Cheese Boutique

Quite a few years ago, our daughter introduced Terry and me to a "Cheese Boutique" in Toronto. 

We were there on a weekend. The place was bustling. I remembered it as a crowded shop on a small industrial street, surrounded by trees.

I recently reminded my daughter of the place:  Is it still around?

Yes! 

Then, let's go back and see if they sell "chocolate cheese" - one of my favorite flavours.

They did! Also several other flavoured goudas I was curious to try. I bought chocolate, lavender, Dubai chocolate - and a very sharp "Old Amsterdam."

We then discovered that the Cheese Boutique had expanded into a bake shop and deli a few doors down...

....so we headed over.

Lots to choose from!

I wanted to try everything!.

After buying a few European-style Christmas treats, we sat down to rest in their outdoor courtyard attached to the bake shop - where we  could have bought a sandwich and coffee.

Maybe next time!

Hopefully we can come back soon!

Missed It!

My son texted me this on Saturday evening...

Oh no! I missed it! 

I'm obviously not aware of everything going on in our neighbourhood! This is an event I would probably really enjoy!

Enjoying Octoberfest

Last weekend we enjoyed an "Octoberfest" meal at North Market restaurant in Almonte. 

It was a belated celebration of Terry's and my 49th wedding anniversary. 

There were homemade perogies...

We all loved the German pasta (spaetzla) with mushroom sauce - a specialty of Bavaria (Munich).

Also the sausage... Maybe that's what everyone was sharing in the picture below. 

(There was a lot of sharing going on!)

Afterwards we had dessert at Hummingbird chocolate factory... ice cream or hot chocolate.

(Guess who LOVES ice cream but decided not to have any?!)

After all that delicious food, everyone was ready for a nap!

Really Satisfying Brunch

Often after church we go out for coffee with our son's family.

Last weekend, we tried a new coffer shop - Equator. I ordered a bacon and egg wrap. 

It was very good. Lots of egg - and cheese - as well as bits of bacon. Very satisfying.

(I wonder if I could replicate it at home!)

Cooking and Baking Again!

I don't do a lot of cooking - or baking - in summer, when the weather is hot.

But now that it's cooler, I've started cooking and baking again.  

Yay, cooler weather!

Toronto Breakfast

Last Monday started out well - a beautiful sky!

Then we headed to one of our favourite breakfast restaurants... Mildred's.

We were there when the doors opened!

We shared a blueberry pancake. As usual, the food was elegant and delicious. 

Then on to the "main course"!

I had quiche with salad. I really can't remember what my daughter ordered!

A delicious way to start the day!

Girl Dinner vs Boy Dinner

On warm summer days, I enjoy eating uncooked meals, like this plate of cottage cheese, tomatoes fresh off the vine, smoked garlic sausage - and, in this case - leftover tortellini and part of a " veggie-burger" made of walnuts and lentils.

That's called a "girl dinner" my daughter informed me, when I told her what I was eating.

Why?

I don't know. Possibly because it involves no cooking.

Is there also a "boy dinner"? I asked...

Barbecued chicken (bought pre-cooked at the supermarket) with a diet coke to drink, she replied.

(I had no idea!!)

Baking with (Boiled) Quinoa

My latest baking adventure has taken me into the crazy world of replacing flour with cooked quinoa!

It all started when I dropped into a coffee shop for a snack. A chocolate loaf caught my eye, so I ordered it with a cup of coffee.

That was probably the best chocolate cake I've ever eaten, I later told my daughter. I'd love to get the recipe.

She immediately googled "chocolate loaf at Bridgehead Coffee in Ottawa", and reported back: Well, it caused quite a stir on Reddit when they started to serve it a while back. It's gluten-free because it has quinoa in it instead of flour.

(It also has a cup of unsweetened cocoa in it - so it's very chocolatey!)

She eventually found me a recipe on "All Recipes) that seemed to have the same ingredients as the one on the coffee shop's menu - minus oatmeal. 

I followed the recipe, but I did want to cut back on the butter.

I was a little disappointed when I first cut into the warm cake. It did taste better the second day - after it had been refrigerated.

If you love chocolate as much as I do, you might want to give it a try!

Plum Dumplings

I bought a frozen package of Hungarian plum dumplings.

The instructions seemed straightforward: Drop frozen dumplings into boiling salted water. When they rise to the top, let them boil for a few minutes before removing them with a slotted spoon.

I checked out a few recipes online to see how to serve them... 

Apparently one rolls the boiled dumplings in bread crumbs fried in butter and sprinkles them with icing sugar (castor sugar)... Another recipe suggests sugar snd cinnamon. 

That probably would have been interesting - but (trying to save time) I just sprinkled them with sugar.

Maple syrup might have been a nice addition, as well!

Grandma's "Cooking Class"!

Today it's back to school for kids in Ontario...

But a few days ago, my grandkids and I had a different kind of learning experience: grandma cooking HER GRANDMA's recipe!

My mother and grandmother often made "potato pancakes" for supper. It's a simple dish that I would never need a recipe for - I had watched them make it so often.

Shredded raw potato, rinsed and patted dry... Add several raw eggs and several heaping  tablespoons of flour to hold the shredded potatoes together as pancakes when frying.

As I recall, my mother used a generous amount of oil - or was it bacon drippings? - to fry it in.

My grandkids helped with grating - and Ivy watched over the frying pan.

I haven't made them in a long time - and wondered if I should add a small grated onion for extra flavour. 

Unfortunately I didn't, and they were quite bland. Next time I'll add onion and salt - if not using salty bacon drippings to fry them in!

As we were making them, I also wondered if they would taste just as good with other vegetables added - like shredded carrot and some chopped green vegetable, like broccoli. That's not what my grandmother did - but recipes do change over time! Why not start a new tradition?!

Delicious Meal Out

Terry and I recently joined our son and grandson for a lovely meal...

It was totally last minute!

We started out heading to a food truck that had a hamburger special - only to discover that they had run out of hamburger!

(Did we want anything else?!)

Another option was a nearby brew pub we had been to once before - years ago - in Ashton...

The food was delicious! 

The view from the screened porch looked down the hill (cliff?) to the river.

(But the beams looked SOLID!)

Glad we were impulsive!

Weekend Cake

I'm a fan of European baking. These days, I don't travel much... So eating ethnic food gives me a sense of "almost being away"!

And sometimes, I buy - or make - cake on the weekend.

I was hoping to buy a European-style cherry cake with a crumble topping... when I saw a different cake.

It seemed to be calling my name!

It's a honey cake - or, in their words - "a miracle from honey." Pretty compelling description! 

I stuck with my original plan and got the cherry cake...

But next time, I think I'll try this!

Not "Croque Madam"

I've long been curious to try a "croque monsieur" or a "croque madam" sandwich - traditional French sandwiches made by dipping ham and cheese sandwiches in a mixture of egg and milk, then frying them, as one would fry French toast. 

I was under the impression that the "croque monsieur" had ham and cheese between the slices of bread but "croque madam" only had cheese...

So I made what I thought was a "croque madam" - because I had no ham.

But I was wrong! Turns out that both croque monsieur" and "croque madam" have ham and cheese in them. But "croque madam" has a fried egg - sunny side up - on top!

I need to try that!

But I did use the leftover egg and milk mixture for a small serving of scrambled eggs - which I drizzled with homemade strawberry jam...

A delicious dessert!

"Cat Food"!!

Here are two Pinterest photos that give new meaning to the term "cat food"!

Food in the shape of a cat!! The orange segments on top - and the tomato slices (bottom left)!

Now I don't know about you - but I've never had the urge to shape food into animals... except perhaps "ants on a stick" when encouraging my kids to eat healthy snacks.

But I'm sort of glad none of my kids were "food artists" either! Could you imagine them slowing down supper because they wanted to create a masterpiece with some dish before it was served!!

I wonder... Were adult food artists - as kids - children who enjoyed eating - or kids who liked playing with their food?!!

Cheap Food

My daughter told me about an app that offers cheap food - no choice, however! Just bags of food that won't keep, so it's offered at discounted prices. Both supermarkets and restaurants have signed up.

The app is called "Too Good To Go"... (Not sure exactly what that means... Too good to go to waste?)

I'm tempted to try some of their offerings... 

One place I'm curious to try is a downtown buffet restaurant that Terry and I used to frequent before COVID. It shut down for several years, then reopened in a new location.

They rank high in the app's feedback. 

But there are also deals closer to home - bakeries and supermarket deli bars that offer bags of discounted food.

Maybe it's time to be adventuresome...

Two slight problems - for people with food sensitivities, like Terry, who is allergic to fish and seafood, there is no way of knowing what the mystery bag will hold. There's also no indication of quantity: Will it feed one or more?!

But I'm ready for some food adventure - so it's only a matter of time before I try! I just need the right deal!

Interesting Oatmeal Recipe

I prefer written recipes - but I recently came across a "reel" - a quick video - of an oatmeal-cottage cheese recipe I thought looked interesting. 

I had to watch the reel half a dozen times to catch the last ingredient - which I didn't get in the end. I assume it was a spice - so I used 1/4 teaspoon of cinnamon. (I omitted the nutmeg.)

It is supposed to be a mug cake, cooked for 1-2 minutes on high in the microwave.

I mixed the ingredients, then divided it into 3 custard cups - which I cooked together in the microwave. I didn't want it to overflow.

Mine was not brown on top but it didn't overflow either...

I enjoyed it - appreciating that, with cottage cheese in it, it was high in protein. I also like the tangy taste of cranberries (or rhubarb).

Another time, I would add one chopped apple and an egg - instead of honey. I'd probably have to use 4 small custard cups to cook it in.

I enjoy experimenting with food! Figuring out how to omit sweetener is my current cooking challenge. I find that adding a chopped apple - and/or chopped dates to most recipes adds sweetening...

But maybe that could be another blog!