Ling

^NOOO! Is it in today's paper? I wonder what the "numerous problems" were? The recipe looks very similar to my regular cheesecake recipe, without the stilton, of course.

^My parents have been to Shanghai River and said the food was OK, but not worth the crowds. I don't think they're going back.

Joie and I went to Trafalgar's today, and we shared the Chocolate Obsession(like a flourless chocolate cake) and the Chocolate Ganache cake. To be honest, I wasn't blown away by either dessert--I think I use better recipes for both cakes. I asked the server what sort of chocolate Trafalgar uses, and she said the baker uses Callebaut. Call me a chocolate snob, but I much prefer the deeper, more complex taste of Valrhona chocolate desserts, even though I use 1/2 Callebaut and 1/2 Valrhona in my home-baking to offset costs. Joie will post the pictures up shortly, so stay tuned! Trafalgar's has a delicious-looking St. Honore cake and a few other desserts that looked very tempting (like the Peanut Butter Mousse cake and the Chocolate Hazelnut Zuccotto), so we'll have to re-visit them. My scoring: Chocolate Ganache: 6.5/10 (cake was a bit crumbly and light for my tastes) Chocolate Obsession: 7.5/10 (I prefer an even thicker, darker, and richer tasting flourless chocolate cake)

^I've seen that couple competing in an international pastry competition in France (on FoodTV). I looked at the website...but is the only way to get their product is having it shipped, or do they have a retail location?

Imperial (downtown) has pretty good mapo tofu...I haven't been there recently though, so I don't know if they've changed chefs.

Really looking forward to this.......

2 days ago: chicken bastela (ground chicken and almonds wrapped in phyllo, dusted with cinnamon and icing sugar) yesterday: freshly-baked chocolate chip cookies

We went on a family vacation when I was in grade 3 and I remember spending an afternoon digging clams, only to see the Red Tide warning sign in the area when my bucket was full. I suspect mussels are similarly affected, at least in certain areas. I wouldn't want to risk getting a stomach ache (or worse) for some free sea food.

I think Irishgirl's Roquefort ice-cream could work on the dessert menu in a steakhouse.

All yesterday: Zanzibar for lunch with Arne and Joie, later joined by Joie's husband (who dutifully ate her leftovers, as all husbands should ) and Angela (PeppermintTea). I had the chicken bastela and the seafood bastela, and we shared the Morrocan flatbreads--one spinach, one red pepper, and one almond and honey. The spinach was my favourite. The chicken bastela was, for me, the best thing we sampled--ground chicken and almonds encased in crunchy phyllo, dusted with icing sugar and cinnamon. We then walked up the street to Prado and I had my usual Americano and shared a nice peanut butter cookie with Joie. It was good, but I was a bit disappointed that they didn't have their ginger cardamon cookie that PeppermintTea so highly recommended. Ch'i: We got there around 7pm-ish and shared the handmade roti with curry sauce, the duck, enoki, and shiitake spring rolls, the tempura oysters, and my bf also had the laksa. (I foolishly didn't order any more food because I thought I would be full, having eaten dinner already before going to Ch'i). I drank the Echelon Pinot Noir and the Georges Duboeuf Beaujolais. My bf had the lychee mojito and a few other cocktails. Before we left, the manager gave out roses to the ladies...I thought that was a sweet gesture. Our group decided to hit another spot before going home as we were still hungry (notably, ME! ) I was getting crankier by the minute, and so we decided to go to... The Hamilton Street Grill for yam fries and gingerbread pudding. I inhaled most of the bread from our table before the fries came, and Deborah ("giver of food") generously gave me most of her fries too After the gingerbread pudding (and a slice of bread from the basket at the next table), I was full and happy.

^But that gives you an excuse to go back there, buy some more cheese danishes, and snap some pictures for this thread.

stilton cheesecake with rhubarb compote

Tonight I did the honey and mustard thing, but that vinegar and brown sugar sounds so good! Must try that next.

Yes, the stilton flavour is definitely mild...I was thinking about increasing the amount of stilton when I make it. I think the blue cheese creme brulee at Umami had a stronger blue cheese flavour--and it is green-ish, not absolutely white like the cheesecake at Sen5es. I wasn't expecting it to be very different from the other cheesecakes I've eaten, because I looked at the recipe (or maybe the dumbed down version for us home-bakers) on Epicurious and the proportions are about the same as all the other cheesecakes I make. I didn't give it a 10, though, because I found the base a little soggy. That Roquefort ice-cream sounds heavenly--pear and port?!! Wow--I still haven't found a solid "10" yet, and that ice-cream has me drooling already.

Hmm...Image Gullet doesn't seem to be working tonight, so here's my pick for best dessert (this quest is far from over, though!) Stilton Cheesecake with Rhubarb Compote from Sen5es I'll try posting the picture tomorrow...but it ain't pretty due to my crappy photography skills. The taste of stilton was surprisingly mild to me, but it's definitely there to add that delicious hint of saltiness to the cheesecake. The base is described as "almond crumble", though the recipe on Epicurious uses shortbread as a base. The rhubarb compote provided a nice tart/sweet component. I'm in love with this cheesecake (Rating: 9.5)

Ch'i is, imo, a great place for snacks and drinks. I love the jackfruit martini. Heading there tomorrow....

There's a Guiness Stout cake recipe on Epicurious.

Oh. My. God. I've found something better than the Caramel-Chocolat and the Chocolate Ganache cake. I took pictures, but since I don't know how to upload them, you're all going to have to wait until my bf uploads them tonight. edit: Just so I don't disappoint any of you, the dessert is actually quite famous in Vancouver so it isn't exactly a "hidden gem". It's the perfect balance of salty/sweet/crispy/creamy/tart....any guesses?

I had to look up Charo--omigod, she's the freaky woman on "The Surreal Life"! I like the ideas for the pit bbq and the Mexican food...can't say I don't find the school boy/girl outfits just the slightest bit creepy though.... And I want Batali's Iron Chef dessert of churros and melted Mexican chocolate (I think he put some sort of heat and some cinnamon in there) on the dessert menu.

^You're right--I fixed the dates (and my spelling of "ankimo" ) I wanted to order the beef tongue with the ponzu sauce, but Albert's dad doesn't like to eat tongue. Next time I will....

^I'm still sitting here in shock. And I'm worrying that HKDave will usurp my "eating-champion" title.

^Damn. 3 restaurants for 1 dinner. And that Sunday mixed grill. I'm sitting here in awe. I think you would be a formidable opponent if we were to go head-to-head in an eating competition.

chutoro (medium toro) and ankimo (monkfish liver)

Monday night was a night out with non-Egullet friends, hence: Rugby's for duck spring rolls and cheap wine and beer...then when they closed at midnight, we headed across the street to Boston Pizza for the Team Pitcher and wings until 2ish a.m., then to Blenz to sober up. (Finally went to bed at 5am) Tuesday: coffee at the Elysian Room followed by a plethora of treats at Ganache Patisserie Wednesday night: delicious dinner at Yuji's that included deep-fried California rolls, the tastiest ankimo pate (monkfish liver), beef tendon hot pot, chutoro (medium toro), geoduck, hamachi, SPAM roll (with scrambled eggs--my bf asked Yuji for this, as it wasn't on the menu), grilled pork cheeks with honey pepper, blue cheese anchovy pizza, tempura yam fries and a smoked salmon roll with cream cheese. Drank sake....but forgot to note the name. It's one of the more popular brands--comes in a black bottle.

Extra shot if you see me downing a mountain of gingerbread pudding in under 2 minutes.