Tag: coniferes et feuillus

middle eastern grilled lamb kafta with tahini yogurt sauce & whole wheat pita bread

grilled lamb kafta & tahini yogurt sauce | conifères & feuilllus
~ annika ~ 30 Comments

One of my son’s closest friends happens to be of Lebanese descent. The first time my son went over to his friend’s, he returned home and exclaimed rhetorically “Why can’t you make food like theirs?” I didn’t have much a choice; this one question set into motion the quest to add a few more recipes to our arsenal.grilled lamb kafta & tahini yogurt sauce | conifères & feuilllus Continue reading “middle eastern grilled lamb kafta with tahini yogurt sauce & whole wheat pita bread” →

mango lassi and two berry variations

mango, blackberry and strawberry lassi recipes | conifères & feuillus
~ annika ~ 30 Comments

I’m no expert on the matter, but from my visits to India I’d bet that the mango lassi is the most popular variation of India’s favorite yogurt drink during the summer months. I suppose this is in part due to it being mango season during this time. Lucky for us, here in Canada, we get a healthy supply of mangoes from mango producing countries throughout the world.

I’ve already shared my recipes for the standard salty lassi, as well as the sweet rose lassi. So it’s time for a mango lassi recipe today along with a few variations.mango, blackberry and strawberry lassi recipes | conifères & feuillus Continue reading “mango lassi and two berry variations” →

rose lassi

Rose Lassi | conifères & feuillus
~ annika ~ 35 Comments

If there be thorns, there shall be roses.

When we first made our journey from India to Canada, packed in our suitcases among our humble belongings was a small treasure trove of what always seemed to my younger self as magical potions and such. Having grown up in India, my parents were well versed in homemade ayurvedic remedies. We brought with us such things as eucalyptus (nilgiri) oil, sandalwood oil, churna and rose water to name a few.Rose Lassi | conifères & feuillus Continue reading “rose lassi” →

sprouting and growing fenugreek (methi) & a recipe for gujarati methi roti

methi or fenugreek | conifères & feuillus
~ annika ~ 15 Comments

Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food.  -Hippocrates

Fenugreek, known as methi in Hindi, is an important flavouring ingredient in Indian cuisine. It’s used as a herb (fresh leaves), spice (seeds or dried leaves), and vegetable (sprouts). It has a very distinctive, slightly bitter taste (acquired if you ask me) and is best known for its therapeutic properties. I grew up hearing all about its medicinal and nutritional benefits and now, digging around on the internet, I see that my parents knew well. methi or fenugreek | conifères & feuillus

Continue reading “sprouting and growing fenugreek (methi) & a recipe for gujarati methi roti” →

thyme and lilac posset

thyme and lilac infused lemon posset | conifères & feuillus
~ annika ~ 23 Comments

And suddenly you know: It’s time to start something new and trust the magic of beginnings.  ―Meister Eckhart

Unknown to me, at this time last year when my lilacs were in bloom, I was shooting some of the first photos that would appear here on this blog. This blog, as you may or may not know, is a labour of love for my children, a collection of recipes of the foods that grace our table, meant for them to use later on when they are old enough and on their own. Before I started this blog, I knew I wanted to put this collection together for them but I was hesitant about doing it in such a public manner.thyme and lilac infused lemon posset | conifères & feuillus Continue reading “thyme and lilac posset” →

apple and parsnip cake

Apple and Parsnip Cake | conifères & feuillus
~ annika ~ 31 Comments

They’re pink, gorgeous, and probably the ultimate sign of spring. Whether they are cherry, crabapple or magnolia blossoms; streets, parks and gardens throughout the city transform, almost overnight, with these beauties. When all this is going on here in Montréal, it also means that we are still weeks away from the start of berry season and a seasonal snacking cake can look very much like an autumn cake (minus the spring blossom styling!). Lucky for us, we still have plenty of apples and parsnips from our last harvest.
Apple and Parsnip Cake | conifères & feuillus Continue reading “apple and parsnip cake” →

potato, chive, and cheese soup with chive oil

potato, chive, and cheese soup with chive oil | conifères & feuillus
~ annika ~ 21 Comments
Spring appears in whispers and hushed tones, as the bellowing winter bows away.  -Author Unknown
As the snow melts away after months of winter and the ground begins to thaw, my brave chives are always the first to poke their green stalks out of the ground. And while the other herbs in my garden just begin to show signs of life, my chives are ready for the first harvest. As soon as that happens, it’s time to whip up a batch of this potato, chive, and cheese soup. It’s a much anticipated tradition here; a celebration to mark the start of a new gardening season. It’s a rich and creamy soup, perfect for these still cool, damp days of spring, but with whispers and hushed tones of chives and Emmental. For additional allium flavour and visual appeal, it’s garnished with a drizzle of chive oil.

potato, chive, and cheese soup with chive oil | conifères & feuillus Continue reading “potato, chive, and cheese soup with chive oil” →

the plague of 1896 & mango pickles

Gujarati mango pickles | conifères & feuillus
~ annika ~ 29 Comments

The creation of a thousand forests is in one acorn. -Ralph Waldo Emerson

A bubonic plague pandemic came to India in 1896 via rats on cargo ships from China. Over the next thirty years, India would lose 12.5 million people to this disease. Initially, it was confined to port cities but eventually, it spread to rural regions of the country as well. [1]

By the time the pandemic reached my ancestral village in Gujarat, my paternal grandfather was but a newborn. This meant that he had minimal resistance and the least possibility of survival if infected. But parents will do whatever possible to ensure the safety of  their children and so, as difficult as it may have been, arrangements were made by my great-grandparents to have him taken away to live temporarily with relatives living further away until the threat would pass. But things didn’t turn out quite as planned and what was meant to be temporary became permanent. Soon after he was taken away, his entire family fell victim to this deadly disease.

Indian mango pickles | conifères & feuillus Continue reading “the plague of 1896 & mango pickles” →