Clearly Mai Tai

Wow, it’s already two weeks into 2018 and I haven’t posted on this blog in months! It’s not that I haven’t thought about you. I’ve taken pictures and jotted down ideas, but nothing seems to have actually made it to posting stage.

Let’s not stay mad. It’s a new year and I have an amazing cocktail recipe for you.

It’s amazing not just because it tastes great, but also because of how it looks. Who ever heard of a tiki drink that’s crystal clear? This clarified mai tai tastes just like the old favourite, but is mellower with a creamier mouthfeel, and looks so much classier than its cloudy cousin.

Candied Maple Bacon

When Lisa goes vegetarian in The Simpsons, her dad keeps asking her what she won’t eat.

“What about bacon?”
“No”
“Ham?”
“No”
“Pork chops?”
“Dad, those all come from the same animal!”
“Haha, right Lisa, a wonderful, magical animal…”

It really is a wonderful magical animal, but what is even more wonderful and magical is how we can transform pork belly into bacon.  Actually there’s nothing magical about it, it’s just science!

Baker Scientist, Scientist Baker

In thinking about where to take my life after my PhD, or rather, where life will take me after my PhD, I started thinking about what I want to do, who I am.
  
We all heard the question when we were kids: “Who do you want to be when you grow up?” I went through various phases including paleontologist and marine biologist.  But now (arguably) I am grown up.  If someone were to ask me what I am, what would my answer be?  What would your answer be?

Roasted White Chocolate Lava Cake

I first encountered roasted white chocolate at Soma here in Toronto.  I couldn’t resist buying their roasted white chocolate bar white it’s lightly browned, slightly crisp edges, and that’s saying a lot since I normally want to buy everything in there.  So it was only natural that when I had the idea to make a classic lava cake with white chocolate, I had to roast it first.