Drive in the Country Saskatchewan

Was there a castle on this lot?

This past weekend there was a Highway #1 Artist's tour. Several galleries opened their doors all down the road from Swift Current. It was a nice day to take a drive. As usual, I wish I had taken more pictures. This is all I have.

This secret garden was a delightful find in a village. It begs for more research and find the significance.

Concrete walk up to...the house?

Stone fence all around.

It appears to be a lovely lot where a house was once situated. Now it is a lovingly cared for garden.

UPDATE:   Mystery Solved

The town of Herbert has a wonderful website. I don't know why I didn't try that first. Thanks to Nana and Anonymous for encouraging me to find more info.  Here it is:

H.M. Klassen House - 420 Herbert Avenue (Castle Yard) - A beautiful house was built here for the H.M. Klassens in the early 1900s. It was traded to Senator William Sharpe in 1920, and then sold to Dr. Bejamin Funk and renovated to become Herbert's First hospital in 1923. the hospital burned down in 1925. The "Holme's Castle" was built on this property by Tom Holmes in 1933. The Nursing home owned the property for a time an it now is owned privately.

The Best Lamb Burger Ever

Last Sunday was the first ever block party for my street. Some residents have lived on this block for 50 years. So hats of to neighbour Hannah for getting this going.

It was great. Odd house numbers brought salads and even numbers brought desserts. We have way more odd numbers so we had a lot of salad choices. And no repeats. How does that always work?

We each bring something to barbecue and my big decision was what do I make for myself? My first stop was the freezer. Emptying the freezer is on the agenda before purchasing more food. A lone bag of ground lamb was the answer.

This is Black Welsh lamb and is ever so flavourful. I am choosing to use only salt and pepper so the beauty of this meat is not masked. Mint pesto will compliment the flavour perfectly.

This burger is simple and delicious. At the party I served it on foccacia with a thick slice of heirloom tomato and a thin slice of red onion. Oh, yes, and with the homemade mint pesto. The real trick to take it to the next level is to hide baby bocconcino inside the burger. This cheese melts like a dream.

Best Lamb Burger Ever
1 lb. ground lamb
Sea salt & freshly ground black pepper
Baby bocconcino
Foccacia
Mint pesto

Season ground lamb with salt and pepper. As you shape the burgers, hide the bocconcino inside. Grill as usual. Spread the bottom of the foccacia bun with mint pesto. Top with burger and layer on sliced tomato and red onion. Top with foccacia and serve.

Mint Pesto 

1 c. (packed) fresh mint leaves
1/2 c. (packed) fresh cilantro leaves
2 tbsp. pine nuts
2 tbsp. freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1 tbsp. fresh lemon juice
1 medium garlic clove, peeled
1/2 tsp. coarse kosher salt
1/2 c. (or more) extra-virgin olive oil

Place all ingredients into a food processor and puree until smooth. Serve. Can be refrigerated for up to 4 weeks in covered container.

Wild Mushroom Soup

A week or two back I showed off some mushrooms that I foraged from my neighbour's front yard. They were shaggy parasols. In this soup they are very meaty and tasty. I must add that I have never foraged for mushrooms...ever. I admit a bit of intrepidation to cook them. Even though I was 99% sure the mushrooms were indeed shaggy parasols and edible when cooked, that lingering 1% can weigh on your mind. To satisfy myself and my neighbour friend who shared these gems, I ate a full bowl of this soup first. Fortunately I reported no ill effects. Phew!

This soup is very thick and you may want to thin it with more stock. I think that a tablespoon or two would make a nice addition to risotto. Adding a touch of heavy cream or creme fraiche turns it into a cream soup.

I made this recipe for Thanksgiving in 2000 and loved it. The bonus is that it freezes well.

This recipe is adapted from The New Basics cookbook by Julee Rosse & Sheila Lukins

Wild Mushroom Soup
1/2 c. sherry or madeira
2 - 3 c. chicken broth
3 leeks, well rinsed and dried
1 onion
1/4 c. unslated butter
3 tbsp. flour
2 c. beef stock
1 lb. wild mushrooms
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
creme fraiche or heavy cream
fresh herbs such as chives or thyme for garnish

Dice leeks, white part only, and onion and cook over medium heat in butter until soft. Add roughly chopped mushrooms and continue to cook until the mushrooms are soft. Sprinkle with flour. stir and cook 5 minutes.

Add chicken stock and beef stock. Cook for about 30 minutes or until the mushrooms are thoroughly cooked. Cool. Puree in batches in a food processor. Return to pan to reheat and serve. Serve with garnish of creme fraiche or heavy cream and fresh herbs.

Freezes well.

Pickled Peppers

There is nothing simpler than pickling peppers. They are in season now and so fresh. I have put these away for the winter. Use any peppers you have.

Pickled Peppers
peppers, any hot peppers you have
white vinegar
garlic

Slice peppers into rings, remove all seeds and pith. Pack into a jar.

Measure vinegar to fill jars into a saucepan. Heat with garlic cloves that have been crushed. Discard garlic and fill jars leaving 1/4 inch headspace.

Water bath process for 20 minutes.

Fresh Tomato Soup with Minted Cream

Today was the day to deal with the fresh fruits and vegetables that are overflowing from my refrigerator. I had a mix of tomatoes from my garden and the market that must not go to waste. They became this rustic tomato soup now stowed away in my freezer for school lunches.

Rustic Tomato Soup
2 lb tomatoes, whatever you have
2 cloves garlic
sea salt & freshly ground black pepper
extra virgin olive oil
2 c. chicken stock
heavy cream
mint pesto

Slice tomatoes in half and place cut side up on a lightly greased baking sheet. Generously season with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.  Drizzle lightly with olive oil.

Wrap garlic cloves in foil and place on baking sheet with tomatoes.

Roast at 400F for about 20 minutes or until tomatoes begin to carmelize.

Puree tomatoes, garlic and chicken stock. Heat and serve. Garnish with lightly whipped cream flavoured with mint pesto.

Fresh Peach Cake

 

Peaches are in season. It wait all year for fresh fruit from British Columbia. Mostly I eat it fresh out of hand but I had sour cream in the refrigerator. This is not your store bought type of sour cream. I had real sour cream. I have real fresh cream from the farm and I became so busy that I forgot about it. The thing about real unpasteurized cream is that it makes good sour cream if you happen to forget about it in the back of your fridge. I could not let it go to waste.

The peaches and pecans beckoned for a dollop of bourbon whipped cream. Add just a splash with a little powdered sugar after beating the cream to stiff peak stage. Makes a great breakfast. The rest will be packaged individually and stowed in the freezer for my school lunches.

Fresh Peach Cake            adapted from Ina Garten      Barefoot Contessa How Easy Is That?

1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature

1 1/2 cups sugar, divided

2 large eggs, at room temperature

1 cup sour cream, at room temperature

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

2 cups organic white flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

3 large, ripe peaches, peeled, pitted, and sliced

1/2 cup chopped pecans

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 9-inch square baking pan.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and 1 cup of the sugar for 3 to 5 minutes on medium-high speed, until light and fluffy. With the mixer on low, add the eggs, one at a time, then the sour cream and vanilla, and mix until the batter is smooth. In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. With the mixer on low, slowly add the dry ingredients to the batter and mix just until combined. In a small bowl, combine the remaining 1/2 cup sugar and the cinnamon.

Spread half of the batter evenly in the pan. Top with half of the peaches, then sprinkle with two-thirds of the sugar mixture. Spread the remaining batter on top, arrange the remaining peaches on top, and sprinkle with the remaining sugar mixture and the pecans.

Bake the cake for 45 to 55 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Serve warm or at room temperature.