treats and eats in quebec city!

i am so grateful i had places to go to in quebec city that had organic and/or vegan treats and eats! i was there for just under 3 weeks to learn french language and culture!
the grocery store, or l'epicerie,  (provigo) closest to the campus i was staying at actually had a number of organic things which was amazing (as organic doesn't seem to be all that in demand out there!) and i would buy the president's choice brand of organic quinoa and brown rice pasta (and as mentioned before, their frozen fruit mix) and then was able to get the following produce organic: avocados, bananas, arugula, mixed greens, romaine, apples, carrots and mushrooms.

there was also the health food store le crac/le carotte joyeuse... on rue st-jean (the home of the oldest north american grocery store and a chocolate museum and other fun shops) which i called "le carotte joyeuse" or "le gros carotte" as that's how my new friends referred to it! (gros = large in french)
each time i went to this store, i tried a new snack.

le maison moisan (epicerie fine) - possibly the oldest grocery store in north america!

look at how big this fennel is! (at la carotte)

just some of the non-dairy mylks at la carotte! wow, blurry photo. wish i had taken another! i didn't use any but i'm really curious about the quinoa mylk! i love quinoa everything!

despite my chocolate sensitivity, i was keen on the sweets from the earth peppermint nanaimo bars and chocolate pecan caramel bars. hehe.

these chocolate treats really helped as i was mad craving chocadel's salted raw chocolate but it's on sale back home so it was hard for me to justify buying out there. before i had discovered it at "le carotte", i emailed the company in my broken french to mention how much i loved their fleur de sel bar and to ask where their chocolate retailed in quebec city. my reply? "merci beaucoup". hehe.

and what was super fun was discovering some raw food treats made in quebec!

 (i ended up leaving the crubec cookies as i think some of them had cashews and, well, i'm on a budget!)

 (these raw "chocolate chip cookies" from rawsome, which is also a quebec company, were so good i ate the whole package in one night!)

 (i'm not one for flavoured water but this lemongrass mint vanilla from ayala's seemed pretty legit and organic and it was on sale and less than $1.50! it was super soft and refreshing water. i loved crubec's sesame/maple/chia snacks and i definitely plan to try making my own!)

 (i got more of crubec's sesame snaps and tried bio-sphere's spiru-lyn(?) crackers that were super green but crunchy and satisfying!)

(more of the ayala's water and some rawsome italien herb crackers! they were super tasty! a bit soft perhaps because they are thicker than i'm used to with organic lives veg crackers but also perhaps because of the humidity in quebec!)

now in terms of eating out in quebec city, i made sure to go to the vegetarian buffet, le commensal (a quebec chain/manufacturer with a toronto location), a couple times. it's on the same street (rue st-jean) as la carotte joyeuse! loved that street for all of its food glory!

le commensal is not the best buffet i've been to (loving hut achasan, anyone?), but i loved that they label their dishes so it's easy to eat vegan and i was able to TRY to avoid gluten though i wasn't as picky as i'd be at home (and i brought a papaya digestive enzyme to help with eating gluten). i still have never tried greens & gourmet (a veg buffet in vancouver) so i really should get there some time! it's hard, though, with all these new vegan and raw-friendly places opening up in vancouver! (like the new fine dining veg place, the acorn!)

anyways, check out this veg bounty:



i went to a chain, le cochon dingue, with my roommates one night. we had gone there as a whole group (of 50 or so?) at the end of one of our activities earlier that week and i was impressed with how accommodating and friendly the staff were and i was able to have a bean salad the first time there and i ordered pasta there this time! pasta that isn't quinoa or brown rice-based for me is a real odd thing but i guess since i'm not celiac, i can afford some discomfort sometimes to eat "regular-people" pasta. and i craved it several times in quebec! i think because i was doing hours of walking every day - up and down giant hills and walls?

dinner at a "sugar shack" or "la cabane à sucre". i took a picture of the vegan pea soup i had to start but for some reason neglected to take a photo of the MASSIVE dish of roasted root vegetables on couscous they had prepared for me while the non-veg heads had meats and such. i must have been distracted by the pouring of maple syrup on everything! 

after dinner, check out this delight! i went back for seconds and thirds... hehe. maple syrup on ice!

yum!

after a few late night ice cream stops at glacier aberdeen (just off of cartier, the cutest street near the college) for carlos, i noticed on the price board "tofu aux fruits" and decided to be brave and order it. the young girls working there were super sweet (and let me practice my french) and blended up one of the packaged frozen tofus with some frozen fruit i chose. and bam! frozen non-dairy yogurt type thing!

i met up with my roommates at DAVIDsTEA(a montreal company) one day as my friend is super keen on their tea. i love the label design and paul had texted me the day before to show me his most excellent iced soy matcha from one of the stores in toronto. anyways... before even having any tea, i fell in love with this tea carafe. i have smashed 2 glass ones within 5 months this year but i still prefer drinking out of glass! i love this one with the wood lid! i hope to get it someday! ^_^

anyways, this is my iced soy green tea latte. i'm not sure how the one paul got in toronto was $2 cheaper than mine (did i order wrong?) but it still was fabulous. look at that foam! on a cold drink!
*update: i now know that ordering the green tea with soy as a latte is what cued the $2 extra charge for frothing*

speaking of green tea lattes and the like... i ended up having a cold green tea latte (with soy, minus ice cream! glad i checked on that one) at le musée national des beaux-arts du québec. the funny thing was my friend patrick being offered the extra of my drink in the blender which was the same size as mine. so we basically got 2 for 1. always looking for deals, you know. 

my last night in quebec city and at the end of our last day of classes, we went on a boat cruise of the st. lawrence river which was super nice. there was a buffet dinner, which i managed to find some things to eat from, but there was also a vegan hot dish prepared! how sweet!

and beautiful fruit for dessert...

and, thus concludes my mega post about food finds in quebec city! i was disappointed in the lack of organic foods but grateful and encouraged by the helpfulness and friendliness of all clerks and servers i met! 

merci beaucoup, quebec!

so many thinks to think right now!

so don't even get me started about my fears of losing access to real, whole, organic, non-GMO foods. perhaps you heard of the whole foods "not labelling GMO" drama of last year? of course i go through phases where i feel hopeful (and i remind myself about the good things happening when i see stuff like truth in labelling campaigns and i make sure i am as aware as possible and eat as much fresh, organic plant foods as possible as per this how to avoid genetically modified foods article.) but sometimes it's hard not to feel sad for our world's health! i guess i just have to keep hoping that our push for progress and our rapidly changing technology advances will somehow suddenly shift us to using absolutely no electricity or oil or plastic, etc (probably because there will be none!) and back to "the basics" of growing food for your immediate community and moving at a man and sun-powered pace!

just want to put this all out there in ye 'ol interwebs, whoa, what a ramble... as i think about the health of the world, i remember that i can at least do something about my own health!

with this new year, my naturopath had promised an elimination diet to figure out my food sensitivities and allergies.

FYI, i finally used almond flour (remnants from making milk) successfully! i made a cracker bread with soaked ground flax and processed carrot, beet, green onion and sauerkraut and a whole bunch of spices. hurrah! (smeared on top is a store-bought red pepper hummus. oh the shame! but hey, it tasted great and i was able to eat it with other people over at my place!)

so now, i am not only avoiding the regulars which i would NEVER dream of eating such as any animal products, coffee, MSG, or conventional, non-organic things, but i have to completely avoid the following for 3 months:
*corn
*wheat
*baker's yeast
*green pepper
*tomato
*grapes
*honeydew
*strawberry
*cashews
*peanuts
*saccharin, white sugar

so some of those things, i don't buy anyways, but i don't usually ask if they are in the ingredients of something i order at a restaurant. and now i need to. and i guess i don't usually eat ANY of them but tomatoes. even though i have always known i was sensitive to tomatoes, i thought i was ok eating them. and i definitely enjoyed not having to look out for them as an ingredient!

the following things, i need to have RARELY (so for me, i am 'indulging' once a week if necessary):
*dates (gah!)
*figs (thank GOODNESS it isn't september right now!)
*papaya (it's been awhile since i've had my tropical thunder smoothie at organic lives but still)
*peach
*watermelon
*brazil nut (also has been awhile since i've binged on these! hehe but gah, i love brazil nuts!!!)
*hemp seed (can't help but wonder if this is because i was drinking hemp milk and pouring seeds on my salads in the days before my sensitivity test)
*poppy seed
*wine (it's funny since i haven't really enjoyed it for the past year)
*carob, chocolate, cocoa powder (what?! i wondered if this was because i was going CRAZY for chocolate the week before my test. this past friday, i treated myself to 2 halves of zimt bars! i had asked if raw cacao counted and apparently it does. sigh.)
*sugar cane
*brewer's yeast
*buckwheat
*oats
*brown rice
*sprouted bread
*fermented soy (i thought fermented soy was the easiest soy? soy milk was borderline for me)
*cauliflower (was it because of my horrid cauliflower mash the week before?)
*cucumber (at least it's not in season right now and expensive because i LOVE cucumbers!!!)
*eggplant
*pumpkin
*spinach
*squash
*sweet potato, yam
*black eyed/lima/navy beans

so it's been super interesting doing this so far. i have survived just over a week. i have to keep a food diary which is interesting as i'm thinking more about what i eat since i have to record it down. it's helping me become more conscious and eat when i'm hungry rather than eating just because it's so delicious! hehe.

ooh, speaking of delicious... a smoothie inspired by my friend menaka working in bali... frozen banana and banana with thawed coconut meat, supergreens (spirulina, chlorella, barley grass, wheatgrass, AFA, brainon), lucuma, tumeric, and ginger! YUM!

it's also been interesting because i'm realizing that just because i'm not eating something i really love (ie chocolate), it doesn't mean that i am sad or feel i'm missing out. there are so many incredible things to eat and it somehow isn't a big deal?
i'm now also eating with more awareness of proper food combining. i have considered it before, as with balancing acidic and alkaline foods. i'm aiming for 75% alkaline food in my diet. and that, with trying to eat what is local as well. so... it is really perfect for eating raw! i am really limiting my processed food intake, which admittedly isn't very high to begin with, but it's always a challenge when you decrease your options!
the only annoying thing is eating out. vancouver has so many vegan-friendly restaurants and i have LOVED being able to order anything without question. now i have so many questions again. and new questions. it's a whole new way of thinking.

like eating at sejuiced the other day - i would normally get the raw caesar but it's made with cashews! so i ordered a sandwich and i couldn't do gluten-free bread as it was made with buckwheat. so i got lettuce "bread" and skipped the tomato and instead, it was filled with a chickpea hummus (which i acknowledge is not raw!) with yummy avocado and sprouts. the bonus was i was still satisfied and it cost me only $4? yah!

i feel lucky as i can imagine this sort of elimination diet process for an "eat anything" person would be INCREDIBLY challenging, if not impossible. but last year, i wasn't eating ANYTHING off my avoid list except tomatoes and sometimes the other fruit!

the simple pleasures: finding these pears at drive organics. so nice to have a delicious snack! i haven't been able to bring my usual larabar work snack as there are cashews and/or dates in them so i have been on the lookout for easy things to pack along with me and THESE were INCREDIBLE!)

i am grateful for this chance to be more present in another area of my life. the diet actually helps me appreciate my nourishment even more! and a big bonus is it is helping me stick to more of a budget this year which was an important 2012 resolution for me!

so i know i can do this. and i'm super curious as to what i will find out!

raw kale chips! found in calgary, alberta!

i really didn't expect food success in calgary, alberta. me and paul brought a bunch of organic produce and snacks for our time here as we expected it to be expensive or non-existant. going to planet organic the other day proved us wrong!
we got kelp noodles like we love back home for $6.50! $1 cheaper than back home! and the produce appears to be cheaper! $1 cheaper too! like $2 romaine and $1.50 avocados? what is going on? i am excited there is a market for organic products in cowtown, alberta! though my main impression of the areas we have seen is that everyone here is living in EXCESS. there is oil money here! and no tax! people have more than one iphone and car... massive and new houses with new furniture. i wonder where the old stuff is?
in the town of didsbury, alberta (population 5000), the one coffee shop here serves soy and rice milk and has gluten-free options! and paul's mom found daiya cheese and coconut bliss ice cream at the grocery store here? i am so excited there is a market for it here! seemingly in the middle of nowhere!
anyways... i bought kale chips made by rhythm superfoods at the planet organic.

i haven't even seen this brand before! (**february 2012 update - i have now seen these in greens market in vancouver**) i think the store had 4 kinds of them for sale for $6.99 which is a nice price as i find if you buy them in vancouver, they are about $10 a bag. i got kool ranch but the bag i got tastes (or smells) a bit stale. paul said the flavour was 'trying too hard' which i agree. his kale chips are my favourite! he made some for this trip (and did some chards also) and they were AWESOME. only one of his nephews would try the "leaves from vancouver" though.
it was nice to make a raw lunch the other day using the kelp noodles and blending up tomatoes with a bit of lemon, a bunch of fresh basil, a few sprinkles of salt and oregano and a pour of olive oil, and then adding sundried tomatoes. i had mine on a bed of arugula and some other greens:

we have just a couple days left here and i hope we get a chance to check out gratitude cafe somehow, perhaps tomorrow?

we enjoyed some vegan goodness at the coup today for lunch which was fun. and the gratitude cafe is just a 6 minute drive from there. i'm curious about prepared raw food in calgary! the coup had a raw dessert but i wasn't too interested in it as it was agave-sweetened. 

i had the seaweed soba ($12) and some bites of everyone else's borsht and grilled pita sandwich things!

gratuitous produce photos...

after a successful farmers market saturday shop...

 i love being able to eat local! i hope that canada figures out a better way to support and sustain itself, food-wise. we need to support our local, organic growers! is it true that less than 2% of crops grown in canada are organic? gah!!!

 i love it when i see hearts in my food. paul found one on a potato the other day! i love that he noticed ^_^

 and... isn't this the most beautiful teacher apple? i wish i had waited to take a bite until after i decided to take a photo. so perfect! and again, grown here! we are so lucky!!!

vancouver is awesome.

okay so i have to interrupt my stream of posts to come of costa rica drool-worthy foods to quickly say, THANK YOU WEDNESDAY. i got back on friday and was feeling super discouraged about being home, being cold, being poor, being away from the green beauty that is costa rica.
but then yesterday came along and reminded me of why vancouver is awesome.
first, despite recently moving into my own place and having no dishes, i made up a great salad and enjoyed it out of a pot. i don't use pots anymore for cooking but hooray for them being there for me to eat giant salads out of!












then, i was able to finally hit up the farmer's market. there is a wednesday one at main street station which rules as i usually work the weekends when the westend one is on. last summer, there was one in gastown which RULED but it was a trial run and i guess it wasn't successful enough to do again this year. and since i generally seem to be away most of the summers, it's september when i get a month of bliss of farmer's market time! so i was super excited to collect on the local, organic produce! so inspiring! and i got some curry crackers from radha too :)
















then! i got to meet up with my sister for gorilla food. we both got the jungle coleslaw (SO good!) and she got a burger and i got the main st monkey sandwich that i was craving all day. i last had one of their sandwiches the day i got home from korea so it was so nice to get one again.















and then to complete the day of awesome (though it would have been 200% amazing if it had worked out with my friend who i'm trading piano lessons for a chair to be delivered), i went to talent time that night. and a friend who runs an amazing company of earth-friendly moving boxes, frogbox, who helped me do a zero-emissions move across the city, came to the show too! it's been exciting to see how the crowd is growing at this show.
ooh and i brought chlorella (with spearmint) to drop in my water at the biltmore so it wouldn't taste nasty and also so i'd have this green drink to freak people out with. er, whatever. it made drinking more exciting.
anyways!
i made a pinata for it (full of money - it's a 'cover charge pinata', organic vegan lollipops, pencils, stickers and boxes of raisins) and again, this whole raw thing does wonders for multi-uses of kitchen products. like my stove becomes workspace for crafts! perfect! i haven't started storing stuff in my oven yet but who knows.













anyways, after a summer off, the variety show of inspired and earnest people of all sorts of talents came back to the biltmore. it happens the first wednesday of every month, it's $8 and starts at 9 but if you want a seat of some sort, the lineup to get in starts around 8. i was particularly impressed by the 12 year old violinist. and then at the end, the vancouver complaints choir performed and it was glorious! i loved the kind of complaints veda hille collected to represent the kinds of things vancouver people complain about: cars vs bikes, no beer in the grocery store and umbrella etiquette.
and it reminds me of helsinki which i spent one day in last summer. i guess theirs was the second ever complaints choir. anyways, when i was there, i was excited to find one place with raw/living foods - vegetaari. i went 2x the one day i was there and told the lady i was from vancouver and was excited to check out her place. she said beautiful things to me that of course i can't remember at the moment. but i can't help but relate beautiful food to beautiful people and beautiful love all around.

so... i may be back home and a bit restless for my next adventure (and seemingly in a rambling random mood today?), but there are plenty of exciting and inspiring things happening in my own city to keep me occupied for awhile.
thank you, vancouver.