Smooch Food: Love Letters to Every Bite

It's the fourth week that a HelloFresh box arrived at our home. We skipped last week but ordered five different dishes this week. The theme of this week happens to be tomatoes. Four out of the five dishes we ordered included crushed tomatoes. Carb Smart Moroccan-Style Shrimp Stew with Zucchini, Feta, and Almonds HelloFresh Description: This savoury bisque is inspired by the flavours of North Africa. A sprinkle of dry-roasted almonds adds a light crunch on top. It's so easy to burn the toasted almonds. Otherwise, I love the shrimps! Spanish Chorizo and Chickpea Stew with Kale, Peppers, and Spiced Croutons HelloFresh Description: This satisfying stew packs lots of protein with smoky chorizo sausage and filling chickpeas. It's a fiesta of flavour! It's spicy! I went crazy and added lots of chilli flakes. The croutons made of ciabatta roll are so good. Cal Smart Chipotle Pork Chili with Poblano Peppers and Cheddar Cheese HelloFresh Description: This nourishing and light chi...

Bridges Restaurant in Granville Island will be closing its doors this weekend. Tomorrow is their last day of operation. After renovations, the iconic yellow building will be the new home of Tap and Barrel Bridges. My Bridges Restaurant Memories I moved to Canada in 2015, and my first full-time job was at the building by the entrance of Granville Island. According to my Swarm App, I have been to Bridges Restaurant seven times (before today). First Promotion My first time at Bridges was when I had lunch with our CEO last April 2018. He told me the fantastic news that I will be the new manager of our Vancouver office. I was shaking with excitement, joy, and fear all at the same time. I wanted to cry after our meal as we were walking back into the office. You see, I was underemployed for nine months after I arrived in Canada. I got married in October 2017, and my hubby was unable to work right away until we get his work permit. It was a challenging time ...

It's a busy Saturday for hubby and me (and my beautiful parents, who helped us with our errands today). We decided (just a week ago) to send a balikbayan box  to my in-laws in the Philippines. It's our first time doing such a thing, and we have no idea what to get and how to do it, but we chugged along. We started the day in Costco, where we purchased many things we think they're going to enjoy - a personal favourite is the box of 40 (10 pieces of 4 different hot chocolates!). Of course, we also got the usual like Spam, body soap, toothbrush, and toothpaste. Then, we head to Superstore. I shopped for our food for the week since I am not getting HelloFresh delivery this week. Hubby also got tea and chips (limited edition Pringles and ketchup flavour chips), which we can include in the box. Before heading to lunch, we stopped by Manila Cargo Express to buy a balikbayan box and ask about the process of sending a package and its costs. Then, we drove all the way to Ironwood for...

This is the third week that a HelloFresh Box arrived at our home. I went a little crazy and ordered five different dishes. Zucchini and Lemon Linguine with Basil Pesto and Goat Cheese HelloFresh Description: We love zucchini all year long here at HelloFresh, and this dish combines some of our favourite flavours. Sweet snap peas, zucchini and basil pesto combine in this delicious linguine pasta! A little squeeze of lemon at the end brings the whole dish together! My favourite part of this dish is the pesto and goat cheese combination. After enjoying this for dinner, I told hubby we could totally make this again! Chicken Tikka Masala with Peppers and Garlic Rice HelloFresh Description: Bold tikka masala and creamy coconut milk coat tender ch...

It's that time of the month when Trees Cheesecake + Organic Coffee changed their limited-edition cheesecake from Mango to Peanut Butter, and of course, we went there to enjoy a slice. It's much sweeter than I like, but it tastes like peanut butter. I wonder if they can make a PB & J cheesecake. Peanut Butter Cheesecake Happy Saturday!

Happy rainy Saturday in Vancouver! After Mass today, we decided to have dinner somewhere that serves soup (i.e. pho or ramen or anything with noodles). I had a dentist appointment recently, and they just placed a temporary crown, and I am paranoid that it will crack, so I thought noodles would be soft enough not to cause any damage. Also, I am not allowed to eat anything crunchy (like chips), hard (like nuts and candy), and sticky (like gum). So, except for the chips, I don't eat nuts, candy, or gum regularly. We also changed our diet recently, and we don't buy chips anymore. Anyway, as we were walking from the Church to our home, we kept pointing at different restaurants and whether they had noodles and if we had eaten there recently. So that went on until we reached MASA Japanese Restaurant. Volcano Roll (Salmon) Menu Description: Deep fried spicy salmon roll with spicy salad and sauce I love the Volcano Roll; it was spicy good! Though, to be fair, I think I enjoyed all the r...

Happy Saturday! I can't believe this is the second week of us ordering from HelloFresh. I now understand better why people enjoy the service so much. We get to enjoy restaurant-quality recipes for a fraction of a cost. The best part for me is the nutritional information and good portions. I divide all serving into two, which solves lunch and dinner, plus I only eat half of the calories. Bacon and Mushroom Linguine with Spinach and Thyme HelloFresh Description: Velvety mushrooms and smoky bacon are a savoury match made in pasta heaven! A cheesy and creamy final touch will take your taste buds to new heights. Cal Smart Italian Wedding Soup with Turkey and Parmesan HelloFresh Description: The soup we all know and love has gotten a Cal Smart makeover! All of ...

Happy Saturday and Labour Day Long Weekend. We spent most of the day at my parent's place in Richmond, BC, and their apartment is close to a Popeyes and a Church's Chicken. I want to do a fried chicken battle between the two fried chicken fast-food chains, but to get things started, I ordered from Popeyes tonight. We ordered for delivery with UberEats. Popeyes Feast As you can see from the picture above, I ordered a lot. I ordered 8 pieces Bonafide Chicken Family Meal (half mild and half spicy), large cajun gravy, three chicken sandwiches, macaroni and cheese, cajun fries, mashed potatoes and gravy, onion rings, and 8 pieces of New Nugget. Plus, they gave us five biscuits. Bonafide Chicken Family Meal  Spicy Chicken Sandwiches 8 pieces nuggets Signature Sides: Cajun Fries, Mashed Potatoes with Cajun Fries, Biscuits, Onion Rings, and Macaroni and Cheese As I write this blog post, I haven't tried the spicy fried chicken, so I can't comment yet if I like it better than the...