Lucy gets quilled… again

20 Monday Aug 2012

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Last week my poor wonderful dog, Lucy got quilled for the second time.

The first time she was quilled she must have barely touched the porcupine as she only had eight quills in total- three in her nose (pictured above) and five in one of her front paws. The quills were not very deeply embedded so I like to believe that she was simply curious, went in for a tentative sniff and then quickly learned her lesson. She avoided the next porcupine we encountered on the side of the road a few months later so I naively assumed that she was safe from porcupine enounters.

Then last Tuesday evening when we were out for our evening walk, Lucy went leaping gracefully through some tall grass as she so often does. On her third landing she suddenly started yelping and running out of the grass. I thought that perhaps a coyote had nipped her and was chasing her (we run into them often but the encounters are never threatening) so I went running towards Lucy with my hiking poles ready to defend her. As Lucy came running towards me I saw that she was holding her body posture very awkwardly and that the entire inner parts of her front legs and her chest were covered in porcupine quills! It was quite gruesome and she seemed to have morphed into some kind of spiky X-men character. She must not have smelled the porcupine in the tall grass. Perhaps the wind was blowing away from her… And judging by the location of the quills, she must have landed right smack on top of the prickly animal. Lucy looked confused and in pain as she limped toward me. Lucky we were not far from home and we slowly made our way back to the cabin.

As we walked home I was wondering if I would be able to take out the quills myself. Last time Lucy was quilled, she was very jumpy and it took me almost two hours to trick her into letting me get close enough to pull the quills out. I was amazed and so proud of Lucy when this time around when she came right over to me and let me snip the tips off of the quills with a pair of scissors. Then she stood very still (she was actually trembling and probably in shock) while held her with one arm and quickly plucked out all of the quills from one of her legs with needle nose pliers. I gave her a few minutes to rest and walk around, then I called her again and did the other leg. After another short break I pulled the quills from her chest area and after a thorough body search found a few quills on the inside of her back legs.

Unfortunately I did not take a picture of her before pulling the quills out. It did not even enter my mind this time around. As soon as I saw Lucy’s quills my only thought was to get them out as quickly as possible. In total I pulled out 141 quills and found 2 more the following day. Since then, Lucy has been more careful on our walks and keeps to the wide path a lot more and she completely avoids the patch of tall grass where she encountered the porcupine!

I’m happy to say that Lucy is doing great! She was tender for a few days but there were no signs of infection and she recovered very quickly. She’s even started leaping again… but she has been keeping to the path where the grass is much shorter!

Saskatoon jam

13 Monday Aug 2012

Posted by in cook, Pigeon Lake, preserve, wild berries

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This year the Saskatoon berries in my backyard are huge and plump! B and I got on ladders yesterday and picked three full basketfuls. I froze them for smoothies and pies and made a small batch of tarts for immediate enjoyment. I like to freeze the berries one layer at a time on cookie sheets and then place the frozen berries in large ziplock bags. This way they don’t stick together or freeze into one large lump and I can easily reach in for a handful of berries any time for smoothies. Last weekend I picked Saskatoon berries at one of our many beaches here on Pigeon Lake. There were many ripe berries and as these ones were a little smaller in size, I decided to make this jam with them.

Saskatoon Berry Jam

4 cups Saskatoon berries

3 cups raw cane sugar (less if, like me, you prefer the jam a little less sweet)

1 tablespoon lemon juice, fresh or bottled

Place Saskatoon berries in a large pot, add the lemon juice and cover with the sugar. Heat on medium-high heat and stir until the mixture begins to bubble. Allow mixture to boil hard for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally until it thickens. Pour into hot, sterilized jars to within 1/4 inch of the top. Yield: 2 half pints and 1 small jar.

Serve on toast, pancakes, crepes and waffles. Enjoy!

millet pancakes with wild strawberry jam and wild blueberries

07 Tuesday Aug 2012

Posted by in cook, preserve, whole grains, wild berries

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I have been busy milling various flours at home, including soy, black bean, spelt, brown rice, jasmine rice and buckwheat and experimenting with each of them. Today I tried millet for the first time and decided to use my classic buttermilk pancake recipe to see how the flour behaves (beautifully) and tastes (quite mild, actually). Served with wild strawberry jam and the blueberries found on the morning walk, it was a lovely way it start the day.

Millet Pancakes

1 egg

1 cup millet flour (or whatever flour you want to try)

1 cup buttermilk

1 tablespoon raw cane sugar (or honey)

2 tablespoon vegetable oil

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

Combine all ingredients until well mixed. Ladle onto a preheat griddle (medium heat) and flip over when the pancake starts to bubble. Serve with your favorite jams, jellies and syrups. Enjoy!

coconut rice with prawns

30 Monday Jul 2012

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I love going out for Thai food and it’s always the simplest accompanying dish that I crave- coconut rice! I found this recipe in a Martha Stewart magazine way back in September, 1994 and it has been a staple in my kitchen ever since. I usually make it plain to go with a curry but today I added some prawns to make this a complete meal.

Coconut Rice with Prawns

6 cardamom pods or 1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom

1 tablespoon butter

1/2 large onion, finely chopped

3/4 cup unsweetened coconut milk

1-1/4 cups water

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon sugar

fresh coconut, shelled but unpeeled and shaved for garnish

1-1/4 cup basmati or jasmine rice

1 cinnamon stick

Optional: sliced almonds, toasted

Remove seeds from cardamom pods, if using and discard pods. Grind seeds to a powder in a spice grinder or mortar and pestle.

In a medium saucepan with a tight-fitting lid, melt butter over medium-low heat. Add onion and cardamom and cook, stirring frequently, until onions are translucent, about 5 minutes.

Add rice and stir until the grains are well coated with butter. Add cinnamon stick, coconut milk, 1-1/4 cups water, salt and sugar. Stir well to combine. Bring to a boil then immediately reduce heat to lowest setting.

Optional: While rice cooks, stir fry prawns (or any meat or tofu that you choose to add). Cook thoroughly and then add to finished rice just before serving.

Cook rice, covered, for 25 minutes (or longer if necessary). Remove from heat and let stand for 5 minutes. Fluff with fork and add prawns, if using. Serve hot, garnished with shaved coconut and/or toasted almonds.

wild strawberry jam

25 Wednesday Jul 2012

Posted by in cook, forage, preserve, wild berries

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I spent a blissful two hours picking wild strawberries on the trail last weekend. I had been picking small handfuls of them every morning and evening on our walks over the past two weeks and enjoying the sweet burst of flavor each little berry contains, but now it was time to do some serious picking. This time I brought along a large basket, dressed in rain pants (in order to crawl around on the ground) and wore mosquito netting. Lucy, as always, is a patient foraging companion. She just wanders around quietly nearby or curls up beside me in the tall grass and relaxes in the morning sunshine, eyes half closed.

I managed to pick enough berries for four medium jars of strawberry jam. As I didn’t have a lot of time for sterilizing jars, etc. I decided to try a freezer jam recipe from Jean Pare (Company’s Coming) which worked quite well. I am looking forward to opening these up on a cold winter’s morning and tasting sweet summer sunshine on my pancakes or toast or even served with chocolate or ice cream!

Strawberry Freezer Jam

4 cups sliced strawberries (or whole wild strawberries)

4 cups sugar (I use raw cane sugar)

2 tablespoons lemon juice, fresh or bottled

Place strawberries in a large pot. Cover with 2 cups of the sugar. Heat and stir on high until it comes to a full rolling boil. Boil hard for 3 minutes, stirring continually.

Add remaining sugar. Return to a boil, stirring continually. Boil hard for three more minutes while continuing to stir. Remove from heat.

Add lemon juice. Stir and skim off foam. Cool. Fill jars or plastic containers leaving at least one inch at the top for expansion. Let stand on counter for 24 hours to set. Freeze. Makes 4 half pints.

strawberry rhubarb crisp

23 Monday Jul 2012

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The strawberry patch is starting to produce like crazy and I have some lovely young rhubarb behind the greenhouse… Time for a crisp! This is such a quick and simple recipe as it really only takes minutes to throw together before baking. Baked with the freshest of ingredients, I served this with a dollop of Devonshire double-clotted cream. Truly decadent with a cup a tea!

Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp

2 cups sliced strawberries

2 cups sliced rhubarb

2/3 cups brown sugar (more if you like your crisp sweeter)

1/2 cup spelt four or rice flour or all purpose flour

1/2 cup oats

1/3 cup butter, softened

3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

3/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

Preheat oven to 375 degrees (F). Grease a square baking pan (or stoneware baking pan). Place strawberries and rhubarb in the pan. Mix the remaining ingredients in a medium bowl and sprinkle over the fruit. Bake for about 30 minutes. Serve warm and, if desired, with whipped cream or ice cream. Enjoy!

 

checking in on the raised bed garden…

17 Tuesday Jul 2012

Posted by in garden

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The last time I posted on the raised bed garden was back in May after it was just built. It was so exciting to see my vision of a circular Medicine Wheel raised bed garden come true! Next summer I will add a second row of triangular boxes and begin incorporating elements of the Medicine Wheel.

Back in May it looked like this: (click here to see the post)

I planted potatoes, peppers, a variety of onions, leeks and garlic, broccoli, brussels sprouts, kale, Swiss chard, red and green cabbage, kohl rabbi, tomatoes and a number of herbs.

A week and a half ago, the garden looked like this:

Brussels sprouts…

 

Leeks, onions and garlic…Red cabbage…

These raised beds have been very little work so far this season. I haven’t had to water yet as we have been receiving plenty of rain. I have only weeded a few times and there were only a few small weeds to pull. My main job so far has been keeping the slugs off of the brassicas. I have been picking them off by hand and then sprinkling diatomacious earth on the plants (which dehydrates and kills the slugs as they travel over it). This works very well until the rain washes it off and I have to reapply. Tonight I will sprinkle some woods ash around the plants and then put out a few half-filled trays of beer (the slugs apparently drown themselves in it while heartily singing pub songs). I will also put out small aluminum tart trays with a slice of cucumber in it (apparently the slugs hate the smell of the chemical reaction between the aluminum and the cucumber which drives them to drink the beer conveniently located nearby). I’ll let you know whether I am successful this year. Last year by mid-summer I had a lovely row of green cabbage one day and just the naked spines of the plants after a week of rain (and my neglect). This year I would like to enjoy the brassicas myself, thank you very much!

 

 

tomato, basil & bocconcini salad

13 Friday Jul 2012

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Summer is here and with it, fresh tomatoes and basil! My basil is flourishing in the greenhouse but I am relying on the Farmers Market and organic grocery stories to find the early fruit. I recommend using your highest quality extra virgin olive oil and sea salt flakes (i.e. Malden’s). A taste of juicy summer in every bite!

Tomato, Basil and Bocconcini Salad

This is a ‘rough’ recipe as the size of your salad will depend on how many people you are serving or how many fresh ripe tomatoes you bought at the farmers market.

3 medium-large ripe tomatoes

bocconcini, sliced (Note: I accidentally bought ‘cocktail balls’ of bocconcini but they worked just as well sliced in half)

fresh basil

extra-virgin olive oil

balsamic vinegar (just a sprinkling)

seal salt flakes and freshly ground pepper

Slice your tomatoes and bocconcini. Separate the basil into individual leaves. (You can coarsely chop these if your basil leaves are very large.) On a serving platter, begin laying the tomato slices and top each with a bocconcini slice. You’ll often see this salad arranged in a circle but play around and have fun with the design. This time around, I used a very long bread plate and arranged them in a long line.

Drizzle the tomatoes and cheese with olive oil and sprinkle with balsamic vinegar. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and serve. Enjoy every bite and keep in mind that this salad will never be this flavorful in the winter with store-bought fruit!

 

rice flour bread (wheat-free, gluten-free)

12 Thursday Jul 2012

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Here is a wheat-free, gluten-free bread recipe that is quite light and flavorful. I found it on yummly.com. I milled some basmati rice for this but the original recipe calls for brown rice flour (which you can easily find at your local grocery store or health food store). Despite the short rising time, I was impressed at how much this bread rose. It slices well so it is great as toast and sandwiches without becoming too crumbly.

Rice Flour Bread

3 large eggs

¼ cup vegetable oil

1 teaspoon lemon juice

1-¼ cup warm water

4 tablespoons sugar

1-1/2 tablespoons active dry yeast

2 cups tapioca flour

2 cups rice flour (white or brown)

2/3 cup nonfat dry milk powder (instant)

2 teaspoons zanthan gum

1 teaspoon fine sea salt

2 tablespoons ground flax seeds

Bring all cold ingredients to room temperature.

Butter a 5 x 9 inch loaf pan.

In a electric mixer bowl, combine eggs, oil and lemon juice. In a separate small bowl combine the water, 1 tablespoon of the sugar and the yeast. Let this stand for 5 minutes or until foamy. In a medium bowl, combine the tapioca flour, rice flour, dry milk powder, xanthan gum, salt, flax seed and remaining 3 tablespoons of the sugar. Add the yeast mixture to the egg mixture then slowly add the dry ingredients a little at a time until completely incorporated. Mix batter on high speed for 3-1/2 minutes then pour into the prepared pan.

Cover bread with foil and place in a cold oven. Set a pan of hot water on lower shelf underneath the bread. Leave for 10 minutes with oven door closed. (This will cause the bread to rise quickly.) Remove bread from oven (do not uncover) and place in a warm place. Preheat oven to 400 degrees (F). Bread will continue to rise as the oven preheats.

Uncover the bread and bake for 10 minutes to brown the top. Re-cover the bread with the foil and continue to bake for 30 minutes. Turn bread onto a cooling rack. Once bread has cooled completely, wrap tightly to maintain freshness. Enjoy!

chocolate almond bark with smoked sea salt

11 Wednesday Jul 2012

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If you like chocolate-covered pretzels you will love this almond bark with its rich sweetness followed by a hit of salt. Hunt for the best quality chocolate you can find for this recipe and use sea salt flakes (or fine sea salt), such as Maldon’s or Contemporary Ocean Products found at specialty cooking shops or health food stores. A decadent treat for those special moments. I have to warn you, this is a very addictive treat and I am already planning on making a second batch only a few days after finishing the last one!

Chocolate Almond Bark with Smoked Sea Salt

1/2 cup maple syrup syrup or raw cane sugar

1 tablespoon unsalted butter

1-1/2 cup raw almonds, freshly toasted

1 pound high-quality dark chocolate (62- 70% cacao), finely chopped

smoked sea salt flakes (to taste)

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Combine maple syrup with 2 tablespoons of water in a small saucepan. Stir over medium-low heat and cook until the mixture thickens and darkens in color. Remove from heat and add the butter, whisking until melted. Set aside 1/4 cup of the almonds and add the rest to the saucepan. Stir until well-coated.

Place chocolate in a double boiler or in a bowl over a pot of boiling water. Stir until melted, then add the nut mixture, again, stirring well. Transfer to the baking sheet, spreading the mixture out, topping with the reserved toasted nuts and sprinkling with salt flakes (to taste). Chill until chocolate sets, about 3 hours. Break bark into pieces and store between layers of parchment paper or waxed paper. Can be made up to a week ahead. Store in the fridge. Enjoy!