It's my birthday and I can party if I want to......

I happen to have turned a rather BIG number this month and I'm celebrating BIG time.  It's been an awesome couple of weeks ('cause turning a big number means you get to celebrate for weeks at a time, not just one day!).

Limo rides, tea in Niagara on the Lake, spa weekend, the play Wicked, dinners, celebrations, and a surprise party to end all surprise parties.

I've been terribly spoiled by friends and family.  I'm so grateful and appreciative for all the love and attention surrounding me.  I'm very blessed to be turning this magical number.  For those of you lamenting turning a year older, be grateful that you are still here to turn a year older!

When I reflect back on the past 50 years (or the years that I can remember!), I don't feel old, or older, nor do I wish to be younger.  I'm liking this age a lot.  I don't feel the need to be someone I'm not, or to put on act to please others.  I'm content with myself and very content with my life.  Sure there are things I would change and characteristics about myself that I'm aware of and try to work on, but all in all, it's been a great ride.

I'm truly blessed and grateful to be here turning this magical age.  So no, I don't wish to turn back the clock, I only wish the "clock" would slow down a little.  I feel like I blinked and the past decade sped by.

Thanks to all of my family and friends who shared this wonderful milestone celebration with me.  I love you all!

P.S.  The amazing cakes were all made by my friend Laurie. 

And they taste as good as they look. 

Thanks Laurie for all of your wonderful baking!

1000 Awesome Things

If you're not familiar with his website, check out Neil Pasricha's http://1000awesomethings.com/.

Neil's amazing wit and insight are also captured in his book entitled "Book of Awesome". 

Here are a few of my "awesome things":

• my first cup of coffee in the morning
• quietly listening to birds chirping in the early morning
• the early morning mist on a lake up north
• hearing the call of loons
• sitting in front of a cozy fire
• watching my kids play a game together
• baking on a wintry, blustery day
• good friends

What are some of your awesome things? 

Raspberry Cream Cake

This recipe was originally published in Canadian Living many years ago.  It remains one of our favourite cakes.  It's so pretty to look at with the layers of cake, cream, and raspberries and very light at the end of a meal.  It's a bit tedious to make the layers, but well worth the effort.  Enjoy!

 

Recipe:
Wafers:

6           egg whites

1 1/2     cups sugar

1 cup     all purpose flour

3/4 cup unsalted butter, melted

2 Tbsp   water

1 Tbsp   vanilla extract

Raspberry Sauce:

2 pkgs (300 g) frozen raspberries, thawed

1/2 cup instant dissolving sugar

Cream Layer:

2 cups    whipping cream

1/3 cup  icing sugar

Instructions:
Wafers:  Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper or grease and flour sheets.  Trace an 8" round circle on each sheet.
In large bowl, lightly whisk egg whites, gradually whisk in sugar, flour, butter, water and vanilla just until blended.  Drop 1/3 cup (75ml) of the batter into the baking pan.  Spread the batter evenly.  Bake at 375 degrees for 8 to 10 minutes, just until the edges begin to brown.  Remove from oven, let cool slightly, remove wafers from baking sheet and let cool completely on a flat surface.  Wafers can be made ahead of time and stored for up to 2 days in an airtight container. 

Tip: I make the cake layers ahead of time and freeze them between layers of parchment paper.

Raspberry Sauce:  In food processor or blender, puree raspberries until smooth.  Pass through strainer to remove seeds.  Whisk in sugar.  Use immediately or refrigerate for up to 3 days.

Cream Layer: In bowl, whip cream with icing sugar until soft peaks form.

Assembly:  Place 1 wafer on serving plate.  Spread with 1/2 cup whipped cream.  Drizzle with 1/4 cup raspberry sauce.  Repeat with remaining layers.  Spread top of cake with a layer of whipped cream.  May decorate with fresh raspberries, drizzle with remaining sauce or leave as is.



Do some good....

Never underestimate the power of kindness.  We get so busy in our lives that we forget to do the little things which mean so much. All it takes is a kind word, a wink of the eye, a bright smile to make someone’s day. Imagine how you make people feel when you hold the door for for a harried mother or help an elderly woman with her packages. Little things that take little time, yet mean so much.

Little things that make the world a better place. What may seem like a small gesture on our part may actually make a big difference in someone's world.  No matter our situation in life, it's easy to spread kindness. Few of us are meant to be the Mother Theresa’s or Oprah’s of the world (and God bless them), but we can still make a real difference in people’s live.Start off small - one or two acts of kindness a week, graduate to one every day, and soon you will be incorporating these small acts of kindness into your daily routine without even realizing it. It will become second nature to be kind, helpful, and thoughtful. And couldn’t we all use a little more of that in our lives?

Here are a few ideas to get you started:

• When you’re in line at your favourite coffee drive-through in the morning, pay for the person’s coffee behind you.  You will make their day!
• Put a little extra change into someone’s parking meter who’s time is running out.They won’t ever know, but they’ll appreciate that they don’t have a ticket on their windshield!
• Volunteer at a food bank……

“No act of kindness, no matter how small, is ever wasted.”

Our Fall weather has been spectacular!

Wow, our Fall weather has been amazing!  It's been a beautiful, warm fall in our part of the world (southern Ontario). 

Nature's canvas is exploding with burnished oranges and golds creating a tapestry of colour.  The squirrels are going crazy gathering food for the upcoming winter and getting ready for the hibernation.  It's fun to see them scurrying to and fro, unable to decide which side of the street they should be on.

Enjoy this wonderful time of year as soon, we too will be hibernating!

Potatoe Pizza

When we were on our honeymoon in Italy (back in the stone ages!), we pretty much ate and drank our way through this beautiful country.  One of the very unique dishes we came upon, was Potatoe Pizza.  Now that may sound funny, but boy was it good!  For years, we've looked for Potatoe Pizza and have never found it.  So we decided to recreate our own.

And if we do say so ourselves, it's pretty darn good!  Buon Appetito!

 

Recipe:

1 fresh pizza dough, proofed

200g fontina cheese

175 g mozarella

2 medium sized red-skinned potatoes

Rosemary, preferably fresh, but dried is okay too

Mushrooms (from a can)

1/2 onion

Shortening

• Thinly slice 1/2 onion.  Slowly cook over low heat until brown and caramelized.
• Thinly slice the potatoes.  Cook in the slices in a microwave oven just barely covered with water.  Cook until tender.  Drain and blot dry.
• Spread shortening on a large pizza pan.   Spread the pizza dough evening to cover the pizza pan, making sure the dough reaches the edges of the pan.
• Grate the fontina cheese and mozarella cheeses.  Spread over the pizza crust. 
• Drain the mushrooms from the can and spread over the cheese.
• Spread the potatoe slices covering the entire pizza. 
• Finely dice the rosemary.  Spread the rosemary over the entire pizza.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper.
• Drizzle the entire pizza, but mostly the crust and the potatoes with olive oil.
  Do not put the onion slices on yet as they will burn.

Bake the pizza at 500 degrees on lowest rack in the oven for 15 minutes. Remove and sprinkle the onion slices over the entire pizza. Return to the oven for 5 more minutes.

If the pizza browns too much on the top, lower to the oven to 450 degrees.

Notes:
To "Poof" the pizza dough, place the dough in an oiled glass bowl, covered with plastic wrap or foil.  Place in the oven at 100 degrees for approx. 2 hours.  The dough will double in size.  If you cannot heat your oven to 100 degrees, simply warm the oven at 200 degreees for approx. 5 minutes.  Turn off oven and place dough in the oven.