ISO organic yogurt in a multipack

i found liberte organic yogurt in a multi-pack at loblaws (raspberry/vanilla, 8 portions). and i also found liberte organic GREEK yogurt in a multi-pack at longos (strawberry and/or blueberry, 4 portions each). flavours are not as extensive as stonyfield but i've tried both the regular and greek yogurts and they are tasty.

lilaki in Ontario (including Toronto)

ISO organic yogurt in a multipack

okay, i will check out loblaws this weekend for the 8 pack! i don't recall seeing it last week ... i saw the individual containers but i'll take another look. thanks!

lilaki in Ontario (including Toronto)

ISO organic yogurt in a multipack

oooh, i will have to look for this next time i'm at costco. like truffles, i thought it was regular and not organic. thanks!

lilaki in Ontario (including Toronto)

ISO organic yogurt in a multipack

hi hounds,

i was dismayed to find out that stonyfield organic yogurt has been discontinued in canada. i've been buying that stuff for several years and fell in love with the taste/quality/flavours/etc. hubby and i would normally take one or two containers to work in our lunch bags each day. now, the search is on for another organic yogurt that also comes in a multipack.

i've tried the liberte organic yogurts and they're good ... but it's an expensive habit to buy each container individually.

any recos?

thanks!

lilaki in Ontario (including Toronto)

ISO chopped/diced tomatoes NOT in cans

chopped or strained?

lilaki in Ontario (including Toronto)

ISO chopped/diced tomatoes NOT in cans

i have started using mutti diced tomatoes. they are in tetra pak like pomi but slightly smaller container. i get them at longos.

lilaki in Ontario (including Toronto)

Recommendations for 'best' Parisian style bakery in Toronto/GTA

third!!!

lilaki in Ontario (including Toronto)

looking for thai curry recipe

do you also freeze the meat/veg in the base? do you have any recipes that you could point me to or share? thanks!

lilaki in Home Cooking

looking for thai curry recipe

any, all ... coconut-based. and preferably with some vegetables thrown in so we can just defrost, cook some rice and dinner would be ready!

THANKS!

lilaki in Home Cooking

looking for thai curry recipe

hi hounds,

i'm hoping you can help me out. i'd like to make some thai chicken or beef curry and then FREEZE it. DH and i are expecting kid #1 shortly and we've stocked our deep freezer with lots of pastas, casseroles, etc. i'm looking for something a bit more 'exotic' when we're casserole-ed out!

does anyone have any recipes that they can recommend that also freeze well?

thank you!

lilaki in Home Cooking

can i freeze a whole, roasted chicken? (also, any make-ahead meat-based dishes that freeze well?)

great, thanks for the tip! maybe i'll roast and shred some chicken after all!

lilaki in Home Cooking

can i freeze a whole, roasted chicken? (also, any make-ahead meat-based dishes that freeze well?)

thanks for all of your input. maybe making and then freezing meat isn't such a great idea. however, i am inspired to make some chicken/beef pot pies!

lilaki in Home Cooking

can i freeze a whole, roasted chicken? (also, any make-ahead meat-based dishes that freeze well?)

i haven't eaten lunch meats/processed meats in years ... i LOVE your idea of sliced leftover meats for sandwiches though. tks!

lilaki in Home Cooking

can i freeze a whole, roasted chicken? (also, any make-ahead meat-based dishes that freeze well?)

hi 02putt,

thanks for the list... i never thought of chicken parm or breaded chicken. i'm assuming this is fully cooked and then frozen?

lilaki in Home Cooking

can i freeze a whole, roasted chicken? (also, any make-ahead meat-based dishes that freeze well?)

ouf! i'm glad i asked! i didn't know about the bones and bitterness!

i'm not sure if roasting a whole chicken would work then ... i know what i'd do with all the breast meat but not so sure about the thighs/legs. what would you do with the shredded dark meat?

maybe someone will post about meat dishes that freeze well.

lilaki in Home Cooking

can i freeze a whole, roasted chicken? (also, any make-ahead meat-based dishes that freeze well?)

hi hounds,

hubby and i are expecting kid #1 in early december. we bought an upright freezer recently and have been slowly stocking it with soup, stock, chili, lasagna, tomato sauce, ziti, quiche, muffins, loaves, casseroles, etc. i've found some great threads on CH on what kinds of things new parents can make and freeze ahead of the newborn chaos!

however, now i'm wondering about roasting and freezing whole chickens. would that work? ideally, we could roast off four chickens in a weekend, throw them in the freezer and then have quite a few dinners with a quick frozen veg/salad and rice (or something).

also, other than meatballs and hamburger patties, are there any other meats that we can make ahead and freeze?

THANKS!

lilaki in Home Cooking

New Butcher/food store in Etobicoke

glad people are still loving medium rare. we were completely saddened/shocked by frank's passing! it is nice to see that the place is still bustling and quality has remained superb. connie (frank's sister) treats us like family. it is just another stop in our weekly errands ... and i'm so glad the place is still thriving!

lilaki in Ontario (including Toronto)

Grocery Chains - Favourites?

my favourite chain is longos...hands down. unfortunately, they're not the most conveniently located. but i will drive past loblaw, metro, galati, SDM on my way to longos in mississauga.

lilaki in Ontario (including Toronto)

Narrowing the restaurant choices down for family vacation in Maui

i got my safeway card at the cashier's when i was checking out. shouldn't have any problems. same thing for the discount card/club (whatever) they were offering @ foodland farms.

lilaki in Hawaii

At what steak house might a party of two be comfortable without drinking alcohol?

i used to get wined/dined (for work) at all the fancy steakhouses (and other high end restaurants) in toronto. i am not a drinker. in fact, i don't even order pop or anything non-alcoholic. i always order water with my meal. i have NEVER been made to feel uncomfortable.

i concur with the others ... go wherever you want, order whatever you want!

lilaki in Ontario (including Toronto)

ISO vietnamese crepes in GTA

hi hounds,

i had a delicious vietnamese crepe at star noodle in maui. it was so good that i went back again ... i generally don't like repeating restaurants and/or menu items when on vacation because i like to try something new.

the crepe was super crispy, filled with pork, shrimp (coconut-scented?), beansprouts ... and it was all accompanied by butter lettuce, carrots, cucumbers, mint, thai basil, cilantro, and a dipping sauce.

any recommendations on where to get this in the GTA? west-end preferred.

thanks!

lilaki in Ontario (including Toronto)

ISO Taro Chips - GTA

wow, i never thought of trying the bulk barn! thanks.

i wonder if any of the asian grocery stores would have them. T&T perhaps?

lilaki in Ontario (including Toronto)

ISO Taro Chips - GTA

yes, i've seen terra chips ... and some of the blends do have some taro chips in them. but i was looking for 100% taro chips.

lilaki in Ontario (including Toronto)

Narrowing the restaurant choices down for family vacation in Maui

here's my report: http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/805709

lilaki in Hawaii

maui - eating/food report

hi hounds,

as promised, here's my eating/food report. DH and i were in maui for a week at the end of august. we stayed at the maui kai condos in honokawai. we never fully adjusted to the time difference (we're from toronto) ... and we didn't want to give up the sunsets off our balcony each evening ... as a result, we ended up eating pretty early each night. i was 6 months preggers during this trip and definitely can't pack it in like i used to! as you will see from where we ate, we were pretty casual/laid back during our trip.

i've broken this down by restaurants, followed by food stores. here goes:

aloha mixed plate - lahaina

we went here for our first dinner. we were exhausted from a long flight and starving by 4 pm (jet leg from the east coast). service was fast. we were seated right near the ocean. setting is nice. food was okay ... combine tired + hungry and really, any food would've been fine.

TJ's warehouse - wailuku

we stopped in here for a quick 'bento' lunch while in wailuku. i had a pre-package bento box (misoyaki butterfish) and DH had a sampling of items from the hot table. food was really good and cheap. the place was full of locals; we definitely stood out as tourists!

home maid bakery - wailuku

we went here for dessert after TJ's. we got coconut mochi (interesting) and some malasadas. the malasadas were piping hot. maybe i'm missing something, but they seemed like a plain donut to me.

cilantro mexican grill - lahaina

good mexican food in lahaina. the food could've used some more seasoning ... but the self-serve salsa bar more than made up for it. i had a taco combo and DH had a burrito combo. prices were really reasonable.

jawz taco truck - makena beach

we stopped in here after a snorkeling trip to molokini. we had fish tacos and they were DELISH! really hit the spot after our snorkeling trip. we had our first shave ice here too ... which was nothing to write home about (see ululani's below).

star noodle - lahaina

the restaurant just opened for all day service the week we arrived. since we still hadn't adjusted to hawaiian time, we were eating our dinners pretty early. we were seated promptly when we arrived around 5 pm. the vietnamese crepe was AWESOME. ordered the pork buns and brussel sprouts ... to see how they compared to momofuku ssam in NYC. have to say, these were good but momofuku ruled, hands down! also ordered the look funn rolls ... and thought i died and went to heaven. the sauce was so good that i ordered a small bowl of rice to sop it all up. sigh ... still dreaming about that sauce.

we loved star noodle so much that we went back for our 'farewell' dinner before driving off to the airport for our overnight flight home. the vietnamese crepe was worth having twice!

moana bakery - paia

stopped in here for a quick snack after our helicopter tour ... things were pretty pricey but very tasty. we got a cinnamon bun and a cookie. yum!

geste shrimp truck - wailuku

i'm not a huge shrimp fan but i have to admit, these shrimps were mighty tasty! didn't really care for the mac salad ... but to be honest, i'm not a pasta/mayonnaise salad fan. we shared one scampi order.

we returned here a few days later and tried the pineapple shrimp. also very good but i prefered the scampi.

tasaka guri guri

refreshing treat on a HOT afternoon ... but not sure DH and i 'get' the hype. i liked strawberry better than pineapple but DH preferred the opposite. we both agreed, we liked ululani's shave ice better.

sansei - kapalua

we were the first in line at 4:30 pm ... it was a PAIN to have to wait in line till 5:15 pm. however, food was definitely good. this is NOT authentic ... so if you're going here hoping for some authentic japanese food, go elsewhere. HOWEVER, the sushi/rolls were definitely UNIQUE and tasty. the shrimp dynamite was SUPER yummy. and the shrimp cake with whatever sauce was AMAZING. we also had sunomono, panko crusted ahi, japanese eggplant, lobster/blue crab ravioli (i'd skip this next time), ahi poke, sansei's special roll, and the yellow submarine roll. we were able to take advantage of the 25% discount ...but we both agreed, we would return regardless of the discount. gratuities of 17.8% are automatically added to the bill.

mcdonalds

i know. i was NOT planning to go to mcdonalds. but friends told us we HAD to try the haupia pie. well, i have to say ... it's worth the trip to mcdonald's for haupia pie. not sure if it's authentic or what but it was delicious. and the pie was DEFINITELY fried ... wow. delish.

ululani's shave ice

so good that we went back twice. the flavours are AMAZING ... i always had mac nut ice cream and adzuki beans and DH always had haupia ice cream and adzuki beans. we got mochi balls once ... they were good but i think i'd rather have mochi as mochi ... and not as an add in.

merriman's - kapalua

this was our 'splurge' dinner. we had 5:30 pm reservations and watched a wedding ceremony take place during sunset. it was really beautiful. service was great. food was delicious. we each had starter salads and our entrees. no booze or dessert. the bill was just over $100 (pre-tip).

honokowai okuzaya - honokowai

i'd read mixed reviews about this place but it was so close to our condo that we decided to give it a try. not cheap but decent food. we both had the ono with lemon/caper sauce...i think the total was $35. as we were driving out of the parking lot, we noticed a taco truck (ohana tacos?) was setting up in the parking lot! DAMN!!! we both agreed we would've preferred tacos for dinner! oh well ... next trip.

honolua general store - kapalua

great stop for a cheap breakfast or lunch. the store is definitely geared towards tourists in the kapalua 'village'. the hot table had some interesting dishes ... not sure what we ordered but the lady behind the counter said it was philippino. whatever it was, it was good! lunch for both was about $15.

duke's beach house

after a week of mainly seafood meals, i was CRAVING red meat. and being our last night in maui, i REALLY wanted to make it back to the condo in time for our last sunset. we went to dukes (just a short walk along the beach from our condo) and were both pleasantly surprised by our meals. we ate on the more casual patio. we had a great starter salad with kula beets and surfing goat dairy cheese. wow! i wish i had this cheese earlier in the trip! i had beef tacos and was surprised at how flavourful the dish was and how TENDER the beef was. DH had a chicken/rib combo and was also pleased.

and now, for the food stores:

safeway - lahaina

we went here our first afternoon/evening to stock up. i was expecting MUCH more expensive prices. organic milk and yogurt were the same price as what we pay at home. i know prices for dairy in the US are generally cheaper so maybe that's where the sticker shock comes from? bread was a bit more expensive than home. we noticed that packaged foods (i.e. cereals, crackers, chips, etc.) were significantly more expensive. we did not buy produce here. i signed up for the safeway discount card at the cash register and we saved a few bucks on some specific items.

foodland farms - lahaina

i kept hearing radio ads about how foodland farms carries local produce ... but you had to look pretty hard! i was surprised at how much produce was imported (either from mainland US or other countries). we bought some provisions for lunches here ... roast chickens, tomatoes, etc.

honokowai farmers market - honokowai

best place for produce! the actual outdoor market is on m-w-f mornings ... but there's a retail store open seven days a week (i think). the outdoor market seemed to have more produce. we stocked up on apple bananas, papayas, pineapples, sugar cane, coconut, etc. there's also a good selection of flavoured cream cheeses, guacamole, salsas, etc. i really liked the banana bread that we got here too.

times supermarket - honokowai

on a quiet afternoon, DH and i wandered over to times. things were pricier here than the safeway/foodland farms. but, when we travel, we like checking out local grocery stores to see how different things are compared to home.

julia's banana bread

this doesn't really count as a 'store' per se. more like a roadside stand. we took a drive around west maui from honokowai to wailuku one afternoon. we picked up two small banana loaves and a box of coconut candy. NOT cheap ... $25! but really tasty.

whole foods - kahului

the only place where i was able to find kula strawberries ... very tasty! other than that ... it was pretty similar to most other whole foods that i've been to.

costco - kahului

friends of ours had raved about costco during their trip to oahu/big island from a few years ago. so we went to check it out. not sure what all the fuss is about ... we bought some kona coffee and that's about it. as there were only two of us at the condo for one week, it wasn't worth buying anything in bulk.

final comments:

we enjoyed our time in maui. i liked that water was served at every restaurant as soon as we sat down. i got a bit tired of heavy sauces/foods towards the end of the trip. we had plans to go to the old lahaina luau but since we were never awake past 8 pm each night AND since we had already eaten at aloha mixed plate, we nixed our reservations. not saying that AMP was a substitution for our luau. we made reservations at merriman's instead and were glad we did. i was totally craving potatoes by the time we got home ... there was a LOT of white rice in our diet that week! prices weren't as outrageous as i was expecting ... i guess that's a good thing! i fell in love with ono (wahoo) and somehow don't think i'm going to be able to find it at a fishmonger in toronto. i'm also on the hunt for taro chips!

lilaki in Hawaii

ISO Taro Chips - GTA

hi hounds,

just got back from hawaii where i had local taro chips. they were DELISH! crunchy, salty, and TASTY! totally not like potato chips. anyway, i went to my local loblaws over the weekend and didn't find any taro chips.

has anyone spotted taro chips in the GTA??

thanks!

lilaki in Ontario (including Toronto)

Ono (Wahoo) Fresh or Frozen

bumping this to see if anyone knows where to find ono in GTA? my newest favourite fish!

lilaki in Ontario (including Toronto)

Narrowing the restaurant choices down for family vacation in Maui

yes, i'll definitely let you know what where we end up eating!

lilaki in Hawaii

Narrowing the restaurant choices down for family vacation in Maui

hi there,

not sure when you're going ... i'm heading to maui next week and plan to hit star noodle, aloha mixed plate, paia fish market, and the geste shrimp truck. i'll write up a post when i get back (towards the end of august).

lilaki in Hawaii