Riley Aitkin, head chef, and owner of Smokey Bear developed his early cooking interests while living in Denmark, on the island of Samsø. Working at the regional restaurant of Ilse Made, Riley fell in love with produce-driven food. He worked closely with head chef Kasper Gaard to curate a daily changing 5-course menu.

His next adventure took him Biota, a 2-hatted regional restaurant in Australia, where he became head chef later that year. Biota received Two Chefs Hats in the Australian Good Food Guide all three years that Riley was at the helm, and was recognized as a restaurant in Australia’s AFR top 100, Hot 50, and Delicious magazine. Riley fostered many special relationships with the land, people, and produce of Australia, and was involved in discovering and logging many native ingredients in Tasmania, Gulf of Carpentaria, and Melbourne.

In 2017, Riley attended the Food on the Edge symposium in Ireland to speak on cooking using native ingredients. He returned to Canada in 2019 top open his restaurant — Smokey Bear, a wood-fired eatery with a focus on high quality, seasonal produce and ingredients cooked over an open flame, a form of cooking that is amazingly intricate, yet simple. In addition to a constantly changing menu, the drink menu features biodynamic wines, handcrafted cocktails, and local beers.

Cooking at home with Riley Aitkin: Smoked EggPlant with Dried Berries and Nuts

Feeds 4

Prep time 10 min

Cooking 3 hours

What you’ll need:

4 Large eggplants
100 ml of lemon juice
4 cloves of garlic
75 ml of neutral oil
Salt to taste
25g raisins
25g dried blueberries
25g pistachios
25g pine nuts
A BBQ, blender, and maurice (rubber spatula)

Instructions:

Preheat BBQ to high
Place eggplants on the grill and roast until the flesh carbonizes (turns black)
Once roasted, place eggplants in a bowl or container, cover, and let sweat for 1-hour
Remove the stems from the eggplants and place on the highest rack of your BBQ over low to medium heat for 1-2 hours or until 50% moisture is out of the eggplants
Place eggplants in a blender with lemon juice, garlic, and salt, and blend into a smooth paste
Emulsify paste with a little bit of neutral oil, and season one last time.
Place eggplant paste into the fridge and let it cool

Finishing:

Place eggplant in a bowl and cover with dried seeds and nuts. Enjoy!

Liked this recipe? Smokey Bear is offering take out throughout Edmonton! You can order off their regular menu or from Pedros — their family and friends taqueria menu. Both are available for pick up and can be ordered online.

“We have also opened our larder up to guests so they can purchase some cool ferments and pickles that normally wouldn’t be available. Gift cards are also available for purchase!”