Food – Page 15 – Just An East Coast Girl

The Official Food Of Halifax

That’s right it has been made official!

The donair is the food of Halifax!

For years people have been coming to Nova Scotia, Halifax in particular to try the sweet and savoury meat-lovers treat that is closely related to the Greek gyro.

Well, in a close tie, the donair has been elevated to official food status in Halifax. Mayor Mike Savage broke a 7-7 tie yesterday, December 8 at Tuesday’s Halifax regional council meeting that declares the donair “Halifax’s Official Food”

It is suggested that the donair is to Halifax what the Smoked Meat sandwich is to Montreal, or the Beaver Tail is to Ottawa, as well as British Columbia’s Nanaimo bars and Quebec’s poutine and Saskatchewan’s Saskatoon Berry pie. If you are Canadian you recognize all these.

Yum! I love it! Soon time for a donair…

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Just hanging out in the kitchen

Today seemed like a good day just to be hanging out in the kitchen. It’s Saturday and it’s the first Saturday in December which means that Christmas Daddies is on television. ( Normally it’s on the first Sunday but this year is the first year for the new day Saturday) I REALLY enjoy watching this telethon. BUT, to be honest sitting all day…during the daytime in front of the TV doesn’t thrill me so I had an idea…

I can just hang out in my kitchen all day with the TV on and I can do my Christmas baking. Why not? It’s PERFECT!

And to start, well before I started Christmas baking…a new baked treat for Abby girl.

She was thrilled and VERY polite when I gave her the whole plate. One at a time was fine with her, no need to devour them all at one.

And then it was on to the really fun stuff. Cranberry Bliss Bars, Peppermint Bark, Almond Bark, Pecan Bark, Peppermint Patties and Peanut Butter balls. And poor David is not here to sample…he’s off exploring Charleston, SC today before he heads home on Monday.

Poor David…he’s missing out… haha

And…6 hours or so later…my table looks like The Land of Sweets…Who doesn’t love tasty treats at Christmas. These are the special ones, reserved only for Christmas time.

And the plus to all day baking in my kitchen, I saw the whole Christmas Daddies program with the grand total of over $410,000. pledged to go to make Christmas special for children in the Maritimes!!!

I have a bone to pick with you…

On June 5th 1873, two brothers James and Gilbert (G.W) Ganong founded Ganong Bros., Limited in St. Stephen New Brunswick.

In 1885, Ganong candy maker Frank Sparhawk invented the “Chicken Bones”, a pink,spicy cinnamon flavoured hard candy shell filled with bittersweet chocolate. Do you remember these?

Ganong Original Chicken Bones is a Canadian Holiday treat, passed down through family traditions and Holiday memories. This year celebrates 130 years of tradition. A Canadian tradition!

Yum! I just had to pick some up.

East Coast Brew

I love coffee. The first cup of the day is my favourite but a nice coffee in the evening relaxing is great too, oh and I can’t forget mid afternoon…ok ok, I just plain like coffee, too much really.

With all the Black Friday and Cyber Monday specials out there online, I came across another special…

The East Coast Coffee Company had a great promotion. Wait, what? East Coast Coffee! I was curious. Where is this company from and what is their coffee like? So I ordered it!

I did a little research and the East Coast Coffee Company is from Cape Breton, Nova Scotia. How cool!

Ecologically friendly, Kosher, Biodegradable, 100% Organic and Fair Trade, East Coast Coffees are high-grown specialty grade Arabica beans. Located in Eastern Canada on a rugged coastal port city, the service and traditions shine through in the brew! Whether you’re from here, or just long for the taste of the Maritimes, it’s always a little taste of Home.When you order East Coast coffee, it is delivered right to your door from Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia.

I am really impressed …This East Coast Girl is lovin’ East Coast Coffee!

More than just trees from Lunenburg County

It’s Christmas Season and in Lunenburg County it means Christmas trees and wreaths. The smell of balsam fir delivered to homes all over the world.

One farm in particular…DeLong Farms and owners James(Jimmy) & Tina DeLong are very busy this time of year sending a little bit of Lunenburg County to various regions around the world.

Unfortunately I decorate too early for a real tree, but…I make sure I have a real wreath or two… love the smell (reminds me of my childhood)

And…there’s MORE than trees this time of year….

It’s OFFICIALLY Lobster Season. Atlantic Canadian Lobster is considered one of the world’s premier seafoods and is consistently in high demand. Canada currently supplies more than half of the world’s supply of hard-shelled Atlantic Lobster. The very nature of the harvest, where seasonal and regional fisheries dictate a fluctuating supply, means that there are times of the year when the product is a little bit harder to source than others. The lobster season in Atlantic Canada peaks twice year, once in the spring (April-June) and another now in December.

( Photos courtesy of Tourism Nova Scotia) 12314201_10153272132878519_7298897027833694956_o 11224416_10153266611133519_1002757909682827650_n fmshikujplghmjozhyd8

My favourite time of year to eat Lobster is December, but really I love it and will have it anytime. So these days as we are all thinking Christmas, some of the local boys are out Lobster fishing. Stay safe guys!

I just love where we live!

Folklore from days of old…it’s a childhood fantasy land

Father Christmas often appears as a large man, often around seventy years old. He is dressed in a red suit trimmed with white fur, often girdled with a wide black belt, a matching hat or hood, often long and floppy in nature, and dark boots. Often he carries a large brown sack filled with toys on his back. It has been said that the red suit only appeared after the Coca Cola company started an advertising campaign depicting a red suited Father Christmas in the 1930s.

The Father Christmas Festival in Mahone Bay is this weekend and next, and I love all the different Father Christmas figurines.

David having a little chat with Norman the Gnome
It has become a somewhat new tradition for me to visit Mahone Bay for this festival and…pick up my new Amos pewter ornament. Living away makes you really appreciate local and what your community and neighbouring communities offer. I love Amos pewter things and have decided a few years ago to collect these special ornaments.

Each year the Amos Pewter company create a new collector ornament. This year is the Winter Blossom. Each has a lovely inscription about the ornament …” There is a beauty in the cycle of the changing seasons. We wonder at the uniqueness of each softly falling snowflake, joining with others to blanket the earthen a magical whiteness. As the days become longer and warmer, each melting snowflake helps to foster new life that grows, transforms and ultimately fills summer with bursts of blossoms and butterflies. Change is the hope for newness and transformation. Nourish your dreams you embrace the changes in life’s seasons.”

For the last few years at the festival the image of Father Christmas has changed. This year’s 2015 “signature” Father Christmas is Della Robia. He has a gentle face and an Old World European look.

And a new feature this year… The Nutcracker Fantasy. It was my favourite. The creativity and the detail. I am AMAZED that every year there is something new that tops the year before. I could spend hours wandering around here…

And David’s favourite…

Mahone Bay is definitely ready for Christmas and after this weekend with all the specials my mood is very festive, It really is a wonderful time of the year!

I made my own

Hmm…yum!

Don’t you love those tasty treats once and awhile to enjoy with your coffee? I like the gourmet cranberry bars that are at Starbucks this time of year with my coffee. However the nearest Starbucks is 45 minutes away…

My solution

I made my own!!!! Sooooo….good!!

Just a little taste of what’s to come. Next week I will start my Christmas baking.

The bins are out…It’s begun

I know I know…all the opinions are out. When to, when not to, after this day, before this day, not too soon…

But honestly, it is REALLY up to each individual what and when they choose. I don’t mean any disrespect whatsoever. I am so very thankful and feel blessed to live in Canada where brave men and women fought for our freedom and I am thankful that we do remember , pay tribute, and celebrate that every November.

And for me, I do usually wait until after Remembrance Day only because it’s closer to the middle of November and usually by then it’s a bit colder and most of the signs of a beautiful Autumn have disappeared and it just “feels” more like Christmas. I know even the words “feels like Christmas” is up for debate. In Canada, for me Christmas feeling and mood is… cooler weather, crisp frosty mornings and powdery light dustings of snow. However when we lived in Brazil, it was hot, sometimes rainy, beach weather with powdery white sands. It was a real effort to get in the mood of “feeling like Christmas” that year. But fun to decorate and not worry about snow affecting the decor on my patio! haha

So today…the bins are out and I have begun. Just a little, taking my time, enjoying the Christmas music that is now once again added to my Playlist for the next 6 weeks or so, and cleaning my house well, room by room and adding touches here and there that will make things look and feel like Christmas. It will take a few days because I’m not doing it all in one day but I’m enjoying it.

My first baking was done yesterday ( gotta get the fruitcake done early)as I watched the Remembrance Service in Ottawa. And I even did a little shopping online to be delivered in the next few weeks. And so little by little Christmas merrymaking has begun.

Isn’t it just the most wonderful time of the year? Brr…and today “feels” chilly, it “feels” like that time of the year 😀

Give thanks with a grateful heart

Such an absolutely beautiful day along the South Shore and…yet another turkey dinner. Yes, I decided to make another (and pumpkin pecan lava cake for dessert)

Hope you enjoyed a wonderful day with family and friends!

Deep fried Turkey Day!

This weekend is Thanksgiving and many Canadians will enjoy family feasts of turkey, cranberries, pumpkin and apple pie. This year we’re switchin’ things up! Oh for sure we are still going to enjoy cranberries and pie and definitely turkey is on the menu BUT …instead of hours roasting in the oven. Tonight, a few days early ( because of family work schedules on the weekend) we are deep frying our turkey in a pot in the backyard!!

It’s been a few years since we’ve done this and our kids don’t remember doing it so, we will give them this fun experience. And…it only takes 45 minutes!! Crispy on the outside, tender and juicy on the inside.