellent!

I had been reading some reviews since it opened that were not always positive or glowing. However, I either have very different tastebuds, or the food has vastly improved, because all three of us were very impressed. There was only one thing disappointing: the jars of pickles on every table that were not cleared or emptied between clients, and because there was no pickle-fork in the jar, clients would just stick their fingers or their own forks in there, meaning when you finally get a pickle, it’s coated in the finger and mouth germs of 15 people ahead of you (at least). We made a complaint about this, and the waitress said, oh! There’s usually a pincher in there…but as we left the resto and walked by at least one dozen tables, there were no pinchers in any of the jars. Gross!!

Now that my complaint is done, on to the good news! The rest of the food! The photos are not the best, since I only had a cellphone. Soli started with a Caesar, which was actually one of the best that he’s claimed he’s tasted, and I agree, it was pretty amazing. It had a heavy dollop of horseradish in it (which I believe is a typical Montreal-Caesar thing), and have a nice, smokey, BBQ tang to it. Really flavourful!

I ordered the chicken breast meal, which came with coleslaw, gravy, fries and a bun. Soli go the ½ chicken meal, my sister ordered the chicken pot pie, and there was an order of the smoked meat mac and cheese for all to share.

The mac and cheese was nice, but nothing special. It was a very small dish of creamy noodles and a few chunks of smoked meat that were a little lost among the noodles and cheese. This would not be something I would order again.

The chicken, however, was just fantastic. It was juicy and meaty. You could tell this was a good-quality chicken, one who probably lived a decent life, because his taste showed it. The skin was light and crisp, and not too salty. The coleslaw was okay, but the gravy was heaven! Heavy on the rosemary, it was thick and comforting, and was perfect with the chicken. We adored the French fries, which were sooooo crisp, Soli is convinced they are brined first. I even loved the bun, which was sweet and moist. I only had a bite or two of the pot pie, but the gravy was good, and the top flaky and buttery.

The price in the end was great too – very affordable for the quality of the food. It’s a cozy resto, and I can imagine myself spending some cold winter nights in there.

Gordon Ramsay’s Laurier BBQ
381 Laurier Ouest
Montreal, Quebec

This is one of my favourite cakes, for several reasons. It’s amazingly quick and easy to put together, and it comes out with the perfect texture every single time. The yogurt makes is a somewhat dense cake, with a very moist crumb. It is pretty much my favourite cake texture.

Next up, all those raspberries. I like the cake with frozen raspberries and with fresh raspberries…however, whenever I bake with berries, I freeze those berries first. I think that’s an important thing for cakes as white as this one; you don’t want it baking up with swirls and chunks of raspberries; I prefer when then jewel the cake. Also, big berry pieces mean big berry flavor!

The orange peel and juice (I’ve also used lemon) makes the cake exceptionally bright and lively. And finally, that almond extract! The extract in the cake itself is not too heavy, just a background note. The glaze on the cake is a little crunchy, a little sweet, and definitely almondy.

A perfect breakfast kinda cake, an ideal snack for an afternoon, and a lighter way to end a meal in the evening…not matter the season or time of day, this will always be one of my definite go-to cakes!

French Yogurt Raspberry Cake
From Bon Appetit

3 cups unbleached all purpose flour, divided
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 3/4 cups sugar
2 tablespoons fresh orange juice
1 1/2 teaspoons almond extract, divided
1 teaspoon finely grated orange peel
3 large eggs, room temperature
1 cup plain low-fat yogurt (I’ve also used vanilla – great!!)
2 1/2 cups fresh raspberries (two 6-ounce containers) (or frozen)
1 cup powdered sugar
1 tablespoon (or more) water

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter 12-cup Bundt pan. Whisk 2 1/2 cups flour, baking powder, and 1/4 teaspoon salt in medium bowl.

2. Using electric mixer, beat butter and sugar in large bowl until creamy. Beat in orange juice, 1 teaspoon almond extract, and orange peel. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating after each addition. Mix in yogurt.

3. Add dry ingredients to batter and beat just until blended. Toss 1/2 cup flour and raspberries in large bowl. Fold berry mixture into batter. Spoon batter into prepared pan; smooth top.

4. Toss 1/2 cup flour and raspberries in large bowl. Fold berry mixture into batter. Spoon batter into prepared pan; smooth top.

5. Bake cake until wooden skewer inserted near center comes out clean, about 1 hour 10 minutes. Cool 30 minutes. Invert cake onto plate and cool. DO AHEAD: Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover and let stand at room temperature.

6. Whisk powdered sugar, 1 tablespoon water, and 1/2 teaspoon almond extract in medium bowl. Add more water by 1/2 teaspoonfuls as needed for thick glaze. Drizzle over cake. Let stand until glaze sets.

Whenever I pass by the olive bar at the grocery store or the veggie markets, I am drawn in. I cannot resist them – the black olives, the green olives, the garlic-stuffed olives. I always bring some home and I always end up eating them all by the end of the evening. Given this love for olives, I knew it wouldn’t be long before I tried Dorie Greenspan’s herbed olives. It’s a simple recipe, doesn’t call for many ingredients, and just amplifies any olive!

I don’t think I’ll be able to bring home olives again and not heat some oil, toss some herbs and spices in, and wait a few hours. They become so much more interesting with just a few flavour-boosters tossed in there! Feel free to use whatever olives you end up having, as well as any herbs or spices you are partial to.

Herbed Olives
From Dorie Greenspan’s Around my French Table

2 cups olives
3 rosemary sprigs
3 thyme sprigs
½ teaspoon coriander seeds
½ teaspoon black peppercorns
½ cup extra virgin olive oil
4 garlic cloves, split in half
2 bay leaves, cut lengthwise in half
¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
2 strips lemon zest, pith removed
Salt to taste

1. Place the olives into a 1-quart jar (canning one is great). Remove the leaves from 2 of the 3 springs of rosemary and thyme and chop them finely.

2. Heat a heavy skillet over medium heat, and when it gets hot, add the coriander seeds and peppercorns. Turn them in the pan just until they become fragrant. Place them in a small bowl.

3. Let the pan cool a bit, then put it over very low heat. Pour in half of the olive oil and all the remaining ingredients (spices, herbs, the two intact rosemary and thyme sprigs, lemon peel). Heat until warm and fragrant, about 3 minutes.

4. Pour the warm herb oil into the jar with the olives. Add as much oil as needed to cover the olives. Mix and let stand until it reaches room temperature. Let sit in the fridge – the longer you can hold off heating them, the better they will be! They will last about 2 weeks in the fridge.

As some people have realized, I’ve moved the series of Hawaii posts. If you do want to read them, you can see them here:

Big Island, Day 1 (Puako)

Big Island, Day 2 (Puako to Captain Cook)

Big Island, Days 3 & 4 (Kona to Hilo)

Big Island, Days 5 & 6 (Volcano and Mauna Kea)

Kauai and Waimea Canyon

Kauai and Getting to Hanalei

Kauai – The Last Week

And here’s our two days in San Francisco!