On a cold weekend in March 2020, I had just wrapped up another birthday dinner surrounded by two dozen friends in the private room of one of my favourite Thai restaurants in Toronto. There was a little COVID-related tension then, with a few less hugs than usual and a few awkward elbow-to-elbow bumps. Other than that, it was a perfectly “normal” event. The food was plentiful and served family-style. Drinks were generously poured and unique cocktails were even passed around and shared (shared!) between closer friends and partners. The chef (Sasi Meechai) had also created a special “Thai market ..read more

Bar Ape Roselle Desserts Over this past summer, I observed a very disciplined and regular ice cream and gelato diet for the sake of journalism. I even continued the diet throughout my Canadian travels, and have now returned to Toronto to present you with the results of my findings. Before going further, let me start with two important notes: It is hard to make ice cream and gelato taste terrible. But I only have room on this list for my personal favourites. If I have not named your favourite place, send me a message and I can try it out if I haven’t yet! However, many places may be great b ..read more

There is nothing quite like a backcountry portage camping trip to experience the beauty of Canada and its vast expanse of lakes and tiny islands. If you have never been portaging before, you may have some questions about what and how to eat. Unlike a car camping or cottage trip (where you could “wing it” if you had to), it is worth your while in a backcountry scenario to put some careful thought into your meal planning in order to maximize enjoyment and safety. I’m drawing on two decades of camping experience to summarize some of the important things I learned along the way! Pre-Planning ..read more

It is not easy to find “inspiration” to cook exciting meals more than a year into the Pandemic. On the other hand, I’ve listened to enough motivational podcasts to know that it’s better to take action first, and hopefully, inspiration will follow. So, why not start with your weekly meal plan – something you have to do anyway? Many weekly meal plan guides online are primarily focused on saving money, saving time, or eating healthy. This guide isn’t one of them. Like all the articles in my “How to Eat Better” series, this one is focused instead on simply maximizing enjoyment in all its forms (i ..read more

Beautiful trout dinner at Andre Etasje Travelling to Norway During a Pandemic August 2020. Like many countries, Norway had just come out of an intense three-month Pandemic Lockdown and was slowly starting to open itself to business and local travel. Norway wasn’t out of the woods yet. But with only two people hospitalized in intensive care, and less than 10,000 COVID-19 cases in total, the risk of jumping on a plane to visit my kjæreste (a.k.a. my boyfriend DW) in Norway at that moment was one I was willing to take. I should clarify that travelling to Norway then, and at the time of writing, i ..read more

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No matter what situation you find yourself in this September, there is no denying that this year’s back-to-school season is going to be a challenging one. However, I’ve always been a firm believer that it’s not what happens to you, but how you handle it, that determines your well-being and happiness. Personally, I think the kitchen is a great place to start! My advice: think of your kitchen as a singular ecosystem. Instead of stressing about each meal as individual productions, aim to create food building blocks that are always ready to go. Spend a few minutes during your Zoom call breaks to ..read more

The recipe below is one I created for Ontario Pork, and can be found on their recipe catalogue and blog. It’s inspired by Mexican flavours and Mexican-style chorizo (think Mexican chilis, vinegar, salt and pepper), but will work well for any pork sausage labelled “chorizo” you can find in an Canadian grocery store. It’s also inspired by a recent camping trip where I was able to make this as a one cast iron skillet dish – one of the best ways to cook anything! Chorizo (Spanish in origin, or chouriço in Portuguese) can describe a wide variety of sausage that ranges from freshly ground to fully ..read more

One of my personal missions for my recent trip to Gabriola Island was to find the farmer behind the amazing garlic I tasted when I visited the Island for the first time during a high school trip. The garlic was so flavourful and juicy that I wondered whether I had ever actually eaten garlic before. After hours of futile research, I was saddened to learn that the man behind Gabriola Gourmet Garlic, Ken Stefanson, had just recently passed away, leaving behind his loving wife and an incredible legacy. In a twist of fate, I was introduced to another incredible Gabriola resident, Jennifer Knight ..read more

Ever since high school, I’ve floated around the idea of someday retiring to Gabriola Island to open an art studio alongside a robust garlic farm. I can barely remember the details from that excursion but I’ve since longed for that same sense of deep inspiration and relaxation. Located on the unceded and traditional territory of the Snunéymux First Nation, Gabriola Island has a quiet, humble identity. For most of the year, the Island is home to about 4000 residents, with the number increasing to almost 6000 in the summer. Unless you have your own boat, the best way to get to the Island i ..read more