Food Blogs

Wasabi Cowgirl. Alana in Toronto explores food of all sorts. Reviews and recipes, and general commentary on cooking and dining.

Pabillano.com. Cake maker!

Megnut. A food blog by Meg Hourihan.

Corduroy Orange. Excellent tips from a classically trained chef!

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Why, yes, those are the best peanut-butter-chocolate-chip cookies you've ever tasted

149 days ago by David

It usually goes something like this:

…
Oh, I’m glad you like them!
…
Oh no, just a little something I whipped up…
…
Recipe? Oh, I’m really sorry, but it’s a family secret.
…
I really can’t. You know how it is…
…
No. Seriously, I can’t.

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Spicy Thai Steak and Napa Cabbage Salad

167 days ago by David

A few months back, JP bought an amazing book: Raising the Salad Bar by Catherine Walters. We highly recommend this book, as do the Amazon reviewers it seems (five-star average ain’t bad!).

We have a number of favourites from the book, but this is one of the more unique concoctions.

This salad-that-eats-like-a-meal has some amazing chemistry between the lime, mint and steak. I highly recommend you give it a try. I hope Ms. Walters doesn’t mind me reproducing the recipe here, perhaps as a teaser for you to get your own copy of Raising the Salad Bar.

Spicy Thai Steak and Napa Cabbage Salad

“Napa cabbage adds a light crunchiness to this dish. Lots of mint and cilantro along with a vibrant, oil-free lime dressing add the Thai-flavor notes. If you have basil on hand, toss it in, too. The thinner you slice the cabbage and vegetables, the more appealing they are. (Serves 2-4.)”

Ingredients

• 2 tenderloin or rib-eye steaks (about 1.5 lbs), or any cut you prefer
• salt and pepper
• 4 cups very thinly sliced Napa cabbage (1 small-medium head)
• 1 carrot, peeled and julienned or shredded
• 1 cucumber, peeled, seeded and sliced
• 1 red bell pepper, cored and thinly sliced
• ½ small red onion, thinly sliced
• ½ cup fresh cilantro, chopped

• 1/3 cup fresh mint, chopped

  Ingredients: Thai Dressing

• ½ cup lime juice
• 2 tbsp sugar
• 2 tbsp Asian fish sauce

• ¼ to ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes

  Directions

  1. Season the steak with salt and pepper on both sides. Heat a grill or heavy pan.
  2. In a medium bowl, combine the shredded cabbage, carrot, cucumber, red pepper and red onion. Toss in the herbs and mix well.
  3. In a small bowl, combine all the dressing ingredients and mix well to dissolve the sugar. Set aside.

1. Grill or pan-fry the steaks to the desired degree of doneness. Let the steaks rest on a cutting board for at least 5 minutes while you dress the salad. Save some of the dressing to drizzle on steak, along with any juices that have accumulated on the cutting board. Slice the steaks. Divide the salad among 2 to 4 plates, place the slices on top of each serving and drizzle the remaining dressing over all.

Enjoy!

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Banana Bread

168 days ago by David

Long time, no write.

This evening, I made some banana bread to use up some of the very over-ripe bananas I had in the freezer. It’s a very simple recipe that, I think, really lets the banana be the star. (To note, 2 1/3 cups of mashed banana seemed to be about 5 bananas.)

I threw in a couple handfuls of chocolate chips to, you know, spice it up a bit!

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Canada Day Two-Bite Cupcakes

852 days ago by David

Back on Canada Day, we were looking for something to celebrate with. I happened to be sick, so “partying” that day wasn’t a very realistic option. Although I had been hoping for canada Day cookies, we settled on these Canada Day-themed Two-Bite Cupcakes.

Being total pigs, we managed to demolish two-thirds of the package before the photoshoot (the candy bits are actually tiny maple leafs. And everyone thought Canadians weren’t patriotic):

As one might expect, the most comfortable means of enjoying the Two-Bite Cupcake (similar to the always popular Two-Bite Brownie) is with, in fact, two bites. However, if one instead hopes for maximum enjoyment, the cupcake must be eaten in one bite. One bite ensures the cupcake’s subtle bouquet of sugary cake topped with sugary icin, further topped with sugary candy bits, can be appreciated in its fullest flavour.

A recommended celebratory treat, regular Two-Bite Cupcakes can be found at a fine grocery store near you.

Canada Day Two-Bite Cupcakes: 3 non-stick cake pans out of 5

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Pocky / Cheesecake Flavour

857 days ago by David

Disclaimer: I actually ate these back 27 April 2006.

I hope it’s not too hard to see in the photo:

I ate so many of these, so quickly, that I only had the package left when I got myself to a camera. It’s OK, though: the packaging is probably the best part. Like most Pocky, this tasted like soap, but more so, since it’s meant to simulate cheesecake. It was kind of lemony and was probably not far from sticking an unsalted preztel-stick into a dried out piece of cream cheese. “Interesting,” but not “satisfying.”

I don’t know how I ate so many.

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The pleasures of cake. The pleasures of life.

862 days ago by David

Cakelife’s inaugural post pays tribute to the cake that started it all:

Modest, yet imbued with so much integrity, this cake was designed as a birthday cake for me, from Jhenifer Pabillano. The base is a moist Devil’s Food; cream cheese icing is layered on, crowned with candles representing a “2” and a “6.”

This piece, the 26th Birthday Cake embodies the purity of cakeness—a purity that most other cakes cannot attain, and so hide behind garnishes, side fruits, or over-sized serving plates. There are cakes that aspire to be art, and there are cakes of utility. Some cakes, however, accomplish both.

I welcome you to Cakelife. Join us for sporadic updates, reviews and recipes. Make cake a part of your regular schedule.

The pleasures of cake. The pleasures of life.

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Cakelife: The pleasures of cake, the pleasures of life...
From the creator of zeibin.com