Crêpes and a Pet Friendly Bookstore

Sorry for the lack of blog posts this last week. I was all set to go-- we were recently in California and I have lots of good pictures of Pug-- and then I got food poisoning. Possibly from spinach, but we'll never know... I'm feeling much better now, though still eating bland foods, and nothing anywhere near as good as this wonderful crêpe suzette I had at Douce France in Palo Alto:



I do love crêpes, and it had been a long time since I'd had the lovely, plain suzette with just lemon juice and powdered sugar. Pug was envious.



After our breakfast, we wandered over to Books Inc. and realized, wonder of wonders, miracle of miracles, that they allow pets in their store!



Pug and I were thrilled.



Pug checked out the children's books, travel, and fiction.



He was a big hit with the staff, who are all dog and pug lovers!



Now that we're back home, we're definitely going to have to find a bookstore in Portland that is pet friendly too!

From The Kitchen: Farfalle with Pesto, Tomatoes and Arugula

For dinner, I made a nice, summery salad from 200 Super Salads.





It was very easy to make: farfalle, chopped tomatoes, arugula, and homemade pesto. (Basically, a bunch of basil leaves, plus 3 TB toasted pine nuts, and a little pecorino cheese blended in a food processor, with a little olive oil added.)



It was quite tasty and good for supper on a hot day.



Pug was very interested in dinner, and was given a little piece of the farfalle to eat. I don't think he cared for the pesto.

Golden Raspberries

We have a lot of berry bushes in our backyard, and those berries are getting ripe! We have marionberries, raspberries, blackberries, and blueberries (I think)...



The golden raspberries have been ready for the pickin' for the last couple of weeks, and we've been eating them. And we're not the only ones who've been eating them... My guinea pigs love them.



Pug tasted his first golden raspberry.



Pug's verdict:



Heavenly.



For breakfast, I made granola-yogurt-berry parfaits, with our golden raspberries on top!



I put mine in a clear glass because the layers are so pretty.



It's such a yummy, simple breakfast, and we'll definitely be having it again!

Beware of Pug

On my recent trip to Arizona, I found a sign that said "Beware of Attack Bug." I bought it, got out my Wite-Out and voilà:



I love how it turned out. From far away, you can't tell it used to say 'bug'.



Of course, Pug has never attacked anything except his dinner, and the bits of food he finds on the kitchen floor sometimes...

You've Got Mail!

One of Pug's favorite times of the day is when the mail comes. Being such an important pug, he has a lot of fan mail to answer to. But really he likes any and all mail-- bills, junk mail...



Our mail hasn't come yet today, but if there's at least one envelope in our mailbox, I can be sure that Pug will want it!

Strawberry Pie

My favorite summer pie of all is strawberry. I'm not usually a cake person, so for summer birthdays past, I'd often have strawberry pie. Just for fun, and because it's summer, I decided to make it.



I used a Betty Crocker recipe. I preferred it as pictured above: whole strawberries on a thin cream cheese layer. When I make it again, I'm going to keep it simple.



This recipe requires a strawberry mixture to be made and poured on top. Basically, strawberry jam on a strawberry pie. It was good, but too much jam on pie for my taste.

Arizona Part II: More Cottontails

I would love to live in the southwest if for nothing more than all the cottontails.



This one found a cool spot under a bush.



The flowers are beautiful!



So are the baskets. This one was in our casita.



There's a nice little herb garden at The Boulders.



I had some delicious breakfasts. My favorite was granola with yogurt and berries.



The fruit platter with yogurt, breakfast breads and sugar cane sticks was good too!



I was, of course, thrilled to see Pug at home. He loved his southwestern dog souvenir.

Arizona Part I: Cottontails and Sopapillas

Last week I went on vacation to Carefree, Arizona with my mom. We stayed at The Boulders and had a relaxing time in the 110+ degree heat.



I love the desert scenery. This bird had a good view from the top of the cactus.



There were lots of desert cottontails.



Everywhere you looked, there were bunnies.



For dinner one night, we went to the Spotted Donkey. I had the most beautiful margarita ever, which had prickly pear juice and blue curacao in it.



And for dessert, sopapillas! They are one of my most favorite desserts and are difficult to find (well, made the correct way) if you're not in the southwest or California. It's fried pouffy dough, and when you bite off a corner, you pour honey inside. Most delish!

The Oregon Garden

We recently visited The Oregon Garden in Silverton. There are 80 acres of gardens, including a pet-friendly garden.



There were lots of pretty flowers



and an oak grove.



Apples



and peonies



and picturesque birds sitting on top of ladders.



I loved seeing all the growing veggies



and plants!



Dogs are allowed at the Oregon Garden, so bring yours if you go! We didn't know this and left Pug at home. We'll take him there for a visit another time.