Tag: vegetarian
I received a few packages of NuPasta a couple of weeks ago and I was very intrigued. I’d never heard of konjac, which is a root vegetable native to East Asia. It’s grown 2,000 to 4,000 feet above sea level, and the root is dried and milled and this results in a fibre called konjac glucomannan (which is the main ingredient in NuPasta). Each serving of high-fibre NuPasta is only 25 calories a serving (which is one-tenth the calories of regular pasta) and it’s gluten-free, so I wondered whether this could be a satisfying replacement for pasta for people looking to slash calories or who follow a gluten-free diet. (Which is not me, but I love a good noodle option, so I tucked the packages into the kitchen cupboard).
It took several tries but I finally found a satisfying, delicious, and simple way to enjoy NuPasta. Here’s what I learned experimenting in the kitchen with NuPasta:
The first time I tried it, I’d just gotten home from a trip so my fridge was bare and I needed a quick dinner, so I ate the NuPasta with some jarred prepared pasta sauce. Bad choice. I’ve never found a jarred pasta sauce that is anything more than mediocre, and the noodles themselves I found to be very neutral in flavour and have an almost bouncy texture. Which is to say they are not al dente whatsover. I ended up with a very soft, very bland bowl of noodles.
Second recipe attempt, I knew I needed more texture to the dish, and I had a fridge full of fresh veggies I’d received at a cooking class. So I thought a pasta primavera would work well. I sautéed the veggies in batches so that they’d retain some crunch, but in the end my dinner again was bland and the Parmesan and creamy sauce wasn’t pleasing with the NuPasta.
By now, I realized the NuPasta is neutral in taste, very soft and reminded me of a thicker, springier rice noodle, so I opted to make a noodle bowl versus thinking of NuPasta as a replacement for conventional pasta. I ended up grating carrots for crunch, added sautéed tofu and a boiled egg for protein, green onions for colour and flavour, sliced jalapeño for spice, and sautéed mushrooms for some earthiness.
The salsa macha I added once the bowl was complete is what takes this noodle bowl to the next level, though. It not only adds a fiery note but the jolt of red salsa bring the bowl alive visually. Salsa macha originates from Veracruz, and is made of chipotle chilies fried with garlic in olive oil (and it is also often combined with other peppers, more oil, nuts and sesame seeds). I received a few bottles of salsa macha from Los Colibris, a fine dining Mexican resto in Toronto, at a dinner event, so I used that, but here is Rick Bayless’s salsa macha recipe (or you can also just use sriracha to kick up the heat of your bowl if you have no salsa macha handy).
This noodle bowl was ready in a snap, was filling, had loads of different textures, and the soft and springy konjac noodles made much more sense to my palate when eaten in a broth.
Here’s a rough recipe of how you can make a comforting spicy vegetarian noodle bowl for yourself:
- Chop or grate your veggies of choice. I usually aim for at least two to three colours and at least one or two veggies should be crunchy. Ones I typically use in noodle bowls: spinach, baby boy choy, carrots, mushrooms, jalapeño, red pepper, bean sprouts, ginger, edamame.
- Sautée any of the veggies that you prefer lightly cooked. I prefer the texture and flavour of sautéed mushrooms compared to raw, for example. Set each veggie aside.
- Sautée cubes of medium-firm tofu. Set aside.
- Boil one egg. I prefer soft-boiled eggs with my noodles but you can go with hard-boiled, too.
- Bring about two cups of broth to a boil in a small pot (I usually use chicken broth but here I used mushroom broth as it was what I had on hand.) Add a dash of soy sauce and fish sauce to the broth.
- Drain one package of NuPasta in a colander and rinse under the tap with water.
- Once broth is boiling, add NuPasta, veggies, egg and tofu to the pot and warm through.
- Pour into a bowl and top with sliced green onions, about a half teaspoon of salsa macha and a drizzle of sesame oil.
Enjoy!
April 19, 2016
(UPDATED OCTOBER 2019 – added some restos, removed ones that have closed, or that I have been unimpressed with since this post went up a few years ago)
It’s hard to believe that the Nike Women’s Toronto 15k is this Sunday! If you haven’t yet heard, Nike Women Village will be taking over part of the Harbourfront, complete with a floating barge known as the Crystal Coliseum where Nike will be holding more than 30 NTC classes from Thursday, June 11 until Sunday June 14! You can register for these free classes online; I’ve heard most of them are full already but there will be a handful of spots available if you want to try to nab a walk-in spot! Hope to see you there! I’ll be at the Crystal Coliseum Thursday, Friday and Saturday, and Sunday, I’ll be running the race! I’m in Wave 2 (I guess I was pretty darn optimistic when I registered for the race!).
Now if it’s your first time in this city, you may be wondering where to eat in Toronto. I’ve pulled together a short list of my favourite spots (I tend to plan my travels where I want to eat, do you, too?). I haven’t gone into much detail at all here about each spot so if you have any specific questions, feel free to comment here or tweet me, or ask on Instagram! I’m used to people asking for my restaurant recos (I guess my Instagram makes it seem I eat out a lot…). Most of my list here tends to be in the west side as that’s where I now live, but a few of the places I’ve included to have a few locations around the city, such as Fresh and Terroni. Some are obviously for post-race indulging (I’m not suggesting you eat doughnuts and burgers before the race!).
Queen Margherita Pizza
Italian
- Terroni. A Toronto favourite of, like, everyone. Everything is solid here. Do not ask for substitutions. Just don’t.
- Buca. Upscale. Some ingredients may be more challenging for less adventurous eaters (think pork blood pasta, for example), but they’ll be able to find something on the menu for sure. Buca is my fave restaurant in Toronto if I had to choose just one.
- Pizzeria Libretto.
- Queen Margherita Pizza. My favourite spot for pizza in Toronto.
- Enoteca Sociale.
Tacos
Khao San Road
Thai
Pai (possibly long wait for a table, always busy)
Kiin. Thai but not your usual noodles. It’s more fine dining, the food is stunning and delicious (but atmostphere is relaxed).
Bolt Fresh Bar
Vegetarian
- Fresh. Always rammed. Be prepared for a long wait, possibly both for a table and for your food…but when you have a few bites and it’s so flavourful, you’ll decide it’s worth the wait!
- Bolt Fresh Bar. Great salads but it’s their acai bowls I’m seriously addicted to!
Greenhouse Juice
Cold-pressed juice
Dim sum
- Rol San. I can’t find a website for Rol San. It’s in Chinatown at 323 Spadina Ave. (just about a block or two north of Dundas). You order off of a menu checklist (not carts). Point to dishes on other tables if you’re not sure based on the descriptions (my favourite item is #5, these tofu rolls with pork inside, delicious!).
Burgers
Santouka
Ramen
Hokkaido Santouka Ramen. Always busy! Just east of the Eaton Centre.
Jelly Modern Doughnuts
Sweets (Doughnuts, cupcakes, ice cream, etc.)
- Jelly Modern Doughnuts. I’ve recently been eating doughnuts pretty regularly. These are by far my favourite in Toronto. Classic Jelly, you can’t go wrong!
- Prairie Girl Bakery. Before I fell in love with doughnuts, I had a cupcake habit.
- Bang Bang for giant, incredible ice cream sandwiches
- Sweet Olenka’s. Sometimes they have quirky flavours like butter!
- Milk Bar. Compost cookies, yum! I’ve yet to try the soft serve. And, of course, that famous crack pie!
- Le Gourmand. The best chocolate chip cookies ever.
Sud Forno
Coffee
- Dineen Coffee (gorgeous cafe and pretty tiles for a #ihaveathingwithfloors if you are a bit Instagram-obsessed…). It’s also just south of the Eaton Centre if you’re staying in that area.
- Lost & Found (it’s a men’s clothing store but they’ve got great coffee too!)
- Sud Forno (get a nutella bomboloni while you’re there! Pretty tile floor, too! From the Terroni peeps)
- Nadege (French patisserie with the prettiest desserts, macarons and yummy sandwiches)
Union
Brunch*
- Saving Grace (the wait can be unbearably long; also, they are closed Sundays, I think…best to check first)
- Union (the short rib eggs Benny is amazing)
- La Cubana (Cuban brunch!)
- County General
- The Federal
- The neighbourhood Leslieville (it’s in the east end of the city) also has a lot of good brunch places but I haven’t been in awhile so I don’t feel I can name any confidently.
(*N.B. A friend has said that all my favourite brunch places are “hipster brunch spots.” Just FYI. You’ve been warned. haha)
I have so many other favourites that I realized I forgot to note here (I got so focused on how I usually eat Italian before a marathon…) but Bar Isabel, Bar Raval, Porchetta, Patois, Rhum Corner, Patria. Bar Isabel is actually tied with Buca for my all-time fave restaurant in the 6.
Miraj Hammam Spa at Caudalie
Post-race spa time
And if you’re looking for a spa to treat yourself at after the race, my favourite spa in the city is the Miraj Hammam Spa at Caudalie in the Shangri-La Hotel. My blog post on the Miraj Hammam Spa is here!). The Shangri La Toronto also has a great running program they’ve just launched; I got to try out the package; click for my review of Running is Shangri-La.
If you’re more interested in soothing your post-race body at a spa water circuit, head to Body Blitz.
There’s nothing worse than wasting a meal or spa opportunity by going somewhere mediocre or just plain awful, right? So I hope this list is helpful. If you do try out any of them, please let me know (even if you weren’t all that impressed with it, but I’m confident you’ll love them, except for the potentially long waits at some of the places — what can I say, the good places have lineups!). I’m on Twitter @healthswellness and on Instagram @healthandswellness. And good luck in the race, and I hope you enjoy your visit to the 6. (Oh, and if you’re looking to get some nail art, head to Tips Nail Bar. they’re the artists behind our nail art in the photo below!)
Toronto skyline
June 9, 2015
In the summer, I tend to cook less often — I prefer to spend time out on a patio or at the park than in the kitchen. So simple dishes that are tasty and super quick to prepare are a must — and I’m adding this campfire couscous recipe to my rotation. I like the sweetness from the dried fruit, and the crunch from the peanuts (and
remember, peanuts are healthy for you!) — and I’m always looking for carb recipes since I’m apparently always marathon training, haha.
(Oh, I added parsley to my dish, mostly because I wanted a bit more colour to the dish. I bet this recipe would taste just as good made with quinoa instead of couscous, too!)
Campfire Couscous
1 Tbs peanut oil
1 carrot, sliced
2 cups water
1 cup couscous
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground cumin
1/4 tsp ginger
Pinch cinnamon
Pinch cayenne
Pinch cloves
Pinch ground coriander (optional)
1/4 cup dried apricots or cranberries, slivered
1/4 peanuts, coarsely chopped
Heat peanut oil in pot over medium heat. Add carrot, cooking until just tender. Add water and bring to a boil. Add couscous and spices and stir.
Cover and remove from heat. Let stand until liquid is absorbed, about 4 to 5 minutes. Add in apricots or cranberries and peanuts.
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August 25, 2014
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