Posts filed under ‘Gardening’
Island time
We spent the Easter long weekend enjoying four days of beautiful weather in East Sooke. It was the first break I’ve had from work and school since January and it was so nice to be away from the routines of life for a few days. Early spring is an idyllic time to be on Vancouver Island, as you can see from the photos here. We did a whole lot of nothing while we were there …
… went for walks on quiet country roads
… sat on the deck and stared out at the ocean
… checked out the creatures on the beach
… puttered around the garden
… imagined apples growing on summer trees
… visited the Sooke Harbour House for Easter lunch (and remembered getting married there almost seven years ago!)
It was bliss. I can’t wait to go back.
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Tomato and olive gnocchi
As you might remember, I recently tackled what I long felt was a daunting recipe: homemade gnocchi. I’ve made it three times now and as long as you can summon your patience it is easy to make these beautiful potatoey pillows.
Cooking is a huge source of relaxation to me and this recipe really fits with that. There is lots of meditative prep work to do preparing the dough, an endless array of choices for dressing the gnocchi and the satisfaction of sitting down to something special and handmade.
We had this olive and tomato gnocchi last weekend. We weren’t doing anything special, but it was Saturday and there is more time for cooking. We spent the day painting the main floor of our house (a beautiful robin’s egg blue) and puttering around outside in the garden (finally a warm weekend!). There is a celebratory feeling about both of those things, so I thought it was a good night for a special dinner.
Olives are a wonderful match with a simple tomato sauce, giving it a good zing of salty, tangy flavour.
Tomato and olive gnocchi
Serves 4 (at least)
1 recipe of homemade gnocchi
1 jar homemade tomato sauce
1/2 cup of pitted green olives, coarsely chopped
Grated parmesan, chili flakes and chopped fresh herbs to garnish
Doesn’t that sound easy and delicious? It is! I made the gnocchi from dough I had frozen in the freezer since I made more than we could eat the last time. This works perfectly fine, just defrost the dough thoroughly and use extra flour when you are making the little gnocchis.
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First day of spring
Today is the first day of spring, the equinox. The sun crosses over the equator and, according to the smart folks at National Geographic, the day is slightly longer than the night everywhere on earth. What a hopeful thought. It snowed in Vancouver yesterday and I am still wearing my gloves and winter coat most days, but at least it is starting to look like spring.
I hope the temperature takes a cue from the flowers soon.
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Here comes spring
Rain and February. It is hard to separate the two. Today was one of those rare days where they took a break from each other. It was such a treat to be outside in the sun, especially with these crocuses showing off on our patio. It’s still cold, only 6 or 7 degrees celsius, but warm enough for gardening. I spent a couple of hours puttering around outside cleaning up, planting primulas and sowing basil, tomato and lettuce seeds that I’ll grow inside for the next month or two. (more…)
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Flowers + snow
Winter on the west coast is at its best when flowers and snow collide. Take these two scenes: above is a picture of a cherry tree in bloom just off Davie Street and Burrard in Vancouver’s west end. I took this picture today when I was wandering around on my lunch break. This seems shockingly early for cherry blossoms, but the photographic evidence speaks for itself.
And below, in the same neighbourhood on the same day, just a few hours earlier, is the view from my office window of the 20-minute snowstorm we experienced this morning in Vancouver. It was a great start to my week to be able to gaze out into the swirl over emails and Monday morning coffee. (more…)
