Ep. 9 - Fall feels + spooky crafts gone wrong
& it's Canadian Thanksgiving!
“I’m so glad I live in a world where there are Octobers”
— L. M. Montgomery, Anne of Green Gables
Around this time of year is when I typically start thinking ahead and mentally planning for Thanksgiving. In no way is this a stress inducing, consumer motivated or obsessive exercise. It’s a fun mental brain party.
It’s actually one of my favorite activities to go through photos from pervious years. I love finding recipes I researched, ones I tried for the first time, successful previous appetizer platters for the ultimate grazing, the delicious focaccia that everyone devoured (& is now a holiday menu staple), the pies & potatoes I dream of all year.
There’s a balance to this, like anything. I have the joyful advantage of celebrating Canadian Thanksgiving (which is this upcoming Monday) so I get a bit of a head start naturally. Sure, we’re 2 months out from American Thanksgiving, but I like to take the leisurely approach so when the time comes, I can continue at my usual pace of enjoying the season (for myself + with others) living in grateful contentment.
There have only been a handful of Thanksgiving’s in my life of which I didn’t host, and perhaps only one that I didn’t have to cook. I kind of like it that way? I’m here for an excuse to cook for people I love & gather. Honestly. Any excuse.
So if you’ve got some mental ping pong going on about your upcoming holidays, please reach out! I really love to chat all things cooking, hosting, planning and so on.
Speaking of focaccia…
I used to be a devoted Ciao Samin Nosrat Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat focaccia girl. It did me well every time. Now that I’m a sourdough girl, a dear friend of mine swears by A Perfect Loaf, (Maurizio Leo) Focaccia. I’ve definitely made this a few times and enjoy it (and all his other recipes). Not sure which is on the menu this holiday yet.
As for other shapes of gluten…
The good news for me is, any bread baking project that goes awry between now and November gets to gladly be cubed up and popped into the freezer bag for Thanksgiving stuffing. It’s a great move. Highly recommend. Come holiday I’m ready to go with my stuffing mix of homemade bread. It’s the best, you’ve got different types so the flavors are more interesting and it’s one less item to add to my shopping list.
Want to hear a-kind-of sad story?
This is the project that didn’t make it to Pinterest. What was that “Nailed It” terrible cake decoration Netflix show? It was very much that. It started out with such good intentions! I’ve been on this ‘I’m not buying Halloween decorations’ kick (it’s another story, partly due to the fact that there are literally no halloween decorations available after October 1st. Like, what??) But crafts? I’m here for.
The last time I paper machéd I think was Daisy Scouts and we we’re making a globe? or a mask? A mask. Definitely a mask.
So, this started out in my mind as one of those ‘I can see it’… I had this genius idea of making a bunch of giant spiders for the front of the house. So fun, right?
I’m actually laughing as I write this. I’m choosing to give myself immense props for actually taking the time to attempt making this a reality. I think my downfall comes in the form of impatience. The bodies + heads worked great (used balloon). When it came time for the legs, I settled on tinfoil (light, easy to find, moldable, fast to form), but attaching them, ugh. I tried painters tape, spay adhesive, actually paper machèing them (that was a disaster, but the strongest) and finally, packing tape.
OH! I found out spray paint doesn’t stick well to tinfoil. There’s a fun fact for you next time you need it. These guys are currently partially falling apart and deflating on my front bush… lol so I dunno… maybe they’ll be a round 2 with my new learnings.
Part of me feels like, what a waste, right? But, I really enjoyed working with my hands and it was a fun problem solve. Let’s not kid ourselves. We choose. Every moment of every day what we do with our time. It comes down to priorities in which we chose to invest our time. So I chose paper maché. I think I might try for a pottery class or a paint n’ sip next time…
Listening to:
I just found out Food52 has a podcast called, ‘Read Me a Recipe’! If I could explain my elation on this discovery. Most (if not all) of the books I get from the library are cookbooks, but I can’t always be sitting and reading. Now. Now, I can listen to the joy of a recipe. It’s just been the best.
Go-To Cooking Moment Lately:
I found out eggs are a good staple in our house. Typically, I only keep them on hand for baking. For the last few months though, I’ve been keeping a few hardboiled on hand for quick snacking. If you’re in need, here’s my method for hard boiled eggs (+ an ice bath). I decided to step up the egg grab game & started making ‘egg bites’. They’re fun! The post pan cleaning is a bit annoying, I will say. Lots of recipe’s out there, but here’s a quick one if you’re interested in trying —> Love & Lemon’s Egg Bites. They’re easy + quick + protein and great to use up whatever is in the fridge. I’ve been doing mainly roasted red pepper, spinach and maybe some broccoli & a cheese, if on hand. Oh, I tried egg whites, it was fine, but like whatever.
Also, I’ll note: for the vegans in the house - I would totally sub a soft/medium tofu for egg on this one. I would probably try out this recipe, Vegan Egg Muffins.
Gonna leave it at that. Salutations loves. Till next time.
xo Justine
