Pumpkin Soup

Pumpkins were everywhere in October and I made my first pumpkin soup from a pumpkin that Baby J picked.

The recipe I followed was again super simple and worked.  Baby J loved it and cleared his bowl. ^^

Pumpkin Soup

ingredients

• 6 cups chicken stock (I used 4 cups of chicken stock and 2 cups of water)
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 4 cups pumpkin puree
• 1 cup chopped onion
• I skipped the parsley
• 1/2 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream (I used table cream instead to cut down the fat a little bit)
• 5 whole black peppercorns (I used 2 instead because of Baby J and took them out before I pureed the soup)

preparation

Heat stock, salt, pumpkin, onion, thyme, garlic, and peppercorns. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, and simmer for 30 minutes uncovered.
Puree the soup in small batches (1 cup at a time) using a food processor or blender.
Return to pan, and bring to a boil again. Reduce heat to low, and simmer for another 30 minutes, uncovered. Stir in heavy cream. Pour into soup bowls and garnish with fresh parsley.


Yields 8 - 10 servings.

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Scaramouche Restaurant

We took Baby J to Scaramouche Restaurant a few weeks ago and we soon realized that he has an expensive taste! ^^  Previously, whenever we take Baby J out for dinner (even at Terra Restaurant), he was never a big fan of "western" food, he usually would take in a lot of bread and only take a few bites of the mains (usually some form of pasta).  However, at Scaramouche, he enjoyed everything from the appetizer to the dessert.  Just his portion of the meal was around $40+ and he is only 21 month ... haha ... but we are very happy that he enjoyed the meal as that meant we were also able to enjoy ours.

I will not go into details on how great a restaurant Scaramouche is because there are already many great reviews about it online.  As a result, here are the photos of the food.

Baby J's first dish - butternut squash soup.  He loved it so much that this was the first time we saw him drink soup with an open bowl and not using his spoon.

Amuse Bouche - poached quail egg, top with scallion and something else (cannot remember) but it was good. :P

Baby J's main dish - herb pasta sheets/wild mushrooms/grilled leeks/parsley truffled porcini sauce/shaved Umbrian summer truffle.  This was not a full size portion of the pasta from the main menu as the server was nice enough to let us know that the chef can make Baby J a half-sized portion.  Baby J finished more than half of the dish.

K's appetizer - Foie Gras Terrine elderflower jelly/quick pickled cherries/cherry wine reduction toasted hazelnut brioche.

My appetizer - Dungeness Crab Ravioli scallions/sweet peppers/haricot vert/chives/shellfish nage.  Baby J also liked this a lot too to the point that he was upset when he dropped a quarter of the ravioli to the ground while transporting it to his mouth with his spoon.  I liked my pasta appetizer a lot as well and more than K's appetizer.  It was refreshing and just the right amount to not spoil the main of the meal.

My main - Braised beef short ribs and seared sea scallops.  The scallops were one of the tastiest I have had and made me wondered which type of scallops they were and how they were marinated and cooked.

K's main - Lamb roasted rack/grilled leg/caponata/goat cheese whipped potatoes salsa verde/cherry tomatoes/pine nuts/lamb jus.  I liked my main better though. ^^

Dessert - their signature coconut cream pie.  We shared the dessert as we were full and have to be quick since Baby J was already tired after 2 hours of patiently waiting for his dishes and eating his meal.  Looking at the picture again now ... I wish I can have another piece now. ^^

A quick summary of our experience, yep, we will definitely return again because everything was excellent and Baby J loved it.

Scaramouche Restaurant

One Benvenuto Place
Toronto, ON
M4V 2L1

Tel: 416.961.8011

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George Restaurant - 4-course Tasting Lunch Menu

K and I feel that it is good to have some quiet and relax time between the two of us for us to recharge once in a while.  As a result, earlier this month, we went to George Restaurant for lunch while Baby J was in school (yay! ^^).  We ordered the $60 4-course Tasting Menu because we had the whole afternoon to ourselves and were able to afford a 2-hour meal quietly.

The meal started with a complimentary amuse-bouche -- butter beef with broth.  It was a nice plate to start off the meal with because it was refreshing with a little bit of citrusy taste and I also liked that it was beautifully plated.

For the follow on courses, K and I were served completely different dishes.  That means we got to taste 8 different dishes for the entire meal and made me feel like we got more of our money worth.

My first course was a tuna tartar.  When I only tasted the tuna alone at the beginning, I found the tuna was mushier than I expected, however, once I combined the chips that it came with, it enhanced its texture and it was a new way to have a tuna tartar, a way that I liked and never thought of having a tuna tartar with before.  However, I did not enjoy the quail's egg on top and I wished they had skipped it because I did not like the lukewarm feeling of egg on top of the raw fish.  In addition, the chunks of carrots, turnips around the tartar made it look less delicate.

K's first course was a poached scallop with artichoke salad and he said it was refreshing.

The second course was a pasta course, one was a gnocchetti with wild mushrooms and prosciutto.  It was a savoury dish and I found myself wanting more when I had my last gnocchetti.  The other pasta course was some kind of penne pasta with zuchini and goat cheese.  At first, we found the ingredients too ordinary, however, it was surprisingly good once we tasted it and the texture of the pasta was very light and airy (a texture that is better than al dente, but I don't know how to describe it).

My third course was a corn hen with artichoke which was very tender and juicy and K's thrid course was tenderloin which we also liked too.

For our dessert course, they were good but no surprises.  I had a coconut tapioca with berries which tasted good but reminded me of the dessert that you would have in a Chinese restaurant and K had a chocolate cake with sorbet. 

Overall, we enjoyed our lunch break at George.  We liked all of our dishes with the pasta dishes as our highlights.  In addition, presentation of each dish was impeccable and the inside ambiance of the restaurant was quiet, modern, and gorgeously decorated.

George Restaurant

111C Queen St. E 

Toronto, ON 

M5C 1S2  

Tel: 416 863-6006 
 

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Shrimp and Scallops Fusilli with Pesto Sauce

Last night, I made pesto sauce for the first time by following this simple recipe. I am using my Baby Bullet as my food processor more and more often now that Baby J doesn't need to eat pureed food anymore and I find it convenient to use because of its size and power. It is becoming one of the most used small kitchen appliances in my home now. ^^

Since the pesto sauce was for Baby J as well, I purposely blended it extra smooth just to ensure the nuts won't get stuck in his teeth. This Shrimp and Scallops Fusilli with Pesto Sauce turned out to be a success, both K and Baby J loved it. ^^

Pesto Sauce

ingredients

• 3 cups fresh basil leaves
• 1 1/2 cups chopped walnuts
• 4 cloves garlic, peeled
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 cup olive oil
• salt and pepper to taste

preparation

In a food processor, blend together basil leaves, nuts, garlic, and cheese. Pour in oil slowly while still mixing. Stir in salt and pepper.

Yields 16 servings.

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Avocado Coconut Pops

Avocado is one of my favourite fruits because of its smooth, buttery taste and of its many health benefits. As a result, I searched some recipes of using avocado in pops and found that some used it in combination with coconut. The sound of it tasted good already ... how can you resist avocado and coconut, right? However, I was too lazy to follow any recipes this time and just blended the two ingredients together to make the pops. The coconut water lessen the buttery taste of the avocado but at the same time made the pops more refreshing. I love this the most out of the three different flavours of pops that I made so far and will definitely make it again! ^^

Avocado Coconut Pops

ingredients

• 0.5 avocado
• 140ml coconut water/milk
• 1 tsp honey

preparation

Blend all ingredients in a blender until consistency is smooth.
Insert sticks into the moulds and pour in the avocado/coconut mixture to fill the moulds up to the fill line.
Wait until it freezes completely.
Remove the pops with the Super Tool.

Makes 3 Quick Pops.

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Simple Bistro

We went to Simple Bistro for brunch last weekend because we did not want to go somewhere too far south.  It turns out that indeed everything is very simple inside -- with white walls and 1 waitress who was serving the entire restaurant (around 15+ people when we were there).  I ordered the Crêpe aux Champignons and Hubby ordered the Simple Burger. 

The crepe had just the right amount of goat cheese so that its flavor did not overpower the other ingredients in the crepe. 

For the burger, hubby said it was average, nothing special. 

Overall, we both felt nothing too special about our dishes (crepe was good and burger was average), the place was very small and we felt like our elbows were always hitting something. We don't think we will go again unless we are really in that area and there is nothing else we like to try.

Simple Bistro
619 Mount Pleasant Road
Toronto
M4S 2M5
Tel: 416.483.8933

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Strawberry Banana Smoothie

From the Zoku blog, I followed the Strawberry Banana Smoothie recipe today and made these healthy pops for yet another hot summer day. I modified the recipe by adding too much milk in the strawberry yogurt by accident.  As a result, the color of the strawberry portion was too pale and did not have the contrast that I looked for.  In addition, I added 2 tsp of honey instead of 3 tsp as in the original recipe and the taste turned out to be not too sweet which I liked.

Strawberry Banana Smoothie

ingredients

• 1 small banana
• 140ml whole milk
• 1 teaspoon lime zest
• 3 tsp honey
• 140 grams strawberry yogurt

preparation

Blend the banana, 110ml of the milk and 3 tsp of honey in a blender until consistency is smooth.
In a separate container, add the strawberry yogurt and 30ml of whole milk and blend well.
Insert sticks into the moulds and pour in the banana mixture to fill the moulds about half way. Wait for the banana mixture to freeze, and then pour the strawberry yogurt mixture up to the fill line.

Makes 6 Quick Pops.

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