The weather forecast looks great for the up coming 4th of July celebration. I have already brought out our flags to decorate the house and the yard. Some preparations are underway to help save time and make the day as stress-free as possible. Here are a few ways I have incorporated simple and easy ideas for this festive occasion. Store bought donuts sprinkled with patriotic colors is a fun treat to serve at anytime of day. In addition, the classic root beer float is another great treat. Scoop the vanilla ice cream into individual glasses and store them in the freezer until ready to use. All you will need to do later is to pour the root beer into each glass and serve. When it comes to activities, kids love to make noise and pop things, a good supply of pop-its will keep them busy throughout the day. Last but not least, sparklers are always a great way to light up the night.
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Bring out the sparklers, pop-its, and lots of US flags.
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It’s nice to spend some time outside….sit and relax…enjoy the summer weather …have a glass wine…and good company (Bill).
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Ice cold glasses filled with vanilla ice cream and root beer.
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red-white-blue donuts
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Our French brittany, Glory, enjoying the day with us.
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No matter what the plans may be for the day, to end the night with fireworks is something our family always look forward to. As the sun starts to set, we pack up a bag with blankets and fill the cooler with drinks and some snacks then set out on a drive to a nearby park and wait for the display of lights to begin.
I hope you and your family will have a great fourth of July!
Not too far north of the downtown Seattle area and just across the bridge is a neighborhood known as Fremont. There are many reasons to visit or live in this unique, artsy, and eclectic part of Seattle. The area is growing in popularity and it is also in the process of changing and expanding to accommodate the needs of the community. One of the reasons contributing to the growth is the tech industry. Fremont is home to companies such as Google, Tableau, Adobe, and Getty. Not to mention, the internet company, Amazon has its headquarters nearby. For many people, to live near where they work is important and Fremont has become that and more. Its proximity to downtown Seattle, trails, parks, the water, and other amenities are also big draws to the neighborhood. There are plenty of things to do and places to explore in Fremont. Today on the blog, I want to share a small sampling of eateries that are located within a block of each other, easy walking distance to one anther as you can see on the map below. And not too far from there, a ten minute walk over to the Auroa Bridge to visit a well known Troll is a must if you have not been there before. A trip to Fremont for a few hours or for the day will be well worth the trip especially with the summer season approaching.
From the moment you approach The Whale Wins restaurant you may notice these large scale, black and white, whimsical drawings of whales on the side of the building. Upon entering the restaurant, a table with fresh cut flowers greets you and guests The airiness of the space is simply decorated for a casual and warm atmosphere. Just beyond the entrance is an open kitchen with a wood-fired oven. Large marble counters were built to wrap around the kitchen to display an assortment of ingredients, baked goods, and products to be used on the menu. The large room opens to a wonderful outdoor patio. It is an ideal place to enjoy your meals and soak up the summer days and nights. The menu is simple and will change frequently to incorporate seasonal ingredients. The dishes on the menu are delicious and thoughtfully prepared with freshness and flavor in mind. The award-winning chef Renee Erikson and her business partners Chad Dale and Jeremy Price have created another wonderful restaurant for us to visit and enjoy the bounty of the Pacific Northwest. You can find more info about The Whale Wins and Renee’s other eateries at SeaCreatures.com.
Stone Way Cafe is a great place to go for a light snack or a hearty breakfast, lunch or dinner. They have a wide selection of food to choose from as simple as a muffin to a burrito or a plate of chicken and waffles. The selection of beers on tap, coffee, and other drinks are also available for you to choose from. The atmosphere is casual with a mix of rustic and industrial decor. The cafe has a spacious area with tables and chairs for customers to sit and enjoy their meals as they do a little reading, studying, surfing the web, or get some work done on a laptop. Overall, a great place to stop to get a bite to eat and drink.
A summer night out for a casual dinner and cocktails at Manolin might just be the place for you to visit. No reservation necessary, it’s a first come first serve type of dining. The building is tucked away just enough to block out the distraction from the busy street. As you approach the entrance, the blue-trimmed French doors, there is an outdoor seating area off to the left side equipped with a fire pit and strings of lights from above. The interior of the space has a relaxed beach feel with a soft ocean blue color theme throughout. The dining area is centered around an open kitchen built with a U-shaped bar for customers to view all the action first hand. The menu is filled with simple and innovative dishes with the emphasis on seafood and seasonal ingredients. Bill and I enjoyed it all from our cocktails to the last bites of our dessert.
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Cocktails {clove hitch-left and Sloop John B-right}
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{Mussels, Sea Wolf sourdough, ahi amarillo, cilantro}
I love a good crusty bread, light and airy in the center and with a little bit of a bite to it. One of my new favorite places to get this type of bread is at the Sea Wolf Bakery{round striped sourdough loaf}. They are located next door to the restaurant, Manolin {where you might find their breads featured on the menu}. The Bakery space is an open space with high ceilings, big skylights, white walls, and simple decor. Not far from the entrance is the main counter that separates the baking facility from the customer seating area. Located to the right of the counter is a tall rolling baking rack filled with fresh baked goods for you to choose from. They have a wonderful selection of breads, baguettes, focaccia, rolls, croissants, and other pastries. It’s difficult to choose just one or two.
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I didn’t know I was twinning with someone until I saw the picture.
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Here are a few of my must haves: baguette-left, pastry-center, and sourdough loaf-right.
The Fremont Troll Under the Bridge sculpture was constructed in 1990 by four artists: Steve Badness, Will Martin, Ross Whitehead, and Danna Walter. As a part of the piece, an actual {red} Volkswagen Beetle was used as if snatched by the Troll, and soon to be crushed into little pieces with his hand. The 18 foot tall statue is made of steel rebar, wire, and concrete and weights 13,000 pounds. Visitors are welcome to touch, climb, and take pictures with the Troll.
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The view from where the Troll sits under the bridge.
A classic pound cake by itself is basic and simple to make, but with the addition of lemon and lemon-glaze topping will transform and elevate it to another level of deliciousness. The cake is moist with a subtle lemon flavor and the sweet/tart glaze rounds it out well. Pair it with coffee or tea for a late morning or an afternoon snack will be wonderful. The following Lemon Pound Cake recipe is adapted from Martha Stewart’s Everyday Food magazine.
A quick tip before assembling the ingredients, grate the lemon zest first, then squeeze out the lemon juice.
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Makes 2 loaves
Ingredients:
Pound Cakes
1 cup {2 sticks} unsalted butter, room temperature, plus more for pan
3 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for pan
¾ cup low-fat buttermilk
finely grated zest of 2 lemons
⅓ cup fresh lemon juice
1½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
2 cups sugar
5 large eggs
Lemon Glaze
2 cups confectioners’ sugar
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2-3 tablespoon water {depending on the desired thickness of the glaze}
. Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350°
1. Butter and flour two 4½-by-8½-inch loaf pans or similar size.
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2. With an electric mixer, beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition.
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3. In a liquid measuring cup, combine buttermilk with lemon zest and juice.
4. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, salt, baking powder, and baking soda.
5. With the mixer on low, add flour mixture in three parts and buttermilk mixture in two, beginning and ending with flour, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Beat just until smooth {do not overmix}.
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6. Divide batter evenly between pans and smooth the top.
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7. Bake until a toothpick inserted in centers comes out clean, 50 to 60 minutes. Cool 15 minutes in pan. Turn out cakes onto a rack to cool.
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To make the lemon glaze:
1. Place 2 cups confectioners’ sugar in a medium bowl.
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(Caleb was my assistant in whisking the icing)
2. Whisk in 2 tablespoons lemon juice and 1 or 2 tablespoons of water until smooth, thick and pourable.
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3. While the loaves are slightly warm, spread the icing over the top and let it drip over the sides.
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Cut the Lemon Pound Cake into thick slices and serve.
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Mother’s Day is not too far away, make the lemon pound cake a day ahead and it will be a lovely addition to serve on this special occasion.
Today I am sharing a pretty and simple packaging idea to make for Valentine’s Day. With a few basic supplies, some sweet treats of your choice {macarons}, and a little bit of time to assemble, these gifts will be ready to give. For something as simple as these mini packages, a little care and attention to detail was important to make them special. To dress up the basic glassine bags, pink ribbon was used to give the bags a nice pop of color. The handmade heart tags were added for a personal touch. A wonderful way to share with others the yummy treats enclosed inside the gift package.
I hope these ideas will be fun to put together for Valentine’s Day or for other occasions.
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As an alternative to chocolate or candy for Valentine’s Day, each one of the treat bags will be filled with a French macaron.
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Supplies:
1 glassine bags {3¾ X 6¼ inches}
2 treats to fill the bags {macarons}
3 scissors
4 decorative paper for cutting
5 glue stick
6 decorative tape
7 twine
8 ribbon
9 hole punch {⅛” hole size}
To get started, fill each glassine bag with a macaron and tie it with a ribbon. Repeat the process until all are the treats are packaged up.
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To make heart tags:
Choose a decorative paper and cut it into smaller rectangular pieces, approximately 3½-4 inches by 2-2½ inches. Fold one of the small pieces of paper in half and cut out with scissor a heart shape to make two paper hearts {see above pic}. If you are not comfortable cutting freeform hearts with a pair of scissors, you can lightly trace out a heart shape on the paper first then cut them out. Glue the back sides of the two hearts together to give strength and weight to the tag. Repeat the steps with the other pieces of paper.
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After cutting and gluing the two hearts together, punch a hole near the top center of the heart shape paper.
To attach twine to the hart shaped paper:
Cut a piece of twine about 10-12 inches long, fold it in half and insert the folded end through the punched hole, pull about an inch or two out, and loosen it apart to make an opening. Take the two loose ends of twine and pull them through the opening to tighten and attach it to the paper.
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Attach a tag to a bag by tying or taping it. Personalize it with a written note or a person’s name.
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a simple and sweet gift to give for Valentine’s Day.
Merry Christmas to all of you! I know it has been awhile since my last blog post and I hope to get back to posting more in the near future. My reasons for the long gap is basically due to the ongoing technical difficulties that have been occupying my time for the past few months. Most of the situations have been solved, and the rest will have to be addressed later. I made a decision to separated myself from it -for now to spend time with family and friends and enjoy the holiday season. I still periodically post on Instagram if you are wondering or wanting to know what Bill and I are currently up to. There you will find pictures of our daily life, ideas, and whatever interests us (mostly me). Here in this blog post I have included some pictures from White Gunpowder Instagram along with other pictures that I took during the month of December. The above picture is of our little red shed/chicken coop that Bill built to house our chickens. It was taken earlier this month during a snow storm. It made for a pretty Christmas picture with a simple wreath hanging on the door.
I hope you enjoy a moment here and Merry Christmas!
