Mighty Life List - Sticky Rice Ball

I'm trying 10 new foods a year for my life list.  When we were in Calgary we went to Chinatown and I spotted these Mini Green Tea Red Bean Sticky Rice Balls (whew!  what a name!).  

I hate to say it, but I did not like this.  At all. The red beans, I just didn't like them.  Couldn't even swallow my bite.  

Oh well, they can't all be winners.

bites

Last month at my fathers request I made him and my mom my pork skewers with almond butter sauce, the recipe I have entered in the Maple Leaf contest.

You still have time to vote for me! Go to facebook, and visit the Maple Leaf page. You have to "like" the page, and then click on the red box that says Vote Now, and then you can click on (MY) any recipe you like, and then click on the "like" button.

That'd be super. Thanks.

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I have some really excellent cookbook reviews coming up this month and next month, but I want to tell you right now about one that I bought myself - Balls!: Round the World Fare for All Occasions by Angela Murrills. I LOVE THIS BOOK. It has, as it states on the cover "Over 100 Ball-istic recipes" for every kind of meatball, fruitball, riceball, dessertball, fishball, and pretty much anything round that you could think of. We've tried the French Meatball and Onion Soup (which was amazing), the Gehaktballen (Dutch Meatballs) (very very nice), Boules Provencales (tasty), Bistro "Steak" with Oven Fries (delicious), and Grapes Glaces (refreshing). I've got many many more of the recipes marked, and when Fall arrives (it is so gorgeous right now! And how many parenthesis am I using here???) we'll give some more of them a try. Check out this book, you'll love it.

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Last month I crossed something off my Life List - I gave blood.

I tried to do that in the spring, but because I'd given birth just a few months before I was not eligible. Then I got a little freaked out and avoided making an appointment for the rest of spring/all summer when I could have given. But they called me last month and I stopped being a weenie and went and did it.

It was a piece of cake. And I'll be doing it again and again for sure. Free cookies!

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If you happen to be in the BC area, here's 3 things you might like. First, in Vernon - Davison Orchard, about an hour away from Kamloops (where I live). We went last month for the first time and enjoyed it. Paxton is a little too young for the kid activities, but we had a nice walk and a delicious lunch which included apple pie and fresh apple juice, and the most delicious turkey and spinach sandwich. Then we bought a bunch of apples and tomatos and delicious rye bread and went home. Paxton enjoyed the tomato container.

Also last month we went with my parents to the annual autumn feast at Thistle Farms. It was a beautiful setting and the food was lovely. I hope to go back again.

And last, the Salmon Run has started up at Adams River. This is an annual occurrence, which I've mentioned before. This is the biggest run in about 100 years, with millions and millions of salmon swimming home to spawn before they die. We've seen them swimming up the Thompson River, right at the park downtown, which is something we haven't seen in other years. We haven't gone to Adams River yet, probably in a couple of weeks, but I'll share photos and more info with you then.

Happy Sunday!

Mighty Life List - Make a Pavlova

Some people may have scratched their heads if they'd seen number 39 on my life list - make a pavlova. Because it turns out that a pavlova is easy. Ridiculously easy. It's just egg whites and sugar! Which I knew, but I didn't KNOW. If you know what I mean. No?

Anyhoo, I found this recipe in a recent Food Network Magazine, a Chocolate Raspberry Pavlova from Nigella Lawson.





It was, as I said, insanely easy. And also quite delicious. If I were to make this again (and I might, but first I want to try her pavlova with passionfruit) I would bake it slightly less, maybe 5 to 10 minutes. I also cut back on the whipping cream by half; that just seemed like way too much.

Mighty Life List - Sour Lime

I found these kalamansi aka sour limes in Vancouver. So cute, I couldn't resist.

Kalamansi are teeny tiny little citrus fruits.

On the inside they look like seedy oranges. Boy, are they sour. I tried squeezing one into water. Not so great. We tried rum and coke with a splash of the juice. Not too bad. But it worked best in a stir fry, with noodles and veggies and garlic and ginger. So delicious.

Mighty Life List - Lotus Root

Here's my second post for number 108 on my Mighty Life List - Try 10 foods I've never had before.

Lotus Root!

Lotus root comes from the Lotus, a water lily which is used in Asian cooking. The root has a red-brown peel that must be removed before cooking. Lotus root can be found fresh, canned and dried. It has a crisp texture and mild flavor.

We took a couple of trips to Vancouver last month, and I came across pickled lotus root in an Asian grocery store.


The slices were pickled with a sweet and spicy edge and were really refreshing. I've avoided dishes that had lotus root in the in the past (fear of the unknown!) but I won't any more, quite delicious.

Mighty Life List - Dandelion Greens

As I mentioned in my last post, number 108 on my Mighty Life List is to try 10 foods I've never had before.

I picked up the first one on Sunday, Dandelion Greens. Organic Dandelion Greens.


These have never really appealed to me to be honest because I have heard they are quite bitter. But I saw them and figured why not?

Dandelion greens are really quite good for you. They are high in Vitamins A, C and K and are a source of Calcium and Iron. Suggested uses are as a leaf in salads, or boiled, sauteed or steamed.

Vicki from A Work in Progress kindly shared her recipe for them, and it goes like this:

Boil the greens in salted boiling water for 1-2 minutes (I got interrupted and mine boiled more like 7 minutes). Drain and rinse with cold water. Squeeze with your hands to remove water.


Heat some olive oil over medium heat in a skillet. Add garlic (I used 5 cloves) and a pinch of hot pepper flakes. Cook until the garlic is fragrant. Add the greens, stir and cook until the greens are heated through. Season with salt and pepper.

Vicki suggests topping with some parmesan cheese which I forgot to do. I wish I had. I will next time.

These were pretty good! There was a slight bitterness to them, but I really liked the garlic and peppers. I ate these with some leftover mishmash foods, but I could see this going really well with some pasta (again as suggested by Vicki) or a steak or pork chop.

the kindness of strangers and my mighty life list

I received the most amazing email yesterday.

Jen, a lovely soul and the author of Chaotic Chef and waiting is fullness, had come across my Mighty Life List. On my list (#75) is to have a header designed for my blog.
Jen made a header for my blog. How kind is that?

I still can't believe it. Isn't it beautiful? I LOVE it and am beyond thrilled.

I am touched by her generosity more than I can say. Thank you again Jen.

Please head over to her post here where she makes designing a header sound so easy.

First thing crossed off my list!

Mighty Life List - 3 things for March

The other day Maggie from Mighty Girl added a few more items to her Life List. I had a few more things on paper that I hadn't added to the list, thinking that the list couldn't have more than 100 things on it which is silly. It's my list, I can add as much as I want! So I've added a few more. You can visit my list here if you'd like.

And then today Maggie announced she'll be crossing off 3 more items from her list this month and challenged us to do the same.

I can't lie, I've been feeling pretty blue the past while and can't seem to shake it. It's a variety of things, some logical and some not. A couple of times last month I re-read my Life List, thinking why did I bother, that many of the items most likely won't ever get crossed off. And while it's true that some of them are long shots, that's no way to think. And live. So I'm taking Maggie up on her challenge.

In March I will cross off the following 3 items off my Mighty Life List -

14 Give blood Update - I am not able to give blood until the summer, says Red Cross
62 Learn to make towel animals
75 Have a header made for my blog - Done! March 6, thanks to Jen.
103 Make paper

I will update as they get crossed off.

How about you? What's on your list? What will you cross off this month?

Mighty Life List

One of my daily stops on the internet is Maggie Mason's Mighty Girl. Maggie wrote her Mighty Life List - a list of 100 things she hopes to do before her life is over. Back in June she announced that a sponsor had offered to help her cross off 10 things from her list, and she spent the summer doing amazing things - visiting Greece, organized a food fight, and taking tap lessons, among others. Her list, her experiences and her joy of learning and trying new things inspired me to write down my own list. This year I crossed two major things off my life list I kept in my head. In May we went to Alaska and right now I'm sitting here with my feet up on doctors orders as we wait for our baby to arrive.

Here's my Mighty Life List, in no order:


1 Buy a camper and go camping

2 Place flowers at the memorial statue of Stevie Ray Vaughn in Austin, Texas

3 See a Cirque du Soliel show

4 Visit every Province and Territory in Canada

5 Learn to play the drums

6 Have a chocolate tasting

7 Participate (as in run) in a Terry Fox Run

8 Meet in person some food bloggers I "know"

9 Make a Mythic Pasta Dome, from scratch, a la Big Night

10 Go to Churchill and see the polar bears

11 Make a pie with fruit from our garden

12 Learn to make aspic salad for Scott

13 Make at least one new recipe a week

14 Give blood

15 Go to Memphis for barbecue

16 Make a sock monkey

17 Go away somewhere warm for Christmas and New Years

18 Make really good sushi at home

19 Visit Julia Child's kitchen at the Smithsonian

20 See the Great Wall of China

21 Eat at the French Laundry

22 Learn to speak another language

23 Make homemade ice cream and eat it in the backyard on a hot summer day

24 Learn to take better photos

25 Sew a shirt or skirt or pair of pants with my sewing machine

26 Become once again the organized person I used to be

27 Go houseboating

28 Pay off our mortgage early

29 Cook at least 10 recipes out of every cookbook I own

30 Travel on a train

31 Do the very best job I can as a parent

32 Make cheese

33 Replace the art prints we have up in the house with all original art - paintings and photos

34 Visit Spain

35 Fly a kite successfully

36 See the Northern Lights

37 See Niagara Falls

38 Learn how to tell the doneness of a steak with the "touch" method, rather than my "guess" method

39 Make a pavlova

40 Deep fry a turkey

41 Try Absinthe

42 Watch the sunrise from a beach

43 Fly First Class on a long (or longish) flight

44 Take a photo of the baby everyday and post online for family and friends to see (don't worry, not here on my blog!)

45 Be able to recognize more constellations that the Big and Little Dipper

46 Go on a weekend (or longer) trip where Scott could fish all day/to his hearts content

47 Enter some baking into a fall fair

48 Make Turkish Delight

49 Buy and learn how to use a photo editing program to make our photos look better

50 Take a cooking class and learn something really great

51 Take a trip down the Pacific Highway with Scott and our family, like I did with my parents when I was young

52 Visit New Orleans

53 Go to Las Vegas, get dressed up, have a fancy dinner, then play a few hands of blackjack while sipping cocktails

54 Be able to donate regularly to worthy causes

55 Live more "Green"

56 Set off fireworks on a beach

57 Forgive and forget

58 Take part in a parade

59 Stick my toe in the Atlantic Ocean

60 Visit Italy

61 Take a cruise to a tropical destination

62 Learn to make towel animals

63 Complete at least 5 craft tutorials

64 Have a day at a spa

65 Go to the Columbia Icefield

66 Have a family portrait taken

67 Try snowshoeing

68 Drive a boat

69 Go on a trip with no predetermined destination

70 Hire a cleaning company to come to the house once a month

71 Have a little black dress or outfit (that I look good in) for dinners or parties

72 Be able to do 20 regular push ups without stopping

73 Decorate a cake with fondant

74 Visit Bonnie Slotnick Cookbooks

75 Have a header designed for my blog

76 Spend a weekend in a cabin with no tv, phone or internet

77 Add the baby to the family tattoo on my arm

78 Volunteer at a mission or church kitchen to serve a Thanksgiving or Christmas meal

79 Try glass blowing

80 Have a margarita tasting

81 Make a piece of jewelery (that I would wear in public)

82 Catch (and release!) a fish

83 Go to the Richmond Night Market

84 Read these 10 classic novels

85 Have a movie marathon night and cook food inspired by the movies

86 Take photos in the park with a big bunch (20 or more) of helium balloons as a prop

87 Eat at one of Bobby Flay's restaurant

88 Visit all 5 Great Lakes

89 Go to Oktoberfest in Kitchener

90 Learn to juggle

91 Rent a convertible somewhere warm and drive with the top down

92 Learn an old fashioned card game and have a card night

93 See some of the original paintings of the Group of Seven

94 Stay in a fancy hotel suite for one night

95 See the Bay of Fundy

96 Open a coffee shop/bakery

97 Pay for the groceries of the person behind me in line

98 Take a Tai Chi class

99 Make Spam Musabi

100 Shave my head to raise money for charity

101 Take the Mondo Beyondo class

102 Have a bonfire on the beach

103 Make paper

104 Take a Belly Dance class

105 Start a charitable foundation

106 Make a handmade toy for Paxton

107 Get in shape

108 Try 1 new food a week for 10 weeks (each year)
Dandelion Greens / Lotus Root/ Kalamansi/Sticky Rice Ball

109 Learn to knit

110 Make 50 things out of paper

What's on yours?