We needed a treat for race day. The rhubarb in my fridge has been calling to me lately, anyway. It’s been telling me that I should make Rhubarb Custard Bars, but I was feeling more pie-ish today. (Pies are my favourite dessert.) Also, I found a bag of 2010-picked strawberries in the back of my freezer (oo-oops!),
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April 28, 2013
Rhubarb-Strawberry Galette
March 7, 2013
Simple Moroccan Lentils
I am posting today so that I secretly have an excuse to share this super exciting food discovery: a farm on Vancouver Island (in fact, right here on the Saanich peninsula) grows lentils!!! I know, right? WAY more exciting than all this local wheat taking up the headlines. Until now, there have been very limited
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February 16, 2013
An Update on Operation Use-It-Up
Last January, I posted about my New Year’s Resolution to stop pretending that food storage worked like a bank vault, and to start using up food from my freezer and pantry before I had to throw any of it out. I started with the bag of three-summers-old frozen blackberries that I found on New Year’s
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December 7, 2012
Butter Pecan Cookies
I made these the first time only because I wanted to use up some pecans. I made these the second and subsequent times because they Are. So. Good. These cookies are beyond good when made with baby native pecans from Rancho Vignola. Anyone who read my last post will know that I am a huge fan of Rancho Vignola’s
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October 3, 2012
Warm Farro Salad with Winter Greens
I admit that I am a traditionalist when it comes to Thanksgiving dinner. But still I like to add a new dish to the menu every few years. Last Thanksgiving I made a popular recipe, Warm Farro Salad, from my Great Grains cooking class. I thought the combination of nutty whole grain farro, roasted hazelnuts, and wilted winter greens would
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June 30, 2012
What to do with Garlic Scapes
These crazy vegetables – long coiled green things – show up in the farmers’ markets in June. “Garlic scapes,” say the hand-written signs. Sounds good, but what does a person do with garlic scapes in the kitchen? Scapes are the green stems of the garlic plants, trimmed in the spring to prevent their blooms from
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March 18, 2012
Sunday Sundae Treat
As part of my New Year’s resolution, I have been eating up not only healthy foods like dried beans and frozen chicken, but also - woe is me – treats from my stockpile of baking supplies. You know, dark chocolate, organic sweeteners and fair-trade nuts. It’s been tough. The siren call of the nuts and chocolate led directly to a revival of my favourite childhood
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March 7, 2012
Chile con Carne del Congelador*
*Title Translation: “beef chili made from freezer finds” I came home from work last Thursday with a burning determination to continue my New Year’s resolution. With hardly a hello to my family, I began ruthlessly pulling stuff out of the freezer to thaw. “Use it or lose it!” I told myself, even when the pile became
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January 22, 2012
Bean and Sausage Soup with Parmesan
This recipe is definitely part of Operation Use-It-Up, but I got tired of using that term in all my post titles. It’s kind of off-putting, don’t you find? Posts about the struggle to use things from my pantry and freezer(s) will now be found under the category “Operation Use-It-Up” down there on the sidebar. In
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January 17, 2012
Operation Freezer, Week Two: Roasted Chicken and Raspberries in Syrup
This has been a red-letter week in Operation Freezer. I managed to use up freezer items for at least three delicious meals, and to dispose of one sad lonely pork loin chop that has been making me feel guilty every time I open Freezer One. However. I have been thinking. I’ve decided that my Freezer Issue isn’t
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