Last night we saw the new digitally restored Lawrence of Arabia on the big screen. What a spectacle! Normally I just enjoy the pace of older movies, but during the first half I actually started to grow impatient. Masses of warriors were on the move, and it seemed endless. But I caught myself, intentionally relaxed into the powerful cinematography ( Read more... )

My first freelance assignment in many years appears in the fall issue of Edible Toronto, now published. Here is my story about vine-fed lamb online. The print version is a free magazine. The editor liked working with me and wants to meet for coffee. Now I need more assignments.

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I wanted to make a special dinner to welcome Danny home again at last. "At last" because the house in Toronto has finally become someone else's home.

But I'm still operating on a sleep deficit. Standing exhausted at 6 p.m. in the meat aisle, I managed to select something I can dress up with minimal fuss. The main dish was a favourite old standby- ( Read more... )

I had planned to stirfry the vegetables separately, but when I added the liquid to the chops it gave such a heady aroma, I impulsively dumped the vegetables on top and let them steam. The result was an intensely flavourful one-pot meal. Definitely a make-again. A side dish of rice or potato salad would have made a good meal for two, but Danny isn't ( Read more... )

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Just now as I was washing up the last few dishes from my long long weekend with Danny, I thought about how much of a difference I've experienced in this mundane but important aspect of my life.

In the past I consistently left dishes sitting at least a few days. Often some would sit for several weeks. I might clean the fridge out a few times a year ( Read more... )

Certain changes precipitate others. The act of decluttering my apartment over the past two months coincided with reading In Defense of Food (the previous change facilitated more consistent consumption of books), and led to an unplanned, healthy shift in my behaviour around meals and food preparation ( Read more... )

Laura (a grad student knitter friend of mine) is coming over for dinner and bringing a friend. We are all eat gluten-free except Danny. Laura's birthday was Wednesday, so I made a zucchini cake with a package of chocolate pudding mix added. The main course is grass-fed lamb marinaded in olive oil, lemon juice, garlic and rosemary and roasted in the ( Read more... )

Tonight I made gluten-free naan bread. It was only meant as a simple accompaniment for another new recipe, chicken and vegetable korma, in which I substituted my own improvised korma paste: a clove of garlic, some coconut oil, a little ketchup and my traditional curry powder recipe. I wanted korma to celebrate the occasion of having ground, blended ( Read more... )