Cake Decorating!!

Ok, as most of you know... I have some nerdy hobbies. Well... one of them is cake decorating. I'm hooked on alllll those TLC shows so I decided to take some classes to figure out how these people do it... so I signed up for the Wilton classes at Michaels. 

Birthday Cake I was able to make using some of the techniques learned!

The classes are super affordable, only $30 and that gets you 4 x 3 hour classes but you do have to buy the "class kit" that has all the supplies in them for like, $50 a pop but Michaels always have those crazy coupons you get in the mail to get 40% or 50% off... good stuff.

My Flowers & Cake Design Project Cake!

 

So I've taken two courses so far (Decorating Basics and Flowers & Cake Design) and am halfway through the third (Gum Paste & Fondant - my fave so far!) and am loving it!!! It's amazing to learn all these crazy techniques to make those beautiful cakes you see on TV. The instructor at the North Van store, Jenny, is in the industry and her classes are fun and interesting. Check out the awesome cakes she has created (she specializes in gluten-free cakes) by googling The Sweet Tooth Cakery.


If you watch shows like Cake Boss and Ace of Cakes and thought about trying cake decorating, you should totally sign up for a class! Whenever I went to Michaels, I would always see the signs for it around the store but was never sure what it was really about. Just ask a cashier and they'll give you the dates/prices/class list and you're set! It's great, and the courses are designed for the home baker/decorator... but maybe it'll inspire you to take it to the next level (the instructor Jenny started out doing the Wilton classes which inspired her to pursue a career as a cake decorator!) 

*Pics to the left show a carnation, rose and lily made from gum paste that we made in last night's class!*

Restaurant Review: Hell Pizza

Tired of the usual flavors of pizza from Dominoes/Pizza Hut/Panago? You HAVE to check out Hell Pizza! It's a pizza franchise from New Zealand that opened up on 19th and Lonsdale and really, the only reason I went there the first time was because of my boyfriend (who is from New Zealand) loves the place and was stoked to see that we have one here too!

You've probably driven/walked past here before!

Their whole menu consists of pizzas with uncommon (at least to Canadians) topping combos with fun names like "Pandemonium" and "Mayhem" (a couple of personal faves). Though the toppings are uncommon and you might be nervous to try a pizza with apricot or cranberry sauce, it's worth the risk and always tastes awesome!

The pies might be more expensive then your over cheese'd Pizza Hut pizza or drunk staple Fresh Slice, but for "quality over quantities" sake, just do it. You insides will probably thank you. They unfortunately do not sell pizza by the slice, but they do offer sides such as freshly made salads, pastas, and dessert pizza (ambrosia). Another plus is that they offer gluten free crust (that according to my Celiac friend tastes awesome and not like cardboard- yay!)They have a vegan pizza too!

I tossed all the other pizza shop's brochures and when I want pizza, I think Hell Pizza. Do it!

Book Review: Sarahs Key by Tatiana de Rosnay

Oh my god!! This book is SO good! I bought it the other day from Black Bond Books in Lynn Valley Mall and it was on sale for $8.99. I picked it up because I remember an old co-worker at Indigo telling me that it was good, and also because I swear I heard that it was going to become a Hollywood movie... so you know, gotta read the book before it gets horribly slaughtered by Hollywood.

From Publishers Weekly:

De Rosnay's U.S. debut fictionalizes the 1942 Paris roundups and deportations, in which thousands of Jewish families were arrested, held at the Vélodrome d'Hiver outside the city, then transported to Auschwitz. Forty-five-year-old Julia Jarmond, American by birth, moved to Paris when she was 20 and is married to the arrogant, unfaithful Bertrand Tézac, with whom she has an 11-year-old daughter. Julia writes for an American magazine and her editor assigns her to cover the 60th anniversary of the Vél' d'Hiv' roundups. Julia soon learns that the apartment she and Bertrand plan to move into was acquired by Bertrand's family when its Jewish occupants were dispossessed and deported 60 years before. She resolves to find out what happened to the former occupants: Wladyslaw and Rywka Starzynski, parents of 10-year-old Sarah and four-year-old Michel. The more Julia discovers—especially about Sarah, the only member of the Starzynski family to survive—the more she uncovers about Bertrand's family, about France and, finally, herself. Already translated into 15 languages, the novel is De Rosnay's 10th (but her first written in English, her first language). It beautifully conveys Julia's conflicting loyalties, and makes Sarah's trials so riveting, her innocence so absorbing, that the book is hard to put down.

 I always found that learning about the Holocaust/Auschwitz really interesting in high school and university and this book really grabbed my attention from page one. This is definitely a book for the ladies, for example, my dad loves books about the War/the Holocaust (you know, dad books) but I wouldn't give him this book to read... there's some womanly stuff in here! Sarah's Key has fictional characters but several of the events are not, especially the events that occurred in Occupied France during the summer of 1942. As the author says, she is not trying to make this a historical work and has no intention of it being one... so just enjoy this book as a great, interesting read. I finished it in an afternoon, couldn't put it down!!

Sunday Funday!

Today we went to a fave spot on a hot sunny day... Brohm Lake! Never heard of it?....Good! Hahaaa just kidding, I'll let you in on the secret spot...

Perfect Day!

Just past Squamish on the Sea to Sky Highway, Brohm Lake is located a little further up from the Cat Lake turn-off. You can see part of the lake from the highway, and it has a small parking lot so get there early unless you're stuck with having to park further down on the highway was walking alongside it! We showed up around 11am and there were lots of spots, pretty good for a Sunday.

Trail Map!

The "beach" is comprised of mostly big rocks, trees, and shrubs so don't be bringing anything too outrageous, just basic beach stuff since the walk in can be a little tricky if you have tons of stuff. There's a couple pit toilets too near the parking lot which is handy.

If you enjoy cliff jumping, you'll love Brohm! There are also a number of rope swings around the lake which I've never personally tried, but watched people go off them. Lots of people bring floaties and just hang out in there all day... the lake is filled with them! The lake is also filled with dogs, so be aware that they will be running loose and will probably shake off on your blankets/towels. At the parking lot, there's a trail map (see pic on the left) of a bunch of hiking trails that I haven't tried yet, but want to do in the future! Good mix of people at the lake, mostly young people. Wouldn't recommend this lake for little kids, since the large rocks are steep, unstable and potentially dangerous.

Check it out! Just don't steal my parking spot...