Eat Your Broccoli!

May 5, 2013

Cassava Cake

Today’s foray to Indonesian Kitchen reminded me of the great taste of cassava. Cassava is a starchy vegetable that is used as food in a lot of Asian and African countries. It’s used a lot in subsistence farming. There is one ironic thing about this tuber. It is toxic to humans because it contains cyanide. There are two varieties, sweet and bitter. I assume they only sell the sweet variety in the grocery store. It requires proper processing techniques to be safe to eat. With sweet cassava, peel off all the skin (just the white flesh showing), cut off any dark streaks, grate and cook. Most of the poison is in the skin. The bitter variety, apparently has to be soaked for days in water or fermented underground. Then cooked really well. Processed, it is commonly known as tapioca. I usually dislike processed foods, but I appreciate it needs to be processed to be made safe for human consumption.

http://www.uoguelph.ca/foodsafetynetwork/cassava

I’ve modified the recipe below, by substituting the evaporated milk with water, adding some unsweetened shredded coconut, a dash of vanilla extract, and a couple tablespoons of sugar. I’m pretty sure I used around four cups of cassava – I didn’t measure, it was two large tubers. It’s surprisingly tasty, with the rich taste of coconut and a nice caramelized flavour.

http://allrecipes.com/recipe/cassava-cake/

May 5, 2013

Mimo

One area of town that I should explore more is International Avenue. There is a diverse range of food culture represented there, one of which is Portuguese. I’ve had Portuguese food once before; when I had a salt cod casserole. It was delicious.

Mimo is a family run place, for over 29 years. Mom is the chef and the daughters are servers and hostesses. We had a large party so we got to sample a few dishes. I found the flaming sausage quite entertaining. It was homemade; tasted smoky and spicy at the same time. I also had a nibble of the grilled squid which was tasty. My main dish was the paella and what a paella it was. Lobster, crab, shrimp, mussel and clam served in the shell. Also a braised chicken leg, squid and pieces of beef served on top of flavorful, buttery rice. I had enough to take home.

Our server was one of the daughters and she gave us a history of how the restaurant came to be along with memories of a thriving Portuguese community in what is now Little Saigon Mall. She was astute enough to notice that one of her guests left the chicken leg uneaten on her plate. It was uncooked in the middle. Another one of our guests had undercooked chicken as well. She offered to cover everyone’s dessert which I thought was really nice.

The dessert was good. I preferred the passion fruit pudding over the orange creme caramel. Only because the pudding was less sweet. Life would be complete if only I could find some Portuguese egg tarts. According to our server, best head to Edmonton.

May 1, 2013

Lazy Monkey

I’m always looking for new things to try. I am very unfamiliar with Taiwanese food so I went to satisfy my curiousity. Unfortunately, I did not have a photo taking device, so a description would have to do.

Lazy Monkey is a tiny, family run cafe. It looks like a place where Asian high school kids hang out to do their homework. Well, they were doing just that and Sir Winston Churchill is across the road. If you like bubble tea, this is the place for you. Being neither a high schooler nor a bubble tea lover, my friend and I sampled the regular courses.

I just had to try the chicken hearts. They came broiled, six to a skewer, with a light dusting of salt and pepper and a subtle taste of five spice. Who ever thought chicken hearts could be tasty. Next time will have to try the gizzards.

My friend had the egg wrap with curry rice. The curry reminded me of Japanese style curry. It was a good foil for the hearty serving of rice and egg.

I had the Hakka style pork. The tender pork slices were served over rice with a black bean style sauce. The pork was nicely salted and seasoned. There also was a hard boiled tea egg on the side. It was a substantial meal for lunch. Our main courses were served in takeout containers which I found a bit odd.

They had some rather interesting things on the menu, such as coconut thick toast. With vanilla ice cream. I’m trying to figure out if that is a dessert or snack item. I’d like to come back for the salted fish and curry casserole.

April 22, 2013

Waffle & Berries

Looking for breakfast… again. One does need to eat when one is travelling. This is a diamond in the rough. Their signature dish is the Liege waffle. The Liege Breakfast had my name on it. Our server and cook cautioned us on being too large for one person; it is a breakfast for two. I had other plans. I was looking for a breakfast to sustain me through the lunch hour boarding at the airport. No airport food for this person. I waited in eager anticipation of my two house made waffles with fresh fruit, whipped cream and a side of maple syrup. It was delicious and filling. I was happy that the syrup was on the side and that I had passed on the Nutella which liberally covered hubby’s waffles. For most ordinary appetites, I would recommend just one.

Liege Breakfast Two Liege Waffles served with freshly whipped cream, mixed berries and all-natural Canadian syrup — Liege Breakfast
Two Liege Waffles served with freshly whipped cream, mixed berries
and all-natural Canadian syrup

April 22, 2013

Yaletown Brewing

Yaletown Brewing is a large, family friendly pub. They seem to be very accommodating with the ramps for strollers and the amount of room around the tables. With four adults and two kids in tow, they were up to the challenge. We were seated on the patio under the warmth of the heater. The umbrellas were put out when it started to rain.

We shared a tasty appetizer of South Pacific Spicy Fried Squid. I had the Salmon Nicoise salad. The salmon was done to a turn as were the vegetables. The super salty anchovies added some zing. But there was just a tad too much oil on the bottom of the plate. Good placed for a bite, especially if you are hungry.

Salmon Nicoise Wild Sockeye Salmon over cubed Yukon Gold potatoes and crisp garden green beans, hard boiled egg, Greek olives, anchovy fillets, tender tomato confit and warm vinaigrette — Salmon Nicoise
Wild Sockeye Salmon over cubed Yukon Gold potatoes and crisp garden green beans, hard boiled egg, Greek olives, anchovy fillets, tender tomato confit and warm vinaigrette

April 22, 2013

Moonpennies

Sometimes, when you are constantly eating out, you just want something that is quick and healthy. I was looking for something similar to my normal breakfast. Which is steel cut oats with fruit, yogurt and a couple of fried eggs on the side. Moonpennies was close enough. I ordered the honey granola with fruit and yogurt. Also a side of sausage and a fruit smoothie. I found the food very average; there was nothing too exciting about it. The prices were good value. It would be similar to what I would eat daily at home. Which was perfect for this day as that was all I was looking for.

Granola and yogurt with sausage and fruit smoothie

April 22, 2013

Green Leaf Salad Bar

I was on a search for something healthy to tide me over between lunch and dinner. Voila, I found the Green Leaf Salad Bar. This little place serves a variety of Mediterranean food. The salad bar looked fresh and tasty. I helped myself to a good sized portion of mixed greens, peas, chickpeas, pineapple, strawberries, orange, kiwi, red cabbage, beets, mixed vegetables, raspberry vinaigrette, and olive oil. The prices are good value too, $1.59/100g. Sometimes, simple is the best.

April 19, 2013

Kaya Malay Bistro

One of the reasons I like Vancouver is the diversity of the food. Specifically, Malaysian food. Kaya Malay Bistro does a wonderful take on street style Malaysian food for their lunch menu. Reminds me of Hawker Bar in Toronto.

The daily special drink was a passion fruit soda. Yum!

Hubby had the Kari Lamb. The lamb was succulent and the lively flavors made my taste buds dance.

Kari Lamb Boneless lamb shoulder stewed in curry, infused with cumin, fennel and coconut milk — Kari Lamb
Boneless lamb shoulder stewed in curry, infused with cumin, fennel and coconut milk

I had the Satay chicken, gado gado and rice. The chicken had lots of flavor, and I could have eaten the peanut sauce all day long. I love gado gado; a take on an Indonesian cooked vegetable salad. There was also a green salad on the side with a sweet mustard dressing.

Satay Chicken, Gado Gado with Rice Famous Malaysian skewers served with a bean sprout tofu salad topped with peanut dressing. — Satay Chicken, Gado Gado with Rice
Famous Malaysian skewers served with a bean sprout tofu salad topped with peanut dressing.

April 19, 2013

Tableau Bar Bistro

We slept in today and went hunting for breakfast. I was looking for something on the healthy side. So we decided to go downstairs to the hotel restaurant, Tableau. We arrived there just before they were about to close the buffet. I had steel cut oats, fruit compote with brown sugar, yogurt, fresh fruit, smoked salmon and a hard boiled egg. They also offered freshly made egg wraps, which resembled a panini. Hubby enjoyed his wrap. I thought $16.95 was reasonable for a breakfast buffet. The quality of the food was good. We won’t have the opportunity this time, but next time will be back for dinner.

April 19, 2013

Teatro

Teatro is one of those places that have been on the periphery of my radar. One of those places, at some point, that I would get around to visiting. I finally did, lured by a vendor luncheon.

I was feeling less then well at the time, so I opted for something that I hoped to be lighter. I went with the caesar salad and the spatzle. The caesar was nicely presented and it tasted, like a caesar salad. The spatzle was rich, creamy and divine. Not very light, but very filling and tasty for a vegetarian dish.

I didn’t have the lamb, but almost everyone else did. It was a beautiful frenched rack, done to medium rare.

Leek and Spaetzle Cauliflower, white gold provolone, parmesan cheeses, tomato concasse — Leek and Spaetzle
Cauliflower, white gold provolone, parmesan cheeses, tomato concasse

The butternut squash tart was delicious. I really enjoyed the gooeyness of the toasted marshmallow and the accompanying coulis.

Butternut Squash Tart cinnamon meringue, caramelized zucchini — Butternut Squash Tart
cinnamon meringue, caramelized zucchini

The decor was very nice. We were in the Opera room, a room outside the main restaurant. The ceilings were high and the lighting looked as if they had installed two large full moons in the ceiling. I will have to come back for a more typical meal.