food log: Tuesday, March 9

Peanut butter toasts



Diet Coke - $1.25 (no pic)


Beef, corn and rice soup, sesame chicken salad, lemonade, grapes from the bistro - $6




I took a walk to Chinatown after work again and bought instant edamame soup, pork belly and bok choy ($13.22)

Onigiris stuffed with spicy tuna, bok choy, umeboshi plums, spicy mayo

The tuna I used is Korean and super spicy. The pickled umeboshi plums are really, really salty and sour. I love that mix, but it does make you do faces like a baby eating his first dill pickle.

Money spent on food today: $19.22

Food log: Monday, March 8

Cranberry-blueberry juice

Note to self. Don't drink the same juice you used to mix cocktails on the morning after you drank 3 of said cocktails.

Cheese toasts, sparkling water and random (free) carnation from Pasta Café - $4.75

Carrot soup, tofu and veggie puff, rice, fruit salad, orange juice from the bistro - $6



Cheese and banana from the bistro - free


Chicken and fries - $12



Money spent on food today: $22.75

Food log: Sunday, March 7

PB toasts, milk, apple sauce


I spent the rest of the day cooking. Except for a nibble here and there while I prepared dishes, I didn't eat until it was time for the Oscar party. At 2pm, my friend and artisan baker Céline came by with a fantastic Avatar cake she made just for me. Thanks Céline!

Céline will make any cake you want in a flash and they are not just pretty - they taste really good, too. I was taken aback by the huge butterfly, but then Céline said "It's for the 3-D effect!" I laughed and decided to add some 3-D glasses I had in a drawer somewhere. If you want to order a cake, just drop me a comment and I'll give you Céline's number. You an also get her to put her mad cake skillz to work for you by reaching her via Twitter.

The dishes I served where inspired by the ten nominated movies. Some where more to the point than others, but I had fun coming up with them. And I almost ran out of food, so I guess it was tasty, too! We also drank many, many bottle of champagne.

Up in the Air: Up in the Airtini

I used a punch recipe from Espace Cocktail (a Web site I work on a lot for SAQ at the agency) and filled each bottle with the mix. Yes, they were filled with vodka before. Yes, I opened and emptied each one. Yes, I now have a shaker full of vodka.

An Education: smoked trout, BBQ salmon, salmon mousse, smoked carp





It was a salmon and trout lesson, an education about fish. :)

District 9: shrimp boiled with Old Bay, water and rice vinegar, served with aïoli

The aliens in the movie are nicknamed "prawns" so that one was a doozy. And I'm so glad that I finally found a source to get Old Bay - the fish store at Marché Maisonneuve!

Up: cherry tomatoes stuffed with goat cheese

I used a piece of foam from the box of my new tv to make the stand for the picks that served as "balloon strings".

The Hurt Locker: meatballs with "bomb wires" pepper and chive garnish, serve with spicy "kaboom" sauce




This is the dish I had the most fun making. Thank got it didn't explode! Mouhahaha!

The Blind Side: Mac & cheese flavored with truffle butter


It's all about the pun, baby.

Precious: zucchini and basil salad


I had no clue what to do for Precious, so I went for the lifestyle change recommendation.

A Serious Man: Korean-style pork belly sandwich

The guy (a Jewish dude in the movie) is saying "Seriously, is this kosher?" It was not. (I know the R is missing, I fixed it after taking the picture).

Inglorious Basterds: whipped cream and berries



Remember that scene in the movie where he's going on and on about putting whipped cream on his pastry? Yeah.

We watched the show, ate a lot and had a merry old time.





Money spent on food today: 0

food log: Saturday, March 6

PB toasts, milk

I went to Mickey D's and to a movie with my brother but didn't take any pictures ($7.70)

I stopped at the grocery store and at the liquor store for party supplies - $92

I ate lunch at 3pm so I was not nearly hungry enough to eat dinner. Since I had a lot of stuff to prepare  for tomorrow's Oscar party, I nibbled as I cooked. The frozen shrimps I bought in Chinatown are really, really good and they were already deveined, saving me a bunch of time. They cost $12 for 2 pounds. I boiled them for 5 minutes in a cup of rice vinegar, a cup of water and 8 tablespoons of Old Bay spice. I will serve them cold with a garlic dipping sauce.

Boiled shrimp with Old Bay spice


The yellow stuff is kewpie, a.k.a. Japanese mayo.

Chèvre stuffing for tomatoes


I mixed goat cheese, chives salt, pepper and the zest of a lemon together and filled hollowed out cherry tomatoes with it. Then I ate the leftovers on crackers.


Money spent on food today: $99.70

food log: Friday, March 5

Juice on the bus - $2

Oily muffin and juice box at recruiting session - free

Sandwiches, pasta salad, mushroom puffs and nanaïmo bar at recruiting session - free

I know they are free, but these lunches really, really suck. I guess the bistro at work forever spoiled me.

BLT and salad, glass of milk


Lu cookies with peanut butter

Try it. You'll thank me later.

I made pork belly following David Chang's recipe. I think the meat I used was a little too thin and it burned on top, but in the end it was SPECTACULAR. I cooked this for Sunday's Oscar party, but I had to have a taste right away. I guess it's supposed to burn a little, because it gave it a smoky, salty, delicious taste. Still, next time I'll lower the heat and cook it a little longer to make up for it.


Money spent on food today: $2