long weekend

[ waffles with strawberries and whipped cream for breakfast ]

[ a walk along city streets in bloom ]

[ shopping for herbs ]

baked lemon lavender doughnuts

To make these doughnuts, I adapted this recipe from Sur La Table by adding the following to the batter:

- 1 teaspoon lemon zest
- 1 teaspoon chopped culinary lavender

Hint: fill a zipper bag with the batter and then cut off one of the corners – this makes it much easier to fill the doughnut pans!

Then I made a simple glaze using:

- 3/4 cup icing sugar
- the juice of one lemon, strained (give or take a bit – add this to the sugar gradually so that the glaze is thick and opaque)

Dip the doughnuts in the glaze and sprinkle with lemon zest and culinary lavender… Enjoy!

breakfast with eileen

Inspired by Eileen Gray’s impeccable aesthetic, Bodum created the Eileen french press. Since she is one of my favourite modernist designers, I had to have it!

Read her biography and see some of her work  here.

hot cocoa

Hot cocoa and popcorn are the perfect accompaniment to a good movie. My hot cocoa recipe is decidedly improvised, but the basics are as follows…

- about 3 cups of milk
- about 4 tablespoons of cocoa
- about 4 tablespoons of agave nectar
- a hint of flavour: freshly grated nutmeg and cinnamon, chili, lavender, etc.

Combine the ingredients in a pot with a whisk over low to medium heat – the key is to use a heavy pot to heat the milk gradually without burning it.

Enjoy!

local favourite

cuban dinner

[ Cuban sandwiches served with coleslaw and kettle cooked potato chips ]

Hot and humid summer weekends are all about late, leisurely dinners outside. Inspired by repeated requests for mojitos, Cuban sandwiches seemed like the perfect choice. For a cool treat to end the night, I prepared a Watermelon Lemonade Sorbet from Jeni Britton Bauer’s book, Jeni’s Splendid Ice Cream at Home.

The beauty of sandwiches for dinner is that it doesn’t require more effort than a trip to your local deli. Although I didn’t have a Cuban sandwich in Havana, I made sure to pick up some kettle cooked potato chips as a nod to those sold by street vendors throughout the city.

Gather:
- roast pork, thinly sliced
- ham, thinly sliced
- swiss cheese
- dill pickles
- buns
- mustard

[ a mojito, recipe from here ]

[ watermelon lemonade sorbet, served with a sprig of mint ]

pa amb tomàquet

This traditional Catalan dish is perfect for lunch on a hot day. Since it is best served as soon as it has been prepared, I like to lay out the ingredients at the centre of the table so that everyone can assemble their own. To complete this meal, serve with mixed greens with a light vinaigrette, olives, thinly sliced jamón serrano, cheese and fresh fruit.
Gather:
- the best baguette you can get
- ripe tomatoes
- garlic
- olive oil
- sea salt and black pepper

Serve:
- Cut the baguette and toast lightly under the broiler
- Cut a clove of garlic in half and rub it on the toasted baguette, do the same with the tomato.
- Sprinkle with sea salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
- Drizzle with olive oil

…finish your meal with local fresh fruit (here it’s strawberry season). Enjoy!

 

croissants

Let’s talk about croissants. The way I see it, these pastries are best enjoyed fresh from the oven – even if it means venturing out before the sun is up on a weekend morning. There’s nothing like being the first customer at the bakery. Ever since my favourite neighbourhood pastry chef retired, I’ve been buying the most unfortunate croissants from a local bakery that shall remain nameless… Needless to say, I’m on a mission to find an alternative. Unwilling to travel further afield to buy croissants in advance, frozen croissants from Ma Maison in Toronto seemed like the perfect solution. The process is simple, and you get to sleep in. All you have to do is place the frozen croissants on a baking sheet the night before and leave them in the oven to proof overnight. In the morning, the croissants are ready to be baked. Simply remove them from the oven so that it can preheat while you cover the pastries in an egg wash (and make coffee). That’s it! Delicious croissants in under 15 minutes. I can’t wait to try their frozen pains au chocolat and almond croissants.

(hotter) coffee and cake

Determined to improve my sewing skills, I dusted off my sewing machine and tried to think of a simple yet useful project. Finding something that fit the bill wasn’t difficult. Every morning, we make coffee in a French press. Then, to keep it hot, we haphazardly wrap a tea towel around it. Perfect – anything I put together was bound to be an improvement. I started out with a tea towel (this one is from IKEA) and some cotton batting. After testing out a couple of methods to join the two ends, I settled on using braided hemp to tie them. Naturally, after assembling this French press “cozy” I had to test it out! This Olive Oil Cake recipe with fresh rosemary and chocolate from Whole Living was a delicious accompaniment for (hotter) coffee.

P.S. – This cake is even better the next day, as the rosemary flavor has had time to intensify.

something that inspires me

Bread represents life. Although it comes in different shapes, textures, colours, and tastes the world over, bread is a universal staple. From creation to consumption, bread by design engages all five senses. However, to many of us the convergence of the comforting aroma, delicious taste and satisfying texture of freshly baked bread is unfamiliar. The unsettling presence of mysterious ingredients and the inferior quality of most commercial bread motivated me to attempt bread making. When I make bread, my senses, a little logic, formulas and methods that have stood the test of time guide me. By carefully selecting ingredients, I know that what I am creating is healthful and sustainable. As I refine my technique, I become more confident. Every loaf is unique. The often-serendipitous results never cease to amaze me. Bread making has taught me the value of good craftsmanship. It has inspired me to challenge the design of everyday objects without compromising quality for cost or convenience.