CANDY CORN HALLOWEEN CUPCAKES: FINAL POST BEFORE MY KITCHEN RENO!

White Velvet Cupcakes with Vanilla Bean Classic Buttercream and Candy Corn!

These are the last cupcakes I’ll ever make in my old kitchen!  Whee!


I have been so busy lately with work, school and just life.   I won’t be baking anything for a while until Christmas at least since we’re undergoing renovations to the kitchen. 

I will be taking pictures of the renovation along the way and will post them in my blog instead. 

My old kitchen is dark and full of granite.  It doesn’t look all that bad, but many of the appliances have kicked the bucket and I have had to replace my oven, dishwasher, microwave and hood fan since moving in over 8 years ago.   So I’ll be keeping those relatively new stainless steel appliances and just replacing the rest. 

My plan for the new kitchen:  ALL WHITE!

• island counter will be honed white Carrara marble or Statuario marble (sealed of course)
• perimeter counter will be quartz
• white cabinets; brushed silver handpulls/knobs
• industrial looking faucet in brushed silver
• stainless appliances
• 16 x 16 porcelain tile floors (white/gray)
• rectangular glass mosaic backsplash (whites/grays)

Since my kitchen won’t be usable and we’ll be living in the house still, it’ll be chaos.  We plan to eat out and eat simply.  We have a little old microwave and a bunch of plug-in appliances.  We’ll adapt.  We live within walking distance of many restaurants, a Safeway, a bunch of bakeries and we have tons of edible things in the pantry…we won’t starve.

However, I won’t be baking for a while.    Well, it’s kind of been like that anyway around here hasn’t it been?  So sorry if you came looking for cake and just found a bunch of posts of my restaurant reviews.  I have lately felt like I’ve lost my baking mojo since being diagnosed with Hashimoto’s. 

I think a new kitchen might help alleviate the doldrums and may ignite me into a new baking direction.  Yes, I am still gluten free.  My GP says if I feel better restricting gluten, I should continue.  Besides, it’s healthier.  However, having said that, I do not fear gluten (I'm not Celiac) and my kids still eat it.  I indulge once in a while with a little bit of gluten; especially if it's cake.

My grad studies?  that’s going along okay.  I am still only getting 5-6 hours of sleep a night because of the marking from regular work and having to sporadically hand in concept papers to my professors too, but that’s kind of what I knew I’d be getting into.

I’m excited about all the changes going on in my life and I’ll document the DEMO of my old kitchen on the blog through pictures.  It’ll be cool I think.  It’s almost everything I’ve wanted in a  kitchen.  Plus, I am at ease with my choices in the design since I’ve been thinking about it for over 8 years.   Everything in the kitchen is what I think I’ll be happy with for a long time.  It’s all classical colours and the look won’t wane.  I am a little worried about the quartz, but for sure I know I want to go away from the granite look.  It’s so yesterday.  I am tired of how dark it makes my kitchen.  I can’t see the crumbs the kids leave on the counters, or the sticky spills they trail until it’s too late. 

All you smarty-pants who think you know how marble is porous and it’ll etch... I already know that.  Europeans have been using marble for counters for decades.  I think I’ll manage.  I want it for my island because I do my pastry/baking there.  I also will be doing some sealing sporadically (really, it’s just a spray and wipe…how easy is that?  I already spray and wipe my current granite counters anyway)

Besides, if you compromise on the look now, you’ll never be truly happy with your kitchen.  The white marble will stay.  It’ll look great.  It’ll be classic. 

Don’t many people change kitchens every 20 years anyways?  By that time, maybe I might want to change the marble.  Or maybe I might still like it.  I have a feeling I will still like it.  In fact, I’m thinking of using it in the bathrooms too.  Maybe Carrara again.  Or limestone.  Anyway.  I’ll have to save up for that all over again. 

I’ve been saving up for 8 years for this current kitchen renovation.   By next year, we might be working on changing the dining area and the hardwood floors (they’re all banged up engineered hardwood floors).  I also want to redo the bathrooms in a few years.  Our house is just falling apart!  oh, and I hate the curtains.  They came with the house.  They’re so 90’s. 

These Halloween cupcakes were made for my daughter’s Halloween Party at school.  They are White Velvet Butter Cupcakes from Rose Levy Beranbaum’s Rose’s Heavenly Cakes and the frosting is Classic Buttercream with Vanilla Bean from Beranbaum’s The Cake Bible. 

The cupcakes tasted amazing!  The buttercream was silky smooth and the flecks of vanilla were nice.  The candy corn was something my daughter said everyone in the class should like.  I don’t know…I picked mine off.  Give me simple cake and buttercream anyday with no sprinkles or candy.  Today I popped a mini bite-sized one from the batch (I made 3 sizes of cupcakes) and thought they were so yummy! Tender, moist white crumb made with 3 egg whites made it light…I doubled the recipe and the 6 egg yolks that remained were employed in the Classic Buttercream.  I like it when a cupcake is efficient and delicious at the same time!

This is a winner and I’ll make ‘em again for sure when there’s call to make a white cupcake.    I would have gone chocolate all the way, but one of the kids in her class doesn’t like chocolate.   I think that if you feel so strongly about not liking a food, hey…I’ll accommodate.  And I happen to really like this kid because he’s so darn nice!    He’s such a neat kid.  So this whole batch was made vanilla because of him.  I don’t think he knows that but that’s okay.  It would be weird if he knew that anyways.    Though they’re only 8, I’ve told my daughter that if she ever wants to date a guy, he’ll have to be like this chocolate-hating friend of hers.  Not the chocolate-hating part, but the nice part.  I think I’m safe for now because she thinks boys are icky and she’s way too cool to be thinking about liking boys anyway.

Stay tuned for some demolition pictures of my kitchen!

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Thanksgiving Dinner

Thanksgiving Mini Cheesecakes with Double-duty Cranberry Sauce




Cute Polymer Clay Witch

This polymer clay witch magnet was made by my cousin.  This cute figure and many like her (dentists, princesses, snowmen etc.) can be found for sale at her Etsy site.  They are hugely adorable and I think they would make great cake-toppers for kids (and adults) to be reused as magnets.  They have been coated so frosting/grease won’t penetrate the baked clay figurines and I even washed the chef guy because he had cranberry sauce all over him.  The little circular magnets are attached to the back.  Check them out HERE at her Etsy site, and click HERE for her blog.




Here’s the Polymer Chef.  He had a hand in the cranberry sauce as you can see.


For Thanksgiving dinner, I made cranberry sauce with a bag of cranberries, one cup sugar and one cup water (just like it says on the package!)  I love the jewel tones of the berries and the leftover sauce is perfect for topping the mini cheesecakes.  I always have tons of cranberry sauce leftover.




After brining my organic turkey, I dried it in the refrigerator overnight.  Then I roasted it back side up.  Here it is ready to be flipped around breast-side up to finish roasting.


We like tradition around here.  I stuff my turkey with plain ol’ bread stuffing.


Here’s the creamed spinach and mushroom.


I roasted some veggies too:  brussel sprouts, carrots, parsnips, beets, turnips and onions.

For the mini cheesecakes, I used this recipe HERE.

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FAUBOURG PARIS, KERRISDALE, FOR PINK HIGH TEA

The Pink High Tea:  Service for Two.


Faubourg’s window display from the outside.




The reservations for High Tea are seated at the back of the bakery.  The front is the cafe area.


Look up.  Isn’t the chandelier pretty?

The reservations area is located next to the kitchen.  You can take a peek at what’s going on through the window and sometimes when the door swings open.

French  Breakfast Blend.

Mini Lemon Tart.  Crusted with large sugar crystals.

Yogurt Parfait.  A bit tart with fresh berries and a granola crumble

Berry Souffe.  You’re ordered to eat this one first as it will fall.

Chocolate Mousse.  Creamy, lovely, dark.

I forgot what this was.  I think it was a mini gingerbread muffin or a spice muffin. It wasn’t so tender.  I didn’t like it.

Chicken salad sandwich.

Smoked salmon pinwheel.

Poppyseed crusted sandwiches filled with roast meat.

Poppyseed lemon scones served with clotted cream and a little jar of preserves.  Delicious, tender and the sugar crust was crunchy-sweet.

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FLO TEA ROOM, MARPOLE

Short Ribs and Prawns.  Served with a Mushroom Sauce on the side.

The veggies were an extra add-on.  The prawns were grilled just perfectly in the shells.  The short ribs were good and seasoned perfectly.  Good portions.   Good value. Rating:  5/6


The AAA Prime Rib was Medium Rare, as requested.



Prime Rib special $12.95 comes with an onion sauce.  Good deal.  Nice chunk of meat.  Tasty.  This comes with soup of the day.  Rating:  5/6


Soup of the day:  pork bone broth with green daikon and almonds.  Comes with the prime rib special.  Rating:  6/6 (flavourful, but didn’t go that well with the prime rib)

Fire on Ice Slush.  Lychee on the bottom, and some fruity orangey red stuff on top...Mango and Peach maybe? Grenadine?  I think.  The kiddies fought over who could drink it.  Then when I told them they had to share, it was all about who sipped more during their turn.  To resolve the issue, I said that I’d drink it all so they couldn’t fight over it anymore.


Ham and Egg Sandwich.  We asked for cheese to be added.  It was a good idea.  The fries were crispy.  Rating:  5/6 (would be a 6/6 if they grilled it instead of toasted it)

We've visited both Flo's and think the Vancouver one is better.  We like the setting...it's more fresh.  The food is slightly better and the plating is nicer.  The one in Richmond was okay but didn't particularly impress in any area.  The first few times we visited the Vancouver location, the service was pretty bad but the food was quite good.  Stomach is all about a deal and thought the value was there. So we came back a few more times just to make sure the kitchen was consistent.  They are.   The portions are bigger than Cafe Gloucester and Copa Cafe.  The menu selection is different and they do serve neat drinks.  They have specialty slushies and bubble teas too.

This last time we went, we had perfect service and a perfectly yummy meal.  The value was good and we were very happy.  I think they hire a lot of students.  So it's hit and miss with whether you get good service or not.  Some have no idea that they need to take empty plates/dishes away and top up tea etc. They avoid eye contact and wander around seemingly focused on one task, not realizing that they can do things more quickly if they multi-task.  However, this one waiter we have...he had spiky dyed-brown hair...I like him.  He didn't screw up our orders (unlike the previous wait-staff) and he was friendly, smart and efficient.   I'll be seeking him out next time.

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BBQ DUCK 24/7! No. 9 Restaurant, Richmond

This big ol’ bowl of BBQ Duck on Rice is the only reason I go to No. 9 Restaurant, located in Lansdowne Mall, Richmond.



The restaurant in open 24 hours, every day of the week.  I know that if I ever have a craving for BBQ Duck, that I could fill up here!

The BBQ Duck is served with plum sauce and a small bowl (not a little soy sauce bowl) full of the duck gravy.  It’s like the soy-based duck juices all combined and you pour it all over your rice.  OMG.  No. 9 is the only restaurant I know that gives you a whole bowl full to go with your order of rice.   

This is the only BBQ Duck on Rice that I crave for.  The duck isn’t all bones and skin.  You get actual chunks of meat.  The skin isn’t riddled with feathers as someone took the care to prepare it properly.  It’s crispy on the outside and tender, succulent inside.                        Rating:  6/6


Pork Balls in Noodle Soup.  Rating:  4/6

We rarely ever order any dish here (other than the BBQ Duck) that overwhelmingly impresses us.  The food is filling and the portions are pretty big. However, you also pay a higher price for the bigger portions.
The best deal is still the BBQ Duck on Rice. 


Choy Sum.  Oyster sauce is served on the side.  Rating:  4/6


Congee with fish slices.  Rating:  4/6

If you're going to come here, order the BBQ Duck on rice.  If you like Chinese soups, order the soup of the day.  They give you a heaping big pile of stuff that they fish out of the soup and serve alongside the soup along with a soy dip for all the soup bones.  It's a meal in itself.  Their food is consistently average.  Nothing fancy, but satisfactory.

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HOSHI SUSHI, KITSILANO

Spicy Tuna Sashimi            Rating:  5/6




California Roll, Negitoro Roll, Crab Cake nigiri                        Rating: 5/6


Gyoza.  Not so tasty.  Pasty filling.            3/6 


Golden Dragon Roll.  California Roll topped with Tempura Yam.  Yum  6/6


Here’s the pic showing the whole order of the Specialty Dragon Roll.


Chicken Karaage.  Wings (there were two more pieces but I couldn’t snap the pic in time).  5/6


Beef Udon.     Good tender pieces of meat.  5/6


Oyster Motoyaki.  Creamy with sliced mushrooms.  Rating:  5/6

Hoshi Sushi is a little restaurant with very narrow booths.  Despite being squished, I quite enjoyed my meal.  There seemed to be a  lot of takeout orders lined up and the kitchen was hopping busy.  The one waitress was running around tending to the phone, the restaurant customers' orders and the takeouts.  She was fast and did her best.  I have no complaints.   I think I heard some Cantonese in the kitchen? perhaps the cook back there?  I don't know about the sushi chef.  Anyway, the food was good.  The sushi was tasty and I was pleasantly surprised.   We will be back another time when we're in the neighbourhood.

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