Allan and I just got back from a FANTASTIC extended weekend up at Whistler Blackcomb for the Telus World Ski and Snowboard Festival.

We were invited by the amazing Whistler Blackcomb media team (thanks Michelle, Tabetha, Amber!) to check out some of the festivities and attend some events. This was our first year attending as “media”.

We rushed to Whistler Blackcomb after work on Thursday and checked into our hotel for the night — the Coast Hotel Blackcomb Suites (thanks Danny!).

The hotel had tons of amenities such as a gym, full breakfast room, outdoor pools and hot tub, not to mentioned located right on the side of a run for ski-in ski-out access.

We loved our room! Super comfy and had a full kitchen too.

Then, it was off to Araxi Restaurant for a dinner hosted by Cindy of the BC Ministry of Tourism and Breton from Tourism Whistler. Araxi has been one of our favourites restaurants for many years (long before Hell’s Kitchen and the crazy amounts of press it has been getting over the past year or so)… and still is.

As soon as we arrived I was peer pressured into “sabre-ing” the champagne… my first time ever! It was pretty scary but very cool. I got to use a real sabre to chop off the top of the champagne bottle. Videos to come.

Araxi is well-known for its seafood, sustainable food, and local and organic cuisine.

Chef James Walt makes some amazing dishes. He actually lives in Pemberton on a farm and partners with the producers out there to source seasonal foods. The gnocchi and souffle were to die for.

It was also my first time ever tasting venison… and I loved it. So tender. Allan also loved his lamb.

For dessert we had the pistachio ice cream covered in chocolate and an apricot cheesecake. Yum. Also to note — it was my first time ever really trying champagne, red wine, white wine and dessert wine. Steve Edwards (restaurant manager and sommelier) gave me tons of information and some really amazing recommendations. I may slowly be starting to be a convert.

Here’s Michelle, Steve (thanks for all the wine tips!), myself and Cindy.

The next morning (Friday) we woke up and had a hot breakfast at our hotel.

Then it was off to Scandinave Spas in Whistler.

I can’t say enough good things about this place. The eucalyptus steam room (mmmmm), the cold baths, the hot mineral baths and the waterfalls everywhere. We spent about 4 hours here before we were completely shriveled and jello-like, and then it was off to dinner.

We decided to try the Rimrock Cafe in Whistler (by Creekside) as it was recommended to me by one of my coworkers as her favourite restaurant in BC. The drinks we had were a great start — Allan had some wine and I had a kiwi lime Brazilian caipirinha . My drink was sooooooo good.

The appetizers were also pretty good… I had the scallop lobster capellini (very delicate… loved it), and Allan had the cariboo medallions (good, but not as good as the venison at Araxi).

For dinner we had the gnocchi, mushroom risotto with sablefish, and salmon stuffed with crab. I personally thought the gnocchi and the sablefish were pretty good but the mushroom risotto was terrible. Very acidic and not creamy at all — more like a rice pilaf. Would not order again. Allan liked his salmon but thought it was too rich and the crab overpowered the salmon. The dessert was the toffee pudding which was AMAZING. So basically — we would go there for drinks and dessert but probably not dinner again.

Overall… a pretty good couple days in Whistler so far! Next post coming soon with the last few days of the weekend. What did you get up to this past weekend?

Playoff fever is hitting the city of Vancouver, and even though I haven’t made a post about it yet… rest assured, I have been watching every Canucks game and following the team with dedication this year. After all, I did wear my jersey every single day of the playoffs last year as my “playoff beard”. You can check out some of my other posts on the Canucks.

I think the Canucks have a pretty good shot at the playoffs this year, despite some problems in the last two games against the Kings. I think they will pull through and get a win tonight, and we’ll see the Sedins step up again and hopefully Edler will come out hitting. It’s been a humbling time for Luongo and I think many fans are falling off the Lou bandwagon as his performance has been less than stellar as of late. Still — I believe in Blue and Lou (get it?  ha ha) and I’m rooting for my ‘Nucks all the way.

Go Canucks Go!

Anyway, in other news, this past weekend Allan and I cooked up some pretty ridiculous fish and chips. Yes, we cooked it in duck fat. Wait… before you recoil, know this: animal fat gets a bad rap but it’s actually pretty good for you. It doesn’t contain any of the chemicals that some butters, margarines and oils do… and it certainly tastes a lot better. Still, if you don’t want to cook using animal fat, simply modify this recipe and use canola oil instead.

Other compliments to the meal that we made?

Homemade aged-cheddar cheese buttermilk biscuits… (see recipe here) …

And dark chocolate chunk cookies (see recipe here) for dessert.

DECADENT GUINNESS-BATTERED FISH AND CHIPS COOKED IN DUCK FAT RECIPE

1 package of duck fat (approx 8 oz or more, you can find this at your local butcher or in Vancouver at Oyama Sausage on Granville Island)
Canola oil for frying (a few cups depending on how much duck fat you use)
2-4 large russet or other starchy potatoes, peeled and chopped into fry strips the size of a finger
1 cup flour
1 cup rice flour plus 1/2 cup rice flour for dredging
1 Tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon chili powder/cayenne/paprika (choose one or use a mix)
2 Tablespoons chopped parsley (optional)
1 large egg, beaten lightly
1 can of Guinness beer or other dark beer (use about 75% of the can) .. THIS MUST BE COLD.
2 fillets of cod, halibut, haddock or turbot fish (approx 8 oz each, cut into half on an angle)
Tartar sauce, malt vinegar and lemon squeezes if you want

1. Heat the duck fat and enough canola oil (likely 1-2 cups, enough to cover the chips and eventually the fish) in a large bottomed pot or a deep fryer to 325 degrees F. Use a oil/candy thermometer if you have one, otherwise try and eyeball it on medium-high heat.

2. Place the chips in the oil/fat and dry for approximately 2 or three minutes. They won’t be fully cooked yet, but remove them to a plate lined with plenty of paper towel to drain.

3. Raise the temperature to 375 degrees F and then start mixing your dry ingredients.

4. In a large bowl, mix together the rice and normal flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, pepper, chili powder, and about 75% of the parsley. Now, mix in the egg. Whisk in the beer until the batter is smooth. Now quickly coat the fish in the rice flour (on a separate plate) and then dip them into the batter, making sure you shake off the excess batter. Too much batter will cause your fish to be kinda mushy with overly thick batter.

5. You are now going to fry the fish and the chips in the same pot. If there isn’t enough space for both, do it in batches (fries first and then fish for 4-5 mins each). Otherwise, place the fries and fish in the pot making sure they are submerged completely. Fry for 4-5 mins until crispy brown. You may want to flip over the pieces of fish at around 2 minutes so that both sides are evenly brown. Remove to a plate. Let sit for a couple minutes (the fish will continue to cook inside and this will allow it to retain the juiciness).

6. Sprinkle with freshly ground salt and pepper and a little fresh parsley.  Serve and eat… yum! I ate mine with a biscuit instead of fries, but Allan had his with the chips. Both taste great! Sooooo good. It was really crispy.