Rhubarb Crumble

Rhubarb crumble is one of my all time favourite desserts. I think I love it so much because it reminds me of my mom and childhood. Every spring she would pick the rhubarb from our garden (one of the very few things we could grow at such a high altitude), and make a huge crumble in a big rectangular ceramic dish that she still uses to this day. I love the contrast between the tart rhubarb and the sweet topping.

However, I stand alone for my love of rhubarb in my household. D hates it, and usually refuses to eat anything involving the tart fruit. I have a mission this year. To get him loving rhubarb. I have succeeded with coconut in the past, and I have faith that I can do it again this year. So, today I made rhubarb crumble, and next week I plan on making rhubarb cupcakes. I am hoping the cupcakes will seal the deal, as coconut cupcakes are what made him fall in love with coconut last year. I make a mean cupcake. So here is the recipe for the crumble:

Rhubarb Crumble


4 cups sliced rhubarb
1/3 cup white sugar

3/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup flour (I used white, but anything would probably work)
1/2 cup old fashioned rolled oats
1/3 cup butter, softened
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. nutmeg


Preheat oven to 375. Place rhubarb in a bowl and coat with sugar. Set aside while you make the topping.

 In a separate bowl, mix together remaining ingredients with your hands until butter is crumbly. Pour rhubarb into a greased pan (any size is fine, the smaller your container, the longer it will take to cook all the way through), and cover with topping. Bake for 30 minutes, or until rhubarb is soft and the top is golden brown. Serve warm with ice cream.

Wish me luck, I am going in armed with rhubarb!

Brenna

Hello Again!

Well hello there! Sorry for the huge gap in between posts- life has been busy and somewhat boring lately, so I was having a wee bit of writer's block. But a new little gadget that I received as a gift last night has reawakened my blogging spirit!

Here is the history of my blogging up until today:

I lost the cord to my camera quite some time ago, so in order to upload pictures onto my posts I had to go through quite the process:

1. Take photos.
2. Take memory card out of camera and place into D's laptop, which can read them, unlike mine. Place USB flash drive into his computer too (after searching for lost USB flash drive for at least 10 minutes every time).
3. Transfer pictures off of memory card and put them onto USB flash drive.
4. Put USB flash drive into my computer and then transfer them to my computer.
5. Upload pictures onto blog.
6. Scream out in frustration (not really, but you get the point)

So last week was our anniversary and we finally got around to exchanging gifts last night. This was part of my gift:

On the left is an amazing little gadget that will read my memory card and has a handy little USB on it that plugs straight into my laptop, eliminating steps 2-4! Amazing! The book is written by a fellow blogger, and I am quite excited to dig into it. 

These bowls were another part of my gift, and I am quite excited that they have BPA free lids and they are oven safe.

The gift I gave to D was one that I have been looking for for quite some time:

A cast iron waffle maker! This will be so much fun to use, and I can't wait to get it seasoned up and ready to go! It is next to impossible to find an electric waffle iron that is not coated in Teflon, so we have gone without waffles for the past few years. I am happy to say that weekend waffle breakfasts will no longer be a thing of the past thanks to this little guy!

And finally, we made it to the market for the first time on Saturday and I got some great organic produce, despite it being so early in the season.

Organic rhubarb and two bags of greens. One was baby spinach for my smoothies, and the other was a great spring mix including baby chard, arugula, and spinach. I cannot wait for the market to be in full swing so we can rely on it solely for our produce. 

Hope you are having a great start to your week,

Brenna

Frustration + Hope

Well, still no kitchen. The cabinets could be up to another 3 weeks, which is incredibly frustrating. We have had a temporary countertop put in so we can at least chop vegetables and do some cooking; but the only sink is a giant low one in the laundry room that drains horribly and is very awkward to use. This whole move has put me through a loop. I don't feel like myself at times, and am finding it incredibly hard to start making this place homey when we have tons of boxes floating around that we cannot unpack because they are all filled with kitchen stuff. I cannot cook to the extent that I want, so I feel completely unhealthy and lacking in energy. I have somehow lost my vitamins, an almost full bottle, and refuse to fork out another $60 for another bottle, but really have no idea where they are.

It is incredibly easy to be negative and miserable in this environment, but I am really trying to stay positive and just be patient. I do not want to lose hope that this place will never be home, because I know that soon enough it will feel that way. It is really amazing what a lack of kitchen can do to your morale. But today, I had a mini breakthrough. I baked a cake. And it turned out delicious. I also cooked a proper dinner that turned out very well. The funny thing about feeling down and unhappy is that my cooking skills seemed to leave with my positive attitude. I guess the saying that love is the most important ingredient in food is true! I put love into the food today, listening to the freshly dug out radio and smiling through the whole process. I did not let the fact that it took me twice as long as normal to make the cake get me down, and I did not freak out when it took me 20 minutes to find the beaters and cake pan. I just went with it.

Life feels quite different these days, both in good and bad ways. The good way is that school is amazing, and I look forward to my class every day. It is distancing me from my negative work environment, which is great, and it is really giving me an idea of what I want my future to be. So it just goes to show that change, although very hard for a person like me who LOVES her routines, can bring a whole new light to any aspect of our lives.

Now if only I could drive to Ontario and pick up those cabinets myself! Is it not ridiculous that it is apparently impossible to manufacture cabinets in B.C.? I don't think that is too much to ask...

Life As I See It

Here are a few snapshots from our life these days:

This is our new kitchen! Well, actually, this is the room that will (hopefully) soon contain our kitchen! Right now all that it contains is a working fridge and stove, our dining table piled with items, and many, many boxes. We are in limbo because the cabinets have not arrived quite yet, but should hopefully be arriving by the weekend. I am trying to remain positive, and look at this room as a space full of potential, not chaos. 

This corner makes me smile, as it is organized and homey feeling, which is rare right now.

Retro fridge that has these great egg holders! No more searching high and low for the carton to count how many we have left!

A happy boy who has finally emerged from under the bed to explore the scary new world. 

And finally, my notebook and text for my course, which just began today.

A lot has changed in these past weeks, something that I have had to really adjust to. I like routine, so this has been trying, but as each little corner of our new home becomes familiar, I am looking more and more forward to this new chapter we have begun together. And as soon as that kitchen is up and running, I think I will get back into my groove, and really start making this place look (and smell!) like home.

Brenna