Vacation, how I've missed you.

 I've been back at work for five days and I swear it feels like my last vacation was at least two months ago. It was heaven while it lasted, though, and I wanted to share some photos from the week with you.

See you soon, PI!



Brian and Blue went out the day before Blue and I left. When Bucca and I finally met up with Bri Friday afternoon, I put Buc in the truck....and it was clear he wasn't going anywhere.

He was MUCH happier when we finally got to the deck. Can you blame him?!

Blue snoozed. A lot.
He definitely has this vacation thing down.

It rained quite a bit early in the week. Like, torrential downpours.
But once it cleared up, this is what awaited.

It's so beautiful and peaceful sitting on the deck, you forget what waits for you on the other side of the gate.

Fourth of July night, we were treated to the most beautiful sky.

It was nearly as breath-taking as the fireworks that followed.
Like a nighttime rainbow.

Happy hour!
The week started with this delicious grown-up ginger lemonade.

Wine on the upstairs deck. <Great for checking out the neighbors! ;-) >

Two favorites from the Plum Island Grille:
Watermelon Smash (think watermelon Jolly Rancher)

and the infamous Plumtini.

Cheers!!

Old Fashioned Apple Crisp

We eat well at the beach. Anywhere, really, but at the beach especially.

It helps that your internal clock switches to "vacation time" as soon as you come over the bridge into Newburyport. Whether you're there for the night, a weekend, or your summer vacation week, there's something that's just different about time spent on the water.

And, how can food not play a huge role in that, when each day starts with a "committee meeting" to decide on the day's culinary adventure? Most often it's breakfast in (unless someone suggests Mad Martha's...and the wait's not too long), lunch out (but a grilled ham and cheese at home works, too), and dinner in (well...what does the Plum Island Grille have for specials?!). Grocery lists are drafted, reservations made, plans set.

It's a lazy, comfortable, fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants kind of time - is it any wonder it's one of my favorite places to be?!

We'll next be there for Easter weekend, and we have a fabulous menu planned.  Can't wait to share it with you!

This apple crisp is by far the best I've ever had. Most crisps tastes pretty much the same to me - not much distinguishes one from the next. Until now. The orange and lemon put it truly over the top. And they aren't just background flavors; they compliment the apples perfectly while standing on their own, as well.

Enjoy!

Ingredients:

• 5 pounds McIntosh or Macoun apples
• Grated zest of 1 orange
• Grated zest of 1 lemon
• 2 T freshly squeezed orange juice
• 2 T freshly squeezed lemon  juice
• 1/2 C granulated sugar
• 2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp ground nutmeg
• 1 1/2 C flour
• 3/4 C sugar
• 3/4 C light brown sugar, packed
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt
• 1 C oatmeal
• 1/2 lb. (2 sticks) cold unsalted butter, diced

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter a 9 by 14 by 2-inch oval baking dish.
2. Peel, core, and cut the apples into large wedges.
3. Combine the apples with the zests, juices, sugar, and spices. Pour into the baking dish.
4. To make the topping, combine the flour, sugars, salt, oatmeal, and cold butter in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix on low speed until the mixture is crumbly and the butter is the size of peas. Scatter evenly over the apples.
5. Place the crisp on a sheet pan to catch any juices and bake for 1 hour or until the top is brown and the apples are bubbly. Serve warm.
 

Crimson Pear

This martini is from one of my favorite bars in Newburyport, 10 Center Street.

All you need is one part pear vodka, one part pomegranate juice, one part champagne.

Shake the vodka and juice in a martini shaker with plenty of ice. Pour into martini glass, and finish with champagne. Garnish with a lime wedge is desired.

Sip and enjoy.  Happy Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious Saturday!

It Must Have Been the Company...

I am fortunate to have been visiting Plum Island with Brian for a couple of years: I cannot believe I'd never heard of it or Newburyport, and feel so thankful that it's now one of my favorite places.

We like to get into town early for lunch or happy hour before heading to the beach, and found that we were frequenting the same places every weekend. Not a bad thing, but we agreed a couple of months ago to try a new place on each trip.

When last we were there, over B's spring break, we had lunch at The Grog (our fave!) then went to a new place, Loretta, for a glass of wine. We had the best time - it was very quiet (it was a little past lunch time and too early for dinner), the restaurant is very small and cute - almost like a bistro, and the bartender was great. I cannot wait to go back and have dinner!

At the bartender's recommendation, we - and the other customers - opted for their "house" Pinot Noir.

I love it.  Brian loves it. Everyone - with the exception of the weird Italian guy behind us who claimed to be a wine  "connoisseur" and was trying to impress the girl he was with - loves it. Delish.

Soooooo........I go on the HUNT once home. All the standard package stores: no one has it or has heard of it. Better (aka "more expensive") shops: no one has it or has heard of it. I sing its praises to all, insisting it will fly off the shelves.

In a last ditch effort, I stop at Table & Vine in West Springfield. I find the French wine. I find the French Pinot. Nothing. I walk up and down the aisle. Twice. Nothing.

On my way out, I stop one of the men who work there, and tell him I'm looking for a French Pinot Noir and that I've searched that section but would feel foolish leaving without asking if I've missed it...

"What are you looking for," he askes?

"2008 Patch Block Pinot Noir from Lanquedoc, France," says I, reading from the note I took in BlackBerry. (That's how serious I was.)

"Oh!" he exclaims. "It's over here in our bargain wines."  (Bargain?  It wasn't a bargain in Newburyport...)  "Do you remember Georges Duboeuf wine - it had a white label with bright red and blue flowers?  Well, this is their new label - same wine, new branding."

And he hands me a 1.5 liter bottle (aka 2 regular size 750 ml bottles).

With a price tag of $10.99.

I buy 2. And wonder the whole way out if I should buy 2 more...

Moral of the story:  Only when you're in an outstanding setting, having a great afternoon with someone you truly love, will you pay $8 for a glass of wine from a bottle that only cost $10.99 - retail ;-) ...and be delighted to do so.

Sláinte!

New Year's Day Brunch

The best part of New Year's Eve for me is New Year's Day.

It's like the prize you get for making it through the year and suffering through the (often forced) revelry of last night's party. Lazy morning, brunch, football...and a whole new year in front of you to do with whatever you wish.

Ahhh....!

I put this delicious (and healthy, in honor of the new year!) egg bake together while watching the ball drop, popped it in the fridge, and we chased away the cobwebs the next morning over coffee and tea while smelling it bake.

Happy New Year!

Spinach and Artichoke Overnight Breakfast Bake

1 pint liquid egg substitute
3 cups fat free milk
3 tablespoons Dijon mustard
Salt and pepper to taste (optional)*
1 (16 ounce) loaf whole wheat French bread, cut into 16 slices
1/2 pound mushrooms, sliced
1 onion, chopped
2 (10 ounce) boxes frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
1 (14 1/2 ounce) can artichokes, drained and coarsely chopped
1 tablespoon all purpose flour
1 1/2 cups shredded, part-skim mozzarella cheese (divided use)

1. In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, mustard, and salt and pepper (if using). Place half the bread slices in a 13 x 9 x 2-inch baking dish coated with nonstick cooking spray.
2. In a nonstick skillet coated with nonstick cooking spray, saute the mushrooms and onion over medium heat until tender, about 4 - 5 minutes. Add the spinach, artichokes, and flour, stirring to mix well.
3. Spread the mixture over the bread and sprinkle with 1 cup cheese. Top with the remaining bread and sprinkle with the remaining 1/2 cup cheese. Pour the egg mixture over the casserole and refrigerate for 2 hours or overnight.
4. If using a glass baking dish, place it in a cold oven and bake at 350 degrees for 50 minutes or until puffed and golden. If using a metal dish, preheat the oven to 350 degrees and bake 40 - 50 minutes.

*I usually don't add the salt called for in most recipes, but for this, I would use some next time. It was missing something without it, and I ended up sprinkling salt at the table, which is even more unusual.  Add a 1/2 teaspoon to the custard mixture and I think it would be perfect!

Source: Trim & Terrific Diabetic Cookbook

39 and Counting

We spent the weekend on Plum Island celebrating B's birthday...the countdown to the 40th has officially begun!

The fun started Friday night on our way in. We stopped in town at The Grog, one of our favorites local bars. They have, without fail, the best seafood chowder I've ever had. Add a little of their hot sauce and it can't be beat. Some of their sandwiches are ok, and they make great flatbread. It's always been a place where we had a drink and a cup of soup...until, a few weeks ago, we ordered burgers. To die for.

Most everyone there at 10 on a Friday night are locals, and we know - and meet - more of them each time we go. Best spot in town and the perfect place to celebrate a birthday!

Saturday morning we were up and out early and spent the day in Portsmouth. We found the more commercial side of town and spent some time checking out the Nook at Barnes & Noble. (More on that later.) But the best part of Portsmouth is downtown, on the water. I did a little Christmas shopping and B asked the gal in the kitchen store for a lunch recommendation. I had my heart set on The Press Room, a place we stumbled on when last we were there, but she insisted the Coat of Arms was a better pub.

Not so. It seemed to have good potential as an after-work kind of place - pool table, darts, fireplace - but the waiter was crabby and the food was just OK. It's always good to try something new, but we should have held out for live jazz and falafel at the Press Room....

Lest we go hungry, S&K treated us to dinner at Joseph's Winter Street Cafe Saturday night. (Anyone who's been to the Plum knows that the day starts with a committee meeting, where we decide what, where, and when we are going to eat and drink...it's pretty bad when you're planning tomorrow's dinner before today's coffee...)

When last we were there, B and the chef almost came to blows - literally - over their interpretations of steak au poivre. (Let's just say the chef had a very loose interpretation.) It's a beautiful restaurant and the owner is someone B and his family remember from a restaurant they used to go to in Hampton, so he decided to give it another try for his birthday. The owner was as lovely as ever, and our food was delicious.

B started with raw oysters, which he said were excellent (I'll take his word for it), and we got mushroom sardi - sauteed mushrooms on toast with sour cream. I think I liked them more than the others did and would like to try making them - how hard can it be? I tried the bolognese (good, but mine's better!), B and S had different fish dishes, and K had osso bucu. Their presentation is really pretty and everyone seemed to enjoy their dinner (they must have been good - there wasn't a lot of sharing or left overs!). We tried creme brulee and tiramisu for dessert - they were good, but nothing out of the ordinary. I think I'd opt for more mushrooms next time, instead! ;-)

This coming weekend we are celebrating Christmas with B's family - there'll be lots of recipes to share!

Thanks to JW for kindly reminding me that there's no sense in starting a blog if you aren't actually going to blog...point well-taken!