in bloom

Pausing to capture spring blooming all over made all the difference to my day.

this moment

inspired by soulemama

this moment

sunday in the kitchen

"That's a lot of kale, you have there," said the older gentleman eyeing my over-flowing shopping cart. 

"I know," I exclaimed. "It's so good and it's on sale!" And with that, I happily made my way through the rest of the grocery store, looking forward to getting my four bunches of kale home so I could turn it into delicious salads, kale chips, stir fries, and more! 

I love kale. I eat it on a weekly basis and I know four bunches this week might be a bit excessive, but I have no doubt it will not be wasted! I've already made a batch of kale chips that are half eaten, and I can't wait to dig into this, my favourite salad, for supper! This recipe comes from a dear friend.

Wilted Kale Salad
1 bunch of kale chopped with a large middle stem removed
1/4 red onion
1 C sliced mushrooms
1 shredded carrot
Dressing:
1/3 C olive oil
1/4 C balsamic vinegar
1 tsp Dijon mustard

Prepare kale and red onion and place in large salad bowl. Heat oil over medium heat in a frying pan. Add mushrooms and carrots and saute until mushrooms exude juice. Quickly add
balsamic vinegar to frying pan and cook for two minutes. Take off heat and stir in mustard. Quickly pour hot dressing over kale and mix well. The kale will turn bright green. Top with toasted sesame seeds.

this moment

Inspired by Soulemama

this moment

Inspired by Soulemama

sunday in the kitchen

"All you need is love. But a little chocolate now and then doesn't hurt." - Charles M. Schulz

And with that quote in mind, I embarked on experimenting with chocolate in the kitchen today. Valentine's Day is coming up, after all, and there's nothing like a little chocolate treat to add to the love on this special day. Of course, the mention of working with chocolate in the kitchen had that wee Finn jumping at the opportunity to help out. And what we came up with was some dairy-free chocolate truffles that I know have no chance of lasting until the big day! 

In a medium-sized add:

2 C dairy-free chocolate chips

1/2 coconut fat (place can of full-fat coconut milk in the refrigerator for several hours to allow fat to solidify. Open bottom of the can to drain off coconut water - save to use for soups, smoothies, etc. Scoop out creamy fat)

1 tbsp coconut oil

2 tsp of flavouring - we used orange flavouring for this batch. Peppermint would be a nice one too! Have some fun experimenting with different flavours!

Place bowl of ingredients over pot of boiling water - turn heat down to medium high. Stir ingredients as they are melting. Once fully melted and mixed together, remove from heat and refrigerate about 1-2 hours until solid.

Finn wanted to record the process....

but unfortunately we didn't realize there was no card in the camera until we were all done! We just might have to make some more for take two!

Once the chocolate has solidified, scoop chocolate and form into small balls and dredge in icing sugar. This is a messy process when your helper is 8-years-old.

All ready to eat...or box up for your Valentine!