demipinte

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Quick Update and Hello Summer! No, I haven't abandoned this blog yet again.  (Thanks for noticing my absence, though.)  Things have been a bit busy around here but Baby Owl has graciously allowed me some time to myself this morning and I thought I'd pop onto the blog for a few moments.

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Less is so much more

Less is so much more

My husband and I are not minimalists by any means. Personally, my version of hell is a white room that has a white rug, three pieces of white or clear furniture, a lamp, and one or two succulents in it, but nothing else.   I’m not bashing anyone who loves this particular style and who can live happily in it – all I’m saying is that I don’t and I can’t. I can appreciate how clean and bright it…

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Introducing TWO New Demipinte Series

Introducing TWO New Demipinte Series

As of today, I’ve been on maternity leave since October 2018. Our son was born in November 2018 and my husband wrapped up his paternity leave in January 2019. We’re now in April, which means I have been flying solo as a full-time homemaker for five months.

Not only do I spend my days raising our son, I also spend them doing chores. Anyone who knows me and/or who has lived with me will know that…

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#fondantpotatoes -- browned in #castiron, then partially submerged in #homemade #beefstock before getting stuck in an oven to #roast until perfectly tender. Especially lovely when the cooling weather hasn't yet gotten the best of your #homegrown #herbs and you can still get a fair bit of #rosemary off the balcony planter box! Find the recipe at @foodwishes .com along with many more ways to make #potatoes exciting! ••• #ChefJohn #inthekitchen #domesticgoddessintraining #happykitchen #thecouplethatcookstogether #potatoporn #foodporn #foodwish #foodwishes #sotasty

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So some of that #beefbonebroth I posted earlier today ended up in the #lodgecastiron pot that birthed this #borscht (though Hubby says #borsch) ...OMG. It is so #tasty and #yummy and does all the things a #comfortfood should do, namely hug you from the inside out and give your spirits a pep talk with all its cosy deliciousness. The recipe came from the #MadDelicious cookbook by Keith Schroeder (@mad_delicious); Hubby does have a Russian cookbook from when he spent a semester abroad in St Petersburg but it was not as straightforward as this one (Hubby speaks Russian so the foreign language wasn't the issue -- it was the fact the Russian cookbook listed onions in the ingredients but didn't use them and that it didn't have potatoes in the ingredients but did use them, and a few other directional discrepancies). Anyway I am rather pleased with myself and loving every spoonful of this <3 ••• #beets #redcabbage #thecouplethatcookstogether #happykitchen #domesticgoddessintraining #inthekitchen #homemade #lodge #soupsofinstagram #grabaspoon

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Cooler #autumn weather is kicking in which means #soup season is descending quickly (and earlier) upon us up here! I've been feeling under the weather all week but soup is a well-known cure for blahs, mehs, ughs, and several forms of melancholy. Hubby and I are really getting into the swing of all #homemade things, and #beefstock is on the agenda today! Got some lovely #beef #bones from @supermarchepa yesterday and, as per #ChefJohn from @foodwishes .com's instructions they're headed for a nice deep browning in the oven along with some #mirepoix :) We already have a #foodwish in mind for some of this #stock so keep an eye out for it later this weekend! ••• #homecooking #inthekitchen #celery #carrots #onions #beefbones #domesticgoddessintraining #kitchen #happykitchen #thecouplethatcookstogether

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A pre-thunderstorm weather this evening made a beautiful double #rainbow for us on the way #home <3 ••• #verdun #verdunluv #Montreal #cbcmtl #monquartier (at Arrondissement de Verdun)

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#boris has discovered himself in the #mirror -- he was like this all morning, according to my husband, and he's been like this all evening since I got him LOL ••• #boristhebritishshorthair #britishshorthair #catsofinstagram #lifewithcats

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All that's missing from this #equipment #lineup for my latest #trainingprogram is the #vsquat 💪😎 Decreasing reps (15-12-10-8-6-4-2) and increasing weights over 6 #exercises is what makes up my current #fullbody #workout (crafted by the super awesome @cynopel of @nautilus_plus #placevillemarie) ••• #girlsgettingfit #girlsworkout #girlswholift #fitchickinthemaking (at Nautilus Plus)

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Getting in a few minutes of some #stretching before today's @nautilus_plus #placevillemarie #trailhiking group session with @cynopel :D (at Nautilus Plus)

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#homemade #chickensoup and #dumplings -- it's not yet winter but September is already quite cool, which is a bit sad as we barely seemed to have had a proper summer here in Montreal. However, according to #ChefJohn from @foodwishes .com, this soup has been known to cure the blahs and several forms of melancholy. The end of a short summer (as well as the end of two weeks of vacation/staycation) sounds like some kind of blah, so let's put this to the test ;) ••• #tasty #yummy #homecooking #comfortfood #soup #dumplins #omnomnom

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#lichen on a #weepingwillow -- #smalldetails in #nature made up the net that ensnared me and got me hooked on #photography back in the day. It's nice to revisit those roots. (at John Abbott College)

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Practicing my mothering techniques with a giant #zuchinni (no, this is not a pregnancy announcement lol) -- this one was at @alexis_le_gourmand on #ruestjacques here in #Montreal, just a hop, skip, and a jump away from #griffintown :) It's a great little local spot for some quick #gourmet #grocery shopping! (at Alexis Le Gourmand)

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The #crosswalk at the top of our #street, which happens to be outside an elementary #school, was repainted this week :) ••• #backtoschool #helloseptember #september #whatalready #verdun #verdunluv (at Arrondissement de Verdun)

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#heygirlhey -- #Boris giving his best #eligiblebachelor pose and stare haha ••• #boristhebritishshorthair #borisgram #britishshorthair #cats #catsofinstagram #lifewithcats

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The #adventures in #homemade #pickles continue today with...pickled #greentomatoes ! Our #sweet100 #tomato plant is already on its last legs -- the weather has taken quite a cool turn lately but there are still scorching hot stretches some days, and our #balconygarden is taking a bit of a hit. I didn't want any waste (or at the least amount of it as possible) and a few keywords plugged into Google provided me with this idea; it also helped me deal with the last of the #homegrown #dill we've got too :) I hope the luck we've been having with homemade #cucumber pickles will stretch to these guys! #fingerscrossed and I'll post an update when they're ready for consumption! ••• #homemadepickles #greentomatopickles #homemaking #homemakingskills #canning #jarring #balconygarden

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Took #boristhebritishshorthair to the #vet today... He's found a secure #corner and is attempting to establish a nest. ••• #borisgram #Boris #veterinarian #catsofinstagram #lifewithcats #scaredycat (at Clinique Veterinaire Verdun)