Dentist Today, Ouch, Piña Coladas, The Sting.

I hope you will all have your fingers crossed for me this afternoon as its today I go to the dentist to have both a small filling (which I hate) and my broken tooth root removed (which is worse). I am not a happy camper about this and am, of course, making a big fuss about it.

Actually I’m in the wars at the moment, my neck is in agony when I move my head, I think because the air conditioner was probably blowing on it. I’ll be damned careful that doesn’t happen again.

We had the Coconut Chicken Stir Fry (see yesterday’s post) for supper last night. We enjoyed it, but it was a tad sweet. Next time we would leave out the sugar. Also, it said the recipe was for 4. We divided it in half, wasn’t nearly enough, so we ate it all. We have some coconut left over and I was going to use it for Piña Coladas but found we had run out of pineapple. Serious that. Maybe we can get some on the way home from the dentist, I am sure a couple of Piña Coladas would be really good medicine for me, don’t you agree. I actually haven’t had one for several years. I remember one day in the Carolinas, gotta be some 25  years or so ago, when a couple of girlfriends were making them and we joined in. I’d never had them before, but it didn’t take me long to find out how delicious they are. The recipe I have calls for 3 oz. rum, 3 tbs coconut cream and 3 tbs pineapple. Blended and lots of ice.

We sat and watched The Sting last night with Robert Redford and Paul Newman. Did you ever see the movie, it was one of the best. It’s a long time since we saw it last. I nearly always forget exactly what the twist is at the end. Two of the greatest film stars as well. Paul Newman is no longer with us, but Robert Redford is. He is about 76 now. Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid was a great movie with those two stars in it as well.

This is what we had for supper the other night. We enjoyed them very much, but in future we would double the amount of cheese. We didn’t use light cheese of course, but regular cheddar cheese.

Stuffed Portabella Mushroom Cap With Cheddar Cheese

Spark Recipes

Submitted by: LIZBETHMSR
Large portabella cap stuffed with sautéed veggies and topped with cheddar cheese - a meal in itself!

Number of Servings: 1

Ingredients

1 large portabella cap/serving
1 small onion diced
1/2 cup chopped green pepper
1 oz. grated 50% light cheddar cheese

Directions

Preheat oven to 350°F

Gently clean off any dirt from the portabella mushroom cap. Pull the stem out of the center and chop up the stem - set aside

Chop 1 small onion and enough pepper to make 1/2 cup, add to the mushroom stem. Spray a frypan with a little olive oil and sautée all the veggies EXCEPT the mushroom cap, until tender crisp. Drain any excess juices.

Place the mushroom cap on a foil lined baking sheet and top with the sautéed veggies. Sprinkle the grated cheese on top and bake in the 350 oven for 10 - 15 minutes or until the mushroom cap is tender and the cheese is melted and bubbly.
Season to taste.

Have a great day

Bowling, Alleys, New Tricks, Supper.

Yesterday was our last bowling for the summer league, we then have our banquet next Tuesday (I do hope I will be eating normally by then) and then we don’t bowl again until the end of August. We start early because at the beginning of September there is Labour Day and the woman who runs the alley always takes that weekend off. All the other holiday weekends she is there, but never for that one. Personally, I have not bowled particularly well for the whole of the summer league. Matt hasn’t bowled until the last two and has done pretty well considering how long since he took part. Of course two of the September weeks we will be away in North Carolina.

In the area where we live there are three alleys, one I don’t know too much about, but the other two are sadly neglected. Nobody seems prepared to spend any money on refurbishing and repairing. If somebody came along and invested a bundle to bring one of the alleys up to scratch, they could make a killing. I am sure all the bowlers would want to go there instead of their own worn out alleys. I just wish I knew someone I could persuade to do such a thing. When I think of the place, MacDaddy’s in North Carolina where we 10 pin bowl during our holiday, I just wish they would come and invest in bowling up here.

I very much like an English TV programme called New Tricks which is about a group of ex coppers who work on unsolved crimes. I really like the show which appears, very often, on TVO or TV Ontario. Sometimes on the American PBS stations too. I discovered that I can see some of the older shows or ones I have missed on TVO’s website so that’s what I did last night. You should check it out if you like cop shows. I saw it described as a trio of grumpy ex cops, I wouldn’t really call them grumpy, but it can be funny.

Last night Matt cooked us up some stuffed portabella mushrooms which were pretty good so I will share the recipe tomorrow however, this recipe is from Becel margarine which, I believe, is only available here, in Canada. However, it can obviously made with any decent margarine or butter. I thought it sounded very simple and yet tasty, especially if you wilt the spinach a little as described at the bottom.

Shrimp and Avocado Salad

Serves 4

Ingredients

• 2 tsp. (10 mL) sesame seeds
• 1 lb. (450 g) large shrimp, peeled and deveined
• 1 tbsp. (15 mL) Becel® Original margarine
• 6 cups (1.4 L) baby spinach leaves
• ½ large avocado, peeled and sliced
• 1 large orange, peeled and sectioned
• 6 radishes, sliced (optional)
• 2½ tbsp. (40 mL) fat-free Italian dressing

Preparation

Step 1

Toast sesame seeds in a 12-inch non-stick skillet over medium-high heat, stirring frequently, 1 minute or until golden. Remove sesame seeds and set aside.

Step 2

Season shrimp, if desired, with salt and black pepper. Melt Becel® Original margarine in same skillet over medium-high heat and cook shrimp, stirring frequently, 3 minutes or until shrimp turn pink.

Step 3

Arrange spinach on serving platter. Top with avocado, orange, radishes and shrimp. Sprinkle with toasted sesame seeds. Just before serving, drizzle with fat-free Italian dressing.

Note

Recipe can be halved.

Tip

If desired, toss hot shrimp with spinach to wilt the spinach slightly.

Have a great day

Corn, Dentist, Medical, Supper

I heard on Monday, fresh corn is now becoming available (early?) I love the stuff but Matt is not so keen. He does enjoy it barbecued but as we don’t have a barbecue any more, he basically doesn’t eat it. I wonder if its possible to cook it on the indoor outdoor grill, have to investigate that.  I always feel a bit dopey buying 2 or 3 ears of corn at a time. But its got to be fresh. The sooner you can eat it once its been picked, the better. My father taught me that years ago having eaten quite a bit of it in Rhodesia (as was) during the war years when he was stationed there. In those days we called it maize.

I now have an appointment to have my tooth root removed on Thursday, I am NOT looking forward to it as they will have to cut into my gum.

Yesterday I went to see the specialist about my hip, I was sent next door to have an X-ray and they were not doing X-rays that day, I really wasn’t prepared to go over to the hospital which was the next choice, it would have cost us an arm and a leg for parking plus being a lot of walking for me, etc. etc. so I ended up rebooking my appointment for August so I can get the X-ray done any old time. I sure don’t want a hip replacement before we go away so maybe its just as well.

We then went to some friends for a visit and they kindly decided to feed us as well. We had a delightful afternoon/evening sitting out on their deck enjoying a glass or two of wine and then later supper. They are such great friends and show us a good time when we are with them. Thanks to both of them.

I was just about to do some clearing out in my email, and came across this recipe in my inbox. I must have saved it to use before because it looks good to me. Obviously I am not one of those who can’t stand the taste of coconut, I think I will be trying this recipe fairly soon. Have to be careful if I make it for someone else though because of the coconut. Hmm, that reminds me of being in the Dominican Republic and seeing a guy hacking into a coconut with a machete. We were all given a sip of the milk and some of the flesh to eat. Its one of the things many  Dominicans grow in their back yards.

Saucy Coconut-Chicken Stir-Fry

WebMD Recipe from EatingWell.com

Thai flavors of coconut and basil come together in this fresh and spicy chicken and cabbage stir-fry. If your family prefers a milder meal, forgo the jalapeño. Serve with: Rice noodles and mango slices.
Servings: 4

Recipe Ingredients:

1. 4 teaspoons canola oil, divided
2. 1 pound chicken tenders, cut into bite-size pieces
3. 1 jalapeño pepper, minced (optional)
4. 1 bunch scallions, sliced, whites and greens, separated
5. 2 cups sliced shiitake mushroom caps
6. 1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger
7. 3/4 cup “lite” coconut milk
8. 2 tablespoons fish sauce
9. 4 teaspoons lime juice
10. 1 tablespoon brown sugar
11. 6 cups sliced napa cabbage
12. 3/4 cup chopped fresh basil

Recipe Steps:

1. Heat 2 teaspoons oil in a wok or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add chicken and cook, stirring often, until cooked through and lightly browned, about 5 minutes. Transfer the chicken to a plate.
2. Heat the remaining 2 teaspoons oil in the wok or pot. Add jalapeño (if using), scallion whites, mushrooms and ginger and cook, stirring, until fragrant and the mushrooms start to soften, 30 seconds to 1 minute. Stir in coconut milk, fish sauce, lime juice and brown sugar; bring to a simmer. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the mushrooms are tender, 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in cabbage, the chicken and scallion greens; cook, stirring constantly, until the cabbage is slightly wilted, 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in basil just before serving

Have a great day

Food, Medical Stuff, Deals, Wimbledon.

Big tragedy in my life, I finished the last of my asparagus on Saturday – fresh from the farm asparagus that is. I will now have to wait another whole year before I can get more, boo hoo. Went to a friend’s for supper on Saturday night and she said she hadn’t had any this year – horrors. We had fun sitting out on her patio that evening because the temperature had dropped and there was a delightful breeze. We had a picnic meal which was ideal for outside, then our hostess served us with Red Velvet Cake ice cream, have you tried it? Its pretty good. Have you actually eaten Red Velvet Cake? I never have. We were also served some delicious mini caramel cakes. I couldn’t leave them alone. Tiny little cakes with a dollop of caramel through the middle and on the top. Sold at our local grocery store labeled Farmer’s Market. I will not buy any, too dangerous, I wouldn’t be able to leave them alone. Another guest kept trying to push them at me. I ate enough as it was.

I now have permission from my family doctor to stop my blood thinners for a few days so they can remove my broken tooth. Not something I am looking forward to however, I gather they will have to cut the gum. She also decided to send me for a bone density test which reminded us that Matt had one after he fractured his vertebra and we never heard anything about the results. I get a tad irritated that these doctors never tell you the results of the tests unless there is something wrong. You just have to assume that nothing is wrong and that its not just because the doctor didn’t get the results in the first place. I should keep my mouth shut, I said to Matt, at the beginning of the month, how nice no medical appointments this month, now I have at least three.

On the recommendation of the woman who cleans for us once a month, I have been checking out some of the deals from Kijiji which come through all the time and which I have previously ignored. One I am waiting for is carpet cleaning for $39 for three rooms and a hall. Another was for a couple of memory foam pillows which I like. Trouble with that is one could end up spending a lot of money because the deals are so good. There is, apparently, another site which comes up with good deals too, but I don’t think I need to find out what it is LOL.

Matt was as happy as a grig yesterday because Roger Federer won Wimbledon. I kind of wanted the English guy, Andy Murray, to win as apparently England hasn’t won Wimbledon in 76 years. That’s incredible. I used to watch Wimbledon devotedly every year when I lived in the UK, but for some reason I haven’t really followed it since we emigrated. Federer is a good friend of William and Katherine’s of course, so they were there to see him win. Matt referred to her as the next queen, she isn’t of course, Camilla is.

This is the quinoa dish I got from a friend the other day which I made on Friday and then we finished off last night. Very enjoyable.

Vietnamese Shrimp and Quinoa Salad

For the dressing:
6 Tbs freshly squeezed lime juice
1 Tbs Asian fish sauce
2 Tbs vegetable oil
1-1/2 Tbs sugar
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes, plus more if desired

For the salad:
1/2 lb cooked shrimp, peeled and de-veined
1 cup quinoa, rinsed (or pre-washed)
1/2 tsp salt
1 red bell pepper, cored and cut into thin bite-sized strips
1 carrot, peeled and shredded
1 small cucumber, peeled, seeded and finely diced
2 scallions, finely chopped
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

1. Add quinoa, salt and 1-2/3 cups water to a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat to low, cover, and cook for 15 minutes, until the water is absorbed and quinoa is cooked. Transfer to a serving bowl and let cool.

2. In the meantime, make the dressing by combining the lime juice, Asian fish sauce, vegetable oil, sugar and crushed red pepper flakes in a medium bowl. Whisk until the sugar is dissolved. Add shrimp to the dressing and let marinate until ready to assemble the salad. Once quinoa is cool, add red bell pepper, carrot, cucumber and scallions to the bowl. Right before serving, add the dressing, shrimp and cilantro and toss well. Taste and adjust seasoning with more salt, sugar or crushed red pepper flakes if necessary. Serve cold.

Tips
If you don't have any fish sauce mix some anchovy paste with water.

Author Notes
This unconventional shrimp and quinoa salad with Vietnamese flavorings is nutritious and light. Also, wonderfully satisfying. You can also make it without the shrimp; simply cut back on the dressing a bit.

Have a great day

We’re Having a Heatwave, Food and Science.

I know I am not the only one who is sick of this intense heat we have been having – they are talking about it getting cooler at the weekend, by that they mean around 29°C which is not cool really albeit cooler than it has been. Yesterday there were record highs. I felt so sorry for the people in the States who lost power because of that major storm a week ago, they must have been dying, literally in some cases. The woman who cleans for us was saying some of the apartments in this building don’t have air conditioning of any kind and working there is miserable. I bet. I don’t understand why people don’t have air, all the apartments have a slot in the wall built for an air conditioner. OK, its an old building and we don’t have central air, but our wall unit does an excellent job and with the help of a fan blowing the cool air down the corridor it even helps in some of the bedrooms. Used to have a ceiling fan but it got damaged.

Many of us are still sweltering and it is one of the top reports on the news, 11 records in Ontario were shattered yesterday, our own thermometer went up over 100°F or 38°C. According to reports, with the humidex, it was mid to upper 40’s. Neither of us really put our noses outside although Matt did water the herbs after supper. He said it was pretty bad. This picture is of a woman offering a drink to a thirsty bird who was panting and confused on her balcony. I was wondering what would happen to all the animals and birds in this heat because they are not used to it. There was a warning on Facebook about not walking your dog on the sidewalk which would burn its paws. The sand, on beaches, is also too hot to walk on as well and some roads have buckled in the heat.

I got a quinoa recipe from a friend yesterday and simply had to try it out as it included shrimp and I need to use some of ours up before we go dahn sahth. It was delicious so I will share it with you on Monday. Tonight we are going to a friend’s for dinner so we don’t have to strain our brains thinking about what to cook.

I really don’t have a lot to talk about in this blog. The internet was full of the Higgs Boson news which many seem to think is probably not a very valid discovery. Nor worth the money, $10 billion I understand. I am still not 100% sure I understand it all, no doubt if they really have found it, things will become clearer in the future.

I simply had to share these, I am not a big fan of burgers, but these I would at least have a go at. These were on Facebook from OMG! WTF? Much better than eating them inside a bun in my opinion.

BACON TURTLE BURGERS!

Handmade ground beef patties, topped with sharp cheddar cheese, wrapped in a bacon weave....
then the next step, add hot-dogs as the heads and legs with slits for toes and tail.

Next step. Place on an oven rack, covered loosely with foil and baked for 20-30 minutes at 400 degrees.

A little crispy, not too crunchy...just how a turtle should be, no?

Have a great weekend and keep cool

Duck Story, Higgs Bosun, Surgeon,

Senility is creeping in, I forgot to mention to you that our super told us about a duck that was nesting right in the front yard of our apartment building. I had a look and couldn’t see her,  but the super pointed her out, she is pretty well hidden. But what a very odd place to nest. I am told there is a pond about 5 minutes away, I didn’t know of it and I have no idea where, but its going to be a long walk for her and the ducklings across fairly busy roads. I just decided to use Google Maps and I cannot find a pond very close to us at all so I cannot imagine what she is going to do. Her feathers certainly looked a bit like the picture, but I really don’t know one duck from another. I don’t want to take a photograph as I figure it might disturb her.

There’s been a lot of excitement in scientific fields about the Higgs-Bosun particle which they think has been found. I hadn’t a clue what they were talking about, but I found this video in my How To Geek Newsletter yesterday and thought I would share it with you in case you are as confused as I am http://tinyurl.com/84jh86w. Doesn’t explain it all but it does make some of it a lot clearer. I particularly like the snow analogy. I thought about a snowball travelling along and picking up more snow as it went along.

For a number of years I have been telling myself I didn’t need another hip replacement, at least three years, but I finally gave in and asked my doc for a referral to the surgeon. I figured that would take a while, but got a call yesterday to go in and see the surgeon on Monday. That shook me. Maybe its because we are regular customers!!!! Problem is I am concerned about our vacation, I don’t remember what the recovery time is. Will have to see what he says.

I thought this looked like a refreshing Italian salad full of taste.

Shrimp Panzanella

From EatingWell: May/June 2010

This fresh-tasting panzanella (Italian bread-and-tomato salad) is made with shrimp, olives and plenty of herbs. You’ll need olives packed in flavorful brine to make the dressing. For convenience, buy shrimp already peeled and cooked. Sometimes the best-tasting precooked shrimp is sold frozen. Soak in cold water for 10 minutes to defrost. Recipe by Nancy Baggett for EatingWell.

6 servings, about 1 3/4 cups each

Ingredients

• 4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
• 1 clove garlic, peeled and halved
• 4 cups 1/2-inch crusty multigrain bread cubes, preferably day-old
• 1 pound coarsely chopped peeled cooked shrimp 
• 4 large ripe but firm tomatoes, coarsely chopped
• 2 large green, red and/or yellow bell peppers, diced
• 3/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh chives
• 1/4 cup sliced pitted Kalamata olives, plus 1/4 cup olive brine
• 3 tablespoons red-wine vinegar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme or 3/4 teaspoon dried
• Freshly ground pepper to taste
• 4 cups mixed salad greens

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 350°F.
2. Drizzle 2 tablespoons oil on a rimmed baking sheet. Mash garlic into the oil with a fork to infuse it with flavor; discard the garlic. Stir bread cubes into the oil until lightly coated. Bake, stirring every 5 minutes, until very crisp, 12 to 15 minutes. Let cool completely.
3. Combine shrimp, tomatoes, bell peppers, parsley, chives, olives and olive brine, vinegar, thyme and the remaining 2 tablespoons oil in a large bowl. Season with pepper. Let stand for at least 10 minutes to blend the flavors.
4. Toss the croutons with the shrimp mixture and serve the salad over greens.

Have a great day

Great British Menu, English Food, My Tooth Story,

In her blog for July 4, Hilary Melton-Butcher mentioned the Great British Menu which is something I had never heard of before, as far as I recall anyway. Apparently a number of top chefs compete to cook the Olympic Banquet and the whole affair is televised by the BBC. There is a web page which details the menus and recipes and a banquet was held in The Painted Hall at Greenwich Old Royal Navy College. Quite frankly from what I have read, there was a load of pretentious rubbish. The plates all appeared to be composed of little itty bitty courses combining more flavours than I care to consider and I found it very sad to think that was the best they could offer. One thing which did appeal to me was the sweet cheese ice cream which was part of the complicated dessert menu, it was basically made with Mascarpone cheese, but contained stabilisers which any housewife would have in their pantry!!!  Pity, I thought it would be something one could make at home. The dessert also contained atsina cress which I have certainly never heard of. Having Googled it appears to be of North American origin. That’s the green in the picture. Most of the other recipes are similarly complicated and didn’t particularly make me want to eat them. If you want to see more pictures, they are on Hilary’s blog.

One of the problems in Britain, I think, is that they have been known for lousy food for so long that now the chefs have gone totally the other way. I don’t know what food is like generally in the UK nowadays but from all I hear it has improved tremendously and even when I lived there, there were excellent restaurants around all across the country which served food which couldn’t be beaten, alternatively you had the kaff (café) on most streets which served the most, IMHOP, awful food.  Whether they still exist I don’t know. Lyon’s was one. They had Lyons’ Corner Houses in London where you could get a decent meal, but in the local towns their food was god awful. I do know that Indian and Chinese takeaways are in abundance these days. For some reason, Indian food has never caught on here like it has in the UK. Of course there are probably a lot more Indians in the UK anyway due to India being part of the British Empire at one time. Pub food seems to be very much an ‘in thing’ these days but I am no expert on it. I am sure England is littered with burger joints the same as anywhere else today, I don’t know if they are as popular as in North America. Pizza joints come a close second over here.

I went to the dentist yesterday with my broken tooth. Because it was rough round the edges it has been grating against my tongue and causing a lot of pain. I had used an emery board which helped, the dentist ground it down some more. It will have to come out though, but, as I am on blood thinners, I have to check with the family doc about stopping them. She won’t answer the question over the phone, so now I have to go in to see her on Saturday. If she won’t permit me to stop the thinners I will have to go to a specialist to have the tooth extracted which will, of course, cost me more money. They will have to cut into the gum to get at what’s left. Yuk. How much our insurance will pay I have no idea, but they don’t seem to pay a lot towards dentistry. I think I have mentioned, I don’t like going to the dentist and this is getting worse.

This is an interesting looking recipe I found on Facebook

South African Bunny Chow

Source: The Travel Bite

I’ve adapted this recipe from The Collection Cookbook, by Liz McGrath, given to me as a gift when I stayed at The Marine in Hermanus. Their version of this recipe features more Cape Malay seafood including mussels, calamari, prawns and line fish. I’ve swapped the seafood for chicken below to make this more suitable for the home cook.

Take a peak at this video where I teach the host of Daytime TV how to make bunny chow!

Ingredients
2 large white onions, diced
2 tomatoes, diced
2 cups diced carrots
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 tsp coriander
1/2 tsp cumin
3 tablespoons garam masala (any source of Indian products)
1 tsp cayenne pepper
2 tsp tumeric
2 ground cardamom pods
2 bay leaves
1 stick cinnamon
1 to 2 cups water
2 cups potatoes, cubed
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into strips

Directions:
1. In a large saucepan, fry the onions until their almost translucent or clear. Then add all your spices and fry for another 1 to 2 minutes.
2. Next add the tomatoes and mix in with the spices and onions. Cook until it forms a paste.
3. Add chicken, potatoes, carrots, and water to the saucepan. Stir together with the tomato paste and bring to a low simmer. Cover and cook for about 30 minutes until the chicken is tender. Stir occasionally. Remove the bay leaves and cinnamon stick.
4. Hollow out a loaf of bread and spoon the cooked curry inside the bread to serve. If desired, serve with a side of rice. Traditionally, it’s eaten with your hands and the bread is used to soak up the gravy. Enjoy!

Have a great day

4th July, Hallaton Hoard, Queen Elizabeth, Pomp and Circumstance.

Happy 4th of July to all my American friends, have a wonderful time celebrating your independence.

Everyone is talking about taking time off and relaxing – we still have a couple of months before we go on vacation, not that we have a lot of stresses in our lives these days, but it is still nice to get away. One can get awfully tired of the same old walls.

Last night we watched Michael Wood’s Story of England, Romans to Normans, on public TV. The first part was about a small village in the dead centre of England called Kibworth in Leicestershire which has been there since way before the Romans conquered Britain. They did planned digs all over the village area in peoples gardens (yards) and found shards from some of the earliest times as well as Roman relics and artifacts. They did more digging in the area outside the village which led to the discovery of one of the Hallaton Hoard which is one of the earliest collections of Iron Age and Roman coins and unusual artifacts ever found. The digs done by the locals were supervised by professional archeologists. The programme aimed to show the development of England through the lives of its ordinary people rather than its kings and queens. It was a captivating programme. More about Kibworth. 

The story of Kibworth was followed by a story about the reign of Queen Elizabeth II with film from her accession to the throne in 1952 through her Coronation and then Silver and Gold Jubilees until today. I hadn’t realised that Queen Elizabeth was the 38th sovereign to be crowned at Westminster Abbey with William the Conqueror being the first in 1066. The programme showed the return of the Queen after the death of her father, her coronation a year later (she was crowned in 1953) then her Silver Jubilee 25 years later and pictures of the tours of the Commonwealth she undertook at that time, followed by her Golden Jubilee and film of that occasion as well. This was the first time William and Harry were part of the procession. It was lovely to watch especially as I was alive for all of it and remembered so much of the coronation itself. I hadn’t remembered that on the same day as the coronation, Sir Edmond Hillary and Sherpa Tensing conquered Everest. I also hadn’t remembered that the actual anointing of the Queen was carried out in relative privacy. Every time they played Land of Hope and Glory, which they did a lot, I got teary eyed. This is a video from the Royal Albert Hall in London where they are playing Elgar’s Pomp and Circumstance from which Land of Hope and Glory is taken.

This is always played on the last night of the Proms which is a series of concerts at the Royal Albert Hall. When I lived in London I used to go with friends to many of the concerts, but the best nights were always the first and especially the last night. That night was such fun, the first half was serious and then the latter part was devoted to things like the video above.

Here is the latest from Mushrooms Canada. Sounds like it would taste pretty good. We only eat whole wheat spaghetti anyway these days, better for us.

Spaghetti with Mushrooms, Garlic, Chili and Lime
Mushroom Lovers Club

12 oz (375 g) whole wheat spaghetti

1/3 cup (75 mL) extra virgin olive oil

1 lb. (500 g) thinly sliced fresh mushrooms

4 garlic cloves, crushed

½ -1 tsp (2-5 mL) hot red pepper flakes

1/2 cup (125 mL) thinly sliced green onions

1 tbsp (15 mL) finely grated lime rind

1/2 cup (125 mL) fresh lime juice

1/2 tsp (2 mL) salt

2/3 cup (175 mL) minced cilantro

Method
Cook the spaghetti in a large saucepan of salted boiling water according to package directions until al dente drain
reserving some of the pasta water.
Meanwhile, in large skillet heat the oil over medium heat. Add the mushrooms and sauté 3-4 minutes or until
starting to brown; add garlic, red pepper flakes and onion, cook stirring constantly, for 30 –60 seconds. Remove
from heat and mix lime juice, rind and salt. Pour over hot drained spaghetti; toss to coat well. If upon standing it
seems too dry gradually add a little pasta water. Taste and add freshly ground pepper if desired. Stir in cilantro.
Makes 4 servings
Variation
Stir-fry or boil shrimp and asparagus pieces and toss in at the end.
Try substituting parsley or basil for the cilantro.

Have a great day

My Stupid Tooth and My Visits to Greece.

Once it was rather late to do anything on Monday, I realised I should have gone to the ‘on call’ dentist – oh well, I will phone my dentist this morning and hopefully they can see me soon. Would you believe I filed down the worst of the sharp point with an emery board!!! It worked though. Trouble is my tongue is sore from being scraped by the rough area. Its incredible how much one moves the tongue during the course of a day. Swallowing is the most painful and one swallows all the time. We had some pork chops for supper and I had one hell of a job eating mine. I cut tiny pieces off in order to deal with them but my tongue was still hurting like hell.

A guest post by Bex at A to Z posted some Common Misconceptions about Greece and I was interested to see what she wrote. However, my experience regarding the business of throwing plates wasn’t confined to one particular dance; we were on the island of Lefkas in the Ionian Sea – many years ago – and my family and I were dancing with a bunch of Greek friends; plates were being thrown all over the place. I had flip flops or thongs on and kept losing them and was worried I would cut my feet on the china. My particular friend kept calling them to sweep up the broken crockery, which they did. Luckily I never did any damage to my feet, but lost a gold earring instead!!! It was great fun. I love the Greek people they work hard and play hard. What absolutely fascinated me, one could be quietly sipping an ouzo in a taverna (at any of the towns or villages we visited) and suddenly someone, just an ordinary patron, would start singing, then everyone would join in either singing or getting up to dance. Someone always seemed to have a bouzouki.  In those days, it was usually a group of men who would get up and dance, don’t know if its changed. They did allow us visitors to join them though. This applied wherever we were and I travelled from Athens to Kerkira (Corfu) my parents having been sailing the Aegean prior to me flying out to join them in Athens. I never did spend any real time in Athens although I visited the Acropolis – still wearing flip flops, not recommended, there was lots of broken stone to climb around. Greece is one of the places I would like to visit again. I went there twice, spending about 6 weeks in total, and barely skimmed the available things to see and do. One of my favourite places was Delphi which was a delightful spot, apart from its historical significance. I still have the komboloi (worry beads) I bought there. If you watch this video you will see why we non Greeks call them worry beads.

My mother found a giant komboloi whilst they were in the Aegean, I saw one – in Delphi I think – and wanted to get it. I was told to bargain, so I did, I was then told to walk away, which I did, so much for that, I never did get my giant komboloi. I wonder what happened to the one my mother bought?

One thing that really interested me was the acoustics of the ancient Greek theatres. You can stand in the centre of a theatre and speak in a normal voice and be heard at the top of the auditorium. I see in the article mentioned above there is a picture of the theatre at Epidaurus which is in use today. The one I visited was at Delphi and certainly wasn’t in use then, but we tested the sound and it really worked. There was a museum there, may still be, with one particular statue, The Charioteer, which had the most incredible eyes, they followed you all round the room. It is postulated that he was part of a group driving the chariot of Apollo. Sadly, so many artifacts in Greece have been lost, broken or buried due to earthquakes, some, like the charioteer, have been found but how many have been hidden from view? This is one of my pictures, but as you can see, it is no longer very clear, it was, after all, taken some 43 years ago. On that particular trip we sailed (on my family’s yacht) from Piraeus which is really the port for Athens, through the Corinth Canal which was begun by the Romans, (there is a carving to commemorate that fact right on the canal wall) along the Gulf of Corinth into the Ionian sea stopping at various towns and villages on the way. One place, and I don’t remember the name, they actually had some Roman ruins, a beautiful mosaic floor onto which they threw a bucket of water so you could appreciate the colours. They were beautiful, but I still prefer the home grown ruins. The ancient Greeks always sited their important buildings somewhere so that one can enjoy the most beautiful scenery from them. Just look at the background of my Delphi Theatre picture. The great thing about being in your own yacht, you can stop where you want and visit for as long as you wish. Its also easy to “chat up the locals” as we used to call it. We made many friends that way.

Bex, who wrote the article mentioned above, is lucky enough to live there, as I said, I would love to go back. I am glad she says things are not as serious as portrayed in the news. But then reporters like to make mountains out of molehills don’t they? Gotta make it interesting.

I thought this sounded pretty refreshing, especially with our current heat wave. I have several Bobby Flay recipes which I use frequently.

Watermelon-Tequila Cocktails

Contributed by Bobby Flay

SERVINGS:Makes 8 drinks

When watermelon is in abundance, this is a great way to use it. Bobby Flay purees seedless watermelon chunks, then strains the juice through a sieve and mixes it with silver tequila, sugar syrup, blueberries, mint and fresh lime juice.

1/4 cup water

1/4 cup granulated sugar

8 cups diced seedless watermelon (1 pound)

1/4 cup fresh lime juice

1 3/4 cups blueberries

3/4 cup lightly packed fresh mint leaves, plus 8 sprigs for garnish

1 1/4 cups silver tequila

Ice

1. In a small saucepan, bring the water to a simmer with the sugar and stir over moderate heat until the sugar is dissolved, about 1 minute; let the sugar syrup cool.
2. In a blender, purée the watermelon until smooth. Set a fine-mesh strainer over a bowl and strain the watermelon juice, pressing gently on the solids to extract as much juice as possible. Discard the pulp.
3. In a large pitcher, combine the sugar syrup with the lime juice, blueberries and mint leaves. Using a wooden spoon, lightly muddle the blueberries and mint. Add the watermelon juice and tequila. Refrigerate until chilled, about 2 hours.
4. Pour the cocktail into tall ice-filled glasses. Garnish with the mint sprigs and serve.

Have a great day

Bananas, Holiday, Dentist’s.

Well I’m damned, who knew? Banana skins contain lots of great nutrients and shouldn’t be just thrown away, according to eHow Health. . If you are into plants and gardening they make wonderful fertilizer, especially for roses. They also make wonderful cleaners for silver, put in a blender until they become smooth and creamy, then take a little cream on a cloth to clean your silver. I must try this. We eat a banana each per day so….. I also believe you can clean shoes with banana peel but I’m not sure about that one. Rubbing the inside of a banana peel on skin affected with acne or psoriasis works wonders too. Might go red at first but in a day or two it effects a cure. Works for warts and poison ivy as well. I certainly must try it on the silver. In fact there are all kinds of tips and tricks on the web site.

Today is, of course, a holiday in Canada, it being Canada’s birthday. I am sure we will have lots of fireworks tonight which we might watch from our balcony. I have said before, sadly we are on the wrong side of the building to see some of the main firework displays although I wouldn’t change where we are for any other reason. I was impressed  with the Google Doodle yesterday which celebrated Canada Day. Wednesday is Independence Day in the States, not sure if they will celebrate that day or make it Thursday. Seems a bit silly to take Wednesday off and go back on Friday, unless they have the whole lot off. Having asked on Facebook everyone assures me that they only have the Wednesday off, I guess the other days are part of people’s vacations.

Happy Saturday, I was chomping into my steak at dinner and felt something hard in my mouth – my tooth had cracked in half. Lucky I didn’t swallow it I guess. I phoned to find out if there was any dentistry available on the holiday weekend, there is and I spoke to the on-call dentist. However, its not giving me any big problems except for two sharp pieces of tooth, so I think I will wait until I can see my own dentist. They already know what a god awful mess my teeth are in. I have been terrified of dentists since I was about 15 yrs. old. Pity, when I was a kid, my mother (a natural psychologist) used to say if I was good she would take me to the dentist, I never minded going in those days. Not enough to live at the doctor’s these days, now I have to go to the dentist’s as well. Something my English readers may find odd, dentists are addressed as Dr. here, as are veterinarians and surgeons. No “call me Mr.” in North America. In the UK surgeons get very hot under the collar if you address them as Dr. Unless things have changed of course.

I was reminded, over the weekend, of a Swedish recipe I haven’t heard of or made in years: I used to enjoy very much, don’t know why I stopped making it. It was Viveka of My Guilty Pleasure’s last meal before setting off on her trip. Viveka always eats hers with a raw egg yolk but it can be fried if you prefer. If raw, she leaves the yolk in the shell and places it on top of the potato mix. Apparently in Sweden you can buy Pytt-i-Panna in packets these days as it is a very popular ‘leftovers’ dish.

Pytt-i-Panna

serves 4
• 12-15 peeled potatoes, finely diced (1×1 cm)
• 300 g (10.5oz) smoked pork/bacon/pancetta, finely diced
• 2-3 yellow onions, finely diced
• Any left over cooked meats or sausages, finely diced – the more mixture of meat the better it gets
• Spices: salt, freshly ground black pepper (and perhaps allspice).
• 4 eggs and pickled beetroots for serving – I also serve mustard and salt pickled cucumbers

Method
1. Blanche potatoes for a few minutes in salted, boiling water.
2. Fry bacon at medium heat in a big frying pan, preferably cast iron, until fat has melted.
3. Add the well drained potatoes and add to pan a little at the time. Fry, stirring gently, until potatoes are golden.
4. Add onions (and additional meats as available), fry until onions are transparent (and meats are cooked through).
5. To taste, add salt, black pepper and perhaps a bit of allspice.
6. Serve with fried eggs or raw egg-yolks on top, and (always!) with pickled beetroots on the side
7. You can add left over cooked or raw vegetables too. What ever you fancy. Personal I stick to only potatoes.

With this I would serve ice cold beer or milk and a freezing snaps.

Canada Day