Roasted Pepper Season.

 

I don't think we had roasted peppers in at least 3 yrs..pre covid..

And we had none left ..for a long while..

So we went to my fave market in Mtl..

and bought a bushel of peppers.

An oil bath with garlic and basil is prepared..and the peppers are prepped..Halved..seeded etc..

then placed on the grill to roast for ap 20-25 mins..

Once nice and charred they are put in a bag for a further 20-25 minutes..The skin comes off so easily afterwards.

Into the EVOO bath they go..layer upon layer..to be turned occasionally during the process..That bath infuses the already delicious roasted peppers with garlic and basil.

Ap 4 hrs later they are bagged and frozen..

Ap 13.4 lbs.

Gold:)

Ive put a lot of the gardens to bed..

Feels good...even  the zinnias and calendula..nasturtiums..marigolds are still pretty..only kept the calendula..

The bees love them so why rush.

I had ordered a special cookie cutter /stamp for 2 of my grandsons football team.

Perfect design.I was more excited than the boys tbh:)The cookies were a hit ..the stamp was ..oh where did you get that? LOL

But look..another great perfect for stamping recipe..

from Curly Girl Kitchen..and amazing baker/photographer.

You can find the recipe here.. Chocolate shortbread stamped cookies.

No coffee in my icing.

We're piled up in beautiful fall leaves and football games :)

Enjoy your weekend..

~Already..October~

 

Fall is so much in the air..Probably because it IS fall now..

The weather has been cooler than expected so now the leaves are starting to turn..

That apple cake above is so good..

I like a loaf cake  it's not too big..

And you know what? This is a sweet I enjoy.A sliver;)

I found the recipe on TIKTOK..Delish by Elmi.

In French..I have translated below..

The only things in bloom..Sedum..lots..Hydrangeas..zinnias..cosmos and marigolds..pots of annuals i.e. geraniums,lantanas..

Herbs still lovely..new crop of dill happening..

A rose here and there..

I wanted to start fall clean up and I DID ..:)

 To everyone who thinks gardening is a watering can and snippers..LOL

I am still shovel pruning Annabelles..  I cut back the front of our home including it's surrounding gardens..I have the back and planters left but it still looks ok..this tooks 3 days..not full days..

Hard gardening 2-3 hrs max now..

I have spent some time painting during the previous  wet chilly days..all the ones shown here are from Chris Petri tutorials on YouTube.

I love them.

Relaxing..zen..no obligations..

I don't mind my Amish woman..my man..needs work..

The tutorials are free  ..he does this out of love of watercolor and teaching.

Amazing.

If anyone out there wants to try:) This is a great way to learn.

So La Recette for this delicious cake..

3 eggs

150 grams of sugar

1 envelope of vanilla sugar

175 grams melted butter

1/2 tsp of cinnamon

200 grams flour

1/2 packet baking powder (ap 1 1/2 tsps)

2 apples peeled and cored then sliced

turbinado sugar on top before baking.

I added a touch of cardamom because we love it.

His instructions say bake 180C for 30-35 mins

So mine took ap 1 hr.I kid you not.

And it didn't get as dark as his and I was happier.

Well worth it..

To see the way he made it..

you can see here..I think it's important to see how he makes it..you will then know how to add the ingredients

It's just so perfect.

Through the yrs..apart from bookmarked cooking and baking books I have a file folder of tried and true desserts with many apple desserts clipped together with an Advil paper clip lol..

Anyone who inherits my recipes will have a headache:)

Never in a million years..

 Would I have said..I would be spending so much time on football fields.

I was the youngest of three..the other two being boys.. 10 and 7 yr difference..I don't remember much as my youngest brother moved out at 17 and I was 10..

But I do remember in the corner of my mind..Sports being the shows of choice.:(

And here I am at 68.. enjoying watching my grandsons play football..not being hurt..but playing.

No one handsomer than ours lol in their uniforms to me.

So that's where we were all weekend:)

This is hands down my fave easiest no knead bread..

Rock Recipes.

I bake it in that huge clay baker..

 

Put in a cold oven ..450 ..45 minutes..

Remove lid.. ap 10 mins.

It's just perfect.And toasted? Yes please.

So weird.. my tomato plants look awful..burnt diseased etc..still producing but ugly ugly..and sparse like tomatoes hanging from nothing..

and then in my garlic patch where I literally threw things..look..the rosemary is gargantuan..in a pot. the nasturtiums and tomatoes have taken over the plot..and the calendula are starting..

Everything looking so healthy..amazing..

One thing i love about jumbo zinnias..almost my height are the varieties that came to be.I love them all and find them very photogenic without trying:)

Winner winner.

On a sadder note we have a variety of hydrangeas here the first to bloom and knock socks off are Annabelle..we have them here and tehre and bordering the garage in front and house..  look..never has a summer been so dry to produce this..

Awful.Surprised our grass is green.

A formation of geese honking as I just took these pics flew by.

Very chilly this Am ..40's..

Leaves are starting to turn..I'm just not in a rush.We had 2 months of rain in one day two days ago..leaving many Mtl streets flooded..

we were fine..

On a cheerier. note.. bear with me..:)

Some football pics..:)

Friday Night Lights for Max and Saturday was Lucas..

Both teams have pro photographers that take awesome pics..

M Sébastien Gervais is amazing.

I don't know Lucas' but I love this photo they took.

To watch the boys and all the camaraderie is heartwarming.

I told Lucas I have great admiration for him.

From high school in French to college in English..

new team..all new people except one friend.

New everything.

Imagine that.

I'm in awe.

Noah walked over for lunch one day and will again:)He too jumped to a new school..

We took Oli out for his birthday..a tradition we didn't do for 2.5 yrs due to Covid.

A little tradition of lunch out and shopping one on one..

Not sure Ive mentioned how very nice all these boys are.(lol)

My heart actually swells and my face changes when I see them.

A sparkle in my eye.

And that's it and how fast is September going ?Yikes..

Oh a few good shows..

Apple TV

Blackbird..Ray Liotta's last work I think.

Bad Sisters..Bono's daughter who was in the Knickis one of the sisters.

Trying..funny and cute..

Others..

GBBO season 10 ..just finished.

House of Dragons..

Bon weekend..its almost upon us!

Seeds..tomato talk.. and pinks:)

 

I've started my seed saving..dill is so easy and prolific..and you can sow throughout summer to always have.

I have to tell you something about tomatoes..I'm not the only one here in QC crying over tomatoes..but at last they are starting..first time ever growing larger Italian ones..

I had this one covered in organza to keep the squirrels and groundhogs and chipmunks away as this one was heavy and lying lowish..It weighed in at 1.3 lbs!I called it her wedding dress.

So as you know my tomatoes plants burned at the time of transplant and I've been fighting everything to keep them alive..but check the two next photos..that's my garlic bed..self sown tomato plants I put in there..  and self sown Nasturtiums were there..My rosemary in the corner..No one is eating these tomato plants ..planted so late..and I may get tomatoes..Two plants are filling the whole bed....Time will tell..

Just saying..perhaps I 'll plant a bit of garlic in my tomato plant bed..

And let some roam free.

The bees are everywhere pollinating everything even tomato blooms now..zinnias..  all kinds of flowers.And go figure ..the hummingbirds don't go to my feeder they go to my zinnias..

I love the loose bunches of zinnias I bring in..boundless supply it seems..

I have to say I am swayed by pretty ..when I saw this Rosé Wine vinegar in a limited edition bottle  offered at Costco..I added it to J's list.

Not extravagant.

I can't wait for new shows on TV Like Yellowstone..

Enjoying the GBBO..the contestants always forge a way into my feelings..

Not liking Inventing Anna.Harsh words but I can even doze off..She's too good an actress to have that awful accent..and did she really bamboozle all those people..unbelievable.

Loved Grantchester,maybe I mentioned that already..

The Bear on Disney channel..I told my daughter about it who has that channel..she's enjoying it..It's with Lipp from Shameless..

Thursday is September first..I know it is not just me..but..

time is just flying by.

Football is here..

I never thought in my life that I would be looking forward to home football games..lol to football games in general:)

4 different teams this year.

I bought a roll up blanket on sale at Indigo.

I get chilly at nothing.

And only have eyes for my 4 alphabet boys.

Take care..

Honestly..and I now have a 47 yr old:)

 The gardens feel like the end of August..so parched and dry..and bug eaten..

I cut back all my lilies apart from a very few..all shastas..The peony leaves are turning brown.. honestly..  it's all going to pot.

Except the zinnias and hydrangeas..

And some cute marigolds:) Some phlox but quite a lot has been eaten by the chafers..

The 4 o'clocks are just starting..rudbeckias..russian sage..

Ever since we moved here I have had Japanese Anemones around our small pond..A lot..dancing in the breeze attracting bees  bees bees..

NONE..These are true blues but pink for me..

Across the street they have gone forth and multiplied..Imagine that.

Honestly..

The destruction of squirrels..

I always said a good time to go away was  September as my gardens were  pretty much done by Sept..August is the new September.

And gardening has changed with the coming of Japanese Beetles..  I was used to rose chafers.. 2 yrs ago or so beetles appeared.Those are lasting much longer.

And squirrels never ate my tomatoes..never..I had such beauties..

Garlic is my first love now..

Squirrels don't eat garlic..I have tried planting garlic close..I'll get closer next yr..I'll plant in between.

Definitely not starting indoors..

Nope..no way..enough self-punishment.

They are slow this yr and Babette's Feast for the squirrels.

I HATE squirrels.

There.I said it.I won't change my mind.

Living in the country has so many advantages..but the wildlife is not always friendly:(

Celebrating our eldest daughter's bday today..it was the 10th..I was up at 5.30 AM..why?

Most of the things are prepped..

That's me in a nutshell..Never late.

Every home we lived in when the girls were young...my husband  built them a playhouse..this was the first..La maison Sous Les Arbres I called it..She's in pink..and white (second pic) I made that..never had zippers I didn't know how:) I guess I was 25 ..oyoyoy..

My red dodge dart out there..:)

I like everything matchy matchy..she's in the dark Polly Flinders below..they looked like they were now fed up w/ pic taking..

I loved those purses..I was maybe 26 by then..I was all bout Priscillas and gingham..Raggedy Ann's to match..bows..barettes..

Recital days..

I never wanted them to be cold;)

La Maison sous les arbres~

I think I loved those years the very best..until we had our grandsons.

I have always loved children..Embroidered her little dress..

♥