Favourites Friday

I am being bad today.  I took a day off from work.  I don't make a habit of it (actually, before Pk's arrival, I was very rarely off).  This year, sadly, I have been off more than I would have liked but usually, the days are spent wiping a running nose and hugging a feverish, cranky little body.  Today, I'm home just for me.  I needed what, when I was growing up, we referred to as a "mental health" day.  I have definitely been needing some mental health!

Knowing I was going to be off from work, I decided that I HAD to get a post done for the blog.  Lately, it feels more like my whining post than anything else.  While things have been been terrible, I do feel like my life is pretty nice when it isn't spinning out of control.  God has blessed me with things that really bring me a sense of contentment.  I like my "favourites Friday" idea and debated what to write about today.  A bit of time at home reminded me how much I like home!

We live in a village and I have said before how much I like it.  I grew  up in the big city and never knew that I might be happy anywhere else.   Life was good if extremely expensive but I never really felt like I fit.  My naturopath told me not too long ago that I should have been born in an earlier time than I was and I agree.  As a newcomer to a small town, all the things that drive people crazy are pretty nice to me.  I thought I would take you on a bit of a tour.

One thing I love about our town is that other than in the new subdivision where there are some townhouses, the houses are far apart.  That may not seem like a big deal to you but to me, it's wonderful.  I grew up in extremely tight semis in Toronto and then Dh and I lived in the top floor of one for several years before making our move.  I don't have to live with anyone else's cooking smells (other than the odd barbecue and they usually just smell tempting!), don't have to worry about anyone else's music or to be threatened by anyone else's bugs.  We get along really well with our neighbours and while I know that isn't limited to a small town, I think ours is pretty special that way.  In late summer and fall, we often come home to find veggies on our doorstep from neighbours and at Christmas, you never know who is going to leave you treats.  We have a great food exchange going on with our next-door neighbours right now.  Tony and Renate are a bit older than we are and have bought a fairly basic house on a gorgeous lot and are slowly turning it into their dream home.  Dh went by to say hi a couple of weeks ago and they were in the midst of painting their new shed (I would adore to have one like this as a playhouse for Pk when she gets older but these sheds cost thousands!).  They were saying that they didn't have any dinner and were in the middle of the job and didn't want to stop.  They weren't asking, they were just chatting.  Dh came home and told me and I just happened to have a casserole in the oven.  I threw half of it into a dish and sent it back over.  The dish was returned several days later, filled with delicious shepherd's pie.  Last weekend, I tried a rhubarb custard pie recipe that I had gotten from a blog.  Tony loves rhubarb and Renate hates it so we have a deal that when the rhubarb is ready from their garden, it is delivered to me and whatever I make, Tony gets a piece.  Seems like a fair deal to me.  This also makes me feel good because I have been reading a lot about hospitality as a Christian ideal and I feel like it's a kind of outreach.
Another thing we love are the small businesses in town.  They don't look like much (our town probably isn't the prettiest in the world although some of the century homes in the older part of town are lovely) but they are friendly and you would be surprised at what you can buy.  Our local pharmacy is great.  As Dh says, you probably wouldn't want to go there to get Viagara in case you run into someone but the pharmacists are incredibly helpful and put you at your ease.
Every small town needs a good Chinese restaurant and while the menu focus is on chicken balls and fried rice, they make wonderful soups.  I love the San Woo beef soup, Dh is partial to the hot and sour and Pk loves the wonton.
Who knew that in a town this size, we would have a great little whole foods shop.  They have organic and natural meats, eggs, dairy, fruit, vegs and all kinds of healthier packaged stuff.  I love it because again, everyone is one a first name basis.  Katie, who is usually on when we go in, knows our routine.  We enter, grab a gala apple for Pk, Katie takes it in the back and washes it and Pk happily munches while I shop.  Pk calls it the "apple store".  Dh is a true carnivore and if I take him with me, we always come back with some kind of sausage or nitrate free meat snack of some kind.

I could have driven around taking pics of favourite town institutions all day but I decided it was better to come back home in case I ran into someone from work.  I will try another town post another day with some of my other favourite spots.

In the meantime, speaking of favourites, my father-in-law is coming down this evening to spend the night so he and Dh can watch the F.A. Cup tomorrow (Go, Chelsea, Go... Blue is the Colour!!!) and so I wanted to make a sweet treat that I know he likes.  This lemon bread is really, really yummy and whenever I take it anywhere, I get demands for the recipe.

Lemon Tea Loaf

(taken from Anne Lindsay's Lighthearted Everyday Cooking)

1 c granulated sugar   250 ml

1/4 c soft margarine or butter    50 ml

1 egg

2 Tbsp low fat yogurt     25 ml

1/2 c milk    125 ml

1 1/2 c all-purpose flour    375 ml

1 tsp baking powder   5 ml

grated rind of 1 lemon

Glaze:

juice of 1 lemon

1/4 granulated sugar  50 ml

Line and 8 by 4 inch loaf pan with foil; grease lightly.

In large bowl, cream sugar and margarine.  Beat in egg and yogurt; beat in milk.  Mix flour and baking powder; beat into egg mixture until blended.  Stir in lemon rind.

Spoon into prepared pan; bake in 350F oven for 1 hour or until cake tester inserted in centre comes out dry.  Let cake stand in pan for 3 minutes. 

Glaze:  In small bowl, coming lemon juice and sugar, mixing well; pour over top of warm cake.  Remove foil and cake from pan and place on rack.  Loosen foil and let cake cool completely before cutting.

I haven't tried soaking but reading the recipe, it's silly that I haven't since it contains yogurt.  I tried it with whole wheat flour and it wasn't bad but it wasn't the same.  It might be nicer soaked as I find the soaked grains are often fluffier.  This is lovely with a cup of tea and would be nice on a summer afternoon as part of a picnic.