Main Bunny, what will I do without you?6/30/08
6/29/08
6/27/08
A Matter of Time
If, like me, your 'family tree' emerged from a pastiche of transatlantic crossings, diasporas, and house fires, heirlooms may be hard to come by. So, the objects I've inherited, I guard like little eggs.Like this Osterizer, which my parents gave to me when I 'left home' for the first time. Apparently, almost thirty years prior, Lorraine had been daydreaming about making her own baby food (if, someday, she happened to become a mother). Jack, thinking that sounded like a plan, bought her a twenty-speed blender the day she telephoned him to say that she was pregnant.
And did they ever make baby food. My brother and I ate what they ate: fried eggs, Swiss chard, elbow macaroni - helped along by this shiny locomotive. Later on, the blender was pressed into use as a smoothie maker when the little girl of the family turned out to have a 'sensitive' constitution (and palate).
Now the blender is over 30 years old. And that little girl still loves every single thing about it: the bent faceplate, the powerful motor (encased in that sexy chromed base), its heft, the colors of the plastic buttons, its old-fashioned two-prong plug, the chip in the glass pitcher, the story of its birth, the sound of its churring and chewing, and its unfailing dependability. Adam and I use it every single day.
A long way from home, but not so far when you think about it.
6/23/08
6/22/08
Hansel und Gretel
"It's really hard to get German chocolate in Germany," Paradiso tells me. "It's all from Belgium!"But she managed to find Hachez, a company that makes 'feine vollmich-chocolade' wrapped in this cheerfully-designed paper. And 'feine' it is. Smooth and soft as Gretel's bum.
6/21/08
Mojito Man
1. Bash up 6 mint leaves.2. Pour 1 oz simple cane sugar syrup, 1.5 oz white rum, and 1 oz lime juice into glass.
3. Add mint.
4. Top with club soda and ice.
5. Stir and let sit for 5 minutes before drinking. You have to do this step to get the full flavor of the mint oil into the rest of the drink.
Adam figures he churned out about 40 of these last night for our party. Then tonight, he made a geriatric version for us just by omitting the liquor. They really capped off the slow bike tour we did around the neighborhood at dusk. Did you feel how warm the air was tonight?
In the Nick of Time
Good thing Cindy and Tony made a housewarming of this German paring knife! Already, I've had fun imagining myself dicing and chopping on those days when nothing soothes the stress better than 4 inches of razor-sharp stainless steel.And for self-defense, of course. A girl can't be too careful these days.
Welcome Home
I've blogged before about Paticceria Gelateria Italiana (where Christina and I got that loving feeling last November). And I've blogged about my friends Julie and Amirali (who have since generously delivered a large tin of individually-wrapped Gaz candy).Well, at our long-awaited housewarming last night, Julie and Amirali brought us a load of treats from Paticceria Gelateria Italiana, which happens to be smack-dab in the middle of Julie's new neighborhood. First was a shiny chocolate fish and a pair of love mice, complete with chocolate ganache bodies, almond ears, and dark brown eyes. Then came a cardboard box filled with piped butter cookies in orange, mocha, coconut, chocolate.
I feel utterly spoiled and, as always, grateful for dear friends.
6/13/08
Pre-lunch Snack
Vilmas Handbakat Knackebrod is available in Sweden. This one was Rag Havssalt flavour. You can substitute with a Ryvita-brand rye crisp if you like, but it won't be quite as delicate. Either way, slather whatever you've got with a thin layer of Gorgonzola and some sort of sticky jam. I used quince paste on my first try, but this one is organic New Brunswick grape jelly. Who knew you could grow grapes in the Maritimes?
6/11/08
Fruit Salad
The little bean on the right is Bananica: a chocolate coated 'foamy dessert' from The Bosnian Deli on Merivale. The electric-yellow insides taste like children's medicine. Stick to 'Bananko' brand, which is lighter and less artificial-tasting.
If you won't go for banana, how about the most delicate candied orange peel covered in fine milk chocolate? Purchased at Made in France on Dalhousie.6/8/08
6/6/08
In Season
This cold salad was one of those dishes I made in my imagination first and then put together in a bowl. Lately, we've been dutifully eating bunches of short-lived asparagus. The latest way was with Scotch barley, green onion, a pile of fresh mint leaves, a good glug of hazelnut oil, S&P, and the juice of half a lemon.
6/4/08
TLA
When we give from the heart, we do so out of a joy that springs forth whenever we willingly enrich a person's life.
- Marshall Rosenberg
Really nothing makes me ever feel so loved as being fed.
Giving a Fig
A sun-dried Shirazi fig. Another classic Iranian snack introduced to me by Amirali, via Jules.
6/1/08
Milky Baby
Another guy who brews a nice pot is my very own Adam. He just boils up some hot water and steeps whatever kind of loose leaf tea he finds in the cupboard. Once it cools, we keep it in the fridge, mixing it with milk and buckwheat honey or maple syrup each morning.