Thursday, January 23, 2014

Miller Time Friday: EAT, DRINK, LOVE


Well we have reached another Friday!  And that is a lovely thing as it gives us an opportunity to think of the finer things in life....

EAT:

I got a new cookbook from one of my favourite people for my birthday:



It is the companion to the Little Paris Cookbook that Barry bought me for Christmas and it is a delight!!!!

So Wednesday night, I decided to cook its recipe for a chicken bundle (boneless chicken thigh wrapped around shallot and apple and then covered in bacon that is placed on a Kohlrabi/Apple coleslaw.

It looked so good in the cookbook and I can attest that it tasted even better:







However, I did not realize that my vegan son and his vegetarian girlfriend would be there for supper.  Lucky me, I just happened to read Janet's post on mushroom bourguignon  right before I entered the kitchen, and though I only had shitake, not Portobello mushrooms, it mattered not a wit and was so good, I took several mouthfuls and have vowed to make it again next week for the entire family!





Thank you Janet!  It was divine!  And while I cannot match Janet's thriftiness in terms of shopping, since well, we don't have stores that are THAT cheap around here, I must say that we have managed to shave a LOT off of our grocery bill this month through careful planning.  Yay us!


DRINK:

I just KNEW that someone would have already created a Polar Vortex Cocktail and I was right!!!!!

The Polar Vortex Cocktail
                  

3oz Makers Mark
2 Dashes Cinnamon
1 Dash All Spice
2-3 Drops Vanilla Extract
1 tsp Brown Sugar (possibly more based on the sweetness of the bourbon)
3 drops agave nectar (or honey)
Hot water (2 times the amount of other ingredients)
Cinnamon Stick and Lemon Peel (for garnish)
 
Add all ingredients besides water and agave nectar together in a mug. Stir and add hot water
Slowly add 3 drops of Agave Nectar and stir again.
Rim mug with lemon peel and add to drink as a garnish
Add cinnamon stick for garnish if available.
 
Note: Make sure to stir the cocktail occasionally (with the cinnamon stick) to mix the spices that have settled on the bottle of the cocktail. This reinvigorates the flavor of the spices in the drink.



Where is Dennis Quaid when you need him????


LOVE:

One last birthday gift to share.  For years I have been hearing about the restorative and sensual powers of a diptyque candle.

Being a luddite and all I was mixing these wonderful candles up with the line in Raising Arizona when Holly Hunter tells Nicolas Cage that the baby needs a dip-tet shot...





Now of course I was wrong...

So imagine my delight when another dear friend sent me my very first (not last!) diptyque candle!!



I called her right up and lit it while we talked.  It was all very civilized and I felt pampered and tres jolie!

Baies is described thusly:

A bouquet of roses and blackcurrent leaves, a companion to diptyque eau de toilette, L'Ombre dans l'Eau.


I see a pilgrimage to Paris coming on.  Anyone care to join me?


Don't you just love it when the people you love buy you things you love?  I do!

Now THIS is a sensory post!!!!

Have an awesome Friday and stay safe out there!!!

 

52 comments:

  1. I never had a diptye candle either:)
    Glad you got so much nice presents! I cant wait till its friday,after a sleepless night with my little one( stomach virus).
    Happy weekend!

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    1. I am so sorry to here about y'all's illness. Took me four days to recover. I am ready for the cocktail. Mend quickly.

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    2. Oh no Ina, poor you and poor girl! M has had a vile vomity bug too. It's no fun :-(

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    3. Poor you and your daughter! Those all nighters with stomach flu really test our mettle!

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    4. Thanks!
      What a difference a day makes:) She is back in kindergarten,yeah!

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  2. Hi Wendy, that chicken dish sure looks delish! I'll have to look out for that companion book, I think Rachel is adorable and I loved her tv series.

    Lucky you with the Diptyque candle! What a lovely gift - a very nice way to end your birthday week.

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    1. Patricia - I've never seen her TV show, but since I should finish my book rewrite today I am going to treat myself with some of her stuff on YouTube!

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    2. Patricia, Little French will apparently be out in Canada later this year. But if you don't mind making a few ingredient adjustments (mostly what happens with North American editions of Jamie Oliver, Gordon R. et al), you can order online now from Amazon UK.

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    3. Hi GF - thanks, I did notice that it's not available yet on Amazon Canada, but I can wait it out - spending freeze and all!

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    4. Oh, I know, books are such a lovely, but when added up ka-ching spend, and it IS January. Sure will be out in time for holiday gifting.

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  3. Isn't it nice to just have a whole birthday month?! Not a candle person...fire. I like the scented oils so much better... No fire. Raising Arizona is one of my all time favorite movies and while..no matter what...I will always love Nicolas Cage. Turn to the left....

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    1. BB - take it you had bad experience with fire? My favourite line is "Her womb was a barren place where my seed could find no purchase"!

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    2. Thankfully no. Just a fear. The ol "what is the worst way you could die?" Mine is burned alive. I know, I know, I'll succumb to the smoke first but...you would be amazed how many deaths we have here by fire. Too many traitors without smoke detectors. And on that not, have a great day, enjoy your candle :)

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    3. BB, spreading it out sounds SO much better than being belated!

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  4. The chicken looks amazing as does the mushroom dish. It's all making me feel quite famished. Enjoy the candle: such luxury!

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    1. Thanks Jen! Last night we were much simpler: pancakes!

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  5. That looks delicious!! I am always on the lookout for recipes featuring chicken (we don't eat red meat that often around here but I always make an exception for bacon!). It is freezing here in Toronto, that polar vortex is making things miserable. Happy Friday!

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    1. Louise - it is still so cold here, too! We eat a lot of bird here because of my fish allergies and eat vegetarian and vegan fairly frequently as well. It is an awesome recipe!

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  6. I love Raising Arizona. One of my favorite quotes from Ed after Hi returns without a baby because he can't choose which one: "You go right back up there and get me a toddler. I need a baby, Hi. They got more'n they can handle ...
    The candles are wonderful way better than a Dip-tet!

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    1. SC- I LOVE that line! Not everybody loves that movie, but it is one of my favourites! I once taught Deviance at the local university and we watched this movie and they had to do an analysis using all of the deviance theories we'd learned to date. Talk about interesting papers!

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    2. Well I guess that's better than teaching deviants!

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  7. Lovely presents, the chicken looks so tempting, I need a scratch and sniff computer. Ok our winter is quite mild - almost feel like whispering that!

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    1. Ha! You must be the one place, though you folks had a dreadful fall, did you not? how long will it be till we get those scratch and sniff computers?

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  8. Ooh I'm so pleased you've discovered the joy of Diptyque!! They are the most fab candles.... I wish I had a money tree so I could buy more of them! My fave is feu de Bois.
    Your chicken and the mushroom dish sound delicious.
    Have a fab weekend!!

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    1. thanks Ruth! I really love mine and I have gone all Gollum on it, ensuring that folks know it should never be burned in my absence!

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  9. love Rachel Khoo although it makes me guilty bc if she can cook in a closet then most of us have no excuse! Well i dont have a kitchen so still not cooking and I miss it. Yes candles are a great ritual but one must be wary of the candle bill because it can get out of control!

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    1. Hi Naomi - I salute you as I would be climbing the walls if I couldn't cook! My kitchen is an okay size, nothing fancy, but I am amble to whip stuff out of there that's for sure!

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  10. What a lovely post, a perfect cookbook and the glory that is Diptyque! If you're going on a Paris pilgrimage I am IN.
    That is one of my favourite movies... so many funny lines.

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    1. Dani I will be lighting it again tonight and making a toast!

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    2. Ladies, when am I booking my flight for?

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  11. Oh Wendy, that meal looks so delicious! I must say I never had Dyptique candle... You have had beautiful gift. Enjoy the weekend and stay warm!

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  12. i'd love to join you in paris! and i cannot believe it but i have everything on hand to make that polar vortex drink. sounds yummy. glad you like the dish!

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    1. Janet it was wonderful! I bought Portobello today so am all set for sunday dinner!

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  13. Ok, trying again, naughty Blogger ate two comments last night, wanted to say that a small delicious luxury is a Diptyque travel-size candle. My favorite is Feu de Bois, but not in hotels. People have gotten nervous walking by.

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    1. Oh that is too funny! I can see firemen breaking down your door!

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    2. Is that the fig one? Someone gave me one years ago, and it was truly lovely. I'd have to mail order it here!

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    3. No, it actually smells like an exquisite wood fire when you're walking outside on a very cold night... Sometimes aromas really are evocative!

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  14. WHO YOU CALLIN' CHICKEN? Blogger is not liking me or my phone right now. So will suffice to say:
    1. The finest gift any giver can get is knowing a gift will be truly used and loved. (Chuckling at Gollum on it, must use with DH.)
    2. Need more than one cocktail to get through the Polar Vortex. Some would accuse you of corrupting perfectly good bourbon, but right now I will take anything bottom's up that warms me up.

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    1. GF - sometimes one must drink and drink copiously.

      Thus endeth the sermon...

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    2. ANYthing! I would not usually have a hot cocktail, but looking good.

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  15. Rachel Khoo has a new cookbook out? Fabulous! I still don't know how she can crank out those meals in that teeny little kitchen of hers (and two burners and a little toaster oven) ... that's talent. And about Paris, I've been thinking about it alot lately, Hubs and I chatting about going on a vacation there....who knows maybe later this year? Have a great weekend.

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  16. Everyone got their own little pot of those delish mushrooms? How delightful. Will make this with my vegetarian in residence and serve with farro/butter/parmesan. Comfort food is key in the Vortex.

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    1. Lane - you are so right - the polar vortex requires 5 extra pounds and chocolate

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  17. Your chicken looks a lot better than the turkey pot pie I'm nuking. I had a crush on Holly Hunter when Broadcast News came out about the same time as Raising AZ.

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    1. Jimmy - I am a huge Holly Hunter fan, and Albert Brooks in that movie was AMAZING!

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  18. Every recipe I've ever made of Janet's has been spectacular so I'll try this one. Sounds great!! I just got my first Diptyque candles in the mail. I spotted that they were having a special promotion till the end of January and decided to pamper myself. I ordered the trio of small ones, since I had no idea what smelled best. Can't wait to burn one tonight.

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Kindness is a virtue...