Alberta News

March 31, 2010 Posted with the permission of the Edmonton Journal

By Liane Faulder. Photos by Walter Tychnowicz

Church food, for some, means coleslaw and tuna sandwiches. Possibly date squares, on a really good day.Not so at Laurier Heights Baptist Church, Edmonton where a foodie minister named Steve Simala-Grant and his able team of kitchen-savvy congregants (including Red Seal Chef Darryl Attwell) turn church basement meals into something memorable.

Read more after the link.

Indeed, brunch on Palm Sunday at Laurier Heights featured quail eggs in Westphalian ham cups with sour cream and jalapenos, served alongside an asparagus frittata, maple marmalade salmon and hand-cured gravlax. There were not one, but several kinds of fresh, handmade Easter delicacies on the bread table, including hot cross buns by 92-year-old Elsie Jones, George Rechner’s whole-wheat flax loaf and a Dutch egg bread delicately flavoured with lemon zest by passionate baker Ingrid Reimerink.

Jars of handmade strawberry-blackberry jam and fresh, homemade ketchup made tempting accompaniments. For dessert? Lemon tarts, the pastry light as doves, and cream puffs delicately dusted with icing sugar. From preparation to presentation, this church does it right. “This is normal for us,” says Simala-Grant, 39, for 20 years on the pastoral team at Laurier Heights. “We’ve always had this (food) history and tradition, and it’s an opportunity for people to build relationships.”

For the past four years, one of the congregation’s favourite ways to raise funds for a children’s project in Bolivia has been to host Iron Chef-like competitions between members, who came up with creative concoctions based on featured ingredients, including garlic, mango, chocolate and maple syrup. The competitions, combined with silent auctions, have collected $5,000 each year to help some 120 Bolivian children who are living in prison with their incarcerated parents. In fact, two members of the congregation recently quit their jobs in Edmonton to move to South America and spend a year working with the prison project.

There seem to be endless variations on the special food fundraisers at Laurier Heights. Dream Date Night has seen dads in the congregation feting their daughters at fancy, church-prepared dinners so the girls will have appropriately high expectations when fellas their own age come calling. In January, Simala-Grant catered appetizers for 20 in the home of a congregant who had purchased the privilege through the silent auction. Snacks included Honey Garlic Lollipop Chicken, Rosemary Elk with Tomato and Roasted Peppers with Smoked Gouda.

Sunday’s brunch preparations started at 5:30 a.m. when Attwell, who cooks in the kitchen at the Misericordia Hospital for a living, and Simala-Grant arrived with bags and boxes of food, some items prepared, others needing an extensive work-over with a chef’s knife. Attwell fired up the stove, and started tucking thin ham slices into tiny muffin tins. Later, he bent to the task of cracking dozens of speckled quail eggs into the dried ham cups before popping them into the oven.

Meanwhile, team member Iain Armstrong marinated salmon fillets in marmalade and maple syrup, while John Hidber put the finishing touches on his gravlax, spooning a dollop of goat cheese and Dijonaise onto a pumpernickel triangle before layering the cured fish on top.

Creativity flowed as the morning progressed. A bit of leftover cream cheese turned into a garnish for the maple salmon, mixed with lime and orange zest, and a bit of lime juice and dill.

“It’s really good on pumpernickel,” notes Hidber of the new creation.

“It’s also really good on a spoon,” chuckles Armstrong.

Around 11 a.m., when the service upstairs ended, families drifted down to find their places at tables beautifully set with Easter colours of purple and yellow. A little girl with blond braids dashed from table to table, placing palm crosses at each setting. Associate pastor Garret Parsons stepped up to a small stage and prepared to say the blessing.

“We like to gather around food, like other churches,” he said as heads bowed in gratitude. “But at this church ... it’s like a French restaurant.”