A and I live very close to the Niagara wine region and we will often head to Niagara-on-the-lake to do wine tastings.  A couple years ago we went to the winery Stratus, and I fell in love with their 2007 Red.  I find this to be a bold wine with berry tones.  A finds it peppery.  From their website:

“The hot and dry vintage of 2007 is a hallmark for the Niagara Peninsula. The vintage was ideal for the art of assemblage and each varietal was able to show signature typicity. Made up of predominately Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc, other varieties were included to lift the body and nose. The result is a concentrated, complex and ageworthy wine that expresses the diversity of our vineyard.”

Unfortunately, this wine is $44.  We bought one bottle and received one as a gift, but the price keeps me from buying more.  We can always stop in for tastings, though.

My next discovery is more affordable.  I was tasked with purchasing a wine for dinner with A’s parents.  His parents are wine appreciators.  A’s advice was to get something bold, with a good rating.  I purchased The Black Chook Shiraz Viognier 2009 from Woop Woop winery in South Australia.  It was excellent! It reminds me a lot of the Stratus 2007 Red, but at a price of $17.95, it is easier to purchase.  Plus, there’s a chicken on the label.

Here’s the description:

“This 2009 Shiraz Viognier was matured for 10 months in French and American oak, 30% new. Deep garnet purple in color, it has intense cherry and crushed blackberry aromas with an enticing fruity lift and just a touch of peachiness. A solid backbone of high acidity and medium- firm fine tannins support the fleshy, medium-full bodied palate, finishing long. Approachable now, it has some capacity for development and should cellar to 2016+. Score: 90 LPB”

If you want to get your hands on the Stratus 2007 Red, it is available in some LCBO vintages, but the best way is to go to the Stratus winery.  It’s a gorgeous building and they have many wines and ice wines to try.  Here’s their website: http://www.stratuswines.com/

For The Black Chook, check the LCBO website for availability.  You have to search for this wine.  When I found it again, I bought 4 bottles, just in case.

xo Saree

{Lemon burst cake mix cookies}

{White chocolate topped gingerbread cookies}

xo Saree

My other project was the Divine Hat from the free pattern here.  If you are new to crocheting, or just new to making adult hats (as I was), I will include some links that I found useful.  The first is how to make an adjustable ring, which you will need to start this hat.  Next, this hat uses the stitch fpdc (front post double crochet), which has instructions here.  At the end of the pattern, there is also the stitch bpdc (back post double crochet), which is explained here.  Finally, the pattern suggests H and J hooks (5 mm and 6 mm, respectively).  I only had 5 mm and 6.5 mm hooks, so on the body of the hat, I used the 6.5 mm (K).  This didn’t seem to make any difference in the finished product, but I was trying to crochet a bit tighter than normal.  In the end, the hat is really comfortable and warm.  I added one round of a lighter pink yarn for a bit of detail, but the spiral stitches turned out great.  I really recommend this pattern, especially for beginners.

xo Saree

They toured recently with The Pixies, but if you have a chance to see them, I highly recommend it!

Anyway, for Song Saturday, I thought I’d share their song “Say You”.  It can be found here.

xo Saree

Second, I wanted to share this infinity scarf tutorial.  I came across it on Pinterest.  I wanted to make an infinity scarf that was big and chunky, like this one:

I really love the colour of yarn she used too, but I didn’t have chunky yarn, so I ended up making this one in a tweed:

I see a chunky infinity scarf in my future.  I’ll post pictures when it’s done.  Patterns can be found here.

xo Saree

I realize it’s been awhile.  I’ve handed in my thesis for review, so I have a bit more time now.  After I took a couple days to recover from the stress of writing, I got back to work on the L quilt.  Pattern for the zig zag quilt is here.  Friday evening I finished sewing the strips together and then completed the quilt top.

On Saturday, I basted the quilt using a medium loft batting and some minky fabric as the backing.  I will fully admit that although I love the feel and look of minky fabric, I despise working with it.  I had a terrible time trying to secure it while basting and it is so slinky, it’s really hard to position.  Also, when you cut it, there is a mess of fluff all over.  I’m torn about whether to use it again.  I quilted simple horizontal lines beneath each strip and then wrapped the minky around for the binding.  I’m quite happy with how it turned out.  More pictures can be found here.

I then went to work this morning completing a crocheted baby hat to match.  The pattern can be found here. Login is required to view the pattern.  I tried to match the yarn with the quilt and added a cute little square of grey to the top.

xo Saree

A at Point Pelee, Ontario, Canada

xo Saree

xo Saree

Courtesy TLC

This lasagna recipe has changed my life! Seriously.  I love lasagna, but A isn’t really a fan.  I also love recipes that don’t take a lot of time.  This is the perfect recipe and A actually likes it.

I found the recipe from TLC via Apartment Therapy and it can be found here. I’ll list it below in the original format and tell you some things you can do to modify it as well.

Summertime Lasagna Recipe

serve 4

1 cup ricotta
1/4 cup grated Parmesan
3 tablespoons olive oil
Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
8 lasagne noodles, broken into thirds, cooked according to package instructions and drained
1 minced garlic clove
2 pints cherry tomatoes, halved
2 small zucchini, thinly sliced
1/2 cup torn basil leaves

1. Combine ricotta, Parmesan and olive oil, and salt and pepper to taste. Set aside.

2. Heat oil in skillet over medium high and add garlic and tomatoes. Cook until slightly broken down, about 3 minutes. Transfer to bowl.

3. Add zucchini to skillet (with a little more oil if needed). Season with salt and pepper and cook about 5 minutes until tender. Transfer to another bowl.

4. Scatter a few tomatoes over four plates. Top with one noodle, a spoonful of ricotta mixture, zucchini and more tomatoes. Repeat layering twice, ending with noodle and tomatoes. Drizzle a little more olive oil on top. Garnish with basil and serve.

Now for my modifications.  I use whole wheat lasagna, which take a bit longer to cook, but makes this recipe healthier.  I usually start the water boiling and then when I add the lasagna to the water, I start cooking the other ingredients.  I cook the zucchini first with salt and pepper for 2 minutes, then I add the tomatoes and garlic and cook for the remaining 3 minutes.  This way I don’t need to use an extra dish.  I just assemble my lasagna straight out of the skillet.  The last thing I do, which helps in the winter months, is I use canned diced tomatoes instead of cherry tomatoes.  It tastes just as good and is fine for the winter when the cherry tomatoes don’t always look so good.  I also omit basil for this reason.

That’s it.  Super fast.  It’s ready in about 20 minutes from the time you start heating the water.  Enjoy!

xo Saree

I was hoping to have some sewing/quilting stuff for you on Thursday after K came over to work on her quilt, but I had a migraine and had to cancel.  I’m really bummed about that because K is sooooo close to having a quilt done.  Her quilt top is pretty much finished and she bought some backing fabric, so it’s time to put the whole thing together.  We’re going to aim for next Thursday, so hopefully I’ll have an update then.

So, sorry I haven’t been here.  I promise to be back when I’m done writing and actually work on some projects.  I’ll still have song Saturday and picture Sunday, and I’ll try to post a really good recipe too.

Until next time!

xo Saree