Yes it’s indulgent, and no you don’t want to have these every other day (although you’ll want to).  Super high protein and high in fat but oh-so-good.  Make sure you get only the best bacon (sodium nitrate free) and organic, free range eggs.   And timing is everything on this  recipe.   You want perfect cooked eggs, crispy bacon and melty cheese on your toasted english muffin so don’t leave it unattended!

Home Made Egg and Bacon English Muffin

Ingredients:

English muffin (extra crispy for me)

Unsalted Butter softened

1 Slice of best bacon you can get

1 Organic, free-range egg

Thinly sliced cheddar cheese

Optional: Worcester or Hot Sauce.  Special Equipment: An egg ring is nice but I don’t use one.  A timer is helpful for your egg.

Steps:

1. Preheat your oven to the broiler setting and make sure rack is on the highest level.

2. Melt some butter into a non-stick frying pan on Medium Low to Medium, watching it so it doesn’t burn.

3. Slice your muffins in half and butter them.   Stick them into the oven on the highest rack.

4. Crack an egg into a bowl.  Butter should be warming up nicely in the pan. When it’s starting to bubble, put your egg in.  Put your timer on for 2 minutes.  If you’re using an egg ring, put your ring into the pan and then your egg inside the ring.

5. Slice your cheese and check on your English muffins.  When they start to get a bit crispy (but not too browned), put the slices of cheese on. You can either put them on both parts of the muffins or just one side and continue to toast.

6. When your 2 minutes is up, put your bacon into the pan.  You might want to put it in sooner if you prefer your eggs more well cooked.  Also depends on the thickness of the bacon.  Check at this point if you want to flip your egg.  You can tell if it’s flippable if your spatula can get it to come off the pan.  If you like your bottom of the egg crispy, leave it a bit longer.

7.  Check on your muffins again. The cheese should be melted and muffins toasted. Take them out when you think they’re done.

8.  If you like your egg runny, it’s probably done now.  Or cook until desired doneness.  You can also prick the egg yolk with the tip of a knife or a skewer if you want it to run through your egg.  When the egg is done, place it on your muffin bottom.  Add your optional sauce (a few drops).

9.  Finish off with flipping your bacon and dry off with paper towels.  Place on top of the egg and then your other muffin top.

10.  Serve with tea or coffee and a few napkins as it can get messy!

*Disclaimer: I am not a professional chef or cook by any means so please use this as a starting point to experiment. In the process of writing this blog, I actually managed to completely burn my chocolate croissant that was warming in the oven.

Prices start at a whopping $2 and go up increments of $5 up to $50.  Bring cash!  The sale will be held at Hot Art Wet City Gallery located at 752 East Broadway.

My lot will be a mix of designer wear and one-of-a-kind items I collected over the years from Hong Kong.  Just a few of the items that are awaiting new ownership…

Beautiful burgundy red platforms (sadly they don’t fit me) and Betsey Johnson peep-toe booties.  

Minedrd grey jacket from one of my favourite stores, Vincent Park.  Perfect over jeans or a minidress with ankle boots.

Wore this flirty tiered dress last year to our Wassergirls Christmas Party which was hosted by Kelsey of The Anthology.

A little black bow accentuates the hips in this fitted, classic dress that’s a little Mad Men.

Be sure to RSVP for Salvage at the Facebook Event Page.

We were greeted by a smokey scent of cedar as we approached the check-in at Wya Point Campground.  Located between Tofino and Ucluelet, Wya Point is a First Nations operated and owned camping site near Ucluth Beach.  We were here to stay in the beachfront, Mongolian styled yurts.  I listened to the wood burning stove crackle while the Mr. checked us in at the reception cabin.  Even though it was July, there was a growing chill in the air as the sun’s last rays were retiring.

We picked up fresh scallops and salmon from our favourite little fish shop in Ucluelet and we celebrated with a barbecue feast that night.  Celebrated love, life and being in our favourite place in the world.

Animated images created with cinemagr.am.

If you love Tofino, see where else I stayed and ate.

-sticking her butt up and pushing her face onto the ground (usually grass) to give herself a good face rub
-giving you a “hug” by running back and forth between your legs
-prefers to eat raspberries over strawberries any day

Her Auntie Lara of Benson + the Bear Pet Photography kindly took some photos of Nala over the weekend to mark her 2nd milestone.  For more photos, check out her blog here.

To celebrate her birthday, we’re going to meet up with her other amazing auntie Wanda of Bah Baked At Home where she will receive home-baked doggie treats and a play date with her cousin Kate the Olde English Bulldog.  And tonight, Nala will get a special dinner of Angus steak, wild rice, and peas.  For the weekend, she’s taking a mini break for some sun and surf in Tofino.

All photos courtesy of Benson + the Bear Pet Photography.

See How Nala Celebrated Her 1st Birthday

Nala’s 1st Photoshoot

I set out a goal this year to learn how to grow my own organic vegetables.  I had some limited experience of various success before  growing herbs and edible  goodies at my home but I had never taken on my own plot at a community garden.  So I signed up for a farming workshop by Farmers on 57th and began a journey to learn this valuable skill.

What started out as bare soil has now grown into an abundance of nutritious veggies.  Kale, mixed salad greens, heirloom beets, baby turnips, icicle radishes, green onion, fennel and carrots have been born of tiny seeds and nurtured into wholesome produce that I’ve been happily using in my everyday meals.  While I was a believer in organic farming before, I am now more than ever dedicated to it now.

Below: Icicle radishes are milder and sweeter than the round, red grocery store variety.  Ate them thinly sliced on the best butter and bread with salt and pepper on top, in salads and wraps, and braised in butter and chicken stock.  A fast and easy growing crop, I encourage any beginner farmer to sprinkle a few radish seeds and you will not be disappointed.

Learning to garden has taught me so much. Not only the hands-on skill to manage a working farm plot but I’ve learned to appreciate where our food comes from and the amount of love and energy needed to create it.   Gardening has also taught me patience: that good food takes time and love.  There’s just an amazing sense of satisfaction being able to harvest food I grew with my bare hands, just minutes before cooking and sharing it with friends and family.

Below: Beets are some of my favourite things in the world. I like them juiced or roasted for warm salad with goat cheese. I want to try making Beet Chips too.  For the beet greens, I’ve been eating them in salads, juicing and wilting it like spinach. I’ve chopped some up in the food processor for the freezer so I can make ricotta cannelloni and “spinach”dip later.

Below: Spring Lamb Stew with Baby Turnips.

My interest in cooking has been awakened through farming my own produce.  I’m eating healthier and more veggies than ever.  I  purchased Kale only for Kale chips before but now that I’ve grow it and discovered this Kale Pesto recipe, I can’t stop eating it!

Below: Kale pesto tagliatelle with spring baby zucchini (given to me by a co-farmer at the gardens), sprinkled with crispy bacon.

Below: Turnips with herbs (rosemary, lemon thyme) from my home garden.  The green tops are actually delicious! With green onion, mint, oregano, chives and fennel from the garden, I only really need to buy parsley and cilantro.

At my own house, the garden has really blossomed.  I put in several flower boxes, picked out from my two favourite nurseries in Southlands (Southlands Nursery and KJM Country Gardens), and my lavender bush is 5 or 6 times bigger than when we first moved in.  The hydrangeas are in their full glory; they’ve gotten big that they practically block my pathway to the front door.

I’ve dried bunches of lavender this year and I can’t wait to make shortbread and roiboos tea with it.  I’ve already used some in my o Herbes de Provence blend when I made ratatouille last week.  To dry your lavender, cut in small bunches long enough to tie together at the bottom, and hang upside down in a dry and cool place for a couple of weeks.  For the strongest dried lavender, it’s recommended to harvest it before it fully blossoms in order to keep the essential oils in the purple flowers.

Below: A sweet smelling arrangement of sweet peas from my community garden and lavender from my front yard.

Being in my garden, whether it’s outside my own home or at the community plot, makes me feel like I’ve found a little hidden paradise all for myself (ok, shared with Nala usually).  It’s a little time away from the everyday.  As much as I’ve put time and care  into tending the earth, I’ve reaped much, much more.

Vino anyone? Video was created a year ago while I was on holiday at a cottage in Tofino.  Nala is chilling in the background.

Nala’s first day home!

This Alice + Olivia Boxy Shift Dress is very Bizou Bizou a la Megan on Mad Men.

Speaking of mad, I’m crazy about mini purses and this red one by Diane Von Furstenberg adds a great shot of colour.

Red and Purple: a little unexpected and a lot  of royale.  By Pour La Victoire.

Throw this silk trench By Kelly Bergin in red over anything to look instantly polished.

Inspired by your glasses case, Alexander Wang takes this clutch over the top with the ostriche texture and of course, in scarlet.

Red denim may have started it all but this pair of cropped pants by Alice + Olivia is a good office alternative.

These Tory Burch cherry coloured booties scream look-at-me confidence.

Even though I don’t sport a lot in rouge in my closet, I do have a little red jacket.  This over-sized one by Alice + Olivia is perfect all-year round.

Wishing all my Canadian readers a happy long weekend!!

Images from Shopbop.com and Alice + Olivia except for feature image by me.

NATURE’S MY FRIEND ART PRIZE PACK GIVEAWAY: Jessica being the sweetheart that she is has also sent the below art prize package with a print, postcard and buttons for a lucky reader.  Simply follow my blog via WordPress OR submit a comment on this post for a chance to win.  For an extra entry, give me @ABeautifulLife and Jessica @jessicagowling a shoutout on Twitter and follow us.  I’ll draw a random winner a couple of weeks from now.

And now, my 7 questions for Jessica to find out what makes her get up in the mornings, whether she’s a coffee or tea person, and her love of nature.

Below: WINTER IS COMING..hehe might explain my obsession with wolves. In all seriousness, the found Bear Mirror below would be a pretty kickass thing to have on camping trips.

Taking time away  helps me focus on why I started writing in the first place. Every now and then, I lose sight of that.    It’s about sharing all of the wonderful, beautiful things in life, no matter how big or small.  Our lives are a collection of micro experiences, and I’ve tried to capture those that are meaningful to me to share with you.

I’ve titled this post “Feels Like Coming Home” because writing here does feel like coming home.  Emotionally I am feeling renewed and more like myself again.  I’m also sharing my Kauai trip photos in this post, and the island is a place where I truly feel like I belong (more so than in Canada, but that’s a whole another story).   It helps that everyone there thinks I’m “local”, and I feel so welcomed there.

Since this was our 3rd trip to Kauai, we didn’t do too many touristy things.  We split our time in the north and south as usual (Hanalei and Koloa).  Days were spent surfing in the morning, grabbing a plate lunch or a fish taco for lunch, drinking beer on the patio and taking an afternoon snorkel or swim.

Below: Our trusty rental boards when we were surfing in Poipu in the south.  Had  a ton of fun surfing a new little reef break there.

Below: Happy days at the beach where I caught my first 4ft outside reef break.  Making progress!  My bikini is by RipCurl from the Alana’s Closet Collection.  

Below: Cycled through the old and lumpy sugarcane dirt roads to one of two secluded beaches.  

Below: Playing around at our beach cottage in the south.  The all-white clapboard  whispers “Summer” to me.

Below: One of the things I love about Hawaii is the bright and colourful flora and fauna.  

Below: The smell of plumeria is one of my favourites

Below: Kauai Forever.  Got this cute canvas bag from Bungalow 9, a home decor store that has perfect beach cottage goodies.  My cropped embroidered top, made in Bali, is from Southshore Bikinis in Old Koloa Town.  The shopowner Tamra is a sweetheart.

Below: Absolutely loved the Koloa Farmers Market where I picked up some very fresh local produce.  It was so nice to buy from local farmers.  I made roasted fennel, cherry tomato and eggplant pasta for dinner one night.  The mini pineapple was sweeter than candy.

Below: One of the more touristy things we did was the Hanapepe Friday Night Art Market where local artists were on hand at the galleries to talk about their work.  It was a terrific atmosphere and I loved interacting with the artists one-on-one.

Below: And what a view – the ocean framed by the lobby of the Grant Hyatt.

Below: This little guy made me smile.  He cruised right up to us expecting a handout.