My daily bread...
Happy belated Canada Day! I hope everyone had a chance to slow down a little, spend time with family and friends, and enjoy everything that makes this country such a wonderful place to call home. My personal contribution to the festivities. I woke up just in time to hear the fireworks... and decided that counted. π
Rise has been quiet this past week while we took a little break, and I have to say, it was exactly what I needed. It was a week filled with extra sleep, the occasional afternoon nap, checking projects off my ever-growing list, getting organized, and enjoying a completely different pace from the usual whirlwind that comes with having the bakery open. Somehow it was both incredibly productive and wonderfully relaxing.
I just left Rise, and everything is prepped and ready for Monday morning. The mixers will be running again before the sun comes up, the ovens will be hot, and we can't wait to welcome you back.
As for today... I may have once again put just a few too many things on my plate! So I'm focusing on the priorities: first, getting this newsletter into your inbox so you know what's happening this week at Rise... and second, being in bed by 6pm I have a feeling tomorrow's alarm is going to arrive much sooner than I'd like.
Saturday morning, it was back to one of my favorite places, the Farmers' Market. It was bursting with beautiful local produce, and I came home with a table absolutely covered in vegetables, herbs, fruit, and all kinds of inspiration. I even found gorgeous golden beets (I couldn't resist!), along with a whole case of beautiful apricots.
If you see it in the photo and you're eating at Rise this week... there's a pretty good chance it'll end up on your fork! That's exactly how our weekly menu begins. I wander through the market gathering whatever is fresh, local, and inspiring, and then head back to the kitchen to create this week's soup, salads, pizza, and cheesecake.
So... let's get into this week's menu!
Mornings at Rise start early...β
β7am, the doors open, the coffee is flowing, and the bakery is buzzing. Lattes, cappuccinos, iced coffees, tea, house-made chai, golden milk lattes, and, now that patio season has arrived, our Italian lemonade sodas are all ready to go.
If the weather cooperates, you'll find the patio set up and waiting. If the rain decides to make an appearance, we'll simply pull the tables back inside and make room. Around here, we've become pretty good at adapting to whatever Mother Nature has planned.
The pastry case will be filled with fresh-baked treats, and the Rise & Shine muffins are often just coming out of the oven as the first customers arrive. For something a little lighter, you'll find yogurt parfaits layered with berries and house-made granola waiting in the cooler.
And then there's one of the simplest breakfasts around - a thick slice of toasted sourdough, slathered with Rockridge cultured butter and house-made jam. Add a fresh cup of Birdy Coffee, and you've got a pretty great way to start your day.π
BLTs continue to be one of the most popular items on our menu, and lately we've been increasing our focaccia production just to keep up with demand! Made on our house sourdough focaccia and loaded with bacon, lettuce, tomato, dill havarti, and a fried egg.
First up this week will be the wraps. Weβre kicking things off with both Grilled Chicken and Roast Ham Veggie Wraps this week.
Next up... they're back! You haven't seen our Rice Paper Salad Rolls for a couple of weeks because we completely ran out of rice paper wrappers. A quick trip to Calgary solved that problem, so you'll find them back in the cooler this week!
Just give us a little time Monday morning to get everything rolled and ready. We should have both the rice paper salad rolls and this week's quinoa salad bowl stocked in the cooler by noon.
Salad Bowl of the Week
βThis week's salad is all about celebrating what's in season. We're starting with a hearty base of tri-color quinoa, quinoa pasta, and French black lentils, then loading it up with crisp, fresh market veggies. The star of the show, is those beautiful golden beets. Instead of roasting them, we're shredding them fresh to create a bright, crunchy slaw that adds incredible color, sweetness, and texture.
To bring it all together, everything gets tossed with a house-made Rhubarb Apricot Vinaigrette, celebrating two of my favorite summer flavors. Sliced dried apricots adds little bursts of sweetness throughout the bowl and ties everything together perfectly.
As always, we keep the salad gluten-free, with our creamy Rockridge feta and crunchy house-made fattoush pita crisps served on the side. If you can enjoy them, they're the perfect finishing touch. If not, you still have a fresh, vibrant, naturally gluten-free bowl that's absolutely packed with flavor.
As always, we love finishing our salad bowls with a little something special. This week, they'll be topped with fresh microgreens and blooms picked from our own planters. After a week of being completely undisturbed the planters are absolutely bursting and ready for a little pruning while we garnish the salads!π
Sourdough line-up...
Monday - no sourdough loaves
βTuesday - SuperSeed Multigrain Loaves and Red Fife Country Loaves
βWednesday - The Classic Brown 60/40 Loaf and 100% Whole Grain Organic Loaf
βThursday - Light Rye Loaves and Hokkaido Sourdough Milk Buns
βFriday - Red Fife Country Loaves
Wednesday is Soup Day - Wild Mushroom, Chicken & Herb Soup
Part of my week off was spent reaching out to some new suppliers, and one of the things I've been hoping to bring into Rise is locally grown oyster mushrooms from Ceres grown in Crossfield. They'll be arriving Tuesday morning, and I couldn't wait to build a soup around them.
We're pairing those beautiful Alberta mushrooms with delicate shimeji mushrooms, and my favorite wild mushroom blend to create a broth that's rich with deep, earthy flavor. The oyster mushrooms will get a quick roast in Parthena olive oil before they hit the pot, bringing out their incredible natural sweetness.
From there, we'll build a rich chicken stock and if you've ever wondered why the soups at Rise have so much flavor, here's one of our little secrets. Every Monday, as we're prepping vegetables for the week's wraps and quinoa salad bowls, all those peels, herb stems, trimmings, and flavor-packed ends that most kitchens throw away go straight into our stock pot. Those humble "seconds" slowly simmer into an incredibly rich broth that becomes the foundation of our soups.
We start ladling at 11am!π
Then we'll layer in tender chicken, leeks, zucchini, kale, spinach, fresh herbs, tiny little pasta noodles, and a handful of black lentils to create a light, brothy summer soup that's absolutely packed with flavor without feeling heavy, a perfect fit for a warm July day.
A quick reminder about pre-ordering: If there's something you really have your heart set on, soup included, you can pre-order absolutely anything we make at Rise. Just stop by the till, let us know what you'd like, and we'll write it on our good old-fashioned clipboard, take your payment, and set it aside for you. No stress, no disappointment, and no tears when your favorite sells out. It'll be waiting for you.
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π TGIF Sourdough Pizza β Chicken Slovaki with Alberta Oyster Mushrooms
Those beautiful Alberta oyster mushrooms are making another appearance this week... and for good reason. I ordered a whole case!
We're starting with our sourdough crust, then piling it high with lemon and oregano grilled chicken, roasted Alberta oyster mushrooms, roasted red peppers, artichoke hearts, kalamata olives, red onion, mozzarella, and provolone.
Once the pizza comes out of the oven, we finish it the Rise way with a generous handful of fresh greens, house-made tzatziki, crumbled feta, fresh dill, and a little hit of fresh lemon zest.
Fresh, bright, and packed with Mediterranean flavors... I think this one's going to disappear pretty quickly on Friday.
Cheesecake Friday β Honey Roasted Apricot Cheesecake
βWe're starting with a brown butter graham crust, then filling it with our rich New York cheesecake, layered with honey-roasted apricots tucked all the way through. Roasting the apricots first brings out their natural sweetness and gives them an almost jammy texture that pairs beautifully with the creamy cheesecake.
Once it's baked and chilled, we'll finish it with a delicate honey glaze, swirls of Chantilly cream, chopped pistachios, and a sprinkle of local bee pollen that I picked up at the Farmers' Market this weekend. It's a tiny finishing touch that adds a subtle floral note and feels like the perfect way to celebrate summer.
Sweet, creamy, a little nutty, and full of beautiful Alberta sunshine...
And just like that... my week off has come to an end.
We just had a little thunderstorm roll through, but the sun is back out, and I have just enough time to sneak in a quick walk before it's back into the kitchen. Those beautiful apricots are waiting for me and I need to get them prepped this evening so they'll be ready for roasting first thing tomorrow morning.
I couldn't be more excited to get back into the rhythm of Rise. The ovens will be going before the sun comes up, the coffee will be brewing, and our team will be back together doing what we love.
It looks like we've got a beautiful week of summer weather ahead, so the patio will be set, the flowers will be blooming, and there will be plenty of extra seating waiting for you. Stop by for a coffee, stay for lunch, or simply sit for a while and enjoy a little sunshine with us.
Thank you, as always, for supporting Rise and for making this little bakery such a special place to come back to each morning. We can't wait to welcome you back this week!
I'll be back here next Sunday with all the Rise flavors of the week.π
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