vol. 43: cross-canada coffee shops & rhubarb muffins
Well folks, we did it. With the help of pals & a super generous partner, I moved my stuff out of Montreal & made the epic schlep to Winnipeg. I’m writing this while watching deer graze along the Asssiniboine River, mid-summer verdant trees framing the scene while a wide morning Prairie sky renders the river a murky blue.
Our drive through Northern Ontario conjured up all sorts of memories for me, as I spent my adolescent summers on long canoe trips on rivers including the Mattawa, Madawaska, Otoskwin-Attawapiskat, Bazin, and Coulonge. I’d forgotten how beautiful the landscapes were up there, filled with tree-lined mountain ranges and gorgeous views of Lake Superior. My partner and I had a nostalgia-tour of various rotating albums as our soundtrack. I couldn’t help remembering favourites from that time of my life, including albums my Radiohead, Paul Simon, and The Beatles, which my friends taught me by rote on our canoe trips.
We quickly became used to signs with numbers as large as 600+km to Thunder Bay, reminding us of how far from *everything* we were. For my non-Canadian readers, driving from Montreal to Winnipeg is similar to driving from London, England to Kiev, Ukraine (ferries excluded) - basically the whole circumference of Europe. We did it in a leisurely three days, stopping along the Spanish River, Terrace Bay, and finally in Lake of the Woods.
One of my little joys was researching fun coffee shops for pit stops, something I also enjoyed in Saskatoon earlier this summer. I thought it might be nice to compile a list of cross-country caffeination locations based on my summer research. Here are a few from the roadtrip that stood out…:
Opera Cafe and Bakery, North Bay ON:
Couldn’t resist stopping at this cute spot in North Bay. We had cold brew and salad and the service was a treat (and the baked goods looked good too…!!).
Shabby Motley, Sault Ste-Marie ON:
J found this place while I was driving us one morning shift (I maybe drove 5 hours out of the 25 hours… which honestly, I’m pretty proud of myself for! I’m not a big highway driver having grown up/learned in Toronto and driving a 15-foot Uhaul was… new!). Anyway, they were so nice with my indecisiveness and had an in-house knitting store!!!
Habit Coffee, Thunder Bay ON:
It was pouring rain when we arrived in Thunder Bay, but we still made a stop at this converted church turned coffee shop. Amazing rhubarb loaf and coffees and such a beautiful, cozy space.
And while I’m at it, a few cafés from our week in Saskatoon earlier this summer.
Junior Café, Saskatoon SK:
So cute! This airy space was on Broadway by the theatre Jon performed in. We had breakfast sandwiches and went back for a carrot cake cookie. ;)
Night Oven Bakery, Saskatoon SK:
This was our first coffee shop in Saskatoon, as recommended by a few pals of mine. So cute and delicious (& they even sold Jewish treats like challah on Fridays and babke! Who’da thought).
Pique, Saskatoon SK:
Another former New Yorker turned Canada-based jazz musician (like Jon) accompanied us on our morning coffee adventures, and he wasn’t a fan of this place (too bougie). But…. I loved it. I ordered a super decadent oatmeal, which kinda blew my mind.
And since Jon and I can’t sit still, tonight we’re flying to BC to spend time with his family/celebrate his mom’s birthday. :) We spent the last month in Montreal (+ a couple weeks for my work in Toronto) and next month I’ll be in Burgundy and Paris for some engagements & then in Toronto to see family and go to Jon’s shows. BUT! Those places don’t need publicity as far as cafés go. Why not endeavour to visit a smaller place this summer? My two cents.
Also! As I occasionally forget the purpose of this exact newsletter…
On the drive, we listened to some New Yorker fiction podcasts from favorite authors of mine. I enjoyed Jhumpa Lahiri’s short story/memoir about growing up in London, Ottessa Moshfegh’s funny/edgy story about a young boy and his blind mother/mysterious father, and Yiyun Lee’s expertly crafted “Any Human Heart.” My library loan of Ocean Vuong’s new book just came in in time, so I’m diving into that.
Every rhubarb season, I love making these Nigella Lawson muffins from her cookbook Feast, which got me into baking back in my undergrad days & is still a staple amongst my cookbooks:
Ingredients:
1 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup canola or vegetable oil
1 egg
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup buttermilk
175g rhubarb, cut into 1 cm cubes
75g walnuts roughly chopped (easily eliminated for my nut-free friends!!)*
300g plain flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
pinch salt
50g wheat germ
2 tbsp turbinado sugar (just use granulated if you don't have turbinado)
1 tsp cinnamon
*NB: for a fancy touch, I might toast the walnuts for a few minutes in a pan or the oven.
Whisk together the brown sugar, oil, egg, vanilla and buttermilk. In another bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and wheat germ. Combine the wet and the dry ingredients, being careful not to overmix. Gently fold in the walnuts and the rhubarb. Scoop the batter into paper-lined muffin or mini loaf tins.
In a small dish, combine the turbinado and the cinnamon. Sprinkle this mixture over the tops of the muffins. Bake at 350 for about 20 minutes for muffins or 30 for a rhubarb loaf. :)
Your road trip is so familiar to me. It's grueling but spectacular. Glad you're enjoying this (somewhat) new life. Love your descriptions of each adventure.