Piece of Cake

As usual, we chilled out on Saturday, a nice rainy day.

I took this rather odd looking photo as the rain stopped late in the afternoon. We were surprised to see all the wires as I really zoomed this photo, I also took it from our bedroom.

I received the blender/food processor I bought online the other day. Earlier in the spring we had bought an inexpensive blender for our smoothies. It worked well but last week it started to smell like the motor might have been burning out. The internet is amazing

 as I was googling what would be the best to buy up popped an ad from the Hudson Bay (Canadian department store) for a deal on a Cuisinart blender/food processor which I then ordered. That was Tuesday and it was delivered on Friday.

Sunday I strolled out to pick up some vegetables for dinner and snapped a few photos along the way.
Spotted this in the distance and had to walk down to see what it was. Googled it and learned it is called Bubble Football.

So where am I? This photo is from our building. I had just walked down from the store and the kids were playing across the street from the red umbrellas, which is a pub. I stayed on that side of the street to get home and walked on those paths closest to the lake. The sidewalk on that side is usually crowded with cyclists on the weekend.

You can tell by the colour of the grass that we have had very little rain this summer.

I decided to try gluten free baking again this time using an all-purpose gluten free flour from the Bulk Barn. I also added Xanthan gum as the label recommended it, also bought at Bulk Barn. I had lots of blueberries in the freezer and plenty of Greek yogurt. All in all this recipe worked out well.

Lots of goldenrod around.

It was a funny kind of day after yesterday's rain. It felt coolish and overcast when I stepped out but then the wind completely died and the sun came out. City looking pretty hazy.

Monday I went downtown for a haircut, some pizza stuff and also found two pairs of jeans!!


Hockey fever is everywhere.

I came across a recipe that I thought was easy and would use up some stuff in the cupboards. I had a jar of Nutella that we had bought to try and neither of us liked it. Then a jar of peanut butter (I hate the stuff) that John wasn't crazy about so we decided it was good enough for cooking.

This is the recipe for nutella fudge cups, it is not going into my recipe box. I did make some adjustments based on what I had on hand. I mixed the peanut butter with the Nutella as I didn't have enough to make two cups. I didn't like the look of them and thought they were too greasy. John took one bite and valiantly said he would eat them since I made them.  But really, they went in the garbage.

Tuesday John was on a mission to get a pair of jeans so we headed down to his favourite store and salesman who had already picked out several pairs for him.
I loved this display of socks.

Then I met up with my BFF for a good old chin wag over lunch. My fish tacos.

Wednesday I went for a mani pedi and took a couple of photos. So quiet and peaceful on a weekday morning at 9:45.

Decorations for fall at our building, so nice to have someone else do my gardening.

Thursday John had gotten tickets for a new local TV show. It was the first week of taping for The Goods. Was a lot of fun even though the hour long show took about three hours to tape there is always something to keep you entertained, from draws for prizes to contests by the audience.

Check out my new crush, new kid on the CBC block Shahir Massoud, delivering cupcakes around the station.

After a quick lunch of Chinese food we headed home as friends were coming by. I did stop and pick up a Japanese cheesecake that created so much hype last year when they opened up to stupid-long lineups.
From the Globe and Mail:
The first Uncle Tetsu opened 25 years ago in Hakata, Japan. The company’s cheesecakes have become an international phenomenon in the years since; those two-hour lineups aren’t an only-in-Toronto exception, but the rule. Outside Japan, the brand has more than 70 shops across China, as well as in Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia, Philippines and Cambodia. (Some of those are franchises. In Toronto, it’s owned by the company.)

First bite was a little weird but then it grew on me. It is so light, more like a souffle, it is baked in a water bath. It also tastes more eggy than cheesy. At $10 for a cake it is a good deal as well. Would I line up for it, not likely.

Still on my quest to reduce and use the food in our fridge and freezers! It doesn't seem to be going down.
How did I decide what to make for dinner before Pinterest????
None of the new recipes went into my recipe box this week. The meatloaf and tikka masala were good, but not memorable, even though John enjoyed them both.

Saturday - burgers and fries with a change up in the ketchup to which I added hot sauce and chili sauce to it.
Sunday - used the rest of the ground beef to make this meatloaf with colcannon.
Monday - pizza (GF crust in freezer)
Tuesday - buttery garlic lime salmon (frozen) and salad
Wednesday - chicken breasts (frozen) made into chicken tikka masala
Thursday -  spaghetti with veal meat sauce (frozen)
Friday - steak (frozen) sauteed green peppers, onions and mushrooms with frites.

BOOKS
I didn't include an update last week.
Finished:
A Free Life I gave it 2 stars out of five. Wanted to finish it just to see what happened.
In The Skin of a Lion I was sorry to give this 1 star as it was recommended on last week's lost breweries tour, but I just couldn't get into the main character.
The Grownup Seriously don't even get me started!! What a waste of time! 64 pages, really????
Twisted River 5/5 loved it. Didn't want it to end.
My Name is Lucy Barton 2/5 I so wanted to love this one... but it was just ok.

I started Fates and Furies and enjoying it so far.

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