Lots happening in June as Summer kicked into high gear and I headed out on vacation for a week. I still tried to cook at home as much as possible, and may have discovered a new favourite recipe:

  • The month started off with maybe my favourite meal of 2024 so far: Maipai. This is a tiki bar in Hamilton serving up Detroit style pizza, which may seem like an odd combo but it WORKS. I went with Alexis (an actual vegetarian, while I’m an aspiring vegetarian) so we got two pizzas to share: Mickey the MVP (Vodka Sauce, Pesto, Romano, Oregano) and Garlic Garlic Garlic (Confit Garlic, Roasted Garlic Aioli, Ricotta, Romano, Parsley) and they were mind blowingly good, and taken over the top with Lebanese Garlic Sauce and Detroit Red Sauce for dipping. We also had loaded Waffle Fries (tossed in gochujang butter and topped with parm and green onions) and some fun cocktails and it was simply the best.
  • I went to a little barbecue at my friends’ house in Cobourg, and brought Alison Roman’s Blueberry Cornmeal Tart. It was so easy to make (press in crust! don’t have to slice any fruit!) and it looked pretty (but somehow I didn’t take any pictures of it!) and tasted fabulous. This might be a new summer go-to.
  • Our Smutty Book Club had an outing to Famous Last Words to discuss Emily Henry’s new book Funny Story, and they let you bring in your own snacks and food (as they don’t have a kitchen). In the book, the main character is always saying her love interest smells like gingerbread cookies, so I baked up a batch of Smitten Kitchen’s Molasses Spice Cookies to take along. Seasonally inappropriate, but a hit nonetheless.
  • Then I went to Vegas for a week to play pickleball!!! In terms of eats, I had a lot of repeats from previous trips (True Food Kitchen, Dominique Ansel, Giada, Eggslut, Sprinkles) but the one new place I went was absolutely amazing: Chica. This is a Latin American restaurant in The Venetian and I was obsessed with everything about it from the decor to the food to the little lamps on the tables. I had a Spicy Mamacita for my cocktail (which was a strawberry chili margarita), then Short Rib Arepas and a Market Greens Salad (which had black beans, pickled onions, avocado, tortilla strips and lemon cilantro vinaigrette). For dessert I had “The Corn” (pictured up top) which was Strawberry Flan Cheesecake! On the bottom was graham cracker crumble and that’s grated white chocolate on the top. There’s another Chica in Miami (where I’m headed for my birthday in October), so I might need to go back to try more dishes!
  • Now here’s my regular recipe round-up for the month:
  • Stuff I made from the archives: Cashew Crunch Salad, Cheddar Chive Egg Bites
  • Some of my favourite go-to dishes: Huevos Rancheros, SweetGreen Caesar (but with Tahini Caesar Dressing from the Cookie + Kate Cookbook)
  • New things that I tried and liked: Amazon Smoothie (Nutella, Banana, Peanut Butter) from the Mandy’s Cookbook, Smashed Falafel Pita (actually obsessed with this and need to blog it here soon), Black Bean Burgers
  • Homemade Snacks: Carrot Cake Breakfast Cookies

Other non-foodie things I was obsessed with last month:

  • Lydia and I made a triumphant return to Canada’s Wonderland! I haven’t been since 2007 (insane) but Lyd and I spent basically all our free time here in high school, so it was so fun to go back and have so many memories flooding back. We tried a few of the more tame roller coasters (I don’t think my body can handle flipping upside down anymore, so we left those ones to Lydia’s son and his friend) and walked around the entire park, and it was a blast.
  • In Vegas we went to an Aces game and it was INCREDIBLE! Seriously so much fun, the crowd was so amazing, Kelsey Plum made her own triumphant return after her injury and the Aces won! Make me SO excited for 2026 when Toronto’s WNBA team has it’s first season.

Flashback!