Walk Widely. Eat Wisely. Live Gratefully.
Saturday we visited the Seaport Market and I was especially excited to discover at Noggins Corner, the first tiny tomatoes of the season from Den Haan’s. They made a fantastic breakfast treat to reward ourselves for the gym, next to a celery and mushroom poached egg. Tasty!
Yesterday’s meetings finished late enough that we didn’t get home until the slush in the driveway had frozen into a rutted, slippery mess. So on today’s agenda, scraping and hacking. Lots of it. Clearly, fuel is needed, so this paradise rye French toast fit the bill. Paired up with a Full Steam coffee and some Acadian Maple syrup, and we’re ready to face what nature has doled out.
Thanks also to Krista Oland at Morning Sun Pottery for making these beautiful mugs!
Today we’re headed out to the plot to do some compost maintenance and give the gardens a general walk-around before some visitors arrive this afternoon. Our fuel for the endeavour consists of local harvest foods, some of our own, and some from others nearby.
We cooked a melange of veggies – potato, onion, celery, peppers, mushrooms in a tiny spoonful of bacon fat (vegetarians, canola oil is fine, or a nice herbed olive oil if you have one). When they were nearly tender enough for our taste, we broke in some fresh eggs, lidded the lot and let them poach until just softly done. This is our tasty result:
This morning we were out for a walk in the early morning, keeping our commitment to be fitter, not fatter, in 2014. This is especially important if you’ve had far too much fun with friends or family on the weekend. Don’t give up, just get on track.
Breakfast was a healthy affair – a piece of plain wheat toast, topped with 1/3 of an avocado mashed with lemon juice, 1/3 of a medium tomato, diced, a poached egg and a sprinkle of lemon pepper for me, and two servings for the big guy.
We’re so grateful that the good weather continues and we can get outside and keep fit without ending up drenched or freezing! Hope you’re having a healthy, happy day as well.
This Friday fixing of potato, onion, herbs, egg and tomato is looking good, except for the one whose yolk broke on the way into the pan…
The last day at work before launching back to the world of running my own company needs to get off to a strong start. It’s not enough that my horoscope said I was a “force of nature”; I also did 45 minutes of rowing and then got to eat this awesome breakfast. Friends and future clients, here I come!
To make this (for 2 or 4):
Cook 1/2 diced onion and two diced potatoes in a small amount 5ml or 1t) olive oil. Tip in some chopped herbs and pepper. Add a couple of spoonfuls of water and break in eggs (more carefully than I did). Surround with diced tomato and lid until eggs are cooked as you like (3-6 minutes).
Have a good one!
I’m off to a business breakfast this morning – a good one, where there are usually great people to network with, and much to learn. But these things can also wreak havoc on healthy habits of both the dietary and professional variety. While buffets are improving in their number of healthy choices, they still tend to feature heavily (no pun intended) in carbs and fat. Besides, with so many bright people to meet, why spend time chewing a chocolate chip muffin?
So here’s how we are fueling up for a more productive day: veggie and goat cheese omelette, with a slice of whole wheat toast. On the toast: apple butter from our daughter’s kitchen. What better start could we have?
This is one of our favourite breakfasts, especially if there are kids around. For some reason we have always called it toad in the hole, even though that moniker seems to apply to a host of other dishes. No matter what you call it, the appeal of having an egg cooked right into the toast, and a tiny toast circle to mop up the egg yolk, never gets old.
Butter a piece of bread for each person. Melt a little more butter in your frying pan or on a griddle. Cut a circle out of each bread using a cookie cutter, or a drinking glass. Put all of the pieces in the frying pan, butter side up. Crack in an egg. When you can start to see that the bottom is cooked (check the circles!), flip the pieces. Cook until they are as done as you like, and enjoy with some fresh tomato – or even a spoonful of guacamole and salsa.
Today is Remembrance Day. Please take time at 11am to remember those who have fought to gain the freedom and democracy you enjoy.
125ml (1/2 c) whole wheat flour
1/8 teaspoon salt
125ml (1/2 c) 1% milk
65ml (1/4 c) water
10ml (2T) butter, melted
1 large egg
Cooking spray
Gently mix all but cooking spray together with a whisk. Refrigerate 1/2 an hour. This will give a thinner crepe.
Meanwhile prepare toppings – we whisked some cream and prepped fresh berries, but a creamy seafood or chicken filling works well also.
To cook, heat a medium sized nonstick pan on medium heat. Spray w cooking spray or wipe w a paper towel dipped in canola oil.
Pour in about 1/4 c batter and swirl to a thin layer. When surface is dry, flip gently and cook a few seconds more. Place in warmed oven that has been turned off, on a tea towel.
Repeat. Makes 6 crepes, 2 servings.
One of the best ways to up your personal productivity is to get the day off to a good start, and that means eating breakfast. I know, that seems easier said than done, but here is a great smoothie for two that takes almost no time, and will put a little spice in your step:
500ml/2c frozen berries
500ml/2c plain no fat organic yogurt
250ml/1c 1% milk
30ml/2T Justus Spicy Mexican Hot Chocolate mix
Blend until smooth and enjoy!
Thanks to the folks at Justus coffee for getting us off and running!
http://www.justuscoffee.com/
Yesterday was Christmas tree day…the local Lions Club had set up shop in the parking lot of our nearby grocery store. We stopped first for some provisions, including some delicious-looking peppered smoked salmon, from St. Mary’s Bay.
So this morning, surrounded by the gorgeous smell of balsam fir in the house, we made smoked salmon bennies on homemade English muffin loaf. We’re all set for a day of decorating. On a day like this how can we help but feel grateful?