The simplest things in life fill me with joy.  Today was one of those amazing days.  I woke up in our snugly cottage after a ten hour sleep!  I can never sleep that long in the city.  After our morning coffee we headed down the back trail to enjoy a Masala tea and grilled cinnamon bun at The Spirit Rock Cafe.  While there, Julie recommend that we try the Danish made by a Danish baker across the street at  The Sand Bar Motor Inn.  We purchased two maple and pecan delights that I thought were going to be for later in the day, but when my husband started in on his-I wasn’t going to be left behind.  Delish.  We perused the Mother’s Day buffet and were duly impressed-$9.95 for quiche, eggs Benedict and more danish varieties.  Next year…..

On a sugar high, we decided to walk the beach.  I have still seen ice on the lake some May Long Weekends and here we were in t-shirts and I in a skirt walking the sand with no one else in sight-bliss.

My husband tidied the cottage while I finished my book on the deck.  The kids assembled for dinner and our son handled the barbeque.  Pork chops are my favourite supper and his were cooked to perfection.

Gifts of a beach bag and a pashmina in mauves and aquas, a hand-thrown pottery wine decanter and a Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution followed.  Beautiful and heartfelt cards from my girls and a sung card from my guy. 

A simply perfect day-I love being a Mom!

Kath’s quote: “The highlight of my childhood was making my brother laugh so hard that food came out of his nose.”-Garrison Keillor

Hoisin sauce, also called Chinese barbeque sauce is a fragrant, pungent sauce used frequently in Asian stir-fries and marinades. The sauce is made from a combination of fermented soy, garlic, vinegar, and usually chilis and sweetener.  Hoisin is dark in color and thick in consistency. It has a very strong salty and slightly sweet flavor which is probably why I like it so much.  Hoisin became one of the staples in our fridge when we discovered mu shu many, many years ago at the original Mandarin restaurant when it was located on Sargent Ave.  We found a great substitute for the pancakes by using small flour tortillas and the dish became a family favourite when the kids were still quite young.

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Fixings for Mu Shu

We now enjoy hoisin stir fries, on dumplings, noodles, salads and even meat loaf!  Here’s a unique version of a family favourite:

Hoisin-Glazed Meatloaf

Whisk 2 eggs in a large bowl, mix in 2 c fresh bread crumbs, 2 c grated carrots, 4 cloves of minced garlic, 1 t ground ginger and salt, 1/2 t pepper and 3/4 c thinly sliced green onions.  Mix in 2 lbs of lean ground pork (or 1/2 pork & 1/2 beef or even all beef).   Pack into a loaf pan, mounding the top.  Spred  1/4 c hoisin sauce over the top  and roast in a 400 degree oven for approx. 1 hour.  Upon serving, sprinkle with another 1/4 green onions.

Our picks for Hoisin dishes: The Plaza Restaurant in EK and The Spicy Noodle House on Osborne.  Our fav place to buy Hoisin Sauce: Oriental Market on King St.  Where are your favourite places for Hoisin dishes?

Kath’s quote: “It is the Americans who have managed to crown minced beef as hamburger, and to send it round the world so that even the fussy French have taken to le boeuf hache, le hambourgaire.”-Julia Child

I have written before that my family is sushi crazy.  I would say that the kids are more savvy than my husband and I about selecting the perfect sushi taste combinations.  Daughter # 2 had to work on the eve and day of her birthday and I was feeling a bit sorry for her (but we are so glad that she has such a wonderful job!) so I took her out for a feed of sushi.  Our son happened to drop in and so came along and it was a lovely impromptu time.

We ordered California Roll with Crunch, Boston Roll

Dynamite Roll, Avocado Cucumber Roll,

Shrimp Tempura Roll, Yam Tempura Roll and Tuna Tempura Roll.

Sushi Ya (I feel like I should give a Miss Piggy karate chop when I say this restuarants’ name) is in our neighbourhood and very affordable and is our first choice for sushi.  In River Heights there is almost a sushi place on every block of Academy, Corydon and Grant so there are many, many places to choose from.  Where’s your fav place for sushi?

Kath’s quote: “I don’t eat anything that a dog won’t eat. Like sushi. Ever see a dog eat sushi? He just sniffs it and says, ‘I don’t think so.’ ”-Billiam Coronel

This past Saturday night my husband and I did something that we rarely do-we ordered Chinese food from Kai Ping on our corner and got a couple of episodes viewed of our “Lost” collection.  As Daughter #2 headed out the door-her message was a plea: “Order lots and please save me some”.  First mistake: we only ordered 3 dishes and second: since we had not eaten a meal since breakfast and the food was delicious and piping hot, there was only one measly portion or curried vermicelli noodles left over.  We often discuss what we are going to cook up for Sunday brunch on our way home from church and it was abundantly clear that Daughter #2 had her heart set on Chinese food leftovers.  My husband and I are consistent in our displays of affection with food-so he leapt into action.

In minutes we were sitting down to honey garlic veal and what little was left from the night before.  Daughter #2 was thrilled with the effort and thinks her Daddy is the greatest-and he is.

He tossed veal scallops in flour and shallow fried them in oil in the wok.  Next he mixed sauteed garlic, honey, water and soya together to a slow boil and then added cornstarch to thicken.  The portions are really to taste-some liking saltier, sweeter, garlickier…..

Perhaps you were thinking I was going to list some of our favourite Sunday breakfast/brunch spots.  Well not to disappoint, they are: The Falefel House, The Garwood Grill or any of the Original Pancake House locations and for those very special occasions The Hotel Fort Garry!  Please leave a comment indicating your fav place for Sunday breakfast/brunch.

Kath’s quote: “The sweetest honey is loathsome in his own deliciousness
and in the taste confounds the appetite.” –William Shakespeare (Romeo and Juliette).

My Mom is in her late eighties.  She is a breast and lung cancer survivor.  She has outlived every member of her immediate family and my Daddy by thirteen years.  She loved to cook for her family and still loves to watch the Food Network even though her meals now revolve around poached eggs and ordering in. 

More than anything my Mom loves to eat but she loves to eat and tell stories and listen to stories at the same time.  It is because of this that we three sisters have honoured her with an elaborate dinner party to celebrate her birthday over the last number of years. Here are some courses from her dinner in 2009: 

 Her actual birthday is in January but because it is often difficult for her friends to get together in the middle of winter, we usually wait until spring. 

This year many of her friends are too infirm to attend so we are changing things up a bit.  We are having her best friend from across the street and a couple who once lived two doors down.  In addition to my brothers, their wives and the two husbands of the three sisters.  We’re serving a selection of small plates -stay tuned for what the three sisters are cooking up.

Kath’s Quote: I know how the nuts taken in conjunction with winter apples, cider, and doughnuts, make old people’s tales and old jokes sound fresh  and crisp and enchanting.”-Mark Twain