Dreamy Black Beans and Rice

Usually in September I'm dreaming up ideas for showcasing the season's most fleeting of pleasures: homegrown tomatoes. Once I've eaten my fill of tomato-and-basil sandwiches and made a few batches of the world's fastest tomato sauce there is still giant bowl of perfectly imperfect tomatoes in my kitchen. Here is a lovely and deliciously plain meal that invites a table full of toppings to garnish it. You can have fun with this, and it's perfect for a large gathering if you simply scale up the recipe.

The beans can be made well ahead of time, then reheated with a little extra water so they don't scorch. Bowls of roughly chopped tomatoes, avocado, finely diced onion, cilantro, cheese and some good hot sauces allow each of your guests to make their own beautiful presentation.

It's also really good with none of these accompaniments, proving that simple is almost always best...

Black Beans and Rice four servings

Seasoning is totally key here, taking something that could be boring to something outstandingly delicious. When starting with dried beans, a full tablespoon of salt is right for me. You might want to start with two teaspoons and season to taste from there.

2 cups dried Black Beans or 2 cans (540 ml) Black Beans
2 tablespoons Olive Oil
1 large Onion, chopped
3 cloves Garlic, finely chopped
1 teaspoon ground Cumin
1 teaspoon ground Coriander Seed
1/2 teaspoon Smoked Paprika (optional)
1 Bay Leaf
1 tablespoon Salt
1 cup Brown or White Rice, cooked according to directions (don't forget the salt!)

If using dried beans, place them in a large heavy pot with 8 cups water.  Cover and bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and cook until tender, about an hour and a half. Check from time to time that there is enough water. If using canned beans, skip this step and place the beans in a large heavy pot- no need to drain.  When the beans are tender, heat the olive oil in a frying pan over medium heat and add the onions. Stir until golden, then add the garlic, spices and salt. Cook for a minute, then scrape into the pot with the beans. Add 2 cups water, cover and simmer over low heat until beans are falling apart a little, about an hour. Serve with rice and toppings and cold beer.

Simple Pumpkin Cake with Brown Butter Glaze

Lately all I've been wanting to eat is cake.  I daydream about cupcakes piled high with frosting, layers of chocolate and cream, caramel sauce, raspberries. lemon curd.  I've been firing up my oven at bedtime to make a quick batch of brownies and almost bought a box of crunch donuts from the grocery store last week.  I am pregnant.

Since I've been rather absent here for the last few weeks, it should come as no surprise that I really haven't been doing much cooking.  Nothing I really want to share with you, or even admit to.  But now I'm feeling better and more energetic every day, and I've even started stocking my fridge with vegetables again! 

Pregnant or not, most of us could stand to eat a little healthier.  I'm not saying that the following recipe is actually good for you, but it certainly is better for you than some of the alternatives.  The pumpkin makes the cake very moist and rich-tasting, despite the fact that there is less fat and sugar in there than in other cakes.  The glaze adds a sugary, buttery flavour without being piled half an inch thick.  The recipe makes enough batter for 1 cake and a dozen muffins to freeze and dole out in lunchbags.

If you're energetic, try roasting your own pumpkin or buttercup squash, it will make the very best cake.  You will note that this recipe uses a whole large can of pure pumpkin, rather than leaving you with leftovers. 

This time last year: Roasted Moroccan Carrot Salad

Simple Pumpkin Cake with Brown Butter Glaze
makes 1 cake and 12 muffins

2 C. Sugar (I use Just Us!)
1 C. Canola Oil
6 Eggs
1 T. Vanilla
3 C. cooked and mashed Pumpkin  (or 1 large can)
4 C. Flour (try 2 C. white and 2 C. whole wheat)

4 t. Baking Soda
2 t. Baking Powder
2 t. Cinnamon
1 t. Ginger
1/4 t. Cloves
1/2 t. Salt

Preheat the oven to 350°.  Butter a bundt or other large cake pan, and a 12 cup muffin tin (or use paper liners).  In a large bowl, beat the sugar, oil, eggs and vanilla.  Add the pumpkin and whisk to combine well.  In a separate bowl, stir together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, ginger, cloves and salt.  Add the dry ingredients to the pumpkin mixture, and whisk just until combined.  Fill the muffin cups 2/3 full, then scrape the remaining batter into the cake pan.  Bake the muffins for 15-18 minutes and the cake for 30-40 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the middle of the cake comes clean.  Let cool on a rack in the pan for 10 minutes, then remove the cake from the pan.  Make the glaze, then drizzle it over the cake and muffins.

for the Brown Butter Glaze

2 T. Butter
1/4 C. Brown Sugar
1/4 C. Milk
1 1/2 C. Icing Sugar

Place the butter in a small saucepan over medium high heat.  Watch as it melts, bubbles, and begins to brown.  Whisk in the brown sugar, cook another 30 seconds, than remove from the heat and beat in the milk and icing sugar.

Heirloom Tomato Pasta

Sometimes the simplest things are the best.  You could stand all day at the stove, stirring a simmering pot of tomato sauce.  Or you could whip this up in the time it takes to boil the water for your pasta.  Of course, you need some really flavourful tomatoes. You can find some great old-fashioned tomato varieties at most nurseries if you're up for growing your own, or you can buy a mix of tomatoes at a farm market (or even at the grocery store).  This is a great use for ugly or less-than-perfect tomatoes since you chop them all up anyway.  The inspiration for this recipe comes from pasta genius Ross Patterson, aka The Noodle Guy.  Ross worked as a waiter in the early days of Union Street Cafe but he couldn't keep his nose out of the kitchen and we just loved him for it.  If I remember correctly, his version included a touch of anchovy. 

What makes this particular sauce so unusually delicious is that the tomatoes are essentially raw.  Barely cooked by the heat of the pasta, their sensual flavours bloom.  When I made this for myself last week, I added some fresh herbs that I collected by flashlight from my ridiculously overgrown garden and left out the anchovies because I didn't have any.  Locally grown, quality garlic will certainly make this all the better.

 This time last year: Grilled Summer Vegetables

Heirloom Tomato Pasta for 2

1 lb. mixed ripe Tomatoes, cut in 1" pieces (halve any cherry tomatoes)
2 T. Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1/4 t. Salt
1 juicy clove minced Garlic
2 T. slivered Red Onion
2 T. chopped fresh Basil
2 T. chopped fresh Parsley
1/2 of a 375 g. box Whole Wheat Spaghetti or Spaghettini
Freshly ground Pepper and Parmesan Cheese, for serving

Combine the tomatoes, oil, salt, garlic, onion and herbs in a bowl.  Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and add the pasta.  Cook until just tender, then drain.  Put the tomato mixture into the still-warm pot, then add the hot pasta.  Return to the turned off burner for a moment before tossing the whole glorious mess together.  Divide between bowls, adding generous grinds of pepper and Parmesan cheese to each serving.

Garlicky Green Beans

 This time last year: Blackberry Apple Pie

Well here's a deliciously simple way to consume mass amounts of fresh beans. My mom and I have each been cooking a version of this throughout bean season and are addicted.  You should try it!  It's adapted from Mollie Katzen's The Vegetable Dishes I Can't Live Without.  You just trim about a pound of beans and snap them in half.  Have ready about a tablespoon of minced fresh garlic.  Heat your largest pan over high heat for a few minutes, then swirl in a couple teaspoons of vegetable or sesame oil.  Keep the heat high as you pour in the beans.  Stir the beans constantly for about five minutes, adding a sprinkle or two of salt as they cook.  Add the garlic and cook for a minute or two longer, then remove from the heat.  Serve as an appetizer with a little sweet chili sauce for dipping, as a side dish, or make a meal of it!

Creamy Peach and Tomato Soup with Fresh Basil

This time last year:  Zucchini Muffins and Zucchini with Olive Oil, Garlic and Parmesan

This soup doesn't have a story.  It's just what results when you're driving to work with a bushel box of peaches from the Peach Pit Farm Market in the front seat and an enormous basket of fresh basil from your Dad's garden in the back.  Before you know it, you're standing in the kitchen making a soup that's even better than you hoped it might be....

 

Creamy Peach and Tomato Soup with Fresh Basil

2 T. Butter
1 Onion, diced
4 Ripe Peaches, diced
8 C. diced fresh Tomatoes or 2 Cans  Tomatoes (540 ml each), pureed
1 t. Salt
3 C. Chicken or Vegetable Stock or Water
1 C. Cream (optional)
1/4 C. Fresh Chopped Basil

Heat the butter in a large pot over medium heat and add the onion.  Cook and stir until the onion is tender, about ten minutes. Don't let it brown too much!  Stir in the peaches, tomatoes, salt and stock.  Bring to a gentle boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for twenty minutes or so.  Stir in the cream if using, and the basil.  If you like, use an immersion blender to smooth the soup out a bit, though a few discernible chunks of peach are lovely.  Taste for salt, and serve.  This soup is great hot, at room temperature, or cold.  Chill to store.

Creamy Broccoli Soup

This time last year: Kale and Swiss Chard with Caramelized Onions and Chicken Penne with Greens and Raspberries

When do we become confident soup makers?  When do we become confident cooks for that matter, counting on regular success in the kitchen and perhaps even believing that cooking is something we should do for a living?   For something so basic to our survival, it is astonishing how much practice it takes to become a really good cook.  Take soup.  I know that if I start with some chopped onions, some garlic, and a few basic ingredients that I can make something delicious.  But it wasn't always that way.

I had already mastered a few basics when I left home: macaroni and cheese, pancakes, stirfry.  But far away on the other side of the country, I missed my mother's chicken soup.  And she couldn't really tell me how to make it, because she Just Made It.  Also, I was vegetarian at the time, so I couldn't admit it. 

I was working at my first real cooking job, at a bowling alley on Saltspring Island, British Columbia.  I didn't have a phone, or a house for that matter, but I had a job.  I'd wake up each morning in my tent, shower at the marina down the road, and head in.  If I was late, my boss would call the woman who owned the land I was camping on, and she would holler at me from her house up the hill.  Kings Lane Recreation was a combination bowling alley/pool hall/arcade/restaurant beloved by Ganges locals.  The food was great.  Turkeys were continuously roasted, halibut filleted by hand for fish and chips, dough for butter tarts rolled out and filled.  And big pots of soup were made from scratch.

After working for the owner,  Ruth,  for a while, I progressed from counter girl to gravy maker to full time cook.  Following recipes that had been used for years, I slowly gained confidence in soup-making and most other kitchen duties.  I also learned a great deal about being a boss and business owner. Ruth was generous, kind, crazy, and bursting with love for her family and community.  She could flirt like nobody's business and always kept tubes of lipstick by the sink for applying when the rush of hardworking men would come in for lunch.  I think of her whenever I choose the heel of the bread for my sandwich at work (it'd go to waste otherwise) or hire someone with no experience just because I like them.  That's how Ruth would do it.

When I moved back home to NS, Ruth and I kept in touch.  She was the last person I regularly corresponded with by mail and I looked forward to her letters filled with news about her amazing children, travels with her husband, and Saltspring gossip.  Now it's only every few years that we check up on each other, but I'll always remember her taking a chance on me and giving me a start in the right direction.

Cream of Broccoli Soup

Choose a lovely bunch of local broccoli for this soup.  That's the secret to its success!

1 large bunch Broccoli
3 C. Water or Stock
1 1/2 t. Salt
3 T. Butter
1 medium Onion, diced
2 cloves Garlic, minced
1/4 C. Flour
2 C. Milk (I use 1 or 2%)
Optional: 1/2 to 1 C. grated Cheddar

Cut the broccoli from the main stem and peel the stem.  Cut all the broccoli into 1/4" pieces.  Put them in a pot along with the water or stock and the salt.  Bring to a boil over high heat, then remove from the heat and set aside for now.  Heat the butter in a large soup pot over medium heat and add the onions.  Stir and cook for about ten minutes, until the onions are tender and golden, then add the garlic and the flour.  Let cook for a minute, then whisk in the milk.   Stir or whisk continuously as it thickens and begins to bubble.  Add the broccoli and its cooking water and stir to combine.  Let the soup simmer for at least a few minutes, adding the optional cheese and lots of black pepper.  Enjoy in the company of good people.

Little Vegetable Dishes

This time last year: Honey Curry Dip  and Hodge Podge

We just got back from a weekend camping trip at Kejimkujik.  Six adults, three kids and a dog.  Glorious weather.  Lots of food.  We returned to sites we've been camping on for twenty five years, in a warm forest that smells just like I remember every year and feels like home.  I strung a hammock between two trees, set up a giant tent and a makeshift kitchen. The kids and I hiked, swam, threw rocks and pigged out.  As I've told you before here, we like to eat well, and it can get a little out of hand.  On our way home yesterday I was looking forward to a little balance!  We decided to have a supper of vegetables.

One of the most memorable meals of my life was when I was living with some girls in a one room cabin on Saltspring Island.  It was summer and we had gone to the market and come back with a huge assortment of vegetables.  We cooked each in different ways, made some cheesy garlic bread, and sat down to feast.  A meal of small vegetable dishes can be enormously satisfying (even without cheese bread).  It doesn't need to be a huge production, and everything can be served at room temperature if that's how the timing works out.  This time of year, markets and home gardens are vegetable bonanzas and you don't want to be limited to just a few at suppertime!

Some of my favourite simple vegetable dishes of the season are Swiss Chard with Caramelized Onions, Sugar Snap Peas in Brown Butter, Parsley Potatoes, and Roasted Asparagus.  If you click around the All Things Vegetable section of this site, you'll find lots more ideas as well.  And here's one more.

Warm Spinach and Tomato Salad

2 t. Olive Oil
1 Clove Garlic
8 oz Spinach, washed and chopped
1 medium Tomato, cut in chunks

Heat the oil over medium heat in a frying pan for a minute, then add the garlic.  When the garlic sizzles, stir in the spinach and a pinch of salt.  Stir for about thirty seconds, until the spinach begins to wilt, then add the tomato.  Cook for another minute at the most, just until the tomatoes have heated through.  Remove from the heat and serve hot or at room temperature.

Roasted Asparagus and Fiddleheads with Parsnip and Sweet Potato

I had some of my favourite people over for supper last night.  Roasted Chicken is always a crowd-pleaser in my house, so we had that, and mashed potatoes, and some lovely roasted vegetables.  You may feel the same way I do about fiddleheads: I want to love them, but I need to grow up a little first.  Their incredibly short season means that I diligently give them a try, expecting rapturous delight each time.  This go-around, I decided to roast them alongside some of my favourite vegetables.  I had bought some spectacular asparagus harvested that day from Glad Gardens just outside Berwick (mine isn't quite ready yet, and I'm impatient) and I had the last of my Dad's parsnips in the fridge.  I cheated and threw in not-from-here sweet potato because I love it. Then I roasted everything with olive oil and voila: the perfect bridge between winter and spring. And I enjoyed every tightly curled emerging fern.

Roasted Spring Vegetables

1 large Sweet Potato, cut in 1" cubes
1/2 lb. Parsnips, cut in roughly 1" pieces
3 T. Olive Oil
1 t. Salt
1 lb. Asparagus, ends trimmed and cut into 1" lengths
1/2 lb. Fiddleheads, well rinsed and little brown ends trimmed off

Preheat the oven to 400.  On a cookie sheet, toss the sweet potato and parsnip with the olive oil and salt.  Place in the oven and roast for 15 minutes.  Take the sheet out of the oven and add the asparagus and fiddleheads to the pan.  Toss again, adding a little more oil if it looks like it needs it.  Place the vegetables back in the oven and roast for about 20-25 minutes more, tossing occasionally, until the vegetables are tender and browned.

Pre-Dinner Refreshment

Longing for Spring Soup

Around these parts, spring doesn't feel too spring-y.  Although I've bundled up to dig around in my garden and all signs point to longer and warmer days, I'm still making roaring fires and pots of hearty soup.  This is one of my very favourite recipes, both at home and at the Cafe.  It has a very comforting, rustic, yet somehow exotic taste, as if the recipe had been passed down by my Italian grandmother (I don't have an Italian grandmother, but I like to pretend).  Obviously, this is a soup that wants the company of some crusty bread and a good grating of Parmesan cheese. 

Jacob's Cattle Bean and Vegetable Soup

You can substitute just about any dried bean for the Jacob's Cattle beans in this recipe.  

2 C. Dried Beans (we use Webster's Jacob's Cattle Beans)
16 C. Water
3 T. Olive Oil
1 large Onion, diced
3 stalks Celery, diced
2 medium Carrots, diced
2 cloves Garlic, minced
1/2 small Cabbage, shredded or diced
2 t. Salt
1 t. freshly ground Pepper
1/2 bunch Parsley, minced

Optional: 1-2 C. chopped cooked Ham, Sausage or Smoked Tofu


Bring beans and water to a boil in a large pot. Reduce heat to simmer and
cook for two hours, until beans are tender and falling apart. Add the
cabbage to the pot with the beans and continue to simmer until tender, about
20 minutes longer. Meanwhile, heat the olive oil over medium heat and saute
the onions, carrot, celery and garlic until softened and beginning to brown.
Add the sautéed vegetables to the beans, along with the salt, pepper, parsley and
optional meat or tofu. Taste for seasoning, and let simmer another 20 minutes
before serving.

A Miracle in Cabbage

Sean and I went out for a pre-Valentine's dinner a few weeks ago at the Library Pub, a lovely spot in Wolfville with fresh and lovingly made food. Love is an essential ingredient of good cooking, a seasoning that hasn't yet been duplicated by large scale food processors and never will be.  We shared, among other delicious things, a red cabbage salad with feta and sesame.  Only love could transform the stalwart cabbage; reliable, economical, and readily available; into a dish that we nearly fought over. It's perfect: salty, a little sweet from the cabbage and a touch of honey, nutty with sesame oil and a little creamy from the feta.  This is my version, not theirs, and although I'm certain it isn't exactly the same, it is very delicious.  Bonus:if you store the salad overnight, some juice will collect at the bottom of the bowl which you can pour off and let your kids experiment with.  Rowan and I had a blast turning it pink with vinegar, dribbling in oil, turning it back to blue with baking soda, and so on.

Red Cabbage Salad with Feta and Sesame

1 T. Soy Sauce
1 T. Honey
1/2 clove Garlic, minced
2 T. Sesame Oil
1 T. White Wine Vinegar
1/4 head Red Cabbage, cut into small wedges, then sliced fine
1/3 C. crumbled Feta

In a large bowl, whisk the soy sauce, honey, garlic, sesame oil and vinegar together.  Add the cabbage and toss thoroughly to coat, then sprinkle in the feta and toss again.   This is great right away, but even better after it sits in the fridge a while.

Zucchini

 

I bought a food magazine last week (hard to choose these days!) and was taken by a picture of the month's featured ingredient, Zucchini. A row of gorgeous specimens was laid out, all with flowers attached, in tight shiny skins. It made me feel sad for those grocery store zucchini, all pitted, dull, and half rotten. Zucchini is rarely displayed in the refrigerated section, where it really needs to be. This leaves us no choice but to buy our zucchini straight from a farmer, or find a little room and grow our own. I get my fill of zucchini every summer, when my plants produce enough for me, the Cafe, and our sweet little laying hens.


They love to wander the garden, pecking for slugs, snails, and the butt end of any zucchini they can reach. Almost all the zucchini I have harvested this year have had to be trimmed at the end to get rid of beak marks. I am happy to share, as zucchini is one of those garden treasures that rarely fails to provide. The hens were an addition this spring, when my daughter, who had wished on the first star she saw tonight for over two years now, finally got her dream of being a farmer. I may have influenced things a little, pointing out that while the pig, pony, goats and sheep she wanted would be very nice, chickens were probably all we could handle right now. We have a flock of 16 birds, including two young roosters who are in a contest for their very lives that they know nothing about. Unless they can work it out peaceably, it is likely one will get eaten for Thanksgiving.



My parents' garden one year produced an overabundance of baseball bat sized squash. I'm not sure how old we were, but my sister Meagan and I were determined not to let any go to waste. We decided to make zucchini loaf, something we had enjoyed at least once and that was supposed to freeze well (zucchini on its own is not a great freezer). My mother looked the other way as we blew through her baking supplies, using at least $30 worth of ingredients saving what most people would have thrown in their compost heap, or shoved into their neighbour's mailbox (not the kind of gifting I was referring to last week). In the end, we got super sick of zucchini bread, and threw many freezer burned specimens out the next spring. My strategy now is to pick zucchini small, 6-8 inches at most, and use it up right away in savoury dishes. There will always be one or two that escape your notice before turning into monsters. This is what you should use in baking, as it is practically flavourless. Or throw it to your chickens.

Zucchini with Olive Oil and Garlic
If you still don't like zucchini, try this simple but very delicious method.

4 medium or 8 small Zucchini sliced into 1/4” disks
2 t. Olive Oil
2 cloves Garlic, minced
Salt and Pepper
Freshly grated Parmesan, optional

Heat a large pan over medium high heat. Swirl in the olive oil, and let heat for a minute. Add the zucchini. Stir and cook for about five minutes, until the zucchini is hot and just tender. Add the garlic and salt and pepper to taste (lots of pepper is great in this). After another minute of cooking, the zucchini is ready to eat. If you like, you can sprinkle with an optional tablespoon or two of parmesan, then stick the whole pan under the broiler until the cheese is bubbling and browned.


Zucchini Muffins
These are great fresh. And still great frozen. But if you multiply this recipe and freeze it, it is at your own risk.

2 C. Whole Wheat Flour
3/4 C. Sugar (Just Us! has inexpensive Fair Trade sugar)
2 t. Baking Powder
2 t. Cinnamon (optional)
½ t. Salt
3 Eggs
1/2 C. Canola Oil
1 T. Vanilla
4 C. Grated Zucchini, squeezed of most moisture
1 C. Chocolate Chips or Toasted Walnuts

Preheat oven to 350°. Line a 12 cup muffin tin with paper liners, or grease well with oil. Combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon and salt in a large bowl. In another bowl whisk the eggs, oil, and vanilla and pour over the dry ingredients. Add the zucchini and chocolate or walnuts, and then stir just to combine. Divide the mixture between muffin cups and bake for 20-25 minutes, until tops are springy to the touch.


Chocolate Zucchini Cupcakes

1 1/2 C. Flour (part Whole Wheat or all Spelt works great)
1 C. Sugar
1/3 C. Cocoa
1 t. Baking Soda
1/2 t. Salt
1/4 C. Canola Oil
1 T. White Vinegar
1 t. Vanilla
1 C. Cold Water
11/2 C. Grated Zucchini (about 1 medium)
1 C. Chocolate Chips
Preheat oven to 350°.  Whisk dry ingredients in a large bowl. Add the oil, vinegar, vanilla, water, zucchini and chocolate chips and stir gently until just combined. Pour into muffin pans and bake until a toothpick comes out clean, about 20-25 minutes.

Veggies at Keji

Lyss at our Kejimkujik Kitchen

We went camping last week. That's why I've been missing. We left for Kejimkujik National Park on Saturday and didn't return until Thursday afternoon. That's a lot of advance food planning, and a long time to keep a cooler cold. Camping at Keji has been a longstanding tradition with my family, my parents taking my sister and I nearly every year when we were kids. As I've told you, my mom is an excellent and adventurous cook, and cooking over a campstove in the middle of the woods with no running water is not going to deter her from making exactly what she wants, be it Coconut Curry with Cauliflower and Dhal, or Hodge Podge, or fresh Guacomole. This, after all, is the woman who has made risotto (for the first time!) during a power outage caused by a snow storm raging outside, using the same stove and hoping for the best as far as carbon monoxide goes.

I'm my mother's daughter, so I had to have a few essentials: Pepper Grinder, Homemade Granola Bars, Lobster, Pesto, Chocolate, Fresh Dates, Blueberries, Raspberries, Kale, Swiss Chard, New Potatoes, many Zucchini, Fresh Basil, Cilantro, Peanut Ginger Baked Tofu, Curry Sauce from the Cafe, Tomatoes, Lemons, Toasted Almonds and Cashews, a Baguette, some Pesto Hummus (my new invention), Roasted Eggplant, Mango Chutney, Bananas, Garlic, and of course, Sweet Thai Chili Sauce. And some hot dogs. I didn't panic when I discovered that I forgot the Parmagiano and a little cheese grater, because I knew my mother would show up with both.
My cousin Melyssa and my sister Meagan were among my camping companions, along with husbands, children, and an ever-changing roster of dear friends new and old. We did a little advance planning to cooperate on meals and Melyssa and I spent a few hours preparing some of the longer-cooking, more complicated menu items at home. My garden was exploding, so I did my best to hold it at bay by cramming many more vegetables than we could possibly eat into our cooler.

That first night, we enjoyed my Chicken and Vegetable Curry with Melyssa's Dhal and some Naan bread that she toasted over the flames, along with amazing Samosas my friend Melissa brought along. The meals all week continued in the same way. Every evening at dinner time, we laughed at ourselves for being so ridiculous, but also felt gratitude for being in the company of others who find such pleasure in these small luxuries. After all, we've got to eat! Might as well make it good.

Peanut Ginger Baked Tofu

Wrap this up with veggies, basil and cilantro and Thai Chili Sauce for a wonderful wrap, or serve it with steamed vegetables and rice. The tofu keeps for a week or two in the fridge, or forever in the freezer.

2 lb. Tofu (if you live here, use Acadiana!)
2 T. Peanut Butter
3 inch piece of Ginger
8 cloves Garlic
½ C. Soy Sauce
½ C. Canola Oil
½ C. Sugar
1 T. Sesame Oil
Blend everything except the tofu in the food processor. Cut the tofu in 1x2 inch pieces, and place on a baking sheet. Pour marinade over and bake at 350 until crispy...but not burned, about 25 minutes.


Granola Bars that are Good for You

This is a very flexible recipe-the last 7 ingredients can be changed up as you see fit. Try dried apricots, figs, dates, dried cherries or dried blueberries for the fruit. Cashews, peanuts, hazelnuts, really anything goes for the nuts. Just do not omit the chocolate. My daughter insists it is key to the success of this recipe.

1/2 C. Peanut Butter (or half Peanut and half Almond Butter)
1/2 C. Brown Sugar
1/2 C. Milk or Soy Milk
1/2 C. Honey
2 T. Oil
2 t. Vanilla
3/4 C. Whole Wheat Flour
3/4 C. Plain Soy Protein Powder (Look in the health food section or substitute whole wheat flour)
1 1/2 C. Oatmeal
1 t. Baking Soda
1/2 t. Salt
1/2 C. Raisins
1/2 C. Dried Cranberries (Terra Beata uses NS Fruit)
1 C. Chocolate Chips
1/2 C. Chopped Almonds
1/2 C. Ground Flax Seed or Sesame Seeds
1/2 C. Sunflower Seeds
1/2 C. Coconut

Grease a standard size cookie sheet with canola oil. Combine everything in a large bowl and mix well, then pack evenly into the pan. Use wet hands to smooth it down, then bake at 325 for 20 minutes. Cool for about half an hour, then cut into 32 bars. Freeze in an airtight container. These are great straight from the freezer, so hide them well. They will also keep for at least a week on your next camping trip, or in the glove box, or your gym bag.


Pesto Hummus

This is way easy if you have pesto, and really yummy, too!

1 Can Chick Peas, drained
2 T. Lemon Juice
1/4 C. Pesto

Throw this all in the food processor and blend, adding water as necessary, until smooth. Scrape it into a serving dish, or divide into 1 Cup plastic containers and freeze. The top will discolour quickly from the pesto, but stir it up just before serving and you will find it deelish!

PS My Mom and Dad wrote a great song about camping at Kejimkujik with deluxe food and the company of raccoons. They are famously clever at Keji and they always manage to get something, no matter how careful you are! Here are the lyrics, as my special bonus to you. Sing it to any tune you want, or buy a copy of the Lustre Brothers CD Live at the Whittle at the Cafe.


RACCOON BLUES
© Anna & Don Osburn 1994

Raccoon raid on our camp last night
Raccoons came, took everything in sight
Took my fresh-made pesto and a cheesecake, too
But they left the avocado, guess they didn’t know what to do

CHORUS:
With the avocado, the tequila, and the lime
I think they would’ve figured it out, if they only had the time
Well, the scene bordered on the bizarre
Some might say it was sublime
I saw `em feastin’ in the moonlight
Gettin’ mellow on my wine.

We had a merry little band of masked marauders
Every one one of them a sophisticated robber
Broke into the cooler with skill and ease
Solved a combination lock, and absconded with the cheese....

CHORUS:
But they left the avocado.... etc.


Breakfast this morning was kind of lean,
`Cause the raccoons left us with low cuisine
No bagels, no bacon, took the brandied jam
Now guacamole and a shot glass are lookin’ like the plan....

CHORUS:
`Cause they left the avocado.... etc

Sugar Snap Peas

My Uncle John was the first professional chef I ever met. The youngest of my mother's six siblings, John is now a dietician but still gives great advice when I'm stumped in my own kitchen. In fact, for a brief time, he had an apartment above the restaurant and I enjoyed him stopping in almost daily for a chat. I don't see him nearly so often anymore, but think of him whenever I'm frying fish or preparing sugar snap peas.

One summer, the sugar snaps were fattening up in the garden when John came to visit. I was probably about ten. My father, who is an incredibly enthusiastic gardener, is a Sugar Snap Pea Lover, and babies those things until they produce so many peas, no one knows what to do with them. At the time, my mom was following the Weight Watchers program and her and John were struggling to come up with a plan for turning a pile of peas into a side dish for dinner. John was suggesting a cream sauce, and that obviously wasn't going to fit the bill. There was a small argument about butter, and John won by assuring her he would only use a small amount. I'm not sure where he got the idea for making peas this way, but once we tasted them that night, we never went back. Yes, raw peas are great, but these are amazing. After a brief stir-fry in butter, these peas are sweeter, greener, and even Pea-ier than straight from the vine. Warm throughout, but practically still raw, they are pure sunshine in a bowl.

Sugar snap peas are available at farmer's markets in pints or by the pound. Buy a couple pints for this recipe, so you can snack on some while you drive home. You can sometimes find immaculate peas, but don't let a little white scarring scare you away. As long as the peas seem fresh and crisp, the scars will disappear in cooking. To get them ready for cooking or just popping in your mouth, snap the stem towards the curved side of the pea, then peel the string away with it.

Sugar Snap Peas in Brown Butter (serves 4-6)

1 lb. Sugar Snap Peas, stemmed and stringed
1 T. Butter (but you can use a little less if you like)
a pinch of Salt

Heat a wide frying pan over medium high heat for a couple minutes. Add the butter, and let it melt. After another minute, throw in the peas. They should sizzle immediately. Stir or toss until peas are bright green, glossy, and hot throughout. A little browning adds even more flavour! Sprinkle with just a pinch of salt and serve.

Honey Curry Dip

We throw two official staff parties every year-one in January after the craziness of Christmas parties has died down, and the other on Canada Day, just before the craziness of summer begins. There's also a Halloween party whenever someone has the desire to spearhead it. Union Street Cafe's staff are a family, albeit somewhat dysfunctional, and we truly love one another. Just as we're getting on each others' nerves, a little festive fun time can lift everyone's spirits and help us remember it's just a restaurant we work at, not an emergency room.
Of course, food figures into the fun even more then drink, so a couple weeks beforehand, I dream up some tasty snacks that bear almost no resemblance to what we serve at work. This past Thursday, that meant Greek Chicken Pitas, Vietnamese Meatball Sandwiches, miniature Hamburgers and a veggie tray with a super yummy and somehow retro-tasting Honey Curry Dip. I highly recommend it with the sweet little Sugar Snap Peas that are hitting their stride right about now.
I can also tell you that mayonnaise, being so utterly commonplace, becomes somewhat of a miracle (and I don't mean Whip) when made with your five year old son and two year old nephew. For that kind of fun, take one Egg and put it in a blender or food processor. Add a big pinch of Salt and a teaspoon of Dijon, plus a teaspoon of Vinegar or Lemon Juice. Get the motor running, then drizzle in 1½ cups Canola Oil very slowly. Watch their amazement (and maybe even your own) as the mayonnaise thickens before your very eyes! Then use it in this dip, and refrigerate the rest for your sandwiches, potato salad or perhaps licking off the spoon (you know who you are).

Honey Curry Dip
1 T. Curry Powder
1 T. Canola Oil
1 C. Sour Cream
½ C. Mayonnaise
¼ C. Honey (I use Foote Family Farms)
½ t. Salt
¼ C, Chopped Cilantro (optional, but highly recommended)

Heat the oil with the curry powder over medium high heat in a small skillet. After a minute or so ,the mixture will foam and smell very aromatic. (This step will absolutely elevate your dip above all other curry concoctions). Remove it from the heat. In a bowl, combine the sour cream, mayonnaise, honey and salt, and scrape in the curry and oil mixture. Add the cilantro and serve with assorted veggies, crackers (rice crackers are especially good) or potato chips. After chilling, the dip is thick enough to be a delicious condiment for burgers or folded into diced chicken, cranberries, celery and green onion for a killer Chicken Curry Salad.

I have personally banned this dip from my refrigerator since I cannot resist its call, but if you make a batch, please invite me over.

Hodge Podge

My Nova Scotia Garden in June

Do you know what Hodge Podge is? Then chances are, you are from Atlantic Canada. Though I'm not exactly sure where the exact culinary boundaries are, it's safe to say that my friends from Nova Scotia say "yum!" while those from elsewhere say "huh?". Hodge Podge is a wonderful perfectly seasonal mix of new-from-the-garden (or market) vegetables, napped with a creamy sauce. I think the rules are usually potatoes, carrots, peas and beans, although asparagus, spinach, onions and just about any fresh vegetable should be welcome. Last week, my dear friend Alexis killed her chickens and brought me one. I roasted it with fresh herbs, made my first batch of Hodge Podge of the year, and dug in. Bliss!

Hodge Podge serves 4-6
1 lb. New Potatoes, halved if large
1 lb. New Carrots, cut into thick slices
1/2 lb. Sugar Snap Peas, stems removed (or use 1/2 lb shelled peas)
1 lb. Green or Yellow Beans, stems removed and snapped in half
2 T. Butter
2 T. All-Purpose Flour
1 1/2 C. Milk
1/2 t. Salt
Pepper
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and drop in the potatoes and carrots. After 10 minutes, check the potatoes. When they are almost tender, add the beans. Simmer for another few minutes, then turn off the heat and add the peas. Leave while you make the sauce. Heat a large saucepan over medium high heat. Add the butter, and when it has melted, whisk in the flour. When it is smooth, slowly add the milk, whisking all the while. Continue cooking until mixture bubbles and thickens. Season with the salt and add pepper to taste. Drain the cooked vegetables, saving a little water for thinning. Add to the pot containing the sauce and combine thoroughly, adding cooking water if necessary.
Now that you have your basic Hodge Podge (try it like this first if you've never had it before) you can go crazy with variations. Try stirring in a couple tablespoons of pesto, or chopped fresh herbs. Add asparagus with the beans, or chopped spinach with the peas. If you grow garlic and have scapes to use up, chop them and add with the beans.
Best of all, cut a roasted chicken from your neighbour into serving pieces. Load up your plate with Hodge Podge, then top with a piece of chicken and a spoonful of the roasting juices from the pan.

Nothin' Says Lovin' like Focaccia in the Oven

The last two weekends, I have catered weddings. They were both beautiful outdoor extravaganzas, with lovely weather (sunny and breezy), and both took place in gorgeous rural settings. These were hands-on weddings, planned by creative people that really put their heart and soul into putting on a wonderful celebration for their friends and families. Both were breathtaking.
Sometimes in the scramble to get the food ready and to the wedding, I forget that someone is really getting married. Then poof!, the stunning bride appears in her gown. It always takes me by surprise, the power of the idea of a true love promised to last forever. The families, the cake, the kids, the food, the dresses, just the amazing effort of creating a memory. I am always overcome.
Congratulations Candice and Jeremy and Shasta and Patrick!
So I thought I'd provide a couple fun party recipes from these celebrations. Both use a wonderful no-knead focaccia dough. It is amazing and flexible, easy-peasy and impressive. In the first recipe, the dough is baked thick so it can be split and stuffed. In the second, it makes a great thin pizza crust.

Roasted Vegetable Focaccia Bites (We make these all the time, but made up miniature for Candice and Jeremy's wedding, these were a big hit!)

Makes 32 mini sandwiches, or 12 lunch size sandwiches

Focaccia Bread (adapted from Suzanne Dunaway’s No Need to Knead Bread Book)

2 cups Warm Water
2 teaspoons Yeast
4 cups Unbleached All-Purpose Flour (or use part Whole Wheat Flour)
1 tablespoon Salt (I use Sifto Kosher Salt at home)
3 tablespoons Olive Oil, divided
2 teaspoons dried Rosemary or 2 tablespoons fresh rosemary, chopped

Sprinkle the yeast over the water in a large bowl. After five minutes, add the salt, 1 tablespoon of the olive oil and 2 cups of the flour. Stir until smooth, then add the rest of the flour. Stir with a large spoon for two minutes until the dough is smooth and flour is incorporated. The dough will be very sticky. Cover the bowl and let the dough rise until doubled in volume, 45 minutes to an hour. Preheat the oven to 500. Oil a 13x18 baking sheet and ease the dough with a scraper onto the middle of it. With oiled fingers, gently spread the dough into a large oval. Let rest for five minutes, then evenly push the dough to fill the pan. Drizzle with the remaining olive oil and sprinkle with the rosemary. Place the pan in the oven and reduce the heat to 450. Bake 15-20 minutes until golden brown. Let cool in the pan, then cut in half.

Sundried Tomato Mayonnaise:

¼ cup Sun-dried Tomatoes, soaked in warm water for 20 minutes
1 clove Garlic
¼ teaspoon Salt
2 tablespoons chopped Parsley
1 teaspoon dried Oregano
1 cup Mayonnaise
1 tablespoon Lemon Juice

Combine all ingredients in a food processor and process until fairly smooth.

Roasted Vegetables:

1 bulb Garlic, top ¼ inch cut off and wrapped whole in foil
4 large Carrots, peeled and cut into thick strips
1 Red Onion, cut into 8 wedges
1 Yellow Onion, cut into 8 wedges
1 bulb Fennel, tops removed and cut into thin slices
1 Red Pepper, seeded and cut into ¼ inch slices
2 tablespoons Olive Oil
1 tablespoon Balsamic Vinegar
1 teaspoon Salt
Preheat oven to 400. Combine carrots and onions in 13x18 pan. Drizzle with the olive oil and sprinkle with the salt, then toss the vegetables until coated. Nestle the garlic packet in the vegetables, and place in oven. Roast until vegetables begin to soften and brown, stirring occasionally, about 25 minutes. Add the fennel and red pepper and stir to coat with the oil. Continue to roast another 25 minutes, stirring occasionally so the vegetables around the sides of the pan don’t burn. Vegetables should be tender and browned. Remove the vegetables to a large bowl, and let the garlic cool. Squeeze the garlic out of its skin into a small bowl. Mash and add the balsamic vinegar, then stir this into the vegetables.

Assemble the Sandwiches:
Split each Focaccia piece horizontally. Spread the bottom and top generously with the sun-dried tomato mayonnaise and layer with roasted vegetables, then the top of the Focaccia. Cut each sandwich into 16 pieces.
You can try adding grilled pork tenderloin or chicken breast for a more substantial sandwich. These are perfect as is, but you can grill them in a panini press with or without mozzarella, too. The vegetables will keep about a week in the fridge and make a great side dish or addition to any pasta recipe.



Spinach and Tomato Pizza
These can be cut into mini wedges after cooling a bit, then arranged on a tray and served at room temperature.

1 recipe Focaccia Dough
2 C. Tomato Sauce (your favourite homemade or bottled)
1 lb. Spinach, trimmed and chopped
3 large Tomatoes, diced
4 C. Shredded Mozzarella
4 fat cloves Garlic, minced

Make the focaccia as described above, but divide between two pans. This will take a little more patience and coaxing, but it will work! Preheat the oven to 425. Spread the dough with the tomato sauce. Layer on the spinach, then the tomatoes, then the cheese. Sprinkle with the garlic. Bake for about 15 minutes, or until the cheese is bubbling and browned.

Big Bunches of Greens

My garden gives me great joy, but sometimes overwhelms me with too much of a good thing. I've also found the same thing true at farmer's markets. There is so much beauty I want to take it all home, but if I do it without a plan, it might go to waste. This recipe is for such times as you find yourself with the desirable problem of too many fresh greens in your fridge. It's filling and stew-y, but also very rustic Italian and sophisticated. I can't help but feel good about life when I eat this. Warning: Eat it for lunch and you might find yourself justifying a half glass of red wine at noon. You're welcome.


Summer Solstice Soup of Garden Greens and White Beans
Don't worry if you're missing something. Either substitute another green, like Swiss Chard, Arugula, or Mustard, or leave it out.

2 T. Olive Oil
1 small Onion, diced
3 cloves Garlic, sliced
a handful of Garlic Scapes, chopped
1 small bunch Kale, sliced into ribbons
3 C. Chicken or Veggie Broth, or Water
1 small bunch Broccoli Raab, stems and leaves separated and chopped
½ lb. Asparagus, cut into 1 inch lengths
1 can White Kidney Beans
3 T. Chopped Parsley
1 T. Fresh chopped Thyme
½ lb. Spinach, chopped
Salt and Pepper
3 Tomatoes, diced
freshly grated Parmesan Cheese
Fresh Basil

Heat the oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and cook for 5 minutes or so, until nicely browned and fragrant. Turn the heat to medium- high and add the garlic scapes and kale. After a minute, stir in the broth or water. Bring to a boil, then cover and cook for 5 minutes, or until the kale is nearly tender. Add the broccoli raab stems, asparagus, white beans, parsley and thyme. Stir and cook uncovered until the raab is tender, about 5 more minutes. Stir in the spinach and broccoli raab leaves and turn off the heat. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve in big bowls with chopped tomato and grated Parmesan on top, and basil if you've got it.

Emergency Salted Peanut Butter Chocolate Birthday Cake

Last Monday was my cousin Melyssa's birthday. At 6:00, I realized I hadn't planned to bring anything to eat to her celebration, and that wasn't gonna fly with the food appreciators and pregnant ladies expected to be in attendance. Also, I wasn't sure if anyone was bringing a birthday cake! I was due to arrive at the festivities an hour later. What to do?
I decided to go with a cake. I knew I had that Wacky Cake recipe somewhere, the one where you mix everything right in the pan and bake it, and it somehow turns into the most delicious chocolate cake ever. The recipe is weird because you don't even grease the pan and it calls for vinegar. Fortunately, it also uses oil instead of butter, which was good because I was fresh out. I threw the cake together (with love) in about 2 minutes and got it into the oven before dinner. As we ate our pizza, I contemplated how I would frost it. My standard in-a-hurry icing solution is to throw chocolate chips over the cake while it is still hot out of the oven, then smear it around a few minutes later until the cake is glazed. I still think this is a great way to go, but then I remembered that Melyssa loves sweet treats with a touch of salt. This is the recipe I came up with. By the way, it worked out really well because one of the guests was vegan and another was allergic to milk.

(Last Minute) Decadent Salted Peanut Butter Chocolate Birthday Cake (that is Also Vegan)
1 ½ C. Flour
1 C. Brown Sugar
½ C. Cocoa
1 t. Baking Soda
½ t. Salt
1 C. Water
6 T. Canola Oil
1 T. White Vinegar
1 t. Vanilla (I'm not going to say it must be pure, because I cheat at home)

Mix the flour, brown sugar, cocoa, soda and salt right in an 8” round cake pan. Add the water, oil, vinegar and vanilla and mix just until dry ingredients are moistened. Smooth into the pan and bake at 350 for 30 minutes, until cake tests done in the middle. While the Cake bakes, mix up the frosting:

½ C. Peanut Butter (Yum Bakery's is excellent)
3 C. Icing Sugar
1 T. Vanilla
Soy Milk (or regular)
1/3 C. Chocolate Chips
Fleur de Sel or some other fancy salt you spent too much money on and don't use enough

Cream the peanut butter, icing sugar and vanilla together, adding just enough soy milk by tablespoonfuls until the frosting is smooth.

When the cake comes out of the oven, don't even take it out of the pan. Spread the frosting over it, breaking all the rules about waiting for a cake to cool completely, blah blah blah. You're in a hurry, right? Sprinkle with the chocolate chips, then a pinch or two of salt. Rush to the party with the hot cake, which will cool on the way and be a big hit. Don't forget the candles!

Strawberry Rhubarb Crunch Cheesecake

Just as the first really hot days hit the Valley, so winds down the rhubarb. It sends up tall white flowers that quickly turn into brown seed pods. Meanwhile, the main season strawberries are just about hitting full peak. That little window in early to mid June is the Strawberry Rhubarb Season. Strawberries make rhubarb less puckery, rhubarb makes strawberry more intense, and the whole combination is rich and complex and just plain cussing delicious.
My mom and I just polished off an entire amazing quart in the time it took to drive from the stand into town. I have heard that strawberries naturally whiten teeth, but mine were pretty red. I wouldn't recommend using them as rouge or lipstick either, although my skin does have a refreshed and invigorated feeling.
Well, the word around here is that next week, folks picking strawberries will be making more per hour than I ever hope to. For many kids around here, picking strawberries is a lucrative first job. I did it, too. For one morning. My entire picking career netted me $15, which I don't even remember collecting. Strawberry picking involves bending down and picking fast. It's a buggy, sweaty, back-breaking kind of job, the kind I don't much go for.
I'll be in the kitchen making this Strawberry Rhubarb Crunch Cheesecake.

Strawberry Rhubarb Crunch Cheesecake Serves up to 12

Crust:
3/4 C. flour
1/2 C. brown sugar
1/2 C. oats
3/4 t. cinnamon
1/4 t. baking soda
1/4 t. salt
1/3 C. butter
Using your fingers, work the butter into the dry ingredients until well combined. Reserve 1 cup crumbs in a separate bowl. Press remaining into a 9 or 10 inch springform pan. Bake at 350 for 10 minutes.

Pretty Pink Filling:
4 C. Rhubarb, sliced
1 1/2 C. Strawberries, sliced
3/4 C. sugar
Bring to a boil in a wide pan and cook until juices have evaporated and mixture is the consistency of chunky jam.

Cheesecake Part:
1 lb. cream cheese
1 C. sugar
1 1/2 t. vanilla
3 eggs
2 C. sour cream
1 T. cornstarch
Combine in a food processor and blend until smooth. Pour over crust into pan. Place rhubarb filling by spoonfuls on top. Sprinkle reserved crumbs over. Bake for 45 minutes to an hour at 350, until center barely jiggles when pan is gently shaken. Cool and then refrigerate overnight.

You Can't Trust a Skinny Chef

I own a restaurant. So that makes me a professional food lover, which gives me the right, no, the obligation, to eat whatever I want. I'm always testing, tasting, and re-tasting, thinking I've skipped meals when really I've already eaten plenty while working my way through an eight to twelve hour shift surrounded by food. Great food. Our Cafe serves mainly healthy fare, but that doesn't mean calorie free. Three years after the birth of my second child, I didn't like what I saw in the mirror. No justification could fix the fact that I thought about being overweight way too much. My low came when I found myself at a dear friend's birthday party, stealing her camera and deleting all the photos of myself I didn't find flattering.
Eating is a funny thing to be addicted to. Other substances must be shunned forever, but we have to eat to live. Food was a big part of my life growing up. Nearly every activity had accompanying side dishes, and I looked forward so much to dinner that I would cry if it was something I didn't like (hello fish). I loved cooking from a young age, and would make treats (and enormous kitchen messes) for my family. I ate for comfort, and I ate out of great love for the flavours I was discovering. I ate for a living, getting my first cooking job in a Saltspring Island kitchen at age 18. So there was a real love and passion for food (positive) coupled with a tendency to overeat, especially when I was stressed out (negative). And I hated the idea of dieting, and how annoying people on diets could be to committed overeaters, especially when their diet worked.
Because I'm a big ol' food nerd who reads cookbooks in bed, I have a favourite cookbook author. As a cooking obsessed vegetarian teenager, my mom had given me “Still Life with Menu” by Mollie Katzen. I had already read cover to cover my neighbour's copy of the Moosewood Cookbook, also by Mollie, and loved her writing style, her recipes and food guidance. So I was stunned one day while searching online to discover that she had Co-Authored a Diet Book! I thought, “if this woman who has shaped how I cook and feel about food has something to teach me about losing weight, then I want to learn!” I bought it.
I realized I knew lots about food, but so little about how to really eat for health and well-being. The book, titled Eat, Drink and Weigh Less was co-written with Walter Willett, head of the Department of Nutrition at Harvard. It cleared up a lot of my confusion about calories and metabolism, as well as providing a blueprint for long term health. Among Mollie's contributions to the book were many wonderfully simple and tasty recipes. It worked. I lost forty pounds over six months.
Of course, the authors insisted I exercise, and I did. I went to fitness classes a few days a week at our Town Hall (I've never been self motivated, so paying in advance for those classes really got me there). I met inspirational instructor Maggie Travis and joined my amazing cousin Melyssa Hutchinson's fitness Boot Camp. I was just ready, so ready, to shed the old tired me and get moving! So now I'm strong and lean, too. And so grateful for having made the change.
My friend and co-worker, Annette, reminds me constantly to try to be happy with what I have. Like she says, a negative body image can't truly be overcome simply by changing the body. She attends classes, too, and we have a great time trying to outdo each other. It really helps to have that kind of support.

Part of this journey has been rediscovering breakfast. Here are two of my favourite ways to get things cranking in the morning:

Maple Almond Bowl (serves two people who are resolved to make this day a great one)
If you are eating solo, wrap up the second bowl for tomorrow....or the next day.
½ C. 12 Grain Cereal
1 ¼ C. Water
pinch of salt
2 T. toasted and chopped Almonds
2 Medjool Dates or 6 regular dates, diced (I wet the knife so they don't stick)
1 small Apple, diced (I like Boates, VanMeekeren Farms, and Suprima Apples)
2 t. Ground Flax Seed
2 T. Maple Syrup

Combine the cereal, water and salt in a small pot. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 5-10 minutes, until nicely thickened. Pour into two bowls. Sprinkle each with the almonds, dates, apple, and flax seed and drizzle with the maple syrup.

Spanakopita Eggs for two (multiplies easily, but use a larger pan)

2 t. Olive Oil
½ small Onion, diced
1 clove Garlic, minced
pinch each Salt and Oregano
two big handfuls or more Spinach, chopped
4 good Eggs
2 T. Feta, crumbled (I love Holmestead)

Heat the oil in small pan over medium high heat. Add the onion and garlic, along with the salt and oregano. Cook 2-3 minutes, until the onion has softened. Add the spinach, then toss and stir until it wilts. Transfer to a plate, and return the pan to the stove. Beat the eggs with a pinch of salt and freshly ground pepper. Pour them into the hot pan. Now stir gently for a few minutes, scraping the bottom of the pan (I use a silicon spatula). When the eggs are mostly set but still wet, shut off the heat and fold in the spinach mixture and the feta. Allow to sit on the heat another minute if you like them cooked more.
Divide between two plates and serve, with toasted pita bread or on its own.