Blueberry Picking at the lake

My Dad and I went in search of some tiny wild blueberries at the lake. This is not something we normally do, although I absolutely love blueberries. So I thought this year we should start. I have been with friends before who knew a great spot....but we couldn't find that spot, so we searched and found a small patch. We didn't end up with too many, but the ones we did get were delicious!

Chanterelles!

I bought these lovely chanterelles from the market last week and decided to cook them simply....lots of good butter (I use unsalted cultured butter), shallots, garlic and some dry thyme from last summer's garden. I like to use dried thyme instead of fresh, I find it has a more intense flavour. Then I grated some Pecorino Romano cheese over top and popped them in the oven for a few minutes until bubbly. Mmmmmmm!

Golden Beet gaspacho

This soup is really easy and tasty on a hot summer day.

Here's what I did....

Roast a bunch of golden beets in a 400 degree oven with salt, pepper and olive oil until tender. Cool a bit and then peel the beets (the skin should come satisfyingly off in thin pieces).

Put the beets in the blender along with some water (just enough so that the blender is happy), a few generous spoonfuls of sour cream, some chives and a god amount of freshly ground black pepper. Give it a whizz and then taste for salt. Chill in the fridge for a while.

To serve, dollop with more sour cream and a few sprigs of chives.

Here is a photo of the Rose Petal Jelly. I made it without strawberries, found a great recipe on a really good french food blog toquetoques.com

To make it, I used Rose Bud Tea that Dave brought me from China last year. It turned out beautiful as you can see, but I haven't tasted it yet....

Using the tea got me to thinking that a Jasmine Jelly may be a lovely idea.

Strawberry Season

We went strawberry picking the other day, my Mom and I, as has become our summertime tradition. So for the last few days I have been making all things strawberry! Strawberry jam, strawberry wine spritzers, strawberry sorbet, and today I'm going to try a strawberry rose petal jam. I'll post it as soon as I'm done....if it's any good.

Tarte a la Moutarde

Here's an easy little recipe, actually more of a suggestion, for a Tarte a la Moutarde. In my opinion the tomato is really the star here, but the French call it a mustard tart....

All you need to do is thaw and roll out a sheet of good puff pastry (try to find one that uses real butter) onto a parchment lined baking sheet, spread it with a thin layer of dijon mustard (regular or grainy), slice up a ripe tomato and lay it out on the mustard slicked pastry, chop up a bit of fresh basil if you have some and sprinkle it over top, lightly sprinkle some good, coarse sea salt, and grate a bit of parmesan cheese over top. Fold the edges over to create a nice, thick edge and pop it into a 375 degree oven for 20 minutes or until golden.

Cut into squares so that each square has a round of tomato and serve as an appetizer.

Le Temps des Lilas

It's my favourite time of year again! All the lilacs, apple and cherry trees are in bloom and are so fragrant and pretty! I wish it could last forever! My tulips are still blooming and the ferns have just finished unfurling. The grass is green and the new tender leaves are bright green on the trees. Mmmmm, spring!