Stuff

It has been a beautiful Fall week in Portland with sprinkles intermingled with blue skies and sunshine - plus it has been balmy and comfortable so we are enjoying the change of color to the trees and the cooler weather. Roger and I have been cooking all weekend so now we have homemade apple pie, fresh vegetable soup, chicken and pasta and tonight an exotic Iranian dish that is taking three hours to cook (Roger is in the kitchen today).

Yesterday I received a shipment of sterling from Oakland so I have been on the computer most of the day. Today I won more items from the S.F. auction but they are bigger in size so I will pick them up when we drive to California the first week in November.

Tomorrow we head for Lincoln City but we'll make a slow get-a-way since we won't pack or plan anything until tomorrow morning. Bella gets to go along but we haven't told her yet.

The machine you see in the photo is a Raclette that we used for today's lunch. We learned about this while in Paris and we enjoyed it so much we went to a gourmet kitchen shop and bought one. It has a heat coil much like an oven or broiler under the top flat plate. Underneath are sections for eight little "cups" with handles. Many people just put Raclette cheese in the cups and stick it under the element until the cheese melts and gets gooey. We learned another way in Paris where they start with tiny steamed potatoes that have been cooked soft. We put a platter out with raw thin sliced onions, bell pepper, prosciutto, thin sliced tomatoes and Raclette cheese. The pepper and onion can be grilled on the top or put raw into the cups. The fun thing is that each person can prepare the cup with just the ingredients that they like. Then you cook it until it bubbles and dump it over the cooked potatoes or a piece of bread. Of course, a French Baguette is requisite. Raclette is popular in many French cafes but it actually originated in Sweden. If you visit us in Portland you'll be guaranteed at least one Raclette lunch and one breakfast. Quail eggs cook perfectly in the cups.

I just spoke to Rosie at the B&B in Lincoln City and she says that they are having sunshine and warm weather in the afternoons. Tomorrow night they have friends who have a Jazz quartet who are coming to the house to play music so we even get live entertainment.