Book Club - The Cook And The Gardener by Amanda Hesser

"Despite rain and cold, our minds turn toward lighter thoughts of sun, flowers, fresh air, even the prosaic prospect of wearing less clothing."

"We entered the long, narrow garden through a delicate wrought-iron arch tangled with climbing roses.  Her garden does not open up and show itself all at once.  It is filled with caches and surprises."

"The hunters are given the forest one day a week, but that is all.  It is mushroom season, after all."

__________________________

I bought this years ago after I read her other book Cooking for Mr. Latte.  I had to special order The C&G and it took months to show up......and it has sat on various shelves ever since.  I read it for the Summer Reading Challenge Category Picked at random off the library shelf, but instead of off the library shelf, if was picked from my own shelf. 
It was ok.  I liked Cooking for Mr. Latte much better.

Something I Like - To Laugh and Learn

I love all the above people and their projects and you might too, if you don't already.

I won't talk about them individually other than to say that Nanette by Hannah Gadsby is so powerful and amazing.  It should be required viewing for EVERYONE. 

Book Club - Vinyl Cafe Unplugged by Stuart McLean

"The two of them thew their snowballs at almost the same moment, and they both laughed in wonder when they collided in mid-air, spraying snow like a shower of icy fireworks through the silence of the night."

"Dave smiled and looked back at the letter in front of him.

I will go out and visit them after supper, he added

And I will write again soon.

Love, he wrote.

Love, Dave"

"Love never ends."

___________________________________

I bought this book early this year because I thought that one of the stories in it had a quote that I wanted to use for my Mom's memorial folder at her service.

I couldn't find the quote I wanted - I remembered the story wrong, so I put the book aside for a while before reading it.  
When the Summer Reading Challenge came along I picked this one for By a Canadian Author.
 

The Good, The Good and The Ugly.

I made these muffins to use up some apples that were on the cusp of becoming inedible - I was very pleased with how they turned out, and as you'll see in a moment, they saved my bacon..... 

But first -

I've altered this a bit from a recipe saved from Taste of Home

Apple Pie Muffins

3/4 cup packed brown sugar

1/3 cup canola oil

1 large egg

1 cup buttermilk

2-1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp nutmeg

2 cups chopped and peeled apples

For the tops -

1/3 cup packed brown sugar

1/4 tsp cinnamon

2 tsp butter, melted

Preheat oven to 350'. 

Beat together the brown sugar, oil and egg.  Mix in the buttermilk. Add in flour, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt.  Stir to combine, and then add the chopped apples.  

Spoon into muffin cups, about 2/3 full.

Mix brown sugar, cinnamon and butter. Spoon onto muffins.

Bake 18-22 minutes until done.

I also made these Brown Butter Cinnamon Crinkle Cookies for a Sunday dinner.  I didn't have any chocolate to make chocolate chip cookies (always the favorite around here) so I hunted down something new, and it was a surprise hit with the fam.  Try them here.

Lastly, I made a batch of Dorie Greenspan's brownies for a bake sale.  The morning of the sale I went to remove them from the pan and they were stuck SOLID.  I frantically pried and chiseled at them for a while before having to accept defeat.  I think a bunch of stuff went wrong with this batch - I should have used parchment paper in the pan, our new(ish) oven is a bit finicky and I think I baked them too long, and I wonder if using up the bits and bobs I had of chocolate - milk, dark, and white - could have factored in?  No idea.  But there was no way I could take these to the bake sale and I didn't want to show up empty handed, so instead I packed up 6 of the apple muffins from the top of the post and took those instead. 

Thank goodness for extra baking the freezer!

Coffee Shake

I don't like coffee. I don't know if I've mentioned that before, but it's true.

 I don't drink hot coffee in any form and never have.

For a while I would have the very rare frappuccino from Starbucks, but not often - they are so rich - and a Ice Cap from Tim Horton's occasionally.

During my last pregnancy we had to drive to Vancouver for some hospital appointments and my treat for having to sit in a car for hours, go get poked and prodded and then drive hours back home was a sausage and cheese mcmuffin from McDonald's and a small ice cap from Tim Hortons. Memories!

While I was on maternity leave I indulged in Ice Caps a little more often, then stopped after the caffeine started making me queasy, but then started up again.

And so here I am, with a kinda sorta Ice Cap habit that I am trying to break for both the sake of my wallet AND my chubby little bod.

Speaking of my bod, a medium ice cap has 360 calories, 15 grams of fat and 47 grams of sugar. Eeeeeeeeeek.

So I've been experimenting with making my own coffee shake at work in the mornings.

I have my Magic Bullet from Christmas 2008 (!!!) base at work  so in the mornings I fill my cup with the ingredients except the ice, which goes into a plastic bag, and then at work I whizz it up.

It is definitely less decadent than a store bought drink, but it still feels like a treat.

1 cup milk

1 tb brown sugar

2 tb cocoa powder

1 tb instant coffee

handful ice cubes

Mix.  Whizz.

I threw the ingredients into a calorie calculator and here's what it said to me - 

192 calories, 6 grams of fat and 24 grams sugar.  

Not bad, and definitely better than the drive thru options.

Book Club - The Death of Mrs. Westaway by Ruth Ware

'Never believe it, Hal.  Never believe your own lies.'

_____________________________________

I borrowed this from My Boo to fill the Mystery or Suspense Novel category in this Summers Reading Challenge.  It was good, a bit suspenseful, and a nice change of pace from all the self help and biographies I have waiting for me.

Sausage and Orzo

I found this recipe at Frugal Girl, and it was a hit with The Mister and me. Not the kids. 

 Nothing is a hit with the kids. 

Ever. 

I am defeated. 

 But! If you like orzo, and if you like sausage, you should try this dish. 

It's quick and delicious you could swap in and out whatever veggies you please. 

I used green beans because I had 'em, but pretty much any veg would be super in this. 

Meatless would be grand too.

I am a big orzo fan and we don't eat it enough. Gotta change that. 

Recipe: Orzo with sausage and asparagus

Adult Summer Reading Club 2018

I'm late on this one, July is more than half gone (whaaaaaat) but here is the list for Summer 2018 from the TNRD Library.  Go here for all their details on the challenge.

Same as the past 2 years, I am not giving myself a time frame to get these done, but maybe hopefully all in 2018?

Here is this years list -

A Staff  Pick
A Book With A One Word Title
An Adventure Story
By A Canadian Author
Picked At Random Off A Library Shelf
Originally Published In A Foreign Language
Re-Read A Favorite
A Travel Book About A Place You've Never Been
An E Book or E Audio Book
A Book Published in 2018
A Biography or Memoir
Readers Choice
Published In The Decade You Were Born
Juvenile Or Young Adult
Adapted Into A Movie
A Banned Or Challenged Book
A Mystery Or Suspense Novel
A Book About Sports
A Cookbook - Try A New Recipe

Sunday Dinner - Crock Pot Kahlua Pig

I bought a two pack of port butts at Costco so I could make some pulled pork this summer.  I immediately thought of the Kalua Pig we made years ago, but surprisingly I no longer have Hawaiian salt in the cupboard or banana leaves in the freezer.  Instead I used this spectacular recipe for crock pot Kalua Pig from Nom Nom Paleo.  Truly delicious.

I have used both butts up now with that recipe, one for a Sunday Dinner and one when we had some family in town to visit.  I don't recall if we added the optional garlic cloves the first time, but we did the second time.  Can't say for sure if it added anything extra, but garlic never hurts.

Everything about this recipe is super.  Give it a try this summer.

Smackdown - Banana Bread

Nearly 4 years after the last Smackdown, and now I've posted 2 within a couple of months!  

Whaaaaat???

Here we come with - Banana Bread.

 Banana bread and smoothies are the only way I will eat bananas - it took me years and years to enjoy them those ways.  Out of the peel?  I won't eat 'em.  Bleh.

Banana bread is something that once I did start to eat I was still "meh" about, until I discovered the banana bread in Cookin with Coolio which is really the best banana bread ever.

Or is it?

 Coolio has previously battled on Smackdown - and won - a chicken battle.  Today he is up against another of my faves - Chrissy Teigan and her Banana Bundt Bread.

First up - Coolio.  The first thing I have to tell you is the my copy of his book is falling apart at the recipe for this bread because I have made it so many times.  

His bread is made in a standard loaf pan, and is ready in an hour (plus cooling time).  It's a pretty basic one - sugar, honey, butter, eggs, banana, flour.   Classic.

In the other corner is Chrissy Teigen's banana bundt bread.  This story was all over twitter for a while when Chrissy was testing the recipe for her next book and was looking for someone who had ripened bananas they would give to her.  The story was funny and the recipe piqued my interest - coconut and chocolate in banana bread???

This one veers away from being traditional (for me); beside the coconut and chocolate there is also vanilla pudding mix, which is something I am pretty sure I've never baked with before.  This also fills up a big bundt pan - this is a huge cake. 

The Verdict -Coolio wins it with his classic loaf.  Chrissy's is also delicious (dark chocolate FTW) but there is just so much going on - if you want a basic 'nana bread, Coolio is the one.  Feeling fancy?  Go with CT.

Other Smackdowns - 

Chocoloate Chip Cookies

Drop Biscuits

Sneaky Mac n Cheese

Chicken Thighs

Simple Potatos

Rachael Ray vs Sandra Lee - 2 - Beef

Rachael Ray vs Sandra Lee - 1 - Pasta

Book Club - The Break by Katherena Vermette

"But her fifties feel exactly like her forties - everything just hurts more."

"She would always hold my hand so hard, like she wanted me to know she'd never let go, so hard I could feel the bones in them.  I think she holds hands like that so we would know how much she loves us."

"The dead don't hang on, the living do.  The dead don't have anything to hang on to."

"Tommy wishes he could look at her with the same kind of pity but he knows better.  She would catch him and then go off.  She always catches his looks, so he only thinks them now."

________________________________________

Bought this with a gift card and it filled 2 requirements I'd like to read more of.  More Female authors and more Canadian authors.

Creamy Baked Beefaroni

This was another easy to make ahead meal that I found in my newly organized binder of recipes.  I written many times before about all my notebooks and binders and at times boxes full of recipes I'd copied out of books, torn from magazines, been given by different people....When I was working on organizing my newly moved office area I sat down and went through the papers yet again, pulling out what I knew I would never use and trying to organize the keepers before sticking them all in a binder.  They all fit in one binder!  Now this does bring me a bit of satisfaction, but I also have a huge amount of recipes bookmarked on my computer and saved in Pinterest.  I guess I need to sort those out too.

Anywhoo - this Beefaroni is a homemade version of that beefy cheesy classic.  A bit more time consuming as it contains 2 sauces you make separately and then mix together, but it was so delicious so it was worth it.  This might not be the most appealing recipe in Summer, but save it - you'll want this in the cooler months.  Or soon, if Summer keeps rolling this way...

Recipe here - Creamy Baked Beefaroni

Intentions for July - Happy Canada Day!

 Happy Canada Day Y'all! 
I hope you are having safe fun out there.

Enjoy our beautiful country and be nice to everyone.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++

My God I cannot believe it's July.  Where is this year going?
I feel like I have been totally off the rails for the last long while - a year or more?  Life seems ok on the surface but I am struggling with everything.  I need to get back on track.  I WANT to get back on track.  But I don't know how.  Maybe starting back with intentions and the journal will help?

Intentions for July -

Move, every day.
I haven't been doing too badly with this the last little while.  I joined the Global Challenge with my work mates and it started at the end of May.  We all got step counters, which was good as my not very old Fit Bit bit it back yonder and I was mad at how NOT long it lasted so I didn't replace it.  I find the challenge very motivating and I look forward to entering my activities every morning.  So far it hasn't led to any sort of weight loss but that might also be because I need to -

Stop snacking.
Seriously.  Stop it.

Drink more water.


Get back on the yoga train.
I took a very long hiatus from yoga due to issues and I started back a few months ago.  While I am thrilled to be back to taking classes, I have not gained back enough strength and confidence nor lost any pounds to get me back to the (slightly) harder classes that I used to take and loved.  I want to get back to there.


Less time on the computer/phone, more time reading.


Be positive.  Be kind.  Be strong.

Skillet dinner

I hit a home run with this recent quick and easy dinner, and dinner prep that night was even quicker and easier because I made it in advance! 

I found a freezer bag with a half pound of ground pork and half pound of ground beef so I popped over to Pinterest to see what I could find, and quickly found a recipe 

for an Italian beef and rice recipe.

The recipe suggested pasta instead of rice to mix things up a bit and I had some small pasta shapes to use up, so I chose these sweet little stars.  I mean, come on!

Now, they are small and visually got lost in the dish, but that was ok because it was super awesome.

The grownups added a bit of heat to our bowls.  So good.

This is a recipe I will try again - with rice, a bigger pasta, some different veg - there are endless possibilites.  

Recipe here - Italian Beef Rice Skillet

Sunday Dinner - Hot Brown Casserole

Hot Brown sandwiches are something that I've wanted to make for years, and I decided I'd do them for a Sunday dinner, but then I couldn't find the original recipe I'd saved, and when I hit Google up came Hot Brown Casserole, and I was like, yes!  even better!  and went with it.

This was sooooooo good.  I just loved it.  It was pretty easy too; the sauce was simple to make and I bought a rotisserie chicken so it was a snap to throw together.  

Recipe here:  hot brown turkey casserole

Kids Book Club - Little House in the Big Woods by Laura Ingalls Wilder

I am a big fan of Laura Ingalls Wilder's books.  I have the complete set, plus a few extra biographies on her and her family.  If I ever win the lottery, I'm heading down to the states to tour the places she lived.  I read the books to The Boy - although he was too young to remember them - and now The Girl and I have just finished reading LHBW and I was so, so happy to start reading the series again.  

I know it's a cliche and sexist, but I'm happy to have a daughter who will hopefully like the books and I can pass down my set to her when she's older.

LHBW is one of my favorites in the series because there is so much detail of their every day life - Ma making cheese and how meat was preserved for storage.  The long days of her parents and the excitement of seeing family that lived elsewhere.  The angst of trying to be a good girl when you have an annoying older sister.  Such a lovely book. 

Squash and Turkey Meatball Curry

I  had a beautiful kabocha squash to use up and I didn't want to bake or steam it, so I thought instead I'd make a curry with it.  My original plan had been to keep it vegetarian, but then I decided to throw in some turkey for the kids - although really it was just for The Boy - The Girl is practically a vegetarian.  She does not like meat much at all - so I made some quick meatballs and tossed them in too.  The Girl didn't care for this and The Boy only wanted to eat the rice and meatballs but The Mister and I really really liked it.  

1 TB coconut oil

1/2 - 1 red onion, diced

1 kabocha or other squash, peeled and diced

1 TB ginger, grated

1 TB - or more to your taste - curry paste - I keep it low for my weenie kids

1 can coconut milk

1 cup broth - veg or chicken - or I cup water

1 tsp soy sauce

1 tsp brown sugar

Meatballs - 

1 lb ground turkey

salt and pepper

1/2 cup or more bread crumbs

Any other seasonings you like - onion, garlic, curry etc

Heat the oil in a pan over medium heat.  Add the diced onion and cook until softening.  Stir in the grated ginger and the curry paste and cook, stirring, for 3 minutes.  Add the squash to the pan and cook for a few minutes more.

Pour the coconut milk and broth or water in, and add the soy sauce and sugar to taste.  Bring to a gentle simmer over medium low heat, and cover while you make your meatballs.  

Remove the lid and gently drop the raw meatballs into the sauce.  Cover the pan and cook, stirring occasionally, until the meatballs are cooked through and the squash is tender.

Serve with rice.

Dill Bread

I had a bunch of fresh dill that I had planned on making into tatziki, but then the kids ate all the cucumber, so I decided to make bread instead.  

Because I didn't want to be stuck in the kitchen for a dough that needed rising and shaping (Spring has sprung!  We are outside as much as we can be right now!) I went looking for a quick bread recipe.

I found one that called for dill as well as buttermilk which I didn't have but I did have the plain yogurt I'd bought for the tatziki so I replaced the 1 1/2 cups of buttermik in the recipe with 3/4 cup each of milk and plain yogurt whisked together.

It was a delicious easy bread that called out to be eaten with cheese.  As some breads do.

Recipe - Dill Buttermilk Bread

Book Club - every day by david levithan

"Tomorrow."  she says, a little less than a promise, and a little more than a chance.

The devil doesn't make anyone do anything.  People just do things and blame the devil after.

If you stare at the center of the universe, there is a coldness there.  A blankness.  Ultimately, the universe doesn't care about us.  Time doesn't care about us.  That's why we have to care about each other.

___________________________________

I bought this one because it was $10 and sounded interesting.  It's a YA book, which isn't my usual type, but it was good and I cried at the end.

More Treasures

My Dad has been working through some boxes stored in his basement and he gave me a stack of papers to go through. Here's some cringy things I found - 

A Breakdancing instructional poster - I am pretty sure this came in a record I bought?  

I laughed until I cried looking at this.  It reminded me of when my mom signed me up for a (thankfully short) set of beginner breakdancing lessons at a downtown dance studio in the 80's.

I was horrible at it, but I appreciate my mom letting try.

When I found out that Shawn Cassidy and I share the same birthday I thought that meant we were destined to be together forever.  My obsession with him was as short lived as my breakdancing career, but along the way someone gifted me with this super cool notebook.

In this pile of papers there were some loose "order forms" and receipts and menus from when I would play waitress and take orders from imaginary customers in the restaurant in my room.

Those made sense, more sense than this note I found.

I was a lover, not a fighter, so I am mystified by this.  What was up?  

Who was I begging myself not to fight? 

Ok, so who would NOT want The Go-Go's, Willie Nelson and Billy Joel at their party?  But who is Jennifer Rodgers?  Google is revealing nothing.  Such a mystery.