My last nod to Christmas. This is a wee convenience store near me. I love the way it looks:) Almost magical, makes you want to walk through that door.

My daughter's dinner party was a great success. A bit hairy at the end getting the pasta together. She had doubled the recipe and it called for 30 oz of spinach. That's a lot of spinach! It was overwhelming until it wilted down. It was delicious!

I want to wish you ALL a prosperous and peaceful New Year:) May the bluebird of happiness sit on your shoulder all through the year!

Fries with that?

Looks good doesn't it:) Vacation food. Actually this was taken in August at the Banff Springs Hotel in Alberta. We stopped in to have some lunch and poke about. I often take a picture of what I am eating when I am out and about. Hmm, what does that say about me? I like food too much. Anyway, this sort of meal is going to become very rare. I plan on doing an overhaul of my diet. I am sure I am not the only one:)) More veggies, fibre, nuts and fruit, less sugar, fat, refined food and maybe gluten free too. I have a feeling I will feel a lot better without wheat. Here in North America our diet is predominantly wheat. It is in practically everything. I have a few friends who have tried going gluten free and they say they feel so much better.

I am planning on really starting in January. My birthday is Jan 8th so it is always a good week for me to begin things. Fresh starts. Lists, goals and dreams.

Tonight my daughter is having a "dinner party" for her girlfriends. She is bashing around the kitchen as I write this:) They have to dress up and she is cooking. Funnily enough, we each gave each other a Jamie Oliver cookbook for Christmas! So from hers, she is making tagliatelle with mascarpone cheese and spinach , sticky toffee pudding and plain iceberg lettuce wedges with vineagrette to start. The table is set with candles and pretty napkins. Nice to see teenagers do something a bit different. Not just watching movies, texting and facebooking all at once:)

I was also nominated for "One Lovely Blog Award" from one of my favourite bloggers:)
ChichiBoulie! Thanks Gretchen:)) She is a delightful artist who lives in France and paints whimsical watercolors, does embroidery patterns, rubbber stamps and a myriad of other artful projects:) I really appreciate it !

December Views

last night's adventure

Yesterday, my mum heard an interview on CBC radio in the morning about a man who has been decorating his wee bay window every Christmas for the last twenty years. He starts the beginning of November. It is in a very rundown and quiet area of the city and all the people in the neighborhood look forward to seeing his display. We drove in last night to have a look. My picture does NOT do it any justice at all.
On the spur of the moment, we decided to knock on his door to thank him and tell him how marvelous it is. He graciously asked if we would like to come in and wow, what a sparkly and amazing place!!! Even the blades of his fan get the Christmas treatment:)






This is Mr. Bowden. He lives directly across from St Georges Round Church, a round wooden church built by Queen Victoria's father, the Duke of Kent. He was sitting on his front steps June 1994, the night it caught blazing fire and nearly burnt to the ground. The minister stood next to him, crying his eyes out. What a night that was.

Here is is demonstrating the songs on his latest addition, a carousel.

His dog Daisy lies in front of the TV. His last dog, a German Shepard lived to be 17 years old.

I bought this wee painting as a holiday gift to myself. Just love it. Rustic black olives. Reminds me of the Mediterranean and warm sunny climes. It is by friend of mine, English artist and photographer, Tim Burns. Painted on a piece of driftwood, there is even a hole in the top left olive where the pip came out. You can't really see it in this pic.

Also, here is the Ginger Cake recipe from Mrs. Baird written so many years ago. At least what I could make out from the hastily scrawled recipe.
6oz margarine
3 oz lard
2 oz sugar
1/2 pound sultanas
2 oz currants
1 egg
1 Tbsp syrup ( maybe Lyles Golden?)
1Tbsp treacle
1 tsp bicarb of soda
10 oz flour
pinch salt
2 tsp. ginger
1 tsp mixed spice
1 tsp jam ? ( or 1 jam spoon of pepper?)
pepper? (It looks like 1 Jam . pepper, so make of it what you might, I'm really not sure what it means) EDITED: 1 tsp Allspice ! whole Jamaican pepper= allspice

1. Melt margarine and lard in pan.
2. In big bowl, mix dry ingredients
3. Drop in egg and half the melted lard, beat well
4. Add the rest
5. Put into prepared tin and bake 2 hours. ( I imagine at 350F)

McCall magazine cover picture 1940. George Eastman collection.

Love this, I'll be posting more as the days go by. I'm thinking about lifestyle changes as the new year comes closer. All I've been doing lately is eating chocolate and cheese and chips and dips and creamy concoctions and I need to STOP now! Ack. I made some squash soup with ginger and lime today hoping to have something to eat that won't fast track me to the blubber bin.

We also have a new Wii and that is fun. I have been doing the fitness and balance stuff and it certainly is an eyeopener. I love how it tracks your progress. It even talks to you. I had gained a pound since the last time I stepped on it and it asked me if I had been snacking! lol. "Um, yes!!"

Remember Mrs. Baird in an earlier post?
Here's what my mom wrote to me. The bold is mine.

On reading your blog I see that Mrs Baird's Ginger Cake (and I would like that recipe) is written by Jessie (my grandmother's sister). Mrs. Baird was a friend of hers who was a rich farmer's wife . She lived about a mile away from J's house at Bridge of Dun , near Montrose. She was a big lady with a deep voice and a hearty laugh, who always seemed to wear an apron. Mrs. Baird had three daughters and a son. I remember the names Cathy and Moira but can't get the others. Her husband ( they were always called Mr and Mrs so I never heard their names) looked like an exact replica of her in male form. I remember walking down for afternoon tea at their house, lovely scones, strawberries etc. Yum!. Good memories indeed.

Jessie's husband was the rector at Bridge of Dun, Scotland. He, Jessie and their daughter lived in the manse there and my mum tells many happy stories of going to visit them at the "big" house. One day he ran away to Africa to be with another woman, leaving behind his wife and young daughter. It was a Sunday morning, and my Great aunt had to speak to the congregation herself and tell them what had happened. Jessie then moved in with her sister, my grandmother and they lived together for the rest of their lives.

December Views

December 25

xoxox Merry Christmas xoxox

Christmas Eve

This is my grandmother's well used cookbook. I love to imagine her poking through it looking for a recipe to try or go back to. In it are taped bits of paper with handwritten recipes and notes. Rhubarb chutney, a newspaper clipping....Kitchen Hints for Scots Houswives, taped on the front page, her Xmas pudding, a real classic and handed down from her mother. Ingredients like 1 gill of brandy, 1 pound of Demerara sugar, sultanas, mixed peel, almonds and shredded suet. It was made by my mother and I have made it too. Let stand 12 hours, boil for 8. The smell of the house when it is on the boil represents Christmas:)



I wonder who Mrs. Baird was:)


Have a Happy Holiday Everyone:))

December Views

My neighbor just came over with this little plate and asked for a cup of tea. I obliged:) Monty is sleeping on the chair and outside it is frigid and white. Good day for visits with a friend.


These two wee ornaments used to be on my tree when I was little. I hope you had a chance to listen to Shannon's song from my previous post. I truly believe she is a talent we will be hearing more of:)



December Views

Irwin Lake Sessions

So, tears found me yesterday. I happened by accident across the new CD of a wonderful family friend. Shannon and my daughter H are buddies and her mum and dad are good friends of mine. I knew Shannon and her dad had been working on a CD but I had forgotten all about it and boom, in that random way the internet works sometimes, I found myself on Shannon's Myspace page. I haven't seen her really in a long time. She is studying music in Toronto at Humber College.

I listened to her song Siuil A Ruin, and tears fell. It is beautiful, so clear and pure.
Shannon plays the fiddle and sings, and her dad plays guitar. She plays accordion and piano. I haven't even mentioned her Irish dancing skills....national competitions! Her father Tony, has been a musician and entertainer for more than 30 years. How wonderful for him to team up with his daughter, an accomplished musician in her own right now. They are a great duo:) I am sure you will be hearing more of her/them. CBC is recording a show of theirs in January.


Her mom and I plan on hitting the road together one day too:) Hey Angela! We'll be singing too I imagine but only after a few glasses of wine:) The CD is called the Irwin Lake Sessions. I think it was last Christmas, as a gift to Shannon, Angela paid for a week at an isolated cottage at Irwin Lake for Shan and her dad to get away from it all and create something special. They sure did.

Anyway, here is the LINK to Shannon's Myspace page and you can hear three of her songs. You might have to wait a wee bit for it to upload. Her CD is available at HMV records in Halifax. and you can buy it via the internet at CDBaby too.

ShannonQuinnMusic.com

photo credits - Shehab Illyas