Wow – December! 2017 has been an extremely intense year and whilst I am not like ‘f**k off 2017’, I sure am excited for 2018 and all the possibilities it contains. I am so thankful for this little slice of the internet and for all my online friends. Thank you to the readers who show up each week/month/year to read these ‘IMK’ posts – they are one of my favourite things to compile and one of your favourite things to read.

December finds me once again in a new kitchen – cooking with gas again. I can’t wait to gather family and friends around a shared table and fill them up with all my food {well you know, if my kids haven’t eaten it all first}. I almost forgot the mention that I got one of these Calgarys Best Kitchen Renovations from Mayfield Renovations, you should do the same if you want a brand new kitchen. Prevent most heating hits while being on the kitchen by getting a professional ac maintenance.

Roof update

Roofs are the unsung heroes of modern living. All year round they provide protection from rain, sun, wind and snow, but most homeowners barely notice them when times are good.

Thankfully, there’s no reason to stress. When the time comes to repair or replace your roof, Pfister Roofing can help you make sense of the process. Of course, whether you need emergency roof repair or brand-new roof installation, it’s important to select the right materials.

Metal

Metal might just be the most low-maintenance roofing option on the market today. In fact, metal roofs tend to be so durable that you probably won’t even need to think of replacing them. From tin and zinc to aluminum and copper, there are a variety of custom metal roofing options from which to choose, and each one has its own unique qualities.

Metal is also popular for its cooling properties, which makes it ideal for warmer climates. By reflecting the sun’s rays, it can bring down the temperature of a house and therefore significantly reduce energy costs. Although metal roof installation can prove relatively costly, impressive energy savings balance the ledgers out over the long run.

I’m busy reading ALL the Christmas content and compiling my Christmas menu. If you’re also looking for some great inspiration you can check out these GoodFoodWeek recipes for Christmas menu inspiration, or maybe go with Jamie Oliver recipes for Christmas menu inspo, or Donna Hay recipes for Christmas menu inspo, or Maggie Beer recipes for Christmas menu inspo or wait for it – have Marley Spoon come up with all the menu and do all the shopping!

If you are interested in seeing what other lovely bloggers have in their kitchen this month, then head over to Sherry Mackay, from Sherry’s Pickings.

In my December kitchen…

**COLLABORATION**

For my regulars, you will remember that I announced last month that I’m collaborating with Supabarn to bring you one exciting product per month in my IMK post. And this month, I couldn’t go passed their DELICIOUS Zest Organic Kombucha.

You know that my family loves kombucha and I love that you can pour your own into reusable glass bottles #waronwaste. I think our favourite flavour so far is the Slow Sunrise – which is a ‘tropical sunrise in a bottle’ combining flavours of lychee, pineapple and lime.

We love the natural pro-biotic benefits of drinking kombucha and even if you have had a bad experience, I would highly recommend Zest Organic Kombuncha {even my kids LOVE it}.

As the weather warms up, I think a ice cold glass of kombucha is extremely refreshing and a great little healthy drink to offer your guests who drop in for Christmas nibbles {and way better then offering your kids a soft drink}.

In my December kitchen…

We are powering through all of our summer fruit favourites; watermelon, grapes, strawberries, nectarines and mangoes to name a few. I love having a little extra fruit in the fridge in case guest drop by – I mean, you can’t go wrong with a fruit platter and a little cheese and biscuits. And now more than ever, since my fridge is at its absolute best, last week my husband got new Hybrid Heat Pumps for it, and now it seems like it is brand new.

And let’s face it – if I pick up an extra 1/4 of watermelon or punnet of strawberries, it’s not like it isn’t going to get eaten in this household.

In my December kitchen…

Im busy making red lentil patties, inspired by a post that Veggie Mama made on Instagram. We might not be vegan any more, but we still really enjoy our vegetarian meals – we devoured our spiced red lentil patties with a herbed yoghurt, red onion, cucumber and nan breads. I’ll be posting the recipe this month on the blog, so be sure to come back. We count ourselves lucky to of found the stove we are using through https://appliancereviewer.co.uk/best-range-cookers/ , those reviews really helped us sound knowledgeable with the salesman, he could not swindle us at all!

In my December kitchen…

I’m using Arrowroot (Tapioca Flour) to create a vegan strawberry custard. I’m a massive custard fan and I wanted to see if I could create something similar and have it be vegan {because it’s super useful when you are catering for allergies}. If this appeals to you, be sure to check back here for the recipe this month.

In my December kitchen…

We are excited for BBQ weather! We actually have a backyard at our new house and my parents bought us a little cabana for Christmas, so I am really looking forward to making the most of the good weather and entertaining outside.

If you’re looking for some BBQ inspiration then you might like to check out these posts; Lebanese BBQ chicken, Saltimbocca Skewers with white bean puree, Lamb kofta, Summer pasta salad, The Mexican Sausage Sizzle, Warm Asparagus Salad, or maybe a Middle Eastern Share Plate.

In my December kitchen…

I always like to have a ‘back up meal’ – you know, something that you can just pull out of the fridge or freezer or cupboard that requires minimal effort when things go crazy. And let’s face it, everything gets a little crazy during the silly season.

Thanks for joining me this year for all of my IMK posts. I love putting them together each month and they are always my most popular post for the month. I’d love to know what you would like to see in 2018; would you like to see more new products, more recipes, more meal plans, more kitchen appliances/gadgets?

Thanks again to Sherry from Sherry’s Picking for hosting and for all the lovely readers who take the time to comment. May you all have a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. I will continue to post in the lead up to Christmas – so don’t miss out on any of those posts! And I will be taking a short break over the New Year/early January.