My favourite kitchen staples

I frequently mention certain foods/ingredients in my blog and there is nothing more frustrating than reading a recipe and getting excited and then realising you have to trawl the city to find one key ingredient. I try at all times to choose recipes and foods that are simple, whole and easy to get hold of but there are a few things I can assist in pointing you in the right direction for. I will be adding to this posting regularly and getting it more organised.

Where do I find (BLANK) in Halifax, Nova Scotia?

Silver Hills sprouted grains bread; Sobeys (in the freezer part of the natural foods section), Planet Organic

Nutritional Yeast (nooch): Sobeys, Planet Organic, Superstore, Healthy Selection Shoppe

Hold Crap/Skinny B/Wild Chia cereals: Planet Organic. some Sobeys

Coconut cream (not milk): Healthy Selection Shoppe/ Buy 3, get 10% off

Emergen-C (vitamin and mineral supplement): all of the above mentioned stock these but the best price is at Superstore where it's usually $17-$18 per box. Everywhere else is $20+. I also recently saw these at HomeSense!

Yogi teas: Healthy Selection Shoppe (my fave flavour is Kombucha)

Mary's Crackers : Sobeys, Planet Organic, Superstore (best price is here)

Kitchens of India boxed curry-Sobey's. These are great to have on hand for a quick healthy meal in a rush, or you can use them as a base for a curry that you add veggies and protein too. they have no additives but are a little high in salt so watch out for that. I like the eggplant one and the chickpea one. Neither have dairy in them but some of the other flavours do.


Where are these places?
Sobeys is omnipresent in Halifax. Drive in any direction for 10 mins and you'll find one

Planet Organic Click here for website. Located on Quinpool Road

Healthy Selection Shoppe 1129 Bedford Highway, Halifax


Where do I find (BLANK) in Vancouver, BC?

All of the above mentioned items can be bought at most grocery stores in Vancouver. I will therefore just list the places I used to frequent for my weekly shopping with some tips thrown in for good deals

Save on foods-great selection in their health/natural foods section but usually a little pricier than other stores.

Superstore-has an expanding natural foods section and the prices are great. They have the best deal on the Emergen-c as mentioned above. They also have the best deal on Yogi teas. You can find cartons of coconut cream in the ethnic food aisle and raw virgin coconut in the freezer section. I just find the store layout uber annoying and illogical. But I can get over it.

Whole Foods Yep, I know it's expensive and you end up coming out with 2 grocery bags and a short receipt with triple digits at the bottom. HOWEVER, if you check for the specials, you can get great deals. Usually the Marys Crackers are $5-7 a box in most stores but Whole Foods usually puts them on sale....for HALF price..a few times a year. Worth stocking up. The most I ever see them discounted elsewhere is $1

Apple Farm Market on Lonsdale (across from London Drugs)-small store with a lot packed in. Prices vary, some things are priced well, others not so much. If you want to make guacamole that day, they usually have very ripe avocados for very low prices.

Parkgate Farm Market- This place has been open maybe a year and has got my vote. THe owner has some hardcore connections to produce suppliers and gets THE best prices. Trust me. Go there. They are slowly expanding their range of other foods such as nuts, cereals, breads, snakc foods, honey and chocolate. I always leave smiling and the staff are very friendly.

Queensdale Market (Queens and Lonsdale in North Van-see what they did there?). Suprisingly large store that has lots of nooks and crannies packed with stuff you didn't know you needed. LOTS of selection but a little overwhelming and not the best organised. For those of you with Northvanrec playcards, you get 10% off orders over $50 with your playcard.

Artisan Bake Shoppe, North Van. This is prob by favourite bakery. They offer a range of breads which are wheat free and made fresh daily. They also offer some other yummy treats and make sandwiches to order. Their breads are sold at numerous other stores such as whole foods, Queensdale Market and Parkgate Farm Market. I'm addicted to the spelt bread-get the one with the sesame seeds on top. It's delicious, crunchy and nutty when toasted and makes exceptional croutons.

Thrifty foods (which is part of the Sobey's group)-great selection of foods and a lovely store to browse around. Prices usually a little higher but very good quality produce and deli. They are the cheapest place I have found for Amy's cheese free pizza at $8.99 vs $10.99 or more elsewhere.

The moral of the story....lots of choice in Vancouver...check the flyers, shop around and you can make some great savings. If you only have time to go to one place, I'd choose Queensdale Market-support your local businesses! and get 10% off!

Breakfast of Bubbles and Blueberries

1 week in and I'm back in my foodie/cooking/blogging groove. Happiness!
So far since I arrived here last Monday, I've made every morsel that has passed my lips.
Breakfast is my now staple "Holy Crap" cereal plus blueberries and almond milk. What is "Holy Crap!?" I hear you all say? Well, anyone from Vancouver will probably have heard of it or eaten it but for the rest of my global readers, I will enlighten you. It is a breakfast cereal/dietary supplement that is made of chia seeds, hemp seeds and buckwheat. Thus it is extremely high in fibre...hence the name. The amount needed per day is 2 tablespoons so a little goes a long way. It can be sprinkled on yogurt or added to cereal if you prefer. I just let it sit in the milk for a few minutes and then inhale it before I leave the house. A good start to the day! I haven't yet found a supplier here for it but it's easy enough to make myself, and probably more cost effective too.

I supplement my breakfast with a drink (it's more like a shot) made from an Emergen-C sachet. These are basically vitamin and mineral sachets that dissolve in water and become effervescent. I like the taste and am very bad at taking tablet form vitamins so this works for me. I used to just mix with tap water but then PB suggested mixing it with sparkling water (we like Pellegrino and usually have a few bottles in the fridge at any given time). ULTIMATE EFFERVESENCE! Hard to go back to the regular tap water now. Thanks PB for taking my daily vitamin needs to the High Maintenance category.

Lunch has been leftovers from the night before as I have been at work so it's a quick refuel usually. See below for details!

Dinners so far:

• Thai prawn curry
• Sesame salmon with steamed zuchinni, broccoli and asparagus with sesame/soy drizzle
  
• Mexican chicken and black bean hash
• Salmon sashimi salad
• Cheese-free Amy's pizza(store bought) with my addition of parma ham and Nooch(nutritional yeast).

For anyone who is lactose intolerant and can't eat/find/like soy cheese, the nooch is just sprinkled on and will give a cheesy taste to the pizza, sort of like using parmesan cheese. The bonus is that it's low in calories and fat and high in protein. Nooch is available in most supermarkets now, or failing that, health food stores should carry it.

Tonight's meal will be lemon chicken thighs with more of the steamed veggies. Or maybe I will roast them this time. Decisions Decisions!