Home Tour - Kitchen

I feel like I should apologize for this photo heavy post, but on the other hand it's also an awesome post so it's a bit of a dilemma. Instead of a recipe, this kitchen post is going to be a tour of my kitchen, because I think it's wonderful. And it's also a room I spend a lot of time in because I love to cook and bake.   

Above is one of the things that sold me on my place - a large window with a kind of terrarium style overhang. It's gorgeous really and I can't wait to start some herbs and such there. Possibly tomatoes. (Also, yes I know that shelf is bowing - it was like that before I put anything on it and my landlord keeps promising he'll fix it!) On the shelves there's my tea collection, my napkin collection, various smaller dishes and a container with my dish towels and cloths. Love having this extra space.

Here's a close up view of my tea collection. I buy tea from David's Tea and Teavana and some wonderful local loose leaf tea stores and then put it into mason jars. This way I can see it and it looks pretty. I cut out the label and put it on top so I know which tea is which and where it's from.

                             

This is part of my napkin collection. I have been collecting cloth napkins for a couple of years and love love love them. Not only are they pretty but they also are eco-friendly. (According to one friend, I'm a hippy.) Always on the lookout for more.

                               

Right below my window is this metal cart I've had a couple of years that always comes in handy. It's got my garlic and shallots on the top and then baking supplies on the other shelves. Beside it is this gorgeous blue chair I got at a garage sale for a couple of bucks  The suitcase houses my canned goods (pineapple, beans, tomatoes, etc) which is actually my sister's idea. It's great because it looks pretty and saves me shelf space. Beside the chair is my silverware in a vintage letter/bill rack that I painted.

I seriously love a good colander. The light yellow and green ones are bamboo and lovely. The bright yellow one is melmanack and a sweet thinking-of-you gift from my mom. Also possibly the best record ever that I found at a thrift store. One of my favorite artists (Mary Blair) combined with one of my favorite rides (It's a Small World)? What could be better seriously?

I took the cupboard doors off my top cupboards to open up the space more and love the look. Admist the plates and cups I have pieces from my owl and matryoshka doll collections. And of course my gorgeous Pyrex bowls. 

                                 

I have a somewhat eclectic collection of dish ware which I adore. Pieces from thrift stores (those white bowls on the right and the red cups) and gifts (the light pink bowls in the back and the Fiesta ware bowls) combined with dishes I bought new (the bright pink bowls and large cream/brown bowls at the back). I realized lately I'm definitely not someone who could have complete matching dishes at all.

Beside the cupboards there are some open white shelving. This is another thing that sold me on my place. Love all the open shelving in the kitchen, especially since I have so many dishes. These house my cookbooks, my favorite Pyrex dishes, my measuring cup collection, some of my scale collection and of course, more matryoshkas. Great that I can see everything. It makes for a happy kitchen in my mind.

I hesitated to put this picture up - since it almost looks like a mess, but in truth it's organized chaos. Or something. I love putting photos on the fridge and having lots of memorbilia. There's fun magnets and photo strips and a ticket to a comedian I went to a couple of years ago, plus a whole set of magnetic poetry words that my sister likes to leave me messages on when she visits.

On the side of my fridge I have this old dish towel I found at a thrift store. I don't really have an affinity towards the year 1969 or Australia, but I love the bright turquoise colouring.

And that's my kitchen more or less. Sure I didn't show you my sink that's often full of dishes or my stove I finally got around to cleaning. Some things stay private. Here's the important and fun parts of my kitchen.

What's in yours?

Quick and Yummy Salad

Had some tomatoes going soft in the fridge and wasn't sure what to make with them - then realized I could make a quick and easy (but yummy) salad. Enjoy!

Tomato, Avocado, Mango and Red Onion Salad with Chilli Lemon Dressing

1. Chop tomatoes, avocado, mango and half a red onion and stir together into a bowl.
2. In a small bowl mix sweet chilli sauce, oil and lemon juice with 2 cloves garlic.
3. Pour dressing over cut fruit and vegetables. Stir and enjoy.

The best thing about this salad (besides using up old fruit/vegetables from your fridge and being super easy) is that it tastes even better the next day after it's 'marinated'. I purposefully didn't put in many measurements because it really depends how much you need/want to make. I filled my small bowl and ate it as a side for three meals. 

Make lots and bring to a potluck. Make a little and eat it right from the serving bowl. 

Enjoy.

Making Muesli

I make my own muesli/granola for a number of reasons - 

• it's super fun/easy
• if I make my own, then I know exactly what's in it and that it's gluten free
• generally I have all the ingredients in my house so it's a simple matter of mixing and toasting
• it's yummy and a quick breakfast/snack I like to keep around 

I use a mix of recipes. Here's a few good ones - 

• Toasted Oat and Coconut Muesli (Joy the Baker)
• Toasted Muesli with Millet, Coconut, Pistachios and Cranberries (Whole Living)

 I want to try this one because it looks delicious -

• Gluten Free and Grain Free Chocolate Granola (Gourmande in the Kitchen)

I don't worry a lot about the details. So it wants pecans and all I have is almonds - no worries. So it wants honey and I'm using agave nectar - so what. I'm supposed to toast it for 15 minutes and I toasted it for almost twenty because I lost track of time - it's all good. 

To me a good recipe is one I can adapt and I've found that a good muesli is perfect for that. Follow one of those recipes and make your own. Go crazy and make your own recipe. The fact of the matter is that you'll enjoy it either way.

Jello Marshmallows

Awhile back my sister posted a great tutorial on how to turn jello into fun marshmallows and since then I wanted to try it. I finally got some raspberry jello packaging and made some fun heart shaped marshmallows for Valentine's Day!

One of the great thing about these are that they're gluten free. (Also that they're crazy sweet but that's besides the point.) I brought them to a dinner party on Sunday night where we everyone super enjoyed them and then we watched the new episode of The Walking Dead (which was completely awesome btw!)

What flavour would you make?

Roasted Red Pepper and Beet Soup

I found this recipe in an old issue of Natural Health magazine, made it that day and thought I'd share it with you as it's super easy and incredibly yummy!

Roasted Red Pepper and Beet Soup

1. Cut one red pepper, toss with a little oil and roast in your oven for 15-20 minutes or until browning. 
2. Meanwhile heat one tsp oil in a large saucepan and add half a chopped onion. Cut and peel two large beets. 
3. Once the onion is translucent add the red pepper, beet and 4 cups broth to your pan. Add spices (The recipe suggested cumin but I added cajun spice and it was great). 
4. Bring to a boil and then simmer for 20-30 minutes until everything is soft.
5. Take off the stove and blend up the soup until smooth. 
6. Enjoy with some soft goat cheese sprinkled on top.

I'm having this for lunch with some cheese and herb bread. What would you serve this soup with?

Coconut and Chocolate Pie

Welcome to Friday. And February (rabbit rabbit). Friday's mean a Kitchen post featuring cooking, baking or anything that takes place in the kitchen. Lovely.

My best friend pinned this recipe, texted me about it and I decided to make it - all within the space of about half an hour. It's incredibly easy and so yummy. I changed the original recipe a bit so here's my take on it. 

Coconut and Chocolate Pie

1. Preheat oven to 350 F and put your pie plate on a parchment covered cookie sheet.
2. Mix 6 tablespoons Earth Balance Buttery Spread with 1 1/2 cups unsweetened shredded coconut. Put into pie plate and press along the sides and the into the bottom. Bake for 15-20 minutes.
3. Bring 1 1/4 cup soy milk to a simmer and then take off the burner. Add in a heaping 1 cup chocolate chips and let sit for a couple minutes. Stir until combined and pour onto the cooked crust.
4. Refrigerate until set (atleast a couple of hours). Serve and enjoy!

What toppings do you think would go well with this?

Grated salad

Welcome to Friday (you made it!) Friday's mean a Kitchen post featuring cooking, baking or anything that takes place in the kitchen. Lovely.

Today is all about one of my favorite things and something I make all the time. The Grated Salad. First a little background.

    I'm a celiac vegetarian who also tries to stay away from milk products since they make me phlegmy. I get a lot of 'well then what do you eat?!?!' and people telling me it's all in my mind. (Oh ya, of course it is.) Truth is I eat amazingly, I just have to be super aware of what I'm eating and how I'm getting nutrients and protein. (Truth is I mostly stress about getting enough protein all the time so I'm hyper ware of it) I eat lots of legumes, hemp, eggs, seeds/nuts, quinoa - trust me, I'm making sure I'm all good.  I also eat a ton of vegetables (maybe that should be a 'tonne' of vegetables). Here's one way I like to eat them.

The Grated Salad

You Need:

• grater and knife
• bowl (make it pretty!)
• vegetables to grate (I love zucchini, carrots and beets but you can use anything - I put a big winter radish in the other week and it was delicious!)
• fruit to grate (sometimes I add apple or squeeze in some lemon/lime)
• add ins (dried fruit or nuts)

Wash and grate your fruit and vegetables. Put them into your gorgeous bowl and mix with a fork. Add some lemon or lime juice to preserve (be crazy and add some canned pineapple with a bit of their juice!) Add your extra dried fruits and nuts. Then eat and enjoy!

(I make a huge bowl of it once a week and eat it all week. I just keep it covered in my fridge and it lasts wonderfully. Fluff it with a fork before serving each day)

Look at the colors! I had a co-worker who loved this idea and gave it to her daughter who ate it because of how it was so "bright and pretty"(the daugher's words). It's fast too after a long day at work to whip it up. I love that it's also versatile, great way to use up vegetables from your fridge. Plus - super yummy!

Let me know how yours turns out!