A 5 ft pile of snow greeted us upon arriving home 2 days ago, since then we’ve been pleasantly nestled in our little home insulated with fresh powder. It feels so good to be home, our vacation in the city was wonderful but coming back to stillness and the scent of wood burning just feels right. Who would’ve thought a prairie girl would feel so comforted in the hands of mother mountain. The powers only gone out a handful of times since we got back and though you always think a million things will have changed in 2 weeks, everything remains the same. Aside from baby Mav nearly walking, yes at 9 months he is walking with the help of kitchen chairs and the mini car that his grandma got him. I’m not ready for this, it’s all happened so fast. A year ago he was a mere little bump, today he is an endlessly curious ball of energy. We tried our hand at mom and baby yoga class. Discovered that this is ideal for babies who aren’t yet movers and shakers. It was fun none the less, but I don’t think my boy is the next Iyengar.
Coming home to an empty fridge and belly is both daunting and exciting. I hate waste so I always make sure that everything perishable is enjoyed before leaving for a trip. If not, I give it all away, because there’s nothing worse than returning home to moldy kale leaves. Now we restock, oh what fun. Unfortunately we are relatively snowed in and a trip to town isn’t high on the list of priorities. After driving for 15 hours there must be at least a 3 day reprieve, at least. Simple comfort foods do the trick in this instance, and today this jalapeño and bacon cream of mushroom soup really hit the nail on the head. It’s dead simple, really, I don’t even have any chicken stock made so I had to opt for water and flavourful additions like smoky bacon, crispy garlic chips and a bit of kick with the jalapeño. I am in love, so is J, normally he is considerate and leaves me a little after the second serving but today he gobbled up all the leftovers and left not a crumb. Whatever. You can definitely make this soup paleo friendly by using coconut cream instead of heavy cream. I hope you love this decadent mushroom soup as much as I do.
1½ lb mushrooms (whatever types available to you), sliced
1 Tbs butter or ghee
1 onion, chopped
1 tsp sea salt
1 tsp thyme
½ tsp fresh cracked pepper
3 C water
1½ C heavy cream or 1½ C coconut cream
3 cloves garlic, sliced
6 slices bacon, chopped
1 jalapeño, finely chopped
Instructions
In a large pot melt the butter and add chopped onion, when onion is translucent, add mushrooms (save a handful), thyme, salt and pepper and allow this to cook down for a few minutes.
In a skillet or frying pan, add the chopped bacon and let it release some fat before adding garlic, jalapeño and a handful of sliced mushrooms. Let the bacon get nice and crispy and the mushrooms golden brown.
When the mushrooms and onions have cooked down, add water and cream and simmer for a few minutes. Using a hand mixer or transferring to a blender until smooth and creamy.
Serve the soup with a generous helping of crispy bacon, garlic and jalapeño and enjoy.
Hey guys, woweeee it’s officially 2015, happy new year to you all and I hope it’s the best yet! I’ve seen a lot of talk around of people starting their cleanses and whole 30 resets come January so I thought I would start the year off with a delicious salad recipe suitable for any of your new years challenges. I myself really need to give my adrenals a break and stop drinking so much coffee. Aside from that, I’ve really questioned my belief in setting new years resolutions this year. Every day is an opportunity to set goals and make changes. Every moment a chance to change and improve.
It’s been awhile since I made a real shin diggery of a new years affair. Last night was no different, though we did have a little dance party with classic hits on much more retro, kool and the gang anyone? When we got close to midnight my dad tried to turn on Dicks countdown but instead got stuck on some interactive channel where you find santa, the credits were already playing by the time we got to the right channel. Kisses and hugs and a tired baby wondering why everyones clobbering him ensued. We’ve been having such a wonderful visit with the family, I came here prepared to be productive but it’s all fallen to the wayside. Food photography on location isn’t our strong suit but hey, it’s a learning curve. We have been eating some amazing food, including a brined turkey, which I wanted to post on but it got gobbled up too fast to take any photos. I will recreate it to share, promise, it was just too good not to.
This salad is super simple and it has all those lovely pad thai flavours. Normally when I make this dressing I add all sorts of thai flare like lemongrass and fish sauce but here at my parents those ingredients weren’t so handy, so I simplified it and it’s still delicious. There’s a huge snow storm today so our trip home has been postponed until further notice. In the meantime I’ll just imagine i’m perusing the amazing food markets of Thailand.
Just a little ditty that you might want to save for a special dinner, new years perhaps? I love scallops and seldom indulge, but once in awhile I can’t help myself. I pull into the parking lot where the resident fish bus is parked and load up on the good stuff from the coast. J despises the fact that anyone sells fish out of a school bus, so I make sure to go when he’s not with me. It’s not like the guys got salmon filets on the unwashed seats of school kids, I mean it’s all gutted and filled with freezers, what’s the big deal?
There are really so many ways to become enamoured with these little ocean morsels, seared, covered in butter and salt and pepper is my preferred method, super simple is sometimes best. You could serve these beauties with a nice mash, or grilled veggies, some steamed spinach and thick balsamic glaze or of course crispy shallots and sautéed kale with tamari.
So our celebrations are complete, we rang in the solstice with gift giving and a wonderful meal. J got me two handmade Japanese knives that are sharper than a serpents tooth. I mean they are the sharpest knives I’ve ever used, I barely touched a cucumber and it sliced right through. So now I’m trying to come up with a dish that involves copious amounts of finely chopped vegetables to show off the majesty of these knives. Any suggestions? Too bad I made french onion soup with ten onions last week with my incredibly dull knives.
Perfect Seared Scallops with Crispy Shallots and Kale
Author: Chantelle
Prep time:
Total time:
Serves: 2
Ingredients
10 scallops
1 Tbs+1 tsp clarified butter or ghee
1 tsp olive oil or coconut oil
salt+pepper
1 bunch kale, finely chopped
1 tsp tamari
1 shallot, very finely sliced
Instructions
Thoroughly dry the scallops and lightly sprinkle salt and pepper, heat a cast iron pan and add the clarified butter and oil, when it starts to smoke add the scallops, don't overcrowd the pan. Cook scallops for approx. 2 minutes per side, depending on their size it may take a bit less or more time. Refrain from turning unnecessarily as they won't brown up as nicely.
In a separate frying pan, heat up some more oil or clarified butter and add the shallot. Fry until crispy, add the kale and tamari and cover for 2 minutes until kale is nice and soft.
Happy Solstice everyone! The longest night is upon us, and I think we’re all ready to welcome back the light. This time of year, for me, is all about inner reflection, looking back on the last years happenings. It’s an exciting time to realize the potential that you can harness in 365 days. This time last year I had a little baby bump and had no idea what to expect but now I have this sweet little angel and it all seemed to happen in the blink of an eye. I am so in love with life and the capacity for us all to achieve great things, to full fill our wildest dreams, to learn new skills, practice old ones and reformulate our outlook so that it serves us all the better.
After a day of frolicking around the city, people watching in the busy shopping mall and running around trying to get all the last minute goodies taken care of, I’m so glad that we’re celebrating solstice this year. The mad rush of the 24th is no longer looming because it just doesn’t matter, phew. Tomorrow morning we’ll get up slow, drink baileys and coffee, make a quiche or a giant frittata and open gifts while my dad films the whole thing. We’re roasting a beautiful free range turkey, complete with all the fix ins, and for the one and only time this year our entire family will sit down together and share a meal. I’m so incredibly grateful for all of this, I know what a monumental blessing it is to have a loving family, I wish everyone had that.
Now without further adieu, these little imitation ferrero rochers are delightful and a great little treat to spread joy with to all. I like to plop them into an egg carton for a makeshift box of chocolates. Of course, these beauties are free of unknown nasty preservatives or other weird ingredients, and I personally like them better than their commercial counterparts. All they need is some fancy gold wrapping and a little stick, et voila!
This tender tomato beef stew is spiked with sweet dried apricots and delicate creamy squash. We love it as an alternative to the old classic beef stew. I’m not sure how traditional this stew is, I know that in Argentina they usually add a healthy glug of wine, and a sweet pumpkin, I would love to travel there one day and learn how to make it all proper. Until then, this is my rendition, and I tell you it is pretty damn fine. With a nice glass of red this is a meal to warm your heart on a cold day.
We’ve finally arrived at my parents place for the holidays, it’s been a 2 day adventure to get here and I am so happy to get to spend time with my lovely, crazy family. There has already been a riot of inappropriate jokes and puns, and the fun has just begun. Bring on the good times, amazing food, heartfelt laughter and connection, I love love love it.
Hey I'm Chantelle, my alter ego would be a mermaid if I wasn't such a terrible swimmer. I love writing authentically and cooking in my pyjamas. My favourite pastimes include eating avocados, travelling the world and hanging out with a toddler.
