The Chocolate Book

Got Chocolate?

2012-02-14T19:48:00.000-08:00

Do you have a friend in need of some chocolate?

If so, I would suggest making these most delicious Chocolate Covered Almonds. They are seriously good.

Seriously.

They involve all sorts of the very best things.

Like roasted almonds.

And cinnamon sugar syrup.

And chocolate.

Lots of melted dark chocolate.

And we can't forget the cocoa!

All in a pretty little box.

These sweeties may look humble, but believe me, they are not. One taste and you will be smitten.

Yep, it's true. You will be smitten over almonds.

Chocolate, Chocolate Cupcakes

2012-02-11T23:31:00.000-08:00

I recently baked cupcakes for a retirement party.

When I asked the retiree to name her cupcake preference she said, "Chocolate. Chocolate, chocolate". And, so I baked.

There was a lot of chopping involved.

Chocolate Babycakes

With Chocolate Ganache

Devil's Food, indeed! They were delicious. I didn't wait for the ganache to fully set, as called for in the recipe . . . it was getting late! Instead, I dipped the cupcakes in the thickening ganache and left it at that. Not pretty piping, as I had planned, but perfect all the same.

I Dream in Green

2012-01-07T10:15:00.000-08:00

No, the Christmas cookies are not gone from my freezer.

And, I was gifted a monster box of chocolates upon my return to work in January (which I should have given away, but can't seem to part with).

But.

Right now, I am all about the green. Crunchy and leafy and bittersweet. My balcony lettuce is starting to grown again!

If you want to join me in my praise to green, do this:

Take an apple

Add some spinach and a banana (and some frozen green grapes)

Throw in a pinch of fresh mint

Top it all off with a milk of your choice. Blend it for a little bit.

Then, drink up the green and banish those January cobwebs.

I drank this smoothie for breakfast all of last week. It was so good.

A Last Little Bit of Christmas

2011-12-30T23:05:00.000-08:00

The carols are off the radio, the boxing week sales are in their glory and I am thinking of taking down my tree. No more Christmas. Phew. And boo.

But, before I say goodbye to the season, I have to display my last batch of Christmas cookies:

Mixed Fruit and Nut Cookies

And my 2011 wrapping scheme.

I never got around to making the fabric bags I'd planned on, but I did reuse the paper I decorated my office with last year (wrapping paper = wall paper in my cubicle). I am happy with the cuteness that came together (and the gift receivers were too!).

There was old-fashioned paper and twisty string.

Used cards and scrapbook supplies became gift tags.

I loved the huge candy canes!

I hope that you had a Merry Christmas. Best wishes for a Happy 2012!

Chocolate Gingerbread

2011-12-18T22:42:00.000-08:00

These Chewy Chocolate Gingerbread Cookies are a new recipe for me this year. I wanted a change from the rest of the cookies I make at Christmastime, which tend to be fairly "vanilla" in their flavouring. But, I knew that moving too far away from the family favourites would mean a lot of leftovers in the cookie jar and was hesitant to go too far afield.

I ultimately chose Chewy Chocolate Gingerbread because all of the Christmas spices make it different than the rest of my cookie repertoire and the CHOCOLATE CHUNKS should keep everyone happy! They were easy to make and turned out beautifully.

I haven't had the chance to share these cookies with anyone else yet, but I think this recipie will be a keeper.

Sugar Cookies

2011-12-14T22:27:00.000-08:00

Yum!

Sugar cookies are one of those cookies that NEVER taste good when bought from the store, but are delicious homemade. And, they are so fun to decorate. I've made snowflakes for the past two or three years and I think I am ready to move on, but they have to be one of the most admired cookies I have ever made.

Chewy, crunchy, sweet, perfection.

Candy Cane Shortbread

2011-12-11T17:18:00.001-08:00

My most festive cookie of the season!

Candy Cane Shortbread became an instant classic way back when I first started experimenting with baking after moving out on my own. The first year I remember making them was 1997. Yikes!

I can't recall where I got the recipe I originally used, but I now follow this Icebox Shortbread recipe. I replace the vanilla with peppermint extract and top each cookie, before baking, with about half a teaspoon of crushed candy canes. They are perfect. Minty and buttery, crispy and crumbly.

Preparing for tea and cookies with a friend.
My new (to me) tea pot!

Just add tea.

Chocolate Hazelnut Biscotti

2011-12-05T17:40:00.001-08:00

The fourth item on my Christmas baking agenda was Chocolate Hazelnut Biscotti. This is my favourite biscotti recipe although I've never made it at Christmas before. Biscotti is delicious and sturdy. I think it will be a great addition to my cookie tins!

Shortbread

2011-11-28T18:58:00.001-08:00

My Christmas baking has begun! Beginning with last weekend, I plan to bake at least one batch of Christmas cookies per week until Christmas arrives.

And, first on display is . . . Martha Stewart's Basic Shortbread! This seems a dull name for such a tasty cookie, but it is true that it is very simple.

Martha suggests dipping the cooled cookies in chocolate but, instead, I finished them off with a toss in vanilla bean scented sugar while they were still warm. These cookies are so delicious, I've had to use a significant amount of willpower in order to avoid eating the whole batch.

Nothing says Christmas like shortbread!

I Couldn't Help It

2011-11-16T22:29:00.000-08:00

I know, I know, it's only mid-November. But, I do love my Christmas decorations so. And, I just pulled a few out, the tree will wait until December (I think).

Cookie baking begins on Saturday!

The Weekend Homemaker

2011-11-13T22:00:00.001-08:00

I didn't cook much this weekend. It was a three day weekend for me and I was trying to keep things as low-key and relaxing as possible. I did do a lot of Christmas window shopping and also discovered the TV show, True Blood. I had been avoiding it despite the rave reviews. It just didn't sound like my kind of show.

It is.

I can't wait to watch more.

I also didn't do a lot of cooking because my budget has come it it's end and I will have to wait a week before I can go grocery shopping, leaving me in a bit of a pinch. I had to do a bit of scavenging in my own cupboard and, along with a loaf of bread and some fruit, all will be A-OK.

I did a little harvest from my winter garden, which is growing away very slowly.

And I made one of my favourite ginger salad dressings, which requires very few ingredients. Along with some smoked salmon and cucumber, several delicious salads were had.

I also made pumpkin muffins with some frozen pumpkin I had stashed in my freezer. I forgot to take pictures, but they are bound to be yummy. I don't care for squash in it's natural state, but in bread, muffins or waffles? Take me there.

Today, I tried a new recipe for Carrot Ginger Soup, which required little more than carrots, ginger and onion. It turned out very well.

At the moment, my yogurt maker is humming away. It will provide me with breakfast for 7-days. Along with some leftover casserole in my freezer and some dinners of toast and eggs, my grocery-less week won't be too challenging at all.

The Weekend Homemaker

2011-11-06T18:56:00.000-08:00

The chilly, wet days and long, dark nights are calling me back into the kitchen. Although I have a small winter garden, my desire for crisp salads has been replaced by a hankering for all things warm and savoury.

Last Saturday was the last full-day farmer's market of the season and next Saturday will be the final market of the year. With my looming lack of access to local veggies, I am debating on reinstating my weekly, mostly-local, food box delivery. I have a love-hate relationship with the lack of choice involved with food box programs. I'm forced to try new things, which is good, but I also have a low turnip tolerance.

In any case, my last trip to the market resulted in a batch of goodies:

Apples, more apples, carrots, almond brioche,
Red Pepper Jelly and Zucchini Pickles.

Which resulted in a chicken casserole:

And a huge amount of applesauce:

I also made parmesan coated yam fries, which had no relationship to my market buys, but were delicious nonetheless!

. . . or Treat!

2011-10-31T19:26:00.000-07:00

Something sweet for Halloween. Teeny tiny sugar cookies painted in the blackest black and the orangest orange.

Black Cats

Orange Pumpkins

The perfect one-bite treat. Yum!

Happy Haunting!

To Market, To Market

2011-10-29T11:00:00.000-07:00

Saturday means market day! The market has been dwindling for the past month and today is the last "full-day" market of 2011. There will be a few "half-day" markets in November and a Christmas market in December but, after that, my groceries will be a little less local until spring.

Here are a few of the things I will miss:

Apples (oh, the apples are delicious right now!),
onions, pain au chocolat from my favourite baker,
grapes, carrots, fresh fig jam and lettuce.

There are many things I love about the fall and winter, but the closure of my neighbourhood farmer's market is not one of them!

Homemade Yogurt

2011-10-15T21:35:00.000-07:00

I made yogurt! And it was easy!

As a lactose intolerant sort of person, yogurt is one of the few dairy products I can eat without significant consequences. In fact, it seems to keep my somewhat ornery stomach in check and I try to have a serving every day or two. However, all yogurts are not created equal and the high fat, low additive yogurt that works best for me is expensive, at $6.00 a tub! In addition to high cost, many of the yogurts on the market today are hardly representative of the yogurt that has been consumed by humans for thousands of years. They are extremely low in fat, high in sugar and contain setting agents such as gelatin, pectin and agar agar in addition to a variety of other additives and preservatives. I was pretty surprised when I learned that yogurt is not a complex substance that requires a long ingredient list, but just milk and a little bacteria. Once I knew homemade yogurt was possible, I decided to ditch the additives, containers and high cost and start making my own.

My yogurt-making technique:

(1) First, I heat two litres of milk over medium heat until it reaches a temperature of 180 degrees ferinheight (a candy thermometer can be used to measure the temperature throughout the process) while stirring regularly. I use a combination of organic whole milk and cream. You can use milk of any fat content you like, but higher fat milk will result in a thicker, creamier and more traditional product.

Heating the milk is necessary in order to unfurl the proteins of the milk so that they will set smoothly, rather than in curds.

(2) Next, I take the milk off the heat and let it cool, at room temperature, down to 110 degrees while I stir it occasionally.

(3) As the milk is cooling, I pull my yogurt starter (3-4 tablespoons of yogurt, either from my last batch or from a store bought yogurt containing live active cultures) from the fridge and let it sit at room temperature. Once the milk has cooled to 110 degrees, I add half a cup of the warm milk to the starter, stir them together and pour the combined mixture back into milk. I stir it up well to evenly distribute the bacteria.

If you add the starter back into the milk at a temperature above 120 degrees, you will kill the bacteria. If the milk is below 90 degrees, the bacteria will not be activated.

(4) Once the mixture is combined, I pour it into my yogurt maker, plug it in and leave it alone. My yogurt maker keeps the yogurt at an even temperature of 110 degrees throughout the incubation period.

Now that I understand the yogurt making process, I wish that I had bought a crock pot rather than a specific tool just for yogurt. Alternatively, some people use thermoses wrapped in towels, water baths, or a pot in the oven with just the pilot light on. If you do use a crock pot, you must make sure that your "low" or "simmer" setting remains at a constant temperature, somewhere around 110 degrees. This will vary based on crock pot.

(5) Next, I wait. The incubation process can be anywhere between 4 and 12 hours, depending on the type of yogurt you would like to achieve. A shorter incubation will results in thinner, milder yogurt that tastes very much like milk. A longer incubation will result in a thicker and more tart yogurt.

During incubation, the warm and cozy bacteria are multiplying and metabolizing the lactose in the milk. This process turns lactose (milk sugar) into glucose, galactose and lactic acid. Because I am lactose intolerant, I want to get rid of as much lactose as possible and wait through a full 12 hour incubation. The longer you allow for incubation, the easier yogurt will be to digest as the bacteria has already done part of the work in breaking down both milk sugar and milk protein.

(6) After the incubation period, you have a few choices. You can either put the yogurt directly in the fridge to set, strain the yogurt immediately or put it into the fridge to set and then strain it. I have attempted all three approaches and prefer the last. My goal is to produce Greek-style yogurt (it's not true Greek yogurt because I am not in Greece) which requires straining to reduce/remove the whey. Many people seem to confuse whey with whey protein (which is a very small component of whey), but whey is composed predominantly of carbohydrates (the broken down glucose and galactose). Removing whey leads to yogurt with a higher fat and higher protein content. Whey removal will also remove some nutrients, but everyone seems to have a different opinion on the content and importance of these nutrients. I just go with personal preference and the desire to eliminate as much lactose I as can. So, I let the yogurt set in the fridge overnight and then strain it in a muslin bag for a few hours.

(7) Once strained, I spoon the yogurt into jars for consumption. Two litres of milk will give around 5-6 cups of yogurt (and lasts me a week), but this depends on how much whey you strain out. I always set aside some starter from my current batch in a separate container and use it within 6 or 7 days.

(8) Eat! There are endless ways to use homemade yogurt. I often use yogurt in muffins in place of oil and in sandwiches in place of mayonnaise. But, my favourite way to eat yogurt is for breakfast, with a sweet topping of homemade cinnamon apple sauce, honey or homemade strawberry sauce. Yum!

The Weekend Homemaker

2011-10-13T22:05:00.000-07:00

It's fall. And that means it's time for . . .

Chicken

Noodle

Soup

Block of the Month

2011-10-12T16:22:00.000-07:00

The block of the month club I have been attending, Yours, Mine and Ours, is now finished. The August block was called Sarah's Choice. It was a simple pinwheel star and it was nice to end with something easy. Although, I will admit, it was not the true final block. The final block is from the September session and it looks more complicated. However, I've decided not to complete it. It is not a traditional block and contains, of all things, an octagon. I don't want octagons in my quilt!

My final blocks from the club:

My donation block

My block

After 9 months of the Yours, Mine and Ours club, I have 6 star blocks to use in my quilt. I am making a king size quilt and am anticipating that I will need 10 more blocks to complete it. I am not sure if all blocks will be stars, but they will all be traditional blocks made of squares and triangles. I would really like to finish the topper by Christmas, but I have another project that needs to take priority so I think that Christmas 2012 might be more realistic!

Let the block hunt begin!

Gratitude

2011-10-10T17:36:00.000-07:00

Happy Thanksgiving!

I haven't been feeling particularly thankful lately, but I do know that, all things considered, I have a lot of blessings in my life. Today, I thought I'd document a few:

(1) A place to call my own, with all the fixings of comfort a person needs.

(2) My fuzzy friend, who is sweeter than I have ever dreamed a pet could be.

(3) Unexpected opportunities to make big changes and the knowledge that, sometimes, change can be a really good thing.

(4) The time and freedom to cook, bake, grow and create.

(5) And, last but not least, Thanksgiving leftovers!

All that we behold is full of blessings.

~ William Wordsworth

The Weekend Homemaker

2011-10-02T18:45:00.000-07:00

OK, so September kicked my butt in pretty much every way possible. I would say that weekends saved my sanity, but I am not so sure it was saved. Only time will tell. In any case, knowing that a little cooking is good for my soul, I went all out last weekend. I especially went all out on the protein. I needed some extra umph!

On Saturday, there were steak sandwiches with salad. Yum!

I even made enough of my favourite creamy ginger dressing (no dairy or eggs involved!) to last the week.

I also baked muffins for weekday snacks.

10 Grain Pumpkin Muffins

On Sunday, I made a big chicken dinner.

Veggies for roasting

Perfect Roast Chicken

In addition to chicken and veggies, I made baked sweet potato slices with raisins, pecans and feta.

The food was good, the week that followed was not. October WILL BE better!

The Weekend Homemaker

2011-09-19T17:30:00.000-07:00

The arrival of fall has been very sudden this year on the west coast. Last Sunday (September 11th) was a lovely warm summer day. On Monday, the 12th, it was fall. Victoria weather usually consists of one season, spring, with a pinch of summer and a bit of fall tossed in for a little bit of variety. The transitions are usually long, slow and awkward (what should I wear?) and I am desperate for a change by the time it arrives. But, not this summer. It came late, left early and was was rather noncommittal, even on the hottest days. I wanted more!

In any case, the cooling weather has put me into a cooking and baking mode. I haven't quite gotten back into my weekends of weekly food preparation (in true Weekend Homemaker style), but I am heading in that direction. Over the past few weeks, I have turned to oven on several times!

I've made:

Chocolate Zucchini Muffins

Rosemary Focaccia

Wicked Thai Chicken Soup
(I omitted the dairy and replaced rice with rice noodles)

I even baked bread! Yum!

Of course, I can't let the last few weeks of summer go by without a few final simple summer eats.

Tomatoes from my balcony garden.

Tomatoes, freshly baked bread with local cracked pepper
cheese, chicken and homemade honey mustard sauce.

Although I am not yet accepting of the arrival of fall, the knowledge that there is baking, soup making and roaring fires to look forward to makes the change a little easier to handle!

Container Garden Update

2011-09-18T09:44:00.000-07:00

My tomatoes are finally ripening!

As I wrote up my last container garden update, I realized I wasn't quite ready to give up gardening for the year. I've enjoyed watching things grow and, even more than that, I have loved eating my uber fresh carrots, spinach, tomatoes, lettuce and herbs. It's been fun to experiment with container gardening and learn that I can grow food on my balcony! So, given that I wasn't quite ready to let go, I decided to take things a step further and plant a little fall garden.

Around the 20th of August, I cleaned out two more stainless steel storage tubs (that hadn't been doing much of anything) and planted them with carrots, beets, swiss chard, spinach and two types of lettuce. And, unlike my previous plantings, I mixed the items within each tub in the style of square foot gardening. Square foot gardens are planted quite intensively and I thought this method would work will on my balcony as you don't need wide spaces between plantings in containers (although I did use mini rows).

My two newly planted tubs (the third tub, at
the back, contains carrots I planted in May).

Two Weeks after planting - the spinach and lettuce are speedy!

Four weeks after planting - spinach in front,
chard or beets in the middle (I'm not sure
which) and carrots at the back.

I have also planted a pot with just lettuce and spinach and, now that my first planting of carrots has been eaten, I plan to reseed that container as well. I've tried to space my plantings in order to have plenty of lettuce and spinach available throughout the fall. My first batch should be ready in the next week or two and, if I have planned things right, I think I will have enough for a salad a day for the next 3 months. Vancouver Island has a temperate climate and my container garden should keep growing until some time in December.

A few late summer finds have also allowed me to create a sweet little eating area on my balcony. I found this table and chair set on sale, marked down from $200 to $70!

And, with the addition of two candle sconces I snagged off of the "freecycle" table in my buidling and the gift of a plant, my balcony garden has become a balcony cafe.

Table for two, anyone?

My very happy impatiens, loving
the cool of late summer.

By the end of September, I am hoping to have my final tub of veggies planted and my geraniums replaced with hardy fall flowers. I'm looking forward to seeing what my second planting season yields!

Handmade Napkins

2011-09-14T20:00:00.000-07:00

Way back in August, when I was on vacation, so, so long ago . . . . *sigh*, I did some condo decorating and somehow got it into my head that I needed cloth napkins. It seemed all green and fancy and what not.

I did not want to pay a lot and decided to scrounge online. There are a lot of napkins out there on the internets! I searched high and wide and across the globe. It was hard to choose. I initially had it narrowed down to these ones, aren't they cute?

But then, once I picked out a tablecloth, and decided to go in a different (non-red) colour direction, I had to change my plan and couldn't find what I wanted. I finally decided to buy some fabric to make my own napkins.

Vintage Fabric Remnants from France

I had five different fabric pieces to work with and was able to cut them up into eight 12-inch squares. I then paired the pieces and sewed the pairs, wrong sides together, 1/4 inch from the edge. After that, I turned the squares right-side-out and sewed around the edge of each napkin twice, once at about 1/8 of an inch from the edge and once another 1/4 of an inch from there. Easy peasy.

I had much more of one fabric than the four others, so one side of the napkins are mismatched cotton florals while the other sides are all matching striped pink damask. I love that using two fabrics allows for two slightly different table-top options.

Option 1:

Floral, sweet and casual.

Option 2:

The reverse, ever so slightly more formal.

I am very happy with my new napkins. Although, I am slightly embarrassed to admit, despite making them as "everyday napkins", I am afraid to ruin them and don't use them nearly as much as planned. Perhaps I will have to order the Etsy set after all!

I linked up to Quiltstory's Fabric Tuesday!

To Market, To Market

2011-09-11T09:40:00.000-07:00

I only had time for a very quick stop at the market yesterday. It was a very busy day full of kitchen tiles, errands, gift wrapping and a baby shower. I almost skipped the market. But, I needed honey!

Salad mix, carrots, honey, melon and feta.

The small white ball in the right of the photo is not an onion (as it appears), but a tiny local melon. I will be eating it for lunch today and can't wait to try it.

Block of the Month

2011-09-07T21:02:00.000-07:00

My "Yours, Mine and Ours" monthly quilt-block-club continues! The block of the month for July was the Triple Star. I was worried about this block because it appears quite complicated, but it ended up being pretty strait-forward and fairly forgiving (I seem to have cutting issues).

My donation block

My block

I have been debating on what to do with all of "my blocks" when they are done. They are intended to complete a larger project that I started many years ago, and they will, but I no longer want this quilt for my own bed and I don't want to pay to have it quilted, if it is just going to sit in the closet. I was thinking about splitting it into two or three smaller baby quilts but, on a whim, asked my mom if she would like it. And yes! She wants it and will pay for the quilting. Phew, my quilt has a home.

Just two more quilt club blocks left! I will still need to track down patterns for another 6-8 blocks in order to complete the quilt for my mom, but I am pleased to have finally made some progress on this project after a 10 year standstill.

Attempts at Interior Design

2011-09-05T15:05:00.000-07:00

I've been on vacation for the past few weeks and one of my projects has been to make some decorating decisions for my condo. I bought my condo in May 2010 and hired contractors to complete some major renovations for me. The contractors fully renovated the kitchen and bathroom and replaced all of the doors and frames. I took on the project of repainting the ceiling, walls and doors (bifold and regular) myself (with the help of some friends!). I thought that my end of the project would take a few weekends, but in between the working and the moving, it ended up taking about nine months. By December 2010, I had run out of patience and money and could not stand the idea of doing one. more. thing.

I was left with a lot of blank blue walls and some mismatched furniture.

My walls: Benjamin Moore, Morning Sky Blue

By the time July 2011 arrived, I was finally ready to start thinking about decorating again. I did a major clean-up and reorganization and bought a couple of new pieces of furniture. I thought about the decorating style I want and determined that it is not really one style, but some sort of mishmash of West Coast Casual, Shabby Chic, French Country and Beach Cottage.

Once I started reorganizing and planning, I was on a roll. While I am still unable to bring myself to do any more painting (my new-to-me kitchen table needs refinishing), over the past few weeks, I decided on a tablecloth, accent colours, artwork and kitchen tiles. Phew!

The tablecloth was my first project. This might not seem like a big deal but, because of my very distinct wall colours and the fact that the cloth will be in constant use while it covers up my dingy table, I had to pick carefully. I knew I wanted a white tablecloth, but it was difficult to decide on an accent colour. I love red in combination with my wall colours and even bought a red teapot and planted red geraniums in an effort to go this direction. But, honestly, red is just not my colour. And neither are orange or purple.

After about 36 hours of scouring ebay and Etsy for vintage table cloths, I finally stumbled on Ma Maison Francaise. French Country! Vintage!

I found my tablecloth!

It was only after I bought the tablecloth that I realized that it shares something in common with my bedspread:

My vintage chenille bedspread

The embroidery on my new-to-me tablecloth

I am pretty sure that matching your tablecloth with your bedspread is not cool, but at least I am consistent!

In any case, picking out the tablecloth helped me to decide on my accent colour, the raspberry tone of the pink-red embroidered flower. I even bought some coordinating fabric remnants to make napkins!

I really hadn't wanted pink as my accent. A pink and blue apartment, how tacky does that sound? But, I like pink. And blue. And, it's just an accent colour, right?

I decided to map out my colour palate using Benjamin Moore paint swatches to make sure they all work together. I don't planning on painting with them all (the blue is my wall colour, the rest will be in fabrics and art), but wanted to see how they look. The are pretty girly, but I like them - the colours of skies and waves with a sprinkling of flowers.

Having my colour palette picked out out also helped me choose some art:

Blenda Studio

Jelly Beans

Little Brown Pen (I haven't bought these, but I want them)

And my tiles:

I am hoping to have the tile installed in October. I can't wait until it is done!

Next projects:

Framing all my art and saving my pennies for a new couch!

Summer Eating and the Single Girl

2011-09-04T11:00:00.000-07:00

It seems to me that singletons, couples and families with children each have different diets. I think my diet says "single woman" loud and clear. I should throw a pot roast or something in there for good measure!

Breakfast: Blueberry Muffins

Lunch: Greek Yogurt with Figs and Honey

Dinner: Banana and Nutella Crepes

Harvest

2011-09-03T15:46:00.000-07:00

I can't say how much I love harvesting the vegetables I have grown in my little container garden.

Spinach, carrots and basil.

The haul might be small.

But the rewards are big!

A Simple West Coast Lunch

2011-08-29T16:19:00.000-07:00

Smoked salmon on multigrain tortilla chips with greek yogurt for dipping is one of my favourite meals or snacks. It is delicious. And strange. But mostly delicious.

For a quick lunch yesterday, I added in some carrots from my balcony garden (they are getting bigger!) and some local blueberries. To go along with the meal, I made up a pitcher of Hint-style water, flavoured with lime and home grown chocolate mint.

Sew Green

2011-08-25T10:30:00.000-07:00

For Christmas this year, I am planning on sewing all of my gift wrapping. I am hoping that, if I do this for a few years, I will have created a nice little stash or reusable gift wrapping that my family can pass back and forth each holiday season. It might not be as fun as picking out a new paper each year, but I love the idea of simply sticking something in a nicely sewn bag an tying it up with a ribbon.

I decided to to test this idea out for my brother's birthday earlier this month. Because I bought him BBQ supplies, which would have been nearly impossible to wrap in paper, a gift bag seemed to be the way to go.

I didn't use a pattern and almost made the bag too small, but it worked out fine. I even lined the inside (with an old piece of curtain!) to make sure that the bag will be sturdy and last a long time.

Perfect! And, shhhhh, don't tell anyone that I am talking about Christmas already, but I am looking forward to picking out some cute fabrics covered in snowmen and stockings!

Container Gardening Update

2011-08-21T11:59:00.000-07:00

Although I have attempted vegetable gardens in the past, this year is the first time I've really gotten to reap the rewards.

It's hasn't all been successful. I had to throw out both of my pots of strawberries after they developed some sort of fungus (which was very sad as the fruit was coming along nicely) and had to restart my basil several times before the weather was nice enough for it to survive. I also decided to ditch my spindly tomato plant and replaced it with one that was a little further along. Between the unseasonably cool west coast summer and my west facing balcony, my first tomato plant was so far off schedule, I don't think I would have gotten fruit.

Despite all of these glitches, I think things are going pretty well.

I have a tonne of herbs: mint, chocolate mint, rosemary, thyme, lemon verbena, golden sage and parsley. I have no idea what to do with them all!

I also have basil, and this, I know what to do with! I can never have enough basil and wish that it had a longer growing season here in BC. Next year, I will grow LOTS of basil and start it inside. If I can get the basil organized and growing properly, it has the potential to save me lots of money.

My spinach and lettuce have done well and have no problem thriving on my west facing balcony. Throughout June and July, I had at least 2-3 salads a week from my spinach/lettuce pot. Unfortunately, the spinach is now bolting and the lettuce has disappeared. I will replant both again as a fall crop.

I've just started harvesting carrots and I am thrilled with them! I am not sure if it is worthwhile to plant such a small little crop of something that takes so long to grow (and is eaten so quickly), but they feel like a true balcony garden success. Root vegetables are perfect for my partially sunny spot. I will do a fall crop of carrots and perhaps one of beets as well.

Lastly, as I mentioned above, I replaced my scrawny tomato plant (which I had gotten for free) with one from the local garden shop. The new one was already fruiting when I purchased it two weeks ago and more tomatoes are popping up each day. I really hope they ripen!

Lessons for next year:

* Plant more lettuce and spinach.

* Start basil inside and keep it indoors until July (and plant lots!).

* Buy fruiting tomatos in July.

* Expand root and leafy vegetables.

I think I will also attempt strawberry hanging baskets next year, hopefully the increased sun of a raised location will keep the fungus away!

How does your garden grow?

I (heart) Salad

2011-08-18T15:39:00.000-07:00

There are two eating seasons for me: (1) salad season and (2) soup season. All fall and winter long, I eat soup almost every day. I love homemade soup. It is so easy and so nutritious. But, by the time spring rolls around, I start thinking that soup is gross and hot and boring and that I. will. never. eat. soup. again. And so, I switch to salad. Salad I find a little more challenging to deal with because it requires fresh veggies (which means more shopping and food preparation), but it does allow me to use food from my own little garden and farmer's market. Usually, I obsess over two or three salads all season long. This year, I started off with a minty spinach and fig salad, moved on to a roasted asparagus, yam and spinach salad and am now all about a shredded veggie, lettuce and smoked salmon salad.

The goods (lettuce, carrots, beets, garbanzo beans, feta, pumpkin seeds).

Made even better with local maple smoked salmon, one of my very favourite foods.

And topped with homemade basil vinaigrette.

What could be better than that?

August Eats

2011-08-17T17:03:00.000-07:00

I try to eat seasonally and locally. Right now, that means:

Salmon (the raspberries are also local, but the asparagus is not, whoops!)

and Peaches (in peach cobbler topped with honey sweetened yogurt)!

Salmon and peaches are two of my favourite foods, but I am a bit of a snob about them and refuse to eat them unless they are very fresh (salmon) or tree ripened (peaches). This means that August and September are two of my favourite food months. Yum!

To Market, To Market

2011-08-07T17:02:00.000-07:00

I didn't make it to the farmer's market yesterday as I had no cash (cash is a necessity at farmer's markets!) and decided to have a lazy morning at home. But, I did go last weekend and I bought some yummy food:

The haul: honey (the honey man now refers to me as a "regular," apparently I buy a lot of honey), blueberries, cucumbers, lettuce and Cold Comfort ice cream!

The ice cream was Popcorn with a Caramel Butter Swirl. Slightly strange, very delicious!

I also went to the Oak Bay Night market a few weeks ago and got this beautiful loaf of bread:

It cost about a kazillion dollars, but was fantastic (and huge). The wheat was grown right here on Vancouver Island which, if you have seen Vancouver Island, is a pretty amazing feat.

I've heard a rumour that there will be Fresh Peach, Brown Sugar and Bourbon ice cream at the market next weekend and I will be there to buy it!

Block of the Month

2011-08-03T20:15:00.000-07:00

I almost didn't complete the June block for my monthly "Yours, Mine and Ours" quilting class. My shoulders and neck were feeling pinchy and sewing did not appeal at all. But, at the last minute, the night before the class, I decided to make the donation block. And, it ended up going so smoothly, I made a block for myself too!

The June block was called the British Columbia Dream.

My Block

My Donation Block

I am running out of blue fabric and didn't have enough to do all of the points for my donation block in one colour, but I really like how the alternating colours turned out. It gives the block a bit of pinwheel effect.

Some of the ladies from my quilting class have started to piece together the blocks we have made so far. The toppers will be donated to Victoria Quilts Canada, who will put the finishing touches on the quilts. Victoria Quilts Canada gives finished quilts to individuals with cancer. What a great organization!

You can see the toppers that have been completed here. Can you spot my blocks?

How to Turn a Wardrobe into a Desk (and other transformations)

2011-07-23T23:16:00.000-07:00

Last year, I bought a condo and, over a 6 month period, fixed it up. By the time I was done with the the renovations, I couldn't afford any new furniture and planned to slowly update my old furniture over time. I have most of the items I need but, my old furniture is reaching the end of it's life. Most of it was purchased about 12 years ago from Ike@ and, while Ike@ furniture certainly fulfils a purpose, it is not known for it's longevity. In addition to dealing with increasingly wobbly tables and some punctured particle board, I am so done with pine. I want to get rid of it ALL.

But, I have no money. And, because I have a big project in the works, I am not likely to have any money for a very, very long time. One day, as a was feeling sorry for myself and my "college student" furniture, I had a brain wave. I realized that I could transform my underused white wardrobe into a desk, thereby starting a chain reaction of furniture rearrangement that would allow me to, not only sell my old pine desk and make some money for a new piece of furniture, but to repurpose a lot of what I already own. Win-win!

My old pine desk (it looks like a wardrobe, but was secretly a desk). Sold to a good home.

Once I made the decision to make this change, nothing could stop me. I spent three whole days reorganizing, moving furniture and selling my desk. The furniture domino the sale of my desk created was huge. The desk was replaced by my white wardrobe (now desk), the white wardrobe (which held quilting supplies) was replaced by a dresser I kept in the front hall, the hall dresser (which held bags and hats and mitts) was replaced by an empty chippy toy box that I had stored in my bedroom closet. I was able to sell my old desk for a decent price and I used the funds to buy a kitchen table and a bookcase (both used, solid wood and painted white). Getting a new-to-me kitchen table allowed me to move my old kitchen table (actually a large night stand) to where it belongs, the bedroom. The new-to-me bookshelf allowed me to remove one more pine-like (*not real pine*) item out of my main living space and into the spare bedroom.

Wow! I feel like I have almost all new furniture, at absolutely no cost to me. I do have some more replacements to make in the living room before I will be satisfied, but I am very happy with the outcome!

The biggest change I made was the wardrobe to desk transformation. Because I never actually sit at my desk and I loved the tidy and pet-proof nature of my old wardrobe-style desk, turning a real wardrobe into a desk was a no brainer for me.

My wardrobe, about to be transformed.

I cleaned out my quilting supplies.

And then I sawed a hole in the back panel to allow cords and cables to exit.

Easy peasy!

Once that was done, I loaded my new desk.

I even added some magnet and cork boards onto the doors for notes and keepsakes (this was an additional expense, but it didn't cost much).

The bottom drawer of my wardrobe/desk now holds gift wrapping supplies and the top drawer holds desk supplies such as some old letters, paper, envelopes, markers and pens. As you can see, my laptop, printer, lamp and some other miscellaneous desk supplies fit easily on the shelves.

I am so happy with the airiness my "new" tall and white desk provides. And, I love that thinking differently about my current furniture allowed me to make the changes I wanted without spending money that I don't have. In the picture below, you can see my "new" wardrobe style desk along with the new-to-me table and bookshelf that the sale of my old desk allowed me to purchase.

I won't be able to make my next series of changes (new coffee table, couch and TV stand) without some money, but now that I have managed to get a bit closer to the beachy, shabby-chic look I am after, I know that I can eventually make it happen.

Hopefully white furniture won't go completely out of fashion between now and then!

The Weekend Homemaker

2011-07-17T21:04:00.000-07:00

I'm nearing the end of my financial month again and you know what that means . . . no more money. I don't know how some people do so well with their monthly food budgets, but I am certainly not one of them.

So, it's time to streeeeetch the last few dollars and do some cooking from the pantry. Last weekend I spent $50 on some fresh groceries (and some chips, whoops), scrounged in the cupboards and came with a delicious menu.

Breakfasts

Yogurt and strawberry sauce

Homemade granola with soy milk

Snacks

Almonds and Raisins

Cherries

Twelve Grain Pumpkin Muffins

Lunches

Tuna and crackers with carrot sticks

Whole wheat pasta and lentil salad with basil dressing

Dinners

Pad Thai

Crepes with yogurt and strawberry sauce

I even had enough basil left over from the salad dressing to make a batch of pesto.

Along with a pot of Thai Chicken Soup, I should have enough meals to make it happily through the rest month and prevent me from making last minute (and expensive!) trips the grocery store throughout out the week.

And, no more chips!

Strawberries . . . let me count the ways

2011-07-12T20:26:00.000-07:00

The local strawberry season has already come and gone. The sweet and tender Vancouver Island Juneberries don't last long. I bought two flats of berries, a week apart, and had to eat and/or process all of the berries within 24 hours. It was a yummy, crazy, mess.

What to do with all of these berries?

I ate them for breakfast:

Greek yogurt, strawberries and honey

And for lunch:

Strawberry smoothie

And for dinner:

Salmon burger with strawberries on the side

I even had them for a snack:

I made strawberry jam, strawberry sauce and strawberries in sugar syrup:

And, the best thing I made? Baked french toast with strawberries AND (last year's) raspberry sauce. I love berry season!

Baked French toast

Thank goodness raspberry season starts soon!

Block of the Month

2011-07-03T19:56:00.000-07:00

I just have a few more months left in the "Yours, Mine and Ours" quilting workshop that I have been taking. Some of the ladies (not me!) have started to meet to sew together the donated blocks into lap quilts and I am excited to see how they will all look. I had wished they would wait until the end of the workshop to sew the toppers so that all of my blue and white blocks could be together, but it was not to be. Oh well, the June block was very different from what we have made thus far and it is unlikely that all of my blocks would have been together in any case.

For June, we made a "Twinkling Star" block, a contemporary paper pieced pattern, rather than a traditional block. I love the casual look of paper piecing so I was excited to try this star out.

Because I cannot use the Twinkling Star block in the larger quilt that I am currently working on for myself (which is a very traditional sampler), I decided to do something completely different and start a flannel baby quilt (this means I now have 4 quilts in the works, whoops!). I don't know any new baby girls at the moment, but I was feeling the pink. I am sure one will come along soon enough!

My donation block also turned out well. I think that I am the only one in my quilting class that likes the Twinkling Star pattern (this fact may be explained by the fact that I am at least 25 years younger than everyone else in my class), but I think it is super cute and flexible. I will definitely be using it again!

To Market, To Market

2011-07-02T20:46:00.000-07:00

Sadly, I seem to have already spent my farmer's market allotment for July. Not good. But, my money did go towards and good cause, a kitchen table. Finally!

Fortunately, my last market visit was especially delicious. I bought lunch and ice cream!

Lunch was from the International Women's Catering Co-op. I had their fantastic pakora and a buraq (a pastry stuffed with spinach, peas, mint and feta). Yum.

Then I picked up a few other goodies - basil, tomato, brioche and two handmade ice cream sandwiches with Kaffir lime ice cream sandwiched between coconut macaroon cookies. Oh. My. Goodness.

I have never tasted anything quite like these fresh and yummy treats. It was the "ice cream woman's" (I can't remember the name of her business) first weekend at the market. She was very busy and had sold out of my first choice, Rose, Mint and Watermelon sorbet, when I arrived. I hope that she will be back weekly (and that I can scourge up some cash for next weekend)!

A Strawberry Tea

2011-06-21T19:10:00.000-07:00

I recently helped to plan and organize a Strawberry Tea for a friend.

A few months ago, we made the invitations.

The picture is a bit fuzzy, but I don't think you can deny their excessive cuteness! The date and time were written on the tea bags and each dangling tea bag label was stamped with a sweet tea name.

Tranquility

Serenity

Bed of Roses

You get the picture.

Last Friday evening, I got to work on the cupcakes (Strawberry Cupcakes are requirement for a Strawberry Tea).

The Baker's Assistant

The cupcakes turned out well.

The perfect shade of delicious pink. No food colouring required.

We planned the party for mid June in the hopes that it would be sunny and warm. We planned on having bushels of local strawberries to consume.

It ended up being cool and damp. The local strawberries had not arrived!

But, there was a wood fire, lots of tea sandwiches and strawberry shortcake. Yum!

Messy kitchen = good party!

I Love Lemon!

2011-06-14T20:00:00.000-07:00

Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins with Lemon Zest Glaze. Yum!

Fresh

2011-06-13T19:48:00.000-07:00

Summer hasn't quite arrived yet in these parts, but I am done with soups and casseroles. It's time for fresh, crispy, clean, eating!

Rice Paper Rolls

Rolls: Rice noodles, mint, julienned carrots, and bean sprouts all wrapped in rice paper.

Dipping sauce: sweet red chili sauce, sesame oil, fish sauce, rice vinegar and honey.

The Weekend Homemaker

2011-05-28T15:49:00.000-07:00

I spent a good part of last weekend cooking. I had already spent most of my May food budget by that point and needed to do some serious planning and preparation in order to make my groceries stretch. After picking up a few items for weekend meals at the farmer's market and neighbourhood grocery, I got to work shopping in my own pantry/freezer and prepping the 12 days of meals needed to get me to my next payday (on June 3).

Breakfasts:

Yogurt with Strawberry Jam (4 meals)

Homemade Hazelnut and Cranberry Granola, topped with coconut milk (4 meals)

Yogurt with Granola and Honey (4 meals)

Lunches:

Balcony Salad with Roasted Yams and home-made dressing (2 meals)

Tuna Sandwiches (2 meals)

Red Lentil Dahl with Rice (8 meals)

Dinners:

Eggs, Balcony Salad and Toast (bread still to be baked) (2 meals)

Crepes with Strawberry Jam and Yogurt (2 meals)

Chicken and Veggie Casserole (using all of my frozen veggies and the leftover chicken from my last roast) (8 meals)

Snacks:

Carrot sticks

Dates and raw cashews

Kashi granola bars

Frozen grapes

Popcorn

Banana Coconut Muffins

I did purchase a few bits and pieces over the course of the week, but overall I am feeling rather impressed with myself (hehe). It's amazing what a little time, some scrimping and a few frozen leftovers can provide! For under $50, I prepared at least 30 meals and have the makings of about 10 more.

From Market to Table

2011-05-23T15:33:00.000-07:00

A long weekend . . . . ahhhhh . . .

Sleeping in, walks along the ocean, travel book reading and lots of cooking. Perfect.

(Except for the part where my Moka Pot died. That was sad.)

I started off my weekend with a trip to the farmer's market. The weather was a bit dreary, but it held off long enough for me to get this week's necessities.

Eggs, Mixed Greens, Sourdough bread, Baby Monkey Bread and a Pain au Chocolat.

The Monkey Bread was sooooooo good. I may be buying 37 next week.

After the farmer's market, I stopped at my new favourite spot, the Fairfield Market for a few other necessities: my favourite yogurt, a yam, a tomato, onions, asparagus, sunflower sprouts and bacon. Since I started eating meat again about 5 months ago, I have been pretty careful about how much meat I eat. I allow myself one chicken per month, bacon once per month and "red" meat once per month. I am not trying to be restrictive, but I do want to be mindful about my meat consumption. In any case, I don't always take the red meat option, but I never forgo the bacon!

The bacon, tomato, sourdough bread, eggs and some local brie were cooked up into delicious lunches on Saturday and Sunday.

Mmmm.

For dinners, I roasted the asparagus and yam until crispy and tossed with the greens, cucumber, sunflower sprouts, goat cheese and some homemade croutons.

I am so glad to be back in salad season!

Block of the Month

2011-05-22T09:40:00.000-07:00

I missed my April "Mine, Yours and Ours" quilting class because I was sick (very, very, sick). But, I did pop in to pick up the pattern for the April block, The Centennial Star. I am sure that I missed out on a few pointers and tips, but fortunately for me, The Centennial Star was much easier to make than the previous two blocks. Phew!

My block:

My donation block:

I fussy cut the centre square of this block, but didn't take into account that it would be on an angle. Whoops! Good thing is is a donation block.

I really like the Centennial Star pattern. It looks more like a flower than a star to me and I think that a bunch of them in monochromatic tones (i.e. a pink star, a green star) would look great in a baby quilt or a lap quilt. That might just be my next project!

My Container Garden

2011-05-15T12:27:00.000-07:00

I've tried container gardening a few times, but have never had much success due to poor sun exposure. It my current place, I have western exposure and a partially shaded balcony which, while not ideal, is an improvement. In fact, I had such great success with lettuce and spinach in the fall and have decided to expand my mini garden for 2011. If things go well, I will add a bit more each year.

My garden so far:

Pots of spinach, lettuce, strawberries, mint and rosemary.

The large "bin of dirt" behind the lettuce is planted with two types of carrots and the bag on the shelf is a homemade "greenhouse" containing basil.

I am going to plant more strawberries and basil as well as some cucumbers and tomatoes.

In addition to fruits and veggies, I've also planted flowers. For some reason, I am into red and white this year.

I love double begonias. They do so well with minimal sun.

My mom used to plant geraniums when I was young. One per pot. I never cared for their gangly sparseness, but have grown to love them when packed together in little groups. And in boxes rather than pots.

Even my little Ollie-cat, who was terrified of the balcony one year ago, loves container gardening. Birds to watch, leaves to chase and new hide outs to explore, what could be better?

From Market to Table

2011-05-07T21:29:00.000-07:00

My favourite farmer's market has been back up and running for the past month, but only with a few booths. Today was the first full market of the year.

Excitement!

Fresh local veggies! Cheese! Pottery! Mini donuts!

I have now put my organic food box delivery on hold until the fall and am thrilled to resume my weekly market visits.

I couldn't buy much this week. I had been counting down the days to local honey and spent $15 of my weekly $20 market allotment on 1 kilo of honey made by bees right in my neighbourhood. Yum!

My only other purchase was a pain au chocolat, baked this morning by one of my very favourite local bakers. He does not have a bakery and I feel as if I stalk him and his bread all over town. Totally worth it.

I'm so glad the market is back!

Block of the Month

2011-04-30T20:32:00.000-07:00

The March block for the "Yours, Mine and Ours" monthly quilting class that I am taking was the LeMoyne Star. This star wasn't as hard to make as I expected, but it was hard to make well. I had no idea how to correct my errors. So, I didn't.

Don't look too closely!

My donation block.

My own block.

Kitty-cat inspected and approved.

Hazelnut Milk and Oatmeal Muffins

2011-04-26T08:03:00.000-07:00

I have made my own almond milk for years. I like it in cereal and baking, but it is pretty thin so it does not suffice for coffee. Recently, however, I discovered this recipe for cashew milk. It is delicious and creamy. I omit the agave and reduce the oats to 2 tablespoons (otherwise it will thicken in hot beverages, as I learned the hard way). It is the best milk substitute I have found to drink with espresso.

But, I thought I could improve it even more.

I like hazelnut syrup in coffees, why not just make hazelnut milk?

So, I did.

I soaked 1.5 cups roasted (skins removed) hazelnuts in water over night. The next day, I powdered 2 tablespoons of oats in the blender, dumped in the hazelnuts, a tablespoon of maple syrup and three cups of water. I then liquified the mixture for 3-4 minutes and strained through cheese cloth (x 2).

It was delicious.

And a bit grainy.

I was not able to achieve the smooth and creamy texture of the cashew milk. So, it's a no-go for coffee. But, it is delicious in cereal and I used both the milk and the remaining hazelnut grounds/puree to make Oatmeal Hazelnut Chocolate Chip Muffins. I used this recipe and replaced the cow's milk with hazelnut milk and the pecans with the hazelnut mash without any further modifications.

Perfection!

My Favourite Smoothie

2011-04-24T16:27:00.000-07:00

I've been sick.

Super-duper, to-tired-to-read, one-box-of-kleenex-per-day sick.

All I feel like eating is ice cream and milkshakes, but dairy is no friend of mine, especially when I am sick.

So, I made my new favourite smoothie.

The Cashew Date Smoothie.

Sound weird? Yep. But it tastes so good. Sweet, creamy, healthy and delicious. Not a vanilla milkshake, but it does the trick.

To make this smoothie:

(1) Soak 1/3 cups cashews and three dates in water over night.

(2) When ready to eat, drain cashews and dates and remove the pits from the dates.

(3) Liquify dates and cashews in blender along with one banana and 3/4 cup of soy milk.

(4) Once mixture is smooth, add 4-5 ice cubes and liquify again.

(5) Enjoy!

Block of the Month

2011-04-02T09:05:00.001-07:00

At my Block of the Month quilting club, "Yours, Mine and Ours", the February block was the Rising Star.

I have to say that I had sort of looked down on star blocks prior to joining this club. With all their strait lines and squares, I thought they looked pretty easy. I was wrong. And I have I pile of point-less flying geese to prove it. *Sigh.*

In the end, things turned out OK. For the club, we each make a block for ourselves and a block for a charity quilt.

My block:

My charity block:

I am still loving my charity block fabrics, but I am liking my own fabrics more this month as well. I think that the addition of the dark grey tone really helps to balance the colour values.

Next month: The LeMoyne Star. I am afraid. Very afraid.

Thin Mints

2011-03-22T19:29:00.001-07:00

I made my first attempt at homemade thin mints (or peppermint patties) around Christmastime. They were edible but, being made primarily of coconut butter, had a bit of an odd texture. So, I tinkered around with the recipe and, while it still needs a bit of work, I think I have developed a pretty tasty additive-free and minimally processed replacement for thin mints.

Thin Mints

(Warning: I did not measure so all quantities are approximate)

(1) Melt 1/2 cup semi- or bitter-sweet chocolate chips in the microwave. Coat the bottom of each section of a silicone mini muffin pan/candy mould with 1/2 teaspoon melted chocolate. Place in fridge to set.

(2) Boil 2 tablespoons maple syrup on the stove until slightly thickened.

(3) Add 1/3 cup coconut butter, 1/3 cup coconut cream and 1/2 teaspoon peppermint extract to hot maple syrup. Once melted, whisk until a caramel like consistency is attained. Allow to cool.

(4) Spoon 1 teaspoon of cooled filling into each section of the muffin pan, over chocolate. Place in fridge to cool and harden.

(5) Melt another 1/2 cup of chocolate chips in microwave and allow to cool. Spoon 1/2 teaspoon of chocolate over hardened filling. Tap tray on countertop to remove bubbles.

(6) Place in fridge to harden overnight. The next day, pop the chocolates from the mould and enjoy!

Objects in this picture are smaller than they appear.

Detox

2011-03-15T19:54:00.000-07:00

Is it just me or was last week a universally bad week?

I wasn't feeling well with some weird fluish-probably-allergy-type symptoms. The whole internet was annoying me. And then, the world stomped her feet. I am not one to anthropomorphize*, but I am starting to feel like the earth would say "stop messing around and get it together people!", if she could talk. Sheesh.

By the time the weekend arrived, I decided it was time for some serious detox. For me, this meant (1) no internet**, (2) Gilmore Girls and (3) smoothies.

* That's a lie, I totally am

** I tried very hard and only surfed the net after 8:00pm

The Smoothies were delicious. I don't have formal recipes, but this is what I made:

Vanilla - cashews (soaked overnight), soy milk, banana, maple syrup, ice cubes and vanilla bean seeds.

Chocolate - Banana, frozen grapes, soy milk, coconut tofu, cocoa and honey.

Beetnik - Cooked beets, frozen grapes, cashews (soaked), raspberry juice and cinnamon.

Wintergreen - Spinach, mint, green apple, frozen green grapes, honey and soy milk. Mmmm green is good!

By the end of the weekend (and about 8 episodes of Gilmore Girls), I felt much better. If only Monday hadn't come so quickly!

Chocolate Chews

2011-03-07T20:22:00.000-08:00

I am not sure how I came across the recipe for these cookies, but I had a craving for chocolate and limited ingredients in the cupboards.

As I was going for something light and sweet, I omitted the filling the recipe calls for and shaped the cookies into disks. The final product was a winner - easy to make, grain free, chewy and delicious.

I will be making these again. Soon.

Schmoo

2011-03-06T21:03:00.000-08:00

I attended an Oscar party last Sunday (yay Colin!) and, of course, I brought dessert. It was supposed to be a tasting party, but I am not well equipped to make small bites of things. I do not have small pans or small dishes or small ideas. Only my cupcakes are miniature and, having just baked a batch of those, I was ready for something different.

First, I was going to make French Macarons, but I soon discovered that a food processor was required. My food processor died recently in a terrible fall. No Macarons for me.

Then, I was going to make Pavlova, but quickly decided that Pavlova is more appropriate for a sunny spring day, not a wet and dreary winter day.

Finally, I decided on Schmoo.

Mmmm, Schmoo. I love you.

Schmoo, trifle style.

I had my first bite of Schmoo when living in Manitoba over 10 years ago. Every time I went into the city, I'd HAVE to track down a restaurant or cafe serving my beloved Schmoo. At the time, I thought Schmoo was a newfangled dessert sweeping the nation as I toiled out in the wilds of northern Manitoba. However, it turns out that Schmoo existed in Manitoba long before 1999 and, in fact, it still seems to exist only in central Canada.

Once you try Schmoo, you will wonder why everyone, everywhere is not eating this dessert.

Layers of an pecan studded angelfood-like cake, sweetened whipped cream and butterscotch sauce might all seem a bit run of the mill but, in combination, I can assure you that they are anything but.

I followed a recipe from the Food Network, but was inspired by Mennonite Girls Can Cook to serve it trifle style. Much better for transportation. It was an absolute and complete hit.

If you have never made or tasted Schmoo, go make it right now. You won't regret it!

Snow Day

2011-03-01T19:05:00.000-08:00

Last Wednesday was a snow day.

Actually, it was a snow-can't get out of parking garage-transformer explodes at work and catches trees on fire-power outage-cars crashing all over the place kind of day. Work was cancelled.

In other parts of the country, this might be par for the course but, in my neck of the woods, it was a pretty big deal. In fact, it was a pretty big deal for me. Despite having lived from coast to coast to coast and a few spots in between, I think that I have had a total 3 "bad weather days" requiring school or work cancellation over the course of my 34 years. Even after moving to Halifax for three year specifically for snow days (and graduate school), they eluded me.

It's been sad.

So, last Wednesday, I celebrated. With brownies!

It's a rule to bake on snow days, right?

PS Happy 100th post!

The Weekend Homemaker

2011-02-23T09:44:00.000-08:00

I found my dairy-wheat-sugar-egg free cleanse extremely helpful in getting my diet re-calibrated. Even though I feel like I eat pretty healthily in general, completing the cleanse helped me to realize several things:

* I eat way too much sugar (as an additive in other products)

* My grain to vegetable ratios are way off

* I wasn't eating 5-10 vegetables a day even though I thought I was

Most significantly, however, the cleanse showed me that it is not realistic for me to eat a diary-wheat-sugar-egg free diet all the time. Eliminating these foods from my diet, in combination with my desire to eat real food and eat locally, made food planning and preparation extremely time consuming.

In other words, I am very happy to be back in my weekend cooking mode!

My food box arrived last Thursday and I spent the weekend cooking; preparing enough meals to last me for the next two weeks (although I will probably need a few additions to avoid maltime boredom)!

My very wintery looking food box.

My box contained pears, apples, oranges, romaine lettuce, collard greens, onions, carrots, potatoes, garlic and a lemon.

I started off my weekend with a lovely salad of lettuce, dried figs, pine nuts and a homemade honey balsamic dressing. This salad is even better with spinach and some chopped mint, but you've gotta work with what you've got! I ate this along side some sunflower bread spread with local goat chevre.

On Saturday, I made chicken noodle soup from scratch. I had made some homemade chicken stock from a roast chicken the previous week and decided to go whole hog (or whole chicken, as the case may be) and make my own noodles as well.

Mmmm. Cooking from scratch is SO worth the effort. I am usually not a fan of chunky soups, but this soup is delicious and definitely the best chicken noodle soup I have ever eaten! And, in total, I will get 14 meals out of my $24 local chicken. At $1.71 per meal, eating local, pasture-raised chickens doesn't seem so extravagant!

I had never seen or eaten collard greens before they arrived in my food box this past week. I wasn't sure how I would like them and thought they might end up on my "never send" list, but after I boiled and sautéed them, they were actually pretty good.

I ate these greens along with Red Lentil Dahl and rice, which I did not take a picture of. Dahl is tasty, but not particularly photogenic.

Lastly, I made Baked Pear-Apple Sauce. I will use this throughout the week in my morning muesli, a favourite discovery from my cleanse!

I still have the carrots, parsnips, potatoes and garlic to deal with and I am looking forward to roasting them up this coming weekend, perhaps along with another roast chicken!

Day 15 - Chocolate, Chocolate!

2011-02-15T19:30:00.000-08:00

I finished my two week cleanse on Sunday. Yay! I was not completely sugar-free, but I think I did pretty well over all. I am planning on continuing to keep my diet low in sugar, wheat and eggs for the rest of the month.

Except for one wee little thing . . .

Cupcakes!

I had been thinking about making a sweet Valentine treat since my cleanse began. First, I was going to make Chocolate Sugar Cookies but, I couldn't quite handle the thought of royal icing.

Then, I decided to make White and Dark Hearted Brownies and set out to Michael's to find a tiny heart shaped cookie cutter. However, when I arrived at the store, all I could find was flowers, bunnies and eggs. No good.

Who knew that Valentine's treats required so much advanced preparation?

In the end, I decided on my old standby, cupcakes. Sweet, chocolaty and loved by all.

Chocolate, Chocolate Baby Cakes, mmm.

Days 9 through 12 - West Coast Muesli

2011-02-12T10:54:00.000-08:00

Despite my lack of posting, I have been continue on fairly well with my cleanse. I have not eaten the following items in the past 12 days:

- diary

- wheat

- eggs

- coffee

- and very little refined sugar (only what's in my soy milk and daily handful of chocolate chips)

In fact, I have not had coffee for the past 14 days so that part of my cleanse is done. Yay!

In the past week I have eaten:

* West Coast Muesli (recipe below)

* Green Tea

* Veggies, Almond-Flax Crackers and Lime and Black Pepper Cashew Dip

* Dried apricots stuffed with cocoa nibs

* Borsht

* Red Onion Soup with Almond-Flax Crackers

* Red Lentil Dahl and Rice

* Apples

* Tortilla chips with salsa

Just two days and plenty of yummy ideas to go!

West Coast Muesli

Combine:

1/2 cup oats

1/4 cup pear sauce (I used this recipe, but replaced sugar with honey and vanilla with cinnamon and purred the final product)

3/4 cup soy milk

small handful chopped hazelnuts

small handful dried cranberries

1 tablespoon hemp hearts or flax seeds

Stir well and refrigerate in sealed container overnight. Eat!

Day 8 - Almond-Flax Crackers

2011-02-08T20:19:00.000-08:00

My cleanse is getting easier. I am pretty much over the coffee withdrawal and I feel like I could live without it now. Although, I don't want to.

Today I ate:

Breakfast

West Coast Muesli

Green Tea

Lunch

Almond-Flax crackers (recipe below), carrots and broccoli with yam hummus

Coconut Rice Pudding

Snack

Apple

Sweets and Beets (Yam and beet chips)

Dinner

Red lentil dahl with rice

Chocolate chips

Almond-Flax Crackers (based on this recipe from Elana's Pantry)

Combine:

1.5 cups almond meal

.5 cups flax meal

.5 teaspoon chopped rosemary

.25 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon olive oil

2 tablespoons water

Mix until combine and pat into a round disk. Place disk between two sheets of parchment paper. Carefully roll to 1/8 inch thick. Remove top piece of parchment paper and slide second piece and dough onto cookie sheet. Score dough into rectangles or squares.

Bake at 350 degrees for 9-11 minutes. Cool crackers on baking sheet before separating and eating.

Quilting

2011-02-06T21:57:00.000-08:00

I don't believed that I've ever mentioned, on this blog, that I am a quilter.

Or that I was.

And am trying to be, again.

I started quilting when living in northern Canada in 2000. It was cold! I needed an indoor craft activity!

I became a quilting enthusiast pretty quickly and carried on until 2004 or so, when I went to graduate school. I had a variety of grand plans to pick up this hobby again when I graduated in 2007, but it has taken me almost 4 years to get to that point. Graduate school recovery is intense!

The last quilt I made was in the summer of 2004 and now, six and a half years later (!) I am getting started again. With a vengeance. I currently have 4 projects on the go. Yikes!

Two of the projects are fairly small and well underway. I may blog about them when they are done. The two other projects are the result of a monthly block club I have joined. The group is called "Yours, Mine and Ours", and we will each be making 2 star blocks a month, one for ourselves and one for a charity quilt. We started January off with the Ohio Star.

I will be using my stars to complete a quilt that I started way back in *gulp* 2001. I have a large broken star that is surrounded by sashing and a pinwheel border that will be the centre block of a queen sized quilt.

Can you believe that this has been sitting in my closet for 10 years?

I had always intended to do a sampler border, but did not wants stars (how boring, I'd thought) and couldn't figure out what else to do. But now, having started the block of the month club (where we will only sew stars), I see that they will be perfect.

I am not sure if the fabric will be perfect though. I like it, but I think my taste has matured a bit since 2001. Oh well.

My Ohio Star

For the charity quilt, we could pick whatever materials we wanted - all new and perfectly coordinated or just a scrappy mishmash. I decided to take the middle road and shopped from my own fabric supply to find a stack of blues and whites.

I love how this colour combination turned out. There is nothing more classic than blue and white. I really want to keep this block for myself. But, I won't.

My charity Ohio Star

I am looking forward to finding out what we will be making for February and, in the meantime, I have my other two projects to keep me busy. It's good to be back!

Day 7

2011-02-06T21:08:00.000-08:00

One week of my Free and Frugal February done! I can't wait to drink coffee again and am already planning my first trip to a cafe next weekend (my coffee fast ends on Saturday). But, aside from coffee and dairy, I think I may stay (mostly) sugar, egg and wheat free for the rest of the month. I don't feel any different than I did a week ago, but I am definitely eating more vegetables and less bread/pasta, a goal of mine.

Today I ate:

Breakfast

Coconut Rice Pudding

Green Tea

Lunch

Red Lentil Dahl with Rice

Snacks

Salt and Vinegar Kale Chips

Unsweetened Vanilla Rooibos Tea Latte

Kale chips are stinky, but provide a delicious salty hit when required.

Dinner

Veggies, almond crackers and Lemon Cashew Dip

Coconut Rice Pudding

Chocolate Chips (oops!)

Herbal tea with honey

Bottom Line: I ate a lot of rice today!

Day 6 - Coconut Rice Pudding

2011-02-06T11:08:00.000-08:00

After a week of Wasa bread, I now have some ingredients to make my Free and Frugal February a little bit more interesting.

Today I ate:

Breakfast

Oatmeal with maple syrup

Green Tea

Lunch

Broccoli, carrots and rice crackers with Lemon Cashew Dip

Snack

Salt and Vingar Kale Chips

Dinner

Salad of lettuce, sunflower sprouts, shredded carrots, shredded beets and smoked honey salmon. Homemade dressing.

Coconut Rice Pudding (recipe below)

Coconut Rice Pudding

I adapted this recipe from a "Mango Rice Pudding" I learned at a Thai cooking class with Chef Heidi Fink. This recipe combines some traditional English rice pudding elements with some Thai cooking ingredients.

Ingredients

1.5 cups Sweet Thai Rice (can be found in traditional Thai or Chinese grocery stores)

2 oz Unrefined Palm Sugar (can be found in traditional Thai or Chinese grocery stores)

1 can Coconut Milk

1/2 cup Soy Milk

1/2 teaspoon Vanilla

1/4 teaspoon Salt

1/4 teaspoon Cinnamon

1 pinch Nutmeg

1 pinch Cloves

1 pinch Cardamom

Instructions

(1) Soak rice in water for at least 3 hours (or overnight) before cooking. Drain.

(2) Steam rice in a bamboo basket or in a steaming basket covered with cheesecloth. Sweet rice should not be submerged in water. Steam, covered, for 40 minutes.

(3) As rice is steaming, combine remaining ingredients in a medium sized pot and combine over medium heat. Once coconut cream and sugar has melted, turn off heat. (Note: you can break up the palm sugar using a hammer or shred it, as I did, on a grater).

(4) When rice has finished steaming, scoop it into the sweet coconut mixture. Stir to combine and allow to sit, covered, for 5 -10 minutes.

(5) Enjoy! This dish is best when eaten immediately, but can be reheated.

Day 5 - Lemon Cashew Dip

2011-02-04T23:10:00.000-08:00

I have been on my cleanse for 5 days and coffee free for 7 days. I cannot believe it. I don't think I have spent more than two consecutive days coffee free since I started grad school in 2004.

Although, I have done cleanses before so that might be a lie.

I've probably just
blocked it out.

In any case, my organic food box arrived yesterday and I picked up a few additional supplies today, so week two of my cleanse is bound to be a bit more interesting than week one.

Today I Ate:

Breakfast

Green Tea

Melissa's Muesli

Lunch

Apple Parsnip Soup

Rye Wasa bread topped with peanut butter and honey (yum!)

Snack

Unsweetened, Soy-Milk, Tea Latte (my first trip to "the big green star" in a week, and it was good)

Apple

Dried apricots and cashews

Dinner

Rice crackers with Lemon Cashew Dip (see recipe below)

Salad (lettuce, beets, carrots, sunflower sprouts and hot-smoked honey salmon) with homemade dressing

Blackberry tea with honey

A handful of Chocolate chips (I can't seem to let go of this)

Bottom line: I am feeling pretty good about the cleanse today. I ate well and have more plans for the weekend.

I spent some money, but on necessities only.

Lemon Cashew Dip (Adapted from this recipe by Dreena Burton)

(1) Soak 1.5 cups of raw cashews in water overnight (covered, in the fridge).

(2) After soaking, place cashews in blender and add the rind and juice of one lemon, a scant 1/4 cup of water, salt to taste and pepper to taste.

(3) Puree for 2-3 minutes, scraping down the side of the blender as needed. Add more water 1 teaspoon at a time if required to achieve desired consistency.

(4) Serve with veggies and crackers or spread on bread.

(5) Enjoy!

Lemon Cashew Dip

Lemon Cashew Dip on Wasa Bread with Smoked Salmon

Days 2 through 4 - Roasted Greek Potatoes

2011-02-04T20:30:00.000-08:00

Well, I am still sticking to my wheat, sugar, dairy, egg free plan. I have not been caffeine free . . . I just can't do it. But, I haven't had any coffee and have only been drinking tea, which is much lower in caffeine than my usual espresso-based beverages.

I REALLY miss coffee.

Days 2 and 3 were very much like day 1 diet-wise. A few changes in soups and nut butters were about all I altered.

On Day 4 I ate:

Breakfast

Green Tea

Melissa's Muesli

Lunch

Rye Wasa Bread with Yam Hummus

Orange

Strawberry Apple Sauce

Snacks

Mixed pecans, rasins, dates, dried apricots and cacao nibs

Tortilla Chips

Dinner

Small Beef Tenderloin Steak

Greek Roasted Potatoes (See recipe below)

Blackberry tea with honey and lemon

A handful of chocolate chips (Ok, perhaps my sugar quota has not been perfect either!)

Bottom line: I really, really miss coffee. Aside from that, the cleanse hasn't been too difficult, but I am not yet sure if it is worth it.

I still haven't spent a cent!

Greek Roasted Potatoes

(1) Peel and chop potatoes into large chunks (using as many potatoes as you would like).

(2) Boil potatoes in salted water until they are soft (about 15-20 minutes).

(3) Toss boiled potatoes with Lemon Oil and Olive Oil (or olive oil and the juice of a lemon), salt, pepper and oregano.

(4) Spread potatoes on a parchment lined baking sheet in bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes (flipping halfway through). If potatoes are not light brown and crispy by this time, broil for 5 additional minutes (watch carefully!).

(5) Eat!

Day 1 - Melissa's Muesli

2011-01-31T19:21:00.000-08:00

Breakfast

Green Tea (not caffeine free, but as close as I am going to get)

Melissa's Muesli

1/2 cup oats

3/4 cup soy milk

1/4 cup apple sauce

6 chopped pecan halves

4 chopped dried apricots

1 tablespoon pumpkins seeds

1/8 teaspoon cinnamon

Combine well and refrigerate over night in a sealed container. Eat!

Lunch

Rye Wasa Bread with almond butter

Orange

Cucumber slices

Snack

Mixed pecans, rasins, dates, pumpkin seed and cacao nibs

Dinner

Red Onion Soup

Rye Wasa Bread with peanut butter

Pear

Dried Apricots dipped in chocolate (my sugar splurge)

Blackberry tea with honey and lemon

Bottom line: Not perfect, but I didn't spend a cent!

February: Frugal and Free

2011-01-29T11:40:00.001-08:00

I've decided to declare February a month dedicated towards "getting on top of things". In particular, I am going to focus on my health and my finances.

I haven't been feeling particularly well lately. I've been tired, my allergies are acting up as things start to bloom and I have developed HORRIBLE, EVIL tinnitus in one ear. In order to combat these issues, I've decided to a bit of a diet cleanse. I am not sure if this will help, but it certainly can't hurt. So, for at least 2 weeks, I will be FREE of:

* dairy, wheat, refined sugar

* eggs

* caffeine (Dear Coffee, I miss you already. I love you always, Espresso Girl)

I will also continue on with my goal of eating as locally and organically as possible.

On top of this, I am going to attempt to be FRUGAL and buy absolutely nothing for 30 days unless I really and truly need it. No magazines, no petit vanilla bean scones, no beautiful home decorating items from my favourite store. December and January are killer months for me financially. Not only do I have Christmas to contend with, but professional dues, cat sitter fees, RRSP repayment, and house insurance are all due. I need a frugal month to help me get on top of things again.

This financial and dietary cleanse will be hard, but I know I will feel so much better when it is done. And, I am going to work hard to make it fun too. I am looking forward to trying many new recipes and spending my free time using up my old fabric scraps on quilting projects.

Wish me luck!

The Weekend Homemaker

2011-01-29T10:45:00.001-08:00

My kitchen was very busy last weekend. I made almost everything that I planned and used up most of my food box!

In my food box, I had received: spinach, carrots, apples, potatoes, yams, rosemary, garlic, onions, sunflower sprouts, pears, oranges and lemons.

I used the oranges and lemon (plus an additional bag of Buck Brand organic oranges) to make this Citrus Pudding. Strange, but true. I was planning on eating it without whipped cream, but it was so bitter that I had to stir in some cream. Very, very orangy!

Of course, I also made my Baked Vanilla Pears. For, what would weekend of cooking be without baked pears?

I used the rosemary, red onions and yellow onions to make my stand-by Rebar Red Onion Soup. I freeze this soup in serving size portions and, when topped with some baguette slices and gruyere and broiled in the oven, it makes a delicious winter meal.

I also made my favourite chocolate chip cookies. These cookies bake up chewy rather than crunchy or cakey. Yum!

I made a simple cheese pizza to use up some leftover cheese and pizza sauce that had been hanging around my fridge.

Lastly, I did not yet around to making my planned cashew cheese, but did make this Sweet Potato (I used yams) Hummus and have been eating it for lunch all week. I wish I had not added quite so much garlic (my poor coworkers!), but it was otherwise delicious and is a definite keeper.

What's Cookin'?

2011-01-22T15:53:00.000-08:00

Here's what's going down in my kitchen this weekend as I prepare for the next two weeks:

* Vanilla Roasted Pears

* Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins

* (Vegetarian) French Onion Soup

* Sweet Potato Hummus (to be eaten with pita and vegetables)

* Cashew Cheese

* Pizza

* Warm Spinach Salad

* Citrus Pudding

* Chocolate Chip Cookies

And, it's 4:00 on Saturday and I haven't gotten started yet!

The Weekend Homemaker

2011-01-15T08:52:00.000-08:00

I think I spent about 80% of last weekend in the kitchen. My box of fruit and veggies had arrived on Thursday and needed dealing with. It contained: lettuce, carrots, parsnips, rainbow chard, sunflower sprouts, a lemon, apples, pears, potatoes, onions and beets. I also acquired spinach, basil and white wine (and cheese!) after a pizza night with the girls on Friday. I had to get to work and convert all of my colourful goodness to something edible (and freezable) as soon as possible!

Our pizza night started off with a lovely green salad with lettuce, sprouts, shredded carrots, shredded beets and pumpkins seeds. I always have trouble eating up my lettuce fast enough so I was glad for help! On Saturday morning, I roasted up my favourite Vanilla Pears and then I got to work on the rest:

The Rainbow Chard became . . .

Balsamic Chard.

The potatoes where chopped, boiled, tossed in lemon oil, oregano, salt and pepper and roasted in the oven. I don't eat a huge amount of potatoes, but this is my absolute favourite way to eat them when I do!

I used carrots and onion slices as a "rack" to roast a chicken on. Handy and delicious!

The final plate of goodness for dinner on Saturday night: roasted chicken, roast carrots and onions, balsamic chard and roasted potatoes.

On Sunday, I baked buns. This recipe has taken over as my favourite. All yeast bread recipes are pretty much the same so I don't know why this one is so good. It just is. I replaced one cup of white flour with whole wheat flour.

I also made Apple-Parnip Soup (taking care of most of the apples and all of the parsnips).

And I made basil pesto with the leftover pizza basil. This went directly into the freezer.

Last, but not least, I made two chicken casseroles using the leftover chicken from the roast. I made it the first time with spinach (also using up leftover wine and onions) and, it turned out so well, that I made it again with broccoli. This recipe is easy, tasty and super flexible.

At the time, I was wondering if spending almost my whole weekend in the kitchen was really worth it. But now, having spent a week without having to prepare meals, I know that it is. With the addition of frozen borsht and perogies, a few eggs and a couple of bowls of yogurt, I had plenty of food for last week, next week and maybe more.

This weekend? Shopping!

A Confession

2011-01-08T09:32:00.000-08:00

I have a confession to make. I seem to no longer be a vegetarian. I have been a "non-mammal eater" for about 20 years and was inspired to become a lacto-ovo vegetarian two years ago after reading Kathy Freston's Quantum Wellness. As, I have mentioned previously, I did eat local, free range turkey on special occasions but, aside from that, I never expected to be a meat eater again. In fact, I was even considering veganism.

Despite my desire to be a vegetarian, I came to conclusion that it wasn't quite working for me this past December. I have had increasing acid reflux over the past few years and had no idea why. I was continually lowering my fat intake and avoiding acid reflux culprits such as fried and spicy foods. I was popping tums constantly, but it still kept getting worse.

But then, for Thanksgiving, I ate turkey and the reflux went away. I didn't make the connection though - theoretically, a vegetarian diet should be good for reflux - and I continued with my regular diet. Then, in early December, I ate some Thanksgiving leftovers I had frozen. Again, the reflux went away. I returned to my vegetarian diet, the reflux returned. I made the connection. Finally.

Now, if acid reflux was nothing more than a bit of discomfort, I might have continued on with my meat-free diet. But, it isn't. Nope. So, I decided to return to an omnivore diet. And, once I made the change, I was relieved. I do feel a bit odd standing in the butcher shop and, at 34, I have realized that I have no idea how to cook meat. But, I feel comfortable with my decision. I still plan to eat primarily vegetarian meals and I am going to do my best to purchase non GMO, organic, local, free range animal products. Animal welfare is an important cause to me, but I don't see it as oppositional to meat eating. It just requires a little extra time, effort and money to make sure that what is good for me, is good for animals too.

In any case, as soon as I made the decision to become a meat eater again, all I could think was "steak". This was a shock to me as I think I have maybe eaten steak once or twice previously in my life. But, I went for it. I bought a cast iron frying pan, a lovely steak from the butcher and I made Nigella's Sake Steak with Rice. I didn't have to pop a tums for at least 36 hours following and I felt this strange feeling of fullness for at least a day (secondary bonus!). And, it was good.

My Polish Feast

2011-01-04T19:21:00.000-08:00

After spending Christmas with my parents, I retuned to home for my annual "week of nothing". I always intend to relax and rest during this week, but it usually ends up being a time for doing all those bits and pieces I usually don't have time to do . . . writing letters, painting doors, reorganizing closets and, this year, making a Polish feast.

My maternal grandfather was a Polish immigrant, but he died when my mom was young and she was raised by her very Scottish mother. I never really thought about this too much (in fact, I didn't even know I was part Polish until I was in my twenties), but I've become more interested in culture and food over the past few years. And, when one of my co-workers raved about her Hungarian Christmas Eve feast one day, I began to wonder what my family would have eaten, had Polish traditions been maintained. And so, I decided to give it a try and make myself a Polish dinner for New Year's Day.

I started with an unbelievably fuchsia coloured borsht. If anyone out there has vegetable adverse little girls, I think that this pink soup would be a hit!

Next, I made perogies. I was worried about the labour intensity of this task, but they were actually kind of fun to make.

First I made the dough.

Then I stuffed each pocket with a mixture of potato and cheese.

And then I ate them. Yum!

Lastly, I made makowiec, a sweet poppy seed cake. This recipe had quite a few steps, but it came together really nicely and I enjoyed the process.

To me, this dessert is more of a bread than a cake, but either way, it is delicious. I love poppy seeds and macowiec is certainly a way to get your fill!

I am not sure if I will make borscht again (I prefer my beets in their non-soup form), but I plan to keep homemade perogies and poppy seed cake in my repertoire. Food is so much more nourishing when it comes from a history and not from a box!

My Cupcakes are Famous!

2010-12-31T21:44:00.000-08:00

I am a faithful reader (viewer?) of The Lunch Box Project, a very cute food blog dedicated to not making, but painting, food. At the beginning of December, Lisa Orgler, of The Lunch Box Project, requested cupcake submissions for a cupcake poster she was planning on producing. I submitted my sweet little Spring Blossom Babycakes and, low and behold, they got selected!

My cupcakes in their original sweet glory.

My cupcakes are famous! And still looking very sweet.

The final, deliciously delightful, poster: Let Them Eat {Cup}cakes!

The poster is for sale on Etsy, a zero calorie treat for cupcake lovers everywhere.

Merry Christmas!

2010-12-24T21:21:00.000-08:00

May visions of sugarplums be dancing in your head tonight! Happy holidays from me (and Ollie) to you!

Christmas Cookies - Outrageous Chocolate

2010-12-22T18:48:00.000-08:00

So far, I've made my "must have Christmas cookie" and I've made my "most fun to make Christmas cookie". And now, I have also made my "absolute all-time-favourite cookie" - the Outrageous Chocolate Cookie. This cookie contains more chocolate than any other ingredient and you can taste it! They are chewy, dense treats and are basically brownies masquerading as cookies.

I made one regular batch and added crushed candy canes to a second batch (which are pictured here, but you can hardly tell that they contain candy cane pieces). And, almost impossibly, the Outrageous Chocolate Candy Cane Cookies are even better than the original! Yum!

The Food Box Chronicles

2010-12-20T15:53:00.000-08:00

I forgot to take pictures of my most recent food box creations. Between the baking and wrapping and cleaning and shopping . . . it's been a whirlwind of a week.

I made:

* African Yam Peanut soup (from the Rebar cookbook)

* Mashed potatoes and turnips

* Balsamic Spinach

* Roasted Squash and Blueberry Muffins

* Lemon Cashew Dip (omit garlic and add lemon zest)

* Blueberry Pancakes

I am now on a food box "break" for a couple of weeks over the Christmas holidays, a very good thing considering the amount of soup I have in my freezer!

Christmas Cookies - White Chocolate Candy Cane Drops

2010-12-18T11:48:00.000-08:00

A lot of people are surprised when I tell them that I put candy canes in cookies, but cookie + peppermint candy is a delicious combination. Plus, candy cane pounding can be an excellent stress reliever!

I usually make Candy Cane Shortbread, but decided to try something new this year when I found a recipe for White Chocolate Candy Cane Drops in Better Homes and Gardens' 100 Best Cookies issue. Very minty and very festive!

My one caution about the recipe is that it says it makes 50 cookies while my batch only made 22. I did make them larger than the recipe called for, but they were not huge and, even at half the size, 50 would be stretching it.

Stay tuned for my next minty recipe!

Christmas Cookies - Classic Sugar, Take Two

2010-12-14T19:11:00.000-08:00

After my first attempt at sugar cookies did not quite work out, I decided to go for it one more time.

And, it worked! Yay! No icing troubles here!

I cut my second batch as snowflakes and I must say that I love the white on white. I need to track down a more interesting snowflake cutter, but I think that snowflake sugar cookies will be a tradition from here on out.

The Weekend Homemaker

2010-12-11T09:18:00.000-08:00

I spent almost all of last weekend in the kitchen, cooking and baking my way through my last food box. I know that some people think that spending a weekend in the kitchen is ridiculous, but making food is very relaxing for me. It helps me to reconnect with myself and I eat so much healthier when I give myself this time. Also, a weekend in the kitchen means almost no cooking during the week! Lunches are a snap to prepare and I can get dinner on the table in under 15 minutes.

In my last food box, I received: pears, asian pears, apples, a lemon, carrots, a squash, a pomegranate, tomatoes, broccoli, potatoes and onions.

An onion, some carrots and some potatoes were used along with leftover thanksgiving turkey, lentils, peas and barley to make a turkey soup.

I roasted the squash . . .

And baked it into these lovely squash and pumpkin seed muffins.

I had a delicious snack of pomegranate and asian pear. I love pomegranates! They are a pain to eat, but worth the trouble.

I roasted tomatos. They will be used next weekend in another soup.

I made broccoli soup with the broccoli, an onion and potatoes. This recipe is so easy and dairy free!

Broccoli Soup

1. caramelize one chopped onion in olive oil

2. add one large thinly sliced potato and fry with onions and oil until soft

3. add 8 cups vegetable stock

4. add broccoli (I would say about 4 cups chopped) and bring to a boil

5. simmer until broccoli is soft and then puree with a hand blender

6. season with salt and pepper as desired

So good and so easy!

Lastly, I made my favourite vanilla roasted pears, using up the pears and the lemon. So good with yogurt or oatmeal!

My food boxes have gotten out of sync due to the upcoming Christmas holiday and another box has already arrived. It will be another weekend in the kitchen!

Christmas Cookies - Classic Sugar

2010-12-06T19:06:00.000-08:00

Last weekend was sugar cookie weekend! Sugar cookies are my favourite to make; they are practically edible art.

I used my regular Martha Stewart recipe.

I cut out many mittens, bows and trees.

I piped.

I flooded.

And I sprinkled.

Unfortunately, something went wrong with my Royal Icing (likely a speck of grease on a spoon or bowl) and it did not set properly. The cookies still taste good and look pretty (though not as pretty as I had planned), but they are bit too sticky to send to my parents and, as such, will be potluck cookies.

A vinegar bath awaits my baking supplies as I prepare for sugar cookie round two!

Christmas Cookies - Shortbread

2010-12-01T19:31:00.000-08:00

I can't believe another year has passed! I feel like 2010 has just begun and yet I began my Christmas baking last weekend. I plan to bake at least one cookie recipe per week for the next four weeks. Most of these goodies will go to my parents, but there will be plenty of leftovers for every visitor, work gathering and party over the next month.

I began with Basic Shortbread. While shortbread is not my favourite eating cookie, it is one treat that the Christmas season isn't complete without. Yum!

The Gift of Giving

2010-11-29T21:14:00.000-08:00

"To laugh often and much; to win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children . . . to leave the world a better place . . . to know that even one life has breathed easier because you have lived. This is to have succeeded."

~ one of my favourites, Ralph Waldo Emerson

I am a big fan of giving donations as Christmas gifts and, in past years, I have tended to donate to large NGOs such as Unicef, Oxfam and Plan Canada. But, over time, my desire to help the most vulnerable has led me to streamline my giving. I work with children with developmental disabilities and significant medical challenges and my heart belongs to these beautiful beings. Life can be hard for children with special needs here in Canada, where social, medical and therapeutic supports are available. Children in other countries are not always so lucky. Not only do many of these children lack access to appropriate therapies and medical support, they may be abandoned by their parents due to a disability or orphaned due to a terrible disease that they also carry.

You can spread a little love to the world's most vulnerable children this Christmas season by supporting the following organizations:

ChinaKidz - A Children's Hospice and Palliative Care Service for abandoned children. This hospice gives dying children comfort and love and helps to provide medical support for children with correctable medical conditions and non-life-threatening developmental conditions. You can sponsor a room, a cot or give a single donation.

Reece's Rainbow - Reece's Rainbow is an advocacy network and sponsorship program that promotes the adoption of children with Down syndrome. In some countries, children with Down syndrome are abandoned or relinquished at birth and institutionalized for life if not adopted. On Reece's Rainbow, you can donate money to sponsor the adoption of a particular child and, at Christmas time, you receive a Christmas tree decoration in exchange. The average cost to complete an international adoption of one of "Reece's angels" is $25,000 and every penny donated makes a difference to a waiting family and child!

Vulnerable Children's Society - VCS is new society that has recently taken over fundraising for Faya Orphanage in Ethiopia. Faya provides a permanent home for children living with and without HIV/AIDS in Adama, Ethiopia. In addition to orphans living at Faya, VCS also provides opportunities for you to sponsor HIV+ children and families living in Adama. At Faya, vulnerable children are fed, loved and cared for. In the community, vulnerable children and families are provided with basic necessities, health care and school supplies. These sponsorships allow children to remain with their families rather than being relinquished to an orphanage.

Even a small gift can make life easier for those living with nothing. Let's give these children some hope this December.

The Weekend Homemaker

2010-11-25T20:12:00.000-08:00

So, I was back in business last weekend, attempting to cook up all of the fruits and veggies in my food box. I think that I spent at least half the weekend in the kitchen while listening to the newest Elizabeth George novel on audiobook (I love audiobooks!).

The gnocchi with kale was delicious although the frozen leftovers don't cook up as nicely as the freshly made pasta.

The vanilla roasted pears, as usual, were fantastic. My dad was visiting and I served them to him for breakfast, on top of some Scottish oatmeal. It was an excellent combination.

The banana chocolate chip muffins turned out well and made yummy workday breakfasts that my coworkers greatly admired.

And lastly, the Apple Parsnip Soup was the perfect meal during a very wintry week. It made 10 servings and I have them all doled out here, ready to be popped in a lunch bag or warmed up for a quick dinner.

It was a great weekend's work and made my work nights very easy. This weekend I will be focusing on making some curtains, cleaning, and perhaps, starting my Christmas baking.

The Food Box Chronicles

2010-11-20T19:18:00.000-08:00

After a 6 month hiatus from my organic food box delivery as a result of a move and a lovely summer and fall spent purchasing my goods from my neighbourhood farmer's market, I have finally resumed purchasing food boxes. My first one arrived on Thursday and I am so excited to see what new meals I will discover as I try to eat through each box!

This week I received: apples, onions, parsnip, pears, sunchokes, bananas, celery, kale and salad mix. My plans for all of these lovely fruits and veggies?

gnocchi with kale (kale)
vanilla baked pears (pears)
apple-parsnip soup (apples, parsnips and onions)
chocolate-chip banana muffins (bananas)
salads with celery and salad mix (with some celery left for snacking)

The sunchokes? I have no idea . . . even after searching google for recipes, nothing appeals. I think that this vegetable may be going the way of the kiwi and the avocado (which reside on my "never send" list). If you are familiar with this tuber, please advise.

I love my root veggies, but what the heck?

I Like Bread and Butter

2010-11-13T11:19:00.000-08:00

Have you ever asked yourself silly food questions? You know, what would I eat for my last meal? What meal could I eat every day for the rest of my life if I had to pick just one?

Well, for me, it would be bread. I love bread in every shape and flavour. I especially love homemade bread and, in my effort to follow my food rules, I have been baking my own more regularly. I am not quite sure if this leads to healthier eating or not, but the process makes me value every slice.

For a long time, my favourite recipe has been Simple Whole Wheat Bread. It makes a lot of bread and is very tasty. Last weekend, I made a regular loaf, 12 buns and a small loaf of cinnamon raisin bread all with one recipe (pictured). However, I recently discovered a recipe I like even better: French Bread (Rolls). They stay lovely and soft for days after baking and are delicious, even with 50% whole wheat flour.

Of course, bread wouldn't be my winning meal without butter and homemade strawberry jam or butter and cheese (and maybe pickles). Mmmm.

What meal could you eat every day for the rest of your life?

Milk Glass

2010-11-12T10:22:00.000-08:00

I love milk glass. Some of the styles are a little "much" for my taste, but the cool white simplicity of pressed glass is right up my alley. And while milk glass has increased in price as it becomes a collectors item, it is still fairly inexpensive. I have been admiring several pieces of milk glass on Ebay and Etsy for the past few months, but couldn't quite justify the shipping costs, which were usually more than the glass itself. Happily for me, my favourite consignment shop, Good Things, has just reopened after a long (very long) closure for renovations. And, they usually have a nice little selection of milk glass. My recent purchases included:

This sweet little creamer and sugar bowl set.

Aren't they cute?

And this little vase.

I think the vase would look lovely with some very full tea roses or a couple of peonies. Unfortunately, I am allergic to pretty much every plant on the planet and cannot tolerate flowers inside, but I feel that just having a few vases around gives the suggestion of flowers, which I love.

I can't wait to expand my collection!

Surprise!

2010-11-05T22:34:00.000-07:00

After about 4 hours of some serious picking and choosing and rearranging, I have managed to renovate my blog! Yay!

I had loved my old template, designed by Gisele Jaquenod, but I was ready for something new and she is no longer designing free templates. So, I decided to go it alone this time and used the new blogger template designer along with some personalizing modifications.

I am sure that there are more changes to come, but I'm glad that I've made it through the "messy" stage of the clean up.

Happy Halloween!

2010-10-31T09:28:00.000-07:00

Orange and Black Cupcakes

2010-10-30T15:10:00.000-07:00

It has been a big week of Halloween Festivities! It all began with "Gouls Night Out" at a house of a coworker. We got our palms read (very cool) and I made my favourite spooky martini, the Dark Night (see recipe below). The next day, I joined some friends and their families for some pumpkin carving fun. I brought my Orange and Black cupcakes. They have a brownie bottom and are toped with orange flavoured (and coloured) buttercream. Yum! And finally, we dressed up at work on Wednesday for a costume competition between teams. My team got together to make our own fascinator hats and we went as "mad hatters". We didn't win, but I loved our team craftiness!

Dark Night Martinis

- Shake just over 1 oz Black Sambuca

- With just under 1 oz Bailey's Irish Cream

- And 4-6 ice cubes

- Pur into a martini glass and add two maraschino cherries

Pumpkin Waffles

2010-10-24T19:26:00.000-07:00

I do not care for the texture of squash, but I love the flavour of pumpkin and mix it in to anything from muffins and cupcakes to pancakes and oatmeal. A few weeks ago, I made my first attempt at pumpkin waffles. I would have liked a stronger pumpkin flavour, but they are definitely worth a repeat! Any type of squash or sweet potato could be used in place of the pumpkin.

I (heart) Leftovers!

2010-10-17T13:28:00.000-07:00

What more could you ask for than creamed onions, turkey, stuffing, pickles and orange cranberry sauce all piled on freshly baked buns?

Happy Thanksgiving: One week later

2010-10-16T12:59:00.000-07:00

My Thanksgiving dinner went off without a hitch. After spending most of last Saturday and Sunday cooking, I had almost everything prepared before my brother and his girlfriend arrived. I even pulled out my turkey napkins!

The brined turkey was lovely, I will certainly try that again, despite the fact that hauling around an 18 pound turkey and several litters of brine is no easy task!

Items slowly piled up on the counter as my brother carved the turkey - stuffing, mashed potatoes (with and without dairy), gravy, cranberry sauce, rosemary carrots . . .

. . . buns, creamed onions and sweet potato casserole.

Finally, it was all laid out on my counter and stove for serving (my table is too small for more than two people, never mind all the food). We heaped our plates and even went back for seconds. It was all delicious! I have now eaten turkey soup for a week and have my freezer stocked to the brim with leftovers. Plenty for a Thanksgiving redux in November :)

Brown Butter Pumpkin Cupcakes with Cinnamon Cream Cheese Icing

2010-10-13T10:22:00.000-07:00

I can't remember the last time I made cupcakes, it seems that I have been on some sort of unintentional cupcake hiatus. But, that has ended and cupcake season has arrived! One potluck down, one potluck and two halloween parties to go! I don't think I will make cupcakes for each gathering, but you never know.

In any case, I started off cupcake season with these delicious beauties, Brown Butter and Pumpkin Cupcakes with Cinnamon Cream Cheese Icing. The brown butter added a lovely fall toastyness and cream cheese icing is always a winner in my book. They were a hit!

The 0.001 Mile Diet

2010-10-11T22:19:00.000-07:00

I grew this lettuce right on my very own balcony!