Ling

I made Sarah's butter cake today and it was fantastic--tender crumb, rich without being too heavy (like a pound cake). I used Canadian AP flour and it still turned out OK. The cake took an extra 15 minutes in the oven because I topped it with a thick layer of apricot crumble mixture (flour, sugar, walnuts, rolled oats, butter). I'm really happy with this cake and I'll use it as my standard butter cake recipe from now on. Thanks for posting!

C'mon, Ling, the gig is up: we all know that you're not really going to fire up the oven and bake a damn thing! That dough is gonna get in yer belly uncooked!! ← I did have a sizeable portion of the dough straight from the freezer. But then I baked off 2 pans of cookies for my ice-cream sandwiches. It was my day off today...so I just spent the day bumming around the house, eating.

^Oh god. I could totally go for that right now. (And I swear, if this wasn't a post on Egullet, people would think I'm being sarcastic.) Looks delicious. I sandwiched ice-cream in between gingersnap cookies, and also those Korova cookies. I have batches of cookie dough in the freezer...so I can slice and bake whenever I want.

-steak, pan-fried mushrooms and onions, Chinese stir-fried bean sprouts -gingersnaps (from Chez Panisse) with some Amaretto to go along with them

I remember when my sister and I tried to bake shortbread cookies for the first time, without a recipe. We had seen my aunt do it the week before, and we remembered it only had 3 ingredients--butter, flour, and icing sugar. So we went home and decided to use as much butter and as little flour as possible (more butter is better, right? ) Then we shaped the butter-dough into cookies, and sprinkled them with festive red and green sprinkles. Into the oven they went...15 minutes later, we were pulling a pan of melted, crispy, colorful butter blobs. I think I must've been in grade 7 or so, and my sister was in grade 5. The next time, we used a recipe.

Excellent dough--nice and spicy (and the cookies aren't bad either, but the spices don't taste as sharp. I might increase the amount of cinnamon and ground ginger for my next batch. ) Chez Panisse gingersnaps: http://chocolateandzucchini.com/archives/2...gingersnaps.php

My parents went to a Chinese banquet so I got leftovers. My favourite was the quail. There was some really bad "lovebird" fried rice too--way too much snotty cornstarch-y sauce, and not a whole lotta anything else. I also baked a blueberry pie, because I haven't been able to get Alinka's beautiful pie out of my head! I'll post a pic tomorrow. I didn't apply the egg wash evenly, so some of the pastry leaves are rather pale... I also whipped up a big batch of Chez Panisse gingersnap cookie dough, so I was snacking on that all night. Great dough. Good amount of spices.

Tell me, how do you account for that? Who boned it for you and how? ← It was deboned by a talented chef. I think I've seen chefs snip the backbone out with kitchen shears on TV. The bones in the wings are left alone. I had a "boneless" Cornish hen earlier this week too, at Le Crocodile in Vancouver. (And since it's after midnight, I guess I can post what will probably be the most delicious thing I'll eat today--gingersnap dough from a Chez Panisse recipe! Nice amount of spices. )

^The Cornish game hen was my favourite. Mmm... The Jerusalem artichoke puree with the gorgonzola was amazingly smooth, with the distinct flavour of blue cheese being there but not overwhelming. (All my friends really enjoyed it, and some of them can't stand the smell of blue cheese). I was impressed by how much care evidently went into the sauces and the side components. I tend to prefer my meats on the rare side, so the veal and the lamb were a bit too done for my liking. All the appetizers were tasty, but the foie gras stood out for me. My friend and I noticed that it had more of a crust than you usually see at restaurants. I especially enjoyed the buffalo tartare--if the foie gras isn't offered, I would definitely recommend the tartare. The pate was my least favourite--it was still good, but the general consensus was that it was a bit under seasoned. There were pine nuts in the pate--I thought that was interesting. Of the desserts, my favourites as I noted above were the chocolate tart and the brandy cannolis. The flan was also good, but I thought it had a touch more gelatin than necessary (my friend who ordered it enjoyed it very much, though.) The poached fig dessert and the trifle were both tasty, but I don't enjoy fruit-based desserts very much...that's my own bias.

Last night: -foie gras with figs and Parma ham -crispy skin boneless Cornish hen, cauliflower purée, wild mushroom ravioli, black trumpet mushroom jus -Valrhona chocolate tart with espresso ice-cream (Unfortunately, I only got bites of the appetizer and main from my friends' plates. My dinner was good, but theirs was better. ) Today: -leftover pie crust rolled out, sprinkled with sugar and cinnamon and baked -a few shots of Amaretto

All descriptions from the Parkside website: Appetizers: Pâté de campagne, split pea purée, creamed horseradish mustard, toasted brioche Buffalo steak tartare, well seasoned, gaufrette potato chips Pea and prosciutto ravioli with pea velouté and seared scallop (Daily special appetizer--seared foie gras, figs, and Parma ham. I enjoyed this appetizer the most.) Mains: Milk fed veal chop, stuffed pasta shells, creamed Jerusalem artichokes and gorgonzola, Port sauce Crispy skin boneless Cornish hen, cauliflower purée, wild mushroom ravioli, black trumpet mushroom jus (This was my favourite main course) Roast duck “Grand-mère”, foie gras cabbage roll, sweet onion purée, fondant potato (another one of my favourites..the duck must've been slow-cooked because the meat just fell apart in your mouth. I've never had duck this good!) Roast tenderloin of Alberta lamb, house made sausage, fresh mint and grainy mustard jus (the house made sausage was very lean...not my favourite) Desserts: Dulce de leche caramel flan Strawberry and vanilla triffle Brandy snap cannolis filled with mascarpone and lemon custard, poached blueberries (one of my favourite desserts of the evening...crisp and rich at the same time) Fresh figs roasted in port wine syrup, candied walnut ice cream Chocolate tart, housemade espresso ice cream (They use Valrhona and the tart crust was remarkably thin. The ganache was rich without being too dense. Perhaps it was whipped a bit?) All in all, a wonderful meal. I had the pate, the veal, and the chocolate tart. I shared a bottle of the 2000 Moillard Chorey les Beaune with one of my friends.

Thanks for all the recommendations. I had a great dinner at Parkside tonight, and my friends all enjoyed the food too. Will post a re-cap in the "Last 3" thread soon.

I think these are another 2 of the great wine deals at Earl's: Yalumba Y Series Cabernet Sauvignon Yalumba Viognier Y Series

Me too...often, I find that 150% mark-up is more the norm. (And there's nothing wrong with liking wine list at Earl's, Daddy-A!)

^OMIGOD. I can't believe I wrote that... He asked me to visit him in Japan when he gets his apartment. Maybe in a few months we'll be tearing up Japan together.

Re-read my post and I hope I didn't come across as rude and snarky. I thanked the waitress a few times when she offered me free reign on the buffet...and there was only one other table besides ours in the dining room (they were ordering a la carte). And the boy always leaves a really good tip...so I've noticed.

My mom bought a whole flat of figs for $25 Cdn (I don't know if that's cheap or not...but they were the sweetest, largest figs I'd ever seen in my life.) Soooo delicious....I couldn't stop eating them and now I'm sooooo full! (My honey crystallized too...I just popped it in the microwave.) (And sheesh...your pictures belong in a cookbook! Thanks for posting your lovely pictures, Alinka. I always look forward to your Dinner posts. )

I ate about 15 large (the size of a large plum!) fresh, plump figs. I halved them, then slipped in hunks of Parmigiano-Reggiano, and drizzled them with honey and balsamico. Then I ate a plate of Korova cookies, fresh from the oven.

caramel bread pudding!!!!

I made the Korova cookie dough for the third time this week...anyone else have a recipe to offer before I get sick of this salty-chocolately goodness?

One last night of madness.... Wednesday, 1:00 a.m. We are at Wet Lounge in Richmond, but I got there late and last call was at 12:30 a.m. Saw remnants of a very unappetizing chocolate fondue congealing on the table, and bottles of beer and cigarettes littering the table. 1:15 a.m. We are at Viva in Richmond...why am I here AGAIN?!!!! I see the same people here all the time. DJ Wax scratched on the turn-table for us because the boy told him he was leaving Vancouver for Japan in the morning. And then we played drinking games and drank Chivas and green tea. (Aiya! I'm starting to like this drink....!! I find the slight bitter-sweetness of the tea quite refreshing.) 2:30 a.m. Now we're at No. 9, another high-school haunt of mine. I had the beef tendon noodle--this is what I used to order back in high-school too. (That, and the HK- style french toast). BTW--what is tendon? Is it a protein? Tastes like fatty meat-jelly. I like fatty meat-jelly. The boy had wonton. His friends had the...uhm...mixed balls noodle? (Fish balls and beef balls?), baked spaghetti, and gyoza. The baked spaghetti looked truly disgusting (mushy noodles with meat sauce that didn't smell particularly appetizing, especially after drinking). 10:30 a.m. After only 4 hours of sleep, I met him at the airport to see him off. We went to the Fairmount Hotel for breakfast. Actually, I only had like 7 minutes before I had to leave and get to work, so I told the waitress I wasn't going to order anything. The boy had the breakfast buffet and then the waitress said to me, "Why don't you help yourself to whatever you like, too? I mean, how much can you eat in 7 minutes?" Lady did not know who she was talkin' to! This is what I shovelled down: -a plate of bread pudding (quite good...soft and custardy, with a strong caramel flavour) -a plate of sausage and hickory-smoked bacon -fresh orange juice -hashbrowns -a soft-poached egg on biscuit, with gravy -a made-to-order omelette that the boy got, filled with cheese, ham, and green onion That was nice. Thank-you, unassuming waitress. (Oh, and then I said good-bye to the boy. That was a fun month. )

^I love your pictures, Alinka. If I could take pictures that looked half as good as yours, I'd be snapping away with my digi cam all day. I had peanut butter cookies for breakfast, and coffee.

semi-sweet Scharffen Berger Almond Roca

I've used this recipe--it's a good one. How about pecan pie bars? Or butter tarts?

The pear frangipane looks especially beautiful. Which tart tasted the best? What sort of pan did you use for the tarte tartin?