basil Tag

  Peach tomato salad with bocconcini - TheMessyBaker.com When a spring frost destroyed much of the tender fruit crops in Ontario, I was afraid I wouldn't see a local peach this year, let alone one that delivered a true peachy taste. Fortunately, I was wrong. While the size of the crop may not be large, the peaches are beginning to roll in, and they are sweet, flavourful and juicy. After the intense heat of the past few weeks, I couldn't bring myself to turn on the oven. Too impatient for ice cream (and with a cracked filling that made me temporarily sensitive to hot and cold food), I decided to make something very simple with my first batch of peaches. Something that would also let me experiment with the new basils I have in the garden. Alongside the opal, leaf, and Thai basils, I planted lime basil and -- get this -- lavender basil. While the lime basil had a bright, citrusy taste, the lavender version was surprisingly mild and had a floral scent that screamed out for peaches. So I obliged.
Jade Soup is bursting with leafy greens and herbs - TheMessyBaker.com I'm feeling rather ornery. It's Canadian Thanksgiving this weekend but the weather is downright balmy and I can't face the thought of autumn, let alone winter. I don't care that the leaves are turning glorious colours or the nights are perfect sleeping-weather-cool. I don't want to make the obligatory pumpkin pie -- even if it's damned good. I don't want to slurp delicious squash soup or gobble succulent stuffed turkey. And if you're just a tad like me, you don't want to either. At least not this weekend. Not this early.
Last week I was in Banff, Alberta, surrounded by the breathtaking Rocky Mountains. It was unseasonably warm and the cloudless sky was the shade of cerulean blue you find only in a paint box. It was mid-afternoon and I'd had nothing but airplane coffee and a packet of the biscuits you can only get at 35,000 feet. A local suggested my friend and I grab a bite at a nearby café. Being obedient tourists, we did as we were told. Hungry, but not wanting to spoil dinner, I went for soup. I expected to be taken by the homemade tomato and acho pepper soup and ordered the basil and cheddar scone merely to fill my stomach. I usually find bakery scones disappointing. They've sat on the counter too long. They're too dry, too bland, too expensive. I'm not bragging, but no bakery scone stands a chance against my fresh-from-the-oven ones. The ones I'm making in the photo on my about page. The ones I make every Christmas morning. The ones I want served at my wake.

Since I'm an unapologetic chocolate addict and flower fanatic, you'd think I'd be blogging about Valentine's Day with all the love in my heart and passion in my fingertips. But it's one of those "special" days I ignore in part because it's so contrived. It doesn't help that the media, supermarkets and florists start pushing Valentine's the minute your New Years champagne goes flat. By the time February 14th finally rolls around I wonder if you want or need another heart shaped anything.

So, I was going to let today slip by with nary a mention, without so much as a hint of red or a sliver of pink. No hearts, no cupids, no love poems. But my sister is wiser than I am. Although she knows my stance, she gently pointed out that not everyone shares my view and offered me her heart-shaped silicone baking cups for the occasion. Oh, she knows my weak spot. Baking. I took the hint -- and the cups.

Yesterday I issued a plea for ideas of what to do with garlic scapes. The answers rolled in. I heard from people via Twitter, Facebook, email and the comments section. Thank you all. I was thrilled with your response. Of course, with so many great solutions...

Basil and Walnut Green Beans I've always had firm opinions about food. Even as a child you couldn't trick me into eating tinned corn. Frozen was fine, fresh even better, but it if came from a can, I'd have nothing of it. Peas were just as bad...