One of my favorite ways to use bananas that are about to go south is to make a batch of banana pancakes. I love tossing in the sliced bananas while the first side of the cake is cooking. I like how the fruit caramelizes and sweetens the morning.
A favorite spot to soak in some fun.
Today over at A News Cafe read all about my Strawberry Rhubarb Pie. Deliciously sweet and a little tart, this pie is a perfect reminder of summer. Find the recipe on A News Cafe and I always love to hear from you so please leave a comment.
Mille-feuille is so simple and perfect when made properly. I adore this dessert, and on the rare chance that I find it on a menu, I always have a slice. Mille-feuille, also known as a Napoleon, is layers of puff pastry with fresh chantilly cream. Sometimes there is the addition of fruit, but simplicity is best when it comes to Mille-feuille.
I found this little gem at Meli, a great bistro in the Fells Point neighborhood in Baltimore Maryland. Meli is greek for honey, and all of their desserts had a hint of honey in them, which worked. The light chantilly cream was sweetened with honey, which gave this Mille-feuille a slight twist yet keeping it simple.
Especially when on vacation! While in Alexandria Virgina we stopped in this little shop called Cakelove. I was immediately drawn to Warren Browns adorable little bakery for a few reasons. One was the name, since I am Bakerslove, I felt a little kinship to the shop. Two is I adore a little bakery that makes everything from scratch and educates its customer as to why their product is the best. Sort of reminds me of my little shop from the past. Finally, after I visited the bakery, and brought back a few delights, I was informed by several people that this was the shop that Oprah buys her cupcakes from. I bought three different flavors, a Chocolate ganache for Felex and Westley, Strawberry for Dexter, and Salted carmel for me. The cupcakes were good, fresh, and made everyone smile. Couldn't ask for a better treat!
Make sure you visit the Cakelove website for the history of Warren Brown, his passion for baking, and his inspiration to his community!
(photo from nasa.gov)
On our drive from Huntington Beach to Redding Westley and I joked about the temperature upon our arrival in Redding. Along Interstate 5 we were greeted by some temperatures that would bring a little fear to those coastal dwelling novices. We stopped in Patterson and it was a mere 101. We laughed, 101? Oh Please. As we were about an hour outside of Redding the thermometer reached 106. I knew better, the thermometer was only going to go up. I bet West that by the time we reached Red Bluff the temperature would read 110. It was a fun game watching and rooting for your number to come up. We all cheered when the gage finally reached 110, about a minute before we reached Red Bluff. Then when the excitement wore off of my winning bet, reality hit. We were getting blasted and the heat was not going to give us a break for another two months. Our welcome to Redding only reached 109, so can't really complain.
I was somewhat hesitant when my friend Kim mentioned that we hit this burger joint on our way home from the Boeing Air Show. I am not really a burger and fries person. Don't get me wrong, I like them, I just choose to be kinder to my heart. The kids seemed excited at the prospect of a good old cheeseburger with ketchup only. Knowing that Kim would never steer us wrong, we headed to this little place called Five Guys. Holycow this was a good burger. What I found enjoyable was that my burger was wrapped in foil, then placed in a brown paper bag, and then the french fries were plopped on top. Didn't matter if you were eating in the restaurant or taking it home, every order went out the same way. Five Guys was fun, clean, and had a fantastic burger. I give it a high five! To my southern California friends, I see that there are now locations in Cerritos and Carson. It is worth the trip.
Facebook has been a complete joy to me. I get to catch up with friends I am far away from, hear about family events, and see what is happening locally with friends I often only get to run into at Trader Joe's. But my absolute favorite bonus of Facebook is that I have reconnected with old friends. Friends that I may have never had the opportunity to see again, and for that I am grateful. Here is a picture of my friends Kelly and Suzanne. Suzanne and I have kept in touch through the years, but it had been at least 20 years since we chatted with Kelly. What a gift it was to share a few hours with these amazing ladies. We shared all the usual information about where we had been, our families, kids, etc. We laughed when we remembered old stories of the silly things we used to do as teenagers. I adored every minute, and look forward to many more visits with some of my favorite ladies. Thanks for a great night Kelly and Suzanne!
I also had a fun afternoon visiting with another blast form the past. Denise and I went to High School and played softball together many, many moons ago. She was always a hoot, and of course nothing has changed. Catching up was absolutely delightful, but what I think I enjoyed the most was knowing that Denise was happy. I look forward to more visits with Denise, I just need to weasel my way into cooking tamales with her!
My friend Geoff asked me to make the most amazing, beautifully gourmet hot dog and take a picture with the Orioles diamond in the back. Well, Geoff, as Mr. Harry Callahan once said, the only thing that belongs on a hot dog is mustard. We wouldn't want to upset Dirty Harry now would ya punk.
Two boys loving the big baseball game. We really hit the perfect game. Orioles were tied with the New York Mets. Last inning, last at bat for the 'O's (That's what we call them now) bases were loaded. Two outs. Base hit, and the runner scored the winning run. Game over and we watched the O's beat New York, which is always a good thing.
A tired family after the O's won the game!
When you arrive in a new city 3 hours behind schedule at around ten o'clock at night, somehow you are bound to get lost. That is just the way it is. Embrace it because you might be pleasantly surprised. We were lost, hungry, tired, and just wanted to get to our hotel to decompress. Felex had to go to the bathroom, and this is something my kids just do not understand. In big cities places like Rite Aid do not have a public bathroom, but he begged me and I took him in knowing that I could plead our way into a restroom. Wes and Dexter waited outside and were going to call a cab but instead started to talk to a police officer. Officer T talked to us about his beloved city, and what we should do and eat while we were here. We were saying our goodbyes when he just said, "get in". He gave us a quick tour on our drive, and quickly reminded the kids that this was the ONLY time they should be in a police car.
