2011年02月24日 Kids’ Valentine’s Treat

Valentine’s Day Preschool Truffles
On Valentine’s Day, my preschool kids made chocolate truffles. We bought some bars of chocolate and melted them down and mixed them together with some Anpaman cookies. The kids crushed the cookies in bags and poured them into the bowl of chocolate. We mixed the bowl until the mixture kind of solidified…  we mixed…. we mixed… then I mixed it. It didn’t solidify. We followed the recipe, but it wasn’t working so I had to improvise with my group and add extra cookies a bunch of times until it finally was the right consistency to roll by hand. In the end it looked like little balls of poo!… Happy Valentine’s Day everyone!

Looks so good right!

2011年02月23日 Double Cheese Fondue Bread

My Favorite Bread
Japan seems to love their bakeries.  There is always a large assortments of baked goods to be found. When I first arrived in Japan I used to work in an eikaiwa that was  in a department store. And of course this department store had a supermarket with a bakery section. I would always buy yummy bread on break or for lunch. I had a stamp card and everything, to which to this date I don’t know what the stamp card entailed in terms of rewards. By the end of year I would have a bunch of stamps with no clue. ^^

My favorite favorite thing to buy at the bakery is labeled ダブルチーズフォンヂュ (double cheese fondue [bread]). I don’t know what it’s called; if it has a proper name or something. All I know is I could eat this everyday! Cheese is a wonderful thing… but cream cheese stuffed in warm pastry is orgasmic!

Yummy! Even better when it comes straight from the oven.

It looks like a turtle shell here. I have to say it doesn’t look so special in this picture, but trust me it’s a winner!

2011年02月18日 Playing in the Snow at Steeles & Dufferin

Snow!
After having lunch with Heather it got really snowy. It was kind of cold… it must of been -10 celsius and put the windchill on top of that like  -20 celsius. Please enjoy some pictures of us in the snow being cold and looking awkward. After acting stupid in the snow we went to Tim Hortons for a hot drink before braving the roads.

After that, I don’t think it snowed for the rest of my trip. I realize that my tolerance to cold has gone down. I was shivering like a little chihuahua. I must learn to layer more in the winter months.

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2011年02月18日 Nagoya Sushi in Markham

Japanese Buffet Time
I’m having a food theme going on these past few blogs. Well the saga continues… One of my last dinners back home was at one of my favorite restaurants – Nagoya. I always do this! I live in Japan and come all the way back home just to eat sushi… though there are many variations such as dragon roll, spider roll, Philadelphia roll, and rainbow Roll that you might not see in Japan. Most people in Japan may have never even heard of the California Roll, so coming back to Toronto to “sample the menu” so-to-speak was nice.

The restaurant is small and has been renovated since I was last there. From what I remember it can get really busy during peak times, but that’s for good reason. Prices are pretty standard for sushi buffet and they have a wide variety of stuff to choose from, so you’re bound to find something you like. We went there during lunch on a weekday so it wasn’t busy at all. My mom enjoyed talking to the staff, who who are not Japanese ironically. I think most Japanese restaurants where I live are run by Chinese people usually.

My parents – my dad is the only other person I can recall (besides myself) who uses chopsticks with their left hand. My mom is the only person I know who eats sushi with a fork.

A variation of a dragon roll.

Various maki rolls – I read somewhere that maki rolls that are inside-out  were created in response to those who were not so skilled at grasping food with chopsticks. The rice on the outside of the rolls apparently helps picking up the food easier.

Me and my dad love eating this. A salmon rose is a yummy thing!

Mixed tempura and skewered shrimps for mom.

Salmon teriyaki

Things on skewers seem to be more appetizing to me. Put a stick in it and it’s a winner in my book!

2011年02月13日 Justin vs. the Nacho Platter

Heather Time!
Halfway through my vacation back home, I met up with my friend Heather who has the honor of being my first friend in Japan. We were on the same flight to Tokyo and didn’t even know it and ended up meeting in the airport realizing that we were waiting for the same to-be-doomed company to pick us up and take us to our new homes. We later found out that we both would have training together with that dork of a trainer. Man I was so jet-lagged that day and not in the mood!

I really couldn’t decide where we would meet for our reunion. I finally decided on lunch at Montana’s. During my high school days I used to go there with friends and we’d order 3 appetizers and share them amongst each other. At my heaviest I used to weigh like 190 and devour that sh*t in no time! Ugh perish the thought! Bittersweet memories… Good food, fat stomach, double chins! :S LOL so depressing!

I love Montana’s nacho platter! So cheesy, so saucy! I think my heart hurts just looking at it!  One of three appetizers I used to order with friends when I was chunkier.

Heather was good and ordered a wrap with fries.

I remember crying cause it was too much to handle! Heather just laughed. The nacho platter won this round! Lucky for my friend Candy I doggy bagged it and gave it to her later that evening. She was most grateful!

2011年02月13日 New Years in Toronto

Toronto is where I go to see my family and gain weight
Since living in Japan, I always try to go back home to Canada at least once a year. I usually come home in the fall during the school’s one month break, but this time I decided to come home during the winter break instead for New Years. I haven’t been home for the holidays in years and though it was a shame to miss out on Christmas, I’m fortunate to be home at all seeing that the trip almost didn’t happen cause I couldn’t find a decent priced plane ticket.

I can’t lie. I kind of enjoy coming home and seeing my family and having all my aunts cry over me. It’s sweet. Plus having everyone tell you that you look skinnier (at least by Canadian or even yet my family’s standards) is a boost to one’s ego and self-esteem.

New Years was at my parents’ house. My family I liked to think is pretty close. My younger cousins have grown up a lot. I joke that they are all so old, but then they remind me that I Kuya is old too. :/

Fam jams are always fun… lots of food, video games and hanging out with my cousins joking and having a good time. Things never change.

Filipino parties always have way too much food. If you deny food people will think you’re being modest and giving you a double serving instead. There’s no getting by it. You have to eat!

The table it always packed every year. I’m sure it was the same at Christmas. Our holiday feasts usually consists of a lot of Filipino/Western foods and recently… sushi?

You will never go hungry in my family. If you need  to gain weight, it’s a sure thing here.

My mom is always insisting on taking pictures with me. It’s not that I’m opposed to it, it’s just she always chooses the wrong time. It’s still eating time!

My mom and some of my aunts posing on the living room couch. I’m surprised no one blinked. One of my aunts always ruins the picture by blinking.

A few of my cousins – Shelley, Rox and Joyce. They are soo old!

Getting There
On a different note I’m trying  to catch up on my blogging. I’m a little backlogged so bare with me. I’m about a month and bit behind, but I’m doing my best to get caught up. Bare with me.

2011年02月12日 Acerola Allergy

Acerola
I never knew what acerola was until maybe last year. To me it tastes like those red freezies we used to have as kids. So it’s no surprise that drinking something that resembles the taste of red freezies would be appealing. Red freezies are cherry flavored, which is news to me cause when someone used to ask me what flavor freezie I wanted I would always answer by color. Since when was a color considered a flavor? Anyways, the first time I had acerola I developed swelling both on my lips and tongue. My tongue was in pain for days! No surprise that after that I never touched the stuff again… until like a few weeks ago when I figured it must have been a fluke and decided to have it again just to have the same reaction. D’oh!

Acerola is often compared to the common cherry and filled with high levels of vitamin C. They are usually acidic, which gives them an often sour taste. The acidity of the fruit is probably what set me off. I guess I am kind of hypersensitive to the fruit and perhaps not exactly allergic to them.

Though the drink itself is quite good; I don’t think I’ll be having it again. I can do without the Canker soars and swelling thanks.

2011年02月08日 Centers’ After Party

Way-back-when
I swear this is the last Christmas blog… scouts honor! ;) I was rummaging through my picture files and found a few pics from the after party from when I was Santa for one of the other schools. Staff from three centers joined the fun and we drank and ate a lot. Karaoke was out of control too! It was definitely a good night and great way to celebrate the hard work of preparing for the Christmas parties at our respected schools. It was good to get to know everyone more outside of school. Good times!

Leaving karaoke and off to the next destination.

Drinking at the Hub… I have no idea where I got that Christmas hat from! ^^

Drinking apparently leads to modeling. :P