It’s been a while since a weekend in Ottawa brought with it so much sunshine. During my many trips out to enjoy the mild weather, I snapped these pics of some very creative signage from several eateries – art of advertising indeed!!! Harvest Loaf – Bakery Extra-ordinaire Front Door Front Steps My better half and I discovered the Harvest Loaf bakery on our way to Il Negozio Nicastro. I bought 4 palm cookies, she, an apple turnover. They were delicious. Unfortunately, this bakery is rumoured to be closing because of somewhat unreasonable increases in rent.... | Continue reading article

Grilled Pork chops Alright, my inaugural run at the barbecue this year was with pork chops. Though, I prefer pork loin chops because there is mostly one muscle, I just picked up a couple thick (1″ or so) shoulder chops from the local mega-mart. I know, I know, shoulder chops have a lot of connective tissue that won’t dissolve with hot fast cooking like grilling. And, there’s a lot of muscle groups connected together, but for $1.99/lb, I couldn’t resist.

Keyboard Waffle Iron For a kitchen appliance to resonate well with me, it would have to be something that combined aspects of the two worlds I play in: Food and Information Technology. A designer named Chris Dimino accomplished just that balance with his whimsical waffle iron. Though the waffle iron he designed was meant to reinvent an obsolete product, the typewriter, its new function happens to produce keyboards that look like modern computer keyboards, only edible. Chris’ waffle iron has also been making its way across the web. It has been sighted on theinquirer.net, the... | Continue reading article

Pork Tenderloin With the first of May come and gone, barbecue season is now officially open. Two weekends ago, I concocted a pork tenderloin recipe that should work equally well in an oven or on the barbecue. However, if you decide to make this recipe on the barbecue, I strongly recommend you not brown the apple sauce on the tenderloins. The sauce may drip onto the grate and into the barbecue, causing one rightful mess. Please note that this was a “necessity is the mother of invention recipe” that I cobbled together because a certain... | Continue reading article

Nihao Tea House The face of the Wellington Village continues to evolve. The converted two story house that once housed a Halal meat shop is now the location of the Nihao Tea House (81 Holland Avenue). It opened its doors sometime during the afternoon of April 20, 2007. It is actually the second tea house in Ottawa to sport the name Nihao. The first is located in the Gloucester Center (1980 Oglivie Road). Customers shouldn’t come looking for teabags at the Nihao Tea House. Though I have no doubt that tea bags can be purchased,... | Continue reading article

Pan Fried Tofu No one ever said that tofu was boring. Its uses and applications abound. At the mega-mart, you can find tofu in many products from roasts and burgers to vegan cheese. In the kitchen it can be just as versatile. Depending on what preparation you purchase, tofu can be used to make sauces, milk shakes, pie fillings, or even cakes. Of course, if a savory preparation interests you, traditional Asian cuisine dictates that tofu be deep deep fried, pan fried, or mixed into various stir-fries. For Asian dishes, the tofu of choice comes... | Continue reading article

Baby Cakes Chocolate + Cream = Ganache. Ganache is the stuff of dreams to chocoholics everywhere. It is used in chocolate truffles, glazes, frosting, and, if you’re Alton Brown, fudge pops. Ganache also happens to line the middle of chocolate babe cakes. According to the Holiday 2003 edition of LCBO’s Food and Drink magazine, baby cakes are small cakes that serve 1 or 2 people. In this recipe, the destined size of the cake is small for good reason. These cakes represent the zenith of chocolate decadence. Gift I made these cakes as a gift... | Continue reading article