time flies, school edition

A double post today, couldn't resist:

Dear Charlie-

This morning you packed up your yearbook, tucked your ipod into the pocket of your khaki uniform shorts, grabbed the bag of soda for your classroom party, and were heading out to your bus stop.  Your father remembered that we ALWAYS take a picture on your last day of school.  In the past, it has been when we walked down to meet you at your bus stop, but now that you are twelve (and refuse to have your parents anywhere NEAR your bus stop) and you have a party to go to after school lets out at noon today, and we won't even see you until tonight, dad snapped this before you left.

So a new tradition, the photo of your smiling face as you leave for your last day of school.

It was an interesting year-a whole new school,  a new schedule, higher expectations.  The first months were tough, lots of homework, a little bit of bullying to deal with.

You emerged strong, and confident, and your grades are good.  Although both your father and I know that you still haven't tapped your potential, as you complete your work until it is good enough, not the best it can be.  I don't know what you are holding out for, but for now I am okay with it. 

You are excited to have the summer stretched out before you.  You are asking to be more independent, and be allowed to make more decisions.  We will figure it out.  I am looking forward to having you home, and not just because you take over a lot of the house cleaning in the summer.  With not much on your schedule these next months (other than lots of dirt bike competitions) it will be interesting to watch you navigate your days.  We are encouraging you to help us out with the store, in some capacity, for a wage.  You are thinking of doing some babysitting.  And of course you will want to spend lots of time with your friends, maybe hanging out at the Highland Pool to see which girls show up that day.

You are getting so tall, and so mature, and I know these lazy summers are swiftly flying by.  I plan to enjoy every minute, and promise not to nag (too much).

Love, Mom

European Pastry in St. Paul

Living in St. Paul, we have access to amazing cuisine from all over the world.  You name it, you can eat it here.  Greek, Italian, Nepali, Korean, Japanese, Mediteranean, Indian, Mexican....it's all here.

And just a few blocks from my house, there is a pastry chef who was trained in Europe, and turns out the most incredible baked goods you will ever put on a doily lined china plate.

Her name is Deb, and I got to know her by stopping in for fresh croissants, amazing caramel rolls, and perfectly flaky kolacki.  She has watched Charlie grow (and fed him the most incredible chocolate frosted cupcakes you will ever wrap your lips around). She has been around for several successful years, keeping our neighborhood supplied with cakes for all of the special occasions in our lives.  Graduations, baptisms, weddings and birthdays, she can do it.  Having a party?  Celebrating the grand opening or anniversary of a business?  She can take care of you.  Always with a smile, and often with a hug.  She helps local schools with fundraisers, and makes a point to step out of her kitchen to greet her customers, many of whom she knows by name.

She takes care of our daily needs too, whether it's a fruit scone with a latte, or a bowl of homemade soup, or a meltingly yummy grilled pannini sandwich.  Or a pat on the back if it looks like you are having a bad day.

Sneaky Heather called and ordered me a birthday cake from Deb this year.  Oh my. Three layers of cake soaked in lemon curd, and filled with the lightest buttercream and topped with fresh fruit.  We picked it up on the Saturday of our adventure weekend, and it just happened that we needed some more fuel to continue on with our day.  Here, Heather demonstrates the proper way to enjoy a piece of Key Lime Pie.

To my joy and delight Mari was back at work (that's my cake she's holding!) 

Do you remember Mari?  She suffered a horrific accident that I blogged about here.
http://ohfercute.blogspot.com/2008/09/random.html

and here:
http://ohfercute.blogspot.com/2008/11/mari-update.html
I have been keeping tabs on her progress, what this young lady has been through in the last two years is unimaginable.  And still, she smiles, and proudly shows off her new leg, and is back working at a job she loves.  What an indominatable spirit.

I love supporting local businesses.  And La Patisserie is one of the very best. 

Head to the corner of Randolph and Hamline, and just east of the Irish shop is La Patisserie.  And the earlier you go, the better the chance that you will have a great selection.  She bakes from scratch, every day, and everything is as fresh as it can possibly be.  Will you have a chocolate croissant?  An eclair?  Perhaps a slice of the strawberry cake roll?  Or a melt-in-your-mouth caramel bar?  She is open Mon. through Fri. from 6:30 am to 5 pm, and on Saturday from 7 am until 3 pm.The selections change regularly, and seasonally.  Before you know it, you will be a regular too.

(and tell Deb Kristi says hello!)

Photos courtesy of Miss Heather Hanson

it was the musical month of May

Music plays a big part in my life, and for some reason when I get to see concerts, my favorite artists tend to be in the area within days of each other.  Such was the case last year, when I saw both Bruce Springsteen and Keith Urban in concert in less than a week.

And this year, it was James Taylor and Carole King, followed by Josh Rouse in concert just a few days later.

Josh is not as well known as the others, and doesn't fill the Excel center.  Even better, he plays small venues, such as the Fine Line (where we last saw him) and the Dakota, where we had the great pleasure of seeing him Saturday night.

Mike's brother Bob joined us, along with Charlie.  Bob is a major music aficianado, and first introduced us to Josh's music many years ago.  So it was only fitting that he make the journey from Bemidji to spend the night with us.

Josh had an opening act, AM, from California.  We really enjoyed their songs, an eclectic mix of music that we will be downloading to our Ipods as soon as we can.  You should have seen the look on Charlie's face when the band's drummer sat on the barstool next to Charlie when they were done with their set.  And later in the evening, the band's lead singer sat next to him for a bit too. 

I quietly whispered to him that he should let them know how much he enjoyed their music, you would have thought I told him he had to kiss the queen of England, nude.  Of course, he stayed quiet.  Considering he was by far the youngest person there, I think they would have liked to hear from him, but clearly my powers of persuasion are not up to par.  Look for their music, you have probably heard it before on various TV shows.  Such fun!

Our dinner plates had been cleared away, our drinks refilled, and a hush fell over the crowd.  Josh had been outside eating out on the patio, (leave it to the folks in the Twin Cities to let him dine in peace and not bug him).  I was sorely tempted to walk over and say hello...but of course I kept my distance.


Josh, oh Josh.  You were soulful, and sweet, and adorable.  You live in Spain now, where you fell for the country along with your wife, and are now a father.  I love the Brazilian undertones to your songs, and even though you sang some of the songs in Spanish, and I had no idea what you were singing about, I was still mesmerized.

Even though you don't think you are familiar with him, if I sent you a CD of his songs you would say "Oh yes, I know that song!"  He has been creating music for years, everything from "Dressed Up Like Nebraska", to "Winter in the Hamptons", to "1972".  And one of my favorites, "Sunshine", which he played on Saturday night, to my joy and delight.

His newest CD, 'El Turista" was the focus of the evening, with old favorites thrown in. Three of his four band members are from Valenica, Spain-and it was a delight to watch them play together.

My only complaint was that there was no dance floor.  I had to be content to chair dance, and do a lot of swaying and toe tapping (much to Charlie's embarrassment).  But Josh, Josh, Josh.  You were everything I had hoped for.  You played two sets, and we even got you back for an encore.  A Saturday night very well spent.  Come back soon!

(Mike took the pictures, they were fine with him snapping away without a flash, but they did stop him from making a movie for me-dang.)

recipe box Wednesday

I met a dear friend for the Worlds Best Eggs Benedict on Tuesday (to be found at Bon Vie on Selby Avenue in St. Paul), so of course I had to stop at Great Harvest Bread, just down the street,  to see what they were baking that day. 

When you walk in the door, you are instantly assaulted by the yeasty aroma of freshly baked bread.  And a friendly staffer cheerfully offers you a sample of that day's choices, next to a bowl of freshly whipped butter.

I can hear you groaning.

I was there so early that most of that days loaves had just emerged from the ovens, and were neatly lined up on metal cooling racks.  Bonnie, the owner, cheerfully said hello as she kneaded a batch of dough, her arms dusted in flour, her hair pulled back with a scarf.

And there it was.  Pepperoni Loaf.  And instantly I was inspired to devise that evening's dinner menu.  They pulled a warm loaf off the shelf, gently laid it in a brown paper bag, and advised me not to put it in the fresh plastic bag they provided until it had cooled completely.

Right.  Only nerves of steel, and the fact that I was completely stuffed from breakfast,  prevented me from sampling it as I drove home.

Loaf intact, I set it aside to cool and  put a pot of salted water on to boil.  I pulled a package of rotelle (corkscrew pasta) from the cupboard, then searched the refrigerator for ingredients.

Red and orange peppers, the beautiful Italian wild mushrooms from Farmer's Market, kalamata olives, sugar snap peas, grape tomatoes, fresh spinach (also from the market), a ball of fresh mozzarella, and a Vidalia onion.  Chopping commenced, and I strolled out to my veggie patch to pick some basil and Italian parsley to join the party.  I made my own dressing, with the help of Penzey's Italian Dressing base.  (I could have also used a bottle of Italian salad dressing, or another flavor-whatever was in the cupboard....)

With noodles cooked and cooled and chopping complete, everything received a thorough toss and some salt and pepper, and made it's way to the fridge.  Dinner was ready.  My summer version of Kitchen Cupboard Pasta.  Later, when it was time for dinner, I warmed the bread for about 10 minutes, so the outer crust was crunchy, the pepperoni was warm, and the cheese was slightly melted.  Groan....

The pasta and bread was a hit, and while the pepperoni loaf was quickly gobbled up, we have pasta salad for several more meals, I am thinking maybe to go with ribs tonight.

What's in your fridge and cupboard?  Get creative and make something fresh and yummy for your family tonight, and let someone else make the bread for you!

dream weekend, part two

Sometimes I struggle with a subject for my blog, but there has been so much going on around here lately that I am far behind in all of the things I want to share!!!

Back to my weekend with Heather...

We were up bright and early to hit the sales-as a savvy shopper knows you need to hit it first and fast.  A group of mommy bloggers were holding a sale just down the street from me, so that was our first stop.  My friend Tracy http://www.sellabitmum.com/ was part of the group.

Treasures! Books and luggage and old hat pins and dishes. Wonderful finds.  We even had our picture taken, and got blogged about here:  http://www.offcamerwithtrish.com/2010/05/post-signature.html

Then it was off to downtown St. Paul, where a group of artists, who live and work in their studios in the Lowertown Lofts, were holding a sale.

Oh my.  I do believe it is the very best rummage sale I have ever attended.  My blood pressure climbed,and I am pretty sure I had heart palpitations.

It was an artist/crafter's dream.  We picked up rick rack and old rubber stamps and antique books and bottlecaps and linens and shoe trees and bocce balls and ribbon and doodads and baubles and kerfuffle. 

I think we were there for two hours, browsing and shopping, and doing a lot of smiling, and "HEATHER!  Did you see this????"  The prices were amazing, and six bags later we hauled our treasures down in the elevator.  Oh my.

By then we were faint with hunger, having completely forgotten about eating in all of the excitement.  Luckily we were right next to Farmer's Market, so we made a pit stop at my favorite bagel spot.

Veggie on sesame, with extra olives.  Heavenly carbs.

And then it was time to explore the market:  cave aged cheese from Wisconsin,

fresh rhubarb, pots and pots of herbs and flats of plants.  Endless possiblities.  And of course gelato, which I blogged about last Friday.

Then it was time to head to La Patisserie, which needs a whole post in itself.  Tune in later this week for that story.

We headed home, tired and happy, and the sun obliged by peeking out from behind the clouds, and the rain started to evaporate. 

I moved the music to the back yard, we pulled together a tray of goodies-manchego with fig preserves, the gorgeous cave-aged goat cheese and a crispy baguette, fresh pears and apples, and of course very large glasses of wine. 

We sat and talked until the sun set, resolving all of the worlds problems, and then it was jammie time. We cuddled under blankets and watched "Away We Go", and our night was full of pleasant dreams of good food and amazing treasures.

(all photos courtesy of Miss Heather Hanson, you can find more info on her photography on the sidebar of my blog)

LATE BREAKING NEWS:  Carole King and James Taylor-Live at the Troubador Tonight on PBS (channel 2 in the Twin Cities) from 8-9:30 pm. 

Check your local listings !