Peanut Crusted Tofu with Cold Kimchi Noodles

Summer is winding down but no one told the humidity that. If I could use one word to describe Toronto’s current climate that word would be “swampy”. So if there was ever a time to bust out a bowl of cold noodles, it’s now. I’ve been down this road before. This time a couple of years ago, I was slurping on a cool bowl of chilled noodle soup. But this year I ditched the soup, swapped the noodles for Cold Kimchi Noodles (Kimchi Bibim Guksu), and found some Peanut Crusted Tofu. This isn’t just noodles, this is a bountiful bowl of spicy pickle-y peanut bliss.
Marinated Sweet Peas with Back Bacon and Burrata

Every year I overload myself with summer recipes I want to test, photograph, post, and share. And every summer I find myself in a race against the calendar to get them all ship-shape and blog-ready before everything gives way to pumpkins and pecan pie. There is so much produce to play with during the summer and so little time. So every year, I leave this season with food-related regrets. Missing sour cherry season this year really burned my biscuits. But one thing I did not miss was pea season. And out of the numerous peas-related adventures I embarked upon this year, these Marinated Sweet Peas with Back Bacon and Burrata were my very favorite.
S’more Alfajores with Dulce de Leche Ganache

A traditional alfajor cannot be improved upon. Alfajores are, in my opinion, the perfect dessert. They have melt-in-your-mouth cookies, a creamy, complex, and gooey center, and they can be rolled in shredded coconut. Essentially they pluck at all my heartstrings. So you may be wondering why I would ever choose to alter them. Well, it’s certainly not to elevate them, as I mentioned above, this South American delicacy is the pinnacle of cookie perfection. I decided to introduce s’mores to the classic alfajores because I thought it would taste good. Seriously, that is the only reason. And you know what? I was right. But do these S’more Alfajores beat out the original? No, I wouldn’t say they’re better, they’re just different and variety is the spice of life.
Watermelon Fava Bean Salad

So here we are in August. How did that happen? Every year I ask myself that same question. I look down woefully at my summer bucket list and scold myself for all the boxes left unticked. But this year, that isn’t the case. I kept my list sensibly short due to the COVID of it all. I figured there was no point in grand plans when even a trip to a grocery store requires more than its fair share of forethought. Initially, I was bummed but now that I’m more or less free of mid-summer blues, I’m thinking a small, manageable agenda is what I should’ve been doing all along. I mean, it’s easy to get the most out of summer when all you want are cold beers in the backyard and this Watermelon Fava Bean Salad.