Short Visit Home

I was lucky enough to spend some time home (near Toronto) this weekend for Easter. I got to visit with a few friends, relax and spend time with family. Pictured above are some old trees that line the driveway of my childhood home. After the ice storm this winter many of these trees lost their branches but they seem to be going strong now! This picture doesn't really put it into perspective but these trees are so tall and beautiful. We are lucky to have them.

 One of the best parts of the weekend was a visit to my old university town, Guelph. I met a friend there for lunch at one of our old favourite vegetarian restaurants and it felt so surreal to be back there. I hadn't been back to Guelph since I graduated almost 4 years ago! When we move back to Ontario I hope to spend more time visiting that area, it really is a nice town. 

Easter was great. My parents hosted 30+ of our family and I made these bird nest macaroons which turned out awesome! They were very easy and look so cute, I may make them again. We don't celebrate a big religious Easter, for me its more about welcoming spring and all of the changes that come during this time. It's also just nice to have a reason to celebrate with family and friends. 

After a long winter it felt really nice to get away from the city for a few days. I've been a bit frustrated with Montreal lately due to a number of things: ridiculous politics, the language barrier, unfriendly atmosphere, etc. I found myself desperate for Halifax numerous times, missing the friendly people and the ocean breeze. Everyone keeps telling me that the summers here are wonderful and will make me feel more at home. I really hope so! Coming home (back to Montreal) actually felt exciting this time. On the train ride home I read a blog post about a couple's trip to Montreal. They had never been before and were so enamoured with the city and all it's charm. They went to lots of interesting restaurants and shops in my neighbourhood, just raving about all they had to offer. This blog post really put things in perspective. I am so fortunate to be able to live here! I hope I can embrace this city like I was able to do in the fall during the summer. Things will be very, very busy with me wrapping up school but I know I'll find some time.

Hope you're all enjoying this lovely spring weather. It is so sunny here today and I went for a great, long run up the Mount for the first time since moving here. It felt amazing!

Chili

One of my favourite things to cook and eat is Chili. I love that Chili can easily be made vegetarian and it is so delicious and healthy! I made a big batch (another plus is that it freezes really well) last night with delicious cream biscuits (I substitute with ww flour and put cheddar cheese on top). I thought I might share my recipe here. There are definitely a lot of ingredients but generally the meal is quite cheap when you consider how much the recipe makes.

Ingredients:

1 Large Red Onion

5 Cloves of Garlic

Olive Oil

2 Sweet Potatoes

4 Big Carrots

4-5 Stalks of Celery

3 Peppers (variety is good: one green, one red, one yellow, etc)

1 can of Kidney Beans

1 can Mixed Beans

1 can of Black Beans

1 cup Frozen corn

1 large can of Diced Tomatoes

1 large can of Crushed Tomatoes

* Ives veggie ground 

1 cup of Sharp Cheddar Cheese, shredded.

As far as spices go I use: Cumin, Salt, Pepper, Chili Powder and Chili Flakes. Both the Cumin and Chili Powder are used liberally, probably close to 2 tablespoons each if not more. When you are making a big batch the spices don't go too far and I like my chili with a lot of flavour. Salt & pepper depend on your preference. Remember that the tomatoes tend to be saltier but you also need the salt to help the flavours meld and come out.

*optional: this stuff looks like ground beef and tastes really good, I usually put it in for my non-veggie Partner but the Chili is delicious on its own too.

1. Start by chopping all the vegetables. Onion and garlic are chopped finer but the other ingredients simply need to be chopped uniformly so they cool at a similar rate. 

2. Places the onion & garlic in one bowl, the sweet potato, carrot & celery in another and the peppers in their own bowl.

3. Strain and thoroughly wash the beans, these can be put in their own bowl. Also strain the diced tomatoes and set aside.

4. Heat a large deep pot and once warm place around 2 tablespoons of olive oil in the pot.

5. Once the oil is hot, put in the bowl of diced onion and garlic and cook for 5 minutes until the onion is more translucent. During this time I also put a tablespoon of Cumin & Chili Powder and coat the onion and garlic with these spices. If you like a spicier chill you can also add the Chili Flakes at this step.

6. Add the bowl of sweet potato, carrot and celery. These need time to cook. Sprinkle with salt & pepper, put the lid on the pot and set the timer for 20-25 minutes. Make sure to stir every once and a while.

7. When these vegetables are cooked but still have a slight crunch add the peppers and cook for 5 minutes.

8. Add the bowl of beans and cook for another 5 minutes, stirring and adding more spices if you desire.

9. Add the crushed and diced tomatoes and the cup of corn. Here you may wish to add even more spices upon tasting the flavour. 

10. Let the chili slow cook for about 20-25 minutes more (meanwhile put your biscuits in the oven) and towards the end add the Ives veggie ground. Make sure to stir frequently.

11. Portion out the steaming chili into bowls and serve with shredded cheddar cheese sprinkled on top and a piping hot biscuit, yum!

There you have it. Lots of prep work but a relatively easy meal! Its perfect for cooler fall & winter nights.

new birks

I finally got some much needed birkenstocks! Its been years since I've had a new pair and the past few summers I've been getting by on knock offs or pretty but less walkable sandals and man, does it feel good to have some practical shoes back in rotation! I will never be getting knock offs again, they are not even close to as good!

In other news, I had a lovely patio party with some of my social work friends last night. It was my first time having this circle of friends over and it turned out to be a lovely time. I had planned to serve an almond cake with balsamic strawberries and ice cream but my cake burnt due to me awful oven (this oven has ruined many a good dessert). I also served veggie kebabs though and they were a big hit. I made my dear friend Gillian's famous Sangria and that was also very well received. Over all it was a great night, we may have waken the neighbours being loud and talkative on our porch but oh well! It was nice to hang out with my friends without the stress of school looming over us, everyone seems much more relaxed and at ease.

Today some friends and I went to a lake nearby and soaked in some sun. We've been having some lovely weather lately and it felt so good to be in the wilderness, even if there was a highway a few kms away. We even went swimming, which was so refreshing! I can't wait to bring Alex and show him this gem of a spot.

Heres Gillian's famous Sangria recipe:

Liquids:
1 bottle of white wine (preferably Sauvignon Blanc)
1 bottle of peach schnapps
1 bottle of gingerale

Fruit:
1 cored pineapple, cut up into 1.5 inch pieces
I pint of raspberries
2 or 3 kiwis cut up
1 large pint or 2 smaller pints of strawberries (preferably when in season!) cut in half's or quarters depending on their size.

First cut up all the fruit and place it in a large pitcher. Then add a few ice cubes, about a third of the peach schnapps, half of the white wine and as much gingerale as will fill the pitcher. Stir and let the drink sit in the fridge for around 10-15 minutes before serving! When serving, make sure you scoop some fruit into everyone's drinks for a yummy treat at the end! Once the first batch is done, continue adding more peach schnapps, wine and gingerale with the old fruit until you are content.

And there you have it, the best (in my opinion) white wine Sangria there is! I think I may have drank a little bit too much last night...

anniversary cookies

This friday is Alex and my 3 year anniversary! Whoa! In many ways it feels as though we've been together for 10 years while at the same time it feels like yesterday things were just beginning for us. I'm so proud of our relationship and I feel so lucky to have him in my life and naturally, I'd love to show him how much I love him by giving him something on our big day. Alas, I am currently in a bit of a financial bind. Working part-time does not leave me with a lot of expendable cash and as crafty as I am, I don't want to give Alex something he will likely not use or (gasp!) throw away in a few months. You know?

So... I made a lovely card the other night (I know he'll appreciate and keep that) and I was thinking, why not make him some of his favorite cookies and put them in freezer bags so he can have them for months to come and have a nice treat in his lunch a few times a week. I'm hoping this will be a happy alternative to more conventional and expensive anniversary gifts, and he won't be overwhelmed by them either!

I've found a recipe at the my favorite stand-by cooking website smitten kitchen. Hopefully these cookies taste great!