Ling

I have the Nordicware Rose pan, but it's not my favourite. I still need to get that Cathedral pan! It's my favourite.

At least I hope the person pumping the gas is not the same person who makes your sushi. ← No, it's just pre-packaged sushi that's sold at gas stations. So wrong!

^That birthday cake is crazy cool. Such a lucky kid! You girls did an awesome job!

I was hoping no one would ask, but I had fried rice, and then a Yogurt Coffee Crisp (new flavour? It sounded interesting) before the Chocolate Soiree. (It was strange...I don't usually like tanginess with my chocolate.) When I got home, my mom was making jiao zi (dumplings) from scratch! So how could I not have a bowl (OK fine, I had two.)

No, no...I was perfectly fine. No tummy ache. But I was talking really fast...hahah.

is that the spongy thin long noodle usually served near the end of chinese banquets? i love that stuff! kids love that stuff! although it scares me cuz i think they're flash fried in oil like how most instant noodles are...my mom had some in the cupboard and it was big round block of dry fried noodles which (i guess) get soaked and cooked. ← Yes, it is. Yee mein is the best!

Yes - in HK it is very common. My mother made a fruit and prawn salad for xmas dinner. The fruit was canned and it was heavy on the mayo - but the prawns were steamed live prawns that were quickly cooled and tossed into the salad. The prawns were excellent - the rest left me scratching my head also. Not sure what it is called - but it have seen the dish prepared with candied walnuts in the U.S. - does that sound familiar? Recently - I have seen a real fashion for tossing deep fried slices of pork chop in a sweetened mayo (basically Miracle Whip and condensed milk). It's not bad - in that homey kind of way. ← Ughhh...the prawn/fruit/mayo combo. I can't STAND it! I like the fried pork in sweetened mayo, though. I've had it at Deer Garden in Richmond, but I think they changed chefs a year or so ago? ETA: One of my students is really into food and he went to that Emperor's Feast at Fook Luen in Burnaby I mentioned a few months ago. He said the food was incredible, and the knife work on the decorations was on par with what he's seen in China. Has anyone been to Fook Luen for dim sum? He said that's his family's favourite place to go for dim sum, and he recommends the "king" ha gao (steamed shrimp dumplings.) His family seems to be huge foodies...they've eaten in many of the great restaurants all over China, Hong Kong, and Vancouver. In Richmond, he likes Gingeri and Jade.

You should try their cloth bag. I hear it's not too bad. ← I haven't had Cobs Bread either, but I visited several locations when they first opened, just to take a look. I imagine the bread tastes as good as they look--big, fluffy, pale loaves. The negative comments I've read from ppl who've actually tasted the bread doesn't do much to motivate me in purchasing a loaf for myself.

I don't really like the flavour, so I also sub orange blossom water for rose water.

Maybe it's because of my (quite traditional) Chinese parents, but I've never tasted a Vienna sausage. They come canned? Are they preserved in some sort of liquid? Canned ravioli...ugggh. I had Chef Boyardee once, when I was 6 or so and staying over at my aunt's house. I took a bite and asked my grandma if I could have some congee instead. Even when I was a kid, I knew that meat shouldn't be gray paste! Some more to the list... -canned tuna in water -Red Delicious apples (at least the ones we get in Vancouver) -gas station sushi (I kid you not)

Yes, I know about the recipe! I haven't made it either but it looks incredible! I'm coming to Seattle soon to hit up Fran's and to have dinner at Monsoon...Fridays are my day off, so perhaps this Friday or the Friday after that, before I fly to San Fran!

First, it wasn't a fundraiser...just an incredible event put together by the very generous host and hostess! (I know, I know...can you BELIEVE the spread? My head is still reeling....) The Peruvian chocolate and cabernet sauvignon stood out among the other two hot chocolates I sampled. (One had too much rum so I couldn't really taste the chocolate, and the other was a very smoky Indonesian chocolate, I believe!) The cabernet sauvignon added body and depth without masking the Peruvian chocolate. It was a delicious, very adult treat!

I had the terribly good fortune of being invited to a chocolate event hosted by Egulleter Lord Balthazar and his lovely wife, Fondy, last night. Needless to say, the sheer volume and extravagance of what was proffered to the lucky, lucky guests exceeded my wildest fantasies. Here are the photos and some brief comments. I apologize for being able to tell you little more than what I liked and what I didn't like about the chocolates I remembered tasting--there were just way too many to keep track of, and I didn't want to be the freak with the pen and paper, scribbling tasting notes. The pictures aren't the best either. (I took one quick shot of almost everything although now I realize I'm missing the Michel Cluizel table with the sampler box, the chocolate nibs, and the chocolate cocoa beans!) I wanted to be quick with the pictures so everyone could start tasting. I'll offer my opinion of the Michel Cluizel first, since I neglected to take a picture. I was really surprised with the 45% milk, which I enjoyed much more than the Valrhona Jivara. I'm not a fan of milk chocolate to begin with, but the Cluizel milk was extremely smooth and had more depth than the Jivara. (I've had the rest of the chocolates before--my favourite is the Hacienda 'Los Anconès'. I don't believe this was in the sampler box, but there was the 85% and another 72%, and some white chocolate as well. Domori I sampled three types--none of them really stood out for me. Green & Blacks Pretty good, and if I recall correctly, quite reasonably priced! Vosges I sampled every single bar on this plate. My favourite was the "Black Pearl" bar with ginger, wasabi, and sesame. The ginger came through quite nicely. Also noteworthy is the curry spice one...but at something like 40ish%, it was too sweet for me. Christopher Norman bars Here are a variety of nut/spice chocolate bars...the pistachio one was particularly good. (Yes, I sampled them all...my friend and I spent the whole four hours eating non-stop! This guy who snacked on breadsticks and water crackers all night kept laughing at how much chocolate we were putting away... I just told him we take our work very seriously! ) Christopher Norman brownies These brownies were amazing--they have two distinct layers. The bottom layer seems to be a very dense, almost flourless chocolate brownie and the top layer is a lighter truffle. It tasted like hazelnut (if I remember correctly.) Christopher Norman tea sampler We chose the blue one (lapsuong?) I often see this flavour paired with duck, so it was hard not to think about duck when I was eating this... The tea flavour was quite strong. I think I would've preferred to taste more of the chocolate. Chocolate Table #1 Pierre Marcolini This was my first time tasting Pierre Marcolini's chocolates and I was blown away. These definitely made my Top 3 of the evening, especially the Venezuela 75%. Nice, long finish. Here are Pierre's truffles. I forget which one of these I sampled...I think I had two, and I believe one of them was a salted caramel. My friend said that the salted caramel ones from Fran's surpasses the one we ate last night, though. Vosges truffles I had a dulce de leche truffle, which was delicious, and the "Red Fire" truffle. I liked the flavour in the truffle moreso than in the "Red Fire" brownie. The brownie was too sweet and not chocolatey enough. Wild Sweets from the Duby husband/wife team here in Vancouver! These were beautiful to look at. I had one that was apricot and mango (I think? Or perhaps passionfruit?) and one that was walnut cinnamon. Both were great. Also Wild Sweets...I had a black truffle chocolate from this box. The truffle flavour was quite pronounced, though not overwhelmingly so because of the relatively thick shell. These beautiful truffles are from a famous chocolatier in Montreal, Chocolats Genevieve Grandbois! (Apparently, the chocolate transfers are like a puzzle, and if you fit them together correctly, you get an image of a puppy! I kept my grubby fingers away from all the chocolates though... ) I had two or three selections from this box as well...the black truffle one, and a 25 year old balsamico one. The black truffle flavour in this chocolate was stronger compared to the one put out by Wild Sweets, and the shell was more delicate. I preferred this one. The balsamico truffle was not my favourite--the taste was kind of muddled at the beginning (I hadn't looked at the sheet and couldn't really tell what flavour it was until the sweet/tanginess kicked in at the end.) Now here is ONE of the pastry tables! The host flattered me by placing my chocolate tarts on a pedestal in the center, amidst the beautiful creations by Ganache Patisserie. There's a close-up shot of the tarts I made that I took earlier in the day. Tray one...mousse cakes with a chocolate cake bottom. These were good, but not terribly special. The macaroons were very sweet compared to the ones you find at Thomas Haas. Cream puffs These were dry...not my favourite. (I prefer a moist interior.) raspberry and white chocolate mousse I believe this was the chocolate and banana mousse cake. another chocolate mousse cake (And yes, I tasted each and every single pastry so far... ) The Concorde (meringue rods very sweet, but I love the crunchy contrast) Pastry Table #2 A selection from Sen5es. Sen5es is, of course, run by the legendary Thomas Haas. My favourite pastries there are the lemon tarts, the stilton cheesecakes, and the twice-baked almond croissant. My favourite pastry from last night was the milk chocolate and passionfruit cake (the dome in the back). I am not sure which bakery provided the madelaines... from La Petite France, another one of the best Vancouver has to offer. As you can see, their pastries look very traditional compared to the more modern look that Sen5es prefers. There were a variety of mousse cakes on this platter. What stood out for me was a coffee/chocolate cream layer cake. Not one... ...but TWO Valrhona fountains! These were thinned out by cocoa butter instead of your usual oil. There were lots of different fruits. I had a slice of banana....that was pretty fun. Chocoatl in Yaletown (Vancouver) Themis, one of the owners, was there last night making us hot chocolate too! He was so affable; everyone loved him. My favourite hot chocolate of the evening was a Peruvian hot chocolate with cabernet sauvignon! He made the hot chocolates with these...(btw, the pistachio cake was quite good too!) I tried the dark chocolate matcha truffle. It was filled with a runny white chocolate filling that was subtly flavoured with the matcha. Callebaut chocolates I skipped over these... El Rey truffles, and more Callebaut... Sparkle cookies and E. Guittard The Sparkle cookies I had a few years ago almost made me double over in ecstasy. The ones I had at Haas two months ago were OK...not nearly as chocolatey as the ones you can make at home using their published recipe (providing you use the Guanaja as specified.) The ones last night were more like a chocolate-flavoured almond cookie...way too much almond meal. I think their recipe must've changed once they started packaging some of them as take-and-bake cookies. Haas' beautiful chocolates. These are my favourite in Vancouver! Valrhona Jivara and a chocolate flower Amedei Chuao and Porcelana! These are both incredible 70% chocolates. I give the edge to the Porcelana though...amazingly smooth melt. The Porcelana was my favourite chocolate of the evening. Guido Gobbino I believe these were single-origin chocolates...they were good, but my palate was spoiled from the Amedei. The host also makes incredible ice-creams! The lightest one is Callebaut with Scharffen Berger nibs, one Valrhona dark with El Rey Ioca white chocolate chips, and one was Michel Cluizel (and I believe it had apricot liqueur?) All fantastic. I had two helpings. And look what the generous, very handsome and dashing (not to mention impeccably-dressed!! ) host gave me when I left!! He's making me say that in exchange for the freebies...j/k! What a night to remember! Thanks for allowing me to re-live it by posting it all here. By the end of the night, I had so much sugar and caffeine coursing through my system that I was speaking so incredibly fast...eek!

^I'll do my best!!

I'm flying in to eat at FL in 2 weeks! Can't wait!

Monkfish liver, otoro, and mountain potato are some of my favourites as well! Thank you SO much for those pictures! And thank-you also for giving us a glimpse of your (very enviable) life this week. I scored reservations last night at The French Laundry and I'm most likely going to take the Greyhound first to Seattle before my flight sometime in the next two weeks. It looks like Salumi or Monsoon is in my near future after all!

That's so beautiful! Mmmm!

Just one of the 3 plates worth of "leftovers" from the most incredible Chocolate Party I have ever attended (and will most likely ever attend!) 4 hours of eating the best chocolate, truffles, and chocolate pastries imported from around the world...I have about 50 pictures to resize and upload...stay tuned for the thread! For first, breakfast...(a selection from Ganache Patisserie). The chocolates on this plate are 75% single origin chocolates from around the world, by Pierre Marcolini. (In the background, you can see the Amedei Porcelana, one of my favourite chocolates of the night.)

I'm a bit surprised you feel that way, because there is some terrific mock-meat in traditional cooking for Chinese Buddhists. You don't enjoy any of those mock-meats from time to time? [Edited to eliminate a portion I thought better of.] ← I'm just not a fan of "mock" anything. Goes to the whole design philosophy of celebrating the material or ingredient. ← Hmm...I am not a fan of the Western "mock meat" products, like the veggie burgers and the veggie sausages. Schneider's was at my university giving out mock beef and mock chicken packages two years ago and I took some out of morbid curiousity. The chemical SMELL when I was cooking them was horrendous! It didn't smell like food at all!!! However, I do love the Chinese mock-meat "fried gluten" stuff. I don't think of it as meat, but as any side dish.

Yes, I buy packages of them all the time from the Asian supermarkets! I grew up eating duck gizzards!

That's one beautiful mother and baby, bavila. The cake--it's enormous! How high was it, approximately?

^How delicious! That's my kind of breakfast, girl! I had cream puffs. I was going to bring them to a party tonight, but they didn't look as pretty as usual so I'm going to be anal and not bring 'em. (I made chocolate tarts instead for the party.) Also, some salted duck gizzards and Asian marinaded duck wings leftover from dinner last night.

^ I've heard of canned spray cheese, but I've never tasted it, nor seen it in person. I don't think many grocery stores here in Vancouver carry that product. What does it taste like? Rubbery, mucous-like processed cheese? Is it extra salty?

I made individual Tarte Grenobloise for the party...here's a picture. I did a burnt brandy pecan caramel on top...so delicious!

Underbeating made the crumb in one of my recent pound cakes kind of greasy and heavy.