Completely Canadian and A Shameless Plug

Hello Sweets,

So the weekend has come to an end :(  I hope everyone got out to enjoy some sunshine (if you had some), and created something delicious in the kitchen.  My post tonight is going to be somewhat shorter as I have had a long day and am feeling sort of tired, but I reconnected with an old friend so I think it was worth it!

Let me first start with the "shameless plug" lol because I am SUPER excited, like if there were any other way to emphasize the word super more I am pretty sure I would have done that too.  So as you may or may not be aware I had the opportunity a year ago to not only reconnect with an old friend, but I also got see her in her element (with me as the focus) in her element photography.  Echo is very talented and has a knack for catching the perfect moment and seeing the beauty in everything, I have my favorites but there is one that she caught with my natural smile in a laugh and it is just beautiful.  Well she is currently running a contest for a free natural light session and obviously I entered, not just so I could have another opportunity to work with her but so I could also have professional photos of me and my best friend/soul mate Nathan.  I normally wouldn't include something like this in my blog as it isn't any way associated with food, but so want to have our silliness captured by a true artist.  All you would have to do is click this LINK, like my photo (it's the only couple photo on there) and like the Facebook page it's posted on (CLICK HERE).  The contest is only running for one week so time is of the essence, and I will post some of the photos (if I win) here on my blog for everyone to see what they helped me achieve :)   Also if you would like to use her services or see her amazing portfolio just check out her website; Echo's Visuals.  I would appreciate any help and support y'all can give as it would make me a very happy girl.

Okay enough of my selfish plug let's get to what you really come here for, deliciousness!  So last week I was craving fruit much more than normal, so I went out and bought a few things, well too many for one girl to consume before they go bad (must have been hungry when I went lol).  So I started to realize I was going to throw money away if I didn't come up with something quick.  Then it dawned on me, I've been eating popsicles like they're going out of style and drinking ginger ale (haven't been feeling well).  What better way to ensure I use the fruit, get some vitamins and minerals in me, and spice up my beverage?  If you get fruit cubes then you my friend are a smarty and deserve recognition for that!  Now I know it seems like I would have opted to make popsicles and who said I haven't, yes you'll need to come back again for that little treasure (ya I know I'm demanding).  There is really no easy way to explain them without pictures so let's get to the good stuff :)

Canuckette's Fruity Cubes

Ingredients:

blueberries

blackberries

orange juice

Directions:

1)  Combine all ingredients in a blender, blending until the fruit is completely liquefied (I have a bullet and it was perfect).

2)   Pour the mixture into an ice cube tray and place in the freezer to set.

3)  Once completely frozen place in a glass, pour the ginger ale over top of them (soda water would work too I suppose) and enjoy!

It gives the soda just a little zing, and most importantly, it tastes amazing!

So there you have it, short and sweet ;) pun intended.  I also appreciate y'alls support and understanding over the sporadic posts, I have the best readers.  And if you decided to check out the contest I'm in and end up voting I appreciate that immensely as well.

Stay sweet,


Jennifer xoxoxo

Candy With Some Zing!

Hello Sweets,

Did you have a manic Monday?  I had a painful Monday :(, why you ask?  Well I get TPI's (trigger point injections) every month and where I get them there isn't a lot of muscle or even fat (ie my head).  It's weird though because they've always been painful, but the last few months it seems even worse, but I will keep going at it to try and get back to my regular old self :)

I want to give you all a heads up that today's post will be on the shorter side for a few reasons; 1) I'm not feeling so hot, 2) I'm tired and need to try and nap, and 3) because it will lead into a longer post tomorrow ;)
As most of my readers know I have some "go to" comforts that seem to be the only things that make me feel better or allow me to eat when I am having a bad day.  One that is definitely in my top five is ginger ale, you know the beverage that every grandmother would give you to settle your stomach (even though it should have been flat lol)?  Well still to this day I love it and with all of my not feeling well reminded me of a time when I worked for a retirement home.  Now we're going back a few years but I loved the people I was helping everyday, it honestly was like having one hundred grandparents :)  Of course each of the staff had our favorites, I know I did, and they all stood out for their own unique qualities or traits.  One specific gentlemen named Jack was funny, very friendly, and was always looking out for us girls.  I would volunteer every other weekend to have a billiards day (they had a very nice pool table), and sometimes it would just be Jack and I playing for hours.  One day while helping with cleaning his room, I had a terrible stomach ache and felt awful, he immediately picked up on it and said "I have just the thing for you".  When he came back he was holding open a small candy jar, only I had no idea what the pieces were inside.  Since I had this perplexed look on my face, he spoke up and explained that it was candied ginger and that it would help settle my stomach.  Knowing I still had a good four hours until the end of my shift I thought I'll give it a shot since I didn't have any ginger ale, and sure enough it did the trick.  Now I do keep some on hand that I picked up but it doesn't always help unfortunately, and then one day I ran out and while I was at the grocery store I saw they had fresh ginger on sale.  I took it as divine intervention, the baking Gods were putting a challenge right in front of me and telling me I could make this on my own.  So thanks to my funky little AllRecipe app for my iPhone, that is the recipe I'm bringing to you today!

Candied Ginger via (AllRecipes)

Ingredients

2C sugar

2C fresh ginger, cut into thin slices

2C water

  

I didn't use bottled water lol

Directions:

1)  In a medium sauce pan combine the sugar, ginger, and water bringing to a boil over high heat.  Reduce heat and let simmer until it becomes syrupy and the liquid has been reduced by half 40-45 minutes.  Strain the ginger out and reserve the syrup (if you'd like, I didn't).

2)  I was a little impatient in regards to letting them dry so I threw them in the oven on a low heat until they became tacky to the touch.  I then tossed them in sugar and stored in an air tight container until I needed them.

 from this

to this!

I apologize for the lack of "process" pictures, not sure what I was thinking.  It wasn't overly complicated and I did it without a candy thermometer :)  The smell of the fresh ginger was a lovely aroma that you don't smell very often, and not to mention the fruits of my labor are delish!

So tomorrow you will see what I did with a majority of these bad boys, until them I'll leave you with the many ideas that run through your brains and I'll go try and nap!  Until next time.............................

Stay sweet,

Jennifer xoxoxo