Sunday Brunch: Fruit and Honey Toast

INGREDIENTS:
2 pieces Toast (I prefer seedy, but used what I had)
1 cup Sliced Fruit (I used banana & strawberry, but mango would go nice too)
2 tbsp Honey












I'm sick this week, so I went super simple, but yummy.

Toast 2 pieces of bread, spread honey over them and top with sliced fruit, then drizzle a little more honey across the top. Vitamins, honey, nutrition, yum.

Sunday Brunch: Red Flannel Hash

I had some beets that were on their last legs and no plans to make Borscht/no ingredients for beet slaw. When I typed 'beets for breakfast' into google and got several recipes from that. I took the basics that were in all of them and went from there.










INGREDIENTS:
2 medium Beets, peeled and diced*
4 small White Potatoes, diced
4 Veggie Sausage links, diced (use 1/2 pack crumbled tofu for gluten-free)
1/2 Onion, finely chopped
2 cloves Garlic, minced
1 sprig Fresh Basil, chopped
salt and pepper to taste
red pepper flakes, to taste

In two separate pots, parboil the potatoes and beets, set aside. Meanwhile, fry the veggie sausage with the onions and garlic until the sausage browns a bit and onions are tender. Add the potatoes and shake a bunch of salt (I remember corn beef hash vaguely, and it was the salt that made the dish) and pepper. Add a bit more oil and the potatoes and brown the potatoes. Add the beets, basil and a bit of the beet water. Shake in some more salt, pepper and red pepper flakes; stir to combine.

*To avoid red hands and counter tops, fill the sink 1/2 way with cold water and peel and slice your beets underwater.

A Record a Week: Sandy MacFarlane - The Weddin' O' Sandy Mackay

SIDE 1.
THE WEDDIN' O' SANDY MACKAY
WHEN THE HEATHER BELLS ARE BLOOMING
MACNABS A JOLLY SAILOR
SERGEANT JOCK MCPHEE

SIDE 2.
HAME O' MINE
KATIE MCKAY
GRANNIE'S HIGHLAND HAME-PART 1
GRANNIE'S HIGHLAND HAME-PART 2

Right off the bat, this reminded me of The Log Roller's Waltz. I was tidying up the basement and not paying full attention, so I had to stop and move closer to the stereo to be sure it wasn't. After that song, it all sort of reminded me of the soundtrack to a remotely racist cartoon from the '60s or '50s. Have you checked out the original Casper show lately? Yeah, it's bad. Anyhow, if there was any notion of a leprechaun or faintly Irish character and this would be playing in the background for sure.

The light floaty sound of this style of Irish music is not something I'm going to pretend to know anything about. That's probably why it auto-jumped to such broad categories for me, so I'd have something to latch on to. However, I could tell that it was well performed and was enjoyable to listen to in a Dan Gibson kind of way.

Side note: did you know that googling 'Sandy MacKay' is as easy as googling a Mike Smith or Paul Lee.

A Record a Week: Lovin' Spoonful - The Best of Lovin' Spoonful Vol. 2

SIDE 1.
SIX O'CLOCK
DARLING BE HOME SOON
LOVIN' YOU
BOREDOM
FULL MEASURE
NASHVILLE CATS

SIDE 2.
SHE IS STILL A MYSTERY
RAIN ON THE ROOF
OLD FOLKS
DARLIN' COMPANION
MONEY
YOUNGER GENERATION




I think a lot of times the term 'Best Of' can be a misnomer. Did Lovin' Spoonful really warrant a second best of album? Only two of these songs cracked the top Ten (Rain on the Roof/Nashville Cats), neither of which cracked the top 5. The album has no Summer in the City or Do you Believe in Magic? I suppose there is some stuff I don't know about this band, not being alive in the late '60s, but it's my general opinion that artists that aren't The Beatles, The Stones or Michael Jackson probably don't need 2 best ofs.

With all that out of the way, this album is pretty decent. It sounds pretty much like everything you'd imagine if you've only heard those two songs I previously mentioned, which leaves you wanting for those two songs. To me, it was like listening to a new album by a band whose last album you knew very well. You want to feel the same way about it, but it just hasn't had the time to ingrain itself like the previous one.

Summer in the City is one of those songs that I always loved and tried to no avail to learn all the lyrics to. Well....tried in the sense that I try to memorize them as I hear them, not actually look them up and practice or anything. However, I always get tripped up after the first few lines, because I tend to focus on singing the ones I know, forgetting to ready my brain to try and intake new ones immediately after. By that point, I'm so far behind that there's no hope. Repeat Ad infinitum.

Sunday Brunch: Apple-Cinnamon Blinis

Blinis are a European-style pancake. The other names are blin or blintchiki, which typically are more crepe-like. Typically served with a cheese-filling or caviar top, these go excellently with a dollop of 'sour supreme' or margarine.












INGREDIENTS:
1 Apple; peeled, cored and chopped
1 tbsp Sugar (cane or any granulated sugar)
1 tsp Cinnamon
1 tbsp Earth Balance (or other vegan margarine)
1 cup Flour 
1/2 tsp Salt
1/2 tsp Baking Soda
1 Egg Replacer (I use Ener-G)
1 cup Sour Supreme (or other faux sour cream), divided
1/2 cup Soy Milk (or Almond would work too)

Take the chunks of apple and toss them in the sugar and cinnamon. Heat the margarine over medium low and cook the apple mixture until it caramelizes and the apples are soft. Set aside.

Sift together the flour, salt and baking soda. In a separate bowl or large measuring cup, mix the egg replacer with the milk and 1/2 cup of sour supreme. Fold together the liquid and dry mixes until just mixed. carefully fold in apple mixture *do not overmix.

Over medium-low heat, drop spoonfuls of batter into a lightly oiled pan or griddle. When the bubbles appear on the top and begin popping, flip over. On the second side, they only need about 10 seconds, or until when they aren't sticking. This keeps the middle light and fluffy. Top with a dollop the remaining sour supreme and some fresh fruit.