This week has been a blur.

This week has been a blur. I have had more visitors, calls, emails and messages than I have had in months. I feel so special. I still prefer the blog because I get tired going through the same stories all the time. Many friends from out of town want to fly out and visit. These are people I have known for decades so I struggle to fit them in and give each a chance to just be here. My big brother and sister are flying in on Monday until Saturday and they will be the last guests who actually stay with us until a time might come again where either MrD or I can cope. The day after they leave we have booked flights back to Manila. I need to settle my legal affairs, talk to our staff and face MrD’s family with the news because he has been unable to go into the real details over the phone.
My doctor told me if I needed to do this trip it should be now and make it short.
I have gotten new medicines for the pain and stress so I have had some better sleep time.
The nutritional three week cleansing has moved into the last phase of the vegetable protein stage and I hear rumours from MrD that next week I will be allowed to have some small amounts of dead animals. I can hardly wait.
Cancer Rocks but in truth, this week I have had to dig a little deeper to feel that side of this adventure.
MrD is really at his end of all the care he can give and we are interviewing home help for when we return.
Our newly designed upstairs wardrobes arrive and were installed Thursday to oohs and aahs. If our luck holds the bed we ordered last month before all this struck should be delivered on Saturday so my family doesn’t have to sleep on the floors.
The palliative care people have been here the most figuring ways to make my life at home easier so they have installed special air cushioned bed pads, a pole to help me get out of bed easier, or practice my pole dancing, a toilet seat with arms to get up and down on, a shower seat for the time down the road when I need to sit and rinse and maybe the hardest to accept but pretty cool, is my new black padded wheel chair. They adjusted everything to fit it too my body but it may be a bit before I can fit my mind around it. I thought of journeys out wearing big hats or even veils but everyone would know it was the Trophy H right away.
Everyone have a grand week. I sure plan to have a great one.

MrD signs up the Trophy H for a cleanse.

Wow. My week went by with not a dull moment. I promised MrD to fight this disease. Last week was all about stuffing your face with fat and sugar but MrD a hired private nutritionist for some alternative cancer healing.
She has me on a three week cleansing program. The first five days of my cleanse, I have no protein. I drink brewed, juiced and stewed powders at strange and non flattering times of the early morning late evening. MrD loves to play the disciplinarian. I keep a stiff upper lip with the food.
As my reward for surviving the first 5 days and for being able to introduce protein to my meals, I invited MrD, MsB (the nutritionist) out to dine at one of MsB’s favourite restaurants.
Trophy H slips in a complimentary restaurant review “East Meets East” is a South East Asian popular restaurant on West Broadway here in Vancouver. Our party of three arrived at 6:30 without a reservation but their friendly staff found us a table after a short wait. The owner was offering small cups of their delicious chai variations. My soy milk chai spice tea both soothed the pallet and warmed it up for the food. I love when a restaurant takes time to welcome you in a special way.
The three of us each ordered a Tali tasting plate. I chose the wild salmon in a sauce that was mango, but might have been pineapple. My sauce turned out to be not worth remembering. And I would have to mention, my silent reader, that the salmon was overcooked. I loved my dahl, but couldn’t find any cucumber flavour in the raita. My portion of aloo gobi was sadly a little over done. But everything was forgiven. I was out and about. The place was noisy and I was burping protein. I was with MrD and MsB who showed me all week that they were fighting this disease. I had nothing to complain about. Cancer Rocks.
I got some much craved protein introduced into my diet after the 5th day. I got to eat small chunks of my best beloved potato, one of the outlawed veggies in the first act of this 3 week program. MsB comes to our humble abode to demonstrate how to cook the meals, give us tips and answer our many questions. It’s been a while since I sat on a chair in my kitchen, watching someone show me how to cook. I got to eat rice pasta with tomatoes. This period of not being able to eat, what has become part of my life over the years, somehow allowed me to appreciate taste and texture all over again when they were introduced back into my diet.
A soft boiled egg for breakfast was what I craved most so I did a simple rice and egg breakfast. Here is how to make your own. We must concentrate on the ritual of boiling these liquid chickens. The eggs must be boiled for exactly 3 minutes. Take a spoon and recover the eggs from the boiling water to stop the cooking process. Run them under some cold water to cool our lovelies enough to handle.
Heat a little precooked white basmati rice. The eggs get a proper whack with a knife and their golden hearts lavishly oozed over the warm rice. A good grind of course black pepper kissed with a baby pinch of your favourite salt. I would have loved a splash of chopped scallions on top for colour and crunch but we were out.
Each bite will seem better than the last.
So, my silent reader, go hug your brother. I plan to update every Saturday as long as I am up for it.

My cancer opens a whole new door.

Well it has been a week of Cancer Rocks. I am learning so much during this process. The support of family, friends and acquaintances has been overwhelming, touching and encouraging.
I had my first appointment with the oncologist on Thursday this week at the British Columbia Cancer Agency. My doctor, Sharlene Gill, is not only a senior caregiver but also associate professor of medicine at the University of British Columbia. She knows what she is talking about and puts all the information out to me in ways I can understand and absorb.
She recommended chemo and planed to admit me on Monday for the first treatment so they can monitor my side effects. The other treatments would be as an outpatient.
But, and here comes the hard part, my silent reader, she said the chemo could only hope to enhance the quality of my life because at this stage of my cancer there was no hope for a cure. Here prognosis is she thinks I have 3-4 months to live.
Friday I spoke to her on the phone and we have agreed to postpone the chemo but I have since decided not to have chemo. There is no hope for a cure and I feel too week. I have already registered with palliative care. I have not given up, but given in to the cancer.
MrD is busy with his alternative treatments for me and we will go from here.

On the lighter side, my silent reader, having cancer has opened up a whole new world.
A few examples are.

You can once again fit into any of your old clothes.

You attend a social meet up where home made pastry is included. You are sure to get offered the choice of leftovers.

Your spouse cuts way back on your “to do” list.

After all these years of saying no because it is fattening, you are encouraged to eat the crispy brown chicken skin.

You need not pass up on the desert.

It is fun to pretend there is a friendly alien hiding in you guts.

Sometimes it feels important to take a day off away from people stuffing you full of healthy food. It just reminds you that you are ill.

Folks want to take you out for lunch more and most insist on paying the bill.

Being on this “get fat” diet means you get to eat food you had deprived yourself. I ate poutine for the first time in ten years.

You get appointments to meet new people in new places you have never been.

You take time to stop and smell the roses.

Cancer Rocks

One whole week has passed, my silent reader, since the news of the Trophy H and “The Big C”. It has been a most amazing time where old friends,lovers and relatives have made an effort to get in touch by phone, email or Face Book. They all sent their greetings, prayers and best wishes for my battle with cancer and we got a chance to catch up a bit on what was happening in their lives.
I still have not seen an oncologist. My first meeting at Vancouver Cancer Center is this Thursday. I was not informed at the time whether I should come prepared with an overnight bag so I am assuming it will be just a meet and greet with the specialist in charge of my case. She will give me her expert opinion and hopefully we will get started on path to treatment. Vancouver Cancer Center is one of the few hospitals in the world that offer alternative forms of cancer treatment separately or in conjunction with chemo or radiology. I have my skinny fingers crossed for a couple of weeks of say maybe, shopping therapy?
I have managed to put on some of the weight I lost while in hospital doing all the tests leading up to all this. MrD must get full credit for this. He has been working overload, running the empire and shopping and cooking. He is constantly bringing me smoothies or snacks and watches over me to insure I consume everything. Now I don’t look so much like a ghoul. I make little forays outside to get some exercise and have developed my own style of walking slowly, like I am contemplating life, rather that just too ill to walk faster.
I am learning new things every day. I am learning to let go of some control, ask for help when I need it and sharpen my sense of humour. Today I am particularly grateful because I am celebrating 6 months of sobriety.

Happy New Year from MrD and the Trophy H

Happy New Year from MrD and the Trophy H. This last year has been a lot of
giggles for me writing this tongue in cheek blog to dish some dirt, present some tasty food ideas, give a few travel tips and hopefully add a smile or a chuckle or two to your day.
This year, my silent reader, I am changing topics and heading into more exciting waters.
There is no great way to get this news out there but here goes for trying.
Four days before Christmas I was diagnosed with colon cancer that has spread to my
liver. How cool is that? Cancer Rocks!
I had been in hospital for a week and a half getting fast tracked through a lot of tests. Some of those tests involving chemically emptied colons and live cameras on site in places that should never be visited by operating rooms full of people one does not know. A wee bit nasty and uncomfortable.
I haven't been a patient in hospital since I was in my mid twenties, having my nose done. It took more time getting used to strangers walking in at all hours with
concerned professional smiles wanting to stick long sharp needles in my arms or take my temperature and blood pressure for the hundredth time.
December 20, I got the official reports after a conference with the medical
Team. I was given a discharge and sent home with MrD to celebrate the holidays.
MrD has been a pillar of strength and support through all this but when he heard the “Big C” word he collapsed. In the Philippines, where he grew up, there were and still are relatively fewer survivors. In MrD’s head he was already picking out a good blue suit and a box.
Because it was the holiday season there was no way they could get me into the Cancer
Center until January. I have since been notified that my first appointment is January13. In the mean time my goal is to get my strength back after that barrage of invasive testing. I lost a lot of weight I need to put back on my bones. I will need some reserves to combat the chemo treatments.
A recent report comparing six first world countries found that Canada rated tops in cancer survivors and British Columbia ranked the highest in the land. I have every right to feel optimistic.
You might recall, my silent reader, I always maintain a positive outlook on life and a sense of humour to get me through tough times. I am in great spirits and ready for a fabulous new year. None of us know the future. Often what we perceive to be horrible devastating news turns out down the road to be one of the best things that ever happened to us.
The only sad part is right now I will not be able to spend time back at our home in Asia, getting massages on the beach while I suck back fresh local mango and banana shakes.
That will be something to look forward to down the long and winding road.

Do's and Don'ts of partner squabbling.

People love it when Trophy H’s have a bad day. Everyone thinks oh boy this guy is funny enough to laugh himself over to tomorrow. Little people like to see the myths and giants, if not fall flat, then at least bent out of shape by the wind.
Trophy H’s have really bad days.
We have real fights with our partner that is not stage material.
Here is how I have dealt with some of mine.
Trophy H’s make lousy fighters. We want to make jokes so the angry person being silently mean to you from another room or on the phone from another time zone in another country will return from ugly land. Is your squabble happening with text or real talk, or is your partner right there standing in front of Glee or your favourite hockey game, which ever daddy programming turns your crank.
One thing you attempt to never do when you are having a bad fight with your partner is to laugh. They sometimes take laughter too personal during fights.
There is no good time to laugh. Not while they are staring you in the eye shaking the scissors and a handful of your more favourable credit cards.
Jokes are wasted and unwise during any bitterness or tension in the room.
Jokes tend to either go right over their head when they are cussing out your sorry ass. They for sure will only make you laugh, but not them.
“Hey you are not really angry with me darlink. You are just taking this opportunity to express your inner ugly.” Seriously don’t try this at home, my silent reader.
No way. Real men know how to win and get back to the TV. They understand the bigger picture. We know to keep our eyes not on the TV, at least during the commercials, but at those angry eyes. We nod our head up and down like those made in China neck wobbling car dogs you buy from Canadian Tire. Ok here the trophy H must make a confession. I have never owned a head nodding dog or a dashboard on which to put one.
No helpful interventions or comments. This would not be a good time to mention, and for their own good really, “Now pumpkin. Screwing up your eyes like that does not improve your advancing wrinkle war. The smile and frown all happens down below the ice line.”

Trophy H tips #459863. Become a skilled head nodder. Casually vary the speed of the nod to make it appear sincere.
Trophy H tips # 45697. Listen to what they are telling you without just pretending to listen while you make up your rebuttal in your cutting fashion.
The beauty of being the Trophy H of MrD is we really don’t have fights like this anymore. We worked threw a lot of shit in the first 5 years of this 15 year tour we are on together. And he has never been foolish enough to pull the money card during an argument. He is impeccably trained. Now when he has been bad or nasty or harsh or just plain honest and he sees I have been hurt by his action or words. He has an old saying that brings us back to reality. “15 years and my husband is not used to me yet.”
Trophy H tip #5768 Never go to bed to sleep when you are angry and never let them sleep while you are angry.

The holiday in Hell.

Thanksgiving has always been one of the few family holidays that I enjoy. There seems to be less hysterical drama and just fun times eating lovely traditional foods with family and friends.
Last year about this time my uncle and aunt, MrG and MsC suggested that they fly out from their nest in Northern Ontario, we pick up his sister in North Vancouver, and the 5 of us spend the holiday weekend in the beautiful surroundings of Terrace Beach Resort in the wilds of Ucluelet on the far side of Vancouver Island. Because I am the Trophy H and I did have a year to prepare I happily agreed and started making reservations. The resort was built by Jason Priestly of Hollywood 90210 fame and I managed to reserve the biggest cabin assuming that that would be the one Jason stayed in when he was home. It had three floors of lovely wooden luxury with large outdoor decks, Jacuzzis, fireplaces and a well designed and equipped kitchen for me to wow our guests with my special brunches, lunches and dinners.
My uncle and aunt used their carefully gathered air mile points to book their return tickets. His sister got the weekend off and MrD agreed to come with us because the resort promised Internet connection so he could run the empire while we all sat and chatted or went for long walks in the stunning natural surroundings.
That was what should have happened. This is what did happen.
Things went smoothly in the beginning. My uncle’s sister uses a cane and has some difficulty getting in and out of vehicles but with me carrying the extra luggage we managed to get on board at the early hour and made our ferry connection to the island.
From Departure Bay at Nanaimo to the resort in Ucluelet it rained the whole way so we did not get a chance to enjoy the scenery. We did stop at the giant Douglas fir forest called the Cathedral Trees for a stretch and a drippy camera opportunity. The trip took about 4 hours but we made it seem fun.
At the check in we found out that the cabin I had reserved there was no Internet connection because of the building materials used in the walls. MrD was not amused and made it known that I was responsible. Okay. I had to rent an extra cabin that did have Internet connection and I just whipped out the credit card with a non existent smile.
I got the keys and managed to get my guests safely to their rooms. It was raining the whole time. The resort is built into a rain forest with walkways and stairs. The lady with the cane made it all the way. The biggest cabin was the farthest from the entrance with the most privacy.
I put away all the food supplies I had brought from Granville Island Market, ran back to MrD’s new cabin to check up that he managed to connect and I dropped off my own bag.
I returned to accompany my uncle to the next town in the rental van so we could pick up some milk they wanted for their breakfast tea.
On the way to the van from the cabin we were passed on the walkway by a family with small children. My uncle and I stepped aside to let them pass and he slipped and fell. My uncle could not move or get up. I alerted my aunt about the accident. Someone got the message to the staff in the office. They called 911 and about 45 minutes later the ambulance arrived. All this time the rain never let up. We had blankets keeping my uncle warm and a sheet of plastic covering him to try and keep him as comfortable as possible.
The ambulance attendants assessed the situation. They put a pillow splint on his broken leg. We managed to get him lifted into a stretcher chair and all strapped in. Then we had to get him off the walkway, through the bush along a gravel trail and into the ambulance for the 40 kilometre ride to the nearest hospital in Tofino. All this happened in the rain.
My uncle was the only person insured to drive the rental van so my aunt needed to contact the rental company before we could follow the ambulance to the hospital. Many phone calls later and after heated chats with operators working in Delhi, India, we just gave up, said just make a note and off we drove uninsured to the hospital emergency rooms.
There was of course a lengthy waiting time before some one came out and explained the situation to us. My uncle’s leg was indeed broken in two places, below the knee and above the ankle. He would need an operation that could not be done at the small hospital in Tofino so in the morning the ambulance would have to transport him to the bigger hospital in Nanaimo, the city where we had arrived by ferry that was 4 hours away.
Okay.
This meant that we would have to pack up all our things at the resort, forfeit the prepaid two nights for the two rooms, drive the 4 hours to Nanaimo, rent two more rooms.
Okay.
The staff and owner of the resort were in top form and concern for us all along this ordeal and when I checked us out the next morning the owner assured me that all charges for our rooms for both nights would be cancelled and I was to keep him informed about my uncle’s progress.
We found the hospital in Nanaimo, I got us nice rooms at a hotel near the harbour and we managed to find some turkey dinner specials at a mediocre restaurant chain.
The next morning when we returned to the hospital we found out that if they did operate on my uncle there then he would have to remain in Nanaimo for about two weeks for the follow up. This was not an option so they put a temporary cast on his injured leg. My uncle needed three different medicines and a new pair of crutches. This being the holiday weekend some pharmacies were closed and after a wild goose chase in a city I was not familiar with we managed to visit 3 pharmacies and get all we needed.
MrD and the lady with the cane wanted to return to the city so we got them out of the way and on their way before my aunt and I started the ordeal of getting my injured uncle out of the hospital, into the van, get the van onto the crowded holiday ferry and back to Vancouver. We had to line up at the ferry docks because our reservation we had made was not valid for the time we got my uncle to the docks. We had to wait for 4 ½ hours to get onto a boat. My uncle could not leave the van. I won’t go into details about how he remained comfortable but those urinals the drugstore sells really come in handy.
Finally late at night we returned from our holiday to our condo in Vancouver and we managed to get my exhausted aunt and uncle upstairs and into bed so they could get some rest before the ordeal of flying home the next morning.
In the morning MrD and I got my uncle back in the van with my aunt and their entire luggage. We went with them to the airport. My uncle had to purchase a new ticket on business class because he could not fit in his economy seat with the giant leg cast.
Finally we said good bye to our despondent relatives at security and the airline handlers wheeled my uncle away with my aunt following along waving good bye.
I breathed a giant sigh of relief I did not know I needed. The stress had just built up inside and I spent the rest of the day in a daze.
Yes it was the holiday in Hell but in spite of everything we managed to keep our cool and bond in ways we surely had not planned.
Still it might have been fun to have just had a boring weekend with a book and some pate the way we had planned but the Trophy H, my silent reader, thankfully even at Thanksgiving, knows how to adapt.

Fern Alley Market Farm Trophy H Pesto

Last week I bought my regular supply of spicy greens from John the salad guy at the local farmers market on Granville Island. This past week MrD and I not only munched our way through a half bag of the crisp green mouth happiness but I used the leaves instead of basil to make pesto. The spiciness of the peppery mustard greens, arugula and several other designer yum notes proved a perfect base for a walnut, rather than pine nut, pesto. I used the traditional notes of garlic, olive oil and Parmesan cheese for the taste and texture but to give it that Trophy H kick I added fresh ginger.
Next market day I brought John some of the pesto for him and his mom who was back working on the farm. This gentle quiet farmer or his delightful mom drives 80 K from their farm, Fern Alley Market Farms, in Upper Squamish Valley to bring Vancouverites amazing exotic greens in the top of their prime. It was a thrill to give back with some home made pesto.
Here’s how to make your own.
2 cups spicy salad greens
1 clove of peeled garlic
½ cup toasted unsalted walnuts
1 slice of peeled fresh ginger
½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
½ cup olive oil
Salt and Pepper
Add all the ingredients into a blender and work into a smooth paste
Cover in a bit more olive oil to keep the paste from losing its colour and store in the fridge in a container with a tight lid if you are not going to use it right away.
Trophy H tip # 473. Don’t just use pesto for pasta. It works perfectly as a spread on sandwiches, a base for salad dressing or soup with some zing.

Crab apple and roasted corn salsa.

The tartness of seasonal crab apples goes very well with the sweetness of roasted corn. Don’t peel the apples so the salsa has more colours. Roughly cut the cored apples into the same size as the roasted corn kernels. Add some crisp red onion, a handful of chopped carrots and lots of fresh coriander to make this simple but sensational salsa. Dress the salsa with salt and pepper, olive oil and some spicy vinegar, then give the whole thing a quick stir and it’s good to go. Keep this in the fridge and you can use it for a week. I used some to add to my duck sausage pasta sauce and MrD is still licking his chops and nodding thanks.

No Fuss Fussily.

Fall finds MrD and me back home in Vancouver enjoying my kitchen after three weeks away eating out of hotel kitchens. I have missed the local ingredients from my beloved Granville Island market. This Trophy H pasta is not only easy to whip up in a pinch but it would be good enough to feed to your Italian granny if you had one.
Fry some sliced chorizo sausage and red onions with a handfull of green peas until the sausage is browned and cooked through all the way. Throw in a handful of chopped fresh asparagus for some colour and added crunch. Stir everything for another minute just to cook the asparagus but not kill it. Take the pan off the heat and stir in a serving of chopped smoked salmon. Add all this to some fussily or penne and coat with a generous serving of basil and cream sauce and some salt and pepper to taste. Garnish with soft goat cheese crumbles and a few sprigs of fresh oregano. Your guests will lick their bowl and then wash it. Who could ask for anything more?

Trophy H Peach Salsa

Make this easy winner a day ahead of time. The flavours improve by hanging out and this seasonal side will be one thing out the way before your guests arrive.
Here’s how.
Chop two pealed peaches into small cubes. Save the peach pits aside for some crafting project. In a bowl add the fruit with 1 teaspoon each of chopped ginger and garlic. Finely dice one Thai bird’s eye chili without the seeds, a few sprigs of chopped mint and thin slices of mild red onion to add some bite and texture. Squeeze the juice of ½ a lime and add that with the lime zest over the salsa. Splash everything with a good slosh of decent olive oil and a pinch of crunchy red Hawaiian salt or a few shakes of plain white salt. Stir in everything gently so as not to bruise the peaches and store in the fridge until you are ready to serve.
I prefer to eat this salsa at room temperature but MrD, my silent reader, claims my spicy Trophy H peaches work just as well served up either hot or cold.

Philippines Paradise Papaya Pickles. Achara.

Here, my silent reader is your peaceful path to papaya pickle paradise.
This morning I made green papaya and carrot pickles, my Trophy H version of a Filipino favourite called achara and traditionally served as a side with many of their fried savoury dishes. The sourness of palm vinegar with the dark sweetness of palm sugar sets off a surprising mouthful of crunches with the carrots and green papaya. If you can’t find green papaya just use carrots or maybe try hicama.
To make your own quart jar of pickles grate or finely chop half a seeded green mango with about the same amount of carrots. Traditionally Filipinos would only use 5% carrot as a bit of colour in the mix but today I want a new batch with more carrots. OK I am clearing out the vegetable drawer before we fly out tomorrow and I wanted to use up all the carrots. Together in a sauce pan heat 2 cups of palm vinegar with 1 cup of palm sugar and a teaspoon of pickling spices until the sugar completely dissolves. Plain white vinegar and plain white sugar works just as well, my silent reader. Sterilize a clean mason jar in boiling water and filled the empty bottle to the top with the carrots and mango mixed with a handful of raisins. Top off the jar with the hot vinegar and seal with a tight lid. Stand the bottle upside down to cool and then store in the refrigerator. These are worth waiting for. Leave for at least a week but a month is better. I have to hide my achara behind things in the fridge or MrD will whine for me to open them now. MrD has family visiting from Manila in October and I look forward to sharing some of these flavours from home.
Pickles are easy to make. Don’t tell your guests. They will think you are some super hero.
Make your self a batch of these show stopping papaya paradise pickles and open them up to serve alongside your award winning Thanksgiving turkey. The guests will be the ones giving thanks and it will all be to you and of course your pal the Trophy H.

Trophy H Dish of the Day, August 31, 2010.

The Trophy H Lisa Peach Layer.

MrM and MsL, MrD’s and my own long time acquaintances from Texas came to visit on Sunday. This seasonal peach and salmon appetizer was an easy no fuss no muss and tasty way to start the dining. I have named this simple show stopper after the Lovely MsL. My menu featured two contrasting terrines. The Marvellous MrM’s version got layered roasted peaches with ham and pecorino cheese.

Here’s how.
Inside a metal ring form settle some sliced uncooked peaches with thin slices of the best wild smoked salmon you can source and some fresh goat cheese.

Trophy H kitchen tip #???. Make your own ring form rather than buying one of those 30 dollar rings with a fancy label on it from a kitchen store.

I built this terrine up inside a ring form I made from cutting both ends out of an empty tin can. Tuna fish cans are great. If you make your own tin can version, my silent reader, make sure you bend back the sharp lid edges inside the can so you don’t get injured. Save one of the ends of the can to help release the contents when you are ready to plate.

Start with a layer of the fresh peaches. I skinned the peaches for this version but normally I would leave the skins on for a bit of colour and texture. Add salmon. I used sliced salmon because that is what I had but you, my silent reader, could use salmon ends which I imagine would be cheaper but just as suitable for this dish. After the first layer of salmon add some crumpled goat cheese. I used a plain local cheese, a bit on the soft side, but with no herbs or cute hippy extras. Next I added another layer of salmon and a last few slices of the peaches.
The beauty of this appetizer is it can be made a few hours in advance, so when your own MrD or your guests arrive and its time to plate, you just grab it out of the refrigerator. Remove the terrine by using the tin can lid or a spatula to press out the food onto a cutting board. Slice into wedges like a pie and plate on a bit of micro greens. Throw on a tiny heirloom tomato or three. Splash a tear or two of your really good olive oil over the whole dish. Our guests brought us the best olive oil in Texas but more on that next time.
Then all you need to do is eat enjoy and sit back while the crowd roars your name.

Romer's Burger Bar

Last month’s burger at the Gathering Place Community Center where I was doing community service in the kitchen was a tasty deal for $2.75 and worth every subsidised penny. This month found me at Romer’s Burger Bar in Kitsalano on West 4th Ave. in Vancouver. I’d read a promising revue in some travel magazine and you, silent reader, knows the Trophy H is always open for suggestions as to where to find good meat. I ordered the customer’s choice called the “Man’s Man Burger”. Sounds like one for the Trophy H I thought. Simple ingredients like apple wood smoked bacon, local cheddar and onion strings sound promising but they all arrive on a brioche bun a bit too large for the size of the patty. The server did not ask me how I like my burger cooked and it was a little too cooked for my liking. There was no pink there to savour. The deep fried onion slivers were not greasy nor were they warm. The tomato slice was thin enough to go unnoticed on my chew meter and the cheddar was fairly nondescript. I guess the bacon was fine but I don’t remember much of it. I think there was a slice of pickle lost somewhere in the shuffle. There was some garlic mayo on the well toasted bun but either there was no kick to it or just not enough to notice. I was left wondering why it was there in the first place on this $11.00 quite regular burger. The $3.00 side of double cooked fries with sea salt were double cooked well enough but over salted with sea salt that was ground so fine it might have just been the regular salt out of the shaker.
Sadly, my silent reader, for this Trophy H, when my next month’s burger craving comes around I won’t be heading to Romer’s. Romer’s three star burger with a side of salty fries clocked in at $15.68 not including tip. Take your Dad but not your date.

Back in Manila

So sorry it has been ages since I have updated this blog. MrD and I recently returned to Manila for another stay at our tropical palace. It has been a long couple of months since we have been back so it is good to be home and chewing on some decent mangoes again. I packed a whole suitcase of food stuffs in Vancouver because I planned to cook a dinner for our staff here at home. Our office here in Manila is located on the ground floor of the condo unit where we live. My birthday was coming up, more on that sacred event in a moment. Every year around this time if we are in town, we usually take our staff to the Manila Shangri-La Hotel to enjoy their world class five star buffet but this year MrD requested that I cook at home and invite the staff upstairs. We had several new staff that had never been to visit and it was time to bring them all home. So I filled my check in bag with a 5 kilo ham and veggies you can’t find in the tropics like parsnips, turnips and sweet potatoes. I gathered a dozen or so of my favourite local artisan cheeses, three different varieties of pesto and other treats I knew were not available here on this island paradise. I knew from past experience that check in bags travel down in the hold where it is quite cold enough to keep everything fresh enough until we got here and there is no customs control like most countries here in the Philippines. You could bring in panda steaks and humming bird pate if you had the notion. I did not need the space in my luggage for regular things like clothing and toiletries because I already have all that here at home in Manila.
Dinner was a success but our staff is very easy to please when it comes to eating. They just require lots and lots of food and then just stand back and let them go at it until it all disappears.
The day after the dinner party MrD and I flew off to our island getaway of Boracay. You my silent reader may remember my last trip there when I met the dreaded black banded sea krait and lived to write about it. This time a typhoon just to the north was ongoing. The island storms were very dramatic with the palm trees doing their Gilligan’s Island impersonations. The famous white sand beach totally disappeared under the waves. The water was right up to the tree line. The whole side of the island exposed to the winds had been barricaded with plastic and bamboo screens to keep all those tacky coconut souvenirs from blowing off to our Chinese neighbours to the north.
I love the island when it’s stormy like this but some of the hordes of tourists, mostly from Korea, did not seem quite as excited. It rained a lot but a warm tropical rain and there was no lightning so I went swimming in the torrential downpours. I noticed one tourist standing waist deep in our hotel pool in the rain holding an umbrella over her head. Nice image but a bit confusing.
Alas we only had 3 nights of peace away before we needed to return to Manila. But it was good to be back and say hello to my Filipino home away from home.
Back in the city I needed to go to the National Bureau of Investigation, the Filipino version of the FBI to obtain police clearance documentation so I can apply for a new class of visa. Every year since we moved here I have had to get a working visa which I can because together with MrD we own companies here and hire enough locals to fit the requirements but it is a long involved process requiring lawyers and endless documents. Now because I am …of a certain age…I can apply for a retirement visa which in the beginning is just as tiresome to apply for but will eventually allow me more freedom to enter and exit the country.
I won’t go into the traumatic events of the long endless lineups only to be told we had to go to another office with even longer lineups on the fifth floor of the worst fire trap mall in all of Asia. Long story short. I got my clearance after three excursions into bureaucratic hell and all I need now is to deposit a king’s ransom of American cash into a Filipino bank and they will eventually, after a million more documents, allow me a retirement visa.
On a lighter note, your Trophy H has turned another year older and wiser. We invited MrD’s family for lunch. I refused to cook. I have cooked for that crowd very often but I insisted that this year I wanted the day off. We went to the weekend market early on the Saturday morning and bought Filipino prepared foods like chicken empatido, pork barbecue, seafood rice, roasted corn and other local favourites. I had ordered the giant flour less chocolate cake from the Manila Shangri-La that I have raved about in previous blogs. This beauty weighed in at about 5 kilos. Just think giant chocolate ganache truffle and you get the idea. I served up all the guests each a tiny slice and kept lots for me to enjoy later.
The in-laws loved the food, ate as much as they could and brought the rest of it home. I kept my eye on the leftover cake though so they couldn’t make off with that beauty. MrD left the next morning and is back home in Vancouver where I will fly off to join him again this coming Saturday. In the mean time I am getting much needed massage therapy, eating as many mangoes as I can stuff into me and working my way through all the rest of that delicious cake.

Frozen Fruit Yogurt Desert

Summer time and the living is easy. My Canadian friends are complaining about the heat. I just feel like MrD and I are back home in Manila. Of course it is more humid there but the heat is similar.
The best thing about the heat is cooling off with some home made frozen deserts and here are a couple of ideas for super fast and always easy frozen fruit and yogurt recipes. I keep several kinds of fruit in the freezer compartment of my refrigerator so I have some handy ingredients when I need a fast desert or a cool down snack.
Just add a couple of scoops of frozen fruit in a food processor or blender and add enough low fat yogurt and a little fruit juice so the mixture blends evenly. I often use frozen bananas which are very sweet so you don’t need extra sweetener but sometimes a splash or two of maple syrup is added to bring out the sweetness of the berries and add a dimension of flavour. This kind of frozen desert works best made on demand and eaten right away but in a time crunch you can do it before your guests arrive and leave it sit in the freezer until you need to serve it.
The two examples in the photos are frozen blueberries with cherry yogurt and the other is frozen mango, banana and fresh cranberries blended with lemon yogurt. Remember these fruits are frozen, not fresh so the desert comes out frozen.
Next time I want to try frozen banana and peanut butter with a spoon of nutella and plain yogurt.

Granville Island Public Market

I had thought I would be updating this week from Moncton, New Brunswick but MrD and I have postponed our eastern excursion until September. So, it’s Vancouver this week. I think it’s time for a tourist report from my favourite local market.
Having a bountiful market is a true gift I value, having lived and traveled in so many lands where food is not only scarce but definitely not of the best quality. We Canadians are blessed and fortunate. No one actually needs twenty eight varieties of organic wild game salami and twelve varieties of potatoes, but I ain’t complaining.
Granville Island Market, Vancouver’s perfect place for fresh local ingredients, is a source of many of my Trophy H dinners. Here is where I go to find wild mushrooms, game meats and spectacular sea food. Once a week I take a water taxi across to the island and do my shopping to stock up the pantry. I usually also buy an armload of flowers and a gooey cinnamon bun for MrD who stays home to run the empire while I do the marketing.
My Trophy H tips for visiting Granville Island Public Market is to go in the morning so you can be there when it opens at 9 am. I go on Thursdays. All the produce coming in for the weekend has arrived so you are getting first choice of the finest wares. The market just gets too crowded for actual shopping later when the tourists flock in to ogle our super salmon, salivate at our fat sausages and try to sneak photos of me in one of my stunning, get out of my road, outfits. Avoid the weekends and the inevitable crowds. If its not the food you are shopping for, but all that other artsy stuff, then you need to know that most galleries open at 11am.
Granville Island Public Market is a must for both the serious cook and tourists with their digital cameras and all that holiday vacationer cash to spend. It is the place for me to meet other chefs from around town. We compare notes on what is fresh and in season. We share tips and ideas. The dealers often grill us on what we plan to make with their ingredients. Sometimes we bring them tastes and recipes with our thanks.
The market has ample place to sit and relax with a cup of java and a new found pastry friend. You can eat well in the noisy packed food court or brown bag it with your finds and go outside, sit down and enjoy one of the best views of Vancouver. Mind not to feed those pesky birds.
Have a great week, my silent reader, of shopping, cooking and sharing food with friends.

Last week’s guests have gone home and MrD and I are adjusting to scaffolding set up in our great room. About 3 months ago the workers renovating our upstairs neighbour’s condo damaged a major water pipe that created a trail of disaster for 18 floors. I was back home in Manila when all that happened but fortunately MrD was here to handle the immediate mess. Because the flooding affected so many units a disaster team was called in to do the whole job for all the units. The results are such that three months later workmen are finally here on site fixing up the dry wall. The ceiling in that room is 21 feet high so they had to install scaffolding. I am told the industrial monkey bars will in all likelihood be set up for about two weeks while they dry wall and then paint and texture. This weekend I took advantage of the equipment and had a ceiling fan installed to circulate some of this rare hot air summer has brought us.
In spite of the chaos I keep putting meals on the table for MrD. Here are this week’s three easy to prepare dishes that even you, my silent reader can make on your own.
The heat of summer always seems to keep my hunger level down. The higher the temperature the less time I want to spend chewing food. Salads, sandwiches and nibbles are perfect summer choices.
At this time of year so many of the local tomatoes are being featured at the markets. I found some perfect tiny yellow miniatures that are packed full of flavour. I sliced these babies up, added some fresh herbs, salt and pepper, tossed them with capers in a light vinaigrette and served them as both a salad and a topping for a puffed pastry tart. Puff pastry is not a difficult thing to work with. You buy it frozen in your grocery store and let it thaw out a couple of hours before you roll it out. Don’t have a rolling pin? Use a wine bottle.
In this heat I like to serve chicken drummettes as nibble finger foods. This version I divided the wings into 4 groups and mixed different rubs for each pile. Then, I just baked them all in the same oven at 350 F or 175 C for 45 to 50 minutes. The baby drums are perfect hot or cold. You can use your favourite marinades for the chicken. I used pesto for one of the marinades, spicy hot curry for another, maple syrup and ancho chili powder with lots of black pepper for the third variety and some sun dried tomato paste with balsamic vinegar and mustard for the fourth flavour. Go wild with the combinations but don’t use too many ingredients or the taste gets lost.
I hope this summer weather holds for a bit. Canadians are an entirely different race of people in the warmer season than they are in those colder darker wet months.

Happy Canada Day Eh?

Every patriot loves his home land. I lived abroad for 20 years and every July 1st a bell would go off in my mental files. Bling. Canada. This year MrD and I are celebrating the big day in Vancouver with guests. My much older and wiser brother, MrR and his charming wife, MsA, are visiting for 5 days from their frontier homeland estate back east in the northern wilds of Ontario.
Local artisan cheeses and breads served us as our breakfast celebration. Then we were off to the docks on Hornby Street to catch a ferry to Grandville Island for a quick shop before the crush of tourists arrives. It is perfect July 1 weather, too cold for a mass of tourists. It doesn’t take me long to get what I need from the market. I have a mental list of what I want and where to get it and the crowds tend to part and give me room. Today I was shopping for the last of the fresh wild morels in season. I imagine you are tired, my silent reader, of my morels as much as you might be tired of my morals. MrD will not be sorry when I stop feeding him these tasty fungus treats. But MrR and MsA love morels as much as I do, so they are getting them at every meal.
Tonight I am serving wild cold smoked salmon rolled up with goat cheese and morel puree for the appetizer. MrD is a teeny bit tired of salmon, goat cheese or morels so he is getting wild boar pancetta with some pecorino cheese. MrR and MsA don’t eat pork so things all work out balance wise. To go with my Trophy H Canadian theme menu for tonight’s meal the main course will be braised Alberta beef short ribs in a maple syrup adobo sauce. The sides to serve nestled beside my ribs will be snow peas, smashed fireworks red potatoes and of course morels. Desert will be some of my Trophy H hand baked fig and maple baklava. Then we all head down to the sea shore to watch the fireworks.
We all have an early flight to the Yukon in the morning to continue the festivities. I will update next time with news of our northern journey but in the mean time here are today’s recipes.
Smoked Salmon Rolls.
Layer 8 - 10 smoked salmon slices on plastic wrap.
Spread an even mixture of goat cheese and morel mushroom pate over the salmon layer leaving a half inch of salmon on the long side. Roll up the salmon into a tight roll and refrigerate for at least 4 hours before slicing.
Beef Short Ribs.
Coat generous sized cuts of beef short ribs with a morel BBQ sauce and put them in a slow cooker. Cover with a splash each of Soy sauce, Worcestershire, apple cider vinegar and about ¼ cup of maple syrup. Cook on low for 4 hours.
Cut small stars on opposite sides of some small new red potatoes and boil until fork tender. Cool and then gently smash into flattened ovals with the stars on each of the flat sides. Fry these in hot olive oil or duck fat until brown and crispy.
Saute some sliced morel mushrooms in a little butter with salt and pepper.
Steam snow peas in their shell. Serve the potatoes, mushrooms and peas as the sides for the ribs.
I made my Trophy H secret recipe fig and maple baklava for desert because I am the Trophy H. You, my silent reader, don’t have to go to all that much work.

It's burger time.

OK I have good news and bad news about this month’s burger. You, my silent reader, will remember my blog about a month ago when I reviewed my once a month burger fix. I gave Vancouver’s “The Two Parrots” four out of five stars for a tasty slab of the red stuff.
Well, as you know, I only allow myself one burger a month, so here is the good news. I have discovered the best burger in Vancouver. The bad news is I am not going to tell you where you can find it. If I do that the restaurant might become just too popular if my fans find out I eat there. It’s only a small ‘brassiere’ on Davie Street. I want to be sure to always get a table. I don’t like to wait on tables. That’s what a waiter does. Did that. Done that. My therapist helps me forget all about it.
About a week ago I stopped to read their menu posted outside their kitchen window. (I actually stopped to watch them cook but pretended to read the menu.) I saw ‘Burger’ and my once a month burger alarm went off. I read about white cheddar, bacon and truffle aioli and my heart rate went up with anticipation.
So I convinced MrD I should take him there so he could buy me lunch. We went at an early hour to get seated before the rush and were greeted by a very helpful and equally charming Megan. She welcomed us and updated us on the specials of the day. The lobster bisque with spot prawns set off my taste bud alerts and at only 6 loonies but I was a trophy husband on a mission and that was to eat my monthly burger. I begged Megan to bring me one forthwith and put me out of my craving misery.
MrD went for the moules et frites because he can speak French.
Megan soon enough returned with generous pots of frites for MrD and fries for moi. I know I said I can’t find a decent French fry in Vancouver but I promise I will no longer say that. The fries at this place, that I am not going to mention, are nearly as good as my own. Close enough to have made me want to eat them all.
Now it’s on to the real deal. The burger was actually better than my own because I did not have to do the work that went into this perfect big bite of burger bliss. The soft bun was toasted. The generous meat patty was grilled perfectly to my taste. On top of that was some truffle aioli hidden under bacon so tender, but crisp at the same time. Working my way up this mountain of meat joy were some of the best deep fried onions that ever slipped by my taste buds. Just under the top of the bun I found a tasteful garnish of some fresh salad greens.
Served on the side were tiny ramekins of house made mayonnaise and ketchup. When was the last time you ordered a burger and it came with ketchup the chef made? I hate ketchup. I never eat it. You know that, my silent reader, from a previous blog. No longer true. This tomato treat had just a hint of anise and was not too sweet like our pal the red muck in a bottle. Perfect ketchup with those fries but the burger was good to go as it was. And I ate the whole thing. I won’t bother you with all the details of how juicy and fabulous this five star burger tasted but I don’t imagine I will look elsewhere again next month if I am in Vancouver for my next burger fix. I will just return to Megan and this nameless small brassiere on Davie Street in Vancouver.