Fruit Salad- Mother Nature's answer to winter

What can be more appetizing that a delightful fruit salad. I'm not talking about cantaloupe and pineapple, I mean plethora of layers representing summer in a crystal bowl! What you can't see is the apple, strawberries, pear, Chinese pear, and mango that make up the rest of this splendor. Next time you're at the fruit stand go crazy!

Salad Pick Me Ups

Salad can be so boring when you go out to eat. With the exception of The Naam restaurant I am almost never satisfied with the lack lustre attempt at healthy. I take this into my own hands at home and find new and exciting ways to make salads taste like meals and not rabbit snacks. I'll share some of my favorite toppings to pick up any salad:
Crumbled Feta Cheese
Diced Red/Yellow/Orange Peppers
Marinated Artichoke Hearts
Dried Cranberries
Fresh Strawberries, Blueberries, or any Berries
Marinated Mushrooms
Garlic Shrimp
Candied Pecans (Trader Joe's has some great ones)
Grilled Zucchini cut in strips
Pumpkin Seeds
Maldon Salt

If the mood strikes I love making taco salads with cheese, peppers, ground beef and tortilla chips on a bed of fresh chopped Romaine or Butter Lettuce and top it with corn salsa and sour cream! Who said salads need to be boring? Tonight's dinner consisted of Romaine lettuce, yellow peppers, sliced strawberries, sliced apples, candied pecans and feta cheese. Sea salt and fresh cracked pepper, didn't even need dressing! I'm open to any suggestions?? Anyone??

A glass for an occassion

On a recent trip to Victoria I had the time and pleasure to enjoy the city with my son while my husband worked. Lucky for us it was great walking weather. After a bit of a late start I made it to Government Street by about 10am. I was in desperate need of nourishment and coffee as a 17 month takes a great deal of energy and it was better to be alert. Luck had certainly been on my side and by the time I found a quaint little cafe/deli/Internet cafe to meet my needs my little man was snoring. I was able to enjoy my latte without any disruptions while indulging in one of my favorite pass times, watching my son sleeping soundly. Once finished I was on to my next stop, with no clear plans I stopped in a specialty wine store and was pleasantly surprised. Not only was the clerk knowledgeable and enthusiastic about wine but also due to the hour of my wine shopping (11am) had plenty of time to chit chat. It was such a pleasant shopping experience I left with a bottle of Quatrain and bottle of Compendium both from Mission Hill. I bought two for the two reasons we will have to celebrate shortly. The first will be the sale of our first place, our lovely 2 bedroom condo. The second will be the purchase of our second place a 3 bedroom condo! Maybe we will be able to upgrade to a stand up wine fridge in our new place, one can hope! When the papers are finalized we will open these fantastic bottles of wine and I'll share what I thought of them. Fingers crossed that will be soon!

A hidden treasure

How is it that you can live in a city for so many years and not know of a cute little child friendly cafe with amazing food? Oh wait I know, it's because until 17 months ago I was not in the need for a cute little child friendly cafe. Today I spent a wonderful day enjoying a large latte and brioche French toast delicately dressed with braised pears, walnuts and creme fraiche over friendly conversation with family. Not only was the grown up food wonderful but the selection of yummy and healthy kid items including cheesy toast and mac & cheese was delightful. No one is going to give you the "stink eye" if you child is too loud or throws their toy car on the floor because if you look around there adult chairs are almost outnumbered by the number of retro high chairs. Now that I've told you that you can't miss out on this place, wouldn't it be helpful if I told you where it was? Little Nest, just off Commercial. Thanks to my cousin for introducing me to this wonderful hidden treasure and thanks to my other cousin for breakfast!

Tea Party

As you already know I have a great fondness for tea. Well tea and all things caffinated to be exact. What better way to spend a cheery afternoon than with friend having a tea party! After much thought here was the menu I finally decided on:

Assorted Sandwhiches on mini croissants:
Egg Salad
Smoked salmon and cream cheese
Pesto, smoked turkey and Brie

Various Pastries to include:
Chocolate walnut brownies
Nanimo bars
Coconut macaroons
Chocolate and marshmallow bars

Layered fruit salad drizzled with blueberry honey. Now contrary to most typical fruit salads I make mine with a little more flair. Applepear, blackberries, gala apple, anjou pear, blueberries, mango, black grapes, and strawberries! Whatever is in season and tastes good! If you have never tried fruit drizzled with honey I strongly suggest you do. Not only does it add a beautiful natural sheen to your salad but the subtle sweetness is divine!

As a special treat a friend brought over homemade strawberry shortcakes! FABULOUS! A light and slightly sweet scone with strawberries and creme fraiche!

To serve with this, it was decided that a creamy earl grey would be the right choice. I don't imagine we could have made a wrong choice, after all it was tea! Unfortunately we were too full to do a taste test on the Organic Vanilla Oolong that another friend had brought but later was another story!

Tea Time

There is a great deal that can be said for a good cup of tea! Since I was younger, there has always been tea time at home. It is often surprising to others when I mention that my mother is from Costa Rica and she does not drink coffee... after all coffee is synonymous with Costa Rica. None the less my mother is a tea fan which makes me a tea fan as well. Whether it be a headache, stomach ache or a case of the blah's, a good cup of tea has always been the answer!

Hmmm, which tea to have? Most days my tea of choice is Marks & Spencer Fair Trade Gold for it's smooth taste and perfect strength. When I'm feeling a bit more adventurous I enjoy a cup of Creamy Earl Grey or Secret Garden's Secret. On special occasions, and when I have some in the cupboard a lovely cup of Empress Tea (from The Empress hotel in Victoria) hits the spot. What about when you've had too much to eat and you need to digest..... definitely green tea! That and maybe a laxative with a reminder not to do that again ;)

Tea time usually was accompanied with "tea snacks". A little cheese biscuits, Indian tea biscuits, Maria cookies, or palmiers. The choice is endless but well worth exploring much like the many offerings of High Tea! Having had the privilege to experience High Tea at The Empress Hotel in Victoria, BC (2 times) it is hard to come close to the elegance and scrumptious delights. It is worth dressing up and the $ to enjoy it with someone you really love. I shared this experience with my mom for the first time and what an amazing visit. My second choice and more local option is the splendid Secret Garden in Kerrisdale. Make your reservations ahead of time as it is always a busy place and worth every penny. Don't be fooled by the small size of the pastries, you will be full by the time you leave. More than likely you will also have a little box of what you couldn't finish to enjoy later. There are a few more places I need to try and will do so in the coming months....... Stay tuned!

Bean Dip

When my aunty asked me to bring an appetizer, specifically a bean dip to our family dinner this weekend my immediate response was an enthusiastic "sure"! What I didn't realize until after I hung up the phone was that I wasn't sure what kind of bean dip she wanted me to make. I decided to let my imagination run wild. I checked my fridge and freezer to check my inventory and after pulling a guacamole from the freezer, headed to the grocery store. I wandered the fresh produce isle, meandered through the Mexican isle and ended my trip at the dairy isle. I took a side trip to the meat store and headed home. Now where to start? I got my serving dish out, pulled my frying pan from it's hiding place in the oven, selected a good chopping knife and got to work. My idea was to make this a spectacular bean dip and as I started I even danced around the kitchen singing a made up song about my dip.... I can just imagine what I looked like. Diced onions began softening in my pan and I added the fresh ground beef. If you haven't bought ground beef from a fresh meat shop you don't know what you're missing, the flavour and quality is sooooo much better than your run of the mill grocery chain meat. I added my taco seasoning and a small can of diced green chilies to the mix and topped it off with a large can of refried beans. Once I had it just right I scooped this mixture into my dish and topped it with cheddar/mozza grated cheese. I could have stopped there, after all it was now a bean dip but what kind of food enthusiast would I be if I didn't "kick it up a notch". I have obviously watched to much food TV! I debated my options and decided that a good organic salsa would be my next layer followed by a layer of the guacamole. I added chopped red pepper, green onions and fresh cilantro. As we had a bit of a trek to the family gathering I decided to leave the sour cream off until I was to serve it. I'm not sure how it tastes but it smells awesome so I'll have to wait and see.