Baby, it's a Brand-New Day

I'm a huge fan of breakfast. I know it doesn't really show on the blog (okay, heck, not much in general has shown up on this blog recently), but to me a day simply cannot get started without some sort of nosh. Whether it's hot or cold, sit-down or on-the-go, as long as that food gets into my belly I'm happy.

Of course, I do prefer the hot (or at least warm) breakfast when I get the chance. Be it a bowl of nuked leftover rice from the night before (I stir in jam... nummy!) or a couple toasted corn flatbreads with cinnamon-sugar, the heat seems to keep me a bit more "up" the rest of the morning than a plain bowl of cereal. I know that a lot of people both my age, younger and older than me hate the whole concept of breakfast, though. My dad and sister, for example, could basically eat one meal at "lunch" and another around "dinner" and be done for the day. A couple of my friends who take transit into class in the early morning or work weird shifts simply say they have no time for breakfast. And then you have some of my clients with allergies - one girl who I've mentioned before, a celiac allergic to fungi, corn, strawberries, dairy and brassicae, is both run-off-her-feet busy with school, 4 jobs and army cadets is simply overwhelmed by the prospect of fnding anything convenient and safe to grab in the morning rush.

Either Late or Early

It's right smack-dab in the middle of the North American Thanksgiving "season" right now - our Canadian celebrations (along with my grandfather's birthday) are long since past, and the USA has yet to haul out their birds and pumpkin pie. It's always been the same sort of thing on our table during the holiday season, both at Thanksgiving and Christmas: roasted turkey (though dad did deep fry the thing a few years ago), mashed potatoes, a couple veggies of some kind (usually broccoli and Brussels sprouts at mom's, more often than not some sort of mashed squash thing at dad's), cranberry sauce, and... stuffing.

Oh, stuffing. the bane of my existence. I have never liked the whole idea of that dish... everything from the fact that it's scraps of otherwise inedible bread to the fact that it's shoved up a turkey carcass' butt and left to soak up all the fat and salmonella-y juices to the fact that it's like eating crusty mush is just not right.

A Great-Full Start to A GF Day

I can't believe it's taking me so long to write posts these days. Mind you, unlike before, I'm not actually cooking and baking a whole lot either, so it's not only laziness that's led to the huge gaps between y ramblings on here. No, between school, commuting, sleep and myriads of doctor's appointments it seems that by the time I do get home looking at the computer screen doesn't rank very high on my list of to-dos. It doesn't help that I was diagnosed last week with iron-deficiency anemia, low blood sodium and a progression of my osteoperosis either - now I'm oscillating between snoozing my energy back and running on overdrive to catch up on everything I missed while asleep!

Merci, Julia, Merci

I honestly think that the application of the term "kitchen luminary and amazing home cook" cannot be applied to anyone better than Julia Child. She brought French cooking to the American and British masses (like I needed to tell you that!), and incorporated a style, grace and manner of teaching that endears her still to cooks and chefs worldwide. She also has the distinction of being the only cookbook author - indeed, the only chef - that made my mom change her entire approach to a dish that she's been making and we've been eating for years: cauliflower and cheese sauce. I personally have nothing against mom's recipe - really, it is delicious and probably won't be replaced anytime soon in our home. But Julia's recipe is not simply cauliflower and cheese sauce. And it certainly isn't the same "lighter" option for a dinner side that mom's Weight Watchers - age casserole is.

Whoa... Double [Cinnamon] All the Way...

I'm of the firm belief that when you find something - be it a flavour, a colour, an ingredient or even an idea - that is just so perfect that you can't get it out of your head, it is only fitting that you do it full justice. It is not enough to include that element just once in a recipe. No, no... the real way to experience the flavour filling your mind is to layer as many different types of it on top of one another. Take, for example, lemon cake, made with a lemon filling and topped with a lemon frosting. Really... can you ever have too much lemon? I think not. Or Alton Brown and his Super Apple Pie - the one with applejack booze in the crust. When I made it, not only did I throw Calvados (no applejeck around here) into the crust, but also a glug of local apple cider, and the filling used some homemade apple butter instead of AB's apple jelly. So the pie was not simply an apple pie. No way... that was apple on steroids pie!