Red Cedar

Despite not being around here much lately, I am still posting a menu list for November – mostly because it is helpful to our household organization to have the dinner plan in one easy-to-reference place. We recently got a second-hand copy of Mark Bittman’s How to Cook Everything so where you see a HCE below, the page number is in reference to that book. Otherwise, I have run across some lovely recipes online that I wanted to try and am mixing it up with some of our household standards. Pasta is generally gluten-free around here though I have included a couple of recipes with wheat because I don’t abstain all the time (even though I should!)

I haven’t been writing much here lately – I note it’s been three weeks since my last post. This isn’t because I’m in hiding or having a bad time – in fact, everything is awesome right now. But work has been busy and I haven’t had a lot of time to spend blogging on my breaks since I’m not taking breaks so much these days.

I’ll try to get some photos up of projects I’m working on – but beyond that, no promises. Wondering if I’m *over* blogging after almost ten years? We’ll see.

So – last month my menu-post turned out to be pretty popular and now I’ve got friends asking for another menu plan for this month. Also – I’m a big advocate of meal planning because it makes for better meals with way less grocery costs. So! Here it is – starting with this Sunday, this menu will take us through the end of November.

On Wednesdays I have class so there is no cooking at home that night – and on Sundays we have band practice and generally do some kind of a roasted thing which we leave up to the weekend to decide. This Sunday we are making Hard-cider braised pot roast with sage served with parsnips and potatoes from the garden. Next Sunday will obviously be turkey since we’re having a Thanksgiving dinner party (specific menu for that, and our end of the month dinner party will be posted here when we figure them out).

As before, this is a wheat-free menu with a focus on whole foods with seasonal availability. I have Mondays off work so I often do something more elaborate that day, but otherwise these are all meals that can be cooked after work without too much fuss. If the item doesn’t have a recipe link it’s because the dish is  something I make regularly or plan to improvise. In any case – enjoy! I sure know that we will.

Monday – Black eyed pea stew with wheat-free Cornbread
Tuesday – Beef and Bok Choi Stir-fry
Thursday – Cream of Mushroom Soup served with crackers, cheeses, apple
Friday – Sausages with pan cooked chutney & leek mash
Saturday – Garlic Braised Chicken with Olives and Mushrooms

Monday – Polenta Pizza with Blue Cheese, Walnuts, Dried Fig, Prosciutto & Kale (we loved the polenta pizza from September’s menu so much we’re trying a new variation on it!)
Tuesday – Turkey Tetrazinni (w gf pasta to use up leftover turkey from Thanksgiving)
Thursday – Pork Paprikash w rice
Friday – Fish Tacos, guacamole, corn chips
Saturday – Warm chickpea salad with sun dried tomatoes and feta

Monday – Roast Duck with roasted beets, carrots and sweet potatoes
Tuesday – Chicken Curry with Apple-Ginger Chutney
Thursday – Some type of leftovers before playing a gig at Van Dusen gardens!
Friday –  Shrimp & Herb Risotto
Saturday – Torta w Chorizo with warmed beet salad

Monday – Pork Tenderloin with Sauteed Apples and Leeks
Tuesday – GF-Macaroni-hamburger skillet dish
Thursday – Chicken and Wild Rice Salad
Friday – Salmon and potato al forno
Saturday – Chili served over crisped polenta

In a follow-up to yesterday’s outhouse post, I am plotting a small project for the winter workshop which will see the creation of a wash-basin stand. For the stand I intend to simply cut a hole in a piece of wood to rest a basin in, sand, stain and varnish – and then later in the summer attach it to some legs cut from trees on our property.

When I first envisioned this, I determined that for the basin I would like to find a piece of vintage-looking *or* actual antique enamelware. It didn’t have to be in great shape since its sole purpose will be to hold water, so I figured I could find something pretty cheap. But looking in local antique shops here and in the interior had turned up nothing.

Enter Craigslist! Last week, upon our return from Link Lake, I found a posting for the above collection – being sold out of Burnaby for only $30 – and so I promptly drove out to take a look. It’s the real deal – 1930s-era – with just a very few nicks and rust marks. Perfect for my intended use (the coffee kettle will make a nice water jug companion to the wash basin). The rest of the vessels will find an eventual home in our cabin or bunkie I’m sure 🙂