Hooray for the Olympics!

The Quatchis and I are really enjoying the Olympics so far. We've been streaming a lot because we don't have a TV. My friend, CC, kindly invited us over to his place to watch the opening ceremonies live (photo above). What sports do you enjoy watching?

Mini and the Museum

The Textile Museum of Canada is a hidden gem in Toronto! The Mins and I have been meaning to visit for a while now. Today was great because it's "pay what you can" on Wednesdays.

The first exhibit we checked out was on prayer rugs.

This one was the Mins' favourite.

Another exhibit featured fun quilts in all shapes and sizes.

This one is a "crazy quilt" (see Wiki explanation here).

This work is made up of little squares of fabric, all attached together with string. It's hard to tell but it was pretty massive. The Mins was telling me to take a closer look.

The Mins gave looming a try. Not too shabby for a little sasquatch!

Delicious Scones

This was our first attempt at making scones and they turned out pretty well!

Blueberry scones for the win!

Blueberry Scones

2 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 cup sugar

1 tablespoon baking powder

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1 tablespoon grated orange zest

1 stick cold unsalted butter, grated

1 large egg, lightly beaten

1/2 cup cold heavy cream

1 cup blueberries

Extra heavy cream for brushing the tops

Raw sugar for sprinkling the tops

Preheat the oven to 400 F.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, mix the flour, sugar, baking powder, orange zest, and salt. Add the butter and mix at the lowest speed. Combine the egg and heavy cream and, with the mixer on low speed, slowly pour into the flour and butter mixture. Mix until just blended. Add the blueberries to the dough, and mix on low speed until blended.

Dump the dough onto a well-floured surface and knead it into a ball. Flour your hands and a rolling pin and roll the dough 3/4-inch thick. You should see small bits of butter in the dough.

Shape the dough into a square. Cut the square into eight triangles.

Brush the tops of the scones with heavy cream, sprinkle with sugar, and bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until the tops are browned and the insides are fully baked. The scones will be firm to the touch.

Serve warm with butter and jam.  

Source: La Petite Brioche

Bedroom Progress

The Quatchis spent the afternoon enjoying the new bed and bedding. They're very pleased to have the bedroom semi set-up now. We're still looking to paint the walls, replace the side tables, and buy a desk. Hopefully we can share more progress soon!

Feeling the Heat

Q can't believe how hot it is today!

He's quite furry so he doesn't do too well in the heat.

I grabbed a strawberry lemonade popsicle to help him cool off.

To see the recipe I used, and a bunch of others, click here and here.

Staying In

Somehow I managed to catch a cold in the summertime! Over the long weekend no less. It's hitting me hard too.

The Quatchis and I stayed in tonight to watch The Artist. They were big fans of the music. I liked the whole concept of it all.

The weekend is just around the corner! Aren't short weeks the best?

Decisions, decisions...

I'm thinking of painting my bedroom. The walls are currently white so luckily I don't have to prime them. I bought new bedding recently (to be revealed once I get some euro shams). It's grey and white. I'm leaning toward a greyish blue, but a light green would be quite nice too. Q has a critical eye and is trying to help me make a decision. From left to right, the colours are:

Harbour Mist

Wharf Fog

Chalky Grey

Glacier Bay

Jojoba Cream

Sweet Turquoise

Please weigh in by writing a comment! Merci beaucoup in advance!

Father's Day Dim Sum

The Mins circling my dad's favourite dish off of the dim sum menu.

Siu mai! Nom nom nom!

We're taking a breather before firing up the BBQ this evening.

Happy Father's Day to all the pops out there!

Let them eat cake!

I like how this cake is infinitely adaptable. You can basically use any type of berry - strawberry, blueberry, raspberry, etc. We baked this for my godparents, who came over for coffee on Sunday. They really enjoyed it. As you can see, only one slice left for the Quatchis!



Raspberry Buttermilk Cake
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 stick unsalted butter, softened
2/3 cup sugar plus extra to sprinkle
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 large egg
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 cup fresh raspberries


Preheat oven to 400 F. Prepare 9-inch round cake pan with butter and flour.


Whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside. In a larger bowl, beat butter and 2/3 cup sugar with an electric mixer at medium-high speed until pale and fluffy, then beat in vanilla. Add egg and beat well.


At low speed, mix in flour mixture in batches with buttermilk. Spoon batter into cake pan, smoothing top. Scatter raspberries over top and sprinkle with sugar.


Bake until cake is golden and a wooden pick inserted into centre comes out clean, 20 to 25 minutes. Cool in pan 10 minutes, then turn out onto a rack and cool to warm, 10 to 15 minutes more.


Source: Smitten Kitchen

Summer Reading

I wrote a big exam earlier on this month. It was a doozy so I'm happy to read something that's not a textbook! Q thought I should start off with Bossypants. I hear it's hilarious so bring on the hearty laughs!

On an aside, what do you think of the new blog layout? It's definitely an upgrade from before. We hope you like it!