The Hunger Struck - Confessions of a Food Fanatic.

It’s no secret that I am lover of all things soup, always have been and always will be. I’m pretty sure this has something to do with my absolute love for things that pair amazingly with bread, or more accurately my need to pair everything with bread. Isn’t everything just better with bread? I can fit it into any meal. Have what you think is a no bread necessary meal lined up? I bet I could fit it in, feel free to email me and we can discuss.

Actually, I have recently found myself in the unique position of having to eat much lighter than i’m used to. Not because I want to but because my body is forcing me too. Its definitely not like the earlier weeks of pregnancy where a seemingly never ending appetite seems to alert you to taste buds you never even knew existed, making eating even for a major food lover like me an elevated version of the usual religious experience. A few weeks back I was discovering flavor profiles in soda crackers that would blow your mind. Now sad as it is I can only eat very small amounts at once and even when I do that there seem to be uncomfortable consequences. It’s like alien resurrection inside my stomach after I eat so I’m really trying hard not to cramp his/her style cause revenge is a bitter bitter pill to swallow. No matter what you hear kicks feel like before you’re pregnant, nothing can prepare you for the feeling of a foot in the ribcage during the 8th month of pregnancy.

Bouillabaisse is one of those heavily debated soups. Everyone seems to have an opinion on this soup despite whether they are familiar with its origin or not. I’ve always found this amusing and of course I’m no different.

Personally, there is something really amiss about a bouillabaisse that is not smooth – you know the kind you more often than not receive at your local French restaurant containing various pieces of fish and other types of seafood in a lighter tomato-fish based broth? While many of these soups are quite good, they are not what I want when I order Bouillabaisse and after many such failed attempts I almost never order it anymore, at least not in Vancouver. Occasionally, I will make the mistake of taking the risk when I’m in other cities but regret generally follows instantly. I have to admit that this saddens me to my core as a great bouillabaisse is one of my absolute favorite foods, might even be in my top 5.

I was trying to avoid making an obnoxious statement like this but screw it I cant help myself:  I was ruined forever after having the real thing in the South of France many years back and since then I have not been able to really enjoy a bouillabaisse properly unless I make it at home.  There I said it. I sort of hate myself now… well not really, but I bet you do!

This is my absolute favorite beef stew recipe. I make it frequently in the winter months and it’s one of those recipes that I can do in my sleep. It always turns out fabulous, I’m not sure if this has to do with the years I have been making this or the fact the beef stew is just one of those easy things to make.

I would put this recipe somewhere between Hungarian and German Goulash. It’s definitely not traditional, it contains tomato paste and I like to add carrots, both of these ingredients are not common to traditional Hungarian Goulash and I know my family (German) would not add either. So what makes this goulash for me then? It all comes down to one ingredient and trust me the better quality you can get the better this recipe will turn out: Paprika. Both the sweet and hot varieties are equally important and are what give this stew its edge. I’m not sure why but hot paprika is relatively hard to find in Vancouver, when I do find some I stock up. I recently received some as a gift from a friend who was in Budapest and I immediately knew what I would be using it for.

My hubby and I are making a concerted effort to learn and perfect his mothers recipes. As I’m sure many of you agree, it’s so important to continue on family food traditions. When a recipe has been passed down from generation to generation there is not necessarily an exact method to follow, as often times it has never in fact been recorded in writing. This of course both liberates and presents some unique challenges.

For those of us experienced with the feel of cooking Indian food, there’s an understanding that you probably wont get it right the first few times, it will take a while before you understand how the different spices are balanced in a particular dish to produce the result you know and enjoy.This is of course universal, but with Indian food I find there to be this temptation to toss in every dried herb associated with this countries cuisine and see what happens. There’s also a tendency to wonder what went wrong when the dish doesn’t turn out the way it was supposed to. I have to confess that years ago I was one of the worst offenders.

I have an addiction. No, it’s not cheesecake, chocolate or a certain muffin at a certain favorite coffee shop, it’s much more serious than that. For the past I don’t know how long, at lunch time, when most people I know grab a sandwich or a salad, I can only think of one thing I would like for lunch and its always the same: Pho.

I’m not sure exactly when this started but it’s safe to assume that it’s been many years. I would say at least 5. What’s even more serious about this addiction is it knows no bounds: it’s in no way seasonal. Yes that’s right, it could be 95 degrees outside and I would still want Pho for lunch over a salad any day of the week, rain or shine, arctic weather or extreme heat.

Ridiculous I know.