Monday, August 30, 2010

Monday collage

These are called Country Inn Pancakes and they are from the Chef at Home cookbook by Michael Smith. Very simple, very basic recipe but good tasting. Another one to add to my collection.

You walk in the door and the aroma of baking bread greets you - everything that happened for the past seven hours is erased from your memory bank as the aroma of warm, yeasty bread transports you to another time and place where this was a weekly occurence. Finally, I have tried the no-knead method.
I did the easy part yesterday, mixing the dough for 30 seconds. Mr Cowboy actually made the Stecca loaves today using olives and the cherry and pear tomatoes from the garden. There was barely anything left after dinner, a dinner of homemade sausages, cheese, and lots of Ruffino.

Sunday, August 29, 2010

Homecoming pasta


This was probably one of the best birthday presents I have ever been given but at the time I had just given birth to Daughter #1; all I was concerned with was breastfeeding the little one every two hours and getting a nap in between so I don't think that I showed my Mom how much I appreciated this gift and how grateful we were that she was there with us.

Daughter #1 will be flying home this weekend so what better way to celebrate her homecoming then to make fresh pasta for her first dinner back home after a year of being across the ocean.

Saturday, August 28, 2010

Russian peach jam

Last Saturday I bought a case of peaches with every intention of making peach butter. The recipe for peach butter requires that you bake the cooked peaches for about an hour and a half. It was so hot that the thought of turning on the oven made no sense at all. So I found another recipe, very simple, for peach jam which I had every intention of making. But then I started a new quilt and I'm still working on my jacket plus I have a huge stack of books to read. Mr.Cowboy volunteered to make the jam and not only did he make a batch but then the very next day he made another batch, which means that we now have 18 jars of sunshine in the cellar to enjoy in the depths of winter.

Thursday, August 26, 2010

Birthday tomatoes

What better gift at this time of year then a box full of fresh veggies from the garden. For the special birthday girl, I boxed up some beans, peppers, eggplant,onions, and a cuke. After closing the box I realized that I had forgotten the birthday tomatoes from our garden. Well at least this will give me a chance to try the new recipe for Green Tomato cake. Tanti auguri!

Wednesday, August 25, 2010

Prize-winner

What do you do when someone gives you a zucchini? This zucchini that a co-worker gave to me was so big that we were able to make two dinners and one dessert. The recipe that I have for chocolate zucchini cake is a winner - it won second place ($50.00) in the Art Knapp Zucchini contest in PG.

Tuesday, August 24, 2010

Jamie's carbonara

I don't know why I had a hankering to have carbonara but after seeing the recipe in Jamie Oliver's Italy cookbook I could not resist. Instead of sausage and pancetta I just used pancetta but added onions just because I love onions. Jamie's recipe calls for the zest of a lemon; next time I will not add that. Lots of cheese and pepper plus a big green salad - perfect!

Monday, August 23, 2010

Fico

Yesterday I came across a new tea towel; pure linen, designed and hand printed in Australia (made in Hong Kong) advertising Southwark Bitter Beer, Adelaide, South Australia. When I first saw this towel I immediately thought of making it into a bag but have since changed my mind. It is a great addition to my collection just the way it is. Oh, right, and we had some figs. These little babies were so good tasting!

Sunday, August 22, 2010

Sunday collage



I can close my eyes while walking through our garden and be transported to another garden across the ocean, a garden full of tomatoes and everything else imaginable. And even grapes hanging shyly behind saucer size leaves. Then I open my eyes and gaze upon the tiny garden that is home and wish that I had planted more but there is always next year. Grapes on the vine - not this year.
This was the view down at the river as we enjoyed our cowboy breakfast. It is definitely cooler and even rain has been mentioned.
Yes, I will be adding Nigella's pancake mix recipe to my pancake book. I made a single batch this morning and they are great tasting.

Friday, August 20, 2010

BC burning


Yesterday was the worst day - smoke from forest fires burning hundreds of miles away enveloped the city. It didn't matter if you were inside or outside - smoke was everywhere. From our place up above it looked like a soft gray blanket had been thrown over the town. The sun, as reflected in the library windows, was a huge red ball. I kept wishing for rain all day.

Tuesday, August 17, 2010

Crazy for pancakes

I have been collecting pancake recipes for the past 30 years so please don't be surprised if I mention them at least once or twice on my blog. This past Sunday I bravely tested another recipe; this one from one of my very favourite blogs - A day in the country. The recipe is from Nigella ( I am not a fan of Nigella but Heather said they were great pancakes so I trusted her) well it's actually a recipe for a mix. Again not a fan of making mixes. But I went ahead and made them; this is a very simple recipe, good tasting,and a bit thin because I doubled the recipe. Is this a keeper? I will let you know next Sunday.

Sunday, August 15, 2010

Very late cherries

They are still trucking up cherries from Oliver so I could not resist buying another basket. We are invited to sample; I know they are good and juicy so I help myself to a double. Cherries are my favourite fruit which is why I spent the last few years working on my cherry quilt.
I can't even remember when I started this one but I do recall that it took me a long time to find all the different red fabrics for the cherries.
Today I finally stitched on the binding, gave it a twirl in the washing machine and then hung it out to dry in this blistering heat.
Only one last thing to do; make a tag for the back with my name and todays date. Plus eat the rest of the cherries.

Saturday, August 14, 2010

Buon Ferragosto

No coconut fountain, no concert, no fireworks, and no trip to the beach. But we did enjoy a rustic dinner - Roma beans from the Farmers Market and the last of the Rock Creek spuds all washed down with a smooth Pinot Noir from the Vigneti Delle Dolomiti. And this holiday would not be complete without a watermelon or two.

Wednesday, August 11, 2010

Monsoon muffins

What do you do when the temperature drops and it rains a good soak for about twelve minutes? I turned on the oven and did some baking which hasn't happened around here for quite some time. Baked up a batch of our favourite blueberry muffins - a wonderful way to start the day.

Tuesday, August 10, 2010

Food for the soul


I've never been inside this restaurant, it is the outside that gets my attention every time I walk by.
It is a veritable feast for the eyes; the window boxes along the second floor windows bursting with flowers and greenery. Baskets overflowing with petunias and sweet potato vine grace each corner and all the front windows. Someday I may step inside and sample the menu but for the moment this is all I need.

Thursday, August 5, 2010

A Ferrari it is not


It's red and it has four wheels but other then that there is no comparison whatsoever to a Ferrari.
It will only go as fast as I can pull it depending on how much stuff I've loaded it down with. This is not the fun part of planning a trip - deciding what to pack.

Wednesday, August 4, 2010

Tuesday, August 3, 2010

Naramata kimono

A housecoat, a cover-up, or a kimono. This weekend I managed to finish my linen wrap and I am so happy with the way it turned out. The fabric is from my favourite shop in Naramata and the pattern is #5223 Burda supereasy. I made two of these last year for the girls which means I have just one more to make. As soon as he picks out the fabric I will get started on it.