Come Hunger with Me

I'm on the train to Ottawa right now and I'm feeling unprepared in comparison with the girl beside me. I packed Crystal Light, she has Perrier. I have one solitary clementine, she has those snack packs with the crackers and the processed cheese. (Yum!) I have homemade cookies (make that past tense--I ate them before the train even left the station), she has delicious smelling chocolate wafers. She also pulled out chips at one point, which wouldn't have been notable except for the fact that she also had dip. Amazing. Every time I glance over, she's unveiling another snack. She also has a never-ending stream of Modern Family playing on her laptop. I envy her chuckling. I too, wish I was chuckling and eating processed cheese.

Needless to say, I'm hungry, bored and thinking about food. So I might as well write about it, right?

Participating in a reality television show rarely entices me (mainly due to the fact that I don't own any property, I don't want a room renovation that involves painting a wall red, I'm not getting married, I've successfully lost the last 10 lbs without Billy's help and I prefer to dance my pants off in the comfort of my own home), but there's just something about Come Dine With Me Canada that inspires me to apply.

I've spent a lot of time trying to determine what exactly I would serve if I was selected to appear on Come Dine with Me. Here's my winter menu, with a focus on comfort foods:

Drinks

I'd greet guests at the door with champagne and cassis, garnished with fresh blackberries. It's a light drink that even non-champagne lovers love. (Myself included in that statement.)

Appetizer

I believe in cheese. And cheese plates. My cheese plates typically include a sharp cheese (like an asiago), blue cheese, herbed goat cheese, smoked applewood cheddar, cranberry wensleydale and of course, a baked brie with roasted garlic cloves, candied pecans and sliced pear.

Relatively simple and wouldn't get me any points in terms of food preparation, but would get major points in terms of entertaining. Everyone loves cheese.

Main

Vegetarian tortiere in sage pastry with side greens.

I recently made my first vegetarian tortiere by amalgamating three different recipes. I declared it delicious and wrote down the combination in my recipe book before it could be forgotten. I would probably serve this as personal sized pies because people love that nonsense.

Dessert

Mini-cheesecakes FTW!

Anyone who has attended a social function at my home knows I love to make and serve mini-cheesecakes and mini-pies. Although my white chocolate amaretto cheesecake with raspberries is a crowd-pleaser, I think I'd stick to the winter comfort theme by offering a white chocolate cheesecake with cranberries.

Unfortunately, I can't apply anytime soon. I have a tiny open-concept kitchen/home, no dining room table (or dining room) and an oven without a door handle. (It finally fell off.) It's certainly no state of affairs in which to host four strangers.

Writing this didn't make me any less hungry. In fact, the snack cart guy just came around and I bought Pringles. Two more hours to go. . .