Panzanella salad

This salad has become my new summer staple, especially now that we're fully into tomato season.
It's so easy and quick and uses up things in my kitchen that I've perhaps been ignoring for too long.
Stale bread, overripe tomatoes, olive oil, vinegar, salt and basil are all you need for this satisfying summer snack.


My friend Renee (aka Feisty Chef) made this in a cooking class a few weeks ago. I was so excited to taste her take on panzanella which, like most of her cooking is just simple enough to let the food speak for itself.

Frozen Vegetables

Last year I decided to freeze some of the sweet corn available at my local farmers market so we could enjoy it in the winter. I cut the kernels off of about 8 ears of corn, packed it into a ziploc bag and stored it in my refrigerators freezer.
I had good intentions...but did I really think one little bag of frozen corn was going to last very long??
I probably froze it in late August and I'm pretty sure the bag was gone by October. Oops.

This year is going much better! We invested in a large upright freezer (I think it's about 12 cubic feet) and have been stocking up on vegetables like they're going out of style.
Broccoli, zucchini, corn, green beans, peas, and cauliflower are just some of the vegetables we've begun freezing.
Obviously frozen vegetables have somewhat of a limited range of use once thawed but they'll be great in soups, curries, stir frys, and pasta sauce, to name a few.

Here are some tips for successful frozen veggies:

- Only use unblemished perfect produce. If it's starting to become overripe, don't bother freezing it.
- Clean veggies well.
- Prep the veggies as you would if you were about to cook them. Trim beans, shell peas, chop broccoli, etc. They should be completely ready for use straight from the freezer.
- Remove as much air as possible from freezer bags.
- Label bags with name and date.
- Dry veggies thoroughly after washing or blanching.
-Vegetables that should be blanched include corn, peas, broccoli, cauliflower and leafy greens. Green beans, peppers and zucchini can be frozen raw.

To blanch, place prepared veggies in a colander over a pot of boiling water. Blanch for 3-5 minutes (or until produce colour just becomes bright, but not fully cooked). Toss blanched veggies in an bowl of ice water to stop cooking. Drain well and pat dry.

For more information on preserving food by freezing check out "The Beginners Guide to Preserving Food at Home" by Janet Chadwick.

Creamy Vegan Potato Salad

My parsley plants are overflowing and despite efforts to use it often (and freeze some of it) I just can't seem to keep up. So the other day I made a real effort to find more uses for parsley. I found a recipe for Green Tahini Dressing in my copy of "Get It Ripe" by Jae Steele, that looked perfect. Steele describes the dressing as going well with "everything!" so I decided to take her up on the challenge.
I had a plate full of leftover roasted new potatoes in the fridge and a few green beans that have escaped my pickling rampage, that both seemed like the perfect contenders to try out this dressing.

Peach Chutney

As a longtime lover of mango chutney I was very excited to see a recipe for it in my new favourite canning book. But I just can't bring myself to buy produce thats traveled so ridiculously far to get to me when there is so much wonderful fruit grown right here in my province. So what else is a girl to do but find a local substitute: peach chutney!

Aside from the obvious Indian food applications, this chutney is great on fish cakes, these amazing quinoa patties, alongside cheese and bread, spooned into these biscuits and so much more. I'd love to hear your favourite uses for chutneys too!

Cherry Tomatoes

If I was only able to grow one thing next year in my garden it would be tomatoes. Sure I've enjoyed growing lettuce, kale, zucchini, peppers and herbs, but tomatoes take the cake.
Is there really anything better than freshly picked sweet cherry tomatoes?

My tiny urban patio garden has earned the same envious skepticism ("What? You grew these?? Wow I wish I could do that.") as do many of my usual domestic affairs ("What? You made this?? Wow I wish I could do that"). But guess what? You can do it too, I promise!
If you have any outdoor space at all that gets 6 or more hours of sunlight a day, you can grow tomatoes. You can easily find wonderful transplants at farmers markets in the spring, or you can grow them from seed indoors if you have lots of sunlight inside your home.

With lots of sun, water and love you'll have a beautiful bounty of tomatoes in no time. 

Canned Tomato Sauce

I may have mentioned before how my husband and I have set a hefty goal of canning 40 pints of tomato sauce in preparation for winter. I think so far I've only made 12 pint jars plus about 10 pints of canned whole tomatoes (which can be made into sauce later). Our main reason for doing this is so we that can enjoy local tomatoes all year round instead of purchasing cans of tomato sauce from the grocery store. Not only do we love supporting our local farmers, but as a couple without a car we strive to reduce our walking or biking trips to the grocery store as much as possible in the winter (the less heavy cans we have to lug home through the snow and freezing wind the better!).

I hesitated on sharing this recipe/project with you because it seemed like it might be too boring or simple. But then I realized that the simple (yet oh so useful) projects are sometimes the best inspiration for someone who's new to canning or preserving.

Patchwork Shower Curtain

There's nothing like sensing an approaching season change to inspire you to redecorate around your home. 

Our bathroom was in serious need of some colour and life. Now of course I feel the need to knit a new bathmat to match. Another project to add to the ever growing to-do list!