Fact: I have been eating spaghetti with browned butter and mizithra cheese at the Old Spaghetti Factory for a long long time. It’s a very unique dish that you wouldn’t normally find in an Italian restaurant but I love it. How would I describe Mizithra cheese?  Here’s your answer:  very dry and very salty. To be honest, I’m not sure I have had Mizithra cheese outside of the Old Spaghetti Factory!! But I love it.

I recently took my daughter for lunch to the  Old Spaghetti Factory and noticed that they are about to celebrate their 40th anniversary. I started to tell her that I have been eating the same dish there since I was about her age and how unusual it is to see the the same dish on a menu for that length of time.

I remember going to the Spaghetti Factory quite a bit as a kid.  Time passes (ok decades) where I didnt go back to the Old Spaghetti Factory. However a few years ago we had visitors and thought that it would be a fun restaurant to take them too. I have to admit, not much had changed. The same stained window lamps and the lovely train is still there for those diners lucky enough to snap up a table.

Back then (i.e 1970), it was  a big deal to have a meal that included a salad, sourdough bread, coffee/tea and spumoni ice cream, at no additional cost.  It’s still a nice treat – even today!! It made me smile to see the same whipped garlic butter and regular butter appear with the sourdough bread as well as the spumoni ice cream. Nothing has changed!!

I went on their website (like a good food blogger) and noticed that they had locations in BC, Alberta, Manitoba and Ontario. The one I went to as a kid was in Ottawa. I remember it like it was yesterday. Sadly it has been closed for many years.

In honor of their 40th anniversary, on Monday Aug. 22nd, the Toronto location (54 The Esplanade) will be offering spaghetti entrees at their 1971 prices!!

Think about it: what restaurants (not fast food) have you been visiting since you were a kid that still has the same dish on the menu?

Do share.

I discovered this recipe in 2008 on the Oprah website and have been using it ever since. This dish is truly packed with flavor because you cook the quinoa in carrot juice and not water. Plus the addition of nutmeg gives it a certain punch.

I also love this recipe because it contains all the right elements for a perfect side dish:

• you just need a few ingredients
• it’s got a ton of flavor
• there’s just a few steps i.e its’ easy to make
• oh so healthy

Ingredients:

1 cup of quinoa, rinsed

1/4 tsp olive oil (I didn’t measure but I’m sure I used more)

1/2 cup chopped onion

1/2 cup chopped celery

1/2 cup chopped zucchini

2 cups of bottled carrot juice  (I used Bolthouse)

1/2 tsp nutmeg

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp pepper.

Instructions:

Heat a saucepan, and toast the quinoa. Transfer to a bowl. Set aside.

Heat a frying pan, and add olive oil. Add onion, celery, and zucchini. Cook till the vegetables are soft.

Stir in the carrot juice. Bring to a low boil. Stir in the quinoa, nutmeg, salt and pepper. Cover and simmer until liquid has been absorbed and quinoa is tender. About 25 – 30 minutes.

NOTE:  I put the quinoa and the carrot juice in the rice cooker!! It works brilliantly. Here’s  a picture of my beloved rice cooker.

So much is happening in the world of stores/products these days, who are catering to those with food allergies.  I would like to share some exciting “gluten free” news flashes with you in this blog post.

GOOD BYE GLUTEN…GBG:

A new store opened up recently  called Goodbye Gluten in North Toronto. ( 2066 Avenue Road to be exact). The store is stunning and has a full range of gluten free items. Everything from dry goods, (ie Gluten Free Pebbles), to frozen goods, to freshly prepared goods. I’m sure the neighborhood is delighted that this store opened up.

BETTY CROCKER GLUTEN FREE  CAKE MIXES:

This is truly amazing news that Betty Crocker has introduced a gluten free cake mix. I made it tonite and no one said anything except “Can I have another slice”. LOL.

NUT’N GLUTEN:

Nut’N Gluten is located near Wonderland (3120  Rutherford Rd Unit 17). It has everything one would need and the service is amazing.

There is no question, that more and more people are discovering that they are gluten sensitive or have a gluten allergy. I went out for lunch a few months ago and all 3 off us had some type of food allergy. Two of us were lactose intolerant and the other person needed a gluten free option.

Years ago, when visiting NYC, my friend and I had dinner at Risotteria in the East Village (270 Bleeker St). It was packed with people who were seeking a gluten free restaurant. I thought it was a brilliant concept and I’m sure one day we will see a restaurant like that in Toronto. In the meantime, congratulations to restaurants like Milestones, Il Fornello, Magic Oven, The Burgers Priest and Yes to Fresh who have gluten free options for guests.

Have you noticed that more and more people have gluten allergies? Have you noticed more and more restaurants that have gluten free options?

Disclosure: I am part of the Life Made Delicious Connector Program and I receive special perks as part of the affiliation with this group. The opinion on this blog are my own.

When I visited  Arowhon Pines in June, I was in desperate need of gas for my return trip back to Toronto.  The great staff there, told me to go fill up at the Portage Store down the road. While paying for the gas, I noticed a brochure that said that they supplied everything one would need to go on a camping trip in Algonquin Park. I took the brochure and said to myself “Im going to go camping  THIS SUMMER in Algonquin Park” even though I havent gone camping since I was 16 years old.

I planned it a little late (ok 3 days to be exact) but it all came together. My friend Kris accepted the invitation to join me and knew how to stern a canoe (bonus points). Ontario Parks helped me out by finding me the last camping site on Tom Thompson Lake and the Portage Store helped me out with the the Lightweight Equipment Only Package for $59 a day. All I had to do was bring up the food. Kris and I agreed that cheese, wine, olives, cherries and a baguette or two would be a great meal plan. Oh yeah – add Starbucks Via coffee to that list.  So far so good.!! This trip was going to be awesome.

Deerhurst Resort also kicked in by providing us with a wonderful room to crash in AFTER the trip. Kris and I were psyched at the thought of camping and then glamping!!

The trip was such a success, that we decided that we are going to go next year for TWO days…and bring another friend with (you know who you are). Can’t wait to go camping again. It was SUCH a great experience.  Oh yeah – glamping at Deerhurst was a great idea too. We won’t be camping without glamping. It’s part of the package. LOL.

PS…Kudos to the staff at Portage Store who were so patient, thorough, and genuinely nice. We were blown over with the great service we received.

Here’s some photo’s that will best describe this trip: Wish I figured out a Picaso collage for this, but perhaps I will for the next blog!!

GLAMPING AT DEERHURST:

Sigh – the trip is over. Sadness. However I have great memories and know that I will be camping and glamping again in the future.

I came across blk at the Fancy Food Show. It wasnt hard to notice the black booth, the black tshirts the booth staff were wearing or the BLACK water! I actually  had to look twice at the product – was that really black water? Indeed it was.

Of course I had to stop and ask for a sample and to find out more. Right?

I learned that blk is a Fulvic Enriched Mineral Water. The water is black as it’s from a natural spring that has been enriched with fulvic acid. (which is a plant derivative)

I also found out that blk  contains Canadian Spring Water, has fulvic acid,  is low in acidity, pure, certified kosher and the bottle is 100% rPet recyclable.

What makes blk different? (besides the color..LOL) It’s full of electrolytes, and contains 75 traces of minerals and powerful antioxidants. Clearly not your average glass of water!!

Today is going to be A HOT Day…and guess who will be drinking blk? I only have one bottle (boo), but I hope that this company found some Canadian Distributors while at the Fancy Food Show.  The website indicates that you can buy it at Wegmans (in the States) but I’m sure you will be seeing this drink in more stores soon.

Hope everyone is drinking lots of water today – black or clear!!!

It’s the summer and the kids are away at camp, and once again I am taking advantage of every weekend to travel.

Weekend #1: Ottawa

Weekend #2: Washington and Presqule Ilse, Erie Pennyslavani

Weekend #3 –  Kingston PLUS  Wolfe Island, Sandbanks and Cobourg.

I was all to happy to drive a lot last weekend as I was driving a Lincoln MKZ Hybrid. I wanted to take full advantage of driving this luxury car and I did!! Mission Accomplished.

The car was dropped off early Friday morning. I was asked by the driver “have you ever driven a hybrid before?”. I replied “no”. He said “you are going to put the key into the ignition and you wont think the car has started but it has”. WOW was he right. The car was so pleasant to drive – the seats, the steering wheel, and it was super efficient with gas. I had nothing to complain about.  I floated to Kingston – I didn’t drive. LOL.

The GPS system was a bit complicated for me to figure out (waypoints?). So I stopped off at Buster Rhino’s to ask a Darryl to help me out and we figured it out after a few minutes. (ok 10 minutes).  Not to mention, I picked up a sandwich for my mom to enjoy when I saw her in Kingston. (smart. daughter).

Now let’s talk about those beaches:

WOLFE ISLAND: Did not take the car onto the ferry (don’t ask), so we went across as pedestrians and then asked strangers for a ride. We wont be doing that again!! We finally scored a drive from a lovely resident of Wolfe Island. We got to the parking lot of the beach and we were told that “its a bit of a walk”. We walked, we walked and we walked and then when we saw one of  the workers we asked him to radio his buddy to come pick us up in the ATV. There was no way my mom was a going to walk just OVER A KILOMETRE. They were SO accomodating and came to our rescue.

As for the beach: stunning. Cant’ believe I have never been to Wolfe Island before.

SANDBANKS: I love this place too. Its heaven. We found a quiet quiet section of the beach and didnt move for hours. This year, the shore line is not as sandy as previous years but we were still happy.

COBOURG: I went to this beach on my way home as I had downloaded a new book on my @kobo (State Wonder by Ann Pattchett) and wanted to read it. Nothing like reading a book on the beach!! The beach was PACKED due to a volleyball tournament that ate up half the beach, but I solved the problem with some earphone and my iphone. The water was clear and just the perfect temperature.

It was sad to give up the Lincoln MKZ Hybrid and return to my filthy, gas guzzling,  old van with 250,000 km. Thanks to Ford for this opportunity to drive this awesome car.

My mom lives in Ottawa and I live in Toronto, therefore to meet in Kingston for  a weekend, is ideal. We did it last year and said we would do it again so we did. Exactly one year later!!

We stayed at the lovely Four Points Sheraton both last year and this year. We love the location, the service and the spacious updated rooms.

As for the meals. We repeated the same meals too.!!

We had dinner at Lukes Gastronomy again and have no regrets about eating there two years in a row. We love his creativity, his commitment to using local ingredients, the presentation, and his use of flavors. Luke is a 20 year old self taught chef and he is certainly a chef to be watching!!

I had a main course that was out of this world called “Fields of Jamnagar”: curry, mango, lassi, coconut, tomato, rasam, lentil, rice and lime pickle.

For dessert, we split the “testosterone”: vanilla tobbaco, scotch, coffee, and honey dates. I received a tweet from @mattkantor saying I should try the “estrogen” but we had the testosterone last year and I’m simply in love with this dessert. It’s nothing short of brilliant.

On our trip to Sandbanks we make sure to stop off at Schroeder’s Bakery for some home made donuts. I read about it on Chowhound and put this on my list of  “where to eat”. LOL.  We also made sure to stop into Buddhas Dog where we were treated to some whoopie pies and where we bumped into @laurenendorphin and her hubby. Small world.

On the beach, we needed dinner, so we picked up some sandwiches from Panchancho Bakery on our way out of Kingston and we werent disappointed. (we did the same thing last year….do you see a pattern here?). Not to mention, we had a pain au chocolat for the drive to Sandbanks, that was perfect. (i.e I’m so glad I dont live in Kingston..LOL)

After a long day at the beach, we were in despearate need of  a beer. The Sizzle Restaurant and Bar, which was convenientely located at the bottom of the Four Points Sheraton…came to our rescue. We both enjoyed a Shock Top Belgian White Beer. Infact I enjoyed it so much, I had two!!

On our last day, we enjoyed a sit down breakfast at Panchancho. We both ordered the same thing (like mother like daughter). A fennel/apple salad that was accompanied by a horseradish egg salad with smoked salmon on top of a slice of St. Johns bread. We demolished it.

My mom and I, plan to repeat the same weekend next year. Same hotel. Same restaurants. There is no need to mix things up!!

Info:

Lukes Gastronomy:  26 Princess, Kingston

Pan Chancho Bakery: 44 Princess St, Kingston

Buddhas Dog: 172 Main St, Picton

Schroeder’s Bakery: corner of hwy 62 and country road 1 (just outside of Picton)

Four Points Sheraton: 285 King St. East, Kingston

It wasnt an easy decision, but I drove to Washington last week instead of flying.  I dont regret that decision for a minute. There is something to be said about “road trips”.  For example I got to discover a beach on the way there and a small city on the way back.

On the way down to Washington, I stopped off at Presqule Ilse in Erie PA. I love beaches and this one is magnificent. I was so tempted to return there on the way back it wasn’t funny. Thats how nice it was. The beach is quiet, there’s lifeguards, the sand is gorgeous, and the water is clear and calm. What more could you ask for?

When I arrived in Washington, it was too hot to walk around (in my humble opinion). I waited till I went out for dinner and drinks to kinda explore and take photos.

Where did I eat dinner? Ben’s Chili Bowl because it’s cheap and cheerful and FAMOUS. As in line ups. But that’s ok – I was on vacation!! I had a veggie chili with chopped onions and cheese and it was just perfect.

Where did I drink? First drink…PS7….plymouth gin, gran classico, dolin vermouth and salted ice. I was happy.

Second drink…The Passenger…fernet, sweet vermouth, cherry liqueur, and a whole egg. Once again – I was happy.

On my way out of the city I passed Georgetown Cupcake and HAD to stop, despite a line up of 10 people standing outside in the heat at 3 p.m!! (I’m sure we were all tourists). I chose a honey banana cupcake and it was worth standing in line for.

I decided to cut the journey in half by stopping in Altoona. Dont ask me why!! It was kinda out of my way. (clearly I didnt look at a map). Altoona had a Target – so I was happy. On the way OUT – I heard on the radio that the Food Network was there to film a segment for “The Best thing I Ever Ate” at Anthonys Pizza and Grill. Apparently they serve a famous Rum Cake.  I was so pissed that I heard this ON MY WAY OUT of the city. GRRR.

I have already marked in my calendar that the fancy food show is June 17-19, 2012. Guess who will be repeating the exact itinerary?

I love having parties. I’ve had Canada Day Parties, Sex and the City Parties,Going Away Parties, Birthday Parties, and more. I use to throw a party a few times a year, and loved planning the two major components of throwing a party:

• WHAT TO DRINK...
• WHAT TO EAT….

I think by now,  you know what  I would serve for the “drink” component. Hint: Beer and Scotch.

WHAT TO EAT….

I would serve a variety of snacks.(savoury not sweet).  I would put out a variety of the usual snacks (i.e pretzels, chips, nuts, popcorn etc)  and serve some dips as well. Here is one of my all time favorite dips for a party: It was so popular that I started to make two of these platters at each party.

TACO PIE

Ingredients:

3/4 of a brick of cream cheese ( I bought the light version)

1 cup cottage cheese (I bought the full fat version…i.e 4 %)

1 cup Old El Paso Salsa

1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese

1/2  cup shredded lettuce

scallions to garnish

Directions:

1.Combine the cream cheese and the cottage cheese together, till smooth. (this is the hardest part).

2. Spread onto a serving dish.

3. Spread an even layer of salsa on top.

4. Sprinkle the grated cheddar cheese.

5. Sprinkle the shredded lettuce.

5. Garnish with scallions.

6. Decorate with nachos around the perimeter of the serving dish.

END RESULT:

As I’m writing this blog entry,  I’m thinking I should have a party before the summer is over…I would serve the watermelon martinis, the cucumber lemonade (with vodka of course), taco pie, chex mix (that I just bought in the US), these new pretzels I’m in love with, fresh fruit, and more.

What do you think? Are you having a party this summer?

Disclosure: I am part of the Life Made Delicious Connector Program and I receive special perks as part of the affiliation with this group. The opinion on this blog are my own.

You are probably saying “what is Vicky up to now?”. Here’s your answer:  I am eating my way thru the Fancy Food Show in Washington DC!! The Fancy Food Show is North America’s largest Specialty Food Show that features 180,000 products, 2,400 exhibitors from 80 countries and 24,000 attendess! Naturally I brought flat shoes and outfits with no waistbands!!

The show is taking place NOW (which is why this blog post will be short). It started on July 10 and will end on the 12th however I will be leaving today so that I can take my time driving home (this is code for: I will be stopping to shop at Target and Wegmans).

Wish I could write more, but another 1000 booths are waiting for me!! In the meantime, here’s some photos: