Ling

I love nuts! 1. macadamia 2. cashews 3. pistachios I love any honey-roasted nut, but I like plain peanuts and plain walnuts the least.

Well, the chef at Diva says it was "inspired". I was trying to be kind.

I always use lard in my pie crusts. I've heard of putting ALL your pie crust ingredients in the refrigerator to chill (including the flour and vinegar) before assembling, to make the dough even colder. I did that once and didn't notice much of a difference. My pie crust recipe is very close to the epicurious one, except I use lard and an egg yolk. I save the egg white for brushing on the top crust, and sprinkle with sugar before baking.

I usually have some sort of pastry in the morning (a slice of cake I baked the night before, for example) and coffee. When the pounds start creeping up, I have a bowl of Fiber One cereal and 1% milk, some fruit, and coffee.

Anyone read the article on the $34 burger Diva is offering right now? It's on the front page of today's Vancouver Sun. The burger contains the patty, 2 oz. of foie gras, and short rib meat, sandwiched in an in-house baked onion bun. (It was inspired by Daniel Boulud's burger). Burger comes with onion rings and fries.

I just had the Mocha Chocolate Oreos. They weren't very good, but my bf and I managed to polish off the entire box anyway.

I love ramen followed by a dozen or so warm chocolate chip cookies.

I saw it at Chapters yesterday and it sounded interesting. Has anyone read it yet?

Whoa...I'm way behind. Sorry I haven't been keeping up...I've been in bed with the nastiest throat infection. I've been sick for almost 2 weeks now! I'll catch up soon. Everything looks great. Danishes...yum! I've been wanting to try that recipe in the BWJ book!

You can order them from most Chinese butchers. I don't know how much they generally cost, but my parents bought one for just under $300 last year for Chinese New Year. I think they are a bit pricier around CNY though since the demand goes up.

I eat whatever's quickest. Sometimes it's leftovers from dinner, sometimes it's cold luncheon meat, and sometimes cheese and crackers.

Here are my ka'kats. I liked the crispy bottoms the best. http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid1...3f/f8f0c2a8.jpg I will make the rhubarb cakes sometime this week too.

I've been making pies all week--I haven't had time to do the ka'kats yet! I will do them next week, plus the rhubarb cake. I've never cooked rhubard either!

My bf had the laksa from Curry House last week and he said it was pretty good (but thinks the laksa at Prata Man is better). I've had the pre-packaged sushi from the supermarket several times and it's pretty good and fresh. Don't bother buying bubble tea from the food court though...it's probably the worst I'd ever had. Very watered down and not "milky" at all. There's a few more food stalls open at Aberdeen. There's a fruit juice stand, a crepe stand (sweet and savoury), the aforementioned Japanese udon place (also selling those octopus/squid balls with sauce), a Thai place selling noodles and sides (not a big selection--maybe 4 or 5 different meat and veg), and another Japanese stand selling sushi (I think). Oh, and the Japanese udon place has soft-serve green tea ice-cream!

I made chocolate cream pie (made with a liter of heavy cream) and blueberry pie. Both pies are gone, largely because of me. I am so full.

I buy packages of chicken hearts, gizzards, and other innards at Asian grocery markets.

If they're so fresh, I would eat them raw (just diced with some Japanese mayo). Add some tobiko for an additional briny crunch.

I love chicken hearts done yakitori style..on a skewer, grilled, and sauced. Delicious!

I've decided on coconut cream pie so far. I'll probably make another dessert too.

And yes, I'm in for the ka'kat. This will be my first time baking bread with yeast. I've only done it in a bread machine before.

From Baking with Julia: "Throughout the Eastern Mediterranean, ka'kat are a staple--and satisfying--street food, seemingly available everywhere and anytime. Sesame-seed encrusted and sized for snacking, they're about two and a half inches across and reminiscent, if not in taste, then certainly in mood, of soft American pretzels. This bread is often flavored with mahleb, the ground kernels of a type of black cherry found in the region. Mahleb is available in Middle Eastern groceries, and a quarter teaspoon mixed into the dough will add an exotic aroma to the baked breads."

My Baking With Julia came in the mail today.

Just wondering, what are babas? I should be getting my book in the mail sometime this week. For the weekend of April 10th and 11th, perhaps we could try an Easter-themed dessert? Are there any such ones in the book?

Yesterday: -country fried steak with oven-roasted potato wedges -sticky toffee pudding Today: -spaghetti and meatballs and lots of mushroms -crackers and fruit -coffee cake

I haven't decided what to make yet, but I would love to make the Sticky Toffee Pudding I made yesterday (it's was finished the same day--so delicious!) again even though it's not an "Easter" dessert.