What I've been up to lately - August 2023

There were still some things on my summer 2023 bucket list that I need to do so I tried my best to hit up all of my favourite summer activities before the fall chill rolls in.

Food I ate

Our friends opened up a restaurant (Le Tambour Tavern) in Hamilton so we went out there to

give it a try! I tried a couple of things I've never had before like escargots and a Gibson Cocktail - both were soooo good! I thought the escargots were going to be super chewy, but they were an absolute delight especially when they are covered in garlic and butter. Other highlights was the Smoked Rotisserie Hen and the Fire Grilled Whole Sea Bream both of which are cooked over an open fire.

I made a delicious sour cherry galette with some local cherries which didn't last long at home. Sour cherries only have a short season in Ontario so if you see them, you have to buy them. I used this recipe from Bon Appetite for the pastry crust.

One of our favourite restaurants in Bernhardt's because the menu is always changing and has a strong focus on local Ontario vegetables. This time we got a scallop ceviche, brown butter beets, heirloom tomatoes, and their famous rotisserie chicken. 10/10

I was surprised by Alison Roman (no surprise there) and threw a Hotdog party for my friends to celebrate the summer and we had such a great time! One of my friends shared her mom's caramel corn recipe that I made and everyoneeeee wanted the recipe for. So here it is!

Caramel Corn Recipe

22 cups popped corn - popped from 3/4 cup of kernels in the biggest bowl that you own.

Syrup:

1 1/3 cups sugar

1 cup butter

1 tsp vanilla

1/2 cup corn syrup

1 tsp kosher salt

Boil all of the syrup ingredients for 4-5 minutes making sure not to over caramelize or it will taste burnt. And string occasionally to make sure there isn't any syrup sticking to the bottom of the pot.

Once it's reached perfect caramelization add in 1/4 tsp of white vinegar and pour over the popcorn and quickly and gently mix it to distribute the caramel on all of the popcorn.

Line 2 large baking sheet with parchment paper and gently press the popcorn the baking sheet and top with flakey salt and allow to set.

Things I did

I crashed my sister's beach house vacation in Grand Bend - that's what sisters are for right? Would definitely recommend Grand Bend as a vacation destination. It's not too far from Toronto (about 2.5 hours) and it's such a nice big clean beach that everyone can have a great time.

I also went to Canada's Wonderland with my sister and her kids and was surprised that my niece and nephew has the courage to go on some of the super big kid rides like Dragon Fyre and The Leviathan. After years of the little kid rides I was very excited to finally get on these rides with them! Plus my younger sister just so happened to be there on the same day so we all got to hang out and snack on funnel cakes together. Strawberries and ice cream is the pro-move. Talk about perfection!

Things I read

1. The Walrus There Is No Housing Crisis - a long and very interesting read about what is ~actually~ happening in the housing market and if more homes will actually drive down prices and rents.

2. McKinsey Global Institute's Empty spaces and hybrid places: The pandemic’s lasting impact on real estate - The impact of the pandemic on commercial real estate is very real and is having a lasting effect. With many experts thinking that 30% of workers will continue to WFH for the foreseeable future, what we are suposed to do with all of this commercial real estate? In a city like Toronto a hybrid approach would work that allows us to develop mixed-use neighborhoods, constructing more adaptable buildings, and designing multiuse office and retail space.

3. The New York Times' Fitness After 40: How You Should Change Your Workout - With Jordan's 40th birthday coming up, it mayyyy be a good time for us to look at how we are working out and if we need to change things up.

That's if for this month - see you in September 👋