I went to Coffee Traders for the Big Sky Breakfast- scrambled eggs, salsa, avocado, hashbrowns and toast. I will rate this breakfast a C-. The toast had a weird spread on it which was a saltless alternative to butter. I hate alternatives to butter with rare exceptions. It also smelled rancid. The eggs were rubber and the hash was undercooked. All and all super lame.
I also had a blackbean quesadilla there on a separate occasion which I rate a B. The quesadilla was well grilled- not too soggy or oily- good and crispy. The spicy blackbeans and homemade salsa were killer but they used too much cheese which took away from the flavor and texture of the beans and made the quesadilla too heavy.
Next stop was Bonellie's Bistro. I had a roasted portobello/veggie panini with garlic aioli and moroccan chicken soup on the side. Killer delish. A + rating. I decided then and there to remember the ingredients because I would have to learn how to make this myself or else become putty in Bonellie's hands.
I checked out La Hacienda in Whitefish for some fish tacos for dinner. Two tacos were reasonably priced and the quantity was generous. I give the meal a B+. There was so much tartar sauce slathered lettuce that it was hard to get down to the good crispy fried halibut. But it was tasty. The atmosphere was exceptional though. The staff consisted of three people (son, aunt and grandma), the ladies in the back cooking, and the son out front taking and delivering orders, and clearing tables. He was fun to talk to :)
Aright next stop was Crush Wine Bar in Whitefish. They used to serve food but the food was unpopular (since most people stop there before or after dinner for drinks) so they discontinued food service. That is for the best since on my previous visit I had ordered a mini Guinness cupcake which was stale and exceptionally boring. The wine, on the other hand, was great. I had a Reisling which was sweet, bright, light, and did not leave me with a headache. A + on that beverage. It was the best (and most refreshing) wine that I have had in a long time. Full disclosure: I love white wine and am rarely disappointed as long as it isn't too dry.
Finally, no food tour of Kalispell can be completely without a visit to Ceres Bakery. The Almond and blackberry bearclaw is otherwordly (grade A), although for whatever reason there is constantly a toughness in Ceres' croissant dough that drives me crazy. They are always on the brink of being amazing but just can't quite get it because their dough always seems slightly stale and chewy. They will forever live in the shadow of La Petit in Missoula. Sorry to all of the passionate ceres lovers out there.
Anyway, at the end of that whirlwind food tour I decided to hunker down and figure out how to make that darn bonelli's sandwich for myself. So after some guesstimation, I came up with a soup that managed to replicate insanely well the flavors of the real deal. Here is the recipe for Zoe's Moroccan Chicken soup (don't ask me what of the flavors are Moroccan...I have no idea):
Ingredients:
Generous amt of olive oil
2 chicken breasts cubed
1 red onion, cut in half and pulled apart
1 red pepper, diced
1 tbs ginger
1 tbs cayenne
1 tbs cumin
S & P to taste
Squeeze of lemon to taste
4 C Chicken Stock
1 large can of diced tomatoes
1 can coconut milk (light is fine)
2 C cilantro, diced
Instructions: Heat olive oil, add chicken, stirring occassionally, add onion, pepper, and spices. Let cook in oil for a few minutes. Then add everything else but the cilantro and let simmer for maybe 40-50 minutes. Once simmered, toss the cilantro in there and blend with a hand blender until soup is thick consistency. Mmmmm.
Then paninis:
I roasted 1 R Pepper, 1 Y Pepper, 2 Zucchinis, 1 Summer Squash, 1 Egg Plant, 2 Portobello Mushrooms, 2 Red Onions, 1 Garlic, and 2 Tomatoes. I chopped them all up into edible sizes, threw them into a pyrex and then over them I poured a mixture of 1/2 C of olive oil, 4 tbs of balsamic vinegar, lemon, salt, pepper, and 3 cloves of crushed garlic. I let that bake at 450°F for 50 minutes, taking it out and mixing it around periodically to spread the oil on the veggies.
So then I put that mix onto the panini bread (just a flat bread cut in half) with thin slices of fresh mozzarella and some garlic aioli. The aioli I got lazy on. I just took mayo and pureed it with some of the garlic I had roasted. I spread the aioli on the bread, put the cheese on top of that, put the veggies on top of that, put the top on the sandwich, and I put them in the george foreman for 5 minutes or so.
So that was that. I give myself an A. It's probably the best job I've ever done of replicating a recipe.
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