An ideal day for me would be cycling around Niagara-on-the-Lake, visiting a couple of wineries including Stratus (for their amazing wines and award-winning design), checking out a Shaw Festival play in town followed by dinner at Tony de Luca’s new restaurant, DeLuca’s Wine Country Restaurant (located in The Village at Niagara-on-the-Lake, an award winning New Urbanism development designed by Andres Duany).

My recent meal at DeLuca’s Wine Country Restaurant was truly memorable, especially the Wild Boar Ravioli with Roasted Root Vegetables, Butternut Squash Sauce and Parmesan Cheese. This cookbook author and chef extraordinaire has really put Niagara-on-the-Lake on the culinary map. Plus he’s the nicest guys around, proving that not all chefs are crazy and scary. But since picture is worth a 1,000 words, I’ll just let the photos do the talking.

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I recently tried the Nestlé Toll House original chocolate chip cookie recipe. Nestlé Toll House Semi-Sweet Chocolate Morsels just became available in Canada this past fall but cookie lovers in the U.S. have been baking and eating these morsels since the recipe was first invented in the 1930s. So I had to find out why these cookies are so beloved.

I followed the recipe exactly, except for the amount of chopped nuts called for. Instead of 1 cup of chopped nuts, I only had ½ a cup on hand. It called for butter; I used butter - not shortening or margarine. When it came to the technique, fortunately I had just received a hand mixer as a gift and was able to whip this up as directed. Next, it was time to add the Nestlé Toll House Semi-Sweet Chocolate Morsels. The recipe says to use the whole 340g package, this was more than I would normally add, but in my diligence to follow the recipe precisely I added them all.

I dropped little balls of cookie dough onto an ungreased baking sheet (that I lined with foil), and watched my cookies bake. They came out looking perfect. Next was the taste test. I handed them out around the office at work and got quite the positive response. I heard a lot of "love the texture," "really chewy," "amazing!" "best cookies I've ever had." One person thought they left a bit of a salty aftertaste, another thought they could be more chocolaty. The overall consensus, however, was pretty much a 10/10.

Now, another co-worker of mine also tested out this recipe, following the directions exactly. However, she said hers came out a bit flattened. They spread out on the pan as they baked. I didn't experience this, mine held their shape. We discussed it and we were both stumped as to why it happened because she did everything as I did. She said her butter wasn’t as soft as it should have been, but neither was mine. In the end though she did say they tasted great!

This is a fail-proof recipe that I will definitely use again. My boyfriend, who doesn't care for sweets, ate three as soon as they came out of the oven!

For the recipe go to Nestlé's website here.

By Beach Babe from slice.ca (AKA Tina Taus).

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I have a glass dining table, purchased years B.C. (Before Child). I still love it but it gets dirty pretty quick especially when there’s a 15-month-old trying to feed himself. I used to wipe it with a sponge which would leave that old, damp, rotting garbage scent because I would inevitably forget to change the sponge.

Then I tried the glass cleaner in Coriander and Olive Tree scent from Fruits and Passion’s new eco-conscious Cucina household care products. I love, love, love it. Not only does it leave my glass table sparkling clean, it smells gorgeous! It also comes in Lime Zest and Cypress, Sanguinelli Orange (blood orange from Spain – I looked it up) and Fennel. Cucina fragrances have been specially designed with the sweet and savoury aromas of a busy kitchen in mind.

Since it’s made with 90 per cent natural and plant-derived ingredients with no ammonia or harsh fumes, I don’t have to worry about my son eating off the table. What can I say, table manners are not his forte.

Fruit and Passion doesn’t test on animals or use animal-source ingredients. They also added a new concentrated dish detergent and a multi-purpose cleaner to their Cucina household care products line.

Available at Fruits & Passion Canada, $9 for 500ml.

Bazaar's Houseware Items posts are featured every Wednesday.

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