We’ve made it to Vancouver, having spent a night in Kelowna. And I SO BADLY want to show you what we had for dinner last night, because the whole experience was just phenomenal. But we checked in and ran out the door so quickly I forgot my camera, and my blackberry doesn’t do this food justice.

We went to Bao Bei Chinese Brasserie, on the edge of Chinatown in Vancouver, which was just so damn photogenic it killed me to not have my camera. Although it was packed, with a lineup spilling out the door, they got us in in about 15 minutes (having estimated half an hour). The food came just as fast, every dish as good as the last. We ate squid stir fried with crispy pork belly, chili, and baby bok choi. Mantou – steamed buns with braised beef shortrib, hoisin, scallions, pickled cucumber and roasted peanuts. Shao Bing – crunchy sesame flatbread with braised pork butt, Asian pear, pickled onion and mustard greens. W had his own plate of pork potstickers and a fried egg, which was offered up as a side I wished I had ordered myself to set atop their fried rice of the day, made with rock shrimp, puffed tofu, bits of sweet pineapple, scallions and fish sauce. Mike’s reaction: “damn – how am I ever supposed to eat any other fried rice now??”

Tomorrow we’re off to the Victoria Taste food and wine festival. How excited am I? Very. I haven’t been to Victoria in years, and am very much looking forward to revisiting their already fantastic food scene.

Tuesday morning I did my usual CBC spot before heading outta Dodge. And I mean really right before – we got up early, packed up our things and M&W were in the car in the parking lot as I was in the studio talking about ice cream and frozen ice pops. I made butterbeer ice cream in honour of the current Harry Potter hysteria. Butterbeer is made with butterscotch, with (or so I’ve heard) a salty aftertaste. So salted butterscotch ice cream? Yes please.

In my quest for such, I came across this – brown sugar balsamic ice cream. So intriguing I couldn’t not try. And so I did. We ate the last of it in the car on our way out of town.

Brown Sugar Balsamic Vinegar Ice Cream

AuthorJulie

Yields1 Serving

1 1/2 cups whipping cream

1 1/2 cups milk

6 large egg yolks

3/4 cup (packed) dark brown sugar

1 tsp good vanilla

1/2 cup balsamic vinegar (or about 2 Tbsp balsamic reduction)

In a medium saucepan, whisk together the cream and milk until steaming.

Meanwhile, whisk together the yolks, sugar and vanilla.

Gradually whisk some of the hot cream mixture into the yolk mixture to heat it up; return the mixture to the saucepan. Stir over medium heat until the custard thickens; strain through a sieve set over a bowl. Cover and refrigerate until well chilled.

Meanwhile, simmer the balsamic vinegar in a small saucepan until reduced to 2 tablespoons, about 6 minutes. Cool syrup completely. (Alternatively, start with some balsamic reduction and skip this step.)

Freeze the custard in an ice cream maker according to manufacturer's instructions. When ice cream is done, spoon in balsamic syrup and churn 3 to 4 seconds longer to swirl.

Serve immediately or transfer to a container to freeze until solid.

Categorydessert

Ingredients