Best Coffee - The Tampered Press

I have a few things on my to-do list on this beautiful Sunday morning before I head to my aunt Bink's farm to spend the afternoon with my family.  One item that will not get pushed to the back burner is a trip to my favourite coffee shop in Toronto, The Tampered Press.

I love this place for more than a few reasons: it's close to my house, close to the park, the coffee changes my mood from medium to euphoric, and the owner and space epitomize good vibes (turns out I'm a hippie).

The owner, Caitlin, gets her coffee from Classic Gourmet, one of GTA's best (I can attest) roasters.  She's one of the few indie coffee shops to open before 8 and she doesn't charge for milk substitutes.  What a woman.

I ALWAYS get a single almond milk latte (I'm salivating just thinking about it), my man Dan gets a double Americano, and my little nieces would recommend the hot chocolate to you any day - they even liked it better than that fancy French place near Bellwoods.

So grab a coffee, tea, Awesome (home-made Oreos I've still yet to try) and take a stroll through the park.

Follow them on Twitter for a chance to get a "Tweet Deal".

256 Crawford Street (faces onto Dundas), Toronto

Open Monday -Friday 7:00am - 7:00pm; Saturday and Sunday 8:00am - 7:00pm

*No animals were harmed during this post.*

Pot Luck No Brainer

B-RAW-ccoli Salad

Ever notice at pot lucks that there are always a million bowls of potatoes or pasta salads? Well, if you feel the need to err on the side of healthy or you're unlucky enough to get pigeon-holed into the 'salad' category, this broccoli salad is a no brainer - and good for your brain too.

Broccoli is definitely up there on the 'best possible things to eat' list.  The health benefits are endless - high in fibre, vitamin C, potassium, antioxidants, and folic acid; basically there's no one who out there who should not be eating broccoli.  Trust me, your Mom wasn't lying to you.

Warning - the vitamins and nutrients in broccoli start to deteriorate with more heat - so if you hate broccoli but do it for your body, make sure you don't boil the shit out of it!

Not only will this superfood be the main component of the dish, but because this salad is made with raw ingredients, you'll be getting every last bit of folic acid (that's right - time for baby-making!)

Ingredient possibilities are endless so be creative and add your (or your host's) favourites to the mix.  Oh yeah, and it only takes about ten minutes to prepare.

What you'll need:

 2 broccoli heads

sweet red pepper

red onion

dried cranberries

walnuts

mayo

white or balsalmic vinegar

brown sugar 

ground pepper

What to do:

• Cut broccoli, half of a red onion, and a red pepper into bite sized chunks; add to large bowl with craisins and nuts
• In separate bowl, mix together about 1/2 cup of mayo (low fat okay!), 2-3 tablespoons of vinegar and about 1/4 cup brown sugar
• Mix all ingredients together and add ground pepper
• Let the mix sit for at least an hour before being served
• If it's not saucy enough - make some more dressing but be careful not to drown it!

Have fun at your party, and don't drink and drive!

Tom Kha minus the Kha

I had a crazy craving for some Tom Kha soup one day so I went out and made sure I had every single ingredient on my list.  SOMEHOW, I managed to forget a key player: the galangal (thai ginger). 

The bad news is that this particular ingredient actually made the title [read: mandatory], but the GOOD news is that I've never before included it in this recipe, and so far, I think I've done pretty alright. 

If you've got it, definitely use it (and let me know if I'm crazy to continue making this soup without it!)

What you'll need:

chicken broth

coconut milk

fish sauce

chicken

mushrooms

carrots

onion

lemongrass

hot thai chilies

sugar

lime

oil

galangal (I guueess)

Start the Tom:

• In small saucepan, heat oil and cook onions (thinly sliced) and mushrooms together
• Start your soup base in a separate pot - combine a can each of chicken broth and coconut milk with your burner on medium heat
• Add very coarsely chopped thai chillies (Hint - start with two or three and add more if you can take the heat.  Make sure you avoid these while you're eating or else you won't be able to taste the soup - these babies are HOT)
• Add 1 chopped lemongrass stem, 3-4 tbsp each of fish sauce and sugar, sliced carrot, and your onion/mushroom combo
• Bring mixture to a boil and add raw chicken pieces a few at a time
• Reduce heat once chicken is cooked and taste your masterpiece
• Play around with the salty sour combination of fish sauce (careful with this stuff - it's got enough sodium to kill a horse) and lime, which you should hold off on adding until the end to preserve its flavour

You can make this a vegetarian dish by swapping the chicken stock for vegetable stock, fish sauce for mushroom and/or soy sauce, and of course the chicken for some of your favourite veggies.

Oh screw the galangal - you don't need it!