City Perks - Saskatoon, SK

City Perks has been around for quite a while; I remember walking past when I was in ninth grade thinking how cute it was and wishing I was sophisticated enough to have coffee dates at a place like that (it was a whimsical and very adult prospect for my thirteen-year-old mind). After that, I remember sitting in City Perks many times while in university. I was usually reading, sometimes I was studying or doing homework, but I was always just so happy to be there - it's one of those places that brings about those lovely feelings of peace and contentment. Around that time, however, it was quite often very busy - I wasn't the only person in Saskatoon who had fallen in love with this place - so there were times I would arrive only to find there was no seat for me that day.

Then came the renovations. When I first heard of them my heart dropped a little, thinking the magic of the place would be lost, but I was so wrong. City Perks was updated to allow for more catch ups, study sessions, coffee dates, family outings, first dates, and so much more to take place all at once. They maximized the square footage and added in some beautifully unique touches to the décor, all without losing the essence of what it already was.

Now City Perks has expanded to a second location, which I still haven't had the opportunity to visit yet, located in Ens Toyota in the C.N. Industrial area (just bordering Stonebridge), in the south part of Saskatoon.

Another thing to mention about City Perks is their amazing food, especially their dessert - I don't always let myself add a treat to my order, but I am definitely always tempted!

Have you visited City Perks before? What is your fondest memory of the place?

Valentine's Day 2016

This weekend was amazingly relaxing! Most of Saskatchewan is off today as a statutory holiday for Family Day, but my workplace, being federal, does not recognize it (we get Easter Monday instead!). I don't mind, though. The streets of downtown Saskatoon were eerily quiet on my drive to work, and walking from my car to work was so beautiful. It was quite warm this morning, so warm that the birds were out chirping, which is one of my favourite things. I walked slowly in to work, breathing the refreshing, crisp (but not too cold!) air while enjoying their tune. Also, free parking downtown on a work day? I'll take it! (Side note: it has since begun to snow A LOT, but it's still quite pretty).

As I'm sure we are all aware, yesterday was Valentine's Day. My boyfriend and I celebrated by going for dinner at 2nd Ave Grill and then curling up on the couch to drink wine while watching some White Collar on Netflix. The meal was super tasty and we are so absolutely wrapped up in White Collar.

He also surprised me with those beautiful flowers above, isn't the bouquet unique? I love it.

How was your Valentine's Day?! Have you been to 2nd Ave Grill before? Have you watched White Collar? (No spoilers, please! We're not done yet.)

Citizen Cafe & Bakery - Saskatoon, SK

I recently visited Citizen Cafe & Bakery with my friend Jackie. I have been here quite a few times before, but it seems I haven't shared it on the blog. To be honest, this is one of my most favourite places in Saskatoon, so that's actually quite surprising.

Jackie and I have been friends since our first year of university when our rooms were right next to each other and we learned that we share a love for dance. Even though we live in the same city again, we don't get to see each other as much as we would like, so this was a much needed catch up lunch :).

Citizen Cafe has an amazing menu - I always have trouble choosing what I want to order. They even have a great selection of gluten free and vegan options. Aside from their great coffee, food, and treats, they also offer a warm, inviting atmosphere that happily caters to children and families.

I definitely recommend visiting Citizen Cafe if you're ever in the area!

Have you been to Citizen Cafe before? What's your favourite thing to order? I really like the homemade Oreo - so delicious!

Recipe: Kale Chips

I have absolutely been loving kale chips lately. They're super easy, but for some reason I was almost afraid to give them a try until recently. I served them at my Arbonne Party and I also made some for the girls night at Jessica's last weekend and I figured I could share how I make them with you!

As I said above, these are super simple to make. There are plenty of variations available online, but the only thing I looked up was what temperature to roast the kale at and I settled on 425 degrees Fahrenheit - I like roasting veggies at a higher heat for a shorter time to get them crispy, and I definitely wanted these crispy.

Ingredients

• Fresh Kale - As much as you would like (remember that it shrinks substantially while roasting)
• Olive Oil
• Garlic Powder
• Salt
• Pepper

Instructions

Preheat your oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit. While it is pre-heating wash the kale and remove it from the hard stem in the center. Shred kale into bite-sized pieces and discard the stem.

Toss shredded kale with about 1 tsp of olive oil then place on a baking sheet lined with tin foil.

Add garlic powder, pepper, and salt to taste (I like a lot of each).

Cook for about 15 minutes, checking often and flipping/moving each time.

You'll know they're done when they look like they're about to burn. Leave them in for at least one more minute after that point - let them get super crispy! As they cool they get less crispy and sometimes soggy, so avoid that by making them extra crispy to start. A bit of browning is a good thing.

How do you make kale chips? Any other fun kale recipes you would recommend?

Cathedral Bakery - Regina, SK

As you may have seen in my recent post about my recent visit to Regina, I stopped in at the Cathedral Bakery for some treats for our girls night. I've been to Cathedral Bakery before, but I haven't really highlighted it here on the blog.

Cathedral Bakery is located in Cathedral Village in Regina, right off of 13th Avenue (which is definitely an area you should visit if you're ever in Regina). I first came across this bakery one summer when I was wandering the area on a beautiful, sunny day, and after walking in and seeing the awesome selection of cupcakes I was completely hooked. This time around I went with a dozen cupcakes for the girls night. We cut them into halves so that we could try more flavours. I wasn't able to try all of the ones I picked up (it's a good thing I had to share), but they were all hits with the group.

Have you ever been to the Cathedral Bakery in Regina? Any other dessert or treat recommendations for next time I visit?

Salsamole Recipe (Guacamole + Salsa)

I wanted to take a moment here on my little corner of the internet to share one of my favourite recipes with you. I call it Salsamole.

Salsamole came about by accident one day when I was planning on making guacamole but didn't mash the avocado before adding in the tomatoes, onions, garlic, and jalapeño pepper. The result was unmashed avocado pieces with finely diced pieces of everything else. And it was fantastic. I still haven't made my regular guacamole recipe since (which is pretty fantastic already, if I do say so myself).

This could really be done with any guacamole recipe that calls for pieces of other produce, but my recipe is actually from a random man in the international foods aisle at the Atlantic Superstore on Barrington in Halifax during the summer that I lived there. I was grocery shopping for my house with one of my housemates and we were searching for a guacamole powder that one girl told us existed and she wanted for the night that it was her turn to make supper. We were having absolutely no luck. Neither of us had ever heard of a guacamole powder before and the idea wasn't appetizing, but we searched nonetheless. In our third or fourth turn about the aisle, a man overhead us and cut in saying, "Oh no! You cannot make guacamole from powder, even if you do find it!" He then proceeded to tell us that he owns a Mexican restaurant and gave us the recipe that they use daily. I've tweaked it since then, but his simple instructions have always stuck with me: 3-4 avocados, one tomato, half a red onion, a small jalapeño pepper (insides scraped out), salt, and cilantro. That's it. And it was delicious.

My guacamole has since changed to include garlic (I love it, I do), pepper, cayenne pepper when I do not have a jalapeño pepper, a lime to keep the avocado green, and I scrape the insides of the tomato out too, so that it doesn't get so juicy. Keep on reading so you too can make yourself some Salsamole or guacamole - Sweet Spontaneity style.

Ingredients

• 3-4 avocados, ripe, insides cut into cubes(ish)
• 2 tomatoes, insides scraped, diced
• 1/2 red onion, diced
• 1 small jalapeño pepper, insides scraped, diced OR light sprinkling of cayenne pepper
• 4 cloves of garlic, peeled, finely diced OR garlic powder to taste
• 1 lime, juiced
• 1 Tbsp. cilantro
• 1 tsp. salt
• pepper to taste

Instructions

1. Cut your avocado lengthwise, all the way around, twist to pull apart. If your avocado is perfectly ripe, the pit might fall right out, if not, remove the pit. Cut into the avocado lengthwise and widthwise to make a grid. Hold the avocado over the bowl, flesh side down, and push it out of the skin, into the bowl. You may require the use of a spoon to get it all out. Repeat until all avocados are used. **If you are making guacamole, this is where you should mash your avocado, or else you just might rediscover Salsamole yourself :)
2. Cut your tomatoes in half, remove juices and seeds, then dice them. When I am making guacamole I like to dice everything super fine, but any size will do for Salsamole. The chunkier the better, at times. Add to bowl.
3. Dice your red onion. The amount of onion can definitely be altered. I used to only use about 1/4 of an onion, and it was still super delicious. It's really all about personal preference here. My above comment about dicing still applies here, but sometimes it's nicer to keep onion pieces smaller, especially since it's raw. Add to bowl.
4. Cut your lime in half and squeeze the juice from both sides into the bowl. 
5. Add your form of garlic.
6. Add your jalapeño pepper (insides removed and diced) OR cayenne pepper. You definitely do not need both. 
7. Add cilantro, salt, and pepper. I skipped the salt last time and didn't notice, but some people swear by it.
8. Mix it up and serve with your choice of chips, crackers, or bread. I typically use pita chips or corn chips.

I really like bringing this dish to get-togethers or to share at work. I also like using it as an appetizer while cooking supper with my roommate so we don't get too hungry on the nights we have to wait until later to start cooking. This would also be great to serve as a side dish for tacos, burritos, quesadillas, or any other Mexican-inspired dishes.

Please let me know if you give this recipe a try! What is one of your favourite recipes to serve as an appetizer or snack?