Cadeaux de Noël: du Canada

I know Christmas has long passed, but I must show the world what made the holiday more special for me than it was already becoming since my best friend E's arrival. I had a very lovely reunion with my friend K from Toronto over the holiday in a very special place, Kyoto. And he brought with him a whole bunch of goodies for me!

Everything is actually from K himself and T, another friend of mine in Toronto that I admire and respect for his cooking skills. He is the first male being that is not a chef in northern America that I have ever come across that knew what "shallots" were.

Pringles Salt & Vinegar!

How did he know it's my favorite flavor for chips? And how did he know we don't have the flavor in Japan?

Skippy Crunchy peanut butter!

This, I actually requested from K. We don't have peanut butter in Japan, let alone the crunchy kind. How do they expect me to make my PB&B sandwich (peanut butter & banana) to snack on the way I want it? We do have so-called "peanut butter" but it does not bloody deserve either peanut OR butter in its name if you ask me.

Magnets from Canada!
I requested one from Montreal, actually. I collect magnets from places I visit, and I somehow managed to forget to find one when I went there last summer. K was nice enough to top it with the cute "the Canadian white house" one that I absolutely adore. Both on my fridge door right now.

Chocolate cooking/baking book!

This might be my favorite of all. It's the most perfect gift K and T could have possibly given me because K is a serious chocolate addict, and T is into cooking/baking, AND I love receiving books. I love it next to receiving flowers and handwritten cards. (http://diaryofajapanadian.blogspot.com/2009/10/roses-are-red-violets-are-blue.html)

T baked a bunch of cookies but we ate it all in Kyoto at the hotel. I should have taken a picture!

Thank you, K and T!

Until next time,

Sak