Old Christmas Photo

I came across this old picture of my little brother and I on Christmas morning 1985. I loved those Santa Bears! Also...I still remember the hideous orange and brown floral 1970's couch that we were sitting in front of. I also just noticed for the first time that my socks coordinate with my sweater.

My brother Jon will be back in Minneapolis...finally...for a visit over the Christmas holiday. It is hard having him so far away. I wish that he lived within mini road trip distance away versus needing to take a plane ride to visit. I'm still trying to come up with a plan to get him and his wife to move back here.

Recipe: Tarragon Shallot Egg Salad Sandwiches

Hello! Here is the recipe for Tarragon Shallot Egg Salad Sandwiches. It is definitely a make again for us. This makes 6 servings. This recipe is from Epicurious.com (from Gourmet Magazine April 2003).

Ingredients

For egg salad:
8 large eggs
1/2 cup mayonnaise
3 tablespoons finely chopped shallot
1 1/2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh tarragon, or to taste
2 teaspoons tarragon vinegar or white-wine vinegar
1/4 teaspoon salt, or to taste
1/4 teaspoon black pepper, or to taste

For sandwiches:
Mayonnaise for spreading on bread (optional)
12 slices seedless rye bread or 6 kaiser rolls
3 cups tender pea shoots (3 oz) or shredded lettuce

Preparation

Make egg salad:
Cover eggs with cold water by 1 inch in a 2-quart heavy saucepan and bring to a rolling boil, partially covered. Reduce heat to low and cook eggs, covered completely, 30 seconds. Remove pan from heat and let eggs stand in hot water, covered, 15 minutes. Transfer eggs with a slotted spoon to a bowl of ice and cold water and let stand 5 minutes (to cool). Peel eggs and finely chop.
Stir together eggs and remaining salad ingredients in a bowl with a fork.

Make sandwiches:
Spread some mayonnaise (if using) on bread and make sandwiches with egg salad and pea shoots.

Happy Mother's Day

Matt and I invited my parents over for a Mother's Day breakfast. I made some delicious donut-like chocolate waffles...really more of a dessert than breakfast. We also enjoyed some mimosas and fresh fruit. Then we all went on a nice walk around Robbinsdale. The boys and McGee were the brisk walkers and mom & I lagged behind slowly looking at houses and gardens. I'm always amazed the the array of stuff people put out on their yard...I'm not really a knick-knack type person, but there are a lot of people who have yard knick-knacks. Yuck.

After my parents left we went to the garden center at Cub...well we made two trips...and got 16 bags of mulch. I love the way freshly mulched flower beds look each spring. I wish that I had more of a green thumb. I mostly just have professional looking mulch gardens. Sadly I'm not kidding at all, but I am good at keeping trees alive.

Matt's mom, sister, and our niece came over for lunch. We had tarragon shallot egg salad sandwiches, wild rice soup, chips, and strawberry-rhubarb pie for lunch. Then we played with chalk on the sidewalks, played some lasso golf, made bubbles, and made a living room fort (which McGee tore down). Here's a cute picture of KT posing for the picture in the middle of the bubbles.

Happy Mother's Day Mom's!!

Birthday Date

Matt took me on a fun birthday date last night. First we went to Cafe Lurcat in Minneapolis. Neither of us had been there before. We decided to have some of their signature drinks...Matt had a Lurcat Manhattan and I had a Lurcat Royal. I would totally recommend the Lurcat Royal, which was a sweeter martini garnished with a delicious blood orange.

We tried their three course tasting menu, which was a much better deal than ordering off of their normal menu. Matt had shrimp for an appetizer and I had field greens with warm goat cheese. For the main course Matt had steak and I had the lamb...mmm. For dessert Matt had mini-donuts (yes like at the Fair) and I had this interesting carrot cake/cheesecake combo.

After dinner we ran over to The Brave New Workshop to see one of their comedic live plays. It was called How to Make Love Like a Minnesotan: Sleepless in Shakopee. It made fun of the dating rituals, having kids, etc. Very funny!

Safety First!

McGee has a new accessory...he finally has a seat belt for the car. He doesn't seem to hate it, which is a plus. Here is him riding to Wisconsin in the car.

What a cute little face!!

Pine Chalet

Matt and I finally got away from the city for a short vacation. Last weekend we stayed at a log cabin called the Pine Chalet in Wisconsin. We go there every February with our friends Chad and Susan. This year they brought their dogs, Jack & Jill, and we brought our dog, McGee.

We introduced Chad and Susan to our Valentine's Day tradition of basing our meals around a different country every year. This year...Thailand. We attempted to create Thai meals for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Breakfast and lunch were more fusion than true Thai meals. We shared parfaits for breakfast with fruits native to Thailand. For lunch we made fusion Thai Tacos. Dinner was the main event with Thai Green Curry Shrimp & Scallops over Noodles, Thai Stir Fried Vegetables, and Thai Coconut Tapioca Pudding with Cayenne-Spiced Mango.

It was nice enough this year to actually take a couple walks outside. We are planning on going back this August for another mini-vacation.

"Just Give us the F-ing Point"

Ahh leave it to foodie night for some laughs. Last night we went to The Chatterbox Pub's new location in Linden Hills. Nine of us crammed into a corner of the restaurant.

Overall the food was mediocre...but that was not the focus of the night. We played an INTENSE game of Scattergories. There were many heated arguments/debates...I'll let you be the judge on some of these topics.

1) Who is a hero...Eragon or Aragon?
2) Would you purchase Envelopes as a souvinier?
3) Is an Eel black or silver?
4) Is "the Eel" a dance?
5) Is Egg Beaters a dairy product?
6) Part 1 - Is Jarring a word?
6) Part 2 - If yes, don't you mean canning?
6) Part 3 - Finally, is Jarring/Canning a chore or a hobby?
7) Are Jumper Cables considered a weapon?
8) Could Etheopia be considered a tropical location?
9) Is Elephant Man in the Guinness Book of World Records

Oh and by the way...thanks for giving us the point on Exercycle for a vehicle, which is actually a stationary bike.

See you next month!