Just Desserts: Dark Chocolate Gelato at La Carraia

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Sometimes you need gelato for brunch. And when you do, it has to be dark chocolate. #yeg #yegfood #yegeats #edmonton #edmontonfood #edmontonfoodie #yegdt

A post shared by Paula E. Kirman (@apaulagetics) on Jun 23, 2019 at 11:52am PDT

Just Desserts: Made By Marcus

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Lined up in the alley for ice cream, in between Fringe shows. IIt was worth it. Salted caramel and goat milk, and double cookies and cream. #yeg #yegicecream #whyteave #yegfood #yegfoodie #edmontonfood @madebymarcus

A post shared by Paula E. Kirman (@apaulagetics) on Aug 18, 2019 at 2:12pm PDT

Just Desserts: Ice Cream at Yelo'd

Ube (purple yam) and Buko (coconut) swirl soft serve. The ube was very mellow with the coconut definitely dominating. Very refreshing and smooth. #yeg #yelodicecream #icecream #yegfoodie #yegfood #yegeats #nofilter

A post shared by Paula E. Kirman (@livingsanctuary) on Jul 28, 2018 at 12:50pm PDT

Just Desserts: Ice Cream at 80 Flavours

Ube (purple yam) and green tea ice cream melting quickly in the heat! The ube reminded me of taro, which I often order as bubble tea. The green tea really tasted like tea. #yeg #yegfood #yegfoodie #nofilter #icecream #yegeats #80flavours

A post shared by Paula E. Kirman (@livingsanctuary) on Jul 18, 2018 at 4:02pm PDT

Just Desserts: Chocolate Gelato Shake at La Carraia

Wanted some gelato but went for a shake instead. I chose chocolate - no surprise - it was rather loose, and for over $8 I expected a bigger size. If I return I think I will stick with a scoop of gelato. #yeg #yegfoodie #yegeats #yegfood #gelato #nofilter

A post shared by Paula E. Kirman (@livingsanctuary) on Jun 28, 2018 at 6:30pm PDT

Steak Dinner and Dessert at The Sawmill

Steak. It's what's for supper. #yegfood

A post shared by Paula E. Kirman (@livingsanctuary) on Feb 22, 2017 at 5:23pm PST

It was an evening to relax, blow off steam, and consume steak. So, I and a friend headed to the west end location of The Sawmill. We took advantage of a 10 ounce New York Steak special, which came with our choice of potato and vegetables. The steak was juicy and delicious. The sides were the perfect complements, especially the vegetables which were cooked to perfection.

Double Dutch chocolate brownie sundae. #yegfood

A post shared by Paula E. Kirman (@livingsanctuary) on Feb 22, 2017 at 5:57pm PST

As if that wasn't enough, we decided to go for dessert. My mocha brownie sundae was huge - I must have been super hungry. I wish the brownie pieces atop the mocha ice cream were softer. They were a bit on the dry, hard side, making it difficult to penetrate them with my spoon. Otherwise, I really enjoyed myself.

Just Desserts: Mud Pie at Brewsters

The desserts at Brewsters are so huge, that it took me as long to eat my piece of Mud Pie as it took the other person I was with to finish a meal. The Mud Pie is a huge hunk of expresso flake ice cream in a chocolate graham cracker crust - simple, yet decadent. And yes, I drank beer with it. Beer goes with everything.

Taste of Edmonton 2013

Taste of Edmonton is one of the city's best events if you are a food blogger. Dozens of restaurants set up in Churchill Square to offer small samples of their menus items. This year, several restaurants are new to the festival, while yearly regulars are offering new menu items.

Today was the first day of version 2013, and I headed to Churchill Square for lunch. Myself and a friend pitched in and bought 60 tickets - enough for quite the sampling. And then, the fun began.

I had to start things off with the green onion cake from Hong King Bakery. It's crispy outside, soft inside, and generally wonderful texture makes it my favourite onion cake in the city and I look forward to it every year.

My friend adores the pineapple chicken from Blue Willow, and it is something he returns to every year as well. The large portion did not seem much bigger than the regular one though. That was one of the major changes this year - some menu items had regular and small options for different ticket values.

I did not get a chance to sample this hand crafted orange and tangerine ice cream sandwich from Blue Willow, but my friend said it was worth the awkward effort eating it. I think the crispy sandwich part and cold filling would make a delicious contrast in texture.

The chicken tikka and garlic naan from New Asian Village was full of flavour. I found the regular serving more than adequate, with its plentiful vegetables and chicken chunks.

Padmanadi is one of my favourite restaurants and their menu items this year are excellent choices for people wishing to sample vegan goodness. The chicken drumsticks have a great texture: crisp on the outside and stringy on the inside, with a flavour that does resemble the carnivore version.

The chili chicken also had a realistic texture and a sauce with sweetness and a kick. Definitely a winner when it comes to "fake meat." And, at only three tickets an item, Padmanadi has great value also.

The dry, spicy chicken from Lingnan is another annual favourite and we each had to have our own portion. Another great value at three tickets (but noticeably smaller than last year's portion) the pieces of chicken are breaded and fried to perfection. The hot pepper flakes abound - be sure to have something on hand to drink!

The chicken penne from Old Spaghetti Factory was hands down, my friend's favourite and he ended up having another portion! I took a quick taste. While the penne was a perfect al dente, the chicken felt rubbery to me.

This was on our "must try" list. The s'more fritters from Mercer Tavern are a deep fried, hot, sticky, fun dessert. Very very rich - it was perfect for sharing. I didn't really taste any marshmallow as the chocolate dominated (not a bad thing necessarily).

The avocado roll from Zinc packed a huge flavour punch into one little spring roll. The middle is a puree of avocado, tomatoes, and various seasonings. I was detecting that the avocado was a touch over-ripe. The cilantro honey pesto was the star - sweet with cilantro highlights. At three tickets for only one roll it is a bit on the pricey side, but it was one of the most memorable Taste of Edmonton items I have ever sampled.

I had a few forkfuls of the Pad Thai from Numchok Wilai - one of the dishes I enjoyed last year and my friend requested. Just as I recalled, the noodles were firm and flavourful - and the dish is vegetarian to boot!

I found the steak bites from Canadian Brewhouse a little too chewy for my taste, although my friend loved them and the sesame steak sauce.

The tandoori chicken samosa from Guru was another favourite from last year that I had to try again. Once again, it was packed full of minced tandoori chicken in a coating that was soft enough to manipulate with a fork (without things getting too awkward) but still had some crunch to it.

When you are eating lots of great food in the hot sun, you need something to wash it down with. I decided to sacrifice four tickets for 24 ounces of Lemon Heaven. It got very hot this afternoon and this tasted so good.

Then, I had to jump into the City Hall wading pool to cool off! I had a wonderful afternoon at Taste of Edmonton and still have a few tickets left over. A return visit is planned for next week.

Light Fare at Zocalo

Zocalo has for years been a treasure in the inner city. Not only is it a home and garden shop selling beautiful plants and housewares, but its espresso bar and desserts make it a destination.

Zocalo has taken its food offerings once step further with the addition of fresh, house-made salads, soups, and sandwiches. There is also a greater variety of desserts.

I had coffee here this afternoon with a colleague and she enjoyed her bagel and lox. It was a good sized portion for only $5 and she ended up taking half of it home for later.

In addition to our coffees, we had the fresh blueberry and pomegranate crisp with vanilla ice cream. We were amongst the first customers to indulge in this treat, which was warm and delicious. The fruity filling was enhanced by the crunchy texture of the pomegranates. Of course, ice cream went so well on the buttery topping. We were both enamoured of this dessert.

Halo-Halo at Panciteria de Manila

Halo-Halo, a photo by raise my voice on Flickr.

Although I definitely had enough to eat when I finished my chicken adobo for lunch today at Panciteria de Manila, I simply had to try the Halo-Halo, a popular Filipino summer dessert.

First, let me clarify something: it is pronounced "hallo hallo," not like the round thing hovering over my head that gets more tarnished year after year. Let me try to draw a mental picture of exactly how epic this dessert is: it was a large plastic cup like the ones used for bubble tea, with ripe bananas, white beans, creamed corn, and young coconut slices at the bottom. Atop that was a mountain of shaved ice and milk. Topping the whole thing off was a scoop of purple ice cream (taro flavoured - sort of like a purple yam) and half of a creme brulee tart. I had to have instructions on how to eat it.

First, I consumed the ice cream and tart. The ice cream is so delicious, I would be happy just to have an order of that. Then, I had to mix the shaved ice and milk with the ingredients at the bottom of the cup. I joked with Bayani and my tablemates that this was an interactive dessert. The results were creamy, sweet, refreshing, and appealing in texture. Did I mention how huge it was? I have plans to go back just to have one of these.

Chocolate Lava Cake

Chocolate molten lava cake #yegfood, a photo by raise my voice on Flickr.

So, after a very ample steak dinner, I decided to give dessert a go. The Chocolate Lava Cake caught my eye, being a lover of chocolate.

The cake was warm and very rich. It did not explode with chocolate sauce as other lava cakes I have had, which was a bit of a surprise, but the accompanying ice cream and fruit sauce kept things moist and added layers of flavour. The fresh fruit pieces were also delicious.

Ice Cream Float at Wild Earth

Ice Cream Float, a photo by raise my voice on Flickr.

After a day of riding my bike around town, I was thirsty but also craving ice cream. How fortunate that one of my favourite neighbourhood coffee spots also sells ice cream floats.

The floats at Wild Earth Cafe (142 Street and 85 Avenue) are quite sophisticated. First, you pick which flavour of Italian soda you want. I opted for vanilla. Then, you pick your ice cream from the four flavours available. I chose chocolate.

The results were sweet and very refreshing. The chocolate ice cream blended perfectly with the vanilla syrup. The key here are quality ingredients, and making the right choice for flavour combination. My barrista said that sometimes kids come in and pick mango syrup with coffee ice cream - well, maybe that would work for some people, but sticking with basics like vanilla and chocolate tends to work best for me.

Capital EX 2012 - Fiddlestick

Capital EX 2012, a photo by raise my voice on Flickr.

When I was a child and Capital EX was still Klondike Days, my father would take my brother and I to the fair every year and we would all have one of these: a Fiddlestick! It's a block of vanilla ice cream dipped in chocolate and rolled in nuts. The chocolate hardens around the ice cream, so it's best to wait a few moments before digging in - if you can control yourself! It's a bit messy, and a great value at $4. If peanuts are not your thing, you can just get the chocolate or colourful sprinkles, stored in a container separate from the peanuts.

Chocolate Molten Lava Cake at Chili's

Chocolate Molten Lava Cake, a photo by raise my voice on Flickr.

As we were celebrating a milestone birthday, after Sunday supper at Chili's we decided to splurge on dessert.

This cake is huge, extremely rich, and bursting with both liquid chocolate and ice cream. It is easily shareable, and afterwards I wish I had. We're talking major food coma here.

Heritage Festival 2011 #3 - Persian Ice Cream

Heritage Festival 2011, a photo by raise my voice on Flickr.

Imagine ice cream on a hot day. Now, imagine that ice cream laced with saffron, pistachios, and some rose water. The result is Persian ice cream, and it was unlike any ice cream I have ever had. This treat was served at the Iran pavilion, and my biggest gripe was the portion size. Four tickets for maybe a little over a tablespoon of ice cream. They could have at least filled the cup up halfway.