Run Lori Run!

Falling Leaves

We've had a lovely week of sunshine around these parts lately- the leaves are changing, the air is crisp. I adore this weather! This usually means we switch gears to comfort food this time of year but I'm not ready!  This salad keeps me hanging on to summer... 

So are you up to your eyeballs in pumpkin lattes and butternut squash soup? Are you ready for the fuzzy socks and the fireplace?

p.s If you have half and inkling, make these doughnuts.  Seriously.

Hood River

Took a quick trip to Hood River this weekend and it was beautiful:  sunshine and not a cloud in sight. We visited my family's store and restaurant to take some food photos for the website. 

I've been trying to paint the store for weeks now and I just can't get it right. The background is what's getting me the most. And the detailed work. And the color scheme. It's a frustrating process...

    
But I will persevere!

These Days

These days I've been:

• Planting flowers- Dahlias, Liatris, Euphorbia
  
• Planting veggies- Copra onions, Red Zeppelin onions, Sugar Snax carrots
• Listening to– this song (Thanks Colleen!)
  
• Smelling- Rosemary in the garden, lots of curry in the kitchen
  
• Watching- Alias (so I'm a little behind), The Life of Pi
  
• Reading- Wildwood, The Years of Rice and Salt, maybe Daughter of Smoke and Bone
  
• Eating- Honey glazed salmon, Salad rolls
• Hoping- to build this bench this summer
  
• Planning- my next vacation
  
• Loving- Spring! Finally there's some action in the garden!
  
• Feeling- grateful for more sunshine, amazed when things actually start growing from seed on my windowsill.

What are you up to these days?

Gratitude

                   Bert and I, Colleen and Greg

Things I'm thankful for these days:

• Autumn.  I am trying to be outdoors more this season instead of starting my hibernation too early.  I would rather be inside with a cup of hot chocolate and the whole first season of Downton Abbey instead of raking leaves. 
• Friendship. More specifically, the friendships I've developed through blogging. When I decided to start a blog years ago I had no idea how influential and important your friendship would be.  And I had never met any of my blogging buddies in person until I met Colleen and now she is one of my dearest friends. She reminds me of Joseph Campbell because she's an amazing writer (now published!!!) and because she is a voracious learner.   Sara always has spot-on book recommendations for me.  And Tiffany recently reminded me I should be planting garlic NOW.  And thanks to her I heard this beautiful song. (Yes, I know I must be the only person left on the planet who hadn't heard of them...)

             

• My amazing Bean. I think I will always be afraid that my teenage daughter might turn into an alien at some point but right now I am so grateful to have the relationship we do.  It amazes me sometimes how much love you can feel for one little being- a rumpled up combination of confidence and insecurity, interested in everything, deciding her fate, planning her life, charting her course.  Bubble tea, sushi, sketchbooks, music. Kindness. Silliness. Her laughter drifting down the stairs.

What are you thankful for these days?

Pie

Thinking about Thanksgiving yet?  I'm thinking about pie....

Autumn

The leaves are turning and it has been a beautiful autumn so far but I'm disappointed that I haven't been out to take more pictures. I'm a fair-weather photographer... We made crockpot applesauce again this year which is an all time favorite: apples and a couple cinnamon sticks on low for about 6 hours and you're good to go. I just core and quarter them leaving the skins on and then use an immersion blender at the end to incorporate them into the sauce later. It's easy and delicious and no sugar is needed.

Hope you're having a lovely week!

It's a Good Kind of Pain

 

Make these now. Candied jalapenos. We are officially addicted to these babies and literally put them on everything-- tacos, salads, veggie burgers and my new favorite sandwich: blackened chicken (or tempeh) chipotle mayo and candied jalapenos.  I cry when eat because it's so hot but it's a good kind of pain.

Preserving Summer

 

We made salsa from this book, and this pasta sauce with roasted garlic from this book which was amazing. But let me tell you that peeling heirloom tomatoes is not as easy as peeling Romas...

Summer Musings

I love this time of year when the garden is in full swing. Things are lush and blooming, veggies are harvested every single day. I grew a full bed of carrots this year and they still didn't last.  Maybe I need two beds?  I make these pickled carrots every year and they are gone by the time the leaves start changing.  Are you drowning in zucchini too? So far we've made zucchini chips, stuffed zucchini, and on my quest to find a decent healthy zucchini bread recipe, we tried the following: lemon zucchini bread, pineapple zucchini bread and chocolate zucchini bread.  The chocolate was by far our favorite.  Chocolate Cherry tomatoes are my new favorite cherry tomato, such great flavor!  Dr Wyche's Yellow tomatoes are still at the top of the list too.

 

 

So do you have a garden too? Do you have any recommendations for tomatoes next year?

Foodies In Rome

My brother is a chef and his one goal on our Italian vacation was to eat as much good food and drink as much good wine as possible.  I signed up for that immediately.

 

We started our vacation in Rome- 5 days. And these photos just can't do it justice. There are cute shop-fronts, quaint restaurants and bars (for coffee not beer), pizzerias and gelaterias are everywhere.

We ate our weight in pizza and most was excellent. Generally, if we were in a nicer restaurant the pizza was well worth it. And the toppings were wonderful- anchovies, ham, fresh basil and the quattro formaggi- which was an artery clogger- was sooooooooo delicious!

Did I mention that we had beautifully DRY weather for 98% of our glorious Italian vacation? And dining outside (with a heater of course) provided some great opportunities for people watching.

And did I mention that Italians apparently don't get sick of eating Italian food every day.

There isn't the culinary variety that we take for granted over here. We did see a couple of Chinese restaurants and an Irish Pub but mostly you have small neighborhood restaurants serving fresh pasta, beautiful salads and pizza. (I am spoiled by my beloved Portland: Mexican, Thai, Sushi, Middle Eastern food--and Italian-- all in my neighborhood!)

Food presentation is big here.  This is the little shop beside our condo with its meats and cheeses displayed so beautifully.  The pastries always looked gorgeous, the gelato was piled high and the holiday candy and bakery displays were amazing.  

Next up: the Colosseum, Palatine Hill and the Forum in Rome. Brace yourself.