We're alive and well!

I have been such a terrible blogger! June is typically a whirlwind, and this year is no different. It's been all wonderful though, so I'm not complaining.

So what exactly have we been up to? Well...

There has been canoeing on the Bay of Quinte!

There have been cousins visiting from Northern Ireland!

There was Dance Recital day for my two youngest kiddos.

There have been long walks along the trails and on the docks at the marina to drool over the boats.

There was Summer Solstice and all of the traditions it brings us!

And there was lots of crazy family antics!

This was only to name some of the fun. There was also a few different birthday parties, Father's Day, some soccer games for the biggest boy, watching of So You Think You Can Dance & SYTYCDCanada and more stops at playgrounds. This makes me even more excited for the adventures that await us this summer! Only three more days of school left. It's hard to believe.

Yes, we have also been eating delicious food. I admit to quite a few repeat dinners - ones that are pretty easy to throw together, along with some BBQs at my parents' house. I have made a few blog worthy items and I plan on writing a new entry tonight to include those. For now, I'm going to do some dishes and then maybe head out for a bike ride since it's not raining (yet!). They've been promising rain all week, but so far we haven't had much at all.

Enjoy the last few drops of your weekend, friends!

Long time, no write..

No need to put out an APB on me! I'm alive and very well. The reason for my absence? We had some really good friends come stay with us for a four night visit. The weather was 100% awful, but we managed to enjoy ourselves anyway. There was a drive into Prince Edward County for Fifth Town Artisan cheese, scenery and homemade ice cream at Slickers. There was a visit to Kingston for some window shopping and the most delicious lunch at the Kingston Brewing Company. There was an entire day spent running around to kids activities and meetings. And there was more than a little bit of beer, coolers and rye. Best of all... there was comfort, laughter, and the making of many new memories. Here are a few pictures that I took during our adventures.

Our lovely friends, at the Kingston Brewing Company for lunch.

The food at the Brewing Company was delicious! Kyle and I shared our meals - he had a veggie burger with fries, and I had the dish shown. It was noodles with a spicy peanut sauce and the most scrumptious and fresh salad, ever. That salad had pretty much every vegetable you could think of in it. So good!

Everything about the pub was great - food, atmosphere, prices, service and even the old truck outside!

I am like a moth to a flame when it comes to water. Every time we drive down to Wellington I dip my feet in the lake. Every single time. Did I mention it was cold while our friends were out? Very cold. And windy. But putting my feet in that water makes me feel alive! Sometimes we need to do things that help us remember what a gift life is.

My daughter is a nut. I'm really not sure where she gets that from ... coughcoughcough.... ;)

I guess now I should talk about food since I tend to do that a lot. ;) We ate an abundance of food while they were here. There were little to no hunger pangs, lemme tell you! One night was my chili (having mastered it over many years) & the Red Lobster-esque cheese buns, one night was black bean burgers, alfredo fries and greek salad, and one night there was sushi from our favourite sushi restaurant here in town - Toro Sushi. There was also a whole lot of snacks like chocolate covered potato chips and two different types of bruschetta, and a very filling breakfast out at the Quinte Cafe. It was all around delicious.

Slowcooker Chili

1 tbsp olive oil

2 extra large cans tomato sauce

1 large can tomato paste

1 can black beans, drained and rinsed

1 can dark red kidney beans, drained and rinsed

1 green pepper, chopped

1 onion, chopped

4-5 cloves garlic, minced

5 carrots, sliced

10-15 cremini mushrooms, sliced

4 tbsp chili powder

2 tsp cumin

2 tbsp white vinegar

1 small can chopped chilies

1 cup frozen corn kernels

Cook the onion and mushroom in a skillet until soft. Add to the slow cooker. Add the rest of the ingredients, stir and cook on low for 8 hours, or on high for 4-5 hours.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I serve these over a freshly baked French baguette warmed in the oven and spread with some melted garlic with garlic powder.

Tomato Bruschetta

6 plum tomatoes, chopped

4 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 red onion, chopped very finely

1/8 cup fresh parsley, minced

10 basil leaves, chopped

1 tbsp sugar

1/4 tsp sea salt

1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper

1/8 cup olive oil

4 tsp balsamic vinegar

1 tbsp red wine vinegar

3 tbsp Asiago cheese

Mix all of the ingredients in a bowl or container and chill. This is served over the bread cold.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Mushroom Bruschetta

(altered slightly from Jamie Oliver's recipe)

2 tbsp olive oil

2 dozen cremini mushrooms

4-5 cloves garlic, minced

a few sprigs of thyme leaves, chopped

a few sprigs of parsley leaves, chopped

1 sprig savory leaves, chopped

salt and pepper, to taste

sprinkle of red chilies

1 1/2 tbsp butter

juice of 1/2 lemon

2-3 tbsp water

Cook the mushrooms in oil. Cook until soft. Add the garlic, herbs, salt, pepper and chilies and cook for a few minutes longer.

Add the butter and lemon juice. Once the butter is melted, toss.

Add 2-3 tbsp of water in the pan. Simmer until a thick sauce is formed.

St Paddy's Day Feast.

I was lucky enough to be able to make dinner for our little family as well as my sister, her husband and their three kids. This was unexpected, but very welcomed! I love cooking for people. There's something about making people happy with comfort foods that keeps me happiest. I love nothing more than seeing people smile and say "mmmmm" as they taste my kitchen creation.

For St Patrick's Day, I had decided on three items from the latest Vegetarian Times magazine. In some ways I enjoy making new recipes, but at the same time... it means I haven't had time to alter the recipe into something that suits me. Making three brand new items can be a bit intimidating! The first item was an Irish Stew which I think needed more zing to it. The idea was good - full of different types of veggies which is typically something that appeals to me, but the the main flavour was too bland for me. I know they say "Irish food is bland", and I am mostly Irish.. but I like spices! The second item was cornish pasties which everyone loved! The dough was a bit finicky to make it stick, but I found if I didn't brush the edges of the pasties with the egg wash first, it stuck so much easier. The first half of them looked terrible, but the second half (no egg wash) was great! The final item was potato bite fries (which we always make here during brunches!) with a sugar/malt vinegar dipping sauce. I loved the sweetness the sugar added to the malty taste. Yum. Plus... potatoes? Bring them ON! In that way, I am very, truly and completely Irish.

Irish Stew

(as it is in the magazine... I suggest adding more pizzazz to it since I know it has potential!)

2 tbsp vegetable oil, divided

8oz cremini mushrooms, quartered (it suggested button or shiitake)

4 cloves garlic, minced (it suggested 2 cloves, but I always add more!)

1 medium leek - white part only, diced

3 small red potatoes, cut into small cubes

2 medium carrots, sliced

2 medium parsnips, sliced

1 1/2 tsp tomato paste

15 oz crushed tomatoes

1 1/2 cups vegetable broth

2 sprigs fresh thyme + 1 tsp chopped fresh thyme

1/2 cup lager beer (I used Paddy's red Irish ale)

1 1/2 tbsp quick cooking tapioca

1 cup shredded cabbage

1 tbsp white miso

2 tbsp chopped parsley

Add the first tbsp oil into a large pot and saute mushrooms and garlic for about 8 minutes until the mushrooms are browned. Remove them from the pan and add the other tbsp of oil. Add the leek and cook for 5 minutes. Add potatoes, carrots, parsnips and tomato paste and cook for 2 minutes. Add crushed tomatoes, broth and thyme sprigs and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat, cover and simmer for about 40 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Add the beer, tapioca, and mushrooms and cook for 10-15 minutes until thickened, stirring often. Remove thyme sprigs, and add the cabbage and miso. Simmer 4-5 minutes, or until cabbage softens. Stir in chopped thyme and parsley and season with salt and pepper if desired.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Cornish Pasties

Dough:

1 3/4 cups all purpose flour

1/2 tsp salt

5 tbsp cold margarine, cut into cubes

Filling:

1 tbsp vegetable oil

1 small onion, finely diced

1 stalk celery, finely diced

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 small rutabaga, peeled and diced

1 small potato, finely diced

carrot, finely diced

1/2 tsp thyme

2 large eggs

1 tbsp spicy brown mustard

1/4 cup grated Gruyere cheese

To make the dough:

Stir the flour and salt together, and cut the margarine in. Mix until it makes a coarse meal. Stir in 6-8 tbsp ice cold water. Pinch dough together - if it sticks, it's wet enough. Form into a disk, wrap in saran wrap and chill in the fridge for 1 hour.

To make the filling:

Heat the oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add onion, celery and garlic and cook 5 minutes until lightly browned. Add rutabaga, potato, carrot, thyme; cook 3 minutes, then add 1/2 cup water. Reduce the heat, cover and steam vegetables 10-12 minutes, or until tender.

Whisk 1 egg with mustard in a large bowl. Stir in vegetables and Gruyere cheese and season with salt and pepper, if desired. Whisk remaining egg with tbsp of water in a separate bowl and set aside.

Preheat oven to 350.

Divide dough in half and roll one half out on a floured surface to 1/8 inch thickness. Cut out 5 inch disks. Fill the circle with a tbsp of filling and fold it over in a half circle shape and pinch together. Use a fork to crimp edges. Repeat with remaining dough and filling. Brush the tops with egg wash, and sprinkle with salt & freshly ground black pepper.

Bake on a baking sheet for 25-30 minutes.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Salt and Vinegar Potato Bites

6 medium red or yellow potatoes, cut into 1 inch cubes

2 tbsp vegetable oil

1 cup malt vinegar

3 tbsp sugar

Soak potatoes in a large bowl of cold water for 30 minutes. Drain and pat dry.

Preheat oven to 400.

Toss potatoes with oil on a baking sheet, and spread in a single layer. Roast 45 minutes, or until golden and crisp, turning a few times. Season with salt and pepper, if desired.

Meanwhile, bring vinegar and sugar to a simmer in a saucepan over medium heat. Cook 15 to 20 minutes, or until liquid is reduced by half, stirring occasionally.

Serve as a dipping sauce, or sprinkle over potatoes.