This May was quite possibly, the most fun month I’ve had since the pre-pandemic days, but because of that there wasn’t too much cooking happening at home! Here’s what was going on:

  • After getting back from NYC, I met up with Weedy, Heini and Krishna at the new Piano Piano location on Colborne Street (which used to be the old Switch club where Krishna and I threw one of our Get Your Heart On events when we met like 10 years ago). Anyway, instead of pasta I had Nonna’s Meatballs and a Kale Salad and both were delicious with leftovers to take home.
  • Per tradition, Kristine came over to watch the Coronation and I made us a little breakfast buffet of Scones, Strawberry Jam, Whipped Cream, Granola, Yogurt, Fruit and the Classic Pound Cake from Smitten Kitchen Keepers.
  • After the Coronation, I flew to Florida for a week with my friend Georgia to keep her company while she was housesitting. Even though I felt a bit morally conflicted about it, we tried Chick-Fil-A for the first time and it was pretty tasty. Should I have Popeye’s next? Two locations have recently opened like three minutes in either direction of my house.
  • Nothing noteworthy about these places, but it felt like the old days meeting up with friends at King Taps, Cactus Club and Joey’s for drinks after work throughout the month.
  • I went over to Jen’s to continue our very slow watch of Ted Lasso Season 3 and she made an amazing brunch that must be documented here: avocado toast with fried eggs on top sprinkled with everything bagel spice! Plus fresh fruit, and leftover scones and jam that I brought from the Coronation.
  • My brother had a little BBQ on the long weekend and grilled chicken skewers and made lemon oregano potatoes for a Greek theme, which fit in well with the Green Goddess Salad I made (with cucumber and toasty garlic breadcrumbs) plus warm Chocolate Chip Cookies for dessert.
  • My Mom and I went to see the new T-Rex exhibit at the ROM (we love the Jurassic Park movies) and had lunch at Cafe Landwer afterwards where we shared hummus with chicken shawarma, plus a delicious salad with falafel and fried haloumi on top (her first time trying both!).
  • Here’s my regular recipe round-up:
  • Stuff I made from the archives: Chicken Shawarma Meatballs
  • Some of my favourite go-to dishes: Pineapple Shrimp Lettuce Wraps
  • New things that I tried and liked: Nothing this month!
  • Recipes from Smitten Kitchen Keepers (listing them here instead of blogging about them all separately): Classic Pound Cake
  • Homemade Snacks: Pecan Pie Energy Bites

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

  • My #1 fave Curtis Sittenfeld was at the Toronto Public Library for an event to talk about her new book Romantic Comedy (which I already read and LOVED) along with Carley Fortune, hosted by Kathleen Newman-Bremang, who I’ve been following forever (she used to work at The Social and now works for Refinery 29 and is just a rom-com lover and all around badass). The Q&A was awesome and I loved hearing Curtis talk about her writing process. I got my book signed after and had the chance to tell her my hunch about the celeb I think Noah is based on, and when I did she just smiled and said I might be on the right track (I knew it was John Mayer!).
  • The WNBA had it’s first exhibition game in Canada and I went along with Alexis and her daughter Mila and it was the most fun afternoon! We even made it onto the big screen and immediately my phone started to buzz with messages from friends and co-workers who were also there and saw us freaking out!
  • What an absolute joy to have big summer blockbusters to see in the theatre again! Kristine and I saw Fast X which did not disappoint and then Alexis, Mila and I went to see The Little Mermaid and I absolutely bawled my face off as soon as Ariel/Halle sang “Look at this stuff….”!
  • Alexis and I also went to see Ludacris & Janet Jackson at Bud Stage and it was amazing and the best way to kick off summer concert season (I’m also seeing Beyonce and Pink in July!).
  • I had another really great reading month finishing two completely different books. The first was a biography of Kurt Cobain called Heavier than Heaven, which I was inspired to read after my trip to Seattle and seeing the Nirvana exhibit at the Museum of Pop Culture. The second might end up being my favourite book of the year (after Romantic Comedy of course): Hello Beautiful by Ann Napolitano. It’s a tribute to Little Women and a beautiful story of four sisters that spans decades in their lives and relationships – to each other, to their parents and their partners. I sobbed throughout but especially in the last hundred pages. I couldn’t recommend it more, just maybe not as a Summer/Beach read.

Flashback!