blog

Vegans.

Tue, 12 Feb 2013 19:34:33 +0100

Chipotle Mashed Sweet Potatoes.

Fri, 25 Jan 2013 03:26:57 +0100

Once again, sorry for the three month hiatus. It's been INSANE lately. And as you can probably guess, cooking is a huge stress reliever for me. So, the other night I cooked a delish meal for my good friend Kylie. One of the highlights were the sweet potatoes I made as a side dish. I sweetened them up with some brown sugar and then smoked them up with some chipotle heat! Oh man, so good. I kind of eyeballed everything, so by all means don't feel constrained by the measurments!

Chipotle Mashed Sweet Potatoes

2 Medium sized Sweet Potatoes
4 tbsp Butter
2 tbsp Brown Sugar
3 tsp Adobe or Chipotle paste (I just used the sauce from the canned chipotle peppers I found in the Mexican aisle)

1// Cut the sweet potatoes in half and bake until soft.

2// Scoop out the potato from the skins and place in a bowl.

3// Melt butter over stove and add brown sugar. Whisk together until sugar is dissolved. Add to the potatoes with the chipotle paste and mix in until you get the desired consistency.

YUMMMM.

XO Cat

Best Chocolate Chip Cookies Ever.

Sat, 13 Oct 2012 16:46:37 +0100

I don't bake very often. I prefer to cook because I don't feel confined by precise measurements. But the other day I just had a hankering for some chocolate chip cookies. I found this recipe online, among the millions of cookie recipes out there, and boy what a diamond in the rough. Thank you to Dora where ever you are for uploading this to allrecipes.com.

Best Chocolate Chip Cookies Ever

1 cup Butter, softened
1 cup White Sugar
1 cup Brown Sugar
2 Eggs
2 tsp Vanilla Extract
3 cups All Purpose Flour
1 tsp Baking Soda
2 tsp Hot Water
1/2 tsp Salt
2 cups Dark Chocolate Chips

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

2. Cream together butter, white sugar & brown sugar until smooth. Beat in eggs one at a time, then stir in vanilla. Disolve baking soda in hot water. Add to batter along with salt. Stir in flour & chocolate chips. Drop by large spoonfuls onto an ungreased cookie sheet.

3. Bake for 10 minutes in the preheated oven, or until edges are golden brown.

Happy fall! XO

GBC photo shoot.

Wed, 10 Oct 2012 19:01:33 +0100

I am lucky to have some really talented friends. One of them is one of my best friends Chantelle Kolesnik. Her & I have known each other since our first day of Junior High when we were put in the same homeroom. We were ugly & awkward. Now we are beautiful swans.. I think. Haha.

Chantelle has been pursuing her career as a journalist/photographer over the past few years, and I've been lucky enough to get to watch her work behind the camera while I'm in front of it! The last shoot we did was actually for the blog, which was lots of fun. Here are some of the shots!

If you are interested in contacting Chantelle for any of your photo needs, please e-mail her at chantellekolesnik@hotmail.com.

Thankful.

Sat, 06 Oct 2012 22:01:43 +0100

It's already Thanksgiving weekend. This post will be a little more of an update/lifestyle post since it's been close to four months since my last blog entry.

I feel really grateful about the last few months. The past year has been a really stretching time for me in a lot of different ways & this summer has provided me with a lot of clarity & direction. Drew & I had a blast at a couple different music festivals here in Alberta, went to one of the most beautiful weddings ever, ate out of our garden, had bonfires & cookouts, went for long walks/bike rides with Salsa and spent lots of great times with family & friends.

This fall has come with some really important changes in our lives. The most exciting part of this is the fact that I have been hired by West Jet as a Flight Attendant! The training has been crazy intense, but has also brought me some amazing new friends that I am also grateful for this Thanksgiving.

I said goodbye to the Dairy Lane this summer, which was so bittersweet. It was a place that gave me some really important people in my life & not being able to see them everyday has been quite the adjustment! And those burgers... amazing. I thought that with West Jet I would be saying goodbye to my serving days, but alas, I could not stay away. I have just been hired at Catch & the Oyster Bar down on Stephen Ave. I am so excited to be working in one of Calgary's best restaurants! I can't wait to refine my serving skills & be working downtown again!

With that update, I will leave you with a photo diary of our summer. These pictures were taken with Instagram, you can follow me - @catgusztak. I hope that this fall season keeps you warm & loved! Happy Thanksgiving y'all!!

Garden update 01.

Fri, 22 Jun 2012 16:28:02 +0100

It's been about a month since we planted our square foot garden. It's been so easy to maintain, in fact other than watering it on the days it doesn't rain, we've barely had to lift a finger. A minor hail storm hurt our tomato & pepper plants a little bit, but here are the pictures of the very successful plants!

This is our garden now. For the before picture, see my previous post.

Our broccoli has just started to flower.

Lettuce wraps may be in our near future.

Our little pea shoots are growing!

And our beans!

The mint has pretty much doubled itself.

Cilantro. We've already harvested two huge bushels.

Dill is my favourite fresh herb. I've used so much already.
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We are really happy about the results so far. If any of you have suggestions on how to nurse tomatoes or peppers back to health, please let me know!

XO

Gardening.

Mon, 21 May 2012 16:55:38 +0100

Last week, we built our very own square foot garden. We are so excited to start incorporating our own home grown ingredients into our cooking. This is the first time I've gardened without the help of my mom's green thumb, so let's hope some of her talent is genetic!

This was a very quick project that only took us a couple hours & $200. That money included all the lumber, soil, plants & seeds.

The great thing about having a contained garden like this is that, at the end of the season, you can keep your soil for next year. (We will be storing ours in burlap sacs.) After a few years of doing this, your soil will be rich in nutrients, and your plants will grow better & better as the years go on.

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Here is what we've planted, from left to right, starting at the top.

Dill / Rosemary&Oregano / Cilantro / Mint&Chocolate Mint
Jalepenos / Lettuce / Broccoli / Peas
Bell Peppers / Shallots / Zucchini / Peas
Tomatoes / Beans / Beans / Tomatoes

I will be updating as the summer goes on!
XO

Beet Salad.

Sat, 05 May 2012 02:33:28 +0100

Beets are one of those vegetables that I always 'think' I love, but somehow when I eat them, I don't love them so much. I'll eat beets cause they're full of antioxidants & they prevent heart disease - boo ya!

I experimented a little last night after buying a bunch of beets on sale - and it was a major success!

I came up with this roasted beet salad - great hot out of the oven or chilled over night!

Roasted Beet Salad

5 Beets - small to medium, cubed
3 Tbsp Balsamic Vinegar
2 Tbsp Olive Oil
Salt & Pepper

1/4 cup Dill - fresh, chopped
1 Tbsp Dijon Mustard
1 Tbsp Maple Syrup

1. Place cubed beets in a oven friendly dish. Coat evenly with balsamic, olive oil & salt & pepper. Cook for one hour at 375'F or until you can stick a fork through the beets.

2. Mix together the dill, mustard & syrup. It may be a paste-like consistency. Mix into the beets until evenly coated.

3. Garnish with fresh dill & serve. Or refrigerate over night to serve it cold.

Enjoy XO

Easter.

Tue, 10 Apr 2012 20:41:02 +0100

I hope everyone had a lovely Easter this year. Unfortunately I was sick with a cold & didn't get to help out much with the big meal. But I documented a bit of the cooking/eating process that happens at my parents house during the holiday weekend. Here are some of the shots.

Dad & Miriam making perogies.

Perogies are like snowflakes. No two are ever the same..

Zesting the lemons for the lemon meringue pie // Spring flowers.

Mom's trick: if you don't want your pastry to fluff up, try this!

Good Friday table.

Sunday Ham.

Sunday pie.

Sunday table.

Hope you all had a great long weekend!!
XO

Bocconcini Salad.

Wed, 04 Apr 2012 16:10:51 +0100

Here's a quick salad. This is Drew's absolute favourite.

Bocconcini Salad

1 1/2 cups Cherry Tomatoes - cut in halves
1 container Bocconcini Cheese
(I like to get the pearls so I don't have to cut them up)
1/3 cup Basil - fresh & chopped
3 tbsp Balsamic Vinegar
1 tbsp Olive Oil
Salt & Pepper

Mix it all together in a bowl & serve! So easy!