Sylvia Rose

Surviving Tough Times: How to Prepare for the Worst

March 17, 2020 by Sylvia Rose 2 Comments

When panic seems to seize everyone around you, keep calm. There are plenty of other ways to prepare for surviving tough times than buying toilet paper!

Hollywood loves giving us post-apocalyptic stories, and for the first time, I feel like I’m witnessing the kind of panic I’ve only ever seen on a screen.

COVID-19 is scaring the living daylights out of people and not knowing what to do, folks went out and stockpiled on toilet paper and hand sanitizer.

Guess what?

There’s a better way to prepare!

The first step involves keeping a cool head.

Although it’s not much fun thinking about it, preparing for the worst-case scenario will put us in a much better place.

Strength and security come from self-sufficiency, but first, we need to make sure we’re ready for an emergency. We will need to…

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Classic Genoise Sponge Cake Recipe (only 4 ingredients!)

March 13, 2020 by Sylvia Rose 8 Comments

A classic genoise sponge cake is made with four simple ingredients: flour, sugar, eggs, and butter. Ready for a French pastry lesson?

classic genoise sponge cake cooling down

WHAT DOES GENOISE MEAN?

If you didn’t know, this classic genoise sponge cake is a favourite when it comes to French pastry.

For example, genoise sponge makes the base for many beloved cakes, like the fraisier (a strawberry layer cake with marzipan, mousseline cream, and hints of kirsch).

Around the holidays, it’s rolled up to make bûches de noël (yule logs), which means it’s great for making jelly rolls, too.

Despite its widespread use in French pastry, its origins are Italian.

Named after Genoa, the sixth-largest city in Italy, we can now see where the name comes from.

Genoise = Genoese/Genovese.

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BBQ Pulled Duck: A Simple Slow Cooker Recipe

March 6, 2020 by Sylvia Rose 3 Comments

BBQ pulled duck is a fun spin on pulled pork. Paired with a homemade stout barbecue sauce, this easy duck slow cooker recipe will make your kitchen smell amazing and your taste buds sing!

As much as I love it, not everyone eats pork.

BBQ pulled pork is one of those classic American recipes that people love for its sweet, smoky flavour.

It’s a summertime favourite and makes an excellent addition to a backyard barbecue or a Superbowl party.

While one can always turn to BBQ pulled chicken to get their mock pulled pork fix, chicken doesn’t have the same meaty depth that duck offers.

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12 Garden Lessons from the First Growing Year

March 3, 2020 by Sylvia Rose 1 Comment

There are so many gardening lessons to be learned. Here are twelve of the biggest takeaways from my first year of outdoor gardening.

12 GARDEN LESSONS I LEARNED THE HARD WAY

Before we begin, I want to say that I spent a decade dreaming about having a big garden. My mother liked keeping a sizable garden and I loved working in it as a teenager.

For as long as I daydreamed about working the earth, I kept a container garden on just about every apartment balcony I had. I mostly grew herbs.

My basil would always die and squirrels would rob me blind whenever an heirloom tomato started to ripen.

When I finally had the opportunity to have a real vegetable patch and herb bed, this is what I learned.

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Kefir-Brined Chicken (an Easy Sheet Pan Dinner)

February 28, 2020 by Sylvia Rose 4 Comments

This kefir-brined chicken is juicy and bursting with flavour, and it couldn’t be easier to make! Learn the basics of brining so you can put this easy and wholesome sheet pan dinner on the table this week.

First off, if you can’t get your hands on milk kefir, don’t worry about it. You can easily swap the kefir out with buttermilk if that’s easier for you to get your hands on.

I just happen to be swimming in milk kefir because I make my own at home.

Kefir, by the way, is a fermented milk beverage that’s basically a drinkable version of yogurt.

Boasting more probiotic power than yogurt, it’s easy for the body to digest and is good for gut health.

This post may contain affiliate links, meaning that if you choose to purchase something after clicking on one of the links in this post, I may earn a small commission at no additional cost to you.

Plus, it’s a great way to sneak in a daily dose of cod liver oil for those omega-3’s! You’ll have to check out my post on making milk kefir to get the scoop on that story.

homemade milk kefir — `This is milk kefir. The lumpy stuff is the live culture that converts the milk into kefir.`

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Understanding Eggs: Behind the Ingredients

February 25, 2020 by Sylvia Rose 1 Comment

There is a lot of freedom in knowing how key ingredients work the way they do. Leave the guesswork behind in the first of this Behind the Ingredients series where we dive into learning about the humble egg.

`Photo by Natalie Rhea Riggs on Unsplash`

THE HUMBLE, YET MIGHTY EGG

Almost all of us have eaten eggs at some point in our lives and many of us reach for the egg carton first thing in the morning. Apart from making bacon and eggs, why is it that eggs are called for in so many recipes? What is it about eggs that keep us hungry for more?

Well, for one, eggs are a complete protein checking off all the essential amino acids. Eggs also have a number of B vitamins, vitamin E, iron, minerals, and other nutrients you can easily look up online. They’re nutritious, they keep us full, and they’re relatively inexpensive.

We don’t usually think about these things when we fry, scramble, or poach these edible gems. They’re humble in that they’re depended on, yet overlooked. When’s the last time you’ve been grateful for eggs? During rationing in WWII, eggs were a precious commodity and unless folks kept their own chickens, dried egg powder took the forefront. Gross. Indeed, eggs are humble, but they’re also mighty.

RELATED: Sauerkraut and Bacon Quiche

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