Cake Plate Re-designed

I was extremely proud of my boxing day purchase, a new fancy cake plate with a cover!  At $14.99 it was a steal and just exactly what I wanted.  However nice I thought it was on it's own my little 2 year old thought it would look better with a little pizazz.  He proceeded to cover half the side with his favorite "Cars" stickers. 

The Fish House - Take 2

A few months back I had shared a dissapointing trip to The Fish House in Stanley Park.  The gift certificate they had sent me as an apology has sat on my fridge for several months as a constant reminder to try again.  When I went to look at the gift certificate thinking it was about time to use it I was unpleasantly surprised to find that it had expired.  I took the chance that if I called them they might still let me use it.  This time their customer service was top notch.  I made reservations for the following day for afternoon tea and invited my mother and mother in law to join my little boy and me.  It was like night and day from the moment we were escorted in and guided to a lovely table by the window.  Our server was pleasant and attentive our food delightful.  Never have I tasted such a lovely scone!  When I asked if perhaps we could order an appetizer off the dinner menu our server apologized and said unfortunately no.  Without a word to us he in fact went in to ask the kitchen and was able to offer us the muscles on a hot skillet with the chorizo sausage!  This dish was one of our favorites from the menu at the since closed Cannery.  So sad to see it go but nice to know that it lives on through it's sister restaurant.  The afternoon was a success and thanks to the attentive and pleasant staff at the Fish House we will be back!

Wine and Cheese - A birthday celebration

Things change as do people.  Whereas years ago I would have enjoyed going out drinking pitchers of sangria and enjoying the hilarity of drunken friends I am now just as content to have people come to me with wine in tow to share their drunken hilarity in my home.  To celebrate with friends I invited everyone over, no gifts, just a bottle of wine and your favorite cheese was on the menu.  I rushed home from work and set up a butcher block with a selection of cheeses and plate full of crackers.  Chopped a selection of sausages and deli meats from the International Sausage House and it was a snack that could be a meal.  The cheeses on the menu were: Pecorino, Provolone, Smoked Gouda, Aged White Cheddar, Boursin, Herb & Garlic Goat Cheese, Smoked Polish Cheese, Applewood Smoked Cheddar and I'm sure I missed a couple more.. I had told everyone after 5pm and they obliged with most arriving after 6pm.  Instead of my neurotic tasting habits of beginning with whites lightest to heaviest, etc.... I just popped the cork and went to town. 

Wine 1

Concha y Torro WINEMAKER'S LOT
Carmener 2008

I was the lucky recipient of this fabulous bottle of wine at my husband's work Christmas party.  It was smooth and full bodied, easy to drink and went lovely with the Pecorino cheese.  I went back to this wine several times through the evening and would definitely buy this again!

Wine 2

Layer Cake, Shiraz 2009

South Australia

Being such a young wine this one went straight into the decanter to help "air it out".  It's a favorite in our household for being an easy drinking rich tasting shiraz.  The chocolate and cherry undertones make it a delightful wine for after dinner or all on it's own!  Unfortunately my attempt to make the layer cake to go with it just wasn't the same...maybe next time.

There were several more wines but time is short and I have yet to to tackle dinner tonight.  The rest will have to wait.

Grandma's Secret

For as long as I can remember my grandma has made this wonderful cake she sells and serves with coffee.  My grandmother however lives a bit farther than the next town and calls San Jose, Costa Rica home.  Her orange flavoured cake is not only one of my favorites but also my mom's.  For my mom's upcoming birthday I decided I would give it a try and before you can say "hola" I had my grandma on the line.  I jotted down her instructions and 5 mins later her secret (not so secret) recipe was mine.  As
I am a fan of sharing good recipes I couldn't hold back on this one. 

Grandma's Orange Coffee Cake

3 cups flour

1 1/2 cup sugar

4 eggs

2 x 150gr butter (approx 1 1/2 cups)

1 small glass of orange juice (about 1 cup)

3 tsp baking powder

Cream butter until pale and fluffy and slowly add sugar

Add eggs one at a time combining well after each

in a separate bowl combine flour and baking powder

Add dry ingredients to butter mixture alternating with orange juice

Pour into well greased bundt pan

Bake at 350 F for approximately 1 hour until dark golden colour.

I will be wishing my mom a happy birthday this week and let you know how it turns out!

Jan 3, 2011
Update on the cake, while the recipe is fabulous and easy to put together unfortunately for me it stuck to my bundt pan....  Instead of a lovely slice of cake, we had yummy cake in a bowl.  After this huge disappointment I tried again and poured it into a greased and parchment lined springform pan for 1 hour and 14 mins.  Much better!