Cheers to 2012!

Happy New Year!

Wishing you all the best for 2012!

Love,

Q, Mini Q, and Sammers

The City by the Bay

People told me San Francisco is great, and boy, were they ever right. On the way to my aunt's boutique, the Mins and I walked up Lombard Street. This stretch of the street is famous for being quite steep and crooked. There are eight sharp hairpin turns in total.

The tall column in the background is Coit Tower.

It was really nice to see my Aunt Mary. She took me out for lunch at Delarosa, and toured me around the city. My aunt insisted that we check out the Palace of Fine Arts. After a quick afternoon stroll, we drove to Golden Gate Park.

The de Young Museum looked pretty cool from the outside. I'll have to check it out the next time I'm in San Fran.

Also cool looking was the California Academy of Sciences, which has an aquarium, a planetarium, a natural history museum, and a 4-storey rainforest, all under one roof.

We went to Alcatraz early the next day.

I'm really glad we visited the Rock. The audio tour was really interesting, and the island had great views of the city.

The Mins escaping Alcatraz!!! Tee hee hee.

The clouds look ominous, but the weather was nice that morning.

No visit to San Fran is complete without a ride on the cable car!

Nor a photo opp with the Golden Gate Bridge!

Happy Holidays!

A slightly belated happy holidays to all of our Quatch Watch friends! The Quatchis and I had a great Christmas. It was filled with fun, family, and lots of good food!

On Christmas morning, the Quatchis opened their stockings. From Santa, they received red mittens and M&Ms.

Look at the Mins! Lol. What a funny little guy!

We also received a package from our dear friends at QuatchiFan2010.

Sophia made us (the Quatchis and me) matching scarfs! They're pretty awesome, eh? Thanks a bunch, Sophia! The Quatchis and I can't stop wearing them!

Name that City

Mini Q joined me on an adventure last week! We kicked off our road trip from this city. Can you guess which one it is?

Sweet, Spicy, Chewy Ginger Cookies

The Quatchis and I made these cookies for a bake sale at work tomorrow. I think they'll be a real hit!

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 tbsp ground ginger

2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp salt

3/4 cup unsalted butter

1 1/4 cups + 2 tbsp white sugar

1 large egg

1/4 cup fancy molasses

Preheat oven to 325 F. Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper. In a medium bowl, stir together flour, ginger, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt. Set aside. Cream butter and 1 cup plus 2 tbsp sugar until mixture is light and fluffy. Beat in egg, scraping sides of bowl well. Add molasses and combine. Add dry ingredients and mix just until incorporated.

Shape dough into 24 balls, and toss in a plastic bag with remaining 1/4 cup sugar. Place a few inches apart on baking sheets and bake for 17 to 20 minutes. When done, cookies will be crinkly and golden.

Source: My friend BC

Shots

My parents recently came back from back-to-back cruises. They were gone for 30 days and visited 16 ports. Pretty awesome, eh?

My best friend collects shot glasses so they wanted to get her some. Did they ever deliver! From left to right, there brought back shot glasses from Lisboa, Monaco, Santorini, the cruise ship, Mykonos, Cannes, and Venezia. We hope you like them, KNN! Cheers!

Reading recommendations, s.v.p.

Q and I are currently reading If We Can Put A Man On The Moon, Dreams of Joy, and Freedom. We're already scoping out other books to read next. Any suggestions?

Happy Sunday, everyone!

Me oh my, pumpkin pie!

Since this was my first attempt at baking pie, I decided, just this once, to take the easy route and use a pre-made crust. I gotta start from somewhere, right? I'll try to do everything from scratch the next time around.

E.D. Smith's Traditional Pumpkin Pie

2 eggs

398 ml (1/2 can of 796 ml) of E.D. Smith Pure Pumpkin

1 cup packed brown sugar

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp ground nutmeg

1/4 tsp ground ginger

1/4 tsp salt

3/4 cup evaporated milk

1 9-inch pie shell

Beat eggs lightly in medium bowl. Add pumpkin, sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and salt; stir until well combined. Blend in milk. Pour filling in pie shell. Bake at 425 F 15 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 350 F and continue baking 30 to 35 minutes longer.

Source: E.D. Smith

The Adventures of Mini Q: Part II

The weather did a 180 on us so Mini Q and I walked all over. After making a quick trip to Century 21 we checked out Occupy Wall Street...

...strolled by Trinity Church...

...said hello to the Charging Bull...

...paid a quick visit to Castle Clinton National Monument...

...and enjoyed the sunshine in Battery Park.

I had brunch on Stone Street with some friends I made in China two summers ago. I then wanted to check out the new extension of the High Line but it was closed. I ended up walking through Chelsea and shopping some more around Macy's. I'm glad Mini Q came with me on this trip. Next time I go back, I'll bring both Mini Q and Q along. 

The Adventures of Mini Q: Part I

Mini Q joined me on another New York adventure. This time to the big city! We flew YYZ to EWR really early on Friday morning. Mini Q checked the flight status for me as my eyes were still sleepy.

We stayed at the Millenium Hilton in lower Manhattan. The room was quite spacious for NYC standards. We were on a high floor and had a great view of the 9/11 Memorial. Visitor passes are free, but must be reserved in advance.

After checking in, having a leisurely brunch, and getting a manicure, we returned to the hotel for a much needed afternoon nap. While I was snoring away, Mini Q read Game of Thrones.

And while my friends and I had dinner in Tribeca and drinks in the Bowery, Mini Q ordered room service! A sasquatch has to eat, right?

The weather the next day was pretty terrible. We had a sense that it was going to be grey so we planned a full day of shopping. I brought Mini Q with me but I was reluctant to take him out of my purse because it was so wet and crowded in the stores. Here he is posing with all our purchases. Not too shabby, eh?

More photos of our final day in the Big Apple to come!

Halloween Helpers

The Quatchis were eager to give out candy to the wee ones this Halloween! About 25 kids knocked on our door, which doesn't seem like a lot, but is normal for our neighbourhood. We overcompensated with the amount of candy we bought. Please swing by so we're not eating it all ourselves!

Happy Halloween!

Road Trip with Mini Q

Mini Q joined me on a road trip to Ithaca. I was visiting a few friends that I met in China two summers ago. These friends have met Q before but not Mini Q. Q stayed home this time around to hold down the fort. Mini Q was excited to go on his own adventure!

Here's Mini Q crossing the border. We were just approaching the Canada-US divide at this time. Don't worry, I wasn't driving while taking this photo. It was stop and go, stop and go, all the way to the gates.

Cornell is very picturesque! The setting was exceptional with the rolling hills, the leaves changing colour, and the lake below. I was impressed.

Mini Q checking out the famous clock tower.

Inside the A.D. White Library (Uris Library) - the oldest library on campus. It's also opened 24/7.

Gearing up for spicy hot pot. We ate for two hours! I was in a food coma afterwards.

On the way home, my friend took me for a tour of his school - the University of Buffalo. This is North campus.

 

Mini Q (and Alex's hand) with the school's official mascot. Naturally, it's a buffalo.

Mini Q made some new friends! We then had buffalo wings for dinner. I've had buffalo wings before - my first time in Buffalo. They were messy as all get out (hence, no photos of Mini Q - my fingers were too sticky), but they were worth it. Yes, they were definitely worth it.

Thanks Shuai, Yufei, and Alex for a great weekend! It was a long overdue reunion. I'm happy we made it happen!

Keeping in touch

While I was in Asia this past summer, I made a lot of great friends. One of them is from New Zealand. Even though he's across the globe, we still manage to keep in touch fairly regularly. I always look forward to our bi-weekly Skype dates. We usually talk for hours on end.

Q and Mini Q also made a good friend while in Taiwan and HK - Cabbie! They really enjoy Skyping with her, and can't wait to see her again one day.

Big shout out to our NZ friends! Wo men xiang ni men!

Getting our bake on with blueberry cake

The Quatchis are really getting the hang of this baking gig. We've been in the kitchen a lot lately. 'Tis a good thing too because we're behind in our monthly baking.

My mum had a bunch of ripe blueberries that she wanted me to use. I found the following recipe and thought, ooooohhh, this is gonna be a good one!

Melt In Your Mouth Blueberry Cake

1/2 cup butter

1/2 cup white sugar

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 egg yolks

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/3 cup milk

2 egg whites

1/4 cup white sugar

1 1/2 cups fresh blueberries

1 tablespoon all-purpose flour

1 tablespoon white sugar

Preheat oven to 350 F. Grease and flour an 8-inch square pan.

Cream butter and 1/2 cup sugar until fluffy. Add salt and vanilla. Separate eggs and reserve the whites. Add egg yolks to the sugar mixture; beat until creamy.

Combine 1 1/2 cups flour and baking powder; add alternately with milk to egg yolk mixture. Coat berries with 1 tablespoon flour and add to batter.

In a separate bowl, beat egg whites until soft peaks form. Add 1/4 cup of sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, and beat until stiff peaks form. Fold egg whites into batter. Pour into prepared pan. Sprinkle top with remaining 1 tablespoon sugar.

Bake for about 50 minutes.

Source: Allrecipes.com

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving from the Aberfoyle Antique Market!

My go-to cookie recipe

This recipe is not new, but I wanted to share it with you anyway. It's been tried, tested, and true to my family. It's also a hit with my friends. We baked yesterday because my dad had a huge craving for cookies. He's the cookie monster out of my family, hands down.

Vanilla Pudding Chocolate Chip Cookies

1 cup unsalted butter, melted, cooled

1 cup lightly packed brown sugar

1/2 cup granulated sugar

102 g box instant vanilla pudding mix

2 tablespoons milk

2 large eggs

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon each: baking powder, baking soda

2 cups milk chocolate chips

In large mixing bowl, using wooden spoon, mix butter and sugars until creamy. Stir in pudding mix and milk, then eggs and vanilla. Add flour, baking powder and baking soda; stir until batter is smooth. Stir in chocolate chips.

Drop batter by heaping tablespoonful on non-stick cookie sheets (about 12 per sheet). Bake, in batches, in preheated 350 F oven 12 minutes or until edges are lightly browned. Cool 10 minutes on cookie sheet. Transfer cookies to wire rack to cool completely. Store in airtight container. Makes about 36.

Source: Originally from the Toronto Star but also available here

Foodies

On Sunday, we celebrated my bro's birthday at Kaji. The Quatchis are such foodies so they had to come along. This was already a few courses in. Yum!

This is the sashimi course. The Quatchis loved it because it was the perfect size for them. This course was followed by assorted sushi, soup, noodles, and dessert. We were stuffed at the end!