There are a couple of things that I want to get out to you before the weekend hits.  It's canadian thanksgiving this weekend and it's not so much that I'm looking to give you some great ideas to plot down onto your feast table but more that I've got these things scratching around the back of my head needing to get out.  I want the weekend off.  I want to spend a little time reconnecting with my 13 (!) yr old kid.  I would love to see my husband for a while - we've been texting so I know that he is out there somewhere.  A long weekend really can't go by without a long, enjoyable run in there somewhere.  Maybe a colourful bike ride through the trails.  These things will cause me to 'give thanks'.  Laundry, cooking, baking, cleaning... only by necessity.
I did a weird thing a couple of days ago.  I made ribs.  Ribs are great, awesome even.  Ribs are totally easy and always get gobbled up quickly and.... I NEVER make them.  I'm not sure what exactly possessed me but there I was with two racks of ribs in my hands at the butcher shop and... Oh look, they've come home with me too.  After a few minutes of stupid easy prep and about 3 hours of low heat roasting later I had some happy people around me.


This is not a recipe you want to serve with ribs.  I guess you might want to serve it with turkey but not ribs.  You definitely want to serve it with some crusty, toasted, garlicky buttered bread... but not ribs.  Ribs need to be with ribs.  It's own thing.  Ribs are the thing that wants to take over the world and no matter what you do they will crush you.  They will over power you and they will be better than you ever imagined you could be even in your wildest dreams.  A delicious but subtle, colourful yet meek, meaty but textured dish like this is just destined to sit sad and lonely in the fridge until those damn ribs are gone.  Then, and only then, will this lovely dish get anything close to the recognition it deserves.
I used honey garlic sausages and I used romanescu cauliflower (or broccoli depending on who you talk to.  I like it because it looks like little pine trees but the white fluffy cloud regular cauliflower will do just fine.


If you happen to be someone who likes a little something weird at your thanksgiving table, or you are looking for a non-turkey kind of table, or you are really not observing the whole turkey table, cornucopia thing at all then you might just want to give this recipe a whirl.

Sausage, Cauliflower and Fennel Gratin adapted from TheKitchn.com

1 lb sausage (I used italian honey garlic), casings removed
1/2 cup onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1/2 cup celery, diced
1 cup fennel, coarsely chopped
2 - 3 cup cauliflower, broken into medium sized floret pieces (does that make any sense?)
1 cup spinach, coarsely chopped
1 1/2 cup chopped tomato
1/4 cup honey
1 veggie boullion cube
1/4 cup (scant) juice (I used part of a leftover juice box - apple/grape - from my kid's lunch kit)
3 tbsp worcestershire sauce
1 tbsp oregano
1 1/2 tsp thyme
1/2 tsp cumin
1 1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp pepper sauce

1/2 - 2/3 cup Bread Crumbs
1/2 - 2/3 cup parmesan, shredded
good dash salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 375° F
Butter a 9x13 baking dish and set aside.
Bring a large pot with about 2 cups of water to a boil - add the cauliflower and steam with the lid on for 2 minutes. Drain the cauliflower and set aside.
Heat the same large pot over medium heat.  Add about 2 - 3 tbsp oil and the sausage and onion.  Cook briefly together and then add in the garlic, celery and fennel.  Turn the heat down a bit and cook together for about 10 minutes, until the meat is cooked through and the vegetables are softening.
Add in the tomato and spinach and continue to cook until the spinach becomes wilted.
Add in the honey, bouillon cube, juice, worcestershire sauce, oregano, thyme, cumin, salt and pepper sauce.  Mix well and continue to simmer on low heat for about 10 minutes or until the liquid is about halved.
Add the cauliflower to the sausage.  Mix well and pour into the prepared pan.

Combine the bread crumbs, parmesan, salt and pepper together.  Mix and sprinkle over the sausage and vegetables.
Cover and bake for about 25 - 30 minutes or until the edges are browned and bubbling.
Cool for about 10 minutes before serving.

Yay Me.  I think that this may be the first week in many many many where I have managed to get two posts out.  I'm feeling a little self congratulatory about it and may even make up some kind of award for myself.  On second thought, maybe I will wait until my track record starts to become consistently better before going the award route.  And with that, off we go on what promises to be one of my most scattered posts to date.
 For mother's day/anniversary (which happened on the same day this year) D gave me a new camera lense which I love and am getting used to whenever I have time to play around with it.  I'm looking forward to some hikes, portraits and lots of food shots with this lens.  I have gotten a little time to play though and done a couple of head shots for D who was doing a show this week that required such things.
In other news:
1.  Our house is all over the place right now.  We have finally organized ourselves enough to fund a reno and fix project and have taken the plunge.  What this means is that I have 50% of a kitchen (which will probably become 0% very soon), that our front stairs have no flooring on them and that our backyard space is a combination of rotting deck (that is soon to get ripped out), drywall and dead cabinets.  We are purging like crazy (easy to do) and trying not to get frustrated (hard to do).


2.  Our kids have applied, auditioned, gotten letters, been put on waiting lists and finally have both gotten into schools of their first choice.  The relief I feel about this is palpable and when they were on waiting lists for one reason or another I felt a real sense of failure as a parent.  My reaction surprised me and I haven't taken time to pull it apart yet.
3.  D is having a crazy May.  I am having a crazy May and it just fuels my i-hate-december-and-may thing.  The problem is that this crazy that's been going on doesn't exactly look like it's letting up any time soon.  TIRED.  Silver lining - refer to #, sentence 2.  $$$

This has to be my worst photo on this blog... and who would do this to a cake BTW?  A seven year old apparently.

4.  I haven't baked in a long time - except for today when I was asked by kid #2 for a cake to celebrate his school acceptance (please refer to item #1).  I haven't calculated how long exactly but it's a long time for me - over a month for sure.  Feels weird... when I have time to think about it.  I also haven't gotten my bike out yet.  This is very very weird and it has to end.  I took my bike in for the annual tune up today.
5.  I had an interesting conversation with a colleague about how I am doing (or not doing) and what some strategies might be to feel better about myself.  My non-work life is angst ridden and changing all the time which is guess is normal and healthy.  Parenting is stressing me out... I'm learning to deal with it.
6.  It's a good thing that I remembered to pull this out of the fridge, heat a bowl up and take some pictures of it the day after I made it because very very shortly after that it was gone.  Of course that's a good thing because it means that it tasted good.  Even better is that this is good for you (I'm going to studiously avoid using 'healthy').  There is meat in here but you could definitely leave it out and add in more beans without losing much.  I get more buy in with kids when the meat is present.  If the meat doesn't buy you anything then go for a meatless version.

Playing with the new lens and nailing the background focus totally.

7.  You may be wondering why you haven't seen these wonderful, life changing pictures of the fiddlehead ragu.  Turns out, after all of my self congratulation, that my sd card got compromised.  So I have some lovely reno shots, a shot of basil and some of the cake that kid #2 asked for (refer to item #2).  Well that's funny.  After going back to bed and crying into my pillow for a while, D suggested I post the recipe anyway because it was so good.  The flattery worked and even though you are seeing tools, basil and a cake this is a really good recipe that you should try and if you think to take pictures send them to me please.

Fiddleheads, Sausage and Bean ragu
serves 6 - 8

1/2 cup onion, diced
2 med carrots, coarsely sliced
3 cloves garlic, crushed
1 lb sausage, uncooked and cut into slices
1 1/2 boullion cubes
1 tbsp dried oregano
1 tbsp dried basil
2 tbsp soy sauce
2 tbsp ketchup
1 tbsp Worcestershire Sauce
2 1/2 (approx) cups fiddleheads, stem tips removed
2 - 3 cups spinach, stems remove and coarsely chopped
1 1/2 tsp cumin
1 1/2 tsp salt
400 ml (1 small can) cannellini beans, half drained
1/3 cup water (optional)
1/2 tsp pepper sauce (optional)

Heat a heavy bottomed dutch oven or pot (I used a caste iron thing) over medium heat.
Once heated, turn the heat down to med/low and add about 2 tbsp of oil or fat.
Add in the onion and carrot.  Cook for about 7 min or until the onion is starting to caramelize.
Add in the garlic and sausage and cook together for another 5 minutes.
Add in the bouillon cubes, oregano, basil, soy sauce, ketchup and worcestershire sauce.  Mix and cook together for another 5 minutes to let the flavours mingle.
Add in the fiddleheads, cumin and salt.  Mix well
Add the half drained cannellini beans and the spinach.  Mix well and cover, turning down the heat to low.  Uncover after about 20 minutes.  If it looks a little dry add in some of the water.
Simmer uncovered for about 30 minutes more.
Check the tastes and adjust if necessary.  Add a little pepper sauce.

Serve with mashed potato or rice.

It's taken me so long to get this post out that I've forgotten what I took pictures of.  After having checked the pictures I'll be honest with you, I'm still not a hundred percent.  Nevertheless, I'm not one to let a little thing like bad memory get in my way, so I forge ahead.  The pictures look good.  I think that this was vegetarian.  Not super sure but pretty sure and since vegetarian is a thing that most of us are happy to have more of I'm gonna run with it.  If you see something that looks suspiciously like meat don't worry, it's just large chunks of mushrooms (or something).

As I look back over my last few posts I'm a little distressed at the lack of savoury food and also simply the small number of posts.  Yikes - where have the last two months gone?  I'm home today with a sick 7 year old.  Since he is running around and playing energetically with lego, I'm wondering if I wasn't conned.  However, heavy eyes, a slight fever and some whimpering this morning convinced me that staying home was a good idea.  This has given me time to get a post out.  It has also given me time to catch up on work emails, have a pleasant morning coffee at home and sift through the photos for this post... and find these photos as well.


I guess that kid #2 enjoys not just watching the stuff on the computer but feels compelled to document the occasion with pictures as well.  I should just be happy that he is doing it all in french and shut up.

It's amazing how full your brain can be and yet you can have absolutely nothing to say.  That is how I've been feeling lately.  Quiet.  Possibly even uninspired.  I am working on inspiration but it can be a hard thing to drum up.  I've been scouring pinterest for ideas (it's not really working though), pouring over some of my tried and true cookbooks (nothing yet) and... well that's it really.  Maybe inspiration will come with better weather.  Maybe my paradigm is changing.  Who knows.  The thought of subsisting on beer (craft beer though - come on) and chips for the rest of my life doesn't sound to me like the worst fate.   That should give you some idea of where I am at the moment.
Fortunately this malaise hasn't affected my cooking ability.  In fact, when I do cook everybody tells me it's amazingly delicious, etc.  Even better than usual (that's what you call a back handed compliment I think).  I churned these suckers out because I had feta cheese in the fridge that was going to start giving way to the bacteria that was threatening to turn it fuzzy and blue.  I'm told that the suckers were good.


Now I am going to do something with bananas (my freezer has gifted me with a lifetime supply) and possibly make some soup for the sick conman(kid) who says he is craving see-through soup.  Wish me luck.


Veggie Pinwheels
makes about 9 medium sized pinwheels

Dough:
2 cups unbleached, all purpose flour
2 tbsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1 tsp turmeric
1/3 cup shortening (I think that I used half lard and half cold butter, cubed)
3/4 cup milk

Filling:
3/4 cup onion, diced
1/2 cup celery, diced
3 cloves garlic, crushed
1 lg bunch (about 4 - 5 cups) greens (kale, collard, chard - I used chard) finely chopped
1 cup mushrooms, stems removed and finely chopped
2 tsp salt
1 boullion cube (I used a low salt, veggie one)
1 tbsp each, basil, oregano, parsley
dash or two of Worcestershire sauce
2 tbsp honey
2 tbsp tomato sauce
1 tsp dijon
dash of pepper sauce (optional)
2 tbsp water if needed
3/4 cup feta cheese, crumbled
1/2 cup cheddar (havarti or brick would also do), shredded

Dough:
Combine the flour, baking powder, salt and turmeric.  Mix together. Cut in the shortening (or lard and/or butter) with a pastry cutter or two forks until the mixture looks crumbly.  Add enough milk to the mixture for it to form a ball but not be too wet.
Set aside.

Filling:
Heat a large pot or dutch oven over medium heat.
Add in about 3 tbsp of oil.
Add in the onion and celery and turn the heat down to med/low.  Cook for about 5 minutes or until the onion is wilted and beginning to caramelize.
Add in the garlic and bouillon cube (crumble it with your fingers).  Cook together for about 2 more minutes.
Add in all of the other ingredients except for the feta and cheddar.
Cook together until the greens are wilted (add a little extra water if the mixture gets too dry).
Add in the feta and mix well.
Set aside to cool slightly.

Putting it together:
Preheat the oven to 400°F
Line a cookie sheet with parchment or a silicon liner and set aside.
On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough in a rectangular shape about 1/2 an inch thick.
Spoon the filling onto the dough and spread it out evenly.
Sprinkle the cheddar over the filling and roll everything up along the long side of the rectangle.  Cut the tube into pieces of about two fingers thickness and place flat side down on the cookie sheet - leave some room in between each one for expansion.
THIS WILL GET MESSY.
Bake for about 20 minutes or until the edges of each roll are turning golden.
Remove from oven and cool for about 10 minutes before serving.

Having just had a week off I've been wrestling with this nagging issue in my mind.  I found myself, throughout the week, hard pressed for energy to think of something to do that didn't involve getting to a store to pick up things that the kids were needing or plunking myself in front of a screen.  Sure, I can chock it up to exhaustion.  I can blame the crappy, cold weather and lack of sun.  Suffice it to say that it was all I could do to keep up a reasonable yoga and running schedule throughout the week and plan one other thing in the day.


Thank goodness for this book which I've been devouring (although I have to slow myself down sometimes to really take it in).  I'm not just pushing the book because the author is Canadian but because he's also kick-ass deep. Throughout the week I was reading his chapter on the image and the power of the image.  J.R.S. went succinctly through a look at western religious art and the transformations that it went through up to about DaVinci when the 3D reality kicked in.  He talks about how artists were looking for the moment of epiphany when that reality was created... except the epiphany didn't quite happen.  The paradigm didn't shift epically like they thought it would.  And then the still photo was invented and that kind of kicked paintings butt.  A perfect image of whatever it was the photographer wanted to capture.  Further still was the moving picture.  But something happened in all of that 'reality' and along the way the reality of the photo and the moving picture wasn't reality at all.  It was illusion.  It was set up.  It was doctored.  Now, we live by the moving picture.  It informs us in every way about ourselves - our looks, our expectations, our beliefs.  J.R. Saul even goes as far to say that tv is our new religion.  It's the one thing that we do, in the western world at least, ritualistically and en masse.  Except it's all staged.
It got me thinking a lot about how much screen I take in.  It got me thinking about how much I see people talking about tv shows on FB, on their blogs or in everyday conversation.  It's how we talk about it too.
'I've got to make sure I catch the new episode of...'
'I can't believe what they just wrote into that story line...'
'I can't stand that character'
'My PVR only records 2 shows at a time.  How am I going to catch everything'
I don't have either cable or satellite.  The channels we get come through our rooftop antenna.  I don't miss cable.  I don't think that I've ever even considered getting it again and that was about 5 years ago.  But I still watch my fair share of shows and it's still crap.  It's still written in this stilted, formulaic manner.  It's still played by actors who must look a certain way for everything to work.  It still wraps up into a neat little package that leaves you with a feeling of satisfaction but the desire to experience the same banal comfort next week.  Reality tv... worse.  News.... the worst.
I'm going to work toward becoming more aware of what's in front of me all the time.  I'm not going to say 'that's it - I'm cutting it out' because that's not just unrealistic, it's unsustainable.  I think that the key is awareness.


During my week off I also decided to get serious about varying my cooking again.  It's so easy to get in ruts.  My ruts include cream, parmesan cheese, greens and pasta.  That's ain't half bad.  There is, however, only so much of that one family can take.  I made some Trini Stewed Pork and this is the stuff that we made with it.  Callaloo looks kinda gross and goopy but once you put it in your mouth you realize you haven't yet lived until that very moment.  It's amazing, beautiful stuff.  It's also good for you and if you can't find Dasheen leaf you can always try substituting with spinach.  You will get quite a different taste so you might have to adjust a bit but it's still absolutely worth it.

Trini Callaloo adapted from 'Naparima Girls High School Cookbook'

I'm sitting in front of the screen waiting to be inspired.  I decide to start reading some blogs that always do just that.  I read for a few minutes then decide I should just upload my pictures and start dealing with them so that once I finally write this post I won't have to fiddle with the pictures.  Then I think 'That's dumb - the pictures are the easiest part'.  I go back to the blog but a few minutes later find myself almost involuntarily inserting my camera's memory card into the computer slot.  And around we go.
I'm all over the place.  I'm making the adjustment to not having to hustle out the door except I don't want to truly adjust because it's only a week off and then I'm readjusting.  Trust me when I tell you that adjusting to a more relaxed schedule is a lot easier than the adjustment back.  Ick.  I managed to get myself together enough to meet up with KT for lunch.  Still not enough time (for me) but it's a start.  We got to catch up a bit finally.  Up until about 24 hours ago I hadn't cooked anything in a few days.  DAYS.  What does that tell you.  I'm slowly catching up but honestly I think that I've needed to fall apart just a little.
The thought of having to plan a March Break getaway makes me nearly apoplectic.  However, I'm not sure if it's worse having to deal with two kids asking you each day (and possibly multiple time throughout the course of that day) whether 'we're going to do anything fun today'.  'Since when is doing nothing NOT fun'  I ask.  And around we go... March Break.
I'm going to use this week to get back into some kind of running routine because now there are clear sidewalks and the temperature is such that my brain doesn't shutdown when I look outside.  I'm going to take in my poor bike that has gotten me through another winter... but barely.  Poor baby needs some TLC so badly it's not even funny.  While I'm getting my bike seen to (this is a great shop BTW) at the shop, I'm going to start a conversation about commuter bikes.  Shudder.  I know that they were made for people like me who ride everywhere and all the time (ie. through rain and winter).  They make so much sense... but they're so lame looking.  I gotta get over it and then I've gotta scrap up the dough.  I'm also going to contact my tattoo guy about #2 because I've already got an idea for #2 and #3 and I'm just going to do it.  I need some pain in the very best way.
With the kids... maybe we'll go to the theatre... maybe we'll just rent.  We've already gone out once for dinner so that's covered.  We've booked a possible play date and we've got a dentist appointment.  I'd say that if we get to the bookstore and maybe out into the ravine for a good long walk that we've covered some decent parental duties.


When it come to food I'm pretty relaxed this week.  I'm going to venture into sour dough bread but only just a little.  I'm making some beef stock with bones, meat and marrow and of course a few veggies thrown into the pot.  I did something spectacular with cauliflower that surprised even me - you'll be getting that post next.  I made these beauties.  They're all cheesy and green and square like.  I'm trying to convince myself that they're like a savoury custard bar.

The plant that was taken out of the basket that my school sent us for my Father-in-law's Memorial is finally starting to  get some new leaves.

Spinach, Kale and Feta Squares adapted from 'Almonds and Raisins' by Evelyne Pytka
makes 1 9x9 inch pan of squares

1 cup whole wheat flour (I used Red Fife but any whole wheat flour will be fine)
1/2 cup unbleached, all purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp salt
6 - 7 tbsp cold butter or lard or a combination, cut into small cubes
1/2 - 3/4 cup cold milk

1/2 cup onion, chopped
3 cups spinach, chopped
3 cups kale (I used Cavolo Nero), chopped
1 1/2 tsp salt
2 tbsp dried mixed herbs (I used parsley, basil, oregano, marjoram and rosemary)
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp paprika
1 egg
4 egg whites (or just use 2 more eggs)
3/4 cup plain yogurt
3/4 cup milk
1 tbsp honey
2 tsp dijon (or dried mustard powder)
dash of Worcestershire
dash of pepper sauce (optional)
1 cup feta, crumbled
1 cup cheddar (or any melty cheese), shredded

Preheat oven to 350°F.
Butter or lightly grease a 9x9 baking dish and set aside.
Combine the flours, salt and 6 tbsp's of butter or lard.  Using a pastry cutter or two knives cut the mixture together until it forms a crumbly texture.  Use the extra tbsp of butter if necessary.  Add enough of the milk to form a dough that will stick together when you try to form a ball in your hand.
Pour everything into the baking dish and pat down using your fingers until it is pressed into the bottom fairly evenly throughout.
Bake for about 15 minutes or just until the dough has baked together but hasn't gotten browned.  Set aside to cool slightly.
Remove from the oven and turn the oven up to 375°F.
Meanwhile, heat a heavy bottomed sauce over medium heat.  Add a little oil to the pot and add in the onion.  Stir for a minute or so and then add in the spinach and kale.  Turn the heat off immediately and remove from the heat.  You just want the greens to wilt, not really cook.  Once wilted add in the salt, herbs, nutmeg and paprika.  Mix well.
In a bowl combine the egg and egg whites (or just all the eggs) and whisk for a couple of minutes by hand.  Add in the yogurt and milk and mix.  Add in the honey, dijon, Worcestershire and pepper sauce.  Whisk until combined.
Place the greens evenly over the baked crust.  Sprinkle the feta and cheddar evenly over that.  Pour the egg mixture over the top of everything and spread evenly.  Sprinkle with a little parmesan cheese if you would like.
Bake for about 30 - 35 minutes or until everything has browned nicely on the top and the centre feels fairly firm to the touch.
Cool for about 10 minutes before cutting.

I know that what you are supposed to do is post all of the links that you wish people would read on Friday.  That way, when everyone is not working (on the weekend) they can check out all of the cool ass links that you've been reading yourself ('cause you're a cool ass person).  This is the correct order of things.  The way the blogiverse is supposed to work.  Except it doesn't work for me.  During the week I'm not reading online.  I'm working.  If I'm not working then I'm drinking ('cause it's late already and the kids are in bed).  If I'm not drinking then I'm reading - not online but in my bed... 'cause I'm tired and 'cause I actually read books still.  This being both my reality and my dilemma, I find myself not catching up on anything online until the weekend when I can catch up with all the links that every other blog known to the western world has posted.
Another thing that you are not supposed to do is post a crap load of links along with a recipe.  I guess that the thinking is that we readers need things to be compartmentalized for us.  It's easier to take in all of those links when there is not also a recipe to deal with.  It muddy's up the pictures as well (which are optional with a 'link' post.  Here I've even gone and messed that up.  The blogiverse may kick my cool ass for doing things this way and I'm ok with that.  I've got to send it out the way I get it.  I have the weekend time not just to read but to cook so I'm throwing them both your way.  I'm guessing that you're gonna be able to tackle it.

Holy Sugar - Can I just tell that I laughed and then nearly cried when I read this.  I just get his angle.

Then I read this article and it put a more political slant on the whole parenting 'over-kill' that we live in.

This girl loves every single one of her pounds.  She still runs.  She does it because she loves feeling good.

Here is an example of what is possible when we say no to GMO's and all the crap that comes with them.  Will we all starve?

Ah.. I'm sorry, I didn't quite catch what you said.  I thought that you just suggested that we SELL expired food to poor people.  Oh wait... you did just say that out loud.


And then there is the side dish that has been served with a kick ass roasted chicken, carrots, mashed potatoes and gravy.  The poor turnip and I are working at our relationship.  We've been negligent recently but if nothing else we are motivated to change.  We have agreed not to stop trying until we've found something that works for both of us.  This dish has been a positive step in our work together.


Turnip and Kale Soufflé adapted from Saveur
serves 6 - 8 as a side dish

2 1/2 - 3 cups turnip (peeled and diced), boiled 8 - 10 minutes in salted water and then mashed
3 1/2 cups kale or spinach greens, stems removed and leaves finely chopped
5 eggs, separated
5 tbsp butter
4 tbsp flour
1/2 cup cream
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/2 cup parmesan, grated

Preheat oven to 350°F.
Butter an 8 inch round baking dish and set aside.
Have the mashed turnip ready (mine was still warm which turns out perfectly).
Using a mixer (hand or standing, doesn't matter) whip the egg whites until they are about tripled in size and form hard peaks.  Set aside
Heat a large pot over medium/low heat.  Add the butter until the butter melts.  Add in the flour and whisk until it forms a thick paste.  Add the cream and remove from the heat.  Whisk until it forms a slightly less thick paste but shouldn't be clumpy.
Add in the greens and the mashed turnip.  Mix everything well.  Add in the egg yolks, salt, nutmeg and parmesan.  Mix well.
Gently begin to mix in the egg whites.  Start with a smallish amount and gently fold in.  Continue to fold in the whites gradually until the egg whites have been entirely incorporated.  The mixture should be about double it's original size.
Pour into the prepared baking dish.  Sprinkle the top with a little extra parmesan and bake for about 30 - 35 minutes or until the middle of the soufflé feels almost completely firm when you press on it and the top should be golden brown.
Remove from the oven and cool slightly before serving.

Assumptions.  We all have them.  I certainly do.  I assume a lot of things about another person based on how they look: dressed up, dressed down, athletic shoes, Vuitton bag, under 25yrs old with highlights and lowlights, track pants, ear encompassing headphones.  I think that you get the idea.  It's completely normal to make assumptions about the people around you.  It's how we relate, connect and how we make decisions in our mind about whether it might be someone we would like to be around or not.
However, I don't often think about the assumptions people make about me.  Truthfully, I don't even think of myself as someone noticeable.  And then I had a conversation recently with a neighbour and realized,to my surprise, that the assumptions are definitely there.  Of course they are there.  I know on an intellectual level that people will look at me or have a brief conversation with me and make assumptions based on my hair, my clothes and my accoutrements.  I know this but I don't know it.  In the same way I don't think of myself relative to how other women look at the same age.  I don't think of myself as someone who looks like they might have a tattoo.  I just have one.  So I realize quickly that although my neighbour and I don't know each other very well there are certain assumptions that she's made based on the stuff she knows.


She assumes that I don't eat junk food, like, ever.
Not True.
I eat junk food.  I do.  A lot.  I eat chips.  I love (I mean LOVE) wings and beer.  I don't eat stuff like candy or gummy bears because they make my stomach feel weird.  Not because I don't like them.
She assumes that I don't feed my kids anything but homemade.
Not True.
If Kid #2 could get 'cheesy noodles' (you know that awful stuff that comes from the famous box) everyday, he would be the happiest kid on earth.  I've reached a compromise I can live with by buying somewhat 'natural', organic stuff - still from a stupid box - and letting him have it for a treat once in a while (like once or twice a month).
She assumes that I eat 'healthy' and by healthy she's thinking 'low fat'.
Not True.
I eat fat.  I eat fat in the way of butter, cream, bacon, nuts and cheese.  I don't worry about fat at all.  In fact, I welcome it.  I like it.  I eat fat because it tastes really good and I believe that it's not necessarily the fat that's bad for me - especially those fats.
My neighbour was kind of surprised I guess.  If nothing else, she was somewhat better informed about the reality of my life.  I'm guessing she thought I was a '1 tbsp of olive... only, ever' kinda girl.  In addition, I hope that she's no longer beating herself up about not feeding enough vegetables to her kids or for pulling a box out of the freezer or cupboard once in a while.
I've tried and tried to think of a way to tie this together with the recipe I'm giving you.  It's taken a lot of time and effort but I think that I've found a way.  You see, when you roast a Sunday night chicken and you've made mashed potatoes and celery root, beautiful roasted carrots and parsnips with the chicken and then gorgeous gravy out of the drippings OR if you've hustled yourself home from work and maybe bought one of those roasted chickens from the deli and you want to have something tasty but also 'healthy' (i.e. veg) to go with that - and appease your guilt just a little - then this is the recipe for you.  What takes the longest is steaming the veg.  Everything else you've probably got lying around.  You can use whatever veg you've got, if it's root veg stuff then just make sure you've steamed it until it's just softening.  A little cream, a little cheese and some bread crumbs or crumbled crackers or chips or cereal and voila....


10 Minute Winter Vegetable Gratin loosely adapted from Martha Stewart

2 - 3 cups winter squash, peeled and cubed (about 1 inch cubes will do)
2 - 3 cups kale, chard or spinach, washed and chopped
2 - 3 cups broccoli or cauliflower florets, steamed until just al dente
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp nutmeg
3/4 cup cheddar, shredded (any shreddable cheese will do)
1/4 cup parmesan cheese, shredded
1/3 cup bread crumbs
1/2 - 3/4 cup cream (more if needed)

Preheat oven to 375°F.
Butter a baking dish and set aside.
Toss the cubed squash in some oil, melted butter or lard just until coated.  Place on a baking sheet and spread out evenly.  Bake for about 30 - 40 minutes or until the squash is browned on the outside and soft on the inside.  Remove from oven and set aside.  (This step can be done days ahead of time as well).
Toss together the vegetables in a bowl until mixed and pour into the baking dish.
Sprinkle with salt and nutmeg.  Sprinkle on the cheddar and then the parmesan.
Sprinkle the very top with the bread crumbs.
Add the cream just until it reaches about half the volume of the vegetables.
Bake uncovered for about 35 - 45 minutes or until golden brown on the top, bubbly and cheesy but not too wet underneath.
Cool for about 10 minutes before serving.

Kid #2 started soccer last week.  It's pretty funny watching 5 years old play soccer... unless you live in Brazil and then I would imagine it's probably inspiring.
I stretched my garden planting over 3 days to make it a little easier to deal with in my head.  It helped and now I've got pretty much everything planted.  I always wish I were doing more.  Always.  But the run down goes something like this:

Seeds:
cucumber (we'll see)
snow peas
green/purple beans
mammoth dill

In pots:
Black Prince tomatoes
Chadwick Cherry tomatoes
basil
dill (more dill)
strawberries (it's an experiment)

In the ground:
zucchini
eggplant
peppers
kale
beets (fingers crossed)
parsley
oregano
thyme
pumpkin


It sounds like a lot but it isn't.  Just one or two plants of each thing.  I've given up on carrots for the moment and we'll see about the future.  I'm willing to renegotiate but I've got some serious doubts.  I'm pretty confident about the beans and snow peas.  The cucumber... well we'll see.  The zucchini I'm really hoping for... I've wanted to grow them for a while and for some reason can't seem to get it to work from seed.  I'm sure I'm not doing something.  Along with my raspberry patch that is now threatening to take over the back half of my yard I think I'll content myself with this much.
Potatoes.  I almost forgot my potatoes.  I threw some earth into a tall box.  Made sure that the box drains well.  Put about 7 or 8 potatoes that were already growing eyes into the box and covered them with about another 10 inches of earth.  In theory it should be that easy.  In reality... fingers crossed.

D is away right now.  Somewhere in Europe.  I can't remember where he is today.  I know that he'll be back in France by Thursday because I have to put in my requests for 'bring back's'  by then.  In the meantime I've cooked myself some comfort food.  Nobody around here is a huge fan of chickpeas except me.  I love them.  LOVE.  Combine that with curry and coconut milk and I could pretty much eat this stuff everyday.  I actually ate it with my baked risotto from a couple of posts ago.  Curry and Risotto.  It totally worked.  I used some lovely spring spinach from the food box.  Two full bags.  It was about 6 cups but if you were buying in bunches or bags it would be two as well.  I didn't get this from anywhere it just kind of appeared in my life.  It morph's every time I make it but it never disappoints.


Easy Chickpea Spinach Curry 
serves 4

1 can chickpeas (don't drain)
1 cup coconut milk
1/2 cup onion
6 cups spinach (washed and the big stems removed)
2 1/2 heaping tbsp pataks curry paste
1 veggie boullion
1 tbsp garam masala
2 tsp cumin
1 tsp cardamom and turmeric
2 tsp salt
1 tbsp honey

Heat a large pot over medium heat.  Throw in a couple of tbsp's of oil.  Cook the onion for about 4 minutes until just lightly browned and beginning to become see through.  Turn the heat down to med/low.
Add the canned chickpeas with the liquid.    Add in the spinach, stir and cover for just a few minutes until the spinach begins to wilt.
In the meantime combine the bouillon cube, pataks curry paste, gram masala, cumin, cardamom, turmeric and salt together.  Mix well and add just a little bit of water to form a paste.  Add in the coconut milk and the honey.  Stir well.
Add the spice mixture to the spinach/chickpea mixture.  Simmer over low heat for about 15 minutes.  Turn off and ideally let it sit for a few hours.  If you can't wait then just check the tastes, adjust if necessary and then dig in.

I think that I need to learn how to 'tie in'.  Lately I've been sucking at it.
My last post, for example, had nothing to do with the recipe.  I didn't even explain the recipe.  Was there even food?  I talked about tv, about maybe not watching tv for a while and complimenting a kid in a way that sounded like it was an insult but it wasn't.  A proper blog should tie everything together.  Start by writing something interesting that pulls all you readers in and then expertly steers the writing to the recipe of the day.
I seem to want to use this blog as my journal or something similar.  In theory I like the idea of that.  In practice however it's kinda weird.  I have had a lot of journal years in my life.  It's awesome having a journal and it's especially awesome going back to your journals year later. Is journal writing a girlie thing - that concerns me.  I used to write a lot of crap in my journal that absolutely nobody should ever read.  Remember when you wrote in your journal (maybe you still do) the stuff that you needed to get out... about life, your friends, your parents, your boyfriend.  How you really felt about all that crap you were supposed to do but were fighting with still because you were 16 yrs old and just not ready to take it all on?  Or how about the stream of conscious ramblings.  The stuff that, when you go back to it years later, not even you can get your head around what you were trying to articulate.  Yeah... that's what I still do sometimes.  Only I do it out here, in public (well kinda public).  I wonder if I were you would I read me.  So I'm going to try to be better.  A proper food blogger and not a self-absorbed-journal-writing-wanna-be.

Fingers crossed.  Here is my 'tie in' attempt:

A while ago I promised you all yet another asparagus recipe AND my last for the season (wiping away a tear).  I know that you've all been waiting with baited breath for this and I've been holding out on you.  Asparagus is amazing.  Asparagus is green.  It tastes good when you cook it and you can cook it many different ways.  I like asparagus.  The asparagus season is short but you can make pasta in any season (ok, that was random - I'll give you that one).  If you like asparagus, garlic, mushrooms, spinach, pasta and cheese then maybe this is just the recipe for you.  It was easy.  It was FUN and it was tasty.  Try it and it will change your life forever.  If you have kids they will write for your and paint you awesome pictures.  If you make this for your partner he/she will never leave and your life with him/her will be 10/10 all the time.  Asparagus is the best.

I got so jazzed about this stuff that I put some in Kid #2's bowl and ate it straight up.

What do you think?  I'm not sure that this translated well.


Quick Asparagus, Spinach Pasta
serves 4

1 lg bunch asparagus, chopped into long chunks
3 cloves garlic (or garlic scapes if we're goin' the seasonal route), crushed or minced
3 cups mushrooms, halved
4 cups spinach roughly chopped
paprika
4 tbsp herbs (I used basil, parsley, chives and oregano) - using fresh herbs, about 1/2 cup, chopped
2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cayenne or pepper sauce
1 cup cream
1/2 cup parmesan cheese, grated

Heat a large pot over medium heat.
Add about 2 tbsp of oil.  Throw in the asparagus, garlic and mushrooms.  Keep it moving in the pan and cook for about 6 minutes.
Add in the spinach.  Stirring regularly, let the spinach wilt.  Add in the paprika, herbs and salt.
Add the cayenne or pepper (if you want to go there)
Turn the heat down to low.
Add in the cream and the grated parmesan.
Check the taste and adjust if necessary.
Serve over pasta (I like the penne kind but go with your heart on this one).

Anticipation.
It's in the air right now.  It's palpable.  You can slice it with a knife.
We are all waiting right now.  It's almost the end of school.  The high school boys at my school are already done and writing exams.  Another gr. 12 class is graduating (I'll miss these ones - they're a nice group of guys).  The elementary's are in school for another week or so and we're just putting in time.  These guys are ready to go.
At home, we are waiting too.  Waiting for school to finish.  Waiting for some fun to begin.  Waiting for the garden to grow.  Waiting for visits from far away friends.  Waiting for my BFF to get home from her vacation.


We are also waiting for a new season to kick in as well.  Summer temperatures are not quite here yet.  The spring garden season is beginning to ebb now.  Fiddleheads... done.  Rhubarb... done.  Garlic Scapes... almost done.  This will be my last week for asparagus and what a run we've had.  I've got another bunch to go so I'll be coming up with another recipe but this one turned out very nicely.  It's like the harvest lull before the storm.  My beans and tomatoes (let's please not talk about my stupid-ass carrot and zucchini seed fiasco) and going crazy so I'm keeping my fingers crossed that it turns into real food at some point in the near future.  If I can get tomatoes, beans, herbs and raspberries from my garden this year I will be happy enough.


So I plan.  My summer reading list.  Summer concerts.  Getting ready to start training for an October marathon.  Getting summer camps down (just one happening this summer so it's easy).  What I'm going to do with all my beans and tomatoes (yeah, right).


Asparagus, Spinach and Rice Casserole
serves 6

2 bunches of asparagus, hard ends snapped of and then cut in half (like cutting down a tree)
1 onion
1/4 cup of garlic scapes, chopped OR 3 cloves of garlic, minced
1 large bunch of spinach (at least 4 cups), roughly chopped
2 cups rice
4 cups vegetable broth
1/2 cup mixed fresh herbs, chopped
dash of cayenne (or pepper sauce)
dash of mustard powder
salt just to taste
3/4 cup Parmesan shredded
1/2 sour cream

First saute the asparagus in a little oil for about 6 - 7 minutes over medium heat.  Remove from heat and set aside.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Heat a large pot or dutch oven and add some oil (2 - 3 tbsp).  Throw in the onion and garlic scapes.  Saute those in the oil for about 5 - 7 minutes or until the onion is limp beginning to caramelize.
Add in the  Rice and swish the rice in the oil and veggies until the rice is nicely coated.  Add in the veggie broth and mix.  Cook for about 6 minutes over med/low heat.
Remove from the heat and add in the herbs, mustard powder, pepper sauce (if you are me) and salt.  Mix well.
Add in a 1/2 cup of the parmesan cheese and all the sour cream.  Mix well.
Pour the rice mixture into a largish baking dish.
Arrange the sauteed asparagus over the top of the rice mixture.  Sprinkle with the remaining parmesan cheese.
Bake for about 25 min or until the parmesan is just beginning to brown.
Cool for a few minutes before serving.

Here's to Firetrucking RED Poppies.
Here's to it being warm enough to really want to have a beer in between job #1 (school teaching) and job #2 (home teaching).
Here's to actually doing it.
Here's to hearing this voice on the radio this morning.
Here's to things not always working the first time and still going back to it again.
Here's to having tomatoes and beans fresh from the garden (in about 5 weeks).


Here's to 8 more days of school - give or take - and being a total bum after that.
Here's to biking to work in the morning and being HOT when I get there.
Here's to Sunday nights that stretch on and on because it stays light outside until all hours... and I subsequently forget that I have work the next day and totally enjoy myself.
As of now Sunday nights are about enjoying the fact that an evening doesn't stop at 7pm, that I can sit outside without a jacket and not freeze my ass off, that friends can enjoy it all with you and that summer is God's way of rewarding us for a job well done... ie. surviving another bloody winter.


In the midst of all the crazy try not to miss the moments... reading a book to your kid before work, taking a minute to actually put on lip gloss, stopping to listen - I mean really listen - to what your friend is saying, truly enjoying that cold bubbly beer as it's going down.
I'm just in that kind of mood right now, what can I say.  It's probably because I had the beer (see above). I often wonder though whether in 20, 30, 40 years whether we'll be happier about our accomplishments or about the mistakes we made and what we learned through them.  Just sayin'...


Potato, Yam and Spinach Curry
serves 4 - 6

3 medium potatoes chopped into thick chunks
2 med/large yams chopped into thick chunks
1 onion, diced
1 rib of celery, diced
3 lg cloves of garlic, crushed
1 bunch of spinach (about 4 cups or a little more), washed and roughly chopped
1 can of chickpeas, drained (reserve the liquid)
1 can of coconut milk
1 tbsp of Madras (mild or hot) curry paste
3 tbsp garam masala
2 tsp turmeric
1 1/2 tsp salt
dash of cardamom, cinnamon and coriander

Heat a large dutch oven over medium heat.  Add in some oil (your choice) and begin to saute the onion and celery.  Cook for a few minutes and then add in the garlic, the potato and the yam.  Cook together for another 5 minutes or so.
Add in the spinach and the chickpeas and turn the heat down to med/low.
In a small dish mix together the curry paste, garam masala, turmeric, salt, cardamom, cinnamon and coriander until it forms a thick paste (use a little chick pea liquid to get the paste).  Add the paste to the vegetables and mix well.  Add in the coconut milk and mix.  Add just enough of the reserved chick pea liquid to almost cover the vegetables.  Mix well.


Turn down to low and let it simmer for about 20 min or until the potato and yam are cooked through.
Serve on it's own or with rice or Naan.