June 27, 2013

Neighbourhood Watch


Looking out through the large living room window, I spotted what was once a tiny little bunny. This (not so little) rabbit has made herself a home near my house, or possibly even in the bushes on my lawn and we've been able to watch as she grows into a proper member of the wildlife community.

Judging from when I took the photo of her last year, she's about a year old.  So cute!


Not too far away a robin appeared and  hopped around looking for tasty critters in the lawn. Go get 'em, I say. Get those grubs and what-nots outta here! 



Clearly this guy's the king.



Bunbun's fur is looking a little funny, as she's molting from her bulky winter attire into something lighter and more suitable to the recent Toronto weather. I sat on the front lawn and watched her silently for a little while. At first she was a little nervous, stayed frozen as to not catch my eye but then slowly she let loose and I got to watch her munch on the grass around her.

She'd sit in one place, pig out and then move to another to do the same leaving a nice sized dent on the lawn from the grass she had nibbled off. There are random patches of grass missing and although it's kind of hideous, it's nice to know that my lawn is tasty and she's happy!

I even took a video. I should probably upload it.

I was a good distance away, but thanks to the telephoto lens that Rich got me for my birthday last year I was able to take some sneaky pictures and videos. Animal stalker.

P.S. Bunbun may or may not be a girl. I'm not about to find out anytime soon, unless little ones start appearing!

June 26, 2013

Grad Dinner at Aunt and Uncle T's

Grad cake I baked and decorated- super tacky and I love it.

My (not so) little brother graduated high school! 
My Aunt and Uncle T hosted a little get together earlier in the month to celebrate and there was food. Lots of delicious food! Take a look...

Mixed green salad with almonds and cranberries, served with a poppy seed dressing

Garden veggie salad

Seasoned potato wedges

Rich and I brought samosas and vadai

Roasted asparagus and garlic

Uncle T's one pot rice creation with sausage and veggies

Grilled ribs!

Spicy chicken sausages

We brought over a pot of potato and chickpea curry, served with basmati rice

Mum and dad brought Portuguese egg tars for dessert

I made vegan brownies

There was a multilayer Jello cake, yum!

Berry swirl cheesecake

Chocolate chunk cookies

The insides- vegan vanilla cake

DIY gold non-perils <3
There was so much scrumptious food to be eaten, we all rolled out the door at the end of the evening! The best part was watching my baby cousin Katie eat her first little nub of Jello and going nuts over her teething feeder, which was filled from mashed and frozen banana. So cute and totally made my night.

Grandpa and Katie

June 25, 2013

Chocolate and Malt Frozen Hot Chocolate

 Caving into my hankering for sweet blended frozen beverages, I've been whipping up a super delicious concoction with cocoa and malted milk powder (Horlicks)! I've taken step by step photos, but really, it only takes a handful of steps and the results are mucho rewarding. Read on!


Start off with cocoa, sweetener and a malt beverage powder of your choice. I used Horlicks but Ovaltine would make an excellent replacement. 

Get some ice cubes or frozen coconut milk. I happened to have some coconut milk frozen, because sometimes you just don't need to use a full can. Freezing them is the perfect solution!



Start by filling your cup up with ice and/or coconut ice cubes. I'm using my Magic Bullet blender cup, as I'm making a single serving.


Add in about three tablespoons of cocoa powder (per serving). You could cheat and use chocolate syrup if that's what you've got, you'll just have to adjust the sugar later on.



Follow the cocoa with a couple heaping tablespoons of malt powder. 
Seriously guys, add as little or as much of any of the ingredients as you like! Just make sure you've got enough ice in there to make it a slush. 


Sugar for sweetness. As mentioned in my Frozen Green Tea Latté post, if you're using honey or any kind of syrup that thickens when cold, it's best to thin it out with a little hot water or else it'll just clump on the side of the blender instead of being blended into your drink! 

Ideally I'd make a simple syrup to use, but I haven't done that yet and who knows when that'll happen. As you see, I've decided to use plain old granulated sugar. I never said this was healthy! Just healthier..ish.



Now that all the dry ingredients are in, it's time to add the milk of your choice. Pour in a little under 2/3 of the way up the ice.




Then blend the living day lights out of it! Start by pulsing a couple times and then just let it go at full speed (stopping once or twice to give it a good shake if it's really slushy), until it's nice and smooth.

Disregard the horrendous photo quality below. It was getting horribly dark and stormy!



Voila! Now go make a batch and share!

June 20, 2013

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June 14, 2013

Mister and Missus M.


Mallard ducks. They're quite and the boys look pretty in their blackened emerald green feathers and splash of periwinkle. Rich and I stumbled on these two love birds resting in the ravine. I was sneaking around as not to wake startle them and managed to get a handful of pictures. I love my telephoto lens!
 







Then there was the moon looking all bright and silver. Can you see it's belly button?

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About

Hi, I'm Janetta from Toronto. I cook, bake and often veganize recipes. I photograph nearly everything and those photos will most likely end up being posted here. I've got a little black cat named Tank, who's really cute and a little bit nosy. You'll see a lot of photos of her too!

Contact me at: jubesandtank@gmail.com

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