Buzzing Happily with Pumpkin Cashew "Cheesecake"

When I think of thanksgiving, I almost immediately picture a large table, or two to three smaller tables patch worked together in a long train, covered with mismatched table clothes and each place set with the proper assortment of plates, cutlery, glasses and crackers for a full meal together. Some, of course, match, like at the parents table where the nice plates and wine glasses reserved only for special occasions are used, but down at the other end, where the kids are usually placed together, it's a colourful array of orange and red dishes, bright napkins folded neatly, and the bright golds and shiny yellows of the crackers. I love the setting of a thanksgiving table, with all the colours and decorations that often resemble an autumn pathway, lined with fallen maple leaves held down by smoothed stones and little tea lights that flicker and eventually fade as the evening progresses.  

There is always family and friends, buzzing happily around the table, while some help to serve the heaping dishes of vegetables and aromatic tray of turkey, balancing the cranberry sauce between two plates in either hand. Some sit across from one another and chat freely, with sounds of laughter filling the whole room, and eventually catching on as everyone sits down together, and the food is served in heaping spoonfuls onto plates. I always send my spoon back to the mashed yams, my favourite, and a few extra Brussels sprouts. 

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Curiosity, Courage, and Chicken Pot Pies

Wrapped up in a cosy green, a colour which covers all the walls in this house, and symbolises the growth and rejuvenation it once stood for, and perhaps brings to us as well, I sipped a hot ginger and lemon tea and read a book beside the trails of rain streaming down the windows. Through a storm we spent huddled on our big couch or behind a pair of binoculars trying to spot the first white caps thundering into the harbour. Behind thick lenses we could see a brave fisherman in the wind, and the train of seagulls behind the boat as his crab traps were pulled up from under the waves. It was wonderful to feel so at home behind the front of a big storm rolling in, and the cups of tea held between our hands, or hot plates for dinner, kept us feeling comforted and warm. 

Perhaps it's just the cold left behind from a busy weekend of showing my friends some of my favourite places here while they visited, including a full bakery breakfast and some gluten free French toast for me, as well as a trip to Victoria in the pouring rain, but I've found having so much time difficult at the moment. Maybe it's also that we've been here a month now, and we really are settling in, I mean mum's getting movie suggestions from ladies at the grocery store checkout and we actually recognise people on our daily walks ("he was here yesterday," mum will whisper to me, or I'll wonder where the tall guy was as we come back around the beach). Especially underneath the patter of the continuous and comforting sounds of rain, and left dependant on ginger teas and Tylenol, as well as warming dinners such as home made chilli and steaming chicken pot pies, I almost feel restless to get out and explore, and finally find a foothold in this new town, among new people, and to step there to begin a climb into the unknown.

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This Little Pie

Homemade apple pie and fresh produce straight from the farms. We even picked the figs and pears ourselves, and helped wash off these gorgeous red beets! This really is like living in the country, but with the ocean at our doorstep.

From a few farms that we visited, mum and I returned with all that is laid out above, plus a carton of free range eggs from a roadside stand. In fact, it was a roadside cooler with a large sign that read, "EGGS $4.00." And we were sold. Or, the eggs were. Carrying on down the road, with the carton of eggs preciously resting on my lap, and a huge smile on my face from the special egg of the dozen, we came back to our favourite farm in the Sooke area.

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To Sip a Winter Smoothie

Last week, on one of the endless days of rain and thick cloud cover, I stayed home from school to recuperate from early mornings and what felt like a hive activity for the past few weeks since school restarted for the new year. It was one of those days where very little was going on, so Mum and I got to spend the afternoon together in our cosiest socks and big thick sweaters. I spent the morning beautifying this blog, focusing on adding more pictures and clarifying the little details which had been bothering me for some time, so it was nice to completely relax when she got home from work.

Lunch was only something small to curb our hunger, so when four o'clock came around, and after we'd taken the dog out for a walk to the lake and back, we both felt the need for a little pick-me-up and something to hold tightly in our hands to warm ourselves up. The wind had chapped our lips as we strolled beside the lake, shards of ice perched on top of each other along the shores after being pushed aside by the strong wind. There was a slight breeze as we wandered, and the clouds threatened rain in small droplets that fell infrequently onto our heads and shoulders.

We came home in a flurry as the rain picked up and quickened. Mum put on the fire to heat up the house, and I turned up the stove to make a drink to heat us up. It was then that we both ended up choosing our favourite spots on separate sofas after sipping warm smoothies, and curled up around iPads in the nooks of our arms, absorbed in the trials of our preferred shows and covered in soft blankets. The fire blazed on; the animals snoozed peacefully.

I wish every day could be as peaceful as that day was, instead, I try and stay warm bundled in a big knitted scarf and a hot beanie on my stomach today while studying for an exam. I might just make another smoothie to remind myself of that day, and to sip while I try to memorise vocabulary.

Try a favourite gluten free cookie with your smoothies as well, they're delicious when dunked - see how long you can keep them in without them falling apart!

Before I get too carried away with the goodness of these smoothies, I must quickly tell you how amazing they are. As in, you must make them today, tomorrow morning, next week. In the summer after a day at the beach with ice, in the winter by the fire in a steaming mug. And for the pumpkin obsessed (oops, that's me!), try this for breakfast too. Then, as you take the first sip, you'll realise that this really is the most delicious, creamiest, smoothest, drink ever.

They'll be your neighbours favourite, and your friends favourite, too.

Go ahead, see what pumpkin can really do.

Warm Pumpkin Spiced Smoothie
Print recipe here.

If you thought pumpkin pie was just for Thanksgiving and Christmas - think again! You can pick up a can of pumpkin pie mix from your local grocery store, or puréed pumpkin, all year round. Serve this warm smoothie as an after dinner dessert, or quickly heat it up on the stove to start your day with just the right amount of sugar and spice.

Using canned pumpkin pie mix sweetens the drink, so there's no need to add sugar, and by adding a little extra spices it will bring out the pumpkin flavour a little more when paired with the coconut milk (this can be substituted with any choice of alternative). Try using pure puréed pumpkin if you'd prefer to adjust the sweetness, I recommend doubling the amount of spices listed below and add brown sugar or honey to sweeten, then simmer for an additional 10 minutes to develop the rich flavours of all the spices.

For a creamier dessert, serve these smoothies with a spoonful of vanilla Greek yogourt (the thick kind works best), and provide a spoon to eat.

Serves 2

Ingredients

1 cup unsweetened coconut milk (the beverage kind)
1 cup water
1/2 cup pumpkin pie mix

Dash of vanilla extract
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp cloves
1/4 tsp allspice powder

2 cinnamon sticks to serve

Directions

In a medium sized sauce pan on the stove, whisk together coconut milk, water and pumpkin pie mix.

Add in vanilla and spices and bring to a near boil.

Simmer for a few minutes (3 to 5), whisking repeatedly.

Strain into two large mugs and serve with a cinnamon stick. Top with yogourt if desired.

Holiday Pumpkin Loaf; It's Winter Here!

This weekend I continued to pull the dust-covered cardboard boxes from the cupboard underneath the stairs, some cracked and fraying from use year after year, and among them lay a tangled array of forgotten Christmas lights, baubles wound up in the wires like roses caught among the brambles, and finally underneath the mess, small ornaments to be placed on window sills and around the house. Fuzzy white snowmen on a sled, a small figurine of Santa Claus sitting by his fire reading a letter which rolls down onto the floor, and some snow speckled trees carved from wood. We've made a little village atop the large book shelf in the living room from little ceramic buildings that have their windows carved out, and I managed to pull apart the white cob webbing for Halloween to make a simple layer of snow for the buildings to sit on. I also love how as I post this to my blog, a thin layer of snow rests delicately outside along the deck and down into the garden. Sadly, the wind must have blown the thin layer from the trees last night, but I remain happy in this little winter wonderland of my own.

They buildings sit perfectly arranged in a tight oval, and when the yellow Christmas lights are plugged in, the windows shine brightly as if little families sat snugly in their living rooms. The bakery across, not a palm widths more for us, is warmly lit, and the small garage and diner are bright and inviting, both situated around a tall model of an evergreen tree, which I also decorated with mini lights.

I love the comfort of this little village twinkling brightly when no other lights shine, and wish I could leave the village on during the night so I could wake to the warm glow of the miniature village appearing to be bustling with activity and Christmas cheer. But dad repeats that I'll burn down the house with the strand of lights arranged along a wooden bookcase and fake snow.

It's started with cookie swaps and a few Christmas parties filtering into the season, and its already become busy. School doesn't let out until less than a week before Christmas when our house will be full of people and preparations for the friends that come around Christmas Eve and those who return for Christmas dinner the following day. I am determined to cook a gluten-free dessert for the day, and I'm sure I'll be inclined to bake some elaborate cookies.

Because with an everlasting love for the holiday festivities, the season brings about rolling up the cuffs of our sleeves, diving into the pantry to look for our favourite cookie cutter shapes, and with ingredients neatly lined along the counter, we begin baking.

Is there really any better way to awaken that holiday cheer than filling the entire house with the warm and comforting aroma of sweet gingerbread, cardamom and vanilla scents? I'm sure if you haven't already, walking into an aromatic home, counters scattered with ingredients and the sink full of dishes from baking just as a tray of cookies is pulled from the oven, that you'll be tempted to run home and whip up a batch of your own kitchen delight.

'Tis the season for delightful cooking and cheer!

Pumpkin Pie Loaf
Print recipe here.

Again, I have resorted to trying guar gum in this recipe, I actually have found that it helps in the binding of all the ingredients, and makes it so that the loaf slices without crumbling nearly completely apart when I serve it. If you would prefer to use xantham instead of guar gum, the ratio is the same, or if you would rather not use any, the recipe will still work. I only recommend that in your gluten-free flour mix you incorporate starch, whether that be corn, tapioca, potato or arrowroot, as these help with the thickening, and make a nice blend of flours that is easy to use. Otherwise, any mix of flours can be used, I usually stick to any variety of at least three for a reliable consistency.

Ingredients

3/4 c packed brown sugar
1 c pumpkin purée (I used canned)
2 eggs
1/4 c grape seed oil
3 tbsp maple syrup
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp lemon juice

1 1/4 c gluten-free flour mix
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp guar gum

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350°F and grease a loaf pan with butter or oil.

In a large bowl combine the sugar, pumpkin purée, eggs, oil, syrup, vanilla and lemon juice, and beat well.

Set this bowl aside, and in a smaller mixing bowl combine dry ingredients; flours, spices, baking powder and soda, salt and guar gum.

Pour into the wet ingredients and mix. The batter should resemble pumpkin purée, although slightly darker and thicker.

Pour into the prepared loaf pan and set it in the oven. Bake for approximately 50 minutes, or until a knife comes out clean when inserted into the centre of the loaf.

Allowing the bread to cool completely after baking will make it easier to slice, and also let the flavours develop further.