Gregory Michael MacDonald 1968-2009

On May 3rd, 2009, Robin's brother passed away suddenly. It was and still is a total shock to us. We were supposed to leave for Florida, the day after we received the news. We cancelled the trip and instead dealt with funeral arrangments along with my Mother in Law. It still seems so surreal. I did the one thing I do best which is cook/bake. I spent the entire week( we found out on Monday and the visitation was on Friday) planning meals, baking and serving. It actually made me feel useful and brought me a sense of peace. Greg really loved my cooking and he was a hearty eater. I did NOT take any pictures, It honestly never even entered my mind.

We're heading to Floriday on Tuesday as I really feel Robin needs a change of scenery and some relaxation. Robin had just started her 2 week vacation when we found out and thankfully, her employer gave her some more time off to get herself together.

I'm taking an extended break from this blog, dont know when I'll return.

Bagels.......

I'm a bit of a bagel snob. I only really like them when they're fresh and untoasted, and not just any bagel will do. It has to be an authentic NY water bagel( which can actually be made anywhere, not just NY). The BEST bagels in my opinion are from The Sage Appetizing shop in Hallandale Beach, FL. When Robin and I go to S. Fl, we usually eat here at least 3 or 4 times in one week. I swear, I shed a tear when Robin finally tried her very fresh bagel untoasted. She said to me " I see what you mean now". Such a proud moment for me. Last year, I begged them to sell me some high gluten flour so I could attempt to make my own bagels. I lugged back 5lbs and finally decided to make them this weekend. I used the recipe from the Bread Baker's Apprentice and it was awesome!! I dont know why I didnt do this sooner. It was a fairly simple recipe that is made the day before you plan to serve them. The morning of, you boil and bake them off. I served them yesterday for Easter Brunch( ironic huh?) with some lox I got at Costco. I had one today and they were still really great untoasted!!

We're going to Florida in May for a wedding and I plan on begging them for some more flour, hopefully they'll oblige me.

Cream Cheese Pound Cake.....

I did some cooking and baking this weekend so I now have a few things to blog about. Do you know how sometimes you read a post in a foodblog and you say to yourself " I must make that right this minute?" Well, that happened on Saturday about 1.5 hrs before we were expecting Christine and family for dinner/Wii. Luckily, this cream cheese pound cake came together quickly.

Isnt it gorgeous? It was melt in your mouth tender, the perfect poundcake. I doubt that I'll ever make another pound cake recipe again( although I might use some vanilla bean the next time I make this). Anyway, Deb's picture is a lot nicer( she used a way better camera and a bundt pan). Go make it, you wont be sorry!!!

Farmer's Market pics.....

7 dollar a dozen eggs at the Ferry Plaza Farmer's Market in San Fran.

Veracruz sauce for seafood.....

I returned home on Wednesday from 2 fun filled weeks in California. I lived in Cali for 15 years before moving to small town Ontario. I hadnt been back in 4 years and I didnt realize how much I missed Cali. I wasnt into cooking/baking as much as I am now when I lived in Long Beach ( I was a full time student/working) I didnt have time and I was only cooking for myself. I cooked a lot when I lived with my ex, but I wasnt that advanced and since my ex was a vegetarian, I made simple things. I really love this VeraCruz sauce recipe. My friend Mike introduced me to it a few years ago in Florida. The recipe can be found on MarthaStewart.com. Its meant to be served over whole fish, but I prefer to use fillets. For this meal, I used mahi mahi. I wanted red snapper but Gelson's didnt have any. My dad, sister and I paid a nice visit to the San Clemente Farmer's market where I bought some gorgeous baby veggies that I sauteed for a side dish. We also got some gorgeous strawberries. The produce was fabulous. Later in the week, I drove up to San Rafael and went to the Ferry Plaza Market in SF and the Marin Farmer's market in San Rafael. Both of them were beyond fabulous. It was absolutely killing me that I couldnt cook with all the wonderful products.

Back to the veracruz sauce. I used canned San Marzano tomatoes. The sauce also has white onion, garlic, fresh herbs, capers, white wine and olives. Its super easy to make and the leftovers freeze well. After the sauce is made, pour some into a baking dish and nestle the fish inside. Bake until the fish flakes. Even my sister who isnt really crazy about fish loved it.

I baked!!.....

So yeah, I gave it to peer pressure and baked yesterday!! I went searching thru my old cooking light annuals and came up with this peanut butter cake. I seem to remember making this recipe years ago( into cupcakes) and really liking it. I also recall making a different frosting because I was at my MIL's house and didnt bring the cookbook with me. This frosting was meh, more like a glaze. Nevertheless, it hit the spot.

I also made a veggie/chicken sausage pizza using Joe's favorite whole wheat dough recipe. He's right, its easy to work with. I prebaked it for a few minutes before topping it. I also added a few tbls of ground flax to the dough to make it healthier. Robin really enjoyed it.

I miss baking!!

I really miss baking and I really miss blogging. I swear though, my food is so boring these days. Ya see that chicken breast and spinach? Thats about the extent of my cooking. The chicken was from cooking light( chicken provencal), but I really thought it was uninspiring to blog about. The most exciting baked good I made was 2invididual almost flourless choc. cakes( Nigella recipe) for Robin and I a few weeks ago. I'd read that the Dollarama in Ontario is carrying Sharffenberger Choc. bars for 1.00 each( 85G) so I stocked up on a bunch and made these little desserts. They were heavenly, but somewhat high in points( 8). I need to figure out a way to cut those down.

I just know that if I bake, I want to eat it so I've pretty much stopped baking ( unless I get paid for it). I am going to Cali in 2 weeks so I'll try to do some restaurant posts when I get back. I might do some cooking at my dad's house so look forward to that too.