Geeky Cat Miusings

Notable epicurean delights I have had of late:
Popcorn Tea - not really recommended but it does remind one of popcorn, in a slightly off way.
Panetone Tea - lovely, and it really does remind me of the fruity type of panetone with its citrusy and vanilla tones.
Polenta Budino - a delicious and delectable dessert. I’ll happily have your portion if you don’t like polenta (you know who you are!).
Butternut Squash Ravioli with Sage and Amaretti - yes, that is a dessert sprinkled on the pasta entree - a fascinating combination and totally divine.

I am making good progress on visiting all the cafes on my best of list. I’ll update you later.

Happy Feasting!

Being off work for 8 days is great, especially when you get paid for it. As per my New Year’s Resolution, I signed up for line dance classes. Line dancing does not involve dancing with a partner which I particularly like because I enjoy the sensation of freeness that it entails: You can do whatever you please and you can add your own particular flair whenever you want to. I really signed up for dance classes just for the fun of it plus I already know a couple of the people there so I knew we could have fun together. So far I learned how to dance the Slosh, Electric Slide, and the ever romantic Rhumba.

I have tried a raw food restaurant called Rawlicious on Dundas Street. In case you were wondering, raw food is anything that has not been heated over 40 °C. Proponents of raw food diets believe that heating foods over that temperature causes them to lose much of their nutritional value and become harmful to the body. I believe that we should try to get a healthy dose of raw foods in our diets, but I am not a raw foodist. It is great to give it a try to see what kind of food the raw chef can come up with. I tried the nori rolls stuffed with quinoa; pizza made with sprouted buckwheat crust; lasagna made with layers of zucchini instead of pasta and nut butter instead of cheese; and coconut and pomagranate tea to wash it all down. It was all very tasty.

I went to the animated short films screening at the National Film Board to see the following:

• Bestselling and celebrated Canadian novelist Roch Carrier narrates this animated adaptation of his beloved story, “The Hockey Sweater.”
• NOËL NOËL the story of a misguided billionaire, is in love with Beatrice, a bespectacled fairy. But thanks to little Zoey, her dog Snooze and a blue-eyed reindeer, his eyes are finally opened. Enlivened by a humorous and rhymed narration spoken by Leslie Nielsen.
• LÉON IN WINTERTIME where an eight-year-old adopted bear suffering from an identity crisis.

Aside from their screenings, you can go to their digital viewing stations and choose from 4600 NFB films on demand.

Going to Kensington Market is always wonderful. I shopped for food since their prices are good and you can find unusual products there. I shopped for inexpensive clothes I tried two cafes which were on the best cafes of west Toronto list. My friend bought some great fridge magnets and we adored a beautiful dog. We will be back!

I hope everyone had good holidays, or at least survived them reasonably well. Mine were a bit maddening but overall quite nice and I enjoyed the good company. It was a beautiful experience having a friend cook my birthday dinner. Aside from other things she made a tempeh dish and that reinforced my plan to start cooking with tempeh. Recently, I also tried some North Vietnamese cuisine at Hanoi 3 Seasons and Spanish food at Coca. Both were delicious and inspired me to try more international cuisine for 2009. I have also been cooking a fair amount because I have the whole week off - Hurrah!

I ended 2008 with a good belly chuckle at the Comedy Extravaganza at Massey Hall. I had a late night but now that I have rested up a bit, my mind can think about New Year’s resolutions.

My New Year’s Resolutions:

• To stretch for at least 5 minutes a day. Of course it is preferable to do more but I will have to keep it very modest to start with.
• To visit the Best Cafes in West Toronto as listed in Blogto. I kind of cheated because I have tried a few already in 2008; but getting a head start on goals is a good idea.
• To cook at least three dishes with tempeh because a nutritionist friend of mine said that is much better for the health than tofu.
• I will do a 20 km hike. The longest hike I have ever taken is 15 km. I did not experience too much stiffness so I think 20 shouldn’t be too taxing.
• I will go to Rouge Valley. It is just one of those things that I have never done even though the valley is local in Toronto. Now that I belong to two hiking groups I should be able to achieve this goal.
• I will take one hot yoga class. Sounds good with this chilly -20 weather we had on New Year’s Eve.
• I think I’ll take some dance lessons. They start this Saturday so I don’t have too much time to back out <>.