“Day of the Dead” festival in Seattle (2009)
November 10, 2009 at 1:15 pm | In Family Fun, Food, my life, photography | 8 CommentsTags: art, dance, Day of the Dead, entertainment, festival, Food, holidays, Mexican, photography, Seattle, Seattle Center

“The ”Day of the Dead” (El Día de los Muertos or All Souls’ Day) is a holiday celebrated in Mexico and by Latin Americans living in the United States and Canada. The holiday focuses on gatherings of family and friends to pray for and remember friends and family members who have died. The celebration occurs on November 1st, and 2nd in connection with the Catholic holiday of All Saints Day which occurs on November 1st and All Soul’s Daywhich occurs on November 2nd. Traditions include building private altars honoring the deceased, using sugar skulls, marigolds, and the favorite foods and beverages of the departed, and visiting graves with these as gifts.” (Wikipedia)
I am in love with this celebration. I love the colors, the music, the dancing, the makeup, the food, the costumes, the decorations, the art–the ART !
As much as I whine about longing to live on a farm in the country, I feel blessed to live so close to Seattle. I have learned more about different cultures by attending the free festivals, than I had ever known before.

Many more photos plus a wonderful Youtube video behind the cut…
Continue reading “Day of the Dead” festival in Seattle (2009)…
A Trip to the Country
October 1, 2009 at 5:54 pm | In Awareness, Family Fun, Food, Mountains, cooking, my life, photography | 7 CommentsTags: apple capital, cabin, Eastern Washington, fruit, Icicle Creek, Leavenworth, Leavenworth WA., log cabin, mini-vacation, staycation, The CHeesemonger's Shop, vaction, washington, Wenatchee
My husband and I finally managed to squeeze in a mini-adventure. Fear and the recession made us think twice about spending money on vacations or mini-trips. We decided to throw caution to the wind and give ourselves a much needed break.
We headed to Eastern Washington to spend a few nights outside of a little mountainside town– Leavenworth–Washington’s own little Bavarian village.
I love this town. I especially love visiting in autumn, as Eastern Washington is the Apple Capital of America.
ABOVE: Our balcony view

ABOVE: We were surrounded by an apple and pear orchard
We found a little roadside stand off the beaten trails. A farmer offers–on the honor system!–all sorts of fruits and vegetables for 50 cents a pound. I don’t know about you, but 50 cents a pound is too difficult for me to pass up. Mark and I filled our trunk with an assortment of apples, pears, and peppers. We also visited a farmer’s market and bought fresh watermelon and cantaloupe.

SEE MORE WITH A CLICK HERE…
Seattle Italian Festival 2009
September 28, 2009 at 7:35 pm | In Family Fun, Food, Italian food, My Dysfunctional family, cooking, my life, photography | 10 CommentsTags: Fortissimo, Guanciale, Italian, Italian American, Italian Festival, la familia, Nick Stellino, Salami, Salumi, Salumi's Artisan Meats, Seattle, Seattle Italian Festival 2009, Tony La Stella & the Goombas
Another year at the Italian Festival in Seattle!
There is something about a gathering of Italians–and “wanna-be ” Italians–that makes me look forward to fall in Seattle. Mother Nature was certainly smiling down upon us–the sun was shining and the weather was perfect!

My two very favorite things about the festival are the celebrity chef and, of course, the music. I wait patiently to see our version of the Three Tenors–Fortissimo!

Above: Seattle’s Version of the Three Tenors!
Future Farmers of America and a Berry Crumble
September 3, 2009 at 1:06 pm | In Chick stuff, Desserts, Family Fun, Food, My Dysfunctional family, Recipes, baking, cooking, gardening, my life, photography | 19 CommentsTags: american gothic, baking, berry crumble, black and white, blackberries, cooking, digital photography, Food, photography, picking berries, raspberries, recipe

ABOVE: American Gothic? My son Sean, and his fiancee Olivia posed for me.
I was required to bring in five or more prints to present to my photography class. I had a lot of fun with this project.
If you’d like to see more photos I’ve taken please go to Angelnina’s Photography Blog
In other news….

Blackberry season, in my neighborhood, can easily turn to war. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve caught people trespassing on my property to pick the blackberries. Attempts to deter the berry thieves have been futile. People will break the law for a free blackberry. I’ve tried everything–from sneak attacks to police tape. It simply comes down to survival of the fittest. So far, a group of four elderly Korean women are burying me. These ladies are out before the rooster crows! They can clean out the entire patch of newly ripened berries in a single morning. Before I manage to drink my morning tea, the early risers have filled their buckets and–I’m guessing–have blackberry pies in the oven. I was lucky to score a few cups of berries to make my berry crumble. Thankfully, I had a cup of frozen raspberries to throw into the mix!
Berry Crumble
Filling
3 cups of your favorite berries or mix of berries
1/3 c sugar
1/8 c flour
Tbsp orange juice (opt)
Toss well, and heat a little on stove
-Pour berry mixture into little ramekins– I used 5
Topping
1/2 c flour
1/4 c brown sugar
1/8 c sugar
1/8 tsp Kosher salt
Pulse a few times to combine in food processor
Add
4 Tbsp cold butter , cut up
pulse until size of peas
Pour mixture into a bowl and add 1/4 cup dry oats ( I used Old Fashioned Quaker Oats)
stir in oats.
Place a few Tablespoons of topping over the berries in the ramekins.
Sprinkle sliced almonds over the top.
You will have some topping leftover–place in fridge to use next time!
Bake these on a lined baking sheet at 350 degrees till warm and bubbly–about 30 minutes +
Enjoy with a scoop of vanilla bean ice cream!
Chicks and Bread
March 30, 2009 at 8:24 pm | In Breads, Chick stuff, Family Fun, Food, Italian food, Recipes, baking, gardening, my life, photography | 10 CommentsTags: birds, bread baking, buff orpingtons, chickens, chicks, ciabatta bread, hens, Italian bread
I did it again.
I bought more chicks.
Why I ever go into the feed store is beyond me.
I really love Buff Orpingtons, and I wish I had started my flock with the Buffs. Sunday we drove to the feed store just to “look” at the chicks. We left with these little gals. They are just adorable.
Last night I had to move them from the garage into the den. I realized Mark had used the wrong lamp socket with the heat lamp bulb for the chicks. After a midnight hunt in the shop, we had no luck locating the porcelain socket–which is really important to prevent fire. I knew the chicks couldn’t stay in the garage and have enough heat from a 100 watt light bulb, so I brought them in and hung the lamp with a simple 100 watt light bulb–so far, it has worked very well. The brooder is about 90 degrees. I was awakened by chick peeps on and off throughout the night. Today I feel like the mother of newborns. Thank God breast feeding isn’t required. I’m exhausted!

I’m not naming any of these gals until I’m quite certain there are no cockerels in the bunch.
For those who followed my first time experience with the original flock, you will remember my son, Sean, naming one of my girls “Sean Jr”, and “she” turned out to be a little rooster! Needless to say, Sean is not allowed to name any of these chicks. I think it was a curse!
More chicky butts than faces in this photo, but they were trying to stay warm until we set up the lamp!

In food news:
I tried a no-knead recipe for a Ciabatta bread. I found the recipe here at “Food Wishes” an excellent food blog! He even made a video showing how to make it– step by step.
I had only one problem–my bread stuck to my pan–big time! I mean it was like I had super glued the stuff down–ripped off half the crust trying to get it off the pan. I’ve made a lot of bread in my lifetime and never had that happen before. I’m baking it again, and this time I’m going to oil the pan and then add the cornmeal–maybe I’ll slip some parchment down too!
That said, let me tell you, this bread tastes GREAT! Look at the texture…amazing stuff, without the kneading. Granted kneading can be a wonderful meditative experience, but when you don’t have time to, try this one.
Ciabatta Bread looks like a fluffy slipper–it is flatter than a regular loaf of bread.

It is thicker than this photo seems to show. I really enjoyed it. The crust was crispy and the interior was just right.
Oh, I do have a bread stone in the oven and I used my convection bake setting for half the time–which may be how I created a super glue base? If you have a clue, please clue me!
I have to admit–the Artisan Bread in Five Minutes, that I normally make, is more impressive, BUT this really was fun and it tastes great toasted. It is a nice change, and it is fun to try new things.
Lemon Cornmeal Cake w/ Lemon Glaze and Texas Sheet Cake (kinda sorta)
March 27, 2009 at 9:57 am | In Desserts, Family Fun, Food, Recipes, baking, photography | 5 CommentsTags: Art Smith, Auntie's Chocolate Cake with Chocolate Pecan Frosting, Back to the Table, baking, Bon Appetit, cake, chocolate cake chocolate frosting, cooking, cornmeal cake, Food, lemon cake, lemon cornmeal cake, lemon glaze, pecan chocolate, Texas Sheet Cake
April’s Bon Appetit has a great recipe for a rustic cake that is now one of my favorites!
After a long day, I decided to roast a lemon chicken from a recipe in “Cook’s Country” magazine–which was wonderful!–I roasted asparagus and cooked some basmati rice, but I needed a dessert. Just about the time I had decided to ditch making dessert, Olivia arrived, walked into the kitchen and asked what she could do to help? I mentioned the lemon cake, and discovered she had been wanting to bake the very same cake –yes, I gave the kids a subscription to Bon Appetit– I love that magazine! –With Olivia’s help, we tore through that cake recipe and boy, let me tell ya, I am sure happy we did!

A Slice of our Lemon Cornmeal Cake w/ Lemon Glaze
Angelnina’s Notes to first time bakers: In this recipe is very important to gently fold liquid into flour mixture-don’t be tempted to start stirring.
RECIPE Can be found here on BON APPETIT’S site
Prior to the lemon cake, I showed Olivia how to bake a chocolate cake from Art Smith’s cookbook. I have baked many Texas Sheet Cakes, and this is pretty much a TSC to me. They are simple to make and yummy to eat! As a matter of fact, I only have photos of Olivia frosting the cake because we all kind of jumped into this one without wasting any time. I mean, come on people, it’s chocolate!

Auntie’s Chocolate Cake with Chocolate Pecan Frosting
From Art Smith’s “Back to the Table: The Reunion of Food and Family”
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- Pinch of salt
- 8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter , cut up
- 8 tablespoons (1 stick) margarine , cut up
- 1 cup water
- 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (not Dutch process)
- 3/4 cup sour cream
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Frosting
- 8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter , cut up
- 1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon milk
- 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (not Dutch process)
- 1 pound (about 4 1/3 cups) confectioners’ sugar , sifted
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup (4 ounces) coarsely chopped pecans , toasted
Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 350°F. Lightly butter and flour a 13 x 9-inch baking pan, tapping out the excess flour. Whisk the flour, granulated sugar, baking soda and salt in a large bowl to combine. In a medium saucepan, bring the butter, margarine, water and cocoa to a boil over high heat, stirring to dissolve the butter and margarine. Pour into the flour mixture and whisk well. Add the sour cream, then the eggs and vanilla, and beat well. Spread evenly in the pan. Bake until the cake springs back when pressed in the center, about 35 minutes. Remove from the oven and place on a wire rack.
To make the frosting:
Bring the butter, milk and cocoa to a boil in a large saucepan over medium heat, stirring to dissolve the butter. Gradually stir in the confectioners’ sugar, then the vanilla. Stir in the chopped pecans. Pour over the warm cake. Cool the cake in the pan on the rack. Cut into pieces and serve directly from the pan.

ABOVE: Olivia Spreading the Chocolate-Pecan Frosting
My Son Can Cook
March 2, 2009 at 7:38 pm | In Family Fun, Food, Recipes, baking, cooking, my life | 17 CommentsTags: baking, collards, cooking, family, Food, foodies, fried chicken, honey butter, Lee Bros. Southern Cookbook, Recipes, skillet cornbread, southern cooking, southern food, sweet tea cakes
Last week, my son, Sean, and his fiancee, Olivia, invited us for a Sunday supper with fried chicken as the star of the evening. Needless, to say, I had my doubts. I mean, who makes southern fried chicken, for the first time, and doesn’t end up with a hard learned lesson? Well, Sean does.
Sean borrowed my Lee Bros. Southern Cookbook Stories and Recipes for Southerners and Would-be Southerners, and decided to use their recipe. This made me a bit anxious, because the Lee brothers use a recipe I wasn’t brought up on. Still, I figured, cut the kid a break, he’s trying. I said nothing.
Sunday rolled around, and I chose a few dishes to contribute to our evening: skillet cornbread with honey butter, collards, and southern tea cakes.
I’m going to apologize in advance for the terrible photographs, but this was the best I could do in kitchen lighting.

ABOVE: I’d like to lie and tell you these Southern Tea Cakes are shaped like bears, but truth be told, they are supposed to be pigs. They spread like crazy when baked.
If you’ve never eaten a southern tea cake you’re in for a wonderful surprise. They are soft on the inside and have a slight crisp on the outside. These cookies are very old fashioned, and they can be sprinkled with a hint of nutmeg, sugar, or a cinnamon and sugar mixture. I prefer mine with a pinch of nutmeg. Be warned, they’re addictive.
ABOVE: Skillet honey cornbread
Certainly, not a cake like cornbread, but a perfect cornbread to lap up the pot liquor from the collards. The pot liquor is the liquid you cook your greens in, and it’s full of iron and vitamins.
ABOVE: Collard Greens with a little chard and bacon
I am addicted to these greens. I took a southern cooking class up here in Seattle, and I was shocked that everybody who tried the chef’s collards, refused to finish them. You’ve never heard so many whiny northerners! I guess it is an acquired taste. Although, Olivia had never tried them before, and the girl put the greens down! Good for her!
Sean and Olivia served up some boarding house biscuits, sweet tea, mashed taters, homemade buttermilk salad dressing, and some of the best damn fried chicken I’ve eaten in years!
ABOVE: Sean frying chicken in his kitchen
ABOVE: Sean’s sous chef/ fiancee, Olivia
Come on, you know I’m incredibly proud of these two right now!
Sean played Hank Williams on his computer, and we all had a great time just visiting and laughing. It reminded me of the days of my youth–minus the family fights of course—when the relatives would gather around and sing and play guitar. My grandma would fry up the best batch of fried chicken known to mankind, and we’d all eat like we were half starved.
I’m quite impressed with Sean’s cooking. Every since he returned from Paris, he is obsessed with cooking. Oh, and when he comes for a visit, the first thing he does is turn on the Food Network. He watches the programs like some people watch sports–yes, there is hootin’ and hollerin’. Okay, I admit it, I do it too!
Now, let’s et!
Some recipes just might be hiding behind the cut below…













ABOVE: Mark pointing out the mussels to Sean and Olivia.




















