de facto redhead

Yesterday I decided to actually make something from my many bookmarked recipes, and the recipe I chose was “Super Healthy Carrot Cake Waffles” and came from Katie at chocolatecoveredkatie.com – i.e. “The Healthy Dessert Blog.”

This recipe turned out really well, and Darcy and I both enjoyed our waffles. One thing to note, however, is that this recipe, as is, truly only makes two waffles, and two small waffles at that. Case in point: I had to quickly make another batch when we finished eating and looked at each other as if to say “That’s it?” So, without further ado, here is what happened when I made Super Healthy Carrot Cake Waffles:

 Eggs are not included in this batter, and there is not much liquid, so I was confused about the consistency when I first mixed everything together. I added a bit of extra milk, but it didn’t make much of a difference, so I just continued with the recipe and hoped for the best!

It worked! I placed half the batter in the centre of the waffle iron, as Katie suggested, and everything puffed up and cooked through just as well as any other waffle recipe I have tried.

While the second waffle was cooking, I used this quick and easy recipe for homemade whipped cream.

As you can see, this waffle only fills the centre of a dinner plate. One is just not enough!

And, just in case you don’t feel like clicking through the links, here are the recipes for the waffles and the whipped cream:

Flats, Report via Winners; maxi skirt and chambray shirt, Old Navy; necklace, vintage, earrings, store in Montreal.

Getting a still shot of these earrings was just not going to happen.

I’m guessing these shoes will look pretty ragged by the end of the summer.

Not too much on the go today…Darcy and I were supposed to see the Evil Dead movie tonight, but, of course, because we finally decided to make plans to go, it was finished its run at our movie theatre. So, instead, we made spaghetti squash with homemade tomato-vegetable sauce, talked and had a glass of wine while it simmered on the stove, and then turned on Night 1 of hockey playoffs. This is when I disconnected, considered studying, decided against it, and browsed the Internet instead. Hockey, what?

On Friday, I came home to a leek and lentil soup all cooked and ready to eat. Go Darcy!

On Saturday morning, Darcy and I explored one of the trail systems just outside town…

Gnarled roots.

Gazing yonder.

Rickety bridge that felt even shakier crossing it.

Not sure I would ever consider this an option.

Water break.

Today we ventured out to see what was going on at a local fair…

The Conklin clown, a well-known symbol!

Lemonade on this 22-degree day!

Guilty. We each had a corndog.

No leaves on the trees, but still a beautiful day!

Shoes, Fergalicious via Winners; cropped jeans and blouse, The Gap; belt, gift, Forever 21; earrings, vintage.

I didn’t notice until today that these shoes are officially branded “Fergalicious” by none other than Fergie herself. Does this mean that beat I’m bangin’ is delicious?

I have always had an odd blonde-ish streak in my hair, and it’s only visible when I wear my hair in a bun.

Cats and dots.

Darcy has been in another time zone for the past few days, so finishing the day with a phone call at midnight for him is actually 2 am for me…hence the late-night post and the creative caption on the photo above – “Cats and dots.” As far as the cats go, I am really not an animal person, but I love clothing and jewellery with animal stylings, so, really, at this late hour, let’s call a spade a spade and settle on the revised caption of “Cats and dots: a conundrum not worth pondering.” Goodnight!

Shoes, Madeline via Winners; jeans, Aeropostale; T-shirt, Walmart; sweatshirt, Material Girl via The Bay; jean jacket and purse, Old Navy; scarf, Le Chateau.

I usually fall into a pattern on weekends in which I wear almost the same thing Friday through Sunday. In this case, my go-to outfit was colourful jeans, a T-shirt, and my sequined sweatshirt. This afternoon I met up with my co-worker Dawn to see a movie at the Capitol Centre ($6 discounted movies on Sundays!) and dinner afterward at Cecil’s Eatery and Beer Society. It has been a social weekend and I am glad of it because within the next few days, I am going to be buckling down into study mode for my first exam in becoming a licensed pharmacy technician. Yes, the books are back. Meh!

Last night I was over at a co-worker’s house for a little impromptu birthday party, and because I got home late, I also slept late…and sleeping late deserves to be rewarded with buttermilk pancakes, yes?

(Shoes, Spring; jeans, Forever 21; t-shirt, Smart Set; sweatshirt, Material Girl via The Bay; jacket, gift, River Island; scarf, vintage.

After doing a couple loads of laundry and watching an episode of Call the Midwife, I decided to head down to Winners to spend a gift card my mom gave me for Valentine’s Day. I also made my way to the mall…

My bounty! Both pairs of shoes are from Winners, as well as the sequined sweatshirt-style top; the cropped jeans and cat-patterned blouse are from The Gap; the mittens and tam are from Aldo; and the Quo face primer is from Shopper’s Drug Mart. Everything was – of course – on sale!

An easy supper of a grilled cheese sandwich made of roasted garlic Havarti, avocado, and creamy dill mustard.

As I mentioned yesterday, we have a guest for the weekend, so that meant planning something for today’s breakfast. I didn’t want to go overboard, but I didn’t want to have the regular fare of bacon and eggs, either, so I chose a quick and easy breakfast from a Food Network magazine insert “50 Breakfasts on the Fly.” Behold!

No.14, the Avocado-Egg Pita, was my choice. I substituted parsley for the cilantro.

I have a lot of leftover chickpeas now, but hopefully I can make something else with them this week.

Almost ready!

I always like a little dish of fruit on the side.

A healthy breakfast, all in about 25 minutes.

Darcy and I really like soup, so when we came across a book called The Soup Bible, we bought it (the price was also right – we were at Value Village when we found it). I have made a handful of recipes from The Soup Bible and – wink wink – every single one has been divine.

We have a guest for the weekend, so while the three of us lingered over waffles this morning, it was decided that soup was going to be the supper we would look forward to for the rest of the day. I looked through a few other cookbooks, as well as my Food Network magazine archives, but, as always, I came back to The Soup Bible. I settled on Vegetable Soup with Coconut, and it was a hit!

Yes, I make notes in my cookbooks!

Veggie prep: red chili pepper, green onions, red onion, sweet potato, turnip, and butternut squash.

Delicious!

I also made this tried and true recipe for Irish soda bread.

And, of course, I also made dessert. These squares are another standby, and I first mentioned them on the blog way back in 2009!

If you’re interested in making the Vegetable Soup with Coconut, here is the recipe:

Ingredients (serves 3 as meal-size portions)

2 Tbsp butter or margarine

1/2 red onion, finely chopped

175 g each of turnip, sweet potato, and pumpkin (I substituted butternut squash for the pumpkin and used my kitchen scale to weigh 175 g, which is about 0.3-0.4 kg on the grocery store scales.)

1 tsp dried marjoram

1/2 tsp ground ginger

1/4 tsp ground cinnamon

1 Tbsp chopped green onion

4 cups vegetable stock

2 Tbsp flaked almonds

1 chili pepper, seeded and chopped

1 tsp sugar

25 g creamed coconut (this is usually with the international foods in the grocery store; it comes in a box. Click here to see the brand I used.)

salt and freshly ground black pepper

chopped fresh coriander, to garnish (optional) (I couldn’t find this, so I didn’t use it or a substitute. No one at the table demanded to know where the fresh coriander was.)

Directions

1. Melt the butter or margarine in a large, non-stick soup pot. Fry the onion for 4-5 minutes. Add the diced vegetables and fry for 3-4 minutes.

2. Add the marjoram, ginger, cinnamon, green onion, and salt and pepper to taste. Fry over a low heat for about 10 minutes, stirring frequently.

3. Add the vegetable stock, flaked almonds, chili, and sugar and stir well to mix. Cover and simmer gently for 10-15 minutes until the vegetables are just tender.

4. Grate the creamed coconut into the soup and stir to mix. Spoon into warmed bowls, sprinkle with chopped coriander, if liked, and serve immediately. (I did not have to grate my creamed coconut – it was soft enough to just kind of pick apart. I also did not warm my bowls – I couldn’t be bothered.)

Let me know if you give this recipe a try!

Shoes, Anne Michelle via Le Chateau; tights, Secret; dress, Old Navy; belt, Le Chateau.

Today I was told by a customer, “Wow, that outfit is bright!”

Shortly before that, a co-worker had told me I looked “very American.” I’m simply wishing for the day I can wear this new dress without tights. Winter won’t leave!

It was a rare day – I wore my hair down. It has grown quite a bit since November!

How was your day? Mine started out frazzled – I woke up a full hour after my alarm had gone off.  Then, I proceeded to drop almost everything I picked up, I forgot to put on lipstick, and I came pretty close to running a red light. On the bright side, my bread was well-received at the work potluck, I had a delicious dinner of French toast, and I started a new show, Call the Midwife. If you like stories about young, plucky 1950s English women who, in this case, are midwives in a poor area of London, you will like this show. I am a sucker for stories like this, and therefore it is no surprise that I am endorsing this program. Innit right funny, love?

 Boots, Spring; dress and chambray shirt, Old Navy; scarf, vintage; belt, H&M.

Can’t resist an opportunity to twirl…

“Darcy!”

An essential for any outfit – the requisite hair-tie-on-the-wrist.

I wore this outfit to work on Sunday, and just because I am killing time before I have to prepare bread dough for a work potluck on Thursday (yes, I have to start tonight – at 12:30 am – because while the actual baking of the bread is easy, the timing can sometimes be tricky), you are going to get a double-dose of stripes. Here is what I wore to work today:

Shoes, Madeline via The Bay; cropped pants, The Gap; belt and shirt, Smart Set; necklaces, vintage.

Blue on blue.

I first wrote about the infamous bread when I was cooking with Ami, and while my techniques have vastly improved since then, the general story remains the same – it’s the best bread ever. I always make it when friends are staying over, when I am a guest, when there is a special occasion, and on and on…

When I was home over the Easter weekend, my mom made French toast with the whole-wheat loaf. I had it two days in a row, and this is because I am a French-toast-tasting connoisseur (d0n’t laugh – I AM) and it was AMAZING French toast. How many times can I possibly say something is delicious? If you did not attempt this bread recipe (either the white or whole-wheat loaf) since the last time I talked about it, wait are you waiting for? Everybody’s doing it, and the proof is here. OK, one more time for the cheap seats in the back: delicious.