Looking for a refreshing and light cocktail that is an ode to spring? Then check out the recipe in this video!
Ingredients 45 ml / 1 1/2 oz dry gin 20 ml / 2/3 oz violet syrup 20 ml / 2/3 oz Chambord (black raspberry liquer) 15 ml / 1/2 oz freshly squeezed lemon juice ice Optional: naturally colored sugar or plain sugar and lemon wedge for the rim of the glass Method If drinking from a sugared rim then add a few spoonfuls of sugar to a small dessert plate. Carefully take the lemon wedge and gently wipe the rim of the glass of your choice with the juice of one wedge. Then delicately turn the rim of the glass, little by little, into the plate of sugar. Viola! Fill a cocktail shaker 1/2-2/3 full with ice. Add the gin, violet syrup, Chambord, and lemon juice. Put on the lid and shake for at least 30 seconds. You will feel it start to get cold. Pour into your glass and enjoy! Make as many as you need and drink responsibly :-). Sources violet syrup https://www.beautyhabit.com/products/... cocktail glasses - thrifting, buying vintage or antiques is so easy because entertaining from home used to be a very common thing. It's quite effortless to find affordable vintage glasses as well as absolute treasures. I found mine at: https://rodsrustics.com/
9.10.21
Pumpkin Spice & Baking Bucket Lists
Today it is well past noon and I'm in bed still. This is the first day of holiday time I had scheduled months ago for my favorite time of year: Autumn. As soon as the 1 October came, I felt I had really arrived to the season of Fall and it happened to coincide with National Pumpkin Spice Day, which we celebrated at work and I made a pumpkin spice latte cake spread out over the span of two days. The first evening in preparing the sponge, I was anticipating it to be a late night, but it was not! However it was the second evening that ended in me gleefully cutting up a three tiered cake and sometimes literally throwing slices into brown paper bags hoping for the best almost into the wee hours of the next day. However I did manage to get everything done that needed to be done and leave the washing up for another day, which Mat as a saint took upon himself to do for me 🧡.
I am learning that I have a baking bucket list that I did not previously tell myself about. I do not always know what those list things are until I see them or arrive at a missing piece for an event dreamt up in my mind. If I stumble across a recipe on Pinterest after wondering around and get an, "Aha!" then I stop and file it away as something to come back to for I don't know why and I don't know when. But this was the case for the pumpkin spice latte cake that came from Jane's Patisserie. A friend of mine and fellow baker, Jess, introduced me in a virtual one sided way to the website. I modified the cake to fit my late night, limited time needs and also knew for the sake of Covid and keeping things safe, that this glorious cake would instantly be cut a part and packaged away for safe sharing.
However, the thoughts of decorating this cake leads me to ideas I've been thinking about ever since watching hours of old Nigella videos on Youtube and pondering about how home cooked food (or home baked food) should not be a fuss. I have lots of memories that come up in just typing these words. Some of the most memorable and amazing meals have come from people's homes at their kitchen table. Home prepared food sometimes with it's quirks and wonks is really a world I want to explore because I've already fallen in love with it! When I lived in London there was something amazing about baking something at home and meeting up with a friend in the midst of bustling city space and handing off cinnamon swirled buns that made everything feel neighborly. It did not have to be uniform or perfect. Having also lived in the business of the bakery world I do get joy from goods with "the extra touch," but it's the charm of home that has me especially intrigued at the moment. Maybe possibly maybe it comes from being very tired and healing from the inside out. Or maybe it's because I feel the world needs to perform a little less and love a whole lot more so here I am with an imperfectly iced cake, but a happy heart...
And so I feel this now as I continue to bake, that I am less interested to show off or impress, but more curious about building connections and food is that link for me. I do not have all the right tools, I do not have all the time, but I have the dream. My next baking bucket list bake is a cupcake for the upcoming winter. I've already got sugar plum fairies dancing in my head, which if plans come to life, I'll be able to share more about at a later time. Until then I've got oodles of library books I will be spending time with - all cookery books! And I'll continue to let inspiration lead the way in my next foodie move. Maybe spending time with these books is a way of coping (in a healthy way) with the reality I face of healing from black mold toxicity. I am restricted in ways of eating that I've never been restricted before. Honestly it's been very hard and I have not done as well as I'd like as I learn what I can handle and what I cannot running to the cafeteria at work stuffing my face with forbidden food. But alas! I am improving despite my flaws. And I get a second hand joy in giving away something I've made that I cannot touch with my own fork. It's the creative process that feeds me and keeps me alive.
1.10.20
The Season of the Pumpkin is Upon Us
Contrary to the typical calendar year, I begin in Autumn.🍁🍂 It is the season with leaves that whisper secrets I have yet to find of the year ahead. Pumpkins of weird shapes, strange colours from old orange to green gage, to the faint glowing white represent this time of year - a symbol of beginning again. And so I find myself drawn to pumpkin patches, pumpkin stands and pumpkin food in celebration. What pairs better with pumpkin than spices turning this odd fruit into something familiar. And whether used together or separate I cannot seem to get enough of either!
The Autumn air with electric energy smokes by and what seemed out of question comes into question with a fairytalesque beckoning. Begin breaking away from what you think you should be doing for the whimsy of what you want. This is the season of the pumpkin. It's oddities are the perfect pair for a new beginning that is starting right now.
Pumpkin Pie Spice Oatmeal Cookies
makes 6-9 large cookies
1 2/3 c (150g) gluten free oats
2/3 c (50 g) oat flour
2/3 c (70g) almond flour
1 tsp baking powder
7 TB maple syrup
4 TB coconut oil, melted
1 1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
pinch of salt
*2/3 c (80g) raisins optional
Preheat the oven to 400 F/ 200 C/ 180 CFan. Line a baking tray with parchment paper and set aside.
In a medium sized mixing bowl add the oats, oat flour, almond flour, baking powder, pumpkin pie spice and pinch of salt. Stir to combine making sure to remove any stubborn lumps.
Next add to the bowl the maple syrup, coconut oil and the vanilla extract. Stir again to combine thoroughly. *Raisins in oatmeal cookies can be a source of contention, but I love them!! If using raisins, now is the time to stir them in (with joy).
With a cookie scoop or a large spoon, scoop out the cookie dough into mounds onto the baking lined baking tray. Bake for 10 mins or until lightly golden brown around the edges. Let the cookies cool for five minutes before removing from the baking tray.
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