Theme party :: 70's disco

Last Saturday (over a week ago, I know, I know, should be present here more) the fabulous group of friends I have, celebrated the mid-winter blahs with a 70's disco night. And look who dropped in for the evening... Johnny himself !

Such joy to spend a few hours with my most cherished buddies.

Theme Party :: Ugly Christmas Sweater

Last night was our 2nd annual ugly christmas sweater party at a friend's house (it was also her b-day). We had a blast. Everyone had such beautiful\ugly sweaters.

Dave and I before leaving the house.

The boys in the band.

The birthday girl - very happy about the gift we gave her. The Happy Baker cookbook.

The gang !

Theme party :: glam nite

We had another theme party last night - glam nite/red carpet. These are house parties with a bunch of very good friends wanting to laugh and enjoy life.

Here I am arriving on the red carpet.

Next theme party

I've mentioned here before, I have such an awesome network of friends. It's a small group but we sure kick it up a notch when we're together. We are in the process of planning our next get-together. And as a lot of you know, we LOVE theme parties.

Remember the Cowboy Party back in November ...

Than there was the Ugly Christmas Sweater in December...

Who can forget the Spice Girls for Halloween 2008.

When's the next party you ask ? ... in February. We'll need a lot of bling, bling they say.

Now, where to find a 50 feet red carpet !

Another themed party... tacky christmas sweaters

Remember the Cowboy themed party last month. Last night we had another one, this time the theme was ''Tacky Christmas Sweater/Outfit''. As I've mentioned here before, I don't have a lot of friends but those that I have are the best. We had fun last night. Everyone was in a very festive mood - we sang christmas carols, santa dropped by for a visit and laughter, oh ya, there was lots of laughter and cheers.

Wild, Wild, West

Last night we were invited to a small gathering (10 of us) at some friends' home. The theme of the night was cowboy. Here we are getting ready to leave.


You won't find guns or hunting knives in our home. However, Dave wanted to be an authentic cowboy so he put his childhood treasure on his belt - his spoon, knife, fork thingy. Well, well, everyone had a good laugh at ''authentic Dave''.

I have loads of pictures of the evening but I did'nt get permission from most of the cowboys and cowgirls to put their faces on blogland. But here is a picture of three very good friends that I know won't mind if I post this picture. On the left is the sheriff with two of the cowgirls.

We had a ball. We even had a tour of an awesome barn full of wonderful artifacts.

Food week : Dessert

I know, this picture illustrates the beginnings of a pie and I love pie but my fav dessert is Blueberry Buckle. And not just any blueberry buckle... it's Martha's own version (and her mom's streusel topping recipe).

Visit here for Martha's recipe.

I never bake blueberry buckle without having vanilla ice cream in the house to put a generous serving on top of my piece and anyone else's.

Thank you to Sherrie for hosting yet another fabulous theme week and to all the participants for sharing many delicious recipes that are now neatly stored away in my recipe three-ring binder.

Food week : Vegetable

We are in the middle of a wintery snow storm this morning and it's also "Vegetable Recipe" day for Sherrie's food week.

(No pictures today, sorry)

Baked potatoes

I don't really have a recipe, here is what I put together.

Wash and scrub two large potatoes, poke a few times with a fork. Cover each individual potato with foil wrap and bake in a 350 degree oven until cooked through. Remove from oven and let cool down a little so you can easily handle them. Slice both potatoes in half. Lay the four pieces on a cookie sheet, cut side up. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Top with dried basil, small pieces of broccoli, grated cheese (I usually put what I have on hand which is cheddar and mozzerella). Broil in oven just until the cheese is melted. Remove from oven, top with snipped chives and serve with a dollop of sour cream. (Note - you can add fried bacon before you add the cheese).

I love eating baked potatoes, especially in the Winter.

Take a look at what others are cooking.

Food week : Supper

It's suppertime bloggies !!!!!

Here is my contribution for today's "Food Week" recipe - Maple salmon with sweet spinach salad.


Salmon glaze :

Mix the following in a bowl until well blended.

2 tablespoon butter, room temperature
2 tablespoon lemon juice
2 teaspoon mustard
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup maple syrup

Spread over whole salmon, salmon steaks, or salmon pieces in a baking pan. Cover pan with foil and bake in 350 degree oven until salmon flakes easily. I usually bake the salmon pieces and these take about 20-30 minutes.

Sweet Spinach Salad

1 pkg. baby spinach
1/2 cup dried cranberries (I use these instead of the mandarin oranges)
12 cherry tomatoes, halved
1 cup sliced fresh mushrooms
2 hard boiled eggs
Dressing :
1/3 cup sugar (I use organic cane)
3 tablespoon cider vinegar
1 tablespoon honey (I use Agave)
2 tablespoon finely chopped red onion
1/2 teaspoon celery seed
1/2 teaspoon mustard
1/2 teaspoon lemon juice
1/2 cup olive oil

In a large salad bowl, toss spinach, tomatoes and mushrooms; set aside. In a small saucepan, over medium heat, combine the first 7 dressing ingredients. Stir until sugar is dissolved. Remove from heat. Whisk in the oil. Drizzle over salad, add dried cranberries, toss to coat. Finally, top with sliced hard-boiled eggs.

I can't seem to have enough salmon. I just love it to death. And leafy green veggies - well they taste good and they're good for you. Y'all knew that right !

(Both pictures are from Google Images because I just could'nt find pictures of my own creations).

Check out the delicious-ness others have on their blogs.

Food week : Lunch

Our gracious hostess is asking to see our favorite recipe for lunch. Here's mine.

Black Beans and Rice

(Google Image - this image is not at all what this dish looks like, I just wanted to add a picture to my post)

Don't be fooled by the simple ingredients in this recipe. Thinking that it could be taste-less. Believe me, it's very tasty and delicious (at least I think so). I make this dish at least once in two weeks - making about five lunches for the work week. If you're like me and don't eat meat, black beans are the perfect addition to your diet.

Black Beans and Rice

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 small red onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
3/4 cup uncooked white basmati rice
1.5 cups vegetable broth
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1.5 cups black beans, drained

In a stockpot over medium-high heat, heat the oil. Add the onion and garlic and sauté for 5 minutes. Add the rice and sauté for 2 minutes.

Add the vegetable broth and cumin, bring to a boil, cover and lower the heat and cook for 20 minutes. Add the black beans.

Enjoy !

Hop-on over to Sherrie's blog for a list of participants in Food Week.

Food week : Breakfast

(from Google Images)

Sherrie over at Frenchy's Finds is hosting "Food Week". Thank you Sherrie ! Share our favorite recipes in each of the categories she has identified. Hop on over to her website to see how you can play along.

Here is what Sherrie is looking for today - our favorite recipe for breakfast.

Although I am not usually a breakfast person I force myself to have a light breakfast on weekdays - two slices of toast with jam and my "loving" cup of coffee or a small bowl of oats. But on weekends I enjoy treating myself to a nice breakfast and this is what I love to enjoy :

Crepes

1 cup all-purpose flour (I use unbleached flour)
1 teaspoon white sugar (organic cane for me)
1/4 teaspoon salt (sea salt)
1/2 teaspoon grated orange rind
3 eggs
2 cups milk
1/4 teaspoon vanilla
2 tablespoons melted butter

Sift together flour, sugar, salt and orange rind; set aside. In a large bowl, beat eggs, milk and vanilla together with an electric mixer. Beat in flour mixture until smooth; stir in melted butter.

Heat a lightly oiled griddle or frying pan (I use a small frying pan and it works fine. The size of the pan depends on how small or big you want your crepe) over medium heat. Pour the batter onto the pan, using approximately 2 tablespoons for each crepe. Tip and rotate pan to spread batter as thinly as possible. Brown on both sides, slide onto a plate and roll-up and serve hot with the following drizzled on top :

Orange maple syrup :

1 cup pure maple syrup
1/4 cup orange juice
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1 tablespoon butter

Put all ingredients in a small saucepan on low to medium heat and heat through. No need to let it boil. When butter is melted and all ingredients are well blended together - it's ready to drizzle over your rolled-up crepes.

You can very well add fruits on top of your crepes such as orange slices, strawberries, banana slices, etc. No limits - it's up to you; add whatever you like or what you have on hand. Gee, you can spread some Nutella before rolling, that's always good, right.

On the side - a cup of coffee.

Yup, you guessed it - tomorrow will be "Lunch" Tuesday. If you like black beans, I have the recipe for you.

Comfort Week : Image

Well here we are Friday which is usually my favorite day of the week but today is kinda sad - it's the last day of Sherrie's Comfort Week. But you know what, this week has forced me to stand still and focus on ''the now'' and I think that even though we're done posting on our blogs I'll keep having this Comfort theme for at least the remaining of January and write in my journal.

Image: Sherrie is looking for a picture that represents total comfort to me when I look at the picture. Here it is - my gardens. Our home is 3/4 surrounded by flower gardens (mainly country cottage style gardens) and 1/4 veggie and herb gardens.



But wait...
... I would'nt be true to myself if I did'nt say that the following image gives me the most comfort of all when I look at it :

My family - my husband that loves me for all that I am and encourages me to be the person he knows I can be, my son who is always looking out for his mama and my daughter who is flying with my wings. I love them so much and for this I get comfort.

Thank you so much Sherrie for hosting this Comfort Week. Keep well.

Visit other bloggers here - they're all wonderful.

Comfort Week : Habit

Today we talk about - habit : a behaviour or routine that brings you comfort, according to Sherrie's request. I don't know if I'm on the right track with this one... behaviour is the way someone acts and a routine is doing something continously. Hmmmm, maybe the last one. What do you think !
My love affair and continous obsession with knitting. Well, maybe that's behaviour AND routine so I'm on the right track on both accounts.

And here publicly I have to confess to my "lack of love" for knitting up until January 2008. Yup, that's when I fell in love with all things knitty. In the process, I've discovered that I'm a self-taught knitter and that my past experiences with the art of knitting were not all that great. When I learn something new I want for it to be explained to me "exactly" the way it's suppose to be done - no shortcuts, no "this way but it's still OK that way", no "I do it this way but my cousin does it that way", no nothing. And this is how I got to "not love" (I rarely say the word hate, I don't like that word) knitting. Everyone was showing me a different technique everytime.

So many, many years went by and in January 2008 I bought a pair of wooden needles and three skeins of yarn and went to town - I knitted a stole for my daughter. That Christmas my niece gifted me with a beautiful stole she had knitted herself and this is how it all started for me. I am new at this but the more I knit the more I feel comfort. It kinda makes my heart smile.

Let us mosey on over here to see what others have to say about today's theme. So far I love what everyone is posting about. I've even met knew bloggers that have amazing blogs. I already have them in my favorites. Hope they don't mind.

Comfort Week : Place

Happy Wednesday everyone ! Isn't Sherrie the best hostess ever. Today she'd like to know the place most comfortable to us and if you have a few minutes please check out what others have to say about their favorite Place.

This is a no-brainer. The place most comfortable for me = the OCEAN.

When I'm here all my worries drift-off with the waves; I breathe-in ever so slowly; I feel safe from the world; I slow down; I clear the fog that's in my head. Although, fog is good when it's not in your head :-) They say it's good for the complexion. Hey people, we may not be able to have a clear blue sky all the time, but we can all use a good moisturiser.

The Ocean (and by the way the Ocean is a She) grounds me, gives me balance and direction. I was born and raised further in land. Dave on the other hand grew up next to the ocean. We both decided when it came time to buy our home (30 years ago) that we would go in land and when we needed to see the ocean we would drive and visit anytime we needed to... and that's what we've been doing for the past 3 decades.

When the tide goes down - we dig for our supper. Dave and I spend a lot of our spare time beachcombing looking for driftwood and beach glass. When Life gets in the way - we head to the Ocean to find stillness and silence from the every day madness.

However, never take the beauty and calmness of the Ocean for granted. She's one moody girl. One minute, calm and soothing and the next minute raging waves hit the shore like thunder.

For all the beauty and comfort that I find here, a lot of families have experienced fear and sadness with the loss of family and friends.

Comfort Week : Home

Here is what Sherrie has suggested we talk about today for our Comfort Week theme - home: the most comfortable (or comforting) thing in your home.

Check out what others have to say here.

Although for me my entire 200 year old home is what gives me comfort (as you've probably read a few times on this blog) as well as my yoga mat and altar, my cozy bed, my old shabby antiques, my grandmother's tea set and many more. But I have to give first place to our rocking chair in the kitchen.


This chair belonged to my MIL. This chair is not "old" like most of the stuff I cherish in this home, but it's BEAUTIFUL. Aside from a few teeth marks made by a very active, young puppy years ago it's still in very good shape. Everyone wants to sit in the rocking chair, it's a favorite all around with family and friends.

From here I :

- watch my family doing whatever it is they're doing in the family room, mostly watching TV;
- admire nature's beauty from the window next to the kitchen table;
- breathlessly watch my favorite little creatures as they nibble on bird seeds in the feeder;
- knit, sing, drink tea, and dream;
- keep an eye on our supper that's cooking on the stove;
- have long conversations with my husband as he's washing the dishes;
- find out what kind of day my son had at work;
- worry on my family when weather conditions are bad and they need to be out on the roads;
- have long phone conversations with my daughter;
- laugh and cry with friends;
- wait my turn for the washroom.

You see, this rocking chair is sooooooo much more than a piece of wood that was carved into a piece of furniture. It's memories for my husband. His mom has been gone for 20 years and I'm sure she used the chair for the same reasons I do.

Talk to everyone tomorrow !

Comfort Week : Food

Sherrie over at Frenchy's Finds is hosting Comfort Week and I'm playing along. I'm very excited about this week actually. I love theme weeks. Here is what she's asking for today : food - your favourite comfort food (with recipes, if possible!)

To see and read what other wonderful bloggers have to say, click here.

My all time favorite comfort food(s) is soup and bread. Seriously, I can't just pick one. It has to be the two.

I love ALL soups but a favorite around here is Potato Leek.

It's a soup my mom made when I was a kid (minus the leeks) and she still makes it and I'm sure her mom made it. There's no written recipe but here goes my version :

Potato Leek Soup

Peel as many potatoes as you would like in your soup. Slice to ressemble very thin medallions. Keep slices in cold water while you get the following ready.

Melt 1 tablespoon butter in a saucepan; soften leeks (I use both white and green parts of one large leek) that have been cut-up in very small pieces. I add 1 tablespoon salted green onions (these might not be available to everyone but the soup is still fine without them). Careful that the butter doesn't burn.

Add half the saucepan of water; salt and pepper (if you used the salted green onions you should omit the salt) and 3 tablespoons Knorr Cream of Leek powder.

Add sliced potatoes, bring to a boil then simmer until tender. That's it, nothing fancier than that. Enjoy the soup !

Moving on to the Bread :

I love this no-knead-bread (pictured above) but it takes about 18 hours before you can sink your teeth into a warm slice. But it sure is worth the wait. But if you're in more of a hurry to have delicious fresh bread, try these rolls from Down to Earth. They turn out perfect every single time I make them and I've made these at least a dozen times in the past year. If you don't want rolls, you can make one loaf of bread out of the dough. Seriously beginners, if you want to venture out in bread baking try this recipe. You know sometimes day old bread is dry and hard. Well this one is soooooooo soft inside and it's like this for at least 3 days (if they last that long).

See y'all tomorrow !