Dreaming In Wonderland

New Year Resolution

2012-01-02T00:33:00.000-05:00

Picture found here

Growing up I always make a long list of new year resolutions at the beginning of a new year. The thought of being able to start everything new excites me every year. This year was no exception. After toasted to 2012, I have been thinking of what I can work on. Then I stumbled on this picture on Pinterest today... throughout the year, write down memories that make me smile. On New Year's Eve, open it up and reread all of the good stuff that made the year wonderful. Love the idea! It is always easy to remember the bad but not the good.

Ready

2011-12-23T19:49:00.001-05:00

Are you ready for the Christmas? I am ready. Actually this year I am doing pretty good...no last minute shopping (for that I have to thank Future Shop's 'accurate' shipping estimate and diligent delivery efforts. The gift I got for Max arrived...hmmm...I don't know...maybe more than 10 days early and the delivery happened on a Sunday morning when I was unable to answer the door and Max indeed received his 'surprise gift' himself in a very surprising way than I expected.)

Anyways, hope you all have a wonderful Christmas.

Happy Holidays!

My First Apple Pie

2011-10-10T15:53:00.005-04:00

As many of you might not but we are celebrating our thanksgiving in Canada this weekend. Max labored himself almost the whole day yesterday preparing the dinner (his second time in his life cook a 10lbs bird) for our friends and friend of friends. My job was to make an apple pie. The pastry dough was already made the night before, however I got home last night way too late and only left myself less than an hour to peel and slice all the apples, prepare the filling and roll out the dough. To make things worse our guests decided to arrive 40minutes early. Anyways after few kitchen incidents, dinner turned out surprisingly good. Even though I forgot to weave pastry stripes to make the lattice pattern, my first apple pie did not disappoint (Recipe found here). Actually doesn't matter if food turned out good or bad, it is always a pleasure to have friends over to drink, catch up and have a valuable time together. And it certainly won't bother me either if someone got hammered and passed out on the couch again :)

Hope you all had/have a happy thanksgiving!

We Should All Remember Today

2011-09-11T23:24:00.002-04:00

Today is the 10 year anniversary of 9/11. It's hard to believe that it has been 10 years. Max and I got our memories refreshed by spending the whole weekend watching all movies and documentaries related to 9/11 and clips of the actual attacks replayed on TV. Even after 10 years, it's still too harsh and surreal to watch it all over again(especially after knowing there are still unidentified bones and body fragments). Scott Schuman {The Sartorialist} was in New York on that day and he wrote a really interesting piece about it here. After all we want to send our condolences to all who lost loved ones during the 9/11 attacks. It's a day should always be remembered.

Earthy Browns

2011-09-06T22:40:00.000-04:00

It surprises me every year how temperature drops dramatically after few late summer showers. A little bit disappointed by the chilling breeze but I am also happy for a change.

I was looking through my inspiration file folder for blogging ideas and found out besides a whole bunch of pictures of beautiful rooms and women's wear I also have quite a lot of menswear pictures. I like how menswear design appears simple but it's actually all about the details and impeccable cutting. Here are some pictures of men's blazers in brown shade that I am crazy about at the moment.

Pictures are found here

Maxi Skirt

2011-08-31T20:46:00.002-04:00

Above pictures are found here

ASOS Mesh and Chiffon Maxi Skirt

I know Maxi skirt has been in trend for a while. While the weather is cooling down gradually, I really want to give this look a try before it's too late. However no matter what kind of color or style of the maxi skirts I tried on, it just does not look good on me. I could never achieved that easy laid back look. It's the same thing like I could never wear my naturally curly hair freely. I have to put it up or get it chemically straightened every four months, though I'm envious every time I see a curly hair girl let her hair down and wear it naturally. I guess it's more like a common problem with most of the girls...just like what Garance Dore asked on her blog that why we are able to love on others what we can't stand on ourselves?

Scenes From My Weekend

2011-08-29T12:29:00.001-04:00

We went to Tobermory and Flowerpot island with friends the last weekend. This is the first time for all of us going there and obviously we are all stunned by the scenery. What amazed us the most is how different the landscape changed to while it's only 4 hours' drive to the city. Needless to say, I feel lucky to find out this place (would be happier if I could find out earlier) and to be able to live in a city that's so close to all the amazing places nature offers. For sure I will go back there soon.

Israeli Couscous with Asparagus, Peas and Sugar Snaps

2011-08-25T20:06:00.000-04:00

I was just complaining to Max that tomorrow is Friday. Yes, you heard me right. I complained about Friday's coming too soon! Of course I look forward to the weekends (especially this weekend, since we are heading off to Flowerpot Island). The problem is I have all the work stuff piling up on my desk that need to be done as soon as possible and it's making me feel like if I could, I would love to stretch this week a little bit longer making tomorrow a Wednesday or even better a Tuesday. Oops... did I just make myself sound like a workaholic? Anyways, back to the real topic...which is this delicious lemony Israeli couscous dish.

Here comes again with my one-pot meal wonders...This one is absolutely delicious same as my other one-pot meals and with all the greens it makes me feel less guilty for finishing up 3 servings.

Recipe found here

Colorwheel

2011-08-22T17:43:00.003-04:00

The chill in the air today helps me realize that Fall is coming a little bit faster than I expected this time.("thanks" to the pretty violent storm swept across the city yesterday). Fall has always been one of my favorite season that allows more creativity for dressing. Summer dresses are fun and easy to wear but I bet I'm not the only one that would get tired from one-piece way of dressing once in a while. Here's list of my favorite pieces and before I rush out to welcome some of these lovely additions to my already over jammed closet that I have to make sure the first thing on my list is to finally return to my hot yoga routine get my body back to the shape before one too many beers and BBQs that I had during the summer.

10. 7 For All Mankind

Inspiration

2011-08-18T21:26:00.000-04:00

picture are taken by Eugenio Recuenco

What Happened Recently

2011-08-16T18:47:00.001-04:00

Auberge du Pommier

I have to apologize for disappearing for more than a week. I am still alive just trying my hardest to enjoy the last few weeks of summer :) As you can see from the above picture that there have been a lot of eating-out involved with my life recently. In the last two weeks or so I had the most delicious, tender and moist piece of chicken breast from Auberge du Pommier, sang "Journey" out and loud in the middle of street in front of all the people for a big fat free oyster at the taste of Danforth (don't as for more details), had afternoon tea with friends at Windsor Arms on the hottest day of the summer, went to 360 restaurant on the top of CN tower for Max's birthday that came with a few view of the baseball game...,etc. Anyways I am still around and haven't forget about you all. Thanks for all the support and my blog will be updated more frequently.

The reason that I go back to Taste of Danforth every year - BBQ quails!!

View from the 360 restaurant

Free view of the baseball game down there at the Rogers Center

360 Restaurant at CN Tower

Easy Chicken Paella

2011-08-03T22:46:00.002-04:00

I realized one thing today when I was making my solo dinner (Max had to do OT as usual) by throwing everything from the fridge into a pot that I do a lot of one-pot meals. It's easy and usually super delicious without dirtying any pans or plates. This chicken paella is like one of those tasty one-pot meals that have became part of our weekly routine.

saffron threads soaked in white wine

Easy Chicken Paella
adapted from this recipe

1/2 cup dry white wine
12 tsp saffron threads
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 1/4 tsp smoked paprika
6 large chicken thighs with skins and bones
4 ounces fully cooked smoked Spanish chorizo, sliced 1/4" thick
1 tbsp olive oil
1 large sized onion, chopped
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 1/2 cups long-grain rice
2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
1 14.5-ounce can diced tomatoes in juice
1/4 cup chopped roasted red peppers from jar
2 1/2 cups sugar snap peas, trimmed

Mix white wine and saffron threads; set aside. Rub salt, smoked paprika and black pepper all over chicken thighs.
Heat a skillet over medium-high heat. Add chorizo and saute until fat begins to render and sausage browns, stirring occasionally, about 3 minutes. Transfer chorizo to large plate. Add olive oil to skillet. Add chicken thighs to skillet and cook until browned, about 4 minutes per side. Transfer chicken to plate with chorizo
Pour off all but 1 tbsp drippings from skillet. Reduce heat to medium. Add chopped onion and cook until translucent, stirring often, about 5 minutes. Add minced garlic and stir 30 seconds. Add long-grain rice and stir to coat. Add wine-saffron mixture and bring to boil, scraping up browned bits from bottom of skillet. Add chicken broth, tomatoes with juice and roasted red peppers. Bring to simmer. Stir in browned chorizo. Place chicken thighs, skin side up, atop mixture in skillet. Cover the skillet with lid and simmer for about 25 minutes. Transfer chicken to plate. Stir rice; season to taste with salt and pepper. Scatter snap peas over. Return chicken to skillet, nestling into rice. Cover with lid, simmer for another 10 minutes.

Long Weekend

2011-08-01T22:11:00.000-04:00

I had a perfect plan for the long weekend which was doing nothing than just relaxing on the beach, however that did not happen (in a good way). My long weekend consisted of farmers' market visit, antique market visit, a complete inside-out home cleaning, long time due home improvement projects' last finishing details, explored some interesting stores and most importantly lovely guests sleeping over (Kathy, Ilya and their cute pink-collar rocking German Sheppard Bertha). It's definitely one of those weekends that you wish it would never end. Good thing is that we are one day closer to the next weekend which will be for sure spent on the beach (right max?) Anyways, how was your long weekend?

Asparagus & Crab Linguine

2011-07-27T12:50:00.003-04:00

Whether eating in or out, seafood has always been my top choice. There is just something about seafood that I can't get enough of. It's light, delicate and packed with flavors. It also seems like that when the weather gets hotter and my craving grows stronger too. What else can beat a bowl of delicious seafood linguine with nicely chilled Chardonnay on a beautiful summer day?

This time I splurged a little bit on really good pasta from the "fancy" organic grocery store in our neighborhood. Maybe next time I should try to make some fresh pasta from scratch.

I never realized peeling asparagus into thin ribbons can be this hard and time consuming. I wonder if there is any tricks out there that I'm unawared of.

ASPARAGUS & CRAB LINGUINE
(Recipe is from Jamie magazine July 2010 issue)
serves 4 - 6

500g linguine
A large knob of butter
Extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 tsp fennel seeds (bashed with pestle and mortar. I used my rolling pin rolled on the seeds)
1 red chilli, deseeded and finely chopped
300g crabmeat
2 bunches of asparagus (shred into long thing strips by using a peeler)
Zest and juice of 1 lemon
Pea shoots, to serve

Cook the pasta according to pack instructions. Meanwhile, melt the butter with a little oil in a frying pan. Add bashed fennel seeds and chilli to the pan, fry for a minute. Then add crab to heat through. Remove from the heat
Drain the pasta when it's done, reserving a cup of the pasta water and add the pasta to the frying pan with crab on medium heat. Add asparagus, zest and juice of the lemon and toss well, add a little pasta water to loosen and season to taste.
Serve with a drizzle of olive oil, topped with pea shoots.

Inspirational Room

2011-07-25T23:08:00.001-04:00

pictures are from House&Home September 2011 issue

I fell in love with this beautiful kitchen the first time I saw the picture on the cover of House&Home. It's not only because how open and bright the kitchen is, the killer fireplace oven, interesting herringbone floor, but more importantly......how cool are those awesome brass hardware!

Happy Prints

2011-07-22T11:00:00.002-04:00

art print from Tad Carpenter's online store

I came across this cute little print the other day on Apartment Therapy and I have to share with you all. Illustrator Tad Carpenter's works are all cute and happy like something come right out from a happy kid's imaginary world.

Caprese Salad

2011-07-20T10:11:00.002-04:00

It's been the most brutal dog days of summer in Toronto I have ever experienced. It's hot and humid to a certain level. I don't know about you, to me venturing outside is like going into a sauna and I feel my whole body start melting a little bit by every step I take. However, I am well understood that how short a summer can be. One minute I am complaining and the next minute I will be whining about cold weather and how much I miss the summer. So I won't complain. Instead I made this refreshing Caprese salad using the freshest ingredients to enjoy this hot summer that I've been craving for.

Caprese Salad

serves 2

2 large vine-ripened tomatoes, sliced 1/4" thick

fresh mozzarella ball, sliced 1/4" thick

handful of fresh basil leaves, washed and spun dry

extra virgin olive oil

fine sea salt to taste

freshly ground black pepper to taste

On a large plate to arrange tomato, mozzarella slices and basil leaves by overlapping them. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and black pepper to season.

Brick Works Farmer's Market

2011-07-18T23:50:00.002-04:00

It's an understatement to say I feel really bad that it took me a good two years to notice there's a farmers' market in the neighborhood I've been living in for almost two years. First it's only 5 minutes' walk from my apartment and just off the trail I jog sometimes in the summer on which there's huge sign saying "Brick Works". More embarrassingly is that I would probably never find out this place if it's not featured in the Toronto Life.

This farmers' market is definitely different than any other ones that I've been to. There are more (or maybe all of them) serious organic farmers and cuisine-style food vendors. I mean seriously Susur Lee has one stand and so does Jamie Kennedy... After all, we had an amazing time there and couldn't be happier to find out another awesome place in the neighborhood.

{some real delicious sweet potato doughnuts}

{lavender from the market}

Be Tough and Be Strong

2011-07-13T08:10:00.000-04:00

pictures are taken by Tommy Ton at Paris couture shows

I've been in love with all the soft nude color, flowy and feminine tops and dresses for the past few seasons. Just like most of women, when something gets too comfortable I want to break the pattern and change it up a little bit. What about add a little bit of attitude playing tough? Step up being strong and tough...why not?

My Weekend

2011-07-12T10:29:00.000-04:00

outdoor black&white movie at the harbor front

BBQ by the lake

Last weekend was a really good one as we spent most of our time by the lake. We watched an outdoor b&w movie by the lake on a warm summer night under the stars and we had a BBQ feast by the lake again at the Hanlan's point (aka. the clothing-optional beach part of the Toronto island). We did go checked out the beach after BBQ fully clothed and...... no, there was so much people walking around naked...and no, that is not a disappointment in my tone that you just sensed.

China Part IV - Hong Kong

2011-07-11T13:36:00.001-04:00

{Hong Kong is one of the most densely populated areas in the world. This corner is not even the busiest corner in Hong Kong}

{I know there's a vending machine for everything in Asia. But a charity vending machine(4 dollars for a Pantene hair mask or a mystery high-end hair mask) for Red Cross?!! Hello Canada, why can't we have something like this here?}

China Part III - Sanya ("Hawaii" of Asia)

2011-07-08T12:21:00.000-04:00

{A delicious local beer}

{Some exotic flower at the ethnic minorities' reserve on the island}

{Old fashioned barns}

{Ethnic minority's traditional weaving style}

{Some ritual?}

{The tropical jungle on the island}

{Ancient smoker! looks good to me}

China Part II - Heaven Temple, Summer Palace & Traditional Chinese Neighborhood

2011-07-07T10:38:00.000-04:00

{Heaven Temple. Love the shade of blue)

{Summer Palace}

{The Summer Palace is so massive that we got too exhausted to make it to the other side of the palace}

{The canal around the Forbidden City}

{Traditional Chinese neighborhood}

China Part I - Forbbiden City

2011-07-06T11:31:00.001-04:00

{The most iconic landmark of China - Tian'an Gate of the Forbidden City)

{ A western influenced architecture inside the Forbidden City)

So you probably have already guessed that I went somewhere east and foreign for my trip from the picture I posted yesterday. The answer is China! We went from north to south and visited 4 cities in three weeks. Each city are so different from each other landscape wise and culture wise. Our first stop was Beijing, the capital of China. This is my second visit to the city as a tourist, however I am still in awe of all the grand palace buildings, vibrant color palette and extremely exquisite architectural details. Anyways, by looking at these pictures again reminds me that I really need to get myself a new camera :)

Just a Tease

2011-07-05T09:48:00.000-04:00

Yes, I am back from my 3 weeks' vacation. Home never seemed this comforting in a slightly unfamiliar way after 3 weeks apart. There's only one part that I don't like about travelling ...that is unpacking. It's tedious and also means the official ending of a trip. Here is a picture from my trip and I will upload more starting tomorrow. Now I shall go back to unpacking.