Butter Baker’s Grand Opening on November 24! (Plus Gingerbread Man Croissants!)

Posted on November 20, 2017 by stenoodie
Butter Baker croissants

Butter Baker located at 120 Dundas Street West

Butter Baker, the new pastry bakery featuring French confectionery cooking from the minds of Butter Avenue, is set to have their Grand Opening this Friday, November 24, 2017 at their shop at 120 Dundas Street (near Dundas Square)!

Their intersection is at Dundas Street and Bay Street.  The store opens from  8 a.m. to 8 p.m.  They will  be launching the first two holiday items at this time also to celebrate the Grand Opening!  The first 50 customers will receive these two holiday items complimentary along with a chance to win $100 Butter Baker app credit on the spot!   Continue reading →

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Chefs Plate: Quinoa Masala Meatballs

Posted on November 18, 2017 by stenoodie
Quinoa Masala Meatballs in Romaine Lettuce Cups with Creamy Sweet Chili Sauce

Quinoa Masala Meatballs in Romaine Lettuce Cups with Creamy Sweet Chili Sauce

November 16, 2017:  As the last plate of this week’s order with Chefs Plate, I selected and made a vegetarian dish for the first time!  Usually, I think that ordering the meat dishes are more worth it in value but since I’ve been enjoying more vegetables in my daily meals, this one was very unique to make and terrific to eat Continue reading →

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Chefs Plate: Thai Fish Curry

Posted on November 17, 2017 by stenoodie
Thai Fish Curry in a Coconut Broth with Snow Peas and Lime Couscous

Chefs Plate: Thai Fish Curry in a Coconut Broth with Snow Peas and Lime Couscous

November 15, 2017:  This was the first meal of this type from Chefs Plate that I made!  It was a Thai Fish Curry in a Coconut Broth with Snow Peas and Lime Couscous.  This was different since it was a broth and it was curry!  I hadn’t made either one of these from any of the Chefs Plate recipes before. 😀

It had difficulty level of “easy” and a Continue reading →

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Chefs Plate: Pork Bruschetta Burgers

Posted on November 16, 2017 by stenoodie
Pork Bruschetta Burgers with Provolone Cheese and a Field Green Salad

Pork Bruschetta Burgers with Provolone Cheese and a Field Green Salad

November 14, 2017:  I’ve ordered so many meals from Chefs Plate now that I’m going to stop keeping count.  For this order, we made Pork Bruschetta Burgers with Provolone Cheese and a Field Green Salad!  This had a difficulty level of “easy” and a prep time of 25 minutes.

This recipe really was very simple and straight-forward to Continue reading →

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Weekly Photo Challenge: Experimental

Posted on November 15, 2017 by stenoodie
avocado seed in water

Growing an avocado seed into a plant

I remember a number of years ago when I was very into the practice of eating avocados and had so many of the large avocado pits laying around at home that I decided to plant them.  I don’t remember what happened the the dozens of avocado plants that I successfully sprouted but recently terribly miss eating these awesome fruits and also growing their seeds into plants.  Continue reading →

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Hotel Review: Jingxi International Hotel in Changsha, China

Posted on November 14, 2017 by stenoodie
Jingxi International Hotel

Jingxi International Hotel in Changsha, China

September 16, 2017:  For our fourth night in Zhangjiajie, Changsha in China, we stayed at Jingxi International Hotel.  This was a hotel that was very close to the tourist area with lots of shops and restaurants.  It looked so nice from the outside and had a large and spacious lobby area with lots of space and lounge chairs for guests Continue reading →

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Day 4 in Changsha, China 2017: Zhangjiajie Glass Bridge, Tianzi “Avatar” Mountains

Posted on November 13, 2017 by stenoodie
Tianzi Mountains

Visiting the famous Tianzi Mountain in China!

September 16, 2017:  We visited the infamous mountains today made internationally known by the movie “Avatar”!  But first, we had a continental breakfast early in the morning at 6:30 a.m. in the dining room at the Mellow Crystal Hotel.  This was a really good buffet with tons of selection including of course the familiar noodle station Continue reading →

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Rice Noodle Rolls and Congee at Yin Ji Chang Fen!

Posted on November 12, 2017 by stenoodie
Yin Ji Chang Fen rice noodle rolls

Yin Ji Chang Fen located at 7010 Warden Ave, Unit #17-18 in Markham

November 11, 2017:  Yesterday, we went to Yin Ji Chang Fen for their rice noodle rolls and congee.  This is a restaurant that has been popping up on my Instagram feed since it opened sometime this year.  It’s a franchise that grew out of a well-known restaurant in China for their delicious rice noodle rolls.

My mom and I arrived at about Continue reading →

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Hotel Review: Mellow Crystal Hotel in Changsha, China

Posted on November 11, 2017 by stenoodie
Mellow Crystal Hotel exterior

Mellow Crystal Hotel located at ZJJ Yongding District Xixiping Lijingtianxia Bulding in Zhangjaijie, China

September 15, 2017:  For our third day in Zhangjiajie, China, we stayed at the Mellow Crystal Hotel (张家界梅洛水晶酒店).  This was a really nice hotel!  It seemed like we were alternating from good hotel to bad hotel and then good hotel each day on this trip.

The Mellow Crystal Hotel had a very large and spacious lobby.  The rooms were gorgeous and almost like a suite based on how the layout in the room was.  After you walked into the room, there was a wide area for the TV and work desk and also a sofa set too.  There was an individual room for the toilet.  Continue reading →

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