As Rosh Hashana (the Jewish New Year) approaches (starting tonight), all kinds of "mental clean-up" decisions get made.  There’s no better time, than now, to clear upsets and "make nice."

When others don’t know what they want, it’s better to give them space and not get caught up in their vicissitudes of the moment.  We all need to see the light sooner or later.  But, everyone’s light won’t go on at the same time.  Some lights flicker, others act as motion-detectors.  Many need new bulbs.

Often, we can only count on our own power source.  When others send mixed messages, we need to think about moving on, however hard that is to do, and as this poem hints:

Contradiction

Contradiction
An affliction

One thing said, another done
One thing thought, another wanted

You don’t see, others can
You don’t know, others will

Real you wanting to get out
Real you wanting to shout

Needing it all
Has you stall

Going against the tide
Not about pride

A bigger picture is clear
Not in touch with what is dear

Self matters
But so do others

Self knows
Frustration grows

Back and forth
Forth and back

Knowing what’s right
But keeping up the fight

Others see
Others change

Fair exchange
Or so you’d think…

Always carry your own flashlight as back-up, and you won’t be caught in the dark.  Others’ power surges shouldn’t flatten your batteries…

 

Cookies and scones come in various sizes.  Do you realize you’ll usually eat the same amount regardless of size?  This is why I’ve come up with three sizes:  small, medium, and large (as shown in the photo above).  The small are just for a quick nibble.  It’s easy to eat 1 - 4  of them at any time between meals.  The medium are a little more substantial.  These are for formal snack-times. 1 -2  are recommend at a sitting. The large are meal, or meal-replacement size, where 1 to 1.5 should suffice.  It’s hard to find healthy store-baked treats. Instead of a trip down there, and in the same amount of time, it’s possible and easier to make your own!

Please note, I choose to use Bob’s Red Mill products for most of my baking needs.  Their range and quality are superb.  (You can find these at Wholefoods and many other health-conscious grocery stores.)

Bits of Everything
(The not quite a cookie cookie)

• 4 cups ground almonds
• 2 - 3  cups muesli
• 2 cups oats
• 1 cup oat bran flour
• 8 oz honey
• quarter cup flax seeds
• 1 cup mixed dried fruit (including Goji Berries)
• 8 egg whites
• Spray oil
• Baking powder

Quantities might not be exact.  Experiment, and so long as the mixture holds together and can be molded you should be fine.

Mix everything together then form and bake on three different trays, till light golden brown.  (20 - 25 minutes at 375 degrees in a preheated oven).  Check that there’s no sog in the middle of the cookies, with a tester. Remove from the trays as soon as possible, to cool.

Amounts made:  16 large (meal replacement size);  24 medium (snack size); 35 small (bite size)

Garden Scones
(Savory)

• sage
• chives
• 3 cups oat flour
• 1 cup quinoa flour
• 1 cup flax seed flour
• 1.5 cups probiotic yogurt
• 4 eggs
• 1 stick of butter
• 2 cups grated goat cheese
• 2 tablespoons mustard
• salt and pepper

Quantities might not be exact.  Experiment, and so long as the mixture holds together and is dough-like, you should be fine. 

Mix everything together and dust the baking tray with quinoa flour. Once they’ve been cut, place the scones closely together for baking.  Preheat the oven to 450 degrees then bake for 15 minutes, or till golden brown and firm (no sog in the middle).

These scones can be served with butter or goat cheese spread, even humus or advocado—whatever takes your fancy.

These are called "Garden Scones" because I was fortunate to use my own homegrown herbs.

 

Growing up, I spent a lot of time in the kitchen watching my mother.  She’s still meticulous following recipes, even after cooking for almost 70 years.  No exact instructions for me! Observations and taste buds take over. With a little understanding of formulas and ingredients, I’ve discovered it’s hard to go wrong.  Also, cooking in bulk is cost-, time-, and mess-efficient.  Make large quantities and freeze—even, and especially, as a "one."  Nice to have someone else to cook for/appreciate what you’ve made. However, dipping into the freezer for meals and treats prepared in advance can feel like someone else might have cooked for you!  Self-nurturing, by choice or out of necessity, can be as creative as it is satisfying…and healthy.

Soups need sautéed onions and lots of vegetables, and should be puréed/liquidized.  Adding fruit juice and garden herbs makes them all the more nutritious and tasty.  Fall is a great time to store up for winter, especially when there’s such interesting produce being harvested locally.

8 Squash Medley

• 8 giant squash (each one being of a different variety)—baked till cooked through
• 6 giant white onions—sautéed till golden brown
• EVOA (Extra virgin olive oil) to sautée the onions
• 2 cups apple sauce
• 3 cups orange cranberry juice
• salt and pepper to season
• chives (from garden if possible)—cut up and added after making purée

Blend all ingredients together for a thick sweet main-course soup.

Curried Parsnip with Caraway

• 4 bags parsnips (approximately 1 - 2lbs each)—baked till cooked through
• 6 giant white onions—sautéed till golden brown
• EVOA (Extra virgin olive oil) to sautée the onions
• 1.5 cups orange cranberry juice
• 3 cups orange cranberry juice
• salt and pepper to season
• curry powder to season
• caraway seeds to season

Blend all ingredients together for a thick spicy main-course soup.

 

Earlier this month, I paid renewals for my my driver’s license and vehicle plate.  Funny, the envelope that was mailed to me with the forms for these didn’t include anything about a new $60 Toronto resident’s tax.  Since I’d been out-of-town a lot over the summer, I thought I might have missed news coverage of it.  Apparently not.  Most agree this one got snuck in without hoopla. Astonishing?  Or, Perhaps we’re all paying too much attention to US politics?

At College Park’s (long-lined) Ontario Service Counter, there was no explanatory literature, or prominent signage.  The only thing necessary to know, it seemed, was that if you didn’t pay up there and then you couldn’t make the other renewals.  Employees working at the counter weren’t afraid to mention that they didn’t agree with the tax (they’d be paying it too).  When I got home, I pulled up a September 1 (08) Globe ad Mail article which offered more details. Then, when speaking to friends and acquaintances who drive in Toronto but live in the suburbs, their snigger wasn’t surprising.  This extra charge didn’t apply to them!

From Sarah Palin’s lipstick to John McCain serenely placing his rose on the September 11 memorial at Ground Zero, while Barack Obama appeared to toss his, most of us (myself included) have been more engaged with what’s been happening on the other side of the border than with local politics and consequences. (Please check out the drinks menu at the Gladstone’s Melody Bar, in the photo above.)

Let’s remember that Canada has its own (40th) Federal Election October 14, 08. Americans might not know about this, but many Canadians don’t either…  On its eve, it seems, the Conservatives have been chopping arts funding right, left, and center. This fact may influence artists’ votes!

p.s. Regular readers might remember my Potty Pots in Rosedale (three-entry) series, from last year. Elections in Canada, it appears, can coincide with interesting displays of how tax payers’ money is allocated, locally as well as nationally. (For more links, please check out the third entry in the series: Potty Post in Rosedale, Part Three—As Elections Near, September 15, 2007).

 

There’s no better way to get to know your own city than by having visitors in town—a chance to do things you wouldn’t usually, and become more aware of what’s on offer. This past weekend was a good one, event- and weather-wise, to check out places and happenings I hadn’t before:

• The Beach Celtic Festival
Organizers made a point of stating this was a "Beach" activity (not a Toronto one), clarifying, to friends from New York and Boston how the Beaches are a distinct community (from Toronto) and proud to be one. There was a fun atmosphere and a variety of performers.  Fathers as well as daughters had a chance to display their community spirit and dance routines!  (Please see photo at the start of this blog entry.)

• Queen West Art Crawl
Knowing the amount of work and expense that goes into putting up individual displays, I’m not sure how participants might have felt or how the jurying and set-up processes went.  The overall impression/quality appeared mediocre and disappointing to those from other parts.

• Paws Way
This is a "pet discovery" center that appeals to all, non-pet-lovers included, with its animal heroism exhibits and themed lecture series.  The hours and information services are also user-friendly, especially for later on a rainy Saturday afternoon.  (Not clear who the creators/sponsors of this venture are, but the Purina logo is included.)

• The Drake Hotel
Yes, they do make the best afternoon tea scones in town (apart from my own), and the comfort food at the bar isn’t bad either.  Edamame followed by grilled cheese, with champagne, proved an interesting combination!

• Gladstone Hotel
Their Saturday night Karaoke is a lot of fun, for participants and listeners!

• Chippy’s on Queen
If you’ve not tasted the "real thing," these may be as good as it gets in the ‘hood. We didn’t like the cooks touching money and (?), and then the food, without washing their hands in between.  But, a line was building, and maybe they were short-staffed. Can’t really go wrong with chips when they’re home-cut. However, the batter on the fish was a tad crunchy/heavy…  That said, it’s a nice concept and there’s a good menu and price range. The $7.99 (cod) can be enough for two!

For 2$ a bag you can check in your luggage at the curb, if traveling domestically in the US.  I did this for a Chicago - Boston flight recently.  Inside the terminal, the lines were long.  But for a fee that many others seemed to be paying also, you could, essentially, queue skip.  Interesting process, the lines inside make you want to check-in outside.  But, if there were no lines inside, a revenue-generating op like this might not be possible.  Convenient?  Then there was the plane.  The first one we sat on, for about an hour, had engine problems, so another identical model was prepared a few gates down.  Another hour on, all passengers had deplaned and replaned.  Only two hours late into Boston, frequent flyers appearing unsurprised. Just a typical day with United?  No fuss and no apology messages necessary?  At least that’s what I perceived as someone who isn’t terribly familiar with US domestic aviation practices.

Please check out some of the other entries on this blog about airports and airline travel:

• BMI (British Midland):  First Impressions, September 6, 2008
 
• Airport News Stands: Jennifer Aniston, “Straggler Single”: Uncommon Attention, Common Problems. (Poetry about Dating and Related Blog Entry Links Included), August 22, 2008

• Charter Flights, May 26, 08

• Planes: Flights of Feeling, May 21, 2008

• Traveler’s Poem: From Airport to Destination, May 18, 2008

 

 

Last Friday evening, passing through Yorkville, I noticed a bunch of empty tables:  at Sassafraz, Café Nervosa, Dimmi, Remy’s, Lettieri—all the usual hangout corners.  At  6:30 - 7:00 pm you could take your pick.  So, spontaneously, I decided to stick around:  choose a restaurant where I’d not been before—Flow.  Since the dogs were with me, this worked out well. They could perch on the perimeter hedge of the patio in the comfort of their travel bag, with a view out onto the Hazleton Hotel and One.  The waiters were attentive and kind.  A large bowl of iced water was served to them, and a sliver of duck from a complimentary amuse gueule.  My own dinner of blackened cod and root fries, followed by meringue, was also nicely presented and delicious.  It’s very easy to (be made to) feel uncomfortable when dining solo. But, for some reason, I had the contrary experience here.  By 8ish the Ronnie Hawkins Band was heating up on the roof of an adjacent parking lot and the rain had started to come down.  The night was just beginning, and the opening weekend of the Toronto International Film Festival underway…

Fed up with Air Transat’s/Thomas Cooke’s Toronto-Manchester (UK) service (described in a previous blog entry, Charter Flights, May 26, 08), I’ve been fortunate to be able to try a different Manchester-bound routing.  Happening to be in Chicago last month, I flew BMI from there to Manchester, direct (and back).  The results were positive:  a more comfortable plane, friendlier crew, better baggage allowance and food, a nice variety of free magazines, personal entertainment systems in each seat, and less fuss at booking and check-in, also 20-minute early arrivals (both ways) with speedy baggage delivery.

The only disappointment was Chicago O’Hare’s International Terminal, where there are limited nutrition options once you go through security. (Bring your own food!)  Toronto’s renovated Pearson can definitely set an example here (if you are up for paying the price).  BMI doesn’t have a Toronto service, unfortunately. 

Interesting to note:  BMI crew stay at the Holiday Inn, Chicago Mart Plaza—another favorite of mine!

 

Labor Day weekend comes around too quickly for those who live in colder climates.  It marks the official end of a summer that’s always too short, and (commercial) reminders pop up everywhere, heralding harvest-time.  (Chrysanthe)mums are beautiful flowers, but they’re also hardy—can withstand crisper nights and mornings.  Then there’s the amazing array of squash that start to fill grocers’ stands. Time to make purée (adding cider, onions, and apple) and stock the freezer with vats of home-made soup, ready for dreary winter days ahead. Even those of us who don’t think we have rituals usually do. Maybe they’re as simple as displaying and sampling seasonal produce!  Mums and squash are two of my most familiar, and favorite, overtures into fall.  What are yours?