Saturday, June 22, 2013

THE Waffle Recipe


We were craving waffles one day and D did a search on belgian waffles and came up with this recipe found here.  We've chucked the other recipe out - oh wait D doesn't have a recipe, he does it by feel...little bit of self raising flour, 1 egg, little bit of milk till he reaches the right consistency.   Anyways, this is THE waffle recipe, crisp on the outside, yet buttery soft on the inside. Re-creatable every time. Freezes well and bakes up pretty well too.
Waffle wiith whipped cream, mango and strawberries
With mango and strawberries
Goes great with nutella and whipped cream, blueberry sauce and whipped cream, vanilla ice cream, fried chicken... the possibilities are endless

Recipe
  • 7g active dry yeast
  • 1/4 cup warm milk (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)
  • 3 egg yolks
  • 2 3/4 cups warm milk (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)
  • 3/4 cup butter, melted and cooled to lukewarm (170g)
  • 1/2 cup white sugar
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 4 cups all-purpose flour
  • 3 egg whites
  1. Dissolve yeast in 1/2 cup warm milk.  Let stand until creamy, about 10 min.
  2. In a large bowl, whisk together egg yolks, 1/4 cup warm milk and melted butter.
  3. Stir in the yeast mixture, sugar, salt and vanilla.
  4. Stir in the remaining 2 1/2 cups milk alternating with the flour.
  5. Beat the egg whites until they form soft peaks, fold into the batter.
  6. Cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place until doubled in volume, about an hour.
  7. Preheat waffle iron.  Brush with oil and spoon about 1/2 cup (or as recommended by manufacturer) onto the centre of the iron. Close the lid and bake until it stops steaming and the waffle is golden brown.
  8. Serve immediately or keep warm in a 200F oven

Wednesday, May 15, 2013

Kiisu


We've walked by Kiisu tons of times but never thought to try it as we had our favourite Japanese places - Hamaei, Hachi Hana and Bene.  Kiisu is a small, cosy place and gets pretty crowded so best to go early.


Chopped Scallop Roll 
We started with the chopped scallop roll which was very fresh.  Then we had the toro stack - I think it was super healthy with black brown rice.  There was also a quail egg under that nori.  With the combination of avocado, tuna, green onion, quail egg and unagi sauce, this was D's favorite dish.
Toro Stack
I liked the crunch crunch roll.  We were greedy and ordered the full size portion of 12 pieces.  In hindsight, 2 of us could have easily been good with just 6 pieces.  The chef arranged it in a heart shape...aw.   Good thing it wasn't the first date.  Crunch Crunch roll was yummy.
Crunch Crunch Roll
We finished off with the spider roll, again very well executed, crispy soft shell crab with creamy avocado.
Spider Roll 
I've defintiely added this place to my list of places to go to when I have a craving for Japanese.

KiIsu
1532 Marine Drive
West Vancouver
Ki-Isu Sushi on Urbanspoon

Monday, May 13, 2013

Alta Bistro - Whistler

Another late post, we were up in Whistler with my cousins last last December.   We started off with a couple of cocktails which we enjoyed immensely.  They infuse their own syrups and alcohol so you'll find that they were all very unique.

We enjoyed the starters more than the mains but all in all a very enjoyable meal.  Make sure you make reservations as this place gets packed.  I also like that they are committed to sustainablity - they support local farms, fair trade coffee, chocolate, organic meats, no antibiotics - you get the idea.
Oysters with Champagne Vinegar Granite
Oysters with Champagne Vinegar Granite
Pate and Charcuterie Board 
Winter Salad
Soup of the Day 
Yarrow Meadows Duck Duo
Housemade duck liver parfait, smoked duck rillettes, rye and molasses
breadcrumbs, lemon balm
Pan fried Octopus and White Prawns
Tender confit of BC Octopus, pan-seared prawns, fennel, prawn-lemon vinagrette
Smoked Tuna
Celeriac remoulade, iceberg lettuce,
picholine olive tapenade, crispy fried leeks, orange and honey
Pork Belly
Slow cooked Sloping Hills Pork Belly
White bean cassoulet, Nita Lake Lodge chorizo, rutabaga, parsley and celery salad
Chorizo persillade 
Braised Heriatage Angus Short Rib
Cippolini onions, savoy cabbage, pearl barley, confit garlic, crispy carrots
BC Mussels
Local BC Mussels
Blue mussels in the shell, Russet potato sour cream mash
smoked sourdough, garlic pistou, black Tuscan kale
Pot du creme
Organic Dark Chocolate Pot Du Creme
Vanilla Mint Frozen Parfait
Alta Bistro
4319 Main St
Whistler BC V0N1B4

(604) 932-2582
http://www.altabistro.com/
Alta Bistro on Urbanspoon

Wednesday, May 8, 2013

Crepe Montagne

Hot Chocolate 
Another of my Whistler favorites is Crepe Montagne.  Great place to have brunch or dessert or a quick snack after a day of skiing or snowboarding.   It is a very small space and they utilize every bit of space so be prepared to get cosy.  

To start, hot chocolate -  great way to warm up in winter.  They have a spiked version too if you so choose :)  
Chocolate Crepe 
I've never had a bad crepe here, from the savoury crepes to their dessert crepes,  I've always been a happy camper.  My favourite is the nutella crepe with whipped cream....SOOOO good.
Nutella Crepe 
Crepe Suzette

We've not had dinner here before but I hear they offer fondue and raclette in addition to the crepes.  

Crepe Montagne
#116-4368 Main Street
Whistler, BC V0N 1B4
http://www.crepemontagne.com/
Crêpe Montagne on Urbanspoon

Monday, May 6, 2013

Bearfoot Bistro - Whistler

When my mom came last spring, we took her to Whistler for a couple of days and went to Bearfoot Bistro to try their lobster fest special menu.   A simple, well executed menu that she enjoyed.

Mushroom soup
Wild Mushroom Soup
Salad with Goat Cheese and Beets
Lobster
Trio of Sorbet 
Cheesecake
Bearfoot Bistro
4121 Village Green
WhistlerBC V0N1B4
(604) 932 3433
Bearfoot Bistro on Urbanspoon

Friday, May 3, 2013

No mess baked bacon

Craving bacon but hate the mess it makes in your kitchen after frying up a batch?  Look no further,  after trying microwaving and baking it at various temperatures, I finally found a recipe that I like and it comes from Alton Brown :)  It is easy and not too involved, just leave it in the oven and walk away - it'll be hard as you will soon start to smell bacon and will be so tempted to peek.  Resist - just set the timer and walk away.  Remember to turn on the exhaust fan too!!  Or if you love the smell of bacon then just let the yummy smell of bacon just waft through the house.



  1. Line rimmed baking tray with tin foil.  I used extra foil to raise the sides to avoid the splatter but there really wasn't that much splatter.
  2. Place bacon on the tray, barely touching
  3. Place tray on the middle rack in cold oven and heat over to 400F.
  4. Once the oven reaches 400F, bake for another 17-20 min depending on how you like your bacon.
  5. I like mine crispy so I typically bake it for 20min.


Wednesday, May 1, 2013

Blueacre Seafood - Seattle

After a long day traipising around Seattle, we decided to go for a quick meal near our hotel.  D picked out Blueacre from a website review and we were not disappointed with the food.   The place is quite large, family style and casual.

To start, we ordered a crabcake and mussels to share.  Both were very fresh and flavourful.
Jumbo Lump Crabcake
Mussels
For the main, for some unexplainable reason, everytime I'm in Seattle, I order Cioppino.  It turned out outstanding, the broth was tasty and the hint of spice was perfect.  The seafood was super fresh too!  We couldn't help mopping up every last drop of broth with the extra bread. 
Cioppino
Sis-in-law had the fish - pretty good, just nicely done.  D had the fried catfish - We had seen plate after plate of it being served and wanted to try it.  It was not bad but not quite my cup of tea.  


Catfish
I'll be back in a heartbeat for the crabcake and the cioppino. 

Blueacre Seafood 
1700 7th Avenue
Seattle, WA 98101

Blueacre Seafood on Urbanspoon

Monday, April 29, 2013

Pazzo - Portland


This restaurant holds fond memories for D & I.  Needless to say, the food is very good.  When my brother and sis-in-law came to visit last summer, we did a roadtrip down to Seattle and Portland and had to revisit Pazzo.  They loved it so much that we ended up having dinner there 2 nights in a row. 


To start we had the wonderful bread and a carpaccio to share.  


We also had a tasting wine flight ...how cool is that?  Small pours that is perfect for a taste. 


With the mains,  the parppardelle and the gnocchi were perfect. The ciopinno was so-so.  The next night when we went back, 3 of us ordered the parppardelle.  It was the stuff my dreams were made of that night. 

Pappardelle
Cioppino 
Gnocchi
I was too full for dessert but we still shared a panna cotta to nicely finish up the meal.

They also have a bakery next door and we had some wonderful pastries the next day.  Make sure you get there early as they sell out pretty quick. 

We'll be back everytime we're in Portland. 

Pazzo Ristorante
627 SW Washington ST
Portland, OR 97205
+1 503 228 1515
Pazzo Ristorante on Urbanspoon

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