Official Greenthumb

Let me just say, I am so proud of myself for transitioning from a hopeless plant killer to an intermediate greenthumb!

It all started with my Jade plant when I moved into my first place, and she's still kickin'. This is the first year Vijay and I have decided to try to grow some of our own vegetables. Garden space in the city is hard to come by, so we made the most of our deck space and have a big planter of chard, cherry tomatoes and peppers. We also have kale, and even more tomatoes in another pot. We definitely lucked out, as this has been one of the nicest summers we've had in a while. However I think we will have more tomatoes than we know what to do with...

The only problem we've had has been aphids. I made a mixture of water, cayenne, and a tiny bit of dish soap, and it seemed to work quite well.

I think next we'll try growing some herbs. Basil, mint and dill are on my list right now...

Homemade Butter

I remember making butter in grade school, passing around the jar in class. I have always meant to do it again, and it wasn't until just this past week - when whipping cream mysteriously showed up in our fridge rather than coffee cream- that I decided to try my hand at it again.

All you need is whipping cream, a mason jar, and ideally, some bread. To make my butter, I used Avalon Organic Whipping Cream made here in Vancouver.

Pour the whipping cream into your mason jar and start shaking! I used 500ml, and it ended up making just over a cup of butter. But you can use really however much you like. I suggest doing this project when you have someone to share in the workout. I unfortunately attempted this solo and felt it the next morning.

After about 8-10 minutes it starts to turn into whipping cream. Keep shaking for atleast another 5 minutes or so and it will suddenly start to separate itself into butter and buttermilk. Now you can pour off the buttermilk into a seperate jar and store it for later baking or drinking.

Pour water into the mason jar containing your butter, just to cover it. Give it a gentle shake just to clean off all of the excess buttermilk, and strain out. Move your clean butter into a small bowl, and mix it around for about a minute to remove any trapped milk.

Salt to taste if you like, and there you have your own homemade butter!

Egg & Soldiers

Time for breakfast at our place is never common, so when we have it, we like to make it a little special. 

Egg & Soldiers is a classic British breakfast that is simple and oh so good. What are 'soldiers'? They are thin strips of toast with the sole purpose of diving into your soft-boiled egg. So tasty. 

For this breakfast I recommend boiling your egg anywhere between 5-7 minutes. Of course the timing depends on how runny you like them. (I boiled mine for 6.)

Once the bread is toasted, I buttered it first and then cut it into thin strips. You can use any kind of toast you like - we had our favourite, Italian Cheese bread, from Terra Breads. 

On the plate I put a small mound of salt & pepper to sprinkle on as you go. Tomato or avocado slices are a perfect side for this breakfast. 

I hope you like it as much as we do!

Strawberry Sour Cream Scones

I finally tried my hand at making scones and they turned out even better than I expected. 

I used this recipe from Completely Delicious but tweeked a few things. Rather than plain yogurt I used sour cream. I found it added an extra bit of richness and flavour. I also decided not to make a glaze and instead just sprinkled a little bit of sugar over the egg wash before baking. I don't have time for glaze. 

It's a very simple recipe and they really don't take long to make. Perfect recipe. These are best when they are warm out of the oven! 

And of course you can play around with the fruit as well. I think next time I'll try blueberry...

Baked Salmon with Shallots & Asparagus

This is by far one of my favourite meals we've made. Fresh, simple, delicious & healthy. 

We talked to Janice at the Salmon Shop on Granville Island and she recommended the Spring Salmon for this dish. 

In a parchment round, we placed the spring salmon fillets on a bed of sliced asparagus & shallots, topped with lemon zest & fresh dill.

Season with salt, pepper and a drizzle of olive oil. Fold up in the parchment paper, and bake at 400F for about 12-15 minutes.

Dinner is served! Eat it right out of the parchment paper. 

Enjoy!

Meat Veggie & Cheese Platter with Bocconcini Skewers

We had some friends over for dinner the other night (one of who is gluten-free) and decided to make several appetizers, rather than one whole meal. Since we knew bread was out of the question we decided to focus on fresh simple appetizers that complimented eachother. No oven used!

We went all out for our first appy: meat veggie & cheese platter. For meats we had duck prosciutto, ox & wagyu beef. Our fresh veggies were fresh new carrots, broccolini & asparagus, and the cheeses were fontina & gouda. I made some hummus and a dill yogurt for dipping. The crackers are gluten-free black pepper, and who can go without some mixed olives. 

(Credit to Marg and Jim for our lovely dipping trio!)

This platter went over very well and it was agreed that the wagyu beef prosciutto was a big favourite. 

Second in line was our tomato bocconcini skewers; baby heirloom tomatoes with mozzarella, basil leaves, & thinly sliced prosciutto. Before we skewered them, we tossed the mozzarella cubes in an olive oil and balsamic vinegar dressing. The saltiness from the prosciuttto really made it even more delicious.

Next was a tuna tartar. Small cubes of fresh ahi tuna, chili, green onions, black sesame seeds, all tossed in a lime, (gltuen free) soy sauce, and sesame oil dressing. We served it in frosted cocktail glasses with chopsticks. Seconds were most definitely had. 

Similar recipe here: Tuna Tartar

Last appetizer was a watermelon salad. I used a round cookie cutter to cut out a thick disc of watermelon, topped with thinly sliced shallots, goat feta & mint, then drizzled some balsamic glaze overtop. So easy and so good. It is such a fresh and light dish, but all the flavours work so well together. It's a perfect summer salad.

Recipe here: Watermelon Feta Mint Salad

And of course we had drinks! I made simple cocktail of gin, ginger ale, and mint. Very refreshing.

For dessert we had greek yogurt and berries drizzled with a touch of honey. Perfect way to finish off the night!