Sushi and Snow

Sparse as the snow has been, it has been a HUGE hit at our house.  Not only will Tricia eat any (and I mean any) snow she can lay her little paws on but she loves to roll in it, lay face down and gaze at it, and make "angels" in it (her angels are forthcoming as she is still flapping her arms in a forward motion thus missing the snow all together).  Over the Christmas break we were blessed with some time spent in the much snowier realm of Muskoka where our family cottage sits on a very big hill.  Tobogganing was an immediate obsession for our wee thrill seeker but we found we had a serious problem... so much fun means snow up the pants, up the sleeves and down the collar.  Fortunately Ryan was on hand with a perfect solution... Duct Tape!!  Ryan taped Tricia and her cousins into their snow suits allowing them at least another 1/2 hour of play per session... he's not just a pretty face ya know. 

The snow coupled with the arrival of Santa and Snowmen adorning many lawns gave us a plethora of new vocabulary for the season.  We drove around at night like kids in a candy store exclaiming over every sparkly house we could find.  Tricia can literally spot a Santa (head, hat, body, half blown up or otherwise) from a mile away.  She has no idea Santa brought her presents at Christmas but she does know that she LOVES him!  Kids are hilarious.  We also learned that Christmas is about baby Jesus' birthday.  I knew Tricia was getting the hang of the Birth of our Saviour thing when she told me on our way to the Christmas eve service "NOT to hit the baby Jesus"! 

The running commentary out of that girls mouth is too much and it simultaneously tells me how I'm doing at communicating with her.  She tells us all about bad attitudes, she tells us to show her our happy faces, she tells her babies not to open the fridge, hit Miley, push baby Ruby, hit Melia or Cole, and that they only get potty treats for going poopy.  Its very informative and hilarious as her words are coming fast and furious and she doesn't wait to get it right before she launches into a speech.  Particularly fabulous is that she loves these little rubber frogs she got.  They are a multitude of colours and while she has no trouble with the plural "frogs" the singular "frog" sounds exactly like the F word, no joke.  If you don't believe me just ask the 6 people who were here for dinner the other night :)

PS - some of these pics are incredible, just click on the one of Reuben at the wood stove to see what I mean!

There are still spaces available in the upcoming Culinary Class on February 2nd from 6-9 pm

Join me for "Sushi Basics": Learn the basics of the amazing art of this Japanese cuisine.  Literally Sushi means "seasoned rice" and offers so much flexibility and as little raw fish as you desire...

The details: The evening will be a informal event. We begin with a little meet and greet, discuss the evenings recipes and breakout into teams. There will also be an intro to skills and equipment at this time. Groups will then work together to create their dishes with brief demonstration points for all. Finished dishes will be set out in the dining room for everyone's enjoyment when we have finished (we will discuss plating and garnishing at this time as well).

Where: London House Bed and Breakfast - 80 London Rd W (front entrance at porch)

Evening includes: Instruction and demonstration by chef Katie Franks, all required equipment and ingredients. Each participant will also receive a recipe book for all of the evenings creations. Tea, coffee and ice water are provided, if you wish to bring other beverages for your own enjoyment please feel free, glassware is available.

Participants should bring: A favourite apron, comfortable closed toe shoes and their appetites!

Note: Please let me know if there are any dietary restrictions, allergies or intolerance so we can plan ahead, thank you!

To book your spot please email or leave a comment... more info on all our classes can be found right here on this blog at The Kitchen Door Culinary Classes

See you then!

Chef Katie Franks
The Kitchen Door Culinary Classes
katie_franks@me.com