Jalapeño-cheddar cornbread

I am strapped in and ready to ride the southern cooking bandwagon. Even our local liquor store chain is getting in on the action, promoting 'Taste the Spirit of the South' cocktails. I had some leftover buttermilk from my cheddar-olive-chive scones and eggplant and chicken pizza, so I decided to try another recipe from the Double Trouble Kitchen Edition blog: jalapeño-cheddar cornbread, which we ate with chicken wings and greens. The only changes I made to the ingredients, itself adapted from comfortofcooking.com, was to double the amount of cheese, use an old sharp cheddar, and substitute pickled hot pepper mix for raw jalapeño. I also found my cornbread took considerably longer in the oven than the original recipe, probably closer to 25-30 minutes. The cornbread is best straight out of the oven. It's got that delightful granular texture and the distinctly sweet and spicy flavours play off each in every bite.

To make, lightly whisk one egg in a medium-sized mixing bowl. Add 1/3 cup sugar, 1T honey and 1/4 cup melted butter and stir. In a separate bowl, sift together 1/2 cup flour, 1/2 cup cornmeal and 1/4 tsp salt. Fold cornmeal mixture into egg mixture without overmixing.Fold in 3T-4T chopped pickled hot pepper mix and 1/2 cup grated old sharp cheddar.

Bake at 375F for 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into center comes out clean.

Good riddance to you, May

This post comes as we turn the page on a month I wasn't sorry to leave behind. From  cancelling Brad's 30th birthday celebration when he came down with the flu to our car repairs to many, many long hours at the office dealing with difficult files, resulting in skipped workouts and 10pm dinners, I'm hoping June has better things in store. Then Friday I learned of a terrible tragedy to befall a beautiful family. Please think a good thought for them. It had me rattled and it's times like these when your own problems are put in glaring perspective. I hugged B pretty tight that night and remembered how many things I DO have to be thankful for.

This outfit is from a couple of months ago; I wore it to a bachelorette. The photos are pixelated and the colours are off, but you can blame my brilliant idea to take photos in a dark, windowless restaurant bathroom. This dress been a favourite for going out and running errands ever since I bought it about 3 years ago. I love the lace detailing and it makes a fantastic layering piece.

xx

Dress - Forever 21 (also here, here and here)

Fur collar - Thrifted (most recently here)

Shoes - Thrifted (Aldo)

Clutch - Coach

Watch - Kenneth Cole

Bracelets - Hand-me-down, Toronto boutique

Floral midi and chambray shirt

This outfit is a preppier variation of one of my 10 favourite blog looks. Instead of a striped tee, I wore a chambray shirt, and rather than matching my shoes to my top, I matched them to my belt. 

 I'm in the early stages of growing out my bangs so bear with me over the next few months. I decided to keep the ombre through the summer but I'll go back to my usual highlights come fall.  

Wishing those who got to celebrate it a happy Victoria's Day weekend! Our plans involved a get-together with friends in B's hometown. We were delayed by a car misadventure: we ran over a raccoon that darted across the road, which broke our radiator. We had to tow the car 50 km back to my parents' place, the closest spot. My brother is an excellent self-taught hobby mechanic and he graciously offered to fix it for us. It's still a couple hundred dollars we didn't expect to spend, but between my brother and my mom - who lent us her car for a day - it could have been much worse. And, better damage to the car than to us. A deer or moose would have been far worse! Still, I can't help but wonder if it's karmic retribution for us hitting a bear last summer with virtually no damage to the vehicle. As our friend said, we're not in the good graces of the animal kingdom! I was very grateful when we finally made it to our friends' place and started to relax with wine around a campfire.

The rest of the weekend was spent getting our balcony ready for summer and starting to design our wedding invitations. 

xx

Skirt - Thrifted (Joseph A.)(also here and here)

Top - Thrifted (Ralph Lauren) (also here and here)

Belt - Swapped (Brooks Brothers)

Shoes - Shoe Republic via sample sale

Earrings - Laura

Two-bean and avocado salad

I saw a gorgeous picture on Pinterest the other day of the most lush, perfect avocado stuffed with bacon, cheddar and onion. Stuffed avocado presentation? Why didn't I think of that? I set about making my own version with whatever I had on hand. I was overzealous in my 'stuffing', which ended up dwarfing my slightly overripe and fragile little avocados. Instead, I heaped the stuffing onto a plate and draped avocado slices on top. I was really pleased for this dish turned out. Not only it is wholesome and flavourful, it can be made in under 20 minutes.

To make, finely dice 1/2 sweet onion and two mini zucchinis. Heat 1 tsp olive oil in a small pan, then add onion and zucchini. While they started to cook, I chopped up four Veggie Products' Mediterranean Chickpea Patties from Costco and added them to the pan.  Once the mixture has browned a little, transfer to a mixing bowl. Add 1 cup halved cherry tomatoes, 1 can drained and rinsed black beans, a handful of chopped cilantro, 4T salsa (or to taste) and the juice of one lime. 

Top with avocado slices and Crispy Onion (another Costco-sourced product). 

Eggplant and chicken pizza on naan

I recently saw a simple and tasty-looking recipe for Eggplant with Buttermilk Sauce, which appeared on this blog but is originally from a cookbook called Plenty. I felt the recipe needed a little more...what's the word? Carbs. Carbs and MEAT. So I adapted it into a pizza of sorts which made for a one-dish dinner for two, with leftovers.

To make, slice one mini or one regular-sized eggplant into rounds about 1/4" thick. Peel and thinly slice one sweet onion. Peel and chop 3 cloves garlic. Heat 1T olive oil in a large pan over medium heat. Add eggplants and onions and cook until lightly browned, stirring occasionally (about 5-7 minutes).

While vegetables are cooking, shred meat from 1/2 rotisserie chicken and set aside. Take three pieces of naan bread and brush with tahini. Top with onion, eggplant and shredded chicken. Sprinkle liberally with zataar spice. Bake in oven at 425 for about 10 minutes. 

While pizza is baking, combine 1/2 cup buttermilk and 1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt. Remove pizza from oven, then sprinkle with lemon juice and Pomegranate seeds. Drizzle with yogurt sauce and serve.

Silvery wedding guest wear

Wow, how is it already the second week of May?? I've been working on some concurrent projects at work which has meant long hours at the office (I'll spare the details but just, UGH!!). Luckily the sneak peek of summer in Ottawa has more than made up for it. Without a doubt, my best pick-me-up is soaking up the warm late day sunshine with a run along the canal and seeing the pops of colour of tulip beds in full bloom. I haven't even given much thought to a second glance, though I have missed seeing all YOUR blogs. I'll be coming around soon to catch up on what I've missed! 

Last Saturday we attended the wedding of our friends P&L on a maple syrup farm in rural Edwards, Ontario. (Am I the only one who feels that come the warmer months I just rotate between work clothes, workout wear, PJs and dressy wedding outfits?) The bride made her entrance in a horse and carriage - awesome! B looked super handsome in his groomsman suit (I had to include a photo below!). I wore a dress I bought at Laura on mega sale last year (75% off!) but haven't had a chance to wear yet.

Today's a big day - it's B's 30th birthday and our 'minus-one year' wedding anniversary! For his birthday I'm revealing the destination of a surprise trip I've planned for us in June. Wishing you all an equally celebratory weekend!

xx

 

Dress - Laura

Shoes - Le Chateau

Earrings - Le Chateau

Clutch - from my grandmother's closet

Hair clips - Claire's

Bracelet - Hand-me-down 

Easy breezy

This outfit had an easy breezy feel to it that perfectly suited my mood on the first unseasonably warm day of the year. By late afternoon the wind gusts had picked up to 75 km/hour so I was very glad to have settled on a long skirt that day! And in true Canadian fashion, by the time I went to bed, it was snowing. Has spring sprung where you are yet?

xx

Skirt - Zara (also here)

T-shirt - Gap

Necklace - Claire's

Sandals - Clarks via Winners

Bracelets - Hand-me-downs

Curried stuffed mini squash

Lately I've been wanting to make another sort of stuffed vegetable (some of you may recall my stuffed zucchini recipe from two years ago). As soon as I spotted these two adorable mini sweet squashes at the grocery store, I knew I'd found what I was looking for. I remembered seeing a chef using pulverized roasted pumpkin seeds as a breadcrumb-type type topping for lamb, and I decided to do the same here. The mixture was loosely inspired by a South African curry casserole my mom used to make. 

To prepare squash, cut off cap and scoop out flesh, leaving about 1/2" of rind. Coarsely chop flesh. Peel, core and dice one Asian pear into 1/2" cubes. Peel and finely dice one large shallot. Dry heat a small cast-iron skillet over low heat, then sprinkle 1/2 T curry powder and a small handful of unsweetened coconut flakes into pan. Shake pan gently until fragrant/browning. Add 1T vegetable oil (coconut oil would be a nice substitute) and increase heat to medium. Add shallots and cook for one minute, stirring for avoid browning. Add squash, pear and a small handful of raisins. Cook for 3-4 minutes. 

In the meantime, pulverize a small handful of dry roasted pumpkin seeds using the pulse (or ice crush) function on a blender. 

Scoop squash-and-pear mixture into hollow shell, then top with crushed pumpkin seeds and squash cap. Cook at 375 for 15 minutes. 

Everything except the cap stem is edible!

Island of misfit clothes #5: The khaki jacket

#5: THE KHAKI JACKET

I bought this jacket at Winners about seven years ago. I'm ashamed to say I was wooed by the Michael Kors label, which I hadn't seen at Winners until then, and didn't really think through how often I'd actually wear it.

Pros: It's got nice details like a slight flare on the back hem. It's a true wardrobe classic. When I wear it I feel like I'm on an adventure with Indiana Jones.

Cons: Depending what it's worn with, it can look like a safari costume. It's not the best colour for my skin tone. When I need outerwear, I tend to reach for my leather jacket.

Solution: Go classic with jeans, a casual white tee and a scarf. Apply self-tanner the night before to avoid looking washed out ;)

xx

Slouchy sweater

Sometimes my blog photos start off unplanned. I'll get to work in some random outfit, and Nini will insist that it's is cute and I should take some pictures. ♥ her for that! I'd been fighting a bad cold (ugh sick AGAIN!) the week after Easter, which coincided with us getting absolutely slammed at work. So I trudged through, coming wrapped in big cozy sweaters every day and toting a steaming mug of tea. Two of my coworkers powered through fevers, so I can't even say I had it the worst. Anyways, Nini and I nipped downstairs for photos mid-afternoon on Friday and you I think you can read the weariness on my face as we came into the home stretch before the weekend. Oh glorious weekend. (And yes we do get sick days and barring circumstances like these, my coworkers and I do take them!).

 xx

Sweater: Swapped (Xhiliration) (also here)

Top - Thifted (also here)

Boots - Geox (most recently here)

Earrings - Gift

Bracelets - Aakriti Designs and Toronto boutique

Watch - Kenneth Cole