January 2012
2 posts
4 tags
4 tags
November 2011
1 post
A goal
I got a complaint about my lack of posts. Yay - I have a fan (thanks, Boone)!
Sometimes it’s hard for me to stay on my happy theme for my “happy place.” Especially on gray and stormy days. The Fall/Winter time can be a gloomy time for me, but I can’t even really use that as an excuse because it’s been a better than usual fall. Take this photo I took last Friday as...
October 2011
3 posts
1 tag
Double Trouble Pumpkin Pie
I love pumpkin pie. This year for Thanksgiving, our dessert was ice cream cake to get in some belated birthday celebrations… they’re such sweet birthday boys, so I can’t begrudge them depriving me of my pumpkin pie (I guess).
Last night I made my first attempt at a traditional pumpkin pie. I’ve made some yummy pumpkin cheesecakes before, but after trying this, I think...
Oh man, I love these
This was one of the very first things I ever made for dinner when I was a wee girly. I still love it to this day. Will wasn’t too crazy about it for some reason. I took it as a personal offense. The next day, he said he liked them more. Oh Will.
I think this recipe was originally from a Canadian Living cookbook as Tomatoes Provincial.
Here’s what you do:
Cut some tomatoes in half...
1 tag
What should I call this?
Ok here’s what went down with the fenugreek adventure last week:
First, I gathered some ingredients:
Fenugreek
Ground beef
1 Onion
1 Eggplant
Garlic
Zataar (get this spice! It’s so good!)
Then, I washed and cut everything up and started cooking it up on high heat in my wok.
I started with these things and let them brown.
Then I added the rest of the ingredients:
When...
September 2011
2 posts
Flourless Chocolate Hazelnut (or Almond!) Torte
This post is for Shauna! I learned this recipe last Fall when I went to a French Mint cooking demonstration with my dad. This is when the above photo was taken. When Chef Castro made the torte, he used roughly chopped toasted hazelnuts. He also used real vanilla beans for the whipped cream. I made the torte myself a few weeks ago for my friend’s birthday. I used ground almonds and vanilla...
What's been taking up my time
Sorry for my lack of posts. My excuse is that I’ve been preoccupied with the renovation going on down in my basement suite. Even though I didn’t have to do too much of the work myself (at all), I still found the whole process quite draining. I’m really happy with the end result though. Now I’m dreaming about one day getting to gut my bathroom upstairs, fixing up the laundry...
August 2011
2 posts
July 2011
5 posts
1 tag
June 2011
4 posts
Cooking D.I.Y
I found this article a few months back. It got me really revved up to try and make a few of these pantry items for myself. At the same time, how many jars of preserved lemons does one need?
With that, I put out a call to any interested parties, and was able to recruit a couple friends to come help and then take home a share of the product.
Shauna was my trusty citrus chopper and Sarah also...
Oh hello, pancakes
Buckwheat pancakes topped with stewed vanilla peaches and a dollop of vanilla yogurt
I need more pancakes in my life. These were so yummy! The peaches were the last of the harvest I’d frozen from our peach tree last year. I stewed them with sugar, vanilla, and a little bit of rum.
1 tag
Fiddleheads with Alfredo Sauce
There’s something about fiddleheads, maybe because they are available so briefly, that I find them such a treat.
I served these bad boys up last week with just a jar of alfredo sauce over pasta. It was a nice, simple, mid-week treat.
Also, because Will needs his meat, I grilled up a lamb shank. It was a weird cut of meat that I’d never tried before, but it was pretty tender. I cut...
May 2011
10 posts
A skill...
I’ve tried to ride my bike in a skirt before, but it hasn’t fully worked out for me yet.
The last time I attempted, everything was going fine until it was time to dismount: My skirt tangled around the seat, essentially tying my butt onto the bike and I ended up falling sideways. I’m sure it was a very funny thing to witness, but my ego was definitely brused.
What is the...
1 tag
Cooking Demo
I love attending cooking demos. They’re fun, educational, and delicious.
The most recent one I went to was with my buddy Shauna. It was put on by The London Chef, Dan Hayes, and was called La Dolce Vita - Amalfi Coast.
The demo was put on in the Monterey Community Centre. Just based on location, it was probably the worst demo I’ve been to: it was tiny, crowded, and hard to get a good...
1 tag
Roasting
We had my dad and brother over for dinner last Thursday. It was a really nice night. One thing I really enjoy is getting to spend time with my family. It can be hard, everyone is always so busy, but when it happens, it’s like happiness-pie (note: no actual dessert was served - I’m the only one who actually enjoys it).
I cooked up buttermilk roasted chicken, roasted potatoes and...
Important Safety Announcement: Fire Extinguishers
Ok. This is a totally random subject for me, I know.
Yesterday I attended a lesson on how to use a fire extinguisher. I had a great time - except for the part where they showed us live footage from this 1985 soccer disaster. It was awful to watch, but I think it helped give me a healthy dose of fear. I really enjoy a roaring beach fire or a cozy one in my fireplace. I had no real sense of how...
Note to Self: Go for brunch at The Superior again!
I’ve been to The Superior bunches of times, but this was my first brunch. The prices were actually on the same level as most other brunchy places I often go to and the food was delicious, so what’s keeping me from going again? We went at around 12 the day before Mother’s Day, so it wasn’t busy in there either.
Everything on the menu looked so good that we were feeling a...
1 tag
Jane's Walk: Urban Eco Tour
Last Saturday, I attended a Jane’s Walk in James Bay. We strolled around for two hours listening to stories about nature and the history of the area. I love that kind of stuff.
Here are some photos I snapped during the walk:
Notice anything in this picture?
Hungry seals!
The light was filtering through the trees in such a lovely way. I wish I could have better captured it.
Two...
1 tag
Chocolate Cake with Dark Chocolate Ganache
This was the first cake I made in a looooong time - I was feeling a bit anxious and a bit excited about making it for my good friend’s birthday last Friday. It turned out pretty good. It was super-sweet, but hey, it’s a birthday cake - right?
Also, I don’t have a lot of skills in the decorating department, but it still turned out okay. It looked a lot prettier in slice form...
1 tag
April 2011
6 posts
2 tags
4 tags
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Soup Diet
I wanted to give myself a little kick-start to lightening up before I get back on with my biking/gym summer routine. I know diets are not really a good thing to do, but it has been working for me. I got the recipe here. I didn’t get any after pictures, but I did record the preparation, because it was pretty crazy the amount of veggies that went into this soup.
A giant bowl full of...
Spring
Spring in Victoria…it’s creeping its way in. It makes me happy, even if it has been a slow arrival.
Our peach tree blossoms. I sprayed the tree this year to prevent black spot. It rained soon after, so I don’t know if it’ll help. Here’s hoping!
I planted the bulbs I found lying around at the Sooke Harbor House back in December and they are starting to pop up! I...
5 tags
Garage Door & Basement
Well, it can take a loooong time to have your brother do a renovation for you, but I have to say, he did a fabulous job ;)
Thanks, Ryan!
Before & Afters:
Standard issue 1940s garage door
Custom door made with lots of love and care
I forgot to get a good before shot of the inside. You can still see the weird original reno where they just drywalled the inside of the garage door and...
March 2011
8 posts
1 tag
Shopping
I am not much of a shopper, but I have been buying a lot of things this month.
First there was a floppy sunhat I bought online:
Then there were these earrings (for a friend):
Then a black jersey dress (I forgot to save a picture of it) and these sandals
And then all those pictures I posted about earlier this week.
And then last night I did some real life shopping:
I loooooove this...
1 tag
Art...and Will...
I hung up all my frames on Monday night. It was soo quick and easy! I am pretty happy with it. The wall was much too bare before.
I then spent much longer than I should have online looking for new pictures to put in my frames (Will says it’s because I have an assignment due and this is a symptom of procrastination).
Here are some of the goodies I found (you can click on the pictures to...
1 tag
2 tags
Hanging Pictures
After reading this post last week, I felt a bit inspired to finish hanging the pictures on my dining room wall. Picture hanging is something that makes me feel a bit nervous and the last time I needed some mirrors hung, I ended up snagging my brother and getting him to do the work for me.
The paper on the wall trick is something Martha had told me about before (yes, she emails me handy tips every...
2 tags
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February 2011
12 posts
2 tags
Sweet Potato Ravioli in Cheese Broth
These babies were so tasty, I forgot to take a photo of the final product!
(I ganked this one from a Google search - gotta say, I did a better job of julienning our green onions. I also modified the recipe to make less cheese broth. My version was more buttery and only needed a little drizzle)
The recipe is from The Frankies Spuntino Kitchen Companion. I’ll definitely be making them...
3 tags
Almost March!
In Victoria, March is Springtime for me. Daffodils and snowdrops start shooting out of the ground and the cherry blossoms appear to start fighting off the winter grays.
I decided it was time to take down my Winter theme and start something fresh. This is what I came up with:
It doesn’t feel finished yet…
Then, about three days later, Winter came to let us know she’s not...
2 tags
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Pulled Pork Tacos
Another easy and delicious meal thanks to my trusty slow-cooker ;)
Here are the ingredients you’ll need for the pulled pork
1/2 cup lime juice
1/4 cup grapefruit juice
1/4 cup water (next time I’ll use stock)
2 bay leaves
1 t dried oreano
1/2 t salt
1/2 t cumin
1/4 black pepper
3 loves garlic, minced
1 3-pound boneless pork shoulder roast (I used pork...
3 tags
3 tags
Happy Valentine's Day!
I made these for a Love Breakfast with my buds yesterday. They’re biscuits from that Clinton St. Baking Company cook book. Everything in there turns out so homey and yum.
Will, Boone, and I also made some brownies from that book last night. They turned out really nicely too (sorry, no photo!).
Here’s the recipe for the biscuits (this is for 6):
Whole Wheat Buttermilk Biscuits
1...