Feels Like Fall

 
Maggie joined my family and I on a mini road trip to Bancroft to visit an old friend. Along the way, we hit up a few butter tart places. Maggie liked the tarts from the Kawartha Buttertart Factory & Bakery the best.

We also hit up a few fruit/veggie stands on our drive. We didn't buy any gourds or pumpkins, but we did get apple pie.

Maggie ran toward this corn field hoping it would be a corn maze. No such luck.

But Maggie did luck out with candy! She brought back a bunch of treats for the friends. We know Halloween will be different this year, but at least it will still be sweet!

Melothria Scabra

We've been trying lots of new fruits and veggies this summer, including plumcots, doughnut peaches, and Maggie's new favourite - melothria scabra, a.k.a. mouse melons. They look like mini watermelons, but they are kinda cucumber-ish. Some folks pickle them, or use them in cocktails. We're going to use them for a salad this week.

Summer Picnic

We had a lovely summer picnic at the Beaches, care of Suresh Doss. The picnic featured delicious South Indian dishes, many which were new to us.

Clementine loved the tiffan box from Anitha’s Homestyle Kitchen. Her favourite appetizer from the box was the masala vada (fried fritters with chana dal, onions, and herbs).

The main dishes were prepared by Minerva Tiffins. This sambar idil (savoury rice cake in lentil soup with peanut sauce and spices) was very filling.

The other mains included puri bhaji (friend bread) and pongal (rice and lentils).

We had mango lassi shortly thereafter. It was so delicious, we finished the whole thing before taking a photo.

Clementine really liked that the dessert was monster size. It was served in a small clay pot, which we were able to take home with the tiffin box.

We are now back home with happy tummies. Suresh will be hosting other picnics this summer. Sign up for his newsletter on his website for more details.

Trev Inspired Snack

We found this snack at the grocery store and instantly thought of our honey bear, Trev! The happy face and Trev are both smiling, both looking in the same direction, and both yummy! Trev is happy to report the cookies are indeed tasty. Have a great Saturday, everyone!

Spencer, the Cake Tester

I baked two cakes, a chocolate olive oil cake and a lemon polenta cake, and asked Spencer to taste test. He preferred the lemon polenta cake. To be honest, I must agree with him, though the chocolate olive oil cake was still very good.

I will keep both recipes in my toolkit since they were fairly simple. Would love to hear what other peeps have been baking these days!

Quarantine Life

How is everyone holding up? We just finished week five of quarantine life. Maggie has been keeping busy at the condo.

She has been trying lots of new cookie recipes, including this one for buckwheat chocolate cookies from Bon Appetit.

She has also been reading books. Dear Girls is the last book we got from the library before it shut down because of COVID-19.

Every now and then she watches movies on Netflix. Shout out to Chris for adding us to your account!

She waters our plants.

And she takes afternoon naps with B.

Stay happy and healthy!

Stay Safe!

Hi friends. We hope you are in good spirits and good health.

We've been staying home for the past month, only going out for necessities. B's mum made us fabric face masks for our weekly grocery run. Even in times of crisis, we represent our favourite basketball team - the Toronto Raptors.

Please stay safe and take care!

Snapshots from Lima

Hola one more time! Our layover in Lima was a quick one. We tried to maximize it by visiting some historic sites, markets, and funky neighbourhoods. We didn't take many photos since the day was hot and sticky. We started our adventures at Huaca Pucllana, runis in the heart of Miraflores.

This site predates Inca times, and used to serve as an important ceremonial and administrative centre.

We spent most of the afternoon strolling by the waterfront, eating ice cream, and wandering through Barranco. There was lots of street art there. This bear appeared several times.

We capped off our day at Central. It was a once in a lifetime dining experience. My credit card is hurting because of it, but it was worth it!

We hope the new decade is off a great start for you all! Sending good vibes and lots of love to our pals near and far!

Inca Highlights (and More)

Hola again! We did a day trip to Machu Picchu, a must if you're visiting Peru. Luckily the weather cooperated with us. It rained a lot the evening before. The views were stunning at every angle. This is Bernie and Dumbo from the Sun Gate.

We did a side trek to see the "secret entrance" to Machu Picchu. It is a very narrow Inca bridge, with a wood plank connecting the two sides of the path. Could you imagine crossing that bridge back in the day? Yikes!

We saw llamas, alcapas, and sheep on many of our hikes. These did not seem phased by all of the humans out and about.

On our fourth day, we did an 18 kilometre hike, which was super tiring but also very rewarding, since we saw everything - hills, lakes, valleys, canyons, waterfalls, Inca terraces, etc. Here, Bernie and Dumbo are enjoying a picnic lunch.

The hike ended at Huchuy Qosqo. It is not visited by many tourists. We didn't see any when we were there.

Explora knew B and I were celebrating a special occasion. Bernie and Dumbo helped us finish the chocolate covered strawberries.

On our final day, we hiked to Moray. We took a local path, which offered unique views of the famous archaeological site.

These ruins are still standing, despite being hundreds of years old.

Our stay at Explora was phenomenal! We would love to go back one day, perhaps with other friends so they can enjoy the experience as well.

Next stop, Lima!

Exploring the Sacred Valley

Hola! Bernie and Dumbo represented the friends on our most recent international adventure. We spent five glorious days at Explora in the Sacred Valley. Our room had a beautiful view of corn fields and mountains. 

It also had a very comfortable (and quite possibly the largest) bed. We had a great sleep every night we were there.

The meals at Explora were five stars. We loved ordering quinoa pancakes for breakfast.

On our first full day at Explora, we did two hikes. Here, the friends are taking a wee break mid-hike.

The first hike ended at Pumamarca, a hillside fortress that once guarded the entrance to the Sacred Valley.

In the afternoon, we visited the Salineras in Maras. Salt has been extracted from these 5,000 salt pools since Inca times.

On our second day, we did a hike to see five lagoons. This is Bernie and Dumbo at the highest point of our hike, at 14,295 feet above sea level.

More snaps to come!