I get so keyed about storms, I love the energy and excitement. I do hope nothing gets damaged though, especially my garden. I’ll let you know how it goes.

(the following was written by Crystal Ross, you can visit the original post here…)

Summer is not over yet! It’s hot and humid here in Nova Scotia, the perfect time to enjoy a ice cream cone. I’ve been experimenting with various flavours, but I often find myself making batches of French Vanilla. It’s just so fragrant and creamy. I thought I’d share the steps with you in case you felt like making some too. (Of course, If you don’t feel like making it we will gladly make you a pint.)

1 whole egg
2 egg yolks
1/3 cup of sugar

1/3 cup of sugar
2 cups of fresh whipping cream
1 cup of whole milk
a 6 inch piece of vanilla bean

Using a mixer beat the eggs and 1/3 cup of sugar on high speed for a few minutes, until the mixture becomes pale yellow, creamy and thick.

Meanwhile combine the remaining group of ingredients (1/3 cup of sugar. cream, milk) in a saucepan. Split the vanilla bean and scrape out the seeds. Add the seeds and the bean to the cream.

Heat on medium until it begins to bubble and then reduce to low heat. At this point you can turn the mixer on again and ladle in about half of the hot liquid as it beats. Let it beat for a few minutes and add it all to the saucepan. This tempers the eggs so they don’t cook up and get lumpy.

Now you must stir gently and pay attention to the saucepan. It needs to thicken quite a bit and become a custard, but you can’t let it boil so keep your burner on a low setting. Keep an eye on it, when it covers the spoon nicely and looks rich, it is done. The richer it is the smoother your ice cream will be.

At this point I usually remove the vanilla pod and put it in another bowl and whip it for a few minutes, or beat it with the mixer to encourage it to cool quickly. Once it isn’t too warm,  you can put it in the fridge to cool all the way.

The custard will get even thicker and look even more tempting. It has to be cold when you add it to your ice cream machine, or it may not freeze properly.

If you don’t have an ice cream machine, you can still give it a whirl. Put it in the freezer in a metal bowl, wait 30 minutes until the edges start to get hard, whisk it hard with a beater from the machine or beat it with a mixer, then return it to the freezer and repeat until it’s the way you like it. It might be more labour intensive, but it will work.

I made these homespun beauties to share with friends on Canada day. They were light lemon cake with home made strawberry/raspberry preserve and vanilla bean buttercream. Each one was served with fresh strawberries and raspberries. If you try making these at home pick up a nice raspberry jam with a low sugar content. My partner Dan loves to eat these jam filled cakes in the morning without icing.

I had a pretty relaxed Canada day enjoying the company of friends, we spent the day drinking wine, sharing food, walking around the city, swinging on swing sets, and watching old episodes of “Kids in the Hall” until the fireworks got under way.

I forgot how much I enjoy swing sets. There is something so Zen about swinging away. I was so involved in the experience, the action, the movement,  the rush of summer air, the view of clouds in the distance over the building tops as I reached the highest heights.

Amy loves parks and often suggests we go out and find one. I’m so glad Amy brings out the kid in me. I joked this was going to be my new exercise of choice, (it is a super low impact exercise and it seems to work everything.) I do plan on doing this more often though. You should try rediscovering it too.

I hope you had a relaxing Canada day as well. =)

Lemon Dream Cupcakes:

1 1/2 sticks of unsalted butter,
1 1/2 cup granulated sugar,
1 tsp vanilla,
2 small lemons worth of zest,
3/4 cup milk,
1/4 cup cream,
6 egg whites, 
3 cups sifted cake flour,
4 tsps baking powder,
1 tsp salt
(all ingredients should be room temperature).

Cream butter and sugar until white and fluffy, add zest and vanilla.

Lightly whisk your eggs, milk and cream, then set the mixture aside. Sift your dry ingredients all together and set that aside too.

Fold half the flour mixture into the butter, then half the liquid, then the remaining flour and liquid.

Fill cupcake cups 3/4 full, leaving some space for them to rise. They take between 15-25 minutes  depending on your oven. Bake at 300f if you are using a shiny pan or 350f  if using a dark or non-stick pan. If you’d like extra “zing” brush the tops of the cakes with lemon juice when you remove them from the oven. The lemons I used were organic and a bit smaller than your average lemon. I recommend using organic citrus when you are using them for zest.

Enjoy!

 

My friend Crystal Ross (who is well aware of my baking obsession) asked me if I would be interested in forming a “cupcake team” and making some camp themed cupcakes together for “Cupcake Camp Halifax”. Of course I said yes, who wouldn’t want to be part of a cupcake team?  I was especially excited to work with Crystal and to see what we’d dream up as a duo; she is one creative and talented lady. Her creations always look lovely, unique, and very delicious. I see her photos of them on facebook and I want to eat them up. We decided that we should make cupcakes that were camp themed to play on the name of the event.

I had never heard of Cupcake Camp before she mentioned it, so I had no idea it how far reaching it is.  According to the cupcake camp directory the Cupcake Camp is  “an ad-hoc gathering born from the desire for people to share and eat cupcakes in an open environment.” Anyone can organize one and because of this open attitude cupcake camps are happening all over the world! There is also a blog dedicated to cupcake camp .This event in Halifax was held at the Hub and organised by Johanna Gerrits.

We had the opportunity to sample many delicious home baked cupcakes and our cupcakes won best in show! It was a great time and we left with some sweet prizes including a bottle of cupcake wine (which we enjoyed while baking together days later). I’ve been thinking about some of my favourites from the cupcakes we sampled that day, they were really amazingly tasty and inspiring. (A grapefruit cupcake, which I believe had blueberries and an amazing burst of flavour, a coffee cupcake with the most deliciously creamy frosting, an almond sponge with delicate caramel baileys frosting,  a chocolate blackcurrant cake with lemon meringue frosting, a spicy mexican chocolate cake… and that’s just to name a few. I can’t wait until the next one, whenever it happens.)

Crystal and I had a lot of fun making our little diorama and camp fire cupcakes and as we worked we discussed desserts, recipes and our shared dream of exploring our baking passions and starting a small business.  A few baking sessions later and we’ve decided to start of our new business, Gateaux Rose.

We both love quirky and artfully presented desserts and we both have a taste for quality sweets. If we make a dessert we want it to be as fresh, flavourful and rich as possible. We use fine chocolate, real vanilla, butter and whipped cream. When possible we opt for local berries and other ingredients.

We are inspired by French pattiseries and French attitudes about desserts, they don’t shy away from decadence  and we don’t either, we refuse to feel guilty about enjoying a dessert. I definitely think that healthy eating is important, but desserts are a special indulgence. If you can only indulge on occasion, in my opinion, that special indulgence had better be a really good one. That is what we want to provide to our customers, a memorable indulgence to complement their memorable day,  something beautiful and delightfully full of flavour.

We are figuring out all the details and things are about to unfold here at Gateaux Rose. I’ll keep you posted on the details and when the website will be up and running. To get in touch with us at Gateaux Rose email gateauxrose@gmail.com. You may also like to visit the Gateaux Rose blog at gateauxrose.blogspot.com.

 

There is a gorgeous flowering tree near at site of a torn down motel on the Bedford highway. I took a few snaps on my way past.

 

The first step is to get a pineapple that is nice and ripe, it should smell very sweet. The leaves may be a bit sharp so be careful, you can wrap them in a kitchen towel if you need to. Grasp the pineapple fruit in one hand and the leaves of the pineapple in the other hand and twist until they separate from one another, it will take some force. You will be left with a little nub of fruit and you may even see some teeny roots.

To prepare the crown for planting you will need to remove some of the leaves around the bottom. As you do this you will notice that you are exposing more tiny roots that were hidden between the leaves. Once you stop seeing roots you can stop tearing off the leaves and plant it.

If you don’t have soil handy, you can set it near a sunny window in a container filled with slightly warm water. It can stay like that for a few days until you get a pot and some potting soil suitable for tropical plants. Once it is planted, tend the plant and make sure the soil stays moist, but not wet. When it is established in the pot you can let the soil dry out just a little between the time you water it.

It may look a bit trashed at first and some of it’s leaves around the outside may die, but with a little time fresh new blades will grow from the centre and you’ll have a healthy tropical plant, with more care and patience it may even produce pineapples.

I hope my pineapple turns into a healthy plant, I’ll keep you updated on it’s progress. I think I’ll try growing a mango next.

 

You will need:
1 part epsom salts,
1 part sea salts,
1 tsp sweet almond oil,
a few drops of neroli and sandalwood oil,
corn silk,
jasmine blossoms,
a jar with a tight fitting lid.

Method: Mix the almond oil and essential oils in a small jar, then pour in your salts leaving room for the botanicals. Close the jar and shake up the salts until the mixture is thoroughly mixed. Open the jar and add the jasmine blossoms and corn silk. Close the jar again and shake it until it’s blended.

At this point you can also decide whether you’d like to add an extra drop or two of the oils. You might like it a little stronger depending on your preference and the size of the jar you are using. I generally add the flowers by eye, I’d say I normally use a couple of heaping teaspoons of jasmine blossoms and a tbsp or so of dried  corn silk. I find it’s best to make this is small batches so it’s fresh and fragrant, this way you’ll get the most out of your precious essential oils.

Neroli essential oil comes from the blossoms of the bitter orange tree. It is used in many good quality perfumes and even to flavour colas. It has been used traditionally to relieve anxiety, stress and tension, as well as to promote good circulation. It is non-toxic.

Sandalwood essential oil comes from the wood of the sandalwood tree which has been prized for thousands of years. It has a sweet, warm, woody fragrance with a hint of spice.  It is suitable for all skin types and is non-toxic. Unlike many other essential oils it will not degrade over time if properly stored, I’ve had my tiny bottle since I was a teen.

If I were in the market for some now I would be very careful when purchasing it new. You should check the label when you are shopping around for oils to find one that is uses only ethically harvested sandalwood. Smugglers have been removing trees from their native habitat since the wood is very valuable. It is a special oil, use it sparingly and with the respect it deserves. I found this page on sandalwood oil, which is helpful.

I bought the corn silk and Jasmine blossoms from a shop that sells herbs, so try your local organic grocer, tea shop, sometimes Wiccan shops will carry them too. You can also dry and store your own corn silk easily.

 

I wonder if anyone out there can tell me what is this lovely plant is called? I don’t know what it is, but I was delighted to see it. Its blossoms were so vivid on this foggy, rainy afternoon.

I realized later that this is a Japanese Quince, a plant that produces small fruit similar to an apple or pear. I saw the same plant during my trip to Halifax seed and recognized it right away. I think that a bird may have eaten the fruit and spread the seeds, so that is why it is growing out of the way by this old tire on the highway.