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By doriluthy, June 15, 2011 10:29 pm

Wouldn’t you agree that there are certain foods out there in this incredible world that simply have an inherent quality of goodness about them? I mean, just the thought of them, they carry with them some sense of wholesomeness, comfort, etc. Foods you want to wrap up in, like a favourite sweater on a cool summer evening.

Now, I’m not sure if this is related to my advancing pregnant state, or that summer has finally arrived and so the seasonal mood has shifted again, but my life certainly seems to revolve around my list of goodness-comfort-foods these days. And it may not be too surprising that most of the foods on my little list are things that either come from 1) the garden or 2) the oven. Of course, the most charming and joy-inducing foods are ones that combine the two elements (Knock-Your-Socks-Off Rhubarb Crumble!), providing the perfect chain of experience from Garden>Oven>Mouth.

But there is one of these goodness-foods, regardless of season or variation of the recipe, that always seems to bring a touch of homemade pleasure into my family’s days. From the act of preparation (totally child friendly), the attending as it bakes (mama’s job), the smell that just fills a house (dad’s favourite to come home to), making it in a large batch means it’s the ultimate food that will last for days. What is that wonderful food? Granola!

I know I’ve shared a recipe for granola on my blog before, but after years of making I managed to tune it into a lovely little recipe that is now my (our!) favourite. And what I love most about baking anything- the act of sharing makes it even better. So here for you all to try (and modify as you see fit), Strathcona Granola!

This sizable batch will last at about a week of everyday eating. And with fresh berries and yogurt, it is officially one of Finn’s favourite breakfasts these days. “NOLA!”

Strathcona Granola

In a large bowl, mix together:
6 cups whole oats
2 1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 1/2 – 2 cups chopped walnuts
1 cup chopped dates
1 cup dried cranberries

In a small pan over low/med heat, mix together:
2/3 cups honey
2/3 cup oil- safflower, sunflower, or even canola in a pinch
Mix together until honey is melted, then add to the honey/oil:
3 tsp vanilla

Add wet to dry, stirring well to coat everything.
Preheat oven to 225*F. Pour mixture evenly out over 2 cookie sheets, and bake for approx 1 hour, taking mixture out to stir well every 15-20 minutes. After an hour, take out of oven, and allow to cool entirely before placing in a well sealed container. Eat!

Enjoy, and feel free to share some of your own- what are your favourite goodness foods?

Ciao!

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By doriluthy, June 7, 2011 3:01 pm

Finn and I headed to our garden plot at the nearby community gardens yesterday morning. It was quiet and still a little dewy, perfect conditions for communing with some plants… We discovered that EVERYTHING had grown many many inches in the past 3 weeks we’ve been away- broccoli and kale gone to seed and grown up to my shoulder, a GIANT rhubarb patch, garlic as tall as Finn, cabbage happily doing it’s thing, and a surprise of 3 hearty tomato plants that must have seeded from the previous owner’s crop… and of course the horsetail had taken over my iris patch and happy butter cups ran amok! After a couple hours of digging, and lots of exploring, the garden was back in a decent shape, and we were on our way back home with a few stalks of rhubarb to make something summer-inspired!

Here’s my recipe for ‘Knock-your-socks-0ff Rhubarb Crumble’- a tangy/tart filling with a crunchy-sweet topping.

First layer:
approx 3 cups young rhubarb; unpeeled and diced
1 Tbsp unbleached flour
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
1/3 cup chopped dates
1/4 cup chopped walnuts, toasted (or other seeds/nuts? I also threw in a handful of sunflower seeds)
1/8 tsp salt
1 Tbsp Water

Topping:
1/2 cup butter, softened to room temp
1/2 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
1/2 cup unbleached flour
2/3 cup rolled oats

Preheat the oven to 350 Degrees. In a 9×9 baking dish or straight sided pie pan, combine the bottom layer ingredients and stir well to coat the rhubarb. In a medium size bowl, cream the butter with the flour and brown sugar, then stir in the oats. Smoosh this topping over the rhubarb. Bake at 350*F for 40 minutes or until the rhubarb is tender and the top is brown.

And can I recommend a side of vanilla ice cream, eaten quietly and slowly, while sitting out on the patio in the sunshine as the little one naps? Perfection.

Enjoy the bounties of summer!

Ciao.

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By doriluthy, November 26, 2010 11:07 am

Happy belated Thanksgiving for those Americans out there- we’ve had a good friend up visiting for a few days from the US, and celebrated the national holiday last night with fresh caught steamed crab and mushroom risotto. Oh FOOD!

This morning was greeted with cranberry pumpkin muffins hot out of the oven- to keep the scents in the house in theme with the harvest festival, of course!

They got a little overdone on the top, but they still taste awesome warm with butter. Writing this post, they are already half gone into the bellies of boys (big and small).

Have a toasty weekend!

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By doriluthy, November 22, 2010 10:44 am

Oh dear! How can it have been a WHOLE MONTH since the last post? I thought I was getting into a routine there… but traveling, birthday celebrations (egads! I’ll write about that soon), and now childminding for a fellow 1 year old, life has gotten busy- or rather- life is always busy! but I haven’t gotten a routine around my blogging, apparently. Note to self- get organized about blogging! (or don’t, and just keep doing what you can do when you can do it…)

Anyway, I’m sitting on the couch on this early Monday morning listening to the sounds of traffic outside the window… smelling the warming of the potatoes in the oven roasting for breakfast… wrapped up in a woolly blanket and a warm cup of tea at my side…  waiting for a little boy to arrive. It has been a blessed month with the extra toddler in the house. With little M. arriving early in the mornings it has forced me into a lovely private routine that usually involves getting the oven geared up as soon as I come downstairs. Besides making/baking/partaking of goodness and wholeness  in our meals, the heat of the oven makes the cold mornings so much more bearable.

Speaking of baking, let’s talk about Bread! The search for the perfect loaf for this little family continues- although this one seems to be making Dustin and Finn (and M.!) quite happy these past 3 weeks:
—
Seedy Bread
5 cups whole wheat flour
5 tsp yeast
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 tblsp oil
1 egg
2 cups warm water
1/2 cup oat or wheat bran
1/4 cup sesame seeds
1/4 cup sunflower seeds
1/4 cup flax seeds
1/4 cup pumpkin seeds
(additional nuts? go for it! I’ve done chopped walnuts and almonds… ohhhhhh yum.)

Combine 2 cups flour, all seeds, wheat or oat bran, yeast, salt and warm water. mix until incorporated. Add oil and egg. Mix. Add one cup of flour. Mix. Add fourth cup of flour. Mix. Remove from bowl and slowly add as much of fifth cup of flour as dough will allow. Dough should be soft, and barely sticky yet pliable. Knead for approx 5 min altogether.

Place in lightly oiled bowl (I use the same bowl I mixed in to avoid more dishes), and turn loaf to coat in oil. Cover. Let rise for 1 hour. Remove and knead again, you may need to flour your work surface. Cut into two and shape into loafs. Sprinkle corn meal on bottom of greased bread pans. Place loafs into bread pans, cover, and let rise for approx 1 hour.

Bake at 375 degrees for 40min or until slightly brown. Let loaves cool before cutting. ENJOY! (toasted with butter and honey is my personal fav.)

Hey, I think that loaf needs a better name. Anyone have any suggestions?? Post in the comments and I’ll have a look!

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By doriluthy, October 12, 2010 10:54 pm

This week’s bread is a Greek Wholewheat Loaf. I seriously wish I was the original Greek woman who dreamed this loaf into being (bread recipes come from dreams, right?). This loaf? A dark, giant mound, very moist, tight crumble, and a semi-thick soft crust. Last night we had thin slices, toasted and slathered in butter, to go with a 12 bean & bacon soup, to warm our slightly sick bodies… While slurping our dinner, we parents marveled to each other how our little baby will soon be shedding his infant cloak, and before our very eyes he is entering toddlerdom with great curiosity and enthusiasm. A pause in time to see this, I spent the past 24 hours feeling so wistful to see him grow out of his infancy. I just loved him so much as a wee one, precious darling baby to snuggle and lie in bed and nap and touch fingers and coo and dress in fun little clothes… Don’t get me wrong, I’m just as excited for all the upcoming stages. But this watching my child growing up- it feels like I can’t make my stitches fast enough, to gather together the pieces of this life that is flying by us. Wistful because I won’t be able to remember the details, memories fade, becoming blurrier and softer in the mind as time goes flying by- and I know that I will long to remember the feeling of his arms grabbing around my neck or the smell behind his ear, the sound of his soft sad cries that sometimes come in the middle of the night. Or the way he does his little naked dance by the bathtub at night, anxious to get into the water- his little chubby butt always makes me laugh.

The loaf came out of the oven on Monday evening, warm and round like a great pregnant belly. I cut a thick piece tonight (toasted with cream cheese, cinnamon, and honey- oh heaven) to eat in bed with my tea and writing. Inspired by my wistful state and the circumference of the bread, I’ve been straining my memories back to my pregnant belly- only a year ago, can I believe it? Sensations and recollection of a rolling kicking child inside are faint, but are there ‘just enough’ to bring a smile. What an old woman I feel like today, on the other side of the gate of birthing and knowing the person that was the mysterious rolling kicking child- and how young I seemed in those days leading up to his birth, anticipating the baby, and ignorant to the bliss and sorrow that would come wandering into the house on that glorious morning of his birth.

Today I am the old woman with a wet face, as today was a day of many tears that can age the soul by 175 years. Some of the tears are too big to talk about, just flowing with the realization that life has gone by and both good and bad has crossed my path, leaving me to reconcile the best I can. And some of the tears are too sad to talk about- I mean, words absolutely fail when hearing of an unexpected Death, and the shock can bring such physical sorrow, sweeping over the body in waves of anguish… Needing to cling to something full of life, I sat and held tight to Finn with tears rolling down my cheeks- he was curious and laughed as he patted my wet face. Oh man… And of course, some of today’s tears are too funny to talk about. Sometimes that’s the way life is, all in one day.

But now for a little sleep for this old woman. There is more bread to be had tomorrow.