vickichowder: FRIED

FOOD PORN: (RECIPE) GRILLED SANDWICHES EDITION

They're essentially sandwiches, but just so much better.

Yes, your fingers may complain as they get oily from the crispy, buttered and olive oil pan-fried outsides, but your taste buds will say "Thank you, you have chosen well."

I probably haven't convinced you enough to have you wanting to make one of these yourself, but let me tell you: it only takes you a few more minutes to upgrade your boring regular sandwich into something they charge for a lot of money at cafes and bistros!

Avocado, havarti, cheddar, in rye & flax bread grilled sandwich

Sauteed asparagus, cheddar, roast beef, mozzarella, egg, in light rye bread grilled sandwich

As per making a regular sandwich, begin with:

Your choice of two slices (thin or thick? You get to decide that) of bread/bun/baked-floury-goodness, then

Spread butter on one side of each and an optional condiment on the other side (ketchup, mayo, hot sauce, mustard...).

Oil your medium-heated pan with some olive oil (or regular if you don't have - olive makes it taste better though)

Place one slice (buttered down) on the pan, then layer on your cheese, meat, egg, veggies, fruits...

Place the other side (buttered up) to sandwich it all, and press down with a spatula...

When that side is browned and crispy, flip and press down it down. When that other side it also browned and crispy,

Cut (or not) and serve ~

Not fully a sandwich, but just as delicious: sauteed bacon and onion, topped with Brie, baked on light rye bread

Egg, mozzarella, havarti in sesame bagel grilled sandwich

Gala apple, cheddar, mozzarella in english muffin grilled sandwich

These are great for breakfast, lunch, snack, or dinner, so there's no excuse to not make these for yourself now (:

MUAH MUAH MUAH

VICKI CHOW

P/S

Last weekend I saw a Rolls Royce, and asked daddy to take a picture of me with it:

Last week I also saw an FRS, and asked mommy to take a picture of me with it:

She said "No, you can just go to the auto show"

"But mommy, I didn't get to go this year."

So I never got a picture with that FRS.

Yesterday, I saw a bright royal blue car, and from afar I thought, No, that can't be the 370Z... But after a few more steps towards the car, the driver started the engine, the rear lights turned on, and it was the 370Z.

The starting-up sound still lingers in my ears as though it was my ringtone, and lets just leave my strong feelings towards this car as that.

Do you ever get so excessively happy and excited in public that you can't conceal your feelings?

, by vickichowder

BREAKFAST

MODAVIE, MONTREAL (PART I)

My good friends, Sunny and Julie, and I went to Montreal during our reading week, to visit our friends who are studying in McGill University. But we all know that within the depths of that statement, the true reason of me wanting to go to Montreal was to put some good food in my mouth. *I still love my friends equally as much though!*

Chicken cutlet

Just before the bus ride on the Greyhound, we eat dinner at Nak Won for the first time. We ordered many different dishes: the essential bulgogi, soon tofu, fish stew, grilled mackerel, pork and chicken cutlet, and beef stew.

Spicy beef stew

After our 9 - 10 ish hours of sitting on the bus (where I could barely get a mere 15 minutes of shut eye), we arrived a bit earlier than expected, specifically, at 0430 - yes, in the morning. Deciding that it would not be a good choice to wake up our friends at that time, we searched for a 24 hour place to stop by and have some food in our incredibly hungry stomachs.

Good morning!

We had our caffeine fix, stalled for 2 hours, then called up our friend and walked uphill in a not-so-pleasant mix of snow and wind to our friend's residence:

This was a hotel, before it turned into a student residence

Since we still never had a real breakfast, Sunny and I left the three other girls (they were in a deep sleep) to go hunt for some baked goods.

Mine: Almond topped croissant, with almond paste inside

And hers: Banana chocolate muffin

Let's fast forward to the night, where the only place that seems to accept a seating at nearly 20:00, is called Modavie. Sunny and I both decided (coincidentally) to try their Prix Fixe menu: she chooses the duck breast, I choose the salmon orechiette.

Salade d'epinards

To start, we have a spinach salad, which is dressed with what is like a sweet tangy catalina, but tastes much more real than what you get from a Kraft bottle.

Eperlans frits

This is fried smelt, which is barely battered, and fried to a super crispiness that cracks when you bite into the juicy hot smelt flesh. The bones inside were soft and not at all a problem to eat, especially when the fish was dipped in their tangy, creamy tartar sauce. And that bed of salad? - Untouched.

Our friends who order calamari at every place they encounter that sells calamari, ordered calamari. The ones here are juicy, have a nice bite, and are especially flavourful, sans sauce.

Orechiette de deux saumons

There is grilled salmon, as well as smoked salmon in this dish. The white sauce is like the better version of Alfredo: richer, creamier, and keeps you wanting more even after half a plate. Along with a scattering of sautéed mushrooms and a generous grating of parmesan, I lick everything off this plate.

Magret de canard, chutney de pommes

The duck is cooked until the insides are still pink, retaining the duck's juiciness. It is served with a sweet, sweet apple chutney, which complements the savoury duck well. The only thing I didn't like was the sautéed vegetables (red bell pepper, green bell pepper, zucchini) - I'd like to conclude that the overpowering flavour of red pepper when cooked did not go well with the rest of this dish. And that the potatoes were a bit dry. So next time, "I'd like a plate of just duck and chutney please" (:

Tiramisu maison

To end the prix fixe meal, we get our slice of tiramisu. The two layers of lady fingers, which are drowned in a strong liquor and coffee, cut through the richness of the layers of smooth mascarpone cream perfectly. I was extremely compelled to order another slice of these. But my friend who has more sense than I do prevented me from doing so.

People who came in later than us come for drinks and desserts

Read more about Modavie on Urbanspoon!

Our meal was delicious, our waiter was extremely courteous, and along with the peaceful live jazz, part I of my Montreal trip is concluded.

MUAH MUAH MUAH

VICKI CHOW

P/S

Anthony Bourdain's No Reservations is all that I've been watching on Youtube lately. Since I've been told from my parents that I'll be going to Asia this summer (the list includes Malaysia, Thailand, and more), I've been far too interested in the foods that I wish were served in Canada, which I fear will never be.

The amounts of foods that need to be blogged about is piling up - a sign that I need to finish my Montreal trip soon!

Cheeses we found in a corner bakery/pastry/food store

My mind is constantly filled with food: what I'm going to eat, what I'm going to make to eat, what I want to eat...

What's occupying your mind nowadays?

, by vickichowder

CHINESE

CNY & SWEET DREAMS

Happy Chinese New Years! Although I am a bit late from the first day of the new year, CNY is typically celebrated for 15 days after the first day of the new year (: Besides coming back for red pocket (envelopes with money) from family and friends, the other big factor to go home is to spend time with family and eat meals together. Here are some pictures from the first meal I ate on new year's eve.

XO sauce fried turnip/white radish cake

Deep fried doughnut (not sweet nor salty), to be eaten with congee

Deep fried fish skin (we eat it dipped with the clear broth)

Along with congee and fried vermicelli, my late, late brunch was finally satisfied. Daddy and I went to the Chinese restaurant Sam Woo for the crispy-skin pork. The line was almost a 15 minute wait, and by the time it almost got to us, only the pork butt was left and a new whole pork hasn't finished roasting yet. To top that off, neither of us had enough cash cause I forgot my wallet at the book store (which thankfully was there when I went back to retrieve it).

Crispy skin pork

BBQ duck

Vegetarian dish with lots of deep fried soy bean curd

More vegetarian food. The round slices with holes are lotus root

Steamed fish - my favourite part of this is the cheek

Chinese braised mushroom and dried oysters (making it have a super concentrated flavour)

Chinese new year cakes (it's sticky and chewy)

Deep fried egg chip/cracker? I really don't know, but it's really yummy!

Before the week of the new years, my throat was incredibly dry and I kept steaming the Asian pears to eat because it's supposed to be very good for your throat.

After cutting the top off like a lid, scoop out the seeds then fill it with honey and jujube. Replace the top part of the pear and steam it for a good 40 minutes so it becomes soft and sweet.

Sweet Dreams is the name of a bubble tea cafe in Waterloo, and recently, the manager asked if I would make some mousse cakes and cupcakes for her to sell there! And so I made mousse cake and cupcake and sold it there.

It feels so nice to see your cakes inside a display thingy

I wish I had more interesting things to say, but I hope my pictures speak more to you than the words which I am typing now - as I've been through an exceptionally busy week for some reason and feel rather exhausted *yawn*

MUAH MUAH MUAH

VICKI CHOW

P/S

This upcoming week is our reading week and I will be going to a multitude of places:

1. Pennsylvania's Grove City Outlet and Millcreek Mall
2. Buffalo's Walden Galleria
3. Montreal & McGill University
4. The autoshow in Metro Toronto Convention Centre

CNY (Chinese New Year) is near - food and money is near.

I don't know which one of the four I should be most hyped up about because they each encompass my favourite things: shopping, food, cars.

Please be on my blog again soon when I will be posting up pictures of my adventures in the US, Montreal, and Toronto!

This is dough which was made into something delicious that I will post up next time!

Wishing everyone who has reading week this week an amazing break from your studies (:

, by vickichowder

ALMOND

GUU IZAKAYA, TORONTO

My craving for Japanese food hasn't subsided after eating at Spring Rolls, since we ate lots of delicious foods other than the Japanese kind! So I finally got around to going to the highly-raved-about Japanese restaurant, Guu Izakaya, on a Friday night.

You are greeted with a warm towel upon seating.

I called beforehand to make a reservation, and they said that the waiting time will be 1.5 - 2 hours, so my dear friends, who were already in the area (whereas I was still on the highway), got seats for us first.

When you finally find the restaurant, which is off the main street and is only identifiable by the lit-up black and white sign, you'll have to wait outside in a shelter for your seat: because there's no room inside the restaurant!

Unagi Doria: Unagi with on mixed mushroom rice with cheese on top

This place is great if you only have 4-6 people eating together. Otherwise, you'll have to fight over portions or sacrifice a few mouthfuls to the extra person(s) sitting with you. The good part about these small portions is that it's much cheaper!

But you'll have to order more dishes = you get to try more things. So I'll let you decide whether this place's small portions are a good thing or not *because I'm super indecisive*

Deep fried Brie: with mango and blueberry sauce

Oh, how I love Brie.

I just had some this morning as a part of my brunch, and there's still a whole untouched one in the fridge. I usually caramelize some onions and pears to put on top of it to bake until the inside is all melted - but this place makes it so much better. The cheese bursts in your mouth when you bit into the crunchy outside.

Just describing it makes me want it right now *drool*

There was five of us, and only for pieces, so one of them was split between two. Of course, not between me and the best friend/girlfriend. We like our Brie too much to share :)

Ikapiri: deep fried calamari with spicy ketchup and wasabi mayo

I'm not sure what happened, but by the time I finished taking this photo, there were only ~3 pieces left! So I quickly took my very unequal share of the dish and understood why it all disappeared in a matter of seconds after I took a bite.

Why must deep fried foods taste so good?!

Gyu tongue: Grilled beef tongue with salt

I think Asian people are very accustomed to eating any part of an animal, so eating tongue didn't strike us as out-of-this-world. Guu made this very delicious, alongside a freshly grated pile of wasabi (top right) which is very nasal-clearing!

Takoyaki: deep fried octopus ball with tonkatsu sauce and wasabi mayo

The first thing we decided to upon seating was that we each would pick out a dish, and the best friend/girlfriend picked out this one. I love watching the bonito (dried fish) flakes move/wave around when the dish arrives in front of you.

I had Takoyaki at a Night Market during the summertime, and I think the only difference between the two is the presentation and the sauce - Guu makes it nicer.

After the last of our first five dishes arrived and were finished, we realized that our appetites only got larger.

So we ordered more:

Tontoro: pan-fried pork cheek with salt and yuzu pepper

I love the layers of fat in this part of the pork because it's really juicy and gives it a nice, easy bite.

I don't think I could ever become vegetarian - I fall in love with meat all over again each time I eat it.

Kinoko Bibimbap: Mushrooms, cheese, seaweed sauce atop of rice in a sizzling stone pot

In Korean restaurants, you mix your own bibimbap. But at Guu, the server places the sizzling pot in front of you, whips out two spoons and mixes it all in a very experienced manner, then finishes off by smoothing the top and letting us spoon our own servings.

BBQ Pork: BBQ style pork with yuzu honey soy sauce

Another reason we kept ordering more (another reason I kept calling our waiter over to tell him which dishes we wanted) was because our waiter was rather good looking :)

Guu knows how to make money - with good looking waiters.

Scallop Carpaccio: Hokkaido scallop sashimi with wasabi dressing

I'm not sure if the Hokkaido part of the description poses any sort of significance to you, but after google-ing this, it seems that scallops from this region of Japan are renowned for their freshness and high quality.

And I suppose so! Because it was sweet, silky, and with only ~2 pieces to a person (there were five of us), it was the perfect amount to amuse your tongue, and urge you to order another...

Until your next dish comes shortly after you've finished your previous one:

Gyu Carpaccio: seared beef sashimi with ponzu, wasabi mayo, & garlic chips

I've always preferred my beef medium-rare: I like the juiciness that comes with a bloody slice of steak. So I knew I would like beef sashimi. And I did.

The best friend/girlfriend doesn't like raw meat/seafood, so I had her share of scallop and beef *muahs to her*

Almond tofu dessert

Despite the many dishes we ordered, we still had to order dessert (although I think it was only us girls who really wanted sweets after the meal).

With or without the sweet goji berry, I would still be able to eat this cup of almond tofu all by myself. It's like the Chinese tofu dessert on a whole new level.

Deep fried banana: with coconut icecream, mango puree, and chocolate sauce

I was too occupied with the almond tofu to have enough of this. But the few bites that I did have, I really enjoyed. I really like coconut flavoured things, which is why I liked this dessert so much :)

Please look forward to the desserts I make in the next post :)

MUAH MUAH MUAH

VICKI CHOW

P/S

I still have yet to talk about the desserts I've made with butter! I'm sorry... but please anticipate it in the next post for sure (I swear I said this exact same thing in my previous post).

I'm guilty for procrastination and delaying posts *sorry*

I'm off to go to a dinner with minimum meat because we've all agreed that we've been consuming way too much meat these few holiday days.

So, don't eat too much yet - there's still the New Years around the corner = even more meals to come~

Have you been eating yummy food at restaurants this holiday season?

, by vickichowder

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