I think I’m having too much fun with this..
Month: January 2014
#BellLetsTalk
Today in Canada, it is Mental Health Awareness Day. Every call, text, and tweet with the hashtag #BellLetsTalk will contribute 5 cents towards mental health initiatives in Canada. Let’s end the negative stigma surrounding mental health, it’s not something that just happens to outcasts or weird people. Friends and family can go through the same thing and being open to the conversation can be a life-changer.
I filmed a Vlog to be a part of the conversation and to let people know that they are not alone.
Beef Tongue Tacos @ Rebozos
The CMT show Taco Wars did an episode in Toronto putting Playa Cabana Hacienda, Rebozos and Milagro against each other. Personally, I think there are many more great taco places in Toronto and trying only three to crown the best is a little bit dumb. Anyways – upcoming spoiler alert – Rebozos ended up winning with their beef tongue taco. Naturally, I was curious and was eager to try it when I happened to be in the area.
All the tacos came in threes (for $10). I ordered the Lengua (beef tongue of course). It was presented with a side of two different hot sauces. The red was too spicy, so I put just a dab and the green one was a mild green tomato salsa, which I used up completely. The beef tongue was very tender and flavourful. I was surprised. I had ox tongue before at Korean BBQ, but I always found it stiff. This was meaty and tender.
Nash ordered the beef enchiladas which came with refried beans. He cleaned the plate. I took a bite and I actually think I preferred the tenderness of the beef tongue to the regular beef!
To drink, we both had Sindral Mundet soda in apple flavour. I thought it was funny that the bottle purposely advertised that there was less than 1% Apple Juice and artifically flavoured. Do people prefer those qualities? It was a refreshing soda.
We were happy with our meal but whether or not it is the “best taco in Toronto”, I cannot say. We still have many places to go and we’ve enjoyed a lot of the places we have visited so far. All are very different in style and taste. What I can probably say is that Rebozos probably does have the “best beef tongue taco”.
Batman is Unimpressed
I decided to take this Batman figurine out of its packaging and take some silly photos.
The Beautiful Destruction of Bubbles
Inspired by Andrea Kelly, I tried the taking photos of bubbles outside as they freeze thing today. Unfortunately, I didn’t have any bubble solution so I created my own with dish soap and water. The solution wasn’t really the best for long-lasting bubbles so if anyone has a better one (that preferably does not require glycerin) I’d love to know! These bubbles were usually gone within seconds and I was blowing them as well as shooting the photos so it was a bit more difficult. I recommend making someone else freeze their butts of with you if you want to try this.
Carrot Ginger Soup
In one of my vlogs, I was making this Carrot & Ginger Soup and I got some requests for the recipe. I used Elise Bauer’s from Simply Recipes version as a guideline but modified a few things.
Ingredients
3 Tbsp Butter/Margarine
2 lbs carrots – peeled & sliced
2 large onions
1 Tbsp of minced ginger
2 cups of chicken stock
2 cups of water
1 chive – diced (optional for taste)
Salt
1. Melt the butter on medium heat and cook the onions and carrots for about 5 minutes. Get the onions soft, but not brown. Sprinkle some salt over the carrots.
2. Add the chicken stock, water and ginger. Bring to boil and simmer for 15-20 minutes or until carrots are soft.
3. Put the soup into blender in small batches. I only blended it for a few seconds. I tend to like it a tiny bit chunky, but its up to your own preferences how smooth you want it.
4. Taste it and add a little bit of salt (or pepper-optional) if required. Garnish with leeks.
Taking over One Week One Band This Week!
Starting tomorrow, I’ll be taking over One Week One Band for a couple days to talk about Canadian chamber-pop group Ohbijou.
The site’s a really cool platform for music writers to swoon over bands they’re passionate about for a week. I’m so excited for the opportunity to contribute.
Burger Socks
For Christmas Nash’s little sister @immicaylaB got me these awesome burger socks by Sock It To Me.
I actually don’t own that many pattern socks and these are totally adorable so I decided to do a mini-shoot with them.
For these photos I used the Canon 50mm 1.8 II lens. It’s difficult to use for selfies because it has difficulty auto-focusing. So basically I estimated by manual focusing and using a remote. This is the only full-selfie photo that turned out.
The Whippoorwill
Looks like I’m already getting my foodventure on this new year. After a fantastic brunch at Rose & Sons, Nash and I were even more eager to venture into new places this year. On a whim we made a last minute reservation to The Whippoorwill. We usually don’t go down that West on Bloor because it seemed sketchy but I had heard great things about the restaurant and really wanted to try it. We came for just food but the cocktail menu was just so intriguing!
Nash ordered “This Little Piggy” with Napoleon brandy, Grand Marnier, Briottet chesnut, sage, lemon and Scrappy’s Celery bitters. Despite the hilariously girly glass, it was strong and full of flavour.
I had “The Skippy Welcher” with Havana Club Amejo Rum, Briottet Hazelnut, Briottet Chesnut, brown butter, lemon, concord grape juice and maldon. It was like grape juice for adults. I loved the nuttiness. There was enough alcohol in both drinks that made it well worth the price.
I ordered a Lobster Croquette which was one of the specials of the day and not on their regular menu. The presentation was very festive and the croquette itself had a nice crunch. The lobster was fresh and paired well with the creamy sauce.
Nash had the burger, which was recently voted one of the Best Burgers over $10 by Now Magazine. It was a messy juicy burger with a buttered bun, melted cheddar and russian dressing but whatever was in that dressing was worth the sticky fingers. As you know we eat a lot of burgers and this was definitely a great one.
So the croquette was a bit small, so I ordered their other deal of the day a “Deli Sandwich” that was only $6. I half expected a slider for that price but this was seriously a full on sandwich. A great deal, Nash almost ordered a second to take home. It was a mortadella with an egg, peppers and cheese. It was delicious. The meat was flavourful and it was so filling I couldn’t finish. However, Nash made sure there was no leftovers and ate the rest.
Our bill was attached to a paper bag filled with popcorn. It was a lovely surprise and great palate cleanser. I still can’t figure out what was on the popcorn. It was sweet and salty at the same time. I think it was rosemary among many other spices.
From beginning to end it was a lovely meal and we can’t wait to be back!
*Update from 05/19/2014*
We tried some more items that were worth talking about!
Dungeness Crab in spring radish, grilled butter and dijon icecream. This was a very interestingly presented dish!
Fried toast with duck egg, chorizo and vegetables.
Chicken fried rabbit with kale salad. It was better than fried chicken.
Weekly Photo Challenge: Window
I’ve never done any of the Daily Post Challenges before on WordPress but this one just coincidentally fit with something I just shot. I captured Teddy eagerly waiting by the window for my sister to come home.
It’s so hard to leave him at home sometimes because we know how anxious he must be for us to get back. Whether it is 2 hours or 5 minutes, he gives us the same warm welcome when he sees us walk through the door. I really liked this shot because although it’s still, it captured the warmth and the enthusiasm he has when he is perched on the couch watching the world below.
Tiana Feng 