Fleur de lis Bakery - Another New Portland Discovery

This morning Roger treated me to breakfast at Besaw's Cafe, a place that is rapidly becoming our favorite place for breakfast.  They serve a thick slice of toasted multi-grain bread that is really delicious so we learned that it comes from the Fleur de lis Bakery in the Hollywood District.  It's quite a distance to travel for bread but we decided that the drive is worth the effort.

The place is a combination cafe and bakery and actually, the cafe is about five times the size of the bakery area.  We're still uncertain about the variety of their products because when we got there about 2 p.m. they had only one loaf of the multi-grain bread left and a small assortment of some pastries.  The baguettes looked just like those in Paris so we're looking forward to going back earlier in the day.

Roger's Homework - Portraits..................

Roger's film SLR class homework for the weekend was to take 24 portraits using natural or artificial light and manual camera settings.  He came up with a great idea to move next door to the Lincoln Lounge where there's lots of room to set up lighting and "stage" an area.  With film, one never knows for sure how the picture will come out so he was pleased at the quality of most of the shots.

Fresh Basil Pesto

Today I made an early trek to the Farmer's Market with two goals in mind: (1) Quail eggs and (2) Fresh basil.  I was lucky to buy the last two dozen of the eggs and I found that basil is in its prime this month.  I just made the following recipe from the Food Network and I recommend it !!

1. 2 cups washed and packed fresh basil leaves
2. 3 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
3. 1/4 cup toasted pine nuts (put in 350 degree oven on a flat baking pan and watch carefully.  You might want to toss them around after 5 minutes so they brown evenly.) 
4. 2/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
5. Seasalt and freshly ground black pepper to taste.  I used about 1 tsp salt.
6. 1/2 cup freshly grated Pecorino cheese

Combine the basil, garlic and pine nuts in a food processor.  Pulse until coarsely chopped.  Add oil, salt and pepper.  Stir in the cheese and it's ready to use or freeze.

I doubled the recipe and I have nine cupcake holders filled and in the freezer.  As soon as they freeze hard, I'll wrap them in saran and put them back into the freezer.

Pesto can be used on fresh cooked pasta as it is or sometimes I add some cream and more cheese for a creamy pesto sauce.

I still remember way back (at least 45 years) when Rosanna and I became friends and she introduced us to pesto.  This was way before it became a popular food item in the U.S. so we were greatly impressed with such a unique and delicious idea.  Thanks, Rosanna, for exposing us to an authentic Italian delicacy !!

Hummingbird

A friend on Facebook published the original photo of this hummingbird and she gave me permission to "tweak" it at tonight's Photoshop lesson.  The only thing that I worked on was the head and body.  Because of the intense light on the back of the bird, the face and stomach and body detail was too dark.  Now you can see the striped feathers on the face, the little red area that looks like a bow tie and his tiny feet at the back of his tummy.

This is the original.

July in Portland - Lovely..............................

Today was perfect - Bella had a bath at Urban Fauna, I had an amazing lunch at Papa Haydn on 23rd Avenue, and then we went to a dynamite sale at Macys,

Temperatures remain in the low 80s and there's no rain in sight.

Truly a day to celebrate summer!

Home

Oven & Shaker

This afternoon we tried a restaurant that is new to us, "Oven & Shaker" on Everett in the Pearl District.  Their specialty is wood oven baked pizza so we tried the Margherita with a radicchio salad.  The air is "blue" in the condo from all of the fresh garlic....................

Not complaining - just happy we don't have plans to be around people tonight.

My First Photoshop Lesson

Remember the green cactus from yesterday?  This is the result of learning how to change depth, contrast, shadows, color, etc. etc. etc.  Yes, I only finished one project after a 1 1/2 hour lesson - but it's a start....................

This 'n That...............

Now that Roger is taking photography classes, he has been a positive influence for me to return to photography - No, not "point and shoot" but an SLR film camera - manual, not automatic.  The only detriment is that my phone camera takes such great photos (and it's easier).  This picture is a cactus that is planted in a small pot on my desk.  I used my I-Phone 4S for the shot.

My first goal is to learn at least the basics of Photoshop so I've hired a tutor and I'm hoping to be accepted into a class at PSU that starts a week from Monday.

Yesterday and today Roger had his 5th chemo session so.............. only ONE more session to go!  We have been encouraged in many ways; the first being that even though Roger has had some "bad" days, he has been able to keep up with a normal routine.  He sleeps well and he has maintained a healthy appetite and he's still getting top grades in his art classes.  After next month Roger will not have to undergo chemo again even if / when the cancer returns.  Two drugs are close to being approved by the FDA and Roger's Oncologist is really exciting about the testing results that have been published.  This means that Roger will be able to take a pill instead of enduring the chemical treatments.  We have much to be thankful for and we celebrate each and every minute of every day!

Saturday at Eidelweiss

Saturday is a special day at Eidelweiss.  Late Friday night they start smoking hams, turkey and whole chickens, along with baking a variety of fresh lunch meats to be ready for Saturday morning customers.  They do the smoking just one day a week so we love to pick up a freshly smoked chicken for Saturday night's dinner and sandwiches the next day.  They sell a huge variety of sausages and there's always a long line of people waiting to be served. The small shop also imports mustards, sauces, chocolate and everything "pickled" that you can imagine.  A cooler has over 50 brands of German beer.

German is the dominant language spoken in the shop, but of course, the staff all speak English, as well.

If you live in or near Portland, this is a fabulous shopping experience!

July 4th Weekend............

We had an enjoyable 4th of July starting with a huge potluck for the condo owners where they served the traditional holiday food of barbecued hotdogs and burgers.  Later in the evening we were invited to Ann's condo on the 17th floor where we enjoyed wine and more food before watching the firework display.  It's always interesting to look down on fireworks instead of looking up.

Roger is in school today and the weather is warm and sunny so Bella and I walked down to the river where I enjoyed lunch outside overlooking the marina.  After lunch I sat on a bench to listen to jazz music from the nearby Jazz Festival.  Suddenly a small flock of geese landed in front of me and starting grubbing through the grass so I couldn't resist taking a photo.  Bella and I walked both ways and it's uphill coming home so now she and I have an excuse to relax and take a little nap.........................

Happy Birthday, Ashley !!!!

Happy Birthday to my fabulous granddaughter, Ashley.  You help to put the "sizzle" into the fourth of July!