Experimental vegetarian cooking and urban gardening in Ontario, Canada
So I’m a fan of cocktails (martinis especially), and I want to start making them at home. That may sound easy enough, but there’s a problem: Most cocktail recipes call for two or three types of liqueurs, and each bottle costs anywhere from 20 to 30 bucks. Is it really worth it to spend 100 bucks or more at the […]
So this week has been fairly uneventful. The CSA Box has the usual items. I kept things simple. I steamed the broccoli, blanched it, then froze it for later use. I made the usual snacks and meals with the onions and potatoes and salad greens. I had a bunch of green beans leftover from last week, and I managed to […]
Can you believe that it’s almost October? It seems like the summer passed by so fast. With the nighttime temperatures dropping, it’s time to start harvesting the cold-sensitive plants. I decided to deal with the plants at home first. Although I didn’t do much with the front garden this year, I did grow a large basil plant in the yard, […]
Just when the weekly CSA produce was starting to feel monotonous, we got something different: It’s a butternut squash!! Okay, so it’s true that we got more stupid cabbage and green beans and broccoli. But the addition of a butternut squash makes it all worth it. I roasted it and served it with margarine and corn on the cob and […]
These CSA boxes remind me of Chopped, a cooking show where chefs are given mystery baskets with random ingredients, which they must use to cook a meal. Obviously, me receiving a CSA box isn’t the same thing as a televised cooking competition. However, I find myself saying the same thing that the chefs say: what the heck am I supposed to do […]
As part of my effort to support local farmers and to eat seasonal food more often, I’ve signed up for a Community Support Agriculture (CSA) box. That means that once a week for the next eight weeks, we’ll be getting a share of freshly picked veggies (and sometimes fruit) that were grown on a local farm. We also get a […]
Today I’m posting a review of kefir grains along with instructions for making your very own kefir at home. The people at Kefir Kitchen have generously sent me a free sample of their grains (the starter bacteria), all the way from Turkey to Canada, in exchange for a written review of the product. In case you’re wondering what the heck […]
When I was younger and lived with my parents, my mother took two different recipes and mixed them together to make a creamy carrot soup flavoured with curry powder and parsnips. When I moved out on my own, she gave me the recipe, and I altered it by replacing the cream and dairy milk with coconut milk and soy milk. The result is a savoury vegan soup […]
This recipe came to mind one night when I wanted something fresh and healthy without spending much time cooking. You can save time by getting a package of pre-cut veggies (I like the kind that has bell peppers, zuccini and red onions) or you can chop up whatever you’ve got on hand if that’s your style.
I’ve had this cookbook for years called The Mediterranean Vegan Kitchen by Donna Klein. It has really fantastic looking recipes that use fresh herbs and vegetables. Being a student at the time this book was given to me, I felt taunted by the pages of delicious homemade pasta sauces (calling for 3 cups worth of fresh herbs) and side dishes that […]
