STAYING ALIVE, STILL ALIVE!

Ok, so I’ve totally been neglecting this super blog. Have you forgotten about me? I sure haven’t forgotten about you! I just needed a little time off. After all, I'm still on maternity leave. And I have to admit I felt writing on this blog had become an obligation, like a job… I just wasn’t having as much fun with it as I used to. But I still cook and I still love doing it. So now I have to start sharing the goods again just maybe, a little differently this time.

I think I’m going to start adding a few things. If you agree with me, I’d love to start talking about restaurants, interesting articles I come about, things like that. And of course, I’m going to keep on feeding you some great recipes! How does that sound? That way I get to diversify myself but I’ll still be showing great recipes added to where I get my ideas, inspiration and what really make me flip as a foodie!!

I hope this will satisfy you (I think it’ll satisfy me!) and that you’ll keep on reading and supporting this little thing I do. I just love the idea of food so much, I can’t let it go! 


Lets keep going! 

It’s Been One Year For Figareau’s Blog… And Merry Christmas To All!!!

Arrgggg! Sometimes I hate technology! I’ve been away on vacation for the past 2 weeks to enjoy a bit of family time before the hectic days of Christmas. During that time, I was meant to post a few recipes and, this text! I brought my computer along with me specifically to write this in celebration of my blog’s first anniversary. But technology was against me; I had no Internet connection!!! Which is why I post this a few days late. Forgive me and celebrate with me this great achievement!

*****

Today is celebration time so lets pop some champagne!!! I’ve been writing this blog for exactly one year today and OH! what a joy ride it’s been!

It isn’t easy to always keep up with writing… especially since I have to cook to be able to write. And this year has been a handful: a baby was born, some serious renovation was done, some great vacationing was enjoyed, and some sick kids were taken care of. I’m on maternity leave, it’s true, which means I should have more time on my hands to cook; but life isn’t always that easy and cooking hasn’t always come that easily. But I have stood my ground and have kept up with the pace. Writing for a full year is a great pride for me.

I realize I have some amazing readers and without you it would be meaningless. Some of you have read every single line I’ve written… and I thank you for doing so. This experience feels like the greatest diary experience ever (much better than what I used to write about when I was a kid… that no one used to read!). It’s also a dream come true. I get to write a lot, which I’ve always dreamt of doing; I get to cook a lot, which is second nature to me; and I get to share it all with amazing people which gives it all a great meaning.

Thank you for trusting my cooking and my writing. I will try to keep up the pace for another year.

Sincerely,

Sophie aka Figareau  

Par Ici La Sortie!

C’est aujourd’hui le grand jour. Ne manquez pas l’émission Par Ici La Sortie! (chaîne 91 ou 691 sur illico de Vidéotron) ce soir, à 21h30. Tout au long de la semaine vous pourrez voir l’émission en reprise.

Bon visionnement !

http://www.mlle.ca/emissions/paricilasortie/episodes

To All My Toblerone Fans Out There, I'm Sorry

This is going to sound weird but I think I made a mistake and I’m sorry for it. Let me explain…

All the recipes I post on this site have been tested and tried by me. Most of them I make, remake, and remake again and again, time after time. Once the recipes are posted, I often come back to them and follow them as if I were in your shoes. The reason is, I like those recipes and I want to eat them again!

So this week I felt like doing my Toblerone chocolate mousse, which I did. And it was a disaster. It didn’t turn out the way I thought it would and its taste was not even close to what it tasted like the first time around. The texture was also pretty gross! So I went back to my recipe and did a little research… and redid it for a third time, only slightly differently.

They say the third time’s a charm. Well it is! This time I nailed it. It’s absolutely delicious and decadent. I’ve made a few changes to the recipe and you too should nail it each and every time you make it. If you’re interested in trying it out for the first time go for it blind folded; or, if you’ve tried it out and thought it wasn’t as good as expected, please try it again. This time around you won’t be disappointed!

Thanks for your understanding and again, I’m really sorry for the inconvenience… I guess these things happen, even to the best of us! 

http://figareau.blogspot.com/2011/09/weekend-decadence-toblerone-chocolate.html

Our Own Little Oyster Party

If I were stuck on an island and I had no choice but to eat one thing forever, it would be oysters. It is most certainly one of the things I prefer in life. Those juicy molluscs  are simply amazing to me! You can find them all year round at your favourite fish store but the best time to have them, the year’s high season, is in October, November and December.

For the past 2 oyster seasons I’ve been pregnant. And with being pregnant comes a big warning: do not eat any live bate. Which means, no raw oysters while you’re pregnant. So for the past 2 years I’ve been missing out on one of my favourite things in the world, which totally sucks. Ok, I’ve got 2 amazing kids but still… it’s really hard not to eat something you love for such a long time. Think about it… if you couldn’t eat chocolate for 2 years, how would you feel?

The other day my husband and I caught up with lost time and had our own little oyster party. It was a real mollusc fiesta, the best party ever!! We bought 5 different kinds of oysters and just ate them with fresh lemon juice, our favourite way to eat the small beast. Of course, you can eat oysters all sorts of way but to us, lemon stays the best.

Atlantic oysters tend to be briny and crisp on the tongue, you can taste the saltiness of the ocean. Pacific oysters are less salty in flavour and have a creamier, mineral type of taste; they can be fruity and a bit sweet! Kumamoto oysters resemble the Pacific oyster, but are more complex and quite mild, with a creamy texture and buttery finish. Try all types and see the difference!!

The oysters we ate are all Atlantic oysters. To be more specific, they all come from Prince Edward Island.

Cavendish: very close to the malpèque; mildly salty and sweet.

Giant Malpèque: classic oyster, easiest to eat; light in flavour with a mild finish. 

J’adore: chewy, filled with juice and delicate in taste. 

Lucky Limes: mildly salty and sweet. 

Raspberry point: very salty and sweet; very tender.

As for facts, did you know that 4 medium-size oysters provide the recommended daily allowance of selenium, iron, manganese, phosphorus, zinc and vitamin B12?

Plus, with only 10 calories per oyster, you can eat a whole lot of them without feeling guilty!

If you’ve never had any oysters before, please do me a favour and try at least one. Ask your fish guy to show you how to open one and then try it yourself. If you’re opened to new tastes, this is a taste you might get hooked to!!

I Could Use Your Help

Ok so I said it before, I’ve got a little bit of a cooker’s block. And I’m seriously stuck over here. I have to cook for about 15 people in 2 weeks time. It’s going to be my son’s baptism. What will I make, that is the question? I’m looking for some seriously “chic” recipes to make. Things that I don’t mind behind hard to prepare but that will be super easy to serve on the day of the event. I don’t want to be spending the entire party in front of my stove! It’s going to be buffet style, not a sit down dinner.

Any ideas? Any amazing recipes to share? Send me the goods to sophie@figareau.com. I’ll make sure to share your recipe on this blog after that!! 

Cooking On Vacation

Is it me or is there nothing better in life than a nice vacation? I don’t know who wouldn’t agree with me… besides those who don’t have the privilege to get out of their house to enjoy the better things life has to offer. It pity those people…

So I’ve been away, which explains why this blog has been dead silent for the past three weeks. I decided to take a true a total break from writing… and from cooking. Can you believe that? The funny thing is that I’ve actually BEEN cooking for the past three weeks, for my whole family, parents and siblings included! I know, I’m totally contradicting myself so I need to give you a good explanation for this. Actually, when I say I haven’t been cooking, I mean I haven’t spent much time behind the stove and certainly have not been trying out new recipes. I’ve simply been grilling a whole lot of fish and a little bit of meat on the grill, in their bare essential; naked, with almost nothing but salt and pepper. That’s the good life… and it was a true break for me! As for the vegetables, they pretty much got the same treatment!! And what to say about desert? Welcome ice cream cones!!!

But now it’s back to life; back to my cupboard filled with all these great spices; back to my fridge packed with amazing sauces and condiments; back to all the small specialty stores I know that have so much to teach me. I need to get back to cooking. Everyone needs a break once in a while, but everyone needs to come back to reality at one point.

I’m back!