The Secret Lives of Hostas

After our severe storm yesterday I wandered out into my Son's garden to investigate the potential damage on the lush plants surrounding his beach house.  I sighed realizing that the glorious lilacs may not withstand the gusty, unforgiving weather.  What I found was the secret lives of hostas. Storm receding overcast - dripping, dewy with massive raindrops; glistening and hanging onto the green flesh of the leaves.  Nature is amazing. 

Patti Friday, Photojourno, reporting from inside 'The Art Dept.' at the international 'Embassy of Ideas'.

The Uppercase Magazine Stationery Guide

Patti Friday, Photojourno, reporting from inside 'The Art Dept.' at the international 'Embassy of Ideas'.

Coconut-Curry Chickpea Quinoa Pineapple Burgers

Yield: 4 burgers

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Total Time: 30 minutes

Ingredients:

1 can chickpeas, drained
1/2 cup coconut milk
1/2 teaspoon curry
1/2 teaspoon garam masala
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon Goya Adobo Seasoning (or onion salt)
1/4 cup fresh chives or scallions, chopped
1/2 cup quinoa, cooked
2/3 cup panko breadcrumbs
4 slices fresh pineapple
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons toasted sesame seed oil
1/4 cup Vegenaise
lime zest
pepper
4 whole wheat hamburger buns
4 teaspoons Earth Balance butter
lettuce

directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Place the chickpeas, coconut milk, curry, garam masala, adobo seasoning, and garlic powder in a Vitamix or food processor. Pulse until pureed. Stir in the chives, Quinoa, and panko crumbs. Form into 4 patties.

Heat a grill pan over medium-high heat. Drizzle the pan with olive oil and a bit of sesame oil. Pan fry patties until golden brown on each side. Then set aside the patties and grill the pineapple until golden brown grill lines appear on each side of the fruit.

Butter the inside halves of the hamburger buns with Earth Balance butter. Bake, buttered sides up, in an oven preheated to 400 degrees until the butter is melted and the buns are toasty.

In a small bowl, stir together the lime zest, pepper, and Vegenaise.

Serve the Chickpea burgers topped with grilled pineapple, your flavored Vegenaise, and a bit of lettuce on top of of your burger buns.

Vegan, vegetarian - Recipe and delicious photograph from Cheeky Kitchen

Patti Friday, Photojourno, reporting from inside 'The Art Dept.' at the international 'Embassy of Ideas'.

Beach Mandalas

Patti Friday, Photojourno, reporting from inside 'The Art Dept.' at the international 'Embassy of Ideas'.

Cabin Boy

Cabin Boy has to be one of my favorite shops in Ontario. (I also adore Artifacts in Port Carling.) This hip shop is located in little ol' Midland within a stone's throw of the lakeside docks. Such a pretty main street with an interesting variety of shopping.  

From their website:

Cabin Boy opened it's doors in Midland on July 10th, 2004 at 257 King Street and now resides at 251 King Street three doors away.  For the last nine years we have been attending to the needs of the passengers on our "ship" here in beautiful Georgian Bay.

Some people might say we're in " the middle of nowhere", but we believe we're in "the middle of everywhere."

Our goal is to impress the most savvy of shoppers that visit our store.  As we are now a global village, we believe the best of things should be available to everyone including those in small towns like ours North of Toronto.

In addition to our retail store, our design business is best described as "design facilitation", with services ranging from a one hour colour consultation, to floor plans, elevations and general contracting of residential renovations.  We work from Parry Sound to the waters edge in downtown Toronto, and everywhere in between. 

"You have to live somewhere...." is our tag line.  So,  "make your space work beautifully" is our answer. 

Patti Friday, Photojourno, reporting from inside 'The Art Dept.' at the international 'Embassy of Ideas'.