j 1/25/13 j 1/25/13

Thai Red Curry Soup with Cocunut Rice

An amazing flavour and comfort food, red curry is both spicy and smooth. Curried coconut milk with carrots, bell peppers and napa cabbage, served with toasted flake coconut

j 1/21/13 j 1/21/13

One year as a blogger

I decided to take a look back on my first year as a blogger. Generally it's been great! It's a wonderful chance to cultivate creativity and to maintain inspiration. I've also been more focused. Rather than blog about everything I'm working on, or post all my interests to the interwebz, I've been able to put an emphasis on three things (food, fashion and garden). I also have stretched my knowledge and grown as I've posted. I'd say I've expanded my culinary knowledge 30%. I've been inspired by the support of my friends, family and other bloggers.

There have been challenging times. It's not always easy to be inspired - art isn't something that's got an on/off switch. I've also got a real grownup job which always takes priority, so there's not always leisure time for blogging. There've been haters, too - random people who email me just to say how much they hate ... everything.

All the same, it's really been a good year:

A total of 141 posts (almost three times as many as I'd planned on)
Almost 100 food posts with more than 40 vegan recipes
More than 3,000 unique visitors
Viewers from New York, LA, Guam, Paris, Vienna, Zurich, London...
More than 20% of the hits are returning visitors
The most viewed post: http://jlamode.com/december-2012-gardening/
6,000 photos taken for posts

Here's to another great year!

J

j 1/19/13 j 1/19/13

Mind-blowing Vegan Burger

One year anniversary of jLAmode!

Too good to be vegan! A local restaurant inspired me to make this flavourful stack. The patty is also gluten free.

First, set out the spices: garlic powder, dried chives, turmeric, salt, onion powder and smoked paprika.

Then mix with a puree of beans (nearly any kind will do). To help hold things together add tofu, oats and white rice flour.

Form the patty and give it a good fry:

Add some char for a deep flavour.

I baked fresh burger buns just for this:

Completed with lettuce, tomatoes, yellow bell pepper, avocado and grilled onions. Served with a salad made of: fresh-from-the-garden mixed greens, toasted pine nuts and pomegranate seeds.

j 1/18/13 j 1/18/13

Roo's Baby Blanket

Designed with recollections of Island life, a baby blanket for a dear friend:

j 1/15/13 j 1/15/13

Concept: Buttoning Cowl Neck Pullover

I designed this quite a while ago. I envision it constructed with a muted gray cotton fabric.

j 1/12/13 j 1/12/13

Omelette aux asperges

Three whites, one yolk and blanched asparagus. Topped with gruyère; served with a buckwheat biscuit and chili roasted fingerling potatoes.

Chili roasted fingerling potatoes: Coat with olive oil, chili oil, smoked paprika and parsley.

j 1/8/13 j 1/8/13

Sweet Potato Souffle

This is a "souffle" not a genuine soufflé. It's also vegan.

Seasoned with cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and salt. Garnished with brown sugar and pecans.

Personally, I think yams taste like puke so I try to make them edible. Perhaps I'll get ambitious and try my hand at a genuine soufflé made with sweet potatoes.

j 1/5/13 j 1/5/13

Avocado Spread

This isn't like most mushy avocado spreads, rather the addition of fresh, shredded kale gives it a texture. Also, it's not a guacamole flavoured spread. Instead, it's seasoned with smoked paprika, onion powder and saffron.

It goes great on (or in) grilled wraps:

j 12/31/12 j 12/31/12

Citrus stack cake

Layers of zippy lemon cake and mellow whipped cream; topped with lemon and tangerine zest. Served with a dash of nutmeg and a kumquat slice.

j 12/28/12 j 12/28/12

Pomegranate Cranberry Muffins

Some tasty fresh fruit:

I sauteed this with a bit of orange juice to so that they'd be sure to cook properly.

Golden brown perfection:

j 12/24/12 j 12/24/12

Strawberry and Kiwi Tarte

So good, with the fresh and acidic flavours of the fruit.

First, start with a sponge (a cake one). I make this one by following the following ratio - 1:1:1:1 Eggs, Fat, Sugar and Flour. That's the basis for the cake, but will require adding in the rest of the needed ingredients: flavouring (vanilla), salt, soda, powder, etc.

Bake in a fluted tart pan and cool on a wire rack.

Fill the top with either a custard, or whipped cream.

Arrange the fruit and brush with a pastry glaze (melted apple jelly or apricot jam).

Let the glaze cool for a few minutes to all ow it to set.

Slice and enjoy:

j 12/22/12 j 12/22/12

Pecan Cake

An easy preparation for the holidays.

Simply a vanilla cake (boxed, or your favourite recipe). Covered in whipped cream and pecans. Easy to make and a delicious winter treat.

j 12/16/12 j 12/16/12

Butternut Squash Soup

Butternut Squash Soup served with Greek Youghurt, shreds of beet leaf and kale.

This soup, like most takes a while to prepare, but it's worth it!

Made from:

roasted butternut squash
parsnips
onions
peppers
smoked paprika
turmeric

[Omit the youghurt or substitute it with a vegan alternative]

j 12/14/12 j 12/14/12

Pfeffernüße

This recipe is a fat free dough; a spiced, sweet holiday treat.

Because there's no fat in the dough, it's best to bake them on sprayed parchment paper.

Traditional pfeffernüße are usually hard after they've cooled - then stored for a few weeks in loosely covered tins. During this time, the spices develop a full flavour and the flour absorbs moisture, making them edible.

I can't wait for weeks, so this recipe produces ready to eat cookies. Simply dust with powered sugar while still hot and cover them while they cool.

j 12/9/12 j 12/9/12

December 2012 Gardening

The same things are still growing in the garden, but a recent bit of warm weather has brought some new progress. While most people are out Christmas shopping, I'm in the garden. Mixed carrots: it's much of a melange, but they've all got a sweet, crisp flavour. Recent rain and some fertilization have caused the noticeable hair-like roots. They're growing big, all the same.