weekend moments.

26 August 2013

Over this past weekend, we spend the last of August's glorious days & evenings with friends & family in Sebec, Maine. Our visit to my dad's house was spent playing croquet & forging through his beautiful vegetable garden, inspiring all of our meals. We stayed up late chatting, snacking, drinking, sharing, laughing...it was all good.

On Saturday we had the pleasure of celebrating our friends' Dustin & Natasha wedding. After nine years the high school sweethearts united under the waning summer sun on Sebec Lake. With a twinge of autumn in the chilly evening air, everyone danced, laughed, & reconnected in honor of their special day. So to the Farmer & his Wife, we wish you both many years of joy & your very own bountiful garden.

beet greens & a fried egg.

Here is a simple way to use up the beet greens that are often thrown away, but are very delicious.

serves 2

1 bunch of beet greens, cleaned of any dirt

1 TBL garlic infused olive oil

sea salt & cracked pepper to taste

2 free range eggs

1. Cut the stems off from the beet greens & chop the stems up. Reserve the leaves because you will add them to the pan later, once the stems have softened up a bit. In a medium sized pan or cast iron, heat the oil over medium heat & add the beet green stems. Cook for about 4-5 minutes until the are soften, stirring them often. Add the greens & cook another 3 minutes & season to taste.
2. Meanwhile, over medium heat in a lightly oiled or buttered cast iron pan, crack the eggs into the pan. Cover with a lid for about 4 minutes until the whites are cooked all the way through. Season with salt & pepper & transfer to a plate with the beet greens underneath. 

happy eatings & cheers!

mornings at ocean park beach. maine.

It's been a few weeks since I posted anything here, but now that things have settled down a little, I knew it was time to share some pictures and thoughts. In the past weeks we have graduated college and moved from Farmington to the Portland area. We are staying with family while we look for jobs & a new nest. It is interesting living in a state of flux, but I am learning to just go with it, & to allow good things come my way. It is easy to accept changes in your life when you have so much love around you.

In the mean time we have become avid morning beach bums. Because of dog leash laws, we have been waking up early, taking coffee to go, and spending these beautiful June mornings at the ocean watching Maude & Seamus body surf, explore, & most importantly dig holes. It's pretty awesome.

Now that I am back in blogging- action, stay tuned for some outdoor dining & happy hour snacks coming soon.

happy eatings & cheers!

day 7 & 8. trip to boston & some other stuff.

day 7. a trip to the MFA in Boston. 5 hours of art wandering. here's some highlights.

Turner. The Slave Ship. 1840...Pictures don't give this paint justice...

Barrias. Nature Reveling Herself Before Nature.  1899.

This was in the Contemporary gallery...I missed the artists name. Still cool giant shadow box anyway.

Rodin. 

Quentin Massys. Madonna of the Cherries. 15thc. 

English artist from the 19th century...sorry I forgot his name!

Barbana de Modena. Madonna and Child. 1360s.

I forget the artist...but this is in the Contemporary gallery. 

piece from MFA's Blue & White gallery...

MFA Rotunda 

Quincy Market...

Avocado & cucumber maki roll w. seaweed salad. March outdoor picnic.

Day 8. Maine Maple Sunday...I had to celebrate.

appropriately detox almond-coconut pancakes with berry syrup.

serves 4

 The ingredients are not necessarily not-detox, I just don't think you are supposed to eat pancakes.So delicate & fluffy. SO much better than a shake for breakfast! 

1/2 cup almond flour

1/2 cup white or brown rice flour

1/2 tsp baking powder

a pinch of sea salt

1 cup of coconut milk (from a can)

1 TBL olive oil

1. Mix ingredients together, careful to not over mix... this batter will be a little thicker, no worries.
2. Heat a pan or griddle over medium heat. Add a bit of oil & ladle about 3 TBL of batter in the pan for each cake...do as many that will fit in the pan. 
3. When you see bubbles (about 2 minutes), flip pancakes over for another minute.  Remove pancakes to a plate and serve with which ever option you desire.
4. You can keep the pancakes warm in a 200 degree oven. Serving with berry syrup.

berry syrup

makes approx. 1 cup

1 cup blueberries and raspberries

3 TBL Maine maple syrup or agave syrup

1. Add ingredients in a small pot. Bring to a boil. Simmer for about 5-6 minutes until the syrup has thickened a bit. 

my two wild & crazy dogs.

images from Jediah's tumblr.

happy eatings & cheers!

ocean park beach. maine.

A gorgeous weekend morning at the Ocean Park Beach outside of Portland, Maine. The dogs (Seamus, Maude, Hannah & Franklin) had such a blast splashing, digging & bird watching. 

happy eatings & cheers!

greenville, maine...the last hurrah.

We ended our visit to Greenville with a perfectly gorgeous & dreamy summer dinner (grilled salmon, steak, a corn & tomato salad [stay posted for that recipe] & grilled little red potatoes). We drank some vinho verde & watched the sunset over Moosehead Lake...so beautiful. As you can see all of us had a blast (especially the dogs!).

Thanks, to our friend Emerson would contibuted the images for this post. For more of his photography work, visit his website Scrumplife. 

happy eatings & cheers!