Fancy Fast Food

These photographs show extreme makeovers of actual fast food items purchased at popular fast food restaurants. No additional ingredients have been added except for an occasional simple garnish.

This is Why You Are Fat

“Nothing illustrates our nation’s [...]]]> Online finds. Here is a list of really unusual blogs you have to check out:

Fancy Fast Food

These photographs show extreme makeovers of actual fast food items purchased at popular fast food restaurants. No additional ingredients have been added except for an occasional simple garnish.

This is Why You Are Fat

“Nothing illustrates our nation’s bipolar attitude towards eating more hilariously than this visual coronary. A stomach-turning delight.” Revolting caloric pictures submitted by the public.

Why Travel to France – food section

an American Expat living, working and traveling in France. I LOVE this guys humor.
25 awesome foods you never knew could be deep fried!

Not a blog, just one post. The big fad of deep frying unusual foods. I have to say some I would be curious…just one bite to try!

I decided to move the Foodie Exchange here: Foodie Exchange on Ning

Visit Foodie Exchange

Come join us at our new home!

If you linked to the google [...]]]> I recently came across Ning.com, a fabulous site that lets you manage a group so efficiently and is so pretty too.

I decided to move the Foodie Exchange here: Foodie Exchange on Ning

Visit Foodie Exchange

Come join us at our new home!

If you linked to the google group male sure to update your links!

My natural color is medium ash blond. Now I have never dyed my hair drastically. In the summer my hair gets a [...]]]> Yes, you read it right! This is NOT a food recipe. But a recipe with kitchen ingredients for your hair. Below you will find a few ideas on how to naturally lighten your hair.

My natural color is medium ash blond. Now I have never dyed my hair drastically. In the summer my hair gets a lot paler in the sun. By mid winter (now) I am depressed with the dullness of my hair color with slightly darker roots not kissed enough by the sun. So I have been debating getting the usual hair dye box at the pharmacy.

But I decided against it and went searching online. I already new about rinsing out my hair with lemon juice to cut extra grease and lighten a bit. But can it be used to really make a difference in the color and give it a lightness? This is what I found at Bliss Plan:

Best for blonds but good for brunettes wanting auburn highlights:

Lemon juice is a more natural alternative than hydrogen peroxide. One fresh lemon will give you approximately 2 tablespoons of a lemon juice. Mix this juice with approximately 6 tablespoons of water and rub it in to your dry hair [more juice if your hair is long, less juice if it’s short}. Allow the juice to remain on your hair for several hours before you rinse it out. If you repeat this for several days you will have very natural hair highlights. Of course, if you also take your lemon juice covered hair out in the sunshine that will speed the process up. The best thing about using lemon juice as a hair colorant is that it looks very natural.

For brunettes:

Yes, hair coloring with tea is possible. We are talking about ordinary tea that we drink every day and use in our favorite iced tea recipe. Tea, though, is funny — it can lighten hair but it can also darken light colored hair. Steep your favorite tea and allow it to sit until cool. Test it out, just like we did with the hydrogen peroxide, and see what happens. Unlike the other methods we’ve mentioned above, this method requires patience because the changes will take longer.

From Natural News:

Olive oil contains lightening agents in addition to its undeniable ability to give hair a certain softness and sheen. It’s excellent for counteracting any drying effects lemon juice may have on your hair. Mix a tablespoon or two of olive oil in a cup of water with one tablespoon of pure lemon juice. Massage mixture into hair and leave to soak for 30 minutes. Rinse well; two shampoos may be required to completely remove the olive oil.

Another old-fashioned method used for brightening hair is chamomile. Regular chamomile tea mixed with lemon juice can be rinsed through hair daily until the desired effect is achieved. Enhanced results can be seen if you boil the tea yourself using chamomile flowers. Using the natural flowers instead of tea bags seems to have a much stronger effect.

Honey is a superb hair lightener because it naturally contains traces of hydrogen peroxide. You can mix a tablespoon of honey with a cup of water and let it sit for 30 minutes to allow the peroxide to develop. Then coat hair completely with the mixture and allow it to sit for at least 20 minutes. After applying the mixture, you can also cover hair with saran wrap and leave overnight. Add a tablespoon of olive oil to the mix for an intense overnight moisture treatment.

After using any of these methods, you can enhance your results by sitting with your hair in the sun for about 20-30 minutes. The sun is known for its brightening effect on hair, and the items listed above will further activate the sun’s lightening power.

A dinner we recently had with the CEE dinner group was a great Indian find on Victoria in CDN. This place is called Dev Restaurant. This area is very ethnic and there are tones of Indian, Pakistani and Filipino bakeries and [...]]]> I have been so behind on restaurant reviews…I got two more and I am done.

A dinner we recently had with the CEE dinner group was a great Indian find on Victoria in CDN. This place is called Dev Restaurant. This area is very ethnic and there are tones of Indian, Pakistani and Filipino bakeries and eateries. Dev is one of many little jewels. And was it ever good.

You are going to kill me…I have no pics and I don’t remember many of the dishes I had. Samosas and Pakoras are lovely and spicy, the Dev Biryani great with a mix of shrimp, chicken and lamb was yummy, and you’ll find a nice selection of sweets.

A very short review, I know, its been a while already so going on memory. Just go…its dirty cheap (special for us 15$ tx included per person 3 courses) and excellent food!

Dev Restaurant
5987 Victoria (corner Linton)
Montreal, H3W 2R9
(514) 733 – 5353

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Next up on the review menu is Le Moineau / The Sparrow. Honestly I have never seen a place that goes with both the French and English name. There is no actual word on the sign outside besides the pic of a Sparrow. You could easily walk by it and never notice a restaurant.

Then again is it a restaurant? Not in the original plans so much. It was first suppose to be an English pub but the owners had so much trouble getting a liquor license they went ahead and served food and no booze. I think they now have the license so it could be classified a gastro-pub comfort fare.

Can’t find it, can’t classify it….and yet it is the latest little darling of the Montreal Foodie buzz. This was of course a natural choice for a brunch with our also elusive and secret Montreal Foodie Blogger Group. A rare brunch place that takes reservations for groups too. Eleven of our group shared a meal here, both old and new faces. I am so happy how this group of bloggers have bonded.

We all enjoyed the eclectic pub decor with mix and match table and chairs. The menu was as much of a mix and match as the chairs. Oh all the plates are mix and matched too. It was so hard choosing a plate I wanted to taste several of them. Finally Elaine who sat next to me agreed to split our plates. Now you have to imagine the scene. We are all food bloggers. When the food arrives we do not dig in. Oh no. First we have to go through the photograph orgy. Everyone takes a pic of their plate and the neighbors. Its really quite a site, so much so the rest of the customers stare at us…its quite funny,

The was even what you could call entrées to the brunch menu. Valérie had the crumpet and I, amongst other, had the custard and chocolate filled beignets. They was so good, light, moist and yummy inside.

Main brunch plates included hamburger like brunch plates and baked eggs (cannot remember the exact descriptions).

Elaine split her English Brunch plate which was a carnivore’s delight with eggs, bacon, sausage, beans, blood pudding and potatoes. I split with her my french toast covered in apple, cranberries, cream and syrup. It was to die for.

I highly recommend checking out this place. The owners and chefs are still trying to find a steady footing but I am sure its going to create quite few interesting dishes. Try it before it outgrows its now underground buzz and gets to ‘big’ for itself (hopefully won’t be the case).

Le Moineau / The Sparrow
5322 Boulevard Saint-Laurent, Montreal, QC, Canada
514-690-3964

A final note: thank you to Kenneth for bringing me a divine piece of brownie and thank you to Elaine for bringing us all some vanilla beans. She owns I Heart Vanilla with her father.

Open any size jar effortlessly with this jar opener. Simply hold the jar opener by the handle, wedge onto the jar lid, and twist to open. The sharp stainless steel teeth on the jar opener grip the lid firmly, as the soft, non-slip handle cushions your hand and absorbs pressure. The [...]]]> Oxo Good Grips Jar Opener

Open any size jar effortlessly with this jar opener. Simply hold the jar opener by the handle, wedge onto the jar lid, and twist to open. The sharp stainless steel teeth on the jar opener grip the lid firmly, as the soft, non-slip handle cushions your hand and absorbs pressure. The V-shape of the jar opener enables it to be used on any size lid.

OXO is based on the concept of Universal Design. But what is Universal Design and how does it benefit users? In simplest terms, Universal Design means the design of products usable by as many people as possible. In the case of OXO, it means designing products for young and old, male and female, left- and right- handed and many with special needs.

Product Features:

* Works on any size jar lid
* Sharp, stainless steel teeth grip lid firmly
* Soft, comfortable handle
* Dishwasher safe
* Oxo’s satisfaction guarantee

We had diner at a restaurant called Lucky 32. now technically its classified as Southern food, not NC food, but they did have plenty of local [...]]]> Very very late and overdue, I bring you a pic essay of my ONE traditional North Carolina meal I got to eat while in raleigh NC about a month ago.

We had diner at a restaurant called Lucky 32. now technically its classified as Southern food, not NC food, but they did have plenty of local fare on the menu. There are barely any local restaurants there, the other option being Mama Dips. Mama Dips is quite a story:

“Mama Dip’s first job was as a family cook in Chapel Hill. She then moved on to work at Carolina Coffee Shop, Kappa Sigma fraternity and St. Andrews Hall. In 1957 she worked with her mother-in-law in a tiny take-out restaurant where she began to hone her business skills. On a Sunday in November 1976 Mama Dip opened her own restaurant with $64, $40 dollars went toward food and $24 was used to make change. The morning’s take was used to fund the lunch meal and lunch to fund the dinner. At the end of the day Mama Dip took home $135, and the rest is history”.

But I digress, back to Lucky 32. A big effort was placed on the decor. It’s somewhere between fancy and comfy, not pretentious at all but classy. Service was excellent. As you recall the staff bent over backwards to get me this notorious non existent Cherry Bounce cocktail. The food was good. Its not fancy or foodie worthy. It was good. here are some pics of the dishes we had:

The Cherry Bounce, sort of

Voodoo Pig bread with traditional pulled pork

Now I have had several conversations with my dinner partner where he claims what we call BBQ is not what they call BBQ. So I asked him what is his BBQ in NC. He said its got to have sauce, sauce must be vinegar based  and its got to be all pork, preferably pulled apart after cooking. Apparently he says we grill, not BBQ…pfft! lol

Chicken and Dumpling

Chicken something ??? but the important thing is the fancy cheese grits on the right!

Side dishes: collard greens and cornbread with Pot Liquor

What is Pot Liquor you ask? It’s the liquid that is left behind after boiling vegetable greens and meat. My dinner partner told me as a kid this stuff was usually thrown out in the woods behind their house and no one would EVER consider ordering it, he found it funny to see that on the menu.

I also ordered a local wine which was pretty good actually. better then I had expected. but I almost fell of my chair when I saw the 4th word on the back label:…yep, NASCAR! Dorothy you are so not in Kansas anymore!

Although I had only one traditional meal I did discover an absolutely fabulous  kitchen store called A Southern Season, located in Chapel Hill.  They sell everything imaginable that is kitchen related: all appliances, all cook books, and table settings and all the specialty food you can want. I mean rows and rows of BBQ sauces and marinades, local peanuts, jams, candies, cookies, international products, gift baskets, cheeses, cold cuts, teas, coffees, bakery. I am talking 20 to 30 huge rows. Foodies could spend 3-4 hours in there easy….my companion was not that patient to give me hours lol.

So I got to buy my own Foodie Exchange package he he.

Unusual (to me) salts and spices I got!

I did not buy these but was so intrigued I have to find out about making some:

Sweet Potato Butter, Spicy Apple Garlic Butter, and Pear and Port Butter.

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Wow, what a huge post. Are you hungry yet?

What is the Foodie Exchange? This is a group for foodies [...]]]> I have two fabulous care packages to share with you. We recently have gotten a lot of new members at the Foodie Exchange, mostly Europeans. These two exchanges are both from Europe: one in London and the other in a place just south of Florence.

What is the Foodie Exchange? This is a group for foodies from all over the world who wish to be matched up with other foodies to exchange local food related items in the form of a ‘care package‘. The care package: items should be limited to about $10.00 in cost and be safe to mail! Come join in the fun!

The first exchange I did was with Debbie who lives in London and is the owner of Gourmet Traveller.

Wow I don’t know how Debbie was so spot on, but I have a sweet tooth and she fed it intensely for a few days. The Jaffa Cakes are sublime little cookies with an orange filling and the whole thing covered i Chocolate. Below you have a selection of chocolate bars and candies. OMG the clotted cream fudge was to die for! I really needed that peppermint tea afterward. and that was truly the best peppermint tea I have ever had. I love the stufff actually and I found it so smooth but very peppery at the same time. i may need to get a constant supply of that tea from now on.

On a more savory note I got: pork crackle, with is fried pork lard and we actually serve that traditionally in Sugar shacks here; as well as a apple and chilli chutney.

Thank you so much Debbie!

My second Exchange was with Juls from Italy, not far from Florence, and she is the owner of Jul’s Kitchen.

Fewer items but great quality items. And all so lovingly wrapped with ribbons and little notes on each item. it thought that was just amazing. First up a delicious Italian chocolate milk bar from Amedei.

First up was a paquet of local Saffron. I am a HUGE fan of saffron. This was a real treat fro me. its like gold in the kichen.

A flavor paked envelope of garlic, peppercorns and herbs. To be gently awaken in a pan with oil before use!

And some little mints I beleive, it is a candy but have not opened it yet. i love the packaging.

A big thank you to you as well Juls for the exchange.

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Sneak peak at the next package: Back to France in the regioin of Bordeaux!