smooth veggies, a soup

veggies are good for you and you should eat more of them. as someone who, despite a public promise to do so, didn't loose "some" fat during the last 12 months, i need to get back to basics and these soups...







for this soup i used 200 gr carrots, 100 gr parsnip and 100 gr rutabaga. any other combination of root veggies will do







some leek (or onion) gives depth to flavor. had a 15 cm piece of the white and light green part







minced it and sauteed in 1 tbsp of rape seed oil to wilt before adding 2 cups of vegetable stock







chopped the root veggies quite roughly (grating them makes cooking faster, but grating adds hands on time...)







15 - 20 mins later, or when the veggies are soft, take out your immersion blender (or any other gadget that purees) and make it work. on the other hand, you could also use a potato masher, the soup will not be as smooth but it's still as tasty...







i pureed mine quite smooth, added ½ tsp dried tarragon (fresh is fine, too, as is any other dried or fresh herb). i happened to have some 10% cooking cream in the fridge, so used 2 dl of that to thin out the soup, you could use vegetable stock, cream cheese or milk as well. now would be the time to add salt, if salt is your thing.







to serve, i toasted some rye bread, cut it in squares and added a blob of creme fraiche...i did have seconds...you could be a good girl/boy and not add creme fraiche which isn't exactly "light"

nyc moments, places & buildings

certain someone in front of olde good things on west 24th str







practise what you preach







chelsea restaurant







in the 1800s, new york city required that all buildings higher than 6 stories be equipped with a rooftop water tower






one of these years i need to go here and be "seen"







inside chelsea market






highline above 10th avenue, facing north, info also here






new york fashion week was on, those legs go on for ever







slightly thicker model, had to cut myself in half to compare with those skinny ones







elizabeth was also here







us open was also going on while we were in nyc. people watching a game in madison square park







ceiling of a grocery store on west 23rd







flatiron building







another landmark







i think this stands on west 42nd str at 9th av, i like how the clouds reflected on it. another shot thru bus window

bites to eat

drinks first...on air canada's plane, molson is the choice







the hosts weren't happy with the freshness of the corn (we couldn't tell the difference), steak was tender and potato very tasty (learned a new way to bake a potato, onions rings between the halves)







took this picture of someone's plate at the craganmor restaurant, pickerel and fries, this was what we would have had if the catch had been there before us...







buttery apple torte at cousin's house in noble







salmon on a board (i think that is how this was called). the cedar board is very wet, there's spices and you cook it on a grill. i'm thinking this is something we might try at the cottage come summer.







baking pulla at the cousin's house. there was no cardamom but it turned out well any way.







caramel apples, i fought the temptation to eat one...







a very nice lobster pasta at murphy's harbour front inn and resturant







tom yam soup at jaiya restaurant on east 28th street, nyc. cool looking in the dim restaurant, but hazardous to hair and flammable clothing...







chicken marsala at lasagna restauran







my lunch, a portobello sandwich, at the dish






we also ate a good dinner at blend, but the lightning made lousy pictures...one more nyc entry coming tomorrow!

on the bus

originally we had decided to take the train from toronto to nyc. well, originally we thought of splitting the vacation in half between toronto and nyc, but toronto won by days and we only stayed in nyc for three nights (which is always better than none!)

we ended up taking the bus and i think i might have committed an offence of sorts by taking this picture...at least there was a lady who was forced to delete a picture she took right opposite me. the 800 or so mile trip cost only 78 euros for us two, but it was looong (train would have been longer).







and why did we choose to sit 12hrs on a bus instead of flying? well, we wanted to see the scenery, and i don't mean these newspaper boxes, and everyone flies, not many people have taken the bus from toronto to nyc and we weren't in a hurry. enough? also, that was one experience i'll likely not forget very soon (there was a chinese couple behind us and the lady kept talking, and talking, and talking, she talked pretty much for 11½ hours, but i have already forgiven her...)







this was as close as we got to the niagara falls. both of us had been there before (albeit, eons ago) so we were satisfied with this view







these people were cruising on a trike, the weather was nice enough for that







our form of transportation







this was taken on a bright and hot afternoon at a gas station somewhere deep in pennsylvania...we got to see some of the locals...i thought such characters were the invention of movie makers...little did i know.







we were told the waterway is the delaware water gap. beautiful scenery, but pictures thru bus window don't make justice







reward at the end of the long day...

toronto pics

we had certain someone's aunt's car at our disposal so, on our way down from noble to toronto, we actually passed toronto and drove to port dalhousie. our initial intention was to drive all the way to niagara-on-the-lake, but nature called and we had to leave the highway. we saw this cute barn on the service road







toronto city hall, we finns like to brag with the fact that it was designed by viljo revell






in big cities...everything goes







i liked the slogan above the entry of bass pro shop in vaughan, ontario. the shop was HUGE, and the mall attached to it was the biggest i've ever seen







we took advantage of the aunt's car and took a drive in downtown toronto, as it was labor day, the jams weren't that bad. the chinatown looked interesting but parking seemed to be a nightmare...







another toronto landmark

around georgian bay

since i won't be doing any cooking this week i thought it might be time for pics from our "north american tour", albeit short one...

getting ready to for a boat tour on georgian bay, weather was perfect, slight breeze and +30C.







we were told this is someone's summer "cottage", i'd love to see their house proper.







wasauksing swing bridge.






the scenery, despite the white pines, were almost like back home.







enjoying the good life.







the craganmor restaurant and lodge.







this hinkley picnic boat was moored at craganmor. and how would i know what this boat is called? well, martha has one...







we stopped at craganmor for lunch only to be told that the catch of the day was on its way...we had some chips, and beers, and by the time the catch hit (literally) the quay, we weren't hungry anymore.







i fell in love with certain someone's cousin's house. the cousin and his wife designed it, had an architect to draw the blueprints, i cannot imagine a different kind of house on that particular location. the scenes are amazing, this from our bedroom window.







i also loved how the house was decorated, with antiques, all mixed well into modern living and not just as show pieces.







ps. cousin and wife, thank you for your hospitality!