Breakfast Bizzness

I had oatmeal for breakfast! This is an accomplishment in it self because I, for the most part, find oatmeal disgusting. Oatmeal has been totted as one of those holy grail whole grains that are good for heart health and keeping your waistline trim. Too say the least, I've always wanted to be someone that enjoyed the taste of oatmeal but it hasn't been much of a success. However, I tried again and had the instant Quaker oats with flavoring this morning . I was expecting it to be bad but it really wasn't. The portions are a little small and it tastes like it's high in sugar so not exactly the healthiest. Breakfast is usually a pain to figure out in the morning especially on that days when I have to rush out of the house first thing in the morning. This may be the solution? Probably not, I can see myself getting sick of it quick if I eat it every day, not to mention the sugar content. With some tweaks, I hope to avoid the prepackaged varieties and flavor it myself so that it is somewhat healthier. Let's hope it will be tasty afterward!

Just like a song in my heart

Easily one of my favorite songs. It's sad but so incredibly beautiful.
Enjoy.

Nothing like a bowl of hot noodle soup

As promised....

Shrimp Won-Ton Noodle Soup

Wontons:
1 bag of tiger shrimp (peeled and deveined)
5 dried or fresh Shitake mushrooms*
1 teaspoon of minced ginger
1 glove of garlic
1 teaspoon of sesame oil
1 teaspoon of soy sauce
1 dash of 5 spice
1 bag of wonton wrappers
3 sprigs of cilantro 
1 small bowl of warm water
salt and pepper to season

*If mushrooms are dried, soak overnight.

Noodle and Soup:
1 package of fresh won-ton noodles
1 chicken bouillon cube 
1 table spoons of hoisin sauce
1 tablesoon of sriracha sauce
5 sprigs of cilantro (or green onions)
2 batches of bok choy (washed and separated) 

Mince ginger and garlic gloves. Dice Mushrooms and cilantro.. Cut half of shrimp in half and dice the other half. Combine everything in a bowl & add ginger, garlic, soy sauce, sesame oil,  5 spice, salt, and pepper. Spoon filling intro won-ton wrapper and fold into a triangle, use warm water to seal the edges. Grab outer corners of triangle and bring to the front, pinch to hold together. Alternate method: gather won-ton wrapper with filling and pinch until it looks like a small sack.

Boil water and add noodles for 3 minutes. Drain and rinse. Refill pot and heat to a boil. Add shrimp won-tons and season water with a chicken bouillon cube, salt, pepper, and hoison and sriracha sauce. Add bok choy and noodles; let cook for 5 minutes on medium heat. Add cilantro and let cook for 2 minutes and turn off stove.

My mother's version of shrimp won-tons (fill and pinch)

My attempt at wrapping the won-tons in two ways

Final product! 

What are you doing this Family Day?

Family day is a newish holiday implemented in Ontario and has been receiving a mixture of love hate comments. For me, I'm not missing out on any school or work considering that my reading week coincides with family day and I am currently unemployed. I used today to hang out with my family, made wontons with my mother, studied while my dad read the news paper and took notes in my brother's room. Pretty relaxing, aside from the schoolwork but that can't be helped! Anyways, today was my first time making wontons, I tweaked my mom's recipe and will be posting it up very soon!

Bbbbarfffet

Wow, I just got home from a buffet located in Markham a couple hours ago and am I ever full! My favorites of the night were baked oysters, baked potatoes stuffed with sour cream with a cheesy layer and warm waffles with whipped cream and melon. This weekend has been ridiculous in terms of excessive food consumption. BARF!!! My mom is making shrimp won-tons tomorrow but after tomorrow I'll try to keep it healthy for the rest of the week because I really don't think my body can handle all this junk food.

Good food makes me happy!

Hi all,

Hope your weekend is going well so far. Today has been a very indulgent day for me, especially in regards to my meals. I finally fulfilled my Starbucks chai latte craving this afternoon and spent most of it in Chapters checking out their language books and catching up with a friend.  I also went out for dinner last night and was not able to finish my meal due to a late lunch and ended up having most of my dinner packaged.

Here's my lunch:

Leftover chicken Neptune (hollandaise sauce with lobster), broccoli, carrots,
potato balls and homemade fried rice

 ...and dinner:

Sole stuffed with crab, lobster and shrimp, lobster meat, broccoli, potato balls,
carrots I steamed some asparagus (butter and lemon) and mixed some whole wheat pasta with pesto 

 I added some more sides to make it a more rounded and filling meal. I haven't had lobster in a very long time so last night's dinner  and today's meals were quite the treat. The mains were from a restaurant in Mississauga called Scorpio. The food was a bit salty especially the french onion soup but the ambiance was very nice. Most of their dishes contain fresh lobster so be sure to give it a try. I had the lobster bisque for an appetizer and it was quite good but I would have minimized the salt content just a little. Overall, last night was great but today's meal was even greater! Nothing like eating in the comfort of your own home =)

I'll be finishing off the rest of the strawberry shortcake slice that I have in my fridge tonight. I mean, why not?

[Thank you for the lovely night ;) 

You know who you are ]

Too cold for you to keep her, too hot for you to leave her

Happy Valentine's Day!!!

yes yes I know! There are a lot of anti-valentine people out there saying its a consumerist holiday blah blah money grubbing blah blah. I for one, think it's a sweet holiday and why not use that day to be even sweeter to your honey! Obviously, you should not limit your affections to this one day but rather use it as an opportunity to make her/his day even more special. Regardless, let us drown our happiness or sorrows in chocolate and candy hearts!

Would you like MSG with that?

Here's a super fast recipe for: Egg Drop Soup

3/4 carton of chicken broth
1/2 cup of water
1 can of creamed corn
1 egg
2 sprigs of green onion (cut into pieces)
2 sprigs of cilantro (cut into pieces)
salt & pepper

Combine broth and water in a pot and heat to a boil. Add entire contents of creamed corn. Whisk egg in a bowl and season with a little salt. Turn heat to medium and slowly add spoonfuls of egg into pot. Whisk it into soup as soon as it comes in contact with broth (I used a fork). Add onions and parsley. Season with salt and pepper as desired.

The entire cooking process should take about 5-7 minutes.

Note: you are welcome to omit the water and add an entire carton of chicken broth. I did this to reduce the sodium content in the soup. I had a fritatta for lunch today so I wanted to go easy on the egg by adding only one but the recipe can stand for a second egg. Additionally, you can thicken the soup up with a tablespoon of cornstarch or flour with about 4 tablespoons of water or broth. Just add the mixture after the ingredients have been added to the soup.

Super quick and easy. It beats those canned soups or MSG ridden soups at restaurants.

Chocolate Tears

So here I am sitting in my room with my books open for a hardcore study session. Rather than studying for my upcoming exam, I am sitting here pigging out on chocolate and updating this blog! *Sigh* Procrastination is a pain in the butt.

Reading week begins end of next week so hopefully I'll be able to update this blog with an actual recipe!

Ciao and enjoy the freezing cold and evil ice that has descended on the GTA.

P.S. Ughh, going to put away the chocolate and try out the Starbucks vanilla tea sample I received!

Sunday Wisdom

"I'm youth, I'm joy, I'm a little bird that has broken out of the egg"
- James Matthew Barry

I'd rather cook than study

Well...I probably should not be blogging but I just cannot bare the though of reading many(boring) chapters on social science research strategies! Nor am I in the mood to study for my psychology exams or write several random assignments. School burnout very soon. Winter semester has been hectic and continues to get increasingly more hectic, I am sooo looking forward to the end of this semester and enjoy several months of freedom! When I know that I will be home studying, I tend to make myself a big lunch to tie me over. I wanted lots of veggies and in hindsight, should have added even more! This recipe is rough around the edges so feel free to throw in whatever spices, vegetables, fiber, anything you want into it! I made it up while I was cooking.

Baked Veggie Pasta with Bacon (serves 4)

3/4 Bag of Macaroni
1 Zucchini
1 Yellow Onion
3 Cloves of Garlic
1/2 Bag of Enoki Mushrooms
1/2 Cauliflower Head
4 Asparagus Stalks
1/2 Lemon (optional)
Cup of Tomato Sauce (I used Ragu brand)
2 Tablespoons of Pesto (I used Classico brand)
1/3 Cup of Chedder (or Mozerella) small cubes
1/3 Cup of Shredded Chedder
1/2 Cup of Parmesan
1/4 Cup of Breadcrumbs
4 Pieces of Bacon
2 Teaspoon of Olive Oil

2 Teaspoon of Chili Powder (add more if you like it spicy or
jalapeno peppers)
Cracked Black Pepper & Salt
Sprigs of Parsley

Chop into small pieces: cauliflower, asparagus, zucchini, mushrooms, parsley. Dice garlic and onions. Cook bacon on pan and soak fat with paper towel or do it the lazy way by laying pieces on plate lined with paper towel and place paper towel on top of bacon. Microwave for 2.5 minutes then cut up into pieces.

In a medium sized pot, boil macaroni until tender - about 10minutes (remember to salt the water to flavor the noodles). When tender, drain noodles and place in a pot to sit. Set oven to 375degrees.

Heat pan up with olive oil then add garlic on high heat, add onions, turn down to medium heat. Add in cauliflower and saute for about 3 minutes then add zucchini and asparagus pieces. Saute for about 8 minutes until vegetables are somewhat tender and add mushrooms and parsley. Turn heat up to medium high and squeeze lemon juice over the vegetables (completely optional, I had half a lemon in the fridge so I figued why not). Cook until all veggies are tender for about 5 minutes. Turn down heat to medium low and season with chili powder, salt and pepper. Pour veggies into same pot as macoroni noodles. Heat up tomato sauce with pesto on a pan - takes only a few minutes. Throw sauce into pot with noodles and veggies. Pour in breadcrumbs and cheddar cheese cubes into pot. Mix until everything is coated and distribute evenly. Pour into a large casserole dish and sprinkle cheddar and Parmesan cheese over top. Bake for 40 minutes.



It was a bit hectic when I was making the dish as I was making things up as I went along. I had the hardiest time opening the sauce jar too! I would do some things differently such as adding one whole head of cauliflower, one more zucchini, whole bag of enoki mushrooms, tomatoes and spinach. Add some ground flax seeds to the breadcrumb mixture to pump up the nutrients in the dish. The addition of the vegetables means that I would reduce the macaroni content to 3/5 of a big. Hopefully, things will go smoother for you and I do hope you enjoy the recipe. =)

Winter Sushi

Finally, a breather! Today was Toronto's first official snow day...at least for some universities/colleges. I believe it was 20 cm of snow so imagine the amount of shoveling that was done today. Good thing I had some help or I easily would have been out there for a couple of hours this morning. I have been super busy these past few days. Monday was spent in class, at the garage and then a hectic night of writing my proposal for class. Tuesday morning I was walking around like a zombie with 3 hours of sleep. However, it wasn't all bad since I was able to finally dine at one of my favorite sushi restaurants in Toronto. We just happened to beat the crowd that came in 10 minutes later!

Chicken Katsu Bento Box

Spicy Crunchy Tuna roll


Kani roll and Spicy Salmon Roll

All these photos were taken at Sushi On Bloor (google it!). I love the sweetness of the Kani roll, it's bbq eel and really good! Definitely worth a try and for those of you that like fried chicken, the chicken katsu is a cutlet covered in panko bread flakes. It would probably taste better with some lemon juice but the bbq sauce was good. I'm already craving more sushi!