Winter Photos January 2018

street view of our home

routine clearing snow off our temporary garage roof

keeping our garden path clear of snow

views of the St. Lawrence river from inside our favourite local restaurant 

Something Red

Pavlova (no fail recipe) from New Zealand

a traditional kiwi dessert often celebrated at Christmas

Ingredients
3 large egg whites
1 small cup of caster sugar
1 Tablespoon cornflour
1 teaspoon vinegar (malt or white)

Method
Heat over to 180 degrees celsius
Beat egg whites until stiff, then slowly add the sugar 1 tablespoon at a time (until half the sugar has been added).  When all the sugar is dissolved then sprinkle the cornflour and vinegar over the top of the egg whites and gently fold in.
Place meringue on parchment paper and put tray in oven
Immediately turn the oven down to 130 degrees
Bake 1 hour and then turn the oven off (leave the pavlova in the oven until cooled completely).

Topping
Whip 250ml cream with a little honey, and stir in greek yoghurt (if you wish)
Top with your favourite fruit (berries, slices of kiwifruit or grated chocolate)

this is a no fail recipe from Peter Gordon (NZ chef) published in the New Zealand Herald

Cranberry Orange Loaf

This is my go to Christmas gift for giving ... I hope you enjoy it as much as I do!

Cranberry Orange Loaf

Ingredients
1 cup fresh (or frozen) cranberries
Zest of 1 orange
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 cups all purpose flour (slightly less)
1/2 cup sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon or a pinch of salt
1/2 cup canola oil (or melted butter)
1/2 cup orange juice (1 large freshly squeezed orange)
2 large eggs (gently beaten)

Instructions

Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius.

In a medium bowl mix together chopped cranberries, orange zest and 1/4 cup brown sugar. Set aside to infuse flavours (15 minutes).

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, 1/2 cup sugar, baking powder and salt.

Mix together the oil (or melted butter), orange juice and lightly beaten eggs.

Slowly fold in the oil (or melted butter) orange juice and eggs into the flour mixture.

Mix together, and then gently fold in cranberry/orange zest/brown sugar mixture.

Pour into prepared 1 large loaf pan or 2 small loaf pans.

Bake 30 - 35 minutes (small) or 45 - 50 min. (large) until lightly browned and skewer inserted in center comes out clean.

This recipes freezes well, and can be halved to make one small loaf.

River walk

my walk along the river this week

Solider for a Day

Celebrating another year with a party at Martello tower 2 and the Plains of Abraham Museum

Trick or Treat

oops...this is what happened to the last person who asked for candy at this house ...
(J and J at a friend's house)