Looking back at 2015

A few picutres from December 2015

2015
It's been a good year. 
Not everything was great, there were ups and downs but overall, I'm thankful for a good year and for all the people in my life. 

Wrote more on this blog

 (115 posts compared to 41 in 2014!  Eating lots of good meals!)

Baked more

(cookies, cakes, and other interesting treats like the sesame pear muffin in Dec)

Read some interesting books

(about Ramen, French country-side living, and Chinese food in America)

Drank more tea

(at home and at the numerous tea shops that have popped up in Toronto)

Cooked more

(like Jamaican style oxtail...which I have yet to post a recipe for...)

Ate wonderful sweets

(at Petit Nuage and Soma to name a few)

And most importantly, enjoyed more precious memories that my toddler and partner have bestowed upon me.

Thank you to those that have taken the time to read my little space in the blogging world!

Richmond Court Restaurant

Richmond Court is an old standby Cantonese restaurant for me.  They serve HK Style Cafe meals, all day dim sum, and family style Chinese dishes which include a selection of seafood.  For night owls, this place is also open late!
 

I like this place because it's quite large so getting a seat is not too difficult, the food is decent, and the price is on par with the portion and taste.  The servers are also quite friendly.  The restaurant includes a bbq meats section and bakery so it really does offer something for everyone.  Only thing that was a little bit of a sad face on our last visit - lots of ice in the iced tea we got.
 

Wonton noodles and almond milk

On a separate visit... 

Black Pepper Beef

Soy sauce chicken (half portion)

 We ordered veggies as well that was part of a set meal and it comes with soup.  Sometimes all you want is some standard Cantonese dishes that are fast and affortable.

 

 

Richmond Court Restaurant

http://www.richmondcourtrestaurant.com/contactmap.html

550 Hwy 7 East Building A Unit 7-8, 28-30

Richmond Hill, ON L4B 3Z4

T: 905-709-1628 

Hours: Sun - Thurs 8am -2:30am, Fri-Sat open till 3am. 

 

Lunch AND dinner at ZenQ

ZenQ near my place had started offering food and I've been meaning to give them a try for some time now.  The brand started out trying to establish itself as a dessert and tea place, but the expansion into Taiwanese meals is welcome.  From 12-9 pm they offer a selection of their dishes + drink (a select few) for $9.50.  (I think the Markham location is a little cheaper for their combo?)  ZenQ is actually owned by the same parent company as Chatime, La Kaffa International which I found interesting because I'm sure they must be sourcing the same tea.

For a late (and actually quite rushed) lunch, I ordered the crispy chicken rice combo and I wasn't disappointed, actually quite happy.  The meal comes with a side dish of vegetables, a good portion of chicken and rice with some minced pork on top.  Taste was good and it wasn't greasy.  I would have liked a little bit of basil on the crispy chicken to add to the flavour but it was still ok.  The regular milk bubble tea was good as usual.  I've gotten takeout drinks from them often and it's always been pretty good. 

So...usually I'd try out a place and then move on to try another place but...



Come dinner time...I decided to try their takeout.  Yes, I do things in bunches!  The other entree I was thinking of trying at lunch was the three cup chicken so for dinner, this is what I got for takeout.  The takeout container is not a bento box style but still comes with your main and sides.  There is actually more rice in the takeout container.  Flavour was good and is very typical, could use more garlic but I was happy there was basil.  This time I had a honey jasmine green tea with my meal and it was a nice refreshing drink!

For bubble tea places, this place offers quite a decent meal combo and the hours they offer it is really great as you can have it for lunch and dinner!

  

 

ZenQ (North York)

http://www.zenq.ca/

5437A Yonge St.
North York, ON M2N 5S1
T: (647) 350-ZENQ (9367)



Dayali - Spinach and Peanuts, Stir fried Tea Tree Mushrooms, and Yes, Peking Duck

Dayali Beijing Roast Duck
20 Gibson Dr.
Markham, ON L3R 0M7
T: 905-604-8680

About a month ago I was craving Peking duck, so I invited some friends to come try it out with me. We have ordered Peking duck for just 2 of us but I thought it would be good to try some other dishes and looking at the menu, I wanted to try a lot of other dishes!

We ordered the signature duck which was pricier, but unfortunately it wasn't the star of the show that afternoon. It was good but not "you have to eat this HERE!" type reaction.

The signature duck I believe comes with the extra slices of skin that I are around the chest area, fattier than other parts. It also comes with a warmer for the wrappers and extra sides which actually weren't that interesting after all. Overall, this was an average tasting bird. The special pieces were crisp but also because of the fattieness, the fat was somewhat "spongy" as my partner put it.

We ordered a number of sides to go with our duck...

From top L (counter clockwise): meat jelly, glutinous rice stuffed lotus root, spinach and peanuts, jelly fish, marinated duck wings

The best was the spinach and peanuts but it is a spicy dish.

Here are the other items we ordered...

 

Beef noodle soup

Fried rice

Tea tree mushroom stirfry (You can buy these at Chinese supermarkets...they don't taste like tea though, or at least I don't think so since it was stir fried with soy sauce and chilis)

Braised pork with glutinous rice

Spicy clams

 

Dishes that I'd order again based on taste:

Spinach and peanut salad
Spicy clams
Stir-fried tea tree mushrooms (although the picture in the menu was quite different, showing a mix of different types of mushrooms which would have been more ideal): these mushrooms are chewy and the dish is spicy so if might not be everyone's cup of tea.

Average:

Beef noodle soup
Lotus root stuffed with glutinous rice (sweet tasting)
Braised pork with glutinous rice (very little glutinous rice)
Fried rice (can't remember the exact name but I believe it was seafood)

Lacking flavour and wouldn't order again:

Meat jelly
Marinated duck wings

A number of the dishes seemed quite oily but I know that this is often the case.


Service was sub-par...there weren't many servers to attend to the tables, a friend had to get up and get little things like extra napkins himself!

Baking - October and November

Starting from Top L: 6" chiffon cake, olive, parmesan, rosemary sables, cheese and dill scones, mini choux puffs filled with pastry cream, mushroom shaped meringue, banana muffins, coconut jelly filled papaya, lemon chiffon cake

I've been sporatically baking  or making dessert but just haven't had time to post pictures or a little blurb. Here's a snapshot of some of the items.

Most of the items were quite simple to make and I wouldn't necessarily have anything much to write about except to document my baking progress.  But, I'm especially happy that I got to make mushroom shaped meringues (usually made for Christmas logs)!  They were fairly simple but took a lot longer to dry in the oven then what the recipe stated...maybe I made them a bit larger than stated...but I didn't care :D

Leaf de Tea - one of the best bubble tea deals in Markham!

Leaf de Tea has been around for years but last weekend was my first time trying out their tea.  We were at the First Markham food court and I wanted a milk tea after lunch and noticed Leaf de Tea.  It had the shape of Taiwan in their signage so I wanted to take a closer look. 

I was really surprised to see the prices were so...I don't want to say cheap because the word also has the connotation that the quality is not there...but, you get exceptional value!  How do you beat $2 for a regular bubble tea?! 

Got a regular milk tea and the jasmine milk tea, both without tapioca.  The regular milk tea was quite good, I forgot to ask for half sugar and it wasn't too sweet.  I may ask for less sugar next time but this was definitely pretty good as is.  Tea was flavourful and smooth.  The jasmine milk tea was also good but quite a strong floral taste.

This has got to be one of the best bubble tea deals in Markham, taste and price are both very good!  It doesn't have the youth appeal or social media marketing of Chatime, but it's definitely a good option for a tea drink if you're at First Markham.  And if you're hungry they also have food, also for a great price.  One special included 10 curry fish balls and a bubble tea for $5!!  Anyway, will be back to try other teas and their tapioca for a better review...and their food!

Oh, and free wifi offerred?!  Interesting for a food stand in a food court.

 

Leaf de Tea
First Markham Place
3255 Highway 7, Unit 250
Markham, ON L3R 3P9

December: I'm Dreaming of...

Hot chocolate at Maman Toronto :)

December started out a bit rough for me but I'm glad to have finished writing this post!

 

Christmas shopping, party planning, baking shopping lists have all started.  December is usually when I spend huge amounts of time shopping, baking and eating and it'll likely be the same this December.  However, this December, in the midst of everything festive, I'm Dreaming of...

 

- de-cluttering before the year ends. 

Is that even possible?!  I recently bought a bunch of reading material and plan to add more shortly so I am in immediate need of space!  Hopefully I can de-clutter more than I'm expecting to buy, lol!  But in all seriousness, I tend to hold onto things because I think I'll need something later, but really I should start thinking about what brings me happiness, what things I'll use regularly and what things I use on occasion but will use for mamy many years.  It's probably a good time to donate things too.

 

- an array of side dishes.

I have always looked forward to side dishes at Korean restaurants and about a month or two ago I came across two blog posts (here and here) highlighting places with side dishes that looked so healthy and yummy.  Perfect for balancing out all the sweets and treats this season.  Side dishes are not meant to be time consuming but do take organization to pull off.  Hoping this December I could be just a little bit more organized to make a few!

 

- looking to embrace the coming winter. 

I usually hate the coming of winter because of the cold, snow, slush, and ice.  I was watching an episode about bento boxes and it mentioned that Japanese people take pride in the fact that Japan has 4 distinct seasons and they embrace each season.  This is not a new philosophy and I'm sure not every Japanese person feels that way, but I thought to myself, yes...winter is a season that I should embrace and not lament over the cold.  A lot has to do with perspective.  There is beauty in winter and I love sipping on hot tea while it's cold out; just makes the tea even better!  (Or hot chocolate, coffee, or even hot soup!)

 

Enjoy December!