Sunday, October 26, 2014

Saturday Simple Supper for Six...and a Slow Soothing Sunday.

Today is Sunday and I am taking a bit of a break from "The Ugly Truth Series"
(the posts showing the radical transformation of Our Humble Bungalow.)


I posted this picture of succulents from The Deep Cove Chalet Garden on Instagram last week.
I absolutely love that succulents are drought tolerant.
 Are available in wide variety of shapes, colours and forms which add impact and interest to any space.


A walk about in Victoria's Chinatown would not be complete without a stroll through Fan Tan Alley...


or Fan Tan Gallery!
This shop is on my list of favourites...
full of 
lovely linens, soaps, pillows and things for the house.


Glorious colourful fruits and vegetables are out in front of the shops...
garden market style.


We hosted a dinner party this weekend for friends who have recently returned from various trips.
Morocco, France and Spain.


We served bubbly, red wine and lemon infused water.


Mr. HB put the fairy lights on...they stay up all year now, as was the tradition in his family.
His father would plug them in for family dinners and special occasions.


I went to the florist and brought home some white African Violets.
They are a humble, but very reliable plant, and they are not too expensive.


I splurged on a new Sophie Conran Portmeirion bowl.
This was labelled "The statement bowl."
I used it for our salad....but I can see it used as a pasta bowl as well.

On the menu...
Prosecco
Cambozola stuffed Grilled Figs wrapped in prosciutto 
(White Water Cooks At Home recipe prepared by one of our guests.)

I made a simple spinach and arugula salad with toasted pine nuts.
Tossed with a basic balsamic vinaigrette dressing and topped with a shaving of freshly grated Parmesan cheese.

Balsamic Vinaigrette

Whisk together 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
6 tablespoons good quality Olive Oil
2 Tablespoons Balsamic Vinegar
salt and pepper to taste

Makes enough dressing for a large salad.
You can halve the recipe for a smaller salad.

Home made Foccacia Bread served with oil and balsamic dip.

Spicy Italian Sausage Lasagna 

Saute 1 large diced onion, several cloves of peeled garlic in a small amount of oil until soft.
Add 2 cups of sliced mushrooms and cook for a few minutes.
Remove from the casing and add in 1-2 pounds of Hot Italian sausage meat.

Add in a large can of San Marzano tomatoes and a can of tomato paste (or your favourite tomato sauce.)
 Season with Italian spices and red pepper flakes...to taste.
 We like ours quite spicy!
Simmer for about 45 minutes and then layer fresh sheets of lasagna noodles and sauce with a layer of arugula and cottage cheese in the middle layer and top with another layer of noodle and sauce.
Top with grated mozzarella and parmesan cheeses.
Cover with foil and bake at 350 for about an hour until bubbly and hot.
Remove foil and cook for another few minutes so chees topping melts and remove from oven.
Rest it for 10 minutes before cutting into serving portions.

We walked up a couple of blocks to our friend's home after dinner
where we watched a fabulous slide show of Morocco, France and Spain.
 We savoured a delicious pumpkin chiffon pie with tea and coffee before walking home.


This morning we got up bright and early after a late night...
and took the family out for Sunday brunch.
 When we started out the sun was shining over the Inner Harbour.


The sea was calm...
the grass green and the boats tied up snugly to the docks.


then the clouds moved in...


Torrential rain followed...
the wind whipped the sea and soon we have a stormy Sunday. 


I've been tidying up the blog roll as I realized that so many of the blogs I had linked to were no longer active.
It seems like there is a large wave of bloggers who are retiring...
many have opted to post on Instagram instead.
I see the appeal as it is quick and easy.

The Humble Bungalow Blog has been active since November of 2009 and the anniversary is coming up.
(I think I will host a giveaway in celebration of this event.)


The sun has just made another appearance and I plan to have a lazy afternoon sipping tea and catching up on my laundry and blog reading.


Be Well and Be Kind until next time...

Hostess

13 comments:

Susan said...

What a wonderful menu you served! Next time we have a dinner party, I'm making a pitcher of lemon infused water. Thank you for that idea. I also love making and serving lasagna of all different types.

Susan said...

And I intended to ask--Have you ever made a vegetarian lasagna?

LostRoses said...

Lovely dinner menu and the table looks very homey and welcoming. Succulents! Oh my, I love them too. Many of my old blog roll are no longer active either. Sad. Wonder if they know I still think about them? Don't you quit blogging! I don't always comment but I always enjoy.

Grace @ Sense and Simplicity said...

I love your new African violet, your new bowl, and your dinner menu (and not in any particular order). They all speak of a lovely, simple, well thought out life. I had a quiet weekend as well, but it was just what I needed.

KSL said...

Susan - I have, and I used sliced eggplant and sliced zucchini in between the layers, and marinara sauce instead of a meat sauce.

KSL said...

What a nice weekend. I'm worried we'll never see rain in LA again. We had our granddaughter for the whole weekend, and it was great, but after 48 hours non-stop, we're pretty tired out. I used to serve lasagna a lot, but my husband can't eat gluten, and I've never found a good gluten free lasagna noodle. Oh well, lots of other things to serve. Beautiful new bowl.

Lorrie said...

The rain came and then it went away and we enjoyed a beautiful few hours. Your dinner sounds wonderful - good food and good friends! Love the fairy lights. I have some I keep in a ficus tree and am beginning to plug them in in the evenings. Have a great week, Hostess!

LPC said...

Beautiful, hostess. I love the walk after dinner for a dinner party. So festive.

Madame Là-bas said...

The sausage lasagne sounds tasty. The week-end was a surprising combination of heavy rain and sun. I do love to get out and walk in the periods of brightness. I went to Granville Island for the Writers' Festival yesterday and we walked around market which is full of October treats.I like the idea of the fairy lights.

materfamilias said...

So impressed by the dinner parties you put together so regularly. These have become very few and very far between for us. . . .

Northmoon said...

Your lovely photos of the Inner Harbour remind me of my trip. It's only been 2 weeks since I was there and I already want to come back! Besides I missed Fan Tan Alley, so that's a good excuse for another longer trip.

Your living room looks so pretty with the fairy lights, no wonder you leave them up year round.

About Last Weekend said...

Love succulents too - yours are lovely.
they are the most entertaining of plants as the less you water them the more colours they display.
Your chinatown looks fascinating, we have a wonderful one in Oakland and SF too

Jen Lawrence said...

What a delicious sounding meal. I love Victoria's china town: memories from my youth.