I need a hobby, or something.

Watermelon Sangria

This is what I did today, in order of execution:

- Watched Sex and the City
- Thought about steak, a lot
- Went to go buy steak
- Ate steak
- Watched more Sex and the City

I haven't been motivated to cook anything recently (except Steak), but do have some pictures to share of things I've made over the past few weeks (but no recipes).

For the boyfriend's birthday last month, I made a picnic to have at English Bay. Here's the Spinach Salad with Shrimp and Scallops. 

Fig and Kalamata Tapenade. 

Tapenade on canapes with goat's cheese and walnuts. 

A couple weeks ago, I visited my mom in  Kelowna. 

I cooked up a storm. 

BBQed shrimp skewers

Herbed Mushrooms

Eggs baked in Tomatoes with Emmenthal and Dill

Country Apple Sausage

Ebelskivers with Apple Sauce, Tomatoes and Sausage

This is how I made the eggs for the bennys... they got put in plastic bags with grated cheese and green onions, then boiled til softish. 

Chive and Emmenthal Eggs Benedict on Croissants with Roasted Garlic 

and Goat's Cheese with Sauteed Spinach, Roasted Red Pepper Hollandaise 

and Smoked Oysters (Original Creation)

Illustrating...

It's been a long time since I've attempted a fashion illustration... months even. I used to feel like I was quite good at illustrating, but my skills have gotten a little rusty. That's just one more thing to work on this summer. I got an e-mail about submitting an illustration for Vancouver Fashion E-zine, so I decided now was a good of a time as any to brush up those illustration skills. I'm pleased with the result, although with more effort, it could have been better. It's not on-par with some of the stuff I've seen on there before, but for me it's alright!

Subtraction Cutting

Julian Roberts (this guy is such a badass, his website is only open on wednesdays, and if you want to own one of his garments, you have to first learn how it was made), the brilliant man who came up with this method, is visitng my school in June, so I went into school (on summer vacation, I should add) to draft/sew with my friend and teacher.

We are the ultimate keeners.

Subtraction cutting is a method of garment construction that involves techniques such as tunneling and plugging... I don't fully understand it. I have yet to read the book... Sabrina can explain it much better than I can. Maybe I'll give it a shot in a week or so.

This something I made with the tunneling method... um, it was supposed to be a skirt. It ended up being waay too long, but I think with a couple more tries, this technique could be mastered.

This skirt kind of turned into a tube dress.

From the Left: Lesley's tunnel dress, Sabrina's tunnel dress, Lesley's Coil dress, Sabrina's blobby tunnel dress, and my plug skirt. The skirt is made by cutting out a blobby shape, starting and ending at the hem, and sewing a circle larger than the shape into it, creating protrusions, and a wider hem.

If you're interested in creative methods of garment construction, I strongly recommend checking out Julian Robert's book: School of Subtraction Cutting.

Summer is approaching...

...and I have been busy sewing swimsuits to prepare. Some of them will be for sale on my Etsy, but I think I may just have to keep some for myself. If only we had beach weather. I guess thats what I get for moving to Vancouver from Kelowna. Whatever, it was worth it.

Holy ****ing Hollandaise: My First Crack at Eggs Benny

It's official... I'm a butter troll. Between the puff pastry, the hollandaise, the butter-seared shrimp, and all the butter I snitched while cooking, I think I probably consumed about a half-cup of the good stuff morning.

Photography by Chris Young

But holy ****... was it ever worth it. My boyfriend is somewhat of an Eggs Benny connoisseur, and without fail, will order that whenever we dine out for breakfast. He's actually got a top 5 list going of his favorite Eggs Bennys in the city. I can't recall the entire list, but some of his favorites are Locus's Corn Bread and Vegetarian Chili Benny (he's a vegetarian), and Twisted Fork's Brioche and Salmon Benny (okay, he's a pescatarian) . I think The Reef's Jerk Salmon Benny with Citrus Hollandaise was up there too, if I remember correctly. So, I had pretty high standards to meet when I set about creating this dish, but I must've done something right, because I made it into the top 5!

What went wrong:

1. ****ed up the hollandaise. It was beautiful until I put it over the double-boiler to keep it warm. The egg cooked, and the sauce separated and became ugly. Although still delicious, I knew the speckly hollandaise wouldn't make the top 5 cut.

Tip: Make the Hollandaise LAST, so its warm when you serve it.

Pictured above: The good Hollandaise. Mmmm. (I took this one. Only this one.)

2. Too much hollandaise. The boyfriend disagrees, but next time, I will be skipping that extra layer of hollandaise between the shrimp and the eggs.

3. Puff pastry was a bit overcooked.

Tip: Time it so the puff pastry is ready at the same time the eggs are done poaching so it can be assembled while everything is still hot. Cook it til it's just golden brown, but not crunchy!

Shrimp and Avocado Eggs Benny on Puff Pastry with Sauteed Spinach

Serves 2

1 Square Puff Pastry, thawed

1 Recipe Hollandaise Sauce (If you use free-range eggs, your yolks will be darker, giving your hollandaise a richer color. Do it.)

1 Cup Peeled Shrimp

1 tbsp Butter

1 Clove of Garlic

1 Avocado

1 Cup Spinach, Packed

4 Free-Range Eggs

Directions:

Divide the Puff Pastry in 2, and roll them out to fit into your baking vessels (I've used boats here, but you can use large custard cups or bowls if you like). Bake until golden brown, at 350 degrees. Meanwhile, Sautee the shrimp, 1 Tbsp of the butter and garlic, and set aside. Use the same pan to sautee the spinach with the remaining Tbsp of butter, and set aside. Get some water boiling, and poach your eggs. If you've never done it before this video is extremely helpful. Transfer the poached eggs into warm water, to keep them warm. Make the hollandaise sauce! It helps to have assistance for this part, so one person can do the hollandaise while the other assembles the rest of the benny. To assemble: Slice the avocado, and spread along the top of the puff pastry. Lay the shrimp on top of the avocado, and 2 poached eggs on top of each serving. Top it all off with Hollandaise, and the sauteed spinach.

Ta-Daaa!

I have to say, this is one of the most awesome things I have ever created. It could easily be improved, but for a first attempt at Eggs Benny, I can't complain. What I love about this dish is the potential to get creative with all the different components: the base, the toppings and the hollandaise. I can safely say this is not the last time I will be making Eggs Benny.

Omnomnom.

That's a Wrap

Last night's menu was meant to be tostadas. Um... couldn't find any corn tortillas, so I went for Pita instead. I guess this makes this meal Mexi-Greek... with a little Malaysian for dessert.

The recipe for the wraps is loooooong, but it's basically everything you see pictured, and a mexican-marinated tofu, with home-made refried beans.

I'm just gonna say it... my guacamole is awesome. I'll share the recipe for this one:

Cumin-Tomato Guacamole

2 Ripe Avocados

1/4 Cup Mayonnaise

1/4 Finely Diced Onion

1 Tbsp Cumin

1 Chopped Tomato

1 1/2 Tbsp Chopped Cilantro

2 Crushed Garlic Cloves

Salt and Pepper to taste

Mix all ingredients together, and leave it slightly chunky.

These are my stuffed jalapenos. I didn't know what to stuff them with, and couldn't find a satisfactory recipe, so I stuffed them with leftovers from the fridge.

Leftovers-Stuffed Jalapenos

5 Green Jalapenos, Cored

3/4 Cup Cooked, Flavored Couscous (this was my leftovers)

1/4 Cup Cream Cheese

1/4 Cup Spinach Dip (also leftovers)

Salt and Pepper

1/2 Cup Grated Mozza

Fill the cored Jalapenos with the couscous. Mix the cream cheese, spinach dip and S&P together, and spread on top of the couscous. Top with Mozza, and bake at 350 for 20 minutes, or until golden brown.

...and Deep-Fried Bananas and Ice Cream for dessert!

I'm Impressed...

Owen Pallett gets a gold star *