Sunday Food and Pets Post - Comfort Food -

Frozen River at Sunrise (what the heck is that yellow spot??? Reflections I'm guessing!)

Hello Friends!

It's December! EEEK!!! Why does time fly so much faster as you age? Kind of scary in a way. It's so cold out, boo hoo hoo! Christmas is the only thing keeping me going right now...after January I will be in full hibernation, Hygge, cozy, hide-under-the-blankets mode!!! Okay Rain, no worries...only six more months of this...😢

One of the ways I get through our long winters is to make sure there is plenty of comfort food to eat.  What's your favourite comfort food? Maybe I'll take some new ideas and make them this winter!!

Here is some "empty the freezer" Stir Fried Rice. Frozen peas and spring onions made this easy meal very delicious! You can use any kind of veggie with this stir fry. I make this when I'm out of ideas or just plain lazy!

I used the last of the frozen summer corn to make my Loaded Nacho plate. It was so good, we made a second one - but in hindsight, we probably shouldn't have...talk about a food coma!

I'm not sure why, but I'm finding LOTS of asparagus at the market lately! I usually don't see any until the spring so I'm taking advantage because it's our favourite veggie. I made my Asparagus and Fontina Tart - but I used Cheddar cheese instead since we had plenty in the fridge! If you have frozen puff pastry, this is a great recipe to use it up. This tart doesn't reheat well though, so make sure you eat it up quick! Trust me, there won't be a problem with that! 😋

Of course it wouldn't be a typical week in the Rain household if there wasn't a cheesy melty Poutine to eat!

To round out the week of comfort: Minestrone Soup (for Alex) and Fisherman's Stew (for me). You can't have comfort food without a good loaf of homemade No Knead Bread for dipping!

We opened up my Farmhouse Cheddar last night. It was pretty delicious! It aged a month and it was nice and soft, kind of like a Mozzarella. We have FIVE more cheeses to open and taste in December!!! And I'm going to start on my Camemberts for the Christmas holidays!

The girls love to sit outside on a sunny day in the winter. Charlie is pure husky - this is her season that's for sure! Marlene is part husky, part shepherd and she loves the snow too, as long as there is sun to keep her warm!

Jack, however, takes after me lol...he prefers a cozy pillow with lots of blankets!!!

Baby Oscar In The Window

Leo Watching The Birds

Dana Sleeping By The Heater

When we first adopted Jack in 2015, we thought that he had a bad habit of chewing on his ears and we tried to teach him not to do it. But we realized that it's like a game for him - you know like some dogs chase their tails, he "chases" his ears and chews on the ends. He'll sit there for hours with one ear in his mouth!

I'm off for some more coffee now! Be sure to join me on Thursday for our art date - the theme is Flavours and Aroma. ☕☕ Until then, keep warm and cozy!

Thursday Art Date: Grays and Browns and Paint Party Friday!

🍂🍂 Happy Thanksgiving to my American Friends!!! 🍂🍂

Welcome to Thursday's Art Date, today our theme is Grays and Browns. Was this a challenge for you? It was for me at first!!! I had a few ideas for the browns but I was completely stumped for the grays...Bugs Bunny decided Charlie Chaplin's brown outfit would fit the theme very well. He looked the part, but try to get him to stay quiet for a silent movie, no such luck!! 

When I lived on Prince Edward Island in 2010, I saw foxes all of the time. I watched this little fella for a few minutes and got some great shots. What a beauty with his hues and shades of brown!

He was the inspiration for my watercolour fox. I painted this using the more reddish browns of Raw Sienna and Burnt Umber.

I am not a fan of gray paint and I didn't know what to do for the gray portion of the theme! So I took a leap, and I tried something new and very exciting!

Charcoals...my new art obsession!! I L♥️VE them!!! I happened upon a few tutorials on Patreon, the first one was this deer. I don't normally subscribe to Patreon because a) the site is painfully slow to load and b) basically I don't want to spend the money...but I really wanted to learn some techniques so I took a monthly subscription to one of the artists on there.

Here's my elephant. I'm very proud of myself! I've always said that I can't draw but I think I wasn't giving myself enough credit. Each of these tutorials took between two and a half to three hours. When I used to think of charcoals, I thought of black only. I never imagined I could create so many shades of gray using one or two pencils!

Charcoal Jack

Of course I had to draw my Jack! 

I'm not a very good student if I'm 100% honest. I have trouble with my concentration and a lot of things go over my head; but I found that learning how to create artwork with charcoals was super easy for me to comprehend. I learned great techniques so I have confidence. I started with a "beginner" set of charcoals...I had issues with them - so now I'm going to invest in some good quality pencils and tools! Note to self: Artists Loft brand products, (that's the Michaels house brand) are SUB PAR...I've had trouble with that brand's paints, brushes and now the charcoal pencils. Sometimes you do pay for what you get! 😒 Lesson finally learned! (Told you I'm not a good student lol!!!)

Charcoal Marlene

Here is Miss Marlene. She was more challenging to draw than Jack because she has colours where Jack is just black and white. I'm particularly proud of these two because I did these without a tutorial, I just took a few photos and dove right in! I decided I'm going to draw all six of the pets over the next few weeks. 

You will likely see a lot of charcoal work in my future, but I won't give up the painting and drawing! I just want to create art all day long! 😊

Well, that's all for now folks, please check out the link widget below to see more Grays and Browns artwork! And please join me on Sunday for my food and pets post. 🐾🐾🐾 Christmas is coming 🎄🎄 so there will be lots of delicious goodies and recipes to share!!

I'm also linking up with Paint Party Friday tomorrow!

********************

I made this Lemon Curd Ice Cream Pie for Alex's birthday in 2018 - Talk about Flavours and Aroma!!

December 5th: Next Thursday's theme is Flavours and Aroma. Click on the link for ideas and inspiration! Remember it's all about creating. You can showcase your paintings, drawings, photography, sculpting, baking, poetry...whatever you like! 🎨

Thursday Art Date With Rain. Click on the link for a description of the art date as well as a list of upcoming themes. Check out the themes for 2020 here!

Don't forget to add the URL link to your post (not your blog) to the link gadget below to share your wonderful creations! The link gadget expires Sunday at noon (EST).

⚡⚡⚡⚡  Be forewarned ⚡⚡⚡⚡ If you include a link that doesn't follow the art date theme, it will be removed! Thanks for your understanding and for respecting my fellow artists who put their minds, hearts and souls into creating art for the themes!

********************

Sunday Food and Pets Post - Howling Jack

Hello Friends!

How is your weekend treating you? We got dumped with snow overnight and there is more on the way! I love snowy mornings, the blue hues make the scene so beautiful! I'm not looking forward to the shoveling out though!

We're still trying to eat what's left from the freezer before I refill it! Last summer I froze lots of herbs and I had an overload of cilantro, so I made my Homemade Salsa and used it for these breakfast fajitas. It's just tortillas with salsa, eggs, cheese and cilantro. Some fried potatoes on the side. I love breakfast for dinner!

This I haven't made in ages, Chicago Deep Dish Pizza. It's very easy to make and uses so few ingredients, and boy is it filling! 

We had enough for two meals!

I know my American friends are preparing for Thanksgiving this week; but I have Christmas on my mind. The Christmas cookie baking has begun with some Shortbread Bites. 

Jack is out cold here. He had a rough week. On Monday we discovered his mouth was bleeding - after trying our best to locate the problem, we thought we saw a little cut on his back gum. He was definitely sore. Jack is fear aggressive and it was really an act of courage to stick my fingers into his mouth, but he let me - to an extent! I treated him at home with some Oratene anti-bacterial gel and I am so happy to say he's okay now! I was dreading the vet cost if the bleeding didn't stop!

Here he is in the car, howling when Alex ran quickly into the store! Or is he baying? In any case, it's really cool! So happy my Jack is back to himself again! I call him a hound dog, which he is - but we figured out he's a mix between a beagle and a pointer.

Charlie loves to wear Alex's hats...she actually keeps them on!

Baby Oscar, fixed on a Blue Jay in the feeder. Look at the length of those whiskers!

He caught me with the camera! :) 

Enjoy your day friends! See you on Thursday for our art date, the theme is Grays and Browns!

Thursday Art Date: Chilling and Paint Party Friday!

Hello Friends! ☺️

Welcome to Thursday's Art Date, today our theme is Chilling! I decided to celebrate the idea of swimming in the cold chilling waters of the ocean for my pieces today! Poor Bugs thinks he's invincible, but I think that arctic water is a little too cold for him!! Has anyone out there ever done a Polar Bear Dip on New Year's Day? It's always for a good cause, but I personally think it's insanity!!!

Majestic Blue (Watercolour)

The blue whale always fascinated me. It's the largest creature in the ocean - and on earth for that matter. I can only imagine its beauty but it would be a chilling adventure to stumble upon one in the ocean! I went whale watching one summer while visiting Pleasant Bay in Nova Scotia, it was something I'll never forget! We mostly saw pilot whales, they can grow to 22 feet long. Now that was intimidating for me, I couldn't imagine seeing a 100-foot long blue whale from that little boat!

Seal Ballet (Watercolour)

Another lovely creature I saw a lot of along the shores of Cape Breton in Nova Scotia was the grey seal. Did you know they can live up to 45 years old? It was a treat to see such ocean wildlife!

Jack likes to chill with his favourite stuffed animal after dinner. Alex and I had been watching a lot of Three Stooges shorts when we got that toy, so it was christened Mr. Curly. If I say "Jack, go get Mr. Curly!" he runs and grabs it. Very cute!

That's all for now folks, please check out the link widget below to see more Chilling artwork! And please join me on Sunday for my food and pets post. 🐾🐾🐾

I'm also linking up with Paint Party Friday tomorrow!

********************

Leo and Dana playing on the porch last August

November 28th: Next Thursday's theme is Grays and Browns. Click on the link for ideas and inspiration! Remember it's all about creating. You can showcase your paintings, drawings, photography, sculpting, baking, poetry...whatever you like! 🎨

Thursday Art Date With Rain. Click on the link for a description of the art date as well as a list of upcoming themes. Check out the themes for 2020 here!

Don't forget to add the URL link to your post (not your blog) to the link gadget below to share your wonderful creations! The link gadget expires Sunday at noon (EST).

⚡⚡⚡⚡  Be forewarned ⚡⚡⚡⚡ If you include a link that doesn't follow the art date theme, it will be removed! Thanks for your understanding and for respecting my fellow artists who put their minds, hearts and souls into creating art for the themes!

********************

Sunday Food and Pets Post - 🍲 Best Asparagus Soup I've Ever Made! 🍲

Hi Everyone 😊

How are things by you? It's another cold winter day here in the mountains. I'm settling into my winter routine, hibernation basically! We're still eating from the freezer and pantry though I found some really nice asparagus on sale at the market last week, so I made the best Asparagus Soup I've ever made, honestly. It was flavourful, rich and creamy (without having to add dairy), and SO easy to make. We ate the entire pot in one sitting! 

I had some leftover asparagus, so I used it in a basic pasta dish - nothing special, just some cooked pasta, lemon, olive oil, Parm and breadcrumbs. It was just so-so! Needed some jazzing up!

Another recipe that could use some jazzing up: Taste of Home's Crispy Fried Onion Rings. I'm sharing the recipe that I tried, but it needs some kind of spice to it. The onion rings were fabulous and crispy. I used Vidalia onions - the flavours of the sweet onion with the salty batter were great, but a bit bland. Do you make onion rings, and if so, what spices do you use? We thought maybe Old Bay Seasoning next time.

I served the onion rings with my Mushroom Burgers. These are great with a little melted Cheddar, some tomatoes and a light scrape of mayo!

A lot of the meals I'm making lately are simple proteins with a veg on the side. I bake my fish in foil at 450 F for about 10 minutes, with a little olive oil and Balsamic vinegar and it's a treat every time! Christmas is coming up and there will be some heavy eating so I'm taking the opportunity to try to eat cleaner for a little while!

Having said that...I couldn't help myself! I made Cinnamon Crunch Knots yesterday!! They're so yummy and make the house smell so good while they're baking!

Another delicious soup night! I made a Tomato Basil Ravioli Soup last night and it was really nice. I guess traditionally one would use tortellini in soups, but we had ravioli and it worked well! This was another "empty the freezer/pantry" soup!

Charlie, Baby Oscar and Big-Nose Marlene

The most comfortable place in my home - our bed! Alex and I rarely use the living room. The pets basically took over the couches so when we relax and watch movies, we are usually in bed. Of course, the pets hang out with us too; and they are always generous enough to leave us a wee bit of space!

With temperatures dipping to the minus 20's Celsius, Jack is in his full winter gear every time he goes outside. I think he'd rather be snuggled in bed under the covers! (Here's my post from 2018 showing how I make these $4 dog boots)

Thanks for visiting! 😊 See you on Thursday for our art date, the theme is CHILLING - very appropriate for this cold November!!

Thursday Art Date: Forest and Critters & Paint Party Friday!

Hello Friends :)

Welcome to Thursday's Art Date, today our theme is Forest and Critters! Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck landed the roles of Hansel and Gretel this week. They just emerged from the haunted forest. What do you think - will they go into the candy house or call their agents for less dangerous acting jobs? 😊

Important Note: I don't want to be an 👹 ogre 👹, and I hate that I'm forced to say this; but PUH-LEEZE...don't include your link if you aren't following the weekly art theme!!! I'm not a marketing tool to give you hits on your blog! I will have to remove your link if that's the case! Thanks for respecting me and my fellow artists who put their minds, hearts and souls into creating art for the themes!!!

Here's Algie in oil pastels - I've been wanting to whip those pastels out for a while now! Oil pastels are so much fun to use! Algie was one of the three squirrels that Alex and I found in our basement walls last spring. We babied those critters for nearly two months before releasing them into the woods. Algie was the gentlest and the sweetest of the three - here's a video I took with her in my pocket.

Here's a gorgeous critter! This drake is a chick-magnet with his brilliant colours! We are lucky to live in an area where we can see such lovely wildlife all year round!

I really enjoyed using my markers this week! I love how colourful they are when you mix them up with coloured pencils! This is my Enchanted Mushroom Forest. Alex and I went to the art supply store a few days ago and I'm just itching to try new things...I'm thinking about pan pastels, charcoal, oil pencils and special blending tools. Art is so much fun!!!

Still using that watercolour layering technique, I decided to paint the biggest critter in the forest, the moose. I ran into a moose once during a long mountain hike in Orford Quebec, he was very docile. I kept my distance though. I WISH I had a photo to show you! But I think my nerves got to me and I'm not one of those idiots who tries to take a "selfie" with a wild animal! 😊 You definitely don't want to run into a male moose during mating season, they are known to be very aggressive during the rut. They are beautiful animals, the largest deer species in the world.

Something got the dogs' attention this morning!

Jack got cold and ran for the door; but the girls kept digging. I'm guessing a little critter must have hopped across the ground before it snowed.

Cold Mountain River

That's all for now folks, please check out the link widget below to see more Forest and Critters artwork! And please join me on Sunday for my food and pets post. 🐾🐾🐾

I'm also linking up with Paint Party Friday tomorrow!

********************

Chilling weather last February - notice my frozen hair!!

November 21st: Next Thursday's theme is Chilling! Click on the link for ideas and inspiration! Remember it's all about creating. You can showcase your paintings, drawings, photography, sculpting, baking, poetry...whatever you like! 😊

Thursday Art Date With Rain. Click on the link for a description of the art date as well as a list of upcoming themes.

Don't forget to add the URL link to your post (not your blog) to the link gadget below to share your wonderful creations! The link gadget expires Sunday at noon (EST).

⚡⚡⚡⚡⚡  Be forewarned ⚡⚡⚡⚡⚡  If you include a link that doesn't follow the art date theme, it will be removed! Thanks for your understanding and for respecting my fellow artists who put their minds, hearts and souls into creating art for the themes!

********************