Reese's for Halloween

 At last! I was getting desperate since the start of the countdown: I could not find any Reese's chocolates for Halloween. I mean yes, I could find some, but not the one with pumpkins, just normal ones and (shudder) Xmas ones. The latter have no place on the shelves right now. However, a short trip to the nearest Aldi changed it: not only do they have bags of Halloween Reese's, but they have loads of different figures: the usual Jack O'Lanterns, bays and ghosts. I'm in high protein and sugar heaven. It's not Halloween without Reese's. It is a brand I rediscovered in adult age, but for some reason I really got hooked on it.

Reese's Pumpkins

 It's a staple of the season: Reese's chocolates. Especially the ones shaped like pumpkins. I see them from time to time in the local sweet shop, but come October, they are everywhere. They are among the earliest sign of the season. I don't see Reese's given for trick or treat anymore, probably because of peanut allergies. As a child, I don't think I ever ate them except during Halloween, after trick or treat. Now, as an adult, I always buy some when I see them. I share them with Wolfie of course. Hey, it's not so bad: the peanut butteris full of proteins.

Peanut butter and proteins

Yesterday I went downtown for a quick grocery shopping as we were short on a lot of things. It was a simple top up. On my way back, I bumped into one of Wolfie's teaching assistants, maybe his favourite TA (and I think he is her favourite pupil too). We had a quick chat, she told me: "I need to go to the shop. I have two boys, one 28, the other 25 and they just eat all the time. The quantity of proteins they need every day, it's mad!" I told her that it was similar with Wolfie as he was growing up and seemed to never feel full. Then I told her: "The males in our household live mainly on a diet of peanut butter." I think it deserves to be a new great unknown line. She agreed that peanut butter was great anyway, because of the protein intake. Anyway, that made my evening. I feel safe knowing that Wolfie has a TA that understands boys so well and knows what's good for them. And I also now that peanut butter is going to be an important part of family life for years to come.

Reese's: first sign of Halloween

Something made me very happy recently when I went to the local sweet shop: I found Reese's chocolates. The ones Jack O'Lantern shaped. Which makes it officially the very first sign of Halloween I have seen this year. Okay, so I could see ones shaped as Christmas trees too, so they probably were from last year anyway, but all the same, it still counts. Reese's is a staple of treats during trick or treat in any case, so it is all the more fitting. Especially since it has been feeling borderline autumnal recently.

A French Toast Sandwich?

Recently, my wife sent me a link to a recipe of a French toast peanut butter and jelly sandwich. God only knows how she found it. It is made of three French toasts, crunchy peanut butter, blueberry jam and raspberries. It looks absolutely calorific and the perfect recipe if you want to clog your arteries. Typical American overindulgence. Now, because Wolfie is quite fond of French toasts, my wife would like me to make it for him. And, well... I don't know. I love every single component of the French toast sandwich, but I never liked the idea of mixing jam and peanut butter, for one. It spoils the flavour of both in my opinion. And adding it to French toasts... It's just so piggish, isn't it? I guess at least he wouldn't be short on proteins. Anyway, since I saw the recipe, I keep wondering who is the sick, twisted mind who invented this abomination.

Reese's for Halloween

For today's countdown to Halloween post, something I found in the local sweet shop. They have lots of Halloween sweets (or candies as Americans call it) and a few classics. I don't know much about Reese's, I mean I had some in the past, but I understand this is a classic for trick or treaters in the US. For me, it tastes like a spoonful of peanut butter, coated in chocolate.I do remember having some from time to time, I ate then dutifully, but otherwise I never felt overly impressed by them. Well, it turned out they invented the most perfect Reese's for Halloween: shaped like a jack o'lantern. In milk or white chocolate varieties. It still tastes like chocolated sweetened peanut butter, but all the same, I could not help but buy them. And I really enjoyed eating them. Because they were shaped like pumpkins.

About peanut butter sandwiches

When I started working from home, peanut butter quickly became the main part of a quick and easy meal. Well, I had started using it again in the office of my previous job, the one I hated, but it is since lockdown that it became my main mean of sustenance, at least for lunches. It is in many ways going back to uni. I either use it on toasts, or in a sandwich, if I have a good enough bread. A peanut butter sandwich is quick and easy to make, it is filling, it gives you plenty of energy, it is also delicious. Peanut butter sandwiches have many virtues.

ManiLife peanut butter

Since I have been all out of Kraft peanut butter for some time, I try to find the best possible peanut butter here as this is the main part of my diet for breakfast and often for lunch as well, especially since I have started working from home. My wife does not understand this love of peanut butter, which is shared by Wolfie, and how we can get through jars of the thing so quickly. I explained to her that it is a family thing: "With any luck, this will get him through uni life, just like it did to me and my mother and he will never know hunger". This deserves to be a new great unknown line, by the way, but I digress. Anyway, last weekend I bought in one of the local food shop one of the best peanut butters I found in this country: Manilife's original roast smooth peanut butter. Like many posh peanut butters, you need to stir it with a spoon before spreading it. But it is worth it and absolutely delicious. It is thick, creamy, filling, in sum everything it says on the jar. It is not cheap, nevertheless it was worth the investment for quality breakfasts and lunches.

Les réserves de Kraft

Quand je retourne au Québec, je repars toujours avec des réserves de beurre d'arachide Kraft, ce quime permet 1)d'avoir des déjeuners qui ont de l'allure, avec le meilleur des beurres d'arachide selon moi (je suis très sérieux) et 2)de me faire oublier un instant le mal du pays. J'ajouterais aussi bien entendu la nostalgie: c'est toute mon enfance, le Kraft, surtout le crémeux, parfois le croquant, avec quelques variantes. J'ai souvent blogué sur le sujet. Cette année je n'ai rapporté qu'un pot de beurre d'arachide et il est déjà entamé. Je vais essayer de le faire durer, mais ça sera difficile: maintenant je dois le partager avec mon fils, qui l'aime déjà autant que moi.

Pic's Peanut Butter

During last week's grocery shop, I stumbled upon Pic's Peanut Butter. I did not know this brand and, as I am always on the lookout for good peanut butter (I do miss Kraft though), I bought a pot, even though it was not cheap. According to its label and the website, it is gluten free, has 25% more good fat, 26% pure protein per serve, no added sugar, no added preservatives, emulsifiers or flavorings and so on. In fact, it boasts so much about its quality that I said on Facebook: "If it is all it says it is on the label, I’ll be in protein heaven." Which deserves to be a great unknown line. So anyway, I tried it for breakfast and to my surprise it turned out to be true. So I was in protein heaven. And Pic's Peanut Butter is my latest happy gastronomical discovery.

Have a Kit Kat (with peanut butter!)

Sometimes there are weird things that just work. Take the traditional Kit Kat bar for instance: it's a biscuit bar disguised as a chocolate bar and it's a good enough dessert and a delicious if not very filling snack. My wife loves them, I like them. But they introduced a number of variants to the bar, among them, the Kit Kat with peanut butter. As my readers know, I have during weekdays a bit of a beaver's diet: to get through my working days, I need some food that gives me endorphin and energy. Thus, I need something sugar. This specific variety gives a bit more energy, thanks to the peanut butter. And it even tastes just right, to my great surprise. I love peanut butter, but I am always skeptical to add it to a dessert or indeed anything sweet. This time, it worked, it even gives a smoothness which the normal Kit Kat is devoid of. It may not be my favourite chocolate bar, but I will have it from time to time when I need an energy boost.

Les réserves de Kraft commencées

Ceci est l'un des trois pots de beurre d'arachide Kraft que j'ai achetés à Montréal. Trois pots, pas des géants parce que je ne pensais pas pouvoir transporter des pots trop gros, alors j'ai pris les gros formats (ou les formats moyens?). Tout ça pour dire que j'ai donc entamé les réserves de beurre d'arachide Kraft. Je les mange sur mes toasts les fins de semaines, avec du vrai pain (si j'ai pas de pain qui a de l'allure, je ne gaspille pas mon beurre d'arachide) et les soirs de Krav Maga, parce que je rentre tard. Au rythme où ça va, ils devraient durer pendant quelques mois. Après ça, il me faudra songer à un retour au bercail.

Le Kraft

Dans la catégorie "les choses qui me manquaient depuis longtemps et que je redécouvre avec plaisir ici", le beurre d'arachide Kraft figurait en tête de liste. Alors je me suis comme bourré la gueule (au sens d'empiffrer, pas au sens de se saouler, bien entendu) au déjeuner. Le premier déjeuner c'était au croquant, le deuxième au crémeux. Il n'y a pas grand-chose à dire, sauf que de voir une jarre de Kraft comme celle-ci sur la table du déjeuner le matin, ça a quelque chose de rassurant. Rien ne goûte plus familier que le beurre d'arachide Kraft pour moi.

Les réserves de Kraft

C'est pas loin d'être une catastrophe, voire une tragédie, pour mes déjeuners: je n'ai plus de beurre d'arachide... Terminé fini, avec les English muffins ce matin. La famine matinale me guette, en tout cas en ce qui concerne mes déjeuners la fin de semaine. Bon, il fallait bien finir les pots (qui en passant ne sont pas aussi jolis qu'il y a quelques années, je trouve, on voit moins les nounours) et ça ne sert à rien de faire durer le plaisir si on a faim. Tout de même, le beurre d'arachide Kraft m'a fait survivre pendant des années, de mon enfance à l"âge adulte. Je n'en mange pas aussi souvent ici, parce que je dois faire des réserves et parce que c'est difficile à trouver. Là, je vais devoir attendre à Noël, ou trouver une compagnie britannique qui en livre.

Mon rêve serait (photo du mois)

J'espère que l'on ne me trouvera pas trop prodigieusement banal avec celle-là, mais cette photo du mois de février m'a donné bien des maux de tête. Parce que je rêve à bien des choses: à des endroits visités, à des villes où j'aimerais vivre, à des périodes de l'année, que sais-je. Et puis je me suis rendu compte de quelque chose: c'est de manger des toasts au beurre d'arachide Kraft qui me manque le plus. Chaque matin pour déjeuner. Un rêve qui a déjà été une réalité. Je suis goinfre dans mes rêves. Au moins celui-ci peut se réaliser.

Alors, regardez quels sont les rêves de:

Emma, Titem, Kyn, Leviacarmina, Niwatori, Anne Laure T, Edegan, Mamysoren, Emi London, Le-Chroniqueur, Emilyinfrance, A&Y, Grignette, Galinette, Noon, Suzie, Ava, Viviane, La Parigina, Nous4auQuébec, Cekoline, Cindy Chou, E, Lucile et Rod, Meyilo, Une niçoise, Babou, Sébastien, Bestofava, Surfanna, A&G, Julien, La Fille de l'Air, L'atelier azimute, Emily58, La Papote, Mgie les bons tuyaux, Kia909, Tambour Major, Frédéric, Marion, Nathalie, Kyoko, The Parisienne, Cricriyom from Paris, Quelbazar, Urbaine, Aude, Batilou, Stephane08, Tam, Boopalicious, Nataru, Où trouver à Montréal ?, Nomade57, LaGodiche, La Flaneuse, Aparça, Vanilla, jen et dam, La Nantaise, Lhise, Ty, Loutron glouton, Ori, Cathy, Laure, Sinuaisons, Champagne, Pitch, Violette, M'dame Jo, Chris et Nanou, Narayan, Fanny et Vincent, Voyagesetc, Lauriane, Les voyages de Lucy, Anne-Cécile, Fabienne, Krn, Xavier Mohr, Jean Wilmotte, Anaou, Shandara, Céline in Paris, La Madame, Zaromcha, Hugo, Carole In England, Nora, Florian, Coco, Cocosophie, Louiki, Céliano, Cynthia, Alexanne, François, Le Mag à lire, Manola, Cherrybee, M, Anne, Dr CaSo, florianL, Carnets d'images, Les voyages de Seth et Lise, hibiscus, Vinie, Soiz, Caro, Renepaulhenry, Clem et Cha, Eff'Zee'Bee, Lyonelk, Ma, Thib, L'Azimutée, Claude, Dorydee, Stéphie&lesCacahuètes, Gizeh, Blogoth67, Sprout©h, magda627, 100driiine, Urbamedia, Sephiraph, Caroline, Agnès, Guillaume, Karrijini, 4 petits suisses dans un bol de riz, Mandy, Gilsoub, Madame zaza of mars, Clara, Les Maudits Expats, Isabelle, J'adore j'adhère,

Vous désirez participer à La Photo du Mois ? Rien de plus simple : connectez-vous sur Facebook et rejoignez-nous. Une question ? Contactez Olivier. "

En direct de Montréal

Je suis de retour au pays natal depuis hier. Je suis en plein décalage-horaire et je me sens tout cotonneux. Quelques observations éparses sur mon retour au bercail:

-Les douaniers me considèrent maintenant un peu comme un étranger.
-Je sens curieusement sentimental lorsque j'entends un accent québécois.
-Les lumières de Noël restent accrochées trop longtemps sur le Plateau). 
-Le 940, avenue du Mont-Royal Est est sans doute bien maudit: Koka Loka est fermé.
-C'est comme si je n'avais jamais cessé de manger du beurre d'arachide pour le déjeuner.

A shop for the hungry expat

Nealry three years ago, I found some websites that were specialised shipping Canadian food to hungry expat. I was ready to order some, I even emailled the websites to learn more about them and their services, but for some reason it never went further than this. Maybe because I was unemployed at that time and thought I should not spend a fortune for peanut butter, I don't know. But then I discovered through Google the existence of this shop in London. It doesn't only sell food from Canada, but also from Australia, South Africa and New Zealand. The colonies, in fact. And I was happy to discover that they have Kraft peanut butter! (I guess it is no big surprise, but it's still good news). They sell lots of things I don't care about. But they have Kraft peanut butter! Just when my stocks have run out. And the price is not even prohibitive. More expensive than at home, but not nearly as expensive as getting it shipped from mum or from an online company. I just have to order online and it will travel here from... London.

Getting the raspy voice

It was my acting class yesterday. The teacher could finally see the almost finished product. I say almost because I am not quite there, but I am very close. I am playing this very old man, dying and bitter and nasty, and I got the voice right. Not perfect yet, but right. Sure, my English is still flawed, but the raspy voice I have manages to hide them. My teacher was impressed when she heard the voice (and how nice does it feel to impress a pro!), she asked: "How did you get it?" I answered: "Peanut butter". Which is true: I have peanut butter toasts for dinner before class and it does irritate your throat a bit. When I was learning to sing, Claudiiine warned me against it before class. I wouldn't be able to sing after rehearsal, I felt like I had a cold.

I am half joking of course: getting a raspy voice is easy when you get in character. I once played in Rhinoceros by Ionesco and I had to turn into a rhino in the second act: I had to grow a raspy voice within the play (among other challenges). It left me exhausted, but it was great fun. I thought about it a lot when I got home yesterday, the throat on fire. It was painful, but I really enjoyed it.

Fighting Sunday melancholia

My readers know that I find Sundays boring sometimes. I mean they often make me feel melancholic, moreso at the the last Sunday of a month like this one and when on top of that the day is rainy. But today so far I managed to fight the feeling pretty good, via various means:

-I read a fair deal, mainly Cut Short by Leigh Russell (who has been reading this blog for quite a while now, it was about time I start reading her). Nothing like crime fiction to forget about boredom, especially on a rainy Sunday. It is also good to have time to read (I will go back to it straight after I blog this).  I don't read nearly enough these days.
-I watched a bit of I Claudius on Youtube, which is nice to rediscover. I love British soaps when they are set in Ancient Rome and are murderous enough.
-Have a big hearty breakfast with peanut butter (Skippy as I cannot find Kraft here). Food melancholia is often the worst kind of melancholia, so it is nice to have something that is akin to what I find at home.

It appears that I blog lists these days. And that my posts are a bit trivial.

Les stocks

Je crois qu'il est temps que j'aie des vacances, surtout des vacances au Québec, parce que j'ai constaté récemment que je commence à être à court de bien des choses. Il me manque de tout, dont plusieurs trucs que je ne peux trouver que dans mon pays natal. Ce billet est donc une liste des stocks qui me manquent ou qui me restent (j'en écris parfois des triviaux comme ça):

-Beurre d'arachide Kraft. Quantité: épuisé.
-Livres de format poche pour lire en voyage. Quantité: risible. Je dis ça, et j'en ai encore assez pour quelques mois, mais il faut être dans un certain état d'esprit et avoir du temps pour lire des classiques (j'ai quelques briques, mais je me vois mal les transporter avec moi).
-After-shave. Quantité: dangereusement basse. Quand on a la barbe forte comme moi c'est un souci.
-Vêtements d'hiver. Quantité: indéterminée parce que souvent en pièces détachées. Je compte par ailleurs faire découvrir Kanuk aux Anglais.