finding comfort in...
Hey Substack fam 👋🏼
This past month has been a complete rollercoaster, and I want to be open with all of you wonderful people who have chosen to have me in your inbox.
We hosted a few rounds of close friends in Vancouver, celebrated my 32nd birthday, and had a fun pop-up menu planned for three nights at a cute café/wine bar that I was really excited about.
But life had its own plans, and I had to cancel the pop-up due to an early-stage miscarriage from an anembryonic pregnancy that I’m currently experiencing. Woof.
Women’s health is often seen as taboo, but I wanted to break that cycle. I shared a post about my experience on Instagram and was completely overwhelmed by the support we received. This mental and physical journey is tough—it happens in 1 in 5 pregnancies! Processing it with you has been incredibly cathartic, and I can’t imagine going through this in silence.
I’m an open book because I believe the best way to help yourself is to help others (totally a line from Shrinking, one of my fave shows). I wanted to shine a light on this topic since it’s something we don’t often discuss. Thank you to each and every person who shared their own experiences with me or showed up in one way or another. We feel very held by our community, and we are grateful for so many other things in our lives. So much love to all of you 💕
With that said, the rest of this Substack is filled with the things we’ve found comforting during this challenging yet light-filled time:
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🍰 BAKING GF CAKES!
Sometimes, taking care of yourself means baking a cake for no reason other than the joy it brings and to take your mind off things. This Pandan Coconut Cake was adapted from Lara Lee’s recipe in Coconut and Sambal. Since I only had 6” pans instead of 8”, I halved the recipe and used the Bob’s Red Mill 1-to-1 gluten-free flour. It made the perfect mini cake with 8 servings. I made a coconut buttercream instead of whipping mascarpone, using ingredients I already had, and filled it with a white peach jam that I found at ABURI, my local Japanese market.
🍴GF FRIENDLY CHAIN RESTAURANTS!
For a long time, we avoided chain restaurants because their menus are often pretty generic and not very exciting. Lately, though, we’ve been leaning into places like Joey and Tap & Barrel for their reliably well-seasoned dishes and hyper-awareness of allergies. When all you’re craving is a classic chicken Caesar or a burger with a gluten-free bun, it’s an easy choice to hit up a chain with a well-marked menu and the budget for a dedicated gluten-free fryer. One stress-free order of crispy, fluffy waffle fries, please! Also, if it’s got a good patio by the water, we’re 100% in.
🍒 IN-SEASON MARKET PRODUCE!
Peas! Strawberries! Cherries! Morels! Plus, all the amazing meals you can make with those things. Here are a few highlights from the month:
My peak summer salad from the book I was going to feature at my July pop-up: burrata, Rainier cherries, heirloom tomatoes, cucumber, dumpling sauce*, fried shallots, toasted sesame seeds, and basil
A decadent French omelette with garlicky morels and and leftover chili miso salmon rillette, served with baguette from our favourite bakery in Vancouver, Gluten Free Epicurean
* Dumpling Sauce Recipe
2 tbsp (gluten-free) soy sauce or tamari
1 tbsp (gluten-free) Chinese black vinegar or balsamic vinegar
1 tbsp chili paste (such as Sambal Oelek or Calabrian)
½ tbsp toasted sesame oil
+ a pinch of xanthan gum to thicken slightly
In a small bowl, whisk together the ingredients and store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.
🧈 WALKERS GF SHORTBREAD COOKIES!
These are so buttery and addictive, I can’t believe we hadn’t tried them before. They also come in Ginger & Lemon and Chocolate Chip, but the classic Pure Butter ones are our preference. Thanks for sharing, Mariah!
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UPDATES
Behind the scenes, major edits for my book are now complete, and my manuscript is off to the copyeditor for grammar and consistency checks. The first design pages should be coming back this month for review, and the entire interior of the book will be formatted and designed for October!
Hopefully in the fall, I’ll be able to revisit my pop-up concept. For the rest of summer, I’ll be taking it easy and catching up with friends and family in Ontario while we’re back from August through September.
I’ll sign off with my newest seasonal playlist, featuring bassy, bubbly beats for lazing around at golden hour.
✌🏼 Peace, love, and good food,
Jannell