I taught my flatmate Rocky how to make a little soup. Saute some broccoli and some leeks together with olive oil. When it looks done add some veg stock and some almond milk.
Blend!
Serve! Add a dollop of yogurt if you're feeling fancy.Onto loaf times. I have been having some success with making my own vegetarian protein source dishes of late. There were the experimental bean burgers and now we are on to a loaf. I was really in the mood for some more stuffing but I decided to incorporate stuffing into the loaf. Here's what I did.
Mince any dying veg left overs from your fridge. I used carrots, celery, red pepper, leeks and mushrooms. Oh and 4 cloves of garlic. 
Fry it all up in a wok and add couple large handfuls of cooked grain. I used quinoa. I then ripped up about 4 bread ends and threw those in the mix. I also needed more protein, so I used a pound of tofu, mushed up and about 1/2 cup of ground almonds, just grind 'em in a blender. Now we needed flavour! Sage, Herbes de Provence, Veggie Stock, Soy Sauce, Ketchup. Party!
Make sure your loaf is not too mushy or wet...i think this one could have used a bit less liquid. But butter will fix everything so just threw some slices on top before baking in a 350 degree oven for about 45 minutes or until the whole unit is a world of crispiness.
That's what I'm talkin' about.
A few days later, I discovered I could use the loaf crumbled up as you would veggie ground beef in a pasta bake. Delish!
I am going to interrupt our little trip down memory lane to fill you in on all the real time baking that's been going on around here. In late September, I went apple picking in St-Joseph du Lac, on the north shore near Montreal. we drove off the highway into an idyllic misty rolling hill setting with the quaintest milk paint pastel colored houses with cornices and actual "horn of plenty" displays in the front yard. I almost had a heart attack from the overdose of quaint. Just lovely. So we drove through dozens of orchards and didn't really know where to stop...but I had a feeling we would just "know" which orchard was the one. Turns out we really like food related puns, so we settled on Le verger Pommalfun. Pis c'etait pas mal le fun.But what to do with 20lbs of apples? Bake those pink ladies in a cake!
Peel, core and slice about 4 medium apples.
This is a mixture of 1/3 cup raw cane sugar and a teaspoon of cinnamon. (But here's my true view on cinnamon. You want to add loads, all the time. Ignore the recipe.) This sugar/cinni mix is gonna get half sprinkled on the apples and the other half on top of the batter.
Hello batter, nice to meet you. I made it from 3/4 cup flour, 1/3 cup coconut oil, an egg, 1/3 cup maple syrup, and 1/4 teaspoon baking powder and a splash of almond milk. Whisk whisk whisk.
Now you see the batter with sugar mix sprinkled on top. I wonder what those apples feel like under their wee blanket of goodness? They're sugared up and ready to go into the oven. Yes! 350 degrees for about 35 minutes.
These are the leftovers a few days later. 
Good til the last bite.
Vietnam was a mixed bag in terms of travel and overall vibe but the food was something other worldly. Never mind that the dishes are being washed on the sidewalk in a bucket in front of the restaurant,
or that you have to use the toilet in said restaurant while being eyed by a giant cockroach. I had some of the best meals of my life here.
Fried Crab stuffed in its own shell, prawn cocktail, australian shiraz aboard a junk ship, Halong Bay. I'm undressing those darling crabs with my eyes and just can't wait to get my hands on them. This was a very impressive meal made all the more delicious because of the view. We spent 24 glorious hours sailing around and meanwhile the crew was preparing our meals in a tiny galley kitchen.
Fish croquettes, Halong Bay. Look at the beautiful edible garnishes!
Baked Snapper, Halong Bay. The croquettes and the fish were part of a 5 course dinner.
Traditional Egg Pancake, Hue. This ultra light and crispy egg pancake contained goodies like shrimp, bean sprout and veggies with some greens on the side.
The legendary Pho 2000 restaurant in Ho Chi Min City, Vietnam. Can you feel the anticipation and excitement!?
Mixed seafood Pho at Pho 2000. This is seriously the BEST pho I have ever tasted. When the soup was served, it was accompanied with dinner plates full of greens: Mustard, dandelion, basil, mint and lots of others I didn't recognise. You grab a handful and throw it on the soup. Soup and salad in one bowl? I was in heaven! 
Beef Pho, Hanoi. This was my last breakfast of the Vietnam part of my trip. The restaurant was in the district where they make and sell funeral flower arrangements. Hanoi is interesting as a city because certain streets will all sell the same stuff: Plumbing goods street, Textiles street, Bicycle street, Funeral flowers street, and so on. So beef soup for breakfast it was. This was definitely an "authentic" experience. There were no Westerners about, this restaurant serves only this dish, and it's so popular you get touts on the street who offer to go and get the soup for you at a premium. The soup was fragrant and flavorful, but the meat as you can see was pretty rare and very stringy. It was weird to be eating soup at 8 am with an iced Vietnamese coffee.
In the background you can see the funeral flower arrangements and you can see some on the motorbike ready for delivery.
What to say about Cambodia. I was looking through my pictures and realized I don't have very many pics to post. Cambodian food resembles the Thai tradition but a little less spicy. They have curries, rice dishes, noodles...I tried the Cambodian BBQ which was pretty impressive. 
Cambodian BBQ is basically a clay pot with embers in it and that metal thing on top cooks your meat or seafood (including snake and ostrich!) and boils your noodles at the same time in the "moat" around the edge of the grilling implement. Note the beautiful trays of different sauces to go with the BBQ.
There was an unlimited supply of noodles, rice and veggies to go with the BBQ. The waitress must have replenished that tray like 4-5 times.Cambodia, was a land of extreme food. I saw crickets, cockroaches, scorpions, spiders, fetal eggs and all kinds of insects on offer in the local markets. During the Khmer Rouge regime millions of people were purposely starved. As a result, they now seem to have an acquired taste for whatever you can find in the jungles and rice paddies.
Roasted Eel and Paddy rat, village near Slong Tum Lake, Cambodia.
The eel I didn't enjoy-- too fishy. But the rat was ok. Total vegetarian rat, trapped in a nearby rice paddy. Not your urban sewer rat type. No siree, this one tasted mighty fine. Gamy. I imagine squirrels to taste similar. The little dish at the top contained a typical Cambodian dip/sauce. A quarter of a lime and equal pinches salt and white pepper. So good!
I drank a LOT of coconut water to stay hydrated. You can't tell from the picture but it is 42 degrees in the shade there. Cambodia was the hottest climate I have ever experienced. I became zen about it after awhile because here I was in the temples of Siem Reap, one of the Man Made wonders of the World, and I was obsessing about the heat, how much more I would be enjoying myself if I wasn't so hot, etc. I forced myself to think of the heat as only a sensation, neither good nor bad and suddenly I calmed down and felt cooler. Used this Jedi mind trick when carrying my heavy backpack for hours too...it works! Back to the coconut juice...did you know it has all your vitamins, minerals and electrolytes to stay hydrated? It's also a self cooling unit...no need for refrigeration or ice. Lots of liquid in that fruit and so much cheaper than water! A coconut cost about 30 cents.
Maybe I didn't have time to take many pictures of food because I was too busy doing other things...like getting elephant rides...
While on a trip to Asia last spring, it was all about the food. Inexpensive, beautifully prepared, fresh food. From curry to fruit to pancakes to soup it was all amazing. So amazing I fell of the vegetarian wagon for a full 8 weeks. Here's a little trip down memory lane.
Spicy Wide Noodles with Squid, Rambuttri Road food stall, Bangkok. This was my first street stall food experience. Street food is quick, cheap, fresh and tasty. The produce was market fresh and sat atop loads of crushed ice. No regrets here, I loved this stall so much I ate here practically every day for about a week. A drink and a plate cost about $3.50.
This is the view from where I sat and ate my meals. Notice the crushed ice covering the fish. There were a couple woks and butane burners behind the produce and that's all you need to make a meal blog worthy!
Peking style duck with greens and ginger, Chinatown, Bangkok. This meal was a bit daunting to find. I had wandered into Chinatown to have a look around and suddenly there were no farangs (foreigners), no English signage and narrow shady lanes. I felt like Chinatown was one giant covered market. After exploring awhile, I decided to look for somewhere to eat. I entered a diner type place with metal tables and ceramic tiled walls and sat down, hoping there'd be an English menu. There wasn't. I saw what people were eating and decided I would point at something that looked good and hope for the best. The Chinese owner sent a young waitress over to me and she asked me what I wanted in English. I told her I didn't know and she said "pork, chicken or duck". I chose duck.
Chicken Noodle Soup, Soup Stall, Rambuttri Road. Singha Beer, 7-11 Rambuttri Road. Consumed at 1.30 am in my hotel room. Total cost, less than 2 bucks. You know when you're traveling alone and just get tired of eating in public by yourself? It happens. I wanted to sit in my underwear in my air conditioned room and watch BBC and eat soup. Picked this snack up, the stall lady packed it in plastic bags and I borrowed a bowl and some chopsticks from the cafe in the lobby. A complete success I'd say.
Fried Red Snapper and grilled prawns at the Treehouse, Lonely Beach, Ko Chang. What a great night that was. The Treehouse is a conglomeration of huts, shared rooms and a bar and restaurant on stilts going right into the water at high tide. I dined with new friends from the UK and had my first Thai bucket o' booze. 
Vegetarian Buffet Lunch on board the snorkeling ferry, near Koh Chang. Somehow I ended up on the ferry that had all the Thai tourists. I swear I was the only farang on the whole trip. I was also the only person not wearing board shorts. I found out why when I got my very first (and hopefully last) sunburned butt.
A view from the ferry. Please note this photo has not been retouched, saturated, nothin'. Naturally beautiful.
Afternoon snack on board the snorkeling ferry. I think this snorkeling guide thought I was weird.
I taught my flatmate Rocky how to make a little soup. Saute some broccoli and some leeks together with olive oil. When it looks done add some veg stock and some almond milk.
Blend!
Serve! Add a dollop of yogurt if you're feeling fancy.
Mince any dying veg left overs from your fridge. I used carrots, celery, red pepper, leeks and mushrooms. Oh and 4 cloves of garlic.
Fry it all up in a wok and add couple large handfuls of cooked grain. I used quinoa. I then ripped up about 4 bread ends and threw those in the mix. I also needed more protein, so I used a pound of tofu, mushed up and about 1/2 cup of ground almonds, just grind 'em in a blender. Now we needed flavour! Sage, Herbes de Provence, Veggie Stock, Soy Sauce, Ketchup. Party!
That's what I'm talkin' about.
