Monday, December 15, 2008
I like beer more and more...
compared to others I've had so far... for a strong beer this was kind of sweet... and good
Tuesday, December 9, 2008
mmmmmmm pasta
Italian for dinner = red of course
looking at it makes me hungry again...
I am the queen of garlic bread...
looking at it makes me hungry again...
I am the queen of garlic bread...
plum jam is one of my favorites…
"The skin of the damson is heavily acidic, rendering the fruit unpalatable to some for eating out of hand (for which the "President Plum" variety is better suited). Because of this acidic, tart flavor, damsons are commercially grown for preparation in jellies and jams." (source: Wikipedia)
Well it must be true because the first ingredient is sugar, yet the jam isn't very sweet.
I had no clue....
delicious on hot buttered toast
Well it must be true because the first ingredient is sugar, yet the jam isn't very sweet.
I had no clue....
delicious on hot buttered toast
Dinner
we didn't really care for this red... but that's because we didn't let it breathe properly... it was much better once we did
mmmm steak... marinated and almost ready to eat...
served with sun dried tomato, bacon, and green onion double baked potato, and greens with yogurt Ranch dressing...
the sauce that just kept on giving... we used it 4 different times... it was delicious
then we compared two different mincemeat pies (there is no meat in the pies)
this one looks good but it's flavor was too artificial...
this one was not excellent... but better than the one above... the pastry was very flaky and buttery...
mmmm steak... marinated and almost ready to eat...
served with sun dried tomato, bacon, and green onion double baked potato, and greens with yogurt Ranch dressing...
the sauce that just kept on giving... we used it 4 different times... it was delicious
then we compared two different mincemeat pies (there is no meat in the pies)this one looks good but it's flavor was too artificial...
this one was not excellent... but better than the one above... the pastry was very flaky and buttery...
it's true what they say, if doesn't have a price tag don't buy it, because you probably can't afford it…
I was shopping this past weekend at Pusateri's. I was in the mood for some pasta, and decided that one of the ingredients should be sun dried tomatoes in olive oil. There were two types on the shelf, sun dried cherry tomatoes and the jar pictured here. The cherry tomato jar was $10.99, and I felt it was just way too expensive for something that holds so little. The other jar had no price tag anywhere, but looking at it I felt that it must be cheaper since it looks similar to types available at Metro.
I really wasn't paying attention at the cash register, except when she said the total… it seemed a bit high. As she was processing my card I started to read my items listed on the checkout screen… the damn tomatoes were $19.99. I kind of inhaled sharply and possibly made some tiny sound of distress because the cashier gave me this odd look… I couldn't return the tomatoes; it's just not in me, I just smiled and punched in my pin, thinking that those better be the best tomatoes I've ever tasted…
and another life lesson learned the hard way…
I set it to a comfortable 72
I got home and the heat was unbearable….thankfully none of my animals suffered heat stroke… it's been turned off since
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
oh Adrian your body art is just so.........
for anyone out there wondering if this is permanent ink... it is...
money well spent...
money well spent...
Jay and Lucy's first annual Holiday Special, Sunday Nov. 30th, 2008
Jay and I lead a complicated, incompatible life… meaning we have a hard time matching up our schedules and spending time with each other not to mention our families and friends…
And so we decided to make time, and have a sort of impromptu (in case it was a big flop) Holiday meal… Our place is tiny, and after some careful calculations and furniture rearrangements we figured out that we could comfortably fit 8 people in our place (including the two of us)… In not so distant future we will most likely move again, and one of my top priorities will be to have a bigger dining room (well to have a dining room period) because well… the more, the louder, the merrier… and I wish we could have extended a few more invitations…
Our table set up… it's actually two small tables put together… we had them specially made for our kitchen counter.. I think I did a pretty good job in the seat arrangement..
My chair.. it's too low for the kitchen counter.. without the stack of pillows all you'd be able to see is my shoulders and head… and even with the stack I sort of kneeled on them to be eye level with everyone else :)
and now for the main event… the dinner
It was an equal collaboration between Jay and I… the menu took us several days to figure out… there were constant changes, to ensure we please all the different palates …
To start Jay's corn chowder with a crab cake…. I really love crab…
and for the main...
rolled fillets of sole with carrot and beet sauce, topped with toasted almonds… this dish was specifically made with Kinga in mind who is a vegetarian.. we hope she enjoyed it…
beef tenderloin with roasted mushrooms and cipollini onions… Jay cooked the meat to perfect doneness to ensure everyone was pleased.. the loin was tender and juicy… and there were no leftovers...
for the veggies… French beans with buttered shallots, double baked three cheese stuffed potatoes, and tomatoes stuffed with my carrots and peas..
my plate, which looked just like everyone else's plate (a bit of everything)… portion control what??? :)
for dessert I whipped up a layered pumpkin and milk chocolate mousse cake with apple and vanilla bean sauce… this is decadence… one of my favorite chocolate desserts…
on top of all that there were drinks prior, during, and after dinner… a blueberry martini, beer with orange slices, and plenty of wine…
the evening was so great… lots of laughs…
one thing that was a bit off was me… I managed to break three things that day: a vase, a bottle of beer, and during dinner one of our pretty wine glasses (almost took out Magda with that one). The tiny country superstitious part of me sees that as a good thing, since breaking glass blocks off any bad luck, but the rational, logical part knows I'm just butter fingers…
And so we decided to make time, and have a sort of impromptu (in case it was a big flop) Holiday meal… Our place is tiny, and after some careful calculations and furniture rearrangements we figured out that we could comfortably fit 8 people in our place (including the two of us)… In not so distant future we will most likely move again, and one of my top priorities will be to have a bigger dining room (well to have a dining room period) because well… the more, the louder, the merrier… and I wish we could have extended a few more invitations…
Our table set up… it's actually two small tables put together… we had them specially made for our kitchen counter.. I think I did a pretty good job in the seat arrangement..
My chair.. it's too low for the kitchen counter.. without the stack of pillows all you'd be able to see is my shoulders and head… and even with the stack I sort of kneeled on them to be eye level with everyone else :)
and now for the main event… the dinnerIt was an equal collaboration between Jay and I… the menu took us several days to figure out… there were constant changes, to ensure we please all the different palates …
To start Jay's corn chowder with a crab cake…. I really love crab…
and for the main...rolled fillets of sole with carrot and beet sauce, topped with toasted almonds… this dish was specifically made with Kinga in mind who is a vegetarian.. we hope she enjoyed it…
beef tenderloin with roasted mushrooms and cipollini onions… Jay cooked the meat to perfect doneness to ensure everyone was pleased.. the loin was tender and juicy… and there were no leftovers...
for the veggies… French beans with buttered shallots, double baked three cheese stuffed potatoes, and tomatoes stuffed with my carrots and peas..
my plate, which looked just like everyone else's plate (a bit of everything)… portion control what??? :)
for dessert I whipped up a layered pumpkin and milk chocolate mousse cake with apple and vanilla bean sauce… this is decadence… one of my favorite chocolate desserts…
on top of all that there were drinks prior, during, and after dinner… a blueberry martini, beer with orange slices, and plenty of wine…
the evening was so great… lots of laughs…one thing that was a bit off was me… I managed to break three things that day: a vase, a bottle of beer, and during dinner one of our pretty wine glasses (almost took out Magda with that one). The tiny country superstitious part of me sees that as a good thing, since breaking glass blocks off any bad luck, but the rational, logical part knows I'm just butter fingers…
in a month it would have been 20 years old
Jay and I were looking for a holiday drink. The latest issue of the LCBO magazine had quite a few which listed ice wine as one of the ingredients. Since we have a few bottles of ice wine, we thought why not try one. Jay decided to open the bottle pictured below… once we tasted it… we knew there is no way we can mix it with anything else and dilute it…
this picture isn't quite good enough… but the sugar crystals on the cork were very pretty…
it was viscous, sweet, tart, fruity, complex, gorgeous dark amber color… and very delicious… and it's all gone….
this picture isn't quite good enough… but the sugar crystals on the cork were very pretty…
it was viscous, sweet, tart, fruity, complex, gorgeous dark amber color… and very delicious… and it's all gone….
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