Thursday, February 26, 2009

zukay!




I love this stuff! A few weeks ago, I received a generous offer to try some living condiments. Why living? Because they are your regular run-of-the-mill condiments (salsas, relishes, kimchis, pickles), infused with probiotic cultures. You know, the friendly bacteria that make sauerkraut and yogurt so good for you!

I received mild and hot salsas, and garlic and horseradish varieties of the relish. At first I was a little hesitant to try them, so I took them to our friend's house, thinking if many of us sampled these together, we'd be safe! As I opened the jar of mild salsa viva, it bubbled and exploded dangerously onto my friend's counter-top! We were amazed and mildly disturbed, but bravely decided to dip our tortilla chips into this monster anyway. And you know what? It was fizzy! This stuff definitely is alive! But after the first rush, it just tastes like a really fresh, homemade salsa. The 6 of us easily polished off a whole jar of the salsa (and a large bag of tortilla chips) in one night. Next up, the relishes- they are mild, but flavorful, and went great on some vegan sausage sandwiches and also as a dip. The hot salsa viva we tried was more intense and bubbly than the mild stuff, and it received mixed reviews. Most of my friends seem to prefer the mild, though I'm good with both. And my belly definitely appreciates the probiotics.

I'm anxious to try some of Celine's ideas for Zukay foods- in the meanwhile, you can go to their website and order some or see what stores near you carry it, so you can try the stuff for yourself! You won't be disappointed, and you'll be supporting a small and friendly company!

Zukay Live Foods

Coming up soon... remember that giveaway I promised a long time ago? I didn't forget! It's coming!
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Sunday, February 01, 2009

lille




Next up on the European itinerary, Lille, France! I had never been anywhere in France other than Paris (read my post about my last trip to Paris here), so when on-line buddy Aelle offered to let me stay with her in Lille, I could not resist!



I was also lucky to find a travel partner. Pandacookie was able to come to England in November, so together we jumped the Chunnel and crossed over to France. (In this photo, she is posing with Obama at the Lille train station. This was less than a week after the U.S. election, so there was Obama-fever everywhere!)



Here is Aelle, and her partner Wally. They were the coolest hosts. The first night, Aelle had made reservations for us at Le Toucouleur, an Afro-Caribbean restaurant. She had, awesomely, previously made arrangements with the Chef for us to get a two-course vegan dinner! In the above photo, you see our cocktails. All the cocktails at the restaurant are named after African capitals- mine (on the left) was the Yaoundé, a tequilla cocktail sweetened with agave nectar and pineapple juice. I had to get it, just because it taught me how to say agave nectar in French! (nectar de goyave)



Our dinner was amazing. We got the first course, this delicious and spicy vegetable stew with rice, and ate it all up, forgetting that we had another course coming!



So by the time we got this amazing veggie curry (withs sweet potatoes, carrots, potatoes, onions, and more) we were all stuffed! That didn't stop us from indulging anyway. The experience at the restaurant was so nice- without a host who knew the city so well, what would we have had for dinner?



On Sunday, we headed to Lille's large market. It was super bustling, crowded, and filled with beautiful foods and sights. Above, you see some of the brightly-colored spices at a Moroccan spice shop.



And here are some giant squash. Everywhere we went, people gave us samples of clementines, grapes, olives, etc. The market was a very multi-sensual experience.



Here's one of my favorite photos from Lille- a family of musician playing on the street during market day.



After picking up some fresh bread (bien sûr!) we headed home, where Wally and Aelle cooked us a magnificent... Japanese feast. (You see, both of them had been living in Japan until recently). This fragrant dish, full of mushrooms, peppers, and noodles was so satisfying on a cool day, and we inhaled it all.



Lille Cathedral.



Our lovely hosts at a café, where I got to indulge in my love for French espresso:





Here is one of my funnest discoveries in Lille! Kwak beer (being in Northern France, near Belgium, beer is a huge deal in Lille, and people drink it more than they do in other regions.) Kwak beer is called so because it's served in the special glass that you see- and when the drink gets down to a certain point, the sound of air bubbles as you tip the glass make a "quack quack" sound- it's hilarious! And the stuff is very potent, so giggles are sure to accompany a Kwak order!



Of course, you can't go to France without gorging yourself on fresh-made baguettes. Pandacookie and I must have gone through at least 10 loaves of this stuff...



Both of us were also happy to get to check out Le Furet du Nord, formerly Europe's biggest bookstore! (Now the 2nd biggest)... It was so fun to browse through floor after floor of books, magazines, stationery, and art supplies, including a whole section of books in English (and other languages as well).



Here are Pandacookie, me, Aelle, (and of course, baguette), as Aelle dropped us off at the train station on our way to Belgium. Our visit to Lille was so extremely fun, mostly because of the coolness of Wally, Aelle, and her family who were nice enough to take two internet strangers into their house! It was nice to get an insider vegan view of the city, and I can't wait to go back. Merci, Aelle!

To see all my photos from Lille, click here.

Coming up next, join Pandacookie and Bazu in Ghent...


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