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Spicy Buffalo Grilled Chicken Wrap |
It uses tangy buffalo sauce, and what makes it spicy is the presence of jalapeno.
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Southwest Chicken Wrap |
I took a bite of hubby's Southwest Chicken Wrap, which I like better than the Spicy Buffalo.
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Spicy Buffalo Grilled Chicken Wrap |
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Southwest Chicken Wrap |
Last year, my younger sister prepared a delicious Thanksgiving Dinner for our family. However, they had to make multiple trips to the grocery to make sure all the ingredients she needed were complete.
This year I told them I was going to order from HelloFresh and avoid the stress of grocery runs. However, it means we have more side dishes to prepare and cook.
That's more dishes than what we had last year, but I have faith in HelloFresh that they'll guide us through cooking everything with their foolproof recipe book.
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Thanksgiving Dinner from HelloFresh |
I paid $260 for 10 people, but there are only 8 of us enjoying the meal. Before you get upset that we're having a Thanksgiving dinner, it's 8 people and 4 households.
There's so much leftovers that my younger sister, her boyfriend, and we (hubby and I) have food to bring in our respective homes.
We plan to have dinner at around 5:00 PM, because the Vancouver Whitecaps FC game is at 6:00 PM and we want to watch it.
We started preparing at 1:00 PM with me and my younger sister as "chef" while my mom helps with cleaning up and with other things.
BEFORE we even started, I baked the Graham Cracker Crust Pumpkin Pie in the morning (at around 8:00 AM). We arrived quite early at my parent's place to ensure we have sufficient time for baking and cooling.
The downside is we totally forgot to prepare the whip cream for the pumpkin pie. The upside is it's surprisingly delicious. It's our first time trying Pumpkin Pie and it's perfectly sweet.
My sister worked on the turkey. Adding the pepper and oil while I strip the sage. After 3 hours in the oven and 20 minutes of rest, my dad carved the turkey.
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Carved Sage Roasted Turkey from Hello Fresh |
The turkey came out perfect. I can't believe how tender and not dry it was. It's perfect with the gravy.
My sister started working on the cranberry sauce while I struggle to zest and juice the orange. 🤣 This took maybe 30 minutes and we placed it on the fridge as we continue cooking the rest of the items.
This is the add-on vegetarian dish. This dish took so much team effort. My sister cut the mushroom and everything else that needs chopping. My dad helped us slice the squash and my mom did the removal of seeds and core. I cooked the wild rice. Assembling everything is such a challenge.
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Mushroom and Leek Stuffed Squash |
I am uncertain if it's worth all the effort. I will be happy with just the wild rice and vegetable mixture. I am unsure adding it on the squash made a difference. My mom loves it though and that made it all worth it.
As soon as my sister is done cutting the vegetables for the Mushroom and Leek Stuffed Squash and while I sautee the mixture, she started working on the Slow-Roasted Butternut Squash. It's sweet because of the syrup.
It's surprising how the timing works. After the squash for the Mushroom and Leek dish is done in the oven, we replaced it with the Butternut Squash.
Then, my sister started working on the mash. Of course, starting with the time consuming peeling of potatoes. At this point, I am still working on the stuffing for the Stuffed Squash.
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Garlic and Thyme Infushed Mash |
My younger sister continues with the Mash - boiling the potato and preparing the cream butter mixture. Then, she called our only brother to do the mashing. Team (family) effort!
I asked my mom to wash the green beans while my dad did the trimming. As they do that, I toasted the almonds. Then, proceeded to sautee the green beans in butter.
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Green Beans with Almond Butter |
We're almost at the end and I think we're all feeling exhaustion at this point. Surprisingly, there's no quarelling or bickering that happens. Everyone is in good mood and teasing each other.
As I finish the green beans and since we couldn't start with the gravy because we're waiting for the turkey juices, sister started working on the chive butter for the dinner rolls. I wish it's more toasted, but that's just me.
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Dinner Rolls with Chive Butter |
It's my favourite thing about this dish. Actually, the core of the Thanksgiving Dinner is the turkey, mash, and gravy and they are so well-done with this kit. It's so delicious!
Yes! However, I will not add the vegetarian add-on because it's too much effort. Although, for next year, we might just order in to avoid the effort. We'll see!
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First Plate from our Thanksgiving Dinner |
Today, we're just thankful that our family is complete and healthy. We're grateful for the many blessings we've received it.
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Lunch from Church's Chicken |
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The Classic Sandwich |
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Mexicana Sandwich |
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Ube Jam from Baguio in Metro Vancouver |
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.
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.
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).
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 financially and emotionally.
The news I received that day while enjoying a delicious meal at the patio of Bridges Restaurant is something I will always be grateful for.
A month after my first visit (May 2018) - I am back at Bridges Restaurant to have a farewell and thank-you dinner for my first manager in Canada. He is a great manager and a wonderful human being.
The third time I was in Bridges Restaurant was a year later (May 2019). Our company just got acquired! It's an exciting and scary time for the company, but we celebrated the acquisition that evening.
After the acquisition, we had many new colleagues, and some of them even visited us in Vancouver. For one team lunch, we enjoyed a meal at Bridges. It's the ultimate Vancouver experience - good food with amazing views.
Our office is isolated, meaning we only communicate with our customers over the phone or by email. The one exception is when a customer from Israel is on a series of business trips to meet their suppliers worldwide, which means a short stop in Vancouver. So my colleagues and I agree that they deserve to see and experience Bridges Restaurant.
On a random stressful Friday, my parent's dropped by Granville Island, and we had lunch at Bridges Restaurant because I just knew my mom would love it - the view, the ambiance, and the food.
Hubby and I got married twice - once in Canada and a second time in the Philippines. We celebrated our first Catholic wedding anniversary with a beautiful summer dinner in Bridges Restaurant.
Thank you, Bridges Restaurant, for all the beautiful memory. I will miss the cozy yet sophisticated ambiance, delightful staff, and good food.
For lunch today, I made a reservation for 12:30 PM for a table outside. It was a beautiful sunny day! We were almost late because we decided to take a stroll along the seawall from Cambie Bridge.
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Vancouver is so beautiful. |
Kat is the name of our lovely server today. She told us that Bridges is closing and it's the last weekend. She also mentioned the items that are no longer available.
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Nachos with Cajun Chicken Menu Description: Tortilla chips, cheddar, mozzarella, cotija, corn and black bean salsa, cilantro, banana peppers, sour cream, avocado crema, and Valentina hot sauce. |
For sharing, we ordered the Nachos with cajun chicken. Hubby and I enjoyed the cheesy goodness while discussing upcoming projects and planning for the future.
I ordered the Spicy Tuna Burger (the sesame lemongrass crust was amazing!) with french fries while hubby ordered the Grilled Steak (it was delicious!).
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Spicy Tuna Burger |
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Spicy Tuna Burger Menu Description: Seared ahi tuna, sesame lemongrass crust, avocado, cucumber, spicy miso mayo, crispy onion, and pickled onions. |
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Grilled Steak Menu Description: 6 oz sirloin steak, truffle chive butter, mashed potatoes, seasonal vegetables |
To finish things up, I ordered a double scoop of gelato (because the Milk Chocolate Brownie is not available). Meanwhile, hubby ordered the Pecan Caramel Cheesecake.
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Espresso and Chocolate Gelato |
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Pecan Caramel Cheesecake Menu Description: New York cheesecake, candied pecans, and caramel sauce |
The iconic yellow building in Granville Island will be the new home of Tap and Barrel Bridges. According to Kat, the renovations will take around six months, and they expect to open late spring or early summer next year.
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This photo of the Bridges Restaurant and Granville Island Public Market was taken last May 9, 2021, when we were walking along Burrard Bridge. |
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11. Special Beef Noodle Soup (Pho Dac Biet) Special beef noodle soup with medium-rare beef sliced, beef brisket, meatballs, tendon and tripe. |
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32. Lemongrass chicken, spring rolls, and minced shrimp on sugarcane with rice |
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1. Regular Spring Rolls |
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Deep-fried Banana |