I was on Project Runway and the challenge guidelines were to use fresh produce to make a dress. I had access to a kitchen and about 10 convection ovens, and I concocted a fruit leather dress in 12 hours! How amazing would that be- imagine the pretty [...]]]> I had a nice little day dream today-

I was on Project Runway and the challenge guidelines were to use fresh produce to make a dress. I had access to a kitchen and about 10 convection ovens, and I concocted a fruit leather dress in 12 hours! How amazing would that be- imagine the pretty yellows, oranges and red ‘leathers’ I could come up with by mixing different fruits.

I googled ‘fruit leather dress’ for the hell of it and found this- of course it exists! It looks like she used those fruit leather snacks you can buy at the grocery store.

This makes me excited to see my version, which I am thinking will be a little Balenciaga Spring 2008  inspired. I am going to keep my eyes peeled and my ears tuned for any fashion competitions involving biodegradable materials. And prize money.

Allow me to present to you. . . . fruit leather!  Homemade fruit roll ups!

I got the idea from this recipe. My first try I followed it almost exactly except for reducing the sugar. There was a [...]]]> I enjoy trying new things. Sciency kitchen experimiments are especially appealing.  Here is one that blew me away with it’s results.

Allow me to present to you. . . . fruit leather!  Homemade fruit roll ups!

I got the idea from this recipe. My first try I followed it almost exactly except for reducing the sugar. There was a complicated issue of the heat needing to be set at at 150 degrees and most ovens, including mine, only go as low as 170. I had a wooden spoon in the door which I eventually took out after about 6 hours because it wasn’t really helping . . . I let it go for a few hours more and although it was delicious, wasn’t really what I would call a success.

The next day, I changed my approach.  I used one peach, one apple and a handful of cherries all diced up and combined that with a couple teaspoons of lemon juice and a little less than a quarter cup of sugar. I stewed it all on the stove for about a half hour to help cook off some of the moisture before I put it in the oven. I set my oven at 170 and used the convection setting.  Aha! I never bothered to read my stove’s manual so I don’t know too much about convection but it makes sense- having a little fan blow around the heat- isn’t that the premise behind a food dehydrator? It only took 3.5 hours! The leather was moist and soft and perfect!  Egad! Success!

Next time, I think I will skip the sugar alltogether.

Voila the masterpiece-

All cut up-

Try it!

Bea Arthur. Mountains. Pizza.

There was a time in the not too distant past that Dom and I would only speak to each other in a Bea Arthur voice. Deep, slow and sexy, with [...]]]> Via Socialite, I’d have to say, Happy Birthday to Me.

Bea Arthur. Mountains. Pizza.

There was a time in the not too distant past that Dom and I would only speak to each other in a Bea Arthur voice. Deep, slow and sexy, with lots of emphatic flourish. We love her. RIP Bea.

So I would like to say, in my Bea Arthur voice,

“These last 30 years of my life have been wonderful. I’ve made some marvelous friends , and oh, how we’ve laughed. Oh, how we’ve laughed and laughed. It’s been glorious. On this most auspicious of days in my life, I would like to say, thank you. Thank you for all the wonderful times that we’ve had. I love you all.”

xo

Shocking news!!! According to a recent poll, 3/3 Canadians agree that the following recipe is better than Kraft Dinner.

Pasta Fagioli (recipe courtesy of my Mother In Law)

2-3 teaspoons olive oil
3-4 cloves garlic, chopped
1 19oz can white kidney beans
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
[...]]]>

Shocking news!!! According to a recent poll, 3/3 Canadians agree that the following recipe is better than Kraft Dinner.

Pasta Fagioli (recipe courtesy of my Mother In Law)

2-3 teaspoons olive oil
3-4 cloves garlic, chopped
1 19oz can white kidney beans
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
water
3 cups dry pasta (something similar in size to the beans, like macaroni or tubetti)

In a medium saucepan, saute garlic in the olive oil until tender, but not brown. Add the whole can of beans, unrinsed, and one almost full can of water. Simmer over medium heat for 20-30 minutes, until sauce is reduced and slightly thickened.

In the meantime, cook pasta according to directions in salted water. Drain.

Combine bean sauce and pasta, and stir in parmesan cheese. Serve.

You win!!!

 
I love dill, it’s my favourite herbe. This is my Grandma’s recipe- no one can make it like she can, but give it a shot!

Dill Soup

1/2 onion, diced
2 cups fresh dill, chopped fine
large potato, cubed [...]]]>

can you taste the freshness?

 
I love dill, it’s my favourite herbe. This is my Grandma’s recipe- no one can make it like she can, but give it a shot!

Dill Soup

1/2 onion, diced
2 cups fresh dill, chopped fine
large potato, cubed small
1/2 cup rice
salt and pepper, to taste
1 egg
1 cup sour cream
1 tbsp vinegar (or a little more. . . )

Soften onion in a little butter or olive oil in a medium-large pot. Add half a pot of water. Add dill, potato, rice and s + p. Cook until tender. Beat egg and add to sour cream and vinegar. Warm this up slowly by adding a bit of the soup in batches until it is hot enough to add to the remaining soup (without cooking the egg). Warm it up a little more. . . serve.

Great with sandwiches.

Fun Fact: As you may know, dill comes in too big bunches. After you’ve used it for what you intended it for, it usually ends up going bad in the fridge, like, “what the fun am I going to do with all this dill? ” (southern accent) One time I bought a bunch to make this soup, and since I had some left over I also made a yogurt-dill type salad dressing. Both the leftover dill soup and dressing were in the fridge. Dom came home from work one day and warmed himself up a bowl of “dill soup”. I walked in on him at the table trying to eat the “soup”, which was actually the salad dressing! Hot yogurt salad dressing! Ew! He wasn’t too happy. So anyway, anytime I mention making dill soup he makes an exaggerated sad face and shakes his head. I don’t know if he will ever enjoy it again.

For the past month or two I’ve been obsessed with making the perfect homemade granola bars. My local bulk store loves me.  I’ve been experimenting with different ingredients, and I think we’ve got a winner. The basics tend to remain the same, but it’s the liquid binding agents that change the whole thing. Different recipes I’ve tried have used [...]]]>

For the past month or two I’ve been obsessed with making the perfect homemade granola bars. My local bulk store loves me.  I’ve been experimenting with different ingredients, and I think we’ve got a winner. The basics tend to remain the same, but it’s the liquid binding agents that change the whole thing. Different recipes I’ve tried have used combinations of peanut butter, eggs, corn syrup, honey, butter, brown sugar. . . Granola #2, the winner, uses a can of sweetened condensed milk and butter. Simple! Here’s the recipe.

3 cups of rolled oats
5 cups of a combination of the following- ( I use a giant measuring cup and keep layering  until I have 5 cups)

chopped walnuts
chopped pecans
almond slivers
shredded coconut
sunflower seeds
raisins
dried cranberries
chopped dried apricots
chocolate chips
white chocolate chips
butterscotch chips
wheat germ
flax seeds
bran buds

half cup of butter, melted
one can of sweetened condensed milk
2 teaspoons of cinnamon

Combine all the dry ingredients and mix. Whisk the condensed milk and cinnamon into the melted butter. Add to dry ingredients and mix well.

Press mixture into a cookie sheet lined with foil. Compact well, a fork works the best.

Bake at 350 for 25 minutes. Let cool for 10 minutes, flip granola out of pan and remove foil. Cut or break into pieces.

AMAAAAAAAZINGGGGG!