Out & About #973 | Roasted Garlic + Pepper Soup, Relishing IKEA Coffee + More Hockey at Nathan Phillips

Sleep deprivation continued into the work week, with my average duration of rest averaging at five and a half hours.
Appetite levels were relatively low; similarly, I struggled with consistent productivity output.

In an eager attempt to clear out the freezer in preparation for the next batch of creations, I revealed the Mini Raspberry and Apple Pies acquired from Al Ferri and Sons last fall.

​Heeding the instructions on the packaging, I returned to the toaster oven some thirty minutes later to find lard-like (ghee? lard? oil?) aromas and relatively pale shells. Juices had gushed from the Raspberry one, staining its surface with a humorous fuschia stream.

Both pies featured noticeably bland, water-logged fruit fillings. While the Apple featured soft yet structured slices, it was essentially flavourless without a speck of cinnamon or brown sugar in sight. Refreshing and tart was the Raspberry, but utterly lacking in complexity.
Despite visually acceptable, the crusts were an abomination in the gustatory realm. Laced with the bitterness of commercially stabilized shells, I couldn't stomach more than a few forkfuls before grimacing with disgust. Little had I known the meaning of glorious, all-butter crusts until sampling the travesty.

I unveiled my highly coveted Sho Chiku Bai that evening, indulging in a glass following dinner. It was, regrettably, one of my lesser informed decisions, for the alcohol inhibited restful slumber, in spite of inducing initial feelings of drowsiness, and led to the formation of phlegm in the throat.

To make matters worse, incessant sneezing, cupboard-slamming, and door-opening would reverberate from the ground floor kitchen and garage shortly after I had managed to fall asleep. Rejoining the land of dreams proved extraordinarily challenging, causing my entry into the first in-office day of the week to be made with scarcely five hours of sleep. Needless to say, I was beyond irritable and hardly functioning. Delays on the GO didn't quite help either.

​Lunchtime saw exploration of the Loblaws at ​College and Church. The interior had been decorated with Lunar New Year and Valentine's fixtures - both red and equally in-your-face.

​After making my rounds about the ground floor, I boarded the escalators to the second floor. There, one would find LCBO, Joe Fresh, and public lavatories. Entering into the indoor plumbing facilities was yet another mistake of mine, for the stalls were revolting, bearing questionable stains and smears and even housing an orange crawler the length of my thumb.

​Shudders remained until I arrived at IKEA. There were two objectives of the visit: locating more of the blue bins from the North York trip and determining whether complimentary coffee could be obtained simply by scanning the IKEA Family membership.

​As expected, the sturdy baby blue bins were a location-specific exclusive. Stocked at the downtown outpost were the flimsier edition of storage bins.

On the bright side, I obtained my daily dose of afternoon java through the ordering kiosk without any issues. Any items from the retail aisles could also be scanned at the kiosk to settle payment; a separate trip to the self-scan corner was not required.

Akin to McDonald's mobile orders, receipt numbers would be displayed on the screens above the cashier for pickup. Takeout cups with near-useless cardboard sleeves were slid across the counter following the announcement of my order number. One could then navigate over to the Bunn dispenser, then the milk, cream, and sugar machines as necessary.

​Naturally, my coffee would be taken black, thus the cup was filled to the brim without remorse. Transporting the single-use vessel back to the office was the trickier task at hand. Without a stopper, the scalding fluid would spill out on numerous occassions, soaking the napkins in hand as well as my glove.

Decelerating was not my preference. Consequently, I contemplated bringing a reusable tumbler, which was predicted more resilient against hurried treks and uneven concrete sidewalks.

​Nevertheless, the coffee was enjoyed alongside my own tube of Kafferep raspberry jam cookie sandwiches, combatting fatigue with caffeine and sugar.

Visited within the same work week was Farm Boy.

The specialty grocer wasn't unique by any means, for I had previously perused their Oakville and Yonge-Eg locations and departed without being graced with inspiration. The sole highlight was none other than the swinging monkey over the banana section.

​Hockey-related shenanigans continued at Nathan Phillips Square, starting with an Outdoor Practice sponsored by Sportchek.

By lunchtime, the event was in full swing. Leafs players had taken to the ice with jersey-donning fans surrounding the rink. Sponsor booths had been positioned around the square as well, offering vouchers as pachinko, spin-the-wheel, and hockey-related game prizes.

The Pizza Pizza booth earned me a Buy One Slice, Get One Slice coupon, though other prizes such as $5 and $50 gift cards were also on offer. Free Scotties and stale chocolate chip cookies were also spotted on site.

Swapping in a reusable tumbler for IKEA's not-so-durable takeout cup was deemed permissible, much to my glee. The slightly larger quantity of coffee was consumed in conjunction with my non-Chinese coworker's first-ever attempt at making leen go/nian gao.
​
I had sent and discussed with her the recipe two days prior, prompting her visit for brown slab sugar, glutinous rice flour, wheat starch, coconut milk, and even a bamboo steamer.

The result was a rather stiff concoction steamed in a mini loaf pan. Its underside was greased heavily with oil - possibly avocado, given the strong fragrance and yellowish hue. When compared to our household's edition, an obvious darkness in hue could be observed.

Although I had strongly denied all celebrations for the New Year this time around - for what was there to celebrate? My neverending grief?? - the annual iteration of Nian Gao persisted. It was delicious, of course, and rapidly depleted as per usual.

Creations of the week included:

1) Roasted Garlic and Pepper Soup

It all started with a bag of no name "Naturally Imperfect" mixed peppers. I had removed the tarnished bits and sliced the entire bag into roast-able segments shortly after acquiring them, then left them in the fridge as I pursued other endeavours.

When the yellow variety began to wither, it was time for further action to be taken. A handful of garlic gloves were smashed and tossed into a bag of peppers, then drizzled with olive oil, salt, sugar, and a pinch of lemongrass powder. Roasting at 425 F for about 25 minutes allowed the edges to char nicely and the garlic to be impressively aromatic.

The shrivelled portion would then be transferred to a medium saucepot, to which one can of chicken broth and water would be added. An immersion blender would assist in achieving an umami-rich formula while retaining slivers of pepper skin. A splash of Umeshu brandy would be added to finish, combatting the sodium contributed by the canned broth with a fruity, invigorating complexity.

Despite being constructed of fairly common, economic components - umeshu brandy aside, of course - the profile proved robust, delectable, and absolutely worthy of restaurant status.

2) Potato, Broccoli, and Parmesan Bake with Bacon

Initially, I had embarked on a mission to recreate the well-textured Vegetable Medallion sampled on my recent trip to IKEA. Alas, I had neither leek on hand nor a desire to scoop out individual portions for baking. Instead, I'd take to my best lazy attempt at recreation.

Four small onions, four medium yellow potatoes, and a 500 g bag of frozen broccoli were summoned. After thawing and microwaving, the broccoli florets would be pulsed in a food processor until fine bits remained. Added next were the onions and finely diced potato; needless to say, the starchy squares were soaked beforehand to prevent sandiness once cooked. In hindsight, the order ought to have been reversed, for the cavity of the food processor filled up too quickly and required multiple pulses to reach the onions. By this point, the broccoli was hardly visible and the potato offered minimal textural variance.

Eight eggs, a heaping cup of Kirkland Parmesan, and unmeasured quantities of AP flour and cornstarch were added to the mixture. These stabilizers improved the texture of the puree, yet didn't necessarily result in a scoop-able consistency. Opting against the riskier baking format of unlined muffin tins, I simply poured the entire quantity into a 9 in x 13 in sheet pan. As a last-minute addition, bacon strips were sprinkled throughout the middle layer and distributed along the surface.
The concoction would bake at 400-425 F for about 45 minutes, or until the batter was cooked and the bacon was crispy (and slightly foamy).

​Warily checking the tray throughout the baking process, I extremely relieved when the pan's contents did not emerge as a dismal, watery mess, which is often the case for impromptu recipes with too great a water content. That said, grease oozed from the edges - a consequence of the inclusion of bacon.

​The slab was allowed to cool completely before slicing. In the meantime, the signature essence of fatty, smoked bacon filled the air, even permeating through each and every towel in the vicinity and through each strand of fabric in my cotton cooking attire.

Slicing into the specimen, I quickly realized my mistakes in the addition of flour and starch and pulverizing the vegetables too fine. Without the bacon, the dense block would be essentially uniform in texture. Evident were notes of cheesiness and starchiness of potato, but the concoction was too dense overall. The reason for individual portions became apparent: more surface area meant improved consistency, in addition to being easily freezable.

Refrigerating and covering the blocks encouraged re-hydration. The specimens were less rigid than when freshly baked, yet offered nothing but blandness in its lower half. Thankful was the creation of the aforementioned soup, which contributed a much-needed dose of flavour and savouriness. ​Unfortunately, the innovation was neither received well by the household, nor appreciated in the office due to its non-Halal categorization.

​Meals of the week included Buddha's Delight, Steamed Pork and Tofu, and leftover Bacon Bake over Frozen Kale.

Canadian weather is often confusing. While Vancouver received copious amounts of snowfall, our first two months of the year were met with slushiness and shocking, above-seasonal temperatures reaching the double digits.

Sunshine and blue skies weren't common sightings during the winter months, unless paired with frigid, subzero conditions.

​With brilliant daytimes come glorious sunset gradients. I marvelled at the layers from my second-floor office, then ventured two floors down for my daily dose of music-filled activity.

​Clearing the mind in preparation for choreo-learning has been no easy feat as of late. Stress has accumulated to points of grave frustration, while the path towards a better future grows hazier with each passing day and each snippet of information acquired. Again, I've been incredibly thankful to receive phenomenal support throughout this period - the kind of support I never knew/thought I deserved, nor ever experienced while engaging with other humans.