Lemon Tarts

We're back from a weekend of camping festivities and of course, eating way too much. The weather was a little chilly, but thankfully much nicer than we'd anticipated - I'd pictured myself hiding in the tent as rain crashed down on us in buckets. Luckily the sun decided to come out and play, which meant we had a good campfire going and lots of outdoor cooking. There were the good old camping staples: hot dogs and s'mores, bacon and eggs, along with some more exciting things like lemon dill fish, bulgogi, bannick bread, finger jello, popcorn, blueberry muffins, chocolate crinkle cookies...

And what's a camping trip without lemon tarts:

The tartest lemon custard ever...no wonder they all disappeared

They're not as hard to transport as one might expect. They kept well in the tart pan inside a big tupperware and made for a nice treat with afternoon tea next to the camp fire.

Anyhow, I am very pleased with how these tarts turned out, and I will definitely be making them again. Once again, the recipe is courtesy of Restaurant Widow and you can find it right here. The lemon custard is super easy to make and doesn't involve any cooking before pouring into the tart pans. My subs: graham cracker crust for the ginger snap one (although I'm sure the ginger snaps would have been more delicious) because of the last crust disaster I had, and pressed them into 6 four-inch tart pans. There was enough lemon custard to fill 5 of the crusts, so I now have an extra one in the fridge. The most challenging part of this recipe was patiently waiting for the tarts to cool and chill for 4 hours:

Now that we're back, it's time to start getting ready for our big trip which is coming up very soon! A few little details to look after, some packing, and then we're set. My Amazon.com order arrived today so we now have some guidebooks to keep us going - happy Monday everyone!

Weekend in Cleveland, the Under-rated City

Two weeks of part-time employment has been just so overwhelmingly exhausting that I was forced to take a vacation out of sheer restorative necessity...

Just kidding. We're back from a little weekend visit to Cleveland, Ohio. It all started with a Canadian band called Bedouin Soundclash, that has been a bit of a recent obsession for D. When I found out they were coming to Cleveland, I got tickets for D's birthday and had some fun planning a weekend around it. It seemed like a good time to fit in some tourism (particularly given how often we say, 'we should really check out Cleveland sometime'). And, given my recent obsession with Anthony Bourdain, who visited Cleveland on an episode of No Reservations, it was not surprising that our trip largely consisted of the places he visited on the show. What a nerd, I know.

Built in 1890, the Arcade was one of America's first indoor shopping malls

As far as smaller cities go, Cleveland was awesome. We really liked it, and both think that Cleveland is way, way under-rated (or perhaps it's just the people we've talked to). I had been given the impression that it was a really lame town where uncool tourists went to see dorky attractions and eat at the Hard Rock Cafe in a bland version of a city-chic vacation. Was I wrong! Yes, there's the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and yes, there are probably lots of other theme museums, but... RnR was actually really cool and interesting. We only saw a tiny fraction of the attractions. And architecturally, Cleveland was kind of pretty with all the bridges criss-crossing over one another and beautiful historic buildings in the downtown district.

Cleveland Public Square

Friday we went to the Westside Market for breakfast and explored the aisles and aisles of fresh goodies. There was so much good-looking food it took me forever to choose something to eat. Finally, after I settled on a cheese pastry (D bought a massive apple turnover), as soon as I turned the corner, there was (of course) something even tastier looking. So, I went for a ham and cheese crepe...mmm... and saved the pastry for later.

Sharing my crepe Le Complet with D

From the market balcony

We looked around Tower City Center and the Erieview Galleria (which, shopping-wise, can't compete with those big lifestyle malls that are popping up in suburbs - but the architecture was beautiful) and in the evening went to nearby Coventry Village for the show (at the Grogg Shop). Coventry Village was basically one strip of shops and restaurants which reminded me much of the Annex in Toronto: cozy coffee shops, secondhand bookstores, pubs, family-style diners, trinket shops, etc. This probably contributed to my positive experience in Cleveland.

Tower City Center

Inside the Galleria at Erieview

Saturday, aside from the valet parking people losing our car keys (luckily we had an extra set), it was a pretty perfect day. Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Marengo Spa Institute (if you go now they have some good promotions on),

Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

and then dinner at Lola Bistro, which has received a lot of hype since Chef Michael Symon won The Next Iron Chef (and no, we didn't see him that night). Lola definitely lives up to the hype. The restaurant was packed. It was incredibly stylish and swanky - lit marble surfaces, paneled glass, high ceilings, a huge open kitchen. I felt like I had left Ohio for the next 3 hours and was somewhere in NYC. A man at the bar claimed that he had eaten the best shrimp appetizer of his life that night. Our dinner was delicious - between us, we ordered oysters on the half shell, beef-cheek pierogies, brook trout with butternut squash, smoked pork chop with cheesy polenta and barbequed onions, and ended the meal with 'beer and pretzels', a Guinness ice cream with chocolate-covered pretzel chunks and preserved cherries. I could have eaten anything on the menu, it all sounded so good. And the bill was incredibly reasonable - not a cheap meal, but far less than some of the swanky places we have been to in Toronto. It's definitely worth visiting.

And there you have it, my Cleveland review. What? Where are the crafts, you ask? I did start knitting the Shetland Triangle with the grey laceweight while in Cleveland...

My apologies for the lack of crafting news, but as far as new routines go, it takes me a little while to get back into the swing of things. So I blame the new job. That, and eating copious amounts of delicious food and watching too many episodes of Lost and Project Runway.

Happy Valentine's Weekend!

If you haven't yet done a little V-day celebrating, the weekend is packed with lots of fun things to do with your significant other/partner/spouse/friend. I pretty much find all my Columbus activities through these Restaurant Widow's Things To Do reports. It's fantastic.

Valentine cookies from marthastewart.com

I would have made these had I been more crafty...

D has unfortunately been a little sick the last couple days but still had an appetite to dine out (I never lose my appetite when I am sick. In fact, I think I eat even more). On Thursday night we trekked up the icy sidewalks, past all the crazy valet parking (I swear, I have never seen a city more obsessed with valet parking), and had a cozy, boozy dinner at the Burgundy Room in the Short North. We like the little tapas style dishes and wine flights. Mmm. I guess you want to know what we ate: braised short ribs with shoestring carrots, morrocan meatballs with minted couscous, mixed greens with bacon and goat cheese, and deviled crabcake with collard greens. We capped off the meal with a flight of dessert wines. Double mmm.

As some of you know, I started my part time job last week, which has proved to be a major taker-upper of craft time (my boss is a sweet, comical, elderly man who displays one of the worst control streaks I have ever encountered. Thankfully the job is part time, because there are only so many puns and mnemonics for remembering mundane facts that one can tolerate in a single sitting). Anyhow, the bottom line is that this means less craft time. Fortunately, I did have time to make sure that D and I were signed up for the next ceramics class offered at the Columbus Cultural Arts Center. I did a bunch of research into ceramics classes around town and this seemed like the way to go. They certainly weren't kidding when they told me the classes were popular and urged me to phone in at 8am on Monday to register! I spent a good hour on redial trying to get through. It's probably the best deal for pottery classes that I have ever seen - about $50 for an 8-10 week course.

The grey tweed vest is coming along, but it's not very interesting to look at yet, so I'll wait until there's a bit more progress before I post a photo of it. Hopefully you are all having a better time with crafting than I am.

Orchid Forest

Over the weekend, D and I visited the highly-recommended Franklin Park Conservatory to see the Orchid Forest exhibit (which is on until late February). If you haven't already been, it is really an amazing place and definitely worth going. I wish we'd thought of taking our friends there when they visited. The Orchid Forest exhibit was absolutely stunning, and HUGE!

There were so many varieties of orchids I had never seen before (not that I am an orchid expert in any way - I was just really impressed, is all). There was a beautiful glass sculpture in the centre of the exhibit that looked incredibly familiar...then we realized we had seen the artist's (Dale Chihuly's) work in Toronto, at the Sandra Ainsley Gallery.

Chihuly and his team create the most complicated looking, intricate, delicate structures... amazing sculptures. They have videos showing how they work with ladles of molten glass, spinning and swirling the lava like substances. I think it must be dangerous though...Chihuly wears an eye patch over one eye. Anyhow, check out his site. We had a great time at the Conservatory and afterward had a coffee in the main atrium, which was surprisingly light on a grey gloomy day.

Being in a festive kind of mood, I started the Sweetheart socks from Interweave Holiday knits. The heart-shaped cables are look cute and I like how they really pop out - I'm trying a new (cheap) sock yarn by Berroco that feels really soft. Too bad the yarn is so splitty, it makes it hard to cable without a needle. Plus my needles are so small the whole thing is kind of hard to see. This is the kind of knitting that gives me neck cramps...

Amish Weekend

Back from our first road trip! The weather was fantastic and made for a beautiful autumny experience. On Saturday we visited the towns of Sugarcreek, Walnut Creek, and Bolivar and met some lovely people along the way. First we stopped by the Sugarcreek Artisan's Mercantile (and town gym) and received some suggestions for how to spend our day. We went to the Alpine Hills Museum and had an authentic Amish meal at Beachy's Restaurant. After, we took a tour of an old working Amish home and ate some delicious fry-pies..mmm. There was a newborn baby horse - apparently no one knew she had been pregnant! There were some cute donkeys, sheep, Shetland ponies and piggies too.

Some fabric from an Amish quilt shop:

Yesterday I stopped in Joann's to pick up a couple of supplies, and an hour later, walked out with some mini alphabet stamps, textile paint, 2 yds of muslin, a walking foot for my sewing machine, and some quilt batting. That store is so overwhelming. I wandered aimlessly around the quilting section thinking I'd like to buy some quilting cotton, but had to give up because I didn't know how much and what colours I wanted to buy. Even after one settles on a colour theme, there are endless prints and patterns to select from. My anxiety dissipated as soon as I left the area.

The stamps were inspired by Whispering Pine's wonderful crafts - her attention to detail is incredible and her projects are so professional and classic. Although I don't know what I'll be stamping just yet, having these stamps make me feel like I too, can create similar wonderfully detailed crafts. What's silly is that I already owned some alphabet stamps but sold them at my yard sale thinking I would never use them again. I was wrong. Every crafter needs a set of alphabet stamps.

As if I don't already have enough hobbies, I am going to give quilting (basic basic quilting, it may not even involve joining two different fabrics together) a whirl. The foot and quilt materials are for the coaster project from Joelle Hoverson's new Last Minute Patchwork & Quilted Gifts book.

Not sure when I'll get to start this though, as I'd like to finish a few more projects I started earlier (second apron, jacket, monkey socks. . . the list is embarassingly long). Happy crafting!

Downtown Columbus

Downtown Columbus is slowly growing on me. The Arena District is just around the corner, as are the Shorth North shops and restaurants. Driving as a main means of transportation is taking some getting used to, and I miss the subway a LOT.

However, there has been plenty to see and do around here on weekends and the weather is still warm and sunny. I've been trying to remember to take pictures to post for family and friends, but have only managed to collect a few.

Last weekend we stopped by the Goodale Arts Festival in the park, and picked up a few things at the North Market farmer's market. It's hard to resist the goodies at Omega bakery (leek and cheddar buns!) and jeni's ice cream- I'd heard about this place from several people and it definitely lives up to its name. Yum.

D and I have been at this coffee shop a few times and I think it's starting to count as one of our regular spots now. It's half restaurant/lounge, half coffee house, with free wireless so you can sip your coffee and catch up on facebook gossip.

Today I ventured out to explore the downtown area south of our apartment. I walked by the Statehouse and Macy's at City Center Mall (sad and empty, closing in November) and then wandered over to the Columbus Metropolitan Library to sign up for my new library card. The library itself is a beautiful old building contructed in 1904. It was absolutely massive and filled with hours of entertainment - I was inside for about 3 hours and walked away with an huge armful of dvds, cds, sheet music*, cake and knit books and some fiction. Hoorah for free entertainment!

*I bought a second hand keyboard last night, that's what the sheet music is for. The Columbus Library has supplied me with '20 Piano's Greatest Hits' for practice. Given that I haven't played in over 10 years, D will probably not be hearing beautiful music any time soon - for now it will be rusty practicing most likely accompanied by occasional tantrums about the loss of finger dexterity.