As I was packing to spend May Long weekend at the lake, I realized that I still hadn’t posted anything from my last two trips out there. We spent both Christmas & Easter with my family out at the lake & I took a few photos. I love spending time out there! Most of the weekend consisted of cooking & eating, but I captured a few moments from Christmas morning too. So here we go, a big old fashioned holiday photo dump!
N & his giant stocking
It’s not Christmas without a little sparkle
the freshest of figs
Dad decided to roast a couple ducks, which turned out incredible. You also get the added benefit of duck fat when you cook duck, which we proceeded to cook our potatoes in for the rest of the weekend. If you’ve never had potatoes fried in duck fat, I strongly suggest you get out there & try it.
Two sitting ducks
It turns out that carving a duck is completely different from carving a chicken, so unfortunately (ha!), we’re going to have to practice. More duck, please!
The next morning, I took a turn in the kitchen. I’d made a paleo banana bread the week before, so I decided to make banana bread french toast. Seems impressive, but it’s actually a very simple breakfast. My favourite kind of cooking.
I was also in charge of dinner on Saturday night. We didn’t have much planned that day so I decided to go with a slow braise. The leisurely pace of the prep for this type of meal is perfect for a quiet day at the lake.
I picked up a pork shoulder from my favourite butcher in Calgary, Bon Ton Meat Market. They’re a bit out of the way for us in their new location, but I know I can always trust them for specialty cuts (or any large roast, bone in). We also brought our extra large Staub out of storage at N’s parents. (We’re storing a lot of wedding gifts at both of our parents’ houses until we find a house.) I used that for this roast, since it was larger. I chose this Martha Stewart recipe, & the only thing I’d have done differently is trust my gut on the amount of liquid. It got a little low since my Staub is so large. It still turned out delicious. Caramelized onions & bacon…need I say more? (I also thought it’d be funny to live tweet the process, so if you’re interested the hashtag was #deBoersmakedinner.)
Look at that awesome sear!
The next time we were up at the lake was for Easter. I literally only took food photos with my DSLR, although we did more than just eat. We also discovered a new ATV route, got a couple good runs in, & played some games.
I seem to have great timing for when my parents chose to open some of the wines from their trip to France in 2006. They brought back some beauties & this Volnay Clos des Chênes was no exception! They also catered to me & served lamb again this year. I always joke that I don’t like ham, which isn’t entirely true. I love bacon & prosciutto, & I’d never turn down a slice of Iberico Ham. When you put a glazed ham up against lamb though, lamb wins every time for me. (& don’t talk to me about turkey at Easter. No.)
Lamb > Ham, any day.
So there you have it – all caught up on my holidays at the lake, always a very food-centric time for us. I assume if you’re reading this blog, you’re into that type of thing.
With N away for work right now, I’m bringing a couple girlfriends to the lake this weekend. There’s been talk of dad’s famous pizza, which should make it a little more difficult to focus through the final workday!
