Cinnamon Bun French Toast

I found these photos lurking about on my computer so I thought I'd share this with you. This is from last year, the fall I think, before the baby was born. I met up with Mary and Stephanie online and we made cinnamon buns. They were delicious, although don't ask me for the recipe, I have no idea where it came from. I think I made 12 buns, which is a lot for 2 people, even when one of those is ginormously pregnant and so when the last few started to go stale I decided to make them into french toast, just to do something different.

I cut the buns in half through their middles:

And whisked together some eggs, milk, vanilla and cinnamon, in which I briefly soaked the buns.

I cooked them as you do "regular" french toast - over medium heat until golden brown on both sides.

Smeared with a little butter and some maple syrup, they were a delicious, and a little different, breakfast.

3 ingredients - Pineapple Batido

Pineapple Batido

1 cup diced fresh pineapple
1/2 cup skim milk
1 tsp sugar

Place all ingredients in a blender and puree until smooth.

source unknown

Grocery Shop, July 25

Milk, Clamato, organic bananas, organic apples, peaches, snow peas, organic cauliflower, plums, english muffins, corn, cherries, organic prunes.
Total $29.27
Saved $9.22

I stopped by the store this morning because I needed milk, and Paxton is almost out of food (frozen in the Baby Cubes). The bananas, apples, cauliflower and prunes are for him - I'll cook and freeze the last 3 and the bananas will just be mushed on an as needed basis. I also cut some rhubarb from the garden this morning and will stew that and maybe mix them with some apple for him.

It's blisteringly hot here and our garden is complete crap. Our lettuce and onions didn't even sprout, our tomato plants look awful, as do our strawberries and raspberries. The peas aren't doing too bad, and I'm holding out hope for the carrots.

Again, I am not a Babe. Again.

Ugh. 2 months in a row I've not baked the bread of my Bread Baking Babes. I'm not going to let it hit 3.

Please check out the Babes (listed over on the LEFT now) and see what they thought of this months bread - Yeasted Sprouted Wheat Bread from Lynn at Cookie Baker Lynn. It seems like a really interesting bread, and I hope we get lots of Buddies that try it.

Now, 2 pieces of news about the Bread Baking Babes.

First, we've committed ourselves to a schedule. So every month we'll be posting about the bread on the 16th, and every month buddies have until the 29th. Very sensible.

Second, we've grown! Please say a big hello to our 4 new Babes -
Elizabeth from blog from OUR kitchen
Elle from Feeding My Enthusiasms
Astrid from Paulchens FoodBlog
Susan from Wild Yeast

We're getting bigger, better and funner!

Happy Friday

The French Women Don't Get Fat Cookbook

A few years ago a book came out that grabbed the interest of people (me included) looking to drop a few pounds - French Women Don't Get Fat. The book, which offered tips on how to eat well - very well - and be a healthy weight was a sensation. Finally after a few years wait Mirelle Guiliano is back with a companion book of recipes, The French Women Don't Get Fat Cookbook.

Sadly for me, I am still in the position I was a few years ago, still chubby (but a little less though!), and still looking for advice and tips to shed these dammed extra pounds. After quite a while of gaining and losing the same weight over and over again, it finally dawned on me what my biggest problem is. I like to cook. I like to eat. And while I want to lose weight and be healthy, I don't want be stuck on a restrictive diet, eating the same 2 or 3 things over and over again. Because I'll rebel. Big time.

If you're a dork like me, or just interested in really good food that is also good for you, you'll want to see this book.

This book is about eating well, about eating healthfully. About not starving yourself and not sacrificing the good things in life. The author is passionate about food and her recipes are delicious proof.

I love the design of the book - the illustrations are charming, and the writing is witty and easygoing. It has the feel that the author is sitting in the chair next to you, sharing tips over coffee.

For my review I tried 3 recipes:

Asparagus with yogurt dressing


Chicken en Croute Fiona Style


Sweet and Sour Carrot Salad



There is no other way for me to express how I felt about these recipes, other than to say OH MY GOD OH MY GOD. The dishes were delicious. The recipes were easy to prepare and the instructions were clear. Did I mention they were delicious? These recipes are all healthful with natural unprocessed ingredients.

I would recommend this book to well, everyone, for the simple delicious recipes. There is something in here for all palates, whether dieting or not.

Mighty Life List - Make a Pavlova

Some people may have scratched their heads if they'd seen number 39 on my life list - make a pavlova. Because it turns out that a pavlova is easy. Ridiculously easy. It's just egg whites and sugar! Which I knew, but I didn't KNOW. If you know what I mean. No?

Anyhoo, I found this recipe in a recent Food Network Magazine, a Chocolate Raspberry Pavlova from Nigella Lawson.





It was, as I said, insanely easy. And also quite delicious. If I were to make this again (and I might, but first I want to try her pavlova with passionfruit) I would bake it slightly less, maybe 5 to 10 minutes. I also cut back on the whipping cream by half; that just seemed like way too much.

Gazzzzzzzzzzpacho!

It's getting hot in here.....so make some gaz-pach-o!


2 green onions, trimmed and sliced
1 red bell pepper
1 cucumber, peeled and seeded
2 cups V8 or tomato juice
2 cloves garlic
salt and pepper
Worcestershire sauce
lime juice
hot sauce

Place the onions, half the bell pepper, half the cucumber, 1 cup of juice and the garlic in a food processor or blender. Process until smooth and pour into a bowl. Finely dice the remaining bell pepper and cucumber and add to the bowl with the other cup of V8. Season to taste with salt and pepper, W sauce, lime juice and hot sauce. Cover and chill a few hours before serving.

Fix It and Forget It Cookbook

The Fix It and Forget It Cookbook by Phyllis Pellman Good - newly revised and updated - contains 700 recipes for your slow cooker, from breads to drinks to appetizers, mains and more.

As someone who has very little imagination when it comes to my slow cooker a book like this is a great addition to my kitchen. With so many recipes you are bound to find recipes that appeal.

This is a no frills cookbook. There are no photos of finished dishes, no rambling chapter or recipe introductions. Recipes come 2 to 3 to a page. Each recipe comes with serving amounts, prep times, cooking times, and what size of crock pot is ideal. Most have serving suggestions, and some have variations to change up the dish.

The book is peppered (hee hee) with tips and tricks for cooking with crock pots.

I've made 4 recipes from the book so far:

page 208 Sausage Bean Quickie - sausages, beans, and pineapple with a cooking time of 1 to 10 hours. Nice and simple. Delicious.

page 197 One Dish Chicken Supper - this was my favorite! It's like a turkey dinner in a crock pot. Chicken breasts are cooked with cream of mushroom, chicken or celery soup and stove top stuffing. If you ever want a Christmassy dinner without the fuss, make this.

page 40 Taco Soup with Whole Tomatos - another winner. Southwest flavors - beans, corn, onions - without standing over the stove all day.

page 169 Pizza in a Pot - we took the advice of the serving suggestion for this one and served this sausage-y cheesy dish over noodles. Filling and hearty.

The servings in all the recipes are very generous. The taco soup serves 4, I got 8 servings out of it. Ditto with the chicken supper. But when it's a good meal, leftovers are very welcome.

Some people may complain that this book relies heavily on processed food - cream soups, gravy mix, velveeta. Yes, there are plenty of recipes that call for such convenient ingredients. But there are plenty that don't. (Personally, I am fond of occasional sauces made with canned cream of mushroom soup.) Many many recipes are full of healthy wholesome ingredients, and most have no added oil.

I would wholeheartedly recommend the Fix It and Forget It Cookbook for anyone who owns a crock pot. And if you don't, pick one up while you're out buying this book.

Happy Canada Day, and grocery shop June 30

Happy Canada Day to all my fellow Canadians! In BC and Ontario we don't have much to celebrate, as the HST kicks in today, costing us all more money in taxes. You know, just what we need in a recession. And to bring it in on Canada Day? What a kick in the arse.

Moving on! I finally remembered to take a grocery shop photo again.


This is yet another mish mash, I have meals planned for today, last nights dinner, and one more dinner, and the rest is just what it is. We've got -
salsa, eggos, plums, organic frozen peas for the baby, bacon, ground chicken, bell peppers, cucumber, cottage cheese, chips (for Canada Day), ice cream, sushi, juice, steak, hash browns, tomatos, onions, relish, strawberries, sausages, fresh basil, and steak spice.

Our freezer is just jam packed of I don't know what, so I want to work on eating some of the frozen fruit and veggies in there.

Total for the above $88.86. The store I went to doesn't show you your savings on the bill, which sucks.

I'm planning on trying 3 or 4 new recipes today. Hopefully of course they will all turn out, and if they do I'll be sharing with you soon.