Phoenix Botanicals: Updated Review: Jasmine Beauty Balm

This is, I'm afraid, very much overdue. I have no proper excuses - it simply never got done. However, I did faithfully apply the balm every day for a couple of weeks, and gave it the fair trial I'd promised.

In my previous review, I'd mentioned that it seemed to make me break out. I don't know if that was something that resolved itself, or if it never actually had anything to do with the balm at all, but this time around I didn't notice any skin problems. The only (minor) thing was a bit of extra oil, which didn't seem to clog my pores, so no harm done. It's probably due to my combination skin, which gets oilier as the weather gets warmer. It might not be ideal for someone who is concerned about oil or wants a moisturizer with a matte finish.

Because of the oil, I was obliged to stop using it as summer approached. I know I should be using a moisturizer, but I'll have to find one a little less rich, with sun protection. However, I will be resuming use of the balm once the weather cools. And, of course, there's the fact that the fragrance of all that jasmine is so fantastic that I occasionally open it up just to smell it.

I do recommend that you give it a go. At around $9, even the small size lasts forever, so it's good value. And even if it doesn't work as a moisturizer, its gorgeous, androgynous scent makes it a great solid perfume.

Again, here are the links:

Phoenix Botanicals' Etsy Shop (you'll find the product under 'herbal balms'.)

Main website: http://www.phoenixbotanicals.com/

Garden Progress: Before and After

It's been a long time since I updated here! Working two jobs (and often working entire weeks without days off) I've been rather lazy about maintaining things online. But, never fear, I'm putting in a bit more effort to be prompt now.

Anyway, I haven't been neglecting my garden! I thought that it might be fun to post some before and after pictures.

April 2014. Nothing. And boring.

July 2014. Much better! The bright red flowers are dahlias. The lawn, however, is slowly dying. I don't have access to a hose or water spigot, so I do all my watering by hand with a watering can. Unfortunately it'd take about a hundred trips to soak the lawn properly, and I just don't care enough about it to do so.

Do you see the dead plant in the middle? That's not mine. The neighbours noticed that my garden was doing well, and brought over a dead plant with a sign on it (you can see it still there) reading 'Help Me!' I've been doing my best, but unfortunately, it was already gone. Also, as you can see, it's a bit cluttered. That's something I still have to fix. The long red container in the center has little tiny pepper plants starting to grow. I started them from seed and for ages, nothing came up at all, until a few weeks ago. I hope that they can fruit before the season ends!

Anyway, here's another few pictures:

Another one, from a distance. You can see the rose bushes on either side and the strawberry basket hanging up by the pillar on the left.

My violas and dahlias are in bloom! That huge plant next to the dahlias is beebalm. It hasn't flowered yet, and I hope it does so soon. The leaves smell so good, though.

Hydrangea and Double Lavender Superbells (Calibrachoa). Again, waiting for flowers from the hydrangea, but there is a tiny cluster of buds, so it might be soon!

One of the June roses. Soon after they began blooming, something killed off the blossoms! With luck they'll go a second round before the summer's through.

Jasmine plant: July 2014

Jasmine plant: May 2014

The rose on the left side. In the background are ginger geranium and a flower I've forgotten the name of, but which has an abundance of gorgeous coral star-shaped flowers. The plant next to the rose bush, on the white lattice, is my cucumber! It's gotten huge, and there are several little cucumbers growing.

It's been awesome planting and watching everything grow. I already have plans for next year, but we'll see how things go.

And yes, the guy in the reflection on the doors is me. If I'd realized I'd show up, I'd have dressed better!

The End Of ChefButler

Today I came home to an email from ChefButler, explaining that their subscription box program will be ending (their last box will go out in July). I feel a strange sort of guilt that I haven't taken the time lately to show off all the amazing meals I've made thanks to their boxes, but as neither their main website or their Facebook page give any other explanation, I can make no other assumption other than that yes, they are shutting down because I didn't post enough pictures. (If I learn anything more in the next few days, I'll update.)

Now, I enjoyed this subscription a lot. It was fun, the customer service was great, and they really loved food. Regardless, I would have probably stuck with them even if they were mediocre, because as far as I know, there is no other similar program in Canada at this time. I hope that a few other companies will start up to fill the void - the various food subscriptions in the US seem to be doing well.

Thanks for the good times, ChefButler. We'll miss you!

To Come: Updated Review for Pheonix Botanicals' Jasmine Beauty Balm

Just a quick post to let you know I'll be doing an updated, solo review of the Jasmine Beauty Balm. After reading my review, Pheonix Botanicals had some questions, specifically about the balm making me break out. I agreed to give it another trial run in order to give them more thorough feedback.

Unfortunately, I was delayed by first the onset of my seasonal breakout (every season change. Never fails.), then by a several silly things (guests, changes in schedule, a nasty cold that quite frankly makes me hate everything, sheer laziness) that are really no excuse but that nevertheless prevented me from maintaining a routine. In order to make myself accountable, I'm updating you all on my intentions.

Beginning today, I'll be applying the balm twice a day - once while I get ready for my day, and once before bed, after washing my face. I'm not currently in the midst of a break-out, and I'll be giving it a two-week trial, no other changes in routine/diet, so it should be pretty fair.

We'll see how it goes!

Review: BumbleBerry Honey Maple Creme

Before I get started on the review, here's a bit about BumbleBerry Farms, from their website:

Here at BumbleBerry Farms, we take our lead from
the bees – one hive can collectively travel as many as 55,000 miles visiting more than two million flowers to
gather the nectar needed for one single pound of our Heritage Select Honey! With that same care and diligence, our honeycomb is hand-spun to gently release the sweet honey we offer up to you – bottled in vintage-inspired, cork-stoppered glass bottles.

We’re a small operation, located in the foothills of Pennsylvania’s Laurel Mountains, and as such, we craft everything ourselves in small batches. We hand-select the ingredients for our delectable honey-based spreads from a dairy farm and a maple sugar camp just down the road. Our skin care products are kept simple, using fair-trade, organic butters whenever we can get them…like our shea butter, which is harvested by women, the sole supporters of their communities in the Burkina Faso region of West Africa.

We are forever grateful to family and friends who have helped us along the way, lending their children for photo shoots, helping us in our festival booths, volunteering as testers for products in the making. With that same nod toward giving others a lift up, we follow their lead and offer
a Honey Bee Good jar of our yummiest nectar with profits benefitting a local charity. Currently we’re supporting Outdoor Odyssey at Roaring Run, a youth mentoring and leadership development program.

We hope you enjoy your BumbleBerry goods and that
you will do as we attempt to do:

Spread a little sweetness on the planet. Bee happy. ^TM

                         .                                                                                                           Sounds great, doesn't it? I have a special place in my heart for bees, and a special place in my stomach for honey. I adore both and am happy to do what I can to help keep bees (and honey) around for years to come, especially in light of the drastically declining number of bee colonies. And supporting charity, of course, is always fantastic.

Which is why it makes me feel a bit down about writing a less-than-stellar review. But, in the interest of providing an unbiased opinion, here we go:

The big, bad problem here was graininess. Why was it grainy? I don't know. What were the grains, anyway? Again, I don't know. They were a tiny bit sweet, but definitely not sugar. Some sort of strange combination of milk proteins and maple syrup crystals, perhaps? If they were properly sweet, like, say, pure maple sugar, I'd probably have just enjoyed it. Graininess itself, while not what I expect in a spread, doesn't inherently bother me. However, these Mystery Grains took ages to melt in my mouth, had no real flavour or sweetness, and were all around more suited for some sort of sticky bath exfoliant than a food item.

Not to be deterred, I decided that despite the lack of sweetness, the Mystery Grains were probably sugar-based in some way - clearly they had crystallized, and could, theoretically, be melted down again. So I tried microwaving some of the spread, in two batches: one, in a quick hot burst, and another over several short bursts, stirring thoroughly in between. Both ended up bubbly and sticky. And both remained as grainy as ever. Now, it's possible that if I scooped the spread out into a saucepan, and simmered and stirred it slowly for an hour or so, that the Mystery Grains would eventually melt down. But in that case, I might as well be making my own, thus removing the main benefit of a prepared spread in the first place.

Then, there was the taste. It was fine, a nice milky caramel sort of flavour. If I'd ordered a plain caramel spread, I'd be delighted. But there was very little, if any, maple taste, which was what I'd been wanting in the first place. Perhaps all the maple flavour was eaten up by the Mystery Grains.

Anyway, thinking that the creme might have been near expiry, I checked the date on the bottom, which said: BEST BY 111315. Originally I'd assumed that it was good until November 13th, 2015. I don't see how it could mean 2013, since the 13 is in the middle, but it seems possible somehow, especially since I ordered it at the beginning of the year and it came from a secondary supplier (Mouth). Who knows how long it's been sitting in a warehouse? Plus, BumbleBerry's website features the creme with a distinctly different label. I don't know. It didn't taste off, but... those damned GRAINS!

I may be making a big deal out of a simple thing. If there's a quick way to fix the weird graininess, let me know, and I'll try it out. If it works, I'll adjust the review accordingly! But until then:

5/10. Decent taste (but a bit bland and not what I expected); texture made unpalatable by millions of Mystery Grains.

If you want to give it a go anyway (I'm so perplexed that I think I might order it directly from the website and see if the new batch is any better) you can buy it from BumbleBerry Farms at $8.50/5oz plus shipping, or from Mouth, as I did originally, at $13/10oz plus shipping.

March ChefButler

So, I started subscribing to something called ChefButler. Every month, ChefButler assembles all the ingredients (except for meat, produce, and very basic pantry staples) needed to create a full meal for four people - a main dish, an appetizer or side, and a dessert. The theme changes each time, inspired by cuisine from around the world. Apparently, this sort of thing has been available in the States for a while, but this is one of the first available in Canada. Anyway, this month's theme was Pakistani food: Beef Qeema, Vegetable Biryani, and Coconut Ladoo.

Before I get into the box itself, I want to make a note of their great customer service. I realized (after I'd been sent a notice that my box was about to be shipped!) that I'd somehow messed up my address when I'd first signed up, using some sort of weird combination of my last and current address. I called ChefButler up, and the lady who talked to me was friendly and competent, assuring me that I'd called just in time to have it changed. And sure enough, I received a new shipping notice almost immediately, and my box arrived with no problems. As another side note, they also provide a tracking number, which is awesome for people like me who obsessively refresh the UPS tracking page every hour.

Now, on to the box itself:

First look.

I smelled spices the moment I opened the box, and for days, until I actually got around to cooking the meal, our apartment smelled like a Middle-Eastern marketplace. Everything is packed into a nice, solid silver box - great for re-use, as long as you don't mind the lingering scent of spices. I may send a package in it soon, actually.

Second look.

Everything in the envelope.

The envelope included an introduction, the recipes, and a shopping list for everything perishable required to make the meal. It felt very well thought-out, from the convenience of the shopping list, to the recipes being printed on cards, in a perfect size for a large recipe box (I may have to actually get one someday).

The edible contents: spices, coconut, apricots, condensed milk, and basmati rice.

Everything (except, obviously the can of sweetened condensed milk) was packaged individually in sealed plastic envelopes. Each was also labeled with the contents of the quantity included. ChefButler sends their spices freshly-ground for the best and most vibrant flavour, which explains the power of the aroma. I was a little afraid that the smell would have gotten into the coconut, but everything turned out fine.

The spices for the Beef Qeema main.

The spices for the Vegetable Biryani.

This was my first time cooking with either tumeric and un-ground cinnamon bark. I found that I loved the spicy sweetness of the cinnamon bark, which seems more intense than just ground cinnamon, and I'm considering trying to find some for the next time I make rice pudding. Maybe cinnamon sticks would work?

Vegetable Biryani, Beef Qeema, and naan bread.

I only remembered to take a picture of the finished product because my partner reminded me. Unfortunately, I hadn't staged it to look pretty, so this is the best I could do. The biryani is actually very attractive in real life. The qeema, not so much, but it tastes (and smells) incredible.

My partner and I both hate cooked peas, so I replaced them with zucchini (slices in the biryani, wedges in the qeema). Additionally, since the spices are packaged individually, I could choose to add only a little of the chili powder, thus sparing my partner's delicate palate from too much spiciness. The food was very reminiscent of Indian cuisine, which I must admit is the only variation of Middle-eastern/South Asian food I've tried before now. I love that the box gave me the opportunity to cook, well, outside the box, introducing me to recipes I might ordinarily be unlikely to try.

Everything needed for Coconut Ladoo.

The ladoo (ladoos? I kept pluralizing it to ladoos) were delicious! The cardamom isn't a spice I very seldom find in Western desserts - they were, again, something I would never have made on my own, but now I think I'll be adding them to my go-to recipe files. Unlike most desserts, which we tend to eat large servings of, it took only one small ball to satisfy everyone's sweet tooth. My partner's mother and sister, who were visiting a few days later, both liked them, too!

Aren't they beautiful?

I'm very pleased with my first ChefButler experience, and will be continuing the subscription. Being an impatient person, I wish I could find some sort of clue about what themes are coming (they usually provide only tiny hints via their Twitter), but I must admit that the surprise is part of the fun. I'm looking forward to the next month!

The ChefButler site can be found here. At this time, they deliver only to Canada, for C$35 (including shipping anywhere in Canada!) per month.

March Update

You're probably all going crazy wondering what I've been up to this month. The answer is: plenty, but not a lot to blog about. We just finished hosting some family, and I've been getting a few more hours at work, so while I've been busy, I also haven't been accomplishing much.

A few of my plans will have to be pushed back until April, but that's okay. I still have plenty of time. I'll be doing the Vanilla project, various plant things, and the yard clean-up this Spring, hopefully sooner than later. Meanwhile, to make up for my absence, here is a picture of my cat:

That's our laundry basket, by the way.

Review: Pheonix Botanicals: Cloven Hoof Lip Balm, Little Wing Lip Balm, Jasmine Beauty Balm

Look at this adorable packaging!

I received my order from Pheonix Botanicals about a week ago, but wanted time to give it a fair trial. I've been wearing the lip balm about twice a day every day, and tried the beauty balm nearly every night. But, before I get to the actual review, here's a bit about the shop I bought it from:

From their Etsy shop About page: 

"A woodland faerie usually residing in Brooklyn (and currently spending a few months in Hawaii), I am fond of greener pastures! I flutter between the wild fields and the city, and bring some of nature's love back to you.

I’m thrilled about our abundant, wild therapeutic plants, and harvest them mindfully in the gorgeous wild Northeast. Phoenix balms and butters are made with real plants, and are thus very gentle on the skin. All ingredients are listed, and most are baby safe. Naturally and delightfully fragrant - prepared by a discerning nose! 

I blend exquisit natural perfumes, inspired by landscape, story, and emotion.

Apprenticing with local herbalists for several years, and working in ethnobotany research for much of a decade has exposed me to the myriad cultural and healing uses of plants... as well as a yearning to put the knowledge into practice. Spending time in nature, working with the plants, and creating with them is a joy. It's an honor to share my botanical creations with you!

Our name is inspired by that renewed feeling you get spending time in nature - like a Phoenix!

The CEO is also Phoenix. This joyful cockatiel oversees all operations, and adds his whistles and bird love to the mix."

The shop is run from Brooklyn, New York, and recently, Honolulu, Hawaii. You can see a lot of Hawaiian influence in the shop, particularly amongst the perfumes. Now, on to the review!

Irena put a ton of care into her packaging. From the hand-written thank-you note to the individual drawstring bags, it made disassembling my package a lot of fun and made it much more exciting than the usual tear-open, get-product sort of thing.

Something to note is that there was surprisingly little waste considering the layers involved: the tissue was recyclable, the bags were easily reusable, the cards were to keep, and so on. I even found a use for the black and gold string that held the package together: I knotted each end and use it to play with my cat. She loves that stupid thing more than any of her actual cat toys.

Pheonix Botanicals was also kind enough to include a sample of their perfume (which makes sense, as they seem quite devoted to their line of natural perfumes.) As you may have guessed, I, like most people, love samples and freebies. A perusal of their website revealed the value of this sample to be an unusually generous C$6.81.


Now, the products:

Cloven Hoof and Little Wing lip balms:

Ingredients (Cloven Hoof): organic vanilla pods, organic jojoba & olive oils, beeswax, organic shea butter, vitamin e oil, essential oils of clove & vervain.

Ingredients (Little Wing): organic vanilla pods, organic jojoba oil, beeswax, organic shea butter, cocoa butter, vitamin e oil, essential oils of vervain, magnolia & ylang-ylang.

I bought the Cloven Hoof for myself. Throughout winter (throughout most of the year, actually), my lips are constantly dry, and I use a lot of lip balm. I'm not down with wearing something super shiny or tinted, especially at work, but I wanted something with a nice masculine scent and luxurious ingredients. Cloven Hoof fit every requirement, though I honestly didn't expect it to be much better than any of the other multiple lips balms I've used this winter.

I'm pleased to say that it seriously exceeded my expectations. This is the first lip balm I've had that effectively not only got rid of the chapping on my lips, which was really starting to annoy me, but also left my lips soft and moisturized even well after it had apparently worn off. 

Additionally, the scent is awesome. It's a warm, slightly sweet, earthy clove - not overpowering, but a bit spicy, with a distinctly green note that I assume is the vervain (I have never smelled vervain on its own, so I'm a bit lost in regards to that). The tube states that this is 'Pan's coveted clove lip balm', and that does seem to suit it. It's a outdoorsey and wild, androgynous scent. Also, the fact that my partner loves the smell of clove makes it sexy, as well.

The Little Wing balm I bought for my partner, who goes through lip balm at an even greater rate than I do. When asked how it was, the answer was: "It's great, but I like yours better." This is probably on account of the sexy clove, as I mentioned earlier. Apparently it does work well, but not as impressively as my own.

The smell of Little Wing ("a lip balm with a thousand smiles") is unique. Though there is magnolia and ylang-ylang listed in the ingredients, to me it smells like a sweet green vanilla. Fresh-cut flower stems over a trace of true vanilla perfume - nothing food-y about this scent, and the sweet note is subtle enough to make it androgynous.

Both of these balms came in recycled paper tubes. I was afraid it'd get squashed or start breaking down in my coat pocket, but it's surprisingly tough.

Cloven Hoof lip balm: 10/10

Little Wing lip balm: 8/10

Jasmine Beauty Balm:

Ingredients: organic olive, jojoba, & rosehip oils, organic shea butter, Hawaiian beeswax, infused jasmine & natal plum flowers, jasmine essential oils & absolutes.

The description on the tin says that this is "a skin toning moisturizer with uplifting scent". I was thinking about getting a moisturizer for a while, since I of course want to retain my youthful good looks. The problem with this is that I have ridiculously sensitive skin, and almost everything either makes me break out, or gives me some sort of rash. I'd figured out in the past few years that some synthetic fragrances seemed to cause it, although which ones I'm still not sure of. I figured it was easiest just to avoid them all together. This beauty balm seemed pretty safe to try, and since additional items from the shop shipped for $0.50, I might as well give it a go while I was buying anyway.

The first thing I noticed was the scent. Jasmine is often called "The King of Flowers", and I can completely understand why. It's intoxicating. It's got a deep, warm, dry aspect to it that keeps it from being overwhelmingly floral and sweet, and it's strangely addictive. I would wear this as a solid perfume, honestly - I think that men's scents have a lot of room for floral additions beyond the ubiquitous lavender.

I wore this moisturizer several times over the past week, mostly putting it on before bed. I applied it to my laugh lines, (carefully) around my eyes, my forehead, and my hands.

The result: I broke out on my laugh lines, but not anywhere else. I really like the way it worked on my forehead - it didn't seem to make me oily, either. My hands have had a break-out of eczema lately, which I normally put cortisone cream on, but I decided to try the moisturizer on them, since they're also a good indicator of my sensitivities. It didn't get rid of the eczema, but it did make it any worse, either. Therefore, pretty neutral, and safe for sensitive skin. So while I love the scent and it's a decent moisturizer, I'm going to keep looking for something that better suits my demanding complexion.

8/10

Bonus: Lavender Noir Perfume Oil:

I forgot to take a picture of this, but you can see it in one of the photos above, in the little white envelope.

Ingredients: organic jojoba, infused botanicals, essential oil blend.

I like lavender, and this was a gorgeous version. The description describes it as smoky, but to me it's more spicy, slightly dry, with the faintest hint of citrus. According to the shop, the notes include: "Bergamot, Lavender, Wildflower petals, Tonka, Smoke, Mushrooms, Oakmoss." I confess that I probably just don't have a developed enough nose to detect the vast majority of these, but I'm working on it!

In my opinion, a nice androgynous scent, suitable particularly for the evening. I wouldn't wear it in close quarters, such as at work, out of respect for perfume allergies, and my partner sneezes around lavender, so I'll be reserving it for special occasions. I think I might also put a few drops onto one of the bags the lip balms came in and put it under my pillow to help me sleep.

A lovely scent, but for me, nothing spectacular, and not something I'll end up wearing very often.

7/10

You can find Pheonix Botanical's shop here: https://www.etsy.com/ca/shop/PhoenixBotanicals. Their website can be found at: http://www.phoenixbotanicals.com/, and their Facebook page is: https://www.facebook.com/phoenixbotanicals. 

Quick Tortellini Soup

This is the first recipe I've improvised in a long time, especially since I'm trying to get some use out of all the cooking magazines I keep buying. It's very quick, simple, and delicious, exactly what's needed for a weekday night.

Tortellini Soup (for 4):

4 c. chicken broth (if you want to go vegetarian, replacing with vegetable broth will do so)

1 large package of tortellini

1 tbsp olive oil

2 cloves garlic, diced

1/2 c. diced shallots or onions

1/2 c. diced tomatoes

4 generous handfuls of washed, chopped spinach

1/4 c. white wine

1 tsp. sea salt (or to taste)

generous pinch of pepper

For the croutons:

eight slices of day-old baguette

enough olive oil to brush over the tops of each slice

pinch of parmesan cheese per slice (about 1/4 c.)

1. Preheat oven to 300'C. While it does that, heat olive oil in large, heavy pot.

2. Add shallots to the oil, cook until beginning to turn translucent. Add garlic and cook a minute longer.

3. Deglaze pot with white wine; cook down for a minute.  Add broth and simmer for another minute. While it does so, prepare the croutons: place each slice of bread on a baking sheet. Brush the top of each with a bit of olive oil, then add a pinch of parmesan cheese. Place into the preheated oven.

4. Add tomatoes to the broth. Simmer another minute, then add the tortellini. Cook according to the time indicated on the packaging.

5. Taste the broth. Add the salt, adjusting to taste, then add the pepper. Take the soup off of the heat and add the spinach immediately and all at once, stirring in thoroughly.

6. Ladle soup into four bowls. Remove croutons from the oven (they should be crisp and lightly golden brown) and place two atop the soup in each bowl. If desired, garnish with a bit of extra parmesan.

Enjoy!

Note: this soup makes tasty leftovers, too!

Review: February Tea Sparrow

Here she is!

So, my Tea Sparrow package arrived a few days ago. They're apparently all shipped out on the 17th every month, but it took about three days to reach me, two hours' drive away. Got to love the Canadian postal system!

Anyway, for my very first Tea Sparrow review, I'll go over the packaging. After this, unless I mention any changes, just assume it's the exact same.

The back of the box, with the cute logo.

There were two cards in the box: one (the green) with the introduction on the front, and Tea Sparrow Tea Tips on the back, and a coupon for $15 towards any purchase from pantybypost.com. I checked it out, and it's apparently a subscription service that "delivers premium panties for about $15 a month... right to your door." On the actual website, I did find underwear for men, but they were quite boring. Additionally, after I'd been on the site for 5 minutes, it all inexplicably turned to Russian. Same site, only... Russian. I hadn't done anything to request this change so I suppose it's something they do to keep things exciting, or maybe it's a glitch. Anyway, I decided that pantybypost is not for me at this time. Still, it's a nice thought, I suppose. Discounts and freebies are always appreciated.

From left to right: Organic White Rose by Numi; Lavender Earl Grey by Rishi; Strawberry Champagne by Tea Desire, and Organic Chai Rooibos by Gathering Place.

The tea packets were nicely and economically wrapped in brown tissue, and arrived in perfect condition. I didn't smell anything upon opening the box, but sniffing the tops of the envelopes, I caught some scent, particularly of the Strawberry Champagne, which smelled absolutely amazing. Of course, that was the tea I chose to try first.

Note: Both my partner and I tried all the teas except for the Lavender Earl Grey, as my partner, who normally has pretty good taste, for whatever reason does not like Earl Grey. Well, more for me. Anyway, we tried them over several days, so that each one was tried fairly. The results are our compiled notes (well, mainly mine; my partner mostly said, "Mmm, nice.")

Strawberry Champagne by Tea Desire:

Look at this. Gorgeous!

Ingredients: Sencha green tea, carrot pieces, pineapple pieces (pineapple, sugar), strawberries, cornflowers, sunflowers, natural flavour.

The scent of this tea is mouth-watering. It's an effervescent, sweet, floral strawberry. And the taste, fortunately, reflects that. 

From the scent, I thought it would be 'Summery' for me, but it's a slightly darker taste than that. There is definitely a champagne flavour that comes through more while drinking - a slightly boozy sweetness. It's not fizzy but it tastes like it could be. A very well done strawberry champagne. My partner in particular likes it. 

9/10.

This tea can be purchased at teadesire.com at $6 per 50g.

Organic White Rose by Numi Organic Tea:

Smells just like a memory.

Ingredients: Fair trade certified organic white tea and organic rose.

Both my partner and I had the same reaction to smelling this: a strange and happy reminiscent feeling. For me, I'm reminded of my grandparents' cabin by the lake, where big untamed rose bushes bloomed every summer, smelling exactly like this tea. For my partner, it's the memory of walking down the country trails in the forest by the house, and the scent of the wild roses that grew there. This smells of true rose, a light and green, nostalgic floral. It's not perfume-y, more like standing in a rose garden on a summer day. And no wonder, with the generous amount of rose petals in the mix. 

It tastes as it smells - delicately floral. It's not heavy at all, and tastes lovely with a bit of honey.

9/10.

This tea can be purchased at numitea.com at $29 for 4 oz. If you want to try it before committing, a 16 count box of the tea bag version is only $6.99.

Organic Chai Rooibos by Gathering Place:

Warning: complete tease.

Ingredients: Rooibos tea, ginger, cinnamon, fennel, cardamom, cloves and black pepper.

Oh, Organic Chai Rooibos, you tricked me good. When I opened your envelope, you smelled absolutely amazing: spicy, warm, fragrant in a wonderful warm way reminiscent of ornate brass tea pots and silks in gold and red. I suppose that's a lot to live up to. But where did all that promise go?

It tastes like chai, yes, but it was very... faint, especially considering the strong scent. Perhaps I shouldn't have added cream to my tea, but that's how I've always drunk chai, and I haven't found it to dull spices much in the past. In fact, a few years ago, my very favourite chai was another herbal version, which stood up admirably to my additions of cream and honey. After tasting this one the first time, I thought that maybe it needed more steeping. I must have left it for a good fifteen minutes all together. The package does say that it takes 10 minutes to steep. Maybe, if I'd used more than the generous tablespoon I did, and left it for twenty minutes, it would have lived up to its promise. But by then, my tea would be cold. Is this meant to be an iced tea? Possibly, but I'm not an iced tea drinker, and there was no indication of that on the package.

I think that in the future, I'll make it the old-fashioned way: simmered in milk on the stovetop for at least half an hour. I suspect that it will be excellent this way. However, used as directed, it was a bit of a let-down.

7/10 - but if it does turn out to be great the old-fashioned way, I'll be sure to edit this.

This tea can be purchased at gatheringplacetrading.com at $8.05 for 100 g.

Lavender Earl Grey by Rishi Tea

The lavender buds weren't very, well, lavender, but they sure packed a punch.

Ingredients: Organic Fair Trade Certified black tea, organic lavender flowers, natural essential oils of bergamot and lavender.

The interesting thing about lavender, for me, is that it always has had the faintest hint of citrus to it. It's not surprising, then, that the scents of the lavender and bergamot blended completely to my nose. In fact, it smelled mostly lavender. Not that I minded, it was very nice indeed.

During drinking, the bergamot came out slightly more, but the taste was still that of lavender with a trace of citrus. However, the overall impression was still somehow that of an Earl Grey, making me wonder if I noticed more of the bergamot subconsciously, or if lavender was simply very Earl Grey in nature anyway. I've had the Tazo Tea version of Earl Grey with lavender, but I must say that this one beats it by far. Yes, this tea was delightful. It's a fragrant, floral, elegant Earl Grey, but just a little bit fun. It makes one feel like the type of person who reads a rollicking adventurous travel tale while sipping their tea from a china cup in their garden on a quiet, warm summer afternoon. Or, in other words, it makes a very good cup of tea.

9/10.

This tea can be purchased at rishi-tea.com at $4 per oz, or $13 per the quarter-pound.

Overall, I'm very impressed, and have found several teas that might become staples in my tea cupboard. I hope next month goes as well!

Note: Obviously I loved a lot of these teas, so why only 9/10? Well, I'm reserving that for something that is well and truly the best thing ever - something I can't live without, something irreplaceable. However, 9/10 is still considered pretty damn good. Any of them might be that 10/10 for you - give them a try!

Tea Sparrow costs $20 a month, with free shipping to Canada and the continental US.

Mushroom and Thyme French Toast

Thyme for dinner.

This recipe is from a copy of the Fall 2013 Cuisine Tonight magazine. It's amazingly filling! I always end up with leftovers, which are just as delicious (maybe more?) reheated the next day.

For the toast:

- 4 slices challah (or any light, egg-based bread - I usually use German egg braid)
- 2 eggs
- 1/2 c. heavy cream
- 2 tsp. chopped fresh thyme
- salt and back pepper to taste
- 1 tbsp. unsalted butter

For the sauce:

- 8 oz. cremini mushrooms, sliced
- 3.5 oz. shiitake mushrooms, stemmed and sliced
- 2 tbsp. vegetable oil
- 1/2 c. sliced onion
- 2 tbsp. unsalted butter
- 2 1/2 tsp. tomato paste
- 2 1/2 tsp. all-purpose flour
- 1/4 c. dry sherry
- 3/4 c. low-sodium vegetable broth (or, if you aren't going for vegetarian, chicken broth works very nicely)
- 2 tbsp. cream cheese
- 1 tsp. chopped fresh thyme

1. Preheat broiler with rack 6 inches from element.

2. Broil the bread until golden on both sides, about 5 minutes. Let bread cool.

3. Whisk eggs, cream, and 2 tsp. thyme in a shallow dish; season with salt and pepper. Add bread; soak 10 minutes, turning often.

Pro tip: be more efficient at mealtimes by utilizing a thyme vortex!

4. Saute mushrooms in oil in a saute pan until browned, 6-7 minutes. Transfer mushrooms to a bowl. Saute onion in the same pan in 2 tbsp. butter, 1-2 minutes.

5. Stir in tomato paste and flour; cook 1 minute. Whisk in sherry until thickened. Stir in broth and mushrooms and cook about 2 minutes. Whisk in cream cheese and 1 tsp. thyme; keep warm.

6. Fry bread in 1 tbsp butter in skillet until browned on both sides, about 5 minutes. Serve French toast with mushroom sauce.

I like to fry the toast in the same pan I cooked the sauce in - more flavor, less washing up.

Enjoy!

Project #1: Seedlings: First Seedlings!

First of all, look at how my two garlics are growing!

I just realized that there's tinsel under that box? The cat must have put it there??? I don't understand, we had no tinsel this Christmas...

Anyway, on to the seedlings.

I must be honest. It had been well over two weeks, and I was despairing. At around 10 days, I checked the soil, wondering why nothing had deigned to sprout for me. To my surprise, it was dry under the first few milimeters. I'd been noticing that the little containers seemed to go dry very quickly, but I was misting them several times a day, so I thought it was fine. After discovering the dryness, of course, I decided to try another tactic and began watering from the bottom every few days, and pouring water directly on top every day. That seemed to work better.

But still there was no sign of anything sprouting, not even when I watered them yesterday (so, at day 16).

Then, this morning, I went to do the watering, and suddenly, there were sprouts. Three different containers had sprouted:

The thyme;

The Candy-Stripe Cosmos:

and the lavender:

This isn't a plant but it is cute:

She thinks I'm an idiot for freaking out over tiny green things.

How or why they all seemingly sprouted overnight, I'm not sure. I did have a weird dream right before I woke up this morning - something about pulling a big plant out of my seedling pots and seeing that the seeds had started sprouting. An interesting coincidence - I think maybe I noticed the sprouts subconsciously or something when I watered them yesterday? Well, whatever caused it, I'm pretty darn excited. Here's hoping they survive!

Spinach Salad with Honey Bacon Dressing

The Salad.

After the heavy dinner we had on Valentine's Day, I decided to make something a litter fresher and lighter the next evening. This is our favourite salad. I adapted the dressing from Alton Brown's Warm Bacon Dressing - I found his version a little to vinegary for me, so I cut the vinegar down a bit and replaced the sugar with a generous dollop of sweet, warming honey.

This recipe feeds two people pretty well all on it's own. With the addition of fresh bread with butter and a side like soup or sliced chicken breast, it could easily be extended to feed four.

The Salad:

- about four loose handfuls' worth of spinach, leaves washed and stems trimmed

- 6 strawberries, sliced (3 strawberries per portion)

- 2 hard-boiled eggs, peeled and sliced (one egg per portion)

- 6 strips of thick-cut bacon, diced

Nice additions: in the past I've added sliced chicken breast and avocado. Really, with salad, almost anything goes. I imagine toasted almonds would blend nicely with the honey in the dressing.

The Dressing:

- 3 tbsp of warm bacon grease
- 2 tbsp red wine vinegar
- 2-3 tbsp honey, warmed
- 1/2 tsp dijon mustard
- salt and pepper to taste

The smell of freshly-sliced strawberries is Summer to me.

1. Start frying the bacon. While it fries, slice strawberries and eggs in preparation for salad assembly. Warm
the honey in the microwave (15-20 seconds should do) just before bacon is finished.

2. Once bacon is done, remove with a slotted spoon and place in a paper-towel lined dish. Remove pan from heat and carefully measure out 3 tbsp of the grease. Be sure to scrape up and include as many cracklings as you can - that's where the majority of the flavour is.

Yummy yummy cracklings.

3. In a bowl, combine the bacon grease, vinegar, and mustard. Whisk thoroughly. Whisk in the honey, beginning with 2 tbsp, and adding more until it is to your taste. I usually end up with 3 tbsp, since I like a sweet vinaigrette. Add salt and pepper.

It should look like this. But if it doesn't, don't worry, I'm sure it's still delicious!

4. Assemble salad ingredients however you like, and drizzle the dressing over top. Enjoy!

And in case you weren't hungry yet...

Lobster

So, as I mentioned in 'What's The Plan?', I wanted to make lobster for Valentine's Day. And I did! Unfortunately, I neglected to take pictures.

Anyway, it was... okay? I followed the directions and boiled the frozen lobster tails for about 4 or 5 minutes. They really were very pretty afterwards. I served them along with twice-baked potatoes and teriyaki steak. And then, my partner announces that they have never had lobster before. And, it turns out that my partner does not, in fact, actually like lobster.

To be fair, though, it wasn't amazing lobster. Like I said, it was just okay. The middle had the sweet mild flesh I love, but most of it was a bit dry and tasteless - maybe I boiled it for too long? The melted garlic butter I served it with helped save it, but evidently it wasn't tasty enough to convert my partner to lobster (my partner does not, apparently, like crab either, so maybe that's just that).

However, the steak was a big hit!

Pear and Apple Oatmeal Crisp

Straight out of the oven.

I had some fruit to use up, so I decided to try my hand at making a crisp. I adapted it from this recipe.

For the filling:

My eclectic bunch of fruit: three Gala apples, two Bartlett Pears, and one Bosc pear.

3 medium apples
3 medium pears
The zest of one lemon
1 tbsp lemon juice
1/3 c. granulated sugar
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1 tbsp brandy

For the topping:

3/4 c. all purpose flour
3/4 c. old-fashioned rolled oats
1/2 c. brown sugar
1/2 c. butter, melted

1. Heat oven to 350'F. Butter a 9" square baking dish.

2. Core the fruit and cut into 3/4" pieces. Combine in a large bowl, then add the zest, lemon juice, sugar, spices, and brandy. Stir until thoroughly coated, and pour into the baking dish.

3. Combine flour, oats, and sugar. If you're going to use unsalted butter, add a generous pinch of salt. Slowly pour in the melted butter, then stir until all the flour is moistened and mixture is crumbly. Sprinkle over the filling.

Mixing the topping.

4. Bake the crisp for 1 hour to 1 1/2 hours, until juices have thickened and fruit has become tender. If topping begins to get too brown, cover with aluminum foil and continue baking until done.

Crisp!

Note: I ended up with a lot of juice. This could be because a) I had to use a smaller pan, and therefore the filling wasn't as spread out as it should have been; b) I could only bake the crisp for about an hour; or possibly c) pears might have more juice in them. Now, I don't mind the juice in the least, and when I heat my crisp up and stir it, the juice blends right in, but it isn't the most attractive look if you want to serve it at a luncheon or something. If you want to ensure you avoid it, do what my mother does when she bakes apple crisp: mix a bit of flour in with the sugar when making the filling, and it will absorb the excess juices.

Original recipe credit goes to Joanne Gallagher at www.inspiredtaste.net.