Asians are known to be big tea drinkers but I've noticed on this trip back to Toronto that a tea-drinking culture is striving in Toronto. Plenty of gourmet tea shops have sprung up with very pleasant fusion blends of east meets west. Coffee is nice; my HK milk tea is nice but a soothing cup of clear tea is best when one is feeling a bit under the weather or simply when one desires something lighter on the tummy. But Ten Rens Tea Time goes beyond simply selling teas...They offer dishes; Taiwanese-inspired, featuring tea ingredients. Frankly, I don't really taste the tea in the dishes though the dishes are tasty. For $15.99, you get salad, soup, main dish, side dish, dessert and a drink. I quite enjoyed the seaweed/tofu soup, the chicken cutlet and the two desserts (green tea mousse and caramel egg pudding). The seating environment is pleasant enough and I do enjoy the slightly old-fashion Chinese decor but the Adele music being played somehow just doesn't fit the match. The crowd tends to be young...Younger then later it is with the Taiwanese snacks and bubble teas being the more popular food and drinks orders. I generally find bubble tea houses to be overpriced...It's mainly flavoured milk powder drinks with sago; but is a nice alternative to coffee if all you want is a place to mingle and chat with friends.
Since coming back from NY, my low-carb diet flew out the window...And I was making reasonable progress! :( I decided the best way to get back into it is to too indulge in a sweet but low-carb friendly cake. The flourless chocolate cake fits the bill perfectly. After a bit of research, I settled for the recipe shared by blogger ' A Dash of Sass' which I recently used for my modified clementine cake. It turned out great and so I'm eager to try another one of her recipes and it'll kickoff my low-carb diet with a bang! INGREDIENTS:4 oz bittersweet chocolate 1/2 C unsalted butter 2/4C sugar 3 large eggs 1/2 C unsweetened cocoa powder 1/2 tsp vanilla extract (optional) 1/2 tsp fine grind expresso (optional) DIRECTIONS:1. Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees. Melt butter and chocolate and mix until fully combined. 2. Add sugar slowly, mixing it well.
3. Scramble the 3 eggs and add slowly to melted mixture. Finally, add the cocoa powder and all other optional ingredients.
4. Pour mixture into an 8-inch cake pan (I use a springfoam pan) and bake for approximatley 30 minutes. Do a bamboo stick test. If it comes out clean, then it's done.
5. Let cool but it's delicious served warm with a scoop of your favourite ice cream and fresh fruit.
Deciding on a quiet afternoon at home; we re-heated some egg tarts (flaky ones of course!) and made home-styled milk tea. Whilst the English have their teas and scones; we have our milk tea and egg tarts or pineapple bun with butter. All very yum to me depending on the mood.
Mom has found that the use of two whole red tea teabags together with condensed milk helps create the richer colouring and texture of cafe-ordered teas. Though not exactly up to standard, it's a close second.
Recently, we went back to Red Tea Street Cafe (previously blogged) and we each indulged in a cup of their tasty tea.  I like how they use the same cups as old-fashioned HK tea cafes.  Yup, it's fattening but oh so tasty!
Love Shanghai-styled dim sum. Hmm, I would probably say I like all sorts of dim sums or tappas...I'm wondering if I just like the concept of small dishes and can nibble some of this and some of that.
A famous Shanghai dim sum that is a standard of any restaurant that calls itself a Shanghai restaurant is the 'xiaolongbau'. These are small little dumplings with pork and broth inside which one dips into a ginger/vinegar dipping sauce. Careful, they're hot and need to be cooled before eating. When biting into its juicy goodness, one needs to take care that none of that juice squirts out, potentially creating some embarresment. Been there myself.
The xiaolongbao here at 369 Shanghai Dim Sum is steamed to perfection; nice wrapper texture holding all the goodness inside without being to chewy. Succulent tasty pork morsels enveloped with just the right amount of broth. Yum.
The spring rolls were tasty as it should though we found it to be a bit on the saltier side; as with the scallion/spring onion pancakes we had also ordered. I liked the onion pancake more.
One particular dish did stand out; perhaps because of it unusual name; 'Ants Crawling Up Trees'. Having no idea what it is, we ordered it on a whim. It's a tasty vermicelli dish with minced pork and a touch of chilli. Simple but quite delicious. We also ordered a dish of stir-fry pea shoots just so we would have some greens and not feel guilty.
Overall, it was a delightful place serving most of the standard dishes one would find in a Shanghai restaurant. It is clean, bright and price seems reasonable.
Ahh...A steaming bowl of noodles in a flavourful broth just begging to be slurped right up...Just perfect when all you want is something clean to the palette, simple, warming and filling. I love my Vietnamese pho, my Hong Kong squid ball/fish skin dumpling noodles, satay beef vermicelli ..And now I'm going to add fish soup noodles. I've had it once or twice in HK, but I don't remember enjoying it as much as I have tonight. The Fish Soup restaurant recently reopened at their new location on Silver Star Blvd and we decided to give it a go. For $7.95, you choose the soup base you want, the type of noodles you like and two free toppings; additional costs for additional toppings. I went for their famed basic fish soup broth, vermicelli noodles with fish/tofu balls and pork cheek meat. Oh....It was sooooo flavourful. Nothing felt too greasy or too oily; it was just perfection. I am definitely going to go back!
Toronto seems to be struggling with deciding to stay winter or change to spring. The last few days, it'll change from blustery cold with snow to sunny bright sunshine the very next. But, even as winter bids her adieu, she leaves us with a reminder of how beautiful winter can be.
Here are a few upcoming events that are fun or worth supporting which have piqued my interest!EARTH HOUR 2013 24MAR13 @ 8:30pm - 9:30 pm or longer. Definitely hope to take part in this annual global event. Coordinated my workplace's effort towards this event. This year, am happy to just be a participant. Will be turning all non-essential lights out...No TV, not phones...No blogging tonight ;p Click here for the official youtube video. Very inspirational! Metro Zoo. Panda Bears ready to face their admirers in May. So cute. Must visit! Sparking Diva's. Ladies networking event. Sounds like a fun way to meet some new people and make some new friends. GreenDrinks. Every third Wednesday. I've been struggling with attendance. Something always seem to come up. I have attended a number of them in HK and am keen to see how the two cities' approach the same event.
The youngest bamboo girl is flying off soon and requested another round of dim sum as good dim sum is hard to come by where she will be going. Since Bamboo Girl #2 had a dental appointment nearby, it was decided to dim sum at Very Fair Chinese Seafood Restaurant in Scarborough.
Again, it's Scarborough, don't expect fancy decor or furniture. But, it's decent food and fair prices and everyone comes away with a full tummy and very satisfied. About 6 - 7 dishes were ordered and that came out to about $25.00. Not bad for feeding a family of fiveI While many of the more up-to-date restaurants have moved towards the cook-to-order system (you mark what dishes you want on an order sheet); this place has retained old-school charm where 'aunties' pushed food carts up and down the aisles. It's fun seeing what's being offered and then you can just pick off the carts. I enjoy this more though granted, the food may get cold by the time the cart makes it to my table.
A couple of dishes that stood out: the deep fried sesame balls...Huge hollow crispy balls rolled in sesame which the waitress punctures and snips into manageable bite-size pieces. Surprisingly, none of the usual dishes such as shrimp dumbling, pork sui mai or steamed rice rolls were ordered. But, we were all full on the BBQ pork steam buns, the mini sparerib claypot rice and others.
Please excuse the poorer photos as my camera mal-functioned...Need a new one :(
 This will be my first not-so-postive review :( After such a postive experience at the Francesca Italian bakery last week; I was interested to try Nino D'Adversa Bakery which I happened by. I'm not sure where to start but everything was a just a bit off that just made the overall experience a bit of a sour one. The actual cafe/bakery is spacious with clusters of tables in the general middle area. There are small displays/shelves of dried goods such as pasta, olive oil etc. for sale. There are a number of enticing food counters; one each for pastries, cakes, deli, gelato, coffee counter, sweets and cookies and a hot table with reasonable prices i.e. veal sandwich at around $7.00. This was probably where the problems started. The hot table was the only place were visible prices were posted. The rice balls looked yummy but having tried it at Francesca, decided to go for something different. I sampled the small gnocchi in tomato sauce for $5.50. Not a particularly good price for a small dish on its own but I was willing to give it go even if it was dished up by a rather sullen looking server. It was warmed up slightly in the microwave but by the time I've finished ordering pastries and coffee and paid for everything, it was just lukewarm. I also started snapping some photos but one of the employees there called out saying no photos were allowed. Thinking that she's thinking I'm a competitor or something, I explained that I'm a social blogger and that the cafe was very lovely and I wanted to blog about it. She waved or hands and rudely said to go speak to the manager though she didn't indicate who the manager was and/or the manager was in the cafe at the time. While coffee was being ordered, it only seemed right to order a pastry or two. No visible prices could be seen anywhere and the no one looked particularly friendly or interested in answering queries about the pastries. In the end, two Portuguese tarts where quickly ordered to get away from another less than cheerful person. The total bill came up close to $17.00 which just seemed a bit much considering that for a couple dollars more, you could probably have had a nice dinner. Turns out the large coffee was $2.50 and the tarts were $3.50 each; much more than expected. They were kept in the same display case as some of the cakes so there were cold and the shell hardly flaky. (Visited a supermarket recently and saw a box of 6 for $4.99 and at various other bakeries, one can get them for less than $2.00 each). And while I'm unhappily eating away my now barely warm microwaved gnoochi and my cold Portuguese tarts; a lady behind me asked to have her coffee changed to tea...Perhaps she found it too strong or something. One of the employess called out, "That's how our coffee is!," and "People like our coffee!". Overall, this really wasn't a good experience :(
Rice rolls...Another one of my favourites. I love them plain, I love them stir-fried with chili sauce, I love them stuffed with meats or shrimp or with a crispy doughstick...I even love the Vietnamese ones.
I just have to share a few choice pics I found via Google Image. I'm hungry just looking at them! Rice rolls weren't regarded as classy food; made with watery rice water; a scoop was poured over heated bamboo slats and covered with a lid. In minutes, a solid hot rice sheet was made and rolled up, chopped into pieces and served with condiments such as sweet sauce, chili sauce, soy sauce and a sprinkle of toasted sesame. Restaurants roll scallops, shrimps or meats into them and serve them with some sweet soy sauce thereby elevating the lowly status of the rice rolls.
One small shop in HK specializing in rice rolls got an honourary mention by Michelin and since then, it's almost always busy and difficult to get in.
At my recent trip to New York, a delicious little restaurant was found tucked inside Chinatown. The rice rolls with liver and the rice roll with tofu was so good, a repeat visit was needed. But this yummy thought coupled with a delicious spareribs and rice roll claypot sampled at the Miliken Bar & Restaurant inspired the below recipe. Spareribs and Rice Rolls Claypot
INGREDIENTS:
1 pack of rice rolls (can be purchased at any Asian supermarket)
pork ribs cut into pieces
napa cabbage -slivered
spring onion - cut
soy sauce, sesame oil, cornstarch, minced garlic
DIRECTIONS:
1. Rinse the cut pork ribs clean. Place in dish. Add sesame oil, soy sauce, minced garlic and cornstarch. Cover and marinate for 1hr.
2. Add meat to a slow cooker and cook until done. Or, cook on low heat in regular pot.
3. Add a little water to cover bottom of claypot. Add the napa cabbage. Cover and simmer on low heat for a few minutes.
4. Add cut up rice rolls and desired amount of spareribs. Cover with lid and cook on low for another few minutes. Be careful that the bottom does not burn. If it gets too dry; add some water.
5. Turn of heat and add spring onion, soy sauce and sesame oil to taste. Cover with lid and let the pot cook in its own heat for another minute.
6. Serve hot.
When I was a young kid, my parents decided it would be fun to bring their three little bamboo girls to a maple farm...We're proud Canadians after all and isn't that what every family does during March Break holidays?
But, not being particularly articulate at the young age coupled with the fact it would be a lost-of-face to complain about the could when your younger siblings haven't made a peep about it; I held my tongue for as long as possible. When my feet went from uncomfortably cold to downright painful; I started to express my discomfort. But, I suppose when one's got two younger kids to attend to...Well. there really wasn't much they could do other than to tell me to deal with it.
But you see, I was and am (or so I've been told), a very impressionable child. Images of blue toes amputated due to frostbite (I had been reading the Little House on the Prairie books about pioneers and the dangers of being frostbitten) and the fact that all fair maidens and princesses (I still entertain the idea that I'm a descendant from Chinese royalty from mom's side as her maiden name is a Wong and kings are known as Wong Dai) always had all their toes and fingers. Bitter thoughts of how I was on the brink of losing my fingers and toes coupled with the chilly wind led to bitter tears as I fashioned up all sorts of pretend-headlines in the next day Toronto Star newspaper about this poor Chinese kid who lost her toes...Sacrificed so her parents could better attend to the needs of her younger siblings. I'd be a heroine of sorts...Besides; as the eldest in the family, one hardly gets good roles in fairy tales as the eldest is almost always painted as wicked or selfish and thus it will be my duty to show that the eldest can also bring glory to family and country...
But I digress...And you can see why I had trouble expressing all that in the above at the age of 9ish. Anyway, now as a full-grown articulate adult, I visited Mountsberg maple farm out in Halton. Quaint and informative as it is; this definitely something more suited for the young families or tourists who's new to maple farms. Tickets were $7.25 each but family packages were available. There are wagon/hay rides, maple candy demonstrations (and samples!); informative trails through the maple trees with signs explaining the process of turning sap into the maple syrup and everyone's favourite, the pancake house! But very pricey! I can't recall the exact price but was remembered feeling taken aback by it considering an admission fee was already taken. On the way out, we stopped at a small aviary for birds of preys. The snowy owl was breathtakingly beautiful. All in all, it was an educational trip (I learned that a maple tree produces 50L of sap and that 40L of sap is needed to make 1L of syrup); a bit pricey as we finished it in about 40 minutes. But, I can see for young families it can be a great outing for the kids.
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