cake and party

two birthdays in 5 days

one kid party

velvety beet cake with raspberry icing

100 year old plate that I bought almost 15 years ago (finally found a use for it) - yeah I was an odd, antique collecting teenager

lots of noise, energy and excitement when your mix 7 kids under 4

waiting to eat your jellybean decorated cake is really hard

late night cake baking followed by party is a little exhausting for Mama

food

You can't have holidays without traditions around food. Family recipes passed down, that make each holiday feel a bit the same; new traditions that are starting to stick and feel just right; and special dishes that remind us of those that aren't with us anymore.

We had Grandmaman's gumdrop cake accompany many holiday celebrations from solstice through boxing day. Christmas Eve has started a tradition of snacks, appetizers and mushroom/sherry/thyme soup, followed by a bonfire and then back inside for coffee and sweets. And all those extra snacks are perfect for pulling out for guests over the following days.

The traditional turkey dinner served by my Mom was a smaller affair with just six adults and the 2 kids. She tried a new butternut squash with fennel, in place of the turnips with bechamel sauce. Those turnips are a classic, so she had a big challenge ahead of her in changing things up. It was a success, the butternut squash was so good, we'll be hoping for it again...good thing there is Thanksgiving, so the turnips still have a place too!

And you can't forget Christmas oranges to tide you over until breakfast which isn't until after all present opening and playing.

dinner outside

... and my boy, he waits until the very last moment, just before bedtime, to finally eat his dinner.

Blueberries!

They were totally in love with the abundance of their favourite food in the forest near our house. Maeva was trying to pick them while in the sling. Then I took her out, and it was the first time she ever stayed in one place for so long. Totally loving these wild blueberry gems.

When visiting as a child, this has always been my favourite part about summer in this city. The berries and the lakes. It's all about the blue.

red or white?

white when the sun shines ~ red under candlelight

summer eats

berries

how do you like your summer berries?

with honey greek yogourt and chia seeds ~ in a happy face bowl ~ with milk and brown sugar

celebrating 80

watching and listening to his greats and grand-children play

water fun on a hot day

the scene after the water play

and breakfast the next morning.

loving: breakfast outdoors

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also, this blog... simply breakfast

the photos can't help but make you feel all happy, warm, and serene... i love breakfast.

oatmeal

A continuation of this post... This bowl has unsweetened blueberry applesauce, plum and raisins. So simple, so pretty... and healthy too.

a little slice of capri

I am so happy about this Saputo Mozzarina di Bufala. This was my favourite taste of the Amalfi Coast, and I thought I would have to return there to ever have it again. I definitley wouldn't mind returning there though. This cheese is made from 100% buffalo milk, from an Italian buffalo herd being raised in Quebec. I like this cheese on its own to really take in the subtle flavours. But it is the proper cheese (not the tasteless cow's milk version) of the Caprese salad with tomatoes, olive oil and fresh basil. A little bit of Amalfi/Capri/Campania in my living room...

fresh pasta

We've started having fresh pasta and it is so good. Dried pasta just doesn't even compare. But fresh pasta can be quite expensive and it doesn't keep forever like the dry stuff, so we don't always have it on hand. I finally tried making my own tomato sauce instead of the jarred stuff, and it just begged to be paired with fresh pasta. So we tried to make it ourselves for the first time. There is definitely room for improvement here, but it was really easy and cheap. Just egg and flour, roll it out thin (that's where we are lacking in skill and tools) and then cut it into strips.

I do want to start making my own bread, yogourt and cereal too...but one thing at a time. It's a slow process, but I think it would be totally worth it. I just have to figure out how to balance it all. Because homemade bread and yogourt is nice, but laundry piled to the ceiling, not so nice.

We got the recipe from this favourite book of mine, Classic Italian Cooking by Valentina Harris. We did the one cup of flour to one egg and it was pretty dry so we just played around with that. She does make note that all eggs and flour batches are different, so you just go with what works.

oatmeal doesn't have to be boring

This particular bowl has frozen raspberries cooked in, and all kinds of things added after: hemp seed, ground flax seeds, chia seeds, almonds, whey protein powder, a dollop of vanilla yogourt, and dried apricots. Sounds complicated, but I keep most add ins in jars in a drawer just below the counter, and then I line them up for a quick assembly line of additions that pack in lots of nutrition and fibre...and stick to your ribs fillingness (I don't think that is a word). Empty bowls all around, every time. I hope to label the tops of those jars one day. I'm thinking of painting the tops with chalkboard paint.