OffonWednesdays
3623 Main Street V5V3N6 Vancouver, BC, Canada

July 15, 2020 New Zealand South Island Road Trip Day 5: Woke up at Waikene Station (a family run working farm with a campsite) in time to watch an overcast sunrise through the mountains. My night was peaceful with light showers. I had my first shower of the trip, very clean shower room with hot water and great shower pressure, what a nice feeling! Ahhh... modern amenities. After breakfast, I walked around the camp and explored some of the private trails. It was a bit too mud...dy and wet this time of the year, gum boots would have been more appropriate. I headed for Christchurch in the late morning. I visited the quake museum, picked up groceries, stopped at a cafe, and then headed to Godley Head Campsite. Driving to the campsite was a thrilling adventure in itself. A very narrow one lane road with sharp turns, steep drops on one side but breathtaking views of the city, ocean, and surrounding farmland. I love how these DOC campsites are always an adventure in both the journey to get there and the destination. The view from my car is the last photo. No other campers that night though I did hear the on-site caretaker arrived in the late evening. I walked around the camp/ park in the morning, the views were just stunning. The serenity I felt in the morning was so gratifying, I felt really happy.

July 14, 2020 New Zealand South Island Road Trip Day 4: Woke up at Marfells Beach Campsite to catch the sunrise. Last night was a breezy 10C, the sound of the gentle waves breaking along the beach finally put me into a deep sleep. I wrapped myself in wool socks, hat, long sleeves and felt no chill. After sunrise, I made coffee to have with biscuits for breakfast. I hung my sleeping bags and blankets to air out the moisture from the first few rainy days and went for a walk. I...t was the most perfect sunny day. Not another soul on the beach. Headed down the East coast to Kaikoura and did a coastal walk where the herds of sea lions hang out. The marine layer stretched across the snow capped mountains in the distance was my perfect view for lunch. Kaikoura was surprisingly bustling with families, I later found out it was school holidays. I enjoyed blue cod fish and chips at Cooper's Catch in town for dinner before heading inland to my campsite at Waikene Station. Tonight is going to be a chilly 4C. Settled in comfortably in my car for the evening with some tea, nightlight, music and a book. It feels really good to live simply again and enjoy the basic things in life like warm water for tea, feeling warm, being removed from city lights and sounds.

July 11 - 13, 2020 New Zealand South Island Road Trip I took a two week holiday in between jobs to see the South Island. The challenge this time was 'winter' camping. July is normally the coldest month of the year in the country. My kiwi friends thought I was nuts but hey, I ain't new to winter camping. I survived a winter road trip across Canada, and when am I ever going to get the chance to travel around the South with zero tourists in the country! I made a few snacks for ...the road trip: granola, oatcakes, alfajores, vegan chocolate biscuits, sables, and cheddar crackers. Day 1: Drove to Koitiata Motor Camp from Auckland. Arrived early evening to find myself alone at the campsite. It was a familiar place, I'd been here twice during my North Island trip. I didn't sleep too well, it takes some getting used to going from a mattress with a heated blanket to the back of my tiny honda fit. Day 2: Enjoyed a lazy Sunday in Wellington. Read a book at a cafe, did some trip planning for the next few days (I had no idea where I was going yet), ate pastries, settled in for an early night at Belmont Regional Park. Light showers through the day and night. Day 3: Woke up early to catch the ferry to Picton. I didn't expect a bumpy ride, I got very seasick and couldn't wait to get back on land. It was warm and sunny in Nelson as they say, quite a difference to the overcast showers across the straight. I decided to go for a scenic drive along the Queen Charlotte Sound and stretch my legs on a short hike. There just aren't enough hours in the daylight travelling in the winter. It was quite dark when I got to my campsite at Marfells Beach. Guess it'll be a surprise in the morning where I camped.

Raspberry, Soho, apple crumble square galettes a year ago. I miss baking for my regulars Week 3 is when people start to crack eh? I know it’s a very difficult time for many, but the lockdown has been a welcomed break for me. I was working too much, feeling unhappy and frustrated with parts of my life. I spent the afternoon catching up with a good friend across the ocean. It occurred to me that this time last year, I was sitting on his cafe floor crying, a lot, like every ni...ght , in between baking sables. I need to remind myself that life right now is generally a huge improvement from that. Work paused for 2 weeks while we reconfigured the business to online delivery and wholesale. I’m back to full time work in a different role: packing orders and being a delivery driver Generally, I look forward to change. I don’t like routine and I struggle a lot with the part of being a baker that is very much routine. So any change in my work environment is very welcomed. It’s an exciting time I think, businesses are forced to pivot and re-evaluate their value to the community. It’s going to be a harder climate to survive through which means we have to zoom into every detail to eliminate inefficiencies and make our efforts count.

Dulce ganache cookies with candied coffee walnut @dailybreadnz These were my favourite cookies from the cookie box. They began as alfajores but have evolved through 3 edits to become something completely different. Just before assembling, I improvised on the filling because I felt the dulce de leche was just not right for this cookie recipe. I melted 5 parts: 70% dark chocolate and added to 2 parts: dulce de leche, thermomixed together to get a really nice textured ganache.... Now this was a cookie I’d like to make again.