British Columbia Spot Prawn Custard with Chive Salad

And a tour of the Kelowna Farmer’s Market with More Than Burnt Toast

One of my most significant moments of the Okanagan Food and Wine Writer’s Workshop (OKFWWW2012) was finally meeting Valerie from More Thank Burnt Toast. I have followed her culinary adventures for quite some time in her little Kelowna kitchen and marveled at how healthy and gorgeous the food she makes for herself is. We have struck up many side conversations over food and travel through the past few years, and I was delighted to hear she would be joining in for a portion of the conference. The last morning, she took me on a short and intense early morning Kelowna food lover’s tour to the Farmer’s Market, Sandrine for a croissant, The Okanagan Grocery, Codfather’s and Starbucks; I was back to the hotel by 10 am to catch my plane home. Whew! It is amazing what one can buy in such a flurry!

It was raining. We both had our not-so-handy umbrellas and were undaunted. She is a woman after my own heart. After dinner Wednesday night at Botegga with Chef Mark Filatow, a true local food hero in the Okanagan Valley, I was tickled to meet local Spin Farmer, Curtis Stone, from Green City Acres, the provider of the baby vegetable jewels we were served for dinner. Unforgettable.

We enjoyed a pastry from the Portuguese Baker which was so apropo as one of Valerie’s initiatives is “Invite a Blogger to your Table”. She invited me to kick it off a couple of years ago. We made Portuguese Tarts together: she in her kitchen, and I in mine. I would have never challenged myself to make them otherwise, and it was an unexpected learning experience. Therefore, how perfectly proper to be tearing into another Portuguese Treat together.

The Kelowna Farmer’s Market boasts that it is the largest in British Columbia which surprised both myself, and Valerie. It was a rainy day, but seemed comparable to the Edmonton City Market downtown, vendor wise. The bounty and size of the produce was inconceivable for this time of year just one province over. The valley is a lush paradise brimming with the freshness of Spring.

I did my research after cooking my prawns.  Yes, I do know better! They were deadly delicious, but to maximize the experience of this wild and rare Pacific Ocean delicacy, I would suggest not using this recipe for your first tasting experience. It is a great recipe, though. Two minutes is the maximum time needed to cook these morsels of sweetness and sea for your first time, sauteed with butter. This dish was a very tasty complement to grass-fed tenderloin I served and the prawns were beautifully cooked. This savoury potted custard is a lovely starter for any meal and there is no end to what can be created from this concept. Grate some fresh horseradish into the cream for an added zip.

Wild BC Spot Prawns are available live during the harvest season which usually starts the first of May and lasts about six weeks. The season is short, the catch very special, and the time to visit British Columbia to feast on them is May. Booking a trip for a spot prawn fest would be something I would absolutely do! How lucky was I that Valerie suggested a trip to Codfather’s for me to pick up some spot prawns to bring home. I would have not thought about that and did not know that there would be any available. Lucky me!

Codfather’s is a must stop shop for anyone who loves seafood in the Kelowna area and I am particularly impressed with their commitment to sustainable fishing. They get their spotted prawns from Wild BC Spot Prawns who share that same philosophy. We were very fortunate to have had an oyster shucking demonstration and tasting from them at Cabana one day during the OKFWWW2012 for lunch by Jon Crofts, the owner of Codfather’s in Guisachan Village, Kelowna.

Spotted Prawns are a wild sustainably harvested shell fish. Prawn fishermen spread baited traps along the ocean floor at depths ranging from 40 to 100 metres. This method has minimal impact on ocean habitat and very low levels of bycatch of other species. These prawns are hermaphrodites. That is a term I hadn’t heard since high school biology class!: They are born males and then they change to females. after the first two years of their life; usually living a total of four years. The firm sweet flesh and ample size is only part of the story behind this delicacy. There is an enzyme in the head that will travel very rapidly through the body turning the flesh to much when in contact with chlorinated water, so the heads must be removed immediately upon harvesting them: within hours at the very least. Thus, these little critters are fairly labour intensive. They must be eaten within three days of the harvest for optimum enjoyment. That is why most of them are flash frozen at sea, packed and exported across the Pacific to Japan where over 90% of the yearly 2.450 metric tonnes of them are eaten. There are a few saved for fresh eating along the west Canadian coastline. This definitely puts the preciousness of the delicacy into perspective for me. These can also be purchased frozen throughout Canada; however, if you don’t buy them immediately after or during the season, you will be hard pressed to find them anywhere.

Watching Lynn Crawford go spot prawn fishing on Pitchin’ In and eating one of the prawns immediately after pulling up the harvest had my attention. The spot prawn was on my radar and I am so thankful that I was able to have some fresh from Codfathers! Thank you, Valerie!

Spot Prawn Custard with Chive Herb Salad

Ingredients:

We finished our croissant tasting after buying the shrimp. Memories of a beautiful Kelowna morning.