Author: Sharon Yeo

Sharon is an Edmonton-based blogger who has been writing about food since 2006.

Value-priced Cupcakes: The Cake House

Though my homeward bound bus drops me off right around the corner from The Cake House, it took an after work need for pick-me-up sugar to finally gave me the push to walk through the shop’s doors.

Owner Silvia Salas has twenty years of baking experience. She spent a year working for Fuss Cupcakes, and this year, decided to branch out on her own – The Cake House has been open for about six months. Though her main focus is on special occasion cakes (customers come from as far away as Devon to order her 100% nut free creations), she also offers smaller cakes, pies and cupcakes.

The Cake House

Though the exterior of barred windows and functional interior aren’t as charming as the other cupcakeries like Flirt and Whimsical Cake Studio (plus, no seating area), Silvia’s warmth and friendliness makes up for it somewhat. More than that, the cupcakes are the most economical in the city – just $1.75 each, $10 for a half dozen, and $19.50 for a dozen.

There were more than a dozen flavours to choose from on my visit, including red velvet, oreo and caramel. I picked out French vanilla for myself, and a carrot cupcake for Mack. I brought them home, and couldn’t help but dig in right away – the cake base was moist and not too sweet, and while buttercream icing is not my favourite, I didn’t mind Silvia’s version as much – the super-creamy texture probably had something to do with it. Mack loved his cupcake as well, cinnamon spiced to perfection.

French Vanilla and Carrot Cupcakes

For the price, The Cake House offers very good value – worth checking out if you need a cupcake fix that won’t break the bank.

The Cake House
12415 – 107 Avenue
(780) 451-8882
Monday-Friday 10am-5:30pm, Saturday 10am-4pm

Food Notes for November 23, 2009

Mack and I booked our tickets to Yellowknife last week, and were able to cash in on a seat sale! We’ll be visiting his folks for a week at the end of December. Looking forward to the trip, but not necessarily to the cold. On to this week’s food notes:

  • A reminder that the launch of Julianna Mimande and Gabe Wong’s book We Eat Together, a celebration of local food and farmers, is taking place at d’Lish on November 25. I hope to attend! You can read more about the book here.
  • Billingsgate will be hosting their annual open house on November 28 from 10am-2pm. Their kitchen will be sampling jambalaya, while several suppliers will be on hand as well offering a taste of smoked salmon and shrimp, among others.
  • A new chocolatier is coming to Commerce Place called Sweet Lollapalooza (lollapalooza is defined as “something outstanding of its kind”). It looks like they are still under construction, but they hope to be open in the next few days. I salivate when I see the photo of the buttercrunch. Can’t wait.
  • New restaurant alert, as seen on Chowhound – an Indian restaurant named Guru is in the works in west Edmonton, in the space formerly occupied by Julio’s Barrio’s.
  • Nate Box twittered that Moriaties Bistro and Wine Bar is coming to the downtown space off Rice Howard Way that used to hold Ching’s Dim Bar.
  • Kerstin’s Chocolates is running an interesting contest called Name That Origin. Visit the store between December 1-22 to fill out an entry form and then taste four different pieces of chocolate to determine their cacao origins. If you can’t identify them currently, you’ll still get a 20% discount coupon, and if you can identify them, you’ll win a container of Chocophilia Drinking Chocolate. Sounds like a good deal to me, and while you’re there, you can get some Christmas shopping done!
  • My article about Garner Beggs of Duchess Bake Shop was published last week. Unfortunately, I didn’t have enough space to talk about Garner’s commitment to making the city a better place: “I’m a complainer. And most of my friends are rather sick of hearing me complain about, ‘Oh, the city should be designed this way,’ or ‘Why don’t they do this.’ This is a chance for me to put my money where my mouth is, and do something in the way I think it should be done and take a stance.” Moreover, I think it’s really interesting that Garner and Giselle deliberately chose a neighbourhood that they deemed to be on the cusp: “I wanted to be a part of fostering a community. And part of building something up, rather than just slotting myself into a pre-established [community] such as Whyte Ave. I like 124th, it’s good character.”
  • See Magazine interviewed Hong Nguyen, a manager and daughter of Chinatown’s Lucky 97 owner.
  • Eater linked to an amusing flow chart for fast food restaurants that will help you answer the question “Where should I eat?”
  • Mack sent me a link to an infomercial for the EZ Egg Cracker. Though I don’t think it’s amusing as he does, comment #6 after the video is pretty funny.
  • After checking out the Meet the Locals Festival at Planet Organic, I hopped over to the Doan’s next door for a quick pho fix. It’s not my favourite, but it was close by. I had my camera and Moleskine out, as I hadn’t put them back in my purse yet, and after the waiter took one look at them, the look on his face seemed to be one of “food reviewer recognition.” I have to say, I’ve never had any food from Doan’s come out of the kitchen so fast. As for the pho? All right, but the brisket was notable.

Special Beef Noodle Soup ($8.95)

  • Mack and I ordered pizza on Saturday, succumbing to the Panago spam. We both wanted to try one of their meatball pizzas. We called in the order, placing it for pickup at the Meadowbrook location. When we arrived, the clerk said that our pizza was actually at the Mill Woods location – thankfully it’s not far, but it was definitely an inconvenience. Thankfully, the pizza was pretty darn good – the meatballs were nice and tender, on a pie just loaded with cheese. The red onions were a nice touch too.

Italian Meatball Pizza ($12 for a large)

  • I am among a few coworkers who are voracious consumers of grapefruit. So much is a single grapefruit a part of each of our winter lunch routines that we joke about belonging to a “grapefruit club”. Well one day last week, I found a grapefruit spoon and an accompanying card on my desk. The card proclaimed me to be an official member of the “pamplemousse club” – such a lovely surprise.

All hail the grapefruit spoon!

Meet the Locals Food Festival

On Thursday night I headed out to Planet Organic in Old Strathcona to take in their first ever Meet the Locals Food Festival.

Meet the Locals Food Festival

Meet the Locals celebrates local food producers and manufacturers, and is deliberately set during a time when some believe local food production stops – the organizers wanted to draw attention to homegrown food that is available seasonally and year round. And as Planet Organic locations in Edmonton stock about three dozen products from area companies, they definitely have a strong base to draw from.

Grainworks display

The festival has two components: tasting tables and cooking demonstrations. On that night, six local companies were on hand providing customers with product samples. I had the chance to try some elk from Shooting Star Ranch (so incredibly tender), flatbreads made with wholesome and filling lentil, chickpea and whole wheat flour by Rio Vita, fresh bagels from Henderson Bagels, hummus and spanakopita (still warm) from Supreme Georgio’s Fine Foods, and chocolate from Kerstin’s Chocolates.

Rio Vita Flatbreads

I also had the chance to chat with Emily from Mighty Trio Organics, a company located near Redwater that produces cold-pressed, unrefined hemp, flaxseed and canola oils. I was particularly interested in the canola oil, which is made from GMO-free canola sourced from a farm twenty minutes away from them. Though I have heard the term “cold-pressed” before, I didn’t really know what it meant – Emily explained that when manufacturing the oil, cold-pressed oil is not heated to beyond 40 degrees Celsius, preserving the essential nutrients in the oil. She poured me a bit of oil to sample, and I was blown away by it – orange in colour, more viscous than conventionally-made oil, and possessing a slightly floral aroma, it tasted richer and unlike any canola oil I have tried before. I would imagine that like most high-quality products, I would end up using less of this oil in cooking. They didn’t have the oil in stock that day, but I will be heading back soon to pick up a bottle for myself.

I also stayed on for the first of two cooking demonstrations by Madison’s Grill Executive Chef Blair Lebsack.

Blair Lebsack

Blair’s commitment to supporting local farms was apparent throughout his forty-five minute class, as he talked about personally visiting all of the farms that supply products to Madison’s Grill. On the menu, besides the Sylvan Star Cheese gouda, apple-pear compote and crackers, were a spinach and radish salad with goat yogurt dressing and a bacon cassoulet topped with bison sirloin.

His meal utilized no less than eight local products, including Fairwinds Farm yogurt, Alley Kat Raspberry Mead, black eyed peas from Grainworks, bacon from TK Ranch and bison from Olson’s High Country Buffalo.

The dressing on the spinach salad was superb, and it was just a simple combination of vanilla goat yogurt and sherry vinegar. I also had to commend Blair on his attention to detail – prior to the start of the cooking class, he removed all of the stems from the baby spinach leaves. When an attendee asked why he was doing that, he explained that it made the salad easier to eat, and negated the potential hazard of a diner getting spinach stuck in their teeth. The restaurant would then use the stems for purees to ensure that nothing was wasted.

Spinach and Radish Salad with Goat Yogurt Dressing

He also incorporated what he believed to be under-utilized vegetables into the meal – radishes in the salad and celery root in the cassoulet. I have to say that my favourite part of the cassoulet wasn’t the vegetables or the beans, but the bison striploin that topped it. With a sprinkle of salt to finish, it was a perfect bite of steak.

Cassoulet with Bison Striploin

As Meet the Locals is taking place once a week for three months, you still have a chance to check it out in December and January. And until then, although farmers’ markets are great places to shop and interact directly with food producers every week, it’s hard to beat the convenience of a store like Planet Organic that offers local products seven days a week.

Meet the Locals Food Festival at Planet Organic, 7917-104 Street
Continues December 14-20 and January 11-17
Tasting Tables: Monday-Friday 3-6pm, Saturday 10am-4pm, Sunday 12-4pm
Cooking Demonstrations: December 14 and January 11 at 6:30pm with Julianna Mimande, co-author of We Eat Together; December 17 and January 14 at 6:30pm and 7:30pm with Gail Hall of Seasoned Solutions; January 16 at 6:30pm and 7:30pm with Sebastian Lysz of Relish Culinary Consulting

Shopping on High Street

Working on an article on Saturday, I kept looking up from my laptop, distracted by the scene outside of freshly fallen snow glistening in the warm afternoon sunlight. At some point I decided I needed some fresh air, and to kill two birds with one stone, wandered over to High Street to get some Christmas shopping done.

Paul Kane Park, en route to High Street (or as Jim Diers would call it, a “pocket park”)

Though the sidewalks were slippery, it was a pretty nice day to spend outside, wandering in and out of some of my favourite stores in the city. Many other people thought so too, as some of the stores were jam packed with shoppers.

High Street

I picked up a few things at The Tin Box, one of the best shops in my opinion for unique gifts. They had a rack of animal hats and gloves that were ubiquitous in Banff’s gift stores.

Hats and gloves at The Tin Box

Carol’s Quality Sweets is a nice store to satisfy the kid in all of us –I love the brightness of the store, and the colourful candy jars that line the shelves. For just a few dollars, your retro candy craving can be taken care of.

Candy behind the counter at Carol’s Quality Sweets

Notables is another great store, and in recent years it seems they’ve expanded their selection of offbeat giftware. Staff are super-friendly, and you won’t find a better assortment of greeting cards anywhere else in the city.

Christmas display at Notables

My last stop was Call the Kettle Black, a kitchen retail store. I almost always end up buying something if I enter the store, so a visit is a dangerous one for me. Luckily, I balanced a purchase for myself (a lightweight Epicurean cutting board) with the purchase of a gift for someone else. What wasn’t in my shopping basket were these onion goggles – although they might be effective, I think they’d take up too much room for just a single purpose.

Onion Goggles

Other than the stores I’ve listed, Acquired Tastes Tea Company, Floc Boutique and Ginger are a few other shops I like to patronize.

Boulevard trees on High Street

In addition to finding unique gifts, it’s a nice change from wandering within the confines of a mall. Especially during Shop Local Month, I would encourage you to consider doing some of your holiday shopping at High Street.

Card-making 101: Holiday Stampin’ Up Workshop

Back in high school, I used to scrapbook. I think I made one scrapbook a year, filled with photocorners, glitter-glue page titles and magazine cutouts. Sometime since then, I’ve channelled that energy into other endeavours, but can still appreciate the tangible thrill of looking upon something beautifully assembled by one’s own hand.

Ornament card

My friend from high school Jane, on the other hand, never did lose her creative flair, and recently became a Stampin’ Up demonstrator For those who aren’t aware of Stampin’ Up – it is a company made up of crafty entrepreneurs who lead workshops where attendees pay to assemble cards in a fun and supportive environment. Nearly all supplies are provided by the demonstrator, making it easy for non-crafters and lapsed crafters like myself to participate.

So last Sunday afternoon, Janice, Annie and I headed to St. Andrew’s Centre for a workshop alongside a dozen other people. I paid just under $40, which included materials for 15 cards and a “snail adhesive”, a plastic applicator filled with double-sided tape – it was the first of many words specific to the Stampin’ Up world that I would learn that day.

Janice and I

Jane explained that we would be rotating through the five different “stations”, and would be assembling three of each type of card (Jane had created four out of the five designs we would be making). Before we got started, she demoed how to put each card together, from embossing to die-cutting, attaching brads (tiny metal accents that work like duotangs) to using dimensionals (double-sided foam stickers that provide a 3D look).

Jane!

Although the steps to some cards seemed daunting at first, we helped each other around the table, and Jane was always around to answer a question or lend a hand. The fact that almost everything was pre-cut and ready to go simplified the tasks for us, but there was also room for creativity – each table had more than enough colour and stamper options, so those who could think outside the sample could indeed experiment.

North Pole card (the penguin one is my favourite)

I haven’t played with glitter in years, but I think I got more than my share of sparkles at the workshop –it seemed as much of it ended up on me as on the cards!

Reindeer “sparkly and bright” card

The card that we embossed was probably the coolest design – not only did we get to use a heat gun to set the slightly raised and shiny stamped image, but the card incorporated a clear plastic cup to be filled with candy to look like a colourful ornament. It is definitely something not easily found in a card store.

Season’s Greetings 3D ornament card

Though we initially thought that the three hour time frame for the workshop was too generous, Janice, Annie and I were the last to leave, nearly three and a half hours after the session began! I have to say that we weren’t hard at work during that entire time though – Jane had brought snacks with her as well, and even baked mini cupcakes the night prior for the group to nosh on.

Annie shows off one of her creations

It was a great way to spend a Sunday afternoon, and I am certain that those who are given a handmade greeting will appreciate it more than a generic boxed card. If you’re interested, Jane will be hosting another workshop on January 17, 2010 – she says that Valentine’s Day cards will be in the mix. Check out her website for more information.

Thanks again Jane for the opportunity to rekindle my creative side!

The Cooking Chronicles: Linguine with Turkey Meatballs and Quick Sauce

Big batches of pasta dinners seem to become particularly handy during a busy week, where leftovers are a saving grace. This Giada de Laurentiis recipe for linguine with turkey meatballs and quick sauce was one such wonder, and did not diminish in flavour too much in the fridge over a few days.

This was actually our first time making meatballs from scratch, and though I have an odd tendency to mistake naming turkey for lamb (I have no idea why), we did have ground turkey on hand to use. After I combined all of the ingredients for the meatballs, I delegated the shaping of them to Mack while I got started on the sauce.

Like most of Giada’s recipes, this one is just as straightforward, and really, is simply a more refined version of spaghetti and meatballs. The meatballs were quite good – the pancetta made them pop. And though I’m much less prone to oversaucing pasta now than I have been in the past, the sauce was still a little thin for me. Perhaps the addition of more tomatoes would have helped somewhat.

Linguine with Turkey Meatballs and Quick Sauce

In spite of the sauce, I would make this again – I’d likely double the meatball portion and freeze the other half. Like the handiness of leftovers – maximum gain for minimum effort is the name of the game sometimes.

Frozen Yogurt Frenzy: Kiwi Kiss

I have fro-yo envy. Certain US metropolises like New York are overflowing with frozen yogurt joints like Pinkberry and Red Mango, so much so that the competition forces each shop to find their niche, or at least, maintain a high level of quality to retain its customers. We had the chance to visit Iceberry in DC, and loved it as an alternative to a cafe or ice cream parlour.

More than that though, while I’ll have my share of ice cream throughout the year, there’s something about the fruit content and relative lightness of frozen yogurt that appeals to me more as a cold treat. And yes, I do feel less guilty after indulging in a large serving of frozen yogurt than when I have done the same with ice cream or even gelato.

In Edmonton, we have had to rely on a handful of Yogen Fruz outlets, most in shopping centres and others a concession option at Cineplex Theatres…until now.

Kiwi Kiss opened about a month ago in the lower level of the City Centre Shopping Centre, next to Starbucks, while folks in Sherwood Park have Twisted Yogurt Creations (138, 1020 Sherwood Drive, 780-416-1133), open since August of this year, to satiate their cravings.

Kiwi Kiss

I noticed the sign for Kiwi Kiss months ago, but wasn’t aware that it was a frozen yogurt purveyor until I came upon it again on Saturday afternoon while we were in line for Starbucks. I loved the eye-catching green and orange colour scheme and globe lights. I asked the friendly clerks if I could snap their photo for my food blog with an intention to return on a different day. But after they agreed to my request with some curiosity, one of the clerks offered me a sample on the house!

Topping selection

I happily asked for her recommendation, and she obliged, selecting her favourite matcha green tea for me. Kiwi Kiss also offers three additional flavours – original, coconut and acai. Of the dozen or so toppings, including fruit and dry goods, I selected strawberries and blueberries. She threw in a few mochi balls (glutinous rice) which she indicated were an acquired taste, but which she quite enjoys herself. I’ve had them before, but would never have thought to pair it with frozen yogurt.

Kiwi Kiss Frozen Yogurt

As with green tea ice cream, I was expecting an overwhelming, even slightly bitter taste of green tea, but the flavour was subtle, and enjoyably cool to the palate. Mack was anticipating a sweeter yogurt as well, but found it just right. The fruit was a nice touch, even though the berries are far from being in season. The mochi provided some interesting chewy texture, but they didn’t add anything to the yogurt, at least for me.

Prices start at $2.95 for a teaser (small) size of original without toppings, up to $7.95 for nirvana (large) size of the flavoured frozen yogurt with toppings. The size I would likely pick up myself – a small flavoured yogurt with toppings – is priced at a reasonable $4.85, definitely on par with ice creams of similar size. Fruit parfait ($4.95-$5.95) and probiotic iced teas (under $4) are also available.

I look forward to satisfying future fro-yo cravings at Kiwi Kiss – I hope this means more purveyors are on the horizon in the city!

Kiwi Kiss
10088 102 Avenue (Edmonton City Centre Mall)

Food Notes for November 16, 2009

  • Planet Organic on the south side kicks off their Meet the Locals Food Festival this week, with food tasting tables during the week, and a cooking demonstration by Madison Grill’s Blair Lebsack on November 19. The Festival continues December 14-20 and January 11-17.
  • Marianne over at Loosen Your Belt and Eat Around Edmonton posted about some changes in the Whyte Avenue area – Arriba Mexico (10768 82 Ave, 780-757-8220), and the Friends and Neighbours (10834 82 Avenue) expansion into the space formerly occupied by Nokomis, called Delight, are now open, while Muddy Waters looks to be closed.
  • City Palate reports that chef Paul Tao has opened up a restaurant called Tao Signature on the west end called Tao Signature (10406 Mayfield Road, 780-486-7826).
  • Speaking of City Palate, the local publication is looking for a new name. Their royalty agreement with City Palate expires in 2010, and Mary Bailey is looking for “a new name that reflects what we do best: chronicle Edmonton’s food scene.” E-mail Mary your suggestions by November 20 for a chance to win dinner for four at the Hardware Grill.
  • Good piece in Vue Weekly about wine corkage in local restaurants.
  • I love what Cafe Haven out in Sherwood Park is doing with their Twitter account – offering deals, promoting their products and philosophy – they are evolving into a model for restaurants using Twitter.
  • Artisan Resto Cafe in Old Strathcona has a new website, designed by the same company that put Manor’s new site together.
  • Here’s an interesting unpublished Gourmet article on “speed dating” for farmers and chefs. Neat idea, and something we’ll likely see more of in coming years.
  • I can’t believe Top Chef has their own line of frozen dinners – but I guess nothing is sacred these days.
  • First there was the double-ended peanut butter jar, now there is a peanut butter crank to help reconstitute your peanut butter. Who knew?
  • Mack and I dropped by Ceili’s on Friday to help Brittney celebrate her birthday. It was too cool that instead of a birthday cake, she had a platter of pain au chocolat from Duchess Bake Shop!

 

Yum

  • En route to the Holiday Light-Up, Mack and I stopped in to check out the new Health Fare. It’s a nice space, accented with a bright green colour scheme and funky light fixtures. We played around with their nutritional guidance system (both Mack and I ended up with nearly the same dish choices), but really, we were interested in when their text messaging ordering system would be up. The clerk said it would be installed sometime over the next two weeks, and the end counter would be dedicated to serving these pick-up orders. Marianne and Zed wrote a review about it already – I’m sure others will start trickling in soon.

 

Interior

 

At the Nutritional Information Kiosk

  • Needing a quick dinner at Kingsway, I succumbed to A & W’s sirloin twins (I really am a sucker for sliders). I appreciated the fact that the buns were grilled, and the inclusion of sweet red onion, but they were absolutely tiny! Clever name, but not worth the $3.49.

 

Sirloin Twins

Kingsway’s Radiant Reveal

While it took us a few months to finally visit the revamped Southgate Centre, because of the convenient scheduling of Kingsway’s  grand reveal, we were able to hop on a bus right after the Holiday Light Up to join the festivities at the mall.

Kingsway all decked out for the holidays

In particular, I was curious about the premiere of their Twilight Spectacular, billed as “Western Canada’s first light show” – over 100,000 LED lights synchronized to seasonal music. At 7pm, a crowd gathered at the main west entrance (next to the food court) and waited for the event to begin. Just above us, on the second level balcony, someone was delivering a speech to VIPs who were given access to a prime viewing location upstairs – it was strange that the mall authorities didn’t think the public who came out for the opening also deserved to be a part of the welcome and introduction.

After a chorus of singers opened the show, the lights dimmed. As rock versions of popular carols blared, a suspended coil-shaped Christmas tree, strings of vertical lights and star-shaped orbs flashed to the music. It’s a novel entertainment installation, but it wasn’t what I expected – perhaps if the show had been spread out over a larger area, or if animated scenes were played out somehow in lights, it would have been cooler.

Twilight Spectacular

The show will begin after dark and run every hour, on the hour, throughout the holiday season, so you can see it for yourself, but I’d say unless you were planning on shopping anyway, it’s not worth special trip.

At 8pm, a fashion show was hosted on a small runway that had been set-up in front of Aritzia. We didn’t have a clear view of the runway, but stayed to watch anyway, primarily to catch a glimpse of Canada’s Next Top Model runner-up Linsay Willier (I saw her back in September at Edmonton Fashion Week).

Besides highlighting fashion available at the mall itself, the show closed with a dozen dresses Kingsway commissioned from local designers on the theme of “luminance” (including one of my favourites – Kelsey McIntyre). The dresses will be available for purchase through a silent auction until November 22, with all proceeds going to WIN House.

Linsay Willier (it was hard to look directly at the runway with the glaringly bright lights positioned the way they were)

The models pose with the designers of their garment

While I think the name of the designer who created the outfit should have proceeded each walk off, all in all, it’s a win-win for both local designers and a local charity – bravo to Kingsway for an innovative promotional tie-in.

Edmontonians – we now have two sparkly new malls to spend our money in. Choose wisely.

Christmas on the Square Holiday Light Up 2009

I’ve been looking forward to the Holiday Light Up celebration for a while – with a fireworks show actually choreographed to music, and warmer temperatures than on New Year’s Eve, I wonder why it isn’t the city’s most popular event. And with family-friendly activities precluding the light-up, in addition to City Centre Market vendors, it makes for a great few hours spent in the core.

Christmas carollers on stage

Sleigh rides around City Hall were pretty popular with the children, and the Art Gallery of Alberta had a tent promoting their new logo and grand opening in January 2010. We also checked out the vendors on hand (whose heated tents were better spaced out this year).

Inside the Art Gallery of Alberta tent

Mack as Vanna White

At 5pm, everyone readied for the grand finale – two children, alongside Mayor Mandel and Santa Claus, flipped a giant light switch to power up the Christmas lights. The tree, from Whitecourt, AB, stands at sixty feet, and this year, features animated icicle lights that make it appear as if snow is falling from the tree – pretty neat.

The crowd for the main event

Ready for the light-up

All lit up

The light switch that made it happen

The fireworks that followed were fantastic as expected, with flares and sparks released in time to cymbals crashing and trumpets blaring. If you haven’t yet experienced the show, I would encourage you to attend next year.

Fireworks!

Notably missing this year were the small Bright Nights displays that have been a fixture on the Square during the holiday season for the past few years. I guess the cancellation of the Hawrelak Park Bright Nights also meant the necessary retiring of all related decorations. The few inflatable displays they had on the east side of the Square really weren’t the same.

I’m counting down the days to Christmas already, but this was a great event to help kick off the season!

You can see Mack’s photo set here.