Boston or Bust!

Time to catch up.

Visited Boston 2 weeks ago - for snow!

And to deliver the "stache" apron to Mike - my daughter's boyfriend.

Here it is - grid quilted and complete with faux leather pocket

He loved it!

- Let me explain -

This is Mike in costume - his Halloween costume

That thing on his head is his moustache "costume"

He made it - out of yarn!

I told you he was proud of his facial hair.

Looks fitting with the apron.

We had a perfectly gorgeous snowy day the Saturday I visited

Roamed all over Cambridge

I was on a mission

Find "Gather Here"

My new very favorite store 

I love it!!!!

A full line of knitting supplies

 An eclectic collection of fabric

including Malka Durbrowsky's collection

Kokko, Enchino, and so much more

And nothing makes me swoon like a great window display

It had it all!!!

Can't wait to return!

Mission #2 in Cambridge - 

Follow the Honey

A honey store - everything honey

I manage a farmers' market in my free time - hah!

Always on the look out for interesting foodie fodder

 

Follow the Honey had it all - lots of fodder!

A honey store complete with a tap

 Grab a jar

And fill'er up!

 We bellied on up to their "honey bar" to taste honey from around the world.

Guess where this honey is from - love the giraffe on the label

And, yes, we even tasted honey from killer bees!

The shop was full of everything honey,

Balms and butters,

Lotions and creams,

Candles and candies,

Bee inspired jewelry

and these great neck ties!

Love the graphic!

Sunday we headed to SOWA Winter Market

I'm forever exploring every farmers' market I can find 

Always looking for new ideas.

!!! Pasta !!!

My Market - East Goshen Farmers' Market - doesn't have pasta

Look at these offerings!

Yum - now I'm on the hunt

Need ... to... find ... pasta .... maker ... for ... summer ... market!!!

Closing photo

On Harvard's campus

Do you see the face

His bow tie is crooked!

- Side story -

I bought yarn - twice - on my trip to Boston.

Bought a sock project Friday night at a cute little shop on Newbury St.

Left it in the cab!

Arghhhhh!

Bought another sock project at Gather Here

Finished one sock today  - YEAH!!!

Need 2 to post - 

Give me another week, probably 2!

Casing the Joint

I twisted my husband's arm again today - field trip to Lancaster. I need to get my bearings for the upcoming AQS Quilt Show - review the best route into town, identify parking locations and hone in on some good local eateries. The show runs March 24 - 27th - make sure it's on your calendar!

It's a Saturday, so our first stop was Lancaster's Central Market - the country's oldest farmer's market, pictured below - the building is beautiful. When I first started coming to this market I expected all Pennsylvania German vendors, and an older crowd, thick with the local accent. I was completely surprised to find a multi-ethnic market and a very young clientele.One of my favorite stands at the market is the celery stand - all they sell is celery - and, yes, it does taste better than the standard store bought celery.
I took this picture for Cheryl - look at all of the jelly candies! Mmmmmmm! Calorie free if all you do is look!
The market is open Tuesday, Friday and Saturday - make sure to put an ice chest in the car if you're planning to stop while you are at the AQS Quilt Show. After we stashed our goods in the car (in our snow filled ice chest) we were off to lunch - this visit we tried Rachel's - a lovely little creperie in the Uptown section of Lancaster, a quick walk from the market at 309 North Queen Street. We had a very satisfying lunch of crepes - definitely recommend it for lunch. Now onto Gallery Row, on Prince Street.

Honey - come on, stop trying to pick up the mannequin --- men!
Our first stop was City Folks - beautiful home store!!!This is a pillow I saw in City Folk - it was made by a local artisan - Christine Morgan. I've googled her but cannot find any info for her. I recommend a quick stop at City Folk just to see this stunning pillow - it is quilted and chenilled - and this photo does not do the colors justice.
Our next stop was the Red Raven Art Company - a beautiful art gallery. I was captivated by the work of Art Harrington - a local artist who is currently being featured in the gallery. His farm / barn series is a fresh and contemporary view on the stunning landscape of Lancaster County. He works in two completely different techniques and his exhibit gave you a sampling of both. His use of color is captivating. Last night was First Friday Gallery Night in Lancaster - wish I would have been there to meet the artist. A quick dinner tonight - one of our favorites - reminiscent of a French bistro. A bed of mache and radicchio topped with crisp bacon lardons, potatoes and carrots fried (shhh!) in the bacon fat, pan roasted asparagus, dressed lightly with a shallot vinaigrette, and topped with poached eggs - a crisp rosemary and olive roll and a glass of zinfandel - perfect. Tomorrow - off to Brooklyn!

Moody Machines

Maybe it was the weather or maybe it's overdue for a full overhaul - but my little Bernina was in a funk today. I kept getting "please check the upper and lower thread for thread breakage or empty bobbin" warning. I checked, I cleaned, and it kept popping up - check, clean, mild expletives, but no solution. It is sewing just fine despite the warning - soon, I promise, I will take you in for a good cleaning. Finally finished up Cheryl's quilt today - as soon as I have news on her book you'll be the first to know.
Favorite quote from the Olympics last night (I'm addicted to the Olympics) in reference to one of the ice dancer's attire - "here's the top now let's go over it" - truer words were never spoken. That quote is a keeper for my Layers Quilting group.

Here are the stars of tonight's dinner - our veggies include a side of delicata squash, and our main course headliners featuring asparagus, spring onions, and a parsley tarragon gremolata. The flavor secret - saffron, direct from Lancaster, PA. Saffron is the stamen of the crocus flower, and this saffron from Shank's receives rave reviews over the imported stuff - give it a try.

The menu for tonight is Sauteed Chicken Cutlets with Asparagus, Spring Onions and Parsley - Tarragon Gremolata - you can prepare according to the recipe, but I suggest cutting the olive oil and butter measurements in half; and, I omitted the cream completely - it didn't need it. Delicata squash is delicious as a side dish - no need to peel - simply half, remove seeds, and slice into half inch slices - toss with 1 teaspoon of olive oil, salt and pepper, and roast at 375 degrees for about 25 minutes.

Here are two more tools I love - 1. my microplane zester - good for zesting citrus, grating hard cheeses and nutmeg; and 2. the "scooper outer" - sorry I don't know the name of this - it is intended to de-seed a cucumber but you'll find many uses of it in the kitchen - it makes quick work of de-seeding the delicata squash.

After dinner we had a Brown Butter Pecan Biscotti with our espresso - yes, I am keeping it light this week, but I'm all about including a little treat now and again. These biscotti are made by my good friend Laura Smith - visit her website, www.laurasbiscotti.com to find out where you can buy them - they are delicious!

Buy PA Local

Meet Veggie Girl - she was created to grace the pages of the Calico Cutters Quilt Guild cookbook - titled "Quilters in the Kitchen". Veggie Girl Says "Buy PA Local" - in February - with over a foot of snow still left on the ground??? That's right - once a month in the winter my local grower's market - the West Chester Growers' Market - holds it's winter market - and yes - there is some wonderful produce available in February in Pennsylvania, as well as local cheeses, baked goods and soaps.

Here's my market basket loaded up with my purchases from the day. I stocked up on my favorite lotion from Ellen April, lavender scented, promising spring is on it's way. And, yes, all of this produce was grown in Pennsylvania in February. One of my favorite stands at the market is Windy Acres, owned and operated by a comical young Amish man, Abe Stoltzfus. Abe grows all of his winter produce in hothouses. Today we purchased baby bok choy, kale, collards, carrots, beets, beautiful lettuces and organic eggs. I am a veg-a-holic, openly admit it.

Dinner was easy tonight - I sauteed 2 links of chorizo (purchased last week at the Lancaster Farmers' Market) with an onion and garlic clove. Once the onion was translucent I added about 4 cups of mixed cooking greens (kale and bok choy), a chopped up roasted red pepper "fresh from the jar", and a quarter of a preserved lemon - preserved lemon can kick up the flavor of almost anything - click here for a great recipe to make preserved lemons at home. I allowed the greens to cook down, then added 2 cups of cooked pasta and finished the dish off with a grating of Parmesan cheese.

I made a simple chopped salad of English cucumber, cherry tomatoes and crisp celery dressed with a touch of honey vinegar vinaigrette - crunchy and healthy. Honey vinegar has a very special flavor - I purchase it at Carlino's in West Chester or Ardmore. I love chopped salads - I'll pull anything out of the produce drawer, chop it up and toss it with some homemade dressing.

I called these meals "pantry meals" - basically because I am using up the basic ingredients I keep on hand in my pantry and fridge - and they are some of the best meals I make. No recipes - this is where I wing it, play with the ingredients. I am so lucky - I've got a great pantry - and I love to keep it stocked. Every well stocked pantry has it's own quilt art - I display the three quilts I made for the guild's cookbook - check out my website if you want to see them close up.

I have to give a shout out to my big guy Ryan, my nephew - he celebrated his big number 2 birthday today and we got to party on down with him - Happy Birthday Ryan!!!

Happy Valentine's Day!

Wishing everyone a very Happy Valentine's Day - please help yourself to a delicious, calorie free chocolate from my favorite candy shop - Reppert's of Oley, PA (www.reppertscandy.com). If you have any reason to be in the Oley Valley area it is worth planning a visit - check their website first - they do close for a few months out of the year. Their Easter candies are stunning!I apologize for my absence - it was my birthday last week and, well, life got busy. I had a surprise weekend visit from my daughters - Meredith attends Boston University and Olivia is at Parsons School of Design in NYC - I wasn't expecting to see them again until the snow melted - it is going to melt, right?

We had a wonderful weekend. Saturday we took a drive out to Lancaster County. Our first stop was Central Market in downtown Lancaster - this is the oldest farmer's market in the country and will get a post all it's own very soon. We lunched at the Lancaster Brewing Company (www.lancasterbrewing.com) - a great local brewery and restaurant located on Plum and Walnut Streets in downtown Lancaster - keep it in mind while you are visiting Lancaster for the quilt show in March - what - quilters love beer! We had delicious beer and very respectable bar food.

We tried to take country roads home from Lancaster - it was challenging as the snow drifts were massive in places - towering over the car. At one point we were traveling on Stratsburg Road when the road simply ended - the wind had drifted a wall of snow across the road at least 5 feet high - thank heavens for the GPS! The scenery on that ride home was breathtaking - the angles and ripples of the drifting snow, the icicles lacing down from every rooftop and more, the beauty of the landscape blanketed in snow. I know there are many places on this earth that see far more snow, but to see this amount of snow, here in our home, is a rare opportunity. If you have the time, take a ride out to Lancaster and enjoy the scenery.
These past few days have been all about food - some very good food - definitely too much food. Friday evening we went to one of my very favorite restaurants - Restaurant Alba in Malvern (www.restaurantalba.com).Dinner was amazing - for appetizers I had the pig trotters and my husband had the grilled octopus; for dinner it was goat for my husband the the delicately sweet Birchrun Hills veal special. Sean and Kelly Weinberg are wonderful hosts - the service and the food are always excellent.

I really wanted to keep dinner light for our Valentine's Day. I cooked up a flavorful broth using clam juice as the base and infused it with red chili, lemongrass, ginger, basil and garlic. I allowed the broth to simmer for 30 minutes to develop flavor, then strained it and seasoned it with fish sauce, soy sauce and rice vinegar. I added sweet potato, bok choy, asparagus, and cooked udon noodles to the broth, then topped the vegetable rich, noodlie-broth with a serving of grouper that I had bathed with Korean barbeque sauce and roasted till just flakey. I topped the dish with slivered red chili and a chiffonade of basil. It was delicious - light and healthy. O.K. - here is a peek at a quilt I was working on last week - it is a breath of spring. Most of the fabric in this quilt is from one of Amy Butler's first lines. As I said - this is just a peek - I don't want to spoil the surprise. I have it all sandwiched and ready to quilt which I hope to start and, maybe, finish tomorrow.

Super Sunday

As much as I wanted to spend the day cooking yesterday, it just wasn't practical, we had dinner plans - a little bit of snow (24 inches) would not stand in our way. Last night we ventured out into the cold for a lovely evening with friends, and a delicious dinner by my friend Laura, an absolutely wonderful cook - we had luscious braised lamb shanks and au gratin potatoes, with a lemony sweet tart for dessert. One of the hits of the night was our introduction to Root, a root beer-ie, herb-y liqueur made in Philly by Art in the Age (www.artintheage.com) - a hypnotic digestive, yum!

Today it was my turn to cook - I love to cook - welcome to my Super Bowl Sunday dinner - no wings, no pizza - not that I dislike either - I love both. But I needed to play in my kitchen today.

First, relax, playing in the kitchen should be fun - a warm up with a glass of Woodford bourbon was called for, complete with icicles to lend the chill factor - now I'm ready to cook!

I've been wanting to make the Persian Rice with Duck Confit and Cherries recipe featured in the February issue of Martha Stewart's magazine and today is the day (http://www.marthastewart.com/recipe/persian-rice-with-duck-confit-and-dried-cherries). I was lucky enough to be in Kennett Square this past week to pick up duck confit from Talula's Table - the recipe called for duck leg confit but Talula's had duck breast confit - I couldn't pass it up. This is a very basic recipe and involves 6 simple ingredients - duck confit (duck cooked in duck fat - could it be better), dried cherries, cinnamon, rice, cilantro and potatoes.

Here is the prepped dish ready to start cooking. It's one of those rice dishes where you cannot peek while it's cooking - the suspense was killing me. The bottom of the pan is lined with thinly sliced potatoes to create a crust, topped with the cherry jeweled rice and duck confit mixture. A layer of cheesecloth holds in the steam to finish cooking the rice.

The recipe calls for you to remove the skin from the duck and has no further plans for it. No duck skin ever went to waste in my house - time to make duck cracklins - YUM! Duck cracklin is simply "cooked till crispy" duck skin - Lily loves them too! They are destined for our salad.


The salad for dinner is a mix of lettuces, crumbled Birchrun Hills Blue Cheese (http://birchrunhillsfarm.com/), apple slices, and duck cracklins, dressed with a lovely vinaigrette made with Balsamic Honey Vinegar.

The timer sounds - - - the Persian Rice is done - did it turn out - - - YES - - - PERFECT - thank you Martha! The potato crust was crisp, buttery and laced with cilantro. The rice, cherry, and duck confit had a toothy bite and a beautiful marriage of flavors of sweet and savory.

In our house every meal ends with a cup of espresso - my husband is our resident barista. And, no good cup of espresso is complete without chocolate. Tonight's chocolate is from Reppert's (http://www.reppertscandy.com/) in Pennsylvania's Oley Valley - dark chocolate covered crackers - the best!