Dare-to-dream Christmas wish list

Indulge: Dare to dream Christmas wish list

I hesitated to write my foodie Christmas wish list this year as I have in years past – partly out of laziness, partly because I aim to do everything in moderation these days. And if I were to knock all of the items below off my list, I’d be a glutton.
However – and this is a big however – it’s been a rough few months for me since my 4 year old started school. Everytime he brings home sort of bug, my 1 year old gets sick. And back and forth. And again. And again. So, today, I’m allowing myself some room to indulge. To dream a little. To escape. To give into temptation. Join me, won’t you? And perhaps you’ll find an item or two to add to your own wish list.

hazelatlas Hazel Atlas milk glass strawberry tray:

Recently, I bought a few milk glass items which I adore – a bud vase, a candy dish, sugar and creamer.

Since then, searching for the perfect milk glass item to add to my collection has become a bit of fun pastime for me.

I’ve been eyeing this strawberry dish on Etsy for ages, but whimsical as it is I don’t really, truly need it, so for now it’s been sitting in my “favourites” list.

I can imagine it being a darling addition to one of my brunch spreads, can’t you? Perhaps the idea is too obvious, but I’d love to serve some local strawberries in it, with a dollop of whipped cream on top. I must warn you, if you start looking, you may well start building your own collection.

cookie+stamps
Williams-Sonoma cookie stamping set:

This set from Williams-Sonoma is discontinued if you check out their website but it’s one of those items I pinned on a Pinterest board ages ago and swoon over every time I see it.

To be honest, I don’t make cookies that often, and when I do they’re not often the sugar cookie type that lend themselves well to rolling out and decorating.

However, I am a lover of words above all else, so I can’t help but imagine all the fun I would have with this stamping set – particularly for Valentine’s Day.

Like I said, it’s not available for purchase on Williams-Sonoma but a quick Google search shows it’s available on eBay if you really want to hunt it down. And save it for me….

large-kitchenaid_mixer_raspberry_ice
Raspberry colour KitchenAid mixer:
Indeed, I’ve been whining about this for ages, so let this be a lesson for you. If you want to purchase a KitchenAid mixer and you have your eye on a coloured one, just buy it.

I saved $50 on a white KitchenAid mixer some 5-6 years ago and I’ve been regretting it ever since. Sometimes I consider selling my white one on Craigslist and just biting the bullet and buying this raspberry one but just the thought of going through the trouble of taking photos and setting up appointments with strangers stresses me out and I go back to my boring, but efficient white one. It works, and that’s good enough for now. Unless someone wants to surprise me with this one. *Cough, cough.*

momofuku Momofuku miso butterscotch shake:
A few months ago my sister and I had a quick weekend getaway to New York City and because it was such a short trip, I planned our itinerary by the minute.

My first stop after dropping our bags at our hotel was Momofuku Milk Bar, where I bought some cake truffles, Crack Pie, cookies, and pork buns. And this was before our dinner reservations…

My sister ordered a miso butterscotch shake. And that’s the one item I can’t stop thinking about! That first sip was a heady one. Sweet with a strangely savoury depth of flavour.

Utterly intoxicating. And it gave me just enough energy to get me through my super-speedy shopping expedition on that Friday night, culminating in a jaw-dropping sale at the shoe department at Bergdorf-Goodman. (Let’s not talk about that right now.)

A Milk Bar has opened at the Momofuku location in Toronto and it’s just a tiny spot where you can buy the cookies and Crack Pie. But because it’s the shake I can’t get, it’s the shake that I want.

bombes

Nutella Bombes:
If you live in the Greater Toronto Area, you know of Woodbridge as an Italian community north of Toronto where you can buy all the best that Italia has to offer.

And there is one little shop my sister-in-law told me about where you can buy bombes, basically an Italian cream-filled donut. Oh, but it’s so much more.

They make them from scratch and fill them with the most heavenly of flavours, including Nutella, lemon, coffee, dulce de leche, as just a few examples. Dulce de leche and Nutella are my favourite but I would take any flavour in a heartbeat. These are like no donuts you have ever eaten, simply melting in your mouth.

They are very similar to the jelly-filled donuts, sufganiyot, which I buy from my local bagel bakery during Hanukkah but these ones are much lighter in texture and weight.

If you’re not far from Woodbridge, check out Dolce Bombe at 7611 Pine Valley Dr. Unit #4. You can thank me later with some bombes, please and thank you. The only other place I’ve eaten a bombe was at Terroni for dessert. But I’d rather by a dozen at a time and savour them one by one.

tarteplateTarte plate:
Whenever I have a few minutes to myself I like to sip my coffee and surf around on Etsy. This tarte plate was on the home page one day and the pattern caught my eye immediately.

I was surprised, when clicking on it, that it wasn’t vintage because of the faded print. In fact, it’s made by a Canadian artist, which I love not only because I am supporting the Canadian economy but because it saves me on shipping costs.

Isn’t it stunning? I envision myself serving a beautiful flaky-crust asparagus quiche on it. There’s just something about blue and white kitchen accessories that makes my heart race and gets my culinary juices flowing.

Swiss-Master Chocolatier:
This summer I took my son to day camp for the first time. One day, on the way home we stopped for a burger, and I decided to check out the chocolate shop next door. I’d been passing by it for decades but never entered. A community favourite, Swiss-Master Chocolatier has been around for ages.

The truffles are small and lovely but nothing prepares you for that first bite. It was a revelation. I haven’t tasted chocolate like that since my last trip to France, or Belgium perhaps. Each truffle I tasted was better than the last.

So…. confession time: That first trip to the chocolate shop turned into three visits a week until my son’s camp came to an end and I haven’t been able to make an excuse to go back. I imagine myself sitting in front of my Christmas tree with an entire box, to myself, sampling them one by one. Perhaps a trashy novel by my side. One can dream.

sriracha,jpgSriracha water bottle:
I followed the Sriracha factory trial closely, when I heard there was the possibility it would be forced to shut down, wondering whether I would be forced to stockpile my favourite spicy sauce of red jalapeno chili peppers, vinegar, garlic, sugar and salt. Especially when I was pregnant, I couldn’t get enough Sriracha.

Even now, I eat Sriracha with everything… macaroni and cheese, dumplings, hamburgers you name it.

And it turns out I’m not alone, anytime I post a Sriracha update on my Facebook account, many of my friends chime in, lamenting when the trial takes a turn for the worse and it appears the factory might have to shut down.

All it takes is a quick Internet search to see there are thousands of Sriracha fanatics out there.
Here’s one account from a self-proclaimed fanatic.

This water bottle would be a celebration of my love for the addictive concoction. I’d love to startle my colleagues or random strangers by chugging water out of it.

sunnysideeggSunnyside Egg Shaper:
This one would really be for my son. A famously picky eater, I go to great lengths to make meal time amusing for him so he will actually sit down and make it through his food.

Snowmen pancakes, faces made out of eggs and ketchup and toast, plain spaghetti recast as Superpower Red Fantastic Amazing Spaghetti…half the time I’m making stuff up as I go along, but as long as it works, I’ll try anything. Enter the Sunnyside Egg Shaper. I think he would get a kick out of it.

chalkboard-labelsChalkboard labels:
In the kitchen of my dreams, everything is white, all the containers are glass and they match, and everything is neatly labelled. I have a pantry that’s organized alphabetically and I have one of those overhead racks on top of my large marble island, with copper pots and pans hanging down from it. These chalkboard labels fit into my fantasy kitchen, which may never come. But I can start small, and label the unmatched containers I do have, right?

So that’s the end of that. Like I do every year, I have a separate wish list, a more boring one that includes jogging pants, gift card to purchase a new handbag, maybe a Dutch oven. But the holidays wouldn’t be holidays without dreaming a little, and indulging. A little indulgence never hurt anybody…


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One response to “Dare-to-dream Christmas wish list”

  1. Lindsay Avatar

    I LOVE the water bottle! Just got a pair!! Brilliant find!

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