Monday, November 17, 2014

Spot Dessert Bar - KTown Adventures



Menu-Sideview
This past weekend, I went with the Big Red Marching Band to NYC for the football game against Columbia and Sy Katz' Parade, which included marching on 5th Avenue in celebration of Cornell's 150th birthday. Aside from the band stuff, our manager was generous enough to give us around 2 hours of free time after dinner to explore the city ourselves. Guess which rebellious sax end up going dessert-hunting with the clarinets? This hardcore foodie right here. 

Since we had limited time, we ran/walked-like-a-New Yorker to the closest opened dessert place - Spot Dessert Bar's branch in Korean Town. Located on the 2nd floor of a busy food court, the place was filled with people on a breezy Saturday night. 
Part of the Display 
 The cooler had a display of Asian-fusioned (would that be the appropriate word? Correct me if I'm wrong) desserts, including taro cake slices with a mini macaron shell on top, green tea éclairs, etc. Aside from the appealing displays, the Signature Dessert Tapas s are the must-trys. 

With a group of approximately 6 people, I had the chance to try (or watch other people try) 4 out of the 8 signature ones. Unfortunately some of them were not the first choice since the cashier said 4 out of the 8 signature tapas are unavailable, which also happened to be 4 of our top choices (Matcha Azuki, Banocoffee, etc...seriously). Maybe something they can try next time is to state the availability beforehand to avoid disappointment from their long-travelled costumers? Just a thought. 
The Signature: Green Tea Chocolate Lava Cake 
Foodie trips with a Food Science major almost always involves a fun "dissection" of the dish. Ethyn and I both thought the cake had a matcha-infused appearance but lacked majorly on the green tea flavour on the inside. Though beautifully plated, the dish is basically green tea ice cream and chocolate lava cake with minimal green tea taste. Though a little disappointed, this was the least sweet dish out of all the ones we've tried, a favourite dessert for those who can't tolerate over-sweetness, I guess. 

Thursday, November 6, 2014

Establishment - Cornell's Own Student-Run "Restaurant"

The classic menu at Establishment, a place where a casual dining/studying lounge becomes a "restaurant" at night

Though still busy and exhausted from midst of the second round of prelims (term for midterm exams used in our school), Cathleen and I still decided to take a short break from all the pressure and chose Establishment - the student-ran "Restaurant" at Statler Hotel. This is actually a course for Restaurant Management at Cornell, where Hotel School students become servers, greeters, chefs - staff running a restaurant.
Since the roommate is also a student at the School of Hotel Administration, part of the other reasons  we went was also to let her experience Establishment as a guest before she becomes the server (and serves me haha). 

Occasionally, groups of students host themed-nights where there are new additions to the regular menu. We decided on going to the Hong-Kong Themed Night - a reminisce of home for both of us I guess. 


The regular menu with special additions

happy roommate, happy day

The night's additions included the Wushu Trained Flying Wings, Kung Fu Char Siu Master and Yin Yang Dessert. Very creative course names indeed, let's take a look at the actual products.

We ordered all three of the special courses, with 2 more items from the regular menu - Erza's House Salad and Dashi Salmon. 

Wushu Trained Flying Wings

the menu description described this course as: oyster-sauce glaze. I expected salty wings, as the impression of oyster sauce has always been more on the savoury side. The wings surprised us both- it was sweet, tangy, but not the kind of sweet and sour sauce you get at Americanized Chinese restaurants. Definitely consider re-ordering this if it still exists. 

Monday, October 27, 2014

A Giant Cinnamon Bun - Happy Birthday Cathleen!


Someone should post a video of drizzling the glaze...


So after a few months of playing with different ovens/kitchens, I've found out that baking isn't really impossible in college. Of course, this process did take a few sacrificed cakes - the kitchen in my unit somehow only heats the outside of the cake no matter how long you bake them. At this moment I would like to give a sincere gratitude to all the dear friends who ate those partially uncooked cakes and even complimented on the soft (uncooked!) centers. Again, another reason to apply to Cornell ;)




So it turns out that my chef/housewife/talented singer roommate, Cathleen, is OBSESSED with cinnamon. Therefore for her birthday the brainstorming didn't need a long time of thought - what's more cinnamon-ny than a GIANT cinnamon bun? Adding the maple syrup glaze was more of a Canadian touch (homesick moment). 


A big thank you to all the generous and lovely people who've helped with the production of this "gone-in-10-minutes" cake - Jeanne's bread club and her yeast when I didn't have time to do grocery shopping, Richard and his awesome (functioning) oven, Jenny and her emergency milk, and the countless people who've helped set up for the day. Though the cake probably only played a small role, it was the product of patience and care. 

Friday, September 26, 2014

Matcha Sablés - KissmeOrganics Matcha Powder Review






Anyone who took even a small effort to take a look at my post page would probably notice that most of them contain the world matcha or green tea in it. (Clarification: matcha is a type of green tea.) Yes, I'm a little bit obsessed with matcha. How can one resist the temptation of matcha's ability to balance the overly sweet stuff into bittersweet? 
Matcha is the ultimate excuse to eating "healthy desserts", I guess.


Thank you to those who did recognize this obsession and sent me little support packages. Thanks to Maria, I've received a great opportunity to review Kissme Organics' Organic Matcha Powder. After finding my "perfect" matcha powder earlier (see the soufflé post) I had doubts of whether I can accept another brand again. However, Kissme Organics did exceed my expectations. The matcha aroma was there - not too strong or too bitter. 
The powder can be used in many ways - matcha lattés, in yogurt (a spoonful boost to your digestive system in the morning), or in your personal baked goods (seriously, matcha-anything taste pretty good). 


In my example I've used the powder for these cute little matcha sablés, perfect for a studying snack or presents for friends and teachers. You can purchase this powder here , which would also come with an e-book of amazing matcha recipes!

Thursday, June 19, 2014

Richmond Night Market 2014 (River Rock)




WARNING: Serious drool-worthy photos contained.

With its increasing popularity every year, the new Richmond Nightmarket (there's also an "old" night market, or the International Summer Nightmarket) blooms with visitors every non-rainy weekend (maybe rainy weekend too for desperate ones). As a group of two we saved our appetite for the big trip. Let's take a look at some of our finds in this year's night market: 

EAT! Vancouver 2014


EAT! Vancouver has been one of my favourite foodie event in Vancouver for the past few years.
After my last visit (2 years ago) I've always been longing to go since I couldn't go last year with all the school band's music festival stuff. 

So, what is EAT! Vancouver and why are Vancouverites (and other tourists from all over the country/world) attracted by it every year?
EAT! Van is known as the biggest food and cooking festival in Vancouver, the "ultimate consumer food expo" featuring local restaurants, cafes, wineries, celebrity chefs, cooking tool suppliers and other businesses in presenting the current trend in the industry. 
People can purchase cooking tools, try out new foods, taste some wine, attend cooking lessons and even meet their celebrity chefs in real life (yes). 

As a second-timer I did somewhat know my way around BC Place but there are still some changes that I've felt this time I went. Here's EAT! Van from the perspective of a second-timer student (in other words, did not get to try wine due to age ._.)



Saturday, June 7, 2014

Hazelnut Linzer Cookies



Time flies too fast - next week is the last week of senior year, followed by finals, provincials, commencement and prom. Even with all this stuff compiled I'm still procrastinating in the posts (oops)...but I'll try my best to update as much as possible before summer. There are just so many things to make with so little time!

Traditionally, linzer cookies are made with ground almonds to give its nutty aroma and pale colour. However I found some toasted hazelnuts left around in the house, so I "recycled" them for good use. We all know how aromatic these nuts can get (Hazelnut latte from Starbucks anyone?). These nuts proved their "talent" as soon as you take the first bite - like Nutella but the more nutty kind. 




Saturday, May 24, 2014

Matcha (Green Tea) Soufflé



It is this dish that made me realize the importance of a good matcha powder.
Before this recipe, I've made my matcha-infused baked goods with random brands I found on internet - not authentic for sure, but I bought it because it was cheap. 
As obvious as it sounds , but please don't be cheap when it comes to stuff like this! 
The powder I've used for this one is a $5.99 (50g) pack I bought from a Japanese supermarket in San Francisco during Christmas. The powder is from a family tea garden in the Kagoshima area, and the flavour can be tasted with just a little bit in amounts. (Back when I used the cheap matcha powders I use to think that lots of powder is needed for flavouring!)

Now enough blabbing....

DIY Mother's Day High Tea


The full high tea with mom's newly found Victorian dish set

Loving the royal tea pot!
 Mother's Day these days is becoming more and more like a competition to see who can spoil his/her mothers the best...(at least in my area that is). 
Even prior to the day, my social network has been filled with Mother's Day news feeds:flowers, cakes, more flowers and cakes.........
Come on. One has ought to have more creative ideas than flowers and cakes.


Since this is the last year I'll be spending Mother's Day with my mom before heading to college (hello internet shopping gifts...), I thought - why not make this time the best one yet.



My mom has been really into tea sets lately. This Victorian style tea set pictured in this post (only some parts, the whole set has about 73 pieces) was found on Craiglist (really mom) for $1000. I first had doubts on this idea of buying vintage dishes on the internet but when she brought the whole set home I was amazed by the intricate details on these dishes - they were lovely indeed! These dishes were pass-downs from the seller's great grandmother and since most dishes those days are either sold in pieces or missing, the whole set was hard to find.



Now, let's take a closer look at the menu....

Sunday, May 11, 2014

Sakura (Cherry Blossom) Jelly

The combination of freshness and beauty signifies the arrival of spring.
Who knew wine glasses can be used this way?
 It's cherry blossom season here at the Northwest - though Vancouver is quite far from Japan in distance but the similar latitudes have provided a nice environment for these beautiful flowers to blossom.

Wednesday, May 7, 2014

Teahouse at Stanley Park


Inside View on a Sunny Sunday.

Outside view- gorgeous!

Before coming here I've been told that the two restaurants located inside Stanley Park- Fish House and Tea House - are known for their beautiful sceneries. "Fine Eating by the Atmosphere", as some would call it.

The scenery from Third Beach is beautiful! With views looking from the garden to the outward sea on a sunny Sunday- who wouldn't resist in even taking a look?

We made reservations for this brunch- and I highly recommend doing so especially for days with fine weather like this one.

[Drooling Pictures INSIDE]

Saturday, May 3, 2014

The Best Homemade Granola (so far)


Jars and jars...
No added sugar or additives, that's why.

I have been making this granola since last year. It goes so well with many things - yogurt, sprinkle on salad, or just eat as a snack mix.

This is definitely #promdiet worthy as it has no added sugar and relies on the flavour of natural ingredients.
"Eat your fibres, children!"

Vegan Peanut Butter Cookies



 Starting this month I will be posting some simple, delicious recipes for the #promdiet series!
It's prom season. Though my school is probably one of the last schools in North America (maybe the whole Northern Hemisphere) in the date of our prom (in Canada it's called Grad Dinner and Dance...), this does leave me some more time to shape up for summer/able to squeeze in my dress haha.

Of course, dieting does not mean stop eating or losing weight specifically, nor going vegan (hello sheep) or eating fruits everyday. Remember that strong is better than skinny and fit is better than bony!
This is a lifestyle that takes time and perseverance to see the results. Since our bodies' are built differently, it also takes different amount of time to see the results. So don't freak out if your friend got skinnier than you while you guys eat the same things for the past two weeks...it's mother nature. 

Now this series contains recipes full of the "good" nutrients for your body while keeps your body happy. Hope your mind can be happy too!

Now, for this PB cookie...

Monday, April 28, 2014

Bacon, Swiss and Green Onion Mini Quiches

Taste better than they look

These little quiches actually turned out to be a lot more popular than I thought they would be.
As I only had a day to prepare everything for a full high tea, I sometime take "shortcuts" in preparation.
The fillings can be made a day ahead, and just drop the freshly cut onions and cooked bacon bits inside before you bake.
and mini tart shells - one of the best inventions of mankind.

Pumpkin Raisin Scones

 A great scone for multiple occasions- breakfast, afternoon tea...
light on flavour (so you can eat these with jam/seasoned butter of your choice!) and not overly dry.

Monday, April 14, 2014

Soirette Macarons & Tea: Fall/Winter High Tea Menu






 As a macaron enthusiast myself, I admit that I do have high standards for macarons. After two years of continuous trial and error with these fussy (sometimes) and delicate cookies, it's hard not to get picky at the details.
Soirette, however, made it to the top of my list for the Best Macarons in Vancouver.
Ever since it opened, I've visited a few times for their macarons, but haven't had a chance to try their high tea service. Their high tea service is only offered on weekends with about 4-5 time slots per day, so I feel especially fortunate to have made a successful reservation just before the end of their Fall/Winter High Tea Menu.
Okay, enough with the blabbing now...

I went with one of my besties (whose name also happens to be Cathy, and congratulations dear for getting into Cornell University, I'm super grateful to have the chance to spend the next four years + with you as well!) on a sunny Sunday afternoon. The tiny place can only seat 4-5 tables of 2-4 people at once, so each time slot only has 4-5 spaces. Though the space was tiny, I didn't feel squished at all. The chairs were big and comfy and the tables are manageable as well. 

Friday, April 11, 2014

Whole Wheat HK Style Sausage Buns


Fresh out of the oven.

Every time I visit a Chinese bakery, this bun has always been a popular choice among the many. You could call it a hot dog roll, but the soft and fluffy texture makes it different from the Western hot dog rolls.
The fun part? Making different shapes with the dough, of course ("play-dough?").

The traditional Chinese style sausage buns uses plain white bread flour, but I only had whole wheat bread flour at the time so I've changed the recipe a bit (healthier anyways). Fortunately the original recipe is quite flexible with flour types and toppings. 

Wednesday, April 2, 2014

Ladurée Madeleines with a Matcha Twist


I have a tradition of treating myself to a gift each Christmas, as a small hint to self to "love yourself" ,
So ever since I've been into Ladurée's macarons (and everything else in general), last Christmas I've decided to get Ladurée's own cookbook- Sucré or The Sweet Recipes. 
Created by the pastry chef of Ladurée  himself, the book contains some of the many secrets behind Ladurée's success. For example, their delectable French macarons ;)

Sunday, March 30, 2014

DIY Spring High Tea

"ran out of napkins so we're going snowman napkins on a sunny spring day"
 Since the past spring break I've been having this tradition to make a high tea for my friends, both as a celebration for the end of rain season (which is about 1/4 of the year in Raincouver) and just a simple appreciations to my friends for always being there, and to eat my products, good and bad ones. After last year's pot-luck style tea where we each contribute some goodies to the tiers, this year I've decided to challenge myself to go from the bottom up. 

The three-tiered plates and the teacup on the left are from Macy's. I got them from the Boxing Week sales during my Christmas trip to San Francisco.As for the other cups, my mom and I have been into collecting vintage teacups recently (may post a collection picture sometime later) and they're from the numerous thrift/antique stores we went to. They're pretty cheap and are not in bad conditions at all. The other day when I was in an antique store in Skagit Valley, WA, the lady at the store told me that these cups are considered "friendship cups" since we drink and have tea with friends with these cups :) 

Cartems Donuterie

all that goodness

It may be a little inappropriate to post this near bedtime, but it's not that late compared to my normal holiday schedule so here's the post.

For the last two weeks I have been going to places on the spring break to-do list.
The list was quite large to complete, but I'm glad to say that most of them has been completed :)
Cartems Donuterie, one of the most-reviewed place on Urbanspoon, has successfully captured my cravings for donuts in the past two weeks.
Unlike coffeeshops, Cartems Donuterie specializes in a simpler menu- donuts and coffee. 

Saturday, March 15, 2014

Salted Caramel Apple Cheesecake

"A good cake unites people." - Quote of the Day
One of the best things about baking is its versatile uses- bake sales, event attractions, fundraisers, fulfilling cravings......
What I love the most though, is the fun of sharing the results with friends and family.

Celebrating the beginning of Spring Break with a Cake Fest

Whole Wheat Pumpkin Chai-Spiced Muffins


Pumpkin Chai Tea "Latte" in its muffin form.
The past three months have been pretty hectic. With all the school stuff, musical theatre along with the struggle of senioritis...whoa. 
Today marks the first day of Spring Break! Since I'm staying in town (to treasure the last few days in Vancouver/Raincouver before I leave for NY in the summer) for the two weeks, this means- baking time, lots of it.

Sunday, March 9, 2014

Baker's Market 2014: "Vancouver's Sweetest Event"

 So it's "that time" of the year again.
After almost two years of anticipation (one was busy with SATs, APs and whatnots in 2013 :( ), Vancouver's Baker's Market is finally back!
This is the event to go to for bakers and foodies alike, to communicate with other bakers about experiences or just food in general (aka my kind of place).

The last time I've visited the market was back in December 2012, and I was simply fascinated by the variety of baked goods the event offers in such a tiny place. 

Around 12pm at the Baker's Market, always filled with people (hungry people?)

This post contains pictures I've gathered from my first visit and the most recent visit from last week, as they're all simply amazing ❤️
Without further ado, here are some of my recommendations/places I've tried in both visits.

WARNING: CONTAINS DROOLING PICTURES.

Tuesday, March 4, 2014

Dineout Vancouver 2014: Bistro 101



After trying for 3 years, I finally made a successful reservation for this place by waking up at  6: 30 A.M on the morning when the list of restaurants was released.

Why the craze? It is no doubt because of their $18 3-course dinner and lunch menu - yes 3 courses, professional style, half the price of a normal high-class dinner!

Since all of their dishes are prepared by students of the Pacific Culinary Institute (Bistro 101 is one of their "classrooms"), I guess the charge for paying waitresses and chefs (all students) can be omitted since this is part of their study. I would take a class like that but these classes are quite long and not very flexible in schedule (making excuses as a high school senior...).

Feeling grateful with my reservation (Heard later that the restaurant was fully booked for the whole Dineout season in 2 hours), I brought my parents along to see what this place is really like. 

*NOTE*I sincerely apologize for the late post...February has been such a hectic month with the musical, calculus and two English classes..oh who said second semester seniors have it easy? Or maybe I just tend to be self-torturing when it comes to school.

Sunday, February 9, 2014

French Onion Tart

The bubbling cheese, hmmm.

They say that your friends in some way represent who you are. 
As one who lives in a circle of great cooks, every gathering we have somehow always become a time to share our gourmet creations.

This is also my first time making a savory tart crust from scratch, but frankly it actually turned out okay. As long as there's the oozing cheese and the caramelized onion, then the tart is complete (honestly I would just eat the filling by itself)

I have found this recipe to be pretty versatile with the ingredients, the cheese can be substituted to any kind of melt-in-your-mouth cheese you like. 

Saturday, January 25, 2014

Matcha Chiffon Cake


I've began to realize that I'm probably the only one among my friends and family who indulge in sweets. As long as it's not the rot-your-teeth kind of sweetness, I can handle most desserts pretty well.

Anyways as by strong request from the family, here comes another cake for those not interested in super sweet desserts. Compared to the traditional Japanese Cheesecake, the chiffon is slightly spongier( quite fun to press into the cake and see them bounce again), less heavy on the cream part and generally a healthier option. 

Fluffy Japanese Cheesecake with Graham Cracker Crust






I first encountered the quest to make this cake for my mom's birthday last year.
Moms, they say, don't really like super-sweet stuff (unless you're that super lucky child with a mom who's got a sweet tooth)

Therefore I had to look for substitutions. Japanese cheesecakes, with their fluffy texture and light flavor, are the idea presentation of such stuff!
When I first gave them out to my friends to try, they definitely had the "it's to die for face". 
Even now they're still asking for more.
Enough details, here I'll share the "secret" recipe.